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New COVID-19 variant arrives in Texas

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 17:00:44 GMT

TEXAS - A new COVID variant has been identified in Texas, becoming the fifth state where the variant has been confirmed. BA 2.86, also known as Pirola, raised concerns because it has several mutations and it has been detected in several locations within a short amount of time.According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Pirola has been detected in Israel, Canada, Denmark, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, and Thailand, including at least five states in the U.S. A member from the genome sequencing team at Houston Methodist Hospital released the news of the first case in Texas on X, formerly known as Twitter.In the Houston area, overall COVID-19 cases and hospital admissions are up a little and the wastewater viral load in Harris County is at 375 percent. In Texas, cases are up by 31.6% compared to the previous week according to the latest report issued Aug 28, 2023.And while the CDC said there is currently no evidence that this new v...

Vikings head into Week 1 with confidence

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 17:00:44 GMT

When it was suggested that a season like last year’s would be a good one for the 2023 Vikings, veteran safety Harrison Smith laughed.“Well,” he said, “I hope we win a few by larger margins.”Despite a first-round playoff loss, Minnesota’s 2022 season was one for the ages, resulting in an NFC North championship and a handful of firsts, such as Greg Joseph’s 61-yard, game winning field goal and the biggest regular-season comeback in NFL history in a 39-36 victory over Indianapolis.Overall, the Vikings — as alluded to by Smith — were 11-1 one-score games in a season that ended with a 13-4 record.That mettle isn’t something to dismiss, and while the Vikings have shed some important personnel since last season — a key rush end, their No. 1 running back and longtime middle linebacker — there is a sense at TCO Performance Center that good things could happen again.“My confidence level in our team is pretty darn high right now,” head coach Kevin O’Connell said Wednesday before his team’s fir...

Bruce Springsteen postpones all September concerts

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 17:00:44 GMT

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) -- Bruce Springsteen announced that he will be postponing all of his September concerts, starting with his show scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 7 at the JMA Wireless Dome in Syracuse. Get the latest news, weather, sports and more delivered right to your inbox! Springsteen announced on his Twitter that he is being treated for symptoms of Peptic Ulcer Disease, and his medical advisors decided he should postpone his September concerts. He had a concert scheduled on September 19 at the MVP Arena in Albany.No makeup dates have been announced, but ticket holders will receive information about rescheduled dates once they are available.

COVID surges heading into fall: What you need to know

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 17:00:44 GMT

Rates of COVID-19 are rising as the summer ends, with new variants compounding concerns about the virus heading into the fall. Hospitalizations and deaths are rising by double-digit percentages, according to Centers for Disease Control (CDC) data, though rates remain far below pandemic-era levels. The change in season also means cooling temperatures, cold season and the return of children to schools around the country — all of which could exacerbate current trends. Here's what to know about the current state of COVID-19. Hospitalizations, deaths on the riseCOVID-related hospitalizations rose by 16 percent from mid to late August, according to the most recent CDC data available. That continues a trend that started in July after record-low hospitalization rates this summer.Cases could be rising faster, experts believe, with many cases going unreported and an end of pandemic-era data collection. “Everything is much more gray and hazy now because we no longer have a good sense of how ma...

Murder charges filed in domestic violence shooting in Troy, Illinois

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 17:00:44 GMT

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - The Madison County State's Attorney's Office has charged a Troy, Illinois, man for killing a woman he'd been seeing.Troy police were called to a town home in the 2100 block of Tramore early Tuesday morning for a report of a shooting. They found a man standing at the front door of the home with his hands up. He was placed in handcuffs and officers found the victim, Maha Tiimob, inside the residence. Tiimob had been shot several times. Police attempted life-saving measures until EMS arrived, but Tiimob was pronounced dead at the scene.Michael Perham, 52, was charged Wednesday with first-degree murder. He remains jailed on $1 million bail.

Coach Prime 1, Nebraska 0: CU fans will outnumber Big Red faithful at Buffs-Huskers, ticket site predicts

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 17:00:44 GMT

BOULDER — Coach Prime might have already beaten Nebraska before his CU Buffs take a snap.VividSeats.com told The Post this week that based on seats sold and market trends, the popular ticketing site is projecting via its “Fan Forecast” algorithm that 60% of the crowd at Folsom Field for Deion Sanders’ home debut will be wearing CU gold on Saturday.That would flip the crowd makeup at Folsom for this tilt from four years earlier, when Cornhuskers fans in September 2019 accounted for an estimated 60-65% of the sellout crowd.That ratio disappointed Buffs athletic department officials both privately and publicly, despite it being the most profitable football weekend in modern CU history up to that date.Athletic director Rick George has been pleading in the months leading up to Saturday’s game for Buffs fans to “keep the red out” for Sanders’ debut, and to some degree, VividSeats says, he might just get his wish.Especially with CU’s st...

Why fast start is critical for Broncos in Week 1 vs. Raiders: “We’ve got to create a new history”

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 17:00:44 GMT

If you entered the Broncos locker room looking for offensive players who remember the last time the franchise beat the division-rival Raiders, you’d find scant options.In fact, the list includes only left tackle Garett Bolles and wide receiver Courtland Sutton. Of the 53 on Denver’s roster, seven were around for Denver’s last win against the silver and black.Bolles started that game at left tackle on Dec. 29, 2019. Sutton caught four passes for 52 yards. The Broncos eked out a 16-15 win against the team playing its final game as an Oakland-based franchise.Since then? Denver fans know the drill all too well. Six straight losses. A streak that pales in length to a 15-game free-fall against Kansas City but punches above its weight class on the frustration scale.An interesting thing about that 2019 season: It was Vic Fangio’s first as Denver’s head coach and it started with a loss to the Raiders. The Broncos spiraled to 0-4, actually, before playing to a 7-5 mark the rest of the way.Now...

Colorado Highway 9 (Hoosier Pass) closing for work to repair 85-year-old bridge

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 17:00:44 GMT

State highway crews will close Colorado 9 just north of Alma at the base of Hoosier Pass for a week starting Thursday morning, potentially adding more than two hours of travel time for drivers, state transportation officials said.Drivers headed toward that highway linking Alma and Breckenridge should detour along U.S. 24, Colorado 91, or Interstate 70, Colorado Department of Transportation Officials said in a news release.For drivers, the detours may add 120 miles and 2 hours and 25 minutes of travel time, CDOT officials said.They’re closing the highway in an effort to hasten work, keep crews safe, and minimize environmental impacts along Hoosier Pass as crews replace a structurally deficient bridge originally built in 1938, officials said. “For the safety of the traveling public, this structure requires full replacement.” The closure is scheduled to begin at 6 a.m. Thursday and continue through 6 a.m. on Sept. 14, depending on weather. Drivers can find information on road condition...

Court temporarily halts Chino school district's 'forced outing policy'

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 17:00:44 GMT

Just nine days after California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced his intention to halt what he described as a "forced outing policy" approved by a Southern California school board, his office scored a legal victory in blocking the regulation.The state secured a temporary restraining order in San Bernardino Superior Court on Wednesday that nullifies the requirement that Chino Valley Unified School District staffers notify parents if a student is transgender or gender-nonconforming, according to the Los Angeles Times."We’ve secured a temporary restraining order against Chino Valley Unified School District’s illegal and dangerous forced outing policy," Bonta announced on X, formerly known as Twitter. Bonta later added in a statement that "a temporary restraining order rightfully upholds the state rights of our LGBTQ+ student community and protects kids from harm by immediately halting the board’s forced outing policy."Hundreds attended a heated Chino Valley school board meeting as ...

Dodgers pitcher Julio Urías placed on leave after domestic violence arrest

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 17:00:44 GMT

Editor's note: This article has been edited to clarify Urías' status. We regret this error.Major League Baseball has placed Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Julio Urías on administrative leave after he was arrested Sunday evening on a domestic violence charge, the team announced on Wednesday.Urías, 27, was taken into custody by officers with the Exposition Park Department of Public Safety and booked for an alleged violation of Penal Code 273.5 which involves “corporal injury” to a spouse or domestic partner.Exposition Park is the site of BMO Stadium, where Lionel Messi and Inter Miami played LAFC Sunday evening in a Major League Soccer match that was attended by countless celebrities.The Culiacan, Mexico native posted a $50,000 bond and was released from jail early Monday.His initial court appearance is scheduled for Sept. 27.“The Dodgers take all allegations of the kind in this case very seriously, and we do not condone or excuse any acts of domestic violence,” the Dodgers said in ...