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Yosemite National Park: Massive snowpack brings thundering waterfalls

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:58 GMT

The massive snowpack in the Sierra Nevada this year has transformed California’s most famous park, Yosemite. And the impacts are likely to last all summer, and perhaps even longer.The park’s world-famous waterfalls are thundering now as billions of gallons of melted snow cascade 1,000 feet or more down sheer granite cliffs. Park officials say there is so much snow at higher elevations from the winter’s parade of atmospheric river storms that flooding in Yosemite Valley is likely between late April and early July, which could close the park at times.“All of the water is a huge change from the previous few years,” said Cory Goehring, lead naturalist for the Yosemite Conservancy, a San Francisco nonprofit group that runs outdoor programs in the park. “The meadows are wet and lush. The Merced River is rising. It’s raging. And the waterfalls? They are so loud, they sound like an airplane taking off with how loud they are.”High Sierra camps that are popular with backpackers and reserved t...

Secret garden: Pop-up bar transforms for spring

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:58 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A pop-up bar on the top of Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego has transformed into a secret garden for spring. Over the Top Grand Garden, open through May 23, offers guests the chance to enjoy whimsical cocktails and delectable desserts while taking in ocean and skyline views 40 floors above the city. Perfect for photo ops or date nights, the interior features pink florals draping from the ceiling, flower arches and giant mushrooms."It basically looks like Alice in Wonderland came in here and decorated herself!" FOX 5's Heather Lake said when touring the space. Family recipe to phenomenon: The San Diego restaurant credited with creating taquitos The bar's specialty cocktails, inspired by popular springtime spots around San Diego, include Del Mar Derby, Strawberry Fields, Mint Duvet and La Primavera Margarita.A dessert trio features Mr. Cheesecake, Pink Lady and Sweet Mango.The Hyatt recommends making a reservation on OpenTable.com but welcomes walk-up guests.The garden ...

$100M grant awarded for bridge reconstruction, transit platform near fairgrounds

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:58 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A key state grant was announced Monday that will help replace a bridge in the North County and would allow for easier access to events at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. A $100 million grant from the State of California Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program was awarded to advance to phase two of the San Dieguito Bridge Replacement, Double Track and Special Events Platform Project.  “A trip from San Diego to Los Angeles takes three and a half hours. We want to make sure that trip takes less than two hours and replacing the bridge that we got the grant for and moving the track off the bluff is exactly what we need to do,” said Hasan Ikhrata, CEO of SANDAG.  The San Dieguito bridge is 107 years old and nearing the end of its life. This project would not only work to replace the bridge, but also double track through the area allowing it to service more trains.  Potential work stoppage could impact MTS Access, minibus service Just...

Striking public servants block access to government buildings and key infrastructure

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:58 GMT

OTTAWA — Federal ministers said Tuesday they are monitoring for blockades of critical roads and infrastructure as striking federal workers made good on a promise to ramp up their picket efforts by disrupting traffic and limiting access to office buildings in downtown Ottawa. More than 150,000 federal public servants with the Public Service Alliance of Canada were on strike for the seventh straight day as their union representatives continued to negotiate with the government for a bigger wage increase and more flexibility to work remotely.Around the National Capital Region, hundreds of striking workers made their presence felt and heard, circling buildings, chanting through megaphones and blasting music throughout the morning.Hundreds of public servants marched across the Portage Bridge between Ottawa and Gatineau, Que., where some of the biggest federal buildings are located, holding up traffic for a short period Tuesday morning.Outside the Prime Minister’s Office building and...

Toronto police officer charged for firing ‘less-lethal’ round at man’s vehicle in North York

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:58 GMT

Ontario’s police watchdog has charged a Toronto police officer following an incident in North York in 2022.The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) opened the case on Oct. 7, 2022, after a Toronto officer fired a less-lethal round at the window of a vehicle driven by a man in the Don Mills Road area.At approximately 5:30 a.m., the SIU said that responding officers stopped a suspect vehicle at 3000 Don Mills Road, believing the driver was wanted on warrants with Peel Regional Police.Information gathered by the SIU suggested the man refused to exit the vehicle, leading to one officer firing a less-lethal round at the window. The suspect was arrested and taken to a local hospital. The man was not seriously injured, but the SIU invoked its mandate because a police officer discharged a less-lethal firearm.On Tuesday, the SIU charged Const. Alexander Cameron with one count of careless use of a firearm. Const. Cameron will appear in a Toronto court on May 23, 2023.The SIU said it would ...

Gov. Inslee signs Washington gun violence prevention bills

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:58 GMT

BELLINGHAM, Wash. (AP) — Washington Gov. Jay Inslee signed a trio of bills meant to prevent gun violence Tuesday — one banning the sale of certain semi-automatic rifles, one imposing a 10-day waiting period on firearms purchases, and one clearing the way for lawsuits against gun makers or sellers in certain cases.A crowd of gun-control activists and Democratic lawmakers broke into cheers as he signed the measures, which he said would not solve all gun violence but would save lives.“Just because they don’t solve all the problems does not mean the state of Washington does not take action,” Inslee said. “Inaction against gun violence is unacceptable.”White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre praised Washington state officials for passing a ban on assault-style weapons. President Joe Biden “commends the leadership of Washington Governor Jay Inslee and legislative leaders as well as the advocates, survivors and elected officials who fought for years to make today a reality,” s...

How ‘Perry Mason’ captured 1930s Los Angeles, race divisions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:58 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Early in the second season finale of “Perry Mason,” which aired Monday, the titular character pulls up on his motorcycle to Los Angeles City Hall and pauses for a long moment. He stares up at the edifice, as if sizing up an opponent, before walking in with hopes to intercede with a judge on behalf of his clients.Although the scene has no dialogue, the shot of City Hall is pregnant with meaning, almost taunting the maverick lawyer for having the audacity to think he could bring about justice within such a corrupt system.It’s one of many scenes throughout the Emmy-nominated HBO drama, based on Erle Stanley Gardner’s books and a prequel of sorts to the long-running show starring Raymond Burr, where 1930s Los Angeles is itself a star through the creators’ use of iconic institutions, public landmarks, terrain — and racial and class divisions.Matthew Rhys, who plays Mason, only became aware of how much attention to detail went into fashioning “LA as that kind of other c...

Clock ticking for plan to keep West Virginia coal plant open

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:58 GMT

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — More than 500,000 homes and businesses in West Virginia would see their electricity bills increase for up to a year or more to extend the life of a coal-fired power plant on the brink of closure under a proposal advancing through the state’s utility regulatory agency.West Virginia’s Public Service Commission said this week it will allow Monongahela Power and Potomac Edison to move forward with finalizing a plan they project would cost 547,000 West Virginia ratepayers at least $36 million to cover the cost of keeping the two-unit, 1,300-megawatt Pleasants Power Station on the Ohio River open until May 2024.The request, made at the urging of state Republican leadership, will allow the First Energy Corp. subsidiaries — which currently own two other coal-fired plants in West Virginia — to study the possibility of adding it to their power production holdings.Otherwise, Pleasants Power Station’s more than 150 employees will lose their jobs after its cu...

Rosalind Franklin’s role in DNA discovery gets a new twist

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:58 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — The discovery of DNA’s double helix structure 70 years ago opened up a world of new science — and also sparked disputes over who contributed what and who deserves credit. Much of the controversy comes from a central idea: that James Watson and Francis Crick — the first to figure out DNA’s shape — stole data from another scientist named Rosalind Franklin.Now, two historians are suggesting that while parts of that story are accurate — Watson and Crick did rely on research from Franklin and her lab without their permission — Franklin was more a collaborator than just a victim. In an opinion article published Tuesday in the journal Nature, the historians say the two different research teams were working in parallel toward solving the DNA puzzle and knew more about what the other team was doing than is widely believed.“It’s much less dramatic,” said article author Matthew Cobb, a zoologist at the University of Manchester who is working on a biography of Crick. “It’s not a...

Kim Foxx says she will not seek re-election

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:58 GMT

CHICAGO — Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx will not seek re-election. In an email to her staff Tuesday, Foxx said, "While I will not be seeking a third term, it doesn’t mean I’m going anywhere.  The good, hard work we began in 2016 will continue through the end of my term in 2024."Foxx delivered remarks in an address to the City Club of Chicago Tuesday and announced she will not run for the office in 2024. She said she told Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson Monday. Foxx won a second term as Cook County state’s attorney in 2020.Her tenure ushered in sweeping changes in how the Cook County prosecutor handles crime and punishment.For several years, amid a rise in crime in the City of Chicago, critics have labeled her social justice reform as failing the community.Foxx has faced criticism from the Chicago Police Department, and from Mayor Lori Lightfoot on charging decisions, home monitoring, as well as the handling of high profile cases like Jussie Smollett. Previous Coverage: Po...