Monthly Archives: <span>December 2021</span>

Long Road to Recovery for Kansas Ranchers After Wildfires

PARADISE, Kan. (AP)–Ranchers in western Kansas have begun to recover from the deadly wildfires that torched their land earlier this month, but they acknowledge it will be a long process. Two men died and the Kansas Forest Service estimates that …

Family Sues Oil Company Over Fatal Louisiana Tank Explosion

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP)–Relatives of a 14-year-old girl who died when an oil storage tank exploded in February have sued the company that operated the tank. The suit against Urban Oil & Gas Group and its insurer was filed Wednesday …

Two More Circuit Courts Reject COVID-19 Business-Interruption Claims

The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Monday that the coronavirus did not cause a direct physical damage or loss to a New York City art gallery — issuing the latest in a long series of defeats for policyholders seeking …

Subrogating Automated Driving Systems and Autonomous Vehicle Failures

Imagine beginning your day with a cup of coffee in the car on the way to work, watching the morning news from a holographic projection on the windshield while making notes in preparation for a 9:00 a.m. meeting. All this …

Exxon Cuts Baytown Refinery Rates After Extinguishing Fire

Exxon Mobil Corp. says an overnight fire at its Baytown, Texas, refinery that injured four people has been extinguished. The blaze occurred at 1 a.m. local time at the plant, which is the fourth-largest in the U.S., capable of processing …

$475M Settlement Proposed in Longest-Running US Oil Spill

NEW ORLEANS (AP)–A New Orleans-based oil company has agreed to turn over a $432 million cleanup trust fund and pay an additional $43 million to settle a federal lawsuit over cleaning up abandoned wells leaking since 2004, federal prosecutors said …

2 Dead in Submerged Car as California Storm Worries Spread

LOS ANGELES (AP)–Heavy overnight rains in Northern California left two people dead in a submerged car as authorities on Thursday urged residents of several Southern California mountain and canyon communities to voluntarily leave their homes because of possible mud and …

Death Toll in Massive Bangladesh Ferry Fire Rises to 40

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP)–Bangladeshi authorities buried 23 unclaimed bodies on Saturday after a day-long search failed to recover more victims or survivors of a massive fire on a crowded river ferry that left 40 people dead. Habibur Rahman, a top government …

Pennsylvania Fire Departments Facing Volunteerism Emergency

SUNBURY, Pa. (AP)–The state of volunteer firefighting is in a crisis. That is the assessment of Acting Pennsylvania State Fire Commissioner Thomas Cook and multiple fire officials in the state, nation and Valley. The current model of volunteer firefighting in …

Archdiocese of Santa Fe’s Bankruptcy Case Plods Along

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP–The Archdiocese of Santa Fe’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy efforts have plodded along for three years with no end visible in the case involving more than 400 clergy abuse victims. Lawyers say three years is a comparatively long …