Whole Foods says the cheese may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. It was sold in 30 states and Washington DC under names including Les Freres and Crave Brothers Les Freres. The company is posting signs in its stores to inform customers about the recall.

NEW YORK (AP) — Whole Foods Market Inc. is recalling Crave Brothers Les Freres cheese in response to an outbreak of a bacterial infection that has sickened people in several states and killed at least one.

Whole Foods says the cheese may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. It was sold in 30 states and Washington DC under names including Les Freres and Crave Brothers Les Freres. The company is posting signs in its stores to inform customers about the recall.

Public health officials in Illinois say one resident became sick after eating contaminated cheese in May. Minnesota officials say one elderly person in the state died and another was hospitalized after illnesses linked to the cheese.

Listeria can lead to severe illness for women who are pregnant or people who have weakened immune systems.

According to the notice, testing of a water sample from well No. 5 showed traces of enterococci, which is a fecal indicator.

A girl takes a drink of water from a school fountain.Submitted photo 

View Boil order issued for Westfield Ma. in a larger map

WESTFIELD - The city Water Resource Department on Friday issued a notice for residents of the western portion of the city to boil tap water prior to use due to high levels of fecal contaminants.

According to the notice, testing of a water sample from well No. 5 on Tuesday showed traces of enterococci, which is a fecal indicator.

Well 5 is one of eight wells in the city supplying drinking water.

The notice applies to water customers south of the Westfield River and west of Shepard Street, Smith Avenue, High Street and Southwick Road to the Southwick line.

Water customers within those areas are recommended to boil tap water prior to consumption to reduce the risk of exposure to bacterial or viral contamination. An alternative to boiling is purchasing bottled water.

Water should be heated to a rolling boil for at least one minute and then cooled for using. Boiled water or bottled water should be used for drinking, washing dishes, food preperation, or brushing teeth.

The advisory is in effect until further notice.

Westfield boil water notice

The Academy is seeking to improve student safety.

WILBRAHAM — Wilbraham & Monson Academy has received permission from the town of Wilbraham to install a pedestrian light crossing on the Main Street crosswalk in front of Rich Hall.

The academy sought permission to purchase and install the system as a way to improve the daily interaction between students and motorists, particularly at high volume times on weekdays. The academy hopes the installation will help relieve longstanding pedestrian/motorist tensions, said Brian Easler, associate head of school and dean of students.

“We know the Main Street crosswalk has been a cause of frustration and concern for a long time. We share this concern,” he said.

Edmond Miga, Wilbraham DPW director, said the academy approached the town about installing a pedestrian light out of concern for the safety of students using the crosswalk. A town safety committee under the Board of Selectmen consisting of DPW, police and fire officials reviewed the request and gave the permission, Miga said.

“Main Street is a busy street, and we hope this works for them,” Miga said. He said that the town is happy that the school is paying for the pedestrian light.

The system, which is nearly an exact duplicate of the one on Wilbraham Road in Springfield at Western New England University, is a set of daylight-adjusting LED school-zone crossing signs, one on each side, with a button on each for students to push and be given permission to cross. When a button is pushed on either side, the LED lights in both signs will flash for 20 seconds to warn motorists.

The Academy will use the system to teach students how to responsibly cross Main Street in a way that is familiar to the student population, and to more adequately inform motorists of pedestrian traffic, particularly in times of limited visibility, Easler said.

Miga said the footings have already been installed, so the pedestrian light crossing system should be functioning soon.

Because the system will be solar powered and wireless, the installation should cause no disruption to traffic, Easler said.

The map below shows the approximate location of where the lighted crosswalk will be installed:

The conflicting testimony over a potentially critical piece of evidence came on a dramatic, action-packed day in which the prosecution rested its case and the judge rejected a defense request to acquit Zimmerman on the second-degree murder charge.

By KYLE HIGHTOWER
and MIKE SCHNEIDER

SANFORD, Fla. — Trayvon Martin's mother and George Zimmerman's mother clashed on the witness stand Friday over whether the screams for help that can be heard in the background on a 911 call came from the teenager or the neighborhood watch volunteer who shot him.

"I heard my son screaming," Sybrina Fulton, Martin's mother, answered firmly after listening to a recording in which high-pitched wails could be heard. Moments later on the call, there was a gunshot and the crying stopped.

Later in the day Friday, Gladys Zimmerman listened to the same recording and answered, "My son" when asked whose voice it was. Asked how she could be certain, she said: "Because it's my son."

The conflicting testimony over the potentially critical piece of evidence came on a dramatic, action-packed day in which the prosecution rested its case and the judge rejected a defense request to acquit Zimmerman on the second-degree murder charge.

The question of whose voice is on the recording could be crucial to the jury in deciding who was the aggressor in the confrontation that ended with Zimmerman killing the 17-year-old.

The question sharply divided the two families: Martin's half brother, 22-year-old Jahvaris Fulton, testified that the cries came from the 17-year-old. And Zimmerman's uncle, Jose Meza, said he knew it was Zimmerman's voice from "the moment I heard it. ... I thought, that is George."

In asking that the judge acquit Zimmerman, defense attorney Mark O'Mara argued that the prosecution had failed to prove its case.

He said an "enormous" amount of evidence showed that Zimmerman acted in self-defense, and he argued that Zimmerman had reasonable grounds to believe he was in danger, and acted without the "ill will, hatred and spite" necessary to prove second-degree murder.

But prosecutor Richard Mantei countered: "There are two people involved here. One of them is dead, and one of them is a liar."

Mantei told the judge that Zimmerman had changed his story, that his account of how he shot Martin was "a physical impossibility," and that he exaggerated his wounds.

After listening to an hour and a half of arguments from both sides, Judge Debra Nelson refused to throw out the murder charge, saying the prosecution had presented sufficient evidence for the case to go on.

The prosecution rested late in the afternoon after calling 38 witnesses over two weeks.

Among them, earlier in the day, was Sybrina Fulton, who sat expressionless on the witness stand while prosecutors played the 911 recording of a Zimmerman neighbor urging a dispatcher to send police quickly.

"Who do you recognize that to be?" prosecutor Bernie de la Rionda asked her.

"Trayvon Benjamin Martin," she replied.

When introducing herself to jurors, Fulton described having two sons, one of whom "is in heaven."

During cross-examination, O'Mara suggested — haltingly, in apparent recognition of the sensitivity of the questioning — that Fulton may have been influenced by others who listened to the 911 call, including relatives and her former husband.

O'Mara asked Fulton hypothetically whether she would have to accept that it was Zimmerman yelling for help if the screams did not come from her son. The defense attorney also asked Fulton whether she hoped Martin didn't do anything that led to his death.

"I would hope for this to never have happened and he would still be here," she said.

O'Mara asked Jahvaris Fulton why he told a reporter last year that he wasn't sure if the voice belonged to Martin. Jahvaris Fulton explained that he was "shocked" when he heard it.

"I didn't want to believe it was him," he said.

The doctor who performed an autopsy on Martin also took the stand. Associate Medical Examiner Shiping Bao started describing Martin as being in pain and suffering after he was shot, but defense attorneys objected and the judge directed Bao away from that line of questioning.

He later estimated that Martin lived one to 10 minutes after he was shot, and said the bullet went from the front to the back of the teen's chest, piercing his heart.

"There was no chance he could survive," Bao said.

With jurors out of the courtroom, Bao acknowledged under defense questioning he had changed his opinion in recent weeks on two matters related to the teen's death — how long Martin was alive after being shot and the effect of marijuana detected in Martin's body at the time of his death.

Bao said last November that he believed Martin was alive one to three minutes. He also said Friday that marijuana could have affected Martin physically or mentally; he said the opposite last year.

The judge ruled before the trial that Martin's past marijuana use couldn't be introduced, and so the jury did not hear Bao's opinion about the drug's effect.

Technology that saves lives – and fuel – is getting better and cheaper. That means it's no longer confined to luxury brands like Mercedes and Volvo. It's showing up in mainstream vehicles like the Nissan Rogue and Ford Fusion.

By DEE-ANN DURBIN
and TOM KRISHER
AP Auto Writers

DETROIT — Cameras that check around the car for pedestrians. Radar that stops you from drifting out of your lane. An engine able to turn off automatically at traffic lights to conserve fuel.

Technology that saves lives — and fuel — is getting better and cheaper. That means it's no longer confined to luxury brands like Mercedes and Volvo. It's showing up in mainstream vehicles like the Nissan Rogue and Ford Fusion.

"What we see today as slightly elitist technology is changing very, very fast," said Steven Lunn, chief operating officer for TRW Automotive, which supplies electronics and other parts to carmakers.

TRW says its newest radar is a quarter of the price of the model it sold 10 years ago. Its cameras are smaller and cheaper, too, making it easier to put multiple ones on each car.

High-tech options can still cost a few thousand dollars more, but those costs will come down as technology improves and automakers add them to more and more vehicles.

Here are some up-and-coming features that drivers can expect on their next cars:

Collision warning with automatic braking:

New cars have radar and camera systems that warn you, with beeping sounds, of a possible front-end crash. Some even stop the vehicle, or at least slow it enough to make a crash less severe. More sophisticated systems apply the brakes if a car veers off the road and heads toward a moving or fixed object. The systems are the outgrowth of adaptive cruise control, which came out 15 years ago and helps keep cars a safe distance from vehicles in front of them.

Mercedes, Honda, Toyota, Infiniti, Volvo and other brands offer automatic braking to avoid a collision; more automakers will follow soon. The systems seem to be working. David Zuby, the chief research officer at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, said collision warning systems alone reduced crashes by 7 percent in a study of insurance claims for several thousand Mercedes vehicles with the technologies. Adding automatic braking doubled that benefit.

Advanced cameras:

Automotive cameras are showing up on more cars ahead of a government requirement to install backup cameras, which is expected by 2015. But with cameras getting smaller and cheaper, automakers aren't just putting them on the back of the car anymore. Honda has side cameras that come on automatically when a turn signal is employed, so drivers can spot obstacles while turning. Nissan's around-view monitor blends images from four cameras tucked in the mirrors and elsewhere around the car into a composite, bird's-eye view to help the driver back out of a parking spot. The system is available on a high-end Rogue, which costs $6,000 more than the base model. Volvo and Subaru have front-mounted cameras that can apply brakes to avoid hitting pedestrians.

According to Mobileye, an Israeli maker of automotive cameras, car companies are adding cameras that can read wrong-way road signs, detect large animals such as deer, and even note the colors of traffic lights. All that technology is coming by 2015. The next wave? Nissan and TRW are working on a system to automatically steer the car away from an obstacle. Expect that by 2016.

Lane Centering:

A camera can follow the road and gently nudge a car — using the brakes — to stay in the center of a lane. These systems — dubbed Lane Keep Assist — are available on most Mercedes-Benz vehicles as well as the Ford Fusion, Ford Explorer, Toyota Prius, Lexus GS and Lincoln MKZ. They aren't cheap. A combined lane-keeping and lane-centering system is a $1,200 option on the Fusion SE. Prius owners must spend $4,320 to get the system, packaged with cruise control and an entertainment system. Lane-centering is an outgrowth of lane-keeping systems, which first appeared on commercial trucks a decade ago. Those systems — now offered by Honda, Buick, Cadillac, Nissan and other brands — sound a beep or vibrate the driver's seat if a camera senses that a car is swerving out of its lane.

Adaptive headlights:

Headlights don't have to be round any more to accommodate bulbs, so designers have more flexibility on where to put lights. And LEDs, or light-emitting diodes, are letting automakers cram more brightness into smaller spaces. Audi, Mercedes, Acura, Mazda and others have so-called adaptive headlights that swivel in the direction the car is going to help drivers see around corners as they turn. And many cars now have high-beam lights that sense oncoming traffic and dim automatically. The Ford Fusion and other mainstream cars have them, and drivers can buy after-market kits to add automatic high beams to cars without them.

Stop-start:

By 2025, new cars and trucks sold in the U.S. will have to average 54.5 miles per gallon of gasoline, up from the current 30.8 mpg. One feature will almost be a must-have: A "stop-start" device that shuts off the engine at a stop light and automatically turns it on when the driver releases the brake.

Alex Molinaroli, a vice president with Johnson Controls Inc., which makes batteries that power the systems, estimates they raise gas mileage by a minimum of 5 percent.

Stop-start first surfaced in Europe, where gas prices are far higher. Now, nearly all gas-electric hybrid vehicles have it, as do some cars and trucks with conventional engines. The BMW 3-Series has a simple system, helping the four-cylinder version with an automatic transmission get 28 mpg in combined city and highway driving. A high-mileage version of Chrysler's Ram pickup also has it, boosting combined mileage by 1 mpg to 21.

Currently, 5 percent of new U.S. cars have the systems as standard or optional equipment, up from just 0.5 percent two years ago, according to the Edmunds.com automotive website. Johnson Controls predicts that to rise to 40 to 45 percent by 2016.

Marquez was travelling across the country at the time of his death.

Two Pittsfield police officers used accident reconstruction techniques to conclude the crash occurred in the eastbound lane of West Street and that Zuber was drunk during the crash. 

Marquez drowned June 25 when he jumped into the west branch of the river near a dam off Mill Street.

The strong current apparently held him under and he never resurfaced. It took rescue workers a day to retrieve his body from where it was trapped on a grate by the dam spillway.

According to Capeless, Marquez was travelling across the country at the time of his death.

The desire to promote dogfish is a change for fishermen who have long despised the small shark, a relentless predator they say clogs nets, devours bait and drives out more valuable species, such as cod.

By JAY LINDSAY

BOSTON — Fishermen desperate for revenue are learning to love the ornery dogfish, and they're hoping the government can help them persuade seafood eaters to do the same.

Industry groups have asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture to buy more dogfish fillets to increase industry earnings and build market demand for the abundant but low-value fish.

Last week, 19 New England lawmakers, including the U.S. senators from Rhode Island, Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire, followed the fishermen's request with a letter saying such purchases could "bring much needed relief to an ailing industry."

The desire to promote dogfish is a change for fishermen who have long despised the small shark, a relentless predator they say clogs nets, devours bait and drives out more valuable species, such as cod. But with new catch limits cutting New England operations to the bone, fishermen say there's opportunity in the plentiful dogfish.

"When life gives you lemons, you drink lemonade, right?" said Rhode Island fisherman Chris Brown.

This year, fishermen in the coastal New England states have about 24 million pounds of dogfish quota. By comparison, their Gulf of Maine cod quota is about 3.24 million pounds, after being cut 78 percent from last year.

With such a massive dogfish allotment, fishermen are looking for ways to increase demand and drive up profits and infrastructure investment along the way.

The limp market for dogfish exists largely in Europe, where it's sold with fish and chips. Dogfish prices in New England are floating around 22 cents a pound or lower, and the price is often barely enough to cover the cost to go catch it.

Fishermen want the USDA to buy dogfish under a federal program created in 1935 that buys surplus food, relieving downward pressure on the price of that food. The food is then donated to federal programs, such as school lunch programs or initiatives to help needy families.

Fishing advocates from 12 industry groups, in their letter last month to a USDA official, touted dogfish as a low-fat source of protein and a good source of vitamins B6 and B12.

"Breaded dogfish sticks are ideal for use in domestic food assistance programs and are gaining popularity with chefs seeking a cost efficient fish fillet," the June 20 letter reads.

The appeal of dogfish can indeed go well beyond fish stick aficionados, Brown said. It's just going to take a lot more care after catching it.

Fishermen haven't always had the incentive to be attentive to dogfish, when catch limits for big moneymakers such as cod were so much larger, he said.

"They were always the cheapest fish in the boat and the last one you take care of," said Brown, who fishes out of Point Judith.

But Brown said dogfish can produce a high-quality white fillet if it's killed, bled and iced immediately after being caught. He said he's been doing that and getting rave reviews from customers at a farmer's market where he sells it in Richmond, R.I.

Ben Martens, of the Maine Coast Fishermen's Association, a Topsham, Maine-based industry group, said dogfish is no industry savior, noting it remains unclear how to build buzz and markets for it. But he agrees dogfish done right can have much broader culinary draw.

"It could be something that can really help get the industry through a very difficult time," he said.

Emergency services official Amr Salama says the 12 died when hundreds of Islamists descended on a rally by opponents of ousted President Mohammed Morsi in Alexandria, opening fire with guns.

By LEE KEATH, MAGGIE MICHAEL
and SARAH EL DEEB

CAIRO — Enraged Islamists pushed back Friday against the toppling of President Mohammed Morsi, as tens of thousands of his supporters took to the streets across Egypt vowing to win his reinstatement and clashed with their opponent in violence that killed 30 and wounded more than 200 nationwide.

In a battle on a bridge over the Nile River in Cairo, gunfire rang out and flames leaped from a burning car as the rival camps threw volleys of stones and fireworks at each other. Military armored vehicles raced across the bridge in a counterattack on Morsi's supporters.

The clashes accelerated after four supporters of the president were killed when troops opened fire on their rally — and after a dramatic appearance by the supreme leader of Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood. He defiantly proclaimed that his followers would not give up street action until the return of the president, swept out of power days earlier by the military.

"God make Morsi victorious and bring him back to the palace," Mohammed Badie proclaimed before cheering supporters at a Cairo mosque in his first appearance since the overthrow. "We are his soldiers we defend him with our lives."

Badie said it was a matter of honor for the military to abide by its pledge of loyalty to the president, in what appeared to be an attempt to pull it away from its leadership.

"Your leader is Morsi. ... Return to the people of Egypt," he said. "Your bullets are not to be fired on your sons and your own people."

Hours later, Badie's deputy, Khairat el-Shater, considered the most powerful figure in the organization, was arrested in a Cairo apartment along with his brother on allegations of inciting violence, Interior Ministry spokesman Hani Abdel-Latif told The Associated Press.

After the speech, a large crowd of Islamists surged across 6th October Bridge over the Nile toward Tahrir Square, where a giant crowd of Morsi's opponents had been massed all day. Battles broke out there and near the neighboring state TV building. Pro-Morsi youth shielded themselves from flying stones and fireworks with sheets of barricaded metal. A car burned at the top of an exit ramp amid the sounds of automatic weapons and shotguns.

"They are firing at us, sons of dogs! Where is the army?" one Morsi opponent shouted as another was brought to medics with his jeans soaked in blood from leg wounds. At least three people were killed at the bridge.

The fighting ended when at least seven armored personnel carriers sped across the bridge, chasing away the Morsi supporters. Young civilians jumped onto the roofs of the APCs, shouting insults at the Islamists and chanting, "The people and army are one hand."

Across the country, clashes erupted as Morsi supporters tried to storm local government buildings or military facilities, battling police or Morsi opponents. At least 30 people were killed throughout the day in Egypt, with 210 wounded, Heath Ministry official Khaled el-Khatib told The Associated Press.

Islamists descended on anti-Morsi rally, opening fire with guns in the Mediterranean coastal city of Alexandria, where at least 12 people were killed, mostly Morsi opponents, emergency services official Amr Salama said. One man was stabbed and thrown from the roof of a building by Morsi supporters after he raised an Egyptian flag and shouted insults against the ousted president, according to an Associated Press reporter at the scene.

Five policemen killed by militants in shootings around the Sinai city of el-Arish, according to security officials speaking on condition of anonymity because not authorized to talk to the press.

The U.S. State Department condemned the violence and called on all Egyptian leaders to denounce the use of force and prevent further bloodshed among their supporters.

"The voices of all who are protesting peacefully must be heard — including those who welcomed the events of earlier this week and those who supported President Morsi," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a statement. "The Egyptian people must come together to resolve their differences peacefully, without recourse to violence or the use of force."

Britain's Foreign Secretary William Hague also said he was "very concerned" by the reports of violence.

Col. Ahmed Ali, a spokesman for the armed forces, said the Muslim Brotherhood was trying to "pick a fight" with the army and "drag it to a clash in order to send a message to the West that what happened in the country is a coup and that the military is cracking down on the peaceful protesters."

That mirrored a statement from an umbrella group of Morsi opponents — including the National Salvation Front and youth groups. The group urged the public to take to the streets immediately "to defend popular legitimacy" against what they called a "malicious plot" by the Brotherhood.

Islamists vowed to show by their numbers and the turmoil that the military had made a mistake by removing Morsi on Wednesday night. The action followed mass demonstrations for four days this week by the president's opponents in the biggest rallies the country has seen.

"The military got itself in a trap by taking one side. Now they see the masses in the streets and now they realized that there are two peoples," Hamada Nassar, a figure from the hard-line former militant group, Gamaa Islamiya, told AP.

An interim president — senior judge Adly Mansour — was sworn in Thursday, and a Cabinet of technocrats is to be formed to run Egypt until new elections can be held, although officials have not said when that will be. Mansour dissolved the interim parliament — the upper house of the legislature — which was overwhelmingly dominated by Islamists and Morsi allies. He also named the head of General Intelligence, Rafaat Shehata, as his security adviser.

The Islamists had called rallies Friday to express their outrage at Morsi's ouster. The Brotherhood has said it will not work with the new military-backed leadership, and Morsi's supporters say the armed forces have wrecked Egypt's democracy by carrying out a coup against an elected president.

They accuse loyalists of former leader Hosni Mubarak, ousted in 2011, and liberal and secular opposition parties of turning to the army for help because they lost the election to Islamists. Many also see it as a conspiracy against Islam.

The turmoil began in the afternoon when army troops opened fire as hundreds of his supporters marched on the Republican Guard building in Cairo. That site is where Morsi was staying when he was toppled before being taken into military custody at an undisclosed location.

The crowd approached a barbed wire barrier where troops were standing guard. When one person hung a sign of Morsi on the barrier, soldiers tore it down and told the crowd to stay back. A protester put up a second sign, and the soldiers opened fire, according to an AP photographer.

A protester fell dead with a gaping, bleeding wound in the back of his head, while others were bloodied and wounded. Witnesses told AP Television News at the scene that men in plain clothes fired the lethal shots. The Health Ministry said a total of four were killed at the site, though it was not known how all died.

Protesters threw stones at the troops, who responded with volleys of tear gas. Many of those injured had wounds typical of birdshot. The BBC's Middle East editor, Jeremy Bowen, was hit by birdshot in the head as he covered the clashes but said his injuries were superficial.

Badie made his appearance three hours later on a stage in front of tens of thousands of Islamists massed at Rabia al-Adawiya Mosque, not far from the Republican Guard building.

Morsi "is my president and your president and the president of all Egyptians," Badie proclaimed, thrusting his arms in the air, as a military helicopter circled low overhead.

The gray-haired Badie is a revered figure among the Brotherhood's followers, who swear an oath of absolute obedience to him — to "hear and obey."

The circumstances of his appearance were a mystery. Security officials had said Badie was taken into custody from a villa on the Mediterranean coast soon after Morsi's removal Wednesday night and flown to Cairo, part of a sweep that netted at least five other senior Brotherhood figures and put around 200 more on wanted lists.

Just before his speech, the Brotherhood's political party said on its webpage that Badie had "been released." On stage, however, Badie denied he had been arrested. There was no immediate explanation from security officials.

Authorities also announced the release of Saad Katatni, head of the Brotherhood's political arm the Freedom and Justice Party, as well as one of Badie's deputies, Rashad Bayoumi, pending further investigation.

Fears have been running high over an Islamist backlash to Morsi's overthrow. Extremist Islamist groups that gained considerable freedom to operate during Morsi's year in office have already vowed violence in retaliation.

The first major militant attack came before dawn Friday in the tumultuous Sinai Peninsula, killing at least one soldier. Masked assailants launched a coordinated attack with rockets, rocket-propelled grenades and anti-aircraft guns on the airport in the northern Sinai city of el-Arish, where military aircraft are located. Also hit was a security forces camp in Rafah on the border with Gaza, and five other military and police posts.

One of military's top commanders, Gen. Ahmed Wasfi, arrived at el-Arish to lead operations there as the army declared a "war on terrorism" in Sinai. A crowd of Morsi supporters tried to storm the governor's office in the city but were dispersed by security forces.

On the night of Morsi's ouster, jihadi groups rallied in el-Arish, vowing to fight. "War council, war council," a speaker shouted, according to online video of the rally. "No peacefulness after today."

Islamic militants hold a powerful sway in the lawless northern Sinai. They are heavily armed with weapons smuggled from Libya and have links with militants in the neighboring Gaza Strip, run by Hamas. After the attack, Egypt indefinitely closed its border crossing into Gaza, sending 200 Palestinians back into the territory, said Gen. Sami Metwali, director of Rafah passage.

At the Rabia al-Adawiya Mosque rally earlier in the day, the crowd filled much of a broad boulevard, vowing to stay until Morsi is reinstated. The protesters railed against what they called the return of the Mubarak regime.

"The old regime has come back ... worse than before," said Ismail Abdel-Mohsen, an 18-year-old student at the mosque rally. He described the interim president as "the military puppet."

"After sunset, President Morsi will be back in the palace," they chanted. "The people want God's law. Islamic, Islamic, whether the army likes it or not."

Many held copies of the Quran in the air, and much of the crowd had the long beards of ultraconservative men or encompassing black robes and veils worn by women.

One protester shouted that the sheik of Al-Azhar, Egypt's top Muslim cleric who backed the military, was "an agent of the Christians" — reflecting a sentiment that the Christian minority was behind Morsi's ouster.

In southern Egypt, Islamists attacked the main church in the city of Qena. In the town of Dabaiya near the city of Luxor, a mob torched houses of Christians, sending dozens seeking shelter in a police station.

AP correspondent Tony G. Gabriel contributed to this report

According to police, 30 minutes after the robbery was reported, Berthiaume was trying to pawn stolen items in Springfield.

 

ENFIELD — Police on Wednesday arrested a 37-year old Enfield man and charged him with the home invasion robbery and assault of a 93-year-old woman, according to a statement issued by Enfield police.

Arrested was Toby A. Berthiaume of 116 Windsor St., Enfield.

He was charged with home invasion, burglary in the first degree, assault in the third degree on an elderly person and larceny.

The robbery and assault were reported on May 6 at about 2:30 p.m., according to Enfield police.

The elderly homeowner reported being attacked and having jewelry stolen, police said.
The Hartford Courant reported that roughly 30 minutes after the robbery was reported, Berthiaume attempted to pawn stolen items at The Money Stop, 450 Main St., in Springfield.

At his arraignment Friday, Berthiaume denied the charges. He is due back in court on July 19. He was ordered held on $350,000 bail.

Iginla's deal is worth up to $6 million.

It appears to be real this time.

According to multiple reports, the Boston Bruins have signed Jarome Iginla to a one-year contract worth $6 million.

TSN's Bob McKenzie and Aaron Ward were the first to report it via Twitter.

Jarome Iginla is a Boston Bruin.

— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) July 5, 2013

ESPN's Pierre LeBrun tweeted Iginla's deal will be a $1.8 million base salary with the following bonuses: $3.7 million for number of games played and $500,000 for goal scoring and team playoff performance.

Iginla scored 14 goals and 19 assists between Calgary and Pittsburgh last season.

In 15 playoff games, Iginla compiled 12 points, but was held scoreless during the Eastern Conference finals where the Bruins swept the Penguins in the best-of-7 series.

It's an interesting turn of events as Iginla opted to be traded to Pittsburgh instead of Boston believing he had a better shot at capturing the Stanley Cup.

Now the 36-year-old has another chance, but with the team he passed up on in the first place.

UPDATE: Bruins make signing official.

In Chicopee, the temperature only reached 92 degrees, but the humidity made it seem as if it was 99 degrees.

Unbearable heat caused by high temperatures mixed with high humidity continued on Friday and the forecast calls for it continuing through the weekend.
Friday was essentially an unwelcome clone of Thursday with high temperatures and high levels of humidity that made the day seem even hotter.

And, according to the National Weather Service, more of the same in on tap for Saturday and Sunday.

The high temperature at Westover Air Reserve Base in Chicopee Friday was 92 degree but with the relative humidity of between 53 and 94 percent during the day pushed the heat index to 99 degrees. The heat index combines temperature and humidity to gauge how hot it seems, not necessarily how hot it really is.

On Thursday, the high temperature was 91 but the heat index was 100.

It was the same story Friday throughout the Connecticut River valley from Windsor Locks to Franklin County.

Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks recorded a high temperature of 93 degrees and a heat index of 99, Barnes Regional Airport in Westfield saw a high temperature of 94 and heat index of 100, and Orange Municipal Airport in Orange tallied a 91 degree high and a heat index of 97.

The 92 degree temperature in Chicopee was far short of the record high for the day, 98 degrees in 1999.

The National Weather Service has issued a heat advisory for much of southern New England for Saturday between noon and 7 p.m. The worst of the heat will be between 1 and 6 p.m.

People are urged to limit their time outdoors if possible, wear loose fitting clothing and drink plenty of fluids.

Springfield and Northampton announced cooling centers will be open and available to members of the public seeing relief from the heat.

This sign at the state boat ramp at the Oxbow on Route 5 was there as a bearer of bad news for would-be boaters on Friday.The Republican | Michael Beswick 

In Springfield, centers will be open between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. at the Forest Park Branch Library, 380 Belmont Ave., Liberty Street Branch Library, 733 Liberty St., Sixteen Acres Branch Library, 1187 Parker St., and Indian Orchard Branch Library, 44 Oak St.

In Northampton, cooling centers will be open on Saturday and Sunday at the Northampton Police Station Community Room, 29 Center St., and the Lily Library, 10 Meadow Road.
The police station center will be open each day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. while the library will be open Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sunday from 1 – 5 p.m.

Those seeking to beat the heat by lounging on the Connecticut River may find it easier said than done.

Four state boat ramps along the river have been closed since Thursday because of high water levels as the result of recent rains, and large amounts of debris in the water, according to the state Environmental police.

They were Barton Cove in Gill; the ramp in Northfield; Oxbow in Easthampton; and Medina boat ramp in South Hadley.

Heavy rains have continued in Vermont, affecting waters further south. There are no specific dates for reopening the ramps yet; that will be weather dependent.

A spokesman at Sportsmans Marina & Boat Rental Co. in Hadley said the boat launch was closed Friday because the water levels were too high, but could be reopening Saturday if the levels went down sufficiently.

View full sizeHigh water levels at the Oxbow Marina on Thursday was no problem for the boats, but it made for a soggy picnic area.Patrick Johnson / The Republican 

New England’s power grid peaked at 3 p.m. Friday at 25,000 megawatts, said Marcia Blomberg, a spokeswoman for ISO New England in Holyoke which runs that grid. To put that number in perspective, one megawatt is enough to power about 1,000 homes under normal conditions. The record, set in 2006, is 28,000 megawatts.

Blomberg said ISO New England will continue to monitor the grid during the hot spell.

If the heat wasn't bad enough, in Westfield, the city Water Resource Department on Friday issued a notice for residents of the western portion of the city to boil tap water prior to use due to high levels of fecal contaminants.

According to the notice, testing of a water sample from well No. 5 on Tuesday showed traces of enterococci, which is a fecal indicator.

Well 5 is one of eight wells in the city supplying drinking water.

The notice applies to water customers south of the Westfield River and west of Shepard Street, Smith Avenue, High Street and Southwick Road to the Southwick line.

The offers came following a flap about the rerouting of Bolivian President Evo Morales' plane in Europe earlier this week amid reports that Snowden might have been aboard.

MANAGUA, Nicaragua -- Presidents Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua and Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela said Friday they were willing to grant asylum to NSA leaker Edward Snowden.

Snowden has asked for asylum in numerous countries, including Nicaragua and Venezuela.

"As head of state, the government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela decided to offer humanitarian asylum to the young American Edward Snowden so that he can live (without) ... persecution from the empire," Maduro said, referring to the United States. He made the offer during a speech marking the anniversary of Venezuela's independence. It was not immediately clear if there were any conditions to Venezuela's offer.

In Nicaragua, Ortega said he was willing to make the same offer "if circumstances allow it." Ortega didn't say what the right circumstances would be when he spoke during a speech in Managua.

He said the Nicaraguan embassy in Moscow received Snowden's application for asylum and that it is studying the request.

"We have the sovereign right to help a person who felt remorse after finding out how the United States was using technology to spy on the whole world, and especially its European allies," Ortega said.

The offers came following a flap about the rerouting of Bolivian President Evo Morales' plane in Europe earlier this week amid reports that Snowden might have been aboard.

Spain on Friday said it had been warned along with other European countries that Snowden, a former U.S. intelligence worker, was aboard the Bolivian presidential plane, an acknowledgement that the manhunt for the fugitive leaker had something to do with the plane's unexpected diversion to Austria.

It is unclear whether the United States, which has told its European allies that it wants Snowden back, warned Madrid about the Bolivian president's plane. U.S. officials will not detail their conversations with European countries, except to say that they have stated the U.S.'s general position that it wants Snowden back.

President Barack Obama has publicly displayed a relaxed attitude toward Snowden's movements, saying last month that he wouldn't be "scrambling jets to get a 29-year-old hacker."

But the drama surrounding the flight of Morales, whose plane was abruptly rerouted to Vienna after apparently being denied permission to fly over France, suggests that pressure is being applied behind the scenes.

Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo told Spanish National Television that "they told us that the information was clear, that he was inside."

He did not identify who "they" were and declined to say whether he had been in contact with the U.S. But he said that European countries' decisions were based on the tip. France has since sent a letter of apology to the Bolivian government.

Meanwhile, secret-spilling website WikiLeaks said that Snowden, who is still believed to be stuck in a Moscow airport's transit area, had put in asylum applications to six new countries. He had already sought asylum from more than 20 countries, many of which turned him down.

Wikileaks said in a message posted to Twitter on Friday that it wouldn't be identifying the countries involved "due to attempted U.S. interference."

Icelandic lawmakers introduced a proposal in Parliament on Thursday to grant immediate citizenship to Snowden, but the idea received minimal support.

Francis approved a miracle needed to canonize Pope John Paul II and waived Vatican rules to honor Pope John XXIII.

By NICOLE WINFIELD

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis on Friday cleared two of the 20th century's most influential popes to become saints, approving a miracle needed to canonize Pope John Paul II and waiving Vatican rules to honor Pope John XXIII.

It was a remarkable show of papal authority and confirmed Francis' willingness to bend church tradition when it comes to things he cares deeply about. Both popes are also closely identified with the Second Vatican Council, the 1962-65 meetings that brought the Catholic Church into modern times, an indication that Francis clearly wants to make a statement about the council's role in shaping the church today.

Francis approved a decree that a Costa Rican woman's inexplicable cure from a deadly brain aneurism was the "miracle" needed to canonize John Paul. More significantly, he decided that John XXIII, who convened Vatican II, could be declared a saint even without a second miracle attributed to his intercession. The Vatican said Francis had the power to dispense with such requirements and could proceed with only one confirmed miracle to John's name.

The ceremony is expected before the end of the year. The date of Dec. 8 has been floated as likely, given it's the feast of the Immaculate Conception, a major feast day for the church that honors Mary, to whom both saintly popes were particularly devoted. Polish prelates continue to press for October, to mark the 35th anniversary of the Polish-born John Paul's election, but Vatican officials have suggested that's too soon to organize such a massive event.

The announcement came on a remarkable day melding papacies past and present: It opened with Francis and Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI attending their first Vatican ceremony together, sitting side-by-side on matching papal chairs for the unveiling of a statue in the Vatican gardens. It continued with the publication of Francis' first encyclical, a meditation on faith that was largely written by Benedict before he retired but was signed by Francis. And it climaxed with Francis' decision to canonize two other predecessors.

Each event, historic on its own, would have captured headlines. But the canonization announcement capped them all, reflecting the priorities of this unique pontificate that has already broken so many rules and traditions, from Francis' decision to shun papal vestments to his housing arrangements, living in the Vatican hotel rather than the stuffy Apostolic Palace.

The Rev. Thomas Reese, a Vatican analyst, said the decision to canonize both popes was a "brilliant move to unify the church," given that each pope has his own admirers and critics.

"With the joint announcement, Pope Francis is saying we do not have to choose between popes, we can honor and revere both as holy men who served the church well in their times," he wrote on his blog for the National Catholic Reporter newspaper.

Vatican II, which John XXIII opened a year before his 1963 death, opened the church to people of other faiths and allowed for Mass to be celebrated in the languages of the faithful, rather than Latin. In the years since it closed in 1965, though, it has become a source of division in the church, with critics blaming a faulty interpretation of Vatican II's true meaning on the fall in priestly vocations and the "crisis" in the church today.

To anyone who has been paying attention, Francis' decision to canonize John Paul and John XXIII should come as no surprise: The Jesuit was made a cardinal by John Paul, who attended Vatican II, and is very much a priest of John's legacy.

On the anniversary of John Paul's death this year, Francis prayed at the tombs of both John Paul and John XXIII — an indication that he sees a great personal and spiritual continuity in them.

"Two different popes, very important to the church, will be announced saint together - it's a beautiful gesture," said the Rev. Jozef Kloch, spokesman for Poland's Catholic bishops, who like most Poles was overjoyed by the news of John Paul's impending canonization but impatient to know the date.

Francis will set the date at an upcoming meeting of cardinals.

The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, confirmed that the miracle that brought John Paul to the ranks of saints concerned a Costa Rican woman, Floribeth Mora, who on Friday broke months of silence to tell her story in public, surrounded by her family, doctors and church officials at a news conference in the archbishop's residence in San Jose, Costa Rica.

A tearful Mora described how she awoke at her home in Dulce Nombre de Tres Rios, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the capital, on April 8, 2011 with a debilitating headache that sent her to the hospital. She was diagnosed with having suffered a cerebral aneurism in the right side of her brain.

Doctors decided they couldn't operate because the area was inaccessible.

"With an open operation or an endovascular intervention, the risk to Floribeth would have been to die or be left with a significant neurological deficit," her doctor, Dr. Alejandro Vargas, told reporters.

She was sent home with painkillers.

"I returned home with the fear that I was going to die," Mora said.

Nevertheless, a few days later, she insisted on participating in a religious procession during which she said she received a sign that she would be healed. The family decided to build a shrine to John Paul outside their home: a colorful altar with a photo of the late pope next to a statue of the Madonna and surrounded by flowers, candles and Christmas lights.

On the day John Paul was beatified, May 1, 2011, Mora said she insisted on watching the Mass, which drew some 1.5 million people to St. Peter's Square and the streets around it.

"I contemplated the photo of the Holy Father with his arms extended and I fixed my eyes on him," she said. "In this moment, I heard a voice tell me 'get up, don't be afraid,' and I could only say 'Yes, I'm going to get up.'"

She said her family was shocked to see her get out of bed. "I was afraid to tell my husband, because he was going to think I was crazy or on drugs. But I got up from bed, and I am here before you, healthy," she said.

Medical tests confirmed that the aneurism had disappeared, Vargas said. "It's the first time I've seen anything like it," he said, showing the before and after images of the hemorrhage.

John Paul, who was pope from 1978-2005, revolutionized the papacy, traveling the world and inspiring a generation of young Catholics to be excited about their faith. He was the first Polish pope and the first non-Italian in 455 years — a legacy that continued with the German-born Benedict XVI and Argentine Francis.

John XXIII, dubbed the "good pope" for his affable nature, is best known for having convened Vatican II, sensing that the time was ripe for a renewal of the church. But he has fallen from favor among conservatives who blame Vatican II for the church's problems today.

Benedict spent much of his pontificate trying to correct what he considered wrong interpretations of Vatican II, insisting it wasn't the break from the past that liberals believed.

While not disagreeing outright with Benedict, Francis seems to take a more progressive read of Vatican II and its call to go out into the world and spread the faith — a priority he has shown in the first months of his pontificate.

The two living popes, however, clearly get along.

"Your holiness, good day and thank you!" Francis beamed on Friday as he greeted Benedict in the Vatican gardens for the unveiling of the statue. Benedict, 86, appeared in good form, walking slowly but on his own and greeting well-wishers.

The Vatican's complicated saint-making procedure requires that the Vatican certify a "miracle" was performed through the intercession of the candidate — a medically inexplicable cure that is lasting, immediate and can be directly linked to the prayers offered by the faithful. One miracle is needed for beatification, a second for canonization.

Benedict put John Paul on the fast track for possible sainthood when he dispensed with the traditional five-year waiting period and allowed the beatification process to begin weeks after his John Paul's death. Benedict was responding to chants of "Santo Subito!" or "Sainthood Immediately" which erupted during John Paul's funeral.

There has been some concern that the process has been too quick. Some of the Holy See's deep-seated problems — clerical sex abuse, dysfunctional governance and more recently the financial scandals at the Vatican bank — essentially date from shortcomings of his pontificate.

Thus the decision to canonize John Paul along with John XXIII can be seen as trying to balance those concerns, as well as the shortcomings of each pope.

Such was the case in 2000, when John Paul beatified John XXIII, dubbed the "good pope," alongside Pope Pius IX, who was criticized by Jews for condoning the seizure of a Jewish boy and allegedly referring to Jews as dogs.

As soon as the announcement was made, John Paul's critics came out: Juan Vaca, one of the victims of notorious pedophile priest the Rev. Marcial Maciel, founder of the Legion of Christ religious order, said the decision to canonize John Paul was "appalling and shocking" given the thousands of victims of sex abuse who were ignored under his 27-year pontificate.

The Vatican has argued that sainthood cases are based on the record of the person, not the pontificate.

Asked how John XXIII, elected in 1958, could be canonized without a second miracle, the Vatican spokesman insisted that many theologians believe that a second miracle isn't required. He said Francis had approved a decision by the cardinals and bishops of the Vatican's saint-making office.

"Certainly the pope has the power, in a certain sense, to dispense of the second miracle in a cause, and this is what happened," Lombardi said.

He stressed that this decision didn't represent any relaxing of the Vatican's overall standards for canonization, but represented a unique situation, given that the church this year is marking the 50th anniversary of Vatican II.

"John XXIII is someone who we know is beloved in the church, we're in the 50th anniversary of the Council which he started, and I don't think any of us have any doubts about his virtues," Lombardi said.

Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, John Paul's longtime secretary, was clearly pleased that his pope would finally be made a saint.

"John Paul II's holiness was simple, humble, of service," Dziwisz wrote in Friday's Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano. "He lived for God and brought others to God."

Javier Cordoba in San Jose, Costa Rica, and Monika Scislowska in Warsaw contributed to this report

More than 130 dogs saved from a hoarder in California two weeks ago need to be saved again — but only rescue groups can save them now.

By SUE MANNING

LOS ANGELES — More than 130 dogs saved from a hoarder in California two weeks ago need to be saved again — but only rescue groups can save them now.

The dogs were seized from Rainbow's End Animal Sanctuary in Apple Valley on June 18, where they had been living in one large pack for years without proper food, medical care or human interaction, San Bernardino County Animal Care and Control officials said.

Some dogs had to be euthanized for health reasons. The rest can only be released to rescue groups because of the costly and extensive medical care and behavior work they need. For the same reason, most rescue groups may only be able to take one or two dogs, said Doug Smith, the supervising animal control officer at the Devore Animal Shelter, about 60 miles east of Los Angeles.

Any nonprofit rescue group in the country with the proper credentials can save a dog, Smith said. The rescue groups will have to provide transportation for the dogs too.

The dogs are all at Devore now, but only because other shelters and pet lovers pitched in two weeks ago and adopted every available dog at the shelter to make room.

Devore had to hold the hoarded dogs as evidence until Friday.

All of the hoarded dogs are mixed breed, with a lot of shepherd and collie in them, Smith said.

Smith says the dogs range in age from newborn (born Wednesday) to 11 years old. There are males and females.

Soon they will have to free up kennel space for new dogs and if they don't find sponsors for the 130 dogs, they will have to be euthanized, Smith said.

A criminal complaint has been submitted to the district attorney for review, said Brian Cronin, chief of animal care and control. Because it is an open animal cruelty case, some details about the dogs and their living conditions are not available.

"It is extremely concerning when a self-proclaimed animal sanctuary fails to fulfill its commitment to the homeless animals it has accepted," Cronin said in a statement.

Online:

www.sbcounty.gov/acc

The distance of spectators from the show will be one of many factors considered by investigators.

SIMI VALLEY, Calif. -- When a July Fourth fireworks display exploded and sent red and white bursts into spectators at a Southern California park, Paulina Mulkern saw shrapnel headed straight for her 4-year-old cousin.

Mulkern pushed the girl under a lawn chair, and then shielded her 7-year-old cousin with her body as scorching debris flew overhead.

"You feel the big old heat come right over your back," she said Friday, still shaking as she recounted the explosion the night before that left her hospitalized with bruises and red marks on her back.

At least 36 people were injured as many in the crowd of thousands fled for safety. The victims, from 17 months to 78 years old, had burns and shrapnel wounds, and some were trampled, authorities and hospital officials said. The injured included 12 children.

Mulkern said she went into shock after being hit by a flying piece of debris, trembling badly as she was carried to a road where rescuers stripped off most of her clothes and wrapped her in a blanket.

"I was really terrified. Every time someone launched a firework it got me into panic mode and they just told me, ignore the sounds around you and concentrate on your breathing," she recalled.

Police in Simi Valley, northwest of Los Angeles, said it appeared a firework exploded prematurely in its mortar, knocking over others and aiming them across the field. Fire investigators, however, said later they had not yet determined a cause.

Police based their initial statement on the accounts of witnesses, who said a rack of fireworks fell over, said Ventura County Fire Capt. Mike Lindberry.

Among other key questions investigators were trying to answer was whether the pyrotechnics display was set far enough away from spectators, and even if all the rules were followed, whether those guidelines needed to be revised so that the public is kept farther back from launch sites.

Regulations require crowds be kept 70 feet away for every inch of diameter of the largest shell.

By those standards, spectators should have been at least 350 feet away from the show put on by Bethpage, N.Y.-based Bay Fireworks, said Ventura County Fire Department Deputy Chief Mike LaPlant. The distance of spectators from the show will be one of many factors considered by investigators.

"The distances were either at or beyond the normal distances, the prescribed distances, for that sized shell," he said.

The company said it regretted that spectators were injured and that it planned to publicly release the results of a thorough investigation.

Of the victims, almost all had been treated and released by late Friday, hospital officials said.

One patient was transferred to a burn center and two other adults remained hospitalized in fair condition, said Kim Milstein, chief executive of Simi Valley Hospital.

Although fireworks accidents at professional shows are rare, they are not unheard of. The blast in Simi Valley was itself among several mishaps nationwide Thursday, including errant explosions injuring workers at shows in nearby Ojai, as well as North Myrtle Beach, S.C., and a fireworks barge that caught fire in a Montana lake at the start of the grand finale.

In 2008, fireworks shells exploded on the ground and another one launched into the crowd, injuring five people at an event that also involved Bay Fireworks, said Julie L. Heckman, executive director of the American Pyrotechnics Association, a fireworks trade group. The accident will undoubtedly prompt members of the National Fire Protection Association, which develops the codes that guide the industry, to evaluate whether changes are needed, she added.

"For spectators, this is incredibly rare," Heckman said. "This is just one that is going to stop everybody in their tracks and say, 'We've got to the figure out what happened.'"

Bay Fireworks is licensed by the state and had no violations on their record and the show did not require a state fire marshal permit, said Daniel Berlant, a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The state could cite the company after reviewing the results of the investigation by Ventura County, which issued the permit for the event.

Cellphone videos captured a frantic scene in Simi Valley. Fireworks exploded in spheres of sparks close to the ground, and smoke enveloped the park grounds. People screamed and ran as one man could be heard mistakenly shouting that someone was shooting.

Colette Schmidt was watching with guests at her home across the street when it became clear something went terribly wrong. After a few fireworks lofted perfectly in the sky, there was a big explosion on the ground and a volley of blasts.

One landed and left a crater across from her home, then bounced twice and shot over nearby trees, exploding in a puff of reddish-purple smoke, said Schmidt's daughter, Alessi Smith.

The family herded their guests inside and drew the blinds as sparks and embers rained down. "It was terrible but we were so blessed because we had 150 people here and not one single spark hit our house," she said.

A bomb squad was sent to the park to help deactivate the remaining 60 percent of fireworks that weren't launched.

On Friday morning, blackened debris from the explosion littered the ground. Huge chunks of shrapnel were still scattered across the park and the boxes the mortars had been sitting in were left in the middle of a green field.

Authorities said investigators planned to examine the debris and fly over the scene to photograph it.

The annual July Fourth celebration has been sponsored by the city and the local Rotary Club since 1970.

The mishap came a year after a fireworks show in San Diego exploded in about 20 seconds and sent multiple bulb-shaped explosions over the bay because of an error in the computer system that sets off the pyrotechnics. No one was injured. That show was not produced by Bay Fireworks.

Heckman, with the fireworks trade group, said that while the investigation has not yet revealed the cause of the Simi Valley blast, she believes it was probably a product malfunction.

The industry takes such incidents seriously, especially when they involve spectators. She noted that Bay Fireworks has been in business for a long time and has done significant productions.

The company website says it has produced events for NASA, Walt Disney World and Legoland.

"This incident is a dark cloud over the entire industry," she said. "We don't take it lightly."

MGM Resorts International is providing 2 career preparation workshops and a diversity vendor information fair as part of its goal of hiring 3,000 employees and creating millions of dollars in vendor opportunities.

SPRINGFIELD — MGM Resorts International, as part of its pledge to create 3,000 jobs at its proposed casino and to spend millions of dollars on local goods, has scheduled two job workshops and a “diversity vendor” information fair next week to advance those efforts.

The events are free, and include presentations, comprehensive advice and one-on-one conversations with participants, MGM officials said.

The diversity vendor information fair is scheduled Monday from noon to 6 p.m.at Springfield Technical Community College, Scibelli Hall Building 2. The event will include a presentation at 12:30 p.m., provided by a representative from the state’s Supplier Diversity Office.

MGM and the Springfield Branch of the NAACP, co-hosting the event, welcomes any interested minority-owned, women-owned and disadvantaged local businesses to attend, according to a flier.

The “Career Prep” workshops are offered on Tuesday and Wednesday at different sites.

On Tuesday, the workshops are scheduled from 10 a.m. to noon and from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Greenleaf Community Center, 1188 Parker St.

On Wednesday, the workshops are offered from 10 a.m. to noon and from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Dunbar Y Family and Community Center, 33 Oak St.

Individuals are invited to select one session and make a reservation at the MGM Springfield community office at (413) 735-3000, or at www.yesforspringfield.com.

MGM will have various job descriptions available, including security officer, assistant executive housekeeper, food and beverage manager, host person, “21 dealer,” concierge, assistant front desk manager, front desk clerk and housekeeper, a spokeswoman said, as some examples.

Participants will learn how to collect applications and reevaluate their skills during interviews, she said. Several employees from MGM Grand Detroit and MGM Las Vegas will conduct the workshops.

“We are committed to an aggressive local hiring plan. Three thousand jobs is a big number,” said Kelley Tucky, MGM’s vice president of community & public affairs-Eastern Region. "These career prep workshops will break that number down into individual opportunities. We want a pipeline of trained and eager candidates waiting for MGM Springfield to open its doors.”

“The opportunities MGM Springfield can provide to local minority and women-owned businesses are real and within reach,” said Phyllis James, MGM’s executive vice-president, special counsel-litigation and chief diversity officer.

Michael Mathis, vice-president of global gaming development, said MGM has made a strong commitment of $50 million in available biddable goods to local businesses.

Representatives from the Springfield NAACP and MGM will be available at the information sessions.

Arson investigators allege Juliana Gonzales used a Molotov Cocktail to burn a car.

SPRINGFIELD — Springfield police arrested a city woman after they allege she threw a Molotov cocktail incendiary device at an SUV as it sat next to a home in the Pine Point section of the city.

Fire Department spokesman Dennis Leger said the Arson and Bomb Squad was called to 72 Lionel Benoit Road at 4:12 a.m.Saturday to investigate a car fire. Once on the scene investigators found the vehicle badly burned and evidence of an incendiary device. Leger said witnesses identified Juliana Gonzales, and allegedly told investigators she threw a fire bomb at the vehicle. They said Gonzales had fled the area moments after the fire started. Police stopped the woman not far from the scene and placed her under arrest.

Leger said she is being charged with arson and threatening to commit a crime. She will be arraigned in Springfield District Court Monday.

The Dunkin' Donuts site on Westfield Street in West Springfield has been in the family of Aldo Betera for many years.

WEST SPRINGFIELD – Plans are in the works to demolish the building that houses the Dunkin' Donuts shop on Westfield Street as well as a nail salon and replace the structure with new quarters for the doughnut shop.

The Planning Board plans to hold a public hearing on site plans for the venture when it meets at 7 p.m. on July 17.

Material on file in the Planning Board office states that the existing building at 1333 Westfield St. measures about 3,800 square feet, about 1,700 square feet of which is occupied by Dunkin' Donuts.

The proposal calls for rebuilding a stand-alone Dunkin' Donuts restaurant. The new building will be 2,000-square feet and include a sit-down dining area and walk-in counter service as well as a drive-up service window. The parcel on which the current building is situated is 42,185 square feet.

Asked the reason for the rebuilding, property owner Aldo M. Bertera, of Aldo Bertera Limited Partnership of West Springfield, said the site has been in his family for years. He could not say how old the existing building is beyond that he remembers being in it at the age of 6 in 1943 when it was not a doughnut shop. Bertera could not recall what it was used for at that time.

Bertera serves on the Planning Board and as such will have to recuse himself from participating in any board deliberations or hearings on the project. Asked for more details, Bertera directed a reporter to the planning director and Dunkin' Donuts officials.

They could not be immediately reached for comment.

The city will consider applying for the cultural district designation from the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

SPRINGFIELD — Many local officials and organizations are hoping to create a state-recognized cultural district in downtown Springfield to promote its attractions ranging from the Springfield Museums to Symphony Hall, and to expand and strengthen opportunities.

Kateri Walsh 

City Councilor Kateri B. Walsh and Springfield Museums Vice-President Kay Simpson said Friday that the advance support has been strong. An application for the official designation may be submitted by Aug. 15, to the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

“Receiving a state-designated cultural district will position downtown Springfield as an area of uncommon distinction with museums, concert halls, art galleries, studios, theaters and a college,” Simpson said. “The goal is to provide a cultural environment that merges the historical and diverse cultural elements of Springfield into a welcoming experience for residents of the city and visitors from throughout the Commonwealth.”

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The City Council is expected to consider giving its approval for the application at the council’s next regular meeting, July 15.

Walsh, who is chairwoman of the council’s Maintenance and Development Committee, has scheduled a committee meeting on Wednesday at 5 p.m., at City Hall, to discuss the cultural district and answer any questions or concerns. The public is encouraged to attend.

The proposed cultural district would be bordered by East Columbus Avenue, Bliss Street, Stockbridge Street, High Street, Federal Street, Pearl Street, Dwight Street, Lyman Street and Frank B. Murray Street, according to a prepared summary.

Walsh said the targeted area “is a distinctive area to begin with.”

“This reinforces how unique what we have is – the Quadrangle, the Springfield Armory, and combines it all together acting as one to apply for grants and to enhance programming,” Walsh said.

The application for the cultural district designation is the result of the collective efforts of the Cultural Coordination Committee, chaired by David Starr, president of The Republican. The committee includes representatives from various downtown and cultural organizations, all working in tandem with the city on the cultural district project, also working with groups such as DevelopSpringfield and the Chamber of Commerce.

The plans, if approved, would including hiring a full-time district director, funded by the Business Improvement District and other private fund-raising efforts, officials said. Activities could include public art, festivals, concerts, art-related classes, rehearsals, and vendors, demonstrations, exhibitions and walking tours.

The Armory Quadrangle Civic Association, a downtown organization, recently voted to endorse the cultural district application following a meeting between the association and cultural district advocates.

Institutions within the cultural district will include the Springfield Symphony Orchestra, the Springfield Armory National Historic Site, Springfield Museums, Community Music School, CityStage, Springfield City Library, Springfield Technical Community College and WGBY as well as the MassMutual Center, and Paramount Theater, along with various art and musical attractions, major landmarks on the African-American Freedom Trail, and historic residential neighborhoods.

The stated goals of the district include attracting artists and cultural enterprises, encouraging business and job creation, establishing the district as a tourist destination, preserving and reusing historic buildings.

Honoring the 343 firefighters that died Sept. 11, 2001 is the main reason Ware fire department is building a granite-based monument in memory of their fallen comrades -- with an 80-lb section of steel girder donated by New York City -- from one of the World Trade Center towers destroyed in lower Manhattan that fateful day.

WARE – Honoring the 343 firefighters who died on Sept. 11, 2001, at the World Trade Center in New York City is the main reason the Fire Department here is building a granite-based monument in memory of their fallen comrades.

The new memorial will come complete with an 80-pound section of steel girder from one of the World Trade Center towers destroyed in lower Manhattan that fateful day.

Nearly two years ago Cindy Wloch, 56, whose husband, Ed, is Ware’s deputy fire chief, noticed the monument built in the summer of 2011 in Ludlow and was inspired. The Ludlow monument, like others around the country, including ones in Springfield and in Enfield, feature pieces of the Trade Center debris.

At that moment, she decided Ware should also memorialize the men and women who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks on America, Wloch said in a telephone interview.

She's spent the past two years in an effort to bring a piece of the World Trade Center to Ware.

Ludlow 911 memorialDavid Molnar / The Republican 

Springfield also secured a piece of steel weighing more than a ton from the World Trade Center that was donated by the New York City Fire Department. The Ludlow and Springfield monuments were dedicated on the 10th anniversary of the attacks, Sept. 11, 2011.

Wloch said she wrote more than 100 letters and made twice as many telephone calls.

Her communications included then-Sens. John F. Kerry and Scott Brown, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, current U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and congressmen James McGovern, D-Worcester, and Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, as well as New York officials including the city’s fire commissioner.

“People don’t realize what police and firefighters do; they put their lives on the line every day,” Wloch said. “I did this for our town and our firefighters.”

“When someone loses a brother, a firefighter, you feel it in all the United States. We felt 9/11 here and everywhere in the US. It wasn’t just the 343 (dead firefighters). We lost over 3,000 people that day for no apparent reason at all. To this day, we think about it, and all the people that lost their lives that day.

“Two years ago, I saw the piece in Ludlow, and knew we were getting a new fire station built. I thought, 'Oh my God,' it was a big beautiful piece, and I was hoping I could get something for this town and our firefighters. Our guys, they work so hard to keep all the people safe.”

Her efforts paid off.

Debbie Scheetz, the wife of New York City Rescue 1 firefighter Carl Scheetz, met the Wlochs at the Charlton service plaza on the Massachusetts Turnpike and gave them the piece of steel. They met at about 3:30 p.m. on June 28. Carl Scheetz is in charge of the final disbursement of World Trade Center relics which officials have agreed to release.

“The piece of steel we received was donated by the New York City Fire Department,” Wloch said. “We were informed they would not be giving any more steel because of a proposed memorial in New York.”

Deputy fire chief Ed Wloch said the 80-pound steel piece will be affixed to Ware's memorial monument.

“We have the design of it under construction right now,” he said. Monson Savings Bank will underwrite the costs of the memorial, the deputy chief said.

Schematic drawing for Ware fire dept. 911 monument 

The deputy chief praised Alicia H. Molt, a junior legislative assistant to McGovern, who assisted in obtaining the steel.

“Alicia made several phone calls, and got my wife in contact with Lee Ielpi, president of the 9/11 families organization,” Wloch said. “He had a son, Jonathan, a firefighter” who perished while in the line of duty on 9/11.

“He is on our list of names” that will be part of the permanent memorial, Wloch said. He praised Salvatore Cassano, the New York City fire commissioner.

The monument will be unveiled during a dedication tentatively scheduled for Sept. 8.