Weather: Outrageously hot. Because of the extremely temperatures and humidity today in the Bronx and the rest of the region, the National Weather Service has issued a heat advisory until 8 p.m. tonight as well as an air quality alert from 2 to 11 p.m. Stay inside, drink lots of water and if you can, spend some time chillin’ in one of the city’s 400-plus cooling centers. Click here to locate the center nearest you. Thankfully it is supposed to cool down slightly tomorrow and then temperatures should drop significantly this weekend.
Story of the Day: Shooter Takes Aim at Bronx Students, Hits 16-year-old in the Hip
This is the type of terrifying random-act-of-violence story that keeps parents up at night. Yesterday afternoon, a man stepped off a BX5 bus near the Rincon de Gautier Institute for Law and Public Policy on Story Avenue and opened fire. Fortunately, this didn’t turn Columbine-esque. Though “several shots” were fired, only one bullet found a victim, a 16-year-old girl who was hit in the hip and is expected to survive. The scariest part of this is that the shooter remains on the loose as of this posting. One student who attends a nearby school summed it up best for the Daily News: “I don’t understand how people can just start shooting at a pack of kids.”
Quick Hits:
Speaking of random acts of violence in the Bronx, a Sarah Lawrence College professor who was visiting the Bronx Zoo with his wife and 19-month-old son was hit by a BB gun pellet after parking on Bronx Park South near Daly Avenue.
Okay, enough with the random violence. How about some housing policy? Bronx State Senator Gustavo Rivera says Democrats are pushing hard for stronger rent regulations as the current Emergency Tenant Protection Act is set to expire on July 15, just six days from now. (Note: The story wrongly says regulated apartment rent increases are set by the Rent Stabilization Association, which is lobbying and advocacy group that represents landlords. Rent increases are set by the Rent Guidelines Board.)
The New Jersey Nets are taking a hard look at Bronx hoops product Corey Fisher.
The retired cops of the 41st Precinct, which covers the Longwood-Hunts Point area and was known back in the day as “Fort Apache,” will gather to reminisce about the good/bad old days tomorrow night.
Alright, here’s a positive, even heroic, Bronx story. A Bronx court officer performed emergency CPR on a 2-year-old girl who had stopped breathing after suffering a seizure. His father told the Daily News: “You’re talking about a guy who brought my daughter back to life. I don’t know how to thank him. I didn’t know we still had people like that out here.”
Our favorite Bronx political gossip columnist Bob Kappstatter reports that Bronx Assemblyman Peter Rivera’s campaign treasurer pleaded guilty to mail fraud after facing obstruction of justice charges and will spend six months in jail. Meanwhile, former Bronx State Senator Pedro Espada, Jr., had his trial on embezzlment charges moved to Oct. 17. It will be a busy month for legally-entangled Bronx pols. Councilman Larry Seabrook’s corruption trial is set to begin Oct. 11.
