MEC&F Expert Engineers : 12/28/14

Sunday, December 28, 2014

THE GATHERING STORM: THOUSANDS OF MILES OF UNREGULATED OR LOOSELY REGULATED GAS PIPELINES HAVE BEEN CONSTRUCTED OR ARE BEING CONSTRUCTED WITHOUT ADEQUATE OVERSIGHT AND/OR FOLLOWUP INSPECTIONS




THE GATHERING STORM: THOUSANDS OF MILES OF UNREGULATED OR LOOSELY REGULATED GAS PIPELINES HAVE BEEN CONSTRUCTED OR ARE BEING CONSTRUCTED WITHOUT ADEQUATE OVERSIGHT AND/OR FOLLOWUP INSPECTIONS


The precipitous drop in the price of the oil and gas futures is a prime example of the perennial problem plaguing the oil and gas industry: very little oversight or regulation of these operations takes place;  when it does, it focuses on the end result, such as minimize environmental impacts or minimize injury to workers and property damage.

Most of the time, planning and pipeline safety standards and testing and maintenance and inspection is an afterthought and most of the time the result of some catastrophe: explosion, fire, discovered leak, loss of life and so on.  It is has been for many years known in the engineering profession that the pipeline companies are “very dirty” and that they perform very little maintenance or monitoring.  After the spectacular explosion s of the pipelines during the last few years, only then did these pipeline operators were forced to increase their inspections.


The reason is that most of these pipelines are not regulated.  At other times, the pipelines are not properly marked or are not marked at all.  So may incidents have been caused over the years because the pipelines are not properly marked or are not marked on time.

Test borings we install near the right of way of these pipelines always show screamingly high levels of methane.  We do know that they leak (about 3 percent of natural gas goes undetected as lost through leaks or blow offs, etc.).  These leaks are the result of aging and lack of proper installation, especially the lack of proper backfill, defective material, lack of proper inspection and maintenance, and so on.  The lack of backfill is pretty much the biggest joke in the pipeline construction industry, because there is almost none.  


Could you ever imagine placing a water pipe into the ground without proper backfill and then backfilling it with all the rocky excavation material?  Absolutely no.  However, this is how the pipeline operators and their contractors/engineers function.  The pipeline companies simply throw into the excavation trench all the rocky material they excavated to avoid bringing in proper backfill.  The result is the damage to the exterior corrosion protection of these pipes.  


We hold our fingers crossed that all these unregulated and/or not properly constructed or inspected pipelines that have been constructed and continue to be constructed will not end up being the gathering storm that will cause mayhem in rural and more populated areas.  We are simply suspect of the process where the wolf has been placed in charge of watching the health of the sheep.

Commercial Charter COI Passenger Vessels(tourboats, dinner cruises, harbor rcruises, watertaxis, ferries, sight seeing)


Commercial Charter COI Passenger Vessels (tour boats, dinner cruises, harbor rcruises, watertaxis, ferries, sight seeing)

If you own or operate a commercial vessel that has a COI and carries more than 6 passengers for shuttles, sight-seeing tours, fishing or educational purposes; below is an example of coverage that insurers can offer to protect your operation.
  • Hull coverage - physical damage to hull, machinery, and equipment.
  • Protection & Indemnity – protects the owner for liabilities in the operation of the vessel.
  • Crew coverage – employees/crew working on the vessel
  • Pollution liability- coverage for fines levied due to oil or fuel spill
  • Business Interruption - coverage for loss of income that your business suffers if vessels are out of commission due to a covered loss.
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Passenger Vessel Insurance

Watertaxi, Excursion & Ferry
Passenger vessels have very specific insurance requirements. Your exact insurance needs will vary based on the specific type of charter that you operate. Good insurance professionals can provide you with all of the information that you need in order to ensure that your financial investment are protected in the event of a catastrophe or a lawsuit. Most of them specialize in various types of commercial insurance. Typical specialties include:
  • Ferry and Passenger Vessels
  • Watertaxi
  • Charter Fishing
  • Sight Seeing Tours
  • Day Cruises
  • Extended Cruises
  • Fishing Guides
Most insurers can provide coverage for boats and fleets of all sizes. Whether you have a collection of Bass fishing boats that you rent out to lake tourists or you need to protect your fleet of million dollar yachts, the maritime insurance professionals can outfit you with the precise charter fleet insurance to suit your business needs.

Commercial marine insurance can protect your business in many ways. Typical standard insurance policies include provisions such as:
  • Protection and Indemnity Liability Coverage
  • Pollution Liability Coverage
  • Passenger Medical Payment Coverage
  • Personal Property Coverage
  • Towing and Emergency Assistance Coverage
  • Dockside Liability Coverage
  • Replacement Vessel Protection
In addition to standard policies and protections, fleet owners can elect to protect their assets with optional protection policies. With charter fleet insurance, you can protect everything from your captain’s employment to your company office or store. Typical optional policy additions include:
  • Liability coverage for Captain and Crew
  • General Liability Coverage
  • Charter Legal Liability Protection
  • Additional Protection and Indemnity clauses to protect company interests, loss of payees, and breach of warranty suits
A insurance company can help you protect all aspects of your marine based business. The commercial insurance professionals will take the time to understand the nature of your business, the composition of your passenger vessel(s), and the level of protection that you need as an individual business. Try to create a custom tailored insurance policy that suits your budget and is designed to protect you, your assets, your investments.

5 DEAD: SEMI CRASH KILLS ONE ADULT, THREE CHILDREN, ONE TEEN ON I-435 IN KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI


5 dead: Semi crash kills one adult, three children, one teen on I-435 in Kansas City, Missouri





Posted 9:54 pm, December 27, 2014, by Molly Balkenbush and Kasey Babbitt

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Four people are dead, including three children, following an accident involving a semi-truck on I-435 and Eastwood Trafficway Saturday night. Another person is in critical condition.

Due to the accident, the interstate was closed down for several hours on Saturday night.

Police say the vehicle was pulled over on the side of the interstate, and a semi-truck was traveling southbound on and hit the vehicle from behind. Five people were in that vehicle.

Police say the one surviving person, who was inside the vehicle during the crash, is at an area hospital in critical condition.

They say two of the children died at the scene, the other child and adult died at the hospital.


Police say for some time they weren’t even sure what kind of car was involved in the accident because it was buried under the semi-truck.

“It’s pretty catastrophic were looking at it we just were now able to get it freed from underneath the tractor trailer and were taking a look at it right now but it wasn’t immediately apparent what kind,” said Sgt. Bill Mahoney with the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department.

Police say the driver of that tractor trailer is unharmed. They were getting a statement from him and gathering evidence at the scene on Saturday night.
The identities of the four people killed have not yet been released.

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Police identify five killed in Saturday night semi crash on I-435

Posted 9:54 pm, December 27, 2014, by Molly Balkenbush, Kasey Babbitt and Megan Dillard, Updated at 06:27am, December 29, 2014 

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Five people are dead, including three children and one teen, following an accident involving a semi-truck on I-435 and Eastwood Trafficway Saturday night.

Due to the accident, the interstate was closed down for several hours on Saturday night.

Police say the vehicle was stopped in the outer most southbound lane of the interstate, and a semi-truck was traveling southbound struck the vehicle from behind. Five people were in that vehicle.

Police say the one person originally reported as surviving, 17-year-old Dominque Johnson of Kansas City, Missouri, who was inside the vehicle during the crash and was transported to the hospital in critical condition, died late Saturday at the hospital.

They say two of the children, seven-month-old Taeshawn Hutchison and two-year-old JaRiah Hutchison, died at the scene, the other child, one-year-old JaNijah Hutchison, and an adult, 24-year-old Shante Hopkins, who was the mother of the children, died at the hospital.

Police say for some time they weren’t even sure what kind of car was involved in the accident because it was buried under the semi-truck.

“It’s pretty catastrophic were looking at it we just were now able to get it freed from underneath the tractor trailer and were taking a look at it right now but it wasn’t immediately apparent what kind,” said Sgt. Bill Mahoney with the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department.

Police say the driver of that tractor trailer is unharmed. They were getting a statement from him and gathering evidence at the scene on Saturday night.
 

2 TRANSPORTED TO HOSPITAL AFTER WRECK WITH 18-WHEELER IN LINCOLN CO., TENNESSEE



2 transported to hospital after wreck with 18-wheeler in Lincoln Co., Tennessee



Posted: Dec 27, 2014 10:53 PM EST Updated: Dec 27, 2014 10:53 PM EST

By Nick Quaife





The SEMI attempted to dodge the Ford and drove off the road.(Source: WAFF)

  

LINCOLN COUNTY, TN (WAFF) - Saturday evening at around 5 p.m. emergency crews responded to a wreck in front of PalaTec located on Highway 231/431 in Lincoln County.

Lincoln County Sheriffs, Tennessee State Troopers, Park City Fire and Rescue, and Lincoln County Emergency Management Services responded to the scene.


According to state troopers, the wreck involved a Ford Escape and an 18-wheeler. 

The Ford was traveling in the southbound lane and was attempting to make a turn onto a street located across the northbound lane. When the Ford made the turn, state troopers said that the driver did not see the 18-wheeler.


The SEMI attempted to dodge the Ford and drove off the road.


The two occupants in the Ford were transported via Lincoln County EMS to Lincoln Hospital with minor injuries.