Disasters

As the 25th anniversary of the nuclear disaster at Chernobyl in the Ukraine arrives, its lessons may remain unlearned.

"The 83-year-old man spoke with tears in his eyes. 'It's all over. It is better to just die.' He had just learned his small farm would be sealed off at midnight April 21 inside the government's no-entry zone around the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant."

"Exactly one year after the immolated hulk of the drilling rig Deepwater Horizon sank in the Gulf of Mexico, the Coast Guard on Friday blasted the rig's owner, Transocean, for what it described as poor safety practices that exacerbated the disaster after BP's Macondo well blew out."

"Negotiations between the Natural Resource Trustees and BP has resulted in a $1 billion down payment toward early restoration projects in the Gulf of Mexico for damage to natural resources resulting from the BP oil disaster."

"As he prepared to visit Chernobyl 25 years after the world's worst nuclear disaster, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon outlined a five-step plan to strengthen global nuclear safety."

"Calmer winds and higher humidity on Wednesday gave the army of firefighters battling several major blazes in north and west Texas hope of halting the worst wildfires in the state's history."

"A blowout at a natural gas well in rural northern Pennsylvania spilled thousands of gallons of chemical-laced water Wednesday, contaminating a stream and leading officials to ask seven families who live nearby to evacuate as crews struggled to stop the gusher."

BP's response to the Gulf spill disaster often made it seem callous and arrogant. It was a textbook example of how not to do public relations.

"BP Plc filed a lawsuit for more than $42 billion against Halliburton, which cemented the blown-out well which caused the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, after claiming a similar sum from rig owner Transocean."

"Last spring, as BP's unchecked gusher of oil began to spread across the Gulf of Mexico, University of Miami oceanographer Jerald Ault tried to answer the question that was on everyone's lips: What will this do to the Gulf?"