Fast-Moving Lowell Wildfire Injures 4 Firefighters, About 15 Percent Contained

By NBC Bay Area staff

A fast-moving fire that prompted evacuations near Tahoe injured four firefighters, who are now being treated at the UC Davis Medical Center. Christie Smith reports. (Published Sunday, July 26, 2015)

 

Updated at 11:51 PM PDT on Sunday, Jul 26, 2015

 

A fast-moving fire that prompted evacuations near Tahoe was downgraded Sunday to about 1,500 acres.

Authorities reported four injuries on Sunday. Two Cal Fire and two U.S. Forest Service firefighters suffered burn injuries. All are being treated at UC Davis Burn Center in Sacramento.

Both Cal Fire personnel and one USFS firefighters are expected to be released from the hospital Sunday night. The remaining USFS firefighter is being treated for serious burn injuries.

Cal Fire said 1,800 structures are threatened in Placer and Nevada counties due to the fire.

On Saturday, Cal Fire officials said that the Lowell fire scorched roughly 4,000 acres in the Steep Hollow drainage area west of Alta near Placer County in northeast California. But the acreage was reduced due to "more accurate mapping," officials said in a tweet, adding that the blaze is 15 percent contained.

The Lowell fire was the second multi-thousand-acre brushfire burning in Northern California this weekend, following the 6,900-acre Wragg Fire smoldering between San Francisco and Sacramento.

Access to the fire, which sparked at 2:37 p.m. Saturday, is very challenging, a Cal Fire representative said, adding that 1,111 fire personnel are battling the blaze.

The Placer and Nevada County Sheriff’s offices are asking the public for help in identifying a vehicle of interest that may have caused the fire, Cal Fire said. The 4 x 4 white jeep Wrangler was found in the area without a top, no front doors and a black roll bar around 2:30 p.m.

Anyone with information about the vehicle is encouraged to call the Placer or Nevada County Sheriff’s department.

Officials evacuated several communities by Saturday evening. Mandatory evacuations were underway for Red Dog, Chaulk Bluff and You Bet areas in Nevada County. Advisory evacuation was in place for the northeastern portion of Cascade Shores.

Chicago Park at Powerhouse Road, Diggins at Alta and Mando Road between Pasquale and Banner are closed, according to Cal Fire.

An evacuation center was opened at the Nevada Union High School on 11671 Ridge Road in Grass Valley, according to Cal Fire.

Cal Fire has activated one of its Serious Accident Review Teams to assess the incident.

Hackers can seize control of cars: what it means for insurance

by Caitlin Bronson

 

Jult 27, 2015

 

Infotainment systems developed by several car manufacturers are vulnerable to a hacking attack that could put lives at risk, and – for insurance professionals – complicate liability.

Manchester-based security company NCC Group told the BBC last week that it had found a way to carry out cyber attacks on various automobiles by sending data through digital audio broadcasting radio signals commonly received through car information and entertainment systems.

The report coincides with similar developments by US researchers Chris Valasek and Charlie Miller, who earlier this month managed to hack into a Jeep Cherokee through its navigation system and control the car.

According to the researchers, such a broadcast has the power to affect multiple cars at once and create a widespread disaster.

“As this is a broadcast medium, if you had a vulnerability within a certain infotainment system in a certain manufacturer’s vehicle, by sending one stream of data, you could attack many cars simultaneously,” Andy Davis, president of NCC Group, told the BBC. “[An attacker] would probably choose a common radio station to broadcast over the top of to make sure they reached the maximum number of target vehicles.”

The ability of hackers to take over cars has long worried members of the insurance industry, primarily over any dispute in liability.

According to John Tiene, chief executive with the East Coast-based Agency Network Exchange, manufacturers as well as car operators could bear some responsibility over damages caused by a cyber intrusion. This will be particularly true if driverless cars hit the road as scheduled.

“This won’t just be a manufacturer having liability because it’s their technology,” Tiene said. “Owners of these cars may sign waivers with manufacturers, claiming responsibility for technology, in which case you may need to buy a cyber policy in case someone hacks their car.”

That leaves an increased, although nuanced, role for independent insurance agents.

“This brings out a whole new area of expertise that agents are going to have to develop, and it’s going to create new products,” he said. “The reality is there’s still going to be a huge responsibility and a huge need – maybe an even greater need – for professional insurance agents and risk managers to help car owners navigate what will be a much more complicated insurance world than it is today.”
 

At least 12 people were injured when a swing ride at an amusement park in Bowling Green, Kentucky, tipped over.

JULY 26, 2015

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (AP) -- 

Authorities say at least 12 people were injured when a swing ride at an amusement park in Bowling Green, Kentucky, tipped over.

The Daily News reports emergency officials were dispatched to Beech Bend Amusement Park around 6 p.m. on Saturday.

Sandi Feria, a spokeswoman for The Medical Center in Bowling Green, told The Associated Press on Sunday that 12 people have been treated and released from the hospital. She didn't have their ages, but according to media reports some were believed to be children.

Warren County Sheriff's Office spokesman Stephen Harmon couldn't confirm the ages, but he said the accident is being investigated. He said the state agency that oversees amusement park rides has been notified.

"In-rack" sprinkler design for warehouses could reduce fire-related costs

"In-rack" sprinkler design for warehouses could reduce fire-related costs, the leading cause of commercial property damage, by millions of dollars: FM Global

2015-07-27

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Almost three years of research by FM Global has culminated in the release of new fire protection guidelines for warehouse owners that the mutual insurance company reports could reduce fire-related costs by millions of dollars.


The new engineering-driven design standard for “in-rack” sprinklers offers warehouses more protection at less cost, notes a statement last week from FM Global, one of the world’s largest commercial and industrial property insurers.

“Fire is the leading cause of commercial property damage,” Ronnie Gibson, vice president and chief engineer at FM Global, says in the statement.

“Using current fire protection technology, the solution enables facility owners to use fewer sprinklers and lower-capacity water systems,” the statement adds.

By way of example, FM Global reports that for a 500,000-square foot (46,450-square metre) warehouse with an 80-foot (24-metre) ceiling height, contractor estimates show the cost of installing sprinklers, pumps and water tanks could fall from about US$4.3 million to as little as US$2.6 million.

In the event of a fire, the statement notes, warehouse owners would also likely sustain less water and smoke damage, because the fire would be controlled or suppressed more quickly.

Beyond cost savings, FM Global notes the new design is more environmentally friendly and would allow companies to protect their highest-hazard commodities, such as expanded plastic, using less than half the water volume previously needed. Businesses also may see a smaller environmental impact in smoke and water run-off, it adds.

In coming to the solution, FM Global’s research included extensive and advanced open-source computer fire modelling, water flow tests and large-scale fire tests at the company’s 1,600-acre (647 hectare) Research Campus in Rhode Island.

The detailed engineering guideline, Data Sheet 8-9, “Storage of Class 1, 2, 3, 4 and Plastic Commodities,” is available online at FM Global’s website at no cost.

Hole swallows 25 ton water well drilling truck in Citrus County, Florida

Posted: July 23, 2015

By: Evan Axelbank, FOX 13 News

PHOTOS: Apparent sinkhole swallows truck

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A 30-foot-deep sinkhole opened in a backyard in Beverly Hills in Citrus County, during an attempt to dig a well.

"I was at work," said homeowner Keith Mannion. "I got the call from Citrus Well Drilling that he had a small problem with a truck in a sink hole."

No one was hurt, but the problem is bigger than he imagined.

The hole is 30-feet deep, and the truck is estimated to be 50,000 pounds.

"I wasn't quite expecting what I came home to," he explained. "I don't believe what I am seeing."

The owners of other well drilling companies came to see what went wrong.  Craig Newton suspected there was a spot underground that didn't have a clay base to support sand that moves during drilling. "It's just something that happens, it's nobody's fault when that happens."

Crews are hoping to pull the truck out with a crane.

"This is the thing you see on TV and never expect to happen to you," Mannion added. "Well, it happened to me."

Workers for Citrus Well Drilling spent the afternoon trying to figure out how to get their truck out.

"They said it all took about 30-seconds," said Mannion. "The ground opened up, swallowed up one truck, and they just got the other one out of the way."

He's glad that's the only problem with what happened Thursday. "Anything can be replaced but a human life. So if they have to get another truck, I hate to put it this way but it is better than having a body at the bottom of the hole."

Mannion says in the 19-years he's lived here, he hasn't had any problems with an unstable ground, until now.

Kerrobert, Saskatchewan declares state of emergency after large hail storm shreds through town damaging lots of property

 

Kerrobert hit hard by hail, leaving widespread damage to town

 

Reported by News Talk Radio staff

 

First Posted: Jul 23, 2015 5:49am | Last Updated: Jul 24, 2015 6:11am

 

The thunderstorm that rolled through Wednesday afternoon didn't last long, but it was intense with strong wind, lightning, heavy rain and small hail. 

In Kerrobert, north of Kindersley, large hail and strong wind tore down trees and ripped siding off homes and businesses. The damage was severe enough for the town to declare a state of emergency Thursday morning.

Scroll to the bottom for a photo gallery. 

Patsy Kiss, manager of the Wild Goose Motel in Kerrobert, watched the clouds roll in. 

"I said to my husband and the girl working the office, 'Oh, hoho! Are we in for one wicked hail storm,'" she said.

“It was coming from the west and I seen it coming. The clouds were just white and I thought, ‘Oh, are we gonna get it’ and we did."

Golf-ball sized hail fell from the sky for 15 minutes combined with wind and rain. Kiss said nearly all the homes in Kerrobert have siding ripped off. She guessed that two-thirds of the homes have broken windows. 


Shredded siding in Kerrobert on July 23, 2015. Brent Bosker/CKOM News

“Driving downtown, it was almost like you were driving on a bed of trees, like of leaves, because it stripped the leaves something terrible.”

Kiss said the storm also smashed the mirror on her husband’s car and damaged one of the power poles near the motel. 

“It pulled the light off of the pole, put it down on our lawn, and the light was still working. The wire was still attached,” she described. 

State of emergency

Kerrobert has declared a state of emergency after the storm. 

"We've had extensive damage. We have no idea as to the amount of it. We're just trying to get our emergency plan in place," Maureen Applin, economic development officer with the Town of Kerrobert, said.

 

"Tons of property damage-- massive."

 

Kindersley has sent crews and a wood chipper to help. Applin said nearby Hutterite colonies have offered assistance.

 

Kerrobert has set up a command centre at the town office and will match volunteers with people who need help.

 

"That's the beauty of small towns and the beauty of Saskatchewan. Everybody pulls together," Applin said.

 

Applin was alone in at the municipal office when the windows started blowing out Wednesday night.

 

"I know exactly what it was like to be at the centre of the storm ... I'm just really am grateful to live in a small town and see the people banding together and helping each other out."

On Facebook the town says council will meet today to talk about the damage, but there is cleanup and restoration ahead.
"We have a big job ahead of us but I think Kerrobert can do it," acting administrator Harold Trew in a Facebook message said.

Damage from the Kerrobert storm. Photo submitted by Theodore Halter.

Several insurance claims 

A long line of people waited to make insurance claims Thursday morning. Resident Shane Molnar said the storm left some buildings looking like they were disintegrated with a machine gun.

"It sounded like there was about 40 people working on my roof, banging with hammers on my roof," he said, adding there isn't a house in town that wasn't somehow damaged.

Jason Moro said the wind and hail shredded his house.

"The back of my house siding is smashed, roof is smashed, air conditioner smashed. No trees left in my yard."

He said he heard that wind gusts got up to 115 kilometres an hour.

Three power poles came down in Regina on Wiinipeg Street, just south of 5th Avenue with two landing on a chain link fence and the other across the CN tracks. Large hail was also reported north of Prince Albert. 
Source:http://ckom.com/story/photos-kerrobert-storm-shreds-siding-crushes-windshields/570023