East Coast eyes an icy commute. California searches for the fugitives. And an Ohio town looks a lot like Flint. It’s Monday, and here are the five things you need to know to Get Up to Speed and Out the Door.
WINTER STORM
Snow em gee: Monday morning commutes are always a pain. Throw in icy, snowy roads and you have the makings of a real fiasco. That’s what awaits the East Coast after the weekend’s monster blizzard. The storm left at least 16 dead, tied up traffic for miles on interstates and cancelled thousands of flights. And the snowfall totals are epic: 31 inches in New York, 29 inches in Baltimore, 28 inches in Washington and Newark. But the Blizzard 2016 snowfall champion is little ole’ Glengary, West Virginia, which got socked with 42 inches!!!.
CALIFORNIA ESCAPEES
Tonight, there’s gonna be a jailbreak: It wasn’t as daring as El Chapo’s escape, but it was still pretty bold. Three inmates broke out of a maximum security jail in California over the weekend, cutting through steel bars, sneaking through plumbing tunnels and rappelling off a roof. And these guys aren’t angels: Jonathan Tieu is accused of murder; Hossein Nayeri is accused of torture and kidnapping while Bac Tien Duong faces an attempted murder charge. $50,000 goes to the person with info that leads to their arrest.
ISIS VIDEO
Terror TV: ISIS put out another video, and you know that’s never good news. The 17-minute long production features the nine killers from the Paris attacks. In portions apparently recorded before Paris, the attackers give their “final words” and execute some prisoners. The video ends with footage of the British parliament voting to join the anti-ISIS coalition – an obvious warning the UK may be ISIS’ next target.
SEBRING WATER CRISIS
Here we go again: Another Midwestern city is experiencing water woes. First it was Flint, Michigan. Now it’s Sebring, Ohio. The small town, about 70 miles southeast of Akron, doesn’t want children and pregnant women drinking its water after tests showed high levels of lead and copper. Schools will be closed today as more testing’s done. Everyone’s going to keep a close eye on this one, in light of the mess in Michigan.
CAMPAIGN 2016
The grab bag: So much to report, so little space. Here we go:
— As if we didn’t have enough people running for president this cycle, ex-NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg may be prepping to get into the race. Donald Trump said he’d love that.
— Speaking of The Donald, did you know he could “stand in the middle of 5th Avenue and shoot somebody” and not lose votes? Well now you do.
— And a video surfaced this weekend of an 18-year-old Ted Cruz plotting to “take over the world.” But at 18, who didn’t think about that?
BREAKFAST BROWSE
People are talking about these. Read up. Join in.
Quote of the day:
“They are necessary because of the reality we live in”
Egyptian Interior Minister Magdy Abdel Ghaffar, justifying the harsh police tactics in the country five years after the nation’s Arab Spring revolution.
Super showdown
It’s Old School vs. New School for Super Bowl 50: 39-year-old Peyton Manning and the Broncos take on young Cam Newton and the Panthers.
Game on
When a Florida police officer showed up for a basketball rematch with a group of neighborhood kids, he brought some big-time backup — Shaquille O’Neal.
Tough Tut
Egypt doesn’t play about King Tut. Screw up his beard, get hit with a criminal charge. That’s what happened to eight museum employees who botched reattaching the beard on Tut’s mask.
Save a sloth
If this doesn’t melt your heart, you don’t have one. A sloth in Ecuador was found holding onto a guard rail for dear life near a busy highway. Police rescued it, a vet made sure it was OK and it was released back into the wild.
WHAT’S FOR LUNCH
Here’s what’s happening today.
Face the nation
The Democrats’ prez candidates face the voters one more time before the Iowa caucuses during CNN’s town hall tonight at 9 at Drake University.
AND FINALLY …
Vet rodeo
A veterinary technician gets taken for a ride while trying to hold down a 175-pound dog.