Austin news

• Ohio State suspends 37 fraternities amidst hazing, alcohol investigations

  16-11-2017 23:48 via kxan.com
  COLUMBUS (WCMH) — The Ohio State University has suspended 37 fraternities, according to a Thursday press release.
  This includes all all social, recruitment and new member activities for Interfraternity Council (IFC) chapters.
  The university says it has been investigating 11 of the 37 chapters since the beginning of the year, mostly for cases involving hazing and alcohol.
  In an email to IFC presidents, senior director of sorority and fraternity life Ryan Lovell said the number of inves
  
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• 21-year-old man killed in rollover crash near Bertram

  16-11-2017 23:46 via kxan.com
  BURNET COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — A driver traveling south on County Road 212A in Burnet County died in a rollover crash Tuesday evening.
  The Department of Public Safety says 21-year-old Daniel Roman-Hernandez was about 10 miles northeast of Bertram when he was driving at a high rate of speed and over-corrected after veering left on the road around 8:40 p.m.
  Troopers say the pickup truck went through a barbed wire fence and rolled, ejecting Roman-Hernandez, who was pronounced dead at the scene
  
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• Austin company looks at employees’ drive times to decide office location

  16-11-2017 23:34 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — In the last two years, the owners of Austin-based Opcity, an online brokerage company, has had to move five times to make room for its rapidly growing workforce.
  “We were looking for a space where we’d have room to grow into,” says founder and CFO Michael Lam. “We looked at a number of things where we could find that space, where we could get lifestyle amenities and where we could have the best commute for our employees.”
  Space to grow and
  
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• VIDEO: Drake interrupts show to call out alleged groper

  16-11-2017 23:15 via kxan.com
  SYDNEY (WFLA) – Video posted on Instagram shows Canadian rapper Drake interrupt his Sydney performance to call out a man in the crowd for allegedly groping someone in the audience.
  After asking his crew to stop the music, the “Know Yourself” singer leaned into the crowd, pointed at the man and said, “If you don’t stop touching girls, I’m gonna come out there and f— you up, bruh.”
  “I’m not playing with you. If you don’t stop puttin
  
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• Mother of 3-year-old Richardson girl arrested, charged with child endangerment

  16-11-2017 22:51 via kxan.com
  RICHARDSON, Texas (KXAN) — The mother of a 3-year-old Richardson girl found dead in a culvert in October has now also been arrested and charged.
  KXAS in Dallas reports Sini Mathews surrendered to Richardson police Thursday and was arrested on a charge on child endangerment/abandonment. Sini originally told police she was sleeping when her adopted daughter Sherin disappeared during the early morning hours of Saturday, Oct. 7.Newly filed court documents indicate Sini and her husband lef
  
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• Hundreds of ‘Magic’ cards found inside truck after wild chase

  16-11-2017 21:59 via kxan.com
  OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (KFOR/NBC News) — The owners of a stolen truck recovered after a three-hour police chase say a bizarre collection of items was left inside by the alleged thief.
  The truck was stolen from Shane and Stephanie Jones’ Bridge Creek, Oklahoma driveway on Nov. 3. However, Shane says when he was coming back from a doctor’s appointment on Nov. 10, he noticed his truck on the highway.
  “I thought it looked like my truck and yep, I got a little closer. It was my
  
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• Church leaders turn to active shooter training in order to protect parishioners

  16-11-2017 21:44 via kxan.com
  LOCKHART, Texas (KXAN) — More than a week after 26 people were killed when a shooter opened fire at a church in Sutherland Springs, dozens of religious leaders gathered in Caldwell County to learn from law enforcement about how to respond in an active shooter situation.
  Seventy religious leaders from nearby churches packed a meeting room to hear advice from a variety of regional law enforcement.
  While the Caldwell County Office of Emergency Management was already planning to have this work
  
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• Former Homeland Security Secretary hospitalized in Austin

  16-11-2017 21:01 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (AP) – A spokesman says former U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge is in critical condition after undergoing an emergency heart procedure at a hospital in Austin.
  Ridge spokesman Steve Aaron says the 72-year-old Ridge, Pennsylvania’s Republican governor from 1995 to 2001, was attending the Republican Governors Association conference when he called for help at his hotel around 7 a.m. Thursday.
  Ridge underwent a cardiac catheterization at Dell Seton Medical Center at
  
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• Thomas Ian Nicholas from ‘American Pie’ attends Austin Wizard World Comic Con

  16-11-2017 20:28 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — He acts, he rocks, he produces — and now Thomas Ian Nicholas is in Austin for Wizard World Comic Con.
  He’s known for his roles as Kevin Myers from “American Pie,” and Henry from “Rookie of the Year,” but he’s done a number of projects since then, including working to produce a film based on the book “Handbook for Mortals.” He and the author will be at a signing Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Barnes and Noble at the Arboretum.
  
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• Woman refuses to remove crude anti-Trump message from pickup

  16-11-2017 19:40 via kxan.com
  HOUSTON (AP) — The driver of a pickup displaying a profane message to President Donald Trump and his supporters in the Houston area says she won’t remove the decal.
  Karen Fonseca says she’s been repeatedly stopped by law officers, but that they have no grounds to issue a citation for the sticker that says “F*** Trump and F*** you for voting for him.”
  Fort Bend County Sheriff Troy E. Nehls (Facebook Photo)Fort Bend County Sheriff Troy Nehls on Wednesday posted a phot
  
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• APD releases photos from stolen camera to try to find the owner

  16-11-2017 19:24 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin police are hoping they can reunite someone with their camera, after they recovered it along with other stolen items at the beginning of the month.
  A man called police on Nov. 8 and said his car had been “rummaged through,” and he later found missing items posted to sales websites, according to an APD release. The victim connected with the seller, later identified as Juan Charles Gurley, 19. He allegedly admitted to stealing the property, and the victim te
  
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• Naked man reported near UT Austin campus

  16-11-2017 19:11 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The University of Texas at Austin Police Department is investigating a report of an indecent exposure near campus in which a man was not wearing any clothes.
  UTPD tweeted just before noon Thursday that it had received an anonymous report in the area of Guadalupe Street and W. 24th Street. The witness said the man was middle-aged but did not have any more of a description. He was reportedly near a 4-door, silver sedan.
  Officials are asking people to call 911 if the man or th
  
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• Is ‘Fear the Walking Dead’ taking over Round Rock Express field?

  16-11-2017 18:48 via kxan.com
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — Social media is abuzz with rumors that AMC’s Fear the Walking Dead is filming at the Round Rock Express baseball field after drone pictures from Rock Studios showed a production setup.
  A spokesperson for the Round Rock Express says a third party has rented out its facility but it can’t comment on what the project is or how long it’ll be there. In the photographs, you can see the baseball diamond was converted into a space with what appears to be
  
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• Vista Ridge parents: Bike lane change even more dangerous

  16-11-2017 18:46 via kxan.com
  LEANDER, Texas (KXAN) — Concerns from parents of school children and those who live in the Vista Ridge neighborhood led to a change in the area’s bike lane — one that some say is a dangerous alteration.
  After parents complained that cars were parking in a bike lane that students use to get to Camacho Elementary School, the city tried to enforce no parking in that lane. Homeowners became upset because they lost parking in front of their homes.
  The city came up with a compromise:
  
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• Man found unfit for trial over Ten Commandments destruction

  16-11-2017 17:52 via kxan.com
  LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — A man charged with crashing his vehicle into Arkansas’ Ten Commandments display nearly three years after he was accused of destroying a monument at Oklahoma’s Capitol was found mentally unfit Thursday to go to trial.
  A Pulaski County judge found Michael Tate Reed unfit to proceed based on a diagnosis by state doctors and ordered him to be held by the state hospital for further evaluation. Circuit Judge Chris Piazza set a September 2018 hearing on Reed&r
  
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• Driver in deadly crash on E. Riverside Dr. was possibly racing

  16-11-2017 17:44 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Two people who died in a fiery crash in southeast Austin last weekend were possibly racing, police say.
  Police say Anderson Palma Rodriguez, 18, along with his female passenger, were on East Riverside Drive near Montopolis Drive just before 6 p.m. Saturday when Rodriguez started racing a driver in a 4-door black Honda. Initial information indicates Rodriguez was speeding westbound on East Riverside Drive when he lost control and struck a billboard post.
  The vehicle caught f
  
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• Three Williamson Co. men arrested in online solicitation sting

  16-11-2017 17:24 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — An online sting targeting people who were looking to potentially have sex with a child netted three arrests in Williamson County last week.
  The Child Exploitation Unit with the Attorney General’s Office conducted the operation where investigators posed as children online. During the operation, three men, identified as Samuel David Kelley, 21, of Georgetown; Shane Michael Perry, 27, of Georgetown; and Joshua Logan Dean, 28, of Austin, all agreed to meet with who they t
  
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• Feud grows between NFL, Cowboys’ Jerry Jones over Goodell

  16-11-2017 16:59 via kxan.com
  NEW YORK (AP) — The Associated Press has obtained a letter sent by the NFL to Jerry Jones’ attorney accusing the Dallas Cowboys owner of “conduct detrimental to the league’s best interests” over his objection to a contract extension for Commissioner Roger Goodell.
  The letter accusing Jones of sabotaging the negotiations was sent to David Boies on Wednesday. Jones hired Boies and threatened to sue the NFL if Goodell’s contract extension was approved by the comp
  
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• Ex-AFD lieutenant accused of filming female firefighter in locker room

  16-11-2017 16:11 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A former lieutenant with the Austin Fire Department is facing a charge of invasive visual recording, accused of secretly recording video of women in a fire station locker room.
  Lt. James William Baker, 52, had been employed with the city of Austin since 1986. The city says Baker, who worked at the Fire Station No. 1 in downtown Austin, recently retired, but an exact date wasn’t given.
  According to the search warrant, a woman who worked at the fire station discovered a
  
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• Buc-ee’s in Katy holds world record for longest car wash

  16-11-2017 15:58 via kxan.com
  KATY, Texas (KXAN) — The Guinness Book of World Records is heading to a very special pit stop in Katy, Texas, that as of Thursday will officially be home to the world’s longest car wash.
  The Buc-ee’s in Katy is providing a free car wash Thursday to celebrate as the officials come out for a visit. The area boasts multiple self-wash stations as well as a 255-foot drive-through option with multicolored suds.Buc-ee’s has 26 stores throughout Texas, with the Katy one opening i
  
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• Body camera video captures moments of California gas explosion

  16-11-2017 15:33 via kxan.com
  INDIO, Calif. (KXAN/NBC) — Newly-released body camera video from first responders captured a gas explosion in California.
  In August, a duplex exploded as police were responding to reports of a gas leak. The 61-year-old homeowner was airlifted to a hospital, but died the next day. One of the officers was hurt, but despite second-degree burns still helped nearby residents evacuate.
  Officials say homeowners should keep an eye, ear and nose out to detect if there’s anything wrong that co
  
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• 3 sent to hospital after rollover collision in Manor

  16-11-2017 14:05 via kxan.com
  MANOR, Texas (KXAN) — Three people have been taken to the hospital after a rollover collision in Manor, Texas.
  The collision happened around 5:45 a.m. on U.S. Highway 183 near Farm to Market Road 973. Two adults went to Dell Seton Medical Center and a child under 5 years old went to Dell Children’s Medical Center, according to Austin-Travis County EMS. They all have potentially serious injuries.
  Eastbound lanes reopened to drivers before 6:45 a.m. but delays could continue. Check KXA
  
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• Light show offers preview of future Waller Creek park atmosphere

  16-11-2017 13:21 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Light-based art installations will be visible along Waller Creek through Saturday night during the 4th annual Creek Show put on by the Waller Creek Conservancy.
  This year’s show, consisting of six works, is the first since construction started on the major redevelopment project along the creek that runs from 15th Street to the Colorado River. This month also marks five years since voters approved the first $13 million in public funding for the development, and six yea
  
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• 3 UCLA basketball players suspended after theft in China

  16-11-2017 13:15 via kxan.com
  LOS ANGELES (AP) — Three UCLA basketball players detained for shoplifting at three high-end stores in China publicly apologized Wednesday before coach Steve Alford announced they were being suspended indefinitely.
  Freshmen LiAngelo Ball, Jalen Hill and Cody Riley won’t be allowed to suit up, practice or travel with the team while the university continues to sort out the circumstances of last week’s incident in Hangzhou, China, Alford said during a news conference at Pauley Pavi
  
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• Museum of the Bible, built by Hobby Lobby owner, opens in DC

  16-11-2017 12:55 via kxan.com
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Eight years ago, Hobby Lobby president Steve Green found a new way to express his Christian faith. His family’s $4 billion arts and craft chain was already known for closing stores on Sundays, waging a Supreme Court fight over birth control and donating tens of millions of dollars to religious groups.
  Now, Green would begin collecting biblical artifacts that he hoped could become the starting point for a museum.
  On Friday, that vision will be realized when the 430,0
  
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• How much property taxes could go up with Austin’s proposed $640M bond

  16-11-2017 12:23 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) —  On the heels of the $1 billion AISD bond approved by voters just one week ago — now the city of Austin is looking to ask voters to approve a multi-million dollar bond next November. Unlike AISD, this one would raise taxes — but by how much is still very much in question. Thursday night people are encouraged to let the city know what they think.
  The proposed bond would amount to $640 million dollars. It would fund five areas: facility maintenance, tran
  
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• Man hit by vehicle, seriously injured on South Congress Ave.

  16-11-2017 05:55 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin police are urging drivers to avoid the area of South Congress Avenue near Academy Drive after a pedestrian was hit by a vehicle.
  The Austin Police Department said the crash happened in the 1000 block of South Congress and Austin-Travis County EMS medics were called to the scene at 10:20 p.m.
  ATCEMS says a man in his 20s was seriously injured and taken to Dell Seton Medical Center.
  KXAN will update this story as we get additional information.
  
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• In Austin speech, Pence drives home Trump tax plan to governors

  16-11-2017 05:19 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Vice President Mike Pence touted tax reform as the headliner of the Republican Governors Association conference, where some of the top Republicans in the country gathered this week.
  The annual conference took over the J.W. Marriott hotel in downtown Austin, as GOP office-holders and business leaders flooded the property.
  This comes in the same week that Gov. Greg Abbott flew to Washington, D.C. to attend fundraising events with the vice president. Pence borrowed the “
  
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• Rick Cantu talks HSFB playoffs on MTTS

  16-11-2017 05:05 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Rick Cantu previews the first week of the playoffs on More than the Score
  
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• AT&T: Experiencing a cell service issue? Restart your phone

  16-11-2017 04:45 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — AT&T says they are aware of the complaints that some cell phone users across the United States have lost service.
  The company says the fix is simple: restart your phone.
  “We are aware of an issue affecting some users ability to make certain wireless calls. These users should restart their devices, which should resolve the issue,” a spokesperson said. An online AT&T outage map shows users reporting service problems across Texas, especially Dallas and Hous
  
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• Mom makes son do neighbors’ yard work for free after being suspended

  16-11-2017 04:22 via kxan.com
  SHREVEPORT, La. (WCBD) — When Demetris Payne’s son was suspended from school, she knew a 3-day vacation was out of the question.
  She used the power of social media to get his attention — posting her son’s picture on Facebook offering to put him to work for free.
  “My son has been suspended for three days from school for discipline,” she wrote. “He will do your lawn service, he will rake your yard, mow if you supply the mower, pick up trash, or wash your c
  
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• Ohio mayor ‘disappointed and frustrated’ after meeting with Columbus Crew owner

  16-11-2017 03:34 via kxan.com
  NEW YORK CITY (WCMH) — Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther and Alex Fischer, president and CEO of the Columbus Partnership, met with Major League Soccer CEO Don Garber and Columbus Crew owner Anthony Precourt in New York Wednesday.
  In a joint statement, Ginther and Fisher said they were “disappointed and frustrated” with the meeting’s results and said the MLS and Precourt were not committed to keeping the Crew in Columbus.
  We met with Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber
  
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• Projects underway to improve water issues impacting Plum Creek

  16-11-2017 03:02 via kxan.com
  LOCKHART, Texas (KXAN) — Plum Creek is a 52-mile stream flowing across Hays and Caldwell counties, from Kyle through Luling. But over the last decade, its water quality has been on a rapid decline.
  The Plum Creek Watershed Protection Plan was developed with the purpose to restore Plum Creek back to its original designated use of contact recreation.
  “We want Plum Creek to be a safe place for people to swim and enjoy and recreate for the future,” says Nick Dornak, the P
  
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• Business leaders say ‘bathroom bill’ will prevent Texas’ economic growth

  16-11-2017 02:37 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – The Texas House Select Committee on Economic Competitiveness’ meeting on Wednesday focused on how to retain top talent in the state. Much of the discussions were over improving public education and infrastructure, but there were conversations over the so-called “bathroom bill.”
  The legislation, which failed to pass in both the regular and special sessions, would’ve required Texans to use public facilities, such as restrooms, locker rooms and showers,
  
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• Mother of Leander boy bitten by dog frustrated with city’s response

  16-11-2017 02:10 via kxan.com
  LEANDER, Texas (KXAN) — “I was terrified, I didn’t even know if they were going to be able to stitch him together,” said Michelle Hansen when she found out her 5-year-old son had been bitten on the face by a neighbor’s dog.
  Pierce was at his father’s house in Leander on Saturday when a friend stopped by with her dog. As the boy sat on a cooler in the garage petting the dog, it suddenly bit his face. Pierce was rushed to the emergency room, where he had to
  
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• TxDOT: Toll system working ‘correctly’ despite hundreds of complaints

  16-11-2017 01:22 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) Despite hundreds of Central Texas drivers frustrated with the TxTag toll road billing system and customer service, the state agency in charge says the system, for the most part, is working “correctly.”
  Following KXAN’s investigation into TxTag’s customer service practices and the 2.2. million accounts sent to collections this year, we asked viewers to send us their bills. We shared those bills with the Texas Department of Transportation on Nov. 2.
  "We've rec
  
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• Students with airsoft gun cause scare at Cedar Park’s Henry Middle School

  16-11-2017 01:03 via kxan.com
  CEDAR PARK, Texas (KXAN) — After dozens of officers descended upon Henry Middle School and the adjacent Vista Ridge High School due to reports of a possible gun on campus, Cedar Park police say they found two students with an airsoft gun taking photos.
  KXAN viewers reported seeing dozens of emergency vehicles headed to the school, located at 100 N. Vista Ridge Blvd., around 5:45 p.m.
  Business employees across the street from the school saw numerous officers surrounding the school.
  Police s
  
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• Navy widow honors late husband with Veterans Day baby gender reveal

  16-11-2017 00:50 via kxan.com
  HAMPSTEAD, N.C. (WFLA) — On Veterans Day you usually see the colors red, white and blue, but people celebrating with Cassie Lohrey saw pink.
  According to CNN, she chose Veterans Day to reveal the gender of her baby, whose father died in a military plane crash in Mississippi in July 2017.
  “I wanted to honor her daddy on this special day,” Lohrey told CNN. “Veterans Day is a big deal for us every year, but this year it’s extra special.”
  Lohrey married Navy
  
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• Texas State’s Phi Kappa Psi was already under investigation by school

  16-11-2017 00:47 via kxan.com
  SAN MARCOS, Texas (KXAN) — The fraternity now under investigation following the death of Texas State University student Matthew Ellis was already being investigated for an undisclosed allegation.
  “At the time we had already been looking into the activities of Phi Kappa Psi,” said Matt Flores, a university spokesperson.
  Texas State University officials say they received an initial complaint about the Phi Kappa Psi chapter on Sept. 21. After a preliminary review, a more
  
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• Houston-area sheriff goes after driver with ‘offensive’ anti-Trump decal

  16-11-2017 00:03 via kxan.com
  FORT BEND COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — The sheriff of Fort Bend County would like to speak to a pickup truck driver with an “offensive display” that says “F— Trump and f— you for voting for him.”
  Sheriff Troy E. Nehls, whose county covers much of the southwest Houston suburbs, said he has received numerous calls about the white decal on the back window of the pickup truck, often seen along Farm to Market 359 near Richmond, the Houston Chronicle reported.
  Fort
  
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