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Rescues underway, state of emergency declared in Leominster amid flash flooding

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:28 GMT

A state of emergency has been declared in Leominster and a flash flood emergency is in place for the surrounding area as heavy rains continue to batter the region. The flash flood emergency as of around 9 p.m. included Leominster, Fitchburg, Lunenburg, Princeton and Sterling. A larger swath of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Hampshire was included under a series of flash flood warnings.Rescues were underway in several spots Monday night and officials said they were in the process of rushing mutual aid from neighboring communities and state agencies into hard hit areas.“Do not venture out,” said Leominster Mayor Dean Mazzarella in a message on Facebook around 6:30 p.m. “It is not safe.” In a subsequent Facebook Live video, Mazzarella shared a view from a parking lot near the Leominster police station which he said had been flooded since around 4:30 p.m.“Every crew is out here,” Mazzarella said, adding “We’ve called in everybody.” Mazzarella further urged community ...

Orioles open key homestand with 11-5 rout of Cardinals led by Cedric Mullins’ go-ahead grand slam

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:28 GMT

Cedric Mullins waited for the pitch to break, then turned and unloaded. As the ball floated high through the air, some fans flung their arms up, unable to wait until it dropped over the right field fence.With one swift swing, Mullins had doubled the Orioles’ run total and given them an 8-5, fifth-inning lead over the visiting St. Louis Cardinals in the first of a seven-game homestand. The next inning, rookie Gunnar Henderson added on himself by hammering a 422-foot solo shot — his 25th home run of the season.On a night when Orioles starter Dean Kremer had a poor showing, the Orioles shined everywhere else: The offense picked up the slack, the bullpen — which remains without injured closer Félix Bautista — took care of business, and the defense was strong, highlighted by an outstanding diving catch by defensive replacement Austin Hays in the eighth.With the 11-5 victory, the Orioles improved to 91-52 and lowered their magic number to clinch a playoff spot...

‘Life-threatening’ flash flooding in Leominster, Fitchburg; ‘turn around, don’t drown’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:28 GMT

In a dire warning, the National Weather Service has posted alerts for “life threatening flash flooding” in the Leominster, Fitchburg area tonight.The weather service says the warning is for “flash flooding of creeks and streams, urban areas, highways, streets and underpasses.”Route 2 is closed in this area and the rains keep coming.The NWS adds other towns nearby are also under the alert, including Westford, Gardner, Holden, Clinton, Athol, Pepperell, Tyngsborough, Groton, Winchendon, Lunenburg, Townsend, Littleton, Lancaster, Templeton, Rutland, Sterling, Ayer andWestminster.This is a dire situation with the alert adding: “Turn around, don’t drown when encountering flooded roads. Most flood deaths occur in vehicles.”

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrives in Russia before an expected meeting with Putin

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:28 GMT

By KIM TONG-HYUNG (Associated Press)SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Joined by his top military officials handling his nuclear-capable weapons and munitions factories, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrived in Russia on Tuesday, where he is expected to hold a rare meeting with President Vladimir Putin that has sparked Western concerns about a potential arms deal for Moscow’s war in Ukraine.North Korea’s official news agency said Kim boarded his personal train from the capital, Pyongyang, on Sunday afternoon, and that he was accompanied by unspecified members of the country’s ruling party, government and military.Jeon Ha Gyu, spokesperson of South Korea’s Defense Ministry, said in a briefing that the South’s military assesses that Kim’s train crossed into Russia sometime early Tuesday. He didn’t elaborate how the military obtained the information.North Korean state media showed photographs of Kim walking past honor guards and crowds of civi...

18 kilos of fentanyl seized in task force bust; enough to kill 9M

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:28 GMT

State Police report they have seized 18 kilograms of the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl.One kilo of fentanyl, the DEA states, “has the potential to kill 500,000 people.” This bust is a lot of lives saved. (9 million, using DEA math.)A task force zeroed in on a Lawrence-based drug trafficking organization that was supplying fentanyl throughout the Merrimack Valley, MSP said.“Operation Philly Special,” State Police added, was the result of a lengthy investigation conducted by the State Police Commonwealth Interstate Narcotics Reduction and Enforcement Team (CINRET), Troopers assigned to the Attorney General’s Office, federal Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Salem, New Hampshire Police, under the direction of Attorney General Andrea Campbell’s Office.The seized fentanyl, once cut up and sold on the street, would have an estimated value of nearly $1 million.The task force also seized two semi-automatic pistols, approximately $10,000 suspected to be drug traffick...

Flooding in Libya leaves 2,000 people feared dead and more missing after storm collapsed dams

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:28 GMT

By SAMY MAGDY (Associated Press)CAIRO (AP) — Mediterranean storm Daniel caused devastating floods in Libya that broke dams and swept away entire neighborhoods in multiple coastal towns in the east of the North African nation. As many as 2,000 people were feared dead, one of the country’s leaders said Monday.The destruction appeared greatest in Derna, a city formerly held by Islamic extremists in the chaos that has gripped Libya for more than a decade and left it with crumbling and inadequate infrastructure. Libya remains divided between two rival administrations, one in the east and one in the west, each backed by militias and foreign governments. The confirmed death toll from the weekend flooding stood at 61 as of late Monday, according to health authorities. But the tally did not include Derna, which had become inaccessible, and many of the thousands missing there were believed carried away by waters after two upstream dams burst. Video by residents of the city posted ...

Driver killed in I-805 crash near border

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:28 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A driver was killed in a two-vehicle crash Sunday on Interstate 805 northbound at State Route 905 near the U.S.-Mexico Border, authorities said.The collision occurred around 5:27 a.m. when a 21-year-old man driving in a Volkswagen coupe struck the back of a Honda sport utility vehicle at a high rate of speed, Jesse Matias with the California Highway Patrol said in a news release. The driver of the Honda, a 58-year-old of Tijuana, Mexico, died at the scene while the driver of the Volkswagen was taken to a hospital, according to authorities. Pursuit crash prompts I-805 traffic delays; suspect arrested Driving under the influence is suspected to be a factor in the crash, per CHP.Multiple lanes of I-805 northbound were closed for several hours.The identity of the deceased is being withheld pending notification from the family.Any witnesses to this crash are asked to contact the CHP San Diego Area at (858) 293-6000.

California lawmakers approve the nation’s most sweeping emissions disclosure rules for big business

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:28 GMT

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Major corporations from oil and gas companies to retail giants would have to disclose their direct greenhouse gas emissions as well as those that come from activities like employee business travel under legislation passed Monday by California lawmakers, the most sweeping mandate of its kind in the nation. The legislation would require thousands of public and private businesses that operate in California and make more than $1 billion annually report their direct and indirect emissions. The goal is to increase transparency and nudge companies to evaluate how they can cut their emissions. “We are out of time on addressing the climate crisis,” Democratic Assemblymember Chris Ward said. “This will absolutely help us take a leap forward to be able to hold ourselves accountable.”The legislation was one of the highest profile climate bills in California this year, racking support from major companies that include Patagonia and Apple, as well as Christiana Figueres,...

TIFF’23: The Royal Hotel is pure, nail-biting tension

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:28 GMT

Traveling around the world can be a tremendously enjoyable experience. You can learn a lot about other cultures and yourself, experience new things, and have tons of fun with new people. But as this film shows, sometimes travelling can go wrong.The Royal Hotel was an anxious, tense watch. It was a great deal of scary fun with two fantastic lead performances from Julia Garner and Jessica Henwick. Another strong film from Kitty Green. #TIFF23— James Mackin @ TIFF 23 (@JamesMackin10) September 12, 2023The Royal Hotel is the latest film from Kitty Green (the director of Casting JonBenet and the Assistant), and it stars Julia Garner (also from the Assistant and Ozark) and Jessica Henwick (from Glass Onion and Iron Fist). They’re playing two young women travelling around Australia having fun, until they run out of money. They take a job at the Royal Hotel, a small pub in a mining town in the middle of nowhere. The town is mostly filled with men, and the testosterone rises anyt...

Effort to restrict public’s access to Arkansas records stumbles at start of legislative session

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:28 GMT

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ proposal to restrict the public’s access to records about her administration, travel and security stumbled at the outset of a special legislative session that convened Monday, with lawmakers trying to rework the legislation in the face of growing criticism that it erodes the state’s open records law.The House and Senate ended the day without any action on the legislation, one of several items Sanders placed on the agenda for the special session she announced Friday. The Senate scuttled plans to hold a committee hearing Monday night on the bill, with leaders saying they did not yet have a revised version of the proposed changes to the state’s Freedom of Information Act.“We’ve made amendment after amendment after amendment today. It’s just not ready,” Senate President Bart Hester told a committee room packed mostly with opponents of the legislation who had been waiting to to testify on t...