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At Least 80 Dead in Norway Shooting

Mon, 25 Jul 2011 02:59:01 +0000

OSLO � A lone political extremist bombed the government center here on Friday, killing 7 people, the police said, before heading to an island summer camp for young members of the governing Labor Party and killing at least 80 people.

The police arrested a 32-year-old Norwegian man in connection with both attacks, the deadliest on Norwegian soil since World War II.

The explosions in Oslo, from one or more bombs, turned the tidy Scandinavian capital into a scene reminiscent of terrorist attacks in Baghdad or Oklahoma City, panicking people and blowing out windows of several government buildings, including one housing the office of the Norwegian prime minister, Jens Stoltenberg, who was unharmed.

The state television broadcaster, citing the police, said seven people had been killed and at least 15 wounded in the explosions, which they said appeared to be an act of domestic terrorism.

Even as the police locked down a large area of the city after the blasts, the suspect, dressed as a police officer, entered the youth camp on the island of Utoya, about 19 miles northwest of Oslo, a Norwegian security official said, and opened fire. �He said it was a routine check in connection with the terror attack in Oslo,� one witness told VG Nett, the Web site of a national newspaper.

Of the at least 80 people killed on the island, some were as young as 16, the police said on national television early Saturday.

Terrified youths jumped into the water to escape. �Kids have started to swim in a panic, and Utoya is far from the mainland,� said Bjorn Jarle Roberg-Larsen, a Labor Party member who spoke by phone with teenagers on the island, which has no bridge to the mainland. �Others are hiding. Those I spoke with don�t want to talk more. They�re scared to death.�

Many could not flee in time.

�He first shot people on the island,� a 15-year-old camper named Elise told The Associated Press. �Afterward he started shooting people in the water.�

Most of the campers were teenagers but there were also adults on the island, who may have been among the victims.

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Crews clean after tornado hits St. Louis airport

Sat, 23 Apr 2011 15:51:14 +0000

St. Louis' main airport was closed for business Saturday while crews cleaned up after a tornado tore through a terminal, causing several injuries and sending people scurrying for shelter as plated glass shattered around them.

Friday evening's storm at Lambert Airport ripped away a large section of the main terminal's roof, forcing the airport to close indefinitely and diverting incoming flights to other cities. National Weather Service meteorologist Scott Truett confirmed Saturday it was a tornado that struck the airport.

He said it was possible that a tornado that touched down near the St. Charles County town of New Melle was the one that ripped into the airport and apparently other parts of St. Louis County. If that was the case, the tornado sustained itself for roughly 30 miles.

"We think it touched down at New Melle and maybe lifted up and touched down again at the airport," Truett said. "We still have to connect the dots to be sure."

High winds, possibly from the same tornado, damaged an estimated 50 homes in Maryland Heights, not far from the airport, and a 45-foot-tall steeple fell during evening Mass at Holy Spirit Catholic Church. Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson said there was a swath of damage through his community, also near the airport, consistent with a tornado. Several other St. Louis County communities reported damage to homes and numerous trees and power lines down.

The storm also brought absurdly large hail to some areas _ softball-sized in Warren County, west of St. Louis. Flash flooding closed some roads, including Highway 67 near Farmington.

But amid all the damage, there was relief that things could have been worse. Only four people with minor injuries were taken to the hospital from Lambert, while an unspecified number of others were treated at the scene for cuts blamed on flying glass. There were no reports of injuries anywhere else.

"We're fortunate we didn't have larger (numbers) of injuries," airport director Rhonda Hamm-Niebruegge said.

The airport's main terminal sustained the most damage. Hamm-Niebruegge said roughly half of that structure's windows were blown out, sending glass and rain into that building. Elsewhere on the property, trees were toppled and power lines downed, further limiting access to the airport even hours after the storm passed.

Dianna Merrill, 43, a mail carrier from St. Louis, was at Lambert waiting to fly to New York with a friend for vacation. She said her flight had been delayed by weather and she was looking out a window hoping her plane would pull up. But the window suddenly exploded.

"Glass was blowing everywhere. The ceiling was falling. The glass was hitting us in the face. Hail and rain were coming in. The wind was blowing debris all over the place," she said. "It was like being in a horror movie. Grown men were crying. It was horrible."

Merrill said she felt lucky to be alive and that airport workers quickly moved people to stairwells and bathrooms to get them out of harm's way.

Passengers from at least two planes were stranded briefly on the Lambert tarmac because of debris but were later taken away by buses. An Air National Guard facility at the airport was reportedly damaged.

Unconfirmed tornadoes were reported in several counties in the St. Louis area, and at one point utility company Ameren Missouri reported more than 47,000 power outages. Some 35,000 were still without power Saturday morning.

In Maryland Heights, 16-year-old Brandon Blecher was home watching the storm out his window when he spotted the tornado coming toward the house. A gust of wind knocked out his window.

"The giant wooden swing set in my neighbor's yard came into my yard and a shed landed on my deck," he said. "The tornado was right on top of us."

Maryland Heights police were dealing with hundreds of reports of downed trees that were blocking roadways. The city's community center opened as a shelter for residents affected by the storm.

The winds knocked some tractor-trailers onto their side, and in one case, had one sitting on its end, pointing straight up. Interstates 70 and 270 were closed for hours Friday night because of toppled trucks and other accidents.

In downtown St. Louis, Busch Stadium officials hurriedly moved Cardinals fans to a safe area as tornado sirens blared. The game with the Cincinnati Reds was delayed for hours but later resumed.

St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch, who was at the airport when the storm was closing in, said he saw gawkers watching the weather outside as the tornado sirens blared. Moments later, they hastily scrambled inside the building and sought shelter in a restroom.

"About the time we came into the building, the doors blew off," he said. "Literally 10 seconds later, it was over. It's amazing to me more people weren't hurt."

Gov. Jay Nixon announced late Friday he had declared a state of emergency, allowing state agencies to assist communities with their emergency responses to the storm's aftermath, including the destruction at Lambert.

Stephen Fry prison 'pledge' over 'Twitter joke' trial

Sat, 16 Apr 2011 14:58:49 +0000

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Comedian Stephen Fry has said he is "prepared to go to prison" over the "Twitter joke" trial.

Fry was at a benefit gig for a man who is appealing against his conviction for sending a menacing communication.

Paul Chambers had tweeted: "Crap! Robin Hood Airport is closed. You've got a week... otherwise I'm blowing the airport sky high!"

Fry argued that Chambers' tweet was an example of Britain's tradition of self-deprecating humour and banter.
Appeal funds

Chambers' case has become a cause celebre on Twitter, with hundreds of people reposting his original comments in protest at the conviction.

"This [verdict] must not be allowed to stand in law," Fry said, adding that he would continue to repeat Chambers' message and face prison "if that's what it takes".

Among the other celebrities lending their support to the fundraising evening were Al Murray, Rufus Hound, Katy Brand and Father Ted writer Graham Linehan.

Speaking generally about the internet and freedom of speech, Linehan told the audience: "We've got this incredible tool and we should fight any attempt to take it out of our hands."

The benefit gig, at London's Bloomsbury Theatre, aimed to raise funds for Chambers' appeal.
Freedom of speech

The aim of the organisers is that he will not be forced to drop his case because of the possibility he would have to pay the prosecution's legal costs were he to lose.

Few of the stars were prepared to assign wisdom to Chambers' original tweet, however.

Sitting inconspicuously in the stalls, Chambers was subjected to plenty of good-natured ribbing from those on stage and was variously described as a knucklehead, a nerd and a "doughnut".

Murray even branded the gig the "Save Paul Chambers from his own stupid destiny event".

But everyone seemed united by a desire to protect freedom of speech or at least the ability to recognise the difference between jokes and menacing terrorist threats.

Chambers' lawyer, David Allen Green, also addressed the audience, briefing them on the key details of his case.

Tsunami waves slam Hawaii after huge quake hits Japan

Fri, 11 Mar 2011 14:08:57 +0000

TOKYO �

A magnitude 8.9 earthquake � the biggest in modern Japanese history � slammed the island nation's eastern coast Friday, unleashing a 23-foot tsunami that swept boats, cars, buildings and tons of debris miles inland and prompting a "nuclear emergency."

According to police, 200 to 300 bodies were found in the northeastern coastal city of Sendai. Earlier, police confirmed at least 60 people had been killed and 56 were missing. The death toll was likely to continue climbing given the scale of Friday's disaster.

The government ordered thousands of residents near a nuclear power plant in Onahama city to evacuate because the plant's system was unable to cool the reactor. The reactor was not leaking radiation but its core remained hot even after a shutdown. The plant is 170 miles (270 kilometers) northeast of Tokyo.

Dozens of cities and villages along a 1,300-mile (2,100-kilometer) stretch of coastline were shaken by violent tremors that reached as far away as Tokyo, hundreds of miles (kilometers) from the epicenter.

"The earthquake has caused major damage in broad areas in northern Japan," Prime Minister Naoto Kan said at a news conference.

Trouble was reported at two other nuclear plants as well, but there was no radiation leak at any.

According to the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, Kauai was the first island hit early Friday by the tsunami, which was quickly sweeping through the Hawaiian Island chain. Officials predicted Hawaii would experience waves up to 6 feet.

Story Continues as updates occur in japan

Congresswoman critical after shooting

Sat, 08 Jan 2011 23:59:13 +0000

At least five people are dead and a U.S. congresswoman is fighting for her life after a gunman opened fire while she was holding a public event outside a Tucson grocery store, officials say.

U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona, who was shot in the head, was among at least 10 people wounded in Saturday's shooting.

Dr. Peter Rhee of the University Medical Center in Tucson said he was "very optimistic" about Giffords's recovery.

A nine-year-old child and a federal judge were among those killed in the attack, officials said. The number of those killed remained unclear. U.S. President Barack Obama put the death toll at five but other officials said six people were killed.

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2011/01/08/giffords-arizona-shooting.html#ixzz1AUWdaJWd