Month: April 2026

By Todd Magel

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    ELK HORN, Iowa (KCCI) — The Museum of Danish America in Elk Horn has unveiled Fjord Ferryman, a 22-foot-tall wooden troll created by world-renowned Danish artist Thomas Dambo, celebrating Danish migration and sustainability.

“My hope is to make something that makes people smile,” Dambo said.

Dambo shared his love for building and working with wood.

“But what I love the most is to build. So it was so nice to come here and stand in the sun yesterday on the prairie and just help build something and good, because there’s nothing nicer than wood,” he said.

The troll is constructed from what Dambo calls “garbage wood,” materials that would typically end up in the trash.

“For me, the message is that our world is drowning in trash and our world is running out of resources, and the solution is just so screamingly obvious. Don’t turn our resources into trash we are drowning in,” Dambo said.

The sculpture represents the migration of Danes to the Midwestern prairies in the late 1880s.

“So that’s why my sculpture here is sailing in a big wooden boat across the prairie and ferrying the humans across,” Dambo said.

Fjord Ferryman is one of 176 sculptures Dambo has created in his Denmark studio and installed around the world.

Erik Andersen, executive director of the Museum of Danish America, expressed his enthusiasm for the new addition.

“If you don’t know about trolls, what an unbelievable discovery. So, we’re incredibly fortunate to have it. And our timing on it was. I mean, this is unbelievable,” Andersen said.

The half-million-dollar project was completed in just six weeks. True to Dambo’s style, visitors will need to search for the troll, adding an element of adventure to the experience.

“I always hide my sculptures or try, I always hide them because then people have to go and find them,” Dambo said. “And that gives people these experiences that are much, much bigger than the actual experience of looking at the sculpture.”

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Jennifer Mayerle

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    Minnesota (WCCO) — You’ve likely heard of Liam Ramos, the 5-year-old boy from Columbia Heights, Minnesota, in the bunny hat detained with his dad earlier this year by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Columbia Heights Public School District had at least seven students detained during Operation Metro Surge, most with their parents. That includes Valley View Elementary fifth grader Zuriel.

She and her mom, Soraya Gualinga, were sent to the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Dilley, Texas, in January after her mother was arrested while at work. They stayed there for nearly two months.

Inside a Valley View classroom, Zuriel and her mom — who spoke with WCCO via a Spanish language interpreter — say they are grateful to be here.

Gualinga said she was terrified, and she wasn’t leaving without her daughter. So they went to her house to pick up Zuriel.

Zuriel said there was a small box where they put their phones so they couldn’t communicate with anyone.

The family came to Minnesota from Ecuador in 2024 and says they used the CBP One app to apply for asylum. Their case was moving through the system when they were taken to the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis.

Zuriel says she thought it was another check-in, but noticed people with their hands and feet tied up.

“‘That’s it. I’m done for. I’m going to jail right now,'” Gualinga said.

She says she imagined the worst as they shackled her feet, but says she wanted to be strong for her daughter so she wouldn’t be scared.

They say they flew on a commercial flight to Texas the same day, living in a room with a few beds, other kids and families at the center in Dilley for 55 days.

Zuriel said she was scared during her detainment because she didn’t know where she was. She kept asking her mom what was going on and when they were going to leave.

They say they were released following a habeas petition arguing they were unlawfully detained and made their way back to Minnesota. Gualinga has to wear an ankle monitor until her next immigration appointment.

Zuriel is back with her classmates. She says she hasn’t shared what her family went through with friends, but being with them helps her.

They say they live with anxiety and fear. Zuriel says she worries every time she sees a car like the one they were taken in.

They also want people to know there is hope. She said she wants to tell her friends still at Dilley to not lose faith, that everything will be OK in the end.

Gualinga said if she had to make the same choice again, she wouldn’t have brought her daughter with her.

She’s now signed a DOPA form, giving another adult authority to make decisions for Zuriel if she is detained.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Heath Kalb

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    DETROIT, Michigan (WWJ) — Dozens of Black men of all ages gathered Thursday afternoon to set a positive example in Detroit.

It’s finally starting to get warm outside, and New Era Detroit is doing what it can to ensure that Black men of all ages are setting a good example in every neighborhood of the city, as violence typically rises in the summer months.

“You build relationships with the community, we build relationships with each other. And then once again, the community, especially the kids, get to see us out in unity and then our boots on the ground to show that we really care,” said Zeke Williams with New Era Detroit.

The organization, which has been around for over a decade, began its “Brothas on the Block” walks about two years ago to help more Black men feel comfortable being visible, positive presences in the city.

“Our goal is to bring everybody out the neighborhood to come outside to engage with each other. So as we walk the blocks, we pick up trash, we engage with the neighbors,” said Parellee with New Era Detroit.

As we move into the warmer season, the community group says this outreach is more important than ever. They say that when younger people spend more time outside, conflict resolution is especially important, whether it arises from neighborhood disagreements or the so-called “teen takeovers” in the downtown area.

“As you know, in Michigan, there’s a lotta winter months where everybody is in the house, and it’s a lot of tension that goes on over the winter months with the younger crowd, and so as those tensions grow and as summer comes, they see each other and tensions might happen,” said Parallee.

The group says these walks are a positive way to engage with their own communities, rather than waiting for another tragedy to get involved.

New Era says it will hold a different walk in a different Detroit neighborhood every other Thursday.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Michele Gile

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    LOS ANGELES, California (KCAL, KCBS) — A forest of eucalyptus trees planted decades ago gave Laguna Beach’s Forest Avenue its name, and when the city chopped down nearly 10 of them this week, the community says the part of the charm is gone.

On Monday night, nine mature trees were cut down in one block where a new pedestrian promenade is being built. It’s next to Michael McFadden’s jewelry store, and he says the trees were supposed to stay.

“As part of the plan, the trees were supposed to remain — we were told that the trees were going to remain,” he said.

“We were sold a bill of goods, basically cause when I came in yesterday morning, all the trees were gone.”

Business owner Ruben Flores says it’s a big blow, “… because it’s our main street in town and it was beautiful and romantic and charming — everything that you think of Laguna Beach and now it’s gone.”

City leaders say the removal was necessary for safety reasons. A eucalyptus on the same block fell in March. But people who live and work in town say they were blindsided.

“It is heartbreaking because the character of our town was literally in the poetry of those giant trees,” Amy Jackson, Village Laguna board member, said.

Laguna Beach officials called an emergency Zoom meeting on Monday to share results of tests on the trees. Then, hours later, came the sound of chain saws.

“This is a practice so that the people could not protest…could not say wait a minute. Let’s get a better arborist to look at this,” resident George Weiss said.

On Wednesday, protestors did show up. Laguna Mayor Mark Orgill says he understands

The community sentiment and admits that what was lacking in Monday’s emergency meeting was that the trees would be coming down.

“I think that we could have done a lot better, so I think that we failed at how we communicated things, and I’m asking the community to be patient with us, and I think ultimately the promenade will be something we’ll be proud of,” Orgill said.

The city says a total of 30 new trees will be planted, including four live oaks and a couple of dozen eucalyptus, all to be planted on lower Forest Avenue.

The other eucalyptus in the area will be monitored for disease and structural integrity.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

WFOR

By Abby Dodge, Ana Maria Soler

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    MIAMI, Florida (WFOR) — Newly released video shows the moment a Fort Lauderdale K-9 officer was shot while pursuing a burglary suspect, followed by the handler’s emotional exchange with his dog while driving him to the emergency clinic.

The Fort Lauderdale Police Department released footage detailing the lengths officers went to capture the suspect, Christian Bouie.

Officers searched a home Saturday night near 1600 N.W. 16th Court for Bouie.

“FLPD, show yourself,” an officer called out.

It took the Fort Lauderdale Police Department more than an hour to approach Bouie with the help of a SWAT team and heat-sensor cameras attached to a helicopter.

“Yeah, we have him. He’s in a tree,” a pilot can be heard saying.

That’s when the K-9, Appie, went to work. Police say Bouie shot the dog, shattering his upper arm in two places.

The K-9 handler rushed Appie to an emergency clinic, sharing an emotional moment in the car.

“My dog has been shot,” the K-9 handler said. “Buddy, I love you. I love you, bud.”

After a five-hour surgery, Appie received a hero’s welcome back home.

“Today, we celebrate not just survival, but heroism,” Fort Lauderdale Police Chief Bill Schultz said. “Appie, he is, and always will be our canine hero.”

Another K-9 helped take down Bouie, leaving Appie to focus on recovery. The department is still weighing the option of Appie returning to duty.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.