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Deadly weekend in Austin after multiple homicides: What we know

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:14 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Austin Police Department is busy investigating four deadly shootings that left five people dead over the July 15-16 weekend. Austin police tell KXAN there have now been 39 homicides so far this year. MAP: Where have Austin’s homicides occurred in 2023? "It is a very busy night [Sunday] here in Austin," said Cpl. Jose Mendez with APD. APD has 16 detectives on the homicide unit, but there are shortages and that means some detectives also have to do patrol duty, which isn't normal for this position. "I know that the detectives are somewhat overwhelmed due to having a shortage of them," Mendez said.KXAN asked APD how many positions they needed to fill in the homicide division. This story will be updated if we receive a response.However, APD said they could use more detectives, which will allow officers to devote more time to each case."The number of police officers on the force isn't always a deterrent to homicides," Austin Mayor Kirk Watson said. Police identif...

Hottest mid-July stretch on record underway

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:14 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Austin smashed a record high temperature Monday, topping out at 108°. This was the second consecutive day featuring record heat, and it does not stop there.Austin set a record high by a wide three-degree margin Monday, beating the previous record of 105° set in 1984. Tuesday's record high is 107° set in 1918 -- another record that will likely fall.One of the strongest heat domes ever observed over the desert southwest is moving toward Texas Tuesday and Wednesday, potentially leading to high temperatures as hot as 109-110° in some areas -- 10-15 degrees hotter than July averages.Record-setting heat dome is coming our wayThe first 17 days of this month have produced an average temperature of 90.4°. This is the second hottest start to any July, topped by 90.5° the first 16 days of last year.Camp Mabry's high temperatures the last eight consecutive days have made it to 105° or hotter. We will likely extend the streak to 12 consecutive days, beating the 1923 all-time rec...

AFD: Firefighter sent to hospital after fourplex fire in east Austin

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:14 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Austin Fire Department said a two-alarm fire in east Austin that sent two people, including an AFD firefighter, to the hospital is now under control. AFD initially said the trash fire on Wentworth Drive was "reportedly" ignited by fireworks Monday afternoon and spread to the exterior of a large two-story fourplex, but later walked back the original report and said it was "unfounded." Investigators are at the scene trying to determine for sure what caused the fire, AFD said.AFD Division Chief Thayer Smith said a civilian and firefighter went to the hospital due to smoke inhalation. Smith also said firefighters rescued a dog from the blaze.Fire off Wentworth Drive in east Austin July 17, 2023 (Courtesy Cody Bowens)A fire that sent an AFD firefighter to the hospital burned the attic and badly damaged a fourplex in east Austin on Monday. 35 residents were displaced as a result of the fire. The cause is under investigation. (KXAN photo/Andy Way)A fire that sent an AF...

Written driver’s tests for new Minnesota residents going away

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:14 GMT

Starting Aug. 1, people moving to Minnesota will no longer have to take a written test to get a Minnesota driver’s license if they have a valid license from another state.Bill author Sen. John Jasinski, R-Faribault, said the new law is intended to alleviate backlogs at testing centers for the driver’s license exam, or the class D knowledge test, for people who have an out-of-state license. Gov. Tim Walz signed the law in May.While new Minnesota residents didn’t have to take a road test before the policy change, they did have to wait in line to take the knowledge test.“We just thought it made sense with some of the backlogs we’re seeing both with the driver’s test and written test,” Jasinski said.The backlogs date back to the pandemic, but are still on the rise, according to the bill’s authors. And they say demand is about to get stronger.“Now with the passage of driver’s licenses for undocumented people as well, there are going to be a lot more people applying for it,” said House bi...

Allina Health to lay off 350 workers, citing ‘financial challenges’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:14 GMT

Allina Health announced Monday that it is reducing its staff due to “unprecedented financial challenges.”The move will affect about 350 employees including those at United Hospital in St. Paul, according to a press release Monday by Jill Ostrem, president of the hospital.“Please know that we are prioritizing preserving our critical caregiving roles to continue to meet the care needs of the communities we serve. Most impacted jobs are leadership and non-clinical roles,” the press release said, noting that the employees who will be let go will be offered “severance and health benefits and outplacement resources.”Despite cost-savings measures at United Hospital and the rest of the organization, the reduction in work force needs to take place, the release said. “We have reached a critical point that requires us to take decisive action to ensure we can continue caring for the community for years to come.”Minneapolis-based Allina Health is a not-for-profit health care system. It owns or o...

Farmland donated to help local vets, first responders

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:14 GMT

GALWAY, N.Y. (NEWS10) – Veterans, like Gus Kappler, said learning how to cope is important because they never forget the trauma. A nonprofit that helps veterans, first responders, and frontline healthcare workers will now be expanding their programming due to a generous donation. “You’re trained to be a very efficient killer, you are 18 and 19 and you’re trained to kill, that's your job to kill,” Kappler said. “So even when you’re in combat, there’s a little voice in the back of your head saying, ‘Maybe I shouldn’t be doing this,’ – alright – and then you have to live with that little voice.” Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Alliance180 is helping veterans, and other frontline workers, by providing horse-assisted therapy. Anonymous donors stepped up and gave away 15 acres of farmland to assist those on the frontlines with their mental health.Kappler was a doctor during the Vietnam War and described how hard it was ...

Multiple car break-ins in Lindenwood Park leave locals with nowhere to turn

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:14 GMT

ST. LOUIS - Early Monday morning, car thieves struck Bancroft Avenue, damaging at least seven cars, and leaving some residents pinching their pockets.A trend that’s only getting worse now has locals voicing some ideas.“We watch them do it on video; we can't approach them, we're afraid to," said one resident.She lived in her house for 20 years and has been in the neighborhood her entire life. She said she caught the moment car thieves hit Bancroft Avenue attempting to bust open doors in south St. Louis City’s Lindenwood Park."Several of the cars on the block here had been hit," she said.According to the police, a call came in around 7 a.m. about seven vehicles damaged. Reported house explosion in St. Charles; 5 people rushed to hospital "This time it was like 12:30 quarter of 1," said a resident.The longtime locals said car thieves normally hit around 4-4:30 a.m. The timing created more concerns."That could be my kids when they're coming home still…. That's what's scary," said a r...

3 big trees felled by 3 different storms in Maryland Heights neighborhood

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:14 GMT

MARYLAND HEIGHTS, Mo. - Round after round of strong storms has been the pattern the last few weeks, and will continue over the next few days. One Maryland Heights street has lost three different mature trees in three different storms.Clean up continues after Saturday’s storms uprooted another huge tree on Amiot Drive.“It’s just been crazy. We’ve had those storm blow in, and you would think with the tree line over here on the other side that we wouldn’t be seeing that kind of damage. So, I don’t know what’s going on,” said Kathy Mitulski, a homeowner who sustained damage in the storm.This most recent tree landed in between two homes but did do some damage to both. Luckily there were no injuries and area crews responded fast. Reported house explosion in St. Charles; 5 people rushed to hospital “Fire department was here quickly. The gas company. Everybody. Water company. Everybody responded really quickly. It gave us some peace of mind. Helped us feel really safe, and then we whipped...

Rockies’ Tyler Kinley, nearing return from injury, has dominant stuff

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:14 GMT

Before his elbow injury, and before he spent 13 months rehabbing, Tyler Kinley was not just a good relief pitcher. He was dominant.Dominant as in:• An 0.75 ERA in 25 games early last season.• Posting 27 strikeouts vs. just six walks over 24 innings.• A 16.7% swinging-strike rate that hinted at even more strikeouts to come.• No home runs allowed and a .226 batting average against.• A fastball that averaged just shy of 96 mph in 2022 and a slider that sliced through the strike zone at 89-90 mph.No wonder the Rockies’ right-hander is so jazzed to begin his minor-league rehab assignment this week. The 32-year-old will begin at High-A Spokane for a couple of appearances, move on to Triple-A Albuquerque, and finally graduate to the big-league club.“Hopefully, it will be about two weeks or so and I’ll be back here,” Kinley said Sunday from the Rockies clubhouse at Coors Field.Late-game reliever Daniel Bard sounds as excited as his buddy.“Any time you put in a ...

A bison gored an Arizona woman in Yellowstone, the park’s first such attack in 2023

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:14 GMT

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. — A bison gored and significantly injured an Arizona woman in Yellowstone National Park.The attack happened Monday morning in a field near Lake Lodge on the north side of Lake Yellowstone, park officials said in a statement.The 47-year-old woman from Phoenix was walking in the field with another person when they saw two bison. The people turned to walk away.One of the bison then charged and gored the woman, causing significant injuries to her chest and abdomen.She was taken by helicopter to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls, Idaho.Related ArticlesNational News | Yellowstone National Park is all patched up. Here are 6 tips for your next trip National News | No toxic gases detected after train carrying hazardous material plunged into Yellowstone River Park officials did not release the woman’s name or condition. How far the two people were from the bison when the attack began was unknown, th...