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Thousands on South Shore still waiting for power to return, schools closed Tuesday

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:19:49 GMT

Much of the South Shore is starting Tuesday still without power.As of 6 a.m., 92 percent of customers in Scituate, 70 percent of customers in Norwell, and more than half of all customers in Duxbury, Pembroke, Hanover, Hanson and Halifax were still in the dark.National Grid said it could take until Thursday to fully restore power.“Residents are strongly advised to avoid road travel to facilitate cleanup efforts by the Town of Scituate and National Grid crews working overnight,” Scituate officials said near 5:15 p.m. “National Grid will perform damage assessments during the night, and restoration efforts will commence once it is deemed safe.”Scituate schools were closed Tuesday morning, as were those in Cohasset, Duxbury, Marshfield, Norwell, and Pembroke.One National Grid worker in Scituate told 7NEWS he was tasked with keeping people clear of a utility pole left swaying in the wind over a local street.“If it comes down, it could be deadly,” said James McCauley.“Stay clear of everyth...

Hull ferry service closed for storm cleanup

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:19:49 GMT

Multiple cars parked in the MBTA ferry parking lot in Hull were struck by falling power poles during Monday’s storm.No one was hurt by the tumbling poles, which crushed the cars. Officials said ferry service will be closed for the entire day Tuesday as crews work to clean up the mess left by the extreme wind and rain. https://twitter.com/MBTA/status/1736818749976514766

Massachusetts housing prices hit all-time high, as home sales drop

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:19:49 GMT

Home sales fell by more than 10% year-over-year last month while November prices hit an all-time high, real estate market watchers say.Sales of both single-family homes and condos dropped by an average of 10.5% when compared to 2022, and sales this year are down about 22% from last year, according to national real estate and transaction data provider the Warren Group.At the same time, the median price for a single-family home jumped by 8.4% to $579,000 and the median condominium price climbed 5.3% to $500,000.“Market conditions and trends remained relatively unchanged in November as limited inventory in Massachusetts pushed single-family prices to a new all-time high for the month and sales fell by more than 10 percent on a year-over-year basis,” Warren Group Associate Publisher Cassidy Norton said.Last month, just 3,447 single-family homes sold in Massachusetts, down from more than 3,850 in 2022. That’s the smallest reported single-family home sales number seen since November of 20...

An earthquake in northwestern China kills at least 126 people in nation's deadliest quake in 9 years

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:19:49 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — A strong overnight earthquake rattled a mountainous region of northwestern China, authorities said Tuesday, destroying homes, leaving residents out in a below-freezing winter night and killing 126 people in the nation’s deadliest quake in nine years.The magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck just before midnight on Monday, injuring more than 700 people, damaging roads and knocking out power and communication lines in Gansu and Qinghai provinces, officials and Chinese media reports said.As emergency workers searched for the missing in collapsed buildings and at least one landslide, people who lost their homes were preparing to spend a cold winter night in tents at hastily erected evacuation sites.“I just feel anxious, what other feelings could there be?” said Ma Dongdong, who said in a phone interview that three bedrooms in his house had been destroyed and a part of his milk tea shop was cracked wide open.Afraid to return home because of aftershocks, he spent the night in a f...

Live updates | Israel launches more strikes in Gaza as UN delays vote on a cease-fire resolution

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:19:49 GMT

Israeli troops launched more deadly strikes in Gaza on Tuesday and raided the last working hospital in Gaza City, while the U.N. Security Council delayed voting on an Arab-sponsored resolution for an urgent cessation of hostilities. A strike on a home in Rafah where displaced people were sheltering killed at least 25 people, including women and children, and another killed at least three people, according to Associated Press journalists who saw the bodies arrive at two local hospitals early Tuesday.Nearly 20,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel declared war on Hamas, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza, which does not differentiate between civilian and combatant deaths. Thousands more lie buried under the rubble of Gaza, the U.N. estimates. Israel says 127 of its soldiers have died in its ground offensive after Hamas raided southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing about 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and taking about 240 hostages. Currently: — UN Security Council delays ...

German railway operator Deutsche Bahn launches effort to sell logistics unit Schenker

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:19:49 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s main national railway operator, Deutsche Bahn, on Tuesday launched an effort to sell its logistics unit, DB Schenker, as the company seeks to concentrate on its core business at home.Schenker has about 76,600 employees in more than 130 countries and for years generated high profits, helping push Deutsche Bahn into the black. The state-owned parent company describes it as one of the world’s top four logistics firms.Deutsche Bahn issued an announcement that it’s considering selling “the entire share capital of Schenker AG in an open, transparent and nondiscriminatory process” and called for potential bidders to indicate their interest by Jan. 15.The company said that it would retain all proceeds from a sale, which would go in large part to reducing debt, and that disposing of Schenker would “significantly accelerate” its focus on its core business. It already has sold several business units outside Germany, including European public transport ...

US moves to protect old growth forests as climate change threatens their survival

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:19:49 GMT

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — The Biden administration is moving to conserve groves of old-growth trees on federal land by revising management plans for national forests and grasslands across the U.S. as climate change amplifies the threats they face from wildfires, insects and disease.Agriculture Sec. Tom Vilsack said the goal was to provide an “ecologically-driven” approach to older forests — an arena where logging interests have historically predominated. It would be the first nationwide amendment to U.S. Forest Service management plans in the agency’s 118-year history, he said.Details were obtained by The Associated Press in advance of Tuesday’s public release of the proposal.It follows longstanding calls from environmentalists to preserve older forests that offer crucial wildlife habitat and other environmental benefits. The timber industry has fought against logging restrictions on government-owned lands. President Joseph Biden’s administration appears to be aiming for a middle...

Vice President Harris announces nationwide events focused on abortion

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:19:49 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris is redoubling her focus on abortion rights as the election year begins, planning a nationwide series of events as Democrats try to rally voters to give President Joe Biden a second term and regain full control of Congress.Her first event is scheduled for Wisconsin on Jan. 22, which would have been the 51st anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court case that legalized abortion nationwide. The court overturned the decision in 2022 in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.“I will continue to fight for our fundamental freedoms while bringing together those throughout America who agree that every woman should have the right to make decisions about her own body — not the government,” Harris said in a statement. Wisconsin is a critical battleground state where access to abortion has seesawed since the Supreme Court decision. Other dates and locations for Harris’ tour have not yet been announced.The loss of...

German court orders repeat of 2021 national election in parts of Berlin due to glitches

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:19:49 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court on Tuesday ordered the 2021 national election to be partially repeated in the German capital because of severe glitches at many polling stations. The court ruled that the election must be repeated in 455 of 2,256 constituencies in the state of Berlin, which is one of three German cities that is also a state.A state election that was held the same day was completely rerun in February. The ruling is not expected to change the current national government’s majority.Berliners have long been frustrated by the German capital’s notoriously dysfunctional ways, which have been defying clichés of German efficiency for years and have made the city the laughing stock of the rest of the country.Berlin held four votes on Sept. 26, 2021: the state election, a vote for the city’s 12 district assemblies, the German national election and a local referendum.The Berlin Marathon, also held the same day, added to logistical difficulties. Long lines had...

A Bangladesh minister accuses the main opposition party of arson after train fire kills 4

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:19:49 GMT

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Bangladesh’s railway minister accused the country’s main opposition party of “arson” and “sabotage” after a fire broke out early Tuesday on a passenger train in the capital, killing four people including a mother and child.Nurul Islam Sujon accused the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, of resorting to violence in the name of anti-government protests to thwart the Jan. 7 national election and “create chaos.” Zia’s party — which is boycotting the election — issued a statement denying the accusation. “There is deep suspicion among the public whether this incident has been carried out as a ploy to divert public attention from the ongoing democratic movement,” said the party’s Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi. The party has been intermittently enforcing transportation blockades and general strikes demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who seeks to return to power for a fourth c...