Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Tornado Touches Down in Springfield, MA

Tornadoes swept through western Massachusetts this evening downing trees and utility polls, and in the city of Springfield caused significant damage to a house and apartment building, according to several Massachusetts-based news agencies.

One death has been reported, along with several injuries, according to the news organizations.

The Springfield Republican began tracking the storm and reporting its whereabouts at 4:35 p.m. when one of its reporters saw and heard the funnel headed toward the Main Street area of the city.

Multiple twisters touched down in the city's south end and downtown area, according to WWLP.com. One death has been associated with a twister; a man who was driving his car in West Springfield was killed when a tree fell on top of his vehicle, one of the city's police captains told News22.

Gov. Deval Patrick has declared a state of emergency for the Commonwealth and has posted information on what to do in case of a tornado.

For more details on the western Massachusetts tornadoes follow these links:

MassLive.com

WWLP.com

WGGB.com

Philadelphia, New York, Boston weather: tornado watch issued

The Berkely Building (commonly known as The old John Hancock) in Boston is topped by a seven-story weather beacon that gets its glow from 288 neon blue and red lights. No fancy computer needed, just three switches in the basement: power

By Associated Press / June 1, 2011 The National Weather Service has issued a tornado watch for much of the East Coast, including Philadelphia, New York and Boston. The watch area stretches from Maine to Pennsylvania and is in effect until 8 pm A watch

By AP, NEW YORK — The National Weather Service has issued a tornado watch for much of the East Coast, including Philadelphia, New York and Boston. The watch area stretches from Maine to Pennsylvania and is in effect until 8 pm A watch means conditions

By AP, NEW YORK — The National Weather Service has issued a tornado watch for much of the East Coast, including Philadelphia, New York and Boston. The watch area stretches from Maine to Pennsylvania and is in effect until 8 pm A watch means conditions

Shaq retires

Goodbye, Shaq


Shaquille O'Neal is retiring. He announced on Twitter that he'll end his 19-year career after a disappointing season with the Celtics. He has lore in every NBA city in America, but special lore here in Sacramento.

Star-divide

This dude was completely unstoppable, no matter who you threw at him. He was the unsolvable puzzle. Kobe Bryant was fantastic during the great Kings-Lakers battles of the Glory Era. But Shaq? He was on another plane, just a gigantic problem, constantly. We had Vlade Divac, Chris Webber, Scot Pollard ... it didn't matter. If Shaq was on and focused, you weren't stopping him, period. In 16 playoff games against the Kings, Shaq averaged 30.7 points and 15.7 rebounds. Thirty and fifteen.

He wasn't just dominant -- he was completely hateable. He called our team the "Queens." He made fun of us, and our cowbells. Even after his prime was gone and he no longer competed for championships, he pretended he had no idea who Spencer Hawes was. He seemed to genuinely consider Sacramento a joke he wasn't in on, a mistake on the NBA map that he'd rather didn't exist.

Shaq was a total villain in Sacramento in every way, so much so that I vomited into a garbage can when I walked into work at a bar on one fine afternoon in 2004 and saw the front of the Sacramento Beesports page, emblazoned with a big ol' headline that read

"Shaq-ramento?"

Blake Lively Threatens to Sue Over Fake Nude Photos

Just hours after photos of a blond girl who looks like her spread across the web, Blake Lively comes forward to set the record straight. Through her representative, the actress who plays Serena van der Woodsen on "Gossip Girl" denied the authenticity of the nude photos and threatened to sue any publication reprinting the images.

"The photos of Blake Lively which have just surfaced on various websites including Perez Hilton and Zap2it are 100% fake," insisted the rep. "Blake has never taken nude photos of herself. Blake will pursue legal action against the publication which initially published these photographs and any other outlets that republish them in any manner."