text stringlengths 10 159k | url stringlengths 19 865 | crawl_date timestamp[s]date 2022-02-01 01:02:23 2024-12-02 05:16:38 | lang stringclasses 1 value | lang_conf float64 0.65 1 |
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COVID falling in 49 of 50 states as deaths near 900,000
WASHINGTON - With the brutal omicron wave rapidly loosening its grip, new cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. are falling in 49 of 50 states, even as the nation's death toll closes in on another bleak round number: 900,000.
The number of lives lost to the pandemic in the U.S. stood at over 897,000 as of midday Friday, with deaths running at an average of more than 2,400 a day, back up to where they were last winter, when the vaccine drive was still getting started.
New cases per day have tanked by almost a half-million nationwide since mid-January, the curve trending downward in every state but Maine. And the number of Americans in the hospital with COVID-19 has fallen 15% over that period to about 124,000.
Deaths are still on the rise in at least 35 states, reflecting the lag time between when victims become infected and when they succumb.
But the trends are giving public health officials hope that the worst of omicron is coming to an end, though they caution that things could still go bad again and dangerous new variants could emerge.
Los Angeles County may end outdoor mask requirements in a few weeks, Public Health Director Dr. Barbara Ferrer said Thursday. But that is unlikely to happen before the Feb. 13 Super Bowl, which will draw as many as 100,000 people to SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.
Ferrer said COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations in California’s biggest county are falling, and deaths may start to drop as well.
"Post-surge does not imply that the pandemic is over or that transmission is low, or that there will not be unpredictable waves of surges in the future." she warned.
RELATED: Mayor Garcetti says he holds his breath when taking photos maskless at Rams NFC Championship game
Arizona has also seen its daily case and hospitalization numbers decline, though deaths are still on the rise, climbing from average of about 61 a day last week to almost 79 as of Tuesday.
"We have reason to be hopeful, but we are by no means out of the woods," Elizabeth Jacobs, a University of Arizona professor of epidemiology, said Thursday on Twitter.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said she is calling an end to the state's coronavirus public health emergency, a move that will limit the release of health data.
The step reflects the governor’s long-held belief that it is time to get past pandemic restrictions and move toward the point when COVID-19 becomes, like the flu, a manageable part of everyday life.
Overall, new cases in the U.S. have plummeted from a record-obliterating average of more than 800,000 a day in mid-January to about 357,000.
RELATED: Spain to drop masks outdoors as omicron surge decelerates
____
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AP Reporter Becky Bohrer contributed to this report from Juneau, Alaska. Paul Davenport contributed to this report from Phoenix. Robert Jablon contributed to this report from Los Angeles. | https://www.fox29.com/news/covid-falling-in-49-of-50-states-deaths-near-900000 | 2022-02-04T19:27:38 | en | 0.96671 |
FCC aims to block spam callers from leaving ‘ringless voicemails’ on your phone
WASHINGTON - The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has a new plan to protect Americans from unwanted robocalls left on the voicemails of their phones.
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel introduced the proposal Wednesday which would require callers to obtain a person’s consent before they can leave a direct message in their phone’s voicemail, expanding the scope of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).
The TCPA protects consumers from unwanted robocalls and prohibits callers from making any non-emergency call using an automatic telephone dialing system or a prerecorded voice to a cell phone number without the consent of the person contacted, according to a release from the FCC.
"Ringless voicemail can be annoying, invasive, and can lead to fraud like other robocalls—so it should face the same consumer protection rules," Rosenworcel said in a statement. "No one wants to wade through voicemail spam, or miss important messages because their mailbox is full. This FCC action would continue to empower consumers to choose which parties they give permission to contact them."
The agency did not state when they plan to hold a full commission vote on the proposal.
According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and FCC, illegal robocalls cost Americans $10 billion a year in fraud and $3 billion a year in wasted time. Americans in 2021 received four billion robocalls a month, which is twice as many as they did five years ago.
On June 30, 2021, the FCC implemented an initiative to reduce the amount of robocalls people were receiving. Phone providers nationwide have been instructed to install caller ID verification to confirm whether calls on their network are actually coming from the number on display.
Some smaller phone companies initially had a grace period, but all phone companies were required to notify the FCC by June 30 on their stance to protect their customers from illegal robocalls.
FOX5 DC contributed to this story
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This story was reported from Washington, D.C. | https://www.fox29.com/news/fcc-spam-callers-ringless-voicemails-phones | 2022-02-04T19:27:38 | en | 0.963902 |
Rapper Tdott Woo shot and killed in Brooklyn
NEW YORK - A man who was shot and killed on Avenue L in Canarsie, Brooklyn on Tuesday was reportedly up-and-coming rapper Tdott Woo.
NYPD officers responded to a call at about 2:22 p.m. about a shooting at 9802 Avenue L. When officers arrived, they found the 22-year-old with a gunshot wound to the head and left knee.
EMS took him to Brookdale Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Get breaking news alerts in the free FOX5NY News app! | Sign up for FOX 5 email newsletters
Tajay Dobson, whose stage name was Tdott Woo, created the popular Woo Walk dance move. He was a friend of rapper Pop Smoke, who was gunned down at a Hollywood Hills home in 2020.
"I couldn’t even get sleep last night," Dobson’s grandmother told the NY Daily News. "He was a good, good kid .He loved singing and dancing and all that. He had a passion for music."
Tdott_Woo had recently signed a deal with music label Million Dollar Music.
"Love to welcome tdott_woo to the label as an official artist of MDM and the journey begins," wrote the label on Instagram.
Hours later, the label shared its condolences.
"It’s an honor to remain your friend until your last moments. Your memories will always stay with us no matter where we go & what we do. Sleep in peace." #LongLiveTdott
RELATED: Rap Music on Trial: Jay-Z, Meek Mill want rap lyrics blocked from being used in court
Police were investigating the shooting. Posts on the Citizen app indicated that police were searching for a suspect who fled in a dark-colored SUV.
The shooting may have been connected to a style of music called drill music or drill rapping.
The lyrics in drill are often violent and deal in the gang culture. The name comes from street slang for a fight.
Several blogs that follow the music industry said that he was a Drill rapper and his shooting was in retaliation for the recent shooting of Nas Blixky, a drill rapper from a rival gang.
RELATED: Three men shot in Midtown Manhattan during rap video production
Advertisement | https://www.fox29.com/news/rapper-tdott-woo-shot-dead-in-brooklyn-reports-say | 2022-02-04T19:27:40 | en | 0.978547 |
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The state-by-state winning lottery numbers through Friday:
6-3-5
(six, three, five)
02-06-08-16-42
(two, six, eight, sixteen, forty-two)
01-04-08-15-22-23-26-33-40-43-49-61-67-68-70-71-74-76-77-80
(one, four, eight, fifteen, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-six, thirty-three, forty, forty-three, forty-nine, sixty-one, sixty-seven, sixty-eight, seventy, seventy-one, seventy-four, seventy-six, seventy-seven, eighty)
04-11-18-24
(four, eleven, eighteen, twenty-four)
01-02-06-13-15-21
(one, two, six, thirteen, fifteen, twenty-one)
0-2-3
(zero, two, three)
7-5-1-7
(seven, five, one, seven)
05-06-07-09-13-16-17-19-20-21-22
(five, six, seven, nine, thirteen, sixteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two)
02-03-04-05-07-12-15-18-20-21-22
(two, three, four, five, seven, twelve, fifteen, eighteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two)
1-3-9
(one, three, nine)
3-2-8-1
(three, two, eight, one)
03-15-18-24-25-33, Doubler: N
(three, fifteen, eighteen, twenty-four, twenty-five, thirty-three; Doubler: N)
07-08-14-18-30
(seven, eight, fourteen, eighteen, thirty)
2-9-0
(two, nine, zero)
2-2-1-5
(two, two, one, five) | https://www.expressnews.com/lottery/article/Lottery-State-by-State-17069107.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:05 | en | 0.750396 |
The state-by-state winning lottery numbers through Friday:
6-3-5
(six, three, five)
02-06-08-16-42
(two, six, eight, sixteen, forty-two)
01-04-08-15-22-23-26-33-40-43-49-61-67-68-70-71-74-76-77-80
(one, four, eight, fifteen, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-six, thirty-three, forty, forty-three, forty-nine, sixty-one, sixty-seven, sixty-eight, seventy, seventy-one, seventy-four, seventy-six, seventy-seven, eighty)
04-11-18-24
(four, eleven, eighteen, twenty-four)
01-02-06-13-15-21
(one, two, six, thirteen, fifteen, twenty-one)
0-2-3
(zero, two, three)
7-5-1-7
(seven, five, one, seven)
05-06-07-09-13-16-17-19-20-21-22
(five, six, seven, nine, thirteen, sixteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two)
02-03-04-05-07-12-15-18-20-21-22
(two, three, four, five, seven, twelve, fifteen, eighteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two)
1-3-9
(one, three, nine)
3-2-8-1
(three, two, eight, one)
03-15-18-24-25-33, Doubler: N
(three, fifteen, eighteen, twenty-four, twenty-five, thirty-three; Doubler: N)
07-08-14-18-30
(seven, eight, fourteen, eighteen, thirty)
2-9-0
(two, nine, zero)
2-2-1-5
(two, two, one, five) | https://www.theheraldreview.com/lottery/article/Lottery-State-by-State-17069107.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:09 | en | 0.750396 |
The state-by-state winning lottery numbers through Friday:
2-6-9
(two, six, nine)
02-08-10-26-38
(two, eight, ten, twenty-six, thirty-eight)
01-14-25-30-39-41
(one, fourteen, twenty-five, thirty, thirty-nine, forty-one)
6-7-5
(six, seven, five)
0-0-0
(zero, zero, zero)
3-8-4-7
(three, eight, four, seven)
9-6-8-3
(nine, six, eight, three)
05-08-22-24-32
(five, eight, twenty-two, twenty-four, thirty-two)
2-1-5
(two, one, five)
2-2-8
(two, two, eight)
2-3-7-7
(two, three, seven, seven)
1st:12 Lucky Charms-2nd:3 Hot Shot-3rd:10 Solid Gold, Race Time: 1:40.92
(1st: 12 Lucky Charms, 2nd: 3 Hot Shot, 3rd: 10 Solid Gold; Race Time: one: 40.92)
16-17-22-26-28
(sixteen, seventeen, twenty-two, twenty-six, twenty-eight)
04-06-07-17-32
(four, six, seven, seventeen, thirty-two)
3-7-3
(three, seven, three)
1-2-1
(one, two, one)
01-11-18-25-31
(one, eleven, eighteen, twenty-five, thirty-one)
11-18-25-29-32-40
(eleven, eighteen, twenty-five, twenty-nine, thirty-two, forty)
8-2-2, WB: 3
(eight, two, two; WB: three)
0-6-7, WB: 6
(zero, six, seven; WB: six)
7-5-2-8, WB: 8
(seven, five, two, eight; WB: eight)
2-3-2-1, WB: 7
(two, three, two, one; WB: seven)
03-09-10-15-17-20
(three, nine, ten, fifteen, seventeen, twenty)
4-9-5
(four, nine, five)
0-8-2
(zero, eight, two)
3-6-9-1
(three, six, nine, one)
9-5-6-5
(nine, five, six, five)
0-2
(zero, two)
2-2
(two, two)
7-4-5
(seven, four, five)
2-8-0
(two, eight, zero)
7-3-1-2
(seven, three, one, two)
2-1-1-5
(two, one, one, five)
1-5-6-2-3
(one, five, six, two, three)
1-1-3-0-5
(one, one, three, zero, five)
01-09-11-14-22
(one, nine, eleven, fourteen, twenty-two)
09-19-21-24-32-42
(nine, nineteen, twenty-one, twenty-four, thirty-two, forty-two)
9-8, Fireball: 5
(nine, eight; Fireball: five)
9-8, Fireball: 9
(nine, eight; Fireball: nine)
4-2-3, Fireball: 5
(four, two, three; Fireball: five)
6-4-6, Fireball: 9
(six, four, six; Fireball: nine)
2-0-7-4, Fireball: 5
(two, zero, seven, four; Fireball: five)
9-2-4-8, Fireball: 9
(nine, two, four, eight; Fireball: nine)
8-7-2-0-7, Fireball: 5
(eight, seven, two, zero, seven; Fireball: five)
5-9-3-9-9, Fireball: 9
(five, nine, three, nine, nine; Fireball: nine)
6-0-6
(six, zero, six)
6-1-0
(six, one, zero)
3-2-3
(three, two, three)
3-0-0-3
(three, zero, zero, three)
8-0-2-9
(eight, zero, two, nine)
6-8-9-6
(six, eight, nine, six)
02-04-07-09-29
(two, four, seven, nine, twenty-nine)
1-3-3-5-6
(one, three, three, five, six)
2-2-4-8-1
(two, two, four, eight, one)
07-34-35-40-42
(seven, thirty-four, thirty-five, forty, forty-two)
02-10-18-21-31
(two, ten, eighteen, twenty-one, thirty-one)
5-1-5
(five, one, five)
1-3-4
(one, three, four)
3-1-0-8
(three, one, zero, eight)
7-1-6-9
(seven, one, six, nine)
14-19-22-26-31
(fourteen, nineteen, twenty-two, twenty-six, thirty-one)
08-13-20-28-33
(eight, thirteen, twenty, twenty-eight, thirty-three)
15-22-25-32-43
(fifteen, twenty-two, twenty-five, thirty-two, forty-three)
12-18-20-21-43
(twelve, eighteen, twenty, twenty-one, forty-three)
03-04-06-07-08-10-11-17-28-31-38-43-46-53-66-68-70-72-77-80, BE: 17
(three, four, six, seven, eight, ten, eleven, seventeen, twenty-eight, thirty-one, thirty-eight, forty-three, forty-six, fifty-three, sixty-six, sixty-eight, seventy, seventy-two, seventy-seven, eighty; BE: seventeen)
8-0-9, SB: 6
(eight, zero, nine; SB: six)
2-8-3, SB: 9
(two, eight, three; SB: nine)
2-9-2-1, SB: 6
(two, nine, two, one; SB: six)
8-1-9-4, SB: 9
(eight, one, nine, four; SB: nine)
01-03-05-08-10-12-13-15-16-17-18-24-33-44-53-56-67-68-69-76, BE: 53
(one, three, five, eight, ten, twelve, thirteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, twenty-four, thirty-three, forty-four, fifty-three, fifty-six, sixty-seven, sixty-eight, sixty-nine, seventy-six; BE: fifty-three)
2-8-3
(two, eight, three)
8-0-9
(eight, zero, nine)
8-1-9-4
(eight, one, nine, four)
2-9-2-1
(two, nine, two, one)
2-7-0
(two, seven, zero)
9-3-9
(nine, three, nine)
01-09-28-32, Cash Ball: 23
(one, nine, twenty-eight, thirty-two; Cash Ball: twenty-three)
9-7-3
(nine, seven, three)
1-3-7
(one, three, seven)
3-2-3-7
(three, two, three, seven)
4-5-9-6
(four, five, nine, six)
6-4-3
(six, four, three)
4-9-9-2
(four, nine, nine, two)
0-9-2-6-4
(zero, nine, two, six, four)
AH-2D-3D-2H-6S
(AH, 2D, 3D, 2H, 6S)
10-11-25-36-37, Bonus: 13
(ten, eleven, twenty-five, thirty-six, thirty-seven; Bonus: thirteen)
1-2-3
(one, two, three)
2-8-2
(two, eight, two)
4-7-1-8
(four, seven, one, eight)
6-3-8-9
(six, three, eight, nine)
3-9-0-2-0
(three, nine, zero, two, zero)
3-0-2-4-6
(three, zero, two, four, six)
02-11-12-14-23
(two, eleven, twelve, fourteen, twenty-three)
6-7-7-1
(six, seven, seven, one)
7-6-6-2
(seven, six, six, two)
06-08-13-21-28
(six, eight, thirteen, twenty-one, twenty-eight)
KD-AD-10C-8H-10S
(KD, AD, 10C, 8H, 10S)
2-6-9
(two, six, nine)
7-6-4-7
(seven, six, four, seven)
2-0-0
(two, zero, zero)
6-0-3-0
(six, zero, three, zero)
03-12-17-27-30
(three, twelve, seventeen, twenty-seven, thirty)
03-05-08-11-12-13-16-17-19-22-29-30-32-48-49-53-55-58-60-61-66-67
(three, five, eight, eleven, twelve, thirteen, sixteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty-two, twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-two, forty-eight, forty-nine, fifty-three, fifty-five, fifty-eight, sixty, sixty-one, sixty-six, sixty-seven)
5-0-0
(five, zero, zero)
18-24-27-37-39
(eighteen, twenty-four, twenty-seven, thirty-seven, thirty-nine)
03-04-10-19-23
(three, four, ten, nineteen, twenty-three)
5-0-1
(five, zero, one)
0-8-5
(zero, eight, five)
8-8-2-1
(eight, eight, two, one)
3-6-4-6
(three, six, four, six)
04-06-16-26-38
(four, six, sixteen, twenty-six, thirty-eight)
04-16-19-22, Bonus: 8
(four, sixteen, nineteen, twenty-two; Bonus: eight)
Month: 2, Day: 21, Year: 55
(Month: two; Day: twenty-one; Year: fifty-five)
1-0-9
(one, zero, nine)
03-04-07-13-14
(three, four, seven, thirteen, fourteen)
5-2-0, Fireball: 9
(five, two, zero; Fireball: nine)
2-1-1-6, Fireball: 9
(two, one, one, six; Fireball: nine)
03-08-13-27-38, Xtra: 2
(three, eight, thirteen, twenty-seven, thirty-eight; Xtra: two)
9-8-9, Fireball: 9
(nine, eight, nine; Fireball: nine)
0-7-1-8, Fireball: 9
(zero, seven, one, eight; Fireball: nine)
7-2-8
(seven, two, eight)
3-7-7
(three, seven, seven)
0-1-5-8
(zero, one, five, eight)
4-9-9-6
(four, nine, nine, six)
05-12-19-26-34
(five, twelve, nineteen, twenty-six, thirty-four)
01-16-32-37-39
(one, sixteen, thirty-two, thirty-seven, thirty-nine)
5-6-2
(five, six, two)
2-1-3-0
(two, one, three, zero)
3-8-8
(three, eight, eight)
8-4-8-1
(eight, four, eight, one)
04-08-11-15-20
(four, eight, eleven, fifteen, twenty)
02-04-08-10-11-16-23-29-37-39-48-50-53-55-58-61-62-65-74-76
(two, four, eight, ten, eleven, sixteen, twenty-three, twenty-nine, thirty-seven, thirty-nine, forty-eight, fifty, fifty-three, fifty-five, fifty-eight, sixty-one, sixty-two, sixty-five, seventy-four, seventy-six)
07-11-13-23-34
(seven, eleven, thirteen, twenty-three, thirty-four)
7-6-4, Lucky Sum: 17
(seven, six, four; Lucky Sum: seventeen)
7-3-9, Lucky Sum: 19
(seven, three, nine; Lucky Sum: nineteen)
2-0-7-2, Lucky Sum: 11
(two, zero, seven, two; Lucky Sum: eleven)
6-8-8-7, Lucky Sum: 29
(six, eight, eight, seven; Lucky Sum: twenty-nine)
4-8-7
(four, eight, seven)
8-9-2
(eight, nine, two)
0-0-4-1
(zero, zero, four, one)
0-9-3-1
(zero, nine, three, one)
9-9-8-1-4
(nine, nine, eight, one, four)
3-0-4-5-1
(three, zero, four, five, one)
02-10-28-29-34
(two, ten, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty-four)
04-23-28-29-33
(four, twenty-three, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty-three)
8-7-0
(eight, seven, zero)
02-06-10-15-19-23-26-32
(two, six, ten, fifteen, nineteen, twenty-three, twenty-six, thirty-two)
6-7-1-8
(six, seven, one, eight)
8-1-7-6
(eight, one, seven, six)
4-4-3-2
(four, four, three, two)
3-3-2-3
(three, three, two, three)
17-21-36-40-41
(seventeen, twenty-one, thirty-six, forty, forty-one)
04-17-18-23-41-45
(four, seventeen, eighteen, twenty-three, forty-one, forty-five)
8-9, Wild: 7
(eight, nine; Wild: seven)
3-4, Wild: 8
(three, four; Wild: eight)
1-9-1, Wild: 7
(one, nine, one; Wild: seven)
9-6-3, Wild: 8
(nine, six, three; Wild: eight)
0-8-0-9, Wild: 7
(zero, eight, zero, nine; Wild: seven)
3-8-3-4, Wild: 8
(three, eight, three, four; Wild: eight)
5-5-5-7-2, Wild: 7
(five, five, five, seven, two; Wild: seven)
5-9-5-0-2, Wild: 8
(five, nine, five, zero, two; Wild: eight)
04-11-16-17-27
(four, eleven, sixteen, seventeen, twenty-seven)
9-6-1-8
(nine, six, one, eight)
4-4-8-6
(four, four, eight, six)
02-14-21-30-37, Extra: 20
(two, fourteen, twenty-one, thirty, thirty-seven; Extra: twenty)
05-15-21-32-35, Power-Up: 3
(five, fifteen, twenty-one, thirty-two, thirty-five; Power, Up: three)
1-1-5, FB: 1
(one, one, five; FB: one)
3-9-2, FB: 8
(three, nine, two; FB: eight)
8-9-9-7, FB: 1
(eight, nine, nine, seven; FB: one)
0-8-8-2, FB: 8
(zero, eight, eight, two; FB: eight)
5-4-5, Wild: 4
(five, four, five; Wild: four)
6-7-2, Wild:
(six, seven, two; Wild: zero)
7-6-1, Wild: 2
(seven, six, one; Wild: two)
3-1-9-0, Wild: 4
(three, one, nine, zero; Wild: four)
1-8-3-2, Wild: 5
(one, eight, three, two; Wild: five)
8-5-7-7, Wild: 2
(eight, five, seven, seven; Wild: two)
10-19-27-31-34, Bonus: 2
(ten, nineteen, twenty-seven, thirty-one, thirty-four; Bonus: two)
01-04-06-07-09-15-16-18-20-22-23-24
(one, four, six, seven, nine, fifteen, sixteen, eighteen, twenty, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four)
06-08-11-12-14-15-16-17-19-21-22-24
(six, eight, eleven, twelve, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-four)
01-04-06-08-12-14-15-16-17-18-19-23
(one, four, six, eight, twelve, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty-three)
02-04-06-10-11-13-14-19-20-21-22-23
(two, four, six, ten, eleven, thirteen, fourteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three)
01-05-16-26-34
(one, five, sixteen, twenty-six, thirty-four)
9-6-2-2, FIREBALL: 6
(nine, six, two, two; FIREBALL: six)
2-2-0-3, FIREBALL: 5
(two, two, zero, three; FIREBALL: five)
2-7-3-6, FIREBALL: 9
(two, seven, three, six; FIREBALL: nine)
5-9-1-0, FIREBALL:
(five, nine, one, zero; FIREBALL: zero)
6-7-1, FIREBALL:
(six, seven, one; FIREBALL: zero)
8-3-1, FIREBALL: 1
(eight, three, one; FIREBALL: one)
0-6-8, FIREBALL: 3
(zero, six, eight; FIREBALL: three)
3-8-0, FIREBALL: 3
(three, eight, zero; FIREBALL: three)
03-06-12-20-32
(three, six, twelve, twenty, thirty-two)
3-1-6, FB: 6
(three, one, six; FB: six)
3-9-3, FB: 7
(three, nine, three; FB: seven)
1-3-1-5, FB: 7
(one, three, one, five; FB: seven)
3-5-7-0, FB: 4
(three, five, seven, zero; FB: four)
6-3-5
(six, three, five)
02-06-08-16-42
(two, six, eight, sixteen, forty-two)
01-04-08-15-22-23-26-33-40-43-49-61-67-68-70-71-74-76-77-80
(one, four, eight, fifteen, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-six, thirty-three, forty, forty-three, forty-nine, sixty-one, sixty-seven, sixty-eight, seventy, seventy-one, seventy-four, seventy-six, seventy-seven, eighty)
04-11-18-24
(four, eleven, eighteen, twenty-four)
01-02-06-13-15-21
(one, two, six, thirteen, fifteen, twenty-one)
0-2-3
(zero, two, three)
7-5-1-7
(seven, five, one, seven)
05-06-07-09-13-16-17-19-20-21-22
(five, six, seven, nine, thirteen, sixteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two)
02-03-04-05-07-12-15-18-20-21-22
(two, three, four, five, seven, twelve, fifteen, eighteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two)
1-3-9
(one, three, nine)
3-2-8-1
(three, two, eight, one)
03-15-18-24-25-33, Doubler: N
(three, fifteen, eighteen, twenty-four, twenty-five, thirty-three; Doubler: N)
07-08-14-18-30
(seven, eight, fourteen, eighteen, thirty)
2-9-0
(two, nine, zero)
2-2-1-5
(two, two, one, five) | https://www.expressnews.com/lottery/article/Lottery-State-by-State-All-17069108.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:11 | en | 0.685651 |
The state-by-state winning lottery numbers through Friday:
2-6-9
(two, six, nine)
02-08-10-26-38
(two, eight, ten, twenty-six, thirty-eight)
01-14-25-30-39-41
(one, fourteen, twenty-five, thirty, thirty-nine, forty-one)
6-7-5
(six, seven, five)
0-0-0
(zero, zero, zero)
3-8-4-7
(three, eight, four, seven)
9-6-8-3
(nine, six, eight, three)
05-08-22-24-32
(five, eight, twenty-two, twenty-four, thirty-two)
2-1-5
(two, one, five)
2-2-8
(two, two, eight)
2-3-7-7
(two, three, seven, seven)
1st:12 Lucky Charms-2nd:3 Hot Shot-3rd:10 Solid Gold, Race Time: 1:40.92
(1st: 12 Lucky Charms, 2nd: 3 Hot Shot, 3rd: 10 Solid Gold; Race Time: one: 40.92)
16-17-22-26-28
(sixteen, seventeen, twenty-two, twenty-six, twenty-eight)
04-06-07-17-32
(four, six, seven, seventeen, thirty-two)
3-7-3
(three, seven, three)
1-2-1
(one, two, one)
01-11-18-25-31
(one, eleven, eighteen, twenty-five, thirty-one)
11-18-25-29-32-40
(eleven, eighteen, twenty-five, twenty-nine, thirty-two, forty)
8-2-2, WB: 3
(eight, two, two; WB: three)
0-6-7, WB: 6
(zero, six, seven; WB: six)
7-5-2-8, WB: 8
(seven, five, two, eight; WB: eight)
2-3-2-1, WB: 7
(two, three, two, one; WB: seven)
03-09-10-15-17-20
(three, nine, ten, fifteen, seventeen, twenty)
4-9-5
(four, nine, five)
0-8-2
(zero, eight, two)
3-6-9-1
(three, six, nine, one)
9-5-6-5
(nine, five, six, five)
0-2
(zero, two)
2-2
(two, two)
7-4-5
(seven, four, five)
2-8-0
(two, eight, zero)
7-3-1-2
(seven, three, one, two)
2-1-1-5
(two, one, one, five)
1-5-6-2-3
(one, five, six, two, three)
1-1-3-0-5
(one, one, three, zero, five)
01-09-11-14-22
(one, nine, eleven, fourteen, twenty-two)
09-19-21-24-32-42
(nine, nineteen, twenty-one, twenty-four, thirty-two, forty-two)
9-8, Fireball: 5
(nine, eight; Fireball: five)
9-8, Fireball: 9
(nine, eight; Fireball: nine)
4-2-3, Fireball: 5
(four, two, three; Fireball: five)
6-4-6, Fireball: 9
(six, four, six; Fireball: nine)
2-0-7-4, Fireball: 5
(two, zero, seven, four; Fireball: five)
9-2-4-8, Fireball: 9
(nine, two, four, eight; Fireball: nine)
8-7-2-0-7, Fireball: 5
(eight, seven, two, zero, seven; Fireball: five)
5-9-3-9-9, Fireball: 9
(five, nine, three, nine, nine; Fireball: nine)
6-0-6
(six, zero, six)
6-1-0
(six, one, zero)
3-2-3
(three, two, three)
3-0-0-3
(three, zero, zero, three)
8-0-2-9
(eight, zero, two, nine)
6-8-9-6
(six, eight, nine, six)
02-04-07-09-29
(two, four, seven, nine, twenty-nine)
1-3-3-5-6
(one, three, three, five, six)
2-2-4-8-1
(two, two, four, eight, one)
07-34-35-40-42
(seven, thirty-four, thirty-five, forty, forty-two)
02-10-18-21-31
(two, ten, eighteen, twenty-one, thirty-one)
5-1-5
(five, one, five)
1-3-4
(one, three, four)
3-1-0-8
(three, one, zero, eight)
7-1-6-9
(seven, one, six, nine)
14-19-22-26-31
(fourteen, nineteen, twenty-two, twenty-six, thirty-one)
08-13-20-28-33
(eight, thirteen, twenty, twenty-eight, thirty-three)
15-22-25-32-43
(fifteen, twenty-two, twenty-five, thirty-two, forty-three)
12-18-20-21-43
(twelve, eighteen, twenty, twenty-one, forty-three)
03-04-06-07-08-10-11-17-28-31-38-43-46-53-66-68-70-72-77-80, BE: 17
(three, four, six, seven, eight, ten, eleven, seventeen, twenty-eight, thirty-one, thirty-eight, forty-three, forty-six, fifty-three, sixty-six, sixty-eight, seventy, seventy-two, seventy-seven, eighty; BE: seventeen)
8-0-9, SB: 6
(eight, zero, nine; SB: six)
2-8-3, SB: 9
(two, eight, three; SB: nine)
2-9-2-1, SB: 6
(two, nine, two, one; SB: six)
8-1-9-4, SB: 9
(eight, one, nine, four; SB: nine)
01-03-05-08-10-12-13-15-16-17-18-24-33-44-53-56-67-68-69-76, BE: 53
(one, three, five, eight, ten, twelve, thirteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, twenty-four, thirty-three, forty-four, fifty-three, fifty-six, sixty-seven, sixty-eight, sixty-nine, seventy-six; BE: fifty-three)
2-8-3
(two, eight, three)
8-0-9
(eight, zero, nine)
8-1-9-4
(eight, one, nine, four)
2-9-2-1
(two, nine, two, one)
2-7-0
(two, seven, zero)
9-3-9
(nine, three, nine)
01-09-28-32, Cash Ball: 23
(one, nine, twenty-eight, thirty-two; Cash Ball: twenty-three)
9-7-3
(nine, seven, three)
1-3-7
(one, three, seven)
3-2-3-7
(three, two, three, seven)
4-5-9-6
(four, five, nine, six)
6-4-3
(six, four, three)
4-9-9-2
(four, nine, nine, two)
0-9-2-6-4
(zero, nine, two, six, four)
AH-2D-3D-2H-6S
(AH, 2D, 3D, 2H, 6S)
10-11-25-36-37, Bonus: 13
(ten, eleven, twenty-five, thirty-six, thirty-seven; Bonus: thirteen)
1-2-3
(one, two, three)
2-8-2
(two, eight, two)
4-7-1-8
(four, seven, one, eight)
6-3-8-9
(six, three, eight, nine)
3-9-0-2-0
(three, nine, zero, two, zero)
3-0-2-4-6
(three, zero, two, four, six)
02-11-12-14-23
(two, eleven, twelve, fourteen, twenty-three)
6-7-7-1
(six, seven, seven, one)
7-6-6-2
(seven, six, six, two)
06-08-13-21-28
(six, eight, thirteen, twenty-one, twenty-eight)
KD-AD-10C-8H-10S
(KD, AD, 10C, 8H, 10S)
2-6-9
(two, six, nine)
7-6-4-7
(seven, six, four, seven)
2-0-0
(two, zero, zero)
6-0-3-0
(six, zero, three, zero)
03-12-17-27-30
(three, twelve, seventeen, twenty-seven, thirty)
03-05-08-11-12-13-16-17-19-22-29-30-32-48-49-53-55-58-60-61-66-67
(three, five, eight, eleven, twelve, thirteen, sixteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty-two, twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-two, forty-eight, forty-nine, fifty-three, fifty-five, fifty-eight, sixty, sixty-one, sixty-six, sixty-seven)
5-0-0
(five, zero, zero)
18-24-27-37-39
(eighteen, twenty-four, twenty-seven, thirty-seven, thirty-nine)
03-04-10-19-23
(three, four, ten, nineteen, twenty-three)
5-0-1
(five, zero, one)
0-8-5
(zero, eight, five)
8-8-2-1
(eight, eight, two, one)
3-6-4-6
(three, six, four, six)
04-06-16-26-38
(four, six, sixteen, twenty-six, thirty-eight)
04-16-19-22, Bonus: 8
(four, sixteen, nineteen, twenty-two; Bonus: eight)
Month: 2, Day: 21, Year: 55
(Month: two; Day: twenty-one; Year: fifty-five)
1-0-9
(one, zero, nine)
03-04-07-13-14
(three, four, seven, thirteen, fourteen)
5-2-0, Fireball: 9
(five, two, zero; Fireball: nine)
2-1-1-6, Fireball: 9
(two, one, one, six; Fireball: nine)
03-08-13-27-38, Xtra: 2
(three, eight, thirteen, twenty-seven, thirty-eight; Xtra: two)
9-8-9, Fireball: 9
(nine, eight, nine; Fireball: nine)
0-7-1-8, Fireball: 9
(zero, seven, one, eight; Fireball: nine)
7-2-8
(seven, two, eight)
3-7-7
(three, seven, seven)
0-1-5-8
(zero, one, five, eight)
4-9-9-6
(four, nine, nine, six)
05-12-19-26-34
(five, twelve, nineteen, twenty-six, thirty-four)
01-16-32-37-39
(one, sixteen, thirty-two, thirty-seven, thirty-nine)
5-6-2
(five, six, two)
2-1-3-0
(two, one, three, zero)
3-8-8
(three, eight, eight)
8-4-8-1
(eight, four, eight, one)
04-08-11-15-20
(four, eight, eleven, fifteen, twenty)
02-04-08-10-11-16-23-29-37-39-48-50-53-55-58-61-62-65-74-76
(two, four, eight, ten, eleven, sixteen, twenty-three, twenty-nine, thirty-seven, thirty-nine, forty-eight, fifty, fifty-three, fifty-five, fifty-eight, sixty-one, sixty-two, sixty-five, seventy-four, seventy-six)
07-11-13-23-34
(seven, eleven, thirteen, twenty-three, thirty-four)
7-6-4, Lucky Sum: 17
(seven, six, four; Lucky Sum: seventeen)
7-3-9, Lucky Sum: 19
(seven, three, nine; Lucky Sum: nineteen)
2-0-7-2, Lucky Sum: 11
(two, zero, seven, two; Lucky Sum: eleven)
6-8-8-7, Lucky Sum: 29
(six, eight, eight, seven; Lucky Sum: twenty-nine)
4-8-7
(four, eight, seven)
8-9-2
(eight, nine, two)
0-0-4-1
(zero, zero, four, one)
0-9-3-1
(zero, nine, three, one)
9-9-8-1-4
(nine, nine, eight, one, four)
3-0-4-5-1
(three, zero, four, five, one)
02-10-28-29-34
(two, ten, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty-four)
04-23-28-29-33
(four, twenty-three, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty-three)
8-7-0
(eight, seven, zero)
02-06-10-15-19-23-26-32
(two, six, ten, fifteen, nineteen, twenty-three, twenty-six, thirty-two)
6-7-1-8
(six, seven, one, eight)
8-1-7-6
(eight, one, seven, six)
4-4-3-2
(four, four, three, two)
3-3-2-3
(three, three, two, three)
17-21-36-40-41
(seventeen, twenty-one, thirty-six, forty, forty-one)
04-17-18-23-41-45
(four, seventeen, eighteen, twenty-three, forty-one, forty-five)
8-9, Wild: 7
(eight, nine; Wild: seven)
3-4, Wild: 8
(three, four; Wild: eight)
1-9-1, Wild: 7
(one, nine, one; Wild: seven)
9-6-3, Wild: 8
(nine, six, three; Wild: eight)
0-8-0-9, Wild: 7
(zero, eight, zero, nine; Wild: seven)
3-8-3-4, Wild: 8
(three, eight, three, four; Wild: eight)
5-5-5-7-2, Wild: 7
(five, five, five, seven, two; Wild: seven)
5-9-5-0-2, Wild: 8
(five, nine, five, zero, two; Wild: eight)
04-11-16-17-27
(four, eleven, sixteen, seventeen, twenty-seven)
9-6-1-8
(nine, six, one, eight)
4-4-8-6
(four, four, eight, six)
02-14-21-30-37, Extra: 20
(two, fourteen, twenty-one, thirty, thirty-seven; Extra: twenty)
05-15-21-32-35, Power-Up: 3
(five, fifteen, twenty-one, thirty-two, thirty-five; Power, Up: three)
1-1-5, FB: 1
(one, one, five; FB: one)
3-9-2, FB: 8
(three, nine, two; FB: eight)
8-9-9-7, FB: 1
(eight, nine, nine, seven; FB: one)
0-8-8-2, FB: 8
(zero, eight, eight, two; FB: eight)
5-4-5, Wild: 4
(five, four, five; Wild: four)
6-7-2, Wild:
(six, seven, two; Wild: zero)
7-6-1, Wild: 2
(seven, six, one; Wild: two)
3-1-9-0, Wild: 4
(three, one, nine, zero; Wild: four)
1-8-3-2, Wild: 5
(one, eight, three, two; Wild: five)
8-5-7-7, Wild: 2
(eight, five, seven, seven; Wild: two)
10-19-27-31-34, Bonus: 2
(ten, nineteen, twenty-seven, thirty-one, thirty-four; Bonus: two)
01-04-06-07-09-15-16-18-20-22-23-24
(one, four, six, seven, nine, fifteen, sixteen, eighteen, twenty, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four)
06-08-11-12-14-15-16-17-19-21-22-24
(six, eight, eleven, twelve, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-four)
01-04-06-08-12-14-15-16-17-18-19-23
(one, four, six, eight, twelve, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty-three)
02-04-06-10-11-13-14-19-20-21-22-23
(two, four, six, ten, eleven, thirteen, fourteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three)
01-05-16-26-34
(one, five, sixteen, twenty-six, thirty-four)
9-6-2-2, FIREBALL: 6
(nine, six, two, two; FIREBALL: six)
2-2-0-3, FIREBALL: 5
(two, two, zero, three; FIREBALL: five)
2-7-3-6, FIREBALL: 9
(two, seven, three, six; FIREBALL: nine)
5-9-1-0, FIREBALL:
(five, nine, one, zero; FIREBALL: zero)
6-7-1, FIREBALL:
(six, seven, one; FIREBALL: zero)
8-3-1, FIREBALL: 1
(eight, three, one; FIREBALL: one)
0-6-8, FIREBALL: 3
(zero, six, eight; FIREBALL: three)
3-8-0, FIREBALL: 3
(three, eight, zero; FIREBALL: three)
03-06-12-20-32
(three, six, twelve, twenty, thirty-two)
3-1-6, FB: 6
(three, one, six; FB: six)
3-9-3, FB: 7
(three, nine, three; FB: seven)
1-3-1-5, FB: 7
(one, three, one, five; FB: seven)
3-5-7-0, FB: 4
(three, five, seven, zero; FB: four)
6-3-5
(six, three, five)
02-06-08-16-42
(two, six, eight, sixteen, forty-two)
01-04-08-15-22-23-26-33-40-43-49-61-67-68-70-71-74-76-77-80
(one, four, eight, fifteen, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-six, thirty-three, forty, forty-three, forty-nine, sixty-one, sixty-seven, sixty-eight, seventy, seventy-one, seventy-four, seventy-six, seventy-seven, eighty)
04-11-18-24
(four, eleven, eighteen, twenty-four)
01-02-06-13-15-21
(one, two, six, thirteen, fifteen, twenty-one)
0-2-3
(zero, two, three)
7-5-1-7
(seven, five, one, seven)
05-06-07-09-13-16-17-19-20-21-22
(five, six, seven, nine, thirteen, sixteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two)
02-03-04-05-07-12-15-18-20-21-22
(two, three, four, five, seven, twelve, fifteen, eighteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two)
1-3-9
(one, three, nine)
3-2-8-1
(three, two, eight, one)
03-15-18-24-25-33, Doubler: N
(three, fifteen, eighteen, twenty-four, twenty-five, thirty-three; Doubler: N)
07-08-14-18-30
(seven, eight, fourteen, eighteen, thirty)
2-9-0
(two, nine, zero)
2-2-1-5
(two, two, one, five) | https://www.theheraldreview.com/lottery/article/Lottery-State-by-State-All-17069108.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:15 | en | 0.685651 |
ATLANTA (AP) — When she ended her first bid to become Georgia governor in 2018, Stacey Abrams announced plans to sue over the way the state's elections were managed. More than three years later, as she makes another run at the governor's mansion, the lawsuit is going to trial.
Filed in November 2018 by Abrams' Fair Fight Action organization, the suit alleged that state officials "grossly mismanaged” the election, depriving some citizens, particularly low-income people and people of color, of their right to vote. The lawsuit originally called for a sweeping overhaul of the state's elections, but its scope was considerably narrowed after the state made changes that addressed some allegations and others were dismissed by the court. The trial is set to begin Monday.
Even if U.S. District Judge Steve Jones sides with the plaintiffs, it’s unclear whether that will affect elections this year. Jones and other federal judges have been reluctant to order last-minute changes, noting that the Supreme Court has repeatedly said federal judges shouldn’t alter rules “on the eve of an election."
In the months preceding the 2018 election, Abrams, a Democrat, accused her Republican opponent in the governor’s race, then-Secretary of State Brian Kemp, of using his position as Georgia's chief elections officer to promote voter suppression, an allegation Kemp has vehemently denied.
In the more than three years since that fiercely fought contest captured national attention, the focus on Georgia's elections has only intensified. Problems during the 2020 primary drew sharp criticism. Later that year, former President Donald Trump hurled insults at state officials who declined to overturn his narrow general election loss in the state. And the nation watched closely in January 2021 as a pair of Democrats unseated the state’s two incumbent Republican U.S. senators.
Numerous GOP-led state legislatures passed election bills last year after Trump stoked false claims that widespread fraud led to his 2020 defeat. Georgia's bill, which Kemp signed into law a year ago, was one of the broadest. Among other things, the state's measure reduced the window to request an absentee ballot, stripped power from the secretary of state and sharply curtailed the use of absentee ballot drop boxes in populous and Democratic-voting metro Atlanta counties. Voting rights groups and the U.S. Department of Justice promptly sued; those lawsuits are pending.
Republicans in Georgia this year passed legislation to let the Georgia Bureau of Investigation initiate probes into alleged election wrongdoing.
Meanwhile, Abrams, a state lawmaker who was little known outside Georgia when she ran four years ago, has become a household name and Democratic Party star. The only Democrat running for governor, she'll face Kemp again in November if he fends off a primary challenge from former U.S. Sen. David Perdue.
Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger accused Abrams and her allies of trying to undermine the integrity of Georgia elections.
“Her 3-year ‘stolen election’ campaign has been nothing more than a political stunt to keep her in the national spotlight, and it’s a disservice to Georgia voters,” he said in an emailed statement.
Fair Fight says it works to promote voting rights and support progressive candidates around the country, and its PAC has raised more than $100 million since its founding. It filed the lawsuit along with Care in Action, a nonprofit that advocates for domestic workers. Several churches have also joined as plaintiffs.
Fair Fight collected statements from people who said they had problems voting. The lawsuit cited multiple alleged problems, including the purging of eligible voters from voter rolls under a “use it or lose it” policy; the state’s so-called exact match voter registration rules; an insufficient number of voting machines at some precincts; and a lack of sufficient training for election officials. It asked a federal judge to find that Georgia’s elections processes violated the U.S. Constitution and federal law.
“Since the start of this lawsuit, we have highlighted real voters and their challenges because we believe that is one of the most effective ways to demonstrate the barriers in Georgia’s elections system," Fair Fight executive director Cianti Stewart-Reid said in an emailed statement. She added that voters from around the state will testify at trial about obstacles faced while trying to vote.
Some of the alleged problems were addressed by changes in state law. For example, a 2019 law called for replacing the state's outdated voting machines. The new system was implemented statewide in 2020.
In February 2021, Jones threw out parts of the lawsuit, saying some allegations were made irrelevant by changes in state law or the plaintiffs’ lack of standing. Among them were some of the claims about voting machines and election technology, as well as the security of voter lists and polling place issues. The following month, Jones dismissed claims targeting the “use it or lose it” policy and some allegations of inadequate training of poll workers. He also dismissed some claims relating to provisional and absentee ballots.
The issues remaining for the trial have to do with the “exact match” policy, the statewide voter registration list and in-person cancellation of absentee ballots. The plaintiffs claim that Georgia's secretary of state and State Election Board members are “denying and abridging Georgians' right to vote" in violation of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the U.S. Constitution.
Under the “exact match” policy, information from voter registration applications is checked against information held by the state Department of Driver Services or the federal Social Security Administration. If there's a discrepancy, the would-be voter must show identification to county officials before being able to cast a regular ballot.
The plaintiffs say data entry errors or differences as minor as a missing hyphen or apostrophe can trigger a non-match and that naturalized citizens can also be wrongly flagged as noncitizens if records are outdated. These problems disproportionately affect people of color and can depend on where a person lives because counties do things differently, the plaintiffs say.
The statewide voter registration database is “error-ridden,” the plaintiffs say, resulting in the erroneous deletion of eligible voters' registration or critical information being incorrect. That can prevent eligible voters from being able to vote or force them to overcome undue burdens to do so, the plaintiffs say.
The plaintiffs also say election officials aren't sufficiently trained on canceling an absentee ballot if someone chooses to vote in person instead, which can cause voters to be turned away or forced to cast a provisional ballot.
Lawyers for the state argue the claims in the lawsuit “are not supported by the evidence.” The number, geographic scope and severity of the alleged problems experienced by voters identified by the plaintiffs “do not rise to a level sufficient to demonstrate an unconstitutional burden on voting in Georgia,” state lawyers wrote in a filing. Additionally, they argue, the alleged problems cited are not the responsibility of the state officials named in the lawsuit. | https://www.theheraldreview.com/news/article/Abrams-backed-election-lawsuit-goes-to-trial-in-17069084.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:22 | en | 0.972176 |
ATLANTA (AP) — When she ended her first bid to become Georgia governor in 2018, Stacey Abrams announced plans to sue over the way the state's elections were managed. More than three years later, as she makes another run at the governor's mansion, the lawsuit is going to trial.
Filed in November 2018 by Abrams' Fair Fight Action organization, the suit alleged that state officials "grossly mismanaged” the election, depriving some citizens, particularly low-income people and people of color, of their right to vote. The lawsuit originally called for a sweeping overhaul of the state's elections, but its scope was considerably narrowed after the state made changes that addressed some allegations and others were dismissed by the court. The trial is set to begin Monday.
Even if U.S. District Judge Steve Jones sides with the plaintiffs, it’s unclear whether that will affect elections this year. Jones and other federal judges have been reluctant to order last-minute changes, noting that the Supreme Court has repeatedly said federal judges shouldn’t alter rules “on the eve of an election."
In the months preceding the 2018 election, Abrams, a Democrat, accused her Republican opponent in the governor’s race, then-Secretary of State Brian Kemp, of using his position as Georgia's chief elections officer to promote voter suppression, an allegation Kemp has vehemently denied.
In the more than three years since that fiercely fought contest captured national attention, the focus on Georgia's elections has only intensified. Problems during the 2020 primary drew sharp criticism. Later that year, former President Donald Trump hurled insults at state officials who declined to overturn his narrow general election loss in the state. And the nation watched closely in January 2021 as a pair of Democrats unseated the state’s two incumbent Republican U.S. senators.
Numerous GOP-led state legislatures passed election bills last year after Trump stoked false claims that widespread fraud led to his 2020 defeat. Georgia's bill, which Kemp signed into law a year ago, was one of the broadest. Among other things, the state's measure reduced the window to request an absentee ballot, stripped power from the secretary of state and sharply curtailed the use of absentee ballot drop boxes in populous and Democratic-voting metro Atlanta counties. Voting rights groups and the U.S. Department of Justice promptly sued; those lawsuits are pending.
Republicans in Georgia this year passed legislation to let the Georgia Bureau of Investigation initiate probes into alleged election wrongdoing.
Meanwhile, Abrams, a state lawmaker who was little known outside Georgia when she ran four years ago, has become a household name and Democratic Party star. The only Democrat running for governor, she'll face Kemp again in November if he fends off a primary challenge from former U.S. Sen. David Perdue.
Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger accused Abrams and her allies of trying to undermine the integrity of Georgia elections.
“Her 3-year ‘stolen election’ campaign has been nothing more than a political stunt to keep her in the national spotlight, and it’s a disservice to Georgia voters,” he said in an emailed statement.
Fair Fight says it works to promote voting rights and support progressive candidates around the country, and its PAC has raised more than $100 million since its founding. It filed the lawsuit along with Care in Action, a nonprofit that advocates for domestic workers. Several churches have also joined as plaintiffs.
Fair Fight collected statements from people who said they had problems voting. The lawsuit cited multiple alleged problems, including the purging of eligible voters from voter rolls under a “use it or lose it” policy; the state’s so-called exact match voter registration rules; an insufficient number of voting machines at some precincts; and a lack of sufficient training for election officials. It asked a federal judge to find that Georgia’s elections processes violated the U.S. Constitution and federal law.
“Since the start of this lawsuit, we have highlighted real voters and their challenges because we believe that is one of the most effective ways to demonstrate the barriers in Georgia’s elections system," Fair Fight executive director Cianti Stewart-Reid said in an emailed statement. She added that voters from around the state will testify at trial about obstacles faced while trying to vote.
Some of the alleged problems were addressed by changes in state law. For example, a 2019 law called for replacing the state's outdated voting machines. The new system was implemented statewide in 2020.
In February 2021, Jones threw out parts of the lawsuit, saying some allegations were made irrelevant by changes in state law or the plaintiffs’ lack of standing. Among them were some of the claims about voting machines and election technology, as well as the security of voter lists and polling place issues. The following month, Jones dismissed claims targeting the “use it or lose it” policy and some allegations of inadequate training of poll workers. He also dismissed some claims relating to provisional and absentee ballots.
The issues remaining for the trial have to do with the “exact match” policy, the statewide voter registration list and in-person cancellation of absentee ballots. The plaintiffs claim that Georgia's secretary of state and State Election Board members are “denying and abridging Georgians' right to vote" in violation of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the U.S. Constitution.
Under the “exact match” policy, information from voter registration applications is checked against information held by the state Department of Driver Services or the federal Social Security Administration. If there's a discrepancy, the would-be voter must show identification to county officials before being able to cast a regular ballot.
The plaintiffs say data entry errors or differences as minor as a missing hyphen or apostrophe can trigger a non-match and that naturalized citizens can also be wrongly flagged as noncitizens if records are outdated. These problems disproportionately affect people of color and can depend on where a person lives because counties do things differently, the plaintiffs say.
The statewide voter registration database is “error-ridden,” the plaintiffs say, resulting in the erroneous deletion of eligible voters' registration or critical information being incorrect. That can prevent eligible voters from being able to vote or force them to overcome undue burdens to do so, the plaintiffs say.
The plaintiffs also say election officials aren't sufficiently trained on canceling an absentee ballot if someone chooses to vote in person instead, which can cause voters to be turned away or forced to cast a provisional ballot.
Lawyers for the state argue the claims in the lawsuit “are not supported by the evidence.” The number, geographic scope and severity of the alleged problems experienced by voters identified by the plaintiffs “do not rise to a level sufficient to demonstrate an unconstitutional burden on voting in Georgia,” state lawyers wrote in a filing. Additionally, they argue, the alleged problems cited are not the responsibility of the state officials named in the lawsuit. | https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/Abrams-backed-election-lawsuit-goes-to-trial-in-17069084.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:24 | en | 0.972176 |
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A shopping spree in Beverly Hills, a luxury vacation in Mexico, a bank account that jumped from $299.77 to $1.4 million overnight.
From the outside, it looked like Moe and Kateryna Abourched had won the lottery.
But this big payday didn't come from lucky numbers. Rather, a public school district in Michigan was tricked into wiring its monthly health insurance payment to the bank account of a California nail salon the Abourcheds owned, according to a search warrant application filed by a Secret Service agent in federal court.
The district — and taxpayers — fell victim to an online scam called Business Email Compromise, or BEC for short, police say. The couple deny any wrongdoing and have not been charged with any crimes.
BEC scams are a type of crime where criminals hack into email accounts, pretend to be someone they’re not and fool victims into sending money where it doesn't belong. These crimes get far less attention than the massive ransomware attacks that have triggered a powerful government response, but BEC scams have been by far the costliest type of cybercrime in the U.S. for years, according to the FBI — siphoning untold billions from the economy as authorities struggle to keep up.
The huge payoffs and low risks associated with BEC scams have attracted criminals worldwide. Some flaunt their ill-gotten riches on social media, posing in pictures next to Ferraris, Bentleys and stacks of cash.
“The scammers are extremely well organized and law enforcement is not,” said Sherry Williams, a director of a San Francisco nonprofit recently hit by a BEC scam.
Losses in the U.S. to BEC scams in 2021 were nearly $2.4 billion, according to a new report by the FBI. That’s a 33% increase from 2020 and more than a tenfold increase from just seven years ago.
And experts say many victims never come forward and the FBI’s numbers only show a small fraction of how much money is stolen..
“It’s one of the most lucrative things out there,” said Shalabh Mohan, chief product officer at Area 1 Security.
In the nail salon case involving Grand Rapids, police say $2.8 million was stolen. Banks were able to recall about half that amount once the scam was discovered, court records show.
A Secret Service agent said in an affidavit as part of a search warrant application that someone hacked into the email account of one of the school district’s human resource employees and sent emails that persuaded a colleague in the finance department to change the bank account where the health insurance payments were sent.
The emails were brief and unfailingly polite. “Please kindly update” the records, one of them said — words the real HR employee would later tell police she never uses, according to the affidavit.
Police tracked the money to the salon’s bank account owned by the Abourcheds, the affidavit says. After the theft was detected, Moe Abourched contacted a Grand Rapids police detective and said he’d been fooled by a European woman named “Dora” into accepting the funds and forwarding them to other accounts, according to the affidavit.
The Secret Service agent said Abourched’s claims were false and he’d used a similar ruse with police after he received money from a BEC scam targeting a Florida storage company.
Police put the couple under surveillance and in October searched their apartment, offices and BMW, court records show. Police said earlier this year they needed more time to examine the data in the couple's phones and computers.
The Abourcheds’ lawyer, Kevin Gres, said his clients have done nothing wrong and no charges should be filed.
“My clients were unwitting victims in this scheme,” he said.
BEC scammers use a variety of techniques to hack into legitimate business email accounts and trick employees to send wire payments or make purchases they shouldn’t. Targeted phishing emails are a common type of attack, but experts say the scammers have been quick to adopt new technologies, like “deep fake” audio generated by artificial intelligence to pretend to be executives at a company and fool subordinates into sending money.
In the case of Williams, the San Francisco nonprofit director, thieves hacked the email account of the organization's bookkeeper, then inserted themselves into a long email thread, sent messages asking to change the wire payment instructions for a grant recipient, and made off with $650,000.
After she discovered what happened, Williams said, her calls to law enforcement went nowhere.
The FBI told her the local U.S. attorney’s office won’t take her case. She flew to Odessa, Texas, where the bank that initially received the stolen money was located. The money by then was long gone and the local detective was powerless to help. Williams asked her U.S. senators for help and later learned the Secret Service was investigating, but said it hasn't given her any updates.
Crane Hassold, an expert on BEC scams and former cyber analyst with the FBI, has heard of federal prosecutors declining to take BEC cases unless several million dollars were stolen, a minimum threshold that speaks to how out of control the problem is.
“There’s so many of them they can’t possibly work them all,” said Hassold, now director of threat intelligence at Abnormal Security.
Almost every enterprise is vulnerable to BEC scams, from Fortune 500 companies to small towns. Even the State Department got duped into sending BEC scammers more than $200,000 in grant money meant to help Tunisian farmers, court records show.
The Justice Department has launched months-long operations in recent years that have netted hundreds of arrests worldwide.
“Our message to criminals involved in these types of BEC schemes will remain clear: The FBI’s memory and reach is long and wide-ranging, we will relentlessly pursue you no matter where you may be located,” said Brian Turner, executive assistant director of the FBI’s Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch.
But security experts say the wave of arrests has had little impact, and the FBI’s own numbers show that BEC scams continue to grow at a rapid clip.
“You can arrest 100 of the guys and there’s no ripple effect,” said Hassold.
Many of those arrested by U.S. authorities are lower-level “money mules,” who move stolen money around the banking system until it’s out of reach to authorities.
“Mules” don’t need hacking skills and come from a variety of backgrounds. A South Florida man, Alfredo Veloso, pleaded guilty in 2019 after prosecutors say he recruited women he met through his business making “kink pornography” videos to be money mules for BEC and other cyber scams.
Sophisticated BEC scams targeting businesses and other organizations started taking off in the mid-2010s. It was also around that time when ransomware attacks — in which hackers break into networks and encrypt data — started to grow in frequency and severity.
For years both BEC scams and ransomware attacks were treated largely as a law enforcement problem. That’s still true for BEC attacks, but ransomware is now a key national security concern after a series of disruptive attacks on critical infrastructure like the one last year against the biggest fuels pipeline in the U.S. that led to gas shortages along the East Coast.
The National Security Agency’s hackers have taken action to disrupt ransomware operators’ networks. The Justice Department set up a ransomware task force to better organize the law enforcement response. And U.S. President Joe Biden has pressed the issue directly with President Vladimir Putin of Russia, where many ransomware operators are located.
Nothing close to those efforts has been deployed against BEC fraud despite the huge financial losses.
“It’s a bunch of tiny little silos, and they still haven’t figured out a way to have just a single source that goes after these things,” said John Wilson, a threat researcher at the cybersecurity firm Agari.
If the U.S. were to launch a whole-of-government response to BEC fraud, it almost certainly would focus heavily on Nigeria.
Nowhere are BEC fraudsters more active than in Africa’s most populous nation, where scammers have able to operate almost unchecked for decades. The well-worn Nigerian Prince scam may now be a global punchline, but a new generation is making fortunes through sophisticated BEC fraud.
BEC scammers from Nigeria are glorified in pop songs and show off their wealth on Instagram and Facebook, posing with expensive cars or piles of money.
Ramon Abbas, a well-known social Nigerian media influencer who went by Ray Hushpuppi, had more than 2 million followers on Instagram before he was arrested in Dubai. Abbas’ social media posts showed him living a life of total luxury, complete with private jets, ultra-expensive cars and high-end clothes and watches.
“I hope someday I will be inspiring more young people to join me on this path,” read one Instagram post by Abbas, who pleaded guilty in the U.S. to international money laundering related to BEC and other cybercrimes last year. His sentencing is currently set for July.
Pete Renals, a threat researcher at Palo Alto’s Unit 42, said tech-savvy Nigerian criminals started learning how to use available malware to steal victims’ credentials around 2014. As the software changed, the scammers changed too. In 2018, he said, researchers started seeing Nigerian malware being developed in-country by the BEC scammers themselves.
“It does not seem like there’s a whole lot slowing them down," he said. They see “no reason to stop.”
Obinwanne Okeke was one of Nigeria’s best known young entrepreneurs when he was a featured panelist at an event hosted by the prestigious London School of Economics.
“If it’s not born in you to take up challenges, you cannot do it,” Okeke said at the 2018 event when discussing his entrepreneurial drive.
But just days before he made those comments, Okeke had been busy sending fake invoices and defrauding the British sales office of the heavy equipment manufacturer Caterpillar out of $11 million through a BEC scam, according to the FBI. He was arrested at Dulles Airport outside Washington in 2019, pleaded guilty to wire fraud a year later and is now serving a 10-year prison sentence.
BEC scammers arrested by police in Nigeria often have better luck and win back their freedom by paying fines or bribes, experts say. Adedeji Oyenuga, a sociology professor at Lagos State University who has studied cybercrime culture, said there’s little fear by BEC scammers of being punished if caught.
“The person will walk around the streets freely knowing nobody is going to say anything about what he or she is doing,” Oyenuga said.
In the Hushpuppi case, U.S. prosecutors have also charged Abba Kyari, a top Nigerian law enforcement official who prosecutors say falsely imprisoned one of Abbas’ criminal rivals. Kyari remains in Nigeria, where media reports say he’s been arrested on a separate charges related to alleged drug smuggling.
Doug Witschi, an assistant director at the global police organization Interpol, said tech companies that help facilitate BEC crimes need to be more active in stopping such behavior.
“We can’t arrest our way out of this challenge,” he said.
Unlike ransomware operators who try to keep their communications private, BEC scammers often openly exchange services, share tips or show off their wealth on social media platforms like Facebook and Telegram.
A Facebook group called Wire Wire.com, which was until recently available to anyone with a Facebook account, acted as a message board for people to offer BEC-related services and other cybercrimes.
The page, which had a profile picture of a duffle bag filled with cash, was created in 2015 and had more than 1,400 members. It was taken down shortly after The Associated Press asked Facebook about it last month. The company declined comment.
In the case of the stolen Grand Rapids money, it was social media that helped law enforcement when seeking a federal judge’s approval for a search warrant.
Included in the application was a vacation Instagram post by Kateryna Abourched, which linked the timing of her trip with a $3,503 payment to a luxury resort in Mexico made from the bank account that had received the stolen Grand Rapids money.
“Vacation is always inspiring,” she wrote in her Instagram post. | https://www.theheraldreview.com/news/article/Accounts-deceivable-Email-scam-costliest-type-of-17069086.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:28 | en | 0.969965 |
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A shopping spree in Beverly Hills, a luxury vacation in Mexico, a bank account that jumped from $299.77 to $1.4 million overnight.
From the outside, it looked like Moe and Kateryna Abourched had won the lottery.
But this big payday didn't come from lucky numbers. Rather, a public school district in Michigan was tricked into wiring its monthly health insurance payment to the bank account of a California nail salon the Abourcheds owned, according to a search warrant application filed by a Secret Service agent in federal court.
The district — and taxpayers — fell victim to an online scam called Business Email Compromise, or BEC for short, police say. The couple deny any wrongdoing and have not been charged with any crimes.
BEC scams are a type of crime where criminals hack into email accounts, pretend to be someone they’re not and fool victims into sending money where it doesn't belong. These crimes get far less attention than the massive ransomware attacks that have triggered a powerful government response, but BEC scams have been by far the costliest type of cybercrime in the U.S. for years, according to the FBI — siphoning untold billions from the economy as authorities struggle to keep up.
The huge payoffs and low risks associated with BEC scams have attracted criminals worldwide. Some flaunt their ill-gotten riches on social media, posing in pictures next to Ferraris, Bentleys and stacks of cash.
“The scammers are extremely well organized and law enforcement is not,” said Sherry Williams, a director of a San Francisco nonprofit recently hit by a BEC scam.
Losses in the U.S. to BEC scams in 2021 were nearly $2.4 billion, according to a new report by the FBI. That’s a 33% increase from 2020 and more than a tenfold increase from just seven years ago.
And experts say many victims never come forward and the FBI’s numbers only show a small fraction of how much money is stolen..
“It’s one of the most lucrative things out there,” said Shalabh Mohan, chief product officer at Area 1 Security.
In the nail salon case involving Grand Rapids, police say $2.8 million was stolen. Banks were able to recall about half that amount once the scam was discovered, court records show.
A Secret Service agent said in an affidavit as part of a search warrant application that someone hacked into the email account of one of the school district’s human resource employees and sent emails that persuaded a colleague in the finance department to change the bank account where the health insurance payments were sent.
The emails were brief and unfailingly polite. “Please kindly update” the records, one of them said — words the real HR employee would later tell police she never uses, according to the affidavit.
Police tracked the money to the salon’s bank account owned by the Abourcheds, the affidavit says. After the theft was detected, Moe Abourched contacted a Grand Rapids police detective and said he’d been fooled by a European woman named “Dora” into accepting the funds and forwarding them to other accounts, according to the affidavit.
The Secret Service agent said Abourched’s claims were false and he’d used a similar ruse with police after he received money from a BEC scam targeting a Florida storage company.
Police put the couple under surveillance and in October searched their apartment, offices and BMW, court records show. Police said earlier this year they needed more time to examine the data in the couple's phones and computers.
The Abourcheds’ lawyer, Kevin Gres, said his clients have done nothing wrong and no charges should be filed.
“My clients were unwitting victims in this scheme,” he said.
BEC scammers use a variety of techniques to hack into legitimate business email accounts and trick employees to send wire payments or make purchases they shouldn’t. Targeted phishing emails are a common type of attack, but experts say the scammers have been quick to adopt new technologies, like “deep fake” audio generated by artificial intelligence to pretend to be executives at a company and fool subordinates into sending money.
In the case of Williams, the San Francisco nonprofit director, thieves hacked the email account of the organization's bookkeeper, then inserted themselves into a long email thread, sent messages asking to change the wire payment instructions for a grant recipient, and made off with $650,000.
After she discovered what happened, Williams said, her calls to law enforcement went nowhere.
The FBI told her the local U.S. attorney’s office won’t take her case. She flew to Odessa, Texas, where the bank that initially received the stolen money was located. The money by then was long gone and the local detective was powerless to help. Williams asked her U.S. senators for help and later learned the Secret Service was investigating, but said it hasn't given her any updates.
Crane Hassold, an expert on BEC scams and former cyber analyst with the FBI, has heard of federal prosecutors declining to take BEC cases unless several million dollars were stolen, a minimum threshold that speaks to how out of control the problem is.
“There’s so many of them they can’t possibly work them all,” said Hassold, now director of threat intelligence at Abnormal Security.
Almost every enterprise is vulnerable to BEC scams, from Fortune 500 companies to small towns. Even the State Department got duped into sending BEC scammers more than $200,000 in grant money meant to help Tunisian farmers, court records show.
The Justice Department has launched months-long operations in recent years that have netted hundreds of arrests worldwide.
“Our message to criminals involved in these types of BEC schemes will remain clear: The FBI’s memory and reach is long and wide-ranging, we will relentlessly pursue you no matter where you may be located,” said Brian Turner, executive assistant director of the FBI’s Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch.
But security experts say the wave of arrests has had little impact, and the FBI’s own numbers show that BEC scams continue to grow at a rapid clip.
“You can arrest 100 of the guys and there’s no ripple effect,” said Hassold.
Many of those arrested by U.S. authorities are lower-level “money mules,” who move stolen money around the banking system until it’s out of reach to authorities.
“Mules” don’t need hacking skills and come from a variety of backgrounds. A South Florida man, Alfredo Veloso, pleaded guilty in 2019 after prosecutors say he recruited women he met through his business making “kink pornography” videos to be money mules for BEC and other cyber scams.
Sophisticated BEC scams targeting businesses and other organizations started taking off in the mid-2010s. It was also around that time when ransomware attacks — in which hackers break into networks and encrypt data — started to grow in frequency and severity.
For years both BEC scams and ransomware attacks were treated largely as a law enforcement problem. That’s still true for BEC attacks, but ransomware is now a key national security concern after a series of disruptive attacks on critical infrastructure like the one last year against the biggest fuels pipeline in the U.S. that led to gas shortages along the East Coast.
The National Security Agency’s hackers have taken action to disrupt ransomware operators’ networks. The Justice Department set up a ransomware task force to better organize the law enforcement response. And U.S. President Joe Biden has pressed the issue directly with President Vladimir Putin of Russia, where many ransomware operators are located.
Nothing close to those efforts has been deployed against BEC fraud despite the huge financial losses.
“It’s a bunch of tiny little silos, and they still haven’t figured out a way to have just a single source that goes after these things,” said John Wilson, a threat researcher at the cybersecurity firm Agari.
If the U.S. were to launch a whole-of-government response to BEC fraud, it almost certainly would focus heavily on Nigeria.
Nowhere are BEC fraudsters more active than in Africa’s most populous nation, where scammers have able to operate almost unchecked for decades. The well-worn Nigerian Prince scam may now be a global punchline, but a new generation is making fortunes through sophisticated BEC fraud.
BEC scammers from Nigeria are glorified in pop songs and show off their wealth on Instagram and Facebook, posing with expensive cars or piles of money.
Ramon Abbas, a well-known social Nigerian media influencer who went by Ray Hushpuppi, had more than 2 million followers on Instagram before he was arrested in Dubai. Abbas’ social media posts showed him living a life of total luxury, complete with private jets, ultra-expensive cars and high-end clothes and watches.
“I hope someday I will be inspiring more young people to join me on this path,” read one Instagram post by Abbas, who pleaded guilty in the U.S. to international money laundering related to BEC and other cybercrimes last year. His sentencing is currently set for July.
Pete Renals, a threat researcher at Palo Alto’s Unit 42, said tech-savvy Nigerian criminals started learning how to use available malware to steal victims’ credentials around 2014. As the software changed, the scammers changed too. In 2018, he said, researchers started seeing Nigerian malware being developed in-country by the BEC scammers themselves.
“It does not seem like there’s a whole lot slowing them down," he said. They see “no reason to stop.”
Obinwanne Okeke was one of Nigeria’s best known young entrepreneurs when he was a featured panelist at an event hosted by the prestigious London School of Economics.
“If it’s not born in you to take up challenges, you cannot do it,” Okeke said at the 2018 event when discussing his entrepreneurial drive.
But just days before he made those comments, Okeke had been busy sending fake invoices and defrauding the British sales office of the heavy equipment manufacturer Caterpillar out of $11 million through a BEC scam, according to the FBI. He was arrested at Dulles Airport outside Washington in 2019, pleaded guilty to wire fraud a year later and is now serving a 10-year prison sentence.
BEC scammers arrested by police in Nigeria often have better luck and win back their freedom by paying fines or bribes, experts say. Adedeji Oyenuga, a sociology professor at Lagos State University who has studied cybercrime culture, said there’s little fear by BEC scammers of being punished if caught.
“The person will walk around the streets freely knowing nobody is going to say anything about what he or she is doing,” Oyenuga said.
In the Hushpuppi case, U.S. prosecutors have also charged Abba Kyari, a top Nigerian law enforcement official who prosecutors say falsely imprisoned one of Abbas’ criminal rivals. Kyari remains in Nigeria, where media reports say he’s been arrested on a separate charges related to alleged drug smuggling.
Doug Witschi, an assistant director at the global police organization Interpol, said tech companies that help facilitate BEC crimes need to be more active in stopping such behavior.
“We can’t arrest our way out of this challenge,” he said.
Unlike ransomware operators who try to keep their communications private, BEC scammers often openly exchange services, share tips or show off their wealth on social media platforms like Facebook and Telegram.
A Facebook group called Wire Wire.com, which was until recently available to anyone with a Facebook account, acted as a message board for people to offer BEC-related services and other cybercrimes.
The page, which had a profile picture of a duffle bag filled with cash, was created in 2015 and had more than 1,400 members. It was taken down shortly after The Associated Press asked Facebook about it last month. The company declined comment.
In the case of the stolen Grand Rapids money, it was social media that helped law enforcement when seeking a federal judge’s approval for a search warrant.
Included in the application was a vacation Instagram post by Kateryna Abourched, which linked the timing of her trip with a $3,503 payment to a luxury resort in Mexico made from the bank account that had received the stolen Grand Rapids money.
“Vacation is always inspiring,” she wrote in her Instagram post. | https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/Accounts-deceivable-Email-scam-costliest-type-of-17069086.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:30 | en | 0.969965 |
ST. GEORGE, Utah (AP) — A permit is now required to hike Angels Landing at Zion National Park. Some of the first people to hike it Friday with the new system in place said it was less crowded and felt safer.
Susan McPartland, the park’s visitor use manager, said the reduced crowding and enhanced safety is exactly why the new pilot program was put into place — to improve people’s experience, as visitation has risen in recent years.
“We are trying to … make sure that folks have that time to go at their own pace, enjoy those beautiful views and really hope that we can improve how they feel safe,” she told KUER-FM.
There are two lotteries for Angels Landing. The seasonal one opens months in advance and the other can be entered the day before hiking it. McPartland emphasized that it’s a pilot program and may require some tweaks. But by the afternoon on day one, she said things were going smoothly.
There’s a thick metal chain to hold onto, as hikers scramble up steep rocks to the top of Angels Landing. During busy days in 2021, park officials say people had to wait multiple hours to make the trek.
The hike has been on Abbie Crowell’s bucket list for years. The Ohio resident wasn’t too excited about the new lottery system because she had to apply for a certain date months before her April 1 visit.
“But now having hiked it, I think it’s a good idea, I do. It would not have been the same hike if it had been crowded,” she said. “It was fantastic. It’s a wonderful hike. Everyone should do it. But I can’t imagine doing that with people, you know, crawling all over each other.”
Crowell heard from friends and families that have done the hike before about the crowds and said she would have turned around if she saw too many people.
When Tom and Connie Peter were planning a trip to the park from Florida they chose to go on the first day permits were required. They figured it would make it better.
“I think it helped control the number of people on the trail and made it a nice experience,” he said. “It was about the right number of people on the trail today.”
The ideal number of hikers a day is about 800, McPartland said. Those permit holders are then spread through different time frames throughout the day. The program could help inform a potential park-wide reservation system or other trail-specific lotteries, she noted.
Flavio Bonilla, who was visiting southern Utah from New Jersey with his dad, applied for a permit Thursday while hiking in Bryce Canyon National Park and got ahold of one. He said having the crowds under control made it worthwhile.
“It made it a lot safer, I totally feel like it did, especially when we got to the top and climbing back,” he said after finishing the hike. “(We didn’t have to) worry about bottlenecking or having to slow things down. It felt safer.” | https://www.theheraldreview.com/news/article/Angels-Landing-permit-system-at-Zion-is-open-for-17069056.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:34 | en | 0.984768 |
ST. GEORGE, Utah (AP) — A permit is now required to hike Angels Landing at Zion National Park. Some of the first people to hike it Friday with the new system in place said it was less crowded and felt safer.
Susan McPartland, the park’s visitor use manager, said the reduced crowding and enhanced safety is exactly why the new pilot program was put into place — to improve people’s experience, as visitation has risen in recent years.
“We are trying to … make sure that folks have that time to go at their own pace, enjoy those beautiful views and really hope that we can improve how they feel safe,” she told KUER-FM.
There are two lotteries for Angels Landing. The seasonal one opens months in advance and the other can be entered the day before hiking it. McPartland emphasized that it’s a pilot program and may require some tweaks. But by the afternoon on day one, she said things were going smoothly.
There’s a thick metal chain to hold onto, as hikers scramble up steep rocks to the top of Angels Landing. During busy days in 2021, park officials say people had to wait multiple hours to make the trek.
The hike has been on Abbie Crowell’s bucket list for years. The Ohio resident wasn’t too excited about the new lottery system because she had to apply for a certain date months before her April 1 visit.
“But now having hiked it, I think it’s a good idea, I do. It would not have been the same hike if it had been crowded,” she said. “It was fantastic. It’s a wonderful hike. Everyone should do it. But I can’t imagine doing that with people, you know, crawling all over each other.”
Crowell heard from friends and families that have done the hike before about the crowds and said she would have turned around if she saw too many people.
When Tom and Connie Peter were planning a trip to the park from Florida they chose to go on the first day permits were required. They figured it would make it better.
“I think it helped control the number of people on the trail and made it a nice experience,” he said. “It was about the right number of people on the trail today.”
The ideal number of hikers a day is about 800, McPartland said. Those permit holders are then spread through different time frames throughout the day. The program could help inform a potential park-wide reservation system or other trail-specific lotteries, she noted.
Flavio Bonilla, who was visiting southern Utah from New Jersey with his dad, applied for a permit Thursday while hiking in Bryce Canyon National Park and got ahold of one. He said having the crowds under control made it worthwhile.
“It made it a lot safer, I totally feel like it did, especially when we got to the top and climbing back,” he said after finishing the hike. “(We didn’t have to) worry about bottlenecking or having to slow things down. It felt safer.” | https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/Angels-Landing-permit-system-at-Zion-is-open-for-17069056.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:36 | en | 0.984768 |
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The medical technician who drew blood from New Hampshire Rep. Peter Schmidt after he broke his leg in February was registered with the state, thanks to a 2014 law enacted after a traveling medical technician infected dozens of people with hepatitis C.
But by the time Schmidt was back on his feet, colleagues had hijacked his bill aimed at improving the registry. House lawmakers passed a bill last month eliminating the registration requirement altogether, and Schmidt is now urging senators to reject it.
“Please do not pass this, this is a terrible idea,” Schmidt said. “I think we need to continue to register these medical technicians, otherwise we are opening ourselves up to a potential repeat of the Exeter experience.”
New Hampshire created the Board of Registration for Medical Technicians in response to David Kwiatkowski, who is serving 39 years in prison for stealing painkillers and replacing them with saline-filled syringes tainted with his blood.
At the time, officials hoped the board would become a model for other states, but that hasn’t happened. And those who want to ditch it say it creates unnecessary bureaucracy at a time when health care facilities are struggling to hire workers.
“The actions of one bad actor, however heinous, are not reason to require thousands of technicians to register and pay fees,” said Rep. Carol McGuire, R-Epsom, when the House passed the bill last month.
But Linda Ficken, a Kansas woman who contracted hepatitis C from Kwiatkowski in 2011, said she believes any medical worker with access to drugs should be registered and should undergo frequent drug testing.
“Every time I go into the hospital, I can’t help but wonder, is this a repeat?” she said. “Cured or not, the thoughts and anxiety are still there.”
Despite being fired numerous times over drug allegations, Kwiatkowski had worked in 18 hospitals in seven states before being hired in at Exeter Hospital in New Hampshire. After his arrest in 2012, 46 people in four states were diagnosed with the same strain of the hepatitis C virus he carries, including one who died in Kansas.
The case highlighted the fact that medical technicians aren’t as closely regulated as nurses or doctors, whose misconduct and discipline are tracked via a nationwide database. While some states require certain technicians to be licensed, four of the states where he worked didn’t license any of them at the time of his arrest, including New Hampshire.
The registry New Hampshire eventually created applies to all health care workers who are not otherwise already licensed or registered and have access to both patients and drugs. Hospitals are required to report disciplinary actions to the board, which also investigates complaints and takes disciplinary action.
The board has struggled to maintain a quorum, however, and hasn’t met in more than a year, said Lindsey Courtney, director of the Office of Professional Licensure and Certification.
“We’re greatly concerned the state is not meeting its obligation to protect the public,” she said at a public hearing.
Courtney, who isn’t taking a position on eliminating the board, supported Schmidt’s original proposal to convert it to an advisory panel that would make recommendations to her office. There are currently 1,691 registered technicians, and although complaints are rare, the board has taken action in a handful of cases each year.
Schmidt said his goal was to shift some of the administrative burden from the board to the larger agency. He hopes the Senate will either kill the amended bill or return to his original idea.
While hospitals are on the front lines of preventing and responding to drug diversion, partnering with public health, licensing and law enforcement agencies is essential, said Dr. Matthew Crist, a medical officer with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
He said the CDC isn’t aware of outbreaks in recent years related to drug diversion and is cautiously optimistic given that health care facilities have improved security around controlled drugs, and many state licensing agencies have taken steps to improve communication across state lines.
In the decade before Kwiatkowski’s arrests, similar hepatitis C outbreaks had been traced to other hospital technicians in Texas, Colorado and Florida, and CDC officials said at the time that the Kwiatkowski case highlighted a problem that was a growing concern across the public health system.
Even though other states didn’t follow New Hampshire’s lead, the registry likely has deterred people like Kwiatkowski from coming to the state in the first place, said state Sen. Tom Sherman, D-Rye, who led the bipartisan effort to create the board.
Sherman, a gastroenterologist who is running for governor, played a key role in discovering Kwiatkowski’s misconduct when he and his colleagues noticed a cluster of hepatitis C cases among their patients and realized they all had been treated in Exeter Hospital’s cardiac catherization lab. He’s now urging his fellow senators to consider “the price of doing an experiment to see what happens if we get rid of the board.”
“People died because of that outbreak,” he said. “This was a very carefully thought-out solution that has worked. To take it away now means we just don’t learn from history.” | https://www.theheraldreview.com/news/article/Decade-after-hepatitis-outbreak-medical-registry-17069061.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:40 | en | 0.971265 |
WINCHESTER, Va. (AP) — Seven-year-old Kiah Anderson sat in her classroom at Quarles Elementary School on March 31 and held Moby Duck, a duckling she and her fellow second graders hatched in an incubator.
Moby is one of three ducks that were raised in teacher Nicole Hobson’s classroom these past few weeks as part of a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) learning project.
“We’ve had them since they were babies,” Kiah said as Moby Duck’s friends Duke and Ocho waddled around the room.
Kiah reads to the ducklings every day. She said their favorite book is “Duck On a Bike” by author David Shannon.
Eight-year-old Ella Trdlickova said it’s calming to come to school and spend time with the ducklings.
“They’re so cute and playful,” second-grader Ella said on her last full day with her fluffy friends.
Moby Duck, Ocho and Duke moved to their new, permanent home on a farm owned by Winchester Public Schools grant specialist Jennifer LaBombard-Daniels, who is overseeing the grant-funded STEM program at both Quarles and John Kerr Elementary School.
“What we’re doing with our kids is immersing them in STEM and computer science fields,” LaBombard-Daniels said.
How do baby ducks help kids learn about computers? By teaching them about modern farming techniques that involve robotics, automation, coding and more, LaBombard-Daniels said.
Thanks to the Virginia Department of Education and the National Inventors Hall of Fame, Winchester Public Schools recently received a “farm to family” kit that included devices and information to show students at Quarles and John Kerr elementary schools how modern farming embraces technology to reduce workloads and produce better food.
One of the devices in the kit was a miniature John Deere tractor the students programmed to automatically make its way around a classroom.
“They created a farm and made pathways, and then we coded the tractor to go through the farm,” Quarles computer science coach Jenny Ramsey said. “We want to show them how computer science is out there in every industry there is.”
The project with the ducklings began before they even hatched. LaBombard-Daniels said incubators were used to develop the eggs, which allowed students to follow the growth of the ducklings while they were still in their shells. The incubation process also taught the second graders how farmers must limit the number of eggs they hatch in order to control their poultry populations.
Once hatched, the ducklings stayed at Quarles and John Kerr so the students would have an immersive experience while learning to properly care for them. That experience could be instrumental later in their lives, LaBombard-Daniels said, when the children decide what they want to do for a living.
“When we did a survey of third- and fourth-graders last year,” she said, “veterinary science was the number one STEM field that they picked. I really attribute that to these projects because they’re having hands-on experiences.”
Apart from the educational aspect, Ramsey said the ducklings provided other benefits for the students.
“Sometimes they’re having a rough morning or having a hard time in the classroom, so a lot of these ducks end up turning into therapy ducks,” she said. “The students come to the counseling corner, they sit and hold the ducks, they read to them, get their feelings back in action and go back to the classroom. Not only are they learning to raise a duck and understand the life cycle of an animal they may not see in the city, but they’re also learning empathy and caring and giving.”
It’s not just the kids who enjoy spending time with the ducklings. On March 31, LaBombard-Daniels brought in five additional ducklings that caught the attention of every Quarles teacher who passed by in the hallway.
“It’s therapy, something different in the building than math and reading,” Quarles instructional coach Heather Williams said.
The five ducklings brought in are being raised on LaBombard-Daniels’ farm. In order for her to take the animals to Quarles, she also had to bring along a Silkie chicken who became their de facto mother after a batch of chicken eggs she was nesting failed to hatch. Since the Silkie couldn’t have babies of her own, she gravitated toward the ducklings and the ducklings bonded with her immediately. The unusual brood is now inseparable, so the ducklings wouldn’t leave the farm with LaBombard-Daniels unless their mother went, too.
The duckling project recently concluded at John Kerr and at Quarles when LaBombard-Daniels moved the three ducklings in Hobson’s classroom to her farm. LaBombard-Daniels said the ducks will live out their natural lives there and won’t be used for meat, but the eggs laid by the females will be collected and appreciated.
“She’ll send us picture updates and we’ll send them out to the kids,” Williams said.
John Kerr computer science coach Amy Thomas said the students at her school held up quite well when it was time to say goodbye to their ducklings.
“They know that the ducks need to be in a space that’s more comfortable for them,” Thomas said. “And it starts to get a little smelly after a while.” | https://www.theheraldreview.com/news/article/Ducklings-could-open-doors-to-future-careers-for-17069101.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:46 | en | 0.974986 |
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The medical technician who drew blood from New Hampshire Rep. Peter Schmidt after he broke his leg in February was registered with the state, thanks to a 2014 law enacted after a traveling medical technician infected dozens of people with hepatitis C.
But by the time Schmidt was back on his feet, colleagues had hijacked his bill aimed at improving the registry. House lawmakers passed a bill last month eliminating the registration requirement altogether, and Schmidt is now urging senators to reject it.
“Please do not pass this, this is a terrible idea,” Schmidt said. “I think we need to continue to register these medical technicians, otherwise we are opening ourselves up to a potential repeat of the Exeter experience.”
New Hampshire created the Board of Registration for Medical Technicians in response to David Kwiatkowski, who is serving 39 years in prison for stealing painkillers and replacing them with saline-filled syringes tainted with his blood.
At the time, officials hoped the board would become a model for other states, but that hasn’t happened. And those who want to ditch it say it creates unnecessary bureaucracy at a time when health care facilities are struggling to hire workers.
“The actions of one bad actor, however heinous, are not reason to require thousands of technicians to register and pay fees,” said Rep. Carol McGuire, R-Epsom, when the House passed the bill last month.
But Linda Ficken, a Kansas woman who contracted hepatitis C from Kwiatkowski in 2011, said she believes any medical worker with access to drugs should be registered and should undergo frequent drug testing.
“Every time I go into the hospital, I can’t help but wonder, is this a repeat?” she said. “Cured or not, the thoughts and anxiety are still there.”
Despite being fired numerous times over drug allegations, Kwiatkowski had worked in 18 hospitals in seven states before being hired in at Exeter Hospital in New Hampshire. After his arrest in 2012, 46 people in four states were diagnosed with the same strain of the hepatitis C virus he carries, including one who died in Kansas.
The case highlighted the fact that medical technicians aren’t as closely regulated as nurses or doctors, whose misconduct and discipline are tracked via a nationwide database. While some states require certain technicians to be licensed, four of the states where he worked didn’t license any of them at the time of his arrest, including New Hampshire.
The registry New Hampshire eventually created applies to all health care workers who are not otherwise already licensed or registered and have access to both patients and drugs. Hospitals are required to report disciplinary actions to the board, which also investigates complaints and takes disciplinary action.
The board has struggled to maintain a quorum, however, and hasn’t met in more than a year, said Lindsey Courtney, director of the Office of Professional Licensure and Certification.
“We’re greatly concerned the state is not meeting its obligation to protect the public,” she said at a public hearing.
Courtney, who isn’t taking a position on eliminating the board, supported Schmidt’s original proposal to convert it to an advisory panel that would make recommendations to her office. There are currently 1,691 registered technicians, and although complaints are rare, the board has taken action in a handful of cases each year.
Schmidt said his goal was to shift some of the administrative burden from the board to the larger agency. He hopes the Senate will either kill the amended bill or return to his original idea.
While hospitals are on the front lines of preventing and responding to drug diversion, partnering with public health, licensing and law enforcement agencies is essential, said Dr. Matthew Crist, a medical officer with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
He said the CDC isn’t aware of outbreaks in recent years related to drug diversion and is cautiously optimistic given that health care facilities have improved security around controlled drugs, and many state licensing agencies have taken steps to improve communication across state lines.
In the decade before Kwiatkowski’s arrests, similar hepatitis C outbreaks had been traced to other hospital technicians in Texas, Colorado and Florida, and CDC officials said at the time that the Kwiatkowski case highlighted a problem that was a growing concern across the public health system.
Even though other states didn’t follow New Hampshire’s lead, the registry likely has deterred people like Kwiatkowski from coming to the state in the first place, said state Sen. Tom Sherman, D-Rye, who led the bipartisan effort to create the board.
Sherman, a gastroenterologist who is running for governor, played a key role in discovering Kwiatkowski’s misconduct when he and his colleagues noticed a cluster of hepatitis C cases among their patients and realized they all had been treated in Exeter Hospital’s cardiac catherization lab. He’s now urging his fellow senators to consider “the price of doing an experiment to see what happens if we get rid of the board.”
“People died because of that outbreak,” he said. “This was a very carefully thought-out solution that has worked. To take it away now means we just don’t learn from history.” | https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/Decade-after-hepatitis-outbreak-medical-registry-17069061.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:48 | en | 0.971265 |
One million gallons of radioactive water is inside a former nuclear power plant along Cape Cod Bay and it has got to go.
But where, is the vexing question, and will the state intervene as the company dismantling the plant decides?
Holtec International is considering treating the water and discharging it into the bay, drawing fierce resistance from local residents, shell fishermen and politicians. Holtec is also considering evaporating the contaminated water or trucking it to a facility in another state.
The fight in Massachusetts mirrors a current, heated debate in Japan over a plan to release more than 1 million tons of treated radioactive wastewater into the ocean from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant in spring 2023. A massive tsunami in 2011 crashed into the plant. Three reactors melted down.
Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Plymouth, Massachusetts, closed in 2019 after nearly half a century providing electricity to the region. U.S. Rep. William Keating, a Democrat whose district includes the Cape, wrote to Holtec with other top Massachusetts lawmakers in January to oppose releasing water into Cape Cod Bay. He asked the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to examine its regulations.
Keating said in late March that Holtec's handling of the radioactive water could set a precedent because the U.S. decommissioning industry is in its infancy. Most U.S. nuclear plants were built between 1970 and 1990.
“If they're listening, sensitive and work with these communities, it's important,” he said. “That's the message for future decommissioning sites.”
Holtec has acquired closed nuclear plants across the country as part of its dismantling business, including the former Oyster Creek Generating Station in New Jersey and Indian Point Energy Center in New York. It’s taking ownership of the Palisades Nuclear Plant on Lake Michigan, which is closing this year.
Pilgrim was a boiling water reactor. Water constantly circulated through the reactor vessel and nuclear fuel, converting it to steam to spin the turbine. The water was cooled and recirculated, picking up radioactive contamination.
Cape Cod is a tourist hotspot. Having radioactive water in the bay, even low levels, isn't great for marketing, said Democratic state Rep. Josh Cutler, who represents a district there. Cutler is working to pass legislation to prohibit discharging radioactive material into coastal or inland waters.
Holtec said Pilgrim already discharged water into the bay for 50 years while the plant was operating and environmental studies, conducted by the plant operators and now Holtec, have shown little or no environmental impact. Radiological environmental reports are shared with the NRC annually.
“We are working to provide scientific data, educate the public on the reality of radiation in everyday life, and working to have experts explain the true science versus the emotional fear of the unknown,” spokesperson Patrick O’Brien wrote in an email in March.
WHAT ARE HOLTEC'S OPTIONS?
Holtec could treat the water and discharge it in batches over multiple years, likely the least expensive option. Or, it could evaporate the water on site, as it says it has done with about 680,000 gallons (2,600 kiloliters) over the past two years.
Evaporating the water would be more challenging to do now because the spent nuclear fuel is in storage, and couldn’t be used as a heat source. Holtec would have to use a different — likely more expensive — method that would release gas.
Or, Holtec could truck the water to an out-of-state facility, where it could be mixed with clay and buried or placed in an evaporation pond, or released into local waterways. That’s what Keating wants.
Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station, another boiling water reactor, was shut down in Vernon, Vermont, in 2014. It’s sending wastewater to disposal specialists in Texas and other states. Entergy operated and sold both Vermont Yankee and Pilgrim. NorthStar, a separate and competing corporation in the decommissioning business, is dismantling Vermont Yankee.
Nuclear plants occasionally need to dispose of water with low levels of radioactivity when they're operating, so a process to release it in batches into local waterways was developed early in the nuclear industry.
In recent years at Pilgrim, the two largest releases were in 2011, with 29 releases totaling about 325,000 gallons (1,500 kiloliters), and 2013, with 21 releases totaling about 310,000 gallons.
The water from those releases was well below the federal limits for the amount of radionuclides in millirems a person would be exposed to in a year if they ate local seafood or swam in nearby waters, according to the NRC.
NRC spokesperson for the Northeast Neil Sheehan said the limits are set very conservatively and are believed to be protective of the public and environment. He said it’s important to consider the role of dilution — once the discharges mix with vast quantities of water any radioactivity is typically not detectable.
WHY ARE PEOPLE WORRIED?
In Duxbury, Kingston and Plymouth Bays, there are 50 oyster farms — the largest concentration in the state, worth $5.1 million last year, according to the Massachusetts Seafood Collaborative. The collaborative said dumping the water would devastate the industry, and the local economy along with it.
Diane Turco, a Harwich resident and longtime Pilgrim watchdog, fears the water is heavily contaminated, especially from the pool that covered the stored, spent fuel for cooling and shielded workers from radiation.
“Isn’t this a crazy idea for Holtec to use our bay as their dump? No way,” she said.
Others didn't know Pilgrim's water went into the bay in previous years and they don't want it to happen again.
“We can't change that, but we can change what's happening in the future,” said Cutler, the state lawmaker. “It's the first time it has ever been decommissioned, so to compare this to the past is a convenient excuse. ‘Well, we did it in the past,’ that sounds like my kid.”
Towns on the Cape are trying to prohibit the dispersal of radioactive materials in their waters. Tribal leaders, fishermen, lobstermen and real estate agents have publicly stated their opposition as well.
Sheehan, the NRC spokesperson, said the water is not different or distinct, compared to water released during the plant's operations. Holtec would have to handle it the same way, by filtering it, putting it into a tank, analyzing the radio isotopes and calculating the environmental impacts if it was released in batches, he added.
WHO GETS THE FINAL SAY?
Holtec wouldn't need a separate approval from the NRC to discharge the water into the bay. However, Holtec would need permission from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency if the water contained pollutants regulated by the Clean Water Act, such as dissolved metals.
If the water contained only radioactive materials regulated by the NRC, Holtec wouldn't need to ask the EPA for a permit modification, according to the EPA's water division for New England. Holtec has never given the EPA a pollutant characterization of the water associated with decommissioning, the division's director said.
Mary Lampert, of Duxbury, is on a panel created by the state to look at issues related to the Pilgrim’s decommissioning. She believes the state could use its existing laws and regulations to stop the dumping and plans to press the Massachusetts attorney general to file a preliminary injunction to do so.
The attorney general’s office said it's monitoring the issue and would take any Clean Water Act violations seriously.
Holtec said this week it’s examining the water for possible pollutants but the lab results won’t be available for awhile.
The company expects to decide what to do with the water later this year. Discharge, evaporation and some limited transportation will likely all be part of the solution, Holtec added. | https://www.theheraldreview.com/news/article/EXPLAINER-Why-would-nuclear-plant-dump-17069064.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:49 | en | 0.963365 |
WINCHESTER, Va. (AP) — Seven-year-old Kiah Anderson sat in her classroom at Quarles Elementary School on March 31 and held Moby Duck, a duckling she and her fellow second graders hatched in an incubator.
Moby is one of three ducks that were raised in teacher Nicole Hobson’s classroom these past few weeks as part of a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) learning project.
“We’ve had them since they were babies,” Kiah said as Moby Duck’s friends Duke and Ocho waddled around the room.
Kiah reads to the ducklings every day. She said their favorite book is “Duck On a Bike” by author David Shannon.
Eight-year-old Ella Trdlickova said it’s calming to come to school and spend time with the ducklings.
“They’re so cute and playful,” second-grader Ella said on her last full day with her fluffy friends.
Moby Duck, Ocho and Duke moved to their new, permanent home on a farm owned by Winchester Public Schools grant specialist Jennifer LaBombard-Daniels, who is overseeing the grant-funded STEM program at both Quarles and John Kerr Elementary School.
“What we’re doing with our kids is immersing them in STEM and computer science fields,” LaBombard-Daniels said.
How do baby ducks help kids learn about computers? By teaching them about modern farming techniques that involve robotics, automation, coding and more, LaBombard-Daniels said.
Thanks to the Virginia Department of Education and the National Inventors Hall of Fame, Winchester Public Schools recently received a “farm to family” kit that included devices and information to show students at Quarles and John Kerr elementary schools how modern farming embraces technology to reduce workloads and produce better food.
One of the devices in the kit was a miniature John Deere tractor the students programmed to automatically make its way around a classroom.
“They created a farm and made pathways, and then we coded the tractor to go through the farm,” Quarles computer science coach Jenny Ramsey said. “We want to show them how computer science is out there in every industry there is.”
The project with the ducklings began before they even hatched. LaBombard-Daniels said incubators were used to develop the eggs, which allowed students to follow the growth of the ducklings while they were still in their shells. The incubation process also taught the second graders how farmers must limit the number of eggs they hatch in order to control their poultry populations.
Once hatched, the ducklings stayed at Quarles and John Kerr so the students would have an immersive experience while learning to properly care for them. That experience could be instrumental later in their lives, LaBombard-Daniels said, when the children decide what they want to do for a living.
“When we did a survey of third- and fourth-graders last year,” she said, “veterinary science was the number one STEM field that they picked. I really attribute that to these projects because they’re having hands-on experiences.”
Apart from the educational aspect, Ramsey said the ducklings provided other benefits for the students.
“Sometimes they’re having a rough morning or having a hard time in the classroom, so a lot of these ducks end up turning into therapy ducks,” she said. “The students come to the counseling corner, they sit and hold the ducks, they read to them, get their feelings back in action and go back to the classroom. Not only are they learning to raise a duck and understand the life cycle of an animal they may not see in the city, but they’re also learning empathy and caring and giving.”
It’s not just the kids who enjoy spending time with the ducklings. On March 31, LaBombard-Daniels brought in five additional ducklings that caught the attention of every Quarles teacher who passed by in the hallway.
“It’s therapy, something different in the building than math and reading,” Quarles instructional coach Heather Williams said.
The five ducklings brought in are being raised on LaBombard-Daniels’ farm. In order for her to take the animals to Quarles, she also had to bring along a Silkie chicken who became their de facto mother after a batch of chicken eggs she was nesting failed to hatch. Since the Silkie couldn’t have babies of her own, she gravitated toward the ducklings and the ducklings bonded with her immediately. The unusual brood is now inseparable, so the ducklings wouldn’t leave the farm with LaBombard-Daniels unless their mother went, too.
The duckling project recently concluded at John Kerr and at Quarles when LaBombard-Daniels moved the three ducklings in Hobson’s classroom to her farm. LaBombard-Daniels said the ducks will live out their natural lives there and won’t be used for meat, but the eggs laid by the females will be collected and appreciated.
“She’ll send us picture updates and we’ll send them out to the kids,” Williams said.
John Kerr computer science coach Amy Thomas said the students at her school held up quite well when it was time to say goodbye to their ducklings.
“They know that the ducks need to be in a space that’s more comfortable for them,” Thomas said. “And it starts to get a little smelly after a while.” | https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/Ducklings-could-open-doors-to-future-careers-for-17069101.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:55 | en | 0.974986 |
CASPER, Wyo. (AP) — Harmful algae season is months away, but Wyoming regulators are already gearing up to test for toxins at some of the state’s most vulnerable waters.
The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) began tracking harmful algal blooms statewide in 2017. Every spring, the agency revisits the past year’s findings to refine its strategy for the next.
DEQ staff discussed their takeaways from the 2021 bloom season at a virtual public meeting on March 24.
The DEQ continued to rely last year on information from citizen reports and satellite imagery to help with detecting and tracking blooms. In collaboration with other state agencies, DEQ staff also began conducting routine monitoring at 20 popular recreation spots, and introduced tiered health advisories — rather than blanket warnings — to distinguish potentially harmful blooms from ones actively producing toxins.
Now the agency must build the lessons from 2021 into its plans for 2022. It’s just starting to work out what that might look like.
“We’re trying to identify other water bodies that we want to do monitoring at — looking at what our resources are,” Lindsay Patterson, surface water quality standards supervisor at the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, told the Casper Star-Tribune.
Harmful algal blooms have become a growing concern across the country in recent years. The tiny organisms that cause the blooms grow better in warmer water — an effect of climate change. And they thrive in water overloaded with nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus, which rainwater carries from onshore sources, such as manure, to nearby lakes, ponds and streams.
Nutrients can be tough pollutants to regulate. The state is in the process of developing standards intended to lower nutrient levels in surface waters, but according to Patterson, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach the state can take.
“So much of addressing the problem of nutrients has to be driven by the local community,” she said. “That’s what’s going to be the most effective moving forward.”
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reiterated its commitment to supporting states’ nutrient pollution mitigation efforts in a policy memorandum issued Tuesday.
“Our nutrients memo is a call for scaling up the innovative approaches being used by farmers, ranchers, water agencies, local municipalities, industry, and communities to make progress,” Radhika Fox, EPA assistant administrator for water, said in a statement.
Wyoming regulators know a lot more about harmful algal blooms than they did in 2017.
The DEQ has counted more blooms every year it’s looked — almost certainly, Patterson said, because the agency has improved at finding them. Last summer, the Wyoming Department of Health issued bloom advisories for 28 bodies of water and toxin advisories for eight of those.
There are “just more eyes on the ground,” Patterson said.
But the state still has plenty to figure out. It knows, for example, that less than half of documented harmful algal blooms have been found to produce dangerous levels of toxins. But it isn’t sure why.
People exposed to those toxins while recreating in surface water could experience anything from gastrointestinal issues to rashes to cold-like symptoms, and may even need to be hospitalized. Pets, meanwhile, tend to be more susceptible than humans. After exposure, they might cough or start to stumble. Their condition can quickly deteriorate and lead to death.
If humans or pets become sick after contact with water, and a bloom was visible in the area, the illness should be reported to the DEQ, Patterson said.
Harmful algal blooms typically begin in Wyoming in mid-July and end around November. During those months, members of the public can check a map of bloom advisories maintained by the agency before recreating, and look out for posted signs warning of toxin risk. | https://www.theheraldreview.com/news/article/Environmental-staff-making-plans-to-test-for-17069062.php | 2022-04-09T13:37:55 | en | 0.947697 |
One million gallons of radioactive water is inside a former nuclear power plant along Cape Cod Bay and it has got to go.
But where, is the vexing question, and will the state intervene as the company dismantling the plant decides?
Holtec International is considering treating the water and discharging it into the bay, drawing fierce resistance from local residents, shell fishermen and politicians. Holtec is also considering evaporating the contaminated water or trucking it to a facility in another state.
The fight in Massachusetts mirrors a current, heated debate in Japan over a plan to release more than 1 million tons of treated radioactive wastewater into the ocean from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant in spring 2023. A massive tsunami in 2011 crashed into the plant. Three reactors melted down.
Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Plymouth, Massachusetts, closed in 2019 after nearly half a century providing electricity to the region. U.S. Rep. William Keating, a Democrat whose district includes the Cape, wrote to Holtec with other top Massachusetts lawmakers in January to oppose releasing water into Cape Cod Bay. He asked the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to examine its regulations.
Keating said in late March that Holtec's handling of the radioactive water could set a precedent because the U.S. decommissioning industry is in its infancy. Most U.S. nuclear plants were built between 1970 and 1990.
“If they're listening, sensitive and work with these communities, it's important,” he said. “That's the message for future decommissioning sites.”
Holtec has acquired closed nuclear plants across the country as part of its dismantling business, including the former Oyster Creek Generating Station in New Jersey and Indian Point Energy Center in New York. It’s taking ownership of the Palisades Nuclear Plant on Lake Michigan, which is closing this year.
Pilgrim was a boiling water reactor. Water constantly circulated through the reactor vessel and nuclear fuel, converting it to steam to spin the turbine. The water was cooled and recirculated, picking up radioactive contamination.
Cape Cod is a tourist hotspot. Having radioactive water in the bay, even low levels, isn't great for marketing, said Democratic state Rep. Josh Cutler, who represents a district there. Cutler is working to pass legislation to prohibit discharging radioactive material into coastal or inland waters.
Holtec said Pilgrim already discharged water into the bay for 50 years while the plant was operating and environmental studies, conducted by the plant operators and now Holtec, have shown little or no environmental impact. Radiological environmental reports are shared with the NRC annually.
“We are working to provide scientific data, educate the public on the reality of radiation in everyday life, and working to have experts explain the true science versus the emotional fear of the unknown,” spokesperson Patrick O’Brien wrote in an email in March.
WHAT ARE HOLTEC'S OPTIONS?
Holtec could treat the water and discharge it in batches over multiple years, likely the least expensive option. Or, it could evaporate the water on site, as it says it has done with about 680,000 gallons (2,600 kiloliters) over the past two years.
Evaporating the water would be more challenging to do now because the spent nuclear fuel is in storage, and couldn’t be used as a heat source. Holtec would have to use a different — likely more expensive — method that would release gas.
Or, Holtec could truck the water to an out-of-state facility, where it could be mixed with clay and buried or placed in an evaporation pond, or released into local waterways. That’s what Keating wants.
Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station, another boiling water reactor, was shut down in Vernon, Vermont, in 2014. It’s sending wastewater to disposal specialists in Texas and other states. Entergy operated and sold both Vermont Yankee and Pilgrim. NorthStar, a separate and competing corporation in the decommissioning business, is dismantling Vermont Yankee.
Nuclear plants occasionally need to dispose of water with low levels of radioactivity when they're operating, so a process to release it in batches into local waterways was developed early in the nuclear industry.
In recent years at Pilgrim, the two largest releases were in 2011, with 29 releases totaling about 325,000 gallons (1,500 kiloliters), and 2013, with 21 releases totaling about 310,000 gallons.
The water from those releases was well below the federal limits for the amount of radionuclides in millirems a person would be exposed to in a year if they ate local seafood or swam in nearby waters, according to the NRC.
NRC spokesperson for the Northeast Neil Sheehan said the limits are set very conservatively and are believed to be protective of the public and environment. He said it’s important to consider the role of dilution — once the discharges mix with vast quantities of water any radioactivity is typically not detectable.
WHY ARE PEOPLE WORRIED?
In Duxbury, Kingston and Plymouth Bays, there are 50 oyster farms — the largest concentration in the state, worth $5.1 million last year, according to the Massachusetts Seafood Collaborative. The collaborative said dumping the water would devastate the industry, and the local economy along with it.
Diane Turco, a Harwich resident and longtime Pilgrim watchdog, fears the water is heavily contaminated, especially from the pool that covered the stored, spent fuel for cooling and shielded workers from radiation.
“Isn’t this a crazy idea for Holtec to use our bay as their dump? No way,” she said.
Others didn't know Pilgrim's water went into the bay in previous years and they don't want it to happen again.
“We can't change that, but we can change what's happening in the future,” said Cutler, the state lawmaker. “It's the first time it has ever been decommissioned, so to compare this to the past is a convenient excuse. ‘Well, we did it in the past,’ that sounds like my kid.”
Towns on the Cape are trying to prohibit the dispersal of radioactive materials in their waters. Tribal leaders, fishermen, lobstermen and real estate agents have publicly stated their opposition as well.
Sheehan, the NRC spokesperson, said the water is not different or distinct, compared to water released during the plant's operations. Holtec would have to handle it the same way, by filtering it, putting it into a tank, analyzing the radio isotopes and calculating the environmental impacts if it was released in batches, he added.
WHO GETS THE FINAL SAY?
Holtec wouldn't need a separate approval from the NRC to discharge the water into the bay. However, Holtec would need permission from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency if the water contained pollutants regulated by the Clean Water Act, such as dissolved metals.
If the water contained only radioactive materials regulated by the NRC, Holtec wouldn't need to ask the EPA for a permit modification, according to the EPA's water division for New England. Holtec has never given the EPA a pollutant characterization of the water associated with decommissioning, the division's director said.
Mary Lampert, of Duxbury, is on a panel created by the state to look at issues related to the Pilgrim’s decommissioning. She believes the state could use its existing laws and regulations to stop the dumping and plans to press the Massachusetts attorney general to file a preliminary injunction to do so.
The attorney general’s office said it's monitoring the issue and would take any Clean Water Act violations seriously.
Holtec said this week it’s examining the water for possible pollutants but the lab results won’t be available for awhile.
The company expects to decide what to do with the water later this year. Discharge, evaporation and some limited transportation will likely all be part of the solution, Holtec added. | https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/EXPLAINER-Why-would-nuclear-plant-dump-17069064.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:01 | en | 0.963365 |
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine's independent senator wants the U.S. to try to limit Russian president Vladimir Putin and others in Russia from dodging economic sanctions by using cryptocurrencies.
Sen. Angus King said he is cosponsoring legislation that would seek to stop Putin and others from using digital assets to make an end-run on tough sanctions placed by the U.S. He said the proposal would stop any Russian digital assets from being traded in U.S. jurisdictions.
The proposal would also include new cryptocurrency transparency requirements and give the Biden administration new powers to go after the digital assets, King said. King said the U.S. “must ensure that Putin cannot exploit any financial loopholes to escape the consequences of his crimes.”
The bill has numerous sponsors in the U.S. Senate, all the rest of whom are Democrats, including Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren. | https://www.theheraldreview.com/news/article/Senators-want-to-prevent-Putin-dodging-sanctions-17069085.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:02 | en | 0.960602 |
CASPER, Wyo. (AP) — Harmful algae season is months away, but Wyoming regulators are already gearing up to test for toxins at some of the state’s most vulnerable waters.
The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) began tracking harmful algal blooms statewide in 2017. Every spring, the agency revisits the past year’s findings to refine its strategy for the next.
DEQ staff discussed their takeaways from the 2021 bloom season at a virtual public meeting on March 24.
The DEQ continued to rely last year on information from citizen reports and satellite imagery to help with detecting and tracking blooms. In collaboration with other state agencies, DEQ staff also began conducting routine monitoring at 20 popular recreation spots, and introduced tiered health advisories — rather than blanket warnings — to distinguish potentially harmful blooms from ones actively producing toxins.
Now the agency must build the lessons from 2021 into its plans for 2022. It’s just starting to work out what that might look like.
“We’re trying to identify other water bodies that we want to do monitoring at — looking at what our resources are,” Lindsay Patterson, surface water quality standards supervisor at the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, told the Casper Star-Tribune.
Harmful algal blooms have become a growing concern across the country in recent years. The tiny organisms that cause the blooms grow better in warmer water — an effect of climate change. And they thrive in water overloaded with nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus, which rainwater carries from onshore sources, such as manure, to nearby lakes, ponds and streams.
Nutrients can be tough pollutants to regulate. The state is in the process of developing standards intended to lower nutrient levels in surface waters, but according to Patterson, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach the state can take.
“So much of addressing the problem of nutrients has to be driven by the local community,” she said. “That’s what’s going to be the most effective moving forward.”
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reiterated its commitment to supporting states’ nutrient pollution mitigation efforts in a policy memorandum issued Tuesday.
“Our nutrients memo is a call for scaling up the innovative approaches being used by farmers, ranchers, water agencies, local municipalities, industry, and communities to make progress,” Radhika Fox, EPA assistant administrator for water, said in a statement.
Wyoming regulators know a lot more about harmful algal blooms than they did in 2017.
The DEQ has counted more blooms every year it’s looked — almost certainly, Patterson said, because the agency has improved at finding them. Last summer, the Wyoming Department of Health issued bloom advisories for 28 bodies of water and toxin advisories for eight of those.
There are “just more eyes on the ground,” Patterson said.
But the state still has plenty to figure out. It knows, for example, that less than half of documented harmful algal blooms have been found to produce dangerous levels of toxins. But it isn’t sure why.
People exposed to those toxins while recreating in surface water could experience anything from gastrointestinal issues to rashes to cold-like symptoms, and may even need to be hospitalized. Pets, meanwhile, tend to be more susceptible than humans. After exposure, they might cough or start to stumble. Their condition can quickly deteriorate and lead to death.
If humans or pets become sick after contact with water, and a bloom was visible in the area, the illness should be reported to the DEQ, Patterson said.
Harmful algal blooms typically begin in Wyoming in mid-July and end around November. During those months, members of the public can check a map of bloom advisories maintained by the agency before recreating, and look out for posted signs warning of toxin risk. | https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/Environmental-staff-making-plans-to-test-for-17069062.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:07 | en | 0.947697 |
DOVER, Del. (AP) — It was a challenge that turned into a dare that eventually led to the takeoff of one of the most momentous C-5A Galaxy flights out of Dover Air Force Base Jan. 30, 1986.
Retired Col. William “Bill” Jordan, now 79, vividly remembers the sequence of events that led to the first all-Black aircrew of a C-5A cargo plane leaving Dover bound for Germany that day.
After all, he was chosen to lead the historic mission.
“The way it got started was I was chair of the Black History Month Committee that year and one of the members of that committee had suggested that we bring a R&B group down from Philadelphia and have a dance, and I was opposed to that,” Mr. Jordan said. “I said I didn’t think the base would go for that.
“So, a female NCO on the committee said, ‘They never go for anything. I bet they won’t go for an all-Black flight C-5 crew.’”
Mr. Jordan said he was kind of put in a difficult spot and he committed that he would ask then-Col. Walter Kross, who was Dover Air Force Base’s wing commander back then, if he would approve her idea.
Much to his surprise, Col. Kross OK’d the proposal and history was put into motion.
“I guess the thing that made it so memorable for me was the fact that Col. Kross had the fortitude to authorize that flight in the face of a lot of people saying that he was making a mistake,” Mr. Jordan said.
So, he and 17 other Black airmen representing Dover AFB’s 3rd Squadron, 9th Squadron and Reserves, were selected and put into place to fly a routine mission to Germany in honor of Black History Month in February.
The purpose of the flight was to symbolize the role Black airmen played in national defense commitments.
In an article in The Airlifter, the base newspaper, published in 1986, then-Lt. Col. Jordan, who served as the flight commander, said, “Members of the crew wanted to fly an ordinary mission, not an ‘around the flagpole mission.’
“There aren’t any special events planned en route. The mission is a symbol of Black History Month, and we know it will inspire young Blacks to strive harder to achieve whatever their dreams may be.”
At the time, he also knew the flight would have its share of detractors.
“There are people who are going to try to turn this into something negative,” he said. “There will be comments that it’s tokenism or an attempt to segregate a crew. Neither statement is true.”
Little did Mr. Jordan and other members of the all-Black flight crew know at the time about the interest level that many had involving the flight, including a young Black airman at an air base in Incirlik, Turkey.
“The most memorable thing about the flight was the second leg, when we went into Turkey,” said Mr. Jordan. “There was an airman who couldn’t believe there was going to be an all-Black flight and he stayed up all night at the base in Incirlik, Turkey, waiting to see that C-5 come in and land.
“He was out on the flightline just looking to see the all-Black crew. He was a Black airman, so the fact that it meant so much to him and it meant so much to all the Air Force people that we ran across meant a lot to us.
“It was amazing. People were coming up to us and congratulating us and thankful that we did that flight.”
When he looks back on that flight today, there isn’t a whole lot that he would change, calling it an honor to be a part of history.
“We didn’t want it to be just a symbolic flight. We wanted it to be a normal mission,” Mr. Jordan said. “It was to show that on a day-to-day basis that we contributed to the regular Air Force mission — showing that we do this daily, and we can do this all the time.
“I think the biggest honor for me was to see the performance of the entire crew. Everybody on the crew did a fabulous job. It’s always a great honor to work with such a highly motivated and dedicated crew of people.”
Unfortunately, time is catching up to many who participated in the mission. Pilot Joe Lindsay died in January, and several others have also passed away over the years.
Their exploits are still remembered — including another flight by a second all-Black air crew that took place years after the inaugural flight.
On Feb. 24, 1999, there was a C-5 reunion and recognition luncheon for both the flights at Dover Air Force Base.
“If you ask me, it was a momentous flight,” said Mr. Jordan, who now lives in Spotsylvania, Virginia.
However, he said it wasn’t the most significant flight of his aviation career.
“My service in Vietnam might be more significant than that flight,” Mr. Jordan said. “My flying of air medical evacuations … One of my friends asked me what the most important mission I ever flew in the Air Force was, and I told her two missions where I saved two little girls who had been burned over 80% of their bodies, one down in New Orleans and one in Memphis, Tennessee.
“And the lady was shocked. She knew I had been down in Vietnam, and I’d done all that and the Black flight (at Dover) — that flight was very significant to me, but was it the most significant thing in my Air Force career? No.” | https://www.theheraldreview.com/news/article/Sky-was-limit-for-1st-Black-aircrew-at-Dover-Air-17069098.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:08 | en | 0.98751 |
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine's independent senator wants the U.S. to try to limit Russian president Vladimir Putin and others in Russia from dodging economic sanctions by using cryptocurrencies.
Sen. Angus King said he is cosponsoring legislation that would seek to stop Putin and others from using digital assets to make an end-run on tough sanctions placed by the U.S. He said the proposal would stop any Russian digital assets from being traded in U.S. jurisdictions.
The proposal would also include new cryptocurrency transparency requirements and give the Biden administration new powers to go after the digital assets, King said. King said the U.S. “must ensure that Putin cannot exploit any financial loopholes to escape the consequences of his crimes.”
The bill has numerous sponsors in the U.S. Senate, all the rest of whom are Democrats, including Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren. | https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/Senators-want-to-prevent-Putin-dodging-sanctions-17069085.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:13 | en | 0.960602 |
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Sarah Rose took a scalpel and carefully scraped off the dark brown outer layer of a 200-year-old femur and collected the specks in a plastic box. By the shape of the bone, she could tell this man or woman — it’s hard to say by looking — had well-defined muscles. Maybe this person worked a labor-intensive job, Rose said. Maybe this person was enslaved.
Rose’s eyes are focused. This isn’t the first time the Virginia Commonwealth University graduate student has worked with human remains.
She’s been trained not to think about the tragedies the people endured that led to their bodies being inspected by a forensic scientist. She tries to concentrate on the task at hand, grinding down a small portion of the bone to conduct DNA analysis.
But in a case like this, it’s impossible to ignore how this person was treated in life and death: possibly enslaved, robbed from the grave, discarded in a well, excavated in a hurry and forgotten in a Smithsonian storage facility.
“The gravity of the situation brings you back in,” Rose said.
All these years later, after so much was taken and forgotten, could she and a team of researchers restore their identities?
They hope to learn the ancestry, hair color, eye color and perhaps birthplace of this person and 52 others who were found under a VCU Health building in 1994. If the best-case scenario comes true, they will match the DNA to descendants still living today.
Then the VCU researchers will rebury the dead, hopefully bringing back the dignity they were never afforded.
“The feeling is,” said Joseph Jones, a professor from the College of William & Mary and one of the project’s leaders, “these are people who were lost to the community.”
A DIG GONE WRONG
In 1994, construction workers laying the foundation for the Kontos Medical Sciences Building made a discovery. Twenty-five feet below ground, near the end of East Marshall Street, they found a well filled with human remains, leather shoes, glass bottles and mud.
VCU called its chief archaeologist, L. Daniel Mouer, who could smell the decomposition. He found bones and what appeared to be hair and skin.
But VCU refused to delay construction and gave Mouer only a weekend to excavate the remains. When the deadline arrived, a backhoe plowed into the earth, pulling up the bones and dirt, and Mouer watched in disbelief. What couldn’t be collected quickly was left behind.
What was recovered included more than 400 bones belonging to at least 44 adults and nine children. Two rib bones belonged to an infant, and two more to a newborn. Many of the skeletons were incomplete.
Researchers studied the skulls and determined most of them were of African ancestry. It’s likely the individuals were robbed from their graves, used as medical cadavers for the medical department of Hampden-Sydney College — which later became the Medical College of Virginia and eventually VCU.
Throughout the 19th century, the school hired workers known as resurrectionists to illegally dig up bodies, often from the Shockoe Hill African burial ground, a mile north at the intersection of North Fifth and Hospital streets, wrote VCU archivist Jodi Koste in a report.
When the bodies served no further use, they were dumped in a well.
The bones show signs of medical examination — there are cuts and nicks from scalpels, suggesting students learned how to amputate a limb and saw a skull in half to remove the brain. The cut marks are crude and incomplete, the work of amateurs learning their craft.
Alongside the bones, Mouer found detritus — 25 leather shoes, olive green glass bottles, the remains of three dogs and a cat. The articles dated to the mid-1800s.
After the remains and artifacts were pulled from the ground, they were shipped to the Smithsonian Institution, where VCU largely forgot about them for the next 15 years. It wasn’t until 2011 when VCU professor Shawn Utsey made a documentary on the topic titled “Until the Well Runs Dry: Medicine and the Exploitation of Black Bodies” that interest was rekindled.
VCU formed several committees of employees and local residents to decide how the school should proceed. The decision: bring the bones home and respectfully rebury them. But first, find out as much as possible about who these people were.
DNA ANALYSIS
In January, 28 years after the bones left Richmond, they came back to VCU in paperboard boxes draped in colorful Ghanaian burial cloth called Adinkra.
The VCU committees wrestled with the question of how to proceed. DNA extraction is an invasive process that requires further disturbing the remains.
There are four basic steps to DNA analysis, which will take two-plus years to complete: extracting the DNA from the bones, quantifying it, preparing it for analysis and sequencing it.
There are two types of sequencing. First: short tandem repeats, or STR, the type of sequencing the FBI conducts at a crime scene to match a suspect to a strand of hair. VCU researchers will use STR to match bones belonging to the same person.
Second: single nucleotide polymorphism, which the researchers call SNP or “snips.” They’ll use SNP to determine the person’s sex, hair color, eye color, height and blood type.
SNP will also tell the researchers the ancestry of each individual, which the Smithsonian already determined for some of the bones. Most of the people found in the well were of African descent. At least two were European, and six were undetermined.
While the bones make up at least 53 different individuals, Mouer found only 12 intact skulls. The reason why is a mystery. They may have never made it into the well — skulls tend to be collectors’ items, though there’s no evidence the students took them. Or they may still be there, deeper in the mud.
Using chemical analysis on the teeth, the researchers will try to determine if the people lived in Africa before coming to the U.S. Elements such as calcium and strontium in food are incorporated into the teeth and bones. By analyzing the strontium, the researchers hope to tell where the people lived.
The pie-in-the-sky goal is to match the DNA to descendants alive today who have submitted their DNA to biotechnology companies such as Ancestry.com or 23andMe.
None of this work comes cheap. VCU purchased a machine called a TissueLyser, which can cost about $17,000, to grind the bones. It’ll need a handful of DNA prep kits — just one is near $20,000, which mix human building blocks with chemicals.
The research is in an early phase and determining a total cost is difficult. It could reach into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
“DNA is not cheap to do,” said Tal Simmons, a VCU forensic anthropologist and project leader. “It is really expensive.”
‘BEST-CASE SCENARIO’
Universities across the South have confronted the forgotten remains of Black and enslaved people buried on campus. The University of Virginia found an unmarked African American cemetery next to the white cemetery in 2012. Recently, the University of Richmond rediscovered a cemetery for enslaved workers who lived on a plantation that eventually became the school’s campus.
There are no guarantees VCU’s work will bear results. Bone doesn’t provide as good a DNA sample as blood, hair or saliva. There’s no assurance the bones will provide usable DNA.
“All of this is best-case scenario what we’re hoping for,” Rose said. “We can’t really promise anything right now.”
There are too many bones to analyze each one. Small bones from the hands, feet and ribs will never be matched to their bodies. They’ll be buried together.
It’s unlikely the researchers will ever learn the people’s names. While there are some records of bodies robbed from their graves, the time frame doesn’t correspond with the well, said Ryan K. Smith, a VCU history professor. Even if an accurate record is located, it would nearly impossible to match names to bodies.
“I don’t know if we’ll ever know who these people were, but I’d love to get close to who these people were, the time they lived and if we have any clues about what their lives were like before they became comingled bones. I’d love to know that,” Rose said.
The DNA analysis isn’t the beginning of the analysis of these bones — it’s the end. In 2012, researchers from the Smithsonian and other colleges cataloged the bones and artifacts, visually studying each piece. They found a bevy of clues.
A researcher found one skull whose teeth were stained black from tobacco. There were concave dents between the incisors and canines where a pipe would fit.
Lacking dental care, their teeth often decayed or fell out. Signs of arthritis were widespread. Bones in the lower back degenerated. One child lived with a herniated disk. Worn-down bones were the result of “active lifestyles involving physical exertion” and a pattern of physical labor that began in childhood. One person’s leg bones bowed, a symptom of rickets. Another had tuberculosis in the spinal column.
Some experienced traumatic deaths. A male of European ancestry suffered a splinter lodged in the outer edge of his eye socket, penetrating his brain. Another man endured two holes in the top of his skull, likely low-velocity gunshot wounds. The skull shows cuts from a saw — perhaps a surgeon’s attempt to remove the projectiles. But the bone shows no sign of healing, meaning the man didn’t survive surgery.
ACKNOWLEDGING UNRECOGNIZED LEGACY
Each day at the VCU lab begins with a student reciting a statement posted on the bookshelf. The researchers “acknowledge the lives, history and unrecognized legacy” of these individuals and “pay our respect to elders both past and present.”
Amber Mundy, 22 and a graduate student on the project, sees this as an opportunity to memorialize Black lives — something seldom done in early American history. While white Americans were placed under gravestones, Black Americans sometimes were placed in unmarked graves in cemeteries forgotten and built over.
Mundy, who is Black, thinks about the difference between Egyptian pharaohs mummified and placed in museums and Black Americans, whose grave sites were neglected.
“They get a beautiful glass box, and I get a building built over my people,” she said. “My cemeteries are just dirt.”
One purpose for conducting DNA analysis is to determine what kind of burial ceremonies are appropriate for these people, said Rhonda Keyes Pleasants, a local funeral home manager and committee leader.
In Ghana, for example, carpenters design custom-made burial containers — a man who owned a Mercedes-Benz was buried in a coffin shaped like a car, complete with the Mercedes logo on the grill.
The VCU committees hope to rebury the individuals at the African American burial ground downtown or Evergreen Cemetery. A final destination has not been determined.
The way these bodies were treated in the 1800s still bothers Rose, the graduate student researcher. But what shocks her more is how little value was placed on them as recently as 1994, when they were quickly and partially excavated.
There are still human remains until the Kontos building, and historical records suggest a second well of bodies exists under the Egyptian Building. It’s unclear if either well is accessible.
“It’s horrible to think about how these remains were treated this way in my lifetime,” said Rose, 33.
That’s why she collects every speck of dust she grinds off the bones. It will all be reburied one day. | https://www.theheraldreview.com/news/article/VCU-hopes-to-learn-origins-of-bones-found-in-well-17069100.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:14 | en | 0.970586 |
DOVER, Del. (AP) — It was a challenge that turned into a dare that eventually led to the takeoff of one of the most momentous C-5A Galaxy flights out of Dover Air Force Base Jan. 30, 1986.
Retired Col. William “Bill” Jordan, now 79, vividly remembers the sequence of events that led to the first all-Black aircrew of a C-5A cargo plane leaving Dover bound for Germany that day.
After all, he was chosen to lead the historic mission.
“The way it got started was I was chair of the Black History Month Committee that year and one of the members of that committee had suggested that we bring a R&B group down from Philadelphia and have a dance, and I was opposed to that,” Mr. Jordan said. “I said I didn’t think the base would go for that.
“So, a female NCO on the committee said, ‘They never go for anything. I bet they won’t go for an all-Black flight C-5 crew.’”
Mr. Jordan said he was kind of put in a difficult spot and he committed that he would ask then-Col. Walter Kross, who was Dover Air Force Base’s wing commander back then, if he would approve her idea.
Much to his surprise, Col. Kross OK’d the proposal and history was put into motion.
“I guess the thing that made it so memorable for me was the fact that Col. Kross had the fortitude to authorize that flight in the face of a lot of people saying that he was making a mistake,” Mr. Jordan said.
So, he and 17 other Black airmen representing Dover AFB’s 3rd Squadron, 9th Squadron and Reserves, were selected and put into place to fly a routine mission to Germany in honor of Black History Month in February.
The purpose of the flight was to symbolize the role Black airmen played in national defense commitments.
In an article in The Airlifter, the base newspaper, published in 1986, then-Lt. Col. Jordan, who served as the flight commander, said, “Members of the crew wanted to fly an ordinary mission, not an ‘around the flagpole mission.’
“There aren’t any special events planned en route. The mission is a symbol of Black History Month, and we know it will inspire young Blacks to strive harder to achieve whatever their dreams may be.”
At the time, he also knew the flight would have its share of detractors.
“There are people who are going to try to turn this into something negative,” he said. “There will be comments that it’s tokenism or an attempt to segregate a crew. Neither statement is true.”
Little did Mr. Jordan and other members of the all-Black flight crew know at the time about the interest level that many had involving the flight, including a young Black airman at an air base in Incirlik, Turkey.
“The most memorable thing about the flight was the second leg, when we went into Turkey,” said Mr. Jordan. “There was an airman who couldn’t believe there was going to be an all-Black flight and he stayed up all night at the base in Incirlik, Turkey, waiting to see that C-5 come in and land.
“He was out on the flightline just looking to see the all-Black crew. He was a Black airman, so the fact that it meant so much to him and it meant so much to all the Air Force people that we ran across meant a lot to us.
“It was amazing. People were coming up to us and congratulating us and thankful that we did that flight.”
When he looks back on that flight today, there isn’t a whole lot that he would change, calling it an honor to be a part of history.
“We didn’t want it to be just a symbolic flight. We wanted it to be a normal mission,” Mr. Jordan said. “It was to show that on a day-to-day basis that we contributed to the regular Air Force mission — showing that we do this daily, and we can do this all the time.
“I think the biggest honor for me was to see the performance of the entire crew. Everybody on the crew did a fabulous job. It’s always a great honor to work with such a highly motivated and dedicated crew of people.”
Unfortunately, time is catching up to many who participated in the mission. Pilot Joe Lindsay died in January, and several others have also passed away over the years.
Their exploits are still remembered — including another flight by a second all-Black air crew that took place years after the inaugural flight.
On Feb. 24, 1999, there was a C-5 reunion and recognition luncheon for both the flights at Dover Air Force Base.
“If you ask me, it was a momentous flight,” said Mr. Jordan, who now lives in Spotsylvania, Virginia.
However, he said it wasn’t the most significant flight of his aviation career.
“My service in Vietnam might be more significant than that flight,” Mr. Jordan said. “My flying of air medical evacuations … One of my friends asked me what the most important mission I ever flew in the Air Force was, and I told her two missions where I saved two little girls who had been burned over 80% of their bodies, one down in New Orleans and one in Memphis, Tennessee.
“And the lady was shocked. She knew I had been down in Vietnam, and I’d done all that and the Black flight (at Dover) — that flight was very significant to me, but was it the most significant thing in my Air Force career? No.” | https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/Sky-was-limit-for-1st-Black-aircrew-at-Dover-Air-17069098.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:19 | en | 0.98751 |
3 killed in Georgia gun range shooting; suspects not in custody
COWETA COUNTY, Ga. (WGCL/Gray News) – Three members of the same family were killed during a robbery at their family shooting range in Grantville, Georgia.
The robbery took place at the Lock Stock & Barrel shooting range sometime after 5:30 p.m. Friday, according to Grantville Police Department.
WGCL reported when police arrived, they found the range’s owner, his wife, and their grandson had been killed.
Police have identified the owner as Richard Hawk.
“Let’s keep Richard Hawk and Family in our prayers,” Grantville Police said in a Facebook post Saturday morning.
Grantville Police said approximately 40 guns and the security camera DVR were taken from the scene.
Both the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the ATF were called to help investigate the case. The Coweta County Sheriff’s Office is also assisting in the investigation.
Police are asking for the community’s help in gathering any information about the incident. They said anyone in the area who may have driven by the range between 5:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Friday may have seen vehicles other than a white Ford dually truck and a black Ford Expedition.
Copyright 2022 WGCL via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. | https://www.wlbt.com/2022/04/09/3-killed-georgia-gun-range-shooting-suspects-not-custody/ | 2022-04-09T13:38:20 | en | 0.981704 |
SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — Members of the Vermont National Guard will be deployed temporarily to Europe early next month to enhance NATO's defense and support its air policing, guard officials said.
Guard members are expected to be briefed on the mission during a drill this weekend, WCAX-TV reported.
They will join thousands of U.S. soldiers already deployed to support the nation’s allies following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, myNBC5 reported.
“The National Guard is proud to continue our support our allies with ongoing missions,” Maj. J. Scott Detweiler wrote in a statement.
The support of NATO's air policing mission includes defending airspace over nations bordering Ukraine’s to the west and southwest. | https://www.theheraldreview.com/news/article/Vermont-National-Guard-members-to-head-to-Europe-17069081.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:20 | en | 0.943565 |
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Sarah Rose took a scalpel and carefully scraped off the dark brown outer layer of a 200-year-old femur and collected the specks in a plastic box. By the shape of the bone, she could tell this man or woman — it’s hard to say by looking — had well-defined muscles. Maybe this person worked a labor-intensive job, Rose said. Maybe this person was enslaved.
Rose’s eyes are focused. This isn’t the first time the Virginia Commonwealth University graduate student has worked with human remains.
She’s been trained not to think about the tragedies the people endured that led to their bodies being inspected by a forensic scientist. She tries to concentrate on the task at hand, grinding down a small portion of the bone to conduct DNA analysis.
But in a case like this, it’s impossible to ignore how this person was treated in life and death: possibly enslaved, robbed from the grave, discarded in a well, excavated in a hurry and forgotten in a Smithsonian storage facility.
“The gravity of the situation brings you back in,” Rose said.
All these years later, after so much was taken and forgotten, could she and a team of researchers restore their identities?
They hope to learn the ancestry, hair color, eye color and perhaps birthplace of this person and 52 others who were found under a VCU Health building in 1994. If the best-case scenario comes true, they will match the DNA to descendants still living today.
Then the VCU researchers will rebury the dead, hopefully bringing back the dignity they were never afforded.
“The feeling is,” said Joseph Jones, a professor from the College of William & Mary and one of the project’s leaders, “these are people who were lost to the community.”
A DIG GONE WRONG
In 1994, construction workers laying the foundation for the Kontos Medical Sciences Building made a discovery. Twenty-five feet below ground, near the end of East Marshall Street, they found a well filled with human remains, leather shoes, glass bottles and mud.
VCU called its chief archaeologist, L. Daniel Mouer, who could smell the decomposition. He found bones and what appeared to be hair and skin.
But VCU refused to delay construction and gave Mouer only a weekend to excavate the remains. When the deadline arrived, a backhoe plowed into the earth, pulling up the bones and dirt, and Mouer watched in disbelief. What couldn’t be collected quickly was left behind.
What was recovered included more than 400 bones belonging to at least 44 adults and nine children. Two rib bones belonged to an infant, and two more to a newborn. Many of the skeletons were incomplete.
Researchers studied the skulls and determined most of them were of African ancestry. It’s likely the individuals were robbed from their graves, used as medical cadavers for the medical department of Hampden-Sydney College — which later became the Medical College of Virginia and eventually VCU.
Throughout the 19th century, the school hired workers known as resurrectionists to illegally dig up bodies, often from the Shockoe Hill African burial ground, a mile north at the intersection of North Fifth and Hospital streets, wrote VCU archivist Jodi Koste in a report.
When the bodies served no further use, they were dumped in a well.
The bones show signs of medical examination — there are cuts and nicks from scalpels, suggesting students learned how to amputate a limb and saw a skull in half to remove the brain. The cut marks are crude and incomplete, the work of amateurs learning their craft.
Alongside the bones, Mouer found detritus — 25 leather shoes, olive green glass bottles, the remains of three dogs and a cat. The articles dated to the mid-1800s.
After the remains and artifacts were pulled from the ground, they were shipped to the Smithsonian Institution, where VCU largely forgot about them for the next 15 years. It wasn’t until 2011 when VCU professor Shawn Utsey made a documentary on the topic titled “Until the Well Runs Dry: Medicine and the Exploitation of Black Bodies” that interest was rekindled.
VCU formed several committees of employees and local residents to decide how the school should proceed. The decision: bring the bones home and respectfully rebury them. But first, find out as much as possible about who these people were.
DNA ANALYSIS
In January, 28 years after the bones left Richmond, they came back to VCU in paperboard boxes draped in colorful Ghanaian burial cloth called Adinkra.
The VCU committees wrestled with the question of how to proceed. DNA extraction is an invasive process that requires further disturbing the remains.
There are four basic steps to DNA analysis, which will take two-plus years to complete: extracting the DNA from the bones, quantifying it, preparing it for analysis and sequencing it.
There are two types of sequencing. First: short tandem repeats, or STR, the type of sequencing the FBI conducts at a crime scene to match a suspect to a strand of hair. VCU researchers will use STR to match bones belonging to the same person.
Second: single nucleotide polymorphism, which the researchers call SNP or “snips.” They’ll use SNP to determine the person’s sex, hair color, eye color, height and blood type.
SNP will also tell the researchers the ancestry of each individual, which the Smithsonian already determined for some of the bones. Most of the people found in the well were of African descent. At least two were European, and six were undetermined.
While the bones make up at least 53 different individuals, Mouer found only 12 intact skulls. The reason why is a mystery. They may have never made it into the well — skulls tend to be collectors’ items, though there’s no evidence the students took them. Or they may still be there, deeper in the mud.
Using chemical analysis on the teeth, the researchers will try to determine if the people lived in Africa before coming to the U.S. Elements such as calcium and strontium in food are incorporated into the teeth and bones. By analyzing the strontium, the researchers hope to tell where the people lived.
The pie-in-the-sky goal is to match the DNA to descendants alive today who have submitted their DNA to biotechnology companies such as Ancestry.com or 23andMe.
None of this work comes cheap. VCU purchased a machine called a TissueLyser, which can cost about $17,000, to grind the bones. It’ll need a handful of DNA prep kits — just one is near $20,000, which mix human building blocks with chemicals.
The research is in an early phase and determining a total cost is difficult. It could reach into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
“DNA is not cheap to do,” said Tal Simmons, a VCU forensic anthropologist and project leader. “It is really expensive.”
‘BEST-CASE SCENARIO’
Universities across the South have confronted the forgotten remains of Black and enslaved people buried on campus. The University of Virginia found an unmarked African American cemetery next to the white cemetery in 2012. Recently, the University of Richmond rediscovered a cemetery for enslaved workers who lived on a plantation that eventually became the school’s campus.
There are no guarantees VCU’s work will bear results. Bone doesn’t provide as good a DNA sample as blood, hair or saliva. There’s no assurance the bones will provide usable DNA.
“All of this is best-case scenario what we’re hoping for,” Rose said. “We can’t really promise anything right now.”
There are too many bones to analyze each one. Small bones from the hands, feet and ribs will never be matched to their bodies. They’ll be buried together.
It’s unlikely the researchers will ever learn the people’s names. While there are some records of bodies robbed from their graves, the time frame doesn’t correspond with the well, said Ryan K. Smith, a VCU history professor. Even if an accurate record is located, it would nearly impossible to match names to bodies.
“I don’t know if we’ll ever know who these people were, but I’d love to get close to who these people were, the time they lived and if we have any clues about what their lives were like before they became comingled bones. I’d love to know that,” Rose said.
The DNA analysis isn’t the beginning of the analysis of these bones — it’s the end. In 2012, researchers from the Smithsonian and other colleges cataloged the bones and artifacts, visually studying each piece. They found a bevy of clues.
A researcher found one skull whose teeth were stained black from tobacco. There were concave dents between the incisors and canines where a pipe would fit.
Lacking dental care, their teeth often decayed or fell out. Signs of arthritis were widespread. Bones in the lower back degenerated. One child lived with a herniated disk. Worn-down bones were the result of “active lifestyles involving physical exertion” and a pattern of physical labor that began in childhood. One person’s leg bones bowed, a symptom of rickets. Another had tuberculosis in the spinal column.
Some experienced traumatic deaths. A male of European ancestry suffered a splinter lodged in the outer edge of his eye socket, penetrating his brain. Another man endured two holes in the top of his skull, likely low-velocity gunshot wounds. The skull shows cuts from a saw — perhaps a surgeon’s attempt to remove the projectiles. But the bone shows no sign of healing, meaning the man didn’t survive surgery.
ACKNOWLEDGING UNRECOGNIZED LEGACY
Each day at the VCU lab begins with a student reciting a statement posted on the bookshelf. The researchers “acknowledge the lives, history and unrecognized legacy” of these individuals and “pay our respect to elders both past and present.”
Amber Mundy, 22 and a graduate student on the project, sees this as an opportunity to memorialize Black lives — something seldom done in early American history. While white Americans were placed under gravestones, Black Americans sometimes were placed in unmarked graves in cemeteries forgotten and built over.
Mundy, who is Black, thinks about the difference between Egyptian pharaohs mummified and placed in museums and Black Americans, whose grave sites were neglected.
“They get a beautiful glass box, and I get a building built over my people,” she said. “My cemeteries are just dirt.”
One purpose for conducting DNA analysis is to determine what kind of burial ceremonies are appropriate for these people, said Rhonda Keyes Pleasants, a local funeral home manager and committee leader.
In Ghana, for example, carpenters design custom-made burial containers — a man who owned a Mercedes-Benz was buried in a coffin shaped like a car, complete with the Mercedes logo on the grill.
The VCU committees hope to rebury the individuals at the African American burial ground downtown or Evergreen Cemetery. A final destination has not been determined.
The way these bodies were treated in the 1800s still bothers Rose, the graduate student researcher. But what shocks her more is how little value was placed on them as recently as 1994, when they were quickly and partially excavated.
There are still human remains until the Kontos building, and historical records suggest a second well of bodies exists under the Egyptian Building. It’s unclear if either well is accessible.
“It’s horrible to think about how these remains were treated this way in my lifetime,” said Rose, 33.
That’s why she collects every speck of dust she grinds off the bones. It will all be reburied one day. | https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/VCU-hopes-to-learn-origins-of-bones-found-in-well-17069100.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:26 | en | 0.970586 |
WFO LOS ANGELES Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, April 10, 2022
_____
WIND ADVISORY
URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Los Angeles/Oxnard CA
450 AM PDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 3 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO 3 AM PDT
SUNDAY...
* WHAT...Areas of northwest winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 45
mph expected.
* WHERE...Santa Barbara County Southwestern Coast and Santa Ynez
Mountains Western Range.
* WHEN...From 3 PM this afternoon to 3 AM PDT Sunday.
* IMPACTS...Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects and
make driving difficult, especially for drivers of high profile
vehicles. Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages
may result.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Use extra caution when driving, especially if operating a high
profile vehicle. Secure outdoor objects, such as lawn furniture.
...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 3 AM PDT
* WHAT...Areas of northwest to north winds 20 to 30 mph with
gusts up to 50 mph expected.
* WHERE...Ventura County Mountains and Los Angeles County
Mountains.
* WHEN...From 6 PM this evening to 3 AM PDT Sunday.
* WHAT...Areas of northwest to north winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts
up to 45 mph expected.
* WHERE...Santa Barbara County Interior Mountains.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.theheraldreview.com/weather/article/CA-WFO-LOS-ANGELES-Warnings-Watches-and-17069053.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:26 | en | 0.867202 |
First Alert Forecast: A Chilly start to our Saturday, and a warmer weekend in store for us! Showers and storms returning this upcoming week!
JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) - Good Morning! Starting our Saturday morning, we are sitting rather cool outside with temperatures in the mid to upper 30s! So we are sitting rather chilly to start. But we are going to warm up quickly today! This weekend, temperatures begin to rise a bit as the 70s return for Highs Saturday, with mostly clear conditions. Lows Saturday night mid-40s. Mostly sunny conditions today.
Sunday, we are noticeably warmer with Highs in the low 80s. Mostly clear conditions for our Sunday and Lows falling to the upper 50s.
As we move back into the workweek, Monday brings our rain chances back to the area with a 30 % chance of showers with Highs in the low 80s and Lows falling to the mid-60s.Partly Sunny conditions for our Monday.
Tuesday, our rain chances continue with a 40% chance of showers. Highs reaching into the low 80s. Our Lows fall to the mid-60s. Mostly cloudy conditions.
Wednesday, our storm threat returns with a 50% chance of showers and thunderstorms, with Highs in the mid-80s and lows falling to the low 60s with mostly cloudy conditions.
Thursday, our storm threat continues as we see a chance for showers and thunderstorms. We are looking at a 50% chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs on Thursday are in the upper 70s, with Lows falling to the mid-50s. Mostly cloudy conditions on Thursday.
Friday, Highs remain in the mid to upper 70s with a 30 % chance of showers. Lows on Friday fall to the upper 50s.
Thank you for watching WLBT First Alert Weather!
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Copyright 2022 WLBT. All rights reserved. | https://www.wlbt.com/2022/04/09/first-alert-forecast-chilly-start-our-saturday-warmer-weekend-store-us-showers-storms-returning-this-upcoming-week/ | 2022-04-09T13:38:26 | en | 0.945229 |
SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — Members of the Vermont National Guard will be deployed temporarily to Europe early next month to enhance NATO's defense and support its air policing, guard officials said.
Guard members are expected to be briefed on the mission during a drill this weekend, WCAX-TV reported.
They will join thousands of U.S. soldiers already deployed to support the nation’s allies following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, myNBC5 reported.
“The National Guard is proud to continue our support our allies with ongoing missions,” Maj. J. Scott Detweiler wrote in a statement.
The support of NATO's air policing mission includes defending airspace over nations bordering Ukraine’s to the west and southwest. | https://www.expressnews.com/news/article/Vermont-National-Guard-members-to-head-to-Europe-17069081.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:32 | en | 0.943565 |
WFO SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, April 10, 2022
_____
WIND ADVISORY
URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service San Francisco Bay Area
506 AM PDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 3 PM PDT SUNDAY...
* WHAT...North winds 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 60 mph.
* WHERE...North Bay Interior Mountains, Eastern Santa Clara Hills,
East Bay Hills.
* WHEN...Until 3 PM PDT Sunday.
* IMPACTS...Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects.
Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may
result.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...The strongest winds are expected Saturday
night into Sunday morning across the interior mountains.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Use extra caution when driving, especially if operating a high
profile vehicle. Secure outdoor objects.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.theheraldreview.com/weather/article/CA-WFO-SAN-FRANCISCO-BAY-AREA-Warnings-Watches-17069065.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:33 | en | 0.82234 |
Silver Alert issued for 75-year-old Centreville woman
Centreville, Miss. (WLBT) - The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation has issued a Silver Alert for 75-year-old Patsy Ann Brown of Centreville, Mississippi.
She is described as a white female, five feet six inches tall, weighing 135 pounds with black hair and brown eyes.
She was last seen wearing blue jeans and a white top on Friday, April 8, 2022, at about noon near Ewell Road in Amite County.
Patsy Ann Brown is believed to be trying to get to League, Texas in a 2003, brown/silver; Ford, F-150, bearing Mississippi tag DBK2710.
Family members say Patsy Ann Brown suffers from a medical condition that may impair her judgment.
If anyone has information regarding the whereabouts of Patsy Ann Brown, please contact Amite County Sheriff’s office at 601-657-8057.
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Copyright 2022 WLBT. All rights reserved. | https://www.wlbt.com/2022/04/09/silver-alert-issued-75-year-old-centreville-woman/ | 2022-04-09T13:38:33 | en | 0.939764 |
Tennessee House passes bill requiring Black history be taught to 5th - 8th graders
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - A Tennessee bill that would require students in grades five through eight to learn about Black history and culture passed the House, Thursday.
HB 2106 passed with an 80 - 2 vote.
It requires the State Board of Education to study and implement a course of instruction for students in 5th through 8th grades to include curricula designed to educate students in Black history and culture.
It also includes multicultural diversity in curricula for students in kindergarten through the 12th grade.
The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Yusuf Hakeem - (D) Chattanooga, said in 2023 the Board of Education will look at current social studies books to decide what to add. However, the bill would not be implemented until 2025.
”I think the community in general, the broader community, it will give them and understanding that yes, there is value and worth that African Americans have made to this country, to this state and to the world,” Hakeem said.
There was no direct opposition on the House Floor, however Rep. Andrew Farmer - (R) Sevierville, asked this question:
“Are these not issues and topics already being taught in our schools, and if so, why do we need this legislation?”
Rep. Hakeem emphasized that teaching Black history in Tennessee is currently not required. HB 2106 would make it a law, and he wants to focus specifically on Tennessee Black history.
He says the course of study could include Black History figures like Samson Keeble, the first African-American legislator in Tennessee and Judge Bernice Donald, the first female African-American judge in the state. Judge Donald was also the first female African-American bankruptcy judge in the nation.
Renee Smith, a grandmother of two students in Tennessee Public Schools says at a time when Black History is being banned from being taught in schools across the country, she thinks this legislation is necessary.
”I really feel like they should teach it. Students should know their history, our history,” Smith said.
The bill passed with bi-partisan support in the House, and now goes on to the State Senate.
Copyright 2022 WMC. All rights reserved.
Click here to sign up for our newsletter!
Click here to report a spelling or grammar error. Please include the headline. | https://www.wlbt.com/2022/04/09/tennessee-house-passes-bill-requiring-black-history-be-taught-5th-8th-graders/ | 2022-04-09T13:38:39 | en | 0.967602 |
WFO ALBANY Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Saturday, April 9, 2022
_____
FLOOD WARNING
Flood Statement
National Weather Service Albany NY
904 AM EDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...FLOOD WARNING IS CANCELLED...
The Flood Warning is cancelled for
the Wappingers Creek At Wappingers Falls.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...
- At 8:30 AM EDT Saturday the stage was 7.6 feet.
- Forecast...The river is expected to fall to 5.1 feet Monday
evening.
- http://www.weather.gov/safety/flood
Wappingers Creek
Wappingers Falls
Flood Stage: 8.0
Observed Stage at Sat 8 am: 7.6
Forecast:
Sat 2 pm 6.7
Sat 8 pm 6.3
Sun 2 am 6.1
Sun 8 am 5.8
Sun 2 pm 5.6
Sun 8 pm 5.5
Mon 2 am 5.3
Mon 8 am 5.2
Mon 2 pm 5.1
Mon 8 pm 5.1
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.theheraldreview.com/weather/article/NY-WFO-ALBANY-Warnings-Watches-and-Advisories-17069111.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:51 | en | 0.783014 |
WFO PENDLETON Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Saturday, April 9, 2022
_____
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Pendleton OR
454 AM PDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 PM PDT THIS
EVENING ABOVE 3000 FEET...
* WHAT...Snow above 3000 feet. Additional snow accumulations of up
to 12 inches, higher amounts along the crests. Winds gusting as
high as 40 to 45 mph.
* WHERE...East Slopes of the Washington Cascades.
* WHEN...Until 11 PM PDT this evening.
* IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult to impossible. Travel
will be impacted along I-90, US-12 and through Snoqualmie Pass
and White Pass.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Slow down and use caution while traveling.
The latest road conditions can be obtained by calling 5 1 1, or
by visiting online at https://tripcheck.com for Oregon or
https://wsdot.com/travel for Washington.
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 PM PDT
SUNDAY ABOVE 3000 FEET...
* WHAT...Snow expected above 3000 feet. Total snow accumulations
of 6 to 10 inches.
* WHERE...In Washington, Northwest Blue Mountains. In Oregon,
Northern Blue Mountains of Oregon.
* WHEN...Until 5 PM PDT Sunday.
* IMPACTS...Plan on slippery road conditions. Travel will be
impacted along I-84.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.theheraldreview.com/weather/article/WA-WFO-PENDLETON-Warnings-Watches-and-Advisories-17069054.php | 2022-04-09T13:38:58 | en | 0.838775 |
WFO PORTLAND Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, April 10, 2022
_____
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Portland OR
555 AM PDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 8 PM THIS
EVENING TO 11 AM PDT SUNDAY ABOVE 2000 FEET...
* WHAT...Snow expected above 2000 feet. Total snow accumulations
of 6 to 12 inches.
* WHERE...In Oregon, Northern Oregon Cascades. In Washington,
South Washington Cascades.
* WHEN...From 8 PM this evening to 11 AM PDT Sunday.
* IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Heaviest snowfall will occur early Sunday
morning. Snowfall rates up to one and a half inches per hour
will be possible during this time period.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Slow down and use caution while traveling.
For the latest road conditions call 5 1 1, or visit
for Oregon: https://www.tripcheck.com
and for Washington: https://wsdot.com/travel/real-time/map
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 11 PM THIS
of 3 to 8 inches. Heaviest snowfall early Sunday morning
morning.
* WHERE...In Oregon, Northern Oregon Cascade Foothills. In
Washington, South Washington Cascade Foothills.
* WHEN...From 11 PM this evening to 11 AM PDT Sunday.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Heaviest snowfall expected early Sunday
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.theheraldreview.com/weather/article/WA-WFO-PORTLAND-Warnings-Watches-and-Advisories-17069106.php | 2022-04-09T13:39:04 | en | 0.785667 |
WFO SPOKANE Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Saturday, April 9, 2022
_____
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Spokane WA
615 AM PDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM PDT THIS
MORNING...
* WHAT...Snow. Additional snow accumulations up to two inches. Winds
gusting as high as 35 mph.
* WHERE...Holden Village, Stehekin, and Stevens Pass.
* WHEN...Until 10 AM PDT this morning.
* IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult with winter travel
conditions along Highway 2 west of Coles Corner to Stevens Pass.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Slow down and use caution while traveling. The latest road
conditions for the state you are calling from can be obtained by
calling 5 1 1.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.theheraldreview.com/weather/article/WA-WFO-SPOKANE-Warnings-Watches-and-Advisories-17069121.php | 2022-04-09T13:39:10 | en | 0.869758 |
WFO SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, April 10, 2022
_____
WIND ADVISORY
URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service San Francisco Bay Area
506 AM PDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 3 PM PDT SUNDAY...
* WHAT...North winds 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 60 mph.
* WHERE...North Bay Interior Mountains, Eastern Santa Clara Hills,
East Bay Hills.
* WHEN...Until 3 PM PDT Sunday.
* IMPACTS...Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects.
Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may
result.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...The strongest winds are expected Saturday
night into Sunday morning across the interior mountains.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Use extra caution when driving, especially if operating a high
profile vehicle. Secure outdoor objects.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.expressnews.com/weather/article/CA-WFO-SAN-FRANCISCO-BAY-AREA-Warnings-Watches-17069065.php | 2022-04-09T13:39:15 | en | 0.82234 |
WFO ALBANY Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Saturday, April 9, 2022
_____
FLOOD WARNING
Flood Statement
National Weather Service Albany NY
904 AM EDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...FLOOD WARNING IS CANCELLED...
The Flood Warning is cancelled for
the Wappingers Creek At Wappingers Falls.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...
- At 8:30 AM EDT Saturday the stage was 7.6 feet.
- Forecast...The river is expected to fall to 5.1 feet Monday
evening.
- http://www.weather.gov/safety/flood
Wappingers Creek
Wappingers Falls
Flood Stage: 8.0
Observed Stage at Sat 8 am: 7.6
Forecast:
Sat 2 pm 6.7
Sat 8 pm 6.3
Sun 2 am 6.1
Sun 8 am 5.8
Sun 2 pm 5.6
Sun 8 pm 5.5
Mon 2 am 5.3
Mon 8 am 5.2
Mon 2 pm 5.1
Mon 8 pm 5.1
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.expressnews.com/weather/article/NY-WFO-ALBANY-Warnings-Watches-and-Advisories-17069111.php | 2022-04-09T13:39:34 | en | 0.783014 |
You need to enable JavaScript to run this app. | https://sportspyder.com/mlb/kansas-city-royals/articles/39104967 | 2022-04-09T13:39:37 | en | 0.738227 |
WFO PORTLAND Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, April 10, 2022
_____
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Portland OR
555 AM PDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 8 PM THIS
EVENING TO 11 AM PDT SUNDAY ABOVE 2000 FEET...
* WHAT...Snow expected above 2000 feet. Total snow accumulations
of 6 to 12 inches.
* WHERE...In Oregon, Northern Oregon Cascades. In Washington,
South Washington Cascades.
* WHEN...From 8 PM this evening to 11 AM PDT Sunday.
* IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Heaviest snowfall will occur early Sunday
morning. Snowfall rates up to one and a half inches per hour
will be possible during this time period.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Slow down and use caution while traveling.
For the latest road conditions call 5 1 1, or visit
for Oregon: https://www.tripcheck.com
and for Washington: https://wsdot.com/travel/real-time/map
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 11 PM THIS
of 3 to 8 inches. Heaviest snowfall early Sunday morning
morning.
* WHERE...In Oregon, Northern Oregon Cascade Foothills. In
Washington, South Washington Cascade Foothills.
* WHEN...From 11 PM this evening to 11 AM PDT Sunday.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Heaviest snowfall expected early Sunday
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.expressnews.com/weather/article/WA-WFO-PORTLAND-Warnings-Watches-and-Advisories-17069106.php | 2022-04-09T13:39:40 | en | 0.785667 |
You need to enable JavaScript to run this app. | https://sportspyder.com/nfl/atlanta-falcons/articles/39104619 | 2022-04-09T13:39:43 | en | 0.738227 |
WFO SPOKANE Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Saturday, April 9, 2022
_____
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Spokane WA
615 AM PDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM PDT THIS
MORNING...
* WHAT...Snow. Additional snow accumulations up to two inches. Winds
gusting as high as 35 mph.
* WHERE...Holden Village, Stehekin, and Stevens Pass.
* WHEN...Until 10 AM PDT this morning.
* IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult with winter travel
conditions along Highway 2 west of Coles Corner to Stevens Pass.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Slow down and use caution while traveling. The latest road
conditions for the state you are calling from can be obtained by
calling 5 1 1.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.expressnews.com/weather/article/WA-WFO-SPOKANE-Warnings-Watches-and-Advisories-17069121.php | 2022-04-09T13:39:46 | en | 0.869758 |
You need to enable JavaScript to run this app. | https://sportspyder.com/nfl/atlanta-falcons/articles/39105061 | 2022-04-09T13:39:49 | en | 0.738227 |
You need to enable JavaScript to run this app. | https://sportspyder.com/nfl/minnesota-vikings/articles/39104679 | 2022-04-09T13:39:55 | en | 0.738227 |
You need to enable JavaScript to run this app. | https://sportspyder.com/nfl/minnesota-vikings/articles/39105046 | 2022-04-09T13:40:01 | en | 0.738227 |
You need to enable JavaScript to run this app. | https://sportspyder.com/nfl/minnesota-vikings/articles/39105049 | 2022-04-09T13:40:07 | en | 0.738227 |
The state-by-state winning lottery numbers through Friday:
6-3-5
(six, three, five)
02-06-08-16-42
(two, six, eight, sixteen, forty-two)
01-04-08-15-22-23-26-33-40-43-49-61-67-68-70-71-74-76-77-80
(one, four, eight, fifteen, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-six, thirty-three, forty, forty-three, forty-nine, sixty-one, sixty-seven, sixty-eight, seventy, seventy-one, seventy-four, seventy-six, seventy-seven, eighty)
04-11-18-24
(four, eleven, eighteen, twenty-four)
01-02-06-13-15-21
(one, two, six, thirteen, fifteen, twenty-one)
0-2-3
(zero, two, three)
7-5-1-7
(seven, five, one, seven)
05-06-07-09-13-16-17-19-20-21-22
(five, six, seven, nine, thirteen, sixteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two)
02-03-04-05-07-12-15-18-20-21-22
(two, three, four, five, seven, twelve, fifteen, eighteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two)
1-3-9
(one, three, nine)
3-2-8-1
(three, two, eight, one)
03-15-18-24-25-33, Doubler: N
(three, fifteen, eighteen, twenty-four, twenty-five, thirty-three; Doubler: N)
07-08-14-18-30
(seven, eight, fourteen, eighteen, thirty)
2-9-0
(two, nine, zero)
2-2-1-5
(two, two, one, five) | https://www.lakecountystar.com/lottery/article/Lottery-State-by-State-17069107.php | 2022-04-09T13:41:26 | en | 0.750396 |
The state-by-state winning lottery numbers through Friday:
2-6-9
(two, six, nine)
02-08-10-26-38
(two, eight, ten, twenty-six, thirty-eight)
01-14-25-30-39-41
(one, fourteen, twenty-five, thirty, thirty-nine, forty-one)
6-7-5
(six, seven, five)
0-0-0
(zero, zero, zero)
3-8-4-7
(three, eight, four, seven)
9-6-8-3
(nine, six, eight, three)
05-08-22-24-32
(five, eight, twenty-two, twenty-four, thirty-two)
2-1-5
(two, one, five)
2-2-8
(two, two, eight)
2-3-7-7
(two, three, seven, seven)
1st:12 Lucky Charms-2nd:3 Hot Shot-3rd:10 Solid Gold, Race Time: 1:40.92
(1st: 12 Lucky Charms, 2nd: 3 Hot Shot, 3rd: 10 Solid Gold; Race Time: one: 40.92)
16-17-22-26-28
(sixteen, seventeen, twenty-two, twenty-six, twenty-eight)
04-06-07-17-32
(four, six, seven, seventeen, thirty-two)
3-7-3
(three, seven, three)
1-2-1
(one, two, one)
01-11-18-25-31
(one, eleven, eighteen, twenty-five, thirty-one)
11-18-25-29-32-40
(eleven, eighteen, twenty-five, twenty-nine, thirty-two, forty)
8-2-2, WB: 3
(eight, two, two; WB: three)
0-6-7, WB: 6
(zero, six, seven; WB: six)
7-5-2-8, WB: 8
(seven, five, two, eight; WB: eight)
2-3-2-1, WB: 7
(two, three, two, one; WB: seven)
03-09-10-15-17-20
(three, nine, ten, fifteen, seventeen, twenty)
4-9-5
(four, nine, five)
0-8-2
(zero, eight, two)
3-6-9-1
(three, six, nine, one)
9-5-6-5
(nine, five, six, five)
0-2
(zero, two)
2-2
(two, two)
7-4-5
(seven, four, five)
2-8-0
(two, eight, zero)
7-3-1-2
(seven, three, one, two)
2-1-1-5
(two, one, one, five)
1-5-6-2-3
(one, five, six, two, three)
1-1-3-0-5
(one, one, three, zero, five)
01-09-11-14-22
(one, nine, eleven, fourteen, twenty-two)
09-19-21-24-32-42
(nine, nineteen, twenty-one, twenty-four, thirty-two, forty-two)
9-8, Fireball: 5
(nine, eight; Fireball: five)
9-8, Fireball: 9
(nine, eight; Fireball: nine)
4-2-3, Fireball: 5
(four, two, three; Fireball: five)
6-4-6, Fireball: 9
(six, four, six; Fireball: nine)
2-0-7-4, Fireball: 5
(two, zero, seven, four; Fireball: five)
9-2-4-8, Fireball: 9
(nine, two, four, eight; Fireball: nine)
8-7-2-0-7, Fireball: 5
(eight, seven, two, zero, seven; Fireball: five)
5-9-3-9-9, Fireball: 9
(five, nine, three, nine, nine; Fireball: nine)
6-0-6
(six, zero, six)
6-1-0
(six, one, zero)
3-2-3
(three, two, three)
3-0-0-3
(three, zero, zero, three)
8-0-2-9
(eight, zero, two, nine)
6-8-9-6
(six, eight, nine, six)
02-04-07-09-29
(two, four, seven, nine, twenty-nine)
1-3-3-5-6
(one, three, three, five, six)
2-2-4-8-1
(two, two, four, eight, one)
07-34-35-40-42
(seven, thirty-four, thirty-five, forty, forty-two)
02-10-18-21-31
(two, ten, eighteen, twenty-one, thirty-one)
5-1-5
(five, one, five)
1-3-4
(one, three, four)
3-1-0-8
(three, one, zero, eight)
7-1-6-9
(seven, one, six, nine)
14-19-22-26-31
(fourteen, nineteen, twenty-two, twenty-six, thirty-one)
08-13-20-28-33
(eight, thirteen, twenty, twenty-eight, thirty-three)
15-22-25-32-43
(fifteen, twenty-two, twenty-five, thirty-two, forty-three)
12-18-20-21-43
(twelve, eighteen, twenty, twenty-one, forty-three)
03-04-06-07-08-10-11-17-28-31-38-43-46-53-66-68-70-72-77-80, BE: 17
(three, four, six, seven, eight, ten, eleven, seventeen, twenty-eight, thirty-one, thirty-eight, forty-three, forty-six, fifty-three, sixty-six, sixty-eight, seventy, seventy-two, seventy-seven, eighty; BE: seventeen)
8-0-9, SB: 6
(eight, zero, nine; SB: six)
2-8-3, SB: 9
(two, eight, three; SB: nine)
2-9-2-1, SB: 6
(two, nine, two, one; SB: six)
8-1-9-4, SB: 9
(eight, one, nine, four; SB: nine)
01-03-05-08-10-12-13-15-16-17-18-24-33-44-53-56-67-68-69-76, BE: 53
(one, three, five, eight, ten, twelve, thirteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, twenty-four, thirty-three, forty-four, fifty-three, fifty-six, sixty-seven, sixty-eight, sixty-nine, seventy-six; BE: fifty-three)
2-8-3
(two, eight, three)
8-0-9
(eight, zero, nine)
8-1-9-4
(eight, one, nine, four)
2-9-2-1
(two, nine, two, one)
2-7-0
(two, seven, zero)
9-3-9
(nine, three, nine)
01-09-28-32, Cash Ball: 23
(one, nine, twenty-eight, thirty-two; Cash Ball: twenty-three)
9-7-3
(nine, seven, three)
1-3-7
(one, three, seven)
3-2-3-7
(three, two, three, seven)
4-5-9-6
(four, five, nine, six)
6-4-3
(six, four, three)
4-9-9-2
(four, nine, nine, two)
0-9-2-6-4
(zero, nine, two, six, four)
AH-2D-3D-2H-6S
(AH, 2D, 3D, 2H, 6S)
10-11-25-36-37, Bonus: 13
(ten, eleven, twenty-five, thirty-six, thirty-seven; Bonus: thirteen)
1-2-3
(one, two, three)
2-8-2
(two, eight, two)
4-7-1-8
(four, seven, one, eight)
6-3-8-9
(six, three, eight, nine)
3-9-0-2-0
(three, nine, zero, two, zero)
3-0-2-4-6
(three, zero, two, four, six)
02-11-12-14-23
(two, eleven, twelve, fourteen, twenty-three)
6-7-7-1
(six, seven, seven, one)
7-6-6-2
(seven, six, six, two)
06-08-13-21-28
(six, eight, thirteen, twenty-one, twenty-eight)
KD-AD-10C-8H-10S
(KD, AD, 10C, 8H, 10S)
2-6-9
(two, six, nine)
7-6-4-7
(seven, six, four, seven)
2-0-0
(two, zero, zero)
6-0-3-0
(six, zero, three, zero)
03-12-17-27-30
(three, twelve, seventeen, twenty-seven, thirty)
03-05-08-11-12-13-16-17-19-22-29-30-32-48-49-53-55-58-60-61-66-67
(three, five, eight, eleven, twelve, thirteen, sixteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty-two, twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-two, forty-eight, forty-nine, fifty-three, fifty-five, fifty-eight, sixty, sixty-one, sixty-six, sixty-seven)
5-0-0
(five, zero, zero)
18-24-27-37-39
(eighteen, twenty-four, twenty-seven, thirty-seven, thirty-nine)
03-04-10-19-23
(three, four, ten, nineteen, twenty-three)
5-0-1
(five, zero, one)
0-8-5
(zero, eight, five)
8-8-2-1
(eight, eight, two, one)
3-6-4-6
(three, six, four, six)
04-06-16-26-38
(four, six, sixteen, twenty-six, thirty-eight)
04-16-19-22, Bonus: 8
(four, sixteen, nineteen, twenty-two; Bonus: eight)
Month: 2, Day: 21, Year: 55
(Month: two; Day: twenty-one; Year: fifty-five)
1-0-9
(one, zero, nine)
03-04-07-13-14
(three, four, seven, thirteen, fourteen)
5-2-0, Fireball: 9
(five, two, zero; Fireball: nine)
2-1-1-6, Fireball: 9
(two, one, one, six; Fireball: nine)
03-08-13-27-38, Xtra: 2
(three, eight, thirteen, twenty-seven, thirty-eight; Xtra: two)
9-8-9, Fireball: 9
(nine, eight, nine; Fireball: nine)
0-7-1-8, Fireball: 9
(zero, seven, one, eight; Fireball: nine)
7-2-8
(seven, two, eight)
3-7-7
(three, seven, seven)
0-1-5-8
(zero, one, five, eight)
4-9-9-6
(four, nine, nine, six)
05-12-19-26-34
(five, twelve, nineteen, twenty-six, thirty-four)
01-16-32-37-39
(one, sixteen, thirty-two, thirty-seven, thirty-nine)
5-6-2
(five, six, two)
2-1-3-0
(two, one, three, zero)
3-8-8
(three, eight, eight)
8-4-8-1
(eight, four, eight, one)
04-08-11-15-20
(four, eight, eleven, fifteen, twenty)
02-04-08-10-11-16-23-29-37-39-48-50-53-55-58-61-62-65-74-76
(two, four, eight, ten, eleven, sixteen, twenty-three, twenty-nine, thirty-seven, thirty-nine, forty-eight, fifty, fifty-three, fifty-five, fifty-eight, sixty-one, sixty-two, sixty-five, seventy-four, seventy-six)
07-11-13-23-34
(seven, eleven, thirteen, twenty-three, thirty-four)
7-6-4, Lucky Sum: 17
(seven, six, four; Lucky Sum: seventeen)
7-3-9, Lucky Sum: 19
(seven, three, nine; Lucky Sum: nineteen)
2-0-7-2, Lucky Sum: 11
(two, zero, seven, two; Lucky Sum: eleven)
6-8-8-7, Lucky Sum: 29
(six, eight, eight, seven; Lucky Sum: twenty-nine)
4-8-7
(four, eight, seven)
8-9-2
(eight, nine, two)
0-0-4-1
(zero, zero, four, one)
0-9-3-1
(zero, nine, three, one)
9-9-8-1-4
(nine, nine, eight, one, four)
3-0-4-5-1
(three, zero, four, five, one)
02-10-28-29-34
(two, ten, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty-four)
04-23-28-29-33
(four, twenty-three, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty-three)
8-7-0
(eight, seven, zero)
02-06-10-15-19-23-26-32
(two, six, ten, fifteen, nineteen, twenty-three, twenty-six, thirty-two)
6-7-1-8
(six, seven, one, eight)
8-1-7-6
(eight, one, seven, six)
4-4-3-2
(four, four, three, two)
3-3-2-3
(three, three, two, three)
17-21-36-40-41
(seventeen, twenty-one, thirty-six, forty, forty-one)
04-17-18-23-41-45
(four, seventeen, eighteen, twenty-three, forty-one, forty-five)
8-9, Wild: 7
(eight, nine; Wild: seven)
3-4, Wild: 8
(three, four; Wild: eight)
1-9-1, Wild: 7
(one, nine, one; Wild: seven)
9-6-3, Wild: 8
(nine, six, three; Wild: eight)
0-8-0-9, Wild: 7
(zero, eight, zero, nine; Wild: seven)
3-8-3-4, Wild: 8
(three, eight, three, four; Wild: eight)
5-5-5-7-2, Wild: 7
(five, five, five, seven, two; Wild: seven)
5-9-5-0-2, Wild: 8
(five, nine, five, zero, two; Wild: eight)
04-11-16-17-27
(four, eleven, sixteen, seventeen, twenty-seven)
9-6-1-8
(nine, six, one, eight)
4-4-8-6
(four, four, eight, six)
02-14-21-30-37, Extra: 20
(two, fourteen, twenty-one, thirty, thirty-seven; Extra: twenty)
05-15-21-32-35, Power-Up: 3
(five, fifteen, twenty-one, thirty-two, thirty-five; Power, Up: three)
1-1-5, FB: 1
(one, one, five; FB: one)
3-9-2, FB: 8
(three, nine, two; FB: eight)
8-9-9-7, FB: 1
(eight, nine, nine, seven; FB: one)
0-8-8-2, FB: 8
(zero, eight, eight, two; FB: eight)
5-4-5, Wild: 4
(five, four, five; Wild: four)
6-7-2, Wild:
(six, seven, two; Wild: zero)
7-6-1, Wild: 2
(seven, six, one; Wild: two)
3-1-9-0, Wild: 4
(three, one, nine, zero; Wild: four)
1-8-3-2, Wild: 5
(one, eight, three, two; Wild: five)
8-5-7-7, Wild: 2
(eight, five, seven, seven; Wild: two)
10-19-27-31-34, Bonus: 2
(ten, nineteen, twenty-seven, thirty-one, thirty-four; Bonus: two)
01-04-06-07-09-15-16-18-20-22-23-24
(one, four, six, seven, nine, fifteen, sixteen, eighteen, twenty, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four)
06-08-11-12-14-15-16-17-19-21-22-24
(six, eight, eleven, twelve, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-four)
01-04-06-08-12-14-15-16-17-18-19-23
(one, four, six, eight, twelve, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty-three)
02-04-06-10-11-13-14-19-20-21-22-23
(two, four, six, ten, eleven, thirteen, fourteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three)
01-05-16-26-34
(one, five, sixteen, twenty-six, thirty-four)
9-6-2-2, FIREBALL: 6
(nine, six, two, two; FIREBALL: six)
2-2-0-3, FIREBALL: 5
(two, two, zero, three; FIREBALL: five)
2-7-3-6, FIREBALL: 9
(two, seven, three, six; FIREBALL: nine)
5-9-1-0, FIREBALL:
(five, nine, one, zero; FIREBALL: zero)
6-7-1, FIREBALL:
(six, seven, one; FIREBALL: zero)
8-3-1, FIREBALL: 1
(eight, three, one; FIREBALL: one)
0-6-8, FIREBALL: 3
(zero, six, eight; FIREBALL: three)
3-8-0, FIREBALL: 3
(three, eight, zero; FIREBALL: three)
03-06-12-20-32
(three, six, twelve, twenty, thirty-two)
3-1-6, FB: 6
(three, one, six; FB: six)
3-9-3, FB: 7
(three, nine, three; FB: seven)
1-3-1-5, FB: 7
(one, three, one, five; FB: seven)
3-5-7-0, FB: 4
(three, five, seven, zero; FB: four)
6-3-5
(six, three, five)
02-06-08-16-42
(two, six, eight, sixteen, forty-two)
01-04-08-15-22-23-26-33-40-43-49-61-67-68-70-71-74-76-77-80
(one, four, eight, fifteen, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-six, thirty-three, forty, forty-three, forty-nine, sixty-one, sixty-seven, sixty-eight, seventy, seventy-one, seventy-four, seventy-six, seventy-seven, eighty)
04-11-18-24
(four, eleven, eighteen, twenty-four)
01-02-06-13-15-21
(one, two, six, thirteen, fifteen, twenty-one)
0-2-3
(zero, two, three)
7-5-1-7
(seven, five, one, seven)
05-06-07-09-13-16-17-19-20-21-22
(five, six, seven, nine, thirteen, sixteen, seventeen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two)
02-03-04-05-07-12-15-18-20-21-22
(two, three, four, five, seven, twelve, fifteen, eighteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two)
1-3-9
(one, three, nine)
3-2-8-1
(three, two, eight, one)
03-15-18-24-25-33, Doubler: N
(three, fifteen, eighteen, twenty-four, twenty-five, thirty-three; Doubler: N)
07-08-14-18-30
(seven, eight, fourteen, eighteen, thirty)
2-9-0
(two, nine, zero)
2-2-1-5
(two, two, one, five) | https://www.lakecountystar.com/lottery/article/Lottery-State-by-State-All-17069108.php | 2022-04-09T13:41:32 | en | 0.685651 |
ATLANTA (AP) — When she ended her first bid to become Georgia governor in 2018, Stacey Abrams announced plans to sue over the way the state's elections were managed. More than three years later, as she makes another run at the governor's mansion, the lawsuit is going to trial.
Filed in November 2018 by Abrams' Fair Fight Action organization, the suit alleged that state officials "grossly mismanaged” the election, depriving some citizens, particularly low-income people and people of color, of their right to vote. The lawsuit originally called for a sweeping overhaul of the state's elections, but its scope was considerably narrowed after the state made changes that addressed some allegations and others were dismissed by the court. The trial is set to begin Monday.
Even if U.S. District Judge Steve Jones sides with the plaintiffs, it’s unclear whether that will affect elections this year. Jones and other federal judges have been reluctant to order last-minute changes, noting that the Supreme Court has repeatedly said federal judges shouldn’t alter rules “on the eve of an election."
In the months preceding the 2018 election, Abrams, a Democrat, accused her Republican opponent in the governor’s race, then-Secretary of State Brian Kemp, of using his position as Georgia's chief elections officer to promote voter suppression, an allegation Kemp has vehemently denied.
In the more than three years since that fiercely fought contest captured national attention, the focus on Georgia's elections has only intensified. Problems during the 2020 primary drew sharp criticism. Later that year, former President Donald Trump hurled insults at state officials who declined to overturn his narrow general election loss in the state. And the nation watched closely in January 2021 as a pair of Democrats unseated the state’s two incumbent Republican U.S. senators.
Numerous GOP-led state legislatures passed election bills last year after Trump stoked false claims that widespread fraud led to his 2020 defeat. Georgia's bill, which Kemp signed into law a year ago, was one of the broadest. Among other things, the state's measure reduced the window to request an absentee ballot, stripped power from the secretary of state and sharply curtailed the use of absentee ballot drop boxes in populous and Democratic-voting metro Atlanta counties. Voting rights groups and the U.S. Department of Justice promptly sued; those lawsuits are pending.
Republicans in Georgia this year passed legislation to let the Georgia Bureau of Investigation initiate probes into alleged election wrongdoing.
Meanwhile, Abrams, a state lawmaker who was little known outside Georgia when she ran four years ago, has become a household name and Democratic Party star. The only Democrat running for governor, she'll face Kemp again in November if he fends off a primary challenge from former U.S. Sen. David Perdue.
Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger accused Abrams and her allies of trying to undermine the integrity of Georgia elections.
“Her 3-year ‘stolen election’ campaign has been nothing more than a political stunt to keep her in the national spotlight, and it’s a disservice to Georgia voters,” he said in an emailed statement.
Fair Fight says it works to promote voting rights and support progressive candidates around the country, and its PAC has raised more than $100 million since its founding. It filed the lawsuit along with Care in Action, a nonprofit that advocates for domestic workers. Several churches have also joined as plaintiffs.
Fair Fight collected statements from people who said they had problems voting. The lawsuit cited multiple alleged problems, including the purging of eligible voters from voter rolls under a “use it or lose it” policy; the state’s so-called exact match voter registration rules; an insufficient number of voting machines at some precincts; and a lack of sufficient training for election officials. It asked a federal judge to find that Georgia’s elections processes violated the U.S. Constitution and federal law.
“Since the start of this lawsuit, we have highlighted real voters and their challenges because we believe that is one of the most effective ways to demonstrate the barriers in Georgia’s elections system," Fair Fight executive director Cianti Stewart-Reid said in an emailed statement. She added that voters from around the state will testify at trial about obstacles faced while trying to vote.
Some of the alleged problems were addressed by changes in state law. For example, a 2019 law called for replacing the state's outdated voting machines. The new system was implemented statewide in 2020.
In February 2021, Jones threw out parts of the lawsuit, saying some allegations were made irrelevant by changes in state law or the plaintiffs’ lack of standing. Among them were some of the claims about voting machines and election technology, as well as the security of voter lists and polling place issues. The following month, Jones dismissed claims targeting the “use it or lose it” policy and some allegations of inadequate training of poll workers. He also dismissed some claims relating to provisional and absentee ballots.
The issues remaining for the trial have to do with the “exact match” policy, the statewide voter registration list and in-person cancellation of absentee ballots. The plaintiffs claim that Georgia's secretary of state and State Election Board members are “denying and abridging Georgians' right to vote" in violation of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the U.S. Constitution.
Under the “exact match” policy, information from voter registration applications is checked against information held by the state Department of Driver Services or the federal Social Security Administration. If there's a discrepancy, the would-be voter must show identification to county officials before being able to cast a regular ballot.
The plaintiffs say data entry errors or differences as minor as a missing hyphen or apostrophe can trigger a non-match and that naturalized citizens can also be wrongly flagged as noncitizens if records are outdated. These problems disproportionately affect people of color and can depend on where a person lives because counties do things differently, the plaintiffs say.
The statewide voter registration database is “error-ridden,” the plaintiffs say, resulting in the erroneous deletion of eligible voters' registration or critical information being incorrect. That can prevent eligible voters from being able to vote or force them to overcome undue burdens to do so, the plaintiffs say.
The plaintiffs also say election officials aren't sufficiently trained on canceling an absentee ballot if someone chooses to vote in person instead, which can cause voters to be turned away or forced to cast a provisional ballot.
Lawyers for the state argue the claims in the lawsuit “are not supported by the evidence.” The number, geographic scope and severity of the alleged problems experienced by voters identified by the plaintiffs “do not rise to a level sufficient to demonstrate an unconstitutional burden on voting in Georgia,” state lawyers wrote in a filing. Additionally, they argue, the alleged problems cited are not the responsibility of the state officials named in the lawsuit. | https://www.lakecountystar.com/news/article/Abrams-backed-election-lawsuit-goes-to-trial-in-17069084.php | 2022-04-09T13:41:38 | en | 0.972176 |
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A shopping spree in Beverly Hills, a luxury vacation in Mexico, a bank account that jumped from $299.77 to $1.4 million overnight.
From the outside, it looked like Moe and Kateryna Abourched had won the lottery.
But this big payday didn't come from lucky numbers. Rather, a public school district in Michigan was tricked into wiring its monthly health insurance payment to the bank account of a California nail salon the Abourcheds owned, according to a search warrant application filed by a Secret Service agent in federal court.
The district — and taxpayers — fell victim to an online scam called Business Email Compromise, or BEC for short, police say. The couple deny any wrongdoing and have not been charged with any crimes.
BEC scams are a type of crime where criminals hack into email accounts, pretend to be someone they’re not and fool victims into sending money where it doesn't belong. These crimes get far less attention than the massive ransomware attacks that have triggered a powerful government response, but BEC scams have been by far the costliest type of cybercrime in the U.S. for years, according to the FBI — siphoning untold billions from the economy as authorities struggle to keep up.
The huge payoffs and low risks associated with BEC scams have attracted criminals worldwide. Some flaunt their ill-gotten riches on social media, posing in pictures next to Ferraris, Bentleys and stacks of cash.
“The scammers are extremely well organized and law enforcement is not,” said Sherry Williams, a director of a San Francisco nonprofit recently hit by a BEC scam.
Losses in the U.S. to BEC scams in 2021 were nearly $2.4 billion, according to a new report by the FBI. That’s a 33% increase from 2020 and more than a tenfold increase from just seven years ago.
And experts say many victims never come forward and the FBI’s numbers only show a small fraction of how much money is stolen..
“It’s one of the most lucrative things out there,” said Shalabh Mohan, chief product officer at Area 1 Security.
In the nail salon case involving Grand Rapids, police say $2.8 million was stolen. Banks were able to recall about half that amount once the scam was discovered, court records show.
A Secret Service agent said in an affidavit as part of a search warrant application that someone hacked into the email account of one of the school district’s human resource employees and sent emails that persuaded a colleague in the finance department to change the bank account where the health insurance payments were sent.
The emails were brief and unfailingly polite. “Please kindly update” the records, one of them said — words the real HR employee would later tell police she never uses, according to the affidavit.
Police tracked the money to the salon’s bank account owned by the Abourcheds, the affidavit says. After the theft was detected, Moe Abourched contacted a Grand Rapids police detective and said he’d been fooled by a European woman named “Dora” into accepting the funds and forwarding them to other accounts, according to the affidavit.
The Secret Service agent said Abourched’s claims were false and he’d used a similar ruse with police after he received money from a BEC scam targeting a Florida storage company.
Police put the couple under surveillance and in October searched their apartment, offices and BMW, court records show. Police said earlier this year they needed more time to examine the data in the couple's phones and computers.
The Abourcheds’ lawyer, Kevin Gres, said his clients have done nothing wrong and no charges should be filed.
“My clients were unwitting victims in this scheme,” he said.
BEC scammers use a variety of techniques to hack into legitimate business email accounts and trick employees to send wire payments or make purchases they shouldn’t. Targeted phishing emails are a common type of attack, but experts say the scammers have been quick to adopt new technologies, like “deep fake” audio generated by artificial intelligence to pretend to be executives at a company and fool subordinates into sending money.
In the case of Williams, the San Francisco nonprofit director, thieves hacked the email account of the organization's bookkeeper, then inserted themselves into a long email thread, sent messages asking to change the wire payment instructions for a grant recipient, and made off with $650,000.
After she discovered what happened, Williams said, her calls to law enforcement went nowhere.
The FBI told her the local U.S. attorney’s office won’t take her case. She flew to Odessa, Texas, where the bank that initially received the stolen money was located. The money by then was long gone and the local detective was powerless to help. Williams asked her U.S. senators for help and later learned the Secret Service was investigating, but said it hasn't given her any updates.
Crane Hassold, an expert on BEC scams and former cyber analyst with the FBI, has heard of federal prosecutors declining to take BEC cases unless several million dollars were stolen, a minimum threshold that speaks to how out of control the problem is.
“There’s so many of them they can’t possibly work them all,” said Hassold, now director of threat intelligence at Abnormal Security.
Almost every enterprise is vulnerable to BEC scams, from Fortune 500 companies to small towns. Even the State Department got duped into sending BEC scammers more than $200,000 in grant money meant to help Tunisian farmers, court records show.
The Justice Department has launched months-long operations in recent years that have netted hundreds of arrests worldwide.
“Our message to criminals involved in these types of BEC schemes will remain clear: The FBI’s memory and reach is long and wide-ranging, we will relentlessly pursue you no matter where you may be located,” said Brian Turner, executive assistant director of the FBI’s Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch.
But security experts say the wave of arrests has had little impact, and the FBI’s own numbers show that BEC scams continue to grow at a rapid clip.
“You can arrest 100 of the guys and there’s no ripple effect,” said Hassold.
Many of those arrested by U.S. authorities are lower-level “money mules,” who move stolen money around the banking system until it’s out of reach to authorities.
“Mules” don’t need hacking skills and come from a variety of backgrounds. A South Florida man, Alfredo Veloso, pleaded guilty in 2019 after prosecutors say he recruited women he met through his business making “kink pornography” videos to be money mules for BEC and other cyber scams.
Sophisticated BEC scams targeting businesses and other organizations started taking off in the mid-2010s. It was also around that time when ransomware attacks — in which hackers break into networks and encrypt data — started to grow in frequency and severity.
For years both BEC scams and ransomware attacks were treated largely as a law enforcement problem. That’s still true for BEC attacks, but ransomware is now a key national security concern after a series of disruptive attacks on critical infrastructure like the one last year against the biggest fuels pipeline in the U.S. that led to gas shortages along the East Coast.
The National Security Agency’s hackers have taken action to disrupt ransomware operators’ networks. The Justice Department set up a ransomware task force to better organize the law enforcement response. And U.S. President Joe Biden has pressed the issue directly with President Vladimir Putin of Russia, where many ransomware operators are located.
Nothing close to those efforts has been deployed against BEC fraud despite the huge financial losses.
“It’s a bunch of tiny little silos, and they still haven’t figured out a way to have just a single source that goes after these things,” said John Wilson, a threat researcher at the cybersecurity firm Agari.
If the U.S. were to launch a whole-of-government response to BEC fraud, it almost certainly would focus heavily on Nigeria.
Nowhere are BEC fraudsters more active than in Africa’s most populous nation, where scammers have able to operate almost unchecked for decades. The well-worn Nigerian Prince scam may now be a global punchline, but a new generation is making fortunes through sophisticated BEC fraud.
BEC scammers from Nigeria are glorified in pop songs and show off their wealth on Instagram and Facebook, posing with expensive cars or piles of money.
Ramon Abbas, a well-known social Nigerian media influencer who went by Ray Hushpuppi, had more than 2 million followers on Instagram before he was arrested in Dubai. Abbas’ social media posts showed him living a life of total luxury, complete with private jets, ultra-expensive cars and high-end clothes and watches.
“I hope someday I will be inspiring more young people to join me on this path,” read one Instagram post by Abbas, who pleaded guilty in the U.S. to international money laundering related to BEC and other cybercrimes last year. His sentencing is currently set for July.
Pete Renals, a threat researcher at Palo Alto’s Unit 42, said tech-savvy Nigerian criminals started learning how to use available malware to steal victims’ credentials around 2014. As the software changed, the scammers changed too. In 2018, he said, researchers started seeing Nigerian malware being developed in-country by the BEC scammers themselves.
“It does not seem like there’s a whole lot slowing them down," he said. They see “no reason to stop.”
Obinwanne Okeke was one of Nigeria’s best known young entrepreneurs when he was a featured panelist at an event hosted by the prestigious London School of Economics.
“If it’s not born in you to take up challenges, you cannot do it,” Okeke said at the 2018 event when discussing his entrepreneurial drive.
But just days before he made those comments, Okeke had been busy sending fake invoices and defrauding the British sales office of the heavy equipment manufacturer Caterpillar out of $11 million through a BEC scam, according to the FBI. He was arrested at Dulles Airport outside Washington in 2019, pleaded guilty to wire fraud a year later and is now serving a 10-year prison sentence.
BEC scammers arrested by police in Nigeria often have better luck and win back their freedom by paying fines or bribes, experts say. Adedeji Oyenuga, a sociology professor at Lagos State University who has studied cybercrime culture, said there’s little fear by BEC scammers of being punished if caught.
“The person will walk around the streets freely knowing nobody is going to say anything about what he or she is doing,” Oyenuga said.
In the Hushpuppi case, U.S. prosecutors have also charged Abba Kyari, a top Nigerian law enforcement official who prosecutors say falsely imprisoned one of Abbas’ criminal rivals. Kyari remains in Nigeria, where media reports say he’s been arrested on a separate charges related to alleged drug smuggling.
Doug Witschi, an assistant director at the global police organization Interpol, said tech companies that help facilitate BEC crimes need to be more active in stopping such behavior.
“We can’t arrest our way out of this challenge,” he said.
Unlike ransomware operators who try to keep their communications private, BEC scammers often openly exchange services, share tips or show off their wealth on social media platforms like Facebook and Telegram.
A Facebook group called Wire Wire.com, which was until recently available to anyone with a Facebook account, acted as a message board for people to offer BEC-related services and other cybercrimes.
The page, which had a profile picture of a duffle bag filled with cash, was created in 2015 and had more than 1,400 members. It was taken down shortly after The Associated Press asked Facebook about it last month. The company declined comment.
In the case of the stolen Grand Rapids money, it was social media that helped law enforcement when seeking a federal judge’s approval for a search warrant.
Included in the application was a vacation Instagram post by Kateryna Abourched, which linked the timing of her trip with a $3,503 payment to a luxury resort in Mexico made from the bank account that had received the stolen Grand Rapids money.
“Vacation is always inspiring,” she wrote in her Instagram post. | https://www.lakecountystar.com/news/article/Accounts-deceivable-Email-scam-costliest-type-of-17069086.php | 2022-04-09T13:41:44 | en | 0.969965 |
ST. GEORGE, Utah (AP) — A permit is now required to hike Angels Landing at Zion National Park. Some of the first people to hike it Friday with the new system in place said it was less crowded and felt safer.
Susan McPartland, the park’s visitor use manager, said the reduced crowding and enhanced safety is exactly why the new pilot program was put into place — to improve people’s experience, as visitation has risen in recent years.
“We are trying to … make sure that folks have that time to go at their own pace, enjoy those beautiful views and really hope that we can improve how they feel safe,” she told KUER-FM.
There are two lotteries for Angels Landing. The seasonal one opens months in advance and the other can be entered the day before hiking it. McPartland emphasized that it’s a pilot program and may require some tweaks. But by the afternoon on day one, she said things were going smoothly.
There’s a thick metal chain to hold onto, as hikers scramble up steep rocks to the top of Angels Landing. During busy days in 2021, park officials say people had to wait multiple hours to make the trek.
The hike has been on Abbie Crowell’s bucket list for years. The Ohio resident wasn’t too excited about the new lottery system because she had to apply for a certain date months before her April 1 visit.
“But now having hiked it, I think it’s a good idea, I do. It would not have been the same hike if it had been crowded,” she said. “It was fantastic. It’s a wonderful hike. Everyone should do it. But I can’t imagine doing that with people, you know, crawling all over each other.”
Crowell heard from friends and families that have done the hike before about the crowds and said she would have turned around if she saw too many people.
When Tom and Connie Peter were planning a trip to the park from Florida they chose to go on the first day permits were required. They figured it would make it better.
“I think it helped control the number of people on the trail and made it a nice experience,” he said. “It was about the right number of people on the trail today.”
The ideal number of hikers a day is about 800, McPartland said. Those permit holders are then spread through different time frames throughout the day. The program could help inform a potential park-wide reservation system or other trail-specific lotteries, she noted.
Flavio Bonilla, who was visiting southern Utah from New Jersey with his dad, applied for a permit Thursday while hiking in Bryce Canyon National Park and got ahold of one. He said having the crowds under control made it worthwhile.
“It made it a lot safer, I totally feel like it did, especially when we got to the top and climbing back,” he said after finishing the hike. “(We didn’t have to) worry about bottlenecking or having to slow things down. It felt safer.” | https://www.lakecountystar.com/news/article/Angels-Landing-permit-system-at-Zion-is-open-for-17069056.php | 2022-04-09T13:41:50 | en | 0.984768 |
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The medical technician who drew blood from New Hampshire Rep. Peter Schmidt after he broke his leg in February was registered with the state, thanks to a 2014 law enacted after a traveling medical technician infected dozens of people with hepatitis C.
But by the time Schmidt was back on his feet, colleagues had hijacked his bill aimed at improving the registry. House lawmakers passed a bill last month eliminating the registration requirement altogether, and Schmidt is now urging senators to reject it.
“Please do not pass this, this is a terrible idea,” Schmidt said. “I think we need to continue to register these medical technicians, otherwise we are opening ourselves up to a potential repeat of the Exeter experience.”
New Hampshire created the Board of Registration for Medical Technicians in response to David Kwiatkowski, who is serving 39 years in prison for stealing painkillers and replacing them with saline-filled syringes tainted with his blood.
At the time, officials hoped the board would become a model for other states, but that hasn’t happened. And those who want to ditch it say it creates unnecessary bureaucracy at a time when health care facilities are struggling to hire workers.
“The actions of one bad actor, however heinous, are not reason to require thousands of technicians to register and pay fees,” said Rep. Carol McGuire, R-Epsom, when the House passed the bill last month.
But Linda Ficken, a Kansas woman who contracted hepatitis C from Kwiatkowski in 2011, said she believes any medical worker with access to drugs should be registered and should undergo frequent drug testing.
“Every time I go into the hospital, I can’t help but wonder, is this a repeat?” she said. “Cured or not, the thoughts and anxiety are still there.”
Despite being fired numerous times over drug allegations, Kwiatkowski had worked in 18 hospitals in seven states before being hired in at Exeter Hospital in New Hampshire. After his arrest in 2012, 46 people in four states were diagnosed with the same strain of the hepatitis C virus he carries, including one who died in Kansas.
The case highlighted the fact that medical technicians aren’t as closely regulated as nurses or doctors, whose misconduct and discipline are tracked via a nationwide database. While some states require certain technicians to be licensed, four of the states where he worked didn’t license any of them at the time of his arrest, including New Hampshire.
The registry New Hampshire eventually created applies to all health care workers who are not otherwise already licensed or registered and have access to both patients and drugs. Hospitals are required to report disciplinary actions to the board, which also investigates complaints and takes disciplinary action.
The board has struggled to maintain a quorum, however, and hasn’t met in more than a year, said Lindsey Courtney, director of the Office of Professional Licensure and Certification.
“We’re greatly concerned the state is not meeting its obligation to protect the public,” she said at a public hearing.
Courtney, who isn’t taking a position on eliminating the board, supported Schmidt’s original proposal to convert it to an advisory panel that would make recommendations to her office. There are currently 1,691 registered technicians, and although complaints are rare, the board has taken action in a handful of cases each year.
Schmidt said his goal was to shift some of the administrative burden from the board to the larger agency. He hopes the Senate will either kill the amended bill or return to his original idea.
While hospitals are on the front lines of preventing and responding to drug diversion, partnering with public health, licensing and law enforcement agencies is essential, said Dr. Matthew Crist, a medical officer with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
He said the CDC isn’t aware of outbreaks in recent years related to drug diversion and is cautiously optimistic given that health care facilities have improved security around controlled drugs, and many state licensing agencies have taken steps to improve communication across state lines.
In the decade before Kwiatkowski’s arrests, similar hepatitis C outbreaks had been traced to other hospital technicians in Texas, Colorado and Florida, and CDC officials said at the time that the Kwiatkowski case highlighted a problem that was a growing concern across the public health system.
Even though other states didn’t follow New Hampshire’s lead, the registry likely has deterred people like Kwiatkowski from coming to the state in the first place, said state Sen. Tom Sherman, D-Rye, who led the bipartisan effort to create the board.
Sherman, a gastroenterologist who is running for governor, played a key role in discovering Kwiatkowski’s misconduct when he and his colleagues noticed a cluster of hepatitis C cases among their patients and realized they all had been treated in Exeter Hospital’s cardiac catherization lab. He’s now urging his fellow senators to consider “the price of doing an experiment to see what happens if we get rid of the board.”
“People died because of that outbreak,” he said. “This was a very carefully thought-out solution that has worked. To take it away now means we just don’t learn from history.” | https://www.lakecountystar.com/news/article/Decade-after-hepatitis-outbreak-medical-registry-17069061.php | 2022-04-09T13:41:57 | en | 0.971265 |
WINCHESTER, Va. (AP) — Seven-year-old Kiah Anderson sat in her classroom at Quarles Elementary School on March 31 and held Moby Duck, a duckling she and her fellow second graders hatched in an incubator.
Moby is one of three ducks that were raised in teacher Nicole Hobson’s classroom these past few weeks as part of a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) learning project.
“We’ve had them since they were babies,” Kiah said as Moby Duck’s friends Duke and Ocho waddled around the room.
Kiah reads to the ducklings every day. She said their favorite book is “Duck On a Bike” by author David Shannon.
Eight-year-old Ella Trdlickova said it’s calming to come to school and spend time with the ducklings.
“They’re so cute and playful,” second-grader Ella said on her last full day with her fluffy friends.
Moby Duck, Ocho and Duke moved to their new, permanent home on a farm owned by Winchester Public Schools grant specialist Jennifer LaBombard-Daniels, who is overseeing the grant-funded STEM program at both Quarles and John Kerr Elementary School.
“What we’re doing with our kids is immersing them in STEM and computer science fields,” LaBombard-Daniels said.
How do baby ducks help kids learn about computers? By teaching them about modern farming techniques that involve robotics, automation, coding and more, LaBombard-Daniels said.
Thanks to the Virginia Department of Education and the National Inventors Hall of Fame, Winchester Public Schools recently received a “farm to family” kit that included devices and information to show students at Quarles and John Kerr elementary schools how modern farming embraces technology to reduce workloads and produce better food.
One of the devices in the kit was a miniature John Deere tractor the students programmed to automatically make its way around a classroom.
“They created a farm and made pathways, and then we coded the tractor to go through the farm,” Quarles computer science coach Jenny Ramsey said. “We want to show them how computer science is out there in every industry there is.”
The project with the ducklings began before they even hatched. LaBombard-Daniels said incubators were used to develop the eggs, which allowed students to follow the growth of the ducklings while they were still in their shells. The incubation process also taught the second graders how farmers must limit the number of eggs they hatch in order to control their poultry populations.
Once hatched, the ducklings stayed at Quarles and John Kerr so the students would have an immersive experience while learning to properly care for them. That experience could be instrumental later in their lives, LaBombard-Daniels said, when the children decide what they want to do for a living.
“When we did a survey of third- and fourth-graders last year,” she said, “veterinary science was the number one STEM field that they picked. I really attribute that to these projects because they’re having hands-on experiences.”
Apart from the educational aspect, Ramsey said the ducklings provided other benefits for the students.
“Sometimes they’re having a rough morning or having a hard time in the classroom, so a lot of these ducks end up turning into therapy ducks,” she said. “The students come to the counseling corner, they sit and hold the ducks, they read to them, get their feelings back in action and go back to the classroom. Not only are they learning to raise a duck and understand the life cycle of an animal they may not see in the city, but they’re also learning empathy and caring and giving.”
It’s not just the kids who enjoy spending time with the ducklings. On March 31, LaBombard-Daniels brought in five additional ducklings that caught the attention of every Quarles teacher who passed by in the hallway.
“It’s therapy, something different in the building than math and reading,” Quarles instructional coach Heather Williams said.
The five ducklings brought in are being raised on LaBombard-Daniels’ farm. In order for her to take the animals to Quarles, she also had to bring along a Silkie chicken who became their de facto mother after a batch of chicken eggs she was nesting failed to hatch. Since the Silkie couldn’t have babies of her own, she gravitated toward the ducklings and the ducklings bonded with her immediately. The unusual brood is now inseparable, so the ducklings wouldn’t leave the farm with LaBombard-Daniels unless their mother went, too.
The duckling project recently concluded at John Kerr and at Quarles when LaBombard-Daniels moved the three ducklings in Hobson’s classroom to her farm. LaBombard-Daniels said the ducks will live out their natural lives there and won’t be used for meat, but the eggs laid by the females will be collected and appreciated.
“She’ll send us picture updates and we’ll send them out to the kids,” Williams said.
John Kerr computer science coach Amy Thomas said the students at her school held up quite well when it was time to say goodbye to their ducklings.
“They know that the ducks need to be in a space that’s more comfortable for them,” Thomas said. “And it starts to get a little smelly after a while.” | https://www.lakecountystar.com/news/article/Ducklings-could-open-doors-to-future-careers-for-17069101.php | 2022-04-09T13:42:03 | en | 0.974986 |
One million gallons of radioactive water is inside a former nuclear power plant along Cape Cod Bay and it has got to go.
But where, is the vexing question, and will the state intervene as the company dismantling the plant decides?
Holtec International is considering treating the water and discharging it into the bay, drawing fierce resistance from local residents, shell fishermen and politicians. Holtec is also considering evaporating the contaminated water or trucking it to a facility in another state.
The fight in Massachusetts mirrors a current, heated debate in Japan over a plan to release more than 1 million tons of treated radioactive wastewater into the ocean from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant in spring 2023. A massive tsunami in 2011 crashed into the plant. Three reactors melted down.
Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Plymouth, Massachusetts, closed in 2019 after nearly half a century providing electricity to the region. U.S. Rep. William Keating, a Democrat whose district includes the Cape, wrote to Holtec with other top Massachusetts lawmakers in January to oppose releasing water into Cape Cod Bay. He asked the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to examine its regulations.
Keating said in late March that Holtec's handling of the radioactive water could set a precedent because the U.S. decommissioning industry is in its infancy. Most U.S. nuclear plants were built between 1970 and 1990.
“If they're listening, sensitive and work with these communities, it's important,” he said. “That's the message for future decommissioning sites.”
Holtec has acquired closed nuclear plants across the country as part of its dismantling business, including the former Oyster Creek Generating Station in New Jersey and Indian Point Energy Center in New York. It’s taking ownership of the Palisades Nuclear Plant on Lake Michigan, which is closing this year.
Pilgrim was a boiling water reactor. Water constantly circulated through the reactor vessel and nuclear fuel, converting it to steam to spin the turbine. The water was cooled and recirculated, picking up radioactive contamination.
Cape Cod is a tourist hotspot. Having radioactive water in the bay, even low levels, isn't great for marketing, said Democratic state Rep. Josh Cutler, who represents a district there. Cutler is working to pass legislation to prohibit discharging radioactive material into coastal or inland waters.
Holtec said Pilgrim already discharged water into the bay for 50 years while the plant was operating and environmental studies, conducted by the plant operators and now Holtec, have shown little or no environmental impact. Radiological environmental reports are shared with the NRC annually.
“We are working to provide scientific data, educate the public on the reality of radiation in everyday life, and working to have experts explain the true science versus the emotional fear of the unknown,” spokesperson Patrick O’Brien wrote in an email in March.
WHAT ARE HOLTEC'S OPTIONS?
Holtec could treat the water and discharge it in batches over multiple years, likely the least expensive option. Or, it could evaporate the water on site, as it says it has done with about 680,000 gallons (2,600 kiloliters) over the past two years.
Evaporating the water would be more challenging to do now because the spent nuclear fuel is in storage, and couldn’t be used as a heat source. Holtec would have to use a different — likely more expensive method — that would release gas.
Or, Holtec could truck the water to an out-of-state facility, where it could be mixed with clay and buried or placed in an evaporation pond, or released into local waterways. That’s what Keating wants.
Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station, another boiling water reactor, was shut down in Vernon, Vermont, in 2014. It’s sending wastewater to disposal specialists in Texas and other states. Entergy operated and sold both Vermont Yankee and Pilgrim. NorthStar, a separate and competing corporation in the decommissioning business, is dismantling Vermont Yankee.
Nuclear plants occasionally need to dispose of water with low levels of radioactivity when it's operating, so a process to release it in batches into local waterways was developed early in the nuclear industry.
In recent years at Pilgrim, the two largest releases were in 2011, with 29 releases totaling about 325,000 gallons (1,500 kiloliters), and 2013, with 21 releases totaling about 310,000 gallons.
The water from those releases was well below the federal limits for the amount of radionuclides in millirems a person would be exposed to in a year if they ate local seafood or swam in nearby waters, according to the NRC.
NRC spokesperson for the Northeast, Neil Sheehan, said the limits are set very conservatively and are believed to be protective of the public and environment. He said it’s important to consider the role of dilution — once the discharges mix with vast quantities of water any radioactivity is typically not detectable.
WHY ARE PEOPLE WORRIED?
In Duxbury, Kingston and Plymouth Bays, there are 50 oyster farms — the largest concentration in the state, worth $5.1 million last year, according to the Massachusetts Seafood Collaborative. The collaborative said dumping the water would devastate the industry, and the local economy along with it.
Diane Turco, a Harwich resident and longtime Pilgrim watchdog, fears the water is heavily contaminated, especially from the pool that covered the stored, spent fuel, for cooling, and shielded workers from radiation.
“Isn’t this a crazy idea for Holtec to use our bay as their dump? No way,” she said.
Others didn't know Pilgrim's water went into the bay in previous years and they don't want it to happen again.
“We can't change that, but we can change what's happening in the future,” said Cutler, the state lawmaker. “It's the first time it has ever been decommissioned, so to compare this to the past is a convenient excuse. ‘Well, we did it in the past,’ that sounds like my kid.”
Towns on the Cape are trying to prohibit the dispersal of radioactive materials in their waters. Tribal leaders, fishermen, lobstermen and real estate agents have publicly stated their opposition as well.
Sheehan, the NRC spokesperson, said the water is not different or distinct, compared to water released during the plant's operations. Holtec would have to handle it the same way, by filtering it, putting it into a tank, analyzing the radio isotopes and calculating the environmental impacts if it was released in batches, he added.
WHO GETS THE FINAL SAY?
Holtec wouldn't need a separate approval from the NRC to discharge the water into the bay. However, Holtec would need permission from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency if the water contained pollutants regulated by the Clean Water Act, such as dissolved metals.
If the water contained only radioactive materials regulated by the NRC, Holtec wouldn't need to ask the EPA for a permit modification, according to the EPA's water division for New England. Holtec has never given the EPA a pollutant characterization of the water associated with decommissioning, the division's director said.
Mary Lampert, of Duxbury, is on a panel created by the state to look at issues related to the Pilgrim’s decommissioning. She believes the state could use its existing laws and regulations to stop the dumping and plans to press the Massachusetts attorney general to file a preliminary injunction to do so.
The attorney general’s office said it's monitoring the issue and would take any Clean Water Act violations seriously.
Holtec said this week it’s examining the water for possible pollutants but the lab results won’t be available for awhile.
The company expects to decide what to do with the water later this year. Discharge, evaporation and some limited transportation will likely all be part of the solution, Holtec added. | https://www.lakecountystar.com/news/article/EXPLAINER-Why-would-nuclear-plant-dump-17069064.php | 2022-04-09T13:42:09 | en | 0.963345 |
CASPER, Wyo. (AP) — Harmful algae season is months away, but Wyoming regulators are already gearing up to test for toxins at some of the state’s most vulnerable waters.
The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) began tracking harmful algal blooms statewide in 2017. Every spring, the agency revisits the past year’s findings to refine its strategy for the next.
DEQ staff discussed their takeaways from the 2021 bloom season at a virtual public meeting on March 24.
The DEQ continued to rely last year on information from citizen reports and satellite imagery to help with detecting and tracking blooms. In collaboration with other state agencies, DEQ staff also began conducting routine monitoring at 20 popular recreation spots, and introduced tiered health advisories — rather than blanket warnings — to distinguish potentially harmful blooms from ones actively producing toxins.
Now the agency must build the lessons from 2021 into its plans for 2022. It’s just starting to work out what that might look like.
“We’re trying to identify other water bodies that we want to do monitoring at — looking at what our resources are,” Lindsay Patterson, surface water quality standards supervisor at the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, told the Casper Star-Tribune.
Harmful algal blooms have become a growing concern across the country in recent years. The tiny organisms that cause the blooms grow better in warmer water — an effect of climate change. And they thrive in water overloaded with nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus, which rainwater carries from onshore sources, such as manure, to nearby lakes, ponds and streams.
Nutrients can be tough pollutants to regulate. The state is in the process of developing standards intended to lower nutrient levels in surface waters, but according to Patterson, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach the state can take.
“So much of addressing the problem of nutrients has to be driven by the local community,” she said. “That’s what’s going to be the most effective moving forward.”
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reiterated its commitment to supporting states’ nutrient pollution mitigation efforts in a policy memorandum issued Tuesday.
“Our nutrients memo is a call for scaling up the innovative approaches being used by farmers, ranchers, water agencies, local municipalities, industry, and communities to make progress,” Radhika Fox, EPA assistant administrator for water, said in a statement.
Wyoming regulators know a lot more about harmful algal blooms than they did in 2017.
The DEQ has counted more blooms every year it’s looked — almost certainly, Patterson said, because the agency has improved at finding them. Last summer, the Wyoming Department of Health issued bloom advisories for 28 bodies of water and toxin advisories for eight of those.
There are “just more eyes on the ground,” Patterson said.
But the state still has plenty to figure out. It knows, for example, that less than half of documented harmful algal blooms have been found to produce dangerous levels of toxins. But it isn’t sure why.
People exposed to those toxins while recreating in surface water could experience anything from gastrointestinal issues to rashes to cold-like symptoms, and may even need to be hospitalized. Pets, meanwhile, tend to be more susceptible than humans. After exposure, they might cough or start to stumble. Their condition can quickly deteriorate and lead to death.
If humans or pets become sick after contact with water, and a bloom was visible in the area, the illness should be reported to the DEQ, Patterson said.
Harmful algal blooms typically begin in Wyoming in mid-July and end around November. During those months, members of the public can check a map of bloom advisories maintained by the agency before recreating, and look out for posted signs warning of toxin risk. | https://www.lakecountystar.com/news/article/Environmental-staff-making-plans-to-test-for-17069062.php | 2022-04-09T13:42:15 | en | 0.947697 |
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine's independent senator wants the U.S. to try to limit Russian president Vladimir Putin and others in Russia from dodging economic sanctions by using cryptocurrencies.
Sen. Angus King said he is cosponsoring legislation that would seek to stop Putin and others from using digital assets to make an end-run on tough sanctions placed by the U.S. He said the proposal would stop any Russian digital assets from being traded in U.S. jurisdictions.
The proposal would also include new cryptocurrency transparency requirements and give the Biden administration new powers to go after the digital assets, King said. King said the U.S. “must ensure that Putin cannot exploit any financial loopholes to escape the consequences of his crimes.”
The bill has numerous sponsors in the U.S. Senate, all the rest of whom are Democrats, including Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren. | https://www.lakecountystar.com/news/article/Senators-want-to-prevent-Putin-dodging-sanctions-17069085.php | 2022-04-09T13:42:21 | en | 0.960602 |
DOVER, Del. (AP) — It was a challenge that turned into a dare that eventually led to the takeoff of one of the most momentous C-5A Galaxy flights out of Dover Air Force Base Jan. 30, 1986.
Retired Col. William “Bill” Jordan, now 79, vividly remembers the sequence of events that led to the first all-Black aircrew of a C-5A cargo plane leaving Dover bound for Germany that day.
After all, he was chosen to lead the historic mission.
“The way it got started was I was chair of the Black History Month Committee that year and one of the members of that committee had suggested that we bring a R&B group down from Philadelphia and have a dance, and I was opposed to that,” Mr. Jordan said. “I said I didn’t think the base would go for that.
“So, a female NCO on the committee said, ‘They never go for anything. I bet they won’t go for an all-Black flight C-5 crew.’”
Mr. Jordan said he was kind of put in a difficult spot and he committed that he would ask then-Col. Walter Kross, who was Dover Air Force Base’s wing commander back then, if he would approve her idea.
Much to his surprise, Col. Kross OK’d the proposal and history was put into motion.
“I guess the thing that made it so memorable for me was the fact that Col. Kross had the fortitude to authorize that flight in the face of a lot of people saying that he was making a mistake,” Mr. Jordan said.
So, he and 17 other Black airmen representing Dover AFB’s 3rd Squadron, 9th Squadron and Reserves, were selected and put into place to fly a routine mission to Germany in honor of Black History Month in February.
The purpose of the flight was to symbolize the role Black airmen played in national defense commitments.
In an article in The Airlifter, the base newspaper, published in 1986, then-Lt. Col. Jordan, who served as the flight commander, said, “Members of the crew wanted to fly an ordinary mission, not an ‘around the flagpole mission.’
“There aren’t any special events planned en route. The mission is a symbol of Black History Month, and we know it will inspire young Blacks to strive harder to achieve whatever their dreams may be.”
At the time, he also knew the flight would have its share of detractors.
“There are people who are going to try to turn this into something negative,” he said. “There will be comments that it’s tokenism or an attempt to segregate a crew. Neither statement is true.”
Little did Mr. Jordan and other members of the all-Black flight crew know at the time about the interest level that many had involving the flight, including a young Black airman at an air base in Incirlik, Turkey.
“The most memorable thing about the flight was the second leg, when we went into Turkey,” said Mr. Jordan. “There was an airman who couldn’t believe there was going to be an all-Black flight and he stayed up all night at the base in Incirlik, Turkey, waiting to see that C-5 come in and land.
“He was out on the flightline just looking to see the all-Black crew. He was a Black airman, so the fact that it meant so much to him and it meant so much to all the Air Force people that we ran across meant a lot to us.
“It was amazing. People were coming up to us and congratulating us and thankful that we did that flight.”
When he looks back on that flight today, there isn’t a whole lot that he would change, calling it an honor to be a part of history.
“We didn’t want it to be just a symbolic flight. We wanted it to be a normal mission,” Mr. Jordan said. “It was to show that on a day-to-day basis that we contributed to the regular Air Force mission — showing that we do this daily, and we can do this all the time.
“I think the biggest honor for me was to see the performance of the entire crew. Everybody on the crew did a fabulous job. It’s always a great honor to work with such a highly motivated and dedicated crew of people.”
Unfortunately, time is catching up to many who participated in the mission. Pilot Joe Lindsay died in January, and several others have also passed away over the years.
Their exploits are still remembered — including another flight by a second all-Black air crew that took place years after the inaugural flight.
On Feb. 24, 1999, there was a C-5 reunion and recognition luncheon for both the flights at Dover Air Force Base.
“If you ask me, it was a momentous flight,” said Mr. Jordan, who now lives in Spotsylvania, Virginia.
However, he said it wasn’t the most significant flight of his aviation career.
“My service in Vietnam might be more significant than that flight,” Mr. Jordan said. “My flying of air medical evacuations … One of my friends asked me what the most important mission I ever flew in the Air Force was, and I told her two missions where I saved two little girls who had been burned over 80% of their bodies, one down in New Orleans and one in Memphis, Tennessee.
“And the lady was shocked. She knew I had been down in Vietnam, and I’d done all that and the Black flight (at Dover) — that flight was very significant to me, but was it the most significant thing in my Air Force career? No.” | https://www.lakecountystar.com/news/article/Sky-was-limit-for-1st-Black-aircrew-at-Dover-Air-17069098.php | 2022-04-09T13:42:27 | en | 0.98751 |
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Sarah Rose took a scalpel and carefully scraped off the dark brown outer layer of a 200-year-old femur and collected the specks in a plastic box. By the shape of the bone, she could tell this man or woman — it’s hard to say by looking — had well-defined muscles. Maybe this person worked a labor-intensive job, Rose said. Maybe this person was enslaved.
Rose’s eyes are focused. This isn’t the first time the Virginia Commonwealth University graduate student has worked with human remains.
She’s been trained not to think about the tragedies the people endured that led to their bodies being inspected by a forensic scientist. She tries to concentrate on the task at hand, grinding down a small portion of the bone to conduct DNA analysis.
But in a case like this, it’s impossible to ignore how this person was treated in life and death: possibly enslaved, robbed from the grave, discarded in a well, excavated in a hurry and forgotten in a Smithsonian storage facility.
“The gravity of the situation brings you back in,” Rose said.
All these years later, after so much was taken and forgotten, could she and a team of researchers restore their identities?
They hope to learn the ancestry, hair color, eye color and perhaps birthplace of this person and 52 others who were found under a VCU Health building in 1994. If the best-case scenario comes true, they will match the DNA to descendants still living today.
Then the VCU researchers will rebury the dead, hopefully bringing back the dignity they were never afforded.
“The feeling is,” said Joseph Jones, a professor from the College of William & Mary and one of the project’s leaders, “these are people who were lost to the community.”
A DIG GONE WRONG
In 1994, construction workers laying the foundation for the Kontos Medical Sciences Building made a discovery. Twenty-five feet below ground, near the end of East Marshall Street, they found a well filled with human remains, leather shoes, glass bottles and mud.
VCU called its chief archaeologist, L. Daniel Mouer, who could smell the decomposition. He found bones and what appeared to be hair and skin.
But VCU refused to delay construction and gave Mouer only a weekend to excavate the remains. When the deadline arrived, a backhoe plowed into the earth, pulling up the bones and dirt, and Mouer watched in disbelief. What couldn’t be collected quickly was left behind.
What was recovered included more than 400 bones belonging to at least 44 adults and nine children. Two rib bones belonged to an infant, and two more to a newborn. Many of the skeletons were incomplete.
Researchers studied the skulls and determined most of them were of African ancestry. It’s likely the individuals were robbed from their graves, used as medical cadavers for the medical department of Hampden-Sydney College — which later became the Medical College of Virginia and eventually VCU.
Throughout the 19th century, the school hired workers known as resurrectionists to illegally dig up bodies, often from the Shockoe Hill African burial ground, a mile north at the intersection of North Fifth and Hospital streets, wrote VCU archivist Jodi Koste in a report.
When the bodies served no further use, they were dumped in a well.
The bones show signs of medical examination — there are cuts and nicks from scalpels, suggesting students learned how to amputate a limb and saw a skull in half to remove the brain. The cut marks are crude and incomplete, the work of amateurs learning their craft.
Alongside the bones, Mouer found detritus — 25 leather shoes, olive green glass bottles, the remains of three dogs and a cat. The articles dated to the mid-1800s.
After the remains and artifacts were pulled from the ground, they were shipped to the Smithsonian Institution, where VCU largely forgot about them for the next 15 years. It wasn’t until 2011 when VCU professor Shawn Utsey made a documentary on the topic titled “Until the Well Runs Dry: Medicine and the Exploitation of Black Bodies” that interest was rekindled.
VCU formed several committees of employees and local residents to decide how the school should proceed. The decision: bring the bones home and respectfully rebury them. But first, find out as much as possible about who these people were.
DNA ANALYSIS
In January, 28 years after the bones left Richmond, they came back to VCU in paperboard boxes draped in colorful Ghanaian burial cloth called Adinkra.
The VCU committees wrestled with the question of how to proceed. DNA extraction is an invasive process that requires further disturbing the remains.
There are four basic steps to DNA analysis, which will take two-plus years to complete: extracting the DNA from the bones, quantifying it, preparing it for analysis and sequencing it.
There are two types of sequencing. First: short tandem repeats, or STR, the type of sequencing the FBI conducts at a crime scene to match a suspect to a strand of hair. VCU researchers will use STR to match bones belonging to the same person.
Second: single nucleotide polymorphism, which the researchers call SNP or “snips.” They’ll use SNP to determine the person’s sex, hair color, eye color, height and blood type.
SNP will also tell the researchers the ancestry of each individual, which the Smithsonian already determined for some of the bones. Most of the people found in the well were of African descent. At least two were European, and six were undetermined.
While the bones make up at least 53 different individuals, Mouer found only 12 intact skulls. The reason why is a mystery. They may have never made it into the well — skulls tend to be collectors’ items, though there’s no evidence the students took them. Or they may still be there, deeper in the mud.
Using chemical analysis on the teeth, the researchers will try to determine if the people lived in Africa before coming to the U.S. Elements such as calcium and strontium in food are incorporated into the teeth and bones. By analyzing the strontium, the researchers hope to tell where the people lived.
The pie-in-the-sky goal is to match the DNA to descendants alive today who have submitted their DNA to biotechnology companies such as Ancestry.com or 23andMe.
None of this work comes cheap. VCU purchased a machine called a TissueLyser, which can cost about $17,000, to grind the bones. It’ll need a handful of DNA prep kits — just one is near $20,000, which mix human building blocks with chemicals.
The research is in an early phase and determining a total cost is difficult. It could reach into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
“DNA is not cheap to do,” said Tal Simmons, a VCU forensic anthropologist and project leader. “It is really expensive.”
‘BEST-CASE SCENARIO’
Universities across the South have confronted the forgotten remains of Black and enslaved people buried on campus. The University of Virginia found an unmarked African American cemetery next to the white cemetery in 2012. Recently, the University of Richmond rediscovered a cemetery for enslaved workers who lived on a plantation that eventually became the school’s campus.
There are no guarantees VCU’s work will bear results. Bone doesn’t provide as good a DNA sample as blood, hair or saliva. There’s no assurance the bones will provide usable DNA.
“All of this is best-case scenario what we’re hoping for,” Rose said. “We can’t really promise anything right now.”
There are too many bones to analyze each one. Small bones from the hands, feet and ribs will never be matched to their bodies. They’ll be buried together.
It’s unlikely the researchers will ever learn the people’s names. While there are some records of bodies robbed from their graves, the time frame doesn’t correspond with the well, said Ryan K. Smith, a VCU history professor. Even if an accurate record is located, it would nearly impossible to match names to bodies.
“I don’t know if we’ll ever know who these people were, but I’d love to get close to who these people were, the time they lived and if we have any clues about what their lives were like before they became comingled bones. I’d love to know that,” Rose said.
The DNA analysis isn’t the beginning of the analysis of these bones — it’s the end. In 2012, researchers from the Smithsonian and other colleges cataloged the bones and artifacts, visually studying each piece. They found a bevy of clues.
A researcher found one skull whose teeth were stained black from tobacco. There were concave dents between the incisors and canines where a pipe would fit.
Lacking dental care, their teeth often decayed or fell out. Signs of arthritis were widespread. Bones in the lower back degenerated. One child lived with a herniated disk. Worn-down bones were the result of “active lifestyles involving physical exertion” and a pattern of physical labor that began in childhood. One person’s leg bones bowed, a symptom of rickets. Another had tuberculosis in the spinal column.
Some experienced traumatic deaths. A male of European ancestry suffered a splinter lodged in the outer edge of his eye socket, penetrating his brain. Another man endured two holes in the top of his skull, likely low-velocity gunshot wounds. The skull shows cuts from a saw — perhaps a surgeon’s attempt to remove the projectiles. But the bone shows no sign of healing, meaning the man didn’t survive surgery.
ACKNOWLEDGING UNRECOGNIZED LEGACY
Each day at the VCU lab begins with a student reciting a statement posted on the bookshelf. The researchers “acknowledge the lives, history and unrecognized legacy” of these individuals and “pay our respect to elders both past and present.”
Amber Mundy, 22 and a graduate student on the project, sees this as an opportunity to memorialize Black lives — something seldom done in early American history. While white Americans were placed under gravestones, Black Americans sometimes were placed in unmarked graves in cemeteries forgotten and built over.
Mundy, who is Black, thinks about the difference between Egyptian pharaohs mummified and placed in museums and Black Americans, whose grave sites were neglected.
“They get a beautiful glass box, and I get a building built over my people,” she said. “My cemeteries are just dirt.”
One purpose for conducting DNA analysis is to determine what kind of burial ceremonies are appropriate for these people, said Rhonda Keyes Pleasants, a local funeral home manager and committee leader.
In Ghana, for example, carpenters design custom-made burial containers — a man who owned a Mercedes-Benz was buried in a coffin shaped like a car, complete with the Mercedes logo on the grill.
The VCU committees hope to rebury the individuals at the African American burial ground downtown or Evergreen Cemetery. A final destination has not been determined.
The way these bodies were treated in the 1800s still bothers Rose, the graduate student researcher. But what shocks her more is how little value was placed on them as recently as 1994, when they were quickly and partially excavated.
There are still human remains until the Kontos building, and historical records suggest a second well of bodies exists under the Egyptian Building. It’s unclear if either well is accessible.
“It’s horrible to think about how these remains were treated this way in my lifetime,” said Rose, 33.
That’s why she collects every speck of dust she grinds off the bones. It will all be reburied one day. | https://www.lakecountystar.com/news/article/VCU-hopes-to-learn-origins-of-bones-found-in-well-17069100.php | 2022-04-09T13:42:34 | en | 0.970586 |
SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — Members of the Vermont National Guard will be deployed temporarily to Europe early next month to enhance NATO's defense and support its air policing, guard officials said.
Guard members are expected to be briefed on the mission during a drill this weekend, WCAX-TV reported.
They will join thousands of U.S. soldiers already deployed to support the nation’s allies following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, myNBC5 reported.
“The National Guard is proud to continue our support our allies with ongoing missions,” Maj. J. Scott Detweiler wrote in a statement.
The support of NATO's air policing mission includes defending airspace over nations bordering Ukraine’s to the west and southwest. | https://www.lakecountystar.com/news/article/Vermont-National-Guard-members-to-head-to-Europe-17069081.php | 2022-04-09T13:42:40 | en | 0.943565 |
WFO SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, April 10, 2022
_____
WIND ADVISORY
URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service San Francisco Bay Area
506 AM PDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 3 PM PDT SUNDAY...
* WHAT...North winds 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 60 mph.
* WHERE...North Bay Interior Mountains, Eastern Santa Clara Hills,
East Bay Hills.
* WHEN...Until 3 PM PDT Sunday.
* IMPACTS...Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects.
Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may
result.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...The strongest winds are expected Saturday
night into Sunday morning across the interior mountains.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Use extra caution when driving, especially if operating a high
profile vehicle. Secure outdoor objects.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.lakecountystar.com/weather/article/CA-WFO-SAN-FRANCISCO-BAY-AREA-Warnings-Watches-17069065.php | 2022-04-09T13:42:46 | en | 0.82234 |
WFO ALBANY Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Saturday, April 9, 2022
_____
FLOOD WARNING
Flood Statement
National Weather Service Albany NY
904 AM EDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...FLOOD WARNING IS CANCELLED...
The Flood Warning is cancelled for
the Wappingers Creek At Wappingers Falls.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...
- At 8:30 AM EDT Saturday the stage was 7.6 feet.
- Forecast...The river is expected to fall to 5.1 feet Monday
evening.
- http://www.weather.gov/safety/flood
Wappingers Creek
Wappingers Falls
Flood Stage: 8.0
Observed Stage at Sat 8 am: 7.6
Forecast:
Sat 2 pm 6.7
Sat 8 pm 6.3
Sun 2 am 6.1
Sun 8 am 5.8
Sun 2 pm 5.6
Sun 8 pm 5.5
Mon 2 am 5.3
Mon 8 am 5.2
Mon 2 pm 5.1
Mon 8 pm 5.1
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.lakecountystar.com/weather/article/NY-WFO-ALBANY-Warnings-Watches-and-Advisories-17069111.php | 2022-04-09T13:43:05 | en | 0.783014 |
WFO PORTLAND Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, April 10, 2022
_____
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Portland OR
555 AM PDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 8 PM THIS
EVENING TO 11 AM PDT SUNDAY ABOVE 2000 FEET...
* WHAT...Snow expected above 2000 feet. Total snow accumulations
of 6 to 12 inches.
* WHERE...In Oregon, Northern Oregon Cascades. In Washington,
South Washington Cascades.
* WHEN...From 8 PM this evening to 11 AM PDT Sunday.
* IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Heaviest snowfall will occur early Sunday
morning. Snowfall rates up to one and a half inches per hour
will be possible during this time period.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Slow down and use caution while traveling.
For the latest road conditions call 5 1 1, or visit
for Oregon: https://www.tripcheck.com
and for Washington: https://wsdot.com/travel/real-time/map
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 11 PM THIS
of 3 to 8 inches. Heaviest snowfall early Sunday morning
morning.
* WHERE...In Oregon, Northern Oregon Cascade Foothills. In
Washington, South Washington Cascade Foothills.
* WHEN...From 11 PM this evening to 11 AM PDT Sunday.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Heaviest snowfall expected early Sunday
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.lakecountystar.com/weather/article/WA-WFO-PORTLAND-Warnings-Watches-and-Advisories-17069106.php | 2022-04-09T13:43:11 | en | 0.785667 |
WFO SPOKANE Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Saturday, April 9, 2022
_____
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY
URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Spokane WA
615 AM PDT Sat Apr 9 2022
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM PDT THIS
MORNING...
* WHAT...Snow. Additional snow accumulations up to two inches. Winds
gusting as high as 35 mph.
* WHERE...Holden Village, Stehekin, and Stevens Pass.
* WHEN...Until 10 AM PDT this morning.
* IMPACTS...Travel could be very difficult with winter travel
conditions along Highway 2 west of Coles Corner to Stevens Pass.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Slow down and use caution while traveling. The latest road
conditions for the state you are calling from can be obtained by
calling 5 1 1.
_____
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We take a look at the highlights of the weekend at zero cost in the main stores.
We enter Easter and the current situation of the video game does not give us respite, with the announcement of a remake of Max Payne 1 and 2, Return to Monkey Island, etc. The free proposals to try and download also continue, with a couple of MMOs, a highly acclaimed exploration adventure and other titles that, as always, we leave you in a special, so you can enjoy your passion without spending a single euro more.
Type: Limited Time Trial
If you like MMOs this weekend you have two to try. The first one we talk about is a veteran but recently modernized, Black Desert, where players can enjoy fast-paced combat, action-packed adventures and careers in a vast open world. Millions of players have played it, will you be the next?
Type: Limited Time Trial
Football Manager is a massive success on PC, but for a few months it has also been trying to do it on consoles with a version of the game tailored and adapted to play in a simplified way on Xbox with all the essentials of the management title: transfers, tactics and game days.
With Xbox Live Gold you can also try Grow: Song of the Evertree this weekend and start discovering a unique world full of life. Prideful Sloth presents his adventure as a creative video game with adventure and simulation elements where you can change the world for the better and bring Evertree back to life.
Type: Limited Time Trial
It was one of the great sensations at the end of last year, and now it seeks to continue growing with a free trial in which players will be able to access the main functions of the open world MMO. New World is also one of the first Amazon video games and, therefore, one of its first successes.
Type: Download it and keep it forever!
Roguelite proposals have made their way over the years, and this one in particular may be one of the strongest hits at the time. Now Rogue Legacy, which has just set a release date for its sequel, can be yours inviting you to take control of a string of heroes in a tireless fight.
Type: Download it and keep it forever!
With the Epic Games Store there will also be an opportunity these next few days to add one of the best exponents of the so-called walking simulator to our libraries. We are talking about The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, an exploration and mystery adventure in the first person where we have to unravel the truth after a disappearance.
free games for everyone
Prime Gaming, Xbox GamePass, PS Plus
And the list of games to take advantage of the weekend does not end here, since we also have the option of exploring the new free games for subscribers in services such as PlayStation Plus, Xbox Live Gold, Stadia Pro, Prime Gaming or PS Now and Game Pass .
More about: Free games. | https://thenewstrace.com/6-free-games-for-pc-and-consoles-with-a-couple-of-mmos-soccer-and-much-more-to-enjoy-without-paying-a-euro/228146/ | 2022-04-09T13:44:06 | en | 0.953523 |
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Last December, the fintech Better.com gave a lot to talk about when it decided to manage a dismissal in a somewhat controversial way: it summoned 900 of its employees to a Zoom meeting and fired them in a minute.
Its CEO, Vishal Garg, told his workers (from both the United States —where he resides— and India —his native country—) that the economic situation of the company was not good to conclude with:
“If you’re on this call, you’re part of the unlucky group that is getting fired. Your employment here is terminated, effective immediately. You will receive an email from[l departamento de] Human Resources”.
Three months after this one, we know that Better.com has laid off about 3,000 more workers. On this occasion the The medium chosen to communicate it was email.. And now Techcrunch has revealed what the layoffs are all about: The company is losing around $50 million a month, an insider source at Better.com has leaked.
How to request the DIGITAL CERTIFICATE of NATURAL PERSON from the FNMT
After rudeness, voluntary casualties
With all this, the same source says that now the company is going to offer employees from the product, design and engineering divisions that they can leave on a voluntary basis and the company is offering to pay a 60-day severance pay and a private health insurance plan.
When the first mass layoffs occurred, it is not clear what the internal situation of the company was like, but it is known that after this cold decision, there was great chaos in the first months of this year: the first great reaction within Better.com was the resignation of three managers. CEO Vishal Garg, after apologizing for this event, decided to take a break.
Better.com management then commissioned an audit from an outside company to the corporate culture and leadership of the company are analyzed. We must not forget that, during the call, the CEO himself is the first to say that he had already had to do something similar.
stop, you’re embarrassing me
This means that it is not known with certainty whether the situation in December was economically unsustainable or if it has become like this after this controversial business management. Better.com executives say it’s through no fault of their company: They told employees in an email that the ongoing instability in mortgage markets, with rising interest rates and changing conditions, is hurting them.
It seems that Better.com’s forte has never been good touch. As it became known, in 2020 the company sent messages to the staff accusing them of being “terribly slow”a lot of “dumb dolphins that are going to be eaten by sharks. Stop right now because you are embarrassing me.”
In Spain we are more protected
It must be said that these dismissals and these Better.com practices can only occur in poorly regulated labor markets, such as the United States or India. In Spain, workers have more rights in this regard. Although if it can be fired collectively, the process is longer and in no case can it be resolved with a video call or an email, as Xataka has analyzed.
Better.com had about 6,000 employees before its first layoff. In Spain, a company of this size is governed by the Workers’ Statute. Article 51 states that dismissing 30 workers or more in companies with more than 300 employees is considered a collective dismissal. In Spain, to carry out a collective dismissal, the company must first communicate in writing (and by a means by which the receipt is accredited, such as a burofax) to the workers or their representatives of their intention to initiate the process.
After this, a period of consultations is opened and a negotiating commission must be convened, among other formalities, in accordance with the directives of the Ministry of Labor and Social Economy. This is to reflect the reasons for this decision and the date of the layoffs being planted.
What Better.com did here it would be an unfair dismissal. In the case of this startup, lacking these mechanisms, no one can know if the bad situation of the company is due to the employees, or due to some mismanagement of the remaining managers. | https://thenewstrace.com/after-zoom-firing-900-people-in-a-minute-this-company-is-going-under-this-in-spain-would-be-impossible/228144/ | 2022-04-09T13:44:12 | en | 0.977634 |
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DeLorean Motor Corporate has equipped the primary symbol of its new electrical automobile.
A preview of it was once shared on Twitter on April 1, earlier than the corporate after all published the primary glance of the automobile a couple of days later in every other tweet, which you’ll see beneath. Now not an excessively acquainted glance in comparison to the vintage automobile identified from Again to the Long runbut it surely appears correctly futuristic, and turns out to retain the unique’s barred rear window in some admire.
Let’s transparent issues up somewhat. The following era of DeLorean is getting into focal point August 18, 2022. For more info learn the clicking unencumber right here: https://t.co/Q4Rax2aBC1 #DeLorean #DeloreanEVolved #firstlook %.twitter.com/H0t0i4ODqv
— DeLorean Motor Corporate (@deloreanmotorco) April 4, 2022
DeLorean has additionally introduced that the overall automobile and legitimate title divulge they might arrive just a little previous than anticipated, on August 18 for the Pebble Concours d’Magnificence awards rite.
“Pleasure is construction just like the doorways to our iconic sports activities automobilestated DeLorean Motor Corporate CMO Troy Beetz.We will be able to divulge the following era prototype 3 days forward of agenda at the maximum prestigious degree in Pebble Seashore“.
The go back of the DeLorean as an electrical automobile was once introduced in February with a brief however chic video appearing the silhouette of the enduring gullwing doorways. It comes 40 years after the manufacturing of the unique automobile, which started in 1981 however best till the next 12 months, when the DeLorean Motor Corporate went bankrupt.
Which means It was once already out of manufacturing when Again to the Long run was once launched.from 1985, however the a hit movie made the DeLorean probably the most iconic vehicles in film historical past.
For the ones on the lookout for a DeLorean however can not look ahead to the August divulge, or perhaps simply on the lookout for a inexpensive solution to relive the magic of the ’80s, LEGO has launched its personal model of the unique automobile. Here is the entirety we all know up to now concerning the new DeLorean automobile, from options to value. | https://thenewstrace.com/delorean-presentations-the-primary-symbol-of-its-subsequent-electrical-automobile-successor-to-again-to-the-long-run/228150/ | 2022-04-09T13:44:18 | en | 0.930739 |
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Tech I have played Coromon and as a Pokémon fan, I was pleasantly surprised By Kim Diaz - April 9, 2022 0 Share Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp I have played Coromon and as a Pokémon fan, I was pleasantly surprised | https://thenewstrace.com/i-have-played-coromon-and-as-a-pokemon-fan-i-was-pleasantly-surprised/228155/ | 2022-04-09T13:44:24 | en | 0.995384 |
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The Mexican soccer players who militate in football in Europe prepare for a new day of activities. With some compatriots fighting to stay in the top positions of their respective tournaments, another one is fighting to get away from the bottom of the rankings. Highlights the case of Javier Aguirre who, from the Mallorca bench, seeks to save the category in Spanish football.
The end of the season is already a reality in the sports calendar. The decisive moments for the clubs that aspire to win a title or that are playing for relegation are present. In addition to The Basqueanother Mexican who finds himself in the same situation is John Vasquez with Genoa in Serie A in Italy. By contrast, Erick Gutierrez Y Edson Alvarez the titles are disputed in the Netherlands. Other Aztecs with chances of winning are Hector Herrera Y Jesus Tecatito Corona in Spain, e Hirving Lozano in Italy.
Tecatito receives on the field of the Sánchez Pizjuán Stadium the Granada with the aim of achieving victory to stay in the fight for the top places in La Liga. After losing their last match against Barcelona, Sevilla fell to fourth place in the standings behind the Catalans and Atlético de Madrid with whom they are tied in units. The game is scheduled to take place at 2:00 p.m. this Friday April eight.
Together with Corona, Jiménez inaugurates the weekend’s activity. The striker along with his team, the Wolverhampton Wanderersvisit to Newcastle United by date 32 of the English championship. Wolves are eighth in the Premier League with 49 points. Its main objective is to be able to qualify for European competitions (from sixth position). The duel will be at 2:00 p.m. on Friday April eight.
The Mexican coach has just arrived in Spanish football to direct the Mallorca. With nine dates to play The Basque He was integrated into the Vermellón team with the mission of saving the club from relegation. After losing his first game, Aguirre receives the Atletico Madrid In a second. The match will be at the Son Moix Stadium at Saturday April 9 at 09:15 a.m.. Hector Herrera He was left out of the squad with the Madrid team after not having recovered from a muscle injury.
The national teams selected by Mexico who militate in the Real Betis they visit the Cádiz with the aim of getting the three points so as not to move away from the leaders in La Liga (they are fifth place with 53 units). The duel is scheduled for Saturday March 9 at 07:00.
In Italy, the Naples of the Chucky Lozano fights hand in hand with Milan for the top of the table. Between them, there is hardly a difference of a single unit. The Mexican arrives at his new commitment after having given an assist in his most recent game. The opponent in turn is the Flourishing a the Sunday ten at 08:00 hours.
In Italy, the Naples of the Chucky Lozano fights hand in hand with Milan for the top of the table. Between them, there is hardly a difference of a single unit. The Mexican arrives at his new commitment after having given an assist in his most recent game. The opponent in turn is the Flourishing a the Sunday ten at 08:00 hours.
Guti and PSV are second in the Eredivisie standings with 28 games played. Farmers take on Waalwijk at the Philips Stadion at 07:15 on Sunday ten
The machine and his Ajax are the leaders of the Dutch championship. He takes four points from the closest pursuer of him. His next match against Spartan Rotterdam at 1:00 p.m. this Saturday.
KEEP READING: | https://thenewstrace.com/know-all-the-activity-of-the-mexican-representatives-in-european-football/228148/ | 2022-04-09T13:44:30 | en | 0.962235 |
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A jury of the Court of Corona of Southwarkin the south of Londonhas found guilty the former German tennis player Boris Becker of four of the 24 charges that weighed against him for economic crimes related to his bankruptcy. The former number 1 in the world and winner of six Grand Slam trophies will know his sentence in an upcoming hearing, set for the April 29.
Becker He was found guilty this Friday of Theft of assets, non-disclosure of assets and concealment of a debtall related to his personal bankruptcy, tied to a loan of about $3.8 million granted by private bank Arbuthnot Latham to finance a property Mallorca.
The former athlete 54 years filed for bankruptcy in June 2017 in London and was accused of failing to comply with his obligations to disclose information, particularly banking information, as well as being accused of not deliver to his creditors nine trophies and medals from his illustrious record in the circuit ATP.
The trial against Boris Becker, who has lived in the UK since 2012 and currently works as a sports commentator for television, had started on March 21. The former German tennis player, who won 49 titles In 16 years of professional career, he stated that some of his awards had disappeared and assured that he would deliver them if he knew where they were.
Among the nine awards claimed by his creditors are three Wimbledon trophiestwo trophies from Australian Open and the double Olympic gold medal he won in Barcelona in 1992, a year after reaching the top of the world rankings. Becker won his first Grand Slam on the lawn of All England Tennis Club in 1985when I only had 17 years.
He had already auctioned off some of his prizes worth just over USD 900.000 to pay off some of his debts. The prosecution also accused him of failing to declare two properties in Germanyas well as interest on a London flat, and concealing a loan from USD 890.000. At the time of filing for bankruptcy, Boris Becker had debts estimated at up to $65 million.
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A little over two years ago, in full confinement, RTVE presented the ‘Somos cine’ platform, which you can access here. Since then it has evolved a lot, both in quantity (multiplying the number of titles by five) and in quality. At that time, the public platform was talking about a website where you could watch Spanish movies for free, promising to gradually expand the introductory offer, which It already had more than 60 Spanish films and some non-Spanish-speaking ones, such as ‘La vida de Adele’.
Two years later, having seen dramatic improvement in its first year, we are still using it, and the platform has improved in all on the web. In applications for Smart TV and devices such as Amazon’s Fire TV Stick, which is where content can be consumed more comfortably due to screen size and focus, the cinema section is still a bit hidden. It is rare that it is not announced directly, but it is, it is.
From 60 to more than 300 movies to watch for free
At its launch, Somos Cine was a platform that we relatively praised for the numbers in its catalog. Although 60 movies were few compared to any payment platform, especially if we compare the 3,500 titles that FlixOlé has, many of them national, to be something free it was very good. And although you had to dive into something, it was possible to find recently released movies.
Now, Just evaluating the number of films available, we find more than 300. Officially they do not give a counter on the web, but on their blog they do boast of more than 300, and we have counted “by hand” the links with a Chrome extension, and the counts came out. What they are doing with series is not negligible either, with titles like ‘Downton Abbey’, ‘Sherlock’, ‘House of Cards’ (the British one), ‘Sherlock’, ‘The Collapse’, etc.
At the platform level, the web is getting better. Last year there was no search engine as such. Although the order is still a bit chaotic, it is now much easier to find the content we are looking for, although we still have to waste time searching between sections. In the application for Fire TV it is not very obvious to find the section of cie or series. Only in the most archaic section of the web do we see a search engine, as there is for everything that RTVE has.
In the last year, the quality has improved a lot in apps like the Fire TV Stick, where the resolution now goes up to 720p. Before it was sub-HD
Even so, there is good news beyond the growth of the catalog. If last year we talked about the image quality being lower than that seen on other platforms, and that “don’t look a gift horse in the mouth”, now it continues, but on the web it already offers a choice between resolutions and content it looks less pixelated than before. In the Smart TV and Fire TV apps there is no resolution selector, but we can confirm that it now reaches HD Ready. Let’s see if in 2023 we can talk about Full HD.
Before, we recommended connecting the laptop to the TV because the web had better quality than the applications, but today they have caught up and you can use RTVE Play without problems on the device you have.
The most watched in Somos Cine, according to the platform
Somos Cine publishes a list with the 10 most viewed films. This month, the most popular have been these:
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‘The wiper’ (2021), which you can see here.
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‘The island of lies’ (2020), which you can see here.
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‘The wish list’ (2020), which you can see here.
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‘Far from the sea’ (2015), which you can see here.
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‘I give you my eyes’ (2003), which you can see here.
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‘La vida de Adèle’ (2013), which you can see here.
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‘4 Latas’ (2019), which you can see here.
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‘Champions’ (2018), which you can see here.
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‘Belle époque’ (1992), which you can see here.
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‘In exchange for nothing’ (2015), which you can see here. | https://thenewstrace.com/you-can-now-watch-more-than-300-movies-online-for-free-along-with-dozens-of-series-on-rtve-play-the-spanish-platform-continues-to-improve/228153/ | 2022-04-09T13:44:43 | en | 0.974466 |
The European Union is resuming its diplomatic presence in Kyiv after moving it temporarily to Poland following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the bloc announced Friday.
EU Ambassador to Ukraine Matti Maasikas "is returning to Kyiv to enhance EU presence and ensure support to our Ukrainian partners," the bloc said on its official Twitter account Saturday. Maasikas expressed his own positive thoughts on Twitter.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell traveled to Ukraine on Friday to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky and Ukrainian officials.
"With this visit, the European Union is returning to Kyiv," Borrell tweeted Friday. "And I mean this literally: our Head of Delegation is back here, so that we can work even more directly and more closely with our Ukrainian partners, ensuring support for Ukrainians."
Italy also intends to reopen its embassy in Kyiv after Easter, Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said Saturday.
"Ambassador [Pier Francesco] Zazo and our embassy have never left Ukraine — it is in Lviv, in the west of the country. But now the time has come to give a big signal to the Ukrainians ... and thank them for kicking out the Russian troops from Kyiv," Di Maio said speaking to the press in Volla, near Naples.
The foreign minister said some Italian citizens have remained in Kyiv and "are safer thanks to the Ukrainian resistance."
Slovenia has also reopened its embassy in Kyiv since March 28, according to Slovenia's Foreign Ministry. | https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-putin-news-04-09-22/h_b26b81aebd6875fc842155d7072e67e4 | 2022-04-09T13:44:58 | en | 0.967048 |
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Great Lakes Center for the Arts executive director to retire
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BAY HARBOR — A LinkedIn job posting recently confirmed the departure of the Great Lakes Center for the Arts executive director.
Jill O'Neill, the now outgoing executive director, confirmed she was leaving, but for good reason.
"It's just been so busy with our upcoming season announcements and our youth programs we just started but I am retiring in May," she said.
"The driving force for retirement is that the center is in a really wonderful and strong place and I feel it has so much to offer to someone who may want to take the baton next," she said.
O'Neill — in her 30th year as an arts professional and 26th year with Bay Harbor — added that she is also stepping down to "... spend more time with and be with my son, who is going to be a senior in high school this year and to take a breath and enjoy being a full-time mom."
Throughout O'Neill's tenure with Bay Harbor she worked as an assistant controller, controller and eventually became its chief financial officer before becoming the first director of the Great Lakes Center for the Arts.
Through her window she was able to see its conception and construction take place and watch the area's newest social hub come to life.
The curtains first rose with its grand opening in July of 2018 and has, even through the pandemic, offered year-round programming covering all spectrums of the arts world with music, dance, theater and more.
"Throughout my time here it has always been exciting to build and grow and I am personally grateful for the opportunities I've had over the last 26 years here in the community and five with the center," said O'Neill.
"My time with the center has always and will always be meaningful to me because of the opportunities we are also providing young people to experience the performing arts and to be involved in something right here in their backyard," he said.
O'Neill said she resonates so much with education and sharing the arts as she is an instrumentalist and musician herself.
Through high school she would have to travel an hour and a half to play in an orchestra or have flute lessons.
"That was on a weekly basis, but to be able to have this center serve Emmet, Charlevoix, Antrim (counties) and some other surrounding areas is so meaningful in that we have and will continue to expand on arts opportunities in a rural area," she said.
"You just never know what might spark a young person to fall in love with an instrument or performing on a stage."
O'Neill's retirement, although not formally announced by the center, does also come directly following the center's five-year-celebration programming, with her departure set about the time it all kicks off with Cory Wong's show on May 29.
More:Great Lakes Center for the Arts celebrates 5 year anniversary, announces summer lineup
The center's board of directors is currently conducting a national search and has a search committee led by board chair Kathy Oswald who, as told by O'Neill, is an industry professional with over 40 years of human resource experience.
"We've hired a firm to help us do the search and are doing a nationwide search," Oswald confirmed.
"I don't want to say that Jill is leaving or retiring because she isn't going anywhere else for the time being and we know we will see her around. We do love her and wish her the best," she said.
The executive director job posting has since been taken down and is no longer taking applications, so an announcement about O'Neill's successor may be forthcoming. However, the center and its board have not confirmed the hiring of a new director at the time of the News-Review's print deadline on Friday.
Tickets for the center's upcoming season will be released in waves with single tickets opening for the center's first three larger shows at noon on Sunday, May 1. Tickets will then be rolled out in waves with the next bunch released on Wednesday, June 1 and the last on Friday, July 1.
Those not wanting to wait also currently have the option of purchasing a subscription, which allows a person to purchase four or more tickets and secure their seats in advance. More information about subscriptions can be found on the center's website.
More information about the center's upcoming fifth summer season and celebrations can also be found online alongside information on other performance based and educational programming at www.greatlakescfa.org.
Contact reporter Sean Miller at smiller@petoskeynews.com. Follow him on Twitter, @seanmillerpnr, and Instagram, @sean_everest. | https://www.petoskeynews.com/story/entertainment/2022/04/09/great-lakes-center-arts-executive-director-retire/9508116002/ | 2022-04-09T13:48:39 | en | 0.982582 |
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How much will Petoskey's next city manager make?
Contract to be approved next week
PETOSKEY — Petoskey City Council members Monday could finalize their employment agreement with Shane Horn, who is currently on deck to become the next city manager.
In an update posted to the city’s website Thursday, the officials have scheduled a special meeting to begin at 5:15 pm. that day at city hall, 101 E. Lake St., where they will review the draft contract drawn up after approximately two weeks of negotiations. City council members selected Horn as their preferred candidate to take over the city manager position following a public interview process last month.
He was among three other finalists invited to the city for in-person interviews, on a roster which also included former Petoskey City Manager George Korthauer.
More:Petoskey selects Shane Horn as new city manager
Horn previously served as the city manager of Adrian, Michigan before leaving to become the city manager of Lakeland, Tennessee.
The terms and language of that contract are publicly available in the documents that accompany Monday’s meeting agenda. The details align with what was expected, based on information that was available prior to the start of negotiations. If council members give their seal of approval, Horn would make $152,000 annually in his role as city manager, within the $130,000-$160,000 range that was advertised when the city was seeking applicants.
In addition, the contract allows for Horn’s relocation expenses to be a reimbursed up to $10,000, and he will be granted up to four weeks of vacation time a year. He’ll receive a vehicle allowance of $400 a month, cellphone reimbursement of $40 per month, a 14 percent retirement pension plan contribution, and potential severance pay of six months.
Other benefits, which the contract classifies as “standard” for city employees, include:
- 56 hours of personal leave time annually
- 24 hours for floating holidays
- $25,000 life insurance plan
- Short term disability benefits
Petoskey paid the Michigan Municipal League $19,000 to aid in the search for a new manager, which was initially estimated to take about four months, following the abrupt departure of former city manager Rob Straebel in October.
Straebel officially left of his own volition, though public statements indicate he had not been planning to step down. City council members accepted his letter of resignation in a special meeting days after they completed his annual performance review.
Before Straebel left, current interim city manager Al Terry was expected to retire from his city clerk position. Petoskey’s city council was in the middle of a separate search process for that position when they halted those efforts to focus on the city manager vacancy. During his time as city clerk, Terry already had experience stepping in as interim city manager during past transition periods. | https://www.petoskeynews.com/story/news/2022/04/09/how-much-petoskeys-next-city-manager-make/9510708002/ | 2022-04-09T13:48:45 | en | 0.976197 |
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Tree clearing will cause temporary traffic shifts on U.S. 31 near Petoskey next week
Staff reports
PETOSKEY — Motorists should expect some changes in traffic flow on U.S. 31 northeast of Petoskey next week, but no significant delays.
Maintenance crews are scheduled to do some tree clearing work on the highway, east of Division Street, as early as Monday, and some lanes will temporarily close as a result, said James Lake, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Transportation. The work is expected to take place primarily near Bay View Country Club.
“We’ll have lane closures and traffic shifts during that time, but it should not have a major affect on traffic,” Lakes said in an email. | https://www.petoskeynews.com/story/news/2022/04/09/tree-clearing-cause-temporary-traffic-shifts-u-s-31-near-petoskey-next-week/9509525002/ | 2022-04-09T13:48:51 | en | 0.965907 |
You need to enable JavaScript to run this app. | https://sportspyder.com/nfl/buffalo-bills/articles/39105055 | 2022-04-09T13:48:55 | en | 0.738227 |
You need to enable JavaScript to run this app. | https://sportspyder.com/nfl/buffalo-bills/articles/39105193 | 2022-04-09T13:49:01 | en | 0.738227 |
You need to enable JavaScript to run this app. | https://sportspyder.com/mlb/cincinnati-reds/articles/39104528 | 2022-04-09T13:49:07 | en | 0.738227 |
Updated: April 9, 2022 6:15:40 pm
Taking exception to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s comments on Hindi as an alternative to English, ruling TRS Working President and Telangana Minister K T Rama Rao on Saturday said “language chauvinism and hegemony” in the country will boomerang.
He said it would be a “great disservice to impose Hindi” on the nation’s youngsters who have global aspirations.
“Unity in diversity is our strength dear @AmitShahJi. India is a union of states & a true ‘Vasudhaika Kutumbam’. Why don’t we let people of our great nation decide what to eat, what to wear, who to pray to and what language to speak!,” Rama Rao tweeted with the hashtag #stopHindiImposition.
“Language chauvinism/hegemony will boomerang,” he added.
“I am an Indian first, a proud Telugu & Telanganaite next. Can speak in my mother tongue Telugu, English, Hindi & a little bit of Urdu too. To impose Hindi & diss English will be a great disservice to the youngsters of this nation who have global aspirations,” said Rama Rao, son of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao.
Shah on Thursday said Hindi should be accepted as an alternative to English and not to local languages.
Presiding over the 37th meeting of the Parliamentary Official Language Committee, Shah had said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has decided that the medium of running the government is the official language and this will definitely increase the importance of Hindi.
- The Indian Express website has been rated GREEN for its credibility and trustworthiness by Newsguard, a global service that rates news sources for their journalistic standards. | https://indianexpress.com/article/india/hindi-language-chauvinism-boomerang-k-t-rama-rao-7861660/ | 2022-04-09T13:49:07 | en | 0.942 |
You need to enable JavaScript to run this app. | https://sportspyder.com/mlb/cincinnati-reds/articles/39104681 | 2022-04-09T13:49:13 | en | 0.738227 |
You need to enable JavaScript to run this app. | https://sportspyder.com/mlb/cincinnati-reds/articles/39105129 | 2022-04-09T13:49:19 | en | 0.738227 |
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