City and CSX Transportation maintenance crews did not do a good job responding to repeated complaints from residents about street damage on the Baltimore block that collapsed in the spring, according to the city's transportation director and a report reviewing previous inspections.

The city of Baltimore issued the report Sunday analyzing the April 30 collapse of a stretch of East 26th Street after massive rainfall. The report noted that neither CSX nor city maintenance crews who responded to several resident complaints about the roadway before the disaster had the expertise to identify the surface issues as symptomatic of a larger failure of the street's subsurface.

While the report revealed a lack of coordination between the two entities and a lack of thoroughness in infrastructure inspections, it did not conclusively say what caused the collapse other than an unusually cold and wet winter.

"While we look at available information and discuss possible scenarios, the definitive conditions which ultimately caused the collapse remain inconclusive due to the lack of exploratory information which may not become available even during the extensive excavation of the failure area during the reconstruction phase," the report said.

On Sunday, Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake met with several of the residents who were forced to temporarily leave their homes in the spring after a 120-year-old retaining wall failed after heavy rainstorms, causing much of the street to collapse. The meeting was to go over the results of the report Rawlings-Blake had ordered from city transportation and public works employees about the history of inspections and repairs to the street and complaints from residents.

"This is about getting to the bottom of what happened and why," Rawlings-Blake said after the meeting.

She said residents were given a timetable for repairs and were told of the changes city officials had made to ensure that streets, bridges and walls are thoroughly inspected.

The changes include sending out engineers to do ground testing of streets that receive more than one complaint and deploying city workers and inspectors to review the city's aging infrastructure after major rainstorms such as the deluge the city saw last week, which flooded some streets, particularly in Southeast Baltimore.

Some residents have hired lawyers to seek reparations from the city and CSX after being forced to relocate to city-paid hotels or making other living arrangements for weeks while structural engineers studied the collapse to make sure their homes were not in danger.

"We saw that the city appears to admit that mistakes were made, and we're happy with that," said Jeff Bowman, an attorney who represents five properties.

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Mayor meets with residents over E. 26th Street collapse

City and CSX Transportation maintenance crews did not do a good job responding to repeated complaints from residents about street damage on the Baltimore block that collapsed in the spring, according to the city's transportation director and a report reviewing previous inspections.

The city of Baltimore issued the report Sunday analyzing the April 30 collapse of a stretch of East 26th Street after massive rainfall. The report noted that neither CSX nor city maintenance crews who responded to several resident complaints about the roadway before the disaster had the expertise to identify the surface issues as symptomatic of a larger failure of the street's subsurface.

While the report revealed a lack of coordination between the two entities and a lack of thoroughness in infrastructure inspections, it did not conclusively say what caused the collapse other than an unusually cold and wet winter.

"While we look at available information and discuss possible scenarios, the definitive conditions which ultimately caused the collapse remain inconclusive due to the lack of exploratory information which may not become available even during the extensive excavation of the failure area during the reconstruction phase," the report said.

On Sunday, Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake met with several of the residents who were forced to temporarily leave their homes in the spring after a 120-year-old retaining wall failed after heavy rainstorms, causing much of the street to collapse. The meeting was to go over the results of the report Rawlings-Blake had ordered from city transportation and public works employees about the history of inspections and repairs to the street and complaints from residents.

"This is about getting to the bottom of what happened and why," Rawlings-Blake said after the meeting.

She said residents were given a timetable for repairs and were told of the changes city officials had made to ensure that streets, bridges and walls are thoroughly inspected.

The changes include sending out engineers to do ground testing of streets that receive more than one complaint and deploying city workers and inspectors to review the city's aging infrastructure after major rainstorms such as the deluge the city saw last week, which flooded some streets, particularly in Southeast Baltimore.

Some residents have hired lawyers to seek reparations from the city and CSX after being forced to relocate to city-paid hotels or making other living arrangements for weeks while structural engineers studied the collapse to make sure their homes were not in danger.

"We saw that the city appears to admit that mistakes were made, and we're happy with that," said Jeff Bowman, an attorney who represents five properties.

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Rawlings-Blake meets with residents regarding E. 26th Street collapse

SARANAC LAKE - The town of Harrietstown hopes the Federal Emergency Management Agency will cover most, if not all, of the cost of replacement of a retaining wall along the Saranac River behind the Harrietstown Town Hall.

Town officials recently submitted paperwork to the federal agency to reimburse the town $185,000, which represents their first payment to the project's contractor, Luck Brothers of Plattsburgh. Luck Brothers is expected to submit another invoice for roughly $80,000. The company bid $264,000 on the project.

Town Supervisor Mike Kilroy said FEMA has promised to give the town at least $207,000.

The town of Harrietstown is hoping the Federal Emergency Management Agency will cover most, if not all, of the cost of replacement of this new retaining wall along the Saranac River behind the Harrietstown Town Hall. (Enterprise photo Chris Knight)

"As soon as Luck turns in their second one, I'll submit it," Kilroy said. "It's going to be about $80,000 something. They may give us all of it, and I'd be happy if they do. They might also say, 'Here's your $207,000. That's all you're going to get.' I'm just going to keep submitting until they say stop."

The original retaining wall was damaged in April 2011 when the river, fueled by a combination of heavy rain and spring snowmelt, overflowed its banks. Getting it replaced took more than three years. Town officials have said that's because the project required a long list of approvals from numerous agencies including the state Adirondack Park Agency, Department of Environmental Conservation, Department of Transportation, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Work on the new retaining wall finally started in June. Town Code Enforcement Officer Ed Randig said Thursday that the project was "basically complete" except for some paving work and the installation of a railing.

"We restored the River Walk," he said. "All the bedrock is completed and we're waiting for the grass to grow."

Town officials noted that the wall is much taller than the one that was there before. One board member joked that it looked like a fort.

"The turret and the cannons are coming in next week, and we're going to have a re-enactment of the French and Indian War," Randig quipped.

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H'town banks on FEMA to cover retaining wall project

A 27-year-old woman heading home from work at Cousins Subs rolled her truck Friday morning when she slammed into a retaining wall near Rumsey Park.

Mike and Shelly Kraus, who were headed to Walmart around 10:30 a.m., witnessed the wreck.

Mike said as he headed north on McLane Road, the womans Dodge pickup pulled up behind the couple's minivan. Mike kept an eye on the truck from his rearview mirror, the woman on his tail.

Suddenly, the womans blue truck veered west, slammed into the concrete block retaining wall near Rumsey Park and flipped.

The crash gave the Krauses quite a fright. They turned around to see if the driver was all right and. The woman reportedly climbed out of the crumpled cab, crying, but okay.

I felt bad for her, Mike said.

The womans mother, who arrived on the scene shortly after the wreck, said her daughter had complained to her earlier of being hot at work.

Paramedics took the driver to Payson Regional Medical Center.

Her license plate read "Sea Yaa."

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Woman inexplicably rolls vehicle on McLane Road

NEW YORK Asdrubal Cabrera hit his first home run for Washington and tumbled over a retaining wall to make a terrific catch, leading the Nationals past the New York Mets 3-2 Wednesday night for their 10th straight victory at Citi Field.

Rafael Soriano held on in the ninth inning following Travis d'Arnaud's leadoff homer, getting the final two outs after the Mets put a pair of runners in scoring position.

Matt den Dekker was thrown out at home on pinch-hitter Eric Campbell's grounder to shortstop. Curtis Granderson hit a comebacker on the next pitch, giving Soriano his 27th save in 31 tries.

Bryce Harper and Kevin Frandsen each hit a sacrifice fly in the seventh to make a winner of Jordan Zimmermann (8-5). Drew Storen pitched out of a bases-loaded jam in the bottom half, and the NL East leaders overcame three errors to win for the 24th time in their last 28 road games against the Mets dating to 2011. They haven't lost in Queens since June 29 last year.

The winning streak at Citi Field ties a franchise record for the longest at one venue away from home. The Montreal Expos won 10 road games in a row against the Chicago Cubs from 1982-83.

Coming off his 200th career win last Friday, Mets starter Bartolo Colon (11-10) allowed two runs one earned in seven innings.

Leading 1-0, Colon gave up a leadoff double in the seventh to Adam LaRoche. He stopped at third on a single to center by Ian Desmond, who advanced to second when Juan Lagares' high throw ticked off the glove of cutoff man Lucas Duda for an error.

That ended up hurting the Mets. Harper tied it with a sacrifice fly, Ramos singled and Frandsen put the Nationals ahead with another sacrifice fly.

Cabrera connected in the eighth off Jeurys Familia. The two-time All-Star hit nine home runs for Cleveland this season before he was dealt to Washington at the July 31 trade deadline.

In the bottom half, Cabrera bolted from his spot at second base and made a running catch of Granderson's foul pop just before hitting a retaining wall and going head over heels.

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Nats hold off Mets for 10th straight at Citi Field

Nats hold off Mets 3-2 for 10th straight at Citi

(AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

By MIKE FITZPATRICK

AP Sports Writer

NEW YORK (AP) Despite three untimely errors, the Washington Nationals found a way to win at Citi Field. They always do.

Asdrubal Cabrera hit his first home run for Washington and tumbled over a retaining wall to make a terrific catch, leading the Nationals past the New York Mets 3-2 Wednesday night for their 10th straight victory in Queens.

"We're going to have games like this every once in a while. The fact that we were able to overcome it is key," manager Matt Williams said. "We were fortunate tonight."

Rafael Soriano held on in the ninth following Travis d'Arnaud's leadoff homer, getting the final two outs after the Mets put a pair of runners in scoring position.

Matt den Dekker was thrown out at home on pinch-hitter Eric Campbell's grounder to shortstop - and the call was upheld after a replay review to determine whether catcher Wilson Ramos blocked the plate illegally. Curtis Granderson hit a comebacker on the next pitch, giving Soriano his 27th save in 31 tries.

"We've got the best bullpen in the game," starter Jordan Zimmermann said.

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Nats Hold Off Mets, Claim 10th Straight W At Citi

Contractors work to build a retaining wall after flooding last year brought down a 100-year-old wall in Brown St, Dunedin. Photo by Peter McIntosh

The June 2013 flooding caused slips around the city and closed dozens of roads across the region, including State Highway 1 to the north.

Dunedin City Council project engineer Evan Matheson said yesterday the council had worked with the Earthquake Commission and private insurers on the slip.

It had also spent significant time doing geotechnical assessments to understand why the wall had failed, so the new wall could be designed appropriately.

Mr Matheson said the previous wall, built about 100 years ago, was not a retaining wall, as such.

As well, old drains behind the wall had become blocked over the decades.

The new wall would be made from pre-cast concrete panels, anchored deep into the ground to make it ''nice and strong''.

The work was ''predominantly a council job'', as it was responsible for the wall, although about half of the cost would be paid by the New Zealand Transport Agency.

A house near the slip was ''quite stable'', Mr Matheson said.

Work began last week and was expected to be finished in October,

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Work begins on Brown St wall

The city of Baltimore and CSX Transportation have agreed to split the cost of rebuilding the one-block retaining wall that collapsed along East 26th Street in Charles Village, ending months of negotiations over who was responsible and how much taxpayers would cover.

City officials said Monday they expect the collapse to cost taxpayers about $7.5 million though the total could increase as construction continues and CSX would pay the rest. The entire project is now expected to cost about $15 million, down from an initial estimate of $18.5 million.

The landslide amid heavy rains in April sent half the block of East 26th Street between St. Paul and North Charles streets tumbling into a cut of parallel railroad tracks owned by CSX. Residents of the block were displaced for weeks and still are living in a construction zone.

Responsibility for the repairs has been a touchy subject, as CSX and city property lines intersect across Baltimore, a city with aging infrastructure and active rail lines. While the city and CSX have split costs related to retaining walls around tracks in the past, some city leaders had expressed hope that the railroad would contribute more to the reconstruction this time around.

City Council President Bernard C. "Jack" Young said he was "disappointed" with the agreement. He said CSX "should have paid for it all," and that he believed the wall had been maintained by the railroad.

Councilman Carl Stokes, who represents the area, said he would "trust the wisdom of the city administration" if it believed the agreement helped avoid "long and lengthy litigation," but that he has never seen documents to show "who really is truly responsible."

Neither the city nor the Florida-based railroad accept responsibility for the collapse in the agreement, but release each other from liability. They also agree to split the cost of any losses or damages awarded to third parties who bring claims in relation to the incident, with the provision that legal restrictions on government liability would cap any city contribution.

"This is a complex and significant incident. It's not easy to determine causation," said David Ralph, the deputy city solicitor. "In fact, you know, neither party believes we're necessarily at fault for this, but we realize others might hold one or both of us responsible for something that was an act of God."

Kevin Harris, a spokesman for Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, said the mayor believes the agreement is "equitable and fair."

William Johnson, director of the city transportation department, said negotiations began soon after the collapse. "We didn't always agree on everything, but the one thing I give them credit for is they remained at the table," he said of CSX.

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City, CSX agree to split East 26th Street repair costs

TYLER, TX (KLTV) -

A Tyler rabbi has made sure East Texans prayers are heard.

We spoke with Rabbi Neal Katz in a phone interview in July while he was in Israel on a trip. Katz went with a group from Tyler, made up of both Jews and Christians, who were visiting the country together.

Before his trip, he collected prayers to take to the Western Wall where he would place them for those who could not make the trip. Its a long standing tradition that brought a little piece, or pieces of Tyler, to rest far away in Israel.

In a picture, handwritten prayers from East Texans can be seen stuffed in the Western Wall in Jerusalem.

The Western Wall is the western most retaining wall of the Temple Mount, which is where the temple of old Jerusalem used to stand and the reason why that area is considered particularly holy, is because that would be the closest you could stand to where the Holy of Holies once was, Rabbi Neal Katz, of Beth El Congregation, said.

Its a decades old tradition with millions of prayers tucked in the cracks of the wall each year. Rabbi Katz decided to put out a box at a table during International Day at Tyler Junior College before his trip.

What I thought would be nice is anybody who came to the International Day: the TJC students, staff, faculty, visitors, to have an opportunity to write a prayer to put in the Western Wall since I was going to be going in June, he explained.

East Texans from all religious backgrounds wrote down their prayers.

They would fold it up and I would take some time and put it in the wall. So, just a nice way to allow for some people from Tyler to send their prayers through the Western Wall, he explained.

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Nearly 100 handwritten prayers brought from Tyler to Jerusalem

MAN ON MOTORCYCLE HITS RETAINING WALL GUY GETS RAN OVER BY MOTORCYCLE
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MAN ON MOTORCYCLE HITS RETAINING WALL & GUY GETS RAN OVER BY MOTORCYCLE - Video