closes

From the first time decades ago he was lampooned as a quirky upstart until now, the final stretch of his unprecedented fourth term as California’s governor, Jerry Brown has reveled in his reputation as a cheapskate.

“Nobody is tougher with a buck than I am,” he boasted during the 2010 campaign that sent him back to Sacramento.

Eight years later, Brown is poised to earn a place in the history books as the leader who helped right the ship of state. His mantra of measured spending could be a standard by which future governors are judged.

“We’re well positioned, but if the next governor doesn’t say ‘no’ at critical moments, things will get worse,” Brown said in an interview with The Times.

His promise of similar straight talk about California’s budget prevailed in the 2010 election, held in the shadow of financial collapse. The projected budget deficit he inherited — even after two years of cuts under Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger — stood at $27 billion.

All of which seemed a distant memory Wednesday as Brown signed a budget creating a $13.8-billion cash reserve, the largest in state history. “I think people in California can be proud that we’re making progress,” the 80-year old Democrat said standing beside legislative leaders — the oldest of whom was only 12 when Brown was first elected governor in 1974.

Gov. Jerry Brown displays a playing card with his dog, Sutter, on it during his State of the State speech in 2014. The cards, handed out to legislators, urged them to save — not spend — all of the growing tax revenues.

(Rich Pedroncelli / AP )

While supporters tout his record on combating climate change or raising the minimum wage, the through line of Brown’s second chance as governor has always been the budget, a topic that demanded a fiscal reckoning just days after he took office.

“What surprised me was how deep the deficit became during Schwarzenegger’s last few years,” he said. “We had to get in there and cut, and find some new revenue and work it out the best way we could.”

Brown’s first moves in 2011 were to cancel new cell phones and government vehicles for state workers, political symbolism not unlike the bland Plymouth sedan he chose in the 1970s from the state vehicle pool. By spring, he convinced lawmakers to cut $8.2 billion from programs like higher education, daytime elderly care services and doctor visits for the poor.

When substantive efforts to solve the rest of the problem stalled that June, the governor did something his predecessors had never done: He vetoed the budget ratified by lawmakers.

“For a decade, the can has been kicked down the road and debt has piled up,” Brown said as he signed the veto message. “California is facing a fiscal crisis, and very strong medicine must be taken.”

The veto was a shot across the bow to the Legislature. “It communicated very clearly that there was going to be a minimum standard for the legislative budget, and they just couldn’t slap anything together and put the name ‘budget’ on it,” Brown says now.

“We were frustrated,” remembers John A. Pérez, who was Assembly speaker at the time. “But it laid the foundation for what has become eight years of on-time, balanced budgets.”

Deeper cuts ultimately were made. Within months, ratings agencies moved California’s credit outlook to positive, the beginning of a trend that has driven down interest rates for government borrowing, one way the state has saved money.

Gov. Jerry Brown’s wall of debt crumbles, but more walls are behind it »

He later turned his attention to the short-term obligations that piled up during the financial crisis, from raided school funds to Wall Street-backed deficit bonds. Branded by Brown as the state’s “wall of debt” and once towering at nearly $35 billion, today the balance is less than $5 billion.

“I tell my friends that Jerry Brown is one of the most fiscally conservative Democrats that I know,” said Connie Conway, a Tulare County Republican who served as Assembly GOP leader from 2010 to 2014. She recalls saying at one point that Brown “is the adult in the room because at least he’s admitting we have debt.”

Still, it was Republicans who handed Brown his first real budget setback in 2011, refusing to support a special statewide election to extend temporary taxes. The governor, never a back-slapping kind of politician, nonetheless mounted an intense charm offensive. He hosted private dinners for legislative Republicans where California wine flowed freely. He brought along his affable Corgi, Sutter, for visits. GOP lawmakers wouldn’t budge.

In hindsight, it was a lucky break. Special elections have historically had a disproportionately high turnout of conservative voters who likely would have rejected the plan. When Republicans balked, Brown and a coalition of business and labor leaders qualified a tax increase for the ballot in 2012, a presidential election year with strong turnout from Democrats.

Gov. Jerry Brown holds up a sign in support of Proposition 30 while visiting a San Diego school on Oct. 23, 2012, in San Diego. The ballot measure passed with 55% of the vote.

(Lenny Ignelzi / AP )

The resulting Proposition 30, a surcharge on the state’s sales tax and the incomes of wealthy taxpayers, provided revenue for six years — a more robust plan, Brown now says, than what he asked Republicans to support. “We’d have been right back in the soup” with the original plan, he said. “This way, we got a couple of more years.”

Brown campaigned hard for the ballot measure, shrewdly making it about the budget’s biggest beneficiary — schools — and about his own commitment to balancing the books. On election day, it passed with 55% of the vote.

“There’s no way in hell the voters would have approved those taxes if not for their faith in his fiscal stewardship,” Pérez said.

The taxes and California’s recovering economy have since produced historic tax windfalls. The state Department of Finance estimates the 2012 tax initiative and an extension approved by voters (but not explicitly endorsed by the governor) in 2016 has, to date, generated $50 billion in additional revenue.

Brown’s budget dominance begins with a firm grip on tax revenue forecasts »

Not that all of the modern Brown era has been all about less spending. State government spending has risen by 59% since 2011. Much of that has gone to K-12 schools, as required by law, and Medi-Cal, the state’s Medicaid program. Healthcare spending, in particular, has more than doubled in seven years, to about $23 billion in general fund costs. California has fully embraced Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act. Brown has lashed out at efforts by President Trump to rescind the law.

The rush of revenue also has allowed for a substantial savings account. Brown and lawmakers crafted a robust rainy-day reserve fund, ratified by voters in 2014. “That’s the kind of collaboration you don’t often see between legislators and governors,” Pérez said.

Through lean and flush years alike, the governor’s job approval ratings remained strong. Liberal activists routinely criticized him for not doing more to help those in need, suggesting with an increasing frequency through the years that the scion of a prominent political family had never experienced those struggles first-hand.

Health and human services advocates hold a Los Angeles rally to protest Gov. Jerry Brown’s budget in 2014.

(Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times )

“They’re always asking for more,” he said. “There’s no natural limit. There’s no predator for this species of budgetary activity, except the governor.”

Even critics acknowledged that Brown kept listening to advocacy groups. In 2016, he agreed to remove a provision in the state’s welfare assistance program, CalWORKs, that denied coverage to children born while their families were already receiving benefits. The ban had been in place for almost two decades.

“We came a long way,” said state Sen. Holly Mitchell (D-Los Angeles), the chair of the Senate’s budget committee and a vocal advocate for changing the welfare rule. From the beginning, she said, Brown’s advisers said it was about the cost, not the policy.

This year, Mitchell convinced him to go even further — a small increase in the size of CalWORKs’ monthly cash grants, subsidies that failed to rise with inflation for more than a decade.

Mitchell recalled a flight from Los Angeles during which Brown, a voracious reader, spoke at length about a book that chronicled poverty around the world. “And I was able to say to him, ‘Yes, that chapter right there, that sounds like Central California,’ ” she said.

Likening income inequality to his celebrated efforts on climate change, Mitchell said she once told Brown, “By you just making it a priority, you’ve had worldwide impact. So have the same attitude about poverty.”

In recent years, Brown has agreed to expand childcare programs, Medi-Cal coverage for children regardless of immigration status and a state earned income tax credit for the working poor.

“His track record on issues of poverty, inequality and economic security adds up far better [over two terms] than it often looked in individual budget years,” said Chris Hoene, executive director of the nonprofit California Budget and Policy Center, which advocates for the working poor.

Looking beyond the one-year-at-a-time approach to state budgets may be an important legacy of the Brown administration. The governor pointed to recently adopted five-year plans as a way to get a better look at what’s over the horizon. “It gets people thinking about the inevitable consequences of the decisions in this budget,” he said.

It also may help break one of the more ignominious traditions of California governors: leaving a fiscal mess for the next person to clean up. It’s the kind of dilemma his father, the late Edmund G. “Pat” Brown, left Ronald Reagan in 1967 and he left the late George Deukmejian in 1983.

“The story is one of governors always hitting a wall and leaving a big, fat deficit,” he said. “I wanted to avoid that if I could.”

[email protected]

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LUKE LITTLER is a whisker away from becoming world No.1 for the first time.

The teen sensation battered Luke Humphries in Sunday’s World Grand Prix final to slash the buffer ‘Cool Hand’ enjoyed at the top of the PDC Order of Merit.

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Darts world rankings are determined by the amount of prize money a player has won in ranking tournaments over a rolling two-year period.

Littler was 16 years old and barely even on the radar two years ago.

He has racked up virtually all of his staggering £1,665,500 haul since bursting onto the scene at the 2024 World Darts Championship.

And that doesn’t even include the cash he’s banked at non-ranking events.

Humphries has been untouchable at the top of the standings for nigh on two years.

But the hiding he got from Littler in Leicester has cut the gap to just over £70,000.

Humphries will need a heroic effort to remain on top as he’s defending maximum winnings at the Grand Slam of Darts and the Players Championship Finals next month.

Josh Rock and Danny Noppert are two of the other big winners from the World Grand Prix.

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Rock, 24, is up from ninth to eighth in the world, having started the year 16th.

And Noppert has jumped from 13th to 10th after losing to Humphries in the semi-finals.

Damon Heta, Dave Chisnall and Peter Wright have all slipped further down the pecking order.

And there is more misery for 2023 world champion Michael Smith – who didn’t even qualify for the World Grand Prix – as he has dropped two places to 27th.

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WASHINGTON, Oct. 12 (UPI) — The Smithsonian museums and research centers, along with the National Zoo, closed to the public Sunday for the first time during the federal government shutdown and are likely to remain closed until Congress reaches an agreement over national funding.

Though the shutdown officially began Oct. 1, outside funds from donations and endowments allowed a brief extension. Now, its administrators said, the Smithsonian complex must cease public operations until a budget deal.

The closures affect what had been one of the most accessible forms of public education and sightseeing in the United States With 21 museums, 14 research centers and the National Zoo, the Smithsonian is the largest museum and research network in the world.

The absence of open museums cast a palpable gloom over the capital. Though the weekend brought rainy weather that may have suppressed tourism anyway, the lack of activity around the National Mall left the area unusually quiet.

Washington’s reputation as a destination for cultural visitors has long been tied to its museums, and their closure underscores how dependent the city is on federal operations and how vulnerable that model becomes in shutdowns.

Moreover, many district residents work at various Smithsonian complexes, and the shutdown means a majority of Smithsonian staff members have been furloughed. Some essential operations, like at the National Zoo, must continue for animal care, using existing reserves.

The 163-acre public zoo is home to more than 2,200 animals. The private Conservation Biology Institute is in Front Royal Va., 73 miles away. The two employ in total more than 300 staff members and scientists.

For residents and tourists, the museums and zoo had been a “free of cost” option for learning and cultural engagement.

Most of its museums cluster along or near the National Mall, with several other in the D.C. metro area and two facilities in New York City — also closed because of the shutdown.

The portfolio includes institutions devoted to natural history, air and space, African American history and culture, American art and many specialized fields.

In addition to public galleries and exhibitions, the Smithsonian operates research and education centers. These focus on areas like the cnservation Institute, tropical research Institute and conservation biology.

Sept. 29 (UPI) — Denmark will ban all civilian drones beginning Monday over safety concerns as Copenhagen prepares to host an EU summit on European defense.

Transport Minister Thomas Danielsen announced the airspace closure Sunday after a slew of incidents involving unidentified drones in recent weeks. The closure will be in effect from Monday to Friday.

He said the drones have created disruption and uncertainty in the country, particularly among the military and police. He said the closure of airspace to civilian drone use will allow law enforcement to focus on security for EU meetings Thursday and Friday.

The European Council is meeting informally Thursday to address general defense in Europe as well as the body’s support for Ukraine amid its war with Russia. A more formal summit of the European political community is expected to take place Friday.

Last week, Denmark’s defense minister, Troels Lund Poulson, said the recent drone sightings in Danish airspace likely weren’t by Russia though there has been a rise in Russian violations of allied airspace. He instead described them as “hybrid attacks,” meaning they were the result of different types of drones. Authorities believed they were launched from somewhere local.

The drone incidents have caused Denmark to at times shut down airports and the airspace around its largest military base.

During his speech Wednesday before the U.N. General Assembly in New York City, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned the international community that Russia’s advanced weaponry and defense technology is putting the entirety of Europe under threat. He cited Moscow’s use of drones and artificial intelligence.

“We are living through the most destructive arms race in human history,” Zelensky said.

European leaders, including Poulson, met on the sidelines of the U.N. general debate last week to discuss the establishment of a “drone wall” to prevent drone attacks — from Russia or otherwise. The system to detect and disable drones would create a virtual wall along eastern EU countries, including Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.

There have been other unidentified drone sightings in Lithuania, Poland and Romania.

Sept. 21 (UPI) — “Border czar” Tom Homan reportedly accepted a $50,000 cash bribe from undercover FBI agents posing as business contractors prior to Donald Trump‘s election as president in 2024.

According to a report from MSNBC, FBI agents recorded a conversation with Homan in which he allegedly promised to assist in securing government contracts for work in the border security industry if Trump were elected to a second term.

The report says the FBI and justice department intended to wait and see if Homan would follow through on his alleged promises if Trump were elected to a second term. However, an investigation into the matter was scuttled after Trump was elected, MSNBC reported. The administration recently closed it.

Homan called the report “bullshit” when asked about it by NewsNation.

Current FBI director Kash Patel and Todd Blanhce, the deputy attorney general, told MSNBC the allegations are baseless.

“This matter originated under the previous administration and was subjected to a full review by FBI agents and justice department prosecutors,” Patel said. “They found no credible evidence of any criminal wrongdoing.”

The cash payment was delivered inside a bag from the Cava fast food chain, The New York Times reported.

Justice Department officials closed the case, citing doubts of whether prosecutors would be able to prove that there had been any specific promises made in exchange for the money, and because he was not in any official position at the time of the money exchange.

Italy’s Filippo Ganna won a shortened individual time trial on stage 18 of the Vuelta a Espana as Britain’s Tom Pidcock retained his third place in the overall standings.

UAE Team Emirates-XRG’s Joao Almeida, who is second in the general classification, took 10 seconds off the advantage of overall race leader Jonas Vingegaard.

The stage was reduced from 27.2km to 12.2km to ensure “greater protection” for riders because of security concerns resulting from a series of pro-Palestinian protests during the three-week race.

Police numbers were also ramped up, with hundreds of protestors waving flags along the route and whistling riders from Israel-Premier Tech.

And French news agency AFP reported that two protestors were detained for trying to jump over barriers.

Two-time world time trial champion Ganna, 29, lived up to his billing as the favourite, with the Ineos Grenadiers rider edging out Australian Jay Vine by a second in Valladolid.

“Obviously, with the news of the change in the parcours [route] last night it was a bit strange, but I tried to do the best today,” said Ganna, who was 10 seconds quicker than anyone else over the final four kilometres.

“The first part I didn’t find the correct rhythm and in the final I tried to push over without thinking of the numbers. I am really happy for today.”

While Ganna’s fast finish ensured he pipped Vine, all eyes were focused on the battle at the top of the general classification.

Almeida finished strongly to put time into Visma-Lease A Bike’s Vingegaard and the Portuguese rider now sits 40 seconds behind the Dane with two competitive stages of racing remaining.

Q36.5 Pro Cycling’s Pidcock finished 29 seconds behind Ganna but managed to extend his advantage over Australian Jai Hindley in the battle for the final podium spot by three seconds.

With a relatively flat 161.9km run from Rueda to Guijuelo scheduled for Friday, it raises the prospect of a huge day in the mountains on Saturday’s penultimate stage with a summit finish on the Bola del Mundo.

Torrid Holdings(CURV 0.21%) reported second quarter 2025 results on Aug. 4, 2025, with net sales of $262.8 million and adjusted EBITDA of $21.5 million, in line with internal expectations but reflecting a 6.9% year-over-year comparable sales decline. Management highlighted a strategic pivot toward digital-led growth, accelerated store closures, increased marketing investment, and rapid expansion of higher-margin sub-brands, while navigating tariff headwinds and maintaining liquidity for capital returns. The following insights detail the most significant strategic and financial developments from the call.

Store closures accelerate Torrid Holdings’ digital transition

During the second quarter, the company closed 57 underperforming stores and remains on track to close approximately 180 locations in fiscal 2025, with digital sales now nearing 70% of total demand. This store rationalization is designed to concentrate resources on more profitable digital and omni-channel operations, while a revamped retention strategy aims to preserve customer relationships as the physical footprint shrinks.

“With digital sales approaching 70% of total demand, we are executing a comprehensive realignment that capitalizes on this fundamental shift while strengthening customer relationships across all touch points. To that end, we have been closely tracking customer retention throughout the course of our store closures, and the results remain in line with our objectives. Our target is to retain at least 60% of customers, consistent with historical performance following closures. Encouragingly, retention trends from the 2025 closures are outperforming fiscal 2024 with a greater share of customers migrating to our online platform.”
— Lisa Harper, Chief Executive Officer

This digital migration, coupled with stable customer retention, demonstrates the company’s ability to adapt its business model and maintain engagement despite a shrinking store base.

Sub-brands drive margin expansion and growth for Torrid Holdings

Sub-brand penetration is expected to double in the third quarter and reach 25%-30% of the assortment in fiscal 2026, already delivering “hundreds of basis points” higher product margins than legacy categories. Large-scale refixturing—135 stores year to date—has enabled expanded in-store sub-brand presence, and launches have shown positive halo effects on core denim and intimates.

“we’re still very happy with the margin profile that we’re seeing in sub-brands. And it’s delivering hundreds of basis points higher in product margins than the bulk of the business. And we’re seeing that consistently perform as we roll out more and more deliveries of these. I think there are a few ways that we contemplate expansion past 2026 in this business, whether there are — and we’ll test some of these ideas next year, whether there are stores that we convert to more of a focus on sub-brands.”
— Lisa Harper, Chief Executive Officer

The incremental margin from sub-brands enables reinvestment in scale initiatives and supports the company’s goal of 150-250 basis points of adjusted EBITDA margin expansion in fiscal 2026, even as marketing spend rises.

Capital allocation shifts prioritize shareholder returns and debt reduction

The company repurchased approximately 6 million shares at $3.50 per share using $20 million in cash as part of its $100 million buyback authorization, reducing the remaining authorization to approximately $45 million. Total liquidity, including available borrowing, stood at $111.7 million, and the company proactively extended its asset-based loan (ABL) maturity to 2030.

“We currently have an active $100 million authorization for share repurchase, of which we have approximately $45 million remaining. We also intend to deploy free cash flow to further reduce our debt, fortifying our balance sheet for long-term financial flexibility. At the same time, we remain committed to investing selectively in initiatives that drive profitable growth and improve customer retention, ensuring that our capital decisions not only provide immediate returns, but also strengthen the foundation for future growth.”
— Lisa Harper, Chief Executive Officer

Simultaneous share buybacks and debt reduction, even during a period of EBITDA and net income compression, signal management’s confidence in future cash generation and intrinsic equity value.

Looking Ahead

Management revised fiscal 2025 guidance to net sales of $1.015 billion to $1.030 billion and adjusted EBITDA of $80 million to $90 million, reflecting increased tariffs and a $5 million boost in digital marketing spend, now forecast at 6% of sales. The company is targeting 150-250 basis points of adjusted EBITDA margin expansion and substantial free cash flow uplift in fiscal 2026, driven primarily by store closures and sub-brand growth. Capital allocation priorities for 2026 are focused on further share repurchases and debt reduction, supported by ongoing inventory discipline, with year-end comparable inventories expected to decline by mid-to-high single digits year-over-year.

Turkiye’s top diplomat said his country has ‘completely’ cut off trade with Israel over its ongoing genocide.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said his country has completely severed economic and trade ties with Israel and has closed its airspace to its aircraft, in protest over the war in Gaza.

Speaking at an extraordinary session of the Turkish parliament on Gaza on Friday, Fidan said Israel has been “committing genocide in Gaza for the past two years, ignoring basic humanitarian values right before the world’s eyes”.

Turkiye cut off direct trade ties with Israel in May last year, demanding a permanent ceasefire and the immediate entry of humanitarian aid to Gaza. In 2023, the two countries carried out $7bn in trade.

Ankara has not minced its words about Israel’s war on Gaza, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan calling it a genocide – like many other world leaders and leading human rights organistions – and likening Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the leader of Nazi Germany, Adolf Hitler.

“We have completely cut off our trade with Israel. We do not allow Turkish ships to go to Israeli ports. We do not allow their planes to enter our airspace,” Fidan said.

The Turkish foreign minister’s condemnation comes amid years of increasingly tense relations between the two countries, said Al Jazeera’s Resul Serdar.

“It’s not only about the humanitarian crisis that’s unfolding in Gaza; Turkiye gradually is perceiving Israel as a national security threat,” Serdar explained, noting that Israel’s expansionism and attacks across the wider Middle East have been cause for concern.

In Syria particularly, Ankara has accused Israel of wilfully undermining the country’s recovery efforts after the devastation of a 14-year civil war and the removal of longtime leader Bashar al-Assad last December by a lightning rebel offensive.

“Diplomats in Ankara are seeing that if Israel is not stopped, eventually there might be a direct military confrontation between these two countries,” he said.

Serdar added that the Turkish foreign minister’s comments also show that Turkiye is looking to the Global South and other powers to take action, amid the United States’ and European Union’s largely unwavering support for Israel.

Turkish media reported last week that a ban on maritime traffic linked to Israel had been imposed, although there was no official statement. According to reports, Israeli vessels were banned from docking in Turkiye, and Turkish-flagged ships were not allowed to enter Israeli ports.

‘Like pariahs’

Meanwhile, Turkiye’s latest move is making “more and more Israelis feel the disadvantages of this kind of war that has no deadline”, said Akiva Eldar, an Israeli political analyst.

“Turkiye is not just another country that is deciding to cut its relationship with Israel. Turkiye has been an ally of Israel for many years, a very important market to Israeli goods,” Eldar told Al Jazeera, speaking from Kiryat Shmona, adding that it was also a favourite summer destination for many Israelis.

“We feel more and more … Israelis are feeling isolated and [like] pariahs. More and more countries and companies have decided to stop their business with Israel.”

Last November, Turkish authorities denied permission for Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s plane to enter Turkiye’s airspace for a trip to an international summit in Azerbaijan.

“As Turkiye, we have to take a stance on certain issues,” Erdogan later said when asked about the incident.

Israel and Turkiye’s relationship had soured as far back as 2010, following Israel’s deadly attack on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla, which killed 10 Turkish citizens.

More recently, a Turkish-American activist, Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, was killed by Israeli forces during a protest in the occupied West Bank in September 2024.

A MAJOR garage has closed down at the worst possible time – after thousands of drivers across the country were ordered to avoid using their cars as part of a huge recall.

A serious fault recently discovered in Citroen and DS3 vehicles has resulted in a nationwide safety notice.

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However, the sudden closure of Duff Morgan Citroen and Peugeot – a widely-used service centre in Norwich – has now left many vehicle owners in the lurch.

According to the Eastern Daily Press, the service centre and its Express Service, located on Whiffler Road, closed its doors several weeks ago.

And while the reason for the outlet’s closure has not been revealed, it does coincide with one of the largest car recalls the country has experienced so far this year.

The recall, first announced back in June, targets certain Citroen and DS3 vehicles due to potentially faulty airbags.

It has left thousands of UK drivers unable to use their cars, as Stellantis, the parent company of Citroen, issued an urgent “stop driving” alert.

The affected models include all Citroen C3 and DS3 vehicles manufactured between 2009 and 2016, as well as some DS3 models produced from 2016 to 2019.

Recently, the recall was also expanded to include C4, DS4 and DS5 models.

Reports suggest the expansion added roughly 9,968 UK cars to the total, meaning nearly 106,000 Citroen or DS vehicles in Britain are covered by the stop‑drive action.

The recall was prompted by concerns over airbags supplied by the now-defunct Japanese manufacturer Takata, whose components have been linked to fatal accidents.

In one incident, a driver in France was killed after a minor collision resulted in metal shrapnel from a faulty airbag hitting them – prompting an immediate reaction from the company.

Consumer protection organisation, Which?, has since slammed Stellantis for their “chaotic” handling of the recall and called on them to make urgent improvements.

Thousands of customers across the country have been left unable to drive their cars, with many having no alternative modes of transport, according to Which?.

No incidents are yet to be reported in the UK, but the consumer group has expressed its concern for the lack of clarity around available compensation for customers.

They outlined how “major upheaval” had been caused for customers who were reliant on their cars.

This has only been compounded for Norwich residents, as the closure of the Duff Morgan service centre means many have been unable to get repairs necessary for them to use their cars to access work, healthcare appointments or essential activities, such as taking their children to school.

Elderly individuals in rural areas have also experienced isolation due to the lack of transportation.

Many owners across the country have already complained of substantial delays in receiving necessary repairs, with garages struggling to source replacement airbags.

Sun Motors has contacted Duff Morgan for a comment, an explanation on why the site has closed, and which alternative locations frustrated car owners can take their cars for repairs.

Citroen & DS models affected by UK ‘stop drive’ action

• Citroen C3 (second gen) – built from 2009 to 2016
• Citroen DS3 – built from 2009 to 2016
• DS Automobiles DS3 – built from 2016 to 2019
• Citroen C4 – built from 2010 to 2018
• Citroen DS4 – built from 2010 and 2017
• Citroen DS5 – built from 2010 to 2018

The Pierce College cross-country course in Woodland Hills, used by thousands of runners since the 1960s, has been closed and will be unavailable to host the City Section finals and other high school meets this fall.

At a meeting last week attended by officials from the City Section and West Valley Eagles youth organization, Pierce College officials informed them that a new grass soccer field will be constructed in the area where races have previously started and which was also used as a warm-up area for runners.

Officials also told Jack Dawson of the Eagles and City Section commissioner Vicky Lagos they would revamp the whole course. They have already smoothed out path areas on the hilly course and fixed fencing.

A water truck and construction materials were seen in the area of the flat surface on Wednesday. Few people were made aware a soccer field would be built on a much beloved area used by runners. The school has a men’s and women’s soccer team. A school security officer said he was unaware of the plans, and he would be directly affected since security is hired weekly whenever a high school meet is held.

Dawson said, “The course is going to be beautiful. It’s, how are we going to use it?”

Either revisions have to be done on the soccer field or a new starting point for races has to be created.

Dawson and Lagos said they were informed that there would be no permits issued this year for the course. High schools that previously used the course are scrambling to find alternatives.

Monroe coach Leo Hernandez said his league is investigating using Woodley Park in the Sepulveda Basin as a possible replacement. Birmingham High once set up a course on its campus when Pierce College was unavailable because of heavy rains and could be used by the City Section for the finals.

Pierce College is also being used as a site to take in large animals during wildfires, so developing another course on campus this year is unlikely considering the uncertainty of the weather this fall.

Aug. 10 (UPI) — Rescue workers and emergency crews are responding to life-threatening flash flooding in the wake of record rainfall in Wisconsin, and more rain is in the forecast for Sunday night, officials said.

Officials were forced to close the Wisconsin State Fair early as nearly 8 inches of rain soaked Milwaukee and surrounding areas overnight Saturday, according to the National Weather Service, a record for two-day rainfall, prompting flood alerts and a disaster declaration.

Local officials reported even more rain than the official totals reported by the NWS. Milwaukee mayor Cavalier Johnson said some parts of the city had received as much as a foot of rain.

Fair organizers canceled a concert by Lynyrd Skynyrd on Saturday night and closed the fairgrounds early as rain continued to soak the area and severe weather created dangerous conditions for fairgoers.

The 11-day fair remained closed Sunday, the final day of the annual event, and social media posts showed cars partially submerged as attendees scrambled to leave the event.

Parts of Wauwatosa, just north of Milwaukee, was especially hard hit and many parts of the town remained under water Sunday morning, WISN reported.

Along the Menomonee River, police used loudspeakers and word of mouth to inform people that a popular sports complex was closed, and asked visitors to leave.

There were widespread road closures and power outages as a result of the severe weather, but as of Sunday afternoon, no weather-related deaths or serious injuries had been reported.

Firefighters responded to at least 614 emergency calls between 8 p.m. Saturday and 7 a.m. Sunday, the Milwaukee Fire Department reported.

Aug. 8 (UPI) — Skydance Media and Paramount Global have completed their merger, creating a new media conglomerate and ending months of turmoil over the deal that has drawn allegations of corruption directed at the Trump administration.

The new company — Paramount, a Skydance Corporation — began trading on the Nasdaq under the ticket symbol PSKY on Thursday, the day the merger completed.

“Today marks an exciting and pivotal moment as we prepare to bring Paramount’s legacy as a Hollywood institution into the future of entertainment,” David Ellison, CEO and chairman of Paramount, a Skydance Corporation, said in a statement.

“It is truly an honor and a privilege to help lead this iconic brand into its next chapter.”

Skydance announced the deal in July of last year, but the merger was hung up as President Donald Trump sparred with CBS News, a Paramount Global subsidiary.

Trump sued CBS News during his re-election campaign for $10 billion over the editing of a 60 Minutes interview with his political opponent, Democrat Kamala Harris. He later upped the damages to $20 billion after winning re-election.

Despite many saying it was litigation that was “meritless” and that Trump wouldn’t win, Paramount Global reached a $16 million settlement with Trump last month. The president then said Skydance has pledged $20 million more in advertising, PSAs and other programming, for a total of $36 million.

The deal attracted allegations from Democrats and critics that it was a bribe and an attack on free speech.

After the settlement was reached, the FCC voted 2-1 in favor of the merger, with the commissioners stating that Skydance has made several assurances to the Trump administration over content and that it will not establish any diversity, equity and inclusion policies — an ideology that seeks to create inclusion environments that the far-right president has been seeking to remove from both public and private sectors on the grounds of alleged discrimination.

Commissioner Anna Gomez, who assumed office under the Biden administration, lambasted the merger in a warning that it will not be the last time Trump threatens the First Amendment.

In a statement Thursday, she said the completion of the Skydance-Paramount merger marks the final chapter “of a dark moment in our nation’s history.”

She said the new company is “born in shame” for trading away First Amendment principles for profit, while agreeing to “never-before-seen forms of government control over newsroom decisions and editorial judgement.”

A so-called government-approved “truth arbiter” will be at CBS, with the role of ensuring journalists “do not criticize this administration or express views that conflict with its agenda,” she said.

“Sadly, this will not be the end of this administration’s campaign of intervention in media to silence critics, gain favorable coverage and impose ideological conformity on newsrooms that should remain independent,” she said.

“With longstanding institutions like CBS compromised in this way, it will be up to us — as citizens — to hold this administration accountable for its abuses.”

The announcement also comes as Trump has targeted public broadcasting.

In May, he signed an executive order to halt funding to PBS and NPR, while calling the public news broadcasters “biased.”

Aug. 2 (UPI) — Thousands of frozen hot dogs spilled across Interstate-83 in Pennsylvania, closing the busy highway in both directions after a multi-vehicle collision.

State police and four separate fire departments responded to the crash this week at an exit in Shrewsbury, Pa., the Shrewsbury Volunteer Fire Company confirmed on Facebook.

The collision occurred around 9:10 a.m. EDT and the highway was later re-opened around 3:45 p.m.

Shrewsbury is a borough in York County, located in south-central Pennsylvania.

Four people were taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries, while several sections of the highway were damaged as a result of the collision that involved a tractor-trailer truck and two other vehicles.

The Pennsylvania State Police confirmed they are now investigating what led up to the crash.

The closure stretched for four miles along the interstate, between exits 4 and 8.

“We all came to a dead stop and I was wondering what was going on. Then I saw some emergency vehicles…and hot dogs all over the road,” witness Jake Sitcosky told WPMT-TV.

Cleanup efforts were hampered by the amount of grease left on the pavement.

Local media showed photos of destroyed cardboard boxes and hotdogs littering the road.

In the late 1990s, Paula Deen was an independent restaurateur whose family-operated restaurant had just received a glowing review from USA Today. Her life and career were permanently changed.

Now, over 25 years later, the Georgia native has announced the closing of the Lady and Sons — the iconic restaurant that made her a star of Southern cuisine and a household name in the cooking world.

Opened in downtown Savannah, Ga., in 1996, the Lady and Sons boasted a menu of local classics like fried green tomatoes, banana pudding and hoecakes. The signature dish, Southern fried chicken, was enough to draw lines wrapping around the block — and the restaurant came to be viewed as an embodiment of the indulgent and buttery flavors that characterize Southern cooking.

“There in Savannah, Paula Deen’s homestyle Southern menu at the Lady and Sons turned me into a ravenous beast, unmindful of manners, cholesterol, North-South diplomacy and the dropped jaws of my companions,” USA Today, then the nation’s most-read daily newspaper, wrote on Dec. 17, 1999.

Earlier that year, the popularity of the Lady and Sons caught the attention of Food Network journalist Gordon Elliott. Deen appeared on Elliott’s short-lived show “Door Knock Dinners” that led to her own Daytime Emmy-winning Food Network program, “Paula’s Home Cooking.”

On her website and social media accounts, Deen bid farewell to the Lady and Sons and its longtime fans. Also closing is her newer restaurant, the Chicken Box, which opened in 2023.

“Hey, y’all, my sons and I made the heartfelt decision that Thursday, July 31st, was the last day of service for The Lady & Sons and The Chicken Box,” Deen said in the statement. “We will now focus our attention on the four Paula Deen’s Family Kitchen locations across the country.”

The announcement came without warning, especially as the restaurant continued to draw tours and lines of customers. Three weeks prior to the announcement, the Lady and Sons posted on Instagram that it was hiring for all positions.

Over the years, some of Deen’s other restaurants have also closed suddenly. In 2014, employees at Uncle Bubba’s Seafood and Oyster House — a Savannah eatery she co-owned with her brother, Earl W. “Bubba” Hiers Jr. — reportedly arrived to work to find the doors locked and the appliances removed. A sign on the door said, “Thank you for 10 great years. Uncle Bubba’s is now closed.”

The Panama City, Fla., location of Paula Deen’s Family Kitchen also closed abruptly in 2019, laying off 30 employees without advance notice. Several former employees told local news channel WJHG that they were left without their main source of income following the closure.

Uncle Bubba’s closure came a year after controversy began to surround Deen after a former manager at the restaurant sued Hiers, alleging sexual and racial discrimination.

Food Network canceled “Paula’s Home Cooking” after Deen admitted to using a racial slur during a deposition for the 2013 lawsuit. Lawyers asked Deen if she had ever used the N-word, to which Deen replied, “Yes, of course,” later adding, “It’s been a very long time.”

Since then, the 78-year-old has focused on her restaurants.

The Lady and Sons, as her core establishment, was the result of a litany of personal struggles and ambition. Both of her parents passed away when she was in her early 20s and Deen, then a young mother, struggled with depression and agoraphobia, or fear of going outside.

With only $200 left, Deen founded a catering company out of her kitchen called the Bag Lady. Her handmade bag lunches were delivered by her sons Jamie and Bobby and earned Deen a local reputation for her homestyle cooking. After one attempt at a restaurant, the Lady in 1991, the follow-up, the Lady and Sons, co-owned with Jamie and Bobby, would be her success.

PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland — The rain pounded Royal Portrush right when Scottie Scheffler poured in a birdie putt on his first hole Friday in the British Open. No matter. Nothing stopped the world’s No. 1 player on his way to a seven-under 64 to build a one-shot lead going into the weekend.

Scheffler made eight birdies on another wild afternoon of weather at Royal Portrush, and his 15-foot birdie attempt on the 18th stopped inches short for another.

The result was a one-shot lead over former U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick, who made four straight birdies to start the back nine until he cooled on the home stretch and had to settle for a 66.

The rain was heavy at times but never lasted long. The wind was breezy but never at strength that can cause fits. The scoring was lower, nearly two shots easier than the opening round.

Except for a few chasers, Scheffler made it look like it wasn’t enough.

He was at 10-under 132 as he chases the third leg of the career Grand Slam, having won the PGA Championship by five shots in May.

Brian Harman got the best of the weather — surprising sunshine — and took dead aim in his hunt for another claret jug. Harman played bogey-free for a 64 that left him only two shots behind, along with Li Haotong of China, who had a 67.

Everyone else was five shots behind or more.

That includes Rory McIlroy, who went around Royal Portrush in his native Northern Ireland with plenty of cheers but only a few roars. McIlroy had a 69 but lost a lot of ground because of Scheffler, Fitzpatrick and Harman.

He started the second round just three shots behind. He goes into the weekend seven shots behind the top-ranked player in the world.

Fitzpatrick was at his lowest point just four months ago when he changed his caddie and coach and began pulling himself up. And now he takes that into the weekend against Scheffler.

“He’s going to have the expectation to go out and dominate. He’s an exceptional player. He’s world No. 1, and we’re seeing Tiger-like stuff,” Fitzpatrick said. “I think the pressure is for him to win the golf tournament. For me, obviously I hope I’m going to have some more home support than him, but it’s an exciting position for me to be in given where I was earlier this year.”

Fitzpatrick was rolling along until a pair of short putts he missed, from five feet for par on the 14th and from three feet for birdie on the 17th. Even so, he holed a 25-foot par putt on the final hole and assured him being in the last group at nine-under 133.

Scheffler was sharp from the start. He hit eight of the 14 fairways — compared with three in the opening round — though his misses never left him too badly out of position. But he is seeing the breaks on smoother Portrush greens, and he looks confident as ever.

None of his eight birdies were closer than seven feet. Five of them were in the 10-foot range and then he threw in a 35-foot birdie on the sixth. His lone bogey came on a drive into deep grass on the 11th that kept him from reaching the green.

The statistics led to a shrug.

“Overall, I’m hitting the ball solid,” Scheffler said. “The tournament is only halfway done. I got off to a good start.”

Harman was called the “Butcher of Hoylake” when he won the claret jug at Royal Liverpool two years ago because the British media were fascinated by the Georgia native’s love for hunting. Now it’s about his golf, and it was superb.

Harman played bogey-free, only once having to stress for par as Royal Portrush allowed for some good scoring in weather that again did not live up to its expectation.

Not that anyone was complaining. Temperatures were warm, at least by Irish standards. The breeze was noticeable without being overly punishing.

“They’re very different golf courses, but the golf is similar,” Harman said. “You’ve got to be able to flight your golf ball. You’ve got to know how far everything’s going. Then you can’t get frustrated. You’re going to end up in funny spots where it doesn’t seem fair, and you just have to kind of outlast that stuff.”

The group at five-under 137 included Harris English (70), Harman’s former teammate at Georgia; Tyrrell Hatton of England (69) and Chris Gotterup (65), who wasn’t even planning to be at Royal Portrush until winning the Scottish Open last week.

Also still around is Bryson DeChambeau, who made a 13-shot improvement from the first round with a 65. Still, he was 11 shots behind.

McIlroy wasn’t at his best in the opening round and was pleased to be only three behind. Now he has a real mountain to climb. But at least he’s still playing, unlike in 2019 at Royal Portrush when he shot 79 and then had a terrific rally only to miss the cut by one shot.

“I didn’t have this opportunity six years ago, so to play an extra two days in this atmosphere in front of these crowds, I’m very excited for that,” McIlroy said. “I feel like my game’s definitely good enough to make a run.”

That was before Scheffler began to run away from so many except a small collection of challengers. But this is links golf. And this is the Emerald Isle, where the weather seems to have a mind of its own.

Still, Scheffler has gone 10 tournaments without finishing out of the top 10 and would appear to present a challenge every bit as daunting as Royal Portrush.

Ferguson writes for the Associated Press.

July 13 (UPI) — London Southend Airport in Essex said it is closed until further notice following a small plane crash on Sunday.

“All flights to and from the Airport have been canceled while Police, emergency services and air accident investigators are attending the incident,” the airport said in a statement.

Essex Police, Southend District, said in a statement that it received a report shortly before 4 p.m. BST of a collision involving a 39-foot aircraft at the airport, located about 45 miles east of London.

It was unclear if there were any casualties, but the East of England Ambulance Service said in a statement that four ambulances, four Hazardous Area Response Team vehicles, three senior paramedic cars, a rapid response and a Herts Air Ambulance were dispatched to the scene.

The circumstances surrounding the crash were also unclear.

“We are working closely with all at the scene, as well as the Air Accident Investigation Branch, to establish what has happened today and why,” Essex Police Chief Superintendent Morgan Cronin said in a statement.

“In these very early stages, it is vital we gather the information we need and continue supporting the people of Essex.”

London Southend Airport has described the crash as “a serious incident.”

David Burton-Sampson, Labour member of parliament for Southend West and Leigh, which includes the airport, said he is aware of the incident.

“Please keep away and all the emergency services to do their work,” he said in a statement on X. “My thoughts are with everyone involved.”

Scorching heat forces closure of the iconic site amid severe weather warnings and fire risks across the country.

Greece has shut the Acropolis and halted outdoor work across the country as a fierce heatwave scorches the region, pushing temperatures to above 40C (104F) and leading to fire alerts and severe weather warnings across the Balkans.

The Greek Ministry of Culture announced that the 2,500-year-old Acropolis site would remain closed until 5pm on Tuesday “for the safety of workers and visitors, owing to high temperatures”.

The landmark, perched above capital Athens with little natural shade, typically attracts tens of thousands of tourists each day.

This is Greece’s second severe heatwave since late June. Meteorologists expect temperatures to peak at 42C (107.6F) in some parts of the country, with Athens facing highs of 38C (100.4F). Similar conditions are forecast for Wednesday.

To protect labourers exposed to the sun, Greece’s Ministry of Labour has ordered a work pause from noon to 5pm in multiple regions, including popular islands. The restriction applies to outdoor jobs such as construction and food delivery.

“Days with a heatwave make my job more difficult,” 43-year-old courier Michalis Keskinidis told the AFP news agency. “We drink a lot of water, use electrolytes, and take breaks whenever possible.”

Heatwave across the Balkans

Last year, the Acropolis recorded 4.5 million visitors – up by more than 15 percent from the previous year – and authorities have been forced to close the site during previous heatwaves as well.

Fire danger remains a key concern. Civil protection officials have issued high-risk warnings for areas including greater Athens, central Greece and the Peloponnese. Greece’s fire service is already tackling up to 50 blazes daily, said senior fire officer Constantinos Tsigkas.

Elsewhere in the Balkans, extreme weather continues to batter neighbouring countries. In Serbia, meteorologists warned of elevated fire risks after 620 wildfires were reported on Monday. Simultaneously, parts of the country face threats of hail and hurricane-strength winds.

In Croatia, storms injured two people in Vinkovci when a power line collapsed onto a home. Strong winds and rain have flooded roads, knocked down trees and caused widespread power outages in Split, where a ferry broke loose and sank a tourist boat.

Hungary and Slovakia also suffered storm damage. In Budapest, wind speeds reached 137km/h (85mph), downing power lines and trees. The Hungarian Transport Ministry said rail services might take weeks to fully resume. In Slovakia, fierce winds tore roofs from buildings and disrupted transport across the east.

July 6 (UPI) — Tropical Storm Chantal dumped heavy rain on South Carolina early Sunday before weakening to a depression as it came ashore.

The third named storm of the year, Chantal came ashore near Litchfield, S.C., about 3 a.m. before being downgraded. The National Weather Service said the center of the storm was hard to determine as it began to diffuse after arriving onshore.

Winds peaked at 60 mph before coming ashore, the National Hurricane Center said. The storm had moved inland about 80 miles west of Wilmington, N.C., moving north at about 9 mph. Its sustained winds, however, had fallen off to about 35 mph.

Flash flooding remained a concern and prompted local areas to take precautions as forecasters predicted that as much as four inches of rain could drench the region into the day Monday.

“1-3 inches of rain has already fallen in isolated locations across Eastern NC,” the Newport/Morehead City office of the NWS said in a social media post. “Expect 1-1.5 additional inches through Monday, with locally higher amounts of 3+ possible. This could lead to localized flash flooding.”

Heavy rain forced the closure of some lanes of Interstate 95 as it moved inland, forcing travelers to take alternate routes to reach their destinations.

The storm prompted isolated tornado threats, but the storm was not expected to threaten North Carolina’s popular Outer Banks area. The risk is, however, high for a dangerous rip current across eastern North Carolina through Sunday night.

SACRAMENTO — California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed on Friday a budget that pares back a number of progressive priorities, including a landmark healthcare expansion for low-income adult immigrants without legal status, to close a $12-billion deficit.

It’s the third year in a row the nation’s most populous state has been forced to slash funding or stop some of the programs championed by Democratic leaders. Lawmakers passed the budget earlier in the day following an agreement of a $321-billion spending plan between Newsom and Democratic leaders.

But the whole budget will be void if lawmakers don’t send him legislation to make it easier to build housing by Monday.

The budget avoids some of the most devastating cuts to essential safety net programs, state leaders said. They mostly relied on using state savings, borrowing from special funds and delaying payments to plug the budget hole.

“It’s balanced, it maintains substantial reserves, and it’s focused on supporting Californians,” Newsom said in a statement about the budget.

California also faces potential federal cuts to healthcare programs and broad economic uncertainty that could force even deeper cuts. Newsom in May estimated that federal policies — including on tariffs and immigration enforcement — could reduce state tax revenue by $16 billion.

“We’ve had to make some tough decisions,” Senate President Pro Tempore Mike McGuire said Friday. “I know we’re not going to please everyone, but we’re doing this without any new taxes on everyday Californians.”

Republican lawmakers said they were left out of budget negotiations. They also criticized Democrats for not doing enough to address future deficits, which could range between $17 billion to $24 billion annually.

“We’re increasing borrowing, we’re taking away from the rainy day fund, and we’re not reducing our spending,” said Republican state Sen. Tony Strickland prior to the vote. “And this budget also does nothing about affordability in California.”

Here’s a look at spending in key areas:

Healthcare

Under the budget deal, California will stop enrolling new adult patients without legal status in its state-funded healthcare program for low-income people starting 2026. The state will also implement a $30 monthly premium July 2027 for immigrants remaining on the program, including some with legal status. The premiums would apply to adults under 60 years old.

The changes to the program, known as Medi-Cal, are a scaled-back version of Newsom’s proposal in May. Still, it’s a major blow to an ambitious program started last year to help the state inch closer to a goal of universal healthcare.

Democratic state Sen. María Elena Durazo broke with her party and voted “no” on the healthcare changes, calling them a betrayal of immigrant communities.

The deal also removes $78 million in funding for mental health phone lines, including a program that served 100,000 people annually. It will eliminate funding that helps pay for dental services for low-income people in 2026 and delay implementation of legislation requiring health insurance to cover fertility services by six months to 2026.

But lawmakers also successfully pushed back on several proposed cuts from Newsom that they called “draconian.”

The deal secures funding for a program providing in-home domestic and personal care services for some low-income residents and Californians with disabilities. It also avoids cuts to Planned Parenthood.

Environment

Lawmakers agreed to let the state tap $1 billion from its cap-and-trade program to fund state firefighting efforts. The cap-and-trade program is a market-based system aimed at reducing carbon emissions. Companies have to buy credits to pollute, and that money goes into a fund lawmakers are supposed to tap for climate-related spending.

Newsom wanted to reauthorize the program through 2045, with a guarantee that $1 billion would annually go to the state’s long-delayed high-speed rail project. The budget doesn’t make that commitment, as lawmakers wanted to hash out spending plans outside of the budget process. The rail project currently receives 25% of the cap-and-trade proceeds, which is roughly $1 billion annually depending on the year.

Legislative leaders also approved funding to help transition part-time firefighters into full-time positions. Many state firefighters only work nine months each year, which lawmakers said harms the state’s ability to prevent and fight wildfires. The deal includes $10 million to increase the daily wage for incarcerated firefighters, who earn $5.80 to $10.24 a day currently.

Public safety

The budget agreement will provide $80 million to help implement a tough-on-crime initiative voters overwhelmingly approved last year. The measure makes shoplifting a felony for repeat offenders, increases penalties for some drug charges and gives judges the authority to order people with multiple drug charges into treatment.

Most of the fund, $50 million, will help counties build more behavioral health beds. Probation officers will get $15 million for pretrial services and courts will receive $20 million to support increased caseloads.

Advocates of the measure — including sheriffs, district attorneys and probation officers — said that’s not enough money. Some have estimated it would take around $400 million for the first year of the program.

Other priorities

Newsom and lawmakers agreed to raise the state’s film tax credit from $330 million to $750 million annually to boost Hollywood. The program, a priority for Newsom, will start this year and expire in 2030.

The budget provides $10 million to help support immigration legal services, including deportation defense.

But cities and counties won’t see new funding to help them address homelessness next year, which local leaders said could lead to the loss of thousands of shelter beds.

The budget also doesn’t act on Newsom’s proposal to streamline a project to create a massive underground tunnel to reroute a big part of the state’s water supply.

Nguyễn writes for the Associated Press.