Page 837 - Disaster Accident
Drone nearly hits plane landing in New Zealand from Japan
Air New Zealand said today that a drone came within meters of a flight descending into Auckland Airport from Tokyo, putting the safety of 278 passengers and crew at risk. After yesterday's incident, the national carrier is calling for prison terms for drone operators who endanger lives. Air New Zealand said the pilots of Flight NZ92 spotted the drone about 5 meters (16.4 feet) from their Boeing 777-200 at a point in their descent when it was impossible to take evasive action. The airline said the drone passed so close that the crew worried it had been sucked into an engine, although a later inspection showed that hadn't happened. "It's clear the time has now come for tougher deterrents for reckless drone use around airports to safeguard travelers," David Morgan, the airline's chief operations and integrity standards officer, said in a statement. He called for penalties to be imposed more consistently and also called for better education around drones. The airline said it was the ...
Arizona Governor suspends Uber self-driving cars after fatal crash
Arizona Governor Doug Ducey on Monday suspended the self-driving cars of Uber after a fatal crash last week killed a pedestrian.Ducey sent a letter to the Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi saying that he was suspending the ride-sharing company's tests of self-driving cars on Arizona roads."Improving public safety has always been the emphasis of Arizona's approach to autonomous vehicle testing, and my expectation is that public safety is also the top priority for all who operate this technology in the state of Arizona," Ducey said in his letter to Khosrowshahi."The incident that took place on March 18 is an unquestionable failure to comply with this expectation," the letter added.In 2015, Ducey first welcomed Uber when he stopped Arizona from cracking down on the ride-share business for insurance issues. Later that year, Ducey issued an executive order welcoming self-driving car companies to the state without any special oversight, USA Today reported.The Arizona governor has directed the ...
Ambulance driver arrested for leaving patient upside down on stretcher
A 36-year-old ambulance driver has been arrested by the Kerala police for leaving a road accident victim upside down on stretcher, in Thrissur.The victim died, after receiving critical head injuries.The ambulance driver was upset as the road side victim had urinated in his ambulance.The deceased man reportedly met with an accident in Palakkad on March 20, after which he was taken to district hospital. He was then brought to Thrissur's government medical college in the ambulance.The health department has ordered an investigation in the case.
India condoles death of 64 people in Russia shopping mall fire
India expressed today its deepest condolences to the families and friends of the 64 victims who were killed in a major fire at a busy shopping mall packed with children and their parents in Russia's Kemerovo city. The fire at the Winter Cherry mall in Kemerovo, about 3,000 kilometres east of Moscow, was doused this morning. Russian television showed images of thick black smoke billowing out of the roof of the shopping centre. Emergency services minister Vladimir Puchkov said on Russian television: "We have recorded that unfortunately as a result of the accident 64 people died." Embassy of India said in a tweet that it "expresses its deepest condolences to the families and friends of victims of Kemerovo tragedy". "We are deeply saddened by the loss of lives, including many children. Our prayers and thoughts are with them," Embassy of India said in a tweet here. India's Ambassador to Russia Pankaj Saran said in a tweet: "Deepest condolences on tragic loss of lives in fire in Keremovo ...
Visakhapatnam: Glitch hit SpiceJet flight lands after 30 minutes
A SpiceJet flight landed back at Visakhapatnam's airport after 30 minutes of taking off due to some technical problem.Reportedly, all crew and passengers are safe."SpiceJet flight from Visakhapatnam to Hyderabad had a minor air conditioning issue. It made a normal landing and not an emergency landing in Visakhapatnam. The defect is being rectified and the aircraft will continue with its daily rotation soon," SpiceJet spokesperson said a while ago.Technical glitches faced in more than a dozen scheduled flights almost every other day in the month of March have dealt a major blow to the civil aviation industry's reputation in India.In the past few weeks around 11 Airbus 320 neo aircraft of Indigo Airlines were grounded following several instances of glitches on its engines.
India condoles loss of lives in Russia mall fire
India on Monday condoled the death of at least 64 people in a fire that engulfed a mall in a Russian city.
SpiceJet plane returns to Vizag after air conditioning issue
A Hyderabad-bound Spicejet plane with 74 passengers on board was forced to return to Visakhapatnam this evening due to an "air conditioning" issue, the airline said in a statement. All crew and passengers were safe. The aircraft returned to Visakhapatnam 30 minutes after take off. "The aircraft made a normal landing. The defect is being rectified and the aircraft will continue with its daily rotation soon," an airline spokesperson said.
Nepali Sherpa set to climb Mt. Everest for record 22nd time
Nepal's Kami Rita Sherpa is set to begin climbing Mount Everest for the 22nd time, breaking a world record he shares with fellow climbers Apa Sherpa and Phurba Tashi Sherpa.
64 killed as deadly fire engulfs shopping mall in Russia (Roundup)
At least 64 people, including many children, perished in the Siberian city of Kemerovo as a massive fire engulfed a crowded shopping mall where there was no alarm and the fire exits had been blocked, the Russian authorities said on Monday.
Adani Enterprises inks coal mining agreement with NLC India
Adani Enterprises on Monday said its subsidiary Talabira (Odisha) Mining Private Ltd along with it has signed a coal mining agreement with NLC India for development and operation of Talabira II and III coal block in Odisha.
How Sunita Williams is continuing her career in space
Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams is now helping privately-held companies like Space X and Boeing to develop their new spacecraft systems, which will eventually provide round-trip crew transportation services to the International Space Station (ISS).
Tanker on fire, driver speeds away from fuel pump, saves lives
The driver of a petrol tanker averted a major disaster after he sped away from a fuel pump following a fire in one of the chambers of the truck. The driver's act saved many lives and has drawn praise from chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan who called him a "real hero" with police also planning to honour him, officials said. "Yesterday evening, when the petrol tanker was emptying its stock at a fuel pump in Gotegaon, one of its chambers caught fire. On spotting the fire, driver Sajid sped away from the pump to save the entire facility from blowing up," Gotegaon police station in-charge R K Soni said. He added that the speeding truck, with fuel spilling from its chamber, caused a trail of fire on the road for about five kilometres till it halted at a safe spot near a railway crossing. "His act saved many lives at the fuel pump. He himself got injured and is now being treated at a hospital here where doctors have said that his condition is stable," Soni said. MP CM ...
6.6 magnitude earthquake rocks Papua Guinea
An earthquake measuring 6.6 on the Richter scale hit Papua Guinea at 3The quake 86 miles east of the port town of Kimb struck at a shallow depth of 6 miles, United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported.The USGS has estimated a 34% chance of fatalities and damage.The recent series of earthquakes could have caused secondary hazards including landslides that might contribute to the infrastructure losses, USGS further reported.On Mar 24, another quake 6.8 magnitude shook the country.Recent incidents of quake led to an urgent investigation by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre to check for any possibility for Tsunami in the surrounding region.
23 killed as vehicle ploughs into Mozambique party: police
Mozambique police said today that a pick-up truck ploughed into a crowd of party-goers at the weekend killing 23 people, many of whom were teenagers. The speeding vehicle ignored orders from traffic police, hit an obstacle and veered into the local carnival in the working-class Luis Cabral neighbourhood of Maputo in the early hours of yesterday. "The driver was speeding when he did not obey the signal from a traffic police officer," Maputo police spokesman Orlando Mudumane told reporters in the capital. "A few metres (yards) later he lost control of the car, crashed into an obstacle and caused the accident." The male driver and his passenger were among the dead, with 30 others injured. "Five victims are still hospitalised in a critical condition," said Farida Ursi, clinical director of Maputo central hospital. The accident happened on a highway where the speed limit is 60 kilometres per hour. Scores of young people were at an all-night party close to the roadside. "The car turned over
An Army jawan killed in road mishap
An Army jawan died and nine others were injured in a road accident at Awantipora in Pulwama district on Srinagar-Jammu National Highway today, the police said. The accident occurred, when an Army vehicle collided with a truck at Awantipora, 30 kilometres from here, resulting in death of one jawan and injuries to nine other soldiers, a police official said. He said the injured jawans were taken to a nearby hospital. The police have registered a case of accident and begun investigations.
HC issues notices to Guj, Centre on death of 184 lions in 2 yrs
Taking a serious note of the death of 184 lions in the state in the last two years, the Gujarat High Court today sought explanations of the Union and the state governments over the disturbing trend. The court issued notices to the governments, taking suo motu cognisance of the news reports on the government's March 5 disclosure to the state assembly that 184 lions (including lionesses and cubs) died in 2016 and 2017, with 32 of them dying of "unnatural" causes. A division bench of Chief Justice R Subhash Reddy and Justice V M Pancholi issued notices to the state government and the Centre, returnable on March 18. The court sought to know the reasons behind the high number of deaths and the steps being taken by the authorities concerned to prevent it. As per the figures given by the Gujarat government to the assembly, 12 lions died of unnatural causes in 2016, and 20 last year. Besides, 92 carnivores died of natural causes in 2016 and 60 last year. Gujarat incidentally is the only home .
64 dead in Russia shopping mall fire (Third Lead)
At least 64 people, including many children, were killed in a deadly blaze that engulfed a shopping mall in Russia's industrial city of Kemerovo, the Emergencies Minister said on Monday.
Magnitude 6.6 earthquake rattles Papua New Guinea
A magnitude 6.6 earthquake has rattled the Pacific island nation of Papua New Guinea, a month after a deadly quake there killed more than 100 people. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries from today's quake, which the U.S. Geological Survey said was centered in a remote area of East New Britain province. USGS reported the quake had a depth of 40 kilometers. Deeper earthquakes tend to cause less damage on the Earth's surface. A magnitude 7.5 earthquake on Feb. 26 killed at least 125 people, injured dozens and brought work to a halt at four oil and gas fields. Home to 7 million people, Papua New Guinea is located to the east of Indonesia and sits on the Pacific's "Ring of Fire.
Numerous technical snags in flights mar aviation sector's reputation
Technical glitches faced in more than a dozen scheduled flights each day have dealt a major blow to the civil aviation industry's reputation in India.As per a Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) report of March 23 accessed by ANI, Jet airways faced four technical snags, one of them was damaged brakes, while Spice Jet encountered three serious technical glitches.On being contacted, Jet Airways accepted that their aircraft detected glitches, and said, "Jet Airways own safety programme mandates that aircraft with certain mechanical issues must be cleared before flight. These clearance procedures may, on occasion, require aircraft departures to be delayed or aircraft taken out of service until the fault is corrected."Spice Jet responded, "In all three cases, there was no defect to the aircraft, which operated its scheduled flight without any delay."Other airlines like Air Asia faced two glitches and Go Air faced one glitch.Meanwhile, three Air India flights were delayed due to ...
Russian mall blaze: Death toll rises to 64
The death toll in fire incident at Russia's Zimnyaya Vishnya (Winter Cherry) shopping mall has risen to 64.Five more bodies were found near the cinema and 11 are still missing, TASS quotes a spokesperson as saying.A major fire broke out on Sunday at the fourth floor of the shopping mall where most of the victims were present inside a theatre hall.Till now 100 people have been evacuated. 12 of the victims have been hospitalised while 36 others have received medical assistance as outpatients.Around 660 emergency personnel were deployed at the location to conduct the rescue operations. It took more than 17 hours for the team to douse the flame.A criminal investigation has also been launched in the case to ascertain the cause of fire.