WATCH: High-speed Los Angeles car chase ends in huge fireball

KTLA video still

A police chase in California ended in flames Wednesday night.

A Los Angeles police chase ended in a fireball Wednesday, with the high-speed pursuit caught on video.

KTLA video shows the chase - which involved a suspected drunken driver, the station reports.

The driver weaved in between cars, eluding authorities along a highway in Boyle Heights, a neighborhood on the east side of Los Angeles.

Eventually the suspect's car spun, crashing into a guardrail and bursting into flames.

As fire engulfed the wreckage, police approached the car and pulled the driver to safety.

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Miami startup that turns text to video receives $1 million in seed funding

Guide, a new technology startup based in Miami, announced Tuesday it has closed a $1 million round of seed investment from investors including Knight Foundation, Sapient Corp., MTV founder Bob Pitman, actor and producer Omar Epps, and early Google employee Steve Schimmel. Knight is supporting Guide through its new early-stage venture fund, the Knight Enterprise Fund.

Led by CEO and founder Freddie Laker, Guide’s team of seven is focused on turning online news, social streams and blogs into video for users who may be cooking, exercising, commuting or getting ready in the morning. The application offers consumers a selection of about 20 “anchors” — including a dog, a robot and an anime character — that will read the article and present the accompanying photos, pull-out information and video clips in its video presentation.The basic application will be free for the consumer. Revenue drivers for Guide could include in-app purchases, advertising-based anchors and customizations from publishers, said Laker, a former vice president at SapientNitro.

Laker and his team plan to launch a public beta next month, which they plan to do with a splash at the huge technology conference South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin, Texas.

Read more about Guide here on the Starting Gate blog.

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Miami Heat has scholarships for graduation high school seniors

The Miami Heat is offering South Florida high school seniors college scholarships for the 2013-2014 school year.

Four scholarships of $2,500 each will go to seniors who excel in academics and community service.

One of the four scholarships is reserved for a student who plays sports.

Applicants must have at least a 3.2 grade point average by their final semester in high school, attend school in Miami-Dade, Broward or Palm Beach counties, be accepted to an accredited four-year college or university and demonstrate financial need.

Applications are available at nba.com/heat/community/community_education_scholarships.html and must be submitted by April 6.

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Bachelor Recap: Tierra a Victim of the Elements Again

Tonight's episode marks the second time Bachelor contestant Tierra has been in need of rescue from her Prince Charming (and an EMT crew), for those keeping score.

The rugged outdoors was the theme of Tuesday's show, as the girls were split apart into two one-on-one dates and a group date involving the treacherous elements of snowy Alberta, Canada.

Pics: 'The Bachelor' Scorecard (Did the Relationships Sizzle or Fizzle?)

While Catherine's exploratory snow bus outing and Desiree's 400-ft mountain descent made for thrilling excursions, Sean's frozen swim date with the other seven ladies took the cake for the night's most exhilarating adventure.

Only six volunteered (minus Selma) to brave the icy waters and most came out of the plunge feeling a buzz from the frozen feat. That is, everyone except Tierra. The resident bad gal of the group immediately came down with a case of apparent hypothermia and was whisked away by medical crew to Sean's dismay.

He later visited the ailing Tierra back at her hotel, urging her to spend the night recovering rather than attend the party, but she ultimately ignores his advice and crashes cocktail time.

Despite the unexpected intrusion, the girls are less perturbed than would have been expected. Unfortunately, during a private moment with Sarah, Sean comes to realize that he's been forcing a connection and sends her home.

Related: 'Bachelor' Sean Questions Tierra's Motives

During the night, Sean hits new milestones with AshLee, Lesley and Selma, who finally succumbs to a smooch on national television, despite her disapproving parents.

Apparently, the kiss wasn't enough to keep her in the game. Sean sent Selma home along with Daniella during the rose ceremony.

Catherine and Desiree were safe to date another day as they were both awarded roses during their one-on-ones.

Tune in to The Bachelor next Monday on ABC as Sean and the final six slip on their bikinis and hit the sunny St Croix Virgin Islands.

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Perilous pursuit: Cop, chasing burglary suspect, is struck by car in Bronx

A uniformed cop pursuing a burglary suspect was mowed down by a vehicle on Hull Avenue near East 207 Street at 3:00 p.m. in Williamsbridge yesterday, cops said.

Octavio Perez, 69, a Bronx man with a colorful driving record, then attempted to flee the scene, cops said.

The uniformed police officer was admitted to Jacobi hospital for leg and back injuries, cops said.

Perez was charged with aggravated unlicensed operator, and attempting to leave the scene of an accident resulting in injury, cops said.

Perez has several prior arrests dating back to 1986, for driving without a license and driving while impaired, cops said.

The most recent, two priors in 2010 for driving with a suspended license, cops said.

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Skyscanner.com opening Miami office

One of Kayak and Expedia’s international rivals in the online-travel business is opening up a Miami office in a bid to capture a larger share of the North American market.

Skyscanner, the No. 1 travel site in Europe, picked Miami to open its first U.S. office, according to a company press release. A spokesman said the company plans to put 10 executives in the Miami office, and that the hunt is on for a specific location.

While big in Europe and Asia, Skyscanner.com has a low profile in the Americas. Skyscanner said it selected Miami as its first U.S. location given the city’s ties to South America.

DOUGLAS HANKS

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Woman gets 30-days in jail for giving the finger to a Miami-Dade judge

A woman facing a drug possession charge was sentenced to 30 days in jail on Monday for giving the finger to a Miami-Dade judge, NBC6 is reporting.

Penelope Soto, 18, had been arrested for possession of Xanax and was brought before Circuit Judge Jorge Rodriguez-Chomat Monday, where she was asked about her assets during a video court hearing, the station said.

During an exchange the judge felt was disrespectful, Soto flipped Rodriguez-Chomat her middle finger and blurted out: "[expletive] you" as she walked away from the camera.

The judge demanded she return to the podium and sentenced her to 30-days in jail for contempt of court

It all began when Soto, sporting orange jail jumpsuit, appeared to make light of the proceedings, laughing when she was asked how much her jewelry was worth.

"It's not a joke, you know, we're not in a club now," Rodriguez-Chomat told her. "We are not in a club, be serious about it."

"I'm serious about it, you just made me laugh," Soto replied. "You just made me laugh, I apologize. It's worth a lot of money."

"Like what?" the judge asked.

"Like Rick Ross. It's worth money," she said.

The judge, not understanding the odd reference to the South Florida rapper who made news last week when his car was fired at on Las Olas Boulevard, asked Soto if she's taken any drugs in the past 24 hours.

"Actually, no," she replied.

Rodriguez-Chomat set her bond at $5,000 and said "bye, bye," and Soto laughed and replied " Adios."

Annoyed, Rodriguez-Chomat summoned her back and reset her bond at $10,000, shocking Soto.

"Are you serious?" she asked.

"I am serious. Adios," he replied.

To watch the video of the exchange on the NBC6 website, click here.

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Nancy O'Dell Makes Oscar Nominee and Les Miserables Star Hugh Jackman Blush

Hugh Jackman has been known to induce swooning at the removal of his shirt, but the Oscar nominee tells our Nancy O'Dell that he's far from runway ready, even blushing at the mere suggestion.

PICS: Hot Looks of the Oscar Luncheon

Nancy caught up with the Les Miserables star after the Motion Picture Academy's Nominees Luncheon, where he named Tom Ford as the designer he'll be wearing on the Oscars red carpet.

"I'm one of those guys who when people say, 'Sir, would you like to taste the wine?' I say, 'Oh, it's amazing!' and it could be six dollars," said Hugh, fashioning himself as a man of simpler tastes. "And I'm kind of the same with tuxedoes, but with Tom -- I just know him as a person and everything I wear of his feels good."

Nancy was quick to point out Hugh's model physique that probably doesn't hurt in helping make the clothes look good.

"Way too much hair on my body for a runway," Hugh nervously joked while blushing. "They're all hairless."

During today's Oscar luncheon, Hugh congregated with other nominees, which included newcomer Quvenzahane Wallis, Anne Hathaway, Bradley Cooper, Ben Affleck, Denzel Washington, Jessica Chastain, Daniel Day-Lewis, Joaquin Phoenix and more.

VIDEO: Fielding Fashion & Fun Times at Oscars Luncheon

Hugh described the event as "amazing."

"This is one I'll always remember," said Hugh. "You take in the history of it and you take in the enormity of the moment and everyone is standing there and squishing in, and it kind of felt like being back at school all at the same time."

Click the video to see Hugh's quick one-on-one with an inquisitive fan.

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NYPD releases stop-frisk numbers: Most used in Brooklyn & Queens, nearly all stopped are black or Hispanic

The NYPD for the first time publicly released a report last night on its controversial stop-and-frisk procedure that breaks down by city precinct — and by race — those targeted.

The figures, all from 2011, show that the precinct with the most stops by sheer numbers was Brooklyn’s 75th, which includes East New York and Cypress Hills.

More than 31,000 people were stopped, 97 percent of them either black or Hispanic.

The 73 Precinct, covering Brownsville in Brooklyn, was the next highest with 25,167 stops. About 98 percent involved minorities.

In Queens, the 115th Precinct — which includes East Elmhurst, Corona and Jackson Heights — ranked third with 18,156 stops. Nearly 93 percent of those involved minorities, the figures show.

The 40th Precinct in The Bronx, which covers Mott Haven and Melrose, racked up the next highest number — 17,690 — with 98.5 percent of them involving minorities.

And at No. 5 was the 90th Precinct in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, where there were 17,566 stops, with 88.6 percent involving minorities.

The New York Civil Liberties Union had fought for release of the stats last year.

After getting them, the civil-rights group published the figures on their Web site in May, saying they show a pattern of racial profiling — a charge that the NYPD denies.

The Police Department said it had no comment on why it was releasing the figures itself now.

As has been reported, the statistics show that overall, nearly 90 percent of those targeted by NYPD stop-and-frisks in the city in 2011 were either black or Hispanic.

Meanwhile, blacks and Hispanics together make up less than 53 percent of the population.

A total 685,724 people — 8.6 percent of the city’s population — were detained by cops for “reasonable suspicion.”

That was the highest number since the NYPD started recording stop-and-frisk figures in 2002.

Of that number, 9 percent also were white, and 4 percent were Asian, the figures showed.

The No. 1 reason for stop-and-frisks that year was possible weapons possession, the report said.

The statistics did not say how many of those stops resulted in arrests.

natasha.velez@nypost.com

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Bright spots in Latin America despite global economic uncertainty

There are bright spots as Latin American and Caribbean economies begin the year but the uncertain health of the U.S. economy, the lingering financial crisis in Europe and more sluggish growth in China are casting shadows over the region.

A decade ago, dim prospects in those major markets would have delivered a knock-out punch in the region, but this year Latin American and Caribbean economies are expected to grow by 3.5 percent and average 3.9 percent growth in 2014 and 2015, according to a World Bank forecast. The United Nations’ Economic Commission has a slightly more sanguine forecast of 3.8 percent growth in 2013.

Both are better than the 2.4 percent growth the World Bank is forecasting for the global economy and the mere 1.3 percent increase it is predicting for high-income countries.

The U.S. economy grew by 2.2 percent in 2012. But the economy shrank 0.1 percent in the fourth quarter and the first quarter of 2013 also could be sluggish..

“That creates a soggy start for 2013 in Latin America,’’ said David Malpass, president of Encima Global, a New York economic consulting and research firm.

With a recession in Japan, even slower growth expected in Europe than in the United States, and questions about whether the dip in the Chinese economy has bottomed out and whether the United States will be making sharp cuts in defense spending and other federal programs come March 1, Latin American and Caribbean nations can’t really depend on the industrialized world to spur growth.

The region must look inward and undertake structural reforms that will allow growth from domestic factors, said Malpass, who was in Miami in January for an event organized by the University of Miami’s Center for Hemispheric Policy.

Panama’s $5.25 billion investment in expansion of the Panama Canal is an example of the inward focus that will pay off down the road, said Malpass. By 2015, Panama plans to have completed two new sets of locks on the Atlantic and Pacific sides of the canal and the deepening and widening of existing channels to accommodate the so-called Post-Panamax ships too big to traverse the current locks.

“It’s a difficult period but a period where developing countries are growing solidly but not as quickly as they might otherwise want to,’’ said Andrew Burns, the lead author of the World Bank’s annual Global Economic Trends report.

That means they should focus on investment in infrastructure and healthcare, structural policies, regulatory reforms and improvements in governance that will pay future dividends down the road, Burns said.

Such economic reforms, plus high commodity prices enjoyed by countries with fertile fields and mineral wealth, helped the region move beyond the global financial crisis of 2008 and 2009 far more quickly than it did when it was so dependent on economic cycles in the rest of the world.

Economic growth slowed in Latin America and the Caribbean from 4.3 percent in 2011 to an estimated 3 percent but that was still better than the 1.3 percent growth high-income countries managed in 2012, according to The World Bank.

China will continue to play a major role in Latin America and the Caribbean this year but whether the slowdown in China has reached its low point is subject to debate. But it’s relative. Slow growth in China would be brisk growth elsewhere. China says its gross domestic product grew 7.8 percent in 2012, the most tepid growth in 13 years and a comedown from 9.3 percent growth in 2011.

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