Regulators are still working to extinguish a fire at the site of the train derailment and chemical spill in southwest Jefferson County. But work has also begun to determine the environmental and health effects of the toxic chemicals that have already leaked.

Kentucky Senate Republicans have appointed President Pro Temp Katie Stine as the new legislative co-chair for their chamber as David Williams prepares to depart as Senate president.

The GOP cannot name a new president until lawmakers convene again in January, but current Stine will assume the duties and serve as temporary co-chair of the Legislative Research Commission.

Greater Clark County Schools has received a "C" on the Indiana Accountability Report Card, remaining unchanged from last year.

The grading system was implemented two years ago to make it easier for parents to understand where a district and school rank. It’s based off results from the previous year and measures student test scores, graduation rates and other growth measurements.

But Superintendent Andrew Melin says the accountability system measures schools on a curve, which makes it more difficult to show how individual schools have improved.

The Eve Theatre Company, a new women's theater company, opens its first production this week. Their first show is “Love, Loss and What I Wore,” the Drama Desk Award-winning anthology of monologues that the Los Angeles Times calls “a cross between ‘The Vagina Monologues’ and ‘What Not to Wear’.”

The Republican state senator who is likely to become the next president of the Kentucky Senate says he will be a more inclusive leader should his colleagues make him the successor to David Williams.

State Sen. Robert Stivers, of Manchester, is seeking the post, and the GOP is meeting Thursday to select a new leader.

Many Democrats have been critical of Williams, calling him mean-spirited and vindictive. Stivers declined to comment on that, but says he'll always be willing to talk to lawmakers who disagree with him.

Will the United States ever elect a woman president?

When President Obama — or Mitt Romney — leaves the Oval Office, there will be a handful of highly touted female candidates for consideration as top-of-the-ticket nominees for both major parties.

On the Republican side, the list includes Sen. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire and Govs. Susana Martinez of New Mexico, Nikki Haley of South Carolina and maybe even Sarah Palin of Alaska.

Right now, workers on the scene of the train derailment in southwestern Jefferson County are worried about extinguishing the fire that’s been burning since yesterday, likely caused by residual butadiene. But once that’s under control, they’ll turn their attention to two train cars full of a chemical called hydrogen fluoride. And as they’re working to stabilize and drain those cars, it’s likely there will be another shelter-in-place in effect for the surrounding areas. Why?

If David Jones Jr. wins a seat next week on the Jefferson County Public Schools board, attorney Ted Gordon will file a lawsuit seeking to prevent the former Humana chairman from taking office, a spokeswoman for Gordon announced on Thursday.

The suit would claim that Jones has conflicts of interest that make his ineligible to serve on the school board. 

Public health officials are warning that people in areas devastated by Superstorm Sandy face many risks in the aftermath and are urging people to protect themselves from health threats in the water, air and even their refrigerators.

As millions of people try to put their lives back together, the most obvious threat is the floodwaters themselves. In many places, the water could be a toxic stew.

DETROIT (AP) — Ford CEO Alan Mulally will lead the company at least through 2014, but it's now clear who will succeed him.

The company on Thursday said that Americas President Mark Fields has been named chief operating officer effective Dec. 1, with all of the company's business units reporting to him.

Fields will report to Mulally, 67, who will stay on to lead the company's long-term strategy.