INSTITUTE, W.Va. (AP) — A chemical leak at a West Virginia plant killed two people and sent 19 others to the hospital, authorities said. The leak occurred at the Catalyst Refiners plant, a silver recovery business in Institute, as workers were preparing to shut down at least part of the facility, Kanawha County Commission Emergency […]
DURANGO, Colo. (AP) — A Colorado prosecutor said Wednesday that an immigration officer has been charged with third-degree assault and criminal mischief following an investigation into the treatment of a protester seen being put into a chokehold. Video showed a masked federal agent seizing a protester and placing her in a chokehold, and pulling her […]
Confusion deepened Wednesday in the Strait of Hormuz as Iran attacked three ships near the crucial waterway whose closure has plunged the world into an energy crisis after tankers carrying a fifth of the world’s oil were blocked from using the channel. The attacks unfolded just a day after U.S. President Donald Trump said he […]
HOUSTON (AP) — A Houston city ordinance that limited police officers’ cooperation with federal immigration agents was amended on Wednesday after Texas’ governor threatened to take away millions of dollars in public safety grants. Two weeks ago, Houston City Council passed the ordinance, which eliminated a requirement that Houston police officers wait 30 minutes for […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — More than 17 million people along the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf coasts are at the highest risk of being affected by flooding, with New York and New Orleans standing out, according to one of the most comprehensive studies ever of flood risk. Researchers at the University of Alabama used 16 different factors […]
NEW YORK (AP) — The Gates Foundation is reviewing its ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, the global health funder confirmed Wednesday, as its only remaining founder faces mounting scrutiny over his appearances in Justice Department documents related to its investigation of the disgraced financier. Microsoft founder Bill Gates reportedly spoke “candidly” about his […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — Six people have been charged with plotting to steal at least 20 cars from the Washington, D.C., area and sell them to buyers in the United States and Ghana in West Africa, according to a federal indictment unsealed Wednesday. Investigators suspect members of the car theft ring have stolen more than 100 […]
ATLANTA (AP) — U.S. Rep. David Scott has died at age 80. The Georgia Democrat was seeking his 13th term in Congress and was facing a contested primary.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of 4-year-olds attending state-funded preschools reached record highs last school year, driven by states embracing universal access and an unprecedented $14.4 billion in spending. State-funded preschool enrollment in the U.S. rose to 1.8 million kids, reaching 37% of 4-year-olds and about 10% of 3-year-olds, according to an annual report published […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — A man who stole a purse from then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem while she dined at a restaurant under the protection of Secret Service agents was sentenced on Wednesday to three years in prison for a string of thefts in the nation’s capital. Mario Bustamante Leiva did not recognize Noem when he […]
The gerrymandering of House districts is becoming more rampant across the U.S. The word “gerrymander” was coined in America more than 200 years ago as an unflattering way to describe the political manipulation of boundaries for legislative voting districts by those in charge of drawing them. The word has stood the test of time, in […]
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Rhode Island’s primary elections will now be held on Wednesday, Sept. 9, moving it back from the typical Tuesday election day because it fell too close to Labor Day. Gov. Dan McKee, a Democrat, signed off on the change earlier this week. The primary election had been scheduled for Sept. 8, […]
Large chunks of ice rammed into homes along Michigan’s Black Lake in the northeastern Lower Peninsula as constant spring rainfall and winter melt left many homes flooded and threatened to overflow stressed dam systems. Photos and video posted to social media Wednesday showed ice sitting inside living rooms after it busted through windows and doors. […]
A paddle-wielding robot is so adept at playing table tennis that it is posing a tough challenge to elite human players and sometimes defeating them, according to a new study that shows how advances in artificial intelligence are making robots more agile. Japanese electronics giant Sony built the robotic arm it calls Ace and pitted […]
ATLANTA (AP) — Wildfires burning across the southeastern U.S. were intensifying Wednesday after destroying nearly 50 homes in southeastern Georgia and forcing evacuations in some communities. Some of the biggest fires were popping up between and around Jacksonville, Florida, and along Georgia’s coast. A long drought, low humidity and strong winds are fueling the blazes, […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Wednesday sided with Michigan in ruling that the state’s lawsuit seeking to shut down a section of an aging pipeline beneath a Great Lakes channel will stay in state court. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote for a unanimous court that the Enbridge energy company waited too long to try […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Wednesday cleared the way for a veteran wounded by a suicide bomb in Afghanistan to sue the government contractor for whom the attacker was working when he built the explosive. Former Army Spc. Winston Hencely was wounded in 2016 when he stopped a man on his way to […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — A work vehicle hit a commuter train in downtown Washington early Wednesday, injuring 11 people, officials said. The stationary silver line train was struck just after midnight at the Metro Center station, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority said in a social media post. The station is a major transfer point in […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secrecy surrounding White House security makes details hard to come by, but President Donald Trump’s court fight over his $400 million ballroom casts some light on an underground bunker at the site that has had a role in history. The bunker emerged in the Trump administration’s court fight against the National Trust […]
SAIPAN, Northern Mariana Islands (AP) — Authorities found the body of one of the six missing crew members from a cargo ship that overturned near the Northern Mariana Islands during a typhoon and were searching for the rest, hoping they might have made it to a life raft. U.S. Air Force divers used an underwater […]
EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — There’s a surprising amount of science in a bag of potato chips. Researchers have spent decades developing potatoes for chip makers that can grow in all kinds of climates, avoid diseases and pests, sit in storage for months and still deliver a satisfying crunch. They’ve also kept an eye on […]
The next steps to resume U.S.-Iran talks remained unclear Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump announced the U.S. was extending its ceasefire in the war at Pakistan’s request while awaiting a “unified proposal” from Tehran. Iran has not yet responded to Trump’s announcement of the ceasefire extension, and both countries have warned they were prepared […]
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard opened fire Wednesday on a container ship in the Strait of Hormuz, damaging the ship and further raising the stakes as planned ceasefire talks in Pakistan failed to materialize. The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said the attack happened around 7:55 a.m. […]
