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Investigators say damaged ties caused German derailment that killed 5

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:00 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — A train derailment a year ago in the German Alps that left five people dead was caused primarily by damaged concrete ties on the track, investigators said Thursday.The double-deck regional train derailed on June 3, 2022, shortly after leaving the Alpine resort town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen for Munich. A 13-year-old boy and four women aged between 30 and 70, including two refugees from Ukraine, were killed. More than 70 people were injured, 16 of them seriously.Germany’s federal agency for rail accident investigations said in a preliminary report Thursday that damage to concrete ties used on the line where the accident happened appears to have led to the structure failing and to supports that attach the rails to the ties breaking away, causing the derailment.The ties already had been identified as a potential factor in the derailment in recent months, leading railway operator Deutsche Bahn to launch a “special inspection program” and replace some ties elsewhere a...

Chile closes state copper smelter that polluted bay for decades

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:00 GMT

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — Chile’s state-owned copper mining giant Codelco on Wednesday shut down its Ventanas copper smelter after decades of polluting Quintero Bay with toxic gases and turning it, along with 15 other companies, into what environmentalists called a “sacrifice zone.”Eight years ago, the Chilean government declared that the three municipalities surrounding the bay — Quintero, Puchuncaví, and Concón, located 160 kilometers northwest of the Chilean capital — were saturated with fine particulate matter, inhalation of which is associated with discomfort and respiratory ailments.During a formal ceremony held on Wednesday in Puchuncaví, images of flames from the smelter’s furnace were shown gradually diminishing until they were fully extinguished, marking the closure of the copper smelter 59 years after its founding. A Codelco refinery will continue to operate at the site.The latest mass intoxication by pollution in the region took place only a week ago and affected near...

French Open hopes AI can help tennis players block death threats, other social media hate

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:00 GMT

PARIS (AP) — Frances Tiafoe says he receives death threats via social media after he loses professional tennis matches. Jessica Pegula says the same. So does Donna Vekic — directed at just her or her family, too.“Everybody gets them after a loss,” said Tiafoe, a 25-year-old from Maryland who was scheduled to play in the French Open’s second round on Thursday and was a semifinalist at last year’s U.S. Open. “It’s just how society is today. I know how that affects people’s mental health. That’s very real.”Sloane Stephens, the 2017 champion at Flushing Meadows and 2018 runner-up at Roland Garros, says she often deals with racist messages directed at her online, and said some prompted the FBI to investigate.“It’s obviously been a problem my entire career. It has never stopped,” said Stephens, who is Black. “If anything, it’s only gotten worse.”In a bid to try to protect athletes from that sort of abuse at Roland Garros during the 15-day Grand Slam tournament that ends June 11, the Frenc...

Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative wins Spain’s Princess of Asturias award

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:00 GMT

MADRID (AP) — The Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi), a non-profit that undertakes research and delivers treatment to millions of marginalized patients worldwide, has won Spain’s Princess of Asturias Award for International Cooperation.The Spanish foundation said Thursday the award was given to the medical research organization for its collaborative efforts across international health care systems and the private sector on lifesaving drug research that is largely unprofitable for major pharmaceutical companies.DNDi tackles diseases that proliferate in parts of Africa, Asia and Latin America including Dengue fever, malaria, pediatric HIV, hepatitis C, and cryptococcal meningitis. The research group has already saved millions of lives since its foundation in 2003, it says.The DNDi will receive a 50,000-euro prize for the international cooperation award.The eight Princess of Asturias prizes are among the most prestigious in the Spanish-speaking world. The awards cerem...

Turkish election body confirms Erdogan’s victory in runoff vote

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:00 GMT

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s election board certified the results of the May 28 presidential runoff election on Thursday, confirming that Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has been a dominant force in Turkish politics for the past two decades, has won a third term as president.Ahmet Yener, the head of the Supreme Electoral Council said Erdogan won 52.18% of the votes, while main opposition party leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu garnered 47.82%.“According to these results, it is understood that Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been elected president and the results were sent to the Official Gazette for publication,” Yener announced.He said turnout was 85.72%Already Turkey’s longest serving leader, Erdogan, 69, can now govern until 2028. Unconfirmed reports say he is scheduled to take the oath of office on Saturday, after which he is expected to announce the lineup of his new Cabinet.Erdogan faces a host of domestic challenges, from a battered economy to pressure for the repatriation of millions of Syrian...

Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck buy $60M Beverly Hills mega-mansion

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:00 GMT

(KTLA) - Welcome to the neighborhood. After two years of house-hunting, Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck have purchased a new home together in Beverly Hills for a cool $60,850,000.Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s new Beverly Hills home purchased for $60,850,000 on May 31, 2023. (KTLA)Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s new Beverly Hills home purchased for $60,850,000 on May 31, 2023. (KTLA)Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s new Beverly Hills home purchased for $60,850,000 on May 31, 2023. (KTLA)Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s new Beverly Hills home purchased for $60,850,000 on May 31, 2023. (KTLA)Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s new Beverly Hills home purchased for $60,850,000 on May 31, 2023. (KTLA)Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s new Beverly Hills home purchased for $60,850,000 on May 31, 2023. (KTLA)Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s new Beverly Hills home purchased for $60,850,000 on May 31, 2023. (KTLA)Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s new Beverly Hills home purchased for $60,850,000 on...

Meta threatens to block news in California if journalism proposal passes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:00 GMT

(The Hill) - Facebook parent company Meta is threatening to remove news content on its platforms Instagram and Facebook in California if the state legislature passes a new proposal that would make tech companies pay publishers for news content. “If the Journalism Preservation Act passes, we will be forced to remove news from Facebook and Instagram rather than pay into a slush fund that primarily benefits big, out-of-state media companies under the guise of aiding California publishers,” reads a statement posted to Twitter by Meta spokesperson Andy Stone.Meta’s statement says the California bill, which is now before the state Assembly, “fails to recognize that publishers and broadcasters put their content on our platform themselves and that substantial consolidation in California’s local news industry came over 15 years ago, well before Facebook was widely used.”The bill would require covered platforms to pay a "journalism usage fee" for content from local outlets — and require publi...

How to prepare to start paying back your student loans when the freeze ends this summer

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:00 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — A three-year pause on student loan payments will end this summer regardless of how the Supreme Court rules on the White House plan to forgive billions of dollars in student loan debt.If Congress approves a debt ceiling deal negotiated by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Joe Biden, payments will resume in late August, ending any lingering hope of a further extension of the pause that started during the COVID pandemic. Even if the deal falls through, payments will resume 60 days after the Supreme Court decision.That ruling is expected sometime before the end of June. No matter what the justices decide, more than 40 million borrowers will have to start paying back their loans by the end of the summer at the latest.Here's what to know to get ready to start paying back loans:HOW SHOULD I PREPARE FOR STUDENT LOANS PAYMENTS TO RESTART?Betsy Mayotte, President of the Institute of Student Loan Advisors, encourages people not to make any paym...

Rain chances creep up first weekend of June

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:00 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- As the calendar flips to June today, the forecast looks (and feels!) very much how it should this time of year.Morning clouds will partially clear to a mix of afternoon sun and clouds. High temperatures will warm to seasonal normals with all of Central Texas in the upper 70s to low 80s today.By late Friday, a little excitement in the forecast. A few isolated storms will make a run at the Hill Country late Friday night (9 p.m. - 11 p.m.), and although most stay dry, this will mark the beginning of better rain chances to come.A few isolated storms/showers possible in the Hill Country late Friday night BLOG: Summer forecast released: When do 100º days begin A weakening high pressure system will open the door for a few disturbances to roll in our direction this weekend into next week. Several rounds of scattered showers and storms are possible with rainfall totals generally ranging between 0.25"-1.5" between today and next week. INVESTIGATION: LCRA didn't plan for c...

Activists protest rezoning Borden Dairy site near 183 and Colorado River

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:00 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – Activists gathered in east Austin Wednesday to demand more studies be done before Austin City Council allows a local real estate company to transform the current home of the Borden Dairy Plant near U.S. Highway 183 and the Colorado River. According to our partners at the Austin Business Journal, Endeavor Real Estate Group, known for The Domain and Saltillo, wants permission rezone the 21-acre site off Levander Loop in order to construct 1,400 residential units, more than 400,000 square feet of offices, more than 100,000 square feet of retail space and a 220-room hotel.ABJ reported Endeavor wants to change the property's zoning from industrial to mixed-use with a height limit of 120 feet, which would allow buildings of 10 stories or more. The Austin Planning Commission voted March 28 in favor of the change. Council will consider that change Thursday. The activists, including the social justice group PODER and Colorado River Conservancy, said Wednesday they are not aga...