Month: September 2022

By CURT ANDERSON Associated Press ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — The polluted leftovers of Florida’s phosphate fertilizer mining industry, more than 1 billion tons in “stacks” that resemble enormous ponds, are at risk for leaks or other contamination when Hurricane Ian comes ashore in the state, environmental groups say. Florida has 24 such phosphogypsum stacks,

By CURT ANDERSON Associated Press ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Hurricane Ian, one of the most powerful storms ever recorded in the U.S., swamped southwest Florida on Wednesday, turning streets into rivers, knocking out power to 2 million people and threatening catastrophic damage further inland. A coastal sheriff’s office reported that it was getting many

By DON THOMPSON Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The man who assassinated presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy in 1968 said from a California prison that he wants a judge to free him so he can live the rest of his life in peace. Now 78-years-old, Sirhan Sirhan has been incarcerated for 54 years. He

By ASHOK SHARMA Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — India’s government banned a Muslim organization for five years, accusing it of funding terrorist activities, providing armed training to its supporters and radicalizing people for anti-India activities. The ban Wednesday followed the arrests and detentions of nearly 200 members of the Popular Front of India and

By ELLEN KNICKMEYER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Pakistan’s foreign minister says the international community should work with Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban, not against them, when it comes to combatting foreign extremist groups and the economic and humanitarian crises in that country — even as many U.S. officials say the Taliban have proved themselves unworthy of

By MICHELLE L. PRICE Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — With less than two months until the midterm elections, progressive Democrats are facing a test of their power. Their party is heading into the final stretch of the campaign with a robust set of legislative accomplishments that include long-term progressive priorities on issues ranging from

By JOHN HANNA and HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH Associated Press KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Kansas’ only Democrat in Congress is hoping abortion-rights voters remain fired up enough to save her swing-district seat even if some of them blame her party for housing and grocery prices. Democrat Sharice Davids is seeking a third term against Amanda Adkins,

BY ANDREA RODRÍGUEZ Associated Press HAVANA (AP) — Cuban officials said they had begun to restore some power Wednesday after Hurricane Ian knocked out electricity to the entire island while devastating some of the country’s most important tobacco farms when it hit the island’s western tip as a major storm. At least two people were

By JANIE HAR Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Homeless people and their advocates sued the city of San Francisco in federal court on Tuesday. The lawsuit filed on behalf of the Coalition on Homelessness demands the city stop forcing people living on the streets to clear out without offering shelter, as required by law.

By CHISATO TANAKA Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Inspired by her Taiwanese grandfather, a journalist in Japan has illuminated a little-known university that started out as a grand piece of imperial propaganda celebrating Japan’s subjugation of Asia. In the decades since, it has become a place where former students and their families can share a

BY ANDREA RODRÍGUEZ Associated Press HAVANA (AP) — Hurricane Ian knocked out power across all of Cuba and devastated some of the country’s most important tobacco farms when it slammed into the island’s western tip as a major hurricane Tuesday. Cuba’s Electric Union said in a statement that work was underway to gradually restore service

By ANDREW WELSH-HUGGINS Associated Press A 2009 planning exercise dubbed Project Phoenix eerily anticipated the potential damage the Tampa Bay area is facing from Hurricane Ian. The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Florida Department of Emergency Management sponsored the simulation to address the challenges of responding to and recovering from a Category 5 hurricane.

By DÁNICA COTO Associated Press SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rico’s governor requested that the U.S. government waive a federal law to allow for more fuel shipments to the island amid concerns over a dwindling supply of diesel in the wake of Hurricane Fiona. Gov. Pedro Pierluisi warned Tuesday that a shortage of

By SONIA PÉREZ D. Associated Press GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — The search for a mother and daughter whose car plunged into a huge sinkhole changed to a recovery effort Tuesday, three days after they disappeared. Late Tuesday, authorities said they believed they had located their car using geological technology at a depth of about 50

By FABIOLA SÁNCHEZ and MARÍA VERZA Associated Press MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s president says the special prosecutor leading the Attorney General’s Office investigation into the abduction and disappearances of 43 students in southern Mexico in 2014 has resigned. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Tuesday that Omar Gómez Trejo had resigned one day after

By EDITH M. LEDERER Associated Press UNITED NATIONS (AP) — A senior U.N. official is warning of a possible internal conflict and worsening poverty in Afghanistan if the Taliban don’t respond quickly to the needs of all elements of society.  Marcus Potzel, the U.N. deputy representative for Afghanistan, said their crackdown on the rights of

By EDITH M. LEDERER Associated Press UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Ukraine’s president is warning that Russia’s just concluded “sham referendums” and attempts to annex Ukrainian territory rule out any talks with Moscow as long as Vladimir Putin remains president. And Volodymyr Zelenskyy is calling for Russia’s “complete isolation” and tough new global sanctions. Speaking to

By AUDREY McAVOY Associated Press HONOLULU (AP) — The Hawaii Department of Health is fining the U.S. Navy $8.8 million for repeatedly discharging untreated or partially treated sewage into state waters from Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. The department said Tuesday it recorded 766 counts of the Navy discharging pollutants in excess of limits established by

By MARK LONG AP Sports Writer GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Florida, South Carolina and South Florida are taking steps to salvage home football games as Hurricane Ian approaches. The Gators moved their game against Eastern Washington from Saturday to Sunday just before a slate of NFL games begin. The Gamecocks will host South Carolina State

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Authorities say a 14-year-old youth was killed and four other students were wounded in a shooting near a northwest Philadelphia high school athletic field after a football scrimmage. Police said players were walking off the field behind Roxborough High School after a scrimmage involving three schools when at least two people opened

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Authorities were searching Tuesday for a 42-year-old convicted bombmaker who escaped from a Nevada prison where he was serving a life sentence for a deadly 2007 explosion outside a Las Vegas Strip resort. Gov. Steve Sisolak ordered an investigation into the incident after he said late Tuesday his office learned the

By LARRY NEUMEISTER Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A judge says a defamation lawsuit against Fox Corp., Fox News Network and Lou Dobbs can proceed toward trial after concluding that a Venezuelan businessman had made claims sturdy enough to gather more proof. The lawsuit filed last year alleged that businessman Majed Khalil was defamed

By JAKE COYLE AP Film Writer NEW YORK (AP) — In the whistle-stop lead-up to the release of “Bros,” Eichner has worked tirelessly to whip audiences into a frenzy for a film unlike any Hollywood has before produced. A lot is riding on the movie, and not just because Eichner, the 44-year-old “Billy on the

By LINDSAY WHITEHURST Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal officials say an increasing number of fake prescription pills containing potentially deadly fentanyl are helping drive overdose death rates to record levels in the U.S. And officials warn that some of the pills are being manufactured in rainbow colors designed to look like candy. Attorney General