Firefighter flier hits Menino on LNG plan

Firing another salvo in its contract battle with the city, the Boston firefighters union is mailing fliers to 15,000 residents living near Boston Harbor, saying their safety is at risk with Mayor Thomas M. Menino in charge. The mailer depicts a liquefied natural gas tanker and says the mayor has not planned properly for a potential tanker explosion. City officials said yesterday that there is a detailed security and evacuation plan and that the mayor supports moving the LNG terminal offshore. "This mass mailing is clearly an effort by the union to divert attention from the real issues of drug and alcohol testing and abuses within the department," Menino spokeswoman Dorothy Joyce said.

A man was attacked with a machete near the Government Center MBTA station yesterday afternoon, Boston police said. Police were called to the area at around 4:20 p.m. and found a man in his 20s with injuries to his arm that were not life-threatening, said police spokesman David Estrada. The victim was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital. Police arrested Juan Chavez, 18, of East Boston, on charges that included assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. A 15-year-old was also arrested for disturbing the peace and fighting in a public place, but his name was not released because of his age. The two were arrested at the scene, Estrada said.

Five children under the age of 9 were taken to a local hospital after they were found in a Hyde Park house where they were living in poor conditions, Boston police said. Police received a call around 8:15 p.m. about gunshots on A Street, but the shots turned out to be fireworks. During that investigation, police discovered the children in a house behind a tavern. It was unclear last night if the children had any adult supervision when found. The state Department of Social Services and the city's Inspectional Services Department were assisting in the investigation.

The Milford Zoning Board of Appeals last night denied a controversial application for an exotic dance club on East Main Street. The board said the request for a special permit to establish the club inside an existing sports bar violated the town's bylaws. The bylaws bar adult entertainment businesses from being on the same block or within 400 feet of a residential zone. A lawyer for Kevin T. Coady Sr., the applicant, said at the hearing that he planned to appeal the decision if the permit was denied. In the days before the meeting, more than 1,300 residents signed a petition and 1,000 appeared at a demonstration opposing the proposal.

Danbury officials are being sued by a student who was awakened in class by a teacher who made a loud noise. Documents filed with the Town Clerk, a prelude to a lawsuit, say that a sleeping student suffered hearing damage when his teacher woke him up by slamming her hand down on the boy's desk on Dec. 4. Lawyer Alan Barry says Vinicios Robacher, 15, suffered pain and "very severe injuries to his left eardrum." (AP)

Two explosive devices found in a bunker at Fort Stark are being analyzed at the State Police lab in Concord. Police say the devices were found Wednesday at the fort, which protected Portsmouth Harbor during the Revolutionary War. The park later was used by the Navy for training but has fallen into disrepair in recent years. The State Police bomb squad detonated both devices. (AP)

Police are warning food delivery drivers to use extra caution after several were targeted by knife-wielding robbers. Within the last month, authorities say, eight pizza or Chinese restaurant delivery drivers have been robbed at knife-point by suspects who placed orders from pay phones, giving the address of a nearby house. When the drivers arrive, they are approached by one or two suspects who demand money and cellphones. So far, police say there have been no injuries in any of the robberies, most of which have occurred at night in the city's North End. While most of the drivers handed over cash, police say one pizza delivery man pulled out his own knife Monday and fought off two would-be robbers. (AP)

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