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Skilling: Cloudy, windy start to week for Chicagoland

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:17 GMT

The coldest night of the season is ahead---colder even than Monday morning's 24-deg low which tied for the season's coldest to date.Monday's 28-deg high ranks among the coldest 5% of November 27's of the past 153 years.  In fact, only 7 of the past 153 November 27's have been colder than today's 28----a high temps which comes in 15-deg below normal.By morning, temps will dip to 15-deg at O'Hare with a few colder inland temps dropping as low as 7 or 8-degrees. The last time O'Hare's official city low temp will have been as cold as tonight was nearly 10 months ago---on Feb 4, 2023, when the temp dipped to 11-deg.Little wonder it's this cold. While most of the weekend snow has melted, jet stream steering winds are roaring southward out of the northernmost tundra region of North American and the Canadian archipelago—the islands in the Arctic Ocean.The current chill is eating away at November 2023's once formidable monthly temp surplus.  By the close of today, November 27 will post only ...

ISP received 10K+ 'clear & present danger' reports in 2023

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:17 GMT

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) -- The Illinois State Police (ISP) is recognizing a program the agency strengthened last year, with officials arguing it saved lives. In a release, ISP highlighted the agency's Office of Firearm Safety reviewing more than 10,000 Clear and Present Danger Reports.Law enforcement agencies, school administrators, and medical professionals can file a clear and present danger report to ISP to alert state police of people potentially threatening to hurt someone or themselves. ISP then reviews the report and can revoke a FOID card or application and confiscate any firearms. After the 2022 Highland Park mass shooting, Illinois State Police passed emergency rules to strengthen the reports to include "physical or verbal behavior, such as violent, suicidal, or assaultive threats, actions, or other behavior" as a qualification for the agency to revoke firearm ownership. The Highland Park Police Department issued a Clear and Present Danger report to the mass shooting sus...

New data about the cause of deteriorating symptoms in Alzheimer's disease — and more

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:17 GMT

For Monday, Nov. 27, WGN’s Dina Bair has new medical information, including: More Coverage: WGN's Medical Watch New findings about the cause of deteriorating symptoms in Alzheimer's diseaseUniversity of Pittsburgh neurologists say brain inflammation, not amyloid and TAU proteins, leads to irritability, agitation and anxiety in Alzheimer's patients. The finding builds on prior research indicating the role of neuroinflammation in Alzheimer's progression and it points to new pathways for developing better therapies to relieve symptoms of the mind-robbing disease. Stem cells may spare diabetics daily injectionsStem cells may be able to spare diabetics daily injections. In what researchers call an innovative treatment, University of British Columbia doctors used stem cells to regulate blood glucose levels without insulin injections. Endocrinologists even went so far as to call it a potential functional cure for Type 1 diabetes. The stem cell treatment, implanted under the skin, he...

Texas high school football regional final playoff pairings, locations

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:17 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Every high school football team in Texas wants to play in December, but only the elite get the privilege.Lake Travis, Westlake, Dripping Springs, Liberty Hill, Wimberley and Blanco are among those elite teams in their divisions set to play in regional finals Friday and Saturday. In Class 6A playoffs, Austin-area teams have dominated San Antonio-area teams over the past 3 seasons The Cavaliers and Chaparrals face off in a playoff version of the Battle of the Lakes at 2 p.m., Saturday from The Pfield in Pflugerville in 6A Division I. The two District 26 rivals went at it Sept. 22 and the Chaps prevailed in a tight one 20-14.Dripping Springs takes on Cibolo Steele at 7 p.m., Saturday in the Alamodome in 6A Division II and Liberty Hill heads to Bobcat Stadium in San Marcos to play San Antonio Pieper at 7 p.m., Friday in 5A Division II action. In Week 2, the Panthers pummeled Pieper 44-6 and the Warriors haven't lost since then. Texas high school football playoff scor...

Texas fire departments are fighting stigma and pushing to provide firefighters mental health help

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:17 GMT

For 24/7 mental health support in English or Spanish, call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s free help line at 800-662-4357. You can also reach a trained crisis counselor through the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988.(Texas Tribune) — For more than a decade, Sam Buser watched the lights of fire trucks bounce off the city streets of Houston, heard the roars of burning blazes and stood before the caskets of too many firefighters.He never held a hose or kicked in a door, but, as senior psychologist for the Houston Fire Department, he spent many sleepless nights at fire stations.His job was to convince those who run toward the fire that it's okay to help themselves. But for much of his career, he was something of a rarity in Texas. Even as resources have been poured into law enforcement agencies for decades to solve well-publicized mental health issues, the same can’t be said for fire departments.The reasons are simple: There isn’t enoug...

Wild fire head coach Dean Evason, will replace him with John Hynes

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:17 GMT

The Wild’s terrible start to the 2023-24 season cost Dean Evason his job before the calendar even hit December.With the Wild on a seven-game losing streak, and in the immediate wake of a weak team effort in a 4-1 loss to the Red Wings Sunday in Detroit, general manager Bill Guerin fired the team’s fifth-year head coach on Monday, and sent his top assistant coach, Bob Woods, packing as well.According to an NHL source, the team’s next coach will be John Hynes. He last coached Nashville from 2019-23, where he led the Predators to a 134-961-8 record in four seasons. Hynes and general manager Bill Guerin will address reporters on Tuesday at Xcel Energy Center, where the Wild are set to play host to St. Louis.Minnesota enters that game with a 5-10-4 record, 14 points out of first place in the Central Division and seven points out of a Western Conference playoff spot. They haven’t won a game since Nov. 7 against the Islanders in New York.“It’s unfortunate that our p...

Enjoying the sunny outdoors despite the cold

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:17 GMT

ST. LOUIS – Most people went back to work after the long holiday weekend, but there were still a few out and about braving the cold temperatures.The St. Louis Zoo had its fair share of visitors this afternoon, despite the wind chill.“I’m babysitting. And I decided to take the kids out to the zoo today. We were debating between the science center and the zoo,” Breana Vahey said. “I said, 'Let’s go to the zoo,' because I haven’t been in a while. It’s nice weather, actually. And it’s sunny, so you really can’t tell.”Some zoo guests had extended their holiday weekend, sharing the St. Louis charm with out-of-town family. Despite being from the west, they were prepared for the cold.“They were expecting it. They were swimming two days ago in a lake. In Grafton. So yeah,” Angie Sperr said.Out-of-towners also enjoyed Steinberg Skating Rink. St. Louis native Chris Mitchell brought his family from California to skate. He remembers just how cold it can get here.“Nah. I was born here. So, I’m us...

The 20 best stocking stuffers on Amazon for Cyber Monday

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:17 GMT

BestReviews is reader-supported and may earn an affiliate commission. Details. Get stocking stuffers for everyone on Amazon todayThere’s no better day to get stocking stuffers than Cyber Monday. The deep discounts on Amazon and other online retailers seems tailor-made for small, cute, handy or practical little gifts that go a long way. We think these twenty items are excellent and affordable ways to remind friends, relatives and loved ones you’re thinking about them this holiday season. They’re the ideal “extra” gift your loved one didn’t know they wanted but will be delighted to receive.Stocking stuffers for adultsFrom the stylish to the silly, for travelers and bookworms, these picks are primed to please this Cyber Monday.Aeropress Original Coffee Press Brew fresh, clean-tasting coffee in seconds with the original Aeropress portable coffee press. The BestReviews Testing Lab calls the device ingenius, as it lets you brew ...

St. Louisans spending holiday weekend, Cyber Monday seeking deals

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:17 GMT

ST. LOUIS – On this Cyber Monday, businesses are hoping shoppers take advantage of online sales as the holiday season kicks into high gear. Whether it’s a big box store or an online purchase, some folks we talked to today say they’re taking advantage of those Cyber Monday deals.According to the National Retail Federation and Proper Insights & Analytics, a record number of 196.7 million Americans shopped in stores and online during the five-day holiday shopping period from Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday. That number is up by nearly 17 million from 2021. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily News SIGN UP NOW With inflation felt by many this year, consumers everywhere are trying to stretch their dollars.Retailers saw more than 122 million people step int...

Broncos have put themselves in AFC playoff picture, but start critical stretch of road games Sunday: “The focus has to be strictly on this one.” 

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:17 GMT

Sean Payton backtracked a little to make a point as he started answering a Monday morning question posed to him about his team’s dramatic turnaround this year that included a now common phrase: “Since Miami.”“We’re going to be able to reference Miami in a bunch of different ways for the rest of our lives, it seems like,” he said.The reference, of course, is to the historic, 70-20 loss against the Dolphins in September. The Broncos’ fortunes didn’t turn immediately after that game, but two months later Denver is indeed riding high.Payton’s team has now won five straight and heads into its biggest game of the season so far Sunday at Houston. The Texans, like Denver, are 6-5 and the pair enter Week 13 tied with Indianapolis for the seventh and final AFC playoff spot.So much will happen over the final six weeks of the season, but the NFL slate’s reached the point in time where at least early-stage scoreboard watching becomes inevitable.Naturally, though, Payton wants his team focu...