Society's ChildS


Ambulance

US: Elite surfer drowns after wipeout off northern California coast

surfer Sion Milosky
© UnknownShock: Big-wave surfer Sion Milosky has been killed in a wipeout off the northern California coast, stunning the close-knit big-wave surfing community

A surfer has died after being dragged under by a wave he was riding off the northern California coast.

Fearless Sion Milosky, 35, died on Wednesday evening, apparently drowning in the wipeout at the famed Mavericks surf break, south of San Francisco.

Friends said the wave 'caught him like an avalanche' and he never came up leaving the close-knit surfing community stunned.

Arrow Up

Even Japan's Infamous Mafia Groups Are Helping With The Relief Effort

Even Japan's infamous mafia groups are helping out with the relief efforts and showing a strain of civic duty. Jake Adelstein reports on why the police don't want you to know about it.

The worst of times sometimes brings out the best in people, even in Japan's "losers" a.k.a. the Japanese mafia, the yakuza.

Hours after the first shock waves hit, two of the largest crime groups went into action, opening their offices to those stranded in Tokyo, and shipping food, water, and blankets to the devastated areas in two-ton trucks and whatever vehicles they could get moving.
The day after the earthquake the Inagawa-kai (the third largest organized crime group in Japan which was founded in 1948) sent twenty-five four-ton trucks filled with paper diapers, instant ramen, batteries, flashlights, drinks, and the essentials of daily life to the Tohoku region.

An executive in Sumiyoshi-kai, the second-largest crime group, even offered refuge to members of the foreign community - something unheard of in a still slightly xenophobic nation, especially amongst the right-wing yakuza.

Stormtrooper

Yemen police massacre 45 protesters

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© AllVoices41 dead, 200 injured as Yemen police shoot at protesters
Death toll rises as government forces start to use live rounds in increasingly violent crackdown on nationwide protests

Yasir Saeed was the first casualty dragged into the mosque. Blood was still trickling from the gaping bullet wound in the back of the 32-year-old English teacher's head as doctors lowered his mangled body on to a blanket, muttering a short prayer before closing the lids of his eyes.

Gradually, his corpse was joined by others lined up in a row alongside him. One by one, miniature Qur'ans were placed on their chests as their blood soaked through the carpet beneath them.

The scene was desperate and chaotic. It followed the worst day of violence in Yemen since protests against president Ali Abdullah Saleh began in earnest over a month ago. At least 45 people were killed and hundreds of others wounded as security forces and plainclothes government loyalists opened fire on protesters trying to march through the capital, Sana'a.

Parliamentary opposition spokesman Mohammed al-Sabri accused the regime of a massacre and said: "These killings will not help keep Ali Abdullah Saleh in power." Saleh responded by calling for a state of emergency, saying this meant that ordinary citizens would not be able to carry weapons.

Stormtrooper

Bahrain government razes Pearl Square to ground

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Pearl Square after demolition on Friday March 18, 2011

Bahraini authorities have razed to the ground Manama's Pearl Square, which is considered the epicenter of anti-government protests in the country.

The iconic central structure was brought down on Friday two days after Bahraini and Saudi forces, backed by tanks and helicopters, cleared the land mark square where anti-government protesters had been camped for several weeks.

At least six people were killed and many others have been injured in the brutal crackdown on Wednesday.

Pearl square consisted of six dhows (sails) projecting up toward the sky and holding up a pearl. The dhows represent the six Persian Gulf littoral sates of Bahrain, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman.

The pearl represents the joint heritage of these countries, whose economies were based on pearl diving before the discovery of oil.

Attention

Cholera Epidemic - Accelerated Increase Of Haiti Cholera Cases Feared

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© Reuters
Mathematical model projects almost double the cases estimated by U.N., supports additional public health measures

Current projections regarding the eventual size and extent of the cholera epidemic in Haiti may greatly underestimate the potential number of cases, according to a report that will appear in The Lancet and has been released online. A mathematical model based on current knowledge about the transmission and course of the diarrheal disease arrives at estimates of new cases through November 2011 that almost double those currently projected by the United Nations. The model also reflects the probable impact of public health measures designed to combat the epidemic.

"Our findings suggest that more resources are needed than may be currently planned," says lead author Jason Andrews, MD, of the Massachusetts General Hospital Division of Infectious Diseases. "The number of cases is currently falling, but this is the natural history of an epidemic, and cholera may continue to exact a significant toll over the next year as it becomes established in Haiti."

Before the devastating earthquake of January 2010, cholera had not been reported in Haiti for more than 100 years; but the aftermath of the earthquake, which largely destroyed the country's already inadequate water and sewer systems, set the stage for the cholera outbreak that began in October. The initial U.N. projection of a probable 200,000 cases during the first year was soon raised to 400,000 cases. But those estimates were based on rough estimates of 2 to 4 percent of the population being infected.

According to Andrews and his co-author Sanjay Basu, MD, University of California San Francisco, the U.N. projections were not based on known patterns of infection and disease progression. Nor did they take into account the asymptomatic nature of some infections, the potential impact of vaccination or treatment, and the immunity that develops in those who recover from the disease. To arrive at more accurate estimates, they devised a mathematical model based on information from previous cholera outbreaks that incorporates current understanding of the disease and also includes data from the first months of the Haitian outbreak. Their model predicted that, without additional intervention, 779,000 new cases and more than 11,000 deaths would result from the epidemic from March through November 2011.

Nuke

Best of the Web: Japanese authorities: We have no control over the Fukushima Nuclear plant, people will probably die from fallout

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© AP Photos/KyodoOverwhelmed: Tokyo Electric Power Company Managing Director Akio Komiri cries as he leaves after a press conference in Fukushima
  • Officials admit they may have to bury reactors under concrete - as happened at Chernobyl
  • Government says it was overwhelmed by the scale of twin disasters
  • Japanese upgrade accident from level four to five - the same as Three Mile Island
  • We will rebuild from scratch says Japanese prime minister
  • Particles spewed from wrecked Fukushima power station arrive in California
  • Military trucks tackle reactors with tons of water for second day
The boss of the company behind the devastated Japanese nuclear reactor today broke down in tears - as his country finally acknowledged the radiation spewing from the over-heating reactors and fuel rods was enough to kill some citizens

Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency admitted that the disaster was a level 5, which is classified as a crisis causing 'several radiation deaths' by the UN International Atomic Energy.

Officials said the rating was raised after they realised the full extent of the radiation leaking from the plant. They also said that 3 per cent of the fuel in three of the reactors at the Fukushima plant had been severely damaged, suggesting those reactor cores have partially melted down.

After Tokyo Electric Power Company Managing Director Akio Komiri cried as he left a conference to brief journalists on the situation at Fukushima, a senior Japanese minister also admitted that the country was overwhelmed by the scale of the tsunami and nuclear crisis.

He said officials should have admitted earlier how serious the radiation leaks were.

Eye 2

US: 'Lovely' Kentucky woman accused of horrific war crimes

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© APAzra Basic, 52, took jobs bathing elderly nursing home patients and working at a sandwich factory in Kentucky. She has been charged with fatally stabbing a prisoner in the neck in 1992 during the bloody conflict in Bosnia.

Stanton, Ky. - The arrest of a Croatian woman in small-town Kentucky for alleged war crimes two decades ago in the former Yugoslavia "brings her long run from justice to an end," a U.S. marshal said.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert E. Wier ordered that Azra Basic, 52, be held without bond pending an April 1 status hearing and appointed her a lawyer.

Prosecutors argued that no bail amount would guarantee Basic's presence in court.

Federal agents arrested Basic on Tuesday. A complaint filed by U.S. Attorney James Arehart accuses Basic of committing crimes at three camps in the early 1990s near the majority-Serbian settlement of Cardak in Derventa in Bosnia.

The Croatian woman locals in Stanton knew as "Issabella" settled years ago in this rural, hilly area and took jobs bathing elderly nursing home patients and working at a sandwich factory.

This week, acquaintances were shocked to hear the secret that Bosnian war crimes investigators said Basic has been hiding for two decades.

As a soldier in the Croatian army, she killed a prisoner and tortured others by forcing them to drink human blood and gasoline, authorities said.

Pistol

Yemeni forces open fire on protesters, killing at least 31

Opposition says compromise no longer possible; 3 children reportedly among the dead

Sanaa, Yemen - Yemeni security forces firing from rooftops and houses shot at tens of thousands of anti-government demonstrators, killing at least 31 - including three children - and wounding 200 others, as the protesters entered a downtown square in the capital to demand the ouster of their autocratic president.

Hours after the crackdown - the largest yet in the popular uprising - President Ali Abdullah Saleh declared a nationwide state of emergency. The leader said the decision was made by the country's Highest Defense Council, but there was no immediate word on how long the emergency laws would be in place.

In response to the assault, Yemen's opposition said there was no longer any way to reach a mutual understanding with the government.

"We condemn these crimes," said Yassin Noman, rotating president of Yemen's umbrella opposition group, asking President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step aside.


Nuke

High radiation recorded 18 miles from nuke plant

Official admits that government 'could have moved a little quicker' in wake of disasters

Key details:
  • High levels of radiation found miles from nuke plant
  • U.N. atomic chief calls for world to help Japan
  • 6,500 dead, more than 10,300 missing following quake
  • Officials working to fix power cable to stricken reactors
  • Japan hails 'Samurai warriors' working at nuke plant
  • Tiny amounts of radiation reach California
High levels of radiation have been recorded 18 miles from Japan's quake-damaged nuclear power plant, officials said Friday.

Experts said exposure for just six hours would result in absorption of the maximum level considered safe for a year, Japanese broadcaster NHK reported.


Heart - Black

Japanese earthquake takes heavy toll on ageing population

Shocking stories of deaths emerge as the military is enlisted to help at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant
elderly couple
© IFRC/Getty ImagesAn elderly couple sit near a woodburning stove in agymnasium being used to house those displaced by the Japanese earthquake and tsunami in town of Otsuchi

The devastating impact of the Japanese earthquake on the country's ageing population was exposed on Thursday as dozens of elderly people were confirmed dead in hospitals and residential homes as heating fuel and medicine ran out.

In one particularly shocking incident, Japan's self-defence force discovered 128 elderly people abandoned by medical staff at a hospital six miles from the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant. Most of them were comatose and 14 died shortly afterwards. Eleven others were reported dead at a retirement home in Kesennuma because of freezing temperatures, six days after 47 of their fellow residents were killed in the tsunami. The surviving residents of the retirement home in Kesennuma were described by its owner, Morimitsu Inawashida, as "alone and under high stress". He said fuel for their kerosene heaters was running out.

Almost a quarter of Japan's population are 65 or over, and hypothermia, dehydration and respiratory diseases are taking hold among the elderly in shelters, many of whom lost their medication when the wave struck, according to Eric Ouannes, general director of Doctors Without Borders' Japan affiliate.

This comes after Japan's elderly people bore the brunt of the initial impact of the quake and tsunami, with many of them unable to flee to higher ground.

Although the people from the hospital near Fukushima were moved by the self-defence forces to a gymnasium in Iwaki, there were reports that conditions were not much better there. An official for the government said it felt "helpless and very sorry for them". "The condition at the gymnasium was horrible," said Cheui Inamura. "No running water, no medicine and very, very little food. We simply did not have means to provide good care."