public services

Paradise paused on Friday. One year after the most devastating wildfire in California history mostly destroyed the town, local officials asked people to pause for 85 seconds beginning at 11:08 a.m. — one second for every person who was killed.

Iraqi protesters blocked roads in Baghdad on Sunday to raise pressure on the government to resign after more than a week of renewed mass demonstrations. Protesters blocked one road with burning tires and barbed wire, and held up a banner reading “Roads closed by order of the people.” They appeared to be borrowing a tactic from Lebanon, where similar anti-government...

Chilean President Sebastián Piñera said Wednesday that he is canceling two major international summits so he can respond to protracted nationwide protests over economic inequality that have left more than a dozen people dead, hundreds injured and businesses and infrastructure damaged. The decision to call off the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and U.N. global climate gatherings, planned for November and December,...

The lights were returning to life across Venezuela on Tuesday following a massive blackout that crippled communications, froze the Caracas metro and snarled rush hour traffic, officials said. Energy Minister Freddy Brito said power had been restored in the capital of Caracas and at least five of the South American nation’s 23 states. Partial power had returned to another four...

The youngest member of Britain’s royal family, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, was christened at Windsor Castle on Saturday in a private ceremony — too private for some royal fans. The 2-month-old son of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex was baptized in a private chapel at the castle west of London by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, head of the Church...

The youngest member of Britain’s royal family, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, was christened at Windsor Castle on Saturday in a private ceremony — too private for some royal fans. The 2-month-old son of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex was baptized in a private chapel at the castle west of London by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, head of the Church...

Buckingham Palace says that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will not reveal the names of the godparents of their son Archie when he is christened this weekend. The palace said in a statement Wednesday that the christening at Windsor Castle on Saturday will be private and that “the godparents, in keeping with their wishes, will remain private.” The decision...

Governor Ned Lamont will be proposing a “Debt Diet” for the state that would include cutting the state’s borrowing by hundreds of millions of dollars each year.

Getting important information from your government can be a challenge when your state has 169 communities and hundreds of different public agencies. Is our town-based lifestyle limiting our access to up-to-date information?

A man acquitted of a felony for creating a fake Facebook page that parodied a suburban Cleveland police department is suing the city, saying they violated his right to free speech. Anthony Novak filed the lawsuit Tuesday against the city of Parma and three officers. He created a Facebook page in March 2016 that appeared similar to the page of...

Puerto Rico’s governor is vowing to turn the U.S. territory into the 51st state after statehood won in a non-binding referendum hit by a boycott and low turnout that raised questions about the vote’s legitimacy. Gov. Ricardo Rossello told a couple hundred supporters waving U.S. flags late Sunday that he will soon create a commission to appoint two senators and...

When it comes to the Church of Scientology, Leah Remini continues to be an open book—especially regarding the church’s key players, Tom Cruise and his ex-wife, former member Katie Holmes.