Morning Roundup: A long Friggin' week edition

Good morning, Houston. One word for you: Friday. Did you know the day was named for the lovely lady above? She's Frigg, the Norse goddess of beauty, love and fertility. Among Frigg's hobbies: using Orion's Belt to make clouds. Seriously? Lay off a little, Frigg; we need some sun this weekend.

>> Fire on the Ship Channel: Thick black smoke rose over the east side shortly after noon yesterday when a tanker truck exploded during an industrial fire in Channelview. The fire broke out as xylene, an extremely flammable substance, was being transferred from a truck into a 40,000-gallon tank; roadblocks were put in place as firefighters battled the blaze, and one person suffered burns in the incident. Though neighbors were concerned during the hour it took to subdue the fire, they said it's all part of life in the area: "That's the price we pay for living here on the Ship Channel," one resident told KPRC.

>> Deal in the works for The Center?: KHOU is reporting that Mayor Bill White has been working on a compromise between the city and The Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation, the social service agency city officials are trying to evict from its West Dallas Avenue land. It's not clear what the terms of the compromise might be, but according to Channel 11, we could learn as early as today.

>> Ex-Houstonian pleads guilty in al-Qaeda case: Daniel Joseph Maldonado, the man accused of training to fight with al-Qaeda in East Africa, pleaded guilty yesterday to charges against him. Maldonado, 28, was the first American charged in connection with attempts to establish an extremist Islamic state in Somalia; his guilty plea was in exchange for an agreement that no other charges would be filed against him.

>> This weekend's weather: Two words — say them with us over and over: partly cloudy. That pretty much sums up the next three days' weather, which should hold steady with sun, some clouds and highs around 80. Lows will be in the lower to mid 60s; on Sunday night, expect a slight chance of drizzle, but nothing too serious. Enjoy!

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