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Gold/Mining/Energy : Strictly: Drilling and oil-field services -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: PuddleGlum who wrote (8138)	1/14/1998 10:00:00 PM
From: HH	Respond to of 95453

Gettin cold outside: from montreal MONTREAL, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Thousands of Canadian soldiers, police and firefighters searched door to door on Wednesday for people huddled in their homes against bitter cold as fears mounted that many could freeze to death in Quebec's nine-day-old power blackout. As temperatures of minus 4 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 18 Celsius) were pushed even lower by brisk winds, authorities expressed concern that residents of the hardest-hit Monteregie region south of Montreal were in danger of succumbing to hypothermia -- a potentially fatal lowering of core body temperature. At least 17 deaths in Quebec and Ontario, two from hypothermia, were blamed on the ice storm and widespread blackout that at its peak on Friday affected more than three million people. In a message to Canada's Governor General on Wednesday, Britain's Queen Elizabeth said she had been shocked to hear of the deaths, injuries and widespread damage. "The Queen has read with admiration of the examples of generosity and kindness which have been shown by so many individual people and businesses, as well as by the emergency services, in coming to the aid of those in need of shelter and assistance," the message said. The federal government said on Wednesday it would disburse C$50 million ($35 million) to Quebec and C$25 million ($17.5 million) to Ontario as down payments on compensation for storm damage that could total several hundred million dollars. Some 10,000 of the 14,600 Canadian soldiers mobilized in Canada's largest-ever disaster recovery effort were given special powers to act as unarmed peace officers in more than 120 communities south of Montreal, where 900,000 people remained without electricity. That particular area was likely to be blacked out for at least another week as Canadian and U.S. utility crews battled bitter cold and difficult conditions to make emergency repairs to the devastated power grid. The Quebec government requested the military's help in ensuring safety in the region and to assist police in the search for people suffering in the numbing cold. Many of those worst affected have been cut off from television and radio broadcasts of emergency measures. In Ottawa, Canadian Defense Minister Art Eggleton said the green-clad troops would help reassure the population that it was safe to leave their unheated homes to seek shelter. "This will give them a sense that their neighborhood, their homes are going to be watched by our troops," he said. Military officials said that in their public security role, soldiers would be able only to detain individuals for arrest by police. In St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, a town of 35,000 located 25 miles (40-km) south of Montreal, 180 cadets from the Quebec Police Academy also were patrolling deserted streets, marking the doors of residences with green chalk to indicate that no one was inside. "There are people who hide when we arrive because they do not want to leave, often because they have pets," said cadet Pascale Proulx. Guy Langlais a retired former soldier, said he expected to be able to remain in his St-Jean home, even if the power stayed off for another two weeks. "We have a generator and a fireplace and we are using 12-volt batteries to power lighting," he said. At least 2,000 St-Jean residents were crowded into emergency shelters and more were expected on Wednesday night after a closed military college was reopened. Other victims heeded the repeated pleas of Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien and Quebec Premier Lucien Bouchard to go to shelters or stay with relatives and friends who still had power outside the region. Some people drove in from outlying areas to invite strangers to stay with them.

To: PuddleGlum who wrote (8138)	1/14/1998 10:05:00 PM
From: Thean	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 95453

PKD is on a roll. Its Oklahoma play (one of the best land dayrate going forward) is paying off for them. See story below. Johnson Rice Raises Estimates on Parker Drilling NEW ORLEANS, Jan. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Johnson Rice's Oilfield Services Analyst Joe Agular raised his estimates today on Parker Drilling (NYSE: PKD - news). Mr. Agular's estimate changes are based on strong first quarter results, improving dayrates and continued strong demand in all of Parker's segments. Johnson Rice's new fiscal 1998 estimates for Parker Drilling are $0.80 in EPS, $1.41 in cash flow and $190 million in EBITDA (up from $0.71, $1.35 and $174 million). Oklahoma-based Parker Drilling provides contract drilling and drilling- related services in offshore waters and international and domestic land and gas producing regions.