Thursday, July 25, 2013

US Army: Sergeant Stefan M. Smith

Sergeant Stefan M. Smith, twenty-four of Glennville, Georgia, died on July 23.

He and two other soldiers were killed when a suicide bomber attacked his unit's convoy, in Soltan Kheyl, Afghanistan.

Smith was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division out of Fort Stewart, Georgia.

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Pennsylvania County Allows Same Sex Marriage Despite State Ban

Montgomery County, Pennsylvania began issuing same sex marriage licenses on Wednesday.

This makes them the first in Pennsylvania to do so.

It also sets up further debates, as the state has a ban on same sex marriage.

The state has yet to make a remark about the licenses, but they could try to have the licenses blocked and rule them illegal.

Until the state makes a move, the county will continue with the licenses.

35 Killed in Spanish Train Derailment

Thirty-five people have been killed in a train derailment near Santiago de Compostela.

Dozens more were injured in the crash.

The accident threw passenger cars off of the tracks, tearing at least one open.

Smoke was seen coming out of the torn car, but there were no reports of fire.

At this time it is not known what caused the train to derail.

The Interior Ministry is investigating the crash.

17 Killed and 55 Wounded in Iraq Attacks

Attacks in Iraq, on Wednesday, left seventeen dead and fifty-five wounded.

It began in Bashmaya, when militants attacked a police station, killing nine officers and injuring another two.

As emergency crews were responding, a roadside bomb struck an ambulance, injuring the driver and his assistant.

A car bomb exploded in a residential part of Tuz Khormato, injuring thirty-five and damaging houses.

Two soldiers were killed and five wounded when a car bomb exploded in Kirkuk.

Another explosion killed three and wounded eleven in Qahira.

In Baghdad, three people were killed in a shooting.

The situation in Iraq continues to deteriorate, with attacks the deadliest they've been in nearly a decade. 

Attack in Sukkur, Pakistan Leaves 5 Dead 30 Injured

Five people were killed and thirty injured when militants attacked government buildings in Sukkur, Pakistan.

At least ten gunmen attacked the complex, exchanging gun fire with security personnel and throwing explosives.

Some of the buildings caught on fire and others collapsed, because of the explosions.

Rescue workers searched through the debris for victims.

The complex is said to belong to Pakistan's spy agency.

No one has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

US Army: Specialist Anthony R. Maddox

Specialist Anthony R. Maddox, twenty-two of Port Arthur, Texas, died on July 22 in Landstuhl, Germany.

He was injured in Andar, Afghanistan.

Maddox was assigned to the 10th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, out of Fort Drum, New York.

His decorations include: Army Achievement Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, NATO Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Combat Action Badge.

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Derailed Train Stops Feet Away From Houses

A train derailed and crashed through a Denver building, Tuesday morning.

According to witnesses, the train came off the tracks, went through a garage, and flew over a ditch.

Luckily it stopped before striking houses that lay not much further away.

No one was hurt in the accident.

The cause of the derailment is under investigation.

10 Injured in Airplane Crash at LaGuardia

Ten people were injured when a Southwest Airlines 737 crashed after landing, on Monday evening, at LaGuardia Airport in New York.

The 737 landed safely, but as it was going down the runway it's front landing gear collapsed.

It then skidded down the runway for several hundred feet, before veering into grass beside the runway.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the incident.

La Guardia was forced to keep the runway closed until Tuesday morning when cranes were able to move the airplane.

With only one runway operational, the airport saw major delays.

4 Killed by Suicide Donkey Bomber

Three NATO soldiers and their translator were killed in Wardak, Afghanistan.

A man riding a donkey rode up to their convoy and blew himself up.

Four Afghan soldiers and a NATO soldier were also injured in the attack.

NATO officials did not initially release the nationalities of the four soldiers, but it later was released that they were Americans.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Taliban is being blamed for it, as they carry out most suicide bombings.

Tokyo Commuters Lift Train Off Woman

During Tokyo's busy morning rush hour a woman fell between the platform and a train.

Forty bystanders rushed to join transit workers and police and pushed the train car off of her, so that she could be lifted to safety.

A single train car weighs more than thirty-three tons.

The woman was not seriously injured in the incident, but was taken to a hospital as a precaution.

Train service resumed just eight minutes later.