News stories from Sunday January 24, 1971

Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:

Phnom Penh, Cambodia, is now surrounded by North Vietnamese troops; the city is on full alert. An electric power plant was partly destroyed and there was fighting on the outskirts of the city today. [NBC] New figures show that the use of hard drugs by American soldiers is increasing rapidly in Vietnam. Heroin was introduced in the area only five months ago, now it's a nightmare for the entire Army. The death rate from drugs has increased from two per month to two per day. The Army knows almost nothing about the sources, causes or quantities of heroin use. [NBC] South Vietnam returned 37 disabled POWs to North Vietnam. The Saigon government hopes that North Vietnam will release some POWs in exchange. [NBC] Payment for cleanup of the Connecticut oil slick depends on who is responsible; Humble Oil Company is paying so far. Some of the oil slick has reached the Connecticut shoreline, though most of the oil is still contained in the harbor. A few Canadian ducks are the only wildlife casualties. Home heating oil is the type that was spilled; it dissipates quicker than crude oil. [NBC] An American-owned tanker exploded and ran aground off the coast of Sardinia. Twenty-three crewmen were saved, but 10 were found dead and five are unaccounted for. [NBC] The directors of the Penn Central Railroad took out a $10 million insurance policy for protection against charges of wrongdoing just before the company went broke. Those charges are now pending in court. [NBC] There is frequent radioactive material leakage from atomic tests in the Western states. Nevada rancher Elmer Jackson compared an atomic test to an earthquake -- he saw the mushroom cloud, his face was burned and his eyes were damaged. Jackson was treated for a cancerous thyroid; others in the area have died of leukemia or cancer. Jackson believes that nuclear fallout is causing death and injury to thousands.But there is no proof that the deaths and injuries were caused by testing. The Atomic Energy Commission claims that its testing is harmless, and has now established the Applied Ecology Group. Skeptics say that the Atomic Energy Commission is just getting on the ecology bandwagon. [NBC] Former President Harry Truman was reported in fair condition in a Kansas City hospital, however complications have developed. [NBC] President Nixon will speak around the country to try to generate support for his revenue sharing and government reorganization plans. House and Senate Democratic leaders think that Congress will be slow to vote for those plans. [NBC] Presidential candidates at the California state Democratic convention criticized U.S. involvement in Cambodia. [NBC] Transportation workers and shipyard workers went on strike in Szczecin, Poland. [NBC] An avalanche buried two cabins at Stevens Pass, Washington; four people were killed and four were injured. Two people are missing. [NBC] A public funeral was held in Japan for novelist Yukio Mishima. Mishima committed suicide after protesting the weakness of Japan's defenses. [NBC] The Shah of Iran warned that unless Western oil companies pay higher taxes, Western European nations and Japan may have their oil supplies cut off. [NBC] Guinea sentenced 92 persons to death for attempts to invade the country. [NBC] Time magazine reported that AFL-CIO president George Meany is planning to nationalize the U.S. railroads. [NBC] Edward Hebert, the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, says that he favors an end to college deferments but not an end to the military draft. [NBC] The British Parliament began a debate on joining the European Common Market. British postal and telephone strikes continued. [NBC]