source https://www.journaldemocrat.com/news/20190403/unmc-allergist-talks-about-allergy-asthma-issues-in-flood-cleanup

The leasing office at the vacant apartment complex burned Tuesday evening

WILMINGTON — Police are investigating a fire Tuesday night at a vacant Wilmington apartment complex as possible arson.

At about 7 p.m. Tuesday, crews from the Wilmington Fire Department responded to The Glen Apartments on South College Road, accross from the University at North Carolina Wilmington. The 500-unit, multi-building complex has been empty since October after damage and mold concerns following Hurricane Florence.

On Wednesday, the Wilmington Police Department announced it had determined the fire was «suspicious in nature.» An investigation is ongoing.

The blaze destroyed the leasing office at the former apartment complex. In the days after the hurricane, when residents were forced to vacate, that office also served as a staging area for residents to receive help from the American Red Cross and other aid organizations.

In a news release, Wilmington Fire Department spokeswoman Natosha Vincent wrote that crews had the flames extinguished by 8:55 p.m. Tuesday. Officials did not report any injuries in the blaze.

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The Glen has been vacant since October, when the residents of 480 occupied units were told they would have to leave.

The buildings sustained extensive damage during Hurricane Florence in September. As of February, owner Phillips Management Group said it had not decided on future plans for the complex.

«The fire department indicated to us that they are continuing to investigate the cause of the fire, and will hopefully have a report for us next week,» Phillips Management Group President Maria Barker wrote in an email. «Until they release their report and findings, we’re unable to provide additional information.»

Anyone with information on the fire is asked to contact the Wilmington Police Department via 911, at 910-343-3609 or anonymously submit a tip via Text-A-Tip. Send “Tip708” and the information to 274637 (CRIMES).

Reporter Cammie Bellamy can be reached at 910-343-2339 or Cammie.Bellamy@StarNewsOnline.com.

source https://www.starnewsonline.com/news/20190403/police-investigate-fire-at-glen-as-possible-arson

Traditional surgery to reshape a nose or ear entails cutting and suturing, sometimes followed by long recovery times and scars. But now, researchers have developed a «molecular surgery» process that uses tiny needles, electric current and 3-D-printed molds to quickly reshape living tissue with no incisions, scarring or recovery time. The technique even shows promise as a way to fix immobile joints or as a noninvasive alternative to laser eye surgery.

The researchers will present their results today at the American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2019 National Meeting & Exposition.

«We envision this new technique as a low-cost office procedure done under local anesthesia,» says Michael Hill, Ph.D., one of the project’s principal investigators, who will discuss the work at the meeting. «The whole process would take about five minutes.»

Hill, who is at Occidental College, became involved in this project when Brian Wong, M.D., Ph.D., who is at the University of California, Irvine, asked for help in developing a noninvasive technique to reshape cartilage. Such a method would be useful for cosmetic surgery procedures, such as making a nose more attractive. But the method also could help fix problems, such as a deviated septum, or conditions for which no good treatments exist, such as joint contractures caused by stroke or cerebral palsy. Having suffered through painful deviated septum surgery himself, Hill understands what patients go through, and was excited to join a project to develop a better strategy.

Wong was already an expert in one alternative technique that uses an infrared laser to heat cartilage, making it flexible enough to reshape. «The problem is, that technique is expensive, and it’s hard to heat the cartilage enough so that it’s malleable without killing the tissue,» Hill says. To find a more practical approach, Wong’s team began experimenting with passing current through cartilage to heat it up. The method indeed allowed them to reshape tissue, but, curiously, not by warming it. Wong turned to Hill to determine just how the new method was working and to refine it to prevent tissue damage.

Cartilage is made up of tiny rigid fibers of collagen loosely woven together by biopolymers. Its structure resembles spaghetti that’s been randomly dumped on a counter, with the individual strands tied together with thread. «If you picked it up, the strands wouldn’t fall apart, but it would be floppy,» Hill says. Cartilage also contains negatively charged proteins and positively charged sodium ions. Cartilage with a greater density of these charged particles is stiffer than cartilage with a lower charge density.

Hill’s group discovered that passing current through cartilage electrolyzes water in the tissue, converting the water into oxygen and hydrogen ions, or protons. The positive charge of the protons cancels out the negative charge on the proteins, reducing charge density and making the cartilage more malleable. «Once the tissue is floppy,» he says, «you can mold it to whatever shape you want.»

The team tested the method on a rabbit whose ears normally stand upright. They used a mold to hold one ear bent over in the desired new shape. If they had then removed the mold without applying a current, the rabbit’s ear would have sprung back into its original upright position, just like a human ear would. But by inserting microneedle electrodes into the ear at the bend and pulsing current through them with the mold in place, they briefly softened the cartilage at the bend site without damage. Turning off the current then allowed the cartilage to harden in its new shape, after which the mold was removed.

To achieve this outcome with traditional methods, a surgeon would have to cut through the skin and cartilage and then stick the pieces back together. That can lead to formation of scar tissue at the joint. That scar tissue must sometimes be removed in subsequent operations, Hill says. By avoiding this mechanical damage to the cartilage, the molecular surgery technique causes no scarring and no pain.

The researchers are exploring licensing options for the cartilage technique with medical device companies. They’re also investigating applications in other types of collagen tissue, such as tendons and corneas. In an eye, cornea shape affects vision, with too much curvature causing nearsightedness, for example. Many hurdles must be overcome before this method could be used to correct a person’s vision, but preliminary animal experiments have had promising results. The researchers used a 3-D printer to make a contact lens. After painting electrodes on it, they put the contact lens on the eye. Applying current allowed them to temporarily soften the cornea and change its curvature.

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More information: Electrochemical reshaping of living tissues: Non-invasive surgical modalities for reshaping cartilage and cornea, the American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2019 National Meeting & Exposition.

source https://phys.org/news/2019-04-molecular-surgery-reshapes-tissue-electricity.html

Operation Blessing is in Nebraska helping residents affected by widespread flooding that has hit the Midwest over the past month. The organization has brought a convoy of relief aid, including a Mobile Command Center, construction trailer, mobile kitchen, and a box truck full of supplies to respond to the needs of the victims of the recent floods.

The support comes after authorities had to use boats and large vehicles to rescue some residents. The flooding destroyed homes and ruined crops, resulting in $1.3 billion in damage and nearly $850 million in losses in crops and cattle. The flooding came from rain and snow melting that overwhelmed creeks and rivers. At least one person has died. 

The damage is so extensive that surging water levels have left a large area without any way to protect against future floods.  Operation Blessing volunteers have been working to remove debris and sheetrock from homes that have water damage.

«When floodwaters enter a home, almost everything below the water line has to be removed including drywall, flooring, and insulation,» Operation Blessing tweeted. «Otherwise, mold will begin to grow and spread. Operation Blessing volunteers are helping #Nebraska flood victims with this laborious process.»

When floodwaters enter a home, almost everything below the water line has to be removed including drywall, flooring, and insulation. Otherwise, mold will begin to grow and spread. Operation Blessing volunteers are helping #Nebraska flood victims with this laborious process. pic.twitter.com/34uGH9T8My

— Operation Blessing (@operationbless) March 30, 2019

Jaimie Brush, a daughter of flood victims, told CBN News that she is glad to have organizations like Operation Blessing to help her elderly parents.
 
«My dad is 62 years old and my mom is almost 60 and is not healthy so she is not able to help him,» Brush said. «So my siblings and I were really pushing for my parents to ask for volunteer help and so they finally did and now we have a big group of people here helping them…which is amazing.»

Operation Blessing released a tweet sharing Jamie’s family story. 

«Jamie’s elderly parents had to be evacuated from their home in #Nebraska when the recent #floods hit,» OB wrote. «But four feet of water flooded their basement, destroying treasured possessions. OB volunteers helped Jamie sort through the aftermath. #PhotoPrayer»

Jamie’s elderly parents had to be evacuated from their home in #Nebraska when the recent #floods hit. But four feet of water flooded their basement, destroying treasured possessions. OB volunteers helped Jamie sort through the aftermath. #PhotoPrayer pic.twitter.com/Su9vAdICyx

— Operation Blessing (@operationbless) March 31, 2019

In an interview with CBN News, Senior Director of U.S Disaster Relief  Anthony Lloyd shared the organization specializes in hot meals, flood relief and cleaning houses. Furthermore, their biggest goal is to encourage the victims, calling themselves the «hands and feet of Jesus».  

The organization desires to continue to share the gospel of Jesus Christ while serving the victims. 

«We kinda get them encouraged,» Lloyd told CBN News in an interview March 21. «Get that path to recovery started and pray with them.»

Lloyd said supporters of Operation Blessing are amazing and he wanted to thank them. 

«We are glad to do it,» he said. «It is great to see. All the support we been provided through the years is amazing. Can’t thank the supporters of Operation Blessing enough.»

CLICK HERE to help Operation Blessing provide aid to flood victims. 
 

source http://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2019/april/operation-blessing-volunteers-helping-nebraska-flood-victims-clean-out-homes

BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — Servpro of Broome, Tompkins and Tioga Counties is the Greater Binghamton Chamber Business of the Week.

Servpro provides 24 hour emergency cleanup from fire, water and mold damage.

The local franchise was founded by Lou Sepe in 1993 and has become a family affair employing Sepe’s children and spouses.

It does residential and commercial cleanups including government buildings, hospitals and schools.

Vice President for Administration and Marketing Danielle Sepe Yurka says the company’s nearly 50 employees are continually updating their training.

«We’ve been in business for 25 years and hold the ranking of one of the top 20 franchises out of 1,700 franchises nationwide, United States and Canada.  For us, we continue to educate our staff and provide the best services that we can to create happy customers,» she says.

Servpro of Broome also has the large-loss unit for all of Upstate New York.

And it provides a free mold assessment for anyone who has had water damage.

Its 24 hour emergency line is 722-2262.

source https://www.binghamtonhomepage.com/news/business-of-the-week/business-of-the-week-servpro/1893419672

 Riverhead officials cracked down recently on vacant and potentially unsafe buildings they said have made it more difficult to revitalize the downtown area.

After inspecting 10 downtown properties in a process that began in November, Riverhead’s fire marshal and code enforcement officers recently issued more than 100 violations for those properties. While the owners of seven of those properties were working toward addressing the violations, the owners of the remaining three properties were ordered to bring the buildings into compliance with the town code, Riverhead officials announced March 26 at a news conference at Town Hall.

A public records request revealed the three properties are 117 E. Main St., 53-55-59 E. Main St. and 103-105 E. Main St. The properties at 117 E. Main St. and 53-55-59 E. Main St. are owned by Riverhead Enterprises, whose CEO is Shelly Gordon, according to business records dating to 2013. The violations included a bird infestation and a deteriorated floor on the second story of the 117 E. Main St. building; roof leaks and exposed electrical wiring at 103-105 E. Main St.; and water carpet damage and ceiling mold at 53-55-59 E. Main St. 

“It’s upsetting to have a situation like this, but we are doing everything possible to clean it up,»  Gordon said in an interview Saturday.

He said there had been a failure in communication at some point between Riverhead Enterprises, which he described as a real estate partnership, and town officials before the violations being filed. But «once we were served with this notice, we realized this is top priority,» Gordon said. «From our standpoint, we are ready to deploy all the resources that are necessary to comply with the request from Town Hall.” 

The owners of the three properties were ordered to correct the code violations by April 19 and the violations cited by the fire marshal by April 22. The town will consider legal action against owners who do not comply by the deadlines, said Riverhead Supervisor Laura Jens-Smith. 

A Roadblock for Revitalization

Dawn Thomas, community project supervisor for Riverhead’s Community Development Agency, said such vacant buildings are among the biggest challenges to efforts to revitalize the downtown area.

“The size of some of those buildings is a throwback to a different time,” said Thomas, whose agency administers and secures grants for downtown revitalization projects in Riverhead. “They’re too large . . . with the advent of the internet, the kinds of uses and businesses that would have located downtown when these buildings were built are no longer viable for any new uses like retail, restaurants or small boutiques.”

Councilwoman Catherine Kent, the town board’s liaison to the Downtown Revitalization Committee, said vacant downtown buildings have been a recurring topic in revitalization discussions.

«Some of these owners seem to be holding onto their buildings, thinking they’re going to get a better price as we revitalize,» said Kent. «But at the same time, having those big, empty buildings in a central location downtown holds back revitalization.»

Possible Solutions

Kent said one tool that officials have at their disposal is a revision passed last fall to the town code’s blighted properties section, under which a system assessing points to property owners for specific buildings violation was tweaked to address vacant buildings.

Thomas said other businesses — such as mixed-use retail and residential projects — have expressed interest in occupying vacant Main Street and downtown buildings since the federal government in November approved Riverhead for designation as an Opportunity Zone, a federal program designed to boost private investment in underserved communities through tax benefits.

» I think [the town board] will look into other tools and other actions that we can take,» Kent said, «because revitalizing downtown is something we fully intend to get finished.»

source https://www.newsday.com/long-island/suffolk/code-violations-vacant-downtown-revitalization-1.29138323

Updated: May 25, 2018:

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source https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/mold-bodily-injury-claim-louisiana-59045/

source http://norfolkdailynews.com/blogs/black-mold-like-a-creature-from-the-black-lagoon/article_a18e1ec8-4fe5-11e9-86f9-338db7936ef4.html

source https://www.3newsnow.com/smithsonian-stops-by-durham-to-show-how-to-treat-damaged-keepsakes-after-flood

March 30, 2019, 6:10 PM GMT

By Courtney Kube and Mosheh Gains

CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. — More than six months after Hurricane Florence ravaged North Carolina, hundreds of buildings at Camp Lejeune and two other nearby Marine Corps installations remain frozen in time, with walls still caved in and roofs missing.

The Marines say they need $3.6 billion to repair the damage to more than 900 buildings at Camp Lejeune, Marine Corps Air Station New River, and Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point caused by the storm and catastrophic flooding in its aftermath. And while they have torn down soggy, moldy walls, put tarps on roofs and moved Marines into trailers, so far they have not received a penny from the federal government to fix the damage.

Now the Marine Corps’ top officer is warning that readiness at Camp Lejeune — home to one third of the Corps’ total combat power — is degraded and «will continue to degrade given current conditions.» In a recent memo to Navy Secretary Richard Spencer, Commandant Gen. Robert Neller cited, among other «negative factors,» the diversion of resources to the border, where the Trump administration has sent active-duty troops to patrol and plans to use military funding to pay for a wall.

«Mister Secretary, I am asking for your assistance,» wrote Neller in his memo, his second this year requesting that Spencer push Congress to provide more funds. «The hurricane season is only three months away, and we have Marines, Sailors, and civilians working in compromised structures.»

Neller wrote that the lack of the money needed for repairs, and unexpected expenses like the U.S. military mission at the southern border, are «imposing unacceptable risk to Marine Corps combat readiness and solvency.»

The Department of Defense has allocated money for repairs, but not until fiscal year 2020. Congress has not responded to Neller’s appeal for more money in the interim.

In a March 23 memo obtained by NBC News, Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan requested congressional approval of $600 million for «near-term hurricane recovery actions.» A defense official said as much as $400 million of that could go to Camp Lejeune recovery efforts.

«We understand the effect on readiness if Congress does not approve the reprogamming action,» Shanahan wrote.

In a statement to NBC News, Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., said it is «unacceptable» that «Camp Lejeune and other North Carolina military bases are still waiting on disaster relief we first requested last fall.»

Burr’s fellow North Carolina Republican, Sen. Thom Tillis, agreed, telling NBC News in a written statement that «Camp Lejeune suffered significant damage from Hurricane Florence and Senators Tillis and Burr are working with Congressional appropriators to secure additional federal relief to ensure training and readiness will not be impacted in the long-term and the base can make a complete recovery.»

Frogs in the hallway

At Camp Lejeune’s Second Marine Expeditionary Force headquarters, roughly half the structures received significant structural damage and most of the roofs were blown off. They are still covered with blue tarps. Second MEF — or II MEF, as it is usually known — is one of three MEFS around the world, and represents a third of the Corps ready combat strength.

«We’re 100 percent operational,» said Col. Brian Wolford, chief of staff to II MEF. «We’re here doing our work. But the conditions we’re working under are just like when we were in Iraq or Afghanistan.»

Wolford was among the first Marines back into the building after the storm, and describes seeing frogs in the hallways when they first returned.

«Is this the way we want our Marines and civilian Marines to be working?» he asked. «In these kind of conditions?»

As NBC News toured the damage, Marines at the main II MEF headquarters building maintained a positive attitude about their working conditions. They were anxious to show us the «creepy scarecrow» — a painting they found when they tore down damaged drywall after the storm.

During World War II, the building was a hospital and the Marines believe the scarecrow was once in the children’s wing.

The devastation has forced the Marines to scale back on some training, including exercises at Onslow Beach, where amphibious training teaches Marines to attack from the land and sea.

Some buildings on base are beyond repair, with ceilings caved in, walls crumbling and mold everywhere. At Camp Johnson, which sits on historic Montford Point, on the northern side of Lejeune, the buildings have never been re-occupied, and Marines learning combat service support spend their days in classroom trailers. Montford Point, where the first African Americans received their training to be Marines during World War II, is a sacred place for the Marine Corps.

The Marine in charge of all installations says the repair delays are having an impact on performance and that he’s disappointed in the response.

«I mean it’s kind of like a thousand cuts right now,» said Maj. Gen. Vincent Coglianese. «It has a serious impact.»

«We’ve done all the due diligence that we [can] and we keep on waiting for further assistance,» he said. «And there’s different reasons why I guess we haven’t got that. That’s not for me to say. I’m just disappointed.»

In December, Neller told Congress that repair of 31 prioritized buildings on the base would cost $3.6 billion. Some buildings were so old and damaged that they need to be rebuilt from the ground up, he said.

In the meantime, the Marine Corps has moved around money already in its budget to pay for small, temporary fixes.

«We’ve done initial, you know, damage control surgery and triage,» said Brig. Gen. Ben Watson, the commanding general for Camp Lejeune. «But we haven’t got the funding yet to actually repair the buildings.»

Watson knows another hurricane or severe rain could change everything, making difficult working conditions untenable.

«Marines will find a way to accomplish the mission,» he said. «It just becomes harder and harder. And we ask more and more of our service members and their families to accomplish the same mission.»

The next hurricane season begins on June 1. Gen. Neller is expected to retire from the Marine Corps by then, after 44 years of service. Lt. Gen. David H. Berger has been nominated to replace him.

source https://www.nbcnews.com/news/military/camp-lejeune-still-mess-6-months-after-hurricane-florence-where-n986456