Subj : Miss.RvrDamBreach-Davenpt To : Nancy Backus From : Barry Martin Date : Sun May 03 2020 09:10:00 Hi Nancy! BM>> As I said some time last week the Mississippi River was two feet over BM>> flood stage; they are putting up some of the temporary barriers, so BM>> must be stored locally and I'd assume more on order. The barriers are BM>> a big plastic box filled with sand via bulldozer and the like. Also BM>> assume the barriers are a one-time use as removing the sand would BM>> damage. Presume the sand is filtered and reused. NB>> I suppose no way of knowing when the ones now being placed arrived.... NB>> I wonder if they'd be stored, sand and all, though, and the sand would NB>> just dry out to be ready for the next flood... or maybe there's a way NB>> to remove the sand without damaging the boxes.... BM> I'm thinking not, though also don't recall hearing one way or another. NB> Probably most people don't pay any attention to details like NB> that, unless they are actually involved in the doing of it, so NB> not so likely any announcements about that sort of thing... Just NB> curious sorts like us tend to wonder about it... ;) More than likely. Similar for a lot of things: just happens. Up until a few messages ago I didn't know the size of a HESCO barrier: was just a big box filled with sand by a bulldozer and a lot more efficient than sandbags. BM> Looking on the company's website BM> https://www.hesco.com/products/flood-barriers/ and so far nothing BM> about reusing the HESCO barriers, but hover the mouse over the picture BM> of the Jackbox and pops up "lightweight, recyclable and highly flexible BM> flood barrier". From that picture it sort of reminds me of a row of BM> the paper lawnbags except is plastic, so a lot smaller than the HESCO BM> barriers. BM> Ah! Just learned something: the product is actually called "Floodline" BM> but I've never heard it called that. ..They even go back and forth: BM> FLOODLINE is ideal for emergency flood response, offering BM> significant advantages over traditional sandbags, in terms of cost, BM> time and labor requirement for installation. BM> A wall using HESCO earth-filled barrier can be filled by two people BM> and a standard front-end loader in just 20 minutes. The equivalent BM> sized wall of 1,500 sandbags can take 10 people up to 7 hours to fill BM> and build. BM> (FWIW the size is 48" H, 36" W, 15" D.) Ah! There are two styles: one BM> is 'Recoverable'.... Go to details and need to put in contact BM> information so will end the search there. NB> Looks like the company name is HESCO, and the various products NB> have different names but usually end up being refered to by the NB> company name instead of the product name... Jackbox sounds like NB> the size that an individual might be using to protect his yard NB> and house from a flooding stream, rather than what a community NB> would put up along the raging river to protect a wider area.... ;) The Jackbox is about half the size of the Floodline, so possible targeted to the consumer buyer, though a testimonal story is about a one-in-seventy-five year flood in England. BM>> Rock Island (IL) (across the River) is a little more elevated above BM>> the River and so a lot less area to protect. They have some some BM>> floodgates which are raised during flooding. Other towns (seems mostly BM>> downriver from here) have levees for protection. NB>> Each locality develops their own ways of dealing with the inevitable NB>> flooding... ;) BM> Right. Here in Bettendorf we essentially do nothing. We're barely BM> five miles from Downtown Davenport. Slight bit of elevation and the BM> only area that gets wet is an area about the size of a house lot called BM> Martha's Point (no, no idea who Martha is). They do put up a short BM> flood wall, so without apparently more flooding would occur. NB> That bit of elevation does indeed make a major difference... :) It does! :) BM>> Plus for the past week or so the parks are closed. Iowa is one of the BM>> few states without the stay-in-home order; seems like we went from the BM>> opposite direction and closed everything down so no place to go so may BM>> as well stay home! NB>> As far as I know our parks weren't ever closed.... but not many are NB>> going there... everything else was closed down except for essential NB>> business, though, so still not really any place to go, so the stay NB>> home order is almost superfluous... BM> Uh-huh! No where to go! Heard on the news this morning BM> Governor Pritzker (Illinois) is planning to sign an order to BM> essentially extend the shutdown until May 30th. Appears this one will BM> allow some businesses to re-open but require social distancing. The BM> news blurb didn't go into details; maybe none available yet. Nothing BM> mentioned on what Governor Reynolds (Iowa) is going to do; I'd expect BM> something similar. NB> Sounds a lot like what I'm hearing various states are doing... :) Bit of a mail lag but Iowa has re-opened 77 of the 99 counties on a restricted bases. We're not one of them but we also were among the last if not the last country to have a COVID-19 case so make sense to not be able to re-open yet. (Surrounding countries are also part of the 22; they too were among the last to report cases.) BM>> As for Autumn, she hasn't really wanted to go outside when here; the BM>> weather hasn't been all that nice -- cold and windy. Good news: she BM>> has passed whatever test it is to get into First Grade. :) Needed BM>> 100% in the test, she had been missing one point the past several times BM>> (so 98%) -- from what we were told more from boredom or "that's enough BM>> of that for now". Plus sometimes she likes to screw around to see if BM>> we're paying attention, so maybe the same with the test. NB>> She reminds me of other kids that are too smart for their own good NB>> sometimes.... :) Good that she passed that test, though... :) BM> Yes on the smart-off stuff. LIS she likes to give the wrong answer to BM> see if we're paying attention, or maybe the artist in her kicks in and BM> she sees/interprets the pattern outside of the rules. NB> One thing she'll need to learn soon is when to use that strength, NB> and when to follow the rules.... ;) I'm quite sure she will. I think what will help that is to be back in school with the other kids and teachers: initially the other people won't know her joking style so possibly unintended reaction which will temper/alter Autumn. BM>> My Mother said she got about a foot of snow. Fast-forward to now (!), BM>> here we've supposed to have been getting 'accumulating snow' the past BM>> several nights - so far nothing. This morning's forecast is for BM>> overnight snow flurries - we'll see! NB>> We've only had snow in dribs and drabs, too... hardly accumulating... NB>> but my sister, a little south of here was getting it a couple inches NB>> at a time... it is, though, colder than it should be this time of NB>> year... BM> All that makes the weather interesting: one usually assumes north is BM> colder so that's where the snow would be. Probably a lot of terrain BM> factoring in: funneling in rain or snow in one area and leaving BM> another dry. NB> Where she is, it is a higher elevation than here in town... and NB> she gets lake effect storms off the end of Lake Erie from the NB> Buffalo region that we miss being further north... we only get NB> stuff off Lake Ontario... Sometimes that's enough! BM>>> the Burning Bush doesn't look too good: several of the trunk branches Haven't done anything directly with the Burning Bush but looks to be dead. Not sure what the other shrub/bush is but the leaves look to be different from what I remember the Burning Bush having, but could be because has recently budded and not fully leafed out. Need to do other yard work before cutting out the dead branches. BM> Raining/drizzling this morning. I have the south window somewhat open BM> up here in the Computer Room to get some fresh air; was going to open BM> the window on the north end some: rain hitting the screen! Think I'll BM> leave that one closed for now. NB> Yeah... I'd leave that one closed, too... ;) OK, good we agree! Dry outside and cooler so currently have both windows open. Supposed to be in the lower 70's this afternoon. BM> Trees and shrubs are budding but seems slower: doesn't seem to be much BM> difference since last weekend. NB> Things are looking positively springlike here now... yesterday NB> saw my first dandelions... bright little yellow dots in my NB> neighbor's lawn... ;) Definite starting-to-green-up out there now. NB>> Breaking the message here.... BM> It's only at 179 lines! NB> But that broke it pretty evenly into half.... :) So about 50 lines per printed page, that would be be a little over 3« pages.... ¯ ® ¯ Barry_Martin_3@ ® ¯ @Q.COM ® ¯ ® .... Senior Hits! Leslie Gore - It's My Procedure, and I'll Cry If I Want To. --- MultiMail/Win32 v0.47 þ wcECHO 4.2 ÷ ILink: The Safe BBS þ Bettendorf, IA --- QScan/PCB v1.20a / 01-0462 * Origin: ILink: CFBBS | cfbbs.no-ip.com | 856-933-7096 (454:1/1) .