Texas Smart Home Experiment May Change How We Conserve Water, Build and Live

Texas Smart Home Experiment May Change How We Conserve Water, Build and Live

On the banks of the Llano River, just south of Junction, Texas, amongst the cactus and mesquite trees sits a house that researchers hope will change the face of conservation.    Atmospheric scientist Brian Ancell walked along the edge of this mesquite field. He walked past a small wind turbine, past a beige double wide prefabricated home with a solar array and around the corner to a central piece of his experiment, a 10,000 gallon…

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Raging wildfires trap 4,000 at Australian town’s waterfront

Raging wildfires trap 4,000 at Australian town’s waterfront

Share on Facebook Tweet on Twitter PERTH, AUSTRALIA (AP) — Wildfires burning across Australia’s two most populous states have trapped residents of a seaside town in apocalyptic conditions, destroyed many properties and caused at least two fatalities. About 4,000 people fled to the waterfront of a southeastern town as winds pushed an emergency-level wildfire towards their homes. – Advertisement – The town of Mallacoota was shrouded in darkness from the smoke before turning an unnerving…

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Raging wildfires trap 4,000 at Australian town's waterfront

Raging wildfires trap 4,000 at Australian town's waterfront

By TRISTAN LAVALETTE, Associated Press PERTH, Australia — Wildfires burning across Australia’s two most populous states Tuesday trapped residents of a seaside town in apocalyptic conditions and killed at least two people while more property along the country’s east coast fell victim to a devastating fire season. About 4,000 residents in the southeastern town of Mallacoota in Victoria state fled toward the water Tuesday morning as winds pushed an emergency-level wildfire toward their homes. The…

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Bastrop County wildfire under control, officials say

Bastrop County wildfire under control, officials say

BASTROP COUNTY, Texas — A wildfire in Bastrop County is now 85% contained, according to officials. The Bastrop County Office of Emergency Management (OEM) said Monday night that at 4 p.m. Monday, Bastrop County ESD #2 was dispatched for a report of a wildfire near Cassel Way and FM 1441.  The first arriving fire units reported active fire behavior. Due to dry and windy conditions, multiple agencies were called for assistance and six other fire…

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'Fire-breathing' storm system forms over Australian wildfires

'Fire-breathing' storm system forms over Australian wildfires

What NASA describes as a “fire-breathing storm system” has formed over a region of Australia threatened by wildfires. Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology tweeted Monday that a pyrocumulonimbus cloud developed 16 kilometers (10 miles) over the East Gippsland region of Victoria, where out-of-control wildfires were forcing thousands of residents to evacuate. NASA describes pyrocumulonimbus clouds as a “dragon” of a cloud. A normal cumulonimbus cloud is dangerous enough: The massive, anvil-shaped storm systems can hurl thunderbolts,…

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New Year's fireworks OK'd in Sydney as wildfire risk worsens

New Year's fireworks OK'd in Sydney as wildfire risk worsens

By TRISTAN LAVALETTE, Associated Press PERTH, Australia — Sydney will set off its iconic New Year’s Eve fireworks after being granted an exemption to a total fire ban Monday, with other Australian cities canceling their celebrations due to a worsening wildfire risk. Pressure had built for Sydney’s spectacle to be scrapped before the New South Wales Rural Fire Service approved the event on Monday. The popular celebrations are expected to attract around a million people…

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Thousands of koalas feared dead in Australia wildfires

Thousands of koalas feared dead in Australia wildfires

By TRISTAN LAVALETTE, Associated Press PERTH, Australia — Thousands of koalas are feared to have died in a wildfire-ravaged area north of Sydney, further diminishing Australia’s iconic marsupial, while the fire danger increased in the country’s east on Saturday as temperatures soared. The mid-northern coast of New South Wales was home to up to 28,000 koalas, but wildfires have significantly reduced their population in recent months. Koalas are native to Australia and are one of…

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Our 10 Most-Read Political Stories Of 2019 Reflect A Shifting Capitol Power Dynamic

Our 10 Most-Read Political Stories Of 2019 Reflect A Shifting Capitol Power Dynamic

An overarching and important theme of 2019 was the shifting power dynamic in Washington. The 2018 midterm elections put Democrats in control of the House of Representatives after eight years of Republican control — and made Nancy Pelosi House speaker for the second time in her career. That had consequences, including the use of the ultimate check on presidential authority, impeachment. Many of this year’s most-read political stories on NPR.org centered on what the newly…

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Hurricane Matthew victim, vet celebrates Christmas with children in their new home

Hurricane Matthew victim, vet celebrates Christmas with children in their new home

By Gilbert Baez, WRAL Fayetteville reporter Fayetteville, N.C. — Christmas 2019 took on an added layer of celebration for a former Fort Bragg soldier and victim of Hurricane Matthew. For the first time in three years, Tomeka Rich and her five children woke up on Christmas morning in their own home. “This has been amazing,” she said. Since Hurricane Matthew chased her out of her house, Rich and her children bounced around. For awhile, they…

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Spring Lake family forced out by Hurricane Florence finally home for the holidays

Spring Lake family forced out by Hurricane Florence finally home for the holidays

SPRING LAKE, N.C. (WTVD) — Christmas is a big deal at the Evan’s household. For the first time since Hurricane Florence, they finally have a home to deck the halls. “Hurricane Florence came in, left five feet ten inches of water here in the house,” said Regina Evans. ABC11 first introduced you to Regina Evans back in March. The disaster recovery specialist and grandmother recently adopted her grandkids and was struggling to recover herself. Spring…

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Hurricane, slur, dogs top list of most memorable videos in 2019

Hurricane, slur, dogs top list of most memorable videos in 2019

By Deborah Strange, WRAL digital journalist Thousands of videos were published on WRAL.com in 2019, including coverage of a devastating hurricane, tension amid racist words and acts and some very good dogs. Here are some of the most memorable videos of the year. A racial slur and no apology In July, a white woman was filmed calling two black women a racial slur at a North Hills restaurant. Chanda Stewart and Lakesha Shaw said they…

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Deadly storms, deep freezes, raging wildfires: How 2019's wild weather impacted US

Deadly storms, deep freezes, raging wildfires: How 2019's wild weather impacted US

The final year of the decade once again came with its share of extreme weather events and other natural disasters. But they came with a backdrop of increased global awareness of climate change and the fear that continued warming of the planet could result in weather events that are even more severe. Here is a look back at just some of what our planet endured in the past 12 months. Hurricane Dorian After Puerto Rico,…

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