04-19-2011

Page 1

Roswell Daily Record

Vol. 120, No. 94 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday

INSIDE NEWS

KILLER STORMS COLERAIN, N.C. (AP) — They aren’t used to tornadoes in North Carolina, let alone 60 of them. When a deadly storm system that had already unleashed twisters across the South was about to arrive, residents were out doing yard work, making plans for the Easter holiday or just gazing at the darkening skies.

THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY

April 19, 2011

TUESDAY

www.rdrnews.com

S&P: Fix deficit or risk credit rating

WASHINGTON (AP) — A key credit agency issued an unprecedented warning to the United States government Monday, urging Washington to get a grip on its finances or risk losing the nation’s sterling credit rating. For the first time, Standard & Poor’s lowered its long-term outlook for the federal government’s fiscal health from “stable” to “negative,” and warned of serious consequences if lawmakers fail to reach a deal to control the massive federal deficit. An impasse could prompt the agency to strip

the government of its top investment rating in the next two years, S&P said. A loss of the triple-A rating would ripple through the American economy, making loans more expensive and credit more difficult to obtain. The downgrade was interpreted as a rebuke to President Barack Obama and congressional Republicans, admonishing them to put politics aside and come up with a long-term financial plan as soon as possible. “This is a warning: Don’t mess around,” said Robert Bixby, executive director of

the Concord Coalition, a nonpartisan group that is pushing for deficit reduction. Analysts at S&P have never before used the outlook to cast doubt on the nation’s credit worthiness. In response, stocks suffered their worst slide in a month. The Dow Jones industrial average plunged 245 points before recovering to close down 140 points for the day. “The credit quality of U.S. debt is sacrosanct, and legislators will do everything within their See DEBT, Page A6

AP Photo

In this Friday file photo, President Barack Obama gestures during his interview with The Associated Press, in Chicago

Arrest warrant out for teen, 14

- PAGE A2

TOP 5 WEB For The Last 24 Hours

• Double homicide at RIAC • Remembering Melissa • March for Babies rasies $25,000 • NMPED to audit RISD 15 Minute • Every cemetery monument

INSIDE SPORTS

Matthew Arco Photo

From right, Roswell Fire Department Deputy Chief Chad Hamill and Chief James Salas dish out their favorite recipe to Roswell High School students Monday, during the school’s first ever RFD Turns Up the Heat at RHS event.

Firefighters cook up some fun at RHS HEAT DOMINATE FOR 2-0 LEAD MIAMI (AP) — LeBron James outscored Philadelphia’s entire starting five in the first half by himself. So did Chris Bosh. So did Dwyane Wade. And that pretty much tells the tale of a night the 76ers would rather forget. - PAGE B1

TODAY’S OBITUARIES • Lenora Hardage Rogers • Cecil L. Rockhold • Maxine Baker • Clara May Talbert - PAGE B3

HIGH ...90˚ LOW ....50˚

TODAY’S FORECAST

CLASSIFIEDS..........B6 COMICS.................B4 ENTERTAINMENT.....A8 FINANCIAL .............B5 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........A8 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8

INDEX

The Roswell Fire Department’s top command staff took the cake at Roswell High School Monday, during a program meant to bolster the school’s culinary arts education. Three teams of three firefighters competed in the school’s inaugural RFD Tur ns Up the Heat at RHS event. The school’s culinary class judged

the teams during a three-day event and named the department’s top brass, the top chiefs. “Cooking in the firehouse is a long-standing tradition,” Salas said. “It’s good to share a little bit with the kids.” Teams of two shifts and one team comprised of the department’s commanders were in a competition to

see who can cook the best meal. It culminated with the commanders, who won the contest Monday afternoon. The event was inspired by the school’s culinary arts teacher, Mary Dunbar, who said she hoped the students would get more out of the program by watching the firefighters competing in a cook-off.

Detectives at the Roswell Police Department have secured an arrest warrant for a teenager for his role in Friday night’s shooting that left two dead. The 14-year -old, who was flown out to a regional hospital following the shooting, is now charged with one open count of murder, aggravated assault and unlawfully being in possession of a handgun. Police responded to a call of shots fired on East Byrne Street late Friday, where officers found two persons dead. The police found the 14-year -old severely injured. A neighbor reported that he heard eight or nine shots fired and immediately phoned the police. The deceased were identified as Brandon Lucero, 19, and Rodney Sanchez, 31. “It began with a verbal argument, and the end result was two dead,” Officer Erica O’Bryon said Sunday. O’Bryon did not release the name of the youth who See ARREST, Page A6

Radiation levels too high at plant Officials say fire statistics up for 2011 MATTHEW ARCO RECORD STAFF WRITER

In less than the first four months of 2011, local and statewide wildfires, and the amount of land they charred up in their path, have already far outpaced totals from last year, according to state fire officials. Last year, there were 609 fires reported statewide and 113,076 acres burned. When compared to the amount of fires in New Mexico to date, there have been 341 blazes consuming 210,398 acres, said Dan Ware, spokesman for the New Mexico State Forestry Division. The same trends are similar for Chaves County. In 2010, there were 40 fires that consumed 2,286 acres and as for this year to date, there have been 31 fires in Chaves County that charred 64,936 acres, Ware said. However, March’s Enterprise fire that started in Chaves County and ran 64,936 acres, burned mostly through Lea County and largely inflated Chaves County’s acres burned, he said. Officials cited the weather conditions, including the extreme lack of precipitation in many areas of the state, to the higher number of fires and increased acreage. “The amount of dryness is a little out of the ordinary,” said Ware, adding, “(But) it’s typical of La Niña years.” State-based meteorologists agreed that this La Niña season has been dry, but said the weather system generally comes with warmer temperatures and lower precipitation. “La Niña is actually a feature that takes place in the Pacific waters near the equator,” said Todd Shoemake, an Albuquerque meteorologist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. “Basically See FIRE, Page A6

TOKYO (AP) — A pair of thin robots on treads sent to explore buildings inside Japan’s crippled nuclear reactor came back Monday with disheartening news: Radiation levels are far too high for repair crews to go inside. Nevertheless, of ficials remained hopeful they can stick to their freshly minted “roadmap” for cleaning up the radiation leak and stabilizing the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant by year’s end so they can begin returning tens of thousands of evacuees to their homes. “Even I had expected high radioactivity in those areas. I’m sure (plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co.) and other experts have factored in those figures when they compiled the roadmap,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said. Of ficials said Monday that radiation had spiked in a water tank in Unit 2 and contaminated water was discovered in other areas of the plant. They also described in detail for the first time the damage to fuel in three troubled reactors, saying pellets had melted. That damage — sometimes referred to as a partial meltdown — had

AP Photo

Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) President Masataka Shimizu speaks during an Upper House Budget Committee session at Parliament in Tokyo Monday.

already been widely assumed, but the confirmation, along with the continued release of radiation from other areas, serves to underscore how difficult and how long the cleanup

process will be. In fact, gover nment of ficials themselves have acknowledged that there are still many See JAPAN, Page A6


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.