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Recalling the 2003 blackout: 20 years since North America’s largest power outage

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

It was a Thursday in August like so many others – stiflingly hot, incredibly busy, and completely ordinary.But it all changed at exactly 4:09 p.m. on August 14, 2003, when time literally stopped for 50 million people across Ontario and parts of the U.S.It began with a tree hitting a transmission line in Ohio. It ended with a large part of the Eastern Seaboard in darkness.In Toronto, the effects of the blackout were immediate and stunning. Traffic lights blinked out at the height of rush hour, as brakes screeched cars to a sudden and unexpected stop. Good Samaritans jumped into the middle of it all, trying to direct traffic.The subway came to a grinding halt in the tunnels, leaving thousands sweating and stranded.And everyone was literally in the dark about what happened.How long would it last? And why did the hydro go out? It would be many months before experts could reassemble the failures both human and machine-related that led to the largest power failure in North American histor...

Russia targets Ukrainian city of Odesa again but Kyiv says it shot down all the missiles and drones

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched three waves of nighttime air attacks against the southern Ukraine port city of Odesa, officials said Monday, though the Ukrainian air force said it intercepted all 15 incoming Shahed drones and eight Kalibr missiles.Falling debris from the interceptions damaged the dormitory of an educational facility in the city, a residential building and a supermarket, Odesa Gov. Oleh Kiper said.Two employees of the supermarket were hospitalized, Kiper said. The Kremlin’s forces have pummeled Odesa in recent times, aiming at facilities that transport Ukraine’s crucial grain exports and also wrecking cherished Ukrainian historical sites.The stepped-up barrage followed Moscow’s decision to break off a landmark agreement that had allowed grain to flow from Ukraine to countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia and help reduce the threat of hunger.Following that withdrawal, Russia carried out repeated strikes on Ukrainian ports, including Odesa, and ...

Heavy rains trigger floods and landslides in India’s Himalayan region, leaving at least 22 dead

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

NEW DELHI (AP) — Heavy monsoon rains triggered floods and landslides in India’s Himalayan region, leaving at least 22 people dead and many others trapped, officials said Monday. A cloudburst in mountainous Himachal Pradesh state’s Solan district on Sunday night killed nine people in the area, and nine more bodies were pulled out from under mud and debris after two landslides in Shimla, the state’s capital, authorities told the Press Trust of India news agency. Four others were killed in heavy rains and a landslide in the state’s Hamirpur district, they added. The state’s chief minister, Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, said rescuers in Shimla were working to clear the debris and help those still trapped. Cloudbursts are a common occurrence in Himalayan regions, but experts say they are alarmed by the increase in extreme weather-related events in the area. Cloudbursts occur when more than 10 centimeters (3.9 inches) of rainfall occurs within 10 square kilometers (3.8 s...

German foreign minister stuck in Abu Dhabi after another government plane problem

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s foreign minister was stuck in Abu Dhabi on Monday after a technical problem on her government plane — the latest in a succession of such incidents — forced it to return to the airport rather than continue to Australia.Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock was due to arrive in Canberra on Monday night at the start of a visit to Australia, New Zealand and Fiji. But her German air force Airbus A340 had to return to Abu Dhabi after a refueling stop because of “a mechanical problem with the landing flaps,” ministry spokesman Sebastian Fischer wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.The pilot noticed the problem minutes after the plane took off from Abu Dhabi, and the plane landed again safely two hours later after dumping some 80 tons of fuel, German news agency dpa reported.The German air force posted on X that it was “working at high pressure” to make it possible for the delegation to continue its journey.It was the latest in a string of problems with Germany&#...

Thinking of buying a new pair of jeans? Breaking down the cost over time might help you decide

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — For Jake Welch, getting dressed is one big math problem.The 36-year-old brand director for an advertising firm calculates the cost-per-wear of his wardrobe by highlighting 200 items in a spreadsheet — excluding underwear and socks — and meticulously listing the price he paid for each of them as well as how many times he’s worn it. He updates the spreadsheet every night on his computer to determine whether his purchases were worth it — or not.Lots of people thought Welch was weird when he started doing this 12 years ago, opting to ditch the cheapest items on the sales rack in favor of maximizing the value of his purchases over the span of their lifecycles. But with inflation still a nagging problem, more shoppers are coming around to his way of thinking.“I was actually onto something versus being a little looney,” said Welch of Erda, Utah, who presented his findings last month at a company meeting. Retailers are taking note of this mindset and shifting the...

3,000 customers without power in south Austin

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – The Pedernales Electric Co-Op reports 3,000 customers were without power in far south Austin early Monday morning. According to the website, the power outage covered most of the Olympic Heights neighborhood west of Menchaca Road and north of FM 1626. The company said the outage was reported at 3:50 a.m. and estimated power would be restored by 8 a.m. KXAN called Pedernales Electric Co-Op for more information about the outage and will update the article as we get more information.

New Richmond post office will bear name of half-brothers killed in WWII

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

The U.S. Post Office in New Richmond, Wis., will be dedicated this month in honor of a pair of World War II veterans who happened to be half-brothers.The dedication ceremony will be 11 a.m. Aug. 25 at the post office building at 430 S. Knowles Ave. in New Richmond. The post office will be named after Capt. Robert Harmon and Pvt. John Peirson, who were killed a year apart during the war.Capt. Robert C. Harmon, left, and Pvt. John R. Peirson (Courtesy of Sally Berkholder)Harmon was shot down on his 51st bombing mission over German-occupied France in 1944, a week before the D-Day invasion of Normandy. He received the Air Medal, Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart and 11 Oak Leaf Clusters.Peirson was mortally wounded during an Easter Day assault in Okinawa, Japan, in 1945, and he died the next day. Peirson was married and a father of young boys.It took four years to repatriate the brothers’ remains back to Wisconsin in 1949; they are buried side by side at Fort Snelling National Ce...

Commission approves €6.5 billion German scheme to address carbon leakage risk for energy-intensive companies resulting from national fuel emission trading system

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

The European Commission has approved, under EU state aid rules, a €6.5 billion German scheme to partially compensate energy-intensive companies to address the risk of carbon leakage from higher fuel prices resulting from the German fuel emission trading system (‘German fuel ETS').The German measureGermany notified the Commission of its plan to support energy-intensive companies exposed to international competition by covering part of the higher fuel prices resulting from the German fuel ETS. The scheme will cover costs incurred between 2021 and 2030. The support measure is aimed at reducing the risk of ‘carbon leakage', where companies relocate their production to countries with less stringent emission rules, resulting in increased greenhouse gas emissions globally.The measure will benefit companies active in sectors and sub-sectors listed the EU ETS Carbon Leakage List. Those sectors face significant emission costs and are particularly exposed to international competition.The compe...

Santa Cruz County earns age-friendly status amid ‘silver tsunami’ concerns

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

SANTA CRUZ — The so-called silver tsunami of aging adults has already arrived at Santa Cruz County’s shores, but local leaders say they’re stepping up efforts to address the escalating crisis.The county was recently named an “age-friendly community” by the AARP , a critical step in its work to support the health and wellbeing of older residents while it continues development of a Master Plan on Aging.“The goal of these two complimentary initiatives is to create a community that promotes healthy aging for all,” Alicia Morales, Santa Cruz County Adult and Long Term Care Division director, said during a presentation to the Board of Supervisors earlier this week. “It is an ambitious county-wide effort and cannot be just a government initiative.”According to Morales, one-third of all county residents will be age 60 or older by 2030, which exceeds the already concerning statewide ratio projecting one out of four residents, or about 10.8 million people, to be 60 or older within the same ti...

Ask Amy: Why did she react that way? It was a compliment!

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:44 GMT

Dear Amy: Recently I complimented a woman after her 60th birthday by saying, “You look good for 60.”She grunted, “What is 60 supposed to look like?”Where did I go wrong?– Bewildered BachelorDear Bewildered: I’m going to sidestep my own observations on why you might be a “bachelor,” and head straight to your bewilderment.Where did you go wrong? Oh, let me count the ways.First of all, it’s not necessary to comment on someone’s looks in any context – unless they invite you to.As the woman you damned with faint praise implied through her pointed response, you’ve made an assumption of what 60 is supposed to look like, and – quite simply – we 60-year-old crones have the right to reject your assumption.There is only one context where this comment might be received positively, and that would be on the day of this woman’s 90th birthday.The great news is that you can test-drive this “compliment” again … in 30 years.Dear Amy: My son graduated from high school rece...