Page 382 - Disaster Accident
California wildfire toll matches deadliest ever with 29 victims
The number of dead in a wildfire raging in California rose to 29 on Sunday, matching the deadliest in the state's history as recovery teams found six more bodies in the grim search through the wreckage. The "Camp Fire" -- in the northern foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains -- is the largest and most destructive of several infernos that have sent 250,000 people fleeing their homes across the tinder-dry state, razing 6,400 homes in the town of Paradise and effectively wiping it off the map. "Today, an additional six human remains were recovered, which brings our current total to 29," Sheriff Kory Honea told a news conference at the end of the fourth day in the struggle to contain the blaze, adding that all were found in Paradise. In fire zones in north and south California -- where a total of at least 31 people have died -- acrid smoke blanketed the sky for miles, the sun barely visible. On the ground, cars caught in the flames were reduced to mangled metal carcasses, while power ..
Winds cause flare-ups of big Southern California wildfire
Strong Santa Ana winds returned to Southern California on Sunday, causing flare-ups of a huge wildfire that has scorched a string of communities west of Los Angeles, but no additional structures were believed to have been lost, authorities said. Huge plumes of smoke rose in the fire area, which stretches miles from the northwest corner of Los Angeles' San Fernando Valley to the Malibu coast. Airplanes and helicopters swooped low over hills and canyons to drop loads of fire retardant and water. A one-day lull in the dry, northeasterly winds ended at midmorning and authorities warned that the gusts would continue through Tuesday. The lull allowed firefighters to gain 10 percent control of the Woolsey fire, which has burned more than 130 square miles (335 square kilometers) in western Los Angeles County and southeastern Ventura County since Thursday. Los Angeles County Fire Chief Daryl Osby stressed there were numerous hotspots and plenty of fuel that had not yet burned, but at sunset he
California wildfires toll rises to 31
The death toll from the three raging wildfires in California has increased to 31, with more than 300,000 people forced to evacuate from their homes across the US state, according to authorities.
Miscreants set ablaze Panchayat Ghar in J-K's Brakpora
A Panchayat Ghar was set ablaze by some unidentified miscreants in Brakpora area in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag district on Sunday night.Fire tenders were rushed to the spot to douse the flames.A case has been registered in this regard.The incident comes nearly two weeks after a Panchayat Ghar in Nowpora area was reportedly set ablaze by unknown persons.
Odisha: 3 killed, 15 injured as bus falls into gorge
Three persons were killed and 15 others injured after a bus carrying them plunged into a gorge in Odisha's Nabarangpur district on Sunday.The accident occurred near Jharigaon when the bus skidded on a hilly road and fell into the gorge.The injured were taken to a hospital in Navarangpur. Two of them were later shifted to a Koraput hospital as their condition was stated to be serious, police said.The bus belonged to a school and the passengers included teachers from Raighar, Nabarangpur, Umerkote and Jharigaon.
Liam Payne prepares to lose house in California wildfire
ASinger Liam Payne is afraid of losing his $10 million home in the wildfires currently devastating California.
Co-pilot of Bangkok-bound AI flight misses breath analyser test
A Bangkok-bound Air India flight returned to New Delhi as its co-pilot missed the pre-flight breath analyser test.The flight had taken off around 1.45 pm today but returned to Delhi after 30 minutes. It is still grounded at the Delhi Airport with passengers on board.This is the second such case of discrepancy with regards to the BA test that has come to the fore in the same day.Earlier, a senior pilot of Air India tested positive in a pre-flight breath analyser test and was declared 'unfit to fly.'The pilot, Arvind Kathpalia, had allegedly skipped the BA test on January 19 last year.It is mandatory for pilots to undertake the BA test to ensure that they are not in an inebriated state before entering the cockpit. For safety reasons, they are prohibited from consuming alcohol before reporting for duty.
Panchayat ghar set ablaze by some miscreants in J-K
A panchayat ghar was set ablaze allegedly by some unidentified miscreants in Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir Sunday night, police said. Fire tenders were rushed to the spot to douse the flames, they said. "Some miscreants set a panchayat ghar at Brakpora, in the south Kashmir district, on fire," said a police official. He said the fire resulted in some damage to the building.
Death toll hits 25 from wildfires at both ends of California
Authorities called in a mobile DNA lab and anthropologists to help identify the dead as the search went on for victims of the most destructive wildfire in California history. The overall death toll from the outbreak of fires at both ends of the state stood at 25 Sunday and appeared likely to climb. The worst of the blazes was in Northern California, where flames reduced the town of Paradise, population 27,000, to a smoking ruin days ago and continued to rage in surrounding communities. The number of people killed in that fire alone, 23, made it the third-deadliest on record in the state. Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea said the county was bringing in more rescue workers and consulted anthropologists from California State University at Chico because in some cases "the only remains we are able to find are bones or bone fragments." "This weighs heavy on all of us," Honea said. Authorities were also bringing in a DNA lab and encouraged people with missing relatives to submit samples to ...
At least 10 stowaways dead as DR Congo train derails
At least 10 stowaways were killed and 24 were injured when a freight train derailed in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a local official said Sunday. Rehema Omari, stationmaster in the town of Samba near where the accident occurred on Friday, said the toll was provisional. "The brakes gave way when the train was going at top speed," she told AFP, adding that the driver had fled. A migration service official said however that he saw "at least 30 mangled bodies and others under the cars" of the train. State rail company SNCC's director general for Lubumbashi, Ilunga Ilunkamba, said experts were on the scene to determine the final toll and investigate the causes of the accident. SNCC is headquartered in Lubumbashi, the DR Congo's mining capital, where the train had been headed from the central city of Kindu when it derailed near Samba some 280 kilometres (175 miles) to the south, Omari said. Rail accidents in the sprawling former Belgian colony are frequent and often deadly ...
Air India pilot grounded after failing breath analyser test
Air India senior pilot Arvind Kathpalia, who was tested positive in a pre-flight breath analyser (BA) test, has been grounded, Air India Chief of Flight Safety said on Sunday."Air India pilot Captain Arvind Kathpalia has been grounded. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has been informed to take necessary action," the official said.Meanwhile, the Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) has written to the Ministry of Civil Aviation to take action against the Air India pilot.Kathpalia was found positive in a pre-flight breath analyser test on and declared 'not fit to fly'. He was scheduled to fly AI-111 flight from Delhi to London today.According to the ICPA, Kathpalia had skipped the BA test on January 19 last year. He was scheduled to operate a flight from New Delhi to Bengaluru and proceeded to do so without undergoing the mandatory test claiming that the flight would get delayed. Upon landing at Bengaluru, the pilot once again refused to undergo the test.The ICPA ..
Romania: 10 injured after suspect stabs, drives into people
Emergency officials in Romania say a 20-year-old stabbed another man and then drove a car into people on a road and at a shopping mall, injuring 10 in total. None of the injuries are considered life-threatening. Braila County Police spokeswoman Laura Dan said the stabbing allegedly happened following an altercation over ownership of the vehicle. Dan says the suspect drove off and allegedly struck two people on a ring road, then later rammed the doors of a shopping mall in the city of Braila. Seven people were injured at the mall, including two children ages 11 and 13. Braila Emergency Hospital spokeswoman Alina Neacsu said the stabbing victim had chest and stomach wounds and underwent surgery. Dan says the suspect had a blood alcohol level of 0.37 mg and was uninjured. Drinking any amount of alcohol and then driving is illegal in Romania.
Fire in teachers' training college in Mumbai; no casualty
A fire broke out Sunday on the ninth floor of a teachers' training college in South Mumbai, but no one was injured, a police official said. The blaze started this afternoon in the 10-storey building located near Regal cinema in Colaba, he said. Fire brigade personnel rushed to the spot and doused the flames in a few hours, the official said. No casualty was reported, he said, adding a probe is underway to ascertain the exact reason of the fire.
'Instant Family' premiere cancelled in the wake of wildfire
Paramount Studios cancelled the red carpet premiere of actor Mark Wahlberg's upcoming movie 'Instant Family' on Saturday in the wake of the wildfire spreading across the American state of California.The studio authorities cancelled the premiere at Los Angeles' Westwood area and rescheduled it to another location, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed.A studio representative in a statement said that the decision to continue with the screening at a different location was taken because "a number of foster youths and organizations working in the foster community" were scheduled to attend it.The representative mentioned that the food that was intended to be distributed for the red-carpet event would now be donated to the American Red Cross "which is providing aid to victims of the fires".'Instant Family', which also stars Rose Byrne, Octavia Spencer, and Tig Notaro, is set to hit theatres on November 16.The deadly wildfire, which has wreaked havoc, destroyed a record number of buildings and ...
Smoke forces Air France-Shanghai flight to divert to Siberia
An Air France flight carrying 282 passengers from Paris to Shanghai made an unexpected stop in Siberia on Sunday after smoke and a bitter smell filled the cabin, the company said. No passengers were hurt and they were put up in a hotel near Irkutsk airport in eastern Siberia, Air France told AFP. "The crew of AF116 on a Boeing 777 from Paris to Shanghai decided to divert to Irkutsk in Russia after an acrid smell and light smoke appeared on board," the French carrier told AFP. "The flight landed normally in Irkutsk at 8:10 Paris time (0710 GMT)," it said. Officials at the airport confirmed to Russian news agencies that no one was injured and that experts had been sent to the airport to assess the aircraft. Air France said the flight could continue to Shanghai after technical clearance.
Cyclone 'Gaja' to intensify in next 24 hours
A deep depression in the bay of bengal has intensified into a cyclonic storm and is likely to cross the North Tamil Nadu and South Andhra Pradesh coast between Cuddalore and Sriharikota on November 15, regional weather office here said Sunday. The cyclone, christened 'Gaja', which lay around 860 kms northeast of Chennai and moving at a speed of 12 kmph is likely to intensify into a 'severe cyclonic storm' within the next 24 hours, a bulletin issued at 4 PM said. Gales reaching 80-90 kms per hour was likely over Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Andhra Pradesh. Speaking to reporters, Area Cyclone Warning Centre Director S Balachandran said coastal areas of north Tamil Nadu would experience moderate rainfall and heavy rainfall in isolated places from the night of November 14. "On November 15, many places will receive moderate rainfall and isolated places will get heavy rainfall." Fishermen have been advised not to venture into the sea from November 12 and those already in deep sea
3 killed, 16 injured as bus falls into gorge
At least three persons were killed and 16 others injured when a bus carrying them plunged into a gorge in Odisha's Nabarangpur district on Sunday, police said. The accident occurred near Jharigaon when the bus which was taking the passengers to a spiritual workshop skidded off a hilly road and fell into the gorge. While three passengers including a woman died on the spot, 16 others were injured. The injured were taken to a hospital here. Two of them were later shifted to a Koraput hospital as their condition was stated to be serious, police said. The bus belonged to a school and the passengers included teachers from Raighar, Nabarangpur, Umerkote and Jharigaon.
Elaborate arrangements to ensure smooth Chhath Puja in Bihar
The Patna district administration has made elaborate security arrangements along all ghats by the river Ganga here to avert any untoward incident during this year's Chhath festival that began Sunday, officials said. A total number of 91 medical camps have been set up at different ghats in Patna, the officials said. At least 20 types of medicines will be available at the camps and 32 ambulances have been deployed at various places for the safety of devotees, the Health Minister of Bihar, Mangal Pandey, said on Sunday. Four river ambulances have been pressed into service as well, Pandey said. All the government hospitals and five private hospitals have been asked to be alert during the four-day festival, Pandey added. The District Magistrate (DM) of Patna, Kumar Ravi, along with other officials, visited some major ghats on Saturday, and had expressed satisfaction over the arrangements made for the festival. The administration has set up watch towers, changing rooms, ...
Nepal hit by moderate earthquake
An earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter Scale was felt in Darchula in far-west Nepal, and the surrounding districts on Sunday afternoon, creating panic among the residents. The epicenter of the earthquake was Khela in the Indian state of Uttarakhand that occurred at 12.52 pm, the Seismological Department of Nepal said. Khela is some 16 kilometers South from Khalanga, the headquarters of Darchula district. The locals were scared and ran out of their houses to open grounds as the quake struck, according to officials. However, there have been no reports of any loss of lives or properties due to the quake.
Trump calls for proper forest management to combat California's wildfires
US President Donald Trump called for proper forest management to combat California's wildfires, days after threatening to cut off federal payments due to mismanagement."With proper Forest Management, we can stop the devastation constantly going on in California. Get Smart!" Trump tweeted on Sunday.He previously slammed forest management in the state on November 10 and had tweeted, "There is no reason for these massive, deadly and costly forest fires in California except that forest management is so poor. Billions of dollars are given each year, with so many lives lost, all because of gross mismanagement of the forests. Remedy now, or no more Fed payments!"The US President has urged the affected citizens of California to evacuate, lest they are "overtaken by the fire".As many as 23 people have died so far in the catastrophic fires which have burned over 1,70,000 acres of land. Nearly 300,000 people have been displaced, including Hollywood celebrities like Kim Kardashian West and Lady ..