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Paradise superintendent says construction helps show town’s rebound

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:25 GMT

PARADISE — Nearly five years after the Camp Fire, which flattened and blackened most of the town of Paradise and areas nearby, the landscape is starting to recover.Sure, there are still large swaths of treeless ground that shows the effects of the 2018 conflagration. Downtown still has many foundations without buildings on them. Recovery is visible, but slow, for sure.Taylor On the other hand, recovery and progress at the Paradise Unified School District is really beginning to increase its speed. The district has modernized some of its campuses, rebuilt parts of others from scratch and has generally made its facilities better, in anticipation of continued enrollment growth.Meanwhile, the guy who sits at the steering wheel is thrilled to talk about the progress and what’s ahead.Tom Taylor, superintendent of the PUSD, led off his discussion of the district’s progress with the most obvious and visible topic — construction.For starters: “We have modernized about 70% of Paradise Jun...

The impact of drying waterways on Northern California

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:25 GMT

CHICO — Every year, Little Chico Creek goes nearly bone dry by the time autumn finally arrives, however, this year it had some longevity restored by the recent stormy winter.This is the same for many waterways throughout the north valley, like the Miocene Canal that, outside of the occasional boost from rainfall, has sat dormant since the Camp Fire. This creates enough inconsistency to make it difficult for ecosystems to take hold. Even with waterways that stay relatively continuous like Big Chico Creek and Butte Creek, years of dry weather can have an impact.“It’s not good, just because the riparian ecosystems, the plants, the trees, if you have too many dry years, they can be negatively impacted,” said Chico State Associate Professor of Geological and Environmental Sciences Todd Greene. “They are adaptable, but if you have too many dry years in a row, it’s going to be a big stress on the local trees. That’s also why you’re not going to see fish. You’re not going to see healthy eco...

Fires along Interstate 580 burn 55 acres on Altamont Pass in Alameda County

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:25 GMT

LIVERMORE — Firefighters contained a large brush fire Saturday, one of several that popped up earlier in the morning along Interstate 580 in far eastern Alameda County.The largest fire was fully contained by noon, according to Ed Orre, division chief of the Cal Fire Santa Clara unit. He said four separate blazes had consumed roughly 55 acres total, with the largest fire burned most of that acreage.“The beauty of a grass fire is they’re fine, flashy fuels,” Orre said. “They can travel very quickly, but the fuels are light and burn up quickly.”Crews from the Alameda County Fire Department started battling the flames around 7 a.m. near Grant Line Road, which burned next to westbound traffic and closed the no. 4 lane, according to tweets from the California Highway Patrol’s Dublin office.The Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department, Cal Fire and the CHP all responded to several fires that erupted over an 8-mile stretch.Investigators were still working to pinpoint a specific cause of t...

Suspect dead in Silver Spring after ‘completely random’ stabbings, officer-involved shooting

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:25 GMT

Police are investigating the scene of an officer-involved shooting in Silver Spring. (WTOP/Matt Kaufax) Police are investigating the scene of an officer-involved shooting in Silver Spring. (WTOP/Matt Kaufax) Four people have been hospitalized with injuries following a series of stabbings that “happened in quick succession” in Silver Spring, Maryland, on Saturday morning, ending in the suspect’s fatal shooting by an officer.According to Montgomery County police, three women and one man were stabbed throughout the area of Havard Street and Colie Drive.Two women had been stabbed in the neck, police said. All four victims are expected to survive.Just after 10:30 a.m. in the 4300 block of Havard Stree...

Brewers designate OF Raimel Tapia for assignment and promote OF Sal Frelick

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:25 GMT

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers designated outfielder Raimel Tapia for assignment on Saturday, clearing the way for 2021 first-round draft pick Sal Frelick to make his major league debut.The Brewers called up Frelick from Triple-A Nashville before their game against the Atlanta Braves. They made room by designating Tapia, who batted .173 with a .267 on-base percentage, two homers, three RBIs and two steals in 20 games.Tapia, 29, signed with the Brewers on June 14 after the Boston Red Sox released him. He hit .264 with a .333 on-base percentage, one homer, 10 RBIs and six steals in 39 games with Boston.Frelick, 23, batted .247 with a .333 on-base percentage, two homers, 18 RBIs and eight steals in 40 games with Nashville. He missed much of the season after undergoing surgery on his left thumb.He batted .331 with a .403 on-base percentage in 119 games last season for High-A Wisconsin, Double-A Biloxi and Nashville.The Brewers selected Frelick out of Boston College with the 15th...

Hundreds of thousands march in Israel. Former security chiefs beg Netanyahu to halt legal overhaul

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:25 GMT

JERUSALEM (AP) — Tens of thousands of protesters marched into Jerusalem on Saturday evening and hundreds of thousands of Israelis took to the streets in Tel Aviv and other cities in a last-ditch show of force aimed at blocking Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s contentious judicial overhaul. Also Saturday, more than 100 of Israel’s former security chiefs signed a letter pleading with the Israeli premier to halt the legislation, and thousands of additional military reservists said they would no longer report for duty, in a protest against the plan.In scorching heat that reached 33 degrees Celsius (91 degrees Fahrenheit), the procession into Jerusalem turned the city’s main entrance into a sea of blue and white Israeli flags as marchers completed the last leg of a four-day, 70 kilometer (45-mile) trek from Tel Aviv to Israel’s parliament. The marchers were welcomed in Jerusalem by throngs of cheering protesters before they set up camp in rows of small white te...

Harman steadies himself at British Open to keep a 5-shot lead

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:25 GMT

HOYLAKE, England (AP) — Brian Harman has two victories in 335 tournaments over 12 years on the PGA Tour. Now he’s one round away from one of the grandest titles of all.Harman overcame an early wobble on a wet Saturday at the British Open, and then he steadied himself for a 2-under 69 that kept his lead at five shots on a Royal Liverpool links where the little lefty seems to do no wrong.His final act was an 8-foot par putt, with Harman lightly clenching his fist, that made it that much more difficult for Cameron Young, Jon Rahm or anyone else to catch him.Young, the runner-up at St. Andrews a year ago, hit a superb shot from the front bunker on the par-5 18th for a tap-in birdie and a 66 that got him into the final group.No one was more spectacular than Rahm, who had seven birdies over his last 10 holes and set the Open record at Royal Liverpool with a 63. No one had ever gone lower than 65 at Hoylake. He still was six shots behind.Harman made it feel like an even larger defici...

Incendio en un bar deja al menos 11 muertos en México

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:25 GMT

SAN LUIS RÍO COLORADO, México – Al menos 11 personas -cuatro mujeres y siete hombres- murieron y cuatro más resultaron heridas debido a un incendio provocado en un bar este sábado en el estado mexicano de Sonora, noroeste del país, informó la Fiscalía General de Justicia del Estado (FGJE).En un comunicado, la Fiscalía informó de que las víctimas murieron calcinadas por las llamas en el establecimiento Beer House Cantina, ubicado en la ciudad de San Luis Río Colorado.Según las primeras investigaciones, el incendio fue provocado por un ataque con un cóctel molotov al bar, situado justo frente al muro fronterizo en San Luis Río Colorado con Arizona. México: encuentran a 116 migrantes hacinados en un autobús México suma 3,285 crímenes “atroces” en lo que va del 2023 Entre las víctimas podría haber al menos una ciudadana norteamericana, porque la Fiscalía General de Justicia en Sonora informó de que una mujer fue trasladada para ...

Youngkin says Va. is experiencing its largest labor force in decades

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:25 GMT

More than 23,000 Virginians found employment in June and the Commonwealth is witnessing its largest labor force since the 1970s, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced at a news conference Friday.“Virginia’s unemployment rate fell to its lowest level in nearly a year while more and more people are joining the labor force,” Youngkin said, referencing the state’s unemployment rate of 2.7%, which is lower than in May 2023 (2.9%) but still hovering above last June’s rate of 2.5%.The labor force participation rate, which measures the percentage of all people of working age who are either employed or actively looking for work, also rose 0.1 of a percentage point to 66.6%, the highest rate in Virginia since January 2013.According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, just over 23,100 Virginians found new jobs in June and the number of unemployed residents fell by about 9,300.The Bureau also said Virginia’s labor force grew by just over 13,750 new workers in Ju...

Live updates | Harman takes 5-shot lead into the final round of the British Open

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:51:25 GMT

HOYLAKE, England (AP) — HARMAN WITH 5-SHOT LEAD GOING INTO FINAL ROUNDBrian Harman overcame a slow start to shoot a 2-under 69 and take a five-shot lead into the final round of the British Open.Seeking his first major title, Harman made bogeys on the first and fourth holes before picking up four birdies the rest of the way to post a score of 12-under 201.He will play the final round alongside Cameron Young, the runner-up at St. Andrews last year. Young birdied the final hole for a 5-under 66 that included only one bogey. He was at 7 under for the tournament.One shot back from Young was Jon Rahm, who shot 63 in a Royal Liverpool course record at the Open.Playing in the final pairing with Harman on Saturday, home-crowd favorite Tommy Fleetwood carded even-par 71 to fall seven shots off the lead.___WHAT TO KNOW— Harman builds a 5-shot lead at British Open.— Tommy Fleetwood keeps alive English hopes of an Open champion.— Scottie Scheffler and Cameron Smith rally to make British Open cut...