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Faye Flam: The Pacific garbage patch is now hosting a new threat

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

The infamous Pacific garbage patch is changing the balance of life in the seas. At least 37 species of coastal creatures — worms, crabs, shellfish and the like — have colonized the Texas-sized plastic tangle, turning it into an unnatural floating habitat.The findings, reported last week in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution, show life’s tenacity, with a variety of castaway creatures treating our trash as their own Noah’s Ark. But it’s not something to celebrate. It should be a wake-up call to create stronger, more binding prohibitions against using the oceans as a place to dump plastic.Scientists worry about the plastic that’s infused into the bodies of the animals living in it. That’s going to go up the food chain. And they’re worried that plastic garbage is becoming a conveyor belt for species that could become invasive in their new homes, wiping out other forms of life.While it’s often described as a giant island of plas...

Woman, 81, apparently delivering cookies when garbage truck fatally struck her in Stillwater

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

Margaret Peterson was the kind of person who baked cookies for the mail carriers and garbagemen in her Stillwater neighborhood.Peterson, 81, was apparently on her way to deliver cookies to the driver of a Waste Management garbage truck when he fatally struck her about 7:45 a.m. Tuesday, said Police Chief Brian Mueller. It happened outside her house in the 900 block of Willard St. W.“We see a lot of tragic things in our profession, but the circumstances surrounding this are among the worst I’ve seen,” Mueller said Friday. “Margaret was one of those community caretakers, bringing cookies to the workers and neighbors. Every indication is that she has known these workers for a long time.”The driver of the Waste Management garbage truck, a 46-year-old man from New Richmond, Wis., is cooperating with investigators, Mueller said.“This is tragic on both ends,” Mueller said. “It involved two really good people. (The driver) takes his job seriously and takes great pride in his work. He grew u...

Police make 5 notable DWI arrests in the Capital Region

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- New York State Police around the Capital Region arrested five individuals for DWI during the week of April 20 to 27. Two incidents involved crashes. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! At around 4:25 p.m. on April 21, State Police responded to a crash involving a car and a motorcycle on Duanesburg Road in Princetown. Police say the driver of the car, Daniel L. Miller, 63, of Princetown, failed to yield to the motorcycle. Miller crashed into the motorcycle and ran over the motorcyclist. He was arrested for Driving While Intoxicated and other Vehicle and Traffic Law violations. Miller refused to provide a breath sample. It was determined that Miller had multiple DWI convictions in the last ten years. The motorcyclist was transported to the Albany Medical Center with serious injuries that are not believed to be life-threatening. Foreclosed properties to be auctioned off in Schenectady County In the early...

Saratoga Arts presenting poetry event

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Saratoga Arts is celebrating National Poetry Month by hosting a poetry reading Friday, April 28. The event titled "More Than Local" will feature four Saratoga poets and will begin at 6:30 p.m. at the arts center, located at 320 Broadway, Saratoga Springs. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! The reading will showcase the work of poets Peg Boyers, Elaine Handley, Marilyn McCabe, and Jay Rogoff. It will be moderated by Saratoga Springs’ Poet Laureate Joseph Bruchac. The Greenfield Review Literacy Center has generously teamed up with Saratoga Arts to underwrite the remaining ticket costs to make this poetry reading free and accessible to all. Regional Food Bank hosting their largest food drive of the year The doors will open one hour before the start of the event. While it is free to attend, space is limited, and Saratoga Arts kindly encourages the community to register here to reserve a seat....

Albany man sentenced to 15 years for 2017 manslaughter

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- On Friday, Stephan Harris, 27, was sentenced to a determinate term of 15 years in prison and 5 years of post-release supervision. Harris pleaded guilty to manslaughter on March 17, 2023. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! According to the indictment, Harris caused the death of Jonathan Weldon in May 2017 by stabbing him in the stomach. The incident occurred in the area of 362 Elk Street in the City of Albany.

Man allegedly steals car in Wilton, leads police on chase

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

WILTON, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- New York State Police said a man was arrested twice in one day after allegedly stealing a car and leading them on a chase. Eric Sahm, 45, of Liverpool, N.Y. was taken into custody on April 21. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! On September 23, 2022, troopers in Wilton received a complaint from a Saratoga County resident about Sahm allegedly sending them unwanted and threatening text messages. Wilton Town Court then issued a warrant for Sahm’s arrest.On April 21, Sahm was found in Salina, N.Y. and was brought to State Police in Wilton on the warrant. He was arraigned in Wilton Town Court, where he charged with second-degree aggravated harassment and released. Suspect arrested following animal cruelty investigation Shortly after he was released, police said Sahm allegedly stole a car from the Stewart's on Ballard Road in Wilton. With the help of the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office, Sahm was reportedl...

Here's what Missouri websites looked like in the '90s

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Missouri was one of the early adopters of the internet, AKA the World Wide Web, as it was more commonly referred to in the '90s. Cassidy Rainwater: Everything we know about her death, disappearance, the suspects, and the house fire With the creation of the first web browser in 1990, home use of the internet exploded, and companies and governments took the opportunity to create their first web pages.Below are some examples of what various Missouri official websites looked like in the mid-1990s as taken from Archive.org.St. Louis Missouri Botanical GardenThis 1997 St. Louis Missouri Botanical Garden homepage offered information on garden care, various discoveries, images and a listing of events and lectures. A look at their virtual tour consisted of one or two images of the park!Springfield.Missouri.orgThis official "On-Line" guide to Missouri's third-largest city made in 1999 provided everything you needed to know about what to do and what to see in Springfield. ...

Fisher catches record-breaking freshwater drum in Illinois

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

CHRISTIAN COUNTY, Ill. - One man made the most of his Illinois bowfishing experience earlier this year, breaking a years-long state record. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources says Phillip Albert broke a state record for the heaviest freshwater drum on Feb. 20. He caught a nearly 20.25-pound fish on Sangchris Lake in Christian County. Trending -- Students and teacher rally around fired Webster Groves teacher Albert broke an Illinois bowfishing record for a freshwater drum from 2017. His fish weighed nearly half a pound larger. His fish was mostly white with some pinkish fins. For bowfishers, this is the first record to come from Sangchris Lake, which is about half an hour south of Springfield, Illinois. For a look at additional state records, click here.

St. Louis County man wins $329K lotto jackpot

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

ELLISVILLE, Mo. -- A Missouri Lottery player from St. Louis County hit the Show Me Cash jackpot with a $329,000 win. The man regularly plays the game and checks his tickets every two weeks using the Missouri Lottery's app. The player won the jackpot in the March 24 drawing. Trending -- Students and teacher rally around fired Webster Groves teacher The ticket was sold at the QuikTrip on Manchester Road in Ellisville. It matched all five numbers drawn that evening. The winning numbers were: 19, 21, 22, 25 and 34.Show Me Cash jackpots start at $50,000 and grow until won. The odds of winning the jackpot are around one in 575,757.

Denver’s neediest face tougher times as emergency Aloft hotel shelter closes

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

Unhoused Denver residents who have health problems face increasingly difficult days following the shutdown this week of one of the two hotels converted for government-backed temporary emergency protective housing during the COVID-19 pandemic.The 140-room Aloft hotel downtown has closed its doors, clerks confirmed Friday, saying this six-story building near the Convention Center now is undergoing “renovations” and won’t be re-opened until July — as a commercial hotel. Since January, city caseworkers have been tasked with helping about 124 people who were staying in Aloft find other shelters.Denver City Council members approved $13.3 million last year to fund extended use of the Aloft building for a six-month period that ended on Thursday. The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 raised concerns about health risks in group shelters and city officials set up the emergency protective shelters — using federal pandemic relief funds — for residents with respiratory...