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NTSB: Crews failed to de-ice road before massive Texas crash

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:16 GMT

DALLAS (AP) — The company responsible for maintaining a Texas interstate where 130 vehicles crashed in icy conditions two years ago, killing six and injuring dozens, failed to address the deteriorating road conditions, federal officials said Thursday.That portion of Interstate 35 West in Fort Worth was not treated with salt the morning of the Feb. 11, 2021, crash, the National Transportation Safety Board said. The NTSB said that the failure of North Tarrant Express Mobility Partners Segment 3 to address the conditions contributed to the crash, as did drivers’ speeds.The NTSB said that because of the forecasted freezing rain and sleet, North Tarrant Express Mobility Partners Segment 3 had pretreated the southbound lanes of I-35W two days earlier with a liquid brine solution. But, the NTSB said, crews checking the road about 45 minutes before the crash didn’t recognize that the elevated portion of the interstate where the crash occurred needed additional de-icing treatment...

Netanyahu vows to unite Israel but opponents dismiss pledge

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:16 GMT

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday vowed to “mend the rift” in a nation deeply divided over his proposed overhaul of the country’s judiciary. But he offered no details on how he intends to do so and gave no indication that he would slow down the plan.Netanyahu delivered his appeal in a nationally televised address after another day of mass protests across the country against the plan, and hours after his parliamentary coalition passed the first in a series of laws that make up the overhaul. His vague pledges were quickly rejected by the protest movement, which said it would continue to oppose “Netanyahu’s attempt to become a dictator.”Protesters blocked traffic on main highways and scuffled with police in unrest that shows no sign of abating. Police used water cannons to disperse crowds, and dozens of people — including leaders of the protest movement — were arrested.The government’s plan has plunged the nearly 75-year-old nation into one of its w...

Army: Decorated soldier killed in South Carolina shooting

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:16 GMT

A decorated 20-year member of the U.S. Army has been identified as one of the five people killed in a shooting Tuesday night at a South Carolina home.Command Sgt. Maj. Carlos Evans, 38, was killed by a former soldier in an attack that officials say left three sleeping children dead while their surviving mother frantically sought help.The ex-soldier, Charles Slacks Jr., then killed himself. Slacks and the woman were divorced, but he used a key to enter the home in Sumter around 10 p.m. Tuesday, Sumter Police Chief Russell Roark said Wednesday.Slacks, 42, killed his own children, 5-year-old Aayden Holliday-Slacks and his 6-year-old Aason Holliday-Slacks, and also killed their half-sister, 11-year-old Ava Holliday, Sumter County Coroner Robbie Baker said. Before the divorce, Slacks had been Ava’s stepfather.Slacks had just begun working as a budget analyst with U.S. Army Central last month, according to Major Jason Welch. Slacks served as a tracked vehicle mechanic from June 1999 to Ju...

S&P/TSX composite down Thursday, U.S. markets post small gain despite morning rally

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:16 GMT

TORONTO — The S&P/TSX composite index was down about 70 points Thursday, while U.S. markets posted small gains, with markets rallying for most of the day before sputtering in the last trading hour. The S&P/TSX composite index was down 72.86 points at 19,459.92.In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 75.14 points at 32,105.25. The S&P 500 index was up 11.75 points at 3,948.72, while the Nasdaq composite was up 117.44 points at 11,787.40.The Canadian dollar traded for 73.15 cents US,compared with 72.93 cents US on Wednesday.The May crude contract was down 94 cents at US$69.96 per barrel and the May natural gas contract was down two cents at US$2.28 per mmBTU.The April gold contract was up US$46.30 at US$1,995.90 an ounceand the May copper contract was up eight cents at US$4.12 a pound.This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 23, 2023.Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD=X)The Canadian Press

Police in Waukegan searching for missing 21-year-old Navy sailor

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:16 GMT

WAUKEGAN, Ill. — The Waukegan Police Department is asking for the public's help in finding a 21-year-old man who is an active Navy member stationed at Great Lakes Naval Base.Police said Seamus Gray left the Ibiza Bar on North Genesee Street by himself around 1:35 a.m. on March 18 and was last seen on camera in the area of Sheridan Road and Washington Street. Surveillance video captured him leaving the bar, as well as walking along the lakefront. Detectives said Gray did not report back to the naval base. His curfew was 2 a.m.Waukegan Deputy Chief Brian Mullen spoke on why authorities focused their attention near the lakefront. "The video released last night showed Seamus leaving the bar. After he left the bar, he proceeded to the intersection a little east of the bar at Washington Street and Sheridan (Road)," Mullen said. "Overnight, we received some more video from some of the businesses at the marinas that showed Seamus right on the water's edge. So we focused our efforts on searc...

Skeptical US lawmakers grill TikTok CEO over safety, content

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:16 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. lawmakers grilled the CEO of TikTok over data security and harmful content Thursday, responding skeptically during a tense committee hearing to his assurances that the hugely popular video-sharing app prioritizes user safety and should not be banned.Shou Zi Chew's rare public appearance came at a crucial time for the company, which has 150 million American users but is under increasing pressure from U.S. officials. TikTok and its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, have been swept up in a wider geopolitical battle between Beijing and Washington over trade and technology. In a bipartisan effort to reign in the power of a major social media platform, Republican and Democratic lawmakers pressed Chew on a host of topics, ranging from TikTok’s content moderation practices, how the company plans to secure American data from Beijing, and its spying on journalists.“Mr. Chew, you are here because the American people need the truth about the threat TikTok poses to our na...

Best private high schools in Illinois

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:16 GMT

Private schools, in some form, existed long before the concept of free public education in America. Students were often educated through church-sponsored programs, private tutoring, and boarding schools. Public schools on a large scale were proposed by Horace Mann in the 1830s. The concept gained momentum, and by 1870, nearly 80% of kids aged 5 to 14 were enrolled in public schools. Today, according to the most recent enrollment data, about 4.7 million students—or 10% of students enrolled in kindergarten through grade 12—are enrolled in private schools.Private schools are widely marketed as a better option when compared to public schools, and private school proponents will often point to standardized test scores to substantiate this claim. While private school students have consistently outperformed public school students on standardized tests, recent studies have shown private schools themselves are not the primary driver of success, nor are standardized tests the most accurat...

Gary native Johnell Davis makes history in Florida Atlantic's NCAA Tournament run

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:16 GMT

NEW YORK - It's already been the stuff of dreams and history for one of the "Cinderella" teams in the men's NCAA Tournament in 2023, including a native from Northwest Indiana who has contributed to it.Florida Atlantic got their first two wins ever in the "Big Dance" last week over Memphis and Farleigh Dickenson on Columbus to advance to the Sweet 16. During that second round triumph, Gary native Johnell Davis made some NCAA Tournament history thanks to his multi-faceted performance last Sunday. He scored 29 points, collected a career-high 12 rebounds, five assists, and five steals for the Owls in the win over the Knights. In the process, Davis became the first player to get at least 25 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, and five steals in the same tournament game in Division I."I really don't care about the stats. My team just kept feeding me the ball. Shots going in," said Davis after Sunday's performance in Columbus. "I put the work in. And it shows in the box score."A former Indi...

Moms warn about TikTok as CEO testifies before Congress

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:16 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — As the CEO of TikTok testified before Congress Thursday, parents concerned about the social media app's effects on kids' mental health were also on Capitol Hill to demand a ban.Conservatives, including groups called Moms for Liberty and Moms Against TikTok, say it's time to do away with the app not if not for national security concerns, then for the safety of kids."The Chinese Communist Party should not be allowed to conduct psychological warfare on our children," Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill., said.They argued the app is amplifying the mental health crisis among teens."Get your kids off of this app," Tiffany Justice of Moms for Liberty said. "It brings them down this rabbit hole.""It's one of the most dangerous influences in their lives," Miller said. Skeptical US lawmakers grill TikTok CEO over safety, content During his testimony, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew stopped short of agreeing to lawmakers' calls that the app stop targeting ads to users under the age of 17....

Chicago mayoral race underscores city's racial divisions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:16 GMT

Chicago’s closely watched mayoral race is shining a spotlight on the racial divisions that have long characterized the city.Brandon Johnson, a progressive Black man, and Paul Vallas, a moderate white man, have largely seen their support fall along racial lines.Johnson, former Cook County commissioner, has managed to secure support from predominantly Black neighborhoods, running on an agenda of education and police reform. Vallas, the former CEO of Chicago Public Schools, has espoused tough-on-crime policies and called for middle-class and wealthier Chicagoans to take "back" the city. Vallas was the only white candidate in this year’s election, and he drew the support of many voters in the north and southwest neighborhoods, predominantly white areas home to wealthy families and police officers and firefighters.“Chicago has always been a city that has been very explicitly divided by racial politics,” explained Twyla Blackmond Larnell, associate professor of political science at L...