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Rain allows ‘slight reset’ in B.C. wildfire fight but drought persists

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:31:14 GMT

VANCOUVER — Recent rainfall has allowed for a “slight reset” of the wildfire fight in northern British Columbia but “doesn’t erase all the challenges” of this year’s historic fire season, Emergency Management Minister Bowinn Ma said Thursday.“While the rain did give our hardworking firefighters a chance to take a deep breath, the wildfire and drought situation remains largely unchanged due to the drought conditions we have been seeing since last summer,” she told a news conference on Thursday.The wildfire danger rating has dropped to moderate or low in all but the southeastern corner of the province, however Ma warned that the recent rain and cooler weather don’t ease severe drought conditions across B.C.The BC Wildfire Service was reporting 395 active wildfires as of Thursday afternoon,  down by about 90 since Monday. Twenty-one highly visible or potentially threatening fires were listed on the service’s website, with just...

Casino mogul Steve Wynn fined $10M to end fight over claims of workplace sexual misconduct in Nevada

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:31:14 GMT

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Casino mogul Steve Wynn has ended a yearslong legal fight with Nevada gambling regulators that started with claims of workplace sexual misconduct, agreeing to pay a $10 million fine and cut ties to the industry he helped shape in Las Vegas.The Nevada Gaming Commission accepted a settlement Thursday to end the state’s look at allegations that led to Wynn’s resignation from his corporate empire in February 2018. Wynn admitted no wrongdoing. The decision was 4-0. Commission Chairwoman Jennifer Togliatti abstained from voting, citing a conflict arising from her previous work as a state court mediator.Wynn is now 81 and lives in Florida. He did not attend the hearing held in Carson City and livestreamed on the internet. His attorney, Colby Williams, called the case the final regulatory matter that Wynn faced stemming from the allegations five years ago.Wynn “looks forward to moving on to other phases of his life,” Williams told The Associated Press.The fine is the larges...

CPKC chief exec cites ‘challenging’ three months following railway merger

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:31:14 GMT

CALGARY — Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. framed its first quarter following a major merger as a tough one, as demand for container shipments and some bulk goods fell across the rail sector.“No doubt it’s a challenging quarter as we dealt with a softer demand environment,” said CEO Keith Creel on a conference call with analysts Thursday.The company reported that revenues from container traffic, which moves everything from kitchenware to construction materials, fell 10 per cent in the quarter ended June 30 compared with the two railways’ combined results from a year earlier as consumers spent more cash on services rather than products.In better years, the corrugated steel containers have accounted for about a quarter of Canadian Pacific Railway’s total revenues, rather than one-fifth as they did in its second quarter this year. Grain volumes also fell five per cent year over year while potash shipments plummeted.“This is a long game, it’s not about the first quart...

TC Energy reports lower profit, higher revenues in Q2 as it announces split

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:31:14 GMT

CALGARY — TC Energy Corp. reported its second-quarter profit tumbled compared with a year ago as it announced it’s splitting the company into two. The pipeline operator says its net income attributable to common shares was $250 million in the second quarter, down from $889 million a year earlier. However, net income for the fiscal year so far was $1.6 billion, up from $1.2 billion for the same six-month period last year. Net income per common share was 24 cents, down from 90 cents last year, and comparable earnings were 96 cents per share, down from a dollar. Revenues for the quarter ended June 30 were $3.8 billion, up from $3.6 billion the same quarter last year. TC Energy announced Thursday it will split into two separate companies by spinning off its liquids pipelines business to focus on natural gas infrastructure as well as nuclear, pumped hydro energy storage and new energy opportunities.This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 27, 2023.Companies in thi...

2 injured after small plane crash near DeKalb Airport

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:31:14 GMT

CORTLAND, Ill. — A small plane with two people on board crashed near DeKalb Taylor Municipal Airport on Thursday, the Federal Aviation Administration confirmed to WGN News. A single-engine Cessna 177 crashed in a field around 12:30 p.m. in the 200 block of W. Lincoln Highway in Cortland. The two occupants, which police said were adult males, were reportedly conscious and speaking while being pulled from the mangled aircraft. SEE ALSO: Video shows crop dusting plane nearly clipping semi-truck in Northwest IndianaBoth were transported to Northwestern Kishwaukee Hospital in DeKalb with unknown injuries. According to online records obtained by WGN News, the plane is registered to a flight club out of Evansville, Indiana. Assistant Chief of Cortland Fire Department Mark Hedrick said the plane was in pretty bad shape but it was not the first crash he's seen occur in the area. "Maybe about seven years ago, we had another plane go down, and then this spring, we had a plane crash, and t...

3 firefighters, intern injured in rollover crash in Hampshire

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:31:14 GMT

HAMPSHIRE, Ill. — Three firefighters and an intern are expected to be OK after their fire truck rollover in far northwest suburban Hampshire Thursday morning. SEE ALSO: Small plane crash reported near DeKalb AirportAround 9:40 a.m., emergency personnel responded to French Road, one mile south of Rt. 72, for a crash involving a Hampshire Fire Engine returning from an incident.All four occupants suffered minor injuries and were taken to Sherman Hospital in Elgin.A hazardous material clean-up company was called to the scene after diesel fuel from the truck leaked into a nearby ditch.Read more: Latest Chicago news headlinesThe Kane County Sheriff's Office is investigating. Hampshire is about 60 miles west of Chicago.

Parkland victims' parents go to Capitol Hill, advocate for school safety bills

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:31:14 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — The parents of students killed in the Parkland school shooting joined lawmakers on Capitol Hill Thursday in support of a bipartisan school safety effort. The plan includes requirements for silent panic alarms and funding for school resource officers. With a picture of the child she lost hanging in a heart around her neck, Lori Alhadeff came to Capitol Hill to fight for change. "I love you, Alyssa. And in your honor, you will be saving lives with this legislation," Alhadeff said.  Lawmakers fight over solutions to post-pandemic learning loss Lori's daughter Alyssa was one of the students killed at the school shooting in Parkland five years ago. Max Schacter also lost his son Alex in that shooting. "The failures of that day, it makes you angry. I became more focused and clear about what needs to happen to prevent the next Parkland," Schacter said. Both parents are advocating for two school safety bills. The first, Alyssa's Act, would r...

'Out of control': Video shows ride at New York park malfunctioning

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:31:14 GMT

NEW YORK (PIX11) – A Bronx man was almost one of the people trapped on a malfunctioning ride at Playland Park in Rye, New York on Sunday night. Giovanni Martinez said he and his family were at the Westchester County amusement park when the Music Express ride appeared to suddenly lose control. There were about 20 people on the ride when it went haywire at around 8:30 p.m., he said. ‘I will never stop:’ EMT attacked in ambulance refuses to change life plans "I had some family members on the ride and they were panicking," Martinez told Nexstar's WPIX Thursday. "Thank God I skipped it."The operators were unable to stop the ride from spinning for about five minutes, causing several riders to get dizzy, he said. "It was out of control. It was going faster than it should have been," Martinez said. "Kids were crying. They didn't know when it was going to stop."The park's maintenance crew was eventually able to stop the Music Express before it was shut down for the rest of the evening, ac...

Physically unable to dance, choreographer finds joy in movement still by teaching others

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:31:14 GMT

CHICAGO — Imagine having the one thing that makes you the most alive taken away.That is exactly what happened to local dance legend Kirby Reed.But he wasn't about to let the sun go down on him without choreographing his best number to date.As a professional dancer and choreographer, steps always came easy for Reed."As a dancer you always think maybe I'm going to twist my ankle or hurt my knee,” he said. “You never think you're going to be paralyzed."But after a sudden series of strokes and two heart attacks, a life full of music and movement came to an abrupt halt in 2009 when Reed's entire left lower side was left unable to feel or move. "I should have been over and done,” he said.Instead he’s dancing once again — this time, through his own students at the Gus Giordano Dance School and he teaches up and coming dancers far more than just technique.    "I'm a living testament of my journey,” he said. More from Erin: Camp provides Chicago kids refuge from violenc...

Chicago Fire FC taking part in another soccer tournament this July, August

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:31:14 GMT

CHICAGO — While the biggest tournament in the world of women's soccer is taking place in Australia and New Zealand, another is being played out in North America.That one involves Chicago Fire FC and is in its third year of being staged, only this year in a much bigger way.The 2023 Leagues Cup is taking place in United States and Canada, featuring teams from Major League Soccer and Mexico's Liga MX. For the first time this year, every team from both leagues will participate in the tournament that started on July 21 and will run through August 19. To accommodate the added teams, MLS will take a break from their season until after the final is played. "I think it's good to play in this tournament, and I think the pause from MLS is good, just to focus solely on this tournament and put everything we can do to get as faras possible in the tournament," said Fire midfielder and defender Mauricio Pineda of the Leagues Cup. "I think that's the good thing about being off from MLS for so long. ...