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Maine’s close-knit deaf community is grieving in the wake of shootings that killed 4 beloved members

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:31:45 GMT

FALMOUTH, Maine (AP) — Maine’s close-knit community of deaf and hard of hearing people is grieving in the wake of the Lewiston shootings that killed beloved members, many of whom were ardent advocates.The shootings, at a bowling alley and a bar in Lewiston, killed at least four people in the deaf community, the Maine Educational Center for the Deaf said Friday. The shootings killed 18 people in total and injured 13 others.Joshua Seal, 36, was a sign language interpreter among those killed while he was playing in a cornhole tournament at Schemengees Bar with friends. In the past couple years, he became known as an interpreter during Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s pandemic briefings.His wife Elizabeth Seal said in a Facebook post that he was “a wonderful husband, my best friend, and my soulmate. He was also a wonderful boss, an incredible interpreter, a great friend, a loving son, brother, uncle, and grandson.”“It is with a heavy heart that I share with ...

Maine shelter-in-place order lifted after 48 hours, but suspect still at large

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:31:45 GMT

LEWISTON, Maine (AP) — Authorities scoured the woods and hundreds of acres of family-owned property, sent dive teams with sonar to the bottom of a river and scrutinized a possible suicide note Friday in the second day of their intensive search for an Army reservist accused of fatally shooting 18 people and wounding 13 at a bowling alley and a bar in Maine.Authorities lifted their shelter in place order Friday evening, nearly 48 hours after the shootings.The names and pictures of the 16 males and 2 females who died were released as State Public Safety Commissioner Mike Sauschuck asked for a moment of silence at a news conference. Their ages ranged from 14 to 76.Law enforcement officials said they have not seen suspect Robert Card since his vehicle was left at a boat ramp Wednesday shortly after the shootings. Sauschuck didn't say if they have any indication if Card is alive or dead, only that investigators are leaving all their options open.“We’re going to be all over the place,” Sau...

Alpine Rescue Group prepares for wintry weekend

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:31:45 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- As the wintery weekend approaches search and rescue groups are preparing for their efforts to help people who head into the high country unprepared. The Alpine Rescue Team, which has provided search and rescue services in Colorado for over 60 years, recorded over 130 calls per year since 2014. That much experience has put their group ready for when rescues are needed and they know how to prepare. View the latest Weather Alerts in Denver and across Colorado on FOX31 They have over 70 team members preparing for what is sure to be a snowy weekend in the high country. "A little snow or storm down in Denver can really mean a huge winter storm up in the mountains so we have to be prepared," said Steve Wilson, an Alpine Rescue team member. Those preparations started way before this week, to fine-tune their efforts if someone needs help. "From removing the summer-specific equipment that we have in our vehicles, putting new batteries into avalanche transceivers, making su...

Berthoud teacher named 2024 Colorado Teacher of the Year

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:31:45 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- Turner Middle School teacher Jessica May was surprised with a ceremony Friday, naming her the 2024 Colorado Teacher of the Year.Ms. May has been teaching several subjects including math, science, social studies and language arts in the Thompson School District for decades, according to a release from the Colorado Department of Education. She currently teaches family and consumer sciences. How do ski areas make snow? CDE said the selection committee acknowledged her "innate abilities to connect with her students."As 2024 Colorado Teacher of the Year, Ms. May represents the entire teaching profession for the state and is automatically nominated for the National Teacher of the Year competition. She and other states' nominees will be honored at a special ceremony at the White House and get the opportunity to go to NASA's Space Camp."Ms. May exemplifies the ideal educator who not only imparts real-world knowledge to her middle school students but fosters strong connect...

Explosion 1 million times brighter than the Milky Way creates rare elements

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:31:45 GMT

(CNN) — The James Webb Space Telescope and other observatories witnessed a massive explosion in space that created rare chemical elements, some of which are necessary for life.The explosion, observed on March 7, was the second brightest gamma-ray burst ever witnessed by telescopes in more than 50 years of observations, over one million times brighter than the entire Milky Way Galaxy combined. Gamma-ray bursts are short emissions of the most energetic form of light.This particular burst, called GRB 230307A, was likely created when two neutron stars — the incredibly dense remnants of stars after a supernova — merged in a galaxy about one billion light-years away. In addition to releasing the gamma-ray burst, the merger created a kilonova, a rare explosion that occurs when a neutron star merges with another neutron star or a black hole, according to a study published Wednesday in the journal Nature.“There are only a mere handful of known kilonovas, and this is the first ...

‘He cannot hear the shooting’: Deaf man originally from Chelsea, Mass. identified as victim of Lewiston, Maine shootings

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:31:45 GMT

Steve Vozzella was playing in a cornhole tournament with fellow members of the deaf community when he was shot and killed during the mass shootings in Lewiston, Maine.Sandra Brum shares a 21-year-old son with Steve. She said Steve grew up in Chelsea, Massachusetts, graduated from the Beverly School for the Deaf. “He died painful, last minute, unexpected,” Brum said. “He cannot hear the shooting at the bowling alley.  He can not hear nothing.”Brum said Steve also worked at the United States Postal Service Sorting Facility in South Boston until recently.“Brother Vozzella was only 45-years-old,” his union APWU said in a statement. “He had much more life to live before it was stolen from him in an all-too-common senseless act of gun violence.”“He’s wonderful! Very friendly, very humble, laid back, just a butterfly,” Brum said of Steve. “He’s a great guy.”Steve got married and moved to Maine this year. Sandra said it was Steve’s wife who called to tell her the news of his death.“He ...

Battenfeld: Joe Biden’s move to skip New Hampshire primary could come with steep price in November

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:31:45 GMT

Joe Biden risks losing a key purple state by flipping off New Hampshire voters in an election that could come down to just a few electoral votes.The president’s campaign has made a calculated risk that Granite State voters will forget Biden’s snub of refusing to put his name on the primary ballot.Chances are they won’t forget. New Hampshire has four electoral votes and in a close election losing them could be a major blow to Democrats’ hopes of holding on to the White House.But Biden has chosen South Carolina over New Hampshire and Iowa by endorsing the Palmetto State primary first in line – rewarding the place that rescued his 2020 campaign.South Carolina is now the leadoff voting state in the selection process under Democratic National Committee rules, but New Hampshire is ignoring that DNC list, vowing to hold its primary first under its own state law. Iowa Democrats are also working to preserve their early January caucus.“While the president wishes to participate in the pr...

Richard Moll, who found fame as a bailiff on the original sitcom ‘Night Court,’ dies at 80

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:31:45 GMT

By MARK KENNEDY (AP Entertainment Writer)NEW YORK (AP) — Richard Moll, a character actor who found lasting fame as an eccentric but gentle giant bailiff on the original “Night Court” sitcom, has died. He was 80.Moll died Thursday at his home in Big Bear Lake, California, according to Jeff Sanderson, a family spokesperson. Moll played “Bull” Shannon on NBC’s “Night Court” from 1984-1992 alongside stars Harry Anderson and John Larroquette. His character formed a close friendship with the court’s other bailiff, Roz Russell, played by Marsha Warfield. Bull was known for his shaved head, catchphrase, “Ohh-kay,” and a dim but sweet world view.After “Night Court” ended, Moll contributed his trademark gravelly voice to various video games and comic book projects like “Batman: The Animated Series” as Harvey Dent and appeared in horror films like “Ghost Shark” (2013) and “Slay Belles...

Heavily-traveled border roadway in Tijuana to become one-way only

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:31:45 GMT

SAN DIEGO (Border Report) -- With a pending construction project to build a highway on top of Tijuana's Avenida Internacional — a widely-used roadway that parallels the border — city engineers have decided that during construction, it will be best to turn it into a one-way street.Initially, it was to have one lane of traffic in each direction.But now, the two available lanes will only take cars from the San Ysidro Port of Entry west toward the coast. Road project to partially close major border thoroughfare in Tijuana indefinitely The city made this change after "further evaluating traffic patterns and the impact in the area." It was decided that the one-way-only pattern was best and would avoid potential problems."If we leave only one lane in each direction, with cars coming out of the United States in the afternoon and evening, it's going to create a huge bottleneck and it could lead to a total standstill," said Rafael Vázquez Hernández, director of traffic with the Tijuana Pol...

Premier Eby condemns rise in hate crimes in B.C. stemming from Israeli-Hamas conflict

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:31:45 GMT

VICTORIA — British Columbia Premier David Eby is condemning the rise in hate crimes in the province, driven by the Israeli-Hamas war.Eby says in a written statement that his office has heard “directly” about a number of acts of antisemitism, such as the vandalism of a rabbi’s home and two Jewish women being threatened with violence after a rally.He says there are also increased reports of hate incidents from Muslim organizations in the province, including an incident where two women were attacked in Vancouver.Eby says there is equally “no place for Islamophobia or anti-Palestinian hate” in B.C. as there is “no place for antisemitism or anti-Israeli hate.”More than 1,400 people have died in Israel since the deadly incursion by Hamas on Oct. 7, while authorities in Gaza say the death toll has passed 7,300 in the territory since the war began.Both Israeli and Palestinian supporters have held large-scale public rallies in British Columbia since ...