Latest news with #AllState
Associated Press
9 hours ago
- Sport
- Associated Press
Humble Kingwood's Hunter Quantel heads Texas 6A all-state softball team
LONGVIEW, Texas (AP) — The Blue Bell/Texas Sports Writers Association Class 6A All-State softball team, distributed by The Associated Press: FIRST TEAM Pitcher: Hunter Quantel, Humble Kingwood; Peyton Philipp, Waco Midway; Cailey Slade, Forney Catcher: Lorelei Gamble, Dripping Springs First base: Jayden Sadler, Waco Midway Second base: Leilani Garcia, Humble Kingwood Third base: Morgan Sanchez, Klein Oak Shortstop: Emma Willers, J.J. Pearce Outfield: Stevie South, Mesquite; Camryn Carter, Waco Midway; Ava Cook, Wylie DH/DP/Flex: Lylly Sanchez, Grand Prairie Utility: Stella Benitez-Mendez, Grand Prairie Player of the year: Quantel, Humble Kingwood Coach of the year: Jordan Williams, Waco Midway ___ SECOND TEAM Pitcher: Natalie Moreaux, Mansfield Legacy; Emmie Santos, Forney; Abby Mangrum, Royse City Catcher: Mia Gagliardi, Humble Kingwood First base: Laila Nobles, Pearland Second base: Amanda Rodriguez, El Paso Eastwood Third base: Macy Alewine, Wylie Shortstop: Michaela Landers, Waxahachie Outfield: Kayla Santiago, Wylie; Sydney Prihoda, Willis; Harper Haas, Waco Midway DH/DP/Flex: Jordan Young, Waxahachie Utility: Isabella Dzialo, The Woodlands ___ THIRD TEAM Pitcher: Hailey Rodriguez, El Paso Socorro; Alexis Clark, Frenship; Jenna Hashaw, League City Clear Springs Catcher: Payton Shugart, Pearland First base: Danielle Lozoya, El Paso Socorro Second base: Layla Bennett, Pearland Third base: Dominana English, Forney Shortstop: Lillie Gaudio, Mansfield Legacy Outfield: Jadasia Mims, Longview; Aniya Wilder, Longview; Kaylee Schweitzer, Pearland Utility: Lanee Brown, Waco Midway
TechCrunch
20-05-2025
- Automotive
- TechCrunch
SparkCharge raises $30M to help fleets electrify without commitments
Electrifying a fleet of vehicles is the chicken-and-egg problem for the 21st century. Where do you spend money first, on the vehicles or the charging infrastructure? Believe it or not, that question isn't always thought through. Joshua Aviv, founder and CEO of SparkCharge, has had fleets approach him and say, 'Hey, the cars are here. They're sitting on the lot. We've got no way to service them, no way to charge them. Can you guys help us out?' he told TechCrunch. Some companies are a tad more prepared and give Aviv a week's notice, sometimes longer. But that's not entirely surprising given Aviv's pitch: buy the vehicles first, and leave the charging to us. It's a bit of a pivot from the startup's first offering, which was mobile EV charging. The company had partnered with AllState to help stranded EV drivers, for example. Now, SparkCharge offers what it calls 'charging-as-a-service.' Fleets sign a deal with the startup to buy electricity on a per-kilowatt-hour basis, and SparkCharge make charing happen. The startup has expanded into all 50 states, Canada, and Mexico, To continue to expand, SparkCharge has raised $15.5 million in a Series A-1 round led by Monte's Fam with participation from Cleveland Avenue, Collab Capital, Elemental Impact, MarcyPen, and Non-sibi Ventures, the company exclusively told TechCrunch. Alongside the equity round, SparkCharge also secured a $15 million venture loan from Horizon Technology Finance Corporation. Aviv founded SparkCharge in 2018 as the electric vehicle wave was beginning to form. Outside of Tesla, fast-charging infrastructure was lacking. But companies were starting to invest in electrification because of the compelling financial outlook: EVs promised not only to save on fuel costs, but also maintenance. Techcrunch event Join us at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot for our leading AI industry event with speakers from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Cohere. For a limited time, tickets are just $292 for an entire day of expert talks, workshops, and potent networking. Exhibit at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot at TC Sessions: AI and show 1,200+ decision-makers what you've built — without the big spend. Available through May 9 or while tables last. Berkeley, CA | REGISTER NOW In the seven years since, fast charging has dramatically improved, but it's not evenly distributed. 'There's a lot of fleets out there that are like, 'Hey, I'm in middle of America. Hey, I'm in different parts of the coast,'' Aviv said. In many cases, those customers have a large volume of EVs moving through the facility that need to be charged daily. That includes ports, railheads, or automotive manufacturers. 'Usually these operations are happening 24/7,' Aviv said. 'They want to get these cars charged, but back out on the road.' Even in regions that have plenty of fast chargers, many fleets want their own to control when to charge. But building depot charging can be expensive and delayed by long grid interconnection queues. 'Basically, we can come in service all their vehicles, charge all their vehicles, and they don't have to worry about grid delays, connection. They don't have to worry about any of that trenching, digging, tunneling, the construction,' Aviv said. In many cases, SparkCharge turns to mobile chargers powered by batteries or generators, which Aviv said can run on propane, natural gas, or hydrogen. The startup can either drop the equipment off and let the customer handle charging, or it can offer 'white glove' service where SparkCharge handles all aspects of charging, including plugging in. As customer's operations grow, the company can help them transition to permanent charging infrastructure. So far, 95% of the SparkCharge's customers use its off-grid chargers, Aviv said. Costs depend on the customer and the size of the fleet, he said, but typically run between 35 cents to 60 cents per kilowatt-hour, which is competitive with many public fast chargers. 'If a fleet uses 1,000 kilowatt-hours, then they only pay for that 1,000 kilowatt-hours. If they only use five kilowatt hours, they only pay for five kilowatt-hours,' he said. 'It allows the fleet to really be nimble and flexible with their how they're charging their cars. If they see a big uptick, then that's fine, right? They're covered. If they have a low season, that's fine. They're covered.'
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Rockford couple nears end of two-year battle to restore historic home after tornado
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — Working with adjusters, shopping contractors and filing a civil complaint against their insurance company has been Jay and Tara Dickson's life for more than two years. The couple's historic home on Spring Creek Road was heavily damaged on March 31, 2023, when an EF-1 tornado ripped through parts of city. Damage included several blown out windows, massive holes in the roof and the loss of critical support pillars. The twister also lifted the house off its foundation. Flash forward nearly 14 months and work has finally begun to bring the 120-year-old property back to life. 'We wanted our home restored back to what it was before the storm,' Jay said. But, their insurance company didn't see it that way. The Dicksons were offered a small settlement to make cosmetic improvements, but nothing close to enough to cover repairs that dipped well into the six figures. Knowing they had been paying premiums on a seven-figure insurance policy for four years, Jay and Tara decided to balk at the offer and fight for what they say they were entitled to. 'Nothing we were asking for was outside of our policy.' Tara said. 'Everything we were asking for was inside of our policy.' The Dicksons said the process has been learning experience. 'Most people, I would say their experience with insurance is likened to, 'Well, I had a car accident, a fender-bender,'' Jay said. 'You call up State Farm, AllState, whoever it may be. They put you in a rental car, and they fix your car. And it's all easy.' But, as Jay and Tara found out, a catastrophic insurance claim is anything but easy. 'It's not something that you can do independently,' Jay said. 'You would like to think it is, like I said with the car example. But it just doesn't work that way. You have to have actual professionals who know the laws, who know the codes and who know what insurance companies can and cannot do.' That's where the Dickson's public adjuster and attorneys came in. 'This is not for the attorney who has been practicing law for a year or two, fresh out of law school,' Jay said. 'You need someone who has got some skin in the game.' The project is expected to be completed by the end of summer. 'Overall, I think we are happy with the direction everything is going,' Tara said. 'We are happy that we waited it out and didn't make a hasty decision.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
New Bern High School senior receives Marks-Taylor Scholarship
NEW BERN, N.C. (WNCT) — The New Bern Historical Society announced that the Harriett Marks & John R. and Alice Land Taylor Scholarships for 2025 were awarded to New Bern High School senior Makenzie Richardson. Throughout her high school career, Makenzie demonstrated academic and athletic excellence. She was a straight 'A' student, played basketball and softball all four years of high school, won All State honors, and won Rookie, Offensive Player and Sportsmanship Awards. She is also a member of groups such as Project Unify, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, the National Honor Society, and multiple projects in the community. Makenzie will be attending Campbell University in the fall of 2025, majoring in Special Education and minoring in Entrepreneurship and Christian Studies. The Marks Scholarship was created in 1968 under the terms of the will of Miss Harriett Marks as a memorial to the O. Marks family. A separate scholarship, the Taylor Scholarship, was made to complement and supplement the Marks Scholarship. It was created in 2015 by the North Carolina Community Foundation and is sponsored by their grandson to honor the memory of his grandparents. Both of these scholarships are annually awarded to a senior graduating from New Bern High School based on both scholarship and financial need. They contribute to the tuition, board, or lodging to help them receive a higher education at an accredited college, university, or other institute of higher learning. These scholarships can be renewed for three succeeding years if academic standards are maintained. The Marks and Taylor Scholarships further the Historical Society's mission 'to celebrate and promote New Bern and its heritage through events and education.' Offices are located in the historic Attmore-Oliver House at 511 Broad Street in New Bern. For more information, call 252-638-8558 or go to their website or Facebook page. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
More than 80% of new California properties are in high fire-risk areas
The Los Angeles wildfires last month destroyed thousands of homes, killed dozens of people and left a city reeling. They also raised serious questions about the region's future – and where Americans choose to build. A rapidly increasing share of US homes are built in areas that are at risk of fire. In 1990, about 13% of new homes were built in places at high risk of fire. By 2020, that number had more than doubled to 31%. The numbers come from ClimateCheck, a for-profit research company that compiles risk by studying trends including rainfall, wind and temperature. But the climate crisis is just one of the reasons that more homes are unsafe. The Covid pandemic changed the way people work and live. Some workers who were able to continue their jobs remotely wanted out of dense cities. New York alone has lost half a million residents since 2020. Many of these domestic migrants relocated to smaller cities and rural areas, often choosing homes that were at greater risk of wildfire. Maximilian Stiefel, a risk expert at ClimateCheck, explains: 'In California, especially, there's a difficulty in building dense housing, so a lot of people are forced into single unit housing, and that just accelerates this spread into the wildland urban interface, because you can't build up another unit on your property if you have a single family house. And then there's a lot of nimbyism in California, where people don't want denser developments being built.' Over 80% of properties built in California between 2020 and 2022 were in high fire risk areas, compared with just 28% of the properties built between 1920 and 1929. Related: After the fire, the insurance battles: LA victims' ordeal may just be beginning Insurance companies are well aware of these trends. Experts study data to build 'catastrophe models', predicting how disasters will affect profits. And lately, the numbers haven't looked good. Two giants from the industry, AllState and State Farm, announced in 2022 and 2023 that they wouldn't accept any new home insurance applications in California, in large part because of the high risk of wildfire. Meanwhile, the state, which also has its own last-resort insurance program, has engaged in a complex back-and-forth with private companies. LA residents who lost everything – and who are fortunate enough to have insurance – now must grapple with these companies to avert financial disaster. Even for the most rigorous of insurance experts, wildfires are hard to model statistically. Unlike earthquakes, hurricanes or flooding, they are much more dependent on humans. Humans can start them (wildfires spike on the Fourth of July each year) and humans can stop them with better policies such as better funding for fire departments. Despite the key role that humans play in individual wildfires, the rising overall trend in their frequency is clearly attributable to the climate crisis – long periods of drought, strong winds and high temperatures mean that fires spread faster, last longer and cause far more destruction. Even before the latest LA fires, expected to be the costliest ever, nine of the 10 most expensive wildfires in US history had taken place since 2017. Stiefel explains his own personal experience with these numbers: 'I lived in Santa Barbara during the Thomas fire, which traveled 30 miles up the coast over three weeks, and we were evacuated.' He says he eventually left California in part because there were 'too many hazards there with climate change'. Of course, people have greater mobility when they don't have dependents, aren't disabled and don't have a longstanding attachment to a city. The answer, according to experts like Varun Sivaram, a fellow at the Council for Foreign Relations, is 'more stringent building codes and regulations'. Stiefel agrees, noting: 'It's not just about zoning and land use. It's also about resource sharing and emergency planning, collaboration among all these different levels of government, and educating the community about fire risk.'
