WNYC reports that "in 2005, after Hurricane Katrina, Mayor Michael Bloomberg proposed a registry that would allow disaster responders to know where to find people most urgently in need of aid. But he does not appear to have followed through."

The Kansas City Star
Beef's Raw Edges 
"The Kansas City Star, in a yearlong investigation, found that the beef industry is increasingly relying on a mechanical process to tenderize meat, exposing Americans to higher risk of E. coli poisoning. The industry then resists labeling such products, leaving consumers in the dark. The result: Beef in America is plentiful and affordable, spun out in enormous quantities at high speeds, but it's a bonanza with hidden dangers. Industry officials contend beef is safer than it's ever been."

The Los Angeles Times
Dying For Relief: Reckless prescribing, patients endangered
"By ...

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The Indianapolis Star
Star Watch Investigation: Vectren's costly coal deal is a profit for company, pain for ratepayers
“At a time when coal prices were at record highs, Vectren locked into expensive, multiyear agreements to buy almost all of its coal supply from its own wholly-owned mining subsidiary, Vectren Fuels. And ratepayers paid the price. Experts say Vectren disregarded the common industry practice of staggering its coal purchases through shorter-term contracts to hedge against unusually high prices.”

The Salt Lake Tribune
Utah Highway Patrol discipline problems go beyond Lisa Steed
“While the case of Cpl. Lisa Steed, the one-time ...

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New Jersey Transit placed much of its equipment in rail yards that forecasters predicted would flood after Hurricane Sandy, a move that damaged one third of its locomotives and a quarter of its passenger cars, according to a report from Reuters. The damage could cost tens of millions of dollars to repair, according to Reuters.

"An investigation by Haiti Grassroots Watch (HGW) in the Upper Turgeau region of Port-au-Prince discovered that about 100 “transitional shelters” ­­– often called “T-Shelters” –were donated to earthquake victims and built in places where, prior to the 2010 catastrophe, there were trees, bushes, or at the very least, no houses."

"Today, thanks to the donations of the 12-by-18 square meter wooden shacks, an illegal slum has grown, and the slopes above Port-au-Prince are even more denuded."

“Nowhere are the challenges facing the Alexandria Fire Department more stark than at Station 206, the Seminary Road facility built in 1958. Standing on the front ramp looking west, Fire Chief Adam Thiel can see the massive Washington Headquarters Service — the new Department of Defense building where more than 6,000 people will work early next year. As the crow flies, it’s less than a mile away. But Thiel told The Alexandria Gazette Packet that during rush hour, the massive gridlock created by a lack of transportation planning could create a worse-case scenario — a 20-minute response time.”

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In the aftermath of the devastating Joplin tornadoes, cases of a rare fungus that cause potentially deadly infections in humans began showing up in Southwestern Missouri.Local health officials in Green County contacted state health officials with the evidence and suggested sounding a statewide alert. However, Missouri officials declined citing the concern of causing public panic. Sarah Okeson of the Springfield News-Leaderreports that, “frustrated, county officials issued a limited alert themselves.”

“County officials ended up putting out the word to 43 health care contacts. Joplin health officials also alerted providers. The state did eventually issue a health advisory on ...

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A KY3 investigation reveals that fewer than half of the people who applied for U.S. Small Business  Administration disaster loans after severe storms and flooding in southwest Missouri in 2008 got loan approvals and took the money.  We started looking into the effectiveness of the program after our latest round of severe weather.   We found many don't want the loans, and others who took them have regrets.

This report by the Haiti Grassroots Watch and two students from the "Laboratoire de Journalisme at the State University of Haiti," seeks to identify why reconstruction has not started in downtown Port-au-Prince, the location hit hardest by the earthquake in 2010. Numerous meetings and discussions have been held, but no plan of actions seems to have been enforced. The journalists found a "lack of transparency, lack of coordination, rivalry and sometimes even outright disagreement," which has resulted in thousands of families still living under tarps and in terrible conditions.