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FDA authorizes 1st COVID-19 shots for infants, preschoolers
U.S. regulators on Friday authorized the first COVID-19 shots for infants and preschoolers, paving the way for vaccinations to begin next week.
The Food and Drug Administration’s action follows its advisory panel’s unanimous recommendation for the shots from Moderna and Pfizer. That means U.S. kids under 5 — roughly 18 million youngsters — are eligible for the shots, about 1 1/2 years after the vaccines first became available in the U.S. for adults, who have been hit the hardest during the pandemic.
The FDA also authorized Moderna’s vaccine for school-aged children and teens. Pfizer’s shots had previously been the only ones available for those ages.
There’s one step left: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends how to use vaccines and its vaccine advisers are set to discuss the shots for the youngest kids Friday and vote on Saturday. A final signoff would come from CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky.
At a Senate hearing Thursday, Walensky said her staff was working over the Juneteenth federal holiday weekend “because we understand the urgency of this for American parents.”
She said pediatric deaths from COVID-19 have been higher than what is generally seen from the flu each year.
“So I actually think we need to protect young children, as well as protect everyone with the vaccine and especially protect elders,” she said.
Read: UNICEF finds Bangladesh as Covid-19 vaccine success story
For weeks, the Biden administration has been preparing to roll out the vaccines. States, tribes, community health centers and pharmacies preordered millions of doses. FDA’s emergency use authorization allows manufacturers to begin shipping vaccine across the country. Vaccinations could begin as early as Monday or Tuesday.
Some parents have been anxiously awaiting the chance to protect their little ones.
While young children generally don’t get as sick from COVID-19 as older kids and adults, their hospitalizations surged during the omicron wave and FDA’s advisers determined that benefits from vaccination outweighed the minimal risks. Studies from Moderna and Pfizer showed side effects, including fever and fatigue, were mostly minor.
The two brands use the same technology but there are differences.
Pfizer’s vaccine for kids younger than 5 is one-tenth of the adult dose. Three shots are needed: the first two given three weeks apart and the last at least two months later.
Moderna’s is two shots, each a quarter of its adult dose, given about four weeks apart for kids under 6.
The vaccines are for children as young as 6 months. Moderna next plans to study its shots for babies as young as 3-months-old. Pfizer has not finalized plans for shots in younger infants. A dozen countries, including China, already vaccinate kids under 5.
Dr. Beth Ebel, professor of pediatrics at University of Washington in Seattle, said the tot-sized vaccines would be especially welcomed by U.S. parents with children in daycare where outbreaks can sideline parents from jobs, adding to financial strain.
Read: Vaccine Diplomacy: Why it’s important for Bangladesh!
“A lot of people are going to be happy and a lot of grandparents are going to be happy, too, because we’ve missed those babies who grew up when you weren’t able to see them,” Ebel said.
2 dead, 2 wounded in Alabama church shooting; suspect held
A shooting at a church in a suburb of one of Alabama's major cities left two person dead and two others wounded Thursday evening, police said, adding a suspect was taken into custody.
The shooting occurred at Saint Stephen's Episcopal Church in the Birmingham suburb of Vestavia Hills, Police Capt. Shane Ware said at a briefing. He said officers rushed to the church after dispatchers received a call reporting an active shooter at 6:22 p.m.
He said one person was dead and two others were wounded in the shooting and had been quickly hospitalized. A suspect is in custody, Ware said, but he declined to identify the person or the victims and describe how events unfolded.
“We know of no additional threat to either the community of Vestavia Hills” or surrounding areas, Ware told reporters.
The FBI, U.S. Marshals Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco and Explosives and other local police and fire agencies sent officials to the scene. Investigators remained hours past nightfall, with yellow police tape cordoning off the church complex and emergency vehicles with flashing lights blocking the route to the church.
The Rev. Kelley Hudlow, an Episcopal priest in the Diocese of Alabama, told broadcast outlet WBRC that the church and the community were stunned by the shooting.
“It is shocking. Saint Stephen’s is a communty built on love and prayers and grace and they are going to come together," she said in a live interview with the station. “People of all faiths are coming together to pray to hope for healing."
She added that the church was receiving supportive messages from people all over the United States and the world. "We need everybody out there. Pray, think, meditate and send love to this community because we are going to need all of it," she said.
The church’s website had listed a “Boomers Potluck” for Thursday night. “There will be no program, simply eat and have time for fellowship,” the flyer read.
News outlet al.com said the two wounded victims were being treated at UAB Hospital in Birmingham.
READ: Thousands rally for gun reform after surge in mass shootings
It was the latest in a string of deadly shootings that has rattled the nation. On Saturday thousands of people rallied in the U.S. and at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. to renew a push for gun control measures after recent deadly mass shootings from Buffalo, New York, to Uvalde, Texas. Survivors of mass shootings and other incidents of gun violence also have lobbied legislators and testified on Capitol Hill earlier this month.
Heat stress blamed for thousands of cattle deaths in Kansas
Thousands of cattle in feedlots in southwestern Kansas have died of heat stress due to soaring temperatures, high humidity and little wind in recent days, industry officials said.
The final toll remains unclear, but as of Thursday at least 2,000 heat-related deaths had been reported to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, the state agency that assists in disposing of carcasses. Agency spokesman Matt Lara said he expects that number to rise as more feedlots report losses from this week’s heat wave.
The cattle deaths have sparked unsubstantiated reports on social media and elsewhere that something besides the weather is at play, but Kansas agriculture officials said there’s no indication of any other cause.
“This was a true weather event — it was isolated to a specific region in southwestern Kansas," said A.J. Tarpoff, a cattle veterinarian with Kansas State University. “Yes, temperatures rose, but the more important reason why it was injurious was that we had a huge spike in humidity ... and at the same time wind speeds actually dropped substantially, which is rare for western Kansas.”
Last week, temperatures were in the 70s and 80s, but on Saturday they spiked higher than 100 degrees, said Scarlett Hagins, spokeswoman for the Kansas Livestock Association.
“And it was that sudden change that didn't allow the cattle to acclimate that caused the heat stress issues in them,” she said.
The deaths represent a huge economic loss because the animals, which typically weigh around 1,500 pounds, are worth around $2,000 per head, Hagins said. Federal disaster programs will help some producers who incurred a loss, she added.
And the worst may be over. Nighttime temperatures have been cooler and — as long as there is a breeze — the animals are able to recover, Tarpoff said.
Hagins said heat-related deaths in the industry are rare because ranchers take precautions such as providing extra drinking water, altering feeding schedules so animals are not digesting during the heat of the day, and using sprinkler systems to cool them down.
“Heat stress is always a concern this time of year for cattle and so they have mitigation protocols put in place to be prepared for this kind of thing,” she said.
Many cattle had still not shed their winter coats when the heatwave struck.
“This is a one in 10-year, 20-year type event. This is not a normal event,” said Brandon Depenbusch, operator of the Innovative Livestock Services feedlot in Great Bend, Kansas. “It is extremely abnormal, but it does happen.”
While his feedlot had “zero problems," he noted that his part of the state did not have the same combination of high temperatures, high humidity, low winds and no cloud cover that hit southwestern Kansas.
Elsewhere, cattle ranchers haven't been so hard hit.
The Nebraska Department of Agriculture and the Nebraska Cattlemen said they have received no reports of higher-than-normal cattle deaths in the state, despite a heat index of well over 100 degrees this week.
Oklahoma City National Stockyards President Kelli Payne said no cattle deaths have been reported since temperatures topped 90 degrees last Saturday, after rising from the mid 70s starting June 1.
“We have water and sprinklers here to help mitigate heat and the heat wave,” Payne said, but “we don’t have any control over that pesky Mother Nature.”
Biden says a recession is ‘not inevitable’
President Joe Biden said Thursday the American people are “really, really down” after a tumultuous two years with the coronavirus pandemic, volatility in the economy and now surging gasoline prices that are slamming family budgets. But he stressed that a recession was “not inevitable” and held out hope of giving the country a greater sense of confidence.
Speaking to The Associated Press in a 30-minute Oval Office interview, the president emphasized the battered economy that he inherited and the lingering psychological scars caused by a pandemic that disrupted people’s sense of identity. He bristled at claims by Republican lawmakers that last year’s COVID-19 aid plan was fully to blame for inflation reaching a 40-year high, calling that argument “bizarre.”
As for the overall American mindset, Biden said, “People are really, really down.”
“Their need for mental health in America has skyrocketed because people have seen everything upset,” Biden said. “Everything they’ve counted on upset. But most of it’s the consequence of what happened, what happened as a consequence of the, the COVID crisis.”
That pessimism has carried over into the economy as record prices at the pump and persistent inflation have jeopardized Democrats’ ability to hold on to the House and Senate in the midterm elections. Biden addressed the warnings by economists that fighting inflation could tip United States into recession.
“First of all, it’s not inevitable,” he said. “Secondly, we’re in a stronger position than any nation in the world to overcome this inflation.”
As for the causes of inflation, Biden flashed some defensiveness on that count. “If it’s my fault, why is it the case in every other major industrial country in the world that inflation is higher? You ask yourself that? I’m not being a wise guy,” he said.
The president’s statement appeared to be about inflation rising worldwide, not necessarily whether countries had higher rates than the U.S. Annual inflation in Japan, for example, has risen in recent months though it’s still at a yearly rate of 2.4%, according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Also Read: Death toll from Brazil floods at least 91, with dozens lost
The president said he saw reason for optimism with the 3.6% unemployment rate and America’s relative strength in the world.
But restoring confidence so far has eluded Biden, whose approval ratings have been in steady decline as he has lost support among Democrats and has little evidence to show that he could restore a sense of bipartisan normalcy to Washington.
Biden’s Oval Office is filled with the portraits of presidents who faced crises that have imperiled the country, and the president acknowledged there were parallels to his own situation. A picture of Franklin Delano Roosevelt hangs over his fireplace, a place of prominence because the historian Jon Meacham told Biden that no president had come into office with the economy in such dire circumstances. There is also a painting of Abraham Lincoln, who became president with a nation brutally divided and on the verge of the Civil War.
Yet Biden’s remedy is not that different from the diagnosis made by former President Jimmy Carter in 1979, when the U.S. economy was crippled by stagflation. Carter said then the U.S. was suffering from a “crisis of confidence” and “the erosion of our confidence in the future is threatening to destroy the social and the political fabric of America.”
The president said he wants to endow the U.S. with more verve, fortitude and courage.
“Be confident,” Biden said. “Because I am confident. We’re better positioned than any country in the world to own the second quarter of the 21st century.”
Biden’s bleak assessment of the national psyche comes as voters have soured on his job performance and the direction of the country. Only 39% of U.S. adults approve of Biden’s performance as president, according to a May poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Research, dipping from already negative ratings a month earlier.
Overall, only about 2 in 10 adults said the U.S. is heading in the right direction or that the economy is good, both down from about 3 in 10 in April. Those drops were concentrated among Democrats, with just 33% within the president’s party saying the country is headed in the right direction.
Biden said Republican social policies were contributing to public anxieties. He suggested GOP lawmakers could face consequences in the midterms if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, possibly removing national protections for abortion access. Voters will consider the “failure of this Republican Party to be willing” to respond to “the basic social concerns of the country,” the president said.
The president outlined some of the hard choices he has faced, saying the U.S. needed to stand up to Russian President Vladimir Putin for invading Ukraine in February even though tough sanctions imposed as a result of that war have caused gas prices to surge, creating a political risk for Biden in an election year. He called on oil companies to think of the world’s short-term needs and increase production.
Asked why he ordered the financial penalties against Moscow that have disrupted food and energy markets globally, Biden said he made his calculation as commander in chief rather than as a politician thinking about elections.
“I’m the president of the United States,” he said. “It’s not about my political survival. It’s about what’s best for the country. No kidding. No kidding. So what happens? What happens if the strongest power, NATO, the organizational structure we put together, walked away from Russian aggression?”
Biden spun out the possibility of chaos in Europe if an unimpeded Russia kept moving deeper into the continent, China was emboldened to take over Taiwan and North Korea grew even more aggressive with its nuclear weapon ambitions.
Biden renewed his contention that major oil companies have benefited from higher prices without increasing production as much as they should. He said the companies needed to think of the world in the short term, not just their investors.
“Don’t just reward yourself,” he said.
Consumer prices have jumped 8.6% over the past year, the steepest rise in more than 40 years. Republican lawmakers have said that Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package from last year kick-started a spiral of price increases.
The president said there was “zero evidence” for that claim, noting that other countries have endured higher prices as economies reopened and people became vaccinated. Still, Biden acknowledged Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s contention that the spending had a limited inflationary effect.
“You could argue whether it had a marginal, a minor impact on inflation,” he said. “I don’t think it did. And most economists do not think it did. But the idea that it caused inflation is bizarre.”
Still, high inflation has created a conundrum for Biden. He prioritized bringing back millions of jobs and has seen the unemployment rate return to close to pre-pandemic levels. The Federal Reserve on Wednesday increased its benchmark interest rate, in hopes of slowing the economy and pulling inflation down to its target rate of 2%.
The tightening of Fed policy has caused financial markets to slump and led many economists to warn of a potential recession next year. The president encouraged Americans to stay patient.
“They shouldn’t believe a warning,” he said. “They should just say: ‘Let’s see. Let’s see which is correct.’”
The president is still trying to steer his domestic agenda through Congress, after an earlier iteration last year failed to clear a 50-50 Senate. Biden said “I believe I have the votes” to lower prescription drug prices, reduce families’ utility bills with tax incentives and place a 15% minimum tax on corporations. He said his plans would lower expenses for many Americans, though the measure would be scaled back from earlier intentions for an expanded child tax credit, universal pre-kindergarten and other programs.
“I’m going to be able to get, God willing, the ability to pay for prescription drugs,” Biden said. “There’s more than one way to bring down the cost for working folks.”
And then, in acknowledgement of the political restraints he faces, Biden added, “I can’t get it all done.”
1/6 panel probes Trump pressure on Pence to reject election
The 1/6 committee is set to plunge into Donald Trump’s last-ditch effort to salvage the 2020 election by pressuring Vice President Mike Pence to reject the electoral count — a highly unusual and potentially illegal strategy that was set in motion in the run-up to the U.S. Capitol riot.
With two live witnesses Thursday, the House panel intends to show how Trump’s false claims of a fraudulent election left him grasping for alternatives as courts turned back dozens of lawsuits challenging the vote.
Trump latched onto conservative law professor John Eastman’s obscure plan and launched a public and private pressure campaign on Pence days before the vice president was to preside over the Jan. 6 joint session of Congress to certify Joe Biden’s election victory. A federal judge has said it is “more likely than not” Trump committed crimes over the scheme.
“The illegality of the plan was obvious,” the Jan. 6 panel said in a court filing against Eastman.
The committee will hear from Greg Jacob, the vice president’s counsel who fended off Eastman’s ideas for Pence to carry out the plan; and retired federal judge Michael Luttig, who called the plan from Eastman, his former law clerk, “incorrect at every turn.”
Thursday’s session is also expected to divulge new evidence about the danger Pence faced that day as the mob stormed the Capitol shouting “hang Mike Pence!” with a gallows on the Capitol grounds as the vice president fled with senators into hiding. Nine people died in the riot and its aftermath.
The session is expected to show how Trump’s pressure on Pence “directly contributed” to the attack on the Capitol and how the Eastman strategy posed a “grave, grave threat” to democracy, according to a committee aide who insisted on anonymity to discuss the upcoming hearing.
Ahead of the hearing, Pence’s former chief of staff, Marc Short, said his boss was determined to stay at the Capitol that night and finish the job, despite the threats.
“He knew his job was to stay at his post,” Short said on CNN on Wednesday.
Short said Pence didn’t want the world seeing the vice president leaving the Capitol when “a hallmark of democracy” was under siege.
Read: 1/6 panel: Told repeatedly he lost, Trump refused to go
“He thought it was important that he stay there and make sure the work of the American people was completed that night,” said Short, who testified under subpoena to the committee for eight hours, but has not yet appeared as a live witness.
The panel is reconvening for a third hearing this month after a blockbuster prime-time start last week, followed by logistical setbacks in recent days. Monday’s key witness, former Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien, abruptly declined to appear in person because his wife was in labor with their child. Wednesday’s scheduled hearing with witnesses from the Justice Department who tried to convince Trump that his claims of voter fraud were just not true was postponed.
Nevertheless, the panel’s yearlong investigation is portraying a publicly gripping account of Trump’s final weeks in office as the defeated president clung to “the big lie” of a rigged election even as those around him — his family, his top aides, officials at the highest levels of government — were telling him he simply lost the election.
Former Attorney General William Barr, who resigned at the end of 2020 rather than be part of Trump’s plans, testified earlier that the president was becoming “detached from reality” if he believed the lies. He said he told the president his claims of voter fraud were “bull-—.”
With 1,000 interviews and reams of 140,000 documents, the committee is connecting the dots, showing how Trump’s false claims of election fraud became a battle cry as he summoned thousands of Americans to Washington for a Jan. 6 rally and then sent them to Capitol Hill to “fight like hell” for his presidency.
More than 800 people have been arrested in the Capitol siege, and the panel is considering whether to send a referral for criminal charges against Trump to the Justice Department. No president or former president has ever been indicted by the Justice Department, and Attorney General Merrick Garland has said he and his team are following the proceedings in Congress.
For now, the panel is pressing ahead with its hearings, with more scheduled for next week.
Thursday’s will unpack the Eastman plan to have the states send alternative slates of electors from the five or seven states Trump was disputing, including Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. With competing slates for Trump or Biden, Pence would be forced to reject them, returning them to the states to sort it out, under the plan.
Read: Capitol riot panel blames Trump for 1/6 'attempted coup'
Pence refused the plan, believing the founding fathers would not have left it to one person, the vice president, to decide the outcome, Jacob told the panel in previous testimony. Jacob said the idea was utterly against some 130 years of precedent in American history, “entirely made up.”
The committee in hearings ahead will be delving into the roles of extremist groups and others who heeded Trump’s call to Washington. Leaders and others from the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys face rare sedition charges over their roles in the Capitol attack.
Several members of Congress are also under scrutiny, including Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R-Ga., whom the committee has asked for an interview to discuss a Capitol tour he gave that included basement tunnels to a group of people the day before the attack.
The panel is also probing several candidates for elected office, including the Republican nominee for governor in Pennsylvania, who were among the rioters.
The panel, which is expected to deliver a final report on its findings later this year, intends for its work to be a record for history of the most violent attack on the Capitol since the War of 1812. Unlike other national traumas that have pulled the country together, the Jan. 6 Capitol attack appears to have left many Americans divided. Congress splintered over forming the committee, which most Republicans opposed.
The panel’s two Republicans, Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, have been shunned by the GOP for their work with Democrats leading the investigation into Trump and his role in the Capitol attack.
Northern Arizona watches winds as Western wildfires blaze
Calmer winds and cooler temperatures Tuesday allowed firefighters across the U.S. West to get a better handle on blazes that have forced hundreds of people from their homes.
As red flag warnings expired and winds died down in northern Arizona, firefighters took advantage of the weather changes to attack a 31-square-mile (81-square-kilometer) blaze by air and at the fire’s edges.
“They’re optimistic to make some headway,” fire information officer Cathie Pauls said.
The forecast for later this week called for a chance of showers, which could dampen the blaze but might bring the chance of new fires from lightning strikes.
Meanwhile, authorities downgraded evacuations for the larger of two wildfires burning on the outskirts of Flagstaff, Arizona.
That fire made a run into a wilderness area and reached a lava dome to the northeast, away from most neighborhoods. One home and a secondary structure had burned, the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office said. About 350 homes remained evacuated Tuesday.
Another 280 homes were evacuated because of a smaller wildfire that burned about 6 square miles (16 square kilometers) in a more remote area.
Sandra Morales planned to return home Wednesday, a day after evacuations for her neighborhood were lifted.
Read: Tundra wildfire creeps closer toward Alaska Native community
Still, she worried about the smoke, potential wind shifts and the risk of flooding later in the fire area.
“Next thing you know, we have to be worried about the monsoons and all that,” she said. “That debris, if it gets severe, it’s going to come down the mountain.”
Climate change and an enduring drought have fanned the frequency and intensity of forest and grassland fires. Multiple states had early starts to the wildfire season this spring.
The number of square miles burned so far this year is more than double the 10-year national average, and states like New Mexico have already set records with devastating blazes that destroyed hundreds of homes while causing environmental damage that is expected to affect water supplies.
Nationally, more than 6,200 wildland firefighters were battling nearly three dozen uncontained fires that had charred over 1,780 square miles (4,611 square kilometers), much of it in the U.S. Southwest, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
In southwest Alaska, favorable winds shifted the progression of a fire that’s burned 202 square miles (523 square kilometers) of dry grass and brush, fire managers said Tuesday. No one had been evacuated, and no structures were damaged or lost.
Read: Multiple wildfires in U.S. Colorado burn homes, force evacuation
In California, firefighters reported significant progress against a wildfire near the San Gabriel Mountains community of Wrightwood, but evacuation orders and warnings remained in place. The blaze has scorched about 1.5 square miles (3.9 square kilometers) since erupting over the weekend and was 27% contained.
In Northern California’s Tehama County, firefighters gained 30% containment of a fire that destroyed 10 buildings, damaged four others and threatened about 160 structures, fire officials said.
In a wildfire-related situation, a 50-mile (80-km) stretch of State Route 70 in Northern California remained closed indefinitely after mud, boulders and dead trees inundated lanes during flash floods along a burn scar.
Excessive heat rolls east, bakes much of central, eastern US
More than 100 million Americans are being warned to stay indoors if possible as high temperatures and humidity settle in over states stretching through parts of the Gulf Coast to the Great Lakes and east to the Carolinas.
The National Weather Service Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland, said Monday 107.5 million people will be affected by combination of heat advisories, excessive heat warnings and excessive heat watches through Wednesday.
The heat wave, which set several high temperature records in the West, the Southwest and into Denver during the weekend, moved east into parts of the Gulf Coast and the Midwest Monday and will expand to the Great Lakes and east to the Carolinas, the National Weather Service said.
St. Louis, Memphis, Minneapolis and Tulsa are among several cities under excessive heat warnings, with temperatures forecast to reach about 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius), accompanied by high humidity that could make conditions feel close to 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43 degrees Celsius).
Also read: Severe water shortages strain wheat harvest in Iraq
In Jackson, Mississippi, residents braved temperatures reaching 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35 degrees Celsius) on Monday to complete their chores. Roger Britt, 67, ventured to a neighborhood garden in search of vegetables for dinner.
“It was so cold this past winter, so I know it’s going to be a hot summer,” he said.
Many municipalities announced plans to open cooling centers, including in Chicago, where officials started alerting residents Monday about where they could find relief from the heat. The city plans to open six community service centers on Tuesday and Wednesday and said in a news release that people could also cool off in 75 public libraries in the city.
The city stepped up efforts to respond to heat waves after more than 700 people, many of them elderly, died in a 1995 heat wave. The effort also comes after three women died in a senior housing facility during a brief heat wave last month, raising concerns about the city’s ability to respond to brutally hot weather.
In North Carolina’s Mecklenburg County, which includes Charlotte, the local government opened cooling stations and the area transit system was offering free rides to some of the locations.
And in South Carolina, poll workers are preparing for what could be one of the hottest primary election days ever on Tuesday, with highs forecast to reach 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius) and humidity making it feel closer to 110 (43 degrees Celsius).
Poll managers are trying to find ways to protect people who must stand outside to vote. One saving grace may be turnout for the midterm primaries are often much lower than presidential elections. Another is the state allowed early voting for the first time and more than 110,000 ballots have already been cast.
Also read: South Asia’s intense heat wave a ‘sign of things to come’
In Minneapolis, 14 schools that are not fully air-conditioned will shift to distance learning Tuesday while the city braces for temperatures in the high 90s. Schools were scheduled to finish on June 10 but a three-week teacher’s strike in April pushed the final day to June 24, to make up for the lost class time.
Excessive heat pushed the same schools into distance learning for three days during the final week of classes last year.
Tundra wildfire creeps closer toward Alaska Native community
A tundra wildfire continued to creep closer to an Alaska Native community in southwest Alaska, but mandatory evacuations have not been ordered, fire officials said Sunday.
The East Fork fire was within 3.5 miles (5.6 kilometers) of St. Mary’s, a statement from Alaska Wildland Fire Information said.
Also read: Multiple wildfires in U.S. Colorado burn homes, force evacuation
Even though it had moved 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) closer to the Yup’ik community since Saturday, fire managers said the progress has slowed somewhat because of favorable weather conditions. The temperatures were slightly cooler with rising humidity, which could help moderate fire conditions. However, winds are expected to remain steady out of the north, helping move the fire toward populated areas.
The fire is burning in dry grass and shrubs like alder and willow in the mostly treeless tundra in southwest Alaska. The fire was started by lightning May 31.
Firefighters are working to strengthen primary and secondary fire lines protecting St. Mary’s and the nearby communities of Pitkas Point and Mountain Village and properties, including cabins, between them. No structures have been lost in the fire.
The fire is also 10 miles (16 kilometers) from another community, Pilot Station. Firefighters were expected to evaluate options of opening a preexisting fire line around that community.
Another fire northwest of the East Fork fire is growing, but it still about 25 miles (40 kilometers) north of Mountain Village.
There are 204 personnel working the East Fork fire, which has grown to 190 square miles (492 square kilometers). Additional personnel are expected to arrive Monday, when even more favorable weather conditions are also expected, including increased cloud cover, higher humidity and cooler temperatures. Officials also said the front may switch the wind direction to the southwest, which would help push the fire away from villages.
Also read: Massive New Mexico wildfire grows, but Taos safe for now
Even though there are no mandatory evacuations, the combined 700 residents of St. Mary’s and Pitkas Point, located about 10 miles (16 kilometers) south, have been on alert since Friday to prepare for possible evacuation.
Nearly 150 residents from the affected communities have already temporarily relocated to the southwest Alaska hub community of Bethel.
St. Mary’s is located about 450 miles (724 kilometers) west of Anchorage.
Brazil confirms 2nd case of monkeypox
Brazil on Saturday confirmed its second case of monkeypox, detected in a 29-year-old man who arrived this week from Spain.
The man was put into isolation in the town of Vinhedo, as a laboratory in Spain informed him of his positive test result after he had landed in Brazil on Wednesday, according to Sao Paulo health authorities.
The first case of monkeypox in Brazil was registered on Thursday, also in Sao Paulo, in a 41-year-old man who had traveled to Spain and Portugal. He is also in isolation.
READ: Monkeypox scare: India returnee sent to Jashore hospital
The Brazilian Ministry of Health is investigating at least eight possible cases of monkeypox in the country.
More than 1,000 confirmed cases of monkeypox have been reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) from 29 countries, said WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at a press briefing on Wednesday.
Venezuelan opposition leader attacked during national tour
The leader of the U.S.-backed opposition in Venezuela was physically attacked Saturday during a visit to a rural community, according to members of his parallel government, who accused a group of ruling party associates of carrying out the assault.
A photo accompanying the opposition statement shows Juan Guaidó being held back as people gather around him and someone rips his shirt off. The parallel government said the group, which was associated with the United Socialist Party of Venezuela, known as PSUV, “hit and insulted” Guaidó, who is on a tour around the South American country seeking to unite and organize his party ahead of a planned primary election.
In an Instagram video Saturday night, Guaidó characterized the attack as an “ambush” at a plant nursery in San Carlos, a community about 168 miles (270 kilometers) southwest of Caracas, the capital. But he added that it won't deter him from continuing to be “on the street.”
“Those who attacked today, these members or leaders of the regime’s party," should accept responsibility for the incident, he said.
READ: Bangladesh to work for resolving dispute between Guyana and Venezuela: FM
PSUV leaders, who traditionally issue statements on social media or state television, did not immediately respond.
Last week, Guaidó's supporters were met by a barrage of flying plastic chairs and fisticuffs from allies of President Nicolás Maduro in the western city of Maracaibo.
The U.S. and other nations recognize Guaidó as Venezuela’s interim president. They withdrew recognition of Maduro after accusing him of rigging his 2018 re-election as president.
At the time, Guaidó drew enormous crowds of backers into the streets, but much of the momentum has evaporated. His popularity has dropped from about 60% three years ago to under 15% in February.
Brian Nichols, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, on Saturday condemned what he described as an “unprovoked attack” on Guaidó.
“This egregious attack risked lives; those responsible for the assault should be brought to justice,” he said.