Oil field shut down over line corrosion
In a sudden blow to the nation’s oil supply, half the production on Alaska’s North Slope was being shut down Sunday after BP Exploration Alaska Inc. discovered severe corrosion in a Prudhoe Bay oil transit line.
BP officials said they didn’t know how long the Prudhoe Bay field would be off line.
Once the field is shut down, in a process expected to take days, BP said oil production will be reduced by 400,000 barrels a day – close to 8 percent of U.S. oil production as of May 2006.
BP America Chairman and President Bob Malone said the field will not resume operating until the company and government regulators are satisfied it can run safely without threatening the environment.
Beijing
Explosion kills eight aboard bus
An explosion aboard a bus in southern China killed eight people on Sunday, a government news agency reported, just days after a similar explosion had killed 11.
The explosion occurred about 6 p.m. in Hunan province’s Guiyang county, according to the Xinhua News Agency.
Nineteen people were taken to hospitals with injuries, Xinhua said.
The cause of the blast is under investigation.
Last Thursday, 11 people were killed when an explosion rocked a bus in southern China’s Guizhou province. That explosion also is under investigation.
China has suffered a string of fatal explosions aboard public buses in recent years, blamed on both bomb attacks and accidents with dangerous cargo.
CHARLESTON, S.C.
Citadel cracks down on sex harassment
Cadets at The Citadel will be required to take training aimed at preventing sexual harassment and sexual assault, officials have announced.
School president Lt. Gen. John Rosa presented the preliminary design of the Values and Respect Program to the school’s Board of Visitors on Saturday.
Rosa, who moved to change the culture of the Air Force Academy during his two years as superintendent there, said the lessons will teach cadets to respect themselves and one another.
Rosa said preventing alcohol abuse is a key. “If we cut out alcohol, we’d cut out three-quarters of our problems,” he said.