Tree-cutting to stop beetles starts today

Workers are set to begin cutting down thousands of trees in Worcester's battle to eradicate the Asian longhorned beetle in Central Massachusetts. The Worcester Telegram reported that five months after the beetle was found in the city's Greendale section, the first of approximately 6,000 trees will be cut down today - the start of a long process that could reshape the landscape in parts of Worcester. Infested trees in a 2-square mile area face the chipper in the hopes of halting the spread of the black and white beetles, which bore dime-sized holes in hardwood trees, eventually killing them. Officials say it could take a decade to complete the eradication process within the full 64-square-mile regulated area. (AP)

A 38-year-old Halifax man whose family reported him missing on New Year's Day was found dead just after noon yesterday at the Quincy Adams T station, the Norfolk district attorney's office said yesterday in a statement. An MBTA police officer on patrol found Douglas LaMay dead inside his car, which was parked on the fourth floor of the parking garage. An initial investigation did not point to foul play. The office of the chief medical examiner is set to perform an autopsy today.

A former Boston police officer was arrested early Saturday after police received a 911 call reporting that a man was carrying a loaded gun inside the Dublin House bar on Stoughton Street in Dorchester, said Officer James Kenneally, a Police Department spokesman. Police arrested Isaac Thornton, 43, at 1:30 a.m. Saturday and charged him with illegal possession of a firearm, illegal possession of ammunition, and carrying a loaded firearm in a public way. He is to be arraigned today in Dorchester District Court. In November 1991, a grand jury cleared Thornton of criminal accusations that he shot and wounded a Dorchester teen at a Roxbury nightclub earlier that year. Thornton's lawyer told the Globe that his client fired in self-defense.

Amtrak is planning to increase service from Boston to Washington around Inauguration Day to help those making the trip to see Barack Obama take the oath of office as president. Amtrak isn't alone. Airlines that fly into the city are planning to add additional flights or use larger aircraft during the days leading up to and immediately after the Jan. 20 swearing-in. Airport officials say they will also add staff to help guide travelers. The interest in the inauguration could double or even triple the number of people commuting into the nation's capital, snarling roads and packing subway trains and buses. Officials urge anyone planning to attend the historic event to expect some delays and "pack their patience." (AP)

They were at odds during the presidential campaign, but former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney said that when his wife, Ann, fell ill, one of the well-wishers who phoned the family was President-elect Barack Obama. Romney said Obama told him that he and his wife, Michelle, had his wife in their prayers. Ann Romney had surgery recently to remove a precancerous lump in one of her breasts. Romney made the comments during an interview on CNN yesterday, during which he also praised some of Obama's Cabinet picks. (AP)

An audit of the Connecticut Department of Transportation's plans to upgrade New Haven's rail maintenance center recommends major design changes and delaying some parts of the project, to save nearly $500 million. Despite the suggested changes to the project, it would still cost $849 million to build the facility. That's nearly three times more than what Governor M. Jodi Rell and the General Assembly approved back in 2005. The audit, which cost $630,000, was conducted after news that the project's cost was escalating from $300 million to $1.2 billion. The New Haven rail yard is being upgraded to accommodate a new fleet of 300 Metro-North Railroad cars. (AP)