Fair 68°
News
COVID-19: CDC Says It's Now Tracking More Immune-Evasive XBB Variant Growing In Northeast COVID-19: CDC Says It's Now Tracking More Immune-Evasive XBB Variant Growing In Northeast
Covid-19: CDC Says It's Now Tracking More Immune-Evasive XBB Variant Growing In Northeast With more than 300 COVID-19 Omicron sublineages circulating around the globe, a new potentially more contagious variant called XBB is being closely monitored by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC). XBB is considered more immune-evasive than other Omicron variants, Chief White House medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said last week. But government officials said they don't think XBB will become a threat at the level of Omicron, which first emerged on the global scene almost exactly a year ago. Though XBB now accounts for just over 3 percent of new cases in t…

SHARE

by Joe Lombardi
News
Effort To Aid Ukraine Has Powerful Point Person In This Fairfield County Town Effort To Aid Ukraine Has Powerful Point Person In This Fairfield County Town
Effort To Aid Ukraine Has Powerful Point Person In This Fairfield County Town Facebook gets a lot of blame for various societal ills, but the social media network has been forefront and indispensable to Ulyana Bolgachenko and thousands—if not millions—of Ukrainians. On Thursday, Feb. 24, 2022, everything changed for Bolgachenko, who came to the United States 22 years ago. She awoke that morning to news of Russia’s attack on Ukraine. “That day, we were all on our phones just watching Telegram (a social media platform) and following every explosion,” said the Redding resident. “I decided I had to do something.” That something was sending anything that could help the…

SHARE

by Vira Mamchur Schwartz
News
Ticketmaster Cancels Public On-Sale For Taylor Swift Tour, Citing 'Insufficient' Inventory Ticketmaster Cancels Public On-Sale For Taylor Swift Tour, Citing 'Insufficient' Inventory
Ticketmaster Cancels Public On-Sale For Taylor Swift Tour, Citing 'Insufficient' Inventory It's tough times for Taylor Swift fans who were hoping to purchase tickets for her upcoming tour this week. Ticketmaster has canceled its public on-sale for Swift's "Eras Tour," which was set to open on Friday, Nov. 17. The tour of stadiums across the United States will begin in 2023 and is set to include multiple shows at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey and Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts. "Due to extraordinarily high demands on ticketing systems and insufficient remaining ticket inventory to meet that demand, tomorrow's public on-sale for Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour has been cancelled,…

SHARE

by Nicole Valinote
Weather
Here Comes Nicole: Powerful Storm's Remnants Will Bring Heavy Rain, Strong Winds To Region Here Comes Nicole: Powerful Storm's Remnants Will Bring Heavy Rain, Strong Winds To Region
Here Comes Nicole: Powerful Storm's Remnants Will Bring Heavy Rain, Strong Winds To Region Just two days after making landfall in the United States as a Category 1 hurricane, Nicole is bearing down on the Northeast, where it will bring drenching rainfall, gusty winds, and dangerous flooding in some spots. The remnants of Nicole, which is now a tropical depression, will interact with a more extensive frontal system, bringing moderate to locally heavy rain, isolated thunderstorms, strong winds, and rough marine conditions as it moves across the region late Friday, Nov. 11 into early Saturday morning, Nov. 12, according to the National Weather Center. A tornado watch has been issued…

SHARE

by Joe Lombardi
Business
Recall Issued For Air Freshener Products Due To Injury, Laceration Hazards Recall Issued For Air Freshener Products Due To Injury, Laceration Hazards
Recall Issued For Air Freshener Products Due To Injury, Laceration Hazards A company has recalled about 67,000 air fresheners due to injury and laceration hazards. Reckitt issued a recall of AirWick Fresh New Day aerosol air fresheners in “Fresh Linen” and “Fresh Waters” scents on Thursday, Nov. 3. The recall includes products with batch code B22077-NJ and date code 18/03/22, which are printed on the bottom of the can. The company said a batch of the products is missing a corrosion inhibitor, which can cause corrosion, rupture of the can, and expulsion of the can's contents. Reckitt said it received five reports of incidents involving the products…

SHARE

by Nicole Valinote
Lifestyle
Here's When Social Security Recipients Will See Largest Bump In Benefits In 40 Years Here's When Social Security Recipients Will See Largest Bump In Benefits In 40 Years
Here's When Social Security Recipients Will See Largest Bump In Benefits In 40 Years Social Security beneficiaries are about to see their largest increase in benefits in four decades. Starting in 2023, recipients of Social Security benefits and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments will see their benefits go up by 8.7 percent, according to the Social Security Administration. Approximately 70 million Americans will benefit from the bump, the agency said, with an average increase of more than $140 per month expected. The increase will follow the agency’s annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA), which is required by federal law and based on the Department of Labor’s C…

SHARE

by Michael Mashburn
News
Fairfield County Man Admits To Helping Smuggle People Into US, Child Porn Possession Fairfield County Man Admits To Helping Smuggle People Into US, Child Porn Possession
Fairfield County Man Admits To Helping Smuggle People Into US, Child Porn Possession A Fairfield County man pleaded guilty to helping smuggle four Vietnamese nationals from Canada into the United States and to possession of child pornography. Jose Angel Portillo-Lopez, age 72, of Norwalk, admitted to charges of conspiracy to commit alien smuggling and possession of child pornography on Wednesday, Oct. 12, US Attorney Carla Freedman announced.  Portillo-Lopez admitted that in April 2021, he traveled to the border in the Franklin County village of Burke, New York, and help smuggle the four people into the US for profit, Freedman said. He also admitted that he …

SHARE

by Nicole Valinote
Weather
AccuWeather Releases Winter Weather Outlook AccuWeather Releases Winter Weather Outlook
AccuWeather Releases Winter Weather Outlook Long-range forecasters for AccuWeather have just released their projections for the winter of 2022-23. Senior Meteorologist Paul Pastelok and his team are predicting La Niña will shape the weather patterns across the United States for the third straight year. That means less-than-average snowfall in much of the nation, including the Northeast, especially the southernmost part of the region. (See the first image above.) Earlier report - Old Farmer's Almanac Releases Outlook For Winter In Northeast In addition, the biggest blasts of cold air will hold off until later in the winter…

SHARE

by Joe Lombardi
Lifestyle
New Report Reveals Percentage Of Americans Living Paycheck To Paycheck New Report Reveals Percentage Of Americans Living Paycheck To Paycheck
New Report Reveals Percentage Of Americans Living Paycheck To Paycheck Many Americans are living paycheck to paycheck as inflation continues to impact their finances, according to a new report.  PYMNTS and LendingClub published their September 2022 report on inflation and the United States paycheck-to-paycheck landscape. Researchers found that 60 percent of consumers reported that inflation has impacted how they manage their finances. The report also found that 60 percent of US consumers are living paycheck to paycheck as of August, an increase from 57 percent in September of 2021. According to the report, 45 percent of consumers who are earni…

SHARE

by Nicole Valinote
Lifestyle
This Invasive Insect Spreading Quickly Across Region, Nation, New Study Warns This Invasive Insect Spreading Quickly Across Region, Nation, New Study Warns
This Invasive Insect Spreading Quickly Across Region, Nation, New Study Warns A foul-smelling, invasive insect commonly referred to as a “stink bug” could become a more frequent sight due to climate change, according to a new study published in Pest Management Science. Scientists used data collected over a three-year period from 17 states to try and forecast how changing weather patterns might create a more welcoming environment for the brown marmorated stink bug. Using several potential climate scenarios, modeling found that changing weather could increase suitable habitats for the insect in the United States by 70 percent, researchers found. Areas most likely to b…

SHARE

by Michael Mashburn
Weather
Hurricane Ian Expected To Reach Category 4 Status Before Taking Aim At US: Latest Track, Timing Hurricane Ian Expected To Reach Category 4 Status Before Taking Aim At US: Latest Track, Timing
Hurricane Ian Expected To Reach Category 4 Status Before Taking Aim At US: Latest Track, Timing Click here for a new, updated story: Hurricane Ian Nears Category 5 Status As It Takes Aim On US, Projected Path Changes Ian has strengthened to Category 3 hurricane status and is expected to become an even stronger storm on a path directly taking it to the United States. Early Tuesday morning, Sept. 27, the center of Ian is moving northward over Cuba after making landfall around 4:30 a.m. near Pinar Del Rio, a city in western Cuba, according to the National Hurricane Center. It's now packing winds of 125 miles per hour with a projected path having it making landfal…

SHARE

by Joe Lombardi
Weather
Tropical Storm Ian Strengthening Rapidly On Track To Hit US As Major Hurricane: Latest Timing Tropical Storm Ian Strengthening Rapidly On Track To Hit US As Major Hurricane: Latest Timing
Tropical Storm Ian Strengthening Rapidly On Track To Hit US As Major Hurricane: Latest Timing Tropical Storm Ian is rapidly gaining strength and is projected to become a Category 4 storm before making a direct hit on the United States according to the latest forecast models. Ian, the ninth named storm of the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, is expected to strengthen to hurricane status and move north through Florida in the middle of this week. "In just a few days, Ian is likely to be a dangerous major hurricane," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Adam Douty said.  It's located about 300 miles south-southeast of Grand Cayman, as of early Sunday morning, Sept. 25, with m…

SHARE

by Joe Lombardi