All Over Albany

Hunt continues for escaped prisoners, first responders described devastation of oil train crashes, 1st round pick

Escape from Dannemora
The hunt for the two escaped prisoners from Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora continued Monday as investigators focused on whether the convicted killers had help. A "person briefed on the matter" tells the Times Union that Richard Matt and David Sweat had been staying in an "honor block" that allowed more liberties -- and the investigation has focused on the possible role of an employee who worked the two men in a prison tailor shop. Said Andrew Cuomo Monday of the escape plan: "I don't think they could have acquired the equipment they needed to do this without help." The escape is said to be the first in the facility's more-than-150-year history. [AP/Saratogian] [TU] [NYT] [TWCN] [Wikipedia]

Histories of Capital Region/New York prison escapes: Times Union | Daily Gazette | News10.

Meta: From the New York Times: "For Mr. Cuomo, the escaped men represent both a genuine law-enforcement challenge -- how to chase down a pair of killers in a remote corner of the state -- and an unexpected break from the deepest political doldrums of his time in office."

News story quote or outtake from a comic book movie: "You can imagine the powers in that person to convince others of things when what really lurks within is quite evil." [WNYT]

Oil trains
A "summit" on oil trains organized by Albany county exec Dan McCoy and sheriff Craig Apple on Monday at Saint Rose included emergency responders from oil train crashes in other places -- they described being overwhelmed by the scale of the crashes, resulting fires, and cost of the response. [News10] [TWCN] [TU] [WNYT]

Albany considers new gun storage law
The Albany Common Council is considering a law that would require gun owners to keep their firearms stored in locked containers, or disabled with trigger locks, when not in the person's immediate possession. [TU]

Normanskill landslide
Kathy Sheehan told a neighborhood meeting Monday evening that a plan for a longterm fix for the Normanskill landslide -- the resulting potential flooding -- is waiting on approvals from state and federal authorities. [TU]

Albany County vaping
The Albany County Legislature voted to ban the use of e-cigarettes in places covered by the state's indoor smoking ban. [TU]

Albany County sparklers
Albany County won't end up lifting the ban on sparklers in time for July 4. [TU]

Wolf Road Diner
It's closing and being sold to new owners who plan to change the concept. [Table Hopping]

1st round pick
Niskayuna High School senior Garrett Whitley was picked #13 in the first round of the Major League Baseball draft by the Tampa Bay Rays. [TU]