Austin news

• Fans reflect on unforgettable Olympics experience in Pyeongchang

  25-02-2018 23:29 via kxan.com
  After weeks of watching some of the greatest athletes in the world compete in Pyeongchang, we have reached the closing ceremony of this year’s Winter Olympics.
  “It’s exciting, it’s been a good Olympics,” said Cecil Bleiker, a Team USA fan.
  From Lindsey Vonn taking bronze and becoming the winningest female alpine skier, to the men’s curling team winning historic gold – it was quite a run for Team USA in South Korea.
  “It’s been really fun. The
  
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• PHOTOS: South Korea 2018 closing ceremony

  25-02-2018 23:28 via kxan.com
  PHOTOS: South Korea 2018 closing ceremonyPYEONGCHANG-GUN, SOUTH KOREA - FEBRUARY 25:Fireworks explode as entertainers perform during the "Countdown: Dream for Tomorrow" segment during the Closing Ceremony of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at PyeongChang Olympic Stadium on February 25, 2018 in Pyeongchang-gun, South Korea.(Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images) PYEONGCHANG-GUN, SOUTH KOREA - FEBRUARY 25:Performers dance during the Closing Ceremony of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Gam
  
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• Highlights of the South Korea 2018 closing ceremony

  25-02-2018 23:27 via kxan.com
  The PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games wrapped up Sunday with a spectacular closing ceremony. Here are some of the most memorable moments of the night.
  (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)
  Korean musician Yang Tae-hwan shred the guitar during a classical music remix that got viewers around the world talking. As a drone fleet flew overhead, the 13-year-old led a rendition of “Winter” from Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Image
  
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• As the winter games close, the world prepares for Tokyo 2020

  25-02-2018 23:27 via kxan.com
  PYEONGCHANG, SOUTH KOREA (WCMH) — As the 2018 Winter Olympics wraps up, it’s time to look ahead to the next Olympic Games: Tokyo 2020.
  Two years from now, surfing makes its debut as an Olympic sport. But at the Tokyo 2020 Japan House, you don’t have to wait to ride the waves.
  “In this Tokyo 2020 Japan House, almost every single day there are 10,000 visitors,” said Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee member Hiroyuki Kobayashi. “We made Tokyo 2020 Japan House here t
  
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• Federal team investigating deadly Dallas house explosion

  25-02-2018 22:48 via kxan.com
  DALLAS (AP) — Federal authorities are investigating a suspected natural gas leak that caused an explosion at a newly renovated house in Dallas, killing a 12-year-old girl and injuring four other members of her family.
  The National Transportation Safety Board said it was sending a three-person team Sunday to look into the blast.Firefighters Friday found the home shattered but no fire. Four injured people were in the front yard and one of them was holding the unconscious girl. Authorities sa
  
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• Congress has ideas on gun violence, but no consensus

  25-02-2018 22:26 via kxan.com
  WASHINGTON (AP) — After a 10-day break, members of Congress are returning to work under hefty pressure to respond to the outcry over gun violence. But no plan appears ready to take off despite a long list of proposals, including many from President Donald Trump.
  Republican leaders have kept quiet for days as Trump tossed out ideas, including raising the minimum age to purchase assault-style weapons and arming teachers, though on Saturday the president tweeted that the latter was “Up
  
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• 5 dead after tornado, flooding from central US storms

  25-02-2018 22:24 via kxan.com
  CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — The death toll rose to at least five on Sunday after severe thunderstorms swept through the central U.S., spawning a tornado that flattened homes, gale force winds and widespread flooding from the Upper Midwest to Appalachia.
  The system that stretched from Texas to the Canadian Maritime provinces had prompted several emergency declarations even before the dangerous storms arrived.
  In southwestern Michigan, the body of a 48-year-old man was found floating in floodwa
  
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• Michelle Obama to release memoir in November

  25-02-2018 22:17 via kxan.com
  NEW YORK (AP) — Michelle Obama’s memoir, one of the most highly anticipated books in recent years, is coming out Nov. 13.
  The former first lady tweeted Sunday that the book, to come out a week after the 2018 midterm elections, is called “Becoming.”
  “Writing ‘Becoming’ has been a deeply personal experience,” she said in a statement. “It has allowed me, for the very first time, the space to honestly reflect on the unexpected trajectory of my li
  
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• Mother, 17, arrested for death of newborn in El Paso

  25-02-2018 22:15 via kxan.com
  EL PASO, Texas (AP) — A 17-year-old El Paso woman is facing a capital murder charge for the stabbing and death of her newborn child earlier this month.
  El Paso sheriff’s deputies say Erica Gomez was arrested Friday.
  Authorities say she gave birth to a baby girl at her home and the child was found dead about 12 hours later on Feb. 9, wrapped in a bathrobe inside a storage shed. Investigators say the child was left there immediately after birth and that the baby had stab wounds and cut
  
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• The Latest: Students, teachers return to Florida high school

  25-02-2018 22:03 via kxan.com
  PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) — The Latest on the law enforcement response after a deadly school shooting in Florida (all times local):
  3:40 p.m.
  Thousands of students and their parents are returning to a Florida high school to find out what will happen when they return to school on Wednesday.
  The meeting Sunday with teachers and administrators at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School is expected to last a couple of hours.
  Junior Sebastian Pena said before going in that he was looking forward to seei
  
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• The Latest: Students back at Florida school, get belongings

  25-02-2018 22:03 via kxan.com
  PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) — The Latest on the law enforcement response after a deadly school shooting in Florida (all times local):
  4:45 p.m.
  Students at a Florida high school where 17 of their classmates and staff members were fatally gunned down have gotten their first chance to return to the school.
  Thousands of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students and their parents were able to pick up book bags and other belonging left behind after the Feb. 14 shooting. They were able to see their
  
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• Corps: Agency worked to inform on Harvey flood risk

  25-02-2018 22:02 via kxan.com
  HOUSTON (AP) — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Friday that leading up to and during Hurricane Harvey it “worked diligently” with officials to inform the public on flooding risks from Houston reservoirs that ended up inundating thousands of homes.
  The Corps’ statement came in response to a Houston Chronicle report earlier this week that the agency failed to share with the public a forecast ahead of Harvey’s arrival predicting that Barker and Addicks reservoirs
  
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• Q&A: What the battle of memos on FBI surveillance showed

  25-02-2018 21:56 via kxan.com
  WASHINGTON (AP) — In the battle of the classified memos in the House Intelligence Committee, both sides have now had their say on whether the FBI and Justice Department acted inappropriately as they began investigating President Donald Trump’s ties to Russia.
  A Democratic memo that was declassified Saturday, with sections blacked out and after weeks of delays, aimed to defend the FBI and Justice Department’s conduct. That was after a declassified Republican memo released Feb. 2
  
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• Austin police find missing teen last seen on 6th Street

  25-02-2018 21:12 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — UPDATE: Austin Police say she has been found and is safe.
  EARLIER: The Austin Police Department said they are searching for a 15-year-old girl who is missing.
  APD said Esparanza Flores was last seen 6th Street at 2 a.m. on Sunday.
  They said Flores is Hispanic, 5 feet tall with brown eyes and black hair. She weigh about 100 pounds.
  She was last seen wearing a red top, black skinny jeans and black boots.
  If you have any information, please contact Austin Police at 512-97
  
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• PHOTOS: Weekend storms bring “wavy” clouds across Central Texas

  25-02-2018 18:33 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The past few weeks have brought quite the stretch of wet weather across Central Texas. But the storms this weekend brought more than just some much needed rain. They’ve also paved the way for some neat and unique photo opportunities of our skies.
  Cloud formations called “asperitas” or “undulatus asperatus,” developed across the area Sunday morning. Undulatus Asperatus, which means “agitated waves” creates the appearance of wave-like
  
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• Round Rock police officer hit while working deadly I-35 hit and run

  25-02-2018 15:39 via kxan.com
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — A Round Rock police officer is in the hospital in serious condition after he was hit by a car while directing traffic around a crash scene early Sunday morning.
  The driver who hit the officer is a 65-year-old man. He did stop at the scene, and police said they expect to charge that driver with intoxication assault at some point soon.
  Round Rock Police said they received a call that someone was walking near Interstate 35 at 5:27 a.m. When officers arrived on scene
  
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• Round Rock police officer hit while working deadly auto-pedestrian crash

  25-02-2018 15:39 via kxan.com
  ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — A Round Rock police officer is in the hospital after he was struck by a car while responding to a crash where a pedestrian was hit and killed on Sunday morning.
  Round Rock Police said they received a welfare call about a pedestrian that was walking near Interstate 35. Officers said when they arrived on scene, there was a body on the interstate. They say that person was hit by a driver that fled the scene.
  RRPD said one of its officers was directing traffic around
  
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• State of Texas: Voting security and #metoo backlash

  25-02-2018 15:30 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – National concerns about voter fraud have prompted Texas lawmakers to tackle weaknesses in the state’s voting systems. The Texas Senate Select Committee on Election Security held a hearing Thursday to take on concerns of fraud, cyber security, and simple voter education.
  “I know that ballots have been altered after they’ve been taken out of the ballot box,” said John Oldham, elections administrator for Fort Bend County. “I have observed workers,
  
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• Transgender Texas wrestler wins second high school title

  25-02-2018 14:00 via kxan.com
  CYPRESS, Texas (AP) — For the second year in a row, a transgender wrestler has won the Texas girls’ Class 6A 110-pound division.
  Mack Beggs, an 18-year-old senior from Euless Trinity High School near Dallas, entered the tournament in Cypress outside of Houston with an undefeated record. He beat Chelsea Sanchez — who he beat for the title in 2017— in the final match Saturday.
  Video posted online showed a mix of cheers and boos from the crowd following Beggs’ win.
  Beg
  
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• Sights and Sounds: The 2018 PyeongChang Closing Ceremony

  25-02-2018 13:22 via kxan.com
  With competition complete and all events decided, the world’s elite winter athletes once again converged on PyeongChang Olympic Stadium as the 2018 Olympic Games culminated with the Closing Ceremony Sunday night in South Korea.
  AIRING TONIGHT IN PRIMETIME
  The Closing Ceremony — hosted by figure skating commentating trio of Tara Lipinski, Johnny Weir and Terry Gannon — will air in primetime Sunday evening at 8p.m. ET/5p.m. PT.
  Watch it on NBC and streaming on NBCOlympics.co
  
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• Wilco Sheriff: Wrong-way driver strikes woman’s car, seriously injures her; alcohol suspected

  25-02-2018 04:21 via kxan.com
  WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) – The Williamson County Sheriff’s Office said alcohol is believed to be a factor in a crash where a wrong way driver struck a woman’s car with his pickup and seriously injured her southeast of Georgetown Saturday night.
  It happened at about 8:30 p.m. Saturday on County Road 110 near the intersection with County Road 105, they said.
  Medics took the woman to Seton Medical Center Williamson with serious injuries, an official said.
  The man, who the S
  
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• Suspected drunk driver goes causes wrong-way crash near Georgetown

  25-02-2018 04:21 via kxan.com
  WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) – The Williamson County Sheriff’s Office said alcohol is believed to be a factor in a crash where a wrong-way driver struck a woman’s car with his pickup and seriously injured her southeast of Georgetown Saturday night.
  It happened at about 8:30 p.m. Saturday on County Road 110 near the intersection with County Road 105, they said.
  Medics took the woman to Seton Medical Center Williamson with serious injuries, an official said.
  The man, who the S
  
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• Suspected drunk driver causes wrong-way crash near Georgetown

  25-02-2018 04:21 via kxan.com
  WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) – The Williamson County Sheriff’s Office said alcohol is believed to be a factor in a crash where a wrong-way driver struck a woman’s car with his pickup and seriously injured her southeast of Georgetown Saturday night.
  It happened at about 8:30 p.m. Saturday on County Road 110 near the intersection with County Road 105, they said.
  Medics took the woman to Seton Medical Center Williamson with serious injuries, an official said.
  The man, who the S
  
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• NRA, Florida face backlash after latest school shooting

  25-02-2018 03:24 via kxan.com
  NEW YORK (AP) — The National Rifle Association, and now the State of Florida, faced a growing backlash Saturday as companies cut ties to the gun industry following the latest school massacre, and student survivors called for tourism boycotts of their home state until gun control measures are enacted.
  The latest companies to end their ties with the NRA were Delta and United Airlines, two of the three largest U.S.-based airlines.
  Corporate ties to the NRA aren’t the only elements under
  
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• Houston mayor: Recovery from Harvey not fast enough

  25-02-2018 03:22 via kxan.com
  HOUSTON (AP) — Six months after Hurricane Harvey’s flooding wreaked havoc in Houston, recovery efforts in the United States’ fourth-largest city aren’t “happening fast enough,” Houston’s mayor said Friday.
  Thousands of people still need help as they continue living either in hotels or in damaged homes, said Mayor Sylvester Turner. He praised local efforts, including from nonprofit groups and residents, saying they’ve filled in some of the gaps as t
  
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• Ending the silence: Austin community works to dispel mental health stigma

  25-02-2018 01:34 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — It’s been a little more than a week since 17 people were shot and killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla.
  “So often, what we are doing is that in these tragedies we quickly point to the scapegoat, which is to say it’s a mental health issue,” said Karen Ranus, executive director of NAMI-Austin, the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
  Today, NAMI Austin invited the community to gather in hopes of starting the co
  
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• Austin Energy hands out science fair awards

  25-02-2018 01:22 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Our own Jim Spencer had the honor of presenting awards to some of Central Texas’s most talented young scientists Saturday.
  Austin Energy hosts this science fair every year with the hope of encouraging students to pursue careers in STEM – that’s science, technology, engineering and math.
  Elementary school students from across the city had a chance to compete and present their projects.
  Winners get to move on to present in the Texas Science and Engineering F
  
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• Overflow crowd as group of Austin moms hold monthly meeting calling for gun control reform

  25-02-2018 01:01 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – There was huge turn-out as a group of Austin moms joined together Saturday calling for action on gun control.
  Their organization is called Moms Demand Action and they hosted a monthly meeting Saturday at the University of Texas – their first since last week’s Valentine’s Day shooting in Parkland, Fla., that killed 17 people.
  The group opposes arming teachers and they support lawmakers who refuse to take money from gun rights groups.
  UT’s Hogg Auditor
  
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• Water shoots into the sky after main break in south Austin

  25-02-2018 00:44 via kxan.com
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – Workers shut down a water main break in south Austin after it spewed water high into the air for more than two and half hours Saturday afternoon, said Austin Water.
  Passersby reported the geyser of water to KXAN just before 1 p.m., and Austin Water said its workers turned the water off by 3:40 p.m.
  It happened near the Slaughter Creek overpass off of Interstate 35 between Slaughter Lane and Onion Creek.
  It slowed traffic in the area as drivers watched the rushing water shoo
  
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• Admirers salute Billy Graham as motorcade crosses North Carolina

  25-02-2018 00:19 via kxan.com
  CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Admirers took photos on their phones, fire trucks parked on freeway overpasses and police officers saluted as a motorcade carrying the body of the Rev. Billy Graham crossed the evangelist’s beloved home state of North Carolina for four hours Saturday from his mountain chapel to namesake library in the state’s largest city.
  Residents in some of Graham’s most cherished places paid tribute to “America’s Pastor,” starting at the traini
  
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• Admirers line streets as Graham’s body arrives in Charlotte

  25-02-2018 00:19 via kxan.com
  CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Well-wishers lined freeway overpasses and small-town streets to honor the late Rev. Billy Graham as his motorcade crossed his beloved home state of North Carolina for four hours on Saturday from his mountain chapel to namesake library in the state’s largest city.
  Adults and children stood behind wooden barricades and yellow tape, police officers saluted, and admirers captured the moment on cellphones along the route. Fire trucks parked on overpasses along Inter
  
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• Governors skeptical of Congress, but welcome new gun debate; Abbott to meet with Trump Monday

  25-02-2018 00:12 via kxan.com
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Governors assessing the fallout from the latest school shooting said Saturday that the gun control debate has changed after the sorrow in Florida, a shift helped driven by public outrage and student activists.
  But they are skeptical Congress can seize the moment, overcome its partisan divide and enact measures intended to prevent more tragedies, so governors are preparing to take the lead and have states push ahead with new gun restrictions.
  The Feb. 14 shooting at Marjor
  
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