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Tortuga Music Festival kicks off on Fort Lauderdale Beach amid flood cleanup

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:50:59 GMT

The Tortuga Music Festival opened on Fort Lauderdale Beach as scheduled, as the region recovers from historic flooding.While the floods did not prevent the event from getting underway at noon on Friday, rain that rolled in during the afternoon hours prompted organizers to ask concertgoers to briefly leave the venue.The beach bash, featuring some of country music’s biggest acts, has since resumed.Among the performers expected to take the stage this weekend are Eric Church, Shania Twain and Kenny Chesney.The festival, now in its 10th year, runs until Sunday night.

Crooks caught on camera stealing cars from NW Miami-Dade dealership, crashing through lot’s fence

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:50:59 GMT

Surveillance cameras captured some car crooks in action at a car dealership in Northwest Miami-Dade.Thieves took off with two vehicles from Hot Wheels Auto Brokers on Northwest 79th Street and 33rd Avenue, late Wednesday night, crashing through a fence to get away.One of the vehicles was returned in rough shape.The crime has cost thousands of dollars for the dealership’s owner, Johnny Hernandez.“It’s always hard for a small businessman,” said Hernandez. “We’re a small business. We’ve been around for a long time. We’re not the new kids on the block, but any hit like this is, you know – now we have to deal with the insurance company to see whether they decide to pay. You know how that goes. This will take a year to get solved.”A similar crime happened early Wednesday morning at a nearby dealership. A pair of crooks stole an SUV and took off by crashing through a fence.If you know anything that can help solve these thefts, cal...

House goes up in flames in Topsfield

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:50:59 GMT

A fast-moving fire raced through a home in Topsfield on Friday and officials are working to determine what cause the flames to break out. Crews responding to a reported structure fire on Coppermine Road found the house fully engulfed in flames.Witnesses said they heard an explosion before the flames broke out.The cause of the fire remains under investigation.No additional information was immediately available.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.

Pedro Martinez joins Mayor Wu at BPS Red Sox hat giveaway

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:50:59 GMT

Boston Red Sox legend Pedro Martinez was on hand as the Red Sox, in partnership with JetBlue, distributed more than 40,000 blue and yellow City Connect hats to Boston Public Schools students and staff at 104 K-8 schools across the city on Friday.This year’s hat giveaway launched with an event at the James F. Condon School in South Boston that included City of Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, Martinez, Red Sox Partner and Foundation Board Member Linda Henry, Red Sox President & CEO Sam Kennedy, and BPS Superintendent Mary Skipper.“We began this program in 2017 with the simple idea that every child in Boston should have a Red Sox hat,” Kennedy said in a statement. “It’s a way for students to connect with the team as our season gets underway, and this year, we had an opportunity to tie it to Patriots Day weekend by designing hats in our City Connect blue and yellow as a tribute to the 10-year anniversary of the 2013 Marathon. We are grateful for our partners at JetBlue who have supported ...

7’s Amaka Ubaka joins bombing survivors for event at Shriners Children’s Hospital in Boston

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:50:59 GMT

Boston Marathon Bombing survivors and 7’s Amaka Ubaka were on hand for a volunteer event at Boston’s Shriners Children’s Hospital on Friday ahead of One Boston Day.The Webb Norden Foundation and 7NEWS provided art supplies to the hospital, which were used by some recovering burn victims to express themselves through art.“We fully understand what these kids are going through and we have so much support from this amazing city and we wanted to pay it forward and put a smile on their faces,” said Jacqui Webb, of the Webb Norden Foundation, who survived the bombing in 2013.Paul Warden agreed, saying, “That’s why we started the foundation, to help young kids and put a smile on their faces like people put a smile on ours.” Learn more about the Webb Norden Foundation.

Boston EMS Center in Hyde Park gets fresh paint, new appliances ahead of One Boston Day

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:50:59 GMT

An array for special volunteer events got underway Friday ahead of One Boston Day on Saturday and 7NEWS was among the organizations taking part. Ten years after the Boston Marathon bombings on April 15, 2013, the 7NEWS team took part in several initiatives, including improvements at the Boston EMS center in Hyde Park.7’s maintenance staff prepared and painted a break room at the facility with help from anchor Jadiann Thompson. 7’s Jon Hall was out in the facility’s garage, in the meantime, laying down a fresh coat of yellow paint.Beyond new paint, the EMS facility is getting new appliances, including a fridge, stove and microwave donated by GW Toma in Weymouth. “The world is a little bit different today and I’m in a lucky position that I can help and give back and it’s important to help,” George Toma of George Washington Toma TV and Appliance said. “We need those things to keep going,” EMS Facilities Management Director John Cushing said. “And I’m sure the people that...

Pedro Martinez inspires students, launches a sports mentoring initiative for young athletes in Boston and Lawrence

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:50:59 GMT

Pedro Martinez wants students to understand that he used to “sit on the same chair” as them, learning from his teachers and parents, before becoming a Red Sox legend.“I understood the values of respecting education and trying to learn and be the best you possibly could be. I want you guys to look at me as a sign of hope for whatever you want to do,” the Hall-of-Famer told a packed cafeteria full of excited students Friday morning at South Boston’s James F. Condon School.Martinez and his wife, Carolina, are continuing their passion for education and giving back to the community through the Pedro Martinez Foundation by launching a sports mentoring initiative for young athletes in Boston and Lawrence.The initiative will include mentorship sessions with “major” athletes from across New England, Carolina Martinez said. Those sessions will feature personal training and access to educational events and resources throughout the year. The foundation also will look to participate in events, s...

‘You can’t keep us down:’ The running world shows up in Boston, ready for Marathon Monday

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:50:59 GMT

Thousands of running enthusiasts from near and far are getting amped up to hit their stride on Marathon Monday, and many say they are carrying full hearts looking back on the 2013 bombings.Amy Koepp, a resident of Cumming, Ga., will be running in her thirteenth consecutive Boston Marathon, while her husband, Bryan Koepp, competes in his seventh. The married couple was on Boylston Street when the bombs went off, with Bryan in the bleachers and Amy in a tent past the finish line.Bryan lost some hearing and received care at Tufts Medical Center in the days following the tragedy, but it hasn’t prevented the couple from coming back to the city year after year.“You can’t keep us down,” Amy said.Amy and Bryan stopped by the Marathon Fan Fest Friday afternoon at Copley Square, where runners and others can enjoy live music, entertainment, photo-ops, meet-and-greets with professional runners and more.Nathan Doig, a resident of Perth, Australia, flew 24 hours across the world with his son Regg...

Red Sox notebook: Masataka Yoshida nearing return, ‘honored’ to share field with Shohei Ohtani

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:50:59 GMT

This past spring Masataka Yoshida and Shohei Ohtani shared the field together and helped bring the World Baseball Classic championship back to Japan.Now, the two will face off against one another as rivals for the first time in Major League Baseball.Yoshida, who was out of the lineup for the third straight game Friday due to right hamstring tightness, expects to return on Saturday for the second game of this weekend’s series against Ohtani and the Los Angeles Angels. Speaking in the home dugout prior to Friday’s game, Yoshida expressed excitement about getting to share the big stage with his countryman.“I’m really honored to play with him in the best place in the world,” Yoshida said via translator Keiichiro Wakabayashi.Between his unprecedented big league exploits and World Baseball Classic heroics, Ohtani is a bona fide national hero in Japan and is again looking like a favorite to win American League MVP. Entering Friday he was batting .300 with thre...

Yankees Notebook: Isiah Kiner-Falefa talks trip to the mound

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 11:50:59 GMT

Isiah Kiner-Falefa never wanted to pitch.Odds are any situation that called on him to do so wouldn’t be favorable to the Yankees. That was the case Thursday night, when “IKF” took the mound for the first time in the ninth inning of the Bombers’ 11-2 loss to the Twins.Still, Kiner-Falefa enjoyed the career first, and even joked that his arm felt fine Friday after the super utilityman threw 12 pitches while allowing one hit over one scoreless inning.“It was fun,” Kiner-Falefa admitted. “Not my favorite thing to do, but definitely, they need me to do it, I will go out there and do my best.”Kiner-Falefa pitched as a kid, but he stopped in high school. He said that he probably threw faster back then than he did Friday night, when he recorded the slowest pitch in Yankees history, a 38.5-mile-per-hour eephus.Kiner-Falefa, who said he only threw at 50%, topped out at 74 miles per hour.“I was just worried about throwing strikes,” he...