Palmetto reopens to traffic after crane crash shuts down roadway

A crane on top of a semi struck an overpass on the busy Palmetto Expressway Friday evening, creating a messy parking lot on one of South Florida’s busiest thoroughfares.Traffic had to be diverted away in both directions on State Road 826 and Northwest 27th Avenue, causing major delays and detours during rush hour traffic.The bobcat crane was sitting atop the tractor trailer...

Read More..

Facebook Powerball frenzy: Purported winner offers to ‘share’ $1 million

His name is Nolan Daniels, and he’s just about to give some random dude or dudette $ 1 million. Or so he claims.Purporting to be the second Powerball winner in Wednesday’s $ 588 million payout, Mr. Daniels posted a Facebook photo late Thursday of himself holding a ticket showing the winning numbers. The photo is the only one visible on Daniels’s account, which dates to 2008.“Looks like I’m not going...

Read More..

Cop’s boot gift leads more people to help homeless

The city’s homeless experienced a boost in random acts of kindness yesterday as people were inspired to do good by the story of the hero NYPD cop who bought boots for a barefoot, shivering homeless man. “I’m getting more money today,” said Judy, who was panhandling in the Port Authority Bus Terminal with her walker.She credited the feel-good story of Officer...

Read More..

Boat Show may block Miami’s 2016 Super Bowl bid

This winter, the biggest NFL match-up in South Florida might be Super Bowl versus Boat Show. As South Florida readies a bid for the 2016 Super Bowl, it must contend with a major potential conflict on the tourism calendar. The National Football League may move the Super Bowl to Presidents’ Day weekend, already home to the five-day Miami International Boat Show since the 1940s....

Read More..

College student seeks immunity in South Miami man’s stabbing death

James Arauz, the Miami Dade College student who stabbed his mother’s employer to death, testified Thursday in the first day of a hearing to determine whether he would be granted Stand Your Ground immunity. Arauz, who was 20 at the time, stabbed Vincent Pravada to death and went on a shopping spree with his credit cards in Oct. 2009. Investigators later found bloody fingerprints...

Read More..

Former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, hotel maid to settle: AP

AFP/Getty ImagesNafissatou Diallo (R) accused former IMF head Dominique Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault, but the two have reportedly settled.NEW YORK — Word of a settlement agreement between former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn and a hotel maid who accused him of trying to rape her could bring an end to a saga that has tarnished...

Read More..

California Pizza Kitchen brings prototype to Sawgrass Mills

The restaurant chain that took barbecued chicken pizza mainstream is ready to push the culinary envelope again. How about a pizza topped with roasted Brussels sprouts and applewood smoked bacon or a Korean barbecue pizza with pork loin and spicy kimchee salad?Innovative menu items are just one piece of what’s unique about California Pizza Kitchen’s new flagship restaurant...

Read More..

Miami-Dade ethics board rebukes two city of Miami commissioners

The county ethics commission dinged Miami Commissioner Frank Carollo this week for phoning the police chief after Carollo was pulled over for a traffic stop.Separately, Miami Commission Vice Chairman Marc Sarnoff was reprimanded for not filing a gift disclosure when the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau paid his way to Brazil.Sarnoff said his travels did not...

Read More..

Lindsay Lohan arrested for fighting at NYC nightclub: report

John Shearer/Invision/APActress Lindsay Lohan is in hot water again, according to a report.Lindsay Lohan is in hot water again, according to a report.The troubled starlet, 26, was arrested this morning after getting into a fight at a New York City nightclub, TMZ reports.LiLo was evidently at club Avenue - and after exchanging words with a fellow clubgoer,...

Read More..

City National Bank of Florida and its Spanish parent have four years to evaluate the Miami bank’s future ownership

City National Bank of Florida, the Miami bank purchased by Bankia (formerly Caja Madrid) of Spain in November 2008, said Wednesday that its parent has a “four-year window to evaluate alternatives” for the bank’s future ownership and will work closely with management in Miami during the process.The Spanish government has reached and agreement with the European Union related...

Read More..

Weatherman conned by SoBe “Bar Girls” now has Twitter account hijacked by Playboy fiancée

A former TV weatherman who testified 12 days ago in a Miami federal courtroom that Latvian “Bar Girls” swindled him out of $43,000 on Miami Beach was back in the spotlight Tuesday over suggestive photos and tweets sent from his Twitter account. John Bolaris, who was suspended from his job as a weather anchor for Fox affiliate WTXF in Philadelphia last year amid his allegations...

Read More..

Exclusive: Banks offer to help Sony offload battery unit – sources

TOKYO (Reuters) – Sony Corp has been approached by at least three investment banks offering to sell its battery business as the struggling Japanese group looks to offload non-core assets and focus on reviving its consumer electronics business, banking sources said.Selling the unit, which employs 2,700 people and had sales last year of $ 1.74 billion, would help Sony cut costs and generate cash as...

Read More..

The Complete List: 'Dancing with the Stars' Winners

The Complete List: 'Dancing with the Stars' Winners On Tuesday night, TV personality and former Bachelor contestant Melissa Rycroft became the latest Dancing with the Stars victor! Click through the gallery for a look back at all the previous mirror ball winners. ...

Read More..

Bus-crash horror kills boy, 6, in home

Wayne CarringtonLONG ISLAND NIGHTMARE: This Nassau County bus killed a Hempstead boy asleep in his bedroom last night. A bus crashed into a home in Hempstead, LI, last night, killing a 6-year-old boy and injuring his 7-year-old brother — both of whom were sleeping peacefully inside. “He was just in a bad spot,” said Hempstead Police Sgt. Mark Kirichenko,...

Read More..

Gift ideas for the techie on your list

The holidays are coming fast, and if you’re like me, you’ve probably gotten very little of your gift shopping done. Here are suggestions for a variety of gifts for the techie and the not-so-techie people on your list. Some of these items can be found in stores and some are only available online, but you should be able to order them in time for Christmas or Hanukkah. ...

Read More..

FPL’s request gets OK

The Florida Public Service Commission Monday approved $151 million in advance nuclear costs for Florida Power & Light Co., the total amount the utility requested.The unanimous vote means that a customer who uses 1,000 kilowatt hours a month will be charged $1.69 a month for the advance costs beginning in January, the PSC said. This year that customer is paying $2.20 a...

Read More..

How Zero Dark Thirty Copied Bin Laden's Compound

Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow reteams with her Hurt Locker screenwriter Mark Boal for Zero Dark Thirty, a chronicling of the hunt for Osama bin Laden, and the two opened up to Nightline about how they recreated bin Laden's compound.VIDEO: Zero Dark Thirty TrailerThe filmmakers built a full-scale version of the compound in Jordan, and Bigelow says that everything from the carpet to the marks...

Read More..

Push to do the ‘rate’ thing

The City Council and city’s Taxi and Limousine Commission sparred yesterday over a new taxi design that eliminates printed fares from the sides of taxicabs.Councilman James Vacca (D-Bronx), Transportation Committee chair, is pushing a bill to require the TLC to reinstate the printed fares, which the city dropped earlier this year.“I think passengers have...

Read More..

Shoppers welcome holiday sales by buying early, often — and online

Shoppers swooped into stores in droves on Thanksgiving weekend, topping last year’s sales, as more retailers opened their doors earlier than ever on Thursday, luring bargain hunters away from eating another plate of turkey.And now Cyber Monday is expected to set a record for online shopping this year, for those who prefer the Internet to the mall.Spending per shopper nationwide...

Read More..

Flurry of new bills filed in Tallahassee

TALLAHASSEE -- Florida lawmakers have filed their first bills of the season.Most are familiar: a ban on texting while driving, a requirement that parasailing operators carry insurance and a “foreign law” bill criticized by opponents as anti-Islamic.Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, says she will keep sponsoring the texting while driving measure until it passes. It nearly survived...

Read More..

Justin Bieber Defends Meeting Prime Minister in Overalls

After catching a bit of flack for meeting with the Canadian Prime Minister in a decidedly casual pair of overalls, Justin Bieber took to Instagram Sunday to explain himself.Related: Justin Bieber on Selena, His Favorite Things "The pic of me and the Prime Minister was taken in a room in the arena where I was performing at that day," Bieber wrote in response to a journalist who criticized the move...

Read More..

Cyber Monday likely to be the year's busiest online sales day

APCyber Monday is likely to be the year's busiest online sales day.Bye-bye Black Friday. So long Small Business Saturday. Now, it's Cyber Monday's turn.Cyber Monday, coined in 2005 by a shopping trade group that noticed online sales spiked on the Monday following Thanksgiving, is the next in a series of days that stores are counting on to jumpstart the...

Read More..

Shifting tides of Panama real estate echo Miami trends

PANAMA CITY, Panama — As a real estate agent shows off a model apartment — white leather sectional, stainless steel appliances, open concept, ocean views — in the 59-story Yacht Club Tower, and touts its fitness center and pool deck designed to mimic a ship floating on the sea, he makes a telling statement:“We tried to emulate the Miami style in this building.”Approaching...

Read More..

Never mind shopping; Messiah concert marks start of holiday season

Participating in the annual Messiah sing-in, always made me feel like the Season had begun. I was a member of the community chorus for many years, under the late Dr. Lee Kjelson. It was a wonderful feeling, singing the words from the Bible that foretold the coming of Jesus. Now, decades later, the Messiah sing-in tradition is still going strong.At 2:30 p. m. on Dec. 9,...

Read More..

Prankster Replicates Facebook Users’ Profile Photos, Then Friends Targets [PICS]

1.Image courtesy of Imgur, casinoroycasinoroyClick here to view this gallery.[More from Mashable: This App Curates Gifts From Startups for Your Trendy Friends]Everyone has a knack for something. Reddit user CasinoRoy’s talent is creeping out strangers on Facebook, and perfectly replicating their profile photos.[More from Mashable: Facebook to Slow Down After Move to HTTPS [VIDEO]]The prankster searches...

Read More..

Larry Hagman Dies

Larry Hagman, best known for playing Dallas villain J.R. Ewing, died Friday morning from complications stemming from his recent battle with cancer.He was 81 years old.Video: Larry Hagman Talks 'Dallas', Cancer and Veganism "Larry was back in his beloved Dallas, re-enacting the iconic role he loved most," his family said in a statement via The Dallas Morning News. "When he passed, he was surrounded...

Read More..

Con Ed soaking customers with estimated post-storm bills

Con Ed customers who lost power during Sandy and were expecting to see lower bills won’t get a break this month.The utility is sending out 1.5 million estimated bills to customers in New York City and Westchester County because it was not able to read meters in the aftermath of the storm. A Con Ed spokesman said meter readers in most areas were reassigned...

Read More..

Is the electric car dying again?

A second administration of President Barack Obama will be forced to revisit the issue of subsidies for renewable energy and, with it, those for electric vehicles. Despite the millions of dollars spent on government incentives, marketing and promotion, sales of fully electric cars are well below projected targets. Investment in vehicle charging infrastructure also has fallen...

Read More..