Suburban Chicago Firefighters Suspended Over Refusal to Remove American Flag Decals

Four Illinois firemen have been relieved of duty after refusing to comply with a department-wide directive that prohibited stickers and decals on their helmets and lockers.

A representative from Service Employees International Union Local 73, which represents the firefighters, met for an hour with Chief Bronaugh Tuesday afternoon, with the union hoping Chief Bronaugh would modify his order. Instead, he ordered the firefighters sent home immediately, pending disciplinary action.

Union spokesman Adam Rosen said he is “shocked” that an agency of first responders would enforce such an order the week of Sept. 11.

The four firefighters said they were told that the order was issued because of racial discord on the department. The four, who include two white firefighters, a black firefighter, and a fourth firefighter who is a Cuban émigré, said no such problems exist.

Instead, they trace it back to a decision by several firefighters to replace a tattered American flag last month in one of Maywood’s firehouses. The new flag mysteriously disappeared early Aug. 23. The order on decals was issued last week.

Maywood has had no such order in the recent past. One of the four firefighters, Dave Flowers Jr., inherited his locked from his father when his father retired from the Maywood Fire Department and has stickers dating back several decades that Rosen calls “irreplaceable.” One is a U.S. Marine Corps insignia issued to Vietnam veterans.

The Maywood fire chief told CBS 2 the order rose out of a need to banish inappropriate messages and gave an example of a photo that could be seen as racist.

The image in question was reportedly a picture of a chimpanzee smoking, which town officials could be construed as racist. However, that picture had been removed nearly 8 years ago by a firefighter that has since retired. Former Maywood firefighter Michael Hess said put up the picture to 'jam up' a colleague who was smoking.

Multiple Wildfires Force Thousands to Evacuate in San Diego County

At least nine separate wildfires throughout northern San Diego county have forced thousands of residents in the cities of Carlsbad, Escondido, San Marcos and Fallbrook, CA as well as the 4S Ranch section of San Diego and the nearby Camp Pendleton Marine Corps base to flee their homes as firefighters battled the approaching blaze.

Most of the fires were sparked on Thursday and spread quickly due to dry vegetation, unseasonably warm weather and 50 MPH Santa Ana winds blowing in from the desert. Although firefighters have been going after the wildfires with a sustained air and ground attack, the Poinsettia fire in Carlsbad has destroyed at least 30 homes while the San Marcos fire was large enough to spawn its own weather system as it moved southeast to the neighboring city of Escondido.



Authorities have not ruled out arson and arrests have been made in Escondido and Oceanside, CA of individuals who were seen staring small brushfires in a dry riverbed and city parks. A 57 year old man in Oceanside was arrested after witnesses saw him fanning flames of a fire in the San Luis Rey riverbed while two teenagers were arrested in Escondido on Thursday after multiple witnesses saw them trying to start brush fires in a city park and by a street adjacent to a shopping mall. In Escondido, the fires were quickly doused by nearby homeowners and investigators believe the two teenagers- identified as 19 year old Isiah Silva and a 17 year old accomplice- were copycats who played no role in the larger fires in San Marcos, Carlsbad and Camp Pendleton.

The Poinsettia fire in Carlsbad has already caused one fatality- on Thursday night, firefighters checking an already-burned area for hot spots discovered the charred remains of a man in what was believed to be a transient camp in Carlsbad. A local TV station also broadcast amateur video of what they believe to be the ignition point for the Carlsbad blaze- a golf course along Poinsettia Lane.

Authorities were able to get the San Marcos fire 10% contained on Thursday night and evacuation orders were lifted for parts of San Marcos and Fallbrook overnight- although police set up a checkpoint and would only allow local residents with ID into some of the affected areas.

Meanwhile, military and civilian crews were battling to contain a 14,500 acre wildfire on USMC Camp Pendleton on Friday- although the Marine Corps base is generally wide open, evacuation orders were given to for some housing areas and the town of Fallbrook at the eastern end of Camp Pendleton.

At Least Two Boston Firefighters Killed Battling 9-Alarm Back Bay Blaze

Two Boston firefighters were killed in the line of duty and at least 13 more were injured on Wednesday while fighting a 9-alarm fire in a Beacon Street brownstone. The fire started in the basement of the building but quickly burned all the way up through the roof, although the building's residents were able to evacuate in time using the fire escape. Officials with the Boston Fire Department believe the blaze spread as quickly as it did due to abnormally strong winds coming off the Charles River on Wednesday afternoon.

One woman who lived in the building and was home when the fire started said, "I was in the apartment and I heard shouting and yelling and the people that were in the building next door were going down the fire escape and two seconds later, the firemen were there. So I looked out the window and I saw the smoke and I was like I gotta get out of here so I grabbed my laptops and this box and I left. And then, as I was leaving the smoke was coming into the building, into the apartment and the firemen were there yelling, 'Everybody get out.'"

She was on the second floor of the building when the fire started. Once out of the building, she saw smoke and people throwing suitcases out of the windows.

Another man, who was on the first floor of the building when the fire started, said, "I saw the smoke start coming up, I saw people climbing down from the top floor. The fire and police were there almost right away. There was a lot of smoke, there was a small explosion at the beginning of the fire, and it just got worse and worse."

Honoring the firefighters lost: Firefighter Michael Kennedy (left) and Lieutenant Edward Walsh http://t.co/qxBphTp6bR pic.twitter.com/OzVRZkfoaS

— Boston.com (@BostonDotCom) March 27, 2014

The cause of the blaze hasn't been determined yet, but a Boston Fire Department spokesman identified the two firefighters who were killed as Lt Ed Walsh and fireman Michael Kennedy. Walsh, 43, had been with the department for nearly a decade and was married with three children. Kennedy was a 33 year old combat veteran in the Marine Corps and resided in Hyde Park. Both firemen were with Engine 33- Kennedy was pulled alive from the building but later died at Massachusetts General Hospital while Walsh was found in the basement of the building.

Wednesday's fire is the deadliest fire in Boston since the 1972 Vendome Hotel Fire along Commonwealth Ave killed nine firemen when a portion of the hotel collapsed on the men and their truck.

Nineteen Members of Granite Mountain Hotshots Fire Crew Laid to Rest in Arizona

More than 6000 people- including Arizona governor Jan Brewer and Vice President Joe Biden- were in attendance for a memorial eulogizing the 19 firefighters killed on June 30th battling the Yarnell Hill blaze some 80 miles northwest of Phoenix.

Thousands of firefighters from departments and agencies across North America filled Tim’s Toyota Center arena for the memorial, joining relatives of the 19 hotshots, who perished in the deadliest wildland firefighting disaster in Arizona history.

Afterward, the families claimed their loved ones and prepared for individual funerals, which will begin today and continue into next week, in Arizona and in firefighters’ home states, including California, Oregon, Montana and Illinois.

More than anything, the memorial Tuesday was about firefighters, the 19 who died and the thousands who journeyed to Arizona to pay tribute. Inside the arena and outside were representatives from wildland crews and departments from almost every state and Canada.

Firefighters from other cities took up stations in Prescott to allow every member of the Prescott Fire Department to attend the service, a show of brotherhood that speakers mentioned often.

“Most people can’t comprehend the culture and bond of our profession,” said Harold Schaitberger, general president of the International Association of Fire Fighters. “The Granite Mountain Hotshot crew spent days, weeks at a time, deployed in the wilderness together and the only thing they had for certain was each other, their professional family. We all have two families, our loving families at home and our firefighter family on the job.”

As the memorial began, a procession of wildland firefighters filed in and stood at attention in front of the stage. Dignitaries and family members were never without a uniformed escort.

Family members were given several items in honor of the hotshots, including an American flag that had flown over the U.S. Capitol, an Arizona flag that had flown over the state Capitol and a bronzed Pulaski tool, used for more than a century by wildland firefighters to dig firebreaks and build trails.

Later in the service, the firefighting union presented the families with firefighters’ medals of honor, given to firefighters who die in the line of duty.

Near the end, Tim Hill, president of the Professional Fighters of Arizona, fought back tears as he described the ritual of the final alarm, a series of three bells sounded three times that marked the end of a firefighters’ service.

Afterward, buglers played echo taps and four AV-8B Harrier jets from the Marine Corps station in Yuma flew in formation over the arena, in honor of the aviation tradition in fighting wildfires, and of the three hotshots who had been Marines. In the ceremonial missing-man formation, one of the four rose from the group as it passed and pulled away into the sky.

Officials believe that the escape routes for the Prescott, AZ Fire Department's specialized wildfire crew was cut off by erratic, swirling winds as they were battling the Yarnell Hill fire on June 30, making it the single deadliest day for American firefighters since the loss of 343 FDNY firefighters in the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks against New York's World Trade Center. Although the crew was carrying emergency shelters that were to be used as a last resort, it's possible they never even had a chance to deploy them, or even if they were deployed they remained ineffective.

The Granite Mountain Hotshots- also known posthumously as the Yarnell 19- were also unique in that they were one of the few 'Hotshot' wildfire crews formed as part of a municipal fire department; most wildfire crews come from state or federal agencies. Those killed on Yarnell Hill that fateful day include Andrew Ashcraft, 29; Anthony Rose, 23; Christopher MacKenzie, 20; Clayton Whitted, 28; Dustin DeFord, 24; Garrett Zuppinger, 27; Grant McKee, 21; Jesse Steed, 36; Joe Thurston, 32; Joe Percin Jr, 24; Kevin Woyjeck, 21; Eric Marsh, 43; Robert Caldwell, 23; Scott Norris, 28; Sean Misner, 26; Travis Carter, 31; Travis Turbyfill, 27, Wade Parker, 22 and Billy Warneke, 25.


Yarnell Hill Fire from Congress, AZ from Matt Oss on Vimeo.

The fast moving Yarnell Hill fire was believed to have been sparked by lightning on June 28th and spread quickly by swirling winds in the mountainous area of central Arizona. Some 10 days after the death of the Granite Mountain hotshots, highway 89- the main route between Wickenburg, AZ and Prescott, AZ- reopened to through traffic. Some residents of the town of Yarnell began filing home shortly after Independence Day and the Yarnell Hill fire was at 90% containment.

At Least Thirteen Killed After Explosion From Runaway Train Derailment Levels Quebec Town Center

**UPDATE- 7/8- Local police have said they found eight more bodies around the derailment and blast site, bringing the death toll to 13 as of Monday.**

At least five people were killed and dozens remain unaccounted for in the southern Quebec town of Lac Megantic after a runaway freight train derailed and exploded in the town center early Saturday morning. The train was a Montreal, Maine & Atlantic unit oil train hauling crude oil from the Bakken formation in North Dakota to the JD Irving refinery in New Brunswick.

According to the MM&A, the 5-unit, 71 car train came to a stop at 11:25 PM Friday night at Nantes, a siding approximately 7 miles west of Lac Magantic. The engineer had tied down the train and left for a nearby hotel while the train was awaiting a fresh crew when it began rolling downhill and into Lac Megantic. Eyewitnesses said that by the time the runaway train had reached the center of Lac Megantic, it was moving at considerable speed. The locomotives were found a half mile from the derailed tank cars that triggered the blast while At least four of the derailed tank cars caught fire and exploded. Officials from MM&A and Transport Canada are hoping the locomotive's event recorder (a railroad equivalent to a plane's black box) can be recovered from the five units.

The downtown area contained a number of bars that were still full at the time of the derailment and amateur video clips showed an apocalyptic scene with orange flames shooting skyward along with thick billowing smoke over the pastoral southern Quebec town. The intensity of the heat from the derailed tank cars prevented firefighters from battling the blaze and checking the area for survivors. Firefighters from Franklin County, ME were also dispatched to aid their Quebec counterparts after the derailment.

The bodies recovered from the downtown area were burnt beyond recognition and will be sent to a forensic lab in Montreal so that they can be identified by their DNA or dental records. Local officials also said that the town hall and library were gone- the library archived a number of historic documents from the area.

Meanwhile, investigators from the Sûreté du Québec [Quebec Provincial Police] have not ruled out sabotage. Officials from the MM&A said there were also a number of failsafe mechanisms that should've prevented the train from rolling away on its own. Firefighters from nearby Nantes- where the train was initially stopped- received reports of a locomotive fire on the parked MM&A train. According to Nantes fire chief Patrick Lambert, the blaze was extinguished shortly before midnight and fire crews had left, believing the scene was secure.

Montreal, Maine & Atlantic C30-7 #3613 charges up the grade between Lac Megantic and Nantes with Montreal-bound train #1 in October 2010- before the line started handling oil from the Bakken shale in North Dakota destined for refining in New Brunswick. Frank Jolin photo

Hauling dedicated unit oil trains to the JD Irving refinery in New Brunswick has been boon for northeastern regionals such as Montreal Maine & Atlantic or Pan Am. The increase in oil traffic allowed the MM&A to hire new employees for the first time since announcing 75 layoffs at the end of 2009.

The unit crude trains originate in the Bakken Formation in North Dakota and are typically handed off the either the MM&A in Montreal by Canadian Pacific or to Pan-Am (by CSX) in Rotterdam Jct, NY where they continue eastward to the New Brunswick Southern Railway for the final leg of their journey. Until fairly recently, both railroads had relied significantly on the fortunes of the forestry industry to pay the freight.

Earlier in the year, a Pan Am unit oil train derailed at Mattawamkeag, ME but the damage was limited to only a few gallon due to the fact that the train was approaching yard limits and already travelling at a reduced speed.

19 Firefighters Killed Fighting Arizona Blaze

Officials in Arizona have confirmed that 19 firefighters were killed on Sunday battling the Yarnell Hill fire some 75 miles to the northwest of Phoenix. The firemen were identified as part of a highly specialized ground unit of the Prescott, AZ fire department known as the Granite Mountain Hotshots.

The Granite Mountain Hot Shots, established in 2002, are an elite ground firefighting crew known for their innovative problem-solving and history of safe, aggressive fire suppression. Members of the crew are highly trained, come from diverse backgrounds, and work long hours in extreme environmental conditions doing the most demanding of fireline tasks.

They carry 40 pounds on their back, may hike in seven miles or more to where they need to work, and work up to 14 hours.

"They have to be ready to leave for an assignment on two hours' notice, which sometimes means missing family events," Ward said. "They have to be prepared to be on that assignment for 21 days, get two days rest at home, and possibly be sent out on another 21-day assignment."

When it's not fire season, the Granite Mountain Hot Shots may help with other emergency situations, including removal of downed tree limbs during winter and spring storms - since they are experts with chainsaws.

Earlier in the month, the Granite Mountain Hotshots and a sibling unit with the US Forest Service were busy fighting wildfires in New Mexico and closer to home with the June 18th Doce Fire in the Prescott National Forest.

The Granite Mountain Hotshots and other units were combatting a lightning sparked wildfire in the mountains outside the town of Yarnell over the weekend when the tragedy took place.

State forestry spokesman Art Morrison told the Associated Press that an estimated 200 homes were also destroyed by the blaze, which fed on dry grass near the communities of Yarnell and Grand Isla.

The sheriff's office has notified residents in the Peeples Valley area and in the town of Yarnell to evacuate.

Earlier Sunday, the fire prompted the evacuation of at least 50 homes in the Buckhorn, Model Creek and Double A Bar Ranch areas about 85 miles northwest of Phoenix.

The wildfire also forced the closure of about 15 miles of state Route 89, the Arizona Department of Transportation announced. The department did not have an estimate of how long the closure would last but advised drivers to use U.S. 93 or Interstate 17 as alternate routes.

The Yarnell Hill Fire prompted evacuations in the Model Creek, Buckhorn and Double A Bar Ranch areas about 85 miles northwest of Phoenix. The blaze also was within 200 yards of the Model Creek School.

Crews cleared brush and did other work around the evacuated homes to help guard against the fire.

On Sunday afternoon, the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office called residents in the Peeples Valley area and in the town of Yarnell, telling them to evacuate.

Two hundred firefighters are now working at the fire, but an additional 130 firefighters and more water- and retardant-dropping helicopters and aircraft are on their way.

Yarnell is a town of about 600 on Arizona route 89 (formerly US 89) between Wickenburg and Prescott, AZ and is the first town northbound motorists will encounter as they drive north out of the desert and into the mountains. Reports indicate that half the structures in the town of Yarnell have been lost.

BREAKING- MASS EVACUATIONS AFTER HUGE EXPLOSION OUTSIDE OF WACO, TX INJURE HUNDREDS

Multiple explosions have at a fertilizer plant in north-central Texas has destroyed scores of homes and prompted the evacuation of a town of about 2700 people just outside of Waco.

Tommy Muska, the mayor of West, which is a community north of Waco, said at a news conference he did not know yet how many people were injured or killed.

KWTX reports dozens have been killed citing a hospital official, but Fox News has not confirmed the report.

MyFoxDFW.com reports as many as 300 people were taken away from the scene with injuries.

Among the damaged buildings was the West Rest Haven Nursing Home, from which first-responders evacuated 133 patients, some in wheelchairs. "We did get there and got that taken care of," Muska said.

Information was hard to come by in the hours after the blast, with even Texas Gov. Rick Perry saying state officials were waiting for details about the extent of the damage.

"We are monitoring developments and gathering information as details continue to emerge about this incident," Perry said in a statement. "We have also mobilized state resources to help local authorities. Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of West, and the first responders on the scene."

Aerial footage showed fires still smoldering in the ruins of the plant and in several surrounding buildings, and people being treated for injuries on a flood-lit local football field, which had been turned into a staging area for emergency responders.

Debby Marak told The Associated Press that when she finished teaching her religion class Wednesday night, she noticed a lot of smoke in the area across town near the plant, which is near a nursing home.

She said she drove over to see what was happening, and that when she got there, two boys came running toward her screaming that the authorities ordered everyone out because the plant was going to explode.

She said she drove about a block when the blast happened.

"It was like being in a tornado," Marak, 58, said by phone. "Stuff was flying everywhere. It blew out my windshield."

"It was like the whole earth shook."

She drove 10 blocks and called her husband and asked him to come get her. When they got to their home about 2 miles south of town, her husband told her what he'd seen: a huge fireball that rose like "a mushroom cloud."

The explosion caused the roof of what appeared to be a housing complex of some kind to collapse. In aerial footage from NBC's Dallas-Fort Worth affiliate, KXAS, dozens of emergency vehicles could be seen amassed at the scene. Entry into West was slow-going, as the roads were jammed with emergency vehicles rushing in to help out.

Authorities set up a staging area on a flood-lit high school football field, where the injured were being treated or taken to area hospitals via road or helicopter.

Glenn A. Robinson, the chief executive of Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center in Waco, told CNN that his hospital had received 66 injured people for treatment, including 38 who were seriously hurt. He said the injuries included blast injuries, orthopedic injuries, large wounds and a lot of lacerations and cuts. The hospital has set up a hotline for families of the victims to get information, he said.

Reports from the area incidate volunteer firefighters from the town of West were at the West Fertilizer plant fighting a blaze shortly before the first massive blast. First responders had initially set up a triage center at the local high school's football field, but had to evacuate further away to the West community center due to concerns over toxic fumes from the plant and secondary explosions. In fact, the FAA has placed a temporary flight restriction over the site of the blast and firefighters were reportedly steeting clear of the blast site early Thursday morning due to the fumes. To further complicate things, thunderstorms are expected to move into the area overnight.

There have been no firm estimates of casualties from the explosions, but one public safety official said they could expect at least 60 killed in the initial blast. Six firefighters are also unaccounted for- although there has been no word on which agency.

Ammonia-based fertilizer can be used as either an explosive in addition to its intended use as a fertilizer. Most infamously, domestic terrorist Timothy McVeigh used a truckload of ammonia-nitrate to blow up the Alfred P Murrah federal building in Oklahoma City in 1995. The explosion comes within days of two infamous events in Texas and Oklahoma- McVeigh's bombing in 1995 and the deadly 1993 FBI raid on the Branch Davidian compound in Elk, TX, just outside of Waco and some 20 miles away from West.

The blast also coincided with the 66th anniversary of the Texas City explosion, where a fire on board the French flagged Grandcamp docked in Chambers County detonated more than 2000 tons of ammonium nitrate in the cargo hold, killing more than 500 people.

The town of West itself is located about 20 miles north of Waco along Interstate 35 and the Union Pacific's mainline between Austin and the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Sandy Hook Victims Laid to Rest This Week

Police and firefighter honor guards were present at funerals throughout the Connecticut town of Newtown as victims's from last week's horriffic Sandy Hook Elementary school massacre were laid to rest. Among some of the firefighters present were New York's Bravest for the funeral of 7 year old Daniel Barden. According to Daniel's parents, Barden idolized his father's cousins who were FDNY firefighters.

The first-grader, frozen in time with a gap-toothed smile in a photo distributed by his family, was to be remembered in a morning service at St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church in Newtown and then laid to rest. Firefighters gathered outside the red-brick church, standing silently alongside the black hearse as mourners filed in.

This is a part of our extended family,” said Lt. Eddie Boles, who works with Daniel's cousins as a firefighter in New York, about 65 miles south of Newtown. “After 9/11 the whole country extended its sympathy to New York so we're here to show our support for this community."

Daniel, who had a brother and sister, was described by loved ones as “the light of his family's life” and an active boy who played soccer and swam on the Newtown Torpedoes swim team.

Fringe hate group and professional picketers Westboro Baptist Church announced their plans to picket the funeral for the students and faculty of Sandy Hook with signs proclaiming Lanza's murder spree was God's retribution. Over the weekend, hackers from Anonymous had boasted they were able to release personal information from the Westboro church and post it online [Aaron Worthing explains why as big a bunch of assholes Westboro may be, we should still be concerned about erronious/outdated info being released- NANESB!]

Meanwhile, the media had incorrectly identified gunman Adam Lanza's mother and first shooting victim, Nancy, as a former teacher at Sandy Hook immediately after the attack [they also incorrectly identified the shooter as Lanza's older brother who was in New York City at the time- NANESB!]. Reports had been circulating that Nancy Lanza was getting ready to commit her youngest son to a psychiatric institution- although under Connecticut law those records are sealed- which may have triggered her son's killing spree.

The list of victims at the elementary school include the following

-Charlotte Beacon, Age 6

-Daniel Barden, Age 7

-Rachel Davino, Age 21

-Olivia Engel, Age 6

-Josephine Gay, Age 7 (her birthday was reportedly a few days prior to the shooting)

-Ana Marquez-Greene, Age 6

-Dylan Hockley, Age 6

-Dawn Hocksprung, Age 47

-Madaline Hsu, Age 6

-Catherine Hubbard, Age 6

-Chase Kowalski, Age 7

-Jesse Lewis, Age 6

-James Mattioli, Age 6

-Grace McDonnel, Age 7

-Anne Marie Murphy, Age 52

-Emilie Parker, Age 6

-Jack Pinto, Age 6

-Noah Pozner, Age 6

-Caroline Previdi, Age 6

-Jessica Rekos, Age 6

-Avielle Richman, Age 6

-Lauren Rousseau, Age 20

-Mary Sherlach, Age 56

-Victoria Soto, Age 27

-Benjamin Wheeler, Age 6

-Allison Wyatt, Age 6

New York's WABC also posted a brief bio of each of the victims.

After the winter break, the surviving students and faculty of Sandy Hook will be attending Chalk Hill elementary in neighboring Monroe, CT. The school had been shuttered in recent years, but officials with the education department are confident they can have the building re-opened by early January.

Entire City Block- Including Strip Club- Levelled in Huge Blast in Springfield, MA

A massive explosion destroyed a strip club and levelled an entire city block in western Massachusetts, scattering glass shards and bricks early Friday night.

The explosion happened after a gas leak in the area, which was reported around 4:20 P.M.

The loud boom, which came just after 5:00, could be heard and felt as far away as Hardwick, Granby, Belchertown, and Monson. In downtown, the explosion sent a huge cloud of smoke into the air, and people standing nearby were knocked to their feet.

The Scores gentlemen's club was destroyed in the explosion.

Scores was closed on Friday, sparing exotic dancers [as depicted by Carrie Keagan in the animated GIF above- NANESB!] from any immediate harm. Police and fire were reportedly already on the scene when the explosion took place. Although the blast injured 18 people, officials said there were no fatalities- many of the injured were firefighters and the area was already in the process of being evacuated.

Mayor Dominic Sarno and Massachusetts Lt Gov Tim Murray were attending a tree-lighting ceremony across town when the explosion took place. State Fire marshall Stephen Coan said that his agency would be responsible for investigating the cause of the blast.

While most of the damage was sustained by commercial properties, officials condemned at least 40 nearby apartment units after the explosion and the number is expected to grow.

Springfield is Western Massachusetts' largest city and is perhaps best known as being the home of the Basketball Hall of Fame and Theodore Geisel- who would go on to be the author known as Dr Seuss. Some portions of the city are still rebuilding from a tornado that ripped through the city in June 2011.

Trouble in Electric City? Pennsylvania Mayor Slashes Police And Firefighter Salaries to Minimum Wage

Does anybody remember how the Democrats and public employee unions were warning people prior to last month's Wisconsin recall election that if Gov. Walker retained his office, it would give licensce to all sorts of drastic cuts among public sector employees salaries and benefits?

Recently added Scranton Police Department prisoner transport.

It turns out they were at least half right- only it seems as though its Democrat officeholders who are taking a chainsaw to the wages of cops and firemen.

Local 60 of the International Association of Firefighters, Fraternal Order of Police E.B. Jermyn Lodge 2 and International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Local 2305 filed an injunction against Scranton, PA mayor Chris Doherty slashed the wages of nearly 400 city employees to the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour.

The unions each have separate contracts with the city, the mayor cannot unilaterally slash pay outside the bounds of contracts and without any negotiations, and his decision is legally unfounded, according to the lawsuit filed in Lackawanna County Court by the unions' attorney, Thomas Jennings of Philadelphia.

The lawsuit also claims the unilateral action violates state Act 111 and other labor laws. The suit claims that if the pay cuts stand, they would have a "devastating immediate impact" on workers by creating their inability to feed their families or maintain any semblance of a decent standard of living; pay medical bills and other expenses; pay for child care in some cases, particularly for single parents, thus making it impossible for them to work; and pay mortgages, loans and other bills that would destroy their credit ratings.

Doherty, a Democrat elected to his third term in 2009, made the decision to unilaterally drastically slash wages last month in part to help secure a $16 million loan. According to some reports, the city of Scranton had less than $5000 in the bank last week.

In addition to the salary cuts- including his own- Doherty has also proposed implementeing a hike on property taxes by as much as 78% over the next three years. The Scranton City Council has rejected Doherty's tax hike on multiple occasions. The IAFF Local 60 reports that in 2011, the city shut down two Scranton Fire Department Engine companies. The city of Scranton has a Democrat in the mayor's office for the last 22 years.

Some morbid speculation on my part, but if this persists how difficult do you think its going to be to bribe a police officer who's making minimum wage? This blog's most recent Borderline Psychosis entry highlighted a pair of Texas deputies who were making more than their counterparts in Scranton, yet were willing to escort drug shipments for payments of $500 each. This is not to impugn the integrity of the current officers of the Scranton PD, but Mayor Doherty made it that much more difficult for them to pay their bills. While I suspect a number of officers would seek employment with another agency or take retirement, one would have to wonder about the quality of their replacements if the minimum wage situation is prolonged in any way in Scranton.

With a population of over 76,000, the northeastern Pennsylvania city is the 6th largest in the Keystone state and is perhaps best known for being the setting of the fictional Dunder-Mifflin Paper Company in the American version of The Office- even though most of the show's scenes are filmed in Hollywood.

A trolley from Scranton's Electric City Trolley Museum unloads passengers as a charter train with Pennsylvania E-8s arrives at Steamtown National Historic Site in 2007. Christopher Blaszczyk photo.

Dubbed the Electric City for its early status as the leader in mining relatively clean burning anthricite coal, Scranton is also home to Steamtown National Historic Site and the adjacent Electric City Trolley Museum. The Lackawana County seat also remains an important transportation crossroads in the region with I-81 passing through the city while also serving as the northern terminus for the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike and western end of I-84. In addition to the rail and trolley museums highlighting Scranton's past, the Electric City remains a fairly active railroad hub with freight service provided by the Canadian Pacific, Norfolk Southern, Delaware-Lackawana, Reading & Northern and Luzerne & Susquehanna.

[Hat tip- Support Your Local Gunfighter]

Happy Independence Day From Not Another New England Sports Blog!

Maybe its just me, but it seems as though its an unwritten rule that just about every town in New England (or upstate New York) has their own vintage fire engine that's either in the process of being restored or is already restored and is prominently featured in the town's 4th of July parade.

Firetrucks making an appearence in the Milltown, NJ 4th of July Parade. Frank H. Conlon/Newark Star-Ledger photo

Of course, some of the towns that don't have a working vintage fire truck can usually get a more recent model from the current Fire Department fleet to pinch-hit for them in the parade- that's if they aren't already scheduled.

Fire Engine with Summit County Historical Society banner in the 2010 Frisco, CO Independence Day Parade.

Or they could always arrange to borrow one from a nearby town. In any case, my point is that any parade celebrating the 4th of July [or Memorial Day or Columbus Day depending on where you live- NANESB] seems incomplete without at least one fire engine participating.

It's a little like the 4th of July without fireworks, which unfortunately is a reality in many cities and towns in recent years. While some towns in the Rocky Mountain region have postponed or cancelled fireworks displays over valid concerns about wildfires, the coastal Oregon town of DePoe Bay was pressured by Federal wildlife officials to cancel this year's Independence Day fireworks display because the noise might scare off protected species like the Brandt's Cormorant. And why should we ever doubt the feds and environmentalists? I mean, they have such a high batting average when it comes to birds in Oregon, right?

The fireworks- held a day ahead of Independence Day so they wouldn't have to compete with larger towns- have taken place in DePoe Bay since 1993.

Of course, not everything about the 4th of July in the Pacific northwest is all about being a buzzkill. In addition to the traditional fire engines and vintage cars, one Seattle suburb has managed to make a good thing even better.

Two...actually three photos courtesey of Tuners & Models

In recent years, Kirkland, WA based swimwear retailer Bikini Beach has participated in the city's Independence Day parade, complete with models sporting bikinis adorned in the stars and stripes.

Kinda makes you wish your hometown had an internet-based swimwear and lingerie retrailer so that they could participate too, huh?

Four National Guardsmen Killed In C-130 Crash While Fighting South Dakota Blaze

MAFFs equipped C-130 dropping retardant on Colorado's Waldo Creek fire in June- Hyoung Chang Photo via Denver Post

An Air National Guard C-130 specially equipped to drop water or retardant on wildfires crashed while battling a blaze in the Black Hills region of South Dakota over the weekend, killing at least four crewmen.

Those killed in the crash have been identified as Lt. Col. Paul K. Mikeal, 42, of Mooresville, Maj. Joseph M. McCormick, 36, of Belmont, Maj. Ryan S. David, 35, of Boone, and Senior Master Sgt. Robert S. Cannon, 50. Two other crew members were seriously injured in the crash, but military officials have declined to identify them. The aircraft was from the North Carolina Air National Guard's Charlotte-based 145th Airlift Wing.

The crash prompted the grounding of six other MAFFs-equipped C-130 Hercules aircraft deployed to combat wildfires throughout the Western United States, although they were cleared to take off again by Tuesday afternoon.

Citing favorable a favorable shift in the wind, officials estimated that the White Draw fire north of Edgemont, SD was 50% contained by Tuesday.

With the crash and subsequent grounding of the MAFFS-euipped C-130s [Modular Airborne Firefighting System], there were less than a dozen fixed wing aircraft available to combat wildfires that have been sparked in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, South Daktoa, Utah, Airzona, New Mexico and Nevada. The nation's already-dwindling firefighting aircraft fleet was down to just 9 fixed wing aircraft after a deadly plane crash near the Nevada-Utah in June killed two crew members, a P2V tanker made a crash landing at a northern Nevada airport and another P2V was taken out of commission after large cracks were discovered in the airframe.

Meanwhile, in Colorado, evacuation orders were lifted for some parts of the city as fire officials said the devestating Waldo Canyon fire was around 70% contained. The fire, which began in a national forest about 11 days ago, destroyed about 350 homes in the Colorado Springs area and is the costliest wildfire in the history of Colorado.

Up to 32,000 Evacuated As Massive Wildfire Bears Down on Colorado Springs; Airborne Firefighting Capabilities At Low Ebb With Dwindling Fleet

**UPDATE- 6/27**- The Denver Post is reporting that FBI agents are on the ground in El Paso County, CO to determine if the Waldo Canyon Fire was the result of criminal activity.

Authorities have so far not even said whether they believe the blaze is human or naturally caused. But a string of fires set by an apparent serial arsonist in neighboring Teller County have caused rumors to swirl that the Waldo Canyon Fire could be the work of the same individual.

On Wednesday, El Paso County Sheriff's spokesman Jeff Kramer said, despite the rumors, there is no person of interest. Investigators are taking tips from anyone who may know what happened in Waldo Canyon.

On Tuesday evening, somebody left an anonymous post on the Colorado Springs Craigslist page claiming that the Waldo Canyon fire was in fact arson and they had witnessed the person responsible setting fires.

As firefighters braved triple-digit temperatures in Colorado's Front Range an out of control wildfire encroaching on western neighborhoods of Colorado Springs, CO and the campus of the US Air Force Academy has been deemed too dangerous to fully assess the damage so far.

The wildfire doubled in size overnight to about 24 square miles, and has so far forced mandatory evacuations for more than 32,000 residents, Colorado Springs emergency management director Brett Waters said. The fire burned about 10 acres of land along the southwest boundary of the academy's 28-square-mile boundary, but no injuries or damage to academy structures have been reported.

Steve Cox, an aide to Mayor Steve Bach, said Wednesday morning that the blaze has consumed dozens of houses elsewhere. A more precise figure wasn't available because of the intensity of the fire.

Heavy smoke and ash billowed from the mountain foothills west of the city. Bright yellow and orange flames flared in the night, often signaling another home lost to the Waldo Canyon Fire, which is the No. 1 priority for the nation's firefighters.

On Wednesday morning, the Waldo Canyon fire- the second biggest to strike Colorado in a decade- was estimated at only 5% containment. The fire started on June 23rd in an area about 10 miles northwest of Colorado Springs. Since then, firefighters have been hampered by high temperatures and the remote terrain which the Waldo Canyon started out in.

Included among the 32,000 evacuees in the mandatory evacuation order are personnel from the United States Air Force Academy. As of Wednesday morning, there was no word on whether or not an incoming class of 1,045 cadets would report as scheduled on Thursday.

The Waldo Canyon fire is one of a half dozen wildfires burning throughout Colorado this summer, with others scorching mountains and forests to the west of Boulder and Ft Collins, CO. Earlier this month, the High Park fire burned down nearly 200 homes and was responsible for the death of a 62 year old woman. The High Park fire was reportedly sparked by a lightning strike on June 9 and officials reported it was at 65% containment on Wednesday morning.

In the past decade, the total number of fixed wing firefighting aircraft at the US Forest Service's disposal has been reduced from 44 to 9 after two planes crashed in Nevada and Utah this month. Two of the pilots in Nevada were killed when their converted P2V tanker crashed into remote terrain near the Nevada-Utah border on June 3rd. That same day, another P2V tanker was taken out of comission after making a crash-landing when the landing gear wouldn't deploy.

While legislation authorizing the updating or adding to the nation's fleet of firefighting aircraft has enjoyed bipartisan support from lawmakers in recent years- particularly those representing Western states- Washington has been slow to act.

Federally approved contractors haven't fared much better. Within the last year, federal regulators ordered California-based Aero Union to cease operations at during massive wildfires in central Texas due to unspecified safety violations. Within weeks of the shutdown, Aero Union had filed for bankruptcy and was looking to auction off its assets.

Ealier this month, President Obama signed a bill rushed through the House and Senate that would hasten the addition of seven additional aerial tankers to the US Airborne firefighting inventory. However, these aircraft aren't expected to be ready for delivery until another two months.

To at least temporarily bridge the gap, a number of National Guard C-130s have been specially fitted to drop water or fire retardant and a trio of CV-580 twin engine air tankers loaned from Canada's Interagency Forest Fire Centre have been pressed into service or are on standby. The National Guard C-130s are severely restricted due to byzantine regulations regarding the ability for fight fire from the air.

Oregon-based Evergreen Aviation boasts an aerial tanker that uses a Boeing 747 platform and claims is can hold more than 20,000 gallons of water or fire retardant. Evergreen's 747 Supertanker had previously been deployed to fight wildfires in California, Arizona and Israel in recent years.

Anti-War Landlady in Boston Refuses To Rent Apartment to Veteran

To say this makes me angry would be the understatement of this relatively young 21st Century.

Remember this shit the next time the American left tries weaseling out of their blood libel of the US military over the last decade with the standard 'I support the troops, but not the war' platitudes.

Sgt. Joel Morgan, 29, tried to rent a two-bedroom apartment in the Savin Hill section of Dorchester from 63-year-old Janice Roberts.

“I’ve been deployed so many times, I really haven’t had much of a home,” he told WBZ-TV.

Morgan didn’t get the apartment.

According to the lawsuit, Roberts told Morgan his war service and her peace activism presented a “conflict of interest.”

“Because of what you told me about the Iraq war… we are very adamant about our beliefs… it’s just not comfortable for us… and I’m sure now that you know this, it would not be comfortable for you,” Roberts said in a voicemail to Morgan.

“I would suggest you do the right thing and look for a place less politically active or controversial.”

The divorced father has a young son and is training to be a Boston firefighter so he needs to live in town.

He was shocked and confused and that led him to sue.

“I’ve never been in that situation (being turned down for an apartment), so it was like, ‘I don’t understand what you mean, I just want to give you a check and rent an apartment,” Morgan told WBZ-TV.

“(It) just really, really disgusted me,” he said.

“It really freaked me out that ‘Is this what I’m going to be facing? Should I not let people know that I’m a combat vet?’

Military service members and veterans are part of a protected class in Massachusetts and, therefore, they cannot be discriminated against.

Since Sgt Morgan is studying to be a Boston firefighter, I wonder how Janice Roberts would feel about if her building caught on fire in the not-too-distant future and the first truck to show up had Morgan and another veteran on it. Would she stand by her principles and refuse their help knowing that at least one of them was a soldier who fought in a war she objected to?

How much do you want to bet that despite all the lip service being paid to 'honoring our returning vets', Janice Roberts and people with her worldview are perfectly happy voting for the politician whose idea to curb record unemployment among veterans is to dump them out in the wilderness in a rehash of the Depression-era CCC.

And for those of you who might object and say 'But Fenway- that's just one anti-war landlady. Don't you think it's unfair to paint a whole group with a broad brush based on the actions of one person?...where exactly were you with your objections when attendees at Tea Party raiilers were being judged on the basis of one or two birther signs? I've honestly stopped caring about the sensibilities of people who have made it quite unambiguous that they hate my guts LONG ago.

[Hat Tip: Weasel Zippers]

Dozens Killed As Tornadoes Tear Through Southern Indiana, Kentucky

At least 39 people were killed on Friday as a storm system moving through the Midwest spawned a number of lethal and fast moving tornadoes in southern Indiana and northern Kentucky.

Friday's outbreak of tornadoes was the deadliest in nearly 40 years and came less than 48 hours after the 'official' start of tornado season in the Midwest.

Robert Szappanos, a meteorologist with the weather service in Louisville, said the “super outbreak” resembled the historic 1974 tornadoes, when 63 people died in an area stretching from Southern Indiana to Southern Kentucky.

The weather service will send out teams today to determine exactly how many tornadoes struck the region and their intensity, he said.

But the destruction they left in their wake will take much longer to gauge.

In the town of Chelsea in Jefferson County, Ind., first responders found a 4-year-old boy and his great-grandparents lying on the ground 50 feet from where the elderly couple’s home was blown off its foundation and thrown more than 100 feet.

The child’s young father could be seen crying as he bent over next to a firefighter.
All three died of multiple blunt-force injuries, according to David Bell, the county’s Emergency Management director.

A man who lived nearby on Jackson Road also was killed when the storm slammed into his home, Jefferson County Sheriff John Wallace said.

To the east of Louisville, KY, the Fire Department for the small town of Milton, KY took a direct hit from a category EF2 tornado, demolishing the building and wrecking the fire engine inside.


In New Pekin, IN a 15 month old girl was found alive in a field along with the bodies of her parents and two siblings. However, Angel Babcock passed away from complications stemming from her injuries on Monday after being rushed to Kosair Children's Hospital in Louisville, KY.

The recovery and repair efforts throughout the region were complicated even further by a winter storm system that dumped anywhere from 3-5 inches of snow throughout the region overnight on Sunday.

Borderline Psychosis Update- Life Imitates Breaking Bad in NM; Key El Chapo Aide Killed in Durango Raid; Arrest Made in Tamaulipas Bus Slayings

Breaking Bad- Not just for Albuquerque high school chemistry teachers anymore!

NEW MEXICO: In a development that seemed like all it was missing was Agent Hank Schrader, the Albuquerque, NM office of the DEA announced a series of arrests in New Mexico stemming from an alleged marijuana, cocaine and methamphetamine distribution network that included an Albuquerque fireman and two pecan farmers in Southern New Mexico.

[A]uthorities arrested nine people, including the owners of a southern New Mexico pecan farm, in connection with a trafficking and money laundering ring that involved cocaine and heroin.

Prosecutors said the owners and operators of Pettit Farms and Nursery in Anthony, N.M., and their two sons were among those arrested Thursday. They were identified as Oscar Portillo Sr., his wife Sandra Portillo and sons Matthew Portillo and Oscar Portillo Jr.

According to a 24-count indictment, the farm was used as a place to store and sell drugs.

A team of federal, state and local law enforcement officers arrested the defendants Thursday and executed four search warrants, including one at the farm and three others at residences in El Paso, Texas.

Federal prosecutors said the Portillos allegedly sold drugs to an undercover agent on five separate occasions.

The indictment claims the couple asked the undercover agent to pay for the drugs with money orders which they subsequently cashed and deposited into bank accounts in the name of the farm. The agent was provided with invoices asserting that the agent had purchased pecan trees.

Officials with the Drug Enforcement Administration said the investigation targeted a ring that agents believed was responsible for the transportation of cocaine and marijuana shipments from Chihuahua, Mexico, to the U.S.

Meanwhile, a 7 year veteran of the Albuquerque Fire Department was ordered to remain jailed until trial after being arrested by Federal Agents.

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - An Albuquerque firefighter charged as part of a ring dealing drugs and laundering money with connections to a Mexican drug cartel will stay behind bars until he goes to trial

Drug Enforcement Administration agents arrested Steve Chavez last week along with 10 others in a major drug trafficking and money laundering operation.

The indictment alleges Chavez's role included shuffling nearly $350,000 in drug money in and out of bank accounts over several weeks last summer.

The feds searched his home where they said they found several loaded guns in the attic. They also reported finding an Uzi-style gun in Chavez's car along with an ounce of cocaine.

The feds added Chavez was dealing because he tested negative for drugs.

The judge said he was concerned about the drugs and types of guns found.

He was also worried that Chavez and other defendants had been spying on DEA at their offices.

A DEA agent testified Tuesday that Chavez talked about that after he was taken in for questioning

Chavez's alleged double-life brings to mind the fictitious Walter White from the AMC TV show Breaking Bad. In that series, Bryan Cranston portrays a mild-mannered high school chemistry teacher in Albuquerque who begins cooking methamphetamine with one of his former students as a quick means of leaving money behind for his family after being diagnosed with lung cancer.


DURANGO: A top aide to fugitive Sinaloa cartel boss Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman was shot and killed when a Special Operations unit of the Mexican Army raided a ranch in the state of Durango last week.

Mexican officials say members of an army special forces unit fatally shot a high-ranking aide to the country's most-wanted drug dealer in a gunfight in the northern state of Durango.

Army spokesman Gen. Ricardo Trevilla said Monday Luis Alberto Cabrera Sarabia was responsible for the operations of Guzman's Sinaloa Cartel in Durango and part of the neighboring state of Chihuahua.

The army says Sarabia is know as "The Architect," and was named to the role after the December arrest of his brother Felipe Cabrera Sarabia, or "The Engineer."

Sinaloa gunmen traded fire with troops during the operation to arrest Luis Cabrera Sarabia on Friday. One of the gunmen was slain and 11 others were captured. Four soldiers were hurt in the gunfight.

Guzman, who remains at large, also landed near the top the Forbes magazine 'Wealthiest People in the World' list.

Mass grave in Tamaulipas being unearthed last year.

TAMAULIPAS: Police in northern Mexico have arrested a member of Los Zetas who had reportedly confessed to murdering nearly 75 people in the northeastern state. Officials said the arrest was made on January 20, but authorities waited more than a week to make the announcement while details of Enrique Elizondo Flores' confession were being corroborated.

Nuevo Leon state security spokesman Jorge Domene said that Elizondo also admitted to killing at least 36 passengers who were pulled off of buses at gunpoint by masked gunmen last year.

Domene said the 35-year-old suspect told investigators he had been working in the area at least three years and that he was in charge of killing members of the rival Gulf drug cartel heading to the towns of Cerralvo and General Trevino. He and other gunmen last January began pulling passengers off of buses as they arrived at Cerralvo's bus station, Domene said.

They are among at least 92 bus passengers that the Zetas are accused of killing in three attacks in January and March 2011. Many the victims were originally from the central state of Guanajuato and had arrived in Cerralvo from the border city of Reynosa, Domene said.

Elizondo distinguished himself ``for torturing, maiming and then killing his victims,'' Domene said.

Last year, Mexican investigators unearthed mass graves near the town of San Fernando, Tamaulipas containing more than 190 bodies- many of them identified as passengers pulled off of buses travelling through Tamaulipas between January and April 2011. Prosecutors say a motive for the mass abductions and killings remains unclear, although they believe that some of the abductions were an attempt to forcibly recruit new members by the Zetas.

A number of police officers from the town of San Fernando were also arrested on suspicion that they were working for the Zetas and complicit in the mass abductions and killings.

ELSEWHERE IN TAMAULIPAS: Federal prosecutors in Mexico said they have launched an investigation of high-ranking officials in the volatile border state.

The probe came to light after it was learned prosecutors asked transportation officials to keep track of when the officials entered or left the country and advise the Federal prosecutors office of their activities. One airport official in Tamaulipas reportedly overstepped his authority and drafted a memo instructing that the targets of the investigation not be allowed to leave the country.

Although the Attorney General's office declined to name the specific individuals under investigation, three former governors of the state of Tamaulipas came forward and told the media they believed they were the ones under scrutiny.

Eugenio Hernandez, who left office in 2010, told local media he did not know why he was under investigation, and denied any links to organized crime.

Tomas Yarrington, whose term ended in 2004, wrote in a Twitter account linked to his website that he had learned he had been named in the case, and said he hoped authorities would explain why.

Manuel Cavazos, who left office in 1999, called the investigation "suspicious ... coming in an election campaign," and suggested it might have political overtones. He denied any wrongdoing.

All the former governors are members of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, which held Mexico's presidency for 71 years until President Felipe Calderon's National Action Party won the 2000 presidential elections.

The PRI's de-facto presidential candidate, Enrique Pena Nieto, currently leads in polls ahead of the July 1 elections.

Cavazos said "it would not be the first time that law enforcement has been used for political purposes, that has been done since 2000."

Cavazos is running for a seat in the Senate, and Pena Nieto was scheduled to visit Tamaulipas on Feb. 2, according to the PRI

In 2009, Federal officials arrested 12 mayors and 23 other public officials in the western state of Michoacan and charged them with protecting the La Familia cartel. All 35 were later acquited and released.

TEXAS: A Baytown, TX man received an 8-year Federal Prison sentence after being found guilty of selling weapons to the Zetas cartel, including an AK-47 variant that was recovered from the scene of the Feb 15th 2011 killing of US Customs and Immigration Enforcement Officer Jaime Zapata in San Luis Potosi, Mexico.

Manuel Gomez Barba, a 30-year-old U.S. citizen, pleaded guilty. Barba admitting that he had an intermediary buy the gun from a Beaumont pawn shop, and he had the serial number obliterated before it was sneaked south of the border.

According to the plea agreement in Houston, Barba recruited "straw purchasers" to buy Century Arms WASR-10 semi-automatic rifles.

Buyers would hand the guns to Barba, who told them they would not be traced back to them because serial numbers were being removed. Barba was not able to legally purchase the guns because he was under deferred adjudication for felony drug charges in Harris County.

It was not disclosed if the rifles that Barba illegally sent to Mexico were part of the BATF's ill-advised Operation Fast & Furious, which involved field-level agents being ordered to let the weapons 'walk' to Mexico while under surveillance.

NEW YORK: A Texas perfume retailer has been convicted of laundering drug money for the Sinaloa cartel in Manhattan Federal Court earlier this month.

Vikram Datta, 51, an immigrant from India who started his perfume business in Manhattan, showed no emotion as the sentence was meted out by Judge Lewis Kaplan.

“The defendant has shown little or no contrition,” said Kaplan, who also ordered Datta to forfeit property and $40 million.

A jury found Datta guilty of using his La Versailles Fragance company to launder narcotics proceeds for the Sinaola Cartel.

“This was a successful businessman taking in a ludicrous amount of cash, tens of thousands of dollars, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars, a day,” said prosecutor Peter Skinner.

Datta laundered Sinaloa drug money through what is known as the Black Market Peso Exchange, which became a favorite of Colombian cartels and traffickers beginning in the 1980s.

Even before the ascendancy of Pablo Escobar and the Colombian cartels, the Black Market Peso Exchange had been around for decades as a way to circumvent Colombian taxes and controls on foreign currency. Buying and selling dollars at the state-run banks in Colombia meant inviting several unwelcome questions on how those dollars were obtained or how they would be spent. The majority of the Colombian cartels' drugs were purchased in dollars, while the higher-ranking members of the cartels preferred to remain in Colombia- thus needing to conduct most business with Colombian pesos- the cartels and drug traffickers needed to find a way around these controls.

The cartels would eventually start selling the US Dollar-denominated drug money to various black market peso brokers at a discount. The broker would then take the dollars to a wholesaler in the USA and purchase quantities of electronics, appliances, cigarettes, liquor or luxury goods and import them to Colombia for the cartels. After the peso broker gets a cut for arranging the purchase and shipment of goods, the cartels then sell off the items at a slight markup in pesos, effectively laundering their drug proceeds and giving them the pesos they need to continue doing business in Colombia.

While Mexico doesn't have the strict control on foreign currencies that Colombia does, the cartels have adapted the methods of the Black Market Peso Exchange to launder their drug money.

Besides locations in Arizona, California and New York City, Vikram Datta sold perfume in the Texas border town of Laredo beginning in 2000. By 2009, Federal prosecutors allege that he was an experienced money launderer for the Sinaloa cartel. In 2010, Datta was introduced to a man who was identified as a perfume retailer in Baja California Sur but was actually an undercover Federal Agent.

Datta’s illegal transactions started slowly but quickly increased, court documents indicate. Transcripts from wiretaps over the next six months, which were admitted at trial, indicate that Datta accepted a $40,000 infusion to one of his stores in California and later agreed to wire $100,000 to customers in New York. According to court documents, over the course of a two-year government sting, he and other co-conspirators deposited more than $25 million of American currency in dozens of bank accounts.

At one point, prosecutors said, Datta told an undercover agent, posing as a perfume vendor, that his business was “just washing the whole money.” In a conversation that he had with the agent in New York in December 2010, captured on wiretap, Datta said that “a lot of cash is coming to me” and that he was “90 percent sure” that it was “all Sinaloa money.”

Datta was arrested in New York City in January 2011 while on his way to meet with the undercover agent. So far, 29 people have been charged in the Black Market Peso Exchange investigation- 20 have been convicted.

End of the Year Appeal From Not Another New England Sports Blog!

I seldom go into my personal affairs on this blog because let's face it....isn't there enough of that crap going around on the social networking sites to begin with?

However, I lost my grandfather not too long ago. As it turns out, this past week was our family's first-ever Christmas without him.

The final few years of his long and rewarding life was spent in a retirement home like few other- the Firemen's Home of New York State. The facility- located in Hudson, NY- is designed to accommodate volunteer firefighters from throughout New York State as well as their spouses. The camaraderie that goes with their trade extends into well into retirement at this facility. Aside from some of the traditional nursing home activities like bingo, other activities include group visits to parades and local firehouses. Physical therapy for the FASNY Firemen's home members also includes working on structures and rolling stock for the N-Scale F&H Model Railroad Association (altho' I understand they recently upgraded to a bigger O-Scale layout).

In 2007, a brand new $25 million 126,000 square foot facility opened up adjacent to the original 1892 Home [which had beer on tap and accommodations for family members staying overnight- NANESB!]. Both the new and the old Firemen's home are adjacent to the FASNY Museum of Firefighting. The Museum houses vintage firefighting apparatus and exhibits from across the country and around the world while the Members of the Firemen's home serve as docents.

In 2009, less than two years after the new Firemen's home opened its doors, it was reported that a number of cost-cutting measures were undertaken to ensure the long-term viability of the facility. The FASNY Board of directors said they were looking at a number of measures to reduce operating costs throughout the organization, including the Home.

The home itself is reportedly funded through a combination of donations, Medicare reimbursement, resident fees upon admittance to the Home and fees paid by out-of-state insurance companies to local Fire Departments as well as fundraising activities on behalf of the Home throughout New York State.

Not surprisingly, donations have been off since the late 2008 economic crisis and subsequent recession.

And this is where I'm asking you, good reader, to pitch in. I have already donated multiple times this year and plan on continuing to do so at different points throughout 2012. If you're so inclined, you can donate online or even provide some items from the Administration's current 'Wish List'. Keep in mind that the FASNY Firemen's Home is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, meaning that donations are tax-deductible.

Many thanks in advance for your consideration of support to this organization that has meant so much to our family.