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Ceiling debris falls onto MBTA commuter rail platform

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:18 GMT

A piece of ceiling debris fell on the Forest Hills commuter rail platform, two weeks after a 25-pound ceiling panel nearly hit a rider at a Red Line station.In this instance, the debris was not concrete and weighed less than a pound, according to MBTA spokesperson Joe Pesaturo.“Some crumbled debris, apparently bridge joint felt, which is used as padding near joints and weighs less than one pound, was found on the ground,” Pesaturo said.“Facilities maintenance personnel on the scene observed an area where felt is missing, and, with the felt missing, water has been observed coming down the bridge joint.”He said the area where the debris was found, which was Wednesday morning according to a photo of the material posted on Twitter, has been cordoned off.This incident occurred exactly two weeks after a more serious case of fallen debris at Harvard station, where a 25-pound water-logged aluminum panel collapsed due to what T officials described as corrosion, nearly hitting a woman.A video...

‘We are all Amqui,’ Legault tells Quebec town reeling after pedestrian deaths

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:18 GMT

AMQUI, Que. — Quebec Premier François Legault promised to boost mental health services in the province Thursday as he visited the town where two people were killed and nine injured when a pickup truck crashed into pedestrians.Joined by opposition leaders and other politicians, Legault met with residents of Amqui, the small community in the lower St-Lawrence region. Afterwards, he said the tragedy had prompting soul-searching on what more can be done to prevent a repeat.“We feel a little guilty, me first of all,” he told reporters after the visit. He said the province “has to do more” for mental health.“It’s not always easy because people have to accept to go get help,” he added. “Sometimes we have to, maybe, force them to go seek help.”On Monday, a man drove a truck down one of Amqui’s main streets, allegedly hitting several groups of pedestrians in what police have described as an intentional act. Gérald Charest, 65, and Jean La...

Stocks advance on Wall Street, Treasury yields swing

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:18 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks shook off an early stumble and gained ground Thursday amid hopes for help for a bank at the center of Wall Street’s hunt for what’s next to crack in the struggling industry.The S&P 500 was 1.8% higher in afternoon trading after erasing an earlier loss following reports that First Republic Bank could receive financial assistance or sell itself to another bank.The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 364 points, or 1.1%, at 32,228, as of 1:14 p.m. Eastern time, while the Nasdaq composite was 2.2% higher. This week has been a whirlwind for markets globally on worries about banks that may be bending under the weight of the fastest set of hikes to interest rates in decades. The crisis of confidence has been flaring since Friday’s collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, which was the second largest bank failure in U.S. history.Since then, Wall Street has tried to root out banks with similar traits, such as lots of depositors with more than the $250,000 limit that’...

UN announces new advisers to bolster young voices on climate

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:18 GMT

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres named seven young climate leaders Thursday to be his Youth Advisory Group on Climate Change, underlining the role of youth advocates in climate action.They include advocates, tribal land defenders, educators, and activists and will serve through the end of next year. They’re the second-ever group of climate youth advisers, the first having been selected in 2020.They were selected by Guterres from Poland, the Gambia, Saint Lucia, Philippines, Colombia/Paraguay, Ireland and the U.S. The team will advise the United Nations on climate action and policies.At the announcement, Guterres urged young climate advocates around the world to continue raising their voices and said that the “unrelenting conviction” of young people is essential to keeping climate goals within reach, lowering fossil fuel emissions, and delivering climate justice. Fatou Jeng, a climate educator and frontline activist from Gambia, now a U.N. advisor, said she’s devasta...

Alberta mourns Edmonton officers killed in the line of duty

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:18 GMT

Alberta is mourning the loss of two Edmonton officers that were killed while responding to a domestic call early Thursday morning.In a news conference on Thursday, Edmonton Police Chief Dale McFee called it an “unthinkable and horrific tragedy.”“This is unthinkable. It’s unimaginable. It’s horrific. It’s a tragedy. But we will move on because that’s what we do,” McFee said.“We appreciate all the expressions of support from all over the country, nationally, and internationally, and locally. That is the support that helps us get through each day.”Police say 35-year-old Const. Travis Jordan and 30-year-old Brett Ryan were responding to a family dispute call just before 1 a.m. at the Baywood Apartments on 114 Avenue and 132 Street.When they went inside the apartment complex and approached the suite in question, they were shot by the suspect.McFee says they did not get a chance to use their weapons.Read More: ‘Unthinkable and horrific tragedyR...

Senators take first step in repealing Iraq War authorization

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:18 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate took a first step Thursday toward repealing two measures that give open-ended approval for military action in Iraq, pushing to end that authority as the United States marks the 20th anniversary of the Iraq War.Senators voted 68-27 to move forward on legislation that would repeal the 2002 measure that greenlighted that March 2003 invasion of Iraq and a 1991 measure that sanctioned the U.S.-led Gulf War to expel Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein’s forces from Kuwait. The effort comes at a time when lawmakers of both parties are seeking to reclaim congressional powers over U.S. military strikes and deployments, arguing that the war authorizations are no longer necessary and subject to misuse if they are left on the books. President Joe Biden has backed the push, and the White House issued a statement Thursday in support.“Repeal of these authorizations would have no impact on current U.S. military operations and would support this administration’s commitment to a ...

Fugitive with distinctive facial tattoos captured in Hamilton

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:18 GMT

It’s fair to say that fugitives with face tattoos are at a considerable disadvantage when it comes to eluding the authorities.In that case, Michael Stamatakos didn’t stand much of a chance.The heavily-tattooed federal offender’s time on the run came to an end when he was arrested by Hamilton Police less than a month after breaching his statutory release.Stamatakos, 31, had been unaccounted for since February 23, 2023, after which he became the subject of both a Canada-wide warrant and the internet’s gawking curiosity for his distinctive tats, which included a heart and teardrop with a stitch trail on his left cheek, a stitch trail on his right cheek and “SPARTON” on the right side of his neck, to name a few.The provincial Repeat Offender Parole Enforcement (R.O.P.E.) Squad said on Thursday that he’s now back in custody after being arrested in Hamilton.Before his brief fling with freedom, Stamatakos was serving a two-year sentence for arson a...

Foreign influence registry must not be ‘overly broad,’ senator warns as talks begin

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:18 GMT

OTTAWA — A senator says a prospective foreign influence registry must not be “overly broad” to avoid unfairly targeting members of the Chinese-Canadian community and other minority groups.Yuen Pau Woo, who sits in the Independent Senators Group, spoke to reporters today about the upcoming centennial anniversary of the introduction of the Chinese Immigration Act, known also as the Chinese exclusion act. Woo recently compared the legislation, which forced Chinese immigrants to register themselves or face deportation, to the idea of a foreign influence registry that would keep track of those working in Canada on behalf of other countries. Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino announced last week that the Liberal government was beginning consultations on setting up a registry as part of its response to allegations of Chinese interference in recent Canadian elections.Mendicino said the government would pay attention to feedback from the Chinese diaspora community, and Woo ca...

Women’s World Cup prize money gets big FIFA boost for 2023

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:18 GMT

KIGALI, Rwanda — The Women’s World Cup is getting an increase in prize money of more than 300% for this year’s tournament.The $152 million fund for the first 32-team tournament — covering prize money, team preparation and payments to players’ clubs — is a huge boost from the 24-team edition in 2019, and 10 times what it was in 2015.Some of the $110 million in pure prize money should be dedicated to paying players, FIFA president Gianni Infantino said Thursday in Rwanda after being re-elected by acclamation through 2027.Players’ union FIFPRO said Thursday it has challenged FIFA to secure a “global guarantee of at least 30% of prize money” that is paid to players.FIFA also said the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand won’t be sponsored by the Saudi Arabian tourism authority. Talks about a possible deal had caused unease among players and the tournament co-hosts.Government and World Cup organizers in both host countries had questioned if the deal with...

Top court ruling unleashes permit upheaval in Puerto Rico

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:18 GMT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A ruling by Puerto Rico’s Supreme Court has thrown into limbo hundreds of thousands of business and construction permits issued by a U.S. territory already struggling to attract investors amid an economic crisis.Government officials on Thursday sought to quell anxieties over fallout from the ruling, which upholds the decision of an appeals court that voids a document from 2020 that regulates land use and the granting of permits on the island.The ruling released Wednesday prompted the government to take the unprecedented step of temporarily suspending access to the website where people apply for permits. While access was restored Thursday, confusion still reigned as people began to question whether they’re allowed to operate a new business they opened, keep a new deck they built or start from scratch and obtain new permits if they were in mid-construction of a hospital or other buildings.“This puts our weak economy at risk,” said Luis Vega Ramos, general ...