Gaithersburg (MD) - Yesterday, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) released its final report on the September 11, 2001 collapse of World Trade Center building #7 (WTC7).
The report states that a crucial column (number 79) failed due to uncontrolled fires burning on several floors which produced "an extraordinary event." Once column 79 failed, it "initiated a fire-induced progressive collapse that brought the building down."
Computer analysis
NIST received comments from "the building community," and conducted an additional computer analysis of the structural failure of column 79 to see if it would still bring the entire building down at free fall speeds without damage caused by the collapse of WTC1 and WTC2. The investigation team concluded that "the column’s failure under any circumstance would have initiated the destructive sequence of events."
The report follows a two-year investigation into the collapse of WTC7 which, approximately 7 hours after the collapse of WTC1 and WTC2, came down at free fall speeds.
Building code changes because of 9/11
NIST reports that a three-year study of the collapse of WTC1 and WTC2 was conducted. It began in August, 2002 and concluded in October, 2005. As a result, more than 20 changes to the U.S. model building and fire codes have been adopted.
Concerns over collapse
Several university professors, engineers and independent researchers, and even family members of those lost on 9/11, continue to question the government's official account of the event. Testimony by Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta, given before the 9/11 Commission, whereby he reports the Vice President had prior knowledge of the plane which hit the Pentagon while still many miles out and several minutes before the event, has never been acknowledged on officially published reports.
CNN and BBC both reported the collapse of WTC7 before it occurred. BBC reported it 20 minutes early, with on-air personality Jane Stanley reporting on the disarray downtown caused by the collapse of WTC7.
There were also pools of molten metal found six to eight weeks after the collapse on 9/11. Everyone agrees that a hydrocarbon-based fire (jet fuel) could not heat up steel sufficiently to cause it to become molten. It can heat up enough to weaken and soften it causing it to lose strength, but it cannot melt it to the orange-yellow color observed, and those seen from aerial photographs taken by NASA.
A 24/7 news program related to 9/11 documentaries, reports, presentations, speeches, and more has been created on channel 68078 of the you-broadcast network, TVUnetworks.com.
Read more about the report on the NIST press release, read the full report, view a video describing the collapse, look at all of the comments received on the first draft of the WTC7 report, and look at a chart which tracks the progress toward implementing all of the NIST WTC recommendations.
Friday, November 21, 2008
NIST: Final Report - Collapse of World Trade Center building #7
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Shields Gets 8 Months For 9/11 Hero Fraud
Scott Shields, a former Westport and Greenwich man who credited himself and his golden retriever Bear with recovering bodies at the World Trade Center after Sept. 11, 2001, has been sentenced to eight months in federal prison after his conviction for fraudulently obtaining thousands of dollars in government relief funds, according to court records. Shields pleaded guilty earlier this year to illegally obtaining government money from two agencies, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and American Red Cross, according to documents on file in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. He was arrested, along with his sister, Patricia Shields, in March 2007 and initially pleaded not guilty, records show. In March 2008, Scott Shields changed his plea to guilty, according to court records. "Mr. Shields has pleaded guilty to defrauding the American Red Cross and FEMA, in an attempt to exploit programs that were providing financial assistance to people affected by one of this country's greatest tragedies," read the sentencing opinion handed down by District Judge Robert Sweet on Oct. 14. The sentence opinion said that Shields had a previous conviction for bank fraud 18 years ago involving a "significant sum." After his release from prison, Shields will enter into three years of supervised release. He also was ordered pay back $49,439 to the government. His sister received an identical sentence. According to court records, Scott and Patricia Shields applied for mortgage and rental assistance from FEMA after Sept. 11, 2001, claiming they lived in Manhattan at the time. However, government records show they were living and working in Greenwich and not eligible for FEMA assistance. The aid only was meant for people who lived near the World Trade Center, those who had been injured by the events and businesses that were damaged. Scott and Patricia Shields were evicted from their rental unit in Greenwich in October 2001 for nonpayment of rent, court documents show. While they did move to lower Manhattan after their eviction, they were not eligible for the funds they received and did not use them to pay rent owned on their city apartment, according to court records. They were evicted for nonpayment of rent at the Manhattan location, according to court records. Scott Shields' sentencing comes after six years of making claims about his search and rescue exploits, which were detailed in a book titled Bear: Heart of a Hero, credited to Capt. Scott Shields and co-author Nancy West. The book was pulled from shelves in 2006, according to a spokesman from the publisher, Hero Dog Publications, after the firm realized Shields was not a captain. Shields' main claim was that he and his dog Bear aided in the rescue of victims at ground zero. Roy Gross, chief of the Department at the Suffolk County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, whose organization maintained logs of every dog who assisted in the rescue effort, said Shields and Bear were never documented in its records. "He was a fraud, unfortunately," Gross said. Shields claimed in a Greenwich Time article in 2001 that he was a marine safety specialist who consulted with the New York City parks department. Phil Abramson, a spokesman for the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, said the department was aware of Shields' claim, but that it was not true. "Scott Shields was never employed by the parks department and he was never connected to the parks department," Abramson said. Shields' Manhattan-based attorney, Joel Mark Stein, said he had no comment about the case. Shields is scheduled to begin serving his term on Wednesday, according to the clerk's office for the United States District Court in the Southern District of New York.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Birmingham Conwoman preys on 9/11 heroes - Sunday Mercury
Former Black Country businesswoman Gill Hope allegedly targeted ex-New York fireman Vincent Forras who worked at Ground Zero in the vain search for survivors in 2001.
The brave firefighter now battles for compensation for emergency workers who suffered health problems in the aftermath of the terrorist attack.
He was recently approached by the former fraudster, via Facebook, and says she offered his charity £80 million if it could raise the same amount – and allow her access to the cash.
Speaking from his home in Connecticut, Mr Forras said: “This woman is a disgrace and what she is trying to do is deplorable.
“I knew something wasn’t right from the start but I was amazed to see how quickly our communication went from friendly introductions to talk about millions of dollars.”
Hope, originally from Wolverhampton, strongly denies the claims.
Mr Forras set up his Gear Up Foundation after the 9/11 attacks. He has been fated for his tireless charity work by the likes of former New York Mayor Rudi Giuliani and Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.
But his high-profile role attracted the attention of Hope.
The firefighter said: “She approached me on Facebook and proposed that she had already secured £80 million and just needed to set up final meetings in New York with the Mayor and people like that.
“I knew something was not quite right but I was amazed to discover the truth about her past when I found previous Sunday Mercury articles about her on-line.
“I told the FBI immediately who are currently investigating. To think she would try and do this to the firefighters who responded to Ground Zero on 9/11 when I lost so many brothers is disgusting.”
It is not the first time Hope, formerly known as Gill Edwards and who now calls herself an ‘Ambassador’, has caused controversy in the USA. We previously revealed how she had transformed herself into a bizarre Mother Teresa-style figure, who claimed to know President Bush and A-list celebrities including Angelina Jolie and Elton John.
She also once posed as a nun and appeared in bizarre videos on YouTube to promote her supposed humanitarian work.
Hope fled Britain in 2002 while a warrant was out for her arrest for charges brought by the then Department of Trade and Industry. But it was withdrawn in June 2004 after the authorities failed to trace her.
Yet she was a one-time star of the Midlands’ business world.
In 1988 she scooped the prestigious British Sales and Marketing Award – but after that things went downhill.
Marketing and advertising company E.G. Group of Dudley, where she was managing director, collapsed with debts of almost £250,000.
She later became a director of Global Vouchers plc, of Redditch, Worcestershire, but this firm also crashed with £600,000 debts.
Yet despite being insolvent, the firm carried on trading.
Hope was the only director to be prosecuted and was jailed for 12 months in 1994 for fraudulent trading. She was also disqualified from being a company director for seven years. The fraudster eventually skipped Britain for the US after failing to turn up at court to answer charges brought by the Department of Trade and Industry.
Yet when contacted by the Sunday Mercury, Hope claimed that the 9/11 scam accusations were completely false.
She said: “I think Vinny has misinterpreted our discussions and requests as we have not made any offer of funding to Gear Up Foundation. We have developed a solution for these unmet social needs including two financing offers.
“This is a serious humanitarian and Homeland Security issue and needs to be addressed.
“It would be awesome if you would actually write about what’s possible with imagination, innovation and a desire to provide solutions.”
* To donate to the Gear Up Foundation visit www.gearupfoundation.org
Friday, October 24, 2008
World trade center thermite demolition angle cuts
Great Angle Cut was made by a linear shaped charge, using thermite or thermate.Thursday, April 10, 2008
Fred "Scumbag" Parisi faked letter from priest
Prosecutor: Alleged 9/11 con man faked priest letter
A letter from a priest to the Morris County Prosecutor's Office last month heaped praise on a Jefferson man now under investigation for allegedly defrauding people who donated money to his 9/11 charity.
In the letter, "Archbishop" Stephen Petrovich called Fred Parisi a Sept. 11 hero who is being unfairly treated by Jefferson police and wrote that the police department needed to be investigated, not Parisi.
But Petrovich never wrote that letter, Morris County Prosecutor Robert Bianchi said.
Petrovich said Parisi wrote the letter. And Petrovich added in an interview that he is a priest, but not an archbishop.
"He called me and told me he wrote it last month after he sent it," Petrovich said. "I told him he can't do that. That's not right."
Bianchi said the matter remains under investigation.
Parisi, 40, was arrested March 29 and remains at the Morris County jail in lieu of $250,000. He is charged with theft and failure to allow his business partner to access company money -- some $235,000.
Those charges are unrelated to Parisi's charity, the 9/11 Rescue Workers Foundation. But because of his arrest, his 9/11 fundraising activities are now being reviewed.
Although he claims he was a New York City police officer who rescued thousands from Ground Zero on Sept. 11, 2001, authorities said Parisi was a police recruit training miles away in Brooklyn on that day.
Petrovich, a 57-year-old retired Ukrainian Orthodox priest who lives in Ohio, met Parisi by phone three months ago when the priest was calling 9/11 groups to find volunteer mental health workers to assist a friend providing counseling to rescue workers who moved to Florida.
14 Structural Engineers demand answers
14 Structural Engineers Now Publicly Challenge Government's Explanation for Destruction of the World Trade Center
14 structural engineers now publicly challenge the government's account of the destruction of the Trade Centers on 9/11:A prominent engineer with 55 years experience, in charge of the design of hundreds of major building projects including high rise offices, former member of the California Seismic Safety Commission and former member of the National Institute of Sciences Building Safety Council (Marx Ayres) believes that the World Trade Centers were brought down by controlled demolition (see also this)
Two professors of structural engineering at a prestigious Swiss university (Dr. Joerg Schneider and Dr. Hugo Bachmann) said that, on 9/11, World Trade Center 7 was brought down by controlled demolition (translation here)
Kamal S. Obeid, structural engineer, with a masters degree in Engineering from UC Berkeley, of Fremont, California, says:"Photos of the steel, evidence about how the buildings collapsed, the unexplainable collapse of WTC 7, evidence of thermite in the debris as well as several other red flags, are quite troubling indications of well planned and controlled demolition"Ronald H. Brookman, structural engineer, with a masters degree in Engineering from UC Davis, of Novato California, writes:
"Why would all 110 stories drop straight down to the ground in about 10 seconds, pulverizing the contents into dust and ash - twice. Why would all 47 stories of WTC 7 fall straight down to the ground in about seven seconds the same day? It was not struck by any aircraft or engulfed in any fire. An independent investigation is justified for all three collapses including the surviving steel samples and the composition of the dust."Graham John Inman, structural engineer, of London, England, points out:
"WTC 7 Building could not have collapsed as a result of internal fire and external debris. NO plane hit this building. This is the only case of a steel frame building collapsing through fire in the world. The fire on this building was small & localized therefore what is the cause?"Paul W. Mason, structural engineer, of Melbourne, Australia, argues:
"In my view, the chances of the three buildings collapsing symmetrically into their own footprint, at freefall speed, by any other means than by controlled demolition, are so remote that there is no other plausible explanation!"Mills M. Kay Mackey, structural engineer, of Denver, Colorado, points out:
"The force from the jets and the burning fuel could not have been sufficient to make the building collapse. Why doesn't the media mention that the 11th floor was completely immolated on February 13th, 1975? It had the weight of nearly 100 stories on top of it but it did not collapse?"Haluk Akol, Structural Engineer and architect (ret.)
Charles Pegelow, structural engineer, of Houston, Texas (and see this)
Dennis Kollar, structural engineer, of West Bend, Wisconsin
Doyle Winterton, structural engineer (retired)
Michael T. Donly, P.E., structural engineer
William Rice, P.E., structural engineer, former professor of Vermont Technical College
There are many other structural engineers who have questioned the government's account in private. We support them
Source: georgewashington.blogspot.com
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Clueless: Heartless GOP rep. Darrell Issa
San Diego right wing wacko - GOP Rep. Darrell Issa under fire from everywhere after 9/11 comments
Thursday, April 3rd 2008, 4:00 AM
Hamburg/News San Diego GOP Rep. Darrell Issa was under siege for suggesting the federal government had already done enough to help New York cope with 'a fire' that 'simply was an aircraft' hitting the WTC.
WASHINGTON - The California congressman who called the Sept. 11 attacks "simply" a plane crash ran for cover Wednesday under a barrage of ridicule from fellow Republicans, first responders and victims' families.
San Diego GOP Rep. Darrell Issa was under siege for suggesting the federal government had already done enough to help New York cope with "a fire" that "simply was an aircraft" hitting the World Trade Center.
"That is a pretty distorted view of things," said Frank Fraone, a Menlo Park, Calif., fire chief who led a 67-man crew at Ground Zero. "Whether they're a couple of planes or a couple of missiles, they still did the same damage."
"New York was attacked by Al Qaeda. It doesn't have to be attacked by Congress," added Long Island Rep. Pete King, a Republican.
"I'm really surprised by Darrell Issa," King added. "It showed such a cavalier dismissal of what happened to New York. It's wrong and inexcusable."
Lorie Van Aucken, who lost her husband, Kenneth, in the attacks, slammed Issa's "cruel and heartless" comments.
"It's really discouraging. People stepped up and did the right thing. They sacrificed themselves and now a lot of people are getting really horrible illnesses," she added.
Under pressure from all sides, the Golden State pol - who got rich selling car alarms after getting busted for car theft as a teen - pulled a partial U-turn. He issued a statement but cowered from the press.
"I continue to support federal assistance for the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks," he said.
But he didn't retract his wacked-out rhetoric claiming the feds "just threw" buckets of cash at New York for an attack "that had no dirty bomb in it, it had no chemical munitions in it."
He went on: "I have to ask ... why the firefighters who went there and everybody in the city of New York needs to come to the federal government for the dollars versus this being primarily a state consideration."
In his statement yesterday, Issa insisted he only "asked tough questions about the expenditures" during a hearing Tuesday on an aid bill for sick New Yorkers.
"He realized he stepped in it," said Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-Manhattan), who was leading the hearing when Issa popped off.
"The sound I'm hearing is him slamming the brakes and going in reverse," crowed Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Brooklyn-Queens). Issa also belatedly admitted 9/11 was "an attack on America" in his statement.
It shouldn't have been that hard.
He took to the floor of Congress on Sept. 11, 2001, to argue passionately that America - not just New York - had been attacked, but conveniently forgot that during his Tuesday diatribe.
"It seems that with the passage of time, something happened along the way where the scope of the problem and the real extent of the problem has not drifted out to California," fumed Staten Island GOP Rep. Vito Fossella.
Health officials estimate it could cost $1 billion to care properly for the ailments that may emerge in the people who lived through the horror of Sept. 11 or breathed that toxic dust.
New York lawmakers now want Democratic leaders to bring the 9/11 care bill to the floor soon - before more members of Congress start spouting off like Issa.
Source: nydailynews.com
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