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Drought over? Spring outlook finds relief — and flood risk

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:18:40 GMT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Record snowfall and rain have helped to loosen drought’s grip on parts of the western U.S. as national forecasters and climate experts warned Thursday that some areas should expect more flooding as the snow begins to melt.The winter precipitation wiped out exceptional and extreme drought in California for the first time since 2020, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported Thursday in a seasonal, nationwide outlook that came as parts of the state are under water. In neighboring Nevada, flood warnings were in effect and rushing water prompted some evacuations overnight in one of Arizona’s tourist towns.Elsewhere, NOAA’s forecast warned of elevated flood risks from heavy snowpack this spring in the upper Midwest along the Mississippi River from Minnesota south to Missouri. Despite the receding drought, experts cautioned that the relief may be only a blip as the long-term effects persist from what has been a stubborn dry streak.Gr...

NDP calls on federal government to make caregiver credit a refundable tax benefit

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:18:40 GMT

OTTAWA — New Democrats are calling on the federal government to follow through with its promise to make a tax credit for caregivers a refundable benefit. NDP MP Bonita Zarrillo, who is the party’s critic for disability inclusion, sent a letter to Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Wednesday calling for the change in the upcoming federal budget. Individuals who are supporting a spouse, common-law partner or dependant with a physical or mental impairment can currently claim the credit against the federal taxes they owe. The change would make the credit available as a benefit, regardless of whether or not they owe taxes. “Caregiving is the backbone of Canadian society – and its economy. But we are at a breaking point for caregivers as the health-care crisis puts growing pressure on families to care for their loved ones,” Zarrillo wrote in her letter. The mandate letter that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau gave Freeland after the 2021 election had tasked her with conv...

Floods fill some of California’s summer strawberry fields

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:18:40 GMT

As river water gushed through a broken levee, thousands of people in a California farming town were forced to evacuate as their homes were flooded and businesses destroyed.Yet another potential casualty of the powerful rainstorms that drenched coastal California: hundreds of acres of fresh strawberries slated for America’s supermarket shelves this summer.Industry experts estimate about a fifth of strawberry farms in the Watsonville and Salinas areas have been flooded since the levee ruptured late Friday about 70 miles (110 kilometers) south of San Francisco and another river overflowed. It’s too soon to know whether the berry plants can be recovered, but the longer they remain underwater the more challenging it can get, said Jeff Cardinale, a spokesperson for the California Strawberry Commission.“When the water recedes, what does the field look like — if it is even a field anymore?” Cardinale said. “It could just be a muddy mess where there is nothing left.” For years, C...

Yukon First Nation declares state of emergency over opioids ‘terrorizing’ community

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:18:40 GMT

MAYO, YUKON — A small Yukon First Nation says it’s dealing with an “opioid emergency” that is terrorizing its citizens and families with violence, crime, overdoses and death. The Nacho Nyak Dun First Nation in Mayo, 400 kilometres north of Whitehorse, has declared a state of emergency and called for a meeting with officials in the Yukon government, the RCMP and the Village of Mayo to develop an action plan to protect its members. The First Nation says in the emergency declaration that the action plan could include increased law enforcement within its territory, limiting when non-citizens can be on settlement land, check stops, or the eviction of tenants in First Nations housing who are engaged in illegal activities.It says the plan could also include “action to warn and protect people who use drugs,” and the availability of treatment opportunities for its citizens.The declaration comes days after a double homicide of two Whitehorse men whose bodies were...

Montenegro: President dissolves parliament ahead of election

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:18:40 GMT

PODGORICA, Montenegro (AP) — Montenegro’s president, who is running for reelection this weekend, dissolved parliament Thursday, paving the way for an early parliamentary election in the near future. President Milo Djukanovic issued a decree dissolving parliament three months after Montenegro’s government fell in a no-confidence vote and after lawmakers failed to elect a new one. Djukanovic is expected to set a date for the early election on Friday. Montenegro is holding its presidential election on Sunday. Analysts predict the voting will not produce a clear winner and that the pro-Western incumbent will face one of several challengers in a runoff two weeks later. His opponents include candidates from several parties in a pro-Serbia alliance. Djukanovic and his Democratic Party of Socialists led Montenegro to independence from Serbia in 2006 and into NATO in 2017. But faced with corruption allegations, the party lost a 2020 parliamentary election to an alliance of partie...

Moldovan lawmakers approve divisive national language bill

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:18:40 GMT

CHISINAU, Moldova (AP) — Moldovan lawmakers on Thursday voted in favor of a divisive bill that will replace references to the country’s official national language from Moldovan to Romanian in the Constitution and in legislation.The bill was initiated by Moldova’s ruling pro-Western Party of Action and Solidarity, PAS, and will change references to “Moldovan language”, “mother tongue” and “state language” with “Romanian language.” This has sparked a debate with social, political, and geopolitical overtones.The vote Thursday was the second and final one. All 57 lawmakers present from PAS, which holds 63 of the legislature’s 101 seats, voted in favor as did one unaffiliated lawmaker. The opposition Communists and Socialists bloc, which hold 31 seats, and 6 lawmakers from the Russia-friendly Shor Party, mostly boycotted the vote.While those in favor of the official linguistic changes see them as an important step for the European Union candidate to distance itself from its Soviet ...

Chicago man held on $5M bond after Zion woman strangled to death

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:18:40 GMT

ZION, Ill. — A Chicago man is facing murder charges for allegedly strangling a woman to death in her Zion home Monday. Craig Larsen, 50, was charged with first-degree murder after a pathologist ruled the woman's death was by strangulation, according to an autopsy report.According to Zion police, family members found the 38-year-old woman dead in her home at the 2200 block of Lewis Avenue around 11:08 a.m. Paramedics claimed the woman seemed to have been dead for some time, but reports say she was seen alive just two days earlier. There were also signs that suggested that she had been involved in a struggle. Geneva man pleads guilty in DUI crash that killed man, 73, who was loading fridge onto truck Neighbors reported to the police while the woman did live alone, Larsen frequently visited her apartment. Detectives located Larsen in his Chicago home where police say he made unsolicited comments about her death. Larsen was also noticed having fresh cuts and scratches about his face,...

What to know as Illinois, Northwestern open 2023 NCAA Tournament

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:18:40 GMT

CHICAGO - The madness is officially underway, and there are two teams from the State of Illinois taking part in the men's NCAA Tournament this week.That's Illinois and Northwestern, who are in the 68-team field for the "Big Dance" that is getting underway for both teams this Thursday. It's the first time that's ever happened, since the Wildcats previously only made the tournament in 2017, when the Illini didn't make the field.One of the teams is enjoying a storybook season, while another is back in the tournament for a third-straight year, but it is now in the underdog roleHere's what to look for from the Illini and the Wildcats in the 2023 men's NCAA Tournament.(AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)Illinois - 9th Seed - West RegionOPENING ROUND GAME - Thursday vs No. 8 Arkansas - 3:30 p.m. -TBS - Des Moines, Iowa2022-2023 Record - 20-12, 11-9 in the Big TenNUMBER OF TOURNAMENT APPEARANCES - This is the 33rd time that Illinois has appeared in the NCAA Tournament. The program has five Final...

Best deals of St. Patrick’s Day weekend 2023

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:18:40 GMT

The hottest deals ahead of St. Patrick’s Day weekend 2023St. Patrick’s Day doesn’t only mean wearing your favorite green clothing and going out with your friends to Irish pubs for St. Patrick's Day treats and drinks. It also means many retailers are hosting sales. You can snag the hottest items at a discounted price ahead of St. Patrick’s Day weekend 2023. We’ve got a list of some of the best active sales, but retailers will update their sales all weekend, so be sure to check online often to see if anything on your wish list has changed prices.In this article: OKP K3 Robot Vacuum Cleaner, Fire TV Stick 4K and Sony WF-1000XM4 Wireless Earbuds.What’s on sale?If you look hard enough, you can probably find almost anything you want on sale for St. Patrick’s Day 2023. Amazon sells all kinds of products, so you’ll be able to find electronics, kitchen appliances, jewelry, apparel, toys and more. Wayfair has great sales right now o...

IKEA mirrors recalled over laceration hazard

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:18:40 GMT

VIRGINIA (WXIN) – Thousands of mirrors are being recalled because they may fall off the wall, possibly leading to lacerations.The Consumer Product Safety Commission said the recall involves about 22,400 IKEA LETTAN Mirrors sold. The recalled mirrors were sold at IKEA stores nationwide and online from December 2019 to October 2022, with a price from $23 to $56. Also included in the recall are an additional 17,500 mirrors sold in Canada. Purina expands recall for dog food that may cause kidney issues, sickness in pets The recall was initiated after the company received 55 reports of the plastic fittings breaking, including one report of the fittings coming loose and the mirror falling off the wall.The mirrors, which are frameless and about 38 inches high, were sold in width sizes of 23 31, 39 and 47 inches. The recalled mirrors have a date stamp before and including 2105. The date stamp is in YYWW format, representing the year and week of manufacture.Photo//CPSCPhoto//CPSCAnyone w...