Copyright 2010 associated press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
For more information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.Saturday, April 30, 2011
Texas Bill would be invasive PAT downs felony
Fort Worth, Texas (AP) — former Miss United States tears that she had been groped during a PAT-down in the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport can be a criminal case in accordance with the Bill, is gaining momentum in the Texas Legislature, The proposed Act Texas to people holding checkpoints at airports and public buildingsmake it a felony to intentionally touch someone's private areas, even at the top of the clothes, if an employee or agent has reason to believe that a person does something illegal state Rep. David Simpson, R-Longview, who sponsored the Bill, said Friday, invasive PAT-down searches at airports across the country are in violation of the fourth amendment, which prohibits unreasonable searches. Last fall, the Transportation Security Administration has implemented a new procedure PAT down, which includes security worker hand up inside the passenger's feet and along the side of the buttocks, and make direct contact with groin ". we take for dignity and freedom," said Simpson, whose Bill was approved in Committee and was currently awaiting discussion in full House. Simpson has 70 co-sponsors for a bill that is more than 90% of the votes needed to pass it. The Bill will move to the Texas Senate for consideration. Simpson insisted that the law will pass muster, even though federal law requires all passengers of airlines allowed to pass validation, which sometimes implies a PAT down. If the Bill becomes law, the only way, Texas TSA agent can avoid fear persecution if the traveler consents in writing in the PAT-down search after fully information on procedures, Simpson said.TSA does not comment on pending legislation, said Agency spokesman Nikolai Kimball, "we wish we lived in a world where security procedures had not been necessary, but it's just not the case," said Kimball. "We know that terrorists still tries to manipulate societal norms in order to avoid detection and measures are the best means to reduce the risk. As we explore ways to improve our approach and become more risk-based intelligence and initiative, we welcome feedback from travelers and appreciate their understanding. "Susie Castillo, who was crowned Miss United States in 2003 amounted to Massachusetts, said she was "harassed" during security PAT down at DFW Airport on April 21. In the video she recorded minutes later tears CASTILLO said she picked against walking through a body scanner, and then a woman agent TSA touched her crotch quadrupled during the PAT down CASTILLO said the PAT down differ from those in other airports during their many trips. Castillo, now an actress, saying she believed that she was selected. "I hope that other people who feel violated the us make these complaints and maybe something will change in the future, "CASTILLO said in the video. "I hope they will hear me loud and clear."TSA spokesman Luis Casanova said screener, was questioned and made a PAT down correctly, but there were 898 people, or witnessed PAT down sorry for discomfort in Castillo. According to the TSA, complained to the Agency from November to March and 252 million passengers were shown during this period. TSA says less than 3% passengers take PAT downs, including those who opt out of the body scanner, or when it encounters a problem and require additional validation when a metal detector. because new measures against terrorism screening came into force last year, the American Civil Liberties Union reported more than 1 000 complaints. These travelers claim TSAs patted their genitalia, run your fingers through the hair or along their bras or zones in 59 of the 60 legislators Alaska asked the United States Senate Committee to hold hearings in the State on what they call "often invasive procedures"used by the TSA, you study what they can do at the State level. you don't have to sacrifice their dignity when you travel, and air travel is an important part of the trip to Alaska, "said Mark Gnadt, spokesman for the Democrats in the House At Alaska Legislature.least two federal lawsuits were filed for PAT downs.
Tornado survivors to sift through what's left in Tuscaloosa
TUSCALOOSA, Ala., near the intersection of Mcfarland Blvd and 15 Street, one area of the city's 83 000 most affected by a strong tornado, people sifted through what little remains of houses and apartments.
, Jessica Mcgowan, Getty Images
, Jessica Mcgowan, Getty ImagesPeople roam the streets near downtown Tuscaloosa, Ala., Tornado damage survey on Thursday.
By Jessica Mcgowan, Getty ImagesPeople roam the streets near downtown Tuscaloosa, Ala., Tornado damage survey on Thursday.
In the area, where students from the nearby University of Alabama held many of the homes, Deborah Jackson, 32, was shocked she saw. "I came to check on family and friends, "she said. "I was at home watching it come through Tuscaloosa on TV, and then went to cable. You see this, but you don't believe "I walk around more than an hour now, and I still don't believe It has gone into this. next to his friend, Iris Riggs, hairdresser. Her work has lost its roof "I don't know what we're going to do; We cannot work there roofs, all tore up "Riggs says."I've never seen anything like it. Lord help us. "In the 15th Street a large oak barrel was stripped clean, with the exception of one limb nearly 20 feet off the ground. Hot water heater hung there, roasted, the only remaining limb or abolished, annihilated almost destroyed littered the White Chevrolet Tahoe. sitting down in the debris of what once was the House brick. The steel index was wrapped around the back of the SUV as twist tie in some parts of Tuscaloosa, Utility crews "just have to start over," said Truman Mims, 63, former long-haul truck driver and Tuscaloosa residents.MIMS House is located near the city of Tuscaloosa and avoid injury. He was affected by the hurricane areas offer their assistance in the recovery effort. "I know I can't do much, but I can cut some trees for people, "he said. "It's bad, as I have ever seen. He's going to take some time to get over it. "Police blocked traffic in the most affected areas, where people are forced to improvise to bring clothing and personal items: Many drag and drop a few things that they left with wheeled suitcases. Children, carts and wagons rolling chairs also stood as AIDS to transport one's driveway is almost totally destroyed houses in several articles of clothing were laidremains sheathed in clear plastic wrap from Dry-cleaning. roar of sirens, as continued Thursday as emergency workers continued to rescue Rachel Howat, 26., rode out the storm in the House of a friend, hunkered down in the central corridor covered mattress. "There were three of us in the hallway, and is the only wall left of the home, "said Howat. for additional information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.The central United States plans to earthquake drills
Chicago — Nearly 3 million people expected to participate today in the United States, the first State earthquake drill.
, Kurt Hostetler (Muncie, Ind.) Star press, via AP
, Kurt Hostetler (Muncie, Ind.) Star press, via APJoseph Littlejohn sits under his desk during an earthquake drill 19 April at an elementary school in Muncie, Sean Mitchell.
From Kurt Hostetler (Muncie, Ind.) Star press, via APJoseph Littlejohn sits under his desk during an earthquake drill 19 April at an elementary school in Muncie, Sean Mitchell.
10: 15 am CDT they should kneel, their head and neck and retain a strong for two minutes in practice, the response to the quake. G6 Central United States comes two centuries after devastating earthquakes around Memphis and southeastern Missouri, and is particularly relevant as a result of the deadly earthquake of 11 March and tsunamiin Japan, said Craig Fugate was, Federal Emergency Management Agency administrator. "Earthquake in Japan reminds us how powerful mother nature can be, "said Fugate was. Some Westerners don't know their history in quake region and may not know how to react, he said. Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau, near New Madrid fault sirens will sound indoors and outdoors, said Denise Schmidt, SR., who helped organize campus activity. After the "drop, cover and on," she says, students will gather at the cookout where will spread quake security tips. "Many students don't know what to do if we have an earthquake," said Schmidt. Watching news coverage impacts Japan's quake, said it made her "want to know if that's what could happen here soon. 1811 and 1812 earthquakes in New Madrid, MO., area little damage because the area was settled, says Michael Blanpied, associate program coordinator United States Geological Survey earthquake hazards. The largest of these earthquakes of magnitude 7 was likely, he says "now similar quake damage and would result in a violation," he said. The new Madrid area is "the most active seismic area in the continental United States East of the Rocky Mountains," he said. Over the next 50 years, the probability of magnitude-6 quake 25%-40% probability of magnitude-7.0 or greater temblor was one of the ten, "says Blanpied. in today's drill involved enterprises, schools and residents of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Tennessee. Indiana held its exercise on 19 April. They are modeled on California's annual 1967 NHL expansion, which began in 2008, says Brian Blake Central United States earthquake Consortium, a nonprofit group that coordinates the planning of the earthquake. Steve Oglesby, earthquake program manager for Kentucky Emergency Management Division, said the recent earthquakes in Haiti, Chile and Japan, "awareness" and "very much a new emphasis on readiness."For more information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.Saturday shuttle launch picture sky-high interest
The nation's eyes are on the space shuttle launch Friday as gravely injured Rep. Gabrielle Giffords sends her strapping astronaut husband Mark Kelly into space.
By Chris O'Meara, AP
Space program analysts say the flurry of interest is an aberrant blip destined to fade as NASA spends the next decade focused on engineering instead of derring do. After the last space shuttle flies its last mission in June and all four shuttle vehicles are mothballed, manned spaceflight ? NASA's most dramatic program ? takes a long hiatus while NASA scientists and engineers attempt the next big thing on a tight budget.
Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., an astronaut who served as a payload specialist on the space shuttle Columbia, says NASA's potential is unlimited.
"We're going to Mars," he says.
In a speech last year, Obama said NASA's astronauts will go first to an asteroid and then to Mars. Congress in October authorized money for National Aeronautics and Space Administration to develop a heavy lift rocket with the goal of sending astronauts to Mars in 2030.
"The destination and the timetable are still very much in the air," says veteran space analyst Marcia Smith, editor of SpacePolicyOnline.com and former director of the Space Studies Board at the National Academy of Sciences.
The space shuttle Endeavour will leave earth for the last time at 3:47 p.m. Friday under Kelly's command. The crew's most important task on its 14-day mission to the International Space Station is to deliver the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2, a particle physics detector that searches for unusual sub-atomic matter.
Office of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords Endeavour will also deliver spare parts to the space station, including antennae, circuit breaker boxes and an extra arm for the Dextre robot. Crewmembers will take four spacewalks and complete a long list of chores, including swapping out experiments and doing maintenance on the station.
The experiments are exciting, Nelson says. The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer will conduct "one of the most sophisticated astronomical experiments around," he says. "It'll absorb cosmic rays. As a result of this, we think we will have a chance of understanding the origins of the universe."
Still, he concedes that it's not the spectrometer that has captured the public's imagination.
The mission "is getting an enormous amount of attention because of Mark Kelly and Gabby Giffords, as it should be," Nelson says.
Giffords has been hospitalized since she was shot in the head Jan. 8 while meeting constituents at a Tucson supermarket. Kelly spent weeks at her bedside in a Tucson hospital. Giffords transferred to a rehabilitation hospital in Houston in part so Kelly could resume his mission training.
The couple met on a fellowship to China in 2003 and married in November 2007. Their relationship had often been long distance, as Kelly trained in Houston for his shuttle missions and Giffords traveled between her Arizona congressional district and her duties in Washington. Since they met, she has never missed his launches.
Giffords will attend the launch Friday, watching from a private viewing area inaccessible to the public and media. Kelly, who arrived at Kennedy Space Center Tuesday to prepare for the launch, said he was happy his wife could be there for his last shuttle flight. Kelly has flown three previous missions, twice as a pilot and one as commander.
Media requests are up 70% ? to about 1,500 ? from the previous launch, says NASA spokesman Allard Beutel. He attributes the increased media focus to a number of factors: Giffords, the second-to-last shuttle launch and the president's visit.
The public has also shown interest in the launch, which is scheduled at a family-friendly afterschool time. Kennedy Space Center can accommodate 40,000 people, he said.
"We expect a large crowd outside the gates," Beutel said. "Kids love coming to see the space shuttle."
Giffords is happy about any attention to the space program, says her spokesman C.J. Karamargin.
Karamargin visited with Giffords last week at the Houston rehabilitation hospital. While there, Karamargin received the email confirming that Obama and his family would attend the launch. Karamargin charged into Giffords' hospital room to announce the news.
"It was a great moment," he said. "She smiled broadly and said, 'Awesome.' The president has the power to draw national attention to the space program."
"The congresswoman is one of the most ardent champions of the space program in Congress because of the power it has shown through its history to ignite the curiosity and imagination of America's school children," Karamargin said.
The shuttle program, however, has not ignited the American passion for space the way the Apollo missions once did.
"The shuttle's whole purpose was to make spaceflight routine. It's not jazzy," Smith says. "People don't pay attention until there's some big discovery or some sort of tragedy."
The final space shuttle mission, the launch of Atlantis, is June 28. It, too, will deliver supplies and spare parts to the space station. After that, the shuttles will be delivered to museums. U.S. astronauts will hitch rides to the space station on Russian vehicles, while commercial companies, with seed money from NASA, develop new rockets to transport astronauts into low earth orbit.
"NASA will still have astronauts full time off the planet and on the space station" conducting more than 150 experiments, Beutel said.
It's not at all clear where U.S. manned space program will go next and how it will get there.
The moon, Obama said a year ago in a speech at the Kennedy Space Center, is off the table. "We've been there before," Obama said then. "There's a lot more space to explore."
Obama challenged NASA to design a new "heavy lift" rocket tht can send a crew capsule, propulsion system and large quantities of supplies into deep space by 2016
"By 2025, we expect new spacecraft designed for long journeys to allow us to begin the first-ever crewed missions beyond the Moon into deep space," he said. "We'll start by sending astronauts to an asteroid for the first time in history."
Obama's timetable sends humans to orbit Mars and return safely to earth by the mid-2030s, followed by landing on Mars.
The Mars plan "will rekindle the interest in doing superhuman things like the excitement generated" by the Apollo missions, Nelson said.
The plans are ambitious and will be costly.
The U.S. Human Spaceflight Committee, convened by the White House in 2009 to consider the future of human spaceflight and headed by retired aerospace executive Norman Augustine, concluded the resources allocated to U.S. space exploration fell short of the national aspirations.
"There's no way we're going to have the budget we had during the Apollo era," Beutel says. "We'd love to accelerate the technology, but we've got work within the reality of the budget. It may take us a while to get there, but we're going to get there."
Congress authorized $19 billion for the space program in 2011, $19.45 billion in 2012 and $19.96 billion in 2013.
"People like the shuttle program, they like human spaceflight, they like NASA, they just don't like to pay for it," says Roger Launius, senior curator at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum who served as chief NASA historian from 1990 to 2002.
The human drama of manned spaceflight helps draw the public to the space program, Launius says. Without a narrative, Launius says, it's hard for people to make a connection.
The combination of Giffords' extraordinary story and the end of the shuttle program has swelled interest and may ultimately help boost political support, said John Logsdon of the George Washington University Space Policy Institute.
"It's going to cause a lot of attention," he said. "It almost forces the president to say something about space."
For Giffords, the launch marks a personal milestone.
"She did not want to miss this event. This is something she must do," Karamargin said. "It's a goal she's been working toward. We're hopeful that the great strides she has made since Jan. 8 will get a great boost from this."
For more information about reprints & permissions, visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.We've updated the Conversation Guidelines. Changes include a brief review of the moderation process and an explanation on how to use the "Report Abuse" button. Read more.
By Chris O'Meara, APMark Kelly, commander of the space shuttle Endeavour, arrives at Kennedy Space Center with his fellow crew members in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on Tuesday. Kelly's wife, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, left Houston for Cape Canaveral late Wednesday morning.
By Chris O'Meara, APMark Kelly, commander of the space shuttle Endeavour, arrives at Kennedy Space Center with his fellow crew members in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on Tuesday. Kelly's wife, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, left Houston for Cape Canaveral late Wednesday morning.
This next-to-last shuttle flight, unremarkable but for an endearing love story of a congresswoman and an astronaut, is drawing unparalleled public and media interest. Even President Obama and his family will travel to Florida's Kennedy Space Center to watch the launch.Space program analysts say the flurry of interest is an aberrant blip destined to fade as NASA spends the next decade focused on engineering instead of derring do. After the last space shuttle flies its last mission in June and all four shuttle vehicles are mothballed, manned spaceflight ? NASA's most dramatic program ? takes a long hiatus while NASA scientists and engineers attempt the next big thing on a tight budget.
Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., an astronaut who served as a payload specialist on the space shuttle Columbia, says NASA's potential is unlimited.
"We're going to Mars," he says.
In a speech last year, Obama said NASA's astronauts will go first to an asteroid and then to Mars. Congress in October authorized money for National Aeronautics and Space Administration to develop a heavy lift rocket with the goal of sending astronauts to Mars in 2030.
"The destination and the timetable are still very much in the air," says veteran space analyst Marcia Smith, editor of SpacePolicyOnline.com and former director of the Space Studies Board at the National Academy of Sciences.
The space shuttle Endeavour will leave earth for the last time at 3:47 p.m. Friday under Kelly's command. The crew's most important task on its 14-day mission to the International Space Station is to deliver the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2, a particle physics detector that searches for unusual sub-atomic matter.
Gabrielle Giffords U.S. Congresswoman, D-Ariz.
Office of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords Endeavour will also deliver spare parts to the space station, including antennae, circuit breaker boxes and an extra arm for the Dextre robot. Crewmembers will take four spacewalks and complete a long list of chores, including swapping out experiments and doing maintenance on the station.The experiments are exciting, Nelson says. The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer will conduct "one of the most sophisticated astronomical experiments around," he says. "It'll absorb cosmic rays. As a result of this, we think we will have a chance of understanding the origins of the universe."
Still, he concedes that it's not the spectrometer that has captured the public's imagination.
The mission "is getting an enormous amount of attention because of Mark Kelly and Gabby Giffords, as it should be," Nelson says.
Giffords has been hospitalized since she was shot in the head Jan. 8 while meeting constituents at a Tucson supermarket. Kelly spent weeks at her bedside in a Tucson hospital. Giffords transferred to a rehabilitation hospital in Houston in part so Kelly could resume his mission training.
The couple met on a fellowship to China in 2003 and married in November 2007. Their relationship had often been long distance, as Kelly trained in Houston for his shuttle missions and Giffords traveled between her Arizona congressional district and her duties in Washington. Since they met, she has never missed his launches.
Giffords will attend the launch Friday, watching from a private viewing area inaccessible to the public and media. Kelly, who arrived at Kennedy Space Center Tuesday to prepare for the launch, said he was happy his wife could be there for his last shuttle flight. Kelly has flown three previous missions, twice as a pilot and one as commander.
Media requests are up 70% ? to about 1,500 ? from the previous launch, says NASA spokesman Allard Beutel. He attributes the increased media focus to a number of factors: Giffords, the second-to-last shuttle launch and the president's visit.
The public has also shown interest in the launch, which is scheduled at a family-friendly afterschool time. Kennedy Space Center can accommodate 40,000 people, he said.
"We expect a large crowd outside the gates," Beutel said. "Kids love coming to see the space shuttle."
Giffords is happy about any attention to the space program, says her spokesman C.J. Karamargin.
Karamargin visited with Giffords last week at the Houston rehabilitation hospital. While there, Karamargin received the email confirming that Obama and his family would attend the launch. Karamargin charged into Giffords' hospital room to announce the news.
"It was a great moment," he said. "She smiled broadly and said, 'Awesome.' The president has the power to draw national attention to the space program."
"The congresswoman is one of the most ardent champions of the space program in Congress because of the power it has shown through its history to ignite the curiosity and imagination of America's school children," Karamargin said.
The shuttle program, however, has not ignited the American passion for space the way the Apollo missions once did.
"The shuttle's whole purpose was to make spaceflight routine. It's not jazzy," Smith says. "People don't pay attention until there's some big discovery or some sort of tragedy."
The final space shuttle mission, the launch of Atlantis, is June 28. It, too, will deliver supplies and spare parts to the space station. After that, the shuttles will be delivered to museums. U.S. astronauts will hitch rides to the space station on Russian vehicles, while commercial companies, with seed money from NASA, develop new rockets to transport astronauts into low earth orbit.
"NASA will still have astronauts full time off the planet and on the space station" conducting more than 150 experiments, Beutel said.
It's not at all clear where U.S. manned space program will go next and how it will get there.
The moon, Obama said a year ago in a speech at the Kennedy Space Center, is off the table. "We've been there before," Obama said then. "There's a lot more space to explore."
Obama challenged NASA to design a new "heavy lift" rocket tht can send a crew capsule, propulsion system and large quantities of supplies into deep space by 2016
"By 2025, we expect new spacecraft designed for long journeys to allow us to begin the first-ever crewed missions beyond the Moon into deep space," he said. "We'll start by sending astronauts to an asteroid for the first time in history."
Obama's timetable sends humans to orbit Mars and return safely to earth by the mid-2030s, followed by landing on Mars.
The Mars plan "will rekindle the interest in doing superhuman things like the excitement generated" by the Apollo missions, Nelson said.
The plans are ambitious and will be costly.
The U.S. Human Spaceflight Committee, convened by the White House in 2009 to consider the future of human spaceflight and headed by retired aerospace executive Norman Augustine, concluded the resources allocated to U.S. space exploration fell short of the national aspirations.
"There's no way we're going to have the budget we had during the Apollo era," Beutel says. "We'd love to accelerate the technology, but we've got work within the reality of the budget. It may take us a while to get there, but we're going to get there."
Congress authorized $19 billion for the space program in 2011, $19.45 billion in 2012 and $19.96 billion in 2013.
"People like the shuttle program, they like human spaceflight, they like NASA, they just don't like to pay for it," says Roger Launius, senior curator at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum who served as chief NASA historian from 1990 to 2002.
The human drama of manned spaceflight helps draw the public to the space program, Launius says. Without a narrative, Launius says, it's hard for people to make a connection.
The combination of Giffords' extraordinary story and the end of the shuttle program has swelled interest and may ultimately help boost political support, said John Logsdon of the George Washington University Space Policy Institute.
"It's going to cause a lot of attention," he said. "It almost forces the president to say something about space."
For Giffords, the launch marks a personal milestone.
"She did not want to miss this event. This is something she must do," Karamargin said. "It's a goal she's been working toward. We're hopeful that the great strides she has made since Jan. 8 will get a great boost from this."
For more information about reprints & permissions, visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.We've updated the Conversation Guidelines. Changes include a brief review of the moderation process and an explanation on how to use the "Report Abuse" button. Read more.
Prosecutors: Body of missing woman found in Maine
CONWAY, n. h. (AP) — the body there is no Maine woman whose car had stayed at the ski area with her baby inside was returned safely from the pond, prosecutors said Wednesday.
Conway, n. h., police, via AP
Conway, n. h., police, via APThe body of Christa Dittmeyer from Portland, Maine, in retaining pond.
Conway, n. h., police, via APThe body of Christa Dittmeyer from Portland, Maine, in retaining pond.
The body of a 20-year-old Krista Dittmeyer from Portland, Maine, divers in the pond about a quarter of a mile from where her car was found parked on an idle Saturday Mollet mountain skiing in Conway, the city of 10 million police on Wednesday morning, pushed back from the MEDIA retention pondbut the hearse was seen coming close in the evening.Dittmeyer's mother is looking after a 14-month-old Aliya in Bridgton, Maine, where grew up, about 25 Dittmeyer miles from Conway. Family and friends days ago planned a candlelight vigil Thursday to pray for her safe return.Dittmeyer last seen on Friday. Initially Police believed that she is a victim of a crime and got help from the FBI.Dittmeyer moved to Portland soon after graduating from high school in 2008 and works as a waitress in South Portland restaurant, said her older sister, Kayla Dittmeyer, who lives in Colorado. The family was offered $ 3000 reward for information leading to Krista Dittmeyer location and planned a vigil in Bridgton on Stephens Elementary School book Dittmeyer's mother., LaNell Shackley, said she did not believe who was "a vendetta against her." "It is very nice, very Ishodâsie"mat' told NBC'S today show on Wednesday. "I have asked all my friends, and they tell me the same thing. They don't know who would want to do something to hurt. "She says it Shackley with his daughter last Friday night and was to see her at Police said Easter. children's father was not in Conway, on Friday and Saturday, although they have not ruled out as a suspect. ski area closed in early Aprilbut the resort is popular among joggers and dog walks. She is also a fitness centre, open year-round, but there was still open for the day, at the time, police received a report on Dittmeyer in the car.Copyright 2010 associated press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
For more information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.Heavy rains adding to the woes of the severe weather outbreak
April 2011 is most remembered for his killer Tornado and severe weather outbreaks, but extremely heavy rains and flooding caused destruction through a large swath of the United States.
, Darron Cummings, AP
At the national level, recording 51 river water level sensors are at the stage of "core" floods, according to weather services, mainly in the Mississippi Valley, Ohio Valley and along the Red River North between the Dakota and Minnesota. Additional sensors are record 277 medium or minor flooding according to AccuWeather level River at Cairo, ill., where the Ohio and Mississippi rivers meet and some other places weather service hydrologists set record levels this weekend. weather Šablon"ocen' stagnation Caused?"still raining fuel throughout Central and Eastern United States, said Andrew Orrison, weather service meteorologist in camp Springs, MD. "we essentially stationary throughout the Mississippi Valley and Ohio Valley over the past couple of weeks with a series of low pressure systemson this front, Front, "said Orrison. Although most of the South saw some of the worst flooding, parts of West and North-East also witnessed unusual rainfall and floods.Burlington, VT., has 6.77 inches of rain in April, making the town a record wet April. Near Lake Champlain — only a few inches shy highs fuelled by Torrents of water on Tuesday, the water level rose rapidly early Wednesday. At 7 o'clock in the morning near Enosburg, Vt. There was no water on the Vermont 105 East of the city. At 7: 30 4 inch deep water was streaming across the road. "Shocking, "is how Mary Bray described the scene in the back part of its eastern Berkshire, VT., home Wednesday morning" I went to bed last night and there were no floods, "Bray said Wednesday."I received this morning and opened the side door and saw this. In Rochester, New York, cold April rains kept indoors most of the athletes of the month and the Outlook for the next few days is not much better. Wet spring pushed the little leagues opening day in Greece and Penfield. "We have no choice," said Diane Noga, Board member of little league in Greece. The field this spring, more often than not are unable to play or practice. "We must put safety first, "said knuckle. "Most people understand that. Branson, MO houses, standing in water and city evacuation possible warning to 810 homes along Lake Taneycomo. The Nashville area has been pummeled a series of violent storms, rain and the area was blanketed most of the officers of the city of Nashville Wednesday., prepared for the worst, with emergency management crews and volunteers sandbagging quarters near the Harpeth River. Metro Government also sent rescue boats in four points in the city, that city officials say they learned after floods the historic may last year. In Iowa, planting corn farmers suspended last week due to the wet, cold conditions, making this year's planting the slowest during the Decade were planted three percent maize Iowa on Sunday, good for 28%, this is normal for this dateUnited States Department of agriculture, said Monday, a year ago, with unusually warm, dry weather over most of Ajovak that date were planted 61% of the State of the crop for more information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.
, Darron Cummings, APLarry Schwent checks or floods, rising around his Evansville home Wednesday.
By Darron Cummings, APLarry Schwent checks or floods, rising around his Evansville home Wednesday.
The impact was widespread, not only because of the damaged property, but also delay planting by farmers and failures in the rhythms of life for families and children to be with a large number of youth sports games in the spring, for example, in Ohio, national weather service reported Wednesday, in April this year had already been recorded for Cincinnati, wetwith nearly 1 foot of rain recorded. The city is 3.4 inches of rain in a typical April. The Ohio River in Cincinnati, projected to Crest at 55.7 feet this afternoon. He will then start falling and reach his 52-foot flood stage on Saturday, forecasters said. Near Louisville Floyd officials announced on Wednesday an emergency from flash floods and rising water along the Ohio River. New Albany Mayor Doug England said his city around $ 400000 in damages and Floyd a similar amount. At the national level, recording 51 river water level sensors are at the stage of "core" floods, according to weather services, mainly in the Mississippi Valley, Ohio Valley and along the Red River North between the Dakota and Minnesota. Additional sensors are record 277 medium or minor flooding according to AccuWeather level River at Cairo, ill., where the Ohio and Mississippi rivers meet and some other places weather service hydrologists set record levels this weekend. weather Šablon"ocen' stagnation Caused?"still raining fuel throughout Central and Eastern United States, said Andrew Orrison, weather service meteorologist in camp Springs, MD. "we essentially stationary throughout the Mississippi Valley and Ohio Valley over the past couple of weeks with a series of low pressure systemson this front, Front, "said Orrison. Although most of the South saw some of the worst flooding, parts of West and North-East also witnessed unusual rainfall and floods.Burlington, VT., has 6.77 inches of rain in April, making the town a record wet April. Near Lake Champlain — only a few inches shy highs fuelled by Torrents of water on Tuesday, the water level rose rapidly early Wednesday. At 7 o'clock in the morning near Enosburg, Vt. There was no water on the Vermont 105 East of the city. At 7: 30 4 inch deep water was streaming across the road. "Shocking, "is how Mary Bray described the scene in the back part of its eastern Berkshire, VT., home Wednesday morning" I went to bed last night and there were no floods, "Bray said Wednesday."I received this morning and opened the side door and saw this. In Rochester, New York, cold April rains kept indoors most of the athletes of the month and the Outlook for the next few days is not much better. Wet spring pushed the little leagues opening day in Greece and Penfield. "We have no choice," said Diane Noga, Board member of little league in Greece. The field this spring, more often than not are unable to play or practice. "We must put safety first, "said knuckle. "Most people understand that. Branson, MO houses, standing in water and city evacuation possible warning to 810 homes along Lake Taneycomo. The Nashville area has been pummeled a series of violent storms, rain and the area was blanketed most of the officers of the city of Nashville Wednesday., prepared for the worst, with emergency management crews and volunteers sandbagging quarters near the Harpeth River. Metro Government also sent rescue boats in four points in the city, that city officials say they learned after floods the historic may last year. In Iowa, planting corn farmers suspended last week due to the wet, cold conditions, making this year's planting the slowest during the Decade were planted three percent maize Iowa on Sunday, good for 28%, this is normal for this dateUnited States Department of agriculture, said Monday, a year ago, with unusually warm, dry weather over most of Ajovak that date were planted 61% of the State of the crop for more information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.
Dozens of Tornadoes in South kill 215in
Pleasant Grove, Ala. (AP)-dozens of Tornadoes ripped through southern, transparency of homes and businesses and killed at least 215 people in six States in the deadly outbreak in nearly 40 years. As day broke Thursday, people in the affected Alabama interviewed garbage strewn neighborhoods flattened, and talked about pulling bodies from the rubble after the storm passed Wednesday afternoon and evening.
, Butch dill, PS
, Butch dill, PSPeople looking for what is left of his home Thursday after a tornado Wednesday in pleasant Grove, West of the city of Birmingham, Ala.
From Butch dill, PSPeople looking for what is left of his home Thursday after a tornado Wednesday in pleasant Grove, West of the city of Birmingham, Ala.
"It happened so fast, it was unbelievable," said Gerry Stewart, 63-year-old former fireman who was collecting through the remains of his son demolished homes in pleasant Grove, a suburb of Birmingham. "They said that storm in Tuscaloosa and it'll be here in 15 minutes. And before I knew it, it was here he and his wife, along with their daughter and two grandchildren, survived by hiding under their front porch. Friends down the street who have done the same not so fortunate, Stewart said he pulled out the bodies of two neighbours, whose house was ripped off its foundation in the State of Alabama. emergency management agency said it confirmed 131 people, while 32 in Mississippi30in, Tennessee, 13 in Georgia, eight in Virginia and one in the center of the storm forecasting unit Kentucky is suitable The national weather service in Norman, Okla., said he had received reports of Tornadoes in 137 Wednesday night some of the worst damage was in Tuscaloosa, a town more than 83 000 is home to the University of Alabama. Neighborhoods were leveled on a massive Tornado caught on video camera mounted Tower News, barreled through Wednesday evening. "When I looked back, I just saw trees and stuff coming, "said Mike Whitt, a resident at DCH regional medical center, who ran out of the hospital's parking deck when the wind started swirling and he heard the roar of Thursday morning, he walked through a neighborhood next to the House for students and townspeoplelooking at scores of houses without roofs of hospitals. Household items were scattered on the ground drum, sneakers, isolation, towels and a bottle of shampoo. The streets were impassable, asphalt strewn with trees, houses and cars with blown out Dr. David Hinson windows works in a hospital, where a tornado. He and his wife had to walk several blocks to get their house which was destroyed. A few houses down, he helped pull three students from the ruins. One was dead, and two were seriously injured. He and others used as makeshift stretchers pieces of garbage performing them in the ambulance. "He said we just did the best we could get them and get them to stabilize and get them to help ". "I don't know what happened to them." University officials said there was no significant damage on campus, and dozens of students and local residents were in the 125-bed shelter in the center of campus recreation. Storm system spread devastation from Texas, New York, where dozens of roads were flooded or washed out. Governors of Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia emergency declarations for parts of their States. Dave Imy, meteorologist with the forecasting service, said the death of most Tornado outbreaks in killed 315 people in 1974 .in, Alabama, where one million people were without power, gov. Robert Bentley said 2000 was activated National Guard troops to help the affected areas to search for peoplethat is still missing. He said the National Weather Service forecast and warning people did a good job, but there's only so much you can do to fight a powerful Tornado a mile wide. President Barack Obama said he spoke with Bentley and endorsed his request for emergency assistance in federal. "our hearts for all those who have suffered from the destructionand we pay tribute to the heroic efforts of those who worked tirelessly to respond to this disaster, "Obama said in a statement. Storm came on the heels of another 10 people were killed in Arkansas and one in Mississippi earlier this week. Less than two weeks ago, small quantities of Tornado raced through Alabama, referring to the sirens, causing damage to businesses and the destruction of power lines in Tuscaloosa, but then there was the death of Kemper County., Miss., in East-Central part of the State's sister Florrie Greene and their daughter-in-law Maxine Mcdonald and Johnny Greenall died in a mobile home that was destroyed by a storm. "They were thrown in the pines, "Mary Greene, Johnny green sister-in-law said, pointing out in the wooded area. "They had to go looking for their bodies."And in the pleasant Grove, Samantha nail damage production units, where she was the only House remains intact. The storm slammed heavy pickups in ditches and neat brick houses were destroyed, leaving a mess of mattresses, electronics and toys scattered across grassy plain, where dozens of used to live. "we were in the bathroom, holding onto each other and the way of life," says nail. "If it wasn't for our concrete walls, our House will be gone as the rest of them."//Copyright 2010 associated press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
For more information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.Friday, April 29, 2011
Theft rising price of gas goes up
Gas prices near record highs, theft of gas is on the rise.
, David Paul Morris, Getty Images
, David Paul Morris, Getty ImagesGasoline theft and compromise disk grows with gas prices.
By David Paul Morris, Getty ImagesGasoline theft and compromise disk grows with gas prices.
Regular gasoline averages $ 3.88 gallon to $ 1.02 from years ago and is likely to climb higher. Increasingly, consumers are pumping gas and driving without payment, stealing from other motorists and shattering many municipalities and gasoline Theft costs businesses. convenience store operators that sell about 80% of the fuel sold in the United States, more than $ 90 million in 2009. "No matter what," said representative Jeff Lenard of the National Association of convenience stores. "Any business which continues to pump gas first and then pay can be taken advantage of" Exits the pump-first, pay later Strip are located mainly in the Midwest and West, where some chains, such as A visible growth in Gas "drive-offs." Nancy couch, Director of loss prevention for eight States, 230-store chain, said drive-only about 1% of sales and generally increase as rising gas prices. In Moorhead, Minn. Chief Constable David Ebinger is stepping up patrols to combat the increase in thefts from stores stop-N-Go. among recent tales of stealing gas:Price for a gallon of regular unleaded petrol:
Sources: AAA, oil price information service • in Conover, North Carolina, 280 gallons of fuel stolen from the eight trucks rolled into the official car. Owner Barry Lodge spent $ 3000 for observation equipment, extra lighting and security patrols. • Rusk County, Texas, officials are investigating the theft of 1500 gallons of diesel fuel from construction contractor W.T. Byler co. Fuel for about $ 5, 250. • In Thurston County, Washington, the thieves cut the lock on the fuel tanks and used gas from two districts trucksthe more than 100 gallons of gas and diesel. • San Diego, Jeff flowers and neighbors plan to put cameras outside their homes after thieves used gas from four cars Easter morning. This is the second time, flowers were sent. "I'm going to catch them the next time," he said. • Nashville experienced several massive thefts. Two men were arrested on charges of stealing more than 55 gallons of gas from Eastern station Mapco Nashville, opening the covers of underground fuel tanks and pumping out this month: Lone bright spot: surging sales of locking gas cap. Stant manufacturing, Connersville, Ind., supplier for PEP boys and Wal-Mart expects sales for eclipses of 2008, when sales hit record high gas prices. "We are ramping up since January," said marketing chief Chris Hoffman. "You could call his hedge fund."Contributing: associated press
For more information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.Family doctor, who made Obama "deserved"
HONOLULU (AP) — Honolulu family, doctor whose signature appears on News President Obama birth woke up late Wednesday that put Obama Relatives obstetrician. Dr. David Sinclair told the Associated Press that they were "blown" and "honored" the so-called "birthers" questioned Obama birthplaceespousing theories, he was not born in the United States, possibly his father, a native of Kenya, and therefore cannot be President.Obama released a copy of the short form of his birth in 2008. Recently, potential Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump started questioning why he did not provide the original of the certificate was issued on Wednesday the White House released a copy of the original birth certificate in the signature below Obama's mother was the one who appeared as follows: "David. A. Sinclair. "Sinclair was the practice of obstetrics and Gynecology in Honolulu and delivered babies throughout Hawaii, where Obama was born in 1961, said his son Charles Sinclair, 55, Kailua. Dr. retired in the late 1990s and died in 2003 at 81. "A Shocker," said Charles Sinclair, one of six children. "It's amazing. I'm blown away, quite honestly. "They found out because one of their relatives awake at 3 o'clock in the morning, watching the news and saw a sign, says Dawn Yoshimura-Sinclair, who is married with one son, Dr. Brian Sinclair Sinclair, neuroradiologist ".Yoshimura-Sinclair says, we can attest to the fact that it's really Dad's signature ". "This is not a common name here. There is no confusion that Daddy "relatives said previously they never made the connection, in retrospect, it makes sense, because there were few obstetricians in Honolulu at the time," he never turned everybody, "says Charles Sinclair wifeJulie Sinclair. "Whether they can pay or not."He was born in Portland, Oregon, Sinclair moved to Hawaii in childhood because his father was an engineer who helped build the tunnel Wilson on Oahu. The doctor joined the army after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, relatives said. He was a military pilot and witness to so many deaths during the war, he became a doctor, so he could make a career, focusing on the lives of family members, said he went to the University of Hawaii after the war and then went to medical school at the University of California at San Francisco, where he completed his residency in 1960, Sinclair returned to Honolulu with his wife and children. He made babies mostly at what is now known as the Kapiolani Medical Center for women & children, just a few kilometres from his home and birthplace of Sinclair's widow, Obama. Ivalee, still lives in the English Tudor to the Honolulu skyline and where they raised six children Sinclairs. Shady avocado tree planted beside plumeria flowers fronting House, which is included in the national register of historic. Framed black and white portrait of the doctor and his family sitting at fireplace in the living room doctor never talked about his patients, his children, but they themselves, his father would have been happy, one of the kids, he grew up to be President. "I'm just honored and proud of my father, Charles Sinclair said "I think it's great," said Dr. Brian Sinclair, who career in medicine from his father. Hawaii was a very small place then so I guess I'm not surprised "Brian Sinclair graduated from high school as Obama, but I don't know him personally. Sinclair family includes Obama supporters and those who didn't vote for him, they said he told Karl. Sinclair hopes birth certificate would end speculation. "for me, the birth certificate does not lie," he said. "I think I should put all beds.
Traditional incandescent in their path, starting from 1 January
. On Jan. 27, 1880, less than two years after introducing his tin foil phonograph, Thomas Alva Edison earned a patent for another bright idea: the incandescent light bulb.
By Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY
Edison's 131-year-old bulb still lights homes worldwide. In an age when iPhones get revamped every few months, its longevity stands out.
Yet its eclipse is coming. The United States is on the verge of a lighting revolution that will oust the traditional incandescent in favor of more energy efficient (and less polluting) alternatives. Are you ready?
On Jan. 1, nationwide, a new federal law means the 100-watt incandescent will start disappearing from store shelves. Instead, an expanding line of alternative bulbs will be sold bearing new nutrition-like labels on their boxes. The labels will tout a bulb's lumens, a measure of brightness, rather than its wattage, a measure of energy use. They will also estimate its yearly energy cost.
"This allows consumers to look at the full price," not just the purchase price, says Hamptom Newsome, an attorney for the Federal Trade Commission, which is requiring the new labels. "People will need to look to lumens (not watts) for brightness."
The old 100-watt incandescent, for example, yields about 1,600 lumens, while the 40-watt bulb provides about 450 lumens. The more lumens, the brighter the light.
"It's a drastic change," says Brad Paulsen, who buys light bulbs for Home Depot. He says customers shouldn't worry, though, because they'll still be able to buy pear-shaped bulbs that provide a warm, traditional light.
Why the change?
The reason for the switch is the inefficiency of Edison's invention, which wastes 90% of its energy as heat rather than light. That's why incandescents are so hot when in use and why Australia and the European Union began phasing them out in September 2009.
In 2007, the U.S. Congress passed the Energy Independence and Security Act, requiring light bulbs to use at least 25% less electricity for the amount of lumens, or light, produced. So, come January, manufacturers will have to produce the equivalent of a 100-watt bulb using 72 watts of power.
Edison's bulbs won't meet the standard, but the mercury-free halogen incandescent will. So, too, will the compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) and the LED (light emitting diode), each of which is at least 75% more efficient.
The bipartisan law, signed by President George W. Bush, will also phase out the traditional 75-watt incandescent beginning in January 2013 and the 60-watt and 40-watt versions in January 2014. California is phasing each out a year earlier. The law exempts appliance, colored, three-way and 19 other less commonly used incandescent bulbs.
Although halogens, CFLs and LEDs cost more than the old-fashioned bulbs, the Department of Energy (DOE) says customers quickly recoup the price difference in energy savings. It says they save about $50 yearly by replacing 15 traditional incandescents in their homes,
Once the standards are fully in effect in 2015, DOE estimates families nationwide will save nearly $6 billion a year and will help eliminate 30 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually ? the equivalent of taking about 8 million cars off the road each year.
"We want consumers to understand the energy waste that comes with traditional light bulbs," says Jen Stutsman, DOE spokeswoman. She says DOE will work with manufacturers, retailers and non-profit groups to launch an education campaign this summer on the new bulb standards and labels. The campaign is known as LUMEN, Lighting Understanding for a More Efficient Nation.
Bulbs get new labeling
The labels were originally slated to roll out in July, but the FTC delayed the launch six months to give lighting manufacturers more time to prepare. The companies will need to have their products independently tested to verify the packaging data.
The front of the labels will list energy cost and lumens, which can vary widely even for bulbs consuming the same amount of energy or wattage. Lumens already appear on bulb packaging, but consumers often overlook the fine print.
The back will list the bulb's expected life span, energy consumption and its "light appearance," or color, which is measured on a temperature scale known as Kelvin (K). Lower Kelvin numbers mean the light is more yellow; higher Kelvin numbers mean it's whiter or bluer.
The traditional incandescent, which gives off a warm, soft and almost yellowish light, has a temperature of about 2,700 to 3,000K ? similar to most halogens. LEDs' temperatures range from 3,300 to 5,000K while CFLs can be quite warm (2,700K), neutral or cold (6,500K).
For kitchens and workspaces, where a brighter and whiter light is desired, look for bulbs marked 3,500 to 4,100K. For a cooler, bluish light akin to daylight, good for reading, look for bulbs with 5,000 to 6,500K.
For CFLs, the back label also notes that the bulbs "contain mercury" which, in high enough doses, can cause tremors, mood swings, headaches and insomnia. (CFLs have, on average, 4 milligrams of mercury, while older thermometers have about 500 milligrams.) No mercury is released unless the bulb breaks. The new label lists a government website for tips on how to clean up broken pieces and dispose of the bulbs. Consumers can easily do so at home.
Lighting options expand
With the bulb switch looming, the lighting market has exploded with new options.
Halogen incandescents are easier to find. Philips Lighting has begun selling EcoVantage ones at Home Depot that are dimmable, mercury-free and produce a traditional light. A two-pack of its 72-watt bulbs (replacing Edison's 100-watt) retails for about $3. Each bulb, though, costs about $3.50 a year to operate, while the traditional incandescent costs $4.80, according to EPA.
Shoppers can now buy dimmable CFLs, which typically come in a curly Q shape, and shatter-resistant EcoSmart ones to contain mercury if the glass breaks. A 60-watt equivalent retails at Home Depot for about $6 and the 100-watt version for $8.
EPA estimates that an Energy Star CFL, which can last 10 years, consumes $1.20 worth of energy each year, while an LED uses even less: $1.00.
"The long-term solution will be LEDs," predicts Home Depot's Paulsen, noting they're mercury-free and last up to 25 times as long as traditional incandescents. Paulsen says LED prices are falling fast.
Most (71%) Americans say they have replaced traditional incandescents in their home with CFLs or LEDs, and 84% say they are "very satisfied" or "satisfied" with the alternatives, according to a USA TODAY survey of 1,016 U.S. adults taken Feb. 15-16.
On Capitol Hill, a group of mostly GOP lawmakers, led by Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, has proposed a bill to repeal the phaseout. They argue that the market, not Congress, should decide the future of Edison's bulb.
"It is about personal freedom," Barton said in announcing his bill. "People don't want Congress dictating what light fixtures they can use."
The repeal effort has "almost no chance" of passing, says Steven Nadel, executive director of the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, which favors the phaseout. He says Americans, once they realize the law does not ban all incandescents or mandate CFLs, support the 2007 law.
In the USA TODAY survey, 61% of Americans call it a "good" law while 31% say it's "bad."
Another poll, taken in February by environmental marketing firm EcoAlign, found two-thirds of 1,000 U.S. adults questioned say the phaseout of the traditional incandescent is a good idea. Yet 60% were unaware of the 2007 law that mandates it.
Only 36% knew of the legislation, and even fewer, 19%, knew the 100-watt Edison bulb would be phased out this January, according to the third annual socket survey taken in November 2010 by Osram Sylvania, a lighting company.
"They (consumers) are going to be overwhelmed come Jan. 1st," predicts Terry McGowan, of the American Lighting Association, a trade group. "There will still be a lot of confusion."
McGowan says he has confidence people will eventually adjust, adding: "My family mastered an iPhone not long ago."
For more information about reprints & permissions, visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.We've updated the Conversation Guidelines. Changes include a brief review of the moderation process and an explanation on how to use the "Report Abuse" button. Read more.
By Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAYCompact fluorescent light bulbs.
By Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAYCompact fluorescent light bulbs.
Rutherford B. Hayes was president of a U.S. with 38 states and a booming railroad industry that was starting to replace the horse and buggy.Edison's 131-year-old bulb still lights homes worldwide. In an age when iPhones get revamped every few months, its longevity stands out.
Yet its eclipse is coming. The United States is on the verge of a lighting revolution that will oust the traditional incandescent in favor of more energy efficient (and less polluting) alternatives. Are you ready?
On Jan. 1, nationwide, a new federal law means the 100-watt incandescent will start disappearing from store shelves. Instead, an expanding line of alternative bulbs will be sold bearing new nutrition-like labels on their boxes. The labels will tout a bulb's lumens, a measure of brightness, rather than its wattage, a measure of energy use. They will also estimate its yearly energy cost.
"This allows consumers to look at the full price," not just the purchase price, says Hamptom Newsome, an attorney for the Federal Trade Commission, which is requiring the new labels. "People will need to look to lumens (not watts) for brightness."
The old 100-watt incandescent, for example, yields about 1,600 lumens, while the 40-watt bulb provides about 450 lumens. The more lumens, the brighter the light.
"It's a drastic change," says Brad Paulsen, who buys light bulbs for Home Depot. He says customers shouldn't worry, though, because they'll still be able to buy pear-shaped bulbs that provide a warm, traditional light.
Why the change?
The reason for the switch is the inefficiency of Edison's invention, which wastes 90% of its energy as heat rather than light. That's why incandescents are so hot when in use and why Australia and the European Union began phasing them out in September 2009.
In 2007, the U.S. Congress passed the Energy Independence and Security Act, requiring light bulbs to use at least 25% less electricity for the amount of lumens, or light, produced. So, come January, manufacturers will have to produce the equivalent of a 100-watt bulb using 72 watts of power.
Edison's bulbs won't meet the standard, but the mercury-free halogen incandescent will. So, too, will the compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) and the LED (light emitting diode), each of which is at least 75% more efficient.
The bipartisan law, signed by President George W. Bush, will also phase out the traditional 75-watt incandescent beginning in January 2013 and the 60-watt and 40-watt versions in January 2014. California is phasing each out a year earlier. The law exempts appliance, colored, three-way and 19 other less commonly used incandescent bulbs.
Although halogens, CFLs and LEDs cost more than the old-fashioned bulbs, the Department of Energy (DOE) says customers quickly recoup the price difference in energy savings. It says they save about $50 yearly by replacing 15 traditional incandescents in their homes,
Once the standards are fully in effect in 2015, DOE estimates families nationwide will save nearly $6 billion a year and will help eliminate 30 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually ? the equivalent of taking about 8 million cars off the road each year.
"We want consumers to understand the energy waste that comes with traditional light bulbs," says Jen Stutsman, DOE spokeswoman. She says DOE will work with manufacturers, retailers and non-profit groups to launch an education campaign this summer on the new bulb standards and labels. The campaign is known as LUMEN, Lighting Understanding for a More Efficient Nation.
Bulbs get new labeling
The labels were originally slated to roll out in July, but the FTC delayed the launch six months to give lighting manufacturers more time to prepare. The companies will need to have their products independently tested to verify the packaging data.
The front of the labels will list energy cost and lumens, which can vary widely even for bulbs consuming the same amount of energy or wattage. Lumens already appear on bulb packaging, but consumers often overlook the fine print.
The back will list the bulb's expected life span, energy consumption and its "light appearance," or color, which is measured on a temperature scale known as Kelvin (K). Lower Kelvin numbers mean the light is more yellow; higher Kelvin numbers mean it's whiter or bluer.
The traditional incandescent, which gives off a warm, soft and almost yellowish light, has a temperature of about 2,700 to 3,000K ? similar to most halogens. LEDs' temperatures range from 3,300 to 5,000K while CFLs can be quite warm (2,700K), neutral or cold (6,500K).
For kitchens and workspaces, where a brighter and whiter light is desired, look for bulbs marked 3,500 to 4,100K. For a cooler, bluish light akin to daylight, good for reading, look for bulbs with 5,000 to 6,500K.
For CFLs, the back label also notes that the bulbs "contain mercury" which, in high enough doses, can cause tremors, mood swings, headaches and insomnia. (CFLs have, on average, 4 milligrams of mercury, while older thermometers have about 500 milligrams.) No mercury is released unless the bulb breaks. The new label lists a government website for tips on how to clean up broken pieces and dispose of the bulbs. Consumers can easily do so at home.
Lighting options expand
With the bulb switch looming, the lighting market has exploded with new options.
Halogen incandescents are easier to find. Philips Lighting has begun selling EcoVantage ones at Home Depot that are dimmable, mercury-free and produce a traditional light. A two-pack of its 72-watt bulbs (replacing Edison's 100-watt) retails for about $3. Each bulb, though, costs about $3.50 a year to operate, while the traditional incandescent costs $4.80, according to EPA.
Shoppers can now buy dimmable CFLs, which typically come in a curly Q shape, and shatter-resistant EcoSmart ones to contain mercury if the glass breaks. A 60-watt equivalent retails at Home Depot for about $6 and the 100-watt version for $8.
EPA estimates that an Energy Star CFL, which can last 10 years, consumes $1.20 worth of energy each year, while an LED uses even less: $1.00.
"The long-term solution will be LEDs," predicts Home Depot's Paulsen, noting they're mercury-free and last up to 25 times as long as traditional incandescents. Paulsen says LED prices are falling fast.
Most (71%) Americans say they have replaced traditional incandescents in their home with CFLs or LEDs, and 84% say they are "very satisfied" or "satisfied" with the alternatives, according to a USA TODAY survey of 1,016 U.S. adults taken Feb. 15-16.
On Capitol Hill, a group of mostly GOP lawmakers, led by Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, has proposed a bill to repeal the phaseout. They argue that the market, not Congress, should decide the future of Edison's bulb.
"It is about personal freedom," Barton said in announcing his bill. "People don't want Congress dictating what light fixtures they can use."
The repeal effort has "almost no chance" of passing, says Steven Nadel, executive director of the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, which favors the phaseout. He says Americans, once they realize the law does not ban all incandescents or mandate CFLs, support the 2007 law.
In the USA TODAY survey, 61% of Americans call it a "good" law while 31% say it's "bad."
Another poll, taken in February by environmental marketing firm EcoAlign, found two-thirds of 1,000 U.S. adults questioned say the phaseout of the traditional incandescent is a good idea. Yet 60% were unaware of the 2007 law that mandates it.
Only 36% knew of the legislation, and even fewer, 19%, knew the 100-watt Edison bulb would be phased out this January, according to the third annual socket survey taken in November 2010 by Osram Sylvania, a lighting company.
"They (consumers) are going to be overwhelmed come Jan. 1st," predicts Terry McGowan, of the American Lighting Association, a trade group. "There will still be a lot of confusion."
McGowan says he has confidence people will eventually adjust, adding: "My family mastered an iPhone not long ago."
For more information about reprints & permissions, visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.We've updated the Conversation Guidelines. Changes include a brief review of the moderation process and an explanation on how to use the "Report Abuse" button. Read more.
Virginia Tech turns shooting penalties
By Matt Gentry, PS
Virginia Tech sophomore Emily holds Parillo flowers on the victim's Memorial Stone is the name of the Virginia Tech Drillfield in Blèksburg, Virginia, on 16 April.
ExxonMobil's $ 10.65b revenues are second best in company history
New York--ExxonMobil (XOM) earned around 11 billion dollars in the first quarter, productivity, which will likely land him in the Centre of national debate over high gasoline prices: the world's largest publicly traded companies on Thursday reported net income of $ 10.65 billion, or $ 2.14 per sharefor the first three months of this year. That's up from $ 6.3 billion, or $ 1.33 per share a year earlier. Revenue increased by 26% to $ 114 billion Results exceeded Wall Street estimates of $ 2.04 per share on sales of 112.6 billion. $. United States, according to FactSet .the quarter Exxon at best as he won a record 14.83 billion a year in the third quarter of 2008. This comes at a time when some drivers are paying $ 4 per gallon or more for gas and President Obama faces a multibillion dollar oil industry tax subsidies. Exxon Mobil increased revenues, despite a slight drop in worldwide production of oil and natural gas liquids. Benchmark crude prices rose 20 percent from the same period last year. income rose through the company's business segments. Revenue from its exploration and production business has received 49% to $ 8.7 billion, while the company's upstream business, which includes refineries, posted a huge jump marked more than $ 1.1 billion in anticipation of a strong reaction from riders and politicians, Exxon said at Wednesday's blogShe has little control over oil prices, which rose to nearly $ 113 per barrel. The company also noted that less than 3 cents of every dollar she earns comes from the sale of petrol and diesel fuel That cannot appease many motorists, however. National average for a gallon of gas is $ 3.89, about $ 1.02 more than a year ago. It is above $ 4 in 8 States and the District of Columbia On blog, Ken Cohen, Exxon's Vice President for public and Government Affairs, said the company plans to "necessarily titles and audio about high gasoline prices and what to do about them" after the earnings report.
Army stages Leavenworth prison tour
Fort LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (AP) — Military opens the door to a military prison in Kansas where they allegedly illegally transmitting private armies United States Government secrets on the website WikiLeaks.
Orlin Wagner, AP
Orlin Wagner, APFront gate of the United States prison in Leavenworth, Kan., pictured in 2008.
Orlin Wagner, APFront gate of the United States prison in Leavenworth, Kan., pictured in 2008.
PFC. Bradley Manning was moved last week from marine Brig in MCB Quantico, Virginia, Virginia, joint regional correctional facility in Fort Leavenworth amid criticism for his treatment and of the representative of the Army Colonel Tom Collins said media tour-security military prison in Fort Leavenworth will display conditionsthe army carries out Manning, as he undergoes further evaluation of PFC. ". Manning clearly unusual circumstances, "said Collins. Manning, will soon complete a preliminary evaluation that all prisoners go through when they arrive at the prison, said he was suspected of receiving Manning. sensitive documents as well as an intelligence analyst for the army in Iraq. He looked forward to defining the army whether it mentally to stand trial. It costs about two dozen charges, including aiding the enemy, a crime that can bring the death penalty or life in prison prisons at Fort Leavenworth, which opened late last year, was built near the United States disciplinary barracks, war at the maximum security prison for inmatessentenced to at least five years ' imprisonment, including those who have been sentenced to death some 150 prisoners are held in maximum security prison, Collins said, including other pending military court. The prison is the northern edge of the Fort, which is also home to the command and General Staff College was transferred to army Manning. at Fort Leavenworth in the face of international criticism on the 23-year-old medical treatment during his detention in the Washington area. In MCB Quantico, Virginia Manning was held in maximum security in one location and it was allowed to carry only suicide proof robe, sleep every night. Pentagon officials denied, Manning is currently treated wrong and said he was moved to a more suitable place for a longer term Kevin ZeeseOrganizer Bradley Manning support network, said it was clear that pressure from supporters and international observers Manning has an impact on the administration of President Obama ' barracks.This tour is an attempt to reduce pressure, but we will not allow until Manning is considered properly, "said Crew accused of Zeese. leaked hundreds of thousands of documents on anti-lifetimes website WikiLeaks, including logs of war in Iraq and Afghanistan, confidential State Department cables and classified military video 2007 Apache helicopter attacks in Iraqwho killed photographer News agency Reuters and his driver.Zeese said Manning was "informants", traitor to his country "he is charged with providing documents in Iran or any other enemy, or sell them to the highest bidder," Zeese said. "He is accused of leaking documents to the media, so that the American people will know what makes our Government".Copyright 2010 associated press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
For more information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.Manure and sewage SOAP, but it's not a clean look
Country, about 22% of the sewage overflow, caused by the accumulation of hard, sticky substance gucky, called fog, short for "fats, oils and lubricants. But so far no one knows exactly what it was or how it formed.![This sewer line in Salem, Ore., is coated with layers of fats, oils and grease, or]()
This line is sewage in Salem, Oregon, covered with layers of fats, oils and lubricants or "fog."
This line is sewage in Salem, Oregon, covered with layers of fats, oils and lubricants or "fog."
A team of environmental engineers at North Carolina State University in Raleigh are working since 2004 to unravel the mystery. What they found a surprise: grey white, sand formations, stalagmites which look like large sewers along the walls actually soap. "But this is not ivory," said Joel Ducoste, Professor of environmental sciences at the University. "We are creating SOAP into the sewer, but that's not what you would like to wash their face". Ducoste is one of the co-authors of papers on this topic this week in the journal environmental science and Technology To chemists, all soaps, salts of fatty acids. That's when sludgy agonies sewerage is different from the sweet smell and hygienic, we use on our hands. Household soaps made from sodium or potassium salt, mixed with fat. But researchers found that calcium can also mix with fat to fatty acid salt chemically, SOAP and that is exactly what happens in the sewers. "It's pretty dense and hard, and it takes high pressure water or cutting heads cut through it," said Donald Smith, pre-processing utility manager for the city of Carey, N.C.Where, calcium, which makes this rancid grease in chemical soap remains a mystery. Ducoste notes that have calcium in the urine. But calcium can also be leached from the concrete pipes, if they are exposed to corrosion problem in many municipalities as a wastewater infrastructure. "We don't know yet," said Ducoste Panel of chemists, engineers and biotechnology experts hope that they can better handle on chemistry that happens, they can create a mathematical model enables municipalities to predict where capacity sewage lock can occur. most municipalities operate to reduce the amount of greasethat falls into their sewer systems, said Chris Collins, with the Department of environmental services of Salem, Oregon. Restaurants must have grease traps that most of the fats and oils from entering sewers, he says. When sewer cleaning crew finds accumulation, "they come and tell us and ask us to find out who in the area produces the lubrication system." and this may seem like a helmet for those who don't keep their pristine bathrooms, these deposits are not as soap build-up in the shower or clogged drain at home. MIST usually occurs in large drain pipes downstream concentration (typically restaurants) has plenty of fats, oils and lubricants in their effluent, says Smith for more information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.Thursday, April 28, 2011
Lesbian former Cadet, abandoning the West battle
ALBANY, New York (AP)-Lesbian former cadets who left the University, saying she couldn't live the lie was dismissed on readmission Wednesday due to protracted military ban on gays and said she was abandoning her dream of graduating from the Academy.![Katherine Miller, who left West Point over the]()
November 24 John Seewer, AP Photo
Kathryn Miller, who left West "don't ask, don't tell" policy was dismissed on readmission.
November 24-John Seewer, AP PhotoKathryn Miller, who left West "don't ask, don't tell" policy was dismissed on readmission.
Katherine Miller said in a statement that it planned to move from Yale University, where she's now visit and join the army through the officer candidate school. "While I am deeply saddened that I will not be returned to West point, I understand and respect the decision, "said 21-year-old from Findlay, Ohio. She said that while she always wanted to be with her friends on an equal footing, I harbor no ill will to warand I am looking for a day, they consider it appropriate for me to put into the form back to the "Miller left the West last year and soon became the public face of efforts to repeal the policy, known as" don't ask, don't tell, "which bars gays and lesbians to serve openly. But she missed the storied Academy of upstate New York and as the Government moved to cancel. Declaring opposition to Miller, the University issued a statement explaining that he couldn't take Miller due to prohibition, still existing, but hints that return will not be a problem for her in the future. "While at the Academy, Ms. Miller's good reputation and has done exceptionally well academically and militarily and physically, "said Lieutenant Colonel Sherri Reed, Director of public relations at West point. "The choice to seek re-admission is available after the abolition. Nevertheless, the major activists complained that the Ministry of defence is too discuss things for gays and lesbians who want to serve."For every day of the clock ticks, proceed with the investigation under DADT, and service members remain at risk, "said military legal defense network, which offers the services of a lawyer for the gay and lesbian military members. it must be done within 60 days after the President and senior defence advisers to verifythat waiver would not harm the ability of troops fight. He could go into full force in late summer or early autumn, according to some estimates. it's too late for Miller, but not for students who want to apply to begin classes in 2012 in the United States military academies four: West point; Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut; the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.; and the Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD. Alexander Nicholson, Executive Director of the military organization of gay and lesbian troops and veterans, said openly gay applicants cannot be sure that the policy will be abolished at the start of classes for Western tocki15 Aug. "I just can't imagine that the first shots in this year's new students who think, "I'm not going to have to live under the cloud of don't ask, don't tell," said Nicholson. "I think that will come next year, "said Miller., she had participated in the historic Academy of looming over the Hudson River. It also thrives in its ranking of ninth grade, when she left but she said her sexuality secret code of honor Academy and nagged at her conscience. It was hard for her silence, she said when her fellow students made derogatory comments about gays. "I couldn't work the courage to promote argument against what they say out of fear of being targeted as gay themselves," Miller told the Associated Press in an interview late last year. "I had to keep quiet. That's not what I wanted to become "she filed her resignation in August 2010, just as it was to start her junior year. She was admitted to Yale but again late last year, "don't ask, don't govori"bylo implemented under former President Bill Clinton and maintenance members keep their sexual orientation secret and their colleagues not to know about that Clinton wanted to completely lift the banbut the military and many in Congress claimed that this would lead to disorder within the ranks and threatening the morale of the critics pointed out that emissions of sexual orientation has actually increased in line with the policy, because the mentality of the witch-hunt at his website, counting timeSince its signature Obama to lift The troops recently installed "countdown clock". Nicholson, his Director, said he didn't think there was any ill will to West point. ", I think I should expect from West point," said Nicholson. "I think their hands are tied. training for members on developments related to the withdrawal began around 1 March and can be completed by the end of the summer in the Academy air force indicated that it was acting under the same rules, West point," he continued policies of the Ministry of defence did not request the officers or their sexual orientationto treat all members with dignity and respect and ensure the maintenance of good order and discipline, "said spokesman Lieutenant Colonel John h. Bryan. "And we will continue to follow the law".Copyright 2010 associated press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
For more information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.Giffords launch NASA may visit, doctors say
Houston (AP) — Arizona United States Rep. Gabrielle Giffords can fly to Florida on Friday to watch her astronaut husband rocket into space as Commander of the space shuttle, her doctors in Houston confirmedto associated press on Monday. Giffords medically able to attend, but would return to Houston shortly after launch at Cape Canaveral to continue rehabilitationsays Dr. Gerard Francisco, leading doctor brain damage rehabilitation team and the Chief Medical Officer, TIRR Memorial Hermann and Chairman, Department of physical medicine and rehabilitation, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Medical School .it's the last flight of Endeavour's shuttle to the latter.Giffords was shot in the head on 8 January at the meeting and group with voters in Tucson, Ariz., this will be her first trip since it was raised from Arizona at Houston rehabilitation hospital where she was in therapy launch is scheduled for 3: 47 pm on Friday. Giffords husband, NASA astronaut, Commander Mark Kelly is a mission I ve met with her doctors, her neurosurgeon and its doctors and they've given us permission to take her to run, Kelly said in an interview with CBS ' Katie Couric in Houston. Network operator does not specify when the interview.CBS has released excerpts of the interview Sunday, and it was scheduled to air Monday night, spokesman James Hartsfield. NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, referred all questions about Giffords its staff, who did not immediately comment. President Barack Obama the first family also plans to launch and monitorAlthough it's unclear if they will watch it with the view launches Giffords. Families at Kennedy Space Center with limited scope, and there are no plans to make a public statement by Giffords.Giffords went to Kelly's last run in 2008, when he commanded a space shuttle Discovery. The two married in 2007. "The shooting happened as Giffords advocacy activities community parked in Tucson Mall. In addition to the Congressman, six people were killed and 13 injured. Jared Lee Loughner, 22, has pleaded not guilty on charges stemming from the attack and is being detained.Giffords has not been seen publicly shooting and held over the past three months, to use as speak, walk and take care of itself. She sings of her favorite music therapy products and asked to visit with family, friends and her Rabbi. Kelly returned in preparation for shuttle launch in February after taking time off at his wife's hospital bed.
Kelly, mark ready for launch sites
HOUSTON — At NASA, the master alarm is blaring ? insistent every few seconds ?and commander Mark Kelly is thinking abort.
AP
On the flight deck, Kelly punches certain buttons and plots strategy with Mission Control, but the stakes are lower today. This isn't the real thing. It's practice.
Fully 15 things go wrong on this simulated flight to space -- one of the crew's last tests before the space shuttle Endeavour launches Friday. The simulations are supposed to be difficult: At NASA, it's someone's job to create problems, to "break" various things and force the crew members and Mission Control to get scrappy, save that day's mission and protect their lives.
For the astronauts, this faux flight is one of thousands. Always, they hope to make it to space.
There's an extra seat in the simulator, just behind Kelly's command post. Sometimes, he invites visitors to ride along. His rules: Strap in. Be quiet. Wear closed-toe shoes. And don't drink too much water beforehand.
"There's a lot of shaking," says Kelly, husband of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz.
The simulator is a large metal box that sits high on a lift inside NASA's Johnson Space Center. Inside, it looks just like the shuttle cockpit: seats for Kelly and pilot Gregory Johnson on the forward flight deck, seats for two of the crew members behind Johnson.
Banks of buttons and switches are overhead. A rough count: about 350 buttons, at least. Light blue Velcro is everywhere: adhesive-backed squares decorate the walls and the seat backs, holding Velcro-adorned pencils, notebooks, flight manuals, clips. Think zero gravity. This is how they hold things down.
In the simulator and in the shuttle, the astronauts communicate with each other and with Mission Control using headsets with microphones attached. Even though they're sitting next to one another, the volume inside the shuttle requires it. Seat belts must keep the astronauts in their seats at any angle, and there are four straps: each shoulder, each leg. They meet in the middle. Four clicks, and "you're good to go," says astronaut Roberto Vittori, a flight specialist from Italy.
A simulated mission begins like this:
"All right," says Kelly, reviewing the rules. "All the standard stuff. Let's try to do this without any mistakes. And no talking when the ground talks."
Before their simulated flights, they place bets: Maybe this time NASA will take away communication and Engine 2. No, Johnson says, this time they're going to have to land in Russia. Loser buys the other one a beer.
"Are you ready for motion?" the ground control asks.
They are.
The simulator starts to sway a little.
"Engines are moving, and that's why we're moving," Kelly says to the visitor.
"Just like the real thing," pilot Johnson adds.
Crew member Michael Fincke is counting down.
"T minus nine," he says. Take-off in nine minutes.
Kelly adjusts his headset.
"Good morning, Houston," he says to Mission Control.
The crew runs checks: power boilers, controllers. Astronauts train for years and talk in their own code, impossible to translate if one doesn't speak NASA. One-dash-11, OTC copies, FU tanks.
Kelly asks the ground crew about the pitch. The astronauts tighten their harnesses. The simulator tilts back, far back. It's hard to tell if one's head is slightly above or slightly below one's toes. Kelly wads up a piece of paper, holds out his hand and drops it to demonstrate the reclined angle. It seems like it should fall toward his feet, but instead it falls backward, into the lap of the visitor sitting behind him.
The simulator is tilted back 80 degrees, he explains.
"Three minutes," Fincke says.
A beat, as Kelly remembers what day this is.
Flight STS-134 is the Endeavour's last, and the crew's last, and NASA's second-to-last shuttle flight. The final flight is scheduled for June, on the shuttle Atlantis.
"How many thousands and thousands of hours have we spent in this thing over the years?" Kelly says to his crew.
"Thousands and thousands," pilot Johnson replies.
"And this is it," Kelly says. "Kind of bittersweet, isn't it?"
No one needs to reply.
"One minute," Fincke says.
At that, Johnson slides his hand back toward Fincke and Vittori. His palm up, he wriggles his fingers, asking, and they respond with fist-bumps in his palm. None from Kelly; he doesn't fist-bump unless it's the real thing.
Thirty seconds.
The crew members are grinning, anticipating the rush.
Thirteen seconds.
Seven.
At six seconds, the main engines start and the simulator begins to shake.
Takeoff.
The shaking intensifies violently as the solid rocket boosters ignite. The astronauts' bodies move like water globes being all stirred up. This is what it feels like to leave Earth's atmosphere. Sort of.
What NASA can't simulate, Johnson says, is the force of ascent, which feels "like sitting at a stoplight and getting hit by a truck." That kind of pressure, he says, combined with shaking even stronger than this -- the whole way up.
The crew's voices vibrate through the headsets. It's hard to read the screens, Johnson says.
And this ascent is not going well.
"Dudes, we're not gonna make it uphill, I think," pilot Johnson says.
Mission Control sounds in: "Endeavour, standby for manual throttle."
The helium tanks are giving them problems, the joysticks are giving them problems. Soon, they are talking about bailout, landing in Europe. The master alarm button blinks and wails near Kelly. He punches it every few seconds to shut it up.
"We are dumping," someone tells Mission Control.
And yet, they are calm. They are experienced. There are plans, and there are backup plans, and there is multilayered problem-solving. They consult their manuals. They listen to Mission Control. They listen to each other. "OK, guys, we're trying to save the mission here," Johnson says, and then he does, manually flying the shuttle up into space. When they leave the atmosphere, it feels a bit like a dive into water: so much inertia, and then weightless calm.
That feels more distinct in space, too, they say.
They run through the whole routine. It's time to take pictures of the planet they just left, and Fincke tells the crew he's stepping out of his seat for photo duty and will be unavailable.
And then the drama returns. "There's a cryo leak on the H2 side," someone says. They go to tail-only control. They lose communication with the ground. They lose the lights.
"We went to the dark side of the planet," Fincke jokes.
They have to shut down Fuel Cell 2. They worry about inertial rates and secondary gimbals. They need Fincke, and he has to remind them that he's busy taking photos and not in his seat.
"We're one failure away from going hot," someone says.
The astronauts train this way because of the risks. Two shuttles have exploded, and NASA says they have a one-in-57 chance of dying over the course of their mission. So, they spend endless hours in the simulator, learning everything that could go wrong and how they can fix it and stay alive. Sometimes in the simulator, they don't.
A few minutes later, communication comes back, nothing seems to go hot, and the astronauts want to know: Do they keep going? Head on to the space station? Would it be safe? Is it worth the risk?
They wait for Mission Control to decide, joke about how long it takes, discuss the rum cake that is waiting in the break room. Their orders come through: Go to the station. And with that, the simulation ends.
They unbuckle their belts, take deep breaths.
Fincke hands Kelly a note on a piece of paper -- a question he wants to ask Mission Control during the debriefing after.
It reads: "boundary calls?"
He is asking for answers on whether it would have been worth it, after all that trouble, to keep going to the station.
Johnson is worried, too, and wants to know what would have been done "to keep us alive."
Fifteen malfunctions, he says. That's a lot. In an actual shuttle mission, Kelly says, maybe there would be one or two.
Johnson points out that whatever happened, today they earned their NASA business cards, the ones that say "astronaut."
Also: They lived.
For more information about reprints & permissions, visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.We've updated the Conversation Guidelines. Changes include a brief review of the moderation process and an explanation on how to use the "Report Abuse" button. Read more.
APAn undated image from video provided by NASA shows space shuttle commander Mark Kelly training in a simulator at Johnson Space Center in Houston.
APAn undated image from video provided by NASA shows space shuttle commander Mark Kelly training in a simulator at Johnson Space Center in Houston.
"I have no idea where we're going," he says to his crew. Maybe they'll have to make an emergency landing in Europe. Maybe they'll make it to space.On the flight deck, Kelly punches certain buttons and plots strategy with Mission Control, but the stakes are lower today. This isn't the real thing. It's practice.
Fully 15 things go wrong on this simulated flight to space -- one of the crew's last tests before the space shuttle Endeavour launches Friday. The simulations are supposed to be difficult: At NASA, it's someone's job to create problems, to "break" various things and force the crew members and Mission Control to get scrappy, save that day's mission and protect their lives.
For the astronauts, this faux flight is one of thousands. Always, they hope to make it to space.
There's an extra seat in the simulator, just behind Kelly's command post. Sometimes, he invites visitors to ride along. His rules: Strap in. Be quiet. Wear closed-toe shoes. And don't drink too much water beforehand.
"There's a lot of shaking," says Kelly, husband of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz.
The simulator is a large metal box that sits high on a lift inside NASA's Johnson Space Center. Inside, it looks just like the shuttle cockpit: seats for Kelly and pilot Gregory Johnson on the forward flight deck, seats for two of the crew members behind Johnson.
Banks of buttons and switches are overhead. A rough count: about 350 buttons, at least. Light blue Velcro is everywhere: adhesive-backed squares decorate the walls and the seat backs, holding Velcro-adorned pencils, notebooks, flight manuals, clips. Think zero gravity. This is how they hold things down.
In the simulator and in the shuttle, the astronauts communicate with each other and with Mission Control using headsets with microphones attached. Even though they're sitting next to one another, the volume inside the shuttle requires it. Seat belts must keep the astronauts in their seats at any angle, and there are four straps: each shoulder, each leg. They meet in the middle. Four clicks, and "you're good to go," says astronaut Roberto Vittori, a flight specialist from Italy.
A simulated mission begins like this:
"All right," says Kelly, reviewing the rules. "All the standard stuff. Let's try to do this without any mistakes. And no talking when the ground talks."
Before their simulated flights, they place bets: Maybe this time NASA will take away communication and Engine 2. No, Johnson says, this time they're going to have to land in Russia. Loser buys the other one a beer.
"Are you ready for motion?" the ground control asks.
They are.
The simulator starts to sway a little.
"Engines are moving, and that's why we're moving," Kelly says to the visitor.
"Just like the real thing," pilot Johnson adds.
Crew member Michael Fincke is counting down.
"T minus nine," he says. Take-off in nine minutes.
Kelly adjusts his headset.
"Good morning, Houston," he says to Mission Control.
The crew runs checks: power boilers, controllers. Astronauts train for years and talk in their own code, impossible to translate if one doesn't speak NASA. One-dash-11, OTC copies, FU tanks.
Kelly asks the ground crew about the pitch. The astronauts tighten their harnesses. The simulator tilts back, far back. It's hard to tell if one's head is slightly above or slightly below one's toes. Kelly wads up a piece of paper, holds out his hand and drops it to demonstrate the reclined angle. It seems like it should fall toward his feet, but instead it falls backward, into the lap of the visitor sitting behind him.
The simulator is tilted back 80 degrees, he explains.
"Three minutes," Fincke says.
A beat, as Kelly remembers what day this is.
Flight STS-134 is the Endeavour's last, and the crew's last, and NASA's second-to-last shuttle flight. The final flight is scheduled for June, on the shuttle Atlantis.
"How many thousands and thousands of hours have we spent in this thing over the years?" Kelly says to his crew.
"Thousands and thousands," pilot Johnson replies.
"And this is it," Kelly says. "Kind of bittersweet, isn't it?"
No one needs to reply.
"One minute," Fincke says.
At that, Johnson slides his hand back toward Fincke and Vittori. His palm up, he wriggles his fingers, asking, and they respond with fist-bumps in his palm. None from Kelly; he doesn't fist-bump unless it's the real thing.
Thirty seconds.
The crew members are grinning, anticipating the rush.
Thirteen seconds.
Seven.
At six seconds, the main engines start and the simulator begins to shake.
Takeoff.
The shaking intensifies violently as the solid rocket boosters ignite. The astronauts' bodies move like water globes being all stirred up. This is what it feels like to leave Earth's atmosphere. Sort of.
What NASA can't simulate, Johnson says, is the force of ascent, which feels "like sitting at a stoplight and getting hit by a truck." That kind of pressure, he says, combined with shaking even stronger than this -- the whole way up.
The crew's voices vibrate through the headsets. It's hard to read the screens, Johnson says.
And this ascent is not going well.
"Dudes, we're not gonna make it uphill, I think," pilot Johnson says.
Mission Control sounds in: "Endeavour, standby for manual throttle."
The helium tanks are giving them problems, the joysticks are giving them problems. Soon, they are talking about bailout, landing in Europe. The master alarm button blinks and wails near Kelly. He punches it every few seconds to shut it up.
"We are dumping," someone tells Mission Control.
And yet, they are calm. They are experienced. There are plans, and there are backup plans, and there is multilayered problem-solving. They consult their manuals. They listen to Mission Control. They listen to each other. "OK, guys, we're trying to save the mission here," Johnson says, and then he does, manually flying the shuttle up into space. When they leave the atmosphere, it feels a bit like a dive into water: so much inertia, and then weightless calm.
That feels more distinct in space, too, they say.
They run through the whole routine. It's time to take pictures of the planet they just left, and Fincke tells the crew he's stepping out of his seat for photo duty and will be unavailable.
And then the drama returns. "There's a cryo leak on the H2 side," someone says. They go to tail-only control. They lose communication with the ground. They lose the lights.
"We went to the dark side of the planet," Fincke jokes.
They have to shut down Fuel Cell 2. They worry about inertial rates and secondary gimbals. They need Fincke, and he has to remind them that he's busy taking photos and not in his seat.
"We're one failure away from going hot," someone says.
The astronauts train this way because of the risks. Two shuttles have exploded, and NASA says they have a one-in-57 chance of dying over the course of their mission. So, they spend endless hours in the simulator, learning everything that could go wrong and how they can fix it and stay alive. Sometimes in the simulator, they don't.
A few minutes later, communication comes back, nothing seems to go hot, and the astronauts want to know: Do they keep going? Head on to the space station? Would it be safe? Is it worth the risk?
They wait for Mission Control to decide, joke about how long it takes, discuss the rum cake that is waiting in the break room. Their orders come through: Go to the station. And with that, the simulation ends.
They unbuckle their belts, take deep breaths.
Fincke hands Kelly a note on a piece of paper -- a question he wants to ask Mission Control during the debriefing after.
It reads: "boundary calls?"
He is asking for answers on whether it would have been worth it, after all that trouble, to keep going to the station.
Johnson is worried, too, and wants to know what would have been done "to keep us alive."
Fifteen malfunctions, he says. That's a lot. In an actual shuttle mission, Kelly says, maybe there would be one or two.
Johnson points out that whatever happened, today they earned their NASA business cards, the ones that say "astronaut."
Also: They lived.
For more information about reprints & permissions, visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.We've updated the Conversation Guidelines. Changes include a brief review of the moderation process and an explanation on how to use the "Report Abuse" button. Read more.
Recovery forecast by economists temper
Almost eight out of 10 economists say they're less sanguine about the nation's economic prospects this year than they were three months ago and most appeal to high energy prices biggest threat to recovery, according to a survey today, United States.
, Susan Walsh, APCountry, unleaded regular averaged $ 3.85 on Friday, up to about 75 cents since the beginning of January.
Susan Walsh, APCountry, unleaded regular averaged $ 3.85 on Friday, up to about 75 cents since the beginning of January.
Good news: despite the presentation less turbulent, economists have not changed their forecasts for much more growth of employment in 2011 .they expected the economy to increase 2.9% this year about the same as 2010, down from their average projection of 3.2% in JanuaryAccording to the survey 45 best economists held April 15-20. This moderate growth is much smaller than the wave 5% to 7%, following previous steep downturns. We ve hit airpocket (but) we're still in solid take-off, said Chris Varvares, President of Macroeconomic Advisers. Most 38 economists who evaluation indicated higher oil prices and petrol mainlyand the increasing cost of food and other goods. Country, unleaded regular averaged $ 3.85 on Friday, up to about 75 cents since the beginning of January. Median labor economists forecast through the middle of 2012 shows that the United States, oil prices, while remaining just above $ 100 gas prices offset Higher. drastic reduction of taxes on Congress Americans 2011 salary that helped prompt many economists to improve their prospects in the beginning of this year. The tax burden will go into our gas tanks, says Mark Zandi, Chief Economist of Moody's analytics. Economic impact from the Japanese earthquake, tsunami and lingering nuclear crisis has also caused some economists to trim growth estimates. Catastrophe is disrupting supplies to United States exports and manufacturers., as well as some of the United States. recent economic headwinds added to existing ones, including State and local fire, falling house prices and at the end of the Federal Government's economic stimulus. Although the factory output and retail sales remain strong, consumer confidence plummeted. Nevertheless, economists estimate that some employers will be added 200000 jobs per month for the remainder of this year, that they expected three months ago This more.than last year's monthly average 78000, but less than 300 000 to 400 000 must rapidly reduce unemployment Economists estimate unemployment. 8.8% of the nation s fall to 8.5% by the end of the year. Although economists expect more food and gasoline prices push inflation noticeably this year, 93 percent expect the Federal Reserve to complete its 600 billion dollars in Treasury purchases June keep long-term interest rates in the low half of the expected FEDERAL RESERVE, which meets Tuesday and Wednesdayfor more information about reprint permission, raise & near zero interest rates in the first quarter 2012. For to visit our FAQ. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.Americans are more dependent on federal aid than ever
Americans are increasingly dependent on Government assistance in 2010 than at any other time in its history, finds the United States today analysis of federal data. This trend shows few signs of easing, while growth in almost 2 years.
, Bradley c. Bower, AP
, Bradley c. Bower, APTrays of printed social security checks waiting to be sent from the United States Treasury financial management services in Philadelphia.
By Bradley c. Bower, APTrays of printed social security checks waiting to be sent from the United States Treasury financial management services in Philadelphia.
Record 18.3% of total personal income was paid by the Government for social security, Medicare, food stamps, unemployment benefits and other programs in 2010. Wages were low income 51.0%, since the Government began keeping track in 1929. The income data show how fragile and dependent on the Government's recovery from recession, which officially ended in June 2009 The wages slump continues this year. Wages slipped another historic low personal income 50.5% in February. Further efforts by the Government of the social security payroll tax cut reversed revenue in 2011. Reduction of time tax puts more money in the pockets of workers and boost revenue items, even when salaries remain the same from 1980 to 2000 the Government aid was approximately constant at 12.5%. A sharp increase since then, particularly since the beginning of 2008 reflects several changes: improved health and federal programmes in General, population ageing and continuing economic problem overall profits, payments sustained in this year's annual rate of $ 2.3 trillion. A drop in unemployment was offset by growth in pension and health care programmes.Government's social programmes as part of the record percentage of personal income countries last year. Change the Decade:
Source: United States today; Bureau of economic AnalysisAmericans rose an average of $ 7.427 in benefits each year in 2010, from $ 4.763 inflation in 2000 and $ 3.686 in 1990. The Federal Government pays about 90% of the benefits "what scary Baby Boomers haven't started actually retire," said University of Michigan Economist Donald Grimes 77 million people born from 1946 to 1964, whose old caseload includes 65 this year. "That's when the cost of Medicare will explode. "80% of network security spending in 2010: social security, Medicare (health insurance for the elderly) and Medicaid (health insurance for the poor) and unemployment insurance. For additional information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.Floods drive people from their homes in St.
The floods had forced thousands of people from their homes in Poplar Bluff, MO., Monday after more than a foot of rain creeks and rivers flowing over their banks as heavy rain, 38-year-old woman died Monday near Faytetteville, Ark., where high water engulfed her minivan from Illinois Highway River, The Office of sheriff s Washington said in Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon ordered 200 National Guard troops to help with relief Poplar Bluff flood. Poplar Bluff Police Lieutenant Dave Sutton said Black River crested the dam South of the town and is still growing, growing problems that the dikes would give way. IT s been rain on the last Wednesday is stable, said Sutton. We VE received so far, about 13 or 14 inches (rain) in that time The rivers, which saw severe floods in the same area in 2008, has 5 feet above the flood stage of 16 feet andexpected to Crest at 22 feet, We ve noc'Said. Sutton there were dozens of places where the river above the dam has actually increased, and compromised dam in several locations south of Poplar Bluff, said Sutton. Worried this could lead to a dam not We Re. We do not have any violations, but there s a lot of water flowing over the dam. The Weather Channel meterologist Walton guy says rain totals were as 14 inches in parts of the Ohio River Valley southwards into Arkansas and the Mississippi Valley and Tennessee, and another 10-15 inches of rain could fall over the next two days of rain blamed for excessive frontal systemthat the stalemate in the region. Walton said rain should end Wednesday, but another system of wet weather could arrive at the weekend, the head of the CDIP Berndt area Fire District West Tony in Missouri, said rescue crews Sunday night and Monday morning helping people leave homes threatened by rapidly rising Bull Creek. We had to go after three people didn t want to leave todaySaid Berndt. We had to go for more information about reprint permission &, visit our FAQ's For em in the boats.. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
New York lead package in State benefits
Analysis of the United States believes that today New York receive more assistance to the Government of one person from social programs than any other State.
, Mike Vogt, Idaho Press Tribune via AP
, Mike Vogt, Idaho Press Tribune via APDebra Custis Eagle, Idaho and other protest in February against the proposed cuts in State funding for Medicaid.
By Mike Vogt, Idaho Press Tribune via APDebra Custis Eagle, Idaho and other protest in February against the proposed cuts in State funding for Medicaid.
Medicaid is the State's most expensive in the country, driving the average value of all country guides in New York $ 9442. New York has 28 welfare benefits per person and 9 health benefits. However, the cost of Medicaid, the health program for the poor, far above that in any other State. Only in Washington, d.c., Colombia spends more New York City spent $ 2.903 per person for Medicaid in 2010 is more than any other State. $ 1.364 average United States. Nevada had the least: $ 666 per person. New York has social traditions, ethics, if you will, for the entire population, with particular emphasis on welcoming the attention of those at the bottom, "said James Tallone, former Legislative leader, who heads the Hospital Fund, the study group of New York has unique challenges — a large number of poor peopleoften immigrants and high cost of health care in New York City, said he States relative abundance can take care of its poor. New York took place in the middle of the Pack in the granting of benefits to its residents, where the cost is measured as a percentage of revenues, the United States today analysis. analyzed data from the Bureau of economic analysis and the Census Bureau to determine the value of State benefits in each State. For numbers represent average amounts received per person — not just for those who program advantages include the fact that people get to social security, Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps, veterans programs, college scholarships and many other programmes of the Government in General, the Government will examine the thread from rich Statesusually in the North-East and West, in less wealthy Nations, especially in the South. Key results: •West Virginia. State receives 28% of its income from government programs, more than any other State. State residents are the second oldest after Florida 's, and 20% collect disability. •Of Colorado. Residents get the least 13.2 per cent of income from social programmes and much lower in the United States an average of 18.3 per cent. •Utah. Residents get less dollars is $ 4.731 per person in 2010. State which has a young population, is in US dollars per person on social security, Medicare and Medicaid.State rankings for assistance
The Government pays a record number of benefits for residents in 2010 for social security, Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps and other programs. As a state rank in United States dollars received per person. (2000 dollars adjusted for inflation).
Sources: United States today; Bureau of economic analysis; The Census Bureau
For more information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.Police: Levee breach downriver MO city
POPLAR BLUFF, MO (AP) — Mounds, swollen River from flooded southeastern City Missouri breached in at least one place downriver on Tuesday, but the water pouring through the cracks is unlikely to make further mass evacuation of homes in the area, authorities said.
Beth Hall, AP
Beth Hall, APResidents of Oak Glen residential community have increased water rescue staff, forced them to flee their homes Monday in Johnson, Ark.
Beth Hall, APResidents of Oak Glen residential community have increased water rescue staff, forced them to flee their homes Monday in Johnson, Ark.
Crews also investigates reports of another breach in the embankment protection against major floods Poplar Bluff and the surrounding area along the black policeman Daron House told The Associated Press. He said officials planned to evacuate a House but that he didn't know how much. "occurred Southeast of Poplar Bluff, in an area that is not heavily populated, Butler County Sheriff Mark Dobbs said on Tuesday. Water pouring into drainage ditches along roads, and even if it was a ditch, is unlikely to exceed call enough back up home at Poplar Bluff, "he said after a powerful storm system ... in the West, dumped several inches of rain was near the river and spawned at least one Tornadothat killed four people and carved through the city wide destruction prokos Vilonia. Poplar Bluff Jeff Rolland Deputy Police Chief said Tuesday that more than 6 inches of rain fell on the city on Monday, reached four days around 15 inches and a cause of Black River poured over the embankment in 30 locations from Poplar Bluff city Qulandownriver. more rain, and thunderstorms were expected in the area on Tuesday, letting crews worked all night for sure not. Rolland said levee Street Department hastily night filled with sand and small boats were sure to vulnerable section of the embankment in Poplar Bluff, City 17 000 inhabitants is 130 miles south of St. Louis. Crews rescued 59 people in 1 hour late Monday after the water outside the dam Embankment could force evacuation. approximately 6000 houses from Poplar Bluff in Qulin and destroy or seriously damage the 500 homes in Poplar Bluff and its environs, said Rolland. 23 small businesses in the flood plain have water, "he said hotels in the city filled. quickly, and 300 people took refuge at Black River Coliseum, 500-seat concert venue in town, Roland said. There were no deaths or serious injury. families who have been forced to flee their homes, Monday watched as dark floodwater began creeping into their yard and House. If the levee to give way, many of these homes will remain unfit. The option was not sandbagging, inspired by 10 inches or more rain last week, just grew up too fast. "By the time we realized what was happening it was too dangerous to sandbag, "said Butler County Presiding Commissioner Ed Strenfel. Tornadoes that began early last week hammered modeled nation without increased. Again Monday, powerful storms shattered, Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, Texas and other States. Authorities said at least seven people were killed in Arkansas, three of them when floodwaters swept two vehicles off the roads and four when perhaps Twister tore through the small town of Vilonia storm .the was expected to move to Illinois and Wisconsin on Tuesdaysaid Greg Carbin, meteorologist Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla., while a second storm system is expected to begin on the same road, and several days of rain, "he said in Arkansas Governors. and Kentucky declared a State of emergency. Record flooding in Kentucky is expected within the next few days, partly because of the double whammy of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers well above flood stage. Dozens of residents were evacuated from the area of Cairo, ill., where the River United States Army Corps of engineers considers the extraordinary step intentionally violating birds point embankment in southeastern Missouri, just downriver merge in an effort to reduce the amount of water moving down the Mississippi. This step would immerse 130 000 acres of farmland, and Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon objected to the idea. Missouri is expected to decide Tuesday., continue cleanup from damage caused by the tornado in St. Louis area 2700 buildings including Lambert Airport were damaged in Friday night's Twister when spring flooding from the bad far worse on Monday, A dam in St. Francois County was in danger of burstingwith dozens of houses potentially in harm's way. Especially along the Mississippi River levees in Pike County and Lincoln County, North of St. Louis. But so far, the greatest concern was Poplar Bluff. Missouri National Guard sent 200 guards and equipment from the area. Several people had to be rescued by boat, including some who do not live in the Valley, as heavy rain flooded some streets Monday night, police had Monday to go door-to-door in the southwestern part of town, telling people to get out. Not all made in one road near embankment play standing in water. Adults gathered on porches, seemingly enjoying nature show. "I'm not worried. This is my favorite time of year "20-year-old Brandon Andrews said pledged to ride out the flood in his trailer home, even when the water lapped. He did not have a boat and the water was too large to pass through, but Andrews said he was in the shop and kept on hot dogs, Chile and necessities. Chief Constable Danny Whiteley was hoping would depart soon enough water that floods will mainly be limited to the cellars. He was not optimistic. "I guess you'd call this a perfect storm: it's just all together, "said Whitley.Copyright 2010 associated press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
For more information about Reprint permissions, visit our FAQ &. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards editor Brent Jones. For consideration of publication in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and State to check. To view our corrections, go to corrections usatoday.com. We have updated the guidelines talk. Changes include a brief overview of the approval process and explains how to use the button "report abuse". For More Information.
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