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Keeping up pressure, China sends warships and fighter jets near Taiwan during Yellen’s Beijing visit

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:33 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — China’s People’s Liberation Army sent 13 aircraft and 6 vessels into airspace and waters around Taiwan over the past 24 hours as of early Saturday, overlapping with United States Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s visit to Beijing aimed at mending strained relations. Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said it is monitoring the situation from the air and sea, and land-based missile systems were prepared to respond. It said four Chinese aircraft — two SU-30 fighters, one BZK-005 reconnaissance plane and one Y-8 anti-submarine warfare plane — crossed the median line in the Taiwan Strait that serves as a de-facto border between the sides, and had entered Taiwan’s southwestern air defense identification zone. China claims Taiwan as its own territory to be annexed by force if necessary and sends air and naval missions on virtually a daily basis in an attempt to wear down the island’s defense capabilities and intimidate its 23 million people, who thus far seem largely unfa...

Sailors rejoice after snowy winter raises Great Salt Lake – for now

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:33 GMT

ON THE GREAT SALT LAKE (AP) — A brisk wind caught a Kevlar-fiber sail, sending it snapping as Bob Derby and Randy Atkin pulled lines to turn Red Stripe, their 25-foot boat, through the briny waters of the imperiled Great Salt Lake. Little could be heard beyond the low hum of trucks wheeling past a copper smelter on the lake’s shoreline — a respite from the bustle of Salt Lake City and its booming suburbs that push farther into Utah’s deserts and farmland each year.“Everything that happened today drifts off behind you and there’s nothing like it,’” said Derby, a 61-year-old veteran sailor battling cancer. “There’s no better therapy than being on the lake.”It’s a feeling old friends Derby and Atkin weren’t sure they’d experience again. The Red Stripe’s return comes after it and hundreds of other sailboats were hoisted out of the shrinking Great Salt Lake as water levels plummeted in recent years, leaving docks along the lake’s parched southern...

A gas platform explosion off Mexico kills 2 workers, injures 8 and leaves 1 missing, officials say

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:33 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — An explosion and fire destroyed an offshore gas platform in the Gulf of Mexico early Friday, while two workers died, eight were injured and one was missing, officials said. The state-owned oil company, Petroleos Mexicanos, said the disaster happened on the Nohoch gas transfer platform that it operates. It said the dead and missing workers were employed by a subcontractor and three of the injured were company employees and five worked for the subcontractor.The company, known as Pemex, said none of the injuries were life-threatening.The company’s statement said seven ships evacuated a total of 321 workers from the platform. Photos distributed by the company showed several fire boats pumping streams of water onto the still-smoking platform.Octavio Romero, director of Petroleos Mexicanos, said that the platform “was totally destroyed,” but that four other nearby, linked platforms did not catch fire.There appeared to be little risk of an oil spill, though it was ...

The UN refuses to retract its condemnation of Israel over the Jenin military operation

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:33 GMT

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Israel’s United Nations ambassador called on Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to retract his condemnation of the country for its excessive use of force in its largest military operation in two decades targeting a refugee camp in the West Bank.U.N. deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said Friday the secretary-general conveyed his views on Thursday “and he stands by those views.”Guterres, angered by the impact of the Israeli airstrikes and attack on the Jenin refugee camp, said the operation left over 100 civilians injured, uprooted thousands of residents, damaged schools and hospitals, and disrupted water and electricity networks. He also criticized Israel for preventing the injured from getting medical care and humanitarian workers from reaching everyone in need.Israel’s two-day offensive meant to crack down on Palestinian militants destroyed the Jenin camp’s narrow roads and alleyways, forced thousands of people to flee their homes and killed 12 Palestinians. One...

More rain has fallen in the past week in Chicago than typically falls in all of July, and the region’s “wetter than normal pattern” isn’t done

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:33 GMT

Saturday opens with rains which scatter as mixed sun breaks out—more rains and thunderstorms due late Tuesday through Wednesday night and again next weekendACTIVE FIRES Friday—Courtesy of NASACANADIAN WILDFIRES CONTINUE TO BURNA wind shift has cleared the smoke from the Chicago area, though it’s likely we’ve NOT seen the last of these fires’ smoke.SO WHERE IS THE SMOKE FROM THESE FIRES NOW AND WHERE IS IT GOING in the coming 48 hours? Here’s a smoke forecast off the National Weather Service’s “RAP” model:Here’s where smoke off the Canadian wildfires is Friday morningTHE FIRES CONTINUE TO BREAK RECORDS IN CANADACanada wildfires with continuing active fires across the country for first days of July and total estimated emissions continuing to increase, well above 2003-2022 annual totalsTotal carbon emissions from Canadian fires to date in the 2023 season exceeds those of any prior season since detailed observations began in 2003 and well above the 2003-2022 averageEL NIÑO AND CLIMATE C...

Dry field ignites close to homes during fireworks

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:33 GMT

With no rain in sight and temperatures that are rising once again, fire dangers are ramping up."I saw like a campfire," said Edward Kim who spotted a fire in the field behind his home in Northeast Austin. "It just started getting closer and bigger and the smoke started billowing over this way and people had their hoses out."After calling 911 Kim grabbed all the fire extinguishers he had in his home and tried to stop the fire from spreading."I just started pulling these (fencing) and snapping them off," said Kim who broke through his fence to get to the field.Video from the fire shows Kim spraying the fire extinguisher on the fire as fireworks explode in the distance."If we didn't do something fast it was going to keep spreading and start touching houses," said Kim.He believes it started after a firework exploded nearby."With little rain and the high temperatures there is always the possibility of wild fires," said Kassidy Buth with Travis County Emergency Services District 12.When f...

Lynx grind out win over Mercury for 5th straight victory

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:33 GMT

Being dominant for a half Friday was enough for the Lynx.Facing the WNBA’s worst team by record, Minnesota extended its winning streak to five games.Battling some fatigue, Napheesa Collier finished with 12 points on 6-of-18 shooting and added 12 rebounds for her fifth double-double this season, leading the Lynx in a 75-64 win over Phoenix.But it was a glass half-full kind of win.“We had five people in double digits. So, we definitely spread the offense around which was great,” Collier said. “… And we had some really good defensive stretches, especially like with Dorka (Juhász) and Nina (Milic) in the post, which was awesome. So, it was really ugly, but we were able to grind it out. I thought we played really good team basketball when we weren’t in those slumps.”Minnesota led by 24 points midway through the third quarter but did not keep the proverbial foot on the gas. Keyed by a 15-3 run, Phoenix got within eight early in the fourth quarter.Baskets by Rachel Banham, Lindsay Allen an...

Keuchel stars again as Saints top Cubs

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:33 GMT

DES MOINES, Iowa – Dallas Keuchel continues to impress with each start for the St. Paul Saints. His third start might have been his most impressive, as he pitched the Twins’ Triple A affiliate to a 4-1 victory over the Iowa Cubs on Friday night at Principal Park.Keuchel went 5.2 innings, allowing five hits while walking four and striking out four. He threw 80 pitches, 46 for strikes and got 11 swings and misses. He has allowed one run in 15 innings with the Saints.Keuchel retired the side in just one inning, the third, but he was never in much trouble. He danced around a leadoff single and a one out walk in the first.His toughest inning was the fourth when Keuchel got out of a bases loaded, two out jam. He walked David Bote to start the inning. With two outs, Keuchel gave up a double to Darius Hill and walked Luis Vazquez, but he got Bryce Windham to fly out to deep center to end the inning.In the fifth, Keuchel gave up back-to-back singles to start the inning, but he got Matt...

North Dakota lawyer pleads no contest to fatally bludgeoning ex-wife in Minnesota

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:33 GMT

A former North Dakota prosecutor and public defender charged with the August 2022 fatal beating of his ex-wife in far northwestern Minnesota has changed his plea in the case.Anders Odegaard, 32, initially pleaded not guilty, but on Thursday he offered an Alford plea to second-degree murder without intent while committing a felony, meaning he maintains his innocence but concedes there’s enough evidence for a jury to find him guilty.Anders Odegaard (Courtesy of Marshall County Sheriff’s Department via Forum News Service)Odegaard changed his plea in Marshall County District Court after the state and defense settled on a plea agreement, but his sentence won’t be determined until Aug. 15.Odegaard was arrested on Aug. 23, 2022, after law enforcement was dispatched to a Warren, Minn., residence on the report of a domestic disturbance. At the scene, Odegaard was found with his unconscious ex-wife, Carissa Odegaard, 31.According to an affidavit in the case, Carissa wasn’t breathi...

Twins’ three-game win streak snapped with 10-inning loss to Orioles

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:33 GMT

Byron Buxton stood just outside of the first base bag with his hands on his hips, waiting to see whether or not he had just given the Twins a 3-0 lead.Buxton saw Baltimore center fielder Cedric Mullins leap at the wall near the 411-foot marker but was unsure of whether he got his glove on a ball he had just hit an estimated 414 feet at 104.3 mph off Orioles left-hander Cole Irvin.When Mullins came down with it, Buxton slammed his helmet to the ground before raising his arms, as if to say, “Why?” Or maybe, “How?” Mullins responded in kind, as if to say, “Sorry, man, it’s my job.”Instead of watching Carlos Correa and Donovan Solano trotting home ahead of him for a 3-0, third-inning lead, Buxton tipped his cap. He’s a center fielder, too — or was before being limited to designated hitting duties this season — and appreciates a highlight reel catch.It was the play of the game, the difference between victory and defeat as the Orioles won the first of a three-game series, 3-1 in 10 inning...