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Officials address Boston EMS staffing shortages as median response time, demand increases

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:50 GMT

When seconds count during a medical emergency, residents around the city rely on Boston EMS to respond as soon as possible. However, there are big concerns about a staffing shortage.The Boston City Council discussed the issue Tuesday with first responders.“We’re supposed to get 150,000 more people, that’s the project growth in the city of Boston and so this hearing was to ask the question, ‘Are the city services that we’re providing good enough?’” said Gabriela Coletta, a Boston city councilor.A troubling incident last May in Charlestown led in part to this hearing. A woman was suffering an apparent stroke, and her niece called 911 for help. Boston Fire got there in about three minutes to administer aid, but they had trouble securing an ambulance to respond.“It was anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour before it got there,” said Kelli Gillen Forbes, who called 911 for her aunt. “I actually had my aunt’s son-in-law walk from the Garden, and he got there before there was any ambul...

Staying Hazy, Hot and Humid

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:50 GMT

The heat and humidity are back for more and don’t expect relief in the short term. With the heat and humidity, feels like temperatures will climb back into the upper 90s for the rest of the week and the heat advisory has now been extended to include Friday as well.Tomorrow will be the hottest of the bunch with most of us away from the coastline climbing to the 90s and feels like temperatures closer to 100°. The coast line will again be cooler, but still plenty warm with temperatures in the 80s.So where’s the relief?! Well, distance-wise it isn’t that far away… time-wise is a different story. There’s a cold front moving the Great Lakes now but as it gets closer to the northeast and New England will almost become stationary and keep the true relief away until next week. As it slowly presses into New England, it will drop our temperatures each day through the weekend and increase our rain chances each day. With just a few showers or a storm Saturday, a few...

Delta drafts Tom Brady as adviser

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:50 GMT

ATLANTA   — Delta Air Lines says it’s bringing former star quarterback Tom Brady on board as a “long-term strategic adviser.”Brady is a seven-time Super Bowl winner for the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.“Bringing a leader like Tom onto the Delta team furthers our mission to connect the world while accelerating our drive to continuously improve for our colleagues, customers and communities,”Delta CEO Ed Bastian said in a news release announcing the partnership.Delta did not disclose how much it is paying Brady and declined to disclose other terms.Delta said Brady will play a role in marketing and help the Atlanta-based airline develop training and teamwork tools for its more than 90,000 employees. He will also appear on a series of Bastian’s “Gaining Altitude” video interviews to discuss topics including overcoming adversity.Brady said he and NFL teammates flew on Delta many times, “even celebrating Super Bowl wins...

Long COVID research: A pre-pandemic common cold coronavirus infection could explain why some patients develop long COVID

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:50 GMT

A pre-pandemic common cold coronavirus infection may help set the stage for long COVID, according to Boston researchers who have been looking to explain why some patients end up facing the long-lasting, debilitating symptoms.The researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital teamed up with experts in immunology and virology to look for clues about long COVID in blood samples from patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases.The team found that among these patients, those who developed long COVID were more likely to have expanded, pro-inflammatory antibodies specific to a coronavirus that causes the common cold.A person’s viral history, especially prior infection and expansion of antibodies against a pre-pandemic coronavirus, could prime the immune system for developing long COVID, according to the researchers.“Our study offers evidence and explanation for why some of our patients may be experiencing the persistent and wide-ranging s...

Interior Department cancels remaining leases in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:50 GMT

By BECKY BOHRER (Associated Press)JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The U.S. Interior Department on Wednesday canceled the remaining seven oil and gas leases in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge that were part of a sale held in the waning days of the Trump administration, angering state political leaders including Alaska’s Republican governor, who threatened to sue.Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said that with her decision to cancel the remaining leases “no one will have rights to drill for oil in one of the most sensitive landscapes on earth.” However, a 2017 law mandates another lease sale by late 2024. Administration officials said they intend to comply with the law.Haaland called climate change “the crisis of our lifetime, and we cannot ignore the disproportionate impacts being felt in the Arctic.” She defended the Biden’s administration’s record in addressing the changing climate.Wednesday’s announcement comes months after ...

An unholy mess

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:50 GMT

Grade: C minusShot in France using a real abandoned church, “The Nun II” has its Catholic credentials in order, and once again gives us a demonic nun bearing a weird resemblance to rock star Alice Cooper. The Catholic element is what gives these films some semblance of verisimilitude.Written by Ian Goldberg and Richard Naing of “The Autopsy of Jane Doe” and Akela Cooper of “MEGAN” fame, based on characters created by Gary Dauberman (“Annabelle Comes Home”) and the horror and action film phenomenon James Wan (“The Conjuring”), “The Nun II” is a sequel to “The Nun” (2018) and the ninth installment in “The Conjuring” universe.Now, I like nun movies as much as anyone (one of my favorites is Ken Russell’s still shocking 1971 horrorshow “The Devils”), and I bring a Catholic parochial school background to these films. Like its predecessor, “The Nun II,”  which is in essence a remake of the wildly successful (in spite of terrible reviews and audience scores) first film, borrows ...

Another person dies after being found unresponsive at Fulton County Jail in Atlanta

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:50 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — A 24-year-old man died at an Atlanta hospital after being found unresponsive at a jail that is already being investigated by federal authorities for potential civil rights violations.A Fulton County Jail officer found Shawndre Delmore during a routine check just before 8:30 p.m. Aug. 31, the county sheriff’s office said in a news release Wednesday. Jail staff attempted to revive Delmore until medical staff arrived, and he was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital, where he died Sept. 3, the release says.Delmore is the sixth person to die in Fulton County custody since the end of July. He was arrested April 1 by Atlanta police and was being held on $2,500 bond on a second-degree burglary charge. Atlanta police will investigate his death, and the county medical examiner will do an autopsy, the sheriff’s office said.The U.S. Department of Justice in July opened a civil rights investigation into jail conditions in the county, citing violence, filthy conditions and ...

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis appoints Moms for Liberty co-founder to state Commission on Ethics

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:50 GMT

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed a co-founder of Moms for Liberty, a “parental rights” group that has sought to take over school boards in multiple states, to the Florida Commission on Ethics on Wednesday.Tina Descovich was named to the nine-member, Tallahassee-based commission, which investigates alleged breaches of public trust by elected and appointed officials, as well as state employees.Descovich was previously elected to the School Board of Brevard County in 2016 and served as president of the Florida Coalition of School Board Members. Moms for Liberty started with Descovich and two other Florida women fighting COVID-19 restrictions in 2021. It has quickly ascended as a national player in Republican politics, helped along the way by the group’s political training and close relationships with high-profile GOP groups and lawmakers.The group’s support for school choice and the “fundamental rights of parents” to direct their children’s education has ...

Phoenix on track to set another heat record, this time for most daily highs at or above 110 degrees

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:50 GMT

PHOENIX (AP) — Phoenix, already the hottest large city in America, is poised to set yet another heat record this weekend while confirmed heat-associated deaths are on track for a record of their own. The National Weather Service says after a brief respite from the heat over the Labor Day holiday, Phoenix this weekend is expected to break its previous record of 53 days of 110-degree Fahrenheit (43.3 Celsius) weather in a single year, set in 2020. Afternoon weekend highs will range between 108-113 degrees Fahrenheit (42.4-45 Celsius) across Arizona’s lower deserts. “Remember to stay hydrated and avoid sun exposure from 10am to 6pm this weekend!” the weather service advised on social media. Phoenix has now seen 52 days of temperatures at or above 110 degrees in 2023 and is expected to hit that mark again on both Saturday and Sunday, when an extreme heat watch will be in effect, local meteorologists said. The temperature could also hit 110 degrees on Monday. The desert city set a ...

A judge orders Texas to move a floating barrier used to deter migrants to the bank of the Rio Grande

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:16:50 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A federal judge on Wednesday ordered Texas to move a large floating barrier to the bank of the Rio Grande after protests from the the U.S. and Mexican governments over Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s latest tactic to stop migrants from crossing America’s southern border.The decision by U.S. District Judge David Ezra is a victory for President Joe Biden’s administration, which sued after Texas put the wrecking ball-sized buoys on the water in early July as part of a sprawling border security mission known as Operation Lone Star. The judge said the state must move the barrier by Sept. 15.The barrier threatens provisions of a treaty between U.S. and Mexico, wrote Ezra, who also cast doubt on its effectiveness. “The State of Texas did not present any credible evidence that the buoy barrier as installed has significantly curtailed illegal immigration across the Rio Grande River,” Ezra wrote. Abbott said Texas would appeal. “Today’s court decision merely prolongs ...