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Deadly chocolate factory blast highlights combustion risks

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:24:14 GMT

Last week’s fatal blast at a Pennsylvania chocolate factory highlighted the combustibility of food plants in general and chocolate making in particular.The powerful explosion Friday at R.M. Palmer Co. killed seven people, sent 10 to the hospital and damaged several other buildings in West Reading, a small town 60 miles (96 kilometers) northwest of Philadelphia, where the 75-year-old, family-owned company has long had a factory.Local, state and federal investigations are ongoing. Pennsylvania State Police have said “everything’s on the table,” as fire marshals try to pinpoint the origin and cause. Some workers told relatives they smelled natural gas before the blast, although the gas utility UGI said it received no reports of a gas leak. On Tuesday, federal officials said they were investigating the role of a natural gas pipeline in the explosion.A look at some of the hazards of food manufacturing and what may have been behind this fatal blast:THE RISKSIn general, commercial ov...

Ruling allows some pot dispensary licenses in NY to go ahead

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:24:14 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — New York officials will be able to issue licenses for recreational marijuana dispensaries in some parts of the state after an appeals court on Tuesday narrowed the scope of a temporary injunction that had halted them because of a legal challenge.The ruling from the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals allows the state to hand out licenses in Brooklyn, central New York, the mid-Hudson region and western New York, while upholding the block on them in the Finger Lakes region while a lawsuit continues.A federal judge in Albany, New York, in November issued a temporary injunction against the licenses being handed out in those areas, after a lawsuit filed by Variscite NY One. The company, owned by a Michigan resident, is challenging how New York is issuing its licenses.In designing the New York market, legislators intentionally looked for the first round of licenses to go to those who had pot convictions in their pasts or their relatives, in an attempt to make sure those d...

South Florida airport partially evacuated for security probe

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:24:14 GMT

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Officials ordered a partial evacuation of a South Florida airport Tuesday evening as part of a “security-related investigation.”The Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport posted on Twitter shortly after 8 p.m. that officials were investigating in the baggage claim area of Terminal 1, which is used primarily by Southwest Airlines.The terminal’s lower level was evacuated, and the airport’s entrance roadway was blocked, the social media post said.Travelers were instructed to check their airlines for updated flight information.Officials didn’t immediately provide details about what prompted the investigation and evacuation.Partial Evacuation Ordered At South Florida Airport, The Associated Press

75% of Travis Co. families live in poverty, Central Health 2022 demographic report reveals

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:24:14 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- After Central Health released its 2022 demographic report, it provided up-to-date information indicating how the overall report impacts low-income residents in Travis County.The last time Central Health released a demographic report was in 2020, according to the website. Among the key findings in the report, high cost of living and affordability is a regional issue that impacts Travis and surrounding counties, according to the Central Health website.Furthermore, Austin is the key regional access point for healthcare, affordable housing, public transportation and social services, the report said. According to the report, 75% of Travis County families live in poverty along the Interstate 35 corridor. Access to care continues to be a major barrier, regardless of proximity to care.Forty percent of patients had at least one chronic condition, with the overall average at 2.5 per patient, the report said.Central Health will hold a community conversation to go over the repo...

FBI Albany hosts recruiting event for women in law enforcement

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:24:14 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The FBI field office in Albany held a women in law enforcement recruiting event on Tuesday. Forty-five different agencies from federal, state and local levels signed up to participate in the event at the Albany Capital Center. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! There was a panel with six women who are currently serving in law enforcement. They shared their experiences of what it is like to work in the field.Some of the agencies who took part in the event included the New York State Police and the Troy and Colonie Police Departments.

Crash closes part of Route 144 in Bethlehem

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:24:14 GMT

BETHLEHEM, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- A serious crash has closed a portion of Route 144 in the town of Bethlehem Tuesday night. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! The crash took place on Route 144 northbound between Clapper Road and Beaver Dam Road. All lanes and both shoulders are closed.Drivers are asked to avoid the area.

Los Angeles 'mansion tax' has sellers giving away sports cars to entice buyers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:24:14 GMT

Sellers of luxury homes in Los Angeles are scrambling to offload their properties before a new “mansion tax” takes effect on April 1.Agents are trying their best to entice buyers with extravagant freebies before the ULA tax takes effect. The measure will impose a 4% transfer tax on property sales over $5 million and a 5.5% tax on properties over $10 million.The tax must be paid by the seller which means those with properties on the market are doing everything they can to incentivize quick closes. Some sellers are even throwing in a free McLaren or a Bentley with a purchase.While sellers are dropping prices dramatically, agents are finding clever ways to entice buyers to snatch up these pricey estates.“We were trying to think outside of the box and we offered a $1 million bonus to any agent who brought the buyer to one of our listings if we closed before April 1,” said Josh Altman, CEO of Altman Brothers Real Estate and star of “Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles.”Altman explains the...

84-year-old woman killed in Hollywood hit-and-run; police ask for public's help locating driver

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:24:14 GMT

Authorities with the Los Angeles Police Department are asking for the public’s assistance regarding a hit-and-run incident that claimed the life of an 84-year-old woman in Hollywood.  The fatal collision occurred on Jan. 9, just after 6:30 a.m., when a compact SUV traveling northbound on Serrano Avenue, near Sunset Boulevard, struck the 84-year-old, an LAPD news release stated.  “The suspect fled the scene and did not stop to render aid and/or ID themselves as required by law,” police said.  Personnel with the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to the scene. The female victim was taken to the hospital where she succumbed to her injuries.  The hit-and-run suspect’s vehicle is described as a white 2017-2019 Kia Sportage. A reference photo of the suspect's vehicle, described as a white 2017-2019 Kia Sportage. This is not the actual vehicle. (LAPD)A reward of up to $50,000 is available to community members that provide information leading to the identification, apprehe...

IRS Extends Tax Deadline For Most Of Southern California To Oct. 16

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:24:14 GMT

After a slew of damaging storms to start the year, the IRS extended the 2022 tax filing deadline to October 16 for most California counties, including Los Angeles.The original deadline would have fallen on April 18 for individual filers, and March 15 for some businesses, but 41 of California’s 58 counties can now take advantage of an extra six months after being declared disaster areas by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).“The IRS automatically provides filing and penalty relief to any taxpayer with an IRS address of record located in the disaster area,” The IRS wrote in a press release. “Therefore, taxpayers do not need to contact the agency to get this relief.”Most Southern Californians filing individually, or for business, qualify for the extension, short of those filing in Kern and Imperial County. The deadline applies not only to federal taxes, but state, as well.Changing the tax filing deadline is consistent with the federal assistanc...

Judge upholds Boy Scouts’ $2.4B bankruptcy plan

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:24:14 GMT

By Randall Chase | Associated PressDOVER, Del. — A $2.4 billion bankruptcy plan for the Boy Scouts of America has been upheld by a federal judge, clearing an important hurdle in the legal challenge by certain insurance companies and dissenting sex abuse survivors.The plan would let the Texas-based organization keep operating while it compensates tens of thousands of men who say they were sexually abused as children while involved in Scouting.The ruling released Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Delaware rejected arguments that the bankruptcy plan wasn’t proposed in good faith and improperly strips insurers and survivors of their rights.More than 80,000 men have filed claims saying they were abused as children by troop leaders around the country. Plan opponents say the staggering number of claims, when combined with other factors, suggest the bankruptcy process was manipulated.Judge Richard Andrews said he found no fault with the plan’s initial approval by a federal bankr...