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Spotted lanternfly has spread to Illinois, threatening to crops and trees

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:27 GMT

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Illinois is the latest state to find invasive spotted lanternflies, an winged insect that’s spreading across the eastern U.S. and is subject to squish-on-sight requests in New York and elsewhere.First detected in the U.S. nearly a decade ago, the hitchhiking pest and its eggs have been getting rides on vehicles and trains as they expand from southeast Pennsylvania across the country. Although the inch-long planthopper looks pretty with its distinctive black spots and bright red wing markings, the sap-sucking bug likes to mass and feed on plants. It then excretes a sticky, sugary waste called honeydew that attracts insects and a form of sooty mold that can finish off the already weakened plants, posing a danger to crops and native trees. The gunk can also collect houses, decks and outdoor furniture.The Illinois Department of Agriculture said a sighting of one of the winged adult insects was reported on Sept. 16 at an undisclosed location. Department sta...

Police release images of suspects after attacks at Earlscourt Park cultural festival

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:27 GMT

Toronto police have released images of suspects being sought in connection to violent attacks that took place at a cultural festival at Earlscourt Park in August.Officers were called to the park at around 10 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 5, for reports of a heated protest at The Festival Eritrea Toronto — a scheduled two-day sports and cultural event.Police say some of the protesters became confrontational, damaging property and assaulting several people. At least nine people were reportedly injured. On Thursday, Toronto police released images of three unnamed suspects wanted in connection to the incident.Suspects sought in assault investigation at Earlscourt Park on Aug. 5, 2023. HANDOUT/Toronto Police ServiceThe City of Toronto ended up revoking the festival’s permit “in the interest of public safety,” cancelling the events planned for the second day on Sunday.“The City does not tolerate or condone violence of any kind and is committed to providing a s...

Cyberattacks hit military, Parliament websites as India hacker group targets Canada

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:27 GMT

The federal government is coping with apparent cyberattacks this week, as a hacker group in India claims it has sowed chaos in Ottawa.The Canadian Armed Forces says that its website became unavailable to mobile users midday Wednesday but was fixed within a few hours.The military says the site is separate from other government sites, such as the one used by the Department of Defence, and the incident remains under investigation.Various pages on the House of Commons website are continuing to load slowly or incompletely due to an ongoing attack that officials say started Monday morning.The Commons administration says it’s facing a distributed denial-of-service attack, which is when bots swarm a website with multiple visits and cause it to stop loading properly.A hacking group named Indian Cyber Force has claimed responsibility for the incident involving the military and appears to have managed to infiltrate a handful of websites owned by small businesses in Canada.

University of Alberta returns endowment honouring Ukrainian who fought with Nazis

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:27 GMT

EDMONTON — The University of Alberta is returning endowment funds from the family of a Ukrainian man whose military service was linked to the Nazis.Since 2019, the university’s Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies has had a $30,000 endowment carrying the name Yaroslav Hunka.Hunka was introduced in the House of Commons last week during a visit from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.It was later revealed that Hunka had fought in a Ukrainian unit set up by Nazi Germany to fight the Soviet Union.The revelation forced the resignation of Anthony Rota as House Speaker and an apology on behalf of Parliament by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.The university has now closed the endowment and returned the money to the family. “The university recognizes and regrets the unintended harm caused,” said a statement from Verna Yiu, vice-president academic.“I want to express our commitment to address antisemitism in any of its manifestations, including the ways in which t...

One thing is not changing about the Bears defense for a bit

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:27 GMT

LAKE FOREST — There are many who are hoping for some changes for the Bears' struggling defense as 2023 goes along, but one thing is staying the same.That concerns the duty that has been added to Matt Eberflus' responsibilities. On Wednesday, ahead of the Bears' game against the Broncos at Soldier Field on Sunday, the head coach announced that he'll continue to call plays for the defense for the foreseeable future. This was necessitated by the abrupt resignation of Alan Williams on September 20.Naturally, Eberflus was asked if he'll keep calling the plays for the rest of 2023 season."That's the plan, and we've talked about different things, but that's the plan right there, right now," said Eberflus in response to that question. Woe-and-3: The Bears’ miserable start to the 2023 season It's not an ideal situation, since the first-time head coach made the decision when he took over in the winter of 2022 not to be the defensive play-caller but to focus on running the team as a whole.Bu...

Thursday Forecast: Temps in low 70s with isolated showers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:27 GMT

CHICAGO — Patchy fog with mostly cloudy conditions and isolated sprinkles Thursday. Decreasing clouds, Winds: NNE 0-5 G10. High: 70. Interactive Radar: Track showers and storms here Partly cloudy tonight with patchy fog. Winds: NNE 0-5 G15. Low: 57.Friday Forecast: Patchy fog, mostly sunny, ESE 0-5. High: 75/71.Full forecast details and more at the WGN Weather Center blog

Here are all the items on the leaked Starbucks winter menu

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:27 GMT

Move over PSL, Starbucks’ winter menu has been leakedPumpkin spice might get all the fanfare, but move over, fall — we're already counting the days until the actual best coffee menu drops: the Starbucks winter menu.And sure, the leaves may be only just beginning to turn, but this year's winter menu has already leaked. Starbucks fans will be happy to know that it features some old favorites as well as some new drinks that sound both festive and delicious.What's coming to the Starbucks winter menu this year?According to @markie_devo on Instagram, the leaked menu includes eight drinks, eight food items and four festive cold foams. Keep in mind that this isn't official yet, but considering past leaked menus have turned out to be accurate, it seems pretty likely that we'll see at least some of these drinks on Starbucks menus come wintertime.The winter drinks, which reportedly launch Nov. 2, are a new Gingerbread Oatmilk Chai (hot & iced), Peppermint Mocha, Su...

Cantaloupe sold in 19 states, including IL, recalled over possible salmonella contamination

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:27 GMT

(WHTM) - Thousands of whole cantaloupe sold in 19 states have been recalled due to potential salmonella contamination, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday. The recall includes 6,456 cases of Eagle Produce's Kandy brand whole cantaloupe with the UPC code 4050 and lot codes 797900, 797901 and 804918.The recalled fruit was distributed between Sept. 5 and Sept. 16 in California, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Washington, D.C. Recalled Cantaloupe (FDA)Salmonella can cause "serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems," the FDA says. Best foods to eat in Pennsylvania, according to Food Network As of Sept. 27, no illnesses have been reported. No other products or lot code dates are included in this recall.The FDA says anyone with...

Food prices are rising as countries limit exports. Blame these 3 factors

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:27 GMT

(AP) – How do you cook a meal when a staple ingredient is unaffordable?This question is playing out in households around the world as they face shortages of essential foods like rice, cooking oil and onions. That is because countries have imposed restrictions on the food they export to protect their own supplies from the combined effect of the war in Ukraine, El Nino’s threat to food production and increasing damage from climate change.For Caroline Kyalo, a 28-year-old who works in a salon in Kenya's capital of Nairobi, it was a question of trying to figure out how to cook for her two children without onions. Restrictions on the export of the vegetable by neighboring Tanzania has led prices to triple. More SNAP changes coming Oct. 1 Kyalo initially tried to use spring onions instead, but those also got too expensive. As did the prices of other necessities, like cooking oil and corn flour.“I just decided to be cooking once a day,” she said.Despite the East African country's fertile...

First congressional hearing on Maui wildfire to focus on island's sole electric provider and grid

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:35:27 GMT

Watch the opening remarks by the committee chair and those testifying in the video above.WASHINGTON (AP) — Hawaii's top public utility officials and the president of Hawaiian Electric testified Thursday in a congressional hearing about the role the electrical grid played in last month's deadly Maui wildfire.Members of a U.S. House Energy and Commerce subcommittee questioned the utility officials about how the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century began — and whether the electrical grid in Lahaina was safe and properly maintained.The fire killed at least 97 people and destroyed more than 2,000 buildings, mostly homes. It first erupted at 6:30 a.m. on Aug. 8, when strong winds appeared to cause a Hawaiian Electric powerline to fall, igniting dry brush and grass near a large subdivision.Hawaiian Electric CEO Shelee Kimura, Hawaii Public Utilities Commission Chair Leodoloff Asuncion Jr. and Hawaii Chief Energy Officer Mark Glick were present to testify. Immigration dominated ...