Pipe Burst, Floods Church

It wasn’t as bad as Noah’s dilemma, but local pastor Jack Hollis encountered a smaller flood when he arrived Wednesday night for services at the Christian Center Church.

After Tuesday night’s freeze, a pipe had burst under the baptismal pool, and sent two inches of water into the main sanctuary. Hollis found standing water in every nook and cranny when he arrived, and water was running out all the doors onto the ground outside.

Hollis said that, while he’s not thrilled about the situation, he’s also able to put it in perspective.

“We’ve got a mess here, no doubt about it, but this is nothing compared to what those people went through in Hurricane Katrina or in other crises we’ve seen people suffer through,” Hollis said. “Shellie (wife) and I looked at each other and we said, ‘yeah, we’ve got this stuff, but this is nothing like we’ve seen in other places.’ No one was hurt here, none of our electronic equipment appears to be damaged; the instruments and things were on a raised stage so they didn’t get in the water, so we feel very blessed.”

Hollis is using paid and volunteer labor to get the church back in shape to receive the congregation.

Calloway Carpet Cleaning owner Jason Calloway came out at 7 p.m. Wednesday and worked for hire until 4 a.m., just pumping the water out. Hollis said Calloway pump out about 850 gallons.

Church Deacon Gary Gochenaur brought his work crews from Marianna Truss and Marianna Metal Roofing to help unbolt pews from the floor Thursday so the ruined carpet could be removed. Hollis said Gochenaur hasn’t asked for any compensation for that help, but Hollis said he’ll likely offer to pay a day of salaries for his deacon’s crew or show his appreciation in some way.

Hollis said he feels doubly blessed to have an alternative gathering place available until the church is once again usable.

He’s not sure how long that will take, but said his congregation will meet at the New Life Family Church building for now. It is located at 4028 Lafayette St. in Marianna, and services there had coincidentally ceased a couple of weeks ago.\

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Pipe Burst Floods Criminal Justice Center

Travis County officials were working Friday to clean up flooding at the downtown Blackwell-Thurman Criminal Justice Center after a water pipe burst on the fifth floor, drenching parts of that floor and floors below.

"It is a mess," said County Court-at-Law Judge Nancy Hohengarten, who had assessed the damage to her fourth-floor courtroom and chambers. "My bench was all wet, my computer was fried. Parts of my courtroom were dry and parts of it were a mess."

Hohengarten said other courtrooms and the district attorney's office were damaged but that the water came down on the northwest corner of the building, away from the district clerk's office, which holds critical records.

The flood was discovered by sheriff's officers Friday morning, said Capt. Wes Priddy of the Travis County sheriff's office.

The courthouse and other county offices were closed for the Christmas holiday, but the building was open for bonding services.

Priddy said he did not know the extent of the damage but said the cleanup is ongoing.

Defense lawyer Benjamin Blackburn said he was at the building at about 7 a.m. trying to get a client released from jail and observed a mess.

"It was raining on the inside lobby on the first floor," Blackburn said.

The building has had its share of problems since opening in December 2000, including past issues with leaking pipes and malfunctioning elevators. The building ended up costing the county $45 million, more than twice the original estimate.

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Fire Damages Mormon Temple

A pre-dawn fire Tuesday badly damaged a building under construction at the nation's second-largest Mormon temple, and arson investigators were trying to determine the cause.

The blaze was reported in West Los Angeles. It took 48 firefighters less than a half-hour to douse the flames, Fire Department spokesman Matt Spence said.

He did not know the extent of damage, but televised reports showed large sections of wood framing were charred black.

The fire did not damage the existing Los Angeles California Temple, a 257-foot-high building dedicated in 1956, or its 13 acres of grounds.

It is the second-largest Mormon temple in the U.S. after the temple in Salt Lake City.

Because the blaze occurred on church property, the Fire Department's special house of worship arson task force was called in to investigate, Spence said.

A call to temple representatives seeking comment was not immediately returned.

The fire erupted exactly two months after an arson fire at a construction site forced dozens of people to flee neighboring homes in nearby Brentwood.

Authorities said the pre-dawn fire on Nov. 10 damaged the wood framing for a six-unit townhouse complex.

As many as 10 families were displaced.

No arrests were made.

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1/10/12 Lindenhurst Weather Forecast

Tonight: Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming clear, with a low around 31. Northwest wind between 10 and 13 mph becoming light.

Wednesday: Increasing clouds, with a high near 41. Calm wind becoming east between 7 and 10 mph.

Wednesday Night: Rain, with thunderstorms also possible after 4am. Low around 39. Windy, with a east wind 11 to 14 mph increasing to between 25 and 28 mph. Winds could gust as high as 43 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New rainfall amounts between three quarters and one inch possible.

Thursday: Rain and possibly a thunderstorm before 10am, then a chance of rain between 10am and 4pm. High near 47. North wind between 8 and 18 mph, with gusts as high as 32 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.

Thursday Night: A chance of rain, mainly after midnight. Cloudy, with a low around 39. West wind between 6 and 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.

Friday: Partly sunny and breezy, with a high near 43.

Friday Night: Partly cloudy and breezy, with a low around 29.

Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 38.

Saturday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 24.

Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 36.

Sunday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 24.

M.L.King Day: Mostly sunny, with a high near 40.

Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 33.

Tuesday: Partly sunny, with a high near 46.

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Frozen Pipe Bursts and Floods Local Businesses

Cold weather took its toll Tuesday on at least one New Year’s resolution — to get into shape — after a frozen pipe burst and flooded the Bodyworks Fitness and Spa in Libertyville.

The Libertyville Fire Department called in neighboring departments for extra manpower to help vacuum and tarp areas inside the facility to prevent more damage.

Assistant Chief Mike Cloe said a 4-inch sprinkler pipe in the attic of the building at 510 First Street cracked and leaked water into the second floor.

“You couldn’t even open the door at first it was so high. Once the door opened it gushed out and ran down the stairwell,” he said.

The firefighters tarped exercise equipment and other areas like a cosmetics counter and juice bar area. The second floor, where the business had classes and massages, sustained the most damage.

Cloe said damage was estimated at $150,000 to $200,000.

Firefighters used backpack wet vacuums to try and dry out the fitness center.

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Navy Families Struggle with Mold Damage

After weeks of waiting, four families finally heard from the Navy about the independent mold tests done in their homes.

The Navy's inspectors confirmed what these families have known all along-that there are indeed mold problems and water damage in their homes.

Navy wife Angela Johnson doesn't feel like the Navy is on her side right now.

Johnson first told NewsChannel 3 her story about living with mold before Thanksgiving.

Her family has been living in a hotel since December 2nd.

Finally, two days after the New Year, Navy officials admitted to her for the first time about moisture problems and mold found in her Sandpiper Crescent home.

“They told me and my husband that my home was structurally unsound and said we are not allowed back in the house,” says Johnson.

She says they found nine different types of mold on her air duct system.

“No way that it should be okay to have stachybotrys in my HVAC and that my kids breathe that in every night,” says Johnson.

She is happy she will be moved into a safer home but still can't get over some of the things Navy officials told her in the meeting.

“They said me not cleaning my HVAC system is the reason there were stachybotrys spores sitting on my HVAC system,” says Johnson.

“The Navy kept saying, ‘we are going to help you, we are going to make this right,’ and to me today it felt like they dropped the ball again. The fact that they turned it around on me made me absolutely furious,” says Johnson.

Johnson is one of only four families who received their mold test results. Two more families will meet with the Navy on Wednesday.Fourteen families were lucky enough to get the Navy to test in their homes, but over 285 families have to rely on Lincoln’s third party testers.

“We've contacted them twice a day daily for the last two weeks and have not gotten an answer,” says Johnson.

Maureen Greble, her husband, three kids and their dog have been in a hotel since December 17th.

No results have come in from their mold test performed on December 20th.

According to the Navy, over 50 families are still waiting.

Maureen and her family are trying to make the best of their new home like so many others in the same situation.

Even Angela and her family will have to stay in their hotel until the end of January.

The faith they had has certainly worn thin.

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Electrical Fire Damages Church

An East Knoxville church was damaged by fire this morning.

"Several callers" reported fire around 7:30 a.m. at the Universal Church of Deliverance, 2166 Magnolia Ave., according to Knoxville Fire Dept. Capt. D.J. Corcoran.

Firefighters had the blaze under control about 8 a.m. but were continuing to check for hot spots, Corcoran said. There were no injuries.

Investigators determined that it was an electrical fire that started in the basement. Most of the damage was to interior walls, Corcoran said.

The building has a brick exterior. It is an old house that was used as a business for many years and has been home to the church since 2001, Corcoran said.

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