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Code Purple: ‘Very unhealthy’ air sweeps through DC area as impact of Canadian wildfires continues

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:48 GMT

Poor air quality will continue through Friday in the D.C. region stemming from smoke from wildfires ravaging parts of Canada. With some areas having “very unhealthy” air, here’s what you need to know.What is Code Purple?Thursday began as a Code Red day, but slowly shifted as multiple agencies upgraded the D.C. region’s air quality. The region is seeing “the worst pollution levels” in the last 20 years, 7News First Alert Meteorologist Eileen Whelan.The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) issued a Code Purple Air Quality Alert for the entire D.C. region early Thursday morning, calling for people with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teens to avoid physical activities outdoors.COG recommends that everyone else should avoid “strenuous” activities outside. If possible, activities should be short or moved indoors.Air quality is measured by the air quality index, or AQI. You can look up the air quality near y...

Toyota to build $50 million lab in Michigan to test batteries for electric and hybrid vehicles

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:48 GMT

YORK TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — Toyota says it will spend nearly $50 million to build a vehicle battery testing laboratory at its North American research center in Michigan.The company said Thursday that the lab in York Township south of Ann Arbor will test batteries made for hybrid and electric vehicles at a new factory in North Carolina, as well as from battery suppliers.No new jobs will be created because Toyota will reassign workers from other areas and provide training as needed. The company says the lab is expected to begin work in 2025 and could be expanded as more electric vehicles are made.The lab will do performance, quality and durability testing, as well as testing of charging capabilities.“This new facility also enables us to experiment and pursue new opportunities as technology and business needs advance,” Jordan Choby, group vice president of powertrain, said in a statement.Last month Toyota said it would invest another $2.1 billion in the battery factory that’s under con...

Live updates | Canada Wildfires

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:48 GMT

Follow along for live updates on wildfires in Canada creating a haze in parts of the U.S. and Canada and into northern Europe:___What to know: — Air pollution cloaks eastern U.S. for a second day. Here’s why there is so much smoke— MLB, WNBA postpone games due to smoke from Canadian wildfires— AP PHOTOS: From NYC’s skyline to Washington DC’s monuments, wildfire haze envelopes familiar sites— How to stay healthy as smoke spreads from Canada wildfires___SMOKE FROM CANADIAN WILDFIRES FORECAST TO REACH NORWAY Norwegian officials said the smoke from wildfires in Canada that has enveloped parts of the U.S. and Canada in a thick haze is expected to pour into Norway on Thursday.Atmosphere and climate scientists with the Norwegian Climate and Environmental Research Institute used a forecast model to predict how the smoke would travel through the atmosphere.The smoke has moved over Greenland and Iceland since June 1st, and observations in southern Norway have recorded increasing concentration...

Cuba autoriza a China a construir instalaciones de espionaje en la isla, según la inteligencia estadounidense

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:48 GMT

(CNN) — Cuba accedió a permitir que China construya una instalación de espionaje en la isla que podría permitir a los chinos espiar las comunicaciones electrónicas en todo el sudeste de EE.UU., dijo a CNN una fuente familiarizada con la inteligencia.EE.UU. se enteró del plan en las últimas semanas, dijo la fuente, y no está claro si China ya ha comenzado a construir la instalación de vigilancia.No sería la primera vez que China intenta espiar las comunicaciones electrónicas de Estados Unidos, lo que se conoce como inteligencia de señales. Un presunto globo espía chino que transitó por Estados Unidos en febrero era capaz de recopilar señales de inteligencia y se cree que las transmitió a Beijing casi en tiempo real, según dijeron fuentes a CNN en aquel momento.China y EE.UU. sostienen conversaciones “francas y productivas” para aliviar tensiones tras incidente militar en el marEn ese caso, Estados Unidos tomó medidas para proteger lugares sensibles y censurar las se...

Vuelos cancelados y retrasados: el humo de los incendios afectan a viajeros en EEUU

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:48 GMT

La falta de visibilidad debido a la humarada que ha llegado a varios estados de Estados Unidos a causa de los incendios forestales en Canadá sigue afectando varios aeropuertos del país.Si tiene un viaje programado para este jueves o en los próximos días, es importante verificar las actualizaciones del clima y el estado de su vuelo directamente con cada aerolínea. Los pasajeros también pueden revisar las últimas actualizaciones en fly.faa.gov.Los aeropuertos más afectados han sido los de Nueva York, Filadelfia y Charlotte, según la Administración Federal de Aviación (FAA, por sus siglas en inglés).Aeropuerto de LaGuardia (Nueva York): todos los vuelos de llegada y salida presentan retrasos.Aeropuerto de Newark (Nueva York): todos los vuelos de llegada y salida presentan retrasos.Aeropuerto de Filadelfia: Una pausa temporal estuvo en efecto este jueves, por lo que aún hay vuelos retrasados tanto de llegada como de salida.Aeropuerto de Charlotte: varios vuelos fueron can...

Police arrest man after exposing himself to woman in Coral Gables high-rise

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:48 GMT

Police have made an arrest involving a wanted suspect after he followed and exposed himself to a woman before he attacked her on May 19 in her Coral Gables high-rise.On Wednesday afternoon, Coral Gables Police arrested 31- year-old Evert Andres Esquivel Pichardo after they used surveillance video and the victim’s description to identify him. According to a police report, Pichardo followed the female victim into her apartment at the Life Time high-rise along the 200 block of South Dixie Highway. He entered and burglarize her residence before he pushed her to the ground to expose himself to her. She immediately called 911 after he fled the scene. Surveillance video from the parking garage and several street cameras captured Pichardo’s car and detectives were able to link his vehicle back to him. Once police identified the subject, they were able to find a mugshot from a previous arrest and conducted a six-photo lineup for the female victim to identify the criminal. She cho...

Ukraine counteroffensive: Kyiv claims gains in Bakhmut

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:48 GMT

Ukrainian forces advanced between 200 meters and 1.1 kilometers in various areas around the key battleground city of Bakhmut and are now on the offensive, according to military reports.“In the direction of Bakhmut, our troops switched from defense to offensive,” Ukraine’s Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said in a post on Telegram. “Over the past day, we have advanced from 200 to 1,100 meters in various sections of the Bakhmut direction.”The news comes as multiple media outlets reported Thursday that Ukraine’s long-awaited counteroffensive had begun, with Kyiv’s forces battling to retake territory occupied by Russia.In its daily Ukraine intelligence update on Thursday, the U.K.’s Ministry of Defense said: “Amidst a highly complex operational picture, heavy fighting continues along multiple sectors of the front.”It added: “In most areas Ukraine holds the initiative.”Meanwhile, Russian Defense Minister Sergei ...

LIV Golf Returns in Valderrama July 1st

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:48 GMT

Cuba gives China permission to build spying facility on island, US intel says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:48 GMT

(CNN) — Cuba has agreed to allow China to build a spying facility on the island that could allow the Chinese to eavesdrop on electronic communications across the southeastern US, a source familiar with the intelligence told CNN.The US learned about the plan in the last several weeks, the source said, and it is unclear whether China has already begun building the surveillance facility.It would not be the first time China has attempted to spy on the US’ electronic communications, known as signals intelligence. A suspected Chinese spy balloon that transited the US in February was capable of gathering signals intelligence and is believed to have transmitted back to Beijing in near-real time, sources told CNN at the time.In that case, the US took steps to protect sensitive sites and censor intelligence signals before shooting down the balloon. But it is unclear what the US can do to stop the construction of a Chinese spying facility in Cuba.The Wall Street Journa...

Supreme Court rules in favor of Black Alabama voters in unexpected defense of Voting Rights Act

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:48 GMT

By MARK SHERMAN (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Thursday issued a surprising 5-4 ruling in favor of Black voters in a congressional redistricting case from Alabama, with two conservative justices joining liberals in rejecting a Republican-led effort to weaken a landmark voting rights law.Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh joined with the court’s liberals in affirming a lower-court ruling that found a likely violation of the Voting Rights Act in an Alabama congressional map with one majority Black seat out of seven congressional districts in a state where more than one in four residents is Black. The state now will have to draw a new map for next year’s elections. The decision was closely watched for its potential effect on control of the closely divided U.S. House of Representatives. Because of the ruling, Republican-led legislatures in Alabama and Louisiana will have to redraw maps so that they could increase Black repr...