Some of the articles on our local TV news sites are really poorly written and full of punctuation and spelling errors. TV reporters write stories to read them on air, not for people to read in print. It drives me nuts now, in the age of online news sites and reporters having FB pages, that they don't seem to have editors who take 5-10 minutes to clean up a story so it's a little more readable, but I've come to accept it doesn't necessarily mean the reporter isn't trustworthy.
One of the things that drove me nuts in Mr. Salinas' story is that he repeatedly wrote "I was told." It's awkward and distracting. But he (or his editor) may have felt the need to emphasize that this is all secondhand information, and he wasn't there. Just like we feel the need to repeatedly say "I think" or "in my opinion."
I can't remember where we found the info about that kind of septic tank lid being secured with multiple bolts or screws. I thought one of the MSM articles about Noah had said that, but I searched and couldn't find any reference to bolts/screws holding a typical plastic septic tank lid in place.
The whole story, like many aspects of this case, gives us more questions than answers. It says the lid popped off easily; but was it covered in sod first that the adults had to remove? Did the reporter ask this question? If Noah's parents or mom intentionally put him in the tank, is it possible they removed screws and sod in that process and didn't put them back? If their intent was to hide Noah's body so that nobody could ever find it, surely they would have been very careful to make the septic tank look undisturbed? Or maybe they really are that dumb?
And if LE knew the lid could come off easily, and the searchers reported they felt something, why in the world didn't LE have the tank drained that day?
Why did the searchers feel the need to tell LE that their fingerprints would be all over the pole and lid? LE knew they were searching, so that was a given.
Honestly, I don't think anything will surprise me about this case anymore. And I wonder if we'll ever really know what happened.
In this interview, the owner of a septic company talks about the plastic lids saying they are usually secured with screws.
Lynchburg, VA - At this time, there are still a lot unanswered questions surrounding Noah's death. Investigators have been tight-lipped about the family's septic tank where the 5-year-old's body was found.
Experts say it all comes down to what type of lid, if any, was on the tank that day. So far, all investigators will say is that the septic tank itself is underground.
But we don't know if the Thomas's tank, like many Virginia homeowners', has a plastic riser on it, which would make it accessible above ground.
A lightweight plastic lid is usually placed over the rise to cover the tank.
The owner of 'Five Star Septic' tells ABC 13 the plastic lid is usually secured with more than 8 screws, which would make it impossible for anyone to uncover. But if the lid is not screwed on, he says even a child could pull the cover off.
As for more traditional septic tanks, like the ones most homes in our area have, the lid itself is actually buried about a foot deep. Dale Wilson, owner of Wilson's Septic Tank Service, says those lids are usually made out of cement and are even difficult for someone of his size to pull off.
"Newer tanks these days are quite a bit thicker than that top, but even that top is almost 100 pounds. There is no way any small person can lift that by himself. No way” said Wilson.
Wilson says he has come across septic tanks where the underground lid has been removed -- but he says that is rare. There are many instances every year of children falling into septic tanks.
In most of those cases, the lid was either removed or broken.
Video at link:
http://www.wset.com/story/28635381/...thomas-accidentally-fell-into-the-septic-tank
