The Bridgeport Fire department is reporting a garage near the corner of Asylum Street and Plymouth Street in the city’s north end is on fire with cars inside. Several units have reported to the scene.
Archive for October, 2010
Linguistics of a line
Most of the line to see the president is two to four-people wide.
“We have that on our side,” said Ty Smith of Riverside, Long Island.
Smith is parked near the back of the line, which extends from the Arena at Harbor Yard to Seaside Park.
When Smith saw Obama in Hartford on Feb. 4, 2008, he said many people didn’t make it inside the venue.
“That line was a lot wider,” he said. “I’m optimistic we’ll get in.”
Tara Martinson, Smith’s companion for the day, said she grew up in a place where big-name politicians rarely visit.
“I’m from the Midwest and nobody goes to the Midwest for votes,” she said. “This is once in a lifetime.”
An unofficial demographic survey of the line to see Obama:
Predominant age bracket: 40s and 50s
Predominant race: black
Predominant gender: about equal
Most popular item in tow: Dunkin’ Donuts to-go coffee cup
Presidential visit draws Bridgeport into Obama legacy
Ralph Maldonado, 53, of Williams Street, traveled to Washington, D.C. for Obama’s inauguration because he wanted to witness history.
“Oh, my word,” he said, reflecting on that day while waiting to enter the Arena at Harbor Yard for his second glimpse of the president. “I actually was in tears, and I turned to my son, David, and said, ‘You can be anything you want in this country, and now you can believe that.’”
For Maldonado, the “Yes we can!” spirit that swept the nation during Obama’s campaign for president changed the world. It’s a sentiment he said he hopes is alive as ever this afternoon to help welcome the president to Bridgeport.
“For him to stand up today and say ‘Bridgeport, Connecticut’, where I lived for 52 years — I’m part of history and everyone in this city is, too.”
