The NTSB gives an update on the Francis Scott Key bridge collapse in Baltimore, Maryland, following the impact of a Singaporean-flagged cargo ship, the Dali.

According to the update, 56 containers of hazardous materials were on board, including corrosive flammable cells, lithium ion batteries, and other hazardous materials.  Some of the HAZMAT containers were compromised and some fell into the water.  The briefing also gives a preliminary outline as an outcome of an initial review of the voyage data recorder (VDR) for six hours 00:00 to 06:00 on the morning of the impact. The timeline discussion occurs at 11:00 of the video below.  WATCH:

(Via Fox News) -[…] Homendy said the investigation would be a “massive undertaking” that is expected two take one to two years. She added that the NTSB will not hesitate to issue urgent safety recommendations during that time frame. A preliminary report is expected in only two to four weeks.

Part of the investigation will be determining what caused the ship to lose power before hitting the bridge. The source of that outage remained unknown as of Wednesday, Homendy said.

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Dramatic footage shows the Francis Scott Key bridge in the Port of Baltimore being hit by a containership that plowed directly into a bridge support. The span is part of I-695 and goes over some of the waterway leading into the Port of Baltimore. The port, officially known as the Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore, handles trucks, tractors, trailers and container offloading.

Thankfully the incident happened at 01:30am and traffic across the bridge was light.

(Via MSM) – […] The Singapore-flagged 948 ft. Dali vessel crashed into a column supporting the Francis Scott Key Bridge at around 1:30 a.m. local time in Baltimore, causing part of the bridge to collapse and catch fire before sinking.

At around 1:40 a.m., the Baltimore City Fire Department received an emergency services call to respond to a water rescue in the Patapsco River, according to fire chief Wallace. Several vehicles were on the bridge at the time of impact.

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This is somewhat of a predictably tragic outcome all things considered. I remember a previous conversation on these pages when GM moved massive investment into China to build their mid-size SUV brand, Encore.

Continuing the U.S. decline of the brand, the Wall Street Journal is reporting that approximately half of all Buick dealership in the U.S. have opted to take a buyout from GM, as opposed to spending millions in retooling, restructuring and retraining their staff to accommodate the EV influx.

Most of the EV’s shoved onto the dealer lots sit idle without customers to purchase them.

Wall Street Journal – General Motors (GM) has bought out about half of its 2,000 Buick dealers nationwide, based on their decision to not sell electric vehicles, according to a company spokesman Wednesday.

Dealers who are taking the buyout would give up the Buick franchise and no longer sell the brand, he said. The dealer can continue to sell other GM models, such as Chevrolet or GMC, that often account for a higher percentage of sales.

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There has been increasingly visible media promotion of various municipalities reinstituting mask recommendations to battle a new BA.2.86 covid variant.

Today, the New York City Dept of Health became the latest large metropolitan area to recommend the return to face masks; however, no government mandates yet.

[…] Staying up to date with COVID-19 vaccines, along with other proven prevention tools – like masking, testing, and staying home when sick – continue to be our best defense against COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses. (link)

[Source]

QUESTION: Are you starting to see increased emphasis on mask wearing in/around your local area?

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The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) released an urgent consumer notification that Citgo fuel services from the Port of Tampa accidentally mixed Diesel Fuel into gasoline tanker trucks that offloaded product at gas pumps in Tampa, Fort Myers, Cape Coral and other areas.  [FDACS Notice HERE]

Customers who purchased Citgo gas at the affected areas after August 26th are at risk.  Those fuel stations pumped diesel instead of unleaded gasoline.

[SOURCE]

(AP) – […] The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services said late Sunday that gasoline purchased after 10 a.m. Saturday at some Citgo-supplied stations had a strong likelihood of being contaminated with diesel fuel. Citgo identified 29 affected stations — sold at chains like 7-Eleven, BJ’s Wholesale and other convenience stores — in cities including Tampa, Fort Myers, Sarasota and more. 

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Apparently, Dept of Energy Nuclear Waste official Sam Brinton is facing grand larceny charges from Las Vegas in connection to another luggage theft incident.

Following a previous case in Missouri, it appears non-binary Ms/Mr. Brinton is a serial thief of women’s garments from airports.

(New York Post) – The rainbow atomic symbol T-shirt should have been a clue.

Sam Brinton, the allegedly sticky-fingered Biden administration nuclear official, was captured on security footage making off with a woman’s bag worth more than $3,670 from a Las Vegas airport on July 6, KLAS News reported.

A surveillance snap from Harry Reid International Airport shows a stern-faced Brinton wearing the white T-shirt with the colorful symbol, a black backpack, and black jeans, rolling the suitcase in question through the airport.

The distinctive tee — which Brinton sported in a selfie posted to Instagram that same day — led the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department to issue a warrant for Brinton’s arrest on grand larceny charges, according to a detective’s declaration.

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Earlier this afternoon, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau delivered remarks seemingly targeted to the kids in the bouncy houses at the Ottawa Protest.

Relying upon his feelings and grown-up ability to connect with a juvenile audience on serious events, the Canadian Prime Minister spoke very sternly to the children and media attendees.  The bouncy houses are closed, “it’s time to go home now.”  WATCH:

https://youtu.be/nKL0JktZmiQ

[Full Video Here]

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It’s not the apex of institutional hypocrisy, rather it’s the unmasking of political ideology.  The ACLU is filing a lawsuit today in Virginia demanding that mask mandates against parents and student civil liberties be reinstated.

The ACLU wants the Virginia mask mandate reinstituted.  The ACLU does not want parents and students to have a choice on whether to wear a mask.

The Washington Post headline is akin to folding the universe upon itself and looking back through the mirror: “ACLU challenges Youngkin order mandating choice on school masks.”

The civil liberties organization is arguing against allowing civil liberties.

(Washington Post) – […] The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Charlottesville on Tuesday by the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia; the ACLU is involved in similar cases in Iowa and South Carolina. The plaintiffs represent 11 students with conditions that include cancer, cystic fibrosis, asthma, Down syndrome and diabetes that make covid-19 more dangerous.

“Universal mask use may be necessary to protect some children,” the plaintiffs write. “For many of these children, Governor Youngkin has effectively barred the schoolhouse door.”

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Earlier this evening Fox News host Tucker Carlson interviewed Canadian Freedom Convoy spokesperson Benjamin Dichter about the motives, purposes and intents of the trucker protest. {Direct Rumble Link}

During the interview Mr. Dichter noted how the vaccination passport was yet one more step in the ability of the government to track, monitor, approve and possibly block free movement.  Additionally, the trucker gave a real-world example of that issue recently surfacing when he crossed the border and the crossing guard told him his cell phone location data and his vaccinated status was already tied into the border checkpoint system.

Mr. Dichter was surprised at how quickly the vaccination passport tracking system was triggered and noted the U.S. border checkpoints likely contain the same type of privacy infringements.  WATCH:

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