The USAID shutdown is upending livelihoods for nonprofit workers, farmers and other Americans
By ELLEN KNICKMEYER and HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH
WASHINGTON (AP) — There’s the executive in a U.S. supply-chain company whose voice breaks while facing the next round of calls telling employees they no longer have jobs.
From farms to bakeries, egg shortages and price hikes are challenging small businesses
By MAE ANDERSON
NEW YORK (AP) — Small business owners that rely on eggs for their products are facing sticker shock because the usually reliable staple is in short supply.
Merlin, owner of Legoland, promotes Fiona Eastwood to CEO
Fiona Eastwood has been named CEO of Merlin Entertainments Group, the operator of dozens of attractions worldwide, including Legoland Florida theme park, Madame Tussauds Orlando, Sea Life Aquarium Orlando and the Orlando Eye observation wheel on International Drive.
Eastwood served as chief operating officer of the company until November, when she began a term of interim chief executive officer after the resignation of Scott O’Neil. She was been with Merlin since 2015 when she became global marketing director for gateway attractions.
“Over the past decade, I have seen first-hand what the business is capable of. My task, as CEO, is to lead Merlin to new heights, with a focus on performance, creativity, operational excellence and guest experience,” Eastwood said in a news release.
Eastwood previously worked as managing director of consumer products at BBC Studios.
Disney: Virtual queue going away for Tiana, Cosmic Rewind rides
“Fiona has a deep understanding of the business, the strategies required for sustainable growth, and the vision to spearhead our ongoing transformation,” Roland Hernandez, chairman of Merlin Entertainments, said in a news release.
Disney: Virtual queue going away for Tiana, Cosmic Rewind rides
Walt Disney World is removing the virtual queues from two rides, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at Magic Kingdom and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, a roller coaster at Epcot.
Both attractions will use standard “standby” lines where visitors queue up for the experiences and Lightning Lane options, where riders pay for faster access. The changes kick in Feb. 25, the company confirmed Tuesday. This will leave Disney World without any virtual queue attractions for the time being.
In the virtual queue system, theme park guests would use the My Disney Experience app to secure a spot in line at 7 a.m. without being in the park yet. A second round of virtual signups could also be available at 1 p.m.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, the refurbished Splash Mountain attraction, opened to the public Frontierland last summer. Cosmic Rewind has operated with virtual queues since its opening in May 2022. The system also formerly was used for Magic Kingdom’s Tron Lightcycle / Run, a coaster that opened in 2023.
‘You can’t beat the future’: Electric vehicles on the rise in Central Florida
Orlando resident Tyriq Green bought an electric vehicle to bypass the gas pump and likes that he’s on transportation’s cutting edge.
“I think everybody should start getting electric cars because, 20 to 25 years from now, there might not be as many gas cars,” said Green, who drives a Tesla Model 3 Performance. “You can’t beat the future. You’ve just got to ride with it.”
In Central Florida, the number of electric vehicle registrations rose more than 15% from November 2023 to November 2024, according to S&P Global Mobility, an automotive data and analytics company.
More than 17,000 electric vehicles, often called EVs, were newly registered in Brevard, Flagler, Lake, Marion, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Sumter and Volusia counties during that period, the company said.
Despite that growth, electric vehicles represent just a sliver of what is on the road. There were 4,086,502 vehicles of all fuel types in operation as of October 1, 2024 in the region, S&P said, with about 63,270 of them electric vehicles —or 1.5%.