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AdventHealth donates defibrillators to Haines City Police Department for patrol cars
AdventHealth Heart of Florida is donating seven automated external defibrillators to be placed in patrol cars of the Haines City Police Department.
The potentially life-saving devices will help officers responding to emergency calls, AdventHealth said in a news release. An AED, used when a person is in cardiac arrest, contains pads that are placed on the person’s chest. The machine monitors the heart rhythm and, if needed, delivers an electrical shock to help re-establish a normal heart rate.
When used immediately during a heart attack, the device can be more effective than cardiopulmonary resuscitation alone, the release said.
Lakeland officer shotThree teens arrested in incident that led to officer's shooting
South Florida AvenueBaby found dead in dumpster behind gym in Lakeland
Tuesday's fatal crashSUV driver in crash near Mulberry charged with driving without a license
In the past year, Haines City police officers have been in several situations where someone on the scene has suffered a heart attack, and they immediately went into action providing CPR, the release said.
“AdventHealth is a part of this community and when Chief (Greg) Goreck said there was a need for additional AEDs, we were happy to help,’’ AdventHealth Polk Market President and CEO Tim Clark said in the release. “Time is of the essence when performing CPR. When officers also have AEDs readily available, they have the tools they need to help someone in cardiac arrest before emergency workers arrive. It is an amazing tool to help save lives.’’ | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/adventhealth-donates-defibrillators-to-haines-city-pd-for-patrol-cars/70208151007/ | 2023-05-12T11:29:54 | 0 | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/adventhealth-donates-defibrillators-to-haines-city-pd-for-patrol-cars/70208151007/ |
Fish Hatchery Road rail crossing south of Memorial Boulevard will close for five days
CSX Transportation will close the rail crossing at Fish Hatchery Road just south of Memorial Boulevard in Lakeland for five days for emergency repairs, the Polk County roads and drainage division said in a news release.
The closure will start Monday morning. CSX will make emergency repairs to correct a defect in the track. The crossing is expected to reopen at noon on May 20.
Lakeland officer shotThree teens arrested in incident that led to shooting
South Florida AvenueBaby found dead in dumpster behind gym in Lakeland
During the closure, traffic will be briefly detoured along Memorial Boulevard or East Main Street to Reynolds Road. Track repairs coincide with an ongoing nighttime FDOT resurfacing project on East Memorial Boulevard within the detour route. Backups and minor delays are possible, especially during peak travel hours. | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/emergency-rail-repairs-will-close-small-segment-of-fish-hatchery-road/70208913007/ | 2023-05-12T11:30:06 | 0 | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/emergency-rail-repairs-will-close-small-segment-of-fish-hatchery-road/70208913007/ |
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Contact Us | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/philly-prison-escapee-surprised-by-arrest-us-marshals-say/3565185/ | 2023-05-12T11:41:25 | 0 | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/philly-prison-escapee-surprised-by-arrest-us-marshals-say/3565185/ |
HARRISBURG, Pa. — A Harrisburg home was damaged in a porch fire early this morning.
According to York County 911 Dispatch, firefighters were called out just before 3:20 a.m. to a house on the 2700 block of North 6th Street.
Dispatch says the coroner was not called and no injuries were reported.
Firefighters had left the scene by 6:30 a.m. A FOX43 crew at the scene says the family renting the home were displaced and the Red Cross has arrived.
The cause of the fire is unclear.
According to dispatch, the Harrisburg Bureau of Fire and city police are investigating. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/fire-damages-harrisburg-home-north-6th-street/521-dbc83b88-898d-4d65-adc0-9822b1e99f42 | 2023-05-12T12:04:34 | 0 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/fire-damages-harrisburg-home-north-6th-street/521-dbc83b88-898d-4d65-adc0-9822b1e99f42 |
How Time Flies is a daily feature looking back at Pantagraph archives to revisit what was happening in our community and region.
100 years ago
May 12, 1923: After a stormy session of the city council last night, a general salary ordinance was passed. Salaries include mayor, $2,500 a year; city clerk, $175 a month; city engineer, $2,300 a year; superintendent o f streets, $1,920; city treasurer, $400; city attorney, $2,240; superintendent of water rand light, $250 a month; chief of police $175; fire marshal, $170.
75 years ago
May 12, 1948: Wendell LaBounty, a Daily Pantagraph employee for 20 years, was named the "Ideal Pantagrapher" for this year. Mr. LaBounty, an engraver, was the 12th Pantagrapher to receive the award.
50 years ago
May 12, 1973: Circuit Judge John T. McCullough of Lincoln said he will rule soon on whether the Louis E. Davis American Legion Post may proceed with one of two suits designed to break the Association of Commerce and Industry lease for a vacant lot behind the McBarnes Memorial Building. The ACI has broken ground for a new office on the vacant lot.
25 years ago
May 12, 1998: A former librarian has bequeathed the Bloomington Public Library $50,000, one of its largest gifts ever. The gift from Sandra L. Beye, who died in January after a 10-month battle with cancer, was the second largest the library had ever received. The money will be used to establish a computer network linking public and staff work stations to the internet.
101 years ago: See vintage Pantagraph ads from 1922
Gerthart's
Union Gas and Electric Co.
Hoover
Dr. J.A. Moore Dentists
Moberly & Klenner
W.P. Garretson
W.H. Roland
Pease's Candy
Thor 32 Electric Washing Machine
The Kaiser's Story of the War
Ike Livingston & Sons
Gossard Corsets
Cat'n Fiddle
'Stolen Moments'
Case Model X
The Johnson Transfer & Fuel Co.
The Pantagraph want ads
Franklin Motor Car Co.
'A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court'
Calumet Baking Powder
Mayer Livingston & Co. Newsmarket
'The Emperor Jones'
'California Fig Syrup'
Compiled by Pantagraph staff | https://pantagraph.com/news/local/history/25-years-ago-former-librarian-leaves-50k/article_921d3e06-e497-11ed-890f-bb83dbcbae8e.html | 2023-05-12T12:08:15 | 0 | https://pantagraph.com/news/local/history/25-years-ago-former-librarian-leaves-50k/article_921d3e06-e497-11ed-890f-bb83dbcbae8e.html |
NORMAL — Photographer Ken Kashian and poet Kathleen Kirk will speak at the Normal Public Library at 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 16.
The two will present images and poems from the artist book "Fugue" as part of "Poetry is Normal Presents," a series supported by the library's foundation.
Kashian's work is also on display in the library's gallery.
"Fugue" is the record of over a year of visits to the Weston Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve near Chenoa. Kashian took photos capturing the seasonal variations of the native prairie, and Kirk wrote poems in response.
Photographer Ken Kashian stands at a fence post in an Illinois prairie landscape. Kashian has launched a limited edition artist book, "Fugue," in collaboration with poet Kathleen Kirk, about Weston Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve in northern McLean County. | https://pantagraph.com/news/local/ken-kashian-kathleen-kirk-to-speak-at-normal-library-may-16/article_93394338-f00f-11ed-aef3-e7994916b847.html | 2023-05-12T12:08:21 | 0 | https://pantagraph.com/news/local/ken-kashian-kathleen-kirk-to-speak-at-normal-library-may-16/article_93394338-f00f-11ed-aef3-e7994916b847.html |
WATERLOO — Black Hawk County’s Board of Health is taking a step toward recognizing the role bias plays in the community through the lens of health care.
The board approved a position statement in late April that recognizes bias as a public health crisis which must be eliminated in order to achieve health equity.
Bias is the prejudice in favor or against one thing, person or group compared to another. Some of the forms of bias the board included in its statement are racism, transphobia, heterosexism, xenophobia, ableism, oppression and sexism.
The statement says bias is present in policies, systems, and communities, preventing people from obtaining optimal health conditions. “This shapes where and how people live and what resources and opportunities they have,” the position statement reads. “It also results in the lack of access and opportunity, and increased sickness, mental illness and premature death among impacted communities.”
Board Chairperson Wes Pilkington said the statement aligns with the current Health Equity Policy, which was adopted by the board in February 2020.
“The (position statement) wasn’t reactive to any single event but a step to solidify the board’s stance on how the department should operate,” Pilkington said. “Everyone should have a fair and just opportunity to obtain the highest level of health.”
He said in 2020 there were many nationwide situations that led the board to look at racial bias but that the work from the department started even before that.
“Viewing things through an equity lens is how we as a department want to approach care for all people,” he said. “There are certainly many different races and cultures in our community and realizing that people don’t view things exactly the same is a good step to be able to provide consistent, good care, and that not everyone has the same opportunities or resources.”
He said the board is hoping that Black Hawk County Public Health uses the statement to guide its actions to treat patients. The statement will also “serve as a backbone” for the board and public health’s ability to respond to public health issues – which in turn could encourage lawmakers to use the same equity lens.
As for laws and policies that aren’t as inclusive, Interim Director Kaitlin Emrich said the position statement will allow the board to be more responsive to local, state and national policies and practices.
“Having an official position statement empowers board members, staff and public health allies to reach out to policymakers to let them know how proposed policies and laws affect our work or community,” Emrich said. After the approval of the statement, Black Hawk County became the third entity in Iowa to state that racism is a public health crisis, according to the American Public Health Association.
The health boards for Linn County and Muscatine County are the other two.
Photos: 2023 Cedar Valley Top Nurses recipients at award ceremony | https://wcfcourier.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/black-hawk-county-board-of-health-says-bias-is-a-public-health-crisis/article_192103ed-a17b-5285-b238-8537b1d05281.html | 2023-05-12T12:16:20 | 1 | https://wcfcourier.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/black-hawk-county-board-of-health-says-bias-is-a-public-health-crisis/article_192103ed-a17b-5285-b238-8537b1d05281.html |
Three Republican presidential candidates will be in Black Hawk County on back-to-back days next week.
The Black Hawk County Republicans are hosting a meet-and-greet with two candidates at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Hilton Garden Inn, 7213 Nordic Drive in Cedar Falls.
Former Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson will be there to speak, answer questions and meet people from 6 to 7 p.m. Businessman Perry Johnson will be in attendance after 7:30 p.m. to speak and answer questions.
The central committee will be meeting from 7 to 7:30 p.m.
Anyone can attend. Questions can be directed to Chairperson Craig Lohmann at cwlohmann@msn.com.
Nikki Haley, former governor of South Carolina, is hosting a meet-and-greet at noon Thursday at the Waterloo Boat House, 707 Park Road.
People are also reading…
RSVP online at eventbrite.com/e/meet-and-greet-with-nikki-haley-press-rsvp-waterloo-ia-tickets-632727333487.
Attendees can expect to hear Haley’s stump speech, ask questions and meet her during the event lasting more than an hour.
Originally, it was slated for Cedar Falls before the venue was publicly identified.
Local law enforcement line of duty deaths
Black Hawk County area law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty include:
Jurors also found Michael Thomas Lang guilty of attempted murder for shooting at armored vehicle driver, assault on officer for earlier struggle with police.
Christopher Fitzgerald was officer with Temple University police
DES MOINES — On Friday, two Iowa State Patrol troopers who died in the line of duty in 2021 — Sgt. Jim K. Smith and Trooper Ted Benda — will h…
CEDAR FALLS | A Cedar Falls police officer who lost his life in the line of duty in 1945 received special honors in Des Moines today.
WATERLOO —- The Cedar Valley said farewell to one of its protectors Friday.
CEDAR FALLS | "The first time I met Adam, I realized he was the most laid-back, relaxed, never swore, only drank once a year at church." | https://wcfcourier.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/three-republican-presidential-candidates-host-cedar-valley-meet-and-greets-next-week/article_c5d09bac-f7a1-53c7-9e26-43e55c233579.html | 2023-05-12T12:16:26 | 1 | https://wcfcourier.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/three-republican-presidential-candidates-host-cedar-valley-meet-and-greets-next-week/article_c5d09bac-f7a1-53c7-9e26-43e55c233579.html |
It's neither the oldest (that's Grant Avenue) nor the most famous (that's Lombard Street) street in San Francisco, but Polk Street, which runs north-south through the Russian Hill, Nob Hill and Tenderloin neighborhoods, has a magic all its own, largely thanks to the quirky nightlife the street is known for.
Polk Street has always been an iconic good time. In San Francisco's early days, it served as a main thoroughfare for travelers and a popular destination for miners who frequented the many saloons and gambling joints that lined the street. More recently, it was San Francisco's first gay district, even hosting the city's first Pride Parade. (LGBTQ mainstays, like the drag joint Aunt Charlie's Lounge, still remain in the nearby neighborhood.)
Today the demographics have changed, but Polk Street is still a hub of nightlife, iconic seafood joints and other only-in-SF experiences you must indulge in at least once. Starting on upper Polk and moving south towards San Francisco's City Hall, here are 12 essential Polk Street experiences, ranging from the best restaurants and bars on Polk to an iconic reminder of love.
Catch a game at Green's Sports Bar
With TVs always on and obscure sports memorabilia covering every inch, Green's is a true SF fan's mecca. Even if you're not into sports, the big windows that open onto the street make for an airy indoor-outdoor experience and excellent first stop on an Upper Polk Street bar crawl.
Find it: Green's Sports Bar, 2239 Polk St., San Francisco, CA 94109; 415-775-4287
Discover world-renowned culinary talent at Turntable at Lord Stanley
Modern European cuisine with a California twist earned Lord Stanley critical acclaim, including a Michelin star. The co-chefs and husband-and-wife team recently reimagined their creation to be a revolving "hub for world-renowned and up-and-coming chefs to collaborate and showcase their cuisines" — basically a high-end, curated pop-up. As the Lord Stanley has turned into the Turntable at Lord Stanley, much of the team has remained, as has the minimalist decor, but now an ever-changing roster of new talent makes the corner of Polk and Broadway an exciting place to glimpse into global tastes.
Find it: Turntable at Lord Stanley, 2065 Polk St., SF CA 94109; 415-518-2624
Pay homage to SF's second oldest gay bar — and Star Wars
Cinch Saloon dates back to 1974 when Polk Street was the epicenter of gay life in San Francisco. The pride flag still waves against the Western saloon facade and the front room remains an altar to male beauty, but the back of the bar has been transformed into a Star Wars-themed cantina that is such a mind-boggling ode to fandom, you have to experience it to truly understand.
Find it: Cinch Saloon, 1723 Polk St., San Francisco, CA 94109; 415-776-4162
Get styled to expressive perfection at vintage consignment shop ReLove
Shopping in this narrow, tightly curated destination for vintage, designer and independent labels may yield an enhanced sense of self in a way that only a perfect pair of Levis or a surprising jumpsuit can deliver. There are a lot of great vintage stores on Polk Street, but ReLove stands out for the style and warmth of the owner and staff, who all seem to possess the magical power of pinpointing exactly what you're looking for — and often something you had no idea you couldn't live without.
Find it: ReLove, 1815 Polk St., San Francisco, CA; 415-800-8285
Eat at Bob's Donuts after closing time (or anytime)
This 24-hour bakery is San Francisco's "late-night crown jewel." SFGATE reporter Madeline Wells calls it the "mandatory final stop" of a night out on Polk Street and she's not wrong, although really there's never a bad time to indulge in Bob's housemade, fresh-out-the-oven glazed beauties (and other, more trendy doughnut flavors.) The shop is so iconic, it's beloved by everyone from tourists to locals and bar crawlers to families. There's probably a line but it's very worth it, especially at 2 a.m.
Find it: Bob's Donuts, 1621 Polk St., San Francisco, CA 94109; 415-776-3141
Dare to lounge on Kozy Kar's waterbeds
SFGATE Editor in Chief Grant Marek said it best when he wrote "a night out at this raunchy '70s-themed bar is a shocking San Francisco resident rite of passage." Once inside, it's clear the carpeted waterbeds are one of the least shocking things about this bucket-list dive.
Find it: Kozy Kar, 1548 Polk St., San Francisco, CA 94109; 415-346-5699
Slide up to the counter at Swan Oyster Depot
Anthony Bourdain called the 18-seat counter at this narrow seafood market and restaurant "A touchstone in my worldwide wanderings. A happy zone." As a stalwart of fresh local seafood, famous for its Louie sauce and clam chowder, it's certainly a happy zone of San Francisco. It's been operating for over 100 years and managed not to close for even a single day during the pandemic.
Find it: Swan Oyster Depot, 1517 Polk St., San Francisco, CA 94109; 415-673-1101
Dance the night away in a 150-year-old seafood restaurant
Oysters by day; DJs by night. Mayes Oyster House may be under new management but it's keeping a nod to its 1867 roots by serving a seafood-centric brunch and oysters on the halfshell from a pop-up partner. At 10 p.m., the historic restaurant transforms into a dance club with DJs spinning EDM and Top 40.
Find it: Mayes Oyster House, 1233 Polk St., San Francisco, CA 94109; 415-885-1233
Enjoy happy hour at Lush Lounge
Happy hour goes down everyday and is extended to six hours on weekends with some of the best deals in an increasingly expensive city. The warm, cavernous atmosphere, eclectic decor and frequent events and live music add to the charm.
Find it: Lush Lounge, 1221 Polk St., San Francisco, CA 94109; 415-771-2022
Eat beignets at Brenda's French Soul Food
Known for its delicious and hearty Southern-style comfort food, Brenda's has become a favorite spot for locals and tourists alike. The menu features a variety of soul food classics with a French-Creole twist. It's all delicious, but whatever you do, make sure you order the flight of beignets, so you can try the classic, chocolate, apple and crawfish renditions. If you're like us, you'll be doubling down with the savory crawfish order.
Find it: Brenda's French Soul Food, 652 Polk St., San Francisco, CA 94102; 415-345-8100
Host your next private event in a Victorian-era London Tube station
More cosplay wonderland than cocktail bar, Whitechapel transports you to an abandoned London Tube station, circa 1890, where squatting bootleggers have set up a secret gin clubhouse. The execution is jaw-dropping and forms a cinematic setting for its 400-deep list of gins. You'll have to save up for an occasion worthy of an ornate gin palace, though: The bar is currently only open for private events and buy-outs start at $5,000.
Find it: Whitechapel, 600 Polk St., San Francisco, CA 94102
Soak up the love under City Hall's elegant dome
If you ever need a reminder of love, just poke your head in San Francisco's City Hall, which looms over an entire Polk Street block and is often lit up, serving as a literal beacon for the city. The Beaux Arts-style building, and its even more lavish, yet doomed, predecessor, is steeped in history of protests and landmark decisions. But none were more heartwarming than when San Francisco famously defied national law by marrying same-sex couples here in 2004 or when the first same-sex couple to legally wed in the U.S. did so in this building in 2013. The love is palpable everyday of the week under City Hall's ornate dome, where you'll catch newlyweds posing for pictures.
Find it: City Hall, 1 Dr Carlton B Goodlett Place, San Francisco, CA 94102; 415-554-4000
This story was edited by Hearst Newspapers Managing Editor Kristina Moy; you can contact her at kristina.moy@hearst.com. | https://www.sfgate.com/local/article/polk-street-18000261.php | 2023-05-12T12:18:28 | 1 | https://www.sfgate.com/local/article/polk-street-18000261.php |
On a quiet and foggy morning in August of 1961, Frank Urbancic sat in the back seat of his friend’s car, trying to make sense of the unusual scene unfolding in front of him: Hundreds and hundreds of birds were covering the road, and he didn’t know why.
It was an otherwise unremarkable day: Urbancic, then 18 years old, had woken up before dawn to grab breakfast and head out for a 13-hour shift at his job on the Capitola Wharf. It was still dark, and Urbancic could barely make out what he was looking at in the haze of the headlights on the two-lane street.
Some of the birds were still alive but appeared to be in a daze, flopping around with a helpless, drunken sway instead of flying off. Most, however, were motionless, and he soon realized they were already dead.
“It looked like there were a million of them. They were like locusts,” said Urbancic, who is now 82 years old and lives in Boulder Creek. “All over downtown and in the backyards. You just felt bad trying to avoid them going down the hill. They were so thick on the road you couldn’t help but hit some of them.”
When Urbancic crossed Soquel Creek and arrived at Benias, a coffee shop about a quarter of a mile away, he was surprised to find the birds were there too — and their behavior seemed to be even more erratic. The owner of the shop was baffled at how relentless they were. They had been trying to get inside the diner for hours, and he had been shooing them out all morning. Later, when Urbancic arrived at the docks to open the gates of the wharf as the sun was just beginning to rise, one of the birds dive-bombed him out of nowhere and started pecking at his leg.
The bizarre string of unexplained avian events in the little coastal town that day would panic residents, stump scientists, and go on to inspire one of the most iconic horror movies of the decade — Alfred Hitchock’s “The Birds,” which just celebrated its 60-year anniversary this year. Urbancic doesn’t remember feeling frightened but concerned as he tried to coax this confused animal back into the water.
“I’d never seen anything like it before,” he said. “We knew something strange was going on.”
Word traveled quickly throughout the quaint, beachside communities throughout Santa Cruz County, and the news was published on the front page of the Santa Cruz Sentinel the following day, Aug. 18.
“Seabird invasion hits coastal homes” the alarming headline read.
The birds, later identified as sooty shearwaters, weren’t just trying to barge into restaurants and peck passersby. They were startling residents awake in the middle of the night as their flailing bodies thudded like hail against rooftops and parked cars all the way from Pleasure Point to Rio Del Mar, reports said. Bleary-eyed families staggered out to their front yards with flashlights in hand, only to rush back inside as the birds ambushed them.
The migration began at about 3 a.m., and police switchboards were almost instantly jammed as dispatchers at the Santa Cruz Police Department and sheriff’s office said they were getting more calls than they could handle.
By daybreak, power lines and TV antennas were severed and the air reeked of an overpowering fishy stench from regurgitated anchovies strewn across the suburban lawns. Cats were seen running around the area, and children tried to gather some of the birds in boxes and take them back to the ocean, one report said. All told, Capitola police counted 4,000 birds that were dead or injured, and 2,000 others that were alive but wobbling around and wailing as if they were in pain. By 7 a.m., police reported many of the birds had flown out to sea, but days would pass before the rest were gone. In the aftermath of the strange incident, Urbancic remembered watching sanitation crews haul the birds out in garbage trucks, and the Red Cross even came to town to administer tetanus shots to people who had been bitten or pecked.
‘Merely a coincidence’
The mysterious spectacle captured the attention of the late director Hitchcock, who phoned the Sentinel from Hollywood a few days after it occurred. He requested a copy of the newspaper be mailed to him so he could use the cover story for research as he prepared for his latest motion picture: a film adaptation of Daphne du Maurier’s novel “The Birds,” which would be filmed about 140 miles north in Bodega and Bodega Bay and released in 1963. Hitchcock, who owned a 200-acre estate in Scotts Valley, said it was “merely a coincidence” that the avian attacks occurred in Capitola while he was working on the film. But in another moment of strange synchronicity, a similarly gruesome phenomenon was playing out around the same time in the exact locations where he was shooting: In Bodega and Bodega Bay, ranchers were trying to figure out what to do with the onslaught of ravens that were plucking the eyes out of their sheep and eating them, perhaps inspiring one of the most terrifying scenes in the film.
The so-called seabird invasion on the Central Coast left wildlife officials and residents scratching their heads. Ward Russell, a UC Berkeley museum zoologist interviewed by the Sentinel, speculated the birds had become confused by the dense fog and lost their way, seeking out streetlights to get back on course — a theory that made an appearance in Hitchock’s film. Others thought the birds had become alarmed by the heavy artillery firing at the Army’s Fort Ord on Monterey Bay, or had been sickened by the fish they were eating. A Santa Cruz County health officer suspected fungus-infected sardines may have been the culprit, and five birds that were still alive were sent to a Berkeley laboratory of the State Department of Health for further analysis.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife launched a separate probe, believing at the time that whatever was killing the birds was not transmissible to humans. But an explanation for the mysterious die-off event eluded scientists for decades.
Something in the water
Sooty shearwaters — seafaring birds with dusty brown plumage and hook-tipped bills that are closely related to albatrosses — have one of the largest mass migration patterns of any bird species, traveling 40,000 miles from their nesting sites in the southern hemisphere to their feeding grounds in the north Pacific Ocean every year. On just about any given summer, around July and August, enormous colonies of hundreds of thousands of birds descend upon California’s coastline to take advantage of the overabundance of squid, anchovies and other small schooling fish, said Andrew Farnsworth, a senior research associate for the Cornell Lab of Ornithology who studies bird migration.
But in 1961, the scavenging birds found more than just another meal.
Biologists finally started to solve the mystery of that strange day in Capitola 26 years later when, in the winter of 1987, three people died and at least 100 others contracted food poisoning from eating blue mussels on Prince Edward Island in eastern Canada. Scientists realized the toxin was connected to a diatom in the water known as pseudo-nitzschia, and identified the syndrome for the first time, describing it as amnesic shellfish poisoning, said Clarissa Anderson, the executive director of the Southern California Coastal Ocean Observing System and an expert on harmful algal blooms.
When more than a hundred brown pelicans and cormorants died four years later in Monterey Bay, scientists were still puzzled, but as they began to conduct necropsies of the birds, they realized their stomach contents and the anchovies they had been eating were filled with domoic acid — the same pseudo-nitzschia cells they had seen in Canada.
Initially, they thought it was the first time a die-off event of this nature had ever occurred in the state of California. But researchers at UC Santa Cruz, Louisiana State University and Northern Arizona University came together with another hypothesis: What if this toxin was the same one that had killed the sooty shearwaters all the way back in 1961?
That’s when a team of scientists from UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography went back and looked at archived samples of zooplankton guts that had been gathered from the event using sediment traps half a century prior. Their suspicions were confirmed, and in 2012, they co-authored a study revealing that high quantities of pseudo-nitzschia were, in fact, producing a neurotoxin in the water that infected at least 79% of the plankton the birds were eating, resulting in their strange behavior.
“Scripps was important because they provided the archived samples, but Mary Silver [at UC Santa Cruz] was the one who had the nugget of an idea to pursue this,” said Anderson, who studied in Silver’s lab and was pursuing her doctorate at UC Santa Barbara at the same time the discovery was underway.
Anderson remembers becoming fascinated by the size and scale of algal blooms and how they develop and impact wildlife, and wanted to delve deeper into these questions as a dissertation topic, but was initially discouraged.
“People said, ‘Don’t work on that, you’ll have one or two blooms in your PhD career, if that,’” she said. But around 2000, they became a near-annual event, and the level of toxins they produce has continued to increase every year.
‘You can’t fix the bloom’
It’s not out of the question to imagine that an incident like the one that served as inspiration for “The Birds,” could happen again — in fact, several have occurred, and not just among avian species. Fisheries along the West Coast were abruptly shut down in 2015 as a result of deadly levels of domoic acid found in Dungeness and rock crab. Three years later, a couple of brown pelicans seemingly “crashed” a graduation ceremony at Pepperdine University in Malibu as they swooped and zig-zagged over the crowd — around the same time dozens of other birds were found sick and dying along the Santa Barbara and Ventura coastline. Sea lion strandings occur on a near annual basis, and one of the most toxic events to date was reported last year.
What has changed is how scientists respond to these mass stranding events. If hundreds of frenzied birds descended upon a California town tomorrow and started crashing into lights and pecking people, the first thing experts would do is conduct a series of rigorous tests to determine whether or not they could treat the animals, said Rebecca Duerr, who is the clinical veterinarian and research director at International Bird Rescue’s two wildlife clinics in Fairfield and San Pedro.
“We and the biology community do our best to determine the causes, and sometimes you never know,” said Duerr. “These days, we’re all afraid it’s going to be avian influenza, and the symptoms are pretty indistinguishable. But we have the tools to try to find those answers.”
Anderson spent 15 years developing a forecast model for domoic acid levels in the ocean — not unlike a Doppler radar used to determine the weather forecast — that tells researchers when the organism producing harmful algal blooms is rising or falling. It’s currently in use by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and toxins are measured on a weekly basis at sites across California. If levels reach a certain threshold, that information is disseminated to state health departments, marine mammal rescue groups and avian experts at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
“You can’t fix the bloom or turn it off, but you can start to allocate resources differently, prepare yourself, collect samples and deploy volunteers,” said Anderson. “Those are things that happen now but never happened before.”
These groundbreaking discoveries are more important than ever as greenhouse gas emissions increase the acidity of the ocean, which can lead to widespread destruction of marine environments and other consequences for wildlife that go beyond Hollywood scenarios.
“Any time I talk about pseudo-nitzschia to the public, I always talk about this connection to ‘The Birds,’” Anderson said. “Not only was it one of my favorite movies growing up, but it’s something people can latch onto as we look at whether there’s been a change in the frequency of these toxic events. We can prove the connection.” | https://www.sfgate.com/local/article/real-life-santa-cruz-events-hitchcock-the-birds-18001061.php | 2023-05-12T12:18:28 | 1 | https://www.sfgate.com/local/article/real-life-santa-cruz-events-hitchcock-the-birds-18001061.php |
Today is May 12, which is National Limerick Day, a day to pay homage to the man who made the short poems widespread — Edward Lear. Lear was an English poet who is known for his nonsense-style, often writing with made-up words, telling tales of “Quangle-Wangles,” and “runcible spoons.” He wrote 212 limericks.
The Carthage Wind Orchestra and Concert Band will perform the final concert of this season at 7:30 p.m. today, in A.F. Siebert Chapel on the Carthage campus, 2001 Alford Park Drive. The concert is free and open to the public. No tickets are required. The public can also watch from home through a free livestream. For more details, go to carthage.edu.
National Tourism Week activities continue locally today with the first 100 people at RK News Hallmark, 5914 75th St., receiving a free greeting card (up to a $3.99 value).
People are also reading…
Also part of Tourism Week activities locally, stop by the Wisconsin Welcome Center at I-94 and Highway 165 for free sausage and cheese samples (while supplies last), courtesy of Brat Stop. Visit Kenosha staffers are at the center from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily.
The Kenosha Public Museum, 5500 First Ave., is again hosting an exhibit featuring works by members of the Transparent Watercolor Society of America. This is the group’s annual national juried exhibition and showcases 80-some paintings from the top transparent watercolor artists in the country. You won’t believe what these artists can do with watercolor paints. The show runs through Aug. 6. Admission is free to the museum, open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. museums.kenosha.org/public/
The Anderson Arts Center, 6603 Third Ave. in Kenosha, features works from the Racine Art Guild, plus solo show winners from the Winter Juried Show 2022 and works from the Area Artists Group and Kemper Lakefront Studios. The arts center is open 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Admission is free. Note: There’s also an on-site gift shop, in case you still need to pick up something for Mom. for Mother’s Day. | https://kenoshanews.com/news/local/kenosha-area-events-for-friday-may-12/article_fc883990-f012-11ed-9444-6f8e8d5ebc5b.html | 2023-05-12T12:21:03 | 0 | https://kenoshanews.com/news/local/kenosha-area-events-for-friday-may-12/article_fc883990-f012-11ed-9444-6f8e8d5ebc5b.html |
Daniel Penny, the former Marine seen on camera choking performer Jordan Neely to death on a New York City subway earlier this month, will be formally charged with 2nd-degree manslaughter Friday.
The Manhattan district attorney's office said it was charging Penny without first presenting his case to a grand jury.
Penny's attorneys have previously said their client was protecting himself and others, and there was no way Penny "could have foreseen" his bid to subdue the supposed perceived threat would turn deadly. His attorneys said he never intended to harm Neely.
What Is Manslaughter?
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New York's penal code says an individual is guilty of manslaughter in the 2nd degree if he "recklessly causes the death of another person."
That differs from manslaughter in the 1st degree, where the penal code requires that the defendant first have the "intent to cause serious physical injury to another person" that ultimately leads to that person's death.
In other words - 1st-degree manslaughter requires that you were trying to hurt the person who died, whereas 2nd-degree manslaughter merely requires that you acted recklessly somehow and that led to another person's death.
Local
What Is the Difference Between Manslaughter and Murder?
New York's penal code defines 2nd-degree murder as causing the death of a person "with intent to cause the death of another person."
In other words - murder is when you intended to kill someone and you did kill them, as opposed to manslaughter, where you did not intend for anyone to die but someone did anyway.
Manslaughter Sentence in New York
The penal code categorizes 2nd-degree manslaughter as a Class C felony.
Under New York's sentencing laws, the maximum penalty for a Class C felony is 15 years in prison. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/what-is-manslaughter-ex-marine-daniel-penny-to-face-charge-in-jordan-neely-subway-chokehold-death/4327893/ | 2023-05-12T12:22:47 | 1 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/what-is-manslaughter-ex-marine-daniel-penny-to-face-charge-in-jordan-neely-subway-chokehold-death/4327893/ |
What to Know
- 30-year-old Jordan Neely died on a train at the Broadway-Lafayette station in Manhattan on May 1 after allegedly threatening passengers and being put into a chokehold by a rider; that rider, identified as 24-year-old Daniel Penny, was questioned by the NYPD and later released from custody
- The medical examiner's office ruled Neely's death a homicide the next day, which incited a debate around whether the rider's actions were justified defense or vigilantism
- Multiple protests have taken place in Manhattan since Neely's death and dozens arrested; the Manhattan district attorney's office said Penny will be charged with second-degree manslaughter
The 24-year-old Marine veteran seen on video putting Jordan Neely in a chokehold on the floor of an F train in Manhattan last week, resulting in his death, has surrendered to face a charge of second-degree manslaughter in a case that has prompted citywide protests and national controversy.
Daniel Penny turned himself in at a Lower Manhattan precinct Friday morning ahead of his anticipated arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court later in the day. His attorneys issued a statement late Thursday ahead of the filing.
"When Mr. Penny, a decorated Marine veteran, stepped in to protect himself and his fellow New Yorkers, his well-being was not assured. He risked his own life and safety, for the good of his fellow passengers," attorney Steven Raiser said. "The unfortunate result was the unintended and unforeseen death of Mr. Neely."
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"We are confident that once all the facts and circumstances surrounding this tragic incident are brought to bear, Mr. Penny will be fully absolved of any wrongdoing," Raiser continued.
The defense lawyer's comments echo earlier ones from Penny's legal team. They've insisted he didn't intend to harm Penny. Neely's family has said the 24-year-old's statements amount to a confession.
They've been calling for criminal charges since the city medical examiner's office declared the case a homicide a day after Neely's death, and hours after Penny was released from questioning by the NYPD in connection with the case.
Sources said the decision to charge Penny was made in consultation with the NYPD. A spokesperson for the police department didn't return requests for comment. Second-degree manslaughter is a felony and applies in cases where someone either recklessly causes the death of another or intentionally causes or assists in a person's suicide.
The expected court filing comes 11 days after Neely's death on May 1 and amid mounting public pressure over accountability following the medical examiner's determination. It wasn't clear if Bragg's office intended to pursue charges against two other people seen restraining Neely in that video or if those people had yet been identified.
Witnesses had reported Neely, a homeless man with a lengthy criminal record and a history of mental illness, was aggressive toward other riders on a train at the Broadway-Lafayette station in SoHo. He had been shouting at passengers, witnesses said, yelling that he was hungry and didn't care if he died. The 30-year-old had been on a special city homeless watch list, considered a potential risk to himself and others.
Witnesses also said Neely hadn't physically attacked anyone before Penny moved to subdue him. Penny was questioned by the NYPD that day and released. Then came the autopsy findings.
Multiple protests have taken place in Manhattan since Neely's death, with dozens arrested. Protesters again ratcheted up the volume Thursday, after learning of the looming charges. More demonstrations are expected Friday.
Earlier this week, Mayor Eric Adams, who had been accused by some of not weighing in substantially enough, formally addressed Neely's death in a public address.
The Democrat forcefully declared Neely "shouldn't have died" -- while carefully towing a line between acknowledging the loss, and the ensuing tensions, and appearing to ascribe any sort of responsibility.
"One of our own is dead," Adams said, empathizing with the emotional intensity coursing through the city over the case. "A Black man, Black like me -- a man named Jordan, the name I gave my son, a New Yorker who struggled with tragedy, trauma and mental illness, a man whose last words were to cry for help, a man named Jordan Neely."
Adams said his death is yet another indication the mental health system needs an overhaul to better protect those who, like Neely, he says fall through the cracks and "disappear into the shadows."
On Thursday, Adams again sidestepped when asked his view of whether what happened aboard the subway train was criminal.
"If this case goes to trial, I don’t want to talk about changing venues, tainted with the police," the Democratic mayor said.
As for Neely's death itself, Adams added, "We need to make sure we prevent these things from happening. That is within my span of control."
More Coverage
Jennifer Vazquez, Andrew Siff and Tracie Strahan contributed to this report. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/daniel-penny-faces-second-degree-manslaughter-in-jordan-neely-subway-chokehold-death-seen-on-video/4327865/ | 2023-05-12T12:22:48 | 0 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/daniel-penny-faces-second-degree-manslaughter-in-jordan-neely-subway-chokehold-death-seen-on-video/4327865/ |
Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a gem. Here's everything to know for your visit
Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the most-visited national park in the country for a reason. Many reasons, in fact: the natural beauty of its trails and waterfalls, the salamanders and the synchronous fireflies, the picturesque route it provides for those traveling between the states of Tennessee and North Carolina.
The East Tennessee landmark drew nearly 13 million visitors in 2022, after setting an all-time record with 14 million people exploring the park in 2021.
Whether you're a first-time visitor or are looking for fresh ideas for a return trip to the Smokies, here's what you need to know and where to find even more information to get the peak experience.
What is the most popular destination in Great Smoky Mountains National Park?
Two of the most popular spots are:
- Cades Cove, which offers an 11-mile loop road visitors can drive - or, when the road is closed to cars every Wednesday through Sept. 27, bike or walk - for a leisurely view of the scenery.
- Clingmans Dome, at 6,643 feet, is the highest point in Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the state of Tennessee, offering spectacular 360° views of the Smokies.
For subscribers:'History is complicated as hell': Cherokee will ask to restore native name for Clingmans Dome
What is the best month to visit Great Smoky Mountains National Park?
The summer months are the most popular for hiking, camping and other activities, but autumn has its fans. Though peak fall color season varies year to year, the National Park Service lists these times as best:
- Above 4,000 feet, fall colors tend to develop in early to mid-October, and can be viewed by driving along the the Clingmans Dome Road, the Blue Ridge Parkway or the Foothills Parkway.
- At lower elevations, the most spectacular display of fall colors tends to occur between mid-October and early November.
How many days do you need for a visit to Great Smoky Mountains National Park?
You can easily spend a full day enjoying the park by driving around or walking a trail, or give yourself multiple days to hike and explore. Find links to park workshops and attractions online at nps.gov/grsm.
Can I just drive through Great Smoky Mountains National Park?
No rental cabins are available within the park, but there are campgrounds and backcountry campsites available by reservation, as well as LeConte Lodge, which is accessible only by hiking. Plenty of lodging options outside the park are available in nearby communities.
Yes, you can! In fact, driving through the park is the most popular way to enjoy it.
The most popular entrance in Tennessee is at Gatlinburg. From the North Carolina side, it's the Oconaluftee entrance near Cherokee.
There are 384 miles of roads in the massive park. They meander through the woods and up to destinations like Clingmans Dome.
Most roads are slow and narrow, and can be mountainous. And always be sure to check for road closures, which occur frequently in the winder months.
Camp with a cocktail:New, deluxe Smokies campsite elevates the classic experience
Where can I find trails to hike in Great Smoky Mountains National Park?
The park offers 150 official trails, including kid-friendly hikes and trails to waterfalls, vistas and other destinations.
A map showing all the park's trails is available to download on the website or to purchase at the park's visitors centers (Sugarlands, Oconaluftee, Cades Cove or Clingmans Dome). And before you head out on your hike, you can check for any trail closures or bear warnings online or by calling 865-436-1200.
How much does it cost to go to Great Smoky Mountains National Park?
Unlike most other national parks, Great Smoky Mountains does not charge a fee for admission, but in 2023 started requiring visitors to buy and display a valid parking tag for any vehicle parked longer than 15 minutes.
Visitors can buy a $5 tag for the day, a weekly tag for $15 or an annual tag for $40. Daily and weekly parking tags are available online at recreation.gov and from machines at the park.
More:Worried about finding parking in the Smokies? Here's a way around the park's new rules
Parking is free on three upcoming National Park Service fee-free days in 2023:
- Aug. 4 for the anniversary of the Great American Outdoors Act
- Sept. 23 for National Public Lands Day
- Nov. 11 for Veterans Day
How big is Great Smoky Mountains National Park?
Great Smoky Mountains National Park covers 522,427 acres, divided between Tennessee and North Carolina.
How old is Great Smoky Mountains National Park?
President Calvin Coolidge signed a bill in 1926 establishing the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to conserve the forest and wildlife there, and in 1934, the states of Tennessee and North Carolina donated 300,000 acres of land for the park, according to the Tennessee State Museum website.
Robin Gibson is the people and trends editor for Knox News. Contact her at ragibson@gannett.com and follow her on Twitter @RobinGibsonTSP.
Read exclusive content while supporting strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe. | https://www.knoxnews.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/great-smoky-mountains-national-park-parking-driving-hikes-fees/70196275007/ | 2023-05-12T12:28:35 | 0 | https://www.knoxnews.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/great-smoky-mountains-national-park-parking-driving-hikes-fees/70196275007/ |
This Navy place of honor now bears Farragut's name after the Confederate one was stripped
Civil War hero and celebrated Knoxville native Admiral David Farragut has been bestowed with a new honor more than 150 years after his death as the U.S. military purges the names of Confederate leaders from its buildings and ships.
Though a Southerner by birth, Farragut heeded his oath and the call to duty when he stayed loyal to the Union during the Civil War, playing a key role in squeezing the Confederacy by leading naval forces that captured New Orleans and Mobile Bay.
He also weathered cries of "traitor!" from the secessionists, and the posthumous indignity of the U.S. military naming scores of places and assets such as ships after the leaders who betrayed it.
Now, the U.S. Navy has honored the Knoxville native, stripping the name of Confederate Franklin Buchanan from the Superintendent's Quarters at the U.S. Naval Academy and renaming it Farragut House after one of America's authentic heroes.
"Admiral Farragut was a true American hero," Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro said in the release. "He had a choice during the Civil War and he chose loyalty to the Union, which required moral courage."
Farragut was born in 1801 in Knoxville to a Spanish immigrant father. He was appointed as rear admiral in 1862; vice admiral (a rank created for him by President Abraham Lincoln) in 1864; and commissioned admiral in 1866, the first officer of the U.S. Navy to hold that rank, according to the Navy.
He's best known for his phrase "Damn the torpedoes!" after taking Confederate fire at the Battle of Mobile Bay in 1864. He remained on active duty for the rest of his life and died in 1870 at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Maine.
Knoxville has embraced his legacy by incorporating the area of his birth as the town of Farragut in 1980. The Farragut Memorial Plaza features his life-sized statue and the Hyatt Place Hotel in downtown Knoxville, formerly called the Farragut Hotel, honors him with art and an exterior plaque bearing his name.
"I’m proud to have the superintendent’s residence named after our Navy’s first admiral and a Civil War hero, David Glasgow Farragut," said U.S. Naval Academy Superintendent Sean S. Buck. "As the senior ranking naval officer during our nation’s most trying times, his dedication to our nation and its principles serves as a great example for our midshipmen. I couldn’t be happier to have his legacy memorialized so prominently on our historic Yard."
Sites outside of Tennessee honor Farragut, too, including a statue in New York City's Madison Square Park; a statue in Farragut Square park in Washington, D.C.; and Admiral Farragut Academy boarding school in St. Petersburg, Florida. Now the historic building at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, joins the list.
In recent years, communities and organizations across the South have removed Confederate names from places of honor and taken down monuments of Confederate figures.
The military started using Confederate names on facilities during the early 20th century, when the Lost Cause narrative was particularly strong, and because leaders thought it would build community support, especially when Army bases were built in the South.
"All this changed in the aftermath of the police killing of George Floyd in 2020," the Department of Defense said in a news release about its efforts to remove Confederate names from facilities. "Many people protested systemic racism and pointed to Confederate statues and bases as part of that system." | https://www.knoxnews.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/naval-academy-home-renamed-admiral-david-farragut/70204902007/ | 2023-05-12T12:28:41 | 1 | https://www.knoxnews.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/naval-academy-home-renamed-admiral-david-farragut/70204902007/ |
TVA unveils plans including more solar and gas to meet growing demand for energy
From adding up to 6,000 megawatts of solar and battery storage to its grid to considering expansion of natural gas, the Tennessee Valley Authority on May 10 rolled out the plans and ideas it has for the future.
With demand for energy in TVA's seven-state region continuing to increase and climate change causing extreme weather events, such as the winter storm that resulted in rolling blackouts in December, the federal utility needs a plan for how to keep providing reliable electricity while also reducing its carbon output.
Here's a breakdown of what TVA has planned.
What new electricity generation projects are already in the works?
According to TVA's after-action report, and information shared during the quarterly board meeting, the federal utility is building about 3,800 megawatts of new electricity generation. Here's what's coming:
- Building a combined cycle gas plant at Cumberland that will generate about 1,500 megawatts. This gas plant is intended to replace one of two aging coal units at the Cumberland Fossil Plant in middle Tennessee.
- Installing three simple cycle combustion turbines that produce 250 megawatts each at the Colbert gas plant in Alabama.
- Installing three simple cycle combustion turbines that produce 250 megawatts each at the Paradise gas plant in Kentucky.
- Installing aero-derivative combustion turbines at the Johnsonville gas plant, producing 500 megawatts.
- Building 200 megawatts of solar in Lawrence County.
- Building 100 megawatts of solar on top of coal ash, pending environmental review, at the Shawnee Fossil Plant in Kentucky.
- Building 20 megawatts of battery storage at Vonore.
For subscribers:How a perfect storm of freezing cold and aging power plants led to Tennessee blackouts
What is TVA considering next?
In addition to the current buildout of electricity generation, TVA also released plans to look into new technologies and different ways to add energy to its portfolio. Here are some of the plans TVA mentioned on May 10:
Solar and batteries
TVA's request for clean energy proposals could yield up to 6,000 additional megawatts of electricity from solar and battery storage projects. TVA is just waiting for the companies it has selected to sign contracts. This helps TVA in reaching its goal to install 10,000 megawatts of solar on its grid by 2035.
Creating a 'virtual power plant'
- TVA said it plans to add more demand response and energy efficiency to its grid. The flexibility of these investments could allow TVA to reduce the overall electricity demand on its system when needed.
- Demand response is when TVA asks corporations or industries to reduce their demand for electricity, which can help in cases when TVA is a seeing a surge in demand and is struggling to meet it.
- Energy efficiency allows homes and buildings in the Valley to become more weatherized so electricity isn't wasted as much, such as by installing heat pumps.
- TVA said during its board meeting that investments in these measures as a "virtual power plant" could offset 40% or more of new energy growth.
Natural gas
- As part of its plan to retire aging coal plants, TVA is considering replacing coal units at the Kingston Fossil Plant with a natural gas plant. TVA will release its draft environmental study on this project, which evaluates different options for replacing the coal units, on May 12. During the board meeting, TVA said its preferred option is gas.
- TVA also announced it is looking at "environmental reviews for potential options" for sites that could house more natural gas plants, TVA spokesperson Buddy Eller told Knox News.
- During the meeting, TVA said it will conduct environmental reviews to potentially extend operations or add capacity at its current gas plants, mentioning the Allan and Lagoon Creek gas plants.
- TVA's continued investment in natural gas has come under scrutiny by members of the public and environmental groups. During TVA's public listening session the day before the board meeting, many individuals voiced their objections to TVA's gas expansion plans, including potential plans for Kingston, current plans for Cumberland and the new gas pipelines that would come with these projects.
- Environmental groups are concerned that TVA's investments in gas pull the utility back from its goal to reach net-zero carbon emissions to combat climate change. Gas plants still emit carbon dioxide, though less than coal plants. The natural gas supply chain at different stages also can result in methane emissions, a more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.
- Environmental groups also have questioned TVA's investments in gas as going against the best interest of ratepayers due to the fluctuating fuel costs.
- TVA told Knox News previously its plans for adding new natural gas to its system is to provide a backup as it adds more solar, which can be intermittent in providing electricity depending on the weather.
Pumped hydro
TVA has one pumped hydro facility called Racoon Mountain and is looking to add more. The Racoon Mountain plant pumps water to the top of the mountain, and when TVA needs extra electricity, it runs the water down the mountain to turn a turbine. TVA has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Department of Energy to look at the value of hydro power and pumped storage to its grid, as well as looking at how climate change could impact the federal utility's hydro facilities.
Nuclear
- TVA has entered an agreement to help fund and design a small modular nuclear reactor with companies based in different countries: GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy, Ontario Power Generation based in Canada and Synthos Green Energy in Poland.
- Small modular reactors are a new wave of reactors that generate about 300 megawatts of energy or less. These new reactors are intended to be smaller in size, cost less and be safer than the reactors currently on electric grids.
- The design TVA is hoping to install at its Clinch River Nuclear Site near Oak Ridge is about the size of a football field. Other companies across the country are coming up with their own designs and each will need to be permitted by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Hydrogen fuel
- TVA joined a group of neighboring utilities in the Southeast to create a network for hydrogen fuel across six states. The coalition of utilities includes Duke Energy, Dominion Energy, Southern Company, Kentucky Utilities Company and Louisville Gas and Electric Company and Battelle.
- The coalition submitted an application to the Department of Energy for funding the network this past April.
Anila Yoganathan is an investigative reporter. Email anila.yoganathan@knoxnews.com. Twitter @AnilaYoganathan.
Support strong local journalism by subscribing at knoxnews.com/subscribe. | https://www.knoxnews.com/story/news/local/tennessee/2023/05/12/tvas-plans-for-future-grid-include-more-solar-and-natural-gas/70204823007/ | 2023-05-12T12:28:47 | 1 | https://www.knoxnews.com/story/news/local/tennessee/2023/05/12/tvas-plans-for-future-grid-include-more-solar-and-natural-gas/70204823007/ |
BLACKSBURG, Va. – A love of learning and a passion for music has pushed one soon-to-be Virginia Tech graduate to more than six decades on a college campus.
Kay Castagnoli has a wealth of knowledge and memories. She started out as a student, then a researcher, then became a professor, then back to a student again. This journey through education has earned her the distinguished title of the oldest individual to earn a Bachelor’s degree at Virginia Tech at the age of 85 and a half years old.
Castagnoli says, “I’ve been told I have to walk across the stage. I’ve been given the ultimatum. So I am going to do that.”
At 85, she is going to be the oldest person to earn her Bachelor’s degree in music, Suma Cum Laude, and not to mention, with honors.
She began taking classes at Virginia Tech in 2007.
“I said I always wanted to go back into the music, which I have been out of for some time. So I got into the music department, and it was very nice. The chair at that time was a woman named Tracy. She looked at me and she gave me some things to work on,” says Castagnoli.
She has been taking all kinds of music classes, from theory to harmony. However, just like every student, she has faced some challenges.
Castagnoli says, “The one class I thought I was always going to fail was we had to sing. We had to get a piece of music printed in front of us and read it off vocally. I thought I would never pass this test.”
But with hard work and a great support system from her family, she overcame.
“I worked, I worked, I worked on doing that so much that so when we had it, I did it and there was a leap that was very difficult and I nailed it. I couldn’t believe it,” says Castagnoli.
The support system of her five children and nine grandchildren has been her rock. However, her biggest supporter of all is her husband. He drives her to class every day so that she can live out her dream.
Castagnoli says, “He keeps me going. I say, ‘I can’t do this,’ and he says ‘Of course, you can do this.’”
Castagnoli says she learned her love for music from her mother. She says she started taking piano classes when she was very young. She and her mother would listen to music programs every Saturday from the met.
“My mother couldn’t even sing a note on key, but she loved music,” says Castagnoli.
She says she is stunned by the recognition she is receiving for just pursuing her passion for learning and music.
Castagnoli says, “Okay, I go to school, I love it. I’m going to school, I do my school. I never ever in my mind would have known it would get to this. Never.”
Her advice to anyone who is thinking about going back to school is just do it. She says you never know unless you try.
Once Kay graduates, she is not done with her education. She plans on taking Italian classes in the future to earn a minor. | https://www.wsls.com/news/local/2023/05/12/85-year-old-virginia-tech-graduate-says-her-love-of-family-and-music-has-helped-her-succeed/ | 2023-05-12T12:38:57 | 0 | https://www.wsls.com/news/local/2023/05/12/85-year-old-virginia-tech-graduate-says-her-love-of-family-and-music-has-helped-her-succeed/ |
MIDLAND, Texas — The Midland Police Department is asking for help locating 21-year-old Madeline Molina Pantoja.
She was last seen at 11:00 p.m. on May 10 at 1711 West Francis. There is no clothing description, and her phone and vehicle are still at her apartment.
People can call MPD at 432-685-7108 if they have any information. We will continue to update this story as we receive more information. | https://www.newswest9.com/article/news/local/midland-police-department-asks-for-help-finding-missing-person/513-2f0ff809-0a36-4f08-a4b9-fe770998108f | 2023-05-12T12:47:46 | 0 | https://www.newswest9.com/article/news/local/midland-police-department-asks-for-help-finding-missing-person/513-2f0ff809-0a36-4f08-a4b9-fe770998108f |
News Tribune, May 12, 1983
- April brought record attendance numbers at the Duluth Arena-Auditorium, officials said yesterday. More than 100,000 people attended Arena-Auditorium events last month, a record for April and the fourth-highest monthly total since the complex opened in August 1966.
- The median income of Minnesota families in 1981 was $23,230, a 16.4% increase since 1979, according to a report from the state Department of Energy, Planning and Development. Income in some Northeastern Minnesota counties, however, showed a smaller increase.
News Tribune, May 12, 1923
- Several Duluth School Board members argued last night that too much time is being devoted to instruction in art and music and not enough to teaching the fundamental subjects, principally mathematics. They said recent testing found Duluth students with below-standard scores in mathematics.
- The old stone reservoir on West First Street between 10th and 11th avenues is reportedly in a state of disrepair and is a menace to passing motorists and pedestrians. The Duluth City Council will discuss removing it at next week's meeting. | https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/local/bygones-100-years-ago-duluth-students-were-below-average-in-mathematics | 2023-05-12T12:51:44 | 1 | https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/local/bygones-100-years-ago-duluth-students-were-below-average-in-mathematics |
Here is your Duluth News Tribune Minute podcast for Friday, May 12, 2023.
The Duluth News Tribune Minute is a product of Forum Communications Company and is brought to you by reporters at the Duluth News Tribune, Superior Telegram and Cloquet Pine Journal. Find more news throughout the day at duluthnewstribune.com. Subscribe and rate us at
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. | https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/local/listen-family-police-search-for-duluth-woman | 2023-05-12T12:51:54 | 0 | https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/local/listen-family-police-search-for-duluth-woman |
VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – A man convicted of attempted murder after shooting at Daytona Beach officers during a standoff in 2021 is set to be sentenced.
Joseph Jaynes will be sentenced Friday afternoon in Volusia County.
A jury convicted Jaynes last week on six counts of attempted second-degree murder of a law enforcement officer after a four-day trial.
Officers were patrolling the area of Piccadilly Drive near Jimmy Ann Drive, south of LPGA Boulevard and west of Derbyshire Road, in October 2021 after Jaynes and his roommate had a fight. Police noticed the roommates’ garage door was open and checked the home to find no one was there.
As officers were leaving, they heard a gunshot and took cover, according to police.
Jaynes had a rifle with a flashlight attached to it and when police ordered him to drop the gun, he refused and pointed it at them.
A shootout ensued and Jaynes was struck in the leg before being taken into custody.
Body camera video released days after the shootout shows the violent hours-long standoff.
He faces a possible life sentence.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/05/12/man-in-shootout-with-daytona-beach-police-officers-faces-life-in-prison/ | 2023-05-12T12:57:48 | 1 | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/05/12/man-in-shootout-with-daytona-beach-police-officers-faces-life-in-prison/ |
TWIN FALLS — For one weekend only, anyone who has wanted to take in dinner and a show will have chance to do both, thanks to the work of students in the culinary and theater classes at Twin Falls High School.
The Theater 2 class is hosting the first Murder Mystery Dinner Theater, and attendees have the option of a full multi-course dinner prepared by the TFHS culinary students before the show.
When teacher Brittany Nielson was performing professionally, she had been involved in several dinner theater events. When she joined the high school as an educator, she wanted to bring that experience to her students.
“Since I hadn’t really seen that anybody around here was doing dinner theaters as part of their entertainment, I thought it would be kind of fun to see if we could start a new tradition here at Twin Falls High, and do a Mystery Dinner theater every year,” Nielson told the Times-News.
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Nielson and her theater students already have a show picked out for next year and are looking forward to this becoming a tradition.
The school administration encourages collaboration between departments, and when the culinary program won the high school division in February’s Death by Chocolate event, Nielson thought they might be the perfect group to partner with for dinner theater.
“I thought, I should have them cater the murder mystery dinner, instead of trying to go to a restaurant here in town, or trying to have parents donate the food,” Nielson said. “That would be a really great opportunity for them to showcase what they’ve been learning all year.”
This year’s murder mystery is “The 39 Steps,” an adaptation of the original 1915 novel and famously made into a movie in 1935 by Alfred Hitchcock.
In 2005, the playwrights who were working to adapt the story to the stage found that the material lent itself more to parody than to thriller.
“It ended up becoming this Monty Python-esque mad cap comedy,” Nielson said.
The cast is made up of freshmen and sophomore students in the Theater 2 class, who Nielson described as the up-and-coming talent that will become the next generation of Bruins High Players. They will perform on a stage set as a variation on theater-in-the-round, with the audience seated a circle around the minimal stage.
The menu for the evening is ham, salad, cheesy potatoes (which one culinary student called “funeral potatoes,” which, although not exactly accurate, suits the murder mystery theme), rolls, and multiple desserts for people to choose from. The meal will feature options for people with gluten intolerance as well.
Erica Browning teaches the culinary classes at Twin Falls High, and she said the prospect of preparing a full meal for 100 is nothing her students can’t handle.
“A lot of times people will come to us and say, ‘Hey, we need this for a fundraiser or an event that we’re doing,’ and most of the time we’re up for the challenge,” Browning said. “This is a project-based class ... so we do a lot of hands-on stuff.”
Browning said the class is a mixture of students who want to gain knowledge to become better cooks, and there are also students who see a possible career for themselves in the food industry.
Hayden Threadgill is a junior in the culinary class, and he said he has already gotten offers to work in Sun Valley doing food at the resort.
“I’m thinking when I’m older I’ll go work up there. It’d be a good job,” Threadgill said. “I just really like food.”
Threadgill said that while in the class, he has made some things that impressed him.
“I made a buffalo chicken chili one time, I think that was the best thing I ever made,” Threadgill told the Times-News.
Avery Stephenson and Zoey Thompson, both seniors, made a few batches of cupcakes, their mixers whirling like a variation of dueling banjos.
Stephenson said she could see herself pursuing a culinary career. It could be related to a three-tier cake she made for a fundraiser that sold for several thousand dollars. | https://magicvalley.com/news/local/education/a-dinner-to-die-for-murder-mystery-dinner-theater-joins-culinary-and-theater-programs/article_66c8c17a-f023-11ed-872e-a3c73b7ffb8d.html | 2023-05-12T13:02:53 | 1 | https://magicvalley.com/news/local/education/a-dinner-to-die-for-murder-mystery-dinner-theater-joins-culinary-and-theater-programs/article_66c8c17a-f023-11ed-872e-a3c73b7ffb8d.html |
TAMPA, Florida — Guests and staff at a Tampa hotel were evacuated after a fire Friday morning, according to fire officials.
Tampa Fire Rescue said they extinguished a fire on the 11th floor at the Grand Hyatt Hotel. In a tweet update, the fire crews said the fire is out and all hotel occupants were evacuated.
Firefighters are currently working to remove residual smoke from floors 10 and 11, the department said.
This is a developing story. Stay with 10 Tampa Bay for the latest information. | https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/local/hillsboroughcounty/hotel-guests-evacuated-fire-in-tampa/67-4b5245e0-b72f-439b-90de-28da2b598fdf | 2023-05-12T13:02:57 | 1 | https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/local/hillsboroughcounty/hotel-guests-evacuated-fire-in-tampa/67-4b5245e0-b72f-439b-90de-28da2b598fdf |
Youth musical returns to Northside Church in Jackson, free community event
"Firm Foundation," a free youth musical event for the community, is returning to Northside Church in Jackson from June 2 through June 4.
According to the press release, the musical tackles questions of:
- How often do we place our trust in the things of this world, instead of the Almighty God?
- How often do we anchor our hope, security, and identity in our wealth, titles, careers, talents, and even other people?
Debbie Dunaway, a volunteer in spreading the word about the production, explained that the musical is entirely written by the young performers and varies from year to year depending on "what's on their minds and hearts."
"The whole process is driven by the youth," Dunaway said.
All of the performers are members of Northside Church and travel from the surrounding areas of Jackson to participate. Volunteers ranging from engineers to carpenters and painters donate their time to help build the set, while those who have previously participated in past year's musicals return to direct and coordinate choreography.
Prior to COVID-19's interfering with the production's ability to perform under normal circumstances, it ran during the first weekend in June for more than 20 years.
The musical will begin at 7pm on June 2 and 3 and 3pm on June 4. | https://www.jacksonsun.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/northside-church-in-jackson-resurrects-youth-musical-after-two-years/70208271007/ | 2023-05-12T13:03:50 | 1 | https://www.jacksonsun.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/northside-church-in-jackson-resurrects-youth-musical-after-two-years/70208271007/ |
What Cheer Flower Farm is demolishing Colonial Knife building in Olneyville. What's next?
PROVIDENCE – Rows of purple and pink tulips burst open in the May sunshine and create a stark juxtaposition against the groan of heavy machinery knocking the derelict Colonial Knife site in the Olneyville neighborhood to the ground.
“This is going to give us nearly three acres of farm,” said Shannon Brawley, executive director of What Cheer Flower Farm.
If it weren't for the thriving raised beds and hoop house on the other side of the property, it might be hard to picture that the nonprofit's plan to turn a hazardous brownfield site into a thriving flower farm that gives away 300,000 flowers annually to hospitals, hospices, food pantries, recovery centers and other nonprofits is going to work out.
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At a news conference on Thursday morning, What Cheer Flower Farm representatives were wide-eyed about the magnitude of what they were undertaking as the backhoes created a cavernous amount of space.
But since they started in 2018, they’ve already dug a space for themselves out of the formerly paved-over site, found the grant money and community resources, and are now up to giving away about 100,000 flowers a year.
What’s another 200,000?
What is happening at What Cheer Flower Farm?
The Colonial Knife site at 63 Magnolia St. was one of those sites that can confound people.
A large tract of land in the city with a former factory on it can spur dozens of ideas for what’s possible and dreams that can easily start falling apart when you consider the chemicals that need to be remediated, the deterioration of the structures and other logistics.
“For decades, people have been hoisting their hopes, dreams and aspirations on what might be possible here,” said Mayor Brett Smiley. “I don’t know that anyone would have envisioned something this great.”
With its expansion, What Cheer plans to add acres of growing space, a new building for community classes and certifications as well as administration needs, community gathering space and hedgerows to create a pollinator habitat.
It’s taking both grant assistance from the state Department of Environmental Management’s Brownfield program and an ongoing multi-million dollar capital campaign through the Rhode Island Foundation.
The project is “exactly what we want to see in these investments we’ve got with that Brownfield money,” said DEM Director Terrance Gray, comparing it to Riverside Park, the Steel Yard and Farm Fresh RI.
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“This is a poster child for success,” he said.
What’s the community reaction?
While there has been some discussion over whether the Colonial Knife building should be considered historical, overall, there’s a lot of excitement at the idea of taking a stark landscape and covering it with flowers.
“It’s fresh air to the community,” said Cindy Miranda, who is on the board of the Olneyville Neighborhood Association. “It’s a new chapter that brings so much hoping into this community, something they haven’t had in quite a while.”
Dennis Leggett, of the nearby hotel Dye House, said in an area dense with buildings, the farm is going to be “eye candy.”
“I’m excited about the psychological effects this is going to have,” he said. “This is going to make the entire community feel a lot more uplifted.”
Why flowers?
To try to explain why What Cheer believes so strongly in flowers, Erin Achenbach, the head florist and farmer, handed them out to the small crowd.
“How do you feel when you hold this flower? How do you feel when you hold and see a flower?” she said. “It sparks a memory. It sparks joy. It makes you feel better. That’s what we do here on a very, very basic level.”
She then collected them back up, quickly turning the individual stems into a bouquet, a metaphor for when individuals come together to create something bigger.
“We are going to take this little spark of joy and we are going to create a shining light in the corner of Olneyville,” she said. | https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/what-cheer-flower-farm-expands-at-colonial-knife-site-in-providence-olneyville-providence/70207765007/ | 2023-05-12T13:11:47 | 0 | https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/what-cheer-flower-farm-expands-at-colonial-knife-site-in-providence-olneyville-providence/70207765007/ |
Ready, set, row!
The historic Jefferson Dad Vail Regatta moves across the Delaware River from Philadelphia to New Jersey in 2023.
"The 2023 Jefferson Dad Vail Regatta will be staged on the Cooper River, in Pennsauken, New Jersey on Friday, May 12 and Saturday May 13, 2023," Dad Vail said on its website.
The collegiate rowing event is traditionally held on Philadelphia's Schuylkill River, but moved this year due to a dredging project.
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"The Dad Vail Regatta Organizing Committee changed racing venues to ensure all competitors are afforded a safe and fair racing opportunity during Schuylkill River dredging at the National Racecourse site," race organizers said.
On its website, the Jefferson Dad Vail Regatta bills itself "as largest collegiate regatta in the United States, with over 100 colleges and Universities from the U.S. and Canada. Thousands of student athletes gather to compete during the weekend of the second Saturday of May."
The races are FREE to watch for anyone lining the riverbank on either side.
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When Do the Races Take Place?
The first of more than 175 races for this year's competition launch around 8 a.m. Friday. Races are scheduled from 8 a.m. to a little after 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
The Dad Vail posted the full racing schedule (weather permitting).
Going to the Regatta?
Things are a bit different this year with the race in Camden County. The start line is near U.S. Route 130 with the finish line near Cuthbert Boulevard.
Here's directions to Cooper River Park care of the regatta's website:
From the NJ Turnpike: Take Exit 4 to Route 73 North heading toward Philadelphia. Take left onto Route 38 West, then exit south on Cuthbert Blvd., just beyond exit tto Rte. 70 is North Park Blvd. and the race course.
From I-95 and Philadelphia: Go over Ben Franklin Bridge on 676 (US 30). Continue on HWY 38 heading east for 0.6 miles. Bear right on US 70 heading east for 1.1 miles to N Park Blvd.
From I-295 in New Jersey (runs parallel to NJ Turnpike): Take Route 70 West; Head south on Cuthbert Blvd. to North Park Blvd. and take right to parking area.
Where Should I Park?
"Parking and handicapped parking is located at the main concourse area near finish line. Additional parking will be located at the corner of Cuthbert Ave and North Park Drive, across from double tree hotel. As well as additional street parking on North Park Drive," the Dad Vail says on its website.
Click here for the regatta's parking map.
How Can I Take Public Transit to the Regatta?
Cooper River Park is accessible by NJ Transit's Route 406 bus and Atlantic City Rail Line and PATCO. Dad Vail recommends using the Moovit App to find your route.
Can't Make It to the Regatta and Don't Want to Miss the Action?
The Dad Vail Regatta has will livestream the races on YouTube on Friday and Saturday.
How Do I Avoid the Regatta?
Keep away from the Cooper River Park in Pennsauken. You could see some increased traffic in the area on race days.
What's the Weather Looking Like for the Regatta?
Skies are clear with highs in the 80s Friday. One Saturday, rain could play a role in the races with scattered showers possible. The high Saturday gets into the 70s.
How Much Do You Know About the Dad Vail Regatta?
The regatta, established in 1934, is the largest collegiate rowing event in North America, drawing thousands of athletes from more than 100 colleges and universities from across the United States and Canada, organizers said.
"The Jefferson Dad Vail Regatta was started by two men with ties to rowing at the University of Pennsylvania. The individuals were ‘Rusty’ Callow and Lev Brett," race organizers said on the event's website. "Callow was then coach at Penn and laid the foundation. Brett was credited with being the architect. Their goal was to have a college regatta for developing crew programs." | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/guide-2023-dad-vail-regatta-nj-cooper-river/3564551/ | 2023-05-12T13:12:49 | 0 | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/guide-2023-dad-vail-regatta-nj-cooper-river/3564551/ |
Warren 7th grader who saved school bus given a key to the city
The Warren seventh grader whose quick thinking and action saved a school bus full of his classmates after the driver had a medical emergency was awarded a key to the city on Thursday.
Dillon Reeves, 13, was riding a bus home from Carter Middle School with 65 other students on April 26 when the bus driver lost consciousness. Reeves ran to her side and took control of the steering wheel while pumping the brakes.
Reeves saved more than 60 lives and prevented property damage, Warren Mayor James Fouts said in a news release. Reeves and his family were surprised in the Mayor's Office at Warren City Hall Thursday afternoon when he was honored with a key to the city.
Reeves has previously expressed interest in becoming a police officer when he grows up and was also appointed Warren Police Commissioner for a day, Fouts said.
Reeves also received a limo ride to dinner with his family at Andiamo Italia restaurant in Warren.
hmackay@detroitnews.com | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/macomb-county/2023/05/12/warren-7th-grader-who-saved-school-bus-given-a-key-to-the-city/70210843007/ | 2023-05-12T13:17:11 | 0 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/macomb-county/2023/05/12/warren-7th-grader-who-saved-school-bus-given-a-key-to-the-city/70210843007/ |
Oakland County health officer dead in alleged murder-suicide
Oakland County's top health official appears to have been killed Thursday in a murder-suicide, according to media reports.
Calandra Green, Oakland County Health Division's Health Officer, was found dead in her Pontiac home Thursday along with her husband, reports said.
"Family members went to the home and started to walk into the house," Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard told WDIV-TV (Ch. 4) Thursday. "It didn’t look right, and they smartly backed out and called 911. We immediately responded, made entry into the home, and found two individuals deceased. It appears that our female is the victim and a male individual was the perpetrator, but that’s still early."
Oakland County Executive Dave Coulter confirmed Green's death in a statement Thursday.
"Our hearts are shattered at the news of the passing of our colleague and esteemed Health Officer Dr. Calandra Green," Coulter said in a statement. "Words cannot express how devastating this news is to our Oakland County family. Calandra was a beloved member of our team and a light to all who had the privilege to know and love her."
Coulter's statement did not mention when, where or how Green died.
WXYZ-TV (Channel 7) reported late Thursday that Green was identified as having died at her home in a case the Oakland County Sheriff's Office described as a homicide and suicide.
A Sheriff's Office representative did not immediately respond to requests for comment Thursday night.
Green was 50 and lived in Pontiac, public records show. The longtime health professional's public Facebook page also listed Green as living in the city with her husband.
Meanwhile, Coulter said North and South county health clinics would be closed Friday "to allow our employees time to grieve and seek support from each other and counselors as they process this devastating news.”
Coulter appointed Green as the first woman of color to serve as the county’s health officer in April 2022.
Last year, Green also led a county task force aimed at addressing the illness then known as monkeypox.
She joined the county as a public health nurse in August 2019.
As the COVID-19 pandemic started in March 2020, Green became the Oakland County Health Division’s quality and process improvement supervisor, officials said in a statement Thursday.
Among her duties were serving as the COVID-19 school nurse liaison. She hired, trained and deployed 68 nurses to 28 public school districts and 125 private or charter schools, according to the release.
In May 2021, she became administrator of public health. Green developed and managed comprehensive countywide programs that included organizing and forming mental health response in the aftermath of the Oxford High School shooting.
When known as Calandra Anderson, she worked for McLaren Health Care in Pontiac from 2007-18. There, she rose from manager of patient care services to vice president of patient care services and chief nursing officer, Oakland County said.
From 1993-2007, she worked for North Oakland Medical Centers in Pontiac. She was manager of obstetrics and the neonatal intensive care unit from 2004-07.
Green held degrees from Oakland University, Baker College and Oakland Community College, the county said Thursday.
In 2021, Oakland University recognized Green with the Nightingale Award for Excellence in Community Nursing. | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/oakland-county/2023/05/12/calandra-green-murder-suicide-health-officer-oakland-county/70210090007/ | 2023-05-12T13:17:17 | 0 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/oakland-county/2023/05/12/calandra-green-murder-suicide-health-officer-oakland-county/70210090007/ |
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP — A 62-year-old Valparaiso man, who reportedly told police he was focused on bonding his son out of jail, joined him there instead after allegedly driving into fences at the county animal shelter and then fleeing, Porter County police said.
John Ward faces a charge of leaving the scene of an accident after police captured him with the assistance of a camera license plate reading system, according to the report.
St. John Police CIT Officer Dustin Wartman is trained in mental health intervention.
Police said they were called out around 2:15 p.m. Thursday to the animal shelter at 3355 S. Bertholet Blvd. where officials told them a man driving a Toyota Highlander drove through the neighboring Expo Center property and struck a chain link fence before fleeing. The collision also damaged a black iron rod fence.
Using surveillance footage and the license plate reading system, police tracked down Ward, who said he was on the phone with his son at the nearby county jail at the time of the collision.
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The Homewood woman was cited for driving too fast for conditions.
He blamed the collision on being upset and distracted.
"John stated it never occurred to him to report the damage to the fences," police said. "John stated he was more worried about the damage to his vehicle and bonding his son out of jail."
Gallery: Recent arrests booked into the Porter County Jail
Dawn Tucker
Arrest date: May 4, 2023
Age: 44
Residence: Westville, IN
Booking Number: 2301846
Charges: Sexual misconduct with a minor, felony
Karen Snyder
Arrest date: May 4, 2023
Age: 67
Residence: Portage, IN
Booking Number: 2301840
Charges: Intimidation, felony
Anthony Maxberry
Arrest date: May 4, 2023
Age: 40
Residence: Portage, IN
Booking Number: 2301837
Charges: Invasion of privacy, felony
Flavio Quintanilla
Arrest date: May 4, 2023
Age: 24
Residence: East Chicago, IN
Booking Number: 2301842
Charges: OWI, misdemeanor
Jeremy Riley
Arrest date: May 4, 2023
Age: 42
Residence: Hebron, IN
Booking Number: 2301852
Charges: Weapons/Pointing a firearm, felony
Brayden Joseph
Arrest date: May 4, 2023
Age: 18
Residence: Chesterton, IN
Booking Number: 2301854
Charges: Battery, misdemeanor
Stephen Kearney
Arrest date: May 4, 2023
Age: 36
Residence: Wheatfield, IN
Booking Number: 2301839
Charges: Possession of marijuana, hash oil, hashish, or salvia, felony
Jason Hammer
Arrest date: May 4, 2023
Age: 44
Residence: Darien, IL
Booking Number: 2301848
Charges: Sexual misconduct with a minor, felony
Crystal Robinson
Arrest date: May 3, 2023
Age: 38
Residence: Hebron, IN
Booking Number: 2301821
Charges: Neglect of a dependant, felony
Rebecca Masse
Arrest date: May 3, 2023
Age: 37
Residence: Valparaiso, IN
Booking Number: 2301834
Charges: OWI, felony
Nicholas Kleihege
Arrest date: May 3, 2023
Age: 30
Residence: Valparaiso, IN
Booking Number: 2301820
Charges: OWI, misdemeanor
Marteus Holbrook
Arrest date: May 3, 2023
Age: 27
Residence: Merrillville, IN
Booking Number: 2301832
Charges: Possession hypodermic syringe or needle, felony
Brandon Welshan
Arrest date: May 2, 2023
Age: 35
Residence: Valparaiso, IN
Booking Number: 2301812
Charges: Obstruction of justice, felony
Mitchell Rospierski
Arrest date: May 2, 2023
Age: 28
Residence: Valparaiso, IN
Booking Number: 2301818
Charges: Domestic battery, felony
Kevin Shufford II
Arrest date: May 2, 2023
Age: 37
Residence: Gary, IN
Booking Number: 2301809
Charges: Possession of cocaine or narcotic drug, felony
Tumen Tysrendorzhiev
Arrest date: May 2, 2023
Age: 39
Residence: Brooklyn, NY
Booking Number: 2301810
Charges: Battery, felony
Georgina Houston
Arrest date: May 2, 2023
Age: 46
Residence: Ogden Dunes, IN
Booking Number: 2301819
Charges: Domestic battery, felony
Leona Riley
Arrest date: May 2, 2023
Age: 23
Residence: Gary, IN
Booking Number: 2301815
Charges: Battery, felony
Sandra Dombrowski
Arrest date: May 2, 2023
Age: 49
Residence: Porter, IN
Booking Number: 2301817
Charges: OWI, felony
Wardell Brown
Arrest date: May 2, 2023
Age: 48
Residence: Chicago, IL
Booking Number: 2301811
Charges: Theft, felony
Timothy Burton
Arrest date: May 2, 2023
Age: 51
Residence: Portage, IN
Booking Number: 2301813
Charges: Domestic battery, misdemeanor
Kaylee Schoenenberger
Arrest date: May 1, 2023
Age: 19
Residence: Portage, IN
Booking Number: 2301798
Charges: Drugs/d ealing schedule I, II , or III controlled substance, felony
Jennifer Bish
Arrest date: May 1, 2023
Age: 44
Residence: Chesterton, IN
Booking Number: 2301791
Charges: OWI, misdemeanor
Tucker Morse
Arrest date: April 30, 2023
Age: 21
Residence: Three Oaks, MI
Booking Number: 2301784
Charges: Possession of marijuana, hash oil, hashish, or salvia, felony
Dustin Mathews
Arrest date: April 30, 2023
Age: 39
Residence: Gary, IN
Booking Number: 2301790
Charges: OWI, misdemeanor
Aiden McAlvey
Arrest date: April 30, 2023
Age: 22
Residence: Crown Point, IN
Booking Number: 2301783
Charges: OWI, misdemeanor
William Milan
Arrest date: April 30, 2023
Age: 31
Residence: Jackson, MI
Booking Number: 2301787
Charges: Possession legend drug or precursor, felony
Joshua Heaviland
Arrest date: April 30, 2023
Age: 22
Residence: Valparaiso, IN
Booking Number: 2301781
Charges: OWI, misdemeanor
Sierra Kindy
Arrest date: April 30, 2023
Age: 37
Residence: Galesburg, MI
Booking Number: 2301786
Charges: Possession of legend drug or precursor, felony
Joseph Bauer
Arrest date: April 30, 2023
Age: 26
Residence: Valparaiso, IN
Booking Number: 2301782
Charges: OWI, misdemeanor
Giovani Phan
Arrest date: April 29, 2023
Age: 28
Residence: Valparaiso, IN
Booking Number: 2301773
Charges: OWI, felony
Karen Hanchar
Arrest date: April 29, 2023
Age: 63
Residence: Valparaiso, IN
Booking Number: 2301780
Charges: Domestic battery, misdemeanor
Jordan Lewis
Arrest date: April 29, 2023
Age: 33
Residence: Porter, IN
Booking Number: 2301779
Charges: OWI, misdemeanor
Andres Cadena
Arrest date: April 29, 2023
Age: 39
Residence: Portage, IN
Booking Number: 2301770
Charges: Domestic battery, felony
Sean Webster
Arrest date: April 28, 2023
Age: 57
Residence: Valparaiso
Booking Number: 2301758
Charges: Possession legend drug or precursor, felony
Abigail Ziembicki
Arrest date: April 28, 2023
Age: 39
Residence: Gary, IN
Booking Number: 2301757
Charges: Possession hypodermic syringe or needle, felony
Julia Shannon
Arrest date: April 28, 2023
Age: 28
Residence: Portage, IN
Booking Number: 2301762
Charges: Domestic battery, felony
Paul Hudak Jr.
Arrest date: April 28, 2023
Age: 35
Residence: DeMotte, IN
Booking Number: 2301760
Charges: Possession of cocaine or narcotic drug, felony
Zachary Davenport
Arrest date: April 28, 2023
Age: 20
Residence: Valparaiso, IN
Booking Number: 2301763
Charges: Drugs/dealing schedule I, II, or III controlled substance, felony
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Canton chamber celebrates Business Excellence Award winners
- The winners were: AultCare Health Insurance, Fresh Mark Inc., Marathon Petroleum / Canton Refinery, Williams Toyota Lift and Vern Dale Water Experts.
- The MAGNET Manufacturer of the Year was ZCath Manufacturing and the Stark County Minority Business Association's Business of the Year was Family Life Home and Health Services.
- X'nai Hatcher, of Alliance High School, was awarded the Business Excellence Award Scholarship.
CANTON − The Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce on Thursday recognized five area businesses that have proven to be innovative and long-lasting.
The winners were Canton-based AultCare Health Insurance, Massillon-based Fresh Mark Inc., Marathon Petroleum/Canton Refinery, East Sparta-based Williams Toyota Lift and Canton-based Vern Dale Water Experts.
In addition, the MAGNET Manufacturer of the Year was ZCath Manufacturing in Green and the Stark County Minority Business Association's Business of the Year was Family Life Home and Health Services in Canton.
X'nai Hatcher of Alliance High School was awarded the Business Excellence Award Scholarship.
Chamber President and CEO Dennis Saunier presented the 30th annual Business Excellence Awards after a social hour and dinner at the DoubleTree by Hilton in downtown Canton. Nominees for the awards do not need to be chamber members and were selected by a 17-member committee.
"Tonight's awards recognize the best of the best in our region," he said.
Each award-winning business shared a common "thread of excellence," Saunier said. That included capital improvements, employee retention, and facility and investment growth.
Ralph Lee, chairman of the chamber board, also congratulated the awardees. He said their success represented a successful economic development strategy.
"Each of tonight's honorees has experienced significant growth, expansion and longevity," Lee said.
The five businesses were introduced by a video describing their work and then representatives from each accepted the award. Highlights included:
- Andrew Williams, general manager of Williams Toyota Lift, said the company recently made changes that include the addition of two warehouses after deciding to stock more forklifts and industrial vehicles. "We're proud to be part of this remarkable group of recipients," he said in the video presentation.
- Vern Dale, president of Vern Dale's Water Center, said the water treatment company is constantly trying to improve and the family's business motto has been, "If you're not growing, you're dying." He said the award was an honor. "We really appreciate this, and we look forward to serving the community of the future."
- Robert Dugan, operations team leader at Marathon Petroleum, said on video that he grew up in Perry Township and cares about the community. The refinery, which now has more than 300 employees, often sends volunteers to area school districts. "We are your neighbors," Dugan said.
- Alicia Pucky, vice president and chief people and corporate responsibility officer at Fresh Mark, said the company prioritizes safety and innovation. She discussed the nationwide meat producer's Making a Difference fund, which supports local charitable causes. "At Fresh Mark, people come first," Pucky said.
- Jim Savage, president and CEO of AultCare, said the health care insurance provider was born out of a desire to protect the community and has evolved throughout the years. A recent addition is the Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangement for small businesses in partnership with the chamber. Mike Gallina, vice president of AultCare, said the company cares about "community, with an exclamation point." Employees are given four paid hours to volunteer with a nonprofit, and Aultcare provides a You Matter school scholarship.
Reach Kelly at 330-580-8323 or kelly.byer@cantonrep.comOn Twitter: @kbyerREP | https://www.cantonrep.com/story/news/local/stark-county/2023/05/12/canton-chamber-celebrates-business-excellence-award-winners-2023/70204886007/ | 2023-05-12T13:20:25 | 0 | https://www.cantonrep.com/story/news/local/stark-county/2023/05/12/canton-chamber-celebrates-business-excellence-award-winners-2023/70204886007/ |
Rain returns to the Region today and it will be sticking around through Sunday. There will be peaks and breaks in the activity though. Find out when rain is most and least likely and what temperatures are expected in our weekend forecast video.
Must-watch movies for Mother’s Day
‘Winter’s Bone’ (2010)
Perhaps the best movie of the previous decade, this is the story of a teenage girl — played by Jennifer Lawrence — taking on the role of mother and family protector. Her father is gone. Her mother is a living ghost. Lawrence must navigate meth makers and county sheriffs and the coiled menace of a meth-using uncle played by John Hawkes. An incredible depiction of rural poverty and our underground drug economy in a raw, real setting.
‘Frozen River’ (2008)
To what lengths will a mother go in order to buy her family a coveted double-wide trailer? Melissa Leo portrays a Dollar Store worker who turns to human smuggling to achieve the bleakest margins of the American Dream. Now 61 years old, Leo is the most underrated actor of her generation.
‘Mommie Dearest’ (1981); ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ (1968)
Two sides of motherhood. “Mommie Dearest” is a mother’s insanity seen through the eyes of a daughter, while “Rosemary’s Baby” offers up the terror of impending motherhood. Both are dark, but border on campy after all these years.
‘Terms of Endearment’ (1983)
Something lighter and heartfelt. Shirley MacLaine and Debra Winger were never better. Jack Nicholson is at his peak, winning an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his role.
‘Imitation of Life’ (1959)
This was one of director Douglas Sirk’s Technicolor melodramas. But there is something stark and challenging underneath all the lush colors, including a complex story of race, identity and class. | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/weather/weather-forecast-region-northwest-indiana-hammond-gary-valparaiso-crown-point-chicago/article_51a4a320-f00c-11ed-a8dc-3fe549e7490a.html | 2023-05-12T13:20:30 | 0 | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/weather/weather-forecast-region-northwest-indiana-hammond-gary-valparaiso-crown-point-chicago/article_51a4a320-f00c-11ed-a8dc-3fe549e7490a.html |
Shasta County still fighting to keep Magrini documents secret, despite judge's ruling
In court papers filed this week, Shasta County officials continued to fight the release of documents a judge ordered lawyers to relinquish to the Record Searchlight more than a month ago.
Rather than hand over the records, the county continues to claim the materials are confidential and exempt from release under state law.
“The requests for production are incredibly broad, and they necessarily call for the production of exempt documents. The final judgment should, at a minimum, provide that only non-exempt documents be disclosed,” the county’s lawyers wrote in a court filing this week.
In reply to the court filing, the newspaper's lawyer, Walt McNeill, said all of the county’s objections were already decided by Shasta County Superior Court Judge Stephen Baker’s ruling on April 10.
“The county asks that the court essentially reverse its ruling compelling disclosure and allow the county to unilaterally decide whether these records are exempt under the CPRA (California Public Records Act) and produce only the records they deem both responsive and non-exempt,” McNeill wrote in response to the county.
“The unabashed requests by the county conversely are not matched by support in the law or the record,” he said.
Last month, Baker ruled that the documents were not exempt and gave the county 15 days to release to the Record Searchlight copies of an investigative report into complaints against former Sheriff Eric Magrini.
He also ordered officials to hand over to the paper communications exchanged in 2021 among the Board of Supervisors and top county officials about three general topic areas: sheriff’s office management, hiring Magrini as assistant county executive officer and their decision to appoint a new sheriff to replace Magrini.
During the first half of 2021, turmoil in the sheriff’s office resulted in the Deputy Sheriff’s Association and the Sheriff’s Administrative Association both issuing votes of no confidence in Magrini. At the administrative association's request, the county agreed to hire a firm to investigate the complaints against Magrini.
In June 2021, Magrini stepped down as sheriff to take a 31% pay raise and the newly-created job as assistant county executive officer. Less than two months later and without holding public interviews, the Board of Supervisors appointed former Anderson Police Chief Michael Johnson as the county's new sheriff.
The county has refused to release a report from the investigation, claiming the work is confidential under “attorney-client privilege and attorney-client work product."
In addition to the investigative report, the newspaper had also requested as far back as Aug. 2, 2021 emails, letters and other communications between members of the county Board of Supervisors, other top county officials and Magrini about sheriff's office management issues.
Baker disagreed with the county’s claims and ruled the investigative report and communications must be turned over to the paper.
Prior to suing the county in July 2022, the newspaper submitted three requests to the County Counsel’s Office for the documents, citing the California Public Records Act. The county denied each of the requests.
The county and the newspaper went to trial on the issue in January and Baker issued a ruling in April requiring the county to turn over all the documents the newspaper requested.
The judge also ordered the county to pay for the newspaper's legal fees.
In response to the judge’s ruling, lawyers hired by the county have asked for a new trial or to vacate the decision. In court documents filed during the past week, the county’s attorneys also asked for redactions in any documents released, in order to protect the privacy of county employees, witnesses and others.
The county is represented by Christopher M. Pisano, Jeffrey V. Dunn and Nathalie Camarena with the law firm Best Best & Krieger in Los Angeles.
The county also wants the judge to delay a final ruling for another 60 days, which the paper opposes.
The judge on May 3 rejected a proposed county delay.
McNeill agreed with the county’s request to let Baker determine whether he or a “special master” should review the investigative report in private to determine whether there should be redactions to the document and if releasing it to the public would violate confidentiality.
The paper also asked that if information in the documents is redacted, the judge should require the county to specify what is blocked out. The Record Searchlight wants the county to provide a log of the information it wants removed.
The Record Searchlight also asked the judge to order the county to include in the log the dates, names of senders and recipients, the general nature of the material redacted, the subject matter, the portions of the documents the county wants to redact and the legal basis for blocking out information.
McNeill said he expects Baker to approve the final ruling either late this week or next week.
Reporter Damon Arthur welcomes story tips at 530-338-8834, by email at damon.arthur@redding.com and on Twitter at @damonarthur_RS. Help local journalism thrive by subscribing today! | https://www.redding.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/shasta-county-fights-to-keep-documents-secret-despite-judges-ruling/70209311007/ | 2023-05-12T13:21:29 | 0 | https://www.redding.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/shasta-county-fights-to-keep-documents-secret-despite-judges-ruling/70209311007/ |
Nursing student Mariah Harer said she’s feeling “a mix of terrified and excited” emotions about her graduation today from Coconino Community College (CCC).
“I’m honestly terrified, but I’m also super excited because I have been working towards this moment for pretty close to six years, and it’s finally here,” she said.
Harer will be graduating with both an associate of applied science in nursing from CCC and a bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) from Northern Arizona University. She completed both degrees at the same time over the course of two years as part of the CCC2NAU program, a process she said was exhausting but worthwhile.
Harer remembered how when she started considering the program, her advisor told her “it's a lot of work and you won't have a life for two years." She decided to continue, seeing it as a less expensive way to earn a BSN, which is a requirement for hospital jobs.
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For the past two years, Harer said, her schedule has been almost entirely filled with work and school. She’s been taking online classes at Northern Arizona University (NAU), in-person courses at CCC, and working full time while completing the clinicals and labs required for graduation.
She’s been keeping this up over the summer as well in order to finish in two years.
“Even though I’m exhausted, I definitely don’t regret doing it,” she said.
Harer began preparing to go into nursing in high school, when she researched a registered nurse's (RN) role and decided she wanted that as a career path. A first-generation college graduate, she chose to go to CCC after hearing “great things” about the nursing program and its instructors.
She said it ended up being a “good choice.”
“I honestly have always wanted a job that helps other people,” she said of the decision to study nursing. “I really loved the medical field, so I ended up doing a ton of research and landed on becoming an RN because they tend to be very caring and compassionate individuals.”
One thing she said surprised her from her time studying nursing was “just how much nurses know.”
“I figured they obviously knew a lot medical-wise, because they always have seemed like very smart individuals,” she said. “However, just going to nursing school alone has been a huge surprise of how much they know."
She added: "I think it's very impressive.”
After graduation, Harer plans on starting a nurse residency in Flagstaff Medical Center’s emergency department in July. There, she will continue her education and RN training.
“Usually students go into college and they are terrified because it’s such a different world than it is from even high school,” she said. “My advice would be just to fight through that fear and those really hard feelings of maybe I can’t do this or maybe I don’t want to do this. It always feels like that in the beginning, but once you get to the end, it is the most rewarding feeling.” | https://azdailysun.com/news/local/education/coconino-community-college-graduate-completes-intense-2-years-of-education-to-become-nurse/article_654df8fc-f022-11ed-98fc-23178df5fab8.html | 2023-05-12T13:27:04 | 1 | https://azdailysun.com/news/local/education/coconino-community-college-graduate-completes-intense-2-years-of-education-to-become-nurse/article_654df8fc-f022-11ed-98fc-23178df5fab8.html |
Both Northern Arizona University (NAU) and Coconino Community College (CCC) will be hosting commencement ceremonies to recognize their graduating students this weekend.
CCC
CCC will be recognizing almost 500 graduates in two ceremonies today.
Commencement for students in the Arts and Sciences Program will begin at 10 a.m., while the ceremony for those in the career and technical education program begins at 2 p.m.
Both ceremonies will be in the V. Philip Tullar Commons on CCC’s Lone Tree Campus, located at 2800 S. Lone Tree Road. Speakers at CCC’s commencement include faculty of the year recipients Katie Schwartz and Alan Cartwright.
CCC’s commencement ceremonies will be streamed to its YouTube page: youtube.com/@cococc.
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More information about CCC’s commencement is at coconino.edu/commencement.
NAU
More than 5,200 students will graduate from NAU this weekend in a series of four commencement ceremonies set for today and Saturday in the Walkup Skydome, located at 1705 S. San Francisco St.
Today's ceremony will start at 11 a.m. and recognize students in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, while its afternoon ceremony will start at 4 p.m., recognizing students in the College of Arts and Letters, the College of Education, and both NAU Online and NAU Yuma.
On Saturday, the university will recognize students in the College of Health and Human Services and the W.A. Franke College of Business at a 10 a.m. ceremony, with students in the College of Engineering, Informatics and Applied Sciences, and the College of the Environment, Forestry and Natural Sciences recognized at the 3 p.m. commencement.
Tickets are required for guests to this weekend’s ceremonies, and NAU’s clear bag policy will be in effect. More information, including details about parking and directions can be found at nau.edu/commencement.
The commencement speaker at each ceremony will be given an honorary doctoral degree from NAU. Today’s keynote speakers will be Casa Pueblo Executive Director Arturo Massol-Deyá and Ty White, the 2023 Arizona Education Foundation teacher of the year. Saturday’s speakers will be NAU Foundation board President and Franke and Company Principal David Franke and Bill Gates, the cofounder of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
All ceremonies will be streamed live on NAU’s YouTube page.
Additional information is available on the NAUgo app or by texting “hi” to 833-511-0151 to contact an AI chatbot with graduation questions. | https://azdailysun.com/news/local/education/nau-and-ccc-hosting-graduation-ceremonies-this-weekend/article_760d18c0-f032-11ed-8b0f-a7e5f59fb26b.html | 2023-05-12T13:27:10 | 0 | https://azdailysun.com/news/local/education/nau-and-ccc-hosting-graduation-ceremonies-this-weekend/article_760d18c0-f032-11ed-8b0f-a7e5f59fb26b.html |
LOCAL
Saying goodbye to Oak Ridge's city manager
Mark and Jenna Watson to remain in Oak Ridge
The Oak Ridger
Friends, family members, co-workers and other area residents wished Oak Ridge City Manager Mark Watson well at his retirement reception on May 4 at the Townplace Suites. Watson retired May 5 after serving the city of Oak Ridge as city manager for more than 12 years. He was also honored at Monday's Oak Ridge City Council meeting. He and his wife Jenna plan to continue living in Oak Ridge. A search for a new city manager is currently underway. | https://www.oakridger.com/story/news/local/2023/05/11/saying-goodbye-to-oak-ridges-city-manager/70204578007/ | 2023-05-12T13:33:31 | 0 | https://www.oakridger.com/story/news/local/2023/05/11/saying-goodbye-to-oak-ridges-city-manager/70204578007/ |
AUSTIN, Texas — The unexpected elation felt this week by gun control advocates and families of Uvalde shooting victims dissolved to despair Tuesday, when a bill that would raise the age to legally purchase semi-automatic rifles lost its newfound momentum and was left off the Texas House’s agenda ahead of a key deadline.
Barring an unexpected development, the delay likely ends the bill's chances of becoming law.
The proposal has long faced stiff odds in a state that has regularly loosened gun restrictions in recent years. But on Monday, in the aftermath of the deadly shooting in an Allen shopping mall, a House committee unexpectedly advanced the legislation in an 8-5 vote that included two Republicans supporting it.
That left little time for the bill to be added to the House’s calendar, however. The final day the House can pass bills is Thursday, and the chamber’s agenda must be approved 36 hours ahead of when they convene. That creates a de facto deadline of around 10 p.m. Tuesday for the measure to be placed on the calendar.
When that hour arrived Tuesday night, House Bill 2744 remained off the list.
The measure's supporters, particularly parents of children who died at Robb Elementary in Uvalde who have been advocating for it all session, pushed until the end. Minutes before 10 p.m., a small group stood outside the House chamber holding signs and chanting and calling for the bill to be heard on the House floor. Even then, they could be heard faintly from the back of the chamber.
"2-7-4-4," they yelled. "Put this bill on the floor."
There were less than a dozen of them, but they could be heard inside the House chamber — their chants carrying loudly enough that Capitol staffers closed the doors to the second-floor viewing gallery.
Perhaps the loudest was Brett Cross, whose 10-year-old son Uziyah Garcia was shot to death by an AR-15 in one of Robb's classrooms. When the clock passed 10 p.m., a few Democrats left the chamber and hugged him. Soon after, witnesses in the Capitol said, a Department of Public Safety trooper approached with a decibel monitor, informed him he was being too loud and escorted him out of the building. Cross continued chanting the bill's number as he left.
"This is just another fucking attempt to slow and stop us," Cross said on Twitter. "2744 may have died tonight, but we will never stop!
"Texas fucked with the wrong parents!"
Another parent, Kimberly Mata-Rubio, who lost her 10-year-old daughter Alexandria “Lexi” Aniyah Rubio in the shooting, vowed to travel to the districts of House Speaker Dade Phelan, Calendars Committee Chair Dustin Burrows and Select Committee on Community Safety Chair Ryan Guillen and "share Lexi’s story, and the disrespect shown to Uvalde families."
"This isn’t over," she said. "We will regroup, re-strategize and come back stronger."
HB 2744, filed by Democratic Rep. Tracy King of Batesville, would prohibit selling, renting, leasing or giving a semi-automatic rifle with a caliber greater than .22 that is capable of accepting a detachable magazine to a person younger than 21 years old — an increase from 18 years old. The proposal includes several exemptions that King said he had added after hearing concerns from constituents.
The opposition to the bill hasn’t been vocal in the Legislature, but Republican leadership is fiercely protective of gun rights and reluctant to advance anything that challenges them. Gun advocates say the measure would do little to deter crime and only harm law-abiding gun owners. They also argue that gun ownership is an entrenched American right that shouldn’t be infringed upon by the government.
Since getting a hearing last month — which in and of itself marked a milestone in a gun-friendly legislature — HB 2744 had been left in committee and was poised to be left there.
That is, until Monday, when dozens of supporters, including many relatives of people killed with guns, filled the Capitol to urge lawmakers to advance it. The committee was met with sobs and applause after the last-minute vote.
The gunman at Robb Elementary in Uvalde used an AR-15-style rifle, which he purchased within days of turning 18, after unsuccessfully trying to persuade relatives to illegally buy him a gun. He killed 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School. Relatives of victims have been coming to the Capitol all year to urge lawmakers to raise the age, holding emotional press conferences and confronting lawmakers and state officials.
Their urgency only increased over the weekend, after a gunman killed eight people in Allen.
On Monday, at least two Republicans appeared swayed.
“I am not naive enough to think that laws alone will prevent the type of senseless violence that occurs all too frequently in our state,” said Rep. Justin Holland, a Rockwall Republican who voted to advance the bill out of committee, in a statement Monday. “But after listening to many hours of testimony over this session, I became convinced that this small change to the law might serve as a significant roadblock to a young person (not old enough to buy tobacco or alcohol) acquiring a specific type of semi-automatic rifle intent upon using it in a destructive and illegal manner.”
As it became clear Tuesday afternoon that the bill was again in danger, proponents voiced their frustration. Some left signs urging its passage outside the Calendars Committee’s meeting room. Others protested outside the office of Rep. Ryan Guillen, R-Rio Grande City, the chair of the committee that advanced the bill Monday.
Guillen could not be immediately reached for comment about whether the committee report had been sent to the calendars committee or whether it would be before the deadline.
“I’m sickened that HB 2744 will not be brought to a full House vote,” said Rep. Jarvis Johnson, a Houston Democrat who voted to advance the bill Monday as a member of the select House committee. “For once, the legislature seemed to listen to its constituents & do the right thing after getting this bill out of committee.”
Lawmakers could use other approaches to revive the proposal. But advocates are realistic that the measure will most likely ultimately fail. Even if it were to pass the House — a tall request — it would still need to advance through a Senate that’s perhaps even more skeptical of the idea.
"How many more children have to die before we act?" said one supporter, Bishop John Ogletree, a Houston pastor, in a statement.
Alexa Ura contributed reporting.
This story comes from The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans - and engages with them - about public policy, politics, government, and statewide issues. | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/texas/texas-raise-the-age-gun-law/285-d5f72138-3ec8-4322-8523-3433e7cf9f7f | 2023-05-12T13:33:50 | 1 | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/texas/texas-raise-the-age-gun-law/285-d5f72138-3ec8-4322-8523-3433e7cf9f7f |
PIERCE COUNTY, Wash. — A volunteer-led search and rescue team in Pierce County is missing vital equipment after being burglarized.
Monday morning, Chase Woolley, training director for Pierce County Explorer Search and Rescue found damage thieves left behind.
Woolley said over the weekend someone broke the locks, and stole cords, cables and rescue ropes from their mobile operations vehicles. One of the vehicles is no longer waterproof, and they can’t even get into the driver-side door of the other.
Woolley said whoever’s responsible also siphoned gas out of their transport van and destroyed a trailer. Luckily, they weren’t able to get to major equipment like radios and GPS but it’s still a setback.
“The biggest hit I think will be the generator cables, the stuff that actually powers the rig. We can't use the computer, tv, or tracking equipment without our generators running,” Woolley said.
The team is volunteer-led and 100% reliant on donations. Money for repairs will come from funds set aside to buy new radios and rigs.
“It’s unfortunate. It's a sad reality of the times we're in right now,” Woolley said.
The search and rescue team has been on thousands of missions since it started in 1958.
The crew helps the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department respond to missing hikers, kids, dementia patients, and even evidence searches.
Woolley has been a part of the unit for 14 years and said this has never happened.
“We’ve been talking about trying to get a headquarters station. A place to park the vehicles inside, do our training and have our meetings and it solidifies that we need to do that sooner rather than later,” Woolley said.
Despite the break-in, the team will be able to respond to calls.
This burglary comes as people are expected to hit the outdoors with warm weather on the way and the team gears up for its busy season.
“People will go up in the mountains where there's still snow on the ground and they won't be prepared for that and go in shorts, tee shirts and running shoes and encounter knee-deep snow,” said Woolley.
If you’d like to help or learn how to volunteer click here. | https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/pierce-county-search-and-rescue-team-burglarized/281-e76d127b-6a0d-4b2b-9727-a1680db9d4a1 | 2023-05-12T13:34:37 | 0 | https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/pierce-county-search-and-rescue-team-burglarized/281-e76d127b-6a0d-4b2b-9727-a1680db9d4a1 |
Fallen Yavapai County Sheriff's Sgt. Rick Lopez to be added to national memorial wall
Nearly a year after Yavapai County Sheriff's Sgt. Richard "Rick" Lopez was killed while responding to a call in Cordes Lakes, he was set to be honored this week alongside more than 500 of his fellow officers who have died in the line of duty across the country.
His family is expected to travel alongside Yavapai County Sheriff David Rhodes and other officers who worked closely with Lopez to watch as his name will be officially added to the National Law Enforcement Memorial Wall in Washington D.C. during this year's National Police Week.
Lopez was remembered fondly for his positive impact on the community both before and after he joined law enforcement.
After spending two decades building a successful career as a manager at a Safeway, Lopez wanted to switch gears and join the Sheriff's Office, an institution he chose specifically for its constitutional significance.
“You don’t see a midlife change in careers like that a lot, especially when you’re downsizing your income with a family at home,” Rhodes said. “And so I think that really just speaks to the purpose that he felt that he was fulfilling. The work was more important than the money and he just really wanted to serve.”
Previous coverage:Hundreds attend memorial service for slain Yavapai County Sgt. Rick Lopez
While it's certainly not the average path to law enforcement, Lopez's wife Kym wasn't surprised when he first proposed the idea. Even when it wasn't part of his job description, she said, he'd been finding ways to serve people in need for years by that point.
When a school bus full of kids broke down on the highway outside of Williams, she remembers he grabbed boxes of popsicles and drinks from the store he was managing and drove them over to the kids. He was also known to jump out of the car at intersections to help after coming across car accidents, she said.
They were realistic about the job's inherent dangers but it didn't stop Lopez from taking the leap, eventually becoming the oldest, but most physically fit member of his academy class, Kym said.
“We had those conversations even when he was in the academy, that this could happen," Kym said, of losing her husband in the line of duty. "It’s a possibility, it’s a probability and these are the dangers, but this is what he wanted to do and I wholeheartedly supported him."
Since his death on June 28, 2022, countless stories have emerged illustrating the warmth and positivity that Lopez brought to the job, especially when working with local kids.
As an example, Rhodes points to the sergeant's dedication to the yearly “Shop with a Cop” program, where kids are chosen at random and paired up with officers to shop for holiday gifts. When Lopez realized that the boy he was paired up with had several siblings who weren’t chosen, he went out and bought the whole family Christmas presents.
“That kind of community relationship is really important, for us to be viewed positively and legitimately, for people to trust the police and for kids to grow up trusting the police,” he said.
Countless condolence letters have poured in since Lopez's death, some from as far away as Germany, sharing with his family stories about the many ways he's helped people. In fact, it was only after his death that Kym started to learn about the true scope of her husband's impact.
“He never really discussed any of those things so it was kind of nice to read them in the letters that were left on his car,” Kym said. “And it just kind of solidified that I knew who he was.”
His impact can also be seen every day within the sheriff's office, Rhodes said, as many officers now strive to carry themselves the way Lopez did.
“The way that he did this job was the right way to do it, and its the way that we want to,” he said.
"He used the badge very appropriately to influence people to do better, to be better, and he used the authority the way that it was intended to be used,” he said. “And we want to teach that to everybody."
The National Law Enforcement Memorial and Museum is hosting various events starting May 9, including a candlelight vigil on May 13, followed by the memorial service and wreath laying ceremony on May 15.
This is just the latest attempt to honor Lopez, who was shot while trying to make an arrest last summer. In addition to the current memorial in Prescott, plans for a memorial in his hometown of Prescott Valley are also underway.
Additionally, Lopez was honored in a ceremony at the state capitol recently.
"It's a wonderful way of taking such an ugly tragedy and turning it into something more beautiful," Kym said. "Even though someone took his life, he still lives."
Reach the reporter atllatch@gannett.com. The Republic’s coverage of northern Arizona is funded, in part, with grants from Vitalyst Health Foundation and Report from America. To support regional Arizona news coverage like this, make a tax deductible donation atsupportjournalism.azcentral.com. | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2023/05/12/fallen-yavapai-county-sheriffs-sgt-rick-lopez-added-to-national-memorial/70180666007/ | 2023-05-12T13:41:57 | 0 | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2023/05/12/fallen-yavapai-county-sheriffs-sgt-rick-lopez-added-to-national-memorial/70180666007/ |
Arizona gas prices 'stabilized' while national average dips by 4 cents
Pump prices across the nation have continued their downward trend, with Arizona markets hopefully following suit.
According to AAA, the national average for a gallon of gas dipped by 4 cents since last week, sitting at $3.53 as of Thursday. The current average is around 7 cents less than last month and 87 cents less than what it was a year ago.
New data from the Energy Information Administration, as cited by AAA, saw demand grow substantially this past week from 8.62 million barrels per day to 9.30 million.
“Increasing demand for gasoline would usually drive pump prices higher, but the cost for oil has remained low lately, so drivers should benefit from stable pump prices as Memorial Day drawers near," AAA spokesperson Andrew Gross said in a release Thursday.
Total domestic gasoline stocks took a tumble, however, going from 3.2 million barrels of crude oil to 219.7 million. Total domestic commercial crude inventories increased, though, by about 3 million barrels of crude oil to 462.6 million.
The high demand coupled with a reduction in stocks have developed a lull in pump price decreases, AAA said in the release, as the reported national decline last week was around 6 cents.
Why are Arizona gas prices so high? Gas prices have actually 'stabilized' for now
The national average has not been felt in the Grand Canyon state — or on the West Coast for that matter — but prices have stabilized for the time being, flowing in at around $4.68 per gallon on the mean for the state, a 2-cent fall from last week.
"Gas prices in Arizona are still high, but have at least stabilized and aren’t creeping higher for now. The national average for gas has been dropping for the last three weeks on a weaker oil market. When the Texas and New Mexico refineries come back online in the next few weeks, if they’re not already, and normal supply lines return, you can expect Arizona gas prices to be more in line with the national average," AAA Mountain West Group spokesperson Julian Paredes told The Arizona Republic.
The timing for the refineries coming back online is not ideal, as it will likely happen just before Memorial Day when travel usually increases.
Additionally, the summer blend of gasoline used in Arizona is in part a culprit for high prices, adding an extra 5 to 10 cents per gallon due to added costs of production.
The main factor, however, is likely the oil market's volatility.
"The summer blend of gas is certainly a factor for high gas prices, but the thing that really drives up prices are sudden changes to the oil market or regional supply lines," Paredes said.
In AAA's Thursday release, they said that West Texas Intermediate had decreased by $1.15, sitting at $72.56 by the end of Wednesday's formal trading session.
"Oil prices declined yesterday amid ongoing market uncertainty regarding stalled U.S. debt ceiling negotiations. The market is concerned that if the debt limit is breached, it could contribute to the economy tipping into a recession," AAA said. "If a recession occurs, crude demand and prices would likely decline."
What do Arizona gas prices look like county by county?
According to AAA, the most expensive place in Arizona to fill up your car is in Maricopa County, running at about $5.03 per gallon on average, with the least expensive being found in Graham County, around $3.61.
- Maricopa: $5.03
- Pima: $4.70
- Pinal: $4.58
- Santa Cruz: $4.38
- Coconino: $4.36
- Yavapai: $4.26
- La Paz: $4.21
- Mohave: $4.10
- Navajo: $4.07
- Apache: $4.03
- Gila: $4.02
- Greenlee: $3.97
- Yuma: $3.95
- Cochise: $3.89
- Graham: $3.61 | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2023/05/12/gas-prices-arizona-national-costs-continue-decrease/70207964007/ | 2023-05-12T13:42:03 | 1 | https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2023/05/12/gas-prices-arizona-national-costs-continue-decrease/70207964007/ |
DAUPHIN COUNTY, Pa. — No, it's not the dog ate my homework, but rather, the flying ants are causing an early dismissal.
Seriously.
Today, Lower Dauphin High School announced that they are dismissing students at 10:30 a.m. on May 12 due to "flying ants in the high school cafeteria, which will prevent us from having lunch."
The other schools in the district will remain in session and be dismissed at their regular times, according to the announcement.
There is no word if classes will resume on Monday. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/lower-dauphin-high-school-dismissing-early-flying-ants/521-a6ee9422-1c92-4be7-a7a5-f57473f5d862 | 2023-05-12T13:42:12 | 1 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/lower-dauphin-high-school-dismissing-early-flying-ants/521-a6ee9422-1c92-4be7-a7a5-f57473f5d862 |
HARRISBURG, Pa. — The Pride Of The Susquehanna made a huge splash on Friday.
For its 35th year, the red and white riverboat launched into the Susquehanna to prepare for its summer season.
The boat hit the water Friday morning from the east shore of City Island. The public was invited to watch the launch.
And there’s a jam-packed summer on deck.
This season features princess and superhero cruises, bourbon nights, murder-mystery dinners, jazz nights, senior Mondays and more.
The Pride Of The Susquehanna is an authentic stern-driven paddlewheel riverboat built 35 years ago by the Harrisburg Area Riverboat Society.
There are only five other riverboats like it in the United States Melissa Snyder, administrative director of the Pride of the Susquehanna, said.
To learn more, click here. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/pride-of-the-susquehanna-river-2023-boat-launch/521-765448e7-abcc-4a48-b58e-549bfe0fa4fe | 2023-05-12T13:42:18 | 0 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/pride-of-the-susquehanna-river-2023-boat-launch/521-765448e7-abcc-4a48-b58e-549bfe0fa4fe |
CRESTON, Iowa — Local 5 is now on Roku and Amazon Fire TV. Download the apps today to stream live newscasts and watch video on demand.
The sounds of the train in town cut through the quietness in Creston most days. It’s the kind of town where even a stranger can become a neighbor quickly.
Angie Van Brunt-Wegscheid and her family know that well.
“I’m just so very, very, very, very, very grateful for all of this community that has come out for us,” Angie told a crowd of community members at McKinley Park.
For the past two years, they’ve worked hard for this: a day to celebrate and open Creston’s first and only dog park.
“I think Creston’s always needed a dog park,” said Emma Hanson, who attended the event.
“We need friends. Our animals need friends,” added a woman who frequents McKinley Park to walk her dog.
These are friends, as Angie’s come to learn, who can get together and make a project so dear to her family come true.
“It’s relieving to have that behind us. It’s very emotional,” she said.
The dog park is named “Lexi’s Puppy Patch”, a space for all people and their dogs — and a place to honor Angie’s daughter, Lexi Rounds.
“I know Lexi is very, very proud of this day,” Angie said.
In the winter of 2020, on Highway 34 just east of Creston, 18-year-old Lexi Rounds was killed in a car crash just four days before her 19th birthday.
Angie was at work when her boss paged her.
“My heart just sank. I just knew. I just knew at that moment and I was like ‘No. No. No. No.’ I just kept saying no. Then, I was paged to HR and I just collapsed to the ground at that time and I was screaming,” said Angie.
“Definitely the worst day of my life too,” said Jeremy Rounds, Lexi’s father. “Things have not been the same since, by any means.”
He’s is still coping, too, after more than two years. But between Jeremy, Angie, and her wife, Lexi’s stepmom, Natasha Van Brunt-Wegscheid, the family picked things up where Lexi left off.
Lexi, the soccer player, military member and dog lover, was in the process of bringing a dog park to Creston before she was killed.
“This is something Lexi really wanted to do. She didn’t have the ability, as a highschooler, to get it done on her own. To be frank, she getting it done now,” Jeremy said.
“Her story and what happened to her, I feel, and her love for animals is what fueled this,” Angie added.
Not to mention, she also had a love for people.
“She was very much a servant individual,” said Jeremy.
Lexi’s friends know this firsthand.
“She impacted this community a lot… [and impacted] a lot of people,” said family friend Jessie Comstock.
“People knowing that it’s for Lexi, it’ll help her legacy live on forever,” Hanson said.
At the park grand opening, Hanson could feel Lexi’s presence.
“She’d be running around, petting all the dogs. She’d be going crazy. She was always like the fun spirit and loved everybody,” she said.
Young or old, Lexi’s dream has brought together people from all over Creston, and far beyond Iowa.
Lexi's memory motivated her parents to the grand opening day.
“It’s a labor of love for the family,” Comstock said.
It was a day of joy, but also a day of wondering.
“I’m not even sure how to describe it because once it’s completed then it’s like, ‘Now what?’” Jeremy said.
“I’ve had a focus through this all. Let’s get this open. Let’s do this. Let’s do this. Let’s do this. We’re doing it for her and for everybody in the community but it’ll be done,” Angie said.
The construction may be wrapping up, but the community around Lexi and her family is still building.
“Our family’s gotten to know a lot of cool people because of this. Good things come from bad things,” Jeremy said to the guests on opening day.
“I feel like it is a little patch of heaven right here,” Angie said.
Whether people knew Lexi or not, everyone’s welcome and everyone’s a friend in Lexi’s little patch of heaven.
Angie, Jeremy and Natasha said the family will continue to make improvements to the park. They say grants, donations and community members helped make the park possible.
Right now, the family is hoping someone can donate sod for landscaping and agility equipment for dogs. They're also accepting money donations.
You can follow updates on the park and get in touch with the family at the "Lexi's Puppy Patch" Facebook page. | https://www.weareiowa.com/article/news/local/creston-iowa-dog-park-family-lexi-rounds-teen-honored/524-68803b5b-9bad-4065-bf9b-eeb8e12082cd | 2023-05-12T13:46:13 | 0 | https://www.weareiowa.com/article/news/local/creston-iowa-dog-park-family-lexi-rounds-teen-honored/524-68803b5b-9bad-4065-bf9b-eeb8e12082cd |
COURIER STAFF
CEDAR FALLS — More than 1,400 students are gearing up to graduate from the University of Northern Iowa this weekend.
Ninety-one percent of the students are Iowa residents and nearly a third identify themselves as first-generation college graduates.
Panthers who will be earning their undergraduate or graduate degrees include:
474 College of Humanities, Arts and Sciences students. 339 College of Education students. 292 College of Social and Behavioral Sciences students. 257 College of Business students. 45 interdisciplinary students. There will be three commencement ceremonies in the McLeod Center and each will be available via livestream.
College of Business and College of Social Behavioral Sciences: 7 p.m. Friday.
Continuing Education and College of Education: 10 a.m. Saturday.
College of Humanities, Arts and Sciences: 2 p.m. Saturday. For two years in a row, UNI has achieved record-high graduation rates. The four-year graduation rate increased by 5% over last year and is nearly 20 percentage points above similar universities.
Overall, four of five UNI graduates and nine of 10 UNI transfer student graduates stay in Iowa to work after degree completion. One in 12 UNI students graduate in just three years. The increase in timely graduation contributes to UNI graduates holding the lowest average student loan debt of all public universities in Iowa.
The University of Northern Iowa's Campanile bells returned May 1, 2023, to the campus in Cedar Falls, with the first of the largest ones reinstalled back inside the structure May 3. Credit: Andy Milone.
Photos: 2023 Cedar Valley Top Nurses recipients at award ceremony
COURIER CELEBRATES CEDAR VALLEY'S TOP NURSES
The 2023 Cedar Valley Top Nurses recipients, front row from left, Carol Ratchford, Jake Powers, Allie Boyle, Christiara Deese, Amanda Vervaecke; back row, Tina Styron, Salem Fauser, Sarah Kutz, Danette Christensen and Andrea Burgart at the awards banquet ednesday at the Diamond Event Center in Cedar Falls. The Courier celebrated the Cedar Valley’s Top Nurses for the fifth consecutive year. Sponsors for the event included NewAldaya Lifescapes, Western Home Communities, MercyOne, UnityPoint Health, Cedar Valley Hospice and the Courier Media Group. See more photos at wcfcourier.com .
CHRIS ZOELLER, Courier Staff Photographer
Nurses 2
Cedar Valley top nurse recipient Allie Boyle of MercyOne-Waterloo Medical Center, center, with Courier Media's Doug Hines, right, and Sheila Kerns, left, at the awards banquet on Wednesday at the Diamond Event Center in Cedar Falls.
CHRIS ZOELLER Courier Staff Photographer
Nurses 3
Cedar Valley top nurse recipient Andrea Burgart of Cedar Valley Hospice and Reader’s Choice winner, center, with Courier Media's Doug Hines, left, and Sheila Kerns, right, at the awards banquet on Wednesday at the Diamond Event Center in Cedar Falls.
CHRIS ZOELLER Courier Staff Photographer
Nurses 4
Cedar Valley top nurse recipient Danette Christensen of Harmony Waterloo, center, with Courier Media's Doug Hines, right, and Sheila Kerns, left, at the awards banquet on Wednesday at the Diamond Event Center in Cedar Falls.
CHRIS ZOELLER Courier Staff Photographer
Nurses 5
Cedar Valley top nurse recipient Christiara Deese of Care Initiatives Inc., center, with Courier Media's Doug Hines, right, and Sheila Kerns, left, at the awards banquet on Wednesday at the Diamond Event Center in Cedar Falls.
CHRIS ZOELLER Courier Staff Photographer
Nurses 6
Cedar Valley top nurse recipient Salem Fauser of Black Hawk County Health Department, center, with Courier Media's Doug Hines, right, and Sheila Kerns, left, at the awards banquet on Wednesday at the Diamond Event Center in Cedar Falls.
CHRIS ZOELLER Courier Staff Photographer
Nurses 7
Cedar Valley top nurse recipient Sarah Kutz of UnityPoint-Allen Hospital, center, with Courier Media's Doug Hines, right, and Sheila Kerns, left, at the awards banquet on Wednesday at the Diamond Event Center in Cedar Falls.
CHRIS ZOELLER Courier Staff Photographer
Nurses 8
Cedar Valley top nurse recipient Jake Powers of MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center, center, with Courier Media's Doug Hines, right, and Sheila Kerns, left, at the awards banquet on Wednesday at the Diamond Event Center in Cedar Falls.
CHRIS ZOELLER Courier Staff Photographer
Nurses 9
Cedar Valley top nurse recipient Carol Ratchford of MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center, center, with Courier Media's Doug Hines, right, and Sheila Kerns, left, at the awards banquet on Wednesday at the Diamond Event Center in Cedar Falls.
CHRIS ZOELLER Courier Staff Photographer
Nurses 10
Cedar Valley top nurse recipient Tina Styron of UnityPoint-Allen Hospital, center, with Courier Media's Doug Hines, right, and Sheila Kerns, left, at the awards banquet on Wednesday at the Diamond Event Center in Cedar Falls.
CHRIS ZOELLER Courier Staff Photographer
Nurses 11
Cedar Valley top nurse recipient Amanda Vervaecke of UnityPoint Wound Clinic, center, with Courier Media's Doug Hines, right, and Sheila Kerns, left, at the awards banquet on Wednesday at the Diamond Event Center in Cedar Falls.
CHRIS ZOELLER Courier Staff Photographer
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SAN ANTONIO — Police are investigating a shooting west of downtown, but right now they still can't find a victim.
SAPD officers were called to the 100 block of San Martin Street around 12:45 a.m. Friday, where they say a woman shot at a man trying to break into her home.
The woman told police that it was her ex-boyfriend who trying to break into her house.
She said she shot at him after an argument had escalated.
According to police the two were inside the house when they started arguing about a phone call the man had made.
When the woman kicked the man out, he tried to force his way back inside the home, according to police.
The woman says she shot at the man in self-defense and believes she hit him, but he fled from the home before police arrived.
No arrests were made and police say no gunshot victims were treated at local hospitals.
Police are still investigating.
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Want to get in touch with someone at KENS 5? You can send a message using our Contacts page or email one of our team members. | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/police-investigating-a-shooting-west-of-downtown-but-havent-found-the-victim-sapd-san-antonio-texas-gun-weapon/273-9becc4cc-17e6-4ff5-9529-8cf7aa464b8c | 2023-05-12T13:51:00 | 0 | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/police-investigating-a-shooting-west-of-downtown-but-havent-found-the-victim-sapd-san-antonio-texas-gun-weapon/273-9becc4cc-17e6-4ff5-9529-8cf7aa464b8c |
TAMPA, Fla. — Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Shaquil Barrett posted a "thank you" note on Thursday afternoon on Instagram to all those who supported his family in the wake of losing his 2-year-old daughter.
Barrett's young daughter, Arrayah Barrett, drowned on April 30 after falling into a pool at the family's home in South Tampa.
Barrett said in part, "...Not a single card, note, prayer, or thought has gone unnoticed. We feel the love from everywhere and that wouldn't be possible without you all."
A 911 call came in at around 9:27 a.m. Sunday, April 30, from the family's home near South West Shore Boulevard about a toddler found in a pool.
Tampa Fire Rescue responded and performed CPR on the girl and was able to get a pulse back, authorities said the time. Arrayah Barrett was taken to Tampa General Hospital but later died.
The Bucs released a statement following the girl's death:
"Today’s tragic news is heartbreaking for all members of the Buccaneers family. Our thoughts and prayers are with Shaq, Jordanna and the entire Barrett family during this unimaginably difficult time.
"While no words can provide true comfort at a time such as this, we offer our support and love as they begin to process this very profound loss of their beloved Arrayah."
Barrett, 30, and his wife, Jordanna, have three other children.
Tampa police said it believed the drowning was "a purely accidental and tragic accident." | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/shaquil-barrett-posts-thank-you-note/67-711fb8fe-d3ea-4041-9bd6-24f501a2fa97 | 2023-05-12T13:51:06 | 1 | https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/shaquil-barrett-posts-thank-you-note/67-711fb8fe-d3ea-4041-9bd6-24f501a2fa97 |
Fighting loneliness: Volusia Memorial Funeral Home group LIFT helps local widows
PORT ORANGE — When Brenda Hurley started a widows and widowers group with Volusia Memorial Funeral Home in Port Orange, four people attended the first meeting.
She could not have predicted that almost six years later, LIFT (Living Information for Today) would have about 80 members.
“We went back through a couple of years of families we had helped here at the funeral home, sent out a letter to the widow or widower that we were starting the program,” Hurley, the funeral home’s director and LIFT coordinator, said in an interview.
Of the four women who attended that first meeting, three are still involved with the group. The fourth has since passed away.
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The group aims to help bereaved men and women learn about their community and experience new opportunities as they look beyond their loss.
The latest meeting took place Wednesday when members met at the Port Orange Regional Library to learn about computers and technology with help from the librarians and library staff.
Equipped with their own phones, tablets and electronic devices, the most popular question asked was how to use the audiobook app Hoopla.
Terrie Frazier, who loves attending LIFT meetings, was one of the many who wanted to learn more about Hoopla.
“That was amazing,” she said. “I had no idea.”
She was also surprised by how many events the library offers.
“I just figured the library you go get a book and that’s it,” Frazier said. “I had no idea they had so many activities.”
LIFT offers widows and widowers a social outlet
Hurley said many of the group’s members are clients of the funeral home, though that is not a requirement for participation.
Besides the special monthly activities, the group gathers quarterly for lunches at the funeral home.
“Many of these ladies were married more than 50 years — some even 60,” Hurley said. “Imagine now you’re alone. Discussions you used to have are gone and you are now taking on new responsibilities — sometimes their financial situation changes, too.
“So there are all kinds of things that add a burden on top of the loneliness and the grief,” she added.
Hurley emphasized that LIFT is not a grief-sharing group — the funeral home does offer that service to its clients.
“We are social,” she said of LIFT. “We just try to get together and do things.”
Some of these activities include guest speakers at the funeral home, going to the theater, taking boat rides, and volunteering with local schools and others.
Last year they traveled on the SunRail to Winter Park. Since the activity was so popular among members, Hurley knew they should do it again.
“This year we did more, we went a little further on the train,” Hurley said of their trip to Orlando.
Avoiding loneliness
According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, loneliness and social isolation pose "a serious threat to our mental and physical health."
Being unpartnered, living alone and losing a loved one are among the many factors that might increase a person's risk of loneliness.
According to the agency, loneliness costs the U.S. economy an estimated $406 billion a year and $6.7 billion a year in Medicare costs for socially isolated older adults.
Everyone grieves differently
Hurley said she shares information about LIFT with clients who arrange their late partner's service and who might be interested in joining the group.
She follows up with these clients every few months to ask whether they have considered coming to one of the meetings or lunches.
“Everyone has different timing,” she said of those who join. “Some need time, some need months. I get it.”
Frazier was one of those clients. She lost her husband in October 2018 and her son three months later in January.
“It took me about seven months to join the group,” Frazier said. “I made myself go for a few times.”
She said she appreciates the way Hurley and the funeral home make an extra effort to keep in touch with their clients to offer more help.
“It’s a support that I really needed and I still do,” Frazier said. “And Brenda is marvelous. I can’t imagine anybody doing a better job than she does … It’s a nice group of ladies and they do care.”
Frazier said the group doesn’t make up for losing her husband and son, but “it makes it a little easier to cope, knowing that somebody is there, somebody listens, somebody cares.”
“It really is a wonderful group.”
Vivian Grinnen is one of LIFT's first members. She heard about the group from a friend who had attended one of the meetings and asked her to come along.
“So I did, and I will never regret it,” Grinnen said. “Because it has really helped fill that void in my life.”
Hurley said a big part of her motivation to keep the group going is trying to make the lives of those who lost their partners a little less lonely.
“In no way we can replace what they have lost, but they can meet new people who have navigated the same thing and can enjoy getting together to do some new things,” Hurley said. “They find a new purpose; they find new things to do to occupy them. At any age, we all need purpose in our lives.” | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/local/volusia/2023/05/12/local-widows-group-lift-help-those-in-grief-to-find-new-purpose/70175123007/ | 2023-05-12T13:53:30 | 1 | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/local/volusia/2023/05/12/local-widows-group-lift-help-those-in-grief-to-find-new-purpose/70175123007/ |
Daniel Penny, a 24-year-old Marine veteran from Long Island, will face 2nd-degree manslaughter charges in the NYC subway chokehold death of street performer Jordan Neely, a case that spurred global outrage.
Penny's lawyers have previously said their client was acting to defend himself and others and could not have foreseen that Neely, who was homeless and suffered from mental illness, would have died.
Who Is Daniel Penny?
Penny is a 2016 graduate of Long Island's West Islip High School and has most recently lived in Queens.
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Military records indicate he spent four years in the Marines, rising to the rank of sergeant before being discharged in June 2021. While in the service he earned a number of awards, including the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal.
Penny's attorneys have said their client was a college student, though NBC News reported Penny may have at one point dropped out of college to backpack through Central America.
At one point Penny sought work as a bartender in Manhattan, NBC also reported. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/who-is-daniel-penny-marine-veteran-charged-with-manslaughter-in-jordan-neely-chokehold-case/4327975/ | 2023-05-12T13:53:45 | 0 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/who-is-daniel-penny-marine-veteran-charged-with-manslaughter-in-jordan-neely-chokehold-case/4327975/ |
Discriminating against someone because of weight when it comes to work, housing or in public accommodation would be barred in New York City under a bill passed Thursday by the City Council.
The measure would amend city law to add weight and height to the list of identifiers that are considered protected, like race, sexual orientation, gender identity and national origin.
“People with different body types are not only denied jobs and promotions that they deserve, their whole existence has also been denied by a society that has offered no legal remedy for this prejudice,” said Councilmember Shaun Abreu, who sponsored the legislation.
He said New York would join a handful of cities in the country with similar protections. Michigan is the only state with a law that expressly bans weight discrimination, while in Washington state, a court ruled that obesity is covered under an anti-discrimination law for employees with disabilities.
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A few other states have had legislation introduced on the issue for consideration.
The New York City bill carves out exemptions for jobs where height or weight considerations are integral to the role being performed. It was approved by a committee vote of 4-0 Thursday, with one member absent. See the full text.
It now goes to Mayor Eric Adams, who has said in the past that weight shouldn't be a basis for treating people differently. There was no immediate response to an email sent to his office seeking comment.
More NYC Council
News 4's Erica Byfield contributed to this reporting. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/nyc-council-bill-adds-weight-height-to-protected-classes-for-discrimination/4328262/ | 2023-05-12T13:53:54 | 1 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/nyc-council-bill-adds-weight-height-to-protected-classes-for-discrimination/4328262/ |
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — The Wichita Ethics Advisory Board found that Mayor Brandon Whipple violated City Council policy in an incident with a Wichita police officer at a neighborhood association cleanup.
In September of 2022, Whipple attempted to take a load of trash to a pick-up location in south Wichita, where he had a rental home.
Body camera video showed Whipple arguing with the officer who asked him to use a different entrance. Then, the video shows Whipple calling the city manager to say he’d make a complaint about the officer.
The mayor said he was embarrassed by the video but was surprised the body camera did not capture the entire incident.
In its findings, the Ethics Advisory Board says, “The combination of the mayor going in the wrong entrance, refusing to turn around to get in line or leave, contacting the manager during the encounter with the police officer, stating multiple times that the officer ‘didn’t know who I was’ constitutes seeking favor or private gain. The result was the mayor dumped his trash without waiting in line and used the privilege of direct access to the city manager.”
The board said Whipple violated the portion of the policy which says the council should “seek no favors, nor use the prestige of the office for private gain,” but also said it was not a serious violation.
The board said ethics training is required if the complaint is ruled a violation.
The mayor and the person who filed the complaint have seven days to dispute the board’s findings, or the findings become final. | https://www.ksn.com/news/local/ethics-advisory-board-says-wichita-mayor-violated-policy/ | 2023-05-12T13:55:15 | 0 | https://www.ksn.com/news/local/ethics-advisory-board-says-wichita-mayor-violated-policy/ |
GENESEE TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WJRT) - A large-scale search for a missing 5-year-old girl in Genesee Township ended with her being found safe Friday morning.
The girl, who is nonverbal, was last seen in the Indian Hills Manor Mobile Home Park off Genesee Road. Authorities are not sure exactly when she walked away from home.
The Genesee Township Police Department says the girl was found safe and healthy just before 9:30 a.m.
The Genesee County 911 Communications Center sent an alert to area residents about the search early Friday morning. Residents also noticed helicopters, drones, K-9 teams and ground search crews looking for the girl. | https://www.abc12.com/news/local/5-year-old-missing-from-genesee-township-was-found-safe/article_9f93256e-f0c2-11ed-9471-b3e6bfa2924d.html | 2023-05-12T13:57:27 | 1 | https://www.abc12.com/news/local/5-year-old-missing-from-genesee-township-was-found-safe/article_9f93256e-f0c2-11ed-9471-b3e6bfa2924d.html |
BLOOMINGTON — Cornerstone Christian Academy graduation will be held at 6 p.m. Saturday, May 27 at the school, 22017 E. 1200 North Road, Bloomington.
The valedictorian is Ryan Allen.
The graduates are as follows:
A-F
Ryan Allen, Jakson Baber, Raegan Biggs, Noah Bricker, Brookelynn Cail, John Clark, Mason Dembs, Anna Exner
G-K
Joaquin Gonzalez, Clare Gott, Jessica Halvorsen, Kallista Hammer, Joshua Heil, Benjamin Heinz, Austin Henard, Alexis Huettemann
L-P
Faith Miller, Abigail Nelson, Daniel Nelson, Joshua Nelson, Hayden Parker
Q-Z
Breea Scogin, Connor Scott, John Shearin, Caden Smith, Olivia Smith, Connor Stilwell, Micah Walker, Gabriel Wilson, Tate Witt, and Cade Wolfe.
Meet the 2023 prom royalty in Central Illinois
It's prom season in Central Illinois! Here's a look at prom courts for area high schools. | https://pantagraph.com/news/local/education/cornerstone-christian-academy-2023-graduates/article_13d5a1a0-ef69-11ed-8588-e33347c5fd34.html | 2023-05-12T14:09:52 | 0 | https://pantagraph.com/news/local/education/cornerstone-christian-academy-2023-graduates/article_13d5a1a0-ef69-11ed-8588-e33347c5fd34.html |
Welcome back to another episode of Long Story Short as D. Jack Alkire, Kelsey Watznauer and guest reporter Mateusz Janik take you through the top stories of the week in Central Illinois from Lee Enterprises Journalists.
This week, the team discusses:
- ISU grad student Jonathan Chilaka receives life saving kidney transplant.
- Murder trial continues in spite of defendant's absence
- Veteran Mattoon school board president retires
- Visitors see Decatur "in a new light"
- Bloomington OK's liquor licenses for sales at farmers markets
To read more about any of the stories mentioned this week, find our full reporting at pantagraph.com, herald-review.com and jg-tc.com. Subscribe to 'Long Story Short' for free at Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts.
Music by Diamond Tunes. | https://pantagraph.com/news/local/listen-grad-student-receives-kidneys-murder-trial-continues-a-new-sign-and-more-on-long/article_08d0ecea-f04c-11ed-8325-83e753669b57.html | 2023-05-12T14:09:58 | 1 | https://pantagraph.com/news/local/listen-grad-student-receives-kidneys-murder-trial-continues-a-new-sign-and-more-on-long/article_08d0ecea-f04c-11ed-8325-83e753669b57.html |
Name: Marciara Fuller
School: Bradford High School
Parents: Marcus and Alice Fuller
Most memorable high school moment: My junior year, when I had the pleasure to meet a local author, Deanna Singh, who wrote a book called “Purposeful Hustle” in the books she highlights how she was a young girl from Wisconsin who broke generational curses by choosing to go further her education in New York which has landed her to be so successful and give other students that same hope to do the same. She has inspired me to find that purpose and use other resources to fulfill that purpose and live out my passion.
Most influential teachers: Scott Coey and Selena Jaramillo in Sociology, AP Human Geography, Global Studies, and World History (Mr. Coey) and Ethnic Studies & reading interventions (Ms. Jaramillo); Mr. Coey and Ms. Jaramillo have gone above and beyond in their classrooms. They have gone the extra mile to ensure that all their students' needs are met. My freshman year was definitely hard trying to transition from a charter school to a public school and I was really hard on myself while taking Mr. Coey’s class and he has instilled in me that it is not always about the grade that you receive but instead about what you learned. For that, I am very grateful for his continuance of guidance and support throughout my high school years. Ms. Jaramillo is such an incredible teacher, she is a certified yoga instructor which I believe is a great asset to our students. She is very adamant about self care and protecting energy. WIth her introducing me to yoga has helped me tremendously with my mental health. Collectively both of these individuals had significantly impacted me. They have allowed me to find my voice and become a student activist and become proactive in my community.
People are also reading…
School activities/clubs: Choir/madrigals, DECA, freshman mentors, Link Crew, National Honor Society, yearbook, African American Youth Initiative
School offices held: President of the National Honors Society; Vice President of Career development in DECA; Vice President of the African American Youth Initiative
Honors, letters or awards: Student of the Month-2020,2022; Mayor's youth Award-2021; Academic GPA 3.5 or higher-2021
Out-of-school activities/hobbies: Member of Building our Future-Youth Town Hall; Singing; Reading, doing yoga; painting
College choice: Georgia State University in Atlanta, Ga.
Intended major/field of study: Nursing
Role model: My oldest brother
Three words that best describe my role model: Passionate, Driven, and Bold
What I hope to accomplish in my lifetime: My passion drives my actions everyday. I want to change lives, I want to work hard, I want to help others. My dream is to become a travel nurse. This career is inspiring on multiple levels for me. I can be the change in my community that is so desperately needed. | https://kenoshanews.com/news/local/todays-teen-2023-marciara-fuller-of-bradford-high-school/article_9a66d62e-edef-11ed-962b-4f7d4be00314.html | 2023-05-12T14:22:54 | 0 | https://kenoshanews.com/news/local/todays-teen-2023-marciara-fuller-of-bradford-high-school/article_9a66d62e-edef-11ed-962b-4f7d4be00314.html |
DULUTH — The Spirit Mountain Nordic Center is about to grow larger and more interconnected with some help from local cross-country ski enthusiasts.
The Duluth Cross-Country Ski Club, often referred to as DXC, will contribute $114,000 to help complete Phase II of the center’s development plan. The project will include the construction of a 2.2-kilometer connector trail to link the newer loops at the base of Spirit Mountain with the more extensive established network of trails up top. It also will fund the purchase and installation of a new water pump to boost the snow-making capacity of the Nordic Center below the ski hill, with the upper trails that still rely on natural snowfall.
“The big piece will be the connector," DXC President Jake Morgan said.
“The lower trails at Spirit are definitely more difficult. They’re nice for racing and high-level training, but a little more challenging for someone learning how to ski or someone not as confident on their skis,” he said.
Morgan said the connector will enable people to directly access the more varied and less technical trail network at the top of Spirit Mountain from the Grand Avenue Chalet.
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Even though there’s a significant change in elevation from the trails at the base of the ski hill to those at the top, Morgan said, “It will be kind of a gradual climb with some switchbacks. There is a route planned that allows for a fairly shallow pitch to get to the top. And it will be two-way, obviously. So, I’m thinking they’ll make it wide enough to accommodate that.”
The project is expected to be completed in time for the 2024-25 ski season.
The total cost of the Phase II improvements, including the construction of an additional 800 meters of looped trail, is expected to total about $800,000, with the city itself investing $58,000 from its St. Louis River Corridor Initiative, funded by a dedicated sales tax, said Jim Filby Williams, director of Duluth’s parks, libraries and property division. State and federal grants have made up the difference.
The city also seeks state funding to assist with Phase III Nordic Center improvements, expected to cost about $1.4 million
“The vision was to establish a regional flagship cross-country skiing destination,” Filby Williams said.
Morgan said the improvements should only make Spirit Mountain a more attractive ski destination and venue for races, such as Olympic-qualifying events and Junior National competitions.
What we found is that people would show up at the Grand Avenue Chalet and ask: 'Well, where’s the Nordic center?' And we’d say: 'You are here.'
“There are some more high-level races being discussed and in the works right now. So, because of our cold climate and now our ability to make snow in that cold climate, there’s demand for us to be a place to go where we can almost guarantee to host a race on a scheduled date,” he said.
“It would basically enable us to offer very reliable skiing from November through March,” said Filby Williams, noting that despite hefty snowfalls the past couple of years, weather patterns have become less predictable.
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This isn’t the first time DXC has stepped forward. The club also contributed $430,00 for Phase I of the Nordic center.
Filby Williams said the initial funding in 2018 was sufficient to construct 2.5 kilometers of trail and provide snow-making capacity for about half of that distance.
“The current asset has been heavily used, particularly early in the season, even though it is probably one-third complete,” he said, predicting its popularity will grow with its size.
“The connection will establish an interlinked trail system with three hubs — Magney, Upper Spirit and Lower Spirit — with more than 37 kilometers of exceptionally high-quality trails," Filby Williams said. "So, that creates a destination experience for vacationers and the possibility of larger, longer cross-country skiing events that have the value of significantly adding value to our tourism industry and our long-standing tradition of Nordic skiing in Duluth."
Morgan, too, expects the trail network will draw increased interest.
“A lot of trails generally become famous because they have such a variety of terrain and reliable snow and a large amount of trails that you can easily access, and that’s all going to be the case at Spirit, once this is built out. We’ll have a reliable man-made loop with lights. And then, there will be a nice connector from that loop up to another 20 to 30 kilometers of beautiful trails with great, varied terrain,” he said.
The name of the system will be updated along with the improvements. It used to be referred to as the Grand Avenue Nordic Center, but will be renamed the "Spirit Mountain Nordic Center," in a move that only makes sense to reduce confusion, said Ann Glumac, executive director of the Spirit Mountain Recreation Area.
“What we found is that people would show up at the Grand Avenue Chalet and ask: 'Well, where’s the Nordic center?' And we’d say: 'You are here.'"
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“Since Spirit is maintaining it and grooming it and planning the races and things, this is kind of a branding move for us, because those events can draw a lot of attention, and Spirit Mountain wasn’t really being mentioned. That didn’t quite seem right to us,” Glumac said. | https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/local/duluth-nordic-center-prepares-to-expand | 2023-05-12T14:25:03 | 0 | https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/local/duluth-nordic-center-prepares-to-expand |
ORLANDO, Fla. – The Orlando SlingShot, a thrill ride at ICON Park in the city’s tourist district, reopened Thursday, more than a year after suspending operations when a 14-year-old fell to his death at a nearby attraction owned by the same company.
The SlingShot, which catapults riders up to 450 feet into the air at speeds of 100 mph in less than two seconds, was closed in March 2022 after Tyre Sampson died when he fell from his seat on the Orlando FreeFall, a drop tower ride.
An investigation into the tragedy shows Sampson’s seat wasn’t properly secure because of the teen’s size, and manual changes were made to the seat’s sensor that made the ride unsafe.
The SlingShot Group, which owns the attractions, closed both thrill rides after the teen’s death. The Orlando FreeFall was later dismantled after owners of the ride agreed to do so in October.
SlingShot Group CEO Ritchie Armstrong on Thursday released a statement about the reopening.
“Today, we reopened the SlingShot ride on the south side of International Drive. We did this in close consultation with the Florida Department of Agriculture and all appropriate regulatory authorities. We also worked with a third party national safety company to guide our reopening procedures and help train the workers who will be operating the ride. It is important to know that this ride is a totally different ride from the FreeFall, which has been disassembled and removed from this property entirely. The safety of our patrons continues to be our highest priority and that is why we were supportive of the Tyre Sampson Act being passed by the Florida Legislature this year.”
[STORY CONTINUES BELOW]
We’re at ICON Park where the Orlando Slingshot ride is reopening for its first full day in more than a year.
— Mark Lehman (@MarkLehman6) May 12, 2023
The ride, which is operated by the same company as the now disassembled Orlando FreeFall attraction, has been closed since the death of Tyre Sampson. pic.twitter.com/IW6BjPuF8Q
Earlier this year, ICON Park, where the rides are located, issued a statement about the dismantling of Orlando FreeFall.
“There is nothing more important to ICON Park than the safety of our guests and employees, and we’ve been supportive in assisting Sen. Thompson with her proposed legislation,” ICON Park said in a statement on Wednesday. “We agree with the goal to ensure extra diligence and oversight with mid- to small-attraction operators for ride training, testing and process documentation, which we also focus on in our own rigorous ride safety protocols. While the FreeFall ride is not owned and was not controlled or operated by ICON Park, because it is a tenant on the property, we agree with the owner’s decision to dismantle the ride and our hearts are with the family as they witness this important milestone.”
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday signed the Tyre Sampson Act into law, providing more oversight to amusement park rides.
The legislation includes requirements for a seat belt and harness for any ride that goes over 100 feet and for all rides to be regularly commissioned, certified and tested by a separate regulatory agency.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/05/12/orlando-slingshot-reopens-at-icon-park-over-year-after-death-of-tyre-sampson-on-nearby-thrill-ride/ | 2023-05-12T14:29:46 | 0 | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/05/12/orlando-slingshot-reopens-at-icon-park-over-year-after-death-of-tyre-sampson-on-nearby-thrill-ride/ |
Charlevoix County government offices make move to new location
CHARLEVOIX — This month, several additional Charlevoix County government offices will make the move from their long-time downtown location at 210 State St. to a new building at 13513 Division St. in Charlevoix Township dubbed the Shirley Roloff Center.
Since taking occupancy of the new building — formerly the Charlevoix Elementary School — in the summer of 2020, Charlevoix County officials have been busy upgrading and transitioning their facility towards the ultimate goal of moving every non-court related office to the new location, according to Charlevoix County Administrator Kevin Shepard.
In November 2017, the county agreed to purchase the Division Street school building from Charlevoix Public Schools at a cost of $1.4 million, contingent on school district voters approving the $14.3 million bond proposal to relocate the elementary school to its current location at 108 E. Garfield Ave.
“Much of the work has been supported through grants, and as much of the work as possible, has been completed by in-house staff,” said Shepard.
First taking occupancy was the Charlevoix Senior Center, the Commission on Aging, the Veterans Affairs office and the county administration offices. This past week, the equalization department and the planning department made the move, with others to follow over the next month.
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The county clerk’s office, the Prosecuting Attorney’s office, and the Charlevoix County courts will remain at the State Street location. No decision has been made on what to do with the empty space left at the downtown location. Shepard said in a recent planning session, the Charlevoix County Commission discussed the potential of moving the sheriff’s department into the old building. With the goal being to move as many “customer service-type” county functions as possible to the Division Street location, the current county building downtown will be mainly a court-centered building.
The new building is still a work in progress, with upgrades remaining to be done.
At the board of commissioners meeting on April 26, a few county employees provided feedback regarding the moving process.
Equalization Department Director Emily Selph was concerned about the preparedness of the new location.
“The parking lot lines are barely visible, there are no signs telling people where to park, there is no signage in the building labeling offices or directing people where to go, there has been no formal announcement to the public about the move happening and when they are going to need to come to the new building for service, the cameras are not installed in the new building and there are no panic buttons for us to alert law enforcement in an emergency," she said during public comment.
Selph also expressed confusion as to why the move was occurring despite the new property not yet being formerly annexed by the city. The Shirley Rolof Center sits in Charlevoix Township, but according to state law the county clerk, treasurer and register of deeds must be located within the boundaries of the City of Charlevoix.
Selph conveyed her frustration with possibly having to operate out of two office locations until the annexation is complete and suggested the move be delayed until completion.
County officials approached the township to begin the annexation process in March, according to Charlevoix Township Supervisor Dan Ulrich. As of the date of publication, the annexation will be on the township’s agenda for review in June.
According to Shepard, the move is going to continue despite the annexation delay and those offices with legal requirements will continue to operate out of the old building until legally authorized to move to the new one.
For more information about county services, visit charlevoixcounty.org or contact the Charlevoix County administration office at (231) 237-0156 and administration@charlevoixcounty.org. The office is located at the Shirley Roloff Center at 13513 Division St. in Charlevoix.
— Contact reporter Annie Doyle at (231)675-0099 or adoyle@charlevoixcourier.com. Follow her on Twitter, @adoylenews. | https://www.petoskeynews.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/charlevoix-county-government-offices-make-move-to-new-location/70203313007/ | 2023-05-12T14:30:32 | 0 | https://www.petoskeynews.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/charlevoix-county-government-offices-make-move-to-new-location/70203313007/ |
Council approves subsidy for soccer league's water bills
GAYLORD — Councilman Vic Ouellette said he was sympathetic to the position of the Gaylord Soccer League as the youth sports organization was trying to alleviate its rising water bills for keeping the soccer fields green and in good condition.
But the group's proposed solution of allowing it to drill a water well on the property it leases from the city located behind the North Ohio Elementary School on Fairview Road across from Fairview Cemetery was problematic. The city discourages private wells, allowing exceptions for the maintenance and upkeep of golf courses and ski resorts. Ouellette said he wasn't comfortable with granting the soccer league permission for a well and having to say no to other requests.
In stepped city attorney Paul Slough with a possible solution. He suggested that the city amend the lease and contribute to the youth league's water bills much like it does now for the upkeep of the neighboring Fairview Cemetery. City manager Kim Awrey said the city pays about $10,000 annually to help irrigate the cemetery.
An organizer said water bills for the soccer fields totaled about $21,000 last year. A motion was made and approved that will allow the city to contribute up to a third, or $7,000, to help the group cover its water bills.
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In other matters, council accepted a bid of $701,802 from MacArthur Construction of Hillman for street work this year on North Elm between Mitchell and Petoskey streets and a block on Sheldon between Center and Elm. The bid came in below estimates for the projects.
Finally, city clerk Jennifer Molski said approximately 13 percent of the city's registered voters participated in the May 2 election. She noted that only about 2 percent voted with an absentee ballot.
— Contact Paul Welitzkin at pwelitzkin@gaylordheraldtimes.com. | https://www.petoskeynews.com/story/news/local/gaylord/2023/05/12/gaylord-council-approves-subsidy-for-soccer-leagues-water-bills/70199338007/ | 2023-05-12T14:30:38 | 1 | https://www.petoskeynews.com/story/news/local/gaylord/2023/05/12/gaylord-council-approves-subsidy-for-soccer-leagues-water-bills/70199338007/ |
Library program to focus on Titanic survivors
GAYLORD — Lives were dramatically changed among those who survived the sinking of the Titanic and at 6 p.m. on May 16 at the Otsego County Library in Gaylord, David Kaplan, noted Titanic observer, will present the biographies of six survivors of the disaster.
Kaplan will look at four passengers and two crew members. He will tell of their early years, their reasons for traveling on the famed ship and how they spent their five days aboard, and ending with how the individuals adapted to their normal lives after finally reaching New York City.
Kaplan’s interest in the Titanic began when he was nine years old while watching the 1953 movie “Titanic” starring Clifton Webb, Barbara Stanwyck and Robert Wagner. From that point on, he has been studying the tragedy, the ship and its passengers.
Kaplan has been a member of the Titanic Historical Society for over four decades and subsequently joined the Titanic International Society and the Titanic Society of Atlantic Canada. Over that time, he has been lucky to meet 18 survivors, including Millvina Dean, the last living survivor of the tragedy. In addition, he made a visit to the ship’s sinking location in the North Atlantic Ocean where the IMAX movie “Titanica” was filmed.
This program will take place in the library’s second-floor meeting room. For more information, contact Mariah Hoover at the Otsego County Library at (989) 732-5841 or visit the library website. | https://www.petoskeynews.com/story/news/local/gaylord/2023/05/12/otsego-county-library-program-to-focus-on-titanic-survivors/70194363007/ | 2023-05-12T14:30:45 | 0 | https://www.petoskeynews.com/story/news/local/gaylord/2023/05/12/otsego-county-library-program-to-focus-on-titanic-survivors/70194363007/ |
Every morning, NBC 5 Today is dedicated to delivering you positive local stories of people doing good, giving back and making a real change in our community. | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/something-good/ernst-and-young-volunteers-did-somethinggood-at-st-philips-school-in-dallas/3256692/ | 2023-05-12T14:34:40 | 0 | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/something-good/ernst-and-young-volunteers-did-somethinggood-at-st-philips-school-in-dallas/3256692/ |
Thirteen people dead in two mass shootings. Eight immigrants killed when an SUV slams into a crowded bus stop. The likely approval of legislation that would let the Republican governor overturn elections in the most populous county, a Democratic stronghold. All in the past two weeks.
These issues and the forces behind them - anger and guns, immigration turmoil, deep political divisions about what democracy means - are playing out across American life in various ways. But in Texas, with its immense size and a population that grows by more than 1,000 people a day, the stage is far bigger - and often louder.
It's enough to make even the proudest Texan wrestle with how he sees the state.
"This is out of control right now," said Jay Leeson, an illustrator and cartoonist who lives in Lubbock, a city in the Texas High Plains. He describes himself as a "conservative West Texan" whose kids "know how to handle guns, know how to ride horses, know how to do all the Texas things."
The "Texas things." Texans have heard this all before. They've been hearing it for generations. That everyone is armed. That it's a wildly conservative place full of oil roughnecks and cowboys and brash braggarts. That it's nothing like the rest of the country, really.
Many Texans will tell you there's some truth to this. But Texas is also far more nuanced than a collection of clichés that consider the state through the narrowest of lenses.
Texas News
News from around the state of Texas.
Yet lately, things here have felt unrelenting. And what troubles some Texans is not how outsiders see the state, but whether those living here can navigate the divisive political climate - and overcome a complicated and sometimes violent past.
EVEN THOSE WHO SUPPORT GUNS FRET ABOUT THEM
Leeson is furious at how immigration has become a political battleground. He's furious at how Republicans "bleed every vote they can out of West Texas" to overcome growing populations in the state's heavily Democratic urban centers, from Houston to Dallas, Austin to San Antonio. The Texas Legislature is currently debating various bills that are targeting how Democratic Harris County, the state's most populous, runs its elections.
He's especially furious that his 9-year-old son is so worried about school shootings that he checked all the windows in his classroom to see which would open in case of an attack.
"I just think the whole thing is a damn mess," Leeson said.
Mass killings have a deep history in Texas. Arguably the first modern American mass shooting happened here in 1966, when an engineering student opened fire from a building observation deck at the University of Texas. He killed 14 people and wounded dozens more.
But the state's strict gun laws didn't begin to crack until a few years after another mass shooting - this one in 1991, when a gunman drove his pickup truck through the window of a central Texas cafeteria and killed 23 people. By then, decades of Democratic control were giving way to Republicans who saw gun rights as a key issue.
In 1995, then-Gov. George W. Bush signed legislation that allowed Texans to carry concealed guns. Today, Texans can carry weapons openly. Some do - passionately.
Chad Hasty, a well-known conservative talk radio host based in Lubbock, mourns the latest killings - "I don't want to get to a time where we're not shocked by a mass shooting" - but is adamant that gun rights be protected. He rarely leaves home without his Sig Sauer P365, a small firearm designed for everyday carrying and one of the best-selling pistols in America.
He dismisses the idea that Texas is particularly prone to violence.
"I don't view it as a uniquely Texas thing," he said. Instead, the number of mass shootings is simply a matter of size: "We're a huge state - millions and millions of people."
IT'S A STATE FAR MORE DIVERSE THAN THE CLICHÉS
The litany of Texas' mass killings in just the last few years is staggering: Sutherland Springs, 26 killed in 2017; Santa Fe, 10 killed in 2018; El Paso, 23 killed in 2019; Midland-Odessa, seven killed in 2019; Uvalde, 21 killed in 2022; Cleveland, five killed on April 28; Allen, eight killed on May 6.
Guns have long been a part of Texas culture - both in the state's mythology and in reality. But to equate the number of guns with the number of people killed by guns strikes some as a false equivalence.
"You'll never get people to give up their guns, nor do I believe you should," said Vanesa Brashier, the editor and publisher of Bluebonnet News, a site that covers rural areas north of Houston, including the town of Cleveland, where five immigrants were killed in a mass shooting on April 28.
She was deeply shaken by the killings, particularly by how some of the women died shielding their children from gunfire. But she considers herself pro-Second Amendment: "I want to be able to defend myself if someone comes calling that shouldn't be at my property."
Like so much in Texas, her politics are complex. Brashier, who calls herself a political independent, sees immigration as a good thing - "I just think we need to figure out a better way to do it."
Just two weeks ago she created a Spanish language news site to better inform the area's growing Latino population. She named the site "El Amanecer Texas" or Texas Sunrise, "because I wanted it to be hopeful."
"These residents who have moved here deserve to be informed about what's going on around them," she said. But the influx of immigrants has faced backlash from some residents, who feel "like there's been an invasion," Brashier said.
This week, Texas and other border states were preparing for the end of a policy that allowed the government to quickly expel migrants to Mexico. Gov. Greg Abbott has deployed more Texas National Guard troops in response to the end of the rule. The goal, Abbott said this week: to "secure the Texas border."
Texas' border cities have tended to be more welcoming to immigrants than other parts of the state, since many in these areas have long seen themselves and their Mexican neighbors as a big, blended community that transcends governments' political borders. In El Paso, for instance, more than 80 percent of nearly 700,000 residents are Latino. Many residents have family just across the border in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.
This situation at the border has created a welcoming community that reacts differently to various issues, including immigration, said Richard Pineda, director of the Sam Donaldson Center for Communication Studies at the University of Texas at El Paso. For Texas, he says, it's an outlier - a "fluid culture that goes back and forth."
BIG CHANGES IN THE STATE CAN LEAD TO TENSION
Texas can feel like a study in contrasts. Famed for its oil industry, but the producer of a quarter of the country's wind energy and a leader in solar power. Known for its open, undeveloped landscapes but home to some of the largest, fastest-growing cities in the land. Epitomized by the cowboy, but with some of the largest immigrant populations in America.
With more than 30 million people, Texas has long been a destination for outsiders from other U.S. states and abroad. Since 2010, it has gained nearly 4 million residents - more than any other state, according to U.S. Census figures. In 2020, Latino residents accounted for half the population growth, and many demographers believe Latinos will soon surpass whites as the state's largest ethnic group.
But it's not just Latinos. Texas has large populations of immigrants from India, China, the Philippines, Vietnam and elsewhere. Allen, where a gunman killed eight people at a mall on May 6, is among the Dallas-Fort Worth area's most diverse suburbs.
For nearly a century, Texas has had a one-word state motto: "Friendship." But many see that easygoing connection changing.
"I always thought of Texas as a friendly place. But to be honest, this last decade, it just feels meaner," said Chris Tomlinson, a fifth-generation Texan and a business columnist with the Houston Chronicle. He has written two best-sellers about Texas history, including "Forget the Alamo: The Rise and Fall of an American Myth."
Tomlinson notes that more than 70 percent of Texans over age 60 are non-Hispanic whites, while more than 70 percent of Texans under age 30 are people of color.
"That creates the tension that you see around voting rights and cultural issues like critical race theory and LGBTQ issues," he said. "When you have that level of demographic change, there is going to be tension."
Texas is among the states, for example, where drag shows have been targeted by right-wing activists and politicians, and Republican lawmakers have proposed restrictions on the shows.
At times, it can seem that the Texas population is shifting faster on many issues than the state's politics, which remain solidly conservative and Republican. A Democrat hasn't been elected to statewide office since 1994. Yet Tomlinson notes that polling indicates Texans aren't that different from the rest of the country when it comes to many issues, from abortion to immigration.
Then there are the guns - a reputation that, for better and worse, follows Texas everywhere. A survey last year by the University of Houston and Texas Southern University showed "overwhelming support" for at least some level of gun control. Yet few expect to see that in Texas anytime soon.
Gary Mauro, a longtime commissioner of the Texas Land Office who ran for governor in 1998, is one of those last statewide Democrats. Though he reserves most of his criticism for Republicans, he blames extremists in both parties for focusing on the political fringes - and amplifying some of the very clichés with which Texas continues to struggle.
"I keep thinking it's going to get better," he said of Texas politics. "And it keeps getting worse." | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/from-guns-to-immigration-texass-challenges-echo-the-countrys/3256747/ | 2023-05-12T14:34:46 | 1 | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/from-guns-to-immigration-texass-challenges-echo-the-countrys/3256747/ |
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News from around the state of Texas. | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/migrants-waiting-in-line-at-u-s-border-after-the-end-of-title-42/3256706/ | 2023-05-12T14:34:52 | 0 | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/migrants-waiting-in-line-at-u-s-border-after-the-end-of-title-42/3256706/ |
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News from around the state of Texas. | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/texas-politicians-representatives-weigh-in-on-influx-of-migrants-at-u-s-border-after-title-42-expiration/3256714/ | 2023-05-12T14:34:58 | 1 | https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/texas-news/texas-politicians-representatives-weigh-in-on-influx-of-migrants-at-u-s-border-after-title-42-expiration/3256714/ |
Baltimore Police released a video on Friday in the hopes that someone can identify a person of interest in a homicide case.
Do you recognize this man? Help #BPD homicide detectives identify a person of interest related to a May 5, 2023, deadly shooting.
— Baltimore Police (@BaltimorePolice) May 12, 2023
BPD: 410-396-2100@MCSMaryland: 1-866-7LOCKUPhttps://t.co/rwHneIcJSY
The victim, 29-year-old Isaiah Benjamin Jr. was shot on May 5th on the 6800 block of Elsrode Ave. He died of his injuries the following day.
Police ask anyone with information about the person of interest's identity are asked to call 410-396-2100 or Metro Crime Stoppers at 1-866-7LOCKUP. | https://www.wmar2news.com/local/bpd-releases-video-of-person-of-interest-in-homicide-case | 2023-05-12T14:35:37 | 0 | https://www.wmar2news.com/local/bpd-releases-video-of-person-of-interest-in-homicide-case |
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Virginia police officers shot and killed a man who had attacked a third police officer inside his cruiser, the police chief said.
The man shoved the officer through the open door of his cruiser and got on top of the officer, attacking him, Davis said. As the cruiser reversed out of control into the parking lot of a neighboring McDonald’s restaurant, where it hit a parked car, the officer broadcast calls for help saying the man had his gun, he said.
Two uniformed officers arrived, one fired several rounds and the other ran toward the vehicle, pulled the man off the officer being attacked and fired, striking the man, who died on the scene, Davis said.
“This scene was highly unusual and I’ve been on a lot of these scenes. I have never quite seen something like this,” Davis said. “That police officer, this was literally inside of his own police car fighting for his life.”
The officer had cuts, scrapes, bruises and a bloody right eye. Davis said he expected the officer to be released from the hospital.
Davis said investigators were reviewing body-worn camera footage of the incident. | https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/2023/05/12/fairfax-virginia-officer-attacked-police-shooting/c75b1d20-f0ce-11ed-b67d-a219ec5dfd30_story.html | 2023-05-12T14:36:09 | 0 | https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/2023/05/12/fairfax-virginia-officer-attacked-police-shooting/c75b1d20-f0ce-11ed-b67d-a219ec5dfd30_story.html |
Dr. Box, head of Indiana Department of Health, to retire at end of month
State Health Commissioner Dr. Kristina Box, who became a household name in Indiana when she oversaw the state’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, will retire at the end of the month.
Box had served as the head of the Indiana Department of Health since 2017, Dr. Lindsay Weaver, the state’s chief medical officer, will replace her in the role, Gov. Eric Holcomb announced Friday.
When Box took the post, she replaced Dr. Jerome Adams who left the state to become surgeon general for then President Donald Trump. At the time, Holcomb touted Box’s experience as an obstetrician-gynecologist as positioning her perfectly to lead the state’s efforts to reduce maternal and infant mortality.
Three years later, however, Box faced a completely unanticipated challenge: A global pandemic that required her to advise the governor on taking controversial actions to help stem the spread of the coronavirus.
In the early days of the pandemic, Box addressed the state alongside Holcomb, giving updates on the virus and efforts to fight it. She and Weaver led the state’s vaccination efforts, establishing mass clinics at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Along the way Box herself had two bouts with the virus.
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Over the past year as the state slowly returned to a semblance of normal, Box’s department launched the Governor’s Public Health Commission, which proposed a dramatic reworking of the state’s public health infrastructure to infuse local health departments with more money.
In an emailed statement, Holcomb said that he and Box had discussed her retirement nearly a year ago but she stayed on to help oversee the changes that the legislature approved this session.
“I respect no one more and am so pleased she’ll get to enjoy her next chapter, which is focusing on her family,” Holcomb said. “I could not have had a better partner in this role, especially in this time.”This story will be updated.
Contact IndyStar reporter Shari Rudavsky at shari.rudavsky@indystar.com. Follow her on Twitter @srudavsky. | https://www.indystar.com/story/news/local/indianapolis/2023/05/12/indiana-health-commissioner-led-response-covid-19-retire-dr-kristina-box/70211342007/ | 2023-05-12T14:37:57 | 0 | https://www.indystar.com/story/news/local/indianapolis/2023/05/12/indiana-health-commissioner-led-response-covid-19-retire-dr-kristina-box/70211342007/ |
EL DORADO HILLS, Calif. — El Dorado County announced the applicant for Project Frontier — the proposed 4 million square foot development in El Dorado Hills — withdrew their application.
El Dorado County said they were notified just before 4 p.m. Thursday of the applicant withdrawing, according to a social media announcement.
The county says they have no other information at this time.
This all comes after locals have been voicing their concerns for months about the planned project.
The El Dorado Hills Area Planning Advisory Committee held a meeting Wednesday night and many came out to share those concerns.
The committee held the meeting to discuss the economic impact of the plan and how much money the plan could bring back to the area.
ABC10 has been following the proposal for months. At a March meeting, the developer, Dermody Properties, shared the economic benefits of the project, saying those benefits included thousands of jobs with both construction and distribution center staffing. They also spoke of the revenue it could generate for the area.
The developer chose to keep the tenant's name private, but during our reporting, ABC10 found an incorrect address left on the plans submitted to the county that shows two identical-looking facilities in San Diego and the tenant there is Amazon.
Watch more from ABC10: A look at the proposed development in El Dorado Hills | To The Point | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/project-frontier-applicant-withdraws-application-el-dorado-hills/103-2412d073-e18d-4d6c-924b-38a0e9d3dbf9 | 2023-05-12T14:41:43 | 1 | https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/project-frontier-applicant-withdraws-application-el-dorado-hills/103-2412d073-e18d-4d6c-924b-38a0e9d3dbf9 |
Average daily flows
Snake River at Jackson 286 cfs
Snake River at Palisades 7,292 cfs
Snake River at Heise 8,499 cfs
Snake River at Blackfoot 6,379 cfs
Snake River at American Falls 6,985 cfs
Snake River at Milner 0 cfs
Little Wood River near Carey 573 cfs
Jackson Lake is 32% full.
Palisades Reservoir is 53% full.
American Falls Reservoir is 83% full.
Upper Snake River system is at 64% of capacity.
As of May 11 | https://magicvalley.com/news/local/average-daily-streamflows/article_70bacaa8-f031-11ed-b55a-6f4fe572969d.html | 2023-05-12T14:42:56 | 1 | https://magicvalley.com/news/local/average-daily-streamflows/article_70bacaa8-f031-11ed-b55a-6f4fe572969d.html |
BROWNS SUMMIT — From the roadside, some passersby who see the cluttered, decaying storefront are too young to remember it used to be the only place in town to purchase groceries.
It also was the site of a tragedy the night of Nov. 14, 1992. That was when authorities say Shashane Dedario Chambers shot grocer Ed Bowman twice and stole the store's cashbox from Bowman's sister before leaving in a car with two other men.
More than three decades later, some of the residents and relatives who best knew how that shooting rattled the heart of Browns Summit have either passed away or moved from the small rural community. Some others preferred not to comment on it, at least not publicly.
In a recent announcement, the North Carolina Post Release and Parole Commission said it would be reviewing parole for Chambers through the Mutual Agreement Parole Program (MAPP).
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Residents have until May 24 to voice their opinions to state parole officials about whether the man imprisoned in 1994 for the murder of Bowman should be considered for a pre-release program.
Chambers is one of three men who were charged in connection with the death of Bowman, 65, who died in a hospital more than five months later from complications related to the shooting.
After shooting Bowman twice in the abdomen, Chambers grabbed the cash box from Bowman's sister, Jean, who had closed up for the night at their Brown Summit Grocery. Family members of Ed Bowman have said it was in his nature to try to come to his sister's defense that night.
Chambers, who was 21 at the time, left the store with Steven O'Brian Alexander and Kenneth Rayfield Neal, who were also arrested.
In 1994, all three men pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, robbery with a dangerous weapon and conspiracy to commit armed robbery. Alexander is still in prison, and Neal, who was released on parole in 2012, completed parole in 2017, according to online records.
Chambers was sentenced to life in prison plus 50 years.
The state’s current sentencing law, Structured Sentencing, eliminates parole for crimes committed on or after Oct. 1, 1994, according to information provided by the Parole Commission. However, the commission has the responsibility of paroling offenders who were sentenced under previous sentencing guidelines.
As the parole commission reviews the case, members will consider information in support for or in protest of parole for Chambers, as well as the facts of the case, officials said in a news release.
MAPP is a scholastic and vocational program that is a three-way agreement between the Commission, the Division of Prisons, and the offender.
According to the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, participation in MAPP is available to inmates who are within three years of parole and meet the following criteria:
- Must be in medium or minimum custody
- Not be subject to a detainer or pending court action which could result in further confinement
- Be infraction-free for a period of 90 days prior to being recommended
- If sentenced under the Fair Sentencing Act, is otherwise eligible for 270-day parole or community service parole
Those who wish to write the commission can send an email to Parole.Commission@dac.nc.gov or send a letter to North Carolina Post-Release Supervision and Parole Commission, 4222 MSC, Raleigh, NC 27699 within the next few weeks, according to spokesman Greg Thomas.
When the commission completes its review, it will announce its decision. | https://greensboro.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/the-murder-of-a-hometown-grocer-shook-browns-summit-30-years-ago-now-one-of/article_2d1bd0b6-e434-11ed-af94-d739843399c4.html | 2023-05-12T14:57:07 | 1 | https://greensboro.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/the-murder-of-a-hometown-grocer-shook-browns-summit-30-years-ago-now-one-of/article_2d1bd0b6-e434-11ed-af94-d739843399c4.html |
Spring marks the beginning of a new era in Flagstaff Eagles football.
The Eagles began their spring practice period Monday, May 1, finally getting on the field and doing some basic drills under Mickey Clements, who took over as head coach in the offseason.
Checking out Flagstaff spring football practice today. It’s the first offseason under coach Mickey Clements and the revamped staff pic.twitter.com/S8rZUU0hu1
— Eric Newman (@enewmanwrites) May 10, 2023
The former defensive coordinator for the Eagles -- who in the winter signed on to lead after Sean Manning resigned -- has hired a few assistants, moved some others around and has a new-look roster to usher into the fall.
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“It’s a great opportunity for a lot of guys to step up,” Clements said. "It does feel, for a lot of reasons, like we’re trying to build our new culture with some new coaches and new players. It’s like we’re rinsing out and getting a new feel. There’s some chances for a lot of people."
It’s still early in the process of ramping up to full-contact, full-pads practice that the Eagles will have in the fall, but Flagstaff didn’t just start training when spring practices began. Clements made it a goal to get as many kids into the weight room after spring break as possible.
The goal, other than obviously becoming bigger and stronger, was to start the process of building camaraderie. The Eagles graduated more than 10 seniors who started or played regularly -- including the full starting offensive line -- from last year’s team, and will need to fill those roster and leadership roles.
Throughout the last few weeks, Clements said, he’s had around 30 to 40 athletes at each weight session, and there’s a renewed enthusiasm from what he's seen.
“It’s been great commitment from the guys that are showing up,” Clements said. “We’ve obviously got a lot of guys that are two- or three-sport athletes, and spring was really good for them. So we’re still having some more kids trickle in. But we’ve got the culture in the weight room that you need.”
He also noted that Flagstaff needs to improve on its physicality. The weight room and dedication are the main emphases, even as spring continues. It will continue into the summer, even as the Eagles play in some 7-on-7 passing competitions or other regular summer activities.
Overall strength in the trenches was a weakness for the Eagles in the past, especially last season, when they went 2-8 overall and 0-5 in the Grand Canyon Region standings. There is no way to prepare fully for the contact of a game, but the 4A Conference Eagles are looking to come as close to it as possible.
“You don’t want to keep getting pushed around out there, and that starts now. It’s a physical region and we want to represent our team in that way,” Clements said.
Flagstaff will continue its spring period for the next few weeks. It will keep training in the weight room and do conditioning drills throughout the summer before finally getting to full practices in the fall. It will play in the summer 7-on-7 passing tournament at Northern Arizona University in June. | https://azdailysun.com/sports/local/flagstaff-football-takes-on-spring-practices-under-new-coach-clements/article_c3d5750e-f017-11ed-b651-274559624d1e.html | 2023-05-12T15:07:11 | 0 | https://azdailysun.com/sports/local/flagstaff-football-takes-on-spring-practices-under-new-coach-clements/article_c3d5750e-f017-11ed-b651-274559624d1e.html |
LOWER TOWNSHIP — A small plane crashed off the runway at the Cape May County airport on Thursday evening during takeoff.
The single-engine plane, a Piper PA-28, was carrying three people when it crashed at the airfield at about 7:15 p.m., the Federal Aviation Administration said.
Township Police Capt. Donald Vanaman on Friday said no injuries were reported, adding that the three occupants declined medical assistance. The plane suffered minor damage, Vanaman said.
Dan Robinson, a local drone photographer, was delivering for DoorDash, he said, when he saw the crash as first responders arrived. Robinson stopped and starting shooting video and photos of the accident, he said.
"The scene was scary, but I was happy that there were no injuries," said Robinson, 47, of Wildwood.
The plane is registered to John Smith, of the township's Cold Spring section. It was unclear whether or not Smith was on board at the time of the crash.
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Police arrived shortly after receiving a call about the incident at approximately 7:10 p.m., When police arrived, they found the aircraft in the northern section of the runways.
The aircraft was still at the crash site off Runway 19 on Friday, Delaware River and Bay Authority Public Information Officer James Salmon said. The runway would be reopened once FAA inspectors finish their work and the plane is removed, Salmon said.
Salmon said he was informed that a student pilot was flying the plane with an instructor and the third occupant on board when the crash happened. The student was practicing an engine failure situation when the accident happened, Salmon said.
The crash's cause remained under investigation, officials said.
No airport equipment was damaged by the crash, Salmon said.
A multi-agency response was conducted by township police, Middle Township police, the Cape May County Sheriff's Department, Delaware River and Bay Authority officials and local fire and rescue crews, police said. | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/plane-crash-cape-may-county/article_8e63cde0-f0c5-11ed-81b0-bf4449db158c.html | 2023-05-12T15:08:33 | 1 | https://pressofatlanticcity.com/news/local/plane-crash-cape-may-county/article_8e63cde0-f0c5-11ed-81b0-bf4449db158c.html |
DAUPHIN COUNTY, Pa. — You may be used to hearing people ask why the chicken crossed the road—but what about the avocados?
The fruit didn't quite make it across the Interstate 81 north ramp to U.S. 22 just after 8 this morning, forcing a road closure while PennDOT works to clean up the spill from a tractor trailer.
A PennDOT spokesperson says they do not currently have an estimate for when the ramp may reopen, but it will take several more hours to completely remove the tractor trailer and avocados from the roadway. They are advising drivers to find an alternate route.
No injuries were reported. The tractor trailer was initially hanging out over the parapet, but crews were able to get it back onto the bridge so it is not a danger to drivers passing below.
PennDOT said more of the trailer ruptured as they tried to move it. | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/avocados-interstate-81-ramp-closed-dauphin-county/521-068f2b4b-1b15-4fba-978f-c748f15dbd4e | 2023-05-12T15:15:35 | 0 | https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/avocados-interstate-81-ramp-closed-dauphin-county/521-068f2b4b-1b15-4fba-978f-c748f15dbd4e |
WATERLOO — One person has been arrested in connection with early morning gunfire outside an apartment complex near the Hawkeye Community College campus on Friday.
Police arrested Trevor John Schneider, 26, on charges of reckless use of a firearm, carrying weapons on school grounds, first-offense operating while intoxicated and carrying weapons while intoxicated.
Bond was set at $10,000.
According to authorities, neighbors reported hearing shots in the 1400 block of Shamrock Drive and seeing a vehicle in the area at about 2:50 a.m. Friday. Officers found 10 spent shell casings at the scene and located a vehicle matching the description not far away in the 6000 block of Stardust Drive.
Police searched the vehicle and found a firearm.
No injuries or damage were reported.
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Court records show Schneider has a prior conviction for carrying weapons while intoxicated. In February, he was arrested for showing up at a Patton Avenue home with a .38-special Taurus revolver. | https://wcfcourier.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/one-arrested-in-early-morning-gunfire/article_f4c278d8-593b-5ff8-a6e0-f82b00818b21.html | 2023-05-12T15:19:00 | 0 | https://wcfcourier.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/one-arrested-in-early-morning-gunfire/article_f4c278d8-593b-5ff8-a6e0-f82b00818b21.html |
Brackenridge Street between Harrison and Calhoun streets will be closed Saturday, according to the Fort Wayne Traffic Engineering Department.
A crane crew will be working in the area and should finish the same day.
For more information, call 260-427-6155 or visit www.trecthefort.org. | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/brackenridge-street-closure/article_f7c8ac24-f0c5-11ed-ba91-b7cc7127fd4e.html | 2023-05-12T15:22:24 | 0 | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/brackenridge-street-closure/article_f7c8ac24-f0c5-11ed-ba91-b7cc7127fd4e.html |
A 56-year-old Ohio man died last week in an industrial accident at a Decatur company, the Allen County coroner’s office said today.
Brian S. Conley of Convoy was killed at Prestress Services Industries, 7855 Winchester Road. The victim was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead on May 3. The coroner said Conley died from blunt impact injuries and ruled his death an accident.
No further information was provided. | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/police-fire/ohio-idd-in-industrial-death/article_113d9cf6-f0d4-11ed-9706-b3f11d856de1.html | 2023-05-12T15:22:31 | 1 | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/police-fire/ohio-idd-in-industrial-death/article_113d9cf6-f0d4-11ed-9706-b3f11d856de1.html |
The Office of Gov. Eric J. Holcomb issued the following Friday, May 12, 2023 –
INDIANAPOLIS- Dr. Kristina Box has notified Governor Eric J. Holcomb that she will retire as state health commissioner of the Indiana Department of Health (IDOH) effective May 31. Gov. Holcomb has appointed IDOH’s chief medical officer, Dr. Lindsay Weaver, as the state health commissioner.
“Dr. Box and I began discussing this inevitability nearly a year ago, and I’m so grateful she agreed to stay on to shepherd the state Department of Health’s most ambitious legislative agenda yet. I respect no one more and am so pleased she’ll get to enjoy her next chapter, which is focusing on her family. I could not have had a better partner in this role, especially in this time. She genuinely cares about the health and well-being of every single Hoosier, and because of her dedication to the betterment of our overall public health system, the state is at the forefront of transformational change that will result in a healthier Indiana,” Gov. Holcomb said.
"I also appreciate how she’s been working on a succession plan with Dr. Weaver, another national all-star, to ensure the successful implementation of our new public health plan. Dr. Box’s dedication to seeing the public health commission plan from ideas to action is a remarkable feat in and of itself. Her competitive refusal to lose is a key reason why our state will win for years to come,” Gov. Holcomb said.
Dr. Box, M.D., FACOG, was appointed state health commissioner by Gov. Holcomb in October 2017. Under her leadership, IDOH has:
Launched the Governor’s Public Health Commission, charged with taking a critical look at Indiana’s public health system and making recommendations for improvements.
Advocated for a modernized public health system in Indiana through a sustainable funding mechanism that will have a generational impact on Hoosiers.
Implemented My Healthy Baby statewide to build a network of services and support to create healthier outcomes for mothers and babies.
Conducted the state’s initiative in preventing lead poisoning in children six-years-old and younger through accessible screenings.
Led the state’s response to the novel coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19), the most significant public health event in a century, and through coordination efforts with local, state and federal agencies and health partners, countless lives were saved.
“It has been the greatest honor of my professional life to serve this administration, the Indiana Department of Health and Hoosiers across the state,” Dr. Box said. “The past five and a half years have been filled with challenges and opportunities unlike any that public health has ever encountered, and the public health workforce across the state has met those challenges with a heart and determination that have inspired me every day. I am incredibly proud of the work being done and will forever be grateful to those who continue to make improving the health and wellbeing of Hoosiers a priority.”
Dr. Lindsay Weaver, M.D., FACEP, serves as the chief medical officer for IDOH and has led planning efforts to implement the legislation approved by the General Assembly.
Dr. Weaver spearheaded the development of the statewide lab testing network and the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines and ensured that testing and vaccines were accessible to all Hoosiers.
“Having worked closely with Dr. Weaver over the years, I know she too is committed to continuing our important work of assuring Hoosiers have awareness and access to public health services,” Gov. Holcomb said. “As the chief medical officer, she has shown the prerequisite character, patience and leadership skills needed as she helped manage our state through the COVID-19 pandemic and, more recently, collaborate with local health partners, community leaders and legislators to begin the implementation phase of our massively upgraded public health plan. This transfer of authority will truly be a seamless transition.”
Dr. Weaver is an assistant professor of clinical emergency medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine, and she continues to practice medicine at Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis. She chairs the Indiana Commission for Women.
Dr. Weaver earned her undergraduate degree in biology from the University of Kentucky and graduated from the University of Louisville School of Medicine. She received her residency training in emergency medicine and fellowship training in hospice and palliative medicine at Indiana University School of Medicine.
“Taking over the position of state health commissioner from Dr. Box is an enormous responsibility, and it is an honor to follow in her footsteps,” Dr. Weaver said. “Dr. Box has provided exceptional leadership during the past six years and her commitment to public health has been an inspiration to many. I look forward to building on her legacy, implementing the recommendations of the Governor’s Public Health Commission, and continuing to work toward a healthier Indiana.
She will begin her role as commissioner June 1. | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/verbatim-hoosier-health-commissioner-retires/article_834025ea-f0c9-11ed-91f1-07b9f9b7471b.html | 2023-05-12T15:22:37 | 1 | https://www.journalgazette.net/local/verbatim-hoosier-health-commissioner-retires/article_834025ea-f0c9-11ed-91f1-07b9f9b7471b.html |
BOISE, Idaho — This article originally appeared in the Idaho Press.
Parents looking for daycare for their kids often find themselves on several waitlists before getting care, which most providers attribute to a staffing shortage.
Over the past couple of years, daycare owners like Mia Barron, who owns A Child’s Heart Learning Center in Boise, frequently get calls from “frantic” parents whose daycares have recently closed because of a worker shortage. Barron ultimately has to turn many parents away, because she doesn’t have enough staff to take more kids.
“I’ve been in the childcare business since 2008 and I’ve never experienced such difficulty getting staff,” Barron said.
Daycare facilities have to maintain a ratio of kids to adults: one adult can care for five infants, six 2-year-olds, 10 3- to 4-year-olds or 12 kids age 5 and up. When a daycare doesn’t have the staff to care for more kids, they have to turn parents away. Barron currently has 28 employees servicing 80 children.
She’s one of the lucky ones.
Linda St. Clare, owner of Wonderland Early Learning Center in Boise, has had such trouble with staffing that she doesn’t bother with it anymore.
“Paying $15 an hour is too much for help that stays on their cell phones and does very little with education,” St. Clare said.
She and her husband single-handedly run the learning center, caring for 12 kids. St. Clare has had staffing issues since 2015, the same year she decided to be licensed for 12 kids instead of 30. Cutting down on staff was about the quality of staff, but it was also about affordability. It’s difficult to maintain staff and offer affordable childcare.
St. Clare charges $725 a month for kids who are potty trained, $825 for kids who aren’t. Babies, she said, are the hardest to place in daycare.
“The first year here, I was turning away five to seven babies a day,” she said.
Linda Woll, who owned a small daycare in Boise for 34 years, decided to close her business early in 2022 because she had not been able to hire new employees.
Woll had ads out to hire new employees for months before calling it quits. Her situation is not unique.
Before the pandemic, Woll had 25 kids in her daycare. After the pandemic, they only had 12.
“No daycare has built back up (since COVID), and not because they don’t get calls for kids. I had calls all the time,” Woll said. “It’s because we didn’t have anyone that we could hire. You have to keep that ratio, so if you add two or three kids, you’re going to have to have more teachers.”
The lack of staff was what led to Woll closing her business, and what causes other daycares to operate at a smaller capacity than their building has space for.
Even though Barron is not in the same position as Woll, she agrees that daycare has changed dramatically.
“In the past, it was a lot easier,” Barron said. “There were a lot of people that were interested in this type of job, but it’s hard work. And it takes heart, it takes someone that really does see how important children are. If they’re looking for easy, this is not it.”
Since the job is getting more and more difficult, daycare facilities often try to compensate for the low pay.
“We have to work at it a lot harder. We have to have a good culture, we have to have great training. We have to make sure that we are pouring into these individuals on a regular basis,” Barron said.
At Barron’s learning center, childcare for an infant for five days a week costs $262, while a 4-year-old can get care five days a week for $214. Her employees are paid at least $13 an hour and directors are paid $28.
“We’ve created a career ladder, because we want our employees to see that this could be a career,” Barron said. “This is a teaching job. And it’s not babysitting: it’s educating young kids. The first three years of life are so critical as far as what they’re taught and what they’re exposed to, so we see it as a very important job.”
Although Barron has staff that sticks around, the waiting list for kids lingers. Right now, infants have to wait until October to get into the center.
“Centers are having to close because if you can’t maintain the ratio and you don’t have enough workers on site, you cannot legally care for those children,” Barron said. “If you have no workers, you have no business.”
This article originally appeared in the Idaho Press, read more on IdahoPress.com.
Watch more Local News:
See the latest news from around the Treasure Valley and the Gem State in our YouTube playlist: | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/idaho-press/are-daycares-dying-out-a-dive-into-boise-idaho-child-care/277-eef59719-6974-4096-8f78-8e93106006dc | 2023-05-12T15:24:06 | 0 | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/idaho-press/are-daycares-dying-out-a-dive-into-boise-idaho-child-care/277-eef59719-6974-4096-8f78-8e93106006dc |
What to Know
- A 30-day public notice period begins before a final determination on the plan. If no roadblocks pop up between now and then, drivers could start paying more as early as next year
- Federal approval could come in June, which would begin a 310-day countdown toward starting a toll that would range from $9 to $23 for entering Manhattan south of 60th Street
- Late-night drivers entering the borough below 60th Street (coined the Central Business District) would be charged 50% less between 12 a.m. and 4 a.m.; it's one of several measures included in the state's environmental assessment released to the public on Friday
Motorists driving Manhattan's most congested streets can expect a deep overnight discount when a projected toll takes effect next year.
Late-night drivers entering the borough below 60th Street (coined the Central Business District) will be charged 50% less between 12 a.m. and 4 a.m.; it's one of several measures included in the state's environmental assessment released to the public on Friday.
New York's congestion pricing plan is nearing the finish line as a 30-day public notice period kicks off, leaving the final determination on the state's highly-anticipated and long-debated congestion pricing plan only weeks away. At the end of the public review, the Federal Highway Administration will give the final green light.
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The new toll rate, expected as early as next spring, has yet to be determined -- that decision will fall on the MTA Board over the next year. But the assessment provides the first preview of a few discounts offered to drivers once tolling starts.
Environmental justice efforts included in the assessment would provide a 25% discount to low-income drivers after completing 10 trips in a calendar month -- those 10 trips don't include overnight charges. Nearly $50 million has been earmarked for the driver discount program.
In a boon for taxis and other rideshare operators, tolls will only be charged for those drivers once per day.
The MTA has long argued that congestion pricing is essential to their bottom line and would net them $1 billion annually. Revenue from the plan would be used to back borrowing for capital improvements to the MTA’s subway and bus systems.
New York’s Legislature approved a conceptual plan for congestion pricing in 2019 and it was initially projected to be in place in 2021. But the pandemic and a lack of guidance from federal regulators on the type of environmental review that was required combined to stall the project.
The next step? A 30-day public notice period begins before a final determination on the plan. If no roadblocks pop up between now and then, drivers could start paying more as early as next year.
Federal approval could come in June, which would begin a 310-day countdown toward starting a toll that would range from $9 to $23 for entering Manhattan south of 60th Street.
The plan has plenty of nay-sayers. A big-time bipartisan pushback effort, backed by lawmakers on both sides of the Hudson River, sought to stop drivers from paying more to get into town.
Some lawmakers in New Jersey have said the plan is unfair because motorists already pay tolls at bridges and tunnels to enter New York, and the money from congestion pricing won't be used to improve public transit in New Jersey. Some motorists paying tolls to enter Manhattan from New Jersey are expected to receive discounts or be exempt.
New Jersey Rep. Josh Gottheimer said that the federal approval doesn't mean the plan is set in stone — or a good idea.
"Not only will it lead to more congestion and more traffic, but it will completely devastate commuters," he said.
Last week, a group of New Jersey lawmakers wrote to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, urging her to suspend implementation of the congestion pricing plan.
“New Jersey commuters already pay a $17 toll when they cross the Holland and Lincoln Tunnels, almost double the toll paid on the bridges connecting Manhattan, Queens, and the Bronx. As a result, this congestion price would uniquely double tax New Jerseyans and result in our constituents paying upwards of $40 just to get to work every day," Representative Mikie Sherrill, and half a dozen other lawmakers, wrote.
"At a time when families across the Northeast are already dealing with rising prices and high costs of living, this added tax on simply getting to work is unacceptable."
New details from a recent MTA financial plan suggest drivers would not see the start of congestion pricing until April 2024, at the earliest. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/nyc-congestion-pricing-plan-includes-toll-cuts-for-taxis-night-drivers/4328327/ | 2023-05-12T15:24:06 | 0 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/nyc-congestion-pricing-plan-includes-toll-cuts-for-taxis-night-drivers/4328327/ |
What to Know
- 30-year-old Jordan Neely died on a train at the Broadway-Lafayette station in Manhattan on May 1 after allegedly threatening passengers and being put into a chokehold by a rider; that rider, identified as 24-year-old Daniel Penny, was questioned by the NYPD and later released from custody
- The medical examiner's office ruled Neely's death a homicide the next day, which incited a debate around whether the rider's actions were justified defense or vigilantism
- Multiple protests have taken place in Manhattan since Neely's death and dozens arrested; the Manhattan district attorney's office said Penny will be charged with second-degree manslaughter
The family of Jordan Neely, the 30-year-old homeless man with a history of mental illness and a lengthy arrest record who died on the floor of an F train in Manhattan after a rider put him in a chokehold, is addressing the public Friday.
It comes hours after Daniel Penny, a 24-year-old Marine veteran, surrendered to the Manhattan district attorney's office to face a second-degree manslaughter charge in Neely's May 1 death at the Broadway-Lafayette train station, a case that has ignited racial tensions as well as debate about self-defense and vigilantism across the country.
Penny's attorneys have insisted he never meant to harm Neely. They describe him as a "decorated Marine veteran" who "stepped in to protect himself and his fellow New Yorkers" and who "risked his own life and safety" in the process. They say he couldn't have known Neely would die of the chokehold, calling it an "unfortunate result."
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Neely's family has said the 24-year-old's statements amount to a confession. They are expected to appear alongside their lawyers, Donte Mills and Lennon Edwards.
The family has beencalling for criminal charges since the city medical examiner's office declared the case a homicide a day after Neely's death, and hours after Penny was released from questioning by the NYPD in the case.
Penny's arrest Friday comes amid mounting public pressure over accountability following the medical examiner's determination. It wasn't clear if the Manhattan district attorney's office intended to pursue charges against two other people seen restraining Neely in the widely shared video or if those people had yet been identified.
Witnesses had reported Neely, who had been on a special city watch list, considered a potential risk to himself and others, was aggressive toward other riders on the train. He had been shouting at passengers, witnesses said, yelling that he was hungry and didn't care if he died. They also said Neely hadn't physically attacked anyone before Penny moved to subdue him. Penny was questioned by the NYPD that day and released.
Then came the autopsy findings.
Multiple protests have taken place in Manhattan since Neely's death, with dozens arrested. Protesters again ratcheted up the volume Thursday, after learning of the looming charges. More demonstrations are expected Friday.
More Coverage
Mayor Eric Adams sidestepped a question Thursday about whether Penny's actions should be considered criminal. Earlier this week, the Democrat, who had been accused by some of not weighing in substantially enough, formally addressed Neely's death in a public address. He was careful to toe the line between acknowledging Neely's death, the ensuing racial tensions and systemic outrage over mental health care, without appearing to ascribe any responsibility.
More Coverage
Jennifer Vazquez, Andrew Siff and Tracie Strahan contributed to this report. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/subway-chokehold-jordan-neely-family-speaks-after-daniel-penny-arrest/4328471/ | 2023-05-12T15:24:12 | 1 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/subway-chokehold-jordan-neely-family-speaks-after-daniel-penny-arrest/4328471/ |
The West Central Human Service Center and several other offices at the Prairie Hills Plaza at 1237 W. Divide Ave. in Bismarck will be closed on Monday for water main repair work.
Other North Dakota Health and Human Services offices affected by the temporary closure include Adult and Aging Services, Developmental Disabilities, Disability Determination Services and the regional Vocational Rehabilitation office.
The temporary closure affects on-site services only. Case managers and others who provide services directly to clients in the community will meet with them as planned. Crisis services will continue to be available.
HHS expects to resume regular operations at the site on Tuesday. | https://bismarcktribune.com/news/local/health/human-service-center-closed-monday/article_49ce124a-f0d3-11ed-80e1-9b4e71bb018c.html | 2023-05-12T15:26:26 | 1 | https://bismarcktribune.com/news/local/health/human-service-center-closed-monday/article_49ce124a-f0d3-11ed-80e1-9b4e71bb018c.html |
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL) — The Johnson City Fire Department helped save the day on Thursday, one duckling at a time.
According to a post from the department, the Engine Five crew responded to a concerned citizen’s call. Upon arrival, the firefighters found a group of ducklings trapped in a drain while the mother duck waited by.
Due to the firefighters specialized and teamwork efforts, the ducks were safely returned to their mother.
“Their efforts remind us of the incredible compassion and selflessness within our local community that our Johnson City Firefighters don’t hesitate to lend a helping hand, even to our feathered friends,” stated the department. | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/johnson-city-fire-department-saves-ducklings-from-drain/ | 2023-05-12T15:26:44 | 0 | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/johnson-city-fire-department-saves-ducklings-from-drain/ |
Three faculty unions that went on strike last month at New Jersey’s flagship university have overwhelmingly approved four-year contracts, formally ending the first such job action in the school’s 257-year history.
Thousands of professors, part-time lecturers and graduate student workers at Rutgers University staged the five-day strike at the New Brunswick, Piscataway, Newark and Camden campuses as students were finishing their spring semester and preparing for finals and commencement.
It began April 10 after months of negotiations had failed to resolve disputes over salary increases, better job security for adjunct faculty and guaranteed funding for graduate students, among other requests.
Union leaders announced Monday that the new contracts were approved by 93% of members casting ballots. The deals include across-the-board raises and additional job security for part-time lecturers, along with significant raises and job security provisions for graduate workers.
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Three unions, which represent about 9,000 Rutgers staff members, were involved in the strike: the Rutgers AAUP-AFT, which represents full-time faculty, graduate workers, postdoctoral associates and some counselors; the Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union, which represents part-time lecturers; and the AAUP-BHSNJ, which includes faculty in the biomedical and health sciences at Rutgers’ medical, dental, nursing and public health schools. | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/rutgers-unions-ratify-new-contracts-formally-ending-strike/3562599/ | 2023-05-12T15:27:54 | 0 | https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/rutgers-unions-ratify-new-contracts-formally-ending-strike/3562599/ |
As the 50th anniversary of the federal Endangered Species Act nears, one imperiled species commonly found in Ohio is hanging on, literally and figuratively, despite ongoing threats.
The Indiana bat, one of four endangered bat species in Ohio with the northern long-eared bat, the little brown bat and the tri-colored bat, was one of the first species listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 after appearing in the Endangered Species Preservation Act of 1966.
Since then, it has swiftly dwindled. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the population has declined by half since the species was listed as endangered.
A 2019 winter census estimated a population of 537,297 bats in 16 states.
Bats serve an important role in the ecosystem, providing significant positive impacts on the environment as insectivores and pollinators, biologists say.
“They’re tremendously important, and as an endangered species, we have an obligation to conserve them,” Parham said.
According to the U.S. Department of the Interior, bats can eat their body weight in insects each night, and some studies have estimated bats save U.S. agriculture up to $53 billion annually in pest control.
“They’re also just really cool,” said Eileen Wyza, biologist for the Department of Natural Resources’ Ohio Division of Wildlife, adding that bats are even more closely related to humans than birds.
“They’re the only relative of humans that can fly,” she said. “They’re a really cool, unique group of species, so having and keeping them around to appreciate is a big thing.”
Population reductions can be attributed to disease, human disturbance of hibernating bats and the commercialization of caves where the bats hibernate.
But they also face a loss of summer habitat. That’s where Ohio enters the story.
The habitat loss became a growing topic of concern for some area environmentalists as commercialization and the development of formerly untouched land sees the removal of some potential bat habitat.
A proposed industrial project in Brookville, spearheaded by General Motors, has included the preliminary removal of some forested area, leaving some nearby residents anxious about the potential environmental impacts, including to local bat populations.
“They require a heterogeneous habitat, not just solid forest, wall to wall,” Wyza said. “They like to be near bodies of water and in areas that have some edge or some openings because that’s where it’s easiest to forage for insects, but they do need that forest;. That is where they’re physically roosting and raising their babies during the summer months.”
The proposal involves the expansion of GM’s current DMAX facility, located at 101 W. Campus Blvd., off of Collective Way.
Project plans include the addition of 1.3 million square feet of manufacturing and administration space, according to permit applications submitted to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, along with 0.7 million square feet of parking, truck lane and docking. The project will also reconstruct or reroute 2,550 linear feet of Campus Boulevard.
According to EPA spokesperson Dina Pierce, GM’s application includes plans to fill three “small, isolated wetlands” on the site, including two Category 2 wetlands of 0.12 and 2.11 acres, and one Category 1 wetland of 0.32 acres.
Ohio categorizes wetlands in three categories that identify whether threatened or endangered species live there, starting with Category 1 (none) to Category 3 (high).
Pierce noted Ohio rules require projects like the GM proposal to mitigate any wetlands impacts by preserving or restoring wetlands elsewhere in Ohio.
“GM is proposing to buy mitigation credits with The Nature Conservancy to protect or restore wetland acreage in either the Lower Great Miami River or Whitewater River watersheds,” Pierce said.
The nearly 10-acre forested land and wetlands in question are situated between the current DMAX facility and Brubaker Grain & Chemical. Further west is Foxhole Farm, a locally owned farm and shop selling produce, plants and other goods.
Foxhole Farm owners Sam and Rich Wickham have been vocal about their opposition to the expansion project. They say the multi-billion dollar company should instead expand east, where there is less densely-forested area, to avoid impacts to existing flora and fauna — including the endangered and protected Indiana bat — and the Wolf Creek Waterway.
“We understood this to be protected wetlands and endangered Indiana bat habitat as well as a buffer between our community and the watershed here, the Wolf Creek Waterway, which leads to the Great Miami River,“ Sam Wickham said in March. “Industry and the waterway do not need to mingle.”
During a Brookville council meeting the following month, Rich Wickham addressed city leaders to express his concern with the project, and how information about the plans has been disseminated to residents.
“I’m upset with how GM and the EPA have handled this, as they’ve not really communicated with anybody, and maybe they don’t have to ... but a little bit of communication would go a long way with these bigger projects,” he said.
Anna Kamnyev, environmental manager for the Ohio EPA’s Division of Surface Water, said this week the EPA is conducting a technical review of the project with action expected by June 18. A permit could then be issued, possibly after public notice and comment, depending on the permit type.
In late March, GM confirmed the company began site-clearing work. This was tentatively approved by the Ohio EPA while the agency processes the full permit application.
“Ohio EPA gave GM approval to hand clear the trees in the wetlands so they could meet the requirement to do the work before the Indiana bat roosting season,” Pierce said. “Approval to hand clear means they cannot use heavy machinery, such as a bulldozer.”
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service spokeswoman Georgia Parham said Indiana bats — identifiable by their relatively small, mouse-like ears and particularly social nature — can live anywhere in Ohio, and forested habitat is critical to the species’ survival during summer months.
While a female Indiana bat may travel hundreds of miles once she emerges from hibernation in search of summer habitat, that varies widely based on a number of factors, including what habitat is available.
“It may be as few as 20 miles or up to several hundred,” Parham said. “The average distance is about 100 miles, (and) they tend to return to the same maternity habitat each summer and the same hibernaculum in the winter.”
Parham said representatives of GM approached the agency last year to ask about recommended procedures to limit the effects on the local ecosystem.
According to a letter dated Sept. 28, 2022, from the fish and wildlife service to GM representatives, the proposed project location is within the vicinity of one or more confirmed Indiana bat records, but that record is around 2.5 miles from the project.
The letter also recommends GM complete a summer survey of the location to determine if the specific land in question is a summer habitat location for Indiana bats.
“If a summer survey documents probable absence of Indiana bats at the project location, tree clearing on the project site at any time of the year is unlikely to result in adverse results to Indiana bats,” the letter reads.
If a summer survey is not completed, Parham said the fish and wildlife service advises project developers conduct any tree-clearing only during the bats’ typical hibernation period, from Oct. 1 through March 31, which GM did abide by.
Threats to Indiana bats include wind turbine farms, which can injure or kill traveling bats, along with a relatively new fungal disease known as white-nose syndrome.
“We’ve seen up to 99% population decline in our cave-hibernating bats, so it became very serious very quickly,” Wyza said. “It’s something that’s extremely difficult to treat and there is no cure.
The fungus thrives in cool, moist environments and spreads easily among bats hibernating in clusters along cave walls, Wyza said.
“The fungus is an irritant, so it can wake the bats up because it’s on their face or their wings, and if they’re waking up out of hibernation in the winter, there’s nothing for them to eat, so a lot of these bats are dying from starvation,” she said.
Wyza said it’s not yet known how or why the remaining bat population has been able to survive overwhelming threat of white-nose syndrome.
“We’re seen over 95% decline in populations for hibernating bats but the remaining 1% to 4% is still hanging on,” she said. “As to why that’s happening, we’re still looking into it.”
There’s a chance that some bats may be afflicted with white-nose syndrome during hibernation but remain in a hibernating state. Once temperatures rise, the fungus can no longer survive.
“If they make it through the winter, and to a time when there’s food, then they’ll probably survive,” Wyza said, speculating that there is a potential for bats to change their behavior to avoid susceptibility to the fungus but more research will need to be done on this subject.
“(Perhaps) it’s a genetic component that’s helping some bats survive, or a behavioral change, like choosing different caves that are slightly warmer or slightly colder, or even being less social and not clumping together,” Wyza said. “It’s uncertain whether bats themselves are changing their behavior or if it’s just those that are already acting a little differently that are surviving.”
About the Author | https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/local/work-on-brookville-land-stirs-concerns-over-endangered-indiana-bat-population-and-the-local-ecosystem-at-large/CBVFCFQVSFHFBKRH46STJ7K4TQ/ | 2023-05-12T15:36:47 | 1 | https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/local/work-on-brookville-land-stirs-concerns-over-endangered-indiana-bat-population-and-the-local-ecosystem-at-large/CBVFCFQVSFHFBKRH46STJ7K4TQ/ |
Detroit cop accused of punching woman in hospital in 2018 gets probation
A Detroit police officer accused of assaulting a mentally unstable woman in a hospital in 2018 will serve three days of probation before the case against him is dismissed, a judge ruled Friday.
Dewayne Jones, 51, was technically sentenced to one day's probation Friday by Judge Lynise Bryant in Detroit's 36th District Court. She said if Jones had no new criminal charges filed against him by Monday, the case against him would be dismissed.
"The court will dismiss the matter on Monday," the judge said. "I will place the matter on the docket and then the probation department will run a lien on Monday. If it says the same thing that it says on Friday, then the matter will be closed with improvement, the conviction will be set aside and the case will be dismissed with prejudice."
Jones pleaded no contest last month to a charge of disorderly conduct, according to the judge and court records. In exchange for his plea, an assault and battery charge and a common law offense were dropped. Disorderly conduct and assault and battery are both misdemeanors punishable by up to 90 days in jail and/or a fine of up to $500.
Jones, a sergeant with the Detroit Police Department, was convicted and sentenced to probation in May 2019 for repeatedly punching a mentally unstable woman inside Detroit Receiving Hospital in August 2018. He was also ordered to attend anger management classes, perform 15 days of community service and pay a $500 fine and about $300 in court costs and fees.
In a video that went viral, he is seen hitting a 29-year-old woman with his fists on Aug. 1, 2018, in the hospital's emergency department. During his trial, witnesses said he repeatedly punched the woman after she spat at him and bit him while he and other officers tried to calm her.
However, Jones' conviction had been set aside and he was given a new trial in 2021 after a judge ruled he did not get effective legal counsel during a key part of his defense. The second trial in 2022 ended with a hung jury.
Bryant said Friday that Jones served a probationary sentence, paid more than $1,300 in court fees, and completed 315 days of community service as well as a six-week anger management course in 2019.
"Mr. Jones, I hope that this has truly been a learning experience," the judge said. "I am a firm believer in ... finding the lesson in whatever happens to me and I hope this is the case for you. I wish you all the best in life and in your career."
Jones, who was mostly silent during the hearing, responded: " I just want to say thank you so much. I've learned a ton."
cramirez@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @CharlesERamirez | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2023/05/12/detroit-cop-accused-of-punching-woman-in-hospital-in-2018-gets-probation/70210640007/ | 2023-05-12T15:37:28 | 0 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2023/05/12/detroit-cop-accused-of-punching-woman-in-hospital-in-2018-gets-probation/70210640007/ |
Fire kills one woman on Detroit's east side early Friday morning
Hannah Mackay
The Detroit News
Detroit — The Detroit Fire Department is investigating a blaze that broke out on the city's east side early Friday morning, killing one woman.
The fire was reported at 5:11 a.m. in a house on the 4000 block of Algonquin Street, said Chief James Harris. The house sustained "significant damage" after burning for about 45 minutes.
Other information about the victim such as her age was not known Friday morning, Harris said. No one else was inside the house when the fire started, he added
The cause of the fire is unknown but the Detroit Fire Department is conducting an investigation. The investigation is still in its preliminary stages but they will determine the cause, Harris said.
hmackay@detroitnews.com | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2023/05/12/fire-kills-one-woman-on-detroits-east-side-early-friday-morning/70211182007/ | 2023-05-12T15:37:34 | 0 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2023/05/12/fire-kills-one-woman-on-detroits-east-side-early-friday-morning/70211182007/ |
Northern Mich. man faces terrorism, hate crime charges for threatening 911 calls
A northern Michigan man is facing hate crime and terrorism charges in connection to a series of threatening phone calls made to the Montmorency County 911 dispatch.
Gregory Simms, 37, of Atlanta, Michigan, a small community in Montmorency County, was arraigned Friday on malicious use and threat of terrorism charges in the 88-2 District Court in Atlanta, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced in a news release.
Simms is accused of calling the Montmorency County 911 dispatch and making threats over the phone while a warrant for his arrest was out in Saginaw County, officials said. He allegedly made three calls and identified himself in two of them.
During the calls Simms allegedly said he would send the "pigs" who tried to arrest him "back in body bags," Nessel said in the news release.
Simms' bond was set at $250,000 and the court determined that he is a flight risk and poses a danger to the community, Nessel said in the news release. A preliminary examination is set for May 17.
hmackay@detroitnews.com. | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2023/05/12/northern-michigan-man-faces-terrorism-hate-crime-charges/70211503007/ | 2023-05-12T15:37:40 | 1 | https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2023/05/12/northern-michigan-man-faces-terrorism-hate-crime-charges/70211503007/ |
STACKER —Have you ever been in your kitchen, trying to decide what to make, and you’re baffled? You open the fridge, and there’s just a mish-mash of ingredients that on the surface, perhaps don’t feel like they belong together—until you open the fridge for the fourth time and realize the contents aren’t changing, so you make them work? That moment? That moment is what Tex-Mex cuisine is—but in the best way possible. It’s a delicious mish-mash of cultural influences that came together in a melting pot of flavors that make you feel like you’re experiencing something that feels familiar but for the first time.
Tex-Mex, as the cuisine is affectionately coined in the Southwest, is the by-product of what happened when traditional Mexican cuisine combines with things that weren’t normally available in the land borders renamed Mexico; more cuts of red meat, cheeses, and far milder chiles that provide more smoke than heat. It found its way into the hearts of the Southwest, eventually spreading around the rest of America.
With that kind of reach, where do you begin when it comes to finding that perfect Tex-Mex dish to make your palate dance? Who has managed to create that just-right blend of smoky spice and cheesy goodness that you’ve come to know and love of Tex-Mex food?
Stacker did a little of the heavy lifting for you and combed through data on Yelp to put together a comprehensive list of the highest-rated Tex-Mex restaurants in Dallas. We looked at how many reviews and their average ratings to make sure your guide to Dallas cuisine is ready. Take a look to see where your new favorite restaurant will be! Note, some of these may have recently closed, so make sure to double-check.
#23. Primo’s MX Kitchen
– Rating: 3.0/5 (81 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 1914 Commerce St Dallas, TX 75201
– Categories: Tex-Mex, Cocktail Bars
– Read more on Yelp
#22. Primo’s MX Kitchen
– Rating: 3.0/5 (232 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 3309 McKinney Ave Dallas, TX 75204
– Categories: Tex-Mex, Mexican, Soup
– Read more on Yelp
#21. Amazing Wraps
– Rating: 3.0/5 (10 reviews)
– Price: $
– Address: 901 Main St Dallas, TX 75202
– Categories: Sandwiches, Tex-Mex
– Read more on Yelp
#20. Freebirds World Burrito
– Rating: 3.0/5 (17 reviews)
– Address: 2000 Ross Ave Unit 190 Dallas, TX 75201
– Categories: Tex-Mex, Mexican
– Read more on Yelp
#19. El Fenix
– Rating: 3.5/5 (521 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 1601 Mckinney Ave Ste 1 Dallas, TX 75202
– Categories: Mexican, Tex-Mex
– Read more on Yelp
#18. Texas Burrito Company
– Rating: 3.5/5 (10 reviews)
– Price: $
– Adress: 1111 Foodtruck Ln Dallas, TX 75219
– Categories: Tex-Mex, Food Trucks
– Read more on Yelp
#17. Cafe Herrera
– Rating: 3.5/5 (171 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Adress: 665 S Lamar St Dallas, TX 75202
– Categories: Tex-Mex, Mexican
– Read more on Yelp
#16. Nodding Donkey Uptown
– Rating: 3.5/5 (290 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Adress: 2900 Thomas Ave Dallas, TX 75204
– Categories: Barbeque, Sports Bars, Tex-Mex
– Read more on Yelp
#15. Gloria’s Latin Cuisine
– Rating: 3.5/5 (313 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 600 N Bishop Ave Dallas, TX 75208
– Categories: Mexican, Tex-Mex, Latin American
– Read more on Yelp
#14. City Tavern
– Rating: 3.5/5 (261 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 1514 Elm St Ste 111 Dallas, TX 75202
– Categories: Bars, American (Traditional), Tex-Mex
– Read more on Yelp
#13. Poblanos
– Rating: 4.0/5 (12 reviews)
– Price: $
– Address: 1700 Pacific Ave Dallas, TX 75201
– Categories: Tex-Mex
– Read more on Yelp
#12. Campuzano Mexican Food
– Rating: 4.0/5 (744 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 2618 Oak Lawn Ave Dallas, TX 75219
– Categories: Mexican, Tex-Mex, Breakfast & Brunch
– Read more on Yelp
#11. Mi Cocina
– Rating: 4.0/5 (84 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 2000 Woodall Rodgers Fwy Dallas, TX 75201
– Categories: Tex-Mex, Caterers
– Read more on Yelp
#10. Taco Lingo Tex-Mex
– Rating: 4.0/5 (242 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 2301 N Akard St Ste 270 Dallas, TX 75201
– Categories: Mexican, Cocktail Bars, Tex-Mex
– Read more on Yelp
#9. Mi Cocina
– Rating: 4.0/5 (61 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 3232 McKinney Ave Ste 175 Dallas, TX 75204
– Categories: Tex-Mex, Caterers
– Read more on Yelp
#8. Taco Joint
– Rating: 4.0/5 (425 reviews)
– Price: $
– Address: 911 N Peak St Dallas, TX 75204
– Categories: Mexican, Tex-Mex
– Read more on Yelp
#7. Tejas Taco Factory
– Rating: 4.0/5 (65 reviews)
– Address: 1001 Ross Ave Ste 100 Dallas, TX 75202
– Categories: Tacos, Tex-Mex
– Read more on Yelp
#6. Pepe’s & Mito’s Mexican Café
– Rating: 4.0/5 (620 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 2911 Elm St Dallas, TX 75226
– Categories: Mexican, Tex-Mex
– Read more on Yelp
#5. Mesero – Victory Park
– Rating: 4.0/5 (244 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 2375 Victory Park Ln Ste 180 Dallas, TX 75219
– Categories: Mexican, Tex-Mex
– Read more on Yelp
#4. E Bar Tex-Mex
– Rating: 4.5/5 (865 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 1901 N Haskell Ave Ste 120 Dallas, TX 75204
– Categories: Mexican, Tex-Mex, Bars
– Read more on Yelp
#3. Uno Mas
– Rating: 4.5/5 (164 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 1525 Main St Dallas, TX 75201
– Categories: Tex-Mex, Mexican
– Read more on Yelp
#2. Las Palmas
– Rating: 4.5/5 (487 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 2708 Routh St Dallas, TX 75201
– Categories: Mexican, Bars, Tex-Mex
– Read more on Yelp
#1. La Comida Mexican Kitchen And Cocktails.
– Rating: 4.5/5 (21 reviews)
– Price: $$
– Address: 1101 N Beckley Ave Dallas, TX 75208
– Categories: Tex-Mex, Mexican, Cocktail Bars
– Read more on Yelp | https://cw33.com/news/local/highest-rated-tex-mex-restaurants-in-dallas-according-to-yelp/ | 2023-05-12T15:41:26 | 1 | https://cw33.com/news/local/highest-rated-tex-mex-restaurants-in-dallas-according-to-yelp/ |
DALLAS(KDAF)—North Texas can expect heavy rain in the afternoon due to severe thunderstorms. There is also a chance of flooding, hail, and possible tornadoes. Make sure you’re looking for alternative routes.
NWS Fort Worth said, “Showers and thunderstorms will be on the increase this afternoon and evening as an upper-level disturbance approaches from the southwest. Activity will move in from the west and northwest, with the best overall rain and storm chances occurring along and west of the I-35 corridor. Some storms could be strong or even severe, with large hail and damaging winds, and even a tornado or two cannot be ruled out. Locally heavy rain may also cause flooding in some locations. Remember to keep up with the latest forecast and/or warnings as we get into the latter part of the day”.
The weekend is expected to have rainfall of up to 4 inches, a flood watch has been posted. North Texas will have scattered showers throughout the weekend.
NWS Fort Worth said, “Widespread rainfall is expected over the upcoming weekend. Rain amounts will range from 0.5-1 inch in East Texas to 2-3 inches with isolated amounts 4+ inches west of I-35. A Flood Watch has been posted for western portions of North and Central Texas where instances of flash flooding, widespread nuisance flooding, and some mainstem river flooding could occur”. | https://cw33.com/news/local/tornadoes-and-hail-coming-to-north-texas-this-friday-entire-weekend-will-have-heavy-rainfall/ | 2023-05-12T15:41:32 | 1 | https://cw33.com/news/local/tornadoes-and-hail-coming-to-north-texas-this-friday-entire-weekend-will-have-heavy-rainfall/ |
Lakeland's Jennifer Price enters race for Polk Commissioner George Lindsey's seat
A second candidate has filed to run next year for the Polk County Commission in District 1.
Jennifer Price of Lakeland has entered the race as a Republican, joining Becky Troutman. They are running for an open seat as Commissioner George Lindsey faces term limits.
Price, 46, is a program coordinator in the Education Department at Polk State College. She holds a bachelor’s degree in criminology and Spanish from the University of Florida.
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PreviouslyLakeland's Mike Scott enters 2024 race for Polk County Commission as Republican
It is the first run for office for Price, a mother of two who has lived in Polk County for most of her life. She previously worked in human resources and as an administrator for a nonprofit.
Price said she is concerned about the rapid pace of development in Polk County.
“We've experienced just record growth over the last few years in Polk, and I just really want to see us grow in the smartest way possible,” she said. “I am very concerned about what I would consider to be overdevelopment, or the fast development of Polk County. I think I'd like to see the Planning Commission do everything in their power to sort of slow down the development of residential areas, just until the state, specifically the DOT (Department of Transportation), has a chance to catch up to a level where we can better serve the people of Polk.” | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/second-republican-lakelands-jennifer-price-joins-polk-county-commission-race/70198626007/ | 2023-05-12T15:42:13 | 0 | https://www.theledger.com/story/news/local/2023/05/12/second-republican-lakelands-jennifer-price-joins-polk-county-commission-race/70198626007/ |
LYNCHBURG, Va. – A woman is in the hospital following an officer-involved shooting at James Crossing Apartments, according to the Lynchburg Police Department.
We’re told Virginia State Police will be investigating the incident at the request of LPD Chief Zuidema.
Authorities say no officers were injured in the incident.
Lynchburg Police are asking residents to avoid the 1500 block of Longview Road at this time.
Further details weren’t immediately available, but we have reached out to the Lynchburg Police Department for further information.
Stay with 10 News as this breaking news story develops | https://www.wsls.com/news/local/2023/05/12/lynchburg-drivers-asked-to-avoid-longview-road/ | 2023-05-12T15:44:00 | 1 | https://www.wsls.com/news/local/2023/05/12/lynchburg-drivers-asked-to-avoid-longview-road/ |
A 50-year-old man was arrested and charged in connection with an online investigation into crimes against children, according to the Alleghany County Sheriff’s Office.
Authorities said Thomas Lehrmann, of Lynchburg, agreed to meet with an underaged child for inappropriate activities but was taken into custody by Alleghany County deputies with assistance from the Virginia Department of Wildlife Services when he arrived at the agreed upon location.
He has been charged with two counts of the use of a communication device to facilitate certain offenses against minors.
“The Alleghany County Sheriff’s Office is dedicated to keeping the youth of the Alleghany Highlands safe,” the sheriff’s office said.
If you would like information on how to keep your children safe when they are online, contact the Alleghany County Sheriff’s Office at 540-965-1770. | https://www.wsls.com/news/local/2023/05/12/lynchburg-man-arrested-charged-in-connection-with-online-investigation-of-crimes-against-children/ | 2023-05-12T15:44:06 | 0 | https://www.wsls.com/news/local/2023/05/12/lynchburg-man-arrested-charged-in-connection-with-online-investigation-of-crimes-against-children/ |
ROANOKE, Va. – A man is hurt following a shooting in Northwest Roanoke Friday morning, according to the Roanoke Police Department.
Shortly before 10 a.m., the Roanoke Police Department and Roanoke Fire-EMS were called to the 1800 block of Downing St. NW, where they arrived to find a man who had been shot multiple times.
After investigating further, officers determined that the shooting took place in the parking lot of a convenience store in the 1900 block of 10th St NW.
Authorities said the victim’s injuries were non-life threatening.
Both Lucy Addison and Lincoln Terrace were briefly placed on lockdown and have been released, according to the police department.
No arrests have been made at this time, and detectives are still at the scene investigating. | https://www.wsls.com/news/local/2023/05/12/man-injured-after-shooting-in-parking-lot-of-roanoke-convenience-store-police-say/ | 2023-05-12T15:44:12 | 1 | https://www.wsls.com/news/local/2023/05/12/man-injured-after-shooting-in-parking-lot-of-roanoke-convenience-store-police-say/ |
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2. Eligibility. Subject to the additional restrictions below, the “Diamondbacks Tickets Giveaway” (the “Sweepstakes”) is open to legal U.S. residents (excluding Puerto Rico) of the State of Arizona who are 18 years or older at the time of entry. Employees and contractors of 12News, Diamondbacks and TEGNA Inc., and each of their respective affiliated companies, and advertising and promotional agencies, and the immediate family members of, and any persons domiciled with, any such employees or contractors, are not eligible to enter or to win. Participants are not eligible if they have won a 12News contest in 2023.
3. Entry. Enter by watching KPNX-TV May 5, May 12, May 26, June 2, June 16, July 7, July 28, August 11, August 25, September 1, September 15, and September 29 between 4:30 am and 6:30 am. After KPNX-TV broadcasts the “text now” announcement, the first three (3) viewers to text their e-mail will become a winner, provided that the person texting meets the eligibility requirements stated in these Official Rules.
5. Prizes and Odds. Three (3) winners will receive four (4) tickets to the DBACKS game at CHASE FIELD STADIUM (ARV: $80.00 for each ticket). Game dates: May 5, May 12, May 26, June 2, June 16, July 7, July 28, August 11, August 25, September 1, September 15, and September 29.
6. Winner Notification and Acceptance. On the same day of each contest, winner will be notified at the email address provided by the winner. Winner must accept to such notification within 12 hours to claim the prize. Failure of winner to accept with such time or return of email prize notification as undeliverable may result in disqualification and an alternate winner may be selected from among all remaining eligible entries. Winner may waive their right to receive prizes. Prizes are not assignable and nontransferable. No substitutions allowed by winner. Prizes are not redeemable for cash. Prizes and individual components of prize packages are subject to availability and Sponsor reserves the right to substitute prizes of equal or greater value. Winner is solely responsible for reporting and payment of any taxes on prizes. Winner may be required to complete an affidavit of eligibility/liability and publicity release (except where prohibited by law) which must be returned as instructed by Sponsor. Failure to sign and return the affidavit or release, or to comply with any term or condition of these Official Rules, may result in a winner’s disqualification, the forfeiture of his or her interest in the prize, and the award of the prize to a substitute winner. Except where prohibited, acceptance of any prize constitutes winner’s consent to the publication of his or her name, biographical information, and likeness in any media for any commercial or promotional purpose, without limitation the Internet, or further compensation. Prizes not won and claimed by eligible winners in accordance with these Official Rules will not be awarded and will remain the property of Sponsor. Prizes not won and claimed by eligible winners in accordance with these Official Rules will not be awarded and will remain the property of Sponsors. For prize winners list send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to KPNX-TV, 200 E. Van Buren Phoenix, Arizona, 85004, Attn: “DBACKS” Giveaway. Prizes not won and claimed by eligible winners in accordance with these Official Rules will not be awarded and will remain the property of Sponsor.
7. Participation. By participating, entrants agree to be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify persons found tampering with or otherwise abusing any aspect of this Sweepstakes as solely determined by Sponsor. In the event the Sweepstakes is compromised by a virus, non-authorized human intervention, tampering or other causes beyond the reasonable control of Sponsor which corrupts or impairs the administration, security, fairness or proper operation of the Sweepstakes, Sponsor reserves the right in its sole discretion to suspend, modify or terminate the Sweepstakes. Should the Sweepstakes be terminated prior to the stated expiration date, Sponsor reserves the right to award prizes based on the entries received before the termination date. Sponsor will not be responsible for incomplete, lost, late, misdirected, or illegible texts, or for failure to receive texts or other electronic communications due to transmission failures or technical failures of any kind, including, without limitation, malfunctioning of any network, hardware, or software, whether originating with sender or Sponsor. In the event of a dispute, all texts will be deemed to have been submitted by the owner of the ISP account from which they were sent. For these purposes, an ISP account holder shall mean the natural person assigned to such ISP account by the Internet access provider, online service provider or other organization responsible for assigning ISP addresses for the domain associated with such ISP account. Any questions regarding the number of entries or votes submitted by the owner of an ISP account shall be determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion. By participating in this Sweepstakes, each entrant agrees to fully release, forever discharge and hold harmless Sponsor from and against all claims, costs, liabilities, losses, injuries, and damages arising out of the Sweepstakes, including, but not limited to, any claims for personal injury, death or damage to or loss of property or any other harm arising out of entrant’s participation in the Sweepstakes, the receipt, use, or misuse of any prize, or any travel or activity that is related to the Sweepstakes or any prize.
8. Construction. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of these rules shall not affect the validity or enforceability of any other provision. In the event that any such provision is determined to be invalid or otherwise unenforceable, these rules shall be construed in accordance with their terms as if the invalid or unenforceable provision was not contained therein.
9. Sponsors. The Diamondbacks Tickets Giveaway is sponsored by 12News, Diamondbacks and Tegna Inc. The decisions of the Sponsor regarding the selection of winners and all other aspects of the Sweepstakes shall be final and binding in all respects. Sponsor will not be responsible for typographical, printing, or other inadvertent errors in these Official Rules or in other materials relating to the Sweepstakes. For a list of winners (available after Monday, of each contest date) or a copy of these Official Rules send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to “Winners List/Official Rules” (as applicable), Gabe Silva 200 E Van Buren St Phoenix, AZ 85004. If you have any questions regarding this Sweepstakes, please contact Gabe Silva at gsilva@12news.com | https://www.12news.com/article/news/local/contests/win-d-backs-tickets/75-b488c3a0-c6f3-4577-9218-ffa2224ffe06 | 2023-05-12T15:55:50 | 0 | https://www.12news.com/article/news/local/contests/win-d-backs-tickets/75-b488c3a0-c6f3-4577-9218-ffa2224ffe06 |
WILDWOOD, Fla. – A Sumter County public school teacher was arrested this week, accused of abusing a special needs student in her class.
The Sumter County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday arrested Sherri Evans Robinson, 55, an exceptional student education teacher at Wildwood Elementary School.
The arrest was part of an investigation that started two days earlier when deputies received a report that Robinson physically abused a student, officials said.
The report said Robinson would pull the hair and ears of a special-needs student in her class when the child acted out, even though it caused pain.
Robinson faces a charge of cruelty toward a child - abuse without great bodily harm.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office or call Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS (8477).
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/05/12/florida-teacher-arrested-accused-of-pulling-hair-ears-of-student-with-special-needs/ | 2023-05-12T16:01:21 | 1 | https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2023/05/12/florida-teacher-arrested-accused-of-pulling-hair-ears-of-student-with-special-needs/ |
VAN BUREN, Ark. — Spanish version: Para español haga click aqui.
Tyson Foods Van Buren plant announced the plant closure in March and today it shut down production a day early. The plant closure left nearly a thousand people without jobs. The situation led to several protests over the past couple of months at the Van Buren plant and company headquarters in Springdale. We spoke with plant employee Juan Barron who said he worked there for more than 20 years and says it was a melancholic day.
"You feel sad because this was like home, like your second home and this is where at least I thought I was going to retire and not work anymore but unfortunately this happened and that's just life," said Barron.
Tyson employees say they worked on the leftover inventory and had a potluck dinner on the final day.
"We had some food for everyone and took pictures, and said goodbye to all the workers. The co-workers got organized so that each one brought a plate of food and after that, they visited the supervisors and took pictures with them," Barron said.
Another employee Maria Ruvalcaba said, "Today was my last day of work well it was very nice, very emotional because well we shared with our coworkers. Food was brought; everyone pitched in something to share and it was very nice...emotional but at the same time bittersweet because it was our last day. We were supposed to work tomorrow but they told us it was until today. But we were very happy, all together some of us crying,"
In light of the Van Buren plant closing companies in the area have hosted job fairs to help those losing their job, but many say it hasn't been beneficial for all employees.
Ruvalcaba explained, "When they said they were closing the first day it was announced we all thought what's going on, right? That day we were just told Tyson decided to close, it's not you it was a decision from corporate. After that, the next week they told us certain companies from different places would be coming although they were from about an hour and a half away so it wasn't anything that was for us because we have our homes here and our things but it would be difficult but there were some people who immediately they had their needs like their bills and their homes so they moved immediately to a different place because they told us you can look we'll bring some other companies to accommodate you they did do that but it was difficult because they were too far away."
Since today is the final day many employees have plans to take time of unemployment and rest for a few weeks and then plan to look for jobs in the area.
5news did reach out to Tyson’s corporate office in Springdale to ask about today’s apparent closure but we’re still waiting to hear back.
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To report a typo or grammatical error, please email KFSMDigitalTeam@tegna.com and detail which story you're referring to. | https://www.thv11.com/article/news/local/tyson-foods-plant-shuts-down-a-day-early/527-bbaed60d-44f3-4546-be46-af8e3be15041 | 2023-05-12T16:04:36 | 1 | https://www.thv11.com/article/news/local/tyson-foods-plant-shuts-down-a-day-early/527-bbaed60d-44f3-4546-be46-af8e3be15041 |
BROOKSVILLE, Fla. — A Brooksville teacher was arrested for pushing another teacher following a "heated" conversation early Friday morning, the Hernando County Sheriff's Office said.
Around 7:15 a.m., Michael Anthony DeJesus was having a conversation with another teacher when it became heated, deputies wrote in a statement.
The sheriff's office said DeJesus told the other teacher to "get the **** out of my room," then aggressively walked over to the other teacher and pushed her with two hands in her upper chest area.
Deputies said the push caused the woman to step back two to three feet.
The incident was seen by two other staff members, who have provided statements, and was captured on security cameras.
DeJesus left the campus following the incident and went home. Deputies went to DeJesus' home where he admitted to pushing his co-worker because he was upset with her.
DeJesus was arrested for felony battery and was booked into the Hernando County Detention Center with a bond of $2,000.
The Hernando County School District is conducting its own internal investigation into the incident. | https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/local/hernandocounty/brooksville-high-school-teacher-charged-battery-against-another-teacher/67-d26ac781-ac7f-4c99-b889-6bef2d6aae8d | 2023-05-12T16:06:03 | 0 | https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/local/hernandocounty/brooksville-high-school-teacher-charged-battery-against-another-teacher/67-d26ac781-ac7f-4c99-b889-6bef2d6aae8d |
Check out these top stories and more in The Times and nwi.com.
Indiana senator dumps on Trump: 'He consistently loses': https://bit.ly/42vxD0y
Cleanup of West Calumet Housing site to begin this summer, East Chicago moves forward with redevelopment plans: https://bit.ly/3VXuPqB
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Video provided in partnership with The Times, JEDtv and WJOB. Sponsored by Strack & Van Til. Weekend weather sponsored by NIPSCO. | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/219-news-now-check-out-the-weekend-forecast-with-matt-holiner-5-12-23/article_a60e06ac-565e-5b0b-a1ef-a054bc4f48e6.html | 2023-05-12T16:06:10 | 1 | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/219-news-now-check-out-the-weekend-forecast-with-matt-holiner-5-12-23/article_a60e06ac-565e-5b0b-a1ef-a054bc4f48e6.html |
The United States ranked fourth in steel production worldwide in March, narrowly edging out Russia in the most recent month for which data is available.
The Brussels, Belgium-based World Steel Association reported steelmakers worldwide made 165.1 million tons of steel in March, a 1.7% year-over-year increase. Steelmakers in the 64 steelmaking countries across the globe made 459.3 million tons of steel through the end of March in 2023, a 0.1% decline as compared to the same period in 2022.
The United States produced 6.7 million tons of steel in March, a 2.1% year-over-year decrease. Steel production fell 4% to 19.1 million tons in the United States so far in 2023, as compared to the January through March period the previous year.
In March, China again led the world in steel production, making 95.7 million tons — more than half the steel made in the world and more than eight times as much as the second-place country. India ranked second with 11.4 million tons and Japan third with 7.5 million tons in March. Russia ranked fifth with 6.6 million tons of steel, according to the World Steel Association.
Last year, China made 1 billion tons of steel, India 124 million tons and Japan 89 million tons. The United States ranked fourth worldwide with 80.7 million tons, a 5.9% year-over-year decline.
In March, South Korea, Germany, Brazil, Turkey and Italy rounded out the top 10 steel-producing countries worldwide, according to the World Steel Association.
North America produced 9.3 million tons of steel in March, a 2.6% year-over-year decrease, according to the World Steel Association. North American output fell 4.1% year-over-year to 26.8 million tons through the end of March.
In March, steel production fell by 5.6% to 11.9 million tons in the European Union, by 14.1% to 3.5 million tons in the rest of Europe, by 7.6% to 3.5 million tons in South Africa and by 17.5% to 3.1 million tons in the Middle East. Steel output rose by by 8.4% to 1.4 million tons in Africa, by 4.1% to 124.8 billion in Asia and Oceania and by 3% to 7.6 million tons in Russia and former Soviet states.
Writers strike in Hollywood: Average residual checks can barely cover an In-N-Out burger
Writers strike in Hollywood: Average residual checks can barely cover an In-N-Out burger
Region native Joseph S. Pete is a Lisagor Award-winning business reporter who covers steel, industry, unions, the ports, retail, banking and more. The Indiana University grad has been with The Times of Northwest Indiana since 2013. | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/united-states-ranked-fourth-globally-in-steel-production-in-march/article_6c4a9730-ef61-11ed-b5aa-27875ef06640.html | 2023-05-12T16:06:16 | 0 | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/united-states-ranked-fourth-globally-in-steel-production-in-march/article_6c4a9730-ef61-11ed-b5aa-27875ef06640.html |
While U.S. Steel is no longer roping in the record profits of recent years, it's still paying steelworkers substantial profit-sharing bonuses.
The Pittsburgh-based steelmaker, which employs thousands of workers at Gary Works and the Midwest Plant in Portage, turned a profit of $199 million in the first quarter. Its employees will share in the bounty.
U.S. Steel is paying steelworkers profit-sharing bonuses of $7.35 per hour for the first quarter, U.S. Steel Media Relations Manager Amanda Malkowski said. Workers at the company's steel mills along the Lake Michigan lakeshore qualify for up to $3,500 in profit-sharing bonuses in the first quarter.
Cleveland-Cliffs also offers profit-sharing bonuses but has not paid any for the last two quarters as it's failed to turn quarterly profits. It last paid $1.22 an hour in profit-sharing for up to 48 hours a week in the third quarter of 2022, according to the United Steelworkers union.
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The USW originally negotiated the bonuses in the early 2000s when the domestic steel industry was upended by turmoil amid a flood of cheap imports and longstanding steelmakers like Inland, Bethlehem and LTV vanished from the landscape, either going bankrupt or getting bought out.
The arrangement was meant to help steelmakers out at a time when they were struggling financially. The idea was that it would keep labor costs down during lean years, but workers would be rewarded when the notoriously cyclical industry bounced back.
Steelworkers went years without bonuses, to the point where the bonuses were made quarterly instead of annually so that one bad quarter wouldn't wipe out all of the steelworkers' additional take-home pay.
The bonuses have soared along with record profits in recent years. U.S. Steel's hourly employees got profit-sharing bonuses of up to $6,000 in the fourth quarter and up to $43,000 last year. That's more in just profit-sharing bonuses than the median income of $31,666 in Lake County.
Over the last two years, steelworkers at U.S. Steel's mills in Northwest Indiana have brought home $80,000 in profit-sharing bonuses on top on their regular paychecks.
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NWI Business Ins and Outs: Buona/Rainbow Cone, Fat Burrito, Pickles Kids and Dear Dani Boutique opening | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/us-steel-pays-steelworkers-profit-sharing-of-up-to-3-500-in-first-quarter/article_e2cc3196-ef72-11ed-9b87-ff8d1dd11b15.html | 2023-05-12T16:06:22 | 1 | https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/us-steel-pays-steelworkers-profit-sharing-of-up-to-3-500-in-first-quarter/article_e2cc3196-ef72-11ed-9b87-ff8d1dd11b15.html |
A juvenile suspect is in custody following a threatening text that was sent to Goochland High School Thursday.
In a letter addressed to Goochland families, Andy Armstrong, Interim Superintendent for Goochland County Public Schools, said that school staff received a threatening text message at 10:30 a.m. Thursday.
Because of the specific language in the text, Goochland High School and Goochland Middle School went under full lockdown. Goochland Elementary was placed on hold, with students remaining inside until the Goochland County Sheriff’s Office completed its investigation.
Goochland schools administration and the Sheriff’s Office stated on their respective Facebook pages that there was no active threat during the lockdown. Sheriff’s deputies, K9 units, and school staff searched each classroom, finding no weapons or contraband.
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The schools resumed normal operation at 3 p.m. after the lockdown was lifted, and students were dismissed at 3:30 p.m.
The suspect was taken into custody around 11 p.m. Thursday for sending the threats, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Goochland Middle School and Goochland High School were closed on Friday, and Friday’s after-school activities at the school complex have been postponed.
A joint statement from the Sheriff’s Office and school division is expected to be released Friday. | https://richmond.com/news/local/juvenile-in-custody-after-texting-threat-to-goochland-high-school/article_6ff56430-f0cb-11ed-886c-37488ce56e59.html | 2023-05-12T16:11:48 | 1 | https://richmond.com/news/local/juvenile-in-custody-after-texting-threat-to-goochland-high-school/article_6ff56430-f0cb-11ed-886c-37488ce56e59.html |
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