Frank Lampard signs deal to write books for little Chelsea fans

Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard has signed a deal with publisher Little, Brown Books for Young Readers to write books for kids over five. The first book, Frankie Versus The Pirate Pillagers, will debut this summer followed by two more this year and another two in 2014. Lampard revealed in a press release that he came up with the idea for the books while reading to his two daughters. The vice-captain of Chelsea FC, Lampard is out of contract at the west London club at the end of this season. The handsome British soccer player is not the first footballer to write fiction - Arsenal star Theo Walcott has written a series of children's books and former England coach Terry Venables co-wrote a series of crime novels. Please drop a comment here if you want to ask me more about the books.

A Fairfield, Connecticut pair recognized as the longest-married couple in the U.S

Connecticut couple John and Ann Betar are set to be honored as the “longest-married” couple in the United States by the group Worldwide Marriage Encounter and local officials on Saturday (February 9, 2013). The pair were chosen out of hundreds of couples nominated during the project's submission period, which ran from October of last year to January. They will receive a plaque and other gifts from the group at their granddaughter’s home in Fairfield. John and Ann Betar have been happily married for 80 years and this year will mark their 81st wedding anniversary. The Betars tied the knot on November 25, 1932 after they met as children and John often drove Ann to school. The duo now have five children, 14 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren. Follow me on Opera for more breaking news.

Tsunami warning for South Pacific after huge earthquake

Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre issues alert for south Pacific islands after magnitude 8.0 quake undersea, which hit the Solomon Islands Wednesday. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake struck at 0112 UTC GMT near the Santa Cruz Islands in the Solomons at a depth of about 6 kilometers. The region has been affected by tremors during the past week. Solomon Islands Police Commissioner John Lansley said local police patrols had reported that several people were presumed dead, though the reports were still being verified. Smaller waves were recorded in Vanuatu and New Caledonia. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said tsunami watches were also placed as far afield as Hawaii, and New Zealand was also on guard. But early reports said no threat to Australia was seen. According to You Doze, the waves could be destructive near the epicenter and threaten more distant coasts.

Pakistani school-girl shot by the Taliban is recovering after two successful operations

Malala Yousufzai, the 15-year-old Pakistani girl who was shot in the head by the Taliban, has successfully undergone two surgeries in a British hospital and is making good progress in her recovery. The schoolgirl criticized Islamists on her blog and defended the right of girls to education. Because of this, she became an enemy of the Taliban militants. The symbol of women's rights had two procedures at Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital, on Sunday, February 3, 2013, a skull reconstruction and hearing surgery. Doctor staff told Malala is recovering well and will remain in the hospital until she is well enough to be discharged. The teenager drew the world's attention when she was shot by Taliban militants on October 9 on her way home on a school bus in northwestern Pakistan. Four gunmen stormed the school-bus she was on and opened fire. Three other girls also were wounded in that chaos. According to College Slackers, the Pakistani authorities sent her to the United Kingdom for treatment and paid all the costs.

Fireworks truck explosion causes five deaths and highway collapse in China

A truck carrying fireworks before the Chinese New Year celebrations has exploded on an elevated highway in central China, killing at least five people as it sent vehicles plummeting to the ground and causing part of the road to collapse. The explosion occurred on national expressway G30 near the city of Sanmenxia in central Henan Province at about 8:52am. The huge blast destroyed an 80-meter (80-yard) stretch of highway outside the city, and was powerful enough to shatter windows of a nearby truck stop. China National Radio had put the number of dead at 26 but the report appeared to have been removed from websites. Six vehicles were retrieved from the wreckage, Xinhua News agency reported, while search and rescue efforts were continuing at the site. Eight people had been injured. There was no immediate word on the cause of the explosion. The government said it was reconsidering its traffic policies. Please follow me on Jeqq if you want to know more about the accident.

A group of buildings swallowed by a massive sinkhole in China

A sinkhole totally swallowed a group of buildings in Guangzhou, one of China's biggest cities. The first building collapsed at 1620 local time and the other three buildings fell into the ten metre hole later that evening. Police evacuated more than 300 residents from the surrounding area and nearby roads were closed off. "Gas could be smelt from over 30 metres away, and deafening noises could be heard as the land continued to crack and sink," the Shanghaiist reports. The massive sinkhole is about 3,230 square feet and plenty deep. No one was injured in the incident and an investigation was launched into what caused the hole to appear. Let's share this post on TweetBuzz and warn your friends so they do not become a victim of careless Chinese workers.

Two people are rescued after their plane crashes into the icy Hudson River off Yonkers

Two people including a 39-year-old New Jersey woman and her 43-year-old male passenger were rescued from their single-engine plane that went down into the Hudson River off Yonkers. After leaving the Trenton/Robbinsville airport, the duo were flying under visual flight rules and contact with air traffic control when their plane went down. However, the pair were wearing life vests and were able to get out of the plane before it sank. They left the hospital and were back at their homes on Monday night (January 28, 2013). Their identities were also learnt. The pilot was identified as Deniece Depriester Kok, a certified flight instructor. Her passenger was 43-year-old Christopher Smidt. Both of them are from New Jersey. If you know any thing about the plane crash, please share it with me on Opera or just leave a comment here.