County subcontractor identified
By TANNER COLE tcole@thehawkeye.com
Mar 1, 2017
The Stockport man killed Monday after falling from the back of a moving truck was Neil Bruss, 46.
Bruss was mentioned by Des Moines County Engineer Brian Carter during Tuesday’s county supervisors meeting. The man was not a county employee, but he was working for the Des Moines County Secondary Roads Department as a subcontractor.
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March 2, 2017, at 12:58 p.m.
YARMOUTH, Iowa (AP) — A county official has disclosed the name of a roads worker killed in a fall in southeast Iowa's Des Moines County.
The man had been pulling up road signs Monday morning for the county roads department. County Sheriff Mike Johnstone says the man fell from a moving truck and struck his head about a mile and a half south of Yarmouth. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Hawk Eye reports (http://bit.ly/2mPVeox ) that the county engineer, Brian Carter, mentioned the man's name during Tuesday's Board of Supervisors meeting. He was identified as 46-year-old Neil Bruss, who lived in Stockport. Officials say Bruss was a subcontractor for the roads department.
___ Information from: The Hawk Eye, http://www.thehawkeye.com
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YARMOUTH, Iowa — A roads worker has been killed in a fall in southeast Iowa’s Des Moines County.
The Hawk Eye reports (http://bit.ly/2lcZpOO ) that the man had been picking up road signs Monday morning for the county roads department. Des Moines County Sheriff Mike Johnstone says the man fell from a moving truck and struck his head about a mile and a half south of Yarmouth. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
His name is being withheld until family members are notified about his death.
MARCH 1, 2017
WAYNE, NJ — A worker died in a cement-mixer accident in New Jersey Wednesday morning, local officials said.
Officials got a call about the incident around 10 a.m. The cement mixer was not in use at the time of the incident.
Initial reports show the victim was cleaning out the cement mixer on Dey Road and became trapped under the mixer's drum. The victim was crushed by the body of the truck.
No identifying information is available for the victim.
It appears the accident happened at SBI Materials, a company that does walkway work.
The regional medical examiner and the Wayne Fire Department responded.
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WAYNE, NJ — Officials are investigating a Wednesday morning industrial accident in which a man was killed while cleaning a concrete mixer on Dey Road.
According to police, at 9:53 a.m. emergency crews responded to a call from a motorist who was flagged down by SBI Materials subcontractors that someone was trapped in a concrete mixer.
On scene, officers found a man wedged between the rotating drum on the back of a concrete-mixer truck and the truck body. According to reports, the victim was cleaning out the concrete mixer, and somehow became trapped and was crushed.
The victim was pronounced dead at the scene, according to a statement from the Wayne Police Department. He has not yet been identified but was described as a 34-year-old man by police.
From the street at SBI Materials, the location of the accident, little was visible except the flashing lights of emergency vehicles and the top of a white concrete mixer deeper within the work area. Rain fell steadily as police and emergency vehicles came and went from the business’s front gate, which was monitored by workers in safety vests in the late morning hours.
Medical examiners were among officials responding Wednesday morning when a man was killed while cleaning out a concrete mixer in Wayne. (Photo: Tariq Zehawi/NorthJersey.com)
At 1:30 p.m., the Wayne Volunteer Fire Department assisted in removing the victim for confirmation and identification by the state medical examiner.
The Wayne Emergency Volunteer Memorial first-aid squad, the advanced life support team from St. Joseph’s Medical Center, the Occupational Health and Safety Agency and the Passaic County Prosecutor's Office also responded at the scene.
John Lynch, director of operations at SBI Materials said the victim was a subcontractor and expressed his condolences to the victim’s family.
He declined to comment further, citing the OSHA and police investigations.
Video surveillance tapes of the work area will be examined as a part of the continuing investigation by the Prosecutor's Office and the Wayne police.
SBI Materials is listed as a landscape and masonry supplies and equipment company
Thursday, March 02, 2017 06:22 AM
FRESNO, California (KFSN) -- A near-record snowpack measurement in the Sierra Nevada mountains could signal the end of California's five-year drought.
The average snowpack across the entire range is at 185-percent of normal conditions according to the State Department of Water Resources.
The sierra provides about a third of California's water when the snow melts in the spring and summer. The snowpack has been fueled by an extremely wet winter.
The state's chief snow surveyor says the snowpack in some places is nearing levels last seen in 1983.
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Snow survey reveals CA water content at 185% of average
March doesn't break record, but still bodes well for 2017
Updated: 8:18 PM PST Mar 1, 2017
Show Transcript
PHILLIPS STATION, Calif. (KCRA) —
The Sierra snowpack survey conducted Wednesday revealed that the northern Sierra water content is well above average for this time of the year and bodes well for runoff later in the year.
Numbers manually taken by water officials at the Phillips Station in El Dorado County revealed 43.4 inches of water content, which is 179 percent of the long-term average for March 1, and a snow-depth of 112.7 inches.
The water content did not break the record of 56.4 inches for that station, but Frank Gehrke, of the California Department of Water Resources, said it is "a pretty phenomenal snowpack."
"It bodes very well for runoff much longer than we have had in the past four or five years," Gehrke said. "It's a very, very good indicator of good surface water supplies as we head into spring and summer.
As of March 1:
- The northern Sierra is 159 percent of average.
- The central Sierra is 190 percent of average.
- The southern Sierra is 201 percent of average.
The central and southern regions are tracking "very close" to 1983, which is when the maximum snowpack was recorded statewide.
The northern Sierra is still a little below the record, but it is still way above the average, Gehrke said.
On Feb. 2, the snowpack at the Phillips Station was at 173 percent of average, or 28.1 inches of water content. The "robust" snowpack measured a depth of 90.3 inches.
During the monthly snow survey, a column of snow is collected and weighed to determine how much water it holds.
Although the manual survey, like the one conducted Wednesday at Phillips Station, gives more accurate numbers as to where the snowpack stands, automated sensors at other stations across the state revealed higher percentages before the manual surveys.
In the central Sierra, sensors indicated the water content was at 49 inches, or 193 percent of average, while the southern Sierra was at 204 percent of average.
March is still considered a wet month, and the above-normal snowpack promises to bring large amounts of water to California reservoirs.
Although Northern California is considered to be at a plateau, Gehrke said there shouldn't be anything to worry about heading into March.
"There's nothing to say that it (storm activity) won't take off again," Gehrke said. "We've had very big Marches in the past -- so-called 'Miracle Marches' -- that bailed us out some years ago, when prior to that, we had very dry conditions. So you can readily anticipate fairly good storm activity in March and quite often through April."
April 1 is considered the time when California's snowpack typically reaches its peak.
CAN THE DROUGHT BE DECLARED OVER?
It's the burning question on everyone's mind. While most of California is considered to be out of the drought, Gehrke would not speculate as to whether the recent snow totals help in the state's ongoing drought.
However, Gehrke did offer insight into what water officials look at.
"The concern is really the groundwater. That's the big issue that really became very evident during the dry spell," Gehrke said. "And that doesn't pop back after one snow year."
Gehrke explained that snow and runoff contributes a great deal in terms of the groundwater recharge by way of some complex geological processes, but it is more of a long-term process.
"Surface water is kind of a seasonal thing," Gehrke said. "In other words, clearly we've made up our seasonal deficiency, but the groundwater is a whole different kettle of fish. It's a much longer cycle."
In addition, groundwater is a lot more difficult to measure.
"We don't have the ability to go in and quickly make measurements of the recovery," Gehreke said. "It's a much more complex system than the surface water."
Thursday, March 02, 2017 12:36PM
LAKEWOOD, New Jersey (WABC) -- No injuries were reported when a large tree crashed down onto a pair of school buses in New Jersey Thursday morning as a result of massive winds in the area.
The incident happened around 8:30 a.m. on White Road in Lakewood, at the border with Jackson.
No injuries were reported when a large tree crashed down on school buses in Lakewood, New Jersey
There were no students on board either bus at the time, and both drivers were able to walk away unharmed.
The tree landed on the roofs of both vehicles, shattering windows and one windshield.
No injuries were reported when a large tree fell on a pair of school buses in Lakewood
"My wife heard the crash and looked out, and the tree, which was two trees in one, had fallen on not only one bus, but two buses at the same time," one neighbor said. "Fortunately, everybody was OK. Both bus drivers got out. There were no children...thank God."
Strong winds are believed to be responsible for the tree coming down.
MIAMI, FLORIDA
Edgewater condo owners sue engineering firm for $1M in damages
Posted on March 2, 2017 by Sheryl Barr
Source: https://therealdeal.com, March 1, 2017
By: Francisco Alvarado
Property at 2121 N. Bayshore Drive was affected by leaky HVAC, residents say
The condominium board at an older building in Edgewater is suing the engineering firm that designed the HVAC system at the property, alleging that the system caused extensive damage to the building.
In a Jan. 26 lawsuit filed in Miami-Dade Circuit Court, Biscayne 21 Condominum Inc., which represents the 192 unit owners of the mid-rise tower at 2121 North Bayshore Drive in Edgewater, is suing Fort Lauderdale-based Hillman Engineering. Biscayne 21 alleges that Hillman was professionally negligent and breached its contract by designing a leaky system that caused damage to the building’s interiors.
The condo board is seeking more than $1 million in damages, plus attorneys’ fees. Representatives for Hillman declined to comment, and Harry Malka, the attorney for Biscayne 21, didn’t respond to requests for comment.
According to the lawsuit, Biscayne 21 determined near the end of 2010 that the HVAC system needed to be upgraded and repaired. On Feb. 15, 2011, Biscayne 21 hired Hillman to determine the extent of the repairs to the existing equipment, design a revamped HVAC system approved by the association, and oversee the installation of the new system and repairs.
“Shortly after the conclusion of the project, the new HVAC system began to experience many leaks in the new insulation,” the lawsuit states, “causing damage to drywall and flooring throughout the hallways and corridors of the property.”
Biscayne 21 hired Bosch Group, a construction consulting firm, to inspect the work performed by Hillman. On Nov. 12, 2015, Bosch issued a report documenting “numerous design and construction administration errors and omissions” by Hillman, the lawsuit states.
Biscayne 21 was built in 1964. Prices of available units start at $279,000, according to Realtor.com.
