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Quebec fires: situation ‘stable’ for coming days; evacuees stuck until next week

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

MONTREAL — Quebec’s precarious wildfire situation is expected to remain stable over the next 48 hours but residents displaced by the raging forest fires likely won’t be able to return home until early next week, Premier François Legault said Thursday.“We have (as of) today, 13,500 people that have been evacuated, we think that it’ll be stable in the next few days,” Legault told a briefing, but said that evacuees from Chibougamau and Lebel-sur-Quévillon, Que., which account for a large number of those displaced, won’t be able to return until Tuesday at the earliest.Quebec’s wildfire fight was focused Thursday in the province’s northern and western regions, where flames had reached the doorstep of a municipality of roughly 800 people. Authorities said a wildfire was within 500 metres of Normétal, Que., located 720 kilometres northwest of Montreal, in the Abitibi region.The province’s forest fire prevention agency — Société de prote...

Newfoundland police issue Amber Alert for 14-year-old girl said to be abducted

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Police in Newfoundland and Labrador have issued an Amber Alert for a 14-year-old girl who has been missing since last week.The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary say Melissa Morrell was abducted by an unidentified suspect whom they believe she knows.The force says “an unauthorized adult” is believed to be providing guidance to her to travel across the province, possibly to New Brunswick.Police say Morrell was last seen in St. John’s, N.L. on Friday at approximately 11:30 a.m. wearing a plaid button shirt and grey pants.She is described as being five feet tall, with a medium build, light brown hair and brown eyes.Officials ask anyone with information about her whereabouts to call 911.This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 8, 2023.The Canadian Press

Arrest warrant issued for Northwest Indiana man who set fire to jail lobby

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

CROWN POINT, Ind. — Lake County Indiana Sheriffs have identified the man deputies say intentionally set fire to the lobby of the county’s Northwest Indiana jail. An arrest warrant has been issued for 26-year-old Ryan Andrews of Merrillville. Police described the suspect as 5-foot-10-inches with a weight of 162 pounds. Andrews also has short brown hair, black eyes and a medium athletic build. He may have a goatee beard. ‘We will destroy you’: Northwest Indiana man accused of showing up to Taylor Swift’s residence, stalking Earlier this week, sheriffs released surveillance video of the June 5 incident that shows Andrews spraying an accelerant on the floor amid an attempt to get flames to spread.    Andrews made off in a blue SUV, authorities said. Photo of the blue SUV used as a getaway vehicle in the arson attempt at Lake County Jail on June 5, 2023. (Photo: Lake County Indiana Sheriffs)Fire crews from Lake County Fire and Rescue and Merrillville Fire Department...

Cool temps Thursday night, sunshine continues into weekend

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

Thursday night: Clear, cool and hazy. Some upper 40s normally cooler inland locations. Low: 54Full forecast details and more at the WGN Weather Center blog Friday: Generous sunshine a third consecutive day. A bit warmer, especially inland. High: 78/upper 60s lakeshore and area beaches.  

14-year prison sentence for Cook County carjacker who used dating app to lure victim

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

CHICAGO — A Harvey man guilty of using a dating app to lure and attack a victim before stealing their vehicle in June of 2019 will spend more than a decade behind bars.Stepfon Jiggetts, 25, was sentenced to 14 years in prison after pleading guilty to felony aggravated vehicular hijacking.According to prosecutors, Jiggetts used an online dating app to lure the victim to his south suburban Harvey home.SEE ALSO | Prison time for boater who ran illegal charter operations on Chicago waterwaysOnce the victim arrived, Jiggetts entered the vehicle and asked the target to drive him to a nearby gas station. After returning to Jiggetts’ home, prosecutors say an unidentified individual began attacking the victim and attempted to remove them from the vehicle forcefully. Prosecutors said Jiggetts followed in the assault. According to prosecutors, once the victim was out of the vehicle, Jiggetts entered and drove with the victim’s phone and wallet.Jiggets was located driving the victim's vehicle t...

IRS has $1.5 billion in unclaimed tax refunds: Do you qualify?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

(NEXSTAR) – Over a million Americans could miss out on their share of an estimated $1.5 billion in unclaimed tax refunds, the Internal Revenue Service said Thursday.The refunds are for tax year 2019, so if you didn't file for some reason in 2020, you could be owed part of those unclaimed funds."Time is running out for more than a million people to get their tax refunds for 2019," said IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel in a news release. "Many people may have overlooked filing a 2019 tax return due to the pandemic. We don't want people to miss their window to receive their refund."By law, taxpayers usually have three years to file their taxes and claim their refund, but if they miss the deadline that money goes to the U.S. Treasury instead. El Niño officially arrives early: What it means for 2023 weather Usually, the deadline falls around the April tax deadline, but the COVID-19 pandemic pushed the 2020 filing deadline to July 15.The average tax refund that year was $893, but taxpayers...

What are the health concerns with poor air quality?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

The poor air quality in New York and New Jersey is making headlines as smoke from those wildfires in Canada continues to smother the region - and it's expected that the bad air could linger for days, if not weeks.Last month we saw some of that wildfire smoke hit the Chicago area as well. Related: Here’s how you can check the air quality in Illinois Kristina Hamilton is the Advocacy Director for American Lung Association and joined WGN News to talk about this crisis with the air quality.Sign up for our Medical Watch newsletter. This daily update includes important information from WGN's Dina Bair and the Med Watch team including latest updates from health organizations, in-depth reporting on advancements in medical technology and treatments as well as personal features related to people in the medical field. Sign up here

Police search for man who robbed, sexually assaulted victim in south Austin parking lot

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Police are asking for the community's help to identify a man suspected of robbing someone at gunpoint and then sexually assaulting them outside a south Austin apartment complex. Detectives released a sketch of the suspect during a news conference Thursday. They said the man first approached the victim with a gun and demanded their belongings Sunday at about 10:14 a.m. This happened in the parking lot by an apartment building in the 9400 block of South First Street, which is close to West Slaughter Lane. Police said the man then sexually assaulted the victim and ran, and they have yet to arrest him. Austin apartment issues 10 p.m. curfew, do residents have to follow it? Police said the suspect last had on a black bandana and a t-shirt with random letters covering it. He's described as a white or Hispanic man who's 18 to 25 years old with a heavy build and is about 5'1" to 5'3". He has short black hair and well-kept eyebrows, according to police. Police shared a s...

Dripping Springs Montessori School closes abruptly, parents left waiting for full refunds

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

HAYS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) -- The Dripping Springs Montessori School closed its doors and shut down business a little more than a month ago. Parents said the school had been open for less than a year and they were shocked by the announcement. Caught by surpriseKatie Baron said her two daughters started going there toward the middle of March. Just five weeks later, she said they got an email announcing the school was closing. The letter blamed a teacher shortage and said last month's tuition would be refunded. Baron said parents were only given eleven days' worth of notice. "Mostly for our kids, it was really sad," Baron said. It came as a surprise to her because she said a week before that email, there was a Parents Night with no mention of the school shutting down. "They said they were expanding, and they were so excited about their plans to take over the space next door and have two different areas for the older kids and the younger kids to be divided," Baron said. "You know, it se...

Texas to deploy buoys as new barriers at border, Abbott says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

AUSTIN (Nexstar) —Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced Thursday afternoon a "new, water-based barrier of buoys" will be installed at the Texas border soon. Abbott made the announcement after signing several border security-related bills that passed during the 88th Legislative Session. Abbott said the installation of the buoys will start "immediately.""These buoys will allow us to prevent people from even getting to the border," Abbott said.Col. Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, said the deployment of the first 1,000 feet of buoys will start in Maverick County's Eagle Pass. McCraw added the buoys can be deployed quickly and are movable.Images of the concept were displayed on each side of the table where Abbott, McCraw and Major General Thomas Suelzer, the Adjutant General of Texas, were sitting for the press conference. One image showed someone attempting to get over the barriers.Concept image of adding buoy barriers to the Rio Grande (Nexstar Photo)Im...