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Rail whistleblowers fired for voicing safety concerns despite efforts to end practice of retaliation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:51:59 GMT

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Hours before a Norfolk Southern train derailed in Ohio and erupted in fire in February, a judge ruled a former railroad employee could proceed with a lawsuit claiming he had been harassed for years by managers who said he reported too many flaws in rail cars he inspected and had his job changed after reporting an injury.Richard Singleton’s case against Norfolk Southern was settled for an undisclosed amount after the judge said he had enough evidence to go to trial over whether he was disciplined for reporting safety violations that slowed trains passing through a Macon, Georgia, railyard. The settlement provided relief for Singleton, but does little for residents near East Palestine, Ohio, who worry about possible health effects from the accident’s toxic blaze. That derailment and others since inspired nationwide fears about railroad safety.Lawyers and unions representing rail workers say there is an industry-wide pattern of retaliation against workers like ...

Chinese military launches drills around Taiwan as ‘warning’ after top island official stopped in US

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:51:59 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — The Chinese military launched drills around Taiwan on Saturday as a “stern warning” over what it called collusion between “separatists and foreign forces,” its defense ministry said, days after the island’s vice president stopped over in the United States. Taiwanese Vice President William Lai’s recent trip to Paraguay to reinforce relations with his government’s last diplomatic partner in South America included stops in San Francisco and New York City. The mainland’s ruling Communist Party claims democratic Taiwan as part of its territory and says it has no right to conduct foreign relations.A spokesperson for China’s Eastern Theater Command said in a brief statement that the military exercises involved the coordination of vessels and planes and their ability to seize control of air and sea spaces.It was also testing the forces’ “actual combat capabilities,” Shi Yi said. The drills were a warning over provocations from pro-Taiwan independ...

Local governments are spending billions of pandemic relief funds, but some report few specifics

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:51:59 GMT

Joplin officials say they have big plans for $13.8 million of pandemic relief funds the tornado-ravaged southwestern Missouri city received under a two-year-old federal law. Yet the latest federal records show none of the money has been spent — or even budgeted.In fact, about 6,300 cities and counties — nearly 1 in 4 nationwide — reported no expenditures as of this spring, according to an Associated Press analysis of data released by the U.S. Treasury Department. About 5,100 of those listed no projects — either planned or underway.So what gives? Is the money not needed? Are cities just sitting on it? Local and federal officials told the AP in interviews that the publicly available data is misleading — pockmarked by differing interpretations over exactly what must be reported, lagging in timeliness and failing to account for some preliminary planning. Critics contend it’s an indication of a flawed pandemic response.Federal officials estimate that governments have spending commi...

Trump looms large over Iowa State Fair, but many GOP voters still mulling their caucus choices

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:51:59 GMT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The loop Donald Trump’s private jet made above the Iowa State Fair before his visit last weekend was more than just a gesture to the hundreds of supporters — and a few rival candidates — on the ground. It was a reminder that the four-time indicted former president casts a Boeing 757-sized shadow over the race for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.That’s where agreement about Trump seems to end. With less than five months before Iowans cast the first votes in the GOP contest, conversations with more than 40 Republicans at the time-honored presidential campaign ritual suggest the party is far from unified on much of anything else. Most voters say that until the winter chill sets in, they’re keeping an open mind, honoring the state’s tradition of vetting all candidates. Still, many GOP voters say they can’t help but weigh their intense feelings about Trump as they consider their choices. In line to view the life-sized cow ...

Humidities surge Saturday night and Sunday with weekend high temps jumping from 80s Saturday to 90s Sunday—a wind-shifting “back-door” cold front sweeps through Sunday afternoon/evening bringing “NNE” winds and a temp pullback.

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:51:59 GMT

The heat will not be gone for long. It returns “big time” next weekA HUGE DOME OF HOT AIR IS BUILDING ACROSS CENTRAL UNITED STATESWatch winds shift “NNE” as Sunday’s BACK DOOR COLD FRONT runs down the lake. These are hourly Sunday afternoon wind forecasts. This panel is for 1pm CDT Sunday2pm CDT Sunday3pm CDT Sunday4 pm CDT Sunday5 pm CDT Sunday6 pm CDT Sunday7 pm CDT Sunday8 pm CDT Sunday9 pm CDT Sunday11 pm CDT SundayMidnight Sunday night/Monday morningA huge dome of hot air is building across central U.S., a development which is to boost Chicago weekend temps until a “back door” cold front reaches the city and shifts winds “north/northeast” by mid-Sunday afternoon and evening. Temps will plunge with that windshift, especially near Lake Michigan. Northeast winds will also subdue heating though Monday, but temps are to surge and current forecast indications put the hottest air and potential heat wave conditions into Chicago Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Meantime southerly winds ...

MAP: More than 3,100 acres have burned in Central Texas wildfires this year

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:51:59 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — More than 3,000 acres have burned in wildfires across Central Texas so far this year, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service.A total of 36 fires have burned 3,173 acres in the 15-county KXAN viewing area, as of Aug. 18. How far behind normal are rainfall totals this year? KXAN is keeping track of wildfires this year. Follow along with the map and database below. We'll keep them updated as new information becomes available. Fires that are still uncontained are red on the map. Evacuation checklist: What to grab when evacuating The table below ranks all the fires in our area this year from largest to smallest. Click on one of the column headers to change how the fires are ranked.We're also keeping track of which counties have burn bans in effect. Click here to see the latest update.

Napheesa Collier leads Lynx to 78-70 victory over Storm

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:51:59 GMT

Napheesa Collier continues to find much success against a particular opponent.She scored 24 points and added a 10 rebounds and Minnesota held off Seattle 78-70 late Friday in the Pacific Northwest.The teams meet again Sunday at Target Center.Playing for the first time in eight days, Minnesota also got 21 points from Kayla McBride and 14 from Tiffany Mitchell. The latter started at guard in place of Lindsay Allen, who missed her first game with a broken thumb.Coming off the bench, Dorka Juhász had a team-high 12 rebounds to go with seven points and four assists.The 70 points allowed ties for the second-best Lynx performance this season and is nearly 15 points below their season average.Minnesota (15-16) moves into a tie with Washington for sixth place in the WNBA standings. The Lynx and Mystics are a half-game back of fifth-place Atlanta and two games behind No. 4 Dallas. Nine games remain in the regular season.McBride put the Lynx up by 15 with 7:19 to play, but the Storm (9-22) cha...

Joe Ryan sharp in rehab start with Saints, who beat Indianapolis 8-5

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:51:59 GMT

Twins right-hander Joe Ryan let his pitching do the talking Friday night at CHS Field — literally.Ryan, who made a rehab start with the Saints on Friday night at CHS Field, was not available after the game after striking out seven in four innings of work, including six in the first two innings of the Saints’ 8-5 win over Indianapolis.The only hit Ryan allowed was a one-out home run in the third inning. He walked two.“His cutter and his splitter both looked really good,” said Tony Wolters, who enjoyed catching Ryan on Friday. “He was really focused on getting ahead early, and he did a real good job with that.”The Twins placed Ryan on the injured list on Aug. 3 due to a left groin strain. Ryan last pitched for the Twins on July 26, when he allowed four runs in 3 2/3 innings in a loss to Seattle.From Wolters’ perspective, Ryan is ready to return to the majors.“He’s ready because of his competitiveness,” Wolters said. “Yes, he has God-given talent, but his competitiveness, and wha...

Ralston Valley defense delivers key second-half stops, limiting Week Zero quarterback duel against Mountain Vista

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:51:59 GMT

HIGHLANDS RANCH — For two of the leading passers in the state to do battle in the opening week of the season, it quickly turned into a defensive duel.The two quarterbacks, Logan Madden of No. 4’s Ralston Valley, and Mountain Vista’s Austyn Modrzewski, who combined for over 5,000 yards last season, were stymied in a Week Zero showdown as the teams had four turnovers on Friday night. The Mustangs’ second-half defense delivered two key second-half stops including one deep in the red zone in a 13-7 win.“In the second half, (offensively) we couldn’t close it out, punch it in when we needed to but our defensive line was huge tonight,” Madden said. “We knew they were going to be big coming into tonight and they killed it. Our (defensive backs) stepped up to the challenge.”On the fourth drive of the game for either team, the Ralston Valley (1-0) punched it in on fourth-and-goal. Senior halfback Brady Weldon found a gap behind his offensive linemen and barreled ...

L.A. City Council approves purchase of Mayfair Hotel for homeless housing

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:51:59 GMT

Today, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and the L.A. City Council approved the acquisition of the 294-room Mayfair Hotel in Westlake, a building that will be used for homeless housing. The purchase is an expansion of the Inside Safe program to help combat the homelessness crisis in L.A. by bringing people inside from tents and encampments and preventing encampments from returning.Participants of the Inside Safe program will have access to onsite support services and care and social facilities, in addition to 24/7 onsite security inside and outside of the Mayfair.  Mayor Karen Bass launches Inside Safe program in Hollywood “We need to do all that we can to get Angelenos off the streets and into temporary housing as fast as possible while permanent housing is still being built,” said Mayor Bass. “The proposed purchase of the Mayfair is an important step toward that goal.”Programming plans for the Mayfair are still in the early stages of development and Mayor Bass will work with the comm...