Authorities searching for victims in F-16, Cessna midair collision

Posted: July 07, 2015

By Suzelle Santos

By Live 5 News Web Staff

Mid-air collision

 

The Berkeley County Fire Department says two planes, an F-16 and a Cessna aircraft, have crash-landed near Old Highway 52 at Lewisfield Plantation. 

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: F-16, Cessna mid-air collision

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Maj. Aaron Johnson (Photo Source: LinkedIn)

 

Photo Source: Viewer Submitted/Facebook

 

Photo Source: Live 5

 

Photo Source: Live 5

 

A portion of the F-16 is hauled from the crash site in Berkeley County. (Photo Source: Live 5)

 

BERKELEY COUNTY, SC (WCSC) - 

 Berkeley County officials say they are now in a recovery mission to locate the two victims killed in a midair collision between an F-16 and a Cessna C-150 over Berkeley County Tuesday morning.

Berkeley County Rescue Squad Chief Bill Salisbury said the main goal now is to recover the remains of the two people believed to have been aboard the Cessna and bring them home to their families.

"We have no reason to believe anyone survived the crash," Salisbury said at a Tuesday afternoon press briefing.

The Air Force identified Maj. Aaron Johnson, who is stationed at Shaw Air Force Base, as the pilot of the F-16. Johnson safely ejected from the jet and was rescued following the crash 11 miles north of Charleston and was rescued, according to Berkeley County Rescue Squad officials.

Col. Stephen Jost, commander of the 20th Fighter Wing at Shaw Air Force Base, said Johnson is a "highly-experienced pilot" who was on a single-ship mission involving instrument training.

"Our pilots are well trained to fly the approaches in and out of there and all the facts at this point indicate he was taking to air traffic control when the accident happened," Jost said.

Johnson was taken to Joint Base Charleston for health evaluations, Jost said, and Johnson is expected to be back at Shaw by Tuesday evening.

"Our hearts are with the family of the crew of the civilian plane," Jost said, adding that Shaw would do everything possible to determine what caused the crash and support the safety investigation.

The crash happened near Old Highway 52 in Moncks Corner at approximately 11:02 a.m. and that witnesses reported the F-16 hit the Cessna "broadside," Salisbury said. Salisbury said the Cessna had taken off from the Berkeley County Airport just minutes before the crash was reported and that the plane was believed to be headed to Myrtle Beach.

Salisbury said the fuselage of the Cessna has been located and debris area is 7.3 miles wide and scattered across a rice field. The recovery operation involves boats, divers and sonar, Salisbury said.

Salisbury did not identify the people believed to be aboard the Cessna, but said that while the press briefing was underway, he received word that a wallet had been recovered in the search area.

Salisbury said crews will work as long into the night as is safe and then will resume the search Wednesday morning if necessary.

Law enforcement officers blocked off roads near O.T. Wallace Boulevard and say additional road closures may occur as additional debris is located.

Berkeley County Sheriff Duane Lewis asked for patience for those who might encounter road closures. Lewis said area residents are being allowed in, but everyone else should avoid the area for now.

Anyone who finds debris from the crash should call 911 immediately so the debris can be collected.

Shaw Air Force Base confirmed the F-16 Fighting Falcon was stationed there and that the pilot is accounted for. In a statement, Shaw officials say a team of investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board will work to determine the cause of the accident. 

There were reports toxic flames are coming from the F-16. A witness said the crash was in a rice field about 100 feet from land, very close to the historic Lewisfield plantation home. 

Both Medway and Lewisfield Plantations are off Highway 52.

The F-16 was designed in 1970 for the United States Air Force as an alternative to fighter aircraft that had grown increasingly heavy and unmaneuverable. A team working at General Dynamics in Fort Worth, TX set out to develop a simple, inexpensive fighter that could fly and turn so fast that adversaries would be unable to strike it with either missiles or gunfire.

Throughout the years, weapons and targeting systems were added to the aircraft without diminishing the F-16’s agility, making it a true multirole aircraft.
Since 1975, more than 4,500 F-16s have been produced for 26 nations across the world.  

2 children killed in Clarksville, TN house fire; teen in critical condition

Posted: July 07, 2015 

Posted by Kara Apel

 

Clarksville fire officials are investigating a house fire that killed two children and seriously injured a teenager.

 

CLARKSVILLE, TN (WSMV) - Two children were killed in a house fire in Clarksville on Tuesday morning, according to police.

The two victims have been identified as 9-year-old Travis Howard Jr. and 11-year-old Ann Howard.

Josh Phillips, 14, is in critical condition after being airlifted to Vanderbilt University Medical Center. 

Firefighters were called to the home on the 400 block of Shelby Street at 4:15 a.m. 

Clarksville Fire Marshal Ray Williams said the victims' parents did not know their children had died and he had to break the news to them.

"Any time you have children involved, it's a little tougher. When I got here to the scene, they were putting the children in bags. That's not a good scene to look at," he said. 

There were no working smoke detectors in the home. Fire officials said one of the children never woke up.

Williams said the fire started in the living room.

The parents and an 18-year-old family member who was visiting were able to escape the fire.

Vicki Pollard of Clarksville has been a close friend of the Howard family for 18 years. She has become known to the children as Aunt Vicki.

“You sit there and you ask yourself why would it happen to such good people?” Pollard said.

Officials said the blaze was not suspicious and appears to be electrical in nature. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Irvine, CA woman killed in Uber car crash outside Costa Mesa bar identified

July 7, 2015

Updated 2:14 p.m.

BY ALYSSA DURANTY / STAFF WRITER

COSTA MESA – Two 29-year-olds were leaving a popular local dive bar in the back of an Uber car when a 19-year-old man driving a BMV crashed into them, police said. One of the passengers, identified as Julia Gardner, later died in the hospital. 

Frank Rugnetta, 43 of Irvine, was driving a Ford Escape SUV as an Uber driver around 1:35 a.m. when he picked up the passengers from The Huddle. They sat in the back seat before leaving the bar’s parking lot.

Rugnetta was driving across Baker Street when Porfirio Sandoval, 19 of Costa Mesa, driving a BMW 540i eastbound on the street, struck the driver side of the Escape, injuring the Uber passengers and Rugnetta. 

Sandoval was arrested on suspicion of felony DUI. He was initially held in lieu of $100,000 bail. 

The Uber passengers, Gardner, who is from Irvine, and an unidentified Huntington Beach man, were taken to Orange County Global Medical Center in Santa Ana for chest injuries where Gardner died at 3:36 a.m., according to the coroner’s office.

Officials said Gardner was sitting behind Rugnetta at the time of the collision.
Rugnetta, who passed a field sobierty test, was taken to UCI Medical Center in Orange after he complained of chest pain.

Authorities said Sandoval, who also claimed he had chest pain, was taken to Hoag Hospital. 

The deadly collision comes six days after a new California law went into effect requiring Uber, and other similar ride share programs, to maintain primary third-party liability insurance that provides coverage of $50,000 per individual, up to $100,000, per crash. 

Additionally, there is coverage of up to $30,000 for property damage during rides where the driver is actively looking to pick up passengers, before a ride begins, according to an Uber press release. The new law did not change the insurance policy during rides, though. 

Uber still maintains commercial auto insurance that provides for a driver’s liability for third-party bodily injury and property damage and $1 million of uninsured/under-insured motorist bodily injury coverage per incident. 

It also has contingent comprehensive and collision insurance that provides protection against physical damage to the driver’s vehicle that occurs on a trip, up to the vehicle’s actual cash value, subject to a $1,000 deductible, according to the company.

Any witnesses to the collision have been asked to contact Costa Mesa police Officer Crystal Cordero at 714-754-5264

Woman dies after fall from horse before Civil War re-enactment at at Willamette Mission State Park in Salem, Oregon

Alisha Roemeling, Statesman Journal 12:33 p.m. PDT July 7, 2015

(Photo: ASHLEY SMITH / STATESMAN JOURNAL)

A Washington woman died Sunday after she fell off her horse on Saturday while preparing to participate in a Civil War re-enactment at Willamette Mission State Park.

Tammy Stillwell, of Langley, Washington, was part of the cavalry and was preparing to head out to the battlefield when her horse took a turn into the woods, said Scott Ingalls of the Northwest Civil War Council. Stillwell was knocked off her horse by a tree branch and fell to the ground, Ingalls said.

The incident took place around 3 p.m., said Chris Havel, spokesman for the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. A number of people involved in the event came to her aid, keeping her cool and calm until emergency services arrived around 3:30 p.m., according to the Woodburn Fire Department.

"She was conscious and alert the whole time, while she was laying there and when she was transported," Ingalls said.

Stillwell was taken to Salem Hospital. She went into emergency surgery Sunday to repair internal bleeding but died during surgery.

"I don't know if that was from her injuries or if that was from the surgery," Ingalls said.

The community at the re-enactment was stunned.

"Oh they're devastated," Ingalls said. "We've never even had a serious injury."
Stillwell's Facebook page shows her as an avid horseback rider. One friend posted on her page that she was riding a horse named Maxx at the time of the accident.

Oregon State Police spokesman Lt. Bill Fugate said Monday that because Stillwell died at the hospital, the agency would not be investigating.

Ingalls said the re-enactors group would be conducting an investigation, as would the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department.

Worker killed after fall from scaffolding in Ballantyne, NC

One person was killed early Tuesday afternoon in an incident in Ballantyne. | WBTV

By Ames Alexander
aalexander@charlotteobserver.com

JULY 7, 2015

Ballantyne, NC

A man who worked for a siding contractor fell 14 feet to his death while working on a house in Ballantyne Monday morning, authorities say.

The worker, whose name has not yet been released, fell from scaffolding that had been set up near the house on Whitfield Ridge Drive, according to the N.C. Department of Labor. He worked for a siding contractor named Daryl Thomas, the labor department said.

The victim had been standing on a ladder jack scaffold – a platform that rests on brackets attached to ladders.

The death comes soon after after another fatal scaffolding accident. On March 23, three construction workers were killed when scaffolding collapsed at an office building under construction in downtown Raleigh. On January 23, 2014, another worker died after a fall from scaffolding in Wake County.

Medic fielded the report about Tuesday’s fall at 11:35 a.m. Paramedics arrived about five minutes later and pronounced the victim dead at the scene.

The state’s Occupational Safety and Health Division is investigation the accident. 

In such investigations, inspectors typically look to see whether workers had adequate training and fall protection.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article26657803.html#storylink=cpy

Another Robot Kills Worker at Ventra Ionia Main, in Ionia, Michigan

Worker killed in Ionia, Michigan industrial accident

Gregory Ghering, WZZM 5:45 p.m. EDT July 7, 2015

(Photo: WZZM)

IONIA, Mich. (WZZM) -- 

Local and state authorities are investigating the death of a worker during an industrial accident Tuesday afternoon in Ionia.

The Department of Public Safety says a worker at Ventra Ionia Main, 14 Beardsley Rd., was reported trapped by robotic machinery at 2:20 p.m.

DPS personnel and other Ventra workers freed the trapped employee from the machine, but the employee was pronounced dead at the scene.

Ionia authorities are investigating the accident, in conjunction with MIOSHA, the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Investigators at this point haven't released the deceased worker's name.

SpaceX is struggling to figure out what exactly happened to the CRS-7 rocket last week, after the planned resupply mission to the ISS exploded after takeoff.

 

SpaceX still bemused over CRS-7 explosion says Musk

July 7, 2015

SpaceX is struggling to figure out what exactly happened to the CRS-7 rocket last week, after the planned resupply mission to the ISS exploded after takeoff.

 "The data does seem to be quite difficult to interpret," SpaceX founder Elon Musk conceded, speaking at the ISS R&D Conference in Boston today. 

"Whatever happened is not a simple straightforward thing." Nobody was injured in the explosion, but SpaceX's resupply missions to the International Space Station are on hold until the incident is understood. 


So far, the only theory SpaceX has shared has been the hours just after the failed launch, with Musk blaming an issue in the upper stage liquid oxygen tank which led to over-pressure. 

"We want to see if we can get to what the most likely root cause is, look at both what we think most likely happened, and then anything that's a close call and try to address all of those things and maximize probability of success for future missions," Musk said during his appearance at the conference today. 

To do that, SpaceX plans to take its current findings to the Federal Aviation Administration and see if the trained eyes there can spot anything the private space flight firm itself missed. 

"The exact cause and the sequence of events, there is still no clear theory that fits with all the data," Musk said. 

CRS-7 was to be SpaceX's seventh resupply mission to the orbiting research platform, an unmanned Dragon capsule atop a Falcon rocket. Two minutes and thirty-nine seconds after taking off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, however, and just before second-stage separation, the rocket exploded. 

Without a clear answer, SpaceX's backlog of missions faces even further delays, while leaving NASA reliant on Russia to keep the astronauts in space supplied with food, water, and new science experiments.

A Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Air Facility Charleston responds to a report of an Air Force F-16 crash, July 7, 2015, near Cooper River in South Carolina

A Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Air Facility Charleston responds to a report of an Air Force F-16 crash, July 7, 2015, near Cooper River in South Carolina. The air crew located the crash site and lowered a rescue swimmer to offer medical assistance to the pilot of the downed aircraft. U.S. Coast Guard video

Coast Guard medevacs woman from cruise ship Carnival Pride 200 miles off NC coast

July 7th, 2015

 

WILMINGTON, N.C. 

The Coast Guard medevaced a 77-year-old woman Monday from a cruise ship approximately 200 miles east of Wilmington.

The Coast Guard received a call from the 959-foot, Panama-flagged cruise ship Carnival Pride late Monday afternoon, reporting a female passenger suffering stroke symptoms.

An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew and an HC-130 Hercules aircraft crew from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City launched at about 5:50 p.m.

The Jayhawk crew arrived on scene at about 7:30 p.m., lowered a rescue swimmer, and hoisted the ailing woman, a family member and a medical professional to the helicopter.

The Coast Guard aircrew delivered the woman to Vidant Medical Center in Greenville, arriving at about 9 p.m.

The woman was reported in stable condition.

“We are glad to have been able to help at a time of great need, and we hope the patient makes a complete recovery,” said Lt.j.g. Kevin Riley, helicopter pilot for the case. “Assisting those in distress is a rewarding part of Coast Guard duty.”

Male driver killed in high speed fiery Sunday crash in New Castle County, DE has been identified. Both speed and alcohol appear to be factors in the fatal crash

robin brown, The News Journal 8:53 a.m. EDT July 6, 2015

A man killed in a fiery Sunday morning car crash has been identified by police as Christopher Barton, 38, of Wilmington.

He was found unresponsive shortly after 2 a.m. at the scene of the crash, where he later was pronounced dead by New Castle County paramedics, county police said.

Initial reports of the crash said three vehicles were involved, but officers investigating the crash site along the 800 block of McKennans Church Road determined only one car was involved, but had broken into several pieces before catching fire, Officer First Class Tom Jackson said.

Both speed and alcohol appear to be factors in the fatal crash, he said.

Investigators determined Barton was headed north on McKennans Church Road at a high rate of speed and lost control on a slight curve, Jackson said.

His car slid across the southbound lane and onto the shoulder, where it hit a curb before continuing up onto the roadside grass, he said. There, the car hit a large tree, knocking it over and uprooting it, causing the car to flip over and break apart, he added.

The impact threw Barton onto the grass amid the wreckage, Jackson said.
The engine then caught fire, later put out by crews from Mill Creek and Elsmere fire companies, he said.

Police are continuing their investigation of the fatal crash.

Trying to locate anyone who may have seen it happen, they ask any possible witnesses to call the New Castle County Police Department at (302) 573-2800, give information under “crime tips and alerts” at www.NCCPD.com, send messages via Facebook or use the force’s smartphone app.

Information also may be given through Delaware Crime Stoppers at (800) TIP-3333 and www.tipsubmit.com.

1 person was killed in a fiery rollover crash on Interstate 8 west of Gila Bend Tuesday morning in Arizona

I-8 west of Gila Bend reopens after fiery crash

Posted: July 07, 2015
 

By Phil Benson

 

(Source: KPHO/KTVK)

 

(Source: KPHO/KTVK)

 

(Source: KPHO/KTVK)

 

 

PHOENIX (KPHO/KTVK) - 

 One person was killed in a fiery rollover crash on Interstate 8 west of Gila Bend Tuesday morning, the Arizona Department of Public Safety said. 

The crash happened just before 6:30 a.m. on westbound I-8 at milepost 115. 
The vehicle rolled over and burst into flames, DPS said. 

The identity of the victim has not been released. It’s not known how many others suffered injuries, DPS said in an email. 

There had been a partial closure and restrictions in place but those have now all been lifted, the Arizona Department of Transportation said.

The crash remains under investigation.

I-8 West has reopened at Gila Bend (mile 115, SR 85). Restrictions are still expected on the eastbound lanes.
— Arizona DOT (@ArizonaDOT) July 7, 2015

OPEN: I-8 East has reopened at Gila Bend. All lanes are open.

Copyright 2015 KPHO/KTVK (KPHO Broadcasting Corporation). All rights reserved.

— Arizona DOT (@ArizonaDOT) July 7, 2015

Source: http://www.kpho.com

Officials warn against well water use near CSX train chemical fire site in Maryville, Tennessee

Posted: July 07, 2015

 

MARYVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -

Officials are advising residents against the use of well water in the area where a CSX train car carrying hazardous material derailed and caught fire in east Tennessee.

The Environmental Protection Agency and state and local officials said Tuesday that a well water sample within about 350 feet of the train derailment site has shown detections of acrylonitrile, a hazardous material used in multiple industrial processes.

The chemical was in a train car that derailed and burned last week in Maryville, leading to the evacuation of about 5,000 residents.

Officials said 10 wells are located in the area, but it was not immediately clear how many homes are affected. Police officers are knocking on doors to locate unidentified wells in the area.

Municipal water supplies are not affected.

Family of 3 killed in truck, train collision in Harwood, Texas after the father attempted to drive around the arms in an attempt to beat the train

Valerie Reddell/Gonzales Inquirer

Train, truck collision

An army of first responders is at the scene of a deadly pickup vs train crash in Harwood.

  

Posted: Tuesday, July 7, 2015 6:00 am

 

By Rob Ford rob@gonzalesinquirer.com 

 

HARWOOD, TEXAS

A collision involving a truck and a train on FM 794 Saturday night claimed the lives of three members of a Harwood family when the driver of the truck tried to go around the crossing arms and was struck by the approaching train, officials say.
At 10:16 p.m. July 4, a 2004 Dodge 1500 pickup driven by Javier Castillo, 46, of Harwood, was northbound on FM 794 toward the intersection with the railroad tracks when the crossing arms deployed in front of it, Texas Highway Patrol spokesman Deon Cockrell said.
Castillo attempted to drive around the arms, however, in an attempt to beat the train, but the train struck the passenger side of the Dodge, carrying the truck for approximately 4/10 mile before coming to a stop. Castillo, his wife Lilia and their 13-year-old daughter Christy were killed instantly.

Cockrell said the train remained on the tracks throughout the duration of the incident, and that no one aboard the train was injured.

Worker critically injured by electric shock in Leesburg, Georgia

Posted: July 07, 2015

By Dave Miller

LEESBURG, GA (WALB) - 

Workers were moving a large electric welding machine Tuesday morning in Leesburg, when the machine tipped over and trapped a man.

22 year old Cody Dooling was caught under the machine for several seconds before others could get it off him. During that time, he came in contact with about 240 volts of electricity.

Lee County EMS Chief  Bobby Watkins  said it happened about 11:00, and then Dooling was taken to Phoebe Putney, in critical condition.

The company where Dooling works makes custom outdoor equipment that attaches to vehicles for hunting.

1 Worker Killed When Embankment Collapses at Bridge Site in Columbia County, PA

Posted 12:06 pm, July 7, 2015, by Nikki Krize

GREENWOOD TOWNSHIP, PA

Emergency crews were called to a collapse at a construction site in Columbia County where one worker has been killed.

Crews say an embankment collapsed around 8:30 a.m. Tuesday at a bridge project off Route 42 in Greenwood Township, near Millville.

One neighbor describes this as a “horrifying scene” on Eyersgrove Road.

According to emergency crews, an embankment collapsed, partially burying one of the men working on the bridge over Little Fishing Creek.

The coroner is at the scene.

According to PennDOT, a contractor, Susquehanna Supply out of Williamsport, is in charge of the bridge project. It started in June.

The crew is reconstructing, repainting, and paving parts of the bridge.

Firefighters say crews are now working to prevent the embankment from collapsing again. After they determine the area around the bridge is safe they will remove the man’s body.

The victim’s name has not been released.

Massive house explosion in a suburb of Pittsburgh, PA; Gas, fire crews investigating the cause

Reported house explosion in North Braddock

PITTSBURGH, PA 

Emergency crews and utility officials are on the scene of a house explosion in North Braddock.

Alvin Henderson, Allegheny County's chief of emergency services, confirms there was a report of an explosion shortly before 11 a.m. Tuesday in the 1200 block of Rebecca Avenue.

Video from Chopper 11 shows significant damage to the residence, which appears to be unstable but not completely leveled.

Sources tell Channel 11's Pamela Osborne that two people walked away from the incident unharmed.

Robert Kosko Jr. told Osborne that he was upstairs and his wife, Deborah, was in the basement when the explosion occurred.

Peoples Natural Gas spokesman Barry Kukovich says crews are working with the fire marshal to ensure there are no gas leaks in the neighborhood and working to determine if a leak caused the explosion. That remains under investigation.

Kukovich says Peoples installed a new gas meter there on June 22 and did a safety check at that time.

A woman who is seven months pregnant told Osborne she and her co-worker were nearly hit by flying debris moments after the blast.

The incident remains under active investigation.

North Braddock is a suburb about 10 miles southeast of Pittsburgh, along the Monongahela River.