At the Government session chaired by Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov Deputy Minister for Emergency Situations Kegen Tursynbayev reported on measures taken to protect settlements from floods All flood-prone areas and hydraulic structures were taken under control the implementation of flood control measures was checked "In the regions 590 kilometres of protective dikes and ramparts were erected 164 kilometres of drainage systems were repaired and built 658 kilometres of canals and ditches were constructed On the sections of riverbeds 360 km of bank reinforcement and dredging have been carried out 190 km have been cleaned," the Deputy Minister said since February 10 in Kazakhstan on the basis of the Command Centre the Operational Flood Control Headquarters of the Ministry for Emergency Situations with the involvement of representatives of the Ministries of Water Resources Digitalisation and Kazgidromet has been deployed Similar headquarters are functioning in the regions the work carried out has minimised the risks of waterlogging in most of the country flooding of settlements has not been allowed due to a large inflow of melt water and rain there was flooding of residential houses in Akmola region The existing culvert systems could not cope with such a volume of water This required additional forces and means from the city of Astana and Karaganda region as well as military units of the Ministry," Kegen Tursynbayev explained Immediate evacuation of citizens was carried out rescue and emergency work was carried out.  temporarily left without transport communication the water level in local rivers is decreasing.  According to the Ministry of Emergency Situations the next stage of flooding is expected in North and East Kazakhstan regions where preventive measures are actively continuing about 4.3 million cubic metres of water have been pumped out across the country and over 800,000 kilometres of ditches have been cleaned Over 51,000 farm animals were driven away to safe places All of them have been returned to the farmsteads 176 overflows and 25 washed out areas were registered on motorways Overflows on 21 road sections and 5 washed-out sections remain under control.  Coordination of flood control measures and daily monitoring continues Stay updated about the events of the Prime minister and the Government of Kazakhstan - subscribe to the official Telegram channel Game Recap: Softball | 4/27/2025 10:45:00 PM Thanks for visiting The use of software that blocks ads hinders our ability to serve you the content you came here to enjoy We ask that you consider turning off your ad blocker so we can deliver you the best experience possible while you are here An official website of the United States government Open Search  Mobile Menu < All Press Releases The Bureau of Land Management's Utah State Office is calling for community involvement in the Raptor Inventory Nest Survey (RINS) a unique opportunity to participate in a critical citizen science project focused on the state's raptors citizens help collect data on these birds of prey including identifying their presence and nesting behaviors The data collected is crucial for the management and protection of these species in Utah Volunteers for this project do not need a scientific background The program is open to anyone with a love for Utah's natural landscapes The key requirement is a willingness to engage in this important environmental initiative Training workshops for prospective volunteers are scheduled for February and March These sessions will provide the necessary skills for identifying raptor nests and collecting vital data Participants are encouraged to have their own binoculars The commitment involves regular monitoring visits to an assigned area from March through July The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations An official website of the Department of the Interior Located in Bozeman, MT For questions or comments contact the Ask Us Desk      D2L/Canvas      The steppes of Kazakhstan’s Almaty region are not the most inviting place, especially in winter time, but one unusual phenomenon has been attracting a lot of tourists there lately Located between the villages of Kegen and Shyrganak in the middle of a snow-covered plateau is a 14-meter-high ice tower that continuously spouts water which turns to ice almost instantly The unique structure looks like a miniature volcano The sight has become popular both among locals but also Instagram fans and influencers looking for special backgrounds for their social media posts the ice volcano is the result of an underground spring that spouts water all year-round it causes a green vegetation bloom for tens of meters around it the water freezes creating the ice volcano cone A post shared by Альмира | Almira ♋ (@alyasskat) Photos and videos of the ice volcano in Almaty recently went viral on social media, attracting large numbers of visitors to the otherwise barren steppes, some of whom drove for several hours just to see the weird natural formation in person A post shared by Tengri Travel (@tengritravel.kz) locals say that this is the first year that the volcano actually gushes water A post shared by Irina Mironova (@irina0328) “Last year there were no such water sprays spurting upwards like a fountain, but only an empty cone,” local girl Samal Zhainak told Tengri Travel A post shared by Qazaq•Dulat•Janys🐺 (@kasym_aitbek) The ice volcano is four hours away from the Kazakh capital city of Nur-Sultan A post shared by Бектурган Турсынбуби (@bekturgantursynbubi) A post shared by Т. Тайтаразова (@ttaitarazova) Sign In Register It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Joseph “Joe” Kennedy on Sunday, February 4th, 2024,   Joe is survived by his children: Jolina (Danny), Joey (Angela, Kegen, and Cheyenne, and Jay), Scott, and Darren; sister, Anne Hawksworth (Ken); brother-in-law, Ken Clemmensen (Donna); as well as his nieces and nephews.   Joe was a free will, fun-loving man who loved to tear up the dance floor and tell stories. He will be missed by all who knew and loved him. At 1:45 a.m. New Year's Day in Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital, Keauna Indiaa Dillard became the first baby born in Rutherford County for 2015. And mom LeKeya Dillard did what she could to make sure that baby arrived sooner rather than later. "I was ready, so I just drank pickle juice," said a smiling Dillard as she held her baby girl, who weighed 5 pounds, 7 ounces upon birth, is 21 inches long and has a head full of curls. Dillard tried another home remedy to induce birth — an order of spicy chicken wings — just a few hours before son, Kegen, was born. Still, father Derek Lang said he "didn't think it would work," but by late afternoon Dillard started having labor signs. "I told my boyfriend, 'I think I'm having contractions,' ... and they started getting worse,'" Dillard recalled. By 4 p.m., the young couple were headed up to Labor and Delivery. Less than 10 hours later, the baby was born with no complications for mom or baby. "I really didn't think (the pickle juice) would work," Lang said. Having a New Year's Day baby seemed unlikely because she wasn't due until Feb. 2. "But we had a feeling she was going to come Jan. 1. We kept talking about it," Lang said. "I'm just glad she's OK, healthy," Dillard said. The naby also comes into the world as a little sister to 10-month-old Kegen. Not only is the Dillard baby the first one born in Rutherford County in 2015, but she became the star of the Saint Thomas Health's "Thursday's Baby" segment that spotlights "Thursday's child." Visit tinyurl.com/2015thursdaysbaby to see a video of Keauna Indiaa Dillard. By mid-day, four more babies joined the world New Year's Day at Saint Thomas Rutherford. "We are completely full and have the overflow unit open," said Marla West, charge nurse for Labor and Delivery. There are more than 30 families total, she said. StoneCrest Medical Center in Smyrna wasn't quite so busy. The hospital's New Year's Day baby didn't arrive until much later. Ela Muhsin was born at 10:44 a.m. weighing in at 6 pounds, 6 ounces. Proud parents are Shelair and Sherzad Muhsin of Antioch. "It's a very special day today," said dad Sherzad Muhsin, grinning as he held his tiny baby girl in his arms. While Dillard went into labor, the Muhsin family had their New Year's Day baby all planned. "My wife, she had a C-section. The plan was (Dec. 28), but we decided to do Jan. 1," Sherzad Muhsin said as his youngest daughter, Lava, peered into the nursery as nurses tended to her baby sister. Shelair Muhsin said she had a tough time during the C-section, but after a few hours of rest was "better, just tired." Baby Ela Muhsin was also greeted by a host of family members, including her three siblings: 10-year-old Pedar (who "held her first"), 9-year-old Peleen and 8-year-old Lava (who seemed to be the proudest of all). "With the new year, we start over. But she starts the new year with a new life," said the baby's teenage cousin, Nazik Muhsin. Contact Nancy De Gennaro at 615-278-5148 or degennaro@dnj.com. Follow her on Twitter @DNJMama. They’d been talking about football but ‘things had deteriorated’ An electrician from Manchester who headbutted a man at Jaks bar has been fined £600. Kegen Stevenson admitted disorderly behaviour on licensed premises and was also ordered to pay £125 prosecution costs. The court heard that police were called to the Loch Promenade pub in Douglas on July 10, at 1.15am. CCTV footage showed 20-year-old Stevenson in an altercation and headbutting another male. Members of the public separated them, but when officers arrived, Stevenson had left the pub. They found him outside the Villa Marina where he was arrested. At police headquarters, during an interview, he answered ‘no comment’ to all questions. Stevenson, who lives at Needham Avenue, was represented in court by advocate James Peterson, who said that his client wanted to apologise to the court for his behaviour. Mr Peterson said that the defendant had been talking to a man about football but things had deteriorated and the male had insulted him. Stevenson said he had lashed out with the headbutt and admitted that it was a stupid thing to do. The victim was said to have suffered a bloody nose as a result of the incident. Mr Peterson said that his client had no previous relevant convictions, and that he was currently working temporarily on the island as an electrician for a supermarket. The advocate said that, although fines for defendants from the UK were normally made payable forthwith, his client would be staying on the island for a while, so he requested the court to allow him time to pay. Magistrates ordered Stevenson to pay £300 forthwith and the rest of the fine and costs at a rate of £100 per week. Tel: 01624 695695[email protected]Follow us Further Links Owned or licensed to Tindle Newspapers Ltd | Independent Family-Owned Newspapers | Copyright & Trade Mark Notice & 2013 - 2025 When the first direct tourist flight from China to Samoa landed in the Pacific Island country in late May it was the culmination of years of effort to tap into the potentially lucrative Chinese market Top Samoan officials were at the international airport to welcome the first contingent of Chinese visitors but the tours quickly ran into strife and the jubilation was short lived.  The flights and related business ventures targeting Samoa have links to several discredited business figures in China an investigation by affiliated news organisations BenarNews and Radio Free Asia found Benar News reports that the tourism venture was a stepping stone in plans that called for redeveloping Samoa into a haven for well-heeled immigrants branded as “Eastern International Island” on the website promoting these plans They also sought to transform the country of 220,000 people into a cryptocurrency and stock trading center The ambitions are associated with two senior Samoan government ministers. They also attracted some support from Chinese officials and were characterised as being part of the Belt and Road Initiative – China’s sprawling plan to dot the globe with ports Although Samoa’s prime minister appears to have sidelined the ventures the lack of full accountability for government ministers continues to reverberate in the country The mingling of political office and private business interests the orbiting cast of grifters and the veneer of Chinese government backing resemble a playbook for how to exploit a developing island state.  who as Samoa’s finance minister took part in the Hong Kong launch of a stock exchange digital asset exchange and blockchain special economic zone for Samoa was removed from that role and reassigned in a cabinet reshuffle in September No reason was given for the specific reassignment When the launch took place in April at the luxury St Samoa’s coat of arms was projected and plastered throughout the venue Samoa’s Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata’afa issued a statement saying the government had not approved the ventures A key local link in the plans is Laauli Leuatea Polataivao Fosi a cabinet minister and cofounder with Fiame of the new ruling party in Samoa.  The direct flights from China were stopped after criticism of Laauli’s family ties to the Samoan company that with a Hong Kong partner controlled tours in Samoa for the influx of Chinese visitors Laauli emerged unscathed from the reshuffle.  Some 50,000 acres of land were to be redeveloped in Samoa into 3,000 villas rehabilitation centers and other amenities according to comments attributed to Yao Zhisheng a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference during a speech he made at the Hong Kong cryptocurrency launch.  The CPPCC has the coordinating role in the Chinese Communist Party’s United Front work that includes foreign-influence campaigns.  Yao’s comments are consistent with plans promoted since 2019 on the website of a Hong Kong-based company Samoa Trade & Investment Promotion for Hong Kong and Asian countries which was also the organiser of the cryptocurrency launch It is connected to discredited businessman Chen Keen and claims to have thousands of acres of land in Samoa Two of the Hong Kong and China-based figures involved in the plans are relatives of Chen Keen who is known in Samoa and New Zealand as Jack Chen.  He’s on trial in Hong Kong for money laundering and a US$300 million fraud that took place in the Chinese territory and New Zealand in the late 2000s he was sentenced in Hong Kong to nearly eight years in prison The conviction was thrown out in 2019 because of a legal error in the indictment A retrial in 2021 collapsed when a witness revealed Chen’s previous conviction to the jury The second retrial began in May this year.  who is reported in mainland China to be Jack Chen’s brother Chen Gen is barred for life from holding any position in listed companies or securities businesses in China according to the country’s stock market regulator The purported brothers faked the profits of a group of companies in the 2000s and according to China’s Enforcement Information Disclosure database which was established by the country’s Supreme Court he has 25 instances of defaulting on debts and being subjected to restrictions on his spending since 2013 A reward was offered this year for information of his whereabouts shows an online wanted notice about a $700,000 debt that uses Chen Gen’s other name Chen Kegen Through roles with United Front-affiliated organisations such as overseas Chinese associations Chen Gen projects another image – that of a do-gooder and patriot.  BenarNews has identified her as a daughter or other close female relative of Jack Chen based on common residential addresses in New Zealand and Hong Kong her age group and other corroborating details Luna Chen was the liaison person with Samoa for Travel Focus a tour business based in Hong Kong that promoted the direct flights from Hainan to Samoa and is one of the directors of Travel Focus She is also a director of the company that both organised the cryptocurrency launch and promoted the land redevelopment plans for Samoa according to Hong Kong company records.  She is a director of another Hong Kong company which is in a legal battle in the Chinese territory A company listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange alleged in a filing to the exchange last year that Big Fame had tried to extort money from it by filing a court petition for closure of the company Despite a problematic background that included a ban in China on being a company director Jack Chen cultivated ties to the powerful in New Zealand and Samoa after moving to New Zealand in 2003.  he was bestowed a chief’s title by Laauli’s village after reportedly donating money to Samoan rugby The judge who sentenced Chen in 2016 said Samoa’s prime minister at that time had written to the court vouching for Chen’s good deeds in Samoa Luna Chen did not respond to emailed questions and wasn’t in the office when called at a Hong Kong company she is a director of The law firm representing Jack Chen in his retrial did not respond to two requests to contact him Chen Gen provided a phone number and requested that he be contacted through the WeChat app but did not answer calls or respond to messages Samoa has aspired for some time to have direct flights from China and more Chinese tourists its tourism industry has found that Chinese who can afford to travel to Samoa are mostly not into the resort and beach experiences favored by the Kiwi and Australian visitors around which the tourism industry is built “That’s why we allowed the casino,” said Member of Parliament Lealailepule Rimoni Aiafi referring to two casino licenses issued about a decade ago.  we’ve been working on this for a long time,” he said in an interview with BenarNews We found out it’s the same name that’s been involved in all this – Jack Chen.” Lealailepule was part of Samoa’s previous government led by the Human Rights Protection Party – Samoa’s ruling party for nearly 40 years until its election defeat in 2021 and Laauli are also former members of HRPP governments A third person involved in both the tourism and cryptocurrency and stock exchange ventures who runs a network of purported healthcare businesses in China.  Public records show that courts have ordered high-level consumption restrictions on Zhu on 90 occasions – most recently in April – that bar spending deemed as non-essential such as traveling by plane or high-speed train and staying in hotels above a certain quality The measures are usually ordered in response to unpaid debts Chinese media reports have described Zhu’s health businesses as a multi-level marketing or pyramid scheme.  Zhu promoted an at-home test that claimed to detect cancer in five minutes the main state broadcaster in China.  Videos promoting Zhu’s healthcare businesses feature technology that doesn’t exist or that adds a high-tech twist to traditional Chinese medicine a woman’s feet are bathed in red light inside an MRI-like machine while medical-textbook type illustrations of a brain appear on displays purportedly connected to the machine.  The pseudo science finds an echo on the website of the Hong Kong-based Samoa Trade & Investment Promotion organisation Alongside its photos of Jack Chen with Samoan officials such as Laauli the site describes Samoa as a cancer-free country.   Attempts to contact Zhu via two companies he is associated with did not get a response Three other individuals that BenarNews identified as connected to the tourism and cryptocurrency ventures also have backgrounds with red flags for regulators one of them headed a company that falsely claimed to be part of one of China’s largest state-owned conglomerates who became women’s minister after the September cabinet reshuffle understood about the status of the Hong Kong cryptocurrency event before she attended it She agreed to an interview with BenarNews but canceled it as reporters waited in a meeting room at her office An assistant said Mulipola had a sudden doctor’s appointment said he only wanted to discuss “new issues new opportunities and new investment for Samoa.” He was overseas when BenarNews carried out reporting in Apia over several days in late October and early November The stock and cryptocurrency exchange proposals could be “very dangerous for a small country like Samoa,” said Lealailepule “But we also need to make sure that we follow the rules and do what is best for the country not for yourself or a few individuals.”  Samoans had already been burned in 2018 and 2019 by the One Coin cryptocurrency scam which Shortcomings in financial literacy in Samoa and values that emphasise respect for authority figures and extended family mean that scams can quickly go viral.   Samoa’s central bank ordered banks and money-transfer services to block transfers of money out of Samoa related to One Coin Through two Samoan churches with branches in New Zealand and Australia and the churches’ leaders the scam continued via Samoans in New Zealand a former government official who now runs a small business said he handed over 1,000 tala (US$360) in 2018 to an acquaintance who was collecting money for investment in One Coin The get-rich-quick scheme produced no return for Tapu and his 1,000 tala (US$360) disappeared.  he said the rapid way cryptocurrency can increase in value makes it appealing He said he’d consider putting more money into digital currencies if they were under government supervision Ceremony in China celebrated first China-Samoa flight The first of the flights from Haikou in Hainan province was celebrated with a ceremony in China attended by Zhu Hua three of Samoa’s cabinet ministers and representatives of United Front and allied organisations according to photos and a press release from the event published on several Chinese websites.  the timing and weekly frequency of the flights appears to have been sprung on Samoa earlier on It caused concerns and a request for postponement according to Travel Focus’s own statement in the aftermath–which described Laauli as providing the vision for the venture–and Pativaine Reita Petaia-Tevita the chief executive of Samoa Tourism Authority Samoa had almost 180,000 foreign tourists a year Still recovering from the closure of its borders and with its high-season underway the country did not have enough suitable accommodation to absorb a weekly flight from China “When Travel Focus didn’t take the advice provided we understood that they had already put in place these flights and it would have cost them and the passengers a lot of money if they were to cancel,” Pativaine told BenarNews Travel Focus director Lincoln Linn said it continued to promote tours to Samoa and was “still working closely with Samoa tourism authority and local land operators in Samoa.” Its agency agreement with the Samoa Tourism Authority ended at the end of June and another company was selected as the agent for China.  He didn’t respond to questions about Travel Focus’s connections to Zhu and Jack Chen The Samoa Tourism Authority’s offices in the main government building in the capital Apia are barebones but exude friendliness.  A sight-impaired man works on the reception and fa’afafine – transgender women in Samoa – are key members of the organisation Sitting in front of a large map of Samoa’s two main islands Pativaine said it’s been her aim to make the authority a positive place to work and a provider of opportunities.  She said she hopes a caring and sustainable approach will also guide how Samoa develops its tourism industry under a policy the authority is developing for cabinet consideration Work on the tourism policy had been interrupted by the pandemic.  damaging the environment and rubbing up against traditional culture.  “The Samoan people will have to discuss this and decide what type of tourism they would like to have for Samoa,” Pativaine said all the plans will have to follow the policy,” she said.  “And if it means limiting the number of visitors from this market and this market and this market A Manchester resident has been fined £600 after headbutting a man who insulted him in a pub The 20-year-old admitted displaying disorderly behaviour on licensed premises at Jaks Bar and Smokehouse on 10 July who is working on the Island as an electrician for Tesco was said to have ‘lashed out’ after the man mocked his stammer His advocate told the court: “This is a very unfortunate one-off offence Mr Stevenson fully accepts that this was a stupid thing to do.” and ordering him to pay prosecution costs of £125 magistrates told him: “We really don’t stand for this sort of behaviour.”