2011 St. Louis tornado

2011 St. Louis tornado, also called the Good Friday Tornado, was a storm that struck the St. Louis metropolitan area on April 22, 2011. The tornado, rated EF4 at its strongest point with winds exceeding 165 mph, was the strongest to hit St. Louis County or City since January 1967. In its 22-mile track across the St. Louis metropolitan area, the tornado damaged about 200 homes; left thousands without power; and damaged the main terminal of Lambert-St. Louis International Airport, closing it for nearly 24 hours.

Utility effects

More than 54,000 customers of the utility company, Ameren, were left without power after the storm; more than 47,000 in Missouri and about 7,000 in Illinois.

By 5:40am on April 24, 21,667 customers were still without power in Missouri and 131 in Illinois.

On April 24, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported more than 2,700 buildings severely damaged in St. Louis County, including 900 in Bridgeton, 450 in Berkeley and 1,170 in Maryland Heights.

The tornado may also have hit New Melle in St. Charles County, about 30 miles west of the airport.

The tornado killed no one and injured relatively few.

Tornado strikes the airport

The tornado hit the airport, Missouri's largest, about 8:10 p.m. Three aircraft were on the tarmac with passengers aboard. Numerous passengers and other people were in the airport's terminals.

Lambert Airport released surveillance video showing debris swirling inside the airport. It was reported that an aircraft was moved away from its jetway by the storm, with passengers still on-board.One plane from Southwest Airlines was damaged when the wind pushed a conveyor belt used for loading baggage into it. American Airlines said that four of its planes were damaged, two of them significantly. One was buffeted by 80 MPH crosswinds while taxiing in from a landing when the tornado hit and the other has possible damage to its landing gear. The tornado was rated an EF2 storm when it struck the airport.

The airport was closed by the FAA at 08:54 p.m., and reopened at temporarily reduced capacity on April 23. It was expected to be at 70% capacity on April 24.

St. Louis tornadoes

St. Louis, Missouri metropolitan area has a history of tornadoes. The third deadliest tornado, and the costliest in United States history, the 1896 St. Louis – East St. Louis tornado, injured one thousand people and caused 255 fatalities in the City of St. Louis and in East St. Louis. The second costliest tornado also occurred in St. Louis in September 1927. More tornado fatalities have occurred in St. Louis than any other city in the United States. Also noteworthy is that destructive tornadoes occurred in winter and autumn, as well as the typical months of spring. Additionally, damaging tornadoes occurred in the morning and late at night, as well as the more common late afternoon to early evening maximum period.

In April 2011, an EF4 tornado on Good Friday caused widespread damage across a 22-mile track in northern St. Louis metropolitan area; including significant damage to Lambert International Airport, causing a complete shutdown for over 24 hours. Prior to that event, a F4 tornado also struck the northern metro, and killed three in January 1967. Another F4 tornado struck the Granite City and Edwardsville, Illinois area in April 1981.

March 8, 1871 St. Louis - East St. Louis - St. Clair County, Illinois F3 9 fatalities, 60 injuries See: 1871 St. Louis tornado

March 29, 1872 7th Street F1 1 possible fatality, 8 injuries

January 12, 1890 St. Louis - Madison County, Illinois F2 4 fatalities, 15 injuries

May 27, 1896 St. Louis - East St. Louis - St. Clair County F4 255 fatalities, 1000 injuries Costliest and third deadliest tornado in U.S. history (see: St. Louis-East St. Louis tornado)

August 19, 1904 St. Louis - Madison County F2 3 fatalities, 10 injuries

September 29, 1927 Webster Groves - St. Louis F4 79 fatalities, 550 injuries 2nd costliest and at least 24th deadliest tornado in U.S. history

September 16, 1958 St. Louis F1 0

February 10, 1959 Ellisville - St. Louis - Madison County F4 21 fatalities, 345 injuries Very similar path to 1871, 1896, 1927 tornadoes; 66th deadliest in U.S. history

May 1, 1983 St. Louis - Madison County F2 3 injuries

March 31, 2007 St. Louis EF0 5 injuries Late-March 2007 tornado outbreak

December 31, 2010 St. Louis EF1 0 2010 New Year's Eve tornado outbreak

April 22, 2011 Riverview, St. Louis EF4 0 fatalities, some injuries 2011 St. Louis tornado 

Joplin, Missouri, tornado: Warnings pale in season of violent twisters

JOPLIN, Missouri. — More than 450 people are combing through the ruins of Joplin neighborhoods today, looking for victims of Sunday’s killer tornado that cut an almost one-mile-wide swath of destruction across the south side of the city.

“Rescue efforts are being effective,” Lynn Onstott, the city’s public information director, said shortly before noon. “We are finding people and helping them as we find them.”

The searchers, which included National Guardsmen, law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians and volunteers, were working a grid pattern in the tornado-stricken zone, Onstott said.

“We’re trying to identify what homes we’ve already been into in an efficient manner and just go from there,” she said.

The city’s confirmed death count remained at 89, she said, although a higher number is expected to be announced at a 3 p.m. news conference.

More than 1,000 people were injured by the tornado. Hundreds of injured continued to be taken to area hospitals. One of Joplin’s two hospitals, St. John’s Regional Medical Center, was knocked out of commission by the storm and its patients moved to Freeman Hospital West, to a makeshift medical center in Joplin’s Memorial Hall or to other area hospitals.

Onstott said she did not yet have a list of the other hospitals where St. John’s patients were being transferred but was able to confirm that the most critical had been moved to Freeman.

But the tornado warning system – and how it's applied by states and municipalities – may also be playing a role in affecting those attitudes. Smith calls it the "crying wolf" phenomenon. On Sunday, for example, tornado sirens went off in Lawrence, Kan., even though the area was outside the National Weather Service's tornado warning report. About three-fourths of all tornado sirens are false alarms, according to a National Weather Service study.

"It's important that we cut down the false alarm rate," Smith says. "We are inadvertently training people to not react when the sirens go off."

As happened in Joplin on Sunday, forecasters are now able to give people a 20-minute warning of a tornado strike. Researchers believe that the 20-minute mark is the "flattening-out point" for a warning's effectiveness, because longer lead times don't appear to have an appreciable impact on casualty tolls.

Still, a new generation of weather radars – being tested by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, Okla. – offers the possibility of forecasting a tornado strike perhaps an hour ahead.

Such a breakthrough is already sparking debate about the possibility of ordering limited evacuations ahead of a tornado. Especially in populated areas like the places hit in Alabama and Missouri, such evacuations could probably save lives. But ordering people out of their homes to try to outrun an unpredictable tornado raises a whole array of questions about liability and safety trade-offs.

Medical personnel had to decide on the best places to send hospital patients after the tornado hit. They were in the hospital for all sorts of different conditions before the storm struck.

"We had to determine the best course of action for everyone," Scott said. "We had to get them to facilities that could handle different medical conditions."

Right now, hospital personnel are reporting to the field hospital for work, she said.

"We can redeploy them where they are needed, and we are deploying additional staff as well, including hospital-owned ambulances," said Scott.

Scott also said there are plenty of medical supplies on hand in Springfield, and the entire health system is working together to make sure all the hospitals get what they need quickly.

So far, at least 90 people are reported dead. The number of injured has not yet been reliably estimated.

Joplin races to find survivors after Missouri city hit by tornado

St. John's Hospital in Joplin, Missouri, suffered such severe damage from Sunday's tornado that all patients had to be evacuated and sent to other hospitals in the region.

Cora Scott, a spokeswoman for the hospital, said officials decided the hospital was unsafe after it took a direct hit from the tornado. They are still trying to determine how many patients were affected and where they were sent. Many of them, she said, were taken to St. John's Hospital in Springfield, Mo., about 75 miles away. Both hospitals are part of a multi-state health system.

Many of those injured in Joplin are currently being treated at a field hospital set up in the city's Memorial Hall.

Medical personnel had to decide on the best places to send hospital patients after the tornado hit. They were in the hospital for all sorts of different conditions before the storm struck.

"We had to determine the best course of action for everyone," Scott said. "We had to get them to facilities that could handle different medical conditions."

Right now, hospital personnel are reporting to the field hospital for work, she said.

"We can redeploy them where they are needed, and we are deploying additional staff as well, including hospital-owned ambulances," said Scott.

Scott also said there are plenty of medical supplies on hand in Springfield, and the entire health system is working together to make sure all the hospitals get what they need quickly.

President Obama expressed his condolences in a telephone call to Nixon from Ireland, where Obama is visiting, the White House said. Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Craig Fugate will head to Joplin to coordinate federal disaster relief, said White House spokesman Nick Shapiro.

Speaking on television, Nixon said it was good to speak directly with the president and that Missouri would welcome all of the help available.

More than 40 agencies were involved in the search-and-rescue effort, which was racing against the arrival of the next storm. Nixon said communications equipment was crucial in coordinating the rescue and relief efforts, which are being complicated by transportation difficulties. Interstate 44 was shut down, and streets were clogged with emergency vehicles and the wreckage of buildings.

"This is a developing situation," the governor said, "but we believe that there is a significant potential for saving lives."

The number of deaths stood at 89, but Mayor Pro Tem Melodee Colbert-Kean told reporters that the toll was likely to rise.

"While we haven't heard, it is expected to rise drastically," she said. "We don't know how high it can go. We're praying it wouldn't climb too high."

The weather was worsening, with severe thunderstorms expected, she said. "We're waiting to see if the siren goes off again."

It was the piercing keen of sirens that shook the city of 50,000 at about 6 p.m. Sunday. Most agreed that the weather warning system worked, going off about half an hour before the brunt of the storm hit.

But the tornado was traveling so fast, Colbert-Kean said, that the danger was on the city before most had a chance to deal with the threat.

More than 2,000 structures were damaged, including a major hospital, St. John's Regional Medical Center. Perhaps 30% of the city, about 160 miles from Kansas City, was damaged. An unknown number of people were injured, and many were treated in makeshift shelters in churches, Colbert-Kean said.

Pakistan retakes control of naval base raided by militants

Pakistani commandos ended a Taliban siege of a navy base in the country’s largest city after a 16- hour battle that the militants said was in part to avenge the killing of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

Ten members of Pakistan’s security forces were killed along with four guerrillas, Interior Minister Rehman Malik told reporters in Karachi. The “terrorists were 20-22 years of age and wore Western clothes with suicide jackets beneath them,” Malik said. They were armed with rocket launchers and grenades, he said.

Pakistani Taliban had pledged to attack government and military installations after U.S. forces killed al-Qaeda leader bin Laden in a raid in Abbottabad, 30 miles (50 kilometers) north of Islamabad, on May 2. The American raid exacerbated tensions between the two countries, as the U.S. questioned whether Pakistani officials had protected bin Laden and Pakistan protested the violation of its territory.

The insurgents in Karachi damaged surveillance aircraft provided by the U.S. in the biggest strike against a leading Pakistani military installation since a raid on the army’s Rawalpindi headquarters in October 2009.

Navy spokesman Irfan ul-Haq said 12 commandos and soldiers were killed and another 14 were injured. Ul-Haq would not say how many militants were killed or captured.

The Pakistani Taliban, the country's homegrown insurgency and an Al Qaeda-allied militant group, claimed responsibility. It said the raid was meant to avenge the death of Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, who was killed by U.S. commandos May 2 in the military city of Abbottabad.

The raid marked the most devastating attack on a Pakistani military installation since October 2009, when a team of militants stormed the army headquarters in the garrison city of Rawalpindi and took hostages, beginning a 22-hour standoff that ended in the deaths of 23 people, including nine militants.

That attack raised serious questions within Pakistani society about the military's capability to defend not just civilians, but also itself from Islamist militant violence, and those doubts would likely be renewed by the assault in Karachi. Even before Sunday, the public's confidence in the military had been shaken by the raid on the Bin Laden and the ease with which U.S. military helicopters were able to slip deep into Pakistani territory undetected.

Moreover, the attack in Karachi would probably raise fears among leaders in Washington and Europe about Pakistan's ability to secure its nuclear arsenal, which is estimated to consist of about 100 nuclear weapons.

a local resident near the Mehran Naval Base, expressed his frustration with the security forces.

"You can see how much security there is around this place," he says. "No ordinary person can get inside. How did these people get in? It means our security is incompetent," he says. "This is obviously a security failure."

Critics also point to the fact that there have been a number of very public threats made in statements by extremist groups inside Pakistan.

The fact that the gunmen were able to coordinate and infiltrate the base from three directions also has many in the Pakistani media questioning if there was some inside help - furthering concerns that the military has been infiltrated with those who are sympathetic to the extremist cause.

There is also growing concern that Pakistan’s security forces are unable to adequately protect and defend the country’s assets: including the nation’s nuclear assets.

Security Analyst Ikram Sehgal says the government and the military should have known the situation following the Bin Laden raid would be dangerous and thus put all security forces on high alert.

"We need all our security forces to be in a state of the highest alert," said Sehgal. "And I am sorry to say, somebody must be held accountable and some action must be taken."

The Pakistan government has launched four inquiries into the May 2 raid that killed bin Laden and sparked the current crisis.

Authorities say there will also be a full investigation into this most recent attack.

States Army of Pakistan

Pakistan Army ,پاک فوج, is the branch of the Pakistani Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The Pakistan Army came into existence after the Partition of India and the resulting independence of Pakistan in 1947. It is currently headed by General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. The Pakistan Army is a volunteer professional fighting force. It has an active force of 612,000 personnel. The Pakistani constitution contains a provision for conscription, but it has never been imposed.

Since independence, the Army has been involved in four wars with neighbouring India and several border skirmishes with Afghanistan. It maintained division and brigade strength presences in some of the Arab countries during the past Arab-Israeli Wars, and aided the Coalition in the first Gulf War. Other major operations undertaken by the Army include Operation Black Thunderstorm and Operation Rah-e-Nijat. Apart from conflicts, the Army has been an active participant in UN missions and played a major role in rescuing trapped American soldiers from Mogadishu, Somalia in 1993 in Operation Gothic Serpent. It reportedly receives $4 to $5 Billion per annum as of 2011.

The President of Pakistan is the Commander-in-Chief and supreme commander of the Army. The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), by statute a four star general subordinate to the Defence Minister and Secretary Defence, commands the Army.

Recipients of Foreign awards

Two Pakistani pilots belonging to the army aviation branch of Pakistan army who carried out a daring rescue of a mountaineer are to be given Slovenia's top award for bravery. Slovenian, Tomaz Humar got stranded on the western end of the 8,125m Nanga Parbat mountain where he remained for around a week on top of the world's ninth-highest peak. The helicopter pilots plucked the 38-year-old from an icy ledge 6,000m up the peak known as "killer mountain".

The Slovenian president has presented Lt Col Rashid Ullah Beg and Lt Col Khalid Amir Rana with the Golden Order for Services in the country's capital, Ljubljana, "for risking their lives during the rescue mission", a Pakistan army statement said.

In 2010 160 (W) Brigade of the British Army hosted a patrolling event at Wales called the Cambrian Patrols, in which 70 teams from the British Army and about 16 teams from around the world participated, including Pakistan Army, Indian Army, U.S. Army, and French Army. Pakistan Army not only won the Gold Medal in this exercise but was also named the "Toughest Army In The World.

Combat doctrine

The Pakistan Army has developed a doctrine called the Riposte which is a limited "offensive-defence"[23] doctrine. It has refined it consistently starting in 1989 during the "Exercise Zarb-e-Momin". This doctrine is fully focused towards Pakistan's archenemy, India.

The doctrine is derived from several factors:

The vulnerability of Pakistan is not in its lack of strategic depth versus India, but in the fact that so many of its major population centers and politically and military sensitive targets lie very close to the border with India. As such Pakistan can ill-afford to lose large territories to an Indian attack.

‘Strategic depth’ in the form of a friendly Afghanistan is deemed vital by military planners due to the fact that the country is very narrow at its middle and could well be cut into half by an Indian attack in force.

India has substantially enhanced its offensive capabilities, and a stand and fight approach doctrine used in the 1965 and 1971 wars would lead to serious Indian penetration of Pakistani territory with the Pakistani army being unable to maneuver to meet the threat. Counterattacking formations would then be destroyed piecemeal by numerically superior Indian forces.

Holding formations in both India and Pakistan can man their forward defensive positions and fortifications in less than 24 hours. However, Corps level reserves with large stockpiles of munitions will take between 24 to 72 hours for mobilization after being given their orders. In this regard, both armies will be evenly matched in the first 24 hours since the Pakistani units have to travel a shorter distance to their forward positions.

This doctrine entails Pakistan in the event of hostilities with India will not wait for the enemy's offensive, but rather launches an offensive of its own. The offensive will be a limited advance along narrow fronts with the aim of occupying territory near the border to a depth of 40–50 km. Since Indian forces will not reach their maximum strength near the border for another 48–72 hours, Pakistan might have parity or numerical superiority against the Indians.

The Pakistani Army hopes to accomplish three things under this strategy:

The enemy is kept off-balance as it will be tied up containing the Pakistani offensive into its territory rather than launching an offensive into Pakistani territory.

The Pakistani Army hopes to contain the fighting on the Indian side of the border so that any collateral or other damage will be suffered by India.

Indian territory of strategic importance once seized, will give the Pakistani Army a bargaining chip to be used in the aftermath of a ceasefire brought about by international pressure after 3–4 weeks of fighting.

Kashmir, LOC and the Northern Punjab areas are heavily fortified and ill-suited for large mechanized offensives. The most likely area where Pakistan might launch its offensive is the semi-desert and desert sectors in southern Punjab and Sindh provinces.

States Navy of Pakistan

Pakistan Navy, پاک بحریہ, Pak Bahr'ya, (PN) is the naval warfare/service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. It is responsible for Pakistan's 1,046 kilometres (650 mi) coastline along the Arabian Sea and the defense of important harbors. Navy day is celebrated on September 8 in commemoration of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965.

Organization

The navy has six commands:

COMKAR (Commander Karachi) - Looks after the shore establishments of the Navy which provide services and training facilities for the PN. He also looks after the protocol at Karachi. His responsibilities also include harbour defence.

COMPAK (Commander Pakistan Fleet) - The command heads the surface, sub surface and aviation commands. In fact, this command is the war fighting machine having 4 dimensional components. Previously, it included the 25th Destroyer Squadron (with Gearing class D16O, D164-168).

COMCOAST (Commander COAST) - The special command of SSG(N), Marines and Coastal stations.

COMLOG (Commander Logistics) - This command looks after the repair, maintenance and logistic infrastructure of PN.

FOST (Flag Officer Sea Training) Conducts all types of operational training at Sea

COMNOR (Commander North) - Looks after the Naval installations in the north of Pakistan;

COMWEST (Commander WEST) - Looks after the Naval installations in the west of Pakistan. The naval bases are Ormara, Pasni, Gwadar and Jiwani.

COMNAV (Commander Naval Air Arm) - Looks after the Naval air stations, and is the commander of the Naval Aviation Unit.

Post war Operations

The Pakistan Navy played an integral role to stop the arm smuggled in Balochistan conflict. After the discovery of Arms in the Iraqi Embassy in Pakistan, the Navy made an effort to apply a naval blockade to prevent arms smuggling in the Province. Later, the navy provided logistic support to the Army and the Air Force in the conflict.

From her inception, the Navy sought to diversify its purchases instead of depending solely on the United States, which had placed an arms embargo on both India and Pakistan. It sought more vessels from France and China. The Pakistan Navy thus became the first navy in South Asia to acquire land based missile capable long range reconnaissance aircraft. During the 1980s the Pakistan Navy enjoyed un-preceded growth. It doubled its surface fleet from 8 to 16 surface combatants in 1989. In 1982, the Reagan administration approved US$3.2 billion military and economic aid to Pakistan. Pakistan acquired eight Brooke and Garcia-class frigates from US Navy on a five year lease in 1988. A depot for repairs, ex-USS Hector followed the lease of these ships in April 1989. However after the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989 US President George Bush was advised to no longer certify that Pakistan was not involved in the development of nuclear weapons and the Pressler’s Amendment was invoked on 1 October 1990. The lease of the first Brooke class frigate expired in March 1993, the remaining in early 1994. This seriously impaired the Pakistan Navy, which was composed almost entirely of former US origin ships. Pakistan began to concentrate on self-reliance for its military equipment needs.

The PN began negotiations with China to lease a Chinese Type 091 Han class nuclear submarine after rival India began leasing a Russian Charlie 1 class nuclear submarine. Negotiations were canceled when the Russian submarine was returned in 1991.

During the Kargil War episode, the Pakistan Navy was deactivated along with the Pakistan Air Force, according to Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Fasih Bokhari. However, when Indian Navy launched Operation Talwar, Pakistan Navy responded by deploying Eastern and Southern Naval Command to keep Indian Navy from Ports of Karachi and Baluchistan. The Naval Air Arm maintained its reconnaissance and patrol operations near at the Arabian sea. During the 2001-2002 India-Pakistan Standoff, the Pakistan Navy was a put on high-alert and more than a dozen warships were deployed near at the Arabian Sea.

Naval special Service Group of Pakistan

Special Service Group Navy, codename SSG(N), are the Navy's elite principal special operations force under the command of Pakistan Special Operations Command (P-SOC). The concept and objectives of SSG(N) are very similar to the Special Boat Service and United States' DEVGRU commands. The SSG(N) groups are trained and have been deployed in a wide variety of missions, including direct action and special reconnaissance operations, unconventional warfare, foreign internal defense, hostage rescue, counter-terrorism, and other missions. Without exception, all SSG(N) are male members of either the Navy, or the Coast Guard.

Official numbers place the strength between 700 to 1,000 however the actual strength is classified. During the training of the SSG(N) teams, the SSGN teams are occasionally send to US Navy SEALs training school to conduct its training and exercises in special warfare training with US Navy SEALs.

Capabilities

The role of the SSG)N) members are predominantly focused on the littoral and riverine domain and are capable in mounting coastal and covert beach reconnaissance which could include covert assault route preparation in advance of amphibious assault and recovery or protection of ships and oil installations subject to hostile state or non-state (terrorist) action. They are also trained in Maritime Counter-Terrorism, assault on verified targets and the protection of VIPs.

Organizations

PNS Iqbal is the commanding headquarter of commander SSG(N). The commander SSG(N) is placed under the command of Commander Coastal areas.

SSG(N) are divided into three sub commands.

PNS IQBAL - Commanding Headquarter of SSG(N)

Pakistan Navy SEALs - The SEAL Group is the main stay of SEAL group. The primary objective of this team is clandestine operation in enemy’s waters with out detection and Exit Trunk operation in the enemy’s waters. The Navy SEALs also participated in both Operation Black Thunderstorm and Operation Rah-e-Nijat commenced by the Pakistan Army.

VBSS Team - The VBSS Group is a special members of navy who are specialized in driving the watercraft and boarts. The VBBS Group's consist of modern fast speedboats with integrated sensors and equipments.

Anti-Terrorist Teams - The Anti-Terrorist Group (AAG) is the main organization that was developed to counter the terrorist threats. Its members are regularly trained with Army's SSG component.

Appearance

SSG(N) is distinguished by a dark maroon beret with golden insignia featuring 'Sword superimposed over Wings and a Star' badge for officers, NCOs and enlisted men, worn over the left pocket on dress uniforms. A metal SSGN Midget qualification badge featuring a vertical dagger superimposed over a midget submarine is worn over the left pocket on dress uniforms. Parachute wings are worn over the right pocket.

State Lottery Virginia

Mystery of State Lottery Virginia someone in Alexandria had bought a lottery ticket worth $1 million. But they never stepped forward to claim it. Until now.

Virginia's New Year's Millionaire Raffle saw three ticket-holders win $1 million each. While two others outside the area claimed their checks, the Alexandria ticketholder waited until today to come forward.

Kofi Nyanor of Alexandria told lottery officials he knew on New Year's Day that he had a winning ticket. He kept that ticket tucked away in a safe spot for the next four months.

“I went about my business,” he said. “I didn’t tell anyone.”

Today he claimed the third and final top prize in the Virginia’s New Year’s Millionaire Raffle. He received his check from Virginia Lottery Executive Director Paula Otto.

He put the ticket in a safe place, and started making plans. Only 330,000 tickets were sold in that lottery, and two other winners claimed their million dollars before Nyanor got around to it May 19.

“He was getting his financial affairs in order and really was doing the things we advise winners of big prizes to do,” said John Hagerty of the lottery office.

Nyanor described himself as a once-in-a-while lottery player, and said he will invest his winnings and donate part of it to charity.

Dan Kumbalasiri of Silver Spring didn’t wait nearly so long. He was on a diaper run for his 6-month-old daughter and picked up some Maryland Lottery scratch-off tickets, and a Multi-Match ticket. The scratch-offs won him $150, plenty to cover the diaper purchase. It wasn’t until the next day that he checked the other ticket.

Nyanor described himself to lottery officials as a "once-in-a-while lottery player," and said he plans to invest his winnings and give to charity.

By law, Virginia Lottery tickets expire 180 days after drawings and the unclaimed prize money goes to the state Literary Fund. Nyanor's ticket would have expired on June 29th if Nyanor had not redeemed it.

The Virginia Lottery generates approximately $1.2 million per day for Virginia’s K-12 public schools. Operating entirely on revenue from the sale of lottery products, rather than tax dollars, the Virginia Lottery raised more than $430.2 million for Virginia’s public schools in fiscal year 2010. That represents about 8 percent of state funding for public education in Virginia.

State Lottery of Massachusetts

Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America Lottery Commission, pursuing an ambitious goal of $1 billion in profits, plans to launch raffle-style games reminiscent of fund-raising efforts by youth sports and church groups, and to sell tickets to jumbo drawings like Mega Millions through hundreds of electronic vending machines.

Already among the most profitable lotteries in the country, the Massachusetts system would need to increase profits by another 16 percent to fulfill newly elected state Treasurer Steven Grossman’s campaign pledge to reach the $1 billion mark for the first time in its history. The lottery estimated it will take in $874 million for the current fiscal year, which ends June 30.

State Lottery West Virginia

Thursday's meeting was held at The Inn at Charles Town is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, West Virginia, United States.

Numbers are getting better for the West Virginia Lottery.

"We've seen some increase and we think the economy is improving," Lottery Director John Musgrave told MetroNews Affiliate WEPM Radio of a recent increase in state gambling revenues.

"We think we've turned things around a little bit."

On Thursday, members of the West Virginia Lottery Commission took the group's monthly meeting on the road to Jefferson County.

During that meeting, Commission members gave West Virginia's casinos permission to use complimentary chips to try to bring in more gamblers.

The chips are just the latest additions to the list of gambling credits the state is offering as gambling competition from other states continues to build.

"It's a marketing function and each quarter the Commission assesses them," Musgrave says of plans for the promotional chips.

State Lottery Wisconsin

Green Bay man stepped forward to claim his one-million dollar prize.

Bruce Glinski, a machinist, is the first person from Wisconsin to win the multi-state Mega Millions lottery game.

Lottery officials presented Glinski with a check at the Shell station on Huron Road in Green Bay.

Glinski says he wasn't feeling that lucky since he bought the ticket on Friday the 13th.

"I was actually coming in on Sunday to get my coffee like I usually do and stopped and I checked my ticket and see the lottery office and after that the rest is history."

Glinski correctly picked all five regular winning numbers in last Friday's Mega Millions drawing. Because he also bought the multiplier feature, his $250,000 prize became a million-dollar prize.

The first thing he did? He called his wife.

"I called her on the phone and said, because she had heard that somebody had won the million dollars from the store, and I called her and said, well, it was us who won it, and she didn't believe me. It took me about an hour to convince her."

After taxes, his cash prize is closer to $662,000.

About his only splurge was to buy a new lawnmower.

"I needed a new lawn mower, so I did go out and buy me a lawn mower."

Glinski says most of the money will go into his family's savings for retirement, and he has no intentions of retiring from his job yet.

Also

Ann Glinski told her husband Saturday a winning ticket was purchased at the Shell station he frequents. When Bruce Glinski went in Sunday for a cup of coffee and to turn in his ticket, the machine told him to see the lottery office.

"I'd say, 'Would you stop wasting your money on these lottery tickets? You're never going to win!' And I'm eating my words," wife Ann Glinski said.

Glinski has three children; Phillip is 27, Sean is 20 and Tricia is 16.

The May 13 winning Mega Millions numbers were 3, 33, 39, 47 and 53, with a Mega Ball of 9. An automated Quick Pick selected the winning numbers.

Glinski found out he won the money just before going to work Sunday. He worked a few hours before leaving early. He couldn't keep his mind off the million. He works 12-hour shifts three days a week and also took off Monday and Tuesday. He plans to return to work Sunday.

"I want to just get back to my normal routine again and live my life," he said.

Glinski was raised in the Humboldt area and said he won't spend the money on frivolous trips or trendy gadgets. He plans to save the money for retirement and buy the three-bedroom ranch-style home in Humboldt he's been living in for more than 15 years.

Glinski practically plays the lottery daily and even won $1 from a Badger 5 game on Wednesday morning. He looks forward to winning more jackpots.

"You've got to have a ticket to win," he said.

Glinski is the first $1 million Mega Millions winner in Wisconsin. The Badger State began offering the game in January 2010.

The Shell station earned a $20,000 commission from the Wisconsin Lottery for selling the winning ticket.

Mary Besaw sold the winning ticket. She said she doesn't play the lottery.