Disaster

A new theory suggests that a raging coal fire on board RMS Titanic, started before the ship had left on its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York, contributed to its demise. New evidence points to marks found on the hull where the ship came into contact with an iceberg. The marks point to a well-documented coal fire that had broken out in that part of the ship before Titanic had left Southampton on its ill-fated journey. It appears that the liner was rushing to get to New York while handicapped with a weakened hull and a smouldering fire below deck.

The US Coast Guard said on Thursday morning it was responding to a fire on an oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana.

A Coast Guard news release says the fire was reported around 2:30 a.m. Thursday on an oil platform about 80 miles south of Grand Isle, Louisiana. It was not immediately clear whose platform it was.

The Coast Guard says four people aboard the platform evacuated and were rescued by a supply vessel. No injuries have been reported.

Beijing's pollution problem is getting worse by the day.

On Wednesday, the Chinese capital issued its highest "red fog alert" for only the second day in history, keeping highways closed in and around the city which is already under a smog alert after weeks of choking winter pollution. China's weather bureau warned of visibility of less than 50 meters in some areas, leading many airports to cancel flights.

A LIRR train has derailed in the Atlantic and Flatbush Avenue area of Brooklyn, with initial reports suggesting 32 people were being treated for injuries. The derailment happened at the Atlantic Terminal according to NBC and WPIX11.

Pictures on twitter showed the derailment took place on track 6, and that the train was tipped slightly at an angle.

My #LIRR train crashed at #AtlanticTerminal in #Brooklyn. Crazy. Seems only a few people are lightly injured. pic.twitter.com/oXHvy2yxDL

It is not a secret and it is not new that public hospitals in Greece collapsed. As Keep TalkingGreece.com notes, the first budget cuts imposed with the first bailout agreement affected the public health. Seven years later, the situation goes from bad to worse in fast speed. The austerity freezing of hiring (1:7) ended up in severe shortages in medical and paramedical personnel. The sharp expenditure cuts deprive hospitals of spare parts and essential material.