Disasters - Hurricanes, Tornados, Earthquakes et al

[Goldhedge]

ALARMING New details Jet Set Nightclub Roof Collapse​

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[Goldhedge]

Dangerous Column Cracks Force Hundreds to Flee Beach Condos​

Jeff Ostroff analyzes how large longitudinal cracks developed in a critical support pillar/column at the 13-story South Beach III Condos, located at 1460 Gulf Boulevard on Sand Key. This caused a massive response from many Clearwater Police, Clearwater Fire & Rescue, and surrounding fire engines and TRT (Technical Rescue Response) teams. The evacuation occurred on May 6, 2025, after construction workers discovered a significant crack in a concrete support column during renovation work in the building’s ground-level parking garage. Approximately 60 residents were evacuated from the 12-story building, as shoring poles were brought in to stabilize the building in an effort to thwart the collapse of the condominium.

This has many parallels to the Champlain Towers South Condo collapse in Miami/Surfside, FL in 2021, in which 98 people lost their lives. This video shows all the parallels, since they were built around the same time, and whether errors made in the design and construction of Champlain Towers could have affected this Clearwater condominium as well. This could have been a major construction fail.

00:00 Introduction to Clearwater Condo Evacuation after a cracked column was discovered
01:08 Drone, livestream video from the Condo evacuation scene
02:34 Clearwater Fire Department response
03:26 Close-up of emergency crews installing shoring poles near the cracked column
04:19 View of the garage where shoring poles were installed
05:46 Parallels to Champlain Tower South Surfside/Miami condo collapse
07:20 The Engineering report had given Clearwater Condo a clean bill of health
08:48 Florida laws changed for condos and milestone inspections
10:07 What concrete spalling looks like, Jeff's old condo
10:49 Details from Karins Engineering Milestone Report for Clearwater Condo
13:32 Analysis of photos of the cracked support column
16:37 How design, construction errors from Champlain Tower South could be here
18:43 Stirrups missing from rebar in the concrete column?
19:08 Possible failure modes of the cracked concrete column
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[Goldhedge]

Miami Condo Collapse NEW Security Camera Video, Analysis Updates​

Jeff Ostroff analyzes the latest NIST engineering investigation updates into the Champlain Towers South Condo collapse in Miami, FL. This engineering update was a public meeting of The National Construction Safety Team (NCST) Advisory Committee on March 7, 2024. NIST leadership updated the committee on the progress of NCST investigations focused on the Champlain Towers South partial building collapse that occurred in Surfside, Florida on June 21, 2021.

They also uncovered 2 new security camera videos and those will be analyzed here for clues leading to the root cause of this Miami condo collapse.

00:00 Introduction to NIST Investigation of Champlain Towers Condo Collapse
00:46 Security camera video of Surfside Condo Collapse
01:30 NIST Official video timeline of condo collapse
02:17 FBI analysis of cell phone video of garage collapse
05:07 Upper floor corridor security camera video analysis
07:42 NEW security camera video of beach access walkway from 87 Park
10:28 Ribg camera video from Unit 711 captures condo collapse
11:41 Security cam video from south face camera on 87 Park condo
16:05 Witness accounts of Champlain Towers Condo collapse
18:18 Structural code checks: does the as-built condo meet the building code?
21:56 Materials testing: Corrosion and structural steel from debris
22:48 Structural testing and loading of columns and slabs
25:13 Analyzing 9.1 row columns along the tower's south edge
26:55 Post-collapse site investigations and Frankie Pile testing
27:44 Did the condo collapse initiate in the pool or in the tower?
28:49 Past drainage and garage water leak issues
30:12 Pool deck planter locations floorplans vs actual
30:39 Tell tale punching shear failures weeks before condo collapse
31:19 Weaker concrete in floor slabs than in columns
31:53 Final schedule

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[searcher]

Insurance adjusters say they were pressured to cut payouts after hurricanes​

Storm victims and insurance adjusters appeared before a congressional committee Tuesday, where they detailed what they said are aggressive tactics used by the insurance industry to limit payouts to policyholders after Hurricanes Helene and Milton struck the Southeast this past year.

The hearing, before a subcommittee of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, included testimony from two adjusters who work for Pilot Catastrophe Services, a third-party company employed by Allstate. They accused Allstate reviewers of doctoring their work, altering and deleting their findings to lower the final estimate — ultimately reducing the amount of money the company had to pay out in claims.

“Frequently, these alterations and deletions are simply false,” Pilot property adjuster Clifford Millikan said. “There is no room for discussion. If an adjuster resists, the claim is reassigned to someone who complies.”

More:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/i...after-hurricanes/ar-AA1EI4P7?ocid=socialshare

 

[searcher]

Hawley grills insurance executives about cutting disaster payouts​

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), the chair of the Senate Homeland Security subcommittee that oversees disaster management, vented his frustration Tuesday at a hearing where he grilled the executives of two major insurance companies about cutting hurricane- and other disaster-related payments.

“In the last year alone, disasters have devastated communities across our country,” he said, noting that tornadoes left thousands of people without power and damaged homes in his home state while wildfires and hurricanes wiped out homes in California and Florida in the past year.

More:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/poli...disaster-payouts/ar-AA1EIE9L?ocid=socialshare

 

[searcher]

Insurers seek to surcharge California homeowners for L.A. County fire costs​

Insurers are seeking to charge homeowners across California for some of the costs of the catastrophic Los Angeles County fires the companies were burdened with when the state’s insurer of last resort needed a bailout.

The California FAIR Plan Assn., with the approval of state Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, assessed its member carriers $1 billion on Feb. 11 when the plan was swamped with thousands of claims after the Jan. 7 fires in Pacific Palisades, Altadena and Sylmar.

The plan, operated and backstopped by the state’s licensed home insurers, said it has made $2.75 billion in claims payments as of Friday and expects its costs for the fires will total $4 billion, which it could not cover with its limited surplus and reinsurance funds.

More:

Insurers seek to surcharge California homeowners for L.A. County fire costs

Insurers are seeking to charge California homeowners across the state for the costs of the catastrophic Los Angeles County fires they were burdened with when the state's insurer of last resort needed a bailout.

www.latimes.com

 

[searcher]

An L.A. Doctor’s House Burned. Now He Treats the Fires’ Effects in Neighbors.​

A new clinic, opened by a pulmonologist who lost his home in the Palisades blaze, is addressing the health issues developing among people exposed to the fires.

Dr. Ashraf Elsayegh’s house was one of the first to burn.

He stepped out into his backyard atop the Pacific Palisades in early January to find a raging fire leaping from three houses away to two. He gathered his family, helped older neighbors to their cars and fled without a single keepsake.

In the days that followed, Dr. Elsayegh, a pulmonologist, did not have a chance to grieve. As he did his rounds with patients at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, Calif., his cellphone was bombarded with neighbors and friends seeking his expert advice.

What kind of air purifier?
Is an N-95 mask enough?
My daughter has asthma — should we rent a place farther away?
“Forty phone calls a day with the same set of questions,” Dr. Elsayegh recalled.

More:

https://archive.is/20250513073501/https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/13/health/los-angeles-fire-health-effects.html#selection-669.0-699.80

 

[Casey Jones]

One word:

California.

Liberalism gone off the rails. Or, just following the track to its natural conclusion, chaos and nihilism.

 

[searcher]

California rocked by three earthquakes in a matter of minutes amid fears of the Big One​

California has experienced multiple earthquakes within the last two minutes in an area closely monitored for a potential major quake.

The US Geological Survey (USGS) detected three tremors, ranging from magnitude 2.5 to 3.8, on Monday just after 11am local time (3pm ET).

The seismic activity occurred 21 miles south of Bakersfield, a city of over 400,000 residents, and about 80 miles from Los Angeles.

The epicenter, located in Grapevine, sits near the San Andreas Fault, which runs beneath Interstate 5 at Tejon Pass.

According to the USGS, major earthquakes occur in this area approximately once every 100 years.

More:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/t...S&cvid=55d92704ade84958b8d269535996b9e0&ei=22

 

[searcher]

Hawley grills insurance executives about cutting disaster payouts​

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), the chair of the Senate Homeland Security subcommittee that oversees disaster management, vented his frustration Tuesday at a hearing where he grilled the executives of two major insurance companies about cutting hurricane- and other disaster-related payments.

“In the last year alone, disasters have devastated communities across our country,” he said, noting that tornadoes left thousands of people without power and damaged homes in his home state while wildfires and hurricanes wiped out homes in California and Florida in the past year.

More:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/poli...disaster-payouts/ar-AA1EIE9L?ocid=socialshare

More:

Witness Makes Shocking Claim To Hawley About What Allstate Told Him To Do After Assessing Damage​

May 19, 2025
At a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing on Tuesday, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) spoke to Nick Schroeder, a field adjuster deployed by Allstate through Pilot Catastrophe Services, to survey damage.


8:27

 

[Casey Jones]

^^^^^^^^^

Suicidal.

When trust in insurance is destroyed, the insurance industry will be destroyed.

This is something new. I had some severe storm damage, not much, but a tree limb falling on the roof (tree was old, was destroyed, and had to be professionally removed) and some fencing destroyed. I got a settlement from my company in a week's time, based on a phone description of the damage. The biggest hassle was getting the tree-removal company out there.

NOW, with Woketards entering various financial industries, suddenly any moral scruples have been jettisoned. Contracts are obstacles to be overcome with shysters. Customers are now nuisances.

And now we know these companies are not to be trusted. Not JUST homeowners, or auto-policy holders, but mortgage issuers and auto-finance companies.

THEY are gonna have problems - when you have a $6 million property underwritten, and a Glow Bull Weather Event destroys it...and the insurance company offers a tenth of the damage cost.

What will save the industry? Separate policies for claims adjustments, based on how exposed the BANKSTERS are?

 

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[searcher]

'DOGE has consequences': Fingers pointed at Trump admin after Texas flood deaths​

Donald Trump's administration is picking up some of the blame for recent deaths from flooding in Texas.

Trump's team already faced a fact check in connection with the Texas flood that swept through a girls' camp and has led to an estimated 27 deaths.

Now, the Daily Beast is reporting that "officials in Texas are casting blame on the National Weather Service (NWS) for failing to forecast catastrophic flooding that has killed" dozens of people, including nine kids, according to new reports.

More:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/t...xas-flood-deaths/ar-AA1I27R8?ocid=socialshare

 

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[pmbug]

 

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[Cigarlover]

The quality of forecasting is not very good nor has it ever been. Before or after the cuts it was always terrible more then 24-48 hrs out.

One of the better forecasters out there is a YouTube channel called ryanhallyall. He's a one man show and does better than most of the science guys paid for by the fed gov.

 

[searcher]

ryanhallyall.

Thanks, just subscribed.

Ryan Hall, Y'all

My name is Ryan Hall. I am a professional weather analyst, storm chaser, and a dad! I love making YouTube videos about the weather and that's what I plan on doing here. Please consider subscribing. Contact: info@ryanhallyall.com

www.youtube.com

 

[Cigarlover]

What really happened is that the warnings came in the very early morning when everyone was asleep. Sadly there is no way to know beforehand if something like this is going to happen or where exactly it will happen.

 

[pmbug]

 

[Goldhedge]

I read where the weather forecast came 12 hours before it happened for a possible flood watch.

I think people ignore weather forecasts as a general rule. I know for where I live we get 'noticed' all the time for thunderstorms.

It's getting so we shrug and say "Okay" and go about our lives.

Typical, for the left to immediately come out against Trump as the cause of the flood because of cuts without doing a lick of research.

They really hate that they've lost the race. Spoiled sports? Sour grapes? The Wrath of Khan? They really should grow up.

 

[Goldhedge]

UPDATE: The Associated Press reports the National Weather Service had "EXTRA STAFF ON DUTY" in the region where floods wreaked havoc in Texas.

The number of staff more than DOUBLED in the office.

This is a major blow to the Democrat narrative blaming budget cuts.

Plus,

The post highlights that the National Weather Service doubled its staff in the Texas region during the recent floods, contradicting claims of budget cuts reducing preparedness, as evidenced by a 2021 federal audit showing no staffing reductions in NOAA's operational budget prior to the event.

Historical data from NOAA's own records, including press releases from 2025, show ongoing investments (e.g., a $9.5M contract for ship maintenance in June 2025), suggesting that staffing increases were a planned response to forecasted heavy rainfall, not a reaction to alleged cuts.

Local failures, such as Kerr County's rejection of a $9.8M emergency preparedness grant in 2022, likely contributed more to the tragedy than federal weather service performance, shifting the focus from national policy to regional decision-making.

 

[Goldhedge]

5 people instead of the 'usual' 2 were working at the National Weather Service...

 

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[Joe King]

What really happened is that the warnings came in the very early morning when everyone was asleep. Sadly there is no way to know beforehand if something like this is going to happen or where exactly it will happen.

Almost exactly as the way it happened in 1987 too.

 

[Goldhedge]

Flash flood emergency hits New Mexico town that burned in deadly wildfires​

Officials pleaded with people to get to higher ground after storms dumped rain on Ruidoso.
video

July 8, 2025, 6:52 PM MDT / Updated July 8, 2025, 8:40 PM MDT
By Tim Stelloh and Phil Helsel

A New Mexico mountain town hit by devastating wildfires last year experienced dangerous flooding Tuesday after heavy rain fell on areas burned in the blazes, officials said.

Speaking on a local radio station Tuesday night, Ruidoso Mayor Lynn Crawford said there were reports of mudslides and gas leaks at homes that had been washed away or damaged.

Multiple bridges had been underwater, Crawford said, and there had been more than two dozen swift-water rescues.

more

3 dead after historic flash flooding hits New Mexico town ravaged by wildfires

Two of the victims were identified as the children of a soldier on leave from Fort Bliss, Texas.

www.nbcnews.com