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South Florida cities gear up for New Year’s Eve celebrations

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:51:42 GMT

With just four days until the new year, South Florida cities are preparing for vibrant New Year’s Eve festivities. At Bayside Marketplace, City of Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo shared details of the exciting lineup, featuring 28 singers and groups starting at 6 p.m.“This year we’re having 28 singers and groups,” said Carollo. “This is why other cities wait until late at night to bring in their talent. We have to start at 6 p.m.” Live footage revealed crews setting up stages, signaling the city’s readiness to welcome residents and visitors to a lively celebration. General admission to the Bayside event is free, allowing attendees to bring blankets while offering items for purchase on-site.A police officer emphasized the presence of federal, state, and local authorities for added security during the event on Sunday. Notably, the return of the Big Orange, absent during the COVID-19 pandemic, adds an extra layer of excitement to the festivities...

Investigation continues after 29-year-old woman dies in Tamarac condo fire

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:51:42 GMT

A day after the devastating fire that claimed the life of 29-year-old Keera Brabham, detectives are intensifying efforts to uncover more details surrounding the incident. The fire occurred in her apartment unit at Versailles Gardens Condominium.On Wednesday morning, investigators canvassed the neighborhood, going door to door, seeking information from residents.Keera’s family, still reeling from the loss, expressed deep sorrow and highlighted her dedication to providing for her 4-year-old son. “She was raising him the way a man should be raised,” said Curtis Brabham, the victim’s father.She even ventured into entrepreneurship, opening her own business earlier this year. “She ran her own business, she cared about her clients, she cared a lot for her 4-year-old son. There’s nothing she wouldn’t do for him and that’s why she works so hard to provide for him,” said Stephanie Gladman, Brabham’s sister.The tragedy unfolded around 3:30 am on Tuesday, just hours after Keer...

Bird strike forces Southwest flight to make emergency landing at FLL

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:51:42 GMT

An issue with a flight shortly after takeoff from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport prompted an emergency landing, Wednesday morning. Around 12:30 p.m., video footage showed Southwest Airlines Flight 1416 grounded at a terminal at the airport. The flight was on its way to Austin, Texas when it struck a bird in the air just after takeoff around 11:45 a.m.A statement released by the airlines said that the pilots were able to land safely and evacuated all 145 passengers. Several fire rescue crews and airport officials were on their way to the scene to determine the extent of the damage. Please check back on WSVN.com and 7News for more details on this developing story.

Jacques Delors, architect of a united Europe, is dead at 98

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:51:42 GMT

BRUSSELS — Jacques Delors, who headed the European Commission between 1985 and 1995 and is seen as one of the most important architects of a European internal market and single currency, died on Wednesday, aged 98.A pivotal figure in reanimating the pursuit of a united Europe after World War II, Delors is best known for presiding over the Single European Act of 1987, which set Europe on a course toward borderless economic integration, and the Maastricht Treaty of 1993 that created the European Union and charted a path for countries to join the euro currency. Perhaps most significantly in forging the concept of a united European democracy, the Maastricht Treaty also created EU citizens, who would take part in European Parliament elections. Born in Paris in 1925, Delors worked at the Banque de France until 1962. A committed Christian and active in the trade union confederation, he entered politics as a member of the Socialist Party in 1974 and was appointed as finance minister by Pre...

Solar energy and its cheaper bills are coming to more disadvantaged communities

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:51:42 GMT

David Montgomery | (TNS) Stateline.orgHOUSTON — When a lightning storm knocked out power in Doris Brown’s Northeast Houston neighborhood this summer, her solar-powered home suddenly became a refuge for frantic neighbors left without electricity.The impromptu guests were able to charge their cellphones, power up their CPAP and portable oxygen machines, and take hot showers. A party vibe prevailed as the 73-year-old community activist and her storm-tossed visitors weathered the downpour with snacks, popcorn and a nighttime breakfast of bacon, eggs and sausage.Brown’s single-family home has had solar power since the spring. A group of nonprofits installed her solar panels as part of a two-year project to create so-called hub homes to serve low-income communities during power outages. Climate change has increased the frequency and severity of the storms that have always battered this coastal city.In Houston and across the nation, there are few solar-powered homes in lower-income areas. ...

‘They see a cash cow’: Corporations could consume $50 billion of opioid settlements

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:51:42 GMT

Aneri Pattani |  KFF Health News (TNS)The marketing pitches are bold and arriving fast: Invest opioid settlement dollars in a lasso-like device to help police detain people without Tasers or pepper spray. Pour money into psychedelics, electrical stimulation devices, and other experimental treatments for addiction. Fund research into new, supposedly abuse-deterrent opioids and splurge on expensive, brand-name naloxone.These pitches land daily in the inboxes of state and local officials in charge of distributing more than $50 billion from settlements in opioid lawsuits.The money is coming from an array of companies that made, sold, or distributed prescription painkillers, including Johnson & Johnson, AmerisourceBergen, and Walgreens. Thousands of state and local governments sued the companies for aggressively promoting and distributing opioid medications, fueling an epidemic that progressed to heroin and fentanyl and has killed more than half a million Americans. The settlement mo...

Jacques Delors, architect of the modern EU and ‘Mr. Europe,’ dies aged 98

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:51:42 GMT

By JOHN-THOR DAHLBURG (Associated Press)BRUSSELS (AP) — Jacques Delors, a Paris bank messenger’s son who became the visionary and builder of a more unified Europe in his momentous decade as chief executive of the European Union, has died in Paris, the Delors Institute think tank told The Associated Press Wednesday. He was 98.For many, the owlish but hard-driving Socialist and Catholic was simply “Mr. Europe.” The EU, which stretches these days from Finland to Portugal and is home to more than 500 million people, was dubbed “the house that Jacques built” by a popular biography. Under his 1985-1995 tenure at the head of the European Union’s bureaucracy in Brussels, member countries agreed to tear down barriers that prevented the free movement of capital, goods, services and people.Delors was also key in drawing up the blueprint for economic and monetary union, which led to the creation of the European Central Bank and the euro currency.The lat...

Boston to have ‘strong’ police presence at New Year’s Eve First Night celebration

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:51:42 GMT

There will be a “strong” police presence at this weekend’s annual First Night festivities, which will be held at Boston City Hall Plaza for the first time.A large number of officers from the Boston and MBTA police departments will be on hand to ensure residents and visitors ringing in the new year at the 49th annual event respect the family-oriented atmosphere organizers are striving for.“This is a family-friendly event,” Police Commissioner Michael Cox said, “And we want to keep it that way. We ask you not to consume alcohol nor marijuana in public.”An “abundance” of police officers will be stationed “in and around” the First Night activities, and there will be a “strong presence” throughout all city neighborhoods for the entirety of Sunday’s 13-hour New Year’s Eve festivities, Cox said.Both Cox and MBTA Transit Police Chief Kenneth Green said, however, that there have been “no credible threats” received in relation to the event. The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security issu...

‘Financial ruin is baked into the system’: Readers on the costs of long-term care

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:51:42 GMT

Jordan Rau and Reed Abelson |  KFF Health News (TNS)Thousands of readers reacted to the articles in the “Dying Broke” series about the financial burden of long-term care in the United States. They offered their assessments for the government and market failures that have drained the lifetime savings of so many American families. And some offered possible solutions.In more than 4,200 comments, readers shared their struggles in caring for spouses, older parents, and grandparents. They expressed anxieties about getting older themselves and needing help to stay at home or in institutions like nursing homes or assisted living facilities.Many suggested changes to U.S. policy, like expanding the government’s payments for care and allowing more immigrants to stay in the country to help meet the demand for workers. Some even said they would rather end their lives than become a financial burden to their children.Many readers blamed the predominantly for-profit nature of American medicine and ...

Bankrate: Should I pay off my mortgage or invest?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:51:42 GMT

Jeff Ostrowski |  Bankrate.com (TNS)Many people view debt as the financial enemy and strive to pay it down as quickly as possible.That strategy is a wise one for high-interest obligations like credit card balances, but when it comes to mortgages, the math isn’t as clear-cut. You might be better off putting those payoff funds toward investing, some experts say, while others believe it’s better to unload your debt, then focus on investments.As you weigh your options, here’s what to consider.Should I pay off my mortgage or invest?Questions to ask:—Do I have sufficient emergency savings?—Am I putting away enough for retirement?—How much other debt do I carry?—What are my prospects for increasing my income?—What moves (if any) am I looking to make in the next year? In five years?—How does my mortgage rate compare to expected portfolio returns?Because of this, some financial advisors believe you should leverage your mortgage rather than eliminate it. Take out that 30-year loan, keep it fo...