U.S./World category, Page 580
More rain, more bodies in flooded Kentucky mountain townsVideo
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Another round of rainstorms hit flooded Kentucky mountain communities Monday as more bodies emerged from the sodden landscape, and the governor warned that high winds could bring another threat: falling trees and utility poles. Gov. Andy Beshear said the death toll rose to 35, and hundreds of...
No reported damage in Philippines from Chinese rocket debrisVideo
MANILA — There was no reported damage in a western Philippine region where debris from the final stage of a rocket that launched part of China’s new space station reportedly fell, a Filipino official said Monday. Philippine Space Agency official Marc Talampas said authorities have been advised to be on...
UN chief warns world is one step from ‘nuclear annihilation’
UNITED NATIONS — The United Nations chief warned the world Monday that “humanity is just one misunderstanding, one miscalculation away from nuclear annihilation.” Secretary-General Antonio Guterres gave the dire warning at the opening of the long-delayed high-level meeting to review the landmark 50-year-old treaty aimed at preventing the spread of...
As fewer kids enroll, big cities face a small schools crisis
CHICAGO — On a recent morning inside Chalmers School of Excellence on Chicago’s West Side, five preschool and kindergarten students finished up drawings. Four staffers, including a teacher and a tutor, chatted with them about colors and shapes. The summer program offers the kind of one-on-one support parents love. But...
USDA getting tougher on salmonella in chicken products
DES MOINES, Iowa — The federal government on Monday announced proposed new regulations that would force food processors to reduce the amount of salmonella bacteria found in some raw chicken products or risk being shut down. The proposed U.S. Department of Agriculture rules would declare salmonella an adulterant — a...
Pelosi meets Singapore leaders at start of Asia tour
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi held talks with officials in Singapore on Monday at the start of her Asian tour, as questions swirled over a possible stop in Taiwan that has fueled tension with Beijing. Pelosi met with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, President Halimah...
1st ship carrying Ukrainian grain leaves the port of OdesaVideo
KYIV, Ukraine — The first ship carrying Ukrainian grain set out Monday from the port of Odesa under an internationally brokered deal to unblock the embattled country’s agricultural exports and ease the growing global food crisis. The Sierra Leone-flagged cargo ship Razoni sounded its horn as it departed with over...
Fuel tanker catches fire in Libya; 5 dead, 50 injured
CAIRO — A fuel tanker truck caught fire and exploded Monday in central Libya, killing at least five people and injuring 50 others, authorities said. The incident took place in the central town of Bent Bayya, according to the Health Ministry in the capital of Tripoli. The ministry did not...
17-year-old killed, 4 hurt in stabbings on Wisconsin riverVideo
SOMERSET, Wis. — A Minnesota teenager died and four other people were critically wounded after being stabbed while tubing down a Wisconsin river, authorities said. St. Croix County Sheriff Scott Knudson the victims and suspect, a 52-year-old Minnesota man, were all on the Apple River when the attack happened Saturday...
Michigan professor who made vulgar video quit, settles for $95K
DETROIT — A Michigan professor who was suspended in January for making a profanity-filled video to welcome students settled his legal dispute with a university by accepting $95,000 and agreeing to a three-year gag order. As part of the deal, Barry Mehler retired from Ferris State University rather than face...
Infrastructure damage hampers flood recovery in KentuckyVideo
HINDMAN, Ky. — Damage to critical infrastructure and the arrival of more heavy rains hampered efforts Sunday to help Kentucky residents hit by recent massive flooding, Gov. Andy Beshear said. As residents in Appalachia tried to slowly piece their lives back together, flash flood warnings were issued for at least...
Winning lottery jackpot is lucky for some, tragic for others
Dave and Erica Harrig stayed true to their values when they won a lottery jackpot of more than $61 million in 2013. It made all the difference. The couple from Gretna, Nebraska, a community on the outskirts of Omaha where Dave Harrig now is a volunteer firefighter, allowed themselves to...
Drone explosion hits Russia’s Black Sea Fleet headquarters
A small explosive device carried by a makeshift drone blew up Sunday at the headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet on the Crimean Peninsula, wounding six people and prompting the cancellation of ceremonies honoring Russia’s navy, authorities said. Meanwhile, one of Ukraine’s richest men, a grain merchant, was killed in...
Biden tests positive for covid-19, returns to isolation
President Joe Biden tested positive for covid-19 again Saturday, slightly more than three days after he was cleared to exit coronavirus isolation, the White House said, in a rare case of “rebound” following treatment with an anti-viral drug. White House physician Dr. Kevin O’Connor said in a letter that Biden...
Democrats seem headed, finally, toward triumph on climate, health
It’s been more than a year in the making and has seen plenty of ups and downs. Now, a Democratic economic package focused on climate and health care faces hurdles but seems headed toward party-line passage by Congress next month. Approval would let President Joe Biden and his party claim...
Iraqi protesters storm parliament in Baghdad, set up sit-in
Thousands of followers of an influential Shiite cleric breached Iraq’s parliament on Saturday, for the second time this week, protesting government formation efforts lead by his rivals, an alliance of Iran-backed groups. The alliance called for counter-protests, raising the specter of civil strife. Iraqi security forces initially used tear gas...
Navy expedites waterborne drones to close gap with China
Facing a growing threat from China, the Navy envisions drone ships keeping an electronic eye on enemy forces across the vast Pacific Ocean, extending the reach of firepower, and keeping sailors out of harm’s way. The Navy is speeding development of those robotic ships as an affordable way to keep...
House passes semi-automatic gun ban after 18-year lapse
The House passed legislation Friday to revive a ban on semi-automatic guns, the first vote of its kind in years and a direct response to the firearms often used in the crush of mass shootings ripping through communities nationwide. Once banned in the U.S., the high-powered firearms are now widely...
Isolation complication? U.S. finds it’s hard to shun Russia
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration likes to say Russia has become isolated internationally because of its invasion of Ukraine. Yet Moscow’s top officials have hardly been cloistered in the Kremlin. And now, even the U.S. is talking to them. Russian President Vladimir Putin has been meeting with world leaders, including...
States hope for revenue boost with Mega Millions craze
A bump in college scholarships for New Mexico students. A new bike trail nestled in the western slope of Colorado. More homeless shelters in Arizona. When lottery sales soar, those holding the golden ticket aren’t the only ones who win. Across the U.S., state lottery systems use that revenue to...
‘Very hot’ — heat duration records could fall in Northwest
Extreme heat is forecast to stretch through the weekend in the Pacific Northwest and authorities are investigating whether triple-digit temperatures were to blame for the deaths of at least four people. The Oregon State Medical Examiner’s Office said at least three people have died from suspected hyperthermia during the heat...
Blinken presses Griner, Whelan deal in call with top Russian
WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he spoke to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov by phone on Friday and urged Moscow to accept a U.S. offer to release WNBA star Brittney Griner and another American detainee, Paul Whelan It was Blinken’s first talk with his Russian counterpart since...
Russia, Ukraine trade blame for deadly attack on POW prison
KYIV, Ukraine — Russia and Ukraine accused each other Friday of shelling a prison in a separatist region of eastern Ukraine, an attack that reportedly killed dozens of Ukrainian prisoners of war captured after the fall of Mariupol, the city where troops famously held out against a monthslong Russian siege....
Wounded Knee artifacts highlight slow pace of repatriations
BARRE, Mass. — One by one, items purportedly taken from Native Americans massacred at Wounded Knee Creek emerged from the dark, cluttered display cases where they’ve sat for more than a century in a museum in rural Massachusetts. Moccasins, necklaces, clothing, ceremonial pipes, tools and other objects were carefully laid...
Zelenskyy visits port as Ukraine prepares to ship out grain
ODESA, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited a Black Sea port Friday as crews prepared terminals to export grain trapped by Russia’s five-month-old war, work that was inching forward a week after a deal was struck to allow critical food supplies to flow to millions of impoverished people facing...
