MEXICO CITY

Explosion on oil platform kills four, injures 16 workers

A huge ball of flames engulfed an oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico on Wednesday, killing four people and sending terrified workers leaping into the sea.

State-run oil company Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex, said there was no evidence of a major oil spill following the blast, which also injured 16 workers, two seriously, and forced the evacuation of 300.

Firefighters were still working to put out the fire, which was consuming the oil that was on the platform, Pemex Director General Emilio Lozoya said late Wednesday afternoon.Speaking at a news conference in the nearby city of Ciudad del Carmen, Lozoya said the cause of the fire was still being investigated, but it appeared to be something mechanical.

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone

Countrywide shutdown uncovers 10 new Ebola cases

Sierra Leone found 10 new Ebola cases during a three-day countrywide shutdown, an official said Wednesday, declaring that the West African country is now at the “tail end” of the epidemic.

Hundreds of sick people were identified on Friday, Saturday and Sunday as health teams went door-to-door in an operation that also aimed to remind people how to prevent Ebola. But only 10 of the sick eventually tested positive for the disease, said Alfred Palo Conteh, the head of the country’s Ebola response.

That figure indicates that there were not hordes of hidden Ebola cases as some had feared.

ATLANTA

Former educators convicted in school cheating scandal

In one of the biggest cheating scandals of its kind in the U.S., 11 former Atlanta public school educators were convicted Wednesday of racketeering for their role in a scheme to inflate students’ scores on standardized exams.

The defendants, including teachers, a principal and other administrators, were accused of falsifying test results to collect bonuses or keep their jobs in the 50,000-student Atlanta school system. A 12th defendant, a teacher, was acquitted of all charges by the jury.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.

Total lunar eclipse visible Saturday on West Coast

The heavens are providing a holiday treat this weekend, but viewers will have to be quick to catch it.

Weather permitting, sky gazers along North America’s West Coast can enjoy a total lunar eclipse in the predawn hours Saturday.

Scientists expect totality – when the full moon is completely obscured by Earth’s shadow – to last just several minutes, beginning at 4:58 a.m. PDT. The eastern half of North America will miss out on the total phase.

– From news service reports

Copy the Story Link