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New Zealand prosecutor alleges tourists were not warned before volcano eruption in 2019 killed 22

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:53:26 GMT

WEL.LINGTON, New Zealand — Tourists received no health and safety warnings before they landed on New Zealand’s most active volcano ahead of a 2019 eruption that killed 22 people, a prosecutor said Tuesday.There were 47 people on White Island, the tip of an undersea volcano also known by its Indigenous Maori name Whakaari, when superheated steam erupted on Dec. 9. Most of the 25 people who survived were severely burned.The island’s owners, brothers Andrew, James and Peter Buttle, their company Whakaari Management Ltd. and tour operators I.D. Tours NZ Ltd. and Tauranga Tourism Services Ltd. went on trial Tuesday in Auckland District Court for allegedly failing to adequately protect tourists and staff.Prosecutor Kristy McDonald said in opening the prosecution case that the eruption at the popular tourist destination was not predictable but was foreseeable. The 20 tourists and two tour guides who died were given no warning of the risks, she said.“They were not given the opportunity to m...

Julio Rodríguez hit a record 41 homers in the Home Run Derby’s first round to beat Pete Alonso

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:53:26 GMT

SEATTLE (AP) — Mariners star Julio Rodríguez hit a record 41 homers in the first round before his hometown fans, advancing to the semifinals of the All-Star Home Run Derby on Monday night along with Tampa Bay’s Randy Arozarena, Toronto’s Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Luis Robert of the Chicago White Sox.At 22 trying to become the youngest Derby winner, Rodríguez knocked out two-time champion Pete Alonso of the New York Mets, who hit 21. Rodríguez beat Corey Seager 32-24 in the first round last year at Dodger Stadium, then knocked out Alonso 31-23 before losing to Juan Soto 19-18 in the final.Arozarena beat Texas’ Adolis García 24-17 in the opening pairing at T-Mobile Park. García is the godfather to Arozarena’s daughter, and the two jumped into each other’s arms during warmups.Robert knocked out Baltimore’s Adley Rutschman 28-27 and the longest home run of the round, a 470-foot drive to center. Rutschman hit 21 left-handed, and the switch-hitter then turned around to the right side and ...

Pilot escapes with minor injuries when small plane crashes into hangar’s roof at California airport

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:53:26 GMT

LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) — A pilot escaped with only minor injuries after a single-engine plane crashed nose-first into the roof of a hangar Monday at a Southern California airport, authorities said. The crash happened around 2:30 p.m. while the pilot of the Cessna 172 was “practicing landings and takeoffs” at Long Beach Airport, south of Los Angeles, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement. Video aired by ABC 7 showed the nose of the plane embedded in the hangar’s roof, with the tail sticking straight up. The pilot, who was the only person on board, had to be extricated from the wreckage and was hospitalized with minor injuries, the news station said. About 45 gallons of fuel leaked from the plane after the crash, the fire department said. The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board will investigate.The Associated Press

Trump lawyers agree to delay pretrial conference in classified documents case

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:53:26 GMT

MIAMI (AP) — Lawyers for former President Donald Trump say they agreed with federal prosecutors to delay to next week a pretrial hearing to discuss how classified information is handled in court as he faces federal charges that he illegally hoarded classifed documents at his Florida estate.The hearing to discuss the Classified Information Procedures Act had previously been set for Friday. But an attorney for Trump’s valet Walt Nauta, who was charged alongside the former president, said he has another bench trial this week in Washington preventing him from appearing Friday in South Florida.The attorneys said in their filing that they can appear at the pretrial conference to go over the 1980 law on July 18, adding they had also checked with U.S. attorneys on moving the date. The judge in the case, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, still needs to agree to the new date.Trump and Nauta were charged in a 38-count indictment with conspiring to hide classified documents at Mar-a-Lago...

Rapper G Herbo arrested in Chicago on gun charges: reports

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:53:26 GMT

CHICAGO — A Chicago hip-hop artists was arrested over the weekend after being in possession of a gun during a traffic stop in the River North neighborhood, TMZ reports.27-year-old Herbert Randall Wright III, the hip-hop artist known as "G Herbo," was arrested by the Chicago Police Department after being found with gun in the River North neighborhood near North Wabash Avenue and East Ontario Street around 5:45 p.m. on Sunday, according to TMZ. Video captures Jamie Foxx on Chicago River in 1st public sighting: TMZ The Chicago-native has over 7.5 million monthly Spotify listeners, with his feature on Nardo Wick's "Who Want Smoke??" alongside Lil Durk and 21 Savage having over 196 million plays.According to TMZ, Chicago police arrested G Herbo for misdemeanor unlawful use of a weapon in a public place. He has since bonded out of jail and will have to appear in court at a later date.G Herbo also will not face additional charges for being in possession of nearly 300 grams of marijuana t...

Active weather pattern returns and threatens to bring several chances for showers and thunderstorms in coming days

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:53:26 GMT

The heaviest is capable of gusty winds and drenching downpours. In typical summer fashion, total rainfall is likely to vary widely across the areaCHICAGO’S RAIN/THUNDERSTORM CHANCESSW WINDS HELP PUSH TEMPS WELL INTO THE 80S, BUT AN AFTERNOON WIND SHIFT TO THE NNE WILL SEND READINGS PLUNGING 15+ DEGREESTuesday 1 PM predicted temperature snapshotTuesday 8 PM predicted temperature snapshotTuesday 11 AM predicted windsTuesday 5:30 PM predicted windsSTRONG TO LOCALLY SEVERE T-STORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE FOR PARTS OF THE METRO AREA TUESDAY AND AGAIN WEDNESDAYSevere outlook for Tuesday 7 AM through Wednesday 7 AMWednesday 7 AM through Thursday 7 AM severe outlook—southern sections of the viewing area are most favored for scattered severe t-stormsSOURCE: NOAA-STORM PREDICTION CENTERWIDESPREAD FLASH FLOODING CONTINUES ACROSS MUCH OF THE NORTHEAST ESPECIALLY EASTERN NEW YORK AND WESTERN/CENTRAL NEW ENGLANDHeavy rainfall will continue across New England today, then shower and storms will begin mov...

Student loans: Looming payments put spotlight on 'real danger' for borrowers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:53:26 GMT

Americans with student loans could see thousands of dollars in interest added to their tabs as part of President Biden's backup relief proposal. The Biden administration is attempting to use a proposed aid program to help millions of student debt holders handle the dual blow of payments resuming in October and the Supreme Court striking down a sweeping debt forgiveness plan.Biden’s “on-ramp” repayment plan allows borrowers in financial distress to delay payments from Oct. 2023 to Sept. 2024 without the threat of default or credit score decline.But unlike the current pause on student loans, interest will still accrue on those loans and give borrowers a steeper hill to climb when they begin payments again.More to come: Borrowers stare down student loan repayments after years of high inflationExperts are concerned that millions of Americans who leaned on loan relief throughout the pandemic may be caught off guard under the new system.“I can envision millions of borrowers who are going ...

800 teachers will have to pay back bonus after district mistake

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:53:26 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – Austin Independent School District officials said Monday a "miscommunication" among its human capital staff led to about 800 employees receiving up to $2,000 bonuses they will have to pay back.District officials previously said the overpayment was a processing error and was meant for only new hires who are taking on hard-to-staff roles, including special education and bilingual teaching staff, as a recruitment incentive.But records obtained by KXAN show more than a week before the June 30 paycheck was issued, an AISD teacher asked the human capital office whether all secondary math teachers would receive the stipend on their June checks. Records show a human capital specialist confirmed the teacher was set to receive the stipend.  The teacher received the bonus on June 30 and on the same day received an email stating she would have to pay back the money either in one lump sum or over four separate paydays. Austin ISD apologizes to teachers over late payroll, m...

1 dead after rollover crash in southern Travis County

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:53:26 GMT

TRAVIS COUNTY (KXAN) — A person died in a rollover crash Monday in southern Travis County, Austin-Travis County EMS said.In a tweet thread, ATCEMS said medics responded to the crash just before 5 p.m. at the intersection of Farm to Market Road 1626 and Bliss Spillar Road. One person died in a rollover crash Monday in southern Travis County. The crash occurred near the intersection of FM 1626 and Bliss Spillar Road. (KXAN photo/Andy Way)One person died in a rollover crash Monday in southern Travis County. The crash occurred near the intersection of FM 1626 and Bliss Spillar Road. (KXAN photo/Andy Way)One person died in a rollover crash Monday in southern Travis County. The crash occurred near the intersection of FM 1626 and Bliss Spillar Road. (KXAN photo/Andy Way)One person died in a rollover crash Monday in southern Travis County. The crash occurred near the intersection of FM 1626 and Bliss Spillar Road. (KXAN photo/Andy Way)After performing CPR on an adult, medics later declared ...

Appeals court: Walz had authority to impose face mask mandate during COVID pandemic

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:53:26 GMT

ST. PAUL — Gov. Tim Walz had the legal authority to mandate face masks when he declared a public health emergency in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled Monday.Walz declared a peacetime emergency in March 2020 and mandated masking in most indoor public spaces in July 2020. The conservative Upper Midwest Law Center sued, challenging the mask requirement as unconstitutional. Walz lifted the mandate in May 2021, at which point the Court of Appeals declared the case moot.But the Minnesota Supreme Court in February sent the case back to the appeals court to settle the key legal question behind the case: whether the the Minnesota Emergency Management Act of 1996 authorizes a governor to declare a peacetime emergency during a public health emergency such as the pandemic. The high court called it an “important issue of statewide significance.”The appeals court rejected as “unreasonable” the plaintiffs’ assertions that the coronavirus “most lik...