I feel like I’m finally regaining my footing after vacation, my partner being sick, me being sick, the July 4 holiday and a lot of wedding planning. It’s a reminder that life is cyclical and that you rarely plan to go to the Emergency Department, but sometimes, that’s how life works.

It was so incredibly heartening to have so many people who care and offer to bring over soup or groceries and check-in to see how we were faring. Again, it’s a reminder that we are part of a larger community and don’t have to face life’s challenges alone.

Now that I’m feeling better, I’m asking myself how can I support friends and loved ones as well as myself. Maybe it means surprising someone with a home-cooked dinner or scaling back my to-do list or taking a rest. I’m not entirely sure, as I rarely “take it easy.” I have been reminded that time and health are not a given—or a guarantee, so we must make the most of them.

I hope you find some way to carpe diem soon! Until next time, stay safe, be well and be kind!

L.A. Tunnel Collapse

A sanitation tunnel in Los Angeles County collapsed on the evening of July 9. Fortunately, none of the 31 workers were visibly injured or harmed.

Twenty-seven workers were operating the tunnel boring machine and a section they had already built collapsed due to “squeezing ground” said Robert Ferrante, chief engineer and general manager of the Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts.

The workers were between five to six miles from the sole entry and exit point of the tunnel and about 400 feet below ground. They climbed over a 12- to 15-foot high mound of loose soil to reach four other workers who went inside after the collapse to help with rescue efforts.

Then they were all shuttled in batches on a tunnel vehicle to the entrance and raised up to the tunnel’s entrance in a metal age hoisted by a crane.

The tunnel is part of a municipal wastewater project and will carry treated and clean wastewater from the Joint Water Pollution Control Plant to the Pacific Ocean.

The Los Angeles Times reports this is the first major incident that has taken place since construction on the project began in late 2019, though work on the tunnel didn’t start until 2021.

Ferrante said work is halted until they can determine what caused the collapse and how to fix it.

“There’s no telling how long that will take,” he said. “It’ll take as long as it needs to make sure that the tunnel is safe.”

More than 100 Los Angeles Fire Department responders assisted with the rescue, including those search and rescue teams specially trained and equipped to hand confined-space tunnel rescues.

You can read, view and watch more from this incredible rescue effort from The Los Angeles Times, KTLA, ABC7, The New York Times, The Associated Press and CNN.

Coast Guard Rescue Swimmer

The flash flooding along the Guadalupe River in Central Texas is beyond devastating. I was so amazed when I started seeing mention of Petty Officer Scott Ruskan, and I knew I had to share it with all of you.

Ruskan, 26, is an aviation survival technician (AST) in the U.S. Coast Guard. (Side note: I recently read a book about ASTs, and I want to note that the training program is incredibly grueling and has a very high attrition rate. Being a recue swimmer is not for the faint of heart!)

Ruskan graduated six months ago, and his crew was tasked with evacuating hundreds of people at Camp Mystic, the all-girls’ Christian summer camp.

When he was on the ground, Ruskan realized he was the only first responder around. The crew left Ruskan behind at Camp Mystic to act as a triage coordinator. He said he was the only rescuer on-site for around three hours and had no communication due to poor radio reception and no cell service.

Multiple reports state he is directly responsible for rescuing 165 people, although a Coast Guard press release states that he “remained with victims of the flooding, providing medical assistance to and aiding with the evacuation efforts of 230 victims into assisting agencies air assets.”

In response to being called a hero, Rusan said in an interview: “I’m just a guy… anyone can do this if they raise their right hand.”

This was Ruskan’s first rescue mission as a Coastie.

Multiple news outlets—CNN, Newsweek, The New York Times, USA Today—have profiled Ruskan’s heroic efforts. I encourage you to read at least one of them.

A Study on Coolness

We know who’s cool, but it’s not as easy to explain why someone’s cool. Which is perhaps why this recent study is gaining so much attention.

The study, simply titled “Cool People” in the Journal of Experimental Psychology” surveyed nearly 6,000 people from 12 countries about what makes a person cool. Their answers were pretty much the same despite differences in geography, age, income level, education or gender.

Cool people tend to have six specific traits in common: extroverted, hedonistic, powerful, adventurous, open and autonomous

It’s worth noting that participants had to recognize the word “cool” in English, suggesting that the idea of coolness could be a cultural export from developed, Western countries.

And, as reporter Christina Caron astutely observes, coolness can carry different weight throughout a person’s lifetime. The desire to be cool is high during adolescence, but she notes a 2014 study found that many teenagers who took risks and were socially precocious—traits that could make someone be perceived as cool or popular—could struggle with alcohol, drugs or relationships in their 20s.

Read the full study story here.