Around the Nation

Group Sues FDA in Effort to Ban Painkiller

A prescription painkiller sold under names including Darvon and Darvocet is too risky to stay on the market, a consumer advocacy group argued in suing the Food and Drug Administration.

Public Citizen petitioned the agency two years ago seeking a ban on the drug, calling it no more effective than safer painkillers and citing the accidental deaths of more than 2,000 people since 1981.

On Thursday, Public Citizen filed suit in U.S. District Court in Washington arguing that the FDA has violated the law by not ruling on its petition within the required six months.

At issue is a narcotic known chemically as propoxyphene, which is addictive, and even when used properly it can cause slowed heartbeat and other serious cardiac side effects, the lawsuit says.

1 Dead, 7 Hurt in Wall Collapse

HOUSTON -- Several walls collapsed at a dormitory under construction at Rice University, killing one worker and injuring seven others, fire officials said. The walls collapsed on the second floor around 4 p.m., trapping five construction workers, Assistant Fire Chief Omero Longoria said. One of the workers was dead, and four were taken to a hospital, he said. The extent of their injuries was not immediately known. The cause of the collapse was not known, but storms passed through the area just beforehand.

U.S. Tightens Rules on Shark Fins

To curb the illegal practice of removing shark fins at sea, U.S. officials have announced that all sharks caught in the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico must be brought ashore with their fins attached. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration also reduced by 85 percent the commercial fishing quota for the sandbar shark, a popular species for the Asian delicacy of shark fin soup. Recreational fishermen will be banned from catching and keeping sandbar sharks. The new rules, which also reduce and set quotas for some other sharks, will help rebuild populations, NOAA says. They will take effect July 24.

Naval Officer to Seek Reelection

MONTPELIER, Vt. -- The state auditor of Vermont said he is being called to active duty in Afghanistan and plans to run for reelection while serving. Thomas Salmon, 44, a Democrat, is a petty officer with a Navy Reserve unit based in Brunswick, Maine. The son of former governor Thomas Salmon said that despite being deployed for as long as nine months with a Naval Mobile Construction Battalion, he plans to seek a second term in November. Military rules limit his role in running his office from abroad and forbid active campaigning, he said.

Driver Wedges Van Under Plane

DALLAS -- A service van's driver lost consciousness and wedged the vehicle under a plane full of passengers at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, airport spokesman David Magana said. No one on the plane was hurt. The Midwest Airlines flight to Milwaukee was canceled. Airline spokesman Michael Brophy says the Boeing 717 is significantly damaged. The worker for a ramp services company who drove the van was flown to a hospital.

-- From News Services