Upcoming Boston GreenFest: Go Green, Save Money
This year's Boston GreenFest will take place on Boston City Hall Plaza on Thursday through Saturday, August 15-17, 2013. South End Patch News
Consalvo Calls to Save Boston Housing Program for Elderly
At Wednesday’s city council meeting,City Councilor Rob Consalvo called for stop gap funding to save the Boston Housing Authority resident services program that assists more than 3,500 low-income, elderly and disabled residents across the city. “On May 1 the resident services program was ended due to cuts on the federal level that funded the program the and the impact of those cuts are being felt locally,” said District 5 City Councilor Rob Consalvo, during the meeting. “All resident service coordinators were eliminated…” In total, 40 positions are no longer being funded. “This has a dire and serious impact on Boston people who are still going to live in public housing. [Resident Service Coordinators] work day-to-day to provide help on healthcare, nutritional services, substance abuse help, money management… and to keep people safe and people living a good quality life.” The matter was referred to the Committee on Housing, during which the Boston Housing Authority will testify on how they intend to fill the needs of that program, especially during the more active months of summer. Consalvo said that the Boston Housing Authority “does a great job. They need our help.” SOUTH END PATCH: Facebook | Twitter | E-mail Updates South End Patch
Watertown Rescue’s Actions Helped Save MBTA Officer’s Life
It was a typical 24-hour shift for Watertown Fire Department firefighters James Caruso and Patrick Menton assigned to the department’s rescue ambulance; a few medical calls and some training. Pretty routine for a Thursday, Caruso would remember. But the everyday would within minutes transform into a maelstrom of bullets and bombs. The pair rushed to aid a police officer in a Watertown neighborhood, hit in an exchange of gunfire with the alleged Boston Marathon bombers. “From calm to chaos,” said Menton. Caruso and Menton have worked together periodically on the ambulance which is Caruso’s assignment. In fact, Menton was only scheduled to accompany Caruso after James’ usual partner’s wife gave birth earlier on April 18. The pair — Westford-native Caruso and Menton who was born, raised and is living in Watertown — who joined the department together eight years ago, would be on the 8 a.m. to 8 a.m. shift. Earlier in the week, the department put a second rescue unit on duty as a result of the Boston Marathon bombing, but were not called into the city. It was a fairly quiet night Thursday, until just after midnight when the chatter on the radio began picking up from dispatchers and police and fire: an officer shot and killed at MIT, a car jacking, a wild car chase heading west along Memorial Drive in the direction of Watertown. Then around 12:45 a.m., dispatch relayed to Watertown Rescue the call of “officer down” during a running gun battle along Laural Street with two heavily-armed suspects. Despite the hundreds of round-fired and pipe bombs lying on the street, the pair raced to the heart of the battle. “We didn’t know there had been shots fired, but all we knew was there was an officer needing help so we went in. That was it,” said Caruso. “It was a bit nerve-wracking but instincts just kicked in so you are not really thinking about it,” said Menton. When Caruso and Menton arrived, they were waved to the intersection of Laural and Dexter where they found a group of officers in a driveway. Jumping out of the truck’s cab, the EMTs saw officers working on Richard Donohue Jr., a MBTA officer who was part of the police chase into Watertown. The 33-year-old Donohue was hit by a round that severed three of four major leg arteries, producing a steady steam of blood draining into the street. As Caruso and Menton got out, the officers carried the limp unconscious officer to the back of the vehicle. They soon realized that Donohue had effectively lost his entire blood supply from the wound. “You can’t even describe […]
Save Money With One of These Gas Sippers
Hybrid cars have been around for over a decade, but if you wanted one, you have very few choices. You could either get a Prius or, well, a different color Prius. Other attempts at Hybrids (remember the first generation Honda Insight?) didn’t click in the marketplace. But that’s no longer true. Almost every major car manufacturer offers at lest one hybrid model car. Others go further than that, supplying all-electric vehicles, natural gas cars, or super-efficient all-gas models. In most cases, there’s an upfront cost premium, but if you own the car for a few years, you’ll make that up and then some with savings at the pump. Plus, you’ll help reduce pollution, and who can put a price on that? Here are a few green cars for sale in the area. And since you already know all about the Prius, we found some other models you may prefer: 2013 Honda Civic Hybrid, $ 25,150: Honda’s been in the hybrid game for a while, and the Civic hybrid is one of the company’s favored models with a green engine. This compact will get you 44 miles per gallon on both surface roads and the highway. 2013 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Limited, $ 32,640: A relative newcomer to the hybrid game, Hyundai’s pressing their emerging reputation for quality along with fuel efficiency in its Sonata hybrid. The mid-size sedan earned a 34/39 city/highway miles per gallon split. 2013 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Limited, $ 49,055: Need something bigger? Toyota’s Highlander Hybrid may fit the bill. But size begets fuel economy sacrifice; The SUV gets 28 miles per gallon on the highway. Paltry compared to the other vehicles on this list, but excellent when compared to other family-sized vehicles. 2013 Chevrolet Volt, $ 43,055: After years of rumors and concept models, Chevy finally made good on its promise and released the electric volt. The car does gas a gas engine, but its only purpose is to provide power to the electric engine if needed. As a result, it has achieved a stunning 101 miles per gallon city rating (and 93 miles per gallon on the highway). 2013 Ford Focus Electric, $ 40,990: Not to be outdone, Ford has muscled into the electric car game with its Focus Electric. Comparable in size to the Volt, the Focus Electric gets 110 miles per gallon in the city (99 on the highway). South End Patch