Explosions shatter London underground
Explosions shatter London underground — Near simultaneous explosions rocked the London Underground network and three buses at the morning rush hour, police said, causing fatalities and prompting officials to shut down the entire underground transport network. (CNN)
Dennis floods Jamaica, takes aim at U.S. — Tropical Storm Dennis flooded roads in Haiti and Jamaica yesterday and threatened to strengthen to a major hurricane as it heads for Cuba and then the Alabama-Florida border, forecasters said as the latest storm pushed oil and gas prices sharply higher. (Trinidad Express)
A vote of ‘no confidence’ in airlines? — Regardless of the pedigree of the air carrier — whether it’s Northwest Airlines or discounter JetBlue Airways — insiders have been selling millions of dollars’ worth of shares, and they don’t appear to be in any rush to buy, according to a report published Wednesday. (CNN/Money)
Denver car rental companies oppose planned tax — Too many local residents would end up paying a proposed car rental tax increase aimed at visitors, opponents of the measure told a City Council panel on Wednesday. “Many, many local people will be carrying the burden of this tax,” Enterprise-Rent-A-Car’s Jane Hylen told the council’s Economic Development Committee. “More than 90 percent of our business is local.” (News)
RVers look to Wal-Mart to save money — With $2 gas prices making their hobby more expensive, RV enthusiasts are trimming their travel costs any way they can, whether it’s taking fewer and shorter trips or spending a few nights in the local Wal-Mart parking lot, experts say. They’re also looking for convenience, security and familiarity as they drive their travel trailers or $100,000-plus motor homes from one end of the country to the other. (AP)
Air France jet lands on herd of cows — An Air France jet collided with a herd of cows as it landed in the southern Nigerian oil city of Port Harcourt on Wednesday, according to officials. “No passenger or crew member was injured and the aircraft taxied safely to the gate,” an Air France official said in Lagos. The number of bovine victims was however unavailable. The Airbus A330 was en route from Paris with 197 passengers aboard when it came in to land around 4.30 am local time. (DPA)
DHS requests vigilance at US transit systems — The Homeland Security Department asked authorities in major cities Thursday for heightened vigilance of transportation systems after a series of explosions on London transit systems. President Bush, in Scotland for a meeting of the Group of Eight leaders, conferred in a secure video conference with national security and homeland security officials in Washington. (Security Info Watch)
Plane lands on a speeding Porsche — A German pilot and driver escaped unhurt when a one-seater plane landed on top of a speeding car at a little-used airport, police in the western town of Bitburg said.
“It was a miracle that no one was hurt. There was considerable damage done to the plane and the car,” said Klaus Schnarrbach, spokesman for the Bitburg police. (AU News)
Another man missing from cruise ship — A Greenwich man on a honeymoon cruise is missing and may have fallen off the cruise ship in the Mediterranean Sea. George Smith, had recently gotten married and was on his honeymoon, one of his cousins told the Greenwich Time. According to Michael Sheehan, a spokesman for Royal Caribbean International, the ship, Brilliance of the Seas, was on a 12-night Mediterranean sailing cruise. (Newsday)
European travel, hotel stocks slide on terror attacks — European hotel and travel stocks including Hilton Group Plc and TUI AG slumped on concern a series of bombs set off by terrorists in London today will hurt the city’s tourism industry. The FTSE 350 Leisure & Hotels Index dropped as much as 5.8 percent, the biggest decline since al-Qaeda attacked New York on Sept. 11, 2001. (Bloomberg)
Summertime campuses cash in on conferences — For nine months a year, students at Furman University have freshly renovated apartments all to themselves. But when summer arrives, they give them up in a hurry for one compelling reason: 10,000 visitors are on their way. For Furman, 10 frenzied weeks means $1.5 million in revenue, including up to $300,000 in profits. (USA Today)