Airbus says it will build its first assembly plant in the United States in Alabama. The official announcement today gives the European aerospace giant its first location in the U.S. to compete with rival Boeing. The plant will make passenger airplanes. The plant is estimated to cost $600 million dollars to build and will employ 1,000 people when it reaches full production. It will be built in Mobile.
Montgomery Fire
Montgomery firefighters remain at the scene of a building fire near the intersection of North McDonough and Randolph Streets. Firefighters were called to Standard Roofing Company just after 6 a.m. Authorities said no one was inside the structure when the fire erupted. Fire officials say three firefighters were injured, they are being treated at a hospital and are expected to make a full recovery.
Lee Hearing
Prosecutors will present a glimpse of their case against 22-year-old Deandra Marquis Lee, he is charged in the shooting deaths of 9-year-old twins Taylor and Jordan Dejerinett and their 73-year-old caretaker, Jack Mac Girdner. A preliminary hearing will be held today at the Lowndes County Courthouse in Hayneville for Lee. The hearing will be before Lowndes County District Judge Adrian Johnson.
Homeowners Insurance
A panel formed by Governor Robert Bentley to recommend ways to make homeowners insurance more available in Alabama is closer to issuing a final report. The Affordable Homeowners Insurance Commission voted Friday to support at least seven changes to state insurance laws that would place limits on some deductibles, require insurers to provide more information to homeowners and give private insurers some incentives to write policies on homes in coastal areas.
Natural Gas
Alabama authorities say royalties paid to the state by companies pumping natural gas offshore fell sharply over a five-year period. The Birmingham News reports the State Oil and Gas Board says royalties fell from a high of #373.1 million in the 2006 fiscal year to $119.9 million in the 2011 fiscal year. The board expects the decline to continue for the 2012 fiscal year, which ends September 30th.