Obama Orders Flags Half-Staff In Honor of West, Texas Explosion Victims

President Obama ordered flags to be flown at half-staff on Thursday in honor of the victims of last week's explosion at a West, Texas fertilizer plant.

"As a mark of respect for the memory of those who perished in the explosion in West, Texas, on April 17, 2013, I hereby order, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, that the flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff at all public buildings and grounds and at all military facilities and naval stations of the Federal Government in the State of Texas," Obama said in a presidential proclamation.

Flags are flown at half-staff traditionally as a symbol of mourning. The president last ordered flags flown at half-staff last week as a tribute to the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing.
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