AMU Emergency Management Public Safety

EDM Monday Briefing: Nashville Waffle House Shooter Caught, CDC Expands E. coli Warning

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By Kim Arsenault
Contributor, EDM Digest

Emergency and disaster management briefing for April 23, 2018: Four people are dead following a shooting at a Nashville, Tennessee area Waffle House on Sunday; the manhunt for the suspect accused of killing four and injuring four others in the Waffle House shooting has ended; police used a taser to remove and arrest an unruly passenger from an American Airlines flight at Miami International Airport late Sunday; the CDC expands its warning regarding romaine lettuce over an E. coli outbreak that now includes 16 states; Southwest Airlines canceled 40 flights on Sunday to inspect aircraft engines following a deadly engine explosion that killed one person last week; New York State health officials have issued a tri-state measles warning; a Connecticut university is closed following a mysterious outbreak that has affected at least 100 students; and a window panel cracked on a Boeing 787 when severe turbulence was encountered by an Air India flight.

1. Four people are dead following a shooting at a Waffle House in Nashville, Tennessee very early Sunday morning after a gunman opened fire outside the restaurant and shot and killed two individuals. He then entered the restaurant, killed two others and injured four more before his gun allegedly jammed. When the suspect stopped firing and looked at his gun, another patron tackled him and wrestled it away, causing the shooter to flee the scene.

2. Nashville, Tennessee schools were on lockout mode and the city was on high alert as authorities continued their manhunt for the suspect accused of opening fire at a Waffle House on Sunday. The shooter, who wore nothing but a green jacket, fled the scene. Nashville Police, along with Tennessee Highway Patrol officers, the FBI and ATF, have found the suspect, whom they identified as Travis Reinking, 29. He was considered to be armed and dangerous. Although they did not want to alarm everyone, law enforcement cautioned everyone in the area to be on alert, check in on neighbors and call authorities if necessary.

3. An unruly passenger accused of inappropriately touching another female passenger had to be forcibly removed from an American Airlines flight by Miami-Dade police officers on Sunday at Miami International Airport. After the altercation broke out, crew members asked the man to leave the plane, but he refused.  Authorities were called in to assist. The male passenger became combative with police officers and tried to grab one of their guns when they tried to remove him from the plane, so they used a taser on the man to subdue and finally arrest the man. The plane departed Miami International Airport about an hour later and arrived without further incident at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport early Monday morning.

4. After an E. coli outbreak in 16 states, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is now cautioning everyone to avoid eating all types of romaine lettuce unless they can confirm that it was not grown in the Yuma, Arizona growing region. On Friday, the CDC expanded its warning to include all types of romaine lettuce, include hearts of romaine, whole heads, chopped bagged salads and salad mixes containing romaine lettuce, after inmates in Alaska were sickened when they reportedly ate lettuce from whole heads of romaine. A total of 53 cases have been reported in 16 states, and of those cases, 31 have been hospitalized, with five people developing a type of kidney failure.

5. Southwest Airlines cancelled 40 flights on Sunday to conduct inspections of aircraft engines, following the inflight explosion of one of its airplane’s engines last week that tragically killed one person. The airline noted that the cancellations affected only about 1 percent of its nearly 4,000 flights. The inspections were already scheduled, but they were voluntarily accelerated following the tragic incident. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also issued an Airworthiness Directive (AD) for all CFM56-7B engines on Friday, which affects over 350 engines in the United States and another 680 or so of those engines worldwide.

6. Health officials in New York have issued a measles warning for the tri-state area, which includes New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut, after two tourists infected with the disease visited several locations in New York. Health officials are concerned about people who may have come in contact with the two tourists from Europe who visited a Kingdom’s Hall of Jehovah’s Witness in Brooklyn last Sunday, and Watchtower Jehovah’s Witness facilities in the suburban locations of Tuxedo Park and Patterson, New York. Anyone exhibiting measles symptoms, which often appear 10-12 days after exposure, but up to 21 days, and include a rash, fever, conjunctivitis, or runny nose, should contact their health care provider before going to a medical facility to help prevent the risk of spreading the disease.

7. Western Connecticut State University was closed on Monday after a mysterious outbreak sickened at least 100 students since last Thursday. After consulting with with local and state health officials, university president John Clark announced his decision Sunday night that the university would be closed on Monday in an effort to contain the outbreak and allow for sanitization of the school’s facilities. The university began an investigation last Friday after multiple students began complaining of symptoms that included vomiting and diarrhea. Students were urged to visit an urgent care clinic or their doctor to be tested for a possible virus.

8. Passengers on board an Air India flight were caught in severe turbulence on Thursday shortly after takeoff, which cracked a window panel on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner on which they were traveling. The flight, which departed from Amristar and was bound for Dehli, encountered the turbulence — which was due to bad weather — shortly after it reached its cruising altitude of 15,000 feet. The turbulence lasted for about 15 minutes of the short, 30-minute flight. Three people were allegedly treated for minor injuries resulting from the incident.

Kimberly Arsenault serves as an intern at the Cleveland/Bradley County Emergency Management Agency where she works on plan revisions and special projects. Previously, Kimberly spent 15 years in commercial and business aviation. Her positions included station manager at the former Midwest Express Airlines, as well as corporate flight attendant, inflight manager, and charter flight coordinator. Kimberly currently holds a master's degree in emergency and disaster management from American Public University.

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