Articles by Gerson Freitas Jr. and Ilena Peng

Hurricane Helene Halts Poultry Plants, Damages Cotton Crops

Hurricane Helene has halted chicken processing plants and caused severe damage to some flocks, while also downing pecan trees and flattening cotton crops, as floodwaters swamped the southern U.S. Every commodity was impacted, with cotton, pecans, poultry and timber the …

AccuWeather Puts Total Damage and Economic Loss From Helene at $145B to $160B

AccuWeather increased its estimate of the total damage and economic loss from Hurricane Helene to between $145 billion and $160 billion. This update is an increase from AccuWeather’s preliminary estimate late last week of total damage and economic loss of …

US Eastern Ports Prepare to Close With Labor Talks Stalled

Key industry and government officials are urging U.S. dockworkers and their employers to avoid a strike at East and Gulf coast ports this week, though many facilities are already bracing for a shutdown. “We are coordinating with partners across the …

Epic Games Accuses Samsung, Google of Scheme to Block App Rivals

“Fortnite” video game maker Epic Games on Monday accused Alphabet’s Google and Samsung, the world’s largest Android phone manufacturer, of conspiring to protect Google’s Play store from competition. Epic filed a lawsuit in U.S. federal court in California alleging that …

Abbott, Reckitt Face Trial Over Premature Baby Formula Amid Alarm From Doctors

A Missouri mother and her lawyers this week will aim to convince a jury that Abbott, Reckitt’s Mead Johnson and St. Louis Children’s Hospital are responsible for a severe intestinal illness that she says her premature son got from the …

Globe Life Says It May Face EEOC Lawsuit Over Alleged Discrimination

Globe Life may face a lawsuit from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) over alleged discrimination against six of its sales agents, the insurer disclosed in a regulatory filing on Friday. The EEOC, a federal body responsible for enforcing laws …

Survey: More U.K. Claims Handlers Seeing AI-Driven Fraud

A significant percentage of U.K. claim handlers believe that up to a quarter of claims filed involve fake supporting documents doctored by Artificial intelligence, a new survey shows. A survey in the U.K. from automation company Sprout.ai shows 19% of …

Helene Unleashes Floods and Knocks out Power to Millions

Tropical Storm Helene is triggering dangerous rain and flooding across the US South, where it has killed at least six people and cut power to over 4 million customers after coming ashore in Florida as a major hurricane. More than …

Toyota to Recall 42K Vehicles Over Power Brake Assist, Mazda Recalls 77K MX-5 Sports Vehicles

Toyota Motor Corp is recalling over 42,000 U.S. vehicles over loss of power brake assist that can extend the distance required to stop, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said on Friday. The recall affects certain 2023-2024 Corolla Cross Hybrid …

Aspen’s Orseck Explains the Growing Impact of PFAS [Video]

As research has evolved on the effects of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), correlations are being made to medical conditions within people exposed—and that’s about everyone to some degree. “We’re ingesting this stuff for years and years, to the point …