Disasters

"Rick Snyder previously said he became aware of severity of the lead problem on 1 October, but emails show he initially aimed to avoid a disaster declaration"."

"Two top advisers to Gov. Rick Snyder urged switching Flint back to Detroit’s water system in October 2014 after General Motors Co. said the city’s heavily chlorinated river water was rusting engine parts, according to governor’s office emails examined by The Detroit News."

"NEW ORLEANS — A former BP rig engineer was found not guilty Thursday on a charge that his negligence in interpreting a critical test contributed to the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill."

"The Obama administration on Thursday unveiled a long-awaited plan to reform the nation’s chemical plant safety standards, with a proposal that would require companies to weigh potentially safer alternatives in the design and operation of manufacturing facilities."

"Tens of thousands of Fijians remain homeless and living in evacuation shelters in the aftermath of a devastating cyclone at the weekend, officials said on Thursday, as aid began trickling in to the outer reaches of the South Pacific archipelago."

"The Fijian government and international aid agencies began delivering much needed aid on Wednesday to the Pacific nation's remote islands and coastal villages devastated by a powerful cyclone that killed 42 people."

"Several tornadoes lashed southern Louisiana and Mississippi on Tuesday, killing at least three people and injuring more than 30 as the storms destroyed dozens of homes and businesses and toppled a water tower, weather and emergency officials said."

"Gov. Rick Snyder said Monday his office will release thousands of pages of emails his staff sent or received related to Flint’s water supply switch and subsequent contamination dating back to 2011."

Michigan officials still say they cannot conclusively link an outbreak of Legionnaire's disease to Flint’s contaminated water supply, partly because sputum cultures were not collected from patients. But the possibility of a link was raised in internal government emails as early as October 2014, and state officials did not inform the public of the outbreak until last month.