4 rescued, including child, after hunting party gets stuck on ice floe in Alaska: Coast Guard
A still from a U.S. Coast Guard video showing the rescue of four people who became trapped on an ice floe during a seal hunting expedition naer Chefornak, Alaska, on April 12, 2026. (U.S. Coast Guard)
(ALASKA) — Four people, including a child, who got trapped on an ice floe during a seal hunting expedition in Alaska were safely rescued, the U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday, calling it one of the most “challenging missions” the helicopter crew has ever flown.
The daring rescue occurred early Sunday, approximately 10 miles west of Chefornak, a remote village in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta region in southwestern Alaska.
Alaska State Troopers reported to the Coast Guard at 4:24 p.m. on Saturday that a “group of four people on a subsistence seal hunting expedition required assistance after being trapped on the ice for over 24 hours,” the Coast Guard said in a press release.
The group managed to free the 18-foot vessel overnight, but moving ice prevented it from reaching the shore, the Coast Guard said.
An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew from Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak reached the scene at approximately 5 p.m. Sunday, and all four people — three adults and one child — were safely hoisted aboard, according to the Coast Guard, which released video footage of the rescue.
The conditions at the time included 28-degree air temperature and 29 mph winds, the Coast Guard said.
The individuals were transported back to Chefornak with no reported injuries, the Coast Guard said.
“Our entire crew agreed this was one of the most challenging missions any of us had ever flown,” Lt. Cmdr. Alexis Chavarria-Aguilar, pilot-in-command for the helicopter, said in a statement. “We battled nearly every Alaska-centric aviation weather hazard imaginable, such as flying over 800 miles in near-zero visibility through mountainous terrain, blowing snow and icing conditions.”
“It was a long, difficult night, but I’m so proud of everyone involved who worked seamlessly together to bring four people home safely,” he added.
The Coast Guard noted that the hunting party had three forms of communication on their vessel — including satellite-based — which “greatly enhanced” the aircrew’s ability to find and rescue them.
(WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich.) — A suspect is dead after a shooting and vehicle ramming incident at a synagogue in West Bloomfield, Michigan, law enforcement sources told ABC News.
No injuries have been confirmed, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said.
Preliminary information is that this was an intentional vehicle ramming, sources briefed on the investigation told ABC News.
According to the sources, the driver was seen steering around security bollards, and caused a fire when colliding the car into the building’s front doors.
The suspect was then engaged by synagogue security, the sheriff said.
The Michigan State Police said it’s urging residents to stay away from the area and said police are increasing patrols at other places of worship in the area.
The Jewish Federation of Detroit said in a statement, “We are aware of an active security incident at Temple Israel. Law enforcement are responding. Our Jewish agencies are currently in precautionary lockdown.”
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in a statement, “This is heartbreaking. Michigan’s Jewish community should be able to live and practice their faith in peace.”
“I am hoping for everyone’s safety,” she added.
In New York City, the NYPD said it’s continuing to deploy officers to synagogues and other Jewish institutions “out of an abundance of caution.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Former President Bill Clinton and former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrive prior to the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump at the United States Capitol on January 20, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Melina Mara – Pool/Getty Images)
(CHAPPAQUA, N.Y.) — Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s closed-door deposition with the House Oversight Committee in Chappaqua, New York, was briefly paused Thursday afternoon after a photo of her from inside the room was leaked, which is against committee rules.
The photo was posted by conservative social media influencer Benny Johnson who claimed it was provided by Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert.
ABC News confirmed that the deposition has resumed.
The former first lady and former President Bill Clinton are participating in depositions as part of the committee’s probe into the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
In her opening statement Thursday before the pause, Hillary Clinton said that she had no involvement with Epstein or convicted associate Ghislaine Maxwell.
“The Committee justified its subpoena to me based on its assumption that I have information regarding the investigations into the criminal activities of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Let me be as clear as I can. I do not,” Clinton said, according to a release of her opening statement.
Hillary Clinton said Thursday that she had no idea about Epstein and Maxwell’s criminal activity, saying she doesn’t “recall ever encountering Mr. Epstein.”
“I never flew on his plane or visited his island, homes or offices. I have nothing to add to that. Like every decent person, I have been horrified by what we have learned about their crimes,” she said.
Hillary Clinton went after the Republican-led committee in her opening statement, saying “you have made little effort to call the people who show up most prominently in the Epstein files. And when you did, not a single Republican Member showed up for Les Wexner’s deposition,” she states, referencing the closer-door deposition of retail billionaire Leslie Wexner earlier this month, during which the Republican members were no-shows. During his deposition, Wexner claimed he never witnessed nor had any knowledge of Epstein’s criminal activity.
Digging in even more, the former first lady attacked the probe.
“This institutional failure is designed to protect one political party and one public official, rather than to seek truth and justice for the victims and survivors, as well as the public who also want to get to the bottom of this matter,” she said, not mentioning any particular public official by name.
Republican House Oversight Chairman James Comer said the deposition with the Clintons is an opportunity to ask them questions.
“No one is accusing, at this moment, the Clintons of any wrongdoing,” Comer said Thursday morning ahead of Hillary Clinton’s testimony. “They’re going to have due process, but we have a lot of questions, and the purpose of the whole investigation is to try to understand many things about Epstein.”
Pressed on why the committee was adamant on subpoenaing Hillary Clinton, who has denied ever having any relationship with Epstein, Comer highlighted how there was a bipartisan effort to speak with the Clintons after Democrats also voted to subpoena the Clintons.
The committee first attempted to subpoena the Clintons in July of last year as Republicans demanded more information on the former president’s travels on Epstein’s private aircraft and what the committee called the “family’s past relationship” with Epstein and his convicted associate Ghislaine Maxwell, as part of their probe into Epstein.
The Clintons were subpoenaed to appear under oath in front of the committee for a deposition in January, but failed to comply, arguing the subpoenas were without legal merit. Rather, they proposed a four-hour transcribed interview instead.
David Kendall, the Clintons’ lawyer, argued that the couple has no information relevant to the committee’s investigation of the federal government’s handling of investigations into Epstein and Maxwell, and should not be required to appear for in-person testimony. Kendall contended the Clintons should be permitted to provide the limited information they have to the committee in writing.
Comer had long threatened to hold the Clintons in contempt if they failed to appear before the committee, so when they didn’t, a contempt resolution was drafted and put to a vote. The Oversight Committee passed the contempt resolution, with nine Democrats voting in favor of it, teeing it up for a full House vote.
At the last minute, before the resolution was brought for a full House vote, the Clintons agreed to sit for a deposition, postponing further consideration of a contempt vote.
Democrats on the committee said they hope this week’s testimonies from the Clintons spark Republican committee members to investigate more of Epstein’s ties to President Donald Trump and his Cabinet officials.
President Trump has repeatedly denied any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes and has said that he cut off contact with his former friend more than 20 years ago.
“We will talk to any single person, whether that is a Democrat, a Republican, how much wealth they have, how powerful the position is, we want to talk to anyone. So we’re happy to be here, and we’re glad that both Secretary Clinton and former President Clinton are willing to talk to this committee,” Rep. Robert Garcia, the committee’s top Democrat, said Thursday.
This week’s interviews with committee investigators will be video recorded and transcribed in accordance with the House’s deposition rules.
Comer said the committee is “going to release the video as soon as everyone has approved it.”
While the Clintons have agreed to speak with the committee behind closed doors, they have still pushed for public hearings as part of the committee’s probe into Epstein.
“I will not sit idly as they use me as a prop in a closed-door kangaroo court by a Republican Party running scared,” Bill Clinton wrote in a lengthy post on X. “If they want answers, let’s stop the games & do this the right way: in a public hearing, where the American people can see for themselves what this is really about.”
Hillary Clinton has echoed her husband’s sentiments while also continuing to call for the full release of the Epstein files, which they have accused the Department of Justice of selectively releasing.
“It is something that needs to be totally transparent,” Hillary Clinton said during a panel appearance at the Munich Security Conference earlier this month. “I’ve called for, many, many years, for everything to be put out there so people can not only see what is in them, but also — if appropriate — hold people accountable. We’ll see what happens.”
Neither Bill Clinton nor Hillary Clinton has been accused of wrongdoing and both deny having any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes. No Epstein survivor or associate has ever made a public allegation of wrongdoing or inappropriate behavior by the former president or his wife in connection with his prior relationship with Epstein.
Mayor Mamdani speaks at a press conference after a 7-month-old child was fatally shot in Brooklyn, New York, on April 1, 2026. (NYPD)
(NEW YORK) — A 21-year-old will be placed under arrest in his hospital bed on charges he murdered a baby in Brooklyn by a stray bullet, the New York City Police Department said Thursday.
Amare Green allegedly fired shots from the back of a moped into a crowd in Williamsburg that struck and killed 7-month-old Kaori Patterson-Moore and grazed her 2-year-old brother as they sat in a stroller on Wednesday afternoon.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani called it a “devastating shooting” and said, “My heart aches for the parents impacted,” at a press conference on Thursday.
Green is a known associate of a street gang operating out of a public housing project in Brooklyn, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joe Kenny said. Investigators are looking into whether the baby’s father may have been the intended target as part of a dispute with a rival gang.
New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said detectives have identified the moped driver, but she declined to release a name. The driver is at large.
Tisch mentioned the impending arrest in a crime that shocked the city as she touted a continued drop in crime.
The shooting was reported at about 1:20 p.m. on the corner of Humboldt and Moore streets in the East Williamsburg area, according to police.
Several adults, including two people with strollers, and several other children, were nearby when two males approached the intersection on a moped, Tisch said. The rear passenger on the moped pulled out a gun and fired at least two shots toward the corner, Tisch told reporters, citing surveillance video.
“Today our city suffered a horrifying, senseless tragedy: a 7-month-old child being pushed in a stroller along a busy Brooklyn sidewalk was shot and killed in broad daylight,” the police commissioner said.
The baby was taken to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
After the shooting, the two suspects collided with an oncoming car about two blocks away, police said. Both men were thrown from the moped. The rear passenger, who fits the description of the shooter, was taken to the hospital and is in police custody, Tisch said.
The other passenger took off, but police later located the moped.
Mamdani called the shooting a “devastating reminder” of the work that remains to be done to combat gun violence.
“A life that had barely begun was taken in an instant,” Mamdani said. “There are no words that can mend the heartbreak this family is feeling now.”
