An Albany, New York woman who removed all her belongings from her home the day before it mysteriously caught fire has pleaded guilty to insurance fraud. Kim M. Laporte, 39, later filed a $38,000 claim under her renter’s insurance policy. …
A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength ratings (FSR) of ‘A+’ (Superior) and issuer credit ratings (ICR) of “aa-” of HCC Insurance Holdings (HCC) and its members. Best also affirmed the ICR of “a-“, the debt rating of “a-” …
The lawsuit filed by a Salisbury, Md. police chief against an Internet blogger is scheduled to go to trial in Worcester County District Court. Chief Allan Webster filed the nearly $10,000 lawsuit last March against Joseph Albero, claiming Albero defamed …
The Main Street Middle School in Montpelier, Vt. is closed because of concerns about asbestos contamination. It’s unclear if the school will open as scheduled for the start of school at the end of August. A safety inspector from the …
A federal agency says young children are not at risk for lead exposure from synthetic athletic fields. That is the word from the Consumer Product Safety Commission. The agency evaluated various synthetic athletic fields after lead was detected on the …
A barn fire in Bellevue has caused $350,000 worth of damage and left a fire fighter injured. Firefighters were called to the residence of Paul Fahey at about 4:20 p.m. on Tuesday after a report of a fire engulfing a …
A man is in critical condition and two other people were injured in an apartment fire just east of downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma. Officials say the critically injured man has burns to 80 percent of his body while the other two …
State officials say emergency repairs to Iowa’s roads are costing about $30 million and climbing. State officials say the funding has been needed after record flooding last month. Flooding forced the closure of 464 miles of Iowa’s state highway system, …
A storage tank explosion at a northern Wisconsin paper mill Tuesday killed three workers and injured a fourth, the company that owns the mill said. Packaging Corp. of America said in a news release that the three workers were fatally …
Florida will pay $224 million to Berkshire Hathaway Inc. for a guarantee that the state can borrow up to $4 billion if necessary to help cover future losses by its emergency hurricane insurance fund. Gov. Charlie Crist and Chief Financial …