landslides in pittsburgh pa

[tcwright973]

Norfolk Southern had two tracks open this afternoon, and this reportedly should allow them to get back to more normal operations. Route 65 however, is expected to be closed until October.

Tom Wright

[conrailman]

It will take least 15 days to be Cleared up, that all I hear on the News here in Pittsburgh about the landslides.

[CShaveRR]

It looks like there will be plenty of blame to spread around.  The contractor should (and probably will) bear the financial burden of the cleanup.  But the people who granted permits for all of that fill to be brought in should bear some responsibility as well.

When does the contractor expect all of this to be cleared?  They were required to have a definite plan--and schedule--by last night, I believe.

[zugmann]

Since I'm not a geologist - I'll wait until the investigation is completed.  All I know is walmart doesn't have a stellar record when it comes to contractors.

Anyhow - walmarts around here do not have the lowest prices.  But then again, we're blessed with several decent smaller name brand stores. Amazing how we can have multiple stores here, but elsewhere, no one bothers.  All of these stores have better prices, more stable selection, and personal service.   Walmart's business practices are scary if you look more than two days down the road.  And I do wonder what kind of tax deal this store got.

I hear the road may not be open until Oct, and one of the NS tracks is now open.  The private passenger train is now heading to be split up at Albany, instead of Tyrone.

Oh well.  Thanks, Walmart.
zugmann.

[edbenton]

Zugman the store I work in we are being upgraded to the Supercenter in a few months and the customers are going when will it be open.  Around here there is no such thing as a 24 hour grocery store.  We end up being bent over by mom and pop stores late at night for milk and bread and getting charged 4 bucks a gallon for milk and 3 bucks a loaf for bread.  What happend in Pittsburgh could have happened to any company.  This year has been strange go 2 weeks hot and dry then open the taps for a week straight that right there will make the soil more likely to slip and slide.  I know that I am not a Geologist but ever stop and think that the fact that one the road removed the stabalizing bank from that spot.

[zugmann]

I for one work at a Wal Mart and am glad I do work there.  They offered me the highest starting wages of any retail store in the area of where I live and I have it in writing after 90 days I get a 60 cent an hour raise so I can not complain.  That plus they work around my needs with my family schedule so my kids are not being raised by BABYSITTERS name one other company in the US that will still do that today.

This message has been brought to you by Walmart. 

Walmart - home of falling hillsides, oops, I mean prices.

[edbenton]

I for one work at a Wal Mart and am glad I do work there.  They offered me the highest starting wages of any retail store in the area of where I live and I have it in writing after 90 days I get a 60 cent an hour raise so I can not complain.  That plus they work around my needs with my family schedule so my kids are not being raised by BABYSITTERS name one other company in the US that will still do that today.

[MP173]

There are people who certainly welcome Walmart to their community.  My hometown back in the 80's, in a poor rural location found the low prices and wide selection appealing.  Of course the Main Street merchants didnt like it. 

Now I see Walmart is starting a $4 generic prescription rate in Florida. 

Do you think that folks living on a limited income that have high prescription bills will want Walmart?

ed

[cnw4001]

Yep, it is a big mess. All 4 lanes of Rt. 65 are closed, the dirt and rocks are still sliding, and it will be at least a week and maybe as long as a month before the road is cleared. However at least through last night, when I left work, they were keeping one of the mains open and trains were still moving although of course there were backups. I imagine that's still the case since trains have been coming by the house all morning.

Someone who was down there said that the landslide across the road was almost up to the level of the telephone wires along the road.

Who the hell needs another Wal-Mart anyway?

Later today all tracks were covered and no trains are moving. It is hard to tell when the line will be reopened as at 6 PM the earth was still sliding. Unconfirmed reports have the Amtrak Capitol Limited detouring via the P&LE through Pittsburgh at least today/tonight's cycle.

The whole situation continues to change from hour to hour.

Dale

[Anonymous]

You are mistaken.  The glaciers did not reach Pittsburgh.

It is the topography of the region that favors land subsidence.

http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/topogeo/maps/map7.pdf

http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/topogeo/hazards/es9.pdf

http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/topogeo/education/es6/es6.pdf

 

Dave

 

This may be an "ethics of the low bid thing" with the developer (not Wal-Mart, although the developer might be driven by Wal-Mart and it's presumed culture of low-balling ethics .)

As flaky as geologists are, is there a geotechnical engineer in here too? Pittsburgh and Cincinnati are built on glaciated till which is not that uncommon for creating slip fault slides which you are taught from day one that you add to the potential of failure by placing overburden (and the effects of gravity) at the top of the slope . It will be interesting to see what the slope failure investigation turns up.

(Was water the lubricant that triggered the slide on a layer of shale before stabilization piling was driven or cut (keyed-in) to anchor the hillside??)

[mudchicken]

This may be an "ethics of the low bid thing" with the developer (not Wal-Mart, although the developer might be driven by Wal-Mart and it's presumed culture of low-balling ethics .)

As flaky as geologists are, is there a geotechnical engineer in here too? Pittsburgh and Cincinnati are built on glaciated till which is not that uncommon for creating slip fault slides which you are taught from day one that you add to the potential of failure by placing overburden (and the effects of gravity) at the top of the slope . It will be interesting to see what the slope failure investigation turns up.

(Was water the lubricant that triggered the slide on a layer of shale before stabilization piling was driven or cut (keyed-in) to anchor the hillside??)

[Nora]

Yep, it is a big mess. All 4 lanes of Rt. 65 are closed, the dirt and rocks are still sliding, and it will be at least a week and maybe as long as a month before the road is cleared. However at least through last night, when I left work, they were keeping one of the mains open and trains were still moving although of course there were backups. I imagine that's still the case since trains have been coming by the house all morning.

Someone who was down there said that the landslide across the road was almost up to the level of the telephone wires along the road.

Who the hell needs another Wal-Mart anyway?

[squeeze]

Saw it on the news and was it ever big. Been watching the "Curve" and there is nothing moving. They were saying that Rte. 65 might take weeks to get traffic moving again. Wal-Mart strikes again, lowering prices every day, He, He, He.

[Limitedclear]

Norfolk Southern Service Alert

Delays East of Pittsburgh

September 21, 2006

Norfolk Southern has experienced a landslide at Emsworth, PA, which is
between Conway, PA and Pittsburgh, PA., blocking the mainline tracks.
Traffic moving via this corridor, to and from locations east of
Pittsburgh, will incur delay. Norfolk Southern personnel are on the
scene working to clear the right of way as soon as possible and restore
the line to service.

------------------
Norfolk Southern Corporation
www.nscorp.com

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[JoeKoh]

I guess their prices aren't the only thing getting lower!

Look for a big, expensive clearance sometime soon!

(And the store isn't even built yet, let alone opened!)

Joe--heard anything about this from our Conway Redhead yet?

Carl

nope nothing yet.but will keep trying.

stay safe

joe

[miniwyo]

HAHAHA!!!  I love hearing about building sites that landslide even after being investigated for stability. I think we need a national building code saying that a building site MUST be approved by a geologist BEFORE and excavation has begun. I delivered some pipe to a house being built on a hill side (not really a hill, but for all purposes here it is a hill.) and I pulled up, unloaded my pipe and told the owner that he should move his truck from its spot.
I had noticed some arcuate fractures in the earth near the edge of the hill telling me that it was going to move. He just blew it off and I went on my way, 2 days later I had to go to the same place, I went up there, and sure enough, ther he was, digging his truck out of the hill with a backhoe. All I could do was laugh, I never said I told you so, or anything. I just dropped off my stuff and had him sign for it and away I went. Had a really good laugh for the rest of the day though!

[CShaveRR]

I guess their prices aren't the only thing getting lower!

Look for a big, expensive clearance sometime soon!

(And the store isn't even built yet, let alone opened!)

Joe--heard anything about this from our Conway Redhead yet?

[JoeKoh]

a developer trying to build a wal-mart and other stores has caused landslides along rt 65  near pittsburgh pa and is holding up ns trains going into conway.http://kdka.com/topstories/local_story_263062613.html

stay safe

joe