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24 hours later, cause of St. Charles home explosion still unknown

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

ST. CHARLES, Mo. – One day after a home explosion in a St. Charles neighborhood sent three adults and two children to the hospital, investigators have not yet identified what caused the home to go up in flames.“Initially, dispatch will say we need X amount of resources to handle this problem, and then when you get on the scene, and it becomes something else or much bigger than you initially thought,” said Fire Captain Kelly Hunsel, St. Charles City Fire Department. “That’s something that we train on all the time.”According to Hunsel, just one adult remains hospitalized.A quick-thinking neighbor heard the explosion around 11:30 a.m. Monday and called 911, then aided the injured occupants who had been in the home when it exploded.“So, having those residents close by and render some aide before our folks got there and alert 911 was really valuable,” Hunsel said.While the investigation continues, St. Charles firefighters are thankful for the more than 60 individuals involved and at the ...

Missouri Supreme Court weighs fate of amendment to restore abortion rights

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Whether Missouri voters get a chance to weigh in on legalizing abortion is now up to state Supreme Court judges, who on Tuesday heard arguments in a case about Republican infighting that has stalled the amendment's progress.Judges did not indicate when they might rule on the case, which centers around a proposed amendment to enshrine in the constitution the individual right to make decisions about abortion, childbirth and birth control. Abortion-rights supporters proposed it after the state banned almost all abortions last summer.The amendment hit a snag in April, when Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey refused to sign off on Republican Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick's cost estimate.Without Bailey's approval, abortion-rights supporters have not been able to start work getting the signatures needed to put the measure before voters in 2024. Clerk shot and killed at St. Louis City gas station They sued, and a circuit court judge last month order...

'We deserve answers' - Nearly 4 months after disappearance of Joshua Amos

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

FAIRMONT CITY, Ill. - Nearly four months after 32-year-old Joshua Amos went missing, Illinois State Police have reopened the search.On Tuesday, enforcement was joined by countless community members for hours, searching through the place where he went missing. Still, the family is left without answers."Think to yourself: if this was my child, if this was my dad, if this was my brother, my cousin, you would want to know; we deserve answers," said Christina Marek, Amos's mother. Clerk shot and killed at St. Louis City gas station Around 150 people searched on a rainy, humid day for Amos. He was last seen early morning on March 19, walking and intoxicated, after a night out with friends in Washington Park.“It was only about 18 degrees outside, he didn’t have a coat on," Marek said.She said he was walking around for several hours in those conditions.The search commenced early Tuesday not far from Ee-Jay Motor Transports, a trucking company, where a security camera showed the last place...

Former Avalanche Alex Galchenyuk to check into player assistance program after outburst during arrest

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Former Arizona Coyotes and Colorado Avalanche player Alex Galchenyuk is entering the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program and apologized for hurling threats at officers during his arrest earlier this month.Galchenyuk tweeted a letter on Tuesday apologizing for repeatedly using racial slurs toward an officer in training and threated to have two officers killed following a July 9 traffic stop.“I am deeply ashamed of my recent behavior and I am beyond sorry to everyone I offended and hurt,” he wrote. “It was uncalled for, it was horrific and it has ruined this great new opportunity I was given by the Coyotes. I am beyond embarrassed and disappointed with myself and I feel awful for everyone I have let down.”A Scottsdale Police Department report said Galchenyuk was erratic and aggressive toward officers after apparently crashing a car into a sign.Galchenyuk resisted the officers’ efforts to handcuff him and repeatedly uttered a racial slur toward the officer in ...

Worker advocates in Inland Empire sound alarm on heat-related dangers on the job

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

As a heatwave persists across Southern California, worker advocates in the Inland Empire say the hot weather is especially dangerous for people who do physical jobs both outside and in warehouses.An excessive heat warning remains in effect in the Inland Empire through Saturday night.“It could be hell, it could be super hot,” said Martez Brewster, a Chino resident who works in a warehouse.On hot days, some warehouses are miserable places to work. But not where Brewster works because ice, water and fans are readily available where he works. “It’s lovely,” Brewster indicated.Those are the measures the Inland Empire’s Warehouse Worker Resource Center says employers need to have available as dangerously hot temperatures make those who work physical jobs vulnerable to heat.But advocates feel more needs to be done.“We feel this has been an emergency that has been delayed,” said Deogracia Cornelio, education director for the resource center.She added that while there are regulations for sh...

Police search for missing hiker who disappeared in Monrovia

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

South Pasadena police are searching for a missing man who was last seen near a Monrovia trailhead on Saturday.The man was identified as Colin Brian Walker, 53.Walker is an avid hiker whose vehicle was found parked in the 900 block of Ridgeside near a trailhead, police said.Surveillance video from a nearby resident captured Walker heading toward the trailhead on Saturday around 6:23 a.m.Since that day, Walker has not been seen or heard from, police said. He was reported missing two days later on Monday.Walker was last seen wearing a gray shirt, dark-colored shorts, brown boots with gray socks, and a brown hat. He was carrying a large green backpack and hiking sticks.Colin Brian Walker seen in a personal photo and on security camera the morning he was last seen. (South Pasadena Police Department)Anyone who may recognize Walker or has any information on his whereabouts is asked to call South Pasadena police at 626-403-7297.

Universal to celebrate CityWalk's 30th anniversary with limited-time festivities

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

Universal will be celebrating the 30th anniversary of City Walk with new limited-time food and merchandise offerings, along with a new nighttime display.  CityWalk opened to the public in 1993 and has since been a hub for dining, shopping and entertainment. Toad makes his debut at Super Nintendo World Guests can buy some of their favorite theme park merchandise before heading into the theme park, catch a movie or grab a quick bite to eat.The area’s newest restaurant, Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen, will also be celebrating the shopping district's major milestone with a new milkshake flavor. The restaurant features unique milkshake creations, desserts and treats, and a full menu of brunch, lunch and dinner options. A photo of the milkshakes offered ar Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen at Universal Studios Hollywood. (KTLA) A photo of the milkshakes offered ar Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen at Universal Studios Hollywoo...

Scientists worry warming planet will bring more infectious diseases

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

By Zoya Teirstein | Grist via Associated PressNEW YORK — People around the world are living longer, healthier lives than they were just half a century ago.Climate change threatens to undo that progress.Across the planet, animals — and the diseases they carry — are shifting to accommodate a globe on the fritz. And they’re not alone: Ticks, mosquitos, bacteria, algae, even fungi are on the move, shifting or expanding their historical ranges to adapt to climatic conditions that are evolving at an unprecedented pace.These changes are not happening in a vacuum. Deforestation, mining, agriculture, and urban sprawl are taking bites out of the globe’s remaining wild areas, contributing to biodiversity loss that’s occurring at a rate unprecedented in human history. Populations of species that humans rely on for sustenance are dwindling and getting pushed into ever-smaller slices of habitat, creating new zoonotic-disease hotspots. Meanwhile, the number of people experiencing...

Letters: Hold back sea | Harm’s way | Hate speech | Not ‘improvements’ | Change focus

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

Submit your letter to the editor via this form. Read more Letters to the Editor.Spend whatever ittakes to hold back seaRe: “Rising sea levels expected to cost Bay Area $110B” (Page A1, July 14).In “Rising sea levels expected to cost Bay Area $110B,” David Lewis, executive director of Save the Bay, concludes, “The most important message is to get started sooner.”While this article was only about public works projects needed to mitigate some of the effects of climate change, I would extend it to all the effects of climate change. The thing we need to get started sooner is the reduction of CO2 emissions. The total cost of climate change is many times the $110 billion.We need to look at this like an alien invasion — unlimited funds need to be spent. Let’s get started.Cliff GoldFremontStop putting people inpath of rising watersRe: “Rising sea levels expected to cost Bay Area $110B” (Page A1, July 14).“Don’t put more people in harm’s way.” That’s ...

Calling it payback for bridge attack, Russia targets Ukraine port

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:47:00 GMT

By Felipe Dana | Associated PressKYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine said its forces shot down Russian drones and cruise missiles targeting the Black Sea port of Odesa before dawn Tuesday in what Moscow called “retribution” for an attack that damaged a crucial bridge to the Crimean Peninsula.The Russians first sought to wear down Ukraine’s air defenses by firing 25 exploding drones and then targeted Odesa with six Kalibr cruise missiles, the Ukrainian military’s Southern Command said.All six missiles and the drones were shot down by air defenses in the Odesa region and other areas in the south, officials said, though their debris and shock waves damaged some port facilities and a few residential buildings and injured an elderly man at his home.The Russian Defense Ministry said its “strike of retribution” was carried out with sea- launched precision weapons on Ukrainian military facilities near Odesa and Mykolaiv, a coastal city about 50 kilometers (30 miles) ...