Bushes christen aircraft carrier
George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush saluted one another at a rain-drenched, shore-side ceremony Saturday, as an aircraft carrier was christened in the name of the father, a naval aviator who survived a direct strike by Japanese anti-aircraft fire over the Pacific 62 years ago.
Doro Bush Koch, the former president’s daughter and the current president’s sister, smashed a bottle of sparkling wine against the bow of the vessel, and declared: “I hereby christen thee USS George H.W. Bush. May God bless all who sail her.”
The younger President Bush said of the new vessel: “She is unrelenting, she is unshakable, she is unyielding, she is unstoppable.” He added, “As a matter of fact, (she) probably should have been named the Barbara Bush.”
For the senior Bush, the moment was especially fitting, given his Navy service. On Sept. 2, 1944, he set off from the deck of the carrier San Jacinto to attack Japanese installations on the Pacific island of Chichi Jima, north of the equator. His Avenger was hit by Japanese fire, and with his engine aflame, he managed to drop his bombs over the target and fly several miles from shore before bailing out. Two others in the plane died.
APEX, N.C.
Residents return after plant fire
Residents trickled back into town Saturday after a fire at a hazardous materials plant, relieved that there were no serious injuries or damage to their homes while they were forced out for two nights.
A few roadblocks remained near the still-smoldering rubble of the EQ Industrial Services plant, but the burning smell and potentially toxic clouds of fumes were gone. Still, some residents heeded the advice of environmental officials to replace air conditioner filters, wipe off children’s toys and kitchen counters, and wash clothes and bedding.
About 17,000 residents were urged to leave late Thursday when the plant burst into flames. They were allowed to return starting Saturday morning, after the fire was largely extinguished and tests showed the air and water was safe.
Apex Fire Chief Mark Haraway said officials don’t know what sparked the fire, or what specific chemicals or hazardous materials burned.
GEORGETOWN, Pa.
Amish attend gunman’s funeral
Dozens of Amish neighbors came out Saturday to mourn the quiet milkman who killed five of their young girls and wounded five more in a brief, unfathomable rampage.
Charles Carl Roberts IV, 32, was buried in his wife’s family plot behind a small Methodist church, a few miles from the one-room schoolhouse he stormed Monday.
His wife, Marie, and their three small children looked on as Roberts was buried beside the pink, heart-shaped grave of the infant daughter whose death nine years ago apparently haunted him, said Bruce Porter, a fire department chaplain from Colorado who attended the service.
About half of perhaps 75 mourners on hand were Amish.