Tag Archives: STORM

Caiman Invasion in Puerto Rico

Repeating Islands

Puerto Rico Catching _Grat (4)

When heavy rains begin to pelt a flood-prone neighborhood along Puerto Rico’s north coast, people start sharpening their knives and preparing their lassoes.

The floods herald the arrival of caimans, a close relative of the alligator, whose population has exploded in and around the lagoon next to Los Naranjos neighborhood in the coastal city of Vega Baja, the Associated Press reports.

The scaly reptiles have been spotted prowling around schools and crawling into flooded yards after rains, causing both widespread panic and curiosity in the community.

Calls to government officials to help catch the reptiles and take measures to prevent further flooding have been futile. So now, the residents of Los Naranjos have been forced to face their fears and become caiman catchers themselves in this community of scarce resources where some still ride horses bareback as transportation. Among the rudimentary equipment at their disposal: Wire, duct tape and metal…

View original post 855 more words

Advertisement

Old Guard stays at Tomb of Unknowns in “Superstorm”

  • This handout photo provided by the us Army shows Spc. Brett Hyde, Tomb Sentinel, 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), keeping guard over the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier during Hurricane Sandy, at Arlington National Cemetery, Va., Monday, Oct. 29, 2012. Just like the Sentinel's Creed says "Through the years of diligence and praise and the discomfort of the elements, I will walk my tour in humble reverence to the best of my ability." (AP Photo/Sgt. Jose A. Torres Jr.,/U.S. Army Photo)

    Enlarge Photo

    Associated Press/Sgt. Jose A. Torres Jr.,/U.S. Army Photo – This handout photo provided by the us Army shows Spc. Brett Hyde, Tomb Sentinel, 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), keeping guard over the …more Tomb of the Unknown Soldier during Hurricane Sandy, at Arlington National Cemetery, Va., Monday, Oct. 29, 2012. Just like the Sentinel’s Creed says “Through the years of diligence and praise and the discomfort of the elements, I will walk my tour in humble reverence to the best of my ability.” (AP Photo/Sgt. Jose A. Torres Jr.,/U.S. Army Photo)  less

ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — In the face of Hurricane Sandy, the Army continued to guard the Tomb of the Unknowns on Monday but not with the familiar, choreographed 21 paces that the public typically sees.

A photo that went viral on social media of three soldiers from the Army’s Third U.S. Infantry Regiment, known as The Old Guard, keeping watch over the tomb was actually taken during a September rainstorm. The Army became aware of the photo and said on its Twitter account and to media that it was from September.

The Army handed out a photo that was taken Monday morning before Arlington National Cemetery closed because of the storm. Afterward, when morning funerals were completed, the Old Guard soldiers were still on duty but had moved into an enclosure covered by a green awning known as “the box,” about 20 feet away from the tomb, according to regiment spokesman Maj. John Miller.

He said if the weather becomes intolerable, the tomb can also be guarded from a room inside a nearby amphitheater. But no such order was given on Monday afternoon.

http://news.yahoo.com/old-guard-stays-tomb-unknowns-superstorm-204403223.html