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Japan lowers its tsunami warning but still tells people not to go home after a series of earthquakes

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:50:29 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Japan dropped its highest-level tsunami alert, issued following a series of major earthquakes on Monday, but told residents of coastal areas not to return to their homes as deadly waves could still come.The quakes, the largest of which had a magnitude of 7.6, started a fire and collapsed buildings on the west coast of Japan’s main island, Honshu. It was unclear how many people might have been killed or hurt.The Japan Meteorological Agency reported more than a dozen quakes in the Japan Sea off the coast of Ishikawa and nearby prefectures shortly after 4 p.m.At least six homes were damaged by the quakes, with people trapped inside, government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi said. A fire broke out in Wajima city, Ishikawa Prefecture, and electricity was out for more than 30,000 households, he said.The agency initially issued a major tsunami warning for Ishikawa and lower-level tsunami warnings or advisories for the rest of the western coast of the island of Honshu, as well as ...

A man is arrested in Arkansas in connection with the death of a co-worker in Maine

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:50:29 GMT

WATERVILLE, Maine (AP) — A suspect was arrested in Arkansas on Sunday in the death of a co-worker in Waterville, Maine, according to Maine State Police.The police department in Flippin, Arkansas, encountered the 20-year-old man as he was sleeping in a parking lot, state police said. He fled in a vehicle and police chased him until Arkansas State Police were able to deploy spike strips to disable his car, authorities said. The chase ended on Highway 65 in Boone County. The suspect got out his car with a rifle and shots were fired, police said.The suspect was taken by life flight to a medical facility in Green County, Missouri, and is expected to survive, police said. The shooting is being investigated by Arkansas State Police.Maine State Police said Thursday that the injured man was a person of interest in the killing of 52-year-old Angela Bragg, of Waterville, whose body was discovered early that morning at Damon’s Beverage by a co-worker. She died of sharp force injury.An arrest wa...

Bill Belichick compares rookie’s interception to play All-Pro made vs. Patriots

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:50:29 GMT

In a season when almost everything has gone wrong for the Patriots, it appears their ability to scout under-the-radar cornerbacks has paid off again.The Patriots signed cornerback Alex Austin to their 53-man roster at the end of November after he was released from the Texans practice squad.Austin, who was originally selected in the seventh round of the 2023 NFL Draft by the Bills, made the biggest play of his young career against the team that picked him, intercepting QB Josh Allen midway through the second quarter of Sunday’s 27-21 loss. It was the first interception of his young career.Related ArticlesNew England Patriots | Bill Belichick gives abrupt answer on Trent Brown’s benching New England Patriots | How close are the Patriots to clinching a top-3 draft pick? New England Patriots | How Bailey Zappe explains three first-half interceptions in Patriots’ loss to Bills New England Patriots | Callahan: Ho...

Bill Belichick comments on future before what could be last game as Patriots head coach

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:50:29 GMT

The Patriots will head into their final week of the 2023 season with a 4-12 record as reports continue to swirl about Bill Belichick’s future as head coach.This is the first time in Belichick’s career that he’s lost more than 11 games in a season. His previous worst seasons came in 1995 with the Browns and 2000 with the Patriots when his teams finished with 5-11 records.Related ArticlesNew England Patriots | Bill Belichick gives abrupt answer on Trent Brown’s benching New England Patriots | How close are the Patriots to clinching a top-3 draft pick? New England Patriots | How Bailey Zappe explains three first-half interceptions in Patriots’ loss to Bills New England Patriots | Callahan: How different will the Patriots look in 2024? New England Patriots | Patriots can’t overcome early turnovers in 27-21 loss to Bills Belichick is “highly unlikely” to be outr...

Tom Mulherin’s crystal ball

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:50:29 GMT

A new year brings new opportunity, and we’re ready to turn the page from 2023 for a big rest of the season for the crystal ball.Last week was another good rebound from the opening week’s meltdown, but there’s always room to improve whenever there is a loss. It didn’t exactly start pretty, either, with three early losses on the boys’ side, but a 6-0-1 week on the girls side made up for it.Just as another friendly reminder, there are no repeat picks for one team in a single week. The Hopkinton, Arlington, Catholic Memorial, Reading and Xaverian boys, as well as the Duxbury and Hingham girls, are a just a few teams with multiple tough challenges this week.Let’s kick off 2024 on the right foot:  LAST WEEK’S RECORD: 11-3-1OVERALL RECORD: 25-16-1**WINNERS in CAPS BOYSMondayREADING vs St. John’s Prep, 4 p.m. – AJ Farese’s strong Pete Frates Winter Classic showing leads into a quality goalie battle against Chris Hanifan. Advantage goes to the home team.WednesdayGloucest...

AI set to become more part of our daily lives in 2024

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:50:29 GMT

From autonomous vehicles to virtual assistants, AI is becoming increasingly integrated into our daily lives in 2023.But it has also brought more concern over what the risks are as the world see what’s in store for 2024.With the popularity of generative AI with apps like ChatGPT others transforming how different industries operate, experts say while valuable this type of innovation can come with some unwanted side effects.Daniel Tsai, a professor at Toronto Metropolitan University, said job losses due to AI will likely be on the horizon for 2024. “Other things AI can do, people are now asking AI to do blog posts, and write letters on their behalf. So a lot of the human tasks that used to be done that required human thinking can be replaced by ChatGPT and other AI engines and that’s problematic because you’re talking about jobs lost”He added there could also be more of something known as “deep faking” in which users use AI to generate...

Will King Charles make it right with Indigenous communities in Canada in 2024?

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:50:29 GMT

This year saw the coronation of a new King. As our new head of state, King Charles has an opportunity to begin righting some of the wrongs committed to Indigenous communities in Canada. But as we enter 2024, the question still remains: will he?“We must find new ways to come to terms with the darker and more difficult aspects of the past, acknowledging, reconciling and striving to do better,” said the British monarch during a 2022 visit to Canada.He reflected openly about reconciliation, just months before he ascended to the throne, but the words “I’m sorry” were never spoken.“Apologies only go so far. And for me, it’s him physically coming to each community, seeing the harms done, and acknowledging that, you know, he and his family and the monarchy have the means to fix a lot of injustices on our communities,” said Dr. Paulina Johnson, a citizen of Samson Cree Nation in central Alberta, which is Treaty 6 territory.She ha...

Police say Berlin marks New Year’s Eve with less violence than a year ago despite detention of 390

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:50:29 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Authorities in Berlin said Monday that New Year’s Eve celebrations in the German capital were more peaceful compared to last year despite the temporary detention of 390 people and 54 police officers being injured.Police said many were detained for violating the Weapons and Explosives Act, either using illegal firecrackers or firing them off at officers or other peopleSome 4,500 officers patrolled the city at night to prevent a repeat of the 2022 New Year’s Eve riots. It was the strongest police presence Berlin witnessed in decades.On Sunday night, police banned the use of traditional firecrackers across the city.Both the city’s mayor and Germany’s interior minister had vowed a zero-tolerance strategy toward rioters, particularly any trying to attack officers.“It turned out that the many months of preparation by police and firefighters … have paid off,” Berlin’s top security official Iris Spanger wrote on social media platform X, formerly T...

Advocate Health Care announces first babies of 2024

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:50:29 GMT

Advocate Health Care's first baby of 2024 is an Ocean.With a birth time of 3:18 a.m. Monday at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, Ocean — the first child of Emily and Wes Ortman of Wheeling — became the first baby born in 2024 for the Advocate Health Care network of the Chicago area.Ocean, the first child of Emily and Wes Ortman of Wheeling, is Advocate Health Care’s first baby of 2024.Ocean checked in at 5 pounds, 2.4 ounces and 18.75 inches in length.Just behind Ocean was Rue, born to Kiara and Robert Rhodes of Crete at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn at 5:05 a.m. Monday.Rue, born to parents Kiara and Robert Rhodes of Crete, was the second baby of 2024 born at Advocate Health Care.Rue clocked in at 4 pounds, 9 ounces and 17 inches in length and joins two older brothers, Robert and Kityi, in the world.

These were the biggest Central Texas weather stories of 2023

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:50:29 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — It was a year of extremes: 2023 brought Austin's hottest summer on record and also the worst ice storm on record. More than 4,000 acres were burned by wildfires across Central Texas, and the city experienced its costliest hailstorm ever. Temperatures, rain, severe storms: Tracking Austin’s 2023 weather by the numbers Here's a look back at some of the biggest weather stories of the year.Worst ice storm on recordAt 6:35 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 31, Meteorologist Kristen Currie told KXAN viewers, "This Winter Storm Warning has expanded and extended. The icing threat is worsening. It's only going to get worse through the day."The storm she was referring to would become Austin's worst ice storm in recorded history.Trees covered in ice in northwest Austin on Feb. 1, 2023. (Courtesy Scott Ramsay Images)Trees covered in ice in northwest Austin on Feb. 1, 2023. (Courtesy Scott Ramsay Images)Crepe myrtles bend from the weight of ice, forming a tunnel in Cedar Park on Feb. 1, 20...