In brief: Tow boat crash on Mississippi River causes oil spill
COLUMBUS, Ky. – Part of the Mississippi River was closed as crews investigated an oil spill caused by the collision of two tow boats, the U.S. Coast Guard said Thursday.
The collision Wednesday evening near Columbus, Kentucky, damaged at least one barge carrying clarified slurry oil. The cargo tank was ruptured, causing thousands of gallons of oil to spill into the river, the Coast Guard said.
No injuries were reported.
The barge was carrying approximately 1 million gallons, but the breach was only in one area, affecting just one of its six tanks, Ratliff said.
Pope parade plans allow closer view
After an outcry over plans to keep most of Pope Francis’ audience at his biggest Philadelphia events several blocks away, organizers Thursday announced the pontiff will parade through downtown twice and said they would set aside 30,000 tickets for the public to get a closer view.
“Everyone wants to see the pope, and we totally, totally get that,” said Donna Crilley Farrell, executive director of the World Meeting of Families – the triennial Catholic conference attracting Francis to Philadelphia.
Francis will attend the World Meeting’s closing ceremony on Sept. 26 and celebrate an outdoor Mass on Sept. 27.The Archdiocese of Philadelphia said late Thursday that a map released by the Secret Service had left the impression that the ticket zone was twice the size, putting non-ticketholders more than a half-mile, or five blocks, away from the pontiff.
• The pope is scheduled to offer a special blessing to a group of immigrants and refugees in New York, including those who are undocumented, highlighting two contentious issues in American politics.
The Sept. 25 encounter with about 150 mostly Spanish-speaking New Yorkers “is about the values and the message that he has articulated as pope,” the head of New York’s Catholic Charities, Monsignor Kevin Sullivan, told a news conference Thursday at a church in Harlem. Francis has made helping immigrants a top priority of his pontificate.
• House Democrats are pushing Pope Francis to address the minimum wage, hunger and the environment in his historic speech to Congress on Sept. 24, hoping his embrace will give momentum to three party priorities.
In an Aug. 11 letter to the pontiff, 94 House Democrats lauded Francis’ schedule during his six-day U.S. trip, which includes visits to a Philadelphia prison and a school in New York City’s Harlem neighborhood.
“Your powerful example of solidarity with the poor and the marginalized will undoubtedly help inform our current debates around major U.S. policy affecting all Americans,” the lawmakers wrote.