Homeland
Security
Current Nationwide
Threat Level
ELEVATED
Daily Open Source Infrastructure
Report for 27 July 2010
Significant Risk of Terrorist Attacks
For information, click here:
http://www.dhs.gov
Top Stories
•
•
Several European NATO members have expressed concern that the fallout from a massive
online leak of confidential U.S. documents on the Afghan war could extend well beyond
the Internet — and could even affect the war itself. According to combined report from
CTV news, Associated Press and Canadian Press, the U.S. records cover six years of the
war in Afghanistan, including previously unknown accounts of civilian deaths and targeted
attacks on Taliban members. (See item 34)
The Associated Press reports that flooding from the Maquoketa River after the Lake Delhi
dam failed has damaged dozens of homes and businesses, causing millions of dollars in
damage in Monticello, Iowa officials said July 25. The dam in eastern Iowa failed July 24
as rising flood water from the Maquoketa River ate a 30-foot-wide hole in it. (See item 60)
Fast Jump Menu
PRODUCTION INDUSTRIES
• Energy
• Chemical
• Nuclear Reactors, Materials and Waste
• Critical Manufacturing
• Defense Industrial Base
• Dams
SUSTENANCE and HEALTH
• Agriculture and Food
• Water
• Public Health and Healthcare
SERVICE INDUSTRIES
• Banking and Finance
• Transportation
• Postal and Shipping
• Information Technology
• Communications
• Commercial Facilities
FEDERAL and STATE
• Government Facilities
• Emergency Services
• National Monuments and Icons
Energy Sector
Current Electricity Sector Threat Alert Levels: Physical: ELEVATED,
Cyber: ELEVATED
Scale: LOW, GUARDED, ELEVATED, HIGH, SEVERE [Source: ISAC for the Electricity Sector (ES-ISAC) [http://www.esisac.com]
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1. July 26, Washington Examiner – (Maryland; Virginia; District of Columbia) More
than 240,000 still without power. More than 300,000 people lost power in the greater
Washington D.C. metropolitan area after powerful thunderstorms ripped through July
25 knocking down trees and wires.. As of about 9:45 a.m. July 26, Pepco reported more
than 230,000 homes without power in Maryland and Washington D.C.. The vast
majority are in Montgomery County, Maryland where more than 173,000 homes still
lack power. Dominion recorded nearly 12,000 homes without power in northern
Virginia the morning of July 26. Mandatory water restrictions are still in effect for
Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission customers in Montgomery and Prince
George’s counties in Maryland. At least two deaths were reported during the July 25
storm. A woman was killed in Beltsville, Maryland when a tree fell on her minivan,
and a 6-year-old boy died in Sterling, Virginia after a tree fell on him.
Source: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/local/blogs/capital-land/more-than240000-still-without-power-99232649.html
2. July 24, KTXL 40 Sacramento – (California) Grass Fires Threaten Homes, PG&E
Plant. Embers carried by winds from a fire that started on a person’s property in
Allendale, California may be responsible for a 25-acre grass fire that has spread to
Vacaville and is threatening the Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) plant. Flames spread
into the substation, amid countless transformers. That had Vacaville police on alert.
“Our concern is the wires that feed the substation here, we’re informed by PG&E that if
the fire did cause the wires to snap, that it could cause us to evacuate the whole area,” a
Vacaville police lieutenant said. In Allendale, some residents were asked to evacuate
after the fire damaged one home, and destroyed two outhouses and several old vehicles.
Source: http://www.fox40.com/news/headlines/ktxl-newssolanograssfires,0,2134502.story
3. July 23, CNN – (Louisiana) Deepwater Horizon alarm had been ‘inhibited,’
technician testifies. An alarm system on the Deepwater Horizon had been “inhibited”
for about a year before the April 20 explosion that killed 11 workers and started the
worst oil disaster in the nation’s history, the platform’s chief electronics technician
testified to a federal panel July 23. An inhibited mode means sensors for toxic or
combustible gases or fire are active and will alert the platform’s computer system, but
the computer does not trigger an audible or visual alarm, a technician told the sixmember panel. Supervisors on the Transocean rig were aware that the alarm system had
been inhibited. “When I discovered about a year ago it was inhibited, I inquired as to
why it was inhibited, and the explanation I got is that ... they did not want people woke
up at 3 o’clock in the morning due to false alarms,” the technician said. The rig’s
general alarm system also has normal and override settings, the technician testified.
Under an override setting, the computer will not recognize the sensor information for
any purpose, he said. The alarm system’s visual alerts were on light towers throughout
the rig, he said. A red light signified fire, a yellow light meant toxic gas, and a blue
light indicated combustible gases. Published reports have indicated that investigators
are looking into whether a rapidly expanding methane gas bubble escaped from the
well 5,000 feet below the surface, busting through seals and barriers before shooting up
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the drill column and exploding.
Source: http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/07/23/gulf.platform.alert/index.html?hpt=T1
[Return to top]
Chemical Industry Sector
4. July 26, Outsourcing-pharma.com – (California) Ampac response to plant concerns
“insufficient,” says FDA. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has asked
Ampac Fine Chemicals for a more detailed plan to fix the current good manufacturing
practices (cGMP) deviations at its active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) plant in
Rancho Cordova, California. The cGMP problems at the facility, one of several API
plants Ampac operates in North America, were discovered during an FDA inspection in
February. While Ampac replied to the agency in March, a letter published on the
FDA’s site the week of July 19, described the response as lacking “sufficient corrective
actions.” Foremost among the FDA’s concerns is that the fine chemicals producer has
not detailed the “new procedures” it has developed to manage and quarantine rejected
API batches. This comment refers to the detection, during the inspection, of an
unmarked returned drum of the oncology API temozolomide among batches of the
compound that had been labeled as acceptable for release.
Source: http://www.outsourcing-pharma.com/Contract-Manufacturing/Ampacresponse-to-plant-concerns-insufficient-says-FDA
5. July 24, The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead – (North Dakota) Insecticide spill closes part
of I-94; no injuries reported. A hazardous materials spill on Interstate 94 in North
Dakota caused no injuries but detoured traffic for about 7 hours July 23. The incident
began about 9:30 a.m. when a farm truck spilled canisters, which broke open by mile
marker 232 near Cleveland. The canisters contained several gallons of an insecticide
marketed as Govern as well as an emulsifier marketed as Trophy Gold. It was unknown
how much spilled, but up to 20 gallons of insecticide, and 30 gallons of the emulsifier
were on the truck. The Material Safety Data Sheet for Govern indicates fumes from the
substance are an inhalation hazard and irritant, and the chemical is flammable. The
eastbound lanes of Interstate 94 were closed between Jamestown and Medina for
several hours, with traffic rerouted onto state highways 30 and 46 and U.S. Highway
281. The materials were cleared from both lanes to allow limited traffic to pass the site
by 4:30 p.m. The North Dakota Department of Transportation used dirt to cover the
insecticide and absorb the chemical.
Source: http://www.inforum.com/event/article/id/285840/
6. July 23, Environmental Protection – (National) Rush and Waxman release Toxic
Chemicals Safety Act. On July 22, the chair of a House subcommittee, and the chair of
the House Committee on Energy and Commerce introduced H.R. 5820, the Toxic
Chemicals Safety Act of 2010. “The introduction of this legislation marks a major step
forward in our efforts to bring to current industry standards an important statute that,
once it becomes law, will permanently shine the bright light of public disclosure on a
range of chemicals that consumers encounter in a diverse array of products they use
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each and every day,” said the chair of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee
on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection, which has slated a July 29 hearing on
the bill. The legislation would amend the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976 to
ensure that the public and the environment are protected from risks resulting from
chemical exposure.
Source: http://eponline.com/articles/2010/07/23/rush-and-waxman-release-toxicchemicals-safety-act.aspx
[Return to top]
Nuclear Reactors, Materials and Waste Sector
7. July 24, Kingston Whig Standard – (International) Senator expresses concern about
shipments of radioactive nuclear waste. The Thousand Islands that straddle the
Canada-U.S. border in the St. Lawrence River as it emerges from the northeast corner
of Lake Ontario could be at risk when radioactive nuclear waste is shipped through the
region in September, said a Canadian senator. The senator said radioactive metal from
the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station in Bruce County, Ontario will be transported on
aging ships on a river that this year has very low water levels. The shipment could be
especially dangerous in the narrow passages of the St. Lawrence River west of
Brockville, he added. “My main concern is essentially that we have had two groundings
(of ships) in the past two weeks, one in our area and one in the Quebec area, and the
lake fleet is an aging fleet, with an average age of 40,” the senator said. “Both of the
breakdowns in the last couple of weeks have been attributed to mechanical failure.” He
also said St. Lawrence River water levels remain low, which creates a greater danger
when the 1,800 tons of nuclear material from radioactive steam generators is
transported. A leak or ship sinking could be disastrous, the senator said. On July 23, the
senator sent a letter to the president and chief executive officer of the Canadian Nuclear
Safety Commission to express his concerns. In a statement last week, the commission
said the planned shipment does not present a risk to the public or the environment.
Source: http://www.thewhig.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2683270
8. July 24, Newark Star-Ledger – (New Jersey) Salem 1 nuclear reactor comes back
online after lengthy repairs. PSEG’s Salem 1 nuclear reactor in New Jersey came
online July 24 at 7:49 a.m. after lengthy repairs of a transformer. The reactor went
offline July 7. The other two reactors at the Lower Alloways Creek Township site,
Salem 2 and Hope Creek, are both operating at full capacity. Salem 1, which can
produce 1,175 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 1 million homes annually, has
had three unscheduled outages since its refueling in April. It was manually taken
offline June 15 for less than a day because of a faulty valve; two days later operators
discovered another problem with a valve and took the reactor down again, also for less
than a day. On July 7, one of the hottest days of the year, Salem 1 tripped offline
automatically after one of the plant’s three transformers failed, setting off a small fire
that was quickly extinguished. “Every time a plant goes down, you run the risk of
finding a broken widget,” said a nuclear engineer with the Union for Concerned
Scientists. “It can lengthen an outage and be expensive to repair.”
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Source:
http://www.nj.com/business/index.ssf/2010/07/salem_1_nuclear_reactor_comes.html
9. July 23, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission – (National) NRC informs Areva of
safety issues with EPR reactor design’s computer systems. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission staffers have informed AREVA NP that the company has yet to
demonstrate how some aspects of the EPR reactor’s digital instrumentation and control
system meet NRC requirements. While the NRC’s letter to AREVA acknowledges
progress in resolving the issues, particularly the discussion during a June 25 public
meeting and AREVA’s July 1 letter proposing revisions to the system, the NRC staff
notes that additional information is necessary to determine the system’s acceptability.
Specifically, AREVA needs to better demonstrate that each safety division in the
system can perform its function without relying on information originating from
outside the safety division and is protected from adverse influence from outside the
division. AREVA also needs to better demonstrate that data exchanged between safety
and non-safety divisions are processed in a manner that does not adversely affect the
function of the safety division. The staff continues its work on the remainder of the
EPR design-certification application. The impact on the overall EPR certificationreview schedule will be established after AREVA provides more details on its plans to
revise the reactor’s digital instrumentation and control system.
Source: http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/news/2010/10-130.html
10. July 23, University of Louisville – (Kentucky) Study focuses on health issues of
PGDP workers. A five-year study into the causes of deaths of workers at Paducah
Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP) in Paducah, Kentucky shows significantly lower
death rates from all causes and cancer in general when compared to the overall United
States population. This is known by occupational health researchers as the “healthy
worker effect.” However, death from lymphatic and bone marrow cancers such as
leukemia or multiple myeloma were slightly above national rates. The study was
conducted by faculty at the University of Louisville School of Public Health and
Information Sciences and collaborators from the University of Cincinnati, and the
University of Kentucky. It was funded through the National Institute for Occupational
Safety and Health. The team compiled data on thousands of employees who worked at
the plant for at least 30 days in different job classifications from 1952 through 2003.
The data were used to assess exposure levels. Overall, 1,638 workers died out of the
6,759 in the study. This is less than the 2,253 deaths that would have been expected in
the general public during the same time.
Source: http://www.news-medical.net/news/20100723/Study-focuses-on-health-issuesof-PGDP-workers.aspx
For another story, see item 36
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Critical Manufacturing Sector
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11. July 25, Fort Wayne Journal Gazette – (Indiana) Fire hits GM plant, forces
evacuation. A fire caused smoke damage and a 1 hour-long evacuation at the General
Motors plant in Forth Wayne, Indiana, according to Southwest Allen County
firefighters. The fire was reported about midnight July 23. A spark from a welding
project had entered a room filled with air filters, firefighters said. The body and paint
shop at the plant was shut down for about an hour because of smoke, firefighters said.
Five security officers working at the plant were treated at the scene for smoke
inhalation.
Source:
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20100725/LOCAL07/307259849/1002/LOCAL
[Return to top]
Defense Industrial Base Sector
12. July 24, Associated Press – (Iowa) Bomb found at Waterloo plant has no
explosives. A bomb found in a former munitions plant in Waterloo, Iowa is safe, police
said July 23. Workers demolishing the plant found the bomb on a water heater July 21.
A Waterloo police investigator said a team from Fort Leonard Wood has determined
there were no explosives inside the device, and that the bomb is a warhead for a NikeHercules missile. The warhead will be taken to Fort Leonard Wood. The plant closed
16 years ago and currently is being torn down.
Source: http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20100724/NEWS/100723041/1/WATCHDOG/Bomb-found-at-Waterloo-plant-has-no-explosives
[Return to top]
Banking and Finance Sector
13. July 26, Associated Press – (California) FBI: San Diego skateboard bandit strikes
again. The FBI says a skateboard-clutching bank robber has struck again in San Diego,
California. Authorities said the man dubbed the “Skateboard Bandit” held up a Wells
Fargo branch in the Torrey Pines neighborhood July 23. The FBI believes he is the
same man who robbed a Comerica Bank July 12. In both cases, authorities said the
robber flashed a gun at a bank teller, stuffed money in his backpack, and fled. The thief
was wearing a black, hooded sweatshirt and a green paisley bandanna. The FBI
released a photograph showing the thief holding his skateboard.
Source:
http://news.bostonherald.com/news/national/west/view/20100725fbi_san_diego_skateb
oard_bandit_strikes_again/srvc=home&position=recent
14. July 26, American Banking News – (National) Bank of America corp suffers from
online banking outage. Bank of America’s online banking and mobile banking site
suffered an outage July 22, a widespread issue which appeared to have started at about
2 p.m. Pacific Standard Time, but was resolved over the weekend. A number of Twitter
users posted complaints that they could not access their online banking services, which
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led Bank of America’s “BofA_Help” twitter account to swing into disaster recovery
mode. ZDNet was able to confirm the problem getting into Bank of America’s Web
site, and some of the firm’s mobile applications. Other parts of Bank of America’s Web
site, such as home loans and IRAs, did not appear to be effected by the outage.
Source: http://www.americanbankingnews.com/2010/07/26/bank-of-america-corpnyse-bac-suffers-from-online-banking-outage/
15. July 24, Gainesville Sun – (Florida) Credit card skimming devices were found
Friday at a Gainesville gas station near Interstate 75. More credit-card skimming
devices were found July 23 in two gas pumps at a Gainesville, Florida gas station on
Williston Road near Interstate 75, leading authorities to warn residents against paying
at the pump at any area stations. Earlier in July, three skimming devices were found at
two gas stations near the I-75/Newberry Road interchange. Authorities subsequently
checked all gas station pumps at major interchanges along I-75 in Alachua County,
finding no additional skimmers. Authorities have said the skimming devices installed at
pumps are equipped with Bluetooth, allowing stolen credit-card information to be
retrieved using a cell phone or laptop.
Source:
http://www.gainesville.com/article/20100724/ARTICLES/7241001/1002?p=1&tc=pg
16. July 24, Bank Info Security – (National) Seven banks closed on July 23. Federal and
state banking regulators closed seven banks July 23, raising the number of failed
institutions to 113 so far in 2010. The latest closings follow. SouthwestUSA Bank, Las
Vegas was closed by the Nevada Financial Institutions Division, and the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was appointed receiver. The FDIC arranged for
Plaza Bank, Irvine, California to buy the deposits of the failed bank. The estimated cost
to the FDIC’s Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF) will be $74.1 million. Sterling Bank,
Lantana, Florida was closed by the Florida Office of Financial Regulation, which
appointed the FDIC as receiver. The FDIC arranged for IBERIABANK, Lafayette,
Louisiana to buy the deposits of the failed bank. The estimated cost to the DIF will be
$45.5 million. Crescent Bank and Trust Company, Jasper, Georgia was closed by the
Georgia Department of Banking & Finance, which appointed the FDIC as receiver. The
FDIC arranged for Renasant Bank, Tupelo, Mississippi to buy the deposits of the failed
bank. The estimated cost to the DIF will be $242.4 million. Home Valley Bank, Cave
Junction, Oregon was closed by the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business
Services, which appointed the FDIC as receiver. The FDIC arranged for South Valley
Bank & Trust, Klamath Falls, Oregon, to buy the failed bank. The estimated cost to the
DIF is $37.1 million. Thunder Bank, Sylvan Grove, Kansas was closed by the Kansas
Office of the State Bank Commissioner, which appointed the FDIC as receiver. The
FDIC arranged for The Bennington State Bank, Salinas Kansas to buy the failed bank.
The estimated cost to the DIF will be $4.5 million. Williamsburg First National Bank,
Kingstree, South Carolina was closed by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency,
which appointed the FDIC as receiver. The FDIC arranged fro First Citizens Bank and
Trust Company, Inc. Columbia, South Carolina to buy the failed bank. The estimated
cost to the DIF is $8.8 million. Community Security Bank, New Prague, Minnesota was
closed by the Minnesota Department of Commerce, which appointed the FDIC as
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receiver. The FDIC arranged for Roundbank, Waseca, Minnesota to buy the failed
bank. The estimated cost to the DIF will be $18.6 million.
Source: http://www.bankinfosecurity.com/articles.php?art_id=2780
17. July 23, Wall Sreet Journal – (New York) Four executives arrested in bank fraud
scheme. Four executives of a privately held Long Island City, New York company
were arrested July 23 in an alleged scheme to defraud Amalgamated Bank out of $21
million in loans, said federal prosecutors in Brooklyn. According to a criminal
complaint, the men allegedly booked fictitious sales, prematurely recognized sales, and
made older accounts receivable appear to have been incurred more recently in order to
obtain $21 million in loans for three subsidiaries of GDC Acquisitions LLC. GDC also
allegedly purchased Image Lighting Inc. covertly in 2008, contrary to the terms of the
loan agreement, according to the complaint. The conspiracy allegedly occurred
between January 2007 and June 2010. The suspects have been charged with bank fraud
conspiracy. GDC is a holding company that owns a lighting distributor, a lighting
maintenance firm, a furniture distributor, and other companies.
Source:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703294904575385121894575374.htm
l?mod=googlenews_wsj
18. July 23, Bank Info Security – (National) FDIC: Top 5 fraud threats. The chief of the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s Cyber Fraud and Financial Crimes Section
recently released his top five list of fraud threats of concern to the FDIC: 1. Malware
and Botnets; 2. Phishing; 3. Data Breaches; 4. Counterfeit Checks; 5. Mortgage Fraud.
Malware and Botnets are software agents or robots that take over a user’s computer are
often the root causes of commercial payments fraud, i.e. corporate account takeover.
Phishing has evolved from badly-written, bogus e-mails to well-crafted assaults via email, telephone and text message. While most data breaches have occurred on the
merchant and payments processor sides of the business, financial institutions are still
deeply impacted by these losses. Although circulation of fake checks continues to drop,
counterfeit check fraud remains prevalent. Mortgage fraud crimes committed against
financial institutions, as well as mortgage rescue scams that affect consumers and
mortgage holders, continue to plague the financial market.
Source: http://www.bankinfosecurity.com/articles.php?art_id=2774
[Return to top]
Transportation Sector
19. July 26, KTVK Phoenix – (Arizona) Allegiant Air flight 645 en route to Mesa
diverted to Flagstaff. Allegiant Air flight 645, en route to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway
airport from Billings, Montana was diverted to Flagstaff Pulliam Airport July 26 due to
an engine fire. All 144 passengers and 6 crew members on-board the McDonnell
Douglas MD-83 jet were safely evacuated. Flagstaff police said three people received
minor injuries during the evacuation. According to passengers, one of the engines
began making a “clanging sound” while they were cruising at an altitude of 32,000 feet.
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Once safely on the ground, the plane’s captain met the passengers in the terminal and
said, “We did have an engine fire en route and we had to shut it down and land here
and evacuate.”
Source: http://www.azfamily.com/news/Allegiant-Air-flight-645-en-route-to-Gatewaydiverted-to-Flagstaff-99199969.html
20. July 25, Business Wire – (International) KCS opens Anahuac bridge; cross border
traffic resumes on Nuevo Laredo gateway. Kansas City Southern railway reported
that its Mexican subsidiary, Kansas City Southern de Mexico, S.A. de C.V. (KCSM)
has worked throughout the weekend on the Anahuac Bridge and re-opened the bridge at
5:55 p.m. Saturday, July 24. KCSM began running trains on the re-opened line
immediately. If there is no settlement resulting from trains operating over the bridge’s
approaches, KCSM expects to operate up to 25 to 30 trains over the Nuevo Laredo
gateway by the night of July 25, and plans to remove all service embargos that were
established July 3 in the aftermath of Hurricane Alex. Rail service in northern Mexico
was disrupted for all carriers as a result of Hurricane Alex, which made landfall in
northeast Mexico June 30. Highway infrastructure throughout northern Mexico also
was severely damaged. The hurricane caused significant track damage around the
Monterrey and Saltillo areas as well as on the lines to Nuevo Laredo and Matamoros.
Source: http://newsystocks.com/news/3610450
21. July 24, Associated Press – (Illinois) Flooding causes highway closure in Chicago
area. Flooding closed a major interstate in the Chicago area July 24, and caused heavy
traffic delays on other roads. Interstate 290 closed between Mannheim Road and 25th
Avenue, and standing water slowed traffic around Western Avenue. The Illinois
Department of Transportation said at least eight cars have been reported under water.
There was also standing water on Interstate 90/94 both north and south of the Loop.
North of the Loop, standing water was reported around Addison Street, and south of the
Loop, there was water between 83rd and 87th streets. Southbound traffic was being
diverted at 83rd Street.
Source: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-ilchicagoflooding,0,4356596.story
22. July 24, Times-Standard – (California) Arcata/Eureka Airport temporarily shutting
off navigational system during construction. Due to its proximity to the construction
work at the Arcata/Eureka Airport in McKinleyville, California, one of the airport’s
navigational tools will be shut down temporarily. The airport announced July 23 that
the construction schedule will require the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to
take its instrument landing system (ILS) out of service due to surface grade changes.
The airport will continue to have its other navigational systems online. The outage
could begin as soon as August 9, lasting through September 24, according to a press
release from the airport. The construction work will be done on Runway 14 and
residents near Kjer Road in McKinleyville may notice work being done at night, the
release said. According to the airport, the first phase of the airport construction —
meant to upgrade the airport for compliance with new FAA safety standards — is
expected to be completed by the end of this month. FAA will re-activate the ILS once
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an FAA flight check is completed.
Source: http://www.times-standard.com/localnews/ci_15593090
23. July 24, St. Augustine Record – (Florida) Power outage affects Bridge of Lions. For
about two hours July 23, boats waited to get through the Bridge of Lions in St.
Augustine, Florida after a power outage left the bridge stuck in the down position.
Power went out at about 1,600 locations in an area including Davis Shores and
Anastasia Island around 2:30 p.m., according to a Florida Power and Light
spokeswoman. “The bridge backup generator started up after the outage, but then it
went down, too,” said a spokeswoman for the Bridge of Lions project. By 4:30 p.m. the
generator was working and boat gathered on both sides of the bridge were able to get
through. Power was restored to about half the customers by 3 p.m. By 5 p.m., power
was back for all customers. Bridge workers were still seeking to determine why the
back-up generator failed.
Source: http://staugustine.com/news/local-news/2010-07-23/power-outage-affectsbridge-lions
For another story, see item 5
[Return to top]
Postal and Shipping Sector
Nothing to report
[Return to top]
Agriculture and Food Sector
24. July 25, WOOD 8 Grand Rapids – (Michigan) McD’s evacuated after bomb
threat. Employees at a Belding, Michigan McDonalds were evacuated from the
restaurant early July 25 after receiving a bomb threat. Around 8:30 a.m. the McDonalds
at 1125 W. State St. received a call from a person saying there was a bomb in the
bathroom. The caller said if the employees did not bring money to him at the front
door, he would come into the restaurant and blow it up. The Belding Police Department
and Ionia County Sheriff Department searched the restaurant, but found no evidence of
a bomb in the area. The scene was cleared around 11 a.m. Authorities said this incident
is similar to a bomb threat that was called in July 21 at a Wal-Mart in Comstock Park.
In that instance, a man called the business, stating a bomb was in one of the store’s
bathrooms. The Alpine Township fire chief stated the caller may have made some kind
of demand for money as well.
Source: http://www.woodtv.com/dpp/news/local/central_mich/McD’s-evacuated-afterbomb-threat
25. July 25, Associated Press – (Iowa) Iowa City officials warn of foods tainted by
bacteria. The Linn and Johnson County public health departments in Iowa are warning
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the public not to eat guacamole, salsa, and uncooked tamales prepared by La Reyna
Supermarket and Taqueria of Iowa City if purchased before July 19. The products were
sold at farmers markets in Linn, Johnson and Dubuque counties and may be
contaminated with salmonella. Any guacamole, salsa and uncooked tamales should be
thrown away and not eaten. The salmonella investigation was initiated by Linn County
public health officials, and illnesses were traced to products produced by the restaurant
in Johnson County. The owners of La Reyna are fully cooperating in the public
notification and have taken steps to ensure the future safety of their products, officials
said.
Source: http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20100725/NEWS/100724022/1/GETPUBLISHED03scripts/Iowa-City-officials-warn-of-foods-tainted-by-bacteria
26. July 23, Food Safety News – (International) Report: Imported catfish human health
risk. According to a report from Exponent Inc.’s Center for Chemical Regulation and
Food Safety, eating contaminated catfish imported from Vietnam and China could have
“serious long-term human health consequences.” The report cites “major hazards”
associated with aquaculture fish, including pathogenic microorganisms, antimicrobial
drug residues, and environmental chemicals. The chairwoman of the Senate Agriculture
Committee, joined the group, Food & Water Watch, and the Catfish Farmers of
America in unveiling the report July 22 on Capitol Hill. She said she had been “loud
and clear” on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) delay in implementing
the catfish inspection rule, part of the 2008 Farm Bill, which shifted jurisdiction over
catfish safety from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to the USDA’s Food
Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS). The rule has yet to be implemented. The
proposed rule has languished in the Office of Management and Budget reportedly
because of objections raised by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative over
concerns that countries currently exporting catfish to the U.S. may not be able to meet
the food safety standards FSIS would require.
Source: http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2010/07/report-imported-catfish-humanhealth-risk/
27. July 23, Moultrie Observer – (Georgia) Fire destroys 2 warehouses at Mobley Plant
Co. A fire July 23 at Mobley Plant Company in Moultrie, Georgia consumed two
connected warehouses, but a company official said he expected the operation to be
back at work July 24. The column of black smoke was visible from North Main Street
about 1:30 p.m., shortly after county volunteer firefighters were called out. The
Northside VFD chief said seven or eight departments responded to battle the blaze. It
was about 6 p.m. before the fire was fully controlled because the collapsed building
prevented firefighters from getting in to put out the fire in the rubble. The fire started in
a breezeway between warehouses 2 and 3, although the cause hasn’t been determined.
The company plants seeds in Styrofoam trays then incubates them in this facility before
moving them into greenhouses. When the large quantities of Styrofoam caught fire, the
blaze spread quickly. No one was injured.
Source: http://moultrieobserver.com/local/x2105965576/Fire-destroys-2-warehousesat-Mobley-Plant-Co
- 11 -
For another story, see item 54
[Return to top]
Water Sector
28. July 26, Associated Press – (Maryland) Power restored at Md. plant, water use
restricted. The Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission said the power is back on
at its River Road filtration plant in Potomac, Maryland after heavy storms from July 25
had knocked it off line. The commission said Pepco restored power at the Potomac
Water Filtration Plant at about 5 a.m. July 26 and it would take a few hours for the
plant to return to full production. However, officials said mandatory water restrictions
are still in place for residential and commercial customers. They said that means don’t
use water outdoors, limit toilet flushing and washing machine use, and only use water
as necessary. The commission said it wants to ensure there is appropriate water
pressure available to use for firefighting. The plant provides about 70 percent of the
water for the water utility’s 1.8 million customers in Montgomery and Prince George’s
counties.
Source: http://wjz.com/wireapnewsmd/Power.restored.at.2.1824661.html
29. July 26, Chicago Sun Times – (Illinois) Flood: Adding up the damage. Residents in
Westchester and other deluged areas of Chicago and suburbs mucked out July 25 from
the worst flooding in years, as municipal leaders scrambled to peg a dollar amount on
damages to get federal disaster funds. Officials in the west suburb blame torrential rains
Friday night and early Saturday for bursting the banks of Addison Creek,
overwhelming the village’s aged sewage system and causing some of the worst
flooding in 33 years. The heavy rains brought the same kind of havoc to Cicero, other
west suburbs and pockets of the city. Cleanup continued in Chicago and suburbs July
25 after torrential rains dumped an estimated 60 billion gallons of water on the area.
According to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District, all 190 miles of the Deep
Tunnel system filled quickly, forcing the district to open floodgates in Wilmette and on
the Chicago River to release stormwater into Lake Michigan. The action caused
officials to impose a swimming ban July 25 and 26 at Chicago beaches.
Source: http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/2533448,CST-NWS-flood26.article
30. July 24, DeKalb Daily Chronicle – (Illinois) City well to be monitored. A DeKalb,
Illinois city well that is down the street from a chemical fire that occurred July 21 will
be monitored, but it is believed to be safe, according to a water department official. The
assistant director of public works was out on the scene of 234 Harvestore Drive July
23, he said. That is where a tank full of chemicals Right Pointe Company uses to
manufacture construction materials caught fire July 21, injuring one worker. A city
well is west of the Right Pointe property, near the water tower on the corner of
Harvestore and Corporate drives, the assistant director said. Because the chemicals
were contained to the property and the well is confined, it is believed the hazardous
materials will pose no threat to the water supply, he said. “The potential for any
- 12 -
contamination due to this or any other kind of containment spill would be rare.”
Source: http://www.daily-chronicle.com/articles/2010/07/23/55362649/index.xml
31. July 24, Lafayette Advertiser – (Louisiana) La. DEQ charges plant owner. The owner
of several Acadiana wastewater treatment plants has been arrested by the Louisiana
Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) for allegedly failing to maintain those
facilities and allowed polluted discharges to be released into the community. The man,
58, of Opelousas, is facing 12 felony charges in connection with suspected violations at
six facilities in St. Landry Parish. According to a DEQ news release, the man allegedly
violated state permits by not providing monitoring results, causing or allowing
unpermitted discharges, and failing to provide proper operation and maintenance for
the St. Landry Parish facilities. “Testing showed the water being discharged contained
higher-than-acceptable levels of fecal coliform and total suspended solids,” said a DEQ
spokesman. “When [the accused] stopped testing, the facilities were not properly
maintained or operated, so it is likely that the levels of fecal coliform and totals
suspended solids continued to be above acceptable levels.” The charges announced July
23 are in addition to 15 felony counts the man is facing in connection with alleged
violations at six Plaisance Development Corp. facilities in Evangeline Parish. DEQ
agents arrested the same man in Opelousas in February for similar violations, including
not monitoring results, allowing unpermitted discharges and failing to properly
maintain wastewater treatment serving six subdivisions. His trial on those charges is
scheduled for September 27.
Source: http://www.theadvertiser.com/article/20100724/NEWS01/7240333/La-DEQcharges-plant-owner
For another story, see item 60
[Return to top]
Public Health and Healthcare Sector
32. July 26, Federal News Radio – (District of Columbia) Power outage closes multiple
NIH facilities. Due to power disruptions, the following National Institutes of Health
(NIH) facilities were closed July 26 in Washington, D.C.: 6100 and 6006 Executive
Boulevard, Rockledge 2, 6610 Rockledge Dr., Democracy 1 and 2, GDC Warehouse,
6700B Rockledge, 5635 Fishers Lane, 9800 Medical Center Drive. All other NIH
facilities are open with a normal operating status. However, due to traffic light outages
and general commuter safety issues across the metropolitan area, supervisors at all NIH
facilities are encouraged to discuss telework opportunities with employees who do not
take public transportation.
Source: http://www.federalnewsradio.com/?nid=35&sid=2011580
33. July 24, Palm Beach Post – (Florida) Power restored at Bethesda Hospital in
Boynton Beach after surge knocks out air conditioning. An all-day air conditioning
outage and power problems at Bethesda Memorial Hospital in Boynton Beach Florida
left patients and staff stifling there in heat July 24. One caller to The Palm Beach Post
- 13 -
reported that her relative, recovering from major surgery, was laid up in a dark room
with no lights, no television, and no ability to open her room window. As night fell, the
hospital’s “EMERGENCY” sign off South Seacrest Boulevard glowed red, but the
dark-glass building above it remained black. A spokesman for Florida Power & Light,
said July 24 he received a call about 10 p.m. reporting power had been restored.
Bethesda’s generator system kicked in as it should have, however, with no disruption
for patients on lifesaving electric equipment, and no disruption in essential medical
care. A handful of elective surgeries had to be rescheduled and some equipment
malfunctioned in the warmer indoor temperatures. But the kitchens continued to
function and patients were fed warm meals.
Source: http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/power-restored-at-bethesda-hospital-inboynton-beach-821654.html
For another story, see item 4
[Return to top]
Government Facilities Sector
34. July 26, CTV news; Associated Press; Canadian Press – (International) NATO allies
fear fallout of leaked Afghan war docs. Several European NATO members have
expressed concern that the fallout from a massive online leak of confidential U.S.
documents on the Afghan war could extend well beyond the Internet — and could even
affect the war itself. The U.S. records cover six years of the war in Afghanistan,
including previously unknown accounts of civilian deaths and targeted attacks on
Taliban members. “A lot of it is mundane, but a lot of it is also very serious, on-theground, battlefield reports about the situation in the war, and right now it doesn’t seem
like it is matching the narrative that is coming out of the Pentagon,” a freelance
journalist told CTV’s Canada AM during an interview in Toronto July 26. Some
reports, for example, reveal that the Taliban “apparently have surface-to-air missiles,
which contradicts everything we’ve heard from the Pentagon about the kind of
weaponry that’s being seen in the field,” said the journalist, who has reported in
Afghanistan in the past. So far, NATO has declined comment on the release of the U.S.
documents. But representatives from NATO member countries said they hope the leaks
do not pose problems for the current war effort. The German foreign minister warned
that “backlashes” could result from the 91,000 records posted online by the WikiLeaks
organization July 25. The British foreign secretary said that with recent progress being
made in Afghanistan, he hoped “any such leaks will not poison that atmosphere.”
Source: http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/World/20100726/wikileaks-nato-concerns100726/
35. July 26, Associated Press – (Hawaii) Crews close to containing fire near Makua
base. Fire crews have mostly contained a wildfire burning near the U.S. Army’s Makua
Military Reservation in Hawaii on the island of Oahu. An Army spokesman said crews
expect to have the fire encircled July 26. The blaze has consumed about 200 acres since
it was first reported around 2 p.m. July 24. About 50 personnel from several agencies,
- 14 -
including the Honolulu Fire Department, the U.S. Army, and U.S. Marine Corps are
fighting the blaze. Eight helicopters were also called in to help, but only five were
being used late July 25. Because the fire is burning in rugged cliffs near the reservation,
no structures are threatened. But the spokesman said some rare and endangered plants
are close to the fire. The fire was first reported near the Makua reservation entry gate
near Farrington Highway. It is not known what sparked the blaze, but officials said no
Army training activity was taking place at the time.
Source: http://www.kpua.net/news.php?id=20520
36. July 23, Platts – (Nevada) U.S. DOE lacks master plan for Yucca Mountain
shutdown: IG report. The U.S. Department of Energy has not developed a master
plan to coordinate the shutdown of a project to build a geological repository for spent
fuel and nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain in Nevada, the agency’s Office of Inspector
General (OIG) said in a report released July 23. Dated July 21, the study noted that
department management had requested in March that OIG defer its audit of plans by
the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) to shut down the
project until a “master plan” for the shutdown could be developed. OIG met with
OCRWM officials again in June, when they were told that “the plan was not complete
and that events were moving so quickly that no further action on the master plan was
contemplated.” As a result, “we have decided not to restart our audit,” the Inspector
General said. “To help compensate for the lack of a master plan,” OCRWM officials
told OIG they had established “focus groups to manage shutdown activities,” the
Inspector General said. “Taken together, these efforts were significant; although they
did not, in our opinion, substitute for a master plan,” he said. OIG provided in its report
several “lessons learned” from terminations of other DOE projects. Attention and
oversight should particularly focus on disposition of personal property; maintaining
intellectual, scientific and technology property; and prime contractor and subcontractor
management issues, the Inspector General said.
Source:
http://www.platts.com/RSSFeedDetailedNews.aspx?xmlpath=RSSFeed/HeadlineNews/
Nuclear/3881551.xml
[Return to top]
Emergency Services Sector
37. July 25, Saratogian – (New York) Saratoga County 911 dispatch service restored
after phone outage. The phone lines at the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Department have
been repaired and all 911 calls are again being handled by the 911 dispatch center in
Saratoga County, New York. Service was restored at about 6:30 a.m. July 24, a
Saratoga County Sheriff’s Department spokesperson reported. Crews from Verizon had
been working to restore service since about 3:30 p.m. July 23 and the cause of the
outage is still unknown. Despite the disruption to the telephone lines, residents were in
no danger because when anyone in Saratoga County dialed 911, a Warren County
dispatcher would be available to answer the call, take the details and radio the
emergency to Saratoga County’s dispatchers. Then the Saratoga County staff would
- 15 -
dispatch the appropriate agencies. In addition, all of the county’s volunteer fire
departments keep staff on hand in case anyone drives or walks up to the station
thinking they can’t call 911 or has a problem getting through.
Source:
http://www.saratogian.com/articles/2010/07/25/news/doc4c4a064a89c6d237715330.txt
38. July 24, Bay City Times – (Michigan) Bay County to install two new warning siren
systems in Bay City and Bangor Township. Plans to install two new siren towers in
Bay City, Michigan will allow residents and visitors outside of the downtown area to
hear the emergency warning system. The Bay County 911 director said the county will
install new towers with speakers in the area of Center and Lincoln in Bay City and near
the Bay City State Recreation Area in Bangor Township. The systems cost about
$39,000 and 911 millage money will fund the project. The sirens are activated by 911
dispatchers when needed in an emergency, such as if there is a tornado warning. Those
in the area will hear a loud siren sound. There already is a warning system installed
near the Bay County Community Center in Veterans Memorial Park. That system has a
siren, as well as a digital system allowing dispatchers to make announcements. The two
new towers will not have voice announcement capability. The emergency management
coordinator and Bay County 911 director decided to put one siren at Center and
Lincoln so the warning could be heard on both sides of the Saginaw River, throughout
Bay City, in some nearby townships, and in Essexville. The second siren will be placed
at the state park to warn campers.
Source: http://www.mlive.com/news/baycity/index.ssf/2010/07/bay_county_to_install_two_new.html
39. July 24, Associated Press – (Illinois) Flooding, power outages hit Cook County
Jail. Flooding and power outages have disrupted operations at Cook County Jail in
Chicago and the county’s criminal courthouse. A spokesman for the Cook County
Sheriff’s Department said July 24 that several areas of the jail were under water and
unusable. The flooding, coupled with temporary outages in the courthouse, forced all
bond hearings to be held elsewhere. The jail’s tunnel system also took on water. The
tunnels are used to transport inmates. The elevator shafts in one maximum security
division were also flooded, meaning inmates there would not be able to have visitors.
The jail’s Cermak Hospital was only handling emergencies July 24. The spokesman
normal operations were expected to resume later in the weekend as long as there is no
more rain.
Source: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-il-cookcountyjailfl,0,2012317.story
40. July 24, Alachua County Today – (Florida) Lightning strike a close call for Alachua
Police Department. The City of Alachua, Florida narrowly avoided a disaster July 22
when a lightning strike severed telephone communications at the Alachua Police
Department (APD), including communications for the City’s emergency dispatchers,
for about five hours. Normally, all 911 calls go through the Alachua County Combined
Communications Center (CCC) and are then transferred or communicated to Alachua’s
dispatchers through telephone lines. But when the lightning strike took down telephone
- 16 -
communications at about 2 p.m., APD was left using cell phones and radios. Because
APD upgraded its radio systems to a standardized 800 MHz earlier this year, Alachua’s
dispatchers were able to communicate with the CCC, and the Center was able to
monitor Alachua’s radio frequencies and dispatch officers.
Source:
http://www.alachuacountytoday.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id
=850:lightning-strike-a-close-call-for-alachua-policedepartment&catid=102:local&Itemid=426
41. July 22, KTUU 2 Anchorage – (Alaska) Alaska delegation asks feds to replace lost
Coast Guard helicopter. Alaska’s congressional delegation has sent a letter to the
Department of Homeland Security Secretary, requesting funding to replace a lost Coast
Guard helicopter. The MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter assigned to Air Station Sitka crashed
earlier this month off La Push, Washington, killing three crewmen. “Alaska has more
coastline than any other state in the nation. The loss of a helicopter from Air Station
Sitka reduces the ability of the Coast Guard to respond to maritime emergencies and
places Alaska’s commercial and recreational boating public at increased risk,” the
delegation said in the letter. The Coast Guard has said it will temporarily shift a
helicopter to Sitka from the Lower 48, but the delegation argues that moving a chopper
from another location will only create an additional resource gap elsewhere.
Source: http://www.ktuu.com/Global/story.asp?S=12857979
For another story, see item 46
[Return to top]
Information Technology Sector
42. July 26, Homeland Security NewsWire – (International) New report: Apple software
has the most vulnerabilities. A new report from security software provider Secunia
finds that the latest data shows Apple has surpassed Oracle and even Microsoft with
accounting for the most software vulnerabilities, though the No. 1 ranking is related
only to the number of vulnerabilities — not to how risky they are or how fast they get
patched. The report offers support to the notion that a high market share correlates with
a high number of vulnerabilities. Since Mac OS accounts for only a small share of the
market, hackers have largely stayed away from it, probably figuring that the potential
for obtaining lucrative private information would be less rewarding than the
information that could be had by attacking Windows-based system.
Source: http://homelandsecuritynewswire.com/new-report-apple-software-has-mostvulnerabilities
43. July 25, Computerworld – (International) Mozilla re-patches Firefox 3.6 to fix plugin problem. For the second time in two months, Mozilla rushed out a fix for Firefox to
patch a problem with a browser update issued just days before. Mozilla shipped Firefox
3.6.8 July 23 to patch a single security problem and deal with what the director of
Firefox called “a stability problem that affected some pages with embedded plug-ins.”
- 17 -
The company had released Firefox 3.6.7 two days earlier. Mozilla patched one critical
security bug in the newest update, according to an advisory also published July 23. “In
certain circumstances, properties in the plug-in instance’s parameter array could be
freed prematurely, leaving a dangling pointer that the plug-in could execute, potentially
calling into attacker-controlled memory,” the warning read. The bug surfaced in one of
the 16 patches that Mozilla applied to Firefox earlier in the week. Details of that
vulnerability, and the stability problem that the Firefox director mentioned, were not
available to the public as of July 24. Several Firefox users, however, had filed
numerous reports to the browser’s support forum of problems with Adobe’s Flash
Player plug-in after updating to Firefox 3.6.7.
Source:
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9179638/Mozilla_re_patches_Firefox_3.6_to
_fix_plug_in_problem
44. July 23, IDG News Service – (International) Iran was prime target of SCADA
worm. Computers in Iran have been hardest hit by a dangerous computer worm that
tries to steal information from industrial control systems. According to data compiled
by Symantec, nearly 60 percent of all systems infected by the worm are located in Iran.
Indonesia and India have also been hard-hit by the malicious software, known as
Stuxnet. Looking at the dates on digital signatures generated by the worm, the
malicious software may have been in circulation since as long ago as January, said a
senior technical director with Symantec Security Response. Stuxnet was discovered last
month by VirusBlokAda, a Belarus-based antivirus company that said it found the
software on a system belonging to an Iranian customer. The worm seeks out Siemens
SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) management systems. Siemens
would not say how many customers it has in Iran, but the company now says that two
German companies have been infected by the virus. A free virus scanner posted by
Siemens the week of July 19 has been downloaded 1,500 times, a company spokesman
said.
Source:
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9179618/Iran_was_prime_target_of_SCADA
_worm?taxonomyId=85
45. July 23, IDG News Service – (International) Researcher finds Safari reveals personal
information. A feature in Apple’s Safari browser designed to make it easier to fill out
forms could be abused by hackers to harvest personal information, according to a
security researcher. Safari’s AutoFill feature is enabled by default and will fill in
information such as first and last name, work place, city, state, and e-mail address when
it recognizes a form, wrote the CTO for WhiteHat Security on his blog. The
information comes from Safari’s local operating system address book. The feature
dumps the data into the form even if a person has entered no data on a particular Web
site, which opens up an opportunity for a hacker. For some reason, data beginning with
numbers will not populate text fields and can not be obtained. “Still, such attacks could
be easily and cheaply distributed on a mass scale using an advertising network where
likely no one would ever notice because it’s not exploit code designed to deliver rootkit
payload,” he wrote. “In fact, there is no guarantee this has not already taken place.” He
- 18 -
reported the problem to Apple June 17, but he has yet to receive a personalized reply.
To avoid this issue, users can simply disable AutoFill Web forms, he wrote.
Source:
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9179580/Researcher_finds_Safari_reveals_pe
rsonal_information
Internet Alert Dashboard
To report cyber infrastructure incidents or to request information, please contact US-CERT at sos@us-cert.gov or
visit their Web site: http://www.us-cert.gov
Information on IT information sharing and analysis can be found at the IT ISAC (Information Sharing and
Analysis Center) Web site: https://www.it-isac.org
[Return to top]
Communications Sector
46. July 24, WIAT 42 Birmingham – (Alabama) Two men dead in tower collapse. Police
and the Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration are investigating a fatal
accident at Fort McClellan in Anniston, Alabama. Two men were killed when the radio
communications tower they were working on collapsed. The tower was located on
property leased to the Alabama National Guard at Alps Dr. on McClellan. Anniston
police said the tower collapsed when a vehicle snapped one of the cables keeping the
tower stabilized. Police did not release what kind of vehicle struck the tower, or who
was driving it. The tower involved in the incident is part of a system that provides
communication to personnel at Pelham Range through the Chemical Stockpile
Emergency Preparedness Program (CSEPP). According to a press release from the
Alabama National Guard, CSEPP provides funding to Alabama and the counties near
Anniston Army Depot, location of a chemical weapons stockpile, to improve
emergency response capabilities. A public affairs officer for the Alabama National
Guard said the incident in no way will impair emergency response, and several other
backup methods of communication are already in place.
Source: http://www.cbs42.com/content/localnews/story/Two-men-dead-in-towercollapse/aLJKBo5UPEyt_rC92CVGUA.cspx
47. July 24, Xinhua News – (International) Seacom says repairs successfully
completed. Seacom Inc. announced July 24 that it has successfully restored and tested
their submarine cable which has been down since July 5. In a statement, Seacom said
with the entire network now fully operational, its technical teams will continue to work
closely with customers to reinstate their Seacom traffic to pre-outage configurations
while an extensive investigation will take place to determine the exact cause of the
outage. The fault had mostly affected home users, as many businesses in the region
have no back-up plans for such faults. It was the second major outage the cable has
experienced since it went live last year. The outage had not affected traffic within
Africa, with most local Web sites still accessible. The cable, finished in 2009, connects
- 19 -
South Africa, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda and Mozambique to Europe and Asia.
Source: http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2010/07/24/4918314.htm
48. July 24, The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead – (North Dakota) Thousands hit by
CableOne phone, Internet outage. CableOne of Fargo, North Dakota said phone and
Internet service in the area was disrupted after a botched equipment update the week of
July 19, causing two days of outages affecting thousands of users. New equipment is
being sent, and crews had hoped to repair service by July 24 in most instances, the
general manager said. The installation of a new computer that is essentially a giant
router connecting homes to the wider Internet created the connection failures. The
upgrade gone awry was meant to increase the speed of Internet access. Phone service
was also affected because it is Internet based.
Source: http://www.inforum.com/event/article/id/285837/
49. July 23, Radio & Television Business Report – (Wisconsin) Wisconsin flooding
knocks WDJT-TV off air. Flood waters in Wisconsin July 22 and 23 knocked
Milwaukee’s CBS affiliate off the air, although a competitor came to the rescue.
Weigel Broadcasting’s WDJT-TV (CBS) was one casualty of the flooding in the
Milwaukee area. Broadcasting quickly resumed, however, with the station transmitting
on a digital multicast channel of Journal Broadcast Group’s WTMJ-TV (NBC).By July
24 Weigel had resumed its own transmission of WDJT, although it had moved
temporarily to a digital multicast of its Independent sister station, WBME-TV, licensed
to Racine, Wisconsin. In all, Weigel had four Milwaukee stations broadcasting from
that transmitter, with “MeTV” on channel 49.1, WMLW (Ind.) on 49.2, “CBS-58” on
49.3 and Telemundo Wisconsin on 49.4. WDJT was back on the air on its own
transmitter as Channel 58.1 July 25.
Source: http://www.rbr.com/tv-cable/26140.html
[Return to top]
Commercial Facilities Sector
50. July 26, Stockton Record – (California) Five hurt in S.J. boat explosion. A 22- to 24foot Four Winds cabin cruiser refueling at busy Bullfrog Landing on Lower Jones Tract
Island in San Joaquin County, California exploded July 25, burning five passengers and
requiring bystanders to aid victims and fight the fire. Seven passengers leaped out of
the flames onto the dock or into the water. Resort staffers and bystanders hurriedly
helped victims onto another boat and gave them ice to cool their burns. Others fought
the blaze with fire extinguishers and a water cannon. Staffers dragged the boat to the
end of the dock to minimize danger and property damage. Boat patrol deputies arrived
to find hysterical burn victims with first- and second-degree burns. Ambulances rushed
four of the burn victims to St. Joseph’s Medical Center and San Joaquin General
Hospital. A medical helicopter responded but was not used. The U.S. Coast Guard and
a Contra Costa County boat patrol also responded. The cabin cruiser was destroyed. A
marine tow service pulled it to a Bethel Island boatyard, where it was hauled out to
prevent toxic spills into the delta. The cause of the explosion is under investigation.
- 20 -
Source:
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100726/A_NEWS/7260309/1/NEWSMAP
51. July 25, New York Daily News – (New York) 160 firefighters at scene as Bronx
church is gutted by fire that spread to homeless shelter. A four-alarm fire tore
through a Bronx, New York, church early July 25 and spread to a homeless shelter next
door, forcing an evacuation of more than 220 people. Firefighters battled the blaze at a
three-alarm staffing level before officials called a fourth alarm to provide
reinforcements for those toiling in the humid morning air. With a total of 160
firefighters lending a hand, the fire was finally extinguished by about 3:30 a.m. The fire
left the church gutted, its stone exterior blackened with soot. The fire is under
investigation, but not thought to be suspicious.
Source: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2010/07/25/2010-0725_160_firefighters_at_scene_as_bronx_church_is_gutted_by_fire_that_spread_to_ho
mel.html
52. July 24, KATU 2 Portland – (Oregon) Pipe could have taken out Woodburn Inn. A
possible pipe bomb was discovered July 24 inside a Woodburn Inn motel room in
Woodburn, Oregon. Police said the owner of the bomb is a man already in local jail on
a warrant out of New Hampshire. Authorities said police learned the suspect had a
warrant for his arrest out of New Hampshire “for a threat of [a] bomb” after pulling
him over on “a routine traffic stop.” The pipe did not contain explosives when it was
found. However, it was blown up by state police as a precaution. The investigation
closed Oregon state highway 99 East in Woodburn until just after 3 p.m. Oregon State
Police bomb technicians responded to the scene. Six houses on Williams Street behind
the Woodburn Inn were evacuated, in addition to about 15 businesses in the
surrounding area.
Source: http://www.katu.com/news/local/99174224.html
53. July 24, Associated Press – (New York) Update: Tornado damages 18 condos in
western New York. A tornado tore through western New York July 24, ripping the
roof off a condominium, damaging 17 others and causing widespread power outages.
The National Weather Service said the twister touched down in Mayville in
Chautauqua County at 4:48 p.m. There were no reports of injuries. A National Grid
spokesman said the storm left 12,500 homes without power.
Source:
http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2010/07/tornado_rips_roof_off_home_in.htm
l
54. July 23, Associated Press – (Colorado; Utah) Utah man arrested in sheepskin store
fire. A man who has been arrested on suspicion of starting a fire that destroyed a
sheepskin store near Denver has been linked to two other fires in Utah, which destroyed
business he allegedly deemed were cruel to animals, police said. He was arrested July
22. Federal prosecutors have charged the 34-year-old with one count of arson in
connection with the fire at the Sheepskin Factory in Glendale, Colorado in April. He
- 21 -
has not been charged in the other fires. The susepct allegedly told a friend that he
started the fire that destroyed the Leather Factory in Salt Lake City in June and the
Tiburon Restaurant in Sandy, Utah, which served foie gras. A Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agent said he called a friend that he had not seen in
12 years and referred to a Web site associated with the Animal Liberation Front. A
posting on the Web site claimed responsibility for the fire in Glendale, saying it was
done “in defense and retaliation for all the innocent animals that have died cruelly at
the hands of human oppressors.” The posting also claimed responsibility for the fires in
Salt Lake City and contained the warning: “Be warned that making a living from the
use and abuse of animals will not be tolerated.” The FBI does not take such threats
lightly. “Terrorism in the name of animal rights is every bit as dangerous and
destructive as the other threats facing our country today,” said a Denver FBI special
agent in a statement. “The actions of [the suspect] resulted in significant property
damage and worse, could have resulted in the loss of life.”
Source: http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2010/07/23/general-us-sheepskin-factoryfire_7794200.html?boxes=Homepagebusinessnews
55. July 23, KING 5 Seattle – (Washington) Homemade explosive found in portable
toilet in Lakewood. Police evacuated a small apartment complex and several
businesses in Lakewood, Washington, after a device resembling a pipe bomb was
found in a portable toilet July 23. About 60 people had been evacuated from the nearby
apartment complex and businesses. A United Fite Services worker discovered the
explosive around 9:15 a.m. while cleaning a SaniCan on Tacoma Public Utilities
property next to a substation. The fuse had been lit but had not gone off. The worker
alerted police, then notified Tacoma Power, a subsidiary of Tacoma Public Utilities. A
Pierce County Sheriff’s Office bomb squad defused the device and removed it from the
Sanican. The Lakewood Police Department assistant chief said the device was not a
pipe bomb but a homemade explosive made from several items, including a roman
candle. Had it gone off, the explosive would have damaged the Sanican and injured
anyone in it.
Source: http://www.king5.com/news/local/Pipe-bomb-found-in-trash-bin-promptsevacuations-in-Lakewood-99115149.html
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National Monuments and Icons Sector
56. July 26, KPAX 8 Missoula – (Montana) Bitterroot fire grows to 100+ acres. Some 80
firefighters July 26 will begin helping crews battling a wildfire near Hamilton, Montana
that continues to burn. The Bitterroot National Forest Service reports that nearly 100
acres have been consumed in the Dominic Point area. The fire is located 12 miles
northeast of Hamilton, just 2 miles west of Willow Mountain Lookout. There are 20
firefighters and four engines battling it, along with four helicopters which are
performing water drops. Four planes are also assisting in the efforts. Bitterroot National
Forest officials said all of their available crews are fighting the blaze. The cause of the
fire is unknown at this time, but it may be a holdover fire which was sparked by last
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week’s lightning storm.
Source: http://www.krtv.com/news/bitterroot-fire-grows-to-100-acres/
57. July 26, Associated Press – (Wyoming) Fire in Yellowstone 72%
contained. Firefighters are making progress containing a blaze burning near the center
of Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. The fire has burned about 520 acres and is
now 72 percent contained. Firefighters July 26 plan to put out spot fires burning along
the northern edge of the fire. Helicopters will continue to help put out the fire from the
air. The weather could cause problems later in the day when thunderstorms and gusty
winds are expected.
Source: http://www.khq.com/Global/story.asp?S=12866062
58. July 25, WKYT 27 Lexington – (Kentucky) Water service returned to state
park. Carter Caves, a state park near Olive Hill in Carter County, Kentucky, was
without water for a few days after flooding the week of July 19. Service was restored
this weekend allowing the park’s lodge, cottages and restaurant to reopen. The pool
will be back in service later in the week. The park’s campground, stables, golf course,
welcome center and mini-golf course remained open during the water outage.
Source: http://www.wkyt.com/news/headlines/99209653.html?ref=653
59. July 25, Plumas County News – (California) 1,700 acre fire burning out of control in
Lassen County. While many resources are being dispatched to handle the Constantia
Fire near Doyle, California, the recent lightning activity has caused dozens of smaller
fires in outlying areas around Lassen County, according to a Susanville Interagency
Fire Center (SIFC) public information officer. As of 6:30 p.m. July 25, there were
roughly 56 lightning-caused fires across several areas of SIFC’s jurisdiction district.
The largest of the fires is currently bheing labed as “3-9,” a roughly 50-acre fire located
approximately 15 miles northwest of Eagle Lake. The public information officer said
an incident command team has been assigned to the fire and should have resources set
up by 8 a.m. July 26. As for the other fires in the region, there are currently five being
addressed by the Cal Fire personnel assigned to Susanville, 17 being handled by Cal
Fire units near Bieber, and one by Cal Fire units in Alturas. On the Lassen National
Forest side, seven fires are being dealt with in the Hat Creek Ranger District, three in
the Eagle Lake Ranger District and five in the LNF’s Lake Almanor District. The
Bureau of Land Management’s West Valley District has also reported 13 fires, with
two fires seen in the Ravendale area.
Source: http://www.plumasnews.com/index.php/home/7162-1700-acre-fire-burningout-of-control-in-lassen-county
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Dams Sector
60. July 26, Associated Press – (Iowa) Iowa flooding causes millions in
damage. Flooding from the Maquoketa River after the Lake Delhi dam failed has
damaged dozens of homes and businesses, causing millions of dollars in damage in
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Monticello, Iowa officials said July 25. The dam in eastern Iowa failed July 24 as rising
flood water from the Maquoketa River ate a 30-foot-wide hole in it. Areas below the
dam, including Hopkinton and Monticello, were evacuated. Officials estimated that
8,000 people were affected by the floods, but no injuries were reported. “It is simply
unbelievable. This is unprecedented. We’ve had floods before and we’ve always been
able to contain the situation and minimize the damage, “said the president of the board
of directors at the Lake Delhi Recreation Association. “There was simply too much
water.” The river crested upstream of the dam at Manchester early Saturday afternoon
at 24.53 feet — more than 10 feet above flood stage and well above its 2004 record of
21.66 feet — before it began to slowly recede. About 50 homes and 20 businesses had
major flood damage and the city’s sewer plant was flooded and shut down about 7 p.m.
July 24. Most of the city’s 3,700 residents could flush their toilets, but waste was
pouring into the river. Still, environmental damage shouldn’t be great because the
waste was being diluted by the floodwater. Damage to private property will probably
be in the millions of dollars, the public works director said. The cost of repairing the
sewer plant will not be known until workers can get inside to assess the damage. Pumps
from the Army Corps of Engineers and the city were being put into the city’s main
sewer lines to try to keep water out of residents’ basements. The hydroelectric dam on
the Maquoketa River that created Lake Delhi in the 1920s is no longer used for power
but maintains the lake for recreational purposes.
Source:
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2010/07/26/iowa_flooding_causes_million
s_in_damage/
61. July 24, KCRG 9 Cedar Rapids – (Iowa) Part of Cascade evacuates, city makes sand
levee. The City of Cascade, Iowa, built a man made levee out of sand about 6 to 7 feet
high on Buchanan Street July 24. Part of the town has been evacuated. About 20 to 25
homes would have been directly impacted had the dike broke. City officials said the
river is at record high levels. The city had continuous truckloads of sand hauled in to
try to protect the levee throughout the day. “We continued to reinforce it during the day
because the river kept rising. We were hoping it would crest early this morning but it
never did, so we had to keep reinforcing because it kept going higher,” said the fire
chief.
Source: http://www.kcrg.com/news/local/Part-of-Cascade-Evacuates-City-MakesSand-Levee--99177159.html
For another story, see item 29
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