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Biden announces $3.5B for projects nationwide to strengthen electric grid, bolster resilience

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:31 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration on Wednesday announced $3.5 billion for 58 projects across the country to strengthen electric grid resilience as extreme weather events such as the deadly Maui and California wildfires continue to strain the nation’s aging transmission systems. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said it was the largest federal investment ever in grid infrastructure, supporting projects that will harden electric systems and improve energy reliability and affordability. The federal spending, combined with money promised by private partners, could result in up to $8 billion in investments nationally to upgrade the grid, Granholm said.“The grid, as it currently sits, is not is not equipped to handle all the new demand” and withstand natural disasters and extreme weather worsened by climate change, Granholm said at a news conference Wednesday. “We need it to be bigger, we need it to be stronger, we need it to be smarter” to bring a range of renewable energy proj...

Takeaways from AP’s reporting on who gets hurt by RFK Jr.’s anti-vaccine work

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:31 GMT

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has spent years using his famous name to disseminate false information about vaccines and other topics in a time when spreading conspiracy theories has become a powerful way to grow a constituency.An Associated Press examination of his work and its impact found Kennedy has earned money, fame and political clout while leaving some people suffering from the fallout. Kennedy’s campaign did not return emails seeking comment from the candidate, who is the son of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of President John F. Kennedy.Here are the key takeaways from the AP’s reporting:CAUSE UNKNOWNTwelve-year-old Braden Fahey didn’t die from getting a vaccine, yet a few months after his death in August 2022, his photo appeared on the cover of a book that was co-published by Kennedy’s anti-vaccine group. The book falsely argues COVID-19 vaccines caused a spike of sudden deaths among healthy young people.Kennedy wrote the f...

RFK Jr. spent years stoking fear and mistrust of vaccines. These people were hurt by his work

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:31 GMT

When 12-year-old Braden Fahey collapsed during football practice and died, it was just the beginning of his parents’ nightmare.Deep in their grief a few months later, Gina and Padrig Fahey received news that shocked them to their core: A favorite photo of their beloved son was plastered on the cover of a book that falsely argues COVID-19 vaccines caused a spike of sudden deaths among healthy young people.The book, called “Cause Unknown,” was co-published by an anti-vaccine group led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President John F. Kennedy’s nephew, who is now running for president. Kennedy wrote the foreword and promoted the book, tweeting that it details data showing “ COVID shots are a crime against humanity.”The Faheys couldn’t understand how Braden’s face appeared on the book’s cover, or why his name appeared inside it. Braden never received the vaccine. His death in August 2022 was due to a malformed blood vessel in his brain. No one ever contacted them to ask about their son’s deat...

Astros rough up Rangers’ Scherzer again, scoring 5 in 4 innings of ALCS Game 3

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:31 GMT

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Max Scherzer was roughed up again by the Houston Astros, this time in Game 3 of the AL Championship Series.The right-hander’s first start for the Texas Rangers in more than a month ended after four innings and with the Astros leading 5-0 on Wednesday night.Scherzer gave up three runs in the second on a wild pitch and Martín Maldonado’s two-run single, then allowed Jose Altuve’s leadoff homer in the third.Houston took a 5-0 lead on Mauricio Dubón’s RBI single in the fourth, when Scherzer struck out Jeremy Peña and Maldonado with a man on.Scherzer was dealing with forearm tightness six weeks ago when he allowed seven runs — all on three homers — over three innings in the Astros’ 12-3 win. He exited after 5 1/3 scoreless innings six days later, on Sept. 12 at Toronto, before going on the injured list because of the shoulder strain. Scherzer has had second consecutive rough postseason start, allowing five runs and five hits with a walk, a hit ba...

Italian lawmakers approve 10 million euros for long-delayed Holocaust Museum in Rome

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:31 GMT

MILAN (AP) — Italian lawmakers voted unanimously Wednesday to back a long-delayed project to build a Holocaust Museum in Rome, underlining the urgency of the undertaking following the killing of Israeli civilians by Hamas fighters in what have been deemed the deadliest attacks on Jews since the Holocaust.The measure includes 10 million euros ($10.5 million) in funding over three years for construction of the exhibits, and 50,000 euros in annual operational funding to establish the museum, a project that was first envisioned nearly 20 years ago. Recalling the execution of an Israeli Holocaust survivor during the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel, lawmaker Paolo Formentini from the right-wing League party told the chamber, “We thought that events of this kind were only a tragic memory. Instead, it is an ancient problem that is reappearing like a nightmare.”The Holocaust Museum project was revived last spring by Premier Giorgia Meloni’s far-right-led government. It languished for years du...

Pakistan needs to shake off disappointment, illness against Australia at the Cricket World Cup

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:31 GMT

Pakistan needs to shake off the disappointment of its loss to archrival India and illness within its squad when it takes on five-time champion champion Australia at the Cricket World Cup on Friday.Opening batter Abdullah Shafique and fast bowler Shaheen Afridi were among a group of players sick with a fever after the team left Ahmedabad following a seven-wicket loss to India.Both Shafique and Afridi rejoined the team in practice at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday and are available for selection.Also back in the selection frame are Fakhar Zaman, who has recovered from knee injury, and middle-order batter Saud Shakeel.Pakistan made a solid start to the tournament with wins over Netherlands and Sri Lanka at Hyderabad, a venue where the team got a warm reception.The crowd was behind Babar Azam-led side when Shafique and Mohammad Rizwan both scored centuries in Pakistan’s record run chase of 345-4.But Pakistan — touring India for the first time in seven year...

Russia’s foreign minister thanks North Korea for ‘unwavering’ support of its war in Ukraine

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:31 GMT

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov thanked North Korea for its support for Russia’s war on Ukraine as he arrived in Pyongyang, days after the United States said the North had transferred munitions to Russia to boost its warfighting capabilities. Russian state television ran footage of crowds greeting Lavrov in the pouring rain in Pyongyang on Wednesday alongside a welcoming party waving pompoms. Lavrov said his visit was an opportunity to discuss implementing the unspecified agreements between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un when they met at Russia’s Vostochny Cosmodrome in September.Lavrov later attended a reception where North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui said the countries were building an “unbreakable comradely relationship” under the “strategic” decisions and leadership of Kim and Putin, the North’s official Korean Central News Agency said.Lavrov in a speech said Russia deeply values North Korea’s “unwavering and prin...

Driver arrested after Pacific Coast Highway crash in Malibu kills 4 Pepperdine University students

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:31 GMT

MALIBU, Calif. (AP) — A 22-year-old driver was arrested on suspicion of manslaughter after a crash in Malibu killed four college students and injured two other people, officials said Wednesday. The six pedestrians were struck around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday along Pacific Coast Highway about 4 miles (6.4 km) east of Pepperdine University, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.Four women were pronounced dead at the scene and two others were taken to a hospital but there was no word Wednesday on their conditions.Pepperdine initially said on X, formerly Twitter, that officials believed those killed attended the university’s Seaver College of Liberal Arts. Pepperdine’s president, Jim Gash, later confirmed that the four killed were students.“Earlier today, we learned that four precious lives who brought joy and light to our campus were taken from us suddenly, tragically, and incomprehensibly,” Gash wrote in a message to the university community. The school la...

I-70 reopens near Golden after 3 semis, pickup crash

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:31 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — Three semi trucks and a pickup truck crashed on Interstate 70 during rush hour Wednesday afternoon, closing the eastbound lanes at C-470.The pickup truck driver was "badly hurt" in the crash, but "prognosis sounds good," according to Colorado State Patrol. Troopers say the incident involved two crashes. First, a semi truck crashed into another semi by the C-470 overpass, slowing traffic. The pickup truck driver then rear-ended another truck's trailer.The pickup truck driver was cited.I-70 eastbound was closed between Morrison Road and C-470, about a mile west of Golden, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation. CDOT's interstate cameras showed eastbound traffic at a standstill for miles before the crash scene.Interstate 70 eastbound was closed near Golden after three semi trucks and a pickup truck crashed, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office. (Credit: Colorado Department of Transportation) See the latest traffic conditions in Denver on ...

Bird flu is back: Case confirmed in Colorado backyard flock

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:59:31 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — Bird flu killed most of a backyard chicken flock in Colorado, a federal lab confirmed, as officials warned of a rise in the disease during migratory season.The new case of highly pathogenic avian influenza was confirmed in Weld County after 20 of the flock's 24 chickens died, according to the Colorado Department of Agriculture. The rest of the chickens were euthanized.The chickens were exposed to sick and dying wild geese."Unfortunately, as we see the fall movement of migratory birds through the United States, including Colorado, we are beginning to see HPAI cases increase again,” Colorado State Veterinarian Dr. Maggie Baldwin said in a statement. Deadly bird flu reappears in US commercial poultry flocks in Utah and South Dakota The disease was confirmed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Veterinary Services Laboratory."We will continue to work with commercial poultry and egg producers as well as backyard flock owners to ensure they adhere to strict b...