LITTLE ROCK — QUOTE OF THE DAY “This is not going
to go down as a Christmas for most
people to really remember.”
Marshal Cohen,
a market research analyst, on retail sales this Christmas season Article, this page Pilot in Jamaica
jet skid home
JUNO BEACH, Fla. - The pilot of an American Airlines jet that overshot the runway in Jamaica said Saturday that he’s happy to be home with his family for Christmas, and praised his crew for their quick thinking and professionalism.
“This is the best Christmas,” Capt. Brian Cole said at his South Florida home. “I am just so happy to be home with my family.”
Flight 331 skidded off the runway as it landed in Kingston, Jamaica, in heavy rain Tuesday night, arriving from Washington’s Reagan National Airport by way of Miami.
The Boeing 737-800’s fuselage cracked open, the left main landing gear collapsed and the nose was crushed as the plane lurched to a halt at the ocean’s edge.
All 154 people aboard survived. Ninety-two were taken to hospitals, with no injuries considered life threatening. Cole walked away “pretty banged up” with bruises on his forearms, chest and stomach, but no broken bones.
Fuel moved from
grounded tug
VALDEZ, Alaska - Salvage crews have completed the transfer of thousands of gallons of diesel fuel from a stricken tugboat that crashed into the same reef that damaged the Exxon Valdez 20 years ago, a spokesman for the tug’s owner said Saturday.
Crews finished transferring about 49,000 gallons of fuel and water mixed from the two damaged tanks late Friday, said Jim Butler, a spokesman for Crowley Maritime Services.
A towing vessel began bringing the tugboat back to the Port of Valdez about 2 p.m. Saturday after the U.S. Coast Guard, state of Alaska and Crowley agreed on a tow plan, he said. The tug is being watched by some booming and skimming vessels and monitored by a helicopter to make sure there is no remaining fuel, Butler said.
The tug was being towed at 4 knots and was expected to reach port by Saturday night.
Police: Pastor shot son in fight
DARBY, Pa. - A pastor fatally shot one of his eight children on Christmas Day during a dispute at the family home, where more than a dozen relatives had gathered to celebrate, police said.
Kirk Caldwell killed Jordan Caldwell, 21, after intervening in a violent confrontation between the son and a woman about 2 p.m. at their home in suburban Philadelphia, Darby Borough police said Friday.
Kirk Caldwell fired a single shot, striking his son in the chest, Police Chief Robert Smythe said.
Jordan Caldwell died at a hospital shortly afterward, police said.
Smythe, who noted he had met Caldwell a couple of times, called the pastor a “very good man” and said he was “quite surprised.”
The 44-year-old Caldwell had not been charged as of Friday evening. The gun was legally registered to him, Smythe said.
Front Section, Pages 5 on 12/27/2009