Aurelia Butler

The 7.6-magnitude tremor struck south of the Cayman Islands on Saturday. A tsunami warning across much of the Caribbean was lifted.A large, 7.6-magnitude earthquake struck the Caribbean on Saturday evening, prompting a tsunami warning across much of the region, including Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Honduras and Cuba. The warning was later lifted.The quake struck about 130 miles south-southwest of George Town, Cayman Islands, at 6:23 p.m. local time, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The U.S. Tsunami Warning System lifted its warnings for the whole region by 9 p.m.A wave of 0.1 feet was recorded off the coast of Isla Mujeres, Mexico, the agency said.Cuba’s seismological institute said that the quake had been felt in western parts of the island, including in the province of Cienfuegos and Isla de la Juventud. More

All tsunami alerts and threats have been canceled. Source: U.S. Tsunami Warning System  Note: Sensor data is available only for selected locations, mainly in North America. The New York Times A tsunami advisory has been issued for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands after an earthquake in the Caribbean Sea, according to the U.S. […] More

A federal judge’s order that Elon Musk’s team temporarily cease boring into the Treasury Department’s payment systems raises a far larger question: whether what Elon Musk has labeled the Department of Government Efficiency is creating a major cyber and national security vulnerability.The activities of Mr. Musk’s government cost-cutting effort, U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer said in his order on Saturday, risk “the disclosure of sensitive and confidential information” and render the Treasury’s systems “more vulnerable than before to hacking.”It is a risk that cybersecurity experts have been sounding alarms over in the past 10 days, as Mr. Musk’s band of young coders demanded access to the Treasury’s innermost systems. That access was ultimately granted by Scott Bessent, the newly confirmed Treasury secretary.But other than vague assurances that the new arrivals at the Treasury’s door had proper clearances, there was no description of how their work would be secured — and plenty of reason to believe that it would make it easier for Chinese and Russian intelligence services to target the Treasury’s systems.That was the central argument made by 19 attorneys general as they sought a temporary restraining order to get Mr. Musk’s workers out of the Treasury systems. And Judge Engelmayer endorsed it on Saturday, limiting access to existing Treasury officials until a hearing next week in front of a different federal judge.The government has maintained that Mr. Musk’s team has been limited to reviewing “read-only” data in the Treasury Department’s systems, though the administration is now placing appointees in positions where they could do much more.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Three ducks died of the disease at the Queens Zoo, while three more ducks and nine wild birds that died at the Bronx Zoo were being tested for the virus, according to the parks’ operator.Three ducks at the Queens Zoo died because of bird flu, and as many as 12 more birds at the Bronx Zoo that died after possible exposure were being tested for the virus, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society, the nonprofit that operates the parks.The deaths and possible exposures at the Queens Zoo and the Bronx Zoo, one of the largest and most well-known zoos in the United States, come as an outbreak of bird flu has spread across the country, sickening chickens and dairy cattle and driving up the price of eggs.On Friday, Gov. Kathy Hochul ordered all live bird markets in New York City and a few surrounding counties to close temporarily in an effort to stem the spread of the virus. “Safeguarding public health is all about being proactive,” she said in a statement.The order, from the state’s Department of Agriculture and Markets, requires live bird markets that have not detected any bird flu cases to sell their inventories and disinfect their operations. Markets with detected cases must follow guidelines for quarantine and depopulation, the order said.The virus, called H5N1, has infected roughly 156 million commercial, backyard and wild birds across the country since January 2022. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said that the illness poses minimal risks to the general public’s health, and that it does not yet have the ability to spread readily among people.The Wildlife Conservation Society, which also operates the Central Park Zoo, the Prospect Park Zoo and the New York Aquarium on Coney Island, said that, as a precaution, the organization had recently moved vulnerable bird species to separate, protected areas inside its parks. It has also limited the exposure of other animals in its care to wild birds and especially to waterfowl, which are known to be carriers of the virus.“We have assessed and reviewed our protocols regarding risk to our birds from avian influenza,” the nonprofit said in a statement. “Our veterinarians and curators continue to closely monitor the situation in the region and are collaborating with city, state and federal agencies.”The Bronx and Queens Zoos remained open on Saturday, the organization said, noting the low risk of visitors coming into contact with zoo birds or contracting the virus.On Saturday afternoon at the Queens Zoo, Marck Vasquez and Jennifer Espinoza said they were sad to find that the swans, one of their favorite attractions, were not in their usual pond surrounded by wild birds, but instead alone in a separate enclosure.“It feels empty,” said Mr. Vasquez, 21.Nearby, another visitor, Chawsu, 36, who is originally from Myanmar, strolled by a pond where scores of wild mallards swam. Ms. Chawsu said she was sad the flu was sickening birds but that she was otherwise unconcerned.“I’m coming from a country where every year we have bird flu,” Ms. Chawsu said. “It’s not a worry to me.”Ellen Yan More

In a striking display of the limits being placed on congressional authority in the first weeks of the new administration, several Democratic lawmakers were denied entry to the U.S. Department of Education on Friday.“Get out of the way,” Representative Maxine Waters of California told a man blocking more than a dozen House Democrats from the doors at the department’s Washington offices. The man, who was not identified by name, said he was a federal employee working for the department.“Did Elon Musk hire you?” asked Representative Becca Balint of Vermont.“This is an outrage,” Representative Mark Takano of California shouted as he and his colleagues were physically blocked from entering the building. “We have oversight responsibilities,” he said during the unsuccessful attempt to enter.The clash, captured on video by multiple members, was yet another episode that became a flashpoint in the intensifying battle over the administration’s efforts to reshape the federal bureaucracy.“They are blocking members of Congress from entering the Department of Education! Elon is allowed in and not the people? ILLEGAL,” Representative Maxwell Frost of Florida wrote in a post.It is unclear, however, if the federal employee violated any laws by refusing entry. While members of Congress do have an oversight role over federal agencies, that power is typically exercised through hearings and enforcement of policies.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Users on social media had complained that they could not access their games after the unexplained outage began on Friday night.The PlayStation Network, which users of the Sony PlayStation platform rely on to play games, download content and access apps, started working again on Saturday night after a 24-hour outage that left customers frustrated.“All services are up and running,” PlayStation announced on its website around 7 p.m. on Saturday. The problems, which prevented many customers from “launching games, apps or network features,” were first reported at 7 p.m. on Friday, the company said.“PSN has been restored,” the company’s support team posted on X at 6:58 p.m. on Saturday. “You should be able to access online features without any problems now.”The company did not explain the cause of the outage and did not immediately respond to an email seeking more information.The issues affected users of PlayStation’s most popular offerings, including its console and web products. Account management, gaming and social, PlayStation Video, PlayStation Store and PlayStation Direct were among the impacted services.PlayStation creates software and hardware, including hugely popular gaming consoles. Users play video games and run apps like Netflix, Spotify and YouTube through the PlayStation Network.On social media, some users reported that they were able to use their PlayStation on Saturday afternoon but many were still experiencing issues into the evening.During the outage, some users reported that they were not able to play offline games, a testament to how severe the server problems were, as offline games usually do not face the same issues that online games will sometimes experience.As users complained on social media, other brands fired off trolling messages.“Calling all gamers: this play station still works,” Krispy Kreme posted on X. Krispy Kreme offered free glazed doughnuts for two hours on Saturday “because sweet rewards don’t need a server.”“bet y’all want physical copies now,” GameStop, the struggling video game retail chain, said on X. More

Thousands of protesters in Union Square called for action against an executive order that threatens to withhold federal funding from hospitals that provide gender-affirming care.Bells, drums and chants rang out Saturday afternoon in Union Square in Manhattan as thousands of New Yorkers gathered to protest an executive order from the Trump administration targeting transgender children and teens.The order, which threatens to withhold federal funding from hospitals that provide gender-affirming treatments to trans youth, has left many local families worried and reeling.At the rally, parents and children came together with activists and lawmakers to share their stories and call for action against President Trump’s policies.Juno Krebs, 10, a nonbinary student from Brooklyn, said the executive order was “scary” and that it felt like the administration was “trying to take away our rights.”“I don’t identify as a girl or a boy, and I should be respected for that,” Juno said. “It doesn’t feel any different. It just feels like me, honestly.”For Michelle Byron, the mother of a transgender and nonbinary teenager, the order has raised painful and frightening questions about her child’s ability to continue receiving gender-affirming care, which can include hormone therapy, puberty blockers and surgery, though such procedures are rare for minors.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

As sports catchphrases start to stick, savvy coaches and athletes are moving to protect them with federal trademarks. “Three-Peat” is just one of many.The Kansas City Chiefs are aiming to win their third consecutive Super Bowl on Sunday and become the first team to pull off a Super Bowl “three-peat.”They need to defeat the Philadelphia Eagles, of course. If they do, and they want to celebrate with caps and T-shirts emblazoned with “three-peat,” they need to come to an agreement with Pat Riley, the person who owns the trademark to that expression.That’s because Riley, once the head coach of the N.B.A.’s Los Angeles Lakers, strongly believed that his team would win three consecutive championships in 1987, 1988 and 1989.His team won two consecutive championships before he registered various forms of “three-peat” with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. His applications were approved, but then the Lakers lost in the 1989 N.B.A. Finals.He had another chance for his own “three-peat” when he coached the Miami Heat to championships in 2012 and 2013, but the Heat lost in the N.B.A. Finals in 2014.While he never got to personally use “three-peat,” Riley still owns the commercial rights to the phrase. According to the patent and trademark office, his registrations cover the use of “three-peat” on hats, jackets, shirts, energy drinks, flavored waters, computer bags, sunglasses, backpacks, bumper stickers, decals, posters, mugs and more.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More