In case you missed the news yesterday, the Washington Post has devoted an extraordinary amount of front page column inches to the record breaking temperatures D.C. saw yesterday. At 12:05 p.m. on Wednesday, the temperature hit 102 degrees at Reagan National Airport, according to the National Weather Service, breaking the previous all time high record for Aug. 8, of 101 degrees, set in 1930. The oppressive heat also had a number of other newsworthy outcomes covered in the story: the Metro delays, of course; power outages all over the region and an energy emergency declaration from Pepco, which asked customers to cut back all nonessential electricity use, including air conditioners; and even interns passing out in the sun. So right, just in case you hadn’t noticed, it’s hot, got that?
Md. Panel Goes After Verizon for Delayed Repairs: For the first time in our lives, we’re fantasizing about how wonderful it must be to be a member of the Maryland Public Service Commission. Why? Because they’re the folks currently living the dream of being able to force Verizon to answer questions about why hundreds of customers have waited days and even weeks for telephone repairs this year, exceeding the state standard for missed service appointments five months in a row. Will Verizon be scared enough by the headlines to get their act together? The Post has the details.
Some Good News for D.C. School Children: Two more upbeat items to report for a change concerning the state of D.C. Schools. For one, the Washington Times says that more than 97 percent of the District’s public school students now have up-to-date vaccinations, which constitutes a huge improvement since the Marion Barry administration, when less than half of students were vaccinated, and possibly makes D.C. the top major city in the country in terms of vaccine compliance. Two, Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee now says that “the vast majority” of the District’s public school students will start the academic year with the textbooks they need, even though more than half of the schools do not have a sufficient number of copies for their students.
Briefly Noted: Charter School Board rejects proposed move of Washington Latin School to Penn Quarter … Prince George’s to purchase trash trap for Anacostia River … MPD cancels move of headquarters to Southeast … A 4-year old girl was found wandering on Tennyson Street near the border of Chevy Chase.
This Day in DCist: In 2005 we bugged Mayor Anthony Williams about deciding whether he would run for a third term, and in 2004 we rejoiced in the news that SmarTrip cards were finally being accepted on every single Metrobus.
Photo by Samer Farha
