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Surfboard biting otter avoids capture

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:08 GMT

The surfboard-biting sea otter in Santa Cruz has once again – evaded capture attempts by wildlife officials.“I came over here and everyone’s talking about it and I said, well, I was videotaping a cute little otter and everybody said, hey, that’s a 841,” said Patrick PhilipsThe surfboard-biting sea otter in santa cruz has once again evaded, attempts of captures made by wildlife officials.Colleen Young is one of the divers on the capture team from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. They’ve been working with the Monterey Bay Aquarium staff since July 2. “I’m extremely frustrated and exhausted,” said Young.These are photos taken Wednesday officials are responding because this five-year-old female otter is showing concerning and unusual behavior by approaching people.“We don’t have this issue that frequently. So you know exactly how to capture an animal, with this set of behaviors. So, you know, we’re ju...

Investigation underway after worker killed in industrial accident at Swampscott Quarry

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:08 GMT

A worker was killed in Swampscott on Monday in what authorities are calling an industrial accident at a local quarry.State and local investigators were called to the Swampscott Quarry in the early afternoon after what started as a report of a crane collapse turned into an effort to recover the body of an employee.What exactly happened remained under investigation as of 4 p.m., as efforts to recover the victim continued, with a technical rescue team and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner called in to assist.“We got [the call] as a crane collapse – that’s not the case,” said Swampscott Fire Chief Graham Archer. “Honestly, we haven’t pieced together exactly what happened yet.”“It’s a really tragic call – it’s just a worker that got up and went out to work today and he expected to get back home at the end of the day and it didn’t happen,” Archer added.Throughout the afternoon, authorities could be seen e...

Newton man arraigned on murder charges after fatal beating left wife dead, son calling for help

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:08 GMT

A man from Newton accused of fatally assaulting his wife, leading to his children calling 911 for help, faced a judge on Monday.Richard Hanson, 64, appeared in court after his arrest on Saturday, July 15, when police responded to a Brookline Street home to find Nancy Hanson, 54, suffering from blunt force trauma. Officials said the victim later died after being taken to a nearby hospital. Meanwhile, police said Richard Hanson was found covered in blood in the home’s driveway at the time of their arrival. The suspect was ordered held without bail following Monday’s proceedings, after the prosecution detailed how Hanson allegedly beat his wife with a baseball bat and a barbell while their three sons were in the home.The Middlesex District Attorney’s Office said days before her death, Nancy Hanson had filed for a restraining order against her husband on Thursday, July 13, but police had not yet been able to serve the order before the attack.In court on Monday, the prosecuti...

UMass Lowell student arraigned in mother’s brutal beating death

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:08 GMT

A 23-year-old University of Massachusetts at Lowell student is facing multiple assault charges after authorities say they found his mother dead inside a condo in Lowell on Monday morning.In a joint-statement, both the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office and Lowell Police Department said Elena Vainer, 51, of Reading, was found dead inside a Middlesex Street condo after officers were contacted early Monday morning.Authorities said they responded to the condo after receiving a 911 call reporting that a woman had been beaten and was “barely breathing.” Police then arrived to find Vainer deceased and with “obvious bruising to her face and other apparent trauma.”“The preliminary investigation suggests that the victim had been in Lowell visiting her son Michael Belous, 23, at his Middlesex Street condominium over the weekend,” the statement read.Officials said that, at some point during the visit, “a physical altercation occurred that allege...

Wildfire Smoke Returns

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:08 GMT

Editor’s Note: This blog post was written by 7News meteorological intern Tyler Hughes.Today was a much-needed dry day across New England, but the lack of rainfall came with a different, yet familiar twist: wildfire smoke. Wildfires continue to burn in Alberta and Western Canada, and a dip in the jet stream has “trapped” a plume of wildfire smoke in between two frontal boundaries. This means we’ll continue to see a smoky haze in the sky tomorrow.In fact, an Air Quality Alert is in effect for Southern NH, Worcester County and points west until tomorrow at midnight for ground-level smoke that approaches unhealthy levels. The thickest plume of smoke should stay to the west of Metro Boston, but there will still be a noticeable haze in the air. The smoke will be pushed out tomorrow evening by an approaching cold front, which will also bring a chance of showers/storms with it. I don’t think any storms will become as severe as we saw Sunday (in part due to wild...

32-year-old woman who enrolled in Boston high schools arraigned on criminal charges

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:08 GMT

A 32-year-old woman who officials say fraudulently enrolled in multiple Boston high schools as a student was arraigned on criminal charges on Monday.Shelby Hewitt is licensed social worker accused of creating fake paperwork to enroll in the schools. School officials say that at various points during the 2022-2023 school year, Hewitt attended the Jeremiah E. Burke High School, Brighton High School, and English High School, utilizing the student transfer process and enrolling under multiple pseudonyms.Prosecutors say the reason for her enrollment remains under investigation.Her attorney said she did not enroll for sinister reasons and the situation was the result of ongoing mental health issues.She was released on $5,000 cash bail and ordered to stay away from Boston Public Schools.

Bomb squad called in after possible military ordinance found during home clean-out in Plymouth

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:08 GMT

The State Police Bomb Squad is assisting the Plymouth Fire Department with what appears to be military ordnance that was found during a home clean-out. The item was taken to the Plymouth Fire Department Monday afternoon, a spokesman for the Department of Fire Services said. No additional information was immediately available.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.

Dracut school resource officer on leave amid investigation into alleged inappropriate contact with student

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:08 GMT

A Dracut Public Schools resource officer is on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation into allegations he had inappropriate contact with a Dracut High School student.In a statement Monday, Dracut Police and Dracut Public Schools announced they’ve become aware of the allegation and that School Resource Officer Sunny Nguyen will be on leave. .No additional information was immediately available.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.

Mets see positive indicators with struggling right fielder Starling Marte: ‘ I think there are better times ahead’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:08 GMT

Starling Marte was so crucial to the Mets’ success last season that when he went on the injured list with a broken finger last September, the team went 14-10 without him. He was an All-Star for the second time in his career and he received NL MVP votes.But this season, it’s a different story. In the second year of a four-year contract, the Mets’ right fielder has looked like a different player. He’s hitting .254 with an OPS of .640 and an OPS+ of only 80, 20 points below average.His sprint speed is down in the outfield. His four outs above average is considered poor by Statcast’s metrics and he’s cost the Mets seven runs in the outfield this season, according to Fangraphs, after saving four last season.“Some good. Some flashes of the level he spoiled us with last year,” manager Buck Showalter said. “There’s still a lot of time left. You go through a period where you really think he is going to get it going for an extended p...

Housing market doldrums: Prices rise across state as inventory dwindles

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:08 GMT

The start of summer wasn’t quite enough to heat up the state’s housing market, a Massachusetts Association of Realtors report on June housing data released Monday indicated, with prices still on the rise and inventory sinking.“Inventory continues to hamper any year-over-year growth, despite the monthly growth we have seen in sales,” said MAR President and realtor David McCarthy.The median price for a single-family home bought in June hit $650,000, a 4% increase compared to June 2022, while condominium prices remained flat, the report stated. New listings dropped by 33.2% for single family homes and by 28.7% for condominiums compared to last year.The number of closed sales did increase for the fourth month in a row but remained well below last year’s. Single-family home sales hit 4,440 for the month, a 23.2% drop off from June 2022.Despite the monthly uptick in sales, McCarthy said, many realtors are forecasting the second half of the year will remain si...