Friday, March 26, 2010

Catching Up With the Neighbors

It's all small talk here in AmeriKa, dear readers, usually centering on the weather, sports, or some other self-absorbing subject.

So what's been going on around here, Bob?

"Fingers crossed as rain puts region on alert again; Rivers rise, basements fill, sewage system nears limit" by Brian Ballou and Shana Wickett, Globe Staff And Globe Correspondent | March 24, 2010

Also see: The History of Global Cooling for more on the rain.

We are not forgetting, fart-misting agenda-pushers. Just want that to be clear.

As another storm inundated a region recovering from floods last week, officials from the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority nervously watched the rain yesterday, hoping to avoid another release of raw sewage into Boston Harbor.

Last week, the agency was criticized after it released 15 million gallons of water and raw sewage into the harbor. Without that step, officials said, the sewage would have backed up in homes and flooded waste-management stations.

“The good news is that it stopped raining for several hours’’ yesterday afternoon, said Ria Convery, a spokeswoman for the authority. “The system is full, but we’re holding.’’

That's nice to know.

She said officials were concerned that later rains could push the system to its limit. The Boston area had received 2.3 inches of rain as of late last night and was expected to get up to another inch overnight, according to the National Weather Service in Taunton.

“If we get more rain than we think, we don’t know what we’ll have to do,’’ Convery said.

Across the region, homeowners who had barely mopped up from the previous deluge were experiencing new flooding in basements and backyards from Quincy to Billerica....

Welcome to New England!

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Related:

"No one likes to see sewage spills in Boston Harbor. But in this case, the decision was sound, and the alternative — raw sewage creeping up the basement stairs — much ranker.

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I have to agree with them there.

Also see
: Backed Up in Boston

Related:
Last Look at the Weather

Also see
: European Vacation: Back Home Again

Much better group of kids out in the Midwest.

About 1,000 student volunteers have been critical to Fargo’s battle  against flooding. The Red River is due to crest Sunday.
About 1,000 student volunteers have been critical to Fargo’s battle against flooding. The Red River is due to crest Sunday. (Jay Pickthorn/ Associated Press)

"River, apprehension rise as residents prepare in Fargo" by Associated Press | March 16, 2010

FARGO, N.D. — Police escorted convoys of flatbed trucks carrying piles of sandbags into neighborhoods along Fargo’s Red River yesterday as residents worked to keep the looming flood waters out of their homes.

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"Students mobilize to keep Fargo dry; 1 million sandbags filled in N.D. city" by James MacPherson, Associated Press | March 18, 2010

FARGO, N.D. — Some children lugged sandbags that weighed more than they did. Determined teens showed up just after dawn, ready and willing to shovel. New groups of kids arrived by the busloads, all ready to join the race to protect their city from the rising Red River.

This week, thousands of volunteers filled sandbags to be stacked along the river and near endangered homes as Fargo faces the threat of a severe flood. The river is expected to crest Sunday. But at the heart of that volunteer corps are the city’s youngest citizens.

It’s a job that elsewhere might be reserved for emergency workers. But here, students can be excused from class with their parents’ permission and join the hundreds of adults, local workers, and others who took on the task of filling a million sandbags. The group met that goal yesterday, three days ahead of schedule.

“They pretty much have saved our community,’’ said David Stark, 62, who worked beside hundreds of student volunteers this week....

The students are providing critical manpower....

Good kids out there!

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FARGO, N.D. — The projected crest of the Red River at Fargo has dropped a half-foot, which is good news for a city braced for flooding. Spokesman Mark Frazier said models suggest water levels should decline slowly but steadily after the crest, though flooding from the river could continue to threaten homes and roads much of next week.

I'll be looking for it in my paper.

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"In N.D., officials cautious about effort to hold back Red River" by Dave Kolpack, Associated Press | March 21, 2010

FARGO, N.D. — A city used to fighting floods was confident yesterday that it had done enough to hold back the swelling Red River — even as the water inched higher — but officials stressed that it was too early to celebrate.

Homeowners checking on piles of sandbags in their yards and National Guard soldiers inspecting clay dikes said they didn’t see any immediate problems....

What they SHOULD BE DOING, not FIGHTING WARS 8,000 miles away!

City crews were turning their attention yesterday to cleaning up debris....

Thousands of volunteers spent the past week filling and placing more than 1 million sandbags to fight back the Red River....

The rising river has flooded yards, bike paths, a baseball diamond and golf course — but so far, there has been no major damage. In the rural areas outside of Fargo, the flooding has been more widespread, with several farm fields submerged and a few roads washed out.

Hopefully they will dry out soon enough for planting.

We need food, you know.

The river could still threaten homes and roads, especially if any of the clay levees are breached or if there is heavy rain in April....

Walking on enough eggshells are you?

Related: Clinton's Circles: High Fives in Haiti

Well, it probably won't be that bad.

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Want a ride on the swing set, readers?

Zach and Alex Kallmeyer sat on swings  yesterday in their flooded yard near Fargo, N.D.

Zach and Alex Kallmeyer sat on swings yesterday in their flooded yard near Fargo, N.D. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Why aren't you guys bagging sand?

FARGO, N.D. — The Red River crested in Fargo yesterday and began to fall without doing major damage....

The Red spilled from its banks early in the week because of runoff from a rapid snowmelt. But damage was limited mostly to areas right along the river and to rural areas in western Minnesota and eastern North Dakota.

City officials said they will wait until the river falls several more feet before dismantling their temporary dikes and levees. Barring major storms, that is expected by next weekend.

Fargo residents began cleaning up the debris in low-lying neighborhoods where more than a million sandbags held back waters. Highway crews also were out measuring the clay that had been used to build levees so they could start preparing for how to remove the temporary barriers later this week.

The approaching cresting was met with more shrugs than white knuckles yesterday, as residents walked their dogs and went to church instead of sandbagging and escaping to higher ground.

Dry weather is expected this week, with only a small chance of rain in sight over the next few days....

Every little bit helps.

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Related: 23fargopic_incaps.ART

OKLAHOMA CITY — More snow was falling yesterday as part of a powerful storm blowing through Oklahoma and the southern Plains on the first weekend of spring.

More snow?

The National Weather Service said there was moderate to heavy snow across northeast Oklahoma and northwest Arkansas, with some places reporting 8 to 12 inches of snow. The snow was expected to end later yesterday. Authorities have attributed at least five deaths in four states to the weather.

That is what bothers me. The cavalier attitude towards winter that the warmers have instilled in everyone -- as well as the chopped budgets for snow removal and ice treatment of the roads.

Lies always lead to fatalities in one form or fashion, dear readers.

Think about it.

Police in Arlington, Texas, said ice on an interstate caused an accident yesterday involving five vehicles and two 18-wheelers. One of the 18-wheelers fell on another vehicle, killing one person.

A terrifying tragedy for those involved.

Dozens of wrecks were reported amid heavy snow and high winds, many of them with injuries. Single deaths were reported in Missouri, Kansas, and Texas, while Oklahoma reported two fatal accidents. The storm came a day after temperatures had reached into the 70s....

As if global warming were still with us?

Oh, it's CLIMATE CHANGE now because it has been COOLING for 10 years? Oooooh.

The Oklahoma Department of Transportation urged people in the eastern part of the state not to travel on the snow-packed and slick roads if they didn’t have to, but said roads in the western part of the state were improving.

The storm is the third major winter storm to hit Oklahoma in the last three months, including a Christmas Eve blizzard that stranded holiday travelers at airports and on highways.

Hasn't God made his point yet, farters?

What else does he have to send your way?

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Other things they are talking about around here:

Sisters feud over $500k lottery jackpot

Jackson’s doctor allegedly halted CPR

Actually, no one is talking about that and the MSM cares more about Tiger Woods.