Give me your thoughts.....Do you think proper risk assessments is done at the beginning and during projects? If so, how do we account for project failure?

Projects don't mysteriously fail - we usually make failure inevitable when we don't properly identify risks.
Speaking from personal experience, some sponsors want to avoid delving deeply into risks lest they bring to light long-standing organizational issues they would rather avoid. They note a few risks for form's sake, press ahead with the project, then act surprised when problems later appear. As a contractor I can only push the issue so far; I warn sponsors about the consequences of the risks they're avoiding, then I make my own preparations to deal with the issues when they manifest. .

Eric, interesting insight. I too find that on previous projects that I have worked on, the sponsors tend to be a bit bureaucratic about project success but fail to assess risks including residual risks and secondary risks. From my experiences, project failure stems from not properly assessing the risk, or implementing a risk response. There is much reliance on a work around if possible or project failure, which is extended time and costs. I say put in the ground work and potentially avoid the chaos further down the road. Therefore, being proactive rather than reactive.