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The captain of a casino boat shuttle that caught fire over the weekend in Port Richey says he’s no hero, despite quickly running his boat aground so that 49 passengers on the vessel could escape. |
One of those passengers, Carrie Dempsey, a 42-year-old mother of two from Lutz, would later die after the Sunday fire that burned the Island Lady shuttle boat to the waterline. |
"I was just doing my job," Captain Mike Batten, 37, told Dailymail.com, the website of the British tabloid newspaper the Daily Mail in an exclusive interview. "And someone eventually died. I can’t put that out of my head." |
Batten told Dailymail.com that the Tropical Breeze Casino Cruz shuttle service that ferries passengers to a casino boat deep in Gulf of Mexico waters where gambling is legal, departed as normal. |
"Nothing was out of the ordinary," he said. |
But about 10 minutes into the trip he noticed that a motor was overheating. He went to check it out while a crew member drove and noticed a little steam, and returned to the helm to take the boat back to the dock. |
Soon after, he noticed smoke and sent crew members with fire extinguishers to check it out. They returned saying they couldn’t get to the motor. |
Batten said he then quickly steered the boat to a shallow area to run it aground so passengers could get off the ship. |
"It all happened so fast," he told the website. "What we did was the best thing we could have done, by far." |
Twenty hostages, believed to be foreign tourists, have been killed in an attack on a cafe in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka. So-called Islamic State have claimed responsibility. |
Among the dead are nine Italians, seven Japanese, a US citizen and an Indian student. |
Militants, armed armed with assault rifles and grenades, entered the Holey Artisan Bakery in Gulshan, a restaurant popular with foreigners, at around 9pm local time (2pm BST) on Friday. |
Multiple people were taken hostage with several foreign nationals among them. |
Witnesses said the gunmen were shouting "Allahu Akbar" as they stormed the area. |
Hostages in the cafe during the 10-hour siege who were unable to recite verses from the Qu'ran were tortured and killed, witnesses said. |
Those who recited were spared. The gunmen even gave them meals last night. |
Police exchanged fire with the militants for several hours before launching a rescue operation early on Saturday morning. |
Twenty hostages, who are believed to be foreign nationals, were killed in the attack, according to army officials, who said most were killed with sharp weapons. |
It is unclear whether this toll includes two police officers who died during a gun battle with the attackers. |
Italy's Foreign Minister, Paolo Gentiloni, confirmed that among the 20 dead were nine Italian nationals: "We have identified nine (Italians) killed, there is another person who is missing and could be hiding himself or could be among wounded people ... we are looking for him." |
Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said seven of its citizens had been confirmed dead in the attack, while one Indian, a 19 year-old female student, was killed in the assault, India's foreign minister said on Twitter. |
A US citizen and an Indian student were also among those killed. |
Most of the hostages are believed to have been killed with "sharp weapons". |
Two Bangladeshi police officers were killed during the siege. |
Six gunmen were also killed. |
The Bangladesh prime minister said 13 hostages, including a Japanese national and two Sri Lankans, had been rescued. |
So-called Islamic State militant group claimed responsibility for the attack. |
IS posted graphic images of what it said were dead foreigners killed in the assault and said they had targeted the citizens of "crusader countries". |
The hostage crisis is the latest violent attack claimed by IS and al-Qaeda to hit the country. |
Foreigners, local liberals and minority groups have all been targeted. |
But the Bangladeshi authorities say homegrown militants, with no operational links found between them and international jihadist networks, are to blame for the attacks. |
Prime minister Sheikh Hasina condemned the Dhaka restaurant attack and vowed to fight terrorism. |
"Because of the effort of the joint force, the terrorists could not flee," she said. |
"Anyone who believes in religion cannot do such act. They do not have any religion, their only religion is terrorism." |
Thanks for asking, she and my husband didnt hit it off to well. She was so sweet with me, but she was very timid around my husband, which made him uneasy around her. He asked me if I would reconsider permanently adopting her and try getting another dog we both could live with. So, it broke my heart and I cried like a b... |
You haven't posted about your new Pup in a while. How's it going with her? |
HOUSTON - Channel 2 Investigates has uncovered a scheme perpetrated by publicly funded employees of Cypress Creek EMS that nets them extra cash while on the clock. |
These employees collect paychecks funded by property tax dollars, and use equipment intended to fix ambulances. |
Cypress Creek EMS will receive more than $15 million in property tax dollars this year, but also generates its own revenue through ambulance service billing, which is expected to be about $13 million in 2019. |
Over several days in December and January, Channel 2 Investigates witnessed a series of non-fleet vehicles being serviced inside the bays of the Cypress Creek EMS garage. |
Invoices obtained by Channel 2 show that thousands of dollars in parts were purchased for non-fleet vehicles on the Cypress Creek EMS account. Some of those parts were paid for in cash, some of them were charged to one or more credit cards. It is unclear who foots the bill for those credit cards, but the purchasing acc... |
A KPRC2 employee was able to have front brakes put on his car at the garage for a cost of $105. |
Maintenance manager, Tony Ghourley, a CCEMS administrator, would only accept cash for the job. The transaction was caught on camera. |
Ghourley would not answer questions about the transaction when queried later by Channel 2 Investigates. |
Cypress Creek EMS executive director, Bradley England, declined an on-camera interview request about the matter. |
“Thanks for bringing this matter to our attention. CCEMS is conducting a thorough investigation and will take appropriate action,” England’s statement read. |
"The impression created by the terribly misleading Channel 2 News investigation teaser over the past couple of days is that Cypress Creek EMS is knowingly misusing taxpayer funds in its maintenance department. Of course, this is untrue and Channel 2 News has been told twice that this matter is under investigation. Chan... |
"For the record, the true facts leading up to this are: First and foremost, for many years our mechanics have provided car repair and maintenance for CCEMS volunteers and employees at cost. This has been CCEMS' way of saving our employees money and saying "thank you" to our volunteers. This has never been a secret. At ... |
"CCMES only learned of this on January 26th of this year, slightly more than two weeks ago. However, rather than rush to judgment, CCEMS is investigating this alleged activity and when its investigation is complete we plan to refer the issue to the ESD 11 Commissioners with a full report. ESD 11 is the taxing authority... |
"Second, until the first of this year, not one penny of taxpayer funds ever wen towards vehicle maintenance or any kind of maintenance. Prior to this year, none of the individuals involved in this matter were paid with taxpayer funds. That changed on January 1, 2019, wit ht he current fiscal year budget, when Maintenan... |
"Until the investigation is concluded, CCMES presumes innocence until the evidence shows otherwise, which is the obvious purpose of the investigation. Any suggestion or impression that CCEMS management knew of, or approved of, what appears to be misconduct by some number of CCEMS maintenance department personnel is com... |
Cypress Creek EMS is essentially a vendor, contracted by an overseeing agency that collects, doles out, and supposedly monitors how the public funds are spent. |
Harris County Emergency Services District No. 11 is charged with this task in the area served by Cypress Creek EMS. |
“There’s definitely questions that need to be answered,” Kevin Brost, ESD11 board member said. |
Brost said the latest revelation is among a list of serious issues with Cypress Creek EMS over the last several years. |
"For the greater part of five years, the FBI, the IRS and U.S. District Attorney's Office have been looking into Cypress Creek EMS," Brost said. |
ESD 11’s attorney also sent a typed response, stating the newest matter, uncovered by Channel 2, would be further investigated by ESD11. |
Late last year ESD11 commissioned a third-party forensic audit of Cypress Creek EMS. That auditor found administrators with Cypress Creek EMS relatively uncooperative during the process, as outlined in an executive summary. |
The forensic audit also concluded that CCEMS used accounting practices designed to siphon maximum property tax dollars from ESD11, essentially overcharging tax payers. |
The entire audit, obtained by Channel 2, is below. You can also click here to view it. |
NEW DELHI, July 8: The prestigious South Asian University (SAU) here can admit at least 20 Sri Lankans every year for higher studies, but the island nation has not utilized its 4% quota fully since the institution funded by eight SAARC countries was established here in 2010. |
A total of 210 students from all member countries are studying at the SAU this year. Barely a dozen of them are Sri Lankans—-the highest in eight years! |
The SAU is an international university established, funded and maintained by the governments of the eight member nations of South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC) , namely: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. |
In the first five years since the SAU was set up here (2010-2014), Sri Lanka has paid US$2.951million, or LKR 444.5 million, as its share of funding the university. India meets all capital costs. The annual operational cost of running the university is $7.6 million, or LKR 1,155 million. |
The expenses of running the university are proportionately shared by all SAARC member countries: But Pakistan is yet to pay its share. However, its students are admitted every year in SAU’s Master’s, MPhil and PhD courses. |
According to Prof Sasanka Perera, SAU’s Vice President and Dean, Faculty of Social Studies, 16 Sri Lankan students can be admitted to the Master’s courses and four more for the MPhil/PhD courses. But Sri Lanka has not managed to fully utilize its quota so far. |
According to SAU data, 108 Sri Lankans had sought admission to its Master’s courses during 2010-2016, but only 26 qualified to be admitted. For the MPhil and PhD courses introduced in 2013, of 37 Sri Lankans who sought admission till last year, only three could be admitted. |
And for the first time, a dozen Sri Lankans are studying at the SAU this year. Eight are doing their Master’s, one is doing MPhil and three are continuing their studies. |
The approximate cost for a student in SAU per annum is $ 8,500, or LKR 1.29 million. |
However, students from the SAARC member nations enjoy about 90% subsidy and have to pay only $ 880 or LKR 133,760 per annum. And about 80% of the students from the eight countries receive scholarships, financial aid, tuition fee waiver, hostel fee waiver, etc. |
Sri Lanka has fully met its financial obligations to the SAU in the first funding cycle since the university began operations in 2010: LKR 444.5 million. This is a significant cost to the state, and perhaps much more than the amounts some national institutions might have received in the island. |
Says Prof Perera, the only Sri Lankan on SAU’s faculty: "Given this commitment, Sri Lanka has hardly met its quota of students since inception. This is partly because the SAU’s own outreach in Sri Lanka has been inadequate. But it is also because no Sri Lankan entity has attempted to make the university known within th... |
"Though the Sri Lankans have paid the funds obligated to the university, they keep forgetting that this is as much one of their own universities as it is also of Nepal’s, Maldives’, Bangladesh’s, Bhutan’s, India’s, Afghanistan’s and Pakistan’s," says Prof Perera, who has a Master’s and PhD from the University of Califo... |
Currently there are 58 faculty members, eight of whom are from various countries and the rest are from India. There are currently only two faculties from Sri Lanka: Prof Perera and one administrator (Dr D D Menaka Ranasinghe, a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science). |
This is because Sri Lankan authorities have not tried to put a leave system in place for its academics or university administrators to easily come to the SAU for at least short stints. Other SAARC countries have such a system in place. |
Says Prof Perera: "I have written to various people about this at different times, but nothing has happened. I think it is important for Sri Lankan students and colleagues to come to SAU regularly. This is not only about getting a reasonable education, but also about getting access to the broader South Asian reality th... |
Interestingly, Bangladesh and Afghanistan are the two countries other than India who make best use of their quota. Left-over quotas from other countries are distributed among the member nations with India considered last. |
During SAU’s second convocation on June 11, four Sri Lankans were among the 185 scholars who received their Masters and MPhil degrees in various programmes that include Applied Mathematics, Biotechnology, Computer Science, Development Economics, International Relations, Legal Studies and Sociology. |
Out of the total number of graduates, 21 were from Afghanistan, 28 from Bangladesh, one from Bhutan, one from Maldives, 16 from Nepal, 11 from Pakistan and three from Sri Lanka while the remaining 104 are from India. Nine students got their MPhil Degrees: one each from Sri Lanka and Afghanistan and seven from India. |
Those who have studied at the SAU are well employed either in their home countries or at universities in Europe and the US. |
The SAU is mandated to inculcate a sense of regional consciousness among the young minds of the South Asian region while imparting cutting-edge knowledge. The university took off in 2010 with two Master’s Degree Programmes. Today, SAU offers seven Master’s and an equal number of doctoral programmes. |
The construction of the permanent campus of the South Asian University is going on a 100-acre plot in Maidan Garhi in New Delhi since May last year. India will bear the entire capital cost to set up the campus. The university is currently functioning from Akbar Bhawan, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi. |
The SAU attracts students from all over South Asia, and its degrees are recognized by all the eight SAARC countries. Many of its graduates have already found employment in the region and some have been offered higher education opportunities in countries beyond South Asia as well. |
Most readers know that food and fuel costs have risen significantly, but we can put this in perspective. Inflation for July 2008 was at 5.6 percent, which is certainly considerably higher than the 2007 average of 2.85 percent. You have to go back to 1990 to see inflation at nearly this rate, where the annual average wa... |
WAYNESBORO, Pa. - Pennsylvania's 253 full-time legislators will receive their annual cost-of-living salary increases on Saturday, pushing their annual pay to more than $76,000. The adjustment of 3.5 percent, or at least $2,550, is designed to soothe the sting of inflation for top policy makers, the Associated Press rep... |
The price to send a first-class letter will increase to 41 cents on Monday. David Partenheimer, a spokesman with the U.S. Postal Service, said postage is increased to help adjust for inflation, and typically covers the postal service's operating expenses, such as the costs associated with fuel and employee benefits. Pa... |
Now that we've WON, or Whipped Onflation Now, (Jerry Ford never made any arrangements for tense) what are we to do? Two years ago, the professional worriers all wrote that economic growth had to stop and that the lengthy run of low inflation positively had to end because that's just the way the market system works. But... |
NEW YORK (AP) - A late-session selloff kept stocks narrowly mixed Thursday as cautious investors took what little profits they could from a disappointing week marked by an interest rate hike and inflation concerns. All three major indexes saw their third straight week of losses. Economic data pointing to modest growth ... |
Many will pay To the editor: In answer to David D. Pool and his article in the Opinion Page March 13. First of all I do not hate the homosexual no matter how perverted and twisted they are. As a Bible Christian I cannot hate them or any other faction like the KKK or any such deceived and misled group. We are taught by ... |
Elderly are being squeezed To the editor: We older America people next year will get the smallest annual cost-of-living raise in 12 years. It amounts to $10 a month. It seems to me that nothing is coming down but that. My sewage and water bill went up. I still use the same amount of water each month. My Medicare supple... |
Elsewhere on this page are a couple of letters criticizing my decision to use a political cartoon on the late President Gerald Ford on Dec. 29. We've also gotten phone calls with the same message - the cartoon was insulting to a man who stepped into the presidency at a crucial time in our nation's history. If you didn'... |
The Waynesboro Summer Jubilee Committee is actively preparing for its 17th annual patriotic celebration to be held on the Fourth of July on the grounds across from Waynesboro Hospital. This year's festivities will be highlighted by local musical entertainment from the Drew Adams Project from 4 to 6 p.m. and Lucky Punk ... |
Kids couldn't get enough Sunday of a 59-foot-long inflatable train at Railroad Heritage Days. Going through the bouncy train time after time, kids were smiling whether they were stepping, crawling or falling out of the opening in the locomotive's face. “He loves trains,” said Hagerstown resident Eddie Oliver, 31, of hi... |
The weather was better than the fortunes of the Hagerstown Community College men's soccer team on Wednesday afternoon. The Hawks had problems changing those fortunes as Howard Community College took control for 3-1 victory in a Maryland JuCo Conference match. “Basically, we came out flat and we had no intensity,” Hager... |
Future generations deserve a better economic course To the editor: Kudos to Catherine Webb for her letter to the editor published Aug. 25 ( "It's up to us to fix our economic problems," page A4). How refreshing and yet convicting for a young woman to write so clearly and concisely about what I believe to be the true he... |
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Federal Reserve signaled Wednesday that the weak economy likely will keep prices in check despite growing concerns that the trillions it's pumping into the financial system will ignite inflation. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues held a key bank lending rate at a record low of between ... |
"I can't understand why people are complaining about the sheriff getting a raise, when we are paying Mrs. Nipps $50,000 for a 20-hour-a-week job at PenMar. Does that sound right to you?" -- Clear Spring "Hyper-inflation (really high inflation) occurs when the public realizes that the government is bent on inflation and... |
On his nationally syndicated radio talk show “The Mark Levin Show” Tuesday, host Mark Levin explained why we have the Electoral College in the United States, suggesting that the Founders, and Alexander Hamilton specifically, “feared the mob,” as Hamilton explained in Federalist No. 68. |
Mark Levin’s comments stem from numerous progressives coming “out of the woodwork to call for the end of the Electoral College in favor of a national popular vote,” according to a piece by Jarrett Stepman with the Daily Signal. Just last month, Levin similarly addressed the Electoral College, warning, “think about how ... |
“Federalist No. 68 was written by Alexander Hamilton, and he’s a favorite of the left, I thought, as they try to pour the progressive ideology in any Founder – and he’s one of them. And he was trying to persuade the people in New York to put pressure on their representatives in Albany and in New York to support the Con... |
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