South Florida Local News

Today is Sunday, Oct. 13, the 287th day of 2024. There are 79 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Oct. 13, 2010, rescuers in Chile using a missile-like escape capsule pulled 33 men one by one to fresh air and freedom, 69 days after they were trapped in a collapsed mine 2,300 feet (700 meters) underground.

Also on this date:

In 1792, the cornerstone of the executive mansion, later known as the White House, was laid by President George Washington during a ceremony in the District of Columbia.

Related Articles

• National News | Today in History: October 12, Bali nightclub bombings kill more than 200
• National News | Boeing will lay off 10% of its employees as a strike by factory workers cripples airplane production
• National News | FACT FOCUS: A look at the false information around Hurricanes Helene and Milton
• National News | Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs to stay in jail while appeals court takes up bail fight
• National News | What’s behind the northern lights that dazzled the sky farther south than normal

In 1932, President Herbert Hoover and Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes laid the cornerstone for the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington.

In 1943, Italy declared war on Germany, its one-time Axis partner.

In 1960, the Pittsburgh Pirates won the World Series, defeating the New York Yankees in Game 7, 10-9, on a home run hit by Bill Mazeroski.

In 1972, a Uruguayan chartered flight carrying 45 people crashed in the Andes. In order to stay alive, survivors resorted to feeding off the remains of some of the dead until they were rescued more than two months later.

In 1999, in Boulder, Colorado, the JonBenet Ramsey grand jury was dismissed after 13 months of work with prosecutors saying there wasn’t enough evidence to charge anyone in the 6-year-old beauty queen’s slaying.

In 2011, Raj Rajaratnam (rahj rah-juh-RUHT’-nuhm), the hedge fund billionaire at the center of one of the biggest insider-trading cases in U.S. history, was sentenced by a federal judge in New York to 11 years behind bars.

In 2016, Bob Dylan was named winner of the Nobel prize in literature.

Today’s Birthdays:

• Gospel singer Shirley Caesar is 86.
• Singer-musician Paul Simon is 83.
• Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is 82.
• Singer-musician Sammy Hagar is 77.
• Model Beverly Johnson is 72.
• Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., is 66.
• Singer/TV personality Marie Osmond is 65.
• NBA coach Doc Rivers is 63.
• Actor T’Keyah Crystal Keymah (tuh-KEE’-ah KRYS’-tal kee-MAH’) is 62.
• Football Hall of Famer Jerry Rice is 62.
• Actor Matt Walsh is 59.
• Baseball Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman is 57.
• Actor Kate Walsh is 56.
• Actor Tisha Campbell is 56.
• Olympic silver medal figure skater Nancy Kerrigan is 55.
• Actor Sacha Baron Cohen is 53.
• Olympic gold medal swimmer and TV personality Summer Sanders is 52.
• Basketball Hall of Famer Paul Pierce is 47.
• Singer Ashanti is 44.
• Olympic gold medal swimmer Ian Thorpe is 42.
• Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., is 35.
• Former first daughter Tiffany Trump is 31.
• “Stranger Things” actor Caleb McLaughlin is 23.

Florida coach Billy Napier touts “complementary football” as key to his winning formula.

But W’s rarely come easily for his Gators, even on an atypical night in Tennessee when football’s three phases all showed up. With his offense, defense and special teams clicking on Rocky Top, Napier didn’t do his part during a soul-crushing 23-17 overtime loss to the No. 8 Vols.

Rather than go for the win and avoid overtime, Napier played it safely. With the chance to build a first-half cushion, his offense fell flat and provided hope to Tennessee.

UF failed twice with a yard or less to gain, including on the goal line when quarterback Graham Mertz fumbled.

“We had many opportunities to score points and left a ton of points out there,” Napier said.

Florida head coach Billy Napier walks the sideline during the Gators 23-17 overtime loss at Tennessee Oct. 12 at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

Coach Josh Heupel’s Vols (5-1, 2-1 SEC) eventually capitalized to keep alive their College Football Playoff hopes. The loss undercut Florida’s push for a winning season and Napier’s case to save his job.

Until Tennessee tailback Dylan Sampson’s third touchdown run secured the win, the Gators went toe to toe with a top 10 team with a sellout crowd of 101,915 against them.

Napier had his team, particularly UF’s embattled defense, prepared to compete as 15.5-point underdogs. Yet his repeated miscues derailed the effort and offered the latest example of Napier’s in-game struggles with play-calling, game management and overseeing the operation.

Consider the end of the first half when the Gators squandered three critical points after an illegal-substitution penalty left UF with 12 men on the field and negated Trey Smack’s 42-yard-field goal. Napier claimed an injured player failed to exit the game.

“The player that had been substituted on that unit did not come off (the field),” he said. “He stayed.”

The ensuing 10-second run-off ended the half, with the Gators leading 3-0, because Napier had used Florida’s final timeout moments earlier with the game clock stopped.

Four trips to the red-zone ultimately produced a single field goal for a UF squad entering Saturday third in the SEC with 78.95% touchdown rate (15 of 19) inside an opponent’s 20.

Florida quarterback Graham Mertz (15) is stopped and fumbled at the goal line facing 1st-and-goal during the first half of the Gators overtime 23-17 loss at Tennessee. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

Yet all could have been forgiven, if not forgotten, when true freshman quarterback DJ Lagway found Chimere Dike for a 27-yard touchdown with 29 seconds remaining. With a chance to win in regulation, the Gators initially lined up to attempt a 2-point conversion. But after a Tennessee timeout, Napier had Smack kick an extra point to tie the game.

“Wasn’t quite ready to do that at that point in time,” Napier said of his shift in thinking.

The Gators soon went backward to open overtime, forcing Smack to attempt a 47-yard field that drifted right.

The dispiriting loss left Napier and his players searching for positives.

“Definitely a tough one today,” said Dike, who finished with 133 all-purpose yards. “But you have two choices: You can either fold or you can respond and keep being better.”

The Gators might have to do it without Mertz and top rusher Montrell Johnson Jr.

After a 13-yard touchdown pass to Arlis Boardingham gave UF a 10-0 lead, Mertz side-stepped a pass rusher and immediately fell to the ground with a non-contact injury to his left leg. Four plays earlier, Johnson injured his left lower leg at the end of a 20-yard run and left the game with 85 yards on just 12 carries.

Florida quarterback Graham Mertz (15) runs for yardage during the Gators 23-17 overtime loss at Tennessee Oct. 12 in Knoxville. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

Lagway stepped in for Mertz after he’d suffered a concussion during the season opener against Miami and threw for 456 yards against Samford, a UF true freshman record. But at Tennessee, Lagway replaced Mertz, promptly threw an interception and finished 9 of 17 for 98 yards, though he did show resilience on the Dike touchdown.

The best news Saturday night for Florida was continued defensive improvement.

The Gators held Tennessee to 312 yards, more than 200 below its average (519), forced 2 turnovers after entering with just 4 in five games and had 3 sacks to give them 11 in three games after managing one combined during losses to Miami and Texas A&M.

“It was great for us to see the improvement week to week,” veteran linebacker Shemar James said. “It kind of starts in practice. It’s great to see the product get put on film.”

With Kentucky visiting the Swamp Saturday for homecoming, Napier will challenge the Gators to keep pushing.

“It’s the hardest part about it,” he said. “They played their tails off. You have to put yourself out there, with no guaranteed reward. It takes courage to do that.

“There’s an opportunity here for our team. I just really believe there’s something good on the other side of this.”

Edgar Thompson can be reached at egthompson@orlandosentinel.com

General Daily Insight for October 13, 2024

Hold on tight — today’s gonna be a bumpy ride! Mercury squares chaotic Pluto, so we can forget about focusing early on. Later, when Mercury leaps into intense Scorpio at 3:23 pm EDT, it may become easier to mentally ride the choppy waves that Pluto’s sending our way. Plus, once the Sun trines optimistic Jupiter, we can expect to be able to laugh at any earlier difficulties. A dose of luck may even make up for any earlier headaches. Let’s prioritize self-care after this storm.

Aries

March 21 – April 19

Social connections are changing, Aries — and that’s a good thing. In particular, you’re potentially taking your bond with someone to the next level. Whether they’re a personal or professional link, it’s unlikely that you’re going from being complete strangers to being close with somebody overnight. The more likely scenario is that they are someone that you have met before now, but simply hadn’t bonded with until recently. Let this comradery develop naturally by giving yourself time to contemplate this new path you’re walking together.

Taurus

April 20 – May 20

Common ground can be found with unexpected people. When you clash with someone once, you may not think that there would ever be a future friendship between the two of you. At least consider giving them a chance to reveal another side of their personality (as long as they do the same for you, of course). Once you find out that you’re not so different after all, you might find yourself developing a connection that wasn’t on your radar. Be open to changing your heart.

Gemini

May 21 – June 20

Something you once did for fun could become a part of your routine. This hobby likely serves two functions, such as hiking providing exercise and fun, or a crafting hobby becoming a side hustle if you choose to sell your results. It should be something you enjoy on its own that happens to be able to supplement your health or abundance. Don’t be afraid to seek out fresh activities, but your greatest successes will likely come from pursuits that you’re already interested in.

Cancer

June 21 – July 22

You are done playing it safe! You might have been holding back some ideas, but it’s time for you to externalize your ambitions and turn them into reality. This could require you to say something to someone that intimidates you, or it may compel you to bring in resources from other areas to increase support for these dreams. Step out from the shadows and take a chance on yourself. Be patient, but be confident — slowly but surely, results should begin manifesting.

Leo

July 23 – August 22

Your head should be making way for your heart to speak. You might have had your mind made up about a certain person in your life, but opportunities to change are around every corner. Even though it may not make sense on paper, your thoughts may return to this person often, asking you to give them another chance. This is not necessarily a romantic connection — it could be a friend or business partner. Follow your intuition and make sure you’re listening to your heart.

Virgo

August 23 – September 22

You’re giving yourself space to grow. You may have once been locked into a situation that was cramping your style, but today, you’re fully breaking free. You need room for your roots to spread out and create a foundation for yourself. Be careful — you might have to destroy old foundations to make way for healthier new ones. Anything or anyone who is keeping you locked into past negative habits needs to be especially scrutinized. Prioritize your ability to build a secure foundation for yourself.

Libra

September 23 – October 22

You’re turning the focus off of yourself. You may have had to single-mindedly pursue success lately, but now you’re capable of making more expansive, wiser choices for the future. Creating security is a focus for you, so making solid, substantial choices is the name of the game. While this may require some sacrifices, the long-term results should be incredibly rewarding. You could also have partners, either business or romantic, who need your attention. The more you work with solid people, the better.

Scorpio

October 23 – November 21

The blinders are coming off. You may have previously been happy to live in ignorance about a certain situation in your life, but you are realizing that it needs your attention at present. This could be something that you have been actively procrastinating, or maybe someone else has been asking you to take a look at it, but you were unaware of its true importance. Once your mind is finally clear, you can pay attention to anything that’s been asking for your attention.

Sagittarius

November 22 – December 21

A spiritual retreat could be in order. You may have been going through extra stress or frustration lately — you need a getaway! Perhaps this means going to another country or simply driving to the next city over to clear your mind. Whatever you do, don’t box yourself in right now. You might need freedom and a change of scenery as you work through the inner feelings that are concerning you at present. Make sure that you’re honoring your spiritual health.

Capricorn

December 22 – January 19

You might have recently finished up a big project or done a lot of overtime — regardless, you’re probably ready to have fun! As you spend beneficial quality time with your loved ones, don’t forget to keep your attention fully in the present. There are people who want to spend time with you, Capricorn! Spending all of your time thinking about work or practical matters is draining. You deserve to refuel yourself with some fun, so take time to spend with the people who make you happy.

Aquarius

January 20 – February 18

Healing isn’t a straight line. You might have believed that you’d put a difficult experience behind you, but something abruptly brings it up again. When it resurfaces, pay attention to how your instincts react to it, then make an effort to deal with it more wisely than before. The process could still be frustrating, but you deserve to feel good about yourself when you realize that you know healthier ways of handling your frustration and are putting them into action. Be proud of your growth.

Pisces

February 19 – March 20

Fish don’t have to swim in schools, you know. Perhaps you’ve typically worked on a team or been dependent on another person for your success — until now, when you’re finding your wings to fly solo. This may involve a work project, household DIYs, or the creation of secure routines that should lead you to success. Instead of letting the intimidating nature of working alone scare you off, consider this your opportunity to show the world all the amazing things you can do.

BOCA RATON — Chandler Morris threw two of his four touchdown passes to DT Sheffield in the final 2:38 to rally North Texas to a 41-37 victory over Florida Atlantic on Saturday night.

North Texas (5-1, 2-0 American Athletic Conference) trailed 37-27 when Morris capped an eight-play, 75-yard drive with an 8-yard scoring toss to Sheffield. North Texas got the ball back with 1:43 remaining and Morris hit Sheffield for a 3-yard touchdown at the end of a five-play drive for the lead. Shane Porter had a 34-yard run to set up a first-and-goal at the 5-yard line.

Morris completed 27 of 45 passes for 336 yards with one interception for the Mean Green. Sheffield finished with 11 catches for 126 yards.

Morris threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to Dalton Carnes for the game’s first score and connected with Nick Rempert for a 25-yard touchdown and a 14-7 lead after one quarter.

Cam Fancher followed a 14-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter to Omari Hayes with scoring tosses covering 28 yards to Wyatt Sullivan and five yards to Jabari Smith in the second. Morgan Suarez added two field goals and Florida Atlantic (2-4, 0-2) took a 27-17 lead into halftime. The Owls led 34-27 heading to the final quarter.

Fancher totaled 351 yards on 22-for-30 passing with one interception for FAU. CJ Campbell Jr. carried 18 times for 89 yards and a score.

 

Florida’s dominance over rival Tennessee was one thing the Gators have been able to count on, even during tough times.

With UF leading by 10 points in the second half, Saturday night at Neyland Stadium was going according to script for the Gators, winners of 17 of the previous 19 meetings. But an injury to quarterback Graham Mertz following a touchdown pass and too many miscues allowed the No. 8 Vols (5-1, 2-1 SEC) to rally for a 23-17 overtime win over Florida (3-3, 1-2).

A 1-yard touchdown run by tailback Dylan Sampson ended the Gators’ bid for an upset as 15.5-point underdogs and magnified the continued in-game struggles of embattled coach Billy Napier.

“It’s a punch in the gut,” he said.

With Mertz on crutches on the sideline with a brace on his left leg, true freshman DJ Lagway — his sidekick in the team’s two-QB rotation — overcame several shaky moments to tie the game in dramatic fashion, finding Chimere Dike for a 27-yard touchdown pass with 29 seconds remaining.

A Gators’ defensive stop with 2:31 remaining had forced a punt from the Tennessee 10. A 27-yard punt return by Dike to the Vols’ 31 positioned his team to tie.

Florida head coach Billy Napier dropped to 2-12 against ranked opponents during a 23-17 overtime loss at No. 8 Tennessee Oct. 12 at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)

UF’s previous five drives with Lagway featured an interception, turnover on downs and three punts, an inauspicious start to what could be a new era at quarterback for the Gators. But when Florida needed a play, the 19-year-old delivered.

Lagway stepped up in the pocket to avoid pressure before firing a strike to Dike, who found space in a zone among three Vols defenders.

“DJ obviously rose to the occasion,” Napier said.

A 13-yard touchdown pass from Mertz to tight end Arlis Boardingham with 7:18 to go during the third quarter appeared to provide some breathing room, given the way the Gators’ struggling defense had contained the SEC’s top scoring offense, a group averaging 46 points.

But the drive proved to be costly.

After he threw, Mertz side-stepped a pass rusher and immediately fell to the ground with a non-contact injury to his left leg. Four plays earlier, leading rusher Montrell Johnson Jr. injured his left lower leg at the end of a 20-yard run and left the game.

“We’ll give you some updates on that when we get to next week,” Napier said. “It was significant enough that he couldn’t complete the game. Montrell Johnson was in that category, as well.”

Florida quarterback Graham Mertz (15) dives for the goal as he’s hit by Tennessee defensive back Andre Turrentine (2) during the first half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024, in Knoxville, Tenn. Mertz fumbled on the play. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

With Mertz and Johnson out, the Gators could not keep pace with a Vols’ attack led by Sampson, whose 23-yard touchdown run with 9:42 gave Tennessee a 17-10 lead.

After Lagway’s excellent  touchdown strike to Dike,  the extra point forced overtime after a decision by Napier to not follow through on a 2-point attempt.

“We had a play that we felt good about, and then obviously they burned their timeout,” he said. “We felt from the 3 there we were playing pretty good on both sides of our team, so we thought, ‘Let’s go play overtime. Let’s go give our guys a chance to play some more plays.’

“Defensively, we kept ourself in it. Wasn’t quite ready to do that at that point in time.”

The Gators opened the extra period with the ball and took a first-down shot to score. But Lagway’s pass in the end zone to Dike was incomplete as two Vols defenders blanketed him. A false-start penalty by center Jake Slaughter and a 5-yard loss on a screen pass to true freshman tailback Jadan Baugh forced Florida to settle for a 47-yard field goal attempt by Trey Smack, who missed wide right.

Lagway completed his first four passes at Tennessee, giving him 15 straight in three games, but he finished 9 of 17 for 98 yards with a touchdown plus an interception on his first throw after he replaced the injured Mertz.

Florida running back Ja’Kobi Jackson (24) is tackled by Tennessee linebacker Arion Carter (7), defensive back Will Brooks (35), and defensive lineman Omarr Norman-Lott (55) during the Gators 23-17 overtime loss Oct. 12 in Knoxville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

Mertz’s status is yet to be determined, but the Gators host Kentucky Saturday for homecoming.

Whoever lines up Florida, better execution will be paramount.

The Gators squandered multiple first-half scoring opportunities that would have given them more of a cushion than a 3-0 advantage. But Florida managed just the 3 points on four red-zone trips during the game’s opening 30 minutes.

“We had a chance to really take control of the game in the first half, and we missed on those opportunities,” Napier said.

Edgar Thompson can be reached at egthompson@orlandosentinel.com

COACHELLA, Calif. — Both presidential campaigns agree that seven swing states are likely to determine the outcome of this year’s election. California, which has not voted for a Republican in a presidential race since 1988, is not one of them.

But that did not prevent former President Donald Trump from heading there anyway Saturday evening to hold a rally in Coachella, which is better known for its annual music festival with headliners like Lana Del Rey and Bad Bunny than it is for being a stop on a presidential campaign trail.

It was an unusual choice 24 days before the election. In 2020, Trump lost the state by more than 5 million votes to President Joe Biden. Four years earlier, Trump lost the state to Hillary Clinton, who got more than 60% of the vote. The last Republican to win the state was George H.W. Bush in 1988.

Although Trump is not expected to be competitive in California, the rally showed that he could turn out a crowd. Throngs of people at Calhoun Ranch, where it was held, braved the desert sun and temperatures that hovered near 100 degrees, with several attendees requiring medical attention for heat-related illnesses.

“I want to give a special hello to Coachella,” Trump told the crowd, before putting on a red Make America Great Again cap for protection from the desert sun.

Trump then spoke for about 80 minutes in a rambling speech. He criticized California, Vice President Kamala Harris’ home state, as an incubator of failed liberal policies; disparaged the physical appearance of Rep. Adam Schiff, who led the first impeachment trial of him and is now running for Senate; used a crude nickname to refer to the state’s governor, Gavin Newsom; and took a number of detours to praise billionaire Elon Musk and to criticize Biden.

It was Trump’s second foray into a blue state in two days. On Friday, he visited Aurora, Colorado, where he made a series of nativist attacks and promoted falsehoods about crimes committed by migrants in a state where Harris is safely ahead in polls. And word surfaced this past week that Trump was planning to hold a rally at Madison Square Garden, in New York City, on Oct. 27. That would be his third major campaign event in New York, a state that was once his home but is also solidly blue. He has already held rallies on Long Island and in the South Bronx this election cycle.

At his California rally, several speakers taunted Harris, who represented California in the Senate and served as its attorney general, for problems the state has faced. Trump called California a “paradise lost.”

Trump gave a shout-out to actor Dennis Quaid, who spoke at the rally.

Schiff’s Republican opponent in the Senate race, Steve Garvey, a perennial baseball All-Star for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres in the 1970s and 1980s, did not attend Trump’s rally, a campaign spokesperson said.

The spokesperson did not address remarks made by Trump last month saying that Garvey was making a “big mistake” by not embracing the MAGA movement.

The Desert Sun reported that Garvey would be out of the state at a symposium in Philadelphia for women in sports media.

Both Trump and his critics tried to use the iconography of his Coachella rally to energize voters. The former president posted a photo on social media of himself with palm trees and snow-peaked mountains that are synonymous with the desert oasis to show he was headlining Coachella. And the Lincoln Project, a prominent anti-Trump group, created its own “Trumpchella” social media post, resembling a music festival poster but with a lineup that included “Trump Federal Power Seizure” and “Trump Loyalists in All Federal Positions.”

Trump is no stranger to Coachella. His name once graced a casino just 5 miles from the site of Saturday’s rally as a part of a short-lived business partnership with a Native American tribe, which eventually bought him out while his company was going through bankruptcy.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

By JOHN WAWROW

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Jordan Greenway and Tage Thompson scored 41 seconds apart in the first period, and the Buffalo Sabres ended a season-opening three-game skid with a 5-2 win over the Florida Panthers on Saturday night.

Henri Jokiharju, Mattias Samuelsson and Alex Tuch, with an empty-netter, also scored for the Sabres, who combined for three goals in their first three outings. Lindy Ruff won his first game in his second stint as Sabres coach, 4,257 days after his last victory with Buffalo — a 4-2 decision over Boston on Feb. 15, 2013.

Sam Bennett and Nate Schmidt scored for the Panthers, who have lost two straight since a season-opening win over Boston.

Panthers goalie Spencer Knight stopped 22 shots in his first start since a 6-2 loss to St. Louis on Feb. 14, 2023. He then entered the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program to help manage an obsessive-compulsive disorder, and spent last season in the minors.

Takeaways

Panthers: The defending Stanley Cup champs lacked punch playing without captain Aleksander Barkov (lower body) and Matthew Tkachuk (illness). Knight has to be sharper, especially on Thompson’s go-ahead goal that beat him through the legs from 25 feet.

Key moment

Sabres goalie Devon Levi turned aside Sam Reinhart’s shot off a 4-on-2 break 32 seconds into the second period. Jokiharju put Buffalo up 3-1 66 seconds later.

Up next

The Panthers play the third of a four-game road trip at Boston on Monday at 1 p.m.

Today is Saturday, Oct. 12, the 286th day of 2024. There are 80 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Oct. 12, 2002, bombs blamed on al-Qaida-linked militants destroyed two nightclubs on the Indonesian island of Bali, killing 202 people, many of whom were foreign tourists.

Also on this date:

In 1492, Christopher Columbus’s first expedition made landfall on what is now San Salvador Island in the Bahamas.

Related Articles

• National News | Boeing will lay off 10% of its employees as a strike by factory workers cripples airplane production
• National News | FACT FOCUS: A look at the false information around Hurricanes Helene and Milton
• National News | Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs to stay in jail while appeals court takes up bail fight
• National News | What’s behind the northern lights that dazzled the sky farther south than normal
• National News | Ex-South Florida Democratic congressman endorses Donald Trump, saying he’s best for Israel

In 1870, General Robert E. Lee died in Lexington, Virginia, at age 63.

In 1960, Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev protested remarks at the United Nations by pounding his shoe on his desk.

In 1968, Mexican track and field athlete Enriqueta Basilio became the first woman to light the Olympic flame at the opening ceremonies of the Mexico City Summer Games.

In 1973, President Richard Nixon nominated House minority leader Gerald R. Ford of Michigan to succeed Spiro T. Agnew as vice president.

In 1984, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher escaped an attempt on her life when an Irish Republican Army bomb exploded at a hotel in Brighton, England, killing five people.

In 2000, 17 sailors were killed in a suicide bomb attack on the destroyer USS Cole in Yemen.

In 2019, Eliud Kipchoge became the first person to run a marathon in less than two hours, crossing the finish line of the INEOS 1:59 Challenge in Vienna, Austria, with a time of 1:59:40.

Today’s Birthdays:

• NASCAR Hall of Famer Ned Jarrett is 92.
• Singer Sam Moore (Sam and Dave) is 89.
• Broadcast journalist Chris Wallace is 77.
• Actor Hiroyuki Sanada is 64.
• Jazz musician Chris Botti (BOH’-tee) is 62.
• Actor Hugh Jackman is 56.
• Country musician Martie Maguire (The Chicks) is 55.
• Actor Kirk Cameron is 54.
• Olympic gold medal skier Bode Miller is 47.
• Actor Josh Hutcherson is 32.

By  LINLEY SANDERS and AMELIA THOMSON-DEVEAUX

WASHINGTON (AP) — Chances are, you have never been contacted for an election poll. But the dozens of high-quality election polls that will be released before Election Day, Nov. 5, represent a reasonable estimate of the opinions of all Americans.

The best pollsters do that by ensuring they can randomly select the group of people who respond. That means each household in the United States has an equal chance of being included. Pollsters cannot reach every single household or even come close, so they assemble a group of people with the same range of political affiliations, ages, genders, educational backgrounds and locations as Americans overall.

In other words: You may not have been contacted to participate in the latest poll by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research at the University of Chicago, but someone else who shares your background and outlook likely was.

High-quality pollsters select people randomly to take surveys

It is the concept of random selection that allows a relatively small group of survey participants to represent the country as a whole.

Related Articles

• National Politics | Will the polls be right in 2024? What polling on the presidential race can and can’t tell you
• National Politics | Are male voters reluctant to vote for a woman? Harris’ backers are confronting the question head on
• National Politics | Trump drives his anti-immigration message in Aurora, Colorado
• National Politics | Feeling stressed about the election? Here’s what some are doing and what they say you can do too
• National Politics | US House control teeters on the unlikely battleground of heavily Democratic California

Top-quality pollsters often start with lists of possible home addresses or telephone numbers, and then people are randomly selected from within that group. This is the kind of method that the AP uses in its polls conducted through the AP-NORC Center.

Some pollsters use a different technique, where anyone who wants to participate in their panel can join it. But with that approach, there is less certainty that the group of people responding to any given poll — a “sample,” pollsters call it — is randomly representative of a broader population.

If the initial sample does not look like the country as a whole, some views could be overrepresented or underrepresented, making it harder to accurately capture the attitudes of the entire U.S. population.

An individual’s chance of being selected to participate is low

Polls conducted by the AP through the AP-NORC Center use the AmeriSpeak panel, where households across the U.S. are randomly selected for the sample and then contacted to tell them about the panel. If the household agrees to participate, people complete an introduction survey that collects basic information and participate in polls between two times to three times each month.

For this kind of poll, the odds of being randomly selected to participate are extremely low. There are about 130 million households in the U.S., so to start with, each individual household has only the tiniest chance of being chosen. Even once a household has been selected to participate, there is a relatively small chance of being selected for the surveys that are conducted by media organizations such as the AP-NORC poll.

Pollsters make adjustments to make sure they’re reflecting the population as a whole

It is not a perfect system. Some groups are harder to reach or are less inclined to take surveys, such as nonwhite adults or people without a college education.

To correct for that, pollsters magnify the responses of people who are part of those underrepresented groups to make sure the population percentages in the survey reflect the overall population and they lower the impact of people who are part of groups that are more likely to take surveys.

This process is called “ weighting.” The goal is to make some responses count for more if their demographic characteristics are underrepresented in a survey and some count for less if people like them are overrepresented. To figure out which participants should get more weight and which should get less, pollsters use findings from the most accurate surveys out there, such as ones by the Census Bureau, to get a baseline for what the U.S. population actually looks like.

Even this extra step cannot ensure that the group of people who are being surveyed is fully representative. That is why all high-quality pollsters will tell you about the margin of sampling error, which helps you understand how much the response could vary.

Pollsters do not talk to every single person in the country, so the results have some amount of error. The margin of error is a reminder that each finding is not exactly precise. It also is a guide for understanding how big the range of responses could be.

By  LINLEY SANDERS and AMELIA THOMSON-DEVEAUX

WASHINGTON (AP) — The presidential race is competitive.

That’s about as much as the national polls can tell us right now, even if it looks like Democrat Kamala Harris is down in one poll or Republican Donald Trump is up in another.

And that’s just fine.

Even though polls are sometimes treated as projections, they aren’t designed to tell you who is likely to win.

Polls are better for some things than others. Tracking shifts in voter intention is hard to do with a survey, particularly when the number of truly persuadable voters is relatively small. Voters’ opinions can change before Election Day and they often do. Horse race polls can only capture people’s viewpoints during a single moment in time. Even then, a margin that looks like one that could decide an election — say, one candidate has 48% support and the other has 45% support — might not be a real difference at all.

When reporters at The Associated Press are covering the election, horse race polling numbers don’t take center stage. The reason for this is that the AP believes that focusing on preelection polling can overstate the significance or reliability of those numbers.

Election-year polls are still useful, particularly when they’re trying to assess how the public is feeling about the candidates or the state of the country. They told us quite clearly, for instance, that many Americans wanted Democratic President Joe Biden to drop out of the 2024 race. But they’re not the same thing as an election result, and even a poll conducted just before Election Day still reflects opinion before all ballots have been cast.

Even in high-quality polls, each finding is just an estimate

Polls are useful tools, but it’s important not to overstate their accuracy. After all, a polling organization can’t talk to every single person in the country. They instead rely on a sample to produce a statistically valid estimate of the views of all adults. Even though polls can give a reasonable approximation of the views of the larger group, the question is how much each finding could vary.

The margin of error, which all high-quality pollsters will share along with their results, helps capture some of that uncertainty. It means that in a poll with a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points, a finding that 47% of voters say they’ll support a particular candidate actually means that there’s a very good chance that anywhere between 50% and 44% of voters are supporting that candidate. If the other candidate has 45% support, which could really be anywhere from 42% to 48%, the 2 percentage point difference isn’t statistically meaningful.

That’s why the AP will only say a candidate is leading if that candidate is ahead by more than twice the margin of error.

When you’re looking at a subgroup, rather than a national sample, the potential error is even larger. The fewer people interviewed, the larger the margin of error. This means that state-level polls or polls that measure the views of a subgroup such as women, men, Hispanic Americans or Black Americans are subject to even more error than a national finding.

The margin of sampling error is not the only source of survey error. It is simply the only one that can be quantified using established statistical methods. But there are other factors, too. The wording and order of questions can affect how people answer. An interviewer’s skill can have an effect. Even in high-quality polls, some respondents may be less likely to answer, which means their views can be underrepresented.

Don’t forget about the Electoral College

National polls measure how voters all over the country are thinking about the election. But that’s not how we elect presidents.

Related Articles

• National Politics | How a poll can represent your opinion even if you weren’t contacted for it
• National Politics | Are male voters reluctant to vote for a woman? Harris’ backers are confronting the question head on
• National Politics | Trump drives his anti-immigration message in Aurora, Colorado
• National Politics | Feeling stressed about the election? Here’s what some are doing and what they say you can do too
• National Politics | US House control teeters on the unlikely battleground of heavily Democratic California

The Electoral College system means that presidential elections are functionally decided by a small number of states. So in some ways, looking at polls of those states is a better way to assess the state of the race.

But state-level polls introduce their own challenges. They’re not conducted as frequently as national polls and some states get polled more often than others. Also, the number of people surveyed for state polls is often smaller than for national polls, which means the margin of error is broader.

What about polling averages?

Some media outlets or organizations publish polling averages or aggregates that combine the results of multiple polls into a single estimate. There are some organizations that create polling averages or models during elections that attempt to determine which candidate is leading in overall polls.

But averaging poll results does not eliminate polling error and it can introduce additional problems. Polling averages contain their own methodological decisions, such as which polls are included or receive greater weight. Some of them also include other factors such as the state of the economy to turn those estimates into forecasts.

In election polling, survey averages can provide a general sense of the state of a race. But it’s also important to not overstate the accuracy of an average or expect it to be a crystal ball into the election outcome. Sometimes the individual results of multiple different polls can provide a better sense of the potential array of outcomes than an average boiled down to a single number.

MIAMI — Chaminade-Madonna football coach Dameon Jones likened Friday night’s come-from-behind 29-22 victory over St. Thomas Aquinas to David beating Goliath.

“We’re just a small school out of Hollywood trying to make some noise,” beamed Jones, as No. 29-nationally-ranked Chaminade-Madonna downed the No. 9-ranked Raiders at Pitbull Stadium on the FIU campus.

St. Thomas Aquinas (6-2) is a state-record-holding five-time defending state champion. The loss snapped a six-game win streak. It also was the Lions’ sixth consecutive victory after starting the year 0-2, falling to two other nationally ranked squads. It was also the first time the state powerhouses faced each other in 43 years.

Chance Washington (21) of St. Thomas breaks free for a first down during the first half against Chaminade-Madonna at Pitbull Stadium on the FIU Campus, Friday, Oct. 11, 2024 (Jim Rassol/Contributor).

Chaminade-Madonna, winner of three straight state titles itself, snapped a 22-22 deadlock on a 3-yard scoring run by senior running back and Middle Tennessee State commit Camari Hall with 6:35 left in the game to put the Lions up for good at 29-22. Hall totaled 95 yards on seven carries.

“I had to step up tonight and play football,” Hall said. “I just did what I was taught all week in practice and dominated. There was a lot of talk this week and people doubting us. As soon as I got the ball tonight, I said it was game time.

“This was very big,” Hall added. “It was for the alumni. It was the biggest game I ever played. Last year was my first year playing running back at Chaminade after playing at McArthur. This is way different…a way different atmosphere.”

It was the first meeting between the two teams since 1981, when St. Thomas won 71-7. The last time Chaminade topped the Raiders was 14-7 in 1976. Chaminade leads the series 8-4.

Chaminade-Madonna head coach Dameon Jones directs his players during the first half against St. Thomas Aquinas at Pitbull Stadium on the FIU Campus, Friday, Oct. 11, 2024 (Jim Rassol/Contributor).

St. Thomas Aquinas was driving for a potential tying score and was facing a fourth-and-6 at the Chaminade 42-yard line with 3:54 remaining in the game, however, the Raiders were whistled for back-to-back delay of game penalties that forced a punt.

Chaminade-Madonna got the ball on its 8 and senior running back Jaquari Lewis ran out the clock gaining 40 yards on five carries out of the Wildcat.

“It comes down to execution and one or two plays can decide it, especially when you are playing a team that is extremely talented and motivated,” St. Thomas Aquinas coach Roger Harriott lamented. “When you go through adversity, you hope the young men realize that although this is really difficult, it doesn’t define you. Our goal is to win a championship, and we will continue to keep our eyes on that prize.”

The loss was the first by the Raiders against a Broward County team since a 17-10 setback to Cardinal Gibbons on Oct. 23, 2020, during the Covid years.

“I’m in agreeance with everybody that the top teams need to play each other,” added Jones, whose team handed the Raiders only its second loss against a Broward school in two decades. “We did it on both sides of the ball and these are the games that need to be played. The best need to play the best.”

St. Thomas Aquinas head coach Roger Harriott looks on late in the game against Chaminade-Madonna at Pitbull Stadium on the FIU Campus, Friday, Oct. 11, 2024 (Jim Rassol/Contributor).

“Our whole schedule preps us for the postseason,” Jones said. “Every game is one hard game after another. We just slayed the giant, man. It was a great game and a tough-fought battle. The kids stepped up and my coaches did a wonderful job.”

It has been a quarterback carousel for the Lions this season, they had Zach Katz the first week and he was replaced by Tyler Chance, who was injured and relieved then by Trinity Ocala transfer Preston Wright, who stepped in and started two games before going out with an arm injury two weeks ago. They played out of the Wildcat, rotating running backs last week in a win over Monarch.

“That’s what we had to do, we had no choice,” Jones said. “I never had to go through this before at quarterback. Everyone was stoked for the game.”

Bekkem Kritza started his first game for the Lions and said he didn’t have a problem picking up the system. Kritza, a 6-foot-6 senior QB and Penn State commit, was 28 for 43 for 324 yards and three TDs in four games for Miami Central before he transferred to Chaminade-Madonna last week.

“This is a life-changing experience for me,” Kritza said. “Central showed me a lot of things and I am grateful for the coaches over there. I’m excited to be a Lion. They brought me in like family. I am super blessed.

“I’m a smart guy and didn’t take me long to learn the playbook,” he continued. “I stayed in the film room and drew up plays in my backyard every day. I didn’t feel any pressure learning the plays because I have played in almost every offense. Everything looks the same, it’s just a different language.”

St. Thomas Aquinas grabbed an 8-0 lead when Jermiyah Douglas blocked a 25-yard field goal attempt by Noah Sidan and teammate Justice Fitzpatrick returned it 80 yards for the score. Crissy Finn, the holder on the PAT, ran in a two-point conversion with 7:26 left in the first half.

Chaminade-Madonna took the next play and went 72 yards as Derrek Cooper ran away from the Raiders’ defense for the touchdown just 19 seconds later.

The Lions got on the board on its ensuing series as they went 54 yards in six plays thanks to the arm of Kritza. He completed five consecutive passes in the drive for 31 yards, the last being a 2-yard toss to senior wideout Kyle Washington. Sidan added the extra point for a 15-8 lead. Kritza was 15 of 22 for 106 yards in the first half and finished 17 for 24 for 109 yards as the Lions turned to its running game in the second half.

Bekkem Kritza (11) of Chaminade-Madonna drops back to pass against St. Thomas Aquinas during the first half at Pitbull Stadium on the FIU Campus, Friday, Oct. 11, 2024 (Jim Rassol/Contributor).

St. Thomas Aquinas equalized when Chance Washington scored on a 3-yard run up making it a 15-15 game at halftime.

The Raiders then took the opening drive of the second half and marched 80 yards in five plays, capped by Andrew Indorf’s 25-yard scoring pass to Ah’Mari Stevens to take a 22-15 lead. Indorf closed out the game 14 for 30 for 134 yards with one TD and one interception.

Chaminade-Madonna (6-2) tied it at 22-22 with 53 seconds left in the third when Cooper polished off a 6-play, 88-yard drive with a 7-yard scoring run, his second of the game.

“It was one of those battles that we expected,” Harriott said. “They are a good team, and both (teams) gave a great effort. When it came down to it, they were able to capitalize, hold on to it, and finish strong.

“We need to work on some of our own deficiencies and execute when it is required to,” he added. “The game was great for the community. Our guys are frustrated that we didn’t play to our personal expectations. That’s what makes you better in life, you regroup and don’t pacify or minimize what you have to do. You move forward. It’s a life-learning lesson.”

General Daily Insight for October 12, 2024

Positive growth is on the horizon — just not without some detours! Expansive Jupiter blends well with wounded healer Chiron at 3:31 am EDT, allowing space for personal growth, lovely revelations, and positive mindsets. Nervous Mercury then struggles to align with confusing Neptune, potentially creating a comedy of errors full of miscommunication, misinterpretation, and just plain forgetfulness! Luckily, the sensitive Moon soothes the confident Sun to bring us all back together as we find our way through the haze of confusion to happiness. Solutions are possible!

Aries

March 21 – April 19

Someone else’s words could provide long-needed healing for you. You might have been hurt by what they said in the past — even a simple misunderstanding between you could have everyone involved feeling wounded. for a long time. While it can be difficult to open your heart to someone who hurt you in the past, hearing them out is a great way to further your healing journey. You don’t need to let them back in your life, but closure may be worth one conversation.

Taurus

April 20 – May 20

Your inner peace can fortify your outer security. You may have found that stressing out less over what you can’t control genuinely increases your sense of security in everyday life. This lack of stress could then be touching everything else in your life, whether it’s simply calming down the other people in your personal life or even fascinating business associates who will now consider you for promotions or networking opportunities. Once you find your groove, everything else may get in line with you.

Gemini

May 21 – June 20

You might be the one showing up to help others. Someone might call on you for a favor at this time. It may not be hard for you to help them out, while the effect that your assistance has on them could be immense. It’s important that you try to be there for your friends and family, because your responses can have an amazingly positive impact on their lives — and on how they see your connection. Don’t shy away from showing up.

Cancer

June 21 – July 22

Letting go of current expectations can make you a better leader. You may feel as if you have to do everything perfectly the first time, but this isn’t true. Other people probably respect you simply for putting in the time and energy that you expend. The more that you show your desire to work alongside those that you are leading, the better. We all are doing our best, and you are no different. The effort that you apply is what matters.

Leo

July 23 – August 22

Intriguing information could encourage you in the pursuit of your goals. You may have thought that there was someone who was unsupportive of you, or you might have had a negative belief about yourself in general — either way, it’s likely to be disproven today. It can be surprising to hear someone that you expected to criticize you give you praise instead, but maintain your humility while accepting this praise. Stay focused on what you will be doing next to rise to the occasion.

Virgo

August 23 – September 22

Working hand in hand with a wise peer is an awesome idea. Today is meant to be a team effort, so it’s important that you both understand each other. Trusting one another, in particular, is crucial. Knowing that you are both working toward the same level or style of success will allow you to feed each other’s energy, since each of you doing everything you can should encourage the other to meet their level of commitment. Let their fire stoke your flames.

Libra

September 23 – October 22

Healing your social bonds can lead to lucky opportunities. You might have felt like you needed to do everything while flying solo, or maybe you’ve been waiting for others to initiate the healing process. Either way, consider actively seeking out the stimulus you need to heal. Even if you can’t quite verbalize your soul’s cravings, do your best to state your honest emotions so that your friends can do the same. Afterward, you could receive an invitation that strengthens your link even more.

Scorpio

October 23 – November 21

No sign is an island — not even you, Scorpio. Allowing a trusted pal to support your efforts to improve yourself can go a long way, especially if you need help with something they’ve already gone through. True, they probably won’t boost you all the way to where they are in one day, they should definitely provide you with tips and resources that will put you on the right track. They may even be willing to be an accountability partner. Reach out!

Sagittarius

November 22 – December 21

Having fun with friends may be just what you need. You could feel drained — it’s okay if you need to recharge with the people who bring out your true self. Getting everyone together may require some extra effort, so finding a reason to regularly spend time together would be a good idea. Consider playing a team sport on the weekends, hosting a book or movie club, or setting up a weekly game night. Anything to spend time with those who make life fun!

Capricorn

December 22 – January 19

What’s on your plate? You might have been trying to do too much all at once, and now you’re struggling to stay on top of it all. Even if you’re naturally a high achiever, you can’t be an expert at everything — there’s simply not enough time in a day! You could find that your body will abruptly decide that you need rest today, potentially forcing you to rest if you don’t allow time for it yourself. Let go of what’s not feasible.

Aquarius

January 20 – February 18

A refreshed mindset should let you have a lot more fun than usual. Even if you’re dreading today’s to-do list, being responsible will be easier when you’re able to gamify the tasks ahead. Perhaps for everything you do, you can put a marble in a small jar, and when the marbles fill up the jar, you can treat yourself to something you’ve been saving for a rainy day, or make it a competition with a roommate or family member. Just have fun with it!

Pisces

February 19 – March 20

What matters most to you at this moment? Normally, you may be easygoing to the point of being people-pleasing, choosing to avoid conflict wherever possible. However, someone could be about to throw a belief or attitude at you that truly bothers you. You’re allowed to stand up and say something about it! A bit of pushback might be all you need to make it clear that you don’t endorse their idea. Ultimately, if you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.

A federal judge Friday rejected a request by a California-based company for a preliminary injunction against a new law banning the sale and manufacturing of “cultivated” meat in Florida.

Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker, who held a hearing Monday, issued a 21-page decision denying the preliminary-injunction motion.

UPSIDE Foods, Inc., filed a lawsuit in August challenging the constitutionality of the law, which was approved this year by Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Legislature.

The law makes it a second-degree misdemeanor to sell or manufacture cultivated meat, often known as lab-grown meat.

The manufacturing process includes taking a small number of cultured cells from animals and growing them in controlled settings to make food.

UPSIDE Foods, which is represented by the Institute for Justice legal organization, makes chicken products.

The lawsuit contends, in part, that a federal poultry-products law preempts Florida from imposing the ban.

Walker wrote that the company argues that the “ban imposes an inconsistent ‘ingredient requirement’ by prohibiting the sale or distribution of food products that contain cultivated chicken meat as an ingredient.”

But he wrote the company could not identify a law or regulation “that creates a federal ‘ingredient requirement’ with respect to ‘cultivated meat.’”

The denial of the preliminary injunction does not end the lawsuit.

In supporting the ban, state officials have pointed to questions about the safety of cultivated meat.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture last year approved UPSIDE to manufacture and sell its products.

TALLAHASSEE — The Florida Agency for Health Care Administration on Friday denied a license for a new Pensacola abortion clinic, rejecting a recommendation by an administrative law judge who said the application should be approved.

Agency Secretary Jason Weida signed a 49-page final order that cited a “pattern of deficient performance” at a now-closed Louisiana clinic with ties to the proposed Pensacola facility.

Administrative Law Judge Yolonda Green on Aug. 28 recommended that a license should be issued to July Medical Services, LLC, which applied in March 2023 to operate a clinic that would provide abortions and other services, such as ultrasounds, contraception and counseling.

July Medical Services, which does business as Hope Medical of Pensacola, sought a hearing before an administrative law judge after the Agency for Health Care Administration said last year it would deny the license. Under administrative law, Green’s ruling was a recommended order that had to go back to the agency for a final decision.

Friday’s final order focused, in part, on the similarly named June Medical LLC, a longtime Shreveport, La., clinic that closed in 2022. The Agency for Health Care Administration last year reached out to the Louisiana Department of Health, which provided documents about deficiencies and alleged deficiencies at the Shreveport clinic from 2004 to 2021.

In her recommended order, Green said Louisiana citations against the clinic “consisted of lack of documentation in personnel files, lack of board meeting minutes, and inadequate documentation to verify physician’s orders failed to demonstrate diligence. Most of these violations were non-repeated offenses.”

She also cited an incident in which the clinic did not report to authorities that a 14-year-old patient had been impregnated by a 17-year-old, a crime in Louisiana. But Green said that “incident alone is not sufficient to establish a pattern of deficient performance.”

Related Articles

• Florida News | Supreme Court rejects claim that state agency is interfering with abortion amendment
• Florida News | Florida voters are about to choose whether to expand abortion access. What does Amendment 4 really say and do?
• Florida News | Florida tells doctors abortions to save a woman’s life do not violate new state ban
• Florida News | Door knocking, TV ads, websites: The abortion battle heats up in Florida and it’s getting ugly

Friday’s order, however, said that the violations “reflect a clinic that, over the course of many years, could not get its act together. The agency concludes that these violations constitute a demonstrated pattern of deficient performance.”

The final order focused on the role of July Medical Services owner Michael Rothrock, whose late mother, Robin Rothrock, founded the Louisiana clinic about 1980 and operated it until she died in 2010, according to Green’s recommended order. Ownership of the Louisiana clinic went to Robin Rothrock’s estate, with her son becoming executor in 2011.

Also, the final order focused on the role of July Medical Services’ administrator, Kathaleen Pittman, who served as administrator of the Louisiana clinic.

As an example, the order said the agency concluded that the Louisiana clinic’s activities were “imputable” to Michael Rothrock. It said the clinic’s “pattern of deficient performance constitutes an ‘action’ by Mr. Rothrock as a controlling interest of July Medical. June Medical’s demonstrated pattern of deficient performance is therefore legally sufficient grounds to deny July Medical’s license application.”

But in her August recommended order, Green concluded that “AHCA failed to demonstrate that any ‘pattern of deficient performance’ on the part of June Medical, a separate entity, should be attributed to July Medical. Therefore, the license should be issued.”

“The operation history of June Medical raises some concerns about their compliance with state regulations,” Green wrote. “It also raises concern about the safety of patients. However, based on the evidence of record, there was no threat or actual harm to patients. All the deficiencies proven were corrected. Based on the foregoing, the competent substantial evidence establishes that June Medical’s Louisiana deficiencies did not establish a pattern of deficient performance.”

Friday’s final order, which can be appealed, came amid a fierce political battle in Florida about abortion issues. Voters in November will decide whether to pass a ballot initiative, known as Amendment 4, that would enshrine abortion rights in the state Constitution.

Gov. Ron DeSantis, who last year signed a law that prevents abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, is helping lead efforts to fight the ballot initiative. Also, the Agency for Health Care Administration has been embroiled in a controversy about information it has posted about abortion on a website and in video public-service announcements.

Critics contend the information is biased and inaccurate and is part of efforts to defeat the ballot initiative. The agency has contended the information presented facts.

LIDO KEY — Less than 48 hours after Hurricane Milton made landfall near Siesta Key, many residents were returning to the barrier islands off of Sarasota for the first time since evacuating earlier in the week.

Late Friday morning, cars flowed freely over the John Ringling Causeway leading from Sarasota onto St. Armands Key, a few hours after Sarasota Police re-opened the roads to the barrier islands. Just over the bridge, people were assessing damage in St. Armands Circle, a central dining and shopping area on the island.

Normally a pristine, bustling part of the island, sidewalks in St. Armands Circle remained covered in vegetation debris and random items, including a beekeepers’ hive boxes still swarming with bees. Outside the high-end women’s clothing store Foxy Lady, general manager Jodi Frauhiger, a 30-year Sarasota resident, was an hour and a half into taking stock of the damage.

“We’ve had some storms, and we’ve lost power for a week at a time and that kind of thing. But never two storms this intense back to back,” she said.

She, like many others, said she felt fortunate to come back to see that the area didn’t end up as devastated as it could have potentially been. Before landfall, Milton exploded into Category 5 strength, and that’s what many prepared for. At landfall, Milton had weakened into a Category 3 storm. Still, she had three feet of water that intruded into the store with Milton.

“When they say it’s gonna hit you right on, you think, ‘Oh my gosh. We’re gonna be devastated.’ I mean, this is bad, but it could have been way worse,” she said.

Donna Chane walks through an opening under a large tree that fell during Hurricane Milton, blocking the entrance to the Bay Isle South community on Longboat Key on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Carline Jean/South Florida Sun Sentinel)

She estimated it would take up to a month to now reopen the business. Had Milton not crashed ashore a matter of days after Helene, she said they could have re-opened within a few weeks.

“Now, we have to do stuff that we’ve already done,” she said.

Much of the destruction from Lido Key to Anna Maria was caused by Hurricane Helene, not Milton, many residents said. But Milton put any progress on hold, adding to their stress and anxiety.

Largely the damage from Milton was from wind rather than destructive storm surge. Street after street after street for miles up and down the island looked nearly identical, the vast majority of it being the damage from Helene: couches, mattresses, fiberglass insulation, random debris and pieces of almost every type of furniture and home goods ruined by saltwater sat in jagged piles outside homes and on the curb.

Lido Key resident Chris Amstudz was fixing his white fence along Garfield Drive early Friday afternoon. He returned home for the first time Friday morning since the storm hit.

“We dodged a huge bullet,” he said.

With each storm that comes, Amstudz said the residents on the island are repeatedly warned about storm surge, but they hadn’t experienced anything significant before Helene. By the time Milton started churning in the Gulf and up the coast, everyone was scared. Neighbors who normally would have chosen not to evacuate did leave for Milton after seeing Helene’s surge, which turned his street into a “roaring river,” he said.

Farther south in Lido Key,  Doris Donovan dragged her blue suitcase through the sand, the wheels leaving a trail on what used to be the ground floor of the building she’s lived in for four years. The beach just steps away was empty. The sea was calm. At several hotels and residential buildings on the south end of Lido Key, swimming pools were completely filled in with sand after Helene, leaving just railings and tops of the steps into the pool visible and the edges showing the depths.

Donovan stayed during Hurricane Helene but evacuated about 15 miles away for Milton. She was in a mandatory evacuation zone and was the last to leave her eighth-floor unit, about noon on Tuesday.

Betty Rogers of Bradenton Beach, walks past a house that floated from its original spot during Hurricane Helene and has since survived Hurricane Milton on Sarasota County’s barrier islands on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Carline Jean/South Florida Sun Sentinel)

Donovan, originally from Puerto Rico, said she has experienced Category 3 hurricanes before and saw the destruction in Puerto Rico a few months after Category 5 Hurricane Maria in 2017. “My dream was always to live in front of the beach,” she said, after living for more than three decades in Seattle. When she made the decision to move about four years ago, her son had just gone off to college, and Donovan said it was time for her to finally make the move she had always wanted to make.

“The reason I picked Sarasota is because, as they said, hurricanes don’t come here,” she said, laughing. She planned to try to find a hotel for a few days before possibly going to stay with family in Orlando or Boston or Delaware.

Farther north on Longboat Key, an empty grass lot on the corner of Jungle Queen Way is where the town has dumped all of the ruined furniture debris so far collected from the main thoroughfare Gulf of Mexico Drive after Helene. A bike. A scooter. Couches. Dressers. Chairs. Doors. Mattresses. A stove. All were heaped on the corner of the grass lot at the end of Jungle Queen Way.

Alise Randolph, who lives down the road from the trash heap, said she was worried all of the pieces of random trash and debris would be catapulted around during Milton and end up on her roof. “But thank goodness, it didn’t,” she said.

The ruined household items they removed from Helene, though, did blow around their street. Their trash was in neighbors’ yards, and neighbors’ trash was in theirs.

She and her husband returned to their home about 10 a.m. Friday and found their roof damaged but no water damage, unlike with Helene. The three-foot water line inside her home from Helene was still visible. There’s more clean-up to do now with the second storm.

Randolph said contractors have given her “ridiculous estimates” and that realtors have started calling, offering her a third of what her home is worth.

“We know we can’t rebuild because they’re gouging … So we may sit on it for a bit until things get back to normal. You’ve got thousands of houses in the same situation,” Randolph said.

Randolph and her husband moved into the house on Longboat Key full time about a year ago, previously traveling back and forth from Washington, D.C.

“I love it here. I love the beach. I love everything. But it’s just, it’s a stressful situation because I see that it’s getting worse and worse every year with all this hurricanes and rising water level and temperature. I do believe in climate change. A lot of Floridians don’t, but I do,” she said.

To the north into Bradenton Beach, a bright yellow house on the corner of 12th Street and the main thoroughfare Gulf Drive South that was first damaged in Helene had been titled to its side, after the pillars underneath gave way during Milton, neighbor Betty Rogers said. Rogers came back onto the island from the Cortez area by boat a few days after Helene. She saw propane tanks and furniture in the bay on her way over.

A hotel pool in Lido Key is filled with sand from Hurricane Milton on Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (Carline Jean/South Florida Sun Sentinel)

At the end of the bridge that connects Bradenton Beach on the island with Cortez on the mainland, the Bradentrucky Grub Truck had been set up for hours, giving away free food to those who came by. Brandon Kelle, a resident of Bradenton and co-owner of the food truck, said he opened up at noon with enough hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, french fries and deli sandwiches for 500 to 600 people and was nearly out by about 3:30 p.m.

They started passing out food after Helene, took a break for Milton and picked back up again Friday, their first day back.

“They’re telling us their story. They really can’t believe what they’ve gone through and that people are out here trying to help out like this,” he said.

He rode out Milton in his first-floor apartment in Bradenton. The roof on his side of the building was torn off during Milton’s winds, he said. “We right now have a nice view of the sky,” he said.

“They won’t let me climb up there and put a tarp on it … so since I can’t do anything, they won’t let me do it, I gotta do something else,” he jokingly said, of running the food truck. “People are just so disheveled. They’re wanting to tell you their story. You’re trying to remember their story. You’re trying to remember these faces individually because they’ve come back to us multiple times now,” Kelle said.

Staff photojournalist Carline Jean contributed to this report.

By DAVID KOENIG

Boeing plans to lay off about 10% of its workers in the coming months, about 17,000 people, as it continues to lose money and tries to deal with a strike that is crippling production of the company’s best-selling airline planes.

New CEO Kelly Ortberg told staff in a memo Friday that the job cuts will include executives, managers and employees.

The company has about 170,000 employees worldwide, many of them working in manufacturing facilities in the states of Washington and South Carolina.

Boeing had already imposed rolling temporary furloughs, but Ortberg said those will be suspended because of the impending layoffs.

The company will further delay the rollout of a new plane, the 777X, to 2026 instead of 2025. It will also stop building the cargo version of its 767 jet in 2027 after finishing current orders.

Boeing has lost more than $25 billion since the start of 2019.

Related Articles

• National News | Today in History: October 12, Bali nightclub bombings kill more than 200
• National News | FACT FOCUS: A look at the false information around Hurricanes Helene and Milton
• National News | Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs to stay in jail while appeals court takes up bail fight
• National News | What’s behind the northern lights that dazzled the sky farther south than normal
• National News | Ex-South Florida Democratic congressman endorses Donald Trump, saying he’s best for Israel

About 33,000 union machinists have been on strike since Sept. 14. Two days of talks this week failed to produce a deal, and Boeing filed an unfair-labor-practices charge against the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.

As it announced layoffs, Boeing also gave a preliminary report on its third-quarter financial results — and the news is not good for the company.

Boeing said it burned through $1.3 billion in cash during the quarter and lost $9.97 per share. Industry analysts had been expecting the company to lose $1.61 per share in the quarter, according to a FactSet survey, but analysts were likely unaware of some large write-downs that Boeing announced Friday — a $2.6 billion charge related to delays of the 777X, $400 million for the 767, and $2 billion for defense and space programs including new Air Force One jets, a space capsule for NASA and a military refueling tanker.

The company based in Arlington, Virginia, said it had $10.5 billion in cash and marketable securities on Sept. 30. Boeing is schedule to release full third-quarter numbers on Oct. 23.

The strike has a direct bearing on cash burn because Boeing gets half or more of the price of planes when it delivers them to airline customers. The strike has shut down production of the 737 Max, Boeing’s best-selling plane, and 777x and 767s. The company is still making 787s at a nonunion plant in South Carolina.

“Our business is in a difficult position, and it is hard to overstate the challenges we face together,” Ortberg told staff. He said the situation “requires tough decisions and we will have to make structural changes to ensure we can stay competitive and deliver for our customers over the long term.”

Ortberg took over at Boeing in August, becoming the troubled company’s third CEO in less than five years. He is a longtime aerospace-industry executive but an outsider to Boeing.

The new CEO faces many challenges to turn the company around.

The Federal Aviation Administration increased scrutiny of the company after a panel blew out of a Max during an Alaska Airlines flight in January. Boeing has agreed to plead guilty and pay a fine for conspiracy to commit fraud tied to the Max, but relatives of the 346 people who died in two Max crashes want tougher punishment.

And Boeing got attention for all the wrong reasons when NASA decided that a Boeing spacecraft wasn’t safe enough to carry two astronauts home from the International Space Station.

By MELISSA GOLDIN

Back-to-back hurricanes that brought death and devastation to parts of the South were made worse by a wide range of false and misleading information, some of which still circulates even though they have been conclusively proven false.

Coming in the closing weeks of a hard-fought presidential election, the false information became political fodder, particularly in swing states hit hard by Hurricane Helene and then Hurricane Milton. Former President Donald Trump has pushed a litany of false claims at campaign events and on social media with his supporters helping give voice to the information.

Federal, state and local officials, including several Republicans, have condemned the false information, noting that it has made it more difficult to address the needs of those hurt by the hurricanes.

Here’s a look at the facts around some of the most pervasive misinformation.

The government cannot create or manage hurricanes

CLAIM: The government used weather technology to create Hurricanes Helene and Milton, deliberately targeting Republican voters.

THE FACTS: Both hurricanes were natural phenomena. Humans do not have the technology to control such vast weather systems. Hurricanes are hitting many of the same areas they have for centuries.

Fully developed hurricanes release massive amounts of heat energy — the equivalent of a 10-megaton nuclear bomb every 20 minutes, according to National Hurricane Center tropical analysis chief Chris Landsea.

“If meteorologists could stop hurricanes, we would stop hurricanes,” said Kristen Corbosiero, a professor of atmospheric and environmental sciences at the University at Albany. “If we could control the weather, we would not want the kind of death and destruction that’s happened.”

Historical efforts to control hurricanes have failed. For example, between the 1960s and ’80s, the federal government toyed with the idea of making storms bigger in size but weaker in intensity. But tests were inconclusive and researchers realized if they made storms larger they would put more people at risk. A 1947 attempt by General Electric and the U.S. military in which dry ice was dropped by Air Force planes into the path of a hurricane in an attempt to weaken it also didn’t work.

The federal government was falsely accused of a lack of response following Helene

CLAIM: The federal government did not respond to Hurricane Helene and intentionally withheld aid to victims in Republican areas.

THE FACTS: Both President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, have actively supported recovery efforts.

Biden approved major disaster declarations for Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee and Virginia, allowing survivors to access funds and resources to jumpstart their recovery immediately. The White House announced that the president spoke by phone on Sept. 29 with Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp; North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper; Scott Matheson, mayor of Valdosta, Georgia, and Florida Emergency Management Director John Louk. Kemp confirmed on Sept. 30 that he spoke to Biden the night before and that the state was getting everything it needed.

Harris visited FEMA headquarters in Washington on Sept. 30. She called Helene’s devastation “heartbreaking” and vowed that she and Biden would make sure the impacted communities “get what they need to recover.”

The president and vice president have both been to areas impacted by Helene.

Federal officials do not have plans to seize some hard-hit communities

CLAIM: The federal government plans to seize and bulldoze some especially hard-hit communities like Chimney Rock, North Carolina, and prevent residents from rebuilding on their own property.

THE FACTS: That’s not true, according to local officials. Shortly after Chimney Rock was devastated by Helene’s floods, posts began circulating on social media claiming the federal government planned to seize all of the community’s property through eminent domain and not let residents return or rebuild. Some versions of the claim suggested authorities weren’t even going to allow residents to reclaim the bodies of storm victims, or that communities were being seized as part of a federal scheme to gain control of valuable lithium mines nearby.

Far-right extremists and white-supremacist groups picked up the claim on platforms like Telegram and sought to link false claims about the lithium mines to efforts to fight climate change by boosting electric vehicles, which use lithium in their batteries. Officials from both parties who represent the area and are overseeing recovery efforts said none of that is true.

FEMA cannot arbitrarily seize private property or condemn whole communities, and the federal government has no plans to seize mines or force entire towns to relocate.

“I encourage you to remember that everything you see on Facebook, X, or any other social media platform is not always fact. Please make sure you are fact checking what you read online with a reputable source,” U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards, a North Carolina Republican, wrote to his constituents in a message debunking several viral claims about the storm.

FEMA assistance of $750 is a starting point for those in need. It does not have to be repaid

CLAIM: Hurricane survivors will only get a $750 loan from FEMA, which will seize their land if they don’t pay it back.

THE FACTS: That’s not true. Keith Turi, acting director of FEMA’s Office of Response and Recovery, said that this figure refers to help the agency can give someone in an affected area for immediate needs, like clothing or food.

FEMA wrote on its “Hurricane Rumor Response” page that such payments are called Serious Needs Assistances and can be used while the agency assesses an applicant’s eligibility for additional funds.

The maximum amount for initial Serious Needs Assistance was raised to $770 on Oct. 1. Serious Needs Assistance is a grant that does not need to be repaid. Jaclyn Rothenberg, a FEMA spokesperson, confirmed in an X post that the agency does not “ask for this money back.”

Certain FEMA grants may need to be paid back, although this is less common. For example, if a survivor receives duplicate benefits from insurance or another source.

FEMA is not short of hurricane assistance because it went to other causes

CLAIM: FEMA doesn’t have enough money for hurricane victims because it is being used to help immigrants in the country illegally or going to foreign funding for Israel and Ukraine.

THE FACTS: That’s incorrect. FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell said Wednesday on MSNBC, “There is the money in my budget — the Disaster Relief Fund — to continue the response efforts for Hurricane Helene and Milton.” She added that the agency will need to assess how much money will be left to continue recovery projects and respond to future storms this season.

Related Articles

• National News | Today in History: October 12, Bali nightclub bombings kill more than 200
• National News | Boeing will lay off 10% of its employees as a strike by factory workers cripples airplane production
• National News | Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs to stay in jail while appeals court takes up bail fight
• National News | What’s behind the northern lights that dazzled the sky farther south than normal
• National News | Ex-South Florida Democratic congressman endorses Donald Trump, saying he’s best for Israel

FEMA’s disaster relief fund gets replenished every year by Congress and is used to pay for recovery from hurricanes, floods, earthquakes and other disasters. Congress recently replenished the fund with $20 billion — the same amount FEMA got last year. About $8 billion of that is set aside for recovery from previous storms and mitigation projects. It funds foreign military aid separately.

No money from FEMA’s fund has been diverted to support border issues or international concerns and is only being used for disaster-related efforts, according to the agency.

The helicopter that blew supplies around a North Carolina distribution center was attempting to make a delivery

CLAIM: The federal government is flying unmarked helicopters into Hurricane Helene staging zones and purposely destroying aid meant for victims in western North Carolina.

THE FACTS: These claims are based on a video that showed a helicopter flying above a parking lot where hurricane aid was being collected. As it hovered above the area, it kicked up debris and supplies at the site and toppled canopies.

The North Carolina National Guard said in a statement issued on Tuesday that the video shows one of its helicopters attempting to make a generator delivery requested by a local civilian organization to power their supply distribution site. As the helicopter descended into a Burnsville parking lot being used for assistance efforts, it kicked up debris and supplies at the site and toppled canopies. The landing was aborted for safety reasons.

Megan George, a dog trainer and former Coast Guard veteran who first posted the video, told The Associated Press that she did not intend for it to be used as proof of government maleficence, but rather as documentation of a dangerous situation about which she wanted answers.

According to the National Guard statement, the helicopter’s crew has been grounded until an investigation into the incident is complete.

Associated Press writer David Klepper in Washington contributed to this article.

Find AP Fact Checks here: https://apnews.com/APFactCheck.

Today is Friday, Oct. 11, the 285th day of 2024. There are 81 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Oct. 11, 1991, testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Anita Hill accused Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment; Thomas re-appeared before the panel to denounce the proceedings as a “high-tech lynching.”

Also on this date:

In 1906, the San Francisco Board of Education ordered all the city’s Asian students segregated into their own school. (The order was later rescinded at the behest of President Theodore Roosevelt, who in exchange promised to curb future Japanese immigration to the United States.)

Related Articles

• National News | Reggaeton singer El Taiger dead at 37 after being shot in the head
• National News | 12 rescued from Colorado gold mine tourist site where elevator mishap killed 1 person
• National News | Trump seizes on one block of a Colorado city to warn of a migrant crime threat, even as crime dips
• National News | TD Bank to pay $3 billion in historic money-laundering settlement with the Justice Department
• National News | Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ sex trafficking trial set for May

In 1968, Apollo 7, the first manned Apollo mission, was launched with astronauts Wally Schirra (shih-RAH’), Donn Fulton Eisele and R. Walter Cunningham aboard.

In 1984, Challenger astronaut Kathryn D. Sullivan became the first American woman to walk in space as she and fellow Mission Specialist David C. Leestma spent 3 1/2 hours outside the shuttle.

In 1986, President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev opened two days of talks in Reykjavik, Iceland, concerning arms control and human rights.

In 1987, the AIDS Memorial Quilt was first displayed, during the Second National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights on the National Mall.

In 2017, the Boy Scouts of America announced that it would admit girls into the Cub Scouts starting the following year and establish a new program for older girls based on the Boy Scout curriculum.

In 2021, Jon Gruden resigned as coach of the Las Vegas Raiders following reports about messages he wrote years earlier that used offensive terms to refer to Blacks, gays and women.

Today’s Birthdays:

• Former U.S. Defense Secretary William Perry is 97.
• Actor Amitabh Bachchan is 82.
• Singer Daryl Hall (Hall and Oates) is 78.
• Sen. Patty Murray, D-Washington, is 74.
• Actor David Morse is 71.
• Football Hall of Famer Steve Young is 63.
• Actor Joan Cusack is 62.
• Actor Jane Krakowski is 56.
• Rapper MC Lyte is 54.
• Actor Emily Deschanel is 48.
• Actor Michelle Trachtenberg is 39.
• Golfer Michelle Wie is 35.
• Rapper Cardi B is 32.
• NFL linebacker T.J. Watt is 30.

General Daily Insight for October 11, 2024

What’s no longer working must be upgraded. The Moon conjoins intense Pluto, bringing a recklessly investigative attitude to the forefront. Later, nervous Mercury struggles to connect with surprising Uranus, bringing unexpected shocks that are difficult to react to in the moment. We must keep our wits about us! Topping things off, Pluto stations direct at 8:34 pm EDT after being retrograde since May 2, beginning its last march through Capricorn until 2254. At last, we can fully break down any mindsets that no longer serve us.

Aries

March 21 – April 19

Step into your power with caution, Aries. Opportunities to take the lead might appear at any moment, especially if you have been dealing with delays. The people around you could be looking to you for guidance, but you might tend to be more impulsive. It’s important to make certain that you are understanding what you and others stand to lose if the risks that you take don’t pay off. Don’t let heightened emotions lead you to gamble it all, for you and for others.

Taurus

April 20 – May 20

Up-to-date information can change your attitude. You might have already been itching to make a change, and the facts that you’re about to learn could be just the push that you needed to make it happen. Don’t be afraid of the future or what others may think of you! You’re operating off of a modern mindset, one that they will need to get used to. Trying to avoid this change will probably hurt you in the long run, so be ready to run with it.

Gemini

May 21 – June 20

Intense partnerships can currently be formed. Someone may enter your life, providing you with a partner who understands you on a deeper level. This is more likely to be a business link than a personal bond, or it might be someone who helps to connect you with a professional opportunity. It’s important to make sure that you don’t agree to too much, too quickly, because having a bit of mystery about you could actually benefit you in the long run. Let things develop naturally.

Cancer

June 21 – July 22

Relationships may feel more intense at this time. Whether you have been in a relationship or friendship for a while, or you’ve recently strengthened a newer connection with someone, you might be struggling with tension between you and your compatriot. It’s possible that you won’t even be able to name a tangible reason behind any such issues between you, so it’s important to be kind to yourself and them while you figure it out. Go with compassion and you’re likely to find success.

Leo

July 23 – August 22

Habits that are draining you may need to be released. Regardless of the turmoil that could ensue as you work to break free from these weights, be honest with yourself about what they are and are not adding to your life. You might realize that the cons list is much longer than the pros, which can, in turn, inspire you to replace this routine with one that serves you far better. There’s no need to criticize yourself for waiting until now — change with kindness.

Virgo

August 23 – September 22

The risks that you take could stack up to some weighty outcomes. While going out a limb is currently vital, be sure you’ve calculated the potential danger yourself. Depending on the ideas or desires of others is more likely to result in disappointment. Go with what you feel excited about, and especially with what you already have put effort into in the past. You can take a gamble on yourself and rise to the challenge, but taking risks on outside sources might not pan out.

Libra

September 23 – October 22

Expressing yourself could put you in a vulnerable position. Vulnerability is not a bad thing — quite the opposite! It allows others to meet you where you are. However, it can attract people who would take advantage of you or who are unwilling to open up equally. You can be honest about who you are without needing their approval. This way, your exposure can inspire others to be their true selves as well. Don’t shy away from wearing your heart on your sleeve.

Scorpio

October 23 – November 21

Your mindset might change radically without warning. This may be due to the people that you’re around the most, as their desires and dreams will influence you in some way, so make sure that you’re around people that you genuinely want to emulate. Otherwise, you risk getting swept into other people’s drama, because it’ll only get more difficult to differentiate between your personal matters and theirs. The more that you make a point of spending time with positive and uplifting pals, the better.

Sagittarius

November 22 – December 21

The way that you view security could be changing. Your history has potentially led you to perceive any commitment as a prison, locks and bars and all. Now, opposingly, you could realize that the loyalties that you swear to others provide you with a community of people who will want to help out. You don’t have to do everything alone! Sometimes being beholden to peers can feel restrictive, but this is what we owe to each other. Let yourself grow with others.

Capricorn

December 22 – January 19

You might be noticing the final stages of a personal change manifesting. Over Pluto’s trek through Capricorn since 2008, you have likely undergone intense experiences that altered the landscape of your soul. Today, you’re learning how to fully embody the person that you are, while honoring the person that you used to be before Pluto’s transformative effects took place. You might be a more dynamic, cautious, magnetic, or intense person after your journey. Whatever happens, it’s time to celebrate breaking out of your chrysalis.

Aquarius

January 20 – February 18

You may not see where change has taken place for you. Even if something is obvious to other people, you might struggle to the point that you need to get an outside perspective on the ways in which you’ve shifted in the recent past. This is obviously outside opinions, but if you value their input, then it is important to see this as a recollection of you rather than criticism. Take an honest look at yourself, even if it requires the assistance of someone else.

Pisces

February 19 – March 20

Your goals have likely changed since you first started working toward them. While you might have been moving in your desired direction, a revelation might be about to strike that the goalposts have shifted. You’ve potentially been attempting to appease someone in your life, or believed that you had to have these particular goals to be successful. Now, though, you’re realizing that you’re being called down another path. Don’t be afraid of making minor adjustments to confirm that your journey matches your soul.

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Florida’s first loss of the season might have been costly, with captain Aleksander Barkov leaving with 1:10 remaining after crashing into the end boards and getting hurt.

Barkov was trying to prevent an empty-net goal when he got hurt, giving chase toward a loose puck that Ottawa’s Tim Stutzle tapped into the net to seal the Senators’ 3-1 win. Stutzle and Barkov got tangled up and the Florida forward — at basically full speed — crashed feet-first into the end boards, immediately grimacing in pain.

Barkov needed about a minute before he could get to his feet, then needed help from teammates Evan Rodrigues and Uvis Balinskis to get off the ice and get to the Florida locker room for evaluation.

There was no immediate word on the nature or severity of the injury. It appeared that Barkov could put no weight on his right leg, which he flexed a couple of times as he made his way off the ice.

“He’s going to get looked at here tonight, and probably tomorrow as well,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said in Ottawa after the game.

The Panthers were scheduled to fly to Buffalo on Friday afternoon and will play the Sabres on Saturday.

The play started innocently enough, with Barkov in the offensive end trying to help Florida tie the game. Down 2-1, Barkov tried a wrist shot from just inside the blue line and broke his stick in the process. The puck trickled only a few feet, then was flipped down the other end by Ottawa’s Brady Tkachuk toward the empty Panthers net.

Barkov, without a stick, gave chase but couldn’t stop Stutzle from scoring.

The 29-year-old Barkov — the reigning Selke Trophy winner as the NHL’s best defensive forward — is in his 12th season, all with the Panthers. He was the first Finnish-born player to be the captain of a Stanley Cup champion when Florida topped Edmonton for last season’s title.

The Panthers are scheduled to play two games in Barkov’s homeland on Nov. 1 and 2, when they travel to Tampere, Finland for a pair of matchups against the Dallas Stars.

Barkov is the Panthers’ career leader in a number of categories, including goals (266), assists (446), points (712) and game-winning goals (48).