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‘We know what’s at stake’: Manitoba minibus drivers say safety paramount for seniors

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:10:54 GMT

For seniors in communities across Manitoba, minibuses or handivans are essential means of travel.“Without the use of the handivan as a service, there isn’t much else for seniors who are in wheelchairs or walkers to be able to move around,” said Justin Cicholski, manager of a non-profit handivan service in Neepawa, Man., a town about 190 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg.Fifteen people on a handibus who were headed out on a day trip from a seniors centre to a casino were killed Thursday when it crashed with a semi-trailer truck near Carberry, Man.The bus was carrying 25 men and women between the ages of 58 to 88.Cicholski drives seniors and people with disabilities around in minibuses and minivans in the Neepawa area with Neepawa District Handi Transit.He said a traffic light should be installed at the intersection of the Trans-Canada Highway and Highway 5, where Thursday’s crash happened.Greg Shaw, a driver with the Neepawa company, agreed it’s a busy in...

Brittney Griner is honored in Washington despite missing Mercury’s game with a hip injury

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:10:54 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Brittney Griner waved to fans who applauded her as she walked onto the court, embraced Elena Della Donne and signed an autograph before taking a seat on the bench. A video tribute and standing ovation followed at the first timeout.A hip injury prevented Griner from playing for the Phoenix Mercury against the Washington Mystics on Friday night. Still, Griner was embraced by opponents and the sellout crowd in her first public appearance in the nation’s capital since returning from her imprisonment in Russia, down the road from many of the folks in the U.S. government who worked to get her home. “That was a hard time for all of us,” said Washington guard Shatori Walker-Kimbrough, who played the 2020 season with Griner in Phoenix. “Just knowing her, just knowing her character, knowing her heart, it was just really tough. It’s just an honor and a blessing to see her out, to give her a hug, to talk to her, to hear her voice. And, honestly, she looks great.”Gr...

Fatal tour boat accident prompts New York governor to propose new oversight

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:10:54 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Gov. Kathy Hochul said Friday she wants the state to have regulatory authority over boats that operate in caves and similar waterways following a fatal tour boat accident in an underground water tunnel off the Erie Canal.The Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation regulates commercial boats, Hochul’s office said, but lacks authority to inspect those operating on non-navigable waters, like in the privately owned Lockport Cave.The Democrat will propose legislation to close that loophole, her office said.Earlier this week, a 65-year-old man died and nearly a dozen other passengers were taken to hospitals, mostly with minor injuries, when a flat-bottom boat with 29 people aboard flipped while inside the historic, human-made cavern system in western New York.After the June 12 accident at the Lockport Cave, a human services agency confirmed that a similar incident had occurred during a 2015 outing for clients and staff.“As we mourn the loss of...

Manitoba RCMP: Transport truck in crash that killed 15 had right-of-way

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:10:54 GMT

Dashcam footage seized from a transport truck that collided with a minibus full of seniors, killing 15, shows the bus pulled into the lane where the truck had the right-of-way, Manitoba RCMP said Friday.“We don’t know why the bus proceeded into the (truck’s) lane, but that is something we’re going to continue to look into,” Supt. Rob Lasson told a news conference.Lasson said they have not yet spoken with the driver of the bus, who remains in hospital along with nine other survivors of the fiery collision west of Winnipeg on Thursday.The bus was crossing the Trans-Canada Highway, heading south on Highway 5, when the eastbound truck struck it.Aerial photography of the crash scene shows that drivers heading across the Trans-Canada Highway would first have to obey a stop sign and then, in the median between the opposite lanes, a yield sign.Lasson stressed that it is early in the investigation, and officers are still examining the mechanics of the vehicles, ...

Mexico says 200 retired Mexican boxers who fought in California may be eligible for pensions

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:10:54 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico said Friday that more than 200 retired Mexican boxers who fought in California may be eligible for pensions. The little-known pension fund holds around $2.5 million. Boxers of any nationality over age 50 were eligible, as long as they had fought one fight per year for four years, or 75 professional rounds total, in California. Mexico’s Foreign Relations Department said it had a list of 206 Mexican boxers who might be eligible. The department said it had already located 23 ex-boxers, and given checks to four of them. One of those who got a check was José Refugio “Cuco” Rojas. Rojas said he had no idea the money existed until he got a phone call four months ago telling him he was eligible. “It was very simple,” Rojas said of the application process, adding that “money is always welcome.” The Associated Press

KXAN Founder’s Day: KXANers visited with older Austinites for the annual tradition

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:10:54 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — KXAN celebrated Nexstar Media Group’s Founder’s Day Friday by giving back to the community we serve.This year, KXAN linked up with Meals on Wheels, a Central Texas organization that, in addition to delivering meals, also coordinates sending volunteers to senior centers to spend time with older adults.Loneliness and social isolation are linked to serious health conditions, including some forms of dementia, in older adults, according to the CDC. Further, pew research shows that most older Americans will speed the majority of their day alone. Friday, KXAN teamed up with the nonprofit for the Founder’s Day of Caring, which is a tradition across all Nexstar Media Group stations to volunteer and do community service projects. KXAN employees delivered meals, helped to fix doorbells and decorated care packages the Meals on Wheels delivers to their clients.KXAN staff volunteered at Meals on Wheels June 16, 2023 for Founder’s Day (KXAN Photos)KXAN staff volunteered ...

Republicans play offense on student loans ahead of SCOTUS decision

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:10:54 GMT

Republicans are taking advantage of a perceived opening on student loans, proposing legislation to tackle the issue in both the House and Senate this week ahead of the Supreme Court’s upcoming decision on the legality of President Biden’s relief plan. Experts are skeptical the conservative-majority justices will uphold Biden's forgiveness proposal, but his administration has been mum on alternative plans. “I think it's definitely important because if Biden's plan falls down, he hasn’t proposed any solutions that actually address the problem, the underlying cause of why students are being forced to take out so much money just to attend higher education,” a GOP Senate aide told The Hill. While Democrats have stayed quiet, likely to avoid weakening Biden’s case in front of the Supreme Court, Republicans have been on the move. More education coverage from The HillAFT backs Biden for reelection in latest union endorsementCollege Board says it won’t alter AP courses to comp...

KTVI/KPLR volunteers with NCJWSTL on Nexstar's Founder's Day of Caring

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:10:54 GMT

CREVE COEUR, Mo. - Summer break just started, but some already have back-to-school on their minds Friday.A St. Louis group is getting much needed supplies ready for kids and FOX2 is helping out. KTVI FOX2  and KPLR Channel 11 celebrated Nexstar Founder's Day of Caring by volunteering at the National Council of Jewish Women St. Louis.Volunteers packed backpacks with school supplies and sorting through boxes filled with coats to prepare for the organization's back to school store event in August. Triple shooting at North St. Louis gas station one dead, two injured “The NCJWSTL has been around 120 years, and our mission is to improve women, children and families in our community and this is one of the ways we do that," said Ellen Alper, CEO of NCJWSTL. The volunteer work is part of a nationwide initiative by Nexstar stations to give back to local communities for its 27th Annual Day of Caring, signifying the year that the company was founded.  “Television stations do this across the c...

TikTok rap star Van Van, 4, dreams of working with Beyoncé

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:10:54 GMT

TikTok star, Savannah McConneaughey, Van Van, quickly rose to social media stardom with her creative rap lyrics and energetic beats. With the help of her parents, the 4-year-old self made rapper garnered millions of views on social media from her freestyle raps about her ABCs and 123s. Van Van says that she feels “great and happy” to be a TikTok star. “Ever since she was a child, I’ve just been recording her because she just had something about her, like a spark,”  said Van Van’s dad and hype man, Reggie Savannah McConneaughey. “When she was younger she would just memorize songs so easily and dance to them. Her mom could be singing a song and then stop and Vannah would fill in the words. That’s when she was like one or two years old. She had rhythm when she was younger. I was like, yea, she’s special.” Van Van, who credits her inspiration to child star That Girl Lay Lay, recently released her newest single, “Playing Outside Everyday” where she raps about her love...

Watch on KTLA: 2023 Critics Choice Real TV Awards – A Salute to the Winners

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:10:54 GMT

Some big stars are set to be honored on Friday night for the Critics Choice Real TV Awards.The awards “recognize excellence in nonfiction, unscripted and reality programming across broadcast, cable and streaming platforms."KTLA 5 is celebrating the winners with a special hosted by Sam Rubin and Megan Henderson. The 2023 Critics Choice Real TV Awards – A Salute to the Winners will be streaming on KTLA+ and KTLA.com on June 16 at 7:30 p.m. and will repeat over the weekend as well. It will also be streamed on the Critics Choice YouTube channel.