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The San Francisco Bay Area warehouse where a fire killed 36 people more than two years ago was an artist enclave where nobody was fully in charge, one of two men blamed for the fire testified Monday. Max Harris told a packed Oakland courtroom that everyone treated each other as friends in the shared space known as the Ghost Ship, where at least once a month, residents invited people to the warehouse for gatherings to play music or showcase their art. "It was an autonomous place where everybody brought their insights to the table," Harris said.

Mon, 17 Jun 2019 21:04:40 -0400

The British pound on Tuesday languished near this year's low on rising worries Boris Johnson, the front-runner to replace UK Prime Minister Theresa May, could put Britain on a path towards a dreaded no-deal Brexit. The Australian dollar is also at its lowest levels since the flash crash of early January, hit by growing expectations of another rate cut by the country's central bank and by the spectre of a further slowdown in China - Australia's largest export market. The yen and the euro were steadier, with investors holding out for trading clues from policy-setting meetings by the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan as well as a conference organised by the European Central Bank, all scheduled this week.

Mon, 17 Jun 2019 20:58:58 -0400

Manchester United misfit Alexis Sanchez scored for the first time in five months and provided an assist as Chile began their Copa America defence in emphatic fashion with a thumping 4-0 win over tournament guests Japan on Monday. The 2015 and 2016 Copa champions took the lead late in the first half against a largely young and inexperienced Japan with a towering header from midfielder Erick Pulgar. Journeyman striker Eduardo Vargas continued his remarkable consistency for his country by scoring in a fourth consecutive major tournament by doubling Chile's lead in the 54th minute with the help of a deflection.

Mon, 17 Jun 2019 20:56:55 -0400

The second fire in six months at U.S. Steel's massive coke plant outside Pittsburgh knocked a key pollution control system offline Monday, triggering a health warning as officials monitored the air around the plant for signs of a release of toxic sulfur dioxide. The Allegheny County Health Department threatened to shut down the plant unless U.S. Steel acts quickly to fix its damaged equipment, while elected officials and environmental groups alike chastised the Pittsburgh-based steelmaker. A Christmas Eve fire in the same area of the plant caused $40 million in damage and significant releases of sulfur dioxide, a pungent byproduct of fossil fuel combustion that can make it hard to breathe.

Mon, 17 Jun 2019 20:46:48 -0400

Two weeks from now, the Toronto Raptors' roster might look as different as Danny Green's combed-out mohawk with looming decisions from Kawhi Leonard, Marc Gasol and Green that brought an air of uncertainty to Monday's street party in Ontario. As the Raptors gathered with mobs of fans Monday to celebrate their NBA championship -- the City of Toronto projected 1.5 million fans packed downtown -- the next chapter for the Raptors will be on hold as a series of decisions that shape the future of the franchise are made. "Holding that trophy, there's nothing more special than that," Ed Rogers, chairman of Rogers Communications, partial owner of the Raptors, said Monday.

Mon, 17 Jun 2019 20:44:38 -0400