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Drone strike kills US contractor in Syria; US retaliates

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:37 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S. contractor was killed and five U.S. service members and one other U.S. contractor were wounded when a suspected Iranian drone struck a facility on a coalition base in northeast Syria on Thursday, the Pentagon said.In a statement released late Thursday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said U.S. Central Command forces retaliated with “precision airstrikes” against facilities in eastern Syria used by groups affiliated with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard. The Defense Department said the intelligence community had determined the unmanned aerial vehicle was of Iranian origin.“The airstrikes were conducted in response to today’s attack as well as a series of recent attacks against Coalition forces in Syria” by groups affiliated with the Revolutionary Guard, Austin said. Overnight, videos on social media purported to show explosions in Syria’s Deir Ez-Zor, a strategic province that borders Iraq and contains oil fields.Iran-backed militia groups and Syrian forces co...

Radioactive water leaks at Minn. nuclear plant for 2nd time

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:37 GMT

MONTICELLO, Minn. (AP) — The company that owns a nuclear power plant northwest of Minneapolis said Thursday that water containing a radioactive material is leaking from the plant for a second time, but there is no danger to the public and the facility will power down Friday to begin working on permanent repairs. The announcement by Xcel Energy comes about a week after Minnesota regulators announced that 400,000 gallons (1.5 million liters) of water containing tritium had leaked from the Monticello Nuclear Generating Plant back in November. The delay in making an announcement about the leak raised questions about public safety and transparency, but industry experts said there was never a public health threat. The new leak, announced a day after Xcel Energy says it was discovered, was found to be coming from a temporary fix to the original leak, the company said in a statement. This time, the leak is anticipated to be in the hundreds of gallons. “While the leak continues to pose no ri...

Love and support always part of equation for Chicago teacher

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:37 GMT

CHICAGO — High expectations, love and positivity all add up to success for Jacqueline Dooley, a Chicago math teacher.Dooley, an 8th-grade math teacher, is March's Teacher of the Month. She said her job brings her joy and she said her assignment is supporting her students. Character and community building are suburban kindergarten teacher’s priority She has been teaching for 17 years and spent the past three years at Perspectives Middle Academy in Chatham.She is also a pastor and is guided by faith. She said she loves to see her students grow. Chicago math teacher says it’s truly his students that should be Teacher of the Month Several of her students nominated her teacher of the month.Award sponsor Howard Ankin visited the school to present a $1,000 check.

More Rain on the Way; Severe Weather Threatens South...

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:37 GMT

Friday afternoon snapshot—Mildest temperatures to occur far south/SW of Chicago—near 50°— "Lake breeze" to keep areas adjacent to Lake Michigan in the upper 30s to around 40°Friday afternoon snapshot—Mildest temperatures to occur far south/SW of Chicago—near 50°— "Lake breeze" to keep areas adjacent to Lake Michigan in the upper 30s to around 40°Seconds storm system of the week is likely to bring healthy precipitation totals to much of the metro area Total precipitation by later Saturday:While slushy accumulations are possible, especially areas north/NW of Chicago by Saturday morning, the highest probability of impactful snow accumulations is likely to fall across portions of Wisconsin, including the Madison area.Probability of 4” or more snow by Saturday afternoon: ​Weather history: Chicago Snow Climatology Since snow records began in 1885; 75% of years have logged measurable snow beyond March 24. Nearly 50% of those years produced a 1"+ snowfall.

Longhorns baseball on 11-game tear going into Big 12 opening series vs. Texas Tech

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:37 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — After a wild 17-11 win over Incarnate Word on Tuesday, the Texas Longhorns are riding an 11-game winning streak into the Big 12 Conference opening series against Texas Tech.The three-game set begins Friday at UFCU Disch-Falk Field and is on the back end of a 14-game homestand, but the Longhorns know the Red Raiders will present a much larger challenge than anyone else they've played at the friendly confines the past two weeks.MORE THAN THE SCORE: Stay up to date on sports stories like these, and sign up for our More than the Score sports newsletter at kxan.com/newsletters"We've been able to make some really good adjustments when you look at communication on the field pre-pitch and with the ball in play," Longhorns head coach David Pierce said. "We've done a good job of taking care of business, and now it's time we go out and see how we fare in the Big 12."The Red Raiders are 18-4 on the season and ranked No. 14 in the D1Baseball.com national poll, and the series in A...

Zilker Park adding new pay stations, increasing prices for parking

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:37 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The Austin Parks and Recreation Department will soon add new automated parking pay stations to Zilker Park.Parking lots near Stratford Road and the South Barton Springs Pool lot near Azie Morton Road will now have pay stations like the rest of the park.The lots were free before the decision was made to add the paid parking. The automated parking stalls for these areas will be activated on May 1, 2023.In 2016, pay stations were installed to help reduce both traffic congestion and operating expenses."It is large enough to park, easy access to get in and out and it's free," said Patrick Nicks, who said he is unhappy to hear the lot near Stratford Road will begin charging people. "That is very upsetting. It is going to be a pain to come to Zilker now. It will probably deter me from coming here." Parking meters at Zilker Park aim to reduce traffic Zilker Park currently charges from March to September at most of the lots. Payment is only required over the weekend, holid...

1 airlifted after school bus and pickup truck collide on Iron Range

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:37 GMT

PALO, Minn. — One person was airlifted to a hospital and two others suffered minor injuries when a school bus crashed into a pickup truck early Thursday on Minnesota’s Iron Range, authorities said.The collision was reported in White Township just before 7:30 a.m., according to the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office. The bus was transporting several students to Mesabi East High School in Aurora, about 10 miles north of the crash site.Authorities said the bus failed to stop at the intersection, striking the truck before careening off the road and into some trees.The driver of the pickup, Theodore Fredrickson, 53, of Makinen, was transported by North Memorial Air to an unspecified hospital with unknown injuries. Bus driver Bonnie Locken, 70, of Hoyt Lakes, was treated for minor injuries, as was one child.No charges have been filed. The sheriff’s office said the crash remains under investigation.Related ArticlesLocal News | Xcel Energy to power down Monticello nucl...

Fire tears through former Doane Stuart building

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:37 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Crews are on scene of a major fire on Mount Hope Drive in the city of Albany. The fire is at the old Doane Stuart building. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! The calls for a fully-involved structure fire came in around 6:30 p.m. Thursday. Flames ripped through the entire building and were shooting into the air. Smoke could also be seen for miles. Despite the scale of the fire, Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan said no surrounding buildings were in jeopardy. However, there was an issue getting water to the scene, and the Guilderland Fire Department helped assist. Mayor Sheehan said all city firefighters were called to the three-alarm fire, but mutual aid was called in to help protect the city if any other emergencies take place. NYS education department rejects Fonda-Fultonville request to keep mascot Coeducational and interfaith, the Doane Stuart school was founded in 1975 when the St. Agnes School and Ke...

St. Louis lauds female firefighters, but denies promotions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:37 GMT

ST. LOUIS – Two female fire captains, praised by the city earlier this week for their service, are being denied promotions they earned.On Tuesday, the St. Louis Fire Department held up Acting Captains Licole McKinney and Jessica Jackson as proud examples of women representing the city. But they’re captains in name only.McKinney and Jackson are being denied the pay increase that comes with that title because of a decision by the St. Louis Department of Public Safety.It’s a decision St. Louis aldermen opposed, unanimously, according to Alderman Joe Vaccaro (Ward 23).“We 100% agreed,” he said. Top Stories: Jana Elementary School shuts down after radioactive waste concerns Vaccaro, the head of the Public Safety Committee, said he was disgusted to see the city taking credit for diversity that he doesn’t think we are really upholding.“I think it was somewhat disgraceful on the city’s part, because you’re putting a bunch of people out there saying, ‘Look how great we are,’” he said. “Two...

Downtown nightclub owner speaks out after business blamed for recent crime

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:37 GMT

ST. LOUIS - One of the owners of Europe Night Club speaks out after Citizens for a Greater Downtown St. Louis blames them and the nightclub industry for crime, including a recent incident involving a gun in a downtown parking lot."My patrons are the victim, they're not the problem,” said Bobbi Baker, partner of Europe Night Club.Baker spoke out after Citizens for a Greater Downtown St. Louis claimed on Twitter that they were responsible for an incident in a neighboring parking lot around 2:30 a.m. on Saturday.Something she said has no ties to their business. Top Stories: Jana Elementary School shuts down after radioactive waste concerns "The crime is not a club problem. The crime is a city problem," Baker said. "It’s all over St. Louis; places that have the volume of people that we do are targeted."The tweets showed screenshots from surveillance video that Baker said show a group of people in the parking lot trying to defend themselves against a man with a gun."There's a lack of p...