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Emergency official says multiple Maui wildfire burn patients have been flown to Honolulu hospital

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:07 GMT

By JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER | Associated PressHONOLULU (AP) — Wind-whipped wildfires raced through parts of Hawaii on Wednesday, destroying homes and businesses in a historic town on the island of Maui, injuring several people, forcing evacuations and leading some to flee to the relative safety of the ocean, where they were rescued by the Coast Guard.Fire was widespread in Lahaina Town, including on Front Street, a shopping and dining area that is popular with tourists, County of Maui spokesperson Mahina Martin said by phone early Wednesday. Traffic has been very heavy as people try to evacuate the area, and officials asked people who weren’t in an evacuation area to shelter in place to avoid adding to the traffic, she said. Photos posted by the county overnight showed a line of flames blazing across an intersection and leaping above buildings in the town center that dates to the 1700s and is on the National Register of Historic Places.“Do NOT go to Lahaina Town,” the county tweeted ...

San Diego man found dead on Tucson hike during extreme weather conditions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:07 GMT

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — A California man reported missing on a hike in Tucson has been found dead, authorities said Wednesday.Pima County Sheriff’s officials say the body of 46-year-old Kyle Chance, of San Diego, was located near the Starr Pass area about 4 p.m. Tuesday.“There was no indication of foul play. More information regarding the cause of death will be available at a later date," Sheriff’s Deputy Gordon Downing said in a statement Wednesday. “The initial indication is that it was related to exposure to the weather conditions."The high in Tuscon was 93 degrees Fahrenheit (33.9 Celsius) Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service.Downing said Chance started his hike around 9:30 a.m. Tuesday and was reported missing later in the day.The sheriff department’s search and rescue crew joined Tucson police, Drexel Heights fire personnel and an Arizona Department of Public Safety helicopter in the search.

Religious group sues Quebec government for blocking event over abortion concerns

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:07 GMT

QUEBEC — A Christian group announced Wednesday it is suing the Quebec government after the tourism minister cancelled a religious gathering last June at a publicly owned convention centre because she assumed the event would promote anti-abortion views.British Columbia-based Harvest Ministries International filed a motion in Quebec Superior Court against Minister Caroline Proulx, the convention centre and Quebec’s attorney general. The court filing, dated Aug. 2, argues that the cancellation of the “Faith, Fire and Freedom” rally was a violation of the group’s Charter rights to non-discrimination and to freedom of religion, expression, opinion, and peaceful assembly. The group is asking for more than $200,000 in compensation for moral and material loss, and for punitive damages. It is also asking for a declaration that its rights were unjustly interfered with.In early June, Proulx cancelled a 10-day event at the Quebec City Convention Centre by Harvest Ministr...

Things to know about a vote in Ohio, court action in Kansas and Utah and other abortion developments

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:07 GMT

Voters in Ohio and judges across the U.S. are weighing in on the future of abortion access in several states more than a year after the nation’s top court overturned Roe v. Wade and the right to an abortion, setting off a series of policy shifts.Here are the latest developments.WHAT VOTERS SAYOhio voters on Tuesday rejected a ballot question that would have raised the threshold for future constitutional amendments and required at least 60% support for a measure to pass instead of a simple majority.The new policy would have been in place in November, when voters will be asked to amend the state constitution to give voters the right to make their own reproductive decisions, including both fertility treatment and abortion.Ohio, where Republicans control the state government, has a law banning abortions after cardiac activity can be detected — which is around six weeks and often before women realize they’re pregnant. Enforcement of the ban is on hold while courts consider its lega...

Ex-Las Vegas Raider Henry Ruggs sentenced to 3-plus years in prison for fatal DUI crash in Nevada

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:07 GMT

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Former Las Vegas Raiders player Henry Ruggs was sentenced Wednesday to at least three years in a Nevada prison for killing a woman in a fiery crash while driving his sports car drunk at speeds up to 156 mph on a city street nearly two years ago.“I sincerely apologize,” the former first-round NFL draft pick said as he stood for sentencing in Las Vegas after pleading guilty in May to felony DUI causing death and misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter, a charge carrying a six-month jail sentence that will be folded in with his three-to-10-year prison term.Ruggs, now 24, was cut by the Raiders while he was still hospitalized following the predawn crash on Nov. 2, 2021. The collision killed Tina Tintor and her dog, Max, and injured Ruggs’ passenger, Kiara Je’nai Kilgo-Washington, his fiancee and mother of their daughter.“I have no excuses,” Ruggs said, citing pain the case has caused his family, teammates and Tintor’s family. Ruggs said that after prison, he inte...

Singer and songwriter Sixto Rodriguez, subject of ‘Searching for Sugar Man’ documentary, dies at 81

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:07 GMT

DETROIT (AP) — Sixto Rodriguez, who lived in obscurity as his music career flamed out early in the U.S. only to find success in South Africa and a stardom he was unaware of, died Tuesday in Detroit. He was 81.Rodriguez’s legacy would take off back home after the singer and songwriter became the subject of the Oscar-winning documentary “Searching for Sugar Man.”His death was announced on the Sugarman.org website and confirmed Wednesday by his granddaughter, Amanda Kennedy.He died following a short illness, according to his wife, Konny Rodriguez, 72.A 2013 Associated Press story referred to Rodriguez as “the greatest protest singer and songwriter that most people never heard of.”His albums flopped in the United States in the 1970s, but — unknown to him — he later became a star in South Africa where his songs protesting the Vietnam War, racial inequality, abuse of women and social mores inspired white liberals horrified by the country’s brutal racial segregation system of a...

Millions struggle to pay AC bills in heat waves. Federal aid reaches only a fraction

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:07 GMT

DENVER (AP) — Bobbie Boyd is in a losing battle against near triple-digit temperatures in northwest Arkansas.Her window air conditioner runs nonstop and the ballooning electric bill carves about $240 out of her $882-a-month fixed income. So the 57-year-old cuts other necessities. Boyd eats one meal a day so her 15-year-old grandson, who she’s raising alone, can have two. She stopped paying car insurance and skips medical appointments.“The rent and the light bill. And I’m broke,” said Boyd, who needs the cooling to stave off her heat-induced asthma attacks.As climate change ratchets up temperatures across the U.S., millions of the poorest Americans grapple with the same agonizing decisions as Boyd — between perilous indoor heat or paying costly bills. While President Joe Biden has invested billions into federal programs that subsidize the poorest Americans’ energy costs, the money reaches only a fraction of the most vulnerable during the sweltering summer months.Nationwid...

4 dead, including suspected 'aggressor,' after shooting inside home in Crystal Lake: police

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:07 GMT

UNINCORPORATED CRYSTAL LAKE, Ill — Three female family members were found dead, and one seriously injured, inside a house in Unincorporated Crystal Lake, authorities have confirmed.According to police, the suspected gunman has also died.The shooting happened just before 4 a.m. Wednesday on the 5800 block of Wild Plum Road. Officers were dispatched to a residence for the report of a "single household member shooting their relatives."Upon arrival, police found a total of five people inside the house. Three females were pronounced dead on the scene. Another female, who initially called 911, was seriously injured and transported to an area hospital.A male, who is believed to be the aggressor, was transported to an area hospital where he later died.Police said the five people all lived in the house. Subway, customers robbed at gunpoint on Chicago’s Southwest Side According to authorities, this is an isolated incident and there is no danger to the public.The McHenry County Sheriff's Off...

Blackhawks honor late owner Rocky Wirtz

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:07 GMT

CHICAGO — Less than a week after his death, the Chicago Blackhawks have announced plans to publically honor their late owner.It will happen at a place he helped turn into one of the best venues in all of the National Hockey League over the previous 16 years.The @NHLBlackhawks have announced the details for a public memorial to honor late chairman Rocky Wirtz on Wednesday, August 9th at the @UnitedCenter..@WGNNews pic.twitter.com/aSMRVSmKMh— Larry Hawley (@HawleySports) July 31, 2023On Monday evening, the Blackhawks announced plans to honor late chairman Rocky Wirtz on Wednesday, August 9 at the United Center. The event is expected to begin at 11 a.m. and will be open to the public, with first-come, first-serve seating for the formal ceremony. Once completed, the United Center will remain open to fans to pay their respects to the late owner, who died after a brief illness on July 25. Fans attending the event can start doing so at 9:30 a.m. through Gates 6 & 7 on the south s...

Lil Tay, child rapper and YouTube personality, dies

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:07 GMT

(KTLA) – Lil Tay, the young YouTube star and rapper, has died. According to reports online, she was just 14 years old. The family of Tay, whose real name is Claire Hope, issued a statement about her death in a post on Instagram Wednesday morning. The statement revealed her brother had died, as well. "It is with a heavy heart that we share the devastating news of our beloved Claire's sudden and tragic passing. We have no words to express the unbearable loss and indescribable pain," the statement read. "This outcome was entirely unexpected and has left us all in shock. Her brother's passing adds an even more unimaginable depth to our grief. During this time of immense sorrow, we kindly ask for privacy as we grieve this overwhelming loss, as the circumstances surrounding Claire and her brother's passing are still under investigation.""Claire will forever remain in our hearts, her absence leaving an irreplaceable voice that will be felt by all who knew and loved her," the statement...