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A heat wave affecting Texas to Florida is expected to expand northward

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:19 GMT

A heat wave that has taxed the Texas power grid and threatens to bring record high temperatures to the state is expected to expand north and east during the coming week, a forecaster with the National Weather Service said Monday.“Going forward, that heat is going to expand … north to Kansas City and the entire state of Oklahoma, into the Mississippi Valley … to the far western Florida Panhandle and parts of western Alabama,” while remaining over Texas, lead forecaster Bob Oravec said.Oravec said record high temperatures around 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43 degrees Celsius) are forecast in parts of western Texas on Monday and relief is not expected before the Fourth of July holiday.The heat caused Texas’ power grid operator, Electric Reliability Council of Texas, to ask residents last week to voluntarily cut back on electricity because of anticipated record demand on the system.The National Integrated Heat Health Information System reports more than 46 million people f...

Colorado Springs mass shooter pleads guilty; defendant called a ‘monster’ who hunted LGBTQ+ patrons

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:19 GMT

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — Victims called the Colorado Springs mass shooter a “monster” who hunted down LGBTQ+ patrons in a calculated attack last year that killed five people, as the suspect faced life in prison after pleading guilty Monday to murder and other charges.Anderson Lee Aldrich pleaded guilty to five counts of murder and 46 counts of attempted murder. Aldrich also pleaded no contest to two hate crimes, one a felony and the other a misdemeanor. “This thing sitting in this court room is not a human, it is a monster,” said Jessica Fierro, who’s daughter’s boyfriend was killed that night. “The devil awaits with open arms.”The guilty plea comes just seven months after the shooting and spares victim’s families and survivors a long and potentially painful trial. People in the courtroom wiped away tears as Judge Michael McHenry explained the charges and read out the names of the victims.The father of a Club Q bartender said Daniel Aston had been in the prime of his life when...

For some states with laws on transgender bathrooms, officials may not know how they will be enforced

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:19 GMT

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — When North Dakota restricted what bathrooms transgender students can use in public schools and universities this year, the school district in the state’s largest city promised to ignore the new rules. A Republican legislator then called for confiscating its state funding, but the law doesn’t include that possibility.The defiance in Fargo shows that it’s not exactly clear how bathroom laws will play out in local communities after being enacted in at least 10 states with Republican-controlled legislatures.Kansas’ GOP attorney general planned to discuss his state’s law Monday, five days before it was to take effect. His view is likely to be challenged. Even Florida’s law, allowing the state to threaten the licenses of educators who don’t comply, says a transgender student or staffer must first be asked to leave a restroom and refuse. Some schools already have gender-neutral bathrooms and changing spaces or allow trans stud...

Guatemala voters send 2 presidential candidates from opposite ends of political spectrum to runoff

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:19 GMT

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Guatemala voters sent two presidential candidates from opposite ends of the political spectrum to an Aug. 20 runoff, giving hope to many disenchanted voters that change might be possible, according to preliminary results Monday. With 98% of the votes counted, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal reported that former First Lady Sandra Torres for the conservative UNE party had captured 15.7% of Sunday’s vote and Bernardo Arévalo for the leftist Seed Movement had 11.8%.Irma Elizabeth Palencia Orellana, president of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, said at a news conference Monday that the results were “practically unchangeable.”Miguel Conde of the ruling VAMOS party sat in a more distant third with 7.8%. None of the candidates neared the 50% threshold needed to win in the first round. A cluster of other candidates hovered between 6% and 7% of the votes. Invalid ballots from a frustrated electorate led all the candidates, with nearly all ballots tallied.Torres, watc...

MUST-WATCH: Marvel ventures into the spy genre

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:19 GMT

We won’t be getting a new Marvel movie until the fall, but their latest series has entered the MUST-WATCH! Could the latest genre experiment take over the MUST-WATCH Top 10, or could it go to a surreal comedy about being a little too tall? Perhaps a movie about accepting a very strange job? You’ll have to keep reading to find out!The Perfect FindWhere to watch: NetflixLet’s start off this week with a little romance!The Perfect Find stars Gabrielle Union (from Being Mary Jane and Top Five) as a beauty journalist in desperate need of a job. She calls up an old frenemy (played by Gina Torres from Firefly) who hires her. Shortly after that, she meets a young man (played by Keith Powers from the New Edition Story) and hooks up with him at a party. She’s excited to pursue these two new interests, but they both collide when she discovers her new beau is her coworker AND the son of her new boss. This film also stars La La Anthony (from Think Like a Man), Aisha Hinds ...

Stock market today: Wall Street drifts to start what could be a quiet week

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:19 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are drifting Monday in their first trading since a big rally for Wall Street hit its first roadblock in six weeks.The S&P 500 was 0.2% lower in afternoon trading. It’s still close to its highest level in a year, reached a couple weeks ago. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 42 points, or 0.1%, at 33,770, as of 12:29 p.m. Eastern time, while the Nasdaq composite was 0.8% lower.Electric vehicle maker Lucid Group jumped 6.7% after announcing a deal where it would provide powertrain and battery systems to Aston Martin. PacWest Bancorp, one of the banks Wall Street has punished in its hunt for the system’s next potential weak link, rose 5.4% after it sold a portfolio of loans to strengthen its cash position. Carnival, meanwhile, fell 11% despite reporting stronger results and revenue for its latest quarter than expected. Its forecasted ranges for earnings per share, occupancy levels and other measures in the current quarter may have disappointed some...

Quebec wildfire smoke causes widespread smog warnings, grounds some water bombers

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:19 GMT

MONTREAL — Smoke from the wildfires burning across northern Quebec has forced the grounding some of the province’s water bombers and is causing widespread smog warnings farther south. A spokesman for the province’s forest fire prevention agency says there are 29 fires burning out of control. Nicolas Vigneault says the heavy smoke has reduced visibility, meaning that some water bombers and helicopters haven’t been able to take off. However, he says heavy rain and some wind is expected in the most affected parts of the province in the coming days, which should help firefighting efforts.While he says no towns are under immediate risk of burning, the fires have forced thousands of Quebecers from their homes.Environment Canada has issued smog warnings for much of the province, including Montreal and Quebec City, due to poor air quality caused by fine particles in the air.This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 26, 2023.The Canadian Press

Chicago pharmacist found guilty after stealing, selling COVID-19 cards online

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:19 GMT

CHICAGO — A former pharmacist in Chicago was convicted Friday in federal court for stealing and then selling COVID-19 cards online.During a three-week timeframe in March and April 2021, Tangtang Zhao, 36, of Chicago, posted online listings for over 650 COVID-19 vaccination cards that he advertised as “authentic” and “straight from the CDC.”In total, he sold 630 cards to approximately 200 unique buyers, who paid Zhao more than $5,600. Original story: Chicago pharmacist charged with selling COVID-19 vaccination cards online The jury convicted Zhao of 12 counts of theft of government property. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 28 and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

Brookfield Zoo names 2-month-old wolf pup after Native American tribe

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:19 GMT

BROOKFIELD, Ill. -- Brookfield Zoo's newest wolf pup has finally been named. The two-year-old pup was named Ahote pronounced Ah-ho-teh), a Native American Hopi origin and means "restless one." Ahote is one of seven pups who were born at the zoo on April 27. In May, his siblings were transferred to be fostered by wild Mexican wolf packs in southeast Arizona and southwest New Mexico as a part of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Wolf Recovery Program.The goal of the program is to enhance the genetic diversity of the overall population of the species. Ahote and his mother, Vivilette, can be seen at Brookfield Zoo’s Regenstein Wolf Woods habitat.

See the highlights of the Cubs' games in London

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:19 GMT

LONDON — This past weekend was as rare as it gets for the Cubs and their fans. That's because the team was playing games overseas for just the second time in their history and for just the third time outside the continental United States or Canada. On Saturday & Sunday, the Cubs faced the Cardinals at London Stadium in the United Kingdom as part of Major League Baseball's continued push to play games internationally. Fans of both teams made their way across the Atlantic Ocean to see the teams participate in a road trip like no other. It was the first time since 2003 that the Cubs played outside the continental United States or Canada, when they faced the Expos for a three-game series in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Their last international trip before this weekend was to face the Mets in Tokyo, Japan in March 2000.Here are a few highlights of the weekend in London.(Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)A Happ-y StartIan Happ was a big part of the Cubs' strong offensive start to the...