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Taco Bell launches vegan option of an iconic item at select locations

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:53:54 GMT

(KTLA) - The Crunchwrap at Taco Bell will soon have a fully vegan counterpart. The Orange County-based fast food company announced Wednesday that the Vegan Crunchwrap will be the chain’s first fully vegan entrée item on the menu, but will only be at select locations. Taco Bell opens its newest cantina restaurant in Hollywood The Vegan Crunchwrap features seasoned vegan beef, which is “proprietary, boldly seasoned plant-based protein that has been in the works for years” and is topped with two vegan sauces: blanco and nacho cheese.Craveable and convenient, the Vegan Crunchwrap features vegan seasoned beef, cool vegan blanco sauce and warm vegan nacho sauce. (Taco Bell) Like the traditional Crunchwrap, its vegan counterpart will also have shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, and a tostada shell.“Such a large part of our fandom is vegan or vegetarian, and we're as committed to them as they are to us and our menu," Liz Matthews, global chief food innovation officer at Taco Bell, said in ...

Conservatives call on Senate to pass trans athlete ban

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:53:54 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — Conservatives in the house are calling on the Senate to pass legislation that would ban trans athletes from participating in school sports.The national effort targeting trans kids is prompting LGBTQ+ advocates to declare a state of emergency. Republicans are demanding a national ban on trans athletes in school sports."I’m horrified,” said Illinois Republican Rep. Mary Miller. "Our girls deserve safe locker rooms and fair opportunities in athletics.”The group was joined by women athletes, who say they were wronged after being forced to compete against trans women. Taylor Silverman, a competitive skateboarder, said Congress must act to protect women."I was bumped from first place to second, and it was a different male each time," said Silverman. "Going through this was mentally tormenting."Although house Republicans already passed the bill in April, it stands little chance in the Democrat-led Senate. But that's not stopping Republicans in state legislatures acro...

Here's how you can check the air quality in Illinois

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:53:54 GMT

(KDVR) — Wildfires in Canada have caused poor air quality and smoky skies across several U.S. metros for days. On Wednesday, the air quality in New York City was ranked the worst in the world. Canadian wildfire smoke causing hazy skies, poor air quality in the US That’s according to IQAir’s Air Quality and Pollution City Ranking, which is updated hourly, the air pollution advocacy organization explains. It’s important to note that while New York City is currently in the top spot for unhealthy air, it will likely drop back down once the aforementioned smoke disappears. A few weeks ago, Denver, Colorado, was ranked among the top 10 worst in the world due to wildfire smoke. As of Wednesday, the city ranked 96th on IQAir's list.IQAir's live Air Quality and Pollution City Ranking ranks cities based on AQI, or Air Quality Index points. Cities/areas are assigned a series of ranges for how healthy or unhealthy the air currently is.How to check the air quality where you liveTo find yo...

A look at Texas hurricane history

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:53:54 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Hurricane season started on June 1. The forecast for the Atlantic Basin calls for 12 to 17 named storms to form in 2023. Of those, 5 to 9 will become hurricanes (when winds reach 74 mph) and 1 to 4 will be major hurricanes (when winds reach 111 mph). The Atlantic Basin is just not the Atlantic Ocean but also the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico. That raises the question of how many of those hurricanes, major or not, would hit the Gulf Coast of Texas. That answer is a little more difficult to answer.Could Texas have a hurricane in 2023? It may be timeThe latest statistical information shows that hurricanes hit our state's coastline about once every six years. The average annual rate for tropical storms or hurricanes on the coast is less than one, or 0.8. This translates to three named tropical storms/hurricanes to hit over a four-year period.Texas, the state with the second most tropical storms/hurricanes (behind Florida) might just be due for another hurricane. The l...

Austin family witnesses Hawaii volcanic eruption while on vacation

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:53:54 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – An Austin family said they were on the Big Island of Hawaii when Kilauea, Hawaii’s second largest volcano, started erupting early Wednesday morning. Jason Stubbing, his wife and son were all asleep early Wednesday morning when they were woken up by a violent tremor. Stubbing said hotel staff members began shouting that Kilauea was erupting. Jason Stubbing and his family saw Kilauea, Hawaii’s second largest volcano, start erupting early Wednesday morning.  (Courtesy Jason Stubbing)Jason Stubbing and his family saw Kilauea, Hawaii’s second largest volcano, start erupting early Wednesday morning.  (Courtesy Jason Stubbing)Jason Stubbing and his family saw Kilauea, Hawaii’s second largest volcano, start erupting early Wednesday morning.  (Courtesy Jason Stubbing)Jason Stubbing and his family saw Kilauea, Hawaii’s second largest volcano, start erupting early Wednesday morning. (Courtesy Jason Stubbing)The family told KXAN the earthquake startled them a bit, but that trepi...

Meta lists even more Austin real estate on the market

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:53:54 GMT

AUSTIN (Austin Business Journal) -- Facebook's parent company, Meta Platforms Inc., has placed even more of its Austin real estate on the sublease market.Meta (Nasdaq: META) placed 589,000 square feet of office space in the under-construction Sixth and Guadalupe tower on the sublease market in November, and a company spokesperson confirmed the tech titan is now behind a nearly 120,000-square-foot sublease in the 300 West Sixth tower as Meta plans to focus on remote work. The company employed about 2,000 people here last summer but has laid off hundreds of employees since fall 2022.“The future of work is here and we’re embracing it at Meta,” a Meta spokesperson said in a statement. “The past few years have brought new possibilities around the role of the office, and we are prioritizing making focused, balanced investments to support our most strategic long-term priorities and lead the way in creating the workplace of the future. Our aim is to build a best-in-class remote work experie...

Gov. Abbott signs 2 bills targeting street takeovers, illegal racing

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:53:54 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law two bills this week aimed at cracking down on illegal street takeovers and racing, just a few months after several Austin intersections were targeted.House Bill 1442 is related to street takeovers and illegal racing and is designed to provide additional tools for law enforcement and prosecutors. It's joined by House Bill 2899, which allows the immediate removal and impounding of vehicles involved in street racing, takeovers or other illicit activities impeding traffic. RELATED: Austin Police investigating 'street takeovers' Now signed, state law will be amended to remove the requirement that vehicles can only be impounded "if there was property damage or someone suffered bodily injury," per the Office of the Texas Governor. Instead, impounding is permitted "if the owner is charged with racing on a highway or reckless driving exhibition."HB 2899 is effective immediately, while HB 1442 will go into eff...

Christy Iverson, longtime Pioneer Press front desk employee, dies at 65

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:53:54 GMT

Christy Iverson helped customers at the front desk of the Pioneer Press lobby for many years, but she also had a way with words.In 2012, in a Pioneer Press Turning Point column, Iverson described the experience of living with a grim cancer diagnosis:During her cancer treatments, Christy Iverson, a longtime employee at the Pioneer Press, continued to help customers from the front desk of our lobby. Iverson, pictured here in 2012, passed away on Sunday, May 28, 2023. (Molly Guthrey / Pioneer Press)“The doctor said, ‘I know it’s hard to talk about the loss of your own life,’ and I thought, ‘Do you? Do you, really?'” she said. “There are so many cliches when it comes to cancer. I don’t want the disease to define me, but I don’t want it to defeat me, either.“What’s strange is what goes through your head at night, in bed, when you’re trying to fall asleep. You’ll think mundane thoughts like, ‘Gotta clean t...

How to stay healthy as smoke spreads from Canada wildfires

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:53:54 GMT

NEW YORK — Massive fires are burning up stretches of Canadian forests and sending plumes of smoke into the U.S.As a haze stretches over the East Coast and the Great Lakes, health authorities have raised the alarm about poor air quality.In Minnesota on Wednesday, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency reports that “an area of widespread smoke from wildfires in Quebec will continue to linger across much of the state today. Winds will remain light and from the east. The weather pattern bringing airmasses from east to west will hold and bring another wave of smoke into the eastern part of the state beginning late this afternoon. The smoke will impact the eastern half of the state through tomorrow. The smoke may be heavy and another alert may be needed. We’ll continue to monitor the forecast.”All of this is potentially hazardous. Here’s how you can protect your health from the smoky haze.STAY INDOORSThe small particles in wildfire smoke can irritate the eyes, nose and throat, and can aff...

Advocates call for election legislation to pass

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:53:54 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10)--With next year being a presidential election year, some advocates are calling for changes to New York election laws. One bill would expand the definition of illness as a reason for getting an absentee ballot."We unfortunately got Polio, Mpox, Measles, all have shown up in our state in the recent past. So advocates and organizations like AARP, the NYS Public Health Association, have asked that the legislature make the expended definition of illness that allows you to get an absentee ballot if you’re afraid of getting sick or getting somebody sick, make that permanent in the law," explained Susan Lerner, Executive Director of Common Cause New York.Recently in the Senate, another bill was introduced to allow no-excuse, mail-in-voting. Advocates believe these bills would help increase voter turnout, but Republican Assemblymember Matt Slater said, voting in New York State has never been easier."With early voting, with absentee voting, Election Day voting—— you almo...