Jo Bugman
Jedi
If that’s accurate video, my first thought was another out of control Tesla. I can’t tell what type of car but the way that thing was burning reminds me of an EV vehicle fire.
Explosions in the news
- Thread starter Alana
- Start date
Indeed, many people on X and the msm were quick to jump on the "terrorist attack" bandwagon without waiting for confirmation of details. It seems to come mostly from those wanting to push a particular narrative, either on the right or left.
Not saying it was an electric car explosion either, but it was one of the first possibilities that entered my mind when seeing the video of the event. Also, the claims of finding an intact Iranian passport in or nearby the burnt out wreckage seems highly suspect, imo.
Interestingly, a video from China from last year shows an electric car that malfunctioned, accelerating out of control until in crashed into a building, killing 2 people and injuring three.
The lesson here I suppose is best not jump to conclusions on social media until all the facts and evidence have been investigated.
Hmmm, now CNN is reporting that the crash and subsequent explosion was the result of a "terrible accident", and the car was a $300K Bentley driven by some rich dude from New York who was coming home from a casino after missing out an a KISS concert...
Rich Bentley Driver Caused Niagara Falls Checkpoint Explosion After Canceled KISS Concert: Report | ZeroHedge
Rich Bentley Driver Caused Niagara Falls Checkpoint Explosion After Canceled KISS Concert: Report | ZeroHedge
Friends say the couple had been having problems with the gas pedal on the car just weeks before the fatal crash.
Villani and his wife lived in Grand Island, New York, just 10 miles from where the crash happened. Bentley has not yet commented on the crash but family friends of Villani say he was having a problem with the accelerator.
The Villani family owned Gui's Lumber and had a tradition of handing out turkeys on Thanksgiving and were featured on the news in 2014 for handing out 250 turkeys.
Tragic.
As Grand Island mourns prominent business owners, police search for answers in Rainbow Bridge crash
GRAND ISLAND, N.Y. (WIVB) — Just days after a fiery crash at the Rainbow Bridge in Niagara Falls, police identified the driver and passenger who died and provided new details of the ongoing wreck investigation.
Kurt and Monica Villani, both 53 years old and from Grand Island, were driving a 2022 Bentley Flying Spur when it went over an embankment, flew through the air, crashed and exploded near the Customs and Border Protection building by the bridge, as seen in surveillance video released by the CBP on Wednesday evening.
Video: Car goes airborne at Rainbow Bridge before exploding
“It’s one thing to piece together a seen or an intact vehicle, you can go from here. Obviously, that’s not what we have in this situation. That’s the major obstacle right now,” Niagara Falls Police Superintendent John Faso said in a phone interview Friday afternoon.
The Villani Family
The Villani family said in a statement obtained by News 4’s Tara Lynch that they wished to “extend our sincere gratitude to all that extended prayers, condolences and well wishes. We are all deeply touched. At this point, we would request privacy so we may begin the process of healing.” The statement was also on behalf of the Ceccato, Maniccia and Gui’s Lumber families.
The Villani family, including Kurt P. is widely known across Western New York as the owners of several Ace Hardware locations and Gui’s Lumber, which was established in 1986. The family owns six locations across Erie County, including on Grand Island, another store in Niagara Falls and one in Batavia.
“They’re a local, family-owned business. When you’re local, you have that local touch,” Faso said
Kurt P. Villani’s father, Kurt M. Villani, died in August of last year. The couple is survived by Kurt’s mother, Gail, and their two children, Kurt Jr. and Mia.
Michael J. Billoni, a friend of the Villani family, said the couple’s death is “a devastating loss to Grand Island and Western New York.”
“I’ve known them for a long time. I was born into a family business like theirs, and I know what it takes to run a business like that,” Billoni said. “I am very proud of how the children have followed their father and grandfather and my heart goes out to the whole family. I know how close they are and how quietly philanthropic they are in the community.”
The Grand Island Chamber of Commerce says the family purchased another plot of land next to their store on Whitehaven Road, which is in the center of the town. While there was no set plan to develop it, the Chamber was looking forward to working alongside the family on this project.
“The Chamber of Commerce have had many interactions with the Villani family and Gui’s Lumber over the years. They are a very generous and community-oriented family,” said Eric Fiebelkorn, president of the Grand Island Chamber of Commerce.
“With the loss of Kurt Sr. last year, and now this tragic loss of Kurt Jr. and Monica, it leaves a void in our small town business community that will be very difficult to fill. Our prayers and our thoughts certainly go out to their family and staff. The membership of the Chamber of Commerce will be available to help them in any way we can.”
Faso says he hopes misinformation and rumors about the crash, which are negatively impacting the family as well as the investigation, will stop spreading on social media.
“They’re being affected by this in a big way. It doesn’t help anybody, especially the family, when all these rumors are being posted and going around,” Faso added.
What’s next in the investigation
Officials say the couple was traveling from the Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino, where they stopped for a few minutes before heading toward the bridge. They were traveling to Toronto to see a concert that night.The Niagara Falls Police Crash Management Unit is handling the investigation.
Niagara Falls Police Superintendent: Rainbow Bridge investigation will be ‘long’
“They’re sifting through all the data right now and basically, the investigation has just started and it isn’t going to be concluded any time soon,” Faso added. “They’ll look for mechanical issues, weather issues, whether this was a medical event.”
On Friday, investigators and the Niagara Falls Fire Department were trying to recover the car’s black box from the debris that was collected, which will play a key role in the investigation.
“We’re going to be looking at everything. Speed, mechanical issues, whatever information we can get from it,” Faso said.
The department has its own crash reconstruction team that used 3D renderings and other technology to capture the scene in order to determine the cause of the crash. The black box will assist in this part of the investigation.
Surveillance video also played a critical role, helping officers rule out a terrorist attack, which was widely misreported on social media. It also helped identify the vehicle, where it was coming from and who was driving.
The Seneca Nation confirmed that the victims had been at the Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino for a brief time just before the wreck.
“We are cooperating with law enforcement in their investigation into the incident that occurred near the Rainbow Bridge,” a statement read. “We have reviewed and provided information related to a vehicle that stopped at Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino only for a matter of minutes shortly before the crash occurred.”
‘Something you see in Hollywood’: Witnesses describe fiery car crash at Rainbow Bridge
Police confirm they are also looking into whether a Bentley recall that affected the accelerator contributed to the wreck. This recall by the Australian government lists 2021-2022 Bentley Continental GT and Flying Spur models as the impacted vehicles. There was also an recall posted in 2021 by the Australian government, encompassing all Continental GT and Flying Spur models from 2018-2021.
Erin Bronner, a spokesperson for Bentley USA, told News 4 that the accelerator recall was for right hand drive cars, which the company does not sell in the Americas, and that all of Bentley USA’s cars are automatic. She referred recall queries to the website for the National Highway Safety Administration, which tracks automobile recalls.
“We will work with the authorities quickly as soon as we are contacted and if we can aid in any investigation,” Bronner said.
Faso says he is grateful for the team that helped his department, including the city’s fire department, who ran toward the crash without knowing the intent or cause, in determining what exactly happened on Wednesday. He cited that several federal, state and county agencies collaborated with Niagara Falls first responders, which they do regularly for other investigations. He added he hopes that level of response puts residents’ minds at ease in case a similar incident ever happens again.
The incident remains under investigation and no further details, including a cause, were released by police. Governor Kathy Hochul said Wednesday that there was no indication the crash was an act of terrorism.
2018-2021 Bentley Continental GT and Flying Spur recalled with risk of stuck accelerator
Bentley has recalled 400 examples of its Continental GT and Flying Spur, citing a potential fault with the accelerator assembly.
An explosion was reported at Arlington, Va., with no injuries reported.
www.fox5dc.com
Arlington home explodes after hours-long standoff with suspect who had flare gun, firearm: police
Community members in an Arlington neighborhood were told to shelter in place Monday night after police say rounds were fired from a flare gun and a firearm inside of a home before it exploded.
Holy jumping catfish, what a turn of events. It appears that James Yoo's scenario is irrelevant to the explosion in Arlington, Virginia.
Opinion
en.wikipedia.org
Jacob Joseph Lew (born August 29, 1955) is an American attorney and diplomat serving as the United States ambassador to Israel. He was the seventy-sixth United States secretary of the treasury from 2013 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he also served as the twenty-fifth White House chief of staff from 2012 to 2013 and as director of the Office of Management and Budget in both the Clinton administration and Obama administration.
Lew is an Orthodox Jew who observes the Jewish Shabbat[76][77] and has attended Beth Sholom Congregation in Potomac, Maryland; TheSHUL of the Nation's Capital[78] and Kesher Israel Congregation in Washington, D.C.;[79] and the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale in the Bronx, New York.[80] Interviewed in a 2010 article, Lew's former boss on the National Security Council, Sandy Berger, commented that "Lew's faith never got in the way of performing his duties."[76] A 2011 press release from the Religion News Service noted that Lew also "has extensive connections in the American Jewish community," and that he might be able to help President Obama "build a more friendly rapport" with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.[81]
Opinion
Jack Lew - Wikipedia
Personal life
Lew married his high school sweetheart, Ruth Schwartz.[73] As Chief of Staff, Lew commuted to Washington from the couple's home in the Riverdale neighborhood of the Bronx, New York City.[73][74] They have two grown children,[73] one of whom is Shoshana Lew, head of the Colorado Department of Transportation.[75]Lew is an Orthodox Jew who observes the Jewish Shabbat[76][77] and has attended Beth Sholom Congregation in Potomac, Maryland; TheSHUL of the Nation's Capital[78] and Kesher Israel Congregation in Washington, D.C.;[79] and the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale in the Bronx, New York.[80] Interviewed in a 2010 article, Lew's former boss on the National Security Council, Sandy Berger, commented that "Lew's faith never got in the way of performing his duties."[76] A 2011 press release from the Religion News Service noted that Lew also "has extensive connections in the American Jewish community," and that he might be able to help President Obama "build a more friendly rapport" with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.[81]
Attachments
A rural Michigan house explodes with such force that the shockwave is felt seven miles away, according to comments in a video.
www.fox2detroit.com
Video
www.foxnews.com
Michigan house explosion leaves 4 people dead, 2 injured
Police provided an update Saturday night and announced another person had died, bringing the total to four.
Michigan police investigate fatal house explosion in Whitmore Lake | Fox News Video
A house in Whitmore Lake, Michigan, exploded Saturday, prompting Northfield Township Police Department to investigate. (Source: FOX 2 Detroit)
