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Pope Francis to be hospitalized for several days with respiratory infection, Vatican says

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:49 GMT

(CNN) — Pope Francis will be hospitalized for “a few days” for the treatment of a respiratory infection, the Vatican said on Wednesday, raising concerns over the health of the 86-year-old pontiff.“In recent days Pope Francis complained of some respiratory difficulties and this afternoon he went to Policlinico A. Gemelli for some medical checks,” Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said in a statement, referring to the Rome hospital where popes are normally treated. “The outcome of these [tests] showed a respiratory infection (excluding Covid-19 infection) that will require a few days of appropriate hospital medical therapy.”“Pope Francis is touched by the many messages received and expresses his gratitude for the closeness and prayer,” Bruni added.After his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square, Francis was taken to the hospital to undergo a number of tests. Earlier in the day, the Vatican had said that the vis...

‘Our heart is broken,’ Nashville mayor says as city comes together to grieve 6 killed in school shooting

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:49 GMT

 (CNN) — Grief-stricken Nashville residents came together for a vigil Wednesday to mourn three 9-year-old children and three adults killed in the mass shooting at a private Christian school.First lady Jill Biden was in attendance as community members honored the victims, prayed and shared in the heartache. Singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow performed her song “I Shall Believe” to the grieving crowd.“Just two days ago was our worst day,” Mayor John Cooper said, opening the citywide vigil. “Our heart is broken. Our city united as we mourn together,” he added, asking community members to join hands.Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake, who has become a familiar face providing updates on the investigation, told the crowd that a school shooting, like the one officers faced at The Covenant School on Monday, is a moment officers have trained for but hoped would never come.“Our police officers have cried and are crying with Nashville and th...

Woman charged after allegedly assaulting child at Plympton daycare

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:49 GMT

A woman from Carver has been charged in connection with an alleged assault on a child at a daycare in Plympton, police said on Wednesday. Police said the woman allegedly assaulted the child while working in the infant room at Puddle Jumpers Daycare back in October of last year. The 36-year-old woman has been charged with one count of assault and battery on a child with injury, according to police. Police said the woman has pleaded not guilty and been ordered to stay away from the daycare and not have any contact with children. The woman is due back in court next month.

Solve It 7: Musical Money

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:49 GMT

When the hit Broadway show Hamilton came to town, a Groveland woman bought tickets. But, when she and her friends couldn’t go she says she had trouble getting her musical money back.Solve it 7 gave her case top billing. Brandon Gunnoe has the story. The music.The costumes.The history. “I’ve heard it’s fascinating,” Gerry said. Gerry couldn’t wait to see Hamilton. “I was really excited,” Gerry said. She bought four seats from an online ticket company and planned to go with friends when the musical hit Boston this year.But Gerry and her friends had to back out. “We’re all in our 80s here. So, you know, it’s something that goes with life in the 80th decade,” Gerry said. Gerry easily resold her seats through the ticket company.       “I was thrilled. I mean, it was great. It was over $800,” Gerry said. And she wasn’t worried about getting ...

Mets Notebook: Elieser Hernandez starting season on IL, Bryce Montes de Oca undergoes surgery

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:49 GMT

MIAMI — The Mets haven’t announced their Opening Day roster just yet but you can cross Elieser Hernandez’s name off of the list. The right-hander will start the season on the injured list with a shoulder strain.The injury occurred in a Grapefruit League game last week. The right-hander came out of a game complaining of some soreness, which then lingered for a few days. However, the Mets aren’t concerned considering he’s already playing catch and said he has taken well to anti-inflammatories.Hernandez probably wouldn’t have made the team right out of camp since they project him as a starter, but with a handful of relievers getting injured in recent weeks, he was still an option. The Mets will likely start him in Triple-A Syracuse and stretch him out as a starter.Hernandez was acquired in a trade with the Miami Marlins in December, along with right-hander Jeff Brigham, who was vying for the eighth bullpen spot before the Mets optioned him to Triple-...

Mets starting 2023 season without naming a replacement for injured Edwin Diaz

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:49 GMT

MIAMI — When the Mets begin the 2023 season Thursday afternoon in Miami, they’ll be doing so without a closer. The club has yet to decide on a replacement for Edwin Diaz and they don’t anticipate doing so anytime soon.The closer situation might be the biggest storyline and the biggest question for the Mets as the 2023 season gets underway. When general manager Billy Eppler constructed the roster, he placed a heavy emphasis on relievers with experience and success pitching in high-leverage innings. His goal was to build a versatile bullpen with pitchers who could eat multiple innings and make swing starts, as well as pitch in situations where the game is on the line even if a save isn’t.Eppler added three high-leverage relievers to a group that already had two in Diaz and Drew Smith. That depth will be tested with a demanding schedule right out of the gate. The Mets will play eight games in a row to start the slate.“When we started spring training, we ta...

As Ian Happ enters opening day without a contract extension, the Chicago Cubs outfielder focuses on the present

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:49 GMT

Ian Happ has witnessed how this situation has played out with his former Chicago Cubs teammates.Hours before the Cubs officially announced Nico Hoerner’s three-year contract extension — covering the second baseman’s final two years of arbitration and one year of free agency — Happ reflected on the annual uniqueness of opening day on the eve of the season opener against the Milwaukee Brewers.Happ, 28, enters his final season before free agency without a contract extension, a topic he downplayed before the Cubs’ workout Thursday afternoon at Wrigley Field.“It’s not something I really want to get into,” said Happ, the ninth pick in the 2015 draft who is entering his seventh major-league season with the Cubs. “I mean, I went through the process and that’s about it. There’s nothing really to report and no real comment on it.“I’m excited to play baseball with this group of guys.”Team President Jed Hoyer pr...

Rejection of Black educator angers some Mississippi senators

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:49 GMT

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi’s Republican-led Senate voted Wednesday against confirming veteran educator Robert P. Taylor as state superintendent of education, angering some Black Democrats who said the rejection was at least partly because Taylor is Black and wrote years ago about the state’s racist history.The state Board of Education — which has members chosen by the Republican governor, lieutenant governor and House speaker — conducted a nationwide search for a superintendent last year. Board members announced in November that their unanimous choice was Taylor, who had worked the past 30 years in North Carolina.“This whole confirmation was a political process, and I knew that coming in,” Taylor told The Associated Press on Wednesday evening after the Senate vote. He said senators in the past have confirmed all previous nominees for state superintendent, and he is disappointed this group of senators did not confirm him.“The fact that they didn’t, that is wh...

Biden won’t veto Republican-led bill ending COVID emergency

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:49 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden won’t veto a Republican-led measure to end the national COVID emergency, despite having expressed strong objections against it earlier this year, ensuring the bill is on an easy path to becoming law.It marks the second time in the new Congress that the Biden administration has signaled opposition to a Republican measure, rallying most Democrats in Congress to vote against it, only to soften its stance and let the legislation eventually become law.Just weeks ago, Biden stunned many fellow Democrats when he declined to veto a Republican-led bill to upend a new criminal code for the District of Columbia he and others in the president’s party opposed, allowing the GOP’s tough-on-crime push into the local government to become law. Republicans celebrated the turn of events Wednesday as a sign of their newfound influence in divided Washington, while Democrats quietly complained that the Biden administration had shifted its views.But the Whi...

RCMP arrest five people near natural gas pipeline construction site in northern B.C.

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:05:49 GMT

The RCMP say five people have been arrested at two camps in the area where a disputed natural gas pipeline is under construction in northwestern British Columbia.Police say Mounties responded to a complaint Sunday night from Coastal GasLink security, who reported that a worker had been “swarmed” by a group of people wearing masks.Police say the group allegedly fired flares and gained access to one of the pipeline company’s vehicles when the worker left the area because of the intimidation. TC Energy, the owner of the project, says in a statement that its workers deserve a safe environment without fear of dangerous acts.A statement from the Gidimt’en Checkpoint, whose members oppose the pipeline’s construction through Wet’suwet’en territory, saysthe people arrested Wednesday were mostly Indigenous women, including the daughter of a hereditary chief.Checkpoint spokesperson Sleydo’ says “this harassment and intimidation is exactly t...