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At least 27 dead with dozens more missing after boat capsizes in northwest Congo

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — A boat capsized in Congo’s northwest killing at least 27 people, and more than 70 others were missing, a senior government official said Saturday as rescuers searched frantically for survivors.The locally made boat capsized late Friday in the city of Mbandaka in Equateur Province as it transported more than 100 passengers along the Congo River to the town of Bolomba, according to Taylor Nganzi, deputy provincial governor.“Already 27 bodies of victims have been removed from the waters (and) transported to the morgue of the general hospital in Mbandaka,” said Nganzi, adding that an investigation to find out the cause of the accident had begun.The New Civil Society of Congo, a local civil society group, said 49 people died in the accident, which it said occurred after an engine failure. “Everything started to sink,” Jean-Pierre Wangela, president of the group, told reporters.The contradictory death tolls, which is common in such incidents in Congo, could not imme...

Ottawa working to get Canadians out of Gaza, announces plan for those in West Bank

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says the federal government is still working to get Canadians out of the besieged Gaza Strip as the Palestinian territory braces for an expected ground invasion by Israel.Joly also announced a plan to begin evacuating Canadians from the West Bank territory by bus as early as next week.“We’re extremely concerned about the situation in Gaza,” she said at a news conference from Jordan. “Gaza is one of the worst places on Earth to be right now.”The minister said the Israeli government has authorized Canadians’ departure from the territory on the Mediterranean Sea, but that more work needs to be done to secure their passage. About 160 Canadians and their relatives are still in Gaza, she said.An earlier plan to allow foreign nationals to leave the territory via the border crossing with Egypt fell through Saturday. The Israeli Foreign Ministry announced the cancellation of the plan in a message sent to western embass...

Urban Growers Collective awarded $1M federal grant

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

CHICAGO — A $1 million federal grant was recently awarded to the Urban Growers Collective, a Black and woman-led nonprofit that was started in Chicago in 2017.The nonprofit, which operates eight farms over 11 acres of land on the South and West sides of Chicago, uses urban agriculture as a method to address inequities and structural racism in communities around the city. According to Development Manager Brandon Lov, the recently awarded USDA Urban and Community Forestry Grant will help the nonprofit incorporate trees into its work. Tom Skilling discusses his decision to retire on WGN Morning News Lov said the nonprofit currently focuses primarily on vegetable and crop production. However now, using the grant money, the nonprofit plans to plant trees, integrate the tees into the food system and share the knowledge with its staff, program participants and the community. According to Lov, the trees will be planted at the nonprofit's South Chicago farm and at its Green ...

Wild’s new fourth line shows early promise

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

TORONTO — The Wild’s new fourth line made a nice debut in last Thursday’s 2-0, season-opening victory over Florida, showing coaches and fans a little of what they can bring to the ice this season.The line with wingers Brandon Duhaime and Pat Maroon on either side of center Connor Dewar made its presence felt in both zones, which is exactly what head coach Dean Evason and his staff want to see.Acquired from Tampa Bay for a seventh-round draft pick, Maroon replaces Ryan Reaves, who was on the other side of the ice Saturday when the Wild played the Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena. An imposing presence who can control the puck, and has won three Stanley Cups in 12 NHL seasons, Maroon seems to be a good fit with the young, speedy forwards.“We went through our scoring chances and they were all over it,” Evason said. “Didn’t result, obviously, in goals, but the opportunities they had, they were all around it.”The offensive chemistry was best displayed in the third period, when Maroon pulle...

High school football: Hudson earns No. 1 seed in playoffs. Here are other Western Wisconsin first-round matchups

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

Winner of seven straight and fresh off a Big Rivers Conference crown, Hudson (8-1) earned a No. 1 seed in the Wisconsin Division I playoff bracket unveiled Saturday.The Raiders will meet conference foe Chippewa Falls — which eeked into the playoffs with a 3-4 conference mark — in the first round Friday. Teams need to record a conference mark over .500 in Wisconsin to be guaranteed a playoff spot, but teams coming in under that mark can sneak in to fill out the bracket if needed.Hudson beat Chippewa Falls 13-8 on Sept. 1.The top seed means Hudson would host at least its first three playoff rounds. Four wins are needed to reach the state title game at Camp Randall in Madison.In Division 2, New Richmond (8-1) was given a No. 2 seed and will host Marshfield (4-5) in Round 1. That’s a rematch of a Week 2 game won 31-10 by New Richmond.The winner of that contest will square off in the second round with the winner of another Big Rivers inter-conference showdown between third-seeded M...

Broncos release Frank Clark after being unable to find trade partner

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

The Broncos have officially parted ways with outside linebacker Frank Clark.Unable to find a trade partner in recent days, Denver released Clark on Saturday, according the the NFL’s transaction wire.The separation has been in the works for several days. Clark didn’t practice Tuesday or Wednesday with Denver and did not play Thursday against his previous team, Kansas City.The Broncos and Clark agreed to a restructured contract and tried to find a trade partner for him, but instead will now simply release him.Clark, 30, played in just two games for the Broncos after signing a one-year contract with $5.45 million in original guaranteed money in June.Related ArticlesDenver Broncos | Kickin’ It with Kiz: Bad football beating the Broncomania out of NFL’s most loyal fans Denver Broncos | Rockies Journal: Who’ll return to the playoffs first, Broncos or Rox? Denver Broncos | NFL Picks: San Francisco’s stampede continues...

Actress Piper Laurie, 3-time Oscar nominee, dead at 91

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

Three-time Oscar nominee Piper Laurie has died at the age of 91, according to reports.Laurie, star of movies like "Carrie" and "The Hustler," also starred in the television show "Twin Peaks," which provided two of her nine Emmy nominations.She won her only Emmy for 1986's "Promises," in which she starred with James Wood and James Garner.She was born Rosetta Jacobs in Detroit, but it was as a student at Los Angeles High School that her showbusiness career took off, Variety reports."She was plucked out of Los Angeles High School at age 17 and signed to a Universal contract for $250 a week, which would run up to $1,750 a week after seven years," the outlet said.Laurie found much more success once she gained some autonomy from the film studios.She leaves behind a daughter, Anne Grace.Check back for updates to this developing story.

Solar eclipse leaves Bay Area in awe. And also disappointed.

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

Discouraged by gloom, thousands of Bay Area residents gathered in parties on early Saturday morning to gaze up at overcast skies.Then two honorary guests made a brief surprise appearance: the sun, and the moon.From San Jose to Danville and San Rafael, cheers erupted when skies brightened, then dimmed, as the moon crept across the surface of the sun, shrinking it to a mere crescent.“I see it!” shouted children at a festive Palo Alto event sponsored by Stanford’s Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology, holding protective glasses to their faces.Lesley and Lyric Dawson, left and center, and Iyanis Ludwig use their special glasses to view the eclipse during a viewing event, Saturday, Oct. 14, 2023, at Stanford University. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) Then the glorious view vanished.For the most of the “annular eclipse,” the weather was a tease, cooperating only intermittently along much of its Bay Area path. The clouds opened up to...

Game-opening onside kick backfires and Eastern Michigan tops Kent State 28-14

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

YPSILANTI, Mich. (AP) — Kendric Nowling turned a game-opening onside kick attempt into a 44-yard touchdown and Eastern Michigan went on to defeat Kent State 28-14 on Saturday.When the Golden Flashes tried to open the Mid-American Conference game with a surprise, the ball and a player from each team collided at the same time and Nowling scooped it up and raced to the end zone.Eastern Michigan also got two rushing touchdowns from Samson Evans, who gained 47 yards on nine carries to surpass 2,000 for his career.The win was the 50th for Chris Creighton, tying him for second with Fred Trosko (1952-64) for second all-time at EMU.Sampson’s 19-yard run in the last minute before halftime capped a 12-play, 85-yard drive that made it 14-0. Kent State (1-6, 0-3) got 172 of its 343 total yards on two drives. A 19-yard, 85-yard drive ended on the EMU 5 on a failed fourth-down conversion in the first half, but the Golden Flashes ended a seven-play, 87-yard drive with Tanner Knue turning a short pa...

Seven months after signing $111 million deal, D-backs’ Corbin Carroll looking like a bargain

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:31:50 GMT

PHOENIX (AP) — It’s hard to find much that can fluster Arizona rookie Corbin Carroll, the team’s soft-spoken speedster, who in his first postseason has been a whirlwind of stolen bases, solid defense, line drives and long homers.“If you really want to see my adrenaline flowing, make me do, like, a public speech or something,” Carroll said, laughing.It’s safe to say staring at about 50 reporters during a Division Series pregame news conference wasn’t Carroll’s favorite activity, but the 23-year-old outfielder is starting to get used to his transformation into baseball star.“I think the exciting thing is we’re still getting better,” the NL Rookie of the Year favorite said. “Still adapting to this level. Still kind of going through the trials and tribulations and coming out the other side a better product. I think there’s a lot to be excited about.”The surprising Diamondbacks, who at 84-78 squeezed into the playoffs as the final NL team at 84-78, will meet...