101.   Witnesses reported tornadoes as gusty thunderstorms swept through the New York City metropolitan region on Tuesday.

102.   A sixth person in the New York City metropolitan region has died from the West Nile-like virus, health officials said Thursday.

103.   Health officials said last week that a virus believed to be West Nile had been found in dead birds in the metropolitan region.

104.   Last year, the virus killed seven people and sickened scores more in the metropolitan region.

105.   The shortage has reached crisis proportions in the New York metropolitan region, said Dr. Robert Jones, president and CEO of the New York Blood Center.