Weather Authority: Incoming clipper will bring spotty showers, cold temps overnight

Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine were 68% less likely to be hospitalized during the Omicron wave in the United States than unvaccinated children, according to a study published on Wednesday.

The new character, Ameera, is scheduled to premiere next week on “Ahlan Simsim” — the local version of “Sesame Street” in the Middle East and North Africa. (Credit: Sesame Workshop) NEW YORK - Sesame Workshop, the educational organization behind "Sesame Street," has unveiled a new muppet character with a spinal cord injury, the non-profit announced Monday. The new muppet, Ameera, is scheduled to premiere next week on "Ahlan Simsim" — the local version of "Sesame Street"in the Middle East and North Africa. "A witty, inquisitive 8-year-old girl with a passion for science and basketball, Ameera uses her bright purple wheelchair or forearm crutches to get around due to a spinal cord injury," Sesame Workshop wrote in a press release.

Today we are reporting 15,250 community cases, 830 hospitalisations and 22 deaths.

Organisations representing doctors and nurses have called on the Government to reintroduce some measures to tackle the spread of Covid-19.

The Razzie Awards and director Kevin Smith on Wednesday issued apologies for past criticism of Bruce Willis in the wake of news that the actor was 'stepping away' from his career after he was diagnosed with aphasia, a condition that impact's one's ability to understand or process speech.The Razzie Awards, a satire on the Oscars that lampoons critically-maligned movies, had promoted a new category titled 'Worst Performance by Bruce Willis in a 2021 Movie,' after the 67-year-old actor appeared in eight straight-to-video films in 2021.They included American Siege, Apex, Cosmic Sin, Deadlock, Fortress, Midnight in the Switchgrass, Out of Death, and Survive the Game. The latest:The Razzie Awards and director Kevin Smith, 51, on Wednesday issued apologies for past criticism of Bruce Willis, 67, in the wake of news that the actor was retiring after he was diagnosed with aphasia, a condition that impact's one's ability to understand or process speech.

snow and ice on this system's colder side in portions of the Great Lakes and central Appalachians.Severe storms will impact some of the same places that were hit hard by last week's outbreak of severe weather, which resulted in more than 60 confirmed tornadoes over three days. While there will likely be several tornadoes – some of which could be strong – with Wednesday's outbreak, there is an even greater threat of widespread wind gusts over 75 mph, particularly from the lower Mississippi Valley into western and southern Alabama, West Tennessee and the western Florida Panhandle.Here's what to expect through Thursday.

Gas prices in some provinces are set to rise Friday as the federal carbon tax increases.

BRISTOL, Pa. - A large contingent of law enforcement officers traveled to Bucks County on Wednesday for a viewing for Pennsylvania State Trooper Martin Mack III, who was killed by an alleged drunk driver on I-95 in Philadelphia in March."We have to continue to pray for them every day they’re doing a very difficult job and obviously it can have deadly consequences and I just feel awful," Bucks County District Attorney Matthew Weintraub said. The deadly crash happened over a week ago on Interstate 95 in South Philadelphia near the sports complex. Investigators said Mack, 33, and fellow Pennsylvania State Trooper Branden Sisca, 29, were called to the area to assist a man who was walking on the highway. A large number of Pennsylvania State Troopers showed up to Trooper Mack's viewing.

LOS ANGELES - The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences on Wednesday said that Will Smith was asked to leave Sunday's Oscar ceremony after hitting Chris Rock but refused to do so.The academy’s board of governors met Wednesday to initiate disciplinary proceedings against Smith for violations against the group’s standards of conduct. The academy said disciplinary action for Smith could include suspension, expulsion or other sanctions.Many have focused on why Smith was allowed to remain seated front row in the Dolby Theatre after the incident. On Wednesday, the academy suggested that it attempted to remove the actor from the audience.RELATED: Jim Carrey ‘sickened’ by celebs applauding Will Smith’s Oscar win after slap"Things unfolded in a way we could not have anticipated," the academy said.

PHILADELPHIA - A Ukrainian cathedral in Northern Liberties is offering sanctuary to two women who fled their war-torn homeland of Ukraine as the Russian invasion continues. Alla Pukhtetska and Veronika Matviienko arrived at the Saint Nicholas Orthodox Cathedral Wednesday night after being picked up by Vice President and Choir Director Susan Guz, and Bishop Lukeat JFK Airport. They will live in the rectory of the church and are likely to be joined by others as church member have raised $20,000 to help refugees.The women lived in Kiev and worked together in a cathedral there. They told FOX 29's Jeff Cole that they feared they would be killed in the bombardment of the city."I was afraid not to have time to escape," Pukhtetska said.

The Ford government says it is taking aim at planning and implementation slowdowns which it says are among the main causes of high housing costs. But the government is not adopting changes designed to increase population density in existing residential neighbourhoods because it says they’re too radical for municipalities.

The Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield will today host a media briefing to provide updates on the response to the Omicron outbreak.

FILE-Florida, Miami Beach, South Pointe Park, Carnival Splendor cruise ship Departing. (Photo by: Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) WASHINGTON - Federal health officials are dropping the warning they have attached to cruising since the beginning of the pandemic, leaving it up to vacationers to decide whether they feel safe getting on a ship.Cruise-ship operators welcomed Wednesday’s announcement, which came as many people thought about summer vacation plans.An industry trade group said the move by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention validated measures that ship owners have taken, including requiring crew members and most passengers to be vaccinated against the virus.RELATED: Norwegian Cruise Line announces additional cancellationsThe CDC removed the COVID-19 "cruise ship travel health notice" that was first imposed in March 2020, after virus outbreaks on several ships around the world.However, the agency expressed reservations about cruising.RELATED: More cruise ships under CDC investigation due to rising COVID cases"While cruising will always pose some risk of COVID-19 transmission, travelers will make their own risk assessment when choosing to travel on a cruise ship, much like they do in all other travel settings," CDC spokesman Dave Daigle said in an email.Daigle said the CDC's decision was based on "the current state of the pandemic and decreases in COVID-19 cases onboard cruise ships over the past several weeks."COVID-19 cases in the United States have been falling since mid-January, although the decline has slowed in recent weeks, and the current seven-day rolling average for daily new cases in the U.S.

SAPPORO, Japan - Ex-MLB player Tsuyoshi Shinjo marked his first home game as manager of the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters in spectacular style on March 29.Fan video shows the Japanese baseball manager and former Major League Baseball player riding on a hoverbike and flying over the field. RELATED: MLB, players reach agreement, paving way to end months-long lockoutShinjo, who is also known as Big Boss, was hovering an XTURISMO Limited Edition hoverbike, according to local media. While Shinjos’ entrance was a flying start to the season, it didn’t end well for the team. The Fighters lost 4-0 to the Saitama Seibu Lions, leaving them still searching for a first win of the season.Tsuyoshi Shinjo is a former Japanese professional baseball outfielder and a current manager for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).He played for the Hanshin Tigers in Japan between 1990 and 2000, before signing with Major League Baseball’s New York Mets and San Francisco Giants. RELATED: Mets' Pete Alonso 'thankful to be alive' after car accident, kicked out windshield to escapeIn 2002, Shinjo became the first Japan-born player to play in the World Series. AdvertisementThis story was reported from Los Angeles.

LOS ANGELES - After hosting the 2022 Oscars alongside co-hosts Regina Hall and Wanda Sykes, comedian Amy Schumer is speaking out about that onstage viral debacle between Chris Rock and Will Smith.In an Instagram post, Schumer started by joking that "the best way to unpack what happened is to stream my series @lifeandbethhulu." She goes on to address "what happened," saying "But for real. Still triggered and traumatized," she continued. "I love my friend @chrisrock and believe he handled it like a pro.

Alberta is proposing rules that would make it easier for entrepreneurs to test products in the emerging field of cryptocurrencies and online banking.

There is a common type of scam that targets seniors specifically. It’s called the ‘grandparent scam’ and while it may not be new, it appears to be on the rise.

Alberta Health Minister Jason Copping announces more pharmacies in the province now have access to the COVID-19 treatment Paxlovid.

Health Minister Jason Copping says 70 per cent of positive COVID-19 cases in Alberta are now the Omicron variant BA.2.

Alberta Health Minister Jason Copping says both positivity rates from PCR tests and wastewater data are showing initial signs of increased COVID-19 transmission.

Thomas Rhett joins TMS with a special performance of ‘Angels’ off his new album ‘Where We Started’ out April 1.

President Joe Biden today announced the launch of covid.gov, a new one-stop shop for finding COVID-19 vaccines, masks, tests, and treatments by county on an easy-to-use website.

After rising for 2 weeks, global cases declined again, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in its latest weekly snapshot of the pandemic, but it urged caution about interpreting trends, due to reduced testing in a number of countries.

The USFL is a new, independent American football league controlled by FOX Sports through NSFL HoldCo, LLC, a new business entity. (Source: USFL) The USFL, NFL Films and FOX Sports are teaming up to produce "United By Football: A Season in the USFL," a 13-episode series that will capture the fascinating athlete personalities and the unique circumstances they find themselves in as they pursue their dreams in a new professional spring football league. The one-hour series premiere airs Saturday, April 16 at 6:30 p.m.

WASHINGTON - NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has announced an extraordinary new benchmark: the detection of the farthest individual star to date."We’ve certainly seen galaxies further away, but that is the new record-holder for the most distanced star that we know of," NASA astronomer Jane Rigby told FOX Television Stations Group.The find is a huge leap further back in time from the previous single-star record holder, detected by Hubble in 2018.According to the space agency, the newly detected star is so far away that its light has taken 12.9 billion years to reach Earth. This means the star existed within the first billion years after the universe’s birth in the big bang.NASA announced an extraordinary new benchmark: the detection of the farthest individual star to date.

PHILADELPHIA - A suspect has died after police say he was shot by a customer inside a North Philadelphia corner store that he was attempting to rob Wednesday afternoon. The incident occurred shortly after noon on the 1400 block of Master Street – a few blocks from Temple University’s campus. Police say the unidentified suspect was armed with a gun and attempting to rob a corner store when a customer who was inside shot him multiple times. Following the shooting, police initially identified the shooter as the store's owner. Sources, including the owner, tell FOX 29 that it was actually a customer who opened fire.The suspect was hit twice in the chest and twice in the abdomen.

Steven Bertolino filed a motion to dismiss a civil lawsuit from the parents and stepparents of slain travel blogger Gabby Petito Wednesday.Bertolino filed his 20-page motion on Wednesday asking a Florida judge to drop the lawsuit with prejudice, arguing that there are no facts to support their claims of "intentional infliction of emotional distress." He further asked that the judge prevent the Petito-Schmidt families from filing an amended lawsuit should his dismissal request be granted. Clients Chris and Roberta Laundrie were exercising their constitutional right to remain silent, Bertolino wrote. "The gravamen of the claimed wrongdoing is that the Laundries exercised their constitutional rights and essentially made no statements to Plaintiffs or law enforcement," the motion states.

Actor Bruce Willis attends the "Motherless Brooklyn" premiere during the 57th New York Film Festival on October 11, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Jim Spellman/WireImage) Actor Bruce Willis is taking a break from acting and his family announced on social media Wednesday that the 67-year-old has been diagnosed with aphasia. "Bruce’s amazing supporters, as a family we wanted to share that our beloved Bruce has been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities," the family said.

Surveillance photo of a tow truck stealing a Honda in Burlington County earlier this week BURLINGTON, N.J. - Authorities in Burlington County say they are investigating two car that were stolen by a tow truck earlier this week. Burlington Township police say on Monday, around 8:30 p.m., a car theft occurred on Foxchase Drive. On Tuesday, another vehicle was stolen around 9:30 p.m.

This photo taken February 4, 2019 shows Kareem Abdul-Jabbar at the Hollywood Reporter's 7th Annual Nominees Night in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by JEAN-BAPTISTE LACROIX / AFP) / ALTERNATE CROP (Photo by JEAN-BAPTISTE LACROIX/AFP via Getty Imag LOS ANGELES - NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar did not hold back in his response to the slap that echoed around the world after Will Smith smacked Chris Rock, writing that the incident on the Oscars stage "perpetuated stereotypes about the Black community."Abdul-Jabbar wrote a column titled "Will Smith Did a Bad, Bad Thing," which was posted to his Substack account.He shared that he first met Smith when he appeared on an episode of "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" in 1994."I like him.

Bruce Willis' daughters Rumer and Scout Willis were captured out in Los Angeles on Wednesday after revealing their famous father has been diagnosed with thedegenerative brain condition aphasia.Because of the devastating diagnosis, the 67-year-old Hollywood icon is stepping away from the spotlight and the acting career that 'has meant so much to him,' as per a statement published by the family earlier in the day.The sisters, 33 and 30 respectively, put on brave faces as they reportedly attended a Coachella pre-party held at Infinity house. Spotted:Bruce Willis' daughters Rumer and Scout Willis were captured out in Los Angeles on Wednesday after revealing their famous father has been diagnosed with the degenerative brain condition aphasiaRumer and Scout were photographed seemingly arriving to the event, with the eldest Willis sister rocking a white sundress and Scout opting for a psychedelic sweater and black shorts.Scout appeared to be in a jovial mood while Rumer strolled along the sidewalk with her cellphone pressed to her ear.

Tom Parker of The Wanted visits SiriusXM Studios on May 31, 2013, in New York City. (Robin Marchant/Getty Images) Tom Parker of the band The Wanted has died.

PHOENIX - Republican Gov. Doug Ducey has signed bills banning transgender girls from playing on girls' sports teams and prohibiting gender reassignment surgeries for minors.The governor described Senate bills 1138 and 1165 as legislation to "protect female athletes" and "to ensure that individuals undergoing irreversible gender reassignment surgery are of adult age.""This legislation is common-sense and narrowly-targeted to address these two specific issues ⁠— while ensuring that transgender individuals continue to receive the same dignity, respect and kindness as every individual in our society," Ducey said in a Twitter thread.Two GOP governors last week bucked conservatives in their party and vetoed bills in Indiana and Utah requiring trans girls to play on boys sports teams.Republicans have said blocking transgender players from girls sports teams would protect the integrity of women’s sports, fearing that trans athletes would have an advantage.Many point to the transgender collegiate swimmer Lia Thomas, who won an individual title at the NCAA Women’s Division I Swimming and Diving Championship last week.But there are few trans athletes in Arizona schools.

(Photo by Ben Hasty/MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle via Getty Images) Many Americans now can get a second COVID-19 booster, but it’s hard to tell who really needs another shot right now and who could wait.The Food and Drug Administration authorized extra Pfizer or Moderna shots for anyone 50 or older and for some younger people with severely weakened immune systems. It’s an effort to get ahead of a possible next coronavirus surge.RELATED: FDA approves 2nd COVID-19 vaccine booster for those 50 and olderWith COVID-19 cases low in the U.S., it’s easy to ignore calls for another dose — or for those who aren’t yet vaccinated or boosted to get up to date, said Dr.

Bruce Willis is retiring from acting after being diagnosed with aphasia, a cognitive disease that obstructs language and written communication skills. The family of the beloved 67-year-old actor took to social media to release a joint statement.Emma Heming, the actor’s wife; Demi Moore, his ex-wife; and his daughters Rumer, Scout, Tallulah, Mabel, and Evelyn, asked for compassion and support during the challenging time they are experiencing.“To Bruce’s amazing supporters, as a family we wanted to share that our beloved Bruce has been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities,” they said on Instagram.“As a result of this and with much consideration Bruce is stepping away from the career that has meant so much to him.

COVID-19 indicators rising in Ontario, opposition politicians are calling on the government to expand access to PCR tests for the virus.Critics have been calling for Ontario to reinstate broad access to the gold-standard tests, which have been restricted to certain groups of high-risk people since December when the Omicron variant overwhelmed resources.Those calls continued on Wednesday as some suggested the province was entering a sixth wave of cases after a lull following the peak of the Omicron wave.

CAMDEN, N.J. - Emergency teams responded to the Early Childhood Development Center in Camden on Wednesday after sanitizer was discovered in milk cartons, according to the school district. The facility, which is for preschool and kindergarten students, is located at 1602 Pine Street. According to tweets released by Camden Schools, it was determined that some of the cartons contained a "non-toxic consumable sanitizer that runs through the vendor machines prior to milk." "Unfortunately, many cartons were filled with the sanitizer, sealed and then shipped out with the milk," officials announced on Twitter.

FILE - File image of crime scene tape. (FOX TV Stations)PHILADELPHIA - Philadelphia police are investigating the stabbing of three people in the Mayfair neighborhood on Sunday afternoon, according to authorities. Police say the triple stabbing happened on the 3200 block of Knorr Street just after 2:00 p.m. According to police, a woman in her 30s was stabbed multiple times throughout her body.

A water turbine installed to power a Co Clare hotel became a key source of income during pandemic-related closures.

COVID-19 vaccines at Toronto Public Library (TPL) branches as the city launches its Read and Vax campaign.In a press release issued Wednesday, the city said the campaign will bring COVID-19 vaccine clinics to many TPL branches beginning on Wednesday and extending until March 16. COVID-19: Toronto District School Board receives 1st shipment of medical masks for students The city says 22 vaccine clinics will be held over two weeks in 12 TPL branches across Toronto.The release said the campaign is “part of Team Toronto’s continued equity-focused, hyper-local mobile strategy to make COVID-19 vaccines as accessible and convenient as possible and to bring vaccines to where residents live, work, play, study and read.”According to the release, Toronto Public Health has selected libraries in “specific neighbourhoods” in order to “remove barriers” and bring vaccines to residents in areas or settings that have low vaccination coverage, and to those who are at high risk of contracting the virus.“Locations were chosen to facilitate easy access in places that are part of Torontonians’ everyday lives,” the release reads.

PHILADELPHIA - February's temperatures were warmer than average and the first day of March will bring in similar weather with mild conditions. Tuesday will be cloudy due to high pressure bringing air off the coast. Temperatures will begin chilly in the morning before warming up for a mild and dry day with highs in the 50s. Storms seen on radar will stay north and out of the area, but windy conditions will move in on Thursday. Looking ahead, the weekend will bring cloudy conditions with a chance for rain on Sunday. ___SEVEN-DAY FORECAST TUESDAY: In like a lamb. High: 55WEDNESDAY: Partly cloudy.

New Brunswick schools see high case counts as province prepares to lift restrictions Saint Thomas University has taken a similar stance, with most precautions remaining in place until the end of the semester.In an interview on Tuesday, student union president Tyler MaGee said he believes this will provide some much-needed stability to students as they enter exam season.“I think it makes sense to have it stable throughout the rest of the academic term, especially since the rest of the term is so short of a time period, I agree with the university’s assessment that it’s best to just not rock the boat and keep this…normal until the end of the semester when we can reevaluate.”In a message sent to students last Friday, President and Vice-Chancellor Dawn Russell said stability for students was a factor in the university’s decision.“From March 14 until the end of the semester and exams is six weeks, which is a relatively short period of time; so at this late stage of the academic year, it is important to focus on continuity and stability rather than launch a series of changes.”A spokesperson for Mount Allison University said that the university will be maintaining most of their current pandemic-related health and safety measures until April 30th. New Brunswick lifting all COVID-19 restrictions March 14, proof of vaccination ending Feb.

COVID-19 continues to spread in schools, according to the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, with roughly 11,063 cases having been reported since Sept. 7.Out of the 294 schools in the public school system, 291 have been impacted by the virus since Sept.

COVID-19: N.B. businesses ready to move on from proof of vaccination The province has reported a total of 306 COVID-19-related deaths since the start of the pandemic.Eighty-six people are hospitalized because of COVID-19 — a drop of three from Monday.

COVID-19.Although hospitalizations have been in decline over the last few weeks, the number of people in hospital has jumped to 89 — up from 72, since the last report on Friday.They include 47 hospitalized due to COVID-19 and another 42 who were admitted for another reason but tested positive for the virus.Three people are in ICU and two people on a ventilator. Hospitals are now at 90 per cent capacity while ICU beds are at 72 per cent capacity.

Colorado firefighters on the scene of a floor collapse at a house party.  (South Metro Fire Rescue)DENVER - Three people were taken to a hospital after a floor collapsed during a house party in a Denver area suburb, authorities said.South Metro Fire Rescue said crews responded Saturday at about 9:30 p.m. to the home southeast of Aurora along with deputies from the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office.Firefighters said a portion of the first floor fell into the basement because of a party involving more than 100 people.RELATED: 4 injured after floor collapses in Bronx salonPart of a stage where the Rolling Loud music festival is set to take place at Hard Rock Stadium has collapsed.

New Brunswick lifting provincial vaccination requirements at businesses like restaurants, gyms and salons at 12:01 Monday morning, it’s going to be a more “normal” day than many have seen since last summer.For spots like Rocky’s Sports Bar in Saint John, it might mean seeing some more customers, too.“Proof of vaccination definitely limits the amount of customers we can host in an evening or in a day,” says owner Moe Arsenault.“It’s been a challenge, as everything in COVID has been for everybody.”Arsenault says he’s lost some regulars since proof of vaccination has been required at New Brunswick eateries in September.“It has been a deterrent for some consumers, for sure,” he says. New Brunswick lifting all COVID-19 restrictions March 14, proof of vaccination ending Feb.

PHILADELPHIA - Philadelphia Police are investigating a deadly hit-and-run overnight in Lawndale. A man in his 20s was struck and killed near Oxford and Longshore Avenues, according to police.A driver involved in the incident initially left the vehicle that struck the man at the scene.