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  • Ted Turner Hospitalized In Buenos Aires

    Robert Edward Turner III, more commonly known as philanthropist and cable TV network CNN founder Ted Turner, has been hospitalized in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

    The 75-year-old media tycoon owns property in the Patagonia region of Argentina. On Friday morning, Turner went to the nearby San Carlos Sanatorium in the city of Bariloche, complaining of acute abdominal pain. He then took a jet and set off for Buenos Aires to receive treatment at the Argentine Institute for Diagnosis and Treatment in Barrio Norte. He is currently under observation, and Argentine media sources say Turner will have to undergo an operation for appendicitis.

    Phillip Evans, the spokesman for Turner Enterprises, confirmed in a statement that Turner has been admitted for observation, but they will not provide further details on Turner’s personal health, in view of the company’s policy.

    Born in Ohio, Turner and his family moved to Georgia when he was nine, and he attended a private prep school for boys in Tennessee. Turner went on to study the Classics and later on Economics at Brown University. When he was 24, he became the president and CEO of the Turner Advertising Company after his father’s death. He expanded the business, purchasing an Atlanta UHF station in 1970 and establishing the Turner Broadcasting System. He created the Cable News Network or CNN ten years later, and it became the world’s first 24-hour cable news channel.

    Turner’s media empire includes MGM, Turner Entertainment Co., Turner Network Television, Turner Classic Movies, and the Cartoon Network. He also created the Turner Foundation, which concentrated on giving grants for environmental conservation. He was the man behind the animated series Captain Planet and the Planeteers, and most of his assets are devoted to environmental causes. He now focuses on charity and green initiatives, with many projects dealing with the fight against climate change.

    Turner was named Time Magazine’s Man of the Year in 1991, the first time a media figure was given the honor. He was also inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in the same year.

    Image via YouTube

  • Argentine Commuter Train Wrecks, 80 Injured

    A commuter train in the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires has crashed at the end of the line at the Once station on Saturday, injuring at least 80 people.

    The station is the site of the 2012 Buenos Aires rail disaster, also known as the Once Tragedy, which occurred on February 22, 2012. Fifty-one people died in that crash, and 700 were injured.

    The train blew past buffers as it arrived at Once, shortly after 10 a.m. GMT, and ended up wedged between the floor and ceiling of the platform. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.

    The line the train was on came from Moreno, which is roughly 25 miles west of Buenos Aires. The train is operated by a company called Sarmiento, and is typically a very busy and overcrowded commuter line.

    According to Security Secretary Sergio Berni, some commuters waiting on the platform were injured by flying glass from the train’s windows.

    Jorge Ramirez, a chef and train passenger, said, “I saw people hurt, shouting, others thrown on the floor. The people in the first wagon ended up piled on top of each other.”

    In related news, in late September, two Chicago Transit Authority trains wrecked into one another in Forest Park, crushing part of at least one train car and sending several people to local hospitals. The investigation into the cause of that accident is still underway.

    Earlier this month, a logging truck collided with a passenger train in West Virginia, killing one man, and injuring 20.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons.