Pumpkin carving remains a core Halloween tradition in 2026, with 42% of consumers planning to carve a jack-o’-lantern, according to the National Retail Federation’s annual Halloween survey. That level is roughly in line with last year, even as shoppers watch prices and look for ways to stretch their Halloween budgets.
By: Samantha Borcy Kerr County, Texas has a name in the meteorological and geological record that most of its residents know but few have had to think about in fully concrete terms. Flash Flood Alley. The name refers to the specific combination of terrain, drainage patterns, soil composition, and weather
The 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks will be commemorated on September 11, 2026, across the United States, with the annual name-reading ceremony at the 9/11 Memorial plaza in Lower Manhattan serving as the national focal point. Family members will read the names of the 2,983 men, women,
The Hawk Fire burning northwest of Reno, Nevada has grown to 15,051 acres with zero containment as of Monday morning, August 24, forcing approximately 42,000 people from their homes and placing another 45,000 under evacuation warnings. The human-caused fire, which ignited near Verdi on Saturday morning and exploded overnight into
Taylor Farms, one of North America’s largest producers of packaged salads and fresh-cut vegetables, is now at the center of two simultaneous foodborne illness investigations after recalling jalapeno-containing products linked to a multistate salmonella outbreak on August 9 while still managing the fallout from a cyclospora outbreak that has sickened
A Staten Island state court judge granted a temporary restraining order on August 10 pausing enforcement of New York City’s new pied-à-terre tax on high-value second homes, but the city immediately filed a motion to appeal, a procedural step that stays the lower court order and allows the surcharge’s implementation
Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation on August 5 requiring building owners in New York City to certify twice a year that their cooling towers have been inspected, tested, cleaned, and disinfected in compliance with the NYC Administrative Code. The law, Senate Bill S08472-A, introduces faster remediation timelines, 24-hour notification requirements
The New Jersey legislature passed the New Jersey Kids Code Act on June 30, sending one of the most comprehensive state-level online child safety frameworks in the country to the desk of Governor Mikie Sherrill. Assembly Bill 4015 cleared the Assembly 73-5 and the Senate 36-4, establishing an Age-Appropriate Design
The House of Representatives voted 220-205 on Tuesday to pass a continuing resolution that would fund federal agencies at existing levels through December 4, a move designed to prevent a third government shutdown ahead of the November midterm elections. The measure now heads to the Senate, where its future is
The Glendale Civic Auditorium became the center of an international Buddhist gathering as more than a thousand Dharma masters, rinpoches, and lay practitioners convened for a two-day Dharma Assembly honoring the Holy Birthday of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III. The event was jointly organized by the World Buddhism Association Headquarters,
The White House has served as the residence and workplace of every United States president since John Adams moved into the still-unfinished building in November 1800. What stands at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue today is the product of more than 230 years of construction, destruction, rebuilding, and reinvention — a structure
The Great Fire of 1835 was a devastating event that forever altered the landscape of New York City. In just one night, a significant portion of Manhattan’s commercial district was reduced to ashes, leaving the city in shock. But from the ashes rose a new and improved New York, shaped
The National Weather Service issued an extreme heat warning effective 10 a.m. Tuesday for much of Los Angeles County, with temperatures expected to reach as high as 110 degrees during the peak of the event on Wednesday and Thursday. The warning remains in place through 8 p.m. Thursday and covers
U.S. initial jobless claims dropped to 215,000 for the week ending July 4, the Department of Labor reported Thursday, falling below the 220,000 forecast by FactSet analysts and extending a months-long pattern of historically low layoff activity. The figure declined by 2,000 from the prior week’s revised 217,000, but the
Federal student loan rules changed on July 1, 2026, ending the SAVE repayment plan and replacing a tangle of income-driven options with two new plans for the roughly 43 million Americans carrying federal student debt. The Department of Education is directing about 7.5 million SAVE borrowers to choose a new
New York City is bracing for the most logistically complex week in its modern history as three unprecedented events converge on the same metropolitan footprint. The Semiquincentennial celebrations, Macy’s 50th anniversary fireworks, and the Sail 4th 250 tall ship parade are expected to draw 8 to 10 million visitors during
The First Widespread Heat Wave of 2026 Arrives as Millions Prepare for Outdoor Independence Day Celebrations, World Cup Matches, and America 250 Events A sprawling heat dome is settling over the eastern two-thirds of the United States this week, bringing the kind of sustained, dangerous heat that transforms a holiday