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Rescuers free dozens trapped on Ecuador cable car

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:14 GMT

By Gerardo Lemos | CNNDozens of people trapped in gondolas on one of the world’s highest cable car systems in Ecuador have been rescued, according to a statement from government officials Friday.Firefighters were alerted around 4 p.m. local time Thursday of a technical failure that affected the Quito Cable Car, with at least 70 people trapped, the Quito municipality said in a statement. They launched a rescue effort in the highlands soon after.“In total, the authorities rescued 27 people who had been suspended in the gondolas when the service was inoperative and 47 people who had been left without transportation on top of the mountain,” the statement said.The mayor of Quito, Pabel Muñoz, said the rescued people do not show signs of hypothermia or injuries.He also ordered to suspend the cable cars’ operation until investigations have been carried out.Photos released by Quito authorities show emergency workers huddled in the dark, with the city mayor on site, as rescue efforts continu...

Cheesecake Factory announces its 2023 flavor for National Cheesecake Day, July 30

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:14 GMT

The Cheesecake Factory will begin serving a new flavor, Cookie Dough Lover’s Cheesecake with Pecans, to celebrate National Cheesecake Day on Sunday, July 30.The Calabasas-based chain launched a new loyalty program, Cheesecake Rewards, and people who sign up before July 30 can qualify for a slice of any flavor of cheesecake for half price if they dine in on July 31 or Aug. 1, according to a news release. The offer is good for every member in a group up to six people, providing at least one member is enrolled in the program.Related ArticlesRestaurants, Food and Drink | Food Truck Frenzy visits the Stoneridge Shopping Center this July Restaurants, Food and Drink | Kebab eatery opens in Livermore, closes Walnut Creek spot Restaurants, Food and Drink | Dust Bowl Brewing opens in Livermore with barbecue and ‘smoothie beers’ Restaurants, Food and Drink | Chipotle’s Pizzeria Locale closing all locations, dissolving...

BuyBuy Baby stores going dark after bankruptcy auction falters

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:14 GMT

By Jeremy Hill | BloombergBuyBuy Baby’s stores will shut down after the baby brand — once cast as Bed Bath & Beyond’s prized asset — garnered no adequate going-concern bids in a bankruptcy auction, according to court papers.New Jersey-based baby goods company Dream on Me Industries Inc. won a bankruptcy auction for BuyBuy Baby’s intellectual property last month, but advisers kept searching for a buyer for the whole business. A notice posted to Bed Bath & Beyond’s docket late Thursday indicates none emerged. A hearing to approve the intellectual property sale is scheduled for July 11, court papers show.SEE MORE: Bed Bath & Beyond is coming back, in name only, after Overstock buys brandRelated ArticlesRetail | Magid: Buying a large appliance online vs. local store Retail | Overstock.com is changing its name. It’s one you may recognize Retail | Costco is cracking down on sharing membership cards Retail | Bankrupt Da...

California Coastal Commission on a mission: Funding, focus aims at beach access for all

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:14 GMT

The California Coastal Commission in recent years has been ramping up efforts to ensure greater beach access for underserved communities, by baking it in as a requirement when approving new developments or correcting violations, as well as by granting millions for beach-equity initiatives.“Certain communities and populations have been excluded for so long, it’s absolutely essential we make extra effort to make up for that,” said Sarah Christie, the commission’s legislative director. “I think equity demands a greater focus to ensure those communities are fully supported to have the access they’ve deserved all along.”The Coastal Commission, made permanent by the 1976 California Coastal Act, “plans and regulates the use of land and water” along shorelines, along with local communities and other relevant agencies.In Long Beach, for example, the commission has said it’ll support a new beach-side swimming pool only if a bus route brings inner city kids to play and there’s free or discount...

Infamous Mexican Mafia moneymaker stabbed to death in Sacramento prison attack

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:14 GMT

SACRAMENTO — A Mexican Mafia member with a reputation for generating lots of illicit revenue was stabbed to death at a Northern California prison Thursday, in what appears to be an attack from within his own gang.Michael “Mosca” Torres, 59, was killed around 9 a.m. Thursday by fellow prisoners Juan Martinez, 47, and Ray “Cisco” Martinez, 49, at California State Prison, Sacramento, according to a news release by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. All three men were serving life sentences for various violent crimes, authorities said.Both suspects, who are not related, appear to be affiliated with the Mexican Mafia or its subsidiaries. Ray Martinez was identified in a Los Angeles Times report as a Mexican Mafia member. Juan Martinez has a tattoo on his neck of the number 13, symbol for both the Mexican Mafia and its primary offshoot, the Sureño gang.Torres was widely known as a moneymaker for the notorious prison gang, which contr...

DC disciplinary committee recommends disbarring Rudy Giuliani

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:14 GMT

By Katelyn Polantz | CNNAn attorney disciplinary committee has recommended Rudy Giuliani be disbarred in Washington, DC, for his efforts on behalf of then-President Donald Trump to overturn the 2020 election results.The committee, which weighs cases of legal ethics and attorney misconduct in the District of Columbia, issued the report and recommendation on Giuliani on Friday following a lawyer misconduct hearing for Giuliani in December that functioned like a trial.“He claimed massive election fraud but had no evidence of it,” the committee wrote. “By prosecuting that destructive case Mr. Giuliani, a sworn officer of the Court, forfeited his right to practice law. He should be disbarred.”The panel’s recommendation is not final; the case against Giuliani still must be considered by DC’s Board on Professional Responsibility and by the DC court of appeals.The committee specifically criticized Giuliani for dishonesty following the 2020 election and what they called “calculated” attempts...

Pregnant woman, 20, killed in Antioch crash identified

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:14 GMT

(KRON) -- A 20-year-old woman was killed Thursday in a crash on Lone Tree Way in Antioch after she was ejected from a vehicle, police said.The young woman was reportedly pregnant. The victim was identified by the Contra Costa County Sheriff's coroner on Friday as Angela Fierro, 20, of Antioch. According to investigators, a driver was speeding on Lone Tree Way at 4:49 p.m. when it collided into another car at the Clayburn Road intersection. One of the vehicles, a black Grand Cherokee, flipped several times from the impact of the collision. Fierro was ejected from her passenger seat in the Cherokee. "She was ejected approximately 50 feet from the vehicle," one officer at the scene said. (Image courtesy Art Ray)The Antioch Police Department Communications Center received a flurry of 911 calls from witnesses reporting a horrific crash, and officers responded to the scene. One witness said the Grand Cherokee's driver was speeding through a red light when it was struck by a white car.(Ima...

Grenade, ammo, firearms found in Richmond home where deadly police shooting occurred

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:14 GMT

(KRON) -- The Richmond Police Department released new details of a deadly shooting that occurred last month at a residence on the 1200 block of Sanderling Island. A live hand grenade, ammunition and dozens of firearms were located at the residence where one man was shot and killed during a confrontation with officers.Police responded to the residence at 9:08 a.m. on June 28 to serve a search warrant. Prior to that, at 4:09 a.m., officers had located and arrested Jose Martinez on firearm charges during a traffic stop. During that stop, Martinez told officers he lived at the Sanderling Island residence and that additional firearms were stored there. Pregnant woman, 20, killed in Antioch crash Arriving at the residence, officers knocked on the door and announced themselves, according to a Richmond PD statement. After demanding entry, officers went inside using a key provided by Martinez. Police said that they continued to announce themselves while searching the two-story residence. ...

US Olympic medalist, world champion Joey Mantia retires from speedskating at age 37

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:14 GMT

Joey Mantia, a three-time world champion who won a bronze medal at the Beijing Winter Olympics, has retired from speedskating at age 37.Mantia announced the end of his career in a post on his new Instagram Threads page. He took last season off to deal with back issues, hoping the time away would allow him to heal, but decided it was time to hang up his skates. “Might as well make my first thread the announcement of my retirement,” he wrote. “It’s been such a good ride, but nothing lasts forever.”Mantia, a native of Ocala, Florida, was a multiple world champion in inline skating who made the switch to ice in 2010. He qualified for the the first of three Olympics at the 2014 Sochi Games and finally earned his first medal, a bronze in men’s team pursuit, at Beijing last year.Mantia came up just short of another medal, finishing two-thousandths of a second behind the third-place finisher in the mass start. Mantia was among a wave of skaters from non-traditional regions who m...

Meat processor agrees to reform hiring after two teens were found at a Minnesota plant

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:14 GMT

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A second company involved in meat processing has agreed to reform its hiring practices after investigators recently discovered teenagers working there.The Labor Department said Friday that Monogram Foods will pay a more than $30,000 fine as part of an agreement reached after a 16-year-old and 17-year-old were found to be working at the Memphis, Tennessee-based company’s Chandler, Minnesota, plant. Officials also ordered the company not to ship any products produced while the teens were employed at the plant that makes a variety of meat snacks, but normal operations resumed once they were fired.Earlier this year, a separate investigation found more than 100 kids working overnight for a company that cleans slaughterhouses, handling dangerous equipment like skull splitters and razor-sharp bone saws. Packers Sanitation Services Inc., or PSSI, agreed earlier this year to pay a $1.5 million fine and update its hiring practices after investigators confirmed at leas...