The Panama Canal and 50 Years of Global Shipping

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The shipping container, invented 50 years ago, has transformed global trade. From Hong Kong to Houston, Shanghai to Fort Lauderdale, oil and other sorts of commodities are traveling the world's waterways in massive volumes. Just one of today's ships, which are literally called "giants," can carry enough containers to fill a single file of trucks 68 miles long. They're so massive that now even the Panama Canal must be expanded. What are the impacts of today's global shipping on the economy and environment? Guest host Diana Nyad talks with shippers, environmentalists, economists and experts on the maritime world and about the world of shipping--present and future, including the planned radical renovation of the Panama Canal.Making News: Senate Report Concludes That FEMA Is "Beyond Repair"The Federal Emergency Management Agency broke down so completely during the Hurricane Katrina crisis that today, eight months later, a Senate committee is recommending that FEMA be shut down altogether and a new disaster-response agency created from scratch. Bobby Block covers homeland security for the Wall Street Journal.Reporter's Notebook: Sago Mine Survivor Says Air Packs FailedThe lone survivor of January's fatal Sago Mine explosion in West Virginia is still recovering from brain damage but, yesterday, he wrote to the families of his 11 colleagues who perished underground. Randal McCloy shared the details of the 41-hour ordeal, including that 4 of their 12 rescue air packs didn't work. Davitt McAteer, special advisor to the Governor of West Virginia on the disaster, was with the families when the letter was read.
The shipping container, invented 50 years ago, has transformed global trade. From Hong Kong to Houston, Shanghai to Fort Lauderdale, oil and other sorts of commodities are traveling the world's waterways in massive volumes. Just one of today's ships, which are literally called "giants," can carry enough containers to fill a single file of trucks 68 miles long. They're so massive that now even the Panama Canal must be expanded. What are the impacts of today's global shipping on the economy and environment? Guest host Diana Nyad talks with shippers, environmentalists, economists and experts on the maritime world and about the world of shipping--present and future, including the planned radical renovation of the Panama Canal.
  • Making News: Senate Report Concludes That FEMA Is "Beyond Repair"
    The Federal Emergency Management Agency broke down so completely during the Hurricane Katrina crisis that today, eight months later, a Senate committee is recommending that FEMA be shut down altogether and a new disaster-response agency created from scratch. Bobby Block covers homeland security for the Wall Street Journal.
  • Reporter's Notebook: Sago Mine Survivor Says Air Packs Failed
    The lone survivor of January's fatal Sago Mine explosion in West Virginia is still recovering from brain damage but, yesterday, he wrote to the families of his 11 colleagues who perished underground. Randal McCloy shared the details of the 41-hour ordeal, including that 4 of their 12 rescue air packs didn't work. Davitt McAteer, special advisor to the Governor of West Virginia on the disaster, was with the families when the letter was read.
Guest host Diana Nyad, 2002 inductee into the International Swimming Hall of Fame, is a business sports columnist for Marketplace, senior sports correspondent for Fox News, and has hosted her own show on CNBC. She's also the author of three books.

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee

Associated Press article on Senate conclusions about FEMA

Panama Canal Authority

Panama Canal Master Plan

Text of McCloy's letter to the Sago victims' families

Credits

Host:

Warren Olney