A trail of damaged homes and buildings dotted a wide swath of the U.S. on Saturday after a burst of destructive winds and reported tornadoes tore off roofs, uprooted trees and rendered rural roads impassable with debris.

No deaths were reported following Friday’s storms, which barreled through the Upper Midwest and delivered the latest round of severe weather to batter the region. Officials braced residents for a long recovery in some rural communities.

“We are extremely fortunate that this storm did not result in loss of life or serious injury,” Stephenson County Sheriff Steve Stovall said of the storm that hit Lena, Illinois.

Officials in Wisconsin and Minnesota echoed those sentiments.

In central Wisconsin, a reported tornado that tore through the cities of Kronenwetter and Ringle left behind damaged homes and some residents briefly trapped in their basements, Ringle Fire Chief Chris Kielman told reporters.

Marathon County Sheriff Chad Billeb said he had not seen this much devastation during his 34 years in law enforcement.

“A lot of people are going to need a lot of help,” Billeb said.

In Kronenwetter, neighbors were helping each other clear debris from their properties, and Wisconsin Public Service was working to restore power. Police Chief Terry McHugh said it could be a lengthy process.

He noted that the Community Foundation of North Central Wisconsin has partnered with United Way of Marathon County to help residents whose homes were damaged.

In Olmsted County, Minnesota, sheriff’s officials said tornadoes caused “multiple levels” of damage. At least 30 homes were damaged in Marion Township, with a number of those sustaining damage that was described as significant. Officials went door to door to check on people.

The National Weather Service said the damage was likely caused by tornadoes and surveys of the affected areas would be conducted over the weekend.

On Friday in Illinois, Leo Zach, 14, had just gotten to the high school band room for a music competition when the building started shaking and the power went out. The room was packed with students, and some were very scared and had panic attacks.

“I’m definitely on the luckier side of how that could’ve happened,” he said. “I was just trying to stay calm, help other people.”

When they got outside, they found some of the windows blown out in the gym and part of the school’s roof ripped off.

Photos and video posted online showed a garage totaled, bricks torn from buildings and fences demolished.

Lena is a village of nearly 3,000 people, located about 117 miles (188 kilometers) northwest of Chicago.

Rachel Nemon was going to pick up her stepson from Lena’s middle school when she had to pull into a car wash to take cover from the storm. She watched a large tree get ripped from the ground and sparks fly feet in front of her.

“This is something that you see online, not in real life, especially in a small town in Illinois,” she said.

The popular park was closed after ‘discarded items’ were reported to police

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Kensington Gardens has reopened after police confirmed ‘no harmful substances’ were found. The popular park, situated next to Kensington Palace and Hyde Park, was closed according to The Royal Parks yesterday (April 17).

Specific details were unclear as the Met Police stated they were “assessing a number of discarded items”. Members of the public were asked to steer clear of the location ‘until further notice’.

One witness reported spotting a forensics team near the bandstand in the centre of the park. However today (April 18) police confirmed the re-opening of Kensington Gardens after ‘several suspicious items’ were found.

An update on the Met Police website revealed that among the items were two jars containing a ‘powdered substance’. There were also reports of an online video featuring a group who claimed to have targeted the nearby Embassy of Israel with drones carrying dangerous substances.

This prompted the police presence at the park, however it has now been confirmed no harmful or hazardous substances were identified. Commander Helen Flanagan, of Counter Terrorism Policing London, said: “We recognise this incident and consequent police activity may have caused concern among local residents and the wider public.

“We are grateful to them for their understanding while our work was undertaken. Although the items found have been assessed as being non-hazardous, we continue to investigate whether they may have any link to the online video.

“This work is being carried out by officers from Counter Terrorism Policing London and our enquiries remain ongoing. While the Embassy of Israel was not attacked, we continue to work closely with the Embassy and its security team to keep the site safe and secure.”

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Ants are a common and frustrating pest, but this simple tip will stop them coming back.

Discovering a swarm of insects in your home can be deeply unsettling, particularly when you’re unsure of where they’ve come from. The question most of us ask when confronted with seasonal household pests, such as ants, is how to eliminate them quickly.

That’s precisely what fans of Mrs Hinch were discussing in the Facebook group ‘Mrs Hinch Cleaning Tips’. One worried homeowner sought advice after returning home to find “hundreds” of ants emerging from beneath the washing machine and kitchen cupboards, prompting a wave of responses.

Many suggested using a widely available spice that Nicole Carpenter, president of Black Pest Prevention, says “creates an unfavourable environment for ants, making them want to leave your space.”

Fellow Facebook group members shared their tried and tested remedies, with one user claiming: “Cinnamon works. I did it and they never came back.”

Another commented, “They hate cinnamon, it got rid of ours.” A third added, “We live out in the country, and for some reason, I get them in the kitchen every few years. I use cinnamon and they are gone in a day and don’t come back.”

Pest specialist Nicole clarified that while this warming, aromatic spice can be deployed to repel ants from your home, it’s worth noting that “the scent of cinnamon itself doesn’t kill ants”

Nevertheless, it functions as an effective deterrent owing to its powerful aroma, which disrupts the pheromone trails ants rely upon to locate food.

That said, it must be applied correctly to achieve the best results, reports the Express.

How to deter ants with cinnamon

Cracks and gaps in the foundation, walls, and around windows and doors are typical entry points for hungry ants.

It’s worthwhile inspecting poorly sealed or damaged door and window frames, which can offer straightforward access for these unwelcome visitors.

If you spot ants entering through these areas, mix cinnamon with a small amount of water and apply it using a cotton bud along their route into your property.

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While cinnamon is frequently compared to vinegar and essential oils, which serve as alternative natural ant repellents, it functions differently to other substances.

According to Ismael Girard, CEO of Pest Agent, the key ingredient in cinnamon that may disturb ants is cinnamaldehyde.

He explained: “This substence tampers with ants’ pheromone trails, making it harder for them to navigate toward their food sources or return to their colonies.”

Ants are typically attracted to spaces like the kitchen, where they can easily locate food sources to transport back to the rest of their colony.

Consistent cleaning, appropriate food storage, and immediate cleanup of spills and crumbs are essential to avoid attracting ants.

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Progressive leaders from around the globe gathered in Barcelona on Saturday to try and galvanize their forces and defend a rules-based world order.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, an outspoken critic of U.S. President Donald Trump and the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran, hosted two overlapping events about democracy and progressive politics in Spain’s second-largest city.

Democrats U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz were present alongside the leaders of Brazil, South Africa and high-ranking officials from other left-leaning governments.

While no foreign leader criticized Trump by name in public, the staunchly unilateral position of the American president that breaks with decades of U.S. foreign policy, including his derision of NATO and the United Nations, hung over the meetings.

“We all see the attacks against the multilateral system, the repeated attempts to undermine international law and the dangerous normalization of the use of force,” Sánchez said.

Trump again lashed out on Saturday on social media at Sánchez, who has faced Trump’s scorn for not allowing the U.S. to use jointly operated military bases in Spain for operations related to the Iran war and for refusing to raise military spending from 2% to 5% of GDP.

“Has anybody looked at how badly the country of Spain is doing. Their financial numbers, despite contributing almost nothing to NATO and their military defense, are absolutely horrendous. Sad to watch!!!” Trump posted on Truth Social.

Sánchez says the right’s time is running out

Spain, like the U.S. and other developed countries, is in debt, but it has one of the world’s leading economies under Sánchez.

Sánchez told the rally of progressive politicians and party members held later on Saturday that the populist right “screams and shouts not because they are winning but because they know their time is running out.

“They know their vision of how the world should be ordered is falling apart due to the tariffs and wars,” he said. “Their embrace of climate change denial, of xenophobia, or sexism is their greatest error.

“They have tried again and again to make us embarrassed of our beliefs. That ends now. From now on they can be the ones who feel ashamed.”

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Colombian President Gustavo Petro, and other leaders and officials, including Cabinet members from the United Kingdom and Germany, were in attendance at the IV Meeting in Defense of Democracy that kicked off Saturday’s double-header of political events at the Barcelona convention center.

Sen. Murphy, a Democrat from Connecticut, spoke at the progressive rally and he didn’t shy away from blasting Trump while celebrating the loss of power of Trump’s ally Viktor Orbán in elections in Hungary last week.

“Donald Trump is out to end our democracy,” Murphy said. “We are not on the verge of a totalitarian takeover, we are in the middle of it.”

But, he said, “Americans are watching what is happening across the world, and the victory in Hungary just one week ago lifted our sails.”

Walz, Kamala Harris’ vice presidential candidate who has faced a violent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement migration crackdown in Minnesota, threw barbs at U.S. Vice President JD Vance, who campaigned for Orbán and has backed far-right parties in Europe.

“Unlike our current vice president, I’m not here to arrogantly lecture or scold you, I am not here to pick a fight with the Pope or host a rally for any local wannabe authoritarians,” Walz said.

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, former U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders all sent video messages played at the rally.

Progressives exchange ideas

Among concrete proposals to come from the events, Ramaphosa said South Africa will present a draft resolution to establish an International Panel on Inequality, aiming to tackle the growing wealth gap both within and between nations, to the U.N. General Assembly in September.

Sheinbaum plugged her idea that governments commit to spending the equivalent of 10% of their military budgets on reforestation projects.

“Each year, instead of planting the seeds of war, we will plant the seeds of life,” she said.

Sánchez argued for the importance of regulating social media to stop the spread of hate speech and disinformation. His government also said that it is working with Lula’s Brazil on a tax for the ultrarich.

Lula, who met with Sánchez in a bilateral summit on Friday in Barcelona, kept the focus on how to invigorate the progressive moment. He avoided naming Trump except when he called for U.N. Security Council members to “fulfill their obligation and guarantee peace.”

“Stop this madness of war because the world cannot bear any more wars,” Lula said.