BP profits hit $5.3B year after Gulf spill

BP CEO explains profit reboundBP reports large jump in profits compared to same quarter last yearRising oil prices offset 11% slump in productionCEO Bob Dudley says 2011 is a year of consolidation for the company

(CNN) -- Oil giant BP is back in the black, announcing profits of $5.3 billion just a year after the Deepwater Horizon disaster left it facing heavy losses.

The company said rising oil prices had helped it record a second quarter replacement cost profit of $5.309 billion -- despite an 11% slump in production.

In the same quarter last year, BP made a loss of $16.973 billion, because of costs related to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

BP has paid out $6.8 billion to repair environmental and economic damage in the region.

The company's CEO, Bob Dudley, told CNN that BP had come a long way in the past 12 months.

"It was only a year ago -- just -- that oil was still flowing into the Gulf... We've re-stabilized the company, re-strengthened the balance sheet.

"We've announced new exploration deals across the globe, our credit ratings have increased, and we're back heading in the directions we need to."

An explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig on April 20, 2010, killed 11 workers and left 205 million gallons of oil pouring into the Gulf of Mexico.

Several efforts to contain the spill failed, and the well was not sealed until August, leading to widespread criticism of BP.

Quoting : CNN

Report: Chavez home after treatment

The Venezuelan leader underwent surgery to remove a cancerous tumor last month.The Venezuelan president returns after about a week in CubaHe underwent chemotherapy treatment for cancerChavez has not said what type of cancer he has

(CNN) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has arrived in his home country from Cuba, where he underwent cancer treatment, the Venezuelan state-run broadcaster VTV reported Saturday.

He returned after roughly a week in Cuba, where he received chemotherapy treatment.

Chavez underwent surgery to remove a cancerous tumor last month. He has not said what type of cancer he has.

VTV published an image of the president arriving Saturday night.

Quoting : CNN.com

Six dead after skating rink shooting

A witness tells police the alleged shooter was celebrating his birthdayThe suspected gunman is among the deadPolice say the shooting appears to have stemmed from a domestic dispute

(CNN) -- Six people are dead and four others are injured after a birthday party shooting at a Texas skating rink.

Officers responded to the Roller World skating rink in Grand Prairie Saturday evening and found six people dead at the scene, Grand Prairie Police Chief Steve Dye said. Dye said one of those was the shooter, who appears to have died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The four injured were taken to local hospitals.

Police said the shooting happened during a private birthday party, and one witness told detectives on the scene that the alleged shooter was the guest of honor celebrating his birthday.

While the investigation is ongoing, the shooting appears to have stemmed from a domestic dispute between a husband and wife, Dye said.

"We will have crisis counselors on hand for the witnesses, the victims and the families of the victims to make sure that the Grand Prairie Police Department is offering every resource to help heal in this process," Dye said.

Police have not released the identities of the victims.

Grand Prairie is a suburb west of Dallas.

Quoting : CNN.com

3 ordered to quit after body in pool went undetected for days

Body in public pool undetected for daysTwo Massachusetts pool employees and their supervisor are ordered to resignMarie Joseph, 36, drowned four days before her body was discoveredPoor found poor water clairty the main hindrance to her body being discoveredAuthorities plan to enact a new water clarity test at pools statewide

(CNN) -- Two pool employees and their supervisor were forced to resign on Wednesday after a woman's body went undetected in a public Massachusetts pool for four days in June until her body floated to the top.

The Vietnam Veteran's Swimming Pool manager and assistant manager -- as well as the Southeast Regional Director of the state Department of Conservation and Recreation, have resigned -- according to a statement released by Edward Lambert, the agency's commissioner.

Lambert requested they leave their posts because of "poor decision making and failure to follow (department) pool protocols."

The resignations come in the wake of an investigation into the drowning of Marie Joseph, 36, on June 26. Joseph's body wasn't discovered until the evening of June 30 by teenagers at the pool in Fall River.

"This tragic event leaves heavy hearts in an agency that prides itself on its ability to provide high quality, safe, recreational opportunities for the residents of the Commonwealth," Lambert said in a statement. "We hope that, as an agency, we will continue to work to restore and maintain the public's confidence in our ability to fulfill the mission expected of us by the Governor and residents who visit our facilities."

After Joseph's body was discovered, Lambert ordered the pool closed and appointed a team of officials to investigate her death. The pool's staff as well as the district manager who oversees the pool all were put on administrative leave.

The investigation determined that poor water clarity was the primary factor that kept lifeguards from being aware of the drowning and finding Joseph after her death. In fact, the 12-foot-deep pool was so cloudy that it should not have opened the day she drowned, authorities said.

Joseph had gone to the pool on Sunday with a 9-year-old neighbor and his family. She collided with the boy while the pair went down a pool slide, said Bristol County District Attorney's spokesman Gregg Miliote.

After the collision, the boy surfaced but the woman did not, he said.

It was not clear what happened after the collision or whether the boy and his family sought Joseph's whereabouts when they left the pool.

A decomposing body can take a couple of days before it becomes buoyant, Miliote added.

The investigation is ongoing and the Vietnam Veteran's pool will remain closed, according to Lambert's statement.

In the meantime, DCR officials have closed several waterslides throughout the state and imposed new restrictions at public pools.

Authorities plan to enact a new water clarity test at pools throughout Massachusetts which requires that a five-inch black disc placed at the bottom of the pool is visible at all times.

The state will also require that the "pool checks" normally performed by lifeguards from the pool deck include an underwater check as well.

CNN's Katie Silver contributed to this report.

Quoting : CNN.com