NASHUA - Pan Am Railways President David Fink says it's too early to speculate what caused Tuesday's wreck. New Hampshire Rail Authority chair Peter Burling wonders whether there was a defect in the Pan Am track.

MANCHESTER - Four state agencies are coordinating efforts to enforce laws that require most workers to be classified as employees and not as independent contractors.

Airlines plan to use surcharges to target fuel costs, peak days.

Concord - Updated, 9:37 a.m. The Executive Council this morning authorized tax-exempt bonds to fund the Manchester hospital's Elliot at River's Edge project at the old Jac Pac meatpacking plant site.

EPPING - David Shortridge was originally told by officials that a barber's pole wouldn't be allowed because it violated local zoning rules.

LACONIA - The sudden closure of a Meredith mortgage company last week is now the subject of a criminal probe by the FBI, the state attorney general said last night. The announcement comes as a growing number of investors have stepped forward to demand restitution.

►Mortgage firm shutdown draws fire (10)
►Farah's father: 'He's not a person that would run'

MANCHESTER - Opponents of the proposed affiliation between Catholic Medical Center and Dartmouth-Hitchcock last night said they want a judge to look at the matter.

►Elliot project up for $140 million in bonds
►Martel misspoke about being hired

MANCHESTER - The state's jobless rate for October fell 0.4 percentage points to 6.8 percent. This is the first drop since October 2007.

►New Hampshire Employment Security Web site