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Underwater music show in the Florida Keys promotes awareness of coral reef protection

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:11:24 GMT

BIG PINE KEY, Fla. (AP) — Hundreds of divers and snorkelers listened to an underwater concert that advocated coral reef protection Saturday in the Florida Keys.The Lower Keys Underwater Music Festival, which also spotlighted eco-conscious diving, took place at Looe Key Reef, an area of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary located about 6 miles (10 kilometers) south of Big Pine Key.Established in 1990, the sanctuary protects 3,800 square miles (9,800 square kilometers) of waters including the barrier reef that parallels the 125-mile-long (201-kilometer-long) island chain.Participants swam among Looe Key’s colorful marine life and coral formations while listening to water-themed music broadcast by a local radio station. The music was piped undersea through waterproof speakers suspended beneath boats above the reef.The oceanic playlist included the Beatles’ “Yellow Submarine,” Jimmy Buffett’s “Fins” and the theme from “The Little Mermaid.”Tunes were interspersed with diver awaren...

The struggle to certify the results of Guatemala’s presidential vote suffers another setback

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:11:24 GMT

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — The struggle to certify the results of Guatemala’s first-round presidential election suffered what experts called another setback Saturday after the chief justice of the Supreme Court issued an order blocking the certification. Chief Justice Silvia Valdés Quezada issued the unusual order late Friday. She stipulated the process could not go forward until the electoral authorities who conducted a review of precinct vote tally sheets from the June 25 election reported back to her on their methods and any inconsistencies found. Valdés Quezada said they had to do that within 12 hours.The reviews witnessed by the AP found improperly marked or counted votes amounted to less than 1% of the total, not enough to change the results.The electoral observers’ mission from the Organization of American States said in a statement Saturday that it was concerned by “the attempt to continue judicializing the electoral process.”The OAS group said the tally sheet review “was d...

Police link man to two women whose bodies were found in different Minnesota storage units

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:11:24 GMT

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The body of a Minnesota woman who had been missing for two years was found in a storage unit, and St. Paul police said Friday that her death has been linked to a man who was charged man after another woman’s dismembered body was found in a different storage unit in another Minneapolis suburb.Joseph Jorgenson hasn’t yet been charged in Fanta Xayavong’s death, but the 40-year-old was charged last week with second-degree murder in the death of Manijeh “Mani” Starren, 33, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported.Xayavong’s body was found Thursday in a Coon Rapids storage unit, while Starren’s body was found last month in a storage unit in Woodbury.St. Paul police Sgt. Mike Ernster said Jorgenson is a “person of interest” in the 33-year-old Xayavong’s death after investigators connected him to the Coon Rapids storage unit. Police are now trying to determine if Jorgenson could be linked to any other missing people.“It’s nothing short of horrific...

Greece’s government wins vote of confidence in Parliament to begin a second 4-year term

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:11:24 GMT

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece’s conservative government won a vote of confidence Saturday in Parliament to start its second four-year term, two weeks after Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ New Democracy party handily won the election.The 300 lawmakers voted 158-142 to approve the government’s policy statement after a low-key three-day debate. The vote went as expected, with only lawmakers from New Democracy voting for the government.Mitsotakis’ New Democracy won the June 25 election with 40.56% of the vote, compared to 17.83% for the left-wing Syriza and 11.84% for the socialist PASOK.There are eight parties represented in Parliament, up from six in the 2019-23 legislature and five in the short-lived parliament elected on May 21. That election gave no party an overall majority despite the results being broadly similar. The June 25 election was contested under a different electoral law, which gave bonus seats to the winner.Three of the parties in Parliament are to the right o...

Environment Canada issues heat warnings for B.C., parts of Alberta and the North

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:11:24 GMT

Parts of southern and coastal British Columbia as well as large swaths of Alberta and the North are under heat warnings as temperatures are forecasted to soar near or above 30 degrees Celsius over the weekend and into Monday.Environment Canada says heat warnings are issued when very high temperature could pose an elevated risk of illnesses like heat stroke or heat exhaustion, and is warning residents to keep hydrated and try to find a cool place to stay.B.C.’s Thompson, Cariboo and Okanagan Valley regions — as well as Kitimat, Terrace and inland communities on the central coast — are all under a warning, with the highest temperatures in some areas expected to hit 35 degrees.In Alberta, most of the province is covered under a heat warning and daytime highs are expected near 30 degrees before moderating on Monday.Communities in Yukon, including Whitehorse, Pelly and Watson Lake, are expected to hit 29 degrees over the weekend and remain above seasonal norms into next...

Judge holds Washington state in contempt for not providing services to mentally ill people in jails

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:11:24 GMT

A federal judge has found Washington state in contempt and ordered it to pay more than $100 million in fines for failing to provide timely psychiatric services to mentally ill people who are forced to wait in jails for weeks or months.In her order released late Friday, U.S. District Judge Marsha Pechman said the Washington Department of Social and Health Services has been violating the constitutional rights of these people since 2015 due to a “lack of foresight, creativity, planning and timely response to a crisis of its own making.”The ruling stems from a federal lawsuit filed on behalf of people with mental health disabilities who were charged with crimes and ordered by a judge to have a competency evaluation. If found incompetent to face charges, the state must then provide services to restore their competency. A lack of funding, personnel and beds in mental health facilities forced them to wait in jails for extended periods, which violated their rights, according to the lawsuit....

Man on scooter shoots randomly in NYC, killing an 86-year-old and wounding 2 others

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:11:24 GMT

An 86-year-old New York City man was fatally shot and at least two others were seriously wounded by a man on a scooter who police say was shooting randomly at cars and pedestrians in Queens on Saturday.A person of interest was in custody, the New York Police Department said.The shootings began just before 11:30 a.m., when the 86-year-old was shot multiple times in the Richmond Hill area. He later died at a hospital.About a mile away and less than 10 minutes later, a 63-year-old man was shot in the shoulder and taken to a nearby hospital, where police said he was listed in serious but stable condition.A few minutes later, the shooter fired at a 61-year-old man, hitting him in the torso. He was in critical condition at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center.Police said there was another shooting nearby, but could not say if it was connected to the earlier shootings.With a person in custody, a police spokesperson said there was no immediate threat to the public.The spokesperson was unable to ...

1 dead after fatal structure fire in West Chicago

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:11:24 GMT

WEST CHICAGO, Ill. — One person is dead after a house fire that happened in West Chicago earlier Sunday morning.According to the West Chicago Police Department, the West Chicago Fire Protection District (WCFPD) was called to the 2300 block of Barnhart Street some time shortly before 2 a.m. on reports of a structure fire.After extinguishing the fire, fire personnel found one deceased victim inside the residence where the fire took place. According to police, the name of the victim is being withheld until they are able to notify next of kin. 5 injured after shooting on North Side overnight: CPD WCPD and WCFPD have yet to release a determination of what caused the fire.Parts of Barnhart Street and Bainbridge Boulevard remain closed at this time as first responders' investigation continues.

How to properly dispose of an American flag

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:11:24 GMT

(WHTM) — With the Fourth of July behind us, some people may be looking to retire worn out or damaged American flags. But did you know you can't just throw an American flag away? There's a proper way to dispose of one.According to the United States Department of Defense, the American Legion passed a resolution about flag retirement ceremonies in 1937. These are America’s deadliest national parks: data The Department of Defense also says that many state and county government buildings have flag disposal boxes outside their buildings. But what do you do if there is not one of these boxes near you? The Veterans of Foreign Wars explains flags must folded in a certain way (known as a customary triangle fold) before disposal. You can watch a video on how to fold an American flag by clicking here. After folding, a flag cannot just be thrown in the garbage. It needs to be burned.The U.S. Department of Defense says that the fire should be big enough to burn the flag before you put the folde...

Tennessee can enforce ban on transgender care for minors, appeals court says

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:11:24 GMT

FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AP) — Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth can go into effect — at least for now — after a federal appeals court on Saturday temporarily reversed a lower court ruling.Last month, a district court judge in Tennessee found that the state's new law banning transgender therapies like hormone blockers and surgeries for transgender youth was unconstitutional because it discriminated on the basis of sex. The judge blocked large swaths of the law from taking effect.On Saturday, however, the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati granted an emergency appeal from Tennessee. In a 2-1 ruling, the majority wrote that decisions on emerging policy issues like transgender care are generally better left to legislatures rather than judges.“Given the high stakes of these nascent policy deliberations — the long-term health of children facing gender dysphoria — sound government usually benefits from more rather than less debate,” wrote Ch...