Oklahoma Tornado

The damaged city of Moore, Oklahoma

The tornado was the largest recorded tornado with a width of 2.6 miles long

Rubble

According to this article, Oklahoma's medical examiner's office, the death toll in Oklahoma within the last week is over 20.  The storm that hit the city area last week was classified as an EF5 tornado, including flooding. Officials say that many deaths in Oklahoma City were caused by flooding. The tornado was 2.6 miles long, the widest one ever recorded. In this article,  officials say that among the victims, that 6 are children, 12 are adults, and 3 storm chasers were killed. According to this article,  The National Weather Service says that the winds from the storm exceeded up to 295 mph. The tornado did not only take the lives of people, but caused damage to everything in its way. There were no houses or buildings nearby when the tornado was the most powerful, said by Rick Smith, chief warning meteorologist. "Any house would have been completely swept clean on the foundation. That's just my speculation," he said. "We're looking at extremes... In the rare EF5 category. This is in the super rare category because we don't deal with things like this often." Mayor Matt White said that although 18,000 residents of his city were affected by the storm, that it could have been much worse if it had gone up north." Governor Mary Fallin of Oklahoma says "it's been a very trying couple of weeks, but it's also been a chance to showcase that Oklahoma-strong resiliency, compassion, neighbor-helping-neighbor." After the first tornado that killed 24 in the Oklahoma City of Moore, no one would have guessed that it would hit again in the capital city, killing another 9. Fallin says, "We knew it was going to be bad, but to think that this could happen in two weeks in a row is quite remarkable." The city of Moore is trying to recover and "starting to come back to life." According to this article,Businesses are starting to reopen and many of the debree is being cleaned up. Fallin says, "we are very strong, and we are going to come back strong." According to this article, there are tornado shelters in over 100 schools in Oklahoma. Everyone survived at Briarwood Elementary School in Moore, but several students died at Plaza Towers Elementary School. Both schools were destroyed. The question is how was there deaths in Plaza Towers, but not in Briarwood is not answered. Some believe it has to do with the school's construction. Authorities have searched every house, looking under rubble to make sure there are no undiscovered bodies. Moore Fire Chief Gary Bird said he was "98 percent sure" there were no more bodies of survivors. Moore public school classes have been cancelled for the rest of the school year. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano will go to Oklahoma to ensure that the residents and officials are receiving all of the help they need.

Governor Mary Fallin

 

Plaza Towers Elementary School

 

The Oklahoma tornado damaged everything in it's path

 

Officials and residents are doing the best they can to overcome this tradgedy

Deadly fertilizer plant devastates Texas town

Early Thursday in West Texas, an explosion occurred at a fertilizer plant. Around 15 people were killed and over 160 were injured. Officials say four firefighters are missing as well. The Department of Homeland Security said federal and state authorities are securing the area by shutting down nearby areas and restricting flights around it. The cause of the explosion is unknown. "Nothing at this point indicates we have had criminal activity, but we are not ruling that out," said William Patrick Swanton of the nearby Waco Police Department.

Deadly wave of bombings across Iraq

42 people were killed and 257 were wounded on Monday due to bombs across Iraq. The bombings took place in Baghdad, Anbar, Babel, Kirkuk, Salaheddin, Diyala, and Nasriya. Two of the bombs exploded near Baghdad's airport. Most of the attacks targeted the Shiites in Baghdad. Al Qaeda in Iraq have been responsible for attacks the last few months. Officials are worried that these ongoing violent attacks will effect the provincial elections that are coming up in the next five days.

Report: Child killed in Boston blasts ID'd

The 8 year old boy that was killed yesterday due to the explosions at the Boston Marathon has been identified as Martin Richard. Richard's mother and 6 year old sister were injured from the explosions as well. His mother had surgery due to damage to the brain and the younger sister lost her leg. Due to the two bombs, a total of 3 people were killed and 144 were hospitalized. Federal authorities are not sure who cause the explosions, but it believed to be a terrorist attack.

Rutgers fires coach Mike Rice

Rutgers fired coach Mike Rice on Wednesday due to the airing of a video of him physically and verbally abusing his team players. The video showed him shoving, throwing balls and yelling "gay slurs" during practice. Rice apologized, "for the pain and hardship that I've caused." Rice must face a $50,000 fine and attend anger management classes. There will be a national search to replace Mike Rice's position.

Atlanta schools cheating suspects to surrender

According to this article, officials have been accused of changing student test scores in order to receive more federal funds. A lawyer for two Atlanta teachers are about to turn themselves in. This has been considered one of the nation's largest test-cheating scandals. Today, 35 defendants are to surrender to authorities at Fulton County Jail. Beverley Hall, Atlanta Public School's superintendent, as well as other teachers, will face charges for theft, racketeering and false statements. Many of the teachers, under oath, swore that they did not cheat. "They have to seriously consider whether or not they want to go through a trial, run the risk of being convicted and possibly jailed," Attorney Torin Togut said.

Cyprus Bank Bailout Issue

The European Central Bank gave Cyprus four days to come up with a bailout plan as of Thursday. Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said, "the talks have ended," but but Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said assistance from Moscow would be depended on Cyprus gaining European Union for its other ideas for raising money. Cypriot officials have hoped for a loan of $30 billion or more from Russia. If Cyprus does not come up with a bailout plan within the next few days, then the European Central Bank will cutoff their banking sector.

Barack in Israel

President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met to discuss Israelis and Palestinians and how to live next to each other. Obama wanted to make sure Netanyahu knew that he was committed to their security and he will strengthen the relationship between them. "The question is whether the Iranian leadership will seize that opportunity," Obama said, "We can't even trust yet, much less verify."

7 Marines Killed In Training

Seven marines were killed in an explosion from a training exercise in Nevada. They ranged from ages 19 to 26 and most of them were veterans of the war in Afghanistan. "We send our prayers and condolences to the families of the Marines and sailors who have been killed and injured in this tragic accident," said 2nd Marine General Jim Lukeman. Not only were those 7 killed, but a Navy corpsman was seriously injured, as well as 5 other Marines. The Marines will now not allow the use of 60mm mortars until they find what the cause to the explosion was.

Mohawk Shooting

Kurt Myers, 64, was shot and killed by police and swat teams for killing 4 people. After killing 4 and wounding 2 during a shooting spree Wednesday morning, Myers shot at police officers and hid in an abandoned building. After 20 hours, swat teams sent in the k9 team to the abandoned house where Myers was. He shot and killed the dog. A neighbor of Myers said "Meyers is an older man who lives alone and has never been friendly to him." Police still do not know what the motive to the killing was.

Football Head Injuries

A condition known as punch drunk has been affecting boxers who have suffered multiple hits to the head, but it has become hazardous to football players as well. Chronic traumatic encephalopathy or CTE, is a brain disease that has been linked with repeated head trauma. Former NFL linebacker Junior Seau committed suicide last year due to it. 34 former NFL players who have died and donated their brains to research. Over 90% of them were linked to CTE. Dr. Marie Pasinkski, a Harvard neurologist says "Any blow to the head that leaves a person slightly dazed or not quite right may cause harm to the brain."

New Pope

The new pope, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, or Francis, 76, was chosen to be the new pope. “I would like to thank you for your embrace,” said Francis in Vatican City yesterday, “My brother cardinals have chosen one who is from far away, but here I am.” Francis was previously living in Buenos Aires, where he was known as "humble man who spoke out for the poor." President Obama gave his opinion on Pope Francis “As a champion of the poor and the most vulnerable among us, he carries forth the message of love and compassion that has inspired the world for more than 2,000 years — that in each other we see the face of God."

Winning Musher Is Oldest Champion In Iditarod History

53 year old Mitch Seavey crossed the finish line at 10:39 p.m. Seavey and his sled dogs finished the 1,000 mile long race in 9 days, 7 hours, 39 minutes, and 56 seconds. Seavey and his son Dallas, 25, are the oldest and youngest winning mushers in all of Iditarod history. "Mitch Seavey scored one for the AARP-eligible crowd Tuesday night by becoming the oldest champion in Iditarod history," written by the Anchorage Daily News.

Grumpy Cat

Grumpy cat, also known as Tardar Sauce, has recently become an internet sensation. The 11 month old cat became famous a few months ago when her owners, Bryan and Tabatha Bundesen posted photos of her on Reddit, which became viral immediately. "It was an accident," said Bryan Bundesen, "We thought it would get some laughs, with the Internet liking cats. And it just kept going." Grumpy cat has become the subject of thousands of memes and will soon be premiering in a Friskies cat food commercial. Although she may look unhappy, Bryan says she is a "healthy and happy cat".

White House concerned over North Korean threats

According to this article, North Korea has been sending threats to the White House saying that Pyongyang was canceling the 60-year-old "armistice" that ended the Korean War. We are certainly concerned by North Korea's bellicose rhetoric," Jay Carney, Obama's spokesman revealed to White House reporters, "And the threats that they have been making follow a pattern designed to raise tension and intimidate others. The DPRK will achieve nothing by threats or provocation, which will only further isolate North Korea and undermine international efforts to ensure peace and stability in northeast Asia." North Korea wants a peace treaty, guaranteed security, and the removal of over 25,000 US troops in South Korea.

Hugo Chavez, Venezuelan President, Dead at 58

According to this article, Venezuela's socialist president, Hugo Chavez died at age 58. Chavez has been fighting cancer, recently getting treatment in Cuba. Chavez announced on December 8th 2012 that he would be traveling back to Cuba to undergo surgery since his pelvic cancer came back. Despite his health, he was still elected. In his last public address before his emergency cancer treatment, announced that Nicolas Miduro would take over.

Vote counting under way in Kenya election

Jubilee alliance supporters cheer during a rally in Kenya's capital Nairobi

Supporters of Kenya's Deputy Prime Minister and presidential candidate Uhuru Kenyatta from the Maasai community

According to this article, vote counting began in Kenya's election. With 14 million registered voters, 99,000 policemen were were deployed to stop the violence. 19 people were killed in an incident in thevcoastal city, including six police officers. In Kilifi, a gang beat security forces at a school where some of the voting was taking place. Four or more officers were killed. Late on Sunday, the police said that criminals were going to dress in police uniforms and disrupt the voting centers. According to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, about 23,000 observers, including 2,600 international monitors, are going to be deployed.

Fishermen, acting on gut, find crash site, 2 girls

The scene of the car crash

According to this article, on Wednesday morning in Portland, a 4-year-old girl, after discovering her mother was dead, dragged her seriously injured younger sister from a car crash. The car was stuck deep in the woods and there was no skid marks, making it difficult for officials to find them. Authorities say the young girls were alone in the woods for well over several hours, waiting for someone to rescue them. 2 fisherman finally found the girls and immidiately called 911. In this article, one of the fisherman, Mclure said "I don't know exactly what told us to turn around, but I'm just really thankful we did," on Thursday. Investigators still don't know how fast their mother was driving, or whether something else may have caused the crash. Their motherhad a record and was previously in jail for 10 years due to heroin possession and third degree theft.