Tanker truck overturns on I-5 spilling 15 gallons of liquid, hazmat crews on scene

By KATU.com Staff Sunday, June 5th 2016

Tanker truck crashes, spilling diesel on I-5 (KATU News photo)








PORTLAND, Ore. -- Portland Fire and Rescue crews are on the scene of a tanker truck crash on Interstate 5 Sunday afternoon.

The crash was reported around 3 p.m. at the I-5 north on-ramp from Marine Drive. The tanker spilled about 15 gallons of an unknown liquid onto the highway.

Hazmat crews are on the scene.Stay with KATU News as this story develops.

Rescue crews on Monday will continue trying to reach two miners who have been buried for over 60 hours following a gravel-pit collapse in Mississippi.

Two Miners in Crystal Springs, Mississippi, Buried More Than 60 Hours

by Chris Essner and Shamar Walters














Two Miners Missing In Gravel Pit Collapse 1:30

Rescue crews on Monday will continue trying to reach two miners who have been buried for over 60 hours following a gravel-pit collapse in Mississippi.

The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency said the men were operating an excavator and a dump truck Friday at the bottom of a pit in Crystal Springs when they were "engulfed" by a wall of sludge-like material.

Officials believe the men are trapped under around 10 feet of mud, sand and gravel, according to NBC station WLBT.
The site of the landslide in Crystal Springs, Mississippi. WLTB

"Additional equipment is coming in and we're going to continue going," MEMA's Ray Coleman told a press conference late Sunday. "There's no stopping."

Officials acknowledged that the odds of rescuing the men were slim.

"It's a miracle if we find anyone alive [but] I always have hope," Copiah County Sheriff Harold Jones told the Clarion-Ledger.



Emergency officials were notified at around noon local time Friday (1 p.m. ET) that there had been accident at the Harmony Mine and Mill, run by Green Brothers Gravel Company Inc.

Crews were forced to halt their rescue attempt that day after the rain-soaked material at the pit prompted more landslides, according to the MEMA.

Workers have constructed a road to allow a crane to drive across the unstable material to reach the site, where more than two dozen men were working to recover the miners.

They have been unsuccessful in lifting the crane, but will first attempt to lift the lighter dumper trucker, the agency said Sunday.

The names of the missing miners have not been publicly released by officials. Their families identified them to NBC station WLBT as Emmitt Shorter and James "Dee" Hemphill.
A Mississippi Emergency Management Agency team at the site of the landslide. Mississippi Emergency Management Agency

Calabasa fire started around 4:15 p.m. Saturday when a pickup truck struck a power pole on Mulholland Highway in Calabasas

California firefighters gaining against Calabasas blaze; evacuations lifted



By Joe Sutton and Joshua Berlinger, CNN

Updated 12:16 AM ET, Mon June 6, 2016




California fires claim 600 homes, threaten thousands more







Story highlights
The fire was 80% contained as of Sunday evening
All evacuation orders will be lifted Sunday evening, authorities ay


(CNN)Hundreds of firefighters gained ground Sunday against a wildfire in Los Angeles County that forced at least 5,000 people to evacuate their homes, authorities said.
All evacuation orders will be lifted Sunday evening, Los Angeles County Deputy Fire Chief John Tripp said.
Since the inferno started Saturday, it has already scorched more than 500 acres, Tripp said.
The fire was raging on the slope of a canyon, "which makes it very dangerous for us to do a direct attack," Tripp said.
The wildfire broke out Saturday afternoon in the Calabasas area, a relatively affluent part of Los Angeles County that is home to a handful of celebrities, including Jessica Simpson and Toni Braxton, authorities said.

Firefighters battle the blaze near Calabasas on Saturday.
About 3,700 homes -- or about 5,000 people -- were ordered to evacuate in Calabasas and nearby Topanga, mountainous communities west of Los Angeles and north of Malibu.
"The fire is not on the road, it is halfway up the side of a mountain," Tripp said Sunday morning. "That's why we can't let people back in their homes."
So far, the blaze has destroyed a large building and damaged two homes, he said.

How it started
The fire started around 4:15 p.m. Saturday when a pickup truck struck a power pole on Mulholland Highway in Calabasas, the sheriff's department said.

"Witnesses reported that the truck was traveling at a high rate of speed before colliding into a power pole, causing the pole to fall and a transformer to explode, thus igniting the Calabasas fire," Deputy Jeffrey A. Gordon said.
Temperatures in nearby Topanga reached the mid-90s earlier in the day, according to the National Weather Service.
The fire has been dubbed the "Old Fire" due to its proximity to Old Topanga Canyon Road. It came right up to the edges of Calabasas High School and Viewpoint School.

Fighting blaze with garden hoses
About 400 firefighters, along with water-dropping helicopters, worked to contain the blaze, Tripp said.
He said three firefighters were injured. Two suffered knee injuries, and one had a "cardiac event."
"This is extremely arduous work for them to do," Tripp said.
Steve Gentry, a photojournalist who filmed the firefighters, told CNN the situation was "very serious."

Firefighters outside Calabasas, California, on Saturday.
"At one point, the fire was licking right up through to the backyards of a lot of the homes of the residents in that area, to the point where even sheriffs' deputies were grabbing garden hoses and using them to fight the fire," he said.
"Things here in California, they're very dry and it doesn't take a whole lot for a fire to get going and spread really rapidly."
Pictures of the blaze show residents staring at bright, tall flames creeping toward the sky, visible from nearby streets.
Roseann Bleiweiss' son told CNN the fire looked like "something out of a movie."
One social media user said ash could be spotted as far away as Dodger Stadium, about 30 miles away.
Celebrities also spoke about the fire.
Ellen DeGeneres tweeted that her brother-in-law was out fighting the blaze.
"Sending thanks to Portia's brother Michael & all the rescue workers on the scene of this dangerous fire," she said.


Calabasas and the nearby Santa Monica Mountains are not strangers to wildfires -- the area has experienced many dangerous blazes over the years.
A particularly strong fire in 2013 burned nearly 28,000 acres in two days, threatening thousands of homes in Ventura County.

Soomair family arrested Saturday. Family accused of arson, insurance fraud after auto-shop fire

Soomair family arrested Saturday (Osceola County Jail)

Stephanie Allen Staff Writer

Investigators: Family accused of arson, insurance fraud after auto shop fire




The smoke and sirens were déjà vu for the Soomair family.

Exactly six years after their transmission shop in New York went up in flames, their new shop off East Colonial Drive in Orlando did the same, records show.

This time, though, officials said they quickly noticed something wasn't right.

Detectives on Saturday — more than a year after the fire — arrested the family, Ramdularie Soomair, 69, her husband, Surujlal Soomair, 59, and their son, 40-year-old Navin Soomair.
 
The father and son duo are facing charges of intentionally setting the fire, grand theft and insurance fraud, arrest reports state. Ramdularie Soomair is accused of signing a falsified insurance claim document, the reports state.

Investigators said the father and son, who ran DNS Transmission, repeatedly gave conflicting and changing statements after the fire on March 21, 2015.

There were holes in both of their alibis, investigators said, and cellphone records showed both were in the area of the shop just before Orange County Fire Rescue crews were called that morning.

Evidence also showed the fire was intentionally set with gasoline and originated from two separate vehicles inside the shop, according to the report.

In total, five customer's vehicles and the rented building were damaged.

Two days after the fire, the family filed an insurance claim for nearly $500,000 in lost inventory — a claim investigators said was highly exaggerated.

An inventory report from three months before the fire showed the company had about $40,000 in inventory, according to the arrest affidavit.

The family received $100,000 in insurance money after the March 21, 2009 fire at their shop in New York, records show.

The state fire marshal's office, which investigated the incident, said Navin Soomair called detectives early last month to check on the status of the case. Detectives interviewed him again and then had him take a voice-analysis test, which showed deception, the report states.

All three were arrested Saturday from their home in Poinciana and have since bailed out of jail

In Navin Soomair's arrest affidavit, investigators wrote that he is not a U.S. Citizen. It didn't say where he is from.

Two doctors from Mexico pleaded guilty in connection with a conspiracy to commit wire fraud that resulted in nearly $3 million in insurance claim payouts

Reynosa doctors admit to role in insurance fraud scheme
Charges stem from four-year case involving fraudulent claims, accident reports

LORENZO ZAZUETA-CASTRO | STAFF WRITER
Jun 1, 2016

McALLEN — Two doctors from Mexico pleaded guilty in connection with a conspiracy to commit wire fraud that resulted in nearly $3 million in insurance claim payouts, according to a news release.

Mayolo Melchor, 59, and Bertha Hernandez-Melchor, 61, both of Reynosa, pleaded guilty Wednesday to conspiring with more than 30 policyholders of the American Family Life Assurance Company to fax fraudulent claim forms and accident reports to the insurance company for accidents and injuries that did not happen, according to the release.

Melchor and Hernandez-Melchor admitted AFLAC policyholders paid them to prepare and sign fictitious reports for accidents and injuries that never occurred in exchange for payment, the release states.

AFLAC policyholders filled out the fictitious claim forms in the McAllen area and delivered them to the defendants’ family medicine clinic in Mexico where Melchor and Hernandez-Melchor prepared and signed corresponding accident reports for each fake accident and injury. The policyholders then faxed the fictitious claim and accident forms to AFLAC headquarters in Columbus, Georgia, according to court documents.

Melchor and Hernandez-Melchor admitted the fake claim forms and accident reports that were faxed to the insurance company from September 2001 to August 2010 resulted in the release of more than $2.5 million in fraudulent benefit checks to the policyholders, according to court records.

In total 36 people were convicted in connection with the wire fraud scam which included people from all across the Rio Grande Valley.

Named in the indictment was a Hidalgo police officer, a former Hidalgo County jail worker, other county employees and schoolteachers, according to court records.

In a four-year span, the defendants allegedly racked up more than 21,600 false injury claims accompanied by the doctors’ accident reports, to AFLAC’s claims department, according to the indictment.

The pair were originally named in the indictment on June 14, 2011, and arrested in Mexico. They were subsequently extradited to Houston and made an initial appearance on Jan. 22, 2015, according to court records.

In early February, Melchor and Hernandez-Melchor appeared in federal court in McAllen for their initial appearance hearing, according to court documents.

Sentencing for the doctors is scheduled for Aug. 18 where they could receive up to 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine, according to the release.

2 miners were buried in mud and slush at a gravel pit in southern Mississippi

Search continues for bodies of 2 men trapped in landslide

Published June 05, 2016


CRYSTAL SPRINGS, Miss. – A spokeswoman for the Mining Safety and Health Administration says workers are searching for the bodies of two men who were buried in mud and slush at a gravel pit in southern Mississippi.

Amy Louviere said work resumed Sunday morning at 9 a.m. She said the effort has changed from a rescue to a recovery operation.

Approximately 25 people are on site looking for the men.

The two men were operating heavy equipment for Green Brothers at a pit in Crystal Springs on Friday when they were completely buried in 10 to 12 feet of mud, slush and sluice.

Louviere said mine employees have built a road so a crane can access the area and lift out the buried equipment.

The names of the miners have not been released.

Tropical Storm Colin floods parts of Florida, as Gov. Rick Scott declared a state of emergency

Updated 11 mins ago
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Residents on Florida's Gulf coast filled sandbags, schools closed early and graduation ceremonies were postponed as Gov. Rick Scott declared a state of emergency with Tropical Storm Colin churning toward the state Monday, threatening serious flooding.

A large portion of Florida's western and Panhandle coast was already under a tropical storm warning when the National Hurricane Center announced that a swift-moving depression had become a named storm. The center said it is the earliest that a third named storm has ever formed in the Atlantic basin.

Colin's maximum sustained winds Monday morning had increased to near 50 mph (85 kph) with some slow strengthening possible during the next two days. The storm was centered about 285 miles (455 kilometers) west-southwest of Tampa and moving north-northeast near 16 mph (26 kph).



Early Monday, Ronald P. Milligan, 74, stopped by a park in St. Petersburg where authorities planned to distribute sandbags because the ditch in front of his home had filled during the previous evening's rain.

"If last night was a 'no storm' - and the water was almost up to the hump in my yard - I'm worried," Milligan said, motioning to about knee level. He's lived in Florida since the late 1970s and hasn't ever prepared for a storm this early.

Sandbags also were being distributed in Tampa and nearby cities.

The latest forecast for Colin called for the storm to make landfall near the Big Bend area of Florida in the mid-afternoon, move across the Florida peninsula into Georgia and then move along or just off the South Carolina coast before heading out to sea.

Schools in at least one Florida Gulf Coast county planned to dismiss students early Monday. Pasco County, which had passed out about 20,000 sandbags so far, said schools would be letting out, and it was likely that county government would shut down around noon to get people off the road by 3 p.m.

In addition, two high school graduations in the Tampa Bay area were postponed due to the storms, with both ceremonies being moved to Wednesday night and Thursday. Winds from Colin also closed the Sunshine Skyway Bridge in Tampa.

Farther north at Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuge, the storm's arrival this afternoon was due at the same time as high tide, creating even higher risk of severe flooding, said Andrew Gude, manager of the refuge for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

"We're taking chain saws home so we can cut our way out of our neighborhoods and cut our way back into work tomorrow," Gude said.

Colin is expected to produce rainfall amounts of 3 to 5 inches, and forecasters said up to 8 inches are possible across western Florida, eastern Georgia and coastal areas of the Carolinas through Tuesday.

Forecasters also described Colin as a lopsided storm, with tropical storm-force winds extending up to 185 miles east of its center.

A tropical storm warning was also in effect for the entire Georgia coast and the lower South Carolina coast.

Meanwhile, Gov. Rick Scott postponed a political meeting with presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump scheduled Monday in New York so he can remain in the state capital to monitor the weather.

Scott warned residents not to simply look at the center of the storm, saying the heaviest rain will be to the east and west of it.

"I want everyone to be safe. I've talked to utilities and sheriff's departments, but residents have to do their part," Scott said.

Colin was expected to pass the Georgia coast before dawn Tuesday, said Dennis Jones, director of the Chatham County Emergency Management Agency.

Jones said flash floods appeared to pose the greatest threat, with the worst flood potential expected late Tuesday.

Allan Giese, 62, watched the start-and-stop rains Monday morning from his home about 150 yards from the St. Marys River, where he's seen larger storms bang up boats anchored in the nearby marina. He planned to bring his plywood work table inside, but otherwise simply ride out the storm inside with his wife.

"What it sounds like is just some heavy rains, but nothing torrential, not high winds," Giese said. "We'll just keep an eye on the tracker, go to bed and hunker down."

Flooding is still affecting many residents and cattle in Brazoria County, TX.

Mandatory evacuations and curfews continue for Brazoria Co.





Flooding is still affecting many residents in Brazoria County. Jeff Ehling reports (KTRK)





By Jeff Ehling
Updated 2 hrs 43 mins ago

BRAZORIA, TX (KTRK) -- Most of the area between Angleton and West Colombia is underwater or nearly there.

Homes are flooded, streets are closed and 800 head of cattle are on the move as well.




The flooding Brazos River is swallowing up so much land about 800 head of cattle had no place left to go.

The herd is being rounded up, moved down Highway 521 and onto higher ground. Only a small patch of dry land was left for them to graze on. The farm owner decided to move the cows to a dry field about three miles away. Several volunteers on horseback are helping.

The cattle are the latest to get out because of historic flooding in Brazoria County.

Hundreds of homes are underwater or on the verge of going under.

Janice Smithhart's home in Oak Creek Estates is inaccessible. She said, "I started preparing last Sunday, sandbagging the house, plugging up the weep holes, everything, evacuated the animals."

Smithhart lives just east of Bailey's Prairie. She left when the evacuation order was announced, but says some of her neighbors stayed behind.

She said, "Several people I know have three or four feet of water in their homes, and other places, Bar X, it's a lot worse."

Deputies who have been guarding the road blocks say it appears to them the water has stopped rising, but it's still too dangerous to let people drive over most roads west of Highway 288, and it will be days before the water level finally starts to go down.

Long Horn Estates, Holiday Lakes, Bailey's Prairie and the Bar X Ranch area are all under mandatory evacuation orders.



County Road 26 South of 288 is closed.




(Brazoria County OEM)
FM 521 from Highway 288B to the Brazos River is also closed.





(Brazoria County OEM)
There is a mandatory curfew in place as well.

People have been told to get to higher ground because they can be cut off from ways to get out and unable to leave because roads are covered in high water.

There are two shelters in place in Brazoria County. One in Angleton is at capacity, the other one in Rosharon still has some room.

The Brazoria County Office of Emergency Management says it plans to open a third shelter. It has not said where that will be yet.

MANDATORY CURFEW:
Effective immediately, officials have issued a mandatory dusk-dawn curfew for areas of Brazoria County under an evacuation order.

During the curfew, citizens are forbidden from remaining on or traveling upon property -- public or private -- within the evacuation area unless the person owns or has been invited to the property.

Coast Guard urges mariners to be safe as tropical depression develops in the Southern Gulf of Mexico

Jun 5th, 2016

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Coast Guard is encouraging boaters to stay off the water due to a developing tropical depression expected to impact Florida’s Gulf Coast Sunday extending through Tuesday.
The National Hurricane Center reports high winds up to 25 knots, heavy rain and rising waves up to 12 feet that may affect the eastern Gulf of Mexico. All boaters and beachgoers are strongly encouraged to monitor weather conditions as the depression is expected to develop into Tropical Storm Colin.
Adverse weather effects generated by a tropical storm or hurricane can cover an area hundreds of miles wide. Even recreational boaters and commercial vessels outside of the direct path of the storm are advised to be aware of weather conditions and take appropriate precautions to stay safe.
“Mariners and beachgoers should avoid unnecessary risk and use extreme caution if heading out on the water,”  said Lt. Cmdr. Holly Deal, Sector St. Petersburg’s deputy response chief. “Unfavorable weather conditions could limit or delay Coast Guard search and rescue efforts.”
Here are a few tips to help mariners protect themselves, their families and their vessels:

• Do not go out to sea in a recreational boat if you know a storm is approaching.
• Contact local marinas to ask for advice about securing your vessel.
• Marina operators are knowledgeable and can advise you on the best methods for securing your boat.
• Take action now. The effects of a storm can be felt well in advance. Check with local authorities before entering any storm-damaged area.
• Do not rush to your boat. Boaters should not place themselves in danger to get to a boat.
• Do not try to board a partially sunken boat. Seek salvage assistance from a professional. Storms move quickly and are unpredictable.

For breaking news, please visit the National Weather Service website

Water main break floods streets on Staten Island

Toni Yates reports from Staten Island.





By Toni Yates
Updated 1 hr ago
WILLOW BROOK, Staten Island (WABC) -- A street on Staten Island looked more like a river Monday morning after a water main broke.

Neighbors were cleaning up the with a mess after the 8-inch main ruptured on Vedder Avenue, off Willow Brook Road, sending water rushing down several blocks in the Willow Brook section.

Repair work was underway, with a large hole left in street, and the Department of Environmental Protection is at the scene working to keep water flowing to as many homes as possible.

Several homeowners reported having brown water coming out of their faucets.

"We woke up to brown water," Eileen Manning said. "Brown, cold water. These pipes are over 100 years old. I think they should be fixed by now."

While crews are doing the repairs, expected to be completed by mid afternoon, about 40 homes will be without water.

9,000 gallons of diesel spilled after Wolverine Pipe Line Company of Portage said that an underground pipeline was ruptured by an excavator

Fuel pipeline ruptured in Van Buren County
Posted 3:07 PM, June 3, 2016, by Bob Brenzing and Rebecca Russell



GENEVA TOWNSHIP, Mich. – South Haven Area Emergency Services are currently on the scene of a diesel fuel pipeline spill in Geneva Township.

The line has been shut down and no more fuel is being spilled.

According to SHAES, Wolverine Pipe Line Company of Portage said that an underground pipeline was ruptured by an excavator that was working on land near County Road 380 and 62nd Street, Friday afternoon at about 1 p.m. A crew from Wolverine is also at the scene.

According to Wolverine Vice President and Manager Marius Greene, roughly 8,400 gallons of diesel fuel spilled in a farm field, or about 200 barrels.

“We have the source contained, the pipe is excavated and we’re putting the material into vacuum trucks and that material is going into storage vessels” said Greene.

Officials shut down the line running from Niles to Grand Haven quickly after they learned of the spill as a precaution.

“We’re at the point now where we’re just cleaning up the area trying to evaluate the extent of the damage” said Greene.

Greene doesn’t anticipate any immediate impact this may have on the area and they’re working to prevent any long term impact. This pipeline runs to a tankage farm with a stored inventory and there are other pipe lines still operating, so there shouldn’t be an immediate impact on fuel prices.

“There is no immediate danger to the public” said Greene. “We visited with landowners in the area, we’re working closely with agencies on site as well and we’re working jointly around our mitigation plan.”

Crews have been on scene all day assessing the damage and cleaning up the spill. They plan on working around the clock until everything is completely cleaned up. No injuries were reported and because of the farm’s remote location they don’t see any danger for people living nearby.

Officials at Wolverine want to use this as an opportunity to tell people to call 811 before doing any excavating or digging.

Photo Gallery  

A judge on Friday agreed to a defense motion in the West Fertilizer Co. deadly explosion case to move a trial date from July to January

Judge postpones West explosion trial after ATF announcement







Staff photo— Rod Aydelotte, file

A judge on Friday agreed to a defense motion in the West Fertilizer Co. explosion case to move a trial date from July to January.
 






Posted: Friday, June 3, 2016 6:45 pm

By TOMMY WITHERSPOON twitherspoon@wacotrib.com


The judge presiding over the West explosion litigation granted a defense motion Friday to postpone the next trial on the heels of a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives announcement last month that the fire that preceded the explosion was a criminal act.

Over objections from plaintiffs’ attorneys, 170th State District Judge Jim Meyer agreed to postpone the latest trial setting from July 25 to early January.

Meyer denied a defense request to stay the proceedings for at least six months, which would have put all activity in the cases on hold, including the taking of depositions and other trial preparations.

Defense attorneys argued that the May 11 announcement by ATF agents that the cause of the April 17, 2013, fire that triggered the massive explosion that leveled much of West was “incendiary, a criminal act” could be a “game changer” for the civil litigation. The attorneys requested more time to continue working with the ATF and U.S. District Judge Walter S. Smith Jr. in an effort to gain access to more evidence in custody of the ATF.

Some of the defendants sued the ATF last year in an effort to see the results from the ATF’s $2 million investigation, thinking the findings could help them — or at least the jury — make decisions in the cases.

Canceled trials

Trial settings in October and January were canceled after the parties reached settlements and partial settlements with a portion of the more than 200 plaintiffs who filed suit after the catastrophic explosion that claimed 15 lives, injured more than 200 and decimated schools, an apartment complex, a nursing home and the city’s infrastructure.

The three-year investigation by the ATF and other agencies ruled out all accidental or natural causes for the fire at the West Fertilizer Co.

“The only hypothesis that could not be eliminated is incendiary,” said Robert Elder, special agent in charge of the Houston ATF office, at the May press conference in West.

Defense attorneys argued at Friday’s hearing that there are no guarantees that the ATF will ever conclude its investigation, adding that ATF officials have declined to say whether they have any suspects in the case.

Elder announced last month that the ATF is offering a $50,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of a person or people who may have started the fire.

The fire at the fertilizer company detonated 30 tons of ammonium nitrate fertilizer that was piled high in a flammable wooden bin. The plant exploded with the force of 20,000 pounds of TNT, officials have said.

Plaintiffs’ attorney Steve Harrison argued against the trial delay Friday and said the cause of the fire is not that significant because the plaintiffs’ cases are based on product liability issues.

“The defense is going to see what the evidence is, but the case is not about what started this fire,” Harrison said. “The defense says the ammonium nitrate would not have exploded if there had not been a fire. Well, it also would not have exploded if it had been stored properly and if instructions had been given how to store it properly. It also would not have exploded had it not been sold.

“You can run that argument into the ground. The question is, was the product dangerous, who knew it was dangerous and what they did with that knowledge. That is what this case is going to be about.”

Defendants in the lawsuits include Adair Grain Co., the local owners of the plant that exploded; CF Industries; El Dorado Chemical Co.; Thermaclime Inc.; and International Chemical Co. The defendants either manufactured or sold fertilizer to West Fertilizer Co.

Peter Rusek, an attorney for CF Industries, told the judge that it is important for the defendants to see what evidence the ATF has because it would be important for the jury to review if agents discovered evidence of an accelerant or some explosive device that contributed to the fire.

Harrison, meanwhile, argued that there is no proof after three years that the ATF is in possession of any evidence that would qualify as what the defense attorneys described as a potential “game changer.”

Reduce complaining

“The judge moved the trial date back, I’m thinking, to remove any complaining that the defendants will not have time to see what the ATF has,” Harrison said after the hearing. “Whether anything comes from that or not is a huge question, but the court has essentially taken any whining about that out of this case.”

Those chosen as plaintiffs for the third trial group include Jaquelina Rivera and her family; Michelle Wells, who represents the estate of Joshua Zarecor, who was killed from injuries sustained while he was in a nearby apartment complex; Misty Lambert; Sonja and Lance Moorman; Irma Cruz; Emanuel Mitchel; and Scott and Mary Burgess and Tom Burgess.

Other plaintiffs include West Rest Haven, the nursing home destroyed in the blast; J&B Realty, owners of the apartment complex; and 10 insurance companies who have filed subrogation claims seeking to recoup funds they have paid out.

The Rise of Environmental Crime finds that weak laws and poorly funded security forces are enabling international criminal networks and armed rebels to profit

Value of Environmental Crime Rises Twenty-Six Percent


By MarEx 2016-06-05 18:21:52

Environmental crime has been valued at $91-258 billion, compared to $70-213 billion in 2014, according to a report published by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and INTERPOL. This is a rise of 26 percent.

The Rise of Environmental Crime, released for World Environment Day (June 5), finds that weak laws and poorly funded security forces are enabling international criminal networks and armed rebels to profit from a trade that fuels conflicts, devastates ecosystems and is threatening species with extinction.

Environmental crime dwarfs the illegal trade in small arms, which is valued at about $3 billion. It is the world's fourth-largest criminal enterprise after drug smuggling, counterfeiting and human trafficking. The amount of money lost due to environmental crime is 10,000 times greater than the amount of money spent by international agencies on combatting it - just $20-30 million.

The report recommends strong action, legislation and sanctions at the national and international level, including measures targeted at disrupting overseas tax havens; an increase in financial support commensurate with the serious threat that environmental crime poses to sustainable development; and economic incentives and alternative livelihoods for those at the bottom of the environmental crime chain.

Illegal Fisheries

For example, illegal fisheries are estimated to be worth $11-23 billion per year and often involve criminal networks organized as mafia-style hierarchies. Other criminal groups operate with the implicit support of their governments. There are several inherent factors that make the fisheries sector particularly susceptible to crime, states the report. The industry is a truly global enterprise, with fish caught both in areas within and outside national jurisdiction, and in remote areas beyond the scrutiny of ordinary law enforcement agencies. There is great mobility of actors, infrastructure (vessels) and commodities.

Added to this is a vague international legal framework governing the law of the sea, which fails in many respects to fully take on board the implication of transnational organized crime taking place at sea and particularly in the fisheries sector. An example of this is that, despite the well-documented harmful consequences of allowing anonymous ownership of vessels in states that are unable or unwilling to exercise their law enforcement jurisdiction over the vessels on their flag. This practice continues unabated, states the report.

Since the turn of the millennium this trend has but increased. Of particular concern is that private companies can, and do, buy the right to register vessels in vulnerable flag states in order to offer vessel owners the opportunity to register their vessels in countries unable or unwilling to enforce their laws over them. These companies sell impunity to criminals at sea, states the report. In 2013, INTERPOL established a focus project to assist its member states investigate criminal offences committed within the fisheries sector.

The last decade has seen environmental crime rise by at least five to seven percent per year. This means that environmental crime - which includes the illegal trade in wildlife, corporate crime in the forestry sector, the illegal exploitation and sale of gold and other minerals, illegal fisheries, the trafficking of hazardous waste and carbon credit fraud - is growing two to three times faster than global GDP.

Wild for Life Campaign

To combat the illegal trade in wildlife, the United Nations system and partners have launched their Wild For Life campaign, which draws on support from celebrities such as Gisele Bündchen, Yaya Touré and Neymar Jr. to mobilize millions to take action against poaching and the trafficking of illegal wildlife products.

Already, thousands of people and more than 25 ministers have chosen a species to show their commitment to protecting wildlife. The host of this year's World Environment Day, the Government of Angola, has joined the fight, promising to shut down its domestic trade in illegal ivory, toughen border controls and restore its elephant population through conservation measures.

More than one quarter of the world's elephant population has been killed in a decade. Some of world's most vulnerable wildlife, like rhinos and elephants, are being killed at a rate that has grown by more than 25 percent every year in the last decade.

Funding Terrorists and Criminal Cartels

The report looks at how money generated from the illegal exploitation of natural resources funds rebel groups, terrorist networks and international criminal cartels.

The report notes that transnational organized criminal networks are using environmental crime to launder drug money. Illegal gold mining in Colombia, for example, is now considered one of the easiest ways to launder money from the country's drug trade.

International criminal cartels are also involved in the trafficking of hazardous waste and chemicals, often mis-labelling the waste to evade law enforcement agencies. In 2013, the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reported that the illegal trade in e-waste to Southeast Asia and the Pacific was estimated at $3.75 billion annually.

Carbon Trading Fraud

Carbon trading is the world's fastest growing commodities market. Carbon credit fraud cases have involved profits that stretch into the hundreds of millions of dollars, states the report. The combined value of carbon pricing instruments was just under $50 billion in 2015. Carbon taxes and emission system trade sales generated over $15 billion in government revenues across the world. The vulnerability to crime of this trade derives from the market’s immaturity and the intangible nature of the product, which is based on the lack of delivery of an invisible substance to no one.

The report is available here.

Black carbon and the development of a method for measuring emissions from shipping

Researchers Study Shipping's Black Carbon


By MarEx 2016-06-05 23:49:51

A research project underway to study black carbon is moving closer to the development of a method for measuring emissions from shipping.

VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, the Finnish Meteorological Institute, Tampere University of Technology and the University of Turku have joined forces in an international project – Shipping Emissions in the Arctic – with the aim of making the measurement of black carbon emissions from shipping more reliable.

Incomplete combustion generates soot containing black carbon, which warms the atmosphere and causes health problems. “A reliable method of measuring black carbon emissions from shipping is sorely needed, now that the IMO is evaluating the need to control such emissions, but no reliable measurement technique has been identified,” says Research Team Leader Jukka Lehtomäki of VTT.

Currently, no common international environmental targets have been set for reducing black carbon emissions from shipping, and no standardized measurement techniques have been developed.

A critical examination of maritime black carbon emissions is made all the more urgent by the fact that black carbon is a major contributor to Arctic warming, says the group. Even small deposits of black carbon accelerate melting and climate change, by reducing the reflectivity of snow and ice.

The study aims to assist preparations to meet tightening international environmental regulations. More precise information on the emissions impact of different fuel types is helpful for developers of fuel and engine technology. The results can also be used to improve the accuracy of ship emission models and global emission inventories.

Last autumn, emission tests were performed at VTT’s engine laboratory in Espoo, using a 1.6-megawatt diesel engine which corresponds to a typical auxiliary ship engine. The test matrix was extensive enough to make the results internationally applicable. Four marine fuels were tested, of which three contained varying amounts of sulfur (0.1 percent, 0.5 percent and 2.5 percent), whereas an oxygen-containing bio-component accounted for 30 percent of the fourth fuel.

“The initial results have already revealed critical parameters in the measurement of black carbon. Such parameters can be used to achieve more reliable results. Engine loads and fuel types had a major impact on black carbon emissions from the engine we studied,” explains Principal Scientist Päivi Aakko-Saksa of VTT.

The next step will be to validate the results in a real ship equipped with the latest technology, including an exhaust scrubber. The project also explores the business potential of emission measurements.

The engine measurement tests leveraged the results of another measurement technology research project – HyperGlobal; a multicopter equipped with sensors was used to measure sulfur dioxide levels in the vicinity of an exhaust pipe during the tests.

VTT’s Shipping Emissions in the Arctic project is part of the Tekes Arctic Seas program. The project was launched in January 2015 and will end in December 2016.

VTT’s partners in the project include the Finnish Meteorological Institute, Tampere University of Technology, the University of Turku, Wärtsilä Finland, Pegasor, Gasmet Technologies, VG-Shipping, Port of HaminaKotka, Oiltanking Finland, Kine Robot Solutions and VTT’s spin-off Spectral Engines. AVL List from Austria also assisted with the measurements. The multicopter project was coordinated by Aeromon as part of the HyperGlobal project.

ropical Storm Colin was gaining speed and strength Monday on its way to strike Florida, threatening flooding rains

Tropical Storm Colin heading toward Florida's Gulf coast






Updated 11 mins ago
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Tropical Storm Colin was gaining speed and strength Monday on its way to strike Florida, threatening rains forecasters said could cause some serious flooding along much of the state's Gulf coast.

A large portion of Florida's western and Panhandle coast was already under a tropical storm warning when the National Hurricane Center announced that a quickly moving depression had become a named storm. The center said it is the earliest that a third named storm has ever formed in the Atlantic basin.

Colin's maximum sustained winds Monday morning had increased to near 50 mph (85 kph) with some slow strengthening possible during the next two days. The storm was centered about 360 miles (580 kilometers) west-southwest of Tampa and moving north-northeast near 14 mph (22 kph).

Tropical storms carry wind speeds of between 39 mph (63 kph) and 73 mph (117 kph).

"It's going to impact most of the state in some way," Gov. Rick Scott said in a phone interview. "Hopefully we won't have any significant issues here, but we can have some storm surge, some rain, tornados and some flooding."

The center of Colin is expected to approach the coast of the Florida Big Bend area Monday afternoon or evening, forecasters said.

Colin is expected to produce rainfall amounts of 3 to 5 inches and forecasters said up to 8 inches possible across western Florida, eastern Georgia, and coastal areas of the Carolinas through Tuesday.

Scott postponed a political meeting with presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump scheduled Monday in New York so he can remain in the state capital to monitor the weather.

It is the latest in a series of severe whether events across the country, from record-breaking heat in the West, flooding in Texas and storms that are expected to cause problems in the nation's capital and mid-Atlantic region.

Scott warned residents not to simply look at the center of the storm, saying the heaviest rain will be to the east and west of it.

The National Weather Service in Mobile, Alabama, issued a flood warning for the Shoal River near Crestview and warned of possible widespread flooding in streams, creeks, and canals. Wind gusts threatened to bring down trees and branches and cause power outages.

The Georgia coast and the north Florida Atlantic coast were placed under a tropical storm watch Sunday evening.

Sand bags were being distributed to residents in St. Petersburg, Tampa and nearby cities.