NATION, LOCAL Union- Saturday, February 3, 1996 Killer cold breaks records across U.S.; no end in sight Temperatures fell to 60 degrees and ice and snow paralyzed the By KARREN MILLS Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS Eyelashes froze together. A cup of boiling water tossed in the air turned into a puff of snow before hitting the ground. Polar bears' feet froze and left bloody pawprints at the 200. And a banana froze hard enough to pound nails as the temperature plunged to 60 below zero in the little town of Tower. The deadly Arctic cold front that has held the Plains, the Midwest and much of the South in its grip for at least a week showed no sign of letting up yesterday, breaking temperature records below zero in Minnesota At least 15 deaths have been blamed on the severe weather this South.
week. Nine people were killed in weather-related traffic accidents that had stood for a century. in the South. Throughout much of the nation, cluded Temperature minus 22 lows yesterday in Mo- inpipes froze, overworked heating line, minus 24 degrees systems broke down, car batteries and 34 below in zero in Spokane, La quit and schools were closed. Tens Crosse, Wis.
of thousands of customers throughout South lost electric- At St. Paul's Como Zoo, the poity when the ice-laden branches lar bears' feet froze to the snowy ground when they came out of the pulled "My down power lines. pool, leaving bloody pawprints. eyelashes on my left eye In northern Minnesota, Sonny were frozen together from my Nesbitt of International Falls, breath rising by the time I got on which calls itself the Nation's Ice the bus," said Minneapolis travel Box, made a video of boiling waagent Janelle Nunez, who has ter being thrown into the air. "It been fielding calls about tropical just disintegrated.
It looks like a vacations. big cloud of snow. No water hits In the South, freezing rain and the ground," Nesbitt said. sleet coated roads with ice, In Tower, population 502, heavy snow fell in a band from WCCO radio meteorologist Mike Oklahoma to West Virginia. Lynch blew soap bubbles for a R.I.
may reopen oil-spill area soon Associated Press toxicology and public health, and very minute quantities of oil that PROVIDENCE, R.I. Parts of have to be assessed When a 250-square-mile area of Block we're assured that all public Island Sound closed to fishing be- health precautions have been takcause of a massive oil spill could en, then we'll begin reopening. be reopened by the end of next "Our expectation is that some week, a state environmental offi- of the areas on the periphery will cial said yesterday. open up relatively soon." The ban has been one of the About 828,000 gallons of home most devastating effects of the heating oil spilled from the unJan. 19 spill, idling hundreds of manned barge, North Cape, when fishermen and seafood processors, it ran aground off Moonstone and forcing state officials to Beach in South Kingstown.
The mount a campaign to assure the barge and its tugboat, the Scandia, public that any seafood already on were blown ashore during a storm the market is safe. after a fire forced the tug's crew Department of Environmental to abandon it. Management Wildlife Director Marine lawyer Dennis Nixon David Borden said he expects the told the committee that the state results of sampling from the should step up regulation of tugclosed area, scheduled to be com- boats and barges. pleted tomorrow, will allow the Nixon, a professor at the Unistart of a phased reopening. versity of Rhode Island's GraduThe samples are being analyzed ate School of Oceanography, by the state Department of Health questioned the decision by the for compliance with standards set owner of the tug and barge, Eklof by the Environmental Protection Marine of New York City, to send Agency and the Food and Drug the North Cape out in a heavy Administration, he told the Spe- storm.
Nixon said forecasts by the cial Senate Commission to Inves- National Oceanic and Atmosphertigate the North Cape Oil Spill. ic Administration called for is a very complex issue," force winds and heavy seas on the Borden said. "You're dealing with day of the spill. Crime: No easy answers for area police, lawmakers Continued from Page A1 state even smaller would not benefit the area. thorities Merrigan to called for legal au- On another topic, the panel discuss forming a agreed that legislation for tough separate district attorney's of- but fair jail sentences must be fice solely for Franklin County.
drafted and carried out. But the Now, the Northwestern District Attorney's Office prose- that panel also put faith in the hope cutes cases for Hampshire and violent crimes could be preFranklin counties. vented. "I'm asking for the community "DARE. is a fantastic proto come together and discuss the gram," McCarthy said.
"But the issue," Merrigan said. "I'd like to problem with it is that it's got to see it studied." third But Angier smallest said making the district in show more about sexual abuse and domestic abuse. It's not just drugs we're dealing with. Custody: Mom fights for right to daughter Continued from Page A1 states clearly say evidence must show a child has been harmed to change a custody order. "It presents a very stark example of how irrational it is to take a child away from a stable, committed parent because of sexual orientation," Minter said.
"The fact that the father in this case has a demonstrated history of violent and abusive behavior is outrageous." John Ward's lawyer, Ted Stokes, said Thursday that his client has been rehabilitated since he fatally shot his first wife, Judy, in 1974. He served eight years in prison after pleading guilty to second-degree murder. lle married Mary Ward, his second wife, in 1983. Circuit Judge Joseph Tarbuck granted the father's request for a custody change, citing the mother's lesbianism. lIe gave Mary Ward standard visiting privileges.
The girl has lived with John Ward and his fourth wife, Rita, since Aug. 28. RECORD FREEZE Some record lows set yesterday: Illinois: Moline, minus 22; ties 1905 record. lowa: Mason City, minus 32; 1917 record minus 26. Kansas: Concordia, minus 14; ties 1917 record.
Minnesota: Tower, minus 60, alltime record low for state; minus 59 set in 1899 and tied in 1903 at two other locations in state. Montana: Helena, minus 42; 1887 record minus 41. Nebraska: Kearney, minus 18; 1951 record minus 17. Washington: Spokane, minus 24; 1893 record minus 19. Wisconsin: Eau Claire, minus 35; 1951 record minus 32.
crowd as the nearly century-old record of minus 59 degrees fell. "They freeze and don't pop," he said "It's kind of neat." Someone also demonstrated how to pound nails with a banana. Procession honors slain letter carrier HARTFORD A procession of 117 postal trucks slowly followed a mail route of a slain letter carrier yesterday, and each postal worker delivered a carnation into a mailbag in front of the spot where he was killed. "It's like a brother went down," said Chuck Corsal, vice president of the letter carrier's union in Hartford. 'We do this same job and but for a matter of circ*mstance, it could have been any one of us." One by one, each vehicle pulled in front of the building where Robert Budusky was shot to death Tuesday.
The postal workers, wearing black ribbons pinned to their uniforms, ceremoniously put red, white and blue flowers in the mailbag that hung from a metal fence. The tribute to Budusky lasted more than an hour. Budusky was delivering the mail on the route he had walked for five years in this violenceplagued section of the city when a man walked up behind him and shot him once in the head. Budusky, 35, was engaged to be married. Police arrested Garfield Patterson, 26, shortly after the shooting.
Patterson claimed God told him to do it, according to "No one used to bother the mailman," said Joseph Martinelli, 'a letter carrier. "The worst thing we used to have to fear was the weather and animals. Now we have to worry about an animal like this just running up and shooting Tears streamed down the face of Annell McWhite, Budusky's supervisor, as she hugged her col- leagues before the procession began. She handed out carnations and thanked them. 3 Clothing Sporting Goods CLEARANCE! DICK'S WINTER 3-DAY CLEARANCE SALE Take An Additional Red Ticketed Price On Lowest All Winter clearance Mens Flannel Shirts Mens Womens Sweaters Mens, Womens Kids Jackets Coats A we've Taken We've Taken we've Taken 40-706H Regular Price On SPECIAL PURCHASE Regular Price on ALL WINTER BOOTS REEBOK ATHLETIC ALL SKI EQUIPMENT FOOTWEAR Orig.
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She's adjusted well." Kendell questioned Ward's motives, saying he hadn't cared for the child longer than four days at a time between the divorce and custody change. "He's known for years of her sexual orientation, and he simply did not even file this action until she sought an increase in child support," Kendell said. Ward, who was $1,489 behind in child support at the time, said he never sought more time with his daughter because it wasn't in the original custody agreement. He also claimed Mary Ward was unemployed and unable to support herself, much less a child. Minter said Mary Ward is financially stable; she said she left her job before the hearing because its demands were interforing with her daughter.
Minter was unsure whether the mother is now employed. A.
