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Stink bug swarms spotted in Smithfield | Local News - The ...
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Stink bug swarms spotted in Smithfield
By Steve Kent staff writer
Aug 7, 2019
Stink bugs walk across the outside wall at the Smithfield Chevron on Wednesday morning.
Eli Lucero/Herald Journal
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When Manager Cindy McFarland went to open up the Miller’s Travel Center Chevron in Smithfield on Wednesday morning, something really bugged her.
“I came in to unlock the doors this morning, and I could see these little green bugs all around the lock,” McFarland said. “And I didn’t want to put my key in there because it was gross.”
Readers reported hundreds of the green bugs at the gas station, clumping up on gas pumps, garbage cans and elsewhere.
The green bugs, which have multifaceted backs with four lighter dots in a triangle and a darker section on the lower back, appear to be Say’s stink bugs, according to USU entomologist Ricardo Ramirez. A number of environmental factors have made this an interesting year for some bugs, including a wet spring, a delayed start to summer and sporadic cooling rains.
“Back in end of June, we actually saw large populations of the Say’s stink bug on small grains, actually at high levels,” Ramirez said. “And they kind of concentrate.”
One reason for that, Ramirez said, is an “aggregation pheromone” the bugs produce. It’s not the chemical that causes their characteristic stink — and thankfully for the Smithfield gas station, McFarland said several hours into the morning that nobody had reported smelling the insect’s natural defense mechanism. Customers definitely noticed the bugs, though, and kept asking about them throughout the morning, McFarland said.
“They’re all over everything, on top of each other, piled, all over the garbage cans, in the pump buckets, where they wash their windows,” McFarland said. “All over the back of the place. They’re just in clusters.”
Cache Valley residents may be more familiar with this behavior in box elder bugs, which are also part of the “true bug” taxonomic order of insects along with stink bugs.
“There are some people that get a lot of box elder bugs on south facing walls and these sorts of things, where it’s warm,” Ramirez said. “You can get large populations.”
Ramirez pointed out that according to recent news from the other end of the state, stink bug problems could be worse than a couple hundred loitering at a gas station.
Much, much worse. Videos from St. George late last month show thousands on thousands of the stink bugs swarming on walls and other surfaces.
In a story on their stink bug incidents, Southern Utah University associate biology professor Bill Heyborne suggested such buggy behavior may be on the uptick.
“Truth be told, if you talk to other entomologists around the world, they’re seeing more and more of these sorts of outbreaks,” Heyborne told the St. George News. “And so there is some conversation about, is this related to climate change or not? We don’t really know the answer to that. But I guess time will tell.”
Closer to home but north of the state border, Mormon cricket swarms were reported in Franklin County this July.
Reports of similar events aren’t to say that even the Smithfield Chevron should get too used to the insects.
“With these populations, they’ll probably stick around for, I would imagine, another week or two, and then they just kind of move on,” Ramirez said.
People can spray the bugs, but often once they start to aggregate in a location, additional waves might keep coming in, and then in addition to thousands of live insects on various surfaces, you’ll have thousands of dead insects on the ground to sweep up.
Most of the stink bugs seen Wednesday look like adults, Ramirez said, so they’ll be looking to feed a bit and find a good place to overwinter so they can lay eggs next spring.
At the very least, they made a trip to the pump a bit more surreal for a few Cache Valley residents on Wednesday.
“I just was like, ‘what happened?’” McFarland said. “This wasn’t here yesterday, and there are just all of a sudden millions of them. … I wonder if they’ll be gone tomorrow. I keep wondering, because it’s so odd.”
staff writer
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Insect Disaster
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Waldbaum's supermarket fire
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The Waldbaum's Supermarket Fire was a major fire on 2 August 1978 in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York that killed six FDNY firefighters. The store at 2892 Ocean Avenue was undergoing extensive renovations, but was open for customers when the fire broke out. [1]
The 15,000-square-foot (1,400 m2) building gave the appearance of a one-story building. Inside there was a mezzanine used for offices. The building was constructed with masonry bearing walls and a wood-truss roof. A one-story addition was being built as part of the renovation. The ceiling was a complex construction of several layers, with an interior drop ceiling concealing the original tin ceiling, then a flat roof supported by timber trusses and an exterior "rain roof" to ensure drainage. Voids between the layers were not obvious to an observer.
The first alarm was recorded at 8:39AM. Four companies and a battalion chief were dispatched. Engine 254 entered through the front door and began to drag hoses up the stairs to the mezzanine. There was light smoke in the building at this point. Additional firefighters went onto the roof to vent the smoke. At 8:49AM, Chief Arthur Clark sent an "all hands" signal. Engine Company 276 arrived and saw flames in the walls of the second-story extension still under construction. The Engine 254 firefighters in the building were attacking the flames in the mezzanine ceiling. They reported much heat but little smoke. Ladder Company 169 arrived with specialized equipment to help open the rain roof. [3]
Deputy Chief James O’Malley (12th Division) arrived at 9:00AM. He sent a second alarm moments later. Shortly thereafter Ladder Companies 169, 153, and 156 were on the roof. They cut through the bowed rain roof near the center of the building, but found little smoke. They did not realize the fire was burning under the main roof. They began to make cuts nearer the edges of the building and found these vents freed a great deal of smoke. Teams inside were pulling at the drop ceiling to gain access as the rooftop firefighters began to pump water to douse the flames they could see. [3]
At 9:16, Chief Clark heard a loud noise and saw considerable fire inside the building for the first time. A wooden roof strut had collapsed. There were 24 men on the roof. Outside, observers reported the collapsed without a sound. The structure took a dozen men with it. Six of these men fell onto the tin ceiling and managed to escape into the store. All of these survived, but some with serious injuries. [3]
There was much more smoke both inside and outside the building at this point. A third alarm was turned in. Men still on the roof rushed to the edges of the building. Battalion Chief Peter Eisemann grabbed a line and fought the flames as his men fled to safety. Firefighters inside the store were now searching for survivors from the roof, but conditions became so dangerous that Chief O'Malley ordered them to evacuate. A few moments later, the entire roof fell in. The units conducted an emergency roll call to account for everyone. Search teams reentered the building. They found two dead firefighters on the floor and four more still trapped in the roof. [3]
The fire was declared under control at 12:45, four hours after the first alarm. [3]
Experts reported the fire had been set in the gaps between the ceiling using newspapers and a liquid accelerant. Police arrested a man named Eric Jackson for arson. He confessed that he and two others had set the fire at about six that morning. He claimed he had been paid $500 to do so.
Under this scenario, the fire smoldered undetected for more than two hours before the first alarm. [3]
Jackson was convicted and sentenced to twenty years in confinement. In 1988 he was released when it was discovered that the government had withheld information necessary for his defense. After many legal delays, the government attempted to retry him in the summer of 1994.
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Fire
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Two Arrested After 18 Die From Alcohol Poisoning In Russia
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Russian authorities have arrested two people as part of an investigation into the fatal poisoning of 18 people who died after they drank bootleg alcohol in the city of Yekaterinburg during the past week.
The Russian Investigative Committee’s branch for the Sverdlovsk Region confirmed on October 16 that the criminal case is focusing on the sale of alcohol that had been bottled at a city market and did not meet safety standards.
The investigation is looking into charges of selling substandard goods and death by negligence, which could result in prison sentences of up to 10 years, the committee said in a statement.
Investigators said several individuals sold people “an alcohol liquid that was dangerous for their health" over the past two weeks in Yekaterinburg. "Eighteen people died after drinking the liquid," the statement said.
Dmitry Chukreyev, a coordinator of the People's Control project of the ruling United Russia party, told TASS that an "entrepreneur who worked at the Botanichesky Market in Yekaterinburg had been selling bottled alcohol" that was thought to have caused the deaths.
Chukreyev said the victims' deaths have been recorded over several days since October 11.
The incident follows the opening of an inquiry earlier this month into a suspected poisoning linked to illegal alcohol in southwestern Russia in which more than 30 died after drinking bootleg alcohol containing methanol, which is highly toxic.
As a result of that incident, there were checks on sales of alcohol at outlets in the Orenburg region, about 1,200 kilometers southeast of Moscow on the border with Kazakhstan. The police arrested several people.
In 2016, more than 60 people died in Irkutsk in Siberia after drinking contraband bath oil that contained methanol.
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Mass Poisoning
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Famine in Cape Verde
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The archipelago of Cape Verde has been struck by a series of drought-related famines between the 1580s and the 1950s. During these periods of drought and famine, tens of thousands of inhabitants died from starvation and diseases. The Cape Verde islands have a generally hot semi-arid climate, with substantial rainfall limited to the summer months August and September. The driest areas are the low eastern islands (Maio, Sal and Boa Vista), and the southwestern parts of the more mountainous islands. The higher and northeastern, windward parts receive more precipitation. Agriculture strongly depends on the summer rains; in years with less rain, crop failure was common. The situation was further aggravated by unsuitable crop choice, overpopulation, overgrazing, soil erosion and inadequate response from the Portuguese colonial administration. [1][2]
The following famines have been recorded:
Two of Cape Verde's worst-ever famines occurred in 1941-43 and 1947-48, killing an estimated 45,000 people. [2] The hardest hit were the islands of São Nicolau and Fogo, where resp. 28% and 31% of the population was killed. [3] In 1946-48, Santiago lost 65% of its population. [3] Several thousands of islanders emigrated, for instance accepting contract labour on the cocoa plantations of Portuguese São Tomé and Príncipe. [1] Between 1900 and 1970, about 80,000 Cape Verdeans were shipped to São Tomé and Príncipe. [2] The Estado Novo government of Portugal showed little interest in its African colony, and failed to take measures to improve access to fresh water, or supply food aid. [1]
Fome 47 ("Famine of 47"), one of the best known songs by Cape Verdean musician Codé di Dona, relates the drought, famine and emigration to São Tomé in 1947. [4] The third and final part of the novel Chiquinho by Baltasar Lopes da Silva is focused on the calamity of drought, a major problem in Cape Verde, which results in famine and many deaths. [5]
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Famine
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Today’s COVID-19 In Lebanon Report: September 24th, 2021
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Lebanon registered 602 new coronavirus (COVID-19) cases on Friday, the Health Ministry revealed in its daily report on the outbreak. In the past 24 hours, 7 COVID-19 patients passed away, while 602 others recovered, raising the total number of virus-related deaths and recoveries in Lebanon to 8,260 and 585,669, respectively. The cumulative number of infections confirmed in the country so far has reached 620,552, of which 26,623 are active cases. As of the time of writing, 26,623 COVID-19 patients in Lebanon are in hospital beds. Between Thursday and Friday, 2,819,384 people received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in Lebanon, while 1,254,856 others received the second dose in the same period. In total, the first and second shots have been administered to 1,564,528 and 1,254,856 people in the country, respectively, according to the Health Ministry’s data. The Ministry had confirmed 718 infections and 7 deaths related to the disease on Thursday. Lebanon detected its first case of COVID-19 on February 21st, 2020. Schools and universities were ordered to close a week later, with restaurants and touristic institutions following a week after. The first COVID-19-related death was confirmed on March 10th, and the first recovery followed on March 11th. Lebanon enforced a general mobilization on March 15th, imposing its first pandemic-induced curfew on the 26th of the same month. The country has since gone into and out of lockdowns several times, and introduced various travel bans and local restrictions, as the authorities work to keep the outbreak under control.
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Disease Outbreaks
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Tufts and Harvard Pilgrim name new CEO
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By Priyanka Dayal McCluskey Globe Staff,Updated May 20, 2021, 11:47 a.m. The combined Tufts Health Plan and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care have named a new CEO. Cain A. Hayes will become chief executive on July 5, about six months into the merger of Tufts and Harvard Pilgrim. He will replace Tom Croswell , who previously had announced his retirement. Hayes, 51, is the CEO of Gateway Health in Pittsburgh, a managed care company with more than 340,000 Medicaid and Medicare members. He previously held leadership roles at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota and Aetna. Tufts and Harvard Pilgrim merged in January, but little has changed for their clients or members so far. They have not altered benefits or programs and have yet even to announce a new company name. Much of that work will fall on Hayes. “Cain brings a wealth of experience to this role both as a proven leader and seasoned health care veteran with a distinguished track record of success,” Joyce Murphy, chair of the board of Tufts and Harvard Pilgrim, said in a press release. “His experience, values and mission-oriented leadership make him well-suited to lead the organization into the future.” The company announced Hayes’s appointment Thursday but declined to make anyone available for interviews. “I am thrilled about the opportunity to lead the organization to its full potential in helping shape health care to better serve our members and communities,” Hayes said in the release. Hayes, who is Black, brings diversity to the corner office at Tufts and Harvard Pilgrim, where the CEOs in recent decades have been white men. Tufts and Harvard Pilgrim have about 2.4 million members together and combined are the second-biggest nonprofit health insurer in the state, after Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts. Michael Carson, who was CEO at Harvard Pilgrim before the merger, is president of the combined company, but it’s unclear if he’ll remain in that role. The company said he and Hayes will work together to determine next steps. Advertisement Croswell, who led Tufts Health Plan before taking over as CEO of the combined company, said he will stay in an advisory role until the end of July to ensure a smooth transition.
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Organization Merge
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Wet Weather Returns to SoCal, Bringing Snow, Mudslides, Potential Flooding
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LOS ANGELES (CNS) — A winter storm brought steady rain to the Southland overnight, making for a wet morning commute Wednesday, dropping snow in the mountains and causing a mudslide in Orange County that prompted evacuation orders. The National Weather Service warned that the storm, which is expected to continue into at least Thursday and possibly into Friday, could cause minor flooding in southern Los Angeles County, with some minor mud and debris flows possible across the southern portion of the Bobcat and Ranch2 burn areas in the Angeles National Forest. Officials also warned of possible power outages. At about 7 a.m., a mudslide cascaded onto Silverado Canyon Road in Orange County, but there were no immediate reports of injuries or heavy damage. Due to the fear of more rain prompting additional slides, a mandatory evacuation order was issued for Silverado Canyon, along with evacuation warnings in Modjeska and Williams canyons. The first heavy band of rain with embedded lightning moved through SoCal between midnight and 2:00 a.m. After the first band moved through SoCal in the very early morning hours Wednesday, we can expect on and off scattered showers throughout the day. Temperatures will be cool today and for the next three days as the slow moving cold storm system moves from Northern California today and into SoCal by Friday. The storm system dropped nearly three-quarters of inch of rain in Culver City and more than a half-inch in downtown Los Angeles, Hawthorne and Los Angeles International Airport, according to the NWS. Most valley areas received between a third- and half-inch of rain overnight, while snow fell in some mountain areas, including 5 inches on Mount Wilson. Skies cleared in many areas by mid-morning, but forecasters warned that the storm wasn't yet finished. "Most areas should see additional rain today, but it certainly will not rain all day, with plenty of breaks in rain and even the clouds," according to the NWS. A slight chance of thunderstorms will continue through the day, and snow was falling at levels down to 2,500 feet. A winter storm warning will be in effect until 10 p.m. Thursday for the Los Angeles County mountains, excluding the Santa Monica range, with the National Weather Service anticipating snow accumulations of 6 to 12 inches above 4,500 feet, down to a dusting for elevations around 3,000 feet. The snowy conditions will be joined by southwest winds of 20 to 35 mph, with gusts up to 50 mph. Forecasters warned that conditions will make driving hazardous in the county's northern reaches, with the Golden State (5) and Antelope Valley (14) freeways likely to be affected. "A cold storm system will bring rain and low elevation snow to the region ... through Thursday evening, potentially causing significant mountain travel issues including Interstate 5," according to the NWS. "There will be a slight chance of thunderstorms, especially Wednesday through Thursday. It will be breezy to windy at times and very cool." The rain could persist into Friday, the NWS said. Dry weather is expected to return by Friday night and continue through the weekend. Gusty winds were also in the forecast. The Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management urged residents to be prepared for possible power outages, and to be careful on the roads. "Rainfall has finally arrived once again in L.A. County, and residents should practice rain safety tips during morning commutes and be prepared for power outages if they should occur, especially since many individuals are working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic," said Kevin McGowan, director of the County Office of Emergency Management. "Weather-activated shelters are also available to help keep persons experiencing homelessness out of the rain for several days, until the current storm passes." Due to the wet forecast, the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority announced that weather-activated shelters would be open from 5 p.m. Tuesday until 7 a.m. Friday at Loma Alta Park in Altadena; Glassell Park Recreation Center; Mary Bethune, Enterprise and Leon Washington parks in South Los Angeles; and Alondra Park in Torrance. Information about shelters is available by calling 211 or 800-548-6047. It will be cloudy and cooler for the rest of the week. Temperatures begin to drop off Sunday, but will still remain above normal. Sandbags will still be available at LA County Fire stations. What are Santa Ana winds and do Santa Ana winds cause fires? We explain the role these offshore winds have during periods of critical fire weather. Clear night and light winds help fog form.
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Mudslides
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Fire of Apollo Masters Corporation
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The fire of the Apollo Masters Corporation occurred on February 6, 2020 in Banning, California. Apollo Masters was the only U.S. based manufacturing plant for producing lacquer discs used in pressing vinyl records. The destruction of the plant caused a ripple effect throughout the vinyl record industry, as it left only one operating lacquer plant in the world. [1]
The fire began just before 8am, setting off three fire alarms and five or six explosions from within the building. The cause of the fire is presently undetermined. The inferno required eighty-two firefighters to extinguish it, spanning a total of three hours. [2] While the building suffered complete destruction, none of the employees were injured. [3]
Before the fire, Apollo Masters was one of two factories worldwide to manufacture lacquer discs to be shipped to vinyl mastering studios. There, the blank lacquer would be cut from the master tape or digital source recording to produce a master from which metal molds are produced, for use in pressing the vinyl records. With the destruction of Apollo Masters, producing lacquer discs fell solely to a small Japanese company, MDC. This caused a significant strain on the industry, as Apollo Masters was responsible for 70-85% of lacquer production. [3][4] As a result of the strain, orders became backlogged and delayed, with priority falling to countries with bigger volumes of orders, such as the United Kingdom and the United States. [5] Rebuilding of the facility is uncertain, as it would require hazardous waste remediation and navigating California's environmental laws. [2]
With a decrease in lacquer production, some vinyl pressing plants turned to alternate means of producing records, including direct metal mastering, a costly method of producing records with copper instead of lacquer. [4][6]
The fire also brought together the vinyl industry community, resulting in the creation of Vinyl Record Manufacturers Association of North America (VRMA), devoted to strengthening the industry. [4] Around fifty companies are involved with the association, working together to increase the amount of lacquer production plants and prevent a repeat of any event similar to the Apollo Masters fire. [5]
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Fire
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GBI Investigates Officer Involved Shooting in Henry County
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Ellenwood, GA (December 10, 2021) – The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is conducting an officer involved shooting investigation in Ellenwood, Henry County, GA. On Thursday, December 9, 2021, the Henry County Police Department asked the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to investigate the incident that occurred on Panola Road in Ellenwood. One man was shot and died.
At 1:05 pm, while pursuing leads in a homicide investigation being conducted by the Powder Springs Police Department, officers of the Henry County Police Department, Henry County Sheriff’s Office, and McDonough Police Department, located Arnett Carr, age 64, in the vicinity of 158 Hill Lane in Ellenwood, GA, driving a pickup truck. Officers maintained visual contact with Carr as he drove to a nearby shopping center on Panola Road. As officers were speaking with Carr in the shopping center parking lot, Carr picked up a handgun. During the incident, several officers shot Carr. Carr died at the scene. No officers or bystanders were injured. A handgun was recovered from the scene.
The GBI will conduct an independent investigation. Once complete, it will be turned over to the Henry County District Attorney’s Office for review.
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Famous Person - Commit Crime - Investigate
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Latvia Becomes a Full Associate Member State of CERN
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Latvia has become a full Associate Member State of CERN, following a ceremony at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) headquarters in Geneva on 2 August. The membership will provide Latvian scientists with extensive opportunities to work in one of the world’s most powerful science centres, and Latvian businesses with the chance to participate in the procurements of CERN and offer their products and services necessary to support scientific activities.
The event was remotely attended by the Minister of Education and Science of the Republic of Latvia Anita Muižniece, the Ambassador of Latvia to the United Nations in Geneva Bahtijors Hasans, Professor of Riga Technical University and Latvian representative at CERN Toms Torims, and Ambassador Ilze Rūse, Director of the Department for International Organisations and Human Rights of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia.
“The first tiny seed of cooperation between Latvian scientists and CERN, planted about 25 years ago, has grown into a mighty tree with full CERN membership status,” says Anita Muižniece, Minister of Education and Science.
She stresses that this is thanks to a well implemented and supportive national science policy and the continued provision of public funding. In recent years, the Government has taken important policy decisions to promote the development of the high-energy particle physics community and research into particle accelerator and detector technologies.
As an Associate Member, Latvia will be able to participate in the scientific and administrative work of CERN. Latvia becomes eligible to participate in CERN’s scientific programme, as well as in all training and education programmes of CERN. This means that Latvian scientists will have the opportunity to become CERN employees and participate in CERN science projects, PhD students will be able to work on their theses in collaboration with CERN, Latvian students and teachers will be able to visit CERN and participate in the centre’s education programmes, expanding their knowledge of particle physics and cutting-edge technologies.
“We are finally where we should have been a long time ago: Latvian scientists will now play in the top league of science. By meeting all the necessary criteria and building a high-energy physics community in Latvia, we have qualified to work in one of the world’s most influential science laboratories,” says Toms Torims, professor at Riga Technical University (RTU) and Latvia’s representative at CERN.
Participation in CERN will raise the overall level of science in Latvia and the Baltic States as a whole, while young people will have the opportunity to study physics and engineering in Latvia and to practice in CERN’s super-laboratories, he adds.
The Latvian Ambassador to the UN in Geneva, Bahtijors Hasans, says that by becoming an Associate Member of CERN, Latvia is turning a new page in its cooperation with the European Organization for Nuclear Research. This will provide unique opportunities to contribute to the development of science in Latvia and to contribute to world-class scientific research. “Joining the organisation will also promote science diplomacy, which plays an important role in the foreign policy of Latvia and in promoting the prosperity of Latvia. Therefore, as Ambassador of Latvia, I am truly pleased that Latvia has joined the world’s scientific elite,” he says.
Joining Lithuania and Estonia
The rest of the Baltic States have already become Associate Members of CERN: Estonia on 1 February this year and Lithuania in 2018.
In order for Latvia to become an Associated Member State, CERN assessed the growth of Latvia in high-energy physics over five years against a number of criteria, as well as the country’s potential in the short and long term. In December 2020, the CERN Council decided to start negotiations with Latvia on an association agreement, making sure that Latvia was ready to join CERN. In April 2021, Prime Minister Krišjānis Kariņš and CERN Director-General Fabiola Gianotti signed an agreement for Latvia to join CERN as an Associate Member State.
“Latvia’s membership of CERN is an important step in our growth path. This is our opportunity to invest the scientific and technological experience gained in this cooperation in the further development of our economy and in improving the welfare of our citizens,” said Prime Minister Krišjānis Kariņš.
At the end of May, the Saeima ratified the agreement between Latvia and CERN on granting Latvia the status of an Associate Member State of CERN, wrote Labs of Latvia.
Benefits in Different Areas
By becoming an Associate Member State, Latvia will benefit from CERN in education and science, as well as in economics and business. Latvia will participate in the work of the organisation’s highest decision-making body, the Council, and will serve on CERN’s Finance and Science Committee. Latvian scientists will have the opportunity to sign contracts with CERN to participate in the Centre’s science projects, while future scientists, PhD students, will be able to work on their PhD theses at CERN and also participate in CERN summer schools, gaining valuable experience and the opportunity to work with some of the world’s top scientists.
Latvian students and teachers will be able to take part in educational programmes, visiting CERN and improving their knowledge of high-energy particle physics and a wide range of technologies. The industry will also benefit, as they will have the opportunity to participate in CERN’s procurements, supplying goods and services to the Centre. To help the business community, Latvia will also have its own coordinator for cooperation with the industry, whose role will be to provide Latvian businesses with the necessary information on CERN procurements.
Supporting Scientific Excellence
Since 2016, cooperation with CERN has contributed to Latvia’s scientific excellence and the development of internationally competitive companies in the information technology and electronics industries. Latvian pupils, students and physics teachers have had the opportunity to gain new knowledge through CERN’s educational programmes, thereby increasing interest in physics and other science and engineering subjects.
Since October 2020, RTU, UL and the Institute of Solid State Physics of UL have been implementing the project “Research of the Top Quark and Higgs Boson in the CMS Experiment, Development of Crystal Scintillators, CMS Sub-Detectors and Particle Accelerator Technologies for Applied Applications in Collaboration With CERN” within the national research programme High Energy Physics and Accelerator Technologies established by the Ministry of Education and Science.
RTU and UL are developing a new joint PhD programme Particle Physics and Accelerator Technology, wrote Labs of Latvia. It is intended to be primarily for PhD students from Latvia and the other Baltic States, thus strengthening a common Baltic education and science landscape. The first students could start in the autumn semester of 2021.
The Laser Centre of the Faculty of Physics, Mathematics and Optometry (FMOF) of the University of Latvia has become a partner of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in the AEgIS antihydrogen experiment, wrote Labs of Latvia. The agreement between the University of Latvia and CERN provides for the involvement of the Laser Centre in the development and implementation of a positron detector, analysis of the interaction of the laser with atoms and antiatoms, as well as implementation of other sections of the experiment.
Artūrs Ivanovs, a researcher at the RTU Faculty of Computer Science and Information Technology, has created software for a robot that could help save people in tunnels and other hard-to-reach places in case of disasters, Labs of Latvia wrote. The young scientist has set up a radar system so that the robot could recognise humans without touching them and perceive signs of life: breathing and heart functioning. The robot is still in its infancy and is primarily being developed for CERN’s safety in a tunnel where one of the largest infrastructure elements of the European Organization for Nuclear Research, the Large Hadron Collider, operates. It is used for experiments to observe new physics phenomena, and it was with this accelerator that the existence of the Higgs boson was proven.
Promoting Nuclear Research Since 1953
For almost 70 years, CERN has been a scientific centre where globally important scientific discoveries are taking place. CERN was the place where the Internet was invented, but in 2012, with the help of the Large Hadron Collider, the existence of the Higgs boson was proven.
The European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) is a European scientific organisation dedicated to fundamental physics research and the development of a very wide range of technologies. It was established by the Convention for the Establishment of a European Organization for Nuclear Research, which was signed by 12 countries in 1953. CERN employs around 2,500 people constantly. 12,000 visiting researchers from more than 70 countries have worked in the organization to carry out their research.
The main objective of the European Organization for Nuclear Research is to ensure the operation of an international large-scale research infrastructure for high-energy particle physics research that goes beyond the scope of atomic physics. Research is carried out solely for civil purposes with the aim of promoting scientific and technical cooperation between European countries in the field of nuclear research.
The founders of CERN aim to provide infrastructure for European scientists who offer all the necessary tools to conduct high-level research. At the same time, CERN is not only a laboratory for high-energy particle physics research, but also a place where excellent international cooperation in research, technology and innovation is formed.
In connection with particle accelerator technologies, CERN regularly develops new ways, methods and technological solutions to understand the basic foundations of the universe. The organization has accumulated a high level of scientific and technological information, which is applied in production and everyday life.
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Join in an Organization
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Olympics: South African Tatjana Schoenmaker Just Misses World Record in Prelims of 200 Breaststroke
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Coming off a silver medal in the 100-meter breaststroke earlier in the Olympic Games in Tokyo , Schoenmaker just missed the world record in the 200 breaststroke, going an Olympic record of 2:19.16 for the second-fastest time in history. Despite having two rounds to go, Schoenmaker decided to make a statement in the preliminaries and earned the top seed by nearly three seconds. The world record stands at 2:19.11, set in 2013 by Denmark’s Rikke Moller Pedersen.
Schoenmaker was the silver medalist in the 200 breaststroke at the 2019 World Championships and came into the event as the top seed, thanks to a personal best of 2:20.17. Her prelim outing was a swim of beauty, as she jumped out to an early advantage and continued to press the pace. She will give the global standard another chase when she returns to the blocks for the semifinals on Thursday morning.
“Amazing,” Schoenmaker said. “I was a little nervous coming in from the 100. It’s a whole extra hundred and that’s the hard part about it. So I was a little nervous. But my teammate who swam two heats before me motivated me. She swam a (personal best) by two seconds, so I thought maybe I could do well as well today. She definitely made me feel more relaxed about going into the 200. I don’t think I have words to say how happy I am.”
The United States’ Lilly King is the second seed for the semifinals, following a swim of 2:22.10. King won the bronze medal in the 100 breaststroke and was just ahead of Russia’s Evgenia Chikunova (2:22.16) and South Africa’s Kaylene Corbett (2:22.48). American Annie Lazor, the U.S. Trials champion, was fifth in 2:22.76, with Great Britain’s Molly Renshaw going 2:22.99.
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Break historical records
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1996 Stafford rail crash
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On 8 March 1996, a Transrail freight train travelling from Mossend, North Lanarkshire, to Willesden, North London, derailed after an axle on a wagon carrying liquid carbon dioxide failed due to fatigue at Rickerscote 1.4 miles (2.2 km) south of Stafford. [2] Almost immediately after the derailment, a Travelling Post Office mail train hauled by a Rail Express Systems British Rail Class 86 electric locomotive (no 86239) collided with a section of the derailed freight train on the adjacent line and fouled the path of the TPO mail train. One person, a mail sorter, was killed in the crash and twenty others including the driver of the mail train were injured. [3]
The cause of the collision was the failure of an axle on one of the tanker wagons of the freight train. It caused the wagon and adjacent ones to derail, into the path of the closely approaching mail train, which was travelling at 60 mph (97 km/h). The driver of the mail train had no time to brake and the force of the collision spun the locomotive around and catapulted it up the embankment, where it came to rest against the end wall of a house. [4]
The liquid carbon dioxide formed into a gas as it was no longer under pressure and interfered with the rescue effort. One bystander who had gone to help was later found unconscious after suffering the inhalation effects of carbon dioxide. The rescue services were on the scene within four minutes of being notified, despite the signaller at Stafford having to relay the emergency information via another office because the crash had cut his external phone lines, but he was able to phone his supervisor at Crewe. [5]
The fire service on site were given the wrong staffing list for the mail train - they had been given a manifest for the number of mail workers who would have been on the train northbound after leaving Crewe. However, the ambulance service were given a correct head count list from the Royal Mail workers at the lineside. [6]
During the investigation, it was discovered that the wagon had travelled 69,000 miles (111,000 km) since its last inspection. The recommendation at the time was that wagons were tested every 24,000 miles (39,000 km). [7]
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Train collisions
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Artificial Intelligence Innovations: Potential Global Health Benefits
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DECATUR, Georgia — While the new realm of artificial intelligence (AI) has seemingly been restricted to higher-income states, there has been more research and development of AI that presents potential health benefits for low and middle-income countries. Artificial intelligence innovations that help prevent outbreaks of disease and lower child mortality rates are becoming a reality. Providing lower and middle-income states with these new innovations will improve global health and combat poverty. AI is the subset of computer science that focuses on “the simulation of intelligent behavior in computers.” The two general categories of AI are artificial general intelligence and artificial narrow intelligence. Artificial general intelligence refers to the capability of a machine to mimic the human mind and complete any intellectual endeavor that “a human can perform.” Artificial narrow intelligence deals with the ability of a machine to perform one specific task incredibly well. All applications of AI in regards to medicine and global health fall under the category of artificial narrow intelligence. Expert systems are technologies created with the highest ability to address specific challenges. These systems possess the capabilities to help predict cholera outbreaks in South Africa. The advancement of “fuzzy logic,” a group of mathematical principles “for knowledge representation based upon probability and uncertainty,” has rapidly improved the capability of expert systems. Additionally, the integration of fuzzy logic into “decision support applications” provides an effective representation of how a human would handle intricate situations containing high levels of uncertainty. Physicians in lower-income countries can call upon medical expert systems for aid in diagnosing patients and selecting treatment plans. In some situations, the expert systems can assume the role of a human expert if one is not available. AI experts from Brazil and the U.S. created a fuzzy logic expert system to predict asphyxia in developing nations. Research showed that this prediction system “was 77% sensitive and 95% specific for” recognizing the need for the resuscitation of infants within hospitals. An additional application of AI pertinent to developing countries relates to disease prevention. Artificial intelligence in medical epidemiology is a specialty field employing AI to predict the outbreak and spread of disease within a specific area. AI systems aim to foresee and fight the spread of disease in Manila, The Philippines. A “machine learning tool” was created by AI experts to follow the weather and land-use patterns affiliated with dengue fever. Following many trials, the machine has learned to calibrate its predictions and models of dengue outbreaks with more accuracy. A report constructed by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) divides AI use in global health into four segments: It is clear to most nations, particularly nations with strong technology, that artificial intelligence innovations are profitable investments. China has declared the goal of becoming “the leading AI power” by 2030. Countries all over the world are investing in AI technology because they are aware of the growing value of the AI industry and its wide array of applications. Nations such as China can use their AI power and products as diplomatic bargaining chips with other states. If China decides to provide medical aid to lower or middle-income countries in the future, Chinese officials should consider providing AI medical tools. The potential of AI is enormous. Furthermore, the application of AI technology in the sphere of global health will benefit all countries, developed and developing.
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Disease Outbreaks
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1965 Valparaíso earthquake and El Cobre dam failure
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The Valparaíso earthquake (also known as the La Ligua earthquake) of 1965 struck near the city of La Ligua in the Valparaíso Region, Chile, about 140 km from the capital Santiago on Sunday, March 28 at 12:33 p.m. (UTC−03:00). The moment magnitude (Mw ) 7.4–7.6 temblor killed an approximate 500 people and caused damages amounting to some US$1 billion (adjusted for inflation). [1][2] Many of the deaths were from El Cobre, a mining location that was wiped out after a series of dam failures caused by the earthquake spilled mineral waste onto the area, burying hundreds of residents. The shock was so powerful that it could be felt throughout the country and even across the continent to the Atlantic coast of Argentina. [3]
Earthquakes are frequent in Chile as it lies in the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, where many of the world's active volcanoes and seismic activities are concentrated at. Off the coast of Chile, the Nazca Plate subducts beneath the South American Plate along the Peru-Chile or Atacama Megathrust, producing large earthquakes including the 1960 Chilean earthquake which had a magnitude of 9.5-9.6 on the moment magnitude scale. [4]
On the 22nd of March the same year, a magnitude 6.2-6.4 earthquake rocked the coastal town of Los Vilos at a depth of 48.8 km, slightly north of the epicenter for the mainshock. [5] It has been interpreted as a foreshock of the March 28 quake, although both events were on separate fault planes. The foreshock had a thrust mechanism, different from the mechanism of the mainshock. [6] Whether the 22 March quake was a true foreshock or the seven day time separation was sheer coincidence may never be determined. The earthquake nucleated about 72 km beneath the community of La Ligua with a magnitude of 7.4 on the moment magnitude scale. Focal mechanism of this earthquake suggests normal faulting likely within the slab of the Nazca Plate rather than on the subduction zone interface of the megathrust. [7]
The maximum intensity of the earthquake has been estimated at IX (Violent) on the Mercalli intensity scale, shaking severity for this earthquake would result in cataclysmic impact for the affected regions. [6] The earthquake inflicted serious damages to adobe and unreinforced masonry buildings. Over 21,000 housed collapsed and 70,000 had to be repaired. Houses made of hollow concrete units were especially severely affected, cracks appeared due to the lack of bonding between bricks and the concrete fillings, shear failure, and damages to beams. [8]
At the time it had struck, many Chileans had just finished preparing their lunch means or returned from church services. This may have reduced the anticipated death toll because many churches had collapsed from ground motions, and there were very few instances of conflagrations. In Salamanca and Illapel, over 100,000 people were left homeless. The Department of Illapel reported more than 90% of homes had been damaged, and a hospital was completely destroyed. Adding that "Only facades of the houses remain standing.". Valparaíso reported 25 deaths and 40% of its buildings damaged from the earthquake. At Santiago, the shock knocked out electricity and stirred panic in many neighborhoods. Four persons died from the temblor, including a woman who fell to her death after jumping off the second floor of a hospital and another during a stampede to race for the exit at a racetrack after a grandstand collapsed, while ten were injured. [9][3] An estimated 2,000 homes were badly damaged in the capital. Additional casualties were reported at Llay-Llay, where four people had died, two each in La Laguna and Quilpue, and one each in San Felipe, Colina, Melon, Olmue and Ventanas. Three deaths were from Vina Del Mar when a wall fell on those victims. [3]
Records of aftershocks are sparse due to the poor instrumentation quality at the time, very few moderately-sized events were recorded. Severe liquefaction from the earthquake resulted in the failure of 17 tailing dams, the most severe of which, affected the town of El Cobre, killing hundreds of residents and workers. Tailing dams failing because of seismic activities were a known risk to surrounding communities as seen in previous events. Many of these incidents were a result of liquefaction with flow failure, slope instability and quake-related deformations or overtopping and flow failure. Similar instances of sand tailing dams failing were also observed during earthquakes in 1981, 1985, 1997, and 2010. [10]
Two dams belonging to the El Soldado mine released 350,000 and 1,900,000 cubic meters of debris respectively, and traveled 12 km downstream which destroyed the town of El Cobre, in La Calera, burying it under three feet of muck. [3][11] About 60 to 70 farmhouses and cottages were swept away by the cascading debris flow. Many of the casualties were miners and peasants who were mining for copper. The death toll stands between 350 and 400, although the official figure is at 247. [3]
In the immediate hours of the quake, cabinet ministers met with the President of Chile, Eduardo Frei Montalva. The Ministers of Public Works and Defence were taken to the affected town of Llay-Llay to survey the damage extent and plan the rescue and recovery efforts. The Chilean Army was called in for aid to mobilize the arrival of tents and makeshift kitchens to those who had lost their homes. Government officials and military chiefs were also involved in the distribution of food, water, and medical aid. [12]
This tragedy, along with the 1960 earthquakes was one of the reasons for the formation of the National Office of Emergency of the Interior Ministry which oversees natural disasters and rescue efforts in Chile. Prior to the disaster, there had not been any formal organization to coordinate any rescue and recovery efforts, mainly because local officials and residents have endured many of the frequent earthquakes in the area. [12]
The dam failures marked a series of changes to the civil engineering and mining community, and the design of tailing dams. Upstream tailing dams were opted for other means such as downstream tailings sand, rock-fills, and earth dams despite the higher costs. [13]
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Earthquakes
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2017 European Short Course Swimming Championships
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The 2017 European Short Course Swimming Championships took place in Copenhagen, Denmark from 13 to 17 December 2017. [1] The meet was held in the Royal Arena, which was finished in early 2017. [2] It was the first major sports event in this arena, which has a capacity of circa 12,500. [3]
It was the second time that Denmark hosted this event, after the 2013 edition in Herning. Poland and Italy were also bidding to host the championships. The decision to select Copenhagen was announced by LEN President Paolo Barelli on 9 October 2015. [3]
Host nation
Legend: WR - World record; WBT - World best time; ER - European record; NR - National record; CR - Championship record; WJ - Junior world record
Legend: WR - World record; WBT - World best time; ER - European record; NR - National record; CR - Championship record
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Sports Competition
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Aeroflot Flight 6709 crash
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Aeroflot Flight 6709 was a Tupolev Tu-154B on a domestic route from Baku to Leningrad on 19 May 1978. While cruising, fuel starvation affected the flow of fuel to the aircraft's three Kuznetsov NK-8 engines, causing the engines to stop. [1][2] This issue was possibly as a result of poor aircraft design. [3]
Aeroflot Flight 6709 took off from Bina International Airport at 10:30 a.m. MSK. It was bound for Pulkovo Airport in Leningrad, a distance of 2,550 kilometres (1,580 mi). Roughly two hours into the flight, the engines lost power. Some sources state that this was due to an accidental shutoff of fuel pumping to the aircraft's sump tank by the flight engineer, though the accuracy of this claim is uncertain. [1] Due to the poor design of the Tu-154B, a single fuel pump failure could result in the stoppage of all three engines. [3] Soon after the engines lost power, the aircraft's AC generators stopped. This resulted in an abrupt pitch and roll of the aircraft, the first sign of malfunction that the pilots noticed. [3]
During descent, the pilots tried multiple times to restart the engines. Some of these attempts worked, but did not supply enough power to the generators to restart the fuel pump. The pilots also attempted to use the aircraft's Auxiliary power unit (APU) to restart the fuel pump, but its operation was disabled by design at altitudes above 3,000 metres (9,800 ft). [3]
The aircraft landed in a potato and barley field 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) southeast of Maksatikha at 1:32 p.m. The aircraft bounced several times, separating into three pieces upon contact with trees. Two to three minutes after stopping, the aircraft's fuselage caught fire and was destroyed. [3] The crash and resulting fire caused 4 fatalities and 27 injuries. [1]
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Air crash
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Transcript of Biden’s Speech After Kabul Airport Attack
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The president mourned the U.S. service members and others killed and addressed those responsible: “We will hunt you down and make you pay.”
The following is a transcript of President Biden’s remarks on Thursday about an attack at the Kabul, Afghanistan, airport that killed scores of people, including at least 12 U.S. service members.
It’s been a tough day. This evening in Kabul, as you all know, terrorists attacked — that we’ve been talking about, and worried about, that the intelligence community has assessed — has undertaken an attack by a group known as ISIS-K. Took the lives of American service members standing guard at the airport, and wounded several others seriously. They also wounded a number of civilians, and civilians were killed as well.
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This is an offer for a Basic Digital Access Subscription. The Basic Digital Access Subscription does not include e-reader editions (Kindle, Nook, etc.), NYT Games (the Crossword) or NYT Cooking. Mobile apps are not supported on all devices. These offers are not available for current subscribers. Other restrictions and taxes may apply. Offers and pricing are subject to change without notice.
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Famous Person - Give a speech
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Italy's Mount Etna volcano erupts with dawn explosions of lava and ash clouds
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Mount Etna erupted with strong explosions at dawn this morning, 9 August, shaking the walls and floors of nearby buildings in the Catania province of northeast Sicily. However despite the strength of the blasts, which began at 04.00, there was "nothing abnormal" about the activity, according to Boris Behncke of Italy’s national geophysics and volcanology institute (INGV). Catania airport has warned of "possible delays" on incoming and outbound flights due to volcanic ash from Etna. As the clean-up operation gets underway this morning, there are no reports of injuries or structural damage. ‼️Lunedì 9 agosto ore 8:00. Possibili ritardi su voli in arrivo e in partenza causa eruzione #Etna — Aeroporto di Catania (@CTAairport) August 9, 2021 General Info Address Mt Etna, 95031 Adrano, Province of Catania, Italy View on Map Italy's Mount Etna volcano erupts with dawn explosions of lava and ash clouds Mt Etna, 95031 Adrano, Province of Catania, Italy
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Volcano Eruption
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Olympics-Athletics-Warholm world record astonishes, more long jump drama
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TOKYO (Reuters) – Norwegian Karsten Warholm rocked the world of athletics on Tuesday, shattering his own world record to win the men’s 400 metre hurdles, as Germany’s Malaika Mihambo produced more last-leap drama to triumph in a superb women’s long jump.
A month after he broke Kevin Young’s 29-year world mark with a time of 46.70 seconds, Warholm blew his own record away in the final with an astonishing 45.94 run.
“I can’t believe the time, it’s so fast,” he said. “A lot of the time I am asked about the perfect race. I said it didn’t exist but this is the closest I’ve ever come.”
His key rival American Rai Benjamin took silver in an amazing 46.17 and Brazilian Alison dos Santos claimed bronze in 46.72, still inside the previous world record of 46.78 Young set at the 1992 Games.
In an enthralling women’s long jump final, Mihambo of Germany added Olympic gold to her world championship title with a final leap of 7.00 metres, as American Brittney Reese took the silver ahead of bronze medallist Ese Brume of Nigeria.
“It was, I think, the most exciting women’s long jump competition in history,” said Mihambo, who finished fourth at the 2016 Games.
Six-time Olympic champion Allyson Felix kicked off her fifth and final Games strong, winning her 400m heat in 50.84-second.
Shaunae Miller-Uibo of the Bahamas stayed on course for the track double, easing through to Wednesday’s semi-final and setting up a potential showdown with Felix, 35, who is gunning for the podium after giving birth in 2018.
“It has changed everything. It gave me a different drive, and has brought so many challenges,” said Felix. “It is even more meaningful to be on this stage as a mum.”
A new chapter in Olympic athletics began in the men’s 200 metres, as the event kicked off without retired Jamaican legend and triple winner Usain Bolt for the first time since 2008.
The American trio of Noah Lyles, Kenneth Bednarek and Erriyon Knighton easily advanced, with Bednarek posting the fastest overall time in 20.01.
In men’s triple jump qualifying, world leader Pedro Pablo Pichardo of Portugal leapt for an astonishing 17.71 metres – the best performance ever in a qualifying round – while Olympic and world silver medallist Will Claye of the United States advanced to Thursday’s final with 16.91.
It was not all smiles inside the Olympic Stadium, however, where morning drizzle gave way to a scorching sun.
Croatia suffered bitter disappointment yet again as Sara Kolak’s title defence in the women’s javelin qualifier ended after she committed three fouls to bounce out of the competition, a day after Sandra Perkovic fell short in her bid for a third consecutive Olympic gold in the discus.
Polish world leader Maria Andrejczyk and 2019 world champion Kelsey-Lee Barber of Australia advanced in the javelin.
‘TRANSNATIONAL REPRESSION’
Elsewhere at the Games, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said it was waiting for a report from the Belarusian National Olympic Committee on the case of sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya, who took refuge in the Polish embassy on Monday, a day after refusing her team’s orders to board a flight home from Tokyo.
The U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken blasted Belarus’ attempt to send her home against her wishes, saying it was an intolerable “transnational repression” and Warsaw has offered her a humanitarian visa.
(Reporting by Amy Tennery, Mitch Phillips, Sudipto Ganguly and Omar Mohammed; Editing by Ana Nicolaci da Costa)
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Break historical records
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3 policy proposals to bolster the post-lockdown economy
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By Betsy Vereckey Jun 3, 2020 MIT Sloan economists say the government’s efforts during COVID-19 are a good start but not enough to restart the economy. Here are their recommended next steps. As experts strive to predict how COVID-19 will continue to impact the economy, are there lessons to be learned in looking back to the 2008 financial crisis? Yes and no, said a group of MIT Sloan economists. In a recent webinar, hosted by the MIT Golub Center for Finance and Policy, they cautioned there are important differences to keep in mind. “We don't have a financial crisis right now — we have a public health crisis,” saidAndrew Lo, an MIT Sloan professor of finance. “That's had some very significant implications for financial markets . . . and over the course of the next few weeks to months, we're actually going to see potentially even more disruption.” Speakers offered up a variety of potential economic solutions but said they are contingent on more effectively containing the coronavirus, or even better, finding a permanent solution. “We as a nation are not generating output and income and profits right now, and there's no way for the financial and economic policies of the government to get back that output that we're losing,” saidJonathan Parker, an MIT Sloan professor of finance. “We’ve lost a bunch of wealth, a bunch of income, and the longer the health crisis continues, the more wealth will be lost.” The economists unpacked many of these implications and offered suggestions on what the U.S. government can do to help. Some of their ideas: With wages and rent to pay, cash-constrained small businesses have been among the hardest hit by the coronavirus, and more should be done to help them, the economists agreed. The paycheck protection program (PPP), which is the part of the CARES Act, allowed small businesses to apply for low-interest loans through their banks to cover some of their expenses, such as paying their workers’ wages, but the efficacy of these and other credit programs isn’t yet clear, saidDeborah Lucas,faculty director of the Golub Center. “For many businesses right now, the problem is not so much access to credit as it is solvency. It remains to be seen whether the programs will be effective at averting job losses and preventing bankruptcies,” said Lucas, a distinguished professor of finance at MIT Sloan. “At this point, it's still highly uncertain what the take-up rates will be, whether the money will reach those who really need it, and what the loss rates will be in the end.” Antoinette Schoar,an MIT Sloan professor of finance and entrepreneurship, pointed out the PPP actually forces the owners of small businesses to maintain their cost structure at pre-COVID-19 levels in order to qualify for loan forgiveness. What’s needed, Schoar said, are additional provisions that would allow small businesses to renegotiate with their stakeholders. In addition, the government should make sure that it’s targeting funding to the industries and regions most in need and to businesses that are cash-constrained and don’t have other access to funds — not to companies that don’t need it. That sentiment was echoed by MIT Sloan Distinguished Professor of FinanceRobert Merton, who said that there is “really no reason to bail out big firms” that can safely reorganize under Chapter 11. “One of the reasons we end up bailing out entities that we don't really want to is because they get mixed up with entities that we do want to take care of,” Merton said, adding that now is the time to “develop and invest more in more efficient distribution systems” for any further aid. Markets would rise 5% – 15% the first time the FDA proves efficacy for a COVID-19 vaccine, predicted MIT Sloan Professor Andrew Lo. Markets have been on a rollercoaster the last several months, and Lo forecast even more disruption in the next few weeks to months. “The volatility of volatility has been extraordinarily high,” he said. “Right now it's very difficult for both individuals and institutions to know what to do with their financial assets.” Some events with the potential to impact the market are predictable to a certain extent. For example, Lo predicted that markets would drop by 10% to 20% if Dr. Anthony Fauci — the nation’s top infectious disease expert and a member of the White House’s coronavirus task force — were to lose his job. Conversely, markets would rise by 5% to 15% the first time the Food and Drug Administration developed and proved efficacy for the first vaccine for COVID-19, Lo said. Other developments remain a black box for now. But “there are a number of things that financial policy makers or regulators can do to make it easier for us to deal with this volatility,” Lo said. One idea: provide liquidity to financial institutions so that they, in turn, can provide liquidity to consumers and those businesses that need it. His advice for navigating the current uncertainty? “Unless you need liquidity in the short term, my perspective is to leave the money in [the market] and expect that there's going to be improvements once we deal with the public health crisis,” he said. Merton said that the CARES Act “took a step in the right direction” by limiting penalties and other barriers that stopped people from accessing funds in their 401(k) plans in order to cover their current expenses. But the government could do more, he said. One possibility is giving people the option to give up some of their defined benefit rights so that they can receive cash from a pension fund or employer plan. “Not for everyone in every situation, but the point is making these available,” Merton said. Given that pension funds and 401(k) plans are both assets that belong to the individual, Merton said that people should have broader access to their savings in times of crisis to keep them on track for eventual retirement and to help ensure that there’s a “system in place robust enough to deal with many different people’s lifestyles and needs.” All the economists agreed that it will be impossible to fix the U.S. economy until the virus is under control and it’s safe for people to return to work. Parker noted that one unique challenge with COVID-19 is that the virus affects the economy on both the supply and demand side, which greatly disrupts the supply chain. This means that the sooner people feel safe out in the world working and shopping, the more likely the economy can begin to recover. “The policy target should be about getting people back to work as soon as possible, and that requires, I think, safety,” Parker said. Watch the webinar The mission of the MIT Sloan School of Management is to develop principled, innovative leaders who improve the world and to generate ideas that advance management practice.
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Financial Crisis
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Indonesia’s open unemployment rate has surged to its highest level since 2011, with the pandemic causing some 2.67 million people to lose their jobs
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Indonesia’s open unemployment rate has surged to its highest level since 2011, with the pandemic causing some 2.67 million people to lose their jobs, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) announced on Thursday. The country’s unemployment rate rose to 7.07 percent in August, a 1.84 percentage point increase from 5.23 percent in the same month last year. In total, 9.77 million people were unemployed in August, up by 37.61 percent year-on-year (yoy) from August 2019. “The COVID-19 pandemic has had an extraordinary impact on the labor market,” BPS head Suhariyanto told reporters during a press briefing. Some 29.12 million people or 14.2 percent of the country’s workforce have been affected by the pandemic, BPS data also shows. From the total, 24 million people have worked shorter hours, 1.7 million people have been furloughed, while 2.56 million have lost their jobs and 760,000 are no longer considered as part of the workforce, according to the BPS. Indonesia officially entered its first recession since the 1998 Asian financial crisis after the economy contracted again in the third quarter. Southeast Asia’s largest economy shrank 3.49 percent on an annual basis in the third quarter, as almost all gross domestic product (GDP) components fell amid the persistent rise in COVID-19 cases. Read also: Breaking: Indonesia enters first recession since 1998 on 3.49% Q3 contraction Suhariyanto said the pandemic also triggered a rise in informal workers and a fall in formal workers. The number of informal workers from the country’s 128.45-million-strong workforce has increased by 4.59 percentage point to 60.47 percent in August. Meanwhile, formal workers made up 39.53 percent of the total workforce, down by 4.59 percentage points. “The agriculture, trade and manufacturing sectors employed most workers in August,” he went on to say. The agricultural and trade sectors employed the most people, with 29.7 percent and 19.23 percent of the workers, respectively. Both sectors employed more people in August this year compared to a year ago. However, the manufacturing sector, which employed 13.61 percent of workers, cut its workforce by 1.3 percent in August compared to the same period last year. Earlier in June, National Development Planning Minister Suharso Monoarfa announced that some 5.5 million people may lose their jobs this year, pushing the unemployment rate to between 8.1 and 9.2 percent, up from 5.23 percent last year. As a result, up to 12.7 million people are expected to be unemployed by next year, up from 7.05 million people in 2019. The government’s baseline scenario for next year predicts that the unemployment rate will be between 7.7 and 9.1 percent.
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Financial Crisis
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Indian Airlines Flight 491 crash
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(ii) Crash of Indian Airlines Boeing 737 Aircraft near Aurangabad
Airport on 26.4.1993
THE MINISTER OF CIVIL AVIATION AND TOURISM (SHRI GHULAM NABI
AZAD): The House is aware of the tragic accident to Indian Airlines
flight IC-491 on 26th April, 1993 at Aurangabad
The aircraft, with 112 passengers and 6 crew members, had just
taken off from Aurangabad for Bombay. Before it could gain enough
height, its wheel gear hit a high-rise truck, loaded with cotton,
passing on the road close to the runway outside the perimeter wall at
the eastern end. The landing gear of the aircraft broke off under the
impact and the aircraft swered to the left. Thereafter it hit a power
transmission line and crashed in the field at a distance of about 7
km. from the airport. The aircraft broke into pieces and caught fire. While 63 persons including the pilot, the co-pilot and 2 other
members of the crew have survived, it is a matter for deep regret that
53 passengers and 2 members of the crew lost their lives. 12 of the
surviving passengers, who had sustained injury, were admitted to the
local hospital; 3 of them left the hospital after first aid and the
rest are recovering. I visited the crash site along with senior officials of the
Ministry and Indian Airlines and met some of the surviving passengers,
including
371 Statement by Minister
[Sh. Ghulam Nabi Azad)
those in the hospital. Chief Minister of Maharashtra had also come
over from Bombay and the State Government took all possible rescue and
relief measures. Special information cells have been set up at Delhi, Udaipur,
Jaipur, Aurangabad and Bombay to provide information to relatives of
the passengers. Arrangements have also been made for members of the
bereaved families of Bombay, Jaipur and Udaipur to be taken to
Aurangabad. Compensation for loss of life in the accident would be paid at
the rate of Rs.5 lakhs for adults and rs.2.5 lakhs for children to the
next of kin. The available in formation and the situation primafacie, do not
indicate any sabotage. However, Government have decided to institute
a judicial inquiry which will reveal full facts and circumstances of
the unfortunate accident. DGCA has commenced preliminary
investigations. The sorrow we feel on this sad occasion cannot be describe in
words. I am sure Hon'ble Members will join me in sharing the grief of
the kith and kin of those who lost their precious lives in this
unfortunate incident. [Translation]
SHRI SHARAD YADAV (Madhepura): Mr. Chairman, Sir, I was raising
this issue today in the morning itself and while doing so I said one
thing. It was about landing and taking off of planes at smaller
airports like Udaipur. I said that as per the existing work culture
in India, it is unfortunate that the persons in the public sector or
in any other Government machinery do not perform their duties with a
sense of responsibility. The Government has, of course, instituted a
judicial inquiry, but it will take a long time for submitting its
report. I have myself had an experience of going through this route. Mr. Chairman, Sir, through you, I would like to ask or say, I would
Statement by Minister 372
like to convery to the hon. Minister that the technicians appointed
at smaller stations like Udaipur are irresponsible and inefficient in
checking the airworthiness of planes while the technicians working at
big stations like Calcutta or Bombay are competent and highly skilled. Whenever we under take journey through planes, we observe that the
technicians come and return within 5 minutes. What can they check in
5 minutes? They might be checking two-three things and then they
return. Suppose the said plane had not stopped at 4 stations that is
to say, it had not to take off on 4 stations. You know, a plane has
to exercise maximum energy at the time of landing and taking off and
since it has to apply all its energy at the time of landing and taking
off. So the chances of accident are maximum on those two occasions. So I would like to submit that there should be an immediate review
about the scheduled under which the plane has to stop at 4 stations. If the plane had taken off from here itself, then it would have had 2
take offs and 2 landings and in that case this accident could have
been averted. That is why I am saying that these accidents are due to
the passenger type system of flight. I would further like to know
whether the hon. Minister has got the information about this or not? SHRI DAU DAYAL JOSHI: Mr. Chairman, Sir, I would like to know
from the hon. Minister and would like to tell him that the day before
yesterday one person had come to attend a marriage in Kota city from
Aurangabad and yesterday he was going back to Aurangabad via Jaipur by
the same plane.The news of accident of that plane came on television
at 3 O'Clock and with that I grew anxious about that fellow. I kept
on trying together some news in this regard ever since 3 O'Clock, but
I could not succeed. It was not conveyed through television as to at
which place information regarding the accident could be available. I
was, however, trying my best to get any information in this regard. I
rang up at your residence at 6 O'Clock at last and only then I came to
knw that the hon. Minister had personally gone to the site of
accident and I could know noting more than that. That is to say there
was
373 Statement by Minister
no arrangement to provide any information in this regard even at your
residence. I hoped that there must be some arrangement to provide
information in this regard at least at your residence. I was much
worried for not getting any information from anywhere. It could be
okay if information in this regard would have at least been given in
the evening news at 6.05 p.m. on T.V. or radio. You should have made
some arrangement of this kind.
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Air crash
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The World Isn’t Ready for the Next Outbreak
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The COVID-19 pandemic is the greatest global health crisis in at least a generation, and international organizations have responded accordingly. By building on measures initially developed to counter the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, the global community’s response has easily been the most multilateral public health campaign in human history. By April 2020, for instance, the World Health Organization (WHO) had announced the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, a program designed to help develop and improve access to diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines. Other international organizations quickly pioneered new ways to combat the pandemic’s economic impact. The World Bank
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Disease Outbreaks
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Storms Unleash Mudslides in Italy's Lake Como
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Mudslides struck the picturesque vacation area of Lake Como, Italy, Tuesday after storms wrecked havoc nearby. Firefighters conducted more than 60 rescues but no deaths or injuries were reported, according to the Associated Press. The town of Brienno on the lake's western shore was hit the hardest. There, 50 residents were trapped in a building when a landslide caused a gas leak. Photos show major damage to homes and vehicles in Laglio, where landslides sent debris cascading into buildings and roads. The storms triggered floods as well. In Cernobbio an apartment building was threatened by floods and evacuated by fire crews.
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Mudslides
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Latest news of Covid-19 cases
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KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 5): Malaysia’s daily number of newly-confirmed Covid-19 cases rose to 20,396 today from 19,057 yesterday, as fresh infections rose in states including Selangor and Sarawak. The country’s cumulative number of pandemic-linked deaths topped 18,000 today, after the nation reported 336 fatalities versus 362 yesterday. In an update on Facebook today, Health director general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the newly-confirmed 20,396 Covid-19 infected individuals today brought the country’s cumulative number of pandemic cases to 1.84 million so far. Noor Hisham said Selangor’s daily number of newly-confirmed Covid-19 cases rose to 3,886 today from 3,775 yesterday, while Sarawak’s daily figure of fresh infections climbed to 3,747 from 2,723. Elsewhere, he said Terengganu’s daily number of new Covid-19 cases rose to 861 today, from 605 yesterday. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said in a separate update today on Twitter that the 336 Covid-19-linked deaths reported across Malaysia today brought the country’s cumulative number of pandemic-related fatalities to 18,219 so far. Across the nation’s hospitals, the MOH said 959 Covid-19 patients are being treated in intensive care units. The MOH said 436 pandemic patients need breathing-assistance devices. Meanwhile, 20,573 individuals across Malaysia were reported today to have recovered from Covid-19, according to the MOH. The MOH said the 20,573 individuals brought the country’s cumulative number of persons who have recovered from the pandemic to 1.57 million so far. In Dr Noor Hisham’s update on Facebook, he said the 336 Covid-19-linked deaths reported today involve 274 Malaysians and 62 foreigners. He said there were 107 brought-in-dead cases, of which 67 and 40 were Malaysians and foreigners respectively. On Malaysia’s daily number of newly-confirmed Covid-19 cases at 20,396 today, Dr Noor Hisham said the figure comprises 20,388 local transmission cases and eight imported ones. He said the 20,388 local transmission cases involve 17,858 Malaysians and 2,530 foreigners. "(There are) 255,789 active (Covid-19 cases in the country),” he said. In a separate statement today, Dr Noor Hisham said 13,519 individuals representing 66.3% of the country's daily number of newly-confirmed Covid-19 cases at 20,396 today include people who have no Covid-19 vaccination history, besides those who have received at least one dose of the vaccine. He said 6,877 individuals representing 33.7% of the 20,396 newly-confirmed cases today have a history of being fully-vaccinated against the pandemic.
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Disease Outbreaks
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Group Established to Connect, Inspire and Empower UCI Women in Technology
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To connect, inspire, and empower women working, researching, and teaching in technology-related fields across campus, the University of California, Irvine has established a new diversity affinity group, Women in Technology at UCI (WiT UCI). Through strategic partnerships, career development, educational events, and networking activities, Women in Technology at UCI will strengthen the community of women in technology on campus. Its objective is to engage with staff, faculty, students, and alumni to further the group’s vision and build an alliance of female innovators and leaders and those who support them. “Our slogan is to ‘advance, inspire, empower and act.’ WiT UCI is an organization that will work tirelessly to make a positive difference by focusing on diversity, equality and inclusion. Its vision extends across all areas of technology at UCI, and our goal is to initiate change that advances, inspires and empowers women,” said Shohreh Bozorgmehri, WiT UCI founder and inaugural chair, as well as director of student and academic services in the Office of Information Technology. WiT UCI has established a diverse advisory board of faculty and staff in technology roles at the Office of Information Technology, the Donald Bren School of Information & Computer Sciences, the School of Social Ecology, the School of Medicine and the Claire Trevor School of the Arts. They were selected by the organization’s leadership because of their professional accomplishments; dedication to promoting diversity, equity and inclusion; and commitment to UCI’s mission. The advisory board will work with campus partners and collaborators to achieve the following goals: Build a strong community of women and their allies who support Women in Technology at UCI’s vision. This will include students, faculty, staff, alumni and strategic partners; all gender identities are welcome. Highlight the accomplishments, research and thought leadership of UCI women in technology and UCI women who creatively apply technology to solve today’s problems and create tomorrow’s opportunities. Increase the retention and advancement of women in staff and academic roles at UCI. Connect women with role models who can support them and provide mentorship. Partner with like-minded organizations and associations to promote complementary initiatives, such as Academic & Professional Women of UCI. Make a measurable difference in the metrics that matter. Influence through outreach to the greater community, including K-12. Change attitudes, remove barriers, and equip and empower UCI women to succeed and lead in the digital economy. “Our goal is to support the advancement of women in information technology from hire to retire while raising awareness of gender and racial and ethnic gaps across campus,” said advisory board member Debra Richardson, professor emeritus of informatics and founding dean of the Donald Bren School of Information & Computer Sciences.
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Organization Established
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U.S. military teams with troops in Morocco, Tunisia, Senegal for exercise
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June 8 (UPI) -- The African Lion 21 exercise has begun with 7,800 troops in Morocco, Tunisia and Senegal from nine nations and NATO, U.S. Africa Command said Tuesday. The exercise, meant to prepare U.S. and partner nation forces, kicked off Monday in the three African countries, according to a statement from the command. AFRICOM is responsible for enhancing security and stability in 53 African states and advancing and protecting U.S. national interests. "African Lion 2021 is U.S. Africa Command's premier, joint and multi-national annual exercise," U.S. Africa Command commander U.S. Army Gen. Stephen Townsend said in the statement. "African Lion is an excellent example of the United States' long-term commitment to Africa and recognition of Africa's strategic importance to the United States," Townsend said. The goal of the multi-national, multi-branch exercise that will continue through June 18 is to strengthen interoperability among partner nations and operation preparedness in the African theater of operations. "This exercise is all about readiness," Townsend said. "Readiness of our partners, and readiness of our forces. It brings together various ideas, experiences, and capabilities -- ultimately making us stronger partners and more capable multi-national force," Townsend said. Former Defense Secretary Mark Esper last October referred to African Lion as "a key training and exercise event for many, many years, not just between the United States and Morocco." Though not a NATO member, Morocco, in North Africa, is regarded as a major ally of the United States. Activities for the exercise have been slated to take place across Morocco, from Kenitra Air Base in the north to Tan Tan and the Grier Labouihi training complex further south, along with Senegal and Tunisia, which will feature different military branches showing off maneuvers. U.S. Air Forces Europe and Africa have coordinated air training exercises that feature U.S. and Moroccan air maneuvers including bombers, fighters and aerial refueling. In the maritime portion, U.S. Naval Forces Africa will lead demonstrations, including naval gunfire exercise, multiple-sea-based maneuvers, and crisis response capabilities. U.S. Air Force Airman from the Air National Guard in Utah, which partners with U.S. African Command's State Partnership Program, will conduct a humanitarian civic assistance event in Morocco. In Senegal, U.S. and Senegalese militaries will also show off their ability to rapidly deploy and integrate in response to a crisis. And in Tunisia, U.S. and Tunisian Armed Forces will carry out command post exercises and small unit tactical training. The joint annual exercise was canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. "Due to last year's cancelation of African Lion, we had a head start in planning this year's exercise," Townsend said in the statement. "We understand how important this training is to our forces and our partners and how to better operate in a degraded COVID-19 environment. We will ensure successful training while taking necessary COVID-19 precautionary measures in order to do so," Townsend said. The U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa, replaced the U.S. Marine Corps in assuming the lead responsibility for the African Lion exercise in 2019.
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Military Exercise
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2002 IIHF World Championship
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The 2002 IIHF World Championship was held between April 26 and May 11, 2002 in Gothenburg, Karlstad and Jönköping, Sweden. It was the 66th annual event, and was run by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). Far Eastern Qualification for the tournament took place between October 15 and October 17, 2001 in Harbin, China. All times local
In the First Round, the top 3 teams from each group progressed to the Second Round, whilst the last placed team progressed to the Consolation Round. All times local
All times local
All times local
All times local
In the Second Round, the top 4 teams from each group progressed to the Final Round, whilst the bottom 2 teams are eliminated. Tables and scores below include meetings between teams during the First Round. Tables and scores below include meetings between teams during the First Round. As the Far Eastern qualifier, Japan avoids relegation. Therefore, Poland and Italy are relegated to Division I for the 2003 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
All times local
The final standings of the tournament according to IIHF:
List shows the top ten skaters sorted by points, then goals, then (fewer) games played. Source: IIHF.com
Only the top five goaltenders, based on save percentage, who have played 40% of their team's minutes are included in this list. Source: IIHF.com
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Sports Competition
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70-Year-Old Man Diagnosed With Breast Cancer At Delhi Hospital
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Increasing instances of male breast cancer are shattering the myth that the disease is restricted only to women.
Updated: October 29, 2021 1:03 am IST
A major factor in delayed diagnosis of cancer is owing to a lack of awareness. (Representational)
New Delhi:
A private hospital in the national capital recently diagnosed a 70-year-old man with breast cancer, according to a statement.
Increasing instances of male breast cancer are shattering the myth that the disease is restricted only to women. However, it remains rare occurrence in men and male breast cancer accounts for fewer than one per cent of all cancers diagnosed worldwide, it added.
The patient underwent modified radical mastectomy in September this year and is currently undergoing chemotherapy. He is responding well to the treatment and taking the cycles timely, said Dr Meenu Walia, Senior Director, Medical Oncology, Max Super Speciality Hospital in Patparganj.
"Male breast cancer is rare but an aggressive cancer. As per the American Cancer Society, a man's lifetime risk of developing breast cancer is about 1 out of 833 men. The outlook for male breast cancer is excellent if diagnosis is in the early stages," said Dr Walia.
She said that a major factor in delayed diagnosis is owing to a lack of awareness. “While many women know how to look out for changes that could indicate breast cancer, there is less awareness among men, which means they may be less likely to seek help in the early stages. Male breast cancer is most common in older men, though it can occur at any age,” she said.
Breast cancer can affect men differently as they have fewer breast tissues compared to women. While it can make it easier to detect smaller lumps, however, it also means that the cancer has less room to grow within the breast. As a result, it may quickly spread to nearby tissues/organs, she said.
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For these and other reasons, around 40 per cent of men with breast cancer are diagnosed in stage 3 or 4, when the disease has already spread to other parts of the body. As a result, overall survival rates are lower for men than for women, she added.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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Famous Person - Sick
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1997 IIHF European U18 Championship
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The 1997 IIHF European U18 Championship was the thirtieth playing of the IIHF European Junior Championships. Played April 12 to the 20th, in Znojmo and Trebic, Czech Republic. Switzerland shocked everyone by opening the tournament with wins over the Czechs and the Russians. Although they tired by the end of the tournament, their win over Slovakia assured them of their first (and only) medal in the European Juniors. Germany, losing the best of three series in overtime, was relegated to Group B for 1998. Kauppinen, a defenceman, set a record for the lowest point total to lead a tournament. Played March 21 to the 30th, in Maribor and Celje, Slovenia. Norway was promoted to Group A, and Slovenia was relegated to Group C, for 1998. Played March 12 to the 16th in Miercurea-Ciuc and Gheorgheni, Romania. Great Britain was promoted to Group B and the Netherlands was relegated to Group D, for 1998. Played in Belgrade, Yugoslavia from March 4th to 9th. The hosts completely dominated, with forward Csaba Prokec scoring 29 points in their 5 games. [1]
Yugoslavia was promoted to Group C for 1998.
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Sports Competition
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Tokyo Olympics Athletics LIVE: India’s Men’s 4x400m relay team breaks Asian Record but fails to enter Finals
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India’s Gurpreet Singh has dropped out of the race after competing for around 35Km as he was cramping due to the gruelling heat and humidity.
At halfway point of 25km, he was in the 49th position with the time of 2:01:54 #Tokyo2020 #Olympics
Indian Athletes in Action on Friday
Gurpreet Singh will be India’s sole competitor in the Men’s 50km racewalk finals
Bhawna Jat and Priyanka Goswami will feature in the women’s 20km racewalk finals.
Meanwhile, the likes of Muhammed Anas, Amoj Jacob, Arokia Rajiv, Noah Nirmal Tom and Naganathan Pandi will hope to make their mark in the 4×400 relay event.
India at Tokyo Olympics Day 15 Full Schedule, Match Timings & LIVE Updates
ATHLETICS – 2:00 AM: Men’s 50km Race Walk Final (Gurpreet Singh)
GOLF 5:29 AM: Women’s Individual Stroke Play Round 3 (Diksha Dagar)
GOLF 5:48 AM: Women’s Individual Stroke Play Round 3 (Aditi Ashok)
HOCKEY 7:00 AM: Women’s Bronze Medal Match (India vs Great Britain)
WRESTLING – 8:07 AM: Women’s Freestyle 50kg 1/8 Final (Seema Bisla vs Sarra Hamdi of Tunisia)
8:49 AM: Men’s Freestyle 65kg 1/8 Final (Bajrang Punia vs Ernazar Akmataliev of Kyrgyzstan)
ATHLETICS 1:00 PM: Women’s 20km Race Walk Final (Bhawna Jat, Priyanka Goswami)
ATHLETICS 5:07 PM: Men’s 4x400m Relay Round 1 – Heat 2 (Amoj Jacob, Naganathan Pandi, Arokia Rajiv, Nirmal Tom Noah, Muhammed Anas Yahiya)
Tokyo Olympics India LIVE – Tokyo Olympics Athletics LIVE: Gurpreet Singh (Athletics- Men’s 50km Race Walk Final)
Gurpreet Singh is currently ranked 104 and qualified for Tokyo 2020 by the world ranking quota. Singh clocked 3:59:42, managing to breach the four-hour mark at the national championships in February this year. The 37-year-old who has a career-best ranking of 80, will face stiff competition from Ukraine’s 2018 European champion Maryan Zakalnytskyy, local favourites Satoshi Maruo and Masatora Kawano, and 2019 world championship silver medallist Joao Vieira of Portugal, who all will be aiming to finish on the podium.
Time: 2:00 AM IST
Venue: Sapporo Odori Park
Tokyo Olympics India LIVE – Tokyo Olympics Athletics LIVE: Bhawna Jat, Priyanka Goswami (Athletics- Women’s 20km Race Walk Final)
Priyanka Goswami and Bhawna Jat will be making their Olympics debut and will hope to make their mark in the race walk final on Friday. at held the national record by clocking 1:29:54 and qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics at the National Open Championships in February last year. However, Priyanka Goswami set a new Indian record of 1:28.45 and qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics winning the Indian Racewalking Championship in the 20 km race. After the disappointing performances of Sandeep Sharma, K. T. Irfan and Rahul Rohilla on Thursday, the onus will be on Jat and Goswami to set the record straight.
Time: 1:00 PM IST
Venue: Sapporo Odori Park
Also Read: India at Tokyo Olympics LIVE: Hockey-India vs Great Britain- Women’s Bronze medal match; head-to-head stats, previous results and all you need to know
Men’s 4 x 400m Relay Round 1 – Heat 2
Muhammed Anas, Amoj Jacob, Arokia Rajiv, Noah Nirmal Tom and Naganathan Pandi will feature in the Men’s 4x 400m relay Round 1 Heat 2 on Friday. The quartet made it to Tokyo with a fine performance at the Inter-State Senior Athletics Championships, clocking 3:01.89s to win their heats in Patiala. They will hope to capitalise on their ticket to the Summer Games and aim to make it to the finals.
Time: 5:07 PM IST
Venue: Olympic Stadium
Tokyo Olympics India LIVE – Tokyo Olympics Athletics LIVE: Follow all LIVE Updates as Indian Athletes take on World’s top runners & walkers on InsideSport.co
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Break historical records
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Maritime Central Airways Flight 315 crash
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Maritime Central Airways Flight 315 was an international charter flight from London, England to Toronto, Ontario, Canada, with refueling stops in Reykjavík, Iceland, and Goose Bay, Newfoundland. On 11 August 1957, the aircraft operating this flight, a Douglas DC-4, crashed in bad weather 7.2 kilometres (4.5 mi) west of Issoudun, Quebec, killing all 79 people on board. At the time, it was the deadliest aviation accident in Canadian history, and as of 2020 is still the fifth-deadliest. It is also the second-deadliest crash involving a DC-4, behind another in 1967. [1][2]
Flight 315 departed London Heathrow International Airport for Reykjavík at 21:48 GMT. Then, after stopping in Reykjavík for 66 minutes to refuel, it proceeded on the next leg of its route to Canada. After entering Canadian airspace, the flight crew radioed that they wished to bypass Goose Bay and proceed to Montreal instead. At 18:10, Quebec Radio Range Station relayed a message to the aircraft, requesting it to contact Montreal Range while approaching Rougemont for clearance. This was the final communication with the aircraft prior to the accident. [1]
While flying in the vicinity of Quebec City at an altitude of approx. 6,000 feet, Flight 315 flew into a cumulonimbus cloud. Encountering severe turbulence, the aircraft somehow lost control and went into a near-vertical dive from which it could not recover. At 18:15 UTC, at a speed of over 200 knots, the aircraft slammed into the ground near Issoudun in a 70-degree nose-down position and a slight left bank angle. All 73 passengers and six crew were killed on impact. [1]
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Air crash
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1989 African Championships in Athletics
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The African Championships in Athletics is a continental athletics event organized by the Confederation of African Athletics (CAA), the continental association for the sport in Africa. Since its inaugural edition in 1979 it was at first organised intermittently with nine editions held in fourteen years until 1993. Following the tenth edition in 1996 it has been organised biennially on even years, and is always held in the same year as the Summer Olympics. The 21st edition was held in Asaba, Nigeria in August 2018. The event featured a men's marathon from 1979 to 1990. Following it being dropped from the programme an African Marathon Championships was briefly contested. [1] The event programme has roughly matched that of the IAAF World Championships in Athletics, with the exception of the 50 kilometres race walk. [2]
The following list shows changes to the event programme:
The best athletes of these championships are:
Men Hakim Toumi 7 gold medals
Women Zoubida Laayouni 7 gold medals
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Sports Competition
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‘Destructive U.S.’: Russia Reacts to INF Treaty Withdrawal
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The United States formally withdrew from a landmark nuclear missile pact with Russia on Friday after determining that Moscow was in violation of the treaty, a claim the Kremlin has repeatedly denied. U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. would terminate adherence to the 1987 arms control accord, known as the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), senior administration officials told reporters. The treaty bans either side from stationing short- and intermediate-range, land-based missiles in Europe. Washington signaled its intention six months ago to pull out of the agreement if Russia made no move to adhere to it. Germany, Britain, Poland and the NATO military bloc have joined the U.S. in blaming Russia for violating the INF Treaty and allowing it to lapse. Russia, which denies the violations and accuses Washington of pulling out because it wants to pursue a new arms race, confirmed the end of the pact in a Foreign Ministry statement published Friday. The INF’s demise means both Washington and Moscow are legally free to develop and deploy ground-launched nuclear and conventional ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges of 500 to 5,500 kilometers. Here's how Russian officials and military experts have reacted to the end of the INF Treaty: — Russia said it has asked the U.S. for a moratorium on the deployment of short and intermediate-range nuclear missiles in Europe, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted as saying by the state-run TASS news agency. — President Vladimir Putin says Russia does not want an arms race and he has promised he will not deploy Russian missiles unless the United States does so first. However, should Washington take such a step, Putin says he would be forced to deploy Russian hypersonic nuclear missiles on ships or submarines near U.S. territorial waters. — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg dismissed Russia's moratorium request on Friday, saying it was "not a credible offer" since he said Moscow had already deployed illegal missiles. "There are no new U.S. missiles, no new NATO missiles in Europe, but there are more and more new Russian missiles," Stoltenberg said. — “The U.S. is playing a destructive role today. We’ll be drawing near nuclear war if there are no deterrents,” Russian military expert Viktor Litovkin told The Moscow Times. Litovkin predicted that “Europe will become less secure, and Russia will also have to place its missiles there.” — The U.S. “realizes that they’re destroying the entire international security system because they want to build a new world order,” said Konstantin Sokolov, a geopolitical expert at the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences. Russia “won’t make any sudden moves, but anyone who dares attack Russia knows that Russia will cause serious damage,” he told The Moscow Times. — UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres voiced concern by rising tensions between nuclear-armed states, warning Thursday that "the world will lose an invaluable brake on nuclear war" with the INF’s expiration. — Mikhail Gorbachev, the former Soviet leader who signed the INF Treaty with the U.S. in 1987, said the pact’s demise will lead to “chaos in world politics.” “Today we need to focus on the last pillar of global strategic security — the New START treaty,” Gorbachev told Interfax, referring to a 2010 U.S.-Russian pact that limits strategic nuclear missiles.
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Withdraw from an Organization
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Faucett Flight 251 crash
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AREQUIPA, Peru (AP) _ Sobbing relatives watched from a hillside today as firefighters pulled charred bodies from a Peruvian jetliner that crashed into the Andes Mountains, killing all 123 aboard including two Americans. The Boeing 737 crashed Thursday night into a hillside five miles from its destination. As word spread, relatives of passengers and thousands of onlookers walked to the barren, rocky site, about two miles from a highway. Bodies, many burned beyond recognition, were strewn around the wreckage. Firefighters carried bodies on stretchers and lined them up in bottom of the ravine as grief-stricken relatives _ crying, hugging each other or wringing their hands _ watched from a slope several hundred feet away. Transportation Minister Manuel Vara Ochoa said 103 bodies had been recovered from the smoldering wreckage by noon. It was the deadliest crash in Peruvian aviation history. In the worst previous accident, 91 people were killed on Dec. 24, 1971, when a Peruvian jetliner crashed near the jungle city of Pulcalpa. The Faucett Airlines plane crashed Thursday just outside the city of Arequipa in southern Peru. Its fuselage split into at least three sections that were scattered down the hill into a ravine. The crew of an Aeroperu commercial flight that flew near the Faucett jet spotted the plane flying ``completely in flames,″ said a Lima airport official who spoke on condition of anonymity. But Lt. Col. Marco Velasquez, spokesman for the air force, which is in charge of investigating air crashes, said he could not confirm that the plane was in flames before it crashed. More than 500 police and soldiers cordoned off the area to keep back onlookers. Most were drawn by curiosity but looting has been a problem in past Andean plane crashes. Flight 251 left Lima at 7:10 p.m. and was due to complete the 465-mile flight to Arequipa at 8:15 p.m., Faucett spokesman Jorge D’Acunha said in Lima. The crew was last heard from at 8:10 p.m., and ``everything was normal,″ D’Acunha said. Shortly afterward, local residents said they heard the plane explode on impact. While the weather was foggy at the time of the flight, that had not caused problems for other flights taking off and landing at Arequipa, news reports said. Faucett Airlines originally said the plane was carrying 40 foreign passengers but at midday increased the number to 51. The airline listed 41 Chileans, two Canadians, two Bolivians, three Belgians, one Brazilian, one Argentine and one Mexican. But the Canadian Embassy said the two passengers identified as Canadian were actually Peruvians who had purchased their tickets in Canada. In addition to the airline’s list of 51 foreigners, authorities said two Americans were on board: Lynn Davidson, 42, a Baptist missionary from Santa Fe, New Mexico; and Juan Lorenzo DeSzyszlo, who had dual U.S.-Peruvian citizenship. The other 72 passengers and six crew members were Peruvian. Mrs. Davidson, a mother of three, was returning to her home in Arequipa from a missionary team meeting in Lima, Mark Kelly, a spokesman for the Southern Baptist Foreign Mission Board, said from his office in Richmond, Va. Mrs. Davidson and her husband, Dennis, had been missionaries in Peru since 1988. Boeing 737s went into service in December 1967, and are used by more than 250 airlines in more than 90 countries, Boeing Co. spokesman Brian Ames said in Seattle. The Thursday night crash was the worst in South America since an American Airlines Boeing 757 from Miami crashed near Cali, Colombia, on Dec. 20, killing 160 people.
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Air crash
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2010s Haiti cholera outbreak
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Cases:819,790 (Haiti)33,342 (DR)678 (Cuba)190 (Mexico)
Cases recorded in:
The 2010s Haiti cholera outbreak is the first modern large-scale outbreak of choleraa disease once considered beaten back largely due to the invention of modern sanitation. The disease was reintroduced to Haiti in October 2010, not long after the disastrous earthquake earlier that year, and since then cholera has spread across the country and become endemic, causing high levels of both morbidity and mortality. [5] Nearly 800,000 Haitians have been infected by cholera, and more than 9,000 have died, according to the United Nations (UN). [6] Cholera transmission in Haiti today is largely a function of eradication efforts including WASH (water, sanitation, and hygiene), education, oral vaccination,[7][8] and climate variability. [9] Early efforts were made to cover up the source of the epidemic, but thanks largely to the investigations of journalist Jonathan M. Katz and epidemiologist Renaud Piarroux,[10] today[when?] it is widely believed to be the result of contamination by infected United Nations peacekeepers deployed from Nepal. [11] In terms of total infections, the outbreak has since been surpassed by the war-fueled 2016C2021 Yemen cholera outbreak, although the Haiti outbreak is still one of the most deadly modern outbreaks. [12] As of August 2021[update] there have been no new cases of cholera in Haiti since February 2019. [13][14]
In January 2010, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit Haiti, killing over 200,000 people and further disrupting healthcare and sanitation infrastructure in the country. [15][16] In the aftermath of the earthquake, international workers from many countries arrived in Haiti to assist in the response and recovery efforts, including a number of workers from countries where cholera is endemic. Before the outbreak, no cases of cholera had been identified in Haiti for more than a century, and the Caribbean region as a whole had not been affected by the cholera outbreak originating in Peru in 1991. [17] The population's lack of prior exposure and acquired immunity contributed to the severity of the outbreak. [17][18]
Cholera is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae that when ingested can cause diarrhea and vomiting within several hours to 2C3 days. Without proper treatment including oral rehydration, cholera can be fatal. The suspected source of Vibrio cholerae in Haiti was the Artibonite River, from which most of the affected people had consumed the water. [19] Each year, tens of thousands of Haitians bathe, wash their clothes and dishes, obtain drinking water, and recreate in this river, therefore resulting in high rates of exposure to Vibrio cholerae. [20]
The cholera outbreak began ten months after the January 2010 earthquake, leading some observers to wrongly suspect it was a result of the natural disaster. [21][22] However, Haitians grew immediately suspicious of a UN peacekeeper base, home to Nepalese peacekeepers, positioned on a tributary of the Artibonite River. [23] Neighboring farmers reported an undeniable stench of human feces coming from the base, to the extent that local Haitians began getting their drinking water upstream from the base. [24] In response, United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) officials issued a press statement denying the possibility that the base could have caused the epidemic, citing stringent sanitation standards. [25] The next day, 27 October 2010, Jonathan M. Katz, an Associated Press correspondent, visited the base and found gross inconsistencies between the statement and the base's actual conditions. Katz also happened upon UN military police taking samples of ground water to test for cholera, despite UN assertions that it was not concerned about a possible link between its peacekeepers and the disease. Neighbors told the reporter that waste from the base often spilled into the river. [26] Later that day, a crew from Al Jazeera English, including reporter Sebastian Walker, filmed the soldiers trying to excavate a leaking pipe; the video was posted online the following day and, citing the AP report, drew increased awareness to the base. [27] MINUSTAH spokesmen later contended that the samples taken from the base proved negative for cholera. However, an AP investigation showed that the tests were improperly done at a laboratory in the Dominican Republic, which had no prior experience of testing for cholera. [28]
For three months, UN officials, the CDC, and others argued against investigating the source of the outbreak. Gregory Hartl, a spokesman for the World Health Organization (WHO), said finding the cause of the outbreak was "not important". Hartl said, "Right now, there is no active investigation. I cannot say one way or another [if there will be]. It is not something we are thinking about at the moment. What we are thinking about is the public health response in Haiti. "[29] Jordan Tappero, the lead epidemiologist at the CDC, said the main task was to control the outbreak, not to look for the source of the bacteria and that "we may never know the actual origin of this cholera strain. "[30] A CDC spokesperson, Kathryn Harben, added that "at some point in the future, when many different analyses of the strain are complete, it may be possible to identify the origin of the strain causing the outbreak in Haiti. "[24]
Paul Farmer, co-founder of the medical organization Partners In Health, and a UN official himself who served Bill Clinton's deputy at the Office of the Special Envoy for Haiti, told the AP's Katz on 3 November 2010 that there was no reason to wait. Farmer stated, "The idea that we'd never know is not very likely. There's got to be a way to know the truth without pointing fingers. "[24] A cholera expert, John Mekalanos, supported the assertion that it was important to know where and how the disease emerged because the strain is a "novel, virulent strain previously unknown in the Western Hemisphere and health officials need to know how it spreads. "[24]
Some US professors have disagreed with the contention that Nepalese soldiers caused the outbreak. Some said it was more likely dormant cholera bacteria had been aroused by various environmental incidents in Haiti. [31] Before studying the case, they said a sequence of events, including changes in climate triggered by the La Ni?a climate pattern and unsanitary living conditions for those affected by the earthquake, triggered bacteria already present in the water and soil to multiply and infect humans. [31]
However, a study unveiled in December and conducted by French epidemiologist Renaud Piarroux contended that UN troops from Nepal, rather than environmental factors, had started the epidemic as waste from outhouses at their base flowed into and contaminated the Artibonite River. [32] A separate study published in December in the New England Journal of Medicine presented DNA sequence data for the Haitian cholera isolate, finding that it was most closely related to a cholera strain found in Bangladesh in 2002 and 2008. It was more distantly related to existing South American strains of cholera, the authors reported, adding that "the Haitian epidemic is probably the result of the introduction, through human activity, of a V. cholerae strain from a distant geographic source. "[33]
Under intense pressure, the UN relented, and said it would appoint a panel to investigate the source of the cholera strain. [34] That panel's report, issued in May 2011, confirmed substantial evidence that the Nepalese troops had brought the disease to Haiti. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) utilized DNA fingerprinting to tests various samples of cholera from Haitian patients to pinpoint the specific strand of cholera found in Haiti. During an epidemiological outbreak investigation, DNA fingerprinting of bacteria can be extremely helpful in identifying the source of an outbreak. The results of the CDC tests showed that the specific strain of cholera found in samples taken from Haitian patients was Vibrio cholerae serogroup O1, serotype Ogawa, a strain found in South Asia. [35] This specific strain of cholera is endemic in Nepal, therefore supporting the Haitian suspicion that Nepalese peacekeepers were the source of the outbreak.
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Disease Outbreaks
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Passers-by pounce on bank robber
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Members of the public chased and tackled a would-be bank robber as he made his escape after a hold-up at a bank in western Sydney today. Police say a man entered the Commonwealth Bank branch at Plumpton Marketplace on Jersey Road at around 11:00am and threatened staff before taking a female staff member hostage. The man took money from the tellers before freeing the woman and trying to leave the bank. "He dragged the girl out by the neck over to the car park, then pushed her," witness Sue Dunstan said. Nora Tivitian was working in a nearby shop and saw events unfold. "About 10 bystanders ran after him," she said. Police say he was wrestled to the ground in the bank's car park and held down until they arrived. They say the man turned out to be unarmed. He was arrested and is now being questioned by police. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work.
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Bank Robbery
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NAVCENT Creates Task Force for AI, Unmanned Tech Integration; Michael Brasseur Quoted
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Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) has launched a new task force to accelerate the implementation of artificial intelligence and unmanned platforms across the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet. Task Force 59 will integrate these technologies in alignment with the unique climate, geography and strategic characteristics present in the 5th Fleet's area of operations, NAVCENT said Thursday. Capt. Michael Brasseur will contribute his maritime robotics expertise to lead the task force as commodore. He was recently a member of NATO's Maritime Unmanned Systems Initiative. “As we continue to adapt and implement cutting edge technology, I fully expect our talented team will enrich and enhance the 5th Fleet mission,” Brasseur said. The task force will build human trust in AI over the coming weeks in preparation for next year's International Maritime Exercise, which will demonstrate unmanned systems in multiple dynamic scenarios.
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Organization Established
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1976 UK sterling crisis
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The 1976 UK Sterling Crisis was a balance of payments or currency crisis in the United Kingdom in 1976 which forced James Callaghan's Labour government to borrow $3.9 billion ($17.7 billion in 2020)[1] from the International Monetary Fund (IMF),[2] at the time the largest loan ever to have been requested from the IMF. [3]
The crisis took place during James Callaghan's term as Prime Minister,[4] and caused the Bank of England to withdraw temporarily from the foreign exchange market. [5] After the defeat of the public expenditure white paper in the House of Commons in March 1976 and the resignation of Harold Wilson, many investors became convinced the pound would soon lose value due to inflation. By June 1976, the pound had reached a record low against the dollar. [3]
Only half of the loan was actually drawn by the UK government and it was repaid by 4 May 1979. [6] Denis Healey, the Chancellor of the Exchequer at the time, went on to state that the main reason the loan had to be requested was that public sector borrowing requirement figures provided by the treasury were grossly overstated. [7] Despite this all terms required by the IMF were fully implemented. The IMF loan meant that the United Kingdom's economy could be stabilised whilst drastic budget cuts were implemented. Despite the security provided by the loan, the Labour Party had already begun separating into social democrat and left-wing camps, causing bitter rows inside the party and with the unions. Some believe this may have contributed significantly to Margaret Thatcher's 1979 Conservative victory. [8]
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Financial Crisis
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Thai Airways International Flight 261 crash
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Thai Airways International Flight 261 (TG261/THA261) was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Bangkok's Don Mueang International Airport, Thailand to Surat Thani International Airport in Surat Thani, Thailand. The flight was operated by Thai Airways International, the flag carrier of Thailand. On 11 December 1998, the aircraft, an Airbus A310-204 registered in Thailand as HS-TIA, stalled and crashed onto a swamp during its landing attempt at Surat Thani Airport. A total of 101 people were killed in the crash. [1]
Thailand's Aircraft Accident Investigation Committee (AAIC) opened an investigation into the accident. The investigation revealed that the crew had become disoriented. Visibility was limited. Stress caused the crew to lose control of the aircraft. The AAIC noted also Surat Thani's minimal lighting and faulty warnings to the aircraft. [1]
The accident was the second deadliest plane crash in Thailand,[2] behind Lauda Air Flight 004. [3] It was the fifth worst accident involving the Airbus A310 and the fourth hull loss of an Airbus A310. [4]
The aircraft with registration HS-TIA was an Airbus A310-204, c/n 415, previously registered as F-WWBI for flight testing with Airbus. Given the name Phitsanulok, HS-TIA was first flown on 3 March 1986 and delivered to Thai Airways on 29 April 1986. [5][6]
Flight 261 was carrying 132 passengers and 14 crew members. There were 25 foreigners on board the flight, including nationalities from Austria, Australia, Britain, Finland, Germany, Israel, Japan, Norway, and the United States. The rest of the passengers were Thais. Among the passengers were Siriwan, the sister of Thai Transport and Communications Minister Suthep Thaugsuban, Thai actor and singer Ruangsak Loychusak, and Thawat Wichaidit [th], a Member of Parliament from Surat Thani. [7][8]
The captain, Pinit Vechasilp, had 10,167 flight hours, including 3,000 hours on the Airbus A300-600/A310. Although the A300 and A310 are separate aircraft, the -600 variant of the A300 has a nearly identical cockpit design as the A310. [6][9]
The unnamed first officer has been reported to have 2,839 flight hours, with 983 of them on the Airbus A300-600/A310. [6]
Flight TG261 departed from Bangkok's Don Mueang International Airport with 132 passengers and 14 crew members at 17:40 local time to Surat Thani, a gateway city for popular resort island of Koh Samui in Thailand. It was cleared to fly at flight level 310. The estimated flight time was one hour and 55 minutes. At the time, Thailand was hosting the 1998 Asian Games and many schools had been closed due to the event. Many Thais had headed to holiday resorts. [1]
At 18:26 local time, the co-pilot contacted Surat Thani controller for approach. The aircraft, at the time, was located at 70 nautical miles from the airport. Surat Thani Airport cleared the flight for an approach under the Instrument Flight Rules. The weather at Surat Thani Airport was in good condition with good visibility and calm wind. [1]
At 18:39 local time, the co-pilot contacted Surat Thani to report Flight 261's position. Surat Thani controller then stated that the Precision Approach Path Indicator on the right side of the runway 22 was not functional and the indicator on the left side was in use. Two minutes later, Flight 261 was cleared to land. The flight crews were cautioned of slippery runway due to deteriorating weather conditions. [1]
At 18:42 local time, the runway was sighted and the pilots attempted to land the aircraft. They then decided to go-around for a second approach. The flight was cleared for its second landing attempt. This time, however, the pilots could not see the runway and opted for another go-around. [1]
At 19:05 local time, the flight crews were informed of the weather in the area, which was acknowledged by the crew members. The weather in the area deteriorated, and the visibility was reduced from 1,500 meters to 1,000 meters. The pilots informed the passengers on the deteriorating weather conditions and announced that they would attempt another landing for the third time and stated that if they failed again they would divert the flight back to Bangkok. [10]
During its go-around, the angle of attack of the aircraft gradually increased from 18 degrees to 48 degrees. The speed of the aircraft began to decay and the aircraft began to shake. It entered an aerodynamic stall. As it began to shake, surviving flight attendants recounted that passengers began to scream and jump out of their seats, with luggage reportedly "flying around everywhere". [11][12]
The Airbus A310 crashed onto a swampy ground near a flooded rubber plantation and exploded, bursting into flames. The crash site was located 760 yards from the runway. Many of the occupants were drowned by the waist-deep water, while the remaining survivors had to crawl to escape from the wreckage. Local residents immediately rushed to the crash site to rescue the survivors. Search and rescue operation was hampered by the location of the crash, which was on a swamp. Rescuers reported that most of the survivors were seated at the front portion of the aircraft.
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Air crash
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Homestead Strike
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The Homestead strike, also known as the Homestead steel strike, Homestead massacre, or Battle of Homestead was an industrial lockout and strike which began on July 1, 1892, culminating in a battle between strikers and private security agents on July 6, 1892. [8] The battle was a pivotal event in U.S. labor history. The dispute occurred at the Homestead Steel Works in the Pittsburgh area town of Homestead, Pennsylvania, between the Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers (the AA) and the Carnegie Steel Company. The final result was a major defeat for the union of strikers and a setback for their efforts to unionize steelworkers. Carnegie Steel made major technological innovations in the 1880s, especially the installation of the open-hearth system at Homestead in 1886. It now became possible to make steel suitable for structural beams and for armor plate for the United States Navy, which paid far higher prices for the premium product. In addition, the plant moved increasingly toward the continuous system of production. Carnegie installed vastly improved systems of material-handling, like overhead cranes, hoists, charging machines, and buggies. All of this greatly sped up the process of steelmaking, and allowed the production of vastly larger quantities of the product. As the mills expanded, the labor force grew rapidly, especially with unskilled workers. However, while Carnegie Steel grew and progressed, workers at Homestead were seeing their wages drop. [9][page needed]
The Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers (AA) was an American labor union formed in 1876. It was a craft union representing skilled iron and steelworkers. The AA's membership was concentrated in ironworks west of the Allegheny Mountains. The union negotiated national uniform wage scales on an annual basis; helped regulate working hours, workload levels and work speeds; and helped improve working conditions. It also acted as a hiring hall, helping employers find scarce puddlers and rollers. [10]
The AA organized the independently-owned Pittsburgh Bessemer Steel Works in Homestead in 1881. The AA engaged in a bitter strike at the Homestead works on January 1, 1882, in an effort to prevent management from including a non-union clause in the workers' contracts, known as a "yellow-dog contract". The violence occurred on both sides, and the plant brought in numerous strikebreakers. The strike ended on March 20 in a complete victory for the union. [11]
The AA struck the steel plant again on July 1, 1889, when negotiations for a new three-year collective bargaining agreement failed. The strikers seized the town and once again made common cause with various immigrant groups. Backed by 2,000 townspeople, the strikers drove off a trainload of strikebreakers on July 10. When the sheriff returned with 125 newly deputized agents two days later, the strikers rallied 5,000 townspeople to their cause. Although victorious, the union agreed to significant wage cuts that left tonnage rates less than half those at the nearby Jones and Laughlin works, where technological improvements had not been made. [12]
Carnegie officials conceded that the AA essentially ran the Homestead plant after the 1889 strike. The union contract contained 58 pages of footnotes defining work-rules at the plant and strictly limited management's ability to maximize output. [13]
For its part, the AA saw substantial gains after the 1889 strike. Membership doubled, and the local union treasury had a balance of $146,000. The Homestead union grew belligerent, and relationships between workers and managers grew tense. [14]
The Homestead strike was organized and purposeful, a harbinger of the type of strike which marked the modern age of labor relations in the United States. [15] The AA strike at the Homestead steel mill in 1892 was different from previous large-scale strikes in American history such as the Great railroad strike of 1877 or the Great Southwest Railroad Strike of 1886. Earlier strikes had been largely leaderless and disorganized mass uprisings of workers. [citation needed]
Andrew Carnegie placed industrialist Henry Clay Frick in charge of his company's operations in 1881. Frick resolved to break the union at Homestead. "The mills have never been able to turn out the product they should, owing to being held back by the Amalgamated men," he complained in a letter to Carnegie. [16]
Carnegie was publicly in favor of labor unions. He condemned the use of strikebreakers and told associates that no steel mill was worth a single drop of blood. [17] But Carnegie agreed with Frick's desire to break the union and "reorganize the whole affair, and . . . exact good reasons for employing every man. Far too many men required by Amalgamated rules. "[18] Carnegie ordered the Homestead plant to manufacture large amounts of inventory so the plant could weather a strike. He also drafted a notice (which Frick never released) withdrawing recognition of the union. [19]
With the collective bargaining agreement due to expire on June 30, 1892, Frick and the leaders of the local AA union entered into negotiations in February. With the steel industry doing well and prices higher, the AA asked for a wage increase; the AA represented about 800 of the 3,800 workers at the plant. Frick immediately countered with a 22% wage decrease that would affect nearly half the union's membership and remove a number of positions from the bargaining unit. Carnegie encouraged Frick to use the negotiations to break the union: "...the Firm has decided that the minority must give way to the majority. These works, therefore, will be necessarily non-union after the expiration of the present agreement.
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Strike
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BSAA Star Ariel disappearance crash
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Star Ariel (registration G-AGRE) was an Avro Tudor Mark IVB passenger aircraft owned and operated by British South American Airways (BSAA) which disappeared without a trace over the Atlantic Ocean while on a flight between Bermuda and Kingston, Jamaica on 17 January 1949. The loss of the aircraft along with that of BSAA Avro Tudor Star Tiger in January 1948 remain unsolved to this day, with the resulting speculation helping to develop the Bermuda Triangle legend. British South American Airways (BSAA) was an airline created by former World War II pilots in an effort to provide service on the previously untapped South American trade and passenger routes. Originally named British Latin American Air Lines (BLAIR) it was split off from the British Overseas Airways Corporation to operate its South Atlantic routes. It commenced transatlantic services in March 1946, with a BSAA plane making the first operational flight from London's Heathrow Airport. The airline operated mostly Avro aircraft: Yorks, Lancastrians and Tudors, and flew to Bermuda, the West Indies and the western coast of South America. The Star Ariel was one of three enlarged and improved versions of the Avro Tudor, designated Mark IVs. On 17 January 1949 the Star Ariel was awaiting flight instructions at Kindley Field, Bermuda, with no passengers. BSAA Tudor G-AHNK Star Lion meanwhile suffered an engine failure on approach to Bermuda, landing without incident. Star Ariel was promptly pressed into service to take G-AHNK's passengers on to their destination of Kingston, Jamaica. Star Ariel took off at 08:41 with seven crew and 13 passengers. Weather conditions were excellent, and her pilot, Captain John Clutha McPhee (formerly RNZAF),[1] decided on a high-altitude flight to take advantage of it. About an hour into the flight McPhee contacted Kingston by radio:
And then at 09:42:
No more messages were received from Star Ariel and Kingston finally reported her overdue. The search for the Star Ariel began with another Tudor IV, G-AHNJ Star Panther. She had earlier landed at Nassau, and now refuelled and took off at 15:25 to fly out to Star Ariel's route, bisect it, and follow it back to Bermuda. Another aircraft took off from Bermuda, flew 500 mi (800 km), then did a 10 mi (16 km) lattice search all the way back. A US Navy task force headed by the battleship USS Missouri and including the aircraft carriers USS Kearsarge and USS Leyte assisted in the search, which expanded to dozens of ships and several planes over the next few days. By 19 January the search had been broadened to an area of 55,000 sq mi (140,000 km2) southwest of Bermuda. [2][3] USAF Major Keith Cloe, who had been put in charge, said that the search would be continued until 22 January and extended if any reports of debris were received. [4] The search was finally abandoned on 23 January, with aircraft from Kindley Field having flown over 1,000,000 mi (1,600,000 km). [5] No sign of debris, oil slicks or wreckage had been found. A representative of the Chief Inspector of Accidents left for Bermuda on 18 January 1949. It was revealed that there had been no bad weather, none of the weather reports indicating any abnormal conditions, and the chance of any marked clear air turbulence was almost nil. There were no clouds above 10,000 ft (3,000 m) over the whole of the aircraft's route. However, although the weather was good, the day in question had suffered communication problems ranging from static to poor reception to complete blackouts lasting as much as 10 minutes which came and went, selectively affecting certain planes calling certain stations from different angles. The communication problem lasted almost exactly the entire time the Star Ariel would have been in flight, finally lifting around 13:07. This was investigated, along with McPhee's switch over to Kingston frequency which was considered early, as he was still close to Bermuda at the time. It was considered possible that a distress transmission on that frequency might not have been heard, given the aircraft's distance from Kingston. However, a BSAA representative in Kingston observed[citation needed]:
On 21 December 1949 the report of the inquiry was issued by the Chief Inspector of Accidents, Air Commodore Vernon Brown, CB, OBE, MA, FRAeS. [6] In it he stated that "through lack of evidence due to no wreckage having been found, the cause of the accident is unknown." Brown said that there was no evidence of defect in, or failure of, any part of the aircraft before its departure from Bermuda. The all-up weight and the centre of gravity were within the prescribed limits; a daily inspection had been carried out; the pilot was experienced on the route; the radio officer was very experienced and also experienced on the route; good radio communications had been maintained with the aircraft up to and including reception of its last message; there were no weather complications, and a study of the weather reports have no reason to believe that the accident was caused by meteorological conditions. There was also no evidence of sabotage, though Brown said that the possibility of such could not be entirely eliminated. It was accepted that radio communications were poor during the early afternoon and worsened between 16:00 and 17:00, but Brown said it seemed strange that no attempt was made by BSAA staff at Kingston to find out whether anything had been heard of the aircraft until 2 hours 28 minutes after its last radio transmission. Kingston also did not attempt to establish contact with the aircraft until 17:10 or inquire as to whether it had made contact with Nassau or New York or any other radio station. [7]
As a result of the loss, BSAA withdrew all five of its remaining Tudor IVs from service until each had been examined. The company faced problems in maintaining its services, since it was difficult to find aircraft of sufficient range, and considered chartering Avro Lancastrians. [8]
Don Bennett, who had been fired by BSAA in 1948 when he objected to a judicial investigation into the loss of the Star Tiger, later claimed that both the Star Tiger and Star Ariel had been sabotaged and that "a known war-registered saboteur" had been seen near the Star Tiger shortly before its last takeoff. He also claimed that Prime Minister Clement Attlee had ordered all enquiries into the incidents to be abandoned. [9]
The Tudor IV aircraft were converted to freight use, but Bennett had two restored to passenger use, and one of these, G-AKBY Star Girl, crashed near Cardiff in March 1950 with the loss of 80 lives, at that time the worst air accident in Britain. An enquiry found incorrect loading to be the cause. [9]
A 2009 theory is that a poor design of a cabin heater could have contributed to the plane's loss. [10]
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Air crash
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Knowing the worstIt is becoming easier, cheaper and quicker to diagnose dementia
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OF THE ESTIMATED 55m people living with dementia around the world, only one-quarter have been formally diagnosed with the condition. There are many reasons for this. Two are enduring: many patients and clinicians alike wrongly believe that dementia is an inevitable part of the ageing-human condition and, being incurable, is hardly worth diagnosing; and some people experiencing cognitive impairment fear hearing what sounds like a sentence of brain-death, and so do not seek help.
Some of the reasons for non-diagnosis, however, may be about to change. During the covid-19 pandemic many people have delayed consulting their doctors about non-urgent conditions, and as lockdowns ease, they may begin to ask for professional guidance (moreover, evidence suggests that covid itself heightens the risk of dementia). In addition, diagnostic techniques, hitherto unreliable, time-consuming and costly, are becoming available, and for some forms of dementia hopes are emerging of more effective treatments.
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Famous Person - Sick
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2016 Men's Pan-Am Junior Championship
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The 2016 Men's Junior Pan-Am Championship was the 11th edition of the Men's Pan American Junior Championship. It was held from 20 to 28 May 2016 in Toronto, Canada. [1]
The tournament served as a qualifier for the 2016 Men's Hockey Junior World Cup, held in Lucknow, India in December 2016. [2]
Argentina won the tournament for the 11th time, defeating Canada 5–0 in the final. Chile won the bronze medal by defeating United States 4–1 in the third and fourth place playoff. [3]
Alongside the host nation, 7 teams competed in the tournament.
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Sports Competition
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Aeroméxico Connect Flight 2431 crash
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Aeroméxico Connect Flight 2431 (SLI2431/5D2431) was a Mexican domestic scheduled passenger flight bound for Mexico City that crashed on takeoff from Durango International Airport on July 31, 2018. Shortly after becoming airborne, the plane encountered sudden wind shear caused by a microburst. The plane rapidly lost speed and altitude and impacted the runway, detaching the engines and skidding to a halt about 1,000 feet (300 m) beyond the runway. The plane caught fire and was destroyed. All 103 people on board survived, but 39 passengers and crew members were injured. A final report on the crash was released on February 23, 2019. Investigators found that the primary cause of the accident was adverse weather conditions encountered by the flight, and contributing factors included crew error, air traffic controller error, and the lack of equipment that could detect wind shear conditions at airports. Investigators determined that an unauthorized student pilot in the cockpit who was flying the plane during the takeoff caused the crew to be distracted, leading to a loss of situational awareness. The crew failed to react to dangerous weather conditions that were developing, and did not notice irregularities in the airspeed indicators that could have alerted them to potential hazards. The sole air traffic controller on duty at the airport at the time also failed to notify the aircraft of rapidly deteriorating weather conditions. The accident and the subsequent investigation led to changes in Mexican aviation regulations to prevent unassigned crew members from being present in the cockpit of an aircraft at any time during a flight. Investigators also made several recommendations for changes in flight crew and air traffic controller training, and to improve the capabilities of weather detection equipment in place at airports to improve overall aviation safety. The flight, number 2431, was operated by Aeroméxico Connect and was a regularly scheduled flight from Durango International Airport to Mexico City International Airport. [1][2] Originally scheduled to leave at 2:56 p.m. Central Time (UTC−06:00), the departure was slightly delayed when the first officer observed a fuel leak from the number one engine and asked maintenance crews to investigate. Crews eventually concluded that the rate of leakage was within safe limits. [3](p9) The aircraft left the gate at 3:14 p.m. and headed toward the end of runway 03. As the plane taxied, rain started to fall with increasing intensity, accompanied by strong gusts of wind. [3](p10) At 3:18 p.m., the air traffic controller reported 20-knot (23 mph; 37 km/h) winds from 90 degrees. [3](pp11,30) The flight information service for the airport published an updated weather report at 3:18 p.m. indicating the presence of thunderstorms and rain, reduced visibility, and the presence of cumulonimbus clouds. The air traffic controller did not see this update because he was working alone and was attending to Flight 2431. [3](p30) The rain became so heavy that the tower could not see the runway. [4] Even though the controller was in the best position to see the deteriorating weather conditions, he did not inform the aircraft about any of his observations. [4] The flight was cleared for takeoff at 3:21 p.m. Severe wind gusts caused several trees to become uprooted at the airport, knocking down power and communication lines. [4] A special weather update was sent out by the flight information service at 3:22 p.m. warning of thunderstorms and rain, 0 feet of visibility and a decrease in the ceiling to 0 feet, but this report was never received by the tower controller due to the power outage. [3](p30)
The aircraft proceeded down the runway. After it reached a speed of 147 knots (169 mph; 272 km/h), the pilot flying the plane rotated the controls to bring the aircraft airborne, and raised the gear when the craft was 2 feet above the runway. [3](p11)[4] The plane began its takeoff with a headwind, but the winds quickly shifted to a right crosswind of 11 knots (13 mph; 20 km/h), increasing to 33 knots (38 mph; 61 km/h) as the plane proceeded down the runway. [4] The plane had reached its maximum altitude of about 30 feet (9 m) and a maximum indicated airspeed of 151 knots (174 mph; 280 km/h) when the wind direction suddenly shifted to a 24-knot (28 mph; 44 km/h) tailwind. The plane rapidly lost airspeed and altitude, and an audible alarm of "DON'T SINK" sounded in the cockpit. [3](p29)[4] Five seconds later, the left wing struck the runway, and both engines broke away from the wings. [5] The plane skidded off the runway and came to rest about 1,000 feet (300 m) beyond the end of the runway. [5][6] All 103 people on board the plane were able to evacuate and survived the crash before a fire broke out that destroyed the aircraft. [1][7]
The aircraft was an Embraer 190, registration XA-GAL, msn 19000173. It was first delivered to US Airways in 2008 as N960UW before being sold to Republic Airways Holdings in 2009. [6] Under Republic Airways ownership, the aircraft was re-registered as N167HQ, operating for Midwest Airlines, a former subsidiary of Republic, and later for fellow Republic subsidiary (at the time) Frontier Airlines, until late 2013. After Republic retired its Embraer 190 aircraft from its operations, Republic then leased N167HQ to Aeroméxico Connect in 2014, who registered the aircraft as XA-GAL. At the time of its loss, the aircraft had flown a total of 27,257 hours, and had 18,200 takeoff and landing cycles. [3](p22)[6]
When it was originally manufactured, the aircraft was equipped with a Honeywell WU-880 weather radar. This system can detect storms along the flight path of the aircraft and give pilots a visual indication of the intensity of the storm. [3](p27) The aircraft was also equipped with a wind shear detection and escape guidance system that can detect wind shear conditions and alert the pilots using a combination of visual and audio alarms. The audio alarms are disabled in the event of a higher priority audio alarm, such as the ground proximity sensor alarm. [3](pp27–29)
The pilot in command of the flight was 38-year-old Carlos Galván Meyran, a resident of Mexico City. [8][9][10] He held an airline transport pilot licence and had been working at Aeroméxico since 2010, as a pilot since 2011. [3](p18)[9] He had a total of 3,700 logged flight hours at the time of the crash. [3](p18) Galván completed his captain training for the Embraer E-Jet series in June 2017 and had logged 1,064 hours in the type. [3](p18) He occupied the left-hand seat in the cockpit during the flight, and suffered serious injuries in the accident, requiring hip and spine surgery which doctors called successful. [4][10][11]
The assigned first officer, Daniel Dardon Chávez, held an airline transport pilot licence and had a total of 1,973 logged flight hours, including 460 hours on the Embraer 190 aircraft. [4][10] He was 25 years old at the time of the accident and was originally from Metepec, State of Mexico. [12] He had become certified to copilot this type of aircraft in February 2018.
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Air crash
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Great Atlanta fire of 1917
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The Great Atlanta Fire of 1917 began just after noon on 21 May 1917 in the Old Fourth Ward of Atlanta, Georgia. [1] It is unclear just how the fire started, but it was fueled by hot temperatures and strong winds which propelled the fire. [1] The fire, which burned for nearly 10 hours, destroyed 300 acres (120 ha) and 1,900 structures displacing over 10,000 people. Damages were estimated at $5 million, ($100 million in 2021). [1]
It was a clear, warm and sunny day with a brisk breeze from the south. This was not the only fire of the day, but the fourth call in the span of an hour: a small fire at the Candler Warehouse at 11:39 AM and at 11:43 a fire seven blocks north that destroyed three houses; and at 12:15, south of the Georgia Railroad from the big fire, ten homes were destroyed before being extinguished. At 12:46 a call came from a small warehouse just north of Decatur Street between Fort and Hilliard, and the crew sent to inspect it found a stack of burning mattresses, but had no firefighting equipment with them. If the fire department had not been spread across so many different parts of the city already, the fire would have been put out there; but by the time reinforcements arrived, it was quickly leaping north. [citation needed]
The fire spread quickly up to Edgewood Avenue and from there throughout the main residential areas of Sweet Auburn, sparing little. The area between Decatur and Edgewood was crammed with shanties and lean-tos, which provided fuel for the fire to grow very strong and move fast through the area. A corridor was burned due north between Jackson (now Parkway and Charles Allen) and Boulevard, with a few prominent bulges at Highland and just south of Ponce de Leon Avenue. At Houston Street, the fire was still being stopped on the east by Boulevard (just sparing John Wesley Dobbs' block). When the fire reached Highland, it raced both east and west through many fine homes. Around 4:00 in the afternoon, fire-fighters had begun to stall the fire by using dynamite to destroy many homes along Pine, Boulevard and finally Ponce de Leon. By nightfall the fire crossed Ponce de Leon. While reduced, it headed north through the recently built-out neighborhood along St. Charles, Vedado Way and Greenwood Avenue. It finally stopped at 10 PM, more than 1 mile (1.6 km) north of where it began. In eleven hours, 22,000,000 US gallons (83,000,000 l; 18,000,000 imp gal) of water were pumped to put out the fire. Additional fire trucks had been sent from nine Georgia towns (as far away as Macon and Augusta), as well as from Chattanooga and Knoxville in Tennessee. 1,938 buildings were destroyed over 300 acres (1.2 km2) spanning 73 city blocks. Fires smoldered for the rest of the week. Since more than 85% of the destroyed buildings had wood shingles, the city quickly passed an ordinance banning them for new construction. By 1931 all older buildings had replaced the wood shingles. In the history of the city, only Sherman's fire of 1864 did more extensive damage. Rebuilding was sporadic, with large swaths kept open for years. Commercial strips were quickly built on the destroyed portions of Edgewood and Auburn where busy streetcar routes ran: 17 and 3 respectively. Where large estates with spacious front yards had been, along the entire stretch of Boulevard up to Ponce, dozens of two- and three-storey apartment buildings that hugged the sidewalk were built. Large open spaces were left at what is now the King Memorial and at Bedford-Pine Park, now named Central Park (host of Music Midtown in the 2000s). Low-income housing developments were built in the destroyed extreme southern section and the areas south of North Avenue. Some 50 acres (200,000 m2) around Boulevard and Highland were eventually developed as the campus for Atlanta Medical Center. Except for where single family homes were quickly rebuilt north of Ponce de Leon, the character of this large area of Atlanta was changed forever. The next U.S. fire of more significance wouldn't occur for more than 70 years: The Oakland Hills firestorm of 1991.
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Fire
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The 40 Biggest Celebrity Breakups of the Decade
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Every product on this page was chosen by a Harper's BAZAAR editor. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy. My heart hurts! There's nothing we love more than love. However, not all relationships work out, which is especially hard for celebrities who live their lives in the public eye. This decade has given us some of the greatest romances, as well as some of the most devastating breakups. Here, we take a look at the biggest celeb splits of the past decade. Prepare to shed a tear, because love is most definitely dead. It truly felt like the end of an era when Angelina Jolie split from Brad Pitt in September 2016. Having met on the set of Mr. & Mrs. Smith in 2004, while Pitt was still married to Jennifer Aniston, the couple went on to have six children together: Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Shiloh, Knox, and Vivienne Jolie-Pitt. They got married in August 2014 after almost a decade together. In an interview with NPR in September of this year, Pitt revealed, "A breakup of a family is certainly an eye-opener that as one—and I'm speaking in general again—but as one needs to understand, I had to understand my own culpability in that, and what can I do better." Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan met on the set of 2006 dance movie Step Up, and their on-screen chemistry was palpable. The costars subsequently got married in a dreamy Malibu wedding in 2009, per People, and welcomed a daughter, Everly Tatum, in May 2013. However, in April 2018, Tatum and Dewan announced their split, and both have since moved on. In fact, Dewan is now expecting her first child with Steve Kazee. The world was shocked when Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux announced their split in February 2018, having gotten married in August 2015. In a statement via The Associated Press, the former couple's publicist revealed that the decision to separate "was mutual and lovingly made at the end of [2017]." Theroux later told The New York Times, "The good news is that was probably the most—I'm choosing my words really carefully—it was kind of the most gentle separation, in that there was no animosity." The exes are still on good terms and recently spent Thanksgiving together. Before J.Lo's fairy-tale romance with Alex Rodriguez, the singer was married to Marc Anthony for the good part of a decade. After walking down the aisle on June 5, 2004, wearing Vera Wang, Lopez gave birth to twins, Emme and Max, in February 2008. However, in July 2011, Anthony and Lopez announced their split to the world. In a statement, via the Daily Mail, they said, "This was a very difficult decision. We have come to an amicable conclusion on all matters." According to E! News, Ashton Kutcher first met Demi Moore at a dinner in 2003. They would go on to marry in September 2005, but their marriage was hit with rumors of infidelity. In November 2011, Moore released a statement (via People) that said, "It is with great sadness and a heavy heart that I have decided to end my six-year marriage to Ashton. As a woman, a mother, and a wife there are certain values and vows that I hold sacred, and it is in this spirit that I have chosen to move forward with my life." Daredevil costars Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck's engagement was reported in April 2005, and apparently took place around the time of Garner’s 33rd birthday. Per People, they wed just two months later on June 29 in Turks and Caicos, with Garner expecting the couple's first child. The Afflecks would go on to have three children together: Violet, Seraphina, and Samuel Affleck. In June 2015, the couple announced their split after 10 years of marriage, and their divorce was finalized in late 2018. Anna Faris and Chris Pratt announced their separation in August 2017 after eight years of marriage. Pratt revealed the split in a Facebook post, writing, "Anna and I are sad to announce we are legally separating. We tried hard for a long time, and we're really disappointed." Faris and Pratt continue to co-parent their son, Jack Pratt. In June of this year, Pratt moved on when he married Katherine Schwarzenegger, and recent reports suggest that Faris may be engaged to her new partner, Michael Barrett. Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise's romance once seemed picture-perfect, with the couple marrying in Italy in November 2006. Holmes reportedly told Cruise she was filing for divorce during a phone call in June 2012, according to People. The publication also noted, "With help from her hard-charging attorney dad, Martin, she engineered a dramatic exit, which included moving apartments, changing cell phones and hiring new security." Most importantly, Holmes gained primary custody of the couple's daughter, Suri Cruise. Mother and Daughter live in New York. A little more than a year after her divorce from Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes was spotted dancing with Jamie Foxx at a party in the Hamptons. Years of rumors followed, with occasional photos of Holmes and Foxx spending time with one another leaking to the press. In January 2018, the pair appeared to confirm their relationship when they attended a pre-Grammys gala together. Holmes and Foxx took their relationship to the next level when they made their Met Gala debut as a couple in May this year, only to announce their split soon after. One of the biggest breakups of 2019 and the decade in general came as somewhat of a surprise to fans. Having met while making Nicholas Sparks's movie The Last Song, Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth embarked upon a decade-long, on-and-off relationship. The couple married in a secret wedding in December 2018, but less than eight months later, the singer's rep confirmed to People, "Liam and Miley have agreed to separate at this time." Almost simultaneously, Cyrus was photographed kissing Kaitlynn Carter, but has now moved on with Cody Simpson. Hemsworth officially filed for divorce in August of this year. The former costars had one of the most magical relationships of the decade, or so Twilight fans thought. Being cast as star-crossed lovers Bella Swan and Edward Cullen in 2008, it's unsurprising that Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson reportedly had chemistry from the start. At the time, Stewart was still dating Michael Angarano, per E! News, but once that relationship tailed off in early 2009, the costars became inseparable. Their relationship first encountered trouble in 2012 when Stewart was photographed kissing movie director Rupert Sanders. Despite a brief reconciliation, Stewart and Pattinson split for good in May 2013. In an interview with Howard Stern in November of this year, Stewart revealed, "We were together for years, that was my first [love]." Hollywood stars Naomi Watts and Liev Schreiber announced their separation in September 2016 after 11 years together. In a joint statement, via The Telegraph, they revealed, "It is with great love, respect and friendship in our hearts that we look forward to raising our children together and exploring this new phase of our relationship." The couple co-parents two children, Alexander "Sasha" Pete and Samuel "Sammy" Kai. Watts has since started dating Billy Crudup, with whom she costarred in Netflix's Gypsy. The stars met while shooting the 2003 movie Alfie, while Jude Law was going through a divorce from Sadie Frost, per InStyle. In early 2005, Law's rep revealed that the actor had proposed to Sienna Miller on Christmas Day in 2004, per People. But by July 2005, Law was forced to apologize to his fiancée when it was revealed that he'd had an affair with his children's nanny (Law shares three children, Rafferty, Iris, and Rudy Law, with ex Frost). However, the high-profile pair revealed they'd reconciled on the Met Gala red carpet in 2010 [pictured], much to the delight of many. But by early 2011, Miller and Law had split for good. Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin revealed via a now-unforgettable phrase in the English language that they were "consciously uncoupling" in March 2014. After 10 years of marriage and welcoming children Apple and Moses Martin, Paltrow and Martin have managed to remain close. Paltrow has since married Brad Falchuk, and Martin is now dating actress Dakota Johnson. The quartet have fast become a blended family. Emma Stone is now engaged, but some fans of the actress aren't over her relationship with former costar Andrew Garfield, who Stone met while filming The Amazing Spider-Man in 2010. The year 2015 proved rocky for the couple, when they took a break only to reconcile a few months later. However, in October 2015, a source confirmed to E! News that Stone and Garfield had ended their relationship for good. That hasn't stopped Garfield from looking pretty smitten with his ex on occasion. When it comes to on-off relationships, Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez top the list. Despite breaking up with the singer in 2012, per Us Weekly, Gomez has been repeatedly linked to Bieber over the years ever since. Their most recent reconciliation at the end of 2017 gave fans hope that Jelena may be endgame after all. However, the two singers took another break in early 2018, and Bieber started dating his now-wife, Hailey Baldwin, soon after. While promoting her new music this year, Gomez hinted that her relationship with Bieber was "toxic." Fergie reportedly started dating Josh Duhamel after performing with The Black Eyed Peas on the actor's show, Las Vegas, in late 2004. They got engaged in the winter of 2007 and married in January 2009. They later welcomed a son, Axel Jack Duhamel, in August 2013. In September 2017, Fergie's rep confirmed the split in a statement to E! News: "With absolute love and respect we decided to separate as a couple earlier this year. To give our family the best opportunity to adjust, we wanted to keep this a private matter before sharing it with the public. We are and will always be united in our support of each other and our family." The couple finalized their divorce in November of this year. The "Roar" singer is now happily engaged to Orlando Bloom, but this won't be her first marriage. Katy Perry met comedian Russell Brand at the MTV VMAs in 2008, and the pair started dating after reconnecting the following year at the VMAs in September 2009. The couple got engaged on New Year's Eve at a tiger sanctuary in India. Brand and Perry returned to India for their wedding in 2010 but announced their split in late 2011. Perry later revealed in an interview, "He's a very smart man, and I was in love with him when I married him. Let's just say I haven't heard from him since he texted me saying he was divorcing me December 31, 2011." Ouch. After her split from Russell Brand, Katy Perry found love with John Mayer. Perry and Mayer were photographed on a date in August 2012, soon after the singer's divorce was finalized. Engagement rumors started springing up in 2013, and the couple released the romantic duet, "Who You Love," the same year. Sadly, by February 2014, it was all over. Mayer even wrote a breakup album about his failed romance, and told The New York Times in 2017, "There were times when tears came out of me, and I went, O.K., John, this is not about an on-again, off-again relationship. This is something more profound." Forget Taylor Swift and Calvin Harris. The Swift breakup of the decade that really matters (aside from the singer's brief latte-soaked dalliance with Jake Gyllenhaal) involves Tom Hiddleston and a legendary "I ♥ T.S." tank top. Though Swift and Harris didn't announce their split until June 2016, the pop star danced with Hiddleston at the Met Gala in May, and sparks truly flew. In fact, Swift's song "Getaway Car" appears to hint at an overlap. Alas, their summer romance seemed to fizzle fast, with an Us Weekly source revealing, "Tom wanted the relationship to be more public than she was comfortable with." The Crown's Princess Margaret and iconic movie director Tim Burton announced their split in December 2014 after 13 years together. Helena Bonham Carter started dating Burton after they worked together on the 2001 movie Planet of the Apes, and they went on to have two children together, Raymond and Elena Burton. In 2015, she told Vanity Fair, "Sometimes you're not meant to be forever together. Sometimes you have to come to terms with the fact that that was it. But that was a gift, a massive gift. We gave each other children and a lot more else." Before Kylie Jenner met Travis Scott, she dated Tyga from 2014 to 2017. People reported in April 2017 that the couple was taking a break, but that soon turned into a breakup when Jenner was photographed courtside with her new beau, Scott. Jenner and Tyga are apparently still friendly, and it was reported in October this year that the pair had been hanging out after the makeup mogul, who shares daughter Stormi Webster with Scott, split from Stormi's dad. Khloé Kardashian's whirlwind marriage to Lamar Odom seemed like a fairytale at first.
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Famous Person - Divorce
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Gas supplier to compensate for 2015 El Pecos Maraval blast
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A HIGH COURT judge has found North Plant LPG Co-operative Society Ltd, the supplier of liquid gas to the El Pecos restaurant in Maraval in 2015, to have been negligent and liable for damage to the property which housed the restaurant.
Justice Avason Quinlan-Williams delivered an oral decision in August. On Monday, she provided her written decision, in which she found North Plant LPG to have caused the deadly explosion at the restaurant on February 5, 2015.
A dozen people were seriously injured in the explosion, and four months later, the restaurant’s accountant John Soo Ping Chow died at the Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami.
In its claim for compensation, Continental said the negligence of North Plant LPG’s employees resulted in several explosions, fire damage and extensive structural damage, public liability and loss to the property as well as loss of income, injury to people, death, and vehicles parked on the compound.
A fire investigation report suggested there was a gas leak in the delivery line of the gas truck.
The report also said: “The most probable cause of the fire was as a result of ignition to a mixture of LPG and air, within the rear passageway near the El Pecos LPG cylinders,” while the conclusion of an examination of the gas hose at the Forensic Science Centre said the nozzle did not fit the hose.
Continental Corporation, the owner of the Royal Palm Plaza in Maraval, which housed El Pecos and several other businesses, sued North Plant LPG for negligence for loss, damage and expenses caused by the gas supplier’s employees in delivering liquid gas to the restaurant.
Continental accused North Plant of delivering liquid gas without due care and attention; neglecting to keep proper control of the hose and equipment during the delivery to El Pecos; failing to have regard for the other occupants of the property by giving any proper warning that gas was being supplied; endangering lives; failing to notice the damage to the hose line; and failing to prevent the hose from escaping its handler’s grip.
The property’s owner sought $2.1 million in damages, but the judge held that the company did not provide evidence in support of its claim for special damages.
However, she found that based on the evidence and the finding of fact on the issue of negligence on the part of North Plant LPG, there should be an award of nominal damages of $600,000.
In her decision, Quinlan-Williams said the award was not instead of the award of special damages, but because North Plant LPG was found to have breached Continental’s legal rights.
In her decision, Quinlan-Williams said she was satisfied that the actions of the driver of the LPG truck caused the explosion. She said had it not been for the breach in safety procedures by North Plant’s employee, the explosion would not have taken place.
In its defence, North Plant LPG contended it had not started the delivery of the LPG to El Pecos at the time of the explosion. It claimed the explosion and fire happened before the hose from its fuel truck was attached to the LPG cylinders and before the pump on the truck was engaged to dispense LPG.
Continental was represented by attorneys Rajiv Persad, Lee Merry, Michael Xavier and Lionel Luckhoo. North Plant LPG was represented by Senior Counsel Avory Sinanan, Kelvin Ramkissoon and Nizam Saladeen.
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Gas explosion
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US Announces Withdrawal From UNESCO Citing ‘Anti-Israel Bias’
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The US State Department has confirmed this afternoon that it will be withdrawing from UNESCO as of December and will establish an observer mission at the Paris-based organization to replace its representation. “This decision was not taken lightly, and reflects US concerns with mounting arrears at UNESCO, the need for fundamental reform in the organization, and continuing anti-Israel bias at UNESCO,” the department said. UNESCO head Irina Bokova responded to the news saying that the withdrawal was a matter of “profound regret”. The withdrawal comes after many months of the US condemning numerous rulings by the UN body which have favored Palestinian claims to sites in the Israeli-occupied territories. US envoy to the UN Nikki Haley made the Trump administration’s position clear in July following UNESCO’s ruling that the Ibrahimi Mosque in the Old City of Hebron is a Palestinian World Heritage Site threatened by Israel. “The decision,” Haley claimed, “is an affront to history and further discredits an already highly questionable UN agency.” The plan to withdraw from the international body was reportedly made several weeks ago, with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson informing French President Emmanuel Macron of America’s imminent departure. Such a move is also a cost-saving measure, as the US looks to pay off the country’s $500 million debt to the UN. #UNESCO recognizes Hebron & the Ibrahimi Mosque as Palestinian heritage sites. Israel & U.S. waged intimidation — but failed miserably — Rahim Palestinian (@ben_arfa7) July 11, 2017 Once the withdrawal takes place, the US will remain as an observer state in meetings. It will not, however, be able to participate in any future decision-making. Last year, UNESCO voted in favor of a resolution that denied any connection between Al-Aqsa Mosque and Judaism; Israel relies on such a claim in recognizing the Muslim holy site as the “Temple Mount”. In May, UNESCO ruled that Israel is an “occupying power” and condemned illegal Israeli activity in occupied East Jerusalem a month later. The Israelis were angered once again in July following the designation of the Ibrahimi Mosque, a site which is stormed regularly by illegal Israeli settlers. In response, Israel and the US have cut funding to UNESCO on multiple occasions, accusing it of “anti-Semitism”. The Trump administration is not the first US government to take action against the UN body. In 2011, the then President Barak Obama cut more than $80 million of funding — a fifth of UNESCO’s total budget — in response to the organization admitting the State of Palestine as a member. (MEMO, PC, Social Media) Illegal Settlers Descend on Al-Aqsa, Vandalize Palestinian Property US Rights Group Welcomes ACLU Lawsuit Challenging Anti-BDS Law The Palestine Chronicle mission is to educate, raise awareness, empower, confront bias, misinformation, and, ultimately, tell the truth about Palestine. Support us now and make our mission possible.
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Withdraw from an Organization
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In Kenya, British soldiers train in massive war games
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The size and scale of the British war games in Kenya is unusual: only Suffield in Canada and England’s Salisbury Plain allow something similar Lolldaiga Hills (Kenya): High on Kenya’s Laikipia plateau hundreds of British soldiers spent a recent half-moon night fording a river, marching across wadis and over escarpments before attacking a mocked-up army training camp. This is where - and how - British soldiers learn to fight, in regular six-week training sessions culminating in a simulated assault, this time involving 1,000 troops. “This is among the most demanding training that we do,” said Brigadier Nick Perry, commander of Britain’s 16 Air Assault Brigade, who was in Kenya with three companies of Gurkhas, a storied regiment made up predominately of Nepalese recruits, with their signature curved kukri knives. The size and scale of the British war games in Kenya is unusual: only Suffield in Canada and England’s Salisbury Plain allow something similar. In recent years, infantry units were sent to Kenya for their final training before being deployed to Afghanistan and, for the “rapid reaction force” 16 Air Assault, being always battle-ready is a point of pride. “I need soldiers to be ready to go on operations at very short notice,” said Perry. “Kenya allows large-scale exercises so the whole battle group - the infantry, the artillery, the engineers, the intelligence and surveillance assets - can be tested alongside each other.” They also work alongside the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), of which a 150-strong company swept across a hillside dotted with acacia and euphorbia trees in one of the final moments of the recent training exercise. “Increasingly, operations around the world are multinational. It’s pretty rare now to find a single nation at conflict, and as Britain we’re not in that game.” Britain hasn’t gone to war alone since 1982 when it fought a two-month battle with Argentina over the Falkland Islands. British troops are currently deployed as part of multinational forces in Afghanistan and Iraq and as peacekeepers in South Sudan and Somalia. A history of (simulated) violence Battle groups come to Kenya several times a year, training with live fire at Archer’s Post in the centre of the country and on private land in Laikipia. British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK) commander Colonel Nick Wood said the British military presence in Kenya is worth around $57 million (€46 million) to the local economy. But it also underpins Britain’s diplomatic relations with Kenya, a former colonial property where a bitter independence war was fought in the 1950s, yet where British military training has continued with few breaks for over 70 years. “We’re very much part of life here,” Wood said. The aim of the training isn’t to inflate soldiers’ confidence with easy wins, but to push them, sometimes to the point of defeat. “It’s a challenging war-fighting mission against an impressive and well-equipped enemy,” said Perry, of the assault exercise. It began in a clearing of croton and poison arrow trees where two six by six-metre tarpaulins were laid on the ground and marked with map grid references, contour lines, rivers, tracks and buildings. “Expect the enemy to fight, withdraw and counterattack, so what does that mean? You’ve got to push them hard at the break-in, you’ve got to cut them off,” Gurkha commander Lieutenant Colonel Charlie Crowe told his soldiers after working through the attack plan, hour by hour, company by company. Complicating the exercise, the soldiers first had to build bridges across a river as they entered hostile territory, including one 14 metres long made to carry vehicles. “It’s a very physical task that requires a... fair degree of ‘motivation’,” one of the BATUK trainers explained as the engineers swore, creatively and consistently, in the dark, night-vision monoculars helping them see and connect the hulking girders. High-tech training Sunrise was met with a mechanised dawn chorus of machine-gun and rifle fire echoing across a natural cauldron among the folding granite Lolldaiga Hills. Mortar explosions thumped in the valley. The rounds were blanks, but infrared pointers on the gun barrels, and receivers on the soldiers’ vests and helmets, told who was hit and who killed. Fifteen kilometres away, in a cluster of three olive drab tents bristling with radio antennae, officers and trainers watched a real-time version of events on computer screens, multicoloured markers moving across a three-dimensional terrain. A company of 80 soldiers from the Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment played the enemy, defending a training camp made up of a dozen wooden huts surrounded by razor wire and mud berms. Hundreds of local Kenyans were employed to play militia recruits and the civilian inhabitants of a nearby village, also specially constructed for the exercise. Mostly they watched, amused, as persistent gunfire crackled and British squaddies charged about, sweating heavily under the weight of backpacks, rifles and ammunition as the sun rose and the temperature soared. “I’m brown bread! That’s me done,” shouted one of the Lancaster gunners, as his vest confirmed a fatal hit. His use of British rhyming slang for “dead” baffled the nearby Kenyans. The assault was slow, hampered by a hard march and casualties, but ultimately effective. “We were tested to, and sometimes beyond, the point of failure,” said Crowe afterwards.
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Military Exercise
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Solar storms are back, threatening life on Earth as we know it
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Solar storms are back, threatening life on Earth as we know it While invisible and harmless to anyone on the Earth’s surface, the geomagnetic waves unleashed by solar storms can cripple power grids, jam radio communications, bathe airline crews in dangerous levels of radiation and knock critical satellites off kilter. A few days ago, millions of tons of super-heated gas shot off from the surface of the sun and hurtled 90 million miles toward Earth. The eruption, called a coronal mass ejection, wasn’t particularly powerful on the space-weather scale, but when it hit the Earth’s magnetic field it triggered the strongest geomagnetic storm seen for years. There wasn’t much disruption this time — few people probably even knew it happened — but it served as a reminder the sun has woken from a yearslong slumber. While invisible and harmless to anyone on the Earth’s surface, the geomagnetic waves unleashed by solar storms can cripple power grids, jam radio communications, bathe airline crews in dangerous levels of radiation and knock critical satellites off kilter. The sun began a new 11-year cycle last year and as it reaches its peak in 2025 the specter of powerful space weather creating havoc for humans grows, threatening chaos in a world that has become ever more reliant on technology since the last big storms hit 17 years ago. A recent study suggested hardening the grid could lead to $27 billion worth of benefits to the U.S. power industry. “It is still remarkable to me the number of people, companies, who think space weather is Hollywood fiction,” said Caitlin Durkovich, a special assistant to President Joe Biden and senior director of resilience and response in the National Security Council, during a talk at a solar-weather conference last month. The danger isn’t hypothetical. In 2017, a solar storm caused ham radios to turn to static just as the Category 5 Hurricane Irma was ripping through the Caribbean. In 2015, solar storms knocked out global positioning systems in the U.S. Northeast, a particular concern as self-driving cars become a reality. Airline pilots are at greater risk of developing cataracts when solar storms hit. Female crew see higher rates of miscarriages. In March 1989, a solar storm over Quebec caused a province-wide outage that lasted nine hours, according to Hydro-Quebec’s website. A 2017 paper in the journal of the American Geophysical Union predicted blackouts caused by severe space weather could strike as much as 66% of the U.S. population, with economic losses reaching a potential $41.5 billion a day. To head off such a catastrophe, President Barack Obama’s administration laid out a strategy to begin raising awareness of the dangers of massive solar storms and to asses the risks they pose. Last year, President Donald Trump signed the ProSwift bill into law, which aims to build up technology to improve forecasting and measurement of space weather events. There’s debate among scientists about how much can be done to shield vulnerable parts of the planet’s infrastructure from the effects of solar storms. Steps such as using non-magnetic steel in transformers and installing more surge protectors in the grid could bolster resistance, but in the end the best defense against catastrophe might be better forecasting. That would go a long way toward helping utilities prepare for shortages and making sure there are paths to back up their systems in case they lose power. In weeks, a new model developed by the University of Michigan will come online to help improve Earth-bound forecasting. In the U.K., National Grid is building up its supply of spare transformers and conducting regular drills to deal with a major space weather event, said Mark Prouse, deputy director of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, a ministerial department. Within the past 15 years, the U.S. and U.K. have built space weather forecasting centers that deliver daily outlooks on what may be coming from the sun for airlines, power grids, satellite owners and anyone else threatened by solar flares. While Earth-bound observers can see explosive storms erupt on the sun, they can’t tell the true nature of the threat — exactly how potent it is — until the blast reaches a set of satellites 1 million miles from the planet. At that point, there is only 60 to 90 minutes until it hits Earth. “Our ability to understand and predict the solar cycle is still very limited,” said William Murtagh, director of the U.S. Space Weather Prediction Center. Just as utilities can prepare for a severe thunderstorm by staging repair workers nearby, similar precautions could be taken ahead of a solar storm, according to Mark Olson, the reliability assessment manager for the North America Electric Reliability Corp., a nonprofit answerable to the U.S. and Canadian governments. “You have the potential for very large areas to have voltage instability,” Olson said. “Situational awareness is the key here, just like in terrestrial weather events.” Solar storms have their roots in an 11-year cycle that shifts the polarity of the sun’s magnetic field. The magnetic forces at work on the sun get tangled during the process, and can punch out through the surface, sending the sun’s plasma into outer space and potentially triggering storms on Earth. The most powerful geomagnetic storm ever recorded resulted in the 1859 Carrington Event, when telegraph lines electrified, zapping operators and setting offices ablaze in North America and Europe. If a storm of that magnitude were to hit today, it would likely cut power to millions of not billions of people. “When I first started on this road and was briefed on space weather I raised an eyebrow,” said Prouse. “It is much more mainstream and some of the mystification is gone. You can now raise it as a risk and not get laughed at.”
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New wonders in nature
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Spending less on food. Drawing down on retirement savings. Dropping out of the workforce altogether.
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WASHINGTON (AFP) - Spending less on food. Drawing down on retirement savings. Dropping out of the workforce altogether. Last year, the United States massively expanded unemployment aid as Covid-19 broke out. But in the coming days, those benefits will end, forcing millions of jobless Americans - some of whom have not worked for the entire pandemic - to make hard choices about how they will get by in an economy newly menaced by the Delta variant. "I have no idea how we would survive, just on my daughter's income," said Ms Deborah Lee, an unemployed phlebotomist in Arizona who is recovering from a Covid-19 outbreak that affected her daughter and two of her three granddaughters. The government-funded programmes that increased weekly payments and gave aid to the long-term unemployed and freelancers were credited with keeping the US from an even worse economic collapse last year. In recent months, they have become controversial, with some states ending them early and arguing they encouraged people not to return to jobs that Covid-19 vaccines made safe, though studies have disputed that contention. From Monday (Sept 6), the financial aid will end nationwide, and while economists do not expect them to meaningfully dent the US economy's recovery from its 2020 debacle, they will undoubtedly up the pressure on the unemployed. "I think it's going to be an underappreciated event in the economy," said Mr Andrew Stettner of progressive think-tank The Century Foundation, predicting that 7.5 million people will be relying on the programmes when they end. "It'll be kind of a silent crisis." 'Screwed over' The expansion of the unemployment safety net occurred in March 2020, when Congress rushed to blunt the emerging pandemic with US$2.2 trillion (S$2.95 trillion) in spending through the CARES Act rescue package. While never meant to be permanent, the benefits were reauthorised twice, most recently in the US$1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan enacted by US President Joe Biden and his Democratic allies in Congress last March. While many in the Republican Party at first backed the programmes, by this year, their lawmakers were arguing against them, and 26 states, most with Republican governors, moved to end them early in whole or in part. A study published last month by researchers from American and Canadian universities found only modest improvements in hiring and earnings in some of those states that ended the aid early, while spending fell 20 per cent. Meanwhile, the economy is far from healed, with 5.3 million jobs lost to the pandemic yet to be restored and employers adding a mere 235,000 positions in August, according to government data released last Friday.
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Financial Crisis
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Pests threaten West Darfur crops: farmers - Sudan | ReliefWeb
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View original
Farmers in Sirba locality have complained about the spread of pests on their lands for more than ten days. The pests threaten the agricultural crop season.
The coordinator for the camps in Sirba told Radio Dabanga that the farmers of rural villages reported the spread of insects, that cause crops to dry out, to local and state agricultural authorities. “But they have not yet moved to take action.”
He appealed through the radio to the West Darfur Ministry of Agriculture to act quickly and eliminate the pests. “Please send an aircraft to spray them in order to avoid a disaster.”
In addition, farmers in Sirba complained about attacks by militant herders earlier this month. Camels were released on the farms and farmers were expelled from their lands by force of arms.
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Primary country
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Insect Disaster
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Longest-lasting celebrity marriages
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Almost every day, we hear of a new celebrity marriage falling apart. However, there are some that defy the odds. Celebrities are notorious for not having long-lasting marriages/relationships. Many of these types of marriages only last a few months . Some last a few hours! Almost every day, we hear of a new celebrity marriage falling apart. However, there are some that defy the odds. Some Hollywood relationships are so adorable that when they break up, we are left questioning if the love is still real (we're looking at you, Chris Pratt and Anna Faris ). Celebrity marriages come with a lot of pressure because stars are constantly in the spotlight, or their schedules don't work out, or whatever. However, the celebrity couples we are featuring today give us hope that love in Hollywood can last. These couples work at staying together and reap the rewards. Here are the longest-lasting celebrity marriages. 16 David And Victoria Beckham - 21 Years The couple met in 1997 after the Spice Girls attended a Manchester United match, at David's request. He fell heads over heels in love with Victoria Beckham, who is now the mother of his children . They got engaged in 1998 and were married in 1999. They have 4 children. Victoria and David have stuck together through scandals and all kinds of highs and lows. RELATED: 16 Photos Of Victoria & David Beckham Working Out 15 Kevin Bacon And Kyra Sedgwick - 32 Years Bacon and Sedgwick met on the set of the televised play, 'Lemon Sky.' They married in 1988 and share two children. They've argued over whether or not to make the bed and where to live, just as any normal couple does. Bacon and Sedgwick have starred together in 'Murder in the First,' 'Pyrates.' 'Loverboy,' and 'The Woodsman.' 14 Mark Harmon And Pam Dawber - 33 Years Harmon and Dawber married in 1987, after being introduced by a mutual friend, and have two children together. Dawber is best known for her role in "Mork and Mindy." Harmon had been cast in 'The West Wing' and 'NCIS.' He said the key to their marriage lasting is that they both got married in their 30s...and already did all the stupid stuff. 13 Tom Hanks And Rita Wilson - 32 Years Hollywood's 'mom and dad', Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, married in 1988. They have four children together, many of whom are actors. Their love story began on the ABC series, 'Bosom Buddies.' They starred in the 1985 movie, 'Volunteer.' They have supported each other through the ups and downs, including their recent battle with the Coronavirus. RELATED: 10 Celebs Part Of Rita Wilson And Tom Hanks' Circle (10 They'd Never Let In) 12 Michael J. Fox And Tracy Pollan - 32 Years The couple met on the set of 'Family Ties' in the 1980s. Pollan played his on-screen girlfriend. At the time, she was dating Kevin Bacon. Fox and Pollan married in 1988 and have four children together. They make a point of taking a trip, just the two of them, every year, and only exchange gifts on Christmas and birthdays. The couple has stuck together through Fox's battle with Parkinson's Disease. 11 Ozzy And Sharon Osbourne - 38 Years Sharon met Ozzy while working for her father, who then managed Black Sabbath. When Ozzy was fired from Black Sabbath, Sharon became his manager for his solo career. They married in 1982. Together, they have three children, all of whom are actors. The couple survived cheating scandals and many other problems. 10 Kelly Ripa And Mark Consuelos - 24 Years They met on the set of 'All My Children' in 1995 and eloped in 1996. Ripa and Consuelos share three children together. Ripa said that it was love at first sight for her and she never thought about getting married until she met Consuelos. Kelly Ripa believes in pushing through hard times with Mark. 9 Julia Louis-Dreyfus And Brad Hall - 33 Years Louis-Dreyfus met Hall, who is a director, while they studied together at Northwestern University, despite many people thinking they met on the set of 'SNL.' They married in 1987 and have two sons together. They have collaborated professionally from time to time and are always supporting each other on red carpets. 8 Ellen DeGeneres And Portia de Rossi - 12 Years Although you may not think 12 years is a long time, it is in Hollywood. The couple met in 2000, at a party, and tied the knot in 2008. They are one of Hollywood's beloved LGBTQ+ couples. Many reports have surfaced that Ellen and Portia's marriage was in trouble , but DeGeneres denied them and they are still going strong today. RELATED: According To Ellen DeGeneres: 15 Ways She Makes Her Marriage To Portia De Rossi Work 7 Kurt Russell And Goldie Hawn - 37 Years Together Although not officially married, Russell and Hawn have been a couple since 1983. They met on the set of 'The One and Only, Genuine, Original, Family Band.' They became a couple after reuniting on 'Swing Shift.' They share one child together, aside from their children from previous marriages. 6 Kelly Preston And John Travolta - 29 Years In 1987, Travolta and Preston met while filming 'The Experts.' They married in 1991. The couple has had three children. They have survived a lot of hardships together, including the death of their eldest son. Jett, in 2009. They are one of Hollywood's famous couples and are known for being involved with the Church of Scientology. 5 Felicity Huffman And William H. Macy - 23 Years The couple dated on and off for 15 years before marrying in 1997. They share two daughters together. Huffman and Macy have co-starred in many television shows, movies, and plays. Their marriage has survived the recent college scandal that Huffman is involved with. 4 Freddie Prinze Jr. And Sarah Michelle Gellar - 18 Years One of Hollywood's most underrated couples, Gellar and Prinze Jr. met while filming 'I Know What You Did Last Summer.' They got married in 2002 and have two children together. The couple starred in the 'Scooby-Doo' movies together and numerous other projects. They keep a very low profile. 3 Tim McGraw And Faith Hill - 24 Years Country music's power couple, McGraw and Hill, met at a Nashville radio station event. Hill was the opening act for McGraw's 1996 tour. They fell in love and married that year. They have three daughters. They have recorded many duets together. These two are definitely in it for the long haul. 2 Will Smith And Jada Pinkett-Smith - 23 Years In 1994, Pinkett met Smith on the set of his show, 'The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.,' when she auditioned for the role of his on-screen girlfriend. She did not get the role. They married in 1997 and have two children together, who are also celebrities. Pinkett told Smith that she would throw away her career before she let it break up their marriage. 1 Sarah Jessica Parker And Matthew Broderick - 23 Years Parker and Broderick were introduced by one of Parker's brothers at the Naked Angels theater company, where they both performed. They married in 1997 and have three children together. Rumors swirled about their relationship not doing well, but Parker shut them down. Now, the couple will star in their second Broadway show, 'Plaza Suite', together.
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Famous Person - Marriage
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Aeroflot Flight 964 crash
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Aeroflot Flight 964 was a flight operated by Aeroflot from Kutaisi Airport, Georgia to Domodedovo Airport, Moscow, Russian SFSR. On 13 October 1973 the Tupolev Tu-104 operating on the route crashed during its approach to Moscow, killing all 122 passengers and crew on board. It remains the deadliest accident involving a Tupolev Tu-104. [1]
The aircraft involved in the accident was a Tupolev Tu-104B, registered CCCP-42486 to the Georgia division of Aeroflot. Originally the aircraft cabin had 100 seats, but it was later reconfigured for 115 seats. At the time of the accident the aircraft had 16,250 flight hours and sustained 9,776 pressurization cycles. [2]
Eight crew members were aboard the flight. The cockpit crew consisted of:[2][3]
Flight attendants R.K. Nubarova and D.I. Rusova worked in the cabin, along with an officer of the Ministry of Internal Affairs monitoring the flight. [2]
The flight departed Kutaisi Airport at 18:10 with 114 passengers aboard. Eight passengers boarded the flight illegally. At 19:52 the Tu-104 was handed over to Moscow air traffic control. At 20:12:55 the controller gave Flight 964 permission to descend to an altitude of 400 meters. 26 seconds later the aircraft was reported to be 11 kilometers from Domodedovo at an altitude of 900 meters. At 20:13:28 the crew reported that they were on a bearing of 317° (opposite to the runway) and at 20:15:55 the pilots informed the controller that they were having issues with their compass, while at an altitude of 900 meters. At 20:16:25 with the landing gear released, at a speed of 380–400 km/h and 19 kilometers from the runway the aircraft began to perform a third right turn for the approach. No more radio transmissions were heard from the flight. [3]
Visibility that night was at 2,400 meters. During approach while on a bearing of 143° the crew lost spatial orientation, entered a spin to the left and crashed in a field 16 km northwest of Domodedovo Airport (19.6 kilometers from the airport reference point), striking several power lines. The field of debris was approximately 248 by 180 meters; All 114 passengers and 8 crew were killed. [1][3][4]
The investigation concluded that after the first right turn executed by the aircraft (in which the bank exceeded 40°), multiple navigation instruments including the compass and artificial horizon failed. Combined with the poor visibility at the airport, the crew lost spatial orientation and were unable to see any landmarks to determine their position. When the plane banked slightly to the right, the pilots corrected the right bank only to put the plane into a sharp left bank that reached 70°, causing the crash. [3][4]
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Air crash
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Hull Paragon rail accident
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The Hull Paragon Rail accident was a rail crash that took place at Hull Paragon railway station. On 14 February 1927, on the approaches to Hull Paragon station, the incoming 08:22 from Withernsea to Hull collided head-on with the 09:05 from Hull to Scarborough. Twelve passengers were killed and 24 were seriously injured. This happened despite the tracks having the latest safety features available at the time: a system of interlocking should have made it impossible to give clear signals to trains unless the route to be used is proved to be safe. Three signalmen were present in the signalbox, the enquiry found that one of them had pulled the wrong lever; he had intended to set the points for the incoming train but instead set the points ahead of the Scarborough. Locking bars should have prevented these points from being changed as the signal ahead of the Scarborough was set to clear. Unfortunately one of the other signalmen was setting the signals behind the Scarborough train to danger, in contravention of the rules this was done whilst the train was still passing. This therefore disengaged the locking bar on the points for a few seconds before the Scarborough train reached it, allowing them to be changed by the application of the wrong lever. A combination of these two failings led to the disaster.
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Train collisions
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McKee refinery fire
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The McKee refinery fire on Sunday, 29 July 1956 was a severe fire-related mass casualty event, killing 19 firefighters. [1][2] The fire is considered to have the fourth (the September 11 attacks being first) most casualties of fire fighters in the United States for a single fire event. [1] Their names are engraved at the firefighters' memorial on the grounds of the Texas state capitol. Another memorial is on the grounds of the Moore County courthouse. The refinery, located south of the Texas/Oklahoma border and seven miles north of Sunray, Texas, included a spherical tank containing half a million gallons of pentane and hexane. Vapors escaped from the tank and migrated downhill toward other installations. The vapors ignited, probably near an asphalt plant and travelled back toward the tank. There the flames consumed the escaping vapors, forcing firefighters to use water to cool nearby tanks to prevent further spread. The volunteer fire crews from nearby Sunray and Dumas were fighting the fire in a conventional manner while the decision was made to reduce the amount of liquid in the burning tank. This increased the volume of the tank filled with explosive vapors. A few minutes before seven in the morning, an hour after the blaze began, the tank ruptured as the remaining fluid in the tank boiled, increasing the gas pressure past the bursting point. [3]
Sixteen firefighters died at the scene; three more perished later succumbing to burns. An additional thirty-two people, firefighters and sight-seers were injured. [4] The blast ignited three additional storage tanks. The fire overwhelmed the resources available and was allowed to burn itself out overnight. Coordinates: 35°57′21.28″N 101°53′11.49″W / 35.9559111°N 101.8865250°W / 35.9559111; -101.8865250
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Fire
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Rice University Receives $100 Million Gift From Moody Foundation
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McNair Hall at Rice University. The Moody Foundation has given Rice $100 million for a new student ... [+] center and a student support endowment. (AP Photo/Jacqueline Larma) Rice University announced on Wednesday that it had received a $100 million gift from the Moody Foundation. The gift ties the record for the largest private gift in Rice’s history, matching a $100 million donation from the Robert A. Welch Foundation to establish The Welch Institute, which focuses on advanced materials research. Rice will use the Moody gift to build a new student center - the Moody Center for Student Life and Opportunity - which will replace the existing Rice Memorial Center. Plans call for it to be designed by Sir David Adjaye of Adjaye Associates, an architect whose other works include the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. A portion of the gift will also create endowments supporting student opportunity and success, both as part of the center and in other areas of the university. “As a Rice University alumna, I know this gift will have a profound and lasting effect on the campus and its students,” said Elle Moody, a trustee of both the Moody Foundation and Rice University. “This investment is supporting much more than just a building. We’re investing in every student, so they have access to pursue any endeavor whether it’s leadership, artistic, athletic, global or more.” PROMOTED Rice enrolls about 4,000 undergraduate students and a bit more than 3,000 graduate students. Under its growth plan, Rice’s undergraduate enrollment would reach 4,800, and its graduate enrollment would also increase so that total enrollment would stand at about 9,000 students by fall 2025. Currently ranked the nation’s 24th best national university by Forbes, Rice is one of the smaller elite research universities in the U.S. The new student center will be a central element in Rice’s recently announced plans for a 20% expansion of the undergraduate student body by fall 2025. In addition to the new student center the Rice enrollment growth plan includes: The planned expansion follows an approximately 35% increase in undergraduate enrollment between fall 2005 and 2013, in addition to growth in Rice’s graduate programs. If it achieves its 2025 goal, Rice will have seen its student body grow by about 80% in two decades. Part of the growth stems from the increasingly generous financial aid that Rice has introduced, known as the Rice Investment. Ground-breaking for the new student center project is expected in early 2022. Some components of the existing student center such as the chapel and the cloisters will be integrated into the new design. Construction is expected to be finished in late 2023. About the Moody Foundation The Moody Foundation was established by W.L. Moody Jr. and Libbie Shearn Moody in 1942. William Moody was an entrepreneur from Galveston, Texas, who founded a bank and an insurance company, in addition to his charitable foundation. Across the years, the Foundation, with assets in excess of $1 billion, has pledged and awarded more than $1.8 billion in grants to various organizations throughout the state of Texas, including several other gifts to Rice. The Moody Foundation operates under the direction of a board of three trustees: Frances Moody-Dahlberg, Ross Moody and Elle Moody.
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Financial Aid
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Indian Troops To Participate In Military Excercise In Russia With China, Pakistan: Report
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India is sending a tri-services contingent of around 200 personnel to Southern Russia in September for participating in a multi-lateral Kavkaz-2020 exercise, Indian Army sources said. Along with several other countries, troops of China and Pakistan are also likely to participate in the event, sources said. The Indian contingent would include 160 personnel from the army, along with 40 troops of the Indian Air Force and two Navy officers for the observers there. The exercise is being held in the Astrakhan province of Southern Russia where member countries of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and Central Asian countries would be participating. India had earlier also participated in this exercise with both China and Pakistan as part of it.
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Military Exercise
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Stellantis finalizes its engineering leadership as FCA and PSA brands merge technologies
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Stellantis has chosen the top executives in its engineering organization as the new group seeks to accelerate electrification and integrate Fiat Chrysler Automobiles's product lines with PSA Group's platforms and technologies. Stellantis was formed in January by the merger of FCA and PSA, bringing under one roof brands including Jeep, Chrysler, Fiat, Peugeot, Citroen and Opel. The engineering organization will report to Harald Wester, a German native and FCA veteran, who leads Stellantis's global engineering operations. Wester has two deputies, Frenchmen Patrice Lucas and Nicolas Morel. Both are longtime PSA executives. Lucas's latest job before PSA and FCA merged was head of the French automaker's Latin America operations. Morel was head of development for PSA. Within the new organization the global core engineering functions, directly reporting to Wester, are covered by Giorgio Cornacchia (Body, Chassis and Interior Systems); Yvan Agliany (Electrical, Electronics Systems); Micky Bly (Propulsion Systems); Joe Grace (Physical and Functional Design & Integration); Steve Rober (Automotive Research & Advanced Engineering). Lucas is directly responsible for cross car line and project engineering. Reporting to Lucas are Carla Gohin, head of technical planning; Tom Cowing, head of cross-car lines projects, platforms, and modules; and Christophe Hancke, head of cross-car lines projects and propulsion systems. Product segment heads also report to Lucas. These are Vincent Basso (advanced vehicle segments A/B & C/D & vans and sports cars); John Mrozowski (responsible for advanced vehicle segments D/E/F & pickup trucks); Sebastien Jacquet (responsible for vehicle segments A/B & C/D); Italo Longo (vehicle segment vans); Ettore Dezza (responsible for vehicle segment sports cars); Alan Strajnic (vehicle segments D/E/F & pickup trucks). The organization by segment mirrors the different product types between Europe and the North American market. The two executives heading D/E/F and pickup segments are longtime Chrysler managers; the remaining segment heads come either from PSA (A/B and C/D segments) or Fiat (vans and sports cars). Nicolas Morel heads the company's European technical centers. Reporting to Morel are, among others, Daniele Valerio Esposito (southern Europe technical centers including Turin, Modena, Pomigliano); Alain Guibouret western Europe technical centers, including Velizy, Carrieres-sous-Poissy, Sochaux, Belchamp); Marcus Lott (central Europe technical center including Ruesselsheim). Former PSA executives form a majority in the new structure. Most of FCA's product lines in Europe will gradually migrate to PSA platforms, as was the case after PSA bought Opel from General Motors. Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares outlined in the company's 2020 results presentation on March 3 the synergies he expects over the product renewal cycle. These are: A small Jeep to be built in Tychy, Poland, starting in November 2022, will be the first model from a former FCA brand to use a PSA platform. It will be followed by a Fiat small crossover and an Alfa Romeo small SUV. All three vehicles will be underpinned by the former PSA's Compact Modular Platform (CMP) that is already used for the Peugeot 208 and 2008, Opel/Vauxhall Corsa and Mokka, Citroen C4, and the DS3 Crossback. Stellantis will use four electric platforms (STLA Small, STLA Medium, STLA Large, STLA Frame) to underpin the electrification offensive announced by Tavares on April 15. The group will launch 11 full-electric or plug-in hybrid models this year.
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Organization Merge
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2004 Nabire earthquake
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The 2004 Nabire earthquake occurred on November 26 in Papua, Indonesia. The strike-slip event had a moment magnitude of 7.1 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe). Total deaths for the event amounted to 32, and the total number of injured (as reported by various agencies) was 130–213. Dozens of buildings collapsed and nearly two hundred homes, businesses, and a church were lost. Some infrastructure was damaged, including three bridges and a government telecommunications building. [4]
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Earthquakes
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Hindenburg disaster crash
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The Hindenburg disaster was an airship accident that occurred on May 6, 1937, in Manchester Township, New Jersey, United States. The German passenger airship LZ 129 Hindenburg caught fire and was destroyed during its attempt to dock with its mooring mast at Naval Air Station Lakehurst. The accident caused 35 fatalities (13 passengers and 22 crewmen) from the 97 people on board (36 passengers and 61 crewmen), and an additional fatality on the ground. The disaster was the subject of newsreel coverage, photographs and Herbert Morrison's recorded radio eyewitness reports from the landing field, which were broadcast the next day. [1] A variety of hypotheses have been put forward for both the cause of ignition and the initial fuel for the ensuing fire. The publicity shattered public confidence in the giant, passenger-carrying rigid airship and marked the abrupt end of the airship era. [2]
Speaking before the rally at Madison Square Garden, LaGuardia doubled down. He called Hitler "a brown-shirted fanatic" and promised to continue saying so. Security for the Hindenburg was beefed up after the Zeppelin offices in Germany received threats against the airship ahead of its first flight of the 1937 season – the one from Frankfurt to Lakehurst. "There were Gestapo agents at Lakehurst," Carl S. Jablonski, president of the Navy Lakehurst Historical Society, told the Asbury Park Press in a recent interview, as he recounted the historical context. "There had been threats to blow up the Hindenburg. "[3]
Hindenburg made 10 trips in 1936 to the United States. [4][5] After opening its 1937 season by completing a single round-trip passage to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in late March, the Hindenburg departed from Frankfurt, Germany, on the evening of May 3, on the first of 10 round trips between Europe and the United States that were scheduled for its second year of commercial service. American Airlines had contracted with the operators of the Hindenburg to shuttle the passengers from Lakehurst to Newark for connections to airplane flights. [6]
Except for strong headwinds that slowed its progress, the Atlantic crossing of the Hindenburg was otherwise unremarkable until the airship attempted an early-evening landing at Lakehurst three days later on May 6. Although carrying only half its full capacity of passengers (36 of 70) and crewmen (61, including 21 crewman trainees) during the flight accident, the Hindenburg was fully booked for its return flight. Many of the passengers with tickets to Germany were planning to attend the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth in London the following week. The airship was hours behind schedule when it passed over Boston on the morning of May 6, and its landing at Lakehurst was expected to be further delayed because of afternoon thunderstorms. Advised of the poor weather conditions at Lakehurst, Captain Max Pruss charted a course over Manhattan Island, causing a public spectacle as people rushed out into the street to catch sight of the airship. After passing over the field at 4:00 p.m., Captain Pruss took passengers on a tour over the seasides of New Jersey while waiting for the weather to clear. After finally being notified at 6:22 p.m. that the storms had passed, Pruss directed the airship back to Lakehurst to make its landing almost half a day late. As this would leave much less time than anticipated to service and prepare the airship for its scheduled departure back to Europe, the public was informed that they would not be permitted at the mooring location or be able to visit aboard the Hindenburg during its stay in port. Around 7:00 p.m. local time, at an altitude of 650 feet (200 m), the Hindenburg made its final approach to the Lakehurst Naval Air Station. This was to be a high landing, known as a flying moor, because the airship would drop its landing ropes and mooring cable at a high altitude, and then be winched down to the mooring mast. This type of landing manoeuvre would reduce the number of ground crewmen, but would require more time. Although the high landing was a common procedure for American airships, the Hindenburg had only performed this manoeuvre a few times in 1936 while landing in Lakehurst. At 7:09 p.m., the airship made a sharp full-speed left turn to the west around the landing field because the ground crew was not ready. At 7:11 p.m., it turned back toward the landing field and valved gas. All engines idled ahead and the airship began to slow. Captain Pruss ordered aft engines full astern at 7:14 p.m. while at an altitude of 394 ft (120 m), to try to brake the airship. At 7:17 p.m., the wind shifted direction from east to southwest, and Captain Pruss ordered a second sharp turn starboard, making an s-shaped flightpath towards the mooring mast. At 7:18 p.m., as the final turn progressed, Pruss ordered 300, 300 and 500 kg (660, 660 and 1100 lb) of water ballast in successive drops because the airship was stern-heavy. The forward gas cells were also valved. As these measures failed to bring the ship in trim, six men (three of whom were killed in the accident)[Note 1] were then sent to the bow to trim the airship. At 7:21 p.m., while the Hindenburg was at an altitude of 295 ft (90 m), the mooring lines were dropped from the bow; the starboard line was dropped first, followed by the port line. The port line was overtightened[further explanation needed] as it was connected to the post of the ground winch. The starboard line had still not been connected. A light rain began to fall as the ground crew grabbed the mooring lines. At 7:25 p.m., a few witnesses saw the fabric ahead of the upper fin flutter as if gas was leaking. [7] Others reported seeing a dim blue flame – possibly static electricity, or St Elmo's Fire – moments before the fire on top and in the back of the ship near the point where the flames first appeared. [8] Several other eyewitness testimonies suggest that the first flame appeared on the port side just ahead of the port fin, and was followed by flames which burned on top. Commander Rosendahl testified to the flames in front of the upper fin being "mushroom-shaped". One witness on the starboard side reported a fire beginning lower and behind the rudder on that side. On board, people heard a muffled detonation and those in the front of the ship felt a shock as the port trail rope overtightened; the officers in the control car initially thought the shock was caused by a broken rope. At 7:25 p.m. local time, the Hindenburg caught fire and quickly became engulfed in flames. Eyewitness statements disagree as to where the fire initially broke out; several witnesses on the port side saw yellow-red flames first jump forward of the top fin near the ventilation shaft of cells 4 and 5. [7] Other witnesses on the port side noted the fire actually began just ahead of the horizontal port fin, only then followed by flames in front of the upper fin. One, with views of the starboard side, saw flames beginning lower and farther aft, near cell 1 behind the rudders. Inside the airship, helmsman Helmut Lau, who was stationed in the lower fin, testified hearing a muffled detonation and looked up to see a bright reflection on the front bulkhead of gas cell 4, which "suddenly disappeared by the heat". As other gas cells started to catch fire, the fire spread more to the starboard side and the ship dropped rapidly.
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Air crash
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2013 North India floods
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In June 2013, a mid-day cloudburst centered on the North Indian state of Uttrakhand caused devastating floods and landslides, becoming the country's worst natural disaster since the 2004 tsunami. The rainfall received that month was far greater than the rainfall the state usually received. Debris blocked the rivers, causing major overflow. The main day of the flood was 16 June 2013. Though some parts of Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh in India experienced heavy rainfall, some regions of Western Nepal, and some parts of Western Tibet also experienced heavy rainfall, which drained via the river system to inundate Uttarakhand; hence, over 89% of the casualties occurred in that state. As of 16 July 2013[update], according to figures provided by the Government of Uttarakhand, more than 5,700 people were "presumed dead. "[2] This total included 934 local residents. [3]
Destruction of bridges and roads left about 300,000 pilgrims and tourists trapped in the valleys leading to three of the four Hindu Chota Char Dham pilgrimage sites. [4][5][6][7][8][9][10] The Indian Air Force, the Indian Army, and paramilitary troops evacuated more than 110,000 people from the flood-ravaged area. [5]
From 16 June 2013 a well-marked cyclonic circulation developed around a low pressure area over the Bay of Bengal, moving westwardly, rapidly intensified due to moisture supplied from both the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea, combining with intense western disturbances from the north,[11] thus causing the Indian state of Uttarakhand and adjoining areas to receive heavy rainfall, leading to 375% of the benchmark rainfall during a normal monsoon. [12] This caused the melting of Chorabari Glacier at the height of 3800 meters and cresting of the Mandakini River,[13] which led to heavy floods near Gobindghat, Kedar Dome, Rudraprayag district, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Western Nepal, and acute rainfall in other nearby regions of Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and some parts of Tibet. [14]
The upper Himalayan territories of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand are full of forests and snow-covered mountains and thus remain relatively inaccessible. They are home to several major and historic Hindu and Sikh pilgrimage sites besides several tourist spots and trekking trails. Heavy rainfall for four consecutive days as well as melting snow aggravated the floods. [15] Warnings by the India Meteorological Department predicting heavy rains were not given wide publicity beforehand, causing thousands of people to be caught unaware, resulting in huge loss of life and property. Landslides, due to the floods, damaged several houses and structures, killing those who were trapped. [4][15] The heavy rains resulted in large flash floods and massive landslides. [14] Entire villages and settlements such as Gaurikund and the market town of Ram Bada, a transition point to Kedarnath, had been obliterated, while the market town of Sonprayag suffered heavy damage and loss of lives. [8][16] Pilgrimage centres in the region, including Gangotri, Yamunotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath, the hallowed Hindu Chardham (four sites) pilgrimage centers, are usually visited by thousands of devotees, especially after the month of July on wards. Over 70,000 people were stuck in various regions because of damaged or blocked roads. [15] People in other important locations like the Valley of flowers, Roopkund and the Sikh pilgrimage centre Hemkund were stranded for more than three days. [15] National Highway 7 (Old National Highway 58), an important artery connecting the region was also washed away near Jyotirmath and in many other places. [16] Because summers have more number of tourists, the number of people impacted is substantial. [17] For more than three days, stranded pilgrims and tourists were without rations or survived on little food. [18] The roads were seriously damaged at more than 450 places, resulting in huge traffic jams, and the floods caused many cars and other vehicles to be washed away. [15] On 18 June, more than 12,000 pilgrims were stranded at Badrinath, the popular pilgrimage center located on the banks of the Alaknanda River. [19][20][21] Rescuers at the Hindu pilgrimage town of Haridwar on the river Ganga recovered bodies of 40 victims washed down by the flooded rivers as of 21 June 2013. [22] Bodies of people washed away in Uttarakhand were found in distant places like Bijnor, Allahabad and Bulandshahr in Uttar Pradesh. [23] Searching for bodies who died during the extreme natural fury of June in Kedar valley continued for several months and even as late as September 2013, about 556 bodies were found out of which 166 bodies were found in highly decomposed state during fourth round of search operations. [24]
Although the Kedarnath Temple was not damaged, its base was inundated with water, mud and boulders from the landslide, damaging its perimeter. [20] Many hotels, rest houses and shops around the temple in Kedarnath township were destroyed, resulting in several casualties. Most of the destruction at Kedarnath was caused by a sudden rapid melting of ice and snow on the Kedarnath Mountain, 6 km (3.7 mi) from the temple, which flooded the Chorabari Lake (upstream) and then Kedarnath. The temple was flooded with water resulting in several deaths due to drowning and panic-driven stampede. [25] Even after a week, dead bodies had not been removed from Kedarnath town, resulting in water contamination in the Kedarnath valley and villagers who depend on spring water suffered various types of health problems such as fever and diarrhea. [4][26] When the flood receded, satellite images showed one new stream at Kedarnath town. No damage at the Kedarnath Temple occurred. The Uttarakhand Government announced that due to the extensive damage to the infrastructure, the temple will be temporarily closed to regular pilgrims and tourists for a year or two, but the temple rituals will still be maintained by priests. [27][28][29] The Temple opened for pilgrims on Sunday, 4 May 2014. [30]
New Delhi, Gurugram, Faridabad and surrounding areas received a high amount of rainfall on 16 June 2013, leading to flooding of the low-lying areas of the cities. [31] The Yamuna River swelled to a new height of 207.75 meters submerging the low lying flood plains along the banks. [32][33]
Six-hundred and nine villages, covering a population of 700,000, in 23 districts of Uttar Pradesh were affected by the flood and drought. As of 11 July 2013[update], more than 120 deaths were reported from the state. The number of people who went to Uttarakhand were mostly from Uttar Pradesh [34]
In Himachal Pradesh, floods caused loss of life and property and death toll in the state was 20. [35]
About 6000 citizens of Nepal were visiting the Indian region, of which 1,000 were rescued as of 22 June 2013. [36] Flooding of the Dhauliganga and the Mahakali rivers had caused extensive damage, with reports of 128 houses and 13 government offices swept away and over 1000 people homeless. [37][38] A bridge that joins the India-Nepal border was highly damaged. The Indian Army, Air Force, Navy, Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Border S
National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Public Works Department and local administrations worked together for quick rescue operations. [14] Several thousand soldiers were deployed for the rescue missions. [39] Activists of political and social organisations were also involved in the rescue and management of relief centres. [40] The national highway and other important roads were closed to regular traffic.
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Floods
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Sydney news: University of Sydney protesters cop $21,000 in fines as riot squad deployed
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A Victorian man who flew from Brisbane to Hobart on flight VA702 today has tested positive to COVID-19 and has not been allowed to board a flight to Melbourne
A Watch & Act warning is in place for a fire in the northern parts of Mokine, in WA's Northam Shire. Keep up to date with ABC Emergency
Here's what you need to know this morning.
Police have issued fines totalling $21,000 to a group of student protesters objecting to university job cuts and fee hikes.
The protest began at the University of Sydney campus yesterday and continued through to City Road, where 21 students sat.
NSW Police deployed officers from five departments, including the riot squad and mounted police.
The 21 students were each fined $1,000 for breaching public health orders which prohibit gatherings of more than 20 people.
The number of daily coronavirus tests in NSW has fallen steeply in the last week to its lowest level since mid-July.
This is despite despite health authorities insisting the virus is likely still circulating in Sydney.
"That transmission chain could be lost if you don't get tested and we'll all be punished," Catherine Bennett, chair of epidemiology at Deakin University said.
Here's why getting swabbed is a "necessary overkill", even as new infections decline.
A mother and two children have escaped unharmed after a fire engulfed their Sadleir home overnight. About 2:15am, emergency services attended a home on Pinnacle Street and found it well alight.
The family made it out but the home was significantly damaged.
Police have established a crime scene and are investigating the cause of the blaze. South Australia opened its border to arrivals from NSW at midnight, meaning people are now able to enter the state without being forced into mandatory quarantine.
The move came after two consecutive days of no community transmission of coronavirus being reported in NSW. Discounted airline tickets from Sydney to Adelaide were in hot demand yesterday, but people who flew before midnight were still required to enter 14 days of quarantine. The South Australian Premier said the border will stay open as long as cases remain low, but NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has urged SA to keep the border open for good.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian says the State Government will offer to pay for Sydney's New Year's Eve fireworks to make sure they go ahead.
The City of Sydney has previously indicated it is concerned about hosting the event during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Premier has tasked the Treasurer and Tourism Minister with seeing how the event can be hosted safely.
Ms Berejiklian said she wants to offer the people of NSW, and around the world, a sign of hope for the coming year.
Sunny.
See our full coverage of coronavirus
We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work.
This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced.
AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)
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Organization Fine
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Paleontologist Ji Qiang has made global headlines with claims he’s discovered a new species of early human named “Homo longi.”
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Paleontologist Ji Qiang has made global headlines with claims he’s discovered a new species of early human named “Homo longi.” The 70-year-old tells Sixth Tone how the find really came about — and why critics misunderstand his work. Ji Qiang begins our interview with a revelation: The story circulating the world about how the now-famous “dragon man” skull was discovered probably isn’t true. Over the past week, the 70-year-old paleontologist has shot to global fame after publishing a series of bombshell papers in the China-based peer-reviewed journal The Innovation on June 25. In them, Ji and his team claim a fossilized skull that came into Ji’s possession belongs to a new species of early hominin that they named Homo longi. Much of the media attention has focused on how the skull was found. The man who gave the fossil to Ji described how his grandfather originally unearthed it in the 1930s. As the story goes, the man’s grandfather dug up the artifact while working on a bridge-building project near the northeastern Chinese city of Harbin. Rather than hand it over to the Japanese authorities, who occupied the region at the time, he decided to hide it at the bottom of a well. The skull remained there for 80 years, until the man’s grandfather finally told his family of its existence as he lay on his deathbed. The man then retrieved the skull from the well before contacting Ji — one of China’s most prominent paleontologists — to report his discovery. It’s a fabulous tale, but Ji suspects it may be a little too good to be real. In all likelihood, the man found the skull himself, but didn’t want to admit he’d failed to report his discovery to the authorities immediately, Ji implies. In China, all cultural relics are deemed to be the property of the state, and failing to hand over artifacts in a timely manner is illegal. “This is self-protection,” Ji tells Sixth Tone. “I understand his reasoning.” Sadly, like so much to do with the “dragon man,” verifying the details of the man’s story will be a challenge. After reaching out to Ji by phone in 2018, the man met him at a hotel to hand over the skull. But the man refused to reveal his name, and Ji has been unable to contact him since. It’s not the only issue related to the “dragon man” that Ji is keen to clear up. The research undertaken by Ji — who works at Hebei GEO University in northern China — has also become the focus of much debate in recent days, with some scientists questioning his decision to declare the fossil belongs to a new species. The skull is undeniably a major find: Its wide, square eye sockets and huge brow ridge is unlike any human cranium previously discovered. A virtual reconstruction of the “dragon man” cranium believed to have been found in Harbin, Heilongjiang province. Courtesy of Ni Xijun After years of research, Ji has concluded the skull most likely belonged to a 50-year-old man who lived somewhere in northeast China around 150,000-300,000 years ago. Its anatomical features indicate that Homo longi, rather than Neanderthals, is modern humans’ closest relative. If true, the findings could redefine our understanding of human evolution. It would also represent another career high for Ji, who made his name by discovering the Sinosauropteryx, a species of small, meat-eating dinosaur, and the first fossil to contain evidence that dinosaurs had feathers. Yet others argue it’s too early to identify “dragon man” as a new subset of humans. They suggest the fossil may instead be the skull of a Denisovan — another extinct hominid species of which only a few genetic traces have previously been uncovered. The fact Ji decided against publishing his research in leading scientific journal Nature, instead opting for a China-based title, has only added to the controversy. But the veteran paleontologist insists his critics have misunderstood his intentions. Speaking with Sixth Tone by phone, Ji discussed his research, the debate surrounding the “dragon man,” and the future of Chinese paleontology. The interview has been edited for brevity and clarity. Paleontologist Ji Qiang gets some work done. From the website of Hebei GEO University Sixth Tone: Since your research was published, many paleontologists have said it’s premature to call the “dragon man” a new human species. How do you respond to this? Ji Qiang: Some Western scholars think the characteristics of the “dragon man” aren’t distinctive enough to label it a separate species, so they tend to define it as a subspecies of other known ancient humans. But to become a subspecies, an organism, by definition, usually needs to be isolated geographically from other subspecies. That’s something we’re unable to establish right now. So, for now, we might as well call it a new species. If we make more discoveries about the “dragon man,” its classification may change. Changing a species’ designation is pretty common in paleontology. Sixth Tone: Some say the skull belongs to the mysterious Denisovans. What’s your view? Ji: Molecular biology and morphology are the two main strands of paleoanthropology. People believe that Denisovans existed based on molecular biological evidence, such as DNA. But we barely have any morphological data from this group of humans, because the only Denisovans fossils to have been found are a few teeth and bone fragments. Therefore, there is simply no way to compare the appearance of Homo longi with that of the Denisovans. Some Western scientists say the “dragon man” is a Denisovan. But until DNA testing is complete, this is just speculation — I wouldn’t know whether it is right or wrong. We haven’t started testing the skull’s DNA, which is our next step. But honestly, the “dragon man” bones are so old, I have little confidence in being able to extract ancient genetic information from the skull. Sixth Tone: Do you plan to search for more “dragon man” fossils? Ji: Although we can’t confirm the exact place where the skull was discovered, we managed to verify that the site was near the Songhua River, close to the northeastern city of Harbin. In addition, we determined “dragon man’s” date of death to be sometime between 146,000 and 300,000 years ago. Therefore, we know roughly which rock layers may contain additional fossils. That’s how we plan to begin searching for more evidence. We’ll also continue our search for ancient human fossils more generally. Based on current knowledge about the presence of ancient humans in China, our team will target four key regions next, namely, Shaanxi province and nearby areas north of the Qinling Mountains, Hubei province and adjacent areas south of the Qinling Mountains, Hebei province and other parts of northern China, and the Songhua River basin in the Northeast. The specific locations are classified. Sixth Tone: How did you first find out about the “dragon man” skull’s existence? Ji: I first saw a picture of the skull on my phone after the man sent it to me when he reached out in 2018. I instantly knew it was the real deal. I don’t fully believe the story about how his grandfather found the skull when building a bridge and hid it in a well for 80 years. Nevertheless, I knew it was a very important fossil that needed to be collected as soon as possible. Even if it was fished out of a latrine, it would still be of huge scientific value. We then met in a hotel, but he wouldn’t tell me his name. This is self-protection. I understand his reasoning. Eventually, I convinced him to donate the specimen to Hebei GEO University. I can no longer contact him, because he has changed his phone number, but I sincerely hope he comes forward again. Regardless of the veracity of his story, I think he knows exactly where the skull was found. By telling us, he may aid the discovery of new scientific findings. From left to right, a comparison of early human crania, namely Peking Man, Maba, Jinniushan, Dali, and Dragon Man. Courtesy of Kai Geng Sixth Tone: Usually, a significant archeological discovery like this would appear in a high-ranking journal, such as Nature. Did you submit your manuscript to them? Ji: We first submitted the papers to Nature and went through four rounds of editing over more than a year. However, Nature unexpectedly sent us an email saying that they would only publish our articles if we agreed not to name the new species and conduct phylogenetic analysis. They didn’t explain why. They even asked us to disclose all other scans and data about the skull, which we weren’t ready to publish at the time. We could publish two or three articles using those materials alone. I thought their demands were disrespectful to us as scientists. It has never happened in the past. I think it’s politically driven. So, I decided to withdraw the papers. While some peers advised me to go to Science, I think Nature and Science are the same. I then submitted the research to The Innovation. (The Innovation is a peer-reviewed journal affiliated with the Chinese Academy of Sciences.) A reconstruction of Dragon Man in his habitat. Courtesy of Zhao Chuang Sixth Tone: In recent years, many archeological and paleontological discoveries have emerged in China. Why do you think this is? Ji: There are three main reasons. One is that China is a vast country, so it’s not surprising many treasures are buried underground. Also, Chinese researchers now have enough funding to carry out more scientific research, so we’re seeing an abundance of discoveries. Finally, after the reform and opening-up of China’s economy, the new generation of scientists has solid training and better education, with many having studied abroad. So as you’d expect, the conditions have improved. Honestly, up to this point, we haven’t found many ancient human fossils of significant scientific value, so Chinese researchers haven’t been very influential in the field of human evolution on the global stage. “Dragon man” is a good start. If we can find a common ancestor to Homo sapiens and Homo longi in China or East Asia, our voice will become stronger and more influential. This is what I hope my colleagues and I will do in the future.
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New archeological discoveries
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1968 Tokachi earthquake
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The 1968 Tokachi earthquake (1968年十勝沖地震 Sen-kyūhyaku-rokujūhachi-nen Tokachi-oki Jishin) occurred on May 16 at 0:49 UTC (09:49 local time) in the area offshore Aomori and Hokkaido. The magnitude of this earthquake was put at Mw 8.3. [2] The intensity of the earthquake reached shindo 5 in Aomori, Aomori and Hakodate, Hokkaido. [3]
This earthquake was located near the junction of the Kuril Trench and the Japan Trench. It was an interplate earthquake. [4] The focal mechanism of this earthquake showed movement on a thrust fault with a considerable slip-strike component. [2] The sum of interplate seismic moment release by seismic and aseismic faulting in this earthquake was about 28×1020 N m. The 1960s was noted as one of the peak periods of interplate seismic moment release in the offshore Sanriku region. [5]
Heavy rain occurred due to a low pressure system in the days leading up to the earthquake and aggravated the damage. In Hokkaido, building damage was reported. A four-story RC building of Hakodate University collapsed. [6] In Aomori Prefecture, there was damage to railroads and highways in more than 200 places caused by collapses of artificial embankments. In Hachinohe, there was damage to buildings, water pipes, and gas pipes. The three-story building of Hachinohe Technical College suffered severe damage. [7] The communication between Honshu and Hokkaido was cut off. [8]
A tsunami was triggered by the earthquake,[9] with a maximum height of about 6 m (20 ft). [10] An 11-centimeter (4.3 in) high tsunami was recorded in Tahiti. [11] In Japan, the tsunami caused flooding and damage to the aquaculture. [9]
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Earthquakes
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Balkan Bulgarian Airlines Flight 307 crash
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Balkan Bulgarian Airlines Flight 307 was a scheduled international passenger flight from Sofia to Moscow that crashed on its final approach to the Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow on March 3, 1973. All 25 passengers and crew on board were killed in the crash. The aircraft involved was an Ilyushin Il-18V, registration LZ-BEM with the manufacturer's serial number 182005602. The aircraft first flew in 1962. [1]
The aircraft was completing an international scheduled passenger flight from Sofia to Moscow when, on its second landing attempt after a missed approach, it started to lose altitude and nosedived shortly thereafter. The aircraft crashed into the ground, disintegrated, and caught fire. [1] There were no survivors among the fourteen passengers and seven crew members on board. [2]:81 The accident marked the 60th loss of an Ilyushin Il-18 and was also the 24th worst accident involving the type at the time of the accident. As of July 2014[update], the event is the 35th deadliest one involving an Il-18. [1]
Icing was later determined as the possible cause of the accident. [1]
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Air crash
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Biggest Navy Exercise in a Generation Will Include 25,000 Personnel Across 17 Time Zones
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Tens of thousands of sailors and Marines will participate in the biggest U.S. naval exercise in a generation to test how the services will fight across vast distances as they prepare for possible conflict with China or Russia. Aircraft carriers, submarines, planes, unmanned vessels, and about 25,000 personnel will participate in Large Scale Exercise 2021, which will begin in late summer. The massive exercise will span 17 time zones with sailors and Marines in the U.S., Africa, Europe and the Pacific joining. Live forces will participate in both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. "LSE is more than just training, it is leveraging the integrated fighting power of multiple naval forces to share sensors, weapons, and platforms across all domains in contested environments, globally," said Adm. Christopher Grady, commander of U.S. Fleet Forces, told Military.com in an email. The exercise, he added, will be the first in a series "that will continue to push the envelope of what it means to be the superior maritime force." Read Next: Super Hercules Crew Receives DFC, Air Medals for Daring Afghanistan Flight Under Fire The Navy and Marine Corps are working more closely after decades of missions focused on the Middle East. As competition for influence builds with China and Russia, the Department of the Navy is shifting its focus from a largely land-based fight against terror groups to deterring aggression. Three dozen units will participate in physical portions of the large-scale exercise, while more than 50 will join the exercise remotely, said Lt. Cmdr. Tabitha Klingensmith, with U.S. Fleet Forces Command. Participating units will include personnel from all three Marine expeditionary forces and sailors from the Navy's Second, Third, Sixth, Seventh and Tenth fleets. While the U.S. has held big naval exercises like Bold Alligator and Rim of the Pacific, Klingensmith said the training events are growing in scope and complexity. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday has referred to the upcoming large-scale exercise as the biggest naval training event in a generation. That's because combining live and virtual participants "will expand the playing field beyond what has ever been achieved in live-only exercises," Klingensmith said. "LSE 2021 will use technologies similar to what you see in virtual video gaming environments to expand the number of participants by linking commands and units around the globe virtually, thereby increasing the number of players, real and synthetic, to better replicate the realistic scale of scenarios the Navy and Marine Corps team is likely to face in the future," she added. The sailors and Marines participating will test several concepts they're likely to encounter in a possible conflict with China. Scenarios will test the sailors and Marines' ability to conduct distributed operations; expeditionary advanced-base operations; littoral operations in a contested environment; and command and control in a contested environment. "We've been applying warfighting concepts like Distributed Maritime Operations ... to fleet battle problems at the strike group level to rapidly advance organizational learning," Grady said. "LSE 2021 is important because we will apply those lessons learned at-scale to further our employment of synchronized, integrated operations across all domains globally, to ensure we remain the superior maritime force in a high-end fight." The Navy and Marine Corps are finalizing details on the exercise, but Klingensmith said they plan to incorporate at least one unmanned platform -- the Autonomous Littoral Connector, a surface vessel that can provide logistics support from shore to ship. That's traditionally a Navy mission, she said, but during the exercise it'll be under the command and control of the Marine Corps. The 2021 updates to Commandant Gen. David Berger's Force Design plans for the Marine Corps call for that service to -- in partnership with the Navy -- explore developing "littoral maneuver groups" to operate the future light amphibious warship. Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct the number of time zones involved in the exercise. -- Gina Harkins can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @ginaaharkins. Related: Marines Hop Islands, Set Up Long-Range Fires as Force Preps for Clash with China The Kremlin has rebuffed allegations that a buildup of Russian troops near Ukraine reflects Moscow’s aggressive intentions. Russia’s deputy U.N. ambassador pointed to what he called many threats from Ukraine and provocative actions by U.S. warships... Naval forces from the United States, Israel and two Gulf Arab states are taking part in a joint security drill in the Red Sea... Volcanic activity beneath Iwo Jima, site of a defining World War II battle, is pushing sunken naval vessels to the surface. A Montana Army National Guard soldier has become the first woman to complete the seven-week U.S. Army Sniper Course at Fort... Israel has warned that it would act with military force if needed to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. At least five service members allegedly were part of the deadly pro-Trump mob that assaulted the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. The military's non-tactical vehicle fleet alone is the second largest in the federal government next to the U.S. Postal... Max Cleland, who lost three limbs to a hand grenade blast in Vietnam and went on to represent his native Georgia in the U.S... The Kremlin has rebuffed allegations that a buildup of Russian troops near Ukraine reflects Moscow’s aggressive intentions. Russia’s deputy U.N. ambassador pointed to what he called many threats from Ukraine and provocative actions by U.S. warships... Naval forces from the United States, Israel and two Gulf Arab states are taking part in a joint security drill in the Red Sea... Volcanic activity beneath Iwo Jima, site of a defining World War II battle, is pushing sunken naval vessels to the surface. A new hotline and a more comprehensive, comparative claims processing system are among the efforts to assist Gulf War and...
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Military Exercise
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1992 Rugby League World Cup Final
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The 1992 Rugby League World Cup final was the conclusive game of the 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup tournament and was played between Great Britain and Australia on 24 October 1992 at Wembley Stadium in London, England. Australia won the final by 10 points to 6 in front of an international record crowd of 73,631. Australia, the defending champions, won the Rugby League World Cup for the 7th time. The crowd of 73,631 at Wembley set a new international rugby league attendance record, eclipsing the previous record of 70,204 established during the first test of the 1932 Ashes series at the Sydney Cricket Ground. [1]
The Mal Reilly coached Great Britain started their World Cup campaign on 11 November 1989 when they defeated New Zealand 10–6 at Central Park in Wigan. Until the Final, The Lions won another 4 games while losing 3. Nine of the 17 selected players for the Lions were from the 1992 RFL champions Wigan. Australia began their World Cup campaign with a 22–14 win over New Zealand in the third test of the 1989 Trans-Tasman series in Auckland on 23 July 1989. The Bob Fulton coached Kangaroos would win all 8 of their qualifying games. Seven of the players selected for Australia were members of the Brisbane Broncos 1992 NSWRL premiership winning team. Australia were the defending World Cup Champions and had won all three World Cup Finals since 1975. The Kangaroos had won the 1988 Rugby League World Cup Final 25–12 over New Zealand at Eden Park in Auckland. In the fortnight prior to the World Cup Final (following the 1992 NSWRL Grand Final), the Australians embarked on a mini three game tour of England, essentially using the games as selection trial for the Final at Wembley. The Australians wore a non-traditional mostly white jumper with a green and gold diamond pattern in the shape of Kit supplier Umbro. [citation needed]
The Australian squad for their WCF Tour was:
Mal Meninga (c), Allan Langer (vc), Tim Brasher, Willie Carne, John Cartwright, Bradley Clyde, Brad Fittler, David Gillespie, Brad Godden, Michael Hancock, Paul Harragon, Chris Johns, Glenn Lazarus, Bob Lindner, Graham Mackay, Steve Renouf, Mark Sargent, Paul Sironen, Kerrod Walters, Kevin Walters, Steve Walters. Of the selected squad, only team vice captain Allan Langer, Paul Sironen and David Gillespie had played in Australia's 1988 World Cup Final win over New Zealand. All three would go on to play in the Final at Wembley playing in the same positions and wearing the same numbers (7, 11 and 14 respectively) they had done four years earlier at Eden Park. Before the final, Australia and Great Britain had played each other 119 times, with Australia winning 57 times, Great Britain 57 and 5 draws. Australia had not lost a test series or a World Cup to Great Britain (or England) since the 1972 World Cup. Australia and Great Britain had met in three previous World Cup Finals; 1970 at Headingley Stadium in Leeds (won 12–7 by Australia), 1972 at Stade de Gerland in Lyon, France (the game finished in a 10–10 draw but the Lions were awarded the Cup after finishing on top of the table), and 1977 at the Sydney Cricket Ground (won 13–12 by Australia). As they had done in 1988, Australia won the right to host the World Cup Final. However, in the interests of rugby league and although they were confident of a sell-out if the game was held in Australia after capacity crowds attended all three Ashes Series tests earlier in the year against Great Britain, with the potential for a much larger attendance since at the time Lang Park in Brisbane could only hold 32,500, and the Sydney Football Stadium could only seat 42,500, the Australian Rugby League (ARL) agreed to the Rugby Football League (RFL) hosting the final at the 82,000 capacity Wembley Stadium in London. [citation needed]
The first half of the World Cup Final was a tight affair. The Lions took the lead early thanks to a penalty goal from Deryck Fox after a spilled bomb in front of the posts by debuting Kangaroos fullback Tim Brasher. Fox put up an attacking bomb and Brasher was tackled by Lions fullback Joe Lydon as he attempted to catch the ball. From there Steve Renouf dived on the loose ball that was only 2 metres in front of the posts and was ruled to be offside. From then on Fox and Kangaroos captain Mal Meninga traded penalty goals until the half with Great Britain going into the break with a 6–4 lead. Great Britain were lucky to have a full complement on the field from about the 20 minute mark of the final after hooker Martin Dermott had caught Australian five-eighth Brad Fittler with an elbow to the face. [citation needed] However Dermott was cautioned by referee Hale rather than sent off. While Meninga kicked a penalty goal, Fittler went to the sidelines where he was cleared of serious injury and returned to the game without being replaced. At half time, Kangaroos doctor Nathan Gibbs diagnosed a hairline fracture of his cheek bone, but cleared him to play on. Great Britain wasn't without its own problems though. Early in the first half fullback Joe Lydon picked up an ankle injury and he would be eventually replaced by Alan Tait in the second half. The Lions would also lose centre Gary Connolly to a leg injury which would see him replaced by a former Welsh rugby union international, John Devereux. [3]
Into the second half the match was becoming a struggle with neither team seriously threatening the others line. The closest either team came to scoring was when Australian winger Willie Carne looked to have scored in the corner but the final pass from Meninga was ruled forward. The home side were still leading 6–4 with only 12 minutes remaining. [4] The only try of the match was then set up by Australian replacement back Kevin Walters who, with a clever cut-out pass, put his Brisbane Broncos teammate Steve Renouf into a gap not covered by replacement Lions centre John Devereux (Walters had replaced lock forward Bradley Clyde who left the field with a dislocated shoulder). Renouf, in his debut test for Australia, then raced 20 metres to score in the corner. [5] Meninga's sideline conversion of Renouf's try gave Australia what would be a match winning 10–6 lead. The rain started pouring midway through the second half and Australia was able to hold Great Britain out and maintain their lead until the final siren. Australian hooker Steve Walters was named the man-of-the-match for the 1992 World Cup Final. [6]
The match was broadcast into the United Kingdom by the BBC with commentary from Ray French and Alex Murphy. The match was telecast live late at night throughout Australia on the Nine Network, with commentary provided by Ray Warren and former Australian test players Peter Sterling and Paul Vautin, with sideline comments from Chris Bombolas. The game broke Australia's midnight-to-dawn television ratings record which was set a year earlier by the rugby union's 1991 Rugby World Cup Final in which Australia had defeated England at Twickenham Stadium in London. [7]
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Sports Competition
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Canary Islands volcano roars to life for first time in 50 years
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The outburst is the latest in a string of fissure-style eruptions dating back centuries on the Spanish island of La Palma. Experts say it could last for weeks. The Cumbre Vieja volcano on the Spanish island of La Palma has occasionally twitched, convulsed, and rumbled, but no lava has emerged since 1971. That changed this weekend. At 3:12 p.m. local time on September 19, rising magma tore open several fissures on its western flanks, and an extravagant eruption began. From afar, it looked spectacular. Vertiginous fountains of lava almost 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit screamed skyward, reaching heights of up to 5,000 feet—nearly twice that of the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest skyscraper. Below, braided rivers of molten rock poured from the fissures like blood from open wounds. Sitting 300 miles west of Morocco’s shores in the Atlantic Ocean, La Palma only exists because a volcanic hot spot built land above the waves long ago, forming the archipelago known as the Canary Islands. That long-lasting, superheated blowtorch within the underlying mantle created eight main islands that have delightfully varied ecosystems, from subtropical forests to deserts. On La Palma, high mountains provide ideal conditions for cloud-free star-gazing, which is why the island hosts a major European observatory. But as this new eruption demonstrates, “the price and privilege of living on a beautiful little island is, in this case, its geological history,” says Helen Robinson, a geoscientist at the University of Glasgow who worked as part of the monitoring team for Cumbre Vieja in 2015. Cumbre Vieja is a highly active volcanic edifice, and in the past 7,000 years, a plethora of eruptions have taken place on a north-south orientated ridge—a battle-scarred axis dotted by fissures, cones, craters, and vents. Since the 15th century, multiple lava flows have damaged buildings and crawled into the sea. They often erupt from fissures, a style common to many volcanoes around the world, from Hawai‘i’s Kīlauea to the ongoing eruption in Iceland’s Reykjanes peninsula. As of the afternoon of September 20, the latest eruption shows no signs of slowing down. According to Pedro Hernández, a volcanologist at the Volcanological Institute of the Canary Islands (INVOLCAN), lava continues to cascade slowly downslope and venture westward toward the sea. Most of the island remains unaffected, but 5,000 people in the path of the fiery streams have been evacuated. “More than 20 houses have been destroyed,” says Hernández. Reuters reports that more than 500 tourists had to leave their hotels, and about 360 were evacuated from a local resort to the nearby island of Tenerife. How long the lava will remain a threat is tricky to estimate. Eruptions on La Palma can last from a few weeks to several months. “The only way to know is to know the total volume of eruptible magma under Cumbre Vieja,” says Pablo J. González, a physical volcanologist at the Spanish National Research Council on Tenerife. “That piece of information is unknown.” The changing shape of the volcano and the seismic soundtrack of its quakes may reveal an answer to this all-important query. But even under intense scientific interrogation, Cumbre Vieja is unlikely to give up its secrets easily. La Palma, the most northwesterly of the Canary Islands, is a volcanic chimera: a mishmash of various volcanic edifices big and small. In the south you can find Cumbre Vieja, or “Old Summit,” and despite its name it’s one of the younger siblings, dating back a mere 125,000 years. The volcano’s last eruption was from a small cone called Teneguia back in 1971. But that doesn’t mean Cumbre Vieja has been quiet since. According to Itahiza Domínguez Cerdeña, a seismologist at the National Geographic Institute, on Tenerife, nine earthquake swarms—hundreds of rumbles happening in the same area in close succession—have occurred some 18 miles below the volcano since October 2017. Just a week ago, these earthquakes were happening only seven miles deep, and in the last few days, quakes were emanating from just below the surface. From September 10 to 19, a staggering 25,000 quakes, most of them imperceptible to people, had been recorded. This ascending cacophony was the sound of the crust being pushed aside and deformed. The cause? The “pressure of the magma intruding in the crust,” says Cerdeña. By this past weekend, the ground there had inflated by six inches, suggesting a moderate volume of magma had recently infiltrated the shallow crust. Most intrusions of magma don’t lead to eruptions; they cannot punch through the solid rock above, so they cool down and ultimately stop rising. But it’s always possible for a greater volume of molten rock to gather under an intrusion, and that can potentially fuel a prolific, prolonged eruption. Volcanologists were alarmed by the mountain’s deformation and its seismic clangor, and on September 13, the authorities raised the alert level, warning the southern section of the island and its 35,000 residents that an eruption may follow. On September 18 scientists began deploying additional seismometers in the region to better identify types of quakes and to track their migration with more precision, while others conducted flybys in helicopters to discern if the ground was heating up. Just before midday on September 19, a potent magnitude-4.2 quake shook the volcano. Out of an abundance of caution, Spanish soldiers helped evacuate 40 people and their farm animals from several villages around the volcano. Later that afternoon, lava exploded out of the forested hills on the volcano’s western flank. The lava set trees and farmland aflame, crossed a highway and destroyed eight isolated houses. That night, the government announced that 5,000 people potentially in harm’s way had been evacuated. Although its lava has not yet punched through the more built-up parts of the nearby El Paso municipality, it “is sort of creeping toward quite a densely populated area,” says Robinson. The hope is that the flow will avoid that area on its journey to the sea, but even if it doesn’t, the area has been evacuated, significantly reducing the odds of fatalities. Fortunately, no matter how long the eruption lasts, it shouldn’t damage the multitude of astronomical telescopes at the island’s Roque de los Muchachos Observatory. Juan Carlos Pérez Arencibia, the observatory’s administrator, says that the facilities are 11 miles north of the eruption site. Also, the observatory is located 7,900 feet above sea level, while the lava is emerging at 2,000 feet. “The ash might mean that the telescopes remain closed for several days without observing, but the observatory itself should be unharmed,” says David Jones, an astronomer at the observatory. And despite fears swirling on social media sparked by a highly speculative 2001 paper, there’s almost no chance that the Cumbre Vieja eruption could create a mega-tsunami that would slam into America’s eastern seaboard, says Dave Petley, a landslide expert at the University of Sheffield in England. Flank collapses of volcanoes are a genuine concern, and it’s true that several flank collapses on La Palma’s shores took place many thousands of years ago. But a study from 2015 found that under realistic modeling conditions, the most severe collapse could cause no more than a six-foot tsunami along western Atlantic coastlines. Although such an eventuality would still be decidedly unwelcome, INVOLCAN notes that it would take an incredibly powerful earthquake and an astoundingly explosive volcanic eruption happening simultaneously for any sort of flank collapse to transpire. Cumbre Vieja is structurally sound at present, and there is no indication that such a confluence is even remotely possible. Make no mistake: the lava flows are the real hazard here. Fortunately, the residents of La Palma are being protected by a vanguard of volcanologists and a shield of seismologists. The long-term efforts by geoscientists on the island ensured that it was clear that something wicked was brewing long before serpentine lava flows crept out of Cumbre Vieja’s hillside. “If they didn’t do such intense monitoring,” says Robinson, “they wouldn’t understand their volcanoes as well as they do.”
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Volcano Eruption
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1983 Overseas Final
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The 1983 Overseas Final was the third running of the Overseas Final as part of the qualification for the 1983 Speedway World Championship Final to be held in West Germany. The 1983 Final was run at the Belle Vue Stadium in Manchester, England, and was the second last qualifying round for Commonwealth and American riders. [1]
The Top 10 riders qualified for the Intercontinental Final to be held at the White City Stadium in London. Manchester's own Phil Collins won the Overseas Final. This motorcycle speedway competition-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
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Sports Competition
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Pope Benedict XVI left Rome on March 23, to begin the 23rd foreign trip of his pontificate
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Pope Benedict XVI left Rome on March 23, to begin the 23rd foreign trip of his pontificate, his 2nd visit as Pope to Latin America. He will be in Mexico from March 23 to 26, then travel to Cuba, returning to Rome on March 29. As he boarded his morning flight from Fiumicino airport, the Holy Father appeared in public using a cane for the first time. Aides disclosed that he has been walking with a cane around the apostolic palace for several weeks, to ease discomfort from his arthritic knees. Because of his advanced age, Pope Benedict has generally avoided long trips abroad. His schedule for this trip is relatively relaxed, allowing ample time for rest after the international flight. And he will not visit Mexico City, the nation’s capital, where the high altitude might tax his strength. Instead the Pontiff will arrive Friday evening in the city of Leon. During his stay in Mexico the Pope is expected to address the problem of drug trafficking and the associated violence, which has reached frightening proportions in recent months. Some drug-trafficking gangs have announced an informal truce during the days of the papal visit. Archbishop José Guadalupe Martin Rabago of Leon has expressed confidence that Catholics will be able to attend papal events without fear of violence. The Pope’s visit may also have implications for Mexico’s political situation, with presidential elections due this summer. Trailing in opinion polls, the ruling National Action Party (PAN) of President Felipe Calderon will hope to generate some excitement from the papal visit in a country where Catholicism remains strong even after years of aggressively secular rule. From Mexico the Pope will continue on to Cuba, where he will face a different sort of political challenge. The Cuban government has shown a willingness to offer new scope to the Catholic Church, but opponents of the Castro regime fear that the government is co-opting the hierarchy, seeking to quiet complaints about human-rights violations. Church officials counter with the argument that negotiations have opened new vistas for religious activity, leading to greater freedom for all Cubans. Father Federico Lombardi, the director of the Vatican press office, alluded to that argument when he said that Cuban officials must realize the need for “a climate of development, freedom, and reconciliation.” During his stay in Cuba, the Pope is expected to meet privately with longtime dictator Fidel Castro, who is rumored to be seeking reconciliation with the Church as his health deteriorates.
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Diplomatic Visit
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Two found dead with carbon monoxide poisoning in Vershire
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Thank you for your interest in and support of the Valley News. So far, we have raised 80% of the funds required to host journalists Claire Potter and Alex Driehaus for their one-year placements in the Upper Valley through Report for America, a national service program that boosts local news by harnessing community support.
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VERSHIRE — Vermont State Police are investigating after two people were found dead in an SUV over the weekend with accidental carbon monoxide poisoning, according to a news release from police. The deaths of Vershire resident Cody Coburn, 28, and Sharon resident Joelle Ryder, 36, do not appear to be suspicious, according to the release. Police went to a home on Parker Road in Vershire around noon on Saturday after a family member called police to say two people appeared to be dead inside an SUV parked in the driveway, according to the release. Coburn and Ryder were found dead at the scene and their bodies were taken to the Medical Examiner’s Office for autopsies.
Preliminary information from the Medical Examiner’s Office “indicated accidental carbon monoxide poisoning appeared to play a role in the victims’ deaths,” police wrote.
Police are investigating the deaths and are waiting for the results of toxicology reports, which they said could take several weeks.
Ryder’s friend and former co-worker, Jennifer MacIver, said they met a few years ago when Ryder was living in Florida and was hired to work at MacIver’s job, a pizza restaurant in Daytona Beach.
“She was amazing to work with. She was one of the hardest workers I ever met,” MacIver said in a message Tuesday. She said the two grew closer as Ryder turned to her for help following a failed relationship. Ryder moved back to Vermont with a plan to eventually relocate to Florida, MacIver said.
“She never stayed in one place too long,” MacIver said. “I don’t think she was able to really settle because she wanted to live life and do whatever she could to just be happy and keep moving and to help others.”
The last time MacIver heard from Ryder she said her friend — ever the animal lover — had recently started taking care of a few puppies and excitedly sent her pictures. “No matter how hard life got she always thought of the positive and it just made her so much stronger every time,” she added.
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Mass Poisoning
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WHO announces new expert group to investigate origins of covid-19 and other outbreaks
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Fri, November 19, 2021 The group, which includes scientists from the United States and China as well as 24 other nations, and will be formalized after a brief period of public consultation, is set to consider not only the big, unresolved question of the novel coronavirus virus - how did it first infect humans? - but also set up a framework for future outbreaks involving other pathogens so similar big questions aren't left unresolved again. "It's a real opportunity right now to get rid of all the noise, all the politics surrounding this and focus on what we know, what we don't know and what, urgently, we need to all focus our attention on," Maria Van Kerkhove, head of the WHO's emerging disease and zoonosis unit, said in an interview. Escaping that noise will prove difficult, however, especially as China has repeatedly said it considers any investigation into the origins of covid-19 on its soil completed. This new group, dubbed the Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO), will also face a politicized environment from countries in the West, including the United States. "If you believe that SAGO will answer the question, what was the origins of SARS-CoV-2, then you are sadly mistaken because there is there's little to no chance of them gaining access to information or on the ground investigation as far as China is concerned," said Lawrence Gostin, professor of global health law at the Georgetown University The renewed impetus to investigate the pandemic's origins comes more than six months after the conclusion of a joint WHO-China mission on the subject. That study, which saw a group of international scientists visit sites at the virus' known epicenter in Wuhan, China, became mired in controversy for its inconclusive results. After the scientists labeled the possibility of a leak from a laboratory in Wuhan as "very unlikely" and not worthy of further investigation, WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that the assessment on this theory was not "extensive enough" and, in unusually direct criticism of Beijing, that he expected "future collaborative studies to include more timely and comprehensive data sharing." WHO officials are adamant that the SAGO will not function as a repeat of the discredited mission to Wuhan. "It's an advisory group. We set up these advisory groups all the time," Van Kerkhove said. "It is not about the next mission." Several proposed members of the SAGO group were on the previous 10-person WHO mission to China, including Dutch virologist Marion Koopmans. Chinese scientist Yungui Yang of the Beijing Institute of Genomics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences was also a group leader for China on that mission. Chinese scientist Yungui Yang of the Beijing Institute of Genomics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences was also a group leader for China on that mission. However, the majority of SAGO names were not on the previous mission. Inger Damon, the director of the division of high consequence pathogens and pathology at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is the only American listed. SAGO membership is not yet finalized and the WHO are seeking public comment on the names released on Wednesday. "We are very pleased with the calibre of experts selected for SAGO from around the world, and look forward to working with them to make the world safer," Tedros said in a statement. Van Kerkhove said that the mission could advise the WHO and that it needs to arrange a mission to a member state. Some SAGO members, as experts in their respective fields, may also travel on that mission. "What we're hopeful of is that there will be additional missions to China and potentially elsewhere," said Van Kerkhove. More than 700 experts in their field applied for a place on the SAGO team, WHO officials said, with the scientists chosen not only for their ability but also with a nod toward diversity in gender, ethnicity and place of residence. Member states were not asked to nominate names and their preferences were not considered in the selection process. Those in the group will serve, unpaid, for two-year terms, with the possibility of having their time on body extended. The aim is for the team to meet once a week, with outside experts receiving some invites, though all meetings will be confidential. SAGO will be a permanent fixture for WHO and ready to step in when there are other, post-covid, outbreaks. "I would have loved for SAGO to have existed when MERS emerged in 2012," Van Kerkhove said, referring to the first known cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome, a disease that has killed roughly 800 people. "I think the biggest value will not be for covid at all," said Gostin. "I think the biggest value will be [for WHO to have] an expert standing committee rigorously vetted for any conflicts with a global charge to investigate novel pathogens. This will not be the last one." Even so, much of the initial work will inevitably be on following up from loose threads in the previous WHO-China mission or looking at new evidence that has emerged since. Van Kerkhove pointed to new data that had come out about SARS-like coronavirus in bats in the region and studies of the animals sold in markets in Wuhan before the outbreak. Whether China will allow more access for investigators, however, remains unclear. Pressure from Chinese officials and researchers helped lead the WHO-China mission to Wuhan helped lead to its vague and inconclusive findings. Van Kerkhove said that member states like China had been briefed on SAGO, but that the WHO had no power to force a member state to open its borders to an investigative team. "Our member states have not given us that mandate to be able to go into any country that we want. So we have to negotiate with countries," she said. "There should be no ambiguity about that."
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Organization Established
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1972 Buffalo Creek flood
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The Buffalo Creek flood was a disaster that occurred on February 26, 1972, when a coal slurry impoundment dam managed by the Pittston Coal Company and located on a hillside in Logan County, West Virginia, burst, four days after having been declared "satisfactory" by a federal mine inspector. [1]
The resulting flood unleashed approximately 132 million US gallons (500,000 cubic metres; 500 million litres) of black waste water, cresting over 30 feet (9.1 m) high, upon the residents of sixteen coal towns along Buffalo Creek Hollow. Out of a population of 5,000 people, 125 were killed, 1,121 were injured, and over 4,000 were left homeless. 507 houses were destroyed, in addition to 44 mobile homes and 30 businesses. [1] The disaster destroyed or damaged homes in Saunders, Pardee, Lorado, Craneco, Lundale, Stowe, Crites, Latrobe, Robinette, Amherstdale, Becco, Fanco, Braeholm, Accoville, Crown and Kistler. [2] In its legal filings, Pittston Coal referred to the accident as "an Act of God." Dam #3, constructed of coarse mining refuse dumped into the Middle Fork of Buffalo Creek starting in 1968, failed first, following heavy rains. The water from dam #3 then overwhelmed dams #2 and #1. Dam #3 had been built on top of coal slurry sediment that had collected behind dams #1 and #2, instead of on solid bedrock; it was approximately 260 feet (79 m) above the town of Saunders when it failed. Two commissions investigated the disaster. The first, the Governor's Ad Hoc Commission of Inquiry, appointed by Governor Arch A. Moore Jr., was made up entirely of either members sympathetic to the coal industry or government officials whose departments might have been complicit in the genesis of the flood. One of the investigators was Jack Spadaro, a man who devoted his time to regulating dam construction for safety. After then-president of the United Mine Workers Arnold Miller and others were rebuffed by Gov. Moore regarding their request that a coal miner be added to the governor's commission, a separate citizens' commission was assembled to provide an independent review of the disaster. The Governor's Commission of Inquiry report[3] called for new legislation and further inquiry by the local prosecutor. The citizens' commission report,[4] concluded that the Buffalo Creek-Pittston Coal Company was guilty of murdering at least 124 men, women and children. Additionally, the chair of the citizen's commission and Deputy Director of the West Virginia Department of Natural Resources, Norman Williams, called for the legislature to outlaw coal strip mining throughout the state. Williams testified before the legislature that strip mining could not exist as a profit-making industry unless it is allowed by the state to pass on the costs of environmental damage to the private landowner or the public. [5]
The state of West Virginia also sued the Buffalo Creek-Pittston Coal Company for $100 million (equivalent to $427 million today) in disaster and relief damages, but a smaller settlement was reached for just $1 million ($4.3 million today) with Governor Moore, three days before he left office in 1977. The lawyers for the plaintiffs, Arnold & Porter of Washington, D.C., donated a portion of their legal fees for the construction of a new community center. West Virginia has yet to build the center, though the center was promised by Governor Moore in May 1972. [6]
Gerald M. Stern, an attorney with Arnold & Porter, wrote a book entitled The Buffalo Creek Disaster about representing the victims of the flood. The book includes descriptions of his experiences dealing with the political and legal environment of West Virginia, where the influence of large coal mining corporations is intensely significant to the local culture and communities. Sociologist Kai T. Erikson, son of psychologist and sociologist Erik Erikson, was called as an expert witness and published a study on the effects of the disaster entitled Everything in Its Path: Destruction of Community in the Buffalo Creek Flood (1978). [7] Erikson's book later won the 1977 Sorokin Award, granted by the American Sociological Association for an "outstanding contribution to the progress of sociology. "[8]
Simpson-Housley and De Man (1989) found that, 17 years later, the residents of Buffalo Creek scored higher on a measure of trait anxiety in comparison to the residents of Kopperston, a nearby coal town that did not experience the flood. [9]
Dennis Prince and some 625 survivors of the flood sued the Pittston Coal Company, seeking $64 million in damages (equivalent to $335.8 million today). They settled in June 1974 for $13.5 million ($70.8 million today), or approximately $13,000 for each individual after legal costs ($68,000 today). A second suit was filed by 348 child survivors, who sought $225 million ($1.18 billion today); they settled for $4.8 million in June 1974 ($25.2 million today). [10]
Kerry Albright became known as the "miracle baby" of the disaster. Running from the leading edge of the water, his mother threw him just above the flood level moments before she drowned. He survived with few ill effects, and was reared by his father. His survival gave hope and inspiration to other survivors. [11]
Coordinates: 37°47′50″N 81°39′50″W / 37.797196°N 81.663769°W / 37.797196; -81.663769
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Floods
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An airstrike launched by the Houthi faction in Yemen on Thursday killed at least 40 people, including a senior Yemeni military commander, at a parade in the city of Aden, officials said.
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AL MUKALLA, Yemen An airstrike launched by the Houthi faction in Yemen on Thursday killed at least 40 people, including a senior Yemeni military commander, at a parade in the city of Aden, officials said.
In a separate attack in the city, a suicide bomber drove a truck full of explosives into a police station, killing at least 11 people, officials said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for that blast. At least 50 people were wounded in the two attacks in Aden, the provisional capital of the Saudi-backed forces in the country’s civil war.
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Armed Conflict
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Mussels in Port Pirie waters return 90 times the permissible amount of lead
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Sample tests on aquatic species taken from waters next to South Australian regional city Port Pirie, and its controversial lead smelter has revealed unacceptable levels of metal contamination, particularly lead, in the varied species.
Minister for Primary Industries David Basham said he was unsure whether Port Pirie fishers will ever be able to eat their catch again
The State Government announced this week a recreational fishing ban in the waters around Port Pirie would remain firmly in place after the Federal Government's National Measurement Institute made its findings.
The institute took samples from yellowfin whiting, striped trumpeters, yellow-eye mullet, Australian salmon, blue swimmer crabs, mussels and razorfish in waters south and west of Weeroona Island Boat Ramp which includes First Creek, Second Creek and Port Pirie River (Zone 1) and waters in the Port Germein area, extending north and west from Weerona Island Boat Ramp (Zone 2).
The maximum permissible level of lead in yellowfin whiting for example is 0.5 mg/kg, but the institute found 1.9 mg/kg in two out of 10 whiting taken from Zone 1 — almost four times the permissible level.
The maximum permissible level of lead in mussels is 2 mg/kg, but 180 mg/kg was detected in all of the institute's samples in Zone 1, which is 90 times the permissible amount of lead.
Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development David Basham said the ban could be removed at any time, but he did not know if fishers would be able to eat their catch again. "This is very much something that further research needs to be done — looking at what's happening, working out the particular areas which may or may not be safe in and around Port Pirie," Mr Basham said. "Further work needs to be done to actually establish what may be available for fishing and what's not available for fishing.
"So anyone who's in that area, they're unable to eat any fish they catch and they must release those fish."
Port Pirie Regional Council mayor Leon Stephens said the higher levels of lead detected were a concern.
"It's been a given that we've never taken mussels from the area, the higher levels are a concern, that's why we've asked for extra testing to be done so we can get a better picture of what it looks like overall in our region," Cr Stephens said,
"It would be terrible if we couldn't fish there again, we would have to make alternative situations on where we can get our recreational guys out to.
"It's a very frustrating part of the town's history, is there a fix? Yes there is to everything — but that's the $64 million question."
Under present restrictions, taking shellfish in the region is prohibited. In Zone 1, crab fishing is prohibited and catching finfish is strictly catch and release only.
Fishing for crabs and finfish is permitted in Zone 2, however testing on both of these species in that area has not taken place yet.
"SA Health has recommended additional sampling of finfish and crustaceans in Zone 2, which will guide future health advice about fishing restrictions," Mr Basham said.
"It's there for the safety of the people to protect them from consuming the fish. "All consumers can continue to have confidence in our quality seafood product as commercial fishing does not occur in this region and our commercial fisheries are supported by an ongoing program of National Residue Survey testing."
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Environment Pollution
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Two die in Ogun hotel gas explosion
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The hotel management said the explosion occurred as a result of a fake gas cylinder used while servicing a revolving door at the hotel
May 18, 2021
1 min read
A technician and a yet-to-be-identified person have been confirmed dead as gas explosion rocked Conference Hotel in Abeokuta on Tuesday.
The hotel, located at the Water Corporation headquarters junction, in Ogun capital, is owned by a former governor of the state, Gbenga Daniel.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that three others were said to have sustained injuries in the explosion and are currently receiving treatment in a hospital.
Confirming the incident, the Hotel Facility Manager, Tunde Osinubi, in a statement, said the explosion occurred as a result of a fake gas cylinder used while servicing a revolving door at the hotel.
“A routine maintenance of the Automatic Revolving Door at the entrance of the hotel reception, which involved the use of oxyacetylene gas to weld the door hinges, was being carried out.
“The oxyacetylene gas cylinder suddenly exploded, killing the technician and one other person, yet to be identified.
ALSO READ: Infant, two others die in gas explosion
“The gas cylinder, purchased at the open market, may be fake and unable to withstand gas pressure,” he said.
Mr Osinubi, however, expressed the sympathy of the hotel management with families and friends of the deceased, advising the general public to beware of fake gas cylinders in the market.
NAN reports that two cases of gas explosion had earlier occurred in Abeokuta within the last one week, resulting in the death of four persons, including a minor. (NAN)
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Gas explosion
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Panic of 1901
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The Panic of 1901 was the first stock market crash on the New York Stock Exchange, caused in part by struggles between E. H. Harriman, Jacob Schiff, and J. P. Morgan/James J. Hill for the financial control of the Northern Pacific Railway. The stock cornering was orchestrated by James Stillman and William Rockefeller's First National City Bank financed with Standard Oil money. After reaching a compromise, the moguls formed the Northern Securities Company. As a result of the panic, thousands of small investors were ruined. [1]
One of the key players in this was Harriman, who "by 1898…was chairman of the executive committee of the Union Pacific and he ruled without dissent. But he speculated heavily with Union Pacific holdings, and his attempt to monopolize the Chicago rail market led to the Panic of 1901. "[2] Harriman's opponent in the struggle for Northern Pacific was James J. Hill, who had allied himself with financier J.P. Morgan. [3]
One of the causes of this stock market crash was Harriman's effort to gain control of Northern Pacific by
buying up its stock. The panic began when the market crashed during the afternoon of May 8. [4] Investors did not see it coming, but by 1:00 pm, the decline in the market was beginning to show. First came the gradual decline in Burlington stock. It had been high all morning, but suddenly a sharp weakness came about. Prices of stocks such as St. Paul, Missouri Pacific, and Union Pacific began to fall. Soon enough, the whole market was drowning. Investors who had once held on tightly to their stocks were selling out of panic. Others caught on and an overwhelming cry of "Sell! Sell! Sell!" was heard throughout the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. [5] During the selling, a rumor spread among traders that Arthur Housman, broker for J.P. Morgan, had died. Housman, the head of A.A. Housman & Company, was brought to the floor of the New York Stock Exchange to assure traders that J.P. Morgan was still doing business. [6]
Affected stocks included St. Paul, Union Pacific, Missouri Pacific, Amalgamated Copper, Sugar, Atchison, and United States Steel. However, not all stocks finished the day out on a rough note. Northern Pacific not only avoided a decline, but saw a net advance of 16+1⁄2 points. As a result of this crash, Harriman and Hill joined forces to form a holding company, the Northern Securities Company, to control the Northern Pacific, the Great Northern, and the Burlington. [Wolff 2003] This company was shortly shut down under the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890[7] (see Northern Securities Co. v. United States).
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Financial Crisis
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Hope turns to anguish after Brazil dam collapse; 40 dead
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Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Legal Statement. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. A car lies covered in debris after a dam collapse near Brumadinho, Brazil, Saturday, Jan. 26, 2019. (Associated Press) BRUMADINHO, Brazil – Hope that loved ones had survived a tsunami of iron ore mine waste from a dam collapse in Brazil was turning to anguish and anger over the increasing likelihood that many of the hundreds of people missing had died. By Saturday night, when authorities called off rescue efforts until daybreak, the death toll stood at 40 dead with up to 300 people estimated to be missing. Throughout the day, helicopters flew low over areas buried by mud and firefighters worked to get to structures by digging. "I'm angry. There is no way I can stay calm," said Sonia Fatima da Silva, as she tried to get information about her son, who had worked at Vale mining company for 20 years. "My hope is that they be honest. I want news, even if it's bad." Da Silva said she last spoke to her son before he went to work on Friday, when around midday a dam holding back mine waste collapsed, sending waves of mud for kilometers (miles) and burying much in its path. Employees of the mining complex owned and operated by Brazilian mining company Vale were eating lunch Friday afternoon when the dam gave way. A couple with missing relatives look at the flooded area, after a dam collapsed in Brumadinho, Brazil, Saturday, Jan. 26, 2019. (Associated Press) Throughout Saturday, scores of families in the city of Brumadinho desperately awaited word on their loved ones as Romeu Zema, governor of Minas Gerais state, said that at this point most recovery efforts would entail pulling out bodies. The flow of waste reached the nearby community of Vila Ferteco and an occupied Vale administrative office. On Saturday, rooftops poked above an extensive field of the mud, which also cut off roads. After the dam collapse, some were evacuated from Brumadinho. Other residents of the affected areas barely escaped with their lives. "I saw all the mud coming down the hill, snapping the trees as it descended. It was a tremendous noise," said a tearful Simone Pedrosa, from the neighborhood of Parque Cachoeira, about 5 miles (8 kilometers) from where the dam collapsed. "I saw all the mud coming down the hill, snapping the trees as it descended. It was a tremendous noise. I cannot get that noise out of my head. It's a trauma ... I'll never forget." Pedrosa, 45, and her parents dashed to their car and drove to the highest point in the neighborhood. "If we had gone down the other direction, we would have died," Pedrosa said. "I cannot get that noise out of my head," she said. "It's a trauma ... I'll never forget." TWO AMERICAN WOMEN, CHILEAN MAN FOUND DEAD, APPARENT VICTIMS OF DROWNING IN CHILE PARK In addition to the 40 bodies recovered as of Saturday night, 23 people were hospitalized, said authorities with the Minas Gerais fire department. There had been some signs of hope earlier Saturday when authorities found 43 more people alive. The company said in a statement Saturday that while 100 workers were accounted for, more than 200 workers were still missing. Fire officials at one point estimated the total number at close to 300. Vale CEO Fabio Schvartsman said he did not know what caused the collapse. About 300 employees were working when it happened. The mud covers the backyard of a house after a dam collapse near Brumadinho, Brazil, Saturday, Jan. 26, 2019.(Associated Press) For many, hope was evaporating. "I don't think he is alive," said Joao Bosco, speaking of his cousin, Jorge Luis Ferreira, who worked for Vale. "Right now, I can only hope for a miracle of God." Vanilza Sueli Oliveira described the wait for news of her nephew as "distressing, maddening." "Time is passing," she said. "It's been 24 hours already. ... I just don't want to think that he is under the mud." AMERICAN MISSIONARY IN BRAZIL ACCUSED OF EXPOSING AMAZON TRIBE TO 'RISK OF DEATH' The rivers of mining waste also raised fears of widespread contamination. According to Vale's website, the waste, often called tailings, is composed mostly of sand and is non-toxic. However, a U.N. report found that the waste from a similar disaster in 2015 "contained high levels of toxic heavy metals." Over the weekend, state courts and the justice ministry in the state of Minas Gerais ordered the freezing of about $1.5 billion from Vale assets for state emergency services and told the company to present a report about how they would help victims. Brazil's Attorney General Raquel Dodge promised to investigate, saying "someone is definitely at fault." Dodge noted there are 600 mines in the state of Minas Gerais alone that are classified as being at risk of rupture. An aerial view shows a partially destroyed house after a dam collapsed, in Brumadinho, Brazil, Saturday, Jan. 26, 2019. (Associated Press) Another dam administered by Vale and Australian mining company BHP Billiton collapsed in 2015 in the city of Mariana in the same state of Minas Gerais, resulting in 19 deaths and forcing hundreds from their homes. Considered the worst environmental disaster in Brazilian history, it left 250,000 people without drinking water and killed thousands of fish. An estimated 60 million cubic meters of waste flooded rivers and eventually flowed into the Atlantic Ocean. Schvartsman said what happened Friday was "a human tragedy much larger than the tragedy of Mariana, but probably the environmental damage will be less." Sueli de Oliveira Costa, who hadn't heard from her husband since Friday, had harsh words for the mining company. "Vale destroyed Mariana and now they've destroyed Brumadinho," she said. Daily Folha de S.Paulo reported Saturday that the dam's mining complex was issued an expedited license to expand in December due to "decreased risk." Preservation groups in the area alleged that the approval was unlawful. On Twitter, President Jair Bolsonaro said his government would do everything it could to "prevent more tragedies" like Mariana and now Brumadinho. The far-right leader campaigned on promises to jump-start Brazil's economy, in part by deregulating mining and other industries. Environmental groups and activists said the latest spill underscored a lack of regulation, and many promised to fight any further deregulation. Da Silva summed up what many felt by saying the accident was clearly "negligence." "This could have been avoided if the company had taken the necessary precautions after the tragedy of Mariana three years ago," she said. Peter Prengaman reported from Arraial do Cabo, Brazil.
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Mine Collapses
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Covid-19: South Africa records 2,783 new cases and 155 deaths
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The Health Department says it has recorded 2,783 infections in the last 24 hours pushing the country's known caseload to 2,892,081. Gauteng province has recorded 303 new cases in the last reporting cycle. 155 more people have died after contracting the coronavirus bringing the national death toll to 86,655 since the beginning of the pandemic. RELATED: SA COVID-19 fatalities stand at 86, 500 as 124 people succumb to virus The cumulative recoveries now stand at 2, 753, 334 representing a recovery rate of 95,2%. The total number of vaccines administered is 16,755,133 since the beginning of the vaccine rollout. A s of today the cumulative number of #COVID19 cases identified in SA is 2 892 081 with 2 783 new cases reported. Today 155 deaths have been reported bringing the total to 86 655 deaths. The cumulative number of recoveries now stand at 2 753 334 with a recovery rate of 95,2% pic.twitter.com/okul6BQ9e2
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Disease Outbreaks
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Middleton was killed when the Stirling, BF372 OJ-H, crashed into the English Channel
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Royal Air Force Lakenheath or RAF Lakenheath (IATA: LKZ, ICAO: EGUL) is a Royal Air Force station near the village of Lakenheath in Suffolk, England, UK, 4.7 miles (7.6 km) north-east of Mildenhall and 8.3 miles (13.4 km) west of Thetford. The base also sits close to Brandon. Despite being an RAF station, Lakenheath currently only hosts United States Air Force units and personnel. The host wing is the 48th Fighter Wing (48 FW), also known as the Liberty Wing, assigned to United States Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA). The first use of Lakenheath Warren as a Royal Flying Corps airfield was during the First World War, when the area was made into a bombing and ground-attack range for aircraft flying from elsewhere in the area. It appears to have been little used, and was abandoned when peace came in 1918. In 1940, the Air Ministry selected Lakenheath as an alternative for nearby RAF Mildenhall and used it as a decoy airfield. False lights, runways and aircraft diverted Luftwaffe attacks from Mildenhall. [citation needed]
Surfaced runways were constructed in 1941, with the main runway (04/22) being 2,000 yards (1,800 m), and the subsidiaries at 1,300 yards (1,200 m) (12/30) and 1,400 yards (1,300 m) (16/34). Another 100 yards (91 m) was added to runway 16/34. Hardstands for thirty-six aircraft were built, along with two T-2 and a B-1 hangar. One T-2 was on the technical site, the other hangars to the east across the Mildenhall-Brandon road (A1065) were reached by taxiways. [citation needed]
Lakenheath was used by RAF flying units on detachment late in 1941. The station soon functioned as a Mildenhall satellite with Short Stirling bombers of No. 149 Squadron dispersed from the parent airfield as conditions allowed. The squadron exchanged its Vickers Wellingtons for Stirlings late in November 1941. After becoming fully operational with its new aircraft, the squadron moved into Lakenheath on 6 April 1942 and remained until mid 1944 when the squadron moved to RAF Methwold in Norfolk. [2]
Taking part in more than 350 operations, more than half mine-laying, No. 149 Squadron had one of the lowest percentage loss rates of all Stirling squadrons. [citation needed] One Stirling pilot, Flight Sergeant Rawdon Middleton, was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for valour on the night of 28–29 November 1942, when despite serious face wounds and loss of blood from shell-fire during a raid on the Fiat works at Turin in Italy, he brought the damaged aircraft back towards southern England. With fuel nearly exhausted his crew were ordered to bail out. [3] Middleton was killed when the Stirling, BF372 OJ-H, crashed into the English Channel. [citation needed]
In early 1943, three T-2 hangars were erected on the north side of the airfield for glider storage, forty Horsa Gliders being dispersed at Lakenheath during that year. [citation needed]
On 21 June 1943, No. 199 Squadron was established as a second Stirling squadron. [4] Commencing operations on 31 July, it laid mines during the winter of 1943–44. [citation needed] At the end of April 1944, after sixty-eight operations,[citation needed] the squadron transferred to No. 100 Group for bomber support,[citation needed] moving to RAF North Creake in Norfolk on 1 May 1944. [5]
No. 149 Squadron ended its association with RAF Lakenheath the same month, taking its Stirlings to RAF Methwold. [2] Between them, the two squadrons lost 116 Stirling bombers in combat while flying from Lakenheath. [citation needed]
The reason for the departure of the two bomber squadrons was Lakenheath's selection for upgrading to a Very Heavy Bomber airfield. Lakenheath was one of three RAF airfields being prepared to receive United States Army Air Forces Boeing B-29 Superfortresses, which were tentatively planned to replace some of Eighth Air Force's Third Air Division Consolidated B-24 Liberator groups in the spring of 1945. The work entailed removal of the existing runways and laying new ones comprising 12 inches (30 cm) of high-grade concrete. The main runway (07/25) was 3,000 yards (2,700 m) long; the subsidiaries, 01/19 and 14/32, both 2,000 yards (1,800 m); all three being 100 yards (91 m) wide. Part of the A1065 road between Brandon and Mildenhall was closed, and a new section built further to the east on the Warren. During the peak period of construction, over 1,000 men were working on the site; yet instead of the 12 months planned, it took 18 months for the ground work alone and 2+1⁄2 years before Lakenheath's transformation was complete. The cost was nearly £2 million. By the time construction ended the war with Germany was over and RAF Lakenheath was put on a care and maintenance status. Cold War tensions with the Soviet Union in Europe began as early as 1946. In November, President Harry S. Truman ordered Strategic Air Command (SAC) B-29 bombers to RAF Burtonwood in Lancashire, and from there to various bases in West Germany as a "training deployment". In May 1947, additional B-29s were sent to the UK and Germany to keep up the presence of a training program. These deployments were only a pretense, as the true aim of these B-29s was to have a strategic air force permanently stationed in Europe. In April 1947, RAF Bomber Command returned to Lakenheath and had the runways repaired, resurfaced, and readied for operations by May 1948. In response to the threat by the Soviet Union, by the 1948 Berlin blockade, President Truman decided to realign United States Air Force Europe (USAFE) into a permanent combat-capable force. In July, B-29 Superfortresses of the SAC 2nd Bombardment Group were deployed to Lakenheath for a 90-day temporary deployment. On 27 November 1948, operational control of RAF Lakenheath was transferred from the Royal Air Force to USAFE. The first USAFE host unit at Lakenheath was the 7504th Base Completion Squadron, being activated on that date. The squadron was elevated to an Air Base Group (ABG) on 28 January 1950, and to a Wing (ABW) on 26 September 1950. Control of Lakenheath was allocated to the Third Air Force at RAF South Ruislip, which had command of SAC B-29 operations in England.
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Air crash
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Bank robbers may be caught red-handed
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The men pinned a cleaner to the ground when they broke into the Bendigo Bank branch at Virginia on Adelaide's northern outskirts on Tuesday night. They say the cleaner had been washing windows at the branch in Old Port Wakefield Road about 10:30pm (ACDT) when the men approached him. After their attack they fled with a backpack filled with cash. Police say a red dye bomb in the cash went off. They say the men may find the dye will remain on their skin for up to six months. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work.
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Bank Robbery
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1966 Varto earthquake
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The 1966 Varto earthquake occurred on 19 August with a moment magnitude of 6.8 a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). At least 2,394 were killed and up to 1,500 people were injured in the town of Varto in the Muş Province of eastern Turkey. The earthquake devastated all the structures in Varto. [3][4] This disaster was preceded by an earthquake of magnitude 5.6 that hit Varto on 7 March 1966 killing 14 and wounding 75 people. [5]
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Earthquakes
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Group of Miners Trapped Inside 'Rat Hole' Coal Mine for Fifth Day
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Search and rescue efforts continue for a group of miners trapped for five days in a coal mine in the Indian state of Meghalaya. Eyewitnesses said the illegal coal mine was quickly flooded after a sudden dynamite explosion in Meghalaya's East Jaintia Hills District on May 30, NDTV reports. The heavy rainfall has hindered rescue efforts inside the coal mine, known as a "rat hole" because of the narrow crevices through which coal is extracted. According to the BBC, "rat hole" mining was banned in 2014 but is still widely practiced across the East Jaintia Hills area. The district's Deputy Commissioner, E. Kharmalki, told The Hindu that local police needed to request help from the National Disaster Response Force. "We have requisitioned a crane the miners were using for the rescue personnel to descend into the pit," Kharmalki said. "We have also placed pumps to drain out the water from the mine, but the weather is playing spoilsport." Meghalayan authorities have ordered an inquiry into the mining accident. "We have constituted a magisterial inquiry into the matter and the report is awaited," Home Minister Lahkmen Rymbui told NDTV. "Search and rescue operation teams from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), fire brigade and police are presently stationed at the coal mine which is located under Umpleng AD Camp in Sutnga." "However," he added, "they cannot do anything but wait since the water level is high due to heavy rain. They will take a call on what needs to be done and what is the next step." Rymbui told The Hindu that the mine was abandoned. The former owner of the mine was taken into police custody for questioning, but tested positive for COVID-19 before he could be interrogated. Authorities do not know if he still owns the mine or sold it to someone else. Jagpal Singh Dhanoa, the Superintendent of Police of the East Jaintia Hill district, blamed the Sordar (the manager of laborers) Nizam Ali for the incident, telling The Indian Express that Ali allegedly "did nothing to rescue the trapped laborers" and instead "threatened the survivors with dire consequences and chased them away from the mining site." Dhanoa said there are at least six or seven survivors and at least five people stuck in the mine. Three of the trapped miners have been identified as Abdul Karim, Abdul Kalam and Shyamcharan Debbarma. In January, six people from Assam's Karimganj district were killed while working inside a coal mine in East Jaintia Hills. There was an investigation into the alleged crane accident to determine if there was an attempt to mine coal illegally at the abandoned location, the India Express reports. In 2018, 15 miners died inside the rat hole mines. The exact number of these types of mines is unknown. The state government has come under attack from opposition leaders about the regulation of the mines. Former Minister and Congress MLA Ampareen Lyngdoh told The Hindu that "the people need to know who profits from" the illegal mines and "how the laborers managed to come to Meghalaya despite the COVID-19 restrictions."
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Mine Collapses
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Aukus: UK, US and Australia launch pact to counter China
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The UK, US and Australia have announced a historic security pact in the Asia-Pacific, in what's seen as an effort to counter China.
It will let Australia build nuclear-powered submarines for the first time, using technology provided by the US.
The Aukus pact, which will also cover AI and other technologies, is one of the countries' biggest defence partnerships in decades, analysts say.
China has condemned the agreement as "extremely irresponsible".
Foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said it "seriously undermines regional peace and stability and intensifies the arms race".
China's embassy in Washington accused the countries of a "Cold War mentality and ideological prejudice".
The pact also created a row with France, which has now lost a deal with Australia to build 12 submarines.
"It's really a stab in the back," France's Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told France Info radio. The new partnership was announced in a joint virtual press conference between US President Joe Biden, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison on Wednesday.
And while China was not mentioned directly, the three leaders referred repeatedly to regional security concerns which they said had "grown significantly".
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Speaking to the BBC, UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said China was "embarking on one of the biggest military spends in history".
"It is growing its navy [and] air force at a huge rate. Obviously it is engaged in some disputed areas," he said. "Our partners in those regions want to be able to stand their own ground."
In recent years, Beijing has been accused of raising tensions in disputed territories such as the South China Sea.
On Thursday, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the pact would "preserve security and stability around the world" and generate "hundreds of high-skilled jobs".
He also said the relationship with France was "rock solid".
The Aukus alliance is probably the most significant security arrangement between the three nations since World War Two, analysts say.
The pact will focus on military capability, separating it from the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing alliance which also includes New Zealand and Canada.
While Australia's submarines is the big-ticket item, Aukus will also involve the sharing of cyber capabilities and other undersea technologies.
"This is an historic opportunity for the three nations, with like-minded allies and partners, to protect shared values and promote security and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region," the joint statement read.
"This really shows that all three nations are drawing a line in the sand to start and counter [China's] aggressive moves in the Indo-Pacific," said Guy Boekenstein from the Asia Society Australia.
Western nations have been wary of China's infrastructure investment on Pacific islands, and have also criticised China's trade sanctions against countries like Australia.
Australia had in the past maintained good relations with China, its biggest trading partner. But the relationship has broken down in recent years amid political tensions.
But there is tension now too with France, after Australia tore up the A$50bn (€31bn; £27bn) deal to build 12 submarines. "We had established a relationship of trust with Australia, this trust has been betrayed," Mr Le Drian said.
These submarines are much faster and harder to detect than conventionally powered fleets. They can stay submerged for months, shoot missiles longer distances and also carry more.
Having them stationed in Australia is critical to US influence in the region, analysts say.
The US is sharing its submarine technology for the first time in 50 years. It had previously only shared technology with the UK. Australia will become just the seventh nation in the world to operate nuclear-powered submarines, after the US, UK, France, China, India and Russia.
Australia has reaffirmed it has no intention of obtaining nuclear weapons.
Meanwhile New Zealand said it would ban Australia's submarines from its waters, in line with an existing policy on the presence of nuclear-powered submarines.
New Zealand, although a Five Eyes member, has been more cautious in aligning with either the US or China in the Pacific.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said her nation had not been approached to join the pact.
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Sign Agreement
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The Biden Administration Needs to Act Fast to Reset Relations with France
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Major White House national security announcements rarely (if ever?) mimic plot lines from romantic comedies. But the announcement of a new security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States (shortened to “AUKUS”) that will, among other things, equip Australia with advanced nuclear-powered submarines — which resulted in the termination of an existing $66 billion submarine deal Australia had with France — created a fallout worthy of any rom-com. France, left at the altar by Australia, and betrayed by its wedding party, is now looking to get even. France recalled its ambassador from Washington for consultations — and there’s nothing funny about how ugly things can get unless the Biden administration takes concrete steps to repair ties with Paris. The announcement of the submarine deal — made by President Joe Biden, U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison in a joint, virtual speech — completely blindsided France. Officials in the French government and national security community thought it had entered a lasting, decades-long partnership with Australia when they signed an agreement in 2016 to buy 12 diesel-electric submarines. It was France’s largest arms sales in history and was central to its Indo-Pacific strategy. Just two weeks ago, France and Australian foreign and defense ministers met and agreed on “the importance of the Future Submarine program.” Shockingly, Australia failed to tell France before the White House announcement that it was canceling the deal. As a result, France learned of the agreement like the rest of us, from the press. Even more galling for France is that three Anglo-allies spent months collaborating yet deliberately kept France in the dark. France says top U.S. and Australian officials deceived them in one-on-one meetings throughout the summer. French Foreign Ministry Jean-Yves Le Drian called it a “stab in the back.”
For Washington, French outrage has taken some of the shine off of what the White House rightly sees as a massive accomplishment. The submarine agreement with Australia and the United Kingdom is a legacy achievement for the Biden administration. It solidifies America’s China strategy and cements U.S. relations with Australia, a key U.S. ally that has fought alongside American troops in every major military engagement since World War I. Australia has been subject to brutal economic and political coercion from Beijing in the last several years, and the new Australia-U.K.-U.S. deal is a key signal that Washington will help Canberra defend its vital security interests. As a result, the White House might be tempted to say all’s fair in love and arms sales, and dismiss French complaints as a mere tantrum that will pass. But the United States now has a huge problem. Franco-American relations are in danger of entering a costly downward spiral, not seen since the fallout from France’s opposition to the U.S. invasion of Iraq. Yet, this dispute could become way more damaging to U.S. interests, given the depth of France’s sense that America betrayed its confidence, France’s role in NATO and the European Union, and the growing importance of U.S.-E.U. cooperation on a host of important geopolitical issues, such as climate, trade, and technology regulation. France is not going to allow this to simply blow over. The Biden administration needs to act fast to try to reset relations with Paris. In the short term, Washington should invite French President Emmanuel Macron to Washington with the expressed purpose of building a new Franco-American partnership. As part of the outreach, and the key enticement for France, the Biden administration should agree to support one of Macron’s top foreign policy priorities: the development of E.U. defense capabilities. This would represent a major change in U.S. foreign policy toward Europe, which has long opposed the development of E.U. defense efforts due to fears that it would undermine NATO and America’s role in Europe. Revamping America’s approach to Europe is not what the Biden administration had in mind when announcing an enhanced security partnership with Australia and the United Kingdom. But, to prevent a drastic deterioration in the trans-Atlantic alliance, it’s what is now demanded. This Is Bad and it Could Get Much Worse
France is unlikely to compartmentalize or silo its outrage. France, like the United States, is a proud republican nation with global ambitions and an outlook that is prickly slighted. Paris has already pulled its ambassadors to the United States and Australia, cancelled a Washington gala, and more substantively said it was unlikely to support continuing E.U. trade talks with Australia. It will continue to make itself heard. French efforts to voice its displeasure with the United States will go beyond symbolic gestures. This is not to say France will just lash out. But France will have little interest in making compromises or seeking common ground with Washington on issues about which it does not care or on which it differs. This could have real blowback at NATO and its once-a-decade efforts to develop a new “strategic concept” for the alliance, which is not a major French preoccupation. France could also seek to find daylight with the United States on China and the Indo-Pacific or could up its engagement with Russia, undermining U.S. efforts to forge trans-Atlantic unity. While reaching out to Russia has at times alienated its E.U. allies in Central and Eastern Europe, France has a history of holding out hope that engagement with Russia might moderate Moscow’s belligerent approach to Europe. But U.S. officials should also appreciate that the submarine fallout may affect technology, trade, and even climate issues. While France can’t determine or dictate outcomes at the European Union on its own, it can certainly block agreements, push Brussels to take a harder line on trade and regulatory disputes with the United States, reduce the E.U. Commission’s negotiating leeway, and make the European Union a less flexible negotiating partner. For instance, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen travelled to Europe in July and pressed the European Union to drop or postpone their efforts to impose digital taxes on big U.S. technology companies so as not to upset talks at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development on a global corporate minimum tax, a major Biden administration priority. The European Union agreed to hold off until October, causing some political blowback in the European Parliament. Perhaps France will push the European Union to go forward with its digital tax proposal or will escalate its own unilateral efforts on digital taxes and dare the United States to retaliate. The bilateral diplomatic crisis will overshadow the much anticipated U.S.-E.U. Trade and Technology Council, which will meet in Pittsburgh in late September. The talks are critical to aligning the United States and European Union on key issues central to competition with China, such as 5G technology, digital regulation, and preventing Chinese acquisition of sensitive technologies, especially related to AI. Making progress in harmonizing trans-Atlantic approaches in areas of domestic regulation was always going to be difficult — France, if it chooses, has the power to make it almost impossible. Additionally, the United States and European Union will need to work together to reconcile their climate and trade policies, such as over the European Union’s creation of a tax on carbon-intensive imports. This will require careful negotiations with both sides showing some flexibility. In short, France has a lot of ways to make itself heard. Without a significant U.S. effort to repair ties with France, there is a very real danger that the current crisis will have debilitating long-term damage not just for bilateral cooperation but for the trans-Atlantic alliance as a whole. America’s inept handling of the Australian submarine agreement undermined Atlanticists in the French security establishment, especially those that have worked for years to make the case that France should work with the United States in addressing concerns about China and Indo-Pacific security. That the United States humiliated France in such a brazen way has discredited those views completely. Instead, the episode will empower stakeholders in Paris who advocate for a much cooler relationship with Washington and — tapping into the Gaullist foreign policy tradition — wish to be allied with the United States, but not necessarily aligned on key issues related to Russia and China. If these arguments win out, France can stall progress and upend trans-Atlantic cooperation. This will exasperate American officials and bureaucrats and activate anti-French sentiment lurking in the U.S. government. The mutual suspicion that is already present within some elements of the bureaucracies of both governments will get worse. Frustrated and impatient, U.S. officials will throw up their hands, decry the inability to get things done, and further reduce their engagement with Europe — because why bother? Hence, a trans-Atlantic alliance badly in need of renewal after a rough four years of the Trump administration will instead wither further. France Is a Serious Security Actor Around the World
Washington needs to work hard to get Franco-American relations back on track. While, in the past, the Washington security policy community might have dismissed French concerns, France’s position within the European Union, a market equivalent in size to the United States and China, gives it considerable clout and leverage. With Angela Merkel leaving the European stage after 16 years in office, and a new German government likely to prioritize establishing strong Franco-German relations over ties with Washington, Macron’s role will only become more important in Europe. France has also emerged as a critical military partner for the United States over the last decade. After Brexit, France has by far the most capable military within the European Union. It spends 2 percent of its gross domestic product on defense and is willing to project military force to defend its interests. France has taken the lead in the Sahel, intervening in 2013 to stop the Malian government from falling to Islamist extremists. It continues to maintain thousands of forces in the region. Olivier-Rémy Bel of the French Ministry of Defense explained that the “limited but critical, and largely non-combatant, support” the United States provides in the form of air-refueling and drone surveillance “increases many times over the abilities of the French, European, and African forces fighting on the ground and shouldering most of the burden.” This summer, France and the United States signed a roadmap to increase special forces cooperation for counter-terrorism operations. On the same day France found out about the new partnership between Canberra, London, and Washington, it announced that French forces had killed the top Islamic State leader in Africa, who the United States held responsible for the deaths of four U.S. soldiers and at least six Nigerien soldiers in Niger. Macron noted that France would continue the fight against terrorism in the Sahel “with our African, European and American partners.”
France is also a key player in the Indo-Pacific. French Polynesia in the South Pacific is a French overseas collectivity (collectivité d’outre-mer) — an administrative division of France somewhat similar to a protectorate — giving France the second largest exclusive economic zone in the world. France has 7,000 permanently deployed forces in the region and a powerful capable navy that also features nuclear-attack submarines. France conducts freedom of navigation operations in the South China Sea and in the Taiwan strait. In April, it hosted joint naval exercises with the United States, Australia, Japan, and India in the Bay of Bengal. France has a strong military relationship with India. It is providing India with 36 advanced Rafale fighter jets, which will significantly modernize India’s fighter fleet. All of this — as well as the European Union’s increased focus on the Indo-Pacific and its crucial role in setting standards on trade, technology, and supply chain issues — makes mending ties with France essential to U.S. strategy in the Indo-Pacific. Washington may legitimately protest that it is not to blame for Australia’s cancellation of the submarine program with France. This was an Australian decision and it was up to Canberra to let Paris know about the cancellation. However, the fundamental source of France’s outrage is the way in which American officials engaged in secret diplomacy — and apparently misled Paris in high level meetings — on an issue of significant strategic and industrial importance. As a result, the Biden administration, and the president himself, is going to need a concerted effort to convince France that it is truly a valued partner of the United States. This will require more than a few words of praise from Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Setting up an apologetic phone call is not going to cut it. Instead, the administration will need to take some bold steps. What Washington Should Do Now
The White House should begin repairing ties with France by inviting Macron to Washington for a state visit. While German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited in July and U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is visiting next week, Macron has not yet been invited to Washington during the Biden administration. Washington should make clear that the purpose of the visit isn’t just to soothe bruised egos. Instead, it should be about resetting relations, with the vision of building a new Franco-American partnership. The goal of the visit should be to reverse the broad mistrust between the U.S. and French national security bureaucracies and to lay the groundwork for more intensive cooperation. France, as noted, is already a close U.S. military partner, but the diplomatic, military, and intelligence relationship could certainly be deepened. The United States and France could agree to set up more structured dialogues and engagements, such as regular political-military talks. These occur regularly with the United Kingdom but are much more intermittent with France. The goal should be to build trust through these engagements, laying the groundwork for deeper defense and security cooperation, in particular in relation to the Indo-Pacific, the Sahel, and defense sales. But by far the biggest step the Biden administration can take is to back E.U. defense efforts. During Macron’s visit, Biden should give clear and strong remarks of U.S. support. The United States and France should release a joint statement that outlines the principles and objectives of E.U. defense. And the United States should commit to using its considerable diplomatic clout in Europe to support the development of E.U. defense. This would go a long way toward mending relations. Developing E.U. defense is perhaps Macron’s top geopolitical priority. It is so important to Macron that he is convening a major summit on E.U. defense just prior to the French presidential elections next year. This will likely be the focal point of the French presidency of the European Union, and Macron will be desperate for it to be a success. But for Macron’s E.U. defense ambitions to materialize, he needs U.S. support. Other E.U. members, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe, simply will not support E.U. defense efforts if the United States is not on board. Countries that face an existential threat from Russia (e.g., Poland and the Baltic states) need to be assured that E.U. defense initiatives won’t lead the United States to become less engaged in Europe or NATO. The United States has also long urged European governments to increase their defense spending, but has opposed E.U. defense on the grounds that it would detract from NATO. The United States has used its influence to press E.U.
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Diplomatic Visit
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Discoveries at Stonehenge highlight controversial new tunnel's threat to heritage
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The new tunnel will remove any vehicles from the view of visitors to Stonehenge © Lison Zhao Archaeologists excavating at Stonehenge have uncovered prehistoric human remains and ancient artefacts during a recent investigation at the iconic site. The findings have added fuel to the controversy surrounding a new tunnel nearby, that could, it now appears, disturb a whole landscape of archaeology. Among the discoveries, the excavation team found burnt flint, grooved pottery, deer antlers, and burials. One grave contained a child’s ear bones and a pot, another a woman, who died in her 20s or 30s and was buried with a unique shale object that may have been part of a club. A C-shaped enclosure has also been uncovered. These finds, which date from the late Neolithic and Bronze Age, emerged from 1,777 test pits and 440 trenches, sunk around 2km to the east and west of Stonehenge itself, within the wider World Heritage Site and beyond. Since being unearthed, the artefacts have been moved into storage in Salisbury, but will eventually be exhibited in the local museum. “We’ve found a lot—evidence about the people who lived in this landscape over millennia, traces of people’s everyday lives and deaths, intimate things,” Matt Leivers, an archaeologist at Wessex Archaeology, told The Guardian. One of the newly discovered burial sites © Wessex Archaeology The excavations were conducted in preparation for a controversial new tunnel that will have an irreversible impact on the site. The A303 road, which currently runs close to Stonehenge, will in future enter a 3km long dual-carriageway tunnel that passes through part of the ancient site, removing any vehicles from the view of visitors. Historic England has voiced support for the project, arguing that it will “reunite the landscape” disrupted by the current road. However, a report by The Planning Inspectorate, from January 2020, recommended that consent for the project be withheld, and Unesco has expressed concerns, stating that the tunnel and roads, “would impact adversely the OUV [Outstanding Universal Value] of the property.” David Bullock, the A303 project manager at Highways England, says: “The route itself has been designed to ensure there are no direct impacts on scheduled monuments and the amount of archaeological survey and mitigation work is unprecedented because the surveys are over and above what would have usually been done at this stage of a highway project." The government gave approval for the tunnel project in November 2020, leading the campaign group Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site to launch a legal challenge against the decision. Then, in December, protesters gathered at Stonehenge in a “mass trespass,” bringing attention to their opposition and causing English Heritage to temporarily close the site to visitors. Those opposed to the project fear that it will damage the ancient landscape, which, as these new excavations have shown, is far more than just the standing stones. In a Tweet about the discoveries, The Stonehenge Alliance writes that the artefacts “reveal the richness and fragility of the whole landscape.” Excavations in preparation for the tunnel are set to continue in late spring, and will last for 18 months.
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New archeological discoveries
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Greenfield woman dies in a car crash near Soledad
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KING CITY, Calif. (KION) UPDATE 8:31 p.m. Sept 23, 2021 -- A Toyota Tundra was driving northbound on the 101 Highway near Arroyo Seco Road going at the state speed limit of 70-75 miles per hour. Both the driver and passenger were Greenfield residents. According to California Highway Patrol, the driver made an unsafe turn that made the car spin clockwise sending the car off the road, crashing through a wired fence into an agricultural field. The 18-year old passenger died as a result of the crash. The 29-year-old driver survived, but suffered injuries to her left arm and neck. CHP said they don't think drugs or alcohol were a contributing fact to the collision. ORIGINAL STORY: A woman died in a fatal crash near Soledad on the 101 North Highway off of Arroyo Seco Road. California Highway Patrol in King City is on the scene currently investigating. According to the CHP, the vehicle rolled over and there was another person inside but their condition is currently unknown.
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Road Crash
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2005 Lake Tanganyika earthquake
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The 2005 Lake Tanganyika earthquake occurred at 14:19:56 local time on 5 December with a moment magnitude of 6.8 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme). The shock occurred along the East African Rift, an active continental rift zone in East Africa that is characterized by normal faulting, and initiated at a depth of 22 kilometers (14 mi). Early reports indicated that the heaviest damage was sustained by the eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a region already ravaged by extensive war and extreme poverty. The area houses tens of thousands of refugees displaced by conflicts, such as the Second Congo War and the Burundian Civil War, that have plagued the African Great Lakes in the 1990s and 2000s. Dozens of houses collapsed in the DRC city of Kalemie. [4] A UN spokesman said that most of the casualties were caused by falling zinc or steel roofs. Depending on several factors including soil types, prevalent construction techniques and the acceleration from the earthquake itself, earthquakes with magnitudes in the 6–7 range may or may not cause wide spread damage. In East Africa such seismic events can wreak havoc. The quake was centred roughly below Lake Tanganyika and – in addition to the DRC, where the most widespread damage has been reported – it was felt in Burundi, Tanzania, Rwanda, and as far away as Mombasa, Kenya, and Luanda, Angola. [4][5][6]
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Earthquakes
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Haughey Air AgustaWestland AW139 crash
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On 13 March 2014, an AgustaWestland AW139 helicopter of Haughey Air crashed shortly after taking off at night in fog from Gillingham, Norfolk, United Kingdom, killing all four people on board. Among the victims was Edward Haughey, Baron Ballyedmond. The subsequent investigation concluded that the flight crew may have been subject to somatogravic illusion due to the lack of external visual cues, inducing them to manoeuvre the aircraft into the ground instead of climbing away. The aircraft crashed at about 19:26 hrs UTC,[1] shortly after taking off from Gillingham Hall, Gillingham, Norfolk,[2] for Rostrevor, County Down,[3] via Coventry Airport. [1] An eyewitness to the accident stated that the helicopter came down at a 45° angle. The front of the aircraft was severely damaged in the crash. [4] The location was at Ordnance Survey Grid Reference TM407925. [3] At the time of the accident, weather conditions were foggy. [2] All four people on board were killed; both crew and both passengers. [3] Lord Ballyedmond was one of the passengers. [2] The bodies of the victims were removed from the wreckage during the afternoon of 14 March. [3]
The Norfolk Constabulary asked the Police Service of Northern Ireland for assistance with their investigations into the accident. [5] Norbrook Laboratories, owned by Lord Ballyedmond, was also assisting the police with their enquiries. [2] The site was formally handed over to Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) investigators on 14 March. The Norfolk police stated that they were satisfied that there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the accident. [6] On 15 March, investigators dismantled the remains of the rotor blades and removed the tail of the aircraft in preparation for the removal of the wreck. [7] The fuselage of the helicopter was loaded onto a lorry that day. It was taken to the AAIBs headquarters at Farnborough, Hampshire on 16 March. [8] The AAIBs field investigators were assisted by personnel from the Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service, Royal Air Force and Royal Navy. Following the accident, the police closed a number of roads around the crash site. The last road closure was lifted at 09:25 on 17 March. [9]
The accident aircraft was an AgustaWestland AW139,[2] msn 31421,[10] registration G-LBAL. [5] The aircraft was built in Italy in 2012 and registered in the United Kingdom to Haughey Air on 18 September 2012. [10] Haughey Air was owned by Edward Haughey, Baron Ballyedmond. [3] It was the sole aircraft purchased from AgustaWestland by Haughey Air. Lord Ballyedmond had initiated legal proceedings in September 2013 against AgustaWestland over safety concerns relating to oil leaks and rotor blade issues,[11] as well as problems with the aircraft's communication and navigation systems. [3]
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) opened an investigation into the accident. [2] AgustaWestland assisted the AAIB in their enquiries. The aircraft's data recorders were recovered from the wreckage on 15 March 2014. [7] A Special Bulletin published by the AAIB on 4 April revealed that there had been no mechanical failure with the helicopter and that it had not contacted any object between taking off and the crash site. [1] The final report into the accident was originally scheduled to be published around March 2015. [7] It was published on 8 October 2015. The investigation found that there was no mechanical failure with the aircraft. The crew were found not to have used checklists when operating the helicopter. The cause of the accident was pilot error, with spatial disorientation due to somatogravic illusion a major factor. [12]
An inquest into the deaths of the four victims was opened on 20 March at Norwich Coroner's Court. After hearing that all four people died from head and chest injuries sustained in the accident, the inquest was adjourned until 24 July. [13] The inquests concluded in January 2016, with verdicts of accidental death being returned against all four victims. [14] During the inquest, the Coroner demanded that the AAIB release to her the recordings from the Cockpit Voice Recorder, imposing two fines of £100 each on the Chief Inspector of Accidents at the AAIB. The matter was referred to the High Court, where it was stated that only the High Court had the power to demand such disclosure of evidence. The fines were overturned. [15]
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Air crash
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Glasgow International Tournament
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The Glasgow International Tournament was an invitational football tournament held at Hampden Park, Glasgow. The only edition took place between 1 and 2 August 1987. It was contested by four teams from different countries, including the host nation Scotland. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]
Internacional beat Rangers 5–4 on penalties. This article about a Scottish association football competition is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
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Sports Competition
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1833 Sumatra earthquake
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The 1861 Sumatra earthquake occurred on February 16 and was the last in a sequences of earthquakes that ruptured adjacent parts of the Sumatran segment of the Sunda megathrust. It caused a devastating tsunami which led to several thousand fatalities. The earthquake was felt as far away as the Malay peninsula and the eastern part of Java. [2] The rupture area for the 2005 Nias–Simeulue earthquake is similar to that estimated for the 1861 event. The island of Sumatra lies on the convergent plate boundary between the Indo-Australian Plate and the Eurasian Plate. The convergence between these plates is highly oblique near Sumatra, with the displacement being accommodated by near pure dip-slip faulting along the subduction zone, known as the Sunda megathrust, and near pure strike-slip faulting along the Great Sumatran fault. The major slip events on the subduction zone interface are typically of megathrust type. Historically, great or giant megathrust earthquakes have been recorded in 1797, 1833, 1861, 2004, 2005 and 2007, most of them being associated with devastating tsunamis. Smaller (but still large) megathrust events have also occurred in the small gaps between the areas that slip during the larger events, in 1935, 1984, 2000 and 2002. [3]
Villages along the seaward side of the Batu Islands were devastated. [2] The combined effects of the earthquake and tsunami caused several thousand fatalities. [1]
There is evidence of coseismic uplift of Nias, with exposure of reefs and rock piers. There were six major aftershocks over the next seven months, the last of which, on September 27, caused a damaging tsunami. [2] It was the longest earthquake ever recorded, with the shift of the plate taking around 32 years to unfurl. [4]
At least 500 km of coastline were affected by the tsunami with run-ups of up to 7m recorded on the southwest side of Nias. [2]
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Earthquakes
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Swissair Flight 316 crash
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On 7 October 1979, a Swissair DC-8 crashed while attempting to land at Athens-Ellinikon International Airport. Of the 154 passengers and crew on board, 14 were killed in the accident. Swissair Flight 316 was an international scheduled passenger service from Zurich, Switzerland to Peking, China (now Beijing) via Geneva, Athens, and Bombay (now Mumbai). The aircraft, named Uri, was piloted by Captain Fritz Schmutz and First Officer Martin Deuringer. [2]
Flight 316 touched down on runway 15L at a speed of 146 knots (270 km/h; 168 mph). The aircraft decelerated but overran the runway and came to rest on a public road. The left wing and tail separated, and fire broke out. Fourteen of the 142 passengers on board died. [3] Among the dead were British, German, and French citizens. Of the passengers on board, 100 were doctors on their way to a medical convention in China. [4]
One of Flight 316's survivors was Hans Morgenthau, a professor emeritus from the University of Chicago and expert in International Relations. [5]
After the crash it was learned that the aircraft was transporting over 1,000 pounds (450 kg) of radioactive isotopes and a small amount of plutonium. The plutonium was in the luggage of one of the doctors on board, and was briefly missing in the aftermath of the crash,[5] although it was quickly found. [6] Authorities had firemen and other rescue workers checked for radiation exposure. [7]
The crash destroyed over $2 million worth of industrial diamonds bound for Bombay. Most of the uncut diamonds were found by police, but they were destroyed by the crash's intense heat. [8]
Two days after the crash of Flight 316, Greek authorities charged pilot Fritz Schmutz with manslaughter plus other charges. [9] At a trial in 1983, Schmutz, along with co-pilot Deuringer, were found guilty of multiple charges including manslaughter with negligence, causing multiple bodily injury, and obstructing air traffic, and were sentenced to five and two and a half years in prison respectively. [10] Schmutz and Deuringer were set free on bail while they appealed their sentences. [11] A year after their sentencing, the court ruled Schmutz and Deuringer could substitute fines in place of jail time. Neither pilot had flown since the accident, but they were employed by Swissair. [12]
The accident investigation determined the causes of the accident were that the crew touched down too far down the runway, at too high a speed, following a non-stabilised approach, and that they failed to properly utilise the aircraft's brake and reverse thrust systems, which resulted in their being unable to stop the aircraft within the available runway and overrun distance. One member of the Operations team of the Accident Investigation Committee had a different opinion from the rest of the Committee regarding the cause of the accident, stating that he believed the crew failed to realise the touchdown speed and distance, failed to follow the company's poor-braking-action landing technique, and failed to properly utilise the aircraft's brake and reverse thrust systems. [2]
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Air crash
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Lion Air Flight 904 crash
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Lion Air Flight 904 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Husein Sastranegara International Airport in Bandung to Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali, Indonesia. On April 13, 2013, the Boeing 737-800 operating the flight crashed into water short of the runway while on final approach to land. All 101 passengers and 7 crew on board survived the accident. At 3:10 pm, the aircraft crashed approximately 0.6 nmi (1.1 km) short of the seawall protecting the threshold of Runway 09. The aircraft's fuselage broke into two and 46 people were injured, 4 of them seriously. [1][2]
Among the findings contained in the final investigation report was that the crew continued the approach in adverse weather conditions beyond the point at which the approved procedure would have required to abort the landing. The subsequent attempt to go around was made too late to avoid the impact with the sea. There were no issues with the aircraft and all systems were operating normally. The Boeing 737-8GP, registration PK-LKS, was owned by leasing company Avolon. It was received new from Boeing by Lion Air's subsidiary Malindo Air less than two months before the accident, on February 21, 2013. It was then transferred to parent Lion Air in March. The aircraft had been in service for less than six weeks with Lion Air before the accident. [3] At the time of the accident, Lion Air had 16 other Boeing 737-800 in the fleet. There were two pilots and 5 flight attendants with 101 passengers on board consisting of 95 adults, 5 children and 1 infant. 97 passengers were Indonesians, one French, one Belgian, and two Singaporeans. 6 of the crew were Indonesian while one came from India. [4]
The captain was 48-year-old Mahlup Ghazali, an Indonesian national who joined Lion Air in 2013 and had logged 15,000 hours of flight experience, including 6,173 hours on the Boeing 737. [5][6] The first officer was 24-year-old Chirag Kalra, an Indian national who had 1,200 flight hours, with 973 of them on the Boeing 737. [5][7]
The Indonesian National Transportation Safety Committee (NTSC) published a preliminary report on 15 May 2013. Flight data showed that the aircraft continued to descend below the Minimum descent altitude (MDA), which is 142 m (466 ft) AGL. The report found that at 270 m (890 ft) AGL, the first officer reported that the runway was not in sight. At approximately 46 m (151 ft) AGL, the pilot again stated he could not see the runway. Flight data showed that the pilots attempted to perform a go-around at approximately 6 m (20 ft) AGL, but contacted the water surface moments later. The captain's go around decision came far too late. The bare minimum altitude for a 737 go around is 15 m, as 9 m of altitude is lost when executing the manoeuvre. [8] There has been no indication that the aircraft suffered any mechanical malfunction. [9] A final report was published in 2014. [5]
In January 2017, Budi Waseso, the chief of Indonesia's national narcotics agency, said that the pilot of Lion Air Flight 904 was under the influence of drugs at the time of the accident, and had hallucinated that the sea was part of the runway. That claim is at odds with the statement made after the accident by Indonesia's transport ministry, which said the pilots had not tested positive for drugs. [10]
The NTSC concluded that the flight path became unstable below minimum descent altitude with the rate of descent exceeding 1000 feet per minute. Analysis of the pitch angle versus engine power based on the flight data recorder "indicated that the basic principle of jet aircraft flying was not adhered during manual flying. "[5]
The flight crew lost situational awareness and visual references as the aircraft entered a rain cloud during the final approach below minimum descent altitude. The Captain's go-around decision and execution was conducted at an altitude which was insufficient for it to be executed successfully. The pilots were not provided with timely and accurate weather information considering the weather around the airport and particularly on final approach was changing rapidly. [5]
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Air crash
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Nigeria faces one of its worst cholera outbreaks in years
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LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — Nigeria is seeing one of its worst cholera outbreaks in years, with more than 2,300 people dying from suspected cases as Africa’s most populous country struggles to deal with multiple disease outbreaks. This year’s cholera outbreak, with a higher case fatality rate than the previous four years, is worsened by what many consider to be a bigger priority for state governments: the COVID-19 pandemic. Nigeria faces a resurgence of cases driven by the Delta variant, and less than 1% of the population has been fully vaccinated. At least 69,925 suspected cholera cases were recorded as of Sept. 5 in 25 of Nigeria’s 36 states and in the capital, Abuja, according to the Nigeria Center for Disease Control. Children between 5 and 14 are the most affected age group and the overall case fatality rate is 3.3%, more than double that of COVID-19′s 1.3% case fatality rate in Nigeria. At least 2,323 people have died from suspected cholera this year, but there are concerns that might be an undercount given that many affected communities are in hard to reach areas. States in Nigeria’s north where flooding and poor sanitation increase the risk of transmission are the hardest hit. The 19 states in the north account for 98% of the suspected cases. Cholera is endemic and seasonal in Nigeria, where only 14% of the population of more than 200 million have access to safely managed drinking water supply services, according to government data from 2020, which also shows that open defecation is still practiced by at least 30% of residents in 14 states Nigeria also continues to see regular outbreaks of yellow fever, Lassa fever, measles and other infectious diseases. “We must remain conscious that these multiple outbreaks can further strain our health system,” outgoing Nigeria CDC director-general Chikwe Ihekweazu told The Associated Press. But he and other officials say the experience from those health crises has helped Nigeria prepare for the worst. “Prior investment in diagnostic capacity, case management, electronic surveillance systems, event-based surveillance, risk communication, logistic management systems and national/subnational workforce development have paid off significantly during COVID-19 pandemic,” he said. That has not contained cholera, however, and in some states, authorities have said COVID-19 has taken center stage. In Kogi State, which has Nigeria’s second-highest cholera case fatality rate at 24.5%, top health official Saka Haruna told the AP the rate is high because of the difficulty in accessing care in hard-to-reach areas. Even in the capital, finding care has been challenging. Ese Umukoro said she had a “very difficult” experience when her brother, Samson, had cholera and was rejected at three hospitals before being admitted at the fourth. She asked the government to “try their best to at least give us good water to avoid that kind of sickness.” Sokoto State has Nigeria’s fourth-highest count of suspected cholera cases, and its health commissioner told the AP that 22 of the 23 Local Government Areas have been hit by the outbreak. “What is driving the infections is lack of good sanitary conditions in our villages and open defecation, aggravated by heavy rainfall,” said Ali Inname. It’s a common problem. Government data from a study supported by UNICEF found access to safely managed sanitation services at just 21% nationwide. Engineer Michael Oludare, an Oyo-based water scientist, said it is “very important” for authorities to provide basic water and sanitation. He said the poor, women, children and internally displaced people are among “those that will have problems when it comes to cholera.” Moreover, Nigeria still grapples with the challenge of inadequate vaccines and trained manpower to cover all Local Government Areas where the cholera outbreak has been recorded.
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Disease Outbreaks
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2013 Bulgarian protests against the first Borisov cabinet
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The 2013 Bulgarian protests against the first Borisov cabinet were civil demonstrations against high electricity and hot water bills resulting from monopolism in the sphere that began in Blagoevgrad on 28 January 2013, and subsequently spread to over 30 cities in Bulgaria that ended with the resignation of the Boyko Borisov government on 20 February 2013. They were caused by abnormally high electricity bills, but later turned into a mass non-partisan movement against the government and the political system. The events were marked by seven self-immolations (five of them fatal), spontaneous demonstrations and a strong sentiment against political parties. As a result of the demonstrations, the centre-right government of Boyko Borisov resigned and a caretaker cabinet led by Marin Raykov was appointed. The demands of protesters, however, were not addressed, and demonstrations continued throughout the country, calling for a change of the political model and nationalisation of strategic economic sectors. Electrical power distribution in Bulgaria was managed by a state-owned monopoly until 2005, when the government sold 67% of it to three foreign power companies - German E.ON, Austrian EVN Group and Czech ČEZ Group. In 2011, E.ON sold its Bulgarian branch to Energo-Pro, a private Czech power company, and on the next year the state sold its stakes in CEZ. [20] EVN, ČEZ and Energo-Pro virtually operate as private regional monopolies whose activities are overseen by the State Commission for Energy and Water Regulation (SCEWR). [21] The state also sold its power distribution infrastructure to these private distributors, thus losing control over the management of profits. [22] The main energy companies are believed to have acquired debts in the four years preceding the demonstrations, which partly contributed to a rather unbalanced situation in the energy sphere. [23] In addition, residents of Sofia have been voicing their concerns for years against the city's district heating provider – Toplofikatsiya Sofia, which has a monopoly on heat distribution in the city. Discontent has been created by very high prices and the fact that the company only reviews readings from customers' calorimetres once a year and the rest of the time it forms bills using "estimates", the complex and allegedly illegal formulas the company uses for calculating the bills and the lack of accountability and the practices of the so-called "heating accountancy firms", which act as middle-men between Toplofikatsiya and its customers.
At the same time, Bulgaria has a rapidly expanding renewable energy market. Growth in the sector has surpassed forecasts and has notably increased prices and strain on the electrical grid in the past few years. [29] Investment in wind and solar power installations between 2008 and 2012 in Bulgaria is estimated at more than 4 billion euros, which needs to be repaid by surcharges on electricity prices over the next years. [30] Since 2005, electricity prices for industrial consumers, along with other utilities, have doubled or tripled. [31] In 2011, SCEWR rejected demands by regional monopolies to increase power prices,[32] but a string of severe price spikes occurred in 2012 as a consequence of renewable energy charges. [33] In response, the government drastically cut preferential feed-in tariffs for solar power with 50%, and with 22% for wind power. SCEWR also increased power transmission fees by 50 per cent in an attempt to curb green energy production. These measures led to a drop in electricity exports and withdrawal of investment projects,[29] but prices continued to rise slowly in the following months. [34] Subsequent inflation caused by higher production costs was recorded as the highest for the past four years. [35]
Electricity costs are one of the main expenditures for Bulgarian citizens. [29] Local analysts estimated that with rising living costs, almost 100 per cent of the average Bulgarian household's monthly income would be spent on utilities, food, transportation, healthcare and education. [36] Currently 85 per cent of household monthly incomes are spent on basic necessities. [36] Prices in Bulgaria amount to 49 per cent of the European Union average,[37] At the same time average salaries are the lowest among European Union members at 768 leva (393 euro) for September 2012. [38] The minimum wage is ten times lower than that of some member states,[39] amounting to 310 leva (159 euro), or about 1 euro per hour. Twenty-two per cent of the labour force are employed on a minimum wage. [40][41] For the past three years, incomes have marked almost no change, while prices have increased significantly. [36] Austerity measures encouraged by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund during the recession have resulted in "catastrophic" social consequences according to the International Trade Union Confederation. [2] The government of Boyko Borisov strictly imposed austerity measures and sustained fiscal stability, but also delayed government payments to private companies,[42] and was criticised for worsening corruption and media freedom[43] indicators, political authoritarianism and general economic stagnation. [4] As a consequence, the support for Borisov and his centre-right Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB) party has been steadily declining since 2010. [44] A major blow to GERB's popularity came after their decision to cancel the Belene Nuclear Power Plant project, which was believed to be a way to reduce electricity costs and create jobs. [45] Mass protests for political or social causes are relatively uncommon in Bulgaria, but have become more frequent since 2007, when the issue of the preservation of Strandzha Mountain nature areas came to the forefront. [46]
In late January 2013, protests occurred in Blagoevgrad after consumers received electricity bills that were two times higher than those for the previous month. [47] Protesters symbolically burned their bills. A protester explained that her bill amounted to 310 leva, of which only 128 leva were for electricity consumption and the remainder were various tariffs and taxes. [48] Some of the earliest protests also took place in Sandanski. [49][50]
On 10 February, demonstrations occurred in Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna, Burgas, Ruse, Veliko Tarnovo, Shumen, Blagoevgrad, Sandanski, Silistra, Yambol, Gotse Delchev, Belene, Montana, Pazardjik, Dobrich and Kardzhali. The same day, two EVN utility vehicles were set ablaze in Plovdiv. [51] Demonstrators in Sofia gathered in front of the Ministry of Economy, Energy and Tourism and threw snowballs at minister Delyan Dobrev. [52] One protester was stabbed in Varna on 13 February 2013. [53][54] The authorities of Kranevo also voiced discontent at the electricity prices, after communal services costs almost doubled in comparison to the same period of the previous year. The mayor of Kranevo said that his village was not an exception, and most localities in the municipality had the same issues. [55]
By mid-February tens of thousands of people were on the streets, demanding nationalisation of the private regional monopolies, removal of subcontractors, assigning traffic and distribution to NEK EAD (the state-owned power distribution company), declassifying all contracts between the state and energy companies and more liberal combined heat and power usage laws, among others. [11]
On 17 February, a fictitious declaration supposedly written by the three foreign power companies and dismissing the protester demands while calling on them to accept their own responsibility for the situation that had transpired, was circulated in the social media and caused further anger against the energy providers. [56] According to analysts, in the initial phase of the demonstrations, more than 50% of the discontent was fuelled by the supposed abuses of the monopol companies, with only 15% traceable to anti-government feelings. [57]
On 17 February, a national demonstration against monopolies gathered 10,000 people in Plovdiv, 8,000 (up to 30,000 by other estimates) in Varna and a smaller number in other cities. [58][59] In total, 100,000 people protested all over the country in 35 cities and towns. [11] Key motorways and transport routes in the country were blocked; rocks, bottles and eggs were thrown against Gendarmerie units, the Ministry of Economy and the National Assembly in the capital. [11][60] People chanted "mafia" and "resignation", and carried slogans such as "This is not a protest, it's a process - the struggle for a new Bulgaria", "Down with GERB" and "Janissaries, the end is coming".
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Protest_Online Condemnation
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October 2000 riots
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Lists
The October 2000 riots, also known as October 2000 events, were a series of protests in Arab cities and towns in northern Israel in October 2000 that turned violent, escalating into rioting by Israeli Arabs throughout Israel, which led to counter-rioting by Israeli Jews and clashes with the Israel Police. During the riots, 13 Arabs - 12 Israeli-Arabs and one Palestinian from the Gaza Strip who had been demonstrating in Israel - were killed by police. One Israeli Jew was also killed when his car was hit by stones thrown by Arab rioters. Most of the Jewish riots took place towards the end, between 7–9 October.
The Or Commission was established to investigate the police response to the rioting. Israeli media outlets refer to the episode as אירועי אוקטובר 2000 - the "October 2000 events"[4] while Arab community refers to it as (هبة أكتوبر) the "October ignition." In September 2000, tensions between the police and Israel's Arab citizens rose. On September 12, Israel Police Northern District Commander Alik Ron requested an investigation of Hadash MK Mohammad Barakeh for inciting violence against police. At a meeting of the High Follow-up Committee for Arab citizens in Israel the next day in Kafar Manda, United Arab List's MK Abdulmalik Dehamshe declared: "We will beat or forcefully attack any policeman and we will break his hands if he comes to demolish an Arab house … we are on the verge of an Intifada among Israel's Arabs following Alik Ron's incitement. "
On September 14, Nazareth declared a general strike protesting "police incompetence in handling violence and crime" after the murder of a local resident, Nabieh Nussier, 52. On September 30, the High Follow-up Committee called on the Arab community to mount a general strike to protest the killings of five Palestinians by Israeli police in the Jerusalem clashes of the previous day, which many consider the first day of the Second Intifada.
Demonstrations in Arab towns in northern Israel began to spread after repeated airings of news footage showing the alleged shooting death of 12-year-old Muhammad al-Durrah, who was said to have been caught in the crossfire between Israeli forces and Palestinian militia.
Arab demonstrations and acts of civil-disobedience in solidarity with the Palestinians turned violent following the proclamation of a general strike by the Arab Higher Monitoring Committee to protest the deaths of Arab rioters in Jerusalem the previous day. [6] Arab rioting took place throughout northern Israel. Violence occurred in Umm al-Fahm, Nazareth, Acre, Fureidis, and villages throughout the Galilee. In a number of areas police came under gunfire, and demonstrators threw Molotov cocktails. An Egged bus was torched in Umm al-Fahm.
Israel Police officers and Border Police gendarmes responded with live ammunition, tear gas, and rubber bullets. At the entrance to Umm al-Fahm, police used sniper rifles to prevent the Wadi Ara road from being blocked. Israeli-Arabs Muhammad Ahmad 'Eiq Al-Jabarin and Ibrahim Sayyam Al-Jabarin and Gaza resident Misleh Abu Jarad were killed. About 75 people, including Umm al-Fahm mayor Raed Salah, were wounded.
Police dispersed an Arab demonstration in Arraba with tear gas and live ammunition. Alaa Nassar, 18, and Asel Asleh, 17, were killed.
Demonstrators in Nazareth threw stones, burned tires, looted and burned shops.100 demonstrators were hurt, including one woman who was seriously injured. Dozens of residents of Mashhad approaching a Jewish neighbourhood of Nazareth Illit and smashed house and car windows. Traffic was blocked with burning tires on Route 65, a main artery connecting northern and central Israel. A Jewish man was attacked and pulled from his car by local youth, which they then torched. Three banks in Baqa al-Gharbiyye were set on fire.
Ramez Bushnak, 24, from Kafr Manda, was shot in the head and died the same day during a confrontation with police, who explicitly denied claims that he was shot from close range. Dozens of residents clashed with police blocking the way to Jewish neighbourhoods in Misgav. The funerals of those killed in previous days became focal points of renewed clashes.
Extensive forest fires which Israel Police believed were the result of Arab arsonists caused the evacuations of some residents.
Following the meeting between Barak and the Arab Higher Monitoring Committee, a general calm reigned with only minimal violence, including on 6 October, on which a "Palestinian day of rage" had been announced by Hamas. [citation needed] On 4 October, hundreds of Arab residents of Jaffa burned tires, threw rocks, and beat some reporters.
On 6 October mourners in Kafr Kanna at a funeral of one of those killed in clashes stoned and moderately injured a Jewish motorist from Tiberias. The next day, hundreds of Jewish youth in Tiberias burned tires, attacked a mosque, and attempted to assault Arabs. Dozens of haredi youth stoned Arab traffic in Jerusalem and attacked Palestinian labourers, who were subsequently rescued by police.
Jewish and Arab youth threw rocks at each other near a shopping mall on the border between Jewish and Arab neighbourhoods in Nazareth. Arab traffic in Nazareth Illit was stoned. [5] In Tiberias, mosques, Arab passersby businesses all suffered damages, and the attacks were repeated two days later. A gas station at the Golani Junction was torched, and police attempting to stop the attacks there on Arabs were themselves attacked.
A Jewish citizen, Bachor Jann, from Rishon LeZion, was killed after being hit by a stone thought to have been thrown by those taking part in the protests in Jisr az-Zarqa while driving on the Haifa-Tel Aviv freeway. A scuffle at an Or Akiva shopping mall between Jewish and Arab citizens resulted in an attack on the responding police and the throwing of a Molotov cocktail.
Jews from Nazareth Illit, including apparently many Russian-speakers, attacked Arabs and their homes and businesses in Nazareth on the eve of Yom Kippur. Police, informed of the intention to attack Arabs, beefed up their forces and deployed them on the seam line between the two communities. When hundreds of Jewish youths from Nazareth Illit came down to throw stones and vandalize Arab properties, however, the police did not impede them. The Arab residents emerged from their homes to defend them, and reciprocal stone throwing clashes ensued. Police dispersed the riots with tear gas and live ammunition. Two Arabs who had attempted to rein in their own communities from getting near the Jewish youths and police, Omar Akawi and Wissam Yazbek, were shot dead, the latter by a gunshot wound to the head, fired by a policeman from behind him.
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Riot
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Covid-19: Infectious disease expert warns 'we'll all catch Covid-19 eventually'
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“Sooner or later we are all going to get this thing. Whether it's today, tomorrow, next year or a few years, we're not sure, but it's definitely coming.” In that case is an elimination strategy the right thing to do? St Jude Children's Research Hosp Virologist Dr Richard Webby, faculty member of the department of infectious diseases at St Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis. “I think it is. The way New Zealand has done this is definitely the right way to go. “There's been struggles and lockdowns and shutting shop, but in between those lockdowns it's been pretty free life. And no-where else in the world has really had that, so absolutely it's the way to go.” However, he says the big-picture result is likely to be outside our control. “Elimination's worked for New Zealand on and off, but as a global strategy it's not a starter, so this virus is going to be with us forever. At some point... I think this is going to end up like a common cold or flu scenario, where we have to deal with it during winter. “It may end up putting people in the hospital every year, but as a healthcare infrastructure and as a society those are things that we're a little more able to deal with, and I think that's the point we'll get to with this.” What about New Zealand's strategy of attempting to flatten the curve, trying to even out the case numbers long-term, so medical resources can cope with the caseloads? Webby says even if the virus is normalised, it will still be desirable to control spikes in cases. “We're going to continue to have outbreaks and epidemics of this virus probably forever, but so long as those curves are not spiking it's something that overall as communities we can deal with.” KEVIN STENT/Stuff People line up at a Taranaki Street Covid-19 testing centre in Wellington last week. Experts have debated whether the coronavirus will continue to have such devastating effects, or whether the severity could reduce over time - a concept known as attenuation. Webby says there's no clear indication of how the virus that causes Covid-19 will behave in the future, but based on how other coronaviruses have behaved previously there's good reason to think attenuation is likely. “We have these four other coronaviruses circulating in humans that cause us common cold-type outbreaks. “At one stage they started their life exactly like [Covid-19], they probably came over from animal reservoirs, and almost certainly caused a spike in disease when they first circulated, but then settled into this more winter-sniffle-type cold scenario. I don't see why this particular coronavirus would be any different. “But that's not a view shared by all experts, and some think this virus may have a little bit more of a kick in it than some of those other coronaviruses.” Viruses have the trait of changing over time by adding other viruses' genetic material to their own - called recombining. But Webby thinks recombining is more likely to make the Covid-19 coronavirus more tame, rather than more severe. “Recombination is a mechanism that these viruses use to evolve, it's likely to happen. But the source of genetic material are these other common-cold coronaviruses. “Over the long-term evolution of a virus with its host, it tends to become less nasty rather than more nasty. If you're killing the host that you're in, if you're a virus, that's not really the place you want to be.” Webby says there's no doubt that right now the Covid-19 coronavirus is much deadlier and makes more people sick than the flu, but it's likely we'll see that change. And that as population immunity builds, the case fatality rate will lower; “I'm personally thinking that it will probably drop below [the damage] flu does." He doesn't think the Covid-19 virus is as quick to evolve as flu has been. “Yes, we're getting all these variants of [the Covid-19 coronavirus], but if you look at the mutations, the actual changes that all these variants are making to their genetic makeup, they're actually using some of the same mutations over and over again, but just in different combinations. “So that give me a little bit of hope that this virus doesn't have the same capacity to change and keep on running ahead that the flu does. DAVID WHITE/STUFF The Waitakere pop up mass vaccination site on Central Park Drive continues to see large numbers of Aucklanders getting the Covid 19 vaccination. “So I think if we come back and have another chat in two or three years that we're going to find this virus not having the same impact it's having now, and I would say [it'll be having less impact than flu.” But when we're considering how society might live with the virus in the future, one thing we don't yet have a handle on yet is the long-term effects - known as 'long-Covid', Webby says. Previously, Webby co-authored a paper in Nature Communications, recommending that New Zealand start looking at border controls for seasonal flu, which we don't currently have, even though some 500 people die of flu each year in New Zealand. Is it practical for a society to have ongoing border controls to mitigate against disease? “Closing borders - I don't think it is. We can do this one-off, two-off for a year, maybe a couple of years. Anything longer than that is not really practical,” he says. “But is there things that can be done, whether it be more intensive temperature checks, monitoring people on flights, even educating people on flights when they're coming in during times of disease - just managing it.” He hopes the pandemic will leave us more aware and more proactive about simple disease control measures. LUZ ZUNIGA/Stuff New Zealand is almost two weeks into a nationwide level 4 lockdown. “What I'm hoping is one of the outcomes of this pandemic is that people get a little bit more sensitive to the fact that if you are sick and ill and have a cough or a sniffle, you've got something that you're likely to transmit to someone else. “I think before people probably knew it, but didn't take much notice of it. But now I'm hoping that when people get those coughs and sniffles they're more likely to stay at home, they're more likely to even put a mask on if we're lucky. “I think we're going to head back to basically normal. But I think there will be some longer-term consequences of this pandemic and how we think about it when we're sick or others around us are sick.”
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Disease Outbreaks
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2017 Northwest Iran floods
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The 2017 Northwest Iran floods were flash floods caused by heavy rains in northwest Iran on April 14, 2017. [1] Flooding was observed in East Azerbaijan, West Azerbaijan, Kordestan, and Zanjan Provinces. The flood claimed the lives of more than 40 people, and it was deadliest in East Azerbaijan province, where it left 37 dead. The flood followed after a heavy rain fell for about a day. The rainfall had a maximum total of 47.1 mm in Azarshahr, which was accompanied by 90 km/h wind. [2]
More than 40 people lost their lives in this flood. [3] The majority of casualties were reported from East Azerbaijan province including 17 people who trapped in the flash flood while commuting under a bridge over Seil Chaii in the entrance of Ghallehzar village. While normal traffic to the road was not blocked, cars were commuting through the road next to the flooded river. In a sudden flash flood, 5 cars were driven away by the floodwaters and all 17 passengers inside the cars were killed. [4] The highest casualty incident occurred in Chenar, Ajab Shir where 21 residents were swept away in a flash flood. In the days after the flood, the bodies of 17 victims were recovered. The survivors in Chenar village claimed that there was no flood warning issued. [5]
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Floods
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