Hurricane Harvey

[mirth]

Yikes!

https://www.houstoniamag.com/articles/2017/8/27/yes-floating-fire-ant-nests-are-a-real-thing

God has a sick sense of humor

[mirth]

https://twitter.com/CNN/status/902975263478341634

[Sir Slash]

I've seen the floating Fire Ant trick many times here in Fla. where  there's plenty of water and fire ants. I root for the water, drown the little S.O.B.'s. And I can attest to their foul mood when they reach anything solid to climb onto. They go all 'Mongol Horde' on everything close by. If aliens ever come to Earth, and run across a good million-ant mound, they'll be out of here at light-speed.

[mirth]

[Barthheart]

 O0

[mirth]

Thank God for people like Jim McIngvale

https://www.nytimes.com/video/us/100000005398367/houston-harvey-mattress-shelter.html

[trailrunner]

I've been thinking the same thing.  Glad to see someone put that together.  Let's not ignore the bad, but let's also acknowledge the tremendous amount of good that happens day-to-day.

[bayonetbrant]

The contrast of the 2 furniture store owners that opened up to displaced families with Joel Osteen's "church" was very telling

[bayonetbrant]

ruh roh

A worrisome article on Huffpo by Joe Lauria about the Galveston National Laboratory, a biological research facility affected by Harvey, has been deleted. It is mentioned, cited and excerpted in the attached Esquire article as having gone incommunicado, and the article has since been pulled from HuffPo.

On Galveston Island, there is the Galveston National Laboratory, which is part of the University of Texas Medical Branch. This laboratory contains some of the most deadly biological agents found in the known world, many of them of the airborne variety. It contain several Bio-Safety Level 4 labs, which are basically the places where plagues are studied. And here's the thing, as HuffPost explains—nobody knows what's going on there at the moment:

"There has been almost no news from Galveston as journalists have reported being blocked from reaching the island because of severe flooding. There has been no reporting at all on the condition of the lab. A call to the laboratory on Tuesday immediately went to voicemail.

But the generators run on fuel that would have to be replenished. It is not known if the lab is accessible to emergency crews to refuel the generators, which are stored on the roof, according to the 2008 Times piece. "As I see it the existential problem is this: What happens if and when the fuel for the back-up generators runs out?" asked University of Illinois professor Francis Boyle, an expert in biological weapons. "The negative air pressure that keeps (the) bugs in there ends. And (the) bugs can then escape."

reprint of the deleted article:
https://consortiumnews.com/2017/08/30/worries-about-a-galveston-bio-lab/

and

(10 years ago) http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/29/us/29lab.html




Also a problem waiting to happen

http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/348623-ceo-houston-chemical-plant-explosion-inevitable-due-to-storm

The CEO of an industrial chemical company is warning that there is "no way to prevent" a large explosion and fire at their Houston plant which was flooded after Hurricane Harvey.

The Arkema plant, which produces chemicals used in making acrylic-based paints, is currently submerged under floodwaters from Tropical Storm Harvey which have knocked out its primary and its two backup power generators.

"And as a result, critical refrigeration needed for our materials on site is lost," said Rich Rowe, Arkema's North American operations on Wednesday, according to the Houston Chronicle.

"Materials could now explode and cause subsequent and intense fire. The high water that exists on site, and the lack of power, leave us with no way to prevent it."

The Harris County Fire Marshal's Office, which has jurisdiction over Crosby, Texas, where the plant is located, said Wednesday it is monitoring the situation.

[mirth]

ruh roh

A worrisome article on Huffpo by Joe Lauria about the Galveston National Laboratory, a biological research facility affected by Harvey, has been deleted. It is mentioned, cited and excerpted in the attached Esquire article as having gone incommunicado, and the article has since been pulled from HuffPo.

On Galveston Island, there is the Galveston National Laboratory, which is part of the University of Texas Medical Branch. This laboratory contains some of the most deadly biological agents found in the known world, many of them of the airborne variety. It contain several Bio-Safety Level 4 labs, which are basically the places where plagues are studied. And here's the thing, as HuffPost explains—nobody knows what's going on there at the moment:

"There has been almost no news from Galveston as journalists have reported being blocked from reaching the island because of severe flooding. There has been no reporting at all on the condition of the lab. A call to the laboratory on Tuesday immediately went to voicemail.

But the generators run on fuel that would have to be replenished. It is not known if the lab is accessible to emergency crews to refuel the generators, which are stored on the roof, according to the 2008 Times piece. "As I see it the existential problem is this: What happens if and when the fuel for the back-up generators runs out?" asked University of Illinois professor Francis Boyle, an expert in biological weapons. "The negative air pressure that keeps (the) bugs in there ends. And (the) bugs can then escape."

reprint of the deleted article:
https://consortiumnews.com/2017/08/30/worries-about-a-galveston-bio-lab/

and

(10 years ago) http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/29/us/29lab.html

Why the fuck would you build a lab like that on an island in an area prone to hurricanes?!

Officials at the laboratory and at the National Institutes of Health, which along with the university is helping to pay for the $174 million building, say it can withstand any storm the Atlantic hurls at it.

Pretty much guaranteeing a storm would hit that it can't withstand.

[OJsDad]

The contrast of the 2 furniture store owners that opened up to displaced families with Joel Osteen's "church" was very telling

I had seen where people were upset that the church was opened for those in need of shelter, but I had also seen where there was water in the church.  Once they got that cleaned up, they then opened to those in need.  Has that been proven wrong.

[bayonetbrant]

The contrast of the 2 furniture store owners that opened up to displaced families with Joel Osteen's "church" was very telling

I had seen where people were upset that the church was opened for those in need of shelter, but I had also seen where there was water in the church.  Once they got that cleaned up, they then opened to those in need.  Has that been proven wrong.

There were some folks at the church claiming it was flooded and showed some pictures of the lower level of the parking garage.  But there were locals around town who rolled up on it and were taking pictures in the parking lot of everything high and dry and clear streets around the building.

The church finally released some pics of air mattresses in the hallways, but I don't think anyone has actually reported being sheltered in the place yet.
They're collecting diapers and formula to hand out to those that need it.  That's all I've seen, but there's only so much I've paid attention to.

[OJsDad]

Thanks.  I hadn't seen anything about that church since yesterday.

I've seen this Osteen guy on TV a few times in the past.  Never been impressed with him.  In fact, I've never been impressed with mega churches.  We have a couple close to us.  My wife has a cousin that goes to one.  It feels more like a business.  No one knows each other.  If you leave your child in the nursery during service, you need a wristband to get them back, because those working in the nursery don't know anyone.

[airboy]

Thanks.  I hadn't seen anything about that church since yesterday.

I've seen this Osteen guy on TV a few times in the past.  Never been impressed with him.  In fact, I've never been impressed with mega churches.  We have a couple close to us.  My wife has a cousin that goes to one.  It feels more like a business.  No one knows each other.  If you leave your child in the nursery during service, you need a wristband to get them back, because those working in the nursery don't know anyone.

Osteen is a big part of the "prosperity gospel" clique.  Obviously, Jesus talking about helping the poor and the poor and spirit was not what the Bible is about.  Instead, we should pray for earthly riches and success.

[OJsDad]

Explosions at a chemical plant in Houston. 

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/08/31/2-explosions-black-smoke-reported-at-chemical-plant-outside-houston.html

At least one police officer was hospitalized after inhaling fumes following two reported explosions that rocked a flooded chemical plant outside of Houston, officials said. 

Nine deputies, who also inhaled the non-toxic irritant, drove themselves to the hospital after being near the Arkema Inc. plant in Crosby, about 25 miles northeast of Houston, FOX26 reported.

The plant lost power on Sunday amid Harvey's days-long deluge and a "series of chemical reactions" had occurred because of the lack of refrigeration for chemicals, a plant spokeswoman told The Associated Press late Wednesday. 

"The fire will happen. It will resemble a gasoline fire. It will be explosive and intense in nature," spokeswoman Janet Smith told The Associated Press late Wednesday.
There was "no way to prevent" the explosion, CEO Rich Rowe said.

People located in a 1.5-mile radius of the plant was evacuated. 

In its most recently available submission from 2014, Arkema said potentially 1.1 million residents could be affected over an area of 23 miles in a worst case, according to information compiled by a nonprofit group and posted on a website hosted by the Houston Chronicle.

But, Arkema added, it was using "multiple layers of preventative and mitigation measures" at the plant, including steps to reduce the amount of substances released, and that made the worst case "very unlikely."

Rowe told Reuters that the company has no way to prevent the explosion because the plant is swamped by six feet of water. The company did not move the chemicals, but told Reuters that it made extensive preparations.

Arkema manufactures organic peroxides, a family of compounds used for making everything from pharmaceuticals to construction materials.

"As the temperature rises, the natural state of these materials will decompose. A white smoke will result, and that will catch fire," Smith said. "So the fire is imminent. The question is when."

The company shut down the Crosby site before Harvey made landfall Friday, but a crew of 11 had stayed behind. That group was removed and residents within 1.5 miles were told to evacuate Tuesday after the plant lost power.

Harris County Fire Marshal spokeswoman Rachel Moreno said the 1.5-mile radius was developed in consultation with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and other subject-matter experts. "It's a concerning situation, yes," Moreno said. "But the facility is surrounded by water right now so we don't anticipate the fire going anywhere."

The plant falls along a stretch near Houston that features one of the largest concentrations of refineries, pipelines and chemical plants in the country.

Arkema's plant is required to develop and submit a risk management plan to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, because it has large amounts of sulfur dioxide, a toxic chemical, and methylpropene, a flammable gas. The plans are supposed to detail the effects of a potential release, evaluate worst-case scenarios and explain a company's response.

Daryl Roberts, the company's vice president of manufacturing, technology and regulatory services in the Americas, did not dispute that worst-case scenario but said that assumed all the controls in place failed and strong winds blew directly toward Houston, the nation's fourth-largest city.

"We have not modeled this exact scenario but we are very comfortable with this 1.5-mile radius," Roberts told the AP. He added that it mostly resembled less serious scenarios that would affect a half-mile radius and a few dozen people.

Roberts said the vessels containing the organic peroxide are equipped with controls to slow the release of chemicals. Because of the water, he said, the chemicals will quickly vaporize, reducing the size and scope of the fire.