THE DEADLY ROADS: MORE SOLDIERS DIE ON THEM THAN IN WARS. Fort Bragg soldier killed in Raleigh crash

Spc. Matthew S. Roland

Updated 22 mins ago
RALEIGH (WTVD) -- An 82nd Airborne Division Paratrooper based at Fort Bragg has died after a motorcycle accident in Raleigh on Sept. 17.

Police said 23-year-old Spc. Matthew S. Roland, of Dublin, Ga., was involved in a crash at the intersection of Lead Mine Road and Bridgeport Drive.

A passenger on the motorcycle was seriously hurt.

The Army said Roland was a Cavalry Scout assigned to A Troop, 5th Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division.

"Spc. Matthew Roland was a remarkable Paratrooper for A Troop, this squadron, and the 82d Airborne Division," said Lt. Col. Scott Pence, commander of the 5th Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, the "Panther Recon" squadron. "Our thoughts and prayers are with his Family during this difficult time. He arrived in July and quickly earned the trust and admiration of his platoon and troop ... Roland and his Family will always be members of the Panther Recon family."

Roland is survived by his mother, father, and sister.

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Raleigh Police Investigate Crash that Killed Motorcyclist

By TWC News
Tuesday, September 20, 2016 at 09:15 AM EDT



RALEIGH - A motorcyclist has died from his injuries after a weekend accident.

Police say it happened at the intersection of Lead Mine Road and Bridgeport Drive late Saturday night.

A wreck report shows the motorcyclist, 23-year-old Matthew Roland of Georgia, was travelling straight on Lead Mine Road when a car turned out in front of him.

The Raleigh police department is investigating the accident.

No charges have been filed.
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82nd Airborne paratrooper dies after Fort Bragg traffic collision

By CBS North Carolina Published: May 13, 2016, 2:07 pm




Spc. Javier Enrique Aguilar

FORT BRAGG, N.C. (WNCN) – A member of the 82nd Airborne Division died as a result of injuries sustained in a May 11 multi-vehicle accident on Fort Bragg, officials confirmed.

Spc. Javier Enrique Aguilar, 25, of Bryan, Texas suffered life-threatening injuries after his personal vehicle collided with a Light Medium Tactical Vehicle around 4 a.m. Tuesday on post, officials said.

He was an infantryman assigned to Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division.

“Spc. Javier Aguilar was a tremendous Paratrooper for Bravo Company, this battalion, and the 82d Airborne Division,” said Lt. Col. Justin Reese, commander of the 1st Bn., 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment, the “1 Fury” battalion. “Our thoughts and prayers remain with his family During these extremely difficult times.”

Aguilar joined the Army in March 2013. He was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division in Aug. 2013.

Aguilar’s awards and decorations include the Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War On Terror Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, NATO Medal, the Expert Infantryman Badge and the Parachutist Badge.

He is survived by his wife, children, parents and brother.



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http://metroforensics.blogspot.com/2015/03/united-states-still-has-one-of-highest.html

UNITED STATES STILL HAS ONE OF THE HIGHEST ROAD ACCIDENT DEATH AND INJURY RATES IN THE WORLD: 34,000 DIE AND 2.5 MILLION INJURED EACH YEAR.
Despite the improvements in road safety, the United States has one of the highest death rates at about 1 person dead per 10,000 people. Unfortunately, only undeveloped countries have higher death rate.
Some states, such as Texas and West Virginia (sorry, WV, despite your tremendous progress in traffic safety, you are still at the top of the worst-death-rate list) have death rates of nearly 1.5 percent, i.e., fifty percent more people die compared to the national death rate.
Approximately 34,000 people are getting killed each year.  In the 1950s and 1960s, about 55,000 people used to die on the roads – so, there has been improvement in the number of dead.
However, the number of injured is rising.  Roughly 2.5 million are injured (yes, you read it correctly – 2.5 million injured) per year.  That is, 1 percent (1%) of the population that is eligible to drive is injured every year.
It is worse than a war zone out there.  So, please be safe and be on the lookout for weaving-through-the-traffic drivers, crazy drivers, reckless drivers, sick drivers, medical-condition drivers, sleepy drivers, negligent drivers, stupid drivers, careless drivers, drunk drivers, speeding drivers, drugged drivers, texting drivers, talking-on-the-phone drivers, looking-at-the-GPS drivers, hurry-hurry drivers, tailgating drivers, upset drivers, eating-while-driving drivers, putting-the-lipstick-on-while-driving drivers, elderly drivers, and so on.
 

Kiddie Kollege daycare mercury exposure case: the government cannot be held responsible for duties that include processing licenses and permits and issuing approvals

Last court appeal denied in Kiddie Kollege daycare case
Posted on September 21, 2016 by Sheryl Barr

Source: http://www.philly.com, September 20, 2016
By: Jan Hefler

The New Jersey Supreme Court has denied an appeal filed to force two government agencies to contribute to a medical-monitoring fund for the nearly 100 children who were exposed to toxic mercury vapors at their day-care center, Kiddie Kollege, more than a decade ago.

The court last week rejected without comment the appeal by the class-action suit lawyers who represented the children in a trial and subsequent appeals.

In 2011, Superior Court Judge James Rafferty decided the day care building’s owner, Franklin Township, Gloucester County, and the state Department of Environmental Protection were all negligent, and ordered them to contribute to a $1.5 million medical-monitoring fund.

Rafferty said the agencies had put the children at risk by issuing permits, conducting inspections, and taking other official actions that allowed the day care to open despite the building’s history of contamination.

The vapors can cause brain and kidney ailments, and were reported to be 30 to 50 times beyond acceptable limits.

The building owner and the county reached a settlement, but Franklin Township and the state appealed, arguing they were protected by immunity from lawsuits involving routine performance of their duties.

The judge had ordered the town and DEP to pay $675,000 into the fund and $1.6 million in legal fees to the children’s five attorneys.

In May, an appeals court agreed with Franklin and the DEP and overturned the ruling of the judge, now retired. Though mistakes were made, the government cannot be held responsible for duties that include processing licenses and permits and issuing approvals, the panel said.

The following month, the children’s lawyers appealed.

“We are pleased the matter is now complete and the township has no liability,” said M. James Maley Jr., who represented Franklin Township in the matter. “Local governments are not responsible for enforcing the environmental laws of the state. . . . As far as I know, this ends all the litigation.”

The Attorney General’s Office, which represented the DEP, declined to comment Monday. Attorneys Michael DeBenedictus and Thomas Booth, who represented the children in the latest litigation, were unavailable.

The children’s attorneys said recently that none of the parents had filed a lawsuit alleging that their children suffered harm directly caused by the vapors, but that there was concern that the effects may be latent.




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N.J. Supreme Court rejects appeal in contaminated daycare case
By Matt Gray | For NJ.com
 
on September 20, 2016 at 2:46 PM



Franklin Township and the state Department of Environmental Protection do not have to contribute to a medical monitoring fund for kids who attended a daycare in a former thermometer factory.


The state Supreme Court denied an appeal to an earlier appellate court ruling that found the township and DEP were protected from liability in the case because they are government agencies.

The Accutherm thermometer plant operated in Franklin Township from 1987 until 1994. Kiddie Kollege daycare opened on the site in 2004 and was operating until the DEP shut it down in 2006 because of mercury contamination discovered on the property.

A class action lawsuit brought on behalf of the kids and adults who worked or visited the daycare sought a court-administered medical monitoring fund, punitive damages and attorney's fees.

Plaintiffs alleged that the township, its construction zoning official, the county and the past and present owners of the site were all liable in the case.

Franklin Township was deemed negligent in allowing permits to be issued for Kiddie Kollege, according to the suit, since officials were aware of the previous issues with contamination at the thermometer plant.

Concerns with contamination at the site date back to the late 1980s.

While a trial judge previously ruled in favor of the families, an appellate panel ruled earlier this year in favor of Franklin and the DEP, saying they both are immune from liability under the state Tort Claims Act.

Gloucester County and the firm that leased the property to the daycare operators previously agreed to pay into the medical monitoring fund.

"We are pleased the litigation is finally concluded," said attorney M. James Maley Jr., who represented Franklin Township in the case. Effort to reach attorneys for the plaintiffs were unsuccessful Tuesday.

More than 100 children were exposed to mercury contamination at Kiddie Kollege. Many had high levels of mercury in their system when tested. Medical monitoring for Kiddie Kollege attendees began in 2012.

The current and former owners of the property were found liable for millions in cleanup costs at the site.

The building has been demolished and the property cleaned up.
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10-year fight over toxic daycare ends in $6M judgement

  By Rebecca Forand | For NJ.com
 
on May 05, 2016 at 3:45 PM



FRANKLIN TWP. — The fight over who has to pay to clean up a contaminated thermometer plant that later became a daycare center is over after the state Supreme Court affirmed a lower-court ruling, according to a Philly.com report.

What was the Accutherm thermometer plant from 1987 through 1994 was bought by Jim Sullivan Inc. at a tax sale in 1999. That company then leased the building to Kiddie Kollege, a daycare center that cared for children between eight months and 13 years old before the Department of Environmental Protection shut the center down due to mercury contamination.

The DEP remediated the site, but charged the former and current owners, James Sullivan Inc. — which consist of Sullivan and his three siblings — and former factory owner Philip J. Guiliano, for the $2 million cleanup, as well as a $4 million fine for neglect. An appeal followed, but in January an appeals court ruled that the DEP's actions were just, according to the Philly.com report.

Seven sites in Gloucester County remain on the federal Environmental Protection Agency's list of Superfund program sites.

That court did rule, however, that Jim Sullivan Jr. was not personally liable for the damages.

Sullivan Inc. attempted to appeal again, however the Supreme Court last week refused to hear the matter, letting the ruling stand and ending the 10-year ordeal.

More than 100 children were exposed to mercury contamination during the years Kiddie Kollege was open. Many had extremely high levels of mercury in their system when tested and in 2012 medical monitoring was ordered for the kids affected.

ways in which environmental insurance can be used as a tool to help ease a developer’s concerns and provide protection for all parties involved during building renovation

As urban revitalization proceeds at a steady pace and construction prices continue to escalate in cities where vacant parcels are all but nonexistent, many property owners and developers are finding that substantial profits can be made through major renovations of existing buildings.

Renovation starts in some cities are at an all-time high and it has become commonplace for buildings originally built 100 or more years ago to now house luxury condos, Class-A offices, five-star hotels and even institutions such as universities and hospitals.

Often, these major renovation projects take place in stages; one floor or area of a building at a time, while the rest of the building remains tenanted and profitable. With the renovation and operation of these older buildings, there comes with it an additional and sometimes heavy responsibility to assure clean, healthy indoor air is provided to tenants and occupants.

The general public, legal community, state and local regulators and healthcare providers have become much more educated and aware of potential indoor air quality exposures, and we have even seen states, such as New York for example, recently pass legislation specific to protecting public health against indoor air exposures. Fortunately, there are ways in which environmental insurance can be used as a tool to help ease a developer’s concerns and provide protection for all parties involved.

Savvy developers understand that deals are to be had on existing buildings that although may still be well-tenanted, may not have been updated or improved in decades. Secondly, by renovating these buildings, developers will attract tenants willing to pay a premium for location and luxury.

However, along with the architectural appeal and potential financial profits, the developer also inherits a dilapidated and often-ignored infrastructure that is extremely conducive to indoor air quality issues that could prove disastrous not only to the bottom line, but also to people’s lives.


There are some relatively straightforward and cost-effective insurance solutions available in the marketplace that can help a developer become comfortable with this risk. However, the majority of property/general liability insurance policies do not provide adequate coverage related to indoor air quality (IAQ) losses.

To fill this coverage gap, standard site pollution liability policies may be placed that could provide substantial coverage for IAQ issues at a relatively small price when compared to the overall development costs involved. A policy term as long as 10 years may be available and the policy would generally cover cleanup costs, claims for third party property damage or bodily injury, diminished property value and business interruption resulting from these pollution conditions at the covered site. The policy would respond to pay on behalf of the developer for such coverage grants, in addition to the legal expenses and associated costs resulting from a pollution condition at the covered location.

Some developers desire an element of risk transfer for prospective buyers (and even their lenders) as well. In most instances, policies can be structured such that there is protection for both the developer as well as future purchasers. This approach provides more robust protection for the developer while increasing the allure of the property to prospective investors as well as lenders.

Underwriting these policies requires copies of recent environmental due diligence or assessment reports, details regarding the type of renovations to be undertaken, as well as the general qualifications and financial information relating to the developer. Upon receipt of this information, the deal can usually be underwritten in a very timely fashion and in order to conform to tight project deadlines.
Source: http://www.renewalredevelopment.com, August 2016
By: Kasey Jones

EPA Finalizes $18 Million Plan to Address PCB Contamination at the Unimatic Superfund Site in Fairfield, N.J.

Contact: Elias Rodriguez, 212-637-3664, rodriguez.elias@epa.gov

(New York, N.Y. – Sept. 21, 2016) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has finalized a plan that requires demolishing a building and removing contaminated soil from the Unimatic Manufacturing Corporation Superfund site at 25 Sherwood Lane in Fairfield, N.J. Before ending its operations at the site, Unimatic used the site to run a metals molding facility and operated machines using lubricating oil that contained polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The company’s operations contaminated the soil, groundwater and a building on the property with PCBs.

“EPA’s cleanup will address the PCBs at this site in order to protect the health of people who live in Fairfield,” said Judith A. Enck, EPA Regional Administrator. “PCBs were widely used in industrial and commercial applications until they were banned in 1979. They persist in the environment and can damage the human immune, reproductive, nervous and endocrine systems and are potentially cancer-causing.”

The EPA held a public meeting in Fairfield, N.J. on August 10, 2016 to explain its proposed plan. The EPA accepted public comment for 30 days and considered public input before finalizing the plan.

Unimatic operated a metals molding facility at the site from 1955 until 2001. The company allegedly discharged wastewater containing PCBs through floor trenches into leaky wastewater discharge pipes. The leaky pipes allowed the PCB-wastewater to seep into the ground, contaminating soil and groundwater throughout the property and leading to soil contamination on the adjacent properties. Operations inside the building also contaminated the interior of the building.

In 2001 Unimatic stopped operations at the site. Since 2002, the facility has been used by Frameware, Inc., a metal frame parts manufacturer and distributor. In 2012, Frameware, Inc. moved its operations and relocated its workers. The nearest public drinking water wells are located less than one-half mile from the site and are regularly tested to ensure that they meet all federal and state drinking water standards.

Under the EPA’s final cleanup plan, the building located at 25 Sherwood Lane will be demolished. The structure needs to be taken down so that contaminated sections of the building and contaminated soil underneath can be removed. The EPA will work with local officials to determine the best time to do the demolition and notify the public before demolition begins. Strict procedures will be followed to control dust during the demolition.

The EPA plan also requires removing and disposing of contaminated soil from portions of the site and backfilling those areas with clean soil. The soil will be dug up and properly disposed of at facilities licensed to handle the waste. In total, approximately 26,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil will be removed from the site. During the cleanup, the EPA will monitor the air to protect the public from any hazardous particles in the air resulting from the demolition, and will sample the soil to ensure the effectiveness of the cleanup. The cleanup is estimated to cost $18 million. In the next phase of the cleanup, the EPA will address the groundwater, which is contaminated with PCBs.

The Superfund program operates on the principle that polluters should pay for the cleanups, rather than passing the costs to taxpayers. The EPA has determined that the Unimatic Manufacturing Corporation is potentially responsible for the contamination at this site.

To view the record of decision, please visit: www.epa.gov/superfund/unimatic

For a direct link to the Record of Decision, visit: https://semspub.epa.gov/src/document/02/447167

16-083

Greenwood, Seattle explosion caused by unsealed, abandoned and damaged pipeline in Puget Sound Energy

Updated: Sep 20, 2016 - 5:01 PM

The Utilities and Transportation Commission says the cause of the Greenwood explosion that devastated part of the business core in March was a damaged gas line that was listed as abandoned in Puget Sound Energy records but remained connected for years.

Key developments: 

• 9 firefighters were injured in the March explosion. 
• 3 businesses leveled in blast
• A homeless person may have damaged the pipe.
• UTC has filed a complaint against PSE, claiming the company failed to seal and properly disconnect the gas line more than a decade ago.

According to UTC, the broken gas service line was one that PSE records showed as abandoned in 2004. At the time, PSE failed to properly disconnect and seal the line, allowing it to remain in service for nearly 12 years without proper oversight, a news release said.

 
The investigation found the immediate cause of the explosion was possibly a homeless person who accessed a space near the pipe without proper authorization. That person "applied force" to the gas line. 

The damage allowed gas to escape, accumulate in the building occupied by Mr. Gyros restaurant, and ultimately explode.

The gas service line that PSE believed was abandoned in 2004 was located in a space between the Mr. Gyros and Neptune Coffee businesses.

Evidence at the scene and witness interviews indicated that the space around the gas line was frequently used by unauthorized individuals, possibly homeless people, to store personal items.

Individuals told investigators that due to the limited space, they sometimes disturbed the gas line to access the area, the UTC said.

Lab tests confirmed the line failed at the threaded connection due to "applied external force."

As a result of the investigation, the UTC filed a formal complaint against PSE, alleging the company committed 17 violations of pipeline safety regulations and recommended a penalty of up to $3.2 million.

Pipeline Safety staff allege that PSE violated pipeline safety regulations by failing to:

• Abandon a service line according to federal standards;
• Follow its internal pipeline deactivation plan;
• Perform annual leak surveys of an active service line;
• Perform atmospheric corrosion tests of an active service line at least once every three years; and
• Perform external corrosion tests of an active service line at least once every 10 years.

PSE released the following statement about the UTC report: 

"The proposed fine from the state Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) staff is disappointing and excessive.

"All parties investigating the March incident, including the UTC and the Seattle Fire Department, agree: the natural gas system at the Greenwood site was damaged by unauthorized individuals in a space not intended for human activity, with the resulting gas leak causing the explosion and fire.

"While we disagree with the UTC staff’s conclusions and recommended fine, we’re committed to the safety of our customers and the community and will continue to review the report as we prepare for final disposition of this investigation by the UTC commissioners."