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Maui residents had little warning before flames overtook town. At least 55 people died.

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 07:49:26 GMT

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — Maui residents who desperately escaped flames, some on foot, asked why Hawaii’s famous emergency warning system didn’t alert them as fires raced toward their homes.Hawaii emergency management records show no indication that warning sirens were triggered before a devastating wildfire killed at least 55 people and wiped out a historic town, officials confirmed Thursday.Hawaii boasts what the state describes as the largest integrated outdoor all-hazard public safety warning system in the world, with about 400 sirens positioned across the island chain. But many of Lahaina’s survivors said in interviews at evacuation centers that they didn’t hear any sirens and only realized they were in danger when they saw flames or heard explosions nearby.Thomas Leonard, a 70-year-old retired mailman from Lahaina, didn’t know about the fire until he smelled smoke. Power and cell phone service had both gone out earlier that day, leaving the town with no real-time information abou...

Spain edges Netherlands 2-1 in extra time to reach Women’s World Cup semifinals for the first time

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 07:49:26 GMT

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Jorge Vilda was more interested in the aftermath back in Spain if his team won its Women’s World Cup quarterfinal than he was about a rattling 5.0 magnitude earthquake that shook Wellington an hour before kickoff against Netherlands.Salma Paralluelo was unshaken by the tremblor or the high-pressure stakes, scoring late in extra time Friday to give Spain a 2-1 victory and a place in the Women’s World Cup semifinals for the first time.“We were so concentrated,” Spain coach Vilda said, recalling how his team prepared for the game even as the ground shook. “Yes, it was a middle (moderate) shake, an earthquake, but not today. The earthquake was the victory of Spain.”The 19-year-old Paralluelo started the match on the bench for the first time at this World Cup and made her entry just in time to make history. Spain dominated a scoreless first half and 2019 finalist Netherlands had a penalty scrubbed out by the VAR in the 62nd minute after a tussle...

UBS ends rescue packages from Swiss gov’t that paved way for Credit Suisse takeover

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 07:49:26 GMT

GENEVA (AP) — UBS said Friday it has shut down rescue packages agreed with Swiss authorities that made available up to 200 billion Swiss francs (about $230 billion) to help shepherd through its takeover of ailing rival Credit Suisse and avert an international banking crisis.The Zurich-based banking giant, which completed the takeover on June 12, said it had moved to “voluntarily terminate” rescue programs that aimed to help mop up billions of losses and provide liquidity to the banks as they moved forward on the complex deal.UBS said it had repaid 50 billion francs in loans from the Swiss National Bank and 100 billion francs in liquidity support from the Swiss government, while ending a 9 billion franc “loss protection agreement” with the government. In total, UBS also paid some 730 million francs in commitment fees and risk premiums to Swiss authorities, comprised of 200 million to the government and 530 million to the national bank.Swiss authorities and UBS announced the has...

Los Angeles hosts Atlanta following Ogwumike’s 20-point showing

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 07:49:26 GMT

Atlanta Dream (15-13, 9-8 Eastern Conference) at Los Angeles Sparks (11-18, 6-10 Western Conference)Los Angeles; Saturday, 7:30 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Los Angeles takes on the Atlanta Dream after Nneka Ogwumike scored 20 points in the Los Angeles Sparks’ 87-80 win against the Indiana Fever.The Sparks are 7-8 on their home court. Los Angeles ranks second in the Western Conference in team defense, allowing 81.6 points while holding opponents to 46.1% shooting.The Dream are 7-8 on the road. Atlanta has a 0-2 record in games decided by less than 4 points.The teams play for the third time this season. The Dream won the last meeting 90-79 on July 6. Allisha Gray scored 23 points to help lead the Dream to the victory.TOP PERFORMERS: Jordin Canada is averaging 13.3 points, six assists and 1.9 steals for the Sparks. Ogwumike is averaging 19.8 points, 9.1 rebounds and 1.6 steals over the last 10 games for Los Angeles.Cheyenne Parker is averaging 14 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.5 blocks for ...

Killing of Ecuador candidate deepens country’s sense of vulnerability to crime

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 07:49:26 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — The brazen assassination of Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio at a crowded political rally Wednesday night deepened the country’s sense of vulnerability to the crime that’s spread across the country in recent years. After multiple threats for his stance against drug trafficking and corruption, Villavicencio was under the watch of police and private security guards. His shooting death has focused global attention on his country’s wave of violent deaths, which began about three years ago, and the connection between organized crime and other powerful interests there.HOW WAS VILLAVICENCIO THREATENED? He said during his campaign that he and his team he had been threatened by the Ecuadorian criminal group known as Los Choneros and their leader Alias Fito, whom Villavicencio linked to Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel. Villavicencio said popular support would protect him, “You’re my bulletproof vest. I don’t need one. You&...

Once again the Netherlands ponder what might have been at a Women’s World Cup

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 07:49:26 GMT

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — The Netherland’s peripatetic campaign at the Women’s World Cup ended Friday with a 2-1 quarterfinal loss to Spain and the sting of bitterness and regret.A 62nd-minute penalty awarded to the Netherlands after a push by Irene Paredes on Lineth Beerensteyn was scrubbed out after a VAR review.What might have been a 1-0 lead became a 1-0 deficit when Mariona Caldente scored from the penalty spot from Spain after another review found defender Stefanie van der Gragt’s hand had made contact with the ball near the edge of the area.Just over 10 minutes later and near the end of stoppage time, van der Gragt pushed up in an attack role and broke free on Victoria Pelova’s pass to calmly strike the ball past the Spanish goalkeeper, sending the match to extra time. There was a question of offside but this time the VAR found in favor of the Dutch.But the win and semifinal place went to Spain with a goal to substitute Salma Paralluelo late in th...

More evacuations considered in Norway where level in swollen rivers continues to rise

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 07:49:26 GMT

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — More evacuations were being considered Friday in southeastern Norway, where the level of water in swollen rivers and lakes continued to grow after days of torrential rain.Huge amounts of water, littered with broken trees, debris and trash, were thundering down the usually serene rivers. It flooded abandoned houses, left cars coated in mud and swamped camping sites. One of the most affected places was the town of Hønefossen where the Begna river had gone over its banks and authorities were considering moving more people downstream for fear of landslides. Up to 2,000 people have already been evacuated. “We constantly try to think a few steps ahead. We are ready to press an even bigger red button,” Magnus Nilholm, a local emergency manager in the Hønefossen region, told Norwegian broadcaster NRK. Ivar Berthling of Norway’s Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE) told Norwegian news agency NTB that the water levels around Hønefossen, some 40 kilomet...

In the news today: Feds to give update on Canada’s wildfire season

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 07:49:26 GMT

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed on what you need to know today…Federal government to provide wildfire outlookFederal officials are set to provide an update today on the outlook for the rest of this year’s devastating wildfire season.Officials have already said Canada is experiencing its worst fire season on record, charring more than 130,000 square kilometres to date, which is more than six times the 10-year average.Natural Resources Canada said last week there were more than 650 fires burning across Canada, about two-thirds of them in B.C. —Here’s what else we’re watching …Televising Trump: should D.C. trial be broadcast?A group is working to convince the head of the U.S. Supreme Court that Donald Trump’s trial in Washington, D.C., should be televised. The Radio Television Digital News Association is forming a coalition to petition the court system’s policy-making panel of judges,...

Makkabi Berlin, founded by Holocaust survivors, to be 1st Jewish team in German Cup

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 07:49:26 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Makkabi Berlin’s first game ever ended in a 15-1 loss in the city’s humblest soccer league. The result of that 1971 match was secondary, though, as merely playing was an achievement for the team founded by Holocaust survivors.“We wanted to show that we’re still here — that we’re accepted, that we weren’t ended in 1933,” co-founder Marian Wajselfisz told The Associated Press. He still laughs about the result.On Sunday, Makkabi will be the first Jewish club to play in the German Cup, a season-long tournament for 64 of the country’s best professional and amateur sides.When the annual competition was started under the Nazis in 1935, Jews weren’t allowed to take part. So when fifth-tier Makkabi squares off against top-tier Wolfsburg, it will be carrying the weight of history onto the field.“I’ve been there from the first day. I never imagined that we — as a Jewish team — would ever be playing a cup game against a Bundesliga team. So for us, and for me personally, it’s a hug...

Tensions rise as West African nations prepare to send troops to restore democracy in Niger

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 07:49:26 GMT

NIAMEY, Niger (AP) — Tensions are escalating between Niger’s new military regime and the West African regional bloc that has ordered the deployment of troops to restore Niger’s flailing democracy. The ECOWAS bloc said on Thursday it had directed a “standby force” to restore constitutional order in Niger after its Sunday deadline to reinstate ousted President Mohamed Bazoum expired. Hours earlier, two Western officials told The Associated Press that Niger’s junta had told a top U.S. diplomat they would kill Bazoum if neighboring countries attempted any military intervention to restore his rule.It’s unclear when or where the force will deploy and which countries from the 15-member bloc would contribute to it. Conflict experts say it would likely comprise some 5,000 troops led by Nigeria and could be ready within weeks. After the ECOWAS meeting, neighboring Ivory Coast’s president, Alassane Ouattara, said his country would take part in the military operation, along wi...