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LCSO deputies capture giant alligator outside Florida mall

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:57 GMT

ESTERO, Fla. (WSVN) – A remarkable scene unfolded as Lee County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) deputies captured a colossal 12-foot, 600-pound alligator spotted outside Coconut Point Mall in Estero, Florida. Discovered behind a Five Below store, the hefty reptile raised eyebrows, prompting the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) to step in and relocate the gator to a safer habitat. Video footage captured the unique operation, involving about eight people, including law enforcement officers, lifting the sizable alligator into the back of a truck. One individual held the reptile’s large tail with the ease of handling a tree limb. The impressive reptile was safely apprehended on Thursday by LCSO authorities. The FWC, considering the alligator a potential threat to people, orchestrated the relocation.Ensuring the safety of both the public and the reptile, the 12-foot alligator was relocated alive to Townsend & Sons farm, approximately 45 miles away in LaBell...

RAIN ROLLERCOASTER RIDE

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:57 GMT

Happy last Tuesday of 2023, South Florida!Hopefully everyone had a wonderful holiday surrounded by loved ones. It sure was cloudy for South Florida but at least the clouds and the stronger breeze limited warming during the day. Eventually a swath of rain in the Gulf of Mexico moved eastward across South Florida (and pretty much across much of the state of Florida) by the afternoon. This kept a steady light rain in the forecast on Christmas afternoon and evening. The rain continued on and off through the night.  Then early this morning, we woke up to moderate rainfall once again. The heaviest of the rain this morning was across the Florida Keys and some of our coastal communities.Today, South Florida can expect some changes in the forecast. After starting off with rain, south Florida should see a break later in the day. The morning rain and clouds will give way to peeks of sunshine this afternoon from time to time.  Winds will veer out of the south, which means temperatures will cont...

Collaboration can unlock the potential of gene therapies in Europe

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:57 GMT

Patients with chronic pain tout the benefits of ketamine, but doctors still aren’t sure how it works

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:57 GMT

(CNN) — Emily Ryan’s life changed quite literally overnight when she was a freshman in college.She was studying for final exams and returned from the library around 10 p.m. She crept quietly to bed because her roommate was already asleep.Around 3 a.m., she woke up with intense pain radiating across her back.“I could not feel my legs anymore,” Ryan said.  She also smelled urine.  The sheets underneath her were soaked.“And as a 19-year-old person, you know, I didn’t pee the bed and so it was very surprising.”That terrifying episode launched what would become a 10-year odyssey to find relief from unrelenting pain. Ryan says she finally found it in what some experts think is an unexpected and controversial place — the psychedelic drug ketamine, which she gets through intravenous infusions every 90 days.Ketamine has been used as a surgical anesthetic since the 1970s. It became widely used in field hospitals during the Vietnam War because it doesn’t depress breath...

US home prices hit another record high in October, rising for the ninth straight month

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:57 GMT

Washington, DC (CNN) — US home prices continued to rise in October, hitting a new record high and marking the ninth-consecutive month of increases, according to data released Tuesday.Even as mortgage rates lingered above 7% in October, reaching the highest levels in 23 years, historically low inventory continued to push up the price of a home.Prices rose 0.6% from the month before, according to seasonally adjusted data from the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller US National Home Price Index.Compared to a year ago, the national composite index covering all nine U.S. census divisions reported a 4.8% annual change in October from the year before, up from a 4% change in the previous month.“U.S. home prices accelerated at their fastest annual rate of the year in October,” said Brian D. Luke, head of commodities, real and digital assets at S&P DJI in a statement.This marked the strongest national growth rate since 2022.Each index — the 10-city, 20-city and National Index — remained a...

How Bill Belichick feels about Jets HC’s endorsement he hasn’t received from Patriots

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:57 GMT

With reports and rumors continuing to swirl about Bill Belichick’s future as Patriots head coach, owner Robert Kraft has elected to stay silent on the matter.Jets head coach Woody Johnson took an opposite approach over the weekend, telling the New York Post on Sunday that head coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas would return in 2024 despite the team’s 6-9 record.Related ArticlesNew England Patriots | Bill Belichick explains driving force behind Christian Barmore’s breakout season New England Patriots | Patriots K Chad Ryland finds redemption in game-winning FG at Denver New England Patriots | Patriots QB Bailey Zappe reflects on worst moment of football career after game-winning drive New England Patriots | Patriots wishlist: Clarity, and a great draft pick New England Patriots | Bailey Zappe leads Patriots on first game-winning drive 26-23 over Broncos Belichick, who has...

Baltimore’s new approach to police training looks at the effects of trauma, importance of empathy

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:57 GMT

BALTIMORE (AP) — A three-minute viral video shows an irate Baltimore police officer berating a teenager because he ignored orders to stop skateboarding and called the officer “dude.”“Obviously your parents don’t put a foot in your butt quite enough because you don’t understand the meaning of respect,” he shouted at the skateboarder, who remained relatively calm. That 2007 interaction cost the officer his job. But as policing evolves, others are learning from his mistakes.The Baltimore Police Department recently started requiring its members to complete a program on emotional regulation that uses video as a learning tool and teaches them the basics of brain science by examining the relationship between thoughts, feelings and actions. It’s a far cry from traditional police training.In a city whose embattled police force has long struggled to earn public trust, especially since Freddie Gray’s 2015 death from spinal injuries sustained in police custody, department leaders are demonstrat...

Atomic watchdog report: Iran increasing production of highly enriched uranium

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:57 GMT

VIENNA (AP) — Iran has increased the rate at which it is producing near weapons grade uranium in recent weeks, reversing a previous slowdown that started in the middle of this year, the International Atomic Energy Agency said in a report to member states.Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said in the report that Iran “in recent weeks had increased its production of highly enriched uranium, reversing a previous output reduction from mid-2023,” according to an IAEA spokesperson Sunday. Iran had previously slowed down the rate at which it was enriching uranium to 60% purity. Uranium enriched at 60% purity is just a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%.The U.N. nuclear watchdog said its inspectors had verified the increased rate of production since the end of November at facilities in Natanz and Fordow to about 9 kilograms per month, up from 3 kilograms per month since June and representing a return to earlier levels of production. Enriching uranium mean...

Girl killed in fire on South Side: Chicago fire officials

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:57 GMT

CHICAGO — A girl was killed in a fire on the South Side Tuesday morning, according to the Chicago Fire Department.The fire happened around 7 a.m. in the 500 block of West Marquette Road in the city's Englewood neighborhood.Fire officials have confirmed that a female minor was killed. Emergency crews remain on the scene.This is a developing story. Check back for details.

Man critical after Little Village robbery, shooting

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:05:57 GMT

CHICAGO — A man is in critical condition following an armed robbery and shooting Tuesday morning in Little Village.Police believe two men were in the 2200 block of South Hamlin just before 7:10 a.m. when four armed males exited a white SUV.The group demanded property and one of the men complied, CPD said. After one of the men was robbed, shots were fired at them.A 37-year-old man was shot multiple times. He was transported in critical condition.No one is in custody.