Collapsing Buildings and Roadways

Engineers say a large section of Wyoming highway where four Colorado family members plunged to their deaths might have totally collapsed in a matter of minutes.

It had been raining for hours Monday night when local authorities warned the Constantinides family, among others, about potential flood conditions near North Brush Creek Campground around midnight.

Not long afterward, the family's van drove into a washed-out portion of Wyoming highway 130 and was swept about 75 yards down Brush Creek. Laurel Constantindies and her three daughters died.

The husband and father, Alex Constantindies, who had grown up in Laramie, survived and escape the vehicle. He and a passerby later rescued Carbon County Emergency management Coordinator John Ziegler, whose car washed out while he was trying to assist in flood protection efforts.

Ziegler said he was "very fortunate" to have survived.

Bruce Burrows of the Wyoming Transportation Department says engineers are studying what happened to the roadway early Tuesday morning. He says preliminary assessments indicate the creek swollen with rain and snowmelt may have undermined the roadway over some hours and then gouged a 25-foot-wide, 9-foot-deep hole in a matter of minutes.

Heavy monsoon rains have claimed more than 200 lives across South Asia in the past month

At least eight people were killed in building collapses caused by heavy rain in the western Indian city of Mumbai.

Six people died when a six-storey residential building collapsed in south Mumbai, fire and police officials said. Two people were declared dead on Thursday evening, and rescuers pulled four more bodies from the rubble during the night.

Several people had been trapped under the debris and many more stranded in the portion left standing after the collapse, city fire chief P S Rahangdale said.

"The risk of secondary collapse can't be ruled out," he said.

Witness told local television stations that the dilapidated building was home to five or six families who had stayed on despite residents being advised to move out as it was under repair.

Another building collapsed in the western suburb of Malad earlier, killing two, including a child, and injuring several.

Weather officials had on Thursday upgraded an alert for Mumbai and surrounding areas from orange to red following intense rains in previous days.

The annual monsoon rains regularly cause old or poorly built structures in India's financial capital to collapse.

The eight people killed in Mumbai are among at least 221 who died as result of heavy monsoon rains across South Asia over the past month, officials said on Friday.

More than 1 million people have been marooned in Nepal, Bangladesh and India and hundreds of thousands have fled their homes for higher ground.

India's death toll stood at 101, including 16 people killed in floods and mudslides in the north-east. Nepal reported at least 117 deaths over the past month and Bangladesh reported three.

Rains caused the Brahmaputra River, which flows through Tibet, India and Bangladesh, to burst its banks in India's Assam state in late June, inundating large swathes of the state, triggering mudslides and displacing about 3.6 million people, officials said. Vast tracts are still underwater, with 26 of the state’s 33 districts badly affected.

Authorities rescued about 4,000 people trapped by the surging flood waters in various parts of Assam, said M S Mannivanan, chief of the state Disaster Management Authority. About 36,000 people whose homes were destroyed or submerged have taken shelter in nearly 300 government-run relief camps, he said.

The floods also inundated most of India’s Kaziranga National Park, home to an estimated 2,500 rare one-horned rhinos.

In the eastern state of Bihar, at least nine rivers swollen by heavy downpours in Nepal rose beyond their danger levels and flooded many villages. One of them, the Gandak River, swept away the connecting roads of a newly built multimillion dollar bridge in Gopalganj district, disrupting transportation in the area.

The Meteorological Centre in the state capital, Patna, forecast heavy rain over the next 48 hours.

Nepal’s Home Ministry said 117 people have died in monsoon-related incidents, including landslides in mountainous areas and flooding in the southern plains. At least 47 people were reported missing and 126 have been injured in the past month, it said.

In Bangladesh, the Ministry of Disaster and Relief said at least three people died and more than one million people were marooned since floods hit the country late last month. Officials said heavy rainfall and the onrush of river waters from upstream India were creating havoc in Bangladesh, a delta nation of 160 million people that is crossed by 230 rivers.

Bangladesh's Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre said on Thursday that flooding could worsen at the beginning of next week because of growing devastation in the vast region along the Brahmaputra and Teesta rivers. It said the situation would remain unstable over the next two weeks, causing further suffering for affected people.

The monsoon rains that hit the region from June to September are crucial for crops planted during the season but often cause extensive damage.

Updated: July 17, 2020 12:55 PM

Comment by Starr DiGiacomo on July 19, 2020 at 10:40pm: https://www.thenational.ae/world/asia/rains-cause-two-deadly-buildi...

Rains cause two deadly building collapses in India's Mumbai city

Heavy monsoon rains have claimed more than 200 lives across South Asia in the past month

At least eight people were killed in building collapses caused by heavy rain in the western Indian city of Mumbai.

Six people died when a six-storey residential building collapsed in south Mumbai, fire and police officials said. Two people were declared dead on Thursday evening, and rescuers pulled four more bodies from the rubble during the night.

Several people had been trapped under the debris and many more stranded in the portion left standing after the collapse, city fire chief P S Rahangdale said.

"The risk of secondary collapse can't be ruled out," he said.

Witness told local television stations that the dilapidated building was home to five or six families who had stayed on despite residents being advised to move out as it was under repair.

Another building collapsed in the western suburb of Malad earlier, killing two, including a child, and injuring several.

Weather officials had on Thursday upgraded an alert for Mumbai and surrounding areas from orange to red following intense rains in previous days.

The annual monsoon rains regularly cause old or poorly built structures in India's financial capital to collapse.

The eight people killed in Mumbai are among at least 221 who died as result of heavy monsoon rains across South Asia over the past month, officials said on Friday.

More than 1 million people have been marooned in Nepal, Bangladesh and India and hundreds of thousands have fled their homes for higher ground.

India's death toll stood at 101, including 16 people killed in floods and mudslides in the north-east. Nepal reported at least 117 deaths over the past month and Bangladesh reported three.

Rains caused the Brahmaputra River, which flows through Tibet, India and Bangladesh, to burst its banks in India's Assam state in late June, inundating large swathes of the state, triggering mudslides and displacing about 3.6 million people, officials said. Vast tracts are still underwater, with 26 of the state’s 33 districts badly affected.

Authorities rescued about 4,000 people trapped by the surging flood waters in various parts of Assam, said M S Mannivanan, chief of the state Disaster Management Authority. About 36,000 people whose homes were destroyed or submerged have taken shelter in nearly 300 government-run relief camps, he said.

The floods also inundated most of India’s Kaziranga National Park, home to an estimated 2,500 rare one-horned rhinos.

In the eastern state of Bihar, at least nine rivers swollen by heavy downpours in Nepal rose beyond their danger levels and flooded many villages. One of them, the Gandak River, swept away the connecting roads of a newly built multimillion dollar bridge in Gopalganj district, disrupting transportation in the area.

The Meteorological Centre in the state capital, Patna, forecast heavy rain over the next 48 hours.

Nepal’s Home Ministry said 117 people have died in monsoon-related incidents, including landslides in mountainous areas and flooding in the southern plains. At least 47 people were reported missing and 126 have been injured in the past month, it said.

In Bangladesh, the Ministry of Disaster and Relief said at least three people died and more than one million people were marooned since floods hit the country late last month. Officials said heavy rainfall and the onrush of river waters from upstream India were creating havoc in Bangladesh, a delta nation of 160 million people that is crossed by 230 rivers.

Bangladesh's Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre said on Thursday that flooding could worsen at the beginning of next week because of growing devastation in the vast region along the Brahmaputra and Teesta rivers. It said the situation would remain unstable over the next two weeks, causing further suffering for affected people.

The monsoon rains that hit the region from June to September are crucial for crops planted during the season but often cause extensive damage.

Updated: July 17, 2020 12:55 PM

Comment by Starr DiGiacomo on July 18, 2020 at 1:59am: https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/news/wall-collapse-at-construction...

Wall collapse at construction site on East Side

7 16 2020

The wall of the vacant five-story mixed residential and commercial building at 211 East 34th Street partially collapsed around 11:30 a.m. on Thursday. A secondary collapse happened hours later.

Video from NewsCopter 7 and from an Eyewitness News camera on the ground showed a large portion of the side of the building had fallen. Debris was seen strewn outside the area which collapsed.

Hours later, officials said a second wall collapsed at the site. There were no injuries in that incident.

There was an ongoing excavation operation at the adjacent property, 209 3rd Avenue, in preparation for a new 35 story building.

The neighboring building, 213 E. 34th St, is being temporarily evacuated as a safety precaution.

34th street was closed between 2nd and 3rd Avenues because of FDNY activity. The Queens Midtown Tunnel exit was also closed.

The Department of Buildings was investigating what caused the collapse.

and another:

https://abc7ny.com/brooklyn-wall-collapse-home-greenwood-heights-ne...

Wall collapse in Brooklyn forces evacuation of 3 buildings

Tuesday, July 14, 2020 3:57PM

GREENWOOD HEIGHTS, Brooklyn (WABC) -- A section of wall collapsed off a Brooklyn home on Tuesday morning, prompting a full evacuation of three buildings.
It happened at a two-story semi-detached home on 17th Street in the Greenwood Heights section around 10 a.m.
No injuries were reported.
Department of Buildings inspectors determined that the exterior side wall had collapsed to the ground below. They also observed further cracking at the roof level.
A violation was issued to the building owner for failure to properly maintain the building.
A Full Vacate Order was also issued, and the owner was ordered to erect a construction fence around the property.
Additionally, two neighboring properties have also been issued vacate orders as the department continues its investigation into the structural stability of the initial building.
The American Red Cross has been called to the scene and is offering immediate relocation assistance to anyone affected.
The investigation is ongoing.

Comment by Starr DiGiacomo on June 25, 2020 at 6:22pm: https://metro.co.uk/2020/06/25/boy-sees-mum-two-children-crushed-de...

Boy sees mum and two siblings crushed to death as building collapses in Italy

Thurs 25 June 2020

A young boy watched in horror as his mum and two younger siblings were crushed to death when a building collapsed. Fouzia Taofiq, 38, and her children Soulaymane Hannach were killed instantly by falling bricks and mortar in Albizzate, near Milan in Italy, yesterday. Fouzia’s 15-month-old daughter Yaoucut was pulled from the rubble and rushed to hospital, but sadly died shortly after the incident. The family were crushed when a decorative cornice measuring almost 230ft long suddenly fell from the old factory building, pulling a large part of the connecting wall down with it.

Another woman, 42, was also hit though he injuries are not believed to be life threatening. One witness told Reppublica: ‘Across the street was the eldest son of the dead woman. He was in tears, he asked about his mother.‘I took him to the supermarket until his dad, who was at work, arrived.’ Heartbroken dad and partner Noureddin Hannach, who works nearby as a mechanic, arrived at the scene as rescuers were still attempting to recover his family. He reportedly called the disturbing scene a ‘slaughterhouse’.‘I did not sleep… We were married since 2007.’ Mayor Mirko Zorzo, whose office is in the building, narrowly avoided being crushed in the collapse. He said: ‘I am upset, at the moment I do not feel like commenting much. I am talking with emergency services to reconstruct what happened.’ A supermarket and a pizzeria were also in the converted premises.A ‘twin’ building on the same street has been closed as a precautionary measure. Local prosecutors have opened a manslaughter investigation to determine if any person or organisation is to blame.

Comment by Starr DiGiacomo on June 15, 2020 at 4:25pm: https://www.indiatimes.com/trending/social-relevance/four-storey-bu...

Four-Storey Building Collapses In West Bengal, Disturbing Visuals Caught On Camera
Updated on Jun 15, 2020, 14:38 IST

The visuals have gone viral on social media; they show the building leaning to its front and then completely collapsing into a canal. One can hear cries of people who were in and around the area. Two of the building's top floors were detached from the rest during the collapse.

Fortunately, all the residents had vacated before the structure collapsed; they left as soon as they felt the building shaking while the canal was being dredged.

A four-storey residential building collapsed into a canal in Bengal's West Midnapore district on Saturday. According to officials no casualties were reported, as reported by Times Now.

Comment by Starr DiGiacomo on June 11, 2020 at 6:07am: https://sokodirectory.com/2020/06/multi-storey-residential-building...

Multi-Storey Residential Building Collapses At Night In Kericho Town (Photos)

June 10, 2020 | 12:23 am

It is a cold traumatizing Tuesday night for Kericho residents after a multi-storey in the County’s town area collapsed a few minutes past 7:30 pm.
The storied building, identified as Tebsview court, that has collapsed, 9th June 2020, is believed to have trapped more than 100 people. The Kenya Red Cross is already on ground undertaking rescue mission with police officers already deployed in the area to ensure security.

“Tebsview Building, owned by Kericho contractor Charles Chaglano collapsed slightly after 7:30 pm,” said Kericho Red Cross official Sofia Tuwei.

Search and rescue efforts are underway in Kericho town where a residential building has just collapsed.

Residents have blamed the building’s poor foundation and workmanship on the deadly collapse saying the storied residential building is built on a sinking pit.
Neighbors who gathered around the collapsed building reported that they had heard voices of people calling out for help from the rubbles.
Tebs View Court has 6 two-bedroomed houses according to neighbors and the residents had begun to notice signs of a likely collapse and had even reported to the owner.
It is reported that the Tebs View Court tenants were demanding to be evacuated by the building’s owner which is why the collapse found them still in the poorly constructed houses

Comment by Starr DiGiacomo on May 24, 2020 at 9:32pm: https://www.nationalparkstraveler.org/2020/05/road-failure-hampers-...

Road Failure Hampers Blue Ridge Parkway Travel

May 22nd, 2020 5:05pm

Heavy rains during the past week have led to the collapse of a section of the Blue Ridge Parkway, forcing the closure of the scenic byway from Milepost 112.4 to Milepost 135.9 in Virginia.
Within the closure area, a full road closure to all uses (including motor traffic, bicycles, and pedestrians) is in place from Milepost 121.4 at U.S. Route 220 to Milepost 135.9 at Adney Gap.
The largest hazard is a full road failure roughly 150 feet in length at Milepost 128. In addition, Parkway staff also discovered to two smaller slope failures that resulted in debris on the motor road at both Milepost 119 and 124. Concern remains for the stability of the hill and trees above the road in that area.
The National Park Service and Federal Highway Administration will assess the issues and determine what repairs are needed. Geotechnical and roadway design experts will assess the roadway failures and make recommendations for repairs and restoration of access. The schedule for these repairs is currently unknown.
Specific information regarding daily closures, related to this project or for any other reason, is available on the Parkway’s Real Time Road Map, found at www.nps.gov/maps/blri/road-closures/ .

Comment by Starr DiGiacomo on May 24, 2020 at 9:10pm: https://www.newsbreak.com/virginia/rich-creek/news/0P8OIs3n/portion...

UPDATE: All east bound lanes of U.S. 460 closed near Narrows, Va

May 24 2020

A mudslide closed a portion of U.S. 460 in the Rich Creek – Narrows area of Giles County, Va. According to the Virginia Department of Transportation, one westbound lane is closed and one eastbound lane is closed on U.S. 460 between Route 643 and Route 61. The mudslide happened about five miles east of the West Virginia state line.

and another in NC

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/ncdot-sets-up-detour-after-culver...

NCDOT sets up detour after culvert failure causes partial lane collapse along US 64/74A

May 20 2020

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (FOX Carolina) -- NCDOT has set up a barricade on U.S. 64/74A around 7 miles away from Lake Lure after a culvert has failed and cause part of the lane to collapse.

Officials say the road is impassible.
The westbound detour uses Rainbow Rapids Road, Freeman Town Road and Bills Creek.
The eastbound detour goes the opposite.

Comment by Starr DiGiacomo on May 16, 2020 at 3:59am: https://hosted.ap.org/clevelandbanner/article/7715215fd4438fb4dad7d...

Rescuers checking collapsed building in Polish mining region

May 15 2020 6:43pm EDT

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Authorities in Poland's southern coal mining region say rescuers helped by sniffer dogs and drones are looking for any people who might have been inside a disused building parts of which collapsed Friday

A wall and some floors of the multi-storey building belonging to a mining-related company in Myslowice collapsed around 4 p.m. local time (1400GMT), city authorities said. It was unclear what had caused the collapse.
A spokeswoman for Myslowice Town Hall, Natalia Wypior, said no traces of people have been found in the rubble, but the search will continue as the building, which she said was disused, will be gradually taken to pieces.

Comment by Starr DiGiacomo on May 11, 2020 at 7:03am: https://sabasabaupdates.com/2020/05/10/nine-dead-scores-feared-trap...

Nine dead, scores feared trapped after Kampala building collapse

May 10 2020

Nine people were on Sunday confirmed dead and two others still fighting for their lives at Mulago hospital where they were rushed after a building under construction collapsed in Kiwempe village, Lukuli-Nanganda, Makindye division in Kampala.
The building located on Soweto Road collapsed Saturday night. Scores of workers are feared trapped in the rubble of the three-storied building. Several construction workers have been staying on-site following a presidential directive which restricted movement of people in a bid to stop further spread of COVID-19.
Police sealed off the site and opened investigations into the tragedy as the search for survivors continue.
The Deputy spokesperson for Kampala Metropolitan police, Luke Owoyesigyere said eight bodies and had been recovered from the rubble.
Police also rescued three people but one died moments after arrival at Mulago hospital.
However, authorities say the number of causalities may increase as more people are still trapped in the rubble.
The survivors were identified as Juma Bukenya, 18, and Isaac Keba, 23 both were working as potters at the site.
According to neighbors, the builders have been working on the site during day time and sleep in the same building during the night. It is believed that about 15- 20 workers were on the site by the time of the collapse.
“The building collapsed at around midnight, then people started screaming thinking maybe it is a bomb. So we rushed to the scene and found the whole building had fallen down. There were people screaming from inside.” A resident said.
The building had reportedly been condemned by Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) Physical Planning Department in March.
Mr Douglas Nsubuga, the Physical Planner at Makindye Division said that despite a directive for construction works to be halted pending a review of documentation regarding the building, the developer identified as Abraham Kalanzi took advantage of the COVID-19 lockdown to accelerate works on the site.

Comment by Starr DiGiacomo on May 9, 2020 at 1:57am: https://www.wtvq.com/2020/05/08/road-collapse-closes-lane-gorge-area/

Road collapse closes lane in Gorge area

May 8 2020

MENIFEE COUNTY, Ky. (WTVQ) – Motorists taking a scenic drive in the Red River Gorge area need to be aware of a traffic hazard.
Part of Kentucky Highway 715 near the Gladie Welcome Center in Menifee County has collapsed and traffic is reduced to one lane.

Traffic barriers are in place.
Kentucky 715 winds through the gorge area from Highway 77 on the north to Combs Parkway at Pine Ridge on the south.

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Collapsing Buildings and Roadways

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Rains cause two deadly building collapses in India's Mumbai city

Wall collapse at construction site on East Side

Wall collapse in Brooklyn forces evacuation of 3 buildings

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