Abandoned Concrete and Steel Tower Full of Squatters Collapses In City Centre | Plainly Difficult

[@PlainlyDifficult]

For this weeks Sponsor: Go to ground.news/plainlydifficult to give it a try. If you sign up through my link you’ll get 40% off the Vantage plan, which is what I use to get unlimited access to all features. I think Ground News is doing important work and I hope you’ll check them out. ►Thanks for watching, check out me other bits! ►My new EP: madebyjohn.bandcamp.com/album/retail-simulator ►Outro Song: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gnu5f6eVp9p4gJIsi=KaHhrFbCex3kJBKk ►Instagram: instagram.com/plainly.john/ ►Patreon: www.patreon.com/Plainlydifficult ►Merch: plainly-difficult.creator-spring.com ►Twitter:twitter.com/Plainly_D ►Sources: www.redalyc.org/journal/4276/427661546009/html/ www.phd.eng.br/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/19.04.30ParecerCompletoPaesAlmeida_final-compactado.pdf www.latimes.com/world/brazil/la-fg-brazil-housing-crisis-20180604-story.html www.nytimes.com/2018/05/01/world/americas/sao-paulo-brazil-fire-collapse.html

[@simonthorneycroft1339]

The potters among your audience might point out that wood can burn at 1300 centigrade, somewhat beyond the "above 600 Celsius" you mentioned. this is in a kiln, but of course the kiln will only get as hot as the fire in the fire box. also the Cardington fire experiment showed that office furniture, mainly wood, can get to 1100 centigrade within about 15 minutes.

[@mikeprimm4077]

Can you do me and every other person with a working brain a favor plainly difficult? Can you please do a video on the collapse of the twin towers. You don't have to go into the whole terrorism aspect of it. Just cover the plane crash and the jet fuel melting the steel columns. Because there's so many geniuses out here that leave comments like jet fuel can't melt steel. Or that think our government had something to do with it for some odd reason. I pointed out before the open air burn temperatures of jet fuel which is way above the melting point of steel but it seems like when they're being faced with facts they just double down on their insane conspiracies. I'm thinking maybe an actual trusted content creator such as yourself could maybe combat that a little bit. But I also understand if you don't want to. It is a pretty heavy subject

[@Sensor-g7z]

Where are duh truthers?

[@melissametivier4]

Not sure when you started doing it, but I really like how you've been mentioning sources within your videos ("as reported by the New York Times" and "as noted in Paulo Helene's paper" are the ones I noticed today) as well as putting links in the description and pinned comments. Keep up the good work!

[@stopgotdamndeletingmycomme8642]

Ho ho hold up. First couple seconds nine eleven anyone?

[@JJAB91]

The neighboring church wasn't actually destroyed. It was heavily damaged and remains under reconstruction to this day.

[@truetech4158]

But homelessness frostbite never really produces afterlives. Seems to be a major amount of hushmoney remaining cyclical about that. Would you vote for an atheist, if you were allowed to?

[@damedusa5107]

@@truetech4158how is that relevant to the OP?

[@truetech4158]

@@damedusa5107 because the fancy delude clubs rake in fraud money from maliable noncritical thinkers, and one should never overlook that, without ample willful ignorance.

[@zombiedoggie2732]

@@truetech4158 going through a schizophrenic episode there?

[@akizeta]

@@damedusa5107 It isn't, it's a bot.

[@whyjnot420]

That footage of the building collapsing and the resulting pressure forcing all the flames out is some of the most impressive footage I've seen.

[@1258-Eckhart]

The building self-extinguished the fire in the most fatal possible way.

[@Hagen838]

Very impressive, indeed. Notice that the building falls vertically, like did the Twin Towers and other similar concrete and steel buildings.

[@sto12m]

@@Hagen838 except twin towers burned for 4 months underground.

[@chrismaverick9828]

@@Hagen838 The conspiracy nuts claim the WTC could not have collapsed due to the fire, but they ignore the energies imparted by a 50+ton airliner crashing into it at high speed and the fact that even if the fire wasn't hot enough to melt steel (always used as the 'proof' of inside job/demolition) the weakening and effects caused by expansion of the steel under the heat load, and the design, was perfectly lined up to cause the collapses. A truly impervious to collapse structure is simply not cost effective to build in the form of a high-rise.

[@Nevir202]

@@chrismaverick9828 All structural steel is carefully tempered to get the qualities you want out of it. Steel doesn't melt at jet fuel temps, but it sure loses its temper.

[@Kevin-go2dw]

The building lasted about 50 years. When you consider the Champlain Towers South only lasted 40 years and did not have a fire, the Wilton Paes de Almeida Building lasted a long time considering the lack of maintenance. Removing the lift, but not blocking the shaft is a chimney for any fire and the result could only be catastrophic if there is no fire suppression in the building and people prepared to use it. It is a miracle that the death toll was so low when you consider the disasters other towers have been.

[@ekesandras1481]

Having a leaking swimming pool so that water entered the basement and doing nothing about it for years, didn't really help in the Miami case.

[@1258-Eckhart]

Plus add to that several tonnes of non-fireproofed plywood and chipboard partition walls never ever planned for. It wasn't the building's fault.

[@michaelmcmeel914]

I'm certain that the hoistways were not left open when the cars were removed, but were forced open by the squatters. It's a miracle that any significant number of people were able to escape if the stairwell doors were also blocked open or removed, which is equally common.

[@jm036]

​@@ekesandras1481 Oh yeah. Rusting the rebar and destroying the structural integrity of that concrete.

[@flaviosabe]

​@@ekesandras1481Yes, this comparison doesn't make sense. It is not like 50 year old buildings are collapsing left and right.

[@Oliveira_HS]

as a Brazilian, I would recommend you the Joelma Building fire story too.. it was the disaster that changed the rules and laws for preventing/fighting fires here..

[@OffendingTheOffendable]

Place is a mess

[@LabregoBucolico]

Minha tia foi zeladora do Joelma entre 2018-19, até hoje é difícil alugar salas para escritório lá por causa da infâmia do prédio

[@Superduper666]

I remember watching that fire on TV and asking my mom why the people didn't jump off as the poor people ran back and forth screaming. I was very young and didn't realize you'd die if you jumped from that height. I can still see them running back and forth screaming while I sat on the floor. It wasn't until years later, when I saw a video on YT about it, that I actually knew the name of the fire. Absolutely horrifying.

[@Goat_Lord]

@@OffendingTheOffendableLike the US doesn’t have plenty of building fires a year too.

[@Amygondor]

"rules and laws for preventing/fighting fires"? better yet, don't try to light people on fire with alcohol and a match while you are inside a building. THAT will help prevent fires.

[@No0dz]

Some comments from a civil engineer living for a few years in São Paulo: 1 - For several reasons, most buildings in Brazil are made of reinforced concrete, and especially for buildings delivered in the 60s and 70s, were calculated with VERY generous margins of safety. This means a lot of older, derelict structures are able to withstand a lot of neglect before failing. The lack of seismic activity and significant wind loads also enable a very lax attitude toward structure maintenance. This building, by being both old and with a more daring structure, was a disaster waiting to happen 2 - Housing is such a serious issue in São Paulo that you can assume any building that remains empty needs constant security to remain free of squatters. There are no good guys in this issue, and no solution in sight either.

[@ajardineira]

Existe uma lei para desapropriação de imóveis abandonados. O Wilton já era da união, foi abandonado.

[@lesliepropheter5040]

You can tell by the way the building fell, that it was well designed if not neglectfully built

[@3rdalbum]

Your second point holds true for probably most places where skyscrapers are (city centres). Including my fairly prosperous city.

[@elizabethsohler6516]

@@No0dz Thanks for the education.

[@JasonRule-1]

However, twisting motion and fire, while possibly causing floor collapse, are not sufficient to turn the center columns of steel and concrete into dust as the building collapsed straight down at the speed of gravity leaving nothing but a pulverized pile of debris. The building was obviously imploded. So the big question is, "who gains from this disaster?"

[@wrayday7149]

It's funny how many people just think steel has to melt to fail.... .despite many videos they can watch on the internet about people heating metal and putting it under load to bend it to a new shape.

[@rawveganterra]

Yea, if it bends, it's weak! 😢

[@madmax2069]

Exactly

[@andrewallason4530]

We had a fire here in Hobart (Tasmania), where a 3 story department store caught fire (electrical fault due to early 20th century wiring that had not been disconnected during multiple later renovations). In the aftermath, a steel I-beam (approximately 40cm deep with top and bottom faces of ab15cm) that was one of the main structural element supporting the top floor, was still connected at either end to the ‘pockets’, but sagged along its entire length so much that it was snaking along the floor from about 5m from each end. It was amazing to see the stretching had done very little to alter the overall shape of the I-beam, and that once it had sagged to the ground, it had continued to expand, so it was zigzagged across the floor. Luckily there were no fatalities, and firefighters had managed to rescue several people that had been stuck in the elevator at the time of the fire starting.

[@Pine_Barrens_NJ]

…AND with the new shape you allude to, it also cracks and spalls the concrete

[@OpenCarryUSMC]

Like all the conspiracy nuts over the collapse of the twin towers in 9-11-01 who swear it was demolition charges because fire can’t take down a street and concrete skyscraper.

[@thepagan5432]

Having worked over Sao Paulo and renting an apartment, it was obvious that some buildings were well cared for and others were left to slowly decay. Some buildings in the centre of the city were so close to the neighbouring building that a person could not pass between them, making maintenance virtually impossible. This fire and collapse is a very sad occurrence in a country where shanty towns and the poor have to find accommodation which may well nresult in injury and death.

[@UncleJoeLITE]

A high rise shantytown with no lifts or electricity - what could possibly go wrong?

[@DevReaper]

Worse than no electricity, improvised stolen electricity.

[@N0xiety]

And lots of wooden improvisations, and a heap of garbage to burn at the bottom, and wide open shafts giving fire easy access to spread to other floors.

[@mrdojob]

Sadly this is what squatting often entails. It's hard to feel much in the way of sympathy when squatters seem to universally abuse the very building they're squatting in. Throwing trash down a lift shaft and never removing it? Stealing electric in an unsafe way? It's no surprise these people were homeless to begin with.

[@kingjoe3rd]

@@mrdojob squatters are rarely just single moms down on their luck, like some people would have you think. They are usually drug addicts or various other criminals that abuse the weakness of liberal western society in order to further their own ends.

[@PunishedDad]

​@mrdojob if you had maybe 2 more braincells you could figure it out, youre so close but so stupid

[@RafaelSouza-xq6vw]

Mismanagement from the authorities... Endless legal battles and discussions... Squatting... All very well known to us Brazilians... Your channel is awesome! Been watching for years now.

[@cadillacdeville5828]

Yes, he's a gem 💎

[@homuraakemi493]

Sounds like a normal city in California

[@Amygondor]

don't try to light people on fire with alcohol and a match while you are inside a building. THAT will help prevent fires.

[@13699111]

Families around the world are facing housing problems sadly. Americans have been allowing deregulation starting with the election of president Reagan. The worst of the worst is running for president this year,2024 , project 2025 plans will end democracy . I consider the nightmare former president and his supporters traitor's.

[@13699111]

​@@homuraakemi493 ignorant comment

[@whiterose7055]

600 - 700 Centigrade is more than sufficient to cause enough annealing in the core structure to further allow it to twist under the thermal stress.

[@dr.cheeze5382]

reminds me of "Jet fuel can't melt steel beams!"

[@KRAMITDFROG]

​@@dr.cheeze5382I was thinking this during the intro.

[@HazmatUnit]

​@@dr.cheeze5382but it can sure weaken it

[@MichaelMike-mu3fw]

@@dr.cheeze5382inside job

[@diviningrod2671]

Epstien didn't building 7 himself

[@LabregoBucolico]

I live in São Paulo, and remember this day, we had other two big fires here, the Joelma building fire and Andraus fire, you should search it up, specially the Joelma one, my aunt was caretaker of Joelma between 2018-2019, there is a particular case during the fire that 13 people were trapped inside the elevator, until this day they do not know their identity, we call them the "13 souls", they are buried side by side in Quarta Parada Cemetery in São Paulo . I remember passing through this collapsed building some days after the disaster and remember the debris there.

[@eyesuckle]

Wow. Buried side by side. So they are now spending eternity in the same situation as their last awkward moments alive: trapped in a confined space with strangers, not knowing what to say. I hope they gave them some floor numbers inside their coffins to stare at.

[@ajardineira]

​@@eyesuckle wtf

[@alexsantos3100]

​@@eyesuckleYou ok buddy?

[@SlickArmor]

​​@@eyesuckleHow fitting. It's Brazil so its probably just as dark.

[@h.f6364]

not quarta parada, its in the vila alpina cemetery

[@gyromurphy]

You hit 1 million subs!?!? Back in 2017 I said youd have 1 million by 2019... soooo I was a little off, but, I knew you'd get here eventually. 1,000,000 deserved subscribers. Well done, good sir, well done.

[@PlainlyDifficult]

Thank you!!

[@cadillacdeville5828]

​@PlainlyDifficult You're a 💎

[@cringeRick_Lamar]

​@@PlainlyDifficultcongratulations, M8! Do you get along with @FascinatingHorror or are they your arch nemesis? 😂🤔💀🐦

[@jimtalbott9535]

@@PlainlyDifficultYou’ve earned every one! Your content is fantastic.

[@d.l.d.l.8140]

One million covering construction failures. When I first started watching this channel I knew I was captivated, but one million subs? That is truly amazing, and a tip of the hat is in order here. Well done sir.

[@edwardbarton1680]

For fire temperatures, it's important to remember that the reference tables you see have the caveat that the fuel and air start off at room temperature. If you have a setup where the incoming air gets pre-heated, you can reach much higher temperatures.

[@ChrisFord-wh1gl]

Do you know that NIST has admitted their model leaves out the structural elements that would prevent the process they say occurred. Well we couldn’t get the model to collapse with these safeguards, so we removed them to assure an accurate representation. You believe the standard model too I’m sure. Study the term normalization and if you have any brain at all it will change your opinion

[@PercyPruneMHDOIFandBars]

@ChrisFord-wh1gl: That's "normalisation of deviance" I presume. A very popular technique these days!

[@mysock351C]

@@ChrisFord-wh1gl Bridges and other steel structures do it all the time when there is a fire. If it’s unprotected, it’s going to come down sooner or later if there is a bad fire. Steel is only good to about 400-500 degrees F. Above that bad things start to happen, esp. if it’s a lower quality steel. If you have ever done metalwork you will know ow what I mean. Once it starts to glow it bends like cheap plastic. There is only so much safety factor there, and to make matters worse thermal expansion exacerbates this since the structure doesn’t expand evenly. High rise fires with huge internal drafts and lots of fuel can easily exceed 1000 degrees F. I don’t care what the models say, by that point the building is made out of play-doh if they have not insulated the steel and taken proper precautions.

[@mysock351C]

@@ChrisFord-wh1gl And let’s not forget that many buildings are HEAVILY reliant on their sprinkler systems to survive. Even if the pump sucks the retention pond dry the middle of a fire water still requires enormous amounts of energy to boil off. This buys lot of time.

[@colincampbell767]

@@ChrisFord-wh1gl "Do you know that NIST has admitted their model leaves out the structural elements that would prevent the process they say occurred." Do you have a reference for this? And if that was the case - how come that ASSE (American Society of Structural Engineers) missed that? Remember that the NIST products were distributed to the entire membership of the ASSE for peer review. Just as the fire protection papers were distributed to the membership of the ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers). So please provide me with a reference (which isn't going to happen because the "source" does not really exist). Just more aluminum foil headgear stuff.

[@JamesTaylor-n1u]

Anyone else notice that same yellow Ford Pinto with an orange fender seems to be in the vicinity of all these disasters? Suss

[@MadScientist267]

I think you just wanted an excuse to use "suss" somewhere.

[@JamesTaylor-n1u]

@@MadScientist267 Why would I need an excuse? Your comment is highly suss. Do you drive a yellow Pinto by any chance?

[@174b9]

​@@MadScientist267acting so pissy over some innocent vocabulary

[@goosenotmaverick1156]

Literally the most suss thing I've ever seen, bro.

[@3_Circles]

⁠@@MadScientist267i- wha- i can understand disliking “sus” and maybe “bro”, but “literally” is a common word used every day

[@Moonlight_Tide]

Please don't change your presentation style. Your calmness makes it easier to absorb your material, not to mention it's actually a thing I use to unwind when anxious even despite the content. You, Kyle from some nuclear channel, and Moth Light Media are, so far, my trifecta for that. I've even used some of your vids to fall asleep in the past.

[@ReyOfLight]

I see some complaining about the pace of reading in this video, just have to say I found no issues with listening to this video, and I enjoy the changes and "imperfections" as this is a real human reading, and not some stupid AI voice! Keep being you, John! Always enjoy your videos! Though, one issue with this particular one, the music at the end was very loud in relation to the rest of the video, but that's just a minor thing

[@PlainlyDifficult]

Sorry about that

[@jonyemm]

@@PlainlyDifficultI'll take you over an AI voice narrating any day

[@waffleface4368]

complaining about the pace of reading is truly one of the symptoms of a brainrot infested society of all time

[@anja2716]

That's so redundant when we are individually in control of the playback speed.

[@Chung_Wang]

@@anja2716 good suggestion, much more listenable at 1.25

[@dwilson9546]

Your soothing voice and stellar animation draw me in every week, but honestly, it is the dry humor that has me waiting every Saturday morning!

[@rrice1705]

Those are what keep me coming back too. Though sometimes I feel like the delivery is more somber than it used to be.

[@AnnacolleenEtters]

Thank you, for not using AI, because I turn off those videos, as soon as I hear them. I enjoy your videos very much, and I would miss them so much, as I am alone in my bed, most days, with my trusty lazy dog.

[@rawveganterra]

Nobody likes AI, lol, I agree! I always see negative comments about AI, people hate AI.🤖👎👎 People want real voices and real emotions.

[@DR3ADNAU7Gaming]

Get a fucking job

[@brianw612]

I've been to Sao Paulo, what a zoo. it goes on forever with graffiti everywhere. It's the most populace city in the entire southern hemisphere.

[@rawveganterra]

Sounds like American big cities also, concrete and graffiti everywhere and homeless sadness. Even Austin is now too big and slummy-ish, I am planning on moving to a smaller and quieter city. I have seen videos of Sao and it definitely does look insane😮 surely there are nice areas too I hope.

[@brianw612]

@@rawveganterra Sao Paulo is way worse. It can be scary.

[@1JamesMayToGoPlease]

@brianw612 *populous - Yes, I'm a nitpicker :)

[@Serenity_Dee]

As an English L1 speaker, I'm never going to get used to "BOMBEIROS" meaning "firefighters".

[@michaelmcmeel914]

It's easy once you realize you put a little extra puff on the "b" to make it sound a little bit like a "p" and it becomes "Pumpeiros" and "pumper" is another name for fire engine. The Francophone fire service is even cooler with their "Pompiers/Sapeurs" for engine and truck men.

[@orlandojohnson5742]

I can’t stand Aluminum being pronounced AL You Mini yum! 😅😂😅🤦🏽‍♂️😲

[@giin97]

​@@michaelmcmeel914it's not that it's hard to remember, it's that it's hilarious to think that "firefighter" in other languages sounds like they're a team of suicide bombers :P

[@michaelmcmeel914]

@@giin97 I have seen some fairly minor fires end up with the house looking like a grenade or three went off, so you have a good point.

[@michaelmcmeel914]

@@orlandojohnson5742 It's only al-YOU-min-ee-um if it's made in a la-BOR-a-tor-ee.

[@stanislavkostarnov2157]

interesting that everyone in the locality attacks the government, who at least nominally were against the building being used in the unsafe way it was, and not the strange housing initiative who actually organized the slum and subdivided the properties renting out illegal lots without ever taking any heed to the safety of the residents... was their role investigated in any way? probably not, because they had the means to defend themselves....

[@visekual6248]

The building was illegally invaded, it was the government's duty to allow the police to evict people from there, and then it's years of discussion about where to put these people, and in the end they do nothing.

[@Mastercane98]

I mean, they are partly to blame for allowing those people to squat the building and for refusing to carry out any kind of maintenance work after expropriating the building.

[@visekual6248]

It was the government's responsibility to evict the residents, after all, it was the owner. But as always, there are those who say, "but we can't throw these people out on the street" and so there are years of discussion about where to put these people.

[@tjroelsma]

Agreed, all those wooden seperation walls and maybe even structural walls being removed to create more space will have had a huge effect on the fire. But it's always easier to blame the evil government than a housing initiative that CLAIMS to act on behalf of the people. If that housing initiative had been really serious, they would have done at least some maintenance, but seemingly they couldn't be bothered.

[@clarkkent551]

Hey! Stan, can only give you one like 😘

[@widowpeak6142]

That is a very low amount of deaths, considering how many people were living, and how tall the building was. I like how, if you look up the building in Google, it will be labeled as 'Permanently closed'.

[@IJustFiguredThisOut]

He said that they did not have any official record keeping of tenants in the building so there is no way to know if that number is correct or not. When the WTC collapsed, countless people were never accounted for. He said this building burned for about an hour before it collapsed. And when buildings like this collapse, it is essentially like throwing a human body in a blender. If any people were inside that were not able to get out, and their bodies were burning for an hour, and then went through the collapse, there very well could have been more people unaccounted for that were never found. And I don't know how they handled the cleanup, but with the WTC site they scooped up every pile and combed through it a couple of times for any sign of human remains (as well as other things) at an off site location. I doubt they went through such efforts with this. The deaths were low I agree, but the point being is he said "at least seven people died in the collapse, however numbers were not certain".

[@dykodesigns]

Reinforced concrete will fail in a fire if the fire is severe enough. The concrete starts to develop cracks when the steel reinforcement deforms due to the temperature reaching a critical point. The concrete rebar cover provides a passive form of fire resistance, for high rise buildings an 180 minute fire rating is common. It can take many hours before the structure finally fails. In 2008 a tower of the Delft University collapsed after being subjected to a massive fire, it collapsed after about 8 hours, it had an in-situ concrete frame with rather slender columns (the stories where double height which negative affected the buckling strength). Maybe interesting case for a future video.

[@rawveganterra]

Hmmm. For 911 they say it was about one hour from plane hit to collapse. Planes hit at around 9am and both twin tower buildings are down by around 10:30am.

[@rawveganterra]

7WTC building reportedly collapses hours later around 5/6pm they say.

[@james_fisch]

@@rawveganterra Yes, that is how fire works in a tube-frame steel construction when fire is left unfought for several hours. Eventually the weight of the upper floors can no longer be supported by the weakened steel below.

[@rawveganterra]

​​@@james_fisch Do you think explosives were used in 911, or was it all just from the planes? 110 floors would give out after 1.5 hour burn?

[@Deploracle]

Concrete will fail all by itself in an intense fire. All the water in the cement boils away. We've seen a few highway overpass spans fail after intense fires underneath.

[@PauperJ]

The true neglect in this case, is how the HR Director never bothered to investigate the Safety Director candidate's curriculum vitae, prior to giving him the job.

[@CountingStars333]

Just say CV big bro

[@tissuepaper9962]

​@@CountingStars333 that, or get your shit straight and italicize _curriculum vitae_ like you know what it means and which language it comes from.

[@JohnRunyon]

​@@tissuepaper9962 The language that it comes from is English. It is a loanword, not a foreign language.

[@tissuepaper9962]

@@JohnRunyon can you tell me what it means literally without looking it up? if the answer is no, then the word is not intelligible to you and therefore is not a part of your language by definition.

[@davegubbins4428]

probably her brother. brazil is a basket case.

[@GenJeFT]

A metal building, that collapsed due to a fire, and mostly fell straight down and within its own footprint. Huh, go figure.

[@Ed-ym4tu]

A conspiracy theorist might suggest someone wanted the squatters out and the building demoed. Created a fire as a decoy and then set off explosives to demo the building.

[@aliquotidian]

These buildings are designed to collapse straight down - given most highrise occurs in dense clusters , it would risk a domino effect if they did otherwise. My father worked in structural engineering and mentioned that the then newest and tallest office building in our town could be brought down by removing one particular beam. He didn't reveal which it was, or what mechanism was required to initiate. The building is now over 30 years old, and in the shade of newer, taller structures.

[@jonyemm]

​@@aliquotidianlol

[@Oldschooldan1]

The building was clearly pulled by the Brazilian government using thermite... or possibly a directed energy weapon from the dark side of the moon by the grey aliens. Any way you look at it 7/11 is a part time job!

[@nahoj.2569]

@@aliquotidian No, buildings collapse into their own footprint because of gravity, a building collapsing sideways would be far weirder.

[@emilschw8924]

Marble floors with marble from Greece? Oooh, that's hoity-toity posh! 😂

[@AxionSmurf]

the marble was very greecey

[@tomrogers9467]

@@AxionSmurf. Don’t go there, it’s a slippery slope.

[@PaulSteMarie]

That looks like a perfect replication of a blast furnace. Even if it didn't melt the steel, the steel would be completely softened

[@ImmortalTreknique]

Glory to you and your channel, from a currently sunny corner of West London 😊🍻

[@PlainlyDifficult]

Thank you! Its really nice today isn't it!

[@ImmortalTreknique]

@@PlainlyDifficult Yeah it's nice. Have a good one, bruv 👊

[@CantHandleThisCanYa]

@@ImmortalTrekniqueGowron reference acknowledged

[@ImmortalTreknique]

@@CantHandleThisCanYa 💪👊

[@BPJJohn]

@@PlainlyDifficult Can confirm it is indeed Sunny in London right now.😎👍

[@reuillois]

About steel building collapsing quickly in fire, you should look at the Pailleron middle school in Paris (02/1973)

[@RT-qd8yl]

This is a huge threat; we spent two whole days in fire training just talking specifically about steel construction and the situations that can cause them to fail.

[@ChrisFord-wh1gl]

WTC 7 What do you think.

[@CruelestChris]

​@@ChrisFord-wh1gl Massive unfought fires and most of the facing side's base being ripped out.

[@reuillois]

@@ChrisFord-wh1gl I don't see what this has to do with my little Parisian middle school...

[@Amygondor]

AND every suspicious fire out there, including the twin towers, valparaiso fire and maui fire. look up what Patent No.: US 6,377,436 B1 is for.

[@surrealiststreetgang]

You have the best disaster videos. It's a bit of a hobby of mine, and I'm familiar with most disasters, but I always watch your videos. Excellent quality and entertaining.

[@theairstig9164]

Using the building graphic as a pointer at the end: genius

[@NickAndriadze]

I normally hate fully glass-facade buildings, but I must admit this tower looked really handsome in its design, those alternating metal bars holding the glass together, on top of the sleek yet squarish shape are very interesting. Back then even fully glass buildings looked tasteful.

[@Spooky_Platypus]

Happy 1 million! Well deserved!❤🎉😊

[@flaviosabe]

Even dilapidated this building was absolutely stunning. You could watch the sunset behind the building, the sun shining through the mostly void floors.

[@markb1764]

Steel weakens precipitously long before it will show visible signs of heating

[@rawveganterra]

What are visible signs of steel heating? Bending? I am not an engineer or a chemistry major I'm clueless. How far through the steel does the weakening travel before bending occurs, like if one part bends does that mean the whole structure is already weakened? No exact tests of these incidents have ever been done. Miniature model tests are not exact tests.

[@nosepowder69]

@@rawveganterra Eh, if you really wanted you could run simulations to test this out, I don't really know a lot about engineering either, but I imagine all the answers to your questions can probably be found online.

[@ChrisFord-wh1gl]

At what temperature does it fling itself 100 meters horizontally and pulverize concrete with which it is not in contact.

[@james_fisch]

@@ChrisFord-wh1gl found the truther who forgets another element well in abundance in high rises: air

[@Sashazur]

@@rawveganterrait’ll bend once it gets hot enough, but it’s already losing strength before that happens. And once strength is reduced in one part of a structural element, that almost always means the whole thing is weakened - what does it matter if both ends of a beam are cool and solid if the middle melts?

[@martinrwolfe]

The thing that struck me about the building design for a multi story was only a single stairwell. The fact that it lasted so long after the fire took hold is amazing expecialy with no maintenance. Even if the count is off the bulk of the occupants of the building still got out or were rescued.

[@jakobrebeki]

I like the new graphic of the pidgeon flying past. Well covered. Thanks John....

[@MrEnjoivolcom1]

Just absolutely love your accent and content!

[@nunyabidness674]

AAAAGGGGH!!!! An animated seagull just turned up in a plainly difficult video! John been doing too many radiological disasters, the flash art is mutating to GIFs

[@malicious217]

I'm actually impressed that the construction was solid. Glad to hear it for once.

[@vulpo]

There were some items missing from your Bingo card, such as: Need to demolish building being preserved as Historic Site. 😄

[@GeorgeMcKenna-kz9qx]

Outstanding video! I shall play your "Plainly Difficult Disaster Bingo" in my mind at all future association meetings and recommend others do as well.

[@litz13]

This is what they feared might happen with One Meridian Plaza, but the building managed to hold on. It was deemed unsalvageable from the damage, however, and demolished.

[@blue9multimediagroup]

The beams had shifted and contorted and they thought that weight on them would bring it down

[@plunder1956]

A dubious construction method was used in many Post-Tension Reinforced Concrete structures in Brazil in the 50s-70s. The post-tension wires are stretched using clutches - then grouted in place. After that another layer is added above them and so on. This makes any normal method of explosive demolition impassible. Cutting the reinforcing wires would instantly release all that energy. Sending long high strength steel wires shooting into the air - WITH THE CONCRETE they are holding back. They are like a stack of live bombs. They must be carefully taken apart, layer by layer 🤐

[@rawveganterra]

Nobody can build an indestructible structure, that is impossible. People should never expect, any building, to be indestructible, delusional thinking. Fire prevention is key.😢

[@sthenzel]

Well, there are quite a lot of structures which are close to indestructable by normal occupancy. Only problem: Who wants to live in a bunker? We have quite a few around here, some with 4 or 5 stories, 80yrs old, unmaintained, still standing so strong, the cost of dismantling them far exceeds the value of the property they are build on, although close or in city centers.

[@DioTheGreatOne]

Great video as aways! ❤ I'd also recommend you make a video about the Joelma building fire. It is to this day one of the deadliest high-rise fires in history, with over 179 casualties. You could also talk about the Kiss Nightclub fire, which killed over 242 people and shook the entire nation.

[@BigM_TV]

An "organization" charging a fee to squatters in an abandoned building is diabolical.

[@michaelmcmeel914]

Sounds like the lawyers were getting paid.

[@parkependleton6453]

Squatters squashed.

[@shanalouise]

Love the weather updates at the end. The always make me smile ❤

[@TransistorBased]

As soon as Brazil is brought up you can tell it's going to be bad

[@kenmore01]

I'm actually surprised the building lasted as long as it did.

[@Thanosisnotreal]

Congrats on 1M subscribers my friend, well deserved for your quality content. I’ve been watching since around 2018 I think. I remember your video on the Windscale fire/disaster, I think that was the first one I watched…. Stay healthy!

[@karenpff2010]

Those poor people in that building when it collapsed... 😢 RIP.

[@ClementinesmWTF]

Jump scare at 2:48…you knew what you were doing with that one.

[@Amygondor]

what? I don't see anything weird.

[@sabrinarodrigues629]

WTC Plane

[@jacoblott1617]

​@@Amygondorthe bird was very tongue in cheek, but I think everyone is right. This whole thing remind me of how those buildings were constructed (and unfortunately why they fell the way they did. Core, floors attached to the outer perimeter the same way, fire weakening the steel enough to bend it out of support, progressive collapse)

[@eldoolittle]

While wood burns at 600°C, any traditional blacksmith knows that by drafting air through the fire, like an open elevator shaft as a chimney and intake through shattered windows would allow, the temperature can easily reach 1000°C. People have been bending iron and steel with wood fires for literally thousands of years.

[@rachellee8533]

Have you thought of covering mud/landslides in Guatemala that have happened in the last decade? Could be an interesting topic. Congrats again on 1M !

[@MihzvolWuriar]

Wow, that first video of the collapse was new for me, thanks for using it. BTW, this collapse took half of the church with it, not all, it's still there, it also took part of the building at the other side of the street, scary AF, since it was in the path I used a lot, basically, I'm a Gamer and a Musician, and this building was on the path I took between the places where I shop for music, sound and PC stuff, and yet, I could not believe it, I had never looked up at this building, even though I went through there countless times. And believe it or not, this was not the most fatal fire incident in a building in São Paulo, the Joelma building fire killed a lot more, even though the structure was saved.

[@robertwest6350]

May I recommend doing a video about the Ycua Bolaños Shopping Center fire.

[@pokeybit]

So are a lot of these videos this year sourced from viewer recommendations? I think i remember last year you reached out and asked us for such ideas. I've never heard of this catastrophe before today. I'm happy if that's the case as it leads to much more unique content. I recommended a few and you made videos of them which is so cool.

[@EdgyNumber1]

That's why steel beams are coated with a volcano like slurry similar to that for making shell moulds in manufacturing. It significantly reduces heat transfer and can protect the beams from fire for much longer. Its not infallible though. It is brittle stuff and can withstand an impact to the building from, say, an airliner. In this case it can shatter off and leave the steel exposed.

[@rawveganterra]

If a heavy object hits the coated steel, that slurry will crack off? Like chocolate shell on ice cream? Does heat move slowly or fast through steel, I would guess it heats up fast? Would the whole steel structure of the building, from top to bottom, entirely become hot, like a spiral oven top burner, weakening the entire building? Or, would only sections of the steel become hot and weakened while other sections stayed cool? I guess it depends on the duration of the fire.

[@krashd]

Actually fire-proof coating can withstand impacts, it just deterorates when doing it's job meaning an inferno or a prolonged fire will burn it off. That is why WTC 1, 2 and 7 failed, the first two contained four-storey tall furnaces and the last one was left to burn for 8 hours.

[@Caffeine_Addict_2020]

@@rawveganterra So - only one, or maybe a handful of sections need to fail to bring the whole tower down, because they're all balanced on top of one another. So it's less important that the entire structure have heat spread all over, as one section having concentrated enough heat that the structure weakens to the point that it can no longer hold up the rest of the structure, and everything falls down all at once In addition to what others have said about bending and warping - there's this concept of material science called "annealing". Steel is not just one element, it's many, with different elements such as carbon deposited in specific concentrations to make it stronger, ie. carbon is highest around the outside of the steel. But when you keep the steel at a specific temperature for a while, the carbon will move around to places it isn't supposed to go, turning the steel into just iron and carbon separately, which is significantly weaker

[@davivaz6114]

I'm Brazilian and never heard of this! Great job, really like the video.

[@rafaelHgrassi]

The problem about the people inside the building is way more complicated. In Brazil you can occupy land and buildings that are abandoned (even cars). After five years taking care of it and paying taxes it can be yours. This is used primarily to fix property documentation problems when they are too complicated and also to repurpose abandoned places. This was extended by law to any building (government and others), because there is more empty places in the city than homeless and people living in poor conditions. Due to this, it is always difficult to remove squatters and at the time, public opinion was sided with this movement (with several places). So city hall was trying to remove than legally, with the argument related to safety and minimum conditions, but movement was doing high demands. After this tragedy, things change and public opinion also. Most of people understood that safety concerns are in fact valid arguments against this type of situation, not just government trying to get rid of people.

[@emjayay]

Thanks for that background info.

[@obliviouz]

Just because you can, doesn't mean you should - I can eat nothing but chocolate everyday: who do I blame for my diabetes and obesity? And it very much seems like there was no 'taking care of it' and I'll bet no taxes were paid either.

[@tiagobuarki]

São Paulo featuring here, that's a nice surprise. Two other stories you could cover are the Joelma building fire and the Braskem scandal in Maceió, this last one is baffling.

[@Mr_Sh1tcoin]

Hmmm similar construction of the floors to the Twin Towers and people said then (incorrectly) that a skyscraper has never collapsed from fire.

[@rawveganterra]

I have no idea what happened with 911, I was not there and I do not believe anything the lying media or lying government says, who knows what really happened on 911. 🤷‍♀️

[@IbishuCovet]

@@rawveganterra idk? the videos filmed from people watching it?

[@ctrlaltdebug]

2001 was before 2018.

[@cavalieroutdoors6036]

Well, the Sao Paolo fires were 17 years after the twin towers were nailed by a plane. We didn't have crystal balls for seeing the future in 2001, I'm still waiting for Amazon or Google to get on top of that.

[@CruelestChris]

​@ctrlaltdebug There was an earlier one where the upper floors collapsed down to a massive concrete techical floor.

[@davidmcguerty8405]

FYI, Wilton Paes de Almeida building is located in the Largo do Paissandu suburb in the north of the City of Sao Paulo inside the perimeter hwy called 'The Marginal'.

[@PharadayCage]

Can’t believe that the lift shafts full of trash didn’t contribute too. Those poor people.

[@rawveganterra]

Yea I would guess that building was totally filled with litter. Probably not kept clean just a guess. Was there plumbing, running water, did the bathrooms work...no showers? 🤔😰 What was the bathroom situation like...😢

[@uralicdneprov1806]

That heaps of trash and dirt everywhere is a direct reflection of inhabitant minds. They could keep their place clean, they could team up to remove the trash out of the building. It would cost nothing but the effort. Even poor communities in poor countries can keep their places nice and clean, even poor communities can form a functional society. But squatting attracts a kind of disruptive people not interested in anything positive.

[@Amygondor]

no, the shafts didbn't contribute. The guy who loves to light people on fire with alcohol and a match while inside a building was at fault here. And the government for not imprisoning him when they already knew of his habits.

[@athenagreen5390]

​@@uralicdneprov1806When everyday is a struggle, you don't have the effort to spare to undertake the massive effort of cleaning that place. Remember, these people have nothing and are likely depressed. Also, the rich don't clean either, they pay the poors to do it for them.

[@ElPolloDiabloCH]

@@uralicdneprov1806 Sure, blame the victims. The only "disruptive" people "not interested in anything positive" are billionaires getting rich by exploiting the poor.

[@MartinaButler-u2d]

Growth itself contains the germ of happiness

[@JFirn86Q]

Well, pretty obvious conclusion for a building that's been abandoned and taken over by squatters with no regard for maintenance or fire prevention.

[@OffendingTheOffendable]

Probably addicts and high

[@philiplubduck6107]

Yeah squatters are essentially terrorists where they destroy everything they can.

[@stavison]

Completely ignoring the "fee for maintenance" paid by the people living there, and "They wasn't there for fun"

[@GamingCeo420]

The hive has fallen

[@vulpo]

It looks like the buildings I built with my Kenner Beams and Girder Set.

[@HirmanDulles]

As he entered the church he could hear the soft voice of someone whispering into a cell phone.

[@smittysmeee]

It's crazy that people can just abandon a whole building. There are more consequences for abandoning a soda can.

[@beejls]

The government abandoned it. Who's going after them?

[@obliviouz]

Only if it's on someone else's or public land. Abandon a soda can in your own house and no one will care - this building was on land the building owner also owned.

[@elizabethturner9671]

I can't exactly put my finger on why, but this fire is reminding me of the Worcester Cold Storage and Warehouse Co. Fire of 1999. Not necessarily an industrial disaster, but it did cause a lot of changes to firefighting as we know it. Highly recommend the book "3000 Degrees" by Sean Flynn about that fire.

[@GreeceUranusPutin]

Concrete isn't as fire resistant as people think.

[@Shuriza]

A bunch of inconvenient squatters cleared out. I wonder if the building owner got to collect a nice insurance pay out.

[@TheShockwaveDragon]

The building owner was the government, not a private company, and it burned down before it could be sold off. I highly doubt anyone got anything out of this for the simple reason that while real estate developers can be greedy, insurance companies are even less likely to be in the business of charity, and wouldn't have risked their money on a clearly and incredibly dangerous structure like this unless perhaps the Brazilian government forced them to do so, and seeing that no mention was made of any form of payout being made or even disputed in court in the aftermath section of the video, I seriously doubt any insurance was placed on it.

[@asteverino8569]

Thanks John. I enjoy your coverage of things known to me and unknown to me. I will mention a couple events from my home town of San Francisco CA. Suggestion: The history of The Cliff House and Sutro Baths. Neighbors which both had fires and other calamities. The Cliff still stands in its most recent form. The Sutro Baths burned to the ground in the 1960's.

[@Ticklestein]

Lesson of the day: Don’t be a squatter.

[@Caffeine_Addict_2020]

I think the bigger lesson is that if you convince someone to move their whole family to live somewhere, you better make sure that it's safe to live there first

[@Stephan-bj3lh]

I don't know why but I love listening to you!!!!!!!

[@Absalon68]

And that's why here in America, we insist upon "Building Codes" that are constantly being revised due to new products available.

[@rzella8022]

I heard condo owners are being charged exorbitant crippling fees for new policies because of these collapses, I'm not convinced are natural. Like the one in Florida suddenly collapsed freefall in its footprint although there was no fire. A tech expert, John McAfee, threatened to reveal sensitive info left in an apt. in the building, he had on corruption in gov; and then he was offed in prison.

[@michaelmcmeel914]

Well, to be fair, it usually takes a disaster of some kind to push through large scale and expensive code changes. MGM Grand, First Interstate, Meridian Plaza, Our Lady of the Angels, Congress Hotel, Cocoanut Grove, etc, etc, etc, ad nauseam.

[@krashd]

Oooh, I hope those of us in the other developed countries can some day enjoy these "Building Codes" and not have to live in our mud huts.

[@michaelmcmeel914]

@@krashd Did I mention Grenfell Tower?

[@BertaRS]

I was reminded of the Windsor Tower too. Glad to hear it's coming. Thank you for your videos.

[@TheWhale45]

The US is starting to require everyone to have a sprinkler system in all new construction both residential and Commercial. It stops these run away fires.

[@panzerabwerkanone]

It would be of no use if it is not maintained. The poor people would probably rip out the fire suppression piping to sell it as scrap metal.

[@TheWhale45]

@@panzerabwerkanone Use PVC.

[@panzerabwerkanone]

@@TheWhale45 I'm sure Plainly Difficult would have a bit to say about a fire suppression system who's pipes melt in a fire.

[@TheWhale45]

@@panzerabwerkanone Chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC) has a melting point of 200°F (93°C), which is higher than PVC. CPVC is a rigid amorphous plastic that is used in fire sprinkler systems in buildings such as schools, hospitals, and homes. CPVC fire sprinkler systems are designed to contain and extinguish fires, and are intended to be a life safety system, doh

[@HamlitonDulles]

Money was never a big motivation for me, except as a way to keep score. The real excitement is playing the game.

[@imboredandtired9]

and people say steel buildings cant come down due to fire

[@tylerdurden4006]

Bcoz when built to first world standards, thick steel does not collapse under some fire.

[@The_Haruspex]

@@tylerdurden4006 High grade steel loses half it's strength at just 400 degrees. Burning electrical circuits can reach 700. A fire spreading to the wrong place is more than enough to bring down a building, no matter how high grade the steel is. Not everything is a conspiracy theory.

[@tylerdurden4006]

@The_Haruspex lmfao, sure okay, glad you are paid to think so and lie on every comment.

[@MattF340]

@@tylerdurden4006 Whereas you talk $hit for free...

[@tylerdurden4006]

@MattF340 lol, I don't believe the sh*t and was making fun of others for believing it, which was my point, how did you not understand that? Lmfao 😂

[@RonnieMcNutt666]

'Concrete and steel tower' also known as a "skyscraper"

[@PavulonWielki]

At least city got rid of squatters.

[@RexChristie]

Wishes can be your best avenue of getting what you want when you turn wishes into action. Action moves your wish to the forefront from thought to reality.

[@nemo-x]

100% the fault of the squatters rights mafia and the squatters. It may sound callous but evictions would not have taken two months if the government hadn't been challenged by the squatters rights mafia who essentially took protection money from the people living in a place they didn't own and then didn't spend it on caring for the safety of those people. In a normal case the squatters would have been asked by police to leave and whoever didn't comply would have been arrested and taken away by force. All within a day. Had the people allowed the government to do what it wanted to none of this would have happened.

[@rawveganterra]

The government was clearly in cahoots with that "housing organization". Do you believe the little Slum Lord management company was actually intimidating and controlling the poor, weak, government? Government was running that "housing", basically.

[@urbanoteal6334]

I believe squatters rights as a whole are bogus. They made sense back when they were implemented but now they’re just an excuse for bad behaviour and criminal enterprises like this one. It’s criminal that the squatters rights mafia wasn’t prosecuted if not jailed immediately as they facilitated the unsafe settlement and use of the building.

[@johannageisel5390]

Well, great, and where would those people have to live then? On the streets? That's basically just as dangerous to health and life than a fire. Your approach doesn't solve anything.

[@nemo-x]

@@johannageisel5390 No it isn't. And the idea that it is is absurd.

[@obliviouz]

​@@johannageisel5390Learn skills, get jobs, rent or buy housing.

[@vans617]

Now thats how to get rid of squatters

[@X862go]

Why was there a fee? If nobody fixed anything with the squatting ppl didn't do maintenance?

[@joserafaeldiazmarrero7668]

Another reminder that fire does *not* have to *melt* the steel in a structure to bring it down. Just weaken or distort it enough so that it can no longer hold the building's structural integrity.

[@lyedavide]

It is hard to criticize the inhabitants of the building seeing as how low cost accommodation is extremely high in demand in countries like Brazil. But to allow people to continue living in a building that is essentially derelict with no maintenance being performed for as much as a decade or more, the authorities should have evicted the residents and demolished the structure. It is all the more tragic as those living there had, in all likelihood, no where else to live. I'm quite sure that the true death toll has been covered up. RIP to all who perished in this disaster.

[@chasejones8302]

"no where else to live". This is always a lie to excuse people parking themselves in downtown areas worldwide. Brazil is 8 million square kilometers and 215 million other people have found somewhere else to live. Some countries allow this insanity and some do not.

[@SanchoPanza-wg5xf]

After seeing how they vandalized and trashed the building inside and out, I find it very easy to criticize the inhabitants.

[@Caffeine_Addict_2020]

@@chasejones8302 Alot of people want to pretend homelessness is just "give these people a house", and it's obviously not that simple. Like let's look at the example in front of us: these people got a house, but since it had sketchy, illegal electrical wiring, and nobody was running fire inspection. That's not even to mention those that are incapable of finding and maintaining housing due to mental illness, drug addiction, or criminality which forces them onto the streets Homelessness is a very complicated problem

[@BenCarpendale]

​@@Caffeine_Addict_2020 I find it difficult to empathise with people with mental illness, drug addiction, and criminality, so I don't particularly understand the complexity of that. I know the people in this building were not typically that type but with their terrible housing conditions and a government eviction order, they probably should have left.

[@enzonavarro8550]

The building wasn't just filled with squatters, the squatters had to pay a rent of 400 reais (71 dollars in 2018) for a very small subdivision of that building to someone that didn't even own the building and never did the most essential maintenance. These people that charged rent had luxury cars and obviously didn't care about those people's lives

[@invertedpolarity6890]

Graffiti. Always a sign of quality people. Also, how the hell do people put graffiti on the out side of a high rise building?!

[@nos9784]

you put it on the inside of the glass people do it with post it- notes in offices, too also, i can tell i wouldn't wanna have you as a neighbor

[@BenCarpendale]

​@@nos9784 The irony, you seem like the person that would be the bad neighbour according to most peoples definition. What's so bad about being against disrespectful wonton vandals ?

[@oswaldobetarelli4776]

I saw the pictures and immediately thought the city looked familiar, when you mentioned it was São Paulo i got goosebumps

[@cinnamonrollypoly]

"But, it's impossible for steel and concrete buildings to collapse because of fire!" -9/11 'truthers'. Nevermind that there are quite a few examples of just that happening around the world.

[@Caffeine_Addict_2020]

My favorite part of this is how the "truthers" are trying to add this to their conspiracy theory, bending over backwards to explain how the abysmally poor government here somehow ran a controlled demolition of this building with negative value, that they then disguised as a fire

[@barryfoster453]

Indeed. I'm an engineer, I've been trying to explain to idiots that it's a miracle that the twin towers didn't collapse on impact. The floor trusses were taking a 100 tonne aircraft on them. I'm surprised that they didn't weaken until the fire took hold.

[@chris_is_here_oh_no]

Excellent documentary, this was fascinating! Wonderful research.

[@PlainlyDifficult]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@charlesrobert6211]

Tragic loss of life but the public shares the blame. Taking over a building, rigging of electrical systems, no preventative maintenance, no fire alarms or drills. They have no right to turn on the president of country but rather the reckless activist who engineered this disaster.

[@petervansan1054]

i fail to see any tragedy here

[@obliviouz]

​@@petervansan1054While harsh, given the people inside couldn't even provide for themselves, it's hard to imagine they were contributing anything to society.

[@lewisdsd]

Dear John, please cover the line 12 collapse in Mexico city! Is the perfect subject for a video of yours since it involves trains, structure collapse and corruption!

[@nemo-x]

Blaming the government in this is utterly outrageous. Like someone stealing your car, then cutting the brake lines, then refusing to stop when you tell them, and still going "why would you do this to me" when they crash.

[@rawveganterra]

The slum building was being run by the government, but if someone poured liquor and started a fire, that is not the government's fault you're right, unless people want to blame the government for selling liquor to people and encouraging alcoholism, maybe then it's still the government's fault, that they had liquor and were drunk to begin with...🤔