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Popeyes employee spots monkey roaming in Orlando

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:36 GMT

People in Central Florida are dealing with a monkey mystery. The incident happened outside a fast food restaurant, and soon after, the monkey was spotted all over town. “Corner of my eye, and I’m like, ‘This cannot be possible,’ and I’m like, I’m telling everybody, like, ‘Listen, there’s a monkey. A monkey,'” said Kim Bialobos, a Popeyes employee.One shift manager at an Orlando area Popeyes was working at the drive through window when something peculiar caught her eye.A cheeky monkey was cruising around the area then finally hopped over a fence that separated the restaurant from a wooded area.“He’s a smart monkey cause he stopped right here, and like, he looked over at the traffic, and he knew not to go that way,” Bialobos said. “It’s not every day you hear about a monkey on the loose,” said Orange City Police Department Lt. Sherif El-Shami.According to police, they started getting calls about ...

Swimming advisory issued due to fecal pollution at Crandon Park Beach

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:36 GMT

A swimming advisory has been issued for Crandon Park North and South beaches due to elevated fecal pollution levels in the water. The Florida Department of Health in Miami-Dade County posted the advisory after consecutive samples revealed enterococci counts exceeding recommended standards.According to state regulations, advisories are mandated when water samples surpass the federal and state standards of greater than 70 colony forming units of enterococci per 100ml for a single sample. Individuals are advised not to swim at the affected beaches at this time, as water contact poses a heightened risk of illness, especially for vulnerable individuals.The Florida Department of Health in Miami-Dade County has been monitoring beach water quality at 16 sites, including Crandon Park, since 2002 through the Florida Healthy Beaches Program. The aim of this program is to identify potential beach water quality issues by testing for enteric bacteria like enterococci, which can stem from sources ...

Suspect taken into custody after police follow vehicle on I-95 in Coral Springs

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:36 GMT

A suspect was caught and cuffed on a South Florida highway.7Skyforce hovered over the scene Thursday morning where Coral Springs police said they were trailing a white Volkswagen passat on Interstate 95 northbound, near Copans Road.Police have yet to disclose what the driver was wanted for.The driver was taken into custody without incident.

UMass Lowell housing facility repurposed for migrants amid concerning influx in Mass.

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:36 GMT

As more than 80 communities in the state are housing migrant families, Massachusetts is looking to address growing concerns about resources during a meeting with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.The UMass Lowell Inn and Conference Center is no longer housing college students. School leaders explained in a letter that the facility may instead provide shelter to migrant families.The Town of Foxboro has also announced they will be housing 93 families in a hotel as early as next week. Lowell City Councilor Corey Robinson said there’s a lack of information coming from the state about sending migrants to Lowell.“We’ve been hearing rumors for the past couple of weeks of a potential influx of a few hundred families being sent to Lowell,” Robinson said.Robinson said as Lowell struggles with its own unhoused population, he’s concerned about a lack of state assistance.“We have hundreds of unhoused residents within our community that we’ve been struggling to help,” Robinson s...

Nationals’ Stephen Strasburg to retire after injury-plagued seasons: reports

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:36 GMT

Stephen Strasburg, a World Series hero for the Washington Nationals, is set to retire at age 35, according to reports.The right-handed pitcher was the MVP of the 2019 World Series, which the Nationals won in seven games over the Houston Astros. Injuries, however, have limited Strasburg to only eight starts since then, and none this season.The Nationals haven’t made an announcement but scheduled a press conference for Sept. 9, according to The Washington Post, which was first to report the news.Strasburg boasts a 113-62 record, a 3.24 ERA and 1,723 strikeouts in 1,470 innings over 13 MLB seasons.The Nationals selected Strasburg first overall in the 2009 MLB Draft after a standout college career at San Diego State. Strasburg made his MLB debut the following year but required Tommy John surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his elbow after 12 starts as a rookie.By 2012, Strasburg was a staple of the Washington rotation, making three All-Star teams and finish...

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu sets timeline for new MBTA board seat appointment

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:36 GMT

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said she plans to appoint a member to the city’s new seat on the MBTA Board of Directors before its next meeting in September.The mayor represented the city for the first time at a Thursday board meeting, after being granted the authority to appoint a new Boston-specific representative through this year’s state budget.“You all have no idea how excited I am to be here,” Wu, a self-described T rider, told the board. “This is just such a gratifying and fulfilling moment, I believe, for the entire city of Boston.”Wu and other city officials had long advocated for the seat as a way to have a direct role in the governance of their public transportation system. There was momentum for the change last year, but the Boston seat was scrapped during last-minute budget negotiations.This year’s state budget expands the MBTA Board of Directors from seven to nine members. As mayor, Wu appoints a member to the Boston seat. The governor’s office is conducting a search for the...

Massachusetts free community college program up and running in time for fall semester

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:36 GMT

Danita Mends tried to pursue a college degree after leaving Needham Public Schools in 2003 but financial setbacks got in the way.She worked for the state before shifting to “corporate America.” But she realized she “was hitting ceilings, a lot of opportunities were passing me by. I was constantly overlooked.”One career shift later into an interior design program at MassBay Community College and Mends was pregnant with her son. That eventually led her to take a break from school until a new state program came calling that allowed her to attend college for free this year.“To have this financial burden lifted is amazing,” Mends said at MassBay Thursday. “And I’m excited for the opportunities that are going to open up and the things that are going to change my family. I have a son watching me now.”Mends is taking part in a program that offers students 25 and older a free community college education. The program is expected to serve a...

Aaron Judge homers again but Tommy Kahnle implodes as Yankees drop 5th straight series with loss to Nationals

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:36 GMT

Fresh off of breaking a nine-game losing streak with a feel-good victory featuring three Aaron Judge homers on Wednesday night, the Yankees dropped a heart-breaker on Thursday afternoon to the Nationals, 6-5.Entering the seventh inning owning a 3-1 lead, Tommy Kahnle gave it all back and then some. Alex Call’s two-run homer gave the Nationals the lead and then CJ Abrams followed up with a solo homer going back-to-back for the exclamation point.Kahnle, who was greeted by the boo birds walking off the mound, spoiled what was otherwise a strong performance for the Yankees’ arms.Michael King, in his second start of the season, tossed 2.2 innings allowing one unearned run on one hit while striking out three. The right-hander is being stretched out with hopes of joining the starting rotation at some point in the future. King reached 50 pitches before being pulled in the third after Anthony Volpe’s 12th error.Jhony Brito took on some length, too, executing Aaron BooneR...

3 dead, 6 wounded after a retired police officer opens fire at a Southern California biker bar

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:36 GMT

By EUGENE GARCIA, AMY TAXIN and JOHN ANTCZAK (Associated Press)TRABUCO CANYON, Calif. (AP) — The cover band at the historic Southern California biker bar had just launched into their next song when the gunman walked in and opened fire. Some froze, others ran as the bullets flew inside busy Cook’s Corner, which was holding its weekly spaghetti night on Wednesday. The gunman then went outside and kept firing, witnesses said. Within minutes, deputies arrived and killed the shooter, a retired police officer, Orange County Sheriff’s Sgt. Frank Gonzalez said.Three people were pronounced dead at the scene; six others were shot and taken to a hospital, officials said Thursday. M Street band keyboardist Mark Johnson hid behind a speaker with his wife, singer Debbie Johnson.“Once he started shooting, it was very indiscriminate,” Mark Johnson said. “He just is firing indiscriminately.”The Orange County District Attorney’s Office identified the gu...

Ramaswamy raises $450,000 in first hours after Republican debate as campaigns try to seize momentum

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:14:36 GMT

By MEG KINNARD (Associated Press)COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The first Republican presidential debate provided an opportunity for candidates to make their cases directly to a national audience, and some of that attention is translating into fundraising boosts.Biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy has taken in $450,000 since Wednesday night’s debate, with an average donation of $38, campaign spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin told The Associated Press on Thursday.Ramaswamy, a political newcomer who occupied center stage in the absence of current GOP front-runner Donald Trump, scored several memorable moments during the debate, criticizing some rivals as “super PAC puppets” who were using “ready-made, preprepared slogans” to attack him.Ramaswamy, has largely been self-funding his campaign and raised more than $7.7 million in the second quarter, finishing with more than $9 million on hand.At least one candidate, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, made a direct fundr...