Accidents and Disasters

Boulder's Storm Warning

All Wet

Wake-Up Call: FEMA trouble

Among the residents who evacuated in the face of a fast-moving fire in Boulder this week was Michael Brown, current consultant and talk-show host, and former head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, a man who will be forever linked with this remark by President George W. Bush over his ... More >>

Best Tornado Tours

Storm Chasing Adventure Tours

Drink of the Week

Tommy's Mai Tai

Katrina, stark and surreal, in Trouble the Water

Tommy's Mai Tai

Storm Rising

Verne Carlson hunts tornadoes.

The Eye of the Storm

From the bayou to Boulder, Michael Brown's had a heckuva year.

The Skeptic

Celebrated and shunned, CSU's Bill Gray is taking heat in the global-warming debate.

Critical Fatwa

Michael Stipe

Club Scout

Dazzle Restaurant and Lounge

Off Limits

A Real Horse's Ass

Off Limits

Trouble's Bruin

Best Metal Band

Tyfoid Mary

Consumed by Fire

On the front lines of the Hayman blaze.

Flight Diversions

Rumors won't fly with those who lost their loved ones in a Colorado Springs plane crash.

A Bridge Too Close

In the wake of the "Ghost Bridge" fatal accident, the only person charged is a no-show.

Wheels of Fortune

It's no accident that business is booming for car-wreck reconstructionists.

CSU's Japan earthquake test: best experiment ever

Yesterday, a Colorado State University team led by civil engineering professor John van de Lindt successfully staged a very large-scale test in Miki City, Japan. They've come up with a new approach to building earthquake-proof (or at least more earthquake-proof) buildings, and to see if they're on ... More >>

Colorado is suddenly earthquake central

The blue square on the map represents the location of an earthquake earlier today (click to enlarge).​Earlier today, an earthquake struck near Craig; the U.S. Geological Survey rates it a 3.7 magnitude temblor. That follows a 3.9 magnitude quake near Eads yesterday. So where will nature's ven ... More >>

Public Service Company of Colorado responds to Cabin Creek charges

Tim Taylor.​Just over an hour ago, we told you about a federal grand jury indictment leveled against Xcel Energy, Public Service Company of Colorado, RPI Coating and two individuals over an October 2007 incident at Cabin Creek Hydro Plant near Georgetown in which five workers died. Since then, ... More >>

Mile High Murder, No. 53: Thomas William Boyle booked on vehicular homicide for Harlan Street hit and run that killed Raymond Rivera

Thomas William Boyle should have taken a cab.​Late Monday evening, Raymond Rivera, 48, tried to cross Harlan Street at Alameda Avenue. Unfortunately, he didn't make it -- and the vehicle that struck him didn't stop. According to the Lakewood Police Department, Rivera was struck by a van drive ... More >>

Not a Pretty Picture

Thomas William Boyle should have taken a cab.​Late Monday evening, Raymond Rivera, 48, tried to cross Harlan Street at Alameda Avenue. Unfortunately, he didn't make it -- and the vehicle that struck him didn't stop. According to the Lakewood Police Department, Rivera was struck by a van drive ... More >>

Art With Heart

Thomas William Boyle should have taken a cab.​Late Monday evening, Raymond Rivera, 48, tried to cross Harlan Street at Alameda Avenue. Unfortunately, he didn't make it -- and the vehicle that struck him didn't stop. According to the Lakewood Police Department, Rivera was struck by a van drive ... More >>

Ken Salazar finds oil spilling from Gulf into Colorado

​The Deepwater Horizon disaster keeps spilling into my inbox, more than 1,300 miles from the Gulf of Mexico, where there's "oil for miles and miles," Attorney General Eric Holder lamented yesterday in New Orleans. Denver is more than 1,300 miles from the Big Easy, but the disaster has spilled ... More >>

Ken Salazar still in hot seat -- but with lots of company

"Bring me the head of Tony Heyward." ​Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar is still getting roundly pummeled in the press over the Obama administration's response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster. But there's increasing evidence that the administration is trying to shift the falte ... More >>

Tonight: Drink beer to help the Gulf Coast Spill Relief Fund

A Flickr photo. ​So that oil spill in the Gulf -- bummer, right? And it's still spewing, and apparently doesn't intent to stop anytime soon. We might be landlocked here in this state, but that doesn't mean no one here cares about the BP disaster; to prove it, Bull & Bush Pub & Brewery, 4700 Ch ... More >>

Plane crash in Gilpin County so bad authorities still don't know the type of aircraft involved

Full-sized photos below.​Photos of a plane crash near Rollins Pass underscore the challenge facing Gilpin County Sheriff's Office personnel today. The single-engine craft went down in a heavily wooded area, and the vehicle itself is so mangled that, at this point, authorities have no idea abou ... More >>

Sarah Trujillo formally charged with vehicular homicide in death of scooter-rider Brian Hoyle

Sarah Trujillo.​Yesterday, we told you about the Facebook tribute to Brian Hoyle, the scooter rider killed in a hit-and-run accident late Friday. Now, the woman who was allegedly behind the wheel in the crash -- Sarah Trujillo, 23 -- has been formally charged with vehicular homicide and leavin ... More >>

Boulder Fourmile Canyon fire update: Will deadly California blaze cut into resources?

From SF ABC7San Bruno blaze.​Last night, the high winds that hit the Fourmile Canyon fire burn area near Boulder didn't exacerbate the situation as feared. As Boulder County public information officer Mike Banuelos says this morning, "Firefighters held the line." But will some of them be sent ... More >>

Nadine Montoya guilty of first-degree murder in Burger King hit-and-run

Nadine Montoya.​Nadine Montoya has been convicted of murdering a 49-year-old Aurora woman in a hit-and-run at a Burger King last May. Montoya, 27, will likely serve life in prison for crushing Lilian Verdonkschot with her Cadillac deVille and then fleeing the scene. The altercation started w ... More >>

Scott Kay, Wolf Creek Ski Patrol director, dies in avalanche

Scott Kay.​Scott Kay, Wolf Creek Ski Patrol director, died in an avalanche early today. The ski area reported thirteen inches of new snow this morning and eighteen inches in the last 48 hours.

Boulder Peewink Mountain fire already contained

9News​The inclusion of the photo at right in a 9News story about a blaze that broke out overnight near Boulder raised concerns of another runaway conflagration like last year's Fourmile Canyon fire. But no: This one consumed just an acre or so before being contained. Before this status was ac ... More >>

Japanese radiation worries in U.S.: Health dept. tries to calm fears as media stokes them

​This morning, Peter Boyles spent part of his KHOW morning show wondering if we should be taking potassium iodide to protect ourselves against radiation from the stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan. And at this writing, the main story on the CBS4 home page asks, "Could Japan's Radi ... More >>

Update: More food-centric benefits for Japan

A Flickr photo.​Denver restaurants are rallying to aid Japan; here are some of the local benefits: Ototo Food and Wine (www.facebook.com/ototoden), Izakaya Den (www.izakayaden.net) and Sushi Den (www.facebook.com/sushiden) will host fundraisers through Saturday, March 19. A portion of dinner ... More >>

Indian Gulch fire near Golden: Burned acreage increases to 1,502 (VIDEOS)

​Update: The Indian Gulch fire near Golden is a top wildfire priority nationally; at this writing, it's in the number one slot on the feds' Inciweb.org website. And while the winds that were helping to fuel the blaze have died down to a significant degree, they did significant damage, increas ... More >>

Martin Parras investigated for DUI, vehicular assault for hitting man also struck in hit-and-run

Big pic below.​It's simple math: Being struck by two cars is twice as bad as getting hit by one. That's what happened to a man in Lakewood Saturday night -- and while one driver, ID'd as Martin Parras, stopped (and is being investigated for DUI and vehicular assault), the other's still at larg ... More >>

Local Japan benefits: Video gaming, taiko drumming and a hip-hop compilation

​If you've been inclined to pitch in for the victims of the Japanese earthquake but haven't known how to do it, there are a few different options this week. One involves playing Rock Band on stage, one involves chip tunes, another involves Taiko drumming and still another is for fans of hip-ho ... More >>

Radiation from Japanese nuclear paint found in Colorado: Health dept. says no need to panic

​Last week, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment tried to counter media-fueled fears about radiation from the stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan creating health risks here. Today, that job just got more difficult. The CDPHE confirms that "minuscule" amounts of ... More >>

Model rocket allegedly starts Boulder County grass fire, and that's not only burn ban violation

Flickr​The precipitation falling at this writing should put a punctuation mark on the Indian Gulch and Burning Tree fires -- but the moisture isn't enough to end the dry conditions that have prompted multiple local fire bans. Not that everyone's paying attention, judging by not one, not two, b ... More >>

Crocs donates 100,000 pairs of shoes to Japanese earthquake & tsunami victims

​We've made lotsa sport of Niwot-based Crocs, from a 2005 feature that included savage reviews by fashionistas to reports of what Alan Prendergast described as the "brightly hued, comfy-ugly clown shoes" being escalator unfriendly. So our first thought after hearing the company is donating 100 ... More >>

Today: Bakers and food bloggers from across the world hold an online bake sale to benefit Second Harvest Japan

​When San Francisco food blogger Sabrina Modelle heard about the earthquake and tsunami devastation in Japan, she reacted the same way that most of us did: staring, dumbfounded, at the horrific images on the television screen, or listening in disbelief to the coverage on the radio. And it was ... More >>

Giving Back To Japan

​When San Francisco food blogger Sabrina Modelle heard about the earthquake and tsunami devastation in Japan, she reacted the same way that most of us did: staring, dumbfounded, at the horrific images on the television screen, or listening in disbelief to the coverage on the radio. And it was ... More >>

25th Anniversary of Chernobyl: Protesters voice nuclear concerns at State Capitol

Wes McKinley.​Earlier this week, protesters marked the 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster with a Capitol steps protest. Among the speakers: Wes McKinley, a state rep and onetime foreman of the Rocky Flats grand jury, which tops Alan Prendergast's list of Colorado's greatest whistleblow ... More >>

Ken Salazar's salary at center of David Vitter ethics complaint, CREW tells Keith Olbermann

Ken Salazar.​During last night's sophomore edition of Countdown on Current TV, Keith Olbermann featured an extended segment about Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) filing an ethics complaint against Louisiana Senator David Vitter. But the man in the middle of the cont ... More >>

Reader: Hit-and-run laws haven't stopped cowardly drivers from taking the easy way out

Tim Albo.​Family members of hit-and-run victim Tim Albo believe current laws reward drunk drivers for leaving the scene of an accident -- and they'd like to change that equation. In the meantime, asks one reader, where's that leave victims?

Typhoon

Wednesday, August 10, hi-dive, 720-570-4500.

Johnny Hockaday: Vehicular homicide charge in DUI-Wax Trax crash that killed Roland Stith

Big pic below.​Update: On October 18, Johnny Hockaday, 28, will be formally advised of the accusations against him -- and there are plenty of them. He's been charged with four felonies, including vehicular homicide, in relation to the alleged drunk-driving crash that slammed the vehicle driven ... More >>

Tornado Alley filmmaker Sean Casey on life in the eye of the storm

​Most of us here in Colorado can relate to the rush of skiing down a mountain of fresh powder. But that rush is nothing compared to the heart-stopping, breath-seizing thrill of entering a tornado's destructive vortex of violently rotating winds. But for the past eight years, that was the missi ... More >>

The 2012 Oscar-nominated short films offer something for everyone

​Most of us here in Colorado can relate to the rush of skiing down a mountain of fresh powder. But that rush is nothing compared to the heart-stopping, breath-seizing thrill of entering a tornado's destructive vortex of violently rotating winds. But for the past eight years, that was the missi ... More >>