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Deadly blast off Nigeria points to threat from aging oil tankers

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:36 GMT

By Hellen Wieffering and Grace Ekpu | Associated PressOKITIPUPA, Nigeria — It was the dead of night when the ship caught fire, Patrick Aganyebi remembers, but the flames made it seem as bright as day.The explosion that night woke him and knocked him to the floor. He tucked his phone and his ID card in his pockets, strapped on a life jacket and made his way to the upper deck. As the flames barreled toward him, he prepared to jump nearly 100 feet (30 meters) into the sea.Five workers were killed and two others presumed dead in the blast on the Trinity Spirit, a rusting converted oil tanker anchored 15 miles (24 km) off the coast of Nigeria that pulled crude oil from the ocean floor. It was by the grace of God, Aganyebi said, that he and two fellow crewmen escaped, rescued by a pair of fishermen as the burning vessel sank along with 40,000 barrels of oil.The Trinity Spirit’s explosion in February of last year stands among the deadliest tragedies on an oil ship or platform in rece...

Exclusive: Los Gatos ‘party mom’ indicted by grand jury, clearing way for trial

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:36 GMT

A Santa Clara County criminal grand jury has indicted the so-called Los Gatos “party mom” on more than five dozen felony and misdemeanor charges, clearing the path to trial for Shannon O’Connor, who is alleged to have endangered teens with liquor-fueled gatherings where she goaded them into sex.The indictment filed on Monday charges O’Connor, 49, with 20 felony counts mostly covering child endangerment and aiding and abetting sexual assault — several more than she faced under the initial filing two years ago. The indictment also includes 43 misdemeanor counts based on accusations she furnished alcohol to minors. It follows multiple delays of a preliminary hearing in O’Connor’s case, in which a judge would have decided whether there was sufficient evidence to go to trial.Now with the indictment, the case bypasses the preliminary examination and moves more rapidly to trial. O’Connor, who has been held in Santa Clara County Jail since Oct...

THC gummies found in candy stash at Bay Area elementary school

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:36 GMT

(KRON) -- Gummies infused with cannabis were found in a candy stash at a Halloween event held at Amelia Earhart Elementary School in Alameda over the weekend, school district officials told KRON4 Monday.One student ate a fruit chew containing THC before anyone realized what was in it.The fruit chews were included in a stash of candy collected by students at a PTA-sponsored "Trunk or Treat" event, according to Alameda Unified School District officials. "Three families found the fruit chews in their children’s candy," AUSD spokesperson Susan Davis told KRON4.The Alameda Police Department wrote, "We are currently investigating the report of a child ingesting THC-infused candy they received at a local Halloween trick-or-treating event. The child became ill and sought immediate medical attention."The candy stash also contained chocolate and other popular Halloween candy. The cannabis fruit chews were made by Kiva Lost Farm and packaged in square blue wrappers, according to school distric...

Oakland police shut down pilot program for reporting auto burglaries one day after launch

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:36 GMT

(BCN) -- Oakland police shut down a pilot program Saturday that used social media for reporting auto break-ins while they were happening. The Oakland Police Department pulled the plug one day after it had urged the public to start using @OaklandAutoBurg on Instagram & X to send direct messages reporting auto burglaries in progress."The auto burglary social media reporting pilot was always intended to be a limited test," the police department said in a social media post. "The test concluded as scheduled and the accounts were deactivated as planned." THC gummies found in candy stash at Bay Area elementary school "This account will be reactivated ahead of our next test. Thank you to all who participated. The Oakland Police Department (OPD) will review the results of these tests and evaluate the next steps."In announcing the program, police had asked anyone seeing something suspicious to "DM the details of individuals, & vehicles, and the crime's location. DON'T attempt to sto...

Peninsula hospital put on lockdown as police arrest car burglary suspects

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:36 GMT

(KRON) -- A hospital in Burlingame was placed on lockdown early Monday morning as police officers arrested four suspects accused of being involved in car burglaries, the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office said.SMCSO deputies were alerted to a stolen Jeep that was involved in "a series of auto burglaries within San Mateo County" entering the City of Millbrae at 3:36 a.m., the sheriff's office said. The driver attempted to flee, and three of the Jeep's tires were blown out by spike strips. 15-year-old arrested in fatal San Jose hit and run that killed pregnant mother and her child The Jeep crossed into Burlingame before coming to a rest in front of the Mills-Peninsula Medical Center. Two suspects were arrested, while two others ran to a nearby parking garage, law enforcement said. The hospital went into lockdown as police searched for the suspects. Four local police departments sent resources to help the deputies, and the other two suspects were arrested without incident, according ...

Oakland teachers' association deletes post calling for 'unequivocal support' for Palestine

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:36 GMT

(KRON) -- The Oakland Education Association has deleted an Instagram post pledging "unequivocal support for Palestinian liberation" and blasting Israel as an "apartheid state." The union, which represents teachers, counselors, psychologists, social workers, librarians and other Oakland educators, posted the "official statement of solidarity" with Palestine Friday. The post called for an "immediate ceasefire and the end of all U.S. military aid to Israel." THC gummies found in candy stash at Bay Area elementary school Megan Bacigalupi is Jewish and has two kids attending school in the district. Shortly after she criticized the post, it was removed.The since-deleted post made no mention of the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack on southern Israel, in which over 1,400 people were killed and over 100 taken hostage. Screenshots of the post show that it read as follows:"We, the members of OAE, express our unequivocal support for Palestinian liberation and self-determination. We condemn the g...

Rangers’ extra-inning victory over Diamondbacks was least viewed World Series opener recorded

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:36 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Texas’ extra-inning comeback victory over Arizona on Friday night was the least-watched Game 1 recorded in World Series TV history.The Rangers’ 6-5 win over the Diamondbacks in 11 innings averaged 9.35 million viewers on Fox, Fox Deportes and Fox’s streaming service. The previous low was 9.48 for the opening game in 2020 between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Tampa Bay Rays. That was played during the pandemic, coincidentally in Arlington, Texas. According to Nielsen, Fox averaged 9.17 million for the game telecast. It is only the sixth World Series game that didn’t attract at least 10 million viewers. The others were the first four games in 2020 and Game 3 in 2008 between Tampa Bay and the Philadelphia Phillies. Average viewer ratings have been calculated since at least 1969.Friday’s game was also a 20% decline compared to the 11.48 million who watched last year’s first game between the Phillies and Houston Astros.The news has to be a b...

Israel-Hamas conflict: Israeli Embassy spokesperson discusses hostages and calls for a ceasefire

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:36 GMT

toggle audio on and off change volume download audio WTOP's J.J. Green speaks with Tal Naim Cohen, spokesperson for the Israeli Embassy in Washington $(function () { $('.wtop-audio-container .fa-play').on('click', function(){ var audio_filename = $('div.wtop-audio-file').data("mp3-url"); ga('send', 'event', 'Audio', 'play', audio_filename); }); }); The Israeli military announced Monday they freed a female soldier captured during Hamas’ massacre inside Israel, on Oct. 7.Tal Naim Cohen, spokesperson for the Israeli Embassy in Washington spoke with WTOP national security correspondent JJ Green about what happened. She also re...

The 49ers struggle to come from behind during 3-game losing streak

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:36 GMT

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers showed they could thrive as front-runners during a 5-0 start to the season. Pulling out tighter games down the stretch has proved to be problematic.Brock Purdy turned the ball over three times in the final 16 minutes and San Francisco’s defense struggled to slow down Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals, leading to a 31-17 loss Sunday that was the third straight for the Niners following their dominant start to the season. “We haven’t shown that we can play from behind and come back and win a football game,” linebacker Fred Warner said. “That’s something that we’ve got to address and get better at. We can’t just be a team that can only win when we’re up.”San Francisco (5-3) didn’t face those scenarios in the first five games. It trailed only in one of those wins — Week 2 against the Rams — and never faced a deficit in the second half.But the Niners have been forced to play from behind the last three weeks to poor results...

ACC releases new football scheduling model to add California, Stanford and SMU in ’24

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:36 GMT

The Atlantic Coast Conference has unveiled a new scheduling model to incorporate new members California, Stanford and SMU for next year, which includes those schools facing each other as annual opponents while staying with a no-division format.The league announced its reworked scheduling plan Monday evening, which has all 17 football-playing members playing each other at least twice over a seven-season stretch through 2030. The model also protects 16 annual matchups, including multiple long-standing league matchups such as Florida State-Clemson or North Carolina-Virginia.That includes Cal and Stanford, which have been longtime Pac-12 peers, being paired together, as well as each having annual games with SMU from the American Athletic Conference. But travel miles will pile up: Stanford’s first ACC slate includes trips to Clemson, North Carolina State and Syracuse; Cal’s schedule includes games at FSU, Pittsburgh and Wake Forest; and SMU visits Duke, Louisville and Virgini...