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Another atmospheric river pounds California, 27K to evacuate

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:32 GMT

WATSONVILLE, Calif. (AP) — The latest powerful atmospheric river to drench California put nearly 27,000 people under evacuation orders Tuesday due to flooding and landslide risks. On the central coast, workers hauled truckloads of rocks to plug a broken river levee amid steady rain and wind.Forecasters warned of damaging winds with gusts up to 70 mph (113 kph), and there were numerous reports of falling trees. Power outages hit more than 330,000 utility customers in northern and central areas, according to poweroutage.us, which tracks outages nationwide.Crews raced to stabilize the Pajaro River’s ruptured levee Tuesday, placing rocks and boulders to finish filling the gap that opened late Friday, about 70 miles (110 kilometers) south of San Francisco. Workers will then raise that portion’s elevation to match the rest of the levee over the next few weeks to make it impermeable, officials said.Tuesday’s storm initially spread light to moderate rain over the stateR...

Inter reaches Champions League QF after 0-0 draw at Porto

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:32 GMT

PORTO, Portugal (AP) — Heroic defending and the woodwork helped Inter Milan reach the Champions League quarterfinals for the first time in more than a decade.Inter managed a 0-0 draw at Porto on Tuesday to progress 1-0 on aggregate and join city rival AC Milan in the final eight. Napoli could become the third Italian team in the quarterfinals when it plays Eintracht Frankfurt on Wednesday.All the drama was saved for the fifth minute of stoppage time as a goalline clearance, the post and the crossbar prevented Porto from snatching the goal that would have taken the match to extra time.“In soccer, luck matters relatively,” Inter coach Simone Inzaghi said. “I think that over the both legs we deserved to get to the quarterfinals, we didn’t concede a goal in the 180 minutes against a team that’s used to playing these sort of matches.“We shouldn’t forget that last year we reached the round of 16 for the first time after more than 10 years, this year the quarterfinals … Now we will play wi...

Cowboys get CB Gilmore in trade with Colts on big day for D

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:32 GMT

The Dallas Cowboys acquired cornerback Stephon Gilmore from the Indianapolis Colts for a fifth-round draft pick Tuesday.The addition of the five-time Pro Bowler came on the same day Dallas brought back safety Donovan Wilson and linebacker Leighton Vander Esch as the Cowboys try to further bolster a defense that carried the club at times during a second consecutive playoff season in 2022.The Cowboys will give the Colts a compensatory fifth-round pick in this year’s draft.It will be the third team in three seasons for Gilmore, the 2019 AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year when he was with New England.The 32-year-old Gilmore played 16 games for the Colts last season, finishing with two interceptions and 11 pass breakups as a four-year Pro Bowl run ended.The second of Gilmore’s two All-Pro seasons was with the Patriots in 2019, when he led the NFL with 20 pass breakups and had six interceptions.The trade pairs Gilmore with 2021 NFL interceptions leader Trevon Diggs, who had 1...

AP sources: QB Dalton agrees to 2-year deal with Panthers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:32 GMT

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Panthers have found their stop-gap quarterback, agreeing to a two-year, $10 million contract with unrestricted free agent Andy Dalton, according to two people familiar with the situation.One of those people, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Tuesday because the deal can’t be signed until Wednesday, said the deal includes $8 million in guaranteed money.The Panthers traded up last week to get the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft and are almost certain to use it on a quarterback — a position that has seen repeated turnover over the past five seasons in Carolina. So while Dalton could open the season as the starter if the rookie isn’t quite ready to play, eventually he is expected to be relegated to the role of mentor and backup quarterback.The 35-year-old Dalton has spent 12 seasons in the NFL, including the first nine with the Cincinnati Bengals. He played last season with the New Orleans Saints going 6-8 as a starter with 18 to...

What’s known — and not — about US-Russia military air crash

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:32 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — When a Russian fighter jet collided with a large U.S. surveillance drone over the Black Sea on Tuesday, it was a rare but serious incident that triggered a U.S. diplomatic protest and raised concerns about the possibility Russia could recover sensitive technology.U.S. and Russian officials had conflicting accounts of the collision between the MQ-9 Reaper drone and the Russian Su-27 fighter jet — each blaming the other. But a Pentagon spokesman raised the possibility that the Defense Department could eventually declassify and release video it has of the collision.Defense officials said the drone has not been recovered. But the Pentagon declined to say whether any effort was underway to gather debris or pieces of the Reaper.Here’s what’s known — and uncertain — about the crash.WHAT THE US SAYS HAPPENEDThe Pentagon and U.S. European Command said that two Russian Su-27 aircraft dumped fuel on the MQ-9, which was conducting a routine surveillance mission ove...

FAA to investigate runway wrong turn at DC-area airport

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:32 GMT

Federal officials announced Tuesday that they’re investigating after a taxiing airplane took a wrong turn at a Washington-area airport and crossed a runway where another plane was preparing to take off.The Federal Aviation Administration said it happened on the morning of March 7 after air traffic control cleared a Republic Airways Embraer 175 to taxi across a runway at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and a United Airbus A319 was cleared to take off from another runway, The Washington Post reported. The Republic pilots took the aircraft in a different direction and crossed the runway that the United flight was about to use, but a controller intervened, officials said.The United flight returned to the beginning of the runway at the airport in Arlington, Virginia, before taking off for Chicago, and the Republic flight continued to Raleigh-Durham International Airport. The investigation will determine how close the planes were, the FAA said.United referred questions to ...

DC cherry blossoms expected to reach ‘peak bloom’ next week

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:32 GMT

D.C.’s treasured cherry blossoms are expected to reveal themselves early this year, with some expected to reach peak bloom as soon as next week.The National Park Service said that, due to a milder-than-usual winter, many of the Yoshino trees had already begun to reveal their petals. The agency anticipates peak bloom to occur sometime between Wednesday, March 22, and Saturday, March 25.Easing toward warmer weather, the cherry blossoms will feel the effects. With many of the Yoshino trees beginning to reveal their petals, we’re expecting peak bloom to arrive at the early side of our prediction (March 22-25) or a few days before. #BloomWatch #cherryblossom pic.twitter.com/amvqwNCK5x— National Mall NPS (@NationalMallNPS) March 14, 2023More Cherry Blossom NewsMore DC NewsMore Local NewsSome local scientists have said that earlier peak blooms are an indicator of climate change in the area. Matthew Morrison, an NPS arborist, told WTOP that rising waters at the Tidal Basin are a...

March Madness and Michigan State synonymous under Tom Izzo

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:32 GMT

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Tom Izzo stepped up to a lectern with a microphone, as he has more than 1,000 times over the last three decades, and delivered a timely message when Michigan State University needed it most.The Basketball Hall of Fame coach was asked to address a huge, crestfallen crowd that gathered in the middle of campus two days after shootings less than a mile away killed three students and hospitalized five others.“Emotions are different for each and every person,” Izzo said. “I cry in front of my team. I cry on national TV. Don’t be afraid to show your emotions. We all process trauma in a very different way. I’m just glad we’re all here together.”Izzo had visited the victims in the hospital before practice earlier that day and had prepared what he wanted to say. He went off the script, though, when asking everyone in attendance to meet the 10 people around them before departing.Nearly a month later, Michigan State interim President Teresa K. Woodruff got emoti...

Michigan Senate votes to repeal 2012 law restricting unions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:32 GMT

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Hundreds of union supporters filled the halls of the Michigan Capitol on Tuesday as Senate Democrats voted along party lines in support of repealing the decade-old “right-to-work” law in a state long considered a pillar of organized labor.Democrats have listed the repeal as one of their top legislative goals this session. The law, enacted in 2012 when Republicans fully controlled Michigan government, prohibits public and private unions from requiring that nonunion employees pay union dues even if the union bargains on their behalf. Senators approved the repeal on a 20-17 vote, sending it back to the House, which passed its own version last week but must approve the final language. Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has said she’ll sign it. The Senate also followed the House’s actions last week in voting to restore the state’s prevailing wage law, which requires contractors hired for state projects to pay union-level wages. “It’s a new day here in Lans...

FOX31 viewers help Bailey the service dog

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:32 GMT

(KDVR) — FOX31 viewers are making a difference for an injured service dog. Bailey needed special surgery after tearing a ligament in her rear right leg. The 3-year-old rottweiler helps Taryn Cortez cope with multiple sclerosis and depression and can even sense when Cortez’s blood sugar is too high or low. Watch: Video shows pharmacy robbery near Denver Cortez couldn’t afford to pay for the surgery, which costs more than $3,000. FOX31 viewers donated enough money to cover Bailey’s surgery and therapy within 30 minutes after the story aired. “I was crying because I was just like, it’s amazing that so many people are willing to help and wanted to help Bailey," Cortez said. Service dog faces another medical hurdleBailey is receiving treatment at Animal Works Veterinary in Fort Collins. Dr. Don Kraft explained that large dogs face challenges when it comes to treatment for torn ligaments. "We're looking at, you know, implants, hardware and things like that, all of which have to go in, ...