Brace yourselves for the Blizzard of 2015. “Birdman” wins top picture at the SAG Awards. And police hunt for missing Craigslist couple.
It’s Monday, and here are the 5 things to know for your New Day
WINTER STORM
Snow fun, snow fun at all: This is no ordinary snow storm, weather experts say. The National Weather Service, which isn’t prone to exaggeration, is using terms like “life-threatening” and “historic” to describe the system ready to spread across the Northeast. The storm could dump up to 3 feet of snow in Boston and New York before it ends Tuesday, along with freezing rain and strong wind gusts possibly reaching hurricane level. Blizzard and winter storm warnings are up from New Jersey through Maine and into Canada. Airlines are canceling flights by the hundreds. Check first if you’re flying into or out of the region.
HOME DEPOT SHOOTING
Deadly gunfire: Shoppers, who crowded into a Manhattan Home Depot store to prepare for the snowstorm, fled back into the streets yesterday after an employee shot a store manager and then himself, the NYPD said. The 38-year-old manager was later pronounced dead at a local hospital. The 31-year-old shooter died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the store, according to the NYPD.
SCREEN ACTORS GUILD AWARDS
SAGs take flight: “Birdman” won the big prize – outstanding motion picture cast – at the 21st Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards last night. Best male actor went to Eddie Redmayne in “The Theory of Everything.” Julianne Moore snapped up the award for best actress for her role in “Still Alice.” On the TV side, “Orange Is the New Black” won for best comedy series. “Downton Abbey” took home best TV drama series. The SAG Awards are closely watched for indicators about which way the wind is blowing for next month’s Academy Awards.
ISIS JAPANESE HOSTAGES
Hostage crisis: The Japanese government is grappling with an unpredictable hostage crisis whose terms are being dictated by the Islamist extremist group ISIS. The militants appear to have killed one of the two Japanese hostages they have been holding. And they’re apparently demanding the release of a convicted terrorist in Jordan to spare the life of the other. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe condemned the apparent killing and called for the other Japanese hostage to be released immediately.
CRAIGSLIST MISSING COUPLE
Missing: Police are looking for a suspect in the case of a Georgia couple who went missing after contacting a car seller on Craigslist. Elrey Runion and his wife, June, placed an ad looking for a 1966 Mustang and then drove to rural McRae from the Atlanta suburb of Marietta last week to meet someone who said he had a car like the one they wanted, relatives said. No one has heard from them since. Ronnie “Jay” Adrian Towns was the “last known communications” with Runion, said Sheriff Chris Steverson of Telfair County.
There you go. All you need to know to get an early start to your morning.
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