Downtown Nashville Explosion Knocks Communications Offline

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A recreational vehicle parked in the deserted streets of downtown Nashville exploded early Christmas morning, causing widespread communications outages that took down police emergency systems and grounded flights at the city’s airport. Police believe the blast was intentional but don’t yet know a motive or target. Metro Nashville Police Chief John…

Breakthrough: UK and EU reach post-Brexit trade agreement

BRUSSELS (AP) — Britain and the European Union have struck a free-trade agreement that should avert New Year’s chaos for cross-border commerce and bring a measure of certainty to businesses after years of Brexit turmoil. The breakthrough on Thursday came after months of tense and often testy negotiations that whittled differences down to three key…

Ameren purchases wind farm in northeastern Missouri

Ameren Missouri says it bought its first wind farm and plans to make a “transformational advancement” into renewable energy. The subsidiary of St. Louis-based Ameren Corp. said Wednesday that it closed on its acquisition of the High Prairie Renewable Energy Center in Adair and Schuyler counties, in rural northeastern Missouri. The company says the 400-megawatt…

Feds sue Walmart over role in opioid crisis

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department is suing Walmart, alleging the company unlawfully dispensed controlled substances through its pharmacies, helping to fuel the opioid crisis in America. The civil complaint being filed Tuesday points to the role Walmart’s pharmacies may have played in the crisis by filling opioid prescriptions and by unlawfully distributing controlled substances…