Crowley pulls off last-minute victory in tight race after polls had shown his progressive opponent as a clear frontrunner
David Crowley, the Milwaukee county executive, pulled off a last-minute victory after re-entering the Wisconsin governor’s race and snagging an endorsement from Tony Evers, the outgoing governor.
The race came down to the wire, with Francesca Hong and Crowley running close to each other as each batch of results came in.
Continue reading...British driver Andy Green reached 406.320 mph in car powered by two hydrogen internal combustion engines
The only person to break the sound barrier in a car earned another world record Tuesday in a show of force for hydrogen power.
British driver Andy Green reached 406.320 mph (653.908 kph) in a car powered by two hydrogen internal combustion engines with a combined 1,600 horsepower, setting the record for that vehicle category, according to the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile, the international governing body of motor sports.
Continue reading...Mike Heard used his paddle to strike gator that had latched on to swimmer in Silver River after hearing yells of ‘Gator!’
A Florida paddleboarder rescued a woman from an alligator attack in Marion county over the weekend.
On Saturday, an alligator bit the woman on the arm while she was swimming in the Silver River, according to local reports citing Marion county authorities.
Continue reading...School said it is pivoting away from letter-grading system to ‘curb the mental health crisis’ among college students
The University of Michigan will pivot to a pass-or-fail-style grading system, instead of letter grades, for first-semester students in an effort to “curb the mental health crisis unfolding among college-aged individuals”.
The school said in a notice on Tuesday that its goal was “to help first-year students acclimate to the demands of college and allow intrinsic motivations to guide personally meaningful academic journeys” and foster “a culture of connection and collaboration – rather than competition”.
Continue reading...Jacob ‘Jake’ Whisenant died in Sequoia and Kings Canyon wilderness in ‘climbing-related incident’, authorities say
A 30-year-old California climber known for breaking speed records died after falling in the Sierra Nevada wilderness last week, according to authorities.
Jacob “Jake” Whisenant, from Mammoth Lakes, California, died in the Sequoia and Kings Canyon wilderness on 3 August, according to the Tulare county sheriff’s office coroner unit and the National Park Service (NPS).
Continue reading...Nearly 500 personnel battle Timber fire in Los Padres national forest as blaze grows to 2,000 acres
Evacuations have been ordered for areas along California’s famous Big Sur coast as a wildfire burns in the nearby steep, rugged mountains.
The Timber fire in Monterey county started on Sunday and grew to 2,000 acres by Tuesday morning, according to Cal Fire, the state’s fire agency. Nearly 500 fire personnel had been assigned to the fire in the Los Padres national forest.
Continue reading...Lawsuit challenges executive order targeting international criminal court for investigating Israeli crimes in Palestine
Four prominent US human rights organizations have accused the Trump administration of using its “crippling” sanctions regime against the international criminal court (ICC) to undermine global efforts to prosecute war crimes and crimes against humanity.
In a lawsuit filed in federal court on Tuesday, the groups – the American Friends Service Committee, the Center for Constitutional Rights, Human Rights Watch and the Open Society Institute – argued that the administration’s targeting of the ICC, as well as of groups and individuals affiliated with it or assisting its work, amounts to a “blatantly illegal attack on international justice”, the groups said.
Continue reading...Elaborate ruse was used to transport president to military flight from Air Force One in July
Donald Trump departed on a secret military flight from Turkey to Britain last month when the White House said he was flying aboard Air Force One, in an extraordinary ruse – prompted by an Iranian assassination threat – that involved hiding the president in an airport catering container, according to reporting from the Washington Post and the New York Times.
The operation took place when Trump was in Ankara for a Nato summit with world leaders, according to the Post. The president reportedly boarded the old Air Force One jumbo jet in view of television cameras, and then was secretly shuttled minutes later to a smaller plane via an airport catering truck typically used to load meals and other supplies preflight, a US official told the Post.
Continue reading...Sara Sanchez, 27, and her daughter died after a speedboat capsized in the New York Harbor over the weekend
The driver of a speedboat that capsized in New York Harbor over the weekend, killing a 27-year-old woman and her infant daughter, was charged on Monday with causing their deaths through misconduct or neglect.
Manuel Hernandez, 46, wiped his eyes with his hand as he arrived for his initial appearance in Manhattan federal court. He was not required to enter a plea and was released on bail.
Continue reading...Incidents of damaged trees at Burnt Cedar beach have been reported since 2022 and seem to be linked, officials say
Pine trees near Lake Tahoe are being poisoned in what authorities believe are a series of interconnected incidents in the popular tourist community on border of Nevada and California.
The incidents have damaged nearly 30 trees, some reportedly more than a century old, and caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses.
Continue reading...President and RFK Jr, the health secretary, repeatedly referred to autism during signing, though studies show no link between it and vaccines
Donald Trump has signed an executive order with plans for sweeping changes to the childhood vaccination schedule that attempts to override the authority of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
It is an attempt to undergird the changes made earlier this year to CDC vaccination recommendations, which were halted by a federal judge. The CDC is the federal agency tasked with recommending vaccines, not the White House.
Continue reading...US president’s statement is latest sign that negotations to end war and reopen strait of Hormuz have stalled
Donald Trump has said he will demand that Iran pay compensation for the deaths of thousands of US soldiers and Iran’s own civilians killed in recent decades in the latest sign his negotiations to end the war and reopen the strait of Hormuz have reached an impasse.
The US president is trying to end conflicts in Iran, Gaza and Lebanon, and his additional demands of Iran are likely to provoke anger in Tehran at the same time as Israel has rejected Trump’s terms for a 15-point roadmap to end the war in Gaza.
Continue reading...Israeli prime minister faces incompatible demands from his far-right government ministers and from Donald Trump
Benjamin Netanyahu’s public rejection of a US-backed deal for Gaza drew scepticism in Israel, amid reports he was personally hammering out details of a pilot military withdrawal days earlier.
The Israeli prime minister is struggling to balance incompatible demands on Gaza policy from his key domestic and international allies.
Continue reading...Scharf, who helped president win approval for $400m ballroom, to replace David Warrington on 1 September
Donald Trump announced on Sunday that Will Scharf, the staff secretary who helped secure approval for the $400m White House ballroom project, will become White House counsel and assistant to the president.
Effective 1 September, Scharf will replace David Warrington, who will be leaving the administration to join the private sector. Warrington formerly served as a personal counsel and a lawyer for Trump’s 2024 campaign.
Continue reading...US congresswoman to share journey online as she criticizes Trump administration’s attacks on reproductive care
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has announced she is going to freeze her eggs and will be sharing the process online.
The progressive New York congresswoman, 36, revealed her decision to undergo fertility treatment in a series of Instagram stories this weekend. “This is a choice that I am making to feel more in control of my life,” Ocasio-Cortez said.
Continue reading...Small cruise ship rescued skiff in south-east Alaska even though Meta billionaire’s $300m megayacht was closer
Mark Zuckerberg has faced questions over why a small cruise ship in south-east Alaska rescued a stranded skiff and its crew when his 387ft superyacht had been closer.
The Silicon Valley billionaire’s yacht, worth a reported $300m, is said to have “repeatedly” declined to assist when a nearby boat called for help last week.
Continue reading...Astronomers say viewing conditions promising for this year’s shower, and 50 to 100 meteors an hour may be visible
The Perseid summer light show is back, and viewing conditions are especially promising across the northern hemisphere.
The meteor shower’s is expected to peak on Wednesday night into Thursday morning, and coincides with a total solar eclipse across Spain, Iceland and Greenland and a six-planet parade – though the best time to view the fireballs will come after totality.
Continue reading...Israeli PM says IDF will not withdraw until Hamas is disarmed and rebukes US pressure to end wars without his country’s buy-in
Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has rejected a US-backed 15-point peace plan for Gaza in a rare public break with Donald Trump.
In a statement on Sunday, Netanyahu said that he was confronting a “wave of rumours about Israeli weakness and Israeli withdrawals on all fronts” and rebuked US pressure to end wars in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran without Israel’s buy-in.
Continue reading...Levels at reservoir along Arizona-Nevada border dipped below previous record set in 2022, amid water crisis in west
Lake Mead, the largest reservoir in the United States, has plummeted to its lowest water level since it was filled some 90 years ago, the latest sign of a deepening water crisis in the American west.
Water levels at the reservoir, which straddles the Arizona-Nevada border outside Las Vegas, hit 1,040.4ft (317.1 meters) above sea level on Friday, according to federal data. That’s just below the record set on 28 July 2022, according to the US Bureau of Reclamation.
Continue reading...Drone strike comes after Riyadh signs defence pact and Tehran issues tough demands to reopen strait of Hormuz
Yemen’s Tehran-aligned Houthis have claimed responsibility for an attack on a refinery in Saudi Arabia, two days after the kingdom signed a defence pact with Turkey and Pakistan in response to growing regional instability caused by the US-Israel war on Iran.
The attack early on Sunday came after Iran said tough new demands would have to be met before it would reopen the strait of Hormuz, and after the United Arab Emirates said one of its ships had been targeted by an Iranian missile, as a deal to open the waterway remained out of reach.
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