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December 29, 2006

Last-minute tips for celebrating New Year's

Still pondering your plans for New Year's Eve?

Browse our collection of ideas for how to ring in 2007, from where to see the fireworks, to special dinners at area restaurants, to First Night festivities in area communities.

If you're heading to Providence, the city wants you to know that some of the streets will be closed to motor vehicle traffic during Bright Night hours. They are: State Street, from 8 a.m. on Sunday, to 1 a.m. on Monday; Smith Street between Park and Gaspee Streets, on Sunday, from 5:15 and 6 p.m., then again between 11:45 and 12:45 a.m. (Hint: Those last times correspond to fireworks displays.)

Happy holidays!

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 7:02 PM | Comment

On deck: Steppin' up the action after holiday break

The action is starting to heat up after the Christmas holiday.

PC will be without sophomore guard Sharaud Curry (17.3 ppg) tonight at 9:30 at Florida State in the Friar's final important non-conference game of the season. Curry, the team's leading scorer and backcourt leader, was suspended by head coach Tim Welsh for a violation of team rules. Catch the game on TV Cox.

In hockey, the Providence Bruins travel to Philadelphia for a 7:30 p.m. game, while the Boston Bruins are in Chicago against the Blackhawks at 8:30.

In college football, after three afternoon bowl games, tonight's matchup pits Maryland against Purdue in the Champs Sports Bowl at 8 on ESPN. Check out the results via projo.com's college sports page.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 6:30 PM | Comment

House fire in Coventry under control

COVENTRY -- Firefighters have brought a late-afternoon fire in a home on Barbs Hill Road under control.

Everyone in the wooden, single-family structure at 205 Barbs Hill Road got out safely, said police Lt. Robin Winslow, and there were no injuries.

Police believe the fire may have started about 4:15 p.m. in the attic of the house near the border with the town of Foster and Connecticut. Mutual aid from Connecticut and Foster also responded to the blaze.

No more information was available.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Lisa Vernon-Sparks

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 5:24 PM | Comment

Day of mourning closes federal offices in R.I.

Tuesday has been declared a national day of mourning for former President Gerald Ford, who died this week.

The declaration means federal offices will be closed that day. The New York Stock Exchange will also be closed.

In Rhode Island, closings include U.S. postal services and the federal District Court in Providence.

There are no plans to shut down state government for the day, though Governor Carcieri has decided to postpone his inaugural ball, set for that night, until Wednesday.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 4:46 PM | Comment

New emergency beacons required for boaters

Commercial and recreational watercraft have a few more days to get rid of old emergency radio beacons that are being phased out.

The U.S. Coast Guard is reminding boaters that beginning Jan. 1, they are prohibited from using 121.5 and 243 MHz Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons (known as EPIRBs).

From then on, boaters wishing to have an emergency rescue beacon aboard their vessels must use a digital 406 MHz model, according to the Coast Guard. This type of EPIRB is designed to operate with satellites, according to the Eldridge Tide and Pilot Book.

The change in emergency beacons is required to improve the efforts of the International Cospas-Sarsat Satellite System, which provides distress alert and location data for search and rescue operations around the world.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

The older EPIRBs have been deemed unreliable in emergencies, according to the Coast Guard. Data shows that just one alert out of every 50 with the 121.5 MHz beacon is a genuine distress situation.

The 406 MHz beacons require boaters to enter personal and contact information into a registration database. Therefore, when a beacon signal is received from that type of EPIRB, search and rescue personnel can retrieve information from that database, including identifying characteristics about the vessel that is in distress, according to the Coast Guard.

The changes probably affect the operators of pleasure boats far more than commercial fishing vessels, according to Erik Orman, the co-owner of Tempest Fisheries Ltd. in New Bedford. Orman, who co-owns five fishing boats, said he and his partner already have the latest emergency equipment on board.

Although he was not familiar with the 406 MHz terminology, he said anything required by the Coast Guard is most likely already on board his boats.

“The fishing industry has always been pretty proactive as far as safety equipment goes,” Orman said.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 3:24 PM | Comment

Governor's inaugural ball postponed

While most of the state's inauguration activities are still a go for Tuesday, Governor Carcieri has postponed by one day the festive inaugural ball he had planned for that night "out of respect" for President Bush's declaration of Tuesday as a national day of mourning for former President Gerald R. Ford.

Carcieri spokesman Michael Maynard said the inaugural ball will take place "same time, same place" on Wednesday, at the Rhodes on the Pawtuxet. He said "everyone was very accommodating."

But Maynard said there are no plans to shut down state government for the day, as a handful of states are doing; and he and others noted that both state law and the Constitution require the swearing-in of the governor, lieutenant governor, general treasurer, attorney general, secretary of state and the members of the General Assembly on what is described as "the first Tuesday of January next succeeding their election."

And spokesmen for the House and Senate said legislative leaders have decided to go ahead with their opening day sessions at which the only official business – after new Secretary of State Ralph Mollis swears-in the members – will be the anticipated re-election of House Speaker William J. Murphy and Senate President Joseph A. Montalbano.

“We are required by the state Constitution to come in, so we will come in,’’ Senate spokesman Greg Pare said.

House leaders are also planning to go ahead with a “simple reception’’ in the House lounge after the session.

-- Journal staff writer Katherine Gregg

Early in the day today Maynard acknowledged there was “some discussion’’ about whether to go forward with the black-tie optional, 2007 inaugural ball.

The ball will now be from 7 to 10 p.m. Wednesday at the Rhodes on the Pawtuxet. It is free to the public, with a shuttle bus available to transport attendees from nearby parking lots.

Earlier announced plans for the event said it would feature light hors d’hoeuvres, desserts and entertainment by the Night Life Orchestra, the Big Nazo Puppets and the Johnson & Wales Ballroom and Latin Dance Team.

A spokesman for the National Governor’s Association said Rhode Island is one of three states that had inaugurations planned for Tuesday, the others being Florida and Minnesota.

Florida officials could not be reached for comment, but a spokesman for Minnesota’s newly re-elected Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty said “we are not postponing or canceling any of the inauguration activities.’’

At that point in the day, the spokesman was unclear if state government would shut down for the day. But NGA spokesman Barry Van Lare said he sent out an all-states inquiry and of the 15 or so that responded, only three were planning to close down for the day: Nebraska, Kansas and, of course, Michigan, where Ford will be transported after a memorial in Washington Tuesday morning and will lie in repose until his burial near his presidential museum the following day.

Posted by Jack Perry at 2:56 PM | Comment

Residents wake up to find tires slashed

Journal photo / Kathy Borchers

Tag Tanalski and his daughter Anna Tanalski, 10, of Hillside Ave. in Pawtucket, in their driveway after tires on their cars were slashed overnight.

Tag Tanalski of Pawtucket had an unpleasant surprise when he went outside this morning around 10 a.m.

Tires on two of his family’s four cars had been slashed – one tire on the Toyota Camry station wagon parked in his Pawtucket driveway on Hillside Avenue and two tires on the Camry station wagon in the parking lot across the street, which is in Providence.

He’s not alone.

Tanalski said as many as 10 people he knows who live on Hillside Avenue, in buildings numbered from about 80 to 180, had their car tires slashed overnight, also. The incidents occurred below -- or west of -- Hope Street. Tanalski lives between Swan and Dartmouth streets.

As Hillside Avenue is the dividing line between Providence and Pawtucket, Tanalski said he spoke this morning with police from both cities. He knows some neighbors have also spoken with the police.

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

At 11:30 this morning, a Pawtucket police lieutenant, who declined to come to the phone, told the woman who answered the department’s line to tell projo.com the police know nothing of the incident. A Providence police captain has not returned a call from projo.com.

In talking with neighbors, Tanalski said he has heard that perhaps 50 people’s tires were slashed. The cuts in his tires were about an inch wide and deep enough to penetrate the side walls and flatten the tires, rendering them “useless.”

He hasn’t started pricing new tires but imagines replacing the three and re-balancing the tires on the cars will run about $200. He’s contemplating going to a junkyard to see if he can get a cheaper replacement, as “there’s not a lot of money in the till” just after Christmas.

A substitute teacher in East Providence middle and high schools, Tanalski, 45, doesn’t have much hope that those responsible will be caught.

He thinks whoever did the slashing is “truly unaware of the implications” of what they did.

“There are a lot of repercussions to things like this,” he said. “People could get fired because they’re late to work, they don’t have the money now to pay for something that they really needed. It’s a senseless thing, but obviously they weren’t really thinking about that. They were just having fun.”

Posted by Kate Bramson at 2:43 PM | Comment

DA: No charges in fatal Fall River social club fire

FALL RIVER, Mass. -- No one will be charged in the deaths of four women who perished in the June fire that tore through a social club as they prepared for a Feast of the Holy Ghost celebration, according to a report made public today by the Bristol County District Attorney’s office.

Though the state fire marshal found several code violations -- the building was not a licensed meeting hall, doors were not solid, opened inward and were not the right width -- the 20-page report states that “there is no evidence to support" that the St. John's Holy Ghost Association "was reckless or wanton in not obtaining the appropriate licenses.”

And the report says “the fact these code violations existed did not contribute to the deaths of these women. There is no evidence that the doors, the location of the doors, the width of the doorways contributed to the death of these women.”

Geraldine Andrade, 63, Emeliana Carvalho, 80, Mary Raposa, 70, and Christina Costa, 30, died in the June 14 fire that began at 7:20 p.m. on the first floor of the 228 County St. social hall. The building’s occupants at the time were St. John’s Holy Ghost Association, Recreation Association Nossa Da Luz, and four apartments.

The state fire marshal's report, which with a memorandum from an assistant district attorney to the district attorney makes up the report, draws parallels to The Station nightclub fire that killed 100 people in West Warwick in 2003.

"The use of large amounts of highly flammable paper and wax impregnated paper decorations in this facility contributed to the rapid spread of the fire. The survivor accounts of this fire sound eerily similar to the survivor accounts from the Coconut Grove, Station Nightclub, and Hartford Circus fire," says the report from State Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan.

The fire marshal's report also makes seven recommendations, focusing on fire officials' outreach to social and civic organizations and the use of flammable decorations.

-- Journal staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 2:20 PM | Comment

Club closed until Jan. 8 after deadly shooting

PROVIDENCE — Club Pulse, the South Providence nightclub rocked by a triple shooting on Christmas morning, will be closed until Jan. 8, when a full hearing is scheduled to determine whether the club should keep its licenses to operate.

At the request of the Police Department, the license board suspended the operating licenses of the nightclub because three men were shot — one later died — inside the club on Christmas morning. The police allege that it was only the latest in a string of troublesome incidents at Pulse.

An emergency hearing had been scheduled for this morning to give the club’s owner, Alex Tomasso, owner of A.A.T. Restaurant Corp., the right to contest the suspension and reopen over the busy New Year’s weekend.

But Tomasso’s lawyer, Joseph Keough, officially waived Tomasso’s right to the emergency hearing, and the club will stay closed until the board makes its decision on Jan. 8.

Club ownership temporarily returned its licenses to operate to the city’s license administrator today, pending the results of the full hearing, according to Richard H. Aitchison, city license administrator.

— Journal staff writer Daniel Barbarisi

Posted by Jack Perry at 1:00 PM | Comment

Inaugurations galore after New Year's break

PROVIDENCE -- Let's hope state leaders don't party too hard to celebrate the New Year. Tuesday will be a busy day on Smith Hill.

Governor Carcieri's inauguration is set for noon. He'll be joined by the state's five general officers: the new lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general and general treasurer. And both chambers of the 2007-2008 General Assembly will follow.

All 38 senators are scheduled to be sworn in at 3 p.m. by the state's new Secretary of State Ralph Mollis. Four newcomers are among the senators.

The House inauguration is set to follow at 4 p.m. There will be 10 new representatives among the 75 people sworn in. All the new officials are Democrats.

Each chamber will formally elect its leader for the new session as well. Democratic caucuses met last month and voted to endorse current Speaker William J. Murphy and current Senate President Joseph A. Montalbano.

But the endorsements are expected to be made official Tuesday, according to an announcement released by the legislative press bureau.

The opening day sessions will be broadcast by Capitol TV, which is Channel 15 for Cox Communications subscribers.

-- projo.com staff writer Steve Peoples

Posted by Steve Peoples at 11:59 AM | Comment

Tell us: Are Denver snows affecting your travel plans?

Rhode Islanders: Has the big snow in Colorado stranded you or a family member or changed your travel plans?

The second major snowstorm in a week has dumped another 2 feet of snow on the Western state, canceling hundreds of flights at the Denver International Airport and possibly affecting travel in other parts of the country.

We'd like to hear from you if the storm has got you or a loved one stuck in an airport or otherwise forced a change in travel plans. Please e-mail The Journal newsroom at pjnews@projo.com with your name, location, e-mail address and, if possible, a phone number, in case a reporter wants to contact you.

Locally, T.F. Green Airport in Warwick and Logan International in Boston report that most flights are still arriving and departing on time.

One United Airlines flight out of Logan – set to depart at 11 a.m. today – was canceled, but others appear to be arriving from Denver and scheduled to depart for Denver and beyond later today.

"There's no major problems so far," said Phil Orlandella, a spokesman for Logan.

Inbound flights from Denver appear to be delayed by about 30 minutes, while flights to Denver, aside form the canceled flight, "seem to be on time," he said.

Airline travelers cannot fly directly to Denver from Green. Flights to and from that airport appear to be arriving and departing on time, according to its Web site.

Given the wintry conditions elsewhere – and tomorrow’s chance of snow here in Rhode Island – it’s a good idea to doublecheck your flight information before heading to either Green or Logan.

Get the latest on the storm.

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:00 AM | Comment

Police seeking missing Fall River woman / Photo

Aguiar-Jordan

FALL RIVER – Local police are seeking the public’s help in their search for a woman reported missing since Tuesday night.

Lee Aguiar-Jordan, 38, from the east end of Fall River, was last seen Tuesday around 9 p.m. by family members, her family has told the police, Sgt. Ronald Furtado said this morning. From Wednesday on, Aguiar-Jordan has also not reported for work at the Fall River real estate company where she is employed, Furtado said.

The police believe she could be driving her 2002 black convertible Chrysler Sebring, with Massachusetts plates 23HT48.

The police ask anyone with information about Aguiar-Jordan to call the department, at (508) 676-8511.

“We’re treating it as a missing person report at this time, but certainly any time a person is missing for an extended period of time, it does become a concern,” Furtado said. “We’re following up on any leads. That’s why we’re asking for the public’s help.”

-- projo.com staff writer Kate Bramson

Posted by Kate Bramson at 10:17 AM | Comment

Boston bars skirting fire safety law, report says

BOSTON -- Fewer than half of Boston's bars and nightclubs covered by new fire safety regulations enacted after the fatal Station nightclub fire in West Warwick are complying, according to a published report.

Fire officials say 142 of 229 establishments required to install sprinkler systems are getting around the law or trying to, The Boston Globe reported.

Many clubs have complained about the cost of installing sprinklers, saying it could put smaller establishments out of business. Some have persuaded local and state building agencies to lower their official capacity below 100 people, the law's threshold.

Others are building walls to attempt to qualify as two businesses, each below the 100-person capacity. Bars that serve food are arguing they should be considered as restaurants, which are exempt.

"This is terrible," Boston Fire Commissioner Roderick Fraser told the Globe. "Our goal is to make public areas more safe, not look for loopholes."

-- The Associated Press

Read the full story here.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 8:08 AM | Comment

Traffic: Accident on Route 95N near Exit 20

The state Department of Transportation has posted a Providence accident on Route 95 North on its traffic advisory page.

However, the state police report that no one was injured in the one-car crash just prior to Route 195 (Exit 20) at 6:50 this morning. No lanes are closed, according to Lt. David Neill.

For other traffic needs, check out the state roadways, via the Department of Transportation's online traffic offerings.

You can find the alert about this morning’s crash and any other traffic alerts describing accidents here, browse traffic cams to see real-time photos of the highways and check out the DOT’s road construction schedule here.

Also, check out congestion mapping -- i.e., how heavy the traffic is -- here.

To report a traffic incident, call the Transportation Management Center at (401) 222-5826 and choose option #2.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 7:11 AM | Comment

Sunny today, snow possible tomorrow

PROVIDENCE – Did we hear snow?

Yes, the National Weather Service predicts a 30 percent chance of snow tomorrow, mainly between noon and 3 p.m. Now won’t that feel out of place, given all the warm weather we’ve had this month?

It’s 28 degrees this morning, and temps should rise to about 39. It should be mostly sunny today. Tonight, we can expect a low around 20 and mostly clear skies.

New Year’s Eve should be partly cloudy with a low around 27, and New Year’s Day is likely to be rainy, with a high of 41.

Check back with us throughout the weekend for the latest conditions and forecasts from projo.com.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 7:03 AM | Comment

Today's Journal front page

Today's front page includes local stories about a Middletown mansion selling for $5 million and a Rhode Island educator being picked to run Oprah Winfrey's Leadership Academy for poor girls in South Africa.

Download today's front page in .pdf format.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment