One person is dead and at least five were injured in central Kentucky after a gas line ruptured and produced a fireball that could be seen around the region early Thursday.
FRANKFORT, Ky. — Democrats in Mitch McConnell's home state are pitching "Moscow Mitch" merchandise to try and capitalize on a bitter dispute involving the Kentucky senator over election security legislation.
The Kentucky Democratic Party said Wednesday it's launching the "Moscow Mitch" webstore in a dig at the Senate majority leader.
WATCH: Oklahoma teachers gather outside the State Capitol to protest for better wages and more education funding. nbcnews.to/2Ilp5A0
Thousands of teachers also gathered during a rally for education funding and changes to their pension system on Monday at the state capitol in Frankfort, Kentucky.
Starving for jobs, Letcher County, Kentucky, has asked the federal government to build a penitentiary on the site of an abandoned mountaintop strip mine.
The county’s bid to be the home of America’s next federal prison stems from its willingness to try anything to save itself.
“Would it have been my first choice? Absolutely not,” said Jim Ward, the county judge/executive.
Officials pushing the project have argued that prisons, unlike coal, are a good bet because they are “recession-proof.”
That was true for a long time. But perhaps not anymore.
The number of people behind bars is steadily dropping.
The decline began a decade ago, and has been driven by factors such as a drop in crime, state fiscal crises, and a bipartisan acknowledgement of the damage wrought by mass incarceration.
Despite research showing that a prison isn’t enough to pull a community out of economic distress, many people remain hopeful one will be built.
Gwen Christon isn’t waiting for Letcher County’s economy to bottom out. Her plan involves the prison.
“I just thought that if I’m going to survive, I have to find some way to sell groceries other than the traditional two feet walking in the door."
Aaron Boggs wants to make enough money to live comfortably, but he also longs for something better for his home county.
“I think that’s the way most people feel,” he said. “The prison really would bring something – more hope – back to the people."
(Photo: Reuters)
Corvette fans may want to look away. A massive sinkhole opened up beneath the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky, swallowing eight of the cars on display.
Source: nbcnews.com
(Photo: WFIE)
A mother and eight children were killed when a fire tore through a Kentucky home on Thursday morning, authorities said.
Source: nbcnews.com
(Photo: John Sommers / Reuters)
A dissident Roman Catholic group ordained a 70-year-old woman a priest in Louisville, Kentucky, during a ceremony attended by hundreds on Saturday.
Source: nbcnews.to
(Photo: Dario Cantatore / Getty Images file)
So much for what would have been 2014’s most-watched Senate contest.
Actress Ashley Judd, a Democrat, announced on Wednesday that she will not mount a challenge to take on Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in Kentucky.
Source: nbcnews.to
(Photo: USGS)
A 4.3-magnitude earthquake struck eight miles west of Whitesburg, Ky., early Saturday afternoon, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.
There were no immediate reports of damage in the eastern Kentucky area, but the quake was felt from Cincinnati, Ohio, to Atlanta, Ga., USGS geophysicist Paul Caruso in Denver told NBC News.
Source: usnews.nbcnews.com