NEW YORK

Hurricane Irene strengthened to a major Category 3 hurricane over the Bahamas on Wednesday as it roared up from the Caribbean on a path expected to swipe the East Coast from the Carolinas upward at the weekend.

You can be rest assured that the earthquake-hit Washington Monument is not tilting. However, a closer look at the world's tallest obelisk brought National Park Service officials to discover some cracks near the top of the 555-foot monument.

A strong earthquake rattled the East Coast on Tuesday, sending tremors as far as Canada, damaging well-known buildings in the nation's capital and sending scared office workers into the streets.

The U.S. Federal Reserve used a non-competitive bid process when it secured middlemen services to maintain liquidity in the critical money-market fund market -- an emergency action necessitated by the financial crisis triggered by the collapse of Lehman Brothers.

People said the daily commute and long working hours would be the hardest part of adjusting to life in New York. Seems somebody forget to mention earthquakes and hurricanes. But that's the reality I'm finding, as the earthquake shook New York Tuesday and forecast models show Hurricane Irene is making its way toward the metropolitan area for a possible Sunday strike at Category 1 strength. Suddenly, the daily commute to work doesn't seem like such a difficult task.

A strong durable goods report Wednesday helped reverse a short-lived rebound in precious metals, which had been gaining early in the day on a downgrade of Japan and worries that economic growth in both the U.S. and Europe was tepid at best.

Hurricane Irene's path is plodding toward a possible direct strike on the New York area. Forecast models show the storm could hit Long Island late Sunday or Sunday night at Category 1 strength, packing winds of 80 miles per hour or more.

Most of the damage and loss of life occurred in New England (particularly Rhode Island); however Long Island and New York City were not completely spared.

The social media company sent its own Tweets following Tuesday's earthquake.

A growing number of scandals suggests there risks exist when a school district relies solely on test scores to evaluate academic proficiency and skills mastery.

One day after New York was shaken and rattled by an earthquake, forecast models show that Hurricane Irene has taken aim at America's largest metropolitan area. The latest forecast models show Irene could make landfall late Sunday at hurricane strength, packing winds of 80 miles per hour or more.

Tuesday's unusual East Coast earthquake sent tremors from Georgia to New York, surprising residents who were not expecting such an event.

Google Doodle honors Argentine Jorge Luis Borges, a Virginia earthquake rocks the entire East Coast, Hurricane Irene is upgraded to a Category 3 storm as it approached the United States, and more in today's Daily Scoop

New York survived an earthquake that shook buildings and rattled nerves on Tuesday. Now, America's largest city is bracing for assault from Hurricane Irene, taking dead aim at the metropolitan area. The latest forecast models show Irene could make landfall late Sunday at hurricane strength, packing winds of 80 miles per hour or more.

Hallmark Channel's film based on the fairytale love story of Britain’s Prince William and Kate Middleton, “William & Catherine: A Royal Romance” was premiered in New York City on Tuesday.

By law, the USPS is mandated to break even -- but for fiscal 2011 it is expecting to post a $8.3 billion shortfall

New York area surfers know they are flirting with danger when a major tropical storm or hurricane approaches the area, but they also know they can catch California-like waves or better. Hurricane Irene promises to bring a prime surfing opportunity to the area this weekend but the storm is so powerful the surf may be too dangerous.

U.S. East Coast was struck by an earthquake of magnitude 5.8 on Tuesday that some in New York and Washington briefly mistook for a terrorist attack.

Flushing Meadows reportedly felt aftershocks from the earthquake, originated in Richmond, Virginia, measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale, even as the authorities suspended play at the nearby New Haven Open tennis tournament in Conneticut.

The Washington Monument will be closed indefinitely to the public after engineers found cracks in the stones at the top of the structure.

The top after-market NYSE Losers on Tuesday are: Inphi Corp, Ivanhoe Mines, La-Z-Boy, DSW, Cobalt International Energy, Red Hat, Oceaneering International, PVH, Westlake Chemical and FMC Technologies.