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Torrential rains cause floods, mudslides in Japan
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Torrential rain triggered a mudslide and more floods across Japan on Sunday, leaving three people presumed dead and forcing the evacuation of dozens of residents. A mudslide early Sunday hit a house in Okaya City in the central Japanese prefecture of Nagano, burying eight residents. Three of the people were presumed dead when rescue workers found them, and two others were injured, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency. The other three people were safely rescued. By Sunday, dozens of people in flooded areas in the southern Kyushu region as well as Hiroshima were rescued, the disaster management agency said. Heavy rain has dumped on south western Japan since last week. The Japan Meteorological Agency said more rain is expected in the coming days as a front is stuck above the Japanese archipelago. Nearly 200 municipalities under high risks of floods or mudslides have issued evacuation instructions, affecting more than 4 million residents, though there is no penalty for those who ignore. More than 500 homes around the country have been damaged by floods and mudslides, the disaster management agency said.
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Mudslides
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Weightlifting: China's Shi Zhiyong breaks world record to win gold in 73kg
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TOKYO: China's Shi Zhiyong broke his own world record to win the men's 73kg weightlifting event at the Olympics on Wednesday and claim a gold medal for the second Games in a row.
The 27-year-old lifted a combined 364kg to better his own world record of 363kg he set at the 2019 world championships.
Shi remained strong throughout the competition, breaking the Olympic record in the snatch with his second lift and again with his third.
Shi, gold medallist at the 2016 Olympics in the 69kg category, also broke the Olympic record for the clean and jerk on his first attempt.
Venezuela's Julio Ruben Mayora Pernia won the silver medal and Indonesia's Rahmat Erwin Abdullah the bronze.
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Break historical records
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Rise, Stand Strong merge to form Lumina Alliance
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Two Central Coast organizations merged this month to better serve people affected by intimate partner and sexual violence. Stand Strong and RISE now make up Lumina Alliance. They individually served people who oftentimes had overlapping needs and experiences, so the merger now allows people to get help in one place. "We also have emergency shelters, transitional housing. We can help with case management, help people with anything going on in the courts, we have a legal department,” said Lumina Alliance CEO Jennifer Adams. There are no requirements to receive help from the organization. Services are provided at no cost, are confidential and can also be done in Spanish. "At the beginning of the pandemic, the need or the request for services really dropped and it was really interesting because what we then heard from our law enforcement community was that their calls were really increasing,” Adams said. People were told to stay home as much as possible in the months following the start of the pandemic and away from work or schools where someone else could witness behavior, maybe intervene, or alert authorities of possible abuse situations. "So there were more calls to the police because the violence escalated, and that was where they needed help in stopping the violence,” Adams said. People seeking help can call or walk into the office. Lumina has a 24/7 crisis line and on its website, there is a quick escape button which, when hit, will clear cookies on a browser, so the search cannot be tracked. “We have three shelters now, two in North County and one in San Luis Obispo,” Adams said, “and we have the capabilities of serving, and providing bed space to around 60 people.” Anyone can seek help at a Lumina shelter or with the organization regardless of documentation status, gender identity or sexual orientation. Last year, Rise and Stand Strong provided services to around 1,800 people.
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Organization Merge
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Locust Plague Encircles Mexico's Cancun Resort - KLTV
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Locust Plague Encircles Mexico's Cancun Resort
Published: Sep. 27, 2006 at 12:20 PM CDT|Updated: Sep. 27, 2006 at 5:59 PM CDT
Clouds of locusts have descended around the Mexican beach resort of Cancun, destroying corn crops and worrying officials in a region still recovering from the devastating fury of last year's Hurricane Wilma.
Traveling in dark fogs, locusts are grasshoppers that have entered a swarming phase, capable of covering large distances and rapidly stripping fields of vegetation.
"Imagine, they fly in the form of a flock. Imagine the width of a street," government official Martin Rodriguez said on Tuesday, describing the fields around Cancun on the Yucatan Peninsula.
Towns have formed pesticide-armed brigades and are winning the war against the 3-week-old plague that has left tourist areas unharmed, authorities said.
Squads wait until night to blast the flying insects as they are roosting on plants. They carry motorized backpack pumps to shoot chemicals in a fight that has affected from 2,000 to 2,500 acres (800 to 1,000 hectares) of farm land.
"It is a war, effectively," said German Parra, a senior agriculture official in the Gulf state of Quintana Roo, home of tourist resorts Cancun and Playa del Carmen.
Hot weather and an absence of mobility-limiting hurricanes have allowed the insects to breed more than normal, but authorities hope to end the infestation in the next eight days.
The insects have focused on agricultural areas, sparing beachgoers another disaster after last year's Hurricane Wilma, which ravaged Cancun and other Caribbean coast resorts and caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damages and lost revenue.
Destruction to corn crops has been lessened because the locusts came after most of the harvesting was finished, officials said.
Locusts, which typically come to the region in four-year cycles, are most famous as one of the 10 biblical plagues of Egypt. "We hope that God will take pity on us and help us," said Parra with a laugh.
Copyright 2006 Reuters . All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Insect Disaster
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1854 Nankai earthquake
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The 1854 Nankai earthquake occurred at about 16:00 local time on 24 December. It had a magnitude of 8.4 and caused a damaging tsunami. More than 30,000 buildings were completely destroyed and there were at least 3,000 casualties. [1]
It was the second of the three Ansei great earthquakes; the 1854 Tōkai earthquake of identical magnitude had hit northwest the previous morning, and the third 1855 Edo earthquake struck less than a year later. The southern coast of Honshu runs parallel to the Nankai Trough, which marks the subduction of the Philippine Sea Plate beneath the Eurasian Plate. Movement on this convergent plate boundary leads to many earthquakes, some of them of megathrust type. The Nankai megathrust has five distinct segments (A–E) that can rupture independently,[2][3] the segments have ruptured either singly or together repeatedly over the last 1300 years. [4] Megathrust earthquakes on this structure tend to occur in pairs, with a relatively short time gap between them. In addition to the two events in 1854, there were similar earthquakes in 1944 and 1946. In each case the northeastern segment ruptured before the southwestern segment. [5]
The damage due to the earthquake was severe with 5,000 houses being destroyed and 40,000 houses badly damaged. A further 6,000 homes were damaged by fire. The tsunami washed away a further 15,000 houses and a total of 3,000 people died from either the earthquake or the tsunami. [6] The death toll associated with the tsunami was less than would be expected in comparison to the 1707 tsunami, because many people had left the coastal area following the large earthquake the previous day. [7] In Hiro (now Hirogawa), Goryo Hamaguchi set fires using rice straw to help guide villagers to safety. This story was turned into "A living god" by the Greek-born writer Lafcadio Hearn. [8]
Much of southwestern Honshu, Shikoku and Kyūshū experienced shaking of 5 or more on the JMA scale, with most of Shikoku and nearby coastal areas of Kansai suffering an intensity of 6. [9]
On Shikoku, the greatest inundation heights were 7.5 m in Mugi, 7.5 m in Kamikawaguchi (Japanese: 上川口) of Kuroshio,[10] 7.2 m at Asakawa on the Tokushima coast, 7.4 m at Usa, 8.4 m at Ōnogō in the Susaki area, 8.3 m at Kure on the Kōchi coast and 5 m at both Hisayoshiura and Kaizuka on the coast of Ehime. [7]
A tsunami was observed in Shanghai, China, and a water surge of about 2 to 3 Chi was recorded in Huangpu River. [11]
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Earthquakes
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Lebanon crisis could rank among world’s three worst in 150 years
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The World Bank said on Tuesday that Lebanon’s economic and financial crisis could rank as one of the three most severe the world has seen since the mid-19th century. The World Bank on Tuesday accused Lebanon's authorities of deliberately failing to mount an adequate policy response to the country's economic and financial crisis [File: Hussein Malla/AP] Lebanon’s financial and economic crisis could rank as one of the world’s three most severe since the mid-19th century, concludes the latest Lebanon Economic Monitor released by the World Bank on Tuesday. Lebanon’s descent into what could end up being one of the top three worst crises in 150 years has been stunningly swift. The country’s gross domestic product (GDP) – which measures the total output of goods and services – nosedived from close to $55bn in 2018 to an estimated $33bn last year, the report noted, with GDP per capital plummeting by around 40 percent. “Such a brutal and rapid contraction is usually associated with conflicts or wars,” said the World Bank. The report pulls no punches in its criticism of Lebanon’s political elites, accusing the country’s authorities of deliberately mounting an inadequate policy response to the country’s compounded crises including the rapid deterioration of economic and financial conditions, the COVID-19 pandemic and last year’s Port of Beirut explosion. The inaction, says the report, is not due to lack of knowledge or quality advice, but rather the failure to agree on effective policy initiatives and a political consensus that defends “a bankrupt economic system, which benefited a few for so long”. ‘Catastrophic’ social impact The report also did not mince words on the social fallout of the crisis, warning that the “dire” situation that has likely pushed more than half of the population below the poverty line could become “catastrophic”. The decimated purchasing power of the Lebanese pound – which is how most working people in the country are compensated for their labour – has led to more than 40 percent of households reporting “challenges in accessing food and other basic needs”, according to a phone survey conducted by the United Nations’ World Food Programme at the end of last year. Meanwhile, the nation’s unemployment rate spiked from 28 percent in February 2020 to nearly 40 percent by the end of the year. “The dire socio-economic conditions risk systemic national failings with regional and potentially global consequences,” the World Bank warned.
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Financial Crisis
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US notifies UN of withdrawal from World Health Organization
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The Trump administration has formally notified the United Nations of its decision to withdraw the US from the World Health Organization, officials said, breaking off ties with the global health body amid the expanding coronavirus pandemic. The US has accused the WHO of siding with China on the outbreak of the virus, which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan late last year, alleging the health body misled the world resulting in deaths of over half a million people globally, including over 130,000 in America. In April, the US stopped funding to WHO as the Trump administration reviewed the ties. A month later, President Donald Trump announced the US was terminating the relationship. The US is the largest funder to the world health, contributing more than USD450 million per annum, while China’s contribution to the health body is about one-tenth of that of the US. “I can say that on 6 July 2020, the United States of America notified the secretary-general, in his capacity as depositary of the 1946 Constitution of the World Health Organization, of its withdrawal from the World Health Organization, effective on 6 July 2021,” said St.phane Dujarric, spokesman for the UN secretary-general, in a statement. Dujarric said the secretary-general is in the process of verifying with the WHO whether all the conditions for such withdrawal are met. The United States has been a party to the WHO Constitution since June 21, 1948. Its participation was accepted by the World Health Assembly with certain conditions set out by the US for its eventual withdrawal from this world body. The said conditions include giving a one-year notice, meaning the withdrawal won’t go into effect until July 6 next year, raising the possibility the Trump administration’s decision could be reversed by a new government after the presidential elections in November this year. The decision was criticised by several Congressmen, who said it “would be a bad policy”. ”To call Trump’s response to COVID chaotic and incoherent doesn’t do it justice. This won’t protect American lives or interests it leaves Americans sick and America alone,” tweeted Senator Robert Menendez, a ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Congressman Eliot Engel, Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, said, ”It would be bad policy to pull out of the world’s leading body coordinating global health efforts under any circumstances, but to do so during a global pandemic is utterly baffling, especially against the backdrop of 130,000 American lives lost.” Remaining in the WHO and exerting American leadership would boost international efforts to develop a vaccine and strengthen other countries’ health systems to better address future outbreaks, he said. ”Deflecting blame onto the WHO won’t reverse the administration’s mistakes or undo the suffering our country has endured. The president needs to get serious about stopping this pandemic’s lethal spread by restoring our membership in the WHO, ramping up testing, and encouraging everyone to practice social distancing and wear masks,” Engel said. To withdraw the US from the WHO at the height of a global pandemic is self-defeating and dangerous, said House Majority Leader, Steny Hoyer. ”Not only will this withdrawal hurt global efforts to develop and deploy critical vaccines, but it will also remove our ability to have a say in the operations and future of that organization, yielding much influence to China,” he said. Indian-American Congressman Ami Bera said America lost its best chance to defeat the virus once the president began to minimize the pandemic and shift blame onto others, instead of assuming responsibility and actually leading the country through this crisis. ”Today’s decision comes as no surprise,” he said. ”No response has been perfect, including the WHO’s. But the WHO is playing a critical role by coordinating the global response and providing important guidance and information about the virus. It is this information and guidance that has helped countries in Europe and Asia tackle and contain the virus. They bent the curve. Our cases are increasing. If the WHO is to blame: why has the US been left behind while many countries from South Korea to New Zealand to Vietnam to Germany return to normal” Bera said. Senator Patty Murray, a ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labour, and Pensions Committee, also slammed the Trump administration. This is an abdication of America’s role as a global leader and it is the opposite of putting America first it will put America at risk. Refusing to work with our partners across the world to fight this pandemic will only prolong the crisis, further undermine our international standing, and leave us less prepared for future crises. President Trump needs to realize this crisis doesn’t recognize borders and hiding from it or passing the blame won’t make it go away or make him any less responsible,? Murray said. Senator Jeff Merkley, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee that oversees multilateral institutions, said Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo are delivering a huge win for China and a huge blow to the American people. ”By pulling out of the WHO, President Trump is strengthening Chinese leadership and power, both within the WHO and more broadly within the international community. This is a huge mistake that damages American interests,”Merkley said.
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Withdraw from an Organization
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Lionair Flight 602 crash
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Lionair Flight 602 was a Lionair Antonov An-24RV which fell into the sea off the north-western coast of Sri Lanka on 29 September 1998. The aircraft departed Jaffna Airport with 48 passengers and a crew of seven; it disappeared from radar screens ten minutes into the flight. Initial reports indicated that the plane had been shot down by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam using a MANPADS, which has since been confirmed. All aboard were presumed killed. The Antonov AN-24RV was leased from Belarusian company Gomelavia[1] to operate flight 602. It was captained by Anatoli Matochko and had six other crew including a Sinhalese stewardess. There were 48 passengers, all Tamils, including 17 females and 8 children. [2][3]
The aircraft went missing ten minutes after taking off from Jaffna Airport at 13:40 on 29 September 1998 on a scheduled flight to Colombo;[3] all those aboard were presumed killed. [1] The pilot reported depressurisation a short time before contact was lost. [1] Following the downing of Flight LN 602 all civil aviation between Colombo and Jaffna was suspended for many months by the Sri Lanka Civil Aviation Authority. [4]
Lionair, the main operator of Colombo-Jaffna flights, received a warning letter a month before the incident from the Tamil Eelam Administrative Service, stating that if the airline continued to ignore a prior warning about carrying Sri Lanka Armed Forces personnel, it would be attacked after 14 September. The airline closed its office in Jaffna four days before the incident. [3]
In October 2012 the Sri Lankan Navy discovered wreckage which was believed to be the disintegrated parts of the missing Antonov on the sea bed off Iranaitivu Island. Information concerning the crash site was gained from a former LTTE cadre who had left Sri Lanka and was arrested on his return by the Police Terrorist Investigation department. He confessed to having fired a missile at the aircraft from the island on the orders of Poththu Amman, a leading member of the LTTE. [2][5]
The Navy salvaged the first pieces of the wreckage in May 2013, nearly 15 years after the event. [6] Clothing and remains from 22 victims recovered in the salvage operation were put on display in Jaffna for identification in January 2014. [2]
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Air crash
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Black Sunday bushfires
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The Black Sunday bushfires were a series of bushfires that broke out across South Australia on 2 January 1955. Extreme morning temperatures coupled with strong north-westerly winds contributed to the breakout of numerous fires in Adelaide Hills, Jamestown, Waterloo, Kingston and Millicent. Most were caused by sparks from powerlines in the wind. [4]
Around 1,000 Emergency Fire Service volunteers from 60 brigades were tasked to the fires, but were overwhelmed. At 10am, the EFS head office requested urgent public assistance. Around 2,500 citizens volunteered. The fires were contained by 9:30pm, thanks largely to a fortuitous change in the weather and widespread public assistance. [4]
The fires resulted in two deaths, destroyed 40 homes and numerous other buildings, and caused more than A$4 million worth of property damage, most notably the destruction of the Governor's summer residence at Marble Hill. Governor Robert George, his family and staff were lucky to escape with their lives. The Premier, Sir Thomas Playford, also narrowly escaped death, sheltering with five other men in a patch of hoed earth near Cherryville. [5] The burnt area was estimated at as much as 160,000 hectares (600 sq mi) stretching from One Tree Hill to Strathalbyn;[1] however, other sources put the area at closer to 39,000 hectares (150 sq mi). [2]
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Fire
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Three weeks that changed the world
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It was the year the neo-liberal economic orthodoxy that ran the world for 30 years suffered a heart attack of epic proportions. Not since 1929 has the financial community witnessed 12 months like it. Lehman Brothers went bankrupt. Merrill Lynch, AIG, Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, HBOS, Royal Bank of Scotland, Bradford & Bingley, Fortis, Hypo and Alliance & Leicester all came within a whisker of doing so and had to be rescued. Western leaders, who for years boasted about the self-evident benefits of light-touch regulation, had to sink trillions of dollars to prevent the world bank system collapsing. The ramifications of the Banking Collapse of 2008 will be felt for years if not decades to come. Here, Observer writers pick out the three pivotal weeks that shaped a year of unforgettable and remarkable events. Week one: 9-15 March For the first two months of the year, there was an eerie calm. By the end of February, all was quiet save for global banks routinely updating queasy investors over the tens of billions of dollars they had lost by fuelling the madness we now know as the debt catastrophe. At the start of the year, a global economic meltdown still seemed unimaginable to many. Even Rupert Murdoch's economic brain Irwin Stelzer refused to countenance that the financial world was spinning off its axis, suspending judgment until a $150bn tax rebate by George Bush announced in January - equivalent to $1,000 for every American household - worked its way through the system. If by May that didn't stem a freefall in US consumer confidence, rising unemployment and plunging house prices, then he argued, perhaps we were in trouble. But, during the first two months of the year, a lingering belief remained that perhaps the vicious economic hurricane might blow itself out before it hit the real world. That changed during the week beginning 9 March, seven days in which the real storm broke and swept away some of the biggest and most revered names in international finance. It began on Sunday evening with an unbelievable personal fall from grace and ended with the most spectacular American banking collapse seen in decades. Late that night, Eliot Spitzer, New York governor and the scourge of Wall Street banks, called his closest aides. The former New York attorney-general, who did more than anyone to prosecute bulge-bracket banks following the scandalous fin de siècle ramping up of internet stocks, admitted he had been caught on a wire tap confirming plans to a young woman to join him in a private room at the so-called Emperors' Club where New York's wealthy elite bed prostitutes. As the once proud defender of the people against the excesses of capitalism sank into the quicksand, financial storm clouds swiftly gathered overhead. The following day, Blackstone Group, manager of the world's biggest buyout fund, revealed it had suffered a 90 per cent profit drop during its fourth quarter. Headed by New York society figure Stephen Schwarzman, Blackstone perhaps more than any firm exemplified the gung-ho leverage mania. In January, it was one of a small consortium of private equity firms that gambled $31.3bn to buy the world's biggest casino company, Harrah's. Blackstone spent hundreds of billions of dollars on consumer and leisure firms as well as the betting on the latest investment craze: clean technology. Now its strategy was unravelling, placing the businesses it bought in serious jeopardy. In Britain house-builder Bovis meekly warned that unless there was an urgent cut in interest rates, the property market would collapse. It was a message the Bank of England failed to heed until much later. On Tuesday, there was blind panic on Wall Street. The US Federal Reserve injected $236bn (then, £117bn; now £152bn following the pound's collapse) into the American banking system. Few asked the question: would it be enough? Other central banks followed and Citigroup, the world's biggest bank, was forced to forked out £1bn to bail out six of its hedge funds. A process that would bring Wall Street and the world's banking system to its knees had begun. It meant that when Alistair Darling, in his first Budget, said the UK was well placed to withstand the effects of US turbulence, no one quite believed him. Darling's speech, in which he downgraded his growth forecasts, raised taxes and admitted the UK economy faced its biggest slowdown since Labour came to power, was effectively blown out of the water. If there was hope that perhaps Thursday would bring a sense of calm, more news from America shattered that illusion. The most revered name in private equity, and for many an extension of American foreign policy, the Carlyle Group, admitted that one of its funds could not repay its debt. For every $1 of equity, the $22bn Carlyle Capital Corporation fund was leveraged with $32 of loans. In other words, it toppled over under the weight of unsustainable debt. That day, the price of gold reached a record, trading at $1,000 an ounce. CCC's demise would not be the last big-name casualty. In fact we had to wait just one day for the next one. As rumours over the health of Wall Street's fifth-largest investment bank prompted clients to pull their cash out of the institution, on Friday morning, New York time, Bear Stearns received an emergency bail-out from the Fed and JP Morgan Chase. It was America's Northern Rock moment. One of Wall Street's biggest names had all but gone under. Global equities dived. Venezuela opened oil contracts in euros to hedge against the dollar - a canny investment strategy - and the market started fearing for other big names. They would not have to wait very long. NM Week two: 14-20 September On Sunday Federal Reserve and US Treasury officials met at the central bank's lower Manhattan base to hold tense talks with the chairmen of the biggest investment banks in the world. The goal was to secure a saviour for Lehman Brothers, America's fourth largest bank, ahead of the opening of Asian markets that evening. There was just one problem. Hank Paulson, the former Goldman Sachs chief who was US Treasury Secretary, refused to sweeten a Barclays or Bank of America takeover of Lehman's with public money. The two suitors edged away. Lehman had spent the last five years amassing a huge commercial property loan book. It was a kingpin in securitising sub-prime debt. Its abrasive chairman and chief executive, Dick Fuld, had attempted to finesse a merger with the Korean Development Bank. But the Koreans walked. Meanwhile Ken Lewis, Bank of America's boss, that night concluded a lightning-fast deal to take over Merrill Lynch. So began one of the most tumultuous weeks ever seen on Wall Street. Glued to their BlackBerrys all weekend for the latest news, Lehman's 5,000 London staff turned up to work on Monday to find administrators from PricewaterhouseCoopers handing out leaflets at reception. They announced that their employer was bankrupt. Lehman's London traders found they could not do business with counter-parties. New York had sucked the money back to base. London had been cut adrift. As the day continued, staff left Lehman's Docklands HQ carrying their belongings in boxes. The building became a stop on the London tourist trail. That morning Chancellor Alistair Darling knew the Lehman effect would ripple far and wide. He held fraught talks with the Financial Services Authority's then chairman, Callum McCarthy, and Gordon Brown. Uppermost in their minds was concern over HBOS, the UK's biggest mortgage seller. That evening, Brown steered Lloyd TSB chairman Victor Blank into a quiet corner during a party. The prime minister said he would waive competition law to allow Lloyds to take over HBOS. On Tuesday morning, Darling, McCarthy and Bank of England governor Mervyn King met to review the crisis. They decided HBOS directors had to be told that 'soldiering on wouldn't do'. Meanwhile, on the other side of the Atlantic, Ben Bernanke, the US Fed chief, was in a corner. The world's biggest insurance company, AIG, had seen its stock market value collapse. There were fears that if the firm, sponsor of Manchester United, were to go under it would bring the world banking system down. This was because AIG had transformed itself from a boring insurance company into one at the vanguard of the new credit default swap market. AIG was in the business of insuring leveraged debt just at the time when the financial system was on a precipice. Bernanke knew that, unlike Lehman Brothers, he could not let AIG fail. He announced an $85bn (£46bn) emergency loan. It would not be the last time AIG got help. In London, by Tuesday night, it was clear that HBOS was about to become the biggest UK victim of the financial crisis. Journalists became aware that both Lloyds and HSBC were prepared to step in. On Wednesday morning, Gordon Brown became concerned that savers in HBOS would be spooked by relentlessly negative headlines. He asked the FSA to put out a statement saying that the former building society was 'well capitalised'. Minutes later BBC reporter Robert Peston pushed out the story that Lloyds was buying HBOS. On Thursday, a shattered-looking Andy Hornby, the HBOS chief executive announced the deal with his Lloyds counterpart. For now, attention swung back to Wall Street. Rumours circulated that Goldman Sachs might be in trouble. So worried did regulators become that they slapped a temporary ban on short-selling of financial stocks to prevent shares falling further. The week ended with Hank Paulson unveiling an audacious plan to inject hundreds of billions of dollars of taxpayers' money to buy up toxic assets.NM Week three: 5-11 October On Sunday, German chancellor Angela Merkel got the week off to an acrimonious start by promising to guarantee the accounts of all her countrymen's savers, destroying efforts to build a European concensus on a rescue strategy. The next day, more than £90bn was wiped off the value of Britain's companies in the City's worst day of trading since Black Monday in 1987. Gordon Brown promised to do 'whatever it takes' to halt the panic. But that was only the start of a nerve-shattering week, in which the world's financial system came closer to absolute collapse than at any time since the 1930s. Businesses up and down the country would later insist that in October, everything, 'fell off a cliff'; and this was the week it began. For Brown, it started with the first meeting of his National Economic Council - a gathering of senior ministers, styled as a war cabinet for the credit crunch. But not far away in the City, as rumours swirled around of an emergency taxpayer-backed rescue for Britain's battered banks, shares were plunging, losing almost 8 per cent of their value by the time the markets had closed. A month after the ignominious collapse of Lehman Brothers, investors remained gripped by stomach-churning vertigo: the bankruptcy of the Wall Street giant forced traders everywhere to think the unthinkable - no firm, however venerable, was too good to fail. In fact, plans for a bail-out were still sketchy; but the markets impose a timetable all of their own, and as the sell-off intensified, Treasury officials worked late into the night in Whitehall to fill in the details. Britain was far from alone in grappling with financial panic. Thousands of miles away in Reykjavik, the Icelandic government was rushing through an emergency bill to take control of its collapsing banks, and sending out feelers to the International Monetary Fund about a potential emergency loan, as the credit crunch plunged the overheated Icelandic economy deep into the red. By Wednesday, Brown and Alistair Darling were ready to announce their £50bn bank bail-out. The day began with a 5am crisis meeting at Number 11 Downing Street to put the final touches to the 'recapitalisation' that Brown would then urge the rest of the world to emulate. At 19 minutes to 12, as Brown prepared for his first prime minister's questions since parliament's summer recess, his phone rang: it was Mervyn King, informing the prime minister that interest rates would be cut by half a percentage point, at noon, in a move co-ordinated with central banks around the world. Like Brown, King had at times seemed caught on the back foot by the mounting financial and economic crisis of the summer and early autumn; but the Bank, too, was now ready to gallop into action. For Britain's borrowers, it marked the beginning of an unprecedented period of reductions, bringing rates down to 2 per cent, with another cutting spree expected in the New Year. The scale of October's internationally co-ordinated cut was unprecedented; but still the markets plunged. Across the Atlantic, Hank Paulson, who was now in charge of America's response to the crisis, was desperately attempting to reassure millions of anxious voters that their savings were safe, in the face of scepticism from the financial markets about his $700bn 'Troubled Asset Relief Programme,' aimed at using taxpayers' cash to buy up toxic assets from endangered Wall Street institutions. Also on Wednesday, the IMF kicked off its annual meeting in Washington with a warning that the world economy faced a painfully tough year. The next day, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the IMF's managing director, said he had prepared a $200bn war chest to lend to governments driven to financial crisis by the crunch, and could make cash available to struggling countries within a fortnight. By Friday, as haggard-looking finance ministers from the G7 club of wealthy nations flew to Washington, the world's financial system was on the brink of disaster. Communiques from G7 finance ministers' meetings are usually several waffly pages long, with the pet subjects of different member-countries covered in carefully diplomatic language; but this time, they knew they had to offer some reassurance to a petrified financial world.
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Financial Crisis
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2007 Jakarta flood
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The 2007 Jakarta flood was a major flood in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia and affected several other areas around the city, such as West Java and Banten. The flood, beginning on February 2, 2007 was a result of heavy rain, deforestation in areas south of the city, and waterways clogged with debris. [2] The flood is considered the worst in the last three centuries, including the 1996 and 2002 Jakarta floods, which killed 10 and 25 people respectively. [3]
The final official death toll was 80. [4]
The most significant reason of the disaster is the high rate of rain, since the rainy season in Indonesia starts in December and ends in March. In 2007, the rain intensity reached its peak in February, with the greatest intensity towards the end of the month. [5]
Uncontrolled population growth in urban areas, poor land use planning, and the lack of understanding among city residents and government about floods and its disaster risk are key factors in Jakarta's situation. [6] Eventually, water flowing into Jakarta overflows some of the city's flood control systems and causes devastation in these areas. The flood affected 80 separate regions in and around Jakarta, and over 70,000 homes were flooded, resulting in the displacement of some 500,000 people. [7][8] There was a high level of illness, with 1,066 patients treated by hospitals due to diarrhea and 329 due to dengue fever. [7] The flood has caused Rp 8 trillion (US$879.12 million) in losses. [9] Approximately 190,000 people were affected by flood related illnesses. [10] The nature of the flood in which it extends from riverbanks to surrounding areas has caused the lower-class communities, many of which live on the riverbanks themselves in wooden houses, to take the strongest impact of the flood. HOPE worldwide distributed 5 metric ton (11,000 lbs) of food, water, medicines, clean up kits to 10,000 people. [7][11]
As of March 7, another 5 metric tons had arrived in Jakarta ready for distribution. [7] The total aid cost is expected to be $239,556 to benefit over 55,000 people. [7] So far, 10% has been committed by organisations such as McDonald's, Heart to Heart International and IOM. [7]
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Floods
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2009 Manaus Aerotáxi crash
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The Manaus Aerotáxi crash occurred in the state of Amazonas in Brazil on February 7, 2009. [2] At 13:50 local time, a Manaus Aerotáxi Embraer EMB-110P1 Bandeirante twin turboprop, registration PT-SEA, operating as an air taxi flight from Coari (SWKO) to Manaus (SBEG), crashed into the Manacapuru River about 80 kilometers (50 mi) southwest of its destination, killing the two crew and 22 of the 26 passengers on board. [2][3][4] The four surviving passengers, who were seated in the rear, managed to escape the sinking plane and swim safely to shore. [5] Among the passengers were eight small children of whom one survived, and a family of 17, two of whom survived. [2][3][6][7]
The Embraer EMB-110P1 Bandeirante twin turboprop aircraft, registration PT-SEA and serial number 110352, was carrying twenty-eight people, though it was certificated for twenty-one. [2][4] Shortly before the crash, the pilot reportedly attempted to turn back to Coari due to heavy rainfall, but then had to make an emergency landing in the Manacapuru River, a tributary of the Amazon located between Santo Antonio[disambiguation needed] and Montecristo[disambiguation needed]. [2][6] Survivors said they saw one of the airplane's propellers stop rotating before the crash. [7]
The plane plunged into the river at a point about 500 meters from an abandoned runway, and 20 minutes away from its intended destination Manaus, and it submerged to a depth of about five to seven meters. The four survivors (three adults and one nine-year-old child), who were sitting at the rear of the plane, managed to open an emergency exit and reach the surface; they did not suffer major injuries. [3]
Nearly forty rescue workers, including nine scuba divers and civil defense officials, spent the night searching through the jungle for survivors. [6] Rescue crews were able to recover all twenty-four bodies; all deaths were attributed to drowning. [8] The victims were fifteen adult passengers, seven children, and the two crew members. [3]
The newspaper Folha de S.Paulo reported that the plane was packed with members of one family on their way to Manaus to celebrate the birthday of a relative. [7] Fifteen of the fatal victims and two survivors belonged to this family. [3] Paulo Roberto Pereira, a spokesman for the charter company involved, initially misreported the number of people on board, saying that there had been twenty-two passengers and two crew members aboard but later increased that figure to twenty-six passengers and two crew members. [6]
Brazil's Aeronautical Accidents Investigation and Prevention Center (CENIPA) investigated the crash, and issued its final report on July 30, 2010. CENIPA concluded that the twin engine turboprop aircraft took off overweight, and its left engine failed while en route. Unable to maintain level flight on a single engine in its overweight condition, the aircraft crashed while attempting to execute an emergency landing. [1][9]
According to CENIPA, the aircraft departed Coari weighing 549.7 kg above its maximum certificated takeoff weight, with 28 persons on board, including two crew and 26 passengers, while the aircraft was certificated for a maximum of two crew and 19 passengers. There were only 18 passenger seats installed in the aircraft, so eight passengers traveled as "lap children", a situation CENIPA called "inconsistent with reality" (situação que não condizia com a realidade). [1] CENIPA noted that when the pilot in command contacted Amazonic Center air traffic control by radio, he reported 20 persons on board, instead of the actual 28. [10]
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Air crash
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Qantas Flight 30 crash
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Qantas Flight 30 (QF30, QFA30), on 25 July 2008, operated by Qantas Boeing 747-438, construction number 25067, registration VH-OJK, was a scheduled flight from London Heathrow to Melbourne with a stopover in Hong Kong. The flight was interrupted on the Hong Kong leg by an exploding oxygen tank that ruptured the fuselage just forward of the starboard wing root. [5] 53-years-old Captain John Francis Bartels (who was flying for Qantas for 25 years and the Royal Australian Navy for 7 years) and his co-pilots, Bernd Werninghaus and Paul Tabac, made an emergency descent to a breathable altitude of about 10,000 feet and diverted to Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Metro Manila, Philippines. There were no injuries. The flight left Hong Kong on 25 July 2008 shortly after 9:00 am HKT (0100 UTC). [6] At 10:17 HKT (0217 UTC), passengers and crew heard a loud bang; the cabin depressurised and a hole in the floor of the passenger deck appeared, as well as a hole in the outside wall of the cargo deck. [7] During the emergency, parts of the aircraft's floor and ceiling collapsed. [8] Passengers reported that, despite the noise and the deployment of the oxygen masks, there was very little panic. [9] The pilots conducted an emergency descent from 29,000 feet to ensure adequate oxygen supply for the passengers, reaching 10,000 feet by 10:24 HKT (02:24 UTC). [7][10]
After the accident, four passengers said that their oxygen masks did not deploy, whilst others had deteriorated elastic. [11][12]:53 It was stated that these passengers were deprived of oxygen until the plane had descended to a breathable altitude. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau interviewed passengers who reported problems with the oxygen masks as part of their investigation. [2]
The hole in the fuselage – roughly in an inverted T-shape – was up to 2.01 m wide and approximately 1.52 m high, located on the right side of the fuselage, below cabin floor level and immediately forward of the wing. The wing-fuselage fairing was missing, revealing some palletised cargo in the hold. However, the freight forwarder reported that all items on the manifest were accounted for. Other than some items which were located near the cylinder and resulting hole, no other cargo or baggage on the flight was damaged. [7]
There were no injuries. [12]:3[13] A few passengers reportedly displayed signs of nausea upon exiting the aircraft. [14]
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) led the investigation, sending four investigators to Manila to conduct a detailed inspection of the aircraft, with Qantas, the US Federal Aviation Administration, Boeing, the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority and the Philippines Civil Aviation Authority also involved. [2][8][15][16][17]
Soon after the accident, the ATSB announced that air safety investigators found that an oxygen cylinder which was located in the area of the explosion had not been accounted for, but that it was too early to say that an oxygen cylinder could be the cause of the mid-air explosion on QF30. Regardless, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority ordered Qantas to inspect all of its oxygen cylinders and brackets which hold the cylinders on its Boeing 747 fleet. [2][18][19] The valve and mounting brackets were found, but not the bottle, number four of thirteen fitted in that bank. [20] A senior investigator, Neville Blyth, reported that the cylinder valve was found inside the cabin, having punched a hole "at least twenty centimetres in diameter" through the cabin floor. [21]
Blyth said that the flight recorders were to be analysed in the Canberra laboratories of the ATSB. [22] However, because the plane had remained airborne and operational throughout the incident, the cockpit voice recorder does not contain records of the initial event itself; its two-hour memory had been overwritten with recordings taking place after this event, during the diversion and landing. The twenty-four-hour flight data recorder does contain data covering the entire incident. [23][24][25]
On 29 August, the ATSB gave an update confirming further aspects of the initial investigation. They stated that these initial investigations had found that the aircraft took about five and a half minutes to descend from the decompression event at 29,000 feet to the altitude of 10,000 feet and that it appeared that part of an oxygen cylinder and its valve had entered the passenger cabin, then impacted with the number 2 right door handle, turning it part way. The ATSB noted that there was no risk of the door being opened by this movement, with the door systems performing as designed. All three of the aircraft's instrument landing systems as well as the anti-skid braking system were unavailable for the landing; the pilots subsequently landed the aircraft without using those systems. Most of the oxygen masks deployed in the incident, with 426 out of the 476 deployed being activated by the 346 passengers, pulling them down to activate the flow of oxygen. [26]
The cause of the accident was an exploding oxygen tank in the cargo area, according to a preliminary finding by the ATSB:[27]
After clearing the baggage and cargo from the forward aircraft hold, it was evident that one passenger oxygen cylinder (number-4 from a bank of seven cylinders along the right side of the cargo hold) had sustained a sudden failure and forceful discharge of its pressurised contents into the aircraft hold, rupturing the fuselage in the vicinity of the wing-fuselage leading edge fairing. The cylinder had been propelled upward by the force of the discharge, puncturing the cabin floor and entering the cabin adjacent to the second main cabin door. The cylinder had subsequently impacted the door frame, door handle and overhead panelling, before falling to the cabin floor and exiting the aircraft through the ruptured fuselage. Oxygen masks that were deployed after the blast failed to function properly. Some passengers were forced to share a mask when the Qantas Boeing 747 ran into trouble, while others panicked when they failed to open. [11] The FAA had recently issued airworthiness directives regarding problems with the masks on this and several other Boeing commercial aircraft models. [28]
The ATSB issued two Safety Advisory Notices, advising responsible organisations to review procedures, equipment, techniques and personnel qualifications for maintenance, inspection and handling of aviation oxygen cylinders. [29][30]
Just over two years after the incident, the final report of the event was released on 22 November 2010. [12]
From the summary released by the ATSB:
"On 25 July 2008, a Boeing Company 747-438 aircraft carrying 369 passengers and crew rapidly depressurised following the forceful rupture of one of the aircraft's emergency oxygen cylinders in the forward cargo hold. The aircraft was cruising at 29,000 ft and was 55 minutes into a flight between Hong Kong and Melbourne." "Following an emergency descent to 10,000 ft, the flight crew diverted the aircraft to Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Manila, Philippines, where it landed safely. None of the passengers or crew sustained any physical injury." "A team of investigators, led by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) and including representatives from the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the US Federal Aviation Authority (FAA), Boeing and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) examined the aircraft on the ground in Manila. From that work, it was evident that the oxygen cylinder (number-4 in a bank along the right side of the forward cargo hold) had burst in such a way as to rupture the adjacent fuselage wall and be propelled upwards; puncturing the cabin floor and impacting the frame and handle of the R2 door and the overhead cabin panelling. No part of the cylinder (other than the valve assembly) was recovered and it was presumed lost from the aircraft during the depressurisation." "The ATSB undertook a close and detailed study of the cylinder type, including a review of all possible failure scenarios and an engineering evaluation of other cylinders from the same production batch and of the type in general. It was evident that the cylinder had failed by bursting through, or around the base – allowing the release of pressurised contents to project it vertically upwards. While it was hypothesised that the cylinder may have contained a defect or flaw, or been damaged in a way that promoted failure, there was no evidence found to support such a finding. Nor was there any evidence found to suggest the cylinders from the subject production batch, or the type in general, were in any way predisposed to premature failure."
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Air crash
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Taliban takeover of Afghanistan increases investment risk for Russia, Central Asia
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Updated 14:47 September 9, 2021 Taliban takeover of Afghanistan increases investment risk for Russia, Central Asia By New Europe Online/KG epa05178099 A former Taliban militant holds his weapon before handing over to officials during a reconciliation ceremony in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, 24 February 2016. A group of twenty four former Taliban militants on 24 February laid down their arms in Jalalabad and joined the peace process. Under an amnesty launched by the former President Hamid Karzai and backed by the US in November 2004, hundreds of anti-government militants have so far surrendered to the government. The Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan has sparked new fears that Islamic extremism will take hold in the country, Chris Weafer, co-founder of Macro-Advisory in Moscow, wrote in a note to investors. “Moscow's long-standing fear of instability on its southern borders is the primary factor in its calculations with Kabul. That depends on the ability of the Central Asian nations bordering Afghanistan -- Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan – to defend their borders and keep radical Islamic fig... This story is part of New Europe's Premium content.
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Regime Change
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KPD investigate a shooting near downtown Killeen
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Police are investigating a possible shooting near the Motel 7 in downtown Killeen, 729 E. Veterans Memorial Blvd.
Madeline Oden | Herald
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A man suffering a gunshot wound near downtown Killeen Wednesday was airlifted, police said.
At approximately 2:09 p.m., police responded to a 911 call referring to “shots heard” in the 500 block of Avenue G behind the Motel 7 on East Veterans Memorial Boulevard. Upon arrival, officers were told that there was a male victim suffering from a gunshot wound at Central Fire Station, which was near the scene.
The man was airlifted to Baylor Scott & White Medical in Temple, and his condition was “unknown,” Killeen Police Department spokeswoman Ofelia Miramontez said Wednesday evening.
“Detectives with the Violent Crimes Unit are currently investigating and we believe this was an isolated incident.” Miramontez said in an email to the Herald.
Responding officers were also investigating the area surrounding the nearby Motel 7 after the shooting.
Diana San Fillipo, who lives across the street from the scene, told a Herald reporter that she heard the shots while she was working from home.
“I was on the phone with a customer and all of a sudden I heard a ‘pow, pow, pow, pow,’ and I had to pause and was like ‘Were those fireworks or gunshots?’” she said. “Knowing that I heard it and that it’s right outside across the street... it’s scary.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact the police department or the Bell County Crime Stoppers at 254-526-8477. Police released no further information.
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Famous Person - Commit Crime - Investigate
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School closure, opening decisions for Wednesday, Sept. 15
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As rains from Tropical Storm Nicholas move through Acadiana, school districts are updating on openings/closures. Below is a list of decisions from school districts for Wednesday, September 14. We have reached out to each district and will update this list with information as we receive it. ACADIA PARISH The Acadia Parish School System will be open Wednesday, September 15th. We will continue to monitor weather conditions overnight and announce any changes - if needed - as early as we possibly can in the morning. Students that have difficulty getting to school due to any reasons associated with the weather will be excused. CALCASIEU PARISH All Calcasieu Parish schools and facilities will be open Wednesday, September 15. All SOWELA campuses were closed Tuesday, September 14, in preparation for Tropical Storm Nicholas. For official updates, students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to follow SOWELA.edu. If assistance is needed, contact info@SOWELA.edu. All SOWELA Technical Community College campuses will be open on Wednesday, September 15. If students, faculty, or staff need assistance, please contact the College at info@sowela.edu. EVANGELINE PARISH Evangeline Parish Schools and District offices will be closed on Wednesday, September 15. According to Superintendent Darwan Lazard, the closure is due to flooded roads and road closures in the parish from Nicholas. Schools will implement remote learning where possible, he says. Sacred Heart School in Ville Platte is also closed Wednesday due to road closures. IBERIA PARISH Iberia Parish Public Schools will have remote learning on Wednesday, September 15. JEFF DAVIS PARISH All Jeff Davis Parish Schools/Offices will be open on Wednesday, September 15, 2021. We understand that there will be low-lying areas where excessive water prevents buses from passing or parents from being able to transport students to school. Students in this situation will be excused from school tomorrow as student safety is our primary concern. All students who checked out Chromebooks from the school are expected to return Chromebooks tomorrow. Students unable to get to school tomorrow are strongly encouraged to continue to participate in virtual learning. In these cases, Chromebooks will return to school when students return. LAFAYETTE PARISH All Lafayette Parish schools and facilities will be open on Wednesday, September 15, 2021. As a precaution, buses will not travel on roadways that appear to have high water levels because drivers cannot accurately determine the depth of standing water. Based on your individual circumstances, parents and guardians may decide attendance is not best for your family at this time. If you feel conditions are not safe, you may choose to keep your student home. Carencro Catholic will be open on Wednesday, September 15. Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy will be open on Wednesday, September 15. Westminster Christian Academy will resume on-campus classes on Wednesday, September 15. Lafayette Christian Academy will reopen on Wednesday, September 15th. ST. LANDRY PARISH All St. Landry Parish schools and facilities will be open Wednesday, September 15, 2021. St. Landry Charter School will be closed Wednesday, Sept. 15 due to water damage. The school will resume classes on Thursday, Sept. 16. All JS Clark Leadership Academy - Opelousas schools and facilities will be open Wednesday, September 15. ST. MARTIN PARISH All St. Martin Parish Schools will be open Wednesday, September 15. ST. MARY PARISH All St. Mary Parish schools will open as scheduled on Wednesday, Sept. 15. VERMILION PARISH Vermilion Parish schools will be open Wednesday, September 15. It will be a full day, not a 1/2 Professional Development day as previously planned. Students will report all day. Leblanc Elementary and JH Williams Middle will be closed as they were previously scheduled to be closed all day for School Wide In-Service Vermilion Catholic will return to school Wednesday, September 15th. DIOCESE OF LAFAYETTE Due to weather, some Catholic schools in the Diocese of Lafayette will be closed on Wednesday, September 15: Catholic High in New IberiaSt. Edwards in New Iberia OTHER DECISIONS LSU Eunice will be open on Wednesday, September 15 for normal instruction and business hours. All South Louisiana Community College campuses will be open Wednesday, Sept. 15 and classes will be held as planned. If you are a student living in a low-lying area and can't attend class, please contact your instructors. If you are an employee who lives in a low-lying area and can't make it to work, please contact your supervisor.
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Organization Closed
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2 killed as gunmen rob bank in Osun
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TWO of the three persons shot, yesterday, by gunmen making their way out of Okuku community in Odo-Otin Local Government Area of Osun State after robbing a second generation bank in the town have been reported dead. It was gathered that the gunmen wielding different types of weapon shot sporadically to scare the residents, who scampered for safety, after robbing the bank. An eyewitness, Opeyemi Olayinka, who was using the bank’s ATM at the time of the attack, said no one knew robbers were operating until they shot into the air while leaving the scene. Osun State Oodua People’s Congress, OPC, Coordinator, Prince Deji Aladesawe, in a phone interview said members had been deployed to the area and working with the police to search for the fleeing suspects. He said: “We were alerted around 3:15 pm about the robbery, so we quickly deployed our members to the scene. “The armed robbers had successfully robbed the bank and escaped through a bush path to a town called Iba but OPC members with police are combing the forest areas. “I cannot confirm the numbers of casualties but I was told three persons were shot. But as I am talking with you our men are still in the forest.” Also, the state police spokesperson, Yemisi Opalola, who confirmed the incident, said the Commissioner of Police led a police team trailing the suspects after they had successfully robbed the bank. “It is true armed men robbed a bank in the area, but the Commissioner of Police, Olawale Olokode, led a team trailing the suspects and we are hopeful that they will be arrested and face prosecution,” she said.
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Bank Robbery
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10 Stories of Shipwrecks and the People Who Lived to Tell the Tale
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“Eleven hundred men went into the water. Vessel went down in 12 minutes. Didn’t see the first shark for about a half an hour.” Despite the dangers that come with seafaring, human beings can’t stay away. We’re drawn back to the ocean for travel, for riches, for sheer curiosity. And yet when mariners encounter these dangers, some have persevered against impossible odds. But in order to beat impossible odds, you have to do the seemingly impossible. Some trekked across frozen lands, navigated the treacherous expanse of the open ocean in nothing but a small boat, and some were left with no choice but to resort to cannibalism–but all of them survived. The story of the whaleship Essex is forever immortalized as the true story that partially inspired Herman Melville’s Moby Dick. The Essex and her crew had been experiencing a streak of bad luck even before they had their fateful encounter. The ship encountered a squall that nearly sank it, razed a Galápagos island while resupplying, and found the whale grounds where they’d meant to hunt fallow—prompting the risky decision to sail for the offshore whaling grounds located thousands of miles from the South American coast. It’s not certain what prompted the abnormally large sperm whale to attack the Essex—perhaps the sound of repairs had drawn its attention, maybe it had been harpooned before and was acting in self-defense. Whatever the reason, the whale rammed the Essex two times before swimming away and leaving the crew to their grim fate. The 20 men split across three small whaleboats, only two of which had any navigational instruments. After a month at sea, they made landfall on a small atoll where, after a week, they had depleted its meager resources. Though most of the remaining men decided to make for Easter Island, three chose to stay behind (and were eventually rescued). It only took a few days for their food supply to run out and, one by one, the whalers started to die. The remaining men reached the terrible conclusion that consuming the remains of the dead was the only chance they had at survival. The two remaining whaleboats, which had previously drifted apart, were rescued separately by passing vessels. Despite this unfathomably harrowing ordeal, all eight of the surviving men would resume their seafaring ways. Amid World War II, the British merchant ship, the SS Benlomond was struck by a German U-boat off the coast of Brazil. The ship sank in a matter of minutes but a steward, Poon Lim, managed to grab a life vest before jumping overboard. Lim would have the good luck of encountering a small wooden raft stocked with some supplies, including a biscuit tin, a flashlight, a jug of water, and a flashlight. But once those resources were depleted Lim had to get creative to survive. He collected rainwater for potable drinking water, a wire from the flashlight became a fishing hook, and a piece of the biscuit tin became a knife he used to cut open the fish that he caught. After 133 days at sea, he eventually drifted close enough to the coast that he was spotted and then rescued by Brazilian fishermen. Upon his return to the U.K., he was awarded the British Empire Medal by King George VI. Ships arriving in Liverpool after making trans-Atlantic voyages had come with warnings that the shipping lanes had become packed with ice. But Captain Alexander Kelley decided that the packet ship John Rutledge would set out to return to New York anyway. On the morning of February 20, 1856, the ship was gouged by ice. Captain Kelley ordered that the ship be abandoned with most of the passengers and crew getting into five lifeboats. The boats would quickly become separated. Four of which were never seen again. The occupants of the fifth boat had only a little water and hardtack for provisions. Desperate with thirst, most of the occupants turned to drinking seawater. All except Thomas Nye, a young sailor who hailed from an illustrious Cape Cod seafaring family. After nine days, Nye was the only surviving occupant of the lifeboat and was near death himself when he had the good luck to be spotted by a passing vessel and was rescued. In the summer of 1879, the Jeannette would set out from San Francisco in an attempt to reach the North Pole via a route through the Bering Strait. But after a couple of months at sea, the ship had become icebound. For nearly two years, the ship and her crew of 33 men would hardly move at all, until the hull was eventually pierced by ice and it sank off the coast of Siberia on June 13, 1881. The crew started the long, arduous journey across the ice with the goal of reaching the New Siberian Islands. While sailing in whaleboats, they would become separated by a storm. While some reached the rendezvous point of Bulun (a small settlement), the party lead by the expedition’s commanding officer, George W. De Long, wandered until—depleted of provisions—they died one by one. Of the 33 men that set out only 13 would return. Though the Neva would have the honor of being the first Russian ship to circumnavigate the globe in 1803, in less than a decade it would meet an unfortunate end off the coast of Alaska. In August of 1812, the ship left Okhotsk, Russia, bound for the city of Sitka. The ship reached Prince William Sound but ran aground and sank within a matter of hours. Thirty-two people died in the crash but 28 were able to make it to nearby Kruzof Island. The survivors set up a camp for a month before rescue arrived. “Eleven hundred men went into the water. Vessel went down in 12 minutes. Didn’t see the first shark for about a half an hour.” So begins the monologue Robert Shaw delivers in Jaws that would solidify the story of the USS Indianapolis in popular memory. On July 30, 1945, the heavy cruiser that had delivered the atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima, was struck by two torpedoes. With only a few lifeboats and a delay in rescue being deployed, the situation was dire, to say the least. Men died of exposure, killed each other, or were attacked by sharks. “We had a cargo net that had Styrofoam things attached to keep it afloat. There were about 15 sailors on this, and suddenly, 10 sharks hit it and there was nothing left,” said Eugene Morgan, one of the surviving crew. “This went on and on and on.” Though three naval stations had received the Indianapolis’ distress signal, none reacted to it. It would take four days for rescue to finally come in the form of seven naval ships. Of the 900 men that survived the initial sinking, only 316 would make it out of the water. It was meant to be the first land crossing of Antarctica, but the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, conceived of by explorer Ernest Shackleton, was cut short when their ship, the Endurance, became trapped in an ice floe. Months later, the breaking up of the ice only worsened the ship’s condition. Shackleton ordered that the crew abandon the ship and make camp on the ice, and a month later the Endurance disappeared beneath the water completely. The crew made a treacherous journey across the open water to Elephant Island. The island, however, was remote—even by Antarctic standards—meaning it was basically impossible for a passing ship to discover them. Shackleton and five other men set out in a 20-foot lifeboat for the island of South Georgia with the intent of sending rescue back for the remaining men. Miraculously, after an incredibly perilous journey that included riding out hurricane-force winds and trekking 32 miles across dangerous terrain, they did exactly that. After surviving on the desolate island for four and a half months, all 22 men were rescued (with Shackleton himself aboard one of the rescue boats, of course). In 1866, the General Grant set sail from Melbourne en route to London. However, a little over two weeks into the voyage, the ship ran into cliffs on one of the Auckland Islands and then drifted into a cave where the mast slammed against the roof of the cave, driving a hole into the ship’s hull. Though there were boats that would have allowed for the passengers and crew to escape, the lack of a good place for a landing, rising swell, and the speed with which the ship was sinking made it incredibly difficult to get people off the ship. Of the 83 people on board, only 15 would make it off. The survivors made for Disappointment Island and then Port Ross. Four of the survivors attempted to reach New Zealand by setting off in one of the boats without any navigational equipment—they were never found. The remaining survivors moved to another one of the Auckland Islands where they survived until a passing ship that had seen their signals rescued them in November of 1867. The Princess of Wales cutter set out on a seal-hunting voyage when, in 1821, it wrecked near the Crozet Islands. After months and months, the survivors were rescued by an American schooner. The crew of the Princess of Wales agreed to help the Americans on a seal hunt but a dispute arose and 10 members of the Princess of Wales crew opted to be left behind on St. Paul Island rather than continue on with their American rescuers. It’s one thing to survive the most notorious shipwreck of all time—let alone two more for good measure. In September 1911, Violet Jessop was working as a stewardess on the luxury ship the RMS Olympic when it collided with a British warship. Thankfully, the Olympic didn’t sink and everyone on board survived. But it turned out this was just a warm-up for what would come just half a year later. Jessop was once again working as a stewardess on a luxury liner. A magnificent ship that had been named the RMS Titanic. When the ship struck an iceberg on April 10, 1912, Jessop made it onto one of the lifeboats and was among the survivors rescued by the Carpathia. In 1916, she was working as a stewardess again, this time for the Red Cross on board the HMHS Britannic when the ship hit a mine and started to sink. Jessop survived by jumping out of her lifeboat when she saw that other boats were being drawn into the sinking ship’s propeller. Despite all this, she continued to work for various shipping lines throughout her life.
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Shipwreck
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Dabwali fire accident
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The Dabwali fire accident occurred on 23 December 1995 at Mandi Dabwali, a town in Sirsa district, Haryana in India. The incident occurred at the Rajiv Marriage Palace in Dabwali, where the local DAVPublic School was holding its annual prize distribution function. [1] A synthetic tent, which had been set up inside the building, caught alight when an electric generator short-circuited. The fire spread quickly and blocked the main entrance; many of the deaths were caused by the resultant stampede as 1,500 people tried to escape through the single exit door. At least 400 people died in the fire, and another 160 were injured, half of them with serious burns. [2] Some sources estimate that up to 540 people were killed, 170 of them being children and the rest adults. [3]
Dabwali Civil Hospital was unable to cope with the number of casualties, so many of the burn victims were sent to nearby towns for treatment. The Christian Medical College in Ludhiana received thirty-two patients, despite having only a six-bed burn unit and inadequate resources. [4] An angry crowd of 5,000 mourners gathered on the streets of Dabwali, deriding the emergency facilities and blocking the police from taking bodies away for cremation. [5]
In January 2003, a one-man commission was set up to investigate the incident, and to calculate the amount of compensation owed to the families of the victims. The commission, headed by Justice TP Garg, demanded numerous extensions and took over six years to conclude its report. [6] Compensation was eventually set at Rs 18cr (3.9 million USD$,2003), although in November 2009 the Punjab and Haryana High Court increased the amount to Rs 34cr (7.4 million USD$,2003), and added an extra 6% interest to make up for the delay. [7] The money was to be jointly supplied by the DAV trust and the Haryana government, and shared among the families of 446 victims. However, the DAV appealed against the decision, claiming that the amount was excessive, and that the school should not be responsible for compensating the families. [8] The court replied that they hadn’t carried out adequate fire safety checks, and directed them to pay an interim compensation of Rs 10cr(2.2 million USD$, 2003) before the appeal could be heard. [9]
Members of the Dabwali Fire Victims Association, formed by the survivors and the families of the dead, feel that not enough has been done to ensure that the tragedy will never be repeated. They claim that after sixteen years, the necessary fire safety regulations have still not been put in place. [1] They have also expressed disappointment that the government’s promises of a new 100-bed hospital and burn treatment centre have yet to be fulfilled. [10]
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Fire
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Sand Fire (2016)
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The Sand Fire was a wildfire in 2016 that burned in the Angeles National Forest, east of the Santa Clarita Valley in Los Angeles County, California. [2] The fire, named for the area's Sand Canyon, was fueled by heavy chaparral and brush. [3]
The fire started around 2:10 p.m. on July 22, 2016 near the intersection Soledad Canyon Road and Sand Canyon Road. [4] By 10 P.M., less than 8 hours after it was reported, the fire had burned at least 3,300 acres (13 km2). [2] At the time the fire broke out, temperatures were over 110 °F (43 °C) with sustained winds of 15 miles per hour (24 km/h) gusting up to 25 miles per hour (40 km/h). [2]
The Santa Clarita Valley remained under a Red flag warning throughout the 23rd with temperatures reaching 106 °F (41 °C) and sustained 10-mile-per-hour (16 km/h) winds. [citation needed] By the evening of Saturday July 23, the fire had grown to 20,000 acres (81 km2) with 10% containment. [citation needed] Mandatory evacuations had been issued for parts of Sand Canyon, Placerita Canyon, and Little Tujunga Canyon areas. [citation needed] Hundreds of birds and animals were also evacuated from the Wildlife WayStation sanctuary in Little Tujunga Canyon. [5]
Officials from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department confirmed Saturday night that a male's body had been found in the burn area. [6] The body, which was located on North Iron Canyon Road well within the mandatory evacuation area, was identified as Robert Bresnick, a 67-year-old man who had been visiting a friend in the area and had refused to evacuate. [7]
Sunday afternoon officials confirmed that Sable Ranch, a popular filming location, had been destroyed by the fire. [8] Popular shows including Maverick, The A-Team and 24 were all filmed at Sable Ranch. [8]
By Monday July 25, the fire had reach an estimated 35,155 acres (142.27 km2) with 40% of the perimeter contained. [9] Officials announced that at 7 p.m. most residents would be allowed to return home, with the exception of residents living on Placerita Canyon Road and Tujunga Canyon Road. [10]
Officials announced on August 3 that the fire was 100% contained after burning 41,432 acres (168 km2) of land[11]
According to the United States Forest Service, 3,379 firefighters were assigned to the fire which prompted the evacuation of at least 10,000 homes. [9] On Tuesday July 26, Los Angeles county declared a state of emergency, with over 37,000 acres (150 km2) burned. Acting Gov. Tom Torlakson, the state's top education official who was filling in while Gov. Jerry Brown attended the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, issued the emergency order, a move that helped quickly get aid to affected communities. [12]
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Fire
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Kew Gardens train crash
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The Kew Gardens train crash (also known as the Richmond Hill disaster) was a collision between two trains on the Long Island Rail Road's Main Line, which occurred during the evening rush hour of November 22, 1950. The trains collided between Kew Gardens and Jamaica stations in Kew Gardens, Queens, New York City, killing 78 people and injuring 363. The crash is the worst railway accident in LIRR history, and one of the worst in the history of New York State. [1]
An eastbound Hempstead-bound train consisting of 12 cars and carrying about 1,000 passengers left Pennsylvania Station at 6:09 p.m.[2][3] Its first stop was to be Jamaica station, but as it passed the Kew Gardens station, the train's engineer applied the air brakes to reduce speed to 15 miles per hour (24 km/h) in response to a "Go slow" signal. Once engaged, the brakes would not release, and the train halted. [2][4] While the engineer investigated the problem, the brakeman, traveling in the rear car, got out and held a red lantern to warn any train following, as per the regulations. He then heard the traction motors power; believing that the brakes were now working and that the train was about to depart, he turned off the lantern and re-boarded the rear car. He had not received a signal by the train's whistle to return to the train. The brakes were still locked on and the Hempstead-bound train remained where it was, in the dark, without any protection from the rear. [5][6]
Four minutes after the Hempstead train departed Penn Station, a train bound for Babylon station carrying 1,200 passengers departed Penn Station on the same track. When the Babylon train came around the bend 4,600 feet (1,400 m) behind the Hempstead train,[2][3] it slowed to 15 mph (24 km/h) in response to a "Go Slow" signal indicating congestion ahead. The engineer then saw the next signal beyond the stopped train, which showed "All Clear"; thinking that this applied to him he accelerated to 35 mph (56 km/h). [2][6]
Meanwhile, the brakeman on the Hempstead train signaled to his engineer that he was back aboard and the train could proceed, but he did not receive any response; he signaled again but the train stayed where it was. He prepared to get back onto the track when the Babylon train hit. Before he was killed the Babylon train's engineer applied the emergency brake but it was still travelling at 30 mph (48 km/h) when it collided with the stationary train. Neither train derailed; the impact pushed the stationary train forward 75 feet (23 m) and split its last car lengthwise as the front car of the Babylon train telescoped into it, shearing off the superstructure above the floor and driving the roof 15 feet (4.6 m) into the air. [5][2]
In the ensuing collision, 78 people were killed (including everyone aboard the last car of the Hempstead train, who were crushed by the impact of the Babylon train) and 363 were injured. One witness described the dead as "packed like sardines in their own blood". [5] A survivor recounted: "All I could see was parts of bodies, arms and legs protruding from the windows". [1] Many of those who survived the impact were trapped in the darkness, unable to move in the pileup of dead bodies, amidst the screams and wails of the dying. [7]
In the aftermath of the crash, all of the police detectives on duty in Queens were summoned to the site, as were 200 physicians coming from every hospital in the borough. Police and fire personnel cut through the wreckage with torches, and used ladders to allow doctors and nurses to provide medical aid for those trapped inside. [3] Emergency responders were also summoned from other boroughs. [8] It was more than five hours before the last people still alive were removed from the wreckage. [7]
A four-way investigation was quickly convened after the Kew Gardens collision. [9] The official cause of the crash was determined to be the disregard of the "Go Slow" signal by the Babylon train's engineer, who died in the crash. He had instead reacted to the "All Clear" signal half a mile ahead. The brakeman of the Hempstead train was also criticized for leaving his train unprotected during the critical moments. [10]
The accident happened only nine months after another crash involving LIRR trains at Rockville Centre killed 32 people. [11] The LIRR had suffered from years of underinvestment, as the cars involved in this crash were built during 1910 and their ages were typical of the fleet's as a whole. The New York Public Service Commission had prevented the LIRR from increasing fares between 1918 and 1947, despite the railroad's increased operating costs. At the time of the accident, the LIRR had already filed for bankruptcy reorganization. [5]
In an investigative report published in response to the crash, the Public Service Commission found that fatigue and a lack of proper crew procedures were elements in both the Rockville Centre and Kew Gardens crashes. The commission suggested six improvements that could be made to the LIRR, including signal improvements and automatic train control. [10] After the crash, the LIRR began a $6 million program to install Automatic Speed Control (ASC) on its tracks. [12] The first segment of ASC went into service in May 1951. [13] The Pennsylvania Railroad (the then-owner of the LIRR) terminated the bankruptcy and began a 12-year improvement program at a cost of $58 million. The LIRR was exempted from much of its tax burden and gained freedom to charge realistic fares. [5] Ultimately, the LIRR became reorganized as part of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which was formed to manage the LIRR and still operates it. [14]
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Train collisions
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2019 IIHF Women's World Championship Division I
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The 2019 IIHF Women's World Championship was an international Ice hockey tournament run by the International Ice Hockey Federation. It was contested in Espoo, Finland from 4 to 14 April 2019. [2]
The United States won their ninth title (and fifth consecutive) after a shootout win over Finland. [3] Canada claimed the bronze medal by defeating Russia 7–0. [4]
After the 2017 tournament, it was announced that tournament would expand to ten teams for 2019, having been played with eight teams since the first tournament in 1990, except in 2004, 2007, 2008, and 2009, where nine teams played. The 2004 edition featured nine teams when Japan was promoted from Division II but no team was relegated from the top division in 2003, due to the cancellation of the top division tournament in China because of the outbreak of the SARS disease. [5] Two teams were relegated from the top division in 2004, going back to eight teams for 2005, but due to the success of the 9-team pool in 2004, IIHF decided to expand again to nine teams for 2007. [6] Reverting to eight teams after the 2009 tournament. [7] To bring the tournament to ten teams, Czech Republic which had lost the 2017 Relegation Round, stayed in the top division. Joined by Division I Group A Champions, Japan (2017) and France (2018)
23 games were played in the main arena, while six games were played at a secondary rink. The ten teams were split into two groups according to their rankings. In Group A, all teams advanced to the quarterfinals and three teams from Group B advanced. The bottom two Group B teams were relegated. From the quarterfinals on, a knockout system was used. 12 referees and 10 linesmen are selected for the tournament. [8]
Each team's roster consists of at least 15 skaters (forwards, and defencemen) and 2 goaltenders, and at most 20 skaters and 3 goaltenders. All ten participating nations, through the confirmation of their respective national associations, had to submit a "Long List" roster no later than two weeks before the tournament. The schedule was released on 20 August 2018. [9][10]
All times are local (UTC+3). During the final between the United States and Finland, it appeared Finland had won 2–1 in overtime after a game-winning goal to win their first World Championship. [11] However, Finland celebrated on the ice before the Video Goal Judge initiated a video review. The goal was reviewed for over ten minutes and eventually overturned. The IIHF released a press statement the next day citing rules 186 and 183ii as the reasons for overturning the goal. [12] The United States went on to defeat Finland 2–1 in shootout. It was later announced that Finnish Ice Hockey Association would pay the Finnish team the bonus allotted for winning a gold medal, instead of the silver medal bonus. [13]
Source: IIHF.com
Source: IIHF.com
List shows the top skaters sorted by points, then goals. GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/− = Plus/Minus; PIM = Penalties in Minutes; POS = Position
Source: IIHF.com
Only the top five goaltenders, based on save percentage, who have played at least 40% of their team's minutes, are included in this list. TOI = Time on Ice (minutes:seconds); SA = Shots Against; GA = Goals Against; GAA = Goals Against Average; Sv% = Save Percentage; SO = Shutouts
Source: IIHF.com
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Sports Competition
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McConville went on to visit with Army Reserve Soldiers participating in a Combat Support Training Exercise
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The 40th Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army Gen. James McConville (left), Gen. Michael Garrett, Commanding General of U.S. Forces Command, and Brig. Gen. Maria Juarez, Deputy Commanding General - Support 88th Readiness Division ask questions during a cold weather training briefing by Hunter Heard on Aug. 11, at the Fort McCoy Garrison Headquarters. (U.S. Army Photo by Scott T. Sturkol. Public Affairs Office, Fort McCoy) The 40th Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army Gen. James McConville (left) and Lt. Gen. Jody Daniels, chief of the Army Reserve and commanding general, Army Reserve Command have a discussion during a briefing by Fort McCoy Garrison Commander Col. Michael Poss on Aug. 11, 2021, at the Fort McCoy (Wis.) Garrison Headquarters. The briefing was part of an official visit to the post by McConville. During his visit, McConville toured training through an aerial tour of the post, met with Soldiers and Airmen throughout the post, and more. It’s the first visit to the installation by the top Army military leader in recent history. Also participating in the briefing was Gen. Michael Garrett, U.S. Army Forces Command commanding general. (U.S. Army Photo by Scott T. Sturkol. Public Affairs Office, Fort McCoy) (From left) Brig. Gen. Maria Juarez, deputy commanding general-support with the 88th Readiness Division; the 40th Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army Gen. James McConville; Fort McCoy Garrison Commander Col. Michael Poss; Garrison Deputy Commander Lt. Col. Chad Maynard; and Deputy to the Garrison Commander Brad Stewart stop for a photo in front of Fort McCoy Garrison Headquarters on Aug. 11, as part of an official visit to the installation by McConville. During his visit, McConville toured training through an aerial tour of the post, met with Soldiers and Airmen throughout the post, and more. It’s the first visit to the installation by the top Army military leader in recent history. (U.S. Army Photo by Scott T. Sturkol. Public Affairs Office, Fort McCoy) U.S. Army Soldiers were seeing stars, and lots of them, while conducting annual training at Fort McCoy when Gen. James C. McConville, the 40th chief of staff of the Army, visited the post for the first time Aug. 11. As if four stars weren’t enough, McConville was also joined by Gen. Michael Garrett, commanding general, U.S. Army Forces Command; Lt. Gen. Jody Daniels, Chief of the Army Reserve and commanding general, U.S. Army Reserve Command; and Brig. Gen. Maria Juarez, deputy commanding general, 88th Readiness Division. The generals gathered for a morning briefing with garrison leadership that showcased the installation’s capabilities before departing on a tour of the training areas to see Soldiers in action. This was the first time in recent history that the Army’s top military leader visited Fort McCoy. It also followed a previous visit to the post by Army’s top enlisted leader — Sgt. Maj. of the Army Michael A. Grinston. While touring the 18th Field Hospital, which was participating in a Global Medic exercise, a Humvee arrived at the emergency department and a distraught Soldier fell to the ground, screaming for someone to help her injured military working dog. McConville watched as the Soldiers sprang into action to receive and triage the patients. Once stabilized, they worked with the veterinary detachment on site to determine further care. It was a national training scenario, of course, but bystanders would be hard-pressed to tell the Diesel Dog Manikin was not real as it panted and whimpered in pain. “Diesel” is one of the advanced simulation capabilities of Fort McCoy’s Regional Training Site-Medical, one of only three within the Army Reserve’s Medical Readiness Training Command. “The simulators (equipment, manikins, etc.) give a level of realism that cannot be captured with PowerPoint presentations, classroom discussions, or videos,” said Col. Amy Sanders, the deputy commanding officer of 1st Medical Training Brigade and a veterinary corps officer who served as the chief of the operations group for Global Medic. “A room full of Soldiers fighting back tears when they hear simulated cries is a very powerful and sobering experience.” Exercises like Global Medic test the units’ ability to execute their missions in a field environment, refine their skills and enhance their capabilities to sustain combat power. Sanders said operating in a mostly virtual training environment last year due to COVID-19 affected morale and readiness, but seeing senior leadership interested and involved helps the troops feel appreciated. “The time he spent with the group, which was well beyond what was scheduled, really drove home how much he cares about the well-being of the Soldiers, their concerns, and how much he appreciates their talents,” Sanders said. McConville went on to visit with Army Reserve Soldiers participating in a Combat Support Training Exercise and Diamond Saber, as well as with Airmen participating in Patriot Warrior 2021, an Air Force Reserve exercise. There were more than 4,100 service members at Fort McCoy between all four exercises during his visit. Fort McCoy’s mission is to strengthen Total Force readiness by serving as a training center, a Mobilization Force Generation Installation, and a strategic support area. McConville’s historic visit possibly emphasizes the importance of the post, the only Army installation in Wisconsin, and the essential role it plays in preparing the U.S. armed forces for large-scale combat operations in a multidomain operational environment. Fort McCoy’s motto is to be the “Total Force Training Center.” It is the only U.S. Army installation in Wisconsin. The installation has provided support and facilities for the field and classroom training of more than 100,000 military personnel from all services nearly every year since 1984. Governor Scott McCallum salutes Sergeant First Class Charles Zehner of the Wisconsin National Guard Second battalion 127th infantry based in Appleton, Wis. before presenting him with the Battalion Level Supply Excellence Award 200 during proceedings at the Governor's Day Review at Fort McCoy. Soldiers of the 1775th Military Police Company of the Michigan Army National Guard crawl under doors and windows while training at Fort McCoy's urban warfare complex. PETER THOMSON photo F-16 fighter jets fly over Fort McCoy during the Governor's Day Review ceremony. The annual Red Dragon chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear training excercise was held Saturday, Aug. 10, 2013, at Fort McCoy. Red Dragon is the Army Reserve's only CBRN training excercise. (Rory O'Driscoll/La Crosse Tribune) Staff Sgt. Aaron Brown, a member of the 458th Army Reserve Unit visits with his brother, Nick Brown, right, and his nephews, 2-week old Sawyer Brown and 14-month old Spencer Brown, at a send-off ceremony at the National Guard Armory in Onalaska, Wis. The 458th headed to Fort McCoy for training after the ceremony. PETER THOMSON photo Members of the 32nd Military Police Company are given a send off Tuesday, March 18, 2003 as they move on to Fort McCoy prior to overseas deployment. The noon hour event was at the Wisconsin National Guard Headquarters, 2400 Wright St., in Madison, Wis. Pvt. Courtney Pfad, 19, got support from her stepfather James Tsikretsis, left, and mother Karen Tsikretsis, of Fort Atkinson. WSJ photo/Joseph W. Jackson III PUBLISHED CAPTION 3-19-03 Courtney Pfad, 19, gets hugs Tuesday from her stepfather, James Tsikretsis, and her mother, Karyn Tsikretsis, before leaving Madison for Fort McCoy. Members of the 37th engineers out of Fort Bragg, N.C., parachute out of a C130 at Fort McCoy, Wis. The division is on it's way to Nicaragua to build schools and health care clinics in Operation New Horizons. Erik Daily Soldiers from the 829th Engineer Company listen to speakers during their deployment ceremony at Fort McCoy. The Wisconsin National Guard soldiers were heading to Afganistan to tear down buildings and recover unused equipment from past deployments. Lt. Colonel Bryan Much, Commander of the Wisconsin National Guard 1st Battalion, 126th Field Artillery gives visitors to Fort McCoy an overview of the base during a tour of annual training exercises Wednesday, Aug. 18, 1999. A sign warns motorists traveling at Fort McCoy that a tank crossing is approaching, Monday August 12, 2002 at Fort McCoy, Wis. Sgt. 1st Class Paul Honek, with the 229th Engineer Company, assigns soldiers their stations at the firing range at Fort McCoy. PETER THOMSON photo Steve McQuaid, Darlington, Wis., and his fiance, Jacque Lauer, Wyocena, are reunited at Volk Field. 150 soldiers from the Wisconsin Army National Guard's 32nd Military Police Company returned from Iraq Friday, July 23, 2004, at Volk Field near Fort McCoy, Wis. WSJ/John Maniaci Fort McCoy commander Col. Micheal R. Staszak. Dick Riniker photo Scott Wood, of Madison, kisses his wife, Megan Tellijohn, after being reunited. 150 soldiers from the Wisconsin Army National Guard's 32nd Military Police Company returned from Iraq Friday, July 23, 2004, at Volk Field near Fort McCoy, Wis. Members of the 147th make their way to waiting families Wednesday September 10, 2003, most of the 205 member of the Wisconsin Army National Guard's 147 Command Aviation Battalion who deployed to Kuwait in March 2003 returned to Volk Field. Friends and family wait for soldier from the Wisconsin Army National Guard's 32nd Military Police Company, returning from Iraq Friday, July 23, 2004, at Volk Field. 10-year old Tyler Brudos of DeSoto, Wis., sits atop a 155 mm self-propelled howitzer, complete with his dog tags and camouflaged face, while experiencing Armed Forces Day Open House at Fort McCoy Here are the Onalaska High School students of the month for November: Zara is a beautiful, sweet dog with a happy smile! Zara was quite nervous when she first arrived and is unsure around new people, but really j… The 26th running of UW-La Crosse's 5K Turkey Trot took place Saturday morning on campus, attracting a flock of turkey wannabes on a beautiful … The following students were chosen as the October Students of the Month at Holmen Middle School: Companies, organizations and families can show off their tree decorating skill by purchasing one of the 75 trees set up in Holmen’s Halfway Cr… Fans of one of the most successful and popular bands of all time are likely in for a treat Saturday, Nov. 20, when a show called “ABBA FAB” ro… The 40th Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army Gen. James McConville (left), Gen. Michael Garrett, Commanding General of U.S. Forces Command, and Brig. Gen. Maria Juarez, Deputy Commanding General - Support 88th Readiness Division ask questions during a cold weather training briefing by Hunter Heard on Aug. 11, at the Fort McCoy Garrison Headquarters. (U.S. Army Photo by Scott T. Sturkol. Public Affairs Office, Fort McCoy) The 40th Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army Gen. James McConville (left) and Lt. Gen. Jody Daniels, chief of the Army Reserve and commanding general, Army Reserve Command have a discussion during a briefing by Fort McCoy Garrison Commander Col. Michael Poss on Aug. 11, 2021, at the Fort McCoy (Wis.) Garrison Headquarters. The briefing was part of an official visit to the post by McConville. During his visit, McConville toured training through an aerial tour of the post, met with Soldiers and Airmen throughout the post, and more. It’s the first visit to the installation by the top Army military leader in recent history. Also participating in the briefing was Gen. Michael Garrett, U.S. Army Forces Command commanding general. (U.S. Army Photo by Scott T. Sturkol. Public Affairs Office, Fort McCoy) (From left) Brig. Gen. Maria Juarez, deputy commanding general-support with the 88th Readiness Division; the 40th Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army Gen. James McConville; Fort McCoy Garrison Commander Col. Michael Poss; Garrison Deputy Commander Lt. Col. Chad Maynard; and Deputy to the Garrison Commander Brad Stewart stop for a photo in front of Fort McCoy Garrison Headquarters on Aug. 11, as part of an official visit to the installation by McConville. During his visit, McConville toured training through an aerial tour of the post, met with Soldiers and Airmen throughout the post, and more. It’s the first visit to the installation by the top Army military leader in recent history. (U.S. Army Photo by Scott T. Sturkol. Public Affairs Office, Fort McCoy)
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Military Exercise
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EU will retaliate if Britain rips up Northern Ireland protocol, warns Coveney
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Any British move to suspend parts of the Northern Ireland protocol could prompt the EU to do likewise with the Brexit trade deal, Ireland’s foreign minister has warned.
Simon Coveney said it appeared that the UK was set to follow through with its threat to trigger the Article 16 suspension mechanism within the post-Brexit arrangements for Irish Sea trade. Brussels would respond in a “very serious way,” he said, warning against a trade war.
He insisted that the EU was in “solutions mode” and could go a “little further” in terms of trying to streamline checks required on goods moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. However, he warned that there was a limit to its flexibility and said that Britain was asking for a
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Tear Up Agreement
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Trump withdraws US from TPP trade deal
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Washington, Jan 23 (PTI) President Donald Trump today formally pulled the US out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership as he signed an executive action to withdraw from the negotiating process of the 12-nation trade deal, one of the major international trade initiatives of his predecessor Barack Obama.Also Read - US Man Orders Indian Street Food In Fluent Bengali, Enjoys Mishti, Puchka & Roshogulla | Watch “We’ve been talking about this for a long time…It is a great thing for the American worker,” Trump said as he signed the decree to withdraw the US from the TPP, which aimed to set trade rules for the 21st century and bind US allies against growing Chinese economic clout. Also Read - Texas Abortion Ban Stays in Force as Justices Mull Outcome Trump had vowed during the campaign to withdraw the US from the Pacific trade deal which he argued was harmful to American workers and manufacturing. Also Read - Donald Trump Reportedly Reaches A $375 Million Deal To Sell His DC Hotel, Buyer Plan To Rename It Trump had said the free trade agreements were lopsided against the US and vowed to implement more protectionist trade policies as president, rallying voters to the polls with his “America First” slogan. The TPP was negotiated under former President Barack Obama, but never ratified by Congress, so withdrawing from it will not have an immediate, real effect on US economic policies, although it does signal a new and very different US outlook on trade under Trump. Its signatories — Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Brunei — together represent 40 per cent of the world economy. Fast tracking implementation of his campaign promises, Trump also signed two other orders including freezing the hiring of federal workers and hitting foreign organisations that provide abortions. The Wall Street Journal said the move was largely symbolic, because congressional leaders and the Obama administration had signaled in November that no near-term vote would be held on the TPP. Top Republican Senator John McCain described Trump’s decision as a “mistake”. “President Trump s decision to formally withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a serious mistake that will have lasting consequences for America s economy and our strategic position in the Asia-Pacific region,” he said. “This decision will forfeit the opportunity to promote American exports, reduce trade barriers, open new markets, and protect American invention and innovation,” he argued. “It will create an opening for China to rewrite the economic rules of the road at the expense of American workers. And it will send a troubling signal of American disengagement in the Asia-Pacific region at a time we can least afford it,” he noted. “Abandoning TPP is the wrong decision. Moving forward, it is imperative that America advances a positive trade agenda in the Asia-Pacific that will keep American workers and companies competitive in one of the most economically vibrant and fastest-growing regions in the world,” McCain said. However, Democratic Senator from Ohio Sherrod Brown described this move as one that would reboot the manufacturing sector. “Throwing out TPP is the first necessary step in overhauling our trade policy to put American workers first,” said Brown. This is published unedited from the PTI feed.
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Withdraw from an Organization
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Along with its health impacts, the pandemic has so far weakened consumer and business confidence, diminishing Indonesia’s economic growth
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Along with its health impacts, the pandemic has so far weakened consumer and business confidence, diminishing Indonesia’s economic growth. For the first time in more than 20 years, the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) shrank by 2.07 percent in 2020. Given the prolonged negative outlook amid adverse domestic and global conditions, significant consequences on labor market outcomes are anticipated. The negative consequences are associated mainly with the effect of the shock on labor demand. Unemployment is estimated to hit its highest level in more than a decade, rising to 9.2 percent – or nearly between 12.7 million people – in 2021. Detrimental employment effects emerge as vulnerable businesses with limited liquid assets adjust their staffing temporarily or permanently in response to shocks to demand for their goods or services. Furthermore, during the COVID-19 pandemic, those working in the informal sector are heavily affected as lockdowns severely downscale economic activities, leading to an immediate loss of revenue — likely without savings or other financial cushions. Similarly, most informal business owners may have no choice but to use their business capital to cover their daily needs. These adjustments may lead to job losses, lower incomes and increased poverty, which affect workers in the short and medium term and bring lasting consequences in the longer run. According to the human capital theory, economic inactivity has long been seen to lead to the deterioration of future labor market prospects, often termed as “scarring”. It could occur due to human capital reduction as workers miss out on the potential job-specific training and suffer from the depreciation of general work skills. Besides, a longer duration of inactivity may depreciate the previously acquired skills as they are not used and brought up to date through training and/or working. This reduction of human capital results in lower productivity and, therefore, lower earnings, which can conceivably continue throughout the rest of an individual’s working lifetime. From the labor demand’s perspective, this consequence is that employers may use one’s unemployment history as a screening device. In this regard, previous unemployment may be translated by employers as proxies for unobservable worker productivity, which could have detrimental effects on the likelihood of finding jobs. Moreover, firms may open fewer vacancies following a demand contraction in the economy due to the reduction in the perceived average quality of the unemployed. Another alternative explaining the mechanism behind this is that unemployed workers are more inclined to accept low-quality jobs characterized by high job destruction rates. The challenges of labor market conditions during and after a crisis are without a doubt very complex. Due to the limited data available, previous crisis experiences, such as the Asian financial crisis in 1997-1998, may help us understand the situation better. Although the two crises are different, understanding the mechanism of lasting unemployment effects from the past economic crisis could help create better policy responses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using data from the Indonesian Family Life Survey (IFLS), my study found that workers who were unemployed in 1997-1998 had smaller chances of getting new employment 17 years later, especially among those with low education. However, there is no apparent difference in the probability of employment among workers with tertiary education. The long-term effect on employment was also experienced across all five expenditure quantiles, particularly among workers in the 20 to 40 percent income distribution. Compared to male workers, female workers are more severely affected by previous unemployment. To be more specific, the scarring effect is more apparent among workers in the middle cohort groups (ages 29 to 38 in 1997-1998 and ages 46 to 55 in 2014). This can occur because companies are more likely to flatten out hierarchy by cutting out middle management; thus, a disproportionate number of experienced workers are likely to be displaced. Moreover, mid-level workers may experience difficulties reintegrating back to employment as their accumulated job-specific skills are not easily transferred to new jobs, and their general transferable skills may have been outdated. The limited opportunity for human capital accumulation during unemployment may trap people in low-quality jobs, making it harder to improve their chances to progress to better employment. This issue demands active labor market policies that provide continuous learning opportunities for better skills to these vulnerable workers. A comprehensive approach through empowerment and capacity-building strategy could be adopted based on lifelong investment in education and training. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, comprehensive social protection measures should be in place to compensate for economic activity loss, particularly targeted to the most vulnerable groups, including poor and near-poor households, women and young workers. In the case where income replacement is absent, these vulnerable workers could be pushed into the trap of long-term economic inactivity and in many cases, total exclusion from the labor market. *** The writer is a PhD student at the Australian National University. She holds a master of science in economics for development from the University of Oxford and a master of philosophy in economics from the University of Cambridge.
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Financial Crisis
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Abbots Ripton rail accident
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The Abbots Ripton rail disaster occurred on 21 January 1876 at Abbots Ripton, then in the county of Huntingdonshire, England, on the Great Northern Railway main line, previously thought to be exemplary for railway safety. In the accident, the Special Scotch Express train from Edinburgh to London was involved in a collision, during a blizzard, with a coal train. An express travelling in the other direction then ran into the wreckage. The initial accident was caused by:
The accident (and the subsequent inquiry into it)[1] led to fundamental changes in British railway signalling practice. A coal train preceding the Flying Scotsman on the main East Coast up (south-bound) line was normally scheduled to be shunted into a siding at Abbots Ripton to allow the much faster Flying Scotsman to pass. Because of a very bad snowstorm, both the coal train and the Flying Scotsman were running late and the signalman at Holme, the next station north of Abbots Ripton, judged that the coal train needed to go into sidings at Holme if it was not to delay the Flying Scotsman. He therefore set his signal levers to danger so as to stop the coal train, but it continued on the main line until it reached Abbots Ripton, where as expected the signalman waved it on to his box with a hand lamp, and directed it to shunt. The goods train had nearly completed shunting into the Abbots Ripton siding when the Scotch express ran into it at speed. The wreckage obstructed the down (northbound) line and a second collision occurred some minutes later when a northbound express to Leeds crashed into the wreckage. Thirteen passengers died in the collisions, and 53 passengers and 6 traincrew members were injured. The Great Northern was operating on the block system, which was supposed to eliminate such accidents, so the accident caused considerable alarm. It was soon established that the main problem was with signals and snow:
The coal train had therefore seen nothing to make it stop at Holme, and the Flying Scotsman whilst catching up with it had run through a number of signals which were showing 'clear' although their levers had been set to 'danger'. Abbots Ripton is about 4.5 miles (7.2 km) north of Huntingdon (and 12.8 miles (20.6 km) south of Peterborough ) on the East Coast main line, which handled both fast passenger trains and slow goods (largely coal) traffic. North of Peterborough passenger and coal traffic took different routes. South of Peterborough, they shared the same route; this was twin track in 1876, but stations with 'shunting sidings' were provided at frequent intervals to avoid slow goods trains, typically travelling at 20 mph (32 km/h), obstructing fast trains such as the prestigious 'Scotch express', which averaged 45 mph (72 km/h) (hence its unofficial nickname 'The Flying Scotsman'), A slow train being caught up by a faster one would stop at such a station and reverse into the shunting siding, taking about four minutes to clear the main line. After the fast train had passed, the slow train would resume its journey. Abbots Ripton station had a shunting siding; for a south-bound ('up') train the previous siding was 5.8 miles (9.3 km) further north at Holme, 7 miles (11 km) south of Peterborough. Traffic along the line was regulated by block working. Abbots Ripton and Holme had signal boxes and between them were two intermediate boxes. All controlled 'home' signals near the box and 'distant' signals about half a mile (c 800m) before the home signals. The line was thus divided into three blocks, each roughly 2 miles (c 3.1 km) long; entry to each block was controlled by the signal box at the start of the block. [2] Shunting into the siding at Abbots Ripton took place in a fourth block. The 'home' signals at Abbots Ripton were interlocked with the siding points, so that whenever the points were open to the main line the Abbots Ripton home signal lever had to be at 'danger'. All boxes could communicate with adjacent boxes by their block telegraph. Signals were normally kept at 'all clear' but were set to 'danger' to protect trains as follows. When a train entered a block by passing a home signal, the signalman would set the home signal to 'danger', thus preventing a following train entering the same block. The distant would also be set to 'danger'. Trains were required to stop at a home signal at 'danger', but were allowed to pass a distant signal at 'danger' as this merely warned an approaching driver to moderate his speed to be ready to stop the train at the home signal. Both signals would be returned to 'all clear' when the next box telegraphed 'line clear'. Normally, as soon as a train was past a box's home signal, the signalman would telegraph 'line clear' to the preceding box. During foggy or snowy weather, however, when a train stopped at a station 'line clear' was not sent until the train had restarted, or been shunted into a siding. [3] In good weather therefore a goods train being shunted into a siding at Abbots Ripton should have been protected against another train running into it by the Abbots Ripton 'home' and 'distant' signals ; in falling snow, the home and distant signals of the previous box should have given further protection and the fast train should always have been at least one full block away. Signal boxes serving stations/sidings had, as well as the block telegraph, 'speaking telegraph' instruments. These were not telephones, but Morse code senders, used for messages (for example how late a train was running). The signals used on the Great Northern to work the block system were lower quadrant semaphores. [note 1] A lever in the signal box was connected by a wire (under tension, and passing over intermediate pulleys) to a counterweighted arm on the signal. To set a signal to all clear, the signalman pulled the appropriate lever in his signal box; this moved the arm down (which was pivoted in a slot in the signal post), against the pull of the counterweight, "to a vertical position in the post". [4] When the lever was moved to set the signal to danger, this did not positively drive the signal to “danger” but paid out slack in the wire and allowed the counterweight to take the arm to a horizontal position. [note 2]
Since by day the signal arms were clearly visible from the signal box from which they were worked, the system had no repeater in the signal box to confirm a signal was actually showing the aspect corresponding to the lever position. In emergency the signal could be set to ‘danger’ by cutting the wire; but a heavy weight lying on the wire would keep the signal at ‘all clear’ by effectively pulling on it: since the signals were normally set to ‘all clear’ any fault which stopped them being moved would almost certainly keep them at ‘all clear’ as well. At night (or in poor visibility in daytime) an oil lamp displayed a white light when the signal was at 'all clear'; when the signal arm moved to the horizontal “danger” position it brought a red lens in front of the light, so that a red light was then displayed to oncoming trains. In poor visibility, GNR regulations called for detonators to be laid if possible on the track at the home signal when this was set to danger; at stations where platelayers were available, this should also be done at the distant signals. The express trains were made up of non-bogie non-corridor four- or six-wheel carriages. There were 13 on the Leeds express, giving a weight (including the engine and tender) of somewhat over 200 tons. At this period, other railways often had to resort to using more than one engine to maintain a high top speed; the Great Northern (favoured with one of the best engine classes of the period – the Stirling 8-foot singles) prided itself on not doing so. As with all the other railways, though, it had considerable difficulties in stopping the trains rapidly once they were at speed. To stop a train, the driver could shut off steam, get his fireman to apply a handbrake[note 3] on the tender and put the engine into reverse. He had no means of applying brakes to the rest of the train; indeed most of the carriages had no brakes. Two or three of the carriages were brake carriages with handbrakes, each with a guard who would apply them when (and if) he heard the driver "whistle for brakes". In trials carried out after the accident under favourable conditions this was shown to bring the train to rest within 800–1150 yards when travelling at 40–45 mph.
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Train collisions
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Mauna Loa, The World’s Biggest Volcano, Is Waking Up And It’s Time To Prep For An Eruption
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Scientists monitoring the unsettled geological activity on Hawaii’s biggest island say that while an eruption of the volcano that dominates the landscape isn’t yet imminent, Mauna Loa’s long nap may be coming to an end. The Big Island of Hawaii is really a collection of five volcanoes poking out of the Pacific Ocean, including one of the world’s most active - Kilauea - and the world’s largest: Mauna Loa, making up about half the island’s land mass. Kilauea has been in the throes of a fiery, dramatic and sometimes destructive eruptive period for decades now. And while the smaller shield volcano on Mauna Loa’s eastern slope garners international attention for its tantrums, its big sibling has been slumbering since it last erupted in 1984. PROMOTED But over the past week, the Hawaii Volcano Observatory recorded over 200 small magnitude earthquakes below Mauna Loa. These and other observations of increased activity in recent weeks all point to an increased flow of magma into the volcano’s shallow storage system, according to the HVO. In other words, Mauna Loa is slowly waking up. While scientists emphasize that an eruption isn’t necessarily going to happen today or tomorrow, this week the HVO put out a release urging that “now is the time to revisit personal eruption plans.” A map detailing potential lava flow speed from Mauna Loa. Particularly vulnerable are areas on the island’s western shore, just south of the main tourism center of Kailua-Kona, where lava flows could reach the ocean and populated areas such as Captain Cook, in a matter of hours. The most recent eruption of Mauna Loa in 1984 saw lava reach the outskirts of Hilo on the other side of the island - home to the University of Hawaii - but with several weeks warning. “Nowadays, people pack “go” bags containing essential items in case you have to leave your house under an evacuation order,” reads a statement from the HVO. “You may want to include important documents, like your birth certificate, deeds, legal papers, and medications.” An eruption does not necessarily mean a threat to people or property though, as half of the eruptions recorded from Mauna Loa have remained contained to the remote summit area. That said, several eruptions have sent lava flowing all the way to the ocean in a matter of mere hours. It’s just hard to predict ahead of time. PAHOA, HI - MAY 27: Lava from a Kilauea volcano fissure advances up a residential street in Leilani ... [+] Estates, on Hawaii's Big Island, on May 27, 2018 in Pahoa, Hawaii. Lava from the volcano also flowed to a geothermal power plant today raising fears that toxic gas could be released if wells are breached by lava. The Big Island, one of eight main islands that make up Hawaii state, is struggling with tourist bookings following the Kilauea volcano eruptions, with summer bookings at the island down 50 percent. Officials stress that the eruptions have thus far only affected a small portion of the island. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images) Lava eruptions from Kilauea in 2018, which typically produces a lower volume of material compared to Mauna Loa, still managed to destroy a number of homes and other infrastructure. Aside from lava, eruptions can also produce toxic gases. So in the event of an eruption, be sure to stay up to date with local information from the HVO and Hawaii County Civil Defense to stay safe. I've covered science, technology, the environment and politics for outlets including CNET, PC World, BYTE, Wired, AOL and NPR. I've written e-books on Android and Alaska. I began covering Silicon... Read More I've covered science, technology, the environment and politics for outlets including CNET, PC World, BYTE, Wired, AOL and NPR. I've written e-books on Android and Alaska. I began covering Silicon
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Volcano Eruption
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Turkey, Azerbaijan, Pakistan launch ‘Three Brothers’ joint military exercises
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ANKARA: As part of their tripartite military cooperation, Turkey, Pakistan and Azerbaijan began eight-day joint military drills on Sept. 12. The “Three Brothers — 2021” exercises are being held in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku with the aim of “further strengthening the existing ties” between the three armies and helping them find new ways to fight terrorism in the region, according to an official readout. Lt. Gen. Hikmat Mirzayev, Azerbaijan’s special forces commander, said during the opening ceremony that cooperation between the three countries was at “the highest level” and that important measures were being taken to further strengthen relations to ensure the security of the region and its people. Experts say this new format for military cooperation adds a new layer to the political ties that date back to 2017, when Azerbaijan’s then-Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov held the first trilateral meeting with his Turkish and Pakistani counterparts in Baku. Pakistan and Turkey provided support to Azerbaijan during the 44-day-long Second Karabakh War last September in which Azerbaijan fought against Armenian armed forces until the conclusion of a Russia-brokered truce in November. Following Turkey, Pakistan was the second country to recognize Azerbaijan as an independent state on Dec. 12, 1991. “The regional trio is important in the sense that they will add a military component to the political ties,” Soner Cagaptay, director of the Turkish Program at the Washington Institute, told Arab News. “It is interesting to gather Pakistan as a nuclear power, Turkey as one of the largest and most powerful militaries within NATO, and Azerbaijan as a rising regional military power largely thanks to Turkish and Israeli contributions to the defense industry,” he added. The joint exercises also aim to increase military experiences and share professional know-how between the military staff of the three countries. According to Cagaptay, Turkey’s national security experts consider Pakistan as being among Turkey’s closest allies traditionally. “Turkey is now deepening its defense ties with two of the five countries — US, Korea, Israel, Azerbaijan, Pakistan — that are considered its traditional allies. Pakistan brings strategic depth to this alliance,” he said. Cagaptay also underlined that this move is part of Ankara’s attempts to seek strategic autonomy and look for allies beyond NATO through comprehensive strategic alliances that can provide flexible and timely reactions vis-à-vis geopolitical and military developments. The cooperation between Pakistan and Turkey gained more importance amid the ongoing developments in Afghanistan and the potential refugee influx after the Taliban’s takeover. In July, Turkish, Azerbaijani and Pakistani parliament speakers signed the Baku Declaration to boost trilateral cooperation. In the declaration, the parties supported each other’s territorial integrity and underlined their respective priorities, with overt support to Azerbaijan in its moves on Karabakh, to Pakistan in its conflict over Jammu and Kashmir, and to Turkey in the settlement of Cyprus, Aegean and East Mediterranean disputes. In August, Turkish Aerospace Industries signed a contract with Pakistan’s National Engineering and Science Commission to jointly produce Anka military drones and transfer technology between the two companies. Erol Bural, head of the Ankara-based Research Center for Defense Against Terrorism and Radicalization, said that joint drilling by the special forces units of three countries is of utmost importance because it is a sign that they may conduct joint operations in the future. “The choice of the venue for the joint military drills is also significant and can be considered as a message of solidarity between these three countries — that they see each other as brothers — directed at Armenia following the Second Karabakh War,” he told Arab News. Bural also added that using real weaponry during the joint exercises is also essential. “It helps the military exercise to generate outcomes that are close to real war conditions and to test the newly developed ammunition on the ground,” he said. Military analysts underline that the exercises can also lead to cooperation in producing military technology. The August visit of Pakistan’s President Arif Alvi to Turkey to attend the launching ceremony of the MILGEM project’s first corvette ship built in Turkey for the Pakistan Navy also boosted military cooperation, which would help Pakistan’s defense capabilities increase the country’s role in South Asia. MILGEM corvettes, fitted with modern weaponry and sensors, can be hidden from radar. They are 99 meters long with a displacement capacity of about 24,00 tons and can move at a speed of 29 nautical miles. The delivery of the corvettes dates back to a bilateral deal that was signed in 2018. Delivery of all ships that will be among Pakistan’s most modern vessels is due to be completed by 2025. CAIRO: The commander of the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in Sudan, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, was sworn in on Friday as deputy head of the new Sovereign Council, Sudan TV reported. He retains the position he held in the old council, which was dissolved by the military after seizing power. Meanwhile, the United States and other Western powers expressed grave concern on Friday at the appointment of a new Sudanese ruling council by Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, saying it complicated efforts to restore a transition to democracy. Al-Burhan was sworn in on Thursday as head of the new Sovereign Council, which replaces the power-sharing body he dissolved last month in a takeover that derailed Sudan's transition to civilian rule. DUBAI: Jordan launched this week a plan to protect the country from any infectious diseases that might spread from its border crossing, state news agency Petra reported. Minister of Health Firas Hawari’s initial plan will focus on Jordan's border crossings in Mudawara, King Hussein Bridge, and Passenger Terminal - Aqaba Port. The plan will introduce specialized equipment and train staff, Hawari said, adding that the “development of a comprehensive plan for crossings' emergency response will be made in consultation and coordination with the relevant authorities.” Preparing plans for the various crossings is aimed at creating "clear" guidelines, he noted, which will explain the roles of different sectors in responding to public health emergencies. DUBAI: Jordanian Prime Minister Bisher Khasawneh, along with a delegation of ministers, landed in Dubai to visit the Expo 2020 site for two days, state news agency Petra reported on Thursday. Khasawneh is expected to deliver a speech on Friday to discuss the Kingdom’s measures in uplifting investment environments and improving the competitiveness of Jordan’s economy. His delegation includes the Minister of State for Prime Minister Affairs, Ibrahim Jazi, Minister of Industry, Trade and Supply, Yousef Shamali, Minister of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship, Ahmad Hanandeh, and Minister of Investment Khairy Amr. Expo 2020 Dubai was originally scheduled for the year 2020 but was postponed to 2021 due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. JERUSALEM: An Israeli court on Thursday upheld a ruling to return to Italy a six-year-old boy, the sole survivor of an Italian cable car disaster who was kidnapped to Israel by his grandfather, Israel’s Justice Ministry said. Eitan Biran’s maternal grandfather had appealed against a Tel Aviv family court’s decision last month to send the boy back to his paternal aunt in Italy, in a cross-border custody battle. The child had been living with the aunt since his parents, younger brother and 11 other people died when a gondola plunged to the ground in northern Italy in May. In September, while visiting Eitan, his maternal grandfather, without the aunt’s consent, drove him to Switzerland and chartered a private jet onward to Israel. The aunt petitioned the family court for his return to Italy. The court found that the grandfather’s actions amounted to kidnapping under the Hague Convention on the return of abducted children. The grandfather appealed against the ruling to a Tel Aviv district court, which the Justice Ministry said upheld the family court’s decision. “We order the minor be returned to Italy within 15 days,” the district court said in a ruling released by the ministry. The court stayed implementation of the order for a week to enable the grandfather to appeal to Israel’s Supreme Court. “Although the appellant took the minor away illegally, his misdeeds should not come at his grandson’s expense, and the minor should be allowed to meet with his grandfather, even in Italy,” the court said. Lawyers for the grandfather said they will consider an appeal to the Supreme Court, after studying the ruling.
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Military Exercise
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Feature05 Sep 2020
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Sifan Hassan and Mo Farah in action in the one-hour race at the Diamond League meeting in Brussels (© AFP / Getty Images)
In the aftermath of Friday night’s world record* performances in the one-hour races at the Wanda Diamond League exhibition meeting in Brussels, the two triumphant athletes – Britain’s Mo Farah and Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands – reflected very differently upon their successes in a rarely run but nevertheless prestigious event.
While the 37-year-old Briton, who has had extensive experience of road running since turning from his stellar track career in 2017, was clearly not surprised by gaining the first world record of his career, Hassan, ever excitable, seemed dazed by her effort in breaking clear of Kenya’s world marathon record-holder Brigid Kosgei – retrospectively disqualified for stepping off the track – in the final few minutes.
“It was very strange,” said the Dutch world 1500m and 10,000m champion, who – in a King Baudoin Stadium empty of spectators but full of recorded crowd reaction – reached 18,930 metres as the hour elapsed, beating the existing mark of 18,517 metres set by Ethiopia’s Dire Tune in 2008.
“The first 30 minutes were really hard for me, I really struggled. It was supposed to be easy but it was very hard. But after 30 minutes I was feeling more relaxed. Maybe it was because, before I started, I was a little bit sick, and I threw up.
“But I am very happy because it was a strong field and I still won. At the end I thought Brigid would run away from me. She was very strong but I said to myself I would try to do my best.”
Asked why she had reacted in such a way given all the titles she had won, she responded: “Physically I was feeling good and my legs did OK, but I think mentally, because you have to go for an hour, it was very hard for me.
“I really have a respect for those who run long distances, because it is really so hard mentally. You have to be so patient.
“I don’t know about long distance races, so when I was running with Brigid I tried to help her but I didn’t know how to help. I wanted to do some work, and it was so windy. But she was keeping to me and so I thought, ‘OK, I will have to go faster, when am I going to go?’
“I really appreciate that this race was put together – I want to say thank you so much for putting it on after the difficulties the world has been having with the coronavirus. It has been great to have something to focus on and I am thankful that I have been able to achieve the record.”
Asked if she spoke to Kosgei afterwards, she responded: “It’s always very hard to talk with the long distance runners. They are always quiet. I wanted to say to her congratulations, even though I won, what could I say? But the long distance runners don’t talk a lot, they are more quiet…”
Hassan finished with a wild sprint, long legs reaching, arms pumping, apparently full of energy after her long and sickly start to the race. How could she explain it?
“This was very strange,” she said. “It was so difficult at the start of the race but it got easier and easier. Maybe it was something in my mind. When we had three minutes left I thought ‘Oh, I can make it!’ So I started to sprint. The last few minutes were like a normal competition. I was enjoying it more.”
Despite her record-breaking run in Brussels and her exploits over 13.1 miles over the past two years, she has no immediate plans to move even further up in distance. “I don’t think about the marathon,” she said. “I am more focused on the Tokyo Olympics still if it will be next year. But I am going to focus on Tokyo and more on the track.
“I do think about the half marathon. The marathon will be harder. But this race has given me a lot of confidence. It is not easy to run for an hour.”
Asked if she intended to run at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020 on 17 October, she said: “Yes. That is what I plan to do.”
Farah, sitting next to his friend and training partner Bashir Abdi, said the race had pretty much gone according to their plan. The result being a new mark of 21,330 metres – eclipsing the 2007 mark of 21,285m set by Ethiopia’s Haile Gebrselassie.
Abdi finished eight metres behind, and had earned a world best of his own en route by beating Gebrselassie’s 20,000m mark of 56:26 as he went through as leader in 56:20.2.
Farah said the pair had worked hard on their pacing while preparing for this event at altitude in Font Romeu in the Pyrenees. “It was about staying with the pace, and then if we felt great towards the end of the competition, push on,” he said.
Abdi added: “The first 10,000 metres was more controlled. It was about getting to the second half of the race.”
Farah, whose hour of effort ended very close to where Hassan had come to a halt near the start of the back straight, explained why it took an announcement from the Master of Ceremonies – “The record is yours, Mo!” – to bring him to a halt.
“When I passed the finishing line for the last time I saw I had 24 seconds left, but then I couldn’t see another clock, so I just kept on running to be sure I had done it. I just kept going!” he said.
Farah added that the Wavelight system of differently coloured flashing lights on the inside of the track indicating pacing targets had worked very well for them. “It helped us a lot. Sometimes you get pacemakers who go off too fast. So this system puts them in the right place. And I think that, going forward, it’s great that athletes and spectators have this new option.
“It’s been nice to get back into a competition with all that is going on in the world.
“Records are not easy things to break. It is nice to know you have broken a world record owned by someone who has achieved such a lot in his career.”
When the question was put to Farah about how sure he was of winning and earning the world record, it was answered first, with a grin, by Abdi: “Very sure!”
Farah, who set a world best over two miles indoors back in 2015, responded: “I knew what I had been doing in training and I knew I was capable of beating the record. But doing it in competition is totally different.”
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Break historical records
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Boeing Strike of 1948
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The 1948 Boeing strike was an industrial dispute which lasted 20 weeks, from April 22 to September 13. The Boeing Company was founded by William Edward Boeing in 1916, with the name Pacific Aero Products. In 1945 president of the company Philip G. Johnson died and William McPherson Allen took his place. In 1945, after World War II, the market for wartime planes dwindled. The president William McPherson Allen decided to temporarily shut down the activities and to lay off 25,000 workers. [1] To save the company, Allen announced that he was going to start making commercial planes. In October 1946, Boeing declared that the contract between the company and the Union was up for renewal. Boeing and the Union reached an agreement to start negotiating the new contract starting January 1947. [2] Between January and April 1947 both parties met regularly three times a week to discuss the contract. During this time neither party was able to reach an agreement. In April the Union gave Secretary of Labor and to the National Labor Relations Board a notice for intention to strike. [2] After the intention was submitted the Union and Boeing tried to talk about the contract but “there remained unsettled questions of Seniority, Hours of Labor, and Wages.” [2] After filing to strike and receiving approval the members of the Union never did so. The Union then drafted a proposal that discussed the issues the employees were worried about which was seniority, hours of labor, and wages. The condition was that the proposal had to be accepted by Boeing on April 21, 1948, before noon otherwise the proposal would be void. If this happened Lodge 751 stated that they “reserve the right to take appropriate action including a work stoppage.”[2] Boeing rejected the offer on April 21, 1948. The next day the Union went on strike. Allen declared the strike illegal and proceeded to have multiple lawsuits over the fact. The result of the strike set back Boeing with their orders about 1.25 billion dollars. Boeing was then forced to hire about 50,000 to make for lost time and pushing out orders. Most of the orders were for the government making B-47s, B-50s, and C-97s. [14]
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Strike
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1993 Sukhumi airliner attacks crash
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From 20 to 23 September 1993 during the Sukhumi massacre as part of the war in Abkhazia, separatists in Sukhumi, Abkhazia blocked the Georgian troop's overland supply routes. [1]
In response, the Georgian government used Sukhumi Babushara Airport so troops stationed in Sukhumi could continue to receive supplies. Abkhaz forces attacked the airport in an attempt to further block the supply routes. Five Tupolev civilian airliners belonging to Transair Georgia and Orbi Georgian Airways were hit by missiles allegedly fired by separatists in Sukhumi. Over 150 people died in the attacks. [1][2][3]
An Orbi Georgian Airways Tu-134A (registration CCCP-65809) was destroyed by Abkhaz small arms fire or missiles; there was no one on board. [4][5]
A Transair Ту-134А-3 (built in 1975 with registration 65893 and factory number 5340120[6]) was flying to Sukhumi from Sochi International Airport. The flight crew consisted of captain Geras Georgievich Tabuev, first officer Otar Grigorievich Shengelia, and navigator Sergey Alexandrovich Shah, as well as two flight attendants. Тhe 22 passengers were mainly journalists. At 16:25, at an altitude of 980 feet (300 m), the aircraft was hit on approach to Sukhumi-Babusheri Airport by a Strela 2 surface-to-air missile. The missile had been fired from an Abkhaz boat commanded by Toriy Achba. The plane crashed into the Black Sea, killing all five crew members and 22 passengers. [7] Other sources reported 28 people onboard (six crew members and 22 passengers). [1][2][7][8][9]
An Orbi Georgian Airways Tu-154B aircraft (built in 1976 with registration 85163 and factory number 76А-163[10]) flying from Tbilisi carrying civilians and internal security forces was on approach to Sukhumi-Babusheri Airport when it was struck by surface-to-air missiles. The plane crash-landed on the airstrip, and the ensuing fire killed 108 of the total 132 passengers and crew members,[8][11][12][13] making the incident the deadliest aviation disaster to occur in Georgia. [14] Georgian media claimed that the flight was carrying refugees, but there was no factual evidence to back up these claims. [15][16]
Another Tu-154 was attacked later in the evening, but landed safely. [17]
Passengers were boarding a Transair Tu-134 (built in 1975 with registrations CCCP-65001 and factory number 42235 at Sukhumi when it was struck by rockets from an Abkhaz BM-21 Grad rocket launcher. It caught fire and burned out, leaving one crew member dead. The aircraft was due to operate a Sukhumi-Tbilisi service. [17][18][19]
On the same day an ORBI Tu-154 (registration 85359[20]) was reportedly destroyed by mortar or artillery fire. [21]
Military forces:
Key leaders:
Military forces:
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Air crash
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Arizona West Nile virus tally leads the country in 2021
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According to West Nile virus (WNV) data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Tuesday, Arizona has reported 97 total (77 neuroinvasive and 20 non-neuroinvasive) human WNV cases to date, the most in the country (20 percent of the total). The state has also recorded four deaths due to the mosquito-borne viral disease. The vast majority of the WNV cases are reported from Maricopa County, in the south-central part and the state’s most populous county and home to Phoenix. According to county health officials, through September 16, 90 human WNV cases were reported, including 4 deaths. This compares to the same period in 2020 when they reported three cases and one fatality. The Arizona Department of Health, in a more updated report Tuesday says there has been 132 total cases (88 confirmed/44 probable) with Maricopa County recording 109 total cases. They also report a 5th death. West Nile virus is typically spread through the bite of an infected mosquito. Although it can cause severe disease, only about 1 in 5 of those infected will develop any symptoms at all. Those who do develop symptoms usually experience a flu-like illness including fever, headache, body aches and muscle weakness. Subscribe to Outbreak News TV on YouTube Rarely, about 1 in 150 people infected can develop encephalitis or meningitis (inflammation of the brain or of the spinal cord). This more severe form of the disease can present with headache, neck stiffness, vision loss, paralysis and other neurologic symptoms. These severe cases can lead to very prolonged illness, permanent paralysis or death. Those who are over 60 years old, have underlying medical conditions or have depressed immune systems are at higher risk for the more severe form of West Nile virus.
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Disease Outbreaks
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1979 Bali earthquake
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The 1979 Bali earthquake occurred at 03:58 local time on 18 December with a surface wave magnitude of 6.3. The shock occurred southeast of the coast of Karangasem Regency in the Lombok Strait, and about 60 kilometres (37 mi) east-northeast of Denpasar. Up to 80 percent of the buildings in Karangasem Regency were damaged, between 15,000 and 500,000 people were displaced, and road links to the provincial capital of Denpasar were briefly severed.
The island of Bali forms part of the Sunda Arc, which formed above the convergent boundary where the Australian Plate is subducting beneath the Sunda Plate. The rate of convergence across the line of the Sunda–Java Trench is 7.5 cm per year. Eastwards from Bali, the Sunda Arc is also being thrust over the Bali and Flores back-arc basins on a series of south-dipping thrusts. Focal mechanisms for earthquakes near Bali are dominantly thrust sense on both the subduction interface and the system of thrust faults to the north. [6]
A previous earthquake of 6.5 Ms north of the Buleleng coast on 14 July 1976 caused 573 deaths on Bali and displaced a similar number of people. A previous shock of 6.2 Ms on 20 October affected Mataram, the capital of the neighboring island Lombok, and damaged hundreds of buildings on that island as well as many on Bali. Two people were killed, including a 3-year-old boy in Lombok and a pregnant mother at a hospital in Denpasar. [7] The epicenter of the 20 October temblor was approximately 28 km (17 mi) north-northeast of the 17 December temblor. [8]
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the 18 December shock occurred 60 km (37 mi) east-northeast of Denpasar at a depth of 15 km (9.3 mi). Initial reports by local observers suggested the epicenter may have been beneath the Mount Agung stratovolcano, however Indonesian authorities confirmed the location in the Lombok Strait. [9] The shock was felt along the eastern coast of Lombok, although no significant damage was caused there. [5][10]
As the temblor occurred during the early hours of the morning, there was significant panic; residents are reported to have fled to open fields and beaches for the rest of the night. [9]
Eighty percent of the homes and other buildings in Karangasem Regency were reported to have been destroyed or damaged. [10] Approximately eighty thousand homes were destroyed, as well as 40 Hindu temples, 17 markets, 8 schools, several mosques and a public hospital. [4] The villages of Culik, Datah and Tisla were reportedly left uninhabitable due to catastrophic damage. [11]
The Indonesian Army established eleven temporary barracks in the affected region to assist those displaced. The Governor's office delivered at least 25 tonnes of rice to the displaced residents. [4]
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Earthquakes
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WATCH: Locust outbreak in parts of South Africa is the worst ever
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South Africa has seen large locust populations emerge in recent months. In April 2021, a video was shared on social media of a swarm of locusts moving through the grasslands outside the Eastern Cape town of Graaff-Reinet. According to reports, the local locust population has surged since last year. READ: Local man goes viral for "the bush" videos on TikTok In October last year, 127 farms in Middelburg Cape, Graaff-Reinet, Aberdeen, Cradock, Nieu-Bethesda, Pearston, and Jansenville were affected by the local locust outbreak. By December, the Free State, Northern Cape, and Western Cape experienced the outbreak. READ: "I'd rather die at home" - Salma Hayek reveals she nearly died from COVID-19 Philip Kemp, a government contractor in charge of locust control in the Graaff-Reinet region, told Landbou.com that the latest outbreak in the Eastern Cape is the worst swarms that he has encountered. READ: Full trailer of 'Friends' reunion released According to the United Nations, a locust swarm one square kilometre in size can eat the same amount of food in a day as 35,000 people. The Scenic Drive spoke to farmer André van Rensburg about the latest outbreak. "They don't want to move. It looks like they want to visit forever. It's unbelievable." "You can't even drive. The air becomes black in front of you."
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Insect Disaster
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2019 Iran floods
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From mid-March to April 2019 widespread flash flooding affected large parts of Iran, most severely in Golestan, Fars, Khuzestan, Lorestan, and other provinces. Iran has been hit by three major waves of rain and flooding over the course of two weeks[5] which led to flooding in at least 26 of Iran's 31 provinces[6] and at least 70 people died nationwide as of 6 April, according to the officials. [6] The first wave of rain began on 17 March, leading to flooding in two northern provinces, Golestan and Mazandaran with the former province receiving as much as 70 percent of its average annual rainfall in single day. [6] Several large dams have been overflowed, particularly in Khuzestan and Golestan, therefore many villages and several cities have been evacuated. [5] About 1,900 cities and villages across country have been damaged by severe floods as well as hundreds of millions of dollars of damage to water and agriculture infrastructure. 78 roads were blocked and the reliability of 84 bridges was questioned. [7][8]
Severity of the floods was greatly increased by converting flood routes and dry river beds for urban development without providing proper drainage infrastructure. [9] According to an Iranian official, due to record rainfalls, more than 140 rivers have burst their banks and about 409 landslides have happened in the country. The impact of the floods was heightened because of the Nowruz holiday; many Iranians were traveling and many deaths occurred due to flash flooding on roads and highways. [7] Around 12,000 km of roads were damaged by the flooding, about 36% of Iran's national road network. [3] The floods caused at least $2.2 billion (2019 USD) in damages, mostly due to losses in the agricultural industry. [4] Further, according to Red Crescent, two million people are in need of humanitarian aid due to the devastating floods. [10]
Civil and armed forces have been mobilized since 24 March after the command of Ali Khamenei, Iran's Supreme Leader, and vice President, Eshaq Jahangiri, along with several ministers as well as army commanders have traveled to the areas affected by floods. [11] However, the lack of government aid and delayed response at the first days quickly heightened political tensions throughout the nation. Many Iranians including politicians took to social media platforms to criticize the handling of the floods by the government, specifically President Hassan Rouhani. [12] Civilian outrage ultimately led to deadly clashes between protesters and government soldiers. The floods prompted a large outcry against the government rule which was perceived as worsening the floods through destructive measures such as the destruction of natural plant coverage, obstruction of flood outlets, and converting flood routes and dry river beds to residential areas following the Islamic Revolution.
On 20 March 2019, massive rainfall in the two provinces of Golestan and Mazandaran in Iran brought about heavy flooding. [15] These floods resulted in financial damages to the people living in these areas and also the deaths of two children. [16] State-run media reports indicated that flash floods had surfaced in 70 villages in Golestan and more than 200 villages in Mazandaran. Iran's Minister of Energy also reported that 360 villages in Golestan province and 193 villages in Mazandaran province had lost electricity due to floods. [17] Coincident with Iran's national holiday, Nowruz,. [18]
The first wave of rain began on 17 March, leading to flooding in two northern provinces, Golestan and Mazandaran with the former province receiving as much as 70 percent of its average annual rainfall in a single day. [6] Several large dams have overflowed, particularly in Khuzestan and Golestan, therefore, many villages and several cities were evacuated. [5] In many areas, homes and lands have been partially or totally submerged for several days. [6] Portions of Golestan province received 50-70 percent of their average annual rainfall over a five-day period. Some areas recorded approximately 300 mm (12 in) of rainfall, equivalent to a year's-worth of rain. These amounts exceed any accumulations in the region in at least 70 years. The flooding in Golestan and Mazandaran provinces is considered a 1-in-100-year event. [19]
On 6 April 2019, about two weeks after the flood, the town of Aqqala in the northern province of Golestan, is still covered with lethal flood. Local authorities say "they have to wait for the water to vaporize". [citation needed]
The governor of Golestan province was also reportedly on vacation outside the country during the floods. [12] Later, he was dismissed by the vice President. [20]
On 25 March, flash floods following heavy rains in Southwestern Iran in the vicinity of the city of Shiraz[21] killed 19 people[22] and injured more than 200 others. [23] Many people were traveling for the Nowruz holiday, and were injured or killed when their cars were swept off of roads. Rain was short but heavy, lasting in two bursts of approximately 15 minutes each; however, the impact was exacerbated by the heavy road traffic at the time. Iran's Meteorological Organisation gave warnings for further floods, as heavy rains were expected to last at least until 27 March. [24] The leader of the Iranian Ministry of Energy has stated that climate change was a contributing factor to the flooding. [24] As of 26 March 2019, 20 of Iran's 31 provinces are either currently flooded or facing the possibility of imminent flooding. [21]
According to a dissident news organization, local sources reported that as many as 150 people were killed in the floods in Shiraz on 25 March. [citation needed] Official reports, however, indicated that a total of 21 people were killed in Fars Province, which includes Shiraz, by 5 April. [25]
A brief but intense rainfall caused a sudden flash flood that submerged the main highway between Shiraz and Esfahan, trapping many travelers who had been leaving the city after Nowruz celebrations. City officials did not warn the people of Shiraz of the deadly weather conditions resulting in many deaths. [26]
The initial investigations of the Shiraz flash floods showed that a water canal adjacent to the Quran Gate was paved over in the early 2000s for use as a road by the Shiraz municipality. The road expansion did not include a sufficient drainage system.
The railway between Tehran and southwestern Iran had already been shut down on 1 April following initial floods. [27]
Heavy rains on 3 April, have completely overwhelmed several towns in the mountainous Lorestan province. [28]
The town of Poldokhtar in Lorestan Province was engulfed by flood water. After the floodwaters subsided, cars and homes remained sunken in thick layers of mud.
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Floods
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Seneca Valley Football Teams Draws Inspiration From Athletic Director Diagnosed With Breast Cancer
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Filed Under: Breast Cancer , High School Football , Local TV , Pam Surano , Seneca Valley , Seneca Valley High School , Seneca Valley School District
HARMONY, Pa. (KDKA) — Seneca Valley High School’s football team is learning the greatest lessons in life this year.
Seneca Valley Athletic Director Heather Lewis is incredibly inspirational. Not only for the way she is courageously battling breast cancer, but for the ways she uses it as a teaching moment and to love kids.
The Raiders brought their fighting spirit directly to Lewis, right to the front door of her home. The team surprised Lewis with dozens of pink ribbon decals that represent her fight against breast cancer.
(Photo Credit: KDKA)
One by one, she placed the decals on the players’ helmets.
“When she opened that door and we saw how much it meant to her, it was just really impactful for our team, just knowing that she cares about us that much,” senior defensive end Brian Olan said.
“That experience gave me 10 to 15 seconds with each kid, just to check-in, to say, ‘How ya doing? You’re doing great. Keep working hard.’ That was good for my soul,” Lewis said.
Lewis was diagnosed with breast cancer earlier this year.
“Just a routine annual mammogram, and they saw something they didn’t like,” Lewis said.
Doctors told her she had a fast-growing cancer that had a high likelihood of returning if they did not get to it right away.
Lewis describes the journey as a rollercoaster of emotions, the mental and emotional battles every bit as tough as the physical ones. Knowing what she was going through, football coach Ron Butschle organized the surprise visit.
“She truly is about doing what’s best for kids. And I knew the part about work that she misses the most is the kids,” Butschle said.
“I don’t know if they understand truly, it came at probably the moment when I needed,” Lewis said.
Lewis’ doctors told her the prognosis is good. But had she not gone for her yearly screenings, things may have been different. She wants the Seneca Valley community and region to know how much the support has meant to her.
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Famous Person - Sick
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Spain Withdraws From 2021 African Lion Military Exercise Over Western Sahara
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While the Spanish Ministry of Defense official cited budgetary constraints for its withdrawal, there are reports that tensions over Western Sahara are the actual, underlying reasons. Rabat - Spain has withdrawn its participation from the joint-military exercise African Lion 2021, and Spanish outlet El Pais reported that the reason is that Spain’s government does not wish to “legitimize the occupation of the Sahara.” African Lion, the biggest military exercise on the continent, will take place between June 7-18 across Morocco, Tunisia, and Senegal. Despite participating in the joint-military maneuvers in the past few years, Spain’s Ministry of Defense officially cites budgetary restrictions for withdrawing from this year’s exercises. According to El Pais, however, the real reason is that this year's exercises will take place for the first time in Western Sahara, and “sending soldiers to these exercises would legitimize the Moroccan occupation.” Besides declining the invitation from the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM), Spain is not even going to send any observers to the exercise, unlike 20 other countries that will not be participating but will still be involved. Read also: Racism and Discrimination ‘Deep-Rooted’ in the US Military This year’s exercises will see the participation of 7,800 soldiers from nine countries - the US as the organizers, Morocco as the hosts, as well as Senegal, Tunis, the Netherlands, Italy, the UK, Canada, and Brasil. There will also be 21 combat aircraft and 46 support aircraft present, and the exercise will cost an approximate $28 million (MAD 247 million). “The celebration of African Lion in Western Sahara is a further step in the recognition of its Moroccanness,” notes El Pais. This year’s African Lion exercises will consist of “operating a tactical command post, conducting situational training exercise lanes, conducting field training exercises and conducting indirect fire gunnery table qualification,” which will culminate in “a combined and joint live-fire exercise,” said a press release from the US’ Georgia Army National Guard. The annual exercises, led by the United States Command for Africa (AFRICOM) and the Moroccan Royal Armed Forces (FAR), are an opportunity to consolidate military cooperation and training, as well as experience and expertise sharing. The maneuvers help improve cooperation and relations between countries to counter global terrorism.
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Military Exercise
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1943 Alahan Panjang earthquakes
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The 1943 Alahan Panjang earthquakes occurred on June 8 and June 9 UTC (June 9, 1943, local time) in Sumatra, then under Japanese occupation. This was an earthquake doublet (the shocks occurred at the same location on consecutive days). [4]
The first mainshock occurred on June 8 at 20:42 UTC. It ruptured the Suliti segment of the Sumatran Fault Zone. The magnitude was given as Mw 7.2,[1] or Ms 7.1. [5]
The second mainshock occurred on June 9 at 03:06 UTC. It ruptured the Sumani segment of the Sumatran Fault Zone and perhaps the northwestern part of the Suliti segment. The magnitude was given as Mw 7.5,[1] or Ms 7.4. [5]
Alahan Panjang was damaged in the earthquakes. [4] Right lateral offsets were reported near the town of Solok. [5]
Near the Sumani segment, earthquake doublets occurred repeatedly. [6] Similar earthquake doublet nearby include the earthquakes in 1926 and 2007. [7]
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Earthquakes
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CHI Franciscan, Virginia Mason Complete Healthcare Merger
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January 07, 2021 - Seattle, Washington-based Virginia Mason and CHI Franciscan based in Tacoma, Washington have announced that a healthcare merger deal is complete. The finalization of the merger deal makes Virginia Mason a part of CommonSpirit Health, one of the largest health systems in the US and parent company of CHI Franciscan. Through the deal, the health systems formed Virginia Mason Franciscan Health, an 11-hospital system with nearly 300 care sites serving western Washington. The system will also include the Benaroya Research Institute, Virginia Mason Institute, and the Bailey-Boushay House, the first skilled-nursing and outpatient chronic care management program in the US designed specifically to meet the needs of people with HIV/AIDS. The organization will employ over 18,000 staff members, including about 5,000 physicians and affiliated providers. “For years we have worked with CHI Franciscan, but now, together, our potential is limitless. We will be able to apply learnings across our entire system that not only improve the patient experience, but also change health care delivery for the better,” Gary S. Kaplan, MD, CEO of Virginia Mason Franciscan Health, said in the announcement. Kaplan will lead the new health system alongside Ketul J. Patel, the former CEO of CHI Franciscan and president of the Pacific Northwest Division of CommonSpirit Health, in a “dyad CEO model.” The two leaders intend to combine “the most effective elements from each entity to build a transformative health system for the communities it serves throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond,” according to the announcement. “Virginia Mason Franciscan Health has an incredibly strong foundation to build upon as our two storied organizations come together with an exciting vision, particularly as we expand services for the most vulnerable in our communities,” Patel said. “We are committed to building a consumer-focused health care system while expanding our presence as a national leader in the transformation of health care delivery.” The new health system comes months after CHI Franciscan and Virginia Mason, along with CommonSpirit Health, announced intentions to merge. The health systems signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in July to explore combining the two health systems through the formation of a joint operating Company. CommonSpirit Health was formed in 2019 after the merger between Dignity Health and Catholic Health Initiatives. The Catholic non-profit health system has nearly $29 billion in revenue and 137 hospitals, of which CHI Franciscan represented about $2.45 billion in revenues and 10 hospitals. Virginia Mason operated two hospitals in western Washington until the system’s hospital in Yakima broke off from the health system at the start of the year. The board of Virginia Mason Memorial – now known as Yakima Valley Memorial – voted in October to split from Virginia Mason amid concerns that the merger with CHI Franciscan would negatively impact access to care, particularly reproductive health and Death with Dignity services. CHI Franciscan operates under the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services, which prohibits physician-assisted death for terminally ill patients and abortion services. As part of the healthcare merger deal, Virginia Mason will stop offering elective abortion services and will not participate in Washington’s Death with Dignity Act that allows physician-assisted deaths for certain patients, according to news reports. Patients, however, will be able to use the same site of care for their healthcare needs and continue to use their current insurance plans, Virginia Mason stated in the merger announcement. The newly formed health system will also provide nearly $200 million in community benefit, including free, subsidized, and reduce cost care and programs, the announcement stated. Organization TypeSelect OneAccountable Care OrganizationAncillary Clinical Service ProviderBioMedical EngineeringBiotechnology CompanyClinical Research OrganizationFederal/State/Municipal Health AgencyHospital/Medical Center/Multi-Hospital System/IDNLife SciencesMedical Device ManufacturerOutpatient CenterPayer/Insurance Company/Managed Care OrganizationPharmaceutical CompanyPhysician Practice/Physician GroupSkilled Nursing FacilityVendor
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Organization Merge
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Rim Fire
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The Rim Fire was a massive wildfire that started in a remote canyon in Stanislaus National Forest, in California. This portion of the central Sierra Nevada spans Tuolumne and Mariposa counties. The fire started on August 17, 2013, during the 2013 California wildfire season,[4] and grew to be (at the time) the third-largest wildfire in California's history,[5] having burned 257,314 acres (402.053 sq mi; 1,041.31 km2). [4][6] As of 2018[update], the Rim Fire was California's fifth-largest modern wildfire. [7] As of 2013, the Rim Fire is the largest wildfire on record in the Sierra Nevada mountain range. [8] The Rim Fire was fully contained on Thursday, October 24, 2013 after a nine-week firefighting battle. [4] Due to a lack of winter rains, some logs smoldered in the interior portion of the fire throughout the winter. More than a year passed before it was declared out on November 4, 2014. [9]
The fire was caused by a hunter's illegal fire that got out of control,[10] and it was named for its proximity to the Rim of the World vista point, a scenic overlook on Highway 120 leading up to Yosemite. [11][12] A total of eleven residences, three commercial structures, and 98 outbuildings were destroyed in the fire. [4] During suppression efforts, which cost more than $127 million (2013 USD),[4] a total of ten injuries from the wildfire were reported, but there were no fatalities. The fire was spotted and reported by a pilot on August 17, 2013, at 3:25 PM PDT, in the Stanislaus National Forest, east of Groveland, when a hunter lost control of an illegal campfire. First responders arrived 22 minutes later. [13][14] The camper was not identified publicly until a year later, when two felony and two misdemeanor charges were filed against Keith Matthew Emerald of Columbia, California. [15] The fire had only burned 40 acres when it was discovered, but it grew to 10,000 acres within 36 hours and 100,000 acres after just four days. In two days, in mid-August, the fire burned nearly 90,000 acres. The fire's rapid spread was attributed to drought and extreme weather conditions. [16] It burned into backcountry areas of Yosemite National Park. The park remained open, and although Yosemite Valley was never in danger, the fire did burn 78,895 acres of parkland. [17] Heavy smoke was, at times, a factor. [18]
The blaze was difficult to fight because of inaccessible terrain and erratic winds, forcing firefighters to be reactive instead of proactive. More than 5,000 firefighters[4]–including more than 650 inmates who volunteered as part of California's "Conservation Camp initiative"[19][20]–worked to contain the fire. At one point state officials asked residents to avoid social media, to stop exaggerated claims and rumors from spreading, and debunked a number of circulating stories. [21]
Atmospheric instability, hot temperatures, and a severe drought fueled the fire, making it difficult to suppress. On Thursday, October 24, 2013, the Rim Fire was contained. [4] However, hotspots within the fire's perimeter continued to burn for almost another year before the Rim Fire was finally declared to be extinguished. [9]
During the Rim Fire, forest closures were put into effect and evacuation orders were issued by the Tuolumne and Mariposa County County Sheriff's Offices. Several thousand people left their homes temporarily as a result of the evacuations. [4] The Tioga Pass Road (Highway 120) was closed for a time. Highways 140 from Merced and 41 from Fresno remained open throughout the fire, providing access to the national park. [22] Law Enforcement Command Posts were set up in the communities of Groveland and Tuolumne City, with hundreds of local and mutual aid Law Enforcement Officers from dozens of agencies responding to assist in evacuations, patrols, and road closures in the affected areas. The event is credited for being the single largest Law Enforcement mutual aid event in the history of the California Law Enforcement Mutual Aid System. At the height of the danger, an estimated 15,000 residents were under evacuation order or advisory, with plans drafted by a Search & Rescue Incident Management Team [23] to evacuate the communities of Groveland, Pine Mountain Lake, Big Oak Flat, Tuolumne City, Tuolumne Rancheria, Ponderosa Hills, Sherwood Forest, Sugar Pine, and Miwuk Village. Several commendations and citations were issued by the county and state for these efforts to the Tuolumne County Sheriff's SAR Team, SAR Field Training Officer Jonathan Rodriguez, and Volunteer Tornado Paul Carlson. [23]
On April 17, 2014, Stanislaus National Forest issued an order closing the majority of the burn area to the public through November 18, 2014, citing safety issues from potential falls of heavily burned trees, rock falls, and uneven ground. [24] The decision was met with disappointment by morel mushroom hunters who had looked forward to extensive post-fire fruiting of this highly sought-after mushroom. [25][26][27] The safety rationale was questioned, as Yosemite National Park, which largely prohibits mushroom collecting, had opened up the burn areas within its boundaries to the public earlier in the month. [27][28] Some mushroom hunters stated that they would be willing to sign liability waivers in order to enter the area, but the Forest Service rejected this idea, stating they were ultimately responsible for the safety of those entering the area. [25][26] Extensive harvesting of morels in the Rim Fire area nevertheless took place in May 2014, in a few cases legally by special permit, but in most cases through illegal harvesting. [25][26][29] The closure of the burn area was also criticized by the Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors for, among other reasons, causing the cancellation of grazing allotments by local ranchers. [30]
California governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency for the city of San Francisco on August 23,[31] after the fire caused damage to the power infrastructure serving the Bay Area, causing two out of the existing three hydroelectric power plants to shut down. [32] The fire also threatened the Hetch Hetchy reservoir, the main source of water for San Francisco, providing up to 85% of the city's supply[33] to 2.6 million customers. [34] On August 26, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission moved water away from Hetch Hetchy into downstream reservoirs located in San Mateo and Alameda Counties as a precautionary measure, but did not expect the fire to cause any disruption to the city's water supply. [35][36] The fire advanced to within a mile of Hetch Hetchy by Monday, August 26, which was a concern to O'Shaughnessy Dam officials due to ash falling in the water. [37]
On August 28, after emergency approvals, an MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle flew over the area, providing infrared video of lurking fires. [38][39]
The cost of fighting the fire was estimated at $127.35 million as of October 24, 2014. [4][40] The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced that it would reimburse the state up to 75% of the eligible costs of fighting the fire through a grant for "managing, mitigating, and controlling the fire". [41]
The United States Forest Service made it their highest priority fire at the time because of the threat to local communities and its proximity to Yosemite National Park. [42] Though Giant Sequoia trees, some of the biggest and oldest living things on Earth, are very fire-tolerant and need fire to reproduce, concerns rose as the fire approached them. [43] Park officials set sprinklers to help protect nearby Sequoia trees,[44] but the sprinklers were later removed and careful low-intensity prescribed burns were used.
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Fire
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UK Aircraft Carrier Swaps F-35B Stealth Fighters with US Warship During Pacific Exercise
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The HMS Queen Elizabeth recently traded F-35B Lightning II stealth fighters with a U.S. amphibious assault ship at sea, another first for the U.K. aircraft carrier on its first operational deployment, according to the U.S. Marine Corps. The USS America and the Queen Elizabeth held a cross-deck training exercise Friday near the Hawaiian Islands, the first time the two flagships and their groups have worked together. The America, homeported at Sasebo Naval Base, Japan, its amphibious ready group and elements of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit have been at sea since June, according to the Navy. The Queen Elizabeth, carrying 18 F-35Bs -- 10 of which are from a U.S. Marine Corps squadron -- is making its way to Japan for scheduled port calls in September. Its first patrol is expected to cover 26,000 nautical miles over 7 ½ months and 40 nations. As part of the Navy's Large-Scale Exercise 2021, the Queen Elizabeth launched F-35Bs, built for short take-offs and vertical landings, that the America recovered, reloaded, refueled and relaunched, according to a Marine Corps press release Tuesday. The operation highlighted a change in modern warfare, said Marine Corps Col. Simon Doran, U.S. senior national representative to the U.K. strike group. "The [exercise] underscored our continued effort to shift away from static, built-up airfields towards distributed maritime operations," he said in the news release. The two groups trained through several other scenarios, including large-formation maneuvers, anti-submarine and surface warfare and aviation drills, according to a Sunday news release from the U.S. Navy's 7th Fleet. "These events allow us to work with an unmatched network of partners and allies in a complex environment, supporting the common goal of a free and open Indo-Pacific," Rear Adm. Chris Engdahl, commander of Expeditionary Strike Group 7, said in the release. The blended air wing aboard the Queen Elizabeth includes F-35Bs from Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 211 and the Royal Air Force's No. 617 Squadron. "The U.K. Carrier Strike Group offers the largest fifth generation air wing afloat today and working with our close allies to develop operating procedures and capabilities while concurrently showcasing the agility of land and carrier-based aviation in the Indo-Pacific demonstrates our commitment to the region," said Commodore Steve Moorhouse, the strike group commander, said in the Sunday news release. During a Tuesday night news conference, Moorhouse said Indo-Pacific exercises differ from those in the North Atlantic or Mediterranean because they focus primarily on multiple-threat scenarios. That presents a chance to learn to balance traditional surface and underwater threats with space and cyber elements. The ability of the two nations' F-35Bs to communicate seamlessly highlighted the advantage of allied forces integrating their technology and communications, Moorhouse said. Failure to do so would be like "fighting with one hand behind your back," he said. The Queen Elizabeth in the Indo-Pacific marks the U.K.'s first military presence in the region in 25 years. The ship has completed several firsts since its departure from the U.K. in May, including an exercise with the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan in July. 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. Alaska Native Vietnam-era veterans will be able to select land allotments. At least five service members allegedly were part of the deadly pro-Trump mob that assaulted the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. The committees also found the Mar-a-Lago members exerted dominance over White House staff who were tasked with implementing... Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro said ship names express what "we value as a Navy and as a nation." While the involvement of Saudi and Israeli fighters in the same mission is significant, that development does not necessarily... 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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May-June 2021: A special pair of eclipses
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EarthSky friend Tom Wildoner – of the website LeisurelyScientist – captured this image of a total lunar eclipse in 2019 from Weatherly, Pennsylvania. Solar and lunar eclipses can occur only during a short period of time known as an eclipse season . No two eclipse seasons are the same, and some are particularly noteworthy. The upcoming eclipse season – May-June 2021 – will produce a pair of full eclipses: a total lunar eclipse on May 26, 2021 , and an annular solar eclipse on June 10, 2021 . This kind of pairing isn’t rare. It happens, on average, once every eight years or so. Still, this upcoming pair of eclipses is unusual in that we’ll have an especially short lunar eclipse and an especially long solar eclipse. You can watch both these eclipses live on timeanddate.com . When two full eclipses are squeezed into a single fortnight , the alignment of the Earth, moon, and sun for each event is only just good enough to produce a totality or an annularity . A short lunar eclipse … In the total lunar eclipse on May 26, 2021, the totality, when the moon is fully submerged in Earth’s shadow, will last a little over 14 minutes. That duration will make it the 10th-shortest totality for any lunar eclipse for the approximately 1,000-year span between the years 1600 and 2599. In terms of the total worldwide duration of the eclipse, which includes partial and penumbral phases, the May 26 event is even more exceptional: it is the second-shortest of all 693 total lunar eclipses in the same 1,000-year span. … and a long solar eclipse. Within the same period, the June 10 annular solar eclipse is also notable for its length. Although it is not particularly long when compared to solar eclipses in general, it stands out as having the fifth-longest worldwide duration (including partial phases) of any total or annular solar eclipse that is paired with a total lunar eclipse in the same eclipse season. Between the years 1600 and 2599, there are 2,108 eclipse seasons . Of these, only 126 seasons contain a pair of full eclipses: one total or annular solar eclipse, plus one total lunar eclipse. At timeanddate.com , we looked at the worldwide duration of each eclipse in these pairs. This is the length of time between the first and last moments the eclipse is visible from somewhere in the world, including partial and penumbral phases. Generally speaking, the better the alignment of the Earth, moon, and sun, the longer the worldwide duration of the eclipse. (There are several ways to measure how closely the three bodies are aligned, such as the magnitude of the eclipse, or a more technical number referred to as gamma. However, for fun, we looked at the total length of the eclipse in seconds.) How the May-June 2021 eclipses compare to others. The worldwide duration of the annular solar eclipse on June 10, 2021, is 17,939 seconds, or just under five hours. For a full solar eclipse that occurs in the same season as a total lunar eclipse, this turns out to be unusually long: it is the fifth-longest solar eclipse in our 1,000-year sample of 126 pairs of full eclipses. This means that the worldwide duration of the total lunar eclipse on May 26, 2021 is likely to be short … and indeed it is. Its total length of 18,127 seconds, or just over five hours, might not seem that quick. But for a lunar eclipse that includes penumbral, partial, and total phases, it is exceptionally fast. Across all 2,108 eclipse seasons in the period 1600 to 2599, there are 695 total lunar eclipses. Only one of these has a shorter worldwide duration than the May 2021 eclipse. It is literally a few seconds shorter – four seconds, to be precise – and it will occur 345 years from now (on May 25, 2366). If we consider only totality – in other words, if we ignore the partial and the penumbral phases – the May 2021 eclipse has a duration of 858 seconds (about 14 minutes). By this criteria, it is the 10th-shortest of all 695 total lunar eclipses in our sample period of one millennium. At maximum eclipse on May 26, Earth’s umbral shadow only just covers the face of the moon. Eclipses need a new moon or a full moon. The basic requirement for a solar eclipse is a new moon, which occurs when the moon passes between the Earth and the sun. A lunar eclipse requires a full moon, when the moon is on the opposite side of Earth from the sun. The moon takes around 29.5 days to go through all its phases, and new moons and full moons are separated by about two weeks. Eclipses don’t happen every month. The moon’s orbit around Earth is tilted by about 5.1 degrees to Earth’s orbit around the sun. This is why eclipses don’t happen every month: at new moon and at full moon, more often than not, the moon is too high or too low to align precisely with the Earth and the sun. The moon’s orbital tilt means that perfect alignments can only happen every 6 months or so. Image © timeanddate.com . Eclipses come in seasons. About every six months, Earth comes to a sweet spot in its orbit where a perfect – or almost perfect – three-way alignment of the Earth, moon, and sun can occur. Each sweet spot lasts for about 34.5 days: an eclipse season. If there is a new moon near the middle of an eclipse season, it will form a straight line with the Earth and the sun. The result will be a total solar eclipse , or an annular solar eclipse , if the moon is too far from Earth to cover the sun completely. In a similar way, a full moon near the middle of an eclipse season will produce a total lunar eclipse . Read more: What is an eclipse season? On the other hand, if a new moon or a full moon comes near the beginning or end of an eclipse season, the three-way alignment will be not quite perfect. In this case, the result will be either a partial solar eclipse , a partial lunar eclipse , or, if the moon passes through only the faint outer part of Earth’s shadow, a penumbral lunar eclipse . Eclipses guaranteed. Since a lunar month (the time taken for the moon to go from new to full to new again ) is only 29.5 days, each eclipse season is guaranteed to produce – somewhere in the world – one solar eclipse and one lunar eclipse. There can also be a second solar or lunar eclipse, if the first one occurs in the first few days of the season. Eclipses in balance. In most cases, the solar and lunar eclipses within each season balance each other: if one is a full eclipse, the other tends to be partial. To put it another way, if the alignment of the Earth, moon, and sun is perfect for one eclipse, the other eclipse will likely be near the beginning or end of the season, when the alignment is less perfect. For example, the “Great American” total solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 , was preceded by a small partial lunar eclipse 14 days earlier . And the total lunar eclipse of July 27, 2018 – the longest of the 21st century – was sandwiched between two small partial solar eclipses (on July 13 and August 11 ). View larger . | Looking ahead to future eclipses, this calendar shows how a total eclipse is often — but not always — balanced by a partial or penumbral eclipse. Image © timeanddate.com . Two full eclipses in one season. Occasionally, however, both the new moon and the full moon fall close enough to the midway point of a season to produce a pair of full eclipses. It is possible to fit in two full eclipses like this, but it’s a squeeze: in each case, the alignment of the Earth, moon, and sun is only just good enough to produce a full eclipse. Again, there is a balance between the two eclipses. The better the alignment is for one, the worse it will be for the other. This is what makes the forthcoming eclipse season especially interesting. Note on the accuracy of eclipse predictions. All eclipse predictions contain a small margin of error . One of the uncertainties in lunar eclipse calculations, for example, is that the atmosphere gives Earth’s shadow a fuzzy edge. This can lead to borderline cases such as October 17, 2024 . We at timeanddate.com classify this as an “almost” lunar eclipse, while some sources list it as a penumbral eclipse. Bottom line: Solar and lunar eclipses can only occur during a short period of time known as an eclipse season. The upcoming May-June 2021 eclipse season is an unusual one. Here’s how to understand it in the context of 1,000 years of eclipses.
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New wonders in nature
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1966 New York City transit strike
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In 1966, the Transport Workers Union (TWU) and Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) called a strike in New York City after the expiration of their contract with the New York City Transit Authority (TA). It was the first strike against the TA; pre-TWU transit strikes in 1905, 1910, 1916 and 1919 against the then-private transit companies had all failed. There had also been some partial TWU strikes in the 1930s, but no citywide actions. [1] The strike led to the passage of the Taylor Law, which redefined the rights and limitations of unions for public employees in New York. [2]
The strikers were led initially by the Irish-born Michael J. "Mike" Quill, the TWU's founder, who had been the union's president since its founding. The strike effectively ended all service on the subway and buses in the city, affecting millions of commuters. It was an ominous beginning for the mayoralty of John V. Lindsay, but is perhaps better remembered for the jailing of Quill and for his death only weeks afterwards. The twelve-day strike began on New Year's Day; the last trains rolled at 8:02 am. An injunction to end the strike was issued later that day, under the 1947 Condon-Wadlin Act. [2] On January 2, the union reduced its economic demands, but the TA responded only by getting a judge's order for the arrest of Quill and eight other union leaders. (The others were Matthew Guinan, Frank Sheehan, Daniel Gilmartin, Ellis Van Riper, and Mark Kavanagh of the TWU and John Rowland, William Mangus, and Frank Kleess of the ATU). The arrests were set for 1 a.m. on January 4. Quill was obviously in ill health, but immediately before his arrest he told reporters at the Americana Hotel, "The judge can drop dead in his black robes. I don't care if I rot in jail. I will not call off the strike." Quill spent little time in jail: his poor health soon had him transferred to Bellevue Hospital and later to Mount Sinai Medical Hospital, leaving TWU Secretary-Treasurer Doug MacMahon (a close associate of Quill's, with him since the union's founding) to lead the strike. On January 10, 15,000 workers picketed City Hall. Negotiations moved forward through mediators, with movement from both sides. At 1:37 A.M. on January 13, MacMahon announced that the union was recommending settlement. [1]
The package, worth over $60 million, included wages increases from $3.18 to $4.14 an hour, an additional paid holiday, increased pension benefits, and other gains. Gains averaged nine percent for the next eight years. Quill's health at first seemed to be improving; he was actually released from hospital January 25. He gave a speech to the victorious strikers and another press conference at the Americana, but the apparent improvement in his health was an illusion: he died on January 28. [3]
Democratic New York City mayor Robert Wagner granted collective bargaining rights to city employees in 1958. This led to the unions replacing Tammany Hall as the city's most powerful political force. Wagner formed a close alliance with the public-sector unions. [4] Reformist Republican John Lindsay won the November 1965 mayoral election by campaigning against the city's often corrupt political machines. With the transit contract set to expire the same day Lindsay would take office, the stage was set for confrontation. [3]
Lindsay's "Protestant rectitude"[3] proved no match for the "fiery"[5] Quill. The true sources of power in New York became clear, a point that would be further driven home by 1967 and 1968 teachers strikes and a 1968 strike by sanitation workers. [2] By the time Lindsay ran for re-election in 1969 as the candidate of the Liberal Party of New York, he had made his peace with the public sector unions, and ultimately won their support. [3] However, and partly as a result, the city's social and economic decline was rapidly intensifying.
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Strike
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Ticket reseller Viagogo fined $7 million for misleading Australian consumers
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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
Ticket reseller Viagogo has been fined $7 million for misleading Australian consumers with Google advertisements, added fees and claims about the scarcity of tickets. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) took Viagogo to court over its practices when reselling tickets for entertainment, music and live sport events.
Last year, a Federal Court judge found the Swiss-based company had breached Australian Consumer Law and made false or misleading representations.
Justice Stephen Burley on Friday ordered Viagogo to pay a penalty of $7 million, saying some of the misrepresentations were "on an industrial scale".
The judge issued an injunction which prevents the company from continuing the offending conduct and ordered Viagogo to take part in a compliance program. Costs were also awarded against Viagogo.
The company has been the target of customer complaints, industry backlash and court action overseas. In the ACCC's case, the spotlight was placed on Viagogo's use of the word "official" in its Google advertisements over two months in 2017, leading many customers to conclude it was an official seller rather than an online marketplace.
Justice Burley labelled that as "qualitatively a very serious misrepresentation".
"It fundamentally misled consumers as to the nature of Viagogo's business in order to attract consumers to acquire tickets," he said.
The court found Viagogo's use of phrases such as "only a few tickets left" was deceptive because they related to tickets available through its own website — not the overall availability of tickets to an event. Those phrases "had the effect of drawing the consumer further into a marketing web and also a transactional web", the judge said.
Customer were "lured by repeated assurances that the only tickets available at the venue are going fast".
"The misrepresentations were on an industrial scale for the relevant period," Justice Burley said.
ACCC chairman Rod Sims said the statements created a false sense of urgency.
The watchdog also successfully pursued the company over its added fees, which included a 27.6 per cent booking fee that applied to most tickets in the 2017 period.
The court found the website had drawn customers in with a headline price but did not disclose additional fees sufficiently.
Mr Sims said many consumers were caught out by the "extraordinarily high" fees.
In a statement, Viagogo said the platform had been "overhauled" since the court's initial decision. The changes included consultation with consumer protection regulators in "a number of countries", a spokesman said.
"Viagogo is committed to providing an important service to consumers that use our platform," he said.
ACCC Chairm Rod Sims said Viagogo's business practices were unacceptable.
"Today’s $7 million penalty sends a strong signal to businesses like Viagogo conducting business in Australia that they cannot get away with profiting from misleading Australian consumers about the price of the tickets they are selling," he said in a statement.
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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Mine collapses of Ikolomani
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The craze for gold prospecting in Kakamega County has driven villagers to give up farming and lease out their land to hordes of artisanal miners in the region. Some miners have come in from neighbouring countries, including Tanzania, and operate using proxies to avoid detection. They have brought with them powerful generators and pumps used by those working in the mines as they inch they way in different directions in search of gold in the rocks. The painstaking job requires patience and can take several weeks or months before the miners stumble on a few milligrams of the precious metal. 80,000 artisanal miners According to Western Region Mining Officer Samuel Too, Kakamega County has more than 80,000 artisanal miners. In Kakamega South Sub-County, much of what was family land has been turned into mining sites, with mines that are up to 150 feet deep -- potential death traps for miners who enter them to scoop soils containing rocks that are crushed and sieved for traces of gold. The artisanal miners descend into the tunnels using a container fastened to a tow cable connected to a rudimentary manual pulley. As the miners descend into the dark pits, they know there's a possibility that the walls could collapse and bury them alive. Mining accidents Several miners have been killed in the mines. Mining officials said they were compiling and updating their data on mining accidents. "There have been several accidents, leading to deaths of miners and this has prompted us to compile and update our data to reflect the number of reported accidents and the fatalities," said Mr Too. The miners use wooden planks to hold the soils together and ensure they do not collapse and trap them underground as they get the soil containing rocks and send it to their colleagues for processing. Gold discovery In 2017, the reported discovery of gold heightened expectation and sparked excitement in villages in Ikolomani Constituency. The discovery of 1.31 million ounces of inferred gold resource in the Liranda Corridor drove groups of artisanal miners into a mining frenzy. The discovery was made by the Acasia Mining Company, which was then prospecting for gold in the Liranda Corridor. Shanta Gold East Africa has since acquired the rights for gold prospecting in the region. The estimated value of the gold at the time was Sh169 billion, but the firm said it could take up to three years to carry out further survey and establish whether the venture was economically viable. In an interview after the discovery, Acasia CEO Brad Gordon said: "We are delighted to announce the maiden NI 43-101-compliant Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate on the Liranda Corridor. "This is one of the highest-grade projects in Africa today, and we believe that this initial resource is a first step in the delineation of a multi-million-ounce high-grade corridor." He added: "This greenfield discovery demonstrates the value of our systematic approach to grassroots exploration and validates our contrarian strategy of investing in exploration over the past few years whilst others have been pulling back." Since then, artisanal miners have been sinking their pits close to where Shanta Gold East Africa have set up their rigs and other equipment in the ongoing exploration. Mines collapsed However, several miners have lost their lives in the past, after the mines collapsed on them as they dug the tunnels while others suffered health complications after inhaling poisonous gases in the depth of the mines. In the latest accident, five people died after a mine caved in at Bushangala village in Ikolomani Constituency on May 6. The five were among 16 miners who had gone underground. Eleven sustained injuries after they were trapped in a section of the mine that collapsed during heavy rain. One of the dead was from Bushangala village, while four others were from Migori County. The sub-county police commander, Joseph Chesire, said: "The group had been working on the mine during heavy rains when the soils collapsed, trapping them in the tunnel." The police commander told Nation.Africa that villagers rushed to the scene and helped rescue some of those who were trapped. In December 2019, the government stopped mining indefinitely to avert accidents during the rainy season. Heavy rains usually lead to collapse of soils in the mining pits. Chiefs and their assistants in Ikolomani have been instructed to ensure the miners do not enter the pits during the rainy season. Kakamega County Commissioner Pauline Dola asked the administrators to ensure residents complied with the directive. Intensified activities Ikolomani Constituency is considered the heart of mining in Kakamega County. Villagers usually flock the mines abandoned by the colonial administration in the 1930s to prospect for gold. Artisanal miners have intensified their activities in Savane, Shiveye, Lirembe, Isulu, Shisere and Iguhu. Mr Ernest Chimasia, an official of the sacco representing the miners said: "We are disadvantaged because we lack the sophisticated equipment to detect the presence of gold and other minerals in the soils. But we keep digging the tunnels and risking our lives in the hope that we shall stumble on some gold deposits. He asked the national and county governments to support the groups to buy proper mining equipment. Mr Aggrey Chimasia, from Shikokho village has worked in the mines for the past two years. He said at first, he never thought it was worth the trouble working in the mines. Mr Chimasia and his colleagues were working on a mine at Shikoye in Ikolomani Constituency. Lots of money "One day, we stumbled on a substantial amount of gold with my fellow miners and I ended up earning Sh1 million. I bought a piece of land and built a house for my family. People make lots of money from mining but they shy away from talking about it to avoid attracting attention from authorities," said Mr Chimasia. "If one is patient and hardworking, the job pays off. There are days when we stumble on substantial amounts of gold after working for months without any luck. But we don't give up because we know our lives will change after we have struck gold," said Mr Chimasia, who is also a pastor of the African Divine Church. Ikolomani MP Bernard Shinali said shutting down the mines would lead to an increase in criminal activity in the villages. "What we need the government to do is come up with regulations that will protect the miners and ensure they are safe as they go about their activities. This is the big challenge facing the miners who depend on the activity for livelihood," said Mr Chimasia.
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Mine Collapses
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1992–1993 Malawian protests
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The 1992–1993 Malawian protests was mass demonstrations and violent protests in Malawi during which 38 are thought to have lost their lives. Student-led anti-government demonstrations were held in March, leaving 1 dead. Their main demand was to legalise political parties, end single-party rule, reinstate multiparty politics and get political prisoners released, particularly Chakufwa Chihana. President Hastings Kamuzu Banda ordered troops to disperse protesters. Riots, Rallies and Marches was organised in all areas to protest the government and centre their main demands. [1][2][3]
In Zomba, police fired on protesters and students who threw stones and chanted slogans against the federal government. A series of pro-democracy campaigns spread nationwide as the military failed to contain the movement and widespread demonstrations organised by pro-democracy campaigners, who staged largely-bloodless disturbances and peaceful protest rallies. However, the response from the national police forces was violent and preventing physical actions of marches. 3000 workers went on strike, most of whom textile workers protesting the arrest of Chakufwa Chihana and demanded the release of all political prisoners. Opposition activists staged rallies in the nation and exiled activists staged protests as well. [4]
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Protest_Online Condemnation
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2011–2012 Palestinian protests
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The 2011–2012 Palestinian protests were a series of protests in the Palestinian National Authority and the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, staged by various Palestinian groups as part of the wider Arab Spring. The protests were aimed to protest against the Palestinian government, as well as supporting the popular uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt and Syria. The first phase of protests took place during 2011 and the second phase in 2012. Some suggested the 2012 protests were also inspired by the Arab Spring. [1] Demonstrators were protesting against the economic policies of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), and the increasing cost of living. [2] On 1 September 2012, the PNA raised the price of fuel, as well as the value added tax rate. Mass demonstrations have taken place throughout the Palestinian Authority territory, including in Ramallah, Nablus, Balata Camp, Bir Zeit, Jalazun Camp, Hebron, Bethlehem, Beit Jala, Dheisheh Camp, Jenin, Jericho, Tulkarm[3] and Dura. [4] 2012 Protests have been characterized by road closures, tire burning, self-immolations,[4][5] peaceful demonstrations, stone throwing clashes and workers' strikes. The goal of the early protests were to unify the two ruling parties, Fatah and Hamas. Other reasons included unemployment, inflation, and lack of economic growth. The Palestinian Authority prevented several demonstrations in support of protesters in Tunisia and Egypt. On 3 February, Palestinian police dispersed an anti-Mubarak demonstration in downtown Ramallah, detaining four people, confiscating a cameraman's footage, and reportedly beating protesters. A smaller pro-Mubarak demonstration was permitted to take place in the same area and was guarded by police. [6]
On 15 October, an anti-Assad protest expressing solidarity with Palestinian refugees in Syria affected by the unrest there took place in the Gaza Strip, and was attended by 150 people. Hamas police forces dispersed the demonstration, claiming that it was held without a permit. [7]
On 1 February 2012 the Palestinian Authority announced that it would hold municipal elections in July. Some sources speculated that this announcement was a reaction to the anti-government protests in Egypt. The elections were however postponed to 22 October 2012, then suspended indefinitely due to an internal division within the Palestinian Authority over candidates for many of the municipalities and councils, and fears that Hamas supporters would back Palestinian Authority opponents. [8]
A rise in fuel prices, lowered quality of living and the current financial crisis and unpaid monthly salary payments for about 150,000 Palestinian workers have sparked the protests. The PNA is currently going through a financial crisis. In addition, the PNA has warned of potential cuts in electricity for large areas in the West Banks, prompting a rise in social tensions. Much of the demonstrators' anger has been directed towards the government of Prime Minister Salam Fayyad. [9] The 1994 Protocol on Economic Relations has also been targeted, an interim agreement that is part of the Oslo accords whereby Israel controls Palestinian trade and collects taxes on behalf of the PNA. [10][11] Further sources which point out the centrality to the Paris Protocol have also made the claim that these have been the first protests on the Palestinian West Bank not to be purely "political". [12]
Because of Israeli restrictions on the Palestinian economy, the PNA relies on foreign aid. [citation needed] Due to delays in the funding by the United States and various Arab countries, the accumulating budget deficit has become a financial crisis for the PNA. [9] Professor and former PNA spokesman Ghassan Khatib further states that the expansion of Israeli settlements and the subsequent confiscation of cultivable land and other natural resources has increased the PNA's dependence on foreign funds as well as the "exhaustion" of other venues such as taking bank loans and borrowing from the private sector. [10]
4 September - Mass protests involving thousands of Palestinians were held in cities throughout the West Bank in protest of price rises, higher costs of living, Salam Fayyad's handling of the financial crisis and the Paris Protocol. Several demonstrating groups also stressed they were protesting against the Israeli occupation in addition to dire conditions. In Hebron dozens of public transport vehicles drove from the northern to southern ends of the city protesting the cost of fuel, while hundreds of people participated in protests held in the city center. An effigy of Prime Minister Fayyad was set alight. Smaller demonstrations occurred in Ramallah, Bethlehem and Jenin. [13] In the city of al-Dura in the southern West Bank, 42-year-old Khaled Abu Rabee poured gasoline over himself and entered the municipal hall in an apparent self-immolation attempt. He was stopped by a security guard. [5]
5 September - In Ramallah a man from Gaza unsuccessfully attempted to set himself and his 6-year-old daughter who has cancer alight in protest of his inability to pay for her cancer treatment and the costly price of living. He was stopped by police who arrested him. [5] Meanwhile, school children protested the prices of basic goods in Beit Jala. [14]
In response to growing protests in the West Bank, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas announced that the "Palestinian Spring," drawing relation to the regional Arab Spring, had begun. He further quoted a Palestinian proverb that "hunger is disloyal," acknowledging that people think of feeding their families as the top priority. [15]
6 September - Demonstrations continued in West Bank cities. In Bethlehem, Beit Jala and Beit Sahour mostly young protesters forced many streets to close for traffic. Hundreds gathered to demonstrate in Nativity Street. [16] In Jenin protesters demanded the resignation of Salam Fayyad, while in Tulkarm demonstrators marched with donkeys in a gesture to the rising price of conventional transport. Taxi drivers began a mass strike to protest rising fuel prices. Fayyad announced on Voice of Palestine radio that he was "ready to resign" but the replacement of government officials would not alleviate the PNA's financial crisis. [17]
7 September - Palestinian National Initiative declared its support for protests against rising costs of living in the West Bank, and called for a "radical change" in economic policy. [18]
8 September - Dozens of protesters closed down several streets in Tulkarm and Ramallah on Saturday, as protests against rising living costs continue across the West Bank. A main road in Tulkarm was blocked with rocks and burning tires and protesters in Ramallah closed off several streets in the city center. President Mahmoud Abbas reiterated that Israel and some Arab countries share the blame for the PA’s financial crisis. He said the Palestinian Authority will not seek to stop the popular protests as long as they remain peaceful and do not harm public interests.
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Protest_Online Condemnation
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NATO shifts eastward to old Soviet bloc
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A relaxed resort town on the Black Sea with a dilapidated military airport nearby may seem like an unlikely place for a United States military base, but the small port town of Constanta, Romania will likely play a key role in the biggest U.S. military realignment since World War II.
NATO's expansion to include Romania and six other former Soviet bloc countries opens the door to a historic strategic shift of U.S. military forces in Europe, accelerated by the war on terrorism.
On Friday, soldiers from the seven countries raised their national flags outside NATO headquarters in Brussels to mark what is the biggest expansion of the alliance in its 55-year history.
Foreign ministers from Romania, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Lithuania, Slovenia, Latvia and Estonia joined their colleagues from the other 19 allies as a NATO honor guard played the newcomers’ national anthems.
“From now on, 26 allies will be joined in a commitment to defend each other’s security and territorial integrity,” said NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer. “This is the strongest, most solemn commitment nations can undertake.”
That expansion has upset Russia, which has been uneasy about the eastward shift of its old Cold War foe. Moscow has warned that further NATO troop movements into the former Soviet satellites would harm relations.
However, alliance diplomats played down fears of new tension with Moscow, and Russian foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, was to join NATO allies in talks later Friday.
As the ceremony took place in Brussels, plans were under way to drastically reduce the 110,000 U.S. troops based in Western Europe, mainly at large bases in Germany, and open new smaller military facilities in Eastern Europe.
The strategic shift follows a changed reality: the United States no longer needs an enormous military presence in Germany to deter the threat from a long-dissolved Soviet Union, but it urgently needs bases closer to the Mid East, Afghanistan, and other hotspots, according to the military leadership of U.S. European Command.
Military needs shift east
"Over the last decade it's becoming clear that we need to reposture our forces. A new threat has emerged. Frankly, it's the fundamentalism, it's transnational terrorism, it's instabilities — the threat is moving, or actually developing to the East and to the South," General Charles F. Wald, Deputy Commander of U.S. European Command, told NBC News in an interview. "So the European Command needs to change with the world as it changes."
The United States has no intention of dismantling the large "hub" facilities in Western Europe, such as Ramstein airbase in Germany, which would cost billions of dollars to replicate. But such bases will be downsized and others closed.
Wald told NBC News that strategically chosen Forward Operating Sites, or FOSs, will be set up in several countries, and will range from small temporary bases to more permanent large sites with troops and support staff. But each site would remain flexible enough to expand and contract as needed for mission strength — and to train local troops to share the burden in the global war on terrorism and in protecting energy supplies key to the world economy.
"I think the beauty of the forward operating location is the flexibility that it lends the United States military," Wald said.
New NATO countries step in
The need for flexibility became painfully clear when NATO ally Turkey refused to allow U.S. troops to use its Incirlik base to fly missions into Iraq during the Iraq war.
NATO hopefuls Romania and Bulgaria stepped in to help and the bulk of U.S. Special Operations forces working in northern Iraq flew out of Romania's Constanta.
At the 43rd Mechanized Brigade base near Constanta's Mihail Kogalniceanu airport, commander Colonel Virgil Balaceanu last week displayed the newly remodeled barracks that housed U.S. Special Operations forces during operation Iraqi Freedom.
Balaceanu hopes the United States will set up a permanent base in Constanta, as this would provide good training opportunities for his men and bring in needed finances to improve the infrastructure. The Pentagon has already invested at least $8 million to upgrade the airport and base.
But it's not just what the United States can do for Romania, it's also what Romania can do for the United States, Balaceanu said.
"Modern warfare demands smaller and more flexible troops that need facilities not just for accommodation but also for deployability like harbors, airports, good training facilities, and good ranges. And this area offers these interlinked conditions," he said.
Good training grounds
Another crucial issue for U.S. troops in Europe is good training grounds.
As urban sprawl increases in Europe, areas where troops can train to fire arms at night or fly low over the land are becoming few. European noise regulations hamper training. In contrast, the training ranges in Romania have no such restrictions.
At the Babadag base near Constanta, Romania's only marine brigade was put threw its paces last week by Commander Vasily Romanescu. He has been leading the marines through a restructuring process in order to join NATO, training them for harbor security and anti-terrorist missions.
The marines were running obstacle courses under blank fire, aiming artillery, and even frying fish caught earlier in a nearby lake as part of their survival training.
The Babadag training polygon is ideal for U.S. troops, according to Romanescu. "In a small area you have lake, sea, marsh-type terrain, you have forest, and you have mountains. It's affordable, it's easy to access, and it can offer a lot of opportunities."
Romanescu saw only advantages to an increased U.S. military presence. "We would be able to learn more from them because the American forces have been engaged in real world operations recently, so we would be able to share their experience. They will bring jobs for the local community. So everyone will definitely welcome them," he said.
U.S. military officials have denied that discord between NATO allies France and Germany over the Iraq war played a role in the decision to shift forces East. At the same time, they welcomed Romania's enthusiasm to host U.S. troops and its willingness to send troops to Iraq and Afghanistan.
Romania's Minister of Defense Ioan Pascu told NBC in an interview that Romania's new relationship with the United States has been a process of mutual discovery of common goals.
"It's not that we are offering something in the hope that somebody will offer us something in return. We have to cooperate. Otherwise terrorist activities cannot be stopped or countered," Pascu said.
By Judy Augsburger
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Join in an Organization
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2020 Iran–Turkey earthquakes
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The first and most destructive of the 2020 Iran–Turkey earthquakes occurred on 23 February, near Khoy in north-west Iran, close to the border with Turkey, killing 9 people in Başkale, Van. [2] It hit at 9:23 a.m. local time (05:53 UTC) with a magnitude of 5.8 Mw[1] at a depth of 6 kilometres (3.7 miles)[3] and the epicenter was Qotur district, according to the Iranian Seismological Center (IRSC). About 10 hours later the same area was hit by another major earthquake of 6.0 Mw . [4]
Northwestern Iran and easternmost Turkey lie within the zone of complex structure associated with the continuing collision between the Arabian Plate and the Eurasian Plate. On this part of the boundary the collision is quite oblique and the thrust faulting along the front of the Zagros fold and thrust belt is accompanied by a series of NW–SE trending dextral (right-lateral) strike-slip faults, such as the North Tabriz Fault and the Gailatu–Siah Chesh-meh–Khoy Fault. Normal faults are developed at terminations and releasing bends on the strike-slip faults. The entire fault system is active and has been associated with many destructive earthquakes. [5]
The first of the larger earthquakes had a magnitude of 5.8 Mw with a depth of 10 km (ANSS),[1] 5.8 ML with a depth of 8 km (KOERI),[6] or 5.7 mbLg with a depth of 6 km (Iranian Seismological Center (IRSC)). [7] It was followed just over 10 hours later by the second event, which had a magnitude of 6.0 Mw with a depth of 10 km (ANSS),[4] 5.8 ML with a depth of 5 km (KOERI),[8] or 5.9 mbLg with a depth of 12 km (IRSC). [9]
The area of significant damage stretched from the city of Van in the west to Khoy in Iran to the east. More than 1,000 buildings were destroyed in Turkey,[10] with many others damaged in 43 affected villages in Iran. [11] The Turkish health ministry reported that nine people had died, four of them children,[12] with another 66 injured. [13] 75 people were reported injured in Iran. [11] No further casualties have been reported in Turkey following the Mw 6.0 earthquake. [14] Death toll climbed to 10 when a teenager later died in the hospital. [15]
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Earthquakes
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2016 Oromo protests
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The 2015–16 Oromo protests[29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36] were a series of peaceful protests and nonviolent resistance[37] first sparked on 25 April 2014. The initial actions were taken in opposition to the Addis Ababa Master Plan,[38] and resumed on 12 November 2015 by university students and farmers in the town of Ginchi, located 80 km southwest of Addis Ababa city, encircled by the Oromia region. [39][40][41] The plan was to expand the capital into the Oromia special zone, leading to fears that native Oromo farmers would lose their land and be displaced. The plan was later dropped but protests continued, highlighting issues such as marginalization and human rights. [5] Mulatu Gemechu, Deputy Chairman of the opposition Oromo Federalist Congress, expressed to Reuters: "so far, we have compiled a list of 33 protesters killed by armed security forces that included police and soldiers but I am very sure the list will grow"[7] Protesters demanded social and political reforms, including an end to human rights abuses like government killings of civilians, mass arrests, government land seizures, and political marginalization of opposition groups. The government responded by restricting access to the internet[42][43] and attacking as well as arresting protesters. [43][44][45]
In the three days leading up to 8 August 2016, Reuters reported that at least 90 protesters[18] had been shot and killed by Ethiopian security forces, marking the most violent crackdown against protesters in sub-Saharan Africa since at least 75 people were killed during protests in Oromia Region in November and December 2015. [46][47]
According to Human Rights Watch, at least 500 people are estimated to have been killed as of October 2016. [48][49]
In 1991, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) captured the capital Addis Ababa and ended the Ethiopian Civil War. The EPRDF was led by the Tigrayan People's Liberation Front and was dominated by those belonging to the Tigray ethnic group, which is a minority group comprising only about six percent of the country's population. However, members of this ethnic group have traditionally dominated senior positions in the country's military and political system, while those belonging to the Amhara and Oromo ethnic groups, who comprise a majority of the population, have felt rather marginalized over the past few decades. [43][50] Ethnic divisions are not as sharp in Ethiopia as might be indicated by statistics; intermarriage is extremely commonplace, and the actual disparity and disaffection between groups are not great. Furthermore, following the death of Meles Zenawi in 2012, the influence of the Tigray ethnic group became lower than in previous decades. Subsequent to his death neither of the two main political positions–President (head of state) and Prime Minister (head of government)–were occupied by a Tigrayan. Then-President Mulatu Teshome belonged to the Oromo ethnic group and then-Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn to the Wolayta ethnic group. Nevertheless, the perceived domination of the Tigray people had been in the back of the minds of some people and was a factor in the disturbances. [citation needed]
Protests were first sparked on 25 April 2014 against expansion of boundaries Addis Ababa city and government responded by shooting at and beating peaceful protesters[51] and embarked in full blown strike and streets protests on 12 November 2015 by university student in Ginchi town, located 80 km southwest of Addis Ababa city, encircled by Oromia region. [52][53][54] protests spread throughout 400 different locales across 17 zones of Oromia region[55] according to Amnesty International 800 Oromo protesters killed since started[56]
The 2016 Oromo youth demonstrations started because Addis Ababa's new city master plan proposed including farmlands from the surrounding Oromia region to cope with the city's rapid expansion. Amhara ethnic youth also followed the Oromos because of old bitterness towards the governing EPRDF (a party founded by the TPLF) who have abolished the century-old Amhara dominance in Ethiopian governance. [57]
[58]
[59][60]
After deadly Oromo protests started since 25 April 2014, controversial master plan was cancelled on 12 January 2016 after 140 protesters were killed. [61][62][63]
In 2014, both rainy seasons in Ethiopia saw irregular rainfall. In 2015, due to an extremely strong El Niño event, both rainy seasons in Ethiopia almost did not happen at all. That resulted in an acute drought in particular in the Highlands of Ethiopia, crops and pastures dried up and herds were dying. It was considered to be the worst drought in 50 years. [64] The drought did hit particularly hard in Amhara Region and Oromia Region. [65] After 18 months of severe drought with almost nothing left over to eat for drought-affected people, very strong torrential rains that started in April 2016 did worsen the situation until October 2016. The flooding displaced people for months in exactly the same regions, that were most affected by the long drought. [66] Ethiopia is a multi-ethnic state. UNICEF experience in Ethiopia has shown such droughts and floods often result in humanitarian shocks and tensions between ethnic groups. [13]
The country has been experiencing rapid economic growth since the 2000s and is one of the world's fastest-growing economies and is Africa’s second-most populous country. [67] But while economic development and growth and industrialization are supported a lot by the authoritarian government, often the needs of the rural population remain unconsidered, the freedom and civil rights of farmers and pastoralists in particular are often neglected. They are left behind. [14]
The November and December 2015 protests in the Oromia Region that resulted in the killings of over 100 people by government forces. The 2015 protests were later followed by a police crackdown and the arrests of hundreds of opposition members. [68]
According to diplomatic, NGO, and opposition sources, hundreds of thousands of people marched in more than 200 towns and cities in the vast Oromia State,[69][70] in protest at "the government's draconian and ever-escalating repression. "[71] This resulted in at least 148 people being killed on 5 and 6 August. [72]
On 2 October 2016, more protests occurred where an estimated two million people were attending the annual Irreechaa festival in Bishoftu in the Oromia region. [48] The festival is attended by Oromos from all walks of life to celebrate life and nature. An anti-government protest disrupted the event, with some claiming they involved peacefully chanting slogans against the Oromo Peoples' Democratic Organization,[48][73] while others claim stones and bottles were thrown. [73][74] People died in a stampede as a result of police using tear gas, rubber bullets and baton charges,[48][73][74] falling into a deep ditch and being crushed,[74] or drowning in a lake. [49] While the Oromia regional government confirmed the deaths of 52 people, rights groups, the opposition leader, and local reports claim various numbers up to nearly 300 people dead. [48][49][71][73][74][75] On August 6th, hundreds of protesters marched on Meskel Square in Addis Ababa and shouted "we want our freedom" and "free our political prisoners". [72] Dozens of protesters were arrested by Addis Ababa's police. [76]
23 imprisoned Oromo protesters died in Kaliti Prison after a fire broke out, wherein 21 died from carbon monoxide poisoning and 2 were killed by security force after an attempt to escape. [77]
Protests in the Oromia region spread to Amhara Region in the summer of 2016[78]
In July 2016, the Anti-terrorism task force detained members of the Wolqayt Amhara Identity Committee (WAIC), a legally registered organisation. Soon after, protests erupted in many areas of the Amhara Region, the historic ethnic center of the Ethiopian state and home to the spectacular monolithic rock-cut churches of Lalibela and medieval castles of Gondar that attract tourists from all over. [79] One of the biggest demonstrations took place was on August 1st, 2016 in Gondar city. Hundreds of thousands of people held a peaceful demonstration over the arrest of the WAIC members, government repression and protest Federal government encroachment in regional affairs. Protesters carried placards expressing solidarity with the Oromo people. [80] As they marched, they were heard to be chanting in Amharic "በኦሮምያ የሚፈሰዉ ደም ደማችን ነዉ" [81] which translates to “the pouring of blood in Oromia is our blood” [82][83] and “the killings of our brothers in Oromia needs to stop”.
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Protest_Online Condemnation
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Man diagnosed with cancer and given just weeks to live welcomes baby son 14 years later
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Jonathan Jones, 31, is currently on a gruelling schedule of chemotherapy, but says he is loving life with his partner Danielle and their six-month-old son JJ
A man who was diagnosed with an aggressive brain cancer and told he would be lucky to live for two weeks has welcomed his first child, 14 years later. Jonathan Jones, 31, is currently on a gruelling schedule of chemotherapy, but says he is loving life with his partner Danielle and their six-month-old son JJ.
The Solihull, West Midlands man, was diagnosed in 2007 with a grade 3 oligodendroglioma, an incredibly aggressive brain tumour, on his left temporal lobe.
The discovery of the large tumour was made by University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire (UHCW) NHS Trust, following an eye examination. An urgent MRI scan was ordered and Jonathan and his family were left heartbroken at the results.
If left untreated, Jonathan would not have survived more than two weeks.
Surgery was booked for the following day, where the whole tumour, the size of an orange, was removed from Jonathon’s brain by Professor Amjad Shad.
Following the surgery Professor Ian Brown, consultant oncologist at UHCW, prescribed Jonathan with chemotherapy and a six-week course of radiotherapy.
Jonathan has been on chemotherapy ever since, attending the Arden Centre at UHCW every six weeks.
Brain scans over the last 14 years have returned stable results.
Jonathan said: "The operation was very long and my family were in pieces as you can imagine.
"When the surgeon told my family that it was the best outcome possible, everyone was relieved.”
Following the surgery, Jonathan said he made good progress but his balance was seriously affected, which meant he was stuck in the hospital for some time in a wheelchair.
He described the care as “absolutely incredible” and has credited the team with saving his life.
"I had a great support network around me,” Jonathan added. “My family and friends were a great motivation for me to get better.”
Despite the difficult journey he has been on over the last 14 years, Jonathan has described his life as 'perfect' and has set up a business designing clothes to raise awareness of brain tumours.
Following his diagnosis, he had some of his sperm frozen in case his chances of having children were damaged by chemotherapy.
He and Danielle became first-time parents this year, when their son JJ was born.
Mr Jone said: "Despite the journey I’ve been on and having to go through more than 170 rounds of chemotherapy, I’ve never felt better.
"I feel as fit as a fiddle and am really enjoying life as a new dad."
"My life, albeit the chemo, is perfect,” he added. “I have a wonderful son, beautiful girlfriend and have set up a business designing clothes to help raise awareness of brain tumours, which also donates to the Brain Tumour Trust.
"My tumour was found very late and could have fatal consequences. I’m very lucky to still be here,” he added.
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Famous Person - Sick
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Operating hours of shopping malls, supermarkets and convenience stores will be shortened to reduce the spread of Covid-19
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updated: 24 Apr 2021 at 16:29 writer: Online Reporters Operating hours of shopping malls, supermarkets and convenience stores will be shortened further in 18 high-risk provinces in order to reduce the spread of Covid-19, the Thai Retailers Association (TRA) said on Saturday. In addition, 42 provinces have now made mask-wearing in public mandatory, while officials in Nonthaburi are asking — but not yet ordering — residents to stay home from 9pm to 4am. Starting on Sunday, the TRA said, shopping malls and community malls in 18 provinces will be open from 11am to 8pm; supermarkets and food courts must close at 9pm, and convenience stores must close from 10pm to 5am. The new hours will be in effect until May 2. ADVERTISEMENT The changes apply in the following “red zone” provinces: Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Chon Buri, Khon Kaen, Nakhon Pathom, Nakhon Ratchasima, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Phuket, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Rayong, Sa Kaew, Samut Prakan, Samut Sakhon, Songkhla, Suphan Buri, Tak and Udon Thani. Yon Pokesap, president of the Thai Shopping Centres Association (TSCA), said that promotional activities at malls, which draw people together, would continue to be banned. As well, he said, more staff of member businesses will be asked to work from home if possible. ADVERTISEMENT The TSCA membership includes MBK, The Mall Group, Central Pattana, Siam Retail Development, The Platinum Group, Seacon Development, Siam Future Development, Siam Piwat Group and KE Land. In Nonthaburi, the provincial administration said it was asking residents for “cooperation” to not leave their homes from 9pm to 4am unless they have a good reason. As well, people are being asked not to eat together in groups. Provincial authorities have also expanded the list of establishments required to stay closed in order to reduce virus transmission risk. It includes entertainment places such as pubs, bars, karaokes, bathing houses, massage parlours and others; gaming shops; water and amusement parks, including those at malls; amulet centres; swimming pools; cock- or fish-fighting rings or any animal training or competition sites. Also in Nonthaburi, Bangkruai Hospital announced it would be closed from Monday to tend to existing Covid patients with moderate to severe symptoms. The 60-bed community facility said that under no circumstances would it accept accident or general patients. People can seek medical services from tambon health promotion hospitals for Bang Kruai and Bang Khun Kong from 8am to 6pm. Meanwhile, mask-wearing in both indoor and outdoor public spaces is now compulsory in 42 provinces, according to the Ministry of Interior. Violators can be fined up to 20,000 baht. The provinces are: CENTRAL Ayutthaya, Lop Buri, Kanchanaburi (only at markets, flea markets and floating markets), Nonthaburi, Phetchaburi, Prachin Buri, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Samut Prakan, Samut Sakhon, Saraburi, Suphan Buri EAST Chon Buri, Trat NORTH Lamphun, Phetchabun, Sukhothai, Tak, Uttaradit NORTHEAST Amnat Charoen, Buri Ram, Chaiyaphum, Loei, Maha Sarakham, Mukdahan, Nakhon Phanom, Nong Khai, Si Sa Ket, Surin, Ubon Ratchathani, Udon Thani, Yasothon SOUTH Nakhon Si Thammarat, Narathiwat, Pattani, Phangnga, Phuket, Ranong, Satun, Songkhla, Surat Thani, Trang, Yala.
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Organization Closed
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1992 Murindó earthquake
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The Murindó Fault (Spanish: Falla Murindó) is a strike-slip fault in the department of Antioquia and Chocó in northwestern Colombia. The fault has a total length of 60.6 kilometres (37.7 mi) and runs along an average north-northwest to south-southeast strike of 347.4 ± 6 in the Chocó Basin along the western edge of the Western Ranges of the Colombian Andes. The fault is named after Murindó. [1]
The fault in the Chocó Basin extends along the western slope of the Western Ranges of the Colombian Andes, from the Arquia River in the south to the Río Sucio and the basin of the Atrato River in the north. The Murindó Fault places Cretaceous volcanic (basic) rocks against Tertiary turbidites, and crosscuts Tertiary quartz-diorite and granodiorite. [1] The Murindó River flows along the Murindó Fault near Murindó. [2] The fault underlies the municipalities of Dabeiba and Frontino. [3] To the south, the fault runs parallel to the Mutatá and Encarnación Faults. [4][5]
In the southernmost part, the fault shows evidence of tectonic control of streams. It also forms aligned saddles that face toward the mountain front. The fault is active with an approximate slip rate of 0.2 to 1 millimetre (0.0079 to 0.0394 in) per year, and caused the 1992 Murindó earthquake (MW 7.3) on October 18. A foreshock of 6.7 was registered the day before. Many earthquakes that occurred since 1883 in the region are associated with the Murindó Fault. [6]
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Earthquakes
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Murulla rail accident
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The Murulla rail accident involved the collision of the Sydney-bound Northern Mail with runaway goods wagons near Murrurundi, New South Wales, in the Upper Hunter Valley on 13 September 1926; 26 persons lost their lives. [1] A goods train had become divided and the attempts of the train crew to reunite the portions resulted in 12 vehicles running away down a steep gradient, and colliding with the approaching mail train. This was the worst accident on the New South Wales rail network until the Granville railway disaster in 1977. The signal box at Murulla controlled a loop line for trains to pass on a single-line railway; no other connections were at the location. Electric Train Staff operated between Wingen and Murulla and Electric Tablet operated between Murulla and Blandford. [1]
Train number 62, a southbound goods train, comprised a standard goods engine hauling 34 wagons and a brake van were to pass through Murulla on the main line. Another goods train, number 95, working in the opposing direction, had entered the loop line and was waiting for number 62 to pass. Number 62 had a length of 951 feet (290 m) and a load of 746 tons (758 t). All vehicles were fitted with Westinghouse air brakes. The train slowed at Murulla signalbox for the exchange of the single-line tokens, and as the train staff for the onward section was received, the driver of number 62 put on steam. The shock resulted in the train becoming divided, with the rear 12 vehicles separating from the main train. This was later attributed to the failure of a drawhook. The division of the train was noticed by the driver and both portions of the train were safely brought to a stand. Both portions of the train were verified to be within the clearance points of the loop line, so train number 95 was permitted to depart. The detached portion of number 62 consisted of 12 vehicles, and its length 331 feet with a weight of 264 tons. Handbrakes were applied to these vehicles. The train staff in the possession of the engine crew apparently was returned to the instrument in the signal box at this time, and all vehicles were within the confines of the home signals. After a number of attempts to fit a tailrope, the brake van had been shunted back, foul of the clearance point for the loop line. The two opposing vehicles at the separation were finally hitched with a single wire rope connection, but the airbrake hoses could not be connected. The signalman then requested that the train be brought forward so that it was clear of the clearance point so as to permit the approaching southbound number 8 mail train to pass through the loop. The guard of number 62 released the handbrakes on the rear portion, leaving it unbraked, and the driver went forward to his engine. When he started the train, the tailrope broke and the rear portion began to run back down the grade towards Blandford, coming into collision with the approaching mail train just beyond the Up Distant signal. The collision resulted in the death of 26 persons. [1] (Gunn has 27 fatalities. )[2]
Following the disaster, a coronial inquest was held at Murrurundi, with evidence being taken over 8 days. On 9 October 1926, the district coroner committed the driver and guard of the goods train for trial. He noted that no pin was in the train's guard's brake van to enable the two portions of the train to be coupled in accordance with regulations. Had the portions been properly coupled, the Westinghouse brake pipe hoses could have been connected so that in the event of a further break-away, the brakes on the rear portion would have been automatically applied. In the absence of that pin, essential principles of safe working had been overlooked. [3]
On 6 December, the driver and guard appeared at the Central Criminal Court, charged with felonious slaying one of the mail train's passengers. The crown prosecutor alleged, "if the accused failed to link up the air brakes when the appliances were there, they were guilty of gross negligence. "[3]
In his summing up, Mr Justice Ferguson said, "the charge of manslaughter could be established only if the crown proved gross negligence, criminal in character, and deserving of punishment". On 8 December, the two men were acquitted. [3]
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Train collisions
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Trump says US will withdraw from nuclear arms treaty with Russia
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Experts warn of ‘most severe crisis in nuclear arms control since the 1980s’ as Trump confirms US will leave INF agreement
First published on Sat 20 Oct 2018 21.17 BST
Donald Trump has confirmed the US will leave an arms control treaty with Russia dating from the cold war that has kept nuclear missiles out of Europe for three decades.
“We’ll have to develop those weapons,” the president told reporters in Nevada after a rally. “We’re going to terminate the agreement and we’re going to pull out.”
Trump was referring to the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces treaty (INF), which banned ground-launch nuclear missiles with ranges from 500km to 5,500km. Signed by Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev, it led to nearly 2,700 short- and medium-range missiles being eliminated, and an end to a dangerous standoff between US Pershing and cruise missiles and Soviet SS-20 missiles in Europe.
The Guardian reported on Friday that Trump’s third national security adviser, John Bolton, a longstanding opponent of arms control treaties, was pushing for US withdrawal. The US says Russia has been violating the INF agreement with the development and deployment of a new cruise missile. Under the terms of the treaty, it would take six months for US withdrawal to take effect.
US hawks have also argued that the INF treaty ties the country’s hands in its strategic rivalry with China in the Pacific, with no response to Chinese medium-range missiles that could threaten US bases, allies and shipping.
Bolton and the top arms control adviser in the National Security Council (NSC), Tim Morrison, are also opposed to the extension of another major pillar of arms control, the 2010 New Start agreement with Russia, which limited the number of deployed strategic warheads on either side to 1,550. That agreement, signed by Barack Obama and Dmitri Medvedev, then president of Russia, is due to expire in 2021.
“This is the most severe crisis in nuclear arms control since the 1980s,” said Malcolm Chalmers, the deputy director general of the Royal United Services Institute. “If the INF treaty collapses, and with the New Start treaty on strategic arms due to expire in 2021, the world could be left without any limits on the nuclear arsenals of nuclear states for the first time since 1972.”
Speaking to reporters in Nevada, Trump said: “Russia has violated the agreement. They’ve been violating it for many years and I don’t know why President Obama didn’t negotiate or pull out.
“We’re not going to let them violate a nuclear agreement and do weapons and we’re not allowed to. We’re the ones that have stayed in the agreement and we’ve honoured the agreement but Russia has not unfortunately honoured the agreement so we’re going to terminate the agreement, we’re going to pull out.”
Asked to clarify, the president said: “Unless Russia comes to us and China comes to us and they all come to us and they say, ‘Let’s all of us get smart and let’s none of us develop those weapons,’ but if Russia’s doing it and if China’s doing it and we’re adhering to the agreement, that’s unacceptable. So we have a tremendous amount of money to play with with our military.”
Jeffrey Lewis, the director of the East Asia nonproliferation program at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, said: “This is a colossal mistake. Russia gets to violate the treaty and Trump takes the blame.
“I doubt very much that the US will deploy much that would have been prohibited by the treaty. Russia, though, will go gangbusters.”
Russian state news agencies on Saturday cited a foreign ministry source as saying Washington’s move to pull out of the treaty is motivated by a dream of a single global superpower.
“The main motive is a dream of a unipolar world. Will it come true? No,” a foreign ministry source told Ria Novosti state news agency.
The official said that Russia has “many times publicly denounced the US policy course towards dismantling the nuclear deal”.
Washington “has approached this step over the course of many years by deliberately and step-by-step destroying the basis for the agreement,” the official said, quoted by Russia’s three main news agencies.
“This decision is part of the US policy course to withdraw from those international legal agreements that place equal responsibilities on it and its partners and make vulnerable its concept of its own ‘exceptionalism’.”
Russian senator Alexei Pushkov wrote on Twitter that the move was “the second powerful blow against the whole system of strategic stability in the world, with the first being Washington’s 2001 withdrawal from the anti-ballistic missile treaty”.
“And again the initiator of the dissolution of the agreement is the US,” Pushkov wrote.
The Pentagon has been generally supportive of the INF treaty but defense secretary James Mattis warned other Nato ministers earlier this month it would no longer be tenable if Russia did not withdraw its Novator ground-based missile, which the US has argued for nearly four years violates the INF range restrictions.
Nato ministers issued a joint statement saying the INF agreement “has been crucial to Euro-Atlantic security and we remain fully committed to the preservation of this landmark arms control treaty”. But they urged Russia to come clean about the capabilities of its new missile.
The Chinese arsenal has also been a source of concern for the US Pacific Command. Its former commander, Adm Harry Harris, told the Senate in March: “We have no ground-based capability that can threaten China because of, among other things, our rigid adherence, and rightfully so, to the treaty that we sign on to, the INF treaty.”
Lewis disagreed that the INF leaves the US at a significant disadvantage in the Pacific.
“The China stuff is nonsense,” he said. “INF does not prohibit sea- and air-based systems, not does it prohibit South Korea and Japan from developing long-range missiles. If China were a real problem, the US and its allies could have acted long ago.”
Alexandra Bell, a former senior state department official and now senior policy director at the Centre for Arms Control & Non-Proliferation, said: “When problems arise in arms control, you work and fix them.
“What shocks me is that this president who is constantly telling us he is deal-maker has failed utterly to save Reagan’s nuclear legacy. He did nothing with his relationship with Putin. There were trades to be made to fix this treaty and he couldn’t pull it off.”
She added: “Why would the North Koreans have any reason to believe in any deal made with this president, with Bolton whispering in his ear.”
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Tear Up Agreement
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1957 Blackbushe Viking accident crash
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The 1957 Blackbushe Viking accident occurred on 1 May 1957 when an Eagle Aviation twin-engined Vickers VC.1 Viking 1B registered G-AJBO named "John Benbow" crashed into trees near Blackbushe Airport, located in Hampshire, England, on approach following a suspected engine failure on take-off. All five crew and 29 of the 30 passengers were killed. [1][2] The aircraft also carried the RAF serial number XF629 allotted to this aircraft for use during trooping flights only. [3]
At 21:14 the Viking took off from Blackbushe Airport on an unscheduled passenger flight to RAF Idris in Libya. [2] The aircraft on charter to the War Office had five crew, 25 soldiers from the Royal Army Ordnance Corps, one soldier's wife, two children and two war department civilians. [2] At 21:16 the pilot reported I have port engine failure, I am making a left-hand circuit to come in again. [1] As the aircraft turned onto the approach to land, while still about 1200 yards (1,116 m) from the runway, the aircraft crashed into a wooded copse at Star Hill. [1][2] Thirty-four of the 35 on board were killed. [1]
The aircraft exploded and burst into flames when it hit the ground about 50 yards (46 m) from the A30 road. [2] Passing lorry drivers were the first to help. Ambulances and six fire tenders from the airport were quickly on the scene. [2] The airport fire tenders were soon joined by others from Surrey, Berkshire, Hampshire and United States Navy personnel temporarily based at Blackbushe. [2]
The 29 bodies were recovered and four survivors were taken to Cambridge Military Hospital in Aldershot. [2] Three of those in hospital subsequently died leaving only one survivor. [4][5]
A coroner's inquest was held at Aldershot on 5 June 1957 which returned a verdict of accidental death on the 34 who died. [6]
A public inquiry was opened in London on 23 July 1957. [7] The inquiry report was published in November 1957 and determined that the loss was caused by an error of skill and judgement by the pilot. [8] The report noted that although Captain Jones had flown over 6,800 hours of which 4,800 had been with the Viking he had not made a single-engined landing for at least two years. [8] Because of the fire it was not possible to determine if the port engine had failed. [8]
The probable cause was the failure of the captain to maintain a safe altitude and airspeed when approaching to land on one engine after failure (or suspected failure) of the port engine. [1][9][10]
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Air crash
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Pakistan International Airlines Flight 8303 crash
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Pakistan International Airlines Flight 8303 was a scheduled domestic flight from Allama Iqbal International Airport in Lahore to Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, Pakistan. On 22 May 2020, the Airbus A320 flown crashed in Model Colony, a densely populated residential area of Karachi only a few kilometres from the runway, while on a second approach after a failed landing. Of the 91 passengers and 8 crew on board the aircraft, 97 were killed, and two passengers survived with injuries. Eight people on the ground were also injured in the accident, one of whom later succumbed to her injuries. The flight, piloted by captain Sajjad Gul and first officer Usman Azam,[1][2] took off from Lahore at 13:05. [3][4]:10 and was near the end of its 90-minute journey,[5] when it crashed at around 14:45 (09:45 UTC)[6][7] into the densely-populated neighborhood of Model Colony[8] around 3 kilometres (1.9 miles) from the airport. [9][10] The aircraft's wings were reported as being on fire in the moments before the plane crashed into rooftops. [11][12] The crash damaged buildings in the area,[9] some of which caught fire. [13] The crash was captured on video by a CCTV camera on the roof of one of these buildings (this building was further away from the crash site and not damaged), which shows the aircraft just before crashing into the neighborhood. [14]
The aircraft initially made an aborted landing attempt, apparently with the landing gear not deployed. [15][3] One of the pilots subsequently radioed air traffic control (ATC) reporting landing gear issues and the failure of both engines. [5] ATC confirmed to the pilot that he was cleared to use either of the airport's two runways, requesting, "Confirm your attempt on belly? "[6][13] According to PIA's CEO, Arshad Malik, a technical fault prompted the aircraft to make a go-around rather than land, even though both runways were available. [11] One of the pilots told the controller, "we are returning back, sir, we have lost engines." Twelve seconds later, one of the pilots declared a mayday emergency,[3][16][17] which was the final communication with the aircraft. [15]
According to officials from Pakistan's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), complications had arisen during the aircraft's first descent. [18] The landing gear was still in the retracted position when the aircraft attempted its first landing. Friction marks on the runway suggested there had been some ground contact; at the runway's 1,400-metre (4,500 ft) mark, the plane's left engine is believed to have scraped the runway; at the 1,700-metre (5,500 ft) mark, the right engine made contact. When the pilot went around, it is believed damage had already been caused to both engines from this contact, leading to engine failure after the go-around. This made it impossible for the aircraft to maintain altitude, causing it to crash during its return to the airfield. [18] This is supported by the conversation between the aircraft and air traffic control which indicates that the aircraft was constantly losing altitude. [19] Observers noted that the plane's backup ram air turbine (RAT) was deployed, the purpose of which is to supply power to the aeroplane's control systems when both engines have failed and without the auxiliary power unit (APU) running. [18]
The Economic Times, an Indian publication, reported that the pilots had ignored warnings from air traffic control about the height and speed of the aircraft on approach. At 14:30 the plane was 15 nautical miles (28 km; 17 mi) from Karachi, at Makli, flying at an altitude of 10,000 feet (3,000 m) instead of the recommended 7,000 feet (2,100 m), when ATC issued its first warning to reduce altitude. Instead of descending, one of the pilots responded by saying that he was satisfied with the descent profile. When only 10 nautical miles (19 km; 12 mi) from the airport, the aircraft was at an altitude of 7,000 feet instead of 3,000 feet (910 m). ATC issued a second instruction to turn to descend. One of the pilots responded again by stating that he was satisfied and able to handle the situation, and that he was prepared for landing. [20] The pilot[specify] had a flying experience of 18,000 flight hours. [21]
The narrow streets and alleys comprising the area inhibited the rescue services. [5] ISPR, the Pakistani military's media wing, reported that special forces of the Pakistan Army and Pakistan Rangers had set up a cordon. [5][12] Video footage of the crash scene showed emergency teams trying to reach the scene amid the rubble, clouds of black smoke and flames in the background. [13]
Residents said it is not uncommon for aircraft on final approach to pass so close to building rooftops that they "feel ... we can touch it", given the proximity of the runways. Jinnah Airport is surrounded by urban areas on all sides save for the north side, which leads to a scenario very similar to San Diego or Kai Tak with jets having to pass low over urban buildings before landing on one of the two runways. [22] Edhi Foundation's Faisal Edhi said at least 25 houses suffered damage due to the crash. [12] PIA's spokesman Abdullah Hafiz Khan has said that 18 houses were destroyed or badly damaged. [23] According to a witness statement collected by Reuters, the plane hit a mobile phone tower in the vicinity of the airport as it crashed. [11]
The crashed aircraft was an Airbus A320-214,[24] built in 2004, with manufacturer's serial number 2274, and owned by GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS). It made its maiden flight on 17 August 2004 and was leased to China Eastern Airlines as B-6017 between 2004 and 2014. It was then leased to Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) by GECAS on 31 October 2014, with registration AP-BLD. [8][25][26] It was powered by CFM56-5B4/P engines,[27] which were most recently installed in February and May 2019. [18] The landing gear was installed in October 2014 and was next due for major servicing or replacement after 10 years in 2024. [18]
The PIA's engineering department reported that the last routine maintenance check on the plane was conducted on 21 March 2020, and the most comprehensive check was last performed on 19 October 2019, during which no defects were found in its engines, landing gear or avionics. [27][18] From 22 March to 7 May 2020, the plane had remained grounded owing to flight cancellations amid the global COVID-19 pandemic. From 7 May onward, the plane had conducted six flights. [18] The Civil Aviation Authority had declared the aircraft fit for flight until 5 November. The plane had operated a flight from Muscat to Lahore on the day prior to the accident. [27] The aircraft had logged 47,124 flight hours. [18]
Pakistan International Airlines released details of the flight manifest which shows 91 passengers (51 men, 31 women, and 9 children); there were also eight crew members. [5][9][29][30][15] The death toll was confirmed as 97, consisting solely of those on board the plane[11][31] but later one of those injured on the ground died.
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Air crash
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1951 Ringway Dakota crash
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On 27 March 1951 a Douglas Dakota 3 cargo aircraft registered G-AJVZ operated by Air Transport Charter en route from Ringway Airport, Manchester, England, to Nutts Corner Airport, Antrim, Northern Ireland, crashed shortly after takeoff following the failure of the aircraft to gain height. There were two fatalities amongst the crew on board. The Dakota was operating a flight carrying newspapers from Ringway to Nutts Corner. On takeoff from Runway 06 in freezing conditions and light falling snow, it swung to port, failed to climb, and struck the top of a tree in Woodhouse Lane, close to the hamlet of Heyhead, half a mile from the end of the runway. Both pilots were killed. [2]
The subsequent investigation found that the crash resulted from a loss of engine power caused by ice formation in the carburettor intakes attributable to the captain's failure to make use of the heat controls. The extended undercarriage and the presence of snow on the wings may have also been contributory factors. [2][3]
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Air crash
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Police investigate third fatal crash in WA during the Easter break
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Police are seeking witnesses to a fiery crash in the Perth Hills in which a 31-year-old motorcyclist died. The Kelmscott man was riding a white Husqvarna motorbike eastbound on Jarrahdale Road about 3.45pm on Monday when he left the road and hit a tree near Kingsbury Drive in Jarrahdale. The bike went up in flames and set nearby bushland alight, which firefighters later successfully extinguished. The motorcyclist suffered catastrophic injuries and died at the scene, with the cause now under investigation. His death was the third on WA roads during the Easter break, after a 22-year-old man was found dead on a road in Bedfordale by a member of the public on Saturday morning, and 41-year old father Jared Smith was killed in a collision with another car on Indian Ocean Drive on Saturday afternoon. WA Police major crash investigators are urging anyone with information regarding the crash or who saw the white Husqvarna motorcycle beforehand to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or report online. Anyone with dash-cam or mobile phone vision relating to the crash is asked to upload it to police.
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Road Crash
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Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith indicted for corruption by Civil Grand Jury
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The Santa Clara County Civil Grand Jury indicted Sheriff Laurie Smith this week for willful or corrupt misconduct in office.
The indictment has been called ‘unprecedented’ in legal circles, and includes seven accusations. All but one involve the ongoing investigation around the alleged exchange of concealed weapons permits for campaign contributions that has rocked the Bay Area over the past 18 months. The final count involved the Sheriff’s alleged withholding of information from the Sheriff’s Office’s internal affairs investigation around the 2018 incident involving Andrew Hogan while in custody.
The counts include:
Implementing a policy granting concealed carry weapons (CCW) permits to VIPs including campaign donors, Sheriff’s Advisory Board members, prominent individuals and personal connections;
Failing to investigate and determine good cause for issuing CCW permits to non-VIPs;
Failing to notify non-VIPs about the status of their CCW application, including keeping applications pending indefinitely;
Accepting an unlawful gift in 2019 of the use of a SAP Center suite for a Sharks hockey game, including tickets and suite food and beverage, collectively exceeding the maximum individual gift value limit;
Failing to report the gift in count 4 on her 2019 Statement of Economic Interests (Form 700);
Committing perjury in certifying that her 2019 Form 700 was true and complete;
Failing to cooperate and promptly provide records relating to the investigation around a jail incident in August 2018 regarding Andrew Hogan.
In late August, the County Board of Supervisors issued a unanimous ‘no confidence’ vote against Sheriff Smith around the same circumstances, and directed staff to submit the resolution for investigation to the Civil Grand Jury, as well as the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC), the California State Attorney General and the U.S. Department of Justice.
The week prior, Mayor Sam Liccardo joined several Supervisors in calling for the resignation of Sheriff Smith over the same allegations. In a subsequent press conference, Sheriff Smith welcomed the investigation, suggested expanding its scope to include the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and methodically addressed the allegations against her.
Sheriff Smith is due to appear in court on January 14, 2022 to answer the accusation.
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Famous Person - Commit Crime - Investigate
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Death Toll In Mohmand Marble Mine Collapse Rises To 17
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1 year ago Tue 08th September 2020 | 01:47 PM PESHAWAR: (UrduPoint/UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News-Sept 8th, 2020) The death toll from a rockslide in Khyber Pakhtunkwha’s Mohmand district increased to 17 after recovery of six bodies from the rubble, the rescue workers said on Tuesday. Peshawar Disaster Management Authority Director General said that nine people fell injured were rescued during the operation. “Rescue operation is continuing to rescue others trapped underneath,” said the officials, pointing out that five ambulances and one recovery vehicle were sent to Mohmand from Peshawar. He stated that the authority was closely coordinating with the district administration and the relevant departments. “Mostly the workers were of 40 to 50 years old who had been working there at the site,” said Mohmand District Police Chief Tariq Habib said. He said that usually a large number of people work in these marble mines but luckily a majority had finished work and returned home. Political leaders including PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry and others expressed serious concerns over loss of precious lives in Mohmand district. The incident happened in Ziarat marble mountain in Safi Tehsil of Mohmand tribal district. The rescue workers shifted the injured to Ghalanai Hospital, expressing concerns that many other people still might be under the debris. According to district administration, at least 25 people were missing after the rockslide and there had not been cellular services in the area.
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Mine Collapses
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2007–2009 university protests in France
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This article is about the university strike movement in France during 2007 and 2009. Since Valérie Pécresse was appointed Minister for Higher Education and Research, the mood had been tense in the French university system. Several reform projects had led to protest movements, including that of 2009, the longest-lasting yet since 1968, still on-going after several months. It had put a heavy strain on France's political environment, even within the leading UMP party, and led to a reconsideration of the Bologna process within intellectual circles. A similar movement has simultaneously taken place in Spain. Shortly after Valérie Pécresse was appointed Minister for Higher Education and Research, she announced the launch of a reform that President Nicolas Sarkozy had evoked in his election program: the so-called Law for the Freedom and Responsibility of Universities ("Liberté et Responsabilité des Universités") – shortened as "LRU law" – aimed at radically renewing French universities. [1]
Under this legislation, budgets would no longer be allocated to individual university departments directly by the Ministry. Instead, universities would receive a lump sum, and the academic committee would then choose how to allocate funding to different departments and projects. This would also lead to an alteration in the rules regulating the committee's decisions, and the establishment of a majority voting system in both teacher categories (lecturers and professors). The Chancellor of the university would take personal responsibility for overseeing this new structure. The purpose of the LRU law is to bring universities into line with European and Anglo-Saxon standards, in accordance with the Bologna process. With reduced bureaucracy, universities would be allowed more personal initiative. Furthermore, the draft law would enable Chancellors to enter into partnerships with private companies, thereby mobilising further funding for research. However, given that President Sarkozy has drastically reduced public spending and official posts in the public sector as part of the fundamental basis for his financial policy, enemies of the draft law consider it would lead to the neglect of universities by the State and ultimately possible privatization. The contempt displayed by Nicolas Sarkozy during his election campaign speeches when referring to humanities courses, in particular, appeared to confirm this impression, and the opposition found strong support within the Arts and Humanities faculties, whose fear of extensive neglect is equal to their lack of profitability. This is why opponents of the draft law have spoken of a "mix of feudalism (with the increase power of university management) and neoliberalism". The government, however, has argued that this is a "necessary modernization". Initially, however, the opposition suffered a severe setback when the social-democratic student's union UNEF expressed its approval of the proposed law, once the idea of a Numerus Clausus for the Master's course had been abandoned. The law was passed by parliament during a special sitting in July, and signed into law by Nicolas Sarkozy in August (i.e. during the parliamentary recess). In October, a protest movement began in several universities, mostly in the Humanities Departments, and UNEF briefly became involved, but following the promise of the introduction of a support plan ("Plan Campus") this came to an end. [2][3]
Disapproval increased when Valérie Pécresse presented her plan for restructuring research. In France, the National Centre for Scientific Research (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique CNRS) plays an essential role in research. The CNRS has its own budget, but also collaborates with lecturers and professors working in the Mixed Research Units (Unités Mixtes de Recherche UMR). Despite relatively low levels of State investment, this system ranks sixth in the world according to the Shanghai Ranking (universities receive much lower marks, which has led to sharp criticism within the university community of the Ranking's impartiality and methods). The creation of the National Research Agency (Agence Nationale de la Recherche ANR), the introduction of funding for individual projects, and the restructuring of the CNRS into several specialized institutes has led to suggestions of a potential fragmentation of public means, and all the more so since Minister Valérie Pécresse suggested promoting partnerships with private sector companies, and creating special lecturer and professor posts ("Chaires d'excellence"). Research funding which is not dependent on the ANR would also be included in each university's lump sum allocation, thereby strengthening the power of both Chancellors and the Mandarins. All this generated widespread support for anti-LRU lists at university committee elections held at the beginning of 2008. The defeat of Jean-Robert Pitte, the incumbent Sorbonne-university (Paris IV) Chancellor, thought of as a liberal-conservative, was a symbol of this dissatisfaction. A geography scholar and UMP sympathizer, he was beaten by a left-wing coalition, led by his predecessor, the Romance studies scholar Georges Molinié. [4] In the course of 2008, anti-LRU lists became increasingly successful. [5]
Within the space of a few weeks, three reforms were introduced, all of which helped to spark off a brewing crisis. None of these projects had involved negotiations or discussions with any representatives of the academic community. Education Minister Xavier Darcos, who was already caught in an impasse following the failed introduction of a reform for secondary schools (ultimately shelved), presented a plan in October that would affect the training of primary and secondary school teachers. Until that point, teachers had enjoyed the status of public servants. They first had to successfully pass a national exam with entry quotas (numerus clauses), after which they spent a year in a university teacher training institute (Institut Universitaire de Formation des Maîtres IUFM) with numerous work placements, and finally became fully qualified teachers. [6] There were two such exams: the CAPES (following a bachelor's degree, or more often a Master's) and the Agrégation, following a master's degree and an additional preparatory year. Those who passed the Agrégation had a direct route into Higher Education teaching. Most university lecturers, especially in humanities departments, are former Agrégés who have been awarded a doctorate. Following the reform, they would have to take a master's degree in theory of education (Master Enseignement). Preparation for the exam would then become part of the second year's syllabus, during which there would also be work placements, in order for teachers to access teaching posts immediately after qualifying. However, the technical implementation of this plan has proved to be extremely complex, and opponents have stressed the fact that there would be many more candidates than work placements on offer. Moreover, the training they would receive in their original area of interest would suffer, since the hours of educational theory and exam preparation would leave less time available time for the coursework for the master's degree. Union members denounced the draft law as an attack against teachers' status as public servants and stated that Graduate students who failed the numerus clausus would then become "crowds of precariously employed teachers without any status". The academic community had already begun fighting this proposal, which they saw as threatening the status of French teachers. [7] Meanwhile, Valérie Pécresse unveiled her own proposals. The Minister for Higher Education's two proposals relate to the status of university lecturers and doctoral candidates. For doctoral candidates, a "general doctoral contract" ("Contrat doctoral unique") would be introduced. [8] Without this, it would become impossible to obtain a doctorate at a French university. It would therefore become much more difficult for secondary school teachers to become university lecturers.
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Protest_Online Condemnation
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Trump administration withdrawing from UN Human Rights Council
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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. United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley says the Human Rights Council has treated Israel worse than Iran, Syria and even North Korea over the conflict with the Palestinians. The Trump administration is expected to announce Tuesday that the U.S. will withdraw from the United Nations Human Rights Council. A U.S. official confirmed the decision to Fox News. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley will use a joint statement in Washington at 5p.m. to announce and explain the departure from the 47-member council. Speaking to Fox News, a senior official said that the UNHRC protects human rights abusers, allows them to serve on the council and shows bias in rendering decisions. The official claimed that countries like China, Egypt and Russia worked to undermine U.S. reform efforts and that the council has passed more resolutions this year condemning Israel than Iran, Syria and North Korea combined. Trump has long been critical of the UNHRC, which he has accused of showing a bias against Israel. Haley last year slammed the body for its “relentless, pathological campaign” against Israel. Trump’s National Security Adviser John Bolton opposed the creation of the body when he served as the U.S. ambassador to the U.N. under President George W. Bush. The UNHRC, meanwhile, opened its session on Monday with a blistering attack by Prince Zeid bin Ra'ad, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, on Trump’s immigration policy – calling the policy of separating children from their parents at the U.S. southern border “unconscionable.” Trump is facing intense criticism – both domestically and on the international stage – over that policy. The move to exit the UNHRC extends a broader Trump administration pattern of stepping back from international agreements and forums under the president's "America First" policy. Since taking office, the administration has announced its withdrawal from the Paris climate accord, the U.N. educational and cultural organization and the Iran nuclear deal. Other contentious moves have included slapping tariffs on steel and aluminum against key trading partners, recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital and moving the U.S. Embassy to the holy city from Tel Aviv. Haley has been the driving force behind the latest move, which would be unprecedented in the 12-year history of the council. No country has ever dropped out voluntarily. Libya was kicked out seven years ago. The move could reinforce the perception that the Trump administration is seeking to advance Israel's agenda on the world stage, just as it prepares to unveil its long-awaited peace plan despite Palestinian outrage over the embassy relocation. Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, is visiting the Middle East this week as the White House works to lay the groundwork for unveiling the plan. Fox News' Rich Edson, Ben Evansky and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Withdraw from an Organization
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The first lunar eclipse of 2021 is going to happen in the US during the early hours of May 26
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The Conversation: Red blood lunar eclipse! It's all happening at once - but what does that mean? The first lunar eclipse of 2021 is going to happen in the US during the early hours of May 26 . (In New Zealand, it is due to last five hours, beginning at 8.47pm on Wednesday, and ending at about 1.49am the next morning). But this is going to be an especially super lunar event, as it will be a supermoon, a lunar eclipse and a red blood moon all at once. So what does this all mean? The Moon appears 12% bigger when it is closest to Earth compared with its appearance when it's farthest away. Photo / WikimediaCommons What's a super moon? A supermoon occurs when a full or new moon coincides with the Moon's closest approach to the Earth. The Moon's orbit is not a perfect circle as it slowly rotates around Earth. Photo / WikimediaCommons The Moon's orbit around Earth is not perfectly circular. This means the Moon's distance from Earth varies as it goes around the planet. The closest point in the orbit, called the perigee, is roughly 28,000 miles closer to Earth than the farthest point of the orbit. A full moon that happens near the perigee is called a supermoon . So why is it super? The relatively close proximity of the Moon makes it seem a little bit bigger and brighter than usual, though the difference between a supermoon and a normal moon is usually hard to notice unless you're looking at two pictures side by side. The phases of the Moon correspond to how much of the lit-up side you can see from Earth. Photo / WikimediaCommons How does a lunar eclipse work? A lunar eclipse happens when the Earth's shadow covers all or part of the Moon. This can only happen during a full moon, so first, it helps to understand what makes a full moon. Like the Earth, half of the Moon is illuminated by the sun at any one time. A full moon happens when the Moon and the Sun are on opposite sides of the Earth. This allows you see the entire lit-up side, which looks like a round disc in the night sky. If the Moon had a totally flat orbit, every full moon would be a lunar eclipse. But the Moon's orbit is tilted by about 5 degrees relative to Earth's orbit . So, most of the time a full moon ends up a little above or below the shadow cast by the Earth.
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New wonders in nature
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The Straits Times
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SINGAPORE - A Singapore Polytechnic (SP) student has tested positive for Covid-19 on Saturday (May 15).
The patient is a second-year student from the Media, Arts and Design School, and was last on campus on Tuesday, SP said in a statement on Sunday.
According to a Ministry of Health (MOH) press release on Sunday night, the boy works part time at an arts and craft shop in Westgate.
He developed a fever, cough and headache on 13 May and sought medical treatment at a GP clinic the next day, where he was tested for the virus.
His test result came back positive for Covid-19 infection on 15 May and his serology test result is pending.
Through contact tracing, MOH has issued quarantine orders to students and staff who had been in close contact with the infected student. Some of these include his classmates, SP said.
The areas of campus that the student had visited have been thoroughly cleaned and disinfected.
"We have advised the students concerned to monitor their health closely and will give them our fullest support to ensure that there is minimal impact to their learning through home-based learning," SP said.
"As a further precautionary measure, for the next two weeks starting Monday (May 17) to Friday (May 28), the labs and practical classes for all Year 2 students from MAD will be conducted online if suitable, or deferred till a later date," it added.
SP said it will conduct all lectures and tutorials online, while necessary labs, practical sessions and final year projects will be conducted in-person with the necessary safe management measures in place.
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Famous Person - Sick
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2009 Yakutia Ilyushin Il-76 crash
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The 2009 Yakutia Ilyushin Il-76 crash occurred on November 1, 2009, when an Ilyushin Il-76 jet crashed shortly after takeoff from Mirny Airport in Yakutia, killing all 11 crew on board. [1][2][3][4]
The jet, owned by the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, took off, with eleven crewmembers on board, from Mirny Airport, where the onboard cargo had been unloaded. The aircraft was bound for the city of Irkutsk, when several minutes after liftoff it banked to the right, hit a slag heap from an old mine and crashed. It exploded on impact and caught fire, about three kilometers (1.9 miles) from the airport in a deserted area. There are suggestions that the aircraft failed to gain altitude and deviated off its flight path. [5]
After the cargo was unloaded, the plane "took off but then deviated from the course and crashed 25 km away from the runway," an official from the Russian Emergencies Ministry told reporters. Reports suggest that in the days following the accident eleven bodies were pulled from the jet by rescuers. [citation needed]
Russia's air force had temporarily grounded all Il-76 aircraft after an engine broke off the wing of a plane while it was attempting to takeoff earlier that year. It was reported that the ban was still in place at the time of the accident, and it is not yet clear as to why the jet was used when the model had been grounded. A special commission of the Russian Interior Ministry was assigned to investigate the cause of the accident.
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Air crash
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2014 Southeast Europe floods
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57 in Serbia[1]
24 in Bosnia and Herzegovina[2]2 in Croatia[3][4] 2 in Romania[5][6]
1 in Slovakia[7]
Between 13 and 18 May 2014 a low-pressure cyclone[9] designated Tamara and Yvette affected a large area of Southeastern and Central Europe, causing floods and landslides. Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina suffered the greatest damage, as the rain was the heaviest in 120 years of recorded weather measurements. [10][11] By 20 May, at least 62 people had died as a result of the flooding, and hundreds of thousands had been forced from their homes. Towns of Obrenovac in Serbia and Doboj in Bosnia and Herzegovina account for most victims, after being inundated by several-meter high waters from nearby rivers. [12]
Floodwaters caused over 2,000 landslides across the Balkan region, spreading damage across many towns and villages. [13] The rains activated torrents and mudslides, and subsequently several rivers in watersheds of Sava and Morava rose and flooded surrounding valleys. Official counts indicate that over 1.6 million people were affected in Serbia and Bosnia, after a week of flooding. [14]
Assessments of the damage range up to 3.5 billion € for Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina. [15] Damage in Serbia, jointly estimated by EU, World Bank group and UN officials, stands at 1,55 billion euros. [16] Officials in Bosnia stated that the damage could exceed that of the Bosnian War. [17] The events initiated a large international aid campaign, with numerous countries, organizations and individuals donating humanitarian, material and monetary support for the affected areas. On 13 May, a low-pressure area formed over the Adriatic Sea, as polar air from Central Europe penetrated into the Mediterranean basin. The cold polar air mass met with humid subtropical air, leading to very low pressure. On 14 May, the low moved over the Balkans, becoming stationary. As a result, extremely heavy rain fell within the region; Serbia (in the area around Belgrade) and Bosnia were most affected. [18] Serbian and Bosnian meteorologists named the formed cyclone "Tamara". [19][20] On 15 May, the daily amounts of rainfall broke historical records in Belgrade (107.9 mm), Valjevo (108.2 mm) and Loznica (110 mm). [21] By 15 May, the monthly rainfall in Belgrade had broken the historical record (175 l from 1897), reaching 205 l.[22] By Saturday, May 17, the rain had subsided, and the weather gradually became warmer and sunnier, somewhat easing relief and rescue efforts. On 18 May, the cyclone moved further northwest. [20]
The main flooding region was the watershed of the Sava river, which forms a border between Bosnia and Croatia, flows into Serbia, and drains into the Danube in Belgrade. On Wednesday, 14 May, heavy rainfall caused torrential floods across mountainous regions, which destroyed bridges and infrastructure, and caused numerous landslides. The deadliest impact occurred on Thursday, 15 May, when water levels in several right-bank tributaries of the Sava suddenly and uncontrollably rose at an unprecedented rate, flooding towns in their valleys. The Bosna river in central Bosnia completely flooded the cities of Doboj, Maglaj, Zavidovići and Šamac, while the Kolubara, near Belgrade, did the same to Obrenovac; those cities had the major share of victims. Subsequently, the Sava itself rose to record-high levels, threatening the cities of Slavonski Brod, Šabac and Sremska Mitrovica and numerous villages, but the damage was relatively contained as the population, helped by army and volunteers, strengthened flood defenses. Nonetheless, embankments gave way in several places. Heavy rainfall was also experienced in the region on 3 and 4 May, affecting Romania, Italy and Bosnia. The event produced limited damage but left a number of flooding incidents and high rivers. [23] A state of emergency was declared in parts of Bosnia by local government. Though heaviest affected areas were in the valleys of the Sava and Kolubara rivers, the center of the flood was the drainage basin of the Bosna river and its mouth into the Sava. Water in the Sava then broke through the newly constructed embankment on the left bank in Croatia and flooded the Lower Syrmia region. The water then uncontrollably rushed into the Bosut river which flows back into the Sava in Serbia. In Serbia, the heaviest floods were in the Kolubara river basin where the major rainfall caused extreme torrents in the mountains, causing the hydrological coincidence, a fact that high tidal waves appeared simultaneously on both the left and the right tributaries of the Kolubara. Rivers of Peštan and Vraničina also spilled over, flooding the surface mine "Tamnava-Zapadna Polje", within the Kolubara mines (see Lake Paljuvi). The flooded mines captured 200 million m3 of the flood water. [24]
Belgrade's Institute "Jaroslav Černi", funded by UNDP, compiled a study "Improvement of the water protection in the Kolubara drainage basin". Hydrological section of the report concludes that the cyclone caused the "continual rain of temperate intensity", which however lasted for too long (over three days). In May, the measured 48-hours rainfall was higher than the millennial rains in Loznica while the return period in Belgrade and Valjevo was 400 years. Return periods of the flow in the Kolubara was 120–520 and at the confluence into the Sava, when the Kolubara flooded Obrenovac and the mines, the discharge was 1.456 m3/s (51.4 cu ft/s). If the system against the floods was finished and functioning properly, and that mines and Obrenovac weren't flooded, the discharge would be 2.460 m3/s (86.9 cu ft/s). [24]
In the drainage basin of the Bosna river in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the rains in some places were exceeding the return period of 5,000 years (Vidmar A., et al., "The Bosna River floods in May 2014", Journal on Flood Risk, p. 1–25). At the same time, during the massive overspill in the basin, the return period of the maximal discharge (4.121 m3/s (145.5 cu ft/s), 15 May 2014) was only 152 years and of the wave volume (1,463,000,000 m3 (5.17×1010 cu ft)) was 189 years. After the reconstruction of the flood in the controlled environment, it was concluded that the discharge of the Bosna at Doboj would be 5.000 m3/s (176.6 cu ft/s) on 16 May 2014. A discharge of the Sava, right after the mouth of the Bosna, at the Šamac bridge, was 6.000 m3/s (211.9 cu ft/s) on 17 May (Abdulaj R., et al., Velike vode donjeg toka rijeke Save tijekom svibnja 2014, Hrvatska vodoprivreda, 207, 14–16, 2014). Downstream, in Sremska Mitrovica in Serbia, the discharge of the Sava was 6.420 m3/s (226.7 cu ft/s) (Hidrološki godišnjak RHMZ Srbije za 2014). [24]
If the entire flood control system in all three countries functioned, and that there were no overspills and floods, a hydrological coincidence of joining the highest Sava and Kolubara water levels would occur. That means that in Belgrade, downstream from the mouth of Kolubara into the Sava, the Sava would bring almost 9.000 m3/s (317.8 cu ft/s). The riparian zone along the Sava in Belgrade, called Savski Nasip and enhanced with the embankments, is deigned for receiving 6.500 m3/s (229.5 cu ft/s), so the city would probably suffer a major damage. Additionally, due to the illegal construction of the houses in the Savski Nasip area, the riparian zone is being destroyed and its volume is reduced. [24]
Serbia was the most severely affected, with several major cities in its central region completely flooded, and landslides in mountainous regions. Bosnia, in particular its Republika Srpska entity, was also inundated to a crippling extent.
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Floods
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Mistake leads man convicted in Waco claw hammer attack to spend 2 weeks out of prison
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A court clerical error led a six-time felon who crushed a man’s skull with a hammer in 2012 during a dispute over a $10 debt to spend two weeks out of prison. Henry Lee Hutchinson, 64, was sentenced to 75 years in prison in March 2013 after a 54th State District Court jury convicted him of aggravated assault in an attack on Nathan Lloyd at a residence on Carver Avenue. Less than three hours after a new warrant was issued for Hutchinson’s arrest Tuesday afternoon, he was taken back into custody when he came into the McLennan County Courthouse to pay his court fees at about 5 p.m. Hutchinson While the jury convicted Hutchinson of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon as alleged in the indictment, a court clerk failed to indicate the deadly weapon finding on the judgment form that was sent to prison officials after Hutchinson’s trial. With a deadly weapon finding, Hutchinson should have served a minimum of 30 years in prison before he was eligible for parole. Instead, with no such designation on the court judgment, parole officials released him back to McLennan County on Oct. 26, after he served eight years and seven months. Hutchinson, a former long-haul truck driver, was charged as a habitual criminal because of his previous convictions for armed robbery, theft by deception, conspiracy to transport unlawful aliens and two burglaries. McLennan County District Attorney Barry Johnson said Tuesday his staff filed the paperwork Monday to submit what amounts to a replacement judgment in Hutchinson’s file that corrects the omission about the deadly weapon finding. They also obtained a warrant for Hutchinson’s arrest and have contacted his parole officer, Johnson said earlier Tuesday, before Hutchinson was re-arrested. “He is out by mistake but we are on the verge of getting him put back in,” he said earlier Tuesday. Staci Johnson, one of the prosecutors in Hutchinson’s case, said the DA’s office still considers Hutchinson a “continuing danger to the community.” “It is unfortunate that the court’s error resulted in his premature release from custody,” she said. “Our office has taken steps to remedy the court’s error and return Mr. Hutchinson to prison in accordance with the jury’s verdict.” The jury convicted Hutchinson of hitting Lloyd in the head with the claw end of a hammer after the pair quarreled about a variety of issues, but mostly about a $10 debt between the men. The blow fractured Lloyd’s skull. He underwent surgery and spent several days in intensive care. Lloyd, who was 29 at the time, testified at trial that he has lasting effects from the assault.
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Famous Person - Commit Crime - Release
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Clayton Fire
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The Clayton Fire was a wildfire that started on August 13, 2016 just south of Lower Lake in Lake County, California. The fire burned a total of 3,929 acres (15.90 km2) and destroyed 300 buildings, before it was fully contained on August 26. Damin Pashilk, a construction worker from Clearlake was arrested and facing 17 counts of arson related to the Clayton Fire and other fires. [2]
The fire was first reported at 6:03 pm on August 13 near Highway 29 and Clayton Creek Road. [1] By August 14, the second day, 10 homes had been destroyed and up to 6,000 people had been evacuated from Lower Lake and Clearlake, including St. Helena Hospital Clearlake. [1][3] An evacuation center was opened at Highlands Senior Center and was evacuated the following day. [1]
By August 15, the third day, 5 percent of the fire had been contained, burning a total of 3,000 acres (12 km2), 175 buildings, including the offices of a Habitat for Humanity affiliate,[4] had been destroyed and 1,044 fire personnel were on the ground. Road closures were announced throughout the area, including Clayton Creek Road at Highway 29, Morgan Valley Road, North Spruce Grove Road at Spruce Grove Road, and Jerusalem Grade South Spruce Grove Road. State Route 53 at Highway 29 is closed. New evacuation centers were opened at Twin Pine Casino, Kelseyville High School, and the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Lakeport. [1]
As of August 16, the fourth day, 1,664 fire personnel were on the ground and 20 percent of the fire had been contained. It was reported, at the time, as burning a total of 4,000 acres (16 km2). Additionally, the Clearlake area of the Avenues and neighborhoods from Polk Avenue to Cache Creek, east of Highway 53, have been evacuated. [1] A state of emergency was declared for Lake County by California Governor Jerry Brown. A construction worker from Clearlake, Damin Pashilk, was arrested and is currently being held at the Lake County Jail on 17 counts of arson related to the Clayton Fire and other fires in the area. [2]
On the fifth day, August 17, road closures remained and evacuation centers also remained open, with 40 percent of the fire being contained, burning a total of 3,929 acres (15.90 km2), and 2,327 fire personnel were on the ground. As of August 24, the fire was 98% contained and had destroyed 300 and damaged 28 buildings, and residents were able to return to their homes. [1]
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Fire
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Dirty needles washed onto Lake Hume's shoreline on Victoria, New South Wales border
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Twice this week, hypodermic needles have been found dumped at Lake Hume on the Victoria, New South Wales border, prompting a warning to barefoot visitors at the popular recreation spot.
Mother of one Alex Shain was walking her dogs at Bethanga in Victoria on Wednesday when she came across more than a dozen of capped and uncapped needles.
"I was walking for about ten minutes or so and then I saw a needle about five metres up from the water," Miss Shain said.
"And as I walked along I saw more that were uncapped."
Miss Shain used an empty can of drink to collect all the needles she could find but is concerned there are still more out there.
"I think I got about 15 all up, and out of them, about ten were uncapped," she said.
Miss Shain said she was horrified to think she had only been out at the lake with her young daughter a few weeks ago.
She was concerned about people considering heading out on the water for the Queen's Birthday long weekend, and has urged people to be on alert.
"It's a bit yucky to be honest, it's ok now that it is winter but so many people swim out there," she said.
"And I would hate for my four-and-a-half year-old to have come along and picked one up."
She said she was particularly concerned that most syringes she found were not capped.
"I was really paranoid about my dogs that were running along the shoreline too," she said.
She contacted local police who said they would send officers out to investigate.
It was the second time in less than a week that syringes have been found in the water at the lake. On Sunday, Peter Bennet had been at a popular area of the lake, north of the border in New South Wales known as The Pines, when he came across a large number of needles.
"I was just coming back to the boat ramp after having a bit of a fish and pulled into shore, so my dog could go for a bit of a wander, and then I stumbled on a big pile of syringes on the water's edge," Mr Bennett said.
He said there were more than 80 syringes floating in the water, many were uncapped.
"I basically grabbed a pair of tongs and a bucket and collected them."
Mr Bennett immediately contacted New South Wales Police who told him to take the syringes to the Albury Base Hospital to be disposed of.
He said he had been going out to the Lake for more than 20 years and this was the first time he had seen anything like it.
"It's really disappointing, there are so many people with pets and kids that go out there whether it is winter or summer," he said.
"That someone could actually do that and put not just human beings, but also animals, in harm's way."
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Environment Pollution
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After 12 days of tense negotiations that were plagued by walkouts and accompanied by protests outside in the wintry streets of Copenhagen
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After 12 days of tense negotiations that were plagued by walkouts and accompanied by protests outside in the wintry streets of Copenhagen, delegates from nearly 200 nations at the U.N. Climate Change Conference came to a hard-won initial agreement called the Copenhagen Accord to cap global temperature rise by committing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
"For the first time in history," President Obama said after arriving back in Washington on December 19, "all of the world's major economies have come together to accept their responsibility to take action to confront the threat of climate change."
The accord -- finalized in the early hours of December 19 in a stuffy room at the Bella Center by Obama, Nicolas Sarkozy of France, Angela Merkel of Germany, Gordon Brown of the United Kingdom, Felipe CalderÃ'n of Mexico and 20 other national leaders -- recognizes the scientific view that limiting an increase in global temperature to less than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) is necessary to avoid the worst effects of a changing climate system.
"We now have a Copenhagen Accord which contains a number of very significant elements," an exhausted-looking Yvo de Boer, executive secretary of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), said at the closing press briefing. He called it "an impressive accord," but added that it was "not an accord that is legally binding."
Many delegates hoped the result of this 15th Conference of the Parties (COP-15) to the UNFCCC would be an ambitious and binding agreement on specific national actions to try to avoid the most disastrous effects of climate change. What emerged from informal negotiations among major economies and representatives of regional groups was a first step toward a potentially stronger agreement to be negotiated during COP-16, to be held in Mexico in the final months of 2010. A two-week negotiating session in Bonn, Germany, scheduled for May 31 to June 11, will precede COP-16.
"After extremely difficult and complex negotiations, this important breakthrough lays the foundation for international action in the years to come," Obama said.
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Sign Agreement
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2000 Royal Nepal Airlines Twin Otter crash
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Nepal Airlines Flight 183 was a scheduled domestic passenger flight operated by a DHC-6 Twin Otter that on 16 February 2014 crashed into a hill near Dhikura, Nepal. [1][2]
The aircraft departed from Pokhara Airport in central Nepal with fifteen passengers and three crew members on board and was scheduled to arrive at Jumla Airport in the northwest of the country at 13:45 Nepal Standard Time (8:00 UTC). [3] Thirty minutes into the flight, the 19-seat Twin Otter was attempting to divert to Bhairahawa Airport because of the weather conditions, resulting in radio contact being lost. The last radio communication with the aircraft crew was at 13:13, when the crew reported their approximate position to Bhairahawa Tower, in Khidim. [4] The aircraft eventually crashed in the jungle of Masine Lek, which is located in Dhikura. [5]
Although the crash itself was not witnessed, some residents saw remains of the crashed aircraft. At first, no one was able to get to the crash site due to poor visibility. When the rescue and recovery teams eventually reached the crash site, they found the bodies of all eighteen on board spread over the hill. [6][7]
According to Nepal's Army, the crash site is located at an altitude of 7,000 feet (2,100 m). Parts of the wreckage were found as far away as 7 kilometres (4.3 miles) from the actual crash site. The aircraft, a DHC-6 Twin Otter (Registration: 9N-ABB), which was delivered to Nepal Airlines in 1971,[8] was involved in two incidents before: On 10 June 1973 on a flight from Biratnagar to Kathmandu, the aircraft was taken over by three hijackers of Nepali Congress party who demanded money and escaped after landing in Bihar, India. None of the three crew and 18 passengers were injured. [9]
On 5 July 1992, the aircraft lost directional control on takeoff from Jumla on a flight to Surkhet. The aircraft ran off the runway and struck the airport perimeter fence. None of the three crew were injured and there were no passengers on board. [9]
According to Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal official Ram Hari Sharma, everybody on board, except for one Danish passenger, was Nepalese, including a child. [6]
The Nepalese Government formed a four-man probe team to investigate the crash. The aircraft's flight recorder was taken from the site. The investigation team was expected to report its findings within two months of the crash. [10]
The final report of the investigation was released on 25 August 2014. It found the accident was caused by a lack of crew coordination; a lack of situational awareness on the part of the crew; and the poor weather. [11]
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Air crash
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Northeast Ohio couple spreading awareness of boating dangers after losing son to carbon monoxide poisoning
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MASSILLON, Ohio — Water is the backdrop of some of Krissy and Doug Taylor’s best memories.
Doug grew up on his father’s boat and, as tradition, began taking his kids on that same boat when they were young, too.
“It’s a boat I’d been on for 20 years. We are very seasoned boaters,” he said.
Doug is a North Canton firefighter. He said he always took proper safety precautions on the boat, especially with his children.
June 30, 2019 started out as any other trip to Salt Fork State Park. The couple brought their 7-year-old son Afton and his younger brother out on the boat.
“We were just boating as we normally do,” said Krissy. “It was one of the best days we’ve ever had. He didn’t even fight with his brother that day,” said Doug.
That day turned into a tragedy as they were getting ready to leave.
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“We’ve been going through no wake zones with dangling feet in the water for as long as I can remember,” said Doug Taylor.
Afton was sitting in the back of the boat as it was moving at a slow speed in the no wake zone.
“I looked over [to see] if he was okay, he gave me a thumbs up, I went back to rolling up a rope to make sure everything was secure for the trip and then he was gone,” said Doug. “That was the last time we saw him before we had to identify his body.”
The couple came to the realization that Afton fell off the boat. Officials searched for the little boy for hours and the next day, using sonar equipment, they found his body. It was concluded that he drowned.
“We knew our son could swim. We thought that was very odd,” said Krissy. “My son was a swimmer. He’s been in the water since he was 6 months old,” added Doug.
It was a month later when the official report came out: Afton died of carbon monoxide poisoning.
“He was gone before he even touched that water,” said Krissy.
Officials warn the colorless and odorless gas can emit from the engine and can create a toxic vacuum of fumes at the back of the boat, it’s especially dangerous at slow speeds or when the boat is docked and engine is on.
“It is an open boat, mid-engine boat and going at a slow speed, the exhaust is underneath the boat, underneath the back deck,” said Doug.
Doug, being a firefighter and an avid boater, never knew about the dangers of carbon monoxide in the open water. Krissy said they had never been warned about carbon monoxide poisoning on a boat.
“We’ve all sat back there. We all sat on those back seats, too. It’s what they’re for,” she said.
Now, through their pain, they want to share their story.
“When we lost Afton there was just this hole right here and it never ever gets filled again, and it’s just this emptiness. That’s a good and bad thing because when I feel that emptiness it’s like I have to do something. We have to do something. We have to tell other people about this and that’s what we are doing,” she said.
They want other parents to know that smaller children should never be in the back of the boat at low speeds, as carbon monoxide can poison their bodies at a faster rate.
“The proper way is for everybody to sit in the front of the boat,” said Doug. “Even the open air boats can be and is very dangerous to small children if you don’t know.”
T.J. Martin with the Parma Fire Department said it is important to buy a carbon monoxide detector for your boat, no matter what type it is and, especially, if you have a small indoor cabin.
“When you take the cabin of a boat which is substantially smaller than a house and emit carbon monoxide to the area, the area fills up exponentially quicker,” said Martin.
Martin said if you feel like you may have carbon monoxide poisoning get into fresh air as fast as possible, away from the engine, and call 911.
The Taylors are working to create a law in Ohio dedicated to Afton and creating more awareness about carbon monoxide poisoning on boats.
They have started “Love Like Afton,” which is an organization dedicated to spreading information about carbon monoxide poisoning and dedicated to acts of kindness, like buddy benches at schools. They said their boy had a big heart and loved everyone.
“We just want to spread his love the best we can,” said Krissy.
Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning include: a headache, weakness, fatigue, nausea or vomiting, shortness of breath, confusion, blurred vision and loss of consciousness.
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Mass Poisoning
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Stepping Back From Isolation, Switzerland Votes to Join U.N.
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Stepping Back From Isolation, Switzerland Votes to Join U.N.
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By a slender margin, neutral Switzerland decided in a countrywide vote today to leave behind decades of isolationism and become a member of the United Nations.
The referendum passed by a surprisingly comfortable popular vote -- 54.6 percent for membership and 45.4 percent against -- but the outcome was in suspense for hours because the majority of the country's 23 full cantons, or states, also had to approve the initiative under Switzerland's system of direct democracy.
The balance finally swung to 12 cantons in favor, and 11 against, when Zurich, the country's largest canton, lined up in the ''yes'' column. This tipped the balance, to the relief of the government, which had lobbied hard for Switzerland to shed its go-it-alone stance, and become the 190th member of the global organization.
Switzerland is expected to formally submit an application for membership during the United Nations General Assembly session in September, becoming the last state except for the Vatican to join. This is the second time the Swiss have voted on membership. In 1986, during the cold war, the Swiss overwhelmingly rejected joining, driven by fears that the nation's traditional neutrality would be compromised.
Reflecting this year's hard-fought and emotional campaign, an unusually high number of voters, nearly 58 percent, turned out. Nationalists, led by the billionaire industrialist Christoph Blocher, exhorted the Swiss to vote against joining the United Nations on grounds it would jeopardize the country's neutrality, independence and humanitarian traditions. A small country like Switzerland, with 7.3 million people, would also be subject to the decisions of the United Nations Security Council, which could include dragging Swiss soldiers into conflict situations, they argued.
The government, industry and trade unions mounted a vigorous effort to convince the Swiss that they need to participate in global affairs, and not remain aloof in light of the changing international situation since the Sept. 11 attacks. The country already follows United Nations economic sanctions and provides limited, usually logistical, help in peacekeeping operations. Last June, the voters agreed, for the first time, to allow Swiss soldiers who take part in such missions to be armed for self-defense.
Although the country is host to the United Nations European headquarters in Geneva and is active in a number of its agencies, the government feared that a continued reluctance to become a member would undercut Switzerland politically and economically, and undermine its mediation efforts in far-flung conflicts.
It was also eager to burnish Switzerland's image, damaged by disclosures in recent years that Swiss banks hoarded Holocaust victims' accounts, that many refugees fleeing Nazi Germany were turned away at Swiss borders and that foreign dictators hid behind the country's banking secrecy to stash immense sums looted from poor countries.
Mr. Blocher, who leads the Swiss People's Party, appeared on Swiss television, saying the outcome would ''lead to a weakening of Switzerland,'' and maintained, ''With the United Nations vote today, we are no longer neutral.'' His right-wing party found support in smaller, German-speaking regions which are traditionally fiercely independent and suspicious of the rest of the world.
His party made its name in the 1986 vote against United Nations membership, then went on in 1992 to win a vote against Swiss participation in a European free trade pact, regarded as a steppingstone to European Union membership. This forced the government to put its plans to join on the back burner.
Switzerland's foreign minister, Joseph Deiss, disagreed, noting, ''If there is one winner, it is certainly our country.'' He said Switzerland would retain its sovereignty and neutrality in the manner of other neutral United Nations member countries like Finland.
The vote results showed the country split almost down the middle, with the western, French-speaking cantons voting in favor, and the eastern, German-speaking cantons voting no. Only Zurich, the country's business center located in eastern Switzerland, voted yes. The highest opposition was registered in a small half-canton of Appenzell Inner-Rhoden, in the country's center, where 67.5 percent voted against.
The greatest support came from 66.9 percent of voters in Geneva, where the United Nations European headquarters and several of its key agencies are installed. Kofi Annan, the United Nations secretary general, had urged the Swiss to join, and warned that the world would not understand a no vote. He issued a statement today welcoming the outcome, praising Switzerland as a ''vivid example of what the United Nations stands for -- a tolerant, peaceful and multicultural society built on democratic values.''
Switzerland reaps about $1.8 billion from the United Nations presence in Geneva, a factor that more than offsets the additional $43 million that the government said it would cost for Swiss membership. Switzerland already gives nearly $300 million to the United Nations, making it the 14th largest donor country.
Also today, the Swiss rejected overwhelmingly a move to the French model of a 36-hour workweek, a proposal by the country's labor unions. Statistics show that the average Swiss workweek is around 42 hours, while law fixes the maximum at between 45 and 50 hours.
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Join in an Organization
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COVID-19 pandemic
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The ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019; a lockdown in Wuhan and other cities in Hubei province failed to contain the outbreak, and it spread to other parts of mainland China and around the world. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on 30 January 2020, and a pandemic on 11 March 2020. Since 2021, variants of the virus have emerged or become dominant in many countries, with the Delta, Alpha and Beta variants being the most virulent. As of 18 August 2021, more than 208?million cases and 4.38?million deaths have been confirmed, making it one of the deadliest pandemics in history. COVID-19 symptoms range from unnoticeable to life-threatening. Severe illness is more likely in elderly patients, as well as those who have certain underlying medical conditions. The disease transmits when people breathe in air contaminated by droplets and small airborne particles. The risk of breathing these in is highest when people are in close proximity, but still present over longer distances, particularly indoors. Transmission can also occur if splashed or sprayed with contaminated fluids in the eyes, nose, or mouth, and, rarely, via contaminated surfaces. People remain contagious for up to 20 days, and can spread the virus even if they do not develop any symptoms. Recommended preventive measures include social distancing, wearing face masks in public, ventilation and air-filtering, hand washing, covering one's mouth when sneezing or coughing, disinfecting surfaces, and monitoring and self-isolation for people exposed or symptomatic. Several vaccines have been distributed in many countries since December 2020. Treatments focus on addressing symptoms, but work is underway to develop medications that inhibit the virus. Authorities worldwide have responded by implementing travel restrictions, lockdowns and quarantines, workplace hazard controls, and business closures. There are also efforts to increase testing capacity and trace contacts of the infected. The pandemic has resulted in severe global social and economic disruption, including the largest global recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s. [8] It has led to widespread supply shortages exacerbated by panic buying, agricultural disruption, food shortages, and decreased emissions of pollutants. Numerous educational institutions and public areas have been partially or fully closed, and many events have been cancelled or postponed. Misinformation has circulated through social media and mass media, and political tensions have been exacerbated. The pandemic has raised issues of racial and geographic discrimination, health equity, and the balance between public health imperatives and individual rights. The pandemic is known by several names. It is often referred to as its colloquial name, "the coronavirus pandemic",[9] despite the existence of other human coronaviruses that have caused epidemics and outbreaks (e.g. SARS). [10] Before it was declared a pandemic, it was known as "the coronavirus outbreak" and "Wuhan coronavirus outbreak". [11]
During the initial outbreak in Wuhan, the virus and disease were commonly referred to as "coronavirus" and "Wuhan coronavirus",[12] with the disease sometimes called "Wuhan pneumonia". [13][14] In January 2020, the WHO recommended 2019-nCoV[15] and 2019-nCoV acute respiratory disease[16] as interim names for the virus and disease per 2015 guidance and international guidelines against using geographical locations (e.g. Wuhan, China), animal species, or groups of people in disease and virus names in part to prevent social stigma. [17] The official names COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2 were issued by the WHO on 11 February 2020. [18] Tedros Adhanom explained: CO?for corona, VI?for virus, D?for disease and 19 for when the outbreak was first identified (31 December 2019). [19] The WHO additionally uses "the COVID-19 virus" and "the virus responsible for COVID-19" in public communications. [18]
The variants of the virus are also known by several names. Before being given official names by the WHO, they were commonly named after where the variants were found (e.g. Delta variant was known as the Indian variant),[20] and are also known colloquially as "variants of concern". [21][22] At the end of May 2021, the WHO assigned labels to all the variants after introducing a new policy of using Greek letters for variants of concern and variants of interest. [23]
Although the exact origin of the virus is still unknown,[24] the first outbreak started in Wuhan, Hubei, China in November 2019. Many early cases of COVID-19 were linked to people who had visited the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan,[25][26][27] but it is possible that human-to-human transmission was already happening before this. [28][29] On 11 February 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) named the disease "COVID-19", which is short for coronavirus disease 2019. [30][31] The virus that caused the outbreak is known as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a newly discovered virus closely related to bat coronaviruses,[32] pangolin coronaviruses,[33][34] and SARS-CoV. [35] The scientific consensus is that the virus is most likely of zoonotic origin, from bats or another closely-related mammal. [28][36] Despite this, the subject has generated a significant amount of speculation and conspiracy theories,[37][29] which were amplified by rapidly growing online echo chambers. [38] Global geopolitical divisions, notably between the United States and China, have been heightened because of this issue. [39]
The earliest known person with symptoms was later discovered to have fallen ill on 1?December 2019, and that person did not have visible connections with the later wet market cluster. [40][41] However, an earlier case of infection could have occurred on 17 November. [42] Of the early cluster of cases reported that month, two-thirds were found to have a link with the market. [43][44][45] Molecular clock analysis suggests that the index case is likely to have been infected with the virus between mid-October and mid-November 2019. [46][47]
Official case counts refer to the number of people who have been tested for COVID-19 and whose test has been confirmed positive according to official protocols. [48][49] Many countries, early on, had official policies to not test those with only mild symptoms. [50][51] An analysis of the early phase of the outbreak up to 23 January estimated 86 per cent of COVID-19 infections had not been detected, and that these undocumented infections were the source for 79 per cent of documented cases. [52] Several other studies, using a variety of methods, have estimated that numbers of infections in many countries are likely to be considerably greater than the reported cases.
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Disease Outbreaks
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1967 Saginaw riot
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The 1967 Saginaw riot was one of 159 race riots that swept cities in the United States during the "Long Hot Summer of 1967". This riot occurred in Saginaw, Michigan, on July 26, 1967. Tensions were high across Michigan that week as the 1967 Detroit riots in nearby Detroit had been escalating since Sunday July 23. When Saginaw mayor Henry G. Marsh chose to only meet privately with Civil Rights leaders in a conference closed to members of the public, the public started a protest. [2] The protestors were met by riot police at City Hall and began getting out of hand, eventually turning into a riot that spread through downtown and into the neighborhoods of Saginaw. [4] In all, 7 people were injured, 5 of whom were civilians and 2 were police.
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Riot
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Charfield railway disaster
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The Charfield railway disaster was a fatal train crash which occurred on 13 October 1928 in the village of Charfield in the English county of Gloucestershire. The Leeds to Bristol London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) night mail train failed to stop at the signals protecting the down refuge siding at Charfield railway station. The weather was misty, but there was not a sufficiently thick fog for the signalman at Charfield to employ fog signalmen. A freight train was in the process of being shunted from the down main line to the siding, and another train of empty goods wagons was passing through the station from the Bristol (up) direction. The mail train collided with the freight train and was derailed, coming into collision with the up train underneath the road bridge to the north of the station. Gas used to light the carriages ignited, and four carriages were burnt out. The driver of the mail train claimed that he had seen a clear distant signal on approach to the station, and therefore had assumed that the home signals protecting the station were also clear; however, testing of the signals after the accident confirmed that the distant had been correctly in the yellow "caution" position. The driver was charged with manslaughter, but was subsequently acquitted. The 10:00 pm LMS down passenger and mail express from Leeds to Bristol consisted of Midland Railway Class 3 4-4-0 No. 714 steam locomotive hauling a 6-wheel tender, a 6-wheeled parcels van, a goods van, a composite passenger coach, two third-class coaches, another composite coach, a TPO sorting van, a TPO tender, a pair of TPO vans and a passenger brake van. Of these cars, the parcels van, front composite, both 3rd class Coaches and all four TPO vehicles' lighting was powered by flammable gases. In total, the train was carrying 23 gas canisters in these carriages. Only the front goods van had been constructed with electrical lighting, whilst the rear composite and brake van were built to use gas lighting, but had been converted. All eleven carriages were wooden and old at the time of the crash, with the newest coach being the goods van which was built in 1915, the oldest vehicles were the TPO vans which dated back to 1885. All but the two front vans on the train had vacuum brakes which could be activated from the locomotive. The locomotive also carried a steam brake to brake itself and its tender. Both brakes were able to be activated from the footplate of the engine, and the vacuum brakes could be activated from the guard's van. In the locomotive was driver E.H Aldington and fireman F.C Want whilst in the Brake Van. at the rear of the train was guard Miller. All three men knew each other well and were experienced. Aldington had worked on the railways since 1891, had been driving goods trains since 1916 and passenger trains since 1924. His last working day prior to the crash was 12 October, where he had driven the 1:45 am mail train from Birmingham to Bristol and then the 7:40 am Birmingham to Bristol mail train. Aldington had considerable experience running on this line, having been scheduled to work it every five days for eleven weeks. Fireman F.C Want had worked on the railways since 1917 with nine and three quarters of a year as a fireman and had known Aldington since December 1926. Unlike Aldington, Want was much less experienced on the route, having only handled it 30 times before. Guard Miller had worked on the railways since 1921. The 9:15 pm Great Western Railway (GWR) down semi-fitted goods train from Oxley bound for Bristol. This train consisted of GWR 4300 Class 2-6-0 Locomotive No. 6381, a 6-wheeled tender, forty-nine loaded wagons and a brake van. The locomotive, tender and the front fifteen wagons had vacuum brakes to be operated from the engine, but the remaining 34 wagons were braked via the brake van. The crew aboard this train consisted of driver Gilbert and fireman H. Sutton in the engine and guard W. Fortune in the brake van. The 4:45 am LMS up empty goods train from Westerleigh to Gloucester consisted of a 0-6-0 locomotive hauling its tender, forty-five empty wagons and a brake van. The crew aboard this train consisted of driver G. Honeyfield and fireman A. Clarke in the engine and guard Callaway. Although not in the crash itself, two more trains were involved in the lead-up to the disaster, these being the 12:45 am down parcels train from Leicester to Bristol and the 10:35 pm down goods train from Washwood Heath to Bristol, both operated by the LMS. Approaching Charfield at high speed, Aldington told Want to look out for the down distant signal, even though Want wasn't as experienced on this line as he was, and the fog and lack of knowledge meant he was unsure as to the signal's location. [1] However, 60 yards from the down distant, Want claimed to see the green signal and said to Aldington "He's got it off mate!" before shovelling in some more coal to the engine. As he returned the shovel to the tender, Aldington saw the GWR goods engine emerge from the fog. [2] Realizing a collision was about to occur, he quickly applied the brakes before ducking down. The mail train crashed into the GWR goods train, the engine of the LMS train clipping the edges of the two front-most goods vans of the GWR Train before crashing into the tender, which at that point was slightly askew of the main line as it was being shunted clear. The LMS engine crashed into the right-hand side of the GWR tender and derailed to the right, ploughing into two empty wagons of the up LMS train before it overturned onto its right side against the up slope near the bridge. The GWR tender was flung onto its left side against the north side of the bridge, while the GWR engine became wedged against the abutment, causing the first six vehicles (the parcel van, the other van, the front composite, the two 3rd class carriages and the rear composite) to become wedged under the bridge. Whilst the engine of the mail train was derailed and tossed clear, the tender was derailed but remained on the track. The sudden deceleration caused the two vans, the front composite coach and first 3rd class coach to violently telescope. The rear 3rd class coach hit the rear of the front coach, forcing the front of the carriage to become entangled with the coach ahead of it, causing both underframes to bend upwards until it came to rest leaning on the north side of the bridge. Part of the roof was torn off and thrown onto the bridge. The rear composite and the cars behind it came to an abrupt halt, but remained on the rails, each receiving varying amounts of damage. [1]
The GWR goods train's first two wagons which were still being shunted clear when the LMS train hit received glancing blows whilst the tender of the train received the brunt of the impact. Both 6381's tender and engine were pinned against the wall by the mail train's carriages. The remaining forty-seven wagons mostly received either minor damage or were undamaged.
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Train collisions
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32 Of The Biggest Celebrity Splits Of 2020:Lindsey Vonn & P.K. Subban & More
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2020 has proven to be a totally brutal year all around. But it has been really hard on celebrity couples. A higher number than usual have thrown in the towel when it comes to their relationships, with some heading towards divorce and others going their separate ways — including Lindsey Vonn and P.K. Subban, and Ashely Benson and Cara Delevingne.
Lindsey and P.K. took to Instagram on Dec. 29 to announce their split with similar bittersweet messages. “Over the past 3 years PK and I have had some incredible times together. He is a kind, good man, and someone I respect a great deal,” Lindsey wrote in her message alongside a smiling pic of her and P.K. together. “However, after much consideration we have decided to move forward separately. We will always remain friends and love each other immensely. We ask that you please respect our privacy during this time.”
P.K. shared the same snapshot with the same concluding second paragraph, but added his own feelings about Lindsey to the first. “Lindsey is one of the most kind and caring people I know. I will always treasure our time as a couple together and the many laughs we shared,” it read.
Lindsey and P.K. have been together since at least 2018 and became engaged after he popped the question in summer of 2019 and she did the same in Dec. of the same year. They were planning on getting married this year but postponed the wedding due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Ashley and Cara were together for roughly two years before ending their romance in May. Ashley has since gone on to date G-Eazy.
Kate Beckinsale and Goody Grace found love amid quarantine despite a 24 year age difference. The 47-year-old actress and the 23-year-old musician were first photographed together at a pre-Grammys party on Jan. 25, 2020. They hunkered down at her Los Angeles mansion when quarantine began in March, and in early April they were spotted holding hands and showing PDA on walks trough her neighborhood. By the time her birthday rolled around in July, the two openly said their “I love you” proclamations in Instagram posts. But on Oct. 22, Kate had erased all traces of Goody from her Instagram account and quit following him on social media. He reportedly has since moved out of her mansion and back home to his native Canada.
Rapper Cardi B filed for divorce from husband Offset on Sept. 15, just five days shy of their third wedding anniversary. The couple seemed happy together all summer as a family with 2-year-old daughter, Kulture Kiari Cephus, and it’s unclear what sparked the “WAP” rapper to suddenly file. She did say there are no prospects for a reconciliation in her paperwork, unlike her Dec. 2017 threat to divorce the Migos member. But love won out, and after they were spotted kissing at her Oct. 10 28th birthday blowout in Las Vegas, the two reconciled. She said later that she missed her “best friend” and the passionate intimacy they share.
Lamar Odom‘s fiance Sabrina Parr called off the couple’s engagement on Nov. 4, 2020, just one week shy of the one year mark of his romantic proposal. The pair began dating in Aug. 2019 and he popped the question after a whirlwind four months together. In her Instagram story announcing the breakup, Sabrina wrote that she made the “difficult decision” to split from Lamar, saying that it was the “best for myself and my children.”
Sabrina went on to allege that “Lamar has some things that he alone has to work through,” and that she was “no longer able to be by his side while he seeks the help he so desperately needs.” Much like Cardi and Offset, however, Lamar and Sabrina seemingly reconciled after photos of the pair celebrating the anniversary of their engagement surfaced on social media.
The COVID-19 quarantine proved to be tough on Scott Disick and Sofia Richie‘s relationship. The couple of nearly three years spent plenty of time together locked down in Malibu, but in late April the Talentless founder checked into rehab to deal with some past emotional trauma. He left the facility in Colorado on May 4 after his privacy was blown, and it was reported that Scott and Sofia broke up a few weeks later. He was vacationing with ex Kourtney Kardashian and their three kids in Utah by Memorial Day weekend. Despite hints that Scott and Sofia might get back together, they parted ways for good in Aug. 2020.
It was a bad year for couples from Bachelor Nation when it came to love. Cassie Randolph and former Bachelor Colton Underwood announced their breakup in May 2020 after a year and a half of dating, but no engagement. Things turned ugly though when she filed for and later received a restraining order against Colton in Sept. 2020, after Cassie accused her former beau of stalking and harassing her, even claiming he put a tracking device on her car to keep tabs on her.
The Black Lives Matter protests ended up taking a toll on former Bachelorette Becca Kufrin and her fiancé Garrett Ygrigoyen‘s relationship. He posted pro-police messages in June amid the nationwide rallies over police brutality. Becca later said she did not “agree with” Garrett’s “tone deaf” posts, which had the “wrong time and message and sentiment.” The pair had been happily engaged for two years until that point, but Becca announced on Sept. 1 that it wouldn’t “come as a shock to anyone, but Garrett and I have decided to end our engagement.”
Kelly Clarkson shocked fans when she and husband of seven years Brandon Blackstock called it quits on their seven year marriage, which produced two children — six-year-old daughter River and four-year-old son Remington Alexander. So far the singer turned talk show host has been very mum about why she filed for divorce on June 4 in a Los Angeles court, hoping to keep the matter as private as possible.
Another long marriage came to an end when actors Megan Fox and Brian Austin Green split up in May 2020, one month shy of their 10 year wedding anniversary. A month later the 34-year-old actress was actively dating her Midnight in the Switchgrass co-star Machine Gun Kelly. She’s since gone on to call the rapper/actor her “twin flame,” which is a level above a soul mate. You can check out the gallery above for more celebrity couples who split up in 2020.
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Famous Person - Divorce
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Southern Airways Flight 242 crash
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Southern Airways Flight 242 was a DC-9-31 jet, registered N1335U, that executed a forced landing on Georgia State Route 381 in New Hope, Paulding County, Georgia, United States, after suffering hail damage and losing thrust on both engines in a severe thunderstorm on April 4, 1977. [1]:1[4]
At the time of the accident, the Southern Airways aircraft was flying from Northwest Alabama Regional Airport to Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport. [1]:2 Sixty-three people on the aircraft (including both pilots) and nine people on the ground died; 20 passengers survived, as well as the two flight attendants. The flight crew consisted of Captain William W. "Bill" McKenzie, aged 54, a highly experienced pilot with 19,380 flight hours (including 3,205 hours on the DC-9), and first officer Lyman W. Keele Jr., aged 34, who had 3,878 flight hours, with 235 of them on the DC-9. [1]:50 The crew was advised of the presence of embedded thunderstorms and possible tornadoes along their general route prior to their departure from Huntsville, but they were not subsequently told that the cells had since formed a squall line. [5] The flight crew had flown through that same area from Atlanta earlier in the day, encountering only mild turbulence and light rain. The weather system had greatly intensified in the meantime. The peak convective activity was later shown on ground radar to be near Rome, Georgia, to which the flight was cleared to proceed by air traffic control. The crew attempted to pick out a path through the cells using their on-board weather radar display, but they were apparently misled by the radar's attenuation effect, and they proceeded toward what they believed was a low-intensity area, when in fact it was the peak convective activity point, attenuated by rain. As the aircraft descended from its cruising altitude of 17,000 to 14,000 ft (5,200 to 4,300 m) near Rome VOR, it apparently entered a thunderstorm cell and encountered a massive amount of rain and hail. [1]:31 The hail was so intense that it broke the aircraft's windshield, and because of the ingestion of both water and hail, both Pratt & Whitney JT8D-7A engines were damaged and underwent flameout. [5][2]
The crew attempted unsuccessfully to restart the engines, gliding down unpowered, while simultaneously trying to find an emergency landing field within range. Air traffic control suggested Dobbins Air Force Base, about 20 mi (32 km) east, as a possible landing site, but it was beyond reach. Cartersville Airport, a general-aviation airport about 15 miles (24 km) north with a much shorter runway intended for light aircraft was considered, but it was behind the aircraft and now out of reach. Before the aircraft turned toward Dobbins, the closest airport was another general-aviation airport, Cornelius Moore Airport (now Polk County Airport – Cornelius Moore Field), but the air traffic controllers did not know about it (it was just outside their area of responsibility and not shown on their screens), and it was not considered. As the aircraft ran out of altitude and options, gliding with a broken windshield and no engine power, the crew made visual contact with the ground and spotted a straight section of a rural highway below. They executed an unpowered forced landing on that road, but during the rollout, the aircraft’s left wing collided with a gas station causing it to swerve to the left and crashing into a wooded area. The pilots and 61 passengers were killed by impact forces and fire, but 20 of the passengers survived, as well as both flight attendants. Nine people on the ground were also killed, including a family of seven. [1]:7[a] Among the passengers killed was rhythm and blues singer Annette Snell. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigated the accident and concluded the following probable cause in its final report:[1]:41
The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was the total and unique loss of thrust from both engines while the aircraft was penetrating an area of severe thunderstorms. The loss of thrust was caused by the ingestion of massive amounts of water and hail which in combination with thrust lever movement induced severe stalling in and major damage to the engine compressors. The DC-9 broke into several large pieces; the cockpit had separated mostly intact and came to rest upside-down. Both pilots had been ejected from it, still strapped into their seats, and died of massive blunt-force injuries. The cockpit windows had separated and were mostly intact except for the two that had been struck by hail. No fire damage occurred to the fuselage until behind the wings, which area had been subjected to an intense conflagration, but most of the passenger section up to the wings had been demolished by impact forces. Some passengers were killed on impact, while others were ejected from the fuselage alive but injured. A number of other passengers succumbed to inhalation of smoke and fumes, including some who were unable to escape due to their injuries. Flight attendant Catherine Cooper survived unscathed because she was sitting in an area that provided her with relative protection from impact forces. She found herself hanging upside-down while still strapped into her seat, unbuckled the seatbelt, and jumped from an opening in the fuselage when the main cabin door turned out to be jammed and inoperable. Afterwards, Cooper ran to a nearby house to find help and discovered that some of the passengers were already there. Meanwhile, flight attendant Sandy Ward was seated in the back of the plane and reported it "bouncing up and down" several times during impact and that fire spread through the cabin. With a wall of flames blocking the way in front, she moved rearwards and tried to open the back cabin door, but it was also jammed. By now, the fire had died down and she was able to exit through the broken fuselage. Ward tried to assist passengers in escaping until an explosion forced her to run for cover. As per standard emergency procedure, the flight attendants removed their shoes and ordered passengers to do likewise. This policy was due to the possibility of high heels causing damage to evacuation slides. [6] This resulted in a number of people sustaining lacerations and bruises to their feet would have been unlikely to have occurred otherwise, but since the attendants did not know the exact circumstances of the crash, they simply followed by-the-book emergency directions. The NTSB believed that the pilots should have informed the flight attendants and crew to cushion themselves with blankets, coats, and pillows, and not remove their shoes. The cockpit voice recorder (CVR) data indicated at least two interruptions to power, one lasting for 15 seconds and the other almost two minutes following the complete loss of engine thrust until the crew switched to backup battery power. The best chance for a (reasonably) safe landing would have been at Dobbins Air Force Base in Marietta, Georgia,[1]:33 but why the crew did not attempt it is unclear due to the two-minute gap in CVR data. [1]:33 Lacking CVR data, the NTSB concluded that it was most likely that the pilots turned away from Dobbins due to a combination of poor visibility and loss of electrical power, forcing the crew to turn the plane so they could maintain visual flight conditions. [1]:33
The NTSB also included these contributing factors:
the failure of the company's dispatching system to provide the flight crew with up-to-date severe weather information pertaining to the aircraft's intended route of flight, the captain's reliance on airborne weather radar for penetration of thunderstorm areas, and limitations in the Federal Aviation Administration's air traffic control system, which precluded the timely dissemination of real-time hazardous weather information to the flight crew. Moreover, the crew had no training for a situation that involved total loss of engine thrust, nor did Southern Airways require such training. [1]:33 FAA regulations had no such requirement either, because the possibility of complete failure of all engines on a jet-powered carrier aircraft was deemed so remote as to not require training or special procedures; the NTSB could not find a recorded instance prior to Flight 242 of a commercial jet aircraft experiencing such an emergency. [1]:33 (While other significant incidents involving loss of all engines in flight have occurred, including the Gimli Glider, Scandinavian Airlines Flight 751, and the Miracle on the Hudson, these happened after Flight 242's unpowered landing event in 1977.) Only three of the NTSB's four board members signed the final report. Kay Bailey, who signed the final report, added a concurring statement, which reiterated the board's previous recommendations for improved real-time weather dissemination. [1]:46 Francis H. McAdams, one of the four NTSB members, dissented with the other members. In his dissenting opinion, McAdams provided his alternate view of the probable cause:[1]:48
the probable cause of this accident was the captain's decision to penetrate rather than avoid an area of severe weather, the failure to obtain all the available weather information despite having knowledge of the severity of the storm system, and the reliance upon airborne weather radar for penetration rather than avoidance of the storm system.
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Air crash
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India’s Capital Faces a ‘Swarmageddon’ of Locusts
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The country is weathering its worst invasion in more than two decades. With the monsoon season looming, scientists worry that the worst is yet to come. Send any friend a story As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Anyone can read what you share. By Kai Schultz and Hari Kumar NEW DELHI — A miles-long cloud of locusts swarmed India’s capital region over the weekend, flying through metro stations and playgrounds, invading sugar cane fields and threatening major losses to the agriculture sector at a time when coronavirus restrictions have already caused the loss of millions of jobs. Indian officials have struggled for weeks to contain the country’s worst locust invasion in decades, as the insects have moved from western regions to the New Delhi area and farther east to Nepal despite efforts to douse crops with pesticides and kill swarms using drones. More than a half-dozen Indian states have been affected.
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Insect Disaster
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Police warn foiled bank robber may still be armed
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Police in Tasmania's north-west will today resume their search for a man who threatened bank staff in Ulverstone with a shotgun. The man entered the Bendigo Bank in Ulverstone yesterday morning carrying a shotgun hidden in a blue shopping bag. He demanded cash from a teller but fled on foot and empty-handed when she screamed in fright. Police spent yesterday searching around Ulverstone but concede he could have gone further afield. They warn he could still be armed. Detective Inspector Mark Wright says the man's face was caught on camera but his identity still is not known. "If anyone does have any knowledge as to the offender, we certainly ask that they contact Crimestoppers or your local police station," he urged. The man is thought to be between 30 and 40 years old, about 178 centimetres, heavily built, with square facial features.
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Bank Robbery
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1966 Felthorpe Trident crash
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On 3 June 1966, a newly built Hawker Siddeley Trident jetliner crashed during a pre-delivery test flight near the village of Felthorpe, Norfolk, England, killing all four crew. The aeroplane had entered a deep stall from which the crew were unable to recover. It was the first loss of a Trident aircraft. [1]
The aircraft involved was a tri-jet Hawker Siddeley Trident 1C, registration G-ARPY,[2] serial number 2126; that was about to be delivered to British European Airways. [3]
The aircraft was making its first flight,[4] which was a routine test flight to enable the aircraft's Certificate of Airworthiness to be issued. [5] There were four crew on board. The aircraft took off from Hatfield Aerodrome at 16:52. [3] Tests established that the stick shaker operated at 102 knots (189 km/h), and that stall recovery system operated at 93 knots (172 km/h). The crew then disconnected the stall warning systems in order to ascertain the actual margin left after the warning had been given before the aircraft stalled. On this particular flight, the aircraft was being operated with its centre of gravity towards its aft limit. [5]
Shortly after 18:30, the pilot reported that the aircraft was in a "superstall". [5] At the time, the aircraft was observed to be configured for landing. [3] It was at an altitude of 10,000 feet (3,000 m). The nose was seen to pitch up by 30 to 40° before the aircraft turned to port, followed by the starboard wing dropping. Although full power was applied, the aircraft entered into a flat spin, and crashed at Felthorpe, killing all on board. It was not fitted with an anti-spin parachute. [5] The site of the accident was in a field adjacent to Felthorpe Airfield. [6]
The crew were pilots Peter Barlow and George Errington, and technicians E. Brackstone-Brown and G.W. Patterson. [5]
The Accidents Investigation Branch opened an inquiry into the accident. The investigation found that accident was the result of the pilot delaying recovery manoeuvres for too long, thereby allowing the aircraft to enter a deep stall from which it was impossible to recover. [3]
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Air crash
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1952 Hasankale earthquake
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The 1952 Hasankale earthquake occurred at 08:03 local time on 3 January in Hasankale (today Pasinler) in Erzurum Province, Eastern Anatolia Region of Turkey. The earthquake had an estimated magnitude of 5.8 and a maximum felt intensity of VIII (Severe) on the Mercalli intensity scale, causing 41 casualties. This spot has been the subject of studies due to the amount of earthquakes that occur in Turkey. 17% of earthquakes, globally, occur in this area. This is because the Alpide belt crosses through Turkey. [3] The earthquakes are cause when the plates try to slide past each other on a transform boundary. [4]
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Earthquakes
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2007 Broadway Stagehand Strike
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2007 Broadway Stagehands Strike was a strike action by stagehands represented by Theatrical Protective Union Number One (Local One) of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) against the Shubert, Jujamcyn, and Nederlander theaters (represented by League of American Theatres and Producers). The strike (the first in the union's 121-year history)[1] commenced on November 10, 2007, at 10:00 A.M. in New York City. It was the second strike on Broadway in five years (the other was the 2003 Broadway Musicians Strike). [2]
On November 28, 2007, at 10:30 pm, the two sides announced a settlement to end the strike, with shows beginning the evening of November 29. This was the longest strike to hit Broadway since a 25-day musicians' strike in 1975. [3]
IATSE Local One engages in collective bargaining with the League of American Theatres and Producers (the League), an association of Broadway theater owners and producers. IATSE Local One was formed in 1886, and represents about 7,000 stagehands and other theater workers in the New York City area. Roughly 450 to 700 of its members work for Broadway theaters, building, installing and operating scenery and sound and lighting equipment. [4]
The League includes nearly every one of the 93 theaters on Broadway. The Jujamcyn Amusement Corporation owns five theaters, The Shubert Organization 17 theaters, and the Nederlander Organization nine theaters. The remaining members of the League (Disney Theatrical, Live Nation and six nonprofits) each own a single theater. Generally, Jujamcyn and the Shubert Organization are the only owners represented by the League in negotiations. The Nederlander Organization has a separate contract, but a clause in the contract guarantees that its terms and conditions reflect the contract reached with the League. [5] The remaining members engage in individual contract negotiations with IATSE Local One. [6]
The collective bargaining agreement between Local One and the League expired in the summer of 2007. Members of Local One agreed to work without a contract and promised other unions in the entertainment industry that they would not strike until an agreement was reached. In late summer, Local One and the League, representing the Shubert and Jujamcyn theaters with the Nederlander Organization observing, entered into negotiations. [6]
Contract negotiations generally focused on work rules. Broadway shows offer a standard eight performances per week ("performance calls"), each of which lasts three to four hours. Additionally, there are "load-ins" (periods during which a show moves into a theater), rehearsals, "maintenance calls" (during which scenery, lighting and sound equipment are serviced, repaired and maintained), and opportunities for overtime. The League has accused the union of using its contract to secure featherbedding, a practice made illegal by the federal Taft-Hartley Act. Among the work rule changes sought by the League were:
Many labor relations experts said[citation needed] that the negotiations were not about work rules or economics, but the relative power of the two sides. Producers, who pay the theater owners, are also part of the League, and for the first time they took a vocal and active role in pushing for contract changes in order to break the union's control over theater management. Subsequently the League established a $20 million "defense fund" to help theaters weather a strike. [1] In response, the union established a $4 million fund to help its members during a possible job action. [6]
Contract negotiations stalled between the two parties and the league threatened Local One with a lockout if it would not comply with their demands. On October 21, Local One held a special meeting and its membership voted to authorize the executive board of the union to take any action deemed necessary, including but not limited to a strike, in order to reach an agreement between the two parties. [7]
In late October 2007, talks between Local One and the League again ended in a stalemate. On October 16, the League imposed a portion of its final offer (primarily, the proposals regarding new work rules) on the union. For two weeks Local One worked under these rules before talks with the League resumed. [8] The following day, the Nederlander Organization announced it would not join the Jujamcyn or Schubert owners in imposing the final offer on the union. [9]
On November 8, talks with the League resumed, this time including Thomas C. Short, international president of IATSE, for part of the negotiation session. After seeing progress being made, President Short left the talks early to assist members affected by the 2007 Writers Guild of America strike. After his departure, the negotiations once more ground to a halt. On the evening of November 9, Local One President James Claffey, Jr. was directed by International President Short to begin a strike on Saturday, November 10, 2007 at 10:00 AM Eastern time. [10]
Negotiations resumed between both sides on November 17, 2007 but broke off the following day. All performances of the affected Broadway shows were canceled through November 25. Negotiations between the League and Local One resumed on November 25. [11]
Negotiations continued November 26 and November 27. The first bargaining session began November 25, and lasted 20 hours. It recessed at dawn on November 26, and resumed later that evening. A 13-hour bargaining session lasted through the night into the early morning hours of November 27. The two sides agreed on work rules regarding "load-in"—the period when productions are moved into theaters. Talks concerning work rules governing rehearsals and other kinds of work progressed only slowly and incrementally. Economic issues, such as wages, had yet to be seriously discussed. Although producers canceled all shows through Wednesday, November 28, observers noted that the talks had only taken a break and had not appeared to actually break off. [12]
Both sides applauded the agreement. The union and League agreed to flexibility in the ability to dismiss stagehands during load-in, so long as there was a daily minimum of 17 stagehands on duty at all times. The parties also agreed to extend the continuity call to two hours before or after a performance. However, employees who work the post-performance continuity call earn double pay for the first hour of the two-hour continuity call.
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Strike
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Aerolíneas Argentinas Flight 644 crash
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Aerolíneas Argentinas Flight 644 was a scheduled flight operated by the Douglas DC-6, registration LV-ADW, on 19 July 1961 which was due to operate a domestic scheduled passenger service between Ministro Pistarini International Airport and General Enrique Mosconi International Airport, but crashed 12 km (7.5 mi) west of Pardo, Buenos Aires, Argentina, half an hour after takeoff, owing to severe turbulence during climb out. This aircraft had been originally named 'Presidente Peron' but by 1956-57 had been renamed 'General San Martin'. [1][2] Some reports stated the aircraft was struck by lightning. [3]
According to the investigation, the plane disintegrated en route after the rupture of one its wings following excessive loads in a zone of turbulence. Both the pilot and the company's flight dispatcher contributed to the disaster by misevaluating the weather forecast and choosing an inappropriate flight altitude. [2] All 67 occupants of the aircraft – 7 crew and 60 passengers – were killed in the accident,[4] which remains the deadliest one the company experienced all through its history. [5]
As of 2019, Flight 644 remains the deadliest aviation disaster in Argentine history. [6]
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Air crash
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WHO announces new expert group to investigate origins of the coronavirus and other outbreaks
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The group 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. It is set to consider not only the big, unresolved question of the novel coronavirus — how did it first infect humans? — but it will also establish a framework for the future. High-profile efforts to get to the bottom of the virus’s origins have been stymied by reluctance from Beijing and mired in fraught international politics, especially between China and the United States. “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. Avoiding that noise and politics will be difficult. Some experts in the United States and elsewhere suggest that the virus that causes covid-19, SARS-CoV-2, may have escaped from the Wuhan Institute of Virology or another research institute studying coronaviruses in the Chinese city where covid-19 was first recorded. There is no conclusive evidence for this theory. Beijing has rejected the idea, arguing that it is unsupported by a scientific consensus, and going a step further to claim without evidence that the novel coronavirus could have originated outside of China’s borders — even in the United States. Chinese officials have said they consider investigation of the virus’s origins on China’s soil complete. Advertisement Story continues below advertisement The new group, dubbed the Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO), will not have the authority to force China to open its borders. “If you believe that SAGO will answer the question, what was the origin of SARS-CoV-2, then you are sadly mistaken because there is 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 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, in which a group of international scientists visited sites at the virus’s known epicenter in Wuhan, was entangled in controversy over its inconclusive findings. After the scientists labeled the possibility of a leak from a laboratory in Wuhan “very unlikely” and not worthy of further investigation, WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the assessment of this theory was not “extensive enough.” In an unusually direct criticism of Beijing, he also said he expected “future collaborative studies to include more timely and comprehensive data sharing.” WHO officials are adamant that SAGO will not function as a reprise of the discredited mission to Wuhan. In an editorial published Wednesday in the journal Science , Van Kerkhove, Tedros and WHO emergencies chief Michael Ryan emphasized that the lab leak theory could not be ruled out. “Laboratory hypotheses must be examined carefully, with a focus on labs in the location where the first reports of human infections emerged in Wuhan,” the officials wrote. Advertisement Story continues below advertisement Six of the proposed members of the SAGO group were on the previous 10-person WHO mission to China, including Dutch virologist Marion Koopmans, who played a prominent role in some media briefings in the spring. 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 connected to the previous effort. Inger Damon, 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 for the next two weeks the WHO is seeking public comment on the names released Wednesday. Story continues below advertisement The group will be empowered to advise the WHO and ask it to arrange research trips, which it would need permission from member states to approve. “What we’re hopeful of is that there will be additional missions to China and potentially elsewhere,” said Van Kerkhove. Advertisement More than 700 experts applied for a place on the 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, but 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 the body extended. The aim is for the team to meet once a week, with outside experts receiving some invitations. All meetings will be confidential. Story continues below advertisement “I think the biggest value will not be for covid,” said Gostin. “I think the biggest value will be [for the WHO to have] an expert standing committee, rigorously vetted for any conflicts, with a global charge to investigate novel pathogens.” Advertisement Even so, much of the initial work will inevitably follow up from loose threads in the previous WHO-China mission and look at new evidence that has emerged since. Van Kerkhove pointed to data that has 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 to its vague and inconclusive findings. Yanzhong Huang, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, said the inclusion of a senior Chinese health official would make it harder for SAGO to deliver tough guidance. “Because this is based on consensus, I think it will be very likely that if they make decisions or recommendations, it will be the result of compromise,” Huang said. “Things could be watered down.”
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Organization Established
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RFU and Premiership Rugby sign new £225m agreement
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A new eight-year deal worth more than £225m has been agreed between the Rugby Football Union and Premiership clubs - with England getting more flexibility and greater player access in return.
Clubs will earn more for releasing players for international duty, as well as meeting the English-qualified players target and academy standards.
England will get two more training camps a season and larger elite squad.
"This is a true partnership," said RFU chief executive Ian Ritchie.
"[It is] focused on making English rugby the best in the world for club and country."
The agreement is worth more than double the previous one, which was signed in 2007, and will give England greater flexibility in selection, with the Elite Player Squad (EPS) expanded from 33 to 45 players, while during core periods 36 players can be selected for camps rather than 33.
Ritchie said England head coach Eddie Jones "was heavily involved" in the process and "is very supportive of the result - Eddie is very happy with the access this gives him to players".
In terms of player welfare, England players who play a certain number of minutes throughout the autumn series will now have a mandatory one weekend rest period over Christmas.
"Player welfare, as ever, is a priority for us all, and so further rest periods have been built into the season," Ritchie added.
Premiership clubs will also benefit for the first time if the RFU performs well financially.
The first four year payment from the RFU to the clubs is fixed at £112m, but the second four year payment could be higher.
"Success for England and the clubs depends on an effective partnership between the RFU and Premiership Rugby on many levels," said Premiership Rugby chief executive Mark McCafferty.
"The significantly increased monies to the Premiership clubs, alongside their own increased TV and commercial revenues, will ensure that Aviva Premiership Rugby continues to go from strength-to-strength."
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Sign Agreement
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Air Canada Flight 759 crash
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On July 7, 2017, an Airbus A320-211 operating as Air Canada Flight 759 was nearly involved in an accident at San Francisco International Airport in San Mateo County, California, United States. The flight, which originated at Toronto Pearson International Airport, had been cleared by air traffic control to land on San Francisco's runway 28R and was on final approach to land on that runway; however, instead of lining up with the runway, the aircraft had lined up with a parallel taxiway on which four fully loaded and fueled passenger airplanes were stopped awaiting takeoff clearance. The flight crew initiated a go-around prior to landing, after which it landed without further incident. The aircraft on the taxiway departed for their intended destinations without further incident. [1][2][3][4] The subsequent investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that the Air Canada airplane descended to 59 feet (18 m) above the ground before it began its climb, and that it missed colliding with one of the aircraft on the taxiway by 14 feet (4.3 m). The NTSB determined the probable cause was the Air Canada flight crew's confusion of the runway with the parallel taxiway, with contributing causes including the crew's failure to use the instrument landing system (ILS), as well as pilot fatigue. A retired pilot stated the runway confusion that almost happened "probably came close to the greatest aviation disaster in history"[2][3][4][5] as five airplanes and potentially over 1,000 passengers were at imminent risk. At 11:46 p.m. local time, Air Canada Flight 759, carrying 135 passengers and 5 crew members,[4] was cleared to land at SFO at Runway 28R. The adjacent Runway 28L had been closed at 10 p.m. local time and its lights were off,[6] except for a 20.5-foot-wide (6.2 m) lighted flashing "X" at the eastern runway threshold. [7] The captain was flying AC759 and the first officer was monitoring. [7] The two pilots of AC759 acknowledged that they mistook runway 28R for 28L and therefore lined up for landing on the parallel taxiway C,[2][7][8][9] even though runways and taxiways are lit with different colors and intensities. [6] Preliminary post-event investigation results noted that Runway 28R and Taxiway C were lit on default settings (in different colors), and the automatic terminal information service broadcast information was current and advised that 28L was closed and unlit. [7] According to preliminary Transportation Board investigation results, as the weather was clear, the pilot of AC759 was not required to utilize the instrument landing system and relied instead on a visual approach, as typical for the prevailing conditions. [10]
Taxiway C contained four airplanes, three from United Airlines and one from Philippine Airlines, queueing for takeoff. [1] At 11:55:46 p.m. local time, upon spotting aircraft lights approximately 0.7 miles (1.1 km) from the runway, the AC759 pilot asked the tower if he was clear to land on 28R, to which the air traffic controller responded at 11:55:56 p.m., "There's no one on 28R but you,"[1][3][11] when AC759 was approximately 0.3 miles (0.48 km) from the runway threshold. [12] The AC759 pilots "did not recall seeing aircraft on Taxiway C, but something did not look right to them" according to a post-incident interview summary. [7] The crew of Philippine Airlines 115 (PR115) turned on their landing lights to alert AC759 they were lined up on the taxiway. [13][12] The pilot of United Airlines 1 (UA001), the first in line for takeoff, interrupted the radio traffic at 11:56:01 p.m. and asked "Where is this guy going? He's on the taxiway. "[1][3] The air traffic controller then ordered AC759 to abort the landing at 11:56:10 p.m. After AC759 acknowledged the go-around, the air traffic controller stated, "It looks like you were lined up for Charlie [Taxiway C] there. "[1][3] AC759 had already started to climb before the go-around order. [12]
Afterwards, the pilot of UA001 radioed the tower saying, "Air Canada flew directly over us," and the air traffic controller responded, "Yeah, I saw that, guys. "[1] During the first approach, AC759 flew for 1⁄4 mile (0.40 km) over Taxiway C, descended to an altitude as low as 81 feet (25 m) and approached as close as 29 feet (8.8 m) laterally to the four planes waiting on Taxiway C before being ordered to abort the landing. [11][14][15] According to the flight data recorder, the pilots advanced the thrust levers when AC759 was 85 feet (26 m) above the ground and the minimum altitude was 59 feet (18 m), approximately 2.5 seconds after the thrust levers had been advanced. [7] Following a reconstruction of events, one pilot not involved in the incident noted that had AC759 waited five more seconds before pulling up, it would have collided with the third plane (UAL 863) on the taxiway. [15] There was also less than 14 feet (4.3 m) separation between the bottom of the Air Canada aircraft and the tail of the Philippine Airlines A340. [16]
SFO was the first airport in the United States to install an Airport Surface Surveillance Capability (ASSC) system,[17] which should have alerted the tower of a potential conflict between runway and taxiway movements. [10] AC759 disappeared from the local controller's ASSC display for twelve seconds, between 11:55:52 and 11:56:04 p.m. local time (from shortly after the AC759 pilot asked for confirmation that 28R was clear, to the time the UA001 pilot noted that AC759 was lined up for Taxiway C), as AC759 was too far off-course from 28R. [12]
AC759 completed its go-around and landed without incident after the second approach. [1] A single air traffic controller was monitoring ground and tower frequencies, which would typically be handled by two controllers. [10][12]
The aircraft flying AC759 that night was C-FKCK, an Airbus A320-200. [11][18] The aircraft was 24.5 years old on the day of the incident, first flying in December 1992. [19]
The incident was not considered reportable under current federal regulations,[21] but former NTSB chairman Jim Hall called it "the most significant near-miss we've had in this decade" and urged the NTSB to re-evaluate those reporting requirements. [22] The United States National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) was informed of the incident on July 9, and took the lead on the investigation, with assistance from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) served as a facilitator to convey information between Air Canada and the NTSB. [4] TSB released preliminary information from Occurrence No. A17F0159 on July 11, 2017. [11][18] NTSB assigned identification number DCA17IA148 to the incident. [23]
A retired pilot stated that SFO requires "precision flying" as the two runways (28R and 28L) are laterally separated by 750 feet (230 m), and Taxiway C is separated from 28R by less than 500 feet (150 m). [24] Other pilots pointed out that some airlines require all aircraft to use the instrument landing system (ILS) regardless of weather or visibility, which would have led the crew to realize that they were not lined up with runway 28R. [2] Dave Jones, then California Insurance Commissioner and a passenger on AC759, wrote a letter to Air Canada a week after the incident requesting their cooperation with the investigation. [6][15]
Preliminary NTSB investigation results from flight data recorder telemetry, released on August 2, 2017, indicate that AC759 reached a minimum altitude of 59 feet (18 m) above ground level, comparable to the 55 ft 10 in (17.02 m) tail height of a Boeing 787-9, two of which were on Taxiway C.[7][25] The cockpit voice recorder had been overwritten before the investigation was launched,[12] as C-FKCK flew three more flights on July 8 before the NTSB was informed of the near-miss on July 9. [22]
In a September 25, 2018 board meeting, the NTSB cited as probable cause the pilots mistaking taxiway C for runway 28R due to overlooking the closure of runway 28L in the NOTAM report. Contributing factors included not taking advantage of the ILS, which was not in use by the flight crew, in the flight management system (FMS) visual approach; and pilot fatigue. The crew's body clock was at the Toronto 03:00 Eastern Time: the first officer had no significant rest for 12 h, and the captain for 19 h – he would not have been able to fly under US pilot fatigue rules. Transport Canada planned to bring its pilot rest rules in line with international standards later in 2018. [26] New regulations were announced in December 2018, closer to international standards but criticized as substandard by the Air Canada Pilots Association. [27]
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) received six recommendations: identifying approaches requiring an unusual manual frequency input; displaying it noticeably on aeronautical charts; reviewing NOTAMs to prioritize and present relevant information; requiring aircraft landing in B or C airspace to alert pilots when not aligned with a runway; modifying airports to alert on collision risks and clearly showing closed runways, as construction lighting on 28L looked like ramp lighting. [26]
Air Canada is simplifying its SFO approach charts and includes SFO-specific training in aircraft simulators, trains its staff to reduce expectation bias, and will retrofit new aircraft like the Airbus A220 and Boeing 737 Max with dual head-up displays to enhance situational awareness in low-visibility, high-risk approaches. [26]
The NTSB published their final report in September 2018; five recommendations were made.
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Cambridgeshire road crash involving cow kills motorcyclist
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A man has been arrested on suspicion of drunk or drug driving after motorcyclist and a cow died in a crash involving a van. The dead man was riding a blue Suzuki when the collision happened on the A141 bypass at March at about 03:00 BST on Thursday. A cow had to be put down at the scene, Cambridgeshire Police said. A 51-year-old man from Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk was subsequently arrested and released under investigation. The road was closed for investigation work but reopened later on Thursday. The force appealed for anyone with information to contact officers. Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If you have a story suggestion email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk Cambridgeshire Police Crazy Hats charity in final huge donation to KGH after 20 years of support Take a look around Hamm Tun's new farm shop at Whittlebury Park before it opens this weekend
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Trump on TPP: Death of multilateral free trade agreements with the USA
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Trump on TPP hit the headlines during his first day of presidency. This move is in fulfilment of his promise that scrapping the TPP is one of the very first thing he will do as president. True to his word, so he did. But what could be the implication of this decision to the USA? Here’s a glimpse of what we had in mind. Is this good or bad for USA’s economy? Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement, didn’t catch many by surprise. On the contrary, this was something the world was expecting to happen. It was always included in all of Trump’s campaign policies where he fiercely attacked the government for pushing hard on its ratification amidst the loss it will bring to America. He claims it will hurt American workers and undercut US companies. He further believes that the average American farmer and auto worker got robbed of their jobs because labor is cheap in developing countries like China, Vietnam, and Malaysia. This prompted manufacturers to transfer factories to these countries, thus the increased unemployment rate in the country. Well, this could indeed be a fact. But we are yet to see if abandoning TPP will indeed increase the employment rate of the USA. The USA is applauded by almost all nations for its big support for free trade and globalization. That is, of course, during the era of previous presidents. But under Trump’s presidency, it seems that the US government is going back in reverse and is now promoting protectionism. Is this good or bad? Some think that this is a bad move for the USA at it will restrict trade for the country; however, Trump believes his negotiating power is more than sufficient to win the other countries into entering a bilateral agreement with the USA. In Eric Bradner’s article, Trump’s TPP Withdrawal: 5 things to know he stated, “Trump’s bet is that, through his negotiating prowess, force of will and willingness to walk away from the table, he can convince other countries to accept terms that previous presidents — from George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton on NAFTA to Barack Obama on the TPP — have not been able to achieve.” This may be the case, as we see several countries already wooing his favour. Now that the TPP is dead in the waters, Trump is hopeful that the USA will easily convince other nations to have bilateral agreements with them. Let’s take at the probability of this to become a reality beginning with the participating members of the TPP. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is already set to meet Trump on February. He has initially stated that TPP is “meaningless” without the USA. This makes it a potential win for Trump as he may convince Abe to favor a bilateral agreement with the USA. Is this good or bad for Japan and USA’s trade relations? Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto announced that his government will negotiate new trade pacts with signatory nations of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. But it doesn’t exactly mean having a bilateral agreement with the USA. After signing the USA withdrawal from the TPP, Trump has announced his desire to build the USA-Mexico border wall. This further created a rift between the relationships of the two countries. Is this good or bad for Mexico and USA’s trade relations? Mexico may have other free trade deals with several countries and its proximity to the US market have made the country a top destination for international automakers, who also take advantage of comparatively low labor costs. But with Trump on the lookout for this, Mexico may need to find other ways of supporting its economy, unless it agrees to the conditions set by the USA. With the TPP ditched, does this also mean the death of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)? Is this good or bad for Canada and USA’s trade relations? Canada is one of the largest US trading partner and exporters of US goods. Asked if they are worried they’ll get hit with Trump’s protectionism policy, this is what Christopher Sands, Director of the Center for Canadian Studies at Johns Hopkins University in Washington has to say. “Canada was never on Trump’s hit list – to some extent, he actually sees Canada as the USA’s number one customer. He wants to bring jobs back to the Midwest, and it’s difficult to see how he would do that without the Canadian market.” It seems we will still see good a good relationship between Canada and the USA. Well sort of, that is before the Prime Minister of Canada made this tweet after Trump declared its immigration travel ban. Trudeau welcomes refugees via tweet So it seems nothing is certain yet between these two countries, too! The United States-Australia Free Trade Agreement (AUSFTA) entered into force on January 1, 2005. This is several years earlier than the creation of the TPP. The result is an export of more than $1billion from five Australian states as shown in the illustration below. Undeniably, Australia relies heavily on the goods exported to the USA and the TPP ratification could have given them more leverage. However with the USA leaving the TPP, these additional benefits may soon be forgotten. Do we see Trump negotiating the current FTA with Australia? This is something we are yet to see. Is this good or bad for Australia and USA’s trade relations? Now that the trend has shifted towards protectionism, what effect will it bring to the trade and economy of the USA? By abandoning TPP and focusing into bringing more jobs to the USA, Trump has earned a couple of supporter, which includes Senator Bernie Sanders. “Now is the time to develop a new trade policy that helps working families, not just multinational corporations,” Sanders said in a statement. “If President Trump is serious about a new policy to help American workers then I would be delighted to work with him.” Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa also applauded this decision by Trump. “Today, President Trump made good on his campaign promise to withdraw the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership. With this decision, the president has taken the first step toward fixing 30 years of bad trade policies that have cost working Americans millions of good-paying jobs.” he stated. The labour section is rejoicing with this news, but some businesses are not so very happy with this decision such as the following: USA automakers have longed hoped that tariffs from Asia be slashed due to the TPP ratification. But with the USA abandoning it, the Center for Automative Research (CAR) has this to say: “If the U.S. were to enact a 35 percent tariff on light vehicles imported from Mexico, CAR estimates the sales impact would be 450,000 units in the United States, and an implied loss of nearly 6,700 North American assembly jobs.” CAR further fears Trumps potential decision to leave NAFTA, too. “If the U.S. leaves NAFTA, companies in Mexico and Canada may seek alternate, more affordable places to purchase these goods, such as China, India, and other regions with large, international U.S. competitors.” Nevertheless, this seems to be in contrast to what have happened with General Motors (GM). Prior to scrapping TPP, Trump has already threatened GM of higher tariffs if it continues its plan to outsource its auto assembly in Mexico. Trump’s tweet about General Motors As a result, GM will invest $700 million to expand its existing facility in the US state of Michigan instead. As a result, an estimated 700 jobs in the US will be created. So this seems to be good news for Trump, as his strategy to create more jobs for the USA is quickly being realized. Farmers across the country are already struggling with large grain surpluses and shrinking incomes. Thus they saw TPP as a savior of the industry as it promises lower, if not zero taxes, for their products while opening up new markets to sell to, like Vietnam. John Jenkinson a farmer and agriculture expert stated, “We could end up with more piles of grain just like the one you see behind me because we export over 50 percent of our wheat and 50 percent of our soybeans outside of the United States.” Without new markets to sell to, another big harvest would just increase the existing grain surplus adding insult to injury. Pharmaceutical drug-makers are also disagreeing with this decision. TPP would have lessened the competition from in-coming generic because of the longer patent protection pharmaceutical companies will have on certain drugs. In a statement made by the Generic Pharmaceutical Association (GPhA) they said, “Increasing competition from generic drugs and biosimilars is a proven way to lower health spending. We look forward to working with the Trump administration, bipartisan members of Congress and others on policies that encourages access to more affordable medicines in the United States and around the world.” So it seems that while the pharmaceutical industry sees this as a loss, the healthcare industry sees this as a win. As for tech companies, including Google and cell phone providers, it would be fairly difficult for them to lessen regulations and gain entry into some of participating TPP members. Carl Guardino, president and CEO of Silicon Valley Leadership Group has this to say, “45 million American workers, 105,000 in (Silicon Valley) alone, should be crying (over) this executive action today,” Guardino said, “and the main constituency that will be smiling is the Chinese government, who is already stepping in, pursuing unilateral and multilateral trade deals with the TPP countries that will be bad for American workers, employers and the economy.” There are approximately 105,000 jobs that are directly dependent on foreign trade in the Silicon Valley. Without these data provisions and protections, countries can easily force the US companies to hand over their intellectual property as condition of doing business in their market. This puts the company and the customer’s privacy at risk. The trade sector has also responded. FedEx CEO Fred Smith, stated in the published article via Reuters “The United States being cut off from trade would be like trying to breathe without oxygen.” He argued that approximately 40 million Americans have jobs because of trade. The benefits it brings towards the USA are “more diffuse and harder to see than the pain in areas like manufacturing.” There’s no doubt about it. The labour industry is all words of praises for Trump for this momentous move. They have long argued that the Free Trade Agreement is one of the main reasons for the trend of shifting American manufacturing jobs overseas to nations with lower wages and fewer labor protections. Over the past week immediately after Trump’s withdrawal from the TPP, the stock trades sow lowered investments. The S&P 500 was down 0.34%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2%, and the Nasdaq added 0.12%’ while the the Volatility Index increased 5% as mentioned in The Street. However, what’s rocking the US economy now is not US withdrawal from TPP, rather it is his travel immigration ban.
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Everything You Need to Know About Kim Kardashian’s Divorce Attorney
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This week it became official : Kim Kardashian and Kanye West are going their separate ways. Multiple reports say that Kardashian has filed for divorce from her husband, with whom she shares four children.
During the divorce process, Kardashian has sought the legal counsel of one of Hollywood’s best: Laura Wasser. She is a tough lawyer who is famous for handling many high-profile celebrity divorces, including that of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. (She even has the nickname of Disso Queen , referring to her knack for dissolving marriages.) But why is Wasser so in demand among stars, exactly? Below, everything you need to know about her.
She comes from law royalty.
Wasser—whose initials are, fittingly, L.A.W.—attended the University of California, Berkeley and then Loyola Law School. She is the daughter of prominent Hollywood divorce attorney Dennis Wasser, who has represented celebrities such as Mia Farrow and Steven Spielberg. The father-daughter duo work together at their law firm, Wasser, Cooperman & Mandles .
She has her own businesses.
Wasser is the founder and CEO of the online divorce platform It’s Over Easy , which guides clients through every aspect of the divorce process. She is also the host of the podcast Divorce Sucks! With Laura Wasser. In 2013 she became an author, publishing her first book, It Doesn’t Have to Be That Way: How to Divorce Without Destroying Your Family or Bankrupting Yourself. Because of these ventures, Wasser has won numerous awards for her work, including Harriett Buhai Center for Family Law’s Zephyr Ramsey Award in 2008 and the Century City Chamber of Commerce Women of Achievement Award in 2011.
She specializes in celebrity divorces.
To this day Wasser has represented many star clients. She represented Jolie in her split from Pitt; Johnny Depp in his fraught divorce from Amber Heard; Jennifer Garner in her split from Ben Affleck; Gwen Stefani in her split from Gavin Rossdale; Britney Spears in her split from Kevin Federline; Ryan Reynolds in his split from Scarlett Johansson; Ashton Kutcher in his split from Demi Moore; Christina Aguilera in her divorce from Jordan Bratman. The list goes on and on.
This isn’t her first time working with the Kardashians either.
Wasser represented Kim when she infamously divorced Kris Humphries in 2011 (a marriage that lasted 72 days). She also has reportedly represented Khloé and Kourtney Kardashian at one point.
Stars like her civilized approach to the divorce process.
Wasser apparently got into divorce law after going through her own divorce; she understands the ins and outs. As emphasized in a 2010 Vogue profile, she plays to win but aims to settle outside of court whenever possible; she’s interested in making the process as painless as possible for her clients. “If you are about to embark upon a divorce and you are a celebrity, think twice,” Wasser once said . “Do it in a really conscious way. Think about the lives you can affect. Think about the rest of your life and how you’re going to have to interact with this person.”
She’s one of the best-dressed lawyers in the game.
Wasser sure dresses the part of an A-list lawyer too. Her wardrobe is full of Alaïa, Christian Louboutin, and Prada. She and her sleek, stylish look even reportedly inspired Laura Dern’s role in Marriage Story.
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Prinair Flight 277 crash
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Prinair Flight 277 was a regular passenger flight by Puerto Rican airline Prinair, between Cyril E. King International Airport in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, United States Virgin Islands and Isla Verde International Airport in Carolina, Puerto Rico, a suburb of San Juan. On 5 March 1969, the flight, operated by de Havilland Heron 2D N563PR, crashed into a mountain near Fajardo, killing all 19 occupants on board. [1]
Prinair Flight 277 left Charlotte-Amalie at 5:15 pm on Wednesday, March 5, 1969 for a short flight to the San Juan area's main airport in Carolina. It was an uneventful flight until the airplane entered mainland Puerto Rico. This was the point in which the airplane's pilot contacted San Juan's approach control, letting them know that they were flying at 4,000 feet (1,200 m) and maintaining that flight level. Then, the airport's approach controller responded with, "Prinair two seven seven San Juan Approach Control radar contact three miles east of Isla Verde fly a heading of two five zero for a vector to ILS final maintain four thousand." The approach controller, who was a trainee on the fateful afternoon, mistakenly thought that Prinair Flight 277 was near San Juan, but it was instead near Luquillo at what is described as the "Fajardo intersection". One minute after this communication, Prinair Flight 277 was asked to go to flight level 3, or 3,000 feet (900 m) and prepare for landing. The airplane was vectored for a landing into runway 7. The plane's pilots, trusting that the information given to them was correct, followed the instructions and prepared for landing, soon finding themselves in front of an unavoidable mountain instead. At 5:38 pm, 23 minutes after the flight took off from St. Thomas, it crashed into some trees on the Sierra Luquillo mountains, killing everyone on board. [2]
An NTSB investigation that followed discovered that this accident would not have been survivable in any way. The controller's home and belongings were investigated as part of the investigation and it was found he had a typical family life, along with some of the furnishings and electrical objects found at a typical family house. On March 17, 1969, the controller revealed to investigators, that 3 years before, a flight surgeon had sent him to see both a psychiatrist and a psychologist, and that on March 5, the day of the accident, he was feeling very tense and anxious. It was noted also that the accident area had several peaks that were over 3,000 feet (900 m) and that the weather conditions during that day would have prevented the pilots from seeing the peaks ahead of them. The controller's erroneous indications meant he thought the aircraft was 10 miles (16 km) further west than it actually was. About 5:33 pm, or five minutes before the crash, the flight coordinator's supervisor ordered him to go perform other duties, and then proceeded to give the controller's instructor instructions to go and do collateral duties. By then, the controller was directing 5 flights, including Prinair Flight 277. Some pilots on these five flights were heard complaining because the instructor's own transmissions were interrupting the controller's. Several other key elements were discovered by the investigation. [2]
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Selby rail crash
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The Selby rail crash was a high-speed train accident that occurred at Great Heck near Selby, North Yorkshire, England, on the morning of 28 February 2001. [1] An InterCity 225 passenger train operated by Great North Eastern Railway (GNER) travelling from Newcastle to London collided with a Land Rover Defender which had crashed down a motorway embankment onto the railway line. It was consequently derailed into the path of an oncoming freight train at an estimated closing speed of 142 mph (229 km/h). Ten people died including the drivers of both trains, and 82 were seriously injured. It remains the worst rail disaster of the 21st century in the United Kingdom. The crash occurred at approximately 06:13 (GMT), when a Land Rover Defender, driven by Gary Neil Hart and towing a loaded trailer (carrying a Renault Savanna estate car), left the carriageway of the westbound M62 motorway just before a bridge over the East Coast Main Line. [2] The vehicle ran 30 yards (27 m) down an embankment and onto the southbound railway track. [3] Hart tried to reverse it off the track but could not. He exited the vehicle and, while he was using a mobile telephone to contact emergency services, the Land Rover was hit by a southbound Great North Eastern Railway (GNER) InterCity 225 heading from Newcastle to London King's Cross. [4]
The InterCity 225 was propelled by a Class 91 locomotive (No.91023) and led by Driving Van Trailer (DVT) No.82221. [3] After striking the Land Rover, the leading bogie of the DVT derailed but the train stayed upright. Points to nearby sidings then deflected it into the path of an oncoming Freightliner freight train carrying coal[5] and travelling from Immingham to Ferrybridge, hauled by a Class 66 locomotive (No.66521). [6]
The freight train hit the wreckage approximately 2,106 feet (642 m) from the passenger train's impact with the Land Rover,[7] resulting in the near destruction of the lightweight DVT and moderate to severe damage to all nine of the InterCity 225's Mark 4 coaches, which mostly overturned and came to rest down an embankment to the east side of the track, in a field adjacent to the railway line just south of overbridge ECM 2/7. [8] The trailing locomotive was derailed, remained upright, and suffered minor damage. The Class 66 freight locomotive lost its bogies after impact, with debris of the DVT jammed underneath rupturing its fuel tank. [8] It overturned onto its left side coming to rest in the garden of a residence adjacent to the line to the north of the bridge. The locomotive sustained major damage to its cab area and right side. The first nine wagons following it were derailed and damaged to varying extents. [9]
Immediately before the impact of the two trains, the speed of the InterCity 225 was estimated as 88 mph (142 km/h) and that of the freight train as 54 mph (87 km/h). With an estimated closing speed of 142 mph (229 km/h), the collision between the trains was the highest-speed railway incident that had occurred in the UK since the 1999 Ladbroke Grove crash. [10]
Both train drivers, two additional train crew on board the InterCity 225, and six passengers were killed, all as a result of the second collision. [11] Survivors of the accident included a train-driving instructor, Andrew Hill, who was travelling in the cab of 66521 and teaching a new route to the driver of the Class 66, a driver with 24 years of experience. The coaches of the InterCity 225 were carrying 99 passengers and train staff. [12] The early morning 04:45 time departure from Newcastle resulted in reduced passenger numbers. As it was, 45 of the 52 seriously injured passengers, and all eight fatalities (excluding the two locomotive drivers) were travelling in the first five coaches, which included a restaurant car and two first class coaches with less densely packed seating than standard coaches. [12] In total 82 survivors were taken to hospital. [13] The official incident report praised the crashworthiness of the InterCity 225's Mark 4 coaches. [14]
An unusual aspect of the emergency response was the need to carry out disinfecting procedures at the scene because of the 2001 United Kingdom foot-and-mouth outbreak. [15]
Locomotive No. 66526 has since been named "Driver Steve Dunn (George)", in memory of the Freightliner driver killed in the accident. It carries a plaque commemorating the accident: "In remembrance of a dedicated engineman Driver Steve (George) Dunn was tragically killed in the accident at Great Heck on 28th February 2001". [16] Dunn's son James, who was nine at the time of the crash, later became a train driver. [17] Barry Needham, another Freightliner employee killed in the crash, was also commemorated by the naming of 56115 after him. The nameplates and plaques were transferred to 60087 and later to 60091. The locomotives mentioned above also carried an explanatory plaque. [18]
John Weddle, the GNER driver killed in the accident, was honoured by way of a new driver-training school in his home city of Newcastle, which was named after him. In a ceremony attended by members of his family, his 16-year-old daughter Stephanie unveiled a plaque dedicating the school to his memory. [19]
Coincidentally, No. 91023 was also involved in the Hatfield rail crash four months earlier. [20] The locomotive escaped with only slight damage on both occasions. Following technical upgrade of the Class 91 fleet, which led to all locomotives having 100 added to the number (91001 became 91101, etc. ), 91023 was renumbered 91132, not 91123. [21]
A memorial was created at the point where the carriages came to rest at WikiMiniAtlas53°40′53″N 1°05′55″W / 53.6815°N 1.0986°W / 53.6815; -1.0986. Hart escaped the incident unscathed and was later tried at Leeds Crown Court on ten counts of causing death by dangerous driving. [22] He denied the charges, claiming that his car had suffered a mechanical fault or had collided with an object on the road. [23] An investigation, including reconstruction of the Land Rover to demonstrate that it was not mechanically defective, concluded that Hart had been driving in a sleep-deprived condition, and had not applied the brakes as it went down the embankment. It later transpired that Hart had stayed up the previous night talking on the telephone to a woman he had met through an internet dating agency. [24][25] He was found guilty on 13 December 2001, and was sentenced to five years in prison and a five-year driving ban. He was released from prison in July 2004 after serving half of his sentence. [26]
Campaigners drew attention to what they said was the inadequate length of the crash barriers alongside the motorway.
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Train collisions
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Biden administration brings a new focus on housing policies
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Bank of England Deputy Governor Sam Woods said on Thursday he would front-run global rules if necessary to avoid Britain's banks building up big exposures to cryptoassets that were not backed by sufficient capital. The global Basel Committee of banking regulators have begun work on capital requirements for banks which hold cryptoassets like bitcoin, proposing punitive charges that lenders said this week would make their involvement in the sector prohibitive. Woods said that the regulatory community was starting to get a better grip on the crypto sector and that Basel's proposals were "quite sensible". "At this point our banks don't have material exposures to crypto but you can see over time, there is an investor appetite and not just retail, also institutional investor appetite to have a little bit of this stuff," Woods told Reuters. "Some of the banks have announced plans to provide ancillary services in that regard. That may be OK but as that develops and if it develops into something big, we are going to need to make sure the capital treatment is pretty robust." The crypto sector is growing rapidly, but Basel can take years to adopt norms that then need to be implemented by members like Britain, the European Union and the United States. "We would not want to stop firms doing things that make commercial sense, but we would take a very conservative view on capital treatment, and if necessary, we would therefore front run, maybe not exactly in the same way, but we would put some capital measures in place," Woods said. "It's not an issue yet." Deadline 'Shifting' Separately, the final elements of Basel's tougher capital norms agreed in the aftermath of the global financial crisis over a decade ago have yet to be implemented after being delayed a year to January 2023 to give banks space to focus on dealing with COVID. The new deadline now looks in doubt as Europe, Britain and the United States have yet to finalise how those final elements will be implemented in practice. Woods said it was "not clear" if the January 2023 deadline will be met given that "timetables are shifting". "There is always the question of what does it mean by first of January 2023, that you have published your rules, does it mean firms have got them into their systems? We are going to be in line with the others and there is not going to be a big delay," he said. Banks in the EU want some of the rules eased, but Britain, however, will not water down the rules, Woods said. "Our overriding approach is that we both are and seen to be a robust implementor of international standards," Woods said.
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Financial Crisis
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2010 United Kingdom student protests
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The 2010 United Kingdom student protests were a series of demonstrations in November and December 2010 that took place in several areas of the country, with the focal point of protests being in central London. Largely student-led, the protests were held in opposition to planned spending cuts to further education and an increase of the cap on tuition fees by the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government following their review into higher education funding in England. Student groups said that the intended cuts to education were excessive, would damage higher education, give students higher debts, and broke campaign promises made by politicians. The first major demonstration occurred on 10 November, jointly organised by the National Union of Students (NUS) and the University and College Union (UCU). It involved between 30,000 and 50,000 demonstrators marching through central London, with several hundred branching off to attack and occupy the Conservative Party headquarters. This measure brought condemnation from the establishment and a divide within the student movement over the appropriateness of such tactics. The National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts (NCAFC) called for a mass walk-out and demonstration on 24 November, with occupations taking place at campuses throughout the UK. A march in central London was kettled in Whitehall, resulting in violent confrontation with protesters. Further demonstrations were held in central London on 30 November, when police clashed with protesters and kettled them in Trafalgar Square, while other protests took place throughout the country. Another central London protest took place on 9 December, the day that the proposed reforms were passed into law, with protesters clashing with police and being kettled in Parliament Square. The student protests were unsuccessful in their aim of preventing the government's reforms. The demonstrations had been highly controversial in the UK, being condemned for instances of violence and vandalism by both the establishment and by protestors. The behaviour of the Metropolitan Police in dealing with the protests was also widely criticised for alleged instances of untruthfulness and excessive use of force. In November 2009, the Labour Party government of Prime Minister Gordon Brown commissioned a study into higher education funding in England. Chaired by Lord Browne of Madingley, the former chief executive of BP, the report was to be titled the Browne Review. [1]
In the build up to the United Kingdom General Election in May 2010, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, Nick Clegg, pledged that he would vote against any proposed increase in tuition fees if elected to Parliament. [2]
Following the election and resulting hung parliament, Clegg made an agreement with the Conservative Party to form a coalition government in which Conservative leader David Cameron became Prime Minister and Clegg became Deputy Prime Minister. The Browne Review was subsequently published in October 2010, and contained the suggestion that the government should remove outright the existing cap of £3,290 on tuition fees. The government rejected this proposal, instead choosing to keep a cap but increasing it to £9,000. [3]
David Willetts, the Minister of State for Universities and Science, stated that the measures were "a very progressive package" and "at the end of this we will have a better university system than we have at the moment. "[4] Contravening his pre-election pledge, Clegg expressed support for the rise in the cap on tuition fees, which would result in future students paying higher fees for their university education. [5]
Student union leaders were critical of the cuts. The National Union of Students (NUS) feared that the increased cap on tuition fees would prevent potential students from poorer backgrounds from attending university. [6]
Many protesters focused in particular on Clegg's campaign promise that he would oppose any rise in tuition fees. David Barclay, the president of the University of Oxford's student union, said: "This is the day a generation of politicians learn that though they might forget their promises, students won't. "[4] Rahul Mansigani, the students' union president for the University of Cambridge, said: "Large numbers of students voted for the Liberal Democrats, and there is no question that the pledge is a binding commitment. "[7]
Two weeks before, on 28 October, a protest was held in the University of Oxford to coincide with a visit from the Liberal Democrat minister and Business Secretary Vince Cable. Cable cancelled his visit after taking advice from the police about the protest. [8] Several days later, on 3 November, there was a student protest in Dublin. The subsequent London protest was described by one Irish reporter as "scenes bizarrely similar" to those in the Irish capital. [9]
The initial event was the largest student protest in Britain since the Labour government first proposed the Teaching and Higher Education Act in 1998. [10]
The first major demonstration in protest at the government's proposed reforms was held on 10 November 2010 in central London, jointly organised by the National Union of Students (NUS) and the University and College Union (UCU). This demonstration was officially known as "Fund Our Future: Stop Education Cuts", although also termed "Demo 2010" or "Demo-lition 10.11.10". [11] Arriving from all regions of Great Britain and Northern Ireland,[4][12] approximately 30,000 to 52,000 protesters attended the demonstration. [4][13][14]
The demonstration's route was pre-approved with the Metropolitan Police Service, with marchers moving from Whitehall past Downing Street, the home of the Prime Minister, and then past the Houses of Parliament, chanting such slogans as "no ifs, no buts – no education cuts", "they say cut back – we say fight back", "I say Tories – you say scum". [12][13][14][15] Journalist Harry Mount of The Daily Telegraph, said: "Perhaps because their cause was justified, the students I saw had none of the swaggering, self-righteous manner of the student protester of legend. "[16]
Political groups that sent contingents to take part included the Labour Party, Plaid Cymru, the Green Party, Socialist Workers Party, Socialist Party, Revolution, Young Communist League, Revolutionary Communist Group, and Communist Students. [17][18][19] A few members of parliament (MPs) joined the demonstration, among them Labour MP John McDonnell, who told reporters: "This is the biggest workers' and students' demonstration in decades. It just shows what can be done when people get angry. We must build on this". [17] Representatives of the National Pensioners Convention also took part, with the group's banner carrier, Janet Shapiro, stating that: "We're here because we believe education should be free, funded by the taxpayer. It is something that benefits the community, the country. "[20]
At the end of the march, a rally took place outside Tate Britain where demonstrators were addressed by the UCU general secretary Sally Hunt, who introduced a series of clips displayed on a giant plasma screen featuring Clegg giving a series of promises to the electorate on tuition fees, all of which he had subsequently broken. [20] Hunt stated that making the public university system in Britain "the most expensive in the world" was unfair, that discouraging young people from going to college was not progressive, and that the increase in tuition fees represented further debts for students. [11] The rally was also addressed by NUS President Aaron Porter and the Trades Union Congress Deputy general secretary Frances O'Grady. [11] O'Grady offered the message to the government that: "Don't you dare tell us we're all in this together. The deficit certainly wasn't caused by the students. "[20] The protest was scheduled to end at 2 pm, but slightly overran. [21] The Metropolitan Police were expecting 20,000 demonstrators to turn out, well below the 50,000 figure most widely quoted in the press after the event, and did not expect any violence, so deployed only 225 officers to police the event. [14]
In the afternoon, as protesters passed the Houses of Parliament and moved towards Tate Britain for the rally, several thousand surrounded 30 Millbank in Westminster, campaign headquarters of the Conservative Party, despite attempts by NUS organisers to stop them.
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Protest_Online Condemnation
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2006 Danvers Chemical fire
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The 2006 Danvers Chemical fire took place at approximately 2:46 AM EST on Wednesday, November 22, 2006. [1] An explosion occurred at the plant of solvent and ink manufacturer CAI Inc., located in the Danversport area of Danvers, Massachusetts, which it shared with paint manufacturer Arnel. The explosion was caught on security camera and was reportedly heard up to 50 miles (80 km) away in southern Maine and New Hampshire[citation needed]. Arnel ceased operations after the blast. A May 13, 2008 report from the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board attributed the explosion to unintentional overnight heating of an ink-mixing tank containing flammable solvents. [2]
The explosion damaged over 90 homes, blowing out windows and knocking some houses off their foundations. Officials believed that some of the more extensively damaged houses would have to be leveled and rebuilt. Some of the buildings damaged included a bakery, boats at a nearby marina, and the New England Home for the Deaf, an assisted-living facility for people who are deaf or deafblind and elderly residents requiring constant care. "These people are extremely fragile," said state Rep. Ted Speliotis, D-Danvers, whose district includes the affected area. "Many of them have Alzheimer's and other illnesses. It's clear they can't stay here long, but it's clear they won't be able to return for quite a while." Danvers Fire Chief James P. Tutko toured the area by helicopter and said many residents would be kept from their homes for the foreseeable future. "It looks like a war zone, that's the only thing I can say" Tutko said. Fortunately, no one was killed. "Somebody out there likes us", Tutko commented. Finally, he said that determining the cause of the explosion would take days. Outgoing governor Mitt Romney toured the area and said the explosion was a "Thanksgiving miracle", as the explosion was "equivalent to a 2,000 pounds (910 kg) bomb going off in a residential neighborhood," and that no one was killed. In an area that included over 300 residents, just 10 people reported minor injuries. Residents of the area were evacuated to the Danvers High School, where temporary shelter was set up by the American Red Cross of Massachusetts Bay. Donations were taken for residents affected by the explosion. Residents were also advised to start filing insurance claims right away and to keep track of their expenses. There were minor environmental concerns due to water runoff of chemicals. According to the Environmental Protection Agency's on-scene coordinator Mike Nalipinski, preliminary tests showed low levels of toluene, a solvent, but said it was insignificant. Water runoff from the water used by firefighters left a purple sheen on the river and tests were conducted. However, the water is not a local drinking water supply, and the chemical evaporates quickly. Chief Tutko said there was no risk of toxic fumes getting into the air. An Eastern Propane facility is located near the area, however, it was not the source of the explosion. A spokesman for the company said that although the property suffered some minor damage, their tanks are secure. According to WHDH television, a person who answered the telephone at CAI's Georgetown, Massachusetts headquarters refused comment, and a telephone message left at the company president's home was not returned.
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Fire
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Justice News
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BOSTON – Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Inc. (Draper), a Cambridge-based non-profit research company and defense contractor, has agreed to pay nearly $3.5 million to resolve allegations that it improperly overcharged U.S. Navy contracts. Draper, among other things, helps develop weapons systems for the U.S. Navy.
The settlement resolves allegations that Draper improperly overcharged the government under federal acquisition regulations for certain overhead costs. According to the settlement agreement, an audit of Draper’s 2016 fiscal year costs charged to the government found, among other things, that Draper improperly billed the government for costs associated with internal projects that Draper called “Opportunity Investments.” Many Opportunity Investment projects were not of interest to the government, or Draper lacked sufficient documentation to justify the costs. The audit also found that Draper lacked sufficient internal accounting controls concerning Opportunity Investments. When the Department of Defense requested additional information about the costs flagged by the audit, Draper, for months, did not reveal that it lacked documentation to support charging some of the Opportunity Investments to the government.
“Contractors responsible for supplying and supporting our armed forces are required to follow many rules designed to protect both our military and the taxpayers,” said Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell. “Our office monitors government contractors and – where appropriate – we will hold accountable those who fail to operate within the rules. This is our way of making sure taxpayers can trust that their money is going toward legitimate government-supported purposes and not overcharges.”
“Draper Lab’s overcharging on Navy contracts wasted valuable taxpayer money and undermined the integrity of the Department of the Navy’s procurement process,” said Michael Wiest, Special Agent in Charge of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), Northeast Field Office. “NCIS and our law enforcement partners remain committed to investigating contracting irregularities that diminish the operational readiness and warfighter superiority of the Navy and Marine Corps.”
“Protecting the integrity of the procurement process is a top priority for the Department of Defense (DOD) Office of Inspector General Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS),” said Patrick J. Hegarty, Special Agent in Charge of DCIS, Northeast Field Office. “The settlement agreement announced today is the result of a joint investigative effort and demonstrates the DCIS’ ongoing commitment to work with our law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to investigate allegations of cost mischarging on DOD contracts.”
Acting U.S. Attorney Mendell, NCIS SAC Wiest and DCIS SAC Hegarty made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian M. LaMacchia and Evan Panich of Mendell’s Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit handled the matter.
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Famous Person - Commit Crime - Investigate
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Supermoon total lunar eclipse will be visible over the Pacific Northwest in late May
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The moon's orange-red hue during a total lunar eclipse gives it the name "blood moon." A lunar eclipse this month will be a little more special than usual, occurring as the moon makes one of its closest approaches to the Earth all year. The supermoon total lunar eclipse will take place in the early morning hours of May 26, and most of the event will be visible from the Pacific Northwest, according to astronomers. A total lunar eclipse takes place when the Earth lines up directly between the sun and the moon, with the Earth’s shadow completely covering the moon. During a lunar eclipse the moon turns a vivid shade of red – an effect of refracted sunlight – before darkening completely. This year’s total lunar eclipse will officially begin at 1:47 a.m. on May 26 in Portland, according to Time and Date , with the partial eclipse starting at 2:45 a.m. and the total eclipse beginning at 4:11 a.m. Totality is expected to last about 14 minutes before the shadow begins to gradually fade. The tail end of the eclipse will not be visible from Portland, as the moon is forecast to set at 5:38 a.m. that morning, just after sunrise at 5:29 a.m. Those watching the event may notice the moon appear to be slightly larger than normal. In fact, this will be the closest a full moon will get to the Earth all year, coming within 222,023 miles of our planet. A full moon that close is often called a “supermoon,” as it looks a little bigger and brighter than normal. Stargazers hoping to watch the supermoon total lunar eclipse this month will need to first check the forecast to make sure it will be visible at all, as cloudy skies would block it from view. If visible, you’ll want to find a place with a good, unobstructed view of the sky and look for the moon over the south to southwest horizon. There’s no need to use binoculars or a telescope to see the eclipse, but it could be a fun way to watch the moon up close as the Earth’s shadow falls across it. The eclipse will be visible across most of the western U.S., though viewing will be the best for Hawaii, the South Pacific and Australia, according to NASA .
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New wonders in nature
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Civil uprising phase of the Syrian civil war
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The early insurgency phase of the Syrian Civil War lasted from late July 2011 to April 2012, and was associated with the rise of armed oppositional militias across Syria and the beginning of armed rebellion against the authorities of the Syrian Arab Republic. Though armed insurrection incidents began as early as June 2011 when rebels killed 120–140 Syrian security personnel, the beginning of organized insurgency is typically marked by the formation of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) on 29 July 2011, when a group of defected officers declared the establishment of the first organized oppositional military force. Composed of defected Syrian Armed Forces personnel, the rebel army aimed to remove Bashar al-Assad and his government from power. This period of the war saw the initial civil uprising take on many of the characteristics of a civil war, according to several outside observers, including the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, as armed elements became better organized and began carrying out successful attacks in retaliation for the crackdown by the Syrian government on demonstrators and defectors. [19]
The Arab League monitoring mission, initiated in December 2011, ended in failure by February 2012, as Syrian Ba'athist troops and oppositional militants continued to do battle across the country and the Syrian Ba'athist government prevented foreign observers from touring active battlefields, including besieged oppositional strongholds. In early 2012, Kofi Annan acted as the UN–Arab League Joint Special Representative for Syria. His peace plan provided for a ceasefire, but even as the negotiations for it were being conducted, the rebels and the Syrian army continued fighting even after the peace plan. [20]:11 The United Nations-backed ceasefire was brokered by special envoy Kofi Annan and declared in mid-April 2012. The civil uprising phase of the Syrian Civil War was an early stage of protests – with subsequent violent reaction by the Syrian Arab Republic authorities – lasting from March to 28 July 2011. The uprising, initially demanding democratic reforms, evolved from initially minor protests, beginning as early as January 2011 and transformed into massive protests in March. The uprising was marked by massive anti-government opposition demonstrations against the Ba'athist government of Bashar al-Assad, meeting with police and military violence, massive arrests and brutal crackdown, resulting in hundreds of casualties and thousands of wounded. Despite Bashar al-Assad's attempts to pacify the protests with massive crackdown and use of censorship on one hand and concessions on the other, by the end of April, it became clear the situation was getting out of his control and the Syrian government deployed numerous troops on the ground. The civil uprising phase created the platform for emergence of militant opposition movements and massive defections from the Syrian Army, which gradually transformed the conflict from a civil uprising to an armed rebellion, and later a full-scale civil war. The rebel Free Syrian Army was created on July 29, 2011, marking the transition into armed insurgency. During the June 2011 Jisr ash-Shugur operation, the Syrian army claimed to have begun a crackdown on terrorists between June 4 and June 12, which left 120–140 security personnel dead. [21][22][23][24]
On 29 July 2011, seven defecting Syrian Armed Forces officers formed the Free Syrian Army (FSA), originally composed of defected Syrian military officers and soldiers, aiming "to bring this government (the Assad government) down" with united opposition forces. [25][26] On 31 July, a nationwide crackdown nicknamed the "Ramadan Massacre" resulted in the death of at least 142 people and hundreds of injuries. [27] On 23 August, a coalition of anti-government groups called the Syrian National Council was formed. The council, based in Turkey, attempted to organize the opposition. The opposition, however, including the FSA, remained a fractious collection of political groups, longtime exiles, grassroots organizers and armed militants divided along ideological, ethnic and/or sectarian lines. [28]
Throughout August 2011, government forces stormed major urban centres and outlying regions, and continued to attack protests. On 14 August, the Siege of Latakia continued as the Syrian Navy became involved in the military crackdown for the first time. Gunboats fired heavy machine guns at waterfront districts in Latakia, as ground troops and security agents backed by armour stormed several neighbourhoods. [31] The Eid ul-Fitr celebrations, which began at the end of August, were muted after security forces fired on protesters gathered in Homs, Daraa, and the suburbs of Damascus. [32]
By September 2011, Syrian rebels were engaged in an active insurgency campaign in many parts of Syria. A major confrontation between the FSA and the Syrian Armed Forces occurred in Al-Rastan. From 27 September to 1 October, Syrian government forces, backed by tanks and helicopters, led an offensive on the town of Al-Rastan in Homs Governorate, in order to drive out army defectors. [33] The 2011 Battle of Rastan between government forces and the FSA was the longest and most intense action until that time. After a week, the FSA was forced to retreat from Rastan. [34] To avoid government forces, the leader of the FSA, Colonel Riad Asaad, retreated to Turkey. [35] Many of the rebels fled to the nearby city of Homs. [36]
By October 2011, the FSA started to receive active support from the Turkish government, which allowed the rebel army to operate its command and headquarters from the country's southern Hatay Province close to the Syrian border, and its field command from inside Syria. [37]
In October 2011, clashes between government and army units which had defected were being regularly reported. During the first week of the month, sustained clashes were reported in Jabal al-Zawiya in the mountains of Idlib Governorate. Syrian rebels also captured most of Idlib city. [38] In mid-October, clashes in Idlib Governorate included the towns of Binnish and Hass in the governorate near the mountain range of Jabal al-Zawiya. [39][40] In late October, clashes occurred in the northwestern town of Maarrat al-Nu'man between government forces and defected soldiers, and near the Turkish border, where 10 security agents and a deserter were killed in a bus ambush. [41] It was not clear if the defectors linked to these incidents were connected to the FSA. [42]
According to defectors, in 2011 the Syrian government intentionally released imprisoned Islamist militants and provided them with arms "in order to make itself the least bad choice for the international community", though the "claims could not be independently verified" of the one defector quoted, who "did not have documents supporting" the allegations. "[43][44] On 19 October 2011 U.S. media reported that "large crowds of Syrians rallied in the northern city of Aleppo in support of the government of President Bashar al-Assad". The Syrian government estimated over a million pro-government demonstrators, while others estimated crowds at least "tens of thousands" comparable in size to a pro-government rally "a week earlier in Damascus. "[45][46]
In early November 2011, clashes between the FSA and security forces in Homs escalated as the siege continued. After six days of bombardment, the Syrian Army stormed the city on 8 November, leading to heavy street fighting in several neighborhoods. Resistance in Homs was significantly greater than that seen in other towns and cities, and some in opposition have referred to the city as the "Capital of the Revolution". Unlike events in Deraa and Hama, operations in Homs failed to quell the unrest. [36]
November and December 2011 saw increasing rebel attacks, as opposition forces grew in number. In the two months, the FSA launched deadly attacks on an air force intelligence complex in the Damascus suburb of Harasta, the Ba'ath Syrian Regional Branch youth headquarters in Idlib Governorate and Damascus, an airbase in Homs Governorate, and an intelligence building in Idlib. [47] On 15 December, opposition fighters ambushed checkpoints and military bases around Daraa, killing 27 soldiers, in one of the largest attacks yet on security forces. [48] The opposition suffered a major setback on 19 December, when a failed defection in Idlib Governorate led to 72 defectors killed. [49]
In January 2012, Assad began using large-scale artillery operations against the insurgency, which led to the destruction of many civilian homes due to indiscriminate shelling.
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Protest_Online Condemnation
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