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ERCOT issues conservation request for Thursday evening

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or ERCOT, is asking Texas to conserve energy Thursday evening from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.Due to "continued high temperatures, high demand, low wind, and declining solar power generation," ERCOT said operating reserves are expected to be low into the afternoon and evening hours and is asking Texans to conserve electric use if it's safe to do so. The council also expects similar conditions through Friday and said it will keep the public informed. ERCOT said Thursday's conservation appeal does not indicate ERCOT is experiencing emergency conditions at this time. Current forecasts are showing a potential for low reserves today because of continued high temperatures, high demand, low wind, and declining solar power generation into the afternoon and evening hours. For a portion of Wednesday evening, ERCOT said it entered an emergency level 2 declaration to maintain the stability of the grid. That alert level states rolling outages are p...

Central Texas drought 'top one or two driest'

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Every Thursday morning, the U.S. Drought Monitor map gets updated to show any improvement or deterioration of the drought nationwide. Lately, most of Central Texas was downgraded to the worst level of drought "Exceptional." Meteorologist Nick Bannin spoke with Brian Fuchs from the National Drought Mitigation Center about the factors that go into the drought map and what it would take to get us out of drought.Nick Bannin, KXAN Meteorologist: Brian, what factors go into the drought monitor that's released every week?Brian Fuchs, Climatologist with the National Drought Mitigation Center: So yeah, the Drought Monitor is quite complicated, and it is actually a partnership between the National Drought Mitigation Center, the USDA, or Department of Agriculture, and NOAA. And our groups come together, and we kind of put together...the process of what we look at and it's very much a data-driven process. That means that, again, precipitation is going to be one of the big thin...

Fentanyl awareness top priority for Texas grandmother

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's office just announced it's handing out another 60,000 units of naloxone, also known as NARCAN, to Texas police departments.It's just one effort to combat Fentanyl-related deaths, but some families who have been impacted by this deadly drug are working to educate people on the dangers.JoAnn Lopez has an entire wall filled with pictures of people who have lost their lives from fentanyl and one of them is her granddaughter."You wake up in the morning and they are not here," Lopez said. "And it is just a reminder that fentanyl took her life."Victoria Trevino was just 26 years old when she died."I started with a desire to do something," said Lopez. "To bring awareness. I couldn't just sit at home and grieve over my granddaughter." Kyle Police Chief: Large quantity of fentanyl found in the region Lopez said she joined groups and shared Victoria's story in hopes of saving the lives of others.According to Travis County, in 2020, fentanyl-related ov...

Judge dismisses Twin Metals lawsuit against Biden administration

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit Twin Metals filed last year against the Biden administration over its decision to cancel the company’s mineral leases for its planned copper-nickel mine near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.Judge Christopher Cooper of the U.S. District Court in Washington on Wednesday granted a motion by two federal agencies and a coalition of environmental groups and recreational businesses to dismiss Twin Metals’ claims. The decision can be appealed, according to the order.In a 21-page decision, Cooper said the court found it lacked jurisdiction on two of the company’s claims “and that the remaining two fail to state a claim.”In August 2022, Twin Metals and its exploration subsidiary Franconia Minerals sued the U.S. Department of Interior and Bureau of Land Management, arguing the federal agencies’ decision to cancel two of their mineral leases in January was “arbitrary, capricious, and unlawful evisceration” of the company’...

Rail crossing gates fixed after being stuck in down position on Alameda in Aurora

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

The railroad crossing gates on Alameda Avenue near South Sable Road were stuck in the down position for about an hour before being fixed, an RTD spokesperson said.The railroad crossing gates at Alameda and Sable are stuck in the down position. @AuroraPD are working their way to the intersection to help clear out traffic. @RideRTD has been advised and advising they have a 10 min. ETA. Please avoid the area.— Chief Art Acevedo (@ArtAcevedo) September 7, 2023Aurora Police Chief Art Acevedo reported the problem about 8:15 a.m. and said Aurora police officers were working to clear traffic from the intersection.The RTD spokesperson said the gates were fixed about 9 a.m.Related ArticlesTransportation | “Not a peachy drive”: Truck carrying load of Palisade peaches crashes on I-70 east near Morrison Transportation | I-70 reopens at Denver West after ice cream truck fire is out Transportation | Eastbound lanes of I-70 reopen after t...

Stagecoach Festival: Morgan Wallen, Miranda Lambert, Eric Church headlining 2024 festival

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

After much anticipation, Goldenvoice and other organizers have announced the full lineup for country music's biggest festival. The 2024 Stagecoach Festival will feature headliners Morgan Wallen, Miranda Lambert and Eric Church.“I can’t wait to get back to the desert to play Stagecoach in 2024. It’s going to be one hell of a party," Church said. Morgan Wallen is shown in an undated photo provided by the 2024 Stagecoach Festival.The three-day festival will also feature Willie Nelson & Family, Post Malone (performing a special set of country covers), Jelly Roll, HARDY, Megan Moroney, Bailey Zimmerman, Leon Bridges, Diplo, Wiz Khalifa, The Beach Boys, Elle King and more. “Stagecoach is such a legendary festival,  and I am honored to be headlining the final night.  I have so many friends who never miss it and I know this will be a monumental weekend for all of us. Can’t wait to see everybody there," Wallen said.The festival will take place Friday, April 26, to Sunday, April...

Sheriff's Department employee accused of illegally recording colleagues

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

A civilian employee of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has been charged with illegally recording her colleagues.Operations Assistant III Meghan Capone, 43, is accused of using "a small electronic voice-activated audio recording device plugged into her work computer" between March and June 2021, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office said in a Thursday news release. "An external storage device also connected to Capone’s work computer allegedly contained audio files of private conversations between her superiors and their legal team," the release added. A motive behind the alleged recording was not disclosed, but prosecutors said she targeted the Body Worn Camera Unit.“Violating the law, especially as a government employee, is a serious breach of public trust,” District Attorney George Gascón said in the release. “Government employees are held to the highest standards of conduct and ethics. Defendant Capone’s alleged role in breaching the security and trust of h...

Is local live streaming the future of professional sports?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

On Thursday, KTLA and the Los Angeles Clippers announced that they extended their partnership through the 2024-25 NBA season which involves KTLA broadcasting all Clippers preseason games and select regular season games. The relationship also includes live streaming games on KTLA.com and KTLA+, the station’s app for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV and Samsung Smart TVs.The addition of local live streaming is a relatively new development in professional sports and comes at a time when the business model for many regional sports networks (RSNs) is collapsing due to cord-cutting and other market forces.We recently spoke with Rick Allen, CEO of KTLA’s streaming partner, ViewLift, about the past, present and potential future of sports broadcasting rights.What has caused this house of cards to collapse for the regional sports networks?Rick Allen: You have to start from two different directions.One is structurally for RSNs, which were created to capture what was the great benefit of cable televisio...

Bus driver wins $100,000 on Powerball, promptly retires

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

It wasn’t the big jackpot, but it was apparently big enough for James Keown to decide he had enough of driving buses for a living.Keown, a school bus driver in Louisville, Kentucky, won $100,000 on the Aug. 19 Powerball drawing by matching four white ball numbers and the Powerball, and then doubling his prize with the Power Play option, lottery officials said.After confirming his winnings, Keown first picked up the phone to call his wife, Monta.“I panicked thinking something was wrong,” Monta told Kentucky Lottery officials.  “He told me, ‘I just paid off my bills.’ I said, ‘You did what?’”  ‘I just paid off my bills. I just won $100,000!’”James' next call was to work.“I called my boss on Sunday, and I told him, ‘I hit the lottery and I’m not coming back.’… I loved my job, but I’d been thinking about retiring for a while,” Keown said.He had worked as a school bus driver for 11 years.Keown and his wife claimed the prize the Monday after the drawing. He walked away with a check for $7...

Judge rejects new trial for Danny Masterson, ‘That ’70s Show’ star faces decades in prison

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — “That ’70s Show” star Danny Masterson could get as much as 30 years to life in prison at his sentencing Thursday for the rapes of two women two decades ago. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo is set to sentence the 47-year-old actor after rejecting a defense motion for a new trial. She is hearing victim impact statements before issuing her ruling on what Masterson's sentence will be. The actor, who has been in custody since May, sat in court wearing a suit.“When you raped me, you stole from me,” said one woman who Masterson was convicted of raping in 2003. “That’s what rape is, a theft of the spirit.”“You are pathetic, disturbed and completely violent,” she said. “The world is better off with you in prison.”The other woman Masterson was found guilty of raping said he “has not shown an ounce of remorse for the pain he caused.” She told the judge, “I knew he belonged behind bars for the safety of all the women he came into contact with. I am so sor...