Columbus news

• 4 die, 29 missing in California dive boat fire; crew jumped

  02-09-2019 23:33
  OXNARD, Calif. (AP) — The bodies of four people who died when a raging fire swept through a dive-boat off the Southern California coast were recovered Monday as authorities said more than two dozen others remained missing and feared dead.Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Kroll says the four bodies had injuries consistent with drowning.Searchers continued to look for more than two dozen other people who were aboard the vessel Conception, which burned while anchored off Santa Cruz Island."Right
  
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• Police release more photos of suspects who allegedly beat elderly man, stole his car in southeast Columbus

  02-09-2019 23:20
  COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Columbus Division of Police has released more photos of the suspects who are accused of severely beating a 71-year-old man on Aug. 25 in southeast Columbus.Police said the suspects knocked on the man’s door in the area of Basil Drive around 2:45 p.m. and asked if his grass needed to be cut but the man said no.The suspects returned a short time later and asked to use the man’s phone but the man again said no, according to police. (Columbus Division of Police
  
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• Hurricane Dorian triggers massive flooding across Bahamas

  02-09-2019 22:23
  FREEPORT, Bahamas (AP) — Hurricane Dorian unleashed massive flooding across the Bahamas on Monday, pummeling the islands with so much wind and water that authorities urged people to find floatation devices and grab hammers to break out of their attics if necessary.The fearsome Category 4 storm slowed almost to a standstill as it shredded roofs, hurled cars and forced even rescue crews to take shelter until the onslaught passed.Officials said they received a "tremendous" number of calls fro
  
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• Relative to have no calls with suspects in Rhoden family massacre

  02-09-2019 21:31
  
  WAVERLY, Ohio (AP) — A judge says the mother of a woman charged in an Ohio family's slaying must stop talking with her jailed daughter and have no phone calls with her or three other relatives charged in the case.The mother, 66-year-old Rita Newcomb, isn't charged in the 2016 slayings of eight people from the Rhoden family but pleaded not guilty to forging documents in a related matter.Prosecutors argued Newcomb violated conditions of her own house arrest by discussing the case with her ja
  
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• Owner: Guns stolen from Westerville firearms shop after suspects drive vehicle into building

  02-09-2019 20:16
  
  WESTERVILLE, Ohio - The owner of a firearms shop in Westerville said about 20 guns were stolen after suspects drove a vehicle into the business and took them.Westerville police said a vehicle was driven into Velocity Works Firearms on Old County Line Road around 5:45 a.m. Monday.The shop owner said multiple people wearing hoodies broke into the shop and were out of the business in about three minutes.The vehicle left a hole in the building and people were at the store cleaning it up on Monday.We
  
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• Coast Guard: 4 bodies found; 29 people missing after California dive-boat fire

  02-09-2019 20:03
  
  LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Coast Guard says four bodies have been recovered near a dive boat that caught fire off the California coast with dozens of people aboard.Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Kroll says the bodies recovered Monday morning had injuries consistent with drowning.Searchers are continuing to look for 29 other people who were aboard the vessel Conception, which burned while anchored off Santa Cruz Island.Five crew members were awake when the fire broke out and were able to jump into the water
  
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• Nashville school bans "Harry Potter" series, citing risk of "conjuring evil spirits"

  02-09-2019 19:46
  
  A Catholic school in Nashville, Tennessee has banned the "Harry Potter" series because a reverend at the school claims the books include both good and evil magic, as well as spells, which, if read by a human can conjure "evil spirits," according to the Tennessean.The publication obtained an email from Rev. Dan Reehil, a pastor at Saint Edwards Catholic School parish, which was sent to parents. "These books present magic as both good and evil, which is not true, but in fact a clever deception," R
  
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• Hurricane Dorian pummels Bahamas with Category 4 assault

  02-09-2019 18:54
  FREEPORT, Bahamas (AP) — Hurricane Dorian hovered over the Bahamas on Monday, pummeling the islands with a fearsome Category 4 assault that shredded roofs, hurled cars and forced even rescue crews to take shelter until the onslaught passes.The storm's top sustained winds fell slightly to 155 mph (250 kph), and its westward movement slowed almost to a standstill. The system crawled along Grand Bahama Island at just 1 mph (2 kph) and was expected to generate a storm surge of 18 to 23 feet (6
  
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• Officials: Dozens feared dead in California dive-boat fire

  02-09-2019 18:44
  
  LOS ANGELES (AP) — As many as 34 people are feared dead, according to the Coast Guard, after a dive boat caught fire before dawn Monday off the Southern California coast.Five crew members were rescued and Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Kroll told The Associated Press the Coast Guard was searching for others who may have been able to escape the fire by jumping from the boat.He added, however, that 34 were feared dead. Two of the crew suffered minor injuries, said Coast Guard Petty Officer Mark Barney."R
  
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• Sheriff's Office: Man with knife puts down weapon after being confronted by man with gun in Coshocton County

  02-09-2019 14:34
  
  COSHOCTON COUNTY, Ohio - A man with a knife was confronted by a man with a gun on Saturday at a McDonald's in Coshocton County and the situation ended without any injuries, according to the sheriff's office.The sheriff's office said deputies received a call about a man with a knife around 11:15 a.m. Saturday.When deputies arrived, they learned a 22-year-old man made a threat with a knife inside the restaurant.The sheriff's office said another man who was eating there noticed what was happening a
  
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• Tens of thousands in Hong Kong boycott first day of school

  02-09-2019 13:54
  
  HONG KONG — Clad in gas masks along with their formal white school uniforms, tens of thousands of students in Hong Kong boycotted the first day of classes Monday as part of a citywide strike following a violent weekend of demonstrations.High school students added gas masks, goggles and hard hats to their traditional uniforms, while university pupils crowded into a square at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Workers also participated in their own rally at a public park, braving strong wi
  
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• 10 students injured in Chinese elementary school attack

  02-09-2019 13:48
  
  BEIJING — Ten students were injured Monday in an attack at an elementary school in central China, officials said.The attack occurred about 8 a.m. on the first day of the new semester in Enshi city in Hubei province, local authorities said in a statement. The wounded students were taken to a hospital.A suspect was in custody and was being investigated. The motive for the attack was unclear and no further details were immediately available.In June last year, two children were stabbed to deat
  
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• Remembering the victims of the deadly mass shooting in west Texas

  02-09-2019 13:32
  
  MARY GRANADOSMail carrier Mary Granados was alone in her U.S. Postal Service truck when she was shot and killed by a gunman who hijacked the white vehicle in West Texas amid his frenzy of violence.Granados, 29, was among seven people between the ages of 15 and 57 killed Saturday. Another 22 were injured, including a toddler.US Postal Service officials said in a statement Sunday that they were "shocked and saddened" by the events, but were "especially grieving the loss of our postal family member
  
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• Record-setting Hurricane Dorian keeps pounding north Bahamas

  02-09-2019 11:01
  
  McLEAN'S TOWN CAY, Bahamas — In a slow, relentless advance, a catastrophic Hurricane Dorian kept pounding at the northern Bahamas early Monday, as one of the strongest Atlantic storms ever recorded left wrecked homes, shredded roofs, tumbled cars and toppled power poles in its wake.The storm's top sustained winds decreased slightly to 165 mph as its westward movement slowed, crawling along Grand Bahama island early Monday at 1 mph in what forecasters said would be a daylong assault. Earlie
  
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• Homes, cars damaged after storm rolls through Columbus area

  02-09-2019 05:22
  Just after 5:30 p.m. Sunday evening the storm clouds rolled in.The clouds quickly opened up, pouring on workers as they rushed to get groceries into a car.“I knew it was going to rain,I knew it was maybe going to thunderstorm.I didn't know like everyone in Florida, it was going to be hurricane like stuff!” said Bernie Welch III.Welch was watching the storm from inside as he started hearing noises from his front yard.“I'm in the kitchen and I hear this crack of lightning. I wave
  
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• Evacuations ordered for parts of South Carolina, Florida amid Hurricane Dorian threat

  02-09-2019 03:48
  
  The Latest on Hurricane Dorian (all times local):8 p.m.Hurricane Dorian is pounding Great Abaco and Grand Bahama islands in the archipelago east of South Florida.The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Dorian was centered at 8 p.m. EDT Sunday about 155 miles (250 kilometers) east of West Palm Beach, Florida. It remains a Category 5 storm with top sustained winds of 185 mph (290 kph). The storm is moving west at 5 mph (7 kph).Hurricane center specialists say residents of Florida's east coast now
  
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• New photos show suspects who police say beat elderly man, stole car in southeast Columbus

  02-09-2019 03:19
  COLUMBUS, Ohio — Police provided new photos in their search for two teenage suspects who are accused of severely beating a 71-year-old man on Aug. 25 in southeast Columbus.Police said the suspects knocked on the man’s door in the area of Basil Drive around 2:45 p.m. and asked if his grass needed to be cut but the man said no.The suspects returned a short time later and asked to use the man’s phone but the man again said no, according to police.Police said the suspects forced th
  
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• Columbus police looking for 3 suspects following east Columbus robbery

  02-09-2019 02:53
  
  COLUMBUS, Ohio — Columbus police are searching for three suspects in an aggravated robbery outside of Big Bucks Pawn Shop in east Columbus.It happened around 2 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 22. The three suspects arrived at the pawn shop on Livingston Avenue. Two of the three suspects carried weed eaters, pretending to be clients.The first suspect, who had long dreadlocks and was wearing a white T-shirt, was seen on security tapes reaching over and behind a glass gun display counter, checking if
  
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• Mail carrier, high school student among dead in Texas attack

  02-09-2019 02:47
  
  Mail carrier Mary Granados was alone in her U.S. Postal Service truck when she was shot and killed by a gunman who hijacked the vehicle in West Texas amid his frenzy of violence.Granados, 29, was among seven people between the ages of 15 and 57 killed Saturday. Another 22 were injured, including a toddler.US Postal Service officials said in a statement Sunday that they were "shocked and saddened" by the events, but were "especially grieving the loss of our postal family member."The shooting bega
  
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• Ohio jail's call for books brings thousands of donations

  02-09-2019 02:28
  
  AKRON, Ohio (AP) — A call for reading material for an Ohio jail's newly reopened library resulted in thousands of donated books.Rebecca McCutcheon is director of inmate services for Summit County Jail in northeastern Ohio. She told the Akron Beacon Journal that the jail collected close to 15,000 books in a week after posting the request on Facebook.The jail is no longer accepting books but McCutcheon says they hope to continue to increase services for prisoners. She says the facility had s
  
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• Westerville lineworkers headed to Florida with more than 150 cases of water

  02-09-2019 02:13
  
  WESTERVILLE, Ohio — Lineworkers in Westerville are doing what they can to help those in the country facing the threat of a destructive hurricane.Westerville Electric says four lineworkers are on their way to Florida with more than 150 cases of water donated by people in the city.“This is why I love working for Westerville,” Foreman Todd Head. Four #Westerville Lineworkers are on their way to Florida with more than 150 cases of water. Thank you, Westerville for your quick respon
  
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• AEP: Several thousand without power in central Ohio after storms

  02-09-2019 01:28
  
  American Electric Power says several thousand people are without power around central Ohio after the severe weather came through the area on Sunday.A spokesperson for AEP says the heaviest-hit areas initially were Reynoldsburg, Dublin and Grove City.There have been multiple reports of wires down in those areas. AEP hopes to have power restored quickly. The estimated restoration time is as late as 12:30 a.m., according to the outage map.For the latest information on power outages, you can look at
  
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• Evacuations ordered for parts of South Carolina amid Hurricane Dorian threat

  02-09-2019 01:05
  
  The Latest on Hurricane Dorian (all times local):6:50 p.m.South Carolina's governor has ordered a mandatory evacuation of his state's entire coast as Hurricane Dorian threatens.Gov. Henry McMaster's order goes into effect at noon Monday, when state troopers will begin reversing lanes so that people can all head inland on major coastal highways.Authorities say the order covers approximately 830,000 people, many of whom will be evacuating for the fourth time in four years.McMaster says he knows so
  
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