Author: CNN Newsource

By Derek Heid

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    BUFFALO, New York (WKBW) — Over the weekend, Canisius baseball player Thomas Zwirecki got called up to the big leagues, asked by MLB superstar pitcher Paul Skenes to catch for him at a practice session in Buffalo.

With a one-week heads-up, Zwirecki thought he was just doing a favor for his college baseball coach.

“I got a text from a coach. He said he had somebody reach out to them that asked if they could find a catcher for a ‘high profile arm’ in town, so I said, ‘Sure, I could help,'” Zwirecki said. “When I heard high-profile arm, I originally thought it was a high school kid who was throwing in front of a scout or something along those lines.”

A few days later, he found out that his original thought couldn’t have been more off.

“I really got the call and [my coach] was like ‘So, you’re never going to believe this, but Paul Skenes is coming to Buffalo and needs to throw a bullpen [session],'” Zwirecki said. “My initial reaction is that somebody is messing with me.”

Paul Skenes, the two-time MLB All-Star, reigning Cy Young Award-winning and former first overall draft pick, Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher, was coming to Buffalo, and this Amherst native spent an hour of his Saturday catching a bullpen practice session for him.

Skenes, as well as his girlfriend, social media influencer Livvy Dunne, and fellow Pirates pitcher Jared Jones, were in town for Sunday’s Bills game, but the workouts were too important to skip.

“We did it at the Bills facility. In their weight room, they had a turf pad,” Zwirecki said. “I threw with him, caught him off the mound, it was very, very incredible to say the least.”

Q: “Is this something that you’re rubbing in [your teammates] faces a little now?”

Zwirecki: “Well, it’s safe to say that he is definitely the best pitcher I’ve ever caught in my life.”

Q: And how do the pitchers here take that?

Zwirecki: “They were giving me a hard time. They thought it was one of the coolest things in the world. You can only imagine how a college pitcher feels when they hear that.”

And as the Canisius Baseball season gets going in a few months, Zwirecki said Skenes taught him some valuable lessons to share with his team.

“The way they prepare is the biggest thing that I took away from it,” he said. “I’m definitely going to instill that into our guys this year.”

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 Ayron Lewallen

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    HOKES BLUFF, Alabama (WVTM) — Tuesday marks five years since the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection. On that day, pro-Trump rioters stormed the Capitol and demanded the results of the 2020 election be overturned. They attacked officers and destroyed parts of the building. One officer died a day after the attack from their injuries. Another four took their own lives as a result of what happened.

Just last year, President Donald Trump pardoned people convicted for their involvement. Some of them are from right here in central Alabama. More than 1,000 people were charged by the Department of Justice in connection with the riot.

In the year since Russell Alford was pardoned by Trump, he said all he has is a piece of paper on a wall. Other than the $20,000 he spent on legal fees, Alford told WVTM 13 he was already semi-retired before going to prison and still owns his body shop business.

Alford spent 365 days in a Mississippi prison. He was convicted of entering a restricted building, disorderly conduct and demonstrating inside the Capitol during the insurrection. Alford said he walked about 12 feet inside the Capitol building, stood up against the wall, took 11 minutes’ worth of video, but never said a word.

Alford admits he was never a fan of Trump and had never been to one of his rallies or visited the Nation’s Capitol. He said he had the money to travel and decided he wanted to see what unfolded that day with his own eyes.

“I was tired of sitting on the couch and listening to the mainstream media bark at you and tell you what they wanted you to hear, and I wanted to see it for myself,” Alford said. “I saw so much double-fisting going on in the media. I could afford to go to Washington. I drove up there and seen it, and all that stuff, you might as well yelled action. That’s how ridiculous it was. That’s the only reason I, because I wanted to see it for myself.”

Alford told WVTM 13 he almost went back to D.C. on Tuesday for the march to the Capitol. Dozens of people who were pardoned by Trump wanted to celebrate five years since the insurrection, but Alford decided against it.

While he still believes the 2020 election was stolen—a claim that has been proven to be false by political experts—he said he sleeps happily at night knowing he didn’t lie to anyone and feels it’s all God’s will.

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 Scott McDonnell

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    KENNEBUNKPORT, Maine (WMTW) — Dave Jourdan’s office has become mission headquarters for an ambitious effort to solve one of aviation’s greatest mysteries: the disappearance of Amelia Earhart.

Solving the mystery has been part of Jourdan’s life for decades. He has been building an archive over the years. “The archive I’ve been working on over the years now amounts to 27,000 pages,” Jourdan said.

The search began in 1997, when Jourdan, who founded Nauticos, a company specializing in deep-ocean exploration, began his effort to find Earhart.

“I had recently told my team that we had been so successful at finding everything we saw on the first try that we needed to try something harder,” Jourdan said.

Since then, Nauticos has launched three expeditions across the globe, searching for Earhart’s lost Lockheed Electra. “And I do regret those words,” Jourdan said. “Because this has been a really tough one.”

So far, the team has scanned an area roughly the size of Connecticut using custom-built equipment designed specifically for deep-sea exploration.

Now, Jourdan believes the next expedition could change history.

Advances in technology have transformed the search, particularly with the rise of autonomous underwater vehicles. “The autonomous vehicle has come into being for three reasons,” Jourdan said. “Battery power has improved, navigation has improved, and we now have the ability to process and store massive amounts of data.”

But technology is not the only breakthrough — at least not recent technology.

A key piece of the puzzle came from an unexpected place: an old radio, identical to the one aboard Earhart’s plane. “Was this found at basically a tag sale — a garage sale?” Jourdan was asked.

“Yep,” he replied.

That radio became the final missing component.

Using it, the team located a similar aircraft, flew it out to sea and brought in a boat to replicate the position of the Coast Guard cutter Itasca, which was stationed near Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan, on the day of her disappearance in 1937.

Precise measurements followed — nearly everything the team needed.

Almost.

“Except her actual voice,” Jourdan said. “Because that was never recorded.”

Instead, researchers relied on transcripts and interviews with eight men who heard Earhart’s final radio transmissions, allowing them to recreate her last known calls. “KHQQ calling Itasca. We must be on you but cannot see you. Gas is running low.”

Jourdan believes those transmissions now point to a specific location and helped his team determine where they believe Earhart was during her final transmissions at 8 a.m. “Right,” Jourdan said. “So, that helps a lot.”

The focus is near Howland Island — a tiny speck of land about 1,600 miles southwest of Hawaii. “It’s a whole lot of blue,” Jourdan said.

Howland Island is smaller than the National Mall in Washington, D.C., surrounded by vast, open ocean.

But this time, Jourdan says the search is guided by math — not myths — and he believes the ocean may finally be ready to give up its answer.

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 Tim Nazzaro

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    CHATHAM, Massachusetts (WCVB) — Firefighters sprung into action Tuesday afternoon when a golden retriever named Goose fell through the ice at a pond in Chatham, Massachusetts.

According to the Chatham Fire Department, crews were dispatched to Goose Pond around 3:20 p.m. after a report of a dog that fell into the icy water about 200 feet out.

Goose’s owner was on the scene and told firefighters he had let the dog out 15 minutes prior to the fall.

Firefighters donned survival suits and were on the ice by 3:30 p.m., according to officials.

Utilizing specialized ice rescue equipment, the dog was safely pulled ashore minutes later.

Chatham fire officials said Goose was cold and tired but showed no signs of severe distress.

“While this incident had a successful outcome, this serves as an important reminder that ice on ponds can be extremely dangerous,” Chatham Fire Chief Justin Tavano said in a press release. “In this case, the ice was several inches thick immediately adjacent to where Goose fell through. Goose’s owner did the exact right thing in this situation by calling 911 and resisting the urge to go on the ice himself.”

Chatham police also assisted firefighters at the scene.

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By Marcie Cipriani

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    WASHINGTON COUNTY, Pennsylvania (WTAE) — A 62-year-old man is facing charges after police said he hid a camera under a young relative’s bed in Washington County, and recorded himself as he set it up.

Police said the camera was hidden in a cardboard box, then wrapped in black tape to camouflage it and positioned to face the area where the young girl typically undresses.

Investigators identified the suspect as Michael Crispin of South Franklin Township.

Greene Washington Regional Police Chief William DeForte expressed his dismay, saying, “It’s unfortunate for the victim. It’s unfortunate for the community that we live in.”

DeForte said the girl discovered the camera while cleaning and reported it to her mother, who then contacted the police. According to court papers, the camera was a toy device intentionally rigged to continuously record.

Police said Crispin recorded his own image, setting it up.

“He was a trusted relative, so he was allowed to enter the premises and go through the rooms, and, you know, and spend time with the, with the children,” DeForte said.

DeForte said detectives uncovered 163 recordings, none of which show the girl undressed, but court papers said she can be seen and heard on them.

Michael Crispin is charged with a felony for illegally recording a minor and possessing an instrument of crime, specifically the camera.

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 Rachael Perry

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    PORT ST. LUCIE, Florida (WPBF) — A local golf club says it has spent roughly $60,000 in just three years repairing the damage caused by young adults on e-bikes and dirt bikes.

Matthew Boyd, the general manager at St. Lucie Trail Golf Club, says the young adults or teens continue to cause thousands of dollars in damage, and the golf club can’t do anything about it.

The most recent incident happened on Monday afternoon.

“Right around 4 or 4:15, we got a phone call that there were five kids on bikes going through, driving between members, going over and through the greens and fairways. Once they reached the sixth hole, they darted out of the road and onto the back gate,” Boyd said.

Like clockwork, Boyd said it happens every few months.

“This happens really about once every three or four months; Young adults driving or pedaling bikes throughout the golf course, trespassing, and creating vandalism,” he said.

Not only does he say the issue has created problems for employees and club members, but the financial impact has been huge.

“Thousands upon thousands of dollars, and if you factor in labor, I don’t even want to think about that as it comes out of my pocket,” Boyd told WPBF.

He said that the number comes out to more than $50,000 over the last three years.

“Before that, I could factor in more, just because we went through a greens renovation and during that time, we had to redo three green complexes because bikers did donuts on three of the brand-new greens, which was a huge expense,” he said.

The club is private and has no trespassing signs, which haven’t stopped the bikers. Boyd said any attempt to reason with them hasn’t been successful either.

“They’re incredibly unfriendly. They’ll use some words I cannot say here, and they’ll drive as fast as they can away from anybody chasing them,” he said.

Despite reporting the damage to the police, Boyd said he’s left wondering what can be done to stop it.

“The answer I’ve always received is there’s nothing we can or the police can do, or anybody can do, unless we can physically follow them to their home address and identify them on the golf course with pictures and videos,” he said.

As if the cost of repairs isn’t enough, Boyd said they’ve even lost employees over this.

“We’ve lost staff over the years, being frustrated with it, which is understandable, but it is disheartening for them more than anything to have to re-do things or re-go out there and fix areas that they just spent hours and hours working on,” he said.

Boyd said in a perfect world, the people responsible would stop, but he’s hoping parents will step in and educate their children on what it means to damage someone’s property.

“What frustrates me most is we were all kids growing up, and we all did things that we look back now and say, hey, I probably shouldn’t have done that, but these are repeat offenders constantly just going out there, joyriding, and the amount of vandalism they’re creating is taking its toll on everybody,” he said.

He said it’s important for them to understand that what they’re doing is both trespassing and property damage.

“I would really hope that parents can get involved and realize, hey, this is what my kid is doing, and the best course of action is just to educate them on, don’t go on private property. There’s more damage being done by bikes than they know of, and more importantly, if they do get caught, the repercussions are going to be astronomical at one point,” Boyd told WPBF.

In the meantime, he said, hopefully, awareness of the issue may discourage people from doing this.

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 Greg Ng

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    MIDDLE RIVER, Maryland (WBAL) — An adult and two children were taken to a hospital as a precaution and a family pet died in a fire Tuesday morning.

Baltimore County fire officials said firefighters were called around 7:05 a.m. to a house in the 400 block of Kosoak Road in the Middle RiverBowleys Quarters area.

Officials said firefighters found flames coming from the front of the house as well as smoke from the second floor. Firefighters managed to contain the fire within 20 minutes.

Neighbors helped to get residents out from a second-story window before firefighters arrived.

“This incident is a powerful reminder of the strength of our communities,” Baltimore County Fire Chief Joseph Dixon said in a news release. “Before our fire and EMS crews arrived, neighbors acted without hesitation to help a mother and her children escape a dangerous situation. I want to thank these residents for their courage and selflessness and commend our crews for their swift response in extinguishing the fire and providing medical support.”

An adult and two children were taken to Johns Hopkins Hospital for possible smoke inhalation and an evaluation.

Steven Angelini was one of the people who helped catch the two children who were dropped out of the second-floor window.

“My immediate reaction is to get out and get help,” Angelini said.

Despite a recent arm injury, Angelini tried to get a ladder. He was unable to do so, though. Angelini shifted his focus on saving the children as the smoke thickened and the fire grew.

“My second reaction was just to get these kids down and save their lives. I told the mother, ‘Just drop them, I’ll catch them,'” Angelini said.

After the children were safely caught, neighbors managed to get the ladder off the truck, allowing the mother to climb down with assistance.

“All three of them, when they came out, ad black soot all over them, and it was horrific — devastating. I’m just glad they’re alive at the end of the day, but nothing else matters. Life matters,” Angelini said.

The Red Cross was contacted to assist the displaced residents.

“It’s adrenaline,” Angelini said. “When you had your adrenaline going and it comes to life or death, you don’t think about anything else, you don’t think about injury, you don’t think about consequences in breaking a leg, breaking an arm. You’re saving their life in that moment.”

The cause of fire remains under investigation.

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By Marissa Sulek

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    CHICAGO (WBBM) — A woman in the Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood said she is missing important pieces of mail.

She did her own investigation and believes someone at the post office might be stealing it.

Each day, when Mone’t Austin goes to her mailbox, she finds the pieces of mail no one wants, not the vital information she needs.

Austin has informed delivery with the United States Postal Service.

“If no one knows what it is, it’s actually us being able to view and scan our mail via email, so we know what’s ahead, whether it’s packages coming, whether it’s mail coming, stuff like that,” she said.

Which is why she knew something was up when she didn’t get a government check for $1,000.

Austin said her mail goes through the Jackson Park post office off 61st Street. However, those important pieces of mail, like debit cards, health insurance, and government check never made it to her mailbox.

CBS News Chicago reached out to the USPS on Tuesday night, asking about Austin’s case, but has yet to hear back. Austin said the postal police started an investigation after she received a text about a fraudulent charge.

“A few days go by, and I get the text message from the bank stating a fraudulent charge was charged,” she said.

Someone made a $114 transaction at a gas station. Someone was using her new debit card.

Her informed delivery shows Beverly Bank and Trust sent it, but Austin never received it. Same with her new health insurance cards.

“What the person doesn’t know is that I can see what’s pre-scanned and that I can see what’s being out for delivery,” she said.

Austin said she believes someone with the post office could be collecting all of these pieces of mail.

“They have access to all of our personal information,” she said.

She is now working to get identity theft protection.

“I am just going to personally just pick up my mail at the postal service,” she said.

Someone made a $114 transaction at a gas station. Someone was using her new debit card.

Her informed delivery shows Beverly Bank and Trust sent it, but Austin never received it. Same with her new health insurance cards.

“What the person doesn’t know is that I can see what’s pre-scanned and that I can see what’s being out for delivery,” she said.

Austin said she believes someone with the post office could be collecting all of these pieces of mail.

“They have access to all of our personal information,” she said.

She is now working to get identity theft protection.

“I am just going to personally just pick up my mail at the postal service,” she said.

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.