The exact number of casualties remained unclear as rescue efforts continued to unfold Saturday.

MASHIKI, Japan -- Two powerful earthquakes a day apart shook southwestern Japan, killing at least 29 people, trapping many others beneath flattened homes and sending thousands of residents to seek refuge in gymnasiums and hotel lobbies.

The exact number of casualties remained unclear as rescue efforts continued to unfold Saturday.

Kumamoto Prefectural official Tomoyuki Tanaka said the death tolls were climbing by the hour, with the latest standing at 19 from Saturday's magnitude-7.3 quake that shook the Kumamoto region on the southwestern island of Kyushu at 1:25 a.m. On Thursday night, Kyushu was hit by a magnitude-6.5 quake that left 10 dead and more than 800 injured. Tanaka said reports on injuries were changing fast and he did not yet have any number.

A series of aftershocks ensued, including a magnitude-5.4 Saturday morning. The Japan Meteorological Agency said that the quake that struck earlier Saturday may be the main quake, with the earlier one a precursor. The quakes' epicenters have been relatively shallow -- about 10 kilometers (6 miles) -- and close to the surface, resulting in more severe shaking and damage.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, in an emergency news conference early Saturday, said more than 300 calls came in to the Kumamoto police and another 100 to police in nearby Oita, seeking help and reporting people trapped or buried underneath debris. He said 1,600 soldiers joined rescue efforts. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said damage from the magnitude-7.3 quake could be extensive.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority reported no abnormalities at Kyushu's Sendai nuclear plant.

Public broadcaster NHK TV showed stones tumbled from the walls of historic Kumamoto Castle, and a wooden structure in the complex was smashed. At the Ark Hotel, east of the castle, hotel guests woke up to strong shaking and a warning siren. Hotel staff told guests, including tourists and journalists covering the quake, to evacuate their rooms and gather in the lobby for safety.

A bright spot, broadcast repeatedly on television Friday, was the overnight rescue of an apparently uninjured baby, wrapped in a blanket and carried out of the rubble of a home.

Saturday's quake hit residents who were still in shock from the previous night's earthquake and had suffered through more than 100 aftershocks.

Yuichiro Yoshikado said Thursday's quake stuck as he was taking a bath in his apartment in Mashiki.

"I grabbed onto the sides of the bathtub, but the water in the tub, it was about 70 percent filled with water, was going like this," he said, waving his arms, "and all the water splashed out."

"It's as if all control was lost. I thought I was going to die and I couldn't bear it any longer."

Yoshikado, whose building was undamaged despite the intense shaking, checked the damage at his aunt and uncle's home nearby. Kitchenware was scattered on the floor, and a clock had stopped around 9:26 p.m., the time of Thursday's quake.

The latest victim of Thursday's quake was killed in a fire in the city of Yatsushiro, the Kumamoto prefecture said, adding that two other people were in a state of heart and lung failure. The nine other dead included five women and four men, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency said.

WEST SPRINGFIELD— A gasoline-fueled blaze destroyed a car and a lawnmower, but West Springfield firefighters were able to prevent the fire spreading to nearby structures. Deputy Fire Chief Robert Manchino said first responders reported seeing heavy flames as they approached 163 Laurel Road just after midnight. A 2004 Pontiac Vibe was ablaze as was a riding lawnmower two men had...

WEST SPRINGFIELD— A gasoline-fueled blaze destroyed a car and a lawnmower, but West Springfield firefighters were able to prevent the fire spreading to nearby structures.

Deputy Fire Chief Robert Manchino said first responders reported seeing heavy flames as they approached 163 Laurel Road just after midnight. A 2004 Pontiac Vibe was ablaze as was a riding lawnmower two men had been working on.

Manchino said the two were welding parts on the lawnmower when it caught fire. They dragged the burning lawnmower into the driveway in front of the garage close to the parked Vibe. The gasoline fire spread to the car and the two vehicles burst into a large ball of fire.

The heat of the fire melted vinyl siding on the front of the garage structure and portions of an overhang at the front of the garage stared to burn, but firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze before it extended into the structure of the attached garage itself.

Manchino said both the lawnmower and the car were destroyed in the fire, but there were no injuries to either the men in the garage or to firefighters.

John Ulmshneider, 39, died Friday night, according to Prince George's County Police Department spokeswoman Julie Parker.

TEMPLE HILLS, Md. -- One of two firefighters shot Friday while making a check on the welfare of a person in a Maryland suburb has died and another remains in serious condition, officials said.

John Ulmshneider, 39, died Friday night, according to Prince George's County Police Department spokeswoman Julie Parker. She said Ulmshneider was a 13-year veteran of the department.

Prince George's County Fire Department officials said in a statement that volunteer firefighter Kevin Swain also was shot, and was in serious condition.

Firefighters and police had gone to the Temple Hills home after being called by a person concerned the individual inside might be suffering from a medical condition, Prince George's County police Chief Henry P. Stawinski III said at a news conference.

When they arrived on the scene, the person inside was unresponsive, so they decided to force entry, he said. As that was happening, the person inside fired several rounds, striking two firefighters and the person who had initially made the call for a welfare check.

Stawinski said that once officers got into the home, the gunfire stopped. He said no officers fired weapons.

"Will it ever end? God, I hope so," Prince George's Police Chief Henry Stawinski said.

Touching image: PGFD fire trucks pulled over all along the Beltway to salute their fallen fire fighter. @PGFD_Chief pic.twitter.com/q9YAAofMan

-- Julie Parker (@PGPDJulie) April 16, 2016

The civilian was not seriously injured, according to the police chief.

The person who was inside the home was in custody and cooperating with police, Stawinski said.

The identity of the person inside the home was not immediately available.

"The main thing that we ask for the men and women of Prince George's County are your prayers, your thoughts," said Prince George's County Executive Rushern Baker.

Two people were inside the 16 Hooker Ave. home at the time, but no one was hurt, according to Northampton Deputy Fire Chief Steve Vanasse.

NORTHAMPTON -- Firefighters responded to a house fire at 16 Hooker Ave., near the King Street area of the city that has witnessed several suspicious fires recently, at around 3 p.m. Friday.

Two people were inside the 16 Hooker Ave. home at the time, but no one was hurt, according to Northampton Deputy Fire Chief Steve Vanasse.

The fire first caught on a porch on the home's left side, and swiftly spread into the left back corner of the house before being extinguished, Vanasse said. The structure was moderately damaged.

Northampton firefighters extinguish a house fire at 16 Hooker Ave. Friday afternoon.Laura Newberry 

Firefighters pumped about 200 gallons of water into the home, Vanasse said, and there was a fair amount of smoke inside.

Hooker Avenue is a dead-end street, but was closed to traffic as firefighters extinguished the blaze.

Vanasse said Friday afternoon he was not sure if the home is inhabitable. The cause of the fire was not immediately available.

Hooker Avenue is within a mile of the Ward 3 neighborhood, where several small, suspicious fires have been reported and investigated over the past month.

Between March 12 and 20, ornamental grasses were burned at three homes on North and Bates streets, a barrel was burned in an alley at 137 King St., and a tent at a homeless camp between the bike path and King Street was destroyed by fire, police reported.

This particular neighborhood is especially sensitive to the suspicious nature of the incidents. In December 2009, Anthony Baye went on an arson spree that burned porches and entire homes and killed two people in the neighborhood.

Baye, 31, is serving a 19 to 20-year prison sentence after admitting to setting 15 fires in the area on the night of Dec. 27, 2009, including the blaze that killed Paul Yeskie, Sr., 81, and Paul Yeskie, Jr., 39, a father and son who lived on Fair Street. He also pleaded guilty to setting another 12 fires in Ward 3, where he lived, dating back to 2007.

This story will be updated.

Army troops and other rescuers rushed Saturday to try to reach scores of trapped residents after a pair of strong earthquakes in southwestern Japan killed at least 41 people, injured about 1,500 and left hundreds of thousands without electricity or water.

MASHIKI, Japan -- Army troops and other rescuers rushed Saturday to try to reach scores of trapped residents after a pair of strong earthquakes in southwestern Japan killed at least 41 people, injured about 1,500 and left hundreds of thousands without electricity or water.

Rain was forecast to pound the area overnight, threatening to further complicate the relief operation and set off more mudslides in isolated rural towns, where people were waiting to be rescued from collapsed homes.

Police in Kumamoto prefecture said Saturday night that 32 people had died in the magnitude-7.3 quake and aftershocks that shook the Kumamoto region on the southwestern island of Kyushu early Saturday. Nine died in a magnitude-6.5 quake that hit the same area Thursday night.

Four people were missing in Minamiaso, Japan's Kyodo news agency reported. The village near Mount Aso volcano appears to have been the hardest hit by the second earthquake.

Japanese media reported that nearly 200,000 homes were without electricity. TV video showed people huddled in blankets, sitting or lying shoulder-to-shoulder on the floors of evacuation centers. An estimated 400,000 households were without running water.

Hundreds of people lined up for rations at shelters before nightfall, bracing for the rain and strong winds that were expected. Local stores quickly ran out of stock and shuttered their doors, and people said they were worried about running out of food.

"I could hear the noise of all my dishes come crashing down, the rattling, and I was shocked and sad, now I've lost all my dishes," said Ayuko Sakamoto, who was among those in line for the food.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said that 1,500 people had been injured in the quakes. Kumamoto prefectural official Riho Tajima said that 184 were injured seriously, and that more than 91,000 had been evacuated from their homes. More than 200 homes and other buildings were either destroyed or damaged, she said.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expressed concern about secondary disasters, given the forecast for rain and strong winds. With the soil already loosened by the quakes, rainfall can set off mudslides.

"Daytime today is the big test" for rescue efforts, Abe said early Saturday. Landslides have already cut off roads and destroyed bridges, slowing down rescuers.

Police received reports of 97 cases of people trapped or buried under collapsed buildings, while 10 people were caught in landslides in three municipalities in the prefecture, Kyodo reported.

TV video showed a collapsed student dormitory at Aso city's Tokai University that was originally two floors, but now looked like a single-story building. A witness said he heard a cry for help from the rubble. Two students were reported to have died there.

In the town of Mashiki, where people were trapped beneath the rubble for hours, an unconscious 93-year-old woman, Yumiko Yamauchi, was dragged out from the debris of her home and taken by ambulance to a hospital. Her son-in-law Tatsuhiko Sakata said she had refused to move to shelter with him after the first quake Thursday.

"When I came to see her last night, I was asking her: 'Mother? I'm here! Do you remember me? Do you remember my face?' She replied with a huge smile filled with joy. A kind of smile that I would never forget. And that was the last I saw of her," Sakata said.

The area has been rocked by aftershocks, including the strongest with a magnitude of 5.4 Saturday morning. The Japan Meteorological Agency said that the magnitude-7.3 quake early Saturday may have been the main one, with one from Thursday night a precursor.

David Rothery, professor of planetary geosciences at The Open University in Britain, said the Saturday morning quake was 30 times more powerful than the one Thursday night. "It is unusual but not unprecedented for a larger and more damaging earthquake to follow what was taken to be 'the main event,'" he said.

Rothery noted that in March 2011, a magnitude-7.2 earthquake in northern Japan was followed two days later by a magnitude-9.0 quake that caused a devastating tsunami. "Fortunately, this time the epicenters have been below land rather than under the sea, and no tsunamis have been triggered," he said.

The epicenters of Thursday's and Saturday's quakes were relatively shallow -- about 10 kilometers (6 miles) -- and close to the surface, resulting in more severe shaking and damage. National broadcaster NHK said as many as eight quakes were being felt an hour in the area.

One massive landslide tore open a mountainside in Kumamoto's Minamiaso village all the way from the top to a highway below. Another gnawed at a highway, collapsing a house that fell down a ravine and smashed at the bottom. In another part of the village, houses were left hanging precariously at the edge of a huge hole cut open in the earth.

Suga, the chief Cabinet secretary, told reporters that the number of troops in the area was being raised to 20,000, while additional police and firefighters were also on the way.

At a hot springs resort, dozens of people trapped were picked up by military helicopters, Asahi TV reported.

Kyushu island's Mount Aso, the largest active volcano in Japan, erupted for the first time in a month, sending smoke rising about 100 meters (328 feet) into the air, but no damage was reported. It was not immediately clear whether there was a link between the quakes and the eruption. The 1,592-meter (5,223-foot) -high mountain is about a 1 1/2-hour drive from the epicenter.

The historic Aso Shrine, a picturesque complex near the volcano, was seriously damaged, with a number of buildings with curved tiled roofs flattened on the ground like lopsided fans. A towering gate, known as the "cherry blossom gate" because of its grandeur, especially during spring, collapsed.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority reported no abnormalities at Kyushu's Sendai nuclear plant.

Obituaries from The Republican.

Miguel A. Rivera 

Miguel A. "Chu-Chu" Rivera, 47, of Chicopee passed away on Tuesday. He was born in Springfield. He worked as a freight carrier for United Van Lines for many years. He lived in Chicopee his whole life.

Full obituary and funeral arrangements for Miguel A. Rivera »

The legal fight between Tennessee Gas Pipeline and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts may decide an important issue of federal preemption.

PITTSFIELD -- Before a packed courtroom Friday afternoon, Berkshire Superior Court Justice John Agostini questioned lawyers for Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co. and the office of Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey in a case being watched by pipeline foes and energy boosters alike.

After about two hours, Agostini thanked Attorney James Messenger and Assistant Attorney General Matthew Ireland for their "thoughtful arguments," and said he would rule "as soon as possible, given the important issues raised here."

Tennessee seeks authority under the U.S. Natural Gas Act to condemn and take possession of a two-mile easement through the Otis State Forest to build a pipeline loop associated with its Connecticut Expansion project, which won approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on March 11. The firm also seeks an injunction to immediately cut down trees along the proposed corridor ahead of gaining all state and federal permits.

The state's Department of Conservation and Recreation, which owns the forest, has refused to convey the easement, citing Article 97 of the Massachusetts Constitution, which requires legislative approval for the conveyance or condemnation of conservation land. What's more, the state's Department of Environmental Protection on Thursday said any tree cutting will need a certificate under the Federal Clean Water Act -- a permit which the pipeline company has not yet procured.

Tennessee, a Kinder Morgan subsidiary, on March 16 sued the state seeking authority to condemn the easement, and an injunction to start cutting down trees immediately for its pipeline.

The lawsuit was filed the same day a legislative committee chaired by Rep. Peter Kocot, D-Northampton, assigned a "study order" to a bill that would have conveyed an easement to Tennessee in exchange for a negotiated compensation package. Kocot, in an affidavit, said Tennessee had ignored his requests for project information, leaving the committee with no grounds to advance the bill.

The stalled process on Beacon Hill was raised on Friday, with Ireland saying the court should not address a constitutional issue until Tennessee exhausts its legislative option. Tennessee acted in "bad faith" by having the Article 97 legislation filed on its behalf with no intention of seeing the matter through, Ireland charged, saying the bill could still be revived through the end of the year if Tennessee provides Kocot with the information he needs

Agostini queried Ireland, asking if there any other way Kocot could have procured the information he wanted. "Good faith cuts both ways," he said. Ireland responded that the legislature has the duty to ask a proponent for information, and that not all information Kocot sought was part of the public record.

"I am struck by the argument of good faith," Agostini in turn said to Messenger. "The (legislative committee) chairman requests information, and is ignored. Then you get your certificate, and three or four days later, you're in court asking for a preliminary injunction."

Messenger said a mitigation package for the land-taking was previously approved by a state agency, and that the agreement was included in an environmental assessment and authorized by FERC. "We have worked diligently with state agencies," he said.

Messenger said Tennessee would suffer "irreparable harm" if it cannot cut trees now and start construction in June, because it had planned to have its pipeline in place by November. Agostini pressed Messenger on the "irreparable harm" claim, saying that at least in Massachusetts, a business loss does not rise to that standard. "Why can't you pass those costs on to your customers?" said Agostini. Messenger said part of the "irreparable harm" would be to customers in Connecticut who would be deprived of the extra natural gas.

Ireland claimed that the real "irreparable harm" would occur if mature trees are cut down in the forest, 900 acres of which were preserved in 2007 at a cost of $5.2 million. Messenger countered that the pipeline would merely widen an existing pipeline corridor, and noted that FERC had determined there would be "minimal environmental impact" from the project.

Messenger repeatedly insisted that Tennessee has the statutory right to condemn and take possession of the land, regardless of whether it's in a constitutionally-protected state forest, and whether or not the company has all state and federal permits in hand.

"Under the Natural Gas Act, you gain the power of eminent domain with a FERC certificate," said Messenger. "It is obvious that the federal regulatory scheme Congress established could not function if states could prevent eminent domain."

Messenger said it's common for pipeline companies to condemn properties ahead of gaining all state and federal permits. "It's a practical necessity," he said. "We must get on the property to get information to finalize the permits.... We could not build pipelines if we could not get condemnation and possession."

Ireland said the state was not arguing that the court can't order condemnation without all permits in hand. "What we are trying to do here is to have this preemption question decided," he said. "This court does not have authority to give a condemnation order until it decides the preemption question."

The preemption question centers upon whether Article 97, a constitutional provision unique among the 50 states, can trump the U.S. Natural Gas Act, which grants the power of eminent domain to pipeline companies.

"The preemption issue preempts everything," Agostini observed.

"It's a very real and very important constitutional issue," Ireland responded. "The preemption issue is huge."

Agostini noted that no matter how he rules, the case is likely to be appealed and land at least before the state's Supreme Judicial Court. "This matter is not going to stop here," he said.

Kathryn Eiseman, president of the anti-pipeline group PLAN-NE, said Friday that the outcome of the lawsuit will set the table for Tennessee's proposed 420-mile Northeast Energy Direct (NED), which would cross dozens of constitutionally-protected parcels in Massachusetts while transporting natural gas from the Marcellus shale region of Pennsylvania.

"Kinder Morgan could drop the Massachusetts Loop of the Connecticut Expansion and still serve the actual demand in Connecticut," said Eiseman. "Kinder Morgan's goal with siting the Connecticut Expansion in the state forest is to set a precedent to grease the skids for NED."

Rep. William "Smitty" Pignatelli, D-Lenox, said the pipeline company's lawsuit sets a bad precedent. "Article 97 was built for a purpose," said Pignatelli. "Just honor the process; that's all we've ever asked."

Mary Serreze can be reached at mserreze@gmail.com

An Abington man who was reportedly found to be carrying an array of weapons at Nantasket Beach was arrested Friday, Massachusetts State Police have announced

HULL ‒ An Abington man who was reportedly found to be carrying an array of weapons at Nantasket Beach was arrested Friday, Massachusetts State Police have announced.

Officers responded to an afternoon report of a man who was allegedly drinking on the Hull beach and treating his dog in an overly aggressive manner, according to state police.

Hull Police alleged that 55-year-old Paul Martell, of Abington, was in possession of an open bottle of whiskey and arrested him for violating town and Department of Conservation and Recreation regulations that bar consuming alcohol on the beach, state police reported.

Troopers, upon further investigation, reportedly found Martell to be carrying a handgun, a fully loaded magazine and a large folding knife, according to state police. Officers also reported finding additional knives of various sizes, a hatchet, a dagger and a double-sided machete in his vehicle.

Police charged Martell with unlawful possession of a firearm without a license, carrying a firearm with ammunition, carrying a dangerous weapon and illegal consumption of alcohol on DCR property.

Martell was transported to the state police barracks in Norwell and held pending $240 bail. He will be arraigned in Hingham District Court.

Hull Animal Control took custody of Martell's dog, according to state police.

Emergency crews from more than five communities have responded to a brush fire near a middle school, the Palmer Fire Department has reported.

PALMER ‒ Emergency crews from more than five communities have responded to a brush fire near a middle school, the Palmer Fire Department has reported.

The agency received reports of the fire on Woodland Heights around 1:40 p.m. Saturday. The Palmer Fire Department confirmed that the brush fire is near Converse Middle School.

Fire crews from Three Rivers, Bondsville, Monson, Ware and Brimfield responded to the Palmer Fire Department's request for mutual aid, officials said. Firefighters remain on scene.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated with additional information as it becomes available.

The victim of a lethal tiger attack that occurred Friday was a local college graduate.

SOUTH HADLEY — The tragic victim of a tiger attack at a Florida zoo on Friday graduated from Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, according to Western Mass News.

Stacey Konwiser, 38, was attacked and killed by a 13-year-old Malayan tiger while working as a zookeeper at the West Palm Beach Zoo on Friday.

Konwiser was in an enclosed area with the tiger, preparing for an informative show known as "Tiger Talk," when she suffered a "severe bite," according to the Palm Beach Post. The zoo has stressed that at no time was the public in any danger and the animal never escaped captivity.

After the animal had been sedated, Konwiser was transported to the St. Mary's Medical Center, but did not recover from her injuries.

Florida Fish and Wildlife officials have said that they plan to investigate the incident, according to TCPalm.

Konwiser, who had worked at the zoo for three years according to WPBF 25 West Palm Beach News, was the head zoo keeper. She was an "expert" at dealing with animals and had also been called the "tiger whisperer" by the zoo spokesman Naki Carter.

"This is a family who is in mourning right now," said Carter in reference to the zoo staff, according to The Sun Sentinel. "We all, myself included, doubled over. We're a close-knit group here at Palm Beach Zoo. There were tears."

The spirited event feature paddlers of all skill levels, including novices and experts.

HUNTINGTON — The 2016 Westfield River Wildwater Races, held Saturday in Huntington, always bring out the crowds to this scenic hill town in southwestern Hampshire County, and this year was no exception.

The spirited event featured paddlers of all skill levels, including novices and experts.

The novice run covers an eight-mile stretch of the Westfield River, while the expert races include 5- and 12-mile courses that feature class two and three rapids. In the six-tier whitewater classification scale, six is the roughest and one is the easiest.

The annual springtime event is sponsored by the Westfield River Canoe Club.

More information about the races are available on Facebook and at westfieldriverraces.com.

More than two dozen Muslims and Christians came together at the city's Mason Square Library Saturday to learn about their respective faiths and celebrate their common beliefs.

SPRINGFIELD ‒ More than two dozen Muslims and Christians came together at the city's Mason Square Library Saturday to learn about their respective faiths and celebrate their common beliefs.

The afternoon event, sponsored by the Al-Baqi Islamic Center for Human Excellence, sought to help build bridges between the two communities -- specifically the African-American community -- in Springfield, said Resident Imam Rasul Seifullah.

"We know alone we can't solve the problems, so you need to get as many people as possible with all their resources and focus that on stopping the problems that face us," he said in an interview. "We need to be active outside the walls of the church and the mosque and not just speak to the choir."

Seifullah stressed that such solidarity between the two faiths is important given the level of rhetoric and Islamophobia that has surfaced in recent months, including in the 2016 presidential campaign.

"I think Donald Trump is good for us," he said referencing the GOP front-runner's call to temporarily halt Muslims from entering the U.S. "Let me explain that, I'm not talking about his philosophy or his political stand, but what he's been able to show us is that we still have problems here in America."

Contending that the problems extend beyond racial tensions and exist on both sides of the political aisle, Seifullah said the Muslim community needs to step up and address these concerns.

"I believe that one of the first things we need to do is to get the people out there to get to know us as Muslims one-on-one, then they'll realize that we're no different than they are," he said. "And when people throw stones at Muslims, they'll be able to say, 'Well, I know some Muslims, they're not like that.' That could be their rebut."

Mujahid Aleem, an assistant of Seifullah, agreed, saying people, especially in the Jewish and Christian communities, won't know what Muslims are about unless they reach out to them.

"We have a very good relationship with many of them in other parts of the city and in many other cities, but we don't have a very good relationship with the black ministry and so we felt that we would take particular interest in this particular community because this is where we originated," he said.

Aleem said he hopes that non-Muslims who attended the event will carry their message to other parts of the community.

"We're not looking for grand numbers, we suspect that with the climate being what it is, it's going to be hard to get large numbers of people together," he said. "But, our hope is to kill the ignorance with the light of understanding. You can't do anything about falsehood until you hear it."

Seifullah, who said crowd was primarily Muslim despite invitations made to African-American pastors, however, noted that the responsibility cannot rest on his faith alone.

"We're doing what we're supposed to do and that's reaching out," he said. "If they don't want to grab a hold of a hand, if they don't want to build bridges that's on them. But we feel like they're functioning out of ignorance, so as long as we understand that, our job is to what? Educate them, which we're doing here. We have the same beliefs."

Despite the low turnout, Seifullah acknowledged the challenges that face his effort to bring the two communities together and said he will continue holding such events.

Pastor Amos Bailey, of the Christian Faith Baptist Church in Springfield, said it was important for him to attend the event because he believes the Mulism and Christian communities don't know each other very well at the faith-level.

"(There's) misconceptions that I think need to be understood personally one-on-one. We can dialog a lot of opportunities that we have, but until we meet, until we talk, until we sit and have a cup of coffee or tea, or whatever, we really don't get to know each other," he said. "That's why I came."

Bailey said he hopes to take the message of unity back to his church and to encourage his parishioners to partake in such events.

"I have really been preaching this and living this kind of life for 40 years and when I was approached by Imam Seifullah I found that we were on the same page," he said. "So this is something I've been doing practically all my life...so it's kind of like affirming and reaffirming what we're all about."

Johnny's Roadside Market Garden is hosting its family-friendly Mud, Cheers and Gears weekend Saturday and Sunday at 346 Brainard Rd. The two-day event is jam packed with mug bogging, truck jumping and high power tug of war. Watch video

ENFIELD - Bring your family down to the mud pit.

Johnny's Roadside Market Garden is hosting its family-friendly Mud, Cheers & Gears weekend Saturday and Sunday at 346 Brainard Rd. The two-day event is jam packed with mug bogging, truck jumping and high power tug of war.

Saturday's mud bogging event drew hundreds of motorheads, and organizers think total attendance for the day could reach into the thousands.

So, the obvious question: What's mud bogging?

"It's pretty simple," said Justin Latkofsky, who organized the event with his brother Jake. The trucks "get in line, they wait their turn, they get hooked up to a cable," and then they let 'er rip.

Chevy, Ford, Dodge, Jeep, the works. All tearing down the line and splashing into a trench of knee-deep mud. If you've got the power, muscle through to the other side. If you don't, the cable will yank you back out.

The appeal, said Latkofsky, is also pretty simple. "Big toys playing in the mud," he said.

"Literally everybody" can and does participate, he said. "Your normal warehouse worker guy to a manager of a supermarket. On the spectator side, you've got doctors and lawyers, down to the good ol' boys."

One driver was in a run-of-the-mill two-wheel drive Chevy pickup, while others were sporting 60-inch tractor tires on trucks with shark decals.

But it's not just boys playing with their toys. Especially during the children's Power Wheels race, there were plenty of ladies behind the wheel.

Kids in their pint-sized trucks rode around in decked out rides sporting big, muddy smiles, mightily ascending a mound of wet dirt and rumbling down the other side. (All supervised by grown-ups, of course.)

Sunday's event is the truck pull, or tug of war. Trucks of equal weight will be strapped together for a day of mechanical mayhem.

"There's definitely gonna be some carnage," said Latkofsky.

Admission is $12. Kids 10 and under get in for free, but a non-perishable food donation is requested. Donations benefit Enfield Loaves and Fishes.

Drivers pay $25 each to participate; registration runs from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. All drivers are required to have helmets, seatbelts and hitch points.

Truck pulls on Sunday are from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., then 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. A Power Wheels race for kids runs from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Stressing that "enough is enough," North End residents and community activists called on city leaders Saturday to address structural and environmental issues at German Gerena Community School.

SPRINGFIELD ‒ Stressing that "enough is enough," North End residents and community activists called on city leaders Saturday to address structural and environmental issues at German Gerena Community School.

More than two dozen protesters, including City Councilors Adam Gomez and Bud L. Williams, gathered outside the school's Main Street entrance to bring attention to mold and other issues that they claim plague the building and its related tunnel system -- hazards denied by a top city official.

Jafet Robles, a community organizer for Neighbor to Neighbor who led the protest, said the rally officially kicked-off efforts to address issues relating to the school.

"This is the launching of the campaign, this is the official launch," he said. "We're going to start working on this, planning and addressing the issues."

As part of the new push, Williams announced that he and Gomez plan to sponsor a non-binding resolution in the City Council looking into if and how Springfield can fix the problems at Gerena.

"We want to know the answers," he said, contending that the school never should've been built where it was due to the water issues in the area.

"I've been down here so many times, so many press conferences on Gerena," he said. "Enough is enough."

Gomez, who said he was unable to attend Gerena for years due to water issues, stressed that the community wants to be able to offer students the best education possible.

While he stressed that protesters aren't suggesting that some of city leaders haven't wanted to try and address the problems, Gomez pointed to the lack of progress.

"It's been 20 years that we've been fighting," he said.

Despite the concerns raised by protesters, Patrick J. Sullivan, the city's director of parks, buildings and recreation management, said Friday that Gerena school is "very safe" and in excellent condition.

He pointed to a number of renovations and repairs completed in recent years, as well as additional projects planned with a grant application to the Massachusetts School Building Authority.

Members of Neighbor to Neighbor, Women of the Vanguard, the New North Citizens Council and other community organizations attended the rally.

The White House hopeful called it a "real honor" to meet "one of the extraordinary figures" in the world, a kindred spirit on economic inequality, which is a main Sanders' campaign theme.

ROME -- Pope Francis said his brief encounter Saturday with U.S. presidential candidate Bernie Sanders was a sign of good manners, "nothing more," and hardly evidence of interfering in American politics.

The White House hopeful called it a "real honor" to meet "one of the extraordinary figures" in the world, a kindred spirit on economic inequality, which is a main Sanders' campaign theme.

Francis was on his way to Greece to highlight the plight of refugees and Sanders was wrapping up his trip to Rome when they met in the lobby of the pope's residence, the Domus Santa Marta hotel in the Vatican gardens. The Vermont senator had attended a Vatican conference Friday on economic inequality and climate change, and flew back to New York for campaign events on Saturday.

"This morning when I left, Sen. Sanders was there. ... He knew I was leaving at that time and I had the kindness to greet him and his wife and another couple who were with them," the pope told reporters traveling back with him to the Vatican.

"When I came down, I greeted them, shook their hands and nothing more. This is good manners. It's called good manners and not getting mixed up in politics. If anyone thinks that greeting someone means getting involved in politics, they should see a psychiatrist," the pope said.

Earlier, Sanders said in an The Associated Press interview that he told the pope that he appreciated the message that Francis was sending the world about the need to inject morality and justice into the world economy. Sanders said that was a message he, too, has tried to convey.

"We had an opportunity to meet with him this morning," Sanders said. "It was a real honor for me, for my wife and I to spend some time with him. I think he is one of the extraordinary figures not only in the world today but in modern world history."

Sanders said he had the chance to tell the pope that "I was incredibly appreciative of the incredible role that he is playing in this planet in discussing issues about the need for an economy based on morality, not greed."

Sanders and his wife, Jane, stayed overnight at the hotel, on the same floor as the pope. Francis noted to reporters that members of the Vatican conference that Sanders had attended also were staying at the hotel.

Jeffrey Sachs, a Sanders foreign policy adviser, said there were no photographs taken of the pope and Sanders together. Sanders' spokesman, Michael Briggs, said Francis was "100 percent correct that this was not a political meeting," thanking the pope's staff making the arrangements. He said Sanders and his wife "were advised the night before to be ready to meet the pope at 6 a.m."

The Vatican is loath to get involved in electoral campaigns, and usually tries to avoid any perception of partisanship as far as the pope is concerned, although Francis in February rebuked Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump over Trump's stand on immigration.

Popes rarely travel to countries during the thick of political campaigns, knowing a papal photo opportunity with the sitting head of state can be exploited for political ends.

But Francis has been known to flout Vatican protocol, and the meeting with Sanders was evidence that his personal desires often trump Vatican diplomacy.

"His message is resonating with every religion on earth with people who have no religion and it is a message that says we have got to inject morality and justice into the global economy," Sanders said.

Sanders said the meeting should not be viewed as the pope injecting himself into the campaign.

"The issues that I talked about yesterday at the conference, as you well know, are issues that I have been talking about not just throughout this campaign but throughout my political life," Sanders said in the interview. "And I am just very much appreciated the fact that the pope in many ways has been raising these issues in a global way in the sense that I have been trying to raise them in the United States."

Sachs said Sanders saw the pope in the foyer of the domus, and that the encounter lasted about five minutes. Sanders later joined his family, including some of his grandchildren, for a walking tour of St. Peter's Basilica, one of the holiest Catholic shrines.

The trip gave Sanders a moment on the world stage, putting him alongside priests, bishops, academics and two South American presidents at the Vatican conference.

Sanders has been at a disadvantage during his campaign against rival Hillary Clinton, President Barack Obama's former secretary of state, on issues of foreign policy. But Sanders was peppered with questions from academics and ecclesiastics during Vatican conference in a manner that might have been afforded a head of state.

The invitation to Sanders to address that session raised eyebrows when it was announced and touched off allegations that the senator lobbied for the invitation.

But the chancellor for the pontifical academy, Bishop Marcelo Sanchez Sorondo, said he invited Sanders because he was the only U.S. presidential candidate who showed deep interest in the teachings of Francis.

Once back home, Sanders was set to refocus on Tuesday's pivotal presidential contest in New York, a state with a significant number of Catholic voters. Clinton holds a lead among the delegates who will determine the Democratic nominee, and Sanders is trying to string together a series of victories in upcoming contests to draw closer.

Bill Clinton brings presidential campaign to poor, black Syracuse neighborhood

Police charged a teenager with threatening to kill a 17-year-old girl after she rejected his prom invitation.

CONNECTICUT — Police have charged a teenager from West Haven with threatening to kill a girl after she rejected his prom date invitation, according to the New Haven Register.

Trevon Malik Avery, 18, was arrested for charges that included harassment and breach of peace, on Friday.

Avery allegedly texted the 17-year-old girl threatening messages, including one text that included a picture of him brandishing a firearm. This all occurred after the girl had broken up with him and turned down his prom invitation, according to police.

Avery was ordered to stay under house arrest, with the exception of when he has to attend school, says The Connecticut Post.

Avery allegedly told police that the texts were jokes and that the weapon was fake.

Here are Saturday's winning numbers in the Powerball drawing.

If you plunked down $2 for a ticket to the latest Powerball drawing, let's see if this is your (very) lucky day.

Inform 

Here are Saturday's winning numbers:

03-18-25-32-51, Powerball: 03, PowerPlay: 2X

The estimated jackpot is $205 million. The lump sum payment before taxes will be more than $136 million.

Powerball is held in 44 states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.

A $2 ticket gives you a one in 292.2 million chance at joining the hall of Powerball champions.

The jackpot has been creeping up since March 2, when there was one winning ticket for the $292 million jackpot. In January, Powerball gave away a $1.58 billion jackpot, the largest lottery prize ever.

The drawings are held at 10:59 p.m. Wednesdays and Saturdays. Deadline to purchase tickets is 9:45 p.m.

Democratic voters are clamoring for Hillary Clinton to release transcripts of speeches she made to Goldman Sachs and other financial institutions.

A new hashtag – #ReleaseTheTranscripts – has emerged on Twitter that is being used to pressure presidential candidate Hillary Clinton into showing voters the contents of paid speeches she made to various financial institutions over the past decade.

The transcripts have become a contentious issue in the 2016 race for the democratic presidential nomination.

Seeing as one of Clinton's key campaign platforms has been that she will be "tough on Wall Street," her paid speeches seem to represent a conflict of interest to many voters.

Together, Hillary and her husband and former U.S. President Bill Clinton made $153 million dollars from speaking fees for 729 speeches given between 2001 and 2016, according to CNN. 39 of those speeches were to banks and financial institutions like Goldman Sachs, UBS, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, and Morgan Stanley, among others. CNN estimates that the Clintons made an "average pay day" of upwards of $200,000 on each speech.

As one writer pointed out, Clinton made more money from one speech than her opponent Bernie Sanders made in an entire year as a U.S. senator. For voters that believe financial donations buy political influence, these paid speeches signal that Clinton won't be "tough on Wall Street" as she has vowed during her campaign.

Clinton evaded questions about the speeches during Thursday night's Democratic presidential race debate, and was actively booed by audience members when she said she would release her transcripts when "everybody does it." Sanders made clear in February that he was fine releasing transcripts for speeches he had made to big banks, seeing as he has never made any.

The USGS originally put the quake at a magnitude of 7.4 then raised it to 7.8. It had a depth of 19 kilometers.

QUITO, Ecuador -- A powerful, 7.8-magnitude earthquake shook Ecuador's central coast on Saturday, killing at least 41 people and spreading panic hundreds of miles away as it collapsed homes and buckled a major overpass.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the shallow quake, the strongest since 1979 to hit Ecuador, was centered 16 miles south-southeast of Muisne, a sparsely populated area of fishing ports that's popular with tourists.

Vice President Jorge Glas said in a televised address that there were initial reports of 41 dead in the cities of Manta, Portoviejo and Guayaquil -- all several hundred miles from where the quake struck shortly after nightfall. He said the death toll is likely to rise as reports from the worst-hit areas come in.

"We're trying to do the most we can but there's almost nothing we can do," said Gabriel Alcivar, mayor of Pedernales, a town of 40,000 near the epicenter. He pleaded for rescuers as dozens of buildings in the town were flattened, people trapped and looting broke out amid the chaos. "This wasn't just a house that collapsed, it was an entire town."

Among those killed was the driver of a car crushed by an overpass that buckled in Guayaquil, the country's most populous city.

President Rafael Correa, who is in Rome after attending a Vatican conference Friday, called on Ecuadoreans to stay strong while authorities monitor events.

He said on Twitter he had signed a decree declaring a national emergency but that the earliest he could get back to Ecuador is Sunday afternoon. He said that there were "dozens of dead" from the earthquake.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said hazardous tsunami waves are possible for some coasts. While the government hadn't issued a tsunami alert, Glas urged residents along the coast to move to higher ground and towns near the epicenter were also being evacuated as a precautionary measure. An emergency had been declared in six of Ecuador's 24 provinces, while sporting events and concerts were cancelled until further notice nationwide.

"It's very important that Ecuadoreans remain calm during this emergency," Glas said from Ecuador's national crisis room.

The quake was felt across the border in Colombia, where it shook residents in Cali and Popayan, and Peru briefly issued a tsunami warning.

In the capital Quito hundreds of kilometers away from the epicenter, the quake was felt for about 40 seconds and people fled to the streets in fear. The quake knocked out electricity in several neighborhoods and six homes collapsed but the situation under control and power being restored, Quito's Mayor Mauricio Rodas said.

"I'm in a state of panic," said Zoila Villena, one of many Quito residents who congregated in the streets. "My building moved a lot and things fell to the floor. Lots of neighbors were screaming and kids crying."

The USGS originally put the quake at a magnitude of 7.4 then raised it to 7.8. It had a depth of 19 kilometers. At least 36 aftershocks followed, one as strong as 6 on the Richter scale, and authorities urged residents to brace for even stronger ones in the coming hours and days.

Guayaquil's international airport was also closed because of a lack of communications.

The quake comes on the heels of two deadly earthquakes across the Pacific, in the southernmost of Japan's four main islands. A magnitude-6.5 earthquake struck Thursday near Kumamoto, followed by a magnitude-7.3 earthquake just 28 hours later. The quakes have killed 41 people and injured about 1,500, flattened houses and triggered major landslides.

Pope Francis rescued twelve Syrian refugees from a detention center in Greece on Saturday.

Twelve Syrian refugees were taken to Rome on Saturday where they will be hosted at the Vatican by Pope Francis, according to The Washington Post.

The twelve Muslim asylum seekers are made up of two families from Damascus and one from Deir al-Zour. Six of them are children. All of them had their homes destroyed by bombs in the Syrian war, according to the New York Times.

Pope Francis rescued the refugees from a detention center on the Greek Island of Lesbos on Saturday, where the families were facing deportation. He then shepherded them back to Rome on his papal plane, where a charity organization called Sant'Egidio will attempt to find the refugees work.

The international refugee crisis is affecting countries all over Europe and the Middle East, and has only worsened as a problem over the past year.

Many academics and think tanks – such as The Brookings Institute – have interpreted the crisis to be a response to the wars and conflicts caused by radical Islamicist groups like the Islamic State. Hundreds of thousands of Middle Eastern people are attempting to flee their own countries and seek sanctuary in European nations like Sweden and Germany, according to NBC News.

Yet much of Europe has been reticent to let in the hordes of refugees, for diverse reasons. Many are afraid that terrorists will pose as asylum seekers as a means of infiltrating European borders. Other nations worry about the governmental strain that could be placed on countries that host thousands of foreigners.

Pope Francis, however, has preached that tolerance, sympathy, and generosity should be offered to the escaping refugees.

At the Moria migrant detention facility on Lesbos, the Pope said on Saturday that he hoped Europe would be generous to the refugees. "We hope that the world will heed these scenes of tragic and indeed desperate need, and respond in a way worthy of our common humanity," said Francis, according to The Washington Post.