Latest news with #AustinAmerican-Statesman
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Statesman reporters win Education Writers top honor for fatal Hays bus crash investigation
A team of Austin American-Statesman journalists who spent nine months investigating the state's deadliest school bus crash in nearly a decade last year received the highest honor Friday from the national Education Writers Association. The Fred M. Hechinger Grand Prize for Distinguished Education Reporting was presented to Latino community affairs reporter Emiliano Tahui Gómez, education reporter Keri Heath and Tony Plohetski, associate editor for investigations, who co-authored and oversaw the reporting. The prize, awarded in St. Louis at the group's annual conference, comes with $10,000. The team was selected among 14 of 17 category winners in the 2024 national awards for education reporting. The four-part series, 'A Fatal Field Trip,' investigated the March 2024 crash in Bastrop County involving a Hays school bus returning from a trip to a zoo. The crash killed a 5-year-old student on the bus and a man traveling in a car behind the bus after a concrete pumper truck crossed lanes and hit the bus. The driver of the truck was indicted on charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide. The reporting team revealed how a school district's decision to deploy a bus without seat belts likely contributed to injuries and death; how a lack of regulation — and reduced enforcement of existing regulations — left a dangerous driver on the road; and how after the crash, families were left to fend for themselves because of a lack of programs and services to help them emotionally heal. The Education Writers Association also honored the work with a first-place prize in investigative and public service reporting. Judges wrote that the reporters "tied together disparate strands usually not woven in a news package." They added that they were "impressed by several aspects of this investigation: the deep sourcing with families and centering their stories; the excellent use of public records and analyzing the data related to buses with seat belts, inspections and more; and the 360 approach to the questions of what went wrong and what could have prevented this tragedy." Statesman Editor in Chief Courtney Sebesta said that the work exemplifies accountability journalism at its highest level. "There were so many layers of failure before and after this ill-fated event," said Sebesta. "These families deserved to know about regulation lapses and the public needs to understand the lack of resources available to help victims heal after an incident like this." This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Statesman journalists win EWA top prize for fatal bus crash coverage
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Is Texas staying on daylight saving time? There's only one way for law to take effect
There has been debate for years among Texans and state legislators about whether the Lone Star State should adopt daylight saving time permanently. House Bill 1393, also known as "Texas Time," could bring an end to that discussion. Will Texans have more sunlight year-round? Here's what to know about the bill. The idea dates back to World War I, although some credit Benjamin Franklin for daylight saving time due to a satirical letter he wrote in 1784 stating: "Every morning, as soon as the sun rises, let all the bells in every church be set ringing: and if that is not sufficient, let cannon be fired in every street to wake the sluggards effectually." To maximize resources for the war, Germany and Austria implemented the first daylight saving time in 1916. The U.S. did the same in 1918. It's an outdated idea, some argue. House Bill 1393, referred to as the 'Texas Time" bill, aims to eliminate biannual clock changes and keep Texas on daylight saving time year-round. The bill has successfully passed through the Texas legislature and is now awaiting Governor Greg Abbott's signature. The bill, however, can't take effect unless Congress changes federal law to allow states to adopt daylight saving time permanently. Supporters argue that maintaining a consistent time year-round would reduce confusion, improve safety, and enhance productivity. Opponents of permanent daylight saving time cite health and safety concerns, often arguing that maintaining standard time year-round would be the better choice. Under the federal Uniform Time Act of 1966, states may not currently adopt permanent daylight saving time, but they can opt out of time changes by sticking with standard time year-round. That's how states like Arizona and Hawaii can keep from changing their clocks twice a year. Texas joins 18 other states that have passed similar permanent daylight saving time measures, and there's interest at the federal level in allowing the change. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Is Texas staying on daylight saving time permanently? It's complicated
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Why is Spotify not working? Thousands report outages on platform's app Tuesday morning
Thousands of users say they had issues with music streaming platform Spotify on Tuesday morning. Over 14,000 users reported what seemed like an outage that spiked around 7:30 a.m., according to DownDetector. Nearly all (94%) were experiencing issues with Spotify's app. By 8:15 a.m., the number of reported outages had dropped below 800. Spotify had not acknowledged the outage as of 8:30 a.m. However, the platform appears to have experienced multiple outages in the last several weeks, as documented by its X account, Spotify Status. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Is Spotify down? Thousands of users report outages Tuesday morning
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
What's the weather forecast for Memorial Day? Storms threaten Austin and San Antonio
Planning to spend the long weekend outdoors? You might want to reconsider. While the weekend may begin with clear, sunny skies, conditions are expected to shift quickly for much of the Great Plains. Forecasts call for scattered thunderstorms across Texas, with lingering storms in Central Texas throughout the week as a cold front moves in Sunday. "Fair skies and unseasonably warm temperatures continue for the first part of the upcoming weekend," the National Weather Service office in Austin said. "However, isolated late afternoon into evening showers and thunderstorms are possible Sunday. Widespread chances for showers and thunderstorms return on Memorial Day, along with slightly lower temperatures. Scattered rain chances continue into the middle of next week." The primary threats include large hail and damaging winds, with a risk of localized flooding also possible. The risk of tornadoes is low. Here's what to expect throughout the week. Saturday: Expect mostly sunny skies with highs ranging from 95 to 101°F and minimal weather impacts throughout the day. Sunday: The morning will be mostly sunny, but isolated thunderstorms may develop in the afternoon as highs climb into the upper 90s and low 100s. Monday: Scattered thunderstorms are likely across the region, with highs between 90 and 102°F and continued warm, humid conditions. Tuesday: Stormy weather persists with scattered thunderstorms expected again, slightly cooler highs in the upper 80s to low 90s, and a risk of localized flooding. Wednesday: Scattered storms remain in the forecast with temperatures holding in the low to mid-90s and occasional downpours possible through the day. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Heat wave or thunderstorms? See Memorial Day weekend weather in Austin
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Yahoo
Have you seen Sharolen Roque? Texas AMBER Alert for missing girl, 15, last seen in Dallas
Have you seen Sharolen Roque? Texas has issued an AMBER Alert for a missing 15-year-old girl from Houston. Roque was last seen at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, May 20 in Dallas. She is a white female with black hair and brown eyes, standing at 4'9" and weighing 110 pounds. Police are also looking for Mauricio Ramos in connection with Roque's disappearance, as the person she was last seen with. Ramos is a white male with black hair. Roque and Ramos may be traveling in a black Mazda. If you have any information on the whereabouts of Sharolen Roque or Mauricio Ramos, please contact the Harris County Sheriff's Office at (713) 274-9270. Call 911 if you see either individual. According to Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, Sharolen Roque was last seen on the 2300 block of Hopper Road in North Harris County. .. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas AMBER Alert: Sharolen Roque missing, seen with Mauricio Ramos
