Reports: security hasn’t improved since 9/11
Reports: air security hasn’t improved since 9/11 — Security at U.S. airports is no better under federal control than it was before the September 11 attacks, a key House member says two government reports will conclude. The Government Accountability Office — the investigative arm of Congress — and the Homeland Security Department’s inspector general are expected to soon release their findings on the performance of Transportation Security Administration screeners.
Freak wave damages cruise ship — A freak wave some 70 feet high smashed into a cruise liner as the vessel returned to New York from the Bahamas, slightly injuring four passengers and flooding 62 cabins, the ship’s owners said on Sunday. Norwegian Cruise Line, part of the Malaysian Genting Group’s Star Cruises Ltd., said the wave shattered two windows on the Norwegian Dawn at daybreak on Saturday off the Florida coast.
Amtrak passengers take the slow train — Amtrak hoped to run one or two of its high-speed Acela Express trains Monday after cracks recently found in brake systems caused the troubled railroad to suspend most of the premium Acela service between Washington and Boston. Slower trains will stand in for Acela trains on about half of Amtrak’s scheduled departures today, company spokeswoman Tracy Connell said.
Survey: best rates aren’t so great — Hotel companies are failing to honor website price guarantees. Many are enticing customers by promising the best prices on the internet, however, according to a survey by professional services firm KPMG, hotel firms were offering even better discounts through other online retailers if they found they had a surfeit of empty beds to sell at the last minute.
QE2 crew goes on booze cruise — Three crewmen have been arrested after a drunken party aboard the QE2 caused tens of thousands of pounds worth of damage - and wrecked a priceless tapestry of the Queen. The artwork was torn down and daubed with a moustache and glasses in the rampage.
Help, there’s a python in my car — Motorists occasionally find themselves unable to move their vehicles because their batteries run flat, but it is not often that one is prevented from taking one’s car out of a parking lot by a giant reticulated python. That, however, is what happened last night to a visitor to the Krabi Royal Hotel in the South of Thailand, who was just about to move his vehicle when he discovered a 5 metre-long python curled up underneath.
Contributing: Charles Leocha, John Frenaye