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Bars and restaurants in Auckland, New Zealand, have reopened after almost four months of lockdown as the country eases COVID-19 measures and enters the first phase of its new "traffic light" system. The new system being implemented is intended to curb the spread of coronavirus while stopping short of lockdowns. It will require that people be fully vaccinated to do certain things, the Associated Press reported. It quoted Auckland Business Chamber chief executive Michael Barnett as saying that many bar owners were figuring out how to comply with new rules that they require employees to check their patrons vaccine status...

The Bay Bridge reopened just after 9 a.m. today, six days after a repair job on a cracked structural beam on the eastern span fell apart and plunged onto the upper deck. Tests conducted overnight and this morning on an altered version of that repair job showed that the fix was holding, Caltrans spokesman Bart Ney said. At 9:01 a.m., a fleet of five California Highway Patrol cars escorted the first private vehicles allowed onto the westbound upper deck since the span was shut down Tuesday evening. About 10 minutes later, the lower deck reopened for traffic heading to the...

A new backpack from a Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldier brought a smile to this student’s face at the opening ceremony of Al Tajadud elementary school in the Adhamiyah District of Baghdad, Oct. 26, 2008. Photo by 2nd Lt. Josh Woodke, 4th Infantry Division Public Affairs. BAGHDAD — Rebuilding schools is a top priority for Multi-National Division – Baghdad to eliminate terrorist and criminal activities and set the condition for a brighter future for Iraqi youth. Al Tajadud school in the Adhamiyah District of Baghdad reopened, Oct. 26, after undergoing a two-month-long renovation. With $220,000 from the government of Iraq,...

CAMP STRIKER, Iraq, Aug. 12, 2008 – The Uthman School in Mahmudiyah, Iraq, officially reopened Aug. 6 after extensive renovations. A student from the Uthman School in Mahmudiyah, Iraq, carries school supplies to be presented at the reopening ceremony of the school Aug. 6, 2008. U.S. Army Photo by Pfc. Christopher McKenna, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “I have spent 12 years working at this school, and this is by far the best condition it has ever been in,” said Wahab Fadel, boys’ manager for the Uthman School. “Other school managers...

GARMA, Iraq (Dec. 12, 2007) -- Residents here celebrated a success for their livelihoods, with the grand reopening of a marketplace central to the city’s economy, Dec. 1. Marines with 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 6, and other Coalition Forces joined Garma citizens and local dignitaries in the celebration of the market reopening, marking progress toward economic growth for the community. “It’s a sign of progress and hope for a new tomorrow,” said Capt. Quintin D. Jones, commanding officer with Company L. “The mayor and I wanted to make an immediate impact in the area by making...

BAQOUBA, Iraq, Aug. 23, 2007 — The Baqouba public flour mill began processing wheat Aug. 20, after being closed for nearly a year, marking the local production of flour in the Diyala Province as a major step toward Iraqi self-sufficiency. "This is one more piece to the larger puzzle of providing normalcy here. It's probably the most important thing we've done." Lt. Col. Fred Johnson, deputy commanding officer of the 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division. "This is one more piece to the larger puzzle of providing normalcy here," said Lt. Col. Fred Johnson, deputy commanding officer of...

Huda, 4, makes last minute decorations before the grand re-opening ceremony of the Waoud Kindergarten School in Baghdad July 22. Photo by Sgt. 1st Class Kap Kim, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs. BAGHDAD — Waoud kindergartners, 4-year-old Huda and her sister, 6-year-old Sara, waited all day in their fancy dresses and stood in the Baghdad heat to perform the most important duty they’d ever faced: their job was to carry a small pair of scissors that would be used for the ribbon-cutting ceremony at their newly, renovated school. On break from school, she showed up with...

School receives much-needed structural repairs. BAGHDAD, July 30, 2007 — Waoud kindergartners, 4-year-old Huda and her sister, 6-year-old Sara, waited all day in their fancy dresses and stood in the Baghdad heat to perform the most important duty they’d ever faced. Their job was to carry a small pair of scissors that would be used for the ribbon-cutting ceremony at their newly, renovated school. "The renovations make us all very happy especially the furniture and the color; it’s a happy color." Batool Shaker The school’s vice headmistress On break from school, Sara showed up with her mother, one of the...

Al Kumait School Reopens in Baghdad Neighborhood Security, School Infrastructure Strengthened. By Sgt. 1st Class Robert Timmons 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division BAGHDAD, April 19, 2007 — One recent day found the children of the Al Kumait School in the Doura region of Baghdad peering cautiously through windows and from behind classroom doors at the heavily armed men walking around their recreational area. But once it became clear that these were the men responsible for the building’s new windows and coat of paint, hands flew out from the windows and waved Iraqi flags. “Security is a...

Col. Hattif (far right) and two officers from the 7th IA Division adjusts the water flow into the fresh water holding tank. The completion of repairs to the facility at the 7th Iraqi Army Division Headquarters marks the first time the Iraqi forces will be capable of providing their own drinking water on camp. Official Department of Defense photo by Spc. Walton McJordan. RAMADI -- Iraqi Soldiers took a step closer to independence with the reopening of a water treatment facility at Camp Blue Diamond. The completion of repairs to the facility at the 7th Iraqi Army Division Headquarters marks...

JALALABAD AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, March 29, 2006 – Hundreds of people gathered March 25 to celebrate the renovation of Agam High School in the Pachir wa Agam district in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province. Sayeed Rahman, sub-governor of Pachir wa Agam district in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province, cuts the ribbon at the reopening ceremony of Agam High School on March 25. At left is Marine Capt. Bart Battista, commander of B Company, 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment. Behind him is Army Maj. Dennis C. Edwards, the battalion civil affairs officer. At right is Nu Salaam, the president of Agam High School. Photo by...

FOB KALSU, Iraq (Army News Service, March 13, 2005) – Iraqis celebrated the reopening last week of the Musayib Bridge, located about 45 kilometers south of Baghdad, and officials said it will make traveling easier for residents of Babil province. The span, which runs over the Euphrates River in Iskandariyah, is the main thoroughfare for merchants, worshippers and families who travel north to Baghdad or south to Karbala. The bridge was destroyed one year ago by a terrorist car bomb. The reopening ceremony March 6 was attended by Salem Salh Mahdy, Babil province governor; Gen. Qais Kamza, Babil provincial police...

Quick action and creative thinking by Air Force and Army engineers had the runway fully active again in less than 30 hours. BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, Aug. 9, 2005 — A U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III aircraft rolled off the runway while landing at Bagram Airfield Aug. 6, damaging its nose and right main landing gears. As a result, the runway was closed, but quick action and creative thinking by Air Force and Army engineers had the runway fully active again in less than 30 hours. There were no injuries in the incident. "This is the best cooperative effort between...