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Powerful Hurricane Hilary heads for Mexico’s Baja. Rare tropical storm watch issued for California

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:15:32 GMT

By MARK STEVENSON and JULIE WATSON (Associated Press)MEXICO CITY (AP) — Hurricane Hilary churned off Mexico’s Pacific coast Friday as a powerful Category 4 storm threatening to unleash torrential rains on the mudslide-prone border city of Tijuana before heading into Southern California as the first tropical storm there in 84 years. Forecasters warned the storm could cause extreme flooding, mudslides and even tornadoes across the region.Hillary grew rapidly in strength early Friday before losing some steam in the afternoon, with sustained winds falling from 145 mph (230 kph) to 130 mph (215 kph). Nevertheless, it was forecast to still be a hurricane when approaching Mexico’s Baja California peninsula on Saturday night and a tropical storm when approaching Southern California on Sunday.No tropical storm has made landfall in Southern California since Sept. 25, 1939, according to the National Weather Service. The watch was posted for a wide swath of Southern California...

Caesars Sportsbook drops retail sports betting deal with Raynham Park

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:15:32 GMT

Caesars Sportsbook pulled out of a deal to run a retail sportsbook at Raynham Park just as regulators were in the process of reviewing the race track’s bid for a sports betting license, regulators said.Caesars Sportsbook notified the Massachusetts Gaming Commission it has terminated an agreement with the Massasoit Greyhound Association, the company behind Raynham Park, to open a retail location at the former greyhound track, Gaming Commission Interim Executive Director Todd Grossman said.“Caesars Sportsbook has terminated the operating lease agreement that was in place between MGA and Caesars,” Grossman said. “That agreement set out the terms and conditions under which Caesars would essentially operate the sportsbook if MGA were to be awarded the category two license. As a result of that termination, as of today, MGA is without an entity to operate the sportsbook.”Caesars sportsbook already runs a mobile sports betting application through an agreement w...

Chief says excavation of Manitoba church basement found no evidence of human remains

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:15:32 GMT

MINEGOZIIBE ANISHINABE — No evidence of human remains has been found during the excavation of a Catholic church basement on the site of a former Manitoba residential school. Chief Derek Nepinak of Minegoziibe Anishinabe shared the results of the four-week excavation in a social media video Friday. He said the outcome takes “nothing away from the difficult truths experienced by our families who attended the residential school in Pine Creek.”Fourteen anomalies were detected using ground-penetrating radar in the basement of the church on the site of the former Pine Creek Residential School last year. Survivors had spoken about “horror stories” in the basement.The First Nation, northwest of Winnipeg, hired an archeological team from the University of Brandon to do the excavation earlier this summer. It is the same team that assists police on archeological digs and excavations in the province. “As a community we were preparing for more than one possible outcome, which meant we would prep...

A timeline of events related to wildfire threat in the Okanagan, B.C.

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:15:32 GMT

WEST KELOWNA, B.C. — Thousands of people have been ordered to evacuate from West Kelowna and the Westbank First Nation due to the nearby MacDougall Creek wildfire, which has destroyed a significant number of properties. Here is a timeline of events related to the threat, according to information provided by the Central Okanagan Regional District.Tuesday, 6 p.m.: The MacDougall Creek wildfire is discovered 10 km northwest of West Kelowna.Wednesday, 10 p.m.: An emergency operations centre is activated in response to the fire, with 4,800 homes in West Kelowna put on evacuation alert. The fire measures less than one square kilometre.Thursday, 1:25 p.m.: A local state of emergency is issued for the City of West Kelowna, part of Westbank First Nation and the Central Okanagan West Electoral Area. The MacDougall Creek wildfire grows to three square kilometres. Evacuation alerts expand to 5,700 homes. An evacuation order is issued for 68 properties. Thursday, 3:08 p.m.: Evacuation alerts are...

Michael Jackson sexual abuse lawsuits revived by appeals court

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:15:32 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A California appeals court on Friday revived lawsuits from two men who allege Michael Jackson sexually abused them for years when they were boys. A three-judge panel from California’s 2nd District Court of Appeal found that the lawsuits of Wade Robson and James Safechuck should not have been dismissed by a lower court, and that the men can validly claim that the two Jackson-owned corporations that were named as defendants in the cases had a responsibility to protect them. It’s the second time the lawsuits — brought by Robson in 2013 and Safechuck the following year — have been brought back after dismissal. The two men became more widely known for telling their stories in the 2019 HBO documentary “ Leaving Neverland.”A judge who dismissed the suits in 2021 found that that the corporations, MJJ Productions Inc. and MJJ Ventures Inc., could not be expected to function like the Boy Scouts or a church where a child in their care could expect their protection. Jac...

Republicans gather in city where Trump was indicted but mention former president gingerly, if at all

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:15:32 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — For much of the Republican presidential field, Donald Trump is the candidate who must not be named — or at least not criticized too harshly.Multiple GOP White House contenders took the stage Friday in Atlanta, the city where the former president was most recently indicted and where he must surrender next week on racketeering charges related to the 2020 election. They dealt gingerly with the man they’re trying to catch in the 2024 GOP primary campaign.Radio host Erick Erickson’s annual convocation of conservative leaders and activists mostly sidestepped the dominant figure in Republican politics. The Gathering, Erickson said, “is our time to come together and hear from people when they’re running for office, why should we vote for you … what’s your vision.” Trump dominates the primary polls and media attention despite criminal indictments for alleged actions before, during and after his presidency. Those four indictments seem to have hardened Trump’s support amon...

FACT FOCUS: Online posts spread misinformation about FEMA aid following Maui wildfires

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:15:32 GMT

In the aftermath of the deadly Maui wildfires, some social media users are discouraging residents from accepting disaster aid by falsely claiming the Federal Emergency Management Agency could seize their property if they do.“If you own land in Lahaina, do not sign anything for FEMA,” a woman says on a video circulating widely on social media. “That is why they’re holding back all of the donations and saying, Hey, you want food come sign this?”But disaster recovery experts and lawyers stress accepting aid doesn’t give FEMA any such powers to take private lands and that the posts are misrepresenting federal law. Here are the facts.CLAIM: FEMA can seize the private property of any Maui resident that signs up for disaster assistance.THE FACTS: The federal agency says the claims are “absolutely false” and encourages Hawaiians to visit a website it launched recently to address rumors and frequently asked questions in the aftermath of the fires, which have claimed more than 100 lives.“Appl...

Could a municipal sales tax be the solution for Toronto’s financial woes?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:15:32 GMT

As the City of Toronto considers how to fill an immediate $1.5 billion hole in its budget, reaction is flowing in on the list of revenue-generating options that are now being considered. Amid soaring inflation, taxes may not be the most popular move but a one per cent sales tax is now being considered along with hiking existing revenue tools such as the land transfer tax on luxury homes and parking fees. Even then, the city says implementing those measures would only cover 40 per cent of its deficit. At least one business group believes these measures will only drive people away. “People will just go outside the City of Toronto to buy their goods,” says Jay Goldberg of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. “A commercial parking tax, that’s going to hurt small businesses. I think looking for savings is the number one way to go.”Political science professor Myer Seimiatycki believes a sales tax would be a big part of the solution. “That is the single m...

Natural history museum closes because of chemicals in taxidermy collection

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:15:32 GMT

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — A South Dakota museum has closed after almost 40 years over concerns that the chemicals in its taxidermy collection could endanger visitors and staff, the affiliated zoo announced Thursday.The Great Plains Zoo said Thursday that it is has closed the Delbridge Museum of Natural History in Sioux Falls. The zoo’s CEO Becky Dewitz said strong chemicals were used in the taxidermy process and that tests found detectable levels of those chemicals in the museum, KELO-TV reported. It wasn’t an easy decision to close the museum but it’s the right one, she said.“The specimens were harvested in the 1940s through the 1970s. Prior to the 1980s, it was common to use strong chemicals in the taxidermy process all over the world for preservation of the hides,” the zoo said in a statement on its website. The museum’s collection of animals on display was one of the largest in the region. Sioux Falls businessman Henry Brockhouse assembled the collection t...

Fire breaks out at high-rise in Lake View

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:15:32 GMT

CHICAGO — Emergency crews are on the scene of a fire that broke out at a high rise in Chicago's Lake View neighborhood on Friday afternoon.Black smoke could be seen bellowing from a window in the upper levels of the building at around 5:50 p.m. Chicago police officer facing additional sexual abuse charges Currently, it is unclear how the blaze broke out or if anyone was injured.This is a developing story, stay with WGN News for the latest updates.