| Bus driver suspended after child climbs out back window
After getting out of the bus, the boy ran to his home about four blocks away, Oaks said. "He went directly home and is with his mother," Oaks said this morning. "She was going to take the child to school." Oaks said the bus driver is required to have an aide on the bus to handle the children and a radio to communicate with the bus owner and school officials. "The driver did not stop and pick up an aid," he said. "We're also looking into why they didn't have communications on board. "Both those things are being investigated. And during the investigation, the driver is off the approved driver list." Oaks said the school system and the Knoxville Police Department are conducting the probe. The suspended driver has been on the Ridgedale School route for two weeks.
Local mortgage foreclosures continue climb
Local circuit courts are struggling to keep up as mortgage foreclosure filings continue to increase. With many homeowners experiencing higher-than-expected interest rates on their adjustable mortgages, the number of foreclosures filed this year has tripled compared to just two years ago. Already, more than 2,000 foreclosures have been filed in Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton counties. "It’s really sad. There are just so many people losing their homes," said Susan Land, supervisor of Santa Rosa County’s circuit civil division. In Santa Rosa, foreclosures have made up most of the civil cases filed in circuit court this year, Land said. Her division has had about 1,300 cases filed. Of those, 804 have been foreclosures. Okaloosa County has also seen a large increase in foreclosures, going from 466 last year to 892 so far this year, said Danny Luke, courts director for Okaloosa’s Clerk of Courts office.
Tamarack uber resort commands vistas at premium prices
Fairmont Tamarack, a luxury resort and vacation-home development at Tamarack Resort in Valley County, plans to break ground later this year. If you want a home there, you'll need a big bank account.The project produced $140 million in sales from 125 full memberships sold during a seven-hour period last year, Tamarack says. Among people who have bought homes are TV stars Eric Dane of Grey's Anatomy and Jason Lewis of Sex in the City and Arizona Cardinals quarterback Matt Leinart.Properties start in the $700,000s. Spokesman Chris Lyman declined to say how much the development would cost to build. The project will consist of 305 hotel-condominium units and other residences. Residents will have views of the Payette River Mountains, a Robert Trent Jones Jr. golf course and Lake Cascade. They also will have a ski concierge, a children's entertainment center, salon services, free shoeshines, onsite car rental and other services.
Blu-ray winner by KO in high-definition war
Sony Corp. has finally exorcised the ghost of Betamax.
The Japanese company's Blu-ray format emerged the victor in the battle to set the standard for high-definition DVDs. Its victory over Toshiba Corp.'s rival HD DVD leaves behind its embarrassing loss to VHS in last century's battle for the home videocassette market.
.
'Indy 4' Cannes Debut
You're thinking: this sounds like a decadent moment. But observe that Bardem's patient little mother, who'd been his guest at the Oscar ceremony, was tucked into a seat just beyond him, grinning from ear to ear if also wanting to put in earplugs. Nothing untoward happened. Just ebullience and a lot of fun as the crowd in the darkened tavern shouted out the refrain: "Pleased to meetcha, don't forget my name!" while Javier — with a lot of encouragement, clapping and screaming — channeled vintage Mick Jagger with just a hint of the late John Belushi. Bardem's happiness, by the way, was infectious. The producers of documentary winner "Taxi to the Dark Side" whooped it up as a result, dancing just below his platform, swinging their gold statues around and over their heads.
Colombian rebels free four hostages
The four hostages were freed in the same region of Guaviare state where the FARC released two other politicians on Jan. 10: Clara Rojas and Consuelo Gonzalez. Also released Wednesday were former Rep. Orlando Beltran and former Sen. Luis Eladio Perez. All were said to be ailing — Polanco with thyroid problems, Gechem with heart, back and ulcer problems. "You've saved us practically from death," Beltran said in the video, thanking Chavez. Two of Polanco's three sons were kidnapped together with her and later released in 2004 after a ransom was paid. Her husband was later murdered, allegedly by the FARC. As she held the flowers in the video, she said: "I will lay these flowers at my husband's tomb, and another stem for each one of my sons." Her youngest son, Daniel Polanco, who was 11 when Polanco was kidnapped, told Colombia's Caracol radio before the release that he and his brothers bought their mother flowers, balloons, two or three changes of clothes and cosmetics "so she can be pretty." The helicopters apparently spent about two hours on the ground at the pickup location in Colombia.
|
