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Vermont cleans up while bracing for more rain

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:20 GMT

By Kathy McCormack | Associated PressVermont prepared for the next round of storms — and possibly a tornado — as people took advantage of calm weather Thursday to clean up from historic flooding that damaged thousands of homes, businesses and roads, and left some residents stranded.As floodwaters receded, the good news was that there were no new rescue missions, dams were holding up and more roads reopened. The bad news was that strong thunderstorms were expected to move into parts of the state by Thursday night, which could cause more flash flooding, Gov. Phil Scott said at a news conference. Conditions could spawn a tornado, he said. And the state could get more heavy rain over the weekend.“The period we are more concerned about is Sunday because that could be more widespread and heavier, but not nearly on the scale of what we saw earlier in the week,” National Weather Service meteorologist Seth Kutikoff said.Scott said it’s important for Vermonters to be vigilan...

As drought batters Arizona, Scottsdale bans new grass lawns

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:20 GMT

By Mitchell McCluskey and Holly Yan | CNNAs drought-stricken Arizona bakes in searing heat, the Scottsdale City Council unanimously agreed this week to ban natural grass in front of future single-family homes in an effort to conserve water.The new ordinance will apply to new houses constructed or permitted after August 15.“By adopting this ordinance, Scottsdale aims to lead the way in water conservation practices, setting an example for other communities across the region,” said Brian Biesemeyer, executive director of Scottsdale’s water department.According to Scottsdale City Council, feedback gathered from Scottsdale Water customers in June found that 86% of those who responded supported the ordinance.“It’s a positive step that supports responsible use of our water resources and an initiative that works in tandem with Scottsdale Water’s existing residential and commercial rebate programs that offer water saving options and maintain the beauty and functionality of Scottsdale’s neigh...

Majority of people arrested for drugs in SF not from the city, according to mayor

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:20 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- The "overwhelming majority" of the 115 people recently arrested for public drug use in San Francisco are not residents of the city, according to SF Mayor London Breed. None of those arrested accepted services upon release, Breed added in a lengthy tweet thread about drug enforcement in the city.Arrests for drug dealing in the Tenderloin and South of Market have doubled in the past two weeks, Breed said, resulting in the seizure of "alarming levels of fentanyl." The increased arrests are a result of the San Francisco Police Department increasing enforcement as part of a coordinated drug market enforcement effort. Jenkins talks about her first year as San Francisco District Attorney During that two-week period, SFPD seized 9.5 kilos of fentanyl, the mayor said. That's a third of what officers seized in all of 2022 -- 25 kilos -- in just 14 days."This is why our coordinated efforts matter," Breed said.The San Francisco Sheriff's Office has also been part of th...

Gilroy man charged with South Bay arson spree

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:20 GMT

(KRON) -- A 32-year-old Gilroy man is accused of staging his own wildfire season by igniting a series of arson fires across Santa Clara County. Daniel Catano is charged with intentionally igniting 10 fires in Gilroy and Morgan Hill this summer. "This dangerous man’s personal fire season is over," District Attorney Jeff Rosen said Thursday. For two weeks, the suspected arsonist's blazes "shook the South County community, leaving homes, cars, and businesses scorched, and a housing project burned to the ground," prosecutors wrote. Catano's targets appeared to be random, prosecutors said.Police were able to identify Catano as a suspect after receiving a tip from the public. He was arrested on July 11 after a multi-agency manhunt. Catano will be arraigned on 10 felony arson charges at 1:30 p.m. Thursday in the South County Courthouse in Morgan Hill. If convicted, he will face prison time. "The public, the police, and the firefighters have now done their jobs – and now we will do ours," R...

Tentative deal reached in port strike on Canada’s west coast

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:20 GMT

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — A tentative deal was reached Thursday between employers and workers in a strike that has halted shipments in and out of ports in Canada’s west coast region of British Columbia for nearly two weeks.A statement from the BC Maritime Employers Association said it had reached a tentative agreement with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union. The strike by 7,400 members of the union began July 1 and shut down more than 30 west coast ports. The statement said the four-year deal is subject to ratification by both parties, so details are not yet being released.The affected ports handle cargo worth over 800 million Canadian dollars ($600 million) every day.Business groups and the provincial governments had called on the national government to force an end to the strike. Source

Phone of man who killed 3 at Indiana mall had Hitler photos, `extremely graphic’ videos of killings

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:20 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The cellphone of a 20-year-old man who fatally shot three people last year at an Indianapolis-area mall contained photos of Adolf Hitler, Nazi propaganda, firearms and “extremely graphic” videos of previous mass killings, police said Thursday.Police said the FBI found nothing on the phone about the mall or plans for last year’s mass shooting, but it contained what appeared to be a suicide note Jonathan Douglas Sapirman had written more than two years before the attack.Greenwood police said the FBI was able in May to unlock the phone, which Sapirman dropped into a mall toilet before he opened fire inside the food court of Greenwood Park Mall last July 17. Sapirman was fatally shot by an armed shopper shortly after the shooting began in the city just south of Indianapolis.Police said the FBI recovered more 200 videos and more 3,400 images from the phone, along with notes kept on the device, call and text logs and internet searches. Many of the videos were of ...

Virgin Galactic plans its next commercial flight to the edge of space for August

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:20 GMT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Virgin Galactic is aiming for early August for its next flight to the edge of space, a trip that is expected to include the first of many ticket holders who have been waiting years for their chance at weightlessness aboard the company’s rocket-powered plane.The company announced Thursday that the window for the commercial flight from Spaceport America in southern New Mexico will open Aug. 10. The short up-and-down flight will be streamed live on Virgin Galactic’s website.Virgin Galactic confirmed that three private passengers will be on the flight. The plane has room for six — two Virgin Galactic pilots and four passengers. Hundreds of people have purchased tickets over the years, including celebrities, scientists and entrepreneurs. The company is expected to release more details about the crew and three passengers next week.The flight will mark Virgin Galactic’s third this year. The most recent was in June — a research flight during which ...

Iraqi officials are defending a barter deal with Iran, say it doesn’t violate US sanctions on Tehran

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:20 GMT

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi officials defended Thursday a deal inked this week to barter oil for gas with Iran, saying it does not violate U.S. sanctions on Tehran but will help alleviate a worsening electricity crisis in Iraq.The remarks come as the government in Baghdad struggles to balance between its two key allies, Washington and Tehran. A previous arrangement in which Iraq was buying gas from Iran and paying dollars for it was held up because Washington declined to approve sanctions waivers. That in turn led Iran to cut the gas supply, triggering severe power shortages in Iraq.After decades of electricity shortages because of war, corruption and mismanagement, oil-rich Iraq has become heavily reliant on imported Iranian gas to meet its electricity needs. The shortages in recent months are in part due to U.S. restrictions on transferring funds to Iran.Imports from Iran are especially vital during the scorching summer months when Iraqis are forced to pay for private diesel generators o...

Mexico frees 20 kids who worked 12 hour days selling snacks, trinkets at Playa del Carmen resort

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:20 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Police in Mexico rescued 20 kids ranging in age from 1 to 17 from rented rooms in the resort town of Playa del Carmen, where they were forced to work 12 hours per day selling snacks and trinkets on the streets and beaches, authorities said Thursday.Prosecutors in the Caribbean coast state of Quintana Roo, where Playa del Carmen is located, said that the children and adolescents were from the largely indigenous and impoverished state of Chiapas. The children had been promised that they would be paid and could send money home to their families. But when they asked for their pay, the adults they worked for said it had already been sent to their parents. Notebooks were found with registers of names and amounts, prosecutors said, but it remained under investigation whether the money had been sent. Prosecutors said the kids were forced to work dawn to dusk, and were filthy, poorly dressed and undernourished when found. Two suspects were detained at the low-slung complex...

9 suspects wanted after gun store burglaries

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:12:20 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- Nine people are wanted after a series of gun store burglaries this week across the southern Denver area.According to the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office, there were five gun store robberies in Centennial, Englewood and Denver on July 9 and July 10. July 9 at 12:05 a.m. – Centennial Gun Club, 11800 E. Peakview Ave., CentennialJuly 9 at 12:25 a.m. – Bowers Tactical, 6931 S. Yosemite St., CentennialJuly 9 at 5:41 a.m. – Bighorn Firearms, 2175 S. Jasmine St., DenverJuly 10 at 3:35 a.m. – The Shootist, 2980 S. Galapago St., EnglewoodJuly 10 at 5:30 a.m. – Mile High Armory, 785 S. Vallejo St., DenverWhen investigators arrived at the Centennial Gun Club they found a smashed window. Surveillance video showed nine people trying unsuccessfully to get into the building, all of whom were wearing hoodies or hooded sweatshirts and covering their faces. Problem Solvers: No punishment for detective after teenage son uses duty weapon to shoot homes Video from Bowers Tactical show...