Friday, May 30, 2008

New York - Fall Again???


Deadly Crane Collapse Shocks New York!!
A construction crane collapsed Friday on New York's Upper East Side, smashing into a 23-story apartment building as it fell to the ground, killing two construction workers and seriously injuring another.It was the second deadly crane accident in 2½ months and the latest of several construction mishaps in the city, which recently shook up its Building Department and beefed up inspections.

"What has happened is unacceptable and intolerable. Having said that, we do not know at the moment what happened or why," Mayor Michael Bloomberg said at a news conference, adding that it appears the builders followed regulations.City building department records show that inspectors stopped crane work twice last month, once because they said a crane lacked the proper permit and was being operated in an unsafe manner.The mayor said the top part of the crane snapped off and fell against the building on the southwest corner of 91st Street and First Avenue about 8 a.m. Witnesses described a loud boom, then a cloud of smoke and debris."The sound was like a thunder clap.

Then, an earthquake," said Peter Barba, who lives on the seventh floor of the damaged building across the street from where workers were erecting a luxury apartment tower.Video from the scene showed the upper-floor balconies of the apartment building were severely damaged and a hole extended several stories down the side of the building. The mayor said seven buildings were evacuated as a precaution.One body was brought out of the rubble, placed on a gurney and covered in a white sheet. A construction worker knelt over the stretcher, gently stroking the sheet.Killed were crane operator Donald Leo, 30, who was in the cab when it broke away from the spindly machine and plummeted to the ground, and Ramadan Kurtas, 27, pronounced dead after being taken to a hospital, officials said.

A third construction worker was seriously injured, and one pedestrian was treated for minor injuries.Construction foreman Scott Bair said one of the workers on his 40-man crew, Simeon Alexis, was taken to the hospital with his "chest slashed open.""Everyone was shook up and crying. These are some hardened men, but they were crying," he said.Chaos enveloped the largely residential neighborhood of town houses and apartment high-rises as dozens of emergency vehicles raced to the scene during the morning rush hour.

Robert Lopez, manager of a Duane Reade pharmacy on the ground floor of the building that was hit, said he was 10 feet from the window when he heard "a big boom.""Everybody was yelling and running and calling 911," he said. When he looked out again, he saw part of the crane had landed just feet from the window where he had been standing.The general contractor on the project, Leon D. DeMatteis Construction Corp. of Elmont, posted a statement on its Web site Friday: "First and foremost, our thoughts and prayers are with the families of those affected by this terrible tragedy. We are currently in the process of gathering all the facts surrounding this unfortunate accident and will provide more details as they become available."Sorbara Construction, a subcontractor, was in charge of operating the crane.

A woman who answered the telephone at Sorbara on Friday said no one was available to comment.The neighborhood, not far from the mayor's official residence, Gracie Mansion, has undergone a construction boom in recent years, with high-rises swiftly replacing older, low-rise brownstones.Full of bars and casual restaurants, the neighborhood is populated with a mix of retirees, students and young professionals. Until recently, it had been considered one of Manhattan's more affordable neighborhoods.Cranes at the site had generated several complaints in the neighborhood, including reports that safety barriers were breached and heavy loads passed over the heads of pedestrians, according to city building department records.Inspectors found that most of the concerns were unwarranted, but they did temporarily order one crane at the site to stop all work on April 23 for not having the proper permit and for operating the crane in an unsafe matter.Building Department records also said officials halted work after a crane on the site failed a "load test" on April 22.

The crane passed a second test, however, the next day, and no violation was issued.In a March 15 accident about 2 miles to the south, contractors building a 46-story condominium near the United Nations were trying to lengthen a crane when a steel support broke, killing seven people. A four-story town house was demolished and several other buildings were damaged.A buildings inspector had found the crane to be safe a day before the collapse; another inspector resigned after his arrest on charges of lying earlier about inspecting the same crane.In April, the city's buildings commissioner resigned, under fire over a rising number of deadly construction accidents that have left more than 26 construction workers dead in the past year.Since then, the city has added extra inspections at building sites and required that its staff be on hand whenever the towering cranes were raised higher, a process known as a jump. Those procedures are still being revised.

Thursday, May 29, 2008

Gary Dourdan won't go to jail for drug charges

Gary Dourdan won't do time. The "CSI" co-star pleaded guilty to two of three counts of felony drug possession Wednesday but will not face prison following his drug arrest outside of Palm Springs last month, according to his lawyer. Dourdan could have served up to three years and eight months behind bars.

"Once Gary completes 30 hours of a diversion program, his case will be entirely dismissed," lawyer Shawn Chapman Holley told The Associated Press in an e-mail. "There is no jail time involved."

The 41-year-old actor was arrested after police found him asleep in his car outside of Palm Springs on April 28. He was allegedly parked on the wrong side of the street with the car's interior light on. Dourdan was charged with felony possession of heroin, cocaine and ecstasy.

Dourdan has played crime scene investigator Warrick Brown on CBS' "CSI" since 2000. The character was recently shot and killed during the eighth season finale.

Gary Dourdan won't go to jail for drug charges

Gary Dourdan won't do time. The "CSI" co-star pleaded guilty to two of three counts of felony drug possession Wednesday but will not face prison following his drug arrest outside of Palm Springs last month, according to his lawyer. Dourdan could have served up to three years and eight months behind bars.

"Once Gary completes 30 hours of a diversion program, his case will be entirely dismissed," lawyer Shawn Chapman Holley told The Associated Press in an e-mail. "There is no jail time involved."

The 41-year-old actor was arrested after police found him asleep in his car outside of Palm Springs on April 28. He was allegedly parked on the wrong side of the street with the car's interior light on. Dourdan was charged with felony possession of heroin, cocaine and ecstasy.

Dourdan has played crime scene investigator Warrick Brown on CBS' "CSI" since 2000. The character was recently shot and killed during the eighth season finale.

Monday, May 26, 2008

Madonna Marriage in trouble???


The state of Madonna and Guy Ritchie's relationship has been fodder for the gossip pages for several months. But now, reports are heating up over their allegedly troubled marriage.
According to British paper the Daily Mail, the pair have been spending the majority of their time in Cannes away from one another. And when they were together, Ritchie looked like he was being "paraded at yet another high-octane celebrity party for the benefit of marital solidarity."Gossip blogger Perez Hilton even comments on photos of Madonna and Ritchie at the film festival, asking them to "try and look happy."Previously, her decision to have Nathan Rissman, the family's gardener and "manny," direct her documentary about Malawi, 'I Am Because We Are,' was supposed to have been a blow to Ritchie's ego. That injury is said to have been compounded by her insistence that their trip to Cannes be exclusively about her film work."Guy wanted to talk about his film on the red carpet but Madonna told him this was about her movie," said one observer. "She made it clear to Guy that this event was about her and his nose was put out of joint."

Fresh News!!

 

Design by FLYZCHEAP

Sponsored by Bokbong