This week marks 10 years since a devastating tornado ripped through a swath of western Massachusetts. Three people were killed and 200 injured, and it caused more than $200 million in damages.
Springfield Attorney Laura Marino, whose office was damaged by the storm, said people of the city pulled together in the tornado's aftermath, being what she called resilient and tough.
Panelist Brooke Hauser said she's more familiar with hurricanes than tornadoes, being from Miami originally.
"I was interested to learn that we get, in [Massachusetts], one to two tornadoes a year, on average," Hauser said. "Highly destructive ones are rare. Personally, what I find scary about them is the unpredictability. You really never know when the next one will hit, or where it will hit, until about a half-hour before it happens. So that was news to me."
Panelist John Dankosky said he remembers the day the tornado came through, and how the tornadoes popping up in the Connecticut River valley at the time were scary.
"We didn't know where they'd touch down," he said. "I think it really came home to me the first time I drove through downtown Springfield and saw what had happened. I'd never been to a city — a fairly large-size American city — that had actually had a tornado touch down and rip the heart out of it."
Dankosky said one of his takeaways at the time was tornadoes are going to happen on occasion, and we do need to be ready for them.
"I think one of the things that's most fascinating is just how it transformed the city of Springfield," he said. "I mean, what happened because of the tornado, nobody wanted to see happen. But things happened in development in Springfield that never would have happened if that tornado hadn't touched down there."
Also this week, the Springfield Catholic Diocese, as promised, released an expanded list of clergy and other employees "credibly" accused of sexual abuse of a minor. Bishop William Byrne said 40 new names were added, tripling the size of the list. And he said the expanded list does not include any new allegations — just newly public ones.
One name on the list: Robert Hosmer Jr., an emeritus faculty member at Smith College. He's accused of sexually abusing a minor while teaching at Holyoke Catholic High School.
The Daily Hampshire Gazette reported Smith College acknowledged it knew about the allegation two decades ago, but took no action. The college said back then it received legal advice not to follow up on the claim, which the current president called "anachronistic and irresponsible."
In Massachusetts, it's been nearly a week since most COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. In most cases, people who are vaccinated no longer have to wear a mask, if they choose. But many still are. A Massachusetts gaming official said about half of casino patrons are still wearing masks. And there are also businesses asking people to wear them.
We wrap up this week in Connecticut, where the Democratic leadership of the state Househas admonished some members for drinking on the job. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, many lawmakers are in their offices during legislative sessions, and that's apparently led to "incidents of drunkenness."
Guests:
- John Dankosky, CT Mirror
- Brooke Hauser, journalist and author
