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Severe thunderstorms and high winds in the Great Plains region on Saturday night injured residents, damaged homes and left more than 50,000 electricity customers in Oklahoma and Texas without power, the local authorities said, as more than two dozen tornadoes were reported overnight. More than 13 million people from Texas to Illinois were under tornado watches as of 2 a.m. local time, meaning that tornadoes could occur over the next few hours. The severe weather followed a day in which tornadoes tore through parts of Nebraska and Iowa and leveled dozens of homes on Friday. Thunderstorms were expected to move east into the Mississippi Valley on Sunday, and heavy rains were forecast in Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana, the National Weather Service said.

Organizations: National Weather Service Locations: Oklahoma, Texas, Illinois, Nebraska, Iowa, Mississippi, Texas , Arkansas, Louisiana

☆ Heat-Related E.R. Visits Rose in 2023, C.D.C. Study Finds
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Noah Weiland | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

What the Numbers Say: People in the South were especially affected by serious heat illness. The researchers used data on emergency room visits from an electronic surveillance program used by states and the federal government to detect the spread of diseases. They compiled the number of heat-related emergency room visits in different regions of the country and compared them to data from the previous five years. Nearly 120,000 heat-related emergency room visits were recorded in the surveillance program last year, with more than 90 percent of them occurring between May and September, the researchers found. Heat illness often occurs gradually over the course of hours, and it can cause major damage to the body’s organs.

Locations: Arkansas , Louisiana, New Mexico , Oklahoma, Texas

☆ More Teams in March Madness? Say Goodbye to the Cinderella Stories.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-22 | by ( Billy Witz | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Greg Sankey, the commissioner of the Southeastern Conference, is the ultimate soft power player. Instead, he speaks opaquely, often requiring something like a college sports Kremlinologist to interpret his intentions. constitution and scoffing out of existence the possibility that the SEC would be shut out of the football playoff last season. Recently, he teamed up with the Big Ten commissioner, Tony Petitti, to leverage a deal that will award their conferences about 60 percent of the television revenue for the 12-team College Football Playoff that begins next year, leaving crumbs for everyone else. So, when Sankey told ESPN this month that it was time to rethink the N.C.A.A.

Persons: Greg Sankey, coauthoring, Tony Petitti, Sankey Organizations: Southeastern Conference, SEC, Big, Football, ESPN Locations: Oklahoma, Texas

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — “Beer For My Horses” singer-songwriter Toby Keith has died. “The money to be made was unbelievable,” Keith told The Associated Press in 1996. “Should’ve Been a Cowboy,” his breakout hit, was played 3 million times on radio stations, making it the most played country song of the 1990s. “They were trying to get me to compromise, and I was living a miserable existence,” Keith told the AP. “I always felt like that the songwriting was the most important part of this whole industry,” Keith told the crowd of fellow singers and writers.

Persons: NORMAN, Okla, Toby Keith, Keith, “, ”, Beer, Willie Nelson, ” Keith, I’ve, I’m, ” ‘, Harold Shedd, Shedd, “ Should’ve, Shania Twain, That’s, “ I’ve, Bobby Braddock, “ They’re, He’s, George W, Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, We’ll, Singer, Steve Earle, Natalie Maines, Maines, Saddam Hussein, FUTK, Ethan Hawke, Kris Kristofferson, Hawke, Vince Gill, Scott Borchetta, Trace Adkins, Joe Nichols, Josh Thompson, Clay Walker, Phil Vassar Organizations: Associated Press, Oklahoma City Drillers, United States Football League, Mercury Records, Alabama, AP, DreamWorks Records, Academy of Country, “ Billboard, Arts, “, Universal Music Group, DreamWorks, Universal, Songwriters Hall of Fame, BMI Locations: Oklahoma, Texas, Nashville, Mercury, Oklahoma City

2 Kansas State matched its best ranking ever after a chaotic week that saw nearly half of the AP Top 25 lose at least one game. The Gamecocks received all 35 first-place votes Monday in the latest Associated Press women's basketball poll after their 76-70 road victory over then-No. Political Cartoons View All 253 ImagesStanford and North Carolina State followed Iowa in the poll. ___Get poll alerts and updates on AP Top 25 basketball throughout the season. Sign up here AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball

Persons: Dawn Staley's, Ayoka Lee, Caitlin Clark, Jackie Stiles, Kelsey Mitchell, Kelsey Plum's, Brown, ___ Organizations: Kansas State, Gamecocks, Associated Press, LSU, Wildcats, Oklahoma, Hawkeyes, Northwestern, Stanford, North Carolina State, UCLA, Washington, Washington State ., UConn, Notre Dame, Huskies, TIGERS Princeton, Tigers, Princeton, Yale, Florida State, Seminoles, Duke, BEAVERS Oregon State, The Beavers, Buffaloes, Oregon, AP, womens Locations: Carolina, Texas . Iowa, Iowa, Colorado, Oregon, Utah, Washington State, Washington State . Ohio, Indiana, Texas, Oklahoma, UCLA , Indiana, Rhode Island, Colorado and Utah

☆ Inside the Trust Women abortion clinic in Wichita, Kansas, which saw a spike in out-of-state patients after Roe was overturned
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Maiya Focht | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +18 min

I met Kattie in the waiting room of the Trust Women abortion clinic. Finally, she looked north and found Trust Women in Wichita, Kansas, where I first met her on a drizzly November day. How Trust Women went from a catchphrase to a clinicTrust Women sits near a main road in Wichita, Kansas. 'Screw Texas'Kiernan, the director of nursing at Trust Women, has tattoos of plants that have been historically used as birth control. That has meant clinics like Trust Women receive a large number of out-of-state travelers, especially from southern neighbors like Oklahoma and Texas.

Persons: —, Kattie, she'd, Focht, Maiya, George Tiller, Tiller, Zack Gingrich, Gingrich, Gaylord, Roe, Wade, Kiernan, Texas, Dobbs, they're, I'm, telemedicine, Madison, Stormi, Kate Cox, Brittany Watts, Jennifer Kerns, Rachel O'Leary Carmona, Women's, Gaylor, Kerns, It's, O'Leary Carmona Organizations: Service, Business, Gaylord, Trust, Jackson, Health Organization, Trust Women, Texas Supreme, Centers for Disease Control, Women, University of California, OB Locations: Houston , Texas, Wichita , Kansas, Women's, Kansas, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, State, Dobbs, Texas, Madison, Kansans, Texas . Wichita, Houston, Wichita, Kentucky, Ohio, San Francisco, UCSF, Kattie

☆ Sweetgreen wants to be the ‘McDonald's of its generation.’ This rival salad chain could beat it
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-19 | by ( Amelia Lucas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Source: Salad and GoWhen Sweetgreen went public two years ago, co-founder and CEO Jonathan Neman said the salad chain aspired to be the "McDonald's of its generation." But another salad rival could beat Sweetgreen to the punch: Salad and Go. One of its 48 ounce salads costs less than $7 and comes with chicken or tofu, while a comparable salad from Sweetgreen costs about $12. Two years later, Morrison took over as chief executive, departing Wall Street's favorite chicken wing chain after a decade in favor of a little-known salad chain that then had only 50 locations. Other salad players, such as Sweetgreen, Just Salad or Salata, are usually in the same markets as Salad and Go.

Persons: Sweetgreen, Jonathan Neman, Charlie Morrison, Morrison, Wall, Adam Jeffery, Go, We've, Nicole Portwood, Portwood, hasn't Organizations: Volt Investment, CNBC Locations: Arizona , Nevada , Oklahoma, Texas, Southern California, Englewood Cliffs , New Jersey

A Gallup poll from October found 50% of Americans believe capital punishment is applied unfairly, compared to 47% who believe it is fairly implemented, Maher said. Nearly 200 death row exonerations since 1975, including three in 2023, also have helped changed people's minds about the fairness of the death penalty, Maher said. In recent years, various individuals across the country, including conservative legislators, have raised concerns about the death penalty or debated its future, Grosso said. One allows the death penalty in child rape convictions, despite a U.S. Supreme Court ruling banning capital punishment in such cases. Texas, the nation’s busiest capital punishment state, has not been immune to the ongoing debate over the death penalty.

Persons: —, Eric Berger, Alabama —, Robin M, Maher, ” Maher, Catherine Grosso, George Floyd, Grosso, Berger, Ron DeSantis, ” DeSantis, Corinna, Jeff Leach, “, ” Leach, ” Berger, ___, Juan, Lozano Organizations: HOUSTON, University of Nebraska, Washington, D.C, Gallup, Michigan State University’s College of Law, Florida Gov, U.S, Supreme, University of Richmond School of Law, GOP, Texas, Texas Senate Locations: U.S, Lincoln, Oklahoma, — Texas, Florida , Missouri , Oklahoma, Alabama, United States, Florida , Oklahoma, Texas, Florida, Idaho, Virginia

But national winter wheat yield ended up only about 2% below the long-term trend in 2023. Winter wheat there is only 32% GE, down from the week’s five-year average of 43% but above the year-ago 24%. Winter wheat is 42% and 41% GE, respectively, equal to the Oklahoma average and 13 points above the Texas one. Winter wheat at 47% GE is among the lower ratings for the date historically, but it is not necessarily in poor company. U.S. winter wheat conditions, fall versus springKaren Braun is a market analyst for Reuters.

Persons: Amira Karaoud, Karen Braun, Matthew Lewis Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, U.S . Department of Agriculture, GE, Nino, El Nino, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Shelbyville , Kentucky, U.S, Rights NAPERVILLE , Illinois, United States, Kansas, Illinois, Ohio, Missouri , Kentucky, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Texas, Southern

9 Alabama returned to the top 10 after falling out in mid-September, which snapped a streak of 128 top-10 appearances that dated back to 2015. The number of major upsets to Top 25 teams overall in college football this season remains minimal. IN-N-OUTIowa dropped out of the Top 25 after its second loss of the season and was replaced by No. JMU is in its second season playing in the Bowl Subdivision, the highest level of Division I, leaving the Dukes ineligible to play for the Sun Belt Conference title and a bowl game. Get alerts on the latest AP Top 25 poll throughout the season.

Persons: Nick Saban, “ That's, They've, James Madison, Duke, Tim Reynolds, Ralph D, Russo Organizations: Associated Press, Bulldogs, Southern, Wolverines, Michigan State, NCAA, Ohio State, Penn State, The Nittany Lions, Buckeyes, Florida State, Oklahoma, Alabama, Crimson Tide, Tennessee, ” Tide, Volunteers, Cavaliers, FBS, Clemson, Duke, Duke . North Carolina, Atlantic Coast Conference, Tigers, Dukes, Sun Belt Conference, James, Air Force, Tulane, American Athletic Conference . Air Force, SEC, ACC —, The Ducks, Utes, Louisville, Basketball, Cardinals, ACC, AP Locations: Georgia, Alabama, Michigan, Florida, Washington, Texas, Oregon, Washington , Oklahoma, North Carolina, Virginia, Duke . North, Miami, Sunday's, Utah

AQUIFERS AQUIFERS AQUIFERS WASH. MAINE MONT. MONITORING WELLS MONITORING WELLS MONITORING WELLS WASH. MAINE MONT. FLA. DECLINING WELLS DECLINING WELLS DECLINING WELLS WASH. MAINE MONT. FLA. UNCHARTED WATERS America Is Using Up Its Groundwater Like There’s No Tomorrow Overuse is draining and damaging aquifers nationwide, a New York Times data investigation revealed. Groundwater level trends Rising Declining Groundwater level trends Rising Declining Groundwater level trends Rising Declining Groundwater level trends Rising Declining Note: Colors depict the median trend for each site over the previous 20 years.

☆ A proposed 'battle plan' for the next Republican presidency includes eliminating a Biden-era clean energy act that funneled hundreds of billions to primarily red states
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-05 | by ( Katie Hawkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Conservative organizations have released a proposed "battle plan" for the next Republican president. The plan calls for the president to end the Inflation Reduction Act, which has primarily benefited red states. The 2022 bill funnels hundreds of billions to states home to major clean energy projects, like Oklahoma and Texas. Paul Dans, a director with the Heritage Foundation, called Project 2025 a "battle plan" for the next Republican president, The New York Times reported. The Heritage Foundation did not respond to a request for comment ahead of publication.

Persons: Dans, we're, Sarah Hunt, Joseph Rainey Organizations: Republican, Service, Biden, Heritage Foundation, New York Times, Times, Joseph Rainey Center for Public Policy Locations: Oklahoma, Texas, Wall, Silicon

☆ Johnsonville recalls Beddar With Cheddar sausages over possible plastic contamination
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-19 | by ( Michael Nam | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

New York CNN —Sausage company Johnsonville is voluntarily recalling more than 42,000 pounds of its “Beddar With Cheddar” sausages because of possible contamination. The ready-to-eat pork links may include very thin black, fibrous strands of plastic, according to the US Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service. Johnsonville noted that if the fibers are consumed, the USDA believes they likely pose a low risk of adverse health effects. packages of Johnsonville Beddar with Cheddar Smoked Sausage links were produced on January 26, 2023 and have the best by 07/11/2023 C35 code date along with an establishment number of EST 34224 on the front, lower right corner. At least one incident of the plastic threads being found in the sausage has been reported but otherwise there have been no illnesses or injuries, according to Johnsonville.

Organizations: New, New York CNN —, US Department of Agriculture’s, Inspection Service, USDA, “ Consumers Locations: New York, Johnsonville, Colorado , Iowa , Kansas , Missouri , Nebraska, North Dakota , Oklahoma, Texas

☆ Biden administration to propose tighter health privacy rules around abortion
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Zoë Richards | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The Biden administration on Wednesday will propose new health privacy protections to prevent protected health information from being used to investigate or sue people who facilitate abortions, senior administration officials said. Vice President Kamala Harris will announce the new language, aimed at strengthening existing privacy rule protections under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, when she meets with a task force on access to reproductive health care Wednesday afternoon. The HHS proposal centers on barring using or disclosing protected health information that could be used to identify, investigate, prosecute or sue people, health care providers and others involved in seeking or providing abortion care. In a document outlining its proposal, the White House said taking steps to protect sensitive health information had taken on "renewed importance" in light of such efforts. The proposed rule would continue to allow a regulated entity such as a health insurance company or provider to use or disclose protected health information "for permissible purposes" under the privacy rule, a senior administration official said.

Although winter weather has been gentle to Ukraine’s crops, the ongoing conflict has reduced the country’s 2023 winter wheat plantings 22% below last year’s harvested area. CROP CONDITIONSRecent rains for parched winter wheat in the U.S. Plains have also added to wheat market pressure, though updated crop conditions released late on Monday suggest risks remain. Winter wheat in Texas and Oklahoma is not doing well, but it is better than a year ago. This week, Oklahoma is at 36% GE versus 17% a month ago, 31% in November and 11% a year ago. Kansas, Texas and Oklahoma planted half of this year’s U.S. winter wheat acres, and producers there are hoping yields will rebound from last year’s drought.

☆ Cyberattack on food giant Dole temporarily shuts down North America production, company memo says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Sean Lyngaas | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —A cyberattack earlier this month forced produce giant Dole to temporarily shut down production plants in North America and halt food shipments to grocery stores, according to a company memo about the incident obtained by CNN. “Dole Food Company is in the midst of a Cyber Attack and have subsequently shut down our systems throughout North America,” Emanuel Lazopoulos, senior vice president at Dole’s Fresh Vegetables division, said in a February 10 memo to retailers. “They [customers] are upset, but it happens,” Russell told CNN. Customers started asking questions about the bare shelves, Underwood said, prompting the store to post the Dole memo about the cyberattack on its Facebook page. The multibillion-dollar company — officially known as Dole Plc after a 2021 merger between Dole Food Company and Ireland’s Total Produce — sources produce from dozens of countries around the world.

☆ With over 100 anti-LGBTQ bills before state legislatures in 2023 so far, activists say they're 'fired up'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Jo Yurcaba | Jo Yurcaba Is A Reporter For Nbc Out. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +10 min

So far, Texas has taken the lead with 36 such bills, according to Equality Texas, a statewide LGBTQ advocacy group. Four states — Arkansas, Alabama, Tennessee and Arizona — have enacted restrictions on gender-affirming medical care for minors, though federal judges have blocked them from taking effect in Arkansas and Alabama. State Sen. David Bullard, the Republican sponsoring the bill, told The Oklahoman that gender-affirming medical care is a “permanent change in your body that cannot be reversed. Accredited medical associations — including the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychological Association — have supported gender-affirming care for minors. Advocates and doctors who treat trans youth have said many of the health care restrictions proposed by state legislators mischaracterize what gender-affirming care is.

☆ Earthquake adds new hurdle to slowing Texas oil output gains
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Liz Hampton | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dec 15 (Reuters) - The latest earthquake to rattle West Texas will add costs to producers already snarled by inflation and supply shortages, as operators curtail their use of wastewater wells in the largest U.S. shale field. Regulators in both states have limited how much water can be injected, particularly into deep wells. If another magnitude 4.5 or higher quake occurs in that area, all deep wells within the boundary will shut for 24 months from the date of the event. There are now 78 active disposal wells in that "North Culberson-Reeves Seismic Response Area." "Absolute shut-in of deep wells in the area would cause a significant logistics issue to maintain oil and gas production in highly productive fields in New Mexico and West Texas," she said.

There have been 53 reports of tornadoes since early Tuesday morning in seven states, including three confirmed whirlwinds in Louisiana that killed three people. Reports came in from Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and Florida. Typically, reports are made by citizens or law enforcement who spot the tornadoes or areas of damage. St. Charles Parish President Matthew Jewell said 55 structures were damaged during the storms, 21 of which have been deemed uninhabitable. One family had their home destroyed in Wayne, about 50 miles southeast of Oklahoma City, NBC Montana reported.

☆ Tornadoes leave a trail of destruction in Louisiana and the Southeast, killing at least 3, collapsing homes, knocking out power
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Nouran Salahieh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —A severe weather system cutting through the South has left a trail of destruction in Louisiana, killing at least three people and injuring dozens of others as violent tornadoes touched down, collapsing homes, turning debris into projectiles and knocking out power. Multiple communities throughout Louisiana reported destruction, with roofs ripped off, homes splintered, debris littering roadways and cars flipper over. As ferocious winds downed power lines, more than 50,000 customers were left without power in across Louisiana and Mississippi Wednesday evening, according to PowerOutage.us. More than 40 tornadoes were reported in Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Texas over Tuesday and Wednesday, according to the Storm Prediction Center. More than 15 million people could see severe weather Thursday in parts of Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas as the severe weather shifts the east, according to CNN Meteorologist Robert Shackelford.

☆ Who in the U.S. gets paid sick leave, in four charts
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Danica Jefferies | Danica Jefferies Is An Intern With The Data Graphics Team For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

Roughly 1 in 5 civilian workers in the U.S. don’t have paid sick leave, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. Paid sick leave was at the heart of the dispute between rail workers and freight companies, with some workers demanding seven days paid sick leave. Many sick leave mandates allow workers to take 5 to 8 paid sick days, depending on how many hours they work and the number of employees in the business. Several states including these four have passed legislation blocking cities and counties from enacting paid sick leave. In 2021, Texas became the latest to ban municipal ordinances requiring businesses to provide paid sick leave.

☆ DEI programing stalled in 2022—how that could 'alienate' young workers in the future
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

According to new research from Glassdoor, in September 2017, 27% of companies reviewed on the site indicated corporate investment into DEI programs like Employee Resource Groups. Access to DEI programs surged to 39% in 2020 before peaking to 43% in 2021. Where are DEI programs thriving? Young people have been very vocal about their desire to work for companies that care about diversity, equity, and inclusion — and Glassdoor reviews prove it. Black women, and people of color collectively, are also more likely to say diversity, equity, and inclusion are important than their white counterparts.

☆ Jake Flint: Musician dies just hours after his wedding
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Andi Babineau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Oklahoma musician Jake Flint died unexpectedly over the weekend, hours after getting married, his publicist Clif Doyal told CNN. “Jake Flint was a true Ambassador of the Oklahoma and Texas Red Dirt music scene,” Doyal said. With his infectious smile and disarming sense of humor, he was loved by many, and I believe that, along with his music, will be his lasting legacy.”Doyal said Flint died in his sleep. CNN has reached out to the medical examiner’s office for more information. My heart is gone and I just really need him to come back.

New Jersey-based BlockFi, founded by fintech executive-turned-crypto entrepreneur Zac Prince, said in a bankruptcy filing that its substantial exposure to FTX created a liquidity crisis. BlockFi listed its assets and liabilities as being between $1 billion and $10 billion. Renzi said that BlockFi had sold a portion of its crypto assets earlier in November to fund its bankruptcy. In a court filing on Monday, BlockFi listed FTX as its second-largest creditor, with $275 million owed on a loan extended earlier this year. In its bankruptcy filing, BlockFi said it had hired Kirkland & Ellis and Haynes & Boone as bankruptcy counsel.

Organizations: & & .

New Jersey-based BlockFi, founded by Zac Prince, said in a bankruptcy filing that its substantial exposure to FTX created a liquidity crisis. In a court filing on Monday, BlockFi listed FTX as its second-largest creditor, with $275 million owed on a loan extended earlier this year. Crypto lenders, the de facto banks of the crypto world, boomed during the pandemic, attracting retail customers with double-digit rates in return for their cryptocurrency deposits. Crypto lenders are not required to hold capital or liquidity buffers like traditional lenders and some found themselves exposed when a shortage of collateral forced them - and their customers - to shoulder large losses. In its bankruptcy filing, BlockFi said it had hired Kirkland & Ellis and Haynes & Boone as bankruptcy counsel and Berkeley Research Group as a financial adviser.

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