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Veev CEO sees modular homebuilding as key to tackling U.S. housing shortage

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:37:51 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Most traditional homebuilders in America follow a construction process that’s hardly changed in decades, and which typically takes about four to six months, if not longer, to deliver a completed single-family home.Modular homebuilders fabricate walls, roofing and other segments of a home in a factory and then deliver the finished sections to the homesite for assembly in a process that takes just a few weeks to complete.Veev, a modular homebuilder based in Hayward, California, has built more than 170 townhomes, single-family houses, condos and other types of dwellings around the Bay Area and has set its sights on building 300 more single-family houses in Northern California by the end of 2025.CEO Amit Haller, who co-founded Veev in 2008, recently spoke to The Associated Press about how more modular home construction could help tackle the nation’s chronic shortage of new homes. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.Q: What are some of the major ...

Rescuers are using hand-held drills to free 41 workers trapped in a tunnel for over 2 weeks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:37:51 GMT

NEW DELHI (AP) — Rescuers in India began digging manually Monday in hopes of reaching 41 construction workers who have been trapped in a collapsed mountain tunnel in the country’s north for over two weeks. Kirti Panwar, a state government spokesperson, said a dozen men were taking turns burrowing into the debris with hand-held drilling tools for what was hoped would be the final stretch. They had dug nearly 1 meter (3.2 feet) and had up to 11 more meters (36 feet) to go, he said. Rescuers have also started to create a vertical channel with a newly replaced drilling machine, officials said. They drilled horizontally for a week but the mountainous terrain proved too much for the machine, which broke down repeatedly before it was damaged irreparably on Friday, officials said. The work being done now is designed to create a passageway for evacuating the trapped workers. Rescue teams have inserted pipes into dug-out areas and welded them together so the men can be brought out on wheeled ...

Live updates | Israel-Hamas truce will be extended for 2 more days, Qatar says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:37:51 GMT

An agreement has been reached to extend the Israel-Hamas truce for another two days, the spokesman for Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said Monday.Qatar, along with Egypt, has been the key mediator in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.The announcement comes on the final day of a four-day truce between the warring sides, as they were preparing for a fourth exchange of militant-held hostages for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.On Sunday, Hamas freed 17 more hostages — 14 Israelis and three Thais — in a third exchange under the four-day truce. In turn, Israel released 39 Palestinian prisoners.Of the roughly 240 hostages captured by Hamas in its Oct. 7 attack in southern Israel that ignited the war, 62 have been released, one was freed by Israeli forces and two were found dead inside Gaza. Israel has said it would extend the cease-fire by one day for every 10 additional hostages released. Hamas has also said it hopes to extend the truce.With the truce deal has come increased ship...

Poland’s president swears in a government expected to last no longer than 14 days

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:37:51 GMT

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland’s president on Monday swore in a government that is expected to last no longer than 14 days, a tactical maneuver that allows the conservative Law and Justice party to hang onto power a bit longer — and make more appointments to state bodies.Following a national election in October, President Andrzej Duda swore in Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, who has held that position since late 2017. According to the constitution, Morawiecki and his Cabinet will have 14 days to face a vote of confidence in parliament.They’re almost certain to lose the vote because Morawiecki has no coalition partners after his nationalist and conservative Law and Justice party lost its parliamentary majority and no other parties want to join its government.Morawiecki says he is trying to find partners to govern with, but himself puts his chances at “10% or even less.” Other members of Morawiecki’s new Cabinet also took their oaths. Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak re...

No Christmas tree shortage, but with supply tight, shop early

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:37:51 GMT

In a season of traditions, with Thanksgiving completed, and many looking to buy a farm-grown Christmas tree, rumors of a tree shortage have become an annual thing.Jill Sidebottom, spokeswoman for the National Christmas Tree Association, told WTOP to not panic — there’s plenty of trees for everyone.“We don’t have an oversupply of real Christmas trees, certainly, but there is enough to meet consumer demands,” Sidebottom said in an email. “We have heard reports that some people wanting to buy Christmas trees wholesale to sell at tree lots or as fundraisers are having issues finding trees.”Sidebottom said for a Christmas tree grower — a tractor trailer holds around 600 trees — so if their customer only needs a few hundred, they will have to split the load with other retailers, making shipment difficult and costly.“Since most can sell their trees to larger retailers, the smaller retailer has found it harder to find what they want,” she said...

Stock market today: Wall Street edges lower after the Thanksgiving holiday as winning streak cools

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:37:51 GMT

Stocks edged lower in morning trading on Wall Street Monday as markets look ahead to updates on inflation and how American consumers are feeling about the economy. The S&P 500 fell 0.2%. The benchmark index is coming off a holiday-shortened week in the U.S. and its fourth straight winning week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 73 points, or 0.2%, to 35,318 as of 11:16 a.m. Eastern. The Nasdaq fell 0.1%.Treasury yields slipped. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.43% from 4.47%.Stocks were mostly lower in Asia and mixed in Europe.Investors have grown cautiously optimistic that inflation has cooled enough for the Federal Reserve to put a definitive end to its aggressive interest rate hikes. Meanwhile, the broader economy has remained strong enough in the face of rising interest rates and inflation to avoid a recession.Markets have been rallying on that sentiment and the S&P 500 remains on track to close out November as its best month of the year. Investors will ge...

Rosalynn Carter tributes highlight her reach as first lady, humanitarian and small-town Baptist

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:37:51 GMT

AMERICUS, Ga. (AP) — Rosalynn Carter embarked on her final journey Monday to the Jimmy Carter Presidential Center as her family began three days of memorials for the former first lady and global humanitarian who died Nov. 19 at the age of 96.Family including Rosalynn Carter’s children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren watched as her casket was placed in a hearse Monday morning outside Phoebe Sumter Medical Center in the Carters’ native Sumter County in south Georgia. Onlookers huddled beside the road on a breezy, chilly morning.The motorcade made its first stop at Rosalynn Carter’s alma mater, the nearby Georgia Southwestern State University. The Carters’ four children — Jack, Chip, Jeff and Amy — watched as wreaths of white flowers were placed beside a statue of their mother on the campus.From there, the family motorcade began its trip of more than 140 miles (225 kilometers) to Atlanta, where Rosalynn Carter will lie in repose at The Jimmy Carter Presidential...

Woman, man found dead after barricade situation in Jefferson County

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:37:51 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — A man and a woman were found dead at a Jefferson County home in an apparent murder-suicide, the sheriff's office said. The incident began as a barricade situation Monday morning.After 12:15 a.m., Jefferson County Sheriff's Office deputies were called to a home in the 4300 block of South Holland Way due to a reported domestic violence incident. A family member called 911 saying their father had a gun and was shooting at their mother. Man accused of killing 73-year-old near Park Meadows Mall arrested in Wyoming The sheriff's office said all three children inside the home were able to escape.Once deputies arrived at the house, the suspect allegedly fired shots at the children and the deputies. According to the sheriff's office, one child was shot in the leg and taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office also said a bullet grazed the pant leg of a deputy and hit the cellphone in his pocket...

Will the Broncos make it to the playoffs?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:37:51 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — Even though the Denver Broncos weren't off to a good start at the beginning of football season, after big wins against the Buffalo Bills and the Kansas City Chiefs, the orange and blue are within reach of a playoff spot. Back in 2020, the National Football League expanded the playoffs to 14 teams. Seven teams from the National Football Conference and seven teams from the American Football Conference will qualify for the playoffs. The winning teams from both conferences compete for the Super Bowl title. A Broncos love story decades in the making Each division conference winner earns a spot. While the season isn't over yet, each division has a solid leader and isn't likely to change. This includes the Miami Dolphins, the Baltimore Ravens, the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Chiefs.As of late November, the Broncos are in second place in the AFC West, right behind the Chiefs. But the team isn't completely out of luck. The Broncos started out as a 1-5 team. Now, they're on...

US airports on track for ‘busiest ever’ Thanksgiving season

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:37:51 GMT

MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (CNN/WSVN) — US airports are on the verge of setting more travel records as huge numbers of travelers have been taking to the skies over the Thanksgiving holiday.The Transportation Security Administration said Monday it’s nearing its anticipated 30 million passengers total over the holiday period. The Transportation Security Administration said Monday it’s nearing its anticipated 30 million passengers total over the holiday period.The agency said it had screened 24.7 million people in its holiday period – including a single-day record of 2.9 million on Sunday – with two days still to go.As the holiday weekend winds down, airports like Miami International experience heavy foot traffic and occasional delays. Despite nationwide delays and cancellations—over 1,000 flights delayed and 25 cancellations—passengers remain in good spirits, attributing some delays to snowy weather in the central plains.A family at Miami International, prepared for the potential cha...