BERKELEY, Calif. (Associated Press) — The balcony collapse that killed six college students appears to have been caused by rotted wooden beams, Berkeley's mayor said Wednesday as the victims' heartbroken loved ones began arriving in the U.S. from Ireland.
Mayor Tom Bates said investigators believe the wood was not caulked and sealed properly at the time of construction and was damaged by moisture as a result.
The crowded fifth-floor balcony broke off an apartment building during a 21st-birthday party held by visiting Irish college students Tuesday, spilling 13 people 50 feet onto the pavement below. In addition to the six killed, seven were seriously hurt.
"More than likely, it was caused by rain and water damage that was caused to the support beams," Bates said. He said it was "obviously a bad idea" for 13 people to crowd onto such a small balcony but added that he is not blaming the victims.
Cassandra Bujarski, a spokeswoman for the apartments' property management firm, Greystar, had no comment.
Building inspectors also determined another balcony at the Library Gardens apartment complex was "structurally unsafe and presented a collapse hazard," and it ordered it demolished. Two other balconies were red-tagged, or declared off-limits, at the apartments, which were completed in 2007 and are popular among visiting students and those at the nearby University of California, Berkeley.
Across the Atlantic, flags flew at half-staff around Ireland and the country's parliament suspended normal business as the nation mourned the dead: Ashley Donohoe, 22, of Rohnert Park, California, and Olivia Burke, Eoghan Culligan, Niccolai Schuster, Lorcan Miller and Eimear Walsh, all 21-year-olds from Ireland.
"They were in the prime of their lives," said Bernadette Prendiville, principal of the high school from which Burke and Walsh graduated. "They had a successful time in school, went about their work quietly and had everything going for them, everything ahead of them."
Josh Wilson, assistant principal at Rancho Cotate High School, said Donohoe was a remarkably well-liked and cheerful young woman who returned after graduating to help coach the soccer team.
"She just always had a smile on her face and transcended peer groups and cliques and had a friend in just about every social circle," he said.
A Mass was planned for Wednesday evening in Oakland for the victims, and grieving family members made their way toward Berkeley from Ireland.
The Irish students were working and traveling in the U.S. over the summer, a rite of passage enjoyed by thousands of their countrymen.
"For many of my countrymen, this is a favorite experience, and to have this happen at the start of the season has left us frozen in shock," said Philip Grant, Ireland's San Francisco-based consul general.
The Rev. Aidan McAleenan, a Roman Catholic priest who was sitting Wednesday with two of the injured at John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek, said that they were doing fine but that friends of the dead and injured were in shock and having a hard time talking.
Darrick Hom, president of the Structural Engineers Association of Northern California, visited the site of the collapse and said he noticed the broken wooden beams under the balcony were crumbling in the hands of investigating engineers.
"That wood was decayed or had some serious deterioration to the point where they could touch it with their hands and it was coming off in chunks in their hands," Hom said. He said it was surprising to see such deterioration in a building just 8 years old.
Normally, any building material — wood, steel or concrete — that will be exposed to the elements requires weatherproofing at the time of construction, Hom said.
Nothing in state code requires follow-up inspections of balconies after a building is issued a certificate of occupancy, unless there is major remodeling, said Brian Ferguson, deputy director of the state Department of General Services.
Although Florida has some balcony inspection requirements, most places don't require any reviews after construction is complete. Lawrence Ubell, president of New York-based Accurate Building Inspectors, said that could spell trouble.
"Annual inspections are so important for all balconies and terraces, but particularly for ones made of wood," he said. "In fact, rotting wood is the biggest cause of balcony and terrace failures."
Sari Kosdon, a Berkeley graduate student who has lived at Library Gardens since last August, said she feels terrible about the Irish students' deaths.
"I see these kids all the time and they are just so happy to have gone to this country and the opportunity," she said. "I feel like as a country we've failed them."
___
Associated Press writers Kristin Bender, Olga R. Rodriguez, Paul Elias, Ellen Knickmeyer in San Francisco, Danika Kirk in London and Janie Har in Walnut Creek contributed to this report.
Original Block HustlazbossAr-Abhas been putting in work overtime in the lab. He recently released hisMud Muzik IImixtape. Today he breaks off a new freestyle overNas'classic"Ether"instrumental.
Philadelphia rapper Ar-Ab recently sat down with Mikey T The Movie Star for an exclusive interview.
The Original Block Hustlaz boss explains the title of his new mixtape, Mud Muzik 2: Motivation Under Distress, talks losing his mother and grandmother one month apart, having to go to the trap house the same day his mom passed because he had to be the provider for his entire family and getting shot 13 times within a 5-month span.
A Missouri man is waiting to hear whether or not he will have to serve time for a crime he was convicted of in 2000.
St. Louis resident Cornealious "Mike" Anderson was convicted of the armed robbery of a Burger King manager and was sentenced to 13 years in prison. He posted bail, went home and waited for authorities to contact him to let him know where to report to begin his sentence.
The call never came. Meanwhile Anderson moved on with his life. He got married, had four kids, joined a church, stayed out of trouble with the law and started a contracting business. He continued living in the St. Louis area.
Last summer state prison officials started processing the paperwork for Anderson's release when they realized he wasn't incarcerated.
A team of Swat members were sent to Anderson's home and took him into custody.
Cornealious "Mike" Anderson
Anderson and his wife, LaQonna, are hoping by some miracle the Attorney General decides not to make him serve the time he was originally sentenced to.
LaQonna Anderson wants her husband freed
"I'm hoping that there is a way for them to save face while still allowing him to stay free," Patrick Michael Megaro, Anderson's attorney, told the New York Daily News on Tuesday. "He's no legal expert. He relied on his lawyer. This man is not a fugitive. He didn't try to hide."
An online petition has been started at change.org in the hopes Anderson will be freed. So far it has gathered more than 18,742 signatures.
Should Anderson still have to spend 13 years in prison?
**UPDATE** May 6
Cornealious (Mike) Anderson walks out of the Mississippi County Courthouse along with his wife, daughter Nevaeh, 3, and grandmother.
Cornealious "Mike" Anderson had been sitting in a maximum security Missouri prison cell since last summer hoping that the justice system would realize that he'd become a changed man since his armed robbery conviction 13 years ago.
Anderson was convicted of the crime and sentenced to 13-years in prison, but a clerical error left him a free man until the state discovered the error and arrested him.
The St. Louis resident had gotten married, stayed out of trouble and had four kids during the time he was free. On Monday, May 5, Anderson and his family heard the words they had hoped and prayed for.
"You've been a good father. You've been a good husband. You've been a good taxpaying citizen of the State of Missouri," Judge Terry Lynn Brown said, granting Anderson's request for release.. "That leads me to believe that you are a good man and a changed man."
Cornealious (Mike) Anderson hugs his grandmother after being freed
Anderson said the hardest thing was watching his family go through this difficult period. He never allowed any of his children to visit him in prison.
"I don't think any child should have to see their father or loved one like that," he said on "Today." "I didn't want my children to feel that that was normal, something that's acceptable."
After spending the last nine months in a prison cell Anderson is now reunited with his family.
"I'm so thankful, thank God for everything," Anderson said outside of the courthouse.
Man Who Missed Most of Prison Sentence Goes Free
Man Freed After Clerical Error Caused 13-Year Sentence Delay
Posted by ChasinDatPaper on February 22, 2014 at 12:00pm
MEXICO CITY (Associated Press) — The head of Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel was captured overnight by U.S. and Mexican authorities at a hotel in Mazatlan, Mexico, the Associated Press has learned.
A senior U.S. law enforcement official said Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman was taken alive overnight in the beach resort town. The official was not authorized to discuss the arrest and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The moment of "El Chapo" Guzman's arrest
Guzman, 56, was found with an unidentified woman. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Marshals Service were "heavily involved" in the capture, the official said. No shots were fired.
Guzman faces multiple federal drug trafficking indictments in the U.S. and is on the DEA's most-wanted list. His drug empire stretches throughout North America and reaches as far away as Europe and Australia. His cartel has been heavily involved in the bloody drug war that has torn through parts of Mexico for the last several years.
Known as a legendary outlaw and the world's most powerful and elusive drug lord, Guzman had been pursued for several weeks. His arrest comes on the heels of the takedown of several top Sinaloa operatives in the last few months and at least 10 mid-level cartel members in the last week.
The son of Sinaloa's co-leader and Guzman's partner, Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, was arrested in November after entering Arizona, where he had an appointment with U.S. immigration authorities to arrange legal status for his wife.
The following month, Zambada's main lieutenant was killed as Mexican helicopter gunships sprayed bullets at his mansion in the Gulf of California resort of Puerto Penasco in a four-hour gunbattle. Days later, police in the Netherlands arrested Zambada's flamboyant top enforcer as he arrived in Amsterdam.
Guzman's capture ended a long and storied manhunt. He was rumored to live everywhere from Argentina to Guatemala since he slipped out in 2001 from prison in a laundry truck — a storied feat that fed his larger-than-life persona. Because insiders aided his escape, rumors circulated for years that he was helped and protected by former Mexican President Felipe Calderon's government, which vanquished some of his top rivals.
In more than a decade on the run, Guzman transformed himself from a middling Mexican capo into arguably the most powerful drug trafficker in the world. His fortune has grown to more than $1 billion, according to Forbes magazine, which listed him among the "World's Most Powerful People" and ranked him above the presidents of France and Venezuela.
His Sinaloa Cartel grew bloodier and more powerful, taking over much of the lucrative trafficking routes along the U.S. border, including such prized cities as Tijuana and Ciudad Juarez. Guzman's play for power against local cartels caused a bloodbath in Tijuana and made Juarez one of the deadliest cities in the world. In little more than a year, Mexico's biggest marijuana bust, 134 tons, and its biggest cultivation were tied to Sinaloa, as were a giant underground methamphetamine lab in western Mexico and hundreds of tons of precursor chemicals seized in Mexico and Guatemala.
His cartel's tentacles now extend as far as Australia thanks to a sophisticated, international distribution system for cocaine and methamphetamines.
Guzman did all that with a $7 million bounty on his head and while evading thousands of law enforcement agents from the U.S. and other countries devoted to his capture. A U.S. federal indictment unsealed in San Diego in 1995 charges Guzman and 22 members of his organization with conspiracy to import over eight tons of cocaine and money laundering. A provisional arrest warrant was issued as a result of the indictment, according to the state department.
Guzman is still celebrated in folk songs and is said to have enjoyed deep protection from humble villagers in the rugged hills of Sinaloa and Durango where he has hidden from authorities. He is also thought to have contacts inside law enforcement that helped him evade capture, including a near-miss in February 2012 in the southern Baja California resort of Cabo San Lucas just after an international meeting of foreign ministers. He was vacationing in Cabo during a visit by then-U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.
"There's no drug-trafficking organization in Mexico with the scope, the savvy, the operational ability, expertise and knowledge as the Sinaloa cartel," said one former U.S. law enforcement official, who couldn't be quoted by name for security reasons. "You've kind of lined yourself up the New York Yankees of the drug trafficking world."
More than 70,000 people have been killed in drug violence since former President Calderon deployed thousands of soldiers to drug hotspots upon taking office on Dec. 1, 2006. Many say his government's assault on drug cartels and arrest of kingpins actually fueled the growth of Sinaloa and its major rival, the Zetas, which are now going head-to-heard for lucrative territory.
The two are battling for Nuevo Laredo, a play Guzman lost to the Zetas in 2005, and hitting each other deep inside their respective territories. Sinaloa took over a key Zeta port in Veracruz, while bands of Zetas have attacked their rival deep inside the cartel's home, western Sinaloa and Jalisco states.
The conflict has led to the gruesome dumping of dozens of bodies by both organizations in their battlegrounds.
Authorities said the battle also weakened the Sinaloa cartel and that key hits on the top leadership in Guzman's organization had shaken up his inner circle. In the first months of 2012, the Mexican army and federal police arrested a half dozen key Sinaloa people, including two major cocaine suppliers and a man described as the head of Guzman's security detail.
In April last year, a video made the rounds on the Internet of a man whom U.S. authorities believed was Guzman, possibly indicating a security breach in his inner circle. In 2012, Colombian police seized 116 properties worth $15 million that they say were bought for Guzman, while the U.S. Treasury Department announced that it was placing financial sanctions on a wife and several of his sons.
While his capture may have symbolic importance, many, including Guzman's cartel partner, Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, say it won't stop the violence or flow of drugs through Mexico to the United States.
"When it comes to the capos, jailed, dead or extradited — their replacements are ready," Zambada said in an exclusive interview published in Proceso magazine in April 2010.
Guzman's success and infamy surpassed Colombia's Pablo Escobar, who was gunned down by police in 1993 after waging a decade-long reign of terror in the South American country, killing hundreds of police, judges, journalists and politicians.
Pablo Escobar
Growing up poor, Guzman was drawn to the money being made by the flow of illegal drugs through his home state of Sinaloa.
He joined the Guadalajara cartel, run by Mexican Godfather Miguel Angel Gallardo, and rose quickly through the ranks as a ruthless businessman and skilled networker, making key contacts with politicians and police to ensure his loads made it through without problems.
After Gallardo was arrested in 1989, the gang split, and Guzman took control of Sinaloa's operations.
The Sinaloa cartel violently seized lucrative drug routes from rivals and built sophisticated tunnels under the U.S. border to move its loads.
In 1993, gunmen linked to the Tijuana-based Arrellano Felix cartel attempted to assassinate Guzman at the Guadalajara airport but instead killed Roman Catholic Cardinal Juan Jesus Posadas Ocampo, outraging Mexicans.
Cardinal Juan Jesus Posadas Ocampo assassinated
Police arrested Guzman weeks later before his escape from El Puente Grande prison in 2001. At the time of his escape, Guzman had been serving a 20-year sentence for bribery and criminal association in a maximum-security prison in Mexico.
He was rumored to have once entered a restaurant in Culiacan, capital of Sinaloa state, where his henchmen confiscated every patron's cellphone so their boss could eat without fear of an ambush. He was also rumored to have staged an elaborate public wedding in 2007 to an 18-year-old bride that was attended by officials and local police.
Federal police say they raided the town that day, but got there just a few hours too late.
Guzman had long been reported to move around frequently, using private aircraft, bulletproof SUVs and even all-terrain vehicles.
His location was part of Mexican folklore, with rumors circulating of him being everywhere from Guatemala to almost every corner of Mexico, especially its "Golden Triangle," a mountainous, marijuana-growing region straddling the northern states of Sinaloa, Durango and Chihuahua.
An archbishop in northern Durango state said in April 2009 that Guzman lived in a town nearby. Days later, investigators found the bodies of two slain army lieutenants with a note: "Neither the government nor priests can handle El Chapo."
Authorities Arrest Mexican Drug Kingpin Joaquin Guzman
Mexico captures No.1 drug kingpin "El Chapo" Guzman
World's Biggest Drug Kingpen Joaquin ''El Chapo'' Guzman Captured in Mexico
Don't Flop just released the final battle from their Set the Standard X event. This one features Caustic going against Mr. 13. Who gets bodied? Let us know what you think.
Posted by ChasinDatPaper on November 26, 2013 at 11:41am
Video After The Jump
Psych Ward Druggies member Ryan Bowers delivers a modern remix to the Souls of Mischief classic song "93 'Til Infinity."
The music video for "13 'Til Infinity" was directed by Luke Emmett.
For more information on the Psych Ward Druggies movement please visit their website http://www.psychwarddruggies.com/. Follow Ryan on Twitter and Instagram @RyanBowersOB.
Meek Mill has been grinding on the streets of Philadelphia since he was a teen, looking for his shot to get in the game. He's now gone from freestyling on corner blocks to performing in packed arenas.
Here's some throwback footage of Meek spitting at 13-years old.
The host for the 2013 BET Hip Hop Awards is none other than Big Snoop Dogg a.k.a. Snoop Lion. If you'ever watch The Doggfather on his YouTube show GGN News, you'll know that he is hilarious. I think BET made a good choice.
As far as the nominees, Kendrick Lamar leads the pack with a staggering 14 nods, including Lyricist of the Year, Best Live Performer and Best Hip Hop Video for "F*ckin Problems" along with A$AP Rocky, Drake and 2 Chainz.
Drake is close behind with 13 nominations and J. Cole has 10.
The event will be taped on September 28th at the Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center. It will air on October 15th.
Chris Brown was the headliner at PowerHouse 2013 in Los Angeles on Saturday, June 22. Breezy brought out several special guests including Nicki Minaj for "Take It to the Head" and Sean Kingston for "Beat It."
Peep the performances below
PowerHouse 2013: Chris Brown & Sean Kingston Perform 'Beat It'
PowerHouse 13 - Chris Brown and Nicki Minaj Perform "Take It To The Head"
29-year old bus driver Patrice Sanders is in a lot of trouble after she arranged for two teens to fight in front of her home.
On Thursday of this week Sanders heard two girls, ages 13 and 16, arguing on her bus in Lakeland, Florida.
She told them, "This is going to be handled today and they just need to fight." The 13-year old didn't want to fight, but that didn't stop Sanders from skipping the rest of the bus stops, driving 20 miles to her house. She ordered all 34 students off the bus to watch the fight.
Authorities say she offered the girls Vaseline so their faces wouldn't get scratched.
At least one student filmed the fight while Sanders stood by and watched until the girls were exhausted. After getting all of the students back on the bus, the two girls started to fight again. Sanders stopped the bus and let them continue to scrap, telling the students, "What happens on the bus, stays on the bus."
The 13-year old's mother reported the incident to police and took her daughter to the hospital to be examined. She did not have any serious injuries.
Sanders was arrested and charged with child abuse, neglect, false imprisonment and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Mobb Deep super producer/rapper Havoc will be releasing his third solo album titled 13 on May 7th. He just unveiled the artwork for the project. Check that out up top.
**UPDATE** April 3rd
Havoc has released the official tracklist for the album. He's secured features from Styles P, Raekwon, Lloyd Banks, Twista, Royce Da 5'9 and more.
Tracklist:
1. Gone 2. Favorite Rap Stars feat. Styles P & Raekwon
3. Life We Chose feat. Lloyd Banks
4. Colder Days feat. Masspike Miles
5. Get Busy
6. Eyes Open feat. Twista
7. Tell Me To My Face feat. Royce Da 59
8. This World feat. Masspike Miles
9. Already Tomorrow
10. Hear Dat
11. Gettin Mines
12. Long Road (Outro)
13. Can’t Sleep
It's been twenty years since the release of the hood classic Menace II Society. Director Allen Hughes recently sat down with with Sway In the Morning to talk about the film.
One of the most talked about incidents surrounding the making of the film involved Tupac Shakur. He was originally cast in the movie to play the role of Sharif. A rift developed on the set between Tupac and the Hughes brothers. They eventually fired him. Pac was so angry he later physically assaulted them.
The Hughes brothers filed charges against him and he ended up serving 15 days in jail for the assault.
Allen talks to Sway about how he initially met Tupac, the change he saw in him after he played the role of Bishop in Juice and Pac's erratic behavior on the set of Menace II Society.
Allen Hughes discusses meeting Tupac Shakur
Allen Hughes talks about Tupac's erratic behavior on the set of Menace II Society
MTV News reports on Tupac's conviction for assaulting Allen Hughes
Tupac talks about assaulting the Hughes brothers on Yo! MTV Raps
**UPDATE** January 14th.
Over the weekend we got the first part of Allen Hughes' story about his relationship with Tupac Shakur and the beginning of their fall out.
Today Sway releases the full interview where Hughes talks about Tupac getting fired from his role in Menace II Society and Tupac later having 12-13 members of The Rolling 40's crips jump him.
According to Hughes the fight started off between just himself and Tupac. He claims that he lifted Pac over his head and slammed him down on the trunk of a truck. As he was getting ready to punch Tupac, The Rolling 40's molly whopped him.
Hughes later acknowledges Tupac's immense talent.
"The tragedy is he was just a rock star," Hughes said. "He was just that talented and more talented than we ever got to see. In fact the thing I tell people is most people don't know is he was dummying himself down for his rap verses. He was making it more simple Simon so people could understand it and connect to it. He was vastly more intelligent than his rhymes or his music. He was a voracious reader. He was a sweet, sweet kind man. He was multi-talented we know that. He had a humongous heart. And the thing with him, like a lot of young black males he had mad daddy issues. I got them that's why we connected. I feel like we lost someone bigger than Marilyn Monroe or James Dean."
Hughes also criticizes Quentin Tarantino for his excessive use of the word "n*gger" in his movies.
The story picks up at the 15-minute mark of the video below.
Allen Hughes talks about his his fight with Tupac, getting jumped by crips, criticizes Quentin Tarantino for use of the n-word in his films and praises Tupac's talent.
As Hurricane Sandy churned inland as a downgraded storm, residents up and down the battered mid-Atlantic region woke on Tuesday to lingering waters, darkened homes and the daunting task of cleaning up from once-in-a-generation storm surges and their devastating effects.
Power remained out for roughly six million people, including a large swath of Manhattan. Early risers stepped out into debris-littered streets that remained mostly deserted as residents awaited dawn to shed light on the extent of the damage. Bridges remained closed, and seven subway tunnels under the East River remained flooded.
A wind-tossed construction crane atop one of the tallest buildings in the city still dangled 80 stories over West 57th Street, across the street from Carnegie Hall, after coming loose during the storm.
The storm was the most destructive in the 108-year history of New York City’s subway system, said Joseph J. Lhota, the chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, in an early morning statement. “We are assessing the extent of the damage and beginning the process of recovery,” he said, but did not provide a timetable for restoring transit service to a paralyzed city.
Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey called the damage to his state “incalculable” and said the Jersey Shore had been “devastated.” As he spoke on a series of morning talk shows on Tuesday, rescue teams were rushing to the aid of those stranded in Atlantic City and in areas of Bergen County where he said tidal waters had overwhelmed a protective natural berm.At least 11 deaths — including 7 in the New York region — were tied to the storm, which toppled trees and sparked fires in several areas, state authorities said. Falling limbs became deadly bludgeons in three of the New York deaths and two in Morris County, N.J., where The Associated Press reported a man and a woman were killed when a tree fell on their car Monday evening.
Nine hours after making landfall at 8 p.m. on Monday, the storm — already reclassified as a post-tropical cyclone — weakened as it passed west across southern Pennsylvania, though it still packed maximum sustained winds of 65 miles per hour, the National Hurricane Center said. It was expected to turn north and head for Canada late on Tuesday.
The storm had picked up speed as it roared over the Atlantic Ocean on Monday, grinding life to a halt for millions of people in more than a half-dozen states, with extensive evacuations that turned shorefront neighborhoods into ghost towns.
Hurricane-force winds extended up to 175 miles from the center of the storm; tropical-storm-force winds spread out 485 miles from the center. Forecasters said tropical-storm-force winds could stretch all the way north to Canada and all the way west to the Great Lakes. Heavy snow was expected in some states.
Businesses and schools were closed, roads were closed, and more than 13,000 airline flights were canceled. Even the Erie Canal was shut down.
Subways were shut down from Boston to Washington, as were Amtrak and the commuter rail lines. Flights were canceled at airports across the East Coast, including the three major airports in the New York City area. The wind-driven rain lashed sea walls and protective barriers in places like Atlantic City, where the Boardwalk was damaged as water forced its way inland. Foam was spitting, and the sand gave in to the waves along the beach at Sandy Hook, N.J., at the entrance to New York Harbor. Water was thigh-high on the streets in Sea Bright, N.J., a three-mile sand-sliver of a town where the ocean joined the Shrewsbury River.
“It’s the worst I’ve seen,” said David Arnold, watching the storm from his home in Long Branch, N.J. “The ocean is in the road, there are trees down everywhere. I’ve never seen it this bad.”
Fire Destroys Homes in Queens
In Breezy Point on the Rockaways, nearly 200 firefighters were still battling a blaze on Tuesday morning that destroyed at least 50 tightly-packed homes in the beach community. A Fire Department spokesman said the area was “probably the most flooded part of the city, so there are all sorts of complications.”
The surging water also caused extensive complications at NYU Langone Medical Center when a backup power system failed on Monday night, forcing the evacuation of patients to other facilities. Backup power also failed at Coney Island Hospital in southern Brooklyn, though critical patients had been evacuated in advance of the storm.In New York, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s office said late Monday night that at least five deaths in the statewere caused by the storm. About 7 p.m., a tree fell on a house in Queens, killing a 30-year-old man, the city police said. About the same time, two boys, ages 11 and 13, were killed in North Salem, in Westchester County, when a tree fell on the house they were in, according to the State Police. The storm was tied to another 3 deaths in Maryland, 2 in Connecticut and one in West Virginia, state authorities said.
As the storm lashed the city, waves topped the sea wall in the financial district in Manhattan, sending cars floating down streets. West Street, along the western edge of Lower Manhattan, looked like a river. The Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, known officially as the Hugh L. Carey Tunnel in memory of a former governor, flooded “from end to end,” the transportation authority said, hours after Governor Cuomo had ordered it closed to traffic. Officials said water also seeped into seven subway tunnels under the East River.
“In 108 years, our employees have never faced a challenge like the one that confronts us now,” Mr. Lhota, the transit authority chairman, said.
A replica of the H.M.S. Bounty, a tall ship built for the 1962 movie “Mutiny on the Bounty” starring Marlon Brando and used in the recent “Pirates of the Caribbean” series, sank off the North Carolina coast. The Coast Guard said the 180-foot three-masted ship went down near the Outer Banks after being battered by 18-foot-high seas and thrashed by 40 m.p.h. winds. The body of one crew member, Claudene Christian, 42, was recovered. Another crew member remained missing.
Delaware banned cars and trucks from state roadways other than “essential personnel.”
“The most important thing right now is for people to use common sense,” Gov. Jack A. Markell said. “We didn’t want people out on the road going to work and not being able to get home again.”
Extensive Power Failures
By early Monday evening, the storm had knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of homes, stores and office buildings. Consolidated Edison said that as of 1:30 a.m. Tuesday, 634,000 customers in New York City and Westchester were without power. Con Edison, fearing damage to its electrical equipment, shut down power pre-emptively in sections of Lower Manhattan on Monday evening, and then, at 8:30 p.m., an unplanned failure, probably caused by flooding in substations, knocked out power to most of Manhattan below Midtown, about 250,000 customers. Later, an explosion at a Con Ed substation on East 14th Street knocked out power to another 250,000 customers.
In New Jersey, more than two million customers were without power as of 1:30 a.m. Tuesday, and in Connecticut the total reached nearly 500,000 customers.
President Obama, who returned to the White House and met with top advisers, said Monday that the storm would disrupt the rhythms of daily life in the states it hit. “Transportation is going to be tied up for a long time,” he said, adding that besides flooding, there would probably be widespread power failures. He said utility companies had lined up crews to begin making repairs. But he cautioned that it could be slow going.
“The fact is, a lot of these emergency crews are not going to get into position to start restoring power until some of these winds die down,” the president said. He added, “That may take several days.”
Forecasters attributed the power of the storm to a convergence of weather systems. As the hurricane swirled north in the Atlantic and then pivoted toward land, a wintry storm was heading toward it from the west, and cold air was blowing south from the Arctic. The hurricane left more than 60 people dead in the Caribbean before it began crawling toward the Northeast.
“The days ahead are going to be very difficult,” Gov. Martin O’Malley of Maryland said. “There will be people who die and are killed in this storm.”
Alex Sosnowski, a senior meteorologist with AccuWeather, said potentially damaging winds would continue on Tuesday from Illinois to the Carolinas — and as far north as Maine — as the storm barreled toward the eastern Great Lakes.
Mr. Cuomo, who ordered many of the most heavily used bridges and tunnels in New York City closed, warned that storm surges could go two feet higher than that associated with Tropical Storm Irene last year. The PATH system, buses and the Staten Island Ferry system were also suspended.
The storm headed toward land with weather that was episodic: a strong gust of wind one minute, then mist. More wind. Thin sheets of rain dancing down the street. Then, for a moment, nothing. The sky lightened. Then another blast of rain. Then more wind.
In some places, caravans of power-company trucks traveled largely empty roads; Public Service Electric and Gas said that 600 line workers and 526 tree workers had arrived from across the country, but could not start the repairs and cleanup until the wind had subsided, perhaps not until Wednesday.
They will see a landscape that, in many places, was remade by the storm. In Montauk, at the end of Long Island, a 50-seat restaurant broke in half. Half of the building floated away and broke into pieces on the beach.
The 110-foot-tall lighthouse at Montauk Point — the oldest in the state, opened in 1796 — shuddered in the storm despite walls that are six feet thick at the base. The lighthouse keeper, Marge Winski, said she had never felt anything like that in 26 years on the job.
“I went up in the tower and it was vibrating, it was shaking,” she said. “I got out of it real quick. I’ve been here through hurricanes, and nor’easters, but nothing this bad.”
News coverage
Explosion at NYC Con Edison Plant
Amateur Video Captures Sandy's Power
Record flooding at NYC's Battery Park
Mayor Michael Bloomberg addresses flooded New York City residents
Posted by 80 Promos on September 19, 2012 at 7:46pm
80MinAssassin is back wit another burner for the streets & internet users who love that trap muzik #KAPOW....For info on mixtape slots and hosting email 80promos@gmail.com
Posted by ChasinDatPaper on September 13, 2012 at 10:03am
BET has announced the nominations for the 2012 BET Hip Hop Awards.
Kanye West leads the pack with 17 nods including Best Hip Hop Video, Best Live Performer and Lyricist of the Year. Atlanta rapper 2 Chainz is nominated in 13 categories, including Best Hip Hop Video, MVP oF the Year and Track of the Year.
The event takes place in Atlanta on Saturday, September 29, 2012. It will air on October 9.
Mike Epps is back again as host of the event. This marks the fourth time the comedian will take on that role.
Hip-hop mogul Chris Lightywill be honored during the show.
Check out the full list of nominees below.
Best Hip Hop Video 2 Chainz f/ Drake – No Lie
ASAP Rocky – Goldie
Drake f/ Lil Wayne – HYFR
Wale f/ Miguel – Lotus Flower Bomb
Kanye West, 2 Chainz, Big Sean & Pusha T – Mercy
Reese’s Perfect Combo Award 2 Chainz f/ Drake – No Lie
Drake f/ Lil Wayne & Tyga – The Motto
J. Cole f/ Missy Elliott – Nobody’s Perfect
Wale f/ Miguel – Lotus Flower Bomb
Kanye West, 2 Chainz, Big Sean & Pusha T – Mercy
Best Live Performer ASAP Rocky
Drake
J. Cole
The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West)
Kanye West
Lyricist Of The Year J. Cole
Jay-Z
Kendrick Lamar
Nas
Kanye West
Video Director Of The Year ASAP Rocky & Sam Lecca
Benny Boom
Chris Robinson
Kanye West
Hype Williams
Producer Of The Year Hit-Boy
J. Cole
J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League
No I.D.
Kanye West
MVP Of The Year 2 Chainz
J. Cole
Jay-Z
Rick Ross
Kanye West
Track Of The Year Ca$h Out – Cashin Out
Meek Mill f/ Rick Ross – Ima Boss
The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West) – Niggas In Paris
2 Chainz f/ Drake – No Lie
Drake f/ Lil Wayne & Tyga – The Motto
CD Of The Year Common – The Dreamer, The Believer
Drake – Take Care
J. Cole – Cole World: The Sideline Story
The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West) – Watch The Throne
Young Jeezy – TM 103: Hustlerz Ambition
DJ Of The Year DJ Drama
DJ Enuff
DJ Envy
Funkmaster Flex
DJ Khaled
Rookie Of The Year 2 Chainz
ASAP Rocky
Ca$h Out
Future
Meek Mill
Made You Look Award (Best Hip Hop Style) 2 Chainz
ASAP Rocky
Big Sean
Nicki Minaj
Kanye West
Best Club Banger Ca$h Out – Cashin Out
Drake f/ Lil Wayne & Tyga – The Motto
Future – Same Damn Time
The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West) – Niggas In Paris
Kanye West, 2 Chainz, Big Sean & Pusha T – Mercy
Best Mixtape ASAP Rocky – LiveLoveASAP
Joey Bada$$ – 1999
Meek Mill – Dreamchasers 2
Rick Ross – Rich Forever
Wiz Khalifa – Taylor Allderdice
Sweet 16: Best Featured Verse 2 Chainz – Mercy
Diddy – Same Damn Time (Remix)
Drake – Stay Schemin
Ludacris – Same Damn Time (Remix)
T.I. – Magic (Remix)
Hustler of the Year 2 Chainz
Jay-Z
Lil Wayne
Rick Ross
Kanye West
Impact Track Lupe Fiasco – Around My Way (Freedom Ain’t Free)
Lupe Fiasco – Bitch Bad
Nas – Daughters
The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West) – Murder To Excellence
People’s Champ Award 2 Chainz f/ Drake – No Lie
Driicky Graham – Snapbacks & Tattoos
Meek Mill f/ Rick Ross – Ima Boss
The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West) – Niggas In Paris
Kanye West, 2 Chainz, Big Sean & Pusha T – Mercy
Best Hip-Hop Online Site 2DopeBoyz.com
AllHipHop.com
Complex.com
HipHopDX.com
NahRight.com
RapRadar.com
WorldstarHipHop.com
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