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Lego Discovery Center opens at Springfield Town Center

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:15:04 GMT

LEGO’s newest LEGO Discovery Center officially opens to the public August 14 at Springfield Town Center in Virginia after an official ribbon-cutting and preview on August 9.The LEGO Discovery Center will also be open August 10 through August 13 for a First Play Days preview.The 32,000-square-foot indoor attraction is on the lower level of the mall directly off the main entrance.There is plenty for kids and their parents to do, including a DUPLO Park for young children, an entire area for kids to create and build with LEGO bricks, a Mini-World that features LEGO creations made from more than 1.5 million bricks, a train ride through a LEGO world with games and moving models, a creative lab, a 4D theater and a workshop where master builders display their creations.There is also a cafe and a space mission gallery where children build spaceships and fly them through virtual galleries.Tickets start at $28.99 with online ticket purchases recommended.It is the region’s first LEG...

Western officials say Niger’s junta threatened to kill deposed president if neighboring countries intervened militarily

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:15:04 GMT

NIAMEY, Niger (AP) — Western officials say Niger’s junta threatened to kill deposed president if neighboring countries intervened militarily.Source

Hialeah mayor addresses missed 911 calls after city officials prompt investigation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:15:04 GMT

Hialeah city officials are investigating an alarming amount of missed 911 calls and the mayor addressed the situation after a councilman called attention to the issue. Mayor Esteban Bovo said in a news conference on Thursday that the city’s call center is working efficiently and explained how these calls might be seen as “missed.” “There are no missed calls,” said the mayor. “There are calls that go into our system and are somehow another loss due to somebody hanging up. As I said, a misdial. If it does ring once or twice and somebody hangs up, it could be a nervous caller. And then they’re being called back.”In a press conference held on June 26, Councilman Brian Calvo called for an investigation into the city’s 911 call center after multiple sources documented deterioration of service, including a March 2022 report he said was commissioned by the mayor. “This report showed, and I quote, ‘That the city’s 911 system is woef...

Movie weapons supervisor pleads not guilty to manslaughter in fatal shooting by Alec Baldwin

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:15:04 GMT

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The woman who oversaw the use of weapons on the movie set where Alec Baldwin fatally shot a cinematographer has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence, New Mexico court officials said.Movie armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed waived her right to an arraignment on the charges in the 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the Western movie “Rust,” officials said Wednesday.A state district judge tentatively scheduled a trial for December.A defense attorney for Gutierrez-Reed has characterized it a tragic accident and says the weapons specialist committed no crime. Prosecutors allege Gutierrez-Reed was negligent in the handling of firearms and ammunition on the set.“Rust” safety coordinator and assistant director David Halls has pleaded no contest to a charge of unsafe handling of a firearm and received a suspended sentence of six months’ probation.In April, prosecutors dropped charges against Baldwin, who...

Iran puts 5 Iranian-American prisoners under house arrest, lawyer says; Tehran does not acknowledge

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:15:04 GMT

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran has put five Iranian-American prisoners to house arrest, a U.S.-based lawyer said Thursday, a move coming as Tehran for months has suggested a prisoner swap was possible between it and Washington. Iran did not immediately acknowledge the move.The move comes amid months of heightened tensions between Iran and the U.S. A major American military buildup in the Persian Gulf is underway, with the possibility of armed U.S. troops boarding and guarding commercial ships traveling through the crucial Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of all oil traded passes.It remains unclear whether the Iranian-Americans’ transfers reflect significant progress in a possible prisoner swap between the two countries. Iran in past months has overstated progress in talks, likely conducted with mediation from Oman and Qatar, on a potential trade.The U.S. in March called remarks by Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian that a deal for a swap was close a “cruel ...

Police conduct mass casualty exercise at Downtown Doral Upper Charter School in preparation for upcoming school year

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:15:04 GMT

A South Florida police department is making sure it’s ready to respond to any emergencies on campus as the school year is set to start. On Thursday, Doral Police hosted a training exercise at Downtown Doral Upper Charter School, located at 7905 NW 53rd St.To prevent any potential dangers, police need to train for mass casualty events. “We are not immune to these types of incidents,” said Doral Police Chief Eddie LopezThe reenactments are done in a realistic manner to better prepare officers. “With just about one week away from the start of the school year, it’s imperative that our police officers are equipped and trained on how to respond during a critical incident, Lopez said.” The drills at the school also focused on how different agencies and the school administration would work together as quickly as possible.“First, we want to stop the killing, second we want to stop the dying and third, we want to make sure the injured are evacuated an...

Biden will ask Congress for $13B to support Ukraine and $12B for disaster fund, an AP source says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:15:04 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Thursday will ask Congress to provide more than $13 billion in emergency aid to Ukraine, another massive infusion of cash as the Russian invasion wears on and Ukraine pushes a counteroffensive against the Kremlin’s deeply entrenched forces, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.The last such request from the White House, made in November, was met and then some — Congress approved more than what the Democratic president had requested. But there’s a different dynamic this time. A political divide on the issue has grown, with the Republican-led House facing enormous pressure to demonstrate support for the party’s leader, Donald Trump, who has been very skeptical of the war. And American support for the effort has been slowly softening.The White House also is expected to ask for $12 billion to replenish federal disaster funds, according to the person, who was not authorized to speak publicly about a request...

Novo Nordisk prioritizes existing patients for weight-loss drug as demand soars

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:15:04 GMT

Novo Nordisk is taking a cautious approach to rolling out its obesity drug Wegovy in new markets as demand surges, the company said Thursday.Since the drug was approved in June last year in the U.S. and Europe for weight loss, the Danish firm has seen demand for the product soar, fueled by social media influencers. At the same time, supplies have been impacted by a manufacturing pause.For Novo, the priority is to ensure that patients who start treatment can attain the highest maintenance dose of 2.4 milligrams, which requires increasing the dose four times over five months.CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen told an analysts’ call Thursday that the best way to ensure that all patients started on the treatment can reach the highest dosage and achieve weight-loss results “is of course not to start more patients than we can secure continuity of care, and then furthermore not to launch in more [markets] than we can support.”To safeguard continuity of care, the supply of the lower Wegovy...

Taylor Swift reveals ‘1989 (Taylor’s Version)’ as her next drop, with ‘insane’ vault tracks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:15:04 GMT

(CNN) — Taylor Swift capped off her sixth and final “Eras Tour” concert at Los Angeles’s SoFi Stadium on Wednesday with a big announcement that Swifties had been speculating about for weeks.During the surprise song portion of the concert – in which she sang two songs including “New Romantics” – the singer confirmed on stage that her next re-record will be for her megahit 2014 album “1989.” “New Romantics” is a deluxe track off that record.“There’s something I’ve been planning for a really, really, really ridiculously, embarrassingly long time,” she said after speaking about how moved she is that her fans have embraced her quest to re-record her first six albums, as seen in videos of the concert posted to social media.She then directed attention to the large video screen where an image of the album art for “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” appeared, confirming an October release date.“Surprise!! 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is on its way to you,” Swift wrote&nbs...

Aid organization says US nurse and daughter freed after abduction in Haiti are healthy and unharmed

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:15:04 GMT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A U.S. nurse and her young daughter who were kidnapped in Haiti in late July and released this week were not harmed and are healthy, an aid organization said Thursday.The announcement allayed concerns about the state of Alix Dorsainvil and her daughter. Violent gangs in Haiti are known for mistreating and sometimes raping those they abduct, often holding victims for months and demanding multiple ransoms.“Alix is a remarkably resilient woman whose walk with God guides her deep love for her family and her passionate commitment to the Haitian people,” said El Roi Haiti, the Christian group founded by Dorsainvil’s husband.It also thanked U.S. authorities for working “tirelessly behind the scenes” and credited a faith-based global security ministry with providing consultants that helped lead to the Aug. 8 release of Dorsainvil and her daughter.“God demonstrated His loving kindness through both private and public sector partners and resourc...