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There were rolling blackouts in multiple cities across Mexico on Tuesday, as people in several states reeled from soaring temperatures and the national energy authority briefly declared a state of emergency. A heat wave has scorched Mexico in recent days, bringing temperatures in multiple states into the triple digits. Mexico City on Tuesday reached a high of 92 degrees Fahrenheit, the hottest temperature recorded there on May 7 in over 20 years. Mexico’s energy authority, Cenace, announced a state of emergency for the national grid early Tuesday evening, meaning that available power had dropped below adequate levels. But local news media outlets reported on blackouts in municipalities across the country throughout the evening.

Locations: Mexico, Mexico City

☆ At Least 2 Dead in Hospital Knife Attack in China
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( John Yoon | More About John Yoon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

At least two people were killed and 21 others injured in a knife attack at a hospital in China on Tuesday, the authorities said. The stabbing took place in the southwestern province of Yunnan at about 11:30 a.m., the police in Zhenxiong County said in a statement. The attack happened at Zhenxiong People’s Hospital, an employee at Zhenxiong County Health Bureau said by phone on Tuesday. She did not give her name or confirm any other details. Knife attacks are not uncommon in China, where guns are tightly regulated, and some stabbing rampages have occurred in hospitals.

Persons: rampages Organizations: People’s, Health Locations: China, Yunnan, Zhenxiong County, Zhenxiong

☆ Pittsburgh Shuts Bridges as 26 Barges Break Loose on Ohio River
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-13 | by ( John Yoon | More About John Yoon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The authorities in Pittsburgh closed several bridges as a precaution after 26 barges loaded with coal broke loose on the Ohio River late Friday, drifting miles downstream and damaging a marina, as a flood warning was in effect for the river. There is a risk that the barges could come into contact with the “substructure” of one of the bridges, the McKees Rocks Bridge, the McKees Rocks Police Department said in a statement early Saturday confirming its closure. While floating down the river, the barges caused “extensive damage” to a marina near Brunot Island, the city said. At least 11 barges were found and pinned against a riverbank near the island and held by a tugboat, the city said. But others continued downstream, with six going over the Emsworth Dam, about five miles farther.

Persons: “ Organizations: McKees Rocks Police Department, Campbell Transportation Company Locations: Pittsburgh, Ohio, Brunot, Emsworth

Truong My Lan, a Vietnamese real estate tycoon, was sentenced to death on Thursday for her role in a financial fraud case, in a major display of the ruling Communist Party’s resolve to crack down on corruption. The trial for Ms. Lan, who was the chairwoman of the real estate developer Van Thinh Phat Group, was part of the government’s campaign against corruption. The leader of Vietnam’s Communist Party, Nguyen Phu Trong, has sought for years to stamp out corruption as the nation emerges as a major manufacturing hub and as one of Asia’s fastest-growing economies. Mr. Trong launched the anti-corruption drive in 2016, saying that graft could threaten the survival of the Communist Party, which has governed the country for nearly half a century. The campaign has led to the downfall of many business leaders and top officials, including former President Vo Van Tong, who resigned in March amid corruption allegations.

Persons: Truong, Lan, Van Thinh, Nguyen Phu Trong, Trong, Vo Van Tong Organizations: Vietnam’s Communist Party, Communist Party Locations: Vietnamese, Ho Chi Minh City

☆ Mexico Breaks Diplomatic Ties With Ecuador After Arrest at Embassy
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-06 | by ( John Yoon | More About John Yoon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ecuadorean police officers entered the Mexican embassy in Quito on Friday night to arrest Ecuador’s former vice president who had taken refuge there, prompting Mexico to suspend bilateral relations. Jorge Glas, the former vice president, had been sentenced to prison and there was a warrant out for his arrest before Mexico granted him asylum, Ecuador’s presidential office said in a statement announcing the arrest. Mr. Glas had lived at the embassy since December and was granted political asylum earlier on Friday. The statement said that “no criminal can be considered politically persecuted.”The statement, from the office of President Daniel Noboa, added that the arrest had gone forward because Mexico had abused the immunities and privileges granted to the diplomatic mission and that Mr. Glas’s asylum was given “contrary to the conventional legal framework.”Shortly after the arrest, Mexico’s president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, issued a statement saying that the arrest was a “flagrant violation of international law and the sovereignty of Mexico,” and that the Ecuadorean police had entered the embassy forcibly.

Persons: Ecuador’s, Jorge Glas, Glas, Daniel Noboa, Andrés Manuel López Obrador Locations: Quito, Mexico

☆ 3 Killed in National Guard Helicopter Crash Near Mexican Border
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-08 | by ( John Yoon | More About John Yoon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Three people were killed and one was critically injured after a helicopter carrying National Guard members and a Border Patrol agent crashed in southern Texas on Friday while following people who were crossing the border with Mexico, officials said. The helicopter, which crashed at 2:50 p.m., was conducting an operation near Rio Grande City, according to Joint Task Force North, an operation under the Defense Department that supports Customs and Border Protection with National Guard units. Two of the dead were soldiers, and the third was a Border Patrol agent, Joint Task Force North said in a statement, adding that it would not share the names of the victims because their families had not been notified. The National Guard confirmed in a statement that its members on board were part of the Army National Guard. That model has served as the U.S. Army’s light utility helicopter since 2006, according to Airbus, the manufacturer.

Organizations: National Guard, Border Patrol, Task Force, Defense Department, Army National Guard, UH, Lakota, Airbus Locations: Texas, Mexico, Rio Grande City

☆ Wildfires Prompt Evacuations in Texas and Oklahoma
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( John Yoon | More About John Yoon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Wildfires were spreading rapidly in Texas and Oklahoma early Wednesday, prompting evacuations and the closure of a plant that disassembles nuclear weapons. In Texas, Gov. The largest current blaze in the Texas Panhandle, the Smokehouse Creek fire, has burned at least 300,000 acres since igniting on Monday, fueled by strong winds and dry conditions, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service. “Hot and dry conditions caused by high temperatures and windy conditions are expected to continue in the region in the coming days,” Governor Abbott said in a statement. “These conditions could increase the potential for these wildfires to grow larger and more dangerous.”

Persons: Greg Abbott, Abbott Organizations: Gov, Texas Panhandle, Texas, M, Service Locations: Texas, Oklahoma

☆ Lee Hoyang, Prolific K-Pop Producer and Songwriter, Dies at 40
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-25 | by ( John Yoon | More About John Yoon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Lee Hoyang, a prolific producer and songwriter of South Korean pop music who was professionally known as Shinsadong Tiger and who helped create some of the biggest K-pop hits of the 2010s, died in Seoul on Friday. It did not mention the cause of death, but said that a private funeral was being held in Seoul. Mr. Lee was often credited with shaping the musical style that defined K-pop in the early 2010s: catchy, upbeat and repetitive with a strong hook. Among the hits were “Roly-Poly” and “Bo Peep Bo Peep,” both by T-ara; “NoNoNo” by Apink; and “Bubble Pop!” by HyunA. “He created an exciting, funky, beat-driven K-pop style that continues to be repeated over and over again,” said Do Heon Kim, a pop music critic in South Korea.

Persons: Lee Hoyang, Tiger, Lee’s, Lee, “ Bo Peep Bo Peep, ”, Heon Kim, hasn’t Organizations: TR Entertainment Locations: Korean, Seoul, South Korea

Ameen Sayani, a pioneering radio presenter who drew generations of listeners in India with his melodic voice on a radio show that became a national phenomenon, died on Tuesday. Born in 1932, Ameen Sayani was introduced to radio by his elder brother who was an English-language presenter. In 1952, Ameen became one of the first voices to be heard on the airwaves in Asia by starting the radio program for which he became the most famous, “Binaca Geetmala,” showcasing Bollywood music. He hosted the program on Radio Ceylon, one of the oldest radio stations in the world, based in what is now Sri Lanka. The show was later moved to All India Radio, the state-owned public broadcaster.

Persons: Ameen, Narendra Modi, Sayani’s, “, ” Mr, Rajil, Ameen Sayani, Binaca Organizations: Radio Ceylon, India Radio Locations: India, English, Asia, Sri Lanka

A firefighter was killed after a house in Virginia exploded Friday night, injuring 11 other people and scattering pieces of the home across the neighborhood, officials said. Firefighters arrived at the home in Sterling, Va., a suburb of Washington, about 7:40 p.m., said James Williams, the assistant chief of operations for Loudoun County Fire and Rescue. That was around the same time the Sterling Volunteer Fire Company reported on social media that it had sent fire engines to the house to investigate a gas leak. Soon after, the house exploded with firefighters inside, leaving people trapped and the area in “total devastation,” Mr. Williams said. Aerial footage of the scene from local news media showed smoke and debris covering the area and barely any signs of the demolished house.

Persons: Firefighters, James Williams, ” Mr, Williams Organizations: Loudoun County Fire, Sterling Volunteer Fire Company Locations: Virginia, Sterling , Va, Washington, Loudoun County

Fake, sexually explicit images of Taylor Swift likely generated by artificial intelligence spread rapidly across social media platforms this week, disturbing fans who saw them and reigniting calls from lawmakers to protect women and crack down on the platforms and technology that spread such images. X suspended several accounts that posted the faked images of Ms. Swift, but the images were shared on other social media platforms and continued to spread despite those companies’ efforts to remove them. While X said it was working to remove the images, fans of the pop superstar flooded the platform in protest. They posted related keywords, along with the sentence “Protect Taylor Swift,” in an effort to drown out the explicit images and make them more difficult to find.

Persons: Taylor Swift, X, Swift, Ben Colman Organizations: Twitter

After the check, Mr. Young began asking the agents questions, which they said they answered, and he began video recording them. The arrest affidavit said that Mr. Young and his friends had followed them and began talking to the people there. Then the agent pushed Mr. Young with two hands, and Mr. Young staggered backward and hit his back on a corner of the bar table, causing him to briefly fall, the video shows. Mr. Young then got up, raised both of his hands in the air and walked backward from the agents. Another agent tried speaking to Mr. Young, who did not comply with the orders, the affidavit said.

Persons: Young, Mr, Joseph Phillips Organizations: Alcoholic Beverage Commission, DawgHouse

☆ Frankfurt Airport Cancels Half Its Flights Because of Snow and Ice
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( John Yoon | More About John Yoon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Heavy snow and freezing rain grounded hundreds of flights in Germany on Wednesday, including at Frankfurt Airport, one of Europe’s busiest, where half of the scheduled flights were canceled. At Frankfurt Airport, about 500 of the 1,030 scheduled flights were canceled because of the weather on Wednesday, when 115,000 passengers had been expected, the airport said in a statement. The weather-related disruptions would continue on Thursday, the airport said, advising passengers to check their flight status before traveling to the airport. Munich Airport grounded about 150 flights on Wednesday, according to FlightAware, a flight tracking website. Saarbrücken Airport, a small international airport on the country’s western border, suspended operations entirely, its website said.

Organizations: Frankfurt Airport, Saarbrücken Locations: Germany

The U.S. Air Force said on Monday that the bodies of five crew members had been found alongside the wreckage of a CV-22 Osprey that went down during a routine training exercise last week in southern Japan. Two crew members remain unaccounted for, and the remains of one had been discovered on Wednesday, the day of the crash. Over the weekend, the Air Force identified that airman as Staff Sgt. The body of Sergeant Galliher, a young father who went by the first name Jake, had been found by the Japan Coast Guard. The U.S. Air Force said that a breakthrough in the five-day search came on Monday, when a combined Japanese and American team found the Osprey’s fuselage.

Persons: Jacob M, Sergeant Galliher, Jake, Minoru Kihara, Ricky Rupp Organizations: U.S . Air Force, Air Force, Japan Coast Guard, United States Forces Japan Locations: Japan, Yakushima

When the North Korean men’s soccer team took the field for two 2026 World Cup qualifying matches this month, close observers noticed an important roster change. Han Kwang-song, a high-profile striker, was back, more than three years after vanishing from public view for reasons beyond his control: United Nations-imposed sanctions on North Korean nationals over Pyongyang’s nuclear program. Mr. Han’s story is a rare case of North Korea sanctions reverberating through professional soccer. It also shows how enforcement of U.N. sanctions against individuals varies by country. The government in Italy did not deport Mr. Han, now 25, while he was playing professional soccer there.

Persons: Han Kwang, Han Organizations: United Nations, North Locations: Korean, North Korea, Italy, Qatar, Qatari

☆ Students at Bates College waited anxiously for news under lockdown.
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-26 | by ( John Yoon | More About John Yoon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

At Bates College, the active shooter alert on Wednesday night interrupted a birthday celebration in a dormitory room. “We huddled together and waited for more news,” Ms. The lockdown remained in place overnight for Lewiston, Me., and the 1,800 students at Bates College, a small liberal arts institution there. The emergency order left some students and employees stranded on campus, unable to return home, the university said in a statement. Le waited for news in her dormitory, her family in the Portland, Me., area periodically checked in with her, she said.

Persons: Mavy Le, Ms, Le, “, ”, Geoffrey Swift, “ I’m, ” David He, Mr Organizations: Bates College Locations: Lewiston, Me, Portland

☆ Otis Makes Landfall Near Acapulco as ‘Catastrophic’ Category 5 Hurricane
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( John Yoon | More About John Yoon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Otis made landfall near the resort city of Acapulco on the southern Pacific Coast of Mexico as a Category 5 hurricane, bringing record winds and rainfall that could create a “nightmare scenario” of flooding and mudslides, forecasters said early Wednesday. Hurricane Otis’s maximum sustained winds had grown to 165 miles per hour with stronger gusts at about 12:25 a.m. local time, when it made landfall, the National Hurricane Center said. The storm formed in the Pacific Ocean on Sunday, became a Category 1 hurricane midday Tuesday and “explosively intensified” in a matter of hours, becoming the strongest storm ever to hit this part of Mexico, forecasters said. Otis threatens a coast dotted with fishing villages and beach resorts as they gear up for their peak winter season. Along its path lies Acapulco, a large port city and a popular tourist destination home to more than 852,000 people, according to the Mexican government.

Persons: Otis, “ Organizations: National Hurricane Center Locations: Acapulco, Pacific Coast, Mexico

A Washington state senator was arrested at a Hong Kong airport on charges of possessing a locally unregistered firearm, his office said on Monday. Jeff Wilson, a Republican who represents parts of southwestern Washington State, discovered the weapon on his flight from San Francisco to Hong Kong when he reached into his briefcase for a piece of gum, his office said in a statement. Baggage screeners in Portland, Ore., had failed to notice the unloaded pistol in his briefcase before he departed for his trip, letting it pass through airport security, according to his office. When he landed at Hong Kong International Airport, he told customs officials there about the gun. Mr. Wilson was arrested on Friday night, then released on bail on Sunday, his office said.

Persons: Jeff Wilson, Wilson Organizations: Republican, Hong Kong International Airport Locations: Washington, Hong Kong, Washington State, San Francisco, Portland ,

The Nobel Prize-winning journalist Maria Ressa on Tuesday was acquitted by a Philippine court of tax fraud, the latest legal victory in her fight for the survival of her news site Rappler, which has come to represent the precariousness of the nation’s press freedoms. A regional trial court in Pasig City, near Manila, found that Ms. Ressa did not violate the country’s tax code, according to the ruling. It was the fifth and final tax-related charge against Ms. Ressa, who faced a fine and up to 10 years in prison, and her publication, according to a statement from Rappler. Ms. Ressa, the Philippines’ most prominent journalist, has been the target of harassment and intimidation since she founded the news site in 2012. She has faced a series of civil and criminal cases, including charges of tax evasion and violations of foreign ownership rules.

Persons: Maria Ressa, Ressa, Ms, ” Locations: Philippine, Pasig City, Manila, Philippines

☆ Flooding From Cyclone in Southern Brazil Kills at Least 22
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( John Yoon | More About John Yoon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

A cyclone battered southern Brazil early this week, killing at least 22 people, displacing 3,000 others and prompting the federal government to dispatch helicopters for rescues, the authorities said late Tuesday. Since Sunday, the storm has brought strong winds and floods to the states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina, submerging dozens of towns, according to the Ministry of Social Development. More rainfall was on the way, and some areas could get more than 11 inches of rain this week, Brazil’s National Institute of Meteorology said. Authorities also warned of further flooding near three rivers in the region. The storm, which forecasters described as an extratropical cyclone, also spawned a tornado and winds exceeding 62 miles per hour in Santa Catarina, the state’s Civil Defense said on Tuesday.

Organizations: Ministry of Social, Brazil’s National Institute of Meteorology, Authorities, state’s Civil Defense Locations: Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina

A fire in a house that was being used as a T-shirt printing shop in the Philippines killed at least 15 people on Thursday, including its workers, the business owner and his family members, officials said. The fire broke out at 5:45 a.m. in a house in the district of Tandang Sora in Quezon City, a densely populated suburb northwest of the capital, Manila, a police report said. When the fire alarm was triggered, 37 fire engines were sent to the site of the blaze, according to the police report from the Quezon City Police District. Among the dead were workers at the shop, including quality checkers, printing staff and a driver, many of whom lived in the house and were in their 20s, the police said. The business owner, Michael Cavilte, was 44.

Persons: Tandang Sora, Michael Cavilte Organizations: Quezon City Police District Locations: Philippines, Tandang, Quezon City, Manila, Quezon

☆ Hurricane Idalia: Florida’s Evacuation Orders by County
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( John Yoon | More About John Yoon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

More than 20 counties in western and Central Florida have issued evacuation orders as Hurricane Idalia approaches, including parts of Tampa, the state’s third-largest city. Baker County, west of Jacksonville, issued a voluntary evacuation order for low-lying and flood-prone areas and for mobile homes. Dixie County, west of Gainesville, issued a mandatory evacuation order, urging residents to complete preparations by sunset on Tuesday. Gilchrist County, west of Gainesville, issued a voluntary evacuation order for all low-lying areas and mobile homes. Jefferson County, east of Tallahassee, ordered the voluntary evacuation of mobile homes, recreational vehicles and low-lying areas that are prone to floods.

Persons: Simmons, Joe Beach, Johnny Diaz, Claire Moses Locations: Central Florida, Tampa, Florida, Baker County, Jacksonville, Citrus County, U.S, Dixie County, Gainesville, Franklin County, Tallahassee, Gilchrist County, Gulf County, Panama City, Cape San Blas, Mexico, Simmons Bayou, Highland, Hernando County, Tuesday, Hillsborough County, Jefferson County

Seafood is having a bad week in East Asia, which is bad news for a region where it’s a major part of the diet. Experts say Japan’s discharge into the ocean of treated radioactive wastewater from the ruined Fukushima nuclear power plant, which began on Thursday, does not and will not pose health risks to people who eat seafood. On Thursday, the Chinese government widened a ban on seafood imports to include all of Japan instead of only some regions. The wastewater release has been heavily politicized and fueled deep anxiety over seafood in both China and South Korea, leaving some wondering whether sushi, sashimi and other products were still safe. At Noryangjin Fish Market in Seoul on Friday, fish vending associations had put up banners urging consumers to not give in to paranoia.

Locations: East Asia, Japan, China, South Korea, Seoul

At least four people were dead, including a gunman, and six others were injured after a man believed to have been a retired law enforcement officer opened fire at a popular biker bar in Southern California on Wednesday evening as a crowd gathered for a rock music show and spaghetti night, the authorities said. The shooting occurred at about 7 p.m. at Cook’s Corner, a bar in Trabuco Canyon, a rural community in eastern Orange County, Jeff Hallock, undersheriff at the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, said. The injured were taken to Providence Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo, Calif. Two of the patients were in critical condition, and four were in stable condition, the hospital said. Undersheriff Hallock said the shooting erupted in front of as many as 40 people. He called the incident “an absolute tragic event.”

Persons: Jeff Hallock, undersheriff, Undersheriff Hallock, ” Organizations: Orange County Sheriff’s Department, Providence Mission Hospital Locations: Southern California, Trabuco, Orange County, Orange, Providence, Mission Viejo, Calif

☆ Escape China by Jet Ski? A Dissident Is Said to Have Planned It for Years
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( John Yoon | More About John Yoon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The South Korean Coast Guard has confirmed that on Aug. 16 it found a man stranded with a Jet Ski-type vehicle on a mud flat off the country’s west coast, near the city of Incheon. He had set off from the Shandong Peninsula with a helmet, a life jacket, a telescope and a compass, according to the Coast Guard. He also had five containers of fuel, which he’d tied to the watercraft and used to keep the tank filled during the 14-hour journey, the Coast Guard said. “He felt depressed living in China due to the autocracy and lack of freedom of speech,” said Mr. Ran, 36, who met Mr. Kwon on an online forum about Chinese history.

Persons: he’d, Matt Ran, Kwon, ”, Mr, Quan Ping, Ran, “ Organizations: Korean Coast Guard, Coast Guard, Iowa State University Locations: Incheon, South Korea, China, Shandong, New York City

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