Pagano back to coach Colts after cancer treatment


INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Chuck Pagano stepped to the podium Monday, hugged his team owner, thanked his family for its support and wiped a tear from his eye.


He might, finally, turn out the lights in his office, too.


Nearly three months to the day after being diagnosed with leukemia, the Colts' first-year coach returned to a team eager to reunite with a boss healthy enough to go back to work.


"I told you my best day of my life was July 1, 1989," Pagano said, referring to his wedding date. "Today was No. 2. Getting to pull up, drive in, get out of my car, the key fob still worked. I was beginning to question whether it would or not. When I asked for Bruce to take over, I asked for him to kick some you-know-what and to do great. Damn Bruce, you had to go and win nine games? Tough act to follow. Tough act to follow. Best in the history of the NFL. That's what I have to come back to."


The comment turned tears into the laughter everyone expected on such a festive occasion.


For Pagano and the Colts, Monday morning was as precious as anyone could have imagined when Pagano took an indefinite leave to face the biggest opponent of his life, cancer.


In his absence, all the Colts was win nine of 12 games, make a historic turnaround and clinch a playoff spot all before Sunday's regular-season finale against Houston, which they pegged as the day they hoped to have Pagano back. If all goes well at practice this week, Pagano will be on the sideline for the first time since a Week 3 loss to Jacksonville.


Pagano endured three rounds of chemotherapy to put his cancer in remission.


That Pagano's return came less than 24 hours after Indy (10-5) locked up the No. 5 seed in the AFC and the day before Christmas seemed fitting, too.


"I know Chuck is ready for this challenge. In speaking to his doctor multiple times, I know that the time is right for him to grab the reins, get the head coaching cap on and begin the journey," owner Jim Irsay said. "It's been a miraculous story. It really is a book. It's a fairytale. It's a Hollywood script. It's all those things but it's real."


The reality is that he's returning to a vastly different team than the one he turned over to Arians, his long-time friend and first assistant coaching hire.


Back then, the Colts were 1-2 and most of the so-called experts had written them off as one of the league's worst teams. Now, they're ready to show the football world that they can be just as successful under Pagano as they were under Arians, who tied the NFL record for wins after a midseason coaching change.


Pagano also has changed.


The neatly-trimmed salt-and-pepper hair and trademark goatee that were missing in November have slowly returned, and the thinner man who appeared to be catching his breath during a postgame speech in early November, looked and sounded as good as ever Monday.


He repeatedly thanked fans for their prayers and letters, the organization and his family for their unwavering help and promised to provide comfort and support to other people who are facing similar fights. During one poignant moment that nearly brought out tears again, Pagano even recounted a letter sent to him by a 9-year-old child who suggested he suck on ice chips and strawberry Popsicles in the hospital and advised him to be nice to the nurses regardless of how he felt — and he never even paused.


"I feel great, my weight is back, my energy is back and again, it's just a blessing to be back here," Pagano said.


In the minds of Colts players and coaches, Pagano never really left.


He continually watched practice tape and game film on his computer, used phone calls and text messages to regularly communicate with players and occasionally delivered a pregame or postgame speech to his team.


"He texted me and called me so much, it was like he was standing there in my face every day," said receiver Reggie Wayne, who has been friends with Pagano since the two were working together at the University of Miami.


But the Colts found plenty of other ways to keep Pagano's battle in the forefront.


They began a fundraising campaign for leukemia research, calling it Chuckstrong. Players had stickers with the initials CP on their locker room nameplates, and Arians wore an orange ribbon on his baseball cap during games. Orange is the symbolic color for leukemia. At one point, nearly three dozen players shaved their heads to show their ailing coach they were with him.


That's not all.


Arians and first-year general manager Ryan Grigson decided to leave the lights on in Pagano's office until he returned. Pagano noted the team even installed plastic clips to make sure those lights were not mistakenly turned off while he was gone. Those clips were removed when Pagano arrived Monday morning.


And Arians said nobody sat in the front seat of the team bus.


"He's always been our head coach," Arians said.


So after getting medical clearance from his oncologist, Dr. Larry Cripe, to return with no restrictions, Pagano couldn't wait to get to the office Monday morning.


Arians arrived at 7 a.m., three hours early for the scheduled team meeting. By then, Pagano had already driven past the inflatable Colts player with the words "Welcome Back Chuck" printed on its chest and was back in his office preparing for the Texans.


Players showed up a couple of hours later, and when the torch was passed from Arians back to Pagano, players gave their returning coach a standing ovation that Wayne said was well-deserved.


All Pagano wants to do now is emulate the success Arians and his players have had this season.


"I asked him (Arians) if he would lead this team and this ballclub and this organization and take over the reins," Pagano said. "What a masterful, masterful job you did Bruce. You carried the torch and all you went out and did was win nine ballgames. You got us our 10th win yesterday and you got us into the playoffs. You did it with dignity and you did it with class. You're everything that I always knew you were and more."


___


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Storm brings white Christmas, tornado threat to central U.S






WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A major winter storm brought a rare white Christmas to the southern U.S. plains on Tuesday, contributing to a 21-vehicle pile-up that shut down a major highway in Oklahoma.


The storm system surging east from Kansas and the Texas Panhandle includes the threat of tornados and severe thunderstorms along its southern fringe, from southeast Texas to Alabama, the National Weather Service said.






The storm is expected to bring blizzard conditions and 6 to 8 inches of snow as it strengthens and moves northeast into the upper Ohio River valley through southern Missouri and Illinois, it said.


Freezing drizzle overnight led to 10 separate collisions on Interstate 40 at Oklahoma City just before 3 a.m., said Trooper Betsy Randolph, a spokeswoman for the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.


The 21-vehicle pile-up included three tractor-trailers and shut down the westbound lanes for about five hours, she said. Twelve people were taken to hospitals, and troopers are checking on the severity of their injuries.


In a rare taste of Christmas snow, Oklahoma City is forecast to get 3 to 6 inches of the white stuff on Tuesday. The city’s biggest Christmas snowfall was 6.5 inches in 1914, and measurable amounts have been recorded only a handful of times on the date.


Several flights were canceled at Oklahoma City’s Will Rogers World Airport on Monday ahead of the storm, but conditions on Tuesday morning were good, the airport said in a statement.


Ahead of the storm’s path, parts of eastern West Virginia are under a winter storm warning. Ice accumulations of up to half an inch are expected in higher elevations, the National Weather Service said.


(Reporting by Ian Simpson; Editing by Sandra Maler)


Weather News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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Hollywood movies can (mis)educate us


















Movies for adults


Movies for adults


Movies for adults


Movies for adults


Movies for adults


Movies for adults


Movies for adults


Movies for adults


Movies for adults


Movies for adults


Movies for adults








STORY HIGHLIGHTS


  • Dean Obeidallah: A movie or TV show can educate or (mis)educate you

  • Obeidallah: Two new films about hot issues are firing up both the left and right

  • Senators slammed "Zero Dark Thirty," and energy industry attacked "Promised Land"

  • Obeidallah: What does Hollywood want? To make money, of course




Editor's note: Dean Obeidallah, a former attorney, is a political comedian and frequent commentator on various TV networks including CNN. He is the editor of the politics blog "The Dean's Report" and co-director of the upcoming documentary "The Muslims Are Coming!" Follow him on Twitter: @deanofcomedy


(CNN) -- Can a movie actually convince you to support torture? Can a movie really persuade you that "fracking" -- a process used to drill for natural gas -- is a danger to the environment? Can a movie truly cause you to view certain minority groups in a negative light?


Some scoff at the notion that movies do anything more than entertain. They are wrong. Sure, it's unlikely that one movie alone will change your views on issues of magnitude. But a movie (or TV show) can begin your "education" or "miseducation" on a topic. And for those already agreeing with the film's thesis, it can further entrench your views.


Anyone who doubts the potential influence that movies can have on public opinion need to look no further than two films that are causing an uproar even before they have opened nationwide. They present hot button issues that manage to fire up people from the left and right.



Dean Obeidallah

Dean Obeidallah



The first, "Zero Dark Thirty," is about the pursuit and killing of Osama bin Laden, which features scenes of torture. The second, "Promised Land," stars Matt Damon and explores how the use of fracking to drill for natural gas can pose health and environmental dangers.



Critics of "Zero Dark Thirty" fear that audiences will accept as true the film's story line that torture was effective in eliciting information to locate bin Laden. They are rightfully concerned that the film will sway some to become more receptive or even supportive of the idea of torturing prisoners.


Peter Bergen: Did torture really net bin Laden?


Opposition to the film escalated last week as three senior U.S. senators -- John McCain, Carl Levin and Dianne Feinstein -- sent a letter to the film's distributor, Sony Pictures, characterizing the film's use of torture as "grossly inaccurate and misleading." The senators bluntly informed Sony Pictures that it has "an obligation to state that the role of torture in the hunt for Osama bin Laden is not based on the facts, but rather part of the film's fictional narrative."


Is this just more liberal whining?








Well, the hostility toward "Promised Land" shows us that it's not just liberals who complain about movie messages. Big business -- namely, the gas industry -- is aggressively objecting to the allegation in "Promised Land" that fracking poses environmental and health risks.


How concerned is the gas industry?


It has set up a rapid response team to counter publicity for the film by using two Washington-based groups that lobby for gas and oil companies: the Independent Petroleum Association of America and Energy in Depth. These groups have scrutinized appearances by the films stars on talk shows, questioned who the financiers of the film are, published parts of the script and mocked the film on social media.


Energy in Depth went as far as to "fact check" a recent appearance by the films co-star and co-writer, John Krasinski, on "Late Night With David Letterman." Within hours of Krasinski's appearance, Energy in Depth posted a blog on its website pointing out what it perceived as factual errors made by Krasinski about fracking.


Regardless of whether "Zero Dark Thirty" and "Promised Land" intended to promote any message, people who watch them will be "educated" in some way on torture and fracking -- even if very subtly.


This is the same reason that minority groups continue to object being represented in a negative light in movies and TV. They understand that accurate representations matter because studies have shown that biases can form based on stereotypes or inaccurate representations. (Being of Italian and Arab descent, I'm acutely aware of this issue as my respective heritages have been represented by a parade of mobsters and terrorists.)


What's Hollywood's role in all of this? The same as it has always been -- to make money.


In fact, there's no doubt that the studios behind these movies are overjoyed at the controversy that has erupted and the resulting free press. Indeed, the response of Sony Pictures to the uproar over "Zero Dark Thirty" tells you about what they really hope we will all do: "We encourage people to see the film before characterizing it."


So go ahead, enjoy these films and ones like them that are based on actual events or current hot issues. But while you are watching them, be aware you might be getting more than the price of ticket. You might also be getting a (mis)education.


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The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Dean Obeidallah.






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Christmas Eve shootings leave 7 hurt









Seven people were hurt, at least five seriously, in shootings on the South and West sides late Monday.


Four of the injured were hurt in a single shooting on the Far South Side, and all four were taken to local hospitals in serious-to-critical condition, according to the Chicago Fire Department.


The shooting happened shortly before 7:30 p.m. in the 9400 block of South Justine Street in the Brainerd neighborhood on the South Side, officials said.





A male opened fire, striking four males as they walked down the sidewalk, Chicago Police Department News Affairs Officer Amina Greer said, citing preliminary information.

A 15-year-old  and a 22-year-old  were taken to Advocate Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn, a 17-year old was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital and a 19-year-old  was taken to John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County, police said.


The 15-year-old was shot in the abdomen, and the 17-year-old was shot in the chest, police said. The other two men were shot multiple times.


Police said the condition of each was stabilized at the hospital.


About 11:50 p.m., a 21-year-old was shot in an attempted robbery in the Gresham neighborhood on the South Side, police said.


The victim was sitting in a parked vehicle in the 8200 block of South Marshfield Avenue when two males approached on foot and announced a robbery, Greer said, citing preliminary information.


Shortly after, one or both of the assailants shot into the vehicle, striking the man in the lower abdomen, police said.


The man was taken to Little Company of Mary Hospital and later transferred to Advocate Christ, where his condition was stabilized, police said.


About 9:05 p.m., a 19-year-old man was shot in the head in the 1200 block of West Washburne Avenue in the West Side's University Village neighborhood, police said. 


The man was taken to Stroger in serious condition, News Affairs Officer Veejay Zala said.


Earlier Monday evening, a 37-year-old man was shot in the leg and back in the South Side's Gresham neighborhood, police said.


The shooting happened in the 700 block of West 81st Street about 5:50 p.m., Zala said. The man was taken to an area hospital, where his condition was stabilized.


asege@tribune.com

Twitter: @AdamSege





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Syria envoy seeks peace as clashes rage


BEIRUT (Reuters) - International envoy Lakhdar Brahimi pursued mediation efforts in Damascus on Tuesday, but there was no pause in the bloodletting as Syrian Christians marked a bleak Christmas Day with prayers for peace.


"We are here in a cave that symbolizes Syria right now," said a priest standing beside a nativity scene in a grotto.


"It is cold here but the door is open to all refugees," he told Syrian state TV. "Amid the hunger, cold and deprivation, we still have hope for peace and love for our country."


More than 44,000 Syrians have been killed since a revolt against President Bashar al-Assad erupted 21 months ago, igniting an increasingly sectarian conflict that broadly pits a Sunni Muslim majority against Assad's Alawite minority.


Christians, many of whom have been reluctant to join what they see as an Islamist-tinged insurgency, feel threatened.


Bishop John Kawak, speaking on state TV, said the Christmas holiday was "a symbol for the rebirth of the nation". He condemned "terrorism", the government's term for the rebellion.


Brahimi met some dissidents who are tolerated by Assad but rejected by the mainstream opposition and by rebels fighting to oust him, a day after he held talks with the Syrian president.


There was no word on any progress in the U.N.-Arab League' envoy's drive to end violence that has intensified in recent months as Assad uses airpower and artillery against rebel gains.


Raja Naser, secretary general of the National Coordination Body, said after meeting Brahimi that the envoy planned a week of meetings in Damascus and would stay until Sunday.


"There is still a lot of concern but there is also great hope that these meetings with other Syrian officials will result in some agreements or positive developments," he said.


But most opposition groups appear frustrated with Brahimi's quest for a deal on a transitional government. He has not clarified any role for Assad, whose foes say he must simply go, arguing that too much blood has been shed for any other outcome.


GULF PLEA


Gulf Arab leaders, who have long called for Assad's removal and some of whom have helped the rebels with guns and money, urged swift world action to halt the "massacres" and violations of international law in Syria.


The pro-opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported clashes and government shelling in hotspots across the country, including towns on the eastern outskirts of Damascus.


Abu Nidal, a spokesman for the Rebel Military Council in Damascus, said fighters had killed the head of a local security branch in the capital's suburb of Jaramana, home to a large Christian and Druze population.


In his Christmas message to the world on Tuesday, Pope Benedict encouraged Syrians not to lose hope for peace.


"May peace spring up for the people of Syria, deeply wounded and divided by a conflict which does not spare even the defenseless and reaps innocent victims," he said.


"I appeal for an end to the bloodshed, easier access for the relief of refugees and the displaced, and dialogue in the pursuit of a political solution to the conflict."


Hundreds of thousands of Syrians have fled abroad to escape the daily violence. Those who remain face severe shortages of food, fuel and other essentials as winter weather takes a grip.


Syrian activists offered a message of solidarity with Christians despite rising tensions in central Hama province, where rebels have demanded that Christian villages let them enter to force out the army and pro-Assad "shabbiha" militias.


"We say to the Christians, you are our brothers and our beloved, and your holiday is our holiday," said Abu Faisal, a Hama activist who posted a Christmas message on the Internet.


"The rebels are surrounding (the Christian town) Muhardeh to get rid of Assad's soldiers and shabbiha, but we have not forgotten your honorable stance when you took care of our refugees when the army entered Hama," he said.


"We will not accept that you are targeted by hatred, you are our brothers and our friends."


(Additional reporting by Philip Pullela in Vatican City and Asma Alsharif in Manama)



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Wall Street ends shortened session lower

Carrie Rocha estimates that she and her husband had somewhere between $50,000 and $60,000 in debt in 2006, including student loan debt, a car loan, and tax debt, in addition to their mortgage. After getting serious about eliminating their debt, the couple paid it off in 30 months, and Rocha started Pocket Your Dollars (www.pocketyourdollars.com), a blog where she shares tips on living within your means. ...
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Pagano back to coach Colts after cancer treatment


INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Chuck Pagano was so eager to get back to work Monday, he was the first one to show up at team headquarters.


Long before meeting with his players, the Colts first-year coach drove quietly into the complex, walked into the office where the lights have remained on for nearly three months and began preparing for Sunday's game against AFC South champion Houston like it was another at the day office.


Hardly. It was the biggest milestone yet in an incredibly emotional season in which Pagano has beaten leukemia and the Colts have been a most pleasant surprise in reaching the playoffs under interim coach Bruce Arians.


"I asked him if he would ... take over the reins and what a masterful, masterful job you did Bruce," Pagano said with Arians nearby at the news conference. "You carried the torch and all you went out and did was win ballgames, you got our 10th win yesterday and you got us into the playoffs and you did it with dignity and you did it with class. I can't thank you enough."


Players, coaches and staff members had been anticipating this day from the moment they learned Pagano was taking an indefinite leave to fight cancer, Oct. 1.


So when the 52-year-old first-time head coach returned, the 24-hour rule was cast aside — giving the Colts (10-5) another 24 hours to celebrate something far more important than reaching the playoffs.


"I know Chuck is ready for this challenge," said Colts owner Jim Irsay. " I know the time is right for him to grab the reins and get the head coaching cap on and begin the journey.


"The great thing about the National Football League is that so much attention gets paid to it, so many other things happen beside win and losses and the inspiration Chuck has shown to others and the time Chuck has spent connecting with others, it really is miraculous. It's a fairytale story, its' a Hollywood script, it's all of those things."


When Pagano arrived, he drove past an inflatable Colts player with the words "Welcome Back Chuck" printed on its chest. Normally, that spot is reserved for a message for the Colts to beat their next opponent.


When he spoke at a private team meeting, cheering could be heard in the media room.


If all goes well at practice this week, Pagano will be back on the sideline for the first time since Jacksonville scored a last-minute touchdown on an 80-yard TD pass in Week 3, handing Indy it's only home loss this season.


Pagano began the first of three rounds of chemotherapy Sept. 26, after the team completed its final practice during a bye week.


Arians, a prostate cancer survivor, immediately established the goal: Play long enough so Pagano could return to the sideline this season.


Indianapolis did better than anyone could have expected under Arians, who had spent two decades as an NFL assistant but had never been in charge of an NFL team. The Colts went 9-4 under Arians, who tied the league record for wins after a midseason coaching change, joined the 2008 Miami Dolphins as the only teams in league history to lose 14 or more games one season and win 10 or more the next and became the fourth team in league history to win only two games one season and 10 or more the next.


___


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NY solar tax break, E-cigarette ban in 2013






ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York state laws banning sales of electronic cigarettes to minors and giving businesses new tax exemptions for installing solar energy systems are set to take effect next week.


In 2013, New Yorkers will also calculate state income taxes owed based on the new rates that took effect in 2012, while payroll deductions could change again based on a cost-of-living index adjustment in the law.






The ban on sales to those under 18 of E-cigarettes, battery-powered devices used to inhale vaporized liquid nicotine instead of tobacco smoke, is effective Jan. 1.


At the same time, sales and installations of commercial solar units will become exempt from the 4 percent state sales and use tax. The law lets cities and counties do the same. It follows the 2005 tax exemption for residential systems.


Energy News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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Shootings: Suicide risk gives clues




A sign near a cemetery of a victim in the school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut.




STORY HIGHLIGHTS


  • Daniel Flannery: Studies show there is no distinct profile of school shooters

  • Flannery: We can take lessons from what we know about risk for suicide

  • He says we can do better to assess a person's risk for violent action toward others

  • Flannery: Communities and schools should pay more attention to kids' mental health




Editor's note: Daniel J. Flannery is the Dr. Semi J. and Ruth Begun professor and director of the Begun Center for Violence Prevention, Research and Education at the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University.


(CNN) -- It is hard not to feel a sense of despair, loss and anxiety over the shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. We want answers. We may not know for a very long time, if ever, what really motivated the shooter.


Previous studies of school shooters show us that some common mental health symptoms characterize many of the perpetrators, including poor anger management ability, narcissism, low self-esteem and lack of empathy. However, there are still many more differences across shooters than similarities, so to date there is no distinct profile of school shooters.


What can we do, aside from the psychological autopsying of recent incidents, to try and prevent more homicide school shootings? There is no simple answer. But we can take some lessons from what we know about risk for suicide.



Daniel J. Flannery

Daniel J. Flannery



For many years, we have done a pretty good job of getting people to take threats of suicide seriously. If a young person walks into a counselor's office and says something like, "I think I'm going to kill myself," that counselor has been professionally trained and socialized to not underestimate the threat of self-injury.


Certainly, not every young adult who says such a thing goes on to commit suicide. Evidence shows that many of them have at least thought about hurting or killing themselves at some point, but few actually make a real attempt and fewer still carry it out.








Developing a good model for assessing the risk of suicide can provide a framework for how to assess the seriousness of threats to commit acts of violence toward others.


For example, one of the best predictors of suicide is previous suicide attempts. We try to determine whether a person has access to lethal methods of self-harm (drugs, firearms) and how detailed are the plans to carry out the act. We look for signs of anger and whether the person has experienced a recent crisis or loss. We try to figure out if a person's sense of rejection or disenfranchisement leads to a sense of hopelessness about the future, and a conviction that suicide is the only way out of a desperate situation. Moreover, if a person knows someone close who has committed suicide, we have to be vigilant since there tends to be an increase (clustering) of suicides among friends or acquaintances.


Each of these signposts can help us do a better job of assessing a person's risk for carrying out acts of violence toward others like in the school shootings.


We can look for any history of violence -- whether the person has written about or told others of his or her intent. We can try to find out whether the person has access to firearms or has thought out a plan to carry out an attack. We can try to evaluate levels of anger, feelings of rejection, or expressions of hopelessness about the future.


Most adolescent school shooters have said something to peers prior to taking any action, but not always to the direct target of an attack, and rarely to an adult. (In contrast, in rampage shootings carried out by adults, we don't have as much information and they don't usually give verbal warnings or threats beforehand.)


Ideally, assessing the risk would be carried out using a validated set of reliable indicators, with detailed semi-structured interviews performed by trained mental health professionals. In schools, social workers, counselors or school psychologists can screen young people for risk of potential violence perpetration and refer them to other mental health professionals who could do a more thorough assessment if necessary. Of course, adequate screenings depend largely on adequate time, resources and staff training.


Not every young person who makes a threat to hurt others will end up committing an act of violence toward others, and very few will ever commit a multiple mass shooting. But just as we take threats of suicide seriously, we should pay equal attention to those who say they might harm others.


We have to do all we can to make sure our children are safe, and that they all come home at the end of the school day. We can take steps as a community to pay attention to mental health and violence as it occurs every day, not just when horrible acts of great magnitude occur.


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The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Daniel J. Flannery.






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2 firefighters fatally shot in ambush at blazing NY house









WEBSTER, N.Y. -- A gunman ambushed four volunteer firefighters responding to an intense pre-dawn house fire Monday morning outside Rochester, N.Y., killing two before ending up dead himself, authorities said. Police used an armored vehicle to evacuate more than 30 nearby residents.

The gunman fired at the firefighters when they arrived shortly after 5:30 a.m. at the blaze near the Lake Ontario shore in Webster, town Police Chief Gerald Pickering said. The first Webster police officer who arrived chased the suspect and exchanged gunfire with him, authorities said.


“It does appear it was a trap” for the first responders to the fire, Pickering said at a news conference.











Authorities didn't say how the gunman died or whether anyone might have died in the fire itself.


One of the dead firefighters was also a town police lieutenant; it wasn't clear whether he returned fire. An off-duty police officer who was driving by was injured by shrapnel, Pickering said.


The fire started in one home and spread to two others and a car, officials said. The gunfire initially kept firefighters from battling the blazes. Police say four homes were destroyed and four damaged.


The West Webster Fire District learned of the fire early Monday after a report of a car and house on fire on Lake Road, on a narrow peninsula where Irondequoit Bay meets Lake Ontario, Monroe County Sheriff Patrick O'Flynn said.


The fire appeared from a distance as a pulsating ball of flame glowing against the early morning sky, flames licking into treetops and reflecting on the water, with huge bursts of smoke billowing away in a brisk wind.


Two of the firefighters arrived on a fire engine and two in their own vehicles, Pickering said. After the gunman fired, one of the wounded men managed to flee, but the other three couldn't because of flying gunfire.


A police armored vehicle was used to recover two of the men, and eventually it evacuated 33 people from nearby homes, the police chief said.


The dead men were identified as Police Lt. Michael Chiapperini, 43, the Webster Police Department's public information officer; and Tomasz Kaczowka, also a 911 dispatcher, whose age was not released.


Pickering described Chiapperini as a “lifetime firefighter” with nearly 20 years with the department, and called Kaczowka a “tremendous young man.”


The two wounded firefighters, Joseph Hofsetter and Theodore Scardino, were in guarded condition in the intensive care unit at Strong Memorial Hospital, authorities said. Both were awake and alert and are expected to recover.


Hofsetter, also a full-timer with the Rochester Fire Department, was hit once in the pelvis, and the bullet lodged in his spine, authorities said. Scardino was hit in the chest and knee.


Monday's shooting and fires were in a neighborhood of seasonal and year-round homes set close together across the road from the lakeshore. The area is popular with recreational boaters but is normally quiet this time of year.


“We have very few calls for service in that location,” Pickering said. “Webster is a tremendous community. We are a safe community, and to have a tragedy befall us like this is just horrendous.”


O'Flynn lamented the violence, which comes on the heels of other shootings including the massacre of 20 students and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.


“It's sad to see that that this is becoming more commonplace in communities across the nation,” O'Flynn said.


Webster, a middle-class suburb, now is the scene of violence linked to house fires for two Decembers in a row.


Last Dec. 7, authorities say, a 15-year-old boy doused his home with gasoline and set it ablaze, killing his father and two brothers, 16 and 12. His mother and 13-year-old sister escaped with injuries. He is being prosecuted as an adult.


Associated Press and Reuters contributed





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