A welder who died at the Gary Works steel mill Friday had been looking for another job because he thought his current workplace was getting unsafe

UPDATE: Steelworker dies at Gary Works

Joseph S. Pete joseph.pete@nwi.com, (219) 933-3316
Updated 1 hr ago


A steelworker died at U.S. Steel Gary Works mill Friday, according to the Lake County coroner’s office.

Jonathan Arizzola, 30, of Valparaiso, was killed in the U.S. Steel Slab Storage Yard at the sprawling mill that stretches across 7 miles of Lake Michigan lakeshore at 1 N. Broadway in Gary, the coroner’s office reported.

Arizzola was a maintenance worker, Navy veteran and married father of two. He was pronounced dead at 9:45 p.m. Friday, according to the coroner’s office.

The cause and manner of death remain under investigation.

U.S. Steel external communications manager Sarah Cassella said an accident had occurred Friday in the hot strip mill.

“An investigation is underway, and we will work closely with the United Steelworkers and relevant government agencies throughout the process,” Cassella said in an email.

“No further details regarding the incident are available at this time. Our deepest sympathies are with the employee’s family.”

The Lake County coroner’s office, U.S. Steel Emergency Management, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration Office are investigating the death at the largest steel mill in North America.

Arizzola’s death at Gary Works comes weeks after protests that U.S. Steel and the consulting group McKinsey & Co. were making the mill less safe by laying off and demoting maintenance workers. The United Steelworkers union said the cuts were putting workers at risk by putting off preventative maintenance and causing work orders to pile up.

The USW is appealing the layoffs to a third-party arbiter, arguing the company violated the contract and is threatening workplace safety.
============

Welder Who Died At Gary Steel Mill Thought His Workplace Was ‘Getting Dangerous,’ Wife Says October 1, 2016 12:24 PM
 

GARY, Ind. (CBS) — A welder who died at the Gary Works steel mill Friday had been looking for another job because he thought his current workplace was getting unsafe, his wife tells CBS 2.


Jonathan Arizzola (courtesy: Arizzola family), 30, of Valparaiso, Ind. died at the U.S. Steel Slab Storage Yard, the Lake County, Ind. coroner said. No cause of death was given.

The workers union at the mill said company cost-cutting measures and workplace pressures may have been to blame. Arizzola’s wife, Whitney, said her husband had been working between 70 hours to 90 hours a week, fixing and welding overhead cranes on the property.

“It started getting dangerous, so he started looking for work recently,” she tells CBS 2’s Sandra Torres.

Arizzola was a Navy veteran and a father and had worked at the mill for about four years, Whitney Arizzola said.

U.S. Steel said the fatal “incident” is under investigation.

“Our deepest sympathies are with the employee’s family,” a spokesperson for U.S. Steel.

Labor officials have accused U.S. Steel of making the mill less safe through layoffs and by shuffling workers to other jobs.

On Saturday, United Steelworkers Local 1014 posted a statement on Facebook.

“While all the details are being sorted out one thing is indisputable: this is horrible news and this young man who was a Husband, a Brother, and a Father, didn’t make it home last night,” President Rodney D. Lewis Sr. said.

Old pilot killed after a 1944 Culver PQ-14A vintage aircraft crashed into BB&T Bank in Long View, North Carolina

Saturday, October 01, 2016 09:16PM

LONG VIEW, N.C. --

Emergency officials in Catawba County say the pilot of a vintage aircraft has died after the plane crashed into a building in Long View.


Emergency services responded to a call of a plane crash that happened near a BB&T Bank on Saturday afternoon.

Long View Fire Department, Hickory Rescue Squad and N.C. State Troopers are on the scene after a small red plane was found in the 3200 block of 1st Avenue SW.

Catawba County Emergency Manager Karen Yaussy said 81-year-old George Baxter Harris of the Hickory area was the only person onboard the Culver PQ-14A when it crashed Saturday around 1:10 p.m.
The Federal Aviation Administration says the aircraft was headed to Hickory Regional Airport when it crashed, adding that it had also left from the airport earlier.

The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force says on its web page that the Culver Aircraft Corp. built three basic models in quantity for the Army in 1940. The PQ series was initially designed as radio-controlled target aircraft for training anti-aircraft artillery gunners for the Army and the Navy.

Date:

	01-OCT-2016
Time:	13:10
Type:	Culver PQ-14A
Owner/operator:	Private
Registration:	N4648V
C/n / msn:	N2432
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Other fatalities:	0
Airplane damage:	Substantial
Location:	Catawba County, west Hickory, NC -   United States of America
Phase:	Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.)
Nature:	Unknown
Departure airport:	Hickory Rgnl (KHKY)
Destination airport:	Hickory Rgnl (KHKY)

Narrative:
The aircraft impacted a commercial business structure south of the approach end of Runway 1 at Hickory Regional Airport(KHKY) in Hickory, North Carolina. The airplane sustained substantial damage and the sole pilot onboard received fatal injuries.
Sources: http://www.hickoryrecord.com/news/small-plane-crashes-near-bank-in-hickory/article_355899a4-8800-11e6-9d25-9b6b38e7305c.html
http://www.wsoctv.com/news/local/small-plane-crashes-in-long-view-catawba-co-officials-say/452443590
http://www.wbtv.com/story/33294549/crews-responding-to-small-plane-crash-in-catawba-county
http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=4648V
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.7283905,-81.3920058,19z/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en-us
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culver_PQ-14_Cadet

At least 12 wedding guests were injured after a Jolley Trolley trailer overturned on Route 1 south of Dewey Beach in Delaware

Delaware trolley carrying 22 wedding guests crashes

Delaware State Police



DEWEY BEACH, Del. The Delaware State Police are currently investigating a crash involving a Jolly Trolley south of Dewey Beach, CBS WBOC affiliate reports.

Police say the crash occurred around 4:41 p.m. when a 76-year-old Lewes man was operating a 2005 Ford Econo van, pulling the Jolly Trolley with approximately 22 passengers on board, who were wedding guests. For an undetermined reason, police say the trailer started to sway and then overturned in the southbound lanes on Route 1. The van immediately stopped and bystanders in the area began assisting, pulling passengers from the trolley. At least 12 people were transported by Sussex County EMS to nearby hospitals where they were treated for non-life threatening injuries. The operator of that van was uninjured.

No citations were issued; the cause of the crash remains under investigation. Route 1 northbound and southbound was closed, but has since been reopened due to that crash.

Further details will be reported upon the updates from the investigation. 

If speed did not cause the crash, then the wedding guests were rocking the trailer too much.

1 worker with Cap Construction killed, another hurt in unshored trench collapse in American Fork, Utah

  1 worker killed, another hurt in trench collapse in American Fork, Utah
By Ben Lockhart | Posted Sep 30th, 2016 @ 10:31pm


AMERICAN FORK— A construction worker died after a trench collapsed Friday in American Fork.

Another worker was also trapped in the collapse up to his thigh, according to American Fork Police Lt. Sam Liddiard. Emergency responders helped him out of the collapsed trench. He was able to walk around afterward but was taken to American Fork Hospital by ambulance "as a precaution," Liddiard said.

The incident occurred around 3:30 p.m. at the construction site, 860 E. 500 South, where an unstable trench, more than 6 feet deep, had started to collapse. The man who died had jumped in to try to fix the problem and clear debris, Liddiard said. The injured man had jumped into the trench to help the first man.

Construction crews were digging either a major waterline or sewer line at the time.

The name of 41-year-old man who died was not immediately released. Rescue teams from surrounding fire departments were still trying to recover his body late Friday afternoon, according to Liddiard.

A third worker was temporarily trapped after he jumped in to assist the first two men, but he was able to get out of the trench on his own power.

Workplace investigators were dispatched to the scene to determine what caused the incident. It appears that the trench was not properly shored, if any.

The trench filled quickly with dirt once it destabilized, Liddiard said.

"It wasn't a complete collapse. The dirt just started to roll over the top of them," he said. 


The two other workers were taken to the hospital.

There was no update on the injured worker's condition.

The worker who died was an employee of Cap Construction, Liddiard said. A company representative told 2News nobody was immediately available to comment. Crews recovered the body after arriving on scene.

CALQUAKE: Small magnitude earthquakes near the Salton Sea earlier this week prompted state officials to issue an advisory on the possibility of similar or larger earthquakes in the near future.

Governor's Office of Emergency Services issues earthquake advisory for surrounding areas


Thursday Posted Sep 29, 2016 at 8:41 AM Updated Sep 29, 2016 at 4:35 PM

By Jose Quintero
Staff Writer

Small magnitude earthquakes near the Salton Sea earlier this week prompted state officials to issue an advisory on the possibility of similar or larger earthquakes in the near future.

“California is earthquake country. We must always be prepared and not let our guard down,” said Governor’s Office of Emergency Services Director Mark Ghilarducci in a statement. “The threat of an earthquake on the San Andreas Fault hasn’t gone away, so this is another important opportunity for us to revisit our emergency plans and learn what steps you need to take if a significant earthquake hits.”


Ghilarducci asked the California Earthquake Prediction Evaluation Council, which includes scientists from the California Geological Survey, University of California at San Diego, Southern California Earthquake Center at USC and the United States Geological Survey, to discuss and evaluate a sequence of small earthquakes that recently hit the Salton Sea area.

According to the Governor's Office of Emergency Services, the council “concluded that stresses associated with this recent earthquake swarm may slightly increase the probability between 0.03 percent and 1.0 percent of an additional earthquake as large, or larger, than the Sept. 26 magnitude 4.3” occurring until 9 a.m. on Oct. 4.

The Governor’s Office of Emergency Services has issued an earthquake advisory for the San Bernardino, Kern, Los Angeles, Riverside, Imperial, San Diego, Orange and Ventura counties based on the discussions.

“Local emergency management, government, schools and the public should review their earthquake preparedness plans, maintain awareness and be prepared to take action should the earthquake occur,” the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services said.

USGS Research Seismologist Robert Graves told the Daily Press that these types of advisories should serve as a reminder to residents to take precautionary measures.

“In general, advisories are not common. They have been issued in the past in situations like this where we see somewhat unusual behavior, particularly near our large active faults,” Graves said. “Living in Southern California we are in this together and have to acknowledge and recognize that earthquakes are a part of life.

"They are unpredictable in terms of when, where or how large. But past history has shown us you don’t go very long within a time span where you don't have a strong or major earthquake.”


The San Andreas Fault, which runs through the Cajon Pass, stretches 700 miles through California, and the southern end is estimated to be 50 to 100 years overdue for a large earthquake.

The San Andreas Fault suffered two major quakes in the 19th century — a 7.5 magnitude in 1812 and a 7.9 earthquake in 1857. The San Andreas Fault in Southern California has been quiet since and Southern California hasn’t had a true “Big One,” which is a quake greater than a 7.7 magnitude, since 1857.

Other nearby fault lines include the San Bernardino fault zone near Oak Hills, the Helendale Fault and a fault line that goes through Lenwood. Graves said most of the faults in the High Desert are active faults.

“The San Andreas Fault is a major player but it is not the only fault. But the rate in which (the other faults) have earthquakes is far lower than the San Andreas Fault,” Graves said. “In 1992, there was a large earthquake (magnitude 7.3) called the Landers Earthquake which ruptured north of Indio and east of Barstow. That quake ruptured on a series of faults that prior to that event, the previous earthquake was maybe 60 or 80 thousand years ago. So very infrequent, but obviously an active fault.

“Prediction in a precise sense is not and may never be possible, but with a fault like the San Andreas — (it's) had large earthquakes in the past and will have large earthquakes in the future.”

Extremely Hot 4-Alarm Fire Breaks Out at Historic First Congregational Church in Berkeley, Causes Roof to Collapse

Berkeley fire chief said the flames were so intense, part of the roof collapsed at the church.

By NBC Bay Area staff

Fire crews raced on Friday afternoon to battle a four-alarm fire at an iconic East Bay church just blocks away from the University of California at Berkeley campus. Elyce Kirchner reports. (Published 3 hours ago)

Fire crews raced on Friday afternoon to battle a four-alarm fire at an iconic East Bay church just blocks away from the University of California at Berkeley campus.

Asst. Berkeley Fire Chief Donna McCraken said the fire broke out about 12:30 p.m. and the flames were so intense, part of the roof collapsed at the First Congregational Church at 2345 Channing Way.

Fire crew were able to get the blaze under control at 3:20 p.m. 

Police are investigating the cause of the fire, including reports of someone lighting matches nearby.

The fire forced 94 kids and 14 staff members to evacuate from a daycare inside the church, officials said. A firefighter, who was trapped in the attic during the initial firefight, had to jump out of a window, officials said. The firefighter was not injured.

"Fire crews went inside to try to make an aggressive interior attack and we discovered that the fire is running through the attack," Berkeley Fire Chief Gil Dong said.

Aerial footage showed massive flames spewing from the top of the brick building. The fast-moving flames triggered a roof collapse and forced firefighters to back out of the church.

"We had to go defensive, which means we are spraying water from the exterior trying to put the fire out from the oustide," Dong said.

Fire officials said 60 firefighters responded to the blaze.

First Congregational Church, which boasts a "progressive, welcoming congregation" that serves the East Bay, is a three-minute walk from the Cal campus.

In addition to a congregation, the historic building houses a thrift store, daycare and music venue that were also burned. The church has also been used as a shelter for the homeless. Officials said that will not be an option this winter.

"They have a very social presence, so it's a great loss to everybody," Berkeley-resident Laurie Gundling said.

First Congregation Church was built in 1925 and was designed by Horace G. Simpson, according to Berkeley Walks: Revealing Rambles Through America's Most Intriguing City by Robert E. Johnson and Janet L. Byron.

“Oh man, that’s so sad,” Byron told NBC Bay Area on Friday. She and her colleague routinely show off the church as one of the highlights on their walking tours. She said the church’s sanctuary is especially excellent for acoustics. She added that the particular neighborhood in Berkeley is extremely dense with other churches nearby, including one across the street. At one time, her book notes, Berkeley had among the highest number of churches per capita in the Bay Area.

The church is well known in liberal Berkeley for performing same-sex marriages and hosting musical performances, such as the Midsummer Mozart Festival. Evoloutionary biologists also come to speak there, and rainbow flags and "Pray for Orlando" are the lead images on the church's Facebook page.

Next week, the church was poised to host a forum for young Christians called "Do No Harm! But take no S*@%."

====================

First Congregational Church of Berkeley, from New England to Progressive Berkeley
By Rachel Witte




NBC Bay Area
Fire crews raced on Friday afternoon to battle a four-alarm fire at an iconic East Bay church just blocks away from the University of California at Berkeley campus. (Sept. 30, 2016)

A fire so intense it collapsed a roof raged at an iconic Berkeley church on Friday afternoon.

The four-alarm fire broke out at 12:30 p.m. at the First Congregational Church of Berkeley, a church and building that has played a significant role in the history of the city.

The building currently located at 2345 Channing Way was erected in 1925 and was designed by Bay Area architect Horace G. Simpson, according to the book Berkeley Walks: Revealing Rambles through America's Most Intriguing City.

It is the third building of worship for the church and was built in the period revival style, meant to evoke the architecture of early New England churches, according to local historian Steve Finacom. The congregationalist church movement began in New England in the 17th century.

According to its website, the Berkeley congregationalist church was founded on December 1, 1874. It was formed after then University of California President Daniel Gilman issued a call during his inaugural address for moral and religious institutions to build halls near the university.

"What church, what association, what individual will be the first to establish such a hall?" he asked.


The First Congregational Church of Berkeley answered that call. The church's first chapel was located on the southeast corner of Telegraph Avenue and Dwight Way in Berkeley. A second church was built on the northeast corner of Dana Street and Durant Street in 1884. The current church sits on the northwest corner of Dana Street and Channing Way.

Finacom also pointed to the the church's historical significance during the internment of Japanese Americans in the 1940s. When Berkeley's Japanese-American residents were ordered to report to a local fire station to be processed for internment, Finacom said the First Congregational Church of Berkeley stepped in. The church welcomed the residents to come to its church instead, where congregants could provide hospitality as the Japanese-American residents were processed by the U.S. Army.


"It was a wonderfully beautiful thing that the church did," Finacom said. "It's been a progressive church ever since."

The hall where those residents were cared for, Pilgrim Hall, is in the part of the building destroyed by Friday's fire, Finacom added.


Finacom said a different fire in the 1970s destroyed part of the church's north wing, but that area of the building was eventually rebuilt.

The Army Corps of Engineers counts 3,262 dams in North Carolina, and 1,210 of those are considered "high hazard potential," meaning any breaches could affect many people

More than a thousand NC dams 'high hazard' if breached

The I-Team examines the condition of North Carolina's many dams.

Jonah Kaplan

Friday, September 30, 2016 07:01PM

HOPE MILLS (WTVD) --

By definition dams are barriers, but by design they're an integral part of making economies go. When they fail, there are devastating consequences.

Pummeling rains this week in Cumberland County have led to renewed concerns about dams in North Carolina, some of which date to the 18th century - older than our country.

Currently, Cumberland County Emergency Services is working with the City of Fayetteville, Public Works Commission and the North Carolina Division of Environmental Quality to monitor dams in the county affected by flooding and high water.

HOW RELIABLE ARE THESE CUMBERLAND COUNTY DAMS?

Among the dams on notice:

1. Arran Lake Dam in the area of Bunce Road and Maykirk Drive, is being monitored for high water. No evacuations have been issued.


2. Long Valley Farm Lake Dam at Carvers Creek State Park has breached and approximately 50 residents in the area of Collingwood Street have been notified by telephone alerts from Emergency Services and door-to-door alerts by Spring Lake firefighters.


3. Rhodes Pond Dam in northern Cumberland County is experiencing floodwaters over the top of the dam along U.S. 301 Highway. Three residents affected have been notified by telephone alerts from Emergency Services and Godwin-Falcon volunteer firefighters.


4. Lake Upchurch Dam in the Hope Mills/Parkton area is being monitored for high water. No evacuations have been issued.

  CUMBERLAND COUNTY RESIDENTS DEAL WITH FLOODED HOMES

The Army Corps of Engineers counts 3,262 dams in North Carolina, and 1,210 of those are considered "high hazard potential," meaning any breaches could affect many people. In Cumberland County alone the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) monitors 113 dams, including 52 considered "high risk." An ABC11 I-Team review showed the dams are an average of 71 years old.

Officials at the DEQ confirm the state visits high hazard dams for inspections at least once a year, and they encourage residents to play a role in the dam's maintenance. If residents have any questions or concerns about their dam, DEQ engineers are eager to answer those calls at (919) 707-9220.

Ultimately, the responsibility to maintain the dams belongs to the local towns and cities, which is only advised of recommendations from the DEQ. If the DEQ inspectors recommend repairs, thus, the local governments must budget accordingly. It's also up to the local governments to facilitate emergency action plans in case of dam breaches.

There are a number of resources available to learn more about dams, emergency plans and dam maintenance.

LEARN MORE ABOUT DAM SAFETY AT NCDEQ

READ MORE: COMPLETE NORTH CAROLINA DAM INVENTORY (.PDF)

ASSOCIATION OF DAM SAFETY OFFICIALS

Recent major U.S. commuter transportation crashes

Sept 29 (Reuters) - A commuter train derailed and crashed through the station in Hoboken, New Jersey, near New York, on Thursday, killing a woman on the platform and injuring more than 100 people. Here is a list of some recent noteworthy passenger train and commuter ferry crashes:

October 2003: A New York City-operated ferry carrying commuters from Manhattan to Staten Island struck a maintenance pier on Staten Island, killing 10 passengers and injuring 70. An 11th passenger died two months later of from injuries sustained.

January 2005: A Metrolink commuter train hit an unoccupied vehicle near a grade crossing in the Los Angeles suburb of Glendale, derailing and then colliding with a Union Pacific freight train, which was tied down on a siding. Eleven people were killed and more than 100 injured.

September 2008: A Metrolink commuter train collided head-on with a Union Pacific Railroad freight train in Chatsworth, a suburb of Los Angeles, resulting in 25 deaths, including the commuter train's engineer. The force of the collision caused the Metrolink's locomotive to telescope into the lead passenger coach by 52 feet (19 metres). More than 100 injured people were taken to area hospitals.

June 2009: A Washington, D.C., Metro subway train struck the rear of another Metro train stopped ahead of it in the nation's capital, killing the running train's operator and eight passengers, and sending 52 people to hospitals.

January 2013: A high-speed, privately operated passenger ferry traveling from New Jersey to New York struck a pier in Manhattan, seriously injuring four people and resulting in minor injuries for 75 passengers and one deckhand.

May 2013: An eastbound Metro-North commuter train derailed, then collided with a westbound Metro-North train in Bridgeport, Connecticut, injuring at least 65 people.

December 2013: A Metro-North train derailed in New York City's Bronx borough, killing four people and injuring at least 61.

February 2015: A Metro-North train collided with a sport utility vehicle at a railroad crossing in the New York suburb of Valhalla. The collision killed five train passengers and the SUV's driver as hundreds of feet of electrified rail skewered the train's first two carriages.

May 2015: An Amtrak passenger train derailed in Philadelphia after entering a curve at 106 miles per hour (171 km per hour), more than twice the recommended 50-mile-per-hour (80 km-per-hour) speed, killing eight passengers and sending 185 others to hospitals. The locomotive and seven passenger cars went off the rails.

April 3, 2016: An Amtrak train traveling from New York hit a backhoe performing maintenance on the tracks in Chester, Pennsylvania, a Philadelphia suburb, killing the two men working with the construction equipment and resulting in 41 people going to hospitals. A National Transportation Safety Board report determined the men had a right to drive the backhoe on the tracks at the time.

September 29, 2016:  The Hoboken crash.  The crash at Hoboken Terminal on Thursday, involving a morning rush-hour train from Spring Valley, New York, caused one fatality and 108 injuries. Trains were halted and the terminal evacuated as federal transportation investigators headed to the scene, where steel beams, wires and part of a roof rested atop a rail car.

The Hoboken commuter train crash: Positive train control still lacking at New Jersey Transit, the third-biggest railroad

Hoboken Crash Tests a Railroad Beset by N.J. Fiscal Crisis

Elise Young EliseOnDeadline
September 29, 2016 — 1:48 PM EDT Updated on September 29, 2016 — 2:51 PM EDT



Injured commuters are treated outside the Hoboken Terminal.
Photographer: Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images

Crash at Hoboken station while capital funding is on hold

Positive train control still lacking at third-biggest railroad

A fatal train crash that caused structural damage to a major Manhattan-area station exacerbates troubles at New Jersey Transit, which operates one of the nation’s biggest railroads and has been besieged by aging equipment and slipping reliability.

The agency is without a fiscal-year spending plan after the state in August exhausted its $8 billion account for road and rail work. Non-essential projects have been suspended since July as Republican Governor Chris Christie and Democratic legislative leaders squabble over a proposed gas-tax increase to replenish the fund.

The crash at Hoboken Terminal on Thursday, involving a morning rush-hour train from Spring Valley, New York, caused one fatality and 108 injuries, Christie said during a news briefing. Trains were halted and the terminal evacuated as federal transportation investigators headed to the scene, where steel beams, wires and part of a roof rested atop a rail car.

“Christie and the lawmakers don’t seem to to realize how insolvent their state is,” said Nicole Gelinas, a senior fellow who studies urban issues and finance at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, which promotes limited government. “He’s happy to raise the gas tax for transportation but he wants the legislature to cut another tax in return. New Jersey can’t afford any tax cuts. They don’t have money for infrastructure. They don’t have money for pensions.”

Federal Railroad Administration records show that none of the passenger fleet is fully equipped with positive train-control technology, designed to prevent the kind of derailment that killed eight Amtrak passengers in Philadelphia last year. New Jersey Transit and other railroads successfully asked Congress for a three-year extension on the October 2015 installation deadline.

Christie said that while it’s clear the train was traveling too fast, it’s too soon to speculate on a cause. The engineer, who was injured in the crash, was cooperating with investigators. The person who died was on the platform, not in the train, he said.

Passengers exit a NJ Transit train after it crashed at the Hoboken Terminal on Sept. 29.
Photographer: Pancho Bernasconi/Getty Images
 

Routine Delays

Reliability at the nation’s third-largest rail operator is crumbling, with trains breaking down more often as governors paid for daily expenses with money intended for capital improvements. Crowding and delays are routine.

While the Long Island Rail Road, Metro-North and other New York City-area commuter lines poured billions of dollars into new equipment, New Jersey Transit since 1990 has diverted at least $6.6 billion from its capital account to pay for salaries, health benefits and other costs. In recent years, as state and federal transit aid declined, the agency raised fares five times.

“The biggest challenge New Jersey Transit has is a predictable set of financial parameters,” Jishnu Mukerji, a member of the New Jersey Association of Railroad Passengers board of directors, said by telephone. “They’re stuck in a bad place. They don’t have any money. Trenton has never given them the operating budget they need.”

Hoboken Terminal, the state’s fourth-busiest train station, is key to high-paying jobs for New Jerseyans. The terminal, with more than 15,000 boardings on a typical workday, shuttles suburban riders to ferries, buses and Port Authority of New York and New Jersey trains for the final leg to Manhattan, a ride taking as little as 8 minutes.

The station had completed a $175 million restoration and expansion just 10 months before it was inundated by five feet of Hudson River water driven by Hurricane Sandy in October 2012. Full restoration took 17 months as crews worked on salt-damaged electrical lines, rusted track and a moldy Beaux Arts style waiting room.

Cars Destroyed

Sandy also destroyed dozens of rail cars stored in low-lying yards in Kearny and Hoboken, causing at least $120 million in damage. Last October, the agency cut some routes and raised fares an average 9 percent to help close a budget gap.

New Jersey Transit has been run by an interim executive director, Dennis Martin, a veteran of the agency’s commuter bus operation, since December. A permanent replacement, former Amtrak executive William Crosbie, backed out on taking the job this year when he decided not to move his family from Virginia.

Martin’s predecessor, Veronique Hakim, left after less than two years to become president of New York City Transit. She replaced Jim Weinstein, who was criticized for leaving trains vulnerable during Sandy and for unexplained delays and other commuter woes during an event billed as “the first mass-transit Super Bowl.”

It’s uncertain when New Jersey Transit service to and from Hoboken will resume. Dawn Zimmer, the city’s second-term Democratic mayor, said on Twitter that residents should make alternative arrangements for the evening commute and expect delays.

Kenmore Air de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver aircraft crashed and sank after it impacted the waters of the Pacific Ocean at Cattle Pass south of Lopez Island, Washington

Kenmore Air floatplane crashes off Lopez Island



There were four people on board the plane at the time of the crash and all survived.
Travis Pittman , KING 7:48 PM. PDT September 30, 2016


SEATTLE, WA – A Kenmore Air floatplane crashed off Lopez Island and sank Friday. All four people on board were rescued.

The Coast Guard says the crash happened at 9:13 a.m. in Cattle Pass near the south end of the island.

Three men and a woman were on board. The crew of the Northern Rose saw people in the water and rescued them. All passengers were wearing portable floatation devices when they were rescued.

“Kathy (my wife) and I were able to pull them on board," said Daniel Schwartz, the boat's captain. "And Kathy immediately took all their wet clothing off and got them into just about every piece of clothes we had. And had our heater on in the cabin and wrapped them in blankets. And turned around and started back for Friday Harbor.”

"After we pulled everyone in off the boat, we just started saying the Lord's Prayer because we thought there must've been some kind of divine intervention," said Kathy.

"We were just in the right place at the right time," added her husband Dan.

Two were airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle in fair but stable condition. All four were treated by medics for hypothermia and minor injuries.

The Coast Guard says it was notified by Kenmore Air of an electronic emergency signal just before the plane went down.

The pilot says the plane sank. The Coast Guard says it's too early to know if the plane can be salvaged.

FAA spokesperson Allen Kenitzer said the aircraft is a DHC-2 de Havilland Beaver. All of Kenmore Air's planes of this type are float planes. Kenmore Air regularly uses float planes which are often seen taking off from and landing at Seattle’s Lake Union.

Kenmore’s chief pilot says the plane was a regularly scheduled trip. It left Lake Union to drop off a passenger at Lopez, and was then heading to Roche Harbor on San Juan Island to drop off another two passengers.

It was then expected to pick up passengers and then head back to Lake Union.

The FAA and NTSB will investigate.

FROM KENMORE AIR WEBPAGES:


DHC-2 de Havilland Beaver
The six-passenger piston de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver is the most successful floatplane ever built, and has been the mainstay of our fleet since the early 1960’s. The Beaver sports a thick wing for maximum lift, a sturdy structure and a powerful, reliable 450-horsepower Pratt Whitney R-985 radial engine. The last brand new Beaver came off the line in 1967, however our fleet of Beavers have all been meticulously overhauled by our world-renown aircraft maintenance facility.

Date:

30-SEP-2016
Time: ca 09:00
Type:
de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver
Owner/operator: Kenmore Air
Registration:

C/n / msn:

Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 4
Other fatalities: 0
Airplane damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair)
Location: between San Juan and Lopez Islands, WA - United States of America
Phase: Unknown
Nature: Non Scheduled Passenger
Departure airport:

Destination airport:

Narrative:
The aircraft impacted the waters of the Pacific Ocean at Cattle Pass south of Lopez Island, Washington. The floatplane sank. The four occupants onboard received minor injuries and were rescued by a passing ship.


Sources:
http://www.sanjuanjournal.com/news/395434561.html
http://www.king5.com/news/local/kenmore-air-plane-crashes-off-lopez-island/328030578
http://www.kiro7.com/news/local/floatplane-crashes-in-san-juan-islands/452166348