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One parents allegedly threatened to shoot up the school.

"Doesn't Look Good": Explosion Rocks Major New Orleans-Area Refinery As Fuel Markets Tighten

A fire broke out Friday afternoon at PBF Energy's Chalmette refinery outside New Orleans, according to the facility.

Reuters cited people familiar with the incident who said the 190,000-barrel-per-day Chalmette refinery suffered an explosion on Friday afternoon. The explosion can be traced to a reformer heater used to convert refining byproducts into octane-boosting components added to unfinished gasoline to make premium and mid-grade fuel blends.

The 190,000-barrel-per-day refinery is one of the major Gulf Coast refineries because it produces gasoline, distillates, and specialty chemicals, so any sustained outage can impact regional fuel balances, especially gasoline and diesel supply.

"Fence-line monitoring confirms no off-site impacts," according to the message from the refinery. "Everyone working in the area is safe and accounted for."

I have been in direct contact with local officials and law enforcement on the ground regarding the situation at the Chalmette Refinery. We are actively monitoring developments and working closely with parish leaders and first responders to ensure public safety and provide any…

— Governor Jeff Landry (@LAGovJeffLandry) May 8, 2026

Videos of the incident:

Crews are responding to an explosion and fire at the Chalmette PBF refinery. 🎥 Gage Zaffuto pic.twitter.com/aYAe5gdcWu

— Zack Fradella (@ZackFradellaWx) May 8, 2026

Two different angles of the l explosion and fire at the refinery in Chalmette. Authorities says all employees of the refinery are safe and no injuries have been reported. @WGNOtv pic.twitter.com/lso935kb4y

— Ashley Hamilton (@Ashley_WGNO) May 8, 2026

Bloomberg noted that the refinery completed a month-long maintenance program on several units at the end of April.

GasBuddy head analyst Patrick De Haan wrote on X, "Not only are the molecules in the refinery itself under tremendous pressure, but refineries themselves are under tremendous pressure with huge implications as crack spreads soar. Too early to tell what happened here, but certainly doesn't look good."

And here we go.... There’s a high probability we’ll see an increase in unexpected refinery outages moving forward.

With refining margins at such insane levels right now, refiners have a clear incentive to keep running at max capacity while completely ignoring safety protocols.… https://t.co/La4zOjmcVK pic.twitter.com/GJTKPbWt9h

— JH (@CRUDEOIL231) May 8, 2026

There has been a notable uptick in the number of "refinery fire" news stories, according to Bloomberg data, whether those stories are in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, or the U.S.

Latest on refinery fires:

• Moscow Targeted By Over 50 Drones, Country's 2nd Largest Refinery On Fire

• Fire Erupts At Major Australian Refinery, Amplifying Fuel Shock As "Green" Killed Refining Buffer

• Mexico's "Energy Sovereignty" Dos Bocas Oil Refinery Hit By Major Fire

• Oil Jumps After Explosion And Massive Fire At One Of The Largest US Oil Refineries

With crude-product supplies tightening worldwide and the Hormuz chokepoint still heavily disrupted, any refinery taken offline is an ominous sign for fuel markets.

Refinery fires are starting to look like "Food Factory Fires" from several years ago. 

Tyler Durden Sat, 05/09/2026 - 08:45

Ekpar Asat disappeared after returning to Xinjiang from a trip to Washington in 2016, where he'd flown to attend a State Department program for young leaders.

Joel Embiid believes the fix is in.

Is this the least annoying talking-animal movie since the Babe series?!

A great white shark named Nori, a 9-foot, 432-pound man-eating predator was spotted off the coast of New Jersey on May 4, the first shark seen surfacing as they begin their annual migration from the warm waters of the Caribbean and the Gulf of America up the east coast toward New York and New Jersey.

Eight of the 46 highly-anticipated UFO videos Congress has demanded be made public by the Department of War are featured in an upcoming documentary.

He took his shot -- and hit nothing but net.

A Texas couple wore prom outfits inspired by the iconic scene from the movie "Dumb and Dumber" -- where Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels' characters attend a charity ball in matching orange and blue suits.

The man who ran security at both the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and the 1996 Atlanta Games -- where a bomber killed two and wounded more than 100 -- is warning that Iranian "sleeper cells" are likely plotting attacks during next month's World Cup, as federal officials race to secure the 39-day competition.

Europe Sees 'Hyper-Concentration' Of Crypto 'Wrench Attacks' As Losses Hit $101 Million

Authored by Stephen Katte via CoinTelegraph.com,

Estimated losses from global crypto wrench attacks reached $101 million in the first four months of 2026, with most attacks occurring in Europe, according to Web3 security company CertiK.

With just 34 documented crypto wrench attacks, the losses have nearly doubled those of 2025, which came in at $52.2 million. Europe accounted for 82% of incidents, according to CertiK.

“Our 2025 report documented a gradual tilt from Asia and North America toward Europe, and these first four months of 2026 mark a European hyper-concentration.”

The frequency of wrench attacks has increased since 2025. They involve physical force to gain access to a victim’s crypto holdings and have taken the form of home invasions, kidnappings and other extortion attempts. CertiK said there have been 34 attacks since the start of the year.

If the trend continues, CertiK predicts that by year-end the number of incidents could hit 130, and losses could reach “several hundred million dollars.”

There have been 34 verified wrench attacks worldwide since the start of the year. Source: CertiK 

France is an epicenter of wrench attacks

Of the attacks, 24 crypto wrench attacks occurred in France this year, said CertiK. France’s National Prosecutor's Office for Organized Crime has reported a higher figure of 47 incidents in 2026.

CertiK said France has likely emerged as a hot spot for these kinds of criminals because of the presence of crypto executives from major crypto companies such as Ledger, Paymium and Binance.

Crypto holders in France are being targeted more than anywhere else in the world. Source: CertiK 

It also pointed to numerous data leaks, such as the January breach at crypto accounting firm Waltio and tax official Ghalia C, who is accused of selling crypto asset holder data to criminal networks, and “a culture of flexing and voluntary doxxing that remains deeply embedded in the community.”

“Early 2026 marks the shift to a data-driven targeting model in which prior physical surveillance becomes unnecessary once attackers have the victim's full name, home address, financial profile, and so on.”

“The structural takeaway is clear: as the security of protocols and wallets tends to improve, the threat migrates toward the human link. As long as crypto-asset holdings remain associated with identifiable financial data, physical coercion will remain the economically most rational attack path,” CertiK added.

Blockchain intelligence company TRM Labs reported in May last year that wrench attacks have been on the rise because of the perceived pseudonymity of crypto transactions, the public visibility of wealth, and the ease with which bad actors can gather personal data online.

The criminal teams are often “complete amateurs”

Across recorded wrench attacks, CertiK said the orchestrators are often located outside the target country. The criminal teams on the ground usually consist of three to five people, and they frequently pose as delivery drivers or police officers, or lure victims into an ambush with a ruse such as a fictitious business meeting.

“Most of the time, they are recruited via messaging apps such as Telegram or Snapchat for a few thousand dollars. They don't know each other and are complete amateurs,” CertiK added.

Meanwhile, Casa chief security officer Jameson Lopp has recorded 31 crypto wrench attacks so far this year and reported in March that four cases he was tracking for his list turned out to be mistaken identity, with the thieves attacking the wrong targets. 

Source: Jameson Lopp

In April, at least 88 people, including 10 minors, were indicted in connection with alleged wrench attacks on crypto owners in France.

“The growing proportion of minors signals an increasing externalization of criminal liability toward profiles less exposed to mandatory minimum sentences,” CertiK added.

Tyler Durden Sat, 05/09/2026 - 08:10

Two so-called “alien girls” who work for an obscure, unsexy legislative branch agency are touring military bases and attempting to interview UFO witnesses, The Post has learned.

Violence is up in the Big Apple’s transit system – with robberies and murders surging – even as overall crime underground is down, according to NYPD data.

The Lakers haven’t had a Shai Gilgeous-Alexander problem. They’ve had a non-Shai Gilgeous-Alexander problem.

Christine Taylor explained her husband Ben Stiller's absence from Game One of the Play-Offs.

Christine Taylor explained her husband Ben Stiller's absence from Game One of the Play-Offs.

The countries that bought American tactical goods for decades are now buying Ukrainian, too.

Patient zero in the cruise ship hantavirus outbreak has been identified as ornithologist Leo Schilperoord, whose passion may have cost him his life.

In his new book "Torched," CBS News correspondent Jonathan Vigliotti delivers a damning account of how LA and California officials made a bad situation catastrophic.

Intel Leak: Russia Mulled Giving Iran Un-Jammable Drones To Fight US Forces

Russia offered Iran thousands of advanced drones built to bypass electronic jamming systems, along with training for attacks on US troops in the Middle East, according to a confidential intelligence document obtained and reviewed by The Economist.

Already the two countries have deepened their defense ties in the context of the years-long Ukraine war, with Tehran providing tens of thousands of Shahed suicide drones, but this fresh allegation points to potential increasing Russian involvement against the United States in the Persian Gulf region.

Illustrative file image, source: Dragonfly Pictures Inc.

Moscow has been previously accused of supplying the Iranians with targeting intelligence related to Operation Epic Fury, and some analysts have said this could explain how Iranian ballistic missiles and drones were able in many cases to score precision hits on US radar and military outposts in the region, as far away as Jordan for example.

The Economist report accuses Russian intelligence of preparing a plan to offer Tehran what are essentially 'un-jammable drones', describing that teh GRU military intelligence agency drafted a 10-page proposal offering Iran 5,000 short-range fiber-optic drones, as well as an undisclosed number of longer-range satellite-guided drones, and a full drone operator training program.

The document is said the be full of diagrams and maps of strategic Iranian coastal zones and islands near the Strait of Hormuz, which is precisely where sporadic fighting between US and Iranian forces is taking place currently.

Neither Tehran nor Moscow has publicly acknowledged any such plan or document, and they are not expected to comment. But to some degree the 'planning' seems consistent with what Russia has learned amid the 'drone wars' over Ukraine.

Unlike conventional drones controlled by radio signals, fiber-optic drones operate through trailing cables, making them extremely difficult, if not impossible, to jam electronically - but also highly responsive and maneuverable. Hezbollah in Lebanon is said to be increasingly reliant on tethered drones for attacks on IDF convoys in South Lebanon as well as northern Israel.

As for the Iran war context, the GRU assessed that US amphibious forces and landing craft would be especially vulnerable to drone swarm attacks because of their slow speed, according to The Economist.

The Kremlin has broadly sought to bat down such reports alleging a deepened Russian military or intelligence role in helping Iran amid its war with the US and Israel. Also, most every country has intelligence 'plans' on the shelves as 'options' - but it doesn't mean any follow through actually results, or that decisions were even close to being made.

Lyman, in the Donetsk region of Ukraine

If you’re not aware, wireless drones can be “jammed” so the operator can no longer control it. In response, they’re using tiny fiber optic cables attached to the drone to circumvent jamming

These videos speak to the volume of drone… pic.twitter.com/HTbvaWJSj1

— Magnetic Norse (@MagneticNorse) May 6, 2026

It should also be noted that The Economist in particular is among the more establishment and national security state-friendly magazines and news sources.

Some pundits have accused the publication of tending to always reflect a CIA and military-industrial complex mainstream perspective on global events and 'official enemies'.

Tyler Durden Sat, 05/09/2026 - 07:35