News Briefs

Flights Cancelled Due to Merapi Volcano

The eruption of Mount Merapi in central Java has caused several airlines to suspend service between Singapore and Jakarta.

Merapi is one of the world's most active volcanoes. It has been erupting for the past two weeks and more than 130 people have been killed. This is the biggest eruption of the volcano in over 100 years. An additional 200,000 people have evacuated the area.

The small villages surrounding the volcano were hit the hardest with an eruption last Friday. Rescue teams have found bodies still sleeping in bed or on the phone when the hot ash struck their homes. A mass burial is planned for the dozens killed in Argomulyo, a small village just 11 miles from Mount Merapi.

Officials report that the thick clouds of ash and super-heated gases are a safety concern for aircrafts.

Singapore Airlines, Japan Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Lufthansa and Cathay Pacific are among the airlines that have been affected in the area.

Nuns Sell Rare Baseball Card, Profit $220,000

One of the most famous and rare baseball cards was sold in an online auction this past week. Doug Walton, who owns collectible stores in the Southeast U.S., won the T206 Honus Wagner baseball card. Walton paid $262,900 for the card, with $220,000 going to the School Sisters of Notre Dame.

The School Sisters of Notre Dame came to possess the valuable card after a one of the nun's brothers passed away earlier this year. All proceeds will go toward charitable work.

The T206 Honus Wagner card is one of the 50 to 60 believed to still exist. The cards were only made from 1909 to 1911 after Wagner wanted his likeness removed due to unspecified reasons. Wagner was one of the most talented players of his era. He played for the Pittsburgh Pirates and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1936.

The card was estimated to only sell for $100,000. In 2007, a near-mint condition T206 Honus Wagner sold for $2.8 million.

Sabres on Display at Albright-Knox

Two of Buffalo's favorite institutions will be combined in the coming months.

The Albright-Knox Art Gallery will be exhibiting the past 40 years of Buffalo Sabres history until Jan. 9.

The Albright-Knox and the Buffalo Sabres have more in common than people may think. The sons of the art gallery's patron and namesake, Seymour H. Knox II, were involved in making the Sabres members of the National Hockey League 40 years ago.

The exhibition, "Forty: The Sabres in the NHL," features a room-sized, 360 degree video simulator that shows viewers how it feels to be on the ice during a hockey game. Work from Sabres photographers Ron Moscati, Robert Shaver and Bill Wippert will also be on display.

This is the first time that the art gallery has had an exhibition funded by and dedicated to a single corporation.