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The KCNA news agency identified the American as Bruce Byron Lowrance and said he was detained on Oct. 16 as he crossed the border. An American man of the same name was deported from South Korea in November 2017 after being found wandering near the heavily fortified border with North Korea, but there was no immediate confirmation of the identity of the man held by North Korea. Using the initials of North Korea's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, KCNA said the man had told his captors "he illegally entered the DPRK under the manipulation of the CIA".

Fri, 16 Nov 2018 04:33:28 -0500

"The military is not classifying them as the enemy in any way, shape or form," said Cunningham, who is the spokesman for the Special Purpose Marine Ground- Air Taskforce 7. Trump's politically charged decision to send troops to the border with Mexico came ahead of U.S. congressional elections last week. The number of U.S. troops at the border with Mexico may have peaked at about 5,800, the U.S. commander of the mission told Reuters, noting he would start looking next week at whether to begin sending forces home or perhaps shifting some to new border positions.

Fri, 16 Nov 2018 02:57:02 -0500

SAN FRANCISCO/LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - PG&E Corp shares soared 40 percent in after-hours trade on Thursday following a report that a regulatory official told investors the agency does not want the utility to go into bankruptcy should it be found responsible for this month's deadly wildfire in northern California. Bloomberg reported the comment by a California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) official on a call hosted by Bank of America Corp , citing a person familiar with the matter. A CPUC spokesman said he could not confirm the remarks and Bank of America declined to comment.

Fri, 16 Nov 2018 00:39:00 -0500

A search for victims of a catastrophic blaze that reduced a northern California town to ashes intensified on Thursday, as authorities expanded to 630 the number of those reported missing in the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in state history. At least 63 people have been confirmed dead in the Camp Fire, which erupted a week ago in the drought-parched Sierra foothills 175 miles (280 km) north of San Francisco and now ranks as one of the most lethal single U.S. wildfires since the turn of the last century. Authorities attributed the high death toll in part to the staggering speed with which the wind-driven flames, fueled by desiccated scrub and trees, raced with little warning through Paradise, a town of 27,000.

Thu, 15 Nov 2018 23:25:37 -0500

The federal regulator said in a review of how Columbia Gas Co of Massachusetts, a subsidiary of NiSource, handled pipeline repair work that better construction orders could have prevented the disaster. Explosions and fires that killed one person, injured 21 and damaged 131 buildings erupted as Columbia Gas was replacing cast-iron pipe with plastic lines. Utilities have told state regulators that thousands of miles of natural gas pipelines in Massachusetts are leak-prone and need repairs.

Thu, 15 Nov 2018 20:26:54 -0500