Maryland

Alien fish scare officially over

The carnivorous alien fish species that thrived in an Annapolis pond until this summer has been eradicated there, easing fears the predator could upset local ecosystems.

A fish poison sprayed on the 4-acre pond in September killed the entire northern snakehead population, state officials confirmed Wednesday after returning to the pond to check for surviving fish.

“There was not a fish of any species,” said John Surrick, spokesman for the Department of Natural Resources.

More than 1,000 juvenile snakeheads and six adults were found in the pond, all traced to a Maryland man who discarded two fish there two years ago after buying them live in a New York market.

The predatory fish, native to China, can breathe air and slither on land for short distances, raising concerns they could begin breeding in other ponds and rivers and threaten fish there.

Indiana

Truck spills explosives near university

A tractor-trailer carrying explosive materials overturned near Indiana University early Wednesday, killing a motorist and causing authorities to evacuate hundreds of students from nearby fraternity and sorority houses.

The truck spilled ammonia nitrate and blasting caps, Indiana State Police Trooper Jackie Taylor said. There was no explosion.

About 1,500 people living in fraternities and sororities within a half-mile of the accident in Bloomington were evacuated to the campus basketball arena after the 6:30 a.m. crash. They were allowed to return after about eight hours.

The driver of a car involved in the crash, Linda Lowery, 50, of Nashville was killed. The truck driver was being treated at a hospital for injuries that were not life-threatening, Taylor said. The driver had been making a delivery from Columbus to Mitchell for Austin Powder Co.

Tennessee

TVA plans to treat smokestack emissions

The Tennessee Valley Authority placed a $1.5 billion order Wednesday for smokestack scrubbers that could sharply reduce haze and acid rain throughout the region, including the Great Smoky Mountains and Mammoth Cave national parks.

The contract demonstrates TVA’s commitment to cleaning the air, director Skila Harris said from the agency’s board meeting in Starkville, Miss.

The country’s largest public utility will install scrubber systems at two coal-fired power plants in Tennessee and two others in Alabama and Kentucky.

The units inject crushed limestone into flue gases, causing a chemical reaction that removes sulfur dioxide and leaves a byproduct of gypsum and water vapor.

Together, the systems should reduce TVA’s sulfur dioxide emissions by 200,000 tons a year.

Alabama

Cars crash airport gate, race around field

Two cars crashed through a locked gate at Birmingham International Airport and raced across a runway and taxiways Wednesday before ramming another locked gate to escape.

The vehicles never came close to the terminal or any aircraft, and the cars ” a black Cadillac and a white sedan ” were gone before police could catch them. No arrests were made.

Air traffic controllers and ground workers watched the incident in amazement.

“They went pretty much in all directions all over the airfield,” said Patty Howell, a spokeswoman for the airport authority.

The airport was closed for 15 minutes during the breach, and the Federal Aviation Administration said an incoming flight was delayed about 30 minutes. One or two departing flights were delayed briefly.