Category Archives: Florida

Hurricane Helene makes landfall in Florida as powerful category 4 storm

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Surge could rise to as much as 20ft in some spots after huge storm strengthened as it careened across Gulf of Mexico

Hurricane Helene made landfall along the Florida coast on Thursday night as a powerful and potentially disastrous category 4 storm, bringing chaos to a wide swathe of the Gulf coast and threatening high winds, storm surges and drenching rainfall.

Helene was located about 70km east-southeast of Tallahassee, Florida, with maximum sustained winds of 225 kph, the Miami-based UA National Hurricane Center said late on Thursday.

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Hurricane Helene intensifies to category 4 storm as it approaches Florida

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Forecasters warn that storm, one of the most powerful to hit the US this year, could create a ‘nightmare’

Hurricane Helene strengthened to a catastrophic category 4 storm as it barreled toward Florida’s Gulf coast, making it one of the most powerful storms to hit the US this year.

The storm is expected to make landfall on Thursday night. Forecasters warn the enormous storm could create a “nightmare” scenario, with a potentially life-threatening storm surge that could reach 15-20ft (4.6-6.1 meters) in the Big Bend area of Florida’s Panhandle region.

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Man charged with attempting to assassinate Trump at Florida golf club

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Ryan Routh, 58, accused of plotting to kill Republican presidential nominee in West Palm Beach last week

A man accused of lurking outside Donald Trump’s south Florida golf course on 15 September with a gun – and allegedly writing about his desire to kill him – was charged on Tuesday with attempting to kill the Republican presidential candidate.

Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, was indicted on five counts in south Florida federal court: attempted assassination of a major political candidate, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, assaulting a federal officer, felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number. He was first charged with federal firearms crimes after his arrest.

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Biden declares emergency as Florida braces for Tropical Storm Helene

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Storm developing over Caribbean could become category 4 hurricane by Thursday as evacuations ordered in Florida

Joe Biden declared a state of emergency for Florida on Tuesday afternoon as the state braced for the prospect of Tropical Storm Helene swelling into a powerful hurricane heading for the state’s Gulf coast.

The US president ordered federal assistance to supplement state and local responses. The action authorizes the Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) to coordinate all disaster relief efforts to alleviate hardship and suffering, the White House said.

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Trump golf club suspect left note saying he intended to kill ex-president – DoJ

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Suspect also maintained a list of dates and venues where Trump was to appear, justice department says

The man accused in the apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump at a golf course in Florida left behind a note saying that he intended to kill the former president and maintained in his car a handwritten list of dates and venues where the Republican White House nominee was to appear, the justice department said on Monday.

The new allegations were included in a detention memo filed ahead of a hearing on Monday at which the justice department was expected to argue that 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh should remain locked up while the case is pending.

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Activist with far-right ties fronts Marco Rubio-linked anti-immigration effort

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Nate Hochman recorded several videos for America 2100, a thinktank linked to the Republican Florida senator

The rightwing activist Nate Hochman, who was fired last year by the Florida governor, Ron DeSantis, for employing neo-Nazi imagery in a campaign video, is now the face of a Marco Rubio-linked thinktank’s efforts to spread anti-immigrant panic from Ohio to Pennsylvania.

Videos featuring Hochman recorded in Charleroi, Pennsylvania, have been boosted on X by a range of rightwing figures including the platform’s owner, the tech billionaire Elon Musk.

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Trump recounts apparent assassination attempt as new details emerge

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Former president praises Secret Service as cellphone records show alleged gunman camped out near golf course for about 12 hours

Donald Trump has given his first detailed account of what he experienced on Sunday during what the FBI has said “appears to be an attempted assassination of the former president”, as authorities revealed new details about the incident at his West Palm Beach golf club.

Trump said he was playing golf with friends, including businessman Steve Witkoff, when he heard gunshots.

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Democrats campaign carefully after apparent Trump assassination plot

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The party has been quick to condemn political violence – and is focusing its criticism on Trump’s unpopular policies

In comments to Fox News Digital on Monday, Donald Trump blamed Democrats for the repeated attempts on his life. “Their rhetoric is causing me to be shot at, when I am the one who is going to save the country and they are the ones that are destroying the country – both from the inside and out,” he said.

Also on Monday, the former president released a list of quotes that the campaign described as incendiary. At the top of that list was a quote from Kamala Harris saying: “Trump is a threat to our democracy and fundamental freedoms.”

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Far-right conspiracies abound after second apparent Trump assassination attempt

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Baseless theories about suspect Ryan Wesley Routh and his alleged ties to US military spread online after his arrest

After a man who appears to be obsessive about the war in Ukraine was arrested for allegedly attempting to assassinate Donald Trump on Sunday, rumors and conspiracy theories have spread online attempting to tie Democrats to the two assassination attempts on the former president this election.

Ryan Wesley Routh, the suspect charged with gun-related crimes on Monday, previously conducted media interviews about his efforts to recruit volunteer fighters, particularly from Afghanistan, to help Ukraine in its war against Russia. Routh also apparently self-published an e-book on Ukraine in which he said that Iran was “free to assassinate Trump as well as me”, according to media reports.

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Biden tells Trump of his relief he is safe; Secret Service says golf club visit was unscheduled – live

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President and predecessor share ‘cordial conversation’, White House says; acting director Ronald Rowe defends Secret Service actions

A law enforcement source has told CNN that they “expect a federal court in South Florida will require ‘a mental health assessment’ of Ryan Wesley Routh before any possible criminal proceedings”.

Several prominent foreign leaders have commented on what appears to have been an assassination attempt on Donald Trump yesterday.

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Suspect charged as Trump accuses Biden and Harris of incitement

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Ryan Wesley Routh charged with gun-related offenses after apparent assassination attempt against former president

The suspect in the second apparent assassination attempt of Donald Trump in as many months was charged in federal court on Monday morning with two gun-related crimes, as urgent investigations began into how he was able to get so close to the former US president.

As the US continued to react in shock to the latest apparent attempt on Trump’s life, the Republican presidential nominee added to the already tense atmosphere around the US election campaign by making highly inflammatory remarks, explicitly blaming Joe Biden and Kamala Harris for inciting the attack and calling them “the enemy within”.

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Violence and instability have become a feature, not a bug, of US political life

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Another apparent Trump assassination attempt happened – as we brace for what has been dubbed ‘a tinderbox election’

It has happened again. Another serene and sunny weekend. Another lone suspect wielding a rifle. Another apparent bid to assassinate Donald Trump. And a nation hurtling into uncharted territory 50 days from a presidential election.

On Sunday, Secret Service agents opened fire after seeing a man with a rifle near Trump’s West Palm Beach golf club in Florida while the Republican candidate was playing. The suspect fled in an SUV and was later apprehended by local law enforcement.

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Trump shooting attempt: Secret Service will have ‘every resource’ to protect Trump, Biden says, after apparent assassination bid – live

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A suspect is in custody after the incident, which occurred at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida

Palm Beach county sheriff’s office is hosting its press conference.

According to authorities, a witness said: “I saw the guy running out in the bushes.”

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Suspect held after apparent assassination attempt on Donald Trump at Florida golf course

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Ex-president ‘safe and well’ after Secret Service agents opened fire when they spotted person with firearm

A suspect has been arrested and an AK-47 style assault rifle and scope recovered at a Donald Trump golf course in Florida as the FBI investigated what “appears to be an attempted assassination” of the former president.

On Sunday afternoon, Secret Service agents scouting the course ahead of where Trump was playing spotted the muzzle of a firearm poking through a fence in a wooded area at the Trump International club in West Palm Beach, officials said.

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Who is the man reportedly detained in the Trump ‘assassination attempt’?

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Identity has not been confirmed but suspect named in media reports is described as construction worker who opposed invasion of Ukraine

The suspect in the latest apparent assassination attempt on Donald Trump was in custody on Sunday night after being apprehended unarmed, having apparently abandoned his assault rifle at the golf course before fleeing.

The man in custody was Ryan Wesley Routh, three law enforcement officials told the Associated Press. The officials who identified the suspect spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the investigation.

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US man died because doctor removed wrong organ in procedure, family says

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Family of William Bryan alleges Dr Thomas Shaknovsky removed liver instead of spleen during surgical procedure

The family of a 70-year-old man from Alabama who died last month say that his death was a result of a doctor removing the wrong organ during a surgical procedure in Florida.

William Bryan, 70, and his wife Beverly were visiting their rental property in Okaloosa county this summer when Bryan suddenly began experiencing left-sided flank pain, according to law firm representing his wife, Beverly. Bryan then went to hospital, and was admitted for further studies pursuant to concern for an abnormality of the spleen.

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Donald Trump comes out in support of recreational-use marijuana in Florida

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State will decide on a constitutional amendment in November over whether to allow for adult use of pot

Donald Trump has come out in support for a proposed constitutional amendment that would legalize recreational marijuana in Florida, the state in which he resides.

In a Truth Social post on Saturday, Trump said “personal amounts of marijuana will be legalized for adults” with Florida’s amendment 3, “whether people like it or not”.

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Pulse nightclub owners will not face charges over 2016 mass shooting

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Police close investigation into Barbara and Rosario Poma over possible manslaughter linked to Florida massacre

The Orlando police department has closed its investigation into the former owners of the Pulse nightclub without filing any charges. Victims’ families and survivors of the mass shooting that killed 49 patrons at the LGBTQ+ club had asked law enforcement to investigate them for criminal culpability.

No charges will be filed against the former owners, Barbara and Rosario Poma, because probable cause did not exist for involuntary manslaughter by culpable negligence, the Orlando police said this week in an emailed statement.

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Florida police officer charged with manslaughter over Black airman’s killing

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Eddie Duran charged over death of Roger Fortson, who was shot multiple times when he opened apartment door

A Florida sheriff’s deputy is facing a charge of manslaughter with a firearm in connection with the fatal shooting of a US air force member who opened his apartment door while holding a gun.

The former Okaloosa county deputy Eddie Duran was charged on Friday in the 3 May shooting death of senior airman Roger Fortson, assistant state attorney Greg Marcille said. That is a first-degree felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison.

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Disney seeks to dismiss wrongful death lawsuit over widower’s Disney+ free trial

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Man says wife died of allergic reaction at Disney World but company claims streamer’s terms block him from filing suit

Attorneys for Disney World are seeking to dismiss a wrongful death lawsuit brought by a husband over the death of his wife last year because of the terms and conditions he agreed to when signing up for Disney+ streaming service several years earlier.

In February of this year, Jeffrey Piccolo filed a wrongful death suit against Disney on behalf of his wife, Dr Kanokporn Tangsuan, a medical doctor from New York who died last year. His lawsuit claims that her death was a result of suffering an allergic reaction while dining at a resort restaurant in Disney Springs at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.

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