Mall’s food court closes after 150 illnesses were reported

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — A Kentucky mall has closed its food court to sanitize after a health department received more than 150 reports of illnesses that were mostly from people who had eaten at the food court.

News outlets reported Monday that the Fayette Mall food court has closed at the recommendation of the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department to allow the area to be sanitized. The play area will also be sanitized, and tenants in the food court will be required to do the same.

Last week, the health department began receiving illness reports that increased over the weekend. Commissioner of Health Dr. Keith Humbaugh says they believe the illness is a viral “stomach bug” that’s transmitted person-to-person and isn’t a food contaminant.

The food court and its restaurants will open when they complete the cleaning and comply with the recommendations.

Occupy ICE protest dispersed by Louisville police

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Police have cleared the scene of a protest that blocked elevators in a Kentucky building that houses an immigration court.

The group Occupy ICE Louisville says a group of people went into the building in downtown Louisville on Thursday morning to protest the separation of immigrant families. The protesters linked their arms together inside plastic tubes.

A large number of police outside the building dispersed just before noon as the protesters were taken away in a paddy wagon.

Video posted online by The Courier-Journal of Louisville showed around a dozen protesters.

Louisville Police say they will release more information on the incident later Thursday.

Last week police took down an encampment where the group set up tents and had been staying overnight outside a federal building since July 2.

2 Confederate statues moved to Lexington cemetery

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky’s second-largest city has moved two Confederate statues to the Lexington Cemetery.

The Lexington Herald-Leader reports the statues of Confederate Gen. John Hunt Morgan and John C. Breckinridge, a Confederate secretary of war, were moved late Tuesday to the Lexington Cemetery. The action came about eight months after the statues were removed from downtown Lexington and placed in storage.

The statues were fixtures in downtown Lexington for more than 130 years before the city removed them. The Lexington Fayette-Urban County Council voted last August to remove the statues days after violent protests at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Both men are buried at the cemetery, which will have access to a fund started at the Blue Grass Community Foundation for maintenance.

Whiskey industry leaders to discuss concerns about tariffs

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Anti-tariff talk will be flowing as leading whiskey associations meet in Kentucky to discuss how trade disputes could hurt their industry.

The Kentucky Distillers’ Association says leaders of eight whiskey groups worldwide are meeting in Louisville. The whiskey summit comes as industry officials worry that trade tensions could escalate — with their products caught in the crosshairs.

KDA President Eric Gregory says the goal is to forge a united strategy in making a case to world leaders in promoting free and fair trade. Participants include groups representing the Irish whiskey and Scotch whisky industries and spirits producers in Japan, Canada and Europe.

Trade disputes have resulted in tariffs imposed in some key overseas markets for American whiskey makers.

Summit participants plan to discuss their concerns at an event Thursday afternoon.

South Korean auto parts maker breaks ground in Murray

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — A South Korean auto parts maker has broken ground on a new $50 million plant in western Kentucky.

The plant in Murray would provide 120 jobs, according to a release from Gov. Matt Bevin’s office.

Company leaders with South Korea’s DAE-IL Corp. expect the 295,000-square foot (27406.17-sq. meter) plant to open in May 2019. Employees at the new facility will manufacture automotive transmission gears.

DAE-IL joins four other South Korean-owned companies in Kentucky.

DAE manufactures and sells powertrain parts for automotive, heavy equipment and motorcycles.

Report: Fatal towboat explosion caused by welding near gases

CALVERT CITY, Ky. (AP) — Federal investigators say a fatal towboat explosion in Kentucky earlier this year was caused by people welding and cutting near flammable gases.

The Paducah Sun reports the Occupational Safety and Health Administration released its investigation into the Calvert City explosion Tuesday. A towboat being repaired at First Marine Dry Dock & Boat Repair in January exploded, killing three people and injuring six more.

OSHA cited First Marine Dry Dock & Boat Repair, contractors Joe Rupcke and Thermal Control and Fabrication and staffing companies HUTCO and Wise Staffing Group with 55 total violations. Violations include untrained employees, unlabeled hazardous chemicals and improperly inspected workspaces.

First Marine was cited for 24 violations and fined nearly $640,000. First Marine Vice President of Operations, Capt. Jason Straight, says the company’s analyzing its safety procedures.

Man, 90, drowns in lake while swimming to boat

GRAYSON, Ky. (AP) — Authorities in Kentucky say a 90-year-old man drowned when he tried to swim to his boat after it drifted away.

News outlets report the Elliott County coroner identified the man who died Tuesday as Oscar Roe Jr. Carter County Sheriff Jeff May says Roe launched his boat into the water at a Grayson Lake dock and jumped into the water to swim to it.

His shirt was left on the dock, and the sight of it and the floating boat caused passers-by to call authorities.

His body was found in the middle of the lake and will be taken to the state medical examiner’s office to determine cause of death.