Homeland
Security
Current Nationwide
Threat Level
ELEVATED
Daily Open Source Infrastructure
Report for 3 June 2010
Significant Risk of Terrorist Attacks
For information, click here:
http://www.dhs.gov
Top Stories
•
•
Network World reports that cyber attacks, pandemics and electromagnetic disturbances are
the three top “high impact” risks to the U.S. and Canadian power-generation grids,
according to a report from the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC). (See
item 2)
The New New Internet stated that phishers are looking into different ways of reaching new
recruits of cyber criminals by casting their nets onto social networking sites, creating
special Facebook groups for their work-at-home scams, according to Kaspersky Lab. (See
item 16)
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]
1. June 2, WAOW 9 Wassau – (National) BP says new efforts could stop leak by
today. Day 44 sounds like deja vu along the Gulf Coast: A new effort is underway this
morning that could cap the oil leak by later Wednesday. First BP has to cut open the
pipeline and that’s doing much more damage to the environment. The slick is expected
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to reach Florida beaches as soon as Wednesday. In an attempt to reach out to anyone
who can help, the Feds have met with the director of the Avatar and Titanic films, who
is considered an expert in deepwater technology. BP believes the oil gushing into the
Gulf now for more than 40 days could be contained as soon as today. Undersea robots
continue to slice into the pipeline’s thick casing 5,000 feet underwater. A cap will be
fitted over it to siphon the oil to the surface. BP’s chief operating officer says: “This is
our third containment system we’ve deployed. We learned a lot from that, and we’ve
applied all the learning from those two to this system, and that’s why I’m actually
pretty confident it’ll work.”
Source: http://www.waow.com/Global/story.asp?S=12579531
2. June 2, Network World – (National) Cyberattacks seen as top threat to zap U.S.
power grid. Cyber attacks, pandemics and electromagnetic disturbances are the three
top “high impact” risks to the U.S. and Canadian power-generation grids, according to
a report from the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC). “The specific
concern with respect to these threats is the targeting of multiple key nodes in the
system, if damaged, destroyed or interrupted in a coordinated fashion, could bring the
system outside the protection provided by traditional planning and operating criteria,”
states the report, “High-Impact, Low-Frequency Risk to the North American Bulk
Power System.” The contents of the 118-page report are largely the result of closeddoor discussions held since November by NERC (which plays a key role in setting
security standards for the U.S. power grid), power providers and U.S. government
officials.
Source: http://www.networkworld.com/news/2010/060210-nerc-cyberattack-powergrid.html?hpg1=bn
3. June 1, USA Today – (International) Undersea oil pipelines vulnerable to
hurricanes. As the 2010 hurricane season officially got underway Tuesday, a new
report said underwater oil pipelines in the Gulf are extremely vulnerable to strong
currents and waves from the hurricanes that roar by above. The findings, based on data
obtained during Hurricane Ivan’s savage tear across the Gulf of Mexico in 2004, will
appear in an upcoming edition of Geophysical Research Letters, a journal of the
American Geophysical Union. The study found that the 31,000 miles of pipelines along
the seafloor of the Gulf could crack or rupture unless they are buried or their supporting
foundations are built to withstand hurricane-induced currents. “Major oil leaks from
damaged pipelines could have irreversible impacts on the ocean environment,” the
authors wrote. Researchers got a unique look at what a hurricane can do underwater
during Ivan, a Category-4 hurricane with wind speeds of more than 130 mph in the
Gulf. Ivan passed over a network of sensors on the ocean floor. The study’s
calculations are the first to show that hurricanes propel underwater currents with
enough force to dig up the seabed as far as almost 300 feet below the surface,
potentially creating underwater mudslides and damaging pipes and other equipment
that rest on the bottom.
Source: http://www.usatoday.com/weather/storms/hurricanes/2010-06-01-oilhurricanes_N.htm
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4. June 1, Great Falls Tribune – (Montana) Billings power plant fire causes $100,000 in
damage. A fire broke out in a Billings, Montana, power plant and caused $100,000 in
damage. Nobody was injured in the blaze that started Monday evening at PPL
Montana’s Corette plant. PPL Montana’s director of external affairs said the plant had
been shut down for about three weeks for annual maintenance. Sparks from welders
may have ignited some material. The fire won’t delay the plant’s reopening, but PPL
declined to say when it would be back online.
Source: http://www.greatfallstribune.com/article/20100601/NEWS01/100601001
For another story, see item 10
[Return to top]
Chemical Industry Sector
5. June 2, Occupational Health and Safety – (New Jersey) Chlorine release at plant
leads to chemical hazards charges. OSHA has cited Infineum USA L.P. for 22
workplace safety violations, including exposing employees to chemical hazards, at the
company’s facility in Linden, New Jersey Proposed penalties total $88,500. The agency
initiated its inspection Nov. 24, 2009, in response to a complaint related to a chlorine
release at the facility. As a result of the inspection, the company has received citations
for violations related to a deficient process safety management (PSM) system. Among
the hazards observed by OSHA inspectors was Infineum’s failure to establish and
implement written procedures required to manage any changes to technology, facilities,
equipment, and procedures that can potentially impact a chemical process. The PSM is
intended to prevent or minimize the consequences of a catastrophic release of toxic,
reactive, flammable, or explosive chemicals from a process. A process is any activity or
combination of activities including any use, storage, manufacturing, handling, or the
on-site movement of highly hazardous chemicals. Infineum manufactures petroleum
additives and has 262 employees at the Linden site. The company has 15 business days
from receipt of the citations to comply, request an informal conference with the OSHA
area director, or contest the citations and proposed penalties before the independent
Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
Source: http://ohsonline.com/articles/2010/06/02/chlorine-release-at-gas-plant.aspx
6. June 2, Northwest Aginfo Net – (National) New anti-terrorism security measure
developed for fertilizer dealers. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has
introduced a new security measure for chemical facilities and it could eventually
directly impact producers. The new Personnel Surety program would apply to chemical
facilities regulated under the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards. That
includes fertilizer manufacturers and agricultural retailers. The president of member
services for the Fertilizer Institute, said agricultural producers are currently exempt
from the program’s regulations but that is only temporary. She said DHS’s decisions
could make a big difference given that it is not unusual for example, for producers to
come to a facility to fill up the nurse tank with ammonia. “What we have tried to
explain to DHS is that normally farmers do not load the tank themselves. An employee
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of the facility would load the tank. At that point we feel they should be considered
escorted. Now on the other hand, if there is no employee there, would the facility be
required to stop the producer from entering that area until somebody returns, or is a
retailer going to have to tell his farmer customer that we are going to have to submit
your name to the terrorist-creating database and have you cleared so that if you do
come in and no one is there it doesn’t create a violation for us?” She said retailers do no
like that approach.
Source: http://www.aginfo.net/index.cfm/event/report/id/Northwest-Farm-and-RanchReport-16540
7. June 1, Waste and Recycling News – (Texas) Chemical firm pleads guilty, apologizes
for violations. A chemical company has pleaded guilty to environmental violations at
its Freeport, Texas, facility and offered apologies for its past conduct. “This situation
has been embarrassing for our company, and we apologize to our employees, customers
and the community for the concern it has caused. This does not represent the high
standards we strive to meet every day,” said the president of Gulf Chemical &
Metallurgical Corp. “By agreeing to this plea, we accept responsibility as a company
for what happened in the past, and more importantly it allows us to move forward to
implement measures to ensure that we are never in this position again. We look forward
to earning back the trust of all of our stakeholders.” GCMC agreed to plead guilty to 11
felony violations of the Texas Water Code dating from June 2007 through January
2008 and to pay a fine of $2.75 million for violations at its catalyst recycling plant. The
company has agreed to continue upgrades to the plant´s wastewater treatment
systems. According to published media reports, the company was accused of
manipulating pollutant discharge reports to make it seem the plant´s discharges met
legal limits. Additionally at the plant, the company has begun construction on a new
sulfur dioxide abatement system which will reduce SO2 emissions by at least 95
percent and will dramatically reduce emissions of particulate matter, officials said.
GCMC recycles spent petroleum catalysts including molybdenum, vanadium, nickel,
cobalt and various alumina products. The company, which also produces ferroalloys,
has been in business since 1946.
Source:
http://www.wasterecyclingnews.com/headlines2.html?id=1275405285&allowcomm=tr
ue
For another story, see item 45
[Return to top]
Nuclear Reactors, Materials and Waste Sector
8. June 2, York Daily Record – (National) NRC takes up groundwater contamination
issues. Tritium leaks discovered at two nuclear-powered plants across the nation have
contributed to a review by U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on how the
federal agency may improve its approach in dealing with groundwater contamination.
Earlier this year, officials at Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station in Vermont
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notified the NRC that tritium had been found in one of the plant’s groundwater
monitoring well. In March, Entergy, the owner of the plant, found that the
contamination had hailed from a leaking underground pipe vault. Last year, officials at
Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station in New Jersey found that two small leaks
from underground pipes were to blame for its tritium leak. In response the
contamination issues found at the two plants, the NRC formed a task force whose
mission is to create new recommendations on how to better deal with groundwater
contamination, an NRC spokesman said. “One of the areas that the task force is looking
at is underground piping,” he said. “The new recommendations may include the
increased monitoring of the wells to allow for earlier detection.” The new
recommendations, if approved by the NRC, will be added to existing set of federal
regulations governing groundwater contamination.
Source: http://www.ydr.com/ci_15205441?IADID=Search-www.ydr.comwww.ydr.com
9. June 1, WHTM 27 Harrisburg – (Pennsylvania) Three Mile Island to send corrected
evacuation plan. A Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, woman picked up a mistake on an
important piece of information sent out by Exelon Nuclear. The woman, who is from
Swatara Township, got a mailer from Exelon which contained among other things,
emergency evacuation routes from Three Mile Island (TMI). She decided to read
through it and noticed that the evacuation route from Conewago Township, Dauphin
County was wrong. “Well I was familiar with the names of roads in York County and
grew up in Conewago Township in Dauphin County,” she said. “So I realized they
were York County roads.” The brochure had the Conewago, York County evacuation
route for both Conwago’s. Three Mile Island will be sending out a corrected brochure
to the Conewago Township and Dauphin County residents, and the telephone books
that will be coming in the next few months will now contain the correct information.
“We regret that it happened,” said a TMI spokesman.” We appreciate the citizen that
brought it to our attention. We called her and left her a message thanking her for that
information.”
Source: http://www.whtm.com/news/stories/0610/741837.html
10. June 1, The Wall Sreet Journal – (National) Atomic waste gets ‘temporary’
home. Three months after the U.S. canceled a plan to build a vast nuclear-waste
repository in Nevada, the country’s ad hoc atomic-storage policy is becoming clear in
places like Wiscasset, Maine. Wiscasset doesn’t even have a nuclear-energy plant
anymore. The Maine Yankee facility was shuttered back in 1996 after developing
problems too costly to fix, and the reactor was dismantled early this decade. What’s left
is a bare field of 167 acres cleared and ready for development — except for one thing.
Left behind are 64 enormous steel-and-concrete casks that hold 542 metric tons of
radioactive waste. Seventeen feet tall and 150 tons apiece, the casks are protected by
razor wire, cameras and a security force. Casks like these are the power industry’s
biggest hot potatoes. Their presence at a defunct reactor site like Wiscasset’s
underscores the intractability of the nuclear-waste problem confronting the power
sector and the failure of U.S. policymakers to find a permanent solution. Meant for
temporary storage next to energy plants, these containers are now serving as de facto
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indefinite repositories around America.
Source:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704717004575269111331754570.htm
l?mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLENexttoWhatsNewsThird
[Return to top]
Critical Manufacturing Sector
11. June 1, Consumer Affairs – (National) 2010 Ford Escape, Fusion & Mercury Milan
recalled. Ford is recalling certain Ford Escape, Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan
vehicles from the 2010 model year. The company said that affected vehicles with
automatic transmissions may not have the correct park rod guide retention pin, which
could allow the vehicle to roll away while parked. Ford will notify owners and dealers
will repair the vehicles free of charge. Owners may contact Ford at 1-866-436-7332
about Recall No. 10C12.
Source: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/recalls04/2010/ford_mercury.html
12. June 1, Washington Free Press – (National) NHTSA probes Fusion, Milan floor
mats. U.S. auto safety regulators have opened an investigation into 2010 Ford Fusion
and Mercury Milan sedans over three complaints of all-weather floor mats trapping
accelerator pedals – a problem behind part of Toyota’s recent recalls. The National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration said the probe of 249,301 sedans does not
include any complaints of accidents or injuries. One of the complaints came from the
director of testing for automotive site Edmunds.com, who made a video in April
showing how the rubber mat stacked on top of a regular floor mat could trap the pedal
down. The director who worked as an engineer for Hyundai and Toyota before joining
the site, said he had removed the mats from a 2010 Fusion Hybrid test vehicle, but that
they had been put back in by an attendant at either a car wash or body shop. He told
NHTSA the Fusion’s accelerator stuck for three to four seconds while he was driving,
and that after he drove to work he videotaped the pedal and mat. A Ford spokesman
said the automaker warns customers on the mats themselves and in instructions that
come with them to remove the regular floor mat before using the thicker, rubber mat.
The all-weather mat has two prominent holes for retaining hooks.
Source:
http://www.freep.com/article/20100601/BUSINESS01/100601015/1320/NHTSAprobes-Fusion-Milan-floor-mats
[Return to top]
Defense Industrial Base Sector
13. June 2, Spacewar.com – (National) Boeing team ships first SBSS spacecraft to
launch site. Boeing and its teammate Ball Aerospace and Technologies has announced
that the first Space Based Space Surveillance (SBSS) system satellite has been shipped
to Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, and is scheduled to launch on July 8. The
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SBSS space vehicle was shipped to Vandenberg after completing a final factory
functional checkout. It is currently undergoing final preparations for integration with its
assigned Minotaur IV launch vehicle, while the team prepares for the mission dress
rehearsal and on-orbit operations. The SBSS system passed a U.S. Air Force Mission
Readiness Review this past September, demonstrating that it met requirements and was
ready for a scheduled launch on October 30. A hardware issue with the Minotaur IV
rocket forced the Air Force to postpone launch until this summer. The Air Force led an
effort to resolve the issue, and the first Minotaur IV was successfully launched from
Vandenberg on April 22. The SBSS team maintained mission readiness during the
delay by performing risk-reduction tasks that included additional operations exercises
at Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado, and testing at Ball Aerospace facilities. The
team also initiated software enhancements to improve system performance. Once on
orbit, the SBSS system will provide significantly improved capabilities to track and
monitor satellites, debris, and other objects in space that can threaten U.S. space assets
that provide communications, navigation, weather forecasting, security, and other
services.
Source:
http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Boeing_Team_Ships_First_SBSS_Spacecraft_To_L
aunch_Site_999.html
[Return to top]
Banking and Finance Sector
14. June 2, Courthouse News Service – (National) Credit union demands $42 million,
claims Fannie Mae bought ‘stolen’ mortgages. Fannie Mae refuses to return $42
million worth of “stolen” mortgages to Suffolk Federal Credit Union, the credit union
claims in Federal Court. The credit union, which says its members are “predominantly
blue collar workers from Suffolk County, New York ... including firefighters, police
officers, emergency medical technicians, social services workers, and other low to
middle income employees,” claims Fannie Mae had its head in the sand when it bought
the stolen mortgages, and now refuses to return them. Suffolk claims U.S. Mortgage
Corp. and its CEO, along with another U.S. Mortgage employee, serviced its mortgage
loans, but “signed loan transfer documents that falsely identified themselves as
executives of Suffolk.” Suffolk claims the CEO then sold the loans to Fannie Mae,
which never checked his authority to execute such documents on behalf of the credit
union. “Fannie Mae ignored obvious signs of falsified financial statements, payment
irregularities, commingling of funds, and dangerously speculative securities trading, all
of which pointed to a situation ripe for fraud,” Suffolk claims. Even after the CEO
pleaded guilty to stealing the mortgages, Suffolk says, Fannie Mae refused to return
them, claiming it bought the loans fair and square in good faith. But the credit union
insists that the law states, “purchasers of negotiable instruments who stick their heads
in the sand cannot claim ownership of stolen property.”
Source: http://www.courthousenews.com/2010/06/02/27729.htm
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15. June 2, KMTR 16 Eugene – (Oregon) Scam Alert: fake “Umpqua Bank” phone calls
demand personal info. Scammers are targeting Umpqua Bank account holders with a
new phone scam, starting with hundreds in Douglas County, Oregon. The Douglas
County Sheriff’s Office says hundreds of residents began receiving the phone calls over
the Memorial Day weekend, starting on Saturday, May 29th, 2010. The calls were
claiming to be from “Umpqua Bank.” An automated message on the phone claims the
customer’s debit or credit card has been deactivated, asking customers to press one on
their phone, then to enter in personal information. The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office
and Umpqua Bank say the phone calls are a scam. Scammers involved in this most
recent phone fraud case ask for debit and credit card numbers, also Social Security car
numbers and other information.
Source: http://www.kmtr.com/news/local/story/Scam-Alert-fake-Umpqua-Bank-phonecalls-demand/ZbiCPMcQ90Or7Ij9oxRI2Q.cspx
16. June 1, The New New Internet – (International) Facebook used to find money
mules. Phishers are looking into different ways of reaching new recruits of cyber
criminals by casting their nets onto social networking sites, creating special Facebook
groups for their work-at-home scams, according to Kaspersky Lab. Far from a novel
idea, phishers have been using social networks for years to find new recruits. Now, the
scammers have created Facebook groups specifically dedicated to the work-at-home
scams that often serve as recruitment schemes for money mules. One such group has
almost 225,000 members on Facebook, according to Kaspersky researchers. The
criminals promise high earnings for minimal efforts: $6,000 per month for only 18
hours of work per week. Job responsibilities often involve accepting deposits and wire
transfers of thousands of dollars a day, then transferring the money to other accounts
designated by the phishing gang. Although the money mule can make fast cash
relatively easy, it is usually they who are most likely to be discovered, arrested and
prosecuted. Sometimes, the money mules do not know what the end result of their
activities is; all they know is they are transferring money from one account to another.
Source: http://www.thenewnewinternet.com/2010/06/01/facebook-used-to-find-moneymules/
17. June 1, Bank Info Security – (Maine) ACH fraud sparks another suit. In another
round of bank vs. customer, a Maine business has sued its bank, alleging that the
institution failed to prevent fraudulent ACH transactions totaling more than $500,000.
Patco, a Sanford, Maine-based construction company, had its corporate bank account
raided over a six-day period last May by cyber thieves who were able to move over
$588,000 to dozens of money mules throughout the country. The business was able to
recover only $230,000 of the stolen funds and has sued its bank, Ocean Bank of
Portsmouth, New Hampshire, for failing to detect and prevent the bogus transfers. “I
told them ‘We don’t want to sue you; can you at least make up part of the loss?’“ says
the co-owner of the business. But he describes the bank’s response as “This is your
problem. It wasn’t our firewall that was penetrated.” This is but the latest example of
banks and business customers battling over responsibility for losses resulting from
ACH fraud, or corporate account takeover. Most recently, PlainsCapital Bank and
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Hillary Machinery of Texas settled their lawsuits over a similar dispute.
Source: http://www.bankinfosecurity.com/articles.php?art_id=2592
18. May 31, CNN – (New York) Financial adviser to celebrities charged in $30 million
Ponzi scheme. A financial adviser to celebrities was arrested on Thursday on charges
he carried out a $30 million Ponzi scheme on some of his clients, according to the U.S.
attorney’s office. The 66 year old suspect was charged with money laundering,
investment adviser fraud and wire fraud. He was ordered held without bail until a June
10 pretrial hearing despite a vigorous appeal to the federal Magistrate Court by both
Starr and his attorney. The suspect’s attorney argued that his client was terrified when
federal agents came to arrest him early on May 27, portraying the suspect as a family
man who had strong New York ties and did not pose a flight risk. But prosecutors
painted a different picture, telling the court that the suspect attempted to evade arrest by
hiding from federal agents. According to the complaint, the suspect defrauded a
wealthy jeweler and his wife of nearly $14 million in either bogus or high risk
investments. Almost all of that $14 million remains unaccounted for. The complaint
says the suspect used nearly $6 million of a nearly 100-year-old heiress’ money,
without authorization, to buy a $7.5 million condominium for himself.
Source: http://www.wibw.com/nationalnews/headlines/95268204.html
[Return to top]
Transportation Sector
19. June 1, Aviation Week – (New York) FAA seeks mandatory helo route off Long
Island. Helicopter operators would be required to use the New York North Shore
Route when operating in that area of Long Island, N.Y., under a rule proposed by FAA.
The proposal would mandate use of a route that is currently voluntary. The North Shore
Route was added to the New York Helicopter Route Chart in 2008. New York public
officials have received “numerous complaints regarding helicopter noise,” FAA says,
noting that several Senators were among those hearing from constituents. The agency
began working with stakeholders and industry groups on the issue, developing the
visual flight rules for the North Shore route to address the noise concerns. The route
directs helicopters over water when transiting the area. But with voluntary procedures
in place, FAA says, “New York elected officials have advised the FAA the noise
complaints continue in this area notwithstanding the North Shore route. The local FAA
Flight Standards Division has also received the same complaints.” The agency
acknowledges that a number of conditions may occur that would require helicopters to
deviate from the route, and says “provisions are included that take into consideration
the wide variety of helicopters, their associated performance and mission profiles, the
dynamic weather environment along the route and the pilot’s responsibility to maintain
safe operations at all times.”
Source:
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story_channel.jsp?channel=busav&id=news/
awx/2010/05/28/awx_05_28_2010_p0-230781.xml&headline=FAA Seeks Mandatory
Helo Route Off Long Island
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20. June 1, Associated Press – (California) Funny smell forces evacuation and delay of
flight. San Francisco International Airport officials say a Chicago-bound flight was
evacuated and delayed six hours after a crew member smelled a strange odor coming
from a carry-on bag. Officials say the United Airlines flight was taxiing to the runway
Tuesday morning when a flight attendant noticed a “pungent chemical odor” emanating
from a bag that contained Chinese herbs. The passengers were taken off the plane and
re-screened, while dogs and hazardous materials and explosive teams searched the
aircraft. Investigators did not find anything suspicious on the plane or passengers and
determined the strange smell came from the Chinese herbs, which were owned by an
elderly couple who did not speak English fluently.
Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgibin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/06/01/national/a174917D88.DTL&type=business
[Return to top]
Postal and Shipping Sector
21. June 2, Salisbury Daily Times – (Maryland) Explosive destroys home’s mailbox. The
bomb squad of the Maryland State Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating an incident
that occurred 8 p.m. Tuesday niight on the 300 block of Princeton Avenue in Salisbury.
A mailbox was destroyed and a device was thrown at the house, according to a release
by the fire marshal’s office. The attack caused about $60 in damage and no one was
injured. Any one with information should call the Salisbury office at 410-713-3780.
Source:
http://www.delmarvanow.com/article/20100602/NEWS01/100602021/1002/SALISBU
RY--Explosive-destroys-home-s-mailbox
22. May 27, KKTV 11 South Colorado – (Colorado) 2 In custody for “suspicious
powder” hoax In Pueblo. Streets in Pueblo were blocked off for hours May 27after a
suspicious substance was discovered. The white powder ended up being store brand
sugar. Grand and 24th streets and a block radius in all directions were closed to traffic
and all businesses and houses were evacuated for more than three hours. Witnesses say
two men were acting suspicious around a mail dropbox and there was white powder
found at the base of the dropbox and 20 feet west of it. One was pouring white powder
into the mailbox wearing a gas mask, the other was videotaping the activity. According
to sources from the Pueblo Police Department, one of them called police dispatch from
a Sam’s Club in Pueblo to turn himself in. Officers picked him up and he is in custody.
Another man was also arrested. Their car was found at a Sam’s Club on north end of
Pueblo. That car is now in police custody. The FBI was also on scene because a US
post office box is federal property.
Source: http://www.kktv.com/home/headlines/95045449.html
[Return to top]
Agriculture and Food Sector
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23. June 2, Foster’s Daily Democrat – (International) Portsmouth seafood plant could
face $214g in fines. The company owning a Portsmouth, New Hampshire seafoodprocessing plant is facing a total of $214,500 in federal fines for alleged health and
safety standard deficiencies that regulators say put employees at serious risk for injury
or death.O fficials said workers at the High Liner Seafood Inc. plant on Borthwick
Avenue were placed at higher risk of health problems associated with exposure to
ammonia and possible “extreme cold burns” as a result of an inadequately maintained
piping system that uses the chemical for refrigeration purposes. The Occupational
Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has proposed fines associated with 17
violations that largely revolve around the company’s alleged failure to meet standards
with an “anhydrous” ammonia piping system used for freezing. High Liner Foods
Incorporated Web site indicates the company is one of North America’s largest
marketeers of prepared frozen seafood products, which are produced under the High
Liner, Fisher Boy, FPI, Mirabel, Sea Cuisine and Royal Sea brands. OSHA officials
stated in a June 1 release that some citations follow identical hazards cited at the
company’s Danvers, Massachusetts, facility in 2009. Proposed fines involving the
Portsmouth plant follow a regularly scheduled inspection by OSHA’s Concord-based
office that began on December 1, 2009. The June 1 release indicated OSHA issues
serious citations when “death or serious physical harm is likely to result from hazards
about which the employer knew or should have known.”
Source:
http://www.fosters.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100602/GJBUSINESS_01/7060
29957/-1/FOSBUSINESS
24. June 2, WBAY 2 Green Bay – (Wisconsin) More details offered on explosion in
Valders. Authorities are looking for the cause of a feed mill explosion in Manitowoc
County, Wisconsin. Emergency officials said the explosion happened at 7 p.m. June 1
at CP Feeds on Washington Street in Valders. According to firefighters, three bins
exploded and part of the structure was blown out. The bins stand about 9 stories tall.
Five fire departments responded, including crews with a 100-foot aerial ladder from the
City of Manitowoc Fire Department. A Valders Fire Department official said the
explosion blew out most of the flames, and there was only a small fire for firefighters to
extinguish. Fire crews did have a difficult time working in the confined space around
the bins. “The mills are a little touchy to go up in and just start working before you
determine on where (the fire) is,” the Valders fire official said. One person was injured
and taken to a local hospital. There is no word on that victim’s condition. Fire crews
were cleaning up on the scene until 11 or 11:30. There is structural damage to the bins,
and fire crews aren’t sure yet if the building is safe enough for them to investigate the
cause.
Source: http://www.wbay.com/Global/story.asp?S=12578634
25. June 2, USAgNet – (Wisconsin) More sheep being killed by predators. New numbers
out this week from the American Sheep Industry Association shows sheep and lamb
losses from predator and non-predator causes in the United States totaled 634,500 last
year. The information was released in the Sheep and Goat Death Loss Report as a
cooperative effort by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural
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Statistics Service and Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. This report provides
sheep and lamb predator losses after docking, and detailed breakouts for non-predator
causes. Animal predator losses totaled 247,200 head, the single largest cause of loss.
Among a dozen reasons for death loss, predator kills of sheep and lamb represents 39
percent of the total, resulting in $20.5 million of lost revenue to farmers and ranchers.
Harsh conditions during the 2009 winter made weather-related problems the leading
cause of non-predator deaths, accounting for 21.5 percent. Digestive problems
(enterotoxemia, internal parasites and other digestive problems) followed for a
combined 17.3 percent of non-predator deaths.
Source: http://www.wisconsinagconnection.com/story-national.php?Id=1097&yr=2010
26. June 2, Food Safety News – (National) USDA detects antimicrobial-resistant
genes. Using an advanced genetic-screening technique, the U.S. Department of
Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Agricultural Research Service scientists have detected — for
the first time — over 700 genes that give microbes like Salmonella and E. coli the
ability to resist antibiotics and other antimicrobial compounds. The new screening
technique, called DNA microarray technology, allowed scientists to hone in on
resistance genes in organisms that pose a threat to public health including: Salmonella,
E. coli, Campylobacter, Listeria, and Enterococcus, among others. USDA scientists
expressed worry over the findings, released last week. “Researchers are concerned that
some of these organisms have acquired genetic resistance to the antibiotics used to kill
them,” said the Agricultural Research Service (ARS), the main research arm of the
agency, in a statement. “Finding the genes that confer resistance is an important step
for scientists looking for new ways to control these organisms.” According to ARS, all
genes identified in organisms are logged into GenBank, a gene database administered
by the National Center for Biotechnology Information at the National Institutes of
Health (NIH). This work was published in the scientific journal Microbial Drug
Resistance.
Source: http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2010/06/usda-detects-over-700-antimicrobialresistant-genes/
27. June 2, Alva Review-Courier – (National) Cattle theft increases dramatically. An
increase in cattle theft over the past 90 days has prompted Oklahoma Department of
Agriculture, Food and Forestry agents to ask for information from the public and help
from other law enforcement agencies. “We’ve received reports of 321 head of cattle
stolen since March,” said an ODAFF agent. “This activity has been especially active in
northwest Oklahoma but it is occurring statewide.” He said agents only have one
vehicle description from a case in Woodward County. A ranch hand arrived just as the
thieves were loading cattle. “They jumped in the truck and took off without closing the
trailer gate and the cattle jumped out,” the agent said. “One of the suspects, a Hispanic
male, fired a rifle at the ranch hand who returned fire with his own rifle. We think that
either the truck or trailer probably has a bullet hole.” The pickup was a red Chevrolet
with chrome type wheels and was pulling a white Titan Gooseneck stock trailer with
Kansas tags. He said anyone with information that might be helpful is encouraged to
call local authorities. Agents have recently arrested three suspects for cattle thefts in
Kingfisher and McCurtain County, but have many more cases without leads. The
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executive vice president of the Oklahoma Cattlemen’s Association said his
organization will pay up to $10,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction
of anyone stealing cattle from one of its members. The agent said ODAFF is asking
county sheriff departments and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol to assist by checking
stock trailers moving at night or showing other suspicious behavior. Citizens are
encouraged to watch and identify individuals hauling trailers that appear overloaded
with cattle and using back roads. He also offered the following tips for cattlemen: Keep
pastures secure, lock gates; Control access to keys or combinations to locks on gates;
Brand, ear tag or microchip cattle and horses. Make sure the brand is recorded with the
Oklahoma Cattleman’s Association. Keep permanent records of all forms of ID;
Photographs of animals showing distinctive markings are beneficial during recovery;
Count cattle on a regular basis, the more delay in learning cattle are missing decreases
the chance of recovery; Don’t build pens close to a roadway; Don’t feed in pens; Don’t
establish a routine when feeding. Vary feeding times; Watch out for neighbors, take
down tag numbers of suspicious vehicles, report suspicious activities to law
enforcement or neighbors.
Source:
http://news.mywebpal.com/news_tool_v2.cfm?show=localnews&pnpID=348&NewsID
=981152&CategoryID=7227&on=1
28. June 2, WBOY 12 Clarksburg – (West Virginia) Investigators await test results to
confirm bacteria in Stonewall Jackson Lake fish. Although fish are still dying at
Stonewall Jackson Lake in Jacksonville, West Virginia, a Division of Natural
Resources (DNR) biologist said they are dying in smaller numbers. Investigators found
about 20 dead crappie at the lake June 1, and the biologist abulated that the total dead
so far totals about 1,500. The crappie began dying in the lake May 24. DNR officers are
awaiting test results that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services’ (FWS) Northeast Fish
Health Center in Lamar, Pennsylavania, and the U. S. Geological Survey’s Leetown
Science Center are doing on samples of the dead to confirm what is killing the fish, the
biologist explained. However he believes that the fish are dying from a family of
bacterial infections called columnaris. According to the FWS Web site, columnaris is
“a bacterial disease caused by Flavobacterium columnare and is a common health
problem for hatchery and wild fish when water temperatures climb above 65 degrees
Fahrenheit.” Flavobacterium columnare is found in many species of freshwater fish.
The biologist previously revealed that he considered the bacteria to be the cause of the
kill, because of similar crappie kills at Pymatuning and Tamarack Lakes in
Pennsylvania.
Source: http://www.wboy.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=80722
29. June 1, WMBB 13 Panama City – (Florida) Oyster harvesting may expand. Some
changes are coming to the oyster harvesting industry in Apalachicola, Florida. The
Florida Department of Agriculture and Division of Aquaculture hosted a workshop
June 1 to teach area oystermen about new proposed regulations. Utilizing 12 years of
research, officials revealed plans that would involve expanding oyster harvesting in
more than a thousand acres of water during the winter. They also propose increasing
maximum rainfall levels in several areas, so heavy rain will have less of an impact on
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oyster bed closures. It’s good news for an oysterman, whose seafood plant thrives off
oysters from the Apalachicola Bay. “I like a lot of it,” he said about the changes, “some
of the areas that would’ve closed when the water came up now there’d be a line and
some of it would stay open and it would give more area to work so I think it’d be
good.” The department of agriculture’s process for finalizing the changes will take at
least two months. Agriculture officials also addressed oil spill concerns. They have
already collected samples in the event the oil does contaminate parts of the bay, but
they said closing harvest beds will be a last resort.
Source:
http://www.panhandleparade.com/index.php/mbb/article/oyster_harvesting_may_expan
d/mbb7723746/
30. June 1, UPI – (Washington) Study solves mystery of major wheat threat. U.S.
scientists say they have solved the mystery of why a pathogen threatening the world’s
wheat supply can be so adaptable, diverse and virulent. Researchers at the U.S.
Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service say they found it is because
the fungus that causes the wheat disease called stripe rust can use sexual recombination
to adapt to resistant varieties of wheat. A plant pathologist and two colleagues said they
have shown for the first time that stripe rust, caused by Puccinia striiformis, is capable
of sexually reproducing on the leaves of an alternate host called barberry, a common
ornamental. The fungus also goes through asexual mutation. But sexual recombination
offers an advantage because it promotes rapid reshuffling of virulence gene
combinations and produces a genetic mix more likely to pass along traits that improve
the chances for survival. Barberry (Berberis spp) is already controlled in areas where
wheat is threatened by stem rust, caused by another fungal pathogen. But the ARS team
said its findings are expected to lead to better control of barberry in areas like the
Pacific Northwest, where lower temperatures during most of the wheat growing season
make stripe rust a particular threat. The results of the study recently appeared in the
journal Phytopathology.
Source: http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2010/06/01/Study-solves-mystery-ofmajor-wheat-threat/UPI-25031275427370/
31. June 1, CNN – (National) ‘Dirty dozen’ produce carries more pesticide residue,
group says. If one is eating non-organic celery today, one may be ingesting 67
pesticides with it, according to a new report from the Environmental Working Group
(EWG). The group, a nonprofit focused on public health, scoured nearly 100,000
produce pesticide reports from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration to determine what fruits and vegetables have the
highest, and lowest, amounts of chemical residue. Most alarming are the fruits and
vegetables dubbed the “Dirty Dozen,” which contain 47 to 67 pesticides per serving.
These foods are believed to be most susceptible because they have soft skin that tends
to absorb more pesticides. “The list is based on pesticide tests conducted after the
produce was washed with a USDA high-power pressure water system,” an EWG
member said. “The numbers reflect the closest thing to what consumers are buying at
the store.” The group suggests limiting consumption of pesticides by purchasing
organic for the 12 fruits and vegetables. “You can reduce your exposure to pesticides
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by up to 80 percent by buying the organic version of the dirty dozen,” the EWG
member said. The dirty dozen include celery, peaches, strawberries, apples, domestic
blueberries, nectarines, sweet bell peppers, spinach, kale and collard greens, cherries,
potatoes, imported grapes and lettuce.
Source: http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/06/01/dirty.dozen.produce.pesticide/
For another story, see item 6
[Return to top]
Water Sector
32. June 2, WTAE 4 Pittsburgh – (Pennsylvania) Service restored after W. Elizabeth
water main break. Crews in West Elizabeth Borough have restored service after a 2foot water main broke Tuesday afternoon at a pumping station, flooding a diesel tank
and leaving more than 100 customers without water service. Hazardous materials crews
were called to a West Elizabeth borough garage on Fourth Street, where water gushed
from the broken pipe into the garage and a pumping station very quickly. A contractor
independent of Penn American was working in the area to replace a sewer line when
they hit a water main. About 80 to 125 customers in West Elizabeth lost water service.
Now that service has been restored, a conservation order has been issued for residents
in Clairton, Elizabeth Township, Elizabeth Borough, Glassport, Liberty, Lincoln, West
Elizabeth and Dravosburg. Officials said issuing the order in the first place helps
protect their reserves.
Source: http://www.thepittsburghchannel.com/news/23760164/detail.html
33. June 2, American Rivers – (National) The Ten Most Endangered Rivers of
2010. There are tens of thousands of rivers and streams across the USA, and each year
only ten make it on to the America’s Most Endangered Rivers list. The 2010 list
spotlights rivers facing a multitude of threats from New York to Iowa to California.
The number one river on the list this year is the Upper Delaware River, where gas
drilling threatens the drinking water supply for 17 million people in New York, New
Jersey and Pennsylvania, according to American Rivers. A handful of other threats
stand out this year. Mining puts West Virginia’s Gauley and Oregon’s Wild and Scenic
Chetco at risk. New water supply dams threaten rivers like North Carolina’s Little and
Idaho’s Teton. And outdated flood management imperils public safety and river health
on Iowa’s Cedar and California’s Sacramento-San Joaquin, listed for the second year in
a row. The 2010 report also features 22 endangered river success stories. The rankings
are: 1) Upper Delaware River, Pennslavanna, New York; 2) Sacramento-San Joaquin
River Delta, California; 3) Gauley River, West Virgina, 4) Little River, North Carolina;
5) Cedar River, Iowa; 6) Upper Colorado River, Colorado; 7) Chetco River, Oregon; 8)
Teton River, Idaho; 9) Monongahela River, Pennsylvania, West Virginia; and 10)
Coosa River, Alabama.
Source: http://www.americanrivers.org/newsroom/blog/ten-most-endangered-2010-6-22010.html
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34. June 1, Al.com – (Alabama) Power outage again causes Fairhope sewage spill. An
hour-long power outage at the Fairhope Public Utilities wastewater treatment plant
Monday night led to the release of about 135,000 gallons of tainted effluent into Mobile
Bay, Baldwin County Health Department officials said. The shutdown may or may not
have been caused by a lightning strike about 11 hours earlier that damaged or destroyed
several pieces of equipment at the treatment plant, including office computers and
printers, said the city’s water and sewer superintendent. The strike did not cause an
immediate shutdown of sewage treatment, he said. But at about 7 p.m., the plant’s main
breaker inexplicably shut off, he said. The system was restored within one hour. The
spill was similar to, though less severe than, a six-hour sewage discharge in August that
released 300,000 gallons into the bay after the main breaker switched off. Monday’s
discharge was not of raw sewage, but liquid that had been cleared of solids, oils and
grit for two days. The released liquid did not go through the final step of treatment —
ultraviolet disinfection. The Baldwin County Health Department urged residents who
may be using the bay for recreational purposes to exercise caution and to thoroughly
cook seafood culled from the bay and wash their hands after handling it. Health
officials also cautioned against swimming at the city’s recreational areas.
Source: http://blog.al.com/live/2010/06/power_outage_again_causes_fair.html
35. June 1, Tennessean – (Tennessee) Metro water treatment plant operating again. The
Nashville Metro water treatment plant that was damaged by the May flood, taking out
half of the city’s water supply and forcing conservation measures, is back in service,
the mayor announced on June 1. Repairs to the K.R. Harrington plant, expected to total
approximately $42 million, were completed that morning. The plant will operate at half
capacity while further repairs are made; the second half should be able to operate “later
this summer,” the mayor’s office said in a news release. Floodwaters destroyed K.R.
Harrington’s electrical systems and computerized monitoring system, flooded its
pumps, and motors, and contaminated basins and storage wells.
Source:
http://www.tennessean.com/article/20100601/NEWS02/100601044/2066/NEWS03
36. June 1, Holland Sentinel – (Michigan) 90,000 gallons of raw sewage overflows into
Lake Mac from BPW station. An estimated 90,000 gallons of untreated sewage
overflowed into Lake Macatawa near Crescent Drive Tuesday morning. Lightning
struck a Holland Board of Public Works sanitary sewage lift station at 531 South Shore
Drive around 7:10 a.m. Monday damaging an emergency backup power switch. Power
was restored to the lift station around 9:45 a.m. Before power was restored, about
90,000 gallons of untreated sewage came out of a manhole and flowed over land into
Lake Macatawa. Clean-up was complete by early Tuesday afternoon. One of the lowest
points in the BPW’s sewer system, the corner of Crescent Shores Drive and 16th Street
also has one of the largest lift stations and is susceptible to overflows, officials said.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment mandates that the
general public be notified of any untreated wastewater overflows. The Ottawa County
Health Department is not issuing an advisory as the discharge is relatively minor when
compared with the volume of Lake Macatawa. “Based on our previous experiences
with discharges like this one, the bacteria will not be at an unsafe level for swimming,”
- 16 -
a health department spokeswoman said.
Source: http://www.hollandsentinel.com/news/x265581194/90-000-gallons-of-rawsewage-overflows-into-Lake-Mac-from-BPW-station
For more stories, see items 7 and 8
[Return to top]
Public Health and Healthcare Sector
37. June 2, St. Paul Minnesota Daily – (Minnesota) Metro nurses to strike June
10. Representatives from the Minnesota Nurses Association announced Friday that
12,000 nurses will walk away from their jobs June 10 if they cannot reach a contract
agreement with hospitals before then. If the strike occurs, it will begin at 7 a.m. that
Thursday morning and end at 7 a.m. the following day. A nurse at St. John’s Hospital,
said nurses promised they would spend “any and/or every day until then” bargaining in
order to avoid the strike. Among the contested parts of the contract, nurses are seeking
a fixed nurse-to-patient ratio. Such a permanent system would improve patient
outcome, nurses said. Nurses in the emergency room would be assigned no more than
three patients at once. In intensive care units, it would be one patient per nurse. The
hospitals said the proposed ratios are far too rigid and costly and suggest an alternative
system in which the head nurse on each floor will make staffing decisions based upon
the number and sickness of patients. A federal mediator will join bargaining teams
from MNA and the 14 metro area hospitals when they return to the table Wednesday
and Friday in hopes of reaching an agreement before the planned strike. The strike
announcement is the latest news since May 19, when nurses overwhelmingly voted to
authorize the strike.
Source: http://www.mndaily.com/2010/06/02/metro-nurses-strike-june-10
38. June 2, WOAI 4 San Antonio – (Texas) Update: Test results reveal powdery
substance found at hospital not dangerous. An envelope with a white powdery
substance was found at the local hospital. A San Antonio Fire Department Hazardous
Materials Team was called after the envelope turned up in the Audie Murphy Memorial
Hospital Tuesday around 10:00 a.m. The team loaded the powder into a van for
evaluation.Testing revealed the substance was coffee creamer. It was also the exact
same substance mailed to veterans facilities in Houston and Austin June 1.
Source: http://www.woai.com/news/local/story/Update-Test-results-reveal-powderysubstance/v7Pit3zP7UKdogg3OGj-hA.cspx
39. June 1, WebMD – (National) PediaCare children’s drugs recalled. More children’s
medicines — four products sold under the PediaCare brand name — have been
recalled. All four of the over-the-counter medications were made in Johnson &
Johnson’s troubled McNeil plant in Pennsylvania. Numerous problems at the plant,
including drugs containing incorrect dosages and unsafe manufacturing conditions, led
to the April 30 recall of popular child and infant versions of Tylenol, Motrin, Benadryl,
and Zyrtec.The products recalled over the Memorial Day weekend are sold by
- 17 -
Blacksmith Brands. They include:PediaCare Multi-Symptom Cold 4oz. (UPC # 3
0045-0556-05 9), PediaCare Long Acting Cough 4oz. (UPC# 3 0045-0465-04 7),
PediaCare Decongestant 4oz. (UPC# 3 0045-0554-04 8), PediaCare Allergy and Cold
4oz. (UPC# 3 0045-0552-04 4) Although no injuries have been reported from use of
these products, the manufacturer warns parents to stop using the drugs and to throw
away any product they may have purchased.
Source: http://www.webmd.com/parenting/news/20100601/pediacare-childrens-drugsrecalled
40. June 1, San Antonio Express-News – (Texas) Substance prompts quarantine at VA
hospital. Four mailroom employees at the Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans
Hospital were quarantined for more than an hour June 1 morning after a suspicious
substance was found inside two envelopes. The substance was discovered about 10 a.m.
and police and firefighters were called to investigate. A hazardous materials crew later
determined the substance was not hazardous. Emergency vehicles left the hospital by
11:30 a.m. Patient care at the hospital was continued without interruption.
Source:
http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/substance_prompts_quarantine_at_va
_hospital_95328874.html
41. January 1, KPBS.org – (California) 1,300 San Diego nurses to strike over low
staffing. About 1,300 nurses in San Diego, California, are threatening to walk out of
their jobs at the local UC hospitals next week. Nurses say they will go on strike because
administrators refuse to address their concerns about inadequate staffing. California law
requires hospitals to maintain strict nurse-to-patient ratios in all units around the clock.
UC nurses say their departments are often short-staffed during breaks and at meal
times. Nurses argue they cannot deliver good patient care under those conditions. UC
officials say patient safety is a top priority, and maintain their hospitals obey the
staffing law at all times.
Source: http://www.kpbs.org/news/2010/jun/01/1300-san-diego-nurses-set-strike-overlow-staffing/
[Return to top]
Government Facilities Sector
42. June 2, WTOP.com – (Maryland) Bomb threat evacuation to be
reviewed. Montgomery County, Maryland fire and school officials are reviewing an
incident where 24 middle school students were treated for heat-related illnesses after
they were forced to wait outside while a bomb threat was investigated. The assistant
fire chief said students at Frost Middle School in Rockville were evacuated after a
bomb threat was phoned in May 26. The evacuation took place before lunch, and
emergency officials took longer than expected to reopen the school. The assistant fire
chief said the threat turned out to be a hoax. The Frost Middle School principal said
students were not walked to nearby Wooton High School because by the time they
reached the high school, the bomb threat investigation would be over. A Montgomery
- 18 -
County Public Schools spokesman said principals are often faced with making a call on
how to execute an emergency plan on the spot, and the Frost Middle School principal
made the right call when he evacuated the school. The assistant fire chief said a “hot
wash,” an on-scene evaluation of how the evacuation went, was conducted by his
department, but an overhaul of the evacuation plan will not be necessary. He also said
if students had to be taken off property, there are plans in place, including using
Montgomery Ride On buses to assist an evacuation. None of the children in last week’s
evacuation was sent to the hospital.
Source: http://www.wtop.com/?nid=25&sid=1970679
43. June 1, Associated Press – (Texas) ICE investigating alleged officer sex assault of
detainees. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is investigating allegations
that an officer at a central Texas detention facility sexually assaulted female detainees
on their way to being deported. An agency spokesman said Friday the guard has been
fired and Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), which manages the prison, is on
probation pending the investigation’s outcome. Several women who were held at T.
Don Hutto detention facility in Taylor, Texas, were groped while being patted down
and at least one was propositioned for sex, ICE said. “We understand that this
employee was able to commit these alleged crimes because ICE-mandated transport
policies and procedures were not followed,” the Homeland Security Department’s
contracting officer said in a letter to CCA obtained by The Associated Press. ICE has
ordered CCA to make changes, including not allowing male guards to be alone with
female detainees. Messages left with CCA officials seeking comment were not
immediately returned and a public affairs officer stationed at Hutto had left for the day.
The 490-bed Hutto facility is a former prison where children and their parents were
previously held.
Source: http://www.correctionsone.com/Prisoner-transport/articles/2075206-ICEinvestigating-alleged-officer-sex-assault-of-detainees/
44. June 1, LEX 18 Lexington – (Kentucky) Middle school students temporarily
evacuated after bathroom fire. Firefighters in Jessamine County, Kentucky are trying
to figure out who set fire to one of the middle school bathrooms Tuesday morning.
Crews were called out to West Jessamine Middle School at about 9 a.m. for a fire in
one of the first floor bathrooms. They said someone started it in one of the drop
ceilings. Firefighters said they were able to knock out the fire without much damage,
but said whoever started it could be facing criminal charges. “Think about this,” said a
firefighter. “I mean, it’s somewhere you and your friends come to. Regardless, it’s a
school the important thing to remember is you are putting yours and all the persons
lives in jeopardy.” Students were evacuated from the building for a short time but were
able to go back to class.
Source: http://www.lex18.com/news/middle-school-students-temporarily-evacuatedafter-bathroom-fire
45. June 1, KPSP 2 Thousand Palms – (California) Riverside County gym evacuated due
to toxic fumes. A Riverside County gym was evacuated Tuesday, after some cleaning
materials mixed and caused toxic fumes, sending some employees to the hospital. An
- 19 -
official with the the Riverside County Fire Department said some ammonia and bleach
were mixed at the 24 Hour Fitness gym on Alessandro Blvd. in Moreno Valley, just
before noon. As the fumes spread, 87 people were evacuated from the gym. Two
people, who both work for the gym, were taken to a nearby hospital to be treated for
respiratory problems, according to the fire official. No other injuries were reported and
it was not immediately clear how the chemicals were mixed.
Source: http://www.kpsplocal2.com/mostpopular/story/Riverside-County-GymEvacuated-Due-to-Toxic-Fumes/wSMRJXX8ZU6H5EuTYByXCw.cspx
46. June 1, Associated Press – (International) Glitch highlights U.S. military reliance on
GPS. A problem that rendered as many as 10,000 U.S. military GPS receivers useless
for days is a warning to safeguard a system that enemies would love to disrupt, a
defense expert said. The Air Force has not said how many weapons, planes or other
systems were affected or whether any were in use in Iraq or Afghanistan. But the
problem, blamed on incompatible software, highlights the military’s reliance on the
Global Positioning System and the need to protect technology that has become essential
for protecting troops, tracking vehicles and targeting weapons. “Everything that moves
uses it,” said the director of Globalsecurity.org, which tracks military and homeland
security news. “It is so central to the American style of war that you just couldn’t leave
home without it.” The problem occurred when new software was installed in ground
control systems for GPS satellites on January 11, the Air Force said. Officials said
between 8,000 and 10,000 receivers could have been affected, out of more than
800,000 in use across the military. One program still in development was interrupted
but no weapon systems already in use were grounded as a result of the problem, the Air
Force said.
Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37451462/ns/us_news-security/
[Return to top]
Emergency Services Sector
47. May 28, Arizona Republic – (Arizona) Phoenix police will upgrade communications
resources. Phoenix police plan to expand the department’s 911 and radio-dispatch
efforts beginning this summer even as the city copes with having fewer civilian
employees to relay information on emergencies. The changes include automatic
vehicle-location systems in patrol vehicles, which help dispatchers follow officers on
computerized maps for more than 667,000 dispatched calls annually. The new
technology went online earlier this year, giving police anew computer-aided dispatch
system that had been in the works for years. The system also will help cut down on call
wait times as civilian operators are reorganized when the Police Department shifts from
six to eight precincts this summer. However, as the city adapts to the new computer
system, staffing civilian jobs at the Police Communications Bureau remains a concern,
especially with a high turnover rate in the police communications industry. In busier
times, as officers’ shifts overlap and more crimes are being reported, Phoenix will have
anywhere from 100 to 120 officers per one radio operator. The city would prefer to
have 35 to 50 officers per radio dispatcher, according to national estimates cited by the
- 20 -
Phoenix Police Communications Bureau.
Source:
http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2010/05/28/20100528phoenixpolice-upgrade-communications.html
[Return to top]
Information Technology Sector
48. June 2, V3.co.uk – (International) Symantec warns of hike in World Cup
spam. Symantec has joined the chorus of voices warning users to brace for a surge in
spam centered around the upcoming World Cup in South Africa. Unsolicited email
using the tournament as a lure has risen by around 27 percent in the past month,
according to new statistics posted on the security firm’s Net Threats 2010 site. Internet
users were warned to expect a range of spam, including offers of counterfeit tickets,
malware embedded in fake highlights videos and bogus FIFA product offers. Trend
Micro observed similar trends last month, warning users of 419-style spam runs using
the tournament as bait.
Source: http://www.v3.co.uk/v3/news/2263999/symantec-warns-world-cup-spam
49. June 2, SC Magazine – (International) Jewish Chronicle confirms that it was hit by a
denial-of-service attack on Monday following Gaza flotilla incident. The Jewish
Chronicle was hit by a massive denial-of-service (DoS) attack on May 31. Following
the Gaza flotilla incident, a column in the Spectator claimed that the website of the
paper was down following ‘a massive denial-of-service, apparently to shut down its
balanced coverage of the Ashdod flotilla incident’. Speaking to SC Magazine, the
managing editor of the Jewish Chronicle confirmed that this did occur and happens
often. He said: “We are a target and it is part of our security policy that we understand
people want to stop the Jewish voice. It was probably an attempt to silence us on a
controversial subject. He further explained that the website does not get much traffic on
a Saturday, but on a Sunday it gets traffic from the Jewish community and a much
wider readership. Burton said: “It is a PR disaster for Israel, but we are not a
mouthpiece for the Israeli government as we are critical of them, and our editor has
said that there are two sides to it.”
Source: http://www.scmagazineuk.com/jewish-chronicle-confirms-that-it-was-hit-by-adenial-of-service-attack-on-monday-following-gaza-flotilla-incident/article/171531/
50. June 2, Help Net Security – (International) IT pros are hacking their own enterprises
to keep intruders out. A survey of IT security professionals has discovered that 83
percent consider commercial applications, the ones you buy off the shelf, to be riddled
with code flaws and vulnerabilities. Fortify Software found that 56 percent believe
these flaws could allow hackers to exploit these software vulnerabilities. As a result,
security professionals are making heavy investments in penetration and code testing,
combined with application scanning, to try and build security into the software. Half of
the IT security professionals also admitted to hacking, with 73 percent of these
respondents doing so to test the strength of their own network’s defenses, 13 percent
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for fun or out of curiosity, and 3 percent targeting their efforts at the competition.
Compiled at Infosecurity Europe, the survey also unearthed that, amongst the 300 IT
security professionals interviewed (with the majority taken from companies employing
1,000 plus employees), 31 percent admitted to being victims of hacking. More
interestingly, with 29 percent replying ‘don’t know’, this figure could be substantially
higher! The majority of respondents cited the application layer to be the hackers’ main
target.
Source: http://www.net-security.org/secworld.php?id=9358
51. June 1, Marketing Vox – (International) Digital device, data explosion meets IP
address shortage. The landscape for marketers charting digital strategies one or two
years ahead could well be dramatically different than it is now: characterized by an
explosion of new data generated from mobile devices — and possibly by a logjam
created by a lack of IP addresses. According to IDC, right now there are more than 10
billion non-PC devices that connect to the Internet right now - and that number is
expected to grow to almost 20 billion by 2014. In fact the growth will be so great that
within 18 months — possibly as soon as September 2011 — it is estimated that the
number of new devices able to connect to the internet will be limited by a lack of
available IP addresses. In short, the world is running out. “The internet as we know it
will no longer be able to grow,” the chief scientist at RIPE NCC, the organization that
issues IP addresses in Europe, told CNN. “That doesn’t mean it will cease to function,
but entry could be limited to new devices.” At the same time there are signs that
content - especially user generated content - is about to enter a period where data will
grow faster than the perimeters established with Moore’s law for improvements in
hardware.
Source: http://www.marketingvox.com/digital-device-data-explosion-meets-ip-addressshortage-047040/
52. June 1, Help Net Security – (International) Critical iPhone security issue leaves your
contents exposed. Most iPhone users are confident that using a passcode to secure
their devices means that even if they lost them or they get stolen, their data will be
protected from prying eyes. Unfortunately for them, an information security
professional has recently discovered that the passcode protection can be bypassed by
simply connecting the iPhone 3GS in question to a computer running Ubuntu 10.04.
According to him, the iPhone can be tricked into allowing access to photos, videos,
music, voice recordings, Google safe browsing database, game contents, and more, by
switching it off and connecting it to the computer, then switching the iPhone back on.
He claims that he has managed to get read-and-write access in 4 different 3GS, non
jailbroken, passcode protected iPhones with different iPhone OS version installed. He
says the vulnerability is definitely not an Ubuntu vulnerability, but a flaw in the
iPhone’s way of implementing authentication when connected to a computer. Apple
has been notified of the flaw, and they managed to reproduce it, but have yet to push
out a fix or to say when it will be made available.
Source: http://www.net-security.org/secworld.php?id=9352
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53. June 1, The Register – (International) Windows Mobile Trojan frags
gamers. Scammers have hidden a nasty surprise for users who downloaded doctored
copies of a Windows Mobile game. Hackers adapted a demo version of 3D AntiTerrorist Action to include a Trojan that makes premium-rate calls costing around
US$6 a minute on the sly. Doctored copies of the Counter-Strike-alike game are
designed to call premium-rate phone numbers in the Antarctic, the Dominican Republic
and Somalia, leaving users none the wiser until they received whopper mobile phone
bills. The Terdial-A Windows-CE Trojan was first identified in March but has recently
made its way onto several sites hosting Windows mobile apps, prompting a fresh
warning from gaming site gamepron.com. It adds that even legitimate versions of the
application lack engaging gameplay. The net security firm Sophos believes a Russianlanguage speaker wrote the malware behind the attack.
Source:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/06/01/windows_mobile_trojan_games_victims/
54. June 1, DarkReading – (International) Botnets target websites with ‘posers’. Botnets
increasingly are creating phony online accounts on legitimate websites and online
communities in order to steal information from enterprises. This alternative form of
targeted attack by botnets has become popular as botnet tools have made bots easier to
purchase and exploit. A botnet expert and distinguished professor of computer science
at Georgia Tech, says bots are showing up “en masse” to customer-facing websites —
posing as people. “We are seeing tens of thousands of false registrations getting
through existing defense-in-depth to get accounts on websites,” says the professor, who
is also a member of the board of directors at Pramana and a co-founder of Damballa,
both security firms that specialize in botnet mitigation. And these bots can walk off
with data from those sites, either for competitive purposes or for selling the stolen
information on the black market, according to new data from Pramana, a startup that
spun off from Georgia Tech. “Instead of humans, bots are showing up en masse” on
auction, social networking, and various other websites that require registration for
participation or comments or webmail, he says. “If job listings are your valuable
content, what if your competitors set bots to screen-scrape and take your content out the
door? This screen-scraping is costing a lot of money and becoming way more
prevalent.” Botnet operators are poking holes in CAPTCHA defenses. Pramana, which
uses what it calls “HumanPresent” technology that looks at online activity in real-time
in order to catch fraud before it occurs, saw 60 percent of bots crashing through
CAPTCHAS and other defenses at one Fortune 100 client’s website.
Source:
http://www.darkreading.com/insiderthreat/security/attacks/showArticle.jhtml?articleID
=225300009
55. June 1, Wired.com – (International) WikiLeaks was launched with documents
intercepted from Tor. WikiLeaks, the controversial whistleblowing site that exposes
secrets of governments and corporations, bootstrapped itself with a cache of documents
obtained through an internet eavesdropping operation by one of its activists, according
to a new profile of the organization’s founder. The activist siphoned more than a
million documents as they traveled across the internet through Tor, also known as “The
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Onion Router,” a sophisticated privacy tool that lets users navigate and send documents
through the internet anonymously. The siphoned documents, supposedly stolen by
Chinese hackers or spies who were using the Tor network to transmit the data, were the
basis for the founder of WikiLeaks assertion in 2006 that his organization had already
“received over one million documents from 13 countries” before his site was launched,
according to the article in The New Yorker. Only a small portion of those intercepted
documents were ever posted on WikiLeaks, but the new report is the first indication
that some of the data and documents on WikiLeaks did not come from sources who
intended for the documents to be seen or posted. It also explains an enduring mystery
of WikiLeaks’ launch: how the organization was able to amass a collection of secret
documents before its website was open for business.
Source: http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/06/wikileaksdocuments/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+wire
d/index+(Wired:+Index+3+(Top+Stories+2))
56. May 28, DarkReading – (International) Researchers uncover bot sales
network. Researchers at PandaLabs said yesterday they have uncovered a network that
sells bots targeting social networks and Webmail systems. The publicly available site
contains an extensive catalog of programs aimed at social networks and Webmail
services, including Twitter, Facebook, Hi5, MySpace, MyYearBook, YouTube, Tuenti,
Friendster, Gmail, and Yahoo, PandaLabs says. Each entry explains the reason why the
bot has been created and describes activities that the bots can perform, such as creating
multiple accounts simultaneously on social networks; identity theft; stealing friends,
followers or contacts; and automatic sending of messages. “All bots work in a
conventional manner,” the page says. “They gather friend IDs/names and send friend
requests, messages, [and] comments automatically. We are still investigating, but this is
another example of the lucrative business that malware represents for cybercriminals,”
says the technical director of PandaLabs. “The catalog of bots for sale describes some
of the many activities they can be used for. Some of them are more ‘innocent,’ such as
creating accounts, and others are more insidious and specifically focused on fraud —
including theft of identities, photographs, etc.”
Source:
http://www.darkreading.com/vulnerability_management/security/client/showArticle.jht
ml?articleID=225200574
For more stories, see items 2, 46, and 57
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]
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Communications Sector
57. June 1, IDG News Service – (National) Android rootkit is just a phone call
away. Hoping to understand what a new generation of mobile malware could resemble,
security researchers will demonstrate a malicious “rootkit” program they’ve written for
Google’s Android phone next month at the Defcon hacking conference in Las Vegas.
Once it is installed on the Android phone, the rootkit can be activated via a phone call
or SMS (short message service) message, giving attackers a stealthy and hard-to-detect
tool for siphoning data from the phone or misdirecting the user. “You call the phone,
the phone doesn’t ring, and when the phone realizes that it’s being called by an
attacker’s phone number, it sends him back a shell [program],” said a security
consultant with Chicago’s Trustwave, the company that did the research. Rootkits are
stealthy programs designed to cover up their tracks on the operating system in order to
evade detection. They have been around on Windows and Unix for years, but lately
security researchers have been experimenting with them on mobile platforms.
Source:
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9177576/Android_rootkit_is_just_a_phone_c
all_away
58. May 31, Hindu Business Line – (International) US to work with India on National
Broadband Plan. The US has said that it would collaborate with India in evolving a
National Broadband Plan. “We have initiated talks through the ICT joint working group
last week in New Delhi. We have fixed a time-bound schedule to discuss things. The
two sides will soon identify points of contacts for one-to-one interactions,” the US
Coordinator for International Communication and Information Policy, said. “The ICT
working group, which used to meet periodically, could not meet because of elections
here and in the US. “We have revived it last week and hope to follow it up six months
later in December. These meetings would be held twice a year,” he told Business Line.
The group comprised top Government executives and representatives from businesses.
“The Government set aside $7-billion announced as part of the stimulus package for
creating awareness about the benefits of broadband usage and the US Congress asked
the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) to work for a national broadband plan.
It came out with hundreds of recommendations.
Source:
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2010/06/01/stories/2010060151110800.htm
[Return to top]
Commercial Facilities Sector
59. June 2, Associated Press – (International) 3 killed trying to disarm WWII-era bomb
in Germany. Three experts working to defuse a bomb from World War II were killed
when the device exploded, injuring six others. Some 7,000 residents from around the
area in the central German town of Goettingen, where the 1100-pound (500-kilogram)
heavy bomb was found, were still being evacuated when it blew up late June 1.
Construction workers had found the 65-year-old explosive device about seven yards
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below the ground on an empty [lot] where the city is currently building a sport arena.
The three dead men, aged 38 to 55, were experienced in defusing bombs and it was not
clear why it exploded, Goettingen Police president said at a press conference June 2.
He said two other experts were severely injured and four others were treated for shock.
Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2010/06/02/AR2010060201510.html
60. June 2, Columbus Dispatch – (Ohio) Suspected bomb spurs evacuation of 60
apartments on Far West Side. A call about a potentially suicidal woman turned into a
bomb scare that prompted the evacuation of 60 apartment units on the Far West Side
for six hours June 1. The situation at Saddlebrook Apartments off Roberts Road ended
with no bomb being found and no charges being filed. Columbus police and fire
received a call just after 3 p.m. that a woman at an apartment on Catalina Circle was
suicidal. When the squad arrived, members saw what appeared to be dynamite. Police
then evacuated the apartments. They also blocked off Roberts Road between Walcutt
and Hilliard-Rome roads for some of the time. A school bus was stopped for about 20
minutes by the initial road shutdown. The scare turned out to be nothing. People were
allowed back into their apartments at 9 p.m.
Source:
http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2010/06/02/suspected-bombspurs-evacuation-of-60-apartments.html?sid=101
61. June 2, Lake County Post Tribune – (Indiana) Apartment fire in Hobart forces 100 to
evacuate. A May 30 night fire at the Cressmoor Arms apartment complex displaced
about 100 people. Around 10 p.m. a fire broke out on a first-floor balcony of the
building in the 600 block of Washington Street. Upon arrival, firefighters found heavy
smoke billowing out of the third floor in the northwest corner of the building, which
has 24 apartment units. Everyone was evacuated without injury, and the Red Cross
stepped in to help those displaced with finding shelter. The fire investigation is
ongoing, but a preliminary report shows the fire started on a first floor balcony and
caught the upper balconies on fire. Eventually, the blaze got into the attic. The third
floor and attic areas sustained the most fire damage, but there is water damage on the
first and second levels as well.
Source: http://www.post-trib.com/news/lake/2342688,new-hbfire0602.article
62. June 1, Kokomo Perspective – (Indiana) Wal-Mart closed for 1.5 hours after bomb
threat; no explosive device found; KPD investigating. Kokomo Police Department
(KPD) officers responded to Wal-Mart on Markland Avenue in Kokomo at about 6:21
p.m. June 1 after a call from a store manager about a bomb threat. The usually full
parking lot was empty, save for a few cars, and KPD patrol cars blocked each entrance
while a KPD bomb tech checked the store. No explosive device was found. The store
reopened at about 8 p.m.
Source: http://www.kokomoperspective.com/news/article_ad3bda3e-6ddc-11df-ba7c001cc4c03286.html
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63. June 1, WSJM FM Radio 94.9 – (Michigan) Two stores called with bomb threat. The
Benton Township Police Department reported bomb scares at two businesses off
Pipestone June 1. The Pri-Mart and Walmart recieved calls from a male saying he
placed bombs near or in the businesses. Both places were called just before 11 a.m.
Each place was evacuated while the Berrien County Bomb Squad searched the
buildings. The Walmart had to closed for two and a half hours before the all-clear was
called.
Source: http://www.wsjm.com/Updated--Two-Stores-Called-With-BombThreats/7368781
64. June 1, WAGA 5 Atlanta – (Georgia) Fire investigators probe apartment blast. June
1 morning investigators will continue to try to figure out what caused an explosion at a
Sandy Springs apartment complex. One man was injured in the explosion. A unit on the
bottom floor blew up just after noon May 31. Witnesses say the blast happened right
after the man who lived at the apartment opened his door. The front wall of the
apartment was blown into the parking lot as a result of the blast. The explosion may
have been caused by natural gas, and neighbors reported smelling gas prior to it
happening. The blast singed the victim’s hair, arms, legs and head. While some
neighbors tended to the victim, others put out a small fire caused by the explosion. Ten
units were condemned because of the blast.
Source: http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/dpp/news/Crews-Investigate-Sandy-SpringsApt.-Explosion-20100601-am-sd
65. June 1, Greensboro News & Record – (North Carolina) Police: Restaurant robber
prompts Greensboro motel evacuation. A man faces charges he threatened to set a
Jimmy John’s restaurant on fire Monday night before barricading himself in a motel
room and setting the bathroom on fire. About 7:20 p.m., Greensboro police responded
to a robbery alarm at the restaurant. Employees told police someone entered the store
with a Gatorade bottle filled with gas, poured it on the counter and register, and
threatened to ignite it with a lighter unless he was given money. He grabbed the cash
register and fled in a gray SUV with Virginia tags. The suspect was found in a room at
nearby motel. He had a gun and refused to come out. He then barricaded himself in a
bathroom and set it on fire, causing officers to evacuate the building. The suspect later
surrendered after he was overcome by the smoke and fumes. He was arrested on an
outstanding warrant for fraud and was charged with arson.
Source: http://www.newsrecord.com/content/2010/06/01/article/police_restaurant_robber_prompts_greensboro_
motel_evacuation
[Return to top]
National Monuments and Icons Sector
66. June 1, Associated Press – (National) Fire forcing evacuations of Fenton Lake
area. Law enforcement officers are evacuating the community of 7 Springs and
campers in the area because of a wildfire that broke out June 1 afternoon in the Jemez
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Mountains northwest of Albuquerque. Forest Service spokesman could not say how
many residents and campers might be in the area about 6 miles northwest of Jemez
Springs. The 300-acre fire on the Santa Fe National Forest is about 2 1/2 miles
northeast of Fenton Lake, but no structures are threatened. The blaze is burning in
ponderosa pine and mixed conifer forest, and smoke is visible from Albuquerque and
Santa Fe. Forest officials weren’t sure what caused the fire, but they suspect an
abandoned campfire.
Source: http://www.newswest9.com/Global/story.asp?S=12577798
[Return to top]
Dams Sector
67. June 2, Athens Banner-Herald – (Georgia) Fixes to dam go quicker. Safety upgrades
that required Madison County to drain a popular fishing lake could be finished three
years sooner than expected. In January, officials estimated it would take almost three
years to fix safety concerns with the dam on Seagraves Lake near the Sanford
community. The lake was drained and inspected for safety hazards, such as a rusted
drainage pipe that could have leaked water and softened soil around the earthen dam.
The state Environmental Protection Division labeled the 40-acre lake a high hazard
because a downstream house could be flooded if the dam broke. Contractors replaced
the pipe and refilling could begin once workers finish a few more weeks of
improvements. Besides its recreational uses, Madison County residents could get water
from Seagraves Lake in the future. The county still has to construct a spillway that
could cost between $200,000 to $500,000. The county has spent about $150,000 on the
project so far and probably will spend at least another $100,000 before it is finished.
Source: http://www.onlineathens.com/stories/060210/new_647639001.shtml
68. June 1, KCCI 8 Des Moines – (Iowa) Two years later, levee waits for permanent
fix. In two weeks, it’ll be two years since the Des Moines River levee in the Birdland
neighborhood broke, and yet today, some businesses are still threatened and no work
has begun yet on a permanent replacement levee. The flooding drove hundreds of
people from their homes, shutdown numerous north side businesses and flooded parts
of North High School. In April, the Army Corps of Engineers awarded a $7.3 million
contract to a Minneapolis company to improve and reconstruct 1.7 miles of levee on the
eastside of the Des Moines River, from McHenry and Riverview Parks to Birdland
Park. Tuesday, concrete barriers covered with sheets of plastic were still in place with
sandbags encircling Glass Professionals Inc. in Des Moines. Ceres Environmental
Services of Minneapolis was the contractor hired to make the permanent levee repairs.
Officials said that by contract, Ceres is still supposed to have the levee completed by
the end of next summer. If the company is unable to complete the work, the Army
Corps can pull the contract and put it up for bid again, but officials said that would
slow down the repair work even more.
Source: http://www.kcci.com/news/23761376/detail.html
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69. May 29, New Hampshire Union Leader – (New Hampshire) State plan would remove
historic Epping dam. The State of New Hampshire is moving ahead with plans to
remove a historic dam along the wild and scenic Lamprey River.The 264-year-old
Bunker Pond Dam would be too expensive to repair, state officials said, prompting the
state’s Dam Bureau to seek its removal. The state began considering its removal after
several problems were found during an inspection last fall. The dam is susceptible to
sinkholes during flooding and has suffered leaks along the downstream face of a
spillway. The dam also has uneven upstream concrete walls that cause the embankment
to become saturated during heavy rainfall. A design engineer for the Dam Bureau, said
the state is currently testing samples of sediment to make sure that it’s not
contaminated. If the sediment is clean, the state will continue seeking the proper
permits for the dam’s removal. She said the state must make sure that there are no
problems with the sediment that would be released downstream once the dam is
removed. “If it turns out to be contaminated we might have to rethink things,” she said.
The results of the sediment testing should be back within a month. If all goes as
planned, the design and permitting for the dam’s removal will be done this year. The
dam could be removed by next summer. State officials estimate that repairing the dam
could cost as much as $250,000.
Source:
http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=State+plan+would+remove+histori
c+Epping+dam&articleId=81b88664-af35-455f-a64f-5025a939dda4
[Return to top]
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DHS Daily Open Source Infrastructure Report Contact Information
About the reports - The DHS Daily Open Source Infrastructure Report is a daily [Monday through Friday]
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