UNITED STATES
Bulldozers blaze the way
There was no time to waste. Six coal miners were trapped deep underground. Getting them fresh air was imperative. That required boring holes into Crandall Canyon mine from the top of East Mountain, nearly 1,900 feet overhead. But before a heavy-duty drill rig could be brought in, a mile-long access road had to be cut across the mountaintop - at night, through two dense stretches of forest and along ridges with slopes that plummeted precipitously, the dim light of a waning moon often obscuring the line between level ground and open air...

DeLand increasing biofuel use in heavy equipment
DELAND -- The city of DeLand's motor pool is becoming a green fleet -- well, almost.
In late November, the city followed the suggestion of Public Works Director Marvin Williams and began using a 5-percent mixture of soybean oil to fuel heavy equipment vehicles, such as fire trucks. The mixture is touted as a way to run cleaner machines and help reduce dependence on foreign oil.

PHILIPPINES
Rebels burn down heavy equipment
NEW People's Army guerrillas burned two heavy equipment involved in the construction of market roads and a bunker house in San Francisco town in Quezon for the refusal of the town mayor who owns the equipment to pay "revolutionary taxes."...
"Said heavy equipment are being used to construct market roads of said place and owned by Mayor Nani C. Tan, mayor of San Francisco, Quezon. Said incident was a result of tan's refusal to give in to demands," said Cabangbang.

Heavy rains brings floods, landslides to Southern Leyte
MAASIN CITY, Philippines--A nine-year-old girl drowned in a flashflood and three Southern Leyte towns and a highway in this city were hit by landslides following two straight days of heavy rains on Wednesday and Thursday, local authorities said Friday...
...DPWH-Southern Leyte’s assistant district engineer, Lino Gonzalez, said heavy equipment was dispatched immediately to clear the roads of mud and debris.

INDIA
MCD wakes up to piling solid waste
As the year turns, there is some good news. On Monday, MCD mayor Arti Mehra announced the purchase of 17 new heavy earth moving machines for the better management of solid waste at sanitary landfill sites...
...For the first time, MCD has entered into a contract with the manufacturer for the maintenance of the equipment. "The manufacturer will provide the necessary parts and services required for maintenance while we will bear the cost of fuel and lubricants," said Mehra. According to officials, the contract for the heavy equipment is for six years...