NPR 2010-06-18

BP CEO Tony Hayward, testifying before Congress for the first time since the oil rig explosion in April, says he is deeply sorry for the deadly blast and the oil spill, but as NPR's Giles Snyder reports, the BP chief is getting little sympathy.

The day began with a heckler escorted from the hearing room just as Hayward began delivering his opening statement. Once things settled down, Hayward apologized.

"The explosion and fire aboard the Deepwater Horizon and the resulting oil spill in the Gulf 1 of Mexico never should have happened, and I'm deeply sorry that it did."

Under questioning, Hayward insisted BP makes safety a high priority, but lawmakers accused BP of ignoring the risks. Among them, Bart Stupak of Michigan.

"I'm sure you will get your life back, and with a golden parachute back to England. But we in America are left with the terrible consequences of BP's reckless disregard for safety."

Another leading member of the panel, Henry Waxman of California, accused Hayward of stonewalling when asked about BP's drilling practices. Giles Snyder, NPR News, Washington.

Israel is loosening its blockade on Gaza after weeks of international outrage 2 over its raid of a Gaza-bound aid flotilla. One of the biggest restrictions 3 involve construction materials. Israel says more of those will be allowed into the Palestinian territory for civilian 4 projects with international supervision 5. Israel also says it's lifting its limits on various food products, but the military is expected to maintain its naval 6 blockade, citing concerns over weapon smuggling 7.

In the US, analysts 8 say the Federal Reserve doesn't need to worry about inflation in the economy anytime soon. That's a take-home from the May Consumer Price Index released this morning. NPR's Tamara Keith reports consumer prices declined 0.2%.

Drops in fuel and other energy prices led the way. Core prices, which don't include often-volatile food and energy, actually increased slightly, 0.1%. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a key indicator 9 of inflation. And at this point, some are raising concerns about deflation. Arijit Dutta is a senior economist 10 at Moody's Analytics.

"And it's certainly worrying that we've got this for the second month in a row. The top-line CPI was in deflation territory."

Dutta and his colleagues expect considerable weakness for the rest of the year, but he says there are some encouraging signs like increases in airfare and auto 11 prices. Tamara Keith, NPR News, Washington.

An investigation's underway into this morning's deadly plane crash in south-central New Mexico. Federal Aviation authorities confirm at least five people were killed when the plane overshot a runway.

Last check on Wall Street, Dow was up 25 points.

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A new report from the federal government on emergency room visits for drug overdoses shows a dramatic increase in the abuse of prescription 12 medication. More on this from NPR's Brenda Wilson.

Emergency room visits for abuse of prescription drugs were up by more than 100% from 2004 to 2008. Medical records show a total of more than 300,000 emergency room visits including suicide attempts, patients seeking detoxification and unintentional ingesting of drugs. At the top of the list were pain relievers, oxycodone, hydrocodone and methadone. The drugs may have been intended for another person taking at a higher-than-recommended dose or taking with alcohol. There was also an increase in the abuse of anti-anxiety and anti-depressant drugs, such as Zantacs and Valium. Emergency room visits for prescription drug abuse now match those for illicit 13 drug abuse. Brenda Wilson, NPR News.

Funeral services today for the great-granddaughter of anti-apartheid icon 14, Nelson Mandela. Zenani Mandela was killed in a car crash last week after a World Cup concert in Soweto. She was 13 years old. Former South African President Mandela made a rare public appearance today to attend the funeral. The 91-year-old appeared frail 15, but he occasionally smiled during the service as a troop of singers and dancers performed in Zenani's honor.

An estimated 70 miners are missing, feared dead after an underground explosion in northwestern Colombia today. Colombian President Alvaro Uribe says 16 miners are confirmed dead.