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German rail union says it’s ready to take long-running pay dispute to arbitration

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:14:57 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — A German rail workers’ union said Thursday that it’s prepared to take a long-running pay dispute with the main national railway operator to arbitration, which should head off strikes during the summer vacation period.Talks between the EVG union and state-owned railway operator Deutsche Bahn broke down last week. The union — which has already staged hours-long or one-day “warning strikes,” a common tactic in German negotiations — then announced a ballot on open-ended strike action.That announcement came as schools closed for summer in parts of Germany. On Wednesday, Deutsche Bahn proposed bringing in outside mediators in hopes of resolving the dispute without further strikes during the summer.EVG said it will discuss an arbitration process with Deutsche Bahn. “We have an eye particularly on travelers, who we don’t really want to hit with strikes during the vacation period,” the union’s chief negotiator, Kristian Loroch, said in a statement....

Hurricane Adrian strengthens, new tropical depression brings rain to Mexico’s Pacific coast

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:14:57 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Hurricane Adrian gained strength Thursday far off Mexico’s Pacific coast, but father south and closer to land, a new tropical depression has formed that has forecasters much more worried. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Adrian had sustained winds of 85 mph (140 kph). The storm was expected to weaken again to a tropical storm by the weekend and keep heading out to sea. On Thursday morning, the hurricane’s center was about 440 miles (710 kilometers) west-southwest of the Pacific coast seaport of Manzanillo, Mexico. The hurricane center said Adrian was moving west-northwest at about 8 mph (13 kph), and that general motion was expected to continue. But farther south, Tropical Depression Two-E was expected to build in strength and become the second tropical storm, and perhaps hurricane, of the eastern Pacific season.Mexico’s National Meteorological Service said the depression was expected to bring torrential rains to the coasts of the impoverished souther...

Suspect hit man with pick-up truck while driving on sidewalk in downtown Toronto: police

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:14:57 GMT

Toronto police are searching for a suspect who struck another man while driving on a sidewalk downtown, in what police are calling an “assault with a weapon investigation.”Police say two men got into a fight at Lower Simcoe Street and Bremner Boulevard at 11:30 p.m. on Tuesday, when the suspect then got into a pick-up truck and drove on the sidewalk, hitting the man with his vehicle from behind.The suspect then turned the vehicle around, continuing to drive on the sidewalk at a high rate of speed before fleeing the scene.The man struck was treated for non-life-threatening injuries in hospital.Police say the suspect is five feet eight inches tall with short curly hair.He was driving a black 2002 Ford Ranger truck with Ontario licence plate BV68520.

Italian researchers ready to reach the edge of space on Virgin Galactic ship

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:14:57 GMT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A team of Italian researchers expects to reach the edge of space Thursday morning, flying aboard Virgin Galactic’s rocket-powered plane as the company prepares for monthly commercial flights.The flight is scheduled to launch from Spaceport America in the New Mexico desert, with two Italian Air Force officers and an engineer with the National Research Council of Italy focusing on a series of microgravity experiments during their few minutes of weightless. One will wear a special suit that measures biometric data and physiological responses while another will conduct tests using sensors to track heart rate, brain function and other metrics while in microgravity. The third will be studying how certain liquids and solids mix in that very weak gravity.Virgin Galactic will be live-streaming the flight on its website. Next up for Virgin Galactic will be the first of hundreds of ticket holders, many who have been waiting years for their chance at weightlessness and ...

Burkina Faso’s military accused of killings, torture in latest Human Rights Watch report

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:14:57 GMT

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — A slew of extrajudicial killings, forced disappearances, and instances of torture by Burkina Faso’s military has terrorized communities in the country’s northeast this year, according to a Human Rights Watch report released Thursday. The violence took place between February and May across the province of Séno. The report identifies at least 27 people who were either summarily executed or disappeared and then killed, most of them members of the Fulani ethnic group. Jihadi fighters linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group have waged a violent insurgency in Burkina Faso for seven years. The violence has killed thousands of people and divided the country, leading to two coups last year.The report by the New York-based watchdog comes in the wake of an April massacre in which residents say security forces killed at least 150 civilians in Karma, a northern village near the Mali border. A Burkina Faso government spokesperson did not respond to a reque...

Helicopter crew rescues firefighters stranded when rescue boat goes over falls

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:14:57 GMT

CLIFTON, N.J. (AP) — Two firefighters involved in a rescue effort in a New Jersey river became stranded themselves when their boat went over a waterfall, but a state police helicopter crew was eventually able to bring the pair to safety.No injuries were reported in either of Wednesday’s rescues in the Passaic River, authorities said.The Clifton firefighters were among emergency responders who were helping three people stuck in two boats on the river around 3 p.m. when their rescue boat plunged over the falls at Dundee Dam in Clifton and into the river below. A third firefighter who was in the rescue boat managed to get out before it went over the falls, authorities said.The state police helicopter soon arrived and crews began extracting the firefighters, who were stuck in the partially submerged boat in the river’s swift currents. The first rescue was done quickly as a rescuer repelled down about 100 feet (about 30 meters) to bring one person to safety, but the second to...

Italian police: Migrant smugglers gave children sleeping pills to keep quiet during border crossing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:14:57 GMT

MILAN (AP) — Traffickers in a migrant smuggling cell busted in a cross-national investigation administered sleeping pills to children to prevent them from making noise as they were carried at night across the Croatian-Slovenian border, Italian police said Thursday.Police in the northeastern Italian city of Trieste identified 26 suspects in the cell, part of a larger ring, all Albanian and Kosovo citizens, many residents of Italy. Seven have been arrested, five are being sought on arrest warrants on suspicion of criminal association aimed at aiding illegal immigration and another 13 remain under investigation.The investigation was launched in 2021, before Croatia dropped its border controls earlier this year upon joining the EU’s Schengen-area passport-free travel zone. According to Italian police, migrants were brought by car to the Croatian-Slovenian border, then walked across at night, and picked up on the other side. While children were given sleeping pills, adults were jacked up...

Severe storms possible Thursday

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:14:57 GMT

Thursday morning starts with a round of showers and storms. Storm coverage was scattered and smoke concentrations continue to be highA strong thunderstorm swept portions of Cook County just after 5 a.m. Interactive Radar: Track showers and storm here The rest of the day should be partly sunny with a 50% chance of storms. Strong to severe storms are possible throughout the day and night. The Chicago area is at a slight risk for severe weather.  High: 85. Lakeside: 76Thursday night set to be Partly cloudy with a 20% chance of showers & storms - mainly in the evening. Low: 70.Latest warnings and watches from the National Weather Service.Friday will be partly sunny with a 30% chance of showers and storms. High: 91. Lakeside:  81Saturday mostly cloudy, 50% chance of showers and storms. High: 84   Lakeside:  76Sunday mostly cloudy, 60% chance of showers, storms possible. High:  77   Lakeside: 71

Air quality alert remains as skies slowly improving

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:14:57 GMT

CHICAGO — Wildfire smoke from Canada is lingering around the Chicago area longer than expected. An Air Quality Alert has been extended for the entire area through Thursday. It was originally supposed to end Wednesday at midnight.People with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teens should avoid strenuous outdoor activities, keep outdoor activities short. Others should choose less strenuous activities limit active time outdoors.Full forecast details and more at the WGN Weather Center blog All programming on Wednesday evening at Navy Pier was moved indoors because of air quality. The summer fireworks, which will run from 9-9:10 p.m., will proceed as scheduled.Tuesday’s peak reading in the city which was 258. The forecast suggested by Wednesday afternoon readings should be below 200, however as of Wednesday afternoon, levels have not gone down below 200 — prompting the extension of the alert.A good reading would be considered in the zero to 50 range. Here’s how you can ...

Another Chicago area city expresses interest in the Bears

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:14:57 GMT

AURORA, Ill. — You can add another city in the Chicago area to the list of those who want the chance to be the new home of the Bears. This week, Aurora revealed that they've reached out to the NFL team to pitch the city as a place to build their new stadium. This comes a few weeks after the Bears revealed that the Arlington Park site, which they closed on in February and have begun demolition on this summer, is no longer their "singular focus" for a new home field.Per a city spokesperson, Aurora sent a two-page letter to the team's president and CEO Kevin Warren on behalf of Mayor Richard Irvin that included an invitation to visit the city. Arlington Park demolition begins Here is an excerpt of the letter that was sent to the Bears and provided by the City of Aurora.“Aurora, the City of Lights, the second largest city in Illinois, is built on the unshakable foundation of its storied past.  The opportunity to partner with the historic Chicago Bears as you search for ...