Chiefs

When an unexpected visitor comes crashing into Earth with the force of 20 atomic bombs, Congress sits up and notices. And then schedules a meeting. The House of Representatives heard testimony Tuesday about the meteor that surprised the world Feb. 15 when it lit up the Russian sky with the light of a thousand suns. Neither the head of NASA nor the commander of the Air Force Space Command had comforting words for the congressmen. Rep. Bill Posey (R-Fla.) asked what NASA director Charles F. Bolden Jr. what the space agency could do if, with only three weeks notice, a large asteroid was heading on a collision course with our planet.

WASHINGTON - Reeling from back-to-back presidential losses and struggling to cope with the country's changing racial and ethnic makeup, the Republican National Committee plans to spend $10 million this year to send hundreds of party workers into Hispanic, black, and Asian communities to promote its brand among voters who overwhelmingly supported Democrats in 2012. RNC chairman Reince Priebus on Sunday also proposed shortening the presidential nominating calendar in 2016 and limiting the number of primary-season debates to avoid the self-inflicted damage from inside-party squabbling on the eventual nominee.

WASHINGTON - The Pentagon announced Friday that it would strengthen the country's defenses against a possible attack by nuclear-equipped North Korea, fielding additional missile systems to protect the West Coast at a time of growing concern about the Stalinist regime. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said he would add 14 missile interceptors in Alaska, a roughly 50 percent increase over the current number there and in California. The estimated $1 billion expansion represents a policy shift for the Obama administration, which had shelved earlier plans to expand the mainland defense system.

A lawsuit was filed in federal court this week by a former Bensalem fire chief and his son, claiming malicious prosecution, false arrest, and a host of other offenses by Bensalem Township officials, most prominently Frederick Harran, the director of public safety. The lawsuit was filed by David Jerri Sr., the former chief of the Union Fire Company, and his son, David Jr., a former company battalion leader who remains with the company in a different position. It says Harran ordered Jerri Jr.'s worker compensation to be cut off after he was injured on the job, and that the police department, at Harran's direction, subsequently fabricated a story about how Jerri Jr. suffered the injury.

A lawsuit was filed in federal court this week by a former Bensalem fire chief and his son, claiming malicious prosecution, false arrest, and a host of other offenses by Bensalem Township officials, most prominently Frederick Harran, the director of public safety. The lawsuit was filed by David Jerri Sr., the former chief of the Union Fire Company, and his son, David Jr., a former company battalion leader who remains with the company in a different position. It says that Harran ordered Jerri Jr.'s worker compensation to be cut off after he was injured on the job, and that the police department, at Harran's direction, subsequently fabricated a story about how Jerri Jr. suffered the injury.

The Philadelphia Housing Authority on Thursday promoted its interim head, Kelvin Jeremiah, to the new position of president and chief executive officer. An expert in compliance and investigations, Jeremiah, 40, had been acting as executive director since the abrupt resignation last June of Michael P. Kelly. With his appointment, Jeremiah will maintain his salary of $190,000. Jeremiah, who was born in Grenada and moved to Brooklyn, N.Y., as a boy, was recruited to PHA in 2011 by his predecessor, who had worked with him at the New York City Housing Authority.

The Philadelphia Housing Authority has promoted its interim head, Kelvin Jeremiah, to the new position of president and chief executive officer. An expert in compliance and investigations, Jeremiah, 40, had been acting as executive director since the abrupt resignation last June of Michael P. Kelly. With his appointment, Jeremiah will maintain his salary of $190,000. Jeremiah, who was born in Grenada and moved to Brooklyn as a boy, was recruited to PHA in 2011 by his predecessor Kelly, who had worked with him at the New York City Housing Authority.

SEPTA named a new chief engineer Wednesday to oversee its tracks, bridges, power facilities, and buildings. Andrew Gillespie, a six-year employee of the transit agency, will replace Jeffrey Knueppel, who was recently promoted to deputy general manager. Gillespie, who lives in Doylestown with his wife and three children, will be paid $160,000 a year. - Paul Nussbaum

US Airways Group chief executive Doug Parker and Delta Air Lines chief executive officer Richard Anderson have urged Transportation Security Administration (TSA) chief John Pistole to reconsider allowing small knives in the cabins of commercial aircraft. The TSA announced the change last week, raising the ire of pilot and flight-attendant groups that called it an unsafe plan. In a letter to the TSA, Anderson said the move "will add little value" to passenger security screening efficiency "in relation to the additional risk for our cabin staff and customers.

There typically comes a time when little boys declare they want to be firemen. For Paul E. Hartstein III, it went without saying. Growing up in a firefighting family in Audubon, Camden County, he was chief of his own make-believe company, racing to imaginary infernos. Soon enough, he was doing it for real. Starting as a teen working heavy rescue, he moved up the ranks to be both chief of the volunteer Audubon Fire Department and Camden County chief fire marshal. For more than a decade, he served on the New Jersey Fire Safety Commission.