Puerto Rico
281 passengers ill aboard Royal Caribbean ship
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say 281 passengers have fallen ill aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship.
A total of 3,050 passengers and 1,165 crew members are aboard the Explorer of the Seas.
The CDC said in a statement Friday another 22 crew members also are ill, with people reporting vomiting and diarrhea. Authorities said it’s not yet clear what is causing the illness.
The CDC said health officials will board the ship today while it’s docked in St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Authorities said specimens are being collected and will be tested.
The CDC said Royal Caribbean officials have taken action, including increasing disinfection procedures and preparing new crew members to join the ship mid-voyage.
Pennsylvania
Philadelphia getting ready for unconfirmed pope visit
PHILADELPHIA – Plans for a major Catholic gathering in Philadelphia next year are proceeding with the assumption Pope Francis will attend, though that hasn’t been officially confirmed, church officials said Saturday.
The eighth World Meeting of Families, set for Sept. 22 through Sept. 27 in 2015, is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of visitors.
Pope Benedict XVI announced in 2012 that Philadelphia would host the triennial event. At the time, he said he looked forward to meeting the region’s Catholics.
He attended previous family convocations in Milan and Valencia, Spain, though he skipped one in Mexico.
Benedict since has retired, and Francis’ schedule remains unclear. President Barack Obama is expected to meet with the pope during a trip to the Vatican in March.
West Virginia
Company ordered to remove tanks after chemical spill
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – West Virginia’s governor has ordered the company at the center of a chemical spill that tainted the water supply for the state capital to begin the process of removing all above-ground storage tanks from the Charleston operation.
A statement released Saturday by Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin’s office says Freedom Industries must start the dismantling process by March 15.
The Jan. 9 spill at Freedom Industries contaminated the water supply for 300,000 West Virginians.
Ohio
Family alleges execution is unconstitutional
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The prolonged execution of an inmate during which he repeatedly gasped and snorted amounted to cruel and unusual punishment that should not be allowed to happen again, the inmate’s family said in a federal lawsuit.
The lawsuit, filed late Friday, also alleges the drugmaker producing the medications illegally allowed them to be used for an execution and should be prohibited from making them available for capital punishment.
McGuire’s execution Jan. 16 lasted 26 minutes, the longest since the state resumed putting inmates to death in 1999, according to an Associated Press analysis of all 53 execution logs maintained by the Department of Rehabilitation and Correction.
McGuire’s execution, during which his adult children sobbed in dismay, has led to several calls for a moratorium on capital punishment in the state.
Associated Press
