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India sets sights on home-mined minerals to boost its clean energy plans

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:11:19 GMT

KALIAPANI, India (AP) — In the dusty mountains of eastern India, workers at the country’s largest chromium deposit have mined for the essential ore, rain or shine, for around 60 years. The industry is fruitful in some ways — hundreds of trucks stacked with mineral-rich soil journey back and forth regularly between the mine and processing plants — but it is damaging in others. Farmers say their fields are stripped of fertile earth and livestock desperately comb through now-barren lands for feed.“We used to grow chilies and other vegetables earlier but now when it rains all the soil from the mines washes onto our fields,” bringing with it harmful effluent, said Gurucharan Mohant, a 60-year-old farmer from the nearby village of Kaliapani. “Nothing grows here anymore.”Chromium, used mostly as a coating to stop rust in steel and car parts, has been deemed necessary for India’s transition to cleaner energy. A layer of chromium makes solar panels more efficient, and the mineral...

Alaska volcano’s weeklong eruption eases after spewing another massive ash cloud

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:11:19 GMT

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — An ongoing eruption of a remote volcano in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands produced an ash cloud so large Tuesday that warnings were sent to pilots about potentially dangerous conditions.An ash cloud with an initial height of around 5.5 miles (8.9 kilometers) was reported following the morning eruption of Shishaldin Volcano. But by early afternoon, ash emissions were below 1.9 miles (3 kilometers), and the aviation alert was downgraded, according to the Alaska Volcano Observatory.The volcano is about 700 miles (1,127 kilometers) southwest of Anchorage and sits near the middle of Unimak Island. The island’s 65 or so residents live about 25 miles (40 kilometers) northeast of the volcano, in the community of False Pass.Shishaldin Volcano began erupting July 11. A U.S. Coast Guard overflight confirmed lava erupted the same day within the summit crater.A significant explosion early Friday produced an ash cloud that reached up to 7.5 miles (12 kilometers) and drifted so...

California State University campuses mishandled sexual harassment allegations, audit finds

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:11:19 GMT

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — A flawed policy at California State University, the largest higher education system in the country, contributed to the closure of nearly a dozen sexual harassment cases without thorough explanation, according to a state audit reviewing 40 cases over the span of seven years.The audit, released Tuesday, examined allegations of harassment between 2016 and 2022 against employees at the university system’s chancellor’s office and three of 23 campuses: California State University, Fresno, San José State University and Sonoma State University. It found that the colleges failed to discipline people found responsible for misconduct, including one case where officials took no action in the five years after a faculty member was found guilty of sexual harassment, sexual violence and stalking.“The problems and inconsistencies we found during this audit warrant systemwide changes at CSU,” California State Auditor Grant Parks said in a statement. “In particula...

After nearly 30 years, there’s movement in the case of Tupac Shakur’s killing. Here’s what we know

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:11:19 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — An investigation into Tupac Shakur’s unsolved killing has been revived. It took nearly three decades, but a new twist came when authorities in Nevada served a search warrant this week in connection with the rap star’s shooting death, they confirmed Tuesday.Here’s what to know about one of the most infamous fatal shootings in hip-hop history: WHAT’S NEW IN THE INVESTIGATION?Las Vegas police served a search warrant in connection to the killing of Shakur, who was gunned down Sept. 7, 1996. The warrant was executed Monday in the nearby city of Henderson. It’s unclear what they were looking for or where they searched.Citing the ongoing investigation, a police spokesperson said he couldn’t provide further details on the latest development in the case, including whether a suspect has been identified.WHAT HAPPENED THE NIGHT SHAKUR DIED?The 25-year-old rapper was traveling in a black BMW driven by Death Row Records founder Marion “Suge” Knight in a convoy of about 10 cars,...

Mega Millions: Here are the winning numbers for the $640M jackpot

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:11:19 GMT

(NEXSTAR) - Yet another record-setting lottery prize is up for grabs. This time, it's a $640 million Mega Millions jackpot that has been growing for three months. If your ticket matches the numbers below that were drawn Tuesday night, you could be the winner of the seventh-largest Mega Millions jackpot on record. The Mega Millions numbers drawn on July 18 were: 19, 22, 31, 37, and 54, and Mega Ball 18. The Megaplier was 4X. These are the best, worst states to win the lottery in This jackpot has been brewing since April when a $20 million prize was won by a ticket sold in Syracuse, New York, just four days after a $483 million Mega Millions jackpot was hit by a ticket sold in Queens.Ahead of Tuesday's drawing, Mega Millions officials estimated the jackpot's size at $640 million with a cash value of $328 million. That puts it among the largest in the game's history:$1.537 billion: Oct. 23, 2018 (South Carolina)$1.348 billion: Jan. 13, 2023 (Maine)$1.337 billion: July 29, 2022 (Illin...

New approach to treating esophagus cancer eases recovery

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:11:19 GMT

A major surgery has gotten a reboot. There is a new approach to treating cancer of the esophagus.It’s a procedure similar to open heart surgery but can be even more grueling. Patients with esophageal cancer often face a long hospitalization and require a feeding tube for weeks. In fact, one man turned down the traditional treatment and was willing to accept his fate — until a robot intervened. Dr Samuel Kim describes a traditional esophagectomy as “one of the biggest surgeries there is.”“People stay in hospital about 13 days after this operation,” he said.But that’s not the case with a robotic approach.“The way we’re doing the operation, we’re able to reduce that to a stay no more than two or three days,” Kim said.The option changed Rudy Bland’s fate.“The Lord or somebody brought us here,” he said. “Probably 8-10 years ago I was diagnosed with Barrett’s of the esophagus.” MedWatch Daily Digest: The impact of chemotherapy on the gut — and more That meant routine upper GI and c...

APD identifies motorcyclist in deadly west Austin crash

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:11:19 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- On Tuesday, the Austin Police Department identified the motorcyclist who died in a motorcycle-vehicle crash in west Austin over the weekend, according to an APD news release.At approximately 12:15 p.m. Saturday, officers responded to the crash between the motorcycle and an SUV driver in the 4900 block of FM 2222 Road, according to police. 1 dead following motorcycle collision in west Austin The motorcyclist, Denis Joe Watkins, died on the scene, police said. The SUV driver remained on the scene, was not impaired and cooperated with the investigation, the release said.This incident is being investigated as Austin's 53rd fatal crash of 2023, which resulted in 53 fatalities for the year, according to police. MAP: Where have Austin’s fatal crashes occurred in 2023? Anyone with any information should contact APD's Vehicular Homicide unit at (512) 974-8111. You may submit your tip anonymously through the Capital Area Crime Stoppers Program by visiting austincrimestopp...

Latest storm brings more flood damage across the Capital Region

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:11:19 GMT

CAPITAL REGION, N.Y. (NEWS10) — It’s just what they didn’t want to see in Saratoga County, more rain. Leslie Morlock from the Saratoga National Historical Park said previous downpours had already damaged hiking trails and roads around Saratoga National Historical Park. Now today’s storm.“And as a result of that and the heavy rains, and the water moving through the area, and converging on this area, water flowed down our entrance road here and crossed over,” Morlock said. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! The flooding caused damage to the park’s eastern entrance at Route 4 and numerous locations around the park. Park officials are still evaluating the damages but expect the cost of repairs to be hundreds of thousands of dollars and take months to complete.“So we will need to bring in engineers and have a safe design,” Murlock said. “This all before we can allow traffic to come through this area.”In Guilderland, one family’s ba...

Roadside murder video reveals citizen’s heroism

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:11:19 GMT

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - An East St. Louis man was sentenced Tuesday for striking his girlfriend with his truck and killing her earlier this year. A Madison County jury convicted Richard Mayor in June of first-degree murder in the death of Lisa Dunnavant-Polach. The two had been in a relationship, but got into a dispute prior to the murder.“This was a cowardly yet cruel act by a criminal who has no regard for others,” Madison County State's Attorney Thomas Haine said. “To this day, (Mayor) refuses to take responsibility for his actions.”A Madison County Circuit Court judge imposed a 60-year sentence against the defendant. Mayor will be required to serve the entire term, effectively making it a life sentence.Dunnavant-Polach was killed on Feb. 21, along Illinois 111, in the area north of Interstate 270 near Bel Air Drive. She had been running on foot and attempting to evade Mayor, who was driving a Ford F-150.  Clerk shot and killed at St. Louis City gas station Two good Samaritan...

Vandals damage O'Fallon, Illinois family's window, pool

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:11:19 GMT

O'FALLON, Ill. - Vandals in O’Fallon, Illinois turned a crystal-clear swimming pool into a dark, oily mess.Police said the damage is in the tens of thousands of dollars.The victims are terrorized, saying there’s something even scarier than the oily pool.It happened at about 4:30 a.m. Sunday. The Gibson family was sleeping and then startled by the sound of breaking glass. After quietly dousing the pool with used motor oil, vandals picked up landscaping bricks from Gibson’s yard and chucked at the windows of their house.“It sounded honestly like a gunshot coming through the windows,” said Suzanne Gibson. Clerk shot and killed at St. Louis City gas station She has a 13-year-old son and a 9-year-old daughter with her husband.One of the large bricks crashed through a bedroom window. Thankfully, no one was sleeping there at the time. Gibson said they could have killed.Her husband immediately looked around the house to see what happened and eventually noticed something dark on the concre...