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Avalanche in French Alps kills at least 4 people

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 00:28:42 GMT

PARIS (AP) — An avalanche in the French Alps killed four people Sunday, France’s interior minister said, calling the death toll a provisional count. The avalanche rolled down the Armancette glacier in Contamines-Montjoie, in the Haute-Savoie region, some 30 kilometers (almost 20 miles) southwest of Chamonix.Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin provided no details in his tweet about the deaths. The Alps are a prime vacation spot over France’s long Easter weekend.The local France-Bleu radio station put the size of the avalanche at 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) long and 100 meters (328 feet) wide. Two helicopters were sent in to help in the search, the station said, quoting the local prefecture in Thonon. The Associated Press

Fur real: Bunny joins California police force

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 00:28:42 GMT

Meet Percy, the police rabbit. Yes, that’s fur real.Some bunny – also known as Officer Ashley Carson – found a lost rabbit last year in the middle of Percy Avenue in Yuba City, California.Carson scurried back to the police station and handed the rabbit over to animal control, who could find neither hide nor hare of the bunny’s family.In a hoppy ending, a police services analyst adopted the allegedly “docile and friendly” animal and named him Percy.The Yuba City Police Department – about 40 hopping miles (64.37 kilometers) north of Sacramento – announced the rabbit’s promotion to the rank of “wellness officer” just days before Easter Sunday.“Officer Percy lounges at the police department during the day and is a support animal for all,” the department wrote on Facebook Wednesday.The Easter Bunny could not be reached for comment. Case closed.

BoC expected to hold interest rate this week, even as economy keeps some steam

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 00:28:42 GMT

The Bank of Canada is expected to hold its key interest rate steady this week as inflation continues to slow, despite other data suggesting the economy is still running hot.The central bank is set to announce its next interest rate decision on Wednesday. The announcement will be accompanied with updated economic projections for growth and inflation in its quarterly monetary policy report.BMO chief economist Douglas Porter said although the economy is growing faster than anticipated, lower-than-expected inflation will convince the Bank of Canada to hold its key interest rate at 4.5 per cent.“When we combine all these things together, it certainly looks like the (central) bank is likely to hold rates steady for now,” Porter said.For months, the economic data that the Bank of Canada relies on for its interest rate decisions has been sending mixed signals on the state of the economy.So far this year, growth and job numbers are coming in stronger than expected, even as the Ba...

2 People found dead near O'Hare Airport, hours apart

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 00:28:42 GMT

CHICAGO — Two individuals were found dead near O'Hare International Airport Saturday, hours apart. According to police, a 36-year-old man was discovered unresponsive near the 0-100 block of West O'Hare Avenue Saturday afternoon around 13:20 p.m. He was transported to Resurrection Hospital where he was pronounced dead. the incident is being assessed as a death investigation. Man killed after being hit by CTA train in Near West Side Another incident showed that an unidentified woman was discovered on a CTA railcar unresponsive near the 1000 block of West O'Hare Avenue around 3:12 a.m. The woman was transported to the same hospital where she was also pronounced dead. According to preliminary investigation, police allege the woman may have overdosed. Police are investigating the incident.

Man charged for fatal shooting of woman inside South Side home

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 00:28:42 GMT

CHICAGO — A 37-year-old man has been charged with a fatal shooting that left a woman dead inside a home on the South Side Friday. Sonnie Martin faces three felonies of first-degree murder, cannabis and possession of firearm.According to police, Martin was arrested in the 7600 block of South Marshfield Avenue after being identified as the man who, moments earlier, shot and killed a 45-year-old woman at a home in the 7700 block of South Bishop Street. 2 People found dead near O’Hare Airport, hours apart Police say he was found in possession of narcotics. Martin was placed into custody and charged accordingly. He is due for bond court Sunday. There is no additional information at this time.

Sunday Forecast: High 60s and increasing clouds

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 00:28:42 GMT

Sunday: Sunny start with increasing clouds. S 5-10 mph. Air quality is in the Moderate for Chicagoland and most of the Midwest today. High: 67 Sunday Night: Mostly cloudy & above normal temps. S 5-10 mph. Low: 47Monday: AM clouds then partly cloudy & warmer. SW 5-10 mph. High near: 70Full forecast details at the WGN Weather CenterExtended outlook calls for some of the warmest temps of the year so far. Tuesday mostly sunny and highs in the low 70s. Wednesday and Thursday look mostly sunny with highs near 80 both days. A bit cooler on Friday with partly cloudy skies and highs in the mid to upper 70s. Normal high temp for this part of spring is around 57. 

The California roll probably wasn't even invented in California

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 00:28:42 GMT

(NEXSTAR) – The California roll is a staple at sushi restaurants around the U.S. No matter where you order it, you'll find pretty much the same three ingredients — cucumber, avocado and crab (sometimes imitation crab) — rolled up in seaweed and rice. The roll's provenance isn't as well known as its ingredients, but the most widely accepted origin story takes us pretty far from California — and more than 4,500 miles from Japan, for that matter. The California roll is widely reported to have originated in Vancouver, Canada. Hidekazu Tojo came to Vancouver in the early '70s and started working at one of the city's only sushi restaurants, reports Food52. At that time, the average diner liked tempura and teriyaki dishes, but wasn't really interested in raw fish, Tojo told the publication. Is the rain finally over for California? People were interested, however, in eating cooked crab. So he crafted the roll using cooked crab, avocado and cucumber.The other thing Tojo did to cater to di...

Tiger Woods withdraws from 2023 Masters Tournament

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 00:28:42 GMT

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) - Five-time champion Tiger Woods withdrew from the 2023 Masters Tournament early Sunday morning due to injury. Woods was +6 through the first seven holes of his third round when play was suspended on Saturday. Television coverage showed him limping before the stoppage in play. The Augusta National Golf Club made the announcement early Sunday morning.He explained his decision in a tweet stating, "I am disappointed to have to WD this morning due to reaggravating my plantar fasciitis. Thank you to the fans and to The Masters who have shown me so much love and support. Good luck to the players today!" MORE DETAILS: 2023 Masters Tournament | Sunday updates Woods was injured in 2021 when his car careened off a suburban Los Angeles road at over 85 mph, crushing his right leg so badly that he said doctors considered amputation. Asked how much hardware held it together, Woods replied: “A lot.”The 47-year-old's withdrawal ended his streak of completing all 72 holes of ev...

Texas outdoor weddings: The best, worst cities to have them, rankings show

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 00:28:42 GMT

(NEXSTAR) — Considering a wedding outdoors in 2023? You're not alone — but depending where you want to celebrate the big day, you may have better luck doing it than others.Lawn care industry news outlet Lawn Love recently ranked the 200 biggest U.S. cities on their favorability for outdoor weddings based on several categories, including venue access/quality, affordability, services and climate. Which airports had the most delays and cancellations in 2022? According to Lawn Love, the best Texas city for an outdoor wedding is Denton, which ranked 16th overall on the national list. The Dallas-Fort Worth metro area city received an overall score of 39.12 out of 100 points (this score isn't terrible, the top city only received 51 points) based on several categories, including venue access/quality, affordability, services and climate.Other Texas cities that placed relatively high on the "best" list are Carrollton (22nd), McKinney (32nd) and Grand Prairie (35th). Among these cities, Carr...

Other voices: McCarthy does right to lead meeting with Taiwan president

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 00:28:42 GMT

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who doesn’t always speak for America, did so with moral clarity when he met visiting Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen last week along with a bipartisan group including the House’s No. 3 Democrat, Pete Aguilar, at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, and praised “a successful democracy, thriving economy, and global leader in health and science.” Those words could’ve been spoken by former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, McCarthy’s longtime partisan combatant (and fellow Californian). Both know that Taiwan is so many things mainland China is not, chief among them a stalwart U.S. ally and a place where genuine freedom thrives.These days, the unified support of the United States is crucial for the Asian island nation (population: 24 million, 169,000 active military personnel), as China (population: 1.4 billion, 2 million active military personnel) breathes down its neck with ever more heat. Beijing, refusing to acknowledge ...