State News

State News

Tyson CEO Stepping Down for ‘Personal Reasons’

In an unexpected announcement Monday morning, a Tyson Foods spokesperson revealed to company employees that CEO Tom Hayes, formerly of Hillshire Brands, was stepping down from his role as the company’s president and chief executive officer for “personal reasons.”

During his tenure, Hayes, 53, helped re-brand Tyson as more than a traditional meatpacker. He also oversaw the merger with Hillshire Brands and guided Tyson’s venture into alternative meats. Noel White, a longtime executive at Tyson Foods with expertise in commercial beef and pork operations, will take the helm of the nation’s largest food company, effective Sept. 30.

“It is a very difficult decision to leave Tyson Foods, but after careful consideration and discussions with my family and the board, I know it is the right thing to do,” Hayes said in a prepared remark.

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Two Killed in Pair of Deadly Crashes

An 84-year-old woman died and three other people were injured Friday in a two-vehicle crash in southeast Arkansas, state police said.

The wreck happened about 12:45 p.m. at the intersection of U.S. 65 and Arkansas 35 in the Chicot County city of Dermott, according to a preliminary report.

Authorities said Marie Moss of Lake Village was driving west in a 2015 Nissan on Arkansas 35 when she failed to yield at the intersection. A 2018 Toyota traveling south on U.S. 65 hit the Nissan on its driver's side, the reports states.

Moss was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital about 2 p.m. that day, troopers said. A 41-year-old passenger in the Nissan, Chaunea Mosley of Lake Village, was listed as injured.

The Toyota's driver, 68year-old Randal Maxwell, and a passenger in that vehicle, 70-year-old Roselinda Maxwell, both of Ferriday, La., were also hurt, police said.

Another person, whose identity has not ben released, was killed in a traffic crash along Interstate 30 in Little Rock, near Geyer Springs Road on Tuesday morning.

A black pickup reportedly crashed into the rear of an 18-wheeler in the westbound lanes. One person in the truck died. Traffic was reportedly slow on the highway from an earlier wreck.

More than 350 people have died in wrecks on Arkansas highways this year according to Arkansas State Police figures.