Page 942 - Disaster Accident
48 injured, mostly children, in German school bus accident
A bus carrying children to school in southern Germany hit multiple cars and then slammed into the side of a building without braking, injuring 48 people early today, including 10 seriously, police said. The injured were 43 children and the bus driver, as well as other adults who were aboard the bus, said Mannheim police spokesman Christoph Kunkel. Three helicopters and 10 ambulances rushed to the scene in the town of Eberbach, about 50 kms east of Mannheim, to bring the injured to area hospitals for treatment. The bus crashed just after 7 am as it was driving around a left-hand bend in the road in Eberbach. It wasn't immediately clear what caused the accident, but Kunkel said the driver had been able to talk with police following the crash. A wide area around the accident scene was shut down to traffic as the incident is investigated.
DMRRR dept gets Rs 362 cr allocation during 2017-18: J-K govt
The Jammu and Kashmir government today said that the newly-created Disaster Management, Relief, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction (DMRRR) department was allocated Rs 362 crore for 2017-18 to meet unforeseen exigencies. Minister for DMRRR Javaid Mustafa Mir informed the House in a reply to a question of PDP member Javid Husssain Beigh in the state Assembly. "Jammu and Kashmir is highly-prone to earthquakes, floods, avalanches, flash floods and the government created this separate departmentin pursuance to the Cabinet decision and entrusted various important subjects to it," the minister told the House. The subjects and components, including the emergency relief organisation, DMRR management of all issues relating to Kashmiri migrants, issues pertaining to the Displaced Persons of 1947, among others, he said. The minister said to meet unforeseen exigencies and carrying out various activities under these components an allocation of Rs 362.01 crore was made during the year .
Road mishap: Court refuses to quash convict's 4-mth jail term
A Delhi court has refused to show leniency towards a man guilty of crushing a person under his rashly driven truck, saying he cannot claim sympathy as those who play with fire cannot complain of burnt fingers. Additional Sessions Judge S K Gupta upheld a magisterial court order awarding him four months rigorous jail term, saying in fatal road accident cases, deterrent punishment is vital so that persons plying vehicles bear in mind that they will face serious consequences. "One person has lost his life. The appellant (driver) was driving commercial vehicle and did not take the deceased to hospital. A deterrent punishment is more important in road accident cases so that persons who ply vehicles on road bear in mind that they will have to face serious consequences of conviction and imprisonment in case of fatal accident. "The appellant cannot claim sympathy because a person who plays with fire cannot complain of burnt fingers. The leniency is in such like cases will do ...
Fire rips through maritime museum in Indonesian capital
A fire ripped through a 17th century Dutch colonial building that houses a maritime museum in the Indonesian capital today, causing extensive damage to its historical collections. Museum head Husnizon Nizar said there were no casualties from the fire that swept through one of the museum's three historic buildings. It took about four hours for fire fighters to extinguish it. Nizar said the blaze destroyed models of Dutch East India Company ships, traditional Indonesian vessels and a newly installed diorama showing the history of World War II in the Java Sea. "We have lost so many significant historical collections in the fire," he said. It was the second building calamity to hit Jakarta in two days. Yesterday, a mezzanine floor in the Indonesian stock exchange tower collapsed, injuring nearly 80 people. Safety laws are often inconsistently enforced or even completely ignored in Indonesia, a poor and sprawling archipelago nation. In October, a blaze at a fireworks factory .
Odisha target to supply piped water to all GP hq by Mar'19
Odisha government has set a target to supply piped water to all the gram panchayat (GP) headquarters of the state by March 2019. The decision in this regard was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik here yesterday. An official release said that at least 5586 out of 6801 panchayat headquarters in the state have been provided with piped water supply. Similarly, 15,265 habitations having partial pipe water supply, will be covered fully by May 2018. The state government has decided to provide potable drinking water in areas having high fluoride and saline content in water by March 2018 on temporary basis while piped water supply projects in these areas will be completed in the next two years, the release said.
21 children injured in German school bus accident
Police in southern Germany say a school bus has rammed into a house without braking, injuring 21 children. Mannheim police spokesman Christoph Kunkel said today three helicopters helped bring the children, including six with serious injuries, to the hospital for treatment. He said the bus crashed into the side of a house in the town of Eberbach, about 50 km east of Mannheim, just after 7 am. He says the cause of the accident isn't immediately clear but that police are interviewing the driver of the bus. The bus was full at the time of the accident but police did not have specifics on how many children were on board. Kunkel says a wide area around the accident scene has been shut down as the incident is investigated.
Dakar Rally leader Sainz handed 10-minute penalty
French car manufacturer Peugeot will appeal against a 10-minute penalty handed to Dakar Rally leader Carlos Sainz for "potentially dangerous" driving.
Trump's Mar-a-Lago club cited for serious violations: Report
US President Donald Trump's exclusive club in Florida has been cited by state inspectors for several code violations that pose a serious threat to public health and safety, a media report has said. The Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Trump's Winter White House where the president hosts world leaders, is checked annually by the state of Florida. The club, located on a beachfront property, was cited in November for two violations deemed high priority: the lack of smoke detectors capable of alerting the hearing impaired through flashing bright lights; and slabs of concrete missing from a staircase, exposing steel rebar that could cause someone to fall, Miami Herald reported. "High priority lodging violations are those which could pose a direct or significant threat to the public health, safety, or welfare," the inspection code reads. The November inspections of the club's two main kitchens, meanwhile, yielded a total 15 violations, the report said. Among the no-nos was the ...
Netanyahu to gift desalinisation jeep to Modi
Visiting Israeli Prime Minister will present his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi a special gift - the Gal-Mobile water desalinisation and purification jeep the two leaders rode on Israel's Olga beach last year. The jeep has reached India, sources here confirmed. "It has reached Delhi and is on its way to Bhuj," sources here said. "There will be a live demonstration of desalination of sea water that the two Prime administers will witness through video conferencing from the iCreate centre on Janaury 17," they said. Netanyahu and Modi waded into the Mediterranean Sea and rode the "buggy" jeep on the coast during the latter's visit to Israel in July last year. The jeep is said to cost around 390,000 shekels (approximately USD 111,000). Gal-Mobile is an independent, integrated water purification vehicle, designed to produce high-quality drinking water. It can be useful in natural disasters like floods, earthquakes, military use in difficult terrain and rural areas to provide
Chopper crash: Torso found, DNA analysis underway
The search team has recovered a torso, assumed to be that of the missing pilot of the Pawan Hans helicopter that crashed into the sea off the Mumbai coast on Saturday, an official said today. The torso was found last night. But, there would be clarity on it after DNA analysis, the official at the Cooper Municipal General Hospital told PTI. "We have taken blood samples of a relative of the missing crew member and sent them to a state-run forensic laboratory in Mumbai," he said. He said the DNA analysis is a tedious process and its result is expected by Saturday. The brother of the missing pilot has flown from Kerala to Mumbai and given his blood samples. The Coast Coast yesterday said another body was recovered by an ONGC vessel. With this, the remains of six of the seven persons, who were aboard the helicopter, have been recovered, it said. The ONGC vessel had also managed to retrieve parts of the aircraft, including rotor blades, main gearbox, tail gearbox, both the ...
GNFC shuts down Dahej plant indefinitely post gas leak
Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers & Chemicals Ltd (GNFC) today said it has shut down its plant at Dahej indefinitely post a gas leak incident. "In the morning on January 15, 2018, there has been a sudden leakage at TDI-II plant, Dahej, which called for plant shutdown at Dahej (Gujarat) ... However, as a matter of abundant precaution, management has decided to close the plant indefinitely," GNFC said in a regulatory filing. The company clarified that neither there was any property damage nor any loss of life. It said the plant will be closed till the "root cause is thoroughly analysed, reviewed and necessary further safety measures to be taken are fully evaluated in addition to current safety precautions". GNFC said "this decision to close TDI-II Plant indefinitely is taken till the process of necessary preparations, putting in place further checks and balances and thorough evaluation is over". In November 2016 too, the facility was shut down after a mechanical ...
Indonesian stock exchange floor collapses, several injured
Scores of persons have been injured after the mezzanine floor of the Indonesian stock exchange collapsed here yesterday.The officials said that a large number of Indonesian university students were said to be on the balcony when it suddenly collapsed beneath them.Reports suggested over 70 persons have been wounded.Many of the injured appeared to have suffered fractures, according to police and hospital officials.The city will "audit the building", reports the Independent, which quoted Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan, as saying so."I have conveyed to the building's management that the audit of the construction should start tonight so that the activities of the stock exchange are not disturbed," Baswedan , who visited the site, added.The building was reportedly last inspected by authorities in May.
Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers & Chemicals shuts down plant at Dahej
Due to sudden leakage at TDI-II Plant
Eight bodies found as 'N.Korean' boat washes up in Japan
Eight bodies have been recovered from a wrecked boat that washed ashore in central Japan, authorities said today, suspecting the vessel is the latest in a series of North Korean "ghost ships." Coastguard rescuers found the corpses of seven men inside the wreckage of the boat that washed up in Kanazawa, central Japan, last week, senior police official Hiroshi Abe told AFP. The badly decomposed remains of another man were discovered around 15 metres (50 feet) from the boat, added Abe. "It is difficult to identify the bodies as they had begun to decompose," he said, noting that rough seas had prevented officials from investigating the boat thoroughly. "We spotted a tobacco box which carries some Korean letters, but we can't confirm the boat came from North Korea," he said. However, coastguard officials believe it is the latest North Korean fishing vessel to wash up on the coast, following a record number of such cases last year. Television footage showed the wreckage of the .
Investigators probe cause of Jakarta stock exchange walkway
Indonesian investigators were sifting through the rubble at Jakarta's stock exchange complex today as they looked for clues on what caused a walkway collapse that left scores injured, including dozens of students. A mezzanine floor at the tower in the sprawling city's business district collapsed shortly before lunchtime yesterday, injuring a total of 73 people, police said, adding that there were no deaths. Dramatic CCTV footage showed a group of about 40 visiting students on a balcony section plunge as the floor gave way with a cascade of glass, metal and other material crashing onto the ground floor where several others were walking. National police spokesman Setyo Wasisto said the investigation team is hoping to gather crucial evidence by the end of today, though the results of the probe will not be known for several weeks. Officials have described the collapse as an accident and not the result of an explosion -- the tower was bombed by Islamist militants in ...
10 workers die in bridge collapse, Colombian officials say
Colombian officials say 10 workers died after a bridge they were building outside the nation's capital collapsed. Civil Defense authorities say the laborers were working on drainage along the bridge when the structure fell today about 95 kilometers from Bogota. Nine people were killed at the scene and the 10th died after being taken to a nearby hospital with severe injuries. Authorities are still working to determine how many people were working on the bridge at the time of the collapse and if anyone is missing.
Bridge collapse kills 10 in central Colombia
At least 10 people were killed on Monday when a bridge under construction in central Colombia collapsed.
5 security personnel killed in Pakistan
At least five security personnel were killed and six others injured in a gun attack in Pakistan's Balochistan province late on Monday.
Libya's Afriqiyah Airways suspends flights following airport attack
Libya's state-owned Afriqiyah Airways on Monday suspended all flights after heavy clashes damaged a number of its airplanes.
Helicopter for utility work crashes in field, killing 2 men
A helicopter used for inspecting power lines has crashed into a snowy Ohio field, killing the two men on board. It's not clear what caused the crash today just south of the Ohio Turnpike in Wood County. Sheriff Mark Wasylyshyn says there was no sign of fire and no indication that the aircraft hit any utility lines. FirstEnergy spokesman Doug Colafella tells The Blade that the victims were contractors for the utility. He didn't disclose the names of the men or their employer but said the contractor was working to notify the victims' families. The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board were expected to send investigators to the scene.