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Police say large explosion in Prince George, B.C., sends several to hospital

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

PRINCE GEORGE, B.C. — A large explosion at an abandoned building in downtown Prince George, B.C., has sent several people to hospital, RCMP say.The blast happened about 7 a.m. Tuesday.Cpl. Jennifer Cooper said the number and extent of the injuries were unknown.The cause of the blast was also unknown, and Cooper said emergency crews remained on scene as firefighters worked to put out the flames.“This incident is dynamic and information is changing rapidly,” Cooper said in a news release. “The number of casualties is currently unknown. More information will be provided as it comes available.Fortis and BC Hydro were also at the scene to try to help firefighters contain the blaze and aid in the investigation, Cooper said. The RCMP closed streets around the blast site and asked the public stay out of the area. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 22, 2023.The Canadian Press

Saskatchewan says parental consent needed for name, pronoun change of students

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

REGINA — The Saskatchewan government says schools must now seek parental consent when children under 16 want to change their names or pronouns.Education Minister Dustin Duncan said Tuesday that the province wants to standardize pronoun and naming policies, as they varied from one school division to another.A similar move earlier this year in New Brunswick was faced by intense opposition by LGBTQ groups.“Parent and guardian involvement is critical in every student’s education,” Duncan said in a statement.“Schools will continue to ensure safe learning environments where all students feel included, protected and respected.”The province also said that parents and guardians must be informed of a school’s sexual education curriculum and given the option to decline their child’s participation.The province recently had a review done of its sexual education curriculum after Planned Parenthood inadvertently took inappropriate sexual material into a hi...

Mexican army says drug cartels are increasing their use of roadside bombs

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — The Mexican army said Tuesday that drug cartels have increased their use of roadside bombs or improvised explosive devices this year, with 42 soldiers, police and suspects wounded by IEDs so far in 2023, up from 16 in 2022.The figures provided by Defense Secretary Luis Cresencio Sandoval appeared to include only those wounded by explosive devices, but officials have already acknowledged that at least one National Guard officer and four state police officers have been killed in two separate explosive attacks this year.Particularly on the rise were drone-carried bombs, which were unknown in Mexico prior to 2020. So far this year, 260 such incidents have been recorded. However, even that number may be an underestimate: residents in some parts of the western state of Michoacan say that attacks by bomb-dropping drones are a near-daily occurrence.Six car bombs have been found so far in 2023, up from one in 2022. However, car bombs were also occasionally used years ago i...

Broaden scope of Canada’s weather alert system to account for wildfires, expert urges

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

OTTAWA — As wildfires rage in western Canada, a communications and broadcasting policy expert says the national weather alerting system should account for a wider range of extreme events. Monica Auer of Canada’s Forum for Research and Policy in Communications says emergency notifications should be sent out for any events that have the potential to threaten lives, such as wildfires.As of now, the National Public Alerting System — publicly known as Alert Ready — issues emergency notifications for tornadoes and severe storms.A federal regulatory policy drafted in 2014 says alert messages should be issued for situations presenting “imminent or unfolding dangers to life.”The federal broadcast regulator said in the policy that this included, but was not limited to, tornadoes, forest fires, industrial disasters and tsunamis.Eric de Groot, an associate director with Environment Canada, had no comment on the question of expanding the weather alerting system to include event...

Puerto Rico police investigate deaths of 35 cats at horse racing complex

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Authorities in Puerto Rico are investigating the deaths of 35 cats at a horse racing facility, police said Tuesday. A security guard making the rounds at the Camarero Hippodrome in the northern town of Canovanas found the dead cats and called police, authorities said in a statement. A message left at the track complex was not immediately returned.A necropsy was underway on one of the cats to determine what killed the animals, police said, adding that poison was suspected.Puerto Rico approved a law in 2008 to prosecute animal cruelty. The law was signed in the U.S. territory a year after animal control workers seized dozens of dogs and cats from a public housing project in northern Puerto Rico and threw them over a bridge. Witnesses said at the time that many of the discarded animals were dead but some were still alive when they were tossed.The Associated Press

South Suburban Airport proposal process to take place

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

MONEE, Ill. — Local leaders are celebrating a new law which will force the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) to review development proposals for the long talked-about South Suburban Airport, and decide if the project can move forward. WGN Investigates: Is decision day finally near for third Chicago airport? House Bill 2531 passed the House 72-40 on Mar. 16, and the Senate 33-20 on May 17. It was then signed by Gov. Pritzker on July 28. The subsequent law goes into effect Jan. 1, 2024 and puts a six-month deadline in place for IDOT to establish a prequalification process and begin reviewing proposals to develop and maintain the airport.Tuesday, U.S. Representative Robin Kelly (IL-02) held a press conference, alongside several other area leaders, to celebrate the impending prequalification process and discuss the impact they believe an airport will have on the region.See the full press conference, plus a discussion with WGN investigative reporter Ben Bradley, in the video...

Chicago mutual aid group, CTU members help register migrant children for school

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

CHICAGO — In a room at the 12th district CPD police station, volunteers with the mutual aid group, Todo Para Todos, and CTU members helped migrant parents enroll their children and teens in Chicago Public Schools on Monday."Kids who just arrived today, yesterday and this week are registered for school and get all the supplies that they need to set them up and welcome them here in Chicago," said Kathleen Murphy, a volunteer with Todo Para Todos, which translates to "Everything for Everyone."Those on hand also handed out backpacks stocked with school supplies, hoping to meet the academic needs of the City's newest, youngest residents. New school year, new challenges as CPS students return to classroom CPS has not said exactly how many migrant students have joined the district, but CPS CEO Pedro Martinez said the number of English learners has increased since last year.“We're [at] about 5,000 new English language learners," Martinez said. "Normally, we have about 3,000 because every ...

School bus crash in Ohio leaves 1 child dead, multiple injured, official says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

CLARK COUNTY, Ohio (WDTN) – One child is dead and nearly two dozen were injured after a school bus crashed in Clark County, Ohio, on Tuesday morning, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.Around 8:16 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 22, police were notified of an accident on State Route 41 west of Ballentine Pike, the Ohio State Highway Patrol (OSHP) reported.Sgt. Tyler Ross, with the OSHP Public Affairs Unit, said the school bus was traveling west on SR-41 when an eastbound-traveling 2010 Honda Odyssey crossed into the path of the school bus. Sgt. Ross reported that the school bus attempted to evade the Honda Odyssey, but made contact and then traveled off the right side of the road and overturned.One child was reportedly ejected from the bus and has succumbed to their injuries.A total of 52 children were on the bus at the time of the crash. At least 23 of them were taken to area hospitals: 13 by ambulance and 10 by personal means. One child is said to have...

Hollywood studio brings back mask mandate amid spike in COVID cases

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

(The Hill) -- Hollywood studio Lionsgate is returning to mask mandates for many of its employees amid rising COVID-19 cases reported in Los Angeles. In an internal email obtained by Deadline, the response manager for Lionsgate/Starz, Sommer McElroy, said that employees at its flagship office in Santa Monica, California, will be required to wear a medical-grade face covering, such as a surgical mask or a KN95 or N95 mask.Employees must wear the mask unless they are alone in an office with the door closed, actively eating, actively drinking in their work area, or if they are the only individual present in a large open workspace, according to the emailed memo. Tejano star Bobby Pulido is coming to Washington Studio employees must also perform a daily self-screening prior to coming to the office. If the employee is showing symptoms of COVID-19, they are required to stay home and notify McElroy. They must also stay home if they have traveled internationally in the last 10 days....

Father killed, another injured after explosion levels NC home of NFL player Caleb Farley

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (WJZY) – An apparent explosion overnight leveled a multimillion-dollar home in North Carolina owned by NFL cornerback Caleb Farley, leaving his father dead and another person injured, authorities said.Authorities confirmed with Nexstar's WJZY that the person who was killed has been identified as Robert Matthews Farley, 61, who was staying in the home at the time of the incident. The injured person, a male who was seen leaving the property as the first emergency crews arrived at the scene, was transported to Atrium Health CMC with non-life-threatening injuries, according to Kent Greene, director of Fire Services and Emergency Management for Iredell. His identity has not yet been released.Robert Farley was recovered as crews were searching the debris, authorities said.The 6,391-square-foot house, located in Mooresville just off Lake Norman, was mostly reduced to rubble as of Tuesday morning. Farley was spotted at the scene with family Tuesday, speaking with authoriti...