-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Another mysterious chunk of blue ice hits
By JONDI GUMZ
Sentinel staff writer
SANTA CRUZ — A boat owner at the Santa Cruz harbor claims two chunks of "blue ice" from an airplane restroom crashed through the skylight of his floating home Monday night, narrowly missing him.
It’s the second report of the blue-ice phenomenon in the county in less than a month.
"It hit 10 feet from my head," said Ray Erickson, who keeps his 40-foot Chris Craft at B dock. "It could kill you."
The incident, which occurred at 6:15 p.m., was reported to the Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA is already investigating a blue-ice incident that took place at 9 p.m. Jan. 19 at a home on Caledonia Street, less than a mile from the harbor.
The FAA’s San Jose office did not return calls seeking comment, but Santa Cruz Fire Chief Ron Prince said he was told the FAA has identified a commercial airliner that "may be the culprit" in the Jan. 19 incident. He also said the FAA has a "possible suspect" for Monday’s situation.
The Living in Everyday Earth Web site reports there have been at least 27 documented blue-ice incidents nationally in the past 24 years.
"Conceivably there is a serious problem," said Erickson, 72, who has kept a boat in the harbor since 1970. "This is the second time we’ve had pieces falling out of the sky."
The two chunks that dropped on the boat fit into a plastic baggie and were yellowish-brown in color. They looked relatively harmless, but Erickson said they broke through his boat’s plexiglass skylight, leaving a hole the size of a fist. The impact created a sound like a shotgun blast, he said.
On Tuesday, Erickson was busy calling the FAA and scrambling to cover the hole because forecasters were predicting rain. He said he didn’t have insurance to replace the plexiglass, a job that could cost a couple thousand dollars.
He said he saw a plane overhead at the time of the incident, but could not identify the markings. He had hoped that would come out in an FAA investigation but said he was told he couldn’t get any information from the FAA.
"They say it’s up to you to figure it out," he said. "The only thing to do is sue."
Gus Zesati, who had a chunk of ice crash through his roof into his daughter’s bedroom on Jan. 19, said he’s spent more than $2,000 on temporary repairs. An FAA investigator showed up at his house a week ago, but didn’t have much to say.
"He said he’d let us know in 20 days," said Zesati, who visited Erickson at the harbor Tuesday when news of the second incident began to spread.
The incident was the talk of the harbor. Other boat owners joked they will need hard hats because they frequently see planes overhead.
But Steve Schneider of the county Environmental Health Department is concerned.
"Somebody’s going to get hurt," he said.
He came by Erickson’s boat to collect one of the ice chunks for testing. Preliminary results indicated the material contained some sewage, the fire chief said.
Firefighters who investigated the two incidents are looking for answers.
"We want to get to the bottom of this," said Santa Cruz Battalion Chief Bill Starrs.
Contact Jondi Gumz at jgumz@santa-cruz.com.
Blue ice
WHAT: Blue ice is created when restroom holding tanks or drain tubes on an aircraft leak. A dark blue chemical is added to the water to break down solid matter. Because airplanes cruise at high altitudes, any water freezes upon contact with the outside air, hence the name blue ice. The FAA contends that if a chunk of blue ice were to fall from an aircraft at 30,000 feet, the ice would break up and melt before hitting the ground.
WHERE: Blue ice has been reported by people living under flight paths.
WHAT TO DO: Anyone who sees an object fall off an aircraft in flight should call the FAA. Report any distinctive markings, such as color, registration number and name of airline. The nearest FAA office is in San Jose. The number is (408) 291-7681
Spero che tutti voi capiate l'inglese. In definitiva, il Blue ice è un fenomeno realmente esistente?
A proposito, gli scarichi con relativo "contenuto"
vengono scaricati dove? in areoporto? e in che maniera, in botti della colombo spurghi?Il blue ice viene mai eliminato in volo? la cosa è poi tecnicamente possibile?
Insomma parliamo del BLUE ICE!
