Tragedia en Florida: cinco personas mueren arrolladas por tren en camino a fiesta de quinceaños

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:25:11 GMT

Tragedia en Florida: cinco personas mueren arrolladas por tren en camino a fiesta de quinceaños PLANT CITY, Florida – Un aparatoso choque entre un tren de carga y una camioneta dejó al menos cinco muertos la tarde del sábado en Plant City. Según las autoridades, el choque se registró justo antes de las 7:00 p.m. del sábado, cuando la camioneta estaba cruzando la intersección de la US-92 con la Jim Lefler Circle pero un tren la alcanzó. “Calificar el hecho como devastador no le hace justicia a la tragedia que ocurrió detrás de mi patrulla”, resaltó el aguacil del condado Hillsborough, Chad Chronister, en una conferencia de prensa. “El vehículo luce como una lata de refresco que fue aplastada, es muy difícil de ver.”Chronister añadió que de los siete pasajeros de la camioneta, cinco murieron al salir expulsadas del vehículo, que se volcó varias veces tras el impacto. Entre los fallecidos hubieron menores de edad.Las dos personas que sobrevivieron tuvieron que ser sacadas con ayuda de herramientas hidráulica de rescate. Luego fueron trasladadas ...

Donald Trump calls Rishi Sunak ‘smart’ for easing climate targets

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:25:11 GMT

Donald Trump calls Rishi Sunak ‘smart’ for easing climate targets LONDON — British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s easing of green policies has won the backing of Donald Trump.In a post on his Truth Social media account late Saturday, the former U.S. president congratulated Sunak for announcing last week that he is paring back his green pledges.Sunak has confirmed a major roll-back of several key U.K. green policies, including easing the transition to electric vehicles and shifting a date for a ban on sales of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 until 2035. He also promised there would be more time to transition to heat pumps.“I always knew Sunak was smart, that he wasn’t going to destroy and bankrupt his nation for fake climate alarmists that don’t have a clue,” Trump wrote.Trump, who is leading the polls in the contest for the Republican Party’s 2024 presidential nomination, said the U.S. “keeps rolling merrily along, spending Trillions of Dollars trying to do that which is not doable, while at the same time brea...

Taiwan factory fire death toll rises to 9 after 2 more bodies found

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:25:11 GMT

Taiwan factory fire death toll rises to 9 after 2 more bodies found TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Search teams found two more bodies on Sunday at the site of a golf ball factory fire in southern Taiwan, raising the death toll to nine, according to Taiwanese media reports. One person remained missing.Four of the victims were firefighters. An explosion about 6:10 p.m. on Friday caused part of the building to collapse, trapping firefighters and workers under rubble, Taiwan’s Central News Agency said, quoting a Pingtung County fire official. A second explosion followed 20 minutes later.The fire at the Launch Technologies Co. factory at Pingtung Technology Industrial Park was not extinguished until the next day. The cause remained unclear.About 100 people were injured. Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen traveled to Pingtung County on Saturday and met with victims and their families, Taiwanese broadcaster TVBS reported.The Associated Press

The threat of wildfires is rising. So is new artificial intelligence solutions to fight them

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:25:11 GMT

The threat of wildfires is rising. So is new artificial intelligence solutions to fight them LONDON (AP) — Wildfires fueled by climate change have ravaged communities from Maui to the Mediterranean this summer, killing many people, exhausting firefighters and fueling demand for new solutions. Enter artificial intelligence.Firefighters and startups are using AI-enabled cameras to scan the horizon for signs of smoke. A German company is building a constellation of satellites to detect fires from space. And Microsoft is using AI models to predict where the next blaze could be sparked.With wildfires becoming larger and more intense as the world warms, firefighters, utilities and governments are scrambling to get ahead of the flames by tapping into the latest AI technology — which has stirred both fear and excitement for its potential to transform life. While increasingly stretched first responders hope AI offers them a leg up, humans are still needed to check that the tech is accurate.California’s main firefighting agency this summer started testing an AI system that look...

Lurie Children's Hospital patients, families take part in 'Kids Dig' event

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:25:11 GMT

Lurie Children's Hospital patients, families take part in 'Kids Dig' event CHICAGO — With curiosity and caution, patients from Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago and their families spent their day getting an up close and personal look at large equipment in an event sponsored by the construction company Clayco."The kids are just digging in the dirt. What can be more fun than that?" Dr. Derek Wheeler, the Chief Medical Officer at Lurie Children's Hospital, said. Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines It's the second year for the event, called "Kids Dig," which raises money for the hospital and offers dozens of children the chance to experience the inner workings of a construction site in a big sandbox put together by Clayco in the West Loop.Dr. Wheeler says the event offers kids the opportunity to relax and have fun."They get to be a kid and, you know, forget about whatever struggles they're dealing with right now from a medical standpoint," Dr. Wheeler said. "And they can just come out here and dig, sit in the front loaders and the cranes and the bull...

Jackson, Wortham each run for TDs, Jackson adds pick-6 to help E. Washington beat UC Davis 27-24

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:25:11 GMT

Jackson, Wortham each run for TDs, Jackson adds pick-6 to help E. Washington beat UC Davis 27-24 DAVIS, Calif. (AP) — Justice Jackson and Michael Wortham each ran for a touchdown and Marlon Jones Jr. returned an interception for a TD on Saturday night to help Eastern Washington beat UC Davis 27-24 in a Big Sky Conference opener.The Eagles (2-2) are 11-0 all time against UC Davis, which went into the weekend ranked No. 15 in the FCS coaches poll. Eastern Washington, which beat then-No. 22 Southeastern Louisiana 40-29 last week, has back-to-back wins over ranked teams following losses at No. 2 North Dakota State and Fresno State, an FBS opponent, to open the season. Wortham’s TD, from 10-yards out, gave Eastern Washington the lead for good with 13:08 to play and the Eagles defense forced a three-and-out and intercepted a pass before Isaiah Perez blocked a 31-yard field goal-attempt by UCD’s Hunter Ridley with 3:20 remaining. Lan Larison led UC Davis (2-2) with 225 yards rushing on 22 carries. Eastern Washington’s Soren McKee kicked a 40-yard field goal to make it 3-3 with 3...

MLB notes: Solution to Red Sox defensive woes could be coming from within

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:25:11 GMT

MLB notes: Solution to Red Sox defensive woes could be coming from within At times this year the Red Sox were painful to watch defensively. The club has already reached the dubious 100-error threshold and the advanced metrics don’t look any better.The good news is there is reason for hope that next year’s defense could be much better, and a lot of the help could be coming from within.This season when Trevor Story was out recovering from elbow surgery, Boston’s alternatives in the middle infield didn’t inspire confidence. Kiké Hernández became unplayable at shortstop, and for long stretches the club had to rely on rookies like Enmanuel Valdez and David Hamilton, neither of whom possessed a big league caliber glove.Getting Story back immediately helped stabilize things in the middle infield, but if Boston needs to tap its depth next season its options will look much better.Ceddane Rafaela, who is already getting his big league audition, is regarded as an elite defensive talent who could represent an upgrade for the Red Sox at any pos...

1 Kosovo police officer killed and 1 wounded in an attack in the north, raising tensions with Serbia

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:25:11 GMT

1 Kosovo police officer killed and 1 wounded in an attack in the north, raising tensions with Serbia PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — Kosovo’s prime minister on Sunday said one police officer was killed and another wounded in an attack he blamed on support from neighboring Serbia, increasing tensions between the two former war foes at a delicate moment in their European Union-facilitated dialogue to normalize ties.Prime Minister Albin Kurti said “masked professionals armed with heavy weapons” opened fire on a police patrol in the village of Banjska, Leposavic, 55 kilometers (35 miles) north of the capital Pristina at 3 a.m. (01:00 GMT), killing one officer and injuring another, whose condition is not life-threatening. Kosovo police said two trucks with no license plates had blocked a bridge at the entrance of the village. Three police units were sent to unblock it but came under fire from different positions with different weapons, hand grenades and bombs.Police managed to push back the attack and take two injured police officers at the hospital in southern Mitrovica.One of them was d...

Train crash in eastern Pakistan injures at least 30. Authorities suspend 4 for negligence

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:25:11 GMT

Train crash in eastern Pakistan injures at least 30. Authorities suspend 4 for negligence LAHORE, Pakistan. (AP) — A passenger train collided with another already parked and carrying goods in eastern Pakistan on Sunday, injuring at least 30 passengers, five of them seriously, officials said.Railway authorities suspended the driver of the Lahore-bound passenger train, his assistant and two of the ground staff for negligence as an investigation has been opened, said top railways official Shahid Aziz.Aziz said the incident happened in Shaikhupura district near Qila Sattar Shah station early morning as the passenger train which left Mianwali for Lahore was directed to the track where the goods train was already parked. He said most of the injured were treated at the train station, but those with serious injuries were moved to hospital and the tracks were quickly cleared.Such accidents are common in Pakistan where railways suffer from decades-old signal systems and tracks.The Associated Press

A mayoral race in a small city highlights the rise of Germany’s far-right AfD party

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 15:25:11 GMT

A mayoral race in a small city highlights the rise of Germany’s far-right AfD party BERLIN (AP) — The German city of Nordhausen is best known as the location of the former Nazi concentration camp Mittelbau-Dora.On Sunday, a mayoral election could again put the focus on the municipality of 42,000 people if a far-right candidate wins the vote.Joerg Prophet, a candidate from the populist far-right Alternative for Germany party, or AfD, is the frontrunner in Sunday’s mayoral runoff vote. Earlier in September, Prophet won 42.1% of the vote in the first round of the election and now faces off against independent candidate Kai Buchmann. Sunday’s election underscores recent gains nationally for the AfD and the increasing influence it has on the political discussion in Germany. It also raises concerns about the normalization of far-right rhetoric in places like Nordhausen, drawing criticism from Holocaust survivors and those who work to combat discrimination.“The significance of the election in Nordhausen extends far beyond (its) borders,” Felix Klein, the German gove...