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Mix of heat, haze raise safety concerns for St. Louisans

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

ST LOUIS – From a packed Ballpark Village, to venturing through parks like Creve Coeur, to hitting the St. Louis Zoo, the summer heat and haze caused by Canadian wildfires didn’t stop locals from spending time outside. The dangerous combination has officials stressing the importance of being safe and responsible.For longtime resident Don Woodruff, it was his boat ride on Tuesday that looked much different than usual."I thought that there was just some big fire somewhere,” he said. “We were surrounded by haze."As Canadian wildfires continue to burn, that smoke continues to trickle south, now affecting the St. Louis region."The last couple of days, we've seen an increase in the effects, and certainly the visibility of it in the area," said Sarah Russell, commissioner of St. Louis Emergency Management Agency.It isn’t just concerns about visibility. 2nd Missouri man sentenced in death of woman who was caged, dismembered "It can have an effect on anybody to a certain degree," Russell s...

How drought conditions are affecting Missouri grape, livestock farmers

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- As drought conditions continue to worsen across the state, not only are livestock producers being affected but so is the future of Missouri wine. During a Joint Committee Hearing on agriculture Tuesday, stakeholders said farmers in the Show-Me State are having to make tough decisions because of this early dry spell, and it could cost them a pretty penny. From an early frost last fall, to below freezing temperatures at Christmas, a late frost this spring and now a drought, the state is expecting a major reduction in Missouri's grape crop. "April, May and June parts of our state were probably the driest it's been since 1988," deputy director for the Missouri Department of Agriculture Chris Klenklen said. Nearly all of Missouri is currently experiencing a drought. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, central and northeast Missouri are experiencing an extreme drought while other parts of the state are seeing a severe or moderate drought. Gov. Mike Parson de...

17-year-old killed during party at Kansas City short-term rental

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - A Kansas City family is grieving after their loved one was gunned down Sunday morning.Ricky Monroe was shot to death at a home near 36th and Manchester. Chillicothe cancels 4th of July fireworks over drought Monroe’s sister said he was partying at a short-term rental."I can't sleep,” Rodteshia Johnson, Monroe’s mom, said. “My son was partying. He was having fun and nobody knows nothing."Pain is now woven into this family's daily routine."It took a toll on me, it really did,” Feleacia Johnson, Monroe’s grandmother, said. “It has and it always will."Pictures, videos, and memories are all they have of Monroe.“I know my son was calling for me,” Johnson said. “My son was in a moment, and I couldn't be there for him. That was the worst call ever." Kansas City, Kansas man sentenced to life for child sex crime KCPD said they're confident multiple people saw the shooting, but right now there are no suspects."You hear about it and I see it, but I couldn't understand it,...

Military confirms 4th Marine killed in 5 Freeway crash

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

Military officials confirmed Wednesday that the fourth, previously unidentified victim killed in a fiery high-speed crash on the 5 Freeway in Downey Saturday was also a United States Marine.  According to a release from the California Highway Patrol, the single-vehicle crash involving a 2018 Dodge Charger happened around 2:30 a.m. on the southbound span of the 5 Freeway south of Lakewood Boulevard.   CHP confirmed that the vehicle was on fire when they arrived and that all four occupants of the vehicle were pronounced dead at the scene.   “Preliminary information indicates that the driver lost control of the vehicle at a high rate of speed causing the vehicle to collide with a guardrail and the bridge abutment of the Lemoran Avenue pedestrian overcrossing,” CHP said in a statement. “The force of the impact caused the vehicle to split in two, subsequently ejecting the two rear passengers onto the right shoulder.” Video shows the wreckage of a s...

Lockboxes disabled in series of Long Beach commercial burglaries

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

Long Beach police are investigating several commercial burglaries that have occurred throughout the city this month.In each incident, an outside lockbox was disabled, and in most cases, the keys were used to enter the business, police said.Different items were stolen in each incident and include miscellaneous paperwork and electronics.Though the circumstances of each incident are similar, it is unclear if they are related.Police provided the following details about each incident:June 13 around 2:00 a.m. at 5656 E 2nd St.June 14 at 1806 Ximeno Ave.June 15 at 4801 E. 2nd St.June 18 around 9 a.m. at 1714 Clark Ave.June 22 around 4:15 a.m. at 6467 E. Pacific Coast HighwayJune 27 around 2:00 a.m. at 5710 E. 7th St.June 27 around 2:00 a.m. at 5708 E. 7th St.Police do not have any suspect information, but are working to determine if there are more incidents that may be related.Anyone with information about the break ins is encouraged to call the Long Beach Police Department’s burglary deta...

NASA touts breakthrough in recycling astronaut pee and sweat

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

NASA is touting an advancement that could make life in space more sustainable, even if it might sound kind of gross.The space agency has announced that astronauts on the International Space Station have been able to -for the first time- “recover” 98% of the water that crews bring along on their journey.Yes, that includes a lot of urine.NASA says each crew member needs about a gallon of water per day for drinking, food preparation and hygiene. It has been testing new systems to collect and distill drinkable water through a combination of hardware and processes but had only been able to recover 93 to 94% until now.Thanks to a new Brine Processor Assembly (BPA) designed to extract the remaining wastewater, NASA says scientists were able to reach their 98% goal.“This is a very important step forward in the evolution of life support systems,” said Christopher Brown at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. “Let’s say you collect 100 pounds of water on the station. You lose two pounds of that and t...

Explainer: What we know about the document Trump mentions

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

By Marshall Cohen | CNNThe tape of a conversation with Donald Trump and others made at his golf club in New Jersey has become perhaps the most critical publicly known evidence in the federal indictment against the former president.Special counsel Jack Smith has charged Trump with mishandling classified information after leaving the White House. And the recording – parts of which were made public by CNN earlier this week – features Trump in July 2021 discussing what he called a “highly confidential” Pentagon document that contained “secret” US military plans to attack Iran.Trump has offered a firehose of differing and contradictory explanations of what he claimed happened. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.Here’s a breakdown of what we know about the document, and what Trump has said about it.What does the indictment say?Prosecutors revealed some key details in their 44-page indictment against Trump. Importantly, prosecutors said Trump “showed and described” the document durin...

Michael Conforto exits SF Giants game with apparent leg injury

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

TORONTO — It’s not unusual for Gabe Kapler to call on a pinch-hitter early in a game, particularly when the opponent is throwing a bullpen game. But Austin Slater for Michael Conforto in the second inning with a right-hander on the mound?Before Conforto recorded an at-bat Wednesday night against the Blue Jays, he was out of the game. Slater was announced as a pinch-hitter leading off the top of the second and took his spot in right field in the bottom half of the inning.The bottom of the first was rough enough, with Toronto bringing nine men to the plate and rocking Logan Webb for five runs. But it may have cost them one of their most valuable outfielders in the process.Related ArticlesSan Francisco Giants | Was Kevin Gausman the one who got away? He says split with SF Giants ‘water under the bridge’ San Francisco Giants | Balk, bullpen come up big as SF Giants beat Gausman, Belt in win over Blue Jays San Francisco Giants | ...

Sharks take offensive-minded center with first pick in NHL Draft

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

The San Jose Sharks selected Will Smith with the No. 4 overall pick in the first round of Wednesday’s NHL Draft in Nashville, Tennessee, taking what they hope will someday be the franchise’s future No. 1 centerman.Smith, 18, is considered a game-breaking type of centerman who possesses terrific vision and hockey sense. He had 127 points in 60 games for the U.S. National under-18 team this past season and his skillset has drawn comparisons to Vancouver’s J.T. Miller and Anaheim’s Trevor Zegras.Patrick Marleau, who recently rejoined the Sharks organization as a player development coach and hockey operations advisor, made the draft announcement at Bridgestone Arena.While Smith, who is listed at 6-foot-0 and 180 pounds, needs vast improvement in his two-way game, but a year at Boston College should help him become a more well-rounded player, and he could turn pro as soon as next year.“Sometimes when you have guys who are really great skaters, the hands don’t mesh with the fe...

Thousands more behind bars will get college assistance

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:44:00 GMT

By Aaron Morrison | Associated PressREPRESA, California — The graduates lined up, brushing off their gowns and adjusting classmates’ tassels and stoles. As the graduation march played, the 85 men appeared to hoots and cheers from their families. They marched to the stage – one surrounded by barbed wire fence and constructed by fellow prisoners.For these were no ordinary graduates. Their black commencement garb almost hid their aqua and navy-blue prison uniforms as they received college degrees, high school diplomas and vocational certificates earned while they served time.Thousands of prisoners throughout the United States get their college degrees behind bars, most of them paid for by the federal Pell Grant program, which offers the neediest undergraduates tuition aid that they don’t have to repay.That program is about to expand exponentially next month, giving about 30,000 more students behind bars some $130 million in financial aid per year.The new rules, which overtu...