Monthly Archives: <span>February 2020</span>

Alaska Needs Broad Review of Aviation Safety, Officials Say

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Alaska needs a comprehensive review effort to improve aviation safety because its aviation fatal and non fatal accident rates are far higher than the national average, the National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday. The NTSB issued a …

Court Rules California FAIR Plan Can Offer Only Fire Insurance

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A fund that offers only fire insurance to California residents in wildfire-prone areas can’t be required to provide coverage for other hazards such as flooding or theft, a judge ruled this week. Superior Court Judge Mary Strobel …

Judge: Army Corps Not Responsible for Harvey Flooding Damage

HOUSTON — A federal judge has ruled the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers isn’t liable to damage to thousands of Houston homes that were inundated by two federally owned reservoirs in the days following Hurricane Harvey because they would have …

UK’s Johnson Under Fire for Flood Response as More Rain Due

LONDON — British authorities said Thursday that more rain will bring the risk of “significant flooding” in the coming days, as people in central England and Wales kept a close eye on swollen rivers that have already flooded hundreds of …

Body of 2nd Firefighter in California Library Blaze Found

PORTERVILLE, Calif.– Crews have found the remains of a second firefighter killed while battling a blaze at a public library in central California allegedly started by two 13-year-old boys, authorities said. The Porterville Fire Department said crews were able to …

U.S. Lawmakers to Introduce Bill that Threatens Encryption on Tech Platforms

WASHINGTON, Feb 21 — U.S. legislation will be introduced in the coming weeks that could hurt technology companies’ ability to offer end-to-end encryption, two sources with knowledge of the matter said, and it aims to curb the distribution of child …

Boeing Failure to Fix 737 Max Warning Light May Draw FAA Penalty

Boeing Co. engineers discovered in 2017 that a software glitch had rendered a warning light on the newly introduced 737 Max inoperable on 80% of the planes. But the company chose not to fix it or to inform U.S. regulators. …

Viewpoint: Trucking Is Deadly for Truckers, and Lots of Other People

Of the major industries for which the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported workplace fatality rates for 2018, truck transportation was the most dangerous, with 28 deaths per 100,000 full-time-equivalent workers. To be sure, there are jobs more dangerous than driving …

5th Circuit: Insurer May Have Duty to Defend Lawyer Who Missed Real Estate Scam

A malpractice insurer should have defended a Dallas attorney in a lawsuit filed by investors who were scammed by a career criminal, despite the carrier’s argument that the lawyer sent notice of her claim to the wrong office, the 5th …

Australia Wine Faces ‘Toughest Year’ in Memory After Fires and Drought

The choking smoke that blanketed Australia’s east and south coast during devastating wildfires is roiling some of its storied wineries. Some winemakers are scrapping vintages this year after grapes were hit by smoke taint, which gives wines a burnt, ashy …