Firefighters injured battling blaze

Three firefighters were injured last night while battling a three-alarm fire in Weymouth that destroyed a home on Worster Terrace. The residents were not home at the time of the fire, but three firefighters were taken to the hospital, said Weymouth Fire Chief Robert Leary. Their names were not released last night, and their conditions were unknown. The fire, which was behind Sacred Heart Church, was reported to the Weymouth Fire Department at 5:03 p.m. Firefighters from Weymouth, Quincy, and Braintree responded. The fire was thought to have started in the basement and quickly climbed the walls of the structure. Its cause is under investigation, officials said.

Three Boston men were arrested early yesterday after they allegedly exchanged gunfire with police during a chase from Brockton to Quincy. The 10-minute chase started about 3 a.m. on Highland Street in Brockton, where the suspects allegedly shot a woman in the foot, said Brockton police Lieutenant Leon McCabe. The men fled in a car and drove through Avon and took the highway into Quincy, police said. The men slowed down in Quincy, and one of them fired shots at pursuing police cruisers, McCabe said. Police returned shots but no one was hurt, he said. The men crashed into a Brockton police cruiser before police arrested them near Newport Avenue and Lillian Road. Faustino Rodrigues, 27, Antonio DePina, 26, and Salomao Teixeira, 30, were charged with assault with intent to murder, possession of a firearm, and multiple other charges, McCabe said.

A former selectman is going to be Rutland's new representative in the Vermont Legislature. Governor Jim Douglas chose James McNeil, 49, a Republican, to replace David Sunderland, who resigned last month because of a conflict with his new job, from three candidates. Douglas said McNeil shares his goals on the economy, healthcare, property tax reform, and the importance of job creation. (AP)

New Hampshire lottery officials say a Rochester drugstore sold the winning $1 million ticket in the Tri-State New Year Millionaire Raffle. The State Lottery Commission notified the Wakefield Street Rite-Aid that the winning ticket was purchased there on Friday. Store manager Jennifer Tibbetts said no one has yet presented the winning ticket. The $20 raffle tickets were sold in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont from Nov. 1 to Dec. 31. Winners have one year from last Friday to claim the prize. (AP)

A former Jamestown Town Council member charged in the 1999 scuba diving death of his wife in the British Virgin Islands may waive extradition on the single murder charge. Neal Tassel, one of two Boston lawyers hired by David Swain to represent him at a planned extradition hearing in federal court later this month, told the Providence Journal that Swain is anxious to get on with the case. Swain was arrested last month in the death of his wife, Shelley Tyre, off the island of Tortola. Swain has denied responsibility, but a civil jury held him liable in 2006 and awarded her parents a judgment for millions in damages. (AP)

Rhode Island programs for the homeless are to receive a $6.4 million boost in federal funding. The money will be distributed among about 50 programs that support homeless individuals and their families, from street outreach and emergency shelters to transitional and permanent housing. US Senator Jack Reed and Governor Don Carcieri are to announce the increased federal funding today in Pawtucket. The bulk of the funding will go toward creating housing and providing services for the homeless. A smaller portion will go to programs to help people avoid becoming homeless, like job training, child-care, and substance abuse treatment. (AP)

A weekend snowmobile accident claimed the life of a 23-year-old Kennebunk man. Authorities say Christopher Jackson was snowmobiling with two friends when the accident happened about 8 p.m. on Friday. Jackson, who was wearing a helmet, was pronounced dead at the scene. (AP)