Articles by Kelly P. Kissel

Drone Prompts Diversion of Arkansas Wildfire Surveillance Plane

Forestry officials diverted a surveillance plane from its assigned path because a drone hovered above a northern Arkansas wildfire, prompting them to caution people that airborne efforts to take unique photographs endanger pilots and those working below. State Forester Joe …

Arkansas Mulls 75 MPH Speed Limit, Opens Comment Period

Arkansas opened a 45-day comment period Monday on whether highway officials should let motorists drive at higher speeds and within minutes had elicited confessions from drivers who wrote that, while they themselves speed, other drivers are going even faster. Legislators …

Relief Slow for Small Texas Coastal Towns Recovering from Harvey

Some shoreline communities in Texas that bore the brunt of Hurricane Harvey still need clean water, electricity and health care more than a week after the winds and rain subsided. Locals in Port Aransas, Seadrift and Sargent awoke on Aug. …

Arkansas’ Tyson Foods Installs Video, Bird Welfare Checks in Poultry Operations

Tyson Foods has installed video cameras in key areas of its poultry operations and will test new ways to slaughter birds — not in response to previous “gotcha” moments but under a corporate philosophy that notes its role as a …

Tornado-Spawning Storm System Killed 3 in Midwest, Moved Eastward

A spring-like storm system that killed at least three people as it spawned tornadoes and damaged dozens of homes in the central U.S. rumbled eastward on March 1, putting about 95 million people in its path, forecasters said. The compact …

NTSB: Crew Fatigue Main Cause of Deadly 2014 Arkansas Train Crash

Crew fatigue brought on by irregular work schedules and a moderate form of sleep apnea is the primary reason behind a middle-of-the-night train crash that killed two Union Pacific workers and injured two others in northern Arkansas, the National Transportation …

Court Nulls Medical Liability Cap Proposal on Arkansas Ballot

Arkansas’ Supreme Court said on Oct. 13 that voters won’t be able to consider a measure that would limit the amount of money awarded in medical liability cases because the language on the November ballot doesn’t fully describe what the …

Arkansas Justices Toss Medical Liability Limit Proposal from November Ballot

Arkansas’ Supreme Court said that voters won’t be able to consider award limits in medical liability cases because the language outlining the plan on the November ballot doesn’t fully describe what the proposal would do. Ballots have already been printed, …

Limits on Non-Economic Medical Damages to Be on Arkansas Ballot

Arkansas voters this fall will be allowed to consider a constitutional amendment that would limit non-economic damages in lawsuits against healthcare providers and set a limit on contingency fees lawyers could receive in medical injury cases. It joins four other …

Tornadoes Survival Tips from Texas to Nebraska

Storms swept through the nation’s midsection Monday, spawning numerous tornadoes. While tornadoes can form any time weather conditions are right, the area from Texas to Nebraska typically sees tornadoes between April and June. Here are some items from the nation’s …