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Biden says federal government will help Maui ‘for as long as it takes’ to recover from wildfire

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

LAHAINA, Hawaii, (AP) — President Joe Biden on Monday told survivors of Hawaii’s wildfires that the nation “grieves with you” and promised that the federal government will help Maui “for as long as it takes” to recover after touring damage caused by the deadliest wildfire in the United States in more than a century.Biden arrived in Maui 13 days after the wildfires that have taken at least 114 lives ravaged the western part of the island. Standing near a burned, but still standing, 150-year-old Banyon tree, the president acknowledged the “overwhelming” devastation but said that Maui would persevere through the tragedy.“Today it’s burned but it’s still standing,” Biden said of the tree. “The tree survived for a reason. I believe it’s a very powerful symbol of what we can and will do to get through this crisis.”Biden and first lady Jill Biden got a close look at the devastation wrought by the flames that ripped through the western part of the Hawaiian island, seeing for themselves the ...

2 men jump overboard when yacht goes up in flames off Maine coast

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

GEORGETOWN, Maine (AP) — Two boaters jumped overboard to save themselves after a fire engulfed a 48-foot yacht off the Maine coast, the Coast Guard said. Several lobster boats came to the rescue, and one plucked the men out of the water.The two unharmed men watched along with the lobstermen as the vessel burned and sank in 200 feet of water on Saturday off the coast of Seguin Island, near Georgetown.“It was a very heartbreaking scene. It was really scary,” said Deb Kremer, who witnessed the fire and took photos from her boat.The Coast Guard emphasized the importance of fellow boaters who came to the rescue, averting tragedy.“The moral of the story: Without the good Samaritans responding to calls and helping the Coast Guard, some lives could’ve been lost on this incident. We credit the good Samaritans,” said Lt. j.g. David Letarte in South Portland.The Coast Guard did not identify the two men aboard the yacht, the Titan. It was unclear where the yacht was based.The Coast Guard estima...

Chicago White Sox are considering a move from Guaranteed Rate Field, a report says — and possibly out of town

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

What’s the future for the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field?According to a Crain’s Chicago Business report, the Sox are considering a move from the place they’ve called home since 1991 when the team’s lease expires six seasons from now.No decision is imminent, according to the report, which lists a new stadium in the city or suburbs and relocating to Nashville, Tenn., among the possibilities.The article also details that Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf might look to sell the Sox.“We have not had any conversations about our lease situation, but with six years remaining, it is naturally nearing a time where discussions should begin to take place,” the Sox said in a statement Monday. “The conversations would be with the city, ISFA (Illinois Sports Facilities Authority) and the state and most likely would be about vision, opportunities and the future.”The Sox moved into Guaranteed Rate Field, then named new Comiskey Park, after calling C...

Another 100 migrant families could be housed in Woburn soon, mayor says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

The mayor says the city of Woburn can expect about 100 migrant families to join the dozens already there as the state struggles to find shelter for tens of thousands of newly arriving people.According to Mayor Scott Galvin, the city of 41,000 has already seen 59 migrant families placed in area hotels under the state’s Right to Shelter law, but the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities has informed them that an additional 100 families could arrive very soon.“The State has also indicated its intention to establish an emergency family shelter in Woburnfor as many as 100 families beginning as early as next week,” the Mayor’s office said in a Monday release.According to the Mayor, the nation’s immigration policies, when coupled with the state’s requirement that families with children and expecting mothers be provided with a place to live, have created a perfect storm that is battering already hard pressed municipalities.“Federal inaction on immigration reform has created an...

Mets Notebook: International prospect suspended for PED’s, Francisco Alvarez gets a rest

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

Cristopher Larez, a Mets minor leaguer who was one of the team’s biggest international signings this year, was hit with a 56-game suspension after testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance, Major League Baseball announced Monday.The Venezuelan shortstop, 17, tested positive for Boldenone, according to the announcement.Larez signed a $1.4 million signing bonus with the Mets in January. MLB Pipeline ranked Larez as the No. 43 prospect on this year’s international list, describing him as “one of the most polished shortstops in the class” who “has a chance to be a five-tool player at a premium position.”“Larez shows good bat-to-ball skills and has a chance to be a plus hitter in the future,” the MLB Pipeline scouting report reads. “He shows some strength now. There’s also a chance he develops more power as he grows and his body matures.”The teenager received the third-highest ranking among international free ...

Still no sports betting license for Raynham Park

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

Despite operating a gambling establishment in Raynham for most of the century, the owners of the former greyhound racing track are struggling to convince the state’s gaming commission they should be allowed to take bets on professional sports.While more than half-a-dozen companies have entered the state and started taking bets from Massachusetts residents since the industry was made legal and launched earlier this year, the Massasoit Greyhound Association, the business behind Raynham Park, can’t seem to get passed the licensing phase of operations.“I have a number of questions that, to me, kill a claim that good cause has been shown on this record,” Commissioner Eileen O’Brien said.Raynham Park is, according to lawyers speaking for the company on Monday, owned by George Carney, Jr., who inherited the business from his father.The involvement of his son Chris Carney, who has other business interests and companies working with the track, was of particular concern to the commissio...

Robbins: Loyal Afghan allies still waiting for safety they deserve

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

“America,” wrote novelist Thomas Wolfe, “is a fabulous country, the only fabulous country; it is the only place where miracles not only happen, but where they happen all the time.” We’re having more than our share of trouble doing the fundamentally right things, let alone achieving miracles. But a properly bipartisan bill pending before Congress would at least do the fundamentally right thing for tens of thousands of Afghans, most of them women and children, whose families risked their lives helping us confront Al Qaeda and the Taliban, and who now depend on us to offer them the permanent safety they deserve.In the 20 years following Sept. 11, 2001, untold numbers of Afghans chose to help American forces attempt to ensure that the kind of mass murder visited upon us when planes smashed into lower Manhattan never happened again. They were drivers, interpreters, soldiers, nurses, social workers, cooks, construction workers and more, and they enlisted alongside our own men and women se...

Boulders 'about as big as a school bus' fall onto I-8

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

Rockslide impacting traffic between San Diego, Imperial Counties. (Caltrans San Diego)Rockslide impacting traffic between San Diego, Imperial Counties. (Caltrans San Diego)Rockslide impacting traffic between San Diego, Imperial Counties. (Caltrans San Diego)Rockslide impacting traffic between San Diego, Imperial Counties. (Caltrans San Diego)SAN DIEGO — A rockslide on Interstate 8 in rural East County is impacting traffic for drivers between San Diego and Imperial counties.According to Caltrans, a large boulder and rubble was blocking traffic on I-8, near In-Ko-Pah Park Road Sunday.One-way traffic control was put in place by Caltrans crews as they work to clear the rockslide from the freeway. As of noon Monday, these measures were still in effect."Caltrans crews on EB I-8 near In-Ko-Pah trying to remove the boulders that are about as big as a school bus," Caltrans said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. PHOTOS: Tropical Storm Hilary moves through San Diego Officials said t...

13 people rescued from flooding in San Diego riverbed

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- San Diego Fire-Rescue crews saved over a dozen people from a flooded riverbed in Mission Valley, as the back end of Tropical Storm Hilary continues to drop heavy rains on the region.The incident was reported along the San Diego River at approximately 8:12 p.m. nearby the Morena bridge, according to SDFD. A total of 31 personnel were dispatched to the scene, including California Office of Emergency Services swift water rescue teams.As of 10:30 p.m., a total of 13 people were rescued from the riverbed. A few people were received of medical attention, but none were transported to a hospital, according to SDFD. No other injuries have been reported as of Sunday night. MORE: Tracking Hilary Several of the victims walked out of the water on their own, SDFD said, with one coming out of knee-deep water. The rest were guided out with the assistance of first responders.Tropical Storm Hilary, which pummeled most of Southern California on Sunday with widespread rainfall and gusty ...

San Diego River still experiencing flooding from Tropical Storm Hilary

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:15:29 GMT

SAN DIEGO — Hilary may have passed through San Diego County, but the impact of the storm remained Monday, with flooding and damage reported around the region.The San Diego River in Mission Valley was one such area that was still experiencing heavy flooding from the record-breaking rain.According to the National Weather Service, the river had reached 8.95 feet in height at 10:15 p.m. Sunday near Fashion Valley, marking the highest summertime height ever recorded at that location. PHOTOS: Tropical Storm Hilary moves through San Diego Sunday night, 13 people were saved from the riverbed after getting stuck in the flooded water. No injuries were reported form the incident.Swift water rescue teams were still on standby Monday morning as the riverbed was still flowing through the streets of Mission Valley with a constant stream.While many of the surrounding roads along the San Diego River in Mission Valley are prone to flooding when heavy rain hits the region, the flooding was more wide...