Accuser Takes the Stand in Steubenville, Ohio, Rape Trial
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Saturday, March 16, 2013
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Small Plane Crashes at S. Fla. Parking Lot; 3 Die
A small plane crashed into a parking lot near a South Florida airport Friday afternoon, killing all three people onboard and burning about a dozen vehicles. No one on the ground was hurt.
Fire-Rescue Division Chief John San Angelo said the Piper Navajo, a twin-engine turboprop, began experiencing engine trouble shortly after taking off from Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport at about 4:30 p.m.
The plane tried to turn around and make an emergency landing, but it didn't make it back to the airport, he said. The plane hit a tree and a fence as it crashed into a parking lot, part of a busy industrial area near blocks of tightly packed warehouses and stores.
The victims' names weren't immediately available. Seven cars and a boat caught fire.
"It looks like a junk yard that burned up," said Matt Little, a spokesman for Fort Lauderdale fire and rescue.
Terry Knowles, owner of R.J. Asset Recovery, said he and another one of his employees were in the repossessed auto lot when the plane crashed.
"I was working on a car, and I heard the engine behind me. I turned around and saw the plane coming right over the building in front of me," he said.
Knowles said the plane appeared to be banking around to head back to the airport, but it just couldn't get the lift.
"It hit the ground and exploded," Knowles said. "It was an instantaneous fireball."
Knowles said he yelled to check on his employee, who had been on the other side of the lot, and the two opened a gate for the presumed arrival of firefighters.
Rick Blackburn was outside working on a race car when he saw the plane tilting sideways in the air as it rapidly descended down. "It dropped like a rock. Boom!" he said.
"The plane hit really hard. We knew the pilot hadn't survived. It was too intense of an impact," said the 55-year-old Blackburn.
He took video with his phone as flames devoured a row of cars, thick blankets of black smoke billowing out.
"It was a ball of flames," he said.
Blackburn said it was immediately clear to those who ran over to help that "it was over." The heat coming from the blaze was intense, he said.
"There were a lot of explosions going off at first. Pop, pop, pop," he said.
About 40 firefighters were at the scene. San Angelo said smoke and the flames were so heavy that when firefighters first arrived, they couldn't tell where the plane was.
Television images showed heavy black smoke rising from the crash scene. Later video footage show a parking lot with vehicles in a corner that were burned-out shells, a smoldering heap covered in foam spread by firefighters on the scene. The cars were by a chain-link fence, and a building on the other side was streaked with black.
A storage facility and an indoor go-kart track are among the businesses listed nearby.
The airport serves smaller planes rather than the larger commercial flights at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.
The crash happened at the start of rush hour alongside Interstate 95, the major north-south route along Florida's Atlantic coast. It's also near Fort Lauderdale Stadium, where the New York Yankees and Baltimore Orioles once held spring training, and Lockhart Stadium, where the defunct Fort Lauderdale Strikers and Miami Fusion soccer teams played.
Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jack Seiler said he's amazed no buildings were damaged.
"It's a terrible scene. It's the scene of a tragedy," he said after walking through the wreckage.
Friday, March 15, 2013
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Pope Francis' Upgraded Lifestyle: New Clothes, Car, Home
Watch: Latin America Celebrates Pope Francis
Pope Francis' Upgraded Lifestyle: New Clothes, Car, Home
Watch: Pope Francis: Meet the New Leader of the Catholic Church
Pope Francis' Upgraded Lifestyle: New Clothes, Car, Home
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Who Is the New Pope?
Taking the name Francis, after the saint who ministered to the poor, Argentine Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the first Latin American to lead the Catholic Church, has earned a reputation for living the simple, quiet life of his namesake.
Bergoglio, 76, is the first Jesuit to become pope, and was the archbishop of Buenos Aires, where he has criticized Latin priests whom he calls "hypocrites" for refusing to baptize children born out of wedlock.
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He becomes the 266th pope and the first pontiff in more than a millennium to be born outside of Europe.
He made a name for himself leading a simple life, preparing his own meals, living in a Spartan apartment and riding public transportation, all the while eschewing the luxurious mansion in which he was entitled to live.
Bergoglio was in 2005 considered a runner-up to Pope Benedict XVI, who resigned earlier this month.
Click Here for Full Coverage of Pope Francis
Although not considered a liberal, he is seen as a reformer who has made social justice a priority in his ministry.
In criticizing the priests who refused to baptize out-of- wedlock children, he argued that their mothers had done the right thing by not receiving abortions and should not be shunned by the church.
Priests who refused to perform such baptisms "drive God's people away from salvation," he said.
Bergoglio told his priests: "In our ecclesiastical region, there are priests who don't baptize the children of single mothers because they weren't conceived in the sanctity of marriage.
"These are today's hypocrites. Those who clericalize the church. Those who separate the people of God from salvation. And this poor girl who, rather than returning the child to sender, had the courage to carry it into the world, must wander from parish to parish so that it's baptized."
Despite the authority of the church in Latin America, Bergoglio was not influential enough to stall lawmakers in Argentina from recently legalizing gay marriage. He has in the past argued that gay parents should not be allowed to adopt children.
The Jesuits have traditionally been considered too "critical of the church hierarchy" to ascend to the papacy, said the Rev. James Martin, the editor of "America" and a Jesuit.
Jesuits are known for being the intellectuals among the priests. They run top colleges and schools, are defenders of traditional liberal arts curriculum and academic-scientific research, and tend to be more liberal than the other orders.
Bergoglio is one of five siblings. His father was a railroad worker, born in Italy.
As a teenager, he had a lung removed after an infection.
He has been archbishop of Buenos Aires since 1998.
Watch: Cardinal Edward Egan Discusses New Pope Jorge Mario Bergoglio
Pope Francis' Upgraded Lifestyle: New Clothes, Car, Home
Watch: Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio Now Pope Francis
Pope Francis' Upgraded Lifestyle: New Clothes, Car, Home
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Watch: Papal Conclave 2013 Begins: Celebration and Protests
Michelle Obama, Other Prominent Americans Allegedly Hacked
Full Coverage: New Pope? Not Yet
Black smoke poured out of the chimney above the Sistine Chapel today, signalling that the first vote for a new pope did not succeed in settling on a new pontiff.
Few expected the first vote to determine the next pope and the black smoke was not a surprise. The next vote by the Catholic cardinals is expected to be held on Wednesday.
The cardinals retreated to the Sistine Chapel in a choreagraphed procession with the 115 cardinals eligible to vote marching in two by two while singing prayers. They were dressed in white robes with short red capes and red caps known as birettas as they complied with the ancient rituals of the church and settled into assigned seats beneath the world famous frescoes created by Michelangelo for the papal conclave.
The cardinals read the secrecy oath in unison, and then came forward to individually to put their hands on the Gospels and repeat an oath of secrecy ending with the words, "the holy word of God which I touch with my hand."
The mood of the cardinals after mingling in Vatican City for several days discussing the future of the church has been optimistic. New York's Cardinal Timothy Dolan predicted a new pontiff by Thursday.
Meet the Papal Contenders "My guess is that we'd have a new Successor of St. Peter by Thursday evening, with a hoped-for inaugural Mass on March 19, the feast of St. Joseph, the patron of the Church Universal, a holiday, and Father's Day here in Italy," Dolan wrote to his priests n New York. The diocese spokesman confirmed the letter to ABC News.
In a final report before the conclave on The Catholic Channel/SiriusXM, Dolan said, "It's sort of a unique, special morning. I never thought I'd be doing what I'm about to do. The weather's not cooperating too much. It's kind of damp and chilly but it looks good on the horizon. Maybe this gentle Roman rain is a sign of the grace of the Holy Spirit coming upon us."
Talking about meeting the other cardinals in the days before the conclave, Dolan said 'It's been a beautiful process."
Quick Bios of the Men Who Might Be Pope
"The closer you get, the more you get settled in your mind. And there's a sense of resignation and conformity with God's plan. It's magnificent."
Before the conclave this morning the cardinals celebrated a mass in a packed St. Peter's Basilica with a homily from Cardinal Angelo Sodano, dean of the college of cardinals.
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"We implore the Lord that through the pastoral solicitude of the cardinal fathers, He may soon grant another good shepherd to his holy church," Sodano said.
When Sodano praised the retired Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI as a "beloved and venerable" pontiff, cardinals responded with a lengthy applause.
In recent days cardinals have expressed optimism that the conclave will be a quick one and a new leader of the church's 1.2 billion followers will be swiftly selected. The start of Holy Week on March 24 gives the conclave an added sense of urgency.
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When the cardinal electors - only cardinals under 80 can vote - enter the conclave, they will be shut off from the outside world: no television, internet, or newspapers. Electronic jamming devices have been installed in the chapel. The cardinal electors this morning moved into Santa Marta, the house where they will reside during the conclave. Later today they will gather in the Pauline Chapel before proceeding into the Sistine Chapel, where the doors will then be locked.
After each session of voting, the ballots are burned and smoke is emitted from the chapel's chimney, with black smoke signaling that no candidate has been elected in the preceding rounds of votes and white smoke indicating a new pope has been picked.
The first smoke could be seen between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. EDT today.
On the eve of the conclave, workers hung red drapes over the window at St. Peter's Basilica where the next pontiff will be unveiled to the world for the first time. As the conclave gets underway, speculation in some Italian media outlets has centered on two figures: Cardinal Angelo Scola of Italy, viewed as a reformer with the potential backing of the American and German cardinals, and Cardinal Odilo Scherer of Brazil, seen as a hardline candidate with the support of the Roman curia.
However, the race is regarded as a wide open one, with other frontrunners including Cardinals Marc Ouellet of Canada, Timothy Dolan of the United States, Sean O'Malley of the United States, Peter Erdo of Hungary, Angelo Bagnasco of Italy, Leonardo Sandri of Argentina, and Schoenborn of Austria.
What are the chances of an American pope? Monsignor Christopher H. Nalty, a priest of the Archdiocese of New Orleans told ABC News that it's not very likely.
Watch: Papal Conclave: Father John Wauck Gives a Must-Watch List
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Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Watch: Cardinal Wilfrid Napier on the Papal Conclave
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Red Drapes Readied for New Pope
On the eve of the much-anticipated conclave that will determine the next pope, cardinals gathered in Vatican City today for one last general congregation meeting.
For the past week cardinals have been holding court behind closed doors, discussing church matters as final preparations for the conclave take place. Today red drapes were placed over the balcony window overlooking St. Peter's Square, where the new pope will emerge once elected, and in the evening staff for the conclave were set to swear an oath of secrecy.
When cardinals wake up Tuesday morning, they will move into Santa Marta, the house where they will reside during the conclave, and then later celebrate a mass at St. Peter's. After lunch, they will finally begin the conclave at the Sistine Chapel, the site of the voting to determine the next leader of the Roman Catholic Church and its 1.2 billion followers. The first ballot is set to be cast in the early evening hours after the chapel has been closed to all outsiders.
Two of the front-runners to replace the Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI appear to be cardinals Angelo Scola of Italy and Odilo Scherer of Brazil.
Scola, the archbishop of Milan, was viewed as a leading contender before the previous conclave in 2005 and is regarded as more of a reformer, while Scherer, the archbishop of Sao Paolo, is a hard-liner believed to have the backing of the Roman Curia.
A two-thirds majority of the 115 cardinal electors -- 77 votes -- is needed to become the next pontiff. If none of the cardinals secures enough support in Tuesday's vote, they will return to Santa Marta for the night before resuming the conclave on Wednesday.
"In a few days we will have a new Holy Father," Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn of Austria said Sunday during a mass conducted at his titular church in Rome, according to Italian news agency Ansa. Cardinals spent the day fanned out across Rome celebrating mass at the churches in the Eternal City that are permanently assigned to them.
Despite a tumultuous period for the church, with lingering sexual abuse scandals, the "Vatileaks" controversy over leaked papal documents, and Benedict's shocking resignation, Schoenborn, the archbishop of Vienna, touted the camaraderie within the college of cardinals.
"I found a rarely felt spirit of fraternity this week in the meetings between the cardinals," he said, according to Ansa.
With the cardinals set to make what may be the most important decision of their lives in the coming days, that fraternity may soon be put to the test.
Watch: Papal Conclave: The Vatican's Ancient Ritual Begins
Chuck Hagel Visits Afghanistan, Violent Attacks Follow
Monday, March 11, 2013
Watch: Queen Elizabeth's Historic Move, Takes Stand Against Discrimination
Coast Guard Rescues California Sailors, 1 Dead
Beyond the Brawl: World Baseball Classic Scenes
Of course, there was the bunt single that turned into a brawl between the players - and the fans - in the Mexico-Canada WBC matchup. But the World Baseball Classic has also included such memorable moments as the U.S.'s David Wright's grand slam against Italy and Japan's 16-4 runaway against the Netherlands.
Here are some of the images captured during the tournament:
Watch: Instant Index: Canada, Mexico Face Off in Baseball Brawl
Coast Guard Rescues California Sailors, 1 Dead
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Watch: Parent's Nightmare: Bath Time Images Lead to Abuse Charges
Live Next to Cemetery? Can't Beat the Quiet, Privacy, Price
Watch: Instant Index: Pitcher Mariano Rivera 'Closes' After 18 Seasons
Live Next to Cemetery? Can't Beat the Quiet, Privacy, Price
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Live Next to Cemetery? Can't Beat the Quiet, Privacy, Price
Saturday, March 9, 2013
Stocks Move Higher on Job Growth
A burst of hiring in February pushed stocks higher on Wall Street.
The Dow Jones industrial average gained 34 points, or 0.2 percent, to 14,364 as of 1:02 p.m. EST Friday. The index surpassed its record close Tuesday and is on track for its sixth straight increase.
The Standard & Poor's 500 rose three points, or 0.2 percent, to 1,548. The Nasdaq composite advanced five points, or 0.2 percent, to 3,237.
U.S. employers added 236,000 jobs and the unemployment rate fell to 7.7 percent from 7.9 percent in January, the Labor Department reported. That's far better than the 156,000 job gains and unemployment rate of 7.8 percent that economists surveyed by FactSet expected.
The strong job growth shows that employers are confident about the economy despite higher taxes and government spending cuts.
Optimism that hiring is picking up has been one of the factors bolstering the stock market this year. Stocks have also gained on evidence that the housing market is recovering and company earnings continue to growing.
Stocks have also been boosted by continuing economic stimulus from the Federal Reserve.
The U.S. central bank began buying bonds in January 2009 and is still purchasing $85 billion each month in Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities. That has kept interest rates near historic lows, reducing borrowing costs and encouraging investors to move money out of conservative investments like bonds and into stocks.
Investors have also been pondering what the Fed's next move will be. That question was in especially sharp focus Friday after the government reported the surge in hiring last month.
Andres Garcia-Amaya at JPMorgan Asset Management said that the strong jobs report may heighten speculation that the Fed may end its stimulus sooner than investors had anticipated, which would be a negative for the stock market.
"If the economy maintains or increases the pace of job creation....that could change the Fed's stance," said Garcia-Amaya. "That could mean that the Fed could take the 'punch bowl' away."
The Dow has gained 9.6 percent this year and is trading at record levels, having broken its previous record of 14,164 on Tuesday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index is up 8.5 percent since the start of the year, and remains 1.1 percent short of its all-time high close of 1,565 set Oct. 9, 2007.
The jobs report strengthens the case of stock market bulls, who say the economy is gaining momentum following a long and tepid recovery after the financial crisis and Great Recession, said JJ Kinahan, chief derivatives strategist at TD Ameritrade.
"It gives hope to those that say this rally isn't just about the Fed, it's about the economy recovering," said Kinahan. "It's giving people confidence that maybe the economy is turning the corner."
The surging stock market continues to draw people in.
Investors put $3.2 billion into stock mutual funds in the week ending Wednesday, data provider Lipper reported Friday. That's the ninth straight week of net inflows to stock funds, bringing this year's total to $59 billion.
McDonald's was one of the Dow's biggest percentage gainers on Friday. The fast-food restaurant chain reported that a key sales figure fell 3.3 percent in February, but the decline wasn't as bad as analysts were expecting. The stock advanced $1.42 to $98.51.
H&R Block had the biggest percentage gain on the S&P 500, advancing $2.33, or 9.5 percent, to $27.32.
Watch: Sudden Rise in Jobs Gives Major Boost to Economy
Cardinals Prepare for Conclave, Voting to Begin Tuesday
Friday, March 8, 2013
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N. Korea Threatens 'Nuclear Strike'
The U.N. Security Council today brushed off a threat by North Korea to launch a "pre-emptive nuclear strike" and voted to impose tough new sanctions on the country as punishment for its nuclear weapon and ballistic missile program.
China, North Korea's staunchest ally, joined the U.S. and other members of the Security Council to make the vote unanimous.
The vote came hours after Pyongyang, which has been delivered a series of belligerent statements in recent weeks, said that it would "exercise its right for pre-emptive nuclear strike to destroy the strongholds of the aggressors."
The tough talk from North Korea also comes as the U.S. and South Korean begin joint military maneuvers.
The U.S. dismissed the North Korean threat.
"North Korean threats of provocations will only further isolate North Korea and undermine international efforts to ensure peace and stability in Northeast Asia," Pentagon spokeswoman Lt. Col. Cathy Wilkinson said.
In recent days, North Korea has vowed to turn Seoul and Washington into a "sea of fire," have imposed no-sail/no-fly zones along its coasts, and warned that it might end the armistice that halted the Korean War in 1953 without a peace treaty.
The targets of the latest round of sanctions included in the latest round of sanctions include top officials at a company that is the country's primary arms dealer and main exporter of ballistic missile-related equipment, and a national organization responsible for research and development of missiles and probably nuclear weapons.
The success of a new round of sanctions could depend on enforcement by China, where most of the companies and banks that North Korea is believed to work with are based.
The resolution is intended to make it significantly harder for North Korea to move around the funds it needs to carry out its illicit programs and strengthen existing sanctions and the inspection of suspect cargo bound to and from the country. It would also ban countries from exporting specific luxury goods to the North, including yachts, luxury automobiles, racing cars, and jewelry with semi-precious and precious stones and precious metals.
According to the draft, all countries would now be required to freeze financial transactions or services that could contribute to North Korea's nuclear or missile programs.
To get around financial sanctions, North Koreans have been carrying around large suitcases filled with cash to move illicit funds. The draft resolution expresses concern that these bulk cash transfers may be used to evade sanctions. It clarifies that the freeze on financial transactions and services that could violate sanctions applies to all cash transfers as well as the cash couriers.
The proposed resolution also bans all countries from providing public financial support for trade deals, such as granting export credits, guarantees or insurance, if the assistance could contribute to the North's nuclear or missile programs.
It includes what a senior diplomat called unprecedented new travel sanctions that would require countries to expel agents working for sanctioned North Korean companies.
The draft also requires states to inspect suspect cargo on their territory and prevent any vessel that refuses an inspection from entering their ports. And a new aviation measure calls on states to deny aircraft permission to take off, land or fly over their territory if illicit cargo is suspected to be aboard.
ABC News' Luis Martinez and AP contributed to this report
Watch: North Korea Threatens US With Nuclear Attack
Bolshoi Ballet Acid Attack Leaves Sergei Filin Scarred, Nearly Blind
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Watch: Doctors Struggle to Contain New Bacteria
Bolshoi Ballet Acid Attack Leaves Sergei Filin Scarred, Nearly Blind
'Snowquester' Bringing Heavy Snow
The winter storm that hit the Midwest and forced hundreds of flights to be canceled has arrived on the East Coast. A state of emergency has been declared in Virginia, where 200,000 are without power and heavy wet snow continues to fall. Some 20 inches of snow had fallen in Augusta County, Va., by mid-afternoon.
Winter storm warnings and weather advisories are in effect for much of Virginia, extending along the I-95 corridor into the greater Philadelphia area, the National Weather Service said. Snow totals reached two feet in West Virginia as of Wednesday evening and over a foot of snow has been reported in southern Pennsylvania.
The storm prompted a shutdown of federal offices and schools the Washington, D.C., region Wednesday. As of Wednesday evening, there was little accumulation in the city, but nearly 7 inches of snow fell to the west.
The Nor'easter -- dubbed "snowquester" -- will continue to move up the coast, said forecasters. A total accumulation of 3 inches is expected in New York City by Friday. Boston residents should expect 2-4 inches, with higher totals of 6-8 inches inland from Worcester, Mass. to just north of Providence, R.I.
Coastal flood warnings and advisories are in effect for portions of the Atlantic coastline from Maryland to Long Island.
SLIDESHOW: Wicked Winter Weather
A high wind warning is in effect along the Delaware and New Jersey coasts until 3 a.m. Thursday and coastal flood warnings are also in place through Thursday morning. Parts of Delaware and southern New Jersey have picked up 2-4 inches of rain. In addition to wind damage and power losses, a dune breach on Route 1 in Delaware has caused flooding and closed the road between Dewey and Rehoboth Beach.
As of 6 p.m. Wednesday, there were more than 2,200 flight cancellations nationwide, the majority in Washington, D.C., according to FlightAware. More than 1,300 flights in and out of the three D.C.-area airports (Reagan, Dulles and BWI) were canceled. More than 300 flights have been canceled to and from Philadelphia.
According to the FAA, the Philadelphia airport is experiencing three-hour delays. New York-area airport delays are averaging two-and-one-half hours. In Boston, delays averaged almost two hours.
Airlines including American, Continental, JetBlue, US Airways and Southwest have announced flexible travel policies, allowing passengers to change flights without penalty. Policies vary by airline.
More than 4,000 flights have been canceled so far this week due to the winter storm.
Amtrak said it is "monitoring" the storm, but anticipated normal operations on Wednesday. Passengers who have paid but choose not to travel due to this service disruption can receive a refund or a voucher for future travel.
Megabus said it was canceling most of its of service between New York, Baltimore and Washington and some services running between Washington and Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Durham, Charlotte, Toronto and Buffalo. Greyhound also reported cancellations and delays in New York City, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Washington, D.C. and Richmond.
With reporting by Darcy Bonfils, Max Golembo and Samantha Wnek.
Watch: Winter Storm Wreaks Havoc on East Coast
Bolshoi Ballet Acid Attack Leaves Sergei Filin Scarred, Nearly Blind
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
East Coast Braces for Pummeling Storm
After pummeling the nation's midsection with heavy snow, a late-winter storm made its way Wednesday to the nation's capital, where residents braced for the possibility of power outages.
As the storm closed in, the federal government said its offices in the Washington, D.C., area would be closed Wednesday. Many major school systems around Washington and Baltimore announced pre-emptive closures as well.
Officials said outages were the biggest potential problem from the storm, which was expected to dump 5 to 11 inches of snow in Washington and Baltimore by Wednesday night. Minor tidal flooding was possible along the Delaware coast, the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay and the lower Potomac River, the National Weather Service said.
Already, the storm has been dubbed a "snowquester." The nickname is a play on the D.C. wonk term "sequester," used to describe the $85 billion that must be cut from federal budgets over the next six months after President Barack Obama and lawmakers failed to reach a deal to reduce the national deficit. The "snowquester" has shut down government offices just as the budget cuts threaten to do.
Maryland Emergency Management Agency spokesman Ed McDonough reported no major incidents as of Wednesday morning. There were about 600 power outages statewide as the conditions were worsening in parts of Maryland.
The State Highway Administration said it expected the snow to intensify during the day, adding to accumulations the agency measured Wednesday morning at about 7 inches in Keysers Ridge in the western Maryland mountains and 2 to 3 inches in central Maryland.
"We're urging folks not to travel today and to leave the driving to our professional snow plow drivers," highway agency spokeswoman Lora Rakowski said.
Areas north and west of Washington and Baltimore had been seeing snow since about 3 a.m. The metropolitan region and communities to the south and east had a wet, wintry mix of precipitation.
By early Wednesday, wet snow was falling in the Washington area. It was accumulating on the grass in some areas, but not on the streets as temperatures hovered above freezing. The worst of the storm was expected to arrive by midday.
Washington resident Sheri Sable, out walking her two dogs in light rain early Wednesday, said her office was closed because of the storm. She said the nation's capital gets spooked by snow; even the dog park she frequents had failed to open at 7 a.m.
"They just say that it might snow and the whole city shuts down," she said.
The storm brought around 10 inches of snow to weather-hardened Chicago by late Tuesday, when snow was also starting to come down in parts of Virginia. Schools were closed in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois, and more than 1,100 flights were cancelled at Chicago's two major airports, prompting delays and closures at others.
Airlines along the storm's projected path cut flights too, including hundreds more Wednesday at Dulles and Reagan National airports in the Washington area, according to FlightAware.com.
While there were no initial reports of major accidents in the Chicago area, a semi-trailer slid off a snow-covered interstate in western Wisconsin, killing one person. The search for a second person, believed to be a passenger, was suspended overnight.
Watch: Worst Storm of Season to Hit Major Cities
Teen Skier Found Alive After 2 Nights in Bitter Cold
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Winter Clings on With Midwest Storm
Mother Nature is apparently saving the best, or at least the biggest, for last.
Chicago residents expected to find themselves in the midst of a storm that could wind up dumping as much as 10 inches of snow in the area before the end of Tuesday ' the most since the 2011 blizzard and its more than 20 inches of snow.
"This will be the biggest widespread storm of the winter," National Weather Service meteorologist Amy Seeley said. The forecast is for 8 to 10 inches throughout northeastern Illinois and northwest Indiana, a far cry from last March, which saw less than a half-inch of snow and was the warmest one on record in Illinois.
Hardware stores in and around the city did brisk business Monday, selling salt and snow shovels at a time many usually turn their thoughts toward gardening and baseball.
"Everybody's got a little comment with every bag they're buying," said Mike McIntosh, who works at Dressel's Hardware in Oak Park just outside Chicago. Workers had started to stock the shelves with tools and supplies associated with spring and summer, only to find the shovels and salt they thought they'd hold for another year were still in demand.
"Everybody's a bit surprised, but it's good for us, we've got a lot of this stuff to move," he said.
On Monday, the system moved across the Dakotas and Minnesota, dropping up to a foot of snow in some areas and freezing rain in others. Some schools closed and officials warned motorists to stay off the roads.
As it moved eastward, emergency officials in a number of states issued similar warnings in the hopes that commuters will leave their cars in the garage and take public transportation to work. In Wisconsin, where as much as a foot of snow is in the forecast, emergency managers urged residents to put winter survival kits in their vehicles and check on road conditions.
State patrol officers were searching for a semi driver in the Red Cedar River near Menomonie in western Wisconsin early Tuesday after the vehicle slid off the nearby snow-covered Interstate 94 into the frigid waterway.
A wet snow pelted commuters as they slid along the slick streets of downtown Chicago through the soggy wintery mix early Tuesday. Snow was forecast for the morning and afternoon rush hours, Seeley said. The weather service also said that as much as 1.5 inches of snow could fall per hour, "making snow removal difficult and travel extremely dangerous."
Ill. Gov. Pat Quinn urged motorists to avoid driving unless absolutely necessary, insisting that "safety comes first."
The Illinois Department of Transportation planned to send a fleet of 360 trucks to plow roadways in northeastern Illinois early Tuesday, with a total of 600 throughout Northern Illinois.
The storm is creating wet, heavy snow ' known euphemistically as "heart attack snow" ' which could pose a risk when it comes time to shovel for the elderly, sedentary people or those who have heart problems.
"Shoveling snow is a lot of work. ... It is taxing their bodies and their hearts," said Dr. David Marmor, a cardiologist at NorthShore University HealthSystem in Evanston. "People are really testing their limits, and if they're already at high risk they are better off paying the kid across the street to do it."
If the area does get 10 inches of snow, it would only underline that this has been a mild winter, Seeley said. That amount would raise the snowfall this season from 20.3 inches to 30.3 inches ' just a tenth of an inch more than what Chicago sees in a typical winter.
In northern Iowa early Tuesday, at least one person was enjoying the gentle snowfall.
"It's absolutely gorgeous out," said Mary Hermanson, the night shift front desk clerk at the Super 8 in Mason City.
"If I'm going to have snow come down, that's what I want to have come down," she said of the 10 inches that had fallen in the area in the past 24 hours. She happily said it reminded her of Christmas.
'''
Associated Press writers Nelson Lampe in Omaha, Neb., and Gretchen Ehlke in Milwaukee contributed to this report.
Watch: America Issues New Warning to Iran About Nuclear Weapons
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Monday, March 4, 2013
Sunday, March 3, 2013
Watch: Growing Sinkhole Destroys Home, Swallows Florida Man
Growing Sinkhole Destroys Home, Swallows Florida Man
Head of Chadian Army Claims Troops Kill Belmoktar
Chad's military chief announced late Saturday that his troops deployed in northern Mali had killed Moktar Belmoktar, the terrorist who orchestrated the attack on a natural gas plant in Algeria that left 36 foreigners dead.
The French military, which is leading the offensive against al-Qaida-linked rebels in Mali, said they could not immediately confirm the information.
Local officials in Kidal, the northern town that is being used as the base for the military operation, cast doubt on the assertion, saying Chadian officials are attempting to score a PR victory to make up for the significant losses they have suffered in recent days.
Known as the "one-eyed," Belmoktar's profile soared after the mid-January attack and mass hostage-taking on a huge Algerian gas plant. His purported death comes a day after Chad's president said his troops had killed Abou Zeid, the other main al-Qaida commander operating in northern Mali.
If both deaths are confirmed, it would mean that the international intervention in Mali had succeeded in decapitating two of the pillars of al-Qaida in the Sahara.
"Chad's armed forces in Mali have completely destroyed a base used by jihadists and narcotraffickers in the Adrar and Ifoghas mountains" of northern Mali, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Zakaria Ngobongue said in a televised statement on state-owned National Chadian Television. "The provisional toll is as follows: Several terrorists killed, including Moktar Belmoktar."
The French military moved into Mali on Jan. 11 to push back militants linked to Belmoktar and Abou Zeid and other extremist groups who had imposed harsh Islamic rule in the north of the vast country and who were seen as an international terrorist threat.
France is trying to rally other African troops to help in the military campaign, since Mali's military is weak and poor. Chadian troops have offered the most robust reinforcement.
In Paris, French military spokesman Col. Thierry Burkhard said that he had "no information" on the possibility that Belmoktar was dead. The Foreign Ministry refused to confirm or deny the report.
A spokesman for Chad's presidential palace did not immediately return a request for comment.
In Kidal in northern Mali, an elected official, who requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press, said that he did not believe that Belmoktar was dead and waved off the claim as an attempt by Chad to explain the loss of dozens of their troops to a grieving nation.
"These last few weeks, the Chadians have lost a significant number of soldiers in combat. (Claiming that they killed Belmoktar) is a way to give some importance to their intervention in Mali," said the official, who keeps in close contact with both French and Malian commanders in the field.
Belmoktar, an Algerian, is believed to be in his 40s, and like his sometimes partner and sometimes rival, Abou Zeid, he began on the path to terrorism after Algeria's secular government voided the 1991 election won by an Islamic party.
Both men joined the Armed Islamic Group, or GIA, and later its offshoot, the GSPC, a group that carried out suicide bombings on Algerian government targets.
Around 2003, both men crossed into Mali, where they began a lucrative kidnapping business, snatching European tourists, aid workers, government employees and even diplomats and holding them for multimillion-dollar ransoms.
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Saturday, March 2, 2013
Chicago Violence Drives Push for More Trauma Care
In a storefront office on Chicago's violence-plagued South Side, young activists meet in pursuit of a single goal: pressuring the University of Chicago Medical Center to reopen a trauma department it closed 25 years ago.
The trauma facility was shut down long before most of these college students were even born. But they and others believe restoring it will help save people wounded in the city's maelstrom of gun violence, many of them poor and black.
"This fight is very important to us," said one of the group's organizers, Veronica Morris-Moore. "If the issue were affecting white students at the university as much as people of color in the community, the university would put more effort into this."
Chicago's experience reflects a nationwide trend: An increasing number of U.S. hospitals have closed trauma departments for financial reasons, and impoverished minority communities are frequently the hardest hit. The issue touches a nerve in neighborhoods where other services are also unfairly distributed. But it's also complex, with no clear evidence that lives have been lost.
In Chicago, the young activists' cause is personal. Their friend Damian Turner was hit by a stray bullet in 2010 just blocks from the university and died in an ambulance on the way to a downtown trauma center 10 miles away. He was 18. The group has timed demonstrations to coincide with his birthday and date of death.
The group has met resistance from the University of Chicago hospital, and the evidence isn't clear that opening a trauma center on the South Side would save lives.
That's because Chicago's existing trauma system already does a good job of getting severely injured patients to one of six trauma centers within 30 minutes. Researchers in Chicago and elsewhere have not found a clear link between longer travel times and increased risk of death.
"The question of whether time matters in trauma is much more complicated than what it seems on the surface," said Portland, Ore., researcher Dr. Craig Newgard, lead author of a study of more than 3,600 trauma patients that found no significant link between travel time and death. "There's no magic number, and there's no magic distance."
Most injuries can be treated at any hospital emergency room, but the patients in greatest danger need hospitals with on-call surgeons, other specialists and ready operating rooms. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says Level 1 trauma centers ' the nation's top level of trauma care ' can lower the risk of death by 25 percent.
Experts also agree that not every hospital should be a Level 1 trauma center. Trauma teams perform better if they handle more cases. The American College of Surgeons says at least 1,200 cases a year is standard for the best care.
Plus, there's no agreement about the ideal distribution of trauma centers, and no federal or state requirements for where they should be located. That leaves economic forces to push trauma centers out of poor areas where patients can't pay because they lack adequate insurance.
Nationwide, 16 million Americans saw a 30-minute increase in driving time to the nearest trauma center from 2001 through 2007, according to one study. Poor and black communities, along with rural areas, were more likely to be affected.
But when trauma centers shut down, "it's not always clear that those closures result in worse outcomes, including risk of death," said lead author Dr. Renee Hsia of the University of California, San Francisco.
Friday, March 1, 2013
Benedict XVI's Tenure as Pope Ends
VATICAN CITY -- Benedict XVI's eight-year tenure as pope ended today, after he bade farewell to the faithful and departed the Vatican as the first pope to resign in six centuries.
"Thank you for your love and support," the pope tweeted from his Pontifex account. "May you always experience the joy that comes from putting Christ at the centre of your lives."
With church bells ringing across Rome, the pope was driven to the helipad on the Vatican grounds for the 15-minute flight to Castel Gandolfo, the papal summer residence where he assumed the title "pope emeritus" after 8 p.m. local time.
When Benedict arrived at the residence just south of Rome, he was greeted by a crowd of supporters waving flags and banners.
READ MORE: Pope Benedict XVI Delivers Farewell Address
"I am simply a pilgrim beginning the last leg of his pilgrimage on this earth," he told them.
In his final remarks earlier in the day to colleagues in the Roman Catholic Church, Benedict had promised "unconditional reverence and obedience" to his eventual successor. At a morning meeting at the Vatican, Benedict urged the cardinals to act "like an orchestra" to find "harmony" moving forward.
Benedict, 85, spent a quiet final day as pope, bidding farewell to his colleagues and moving on to a secluded life of prayer, far from the grueling demands of the papacy and the scandals that have recently plagued the church.
His first order of business was a morning meeting with the cardinals in the Clementine Hall, a room in the Apostolic Palace.
Angelo Sodano, the dean of the College of Cardinals, thanked Benedict for his service to the church during the eight years he has spent as pontiff.
When Benedict's resignation took effect once and for all at 8 p.m. local time, the Swiss Guards left his side for the last time, their time protecting the pontiff completed.
For some U.S. Catholics in Rome for the historic occasion, Benedict's departure was bittersweet.
Christopher Kerzich, a Chicago resident studying at the Pontifical North American College of Rome, said Wednesday he is sad to see Benedict leave, but excited to see what comes next.
"Many Catholics have come to love this pontiff, this very humble man," Kerzich said. "He is a man who's really fought this and prayed this through and has peace in his heart. I take comfort in that and I think a lot of Catholics should take comfort in that."
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