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Power outages climb as wind-whipped storm rolls through

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:32 GMT

Heavy rain and high winds swept through the Northeast on Monday for the second time in a week, spurring flood warnings, electricity outages, flight cancellations and school closings.The National Weather Service predicted up to 5 inches  of rain in some parts of the region. More than 245,000 power outages were reported from Pennsylvania to New York to New England, with numerous reports of trees falling on power lines. Wind gusts of up to 60 mph were forecast for the southeast New England coast, the Weather Service said.In Massachusetts, more than 180,000 homes were without power according to the state’s emergency services outage map. That number climbed steadily through the morning from about 54,000 at 8 a.m. to 189,955 just past 11 a.m.  Communities including Newbury, Millis, Carver and Pelham are among those affected.In New York City, high winds prompted the temporary closure of the Verrazzano Bridge. It reopened later Monday morning, but with a ban on tractor-trailers and other la...

EXPLAINER: How can Catholic priests bless same-sex unions?

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:32 GMT

ROME (AP) — The Vatican document explicitly saying Catholic priests can bless same-sex unions lays out the conditions for what such blessings can, and cannot, involve.The overall goal is to make it abundantly clear to the couple and those around them that the blessing is not a liturgical or sacramental ritual, and that it in no way resembles a marriage. This is because the Catholic Church teaches that marriage is a lifelong sacramental union between a man and woman.Nothing has changed about the church’s position on marriage, its firm opposition to gay marriage, or its belief that any extramarital sex — gay or straight — is sinful.Here are some of the points in the document:— To avoid any confusion that the church was performing a same-sex marriage, the blessing should not be offered in conjunction with a civil union ceremony, gay or straight.— “Nor can it be performed with any clothing, gestures, or words that are proper to a wedding.”— Such blessings can be offered during a visit t...

Officers praised for rescuing residents from house fire in Vaughan

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:32 GMT

Three officers are being praised for their bravery after rescuing multiple residents from a smoke-filled home during a house fire in Vaughan last week.York Regional Police said officers responded to a garage fire at a home in the Langstaff Road and Ansley Grove area at around 10 p.m. on Dec. 14.Once on scene, officers found that the entire garage was engulfed in flames and learned that one resident awoke to the smell of smoke in the house and was initially unable to get her husband out due to an illness.York Regional Police Const. Nicola Foster located two elderly residents near the front door and escorted them outside while Const. Justin Carosi and Const. Joshua Hamilton entered the house to find the remaining resident.Const. Carosi safely located that resident and was able to exit through the front door while Const. Hamilton evacuated the female resident to the backyard.The residents of the home did not suffer serious injuries, and all three officers were treated for smoke inhalat...

‘Percy Jackson’ billed as first show shot in Canada to use cutting-edge LED stage

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:32 GMT

TORONTO — “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” is an effects-laden adaptation full of Greek gods, mythical monsters and otherworldly landscapes, but its young stars say they didn’t have to rely on imagination to visualize their fabled scene partners.Disney Plus says the British Columbia-shot series, based on Rick Riordan’s best-selling fantasy novels, uses cutting-edge technology that forgoes green screens.It’s billed as the first project shot in Canada to use the technology, dubbed StageCraft. At its heart is a newly built virtual production stage in Vancouver, known as “the volume,” which consists of 28-metre LED video walls that immerse actors inside computer-generated environments in real time. Actors on the stage see video projections of CGI backdrops and characters that would traditionally be added in post-production.Designed by Industrial Light & Magic, a division of Disney’s Lucasfilm, the stage’s first project was “Percy Jackson,” but there ar...

Powerful gusts over 100 kilometres per hour, steady rain projected to hit East Coast

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:32 GMT

HALIFAX — Powerful gusts are expected to reach speeds of more than 100 kilometres per hour on Canada’s East Coast today as two large pressure systems meet over the Atlantic Ocean.Ian Hubbard with Environment Canada says strong winds are forecast to begin in southern Nova Scotia and New Brunswick and sweep across the provinces through the day and overnight.The storm is expected to head overnight across the Cabot Strait and into southern Newfoundland, where powerful winds are also expected.Hubbard says the strongest gusts may reach up to 110 km/h and that between 50 to 80 millimetres of rain will fall.The forecaster says the storm is the result of a low-pressure system meeting an abnormally high-pressure system in the Atlantic Ocean, creating a slow-moving storm with strong winds for eight to 12 hours.The weather agency is also calling for high coastal water levels overnight, which will bring risk of flooding along the central and eastern part of the Atlantic coast of Nova Scoti...

Energy stocks help boost S&P/TSX composite as price of oil moves higher

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:32 GMT

TORONTO — Strength in energy stocks, as price of oil moved higher, helped Canada’s main stock index gain more than 100 points in late-morning trading, while U.S. stock markets also climbed higher.The S&P/TSX composite index was up 109.62 points at 20,638.77.In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 80.65 points at 37,385.81. The S&P 500 index was up 19.94 points at 4,739.13, while the Nasdaq composite was up 43.73 points at 14,857.65.The Canadian dollar traded for 74.58 cents US compared with 74.75 cents US on Friday.The February crude oil contract was up US$2.18 at US$73.96 per barrel and the January natural gas contract was up five cents at US$2.54 per mmBTU.The February gold contract was up 50 cents at US$2,036.20 an ounce and the March copper contract was down three cents at US$3.86 a pound.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 18, 2023.Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD)The Canadian Press

Don’t wait until you see a problem to get an eye exam

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:32 GMT

A new survey reveals more than one-third of Canadians say they’d only book an eye exam if they feel there’s something wrong with their vision, but experts say it’s best not to wait that long.By the time an eye condition becomes noticeable, there might already be significant damage or vision loss, which isn’t always reversible.“That is often too late because a lot of ocular conditions can actually have no symptoms, so we wouldn’t know what’s happening,” says optometrist Natalia Nowakowska.The survey conducted by Leger for Specsavers and the Canadian Council of the Blind, says 38 per cent of Canadian adults are overdue for their regular eye exam.“Seventy-five per cent of vision loss is actually preventable and treatable,” says Nowakowska, explaining why regular checks are necessary.“As an example with glaucoma — it starts in the periphery and it’s a tunneling of the peripheral vision. You wouldn’t notice that there’s ac...

Annual rent increases slowing as average asking price reaches $2,174 in November

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:32 GMT

A report says the average asking price for a rental unit in Canada was $2,174 in November, relatively flat from the previous month but an 8.4 per cent increase year-over-year.The data released Friday by Rentals.ca and Urbanation, which analyzes monthly listings from the former’s network, shows the annual rate of rent growth in Canada continues to slow, following increases of 9.9 per cent in October and 11.1 per cent in September.The average cost of a one-bedroom unit in November was $1,911, up 13.6 per cent from the same month in 2022, while the average asking price for a two-bedroom was $2,260, up 10.5 per cent annually.The report says there were notable slowdowns in two of Canada’s most expensive major cities for renters. Vancouver saw asking rents rise 0.7 per cent from last year to $3,171, while average asking rents in Toronto decreased 2.4 per cent to $2,913.Meanwhile, Edmonton overtook Calgary as the leader in rent growth among major markets, as average asking rent...

From emotional support to business advice, winners of I Love My Librarian awards serve in many ways

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:32 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — This year’s winners of the I Love My Librarian Award, $5,000 honors presented by the American Library Association, took on a lot more than selecting books and fighting bans.Diana Haneski, at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, is a survivor of the 2018 shootings, who is committed to emotional support for others. Fred Gitner, of New York City’ Queens Public Library, develops resources for immigrants and asylum-seekers. At the University of Puerto Rico, Gladys López-Soto draws upon her expertise in copyright law to aid aspiring entrepreneurs and inventors.“While much of the national conversation surrounding libraries has fixated on book censorship, and as library workers across the U.S. continue to face historic levels of intimidation and harassment, librarians’ efforts to empower their patrons and provide vital services for their communities shines a spotlight on the enduring value of libraries in our society,” library associatio...

Pakistan is stunned as party of imprisoned ex-PM Khan uses AI to replicate his voice for a speech

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:32 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — For the first time, artificial intelligence has been used to deliver a speech by Pakistan’s imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan to supporters. The stunning development could help his political party to win upcoming elections, analysts said Monday.The replicated voice of Pakistan’s most popular opposition figure was used to address a virtual event on social media watched by more than a million people. The four-minute speech was written by Khan in prison and delivered by AI.It was not immediately clear if Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, or PTI, violated any laws. The party confirmed the speech was AI-generated. Khan’s public addresses are heavily restricted in Pakistan.Pakistan’s government has not commented.Khan has had almost no contact with the outside world since he was imprisoned in August on a corruption charge. He faces a slew of other legal cases, making it impossible for him to contest the Feb. 8 parliamentary polls. His lawyer says...