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Clearly you're looking to play the blame game. NOBODY knew exactly how high the water was going to get or IF it would get high at all. NOBODY knew exactly how bad the hurricane would be and when they found out there wasn't much time to do anything about it.
If you want to play this game even further, why aren't all the levies at the dams built higher so they can never be topped and never require emergency releases? Why wasn't everyone within a 10 mile radius of Houston evacuated and why weren't the whole towns to the east of Houston TOTALLY evacuated before they went completely under water?
I know, why are water plants there not functioning now? Why weren't they built wayyyy above the current high water mark so people could have clean water now? Talk about horrible disaster planning!
The answer to all of the above is NOBODY KNEW THIS EPIC STORM WAS GOING TO BE THIS BAD. By the time they found out it was too late to do much of anything.
The problem is you have no idea how chemical plants work, how hazmat is stored or what is required by law.
You can go back to your blame game now...
I think we can all admit that the way the liberal media handled the situation was absolutely atrocious! People were thirsty, injured, and dying, and all the media did was complain about Melania's shoes! Ripping Trump for his response, Salon telling us Trump failed 100% before the storm even hit! Absolutely disgusting
I think we can all admit that the way the liberal media handled the situation was absolutely atrocious! People were thirsty, injured, and dying, and all the media did was complain about Melania's shoes! Ripping Trump for his response, Salon telling us Trump failed 100% before the storm even hit! Absolutely disgusting
Try to differentiate between exaggeration and total BS. I remember the Salon article which blamed Trump for the coming disaster before the storm came on shore.
The media has reported a lot of the activity in Texas along with targeted antiTrump articles.
Clearly, these disaster plans were not up to snuff.
A C-D member posted a clear explanation of how the plant that is on fire did not have adequate contingency plans. Two of their three sources of electricity were actually the same.
Given that their factory explodes without air conditioning, at the very least, they should have had a high and dry generator with a adequately sized fuel tank.
I guess the EPA should have verified that their contingency plan was sufficient. Or maybe an unprecedented storm hit the region and in spite of stringent plans and backup plans, it just wasn't enough.
That is a great reminder. With the possibility of Irma coming up the East Coast, I am going to get the 3 of my cats that are not microchipped done this week if possible!
I agree - this is a great reminder and I'm going to ask my vet about it this month (dogs have an appt).
A video of a service held on Wednesday at Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church shows collection plates passed around the congregation which included victims and evacuees of Hurricane Harvey among others. This comes after the pastor was essentially forced to open the doors of his megachurch when he faced massive criticism on social media for canceling service and locking the doors, refusing to shelter evacuees.
I guess the EPA should have verified that their contingency plan was sufficient. Or maybe an unprecedented storm hit the region and in spite of stringent plans and backup plans, it just wasn't enough.
Clearly, it wasn't enough. Excellent observation.
The company went through the motions enough to satisfy the powers that be, but did not actually have a workable plan.
They did not have three separate sources of electricity. Two of the sources were the same.
The third source was a generator that was quickly flooded. At the very least, that should have been up off the ground.
As the containers were in refrigerated trucks, they could have also driven those refrigerator trucks out of he area.
But they didn't do that either.
Defending the company's poor management practices with how this was an unprecedented storm so how could they be expected to have any workable safety plan is ridiculous.
If you have truckloads of a chemical that explodes and catches everything on fire if it doesn't stay cool, then you better have some plans to keep it cool even during "unprecedented" weather.
It's not like Houston doesn't ever get flooded. Good grief. It happens all the time.
Location: Big Island of Hawaii & HOT BuOYS Sailing Vessel
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Quote:
Originally Posted by craigiri
Explain in regular language why slab-on-grade construction is allowed in low lying areas in Houston and vicinity.
In case you are not familiar, slab-on-grade is by far the cheapest form of construction and offers zero protection from flooding.
Note - Building codes usually address the actual construction and often do not address the larger planning and zoning issues. That is, building codes would typically cover the structure, not where it is located nor how far above the bayou or bay it should sit.
These issues are not new. As mentioned, other areas have solved them 100+ years ago. Some even further back than that. Humans have long settled in dangerous areas and they learned to erect floodwalls, diverters, dams, retention basins, etc. as well as to elevate houses, etc. - all as mitigation for known problems.
I can promise you this. Thing will change in Texas and that becomes proof positive of the lack of current and past mitigation steps. Insurance companies, banks as well as reasonable politicians and others will force these changes. You certainly can't trust builders and land developers with such things!
140 years near where I live - this dam went - simply because there were no dam standards or inspections. As often today, the "corporation" was assumed to have the best interest of the public in mind. The Mill River Flood of 1874, A Preventable Tragedy - New England Historical Society
"in 1864, 11 manufacturers formed the Williamsburg Reservoir Company to dam the Mill River in Williamsburg.
They wanted to save money, so they designed and built the dam themselves. During construction, they cut corners over the protests of the surveyor and workers who feared the poorly built dam would endanger the people who lived downstream."
Market forces and lawsuits against real estate agents should help change Houston.
Likely there already are disclosure laws that require reporting if the home has ever flooded.
I think people will seriously be thinking resale value when buying a single story slab on grade home in Houston.
Don't these homes also suffer more from the ground sinking? It must be a bother to have giant cracks in your kitchen floor.
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Excellent observation.