A ray of hope for Mississippi Gulf Coast economy

al.com: NewsFlash - Miss. shipyard toils to resume business:

"Los Angeles-based Northrop Grumman has three Gulf Coast yards that build ships or sections assembled elsewhere, one each Pascagoula, Gulfport, Miss., and New Orleans.
...
"Including an onshore facility, the defense contractor employs close to 19,000 people in the Gulf region, which accounts for nearly 10 percent of its annual business.
"The regional impact is significant as well. Northrop Grumman's average Gulf operations payroll is about $17 million a week, Cullin said."

Although the fate of a few thousand of Pascagoula's twelve thousand employees is still unknown, Northrop Grumman officials hope to be back in the ship-building business in Mississippi by next week.