Cowboys' practice facility collapses

[YoFuggedaboutit]

He might still be able to coach.  Doug Blevins proved that it is possible to coach from a wheelchair/scooter.

[SportsChick]

isn't he a scout? I'd think it's easy to scout from a chair

[Dave Gray]

I have been holding off on this story for a while, but felt compelled to post.

This is really a tragic story.  Shit.  What sucks even worse, is that this guy getting hurt turns it from an otherwise really cool story.  If nobody were seriously injured, there's something cool and kinda funny about a giant bubble collapsing on the Cowboys.  As is, though, I'm really bummed about it.

[fyo]

According to ESPN, the makers of the "structure" (turns out this particular structure is more like a tent than a bubble, despite it being referred to as a bubble in the media) have had multiple (3-4) structures fail (collapse) in the past 4 years. There were no injuries in the other failures, but all were during storm / heavy snow conditions. This company (Cover-All Building Systems) looks like it could be in some serious trouble. One previous failure resulted in a multi-million dollar jury verdict, one was settled out of court and at least one is still pending.

[YoFuggedaboutit]

If nobody were seriously injured, there's something cool and kinda funny about a giant bubble collapsing on the Cowboys.  As is, though, I'm really bummed about it.

I'll try to say this as politely as I can, but I think this statement is definitely not in good taste. 

I don't think a structure collapsing on ANYONE is funny or cool at all, regardless of whether or not someone is hurt.  Imagine if you were under that thing, you'd probably be scared out of your mind. 

When my son was little, we would always have a "bouncy castle" at his birthday parties.  When he turned 3, we had a situation where the power in the neighborhood failed for a couple minutes.  I was sitting there watching him and his little buddies jump on it, when all of a sudden, it deflated and collapsed on itself, burying him and his buddies.  I ran like a madman toward it and threw back layer after layer of rubber to uncover the kids.  Luckily no one was hurt, but they were all frightened beyone belief and had tear-stained faces. 

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

I'll try to say this as politely as I can, but I think this statement is definitely not in good taste. 

I don't think a structure collapsing on ANYONE is funny or cool at all, regardless of whether or not someone is hurt.  Imagine if you were under that thing, you'd probably be scared out of your mind. 

When my son was little, we would always have a "bouncy castle" at his birthday parties.  When he turned 3, we had a situation where the power in the neighborhood failed for a couple minutes.  I was sitting there watching him and his little buddies jump on it, when all of a sudden, it deflated and collapsed on itself, burying him and his buddies.  I ran like a madman toward it and threw back layer after layer of rubber to uncover the kids.  Luckily no one was hurt, but they were all frightened beyone belief and had tear-stained faces. 

I agree with Dave and disagree with you.  Because someone was serious hurt it is not funny.

But if all that had happened was some folks got scared from the dark, I would have no problem joking about it.  There was no toddlers in the structure.

I have no problem joking about the plane that landed in the Hudson, although it was no doubt very scary for those onboard, but won't joke about 9/11.

If no one was hurt it would have been absolutely hilarrous that the Cowboys bubble burst.  But because one man can't walk, it ain't funny. 

[Phishfan]

Seriously there is a complete difference between grown men and a three year old. I actually enjoy being scared. It's why I watch suspenseful movies, ride rollercoasters, go whitewater rafting, etc. I agree with Dave completely. This is a horrible story because of the injuries. Otherwise I would have had a chuckle. Since it occurred the way it did it is a tragedy.

[Phishfan]

This company (Cover-All Building Systems) looks like it could be in some serious trouble.

I have seen the name of the company reported in two different articles as Summit Structures.

It also appears the Dolphins facility is safe from this type of tragedy. Althought it can collapse, it doesn't have the metal support structure.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/custom/business/sfl-dolphins-practice-bubble-s05sbmay07,0,1095836.story

[YoFuggedaboutit]

Seriously there is a complete difference between grown men and a three year old. I actually enjoy being scared. It's why I watch suspenseful movies, ride rollercoasters, go whitewater rafting, etc. I agree with Dave completely. This is a horrible story because of the injuries. Otherwise I would have had a chuckle. Since it occurred the way it did it is a tragedy.

I do all that thrilling stuff too.  But again, imagine if a structure was coming down on you.  It's not like you're playing "hide under the blanket" with your kids.  There's always the fear that you could be seriously hurt or lose your life. 

You're talking to a guy who was running from room to room in his house as the ceilings were coming down the night of Hurricane Andrew.

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

When my son was little, we would always have a "bouncy castle" at his birthday parties.  When he turned 3, we had a situation where the power in the neighborhood failed for a couple minutes.  I was sitting there watching him and his little buddies jump on it, when all of a sudden, it deflated and collapsed on itself, burying him and his buddies.  I ran like a madman toward it and threw back layer after layer of rubber to uncover the kids.  Luckily no one was hurt, but they were all frightened beyone belief and had tear-stained faces. 

Turns out that the Dolphin facility is in a large "bouncy castle"

http://www.profootballtalk.com/2009/05/07/fins-facility-can-withstand-hurricanes-and-be-stored-under-a-bed/

Fins’ Facility Can Withstand Hurricanes, And Be Stored Under A Bed
Posted by Mike Florio on May 7, 2009, 8:54 a.m. EDT
As the investigation continues into the more-stunning-as-it-sinks-in story of an indoor practice facility that, while vacant for long stretches, happened to be full of football players and coaches and media and front-office staff when a severe thunderstorm hit five days ago, more evidence is emerging regarding the construction of similar structures.

In Miami, the Dolphins use a true bubble — an air-supported dome that can withstand even the worst conditions, because it can be deflated.

“Our structure for the Dolphins is an air-supported structure and not a fabric envelope supported by large steel arches or trusts systems like the one in Dallas,” Dan Fraioli of Air Structures American Technologies told Harvey Fialkov of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

“If it deflates, it turns into a light-weight tarp and it doesn’t have any weight to it to allow it to plunge down to cause injury as if were a big steel frame collapsing.  The safest structure you can have is an air-supported one.”

Per Fialkov, the Cowboys didn’t take a bid from Fraioli’s company when preparing to build their indoor facility in 2003.  “I don’t know what their reasoning was for avoiding the air-supported structure,” Fraioli recently told the San Antonio Express-News. “If [former coach Bill] Parcells had a say, I’d think they’d have gone with an air-supported structure.”

We don’t currently know the difference between the cost of the steel-framed structure and the true bubble-type facility.  One ongoing factor, of course, is the electricity cost associated with keeping the thing inflated.

Still, it’s a much safer proposition to be standing under a large tarp instead of a nest of steel beams if Mother Nature decides to huff and puff and blow the house in.

“Sure, in our pioneer years we had lesser quality fabric and lesser quality inflation blowers but you grow by learning from mistakes,” Fraioli told Fialkov.  “Any failure today wouldn’t do much more than turn the fabric shell from a very rigid shell to a slackened tarp and collapse very slowly.

“With an air-supported structure there’s never been in the United States injuries like the Dallas Cowboys [had], just a slow deflation.  The next day, do some patchwork and reinflate the building.”

[Phishfan]

I do all that thrilling stuff too.  But again, imagine if a structure was coming down on you.  It's not like you're playing "hide under the blanket" with your kids.  There's always the fear that you could be seriously hurt or lose your life. 

You're talking to a guy who was running from room to room in his house as the ceilings were coming down the night of Hurricane Andrew.

And when all is said and done and you weren't hurt and you didn't lose personal possesions (unlike during the hurricane) you wouldn't sit back and think that is a bit of a rush? I likely would.

[YoFuggedaboutit]

And when all is said and done and you weren't hurt and you didn't lose personal possesions (unlike during the hurricane) you wouldn't sit back and think that is a bit of a rush? I likely would.

More like I was stoic.  I don't know if you've had that "lucky to be alive" feeling, but that's what I felt the next morning. 

I had my little sister to protect the night of the storm, so scared as I was, I couldn't show it.

[fyo]

I have seen the name of the company reported in two different articles as Summit Structures.

The two are intertwined to an unknown degree, which has caused a bit of confusion in the reporting. Both are, as far as I've read, privately owned companies, so they don't have to disclose ownership. Anyway, "Summit" is the company that sets up the structure, "Cover-All" is the one  that makes and designs the structure.

He's an ESPN article on the topic:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4147060



The other tent-like facilities [that collapsed] manufactured by Allentown, Pa.-based Summit Structures LLC or its related company, Cover-All Building Systems, were warehouse-type buildings

and

Summit sells and sometimes installs structures fabricated by Cover-All, according to court testimony from Nathan Stobbe, Summit's president.