STATUS: P0 — sitemap_index.xml and three of four child sitemaps return HTTP 404 at their pretty URLs. Only video-sitemap.xml is reachable. The data exists on the server but the WordPress rewrite-rule cache has lost RankMath's sitemap routes, almost certainly as a side effect of the 2026-05-05 plugin deletions and 2026-05-08 redirect insertion script. Recommended fix: wp rewrite flush --hard from the Cloudways shell.

Full report: /Users/samaguiar/Documents/Codex/sitemap/2026-05-08.md

TL;DR

• https://aguiarinjurylawyers.com/sitemap_index.xml returns 404 (5 of 5 retries).
• /post-sitemap.xml, /page-sitemap.xml, /category-sitemap.xml also 404.
• /video-sitemap.xml returns 200 (independent WPCode snippet).
• /index.php?sitemap=1 returns 200 with the correct sitemap index XML — RankMath generation is healthy; only the rewrite-rule layer is broken.
• Server-side counts (215 posts / 330 pages / 18 categories / 54 video) total 617. Today only 54 URLs are accessible to crawlers (-91 percent).
• GSC: errors went from 0 to 1; lastDownloaded still 2026-04-30T23:03Z so Google has not refetched yet.
• IndexNow: skip line written (no diffable additions).

Root cause

WP rewrite-rules cache was regenerated WITHOUT RankMath's init callbacks bound. Most likely trigger: 2026-05-05 22:54Z plugin deletions of GP Premium / GenerateBlocks Pro / GenerateCloud, which fires a rule flush. The video-sitemap survives because WPCode snippet 57887 ("SA Video Sitemap Generator") registers its own rewrite hook and renders directly.

Recommended fix

wp rewrite flush --hard over SSH. Idempotent. Reversible. Restores the same rewrite_rules option content we had on 2026-05-04. Time: <30s. Verify with curl -I <https://aguiarinjurylawyers.com/sitemap_index.xml> (expect 200, text/xml).

Reporting gap

No reports produced for 2026-05-05, 2026-05-06, 2026-05-07. Snapshots only for 05-05. Schedule audit needed (see Q3).

QA Recommendations Pending Approval

Surfaced as 4-way MC in the run report file and the Codex QA queue. Five questions:

1. Q1 (P0) — Run wp rewrite flush --hard now? Recommendation: A.
2. Q2 — Add post-deletion verification step to the cleanup-plugins playbook. Recommendation: A.