Latest Illinois Headlines

All the headlines from our Illinois Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Illinois Cooperative Faces $303K in Fines, Cited for Grain-Handling Violations

Aug 11 2021 // A central Illinois grain-handling cooperative exposed workers to serious engulfment hazards when soybeans collapsed inside a Monticello bin and engulfed an employee up to their waist, the U.S. Department of Labor’s...

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Acquires R.J. Riordan & Co. in Illinois

Jul 30 2021 // Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. acquired Oakbrook, Illinois-based R.J. Riordan & Co.R.J. Riordan & Co. is a retail property/casualty broker offering a full range of insurance products and services to clients across...

People Moves: Bahn Joins RPS in Illinois; Keller Joins IFG Primary Casualty in Chicago; Omaha National Promotes Perry

Jul 29 2021 // Bruce Bahn joined Risk Placement Services (RPS) in Rolling Meadows, Ill., as the vice president of business and product development.In this new position, Bahn will be responsible for leading the firm’s new product...

Credit Ratings Assigned to Illinois’ Vantage Risk Specialty Insurance

Jul 14 2021 // AM Best has assigned a Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and a Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “a-” (Excellent) to Vantage Risk Specialty Insurance Co. (Vantage Risk) in Chicago. Vantage Risk is a...

State Officials Sue Owners of Illinois Chemical Plant that Burned

Jul 12 2021 // Illinois prosecutors on July 9 sued the owner of a chemical plant where a fire in June sent dark smoke and ash into the air for days and prompted evacuations, saying the company should be held accountable for air and water...

Company Defends Use of Toxic Chemicals to Fight Illinois Plant Fire

Jul 2 2021 // A company whose northern Illinois chemical plant was heavily damaged in a fire defended its use of firefighting foam containing toxic chemicals, saying crews had taken steps to contain the material.An industrial team hired...

Foodservice Distributor Settles Claims of Discriminatory Hiring at Illinois Facility

Jun 30 2021 // The U.S. Department of Labor said US Foods will pay $159,550 in back pay and interest to 114 female and Black job applicants as part of an to resolve alleged hiring discrimination found at its Bensenville, Ill.,...

Illinois Chemical Plant Fire Likely Accidental, Fire Chief Says

Jun 27 2021 // An explosion and massive fire at a chemical plant in northern Illinois that filled the sky with black smoke and forced the evacuation of hundreds of homes for days was started accidentally during maintenance work, a senior...

Illinois Casualty Gets AM Best Ratings Upgrade

Jun 22 2021 // AM Best has upgraded the Financial Strength Rating to A- (Excellent) from B++ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) to “a-” (Excellent) from “bbb+” (Good) of Illinois...

Feds Inspected Illinois Chemical Plant Weeks Before Explosion, Fires

Jun 16 2021 // A northern Illinois chemical plant that was rocked by an explosion and massive fires that prompted evacuations was inspected by a federal agency less than a month before the blast sent debris raining down onto nearby...

Explosion, Fire at Illinois Chemical Plant Prompt Evacuations

Jun 15 2021 // An explosion at a chemical plant in northern Illinois sparked massive fires that sent flames and huge plumes of thick black smoke high into the air Monday morning, prompting evacuations.Emergency crews rushed to the scene...

Six Flags Park Settling Illinois Park Fingerprints Lawsuit for $36M

Jun 14 2021 // Six Flags Great America has settled a class-action lawsuit by agreeing to pay $36 million over the use of fingerprint scanners at its Illinois theme park.Pass holders and others who visited the Gurnee park between October...

Attorney Seeks Names of All Order Priests in Illinois Accused of Abuse

Jun 9 2021 // An attorney is calling on Catholic bishops across Illinois to end the “dangerous deceit” and release a full list of religious order priests who face credible sexual abuse accusations.Attorney Jeff Anderson has...

People Moves: Domek Joins HOAIC in Illinois; United Heartland Promotes Richeson in Kansas City; Liberty Mutual, Safeco Name Meuret Midwest Field Exec

Jun 4 2021 // Homeowners of America Insurance Co. (HOAIC), an Irving, Texas-based property/casualty insurance provider, has added Paul Domek as a territory sales manager in Illinois.Domek brings over 20 years of insurance industry...

Illinois Court: Insurer Has ‘Duty to Defend’ in Biometric Information Privacy Case

Jun 3 2021 // The Illinois Supreme Court recently sided with a policyholder seeking defense from its insurer for a lawsuit brought by a customer of a tanning salon alleging the insured unlawfully disclosed the customer’s biometric...

Fire Damages at Least 17 Semitrailers at Illinois Truck Facility

Jun 2 2021 // A fire at a Chicago-area truck service facility has damaged at least 17 semitrailers.The blaze at KDM Truck Service in Addison, Ill., was reported about 10:30 p.m. on May 31, according to WLS-TV. Two semitrailers initially...

4 Twisters Confirmed in Central Illinois

May 5 2021 // Four tornadoes touched down in the evening on May 3 in central Illinois but no damage was reported as the storms swept across farm fields and open areas, the National Weather Service said. One tornado touchdown was...

Hub Acquires Assets of Illinois’ Cooper & Allison Insurance and Russel J. Kobel

May 4 2021 // Chicago-based global insurance brokerage Hub International Limited (Hub) has acquired the assets of Cooper & Allison Insurance Agency LLC and Russel J. Kobel LLC (Cooper & Allison).Headquartered in Burr Ridge,...

Illinois Black, Latino Nursing Home Deaths Linked to Overcrowding

Apr 30 2021 // Overcrowding at some Illinois nursing homes caused a disproportionate number of preventable deaths among Black and Latino residents living in those facilities, state officials say.The Department of Healthcare and Family...

Illinois Distribution Warehouse Cited for Virus Exposures; Fined $12K

Apr 29 2021 // A few days after employees at Midwest Warehouse and Distribution System Inc. gathered in its Naperville, Ill., facility breakroom for a luncheon, some workers experienced symptoms consistent with coronavirus exposure....