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from the random-and-intermittent-failures dept.
https://qz.com/1066966/how-many-cars-were-destroyed-by-hurricane-harvey/ and also at other news outlets.
For Harvey victims, it's going to be rough if they lost their car, Houston is a very car-dependent city. Like many states, Texas only requires liability insurance — only those that bought comprehensive coverage will be able to claim the loss on insurance.
Ideally most of these flooded cars will be scrapped, as it's very likely water damage to electrical systems and other parts are not cost effective to repair professionally. However, there will be "new" and used cars on the market that have been underwater (to a greater or lesser extent). Many will be sold "as is" and some of them will be cleaned up and sold fraudulently as if they were not damaged. Buyer beware, these cars will be shipped all over in search of buyers (marks?)
After Katrina, friends of mine with time on their hands bought several new-flooded Honda Civics (which they were familiar with from building "street stock" race cars). They pulled out the interior and then the full wiring harness. Bought new harness from Honda and replaced everything, and had perfectly good near-new cars for pennies on the dollar (and a few days of hard labor).
(Score: 5, Interesting) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Sunday September 03 2017, @10:19AM (10 children)
It's not just the hurricane victims - there are all the usual drunk drivers and gunshot victims, but many of the blood banks, donation clinics and bloodmobiles have been destroyed.
In the Pacific Northwest, Bloodworks Northwest [bloodworksnw.org] is sending its blood to Texas. The Red Cross operates blood banks throughout the country. Please go directly to a donation clinic to save them the trouble of holding a blood drive.
You can donate every eight weeks. It's going to be a good, long time before Texas has even begun to recover.
Be sure to get a good night's sleep and eat a filling, nutritious breakfast. The very first time I donated, being The Compleat Caltech Student, I stayed up all night then donated without having slept and without having eaten breakfast. I felt fine all day but passed out cold at dinner that evening, with the result that I spent that night in the hospital drinking orange juice and eating jello.
I gotta catch some ZZZs now. Ciao, Bella!
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Runaway1956 on Sunday September 03 2017, @10:47AM (5 children)
"but passed out cold at dinner that evening,"
Seems a long time to suffer any effects from giving blood. Hours later? Strange.
For myself, I've given blood so many times, it's routine. Not even anything to think about, just something to do to break the routine. Except, I embarrassed myself about 1992 or so. Hot summer day, I went to work as usual, doing construction work. About ten o'clock or so, they sent word that our group was due at the blood-mobile, so a half dozen of us walked out by the front gate, where they were set up. I walked into the nice air conditioned van/truck/bus/whatever you call it. Laid on the table, chatted with the lady taking my blood, stood up - and fell out. No dizziness or anything, I just fell out. Taps, taps, lights out! When I came to, they made me lay on a sofa for awhile, drink a couple gallons of juice, then insisted that I be put on light duty for the rest of the day.
And, I really have no idea WHY I passed out that one time. I felt healthy, felt rested, but for some reason it just kicked my ass.
(Score: 3, Funny) by Immerman on Sunday September 03 2017, @02:13PM (2 children)
Perhaps they attempted to replace the lost blood with alcohol?
(Score: 5, Funny) by Runaway1956 on Sunday September 03 2017, @02:22PM (1 child)
We have a member who would suffer an adverse reaction if his alcohol were to be replaced with blood. ;^)
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 03 2017, @04:13PM
I suspect one of my relative's blood type is XO positive. He's not ethanol-fueled but... ;)
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 03 2017, @09:09PM
> WHY I passed out
Lying down in air con after heat and exercise, then abrupt into vertical after lowering blood volume - your body just had a whole shit ton of blood pressure influences all at once.
(Score: 2) by driverless on Monday September 04 2017, @01:17AM
So have I. Maybe it's time I moved out of Oakland.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 03 2017, @09:21PM
Some hospitals accept blood donations.
There's a lot of money [bloodbook.com] in the blood business.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 04 2017, @02:07AM
Available only from my dead body!
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 04 2017, @04:31AM
I, for one, will not be, since I have gay cooties. Apparently this is a condition that exists with an HIV negative result. Texas might catch t3h g4y from me, since they're apparently unable to test for HIV. If I can prevent it, I never want to accept donor blood. I don't have or want AIDS, and their HIV screening protocol is backwards as fuck.
I'd rather die of blood loss than AIDS.
(Score: 2) by urza9814 on Wednesday September 06 2017, @02:19AM
Donated to Facebook? Or is that link supposed to go somewhere else?
Some of us don't permit such evil on our networks... (or is that just me? Probably just me...)