The U.S. Dept. of Transportation is changing the criteria it uses to evaluate which new transit projects it will fund. Industry officials say the shift is likely to give a boost to streetcar and urban light-rail projects in the competition for federal money, but other options, such as bus rapid transit, will still be in the game. Photo: Trimet Observers say future urban light-rail projects, such as the existing system (above) in Portland, Ore., and streetcar-line proposals will benefit from DOT’s policy shift on new transit starts. In unveiling the shift on Jan. 13, DOT Secretary Ray LaHood said the
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has proposed a $35,000 civil penalty against the Babcock & Wilcox Facility in Lynchburg, Va., claiming the facilities staff failed to declare an alert emergency classification in a timely manner as required by their emergency plan. On July 15, 2009, the firm “failed to declare an emergency for more than two hours after they discovered a band-saw-cooling reservoir did not have the proper criticality controls,” says NRC. While the event posed no threat outside the facility, “the results could have been significant under different circumstances,” says NRC.
Two years ago, Haiti hosted the first-ever disaster-reduction meeting, which was attended by more than 120 representatives of 21 nations of the greater Caribbean and 18 regional and international organizations. The November 2007 conference in Saint-Marc, called the “High-Level Conference on Disaster Reduction of the Association of Caribbean States,” produced a 27-point action plan for disaster reduction, which included a plea to make disaster-risk reduction a national priority. Related Links: Haiti Quake Recovery Planners Wait in Wings “Costly investments in infrastructure built in hazardous areas need to be protected, while the time needed for disaster recovery needs to be reduced,”
The leaders of the U.S. earthquake response effort in Haiti say they expect it will be “several weeks” before the effort shifts from a first-response life- support mission to planning for recovery, but when it comes, that phase “will involve all the military and civilian subject-matter experts.” Slide Show Photo: AP/Wideworld An excavator clears rubble of the Electricite de Haiti building in Port-au-Prince. Image: Unosat/Meti&NASA 2009 Density of post-quake bridge, road blockages in Port-au-prince on Jan. 13, 2010 Related Links: Quake Was Too Much for Recent Disaster-Reduction Efforts But a week after the Jan. 12 quake, the answer to how
A preliminary damage assessment map for major buildings and infrastructure in Port-au-Prince is now available from the United Nations Institute for Training and Research's Operational Satellite Applications Programme (UNITAR/UNOSAT). Photo: Eduardo Fierro, BFP Engineers Inc. Collapsed two-, or possibly three-story reinforced concretebuilding in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Sites marked as "No Visual Damage" may have major structural damage not identifiable in the imagery. Damage there is likely underestimated. The same goes for road and bridge damage, says the group. Of 110 selected sites, 58 or 53% are visibly damaged or destroyed. Of these, 88% are government buildings; 60% are churches, 50% are
Florida is looking to the private sector to bankroll high-speed rail. The state’s proposal for federal funding anticipates that private-sector funding would cover all operations and maintenance expenses for a planned line between Orlando and Tampa. State transportation planners aren’t committing any state funding to the system for the foreseeable future. Despite widespread enthusiasm for the project, the president of the Florida Transportation Builders Association is worried about high-speed rail’s long-term impact on state transportation funding, especially since the state has no dedicated funding source for a rail system. “There doesn’t appear to be any recognition at all of the
Damage from landslides is common in Haiti. In Port-au-Prince, there is widespread destruction of nonductile concrete structures. Many rubble or unreinforced masonry walls failed. The E-in-plan Presidential Palace in Port-au-Prince still has much of the first floor intact, with windows unbroken, but there is total collapse above the first floor. There is very light reinforcing evident in failed columns near the entry. At the port, there is a collapsed pier and cranes, and several buildings are under water. Extensive lateral spreading and liquefaction is evident. These and numerous other on-site observations on damage from Haiti’s magnitude 7 earthqauke are from
A contracting executive has set up a special fund to help Haiti and has pledged to match up to $1 million of contributions with his own money. James S. Ansara, chairman, founder and former CEO of Shawmut Design & Construction, Boston, has set up a new fund through The Boston Foundation in that city. The foundation has created The Haiti Fund, to finance immediate efforts to execute short-term relief efforts and for long-term rebuilding. About 25% of the total will be earmarked immediately to procure much-needed materials, fuel, equipment and personnel for infrastructure and for construction of needed medical facilities,
Located along a fault line, the capitol of Haiti, Port-au-Prince, was the heart of the island nation. Now the heart is broken and any attempt to restore the country must revolve around its rebuilding. Photo: AP /Julie Jacobson A man preaches for people to repent outside a cathedral Jan. 14, in Port au Prince. .“Port-au-Prince is Haiti, and Haiti is Port-au-Prince,” says Bryant C. Freeman, perhaps the leading expert on Haiti in the U.S. He says the city and the country were heading in the right direction in recent years as decades of dictatorial oppression and violence faded away under
The Jan. 12 quake that struck Haiti made a shambles of the cargo-handling facilities of the port of Port-au-Prince, a U.S. Coast Guard assessment team reported late Friday. The port, which faces the Caribbean Sea and the eastern tip of Cuba about 175 miles to the west, includes cranes, large berths, and warehouses. The Coast Guard and U.S. Navy are trying to see what will have to be done to get it back in service to assist in the delivery of aid. Photo: U.S. Coast Guard Damage to Port-au-Prince’s port is extensive. The team said five cargo cranes are damaged,
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