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Gov. Greg Abbott sends resources to help combat fires in Louisiana

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:54 GMT

AUSTIN (TEXAS) – Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced Friday he would send resources to Louisiana to help combat a large, destructive fire burning in the Beauregard Parish, near the Texas-Louisiana border, as well as other fires burning across the state.The blaze in the Beauregard Parish – called the Tiger Island Fire – has already burned 23 square miles, which is more acres burned than the state typically sees in an entire year, according to the Associated Press. As of Friday, Louisiana officials were fighting an additional 20 more fires across the state, according to AP. Abbott said he has deployed 89 firefighters, paramedics and emergency management personnel along with emergency response resources to help firefighters in Louisiana. “Just as the State of Louisiana offered their support and assistance during Hurricane Harvey six years ago, Texas is swiftly providing the personnel and resources our neighbors need to combat these destructive wildfires impacting their state. Wh...

Jaren Hall gets full game under his belt, Vikings fall 18-17 to Cardinals in preseason finale

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:54 GMT

Vikings rookie quarterback Jaren Hall has come a long way over the past few weeks.After struggling to call plays in the huddle in the preseason opener against the Seattle Seahawks, Hall played the entirety of the preseason finale against the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday afternoon at U.S. Bank Stadium. He completed 17 of 28 passes for 178 yards, with one touchdown and one interception.His effort wasn’t enough for the Vikings in the end, though, and they lost 18-17 to the Arizona Cardinals after leading for most of the game.That dropped head coach Kevin O’Connell to 0-6 in preseason games since taking over in Minnesota before the 2022 season. His exhibition record makes some sense considering O’Connell believes in keeping his starters in bubble wrap ahead of the regular season.Shortly after the Vikings went through warmups, it became apparent that Hall was going to get a lot of playing time. Not only was starting quarterback Kirk Cousins spotted on the sideline with...

Seven spots no longer serving as St. Louis-area malls

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:54 GMT

ST. LOUIS - Online shopping has contributed to the gradual decline of traditional shopping malls in the 21st century, and several spots in the St. Louis area reflect that harsh reality. In the past few decades, at least seven spots that once served as bustling shopping malls in the St. Louis City or St. Louis County have shut down mall operations. Depending on interpretation, some of these might even be considered "dead malls," due to high vacancy rates, low consumer traffic, or deterioration. Some malls around St. Louis have taken on new life with scaled-down retail or non-retail operations. Others have come down or are expected to soon come down for good. Inspired by a similar Riverfront Times article, FOX 2 takes a closer look into seven malls not forgotten, but no longer serving the St. Louis area as malls.Crestwood CourtOpened: 1957Closed: 2013Municipality: Crestwood, MissouriThe first regional mall in the St. Louis area, Crestwood Court was once home to six different anchors (...

Thomas Saggese: The new Cardinals prospect who doesn't stop hitting

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:54 GMT

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Though the St. Louis Cardinals loaded up on pitching prospects at this year's trade deadline, one young hitter involved in the frenzy is making quite a statement. Thomas Saggese, a 21-year-old shortstop, was one of three players acquired in a deal that sent Jordan Montgomery to the Texas Rangers last month. Thomas Saggese (Photo provided by: Chris Pinson/KOLR)His early returns with the Double-A Springfield Cardinals offer plenty of promise and hope for a possible big-league promotion next year.In less than a month with Springfield, Saggese is hitting .366 with nine home runs, 20 RBI and 19 runs scored. To further paint the picture of his surge:Saggese has picked up at least one hit in all but four of his first 22 games as a Cardinals farmhand. Saggese has nine multi-hit games with Springfield. Saggese delivered his first minor-league cycle last Saturday, one of just two for Cardinals prospects over the past decade. Saggese has 145 hits at the Double-A level this y...

PHOTOS: Publicist says game show host Bob Barker has died

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:54 GMT

A publicist says popular game show host Bob Barker, a household name for a half-century as host of “Truth or Consequences” and “The Price Is Right,” has died at his home in Los Angeles. Barker was 99.

Tenth bus of migrants from Texas arrives in Los Angeles

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:54 GMT

The tenth bus full of migrants arrived in Los Angeles on Saturday morning. According to a release from the L.A. Welcomes Collective – which is a network of immigrant rights and legal services providers, faith organizations, and city and county officials – the bus arrived at Union Station just after 11 a.m. from Brownsville, Texas and included 12 families, among them 21 children and 19 adults. The youngest members of the group are a 5-month-old boy and a set of twins under the age of two, the L.A. Welcomes Collective said. The oldest member of the group is 52 years old. The asylum seekers are from Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Peru and Venezuela. Spokespeople for organizations that comprise the L.A. Welcomes Collective – which include the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, the Coalition for Human Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA) and the Central American Resource Center of Los Angeles (CARECEN) among others – said that each bus with migrants is treated with open arms, and th...

Bay Area software CEO pleads guilty to tax, pandemic relief fraud

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:54 GMT

A Dublin man who served as CEO of multiple Bay Area software companies has been sentenced to two years in prison after failing to pay millions of dollars in employment taxes and defrauding the COVID-19 relief paycheck program.Kishore Kethineni pleaded guilty in February to tax evasion and conspiracy, according to a news release from U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California, Ismail Ramsey. Court documents showed that Kethineni collected more than $2 million in employment taxes from his employees but did not pay them to the government. He also fraudulently obtained $3.1 million under the federal Paycheck Protection Program.Kethineni was the owner of four software companies involved in the scheme: BiteGate, Dinenamics, Neelinfo, and TechPMC. Federal authorities said his brothers also owned three other companies involved: Boxstertech, Hiretechforce, and TechGlobalSystems.Each of the businesses were small consulting and software companies.Between April 2020 and May 2021, Ram...

SF Giants’ Kyle Harrison to make home debut on Monday against Reds

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:54 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — Another Giants top prospect will get to show off his stuff in front of the home crowd.Kyle Harrison will make his Oracle Park debut on Monday against the Cincinnati Reds, manager Gabe Kapler said on Saturday. It’ll be the Giants’ top pitching prospect’s second big league start coming off a tricky debut in hostile Philadelphia.Oddly, the 22-year-old left-handed pitcher gave up a majority of the five hits he allowed to the Phillies’ left-handed hitters — including a home run from former MVP Bryce Harper. He gave up two runs and struck out five in 3 1/3 innings primarily with a strong four-seam fastball up in the zone.With the off day Thursday, Harrison could have made his home debut on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball in the series finale against the Atlanta Braves. His dominance against Philadelphia’s right-handed hitters aside, the Giants saw it best to keep Harrison away from Atlanta’s lineup that holds a league-lead...

Police say University of South Carolina student fatally shot while trying to enter wrong home

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:54 GMT

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A University of South Carolina student was shot and killed as he apparently tried to enter the wrong home on his off-campus street early on Saturday, police said.Nicholas Anthony Donofrio, 20, of Connecticut, was dead by the time police responded to reports of a home burglary and shooting, according to a Columbia Police Department news release. Officers found his body on a front porch around 2 a.m., and Donofrio had a gunshot wound to his upper body, the release said.Police said preliminary information indicated that Donofrio, a sophomore, lived on the same street as where he was shot but apparently was attempting to enter another home. The shooting occurred in a Columbia neighborhood adjacent to the campus.The statement didn’t say who shot the student or whether any charges were immediately filed. In an email on Saturday afternoon, a department spokesperson said the investigation “remains active” but didn’t release more information.The police depar...

Chelsea completes signing of Serbia goalkeeper Petrovic from New England Revolution

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:54 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Chelsea completed the signing of goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic from Major League Soccer club New England Revolution on Saturday. The 23-year-old Serbia international signed a seven-year deal at Stamford Bridge and will initially be expected to be a backup to summer signing Robert Sanchez. The clubs did not disclose the transfer fee but British media reported the deal was worth 14 million pounds ($17.6 million).“Playing in the Premier League is something I’m really looking forward to doing and I hope to learn many things here at Chelsea. I can’t wait to meet everyone and play at Stamford Bridge,” Petrovic said in a statement.Petrovic made 22 appearances for New England this season and was named to the MLS All-Star team.He is the latest newcomer at Stamford Bridge following a spending spree of more than $1 billion over the last 18 months by the club’s American ownership fronted by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital.Despite that, the club has just one win in its first ...