STORM2K

A home depot store in Galveston collapsed this morning, apparently under the weight of rainwater collected on the roof. Initial reports say only minor injuries have occured.

http://www.click2houston.com/index.html

This is a link to our NBC affiliate that has a link in it.

Duck have you heard anything in the ER about it?

I posted about it upstairs in the SE TX weather thread. Apparently, no one was injured. I also posted a pic from one of the traffic cams of all the vehicles coming onto the island from the Causeway. Looks like Beach Party Weekend or something! Everyone is having to detour over to Seawall Blvd. because the other two main thoroughfares are flooded. Plus, I think a lot of people waited until late to come into work in order to spare their vehicles.

And actually, I *used* to work in the ER when I was at the University of KY. Down here, I have an office job.

OOPS!!!! Didn't look in the right place.

It's okay.

Kinda hard to see, but this has a pic of the front of the store from the air.

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/news/062504 ... lapse.html

Thankfully this happened at 6 a.m. today! Can you imagine if this had happened on a Saturday or Sunday? We've been shopping at our local HD a lot for months now, since we're finishing off part of our basement. We avoid HD on Saturdays if we can since it's so busy then with customers and extra employees on duty. So if there's anything good to say about this near tragedy is that it happened as the store was probably about to open.

Mary

Scary thought, Mary!

What if people had been there to buy plywood and supplies when/if a hurricane was threatening the area?

The store has only been there about a year or so. The old Galveston Mall was in that spot when I moved here. But it was all dilapidated and falling apart -- no longer in use. They finally demolished it about three years ago and then announed that Home Depot and Target stores would be built there.

What scares me -- folks who specialize in selling building materials ended up in a faultily built building themselves. I know *they* didn't build it and I'm sure even building inspectors/engineers might not have ever expected so much weight to be on that portion of the roof. But it seems as if it must have been slanted a bit and not draining properly.

What a mess all the water and wet stuff must have made! I'm just glad no one was hurt.

Shawn - I never even thought about that, what if a hurricane was coming? Let's just be glad this wasn't the case!

Have any of you ever really looked up onto the high shelves at places like Home Depot/Lowe's/Toys'R'us, etc.? They pile stacks and stacks of merch up on these shelves! I wouldn't want to be under all of that coming down on me in a collapse. I mention Toys'R'Us because a few years ago my daughter Laura wanted a scooter. None on the floor. The clerk had to get a tall ladder for more, in boxes stacked up high. That's when I really looked around up there! Tons of stuff. Almost like another story/floor, but it's open to the floor below.

Mary

Oh yeah, I agree. It's ridiculous when they have tons of stuff...HEAVY stuff...all the way up on top shelves.

My best friend bought her then-fiance/now husband a grill for Christmas. Had to have a clerk get one of those mini-forklift/cherry picker things that can travel through the aisles. He had to hoist himself to the top, get the box with the grill (by himself) onto the platform, and then lower it to the floor.

That's inefficient and darned dangerous!

Glad to hear that no one was hurt.. Damage looks rough though

Glad no one was hurt bad. Thanks for the photos Chad!!

high stacked shelves are a hazard in a storm, try going through one of those stores when you know you're in an earthquake zone and that it would only take a moderate shock (5-6) to bring all that stuff down-that's why I don't go to those stores very often.

Steve

I couldn't live in a earthquake zone. With canes or nadoes the damage is confined in a certain area. There is some warning involved. Quakes literally pop up anywhere they want

Shawn - yeah our grill was on the very top shelf at Home Depot too. What about the hottubs they have up near the registers? That doesn't seem safe either! Man if a hot tub fell on you, you'd be a goner.

Mary