South Carolina

Crew finds ninth victim of deadly chemical spill

Investigators wearing protective suits and oxygen tanks Saturday discovered the body of a factory worker missing since a train carrying chlorine gas wrecked Thursday, causing one of the nation’s deadliest chemical spills in years.

The worker was found inside the Avondale Mills textile plant in Graniteville, where five workers died after being overcome by the fumes. A total of nine people were killed and more than 250 sickened by the toxic vapors.

The search for the worker delayed crews patching a hole in the train car that was carrying the chlorine gas when the wreck occurred Thursday about 10 miles from the Georgia state line. Debris was moved away from the leaking railcar Saturday and about 40 tons of crushed lime was dropped on the ground to begin neutralizing the chlorine, authorities said.

More than 5,400 residents have been forced to evacuate their homes and will not be permitted to return until Tuesday at the earliest, officials said.

Honolulu

Nuclear submarine runs aground, injures 20

A nuclear submarine ran aground Saturday about 350 miles south of Guam, injuring around 20 sailors and sustaining severe damage, the Navy said.

There were no reports of damage to the USS San Francisco’s reactor plant, which was operating normally, the Navy said. One of the sailors suffered critical injuries.

The 360-foot submarine was headed back to its home port in Guam, and the incident was under investigation, said Jon Yoshishige, a spokesman for the Pacific Fleet based at Pearl Harbor. He said there was no information yet on what the submarine struck.

The extent of the damage would not be known until the submarine arrived Monday at Guam, Yoshishige said.

Florida

Black congresswoman remembered for ‘fight’

Former U.S. Rep. Shirley Chisholm made her mark by holding fast to her convictions and speaking out for women, minorities and the poor, said mourners attending a service Saturday in Palm Coast, Fla., for the first black woman elected to Congress.

“She exemplified what a politician should be — and that is to stand up for what you believe is right and fight until you have no fight left,” said Robert Gottlieb, who worked on Chisholm’s short-lived 1972 presidential campaign.

Chisholm, a former nursery school teacher, was first elected to represent her New York City district in Congress in 1968 and served seven terms. She won 152 delegates in the race for the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination before dropping out.

Chisholm, 80, died Jan. 1 and was to be buried in New York.