Protesters in Ramallah call for Palestinian leader Abbas to resign following activist’s death

Issued on: 27/06/2021 - 

Palestinians gather to protest the violent arrest and death of activist Nizar Banat in the West Bank city of Ramallah in the Palestinian Territories on June 26, 2021. © Abbas Momani, AFP

Palestinian protesters clashed with Palestinian security forces in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Saturday, AFP reporters said, the third day of demonstrations sparked by an activist's death in custody.

Nizar Banat, a 43-year-old from Hebron known for social media videos denouncing alleged corruption within the Palestinian Authority (PA), died on Thursday shortly after security forces stormed his house and violently arrested him, his family said.

On Saturday, hundreds took to the streets of Ramallah, the seat of the PA in the occupied West Bank, calling for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas to quit.

Protester Ismat Mansour said the death of Banat was just "the tip of the iceberg" while accusing the PA of "a mountain of corruption" and demanding that elections be held.

Others held up placards directed at Abbas' PA that simply said "leave".

Security officers in riot gear blocked off streets.

An AFP photographer said protesters hurled rocks at security forces, who responded by launching a barrage of tear gas canisters to break up the crowds.

It was not immediately possible to confirm if there were any injuries following the protests on Saturday.

Banat had registered as a candidate in Palestinian parliamentary elections, which had been set for May until Abbas postponed them indefinitely.

Banat's family said the forces used pepper spray on him, beat him badly and dragged him away in a vehicle.

Samir Abu Zarzour, the doctor who carried out the autopsy, said injuries on Banat's body indicated he had been beaten on the head, chest, neck, legs and hands, with less than an hour elapsing between his arrest and his death.

Gatherings in Ramallah and Hebron

On Thursday, after news spread of his death, some 300 people gathered in Ramallah, as well as in Banat's hometown of Hebron.

On Friday, thousands of mourners attended his funeral in Hebron, with crowds there chanting angry slogans against the PA, as well as at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem.

Banat's death also sparked condemnation from the United States, United Nations and European Union.

Palestinian prime minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said an investigation had been launched.

The PA exercises limited powers over some 40 percent of the West Bank, occupied by Israel since the Six-Day War of 1967.

Israel, which controls all access to the territory and coordinates with the PA, directly administers the remaining 60 percent.

(AFP)

Protesters bemoan 'police violence' at Dusseldorf rally

As many as 8,000 people gathered on Saturday against plans to tighten rules on protesting in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. According to organizers, the police response was "disproportionate."



Organizers said police repression hurt 100 demonstrators

Police in western Germany "violently dispersed" a large protest against plans to tighten rules on demonstrations, organizers complained on Sunday.

The AFP news agency reported that some 8,000 people gathered a day earlier in Dusseldorf, the capital of the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), which has proposed the new assembly law.

What have the organizers alleged?

"Stop the Assembly Law NRW - Preserve Basic Rights," an alliance of mainly left-wing organizations, said in a statement that officers surrounded the protesters in downtown Dusseldorf. They were left for several hours without access to refreshments or toilets.

Organizers claimed the protesters were held under the pretext of using banners that were higher than was allowed during demonstrations.


They labeled the police response an abuse of power and said 100 participants had been hurt as a result of "disproportionate police violence" during a "calm, colorful demonstration."

Local media reported that some protesters attacked officers, who resorted to using batons and pepper spray to quell the violence.
Journalist attacked

The German news agency DPA said one of its photojournalists was attacked by police.

The journalist said he had been beaten several times with a baton by an officer. At least one other colleague was hurt.

DPA's Editor-in-Chief Sven Gösmann said it was an "unacceptable attack on the freedom of press," and demanded a full investigation.

The chairman of the center-left Social Democratic Party in NRW, Thomas Kutschaty, called for a "complete clarification."

How have the police responded?

Police took several hours to respond to reports about the attack on the journalist, local media reported.

Officials said later that the reporter had gotten "between the emergency services and an aggressive group of troublemakers."

A police spokeswoman said a complaint of suspected bodily harm had been filed against the officer who allegedly harmed the journalist.

Giving a further update on Sunday, police said that fireworks and smoke bombs were used by demonstrators.

A police statement said a subgroup of 300 protesters was surrounded as they were "permanently uncooperative and repeatedly committed crimes."

Measures were then taken to establish their identities and several people have been charged.
What about the proposed law?

Although Germany has a federal assembly law, states are allowed to enact their own laws if they wish.

The proposed assembly law in NRW aims to regulate demonstrations, for example banning uniform or uniform-like clothing, to prevent violent behavior.

Critics, however, see it as encroaching on the basic right to assembly.

rm/mm (dpa, AFP)

Lebanon protesters clash with security forces as currency plunges


Issued on: 26/06/2021 - 

Demonstrators burn tyres in central Beirut on June 26, 2021, as they protest against dire living conditions ANWAR AMRO AFP

Beirut (AFP)

Lebanese protesters tried to storm central bank offices in two major cities on Saturday, state media reported, after the national currency plunged to a new record low on the black market.

The pound has been pegged to the dollar at 1,507 since 1997, but the country's worst economic crisis in decades has seen its unofficial value plummet.

On Saturday, money changers told AFP it was trading at 17,300-17,500 to the greenback on the black market, while some social media users said it had fallen as low as 18,000.

Dozens of angry Lebanese took to the streets of the northern city of Tripoli to denounce the depreciation and "difficult living conditions", the National News Agency reported.

Some protesters managed to break through the gates of a branch of the central bank and enter the courtyard, the NNA said, but the army prevented them from reaching the building.

Demonstrators also set fire to the entrance of a government office, an AFP correspondent said.

Others were seen trying to force their way into the homes of two lawmakers but were stopped by security forces.

The NNA said gunshots were heard outside the house of lawmaker Mohammed Kabbara and the army intervened to disperse protesters.

In the southern city of Sidon, protesters tried to storm another branch of the central bank only to be pushed back by security forces, the NNA reported.

Scattered protests also took place in the capital Beirut, where a small number of protesters took to the streets and burned tyres, an AFP correspondent said.

Lebanon has been roiled since autumn 2019 by an economic crisis the World Bank says is likely to rank among the world's worst financial crises since the mid-19th century.

The collapse has sparked outrage at Lebanon's political class, seen as woefully corrupt and unable to tackle the country's many difficulties.

The pound's dizzying depreciation comes as the eastern Mediterranean country grapples with shortages of medicine and fuel which are imported from abroad using foreign currency.

The country has been without a fully functioning government since a massive blast in Beirut last summer that killed more than 200 people and ravaged swathes of the capital.

The government stepped down after the disaster, but a deeply divided political class has since failed to agree on a new cabinet to replace it.

© 2021 AFP

Johnson & Johnson to stop selling opioids in US: NY attorney general

Issued on: 26/06/2021 - 

The opioids crisis is believed to have claimed more than 500,000 lives since 1999

Patrick T. FALLON AFP/File

Washington (AFP)

Johnson & Johnson, one of the pharmaceutical giants accused of fueling the deadly opioid crisis in the United States, will stop making or selling the drugs in the US under a $230 million settlement with New York state.

The agreement allows Johnson & Johnson to resolve litigation over its role in the epidemic, which has killed more than half a million people since 1999, according to a statement from New York attorney general Letitia James.

For its part, J&J announced in a separate statement that the settlement allowed it to avoid a trial that was scheduled to begin Monday.


The settlement "is not an admission of liability or wrongdoing by the company," it said, noting that other nationwide legal proceedings are underway, including a trial in California.

The prosecutor's statement said the company would spread the payments over nine years.

J&J could also pay an additional $30 million in the first year if the state enacts new legislation creating an opioid settlement fund.

"The opioid epidemic has wreaked havoc on countless communities across New York state and the rest of the nation, leaving millions still addicted to dangerous and deadly opioids," James said in the statement.

"Johnson & Johnson helped fuel this fire, but today they're committing to leaving the opioid business -- not only in New York, but across the entire country," she added.

That includes both manufacturing and selling opioids, the statement said.

The $230 million will be aimed at prevention, treatment and education efforts on the dangers of the substances in New York state.

Johnson & Johnson, Purdue Pharma and other pharmaceutical companies and distributors are accused of encouraging doctors to overprescribe opioids -- initially reserved for patients with particularly serious cancers -- even though they knew they were highly addictive.

Since 1999, this dependence has pushed many users of the drugs to higher and higher doses and to illicit substances such as heroin or fentanyl, an extremely powerful synthetic opiate with a high risk of fatal overdose.

About 500,000 people have died of drug overdoses in the United States since then.

- Cost of billions -

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the country's main public health agency, estimates that about 90,000 people died from drug overdoses in 2020, the majority of which involved opioids.

The US Department of Health estimates that the crisis was responsible for four years of declining life expectancy in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017.

Then-president Donald Trump declared it a national public health emergency in October 2017.

The CDC estimated in 2019 that the economic burden of the crisis, including health care costs, lost productivity and costs to the criminal justice system, was about $78.5 billion per year.

A study published by the American Society of Actuaries estimated the cost for the four years 2015-2018 at $631 billion.

The crisis seemed to be easing before the pandemic, thanks in particular to tighter controls on prescriptions, but the CDC recently reported an acceleration of deaths from drug overdoses, including from opioids.

While legal proceedings have increased in the country, many companies are trying to reach settlements.

In February, the prestigious consulting firm McKinsey announced that it had agreed to pay $573 million to settle lawsuits filed by some 40 US states accusing it of contributing to the opioid crisis through its advice to pharmaceutical companies, including Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of Oxycontin.

© 2021 AFP

Peru vote review can resume as new judge sworn in

Issued on: 26/06/2021 - 

Peru's leftist presidential candidate Pedro Castillo, pictured June 25, 2021, took a majority of votes according to the unconfirmed count Jose Carlos ANGULO AFP/File


Lima (AFP)

Challenges to balloting in Peru's disputed June 6 presidential election can resume as a new judge was sworn in Saturday to the panel overseeing vote disputes.

Leftist Pedro Castillo took a majority of votes, according to the unconfirmed count, in an election his right-wing rival Keiko Fujimori -- charged with corruption in an unrelated scandal -- claims was riddled with fraud.

The election has not been called due to the fraud claims from the Fujimori camp, which asked the National Jury of Elections (JNE), the final vote arbiter, to review thousands of votes

If she loses, Fujimori risks an imminent graft trial that would otherwise be delayed until after her presidential term.

One of four JNE judges, Luis Arce, announced Wednesday that he "declined" to continue his duties, from which he cannot resign under law until the job at hand is done.

On Saturday Victor Raul Rodriguez was sworn in as Arce's replacement.

"Electoral justice cannot remain paralyzed or blocked," said Jorge Luis Salas, the top JNE official.

Salas has endured fierce criticism from Fujimori supporters and even demonstrations outside his home.

The JNE has had to weather a highly polarized political environment that has seen large demos in favor of Fujimori and Castillo, including two in Lima on Saturday.

The situation was further rocked this week by the airing of audio from Vladimiro Montesions, the nefarious intelligence chief under Fujimori's father Alberto Fujimori (who was president from 1990-2000). Montesions is currently serving time for human rights abuses.

In the audio the imprisoned Montesinos gives instructions to buy three of the four JNE magistrates and throw the election for Fujimori.

According to the full vote count, Castillo received 50.12 percent of the votes in the election, or some 44,000 more than Fujimori.

The United States has declared the vote "free, fair, accessible and peaceful" and the Organization of American States has said it was without any "serious irregularities."

The JNE has already rejected the majority of Fujimori's objections.

Peru's new president is due to be sworn in on July 28, the country's independence day. 

Protesters clash with Palestinian security forces
AFP 5 hrs ago

Palestinian protesters clashed with Palestinian security forces in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Saturday, AFP reporters said, the third day of demonstrations sparked by an activist's death in custody.

© ABBAS MOMANI Protesters lift Palestinian flags and placards depicting human rights activist Nizar Banat who died while in the custody of Palestinian Authority (PA) security forces, during a demonstration protesting his death in Ramallah

© ABBAS MOMANI A man stands alone during clashes between Palestinian protesters and Palestinian security forces in the city of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, on June 26, 2021

Nizar Banat, a 43-year-old from Hebron known for social media videos denouncing alleged corruption within the Palestinian Authority (PA), died on Thursday shortly after security forces stormed his house and violently arrested him, his family said.

 Ahmad GHARABLI A Palestinian plain-clothes security officer hurls a projectile amid clashes with demonstrators protesting the death of human rights activist Nizar Banat in Ramallah

On Saturday, hundreds took to the streets of Ramallah, the seat of the PA in the occupied West Bank, calling for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas to quit.

Protester Ismat Mansour said the death of Banat was just "the tip of the iceberg" while accusing the PA of "a mountain of corruption" and demanding that elections be held.

Others held up placards directed at Abbas' PA that simply said "leave".

Security officers in riot gear blocked off streets.

An AFP photographer said protesters hurled rocks at security forces, who responded by launching a barrage of tear gas canisters to break up the crowds.

It was not immediately possible to confirm if there were any injuries following the protests on Saturday.

Banat had registered as a candidate in Palestinian parliamentary elections, which had been set for May until Abbas postponed them indefinitely.

Banat's family said the forces used pepper spray on him, beat him badly and dragged him away in a vehicle.

Samir Abu Zarzour, the doctor who carried out the autopsy, said injuries on Banat's body indicated he had been beaten on the head, chest, neck, legs and hands, with less than hour elapsing between his arrest and his death.

On Thursday, after news spread of his death, some 300 people gathered in Ramallah, as well as in Banat's hometown of Hebron.

On Friday, thousands of mourners attended his funeral in Hebron, with crowds there chanting angry slogans against the PA, as well as at the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem.

Banat's death also sparked condemnation from the United States, United Nations and European Union.

Palestinian prime minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said an investigation had been launched.

The PA exercises limited powers over some 40 percent of the West Bank, occupied by Israel since the Six-Day War of 1967.

Israel, which controls all access to the territory and coordinates with the PA, directly administers the remaining 60 percent.

bur-pjm/dv

PURIFICATION BY FIRE

CAWSTON, B.C. — Mounties are investigating after they say two more Catholic churches in British Columbia's southern Interior were destroyed in early-morning fires.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

RCMP say the Princeton detachment got a report at 3:52 a.m. that St. Ann's Catholic Church on Upper Similkameen Indian Band land, near Hedley, B.C., was on fire.

Another report came in to the Keremeos detachment at 4:45 a.m. that a Catholic church on Lower Similkameen land at Chopaka, near the U.S. border, was ablaze.

The Mounties say they're treating both fires as suspicious and looking for possible connection to fires that destroyed two other Catholic churches in the region.

Sgt. Jason Bayda with the Penticton South Okanagan RCMP says in a statement that police investigations into the fires early last week on First Nations lands around Osoyoos and Oliver are ongoing, with no arrests or charges so far.

The fires come less than a month after the discovery of what's believed to be the remains of 215 children in unmarked graves at a former residential school site in Kamloops.

Video: Police investigate 2 suspicious church fires on Indigenous lands in B.C. (cbc.ca)

Lower Similkameen Chief Keith Crow says Catholic community members were devastated by the fires and by the discovery of the graves.


"If you're hurting at this time, please reach out to somebody and make the call. There is a lot of upset people and it's ... heartbreaking," he said in a phone interview.

The small church in Chopaka was built more than 100 years ago and hosted a service a couple of weeks ago, Crow added.

The fire at that church had spread to nearby brush before being extinguished by crews with the B.C. Wildfire Services, the RCMP statement said.

Cowessess First Nation in Saskatchewan announced Thursday that ground-penetrating radar indicated 751 unmarked graves at the site of the former Marieval Indian Residential School. The Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc Nation said last month the discovery in Kamloops was made using the same technology.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 26, 2021.

The Canadian Press

Study suggests correlation between high levels of pollution and Covid-19 deaths

From 16 cities across 36 states, Pune and Mumbai were the two cities picked from Maharashtra (falling under zone 6) for the study

Smoke is seen coming out of a crematorium's chimney where Covid-19 dead bodies are cremated at Yerwada in Pune. (Pratham Gokhale/HT Photo)

PUNE NEWS
By Steffy Thevar
PUBLISHED ON JUN 26, 2021
HINDUSTAN TIMES

A study involving various experts from across the country found a correlation between high levels of pollution and Covid-19 deaths. The study shows that Maharashtra has recorded the second-highest annual particulate matter 2.5 emission loads in India and has also recorded the highest number of Covid-19 related deaths which indicates a link between air pollution and Covid-19, both of which directly impact the respiratory system.

The study titled ‘Establishing a link between fine particulate matter (PM2.5) zones and Covid -19 over India based on anthropogenic emission sources and air quality data’ also provided the first evidence about how people living in highly polluted areas are vulnerable to Covid-19 infection.

It is authored by Dr Saroj Kumar Sahu, PG environment sciences and Poonam Mangaraj, PG environment sciences from Utkal University, Bhubaneswar; Dr Gufran Beig, senior scientist; Suvarna Tikle, a scientist from IITM-Pune; Bhishma Tyagi, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela and V Vinoj, IIT-Bhubaneswar.

In the study, Covid-19 cases were observed between March 2020 to November 2020, while national PM 2.5 emissions load were estimated from the base year 2019.

For the study authors divided specific areas into different hotspot zones across India. From 16 cities across 36 states, Pune and Mumbai were the two cities picked from Maharashtra (falling under zone 6) for the study. Also, Pune and Mumbai are among the Covid-19 hotspots in the country, where high air pollution from the transport and industrial sectors are having a visible relationship with a higher number of Covid-19 cases and casualties.

Engineer reportedly warned in 2018 of ‘major damage’ at Miami condo complex

Four people confirmed dead and 159 still unaccounted for as search-and-rescue teams work around the clock

‘Praying for a miracle’: desperate search goes on



00:33Video shows collapse of Miami-area condo building


Richard Luscombe in Miami
@richlusc
Sat 26 Jun 2021 17.48 BST

Engineers flagged concerns of “major structural damage” at a south Florida condominium complex three years before its deadly collapse, it was reported on Saturday.

A Maryland-based consultant found evidence of a failing concrete slab on the pool deck and “abundant cracking and crumbling” to an underground parking garage during a 2018 inspection, and recommended repair work that was never carried out, the New York Times reported.

The 12-storey Champlain Towers South in the Miami suburb of Surfside collapsed in the early hours of Thursday, sparking a round-the-clock search through unstable wreckage for survivors that by Saturday morning had yielded no success.


‘Praying for a miracle’: the desperate search for 159 missing in condo collapse

At a mid-morning press conference, authorities said the official death toll remained at four, with the whereabouts of another 159 residents unknown. Fire officials said there was a “deep-seated” blaze inside the 30ft pile of rubble, which was sending up thick plumes of smoke and hampering the rescue effort in tandem with poor weather.

Rescue workers search in the rubble at the Champlain Towers South. Photograph: Gerald Herbert/AP

The structural report was conducted by Morabito Consultants, which was contracted by the condominium’s owners’ association to assess the structural integrity of the oceanside complex of 136 apartments.

It warned that “the waterproofing below the pool deck and entrance drive as well as all of the planer waterproofing is beyond its useful life and must be completely removed and replaced”.

Ominously, the report warned: “The failed waterproofing is causing major structural damage to the concrete structural slab below these areas. Failure to replace the waterproofing in the near future will cause the extent of the concrete deterioration to expand exponentially.”

Morabito gave no indication the structure was at risk of collapse, but noted repairs would be aimed at “maintaining the structural integrity” of the building.

“Though some of this damage is minor, most of the concrete deterioration needs to be repaired in a timely fashion,” Morabito wrote about damage near the base of the 40-year-old building.

A makeshift memorial at the site of the collapsed building in Surfside. Photograph: Andrea Sarcos/AFP/Getty Images

The reason for the collapse is not yet known. Daniella Levine Cava, the mayor of Miami-Dade county, said on Saturday: “We did not know of this report.

“We are obviously very interested in all of the evidence that’s coming to light and we’re going to be including it in what happens after the rescue. In the meantime we’re taking actions to make sure that other buildings are safe.”

That includes a 30-day audit by county agencies of all high-rise buildings “at the 40-year point and beyond”, she said, describing it as “an aggressive review of, as well as situations in these buildings to make sure they are safe”.

Included will be an inspection of the sister Champlain Towers North building next door on Collins Avenue, also constructed in 1981 with apparently identical specifications and materials. The Surfside mayor, Charles Burkett, urged an evacuation of residents of that tower on Saturday, saying he could not guarantee the building was secure.

Alan Cominksy, the fire chief of Miami-Dade county, said the third night of rescue operations was briefly halted and subsequently hampered by the growing fire inside the wreckage.

Search and rescue personnel work to find any survivors or casualties of the collapse. Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

“As we continue removing debris the smoke has been picking up,” he said during a briefing that took place amid thunder and torrential rain. “No smouldering fire, but obviously producing a large amount of smoke.

“The biggest thing here is hope, that’s what’s driving us right now … to continue our search and rescue efforts. It’s an extremely difficult situation.”

Search teams from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) and elsewhere arrived on Friday to help relieve the Miami-Dade rescuers who have been working non-stop since the collapse at 1.30am on Thursday. Giant cranes lifted larger sections of debris, while chains of workers removed smaller chunks in buckets.

Joe Biden signed a disaster declaration on Friday that sent federal resources and funding to Florida, after the state’s governor, Ron DeSantis, approved a similar declaration the day before.



00:51Aerial footage shows destruction after Miami building collapse – video

DeSantis was questioned on Saturday about evacuating the fallen tower’s sister building.

“Ultimately the mayor’s gonna have to make the call on that,” he said. “Given the similarities, given the same age, they think that may be something.”

About 100 relatives of the missing waited nearby for news, some growing frustrated.

“It’s day three so I feel like we need to understand how the process is going,” said Rachel Spiegel, whose mother, 66-year-old Judy Spiegel, lived on the sixth floor. “I really do believe everybody’s doing everything in their power, but there are family members, time is of the essence.”

Others were losing hope. Jeanne Ugarte feared a tragic end for her friends Juan and Ana Mora and their son Juan Jr.

“I know they’re not going to find them,” she said. “It’s been too long.”


The Associated Press contributed to this report

SEE

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2021/06/report-showed-major-damage-before.html

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2021/06/experts-get-1st-clues-on-what-may-have.html

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2021/06/third-world-usa-construction-corruption.html

THIS HAPPENED THREE DAY'S EARLIER

USS Gerald Ford shock trials register as 3.9 magnitude ...

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/uss-gerald-ford-shock-trials-earthquake-florida

2:07

2021-06-21 · The blast registered as a 3.9 magnitude earthquake. June 21, 2021 / 2:26 PM / CBS/AFP. The U.S. Navy has started a series of tests on its newest and most advanced aircraft carrier

US Navy detonates huge 40,000lb bomb next to its own aircraft carrier triggering earthquake 100 miles away in Florida

THE US Navy detonated a mammoth 40,000lb bomb next to its OWN aircraft carrier – triggering an …

The Sun · 3d

Florida’s Oceanfront Cities Are Not Prepared for Sea Level Rise

South Florida is sinking and threatened by sea level rise. It's never been more clear its buildings are in danger.

Dharna Noor
Today 9:00AM
GIZMONDO/EARTHER

Rescue workers work in the rubble at the Champlain Towers South Condo in Surfside.Photo: Gerald Herbert (AP)

On Thursday, a 12-story beachside condo building just north of Miami Beach collapsed, killing at least four people with almost 160 still missing. It could be a scary sign for the future, particularly as sea level rise undermines the very foundation that South Florida sits on.


Long before the Champlain Towers South condominium in Surfside crashed, the building started sinking. An April 2020 study found that the area showed signs of land subsidence—sinking brought on by natural occurrences like sinkholes and exacerbated by human activities like extracting fossil fuels and groundwater. The study’s authors told USA Today that back in the 1990s, the building was descending at a rate of 0.08 inches (2 millimeters) per year, though it’s not clear that that necessarily contributed to its horrific collapse.

Officials are just beginning their investigation into what caused the building’s devastating crash. It will take more data to suss out what happened and the role, if any, subsidence played.


“At this point, any hypothesis is not more than a simple speculation,” Henry O. Briceño, a professor at Florida International University who studies water quality and geology, wrote in an email. “We should wait for the engineers to collect and analyze the information.”

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But though the specifics of the crash are still under investigation, it’s been clear for decades that sea level rise and subsidence threaten infrastructure—and people—in South Florida. And the time to address those risks is now, particularly with what the next few decades hold for the region. Sea level rise is expected to accelerate. A report released last year found that Miami “faces the largest risk of any major coastal city in the world” because of the sheer amount of expensive real estate and people living in such a fragile place. An estimated $3.5 trillion of real estate is at risk of inundation by the 2070s, according to the report. Those buildings, though, are ill-equipped for rising seas.

“While it is too early to determine the cause, it is definitely not too early to worry about how building and other infrastructure will be impacted as the flooding from sea-level rise worsens, and whether there is a plan to modify and sustain these buildings or whether they should ultimately be abandond and removed,” Andrea Dutton, a geoscientist at the University of Madison Wisconsin and former associate professor of geology at the University of Florida, wrote in an email.

Buildings in Surfside and Miami Beach are constructed atop reclaimed wetland. Underpinning them is porous limestone, which forms the region’s geological base. As rising seas encroach on the area—whether from storm surge or increasingly common sunny day floods—brackish, corrosive groundwater can get pushed up through the limestone, causing problems for structures.

“If seawater penetrates a column and reaches the rebar, it will oxidize and the products would increase the volume, creating stresses which in turn could crack the concrete,” said Briceño, noting inspectors probing the Surfside collapse “will have to check if something like that happened.”

Whether or not these factors were a factor, though, they could certainly threaten infrastructure in the future.

“Structures will be subjected to conditions for which they were not designed, like being under seawater permanently,” said Briceño. “Concrete mixes are prepared for what they are supposed to withstand according to design, both, mechanically and chemically.”

Tragically, the Champlain tower was due for a 40-year inspection soon, which could have shown it was at risk of falling in. With such dire threats afoot, officials may have to consider holding such inspections more often. Dutton feared it may even be time to start moving people and infrastructure out of Surfside altogether, a fate that some areas are also already considering due to rising seas.

“One of my concerns is that urban hardscape will become flooded without a plan to remove such infrastructure, and then our coastlines will just become a pile of concrete, metal, and glass rubble,” she said.

Dharna Noor
Earther staff writer. Blogs about energy, animals, why we shouldn't trust the private sector to solve the climate crisis, etc. Has an essay in the 2021 book The World We Need.