Buffalo news

• ‘Snowvember’ lessons learned, snow preps fine-tuned

  17-11-2015 23:30 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - It was a pummeling even by Buffalo standards. A narrow band of lake-effect snow pushed across parts of the region during the week of November 17, 2014 dumping up to seven feet in some areas.
  In Erie County, authorities say 11 deaths were attributed to the ferocious storm. Plus, there were roof collapses under the weight of the snow, hundreds of abandoned vehicles that had to be towed, food and gas shortages and countless acts of kindness in the midst of the
  
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• Cuomo: Allowing refugees part of American dream

  17-11-2015 21:36 via wivb.com
  
  ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo says rejecting Syrian refugees would be akin to letting terrorists win by “conceding defeat of the American dream.”
  Responding to those urging him to block the placement of Syrian refugees, the Democratic governor told students at Harvard University Tuesday that efforts to prevent terrorism must be balanced with America’s status as a beacon for liberty and tolerance.
  Cuomo says Washington has vowed to screen potential terrori
  
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• FanDuel suspends operations in New York State, will argue case in court

  17-11-2015 20:40 via wivb.com
  
  ALBANY, N.Y. (WIVB) — Embattled fantasy sports company FanDuel announced on Tuesday it will no longer allow New Yorkers to spend money on fantasy services.
  The move comes a day after they failed to secure a temporary restraining order that would have blocked New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman’s actions, banning them from New York State.
  Schneiderman made national headlines when he announced FanDuel, and other similar fantasy sports websites are considered illegal gam
  
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• FanDuel suspends operations in New York State, DraftKings perseveres

  17-11-2015 20:40 via wivb.com
  
  ALBANY, N.Y. (WIVB) — Embattled fantasy sports company FanDuel announced on Tuesday it will no longer allow New Yorkers to spend money on fantasy services.
  The move comes a day after they failed to secure a temporary restraining order that would have blocked New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman’s actions, banning them from New York State.
  Schneiderman made national headlines when he announced FanDuel, and other similar fantasy sports websites are considered illegal gam
  
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• 2 people dead after fire at home in Chautauqua County

  17-11-2015 20:18 via wivb.com
  
  JAMESTOWN, N.Y. (AP) — State Police say two people have died in a fire at a home in western New York.
  Troopers say they and volunteer firefighters were alerted around 5 p.m. Monday to a report of a blaze at a home in the Chautauqua County town of Ellery, on Chautauqua Lake’s northern shore 55 miles southwest of Buffalo.
  Police say 69-year-old Geraldine Dahlin and 77-year-old Nevon Tarbell were found dead inside the house. Troopers say an investigation determined the fire started Sund
  
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• Germany-Netherlands match called off shortly before kickoff

  17-11-2015 20:04 via wivb.com
  
  HANNOVER, Germany (AP) — The friendly soccer game between Germany and the Netherlands was canceled at short notice after a suspicious object was found at the stadium on Tuesday.
  Policeman Joerg Hoffmeister told The Associated Press that everyone inside had to be evacuated after the as-yet unidentified object was found.
  Announcements at the stadium in northern Germany advised people to go home in a calm manner, and that there was no danger to fear. Most fans were still waiting outside when
  
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• Passenger detained on London flight

  17-11-2015 19:53 via wivb.com
  
  BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts State Police say a drunken passenger on a London-to-Boston British Airways flight tried to open an exit door on the plane and was restrained.
  Police say the incident is not believed to have a link to terror.
  British Airways told state police that a woman about 30 years old tried to open the exit door Tuesday on Flight 213. The flight landed about a half-hour ahead of schedule at Boston’s Logan International Airport at 1:30 p.m. A spokesman for state police
  
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• Buffalo Police report triple shooting on E. Ferry Street

  17-11-2015 18:51 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Buffalo Police are saying three people were shot on the 1000 block of E. Ferry Street in an apparent drive-by shooting.
  Police say the shooting occurred just before 12:30 p.m. Tuesday.
  The victims’ injuries appear to be non-life threatening, according to police. All three are being treated at ECMC.
  Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to call or text the confidential TIPCALL line at (716) 847-2255.
  
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• Driver in fatal 198 crash tells his story during hearing

  17-11-2015 18:33 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – As workers begin installing new guard rails along the 198 at Delaware Park that were spurred by a deadly crash there at the end of May, the man who drove his car off the Scajaquada and hit and killed 3-year-old Maxsym Sugorovskiy that morning has told his side of the story in a Traffic Safety hearing.
  News 4 is not identifying the driver because he was never charged with a crime.
  He did, however, have to go in front of an Administrative Law Judge Tuesday morning for
  
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• NY attorney general seeks preliminary injunction against FanDuel, DraftKings

  17-11-2015 18:22 via wivb.com
  
  ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has filed court papers seeking an injunction to stop daily fantasy sports operators DraftKings and FanDuel from conducting what he calls illegal gambling in the state.
  The filing Tuesday by Attorney General Eric Schneiderman says the companies operate unlicensed games of chance that constitute gambling under New York law.
  The companies say they offer games of skill, not chance, and they’ve made that argument to an increa
  
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• Donald Trump to packed house in Knoxville: Guns could have prevented Paris attacks

  17-11-2015 17:35 via wivb.com
  
  KNOXVILLE (WATE) – Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump spoke Monday night before a packed house at the Knoxville Convention Center in Tennessee.
  Around 5,000 people were expected to attend the rally, which had to be delayed a few minutes because people were still filing in, despite the doors opening around an hour earlier than originally announced.
  Trump’s early comments were against President Obama’s release of five prisoners from Guantanamo Bay last week and that Fri
  
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• New York to suspend licenses of chronic toll evaders

  17-11-2015 16:54 via wivb.com
  
  ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York is cracking down on chronic toll evaders with a plan to yank their driver licenses.
  Gov. Andrew Cuomo says Tuesday that soon after the start of the new year, the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles plans to suspend the license of any motorist who fails to pay five tolls within a period of 18 months.
  The state says it found nearly 35,000 cases of toll evaders racking up five or more unpaid toll violations within 18 months — depriving the state of mo
  
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• Sheriff: Deputies stop Akron burglary attempt by man with active warrant

  17-11-2015 16:52 via wivb.com
  
  AKRON, N.Y. (WIVB) — Erie County Sheriff’s deputies say a man with an active warrant tried to break into a Village of Akron apartment with a screwdriver.
  Just after 6 a.m. on Saturday, deputies say they received a call reporting a burglary attempt on Cedar Street.
  The woman who called authorities said an unknown man was trying to break into her apartment, where she and her children lived.
  The first deputy to arrive on the scene says he found the burglary suspect, Nicholas M
  
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• Russia fires missiles on Syria positions in Aleppo, Idlib

  17-11-2015 16:00 via wivb.com
  
  MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s defense minister says Russian warplanes have fired cruise missiles on militant positions in Syria’s Idlib and Aleppo provinces.
  Sergei Shoigu also told a briefing conducted for President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday that bombers hit Islamic State positions in Raqqa and Der-ez-Zor.
  Shoigu said the cruise missiles that hit the Aleppo and Idlib positions were fired from Tu-160 and Tu-95 warplanes.
  
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• Consumer prices rise slightly in October

  17-11-2015 14:58 via wivb.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. consumer prices rose modestly in October, as low gasoline costs and a strong dollar have suppressed inflation.
  The Labor Department says the consumer price index rose 0.2 percent last month after falling in September and August. Gas costs increased 0.4 percent in October but have plunged 27.8 percent over the past 12 months.
  Overall consumer prices have risen a slim 0.2 percent from a year ago. Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, advanced
  
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• Charlie Sheen admits he is HIV-positive

  17-11-2015 14:16 via wivb.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — Former “Two and a Half Men” star Charlie Sheen says he has the HIV virus.
  In an interview Tuesday on NBC’s “Today,” the 50-year-old Sheen says he tested positive for the virus that causes AIDS.
  Drug and alcohol use have marred Sheen’s personal and professional life in recent years. He was kicked off CBS’ “Two and a Half Men” in 2011 after an explosive meltdown that included calling the show’s pr
  
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• Can governors close borders to Syrian refugees?

  17-11-2015 13:52 via wivb.com
  
  GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — As Friday’s terror attacks on Paris are rapidly weakening support for programs that bring in Syrian refugees, many state governors are saying they don’t want them.
  Governors in 21 states have said they will oppose accepting or that their state will not accept any new refugees from Syria.
  In Michigan, Gov. Rick Snyder on Monday clarified a Sunday statement that he would suspend efforts to accept Syrians into the Great Lakes State, instead saying his
  
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• New research shows health benefits of coffee

  17-11-2015 13:23 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — New research from the American Heart Association finds people who drink moderate amounts of coffee lower their risk of death from cardiovascular disease, Type II diabetes and neurological diseases.
  Moderate drinking is defined as fewer than five cups a day.
  The study found it did not matter if the coffee was decaf or caffeinated, suggesting the health benefit is not just the caffeine, but also something in the coffee beans themselves.
  
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• The Williamsville teenager who turned down Facebook

  17-11-2015 12:46 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — While Gregg Mojica’s classmates focus on sending in early-decision college applications, the 17-year-old is deciding if he should even go to college. It’s not that he doesn’t know what he wants to do, in fact he’s alreay accomplished in his chosen field. Gregg is a programming prodigy.
  The Beginning
  Gregg became interested in computer code when he was 12 years old, after looking at a time widget and wondering how he could improve it. “I
  
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• Dog-riding monkeys entertain at Cincinnati Bengals game

  17-11-2015 12:38 via wivb.com
  
  CINCINNATI (WIVB) — Monday’s football game pitting the Cincinnati Bengals against the Houston Texans featured an extra bit of entertainment that night.
  Monkeys in Bengals jerseys and cowboy hats rode around the field on dogs and entertained the crowd.
  This may have been the high point of the game for Bengals fans since the team lost 10 to 6 against the Texans.
  
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• The Latest: US officials: Russia attacks IS stronghold

  17-11-2015 12:06 via wivb.com
  
  MOSCOW (AP) — The latest on news from Russian officials that a passenger jet was brought down over Egypt by an explosive device. (All times local.)
  3:45 p.m.Two U.S. defense officials say Russia has attacked Raqqa, the Islamic State group’s self-declared capital in Syria, with cruise missiles and bombs on Tuesday.The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss non-U.S. military operations. They provided no details on targets or the scale or outcome of the attacks.One of the
  
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• The Latest: Paris police report 16 arrests, 104 raids

  17-11-2015 11:44 via wivb.com
  
  PARIS (AP) — The latest on the deadly attacks in Paris. (All times local):
  3:20 p.m.Police in Paris say 16 people have been arrested in the region and detained since Sunday in relation to the attacks.A Paris police statement on Tuesday said that there have also been 104 police raids, and six firearms have been seized since a state of emergency was declared on Saturday.Police say that these arrests and raids are targeting “people, arms and objects likely to be linked to activities of
  
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• The Latest: Germans release people arrested in Aachen

  17-11-2015 11:44 via wivb.com
  
  PARIS (AP) — The latest on the deadly attacks in Paris. (All times local):
  6:45 p.m.German police have released seven people arrested near the western city of Aachen in connection with the investigation of the Paris attacks.The dpa news agency quotes an unidentified police official as saying checks found that none had links to the attacks.Germany’s Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere had earlier told reporters authorities acted on a tip that one of those arrested might be a key susp
  
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• Fire starts in SUV, moves to house on Thatcher Avenue

  17-11-2015 11:36 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Investigators are working to find out what caused a fire in an SUV that spread to a house on Thatcher Avenue.
  Neighbors say they heard what sounded like explosions around 3 a.m. Tuesday morning.
  No one was hurt in the fire.
  
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• State and local governments do not decide refugee placement

  17-11-2015 05:53 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)- Across the country, more than 20 governors say they’re against the plan to resettle Syrian refugees escaping from war.
  Governor Andrew Cuomo has not addressed the issue but his opinion will have no bearing on whether refugees are placed in Erie County. Resettlement is a two year process that doesn’t involve the state or local governments.
  Erie County lawmakers have been debating the issue since the Paris attacks on Friday.
  “It’s so bad
  
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• Sabres’ Bogosian Could Return This Week

  17-11-2015 05:46 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — The Buffalo Sabres have jumped out to an 8-8-1 record without the services of a handful of top players. The good news? One of those players should return to game action this week.
  Zach Bogosian was a full participant in practice on Monday and says he’s “ready to go” whenever head coach Dan Bylsma decides to insert him into the lineup. Bogosian practiced alongside Rasmus Ristolainen on the Sabres’ top defensive line and figu
  
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• ‘McPick 2’: McDonald’s new deal to replace Dollar Menu

  17-11-2015 04:12 via wivb.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — It’s the Dollar Menu, take two.
  McDonald’s hopes it has a catchy, new deal that will be as hugely popular as its Dollar Menu. Early next year, the fast-food chain will launch the “McPick 2” menu, which will let customers pick two of the following items for $2: a McDouble, a McChicken, small fries and mozzarella sticks.
  The offering has gained the necessary votes from franchisees to make it onto the national menu, and will be available in U.S. restaur
  
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• South Buffalo residents relieved by rape arrest

  17-11-2015 04:10 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)- Nearly two weeks after a woman was dragged into a secluded area of Hillery Park and raped, Buffalo Police say they have their man.
  “A violent predator has been taken off the streets.” said Mayor Byron Brown in announcing the arrest of 33 year old Timothy DiCenzo for first degree rape and robbery. Police brought him in last week, and charged with with forcibly touching a woman last year on Stevenson Street. Then, when they asked him about Hillery Park, he asked f
  
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• Virginia county distillery first to sell moonshine legally since before prohibition

  17-11-2015 04:09 via wivb.com
  
  FRANKLIN COUNTY (WSLS 10) – For the first time since before prohibition, Twin Creeks Distillery will be the first Franklin County distillery to sell moonshine legally since before prohibition.
  The craft of making “white lightning” goes back to the early 1900’s for Chris Prillaman’s family.
  “Being from around here you see and hear all kinds of stuff about the history, and I always had an interest in it,” says Prillaman.
  Decades after Prillaman’s gre
  
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• Tenn. woman finds thousands of pills dumped behind her home

  17-11-2015 04:07 via wivb.com
  
  FRANKLIN, Tenn. (WKRN) – A Franklin woman was horrified after her children discovered thousands of pharmaceutical pills in the creek and grassy area behind her home this weekend.
  Cindy Bramblett told News 2 she notified Franklin authorities, who responded and cleaned up most of the waste. But she said many pills are still left behind.
  Her 12-year-old son was playing near Sparks Creek on Saturday when he made the troubling discovery.
  His mother investigated and then called Franklin police,
  
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• Minneapolis mayor seeks federal investigation into shooting

  17-11-2015 03:52 via wivb.com
  
  MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The mayor of Minneapolis on Monday asked for a federal civil rights investigation into the weekend shooting of a black man by a police officer during an apparent struggle.
  Mayor Betsy Hodges said she wrote to the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice and to the U.S. attorney for Minnesota seeking the investigation in the “interest of transparency and community confidence.” The state’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is already conducting a
  
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• Thieves nab more than $1,500 in copper

  17-11-2015 03:42 via wivb.com
  
  ALDEN, N.Y. (WIVB) — Another copper heist has police searching for a culprit and reviewing security tape.
  Police are searching for the thieves who hacked away more than $1,500 in copper from a NYSEG substation in Alden.
  Erie County Sheriff’s Deputies are searching for whomever cut through the Walden Avenue substation’s security fence and made off with the valuable metal.
  Anybody with information is asked to call police at (716) 858-2903.
  
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• Supporters of Bennett HS cry foul over Section 6 officiating

  17-11-2015 03:20
  
  Supporters of Bennett are crying foul over the officiating at a recent Section 6 Championship game played November 6.        
  
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• Judge won’t issue order to keep daily fantasy sports in NY

  17-11-2015 03:00 via wivb.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — A New York judge on Monday rejected the requests of daily fantasy sports operators DraftKings and FanDuel for temporary restraining orders to block the state attorney general’s attempt to shut them down.
  In separate complaints filed Friday in state Supreme Court in Manhattan, FanDuel and DraftKings first asked a judge for an injunction, arguing that Attorney General Eric Schneiderman wrongly characterized their businesses as illegal gambling operations.
  On Monday, Bos
  
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• Leaders push Albany to devote more funds to Buffalo roads, bridges

  17-11-2015 02:46 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Crumbling infrastructure in parts of Buffalo have prompted leaders to call for more funding from Albany.
  The “Rebuild New York Now” coalition visited Buffalo on Monday, meeting with city leaders in the afternoon to jointly call for investments in upstate New York, including western New York and Buffalo.
  Organizers of the group say the region is being largely ignored as parts of western New York roads and bridges erode into pieces, putting the public
  
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• Students protest at Niagara University

  17-11-2015 01:50
  
  Some students at Niagara University are protesting over what they say is social injustice.        
  
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• This year’s gift for someone who has everything—a gift card, again

  17-11-2015 01:20 via wivb.com
  
  AMHERST, N.Y. (WIVB) – Gift cards are topping holiday wish lists for the ninth year in a row, with Americans expected to spend more than $170 on gift cards alone.
  What do you give the friend or relative who has everything? For the 9th year in a row, the website CardHub reports it is gift cards.
  If dad is getting tired of the Christmas ties, and the kids already have the latest electronic gadgets, you might consider gift card, which is what 59% of holiday gift recipients are going to get t
  
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• Governors across U.S. question plan to accept Syrian refugees

  17-11-2015 01:05 via wivb.com
  
  DETROIT (AP) — Governors across the U.S. are threatening to halt efforts to allow Syrian refugees into their states in the aftermath of the coordinated attacks in Paris, though an immigration expert says they have no legal authority to do so.
  The governors are responding to heightened concerns that terrorists might use the refugees as cover to sneak across borders. Authorities said a Syrian passport was found near one of the attackers, and the Parisprosecutors’ office says fingerprin
  
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• Western New York French community reflects on Paris tragedy

  17-11-2015 00:46 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) –  For some Western New Yorkers this tragedy hit close to home. More than 300 french people live in this area who have family there.
  Pascal Soares represents the more than 300 French Natives, and the more then one thousand that live from the Bronx to Erie, Pennsylvania through the french consul.
  Soares studied for 5 years at the Sorbonne and lived in the same area near La Republique, where these attacks happened. He compared the Bataclan,
  
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• Wintercast suggests warm start to winter

  17-11-2015 00:39 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Come November there is a question that regularly comes into the weather center and that is “what is this winter going to be like?”
  This season WNY has the benefit of a strong signal coming from El Nino, a pattern many may have heard of before. El Nino could have a strong effect on WNY weather.
  Let’s start with the two different phases of that pattern and what they look like for the entire US. La Nina is the opposite of El Nino and generally lea
  
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• Wintercast suggests milder start to winter

  17-11-2015 00:39 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Come November there is a question that regularly comes into the weather center and that is “what is this winter going to be like?”
  This season WNY has the benefit of a strong signal coming from El Nino, a pattern many may have heard of before. El Nino is likely to have a strong effect on the weather patterns that govern our winter here in WNY.
  Let’s start with the two different phases of that pattern and what they look like for the entire US. L
  
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• Facebook’s “Safety Check” comes under fire

  17-11-2015 00:25 via wivb.com
  
  BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)- Friday’s terrorist attacks in Paris had people from around the world wondering if their loves ones were okay.
  The Facebook “Safety Check” feature allows users to instantly check-in as safe, so that all their friends know they’re alright.
  However, Facebook has been criticized over how the company rolled out this feature.
  It was originally meant solely for natural disasters, but the company decided to use it following the events in Paris.
  Just one
  
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