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More people can’t afford nutritious food and 148 million children are stunted by hunger, UN says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:50 GMT

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. delivered grim news on global food security Wednesday: 2.4 billion people didn’t have constant access to food last year, as many as 783 million faced hunger, and 148 million children suffered from stunted growth.Five U.N. agencies said in the 2023 State of Food Security and Nutrition report that while global hunger numbers stalled between 2021 and 2022 many places are facing deepening food crises. They pointed to Western Asia, the Caribbean and Africa, where 20% of the continent’s population is experiencing hunger, more than twice the global average.“Recovery from the global pandemic has been uneven, and the war in Ukraine has affected the nutritious food and healthy diets,” Qu Dongyu, director-general of the Food and Agriculture Organization said in a statement. “This is the `new normal’ where climate change, conflict, and economic instability are pushing those on the margins even further from safety.”FAO chief economist Maximo Torero said the FAO foo...

Top tribunal certifies Guatemala’s election result minutes after another court suspends party

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:50 GMT

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Guatemala’s troubled presidential election was thrown into even greater turmoil Wednesday when the country’s top electoral tribunal confirmed the results of the June 25 vote while the Attorney General’s Office announced that the second place party had been suspended.The seemingly contradictory moves fed more than two weeks of rising tensions and suspicions after the first round of voting, which had seemingly sent conservative Sandra Torres and progressive Bernardo Arévalo into a Aug. 20 presidential runoff.There were immediate calls Wednesday for Guatemalans to take to the streets in protest and demonstrators gathered outside the Supreme Electoral Tribunal until heavy rain drove them away.It was not immediately clear how the situation would play out now that yet another court had intervened in Guatemala’s electoral process, but electoral authorities said Torres and Arévalo would face each other on Aug. 20.But Rafael Curruchiche, the special prosecutor aga...

Tornado Watch issued LaPorte County, Indiana

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:50 GMT

The National Weather Service in Chicago has issued a Tornado Watch is in effect for La Porte County, Indiana until 2 a.m. Thursday. According to ComEd, there are about 123 active power outages in Northern Illinois as of 10 p.m. on Wednesday. Click here to see the power outages map.Latest warnings and watches from the National Weather Service.CHICAGO — A Tornado Watch is in effect for the Chicago area as heavy rain and storms moved through the region Wednesday.A Tornado Watch was issued for Cook, De Kalb, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kankakee, La Salle, McHenry and Will counties in Illinois. In Northwest Indiana, Jasper, Lake, Newton and Porter counties were also issued a Tornado Watch.A Flood Watch were issued for Cook County, DuPage County, Will County and some parts of Northwest Indiana. There is a slight risk of severe weather. Severe weather leaves damage around Northern Illinois, Northwest Indiana Mostly cloudy conditions with heavy rain showers ...

Rockford kidnapping, murder suspect with lengthy criminal past, possibly linked to death of woman in Schaumburg

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:50 GMT

ROCKFORD, Ill. — Over last weekend, police announced charges against a 44-year-old man from Blue Island in relation to the death of a 10-year-old Rockford girl. Since then, details on his criminal past and connections to other crimes have continued to unfold.According to the Rockford Police Department, Antonio Monroe is charged with several crimes, including first degree murder in the kidnapping and murder of 10-year-old Destiny Huggins, and the kidnapping of her 6-year-old sister."I think this is just, again, a real-life nightmare, with a real-life monster," said Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara.Monroe is accused of luring the two sisters into the backyard of an abandoned home in Rockford, promising them money, before attacking them.A criminal complaint filed in Winnebago county said Monroe strangled the 6-year-old girl until she lost consciousness. During a press conference Sunday, police said she was able to escape and run to get help.According to police, officers were dispatched arou...

This year's Texas football team is one that will be 'powered by love'

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:50 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Love comes in many forms and shows in many ways. For the Texas Longhorns, the players hope their love for each other shows up via a bunch of trophies by the end of the team's last Big 12 Conference season.During Big 12 Media Days at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, seniors Jordan Whittington and Jaylan Ford both mentioned the chemistry the team has developed over the past few years. They said it's an integral part of how the team has won games and will win more in the future. What Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian said at Big 12 Media Days "I think we're more powered by love than we've ever been," Whittington said. "I think we trust each other more than we ever have and I think we believe in what we're doing more than we ever have. I think when you mix all those it's really hard to stop that mixed with the amount of talent we have."Ford, who was tabbed as the Big 12's preseason defensive player of the year following his terrific 2022 season, added that the t...

'Playing catch-up': New tree trimming crews expected to help with Austin Energy efforts

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:50 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- When the power in Isaac's South Austin neighborhood went out, he was worried. The temperatures had only dropped a few degrees from the triple-digit high; he worried about his eight-month-old baby and two teenagers. While he applauded the crews for their work in ultimately getting the outage restored, he told KXAN that based on the weather events of the past few years, he originally didn't have "any confidence" in the estimated restoration time. "Would we get a hotel room?" he wondered. "What about the breast milk in the fridge?" Tree trouble: Focus on vegetation management after Austin power outages Austin Energy posted on Twitter, explaining a tree had come into contact with power lines in a private yard. The outage affected around 2,300 people in the area Tuesday night. Vice President of Electric System Field Operations, Elton Richards, said its vegetation management efforts would not have prevented the incident. "To prevent it, I would’ve had to cut 60 feet ...

Teemu Pukki’s opening goal helps Loons down Houston 3-0

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:50 GMT

Minnesota United’s new partnership of Teemu Pukki and Emanuel Reynoso showed their lethal capability on Wednesday at Shell Energy Stadium in Houston.They can backstab opponents.Reynoso had his back toward Houston’s goal when Pukki took off running from the halfway line. Reynoso made one of his intuitive turns and fed a pass through two Dynamo defenders to an on-running Pukki for his first MLS goal. The Finnish forward calmly slotted it home.The Loons sat on the lead, absorbed a ton of pressure in the second half, but added a further insurance goal and won 3-0.MNUFC (7-8-6, 27 points) haven’t lost to Houston in MLS play since 2020 and narrowed this season’s gap on the Dynamo (8-10-4, 28 points).The Loons signed Pukki to a Designated Player contract with this type of on-field connection with Reynoso in mind. Pukki and Reynoso provided this early return in their first match together in the starting XI.Five minutes before Pukki’s goal, MNUFC took a 1-0 lead when Bongi Hlongwane displaye...

Albany community calls for action for safer streets

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:50 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (WTEN) —  After a 60-year-old Albany man was violently assaulted in front of Paesan’s pizza on Ontario Street, local business owners say they’ve had it with all the violence. Now, City Council Members want a call for action after some business owners have told Albany Common Council President Corey Ellis they are considering moving their business out of the area. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! “When something like that happens, that’s a call to action. That’s a call to action when our business owners feel like there’s no other remedy but to move on,” Ellis said.Council members shared the need for intergenerational community centers and a community police group. But Albany residents like Melissa Mackey say the community police option was already done.“And they typically petered out,” Mackey said. “And so I want something new and different. And you know, we’re up here in Pine Hills, and so a community policing ef...

University City residents frustrated over stalled storm debris cleanup as new storms roll in

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:50 GMT

UNIVERSITY CITY, Mo. - University City residents voiced their frustration as city crews started debris pickup from storms that hit the city hard, leaving a wake of damage earlier this month.It's been nearly two weeks since severe storms hit University City with high winds, resulting in a sea of downed trees and debris. During recent storms, 70-80 mph winds ripped through the area and caused heavy damage to its residents."Probably about 45 to 50 percent of the city was really affected by the storm, caused a lot of damage, crews have been out every day since the day of the storm,” said Darren Dunkle, University City director of Parks, Recreation, and Forestry.Residents did not have power for almost a week. University City was one of the last cities to restore power. 3 killed, several injured in Greyhound bus crash A lot of the trees took down power lines, in addition, to falling on homes and the streets. At every turn, so much debris littered the area. The city didn’t finish assessm...

Firefighters battle massive fire at 2 apartment buildings in Hollywood

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:17:50 GMT

Firefighters responded to a "major-emergency" fire in a two-story apartment building in Hollywood where at least one person was rescued before the flames spread to a second building on Wednesday. Crews responded to the 7700 block of Hollywood Boulevard at around 5:20 p.m. after receiving reports of two vehicles on fire in the carport of the garden-style apartment building, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.  Crews work to extinguish a greater-alarm fire at an apartment building in Hollywood on July 12, 2023. (KTLA)At the scene, fire personnel discovered the flames had extended into the building’s attic and began working, with assistance from L.A. County Fire, to extinguish flames in the 32-unit, 18,900-square-foot building, which has been structurally compromised from the heat of the blaze. Crews were able to rescue a woman on the second floor, who was described as being in fair condition. She was taken to a nearby hospital for unspecified injuries, LAFD said. Aerial footage...