Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

Forest Rivers Sunseeker Classic motor home is built on a Ford E-450 chassis, framed with vacuum-bonded laminate, and crammed with features the armchair outdoorsman would never consider. On the 31-foot model I piloted recently, those included a propane furnace to keep the cabin toasty in freezing temperatures, two refrigerators (one for the indoor kitchen and one for the outdoor one), three sleeping areas, and dozens of cabinets, drawers, and compartments to conceal disorder.

All that engineering was pretty satisfying at the campsite. On the road it was noisy, adding clatter and a little bit of mysteryhoney, did you hear that?to the task of keeping a 14,500-pound motor home upright going over winding mountain roads and through crowded interchanges. At least thats how I saw it. Like a real RV dad, I was doing my best to ignore the complaints of the unhappy campers with whom I was sharing the cabin. My kids had been slugging each other periodically, and when the iPad ran out of juice they tossed markers in my direction. My wife, Eleanor, had a premonition somewhere in the Allegheny Mountains and was now certain our brakes were about to give out. And that was before I opened an artery in my hand with a hatchet and wound up riding an ambulance from an obscure state park to an emergency room, asking myself how, exactly, Id come to believe this would be a relaxing vacation.

The Clark familyin Elkhart.

Photographer: Lyndon French for Bloomberg Businessweek

It had started some months earlier, when Id convinced the editors of Bloomberg Businessweek that we should visit Elkhart, Ind., where the worlds largest RV companies are based. Elkhart, which is about halfway between Ohio and Illinois and just south of the Michigan state line, may not be known as a tourist destination. But, as Id insisted to Eleanor, its a surprisingly bucolic place, where Amish farms mix with factories.

The vaccine was just starting to become widely available when we arrived at the end of March, and RVs remained compelling to travelers understandably turned off by the idea of sharing an airport waiting room or hotel lounge with a nose-masking stranger. Meanwhile, large portions of the American workforce were continuing to log in to the office virtually, creating an opportunity for the younger and more adventurous to work from the road, integrating their jobs into the #vanlife. Even the Oscar-winning film Nomadland romanticized this lifestyle in its own way.

The pandemic has been good for owners of vacation rental properties and shareholders of Airbnb Inc. Its also been great for the RV industry. After all, a motor home (or travel trailer, which is an RV you drag behind your car or truck) is like a halfway house to nature, perfect for indoorsy types who still enjoy national parks and retirees looking for a safe way to drive across the country to see their grandchildren. And so, starting last spring, people began canceling European honeymoons and going to RV dealerships instead. The motor-home-curious flocked to rental offices and Airbnb-style sharing websites. This drove so much demand for new RVs that by the time we got to Elkhart, help wanted signs were calling out from factory gates and roadside billboards.

Conventional wisdom says that workers and vacationers are on the road back to pre-pandemic norms. But its also possible that the sudden embrace of RVs signals the beginning of a longer-term trenda future in which tech executives and second-grade teachers finish their last Zoom of the day, emerge from their respective travel trailers to gather around a campfire, and unwind over cold beers and hot smores. Lets hope theyll all be trained to chop kindling safely.

There was really only one way to find out how realistic that vision was. When the kids school headed into spring break, I took the family to Elkhart, picked up the Sunseeker, and hit the road.

The Sunseeker in action.

Photographer: Lyndon French for Bloomberg Businessweek

The vacation, such as it was, started at the Thor Motor Coach Class B plant in Bristol, Ind., right outside Elkhart. It was, to the extent such a thing is possible, ground zero for the RV boomthe place where the biggest company makes its hottest models. Although a cold front was threatening ominously, it was sunny. Inside, workers wearing T-shirts ducked in and out of a procession of Ram ProMasters that snaked around the factory floor. Plumbers, carpenters, and electricians did their thing. A horn would honk, and a van shell would roll down the line to the next station.

Indiana, where more than 80% of North Americas RVs are made, came to play an outsize role in the industry more or less by accident. In one version of the story, the son of a prominent Elkhart merchant was captivated by the travel trailers hed encountered at the 1933 Worlds Fair in Chicago and begged his parents for startup capital. His success inspired other entrepreneurs, and a network of companies sprung up to manufacture motor homes and supply the nascent industry with specialized suspension systems, gas ranges, and refrigerators. Over the decades, the ranks of once independent RV companies consolidated into a small group of conglomerates, the biggest of which are in Elkhart.

Thor Industries Inc., which accounted for roughly 40% of all RV sales last year, is one of them. The company was founded in 1980 by a descendant of the brewer Adolphus Busch and spent the ensuing four decades acquiring manufacturers, including Airstream Inc., Jayco Inc., and a dozen other makes youve probably gawked at on the highway. Thors lineage and its thirst for acquisitions make it a little like the Anheuser-Busch of motor homes. Forest River Inc., which is owned by Warren Buffetts Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and which owns Coachmen RV, Shasta RV, and other manufacturers, is the second-biggest: the industrys Heineken, as it were. Forest River is based in Elkhart, too.

Data: Compiled by Bloomberg

Thor, like the rest of the industry, had been focused on building travel trailers and larger motorized coaches, which might have a washer-dryer and theater seating. But in recent years Class B motor homeswhat the rest of us call camper vanshave been the fastest-growing segment. Class B vehicles are easier to drive without sacrificing too many amenities. Thors TMC Tellaro, for instance, is a 20-footer that can sleep up to four semicomfortably. Depending on the model, it can also cram in two propane burners, a microwave, a kitchen sink, a full (if tiny) bath, and an innovation called a cassette toileta commode that empties into a tank that works like a rollaway suitcase. That feature, I was told, is big in Europe.

Thors Martin.

Photographer: Lyndon French for Bloomberg Businessweek

Factories in Elkhart County shut down in March 2020 and reopened in May. But despite having been offline for two months, manufacturers delivered more RVs last year than they did the year before. More than 530,000 vehicles will be shipped to North American RV dealers this year, a record, according to estimates from the RV Industry Association.

Our products were kind of built for something like this, said Thor Chief Executive Officer Bob Martin, a former offensive lineman at Purdue University who spoke to me across the length of a conference table overlooking the scenic St. Joseph River. RVs had normally been the domain of snowbirds, motor sports enthusiasts, mountain climbers, pet owners, pro golfers, touring rock bands, and all manner of germophobes. The pandemic has added to those ranks, created new ones, and, of course, proved the germophobes right. Our customers think about those kinds of things, he said. They know who cleaned their RV, because they cleaned it. They know who has been allowed in the unit, because its their unit.

The earliest RVs were basically tents on wheels, covered wagons that hitched to cars instead of horses. But it didnt take long for a group of entrepreneurs to realize they could make more money by complicating things. By the late 1930s, Elkhart was already delivering extravagant travel trailers that anticipated the bigger-is-better fifth wheels (a technical term for a trailer that hangs over the bed of a pickup truck). Some innovations, like the slide-out sections that make an RV wider at the campsite, were widely adopted. Others were not. Long before it was acquired by Thor, Jayco made a pontoon-camper hybrid called the Camp-n-Cruise. It sold poorly. Winnebago Industries Inc., based in Iowa, briefly sold a flying RV called the Heli-Home. It was a neat idea, said Al Hesselbart, the retired staff historian at Elkharts RV/MH Hall of Fame Museum & Library, a facility dedicated to the glories of recreational vehicles and manufactured housing. But it was one of those giant steps that was way too big for the customers.

These days RV companies are still cramming their products full of products. Higher-end motor homes include gas fireplaces and heated tile floors. The plant manager at Rev Group Inc.s Renegade RV factory bragged about the Amish-built cabinetry his employees were installing. An executive at Gulf Stream Coach Inc. boasted of his companys cradle of strength system for lowering the vehicles center of gravity and making it easier to drive. At Nexus RV, co-founder Claude Donati showed off 4x4 drivetrains aimed at improving towing capacity, perfect for hauling a $200,000 sports car behind a $200,000 RV.

A Renegade RV is assembled in Bristol.

Photographer: Lyndon French for Bloomberg Businessweek

Photographer: Lyndon French for Bloomberg Businessweek

Their enthusiasm was only slightly diminished by rising production costs. Skilled workers in need of employment are hard to find in northern Indiana right now, and good ones are commanding higher wages, said Donati. Finding parts is an even bigger problem. When Nexus normal supplier of wheel well liners ran out of inventory this spring, the company found them on Amazon. It bought mattresses online at Wayfair and generators off the shelf at a Menards hardware store. Its like, do we ship it without a generator? Donati asked. You might be putting someone in a position not to have as much fun.

Id rented our Sunseeker from an outfit called Road Bear RV, which, as it turned out, was facing a similar predicament. A week before we arrivedwe drove a normal rental car to get thereI got an email from the reservation desk alerting me to a pitfall of renting an RV in March: I could hook up the RV to a water supply, but Id have to take responsibility if the pipes burst. This didnt seem like a big deal at the time, but then the cold front swept in, promising overnight temperatures in the 20s. The safe plan, a Road Bear representative said, would be to camp without running water.

If Road Bear was worried Id get an incomplete experience, they didnt show it. RV rental companies, much like the rest of the industry, have spent the past year riding the Covid-19 roller coaster. Road Bear and its sister company, El Monte RV, had traditionally done most of their business with tourists from Europe, who were shut out of the U.S. by travel bans. But domestic demand was more than picking up the slack. Road Bears parent, a company in Auckland that had started out running helicopter tours in New Zealand, increased U.S. rental revenue 30% in the second half of 2020, compared with the year before.

The Road Bear rental office was situated in the back corner of an empty lot on Forest Rivers Elkhart campus, in a corrugated metal building that would have looked to the uninitiated like a good place to do something illegal. Inside, a counter was mounted in front of the broadside of a motor home called a Coachmen Leprechaun. Would our RV lead us to a pot of gold or a pot of something else? A clerk took my credit card and handed over a packet of toilet chemicals.

We had rented the RV through Road Bears factory direct program, an offering it developed to help solve a key logistical problem. The company manufactures its RVs in Indiana, but its offices are near major cities. So Road Bear offers renters their choice of the companys RVs for $9 a day to pick up a motor home in Elkhart and drive it to a rental location. After insurance, campsite fees, and gas, our trip worked out to about $170 a day.

At first glance, the Sunseeker compared well to the types of hotel rooms we could get for the money. For one thing, there was a semblance of privacy: My 7-year-old daughter claimed the loft over the cab, and my 5-year-old son slept on the pull-out sofa in the living area. My wife and I had the master bedroom at the back, with wardrobes and a television.

On the other hand, the Sunseeker was a lot more complicated to operate than a two-queen room at the Hilton. When we took possession of the motor home, a Road Bear employee spent 15 minutes walking us around the vehicle while delivering a series of commandments. Start the engine and engage the emergency brake before you extend the slide-outs. Turn off the propane before you fill the gas tank. If you must use the toilet, flush with windshield wiper fluid, because it has a lower freezing point than water.

Scenes from the road.

Photographer: Patrick Clark for Bloomberg Businessweek

We camped in Elkhart that evening, celebrating Eleanors birthday with McDonalds and cheesecake, and soon realized that the Road Bear tutorial had been somewhat inadequate. The RV beeped and buzzed for reasons we couldnt account for. The internet told us to make sure we flipped the breaker before plugging an RV into a power source, but there was no breaker in the electrical box at our first parking slot. I took a breath, imagined offing my family in an electrical explosion, and plugged in. Nothing bad happened, but a couple of hours later we had to spend 10 minutes looking for an elusive light switch. I woke up cold in the middle of the night, dialed up the thermostat, and then smelled something burning. A bit of Googling indicated that the smell was probably just construction debris left in the furnace. To be safe, I turned off the heat and went back to sleep.

Id been warned that a new RV takes a little while to get used to, and moreover that RVing was a lifestyle for people with a certain capacity for self-reliance. RVers had to be comfortable driving a big rig and making minor repairs. Yes, they appreciated modern conveniences such as dishwashers and satellite television, but they also didnt mind cramming themselves into tiny showers or acquiring a basic understanding of electrical system design.

Even before we left Elkhart, it was clear my family might not quite meet this description. I had bought the hatchet as a jokeit was on one of the checklists wed found on the internet covering what to pack on an RV tripand I figured Id buy wood and fire-starters like any basic urbanite. But theres something about having driven a rickety house-car up a windy Appalachian hillside that makes you feel vastly more capable than you actually are. And so I found myself making kindling at Little Beaver State Park near Beckley, W.Va. A light snow was falling, and my children pulled up their camp chairs to watch me nurse the fire while Eleanor cooked burgers on the electric stove that folded down from the motor homes outdoor kitchen. Then my hatchet blade slipped. I didnt feel pain, at least not at first.

Clockwise from top left: The author, grooming at Jellystone Park; dinner in Kentucky; the case for not making your own kindling; the outdoor kitchen.

Photographer: Patrick Clark for Bloomberg Businessweek

Getting to the emergency room in rural West Virginia seemed like it would be an order of magnitude harder than plugging in a motor home. My first instinct was to wrap my wound in a towel and hope. Eleanor didnt think that was a solution and called 911. By 2 a.m.after a 30-minute ambulance ride to Raleigh General Hospital, where the staff sewed me up and called me a cab back to the campsiteI faced a new set of questions.

Could I drive the Sunseeker with nine stitches in my hand? (I thought so.) Did Eleanor want to drive? (No. She didnt.) Were our collective nerves too fried to face another drive through the mountains? (Yes.) Did we have enough propane in the tank to last another day of freezing temperatures? (Maybe?) In the end, we spent a rest day in Little Beaver, ordered Dominos, and shut the doors against the cold.

The guy dressed like Ranger Smith at the camp store in Luray, Va., heard me say my name and made a crack about Clark Griswold, the everyman played by Chevy Chase who dragged his family through hilarious misadventures in the Vacation movies. I didnt mind. Jellystone Park resort, the Yogi Bear-themed chain of RV campgrounds, felt like a party, and, after the ER visit, a relatively safe one. Kids jumped on bouncy pillows and waved at a bear who was riding around on the back of a golf cart. Adults played classic rock at respectful volumes and tended their fires.

A strange thing about RVing is that you can theoretically go anywhere, but many people take their vehicles to glorified parking lots so they can make camp 20 feet away from the next group. This is not universally true: Some stay for free at Walmart parking lots and national forests. But RVerslike motorcyclists and Jeep peoplelike being around their own kind. That often means in diagonal rows of RV-size spaces, each one with an electrical box, a water spigot, and a hole in the ground to connect the tube that empties waste. Usually theres a picnic table. Sometimes theres a way to hook up to cable TV.

Snapshots from the Clarks vacation, including, top left, a post-injury indulgence.

Photographer: Patrick Clark for Bloomberg Businessweek

The Luray Jellystone was a little bit like that, but its RV sites were built into a hillside and along a grassy quad, making it feel less like a parking lot and more like a summer camp, where we could enjoy the kinship of a hundred or so families who also recognized the pleasures and pains of vacationing in a house-car. The temperature had started climbing, and so we were able to plug the Sunseeker into the municipal water supply. I flipped the switch on the electric water heater (having learned to conserve propane) and took a hot shower. More important, I was finally able to complete an important rite of passage: I got to empty the wastewater tank.

Our campsite at Jellystone didnt have a sewage hookup, and it took two laps around the park before I managed to pull up on the correct side of the communal dumping station. I affixed one end of an accordion tube to the Sunseekers undercarriage, screwed the other end to a concrete basin, and pulled a gray handle to empty water from the sinks and shower.

It was easier than I expected, but there was a catch. Everything on the Sunseeker was new, but the tube that Road Bear had supplied me with was not, and when I pulled the plunger, water poured through slits in its midsection. I should have realized what would happen next, but then I pulled the handle to release the toilet tank. Wastewater came pouring through the slits and onto the gravel road next to the basin. In a flash, I understood the appeal of Thors poop suitcase.

On the drive north from Virginia, we assessed the vacation. I had liked driving the RV, clatter and all, and loved pressing the button that made it expand, though the size of the vehicle made it inconvenient for side trips and excursions. Eleanor agreed that the Sunseeker was big enough to provide a bit of privacy, but small enough to be an intimate space for a family of four. That was nice. It had probably been a worthwhile adventure, and she would never do it again.

Which was fine. I got my first vaccine shot shortly after we returned the Sunseeker to the Road Bear office in industrial New Jersey. A few days later we booked airplane tickets to visit family in Florida. The kids went back to school full time, a triumphant moment that signaled the end of what for me had been the most difficult and best parts of the pandemic. Trying to maintain Zoom-school discipline and tending to the emotions of kids whod been separated from their friends was terrible. On the other hand, Ill probably never spend as much time with them again.

I didnt know it, but when I stepped out of the puddle of wastewater at Jellystone Park, the worst of the pandemic was probably behind us in the U.S. (Fingers crossed.) There had been a water hose nearby, but I couldnt figure out how to get it to work, so I gave up on cleaning up after myself and approached the driver behind me to apologize. Its our first time doing this, I told him. We rented this thing. I kind of made a mess.

Thats OK, he said. I hope you had a good time.Read next: JetBlues Founder Is Preparing to Launch a New Airline in a Global Pandemic

More here:
Pandemic Vacation: What We Learned Driving 1,100 Miles in an RV - Bloomberg

Blanca Tamayo was dying when she arrived at UCI Medical Center. She had been shot in the head and her two children were among the four killed in a mass shooting in Orange five weeks ago.

A team of doctors, surgeons and nurses saved her life and cared for her as she recovered. Now, the sole survivor of the tragedy that unfolded on March 31 was being released.

For the record:

1:36 PM, May. 06, 2021An earlier version of this article referred to Luis Tovar as Blanca Tamayos ex-husband. The two were never married.

On Wednesday, Tamayo sat quietly in a wheelchair, holding two flower bouquets and wearing a T-shirt with an image of her 9-year-old son, Matthew Farias, who died in her arms that day.

This hospital has been great, Tamayo said in a low, raspy voice. I have my family, the father of my boy and my son who love me and support me and Im thankful for that.

She paused, placed her right hand over her chest and cried for Matthew.

Hes an angel and hes with God now, his mother said.

At that moment, words failed her. Her daughter, 28-year-old Genevieve Raygoza, was also killed.

Kneeling down next to her, 25-year-old Louis Tovar Jr. whispered comforting words to his mother. Tovar, whose father and two siblings were killed in the shooting, said the road to recovery will be long for his mother.

Im excited to have her back home, he said. Just happy to have her back for Mothers Day.

Tamayo said her only plan for Mothers Day was to spend it with family.

Try and enjoy whatever life God has left me, she said.

Blanca Ismeralda Tamayo, with her son Louis Tovar Jr., pauses in an emotional moment at UCI Medical Center in Orange.

(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

The mass shooting occurred on the evening of the last day of March in a commercial building that housed several businesses, including Unified Homes, a manufactured-home dealer and real estate company that the gunman targeted.

Orange Police Department detectives alleged that Aminadab Gaxiola Gonzalez, 44, drove a rental car to the building at 202 W. Lincoln Ave. They alleged that Gonzalez used bicycle-type locks to shut the front and rear entrances before carrying out the shooting, targeting mostly employees of Unified Homes.

The incident, the third mass shooting in the United States that month, stunned the quiet north Orange neighborhood.

In addition to Genevieve and Matthew, the dead included the owner of the business, Luis Tovar, 50, and longtime company employee Leticia Solis Guzman, 58.

Tamayo was found holding Matthew in her arms, family said. The day of the shooting just happened to be one of the days that Matthew had accompanied his mom to work at Unified Homes instead of going to day care, family said.

Louis Tovar Jr. said his mother was shot twice in the head and once in the arm.

Michael Lekawa, head surgeon at UCI Medical Center, said Tamayos gunshot wounds caused some facial fractures and she required brain surgery.

Lekawa, who was assisting the night the mass shooting happened, said head injuries can be among the most catastrophic a person can experience. Looking at Tamayo, he said he expected her to recover well at least physically.

Gonzalez, the suspected gunman, was wounded after exchanging fire with police officers. Authorities said officers were forced to use bolt cutters to gain entrance.

A photo released by authorities showed a man entering the business dressed in black and gray with sunglasses, a baseball hat and black bandana covering his face. He had a backpack on his left shoulder and a gun in his right hand.

Authorities said they recovered a semiautomatic handgun and a backpack with pepper spray, handcuffs and ammunition that they say belong to the suspect.

Gonzalez, who has not been arraigned, is facing four murder counts and three attempted-murder counts for firing at two officers who were not struck and for critically wounding Tamayo, according to a statement that Orange County Dist. Atty. Todd Spitzer released last month after filing the charges.

The taking of the life of another human being is the most serious of crimes, he said. And the slaughter of multiple people while they were essentially locked in a shooting gallery is nothing short of terrifying.

Detectives say they dont have a motive for the shooting. They are also looking at how the suspect obtained the firearm.

Back at the hospital Wednesday afternoon, Rafael Farias stood by himself a short distance away, watching his wife address the media. He wore a golden rosary with a photo of his smiling son, Matthew. Farias said losing his boy triggered memories of his own father, who died when he was 3. He has tried to take it one day at a time, focusing on supporting his wife and expressing gratitude to the hospital staff, family, friends and the public.

Im just grateful for this miracle, he said, looking over at Tamayo. I might not be able to see my son anymore, but I can at least see him through her.

Farias said hes going to focus on helping his wife while she continues to recover from her injuries. He said shes going to need 24-hour supervision and help moving around so she can avoid injuring herself.

I have a very quiet and calm environment for her and for her family to come over and visit, he said.

Farias said all he can do now is try to move forward as best he can. I have to continue living life for [my son], for his life, he said. I have to stay strong-minded.

Farias described Matthew as a smart, charismatic, athletic and energetic little boy. He said he loved seeing how happy he was around his mother.

He would give her kisses and flowers and hugged her every time he got the chance, he said.

Farias hoped to watch his son grow up and play sports.

I wanted to be his No. 1 fan, he said.

He said every now and then, he has dreams of him. He smiles thinking about it.

Hes joyful and happy, he said.

Hes up in heaven now and I know hes running around chasing his sister Genevieve, the boys father added.

In one dream, Farias said, he saw his son at the grocery store sitting on top of a shelf. He asked his son what he was doing up there and his son said he was just thinking.

I told him come on down, he said, recalling. Thats when I hugged him and I wake up from the dream.

Read more:
Mother who survived Orange mass shooting but lost two children leaves hospital - Los Angeles Times

AWAY 100 FREE CIGARETTE WASTE RECEPTACLES TO LOCAL BUSINESSES. >> IF A LOCAL BUSINESS WANTS TO HELP DO THEIR PART AND ENSURE THAT THEIR CUSTOMERS OR THEIR EMPLOYEES HAVE A SAFE PLACE TO DISPOSE OF THEIR BUTTS WE JUST ENCOURAGE THEM TO APPLY. JACLYN WEVE GOTTEN SOME HEAVY DOWN FOREST. A LOT OF LIGHTNING STRIKES AS WELL. SOME OF THAT HEAVY RAIN HEAD RIGHT FOR US. WINSTON-SALEM IN THE SECOND THIS. FURTHER SOUTH YOU CAN SEE WHAT ITS DOING IN OTHER PARTS OF THE STATE. THIS IS A TORNADO WARNING. THIS STAYS IN EFFE UNTIL 1:15. HERES WHAT WE KNOW AT THIS POINT. A FEW MINUTES AGO THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER DECIDED THAT OUR AREA INCLUDING THE TRIAD IS NOW UNDER A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE WEATHER INSTEAD OF THE MARGINAL RISK THEY HAD ORIGINALLY PUT US UNDER. SCATTERED SEVERE STORM THREAT, AREAS OF WIND DAMAGE ARE LIKELY. ISOLATED TORNADOES ARE ALS POSSIBLE. FOR THE AREAS SHADED IN GREEN, IT IS STILL AN ISSUE. TALKING ABOUT ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS. HAIL UP TO AN INCH AND LOW TORNADO RISK. MAKE SURE YOU KNOW WHERE YOUR SAFE SPACES. ITS THE INNERMOST ROOM IN YOUR HOUSE AWAY FROM DOORS AND WHEN DOES. MAKE SURE YOU ARE READY FOR THIS AND MAKE SURE YOUR EARPHONES ARE FULLY CHARGED. TEMPERATURES GETTING INTO THE UPPER 70S. PREVIOUSLY AREAS TO THE SOUTH HAD A HIGHER SKIP SEVERE WEATHER THAN WE DID. THIS IS ENOUGH TO CREATE INSTABILITY IN OUR ATMOSPHERE. THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AND INTO TH EVENING WE CONTINUE TO SEE A FEW SCATTERED SHOWERS. THE MOST SEVERE THREAT WILL BE IN THE EARLY AFTERNOON. WE HAVE TO BE ON GUARD THROUGH THE LATE AFTERNOON INTO THE EVENING. COULD BE SOME STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS AS WELL. WE ARE WATCHING THESE LITTLE POCKETS. THERE SMALL IN SIZE BUT POWERFUL. EVEN IF YOU DONT GET A SEVERE STORM YOURE SEEING VERY HEAVY RAINFALL. UNDER AN LIGHTNING IS A RISK IN AND OF ITSELF. DAMAGING WINDS CAN BE JUST AS DAMAGING AS A TORNADO. A LITTLE MORE OF THAT ACTIVITY AND WE CALMED DOWN INTO THE LATER PART OF THE NIGHT. THATS GOOD NEW ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AND INTO THE WE WANT TO BE AWARE. WE HAVE ANOTHER LINE OF STORMS. THIS ONE I DONT LIKE THE LOOK OF. WE HAVE THREE IMPACT DAYS IN A ROW. WEDNESDAY ALSO AN IMPACT DAY. PLEASE STAY WEATHER AWARE AND

North Carolina: Severe weather threatens Piedmont Triad

Updated: 6:49 PM EDT May 3, 2021

Severe weather is threatening the Piedmont Triad on Monday. Click the video player above to watch the latest forecast from WXII 12 NewsWXII 12's meteorologists said the primary risks for storms include heavy rain, induced flash flooding and frequent lightning. A few storms Monday afternoon could produce wind damage.Scroll down for live updates.More weather coverage: Closing and delays | Latest weather forecast | Post pictures to the uLocal North Carolina Facebook Group | Traffic information | Report closings and delays | SkyCams | Download the WXII12 News mobile appLIVE UPDATES3:15 p.m. update: The tornado warning has been lifted in Montgomery and Randolph counties.3:05 p.m. update: No damage has been reported in Randolph and Montgomery counties yet.3 p.m. update: Randolph County Schools said all schools in its system have been instructed to go into tornado position. Asheboro City Schools said students and staff will not be dismissed until the warning has been lifted. Dismissal and bus routes will also be delayed until the warning has passed.2:30 p.m. update: A Tornado Warning has been issued for Randolph and Montgomery counties by the National Weather Service until. Seek shelter immediately if you are in this location. The warning expires at 3:15 p.m.1:30 p.m. update: A Tornado Watch has been issued for Montgomery County by the National Weather Service. Be ready to seek shelter if a warning is issued in your location.There are about 1,000 tornadoes a year in the U.S. that kill an average of 80 people and injure 1,500. Being informed and prepared before a tornado hits can make the difference between life and death.1. Stay informed; understand the terminology. Download the WXII app to be aware of alerts, listen to NOAA Weather radio, or tune in to Channel 12 when there is impending severe weather.A tornado watch means that tornadoes are possible. Remain alert for approaching storms. Watch the sky and stay tuned into weather coverage.A tornado warning means that a tornado has been sighted or indicated by weather radar. Take shelter immediately.2. Prepare your family well in advance of severe weather.Put together a disaster supplies kit made up of basic items that your household may need in the event of an emergency.You may need to survive on your own after a storm strikes. This means having your own water, food and other essentials in sufficient quantity to last for at least 72 hours.Local officials and relief workers will be on the scene after a disaster, but they cannot reach everyone immediately. You could get help in hours or it might take days.FEMA supply checklistBasic services such as electricity, gas, water, sewage treatment and telephones may be cut off for days or even a week, or longer. Your supplies kit should contain items to help you manage during these outages.3. Have an emergency communication plan in place before the threat of severe weather.Have an emergency communication plan in place that all members of your family understand. Many families experience unneeded stress when tornadoes strike because they do not have a plan in place to be warned, stay safe and find one another after the storm has passed.4. Know about tornadoes, and know what to watch for.Some tornadoes are clearly visible, but rain or low-hanging clouds often hide others. Occasionally, tornadoes develop so rapidly that little if any advance warning is possible. Before a tornado hits, the wind may die down and the air may become very still.Look for the following danger signs:Dark, often greenish skyLarge hailA large, dark, low-lying cloud (particularly if it appears to rotate)A loud roar, similar to the sound of a freight trainA tornado may appear nearly transparent until dust and debris are picked up or a cloud forms in the funnel.The average tornado moves southwest to northeast, but tornadoes have been known to move in any direction.The average forward speed of a tornado is 30 mph, but may vary from stationary to 70 mph.Peak tornado season in the southern states is March through MayTornadoes are most likely to occur between 3 and 9 p.m., but can occur at any time.5. Know where to go to stay safest.If you are in a residence, small building, nursing home, hospital, factory, shopping center or high-rise building:Go to a pre-designated area such as a safe room, basement, storm cellar or the lowest building level. If there is no basement, go to the center of a small interior room on the lowest level (closet, interior hallway) away from corners, windows, doors and outside walls. Put as many walls as possible between you and the outside. Get under a sturdy table and use your arms to protect your head and neck.If you are in a pickup line at your childs school, get inside the building as quickly as possible.In a high-rise building, go to a small interior room or hallway on the lowest floor possible.Make sure you are wearing sturdy shoes.Do not open windows.If you are in a mobile home, manufactured office building or camper:Get out immediately and go to a pre-identified location such as the lowest floor of a sturdy nearby building or a storm shelter. Mobile homes, even if tied down, offer little protection from tornadoes.Related: South Carolina man dies when tornado destroys his mobile homeIf you are not in a sturdy building, there is no single research-based recommendation for what last-resort action to take because many factors can affect your decision.Possible actions (that do not guarantee safety) include:Immediately get into a vehicle, buckle your seat belt and try to drive to the closest sturdy shelter. If your vehicle is hit by flying debris while you are driving, pull over and park.Take cover in a stationary vehicle. Put the seat belt on and cover your head with your arms and a blanket, coat or cushion if possible.Lie in an area noticeably lower than the level of the road and cover your head with your arms and a blanket, coat or cushion if possible.In all situations:Do not get under an overpass or bridge. You are safer in a low, flat location.Never try to outrun a tornado in urban or congested areas in a car or truck. Instead, leave the vehicle immediately for safe shelter.Watch out for flying debris. Flying debris from tornadoes causes most fatalities and injuries.Click here to watch the latest news and weather from WXII 12 News. Listen while you drive -- watch wherever you are, whenever you want. (Live during the news hours, most recent newscast in between times.) Click to download the app.

Severe weather is threatening the Piedmont Triad on Monday.

Click the video player above to watch the latest forecast from WXII 12 News

WXII 12's meteorologists said the primary risks for storms include heavy rain, induced flash flooding and frequent lightning. A few storms Monday afternoon could produce wind damage.

Scroll down for live updates.

More weather coverage: Closing and delays | Latest weather forecast | Post pictures to the uLocal North Carolina Facebook Group | Traffic information | Report closings and delays | SkyCams | Download the WXII12 News mobile app

LIVE UPDATES

3:15 p.m. update: The tornado warning has been lifted in Montgomery and Randolph counties.

3:05 p.m. update: No damage has been reported in Randolph and Montgomery counties yet.

3 p.m. update: Randolph County Schools said all schools in its system have been instructed to go into tornado position. Asheboro City Schools said students and staff will not be dismissed until the warning has been lifted. Dismissal and bus routes will also be delayed until the warning has passed.

2:30 p.m. update: A Tornado Warning has been issued for Randolph and Montgomery counties by the National Weather Service until. Seek shelter immediately if you are in this location. The warning expires at 3:15 p.m.

1:30 p.m. update: A Tornado Watch has been issued for Montgomery County by the National Weather Service. Be ready to seek shelter if a warning is issued in your location.

There are about 1,000 tornadoes a year in the U.S. that kill an average of 80 people and injure 1,500. Being informed and prepared before a tornado hits can make the difference between life and death.

Download the WXII app to be aware of alerts, listen to NOAA Weather radio, or tune in to Channel 12 when there is impending severe weather.

A tornado watch means that tornadoes are possible. Remain alert for approaching storms. Watch the sky and stay tuned into weather coverage.

A tornado warning means that a tornado has been sighted or indicated by weather radar. Take shelter immediately.

Put together a disaster supplies kit made up of basic items that your household may need in the event of an emergency.

You may need to survive on your own after a storm strikes. This means having your own water, food and other essentials in sufficient quantity to last for at least 72 hours.

Local officials and relief workers will be on the scene after a disaster, but they cannot reach everyone immediately. You could get help in hours or it might take days.

FEMA supply checklist

Basic services such as electricity, gas, water, sewage treatment and telephones may be cut off for days or even a week, or longer. Your supplies kit should contain items to help you manage during these outages.

Have an emergency communication plan in place that all members of your family understand. Many families experience unneeded stress when tornadoes strike because they do not have a plan in place to be warned, stay safe and find one another after the storm has passed.

Some tornadoes are clearly visible, but rain or low-hanging clouds often hide others. Occasionally, tornadoes develop so rapidly that little if any advance warning is possible. Before a tornado hits, the wind may die down and the air may become very still.

Look for the following danger signs:

The average tornado moves southwest to northeast, but tornadoes have been known to move in any direction.

The average forward speed of a tornado is 30 mph, but may vary from stationary to 70 mph.

Peak tornado season in the southern states is March through May

Tornadoes are most likely to occur between 3 and 9 p.m., but can occur at any time.

If you are in a residence, small building, nursing home, hospital, factory, shopping center or high-rise building:

If you are in a mobile home, manufactured office building or camper:

If you are not in a sturdy building, there is no single research-based recommendation for what last-resort action to take because many factors can affect your decision.

Possible actions (that do not guarantee safety) include:

In all situations:

Click here to watch the latest news and weather from WXII 12 News. Listen while you drive -- watch wherever you are, whenever you want. (Live during the news hours, most recent newscast in between times.) Click to download the app.

Continued here:
North Carolina: Severe weather threatens Piedmont Triad - WXII12 Winston-Salem - WXII12 Winston-Salem

A Sounders fan gets poked (Image: Seattle Fire)

To speed the process of getting the citys young adults inoculated against COVID-19, the Seattle Fire Department will begin deploying its mobile vaccination teams to neighborhood breweries, outdoor dining areas, business districts, parks, and beaches.

Officials call the new mobile vaccination strategy an effort to meet Seattle residents and workers where they are and increase vaccination rates, with a focus on younger Seattleites.

The Mobile Vaccination Teams will begin their tour of duty to reach the 16 to 30 crowd Friday in the University District and will be partnering with Big Time Brewery & Alehouse and Sweet Alchemy Ice Creamery to offer discounts to clinic patients. More deployments and deals will follow.

The effort comes as the city says it estimates more than 70% of Seattle adults have at least started the vaccination process. According to King Countys vaccination dashboard, while vaccination first dose rates for county residents 50 and older range from 76% to nearly 97% for those 75 and older, only 59% of those 18-49 have started the process and 42.5% of those 16-17 have at least one shot.

With a major increase in the federal supply, CHS reported here on the sudden shift in the city that has made the vaccine suddenly widely available in the city. Despite the wide availability, the region has struggled with continued spread of the virus though there are signs of a plateau and hope the area will not need to roll back to a higher level of restrictions on businesses and social gathering.

Officials have responded with a flurry of partnerships that include vaccinations offered at major sporting events and sessions with church organ accompaniment at Capitol Hills St. Marks Cathedral.

The citys vaccination efforts come as part of a pieced-together federal strategy forged during the Trump administration mixing commercial and retail providers and municipalities together in a loose network to distribute the Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson and Johnson developed and manufactured vaccines. Since launching its vaccination effort on January 14, City of Seattle says it has administered over 170,000 vaccinations to eligible adults over 111,000 individuals. These vaccinations have occurred at 88 Adult Family Homes, 90 affordable housing buildings with seniors and people with disabilities, 19 pop-ups, 18 permanent supportive housing buildings, two vulnerable youth-serving organizations, city sport events, and the four city-affiliated fixed vaccination sites including the megasite at Lumen Field.

THANKS! WE DID IT! 1,000 CHS SUBSCRIBERS -- We asked, you answered. Thanks for stepping up!Support local journalism dedicated to your neighborhood. SUBSCRIBE HERE. Jointo become a subscriber at$1/$5/$10 a monthto help CHS provide community news withNO PAYWALL. You can also sign up fora one-time annual payment.

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Seattle 'Mobile Vaccination Teams' to target young adults at breweries, outdoor dining areas, parks, and beaches - CHS Capitol Hill Seattle News

Fire crews say two adults and three kids are all in the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries after jumping from the home.

TOLEDO, Ohio A family of five jumped out of a window on the second floor of their home to escape a house fire Friday morning.

This happened in the 400 block of Spencer around 4:25 a.m. in south Toledo.

Fire crews say two adults and three kids are all in the hospital with non-life threatening injuries after jumping from the home.

When a neighbor called 911, she said that a man was outside screaming that his kids were still in the house.

"I saw the fire come out that bottom window over there, shooting out flames," she said, "and then he's screaming, 'help me, help me it's a fire.' I called 911."

Toledo Fire & Rescue Department crews say the mother, father and two boys made it out initially, with the third child still inside. The father got a ladder and went back into the home to save his son.

"I seen him go up the ladder and go back in the window and then seen him fall from the porch with his son," the neighbor said.

By the time fire crews arrived, everyone was safely out of the house and accounted for.

Crews searched the house to confirm and deemed that everything was all clear and under control around 4:36 a.m.

Neighbors are calling the father a hero, saying he did all of this while he's recovering from a recent car accident.

Initial reports show the adult family members woke up to heavy black smoke on the second floor of the home. The father escaped through a second-floor bedroom window and the mother dropped two of children to the ground to the father.

The mother was then forced out of the window due to heavy smoke conditions. That was when the father grabbed a ladder from the back of his home, went back through the second-floor window and found the third child.

Neighbors added his "dad instinct" kicked in and he did was he needed to save his family.

They were able to escape back out of the bedroom window.

The fire caused heavy damage to the first floor of the home. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

TFRD PIO Pvt. Sterling Rahe says this highlights the importance of families having an escape plan in case of a fire. If your family doesn't have a fire escape plan, you can find more information on how to make one here. Be sure to practice your safety plan with all family members.

However, he says it appears there were no working smoke alarms in the home. TFRD says this could have turned out much differently if the family hadn't woke up to the smoke.

"Most often in fires such as this one, unless alerted by working smoke detectors, the outcome is fatal as smoke inhalation is often the cause of death. Early detection and the audio alarm from smoke detectors gives occupants an audible warning that can and has saved lives," Pvt. Rahe said in a statement.

Toledo fire reminds everyone to test your smoke detectors and make sure you have a detector on every level of your home and in all sleeping areas.

Replace any smoke detector that does not sound when tested or is older than 10 years.

More:
Father saves son as family of 5 jumps from 2nd floor window to escape south Toledo house fire - WTOL

Business owners left to clean up after May Day riot

by: Lindsay Nadrich, KOIN 6 News Staff

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) Spa Sasse Manager Michelle Moore tries to stay optimistic but said she is frustrated with what the COVID-19 pandemic and frequent destructive demonstrations have done for business.

The spas display case window was smashed again for the second time Saturday night during a May Day demonstration that later turned into a riot.

Several Starbucks locations were also damaged, including the store on Southwest Jefferson Street and 3rd Avenue, as well as the store on Southwest Main Street and 2nd Avenue and the store in the Pioneer Courthouse Square.

Police arrested six people that night. Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt filed charges against three of the people arrested Phoebe Loomis, Quang Nguyen and Jeremiah Day.

Similar demonstrations have been happening for months in Portland with some people vandalizing buildings and setting fires near Portland Police precincts and other businesses across the city.

Many of the people who participate in these demonstrations often advocate for abolishing police, prisons and ICE on both social media and at these demonstrations.

Moore said she supports the peaceful demonstrations that happened earlier in the day on Saturday, but she is not in favor of destruction.

Theyre violent and Im not ok with it and I feel like the police dont have the proper resources or the time to take care of that, she said.

On top of the broken windows, Moore said they also had a break-in and theft this year. Now they lock their doors at all times, even during the day.

I shouldnt have to replace windows, thats something that (shouldnt) be happening in downtown Portland, she said. Its not something I think of as being regular.

Moore said getting customers to come downtown has been tough because of everything thats happened.

I dont think its going to get better yet, she said. I think we havent seen the last of it, so, unfortunately were just staying vigilant, just trying to stay open and stay welcoming.

Read the original:
Spa manager: I shouldnt have to replace windows - KOIN.com

Ashop owner is set to fork out 1,200 to replace his front window, after a distracted delivery driver walked through the glass.

The Game Pad on Norfolk Street, in Kings Lynn, have gone viral online after the owner released a video of a delivery driver who accidentally smashed their shop window.

The courier arrivedat the shopon Wednesday, May 5, buton his way out, as he looked down at a device in his hand, he failed to see the windowpane directly in front of him.

The Game Pad in Kings Lynn have gone viral online after the owner released a video of a delivery driver who walked through their shop window.- Credit: Jason Lee

Owner Jason Lee said he first felt sympathy for the driver, who explained he tripped and fell,but afterlooking at CCTV he realisedthat he had simply been distracted.

The 43-year-old said: As he walked out there was this almighty bang and crash and we thought he hit a cabinet but it transpired that he walked through theglass.

We gave him medical attention, closed the shop, called the medics and he was there for about 45 minutes as they checked him over. He got a cut to his leg andtheybandaged it up.

He originally told me that hetripped and had gone through the glass so I took it at face value but I looked through the CCTV and I could clearly see it wasn't the case at all.

He was walkingatareasonable pace,looking down at a device or tabletand not looking ahead.So,he went straight through the window.

The Game Pad in Kings Lynn have gone viral online after the owner released a video of a delivery driver who walked through their shop window.- Credit: Jason Lee

The shop window is now boarded up and Mr Leesaid it is now going to cost them 1,200 to have the glass replaced.

My initial reaction was sympathy, he said. Because it could happen to anybody but when I found out it was complete neglect on the driver's part Ididnt have as much sympathy for him.

He is lucky he got away with only a leg injury.

The one thing I would like youto say a lot of people have commented about the standard of the glass butI am only a tenant. The landlorddidn't make me aware of anything to do with the glass.

But the replacement glass will be up tobuildingstandardsand laminated.

Read the rest here:
Delivery driver walks through King's Lynn shop window - Eastern Daily Press

While you can use SFC, DISM, Reset & Cloud Reset options; today we show you how you can also replace a corrupt or missing system file with a good file using the Windows 10 Installation Media.

At times a particular system file may get corrupted and result in an unstable system and sometimes a BSOD. Things can get worse, and the only option you may feel is reinstalling the OS.

However, it is possible to restore corrupted files using the Windows 10 Installation media. It is important that you know the exact path of the system file before we go ahead. If you do not know it, searching for it using Bing or Google might be a good idea.

Prepare your Windows 10 Installation Media by downloading the ISO from the Microsoft website.

Next, boot into the BIOS, and set the first bootable drive as the USB or Flash Storage. Save and exit the BIOS/UEFI.

Insert your installation media and restart your computer. You should now see a Windows 10 Setup screen.

Choose the Repair option, and you will be taken to the Advanced Recovery screen.

Select Troubleshoot > Command Prompt.

Assuming you want to replace ntfs.sys which is located in the System32Drivers folder, execute the commands in the following sequence. You will have to choose x86 or x64 depending on your computers architecture.

Since we have removed the old file, it will not ask for any permission to overwrite.

Repeat the same for any other file which is missing, and then exit.

Restart the computer, and check if still get the file missing or a corrupt error.

There is one thing you need to take care of. Some system files change depending on the version of the OS. So make sure you copy the file from the same version of Windows 10 ISO. If you need files from a different version instead of the latest version, you can download any other version of Windows or you maydownload any exe, dll, etc, OS files from Microsoft.

This is a lot easier than running long SFC and DISM commands if you know how to use this.

PS: Did you know? You can also scan & repair a single file using System File Checker.

Read more:
Replace Bad System File with Good File using Installation Media - TWCN Tech News

Microsoft has an extremely useful Windows 10 tool you may never have heard of. However, if you want to upgrade a PC or do a completely clean install, its the best thing you can use.

Its called the Windows 10 Media Creation Tool and its sole purpose is to prepare installations of the latest version either to upgrade your current PC or build a USB flash drive to perform a clean install of Windows 10.

The Media Creation Tool is free and extremely easy to use. Heres all you need to know.

The Windows 10 Media Creation Tool is a perfect way to make sure you have the latest version installed on your PC.

Its really easy to use and all you need is to set aside some time to allow it to download the necessary files from Microsoft.

On your Windows 10 PC, first download the Media Creation tool. The beauty of using it is that you only need this single download, nothing else is required as it will download the correct image for you.

You can get the Media Creation Tool directly from Microsoft, and its not a large download so wont take long to be finished. You dont have to install it, either, as itll run as a standalone application, which means you can transfer it between machines easily.

Once downloaded you can use the Media Creation Tool to create a bootable flash drive to use on another PC or for a completely clean install. Alternatively, you can use it to upgrade your current PC to the latest version of Windows 10.

Open up the Media Creation Tool on your PC. Select the option to Create installation media for another PC and accept the license terms. The next stage involves choosing a language, edition, and architecture for Windows 10.

The edition will need to match whatever you have a license for, and in most cases, the architecture will be fine as x64. You only need to choose both or x86 if you know youre going to use it on a 32-bit machine.

Hit the Next button, choose the USB Flash Drive option, then select your flash drive from the list. Hit Next one more time, then Finish and the tool will begin the process of downloading Windows 10 and creating the USB installation drive.

Windows Update should deliver the latest versions of Windows 10 to your PC, but its not always the quickest at doing so. If you want to have the latest and greatest, the Media Creation Tool is one of the best ways to get it.

Open up the Media Creation Tool on your PC. Select the option to Upgrade this PC now and click Next. The Media Creation Tool will now begin downloading Windows 10 to your PC.

When the download is complete and the tool is ready to install Windows 10, youll have the chance to decide what you want to keep. Click Change what you want to keep and youll be given options to keep everything, keep only your files, or to keep nothing at all and do a fresh install.

When youre happy with your choice, click Install and the Windows 10 installation process will begin.

Whatever the reason you need to do a complete installation of Windows 10, the Media Creation Tool is one of the easiest ways to do it. Windows Update can sometimes lag behind in rolling out newer versions, but the Media Creation Tool is a quick way around that.

Its also perfect for building a USB flash drive to install Windows 10 on another machine, and as it works in the background you can go about your normal day while it does its thing.

See the rest here:
How to use the Windows 10 Media Creation Tool - TechRadar

Valheim has enjoyed a lot of success out of the gate in early access, and now there are a ton of people who are waiting to see what kind of content is added to the game in the coming months. Valheims developer Iron Gate Games has indicated that the first big update for the game, titled Hearth and Home, is on the way, and today it shared more teasers for the incoming update. The company also shared that its been working on some graphics updates as well.

Specifically, Iron Gate says that it has been working on graphics updates for the troll, the second boss named The Elder, and the third boss named Bonemass to give their old models some new fresh looks. The new looks, Iron Gate says, better align with how the company envisions Valheim, but unfortunately, we didnt get to see any images of the new models for The Elder or Bonemass.

We did, however, get to see an image of the new troll model, which you can see embedded above. If you havent played Valheim in a while, the new troll might not look dramatically different from the old one, but the new model does have more hair and improved nails. Its also noticeably more muscular than the old model, so you can look forward to encountering these buff behemoths roaming the black forest when this update arrives at some point in the future.

Iron Gate didnt share too much regarding the Hearth and Home update, though it did publish two teaser images which weve included both above and below. The first image is a tiny one that seems to focus on a pair of player feet potentially wearing new boots resting at what could be the base of a new throne. The second image shows off what could be a new type of ore, which lines up with the fact that Iron Gate says there are many new items relating to it.

Sadly, we didnt get a release date for the Hearth and Home update today, with Iron Gate saying that it wont decide on one until the update is in a state that its happy to release it in. Well keep an eye out for that release date and any new teasers Iron Gate decides to share, but in the meantime, try to figure out what is being teased in those two new images above.

Go here to see the original:
Valheim devs tease Hearth and Home update additions, show off buff trolls - SlashGear