Two Vermont Guardsmen killed in Iraq
Two Vermont Army National Guardsmen were killed in Iraq on Tuesday. Thirty-six-year-old Kevin Sheehan and 22-year-old Alan Bean were killed Tuesday in a mortar attack. (VPR)
Impact of War: Families deal with long deployments
Hundreds of Vermonters have been called from their families and jobs for long and often dangerous duty in the Iraq war. At home and overseas, these Vermonters are coping with longer absences than they anticipated. They’ve experienced first-hand the changing role of the Guard and Reserves. (VPR)
Northern hospitals compete for cardiac patients
Vermont’s largest hospital has launched an unprecedented advertising campaign aimed at preserving market share in New York State. Fletcher Allen Health Care in Burlington is worried it will lose patients to a new cardiac care facility in Plattsburgh, New York. But an official at the New York hospital says Fletcher Allen rejected a plan two years ago to work together to meet patient needs. (VPR)
Terrorism information system
Vermont has been chosen to be part of a pilot program that will give local and state law enforcement officers direct access to federal counter-terrorism information. Governor Jim Douglas says the program is critical because local officials are a key component in the war against terrorism. (VPR)
Rutland airport wary of new security costs
Officials at small, regional airports across the country say new federal safety requirements may prove so costly that many will have to shut down their commercial passenger service. (VPR)
Kentucky prison concludes investigation into abuse
Corrections Commissioner Steve Gold says he’s satisfied with a prison operator’s investigation into sexual assault allegations made by two Vermont inmates at a Kentucky prison. (AP)
Feasibility study of new UVM arena
The Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce has signed a contract with a consultant to study the cost and feasibility of building a new arena at the University of Vermont. The $80,000 deal with Conventions, Sports and Leisure International, or CSL, was signed last week. (AP)
Middlebury student joins elite group of climbers
A Middlebury College student has become the youngest person to climb the tallest peaks on the seven continents. Twenty-two-year-old Britton Keeshan reached the top of Mount Everest on Monday. (AP)
Phish calls it quits
The band Phish reports it will break up this summer after 20 years together and their last show is in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom. Phish recently announced plans to play a weekend festival expected to attract about 70,000 people to the town of Coventry. (AP)
Sanders postpones campaign rally
The deaths of two Vermont Army National guardsmen have prompted Congressman Bernie Sanders to postpone his campaign kickoff. The event was originally scheduled for this evening at City Hall Park in Burlington. Thirty-six-year-old Kevin Sheehan and 22-year-old Alan Bean were killed Tuesday in a mortar attack. (AP)
Missing fuel rod liability
Entergy Nuclear is telling the former owners of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant that they are financially responsible for the pieces of fuel rod that went missing last month. Entergy bought the Vernon reactor from the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corporation in July 2002. The last time someone saw the fuel rod pieces was in 1980. (AP)
State hospital director named
The superintendent of the women’s prison in Waterbury has been named executive director of the Vermont State Hospital. Fifty-one-year-old Terry Rowe is a social worker by training. (AP)
MAU construction cost dispute
Two school districts are planning to sue the Mount Anthony Union High School District over construction costs. Attorneys for the Pownal and North Bennington districts say they’re being billed unlawfully for the construction of a wing in Bennington’s new middle school. (AP)