Inspiring Homeless Teen to Appear on "Ellen" Thursday

Brainy homeless teen Samantha Garvey was presented with a $50,000 college scholarship on Ellen DeGeneres’ talk show, NBC said.


The inspirational student — who was named an Intel talent search semifinalist while living in a Long Island shelter with her family — appeared on the show Wednesday and was presented with the check from AT&T. The show airs Thursday.


Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres will welcome 17-year-old Samantha Harvey on her show to share her inspiring story and surprise her with a $50,000 scholarship to the college of her choice.


Harvey, a senior at Brentwood High School with a 3.9 GPA, was designated one of 61 Long Island semi-finalists in the Intel Science search.


Havey and her family had been living in a homeless shelter when she discovered she was named one of the top science students in the country. She told NBC New York last week being homeless has "always been a motivator for me."


Thursday, DeGeneres will recognize Harvey's passion and determination with the scholarship from AT&T, along with other surprises for Harvey's family.

Firefighters Find Child Home Alone

BETHESDA, Md. - Fire officials say they have found a six-year-old girl home alone while responding to a report of smoke coming out of an apartment in Bethesda.
Authorities say the incident occurred at around 7:20 p.m. in the 6400 block of Rock Forest Drive. Investigators say the girl was attempting to cook something in a toaster, causing it to smoke and setting off an alarm inside the apartment. A neighbor found the girl wandering in the hallway and called the fire department.
"We were able to locate the mother and the mother has responded to the police station in order to meet with us. We also have brought the six-year-old with us to the police station," said Capt. Marcus Jones of Montgomery County Police.


The child, believed to be 5 or 6 years old, was found in an apartment in the 6400 block of Rock Forest Drive, police said.

Firefighters responded to a call about a small kitchen fire in the apartment.

Costa Concordia disaster

Costa Concordia disaster took place as the Italian cruise ship Costa Concordia hit a reef and capsized on 13 January 


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Employee, 48, shoots 4, self at LA-area office

A man who shot four people, killing two, at a utility office east of Los Angeles before turning the gun on himself was a 48-year-old company employee from Southern California, authorities said Saturday.


Investigators identified the shooter as Andre Turner of Norco in Riverside County and ruled that his death was a suicide, Los Angeles County coroner's Lt. Larry Dietz told the Associated Press.


The two other men killed were Henry Serrano, 56, of Walnut and Robert Lindsay, 53, of Chino, Dietz said.


Two other shooting victims, a man and a woman whose names were not released, were in critical condition at a hospital, the Sheriff's Department said in a statement.


All five people worked for Southern California Edison in the same area of the same building at an office park in Irwindale, a small industrial city east of Los Angeles, authorities said. Authorities have released no information on a possible motive.


A phone number listed in Turner's name rang unanswered Saturday morning.


Horrified employees barricaded themselves behind locked doors and hid under desks Friday afternoon as Turner walked through the office firing a semi-automatic handgun, authorities said.


The complex is surrounded by a fence and patrolled by a security guard. Employees need a security card to get into the building, said Gil Alexander, a spokesman for Southern California Edison. About 230 employees work in the building where the shooting took place, and about 1,100 employees work in the complex.
The utility's office is in a complex of buildings that also includes a business called California Lighting Sales.
Cindy Gutierrez, the controller for that company, said employees there didn't hear gunshots and didn't realize anything was amiss until building management announced over the intercom that everyone should stay indoors.
Two nearby schools were locked for about two hours after the shooting and no one on the campuses was hurt.
Irwindale is a city of about 1,400 residents in the San Gabriel Valley, 22 miles east of downtown Los Angeles. It is home to the Irwindale Speedway auto racetrack and large rock and gravel quarries.
Southern California Edison is one of its largest companies, employing 2,100 people.

Irwindale Edison shooter, victims identified

Irwindale, California -- The gunman who killed at least two people and then himself in an office building in southern California is a 48-year-old man from the nearby town of Norco, authorities said Saturday.
He was identified as Andre Turner.
Those slain Friday were Henry Serrano, 56, of Walnut, California; and Robert Lindsay, 53, of Chino, California, the Los Angeles County coroner's office said.
The building is occupied by Southern California Edison, one of the nation's largest electric utilities, serving almost 14 million people, according to a company statement.
The victims were employees from Southern California Edison, but utility officials didn't provide further details, including whether the gunman was an employee.


According to police, Turner, an Edison employee, shot four of his co-workers, killing two of them and wounding two others. Officials say Turner then turned the gun on himself and took his own life.


The two victims who were killed were identified as 57-year-old Henry Serrano of Walnut and 53-year-old Robert Lindsay of Chino.


The two others injured in the shooting, a man and a woman, were hospitalized in critical condition. Their identities were not released.


The shooting broke out at Edison's No. 3 building on the 4900 block of Rivergrade Road at about 1:30 p.m. Friday.


Olive Junior High School and Walnut Elementary School in the Baldwin Park Unified School District were placed on locked down for some time following the shooting.


SWAT and emergency response teams surrounded the building as employees say they had to barricade themselves inside conference rooms and break rooms.


Many contacted family members using cellphones, and loved ones say they just tried to keep them calm.


"I just was telling her, just do what she has to do to survive and be safe," said Ron Orona, whose daughter works in the building.


Monica Salazar said her mother, a 30-year Edison employee, was inside the building at the time of the shooting. Her mother communicated through text message, saying a group of them had locked themselves in a conference room.


As Salazar was being interviewed by Eyewitness News, she was reunited with her mother.


Edison is calling the shooting one of the worst days in the company's 125-year history. The utility will be offering funds and grief counseling for employees and the families of the victims.


Detectives are working to determine the motive behind the shooting. Authorities say they plan on searching Turner's home and looking at surveillance footage from inside the building at the time of the shooting.