Washington bakal diselimuti salju tebal

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Mary Leahy menyekop salju untuk membuat jalan di dekat rumahnya saat badai salju di Medford, Massachusetts, Amerika Serikat, Sabtu (9/2). (REUTERS/Jessica Rinaldi)

... yang terparah selama dua tahun terakhir ini... "

Washington (ANTARA News) - Washington dan beberapa kawasan di sekitarnya menghadapi hujan salju terberat dalam dua tahun terakhir, Rabu. Sementara badai bergerak ke timur setelah menyelimuti beberapa wilayah di bagian barat tengah Amerika Serikat.

Ratusan penerbangan di sejumlah bandar udara dibatalkan dan lalu lintas terganggu karena cuaca buruk.

Badai diperkirakan bergerak ke arah bagian timur Ohio Valley dan kemudian ke wilayah tengah dan negara-negara bagian di Atlantik sebelum menerjang ibu kota Amerika Serikat, Washington, kata Dinas Cuaca Nasional (NWS).

Juru bicara NWS, Chris Vaccaro, mengatakan, "Hujan salju akan lebat dan akan menjadi yang terparah selama dua tahun terakhir ini."

Pusat Prediksi Badai di Norman, Oklahoma, mengatakan bahwa kawasan Washington akan bersalju setebal 10 hingga 15 centimeter, berakumulasi pada penghujung Rabu.

Di Chicago, NWS mengeluarkan peringatan badai musim dingin yang akan berlangsung hingga tengah malam Selasa, salju mengganggu fasilitas transportasi Selasa pagi.

Ketebalan salju hingga mencapai 15 centimeter mengakibatkan 900 penerbangan di O`Hare International Airport, Chicago, dibatalkan, menurut Departemen Penerbangan Chicago.

Departemen transportasi di Wisconsin mencatat sejumlah jalan raya tertutup salju tebal tapi tak ada penutupan jalan.

Sebanyak 215 tabrakan terjadi antara pukul 5 hingga pukul 16 waktu setempat di jalan raya yang tertutup salju di Minnesota. Tapi belum ada laporan korban kecelakaan.

Beberapa tempat di sekitar kawasan Kota Kembar Minneapolis-St Paul melaporkan salju setebal 23 centimeter. Mengendarai dan melintasi jalan bebas hambatan di Kota Kembar itu dilaporkan sulit setelah badai melintas.

(M016/B002)

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Giffords awards medal to astronaut husband in Washington

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Captain Mark Kelly hugs his wife U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) after receiving the Legion of Merit from U.S. Vice President Joe Biden during Captain Kelly's retirement ceremony in the Secretary of War Suite in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, October 6, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/David Lienemann/The White House/Handout

By Malathi Nayak

WASHINGTON | Thu Oct 6, 2011 6:12pm EDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Representative Gabrielle Giffords gave her astronaut husband a medal at his retirement ceremony on Thursday and got a warm welcome on her second visit to Washington since a gunman tried to kill her in January.

Giffords, who is recovering from a bullet wound to the head, smiled resplendently, blew kisses and waved to a small gathering of friends, her two teenage daughters and fellow members of Congress, both Republicans and Democrats.

Vice President Joe Biden and Giffords awarded her husband, Naval Captain Mark Kelly, two medals to honor his 25 years of service with the Navy and NASA.

"It's not everyday that you encounter examples of sheer, sheer courage, selflessness and dedication like you see in this couple," Biden said after awarding Kelly the Legion of Merit.

Kelly flew 39 missions during Operation Desert Storm and made four trips into space, including commanding the last mission of the shuttle Endeavour.

"Gabby, you remind me everyday to deny the acceptance of failure, that you inspire devoted public service and make me jealous of true grit and determination," Kelly said as he thanked his wife for her support.

Giffords, an Arizona Democrat, was shot at a public event for constituents in Tucson. Jared Lee Loughner has been charged in the shooting spree that killed six people and wounded 12.

Since January, Giffords has made a remarkable recovery in rehabilitation in Houston and her emotional appearance in Congress this summer has made her a portrait of hope.

Wearing a violet jacket, black pants and sneakers, with her hair longer than in her August appearance, Giffords pinned the Distinguished Flying Cross on her husband's jacket.

It was unusual to have a vice president officiate at the retirement ceremony, NASA administrator Charles Bolden said, adding it was "quite appropriate" given Kelly's wife was a member of Congress.

Kelly remarked that his retirement coincided with the phasing out of NASA's 30-year space shuttle program.

"It think it is imperative that we redouble our efforts to safely operate international space stations as we chart a new course in scientific research and space," he said.

(Editing by Ellen Wulfhorst)

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Checks of Washington Monument quake damage completed

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Civil engineers continue their work on the Washington Monument in Washington September 29, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Hyungwon Kang

WASHINGTON | Thu Oct 6, 2011 4:38pm EDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The National Park Service and engineers have completed an assessment of earthquake damage to the now-closed Washington Monument, the agency said.

The service and an engineering team that rappelled the 555-foot-high obelisk wrapped up their checks on Wednesday, the National Park Service (NPS) said.

There is no schedule for reopening the site. The NPS has said the monument is structurally sound.

"The NPS is committed to restoring and reopening the Monument as quickly as possible in a manner that will make it safe for visitors," it said in a statement.

The monument sustained cracks more than an inch wide during the 5.8-magnitude temblor on August 23. Heavy rain from Hurricane Irene in late August worsened the damage.

The engineering team from Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates removed broken pieces that "ranged from golf-ball size to dictionary size," the statement said.

Some of the larger pieces could be pinned back on the monument during repairs.

Wiss, Janney, Elstner will ready a report on the damage and what repairs are needed and then carry out interim repairs. The NPS will determine how permanent repairs will be done.

(Reporting by Ian Simpson, editing by Ellen Wulfhorst)

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Liberals Rally in Washington to Pressure Obama

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Liberal activists will be gathering in Washington today for a conference they call "Take Back the American Dream." One goal is to pressure President Obama to move more to the left, and it's quite possible that it will have some effect because Obama is trying to short up his Democratic base, including liberals.

[See photos of the Obamas behind the scenes.]

But the liberals have broader goals, which will become clearer at the three-day conference in speeches by a number of leaders, including Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO, former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, former Obama adviser Van Jones, and several Democratic members of the House including Rep.Keith Ellison of Minnesota, Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts, and Rep. Barbara Lee of California.

Jones is a particularly controversial figure because he served briefly as the White House environmental adviser until he was forced by administration officials to resign amid a furor over his past associations and policy ideas, which were criticized as extreme.

Jones is trying to organize what he calls a "counter-balance to the Tea Party"—a liberal movement with goals that include imposing higher taxes on the rich—and what he calls an overall "progressive fight-back." The three-day conference is seen by some liberals including Jones as a move in that direction.

[See political cartoons about the Tea Party.]

Katrina vanden Heuvel of The Nation set the tone for the conference, which she is scheduled to address, in a Washington Post essay. "Americans are right to have a low opinion of their government, to feel that their leaders have often left them to fend for themselves, that their democratic institutions have failed them," she wrote. "They are right to see Washington as rigged, dominated by insiders. ...Yet it would be a grave mistake to give up on government; instead, it's time to clean up our politics and rebuild a fair economy."

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D.C., Maryland and Washington State Hold Highest Concentration of STEM Jobs

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September 30, 2011 Print

STEM-related job growth is booming in Washington, D.C., Washington, Virginia and Maryland, according to a new analysis by EMSI, an employment data company.

Those places have the highest concentration of STEM-related workers per capita. Between 2001 and 2011, the number of jobs in STEM-related fields in Washington, D.C. grew 13,758, an 11 percent increase. The firm estimates that there are more than 8 million STEM-related jobs in the U.S.,, 3.7 percent more than in 2001.

California, with more than 1 million workers in STEM-related fields, is still the nation's leader in the industry. Over the past decade, however, the state lost more than 19,000 STEM jobs as the dot-com bubble burst and the recession hit.

Tennessee, Nevada, and Mississippi had the fewest relative concentration of STEM workers, compared to the national average.

EMSI estimates that men hold nearly 75 percent of all STEM-related jobs, and that 20 percent of the STEM workforce is 55 or older.

For a more detailed look at the numbers, check out EMSI analyst Joshua Wright's article at newgeography.com.

States With the Most STEM Job Growth (2001-2011)
States With the Least STEM Job Growth (2001-2011)

 Have something to share? Send news and submissions to stem@usnews.com.

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Washington state gunman shot dead after firing near school field

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SEATTLE | Sat Sep 24, 2011 11:07pm EDT

SEATTLE (Reuters) - A man armed with two rifles opened fire on Saturday near where parents and students were gathered at a middle school football field in a Seattle suburb, before he was shot dead by police, authorities said.

The 51-year-old gunman abandoned his Kia sedan in the center of Issaquah, Washington, blocking traffic, King County Sheriff's Department spokesman Sergeant John Urquhart said.

He then walked a few blocks to an area with several schools and, once there, opened fire without hitting anyone as people took cover, Urquhart said.

"Several Issaquah police officers caught up with him as he was firing, both randomly and at them," he said, and the man was shot and killed by police.

Police said they have no idea what motivated the gunman, whom they did not immediately identify. Issaquah is located 15 miles east of Seattle.

(Reporting by Nicole Neroulias: Editing by Alex Dobuzinskis and Cynthia Johnston)

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Teachers ratify deal ending strike in Tacoma, Washington

1 of 2. Tacoma schools superintendent Art Jarvis (L) and School Board President Kurt Miller ring the ceremonial bell, signifying school is in session and the end to the teachers strike, on top of the Tacoma Central School District's Administration Building September 22, 2011.
Credit: Reuters/Nicole Neroulias
By Nicole Neroulias
TACOMA, Wash | Fri Sep 23, 2011 1:07am EDT
TACOMA, Wash (Reuters) - Jubilant teachers in Washington state's third-largest school district voted overwhelmingly on Thursday to ratify a contract deal that ended their weeklong strike and staved off proposed pay cuts.
The settlement was reached on Wednesday night after seven hours of intense negotiations mediated by Governor Christine Gregoire, who had summoned the two sides to her office in the state capital, Olympia, for a last-ditch round of bargaining.
The new three-year labor deal keeps previous class-size limits intact -- teachers had sought to tighten them -- but holds the line against salary cuts and contains a compromise on the thorny issues of evaluations, seniority and staffing decisions.
The accord also includes an amnesty clause guaranteeing that union members' participation in the strike, which kept 28,700 students at home for eight school days, would not be a factor in staff performance appraisals.
The district's 57 schools will reopen their doors on Friday for the first time since some 1,900 teachers walked off the job on September 13, staying on picket lines in defiance of a back-to-work court order issued the following day.
Whether contempt-of-court citations will now be dropped is technically up to the judge, but district officials said they consider the issue closed. Days lost due to the strike will be made up later in the year.
The mood was festive as members of the Tacoma Education Association gathered in a high school gymnasium to vote on the settlement, which was approved by 98.9 percent of the 1,683 votes cast, the union said.
"I'm excited to get back to work, and I'm excited for my daughter because she gets to go back to school," said Steve Jacobson, 35, a high school health and physical education teacher, who stood with his 4-year-old daughter, Bianca, perched on his shoulders.
"I have never been more proud to be a teacher," union president Andy Coons said. "This was not an easy process, but ... we did what had to be done and we did it together."
District officials appeared relieved. Tacoma Superintendent Art Jarvis and school board President Kurt Miller rang the ceremonial bell atop the district's central office for the first time in nearly 10 years.
"We call all the children back to school," Jarvis declared as the bell echoed throughout downtown.
Labor negotiations began May 31 but hit a stalemate about a week and a half after the previous contract expired September 1.
The main stumbling block, the union said, was a district demand to alter staffing policies so that decisions on teacher reassignments between schools were based on criteria other than seniority, such as performance evaluations.
In the end, the two sides agreed to establish a joint panel of teachers and school officials to set new teacher evaluation standards that would be used in conjunction with seniority to make future staffing reassignments.
The teachers dropped demands for lower overall ratios of students to teachers, and the district abandoned its proposal to cut salaries. Elementary school teachers won a hard cap on class size, but teachers lost one paid training day.
During talks, the district said it would have to spend down its reserve funds by $15.4 million this year to avoid deeper cuts in staffing and student programs after being forced to eliminate about 100 jobs and close two elementary schools.
The last time Tacoma teachers went on strike was in 1978, a walkout that lasted 29 days.
(Additional reporting by Laura L. Myers. Writing by Steve Gorman; Editing by Cynthia Johnston)

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64 Structures burn in Washington State Wildfire

Published September 09, 2011| Associated Press

GOLDENDALE, Wash. -a new count Friday shows 64 structures have been lost in the fire burning near col organi in Washington-South Centre.

A spokesman for the fire, Guy Giffords managers, said that the air count does not show how many people are houses. They had previously reported destroyed nine homes and 13 other structures.

Spokesman of the Ministry of natural resources Chuck Turley, explains the number of firefighters will have doubled by 600 Saturday as the state mobilizes resources.

The fire broke out Wednesday and covered 5,300 acres of brush and trees. About 200 houses were evacuated. Traffic on Highway 97 to col organi was closed at times Friday by smoke and fire in the vicinity. A community meeting is scheduled Friday night high school Goldendale.

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