Residents who were out of state at the time of last week's tornados, found unconventional ways to communicate with their loved ones when the phone lines went down.

View full sizePhoto by Rob Schumacher / The Arizona Republic A truck drives west on highway 260 away from the Wallow fire as it burns to about one mile from the western edge of Eagar, Ariz. Wednesday. Click on the link, below, for a report from the Los Angeles Times for a report about the spread of the wildfire.

• Western Massachusetts tornado victims coping with extreme heat (video) [WGGB.com]


• Citigroup to issue thousands of new credit cards following data breach [online.WSJ.com]


• Facebook, Twitter filled communications void during last week's tornadoes [online.WSJ.com]


• Hundreds of Syrian refugees flea to Turkey to escape expected crackdown [WashingtonPost.com]


• Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi ordered rapes of hundreds of women, International Criminal Court charges [online.WSJ.com]


• Arizona wildfires grows; no end in sight (video) [LosAngelesTimes.com]


• Final approval for Colebrook wind farm in Connecticut expected [HartfordCourant.com]


• Bikini clad 'zombies' concern Enfield residents during calendar shoot (video) [MyFoxBoston.com]



Residents call police over bikini-clad 'zombies': MyFoxBOSTON.com

• Twitter posts tagged #westernma in Western Mass. [MassLive.com]


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Because the town has applied to become a Green Community – and thus eligible for certain grant money – it has to reduce its energy use by 20 percent in the next five years.

Granby Town Hall, winter 2011

GRANBY – Marcos Marrero, land use and environment planner at the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, appeared before the Granby Selectboard and the School Committee Monday to present a preliminary report on how much energy the town uses and how that energy use can be reduced.

Because Granby has applied to become a Green Community – and thus eligible for certain grant money – it has to reduce its energy use by 20 percent in the next five years.

The report offered a kind of map for achieving that goal.

The process starts with a “baseline” – that is, it measures how much energy is being consumed at the moment by such municipal facilities and utilities as town buildings, school buildings, vehicles, water pumps and municipal streetlights.

The report also included advice on how to eliminating waste in those areas to save energy and money. This part is called an ERP, or energy reduction plan, an acronym that will appear increasingly in years to come.

Contributors to the two-part report were Jerry Drummond, of the Building Technologies Division of Siemens Industry Inc.; Chris Martin, town administrator for Granby; and Marrero and Catherine Ratte, both of the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission.

Among the ways to achieve energy efficiency, according to the report, are conservation measures and replacement of fossil fuels and inefficient equipment – in plain English, good conservation habits, fuel-efficient cars and new gadgets.

Some of those new gadgets are a revelation. By now everyone knows about Energy Star-rated washing machines and refrigerators, but there is also a VendingMiser energy management controller for vending machines.

In Granby, the study found that the greatest waste of energy was in the schools – the deteriorating East Meadow Elementary School in particular – and in historic municipal buildings, such as Town Hall and Aldrich Hall.

Marrero said the baseline also sheds light on some individual items that may not be worth the trouble of updating.

A dramatic example is the Pleasant Street pump station. Only $19 a year would be saved if $1,000 worth of conservation measures were put into place. That’s a lot of time before payback kicks in.

Marrero said the report is a first step, but can lead to big savings.

“It’s hard for you to get more bang for your buck by not doing anything,” he said.

Siemens will have more information to present to the Selectboard in upcoming weeks, said Marrero.

Both the Selectboard and the School Committee approved the report.

Police, still investigating the crash, don't think speed was a factor.

BELCHERTOWN – A 52-year-old South Hadley man was fatally injured in a motorcycle crash Wednesday night after he failed to negotiate a corner on Stebbins Street.

Police officer John Raymer said the crash occurred about 11:10 p.m. near 320 Stebbins St. Motorcyclist Michael Hook was ejected from his bike, hit an SUV parked in a driveway and then struck a utility pole, Raymer said.

Police have yet to determine what caused the crash. “I don’t think speed was a factor,” Raymer said.

Scott Rials, a longtime aide who joined the departure, said he doubted Gingrich's ability to win the nomination.

Associated PressIn this image released Sunday, May 15, 2011, by NBC News former House Speaker Newt Gingrich is interviewed on NBC's "Meet the Press" in Washington Sunday. Gingrich said he is very serious about seeking the U.S. presidency, but laughed off any suggestion that he could end up with the Republican Party's vice presidential nomination next year.

WASHINGTON — The entire top echelon of New Gingrich's presidential campaign resigned on Thursday, a stunning mass exodus that left his bid for the Republican nomination in tatters.

Rick Tyler, the former U.S. House speaker's spokesman, said that he, campaign manager Rob Johnson and senior strategists had all quit, along with aides in the early primary and caucus states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.

Other officials said Gingrich was informed that his entire high command was quitting in a meeting at his campaign headquarters in Washington. They cited differences over the direction of the campaign.

Scott Rials, a longtime aide who joined the departure, said he doubted Gingrich's ability to win the nomination.

"I think the world of him. But at the end of the day we just could not see a clear path to win, and there was a question of commitment," Rials told The Associated Press.

Gingrich, a former Georgia congressman, has long been viewed by even his closest allies as a fountain of policy ideas but a man who is unable to avoid speaking in ways that spark unwelcome controversy.

The former speaker told the group he intended to stay in the race, the officials added. They declined to be identified by name, saying they were not authorized to discuss private conversations.

Gingrich could not be reached for comment immediately.

Even before the sudden departures, Gingrich's campaign was off to a notably rocky start. Within days of formally announcing he would run, he was assailed by conservatives for criticizing a plan to remake Medicare that Republicans pushed through the House.

He called the author of the plan, Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, to apologize but did not back off his objections.

Within days, he had dropped from sight, embarking on a cruise to the Greek Isles with his wife, Callista, while rivals for the Republican nomination kept up their campaign appearances.

He returned to the United States earlier in the week to confront a rebellion that had been brewing for some time among the senior echelon of his campaign.

While Gingrich told his now-departed aides he would remain in the race, he faces formidable obstacles in assembling a new team in time to compete in a campaign that's well under way.

Most immediately, he is scheduled to participate in a debate next Monday in New Hampshire.

Johnson and another key aide, strategist David Carney, joined Gingrich's campaign after working as senior political staff members for Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

Perry ruled out running for the White House earlier in the year, but more recently has said he might reconsider. It was not known whether his former aides were interested in returning to him.

Gingrich, 67, last served in public office more than a decade ago. He resigned as speaker of the House after two terms following an unexpectedly close mid-term election in 1998 in which Republicans gained far fewer seats than he had predicted.

In the years since, he has established a virtual one-man think tank, publishing books and speaking publicly.

A search for a suspected jumper yielded nothing, a fire official said.

View full sizeStaff photo by Steve NantonDivers search the water under the Gen. Edwards Bridge for a man who was seen jumping off the bridge just before 1 p.m. Wednesday. A Springfield fire department truck is parked on the bridge and a fire department rescue boat can be seen in the background

This is an update of a story that was posted Wednesday at 3:13 p.m.

SPRINGFIELD - An underwater search of Watershops Pond in the vicinity of General Edwards Bridge for a man who witnesses said jumped into the water yielded nothing, Fire Department spokesman Dennis Leger said.

Members of the Springfield police and state police dive teams searched the pond in the vicinity of the bridge for several hours Wednesday before discontinuing Wednesday night. The search was resumed Thursday morning for a few hours before it was called off, Leger said.

Witnesses reported to 911 just before 1 p.m. that they saw a man jump from the bridge along Roosevelt Avenue into the water. Witnesses who was down closer to the water they did not see anyone in the water or climbing out on the bank.

Federal prosecutors and lawyers for DiMasi, Richard McDonough and Richard Vitale are due to make their final appeals to the jury.

Salvatore DiMasi

BOSTON — Closing arguments are set for the corruption trial of former Massachusetts House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi and two associates.

Federal prosecutors and lawyers for DiMasi, Richard McDonough and Richard Vitale will make their final appeals to the jury on Friday.

U.S. District Court Judge Mark L. Wolf is then scheduled to give final instructions to the jury on Monday and following those instructions, the panel will begin deliberations on the charges that include conspiracy and honest services fraud.

The three men are accused of scheming to use DiMasi's power as speaker to steer two state contracts worth a combined $17.5 million to the software firm Cognos, in exchange for payments.

A fourth man, former software salesman Joseph Lally, pleaded guilty before the trial and testified against the remaining defendants.

Panetta said there are still about 1,000 al-Qaida insurgents in Iraq, and keeping some troops to support security forces there is a good idea.

Associated PressDefense Secretary nominee, CIA Director Leon Panetta, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, June 9, 2011, before the Senate Armed Service Committee hearing on his nomination.

WASHINGTON — Leon Panetta, the likely next Pentagon chief, predicted on Thursday that Iraq will ask the United States to maintain a presence in that country beyond the end of this year, when American troops are currently scheduled to leave.

"It's clear to me Iraq is considering some kind of presence" to remain in the country, contingent on what Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki requests, Panetta told the Senate Armed Services Committee. "I have every confidence that a request like that will be forthcoming."

Panetta said there are still about 1,000 al-Qaida insurgents in Iraq, and keeping some troops to support security forces there is a good idea.

On a glide path to confirmation, Panetta would replace Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who is retiring June 30 after 4 ½ years in the Bush and Obama administrations. Gates has said he hopes Baghdad asks U.S. troops to stay beyond their scheduled Dec. 31 departure to preserve the relative peace.

There currently are about 47,000 U.S. troops in Iraq, none in a declared combat role. They are slated to leave under an agreement worked out in 2008 shortly before President Barack Obama entered the White House. Obama has repeatedly said he intends to carry out the current agreement.

Panetta, the current CIA director, received effusive accolades and persistent questions from senators concerned about the initial drawdown of U.S. forces from Afghanistan in July, the stalemate in the Libyan civil war and fiscal pressures on the defense budget. Panetta has been widely praised for the CIA's role in the raid and killing of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden.

The next defense secretary will oversee the troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, and Panetta said the cut should be based on conditions in the country. Obama, in consultation with Gates and Gen. David Petreaus, will decide on how many of the 100,000 U.S. troops he should withdraw.

Panetta said opposition forces in Libya have made gains in the east and west, and Moammar Gadhafi's regime is weakening. He said rebel leaders could maintain continuity in the current if the current ruler is ousted.

Panetta said the NATO military operation, strong economic sanctions, and the enforcement of the no-fly zone are putting tremendous pressure on Gadhafi, and that the pressure must continue. If it does, he said he believes Gadhafi will ultimately step down.

Republican Sens. Saxby Chambliss of Georgia and Susan Collins of Maine questioned what more must be done to force Gadhafi out, and said the U.S. and its allies must have a plan for Libya once he leaves or chaos will ensue.

Panetta agreed, saying U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton — who this week has been meeting with international leaders about the Libya conflict — are working on ways to give rebel forces the capabilities they will need if they have to take control of the country.

He said he is confident there are enough leaders in the opposition to provide continuity if that transition takes place.

Gadhafi has shown no signs of ceding power despite repeated attacks on his compound, government buildings, military radar emplacements and other army installations.

On the budget, lawmakers expressed concern about Obama's call to slash another $400 billion over 12 years. Panetta, the former chairman of the House Budget Committee and one-time head of the White House Office of Management and Budget, indicated that those cuts would not be limited to the military and would extend to homeland security, intelligence and the State Department.

In the far-ranging hearing, Panetta said his top priority was the troops, pointing out that his youngest son Jim served in Afghanistan and received the Bronze Star. He described himself as the son of Italian immigrants always mindful of his father's words that "to be free, you have to be secure."

Focusing on the challenges for the next defense secretary, Panetta said, "We are no longer in the Cold War. This is more like a blizzard war."

A Severe Thunderstorm Warning is in effect for parts of Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin counties as well as other areas.

Severe thunderstorms are hitting Franklin and Hampshire counties Thursday afternoon, causing downed trees and traffic disruptions.

Interstate 91 was closes between mile marker 41 in Greenfield and Bernardston because of downed trees on the highway.

A Severe Thunderstorm Warning issued by the National Weather Service is in effect until 5 p.m.

This is a developing story; MassLive.com will have more details as they become available.

Here is the NWS' Severe Thunderstorm Warning statement:

Severe Thunderstorm Warning

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
CTC003-013-MAC011-013-015-027-092100-
/O.NEW.KBOX.SV.W.0042.110609T2000Z-110609T2100Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA
400 PM EDT THU JUN 9 2011

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TAUNTON HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
WEST CENTRAL WORCESTER COUNTY IN CENTRAL MASSACHUSETTS...
NORTHERN HARTFORD COUNTY IN NORTHERN CONNECTICUT...
THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF WINDSOR LOCKS...
NORTHWESTERN TOLLAND COUNTY IN NORTHERN CONNECTICUT...
EXTREME SOUTHEASTERN FRANKLIN COUNTY IN WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS...
HAMPDEN COUNTY IN WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS...
THIS INCLUDES THE CITIES OF...SPRINGFIELD...CHICOPEE...
SOUTHERN HAMPSHIRE COUNTY IN WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS...
THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF NORTHAMPTON...

* UNTIL 500 PM EDT

* AT 400 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING QUARTER SIZE
HAIL...AND DAMAGING WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH. THESE STORMS WERE
LOCATED ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM 7 MILES NORTH OF MIDDLEFIELD TO
31 MILES WEST OF TOLLAND...OR ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM 17 MILES
SOUTH OF NORTH ADAMS TO 32 MILES NORTHWEST OF TORRINGTON...AND WAS
MOVING EAST AT 40 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE...CHESTER...WESTHAMPTON...
HUNTINGTON...BLANDFORD...RUSSELL...EASTHAMPTON...MONTGOMERY...
SOUTHAMPTON...SOUTH HADLEY...HOLYOKE...GRANBY...WESTFIELD...
GRANVILLE...BELCHERTOWN...WILBRAHAM...WEST SPRINGFIELD...WEST
BROOKFIELD...WARREN...WARE...SOUTHWICK...PALMER...NORTH
BROOKFIELD...MONSON...LUDLOW...LONGMEADOW...HAMPDEN...EAST
LONGMEADOW...AGAWAM...SUFFIELD...SIMSBURY...ENFIELD...EAST
GRANBY...BLOOMFIELD AND AVON.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL...AS WELL
AS DEADLY LIGHTNING AND TORRENTIAL RAIN. GET TO SAFE SHELTER NOW...
INSIDE A STURDY BUILDING OR IN A VEHICLE. DO NOT SEEK SHELTER UNDER
TREES. IF YOU CAN HEAR THUNDER...YOU ARE CLOSE ENOUGH TO BE STRUCK BY
LIGHTNING. DRIVERS SHOULD BE ALERT FOR PONDING OF WATER AND AVOID
FLOODED ROADS.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM EDT
THURSDAY EVENING FOR SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE. A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
WATCH ALSO REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1000 PM EDT THURSDAY EVENING FOR
NORTHERN CONNECTICUT AND MASSACHUSETTS AND CENTRAL RHODE ISLAND.

&&

LAT...LON 4214 7308 4216 7303 4230 7301 4233 7307
4237 7307 4230 7201 4178 7276 4185 7296
4189 7295 4190 7292 4197 7290 4197 7303
4203 7302 4204 7306 4211 7308
TIME...MOT...LOC 2000Z 280DEG 34KT 4245 7301 4212 7362

The state supervisor of public records has said finalists' names must be made public.

Holyoke Mayor Elaine A. Pluta

HOLYOKE – Mayor Elaine A. Pluta Thursday refused to release the names of the three finalists for police chief, even though state rulings dating at least to 1976 generally have determined finalists’ names must be made public.

Pluta said that though the search process has narrowed the field from 39 candidates to three, those three haven’t been designated the official finalists for police chief.

A search committee Pluta appointed is meeting Saturday and might add two candidates to the three remaining. After those five candidates are put through an evaluation known as an assessment center June 18, three finalists will be designated and their identifies revealed publicly, Pluta said.

“We’re in a state of flux. These are not finalists. We’re still going to have the assessment center,” Pluta said.

A search is underway to replace Anthony R. Scott, who retired April 30 after having been police chief since 2001. His yearly salary was $133,164.

Pluta appointed an advisory committee in November that has limited its search for chief candidates to New England and New York.

Pluta’s refusal to disclose the identities of the three remaining police chief candidates comes six months after she decided that meetings of the search committee wouldn’t be public.

Alan N. Cote, the supervisor of public records, in the past has made reference to a 1978 Supreme Judicial Court decision to say finalists’ names must be public. In that case, the Northampton School Committee reviewed 90 candidates for school superintendent and narrowed the list to 16 and then to five.

The supervisor of public records at the time ruled the 16 names should have been public. The School Committee continued to refuse and the state attorney general took the committee to court and prevailed.

Also, former Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly, in his “Open Meeting Law guidelines” in 2006, said a candidate’s right to privacy naturally recedes as he or she is screened out from other applicants.

City Solicitor Lisa A. Ball said under the city charter, the mayor has exclusive authority to appoint the police chief. Because the mayor is not a governmental body, the Open Meeting Law doesn’t apply to the mayor or to the mayor’s appointment of the police chief, she said.

Also, Pluta’s police chief search committee also falls outside the Open Meeting Law’s public-disclosure requirements because it is not a committee of the city, but a committee of the mayor, Ball said.

Court cases in the state have said that public employees have diminished expectation of privacy in matters relating to their public employment, Ball wrote in an email, but “an applicant for Chief of Police is not yet a public employee and therefore does not possess the same diminished expectation of privacy that he would otherwise have as an employee of the City of Holyoke.”

“For these reasons, the names of any potential finalists for the position of Chief of Police will not be disclosed at this time,” Ball wrote.

The measure would, among other things, require all state agencies to periodically go before a “sunset” commission to justify their performance and continued existence.

BOSTON – The Massachusetts Senate has given unanimous approval to an overhaul of the way state determines how taxpayers money is spent.

The finance reform bill championed by Senate President Therese Murray would modernize that she has called “clumsy and outdated.” It was approved Thursday on a 38-0 vote and sent to the House of Representatives for consideration.

Among other things, the measure would require all state agencies to periodically go before a “sunset” commission to justify their performance and continued existence.

Before approving the bill, senators approved a Republican-backed amendment that would require a zero-based budgeting system by 2017. Such a system would require the state to build a budget essentially from scratch each year, rather than base appropriations on the previous year’s funding levels.

"When you are feeling stuck or down don't give up," Yetzaira Ferre told her fellow graduates.

Republican file photoChicopee Academy

CHICOPEE – Call them the Magnificent Seven.

Wearing black or white caps and gowns, nearly all the seven seniors at Thursday’s Chicopee Academy graduation talked about how they never expected to walk across the stage and be handed high school diplomas.

Graduate Yetzaira Ferre said she had been in a gang, skipped school frequently and was brought into court on a Child In Need of Services petition and was put on probation.

The birth of her son changed her, she said. “I wanted to be a successful mom that he would be proud of,” she said.

But even after she entered Chicopee Academy she struggled, partly because her reading ability was so low she would have a hard time understanding the text books.

“I was too scared to ask for help,” she said.

Finally, with the prodding of a teacher, she talked to the school counselor and was placed in a program that helped her improve her reading and pass the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment Systems. She has been accepted in the culinary arts program at Holyoke Community College.

“When you are feeling stuck or down don’t give up,” she told her fellow graduates.

The class was smaller than typical, but Principal Jon G. Leonard told them they were an exceptional group.

“You set a tone. You are leaders,” he said.

Mayor Michael D. Bissonnette was the one who called the group the “Magnificent Seven.”

“Don’t stop achieving,” he said. “It wasn’t a straight path, but it rarely is.”

The guest speaker was 2009 Academy graduate Joseph Salloum, who talked about how he had turned around his life starting at Chicopee Academy.

By his junior year he had not managed to earn one class credit and transferred to Chicopee Academy, buckled down and managed to earn the credits he needed fairly quickly. He now is a crew chief for Asplundh Tree Service.

“I love what I do and I’m pretty damn good at it,” he said.

The other six graduates are Ceasia F. Briggs, Javier O. Cappas, Jenna H. Cortez, Chantilli Cruz, Steven M. Lopez and Raul A. Ramos Jr. Five of the graduates are planning to head to community college in the fall.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 75 points to close at 12,124.36.

File photo / Associated PressA jar of Smucker's Goober Grape, Peanut Butter & Grape Jelly Stripes is displayed at a grocery store in Pittsburgh. J.M. Smucker Co.'s fourth-quarter net income fell 21 percent Thursday, as it bought Rowland Coffee Roasters and restructured its business.

NEW YORK – A bit of good news was all it took to break a week-long slump in the stock market.

A report that U.S. exports hit a record in April sent stocks sharply higher Thursday as investors hoped the economic recovery may not be as sluggish as the last week of grim economic reports have suggested.

Trade levels factor into calculations of economic growth. Thursday’s number could add half a percentage point or more to the government’s estimate of second-quarter gross domestic product, said Anthony Chan, chief economist for JPMorgan Private Wealth.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 75.42 points, or 0.6 percent, to close at 12,124.36. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 9.44, or 0.7 percent, to 1,289.00. The Nasdaq composite rose 9.49, or 0.4 percent, to 2,684.87.

Thursday’s gains broke a six-day losing streak and marked the first time stocks rose in June. Stocks had dropped following poor reports on manufacturing, home sales, hiring and consumer confidence.

It was the longest losing streak for the Dow Jones industrial average in over a year and the longest for the Standard & Poor’s 500 index since February 2009.

The market’s week-long slump also made stocks appear relatively cheap, Chan said. The S&P 500 lost 6.2 percent over the previous six days of trading.

“Markets usually swing like a pendulum,” Chan said. “This decline has been strong enough that you can easily justify the market taking a breath.”

The narrower trade deficit is a sign that goods from U.S. manufacturers are becoming more competitive in overseas markets. U.S. companies sold more computers, heavy machinery and telecommunications equipment abroad in April compared with the month before. Imports declined because fewer cars were bought from Japan after factories there were damaged by that country’s earthquake and tsunami disaster.

Companies that make farming machinery rose after the government reported that U.S. corn crops would be smaller this fall. That sent corn prices soaring and raised expectations that farm owners would be buying more agricultural equipment such as tractors. Both Deere & Co. and AGCO Corp. rose 2.5 percent.

A report on claims for unemployment benefits was in line with expectations that new applications would stay roughly the same. The Labor Department reported that new claims edged up 1,000 to 427,000. Economists had expected a slight drop. The high level of claims still suggests that the job market is slow.

Advertising company Interpublic Group of Cos. jumped 6.4 percent, the most of any company in the S&P 500 index, after ratings agency Moody’s raised its rating on the company.

A jump in oil prices sent energy stocks higher. Energy companies in the S&P 500 index rose 1.2 percent. Crude rose $1.19 to settle at $101.93.

Stocks have been slipping since mid-April as investors become concerned that the U.S. economy has hit a soft patch. Rising oil prices, Japan’s tsunami and nuclear disaster and the risk that Greece might default on its debt have led investors to lower their forecasts for U.S. growth this year.

Nearly two stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange. Consolidated trading volume was 3.5 billion shares.

"I came today because this project, on its own merits, is important as a symbol of collaboration among agencies," Patrick said.

GREENFIELD – Gov. Deval Patrick lauded the public and private sector groups that worked to consolidate the Registry of Motor Vehicles branch and the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce Visitor Center at the joint location’s grand opening Thursday.

The RMV branch needed to move because its HVAC system did not meet the minimum requirements of the lease, according to a spokesperson for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. FCCC President Ann Hamilton said the Visitor Center was too big for its purposes.

The RMV moved into the Visitor Center at 18 Miner St., near the rotary at Interstate 91 and Route 2. The former RMV branch was leased privately and the new location is owned by MassDOT.

“I don’t come to every RMV opening. They’re all important, I love them all,” said Patrick. “I don’t come to every tourist center opening ... but I came today because this project, on its own merits, is important as a symbol of collaboration among agencies.”

“There were unmet needs from the point of view of the RMV and also from the point of view of the Visitor Center that could not have been met on their own, but together have been met and been met beautifully,” he said.

Hamilton said 90,000 people come through the Visitor Center every year. Combined with the 60,000 who come to the RMV annually, the number of people who will have access to information about the surrounding communities and its businesses will rise to about 150,000.

Information is available for about 150 area businesses and Hamilton said the increased traffic will boost the local economy with tourism dollars.

This map shows the location of the new RMV/Visitor Center

View Larger Map

Patrick said Greenfield residents can be happy to know the new facility has more parking than the former RMV, the HVAC system works properly and waiting in line will become an opportunity to learn about local attractions.

Transportation secretary and MassDOT CEO Jeffrey Mullan said the move is an example of good government.

“Look for more of it. Look for more efficiency, more savings,” said Mullan.

State Registrar of Motor Vehicles Rachel Kaprielian said the building utilizes “every square inch of space.”

“It’s as good a set-up as we have anywhere and I think it’s going to be a very popular site for the residents,” she said.

The RMV branch will be open year-round while the Visitor Center will operate from April 15 to November 1.

“I think we’re all going to get along just fine,” said Hamilton.

The International Fund for Animal Welfare says the seals were found on beaches from Dennis to Chatham over the last six weeks.

File photo / Associated PressA gray seal is on a ledge off the coast of Camden, Maine, in April. Federal fishery officials are investigating the shooting of five such animals on Cape Cod.

CHATHAM – Federal fisheries police are investigating after five gray seals were found shot to death on Cape Cod.

The Yarmouth-based International Fund for Animal Welfare reported that the seals were found on beaches from Dennis to Chatham over the last six weeks.

The fund said ballistic evidence is being analyzed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Law Enforcement. A special agent with the office, Todd Nickerson, said the animals are “suffering greatly” and the office is taking the crimes very seriously.

Gray seals are protected under the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act. Their population has boomed in recent years, which has drawn great white sharks to the area to feed on them. The seals are also often blamed for devouring large amounts of fish, reducing the local catch.

Work crews might be unable to restore power to some customers until the weekend.

Staff photo by Michael Beswick A tree fell on two vehicles in a driveway this afternoon at 29 King Philip Ave in South Deerfield. Here, Jane Kosterman and Jeffrey May show the two trucks under the branches.

SPRINGFIELD – Heavy winds sent trees sprawling onto Interstate 91 in Franklin County and elsewhere while more than 20,000 customers lost power from Pittsfield to Springfield in a storm that put the region on edge because of last week’s tornadoes.

Dark clouds, thunder, lightning and powerful rain began in the late afternoon, but reports of a tornado striking Amherst were untrue, abc40 Meteorologist Ed Carroll said.

“That’s absolutely false,” said Carroll, who said the activity was the result of small thunderstorms moving ahead of a cold front.

Sandra Ahearn, spokeswoman for Western Massachusetts Electric Co., said it could be the weekend before some customers get power back. The storm knocked trees and utility poles onto wires from Pittsfield, to Greenfield to Springfield, she said.

“We’re anticipating it’s going to be a multiday event,” Ahearn said.

“WMECO has engaged every available employee and has brought in contractor crews and requested assistance from other utilities. Because today’s storms caused extensive damage throughout the New England region, WMECO is reaching outside the region for additional assistance,” she said.

Customers can report outages at (413) 781-4300 or (877) 659-6326.

The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency says around 37,000 customers lost power Thursday as a line of storms moved west to east though the state, the Associated Press reported.

Thousands of customers also lost power in Connecticut, Rhode Island and Vermont, AP reported.

At 5:08 p.m., Amherst officials reached out to residents via automated phone call following unverified reports of a tornado and a funnel cloud spinning through Amherst and Leverett. Residents were told to seek shelter in their basements. The alert was rescinded a half-hour later.

Springfield Fire Department spokesman Dennis Leger said firefighters were called to several reports of downed trees and wires across the city including the areas of Bradley Road, Sumner Avenue, Parker Street.

Firefighters were called to a report of people trapped in a car under a downed tree but everyone was safely out of the car before the first units arrived, he said.

Also firefighters were called to assist at 93 Quincy St. where a tree fell on a house. A resident suffered an arm injury when hit by the tree, he said.

Also a house at 386 Parkerview Street was stuck by lightning, he said.

There are also reports coming in of wind damage through the city, he said.

Republican employee Jane Kosterman, of King Philip Avenue in South Deerfield, reported a “huge” tree fell on her husband’s truck in the driveway of their home.

“We were on the porch and we heard this crack and a lot of wind,” Kosterman said.

The tree then “uprooted itself” and fell into the driveway, where a neighbor’s truck was also parked. The tree also hit the garage, but she was unsure of the extent of the damage.

State police said at least six trees were on I-91 in Deerfield and Greenfield from the thunderstorm.

A Republican reporter driving on the highway said several cars were pulled over off to the side of the road.

The region is still assessing damage and slowly rebuilding after three tornados ripped a line from Westfield to Sturbridge June 1. The tornadoes were blamed for four deaths, while damaging or destroying more than 5,000 homes and displacing hundreds of people.

Dispatch switchboards in Franklin County lit up from about 4 to 5 p.m. as skies darkened and thunder boomed. State Police in the Shelburne barracks said trees were down along I-91 from the 41-mile marker south of Greenfield north to Exit 28 in Bernardston.

By 6 p.m., the interstate was clear but police said a section of Route 116 between I-91 and Conway was closed as crews worked to remove downed trees.

Police in Chicopee received calls about fallen trees all over the city, officials said.

One tree fell on a home on Walton Street in Chicopee. There were no injuries, police said.

In Westfield there were major power outages throughout the city as well as trees down, including one tree on a house on South Maple Street. Police said there were no injuries.

Police in Agawam and West Springfield reported both trees and power lines were down in multiple locations.

Police in East Longmeadow said about half the town had lost power due to the storms. There are also trees down in various major roadways including Allen Street, Porter Road, Chestnut Street and Kibbe Road..

In Longmeadow, police said power was out in parts of the town and trees were down throughout, including Shaker Road.

Reporters Fred Contrada, Diane Lederman, Brian Steele, Patrick Johnson, Elizabeth Roman and Sandra Constantine contributed to this story.

Allison J. O'Shea was the class president and valedictorian and Meghan S. Accorsi was the salutatorian.

CHICOPEE –; On her graduation day Allison J. O’Shea admitted she doesn’t like change, but said she will try to embrace it and encouraged the Chicopee High School Class of 2011 to do the same.

O’Shea, the class president and valedictorian, was one of the speakers at the school’s graduation of 231 students Thursday. Storms moved the celebration indoors to the Edward J. Bellamy School.

“I used to believe graduation would be the happiest day in my life until I realized what I’m leaving,” said O’Shea, who will be attending Boston College in the fall.

She talked about her memories of events such as Pride Week and great friends. She thanked her teachers, family and most of all, her mother.

“Ever since I was little I hated change, but that isn’t a surprise for a girl whose father died when she was 7 years old,” she said. “Embrace the change we are destined to face.”

Using a theme of yesterday and tomorrow, Salutatorian Meghan S. Accorsi talked about the growth students have already experienced.

She talked about how students were completely dependent on their parents, then slowly gained independence and soon will be on their own.

“Most of us .¤.¤. are not completely clear on where our lives are going tomorrow,” said Accorsi, who will attend the University of Florida.

Most do have some plans, with 87 percent headed to college, 10 percent to work and 3 percent to military service, Principal Roland R. Joyal Jr. said.

He talked about achievements of the class. A total of 49 students kept a grade point average of 90 percent or better for all four years of high school and 108 made the honor roll at least once. Students will be attending a variety of colleges including George Washington University, Harvard University, Elms College and Moorehouse College, he said.

Guerrero died shielding her 15-year-old daughter during the tornado that demolished their home as it raged through the Merrick section of West Springfield.

The Republican | Don TreegerMourners gather at the entrance of the Toomey-O'Brien Funeral Home in West Springfield for the funeral of tornado victim Angelica Guerrero.

WEST SPRINGFIELD – Friends and relatives turned out Thursday to mourn the passing of Angelica Figueroa Guerrero, the mother who died protecting her 15-year-old daughter from the recent tornado.

The 39-year-old Guerrero perished because she shielded her daughter Ibone in a bathtub in their 667 Union St. apartment during the June 1 tornado that swept the area. A calling hour was held at 5 p.m. followed by a 6 p.m. funeral at Toomey-O’Brien Funeral Home as torrential rains poured down outside.

People who knew Guerrero have described the Mexican immigrant as a saintly person completely devoted to her family. Victor Richey, who rented the third-floor unit in the apartment house where Guerrero lived, has said she was a very quiet, hard-working mother.

He recalled her as a beautiful woman who dressed well, wore her hair up and kept a very clean apartment. Richey described the Guerreros as “a very, very tight” and nice family whose members kept to themselves.

Guerrero worked at the Wendy’s outlet in the Holyoke Mall at Ingleside. Her husband, Juan, stayed at home to care for the foster children the family took in. Juan tried to dig his wife out of the rubble of their home, which collapsed after the tornado hit, according to an eyewitness to the tragedy. Neighbors also tried to free her using a chain saw, but she was not removed until later by firefighters.

In addition to her husband and daughter Ibone, Guerrero leaves a second daughter, Fabiola.

220 buildings have been condemned in Springfield following the tornado, including 514 housing units.

Elected officials Thursday sought long-term solutions to the problems wrought by the June 1 tornado.

U.S. Sen. John F. Kerry visited the MassMutual Center in Springfield and heard that the number of people displaced by the tornado is decreasing.

Springfield residents who lost their homes during the June 1 tornado are being housed at the MassMutual Center.

Helen R. Caulton-Harris, director of Health and Human Services for the city of Springfield, said that earlier this week 372 people were being housed at the MassMutual Center. Immediately following the tornado, there were 500 people staying at the center.

“As of this morning, there were 271,” she said. “We’re going in the right direction.”

Kerry was told that 220 buildings have been condemned in Springfield following the tornado, including 514 housing units. Of those, 139 are single-family homes and the rest are multi-family homes.

Kerry asked what the obstacles are to finding housing for the persons displaced in the tornado.

Kerry was told that people want units in the area so they do not have to travel. They also need to have first and last month’s security deposits to take an apartment.

In Brimfield State Rep. Todd M. Smola, R-Palmer, said Governor Deval L. Patrick filed a supplemental budget of $10 million for tornado assistance on Thursday, and it will be reviewed by the House Ways and Means Committee.

Federal Emergency Management Agency teams still are going through the hard hit areas, doing their assessments.

Smola said that Joplin, Mo., still has not been declared a federal disaster area, even though a tornado struck there on May 22, and 151 people died.

“We wish we could have provided a check in hand yeterday,” Smola said.

Touring Brimfield on Thursday, Lt. Gov. Timothy Murray said the destruction left by the tornado on Haynes Hill Road is difficult to describe, it is so severe.

The Republican | Lori StabileChristopher Rabbitt stands where his home at 55 Haynes Hill Road in Brimfield used to be.

Homes have been transformed into debris piles, while chunks of others are missing, he said.

Murray, who toured Wilbraham, Monson and Springfield Thursday, went to 55 Haynes Hill Road in Brimfield, the home of Christopher J. Rabbit.

The foundaton remains, but little else.

Rabbit was home with his wife and 5-year-old son when the tornado struck. They sought refuge in the cellar.

“I thought maybe we’d have to replace some lawn furniture and windows. I never thought we’d have to replace an entire house,” Rabbit said.

Murray also visited the tornado-ravaged King Street in Monson. Selectmen Chairman Richard Smith said officials are concerned about residents who lost everything who either had no insurance, or who were underinsured. The other problem is removing the demolished homes, Smith said.

He said there are questions about who will pay for demolition if there is inadequate homeowner’s insurance.

Murray also visited the Monson Developmental Center at 171 State St., where a storm assistance center has been set up.

There, displaced residents can meet with state officials from various government departments, including transitional assistance, workforce development, mental health, housing and community development, veteran affairs, along with MassHealth. Residents also can apply for food stamps, unemployment insurance benefits, find temporary shelter and undergo crisis counseling.

Clothing for residents is available at Daly Hall and there are laundry facilities for the tornado victims to use. The American Red Cross also is on site.

One state official said 180 people in Monson have been served since Sunday.

State Rep. Cheryl A. Coakley Rivera, D-Springfield, said she wants to make sure the displaced residents are not moved from the MassMutual Center to another temporary site.

Richard A. Lee, executive director of the Pioneer Valley chapter of the American Red Cross, said the displaced persons will not be moved again until they find permanent housing.

In Springfield Coakley-Rivera said 99 percent of the displaced persons in the MassMutual Center are Hispanic. “If they stay on Main Street, the city will not forget about us,” she said.

Lee said the displaced persons will not be moved until they have someplace permanent to go. He said 188 Red Cross volunteers are on the job providing food and shelter for the tornado victims.

“We scrambled at first, because tornadoes usually occur in Kansas, not in Massachusetts,” Lee said.

He praised the MassMutual Center for opening its doors to those in need.

Nearly all 67 graduates took the opportunity to mark the occasion with extravagantly artful caps they created.

NORTHAMPTON – In a bow to the showmanship they have honed and cultivated, the 67 graduates of the Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Charter Public School took center stage in a high-energy theatrical extravaganza of music and drama during their commencement at the Calvin Theater Thursday evening.

In the 12th graduation ceremony since the charter public school opened its doors 15 years ago to a class of ninth-graders, academic excellence and boundless talent in the arts were celebrated in a raucous spectacle that resembled anything but a traditional and staid rite of passage.

From the brass-driven beat of the pit band that greeted the graduates as they clapped and danced their way down the aisles to their seats, and the movingly heartfelt performance of “Bridge Over Troubled Water” by graduate Kimaya Diggs, whose crystal-clear voice rivaled that of any “American Idol” finalist, to the dramatic, amusing and emotionally inspiring poetic presentation by student speaker Amelia Cain, the event was one that celebrated the uniqueness of each student.

Nearly all 67 graduates took the opportunity to mark the occasion with extravagantly artful caps they created and donned to top off their commencement regalia. A parrot, an intricate flower garden, a mythical unicorn, a creation of vinyl record albums and even an alligator heralded their arrival into the theater to the cheers of the audience that erupted into deafening applause.

Following the witty remarks by PVPA Board of Trustees President Paul Weinberg, who called the graduates “an unusually exuberant group of young people,” and self-described “spontaneous hugger” Robert Brainin, PVPA financial officer, who noted that quantified in financial terms the group equaled $575,000 in tuition revenue, student speaker Amelia Cain took to the podium and delivered a memorable address.

Their 2,217 days together, Cain said, began each day “at two aluminum doors” where the magic began.

“Like a trinket pilfered by a toddler, we held onto each other,” she said. “We have learned to speak for ourselves and shape our own utopia. Don’t let the smoke from our disasters define us.”

As for family, Cain compared succeeding as a student without that backbone of support to a “mouse without a sense of smell.”

“Without you, we wouldn’t have found the cheese.”

In the end, she added, getting out of bed was worth it, and detaching from her peers at the graduation ceremony was “the best break-up I’ve ever had,” a statement that was met with thundering applause from her classmates.

“Don’t think of this as an end,” Cain said. “It is simply a milestone. Smile ... people will know you’re up to something.”

U.S. Rep. John W. Olver held a fundraiser and event at the Log Cabin in Holyoke to celebrate 20 years in Congress.

The Republican | Dave RobackU.S. Rep. John Olver, D-Amherst, left, talks to Massachusetts Gov. Deval L. Patrick before a celebration of Olver's 20 years in office at a function at the Log Cabin in Holyoke on Thursday.

HOLYOKE – With redistricting threatening the future of his seat, U.S. Rep. John W. Olver celebrated 20 years in Congress on Thursday night and sent a message that he is planning to run for re-election though his wife is seriously ill.

“The signal is ... I am ready to go,” the Amherst Democrat said in an interview at The Log Cabin in Holyoke, where about 500 friends and supporters feted him at a campaign fundraiser to mark the anniversary of his election to the U.S. House of Representatives 20 years ago this month. U.S. Sen.John F. Kerry, Gov. Deval L. Patrick, Lt. Gov. Timothy P. Murray and Treasurer Steve Grossman were among top politicians to attend.

Olver announced he would run for re-election in December. Then he said he learned on March 31 that his wife, Rose, a professor at Amherst College, had contracted ovarian cancer. He said he has been driving her to a Boston hospital once a week for chemotherapy.

Olver paused and took a breath when asked if he could change his mind about running for re-election in order to spend more time with his wife and avoid frequent trips to Washington. He said he made the decision to seek re-election well before his wife was diagnosed.

“I have made the announcement,” Olver said. “This is one of those factors that will obviously weigh in the long run.”

“She’s in the midst of a series of procedures which will go on for some time,” he said. “It is going well thus far.”

Rose Olver attended last night’s event, but she was not available for an interview, said Debra Guachione, political director for Olver.

Redistricting is currently hanging over Olver’s head and sparking concern in Western Massachusetts. The state must relinquish one of its 10 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and speculation is that Olver’s 1st congressional seat could be combined with the 2nd congressional district of U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield.

Dennis B. Hale, an associate professor of political science at Boston College, said Olver is “the obvious candidate” to lose his seat partly because of his age. At 74, Olver is working when the great majority of people his age are retired. His wife’s illness is another reason Olver could retire from Congress, Hale said.

The Democrat-controlled state Legislature, which will vote on a new congressional map for the state, will be seeking to create nine seats that are as Democratic as possible, Hale said. Democrats might want to divide up Olver’s sprawling, liberal-leaning district to help them achieve that goal, he said.

If Olver decided against seeking re-election, it would make it easier for the state Legislature to draw nine seats, Hale said.

The Republican | Dave RobackXinjun Gao of Amherst adjusts his camera before a photo is taken of him, Lijing Zhang, of Amherst and U.S. Rep. John Olver during a celebration of Olver's 20 years in office at a function at the Log Cabin in Holyoke on Thursday.

“The pressure on him will be strong to retire,” Hale said.

Olver said redistricting is up to the Legislature. He smiled when asked if age would be a factor in deciding whether to run for re-election. “Not if I still think I can rock climb,” said Olver. “ I go when I have the time.”

Olver defeated Republican Steven Pierce of Westfield in 1991 in a special election to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Rep. Silvio O. Conte, a Republican. Before that, Olver was a member of the state House of Representatives from 1968-1972 and the state Senate from 1972 to 1991.

Olver grew up in Pennsylvania and moved to Amherst in 1962 to teach at the University of Massachusetts. He has three college degrees in chemistry, including a doctorate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Olver is currently No. 4 in seniority in the state’s U.S. House delegation, right behind Neal, who is No. 3. Olver is currently ranking Democrat of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and the only member of the delegation on the House Appropriations Committee.

In an interview, Kerry said he didn't want to consider the possibility that Olver could be serving his last term in Congress. Kerry said Olver gets an amazing amount of work done for his district and it’s appropriate to celebrate his years of service.

“He is at the top of his game,” said Kerry, who gave the keynote speech at Olver’s fundraiser. “He’s on a powerful subcommittee … which is key to a lot of us. He does not just work for the 1st district – He helps the state. I think it’s good for people to recognize his talents.”

Olver, who turns 75 in September, said he did not expect he would serve 20 years in Congress. “Time goes quick when you are having fun,” he said.

Olver said he plans to testify on redistricting during a hearing by the Legislature’s Redistricting Committee scheduled for 10 a.m. on Saturday at Pittsfield City Hall. Olver said he didn't plan to speak about redistricting at Thursday’s event.

Olver, one of the more progressive members of Congress, has 107 communities in his district, including the cities of Holyoke and Westfield. He represents almost 40 percent of the state’s land mass.

Olver said he will emphasize that there are five senior members of the state’s U.S. House delegation and each is a member of a prestigious committee including himself and Neal. The committee can consider clout when crafting new congressional districts.

“They can take that into account,” he said. “We've built up our seniority in committees and thereby have some opportunity to be particularly helpful to …. our districts and to the state.”

Sen. Stanley C. Rosenberg, D-Amherst, the co-chairman of the redistricting committee, has said every region of the state is concerned it will lose a congressional seat. Rosenberg has said a final congressional map may be ready by Thanksgiving, or possibly earlier.