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July world’s hottest month on record, scientists confirm

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

Several global climate records fell last month, EU scientists said Tuesday, confirming July as the world’s hottest month in recorded history. The bloc’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) said that July’s global average temperature of 16.95 degrees Celsius was well above the previous 16.63C record set in 2019. At the same time, ocean temperatures hit a new high.Last month also saw the world’s hottest day: Global temperatures on July 6 reached 17.08C — and every day between July 3 and July 31 smashed the previous 16.80C record set in August 2016. The findings validate earlier estimates.“These records have dire consequences for both people and the planet exposed to ever more frequent and intense extreme events,” said Samantha Burgess, C3S deputy director. The high global temperature — part of a steep warming trend driven by the burning of fossil fuels — manifested in severe heat waves across the Northern Hemisphere, from the United States to the Medi...

Sources: 311 complaint leads to discovery of dead body at Boston DPW facility

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

Law enforcement sources tell 7NEWS that human remains found at a Boston public works facility were the result of a 311 complaint about trash left on a sidewalk.Residents who live on Winchester Street say they walked past the shopping cart that appeared to be full of trash several times before city workers came to retrieve it.Boston police have confirmed a man’s body was found at a nearby processing facility, which was transformed into a crime scene after the discovery was made Monday.“I think it’s completely inhumane, it’s disgusting,” said nearby resident Mary O’Beirne of news of the body being left on the street. “It’s disgraceful.” Boston police say they’ll have more information after an autopsy is completed. They’re hoping to have those results Tuesday afternoon.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.

Brockton shooting leaves 20-year-old hospitalized

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

A 20-year-old was rushed to the hospital Monday night after being shot in Brockton, officials said.Officers responding to a reported shooting on Stillman Avenue around 8:30 p.m. found the man suffering from a non-life-threatening gunshot wound, according to police.The shooting remains under investigation.No additional information was immediately available.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.

Scattered Strong Storms

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

We’re watching an active weather day across southern New England, especially this morning. The first thing I want to point out is an important word in the title — scattered. Not every person or every town will see storms today, but where they do move through, they have the potential to be strong or even severe. The storm risk will come in two waves: one this morning, the second later this evening.Like so many times this summer, our biggest threat today is not necessarily the strong or severe criteria for the storm, but rather the rain. As a reminder, an official severe storm requires wind gusts to 60 mph, hail over 1″ in diameter, or a tornado. There’s a lot of water locked up in our atmosphere this morning and you’ll feel that in the humidity as you step out the door. As the warm front moves through this morning, it will squeeze all of that moisture out of the atmosphere. So any of these storms could produce a quick inch or two of rain, then imagine ge...

Battenfeld: Gagging Trump a risky gambit for Democrats

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

Gagging Donald Trump with a court order preventing him from speaking out is a risky gambit for Democrats and prosecutors.The strategy could be a bridge too far – especially if the former president violates the order and is locked up. That happens routinely in dictatorships but not here.Trump – who is back in New Hampshire today – might actually benefit from Democrats trying to put him in prison, confirming his supporters’ worst fears that he is being persecuted by politically motivated judges and prosecutors.If the strategy is to weaken him and run against him they may be mistaken. Saddling him with so much legal baggage, could Trump survive?The Constitution does not prevent someone from running for president after being convicted of crimes. In fact, two presidential candidates, Eugene Debbs in 1920 and Lyndon LaRouche, have run for office while serving jail time, though neither came close to winning.But if Trump wins the election against Joe Biden while jailed, don’t be too surpris...

Recipe: Grilled pears with ice cream, honey and pepper is summer’s best easy dessert

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

By Bethany Jean Clement, The Seattle TimesSEATTLE — Too many pears is a happy problem to have. At a sad time recently, someone sent a box of bereavement pears, not something to belabor here except to say that the gift — with one pear, mysteriously deemed special, wrapped in golden foil in the center of the cushioned box — actually helped in a small way, which is kind of all one can hope for at a sad time. We put them in a pretty bowl on the table and admired their curvy beauty; we ate them, the first few at ambient temperature, then chilled as they ripened all at once and it became apparent we had too many pears. It turns out that when it’s hot out, eating a juicy chilled pear while standing in front of the open refrigerator can be a small moment of pure joy, if you let it be.Trying to figure out what to do with the pears as the ripening tumbled made for a nice distraction. We weren’t equal to anything remotely difficult, nor to anything involving a hot oven, which most ...

Need a new or renewed US passport? Get ready to wait

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

By Gisselle Medina, Los Angeles TimesA California family of six had everything arranged for their trip to France at the end of June — except a passport renewal for one of their sons. They’d booked their flights and accommodations in April and gotten a passport appointment in May, paying for expedited service. But one week before the trip, their son’s passport still hadn’t arrived.They started making daily calls to the U.S. State Department, which issues and renews passports, but couldn’t get through to anyone.It wasn’t until they saw posts on local Facebook groups that they realized there was a national passport appointment backlog. And it wasn’t until four days before their trip that they learned about a potentially risky way around the backlog.Why is there a passport backlog?Andres Rodriguez, lead community relations officer for passport services at the State Department, said the passport backlog is a result of the pandemic’s effect on tra...

Fan dies in Greece after clashes between rival supporters. UEFA postpones Champions League qualifier

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

NEA PHILADELPHIA, Greece (AP) — A 29-year-old Greek fan has died after overnight clashes between rival supporters in Athens, with European governing soccer body UEFA announcing it has postponed a Champions League qualifying game scheduled for Tuesday because of the violence.After the fan’s death, Greek authorities had requested that all supporters should be excluded from the match between AEK Athens and Croatia’s Dinamo Zagreb at the Opap Arena.Dinamo fans were officially already excluded under a previous ruling by UEFA.Eight fans were injured while Greek police said Tuesday they had made 88 arrests, mostly of Croatian supporters.UEFA says what was going to be the second leg in Zagreb next Wednesday will now be the first leg. The second leg will be held in Athens on Friday 18th or Saturday 19th.___AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccerThe Associated Press

Mourners gather in Ireland to pay their respects to singer Sinead O’Connor

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

Fans are gathering in singer Sinead O’Connor’s former hometown in Ireland to say goodbye ahead of her funeral.O’Connor’s family invited the public to line the waterfront in Bray on Tuesday as her funeral procession passes by.“Sinead loved living in Bray and the people in it,” a statement issued by her family said. “With this procession, her family would like to acknowledge the outpouring of love for her from the people of Wicklow (county) and beyond, since she left last week to go to another place.”Fans left handwritten notes outside her former home, thanking her for sharing her voice and her music. One sign listed causes that the singer had expressed support for, including welcoming refugees.O’Connor, 56, was found unresponsive at her London home on July 26. Police have not said how she died, though they said her death was not suspicious.O’Connor, a multi-octave mezzo soprano of extraordinary emotional range who was recognizable by her shaved hea...

Japan’s tech investor SoftBank trims losses and promises offensive turnaround

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

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese technology company SoftBank Group Corp. continued to rack up losses for the fiscal first quarter as technology investments soured amid a market downturn.But SoftBank’s April-June red ink, at 477.6 billion yen ($3.4 billion), was smaller than a year ago, when losses totaled 3.16 trillion yen ($22 billion), the Tokyo-based company said Tuesday.Losses came from what SoftBank calls its Vision Funds, as well as from other investments including those in telecommunications in Japan.Chief Financial Officer Yoshimitsu Goto struck an upbeat tone, stressing that the environment for technology issues was improving.“We must pay attention to the conditions and adjust stepping on the gas pedal, as well as on the brakes on investments accordingly,” he told reporters.SoftBank Vision Fund 1 marked a $12.4 billion gain since its inception, while SoftBank Vision Fund 2, set up after the first fund, was still performing at a loss of $18.6 billion, according to SoftBank.Over the lat...