Summer scorcher: Dangerous heat to head to Northeast after slamming Midwest
(NEW YORK) — Extreme heat is gripping the Midwest before moving into the Northeast.
Chicago is in the center of an excessive heat warning that stretches north to Madison, Wisconsin, and south to Springfield, Illinois.
The heat index — what temperature it feels like with humidity — soared to a scorching 114 degrees in Chicago on Tuesday. Chicago’s actual temperature hit 98 degrees, breaking the city’s daily record of 97 degrees.
In Detroit, public school students were released three hours early on Tuesday due to the heat.
Next, the dangerous temperatures will move east.
On Wednesday, the heat index is forecast to climb to 104 degrees in Nashville, Tennessee; 100 degrees in Indianapolis; 105 in Philadelphia; and 103 in Washington, D.C.
D.C. may hit a new record-high actual temperature of 100 degrees.
By Thursday, the Northeast will cool down. But temperatures will stay in the 90s in the South as the week ends.
There are hundreds of deaths each year in the U.S. due to excessive heat, according to CDC WONDER, an online database, and scientists caution that the actual number of heat-related deaths is likely higher.
Last year marked the most heat-related deaths in the U.S. on record, according to JAMA, a peer-reviewed medical journal published by the American Medical Association.
Click here for tips on how to stay safe in the heat.
(NEW YORK) — A new Instagram filter will allow Jackson Hole visitors to interact with nature while keeping a safe distance from wildlife.
Every summer season, when school is out and the weather is warm enough to explore preserved land around the country, images circulate of people attempting to get too close to wildlife, often to snap a picture with the unsuspecting animal.
The occurrence is so prevalent that in 2023, Yellowstone National Park issued a message to tourists who spot wild animals: “Leave it alone and give it space.”
Tourism experts are now getting creative in finding ways to encourage visitors to keep their distance from wildlife, even docile-seeming giants like bison.
Visit Jackson Hole has launched the “Selfie Control” filter, an Instagram filter that will warn guests when they are getting too close to comfort.
Users can search for the filter on Instagram and then navigate through the animal options to the type of wildlife they are looking at, according to the tourism board.
If the live animal appears bigger than the icon featured on the filter, it means the user is too close. Once visitors move back to the appropriate distance, they can take a photo and tag @visitjacksonhole before sharing as a Story or in-feed post.
The tourism board decided to create the filter after noticing a “really big increase” in human-wildlife encounters, Crista Valentino, executive director of the Jackson Hole Travel & Tourism Board, told ABC News.
The increase in interactions is likely stemming from a rise in the number of visitors, but Valentino believes that the emergence of smartphones and social media may have contributed to the growing trend of too-close calls between visitors and wildlife as well.
“Many of them are coming without the information of knowing and understanding that these are wild animals, that this is not a zoo, and that these animals need space,” Valentino said.
In May 2023, a video of a woman filmed standing precariously close to a fully grown bison went viral. Although the bison seemed unperturbed, nature experts warn against misjudging their slow, calm nature to mean that they can interact with them, Valentino said.
The tourism board has witnessed people take their children and place them on top of the 3,000-pound animals or get dangerously close to them for the perfect shot, she added.
“And if you get between a mom and a baby moose, that mom will very quickly close that gap and defend its young,” Valentino said.
In addition to the potential for the humans themselves to get hurt, after interactions with humans, wildlife can sometimes be put down because they are rejected from their herd, Valentino said.
National Parks visitors are required to stay at least 25 yards away from all wildlife, including bison, elk and deer, and at least 100 yards away from bears and wolves. Each violation can result in fines up to $5,000 and six months in jail, according to the National Park Service.
“For professional photographers and amateurs alike, it’s hard to tell if a moose or bison is 25 or 100 yards away just by ‘eyeballing’ it, especially when you’re in a place like Grand Teton or Yellowstone National Park with sprawling, wide-open spaces,” said Erik Dombroski, chair of the Jackson Hole Travel & Tourism Board.
Similar incidents occur in Australia, another country known for its natural wonders.
Last year, professional photographers in Australia urged national parks visitors to stop messing with the numbats, a marsupial that lives in the western part of the country. The number of numbats is dwindling, with less than 1,000 estimated to still be living in the wild, according to the World Wildlife Fund.
Visit Jackson Hole reminded guests that staying the appropriate distance is more than a suggestion — it’s a requirement. The filter will help visitors to avoid creating dangerous situations for themselves or others, Valentino said.
“We’re hoping to really see those those negative interactions decline,” Valentino said.
(NEW YORK) — A Michigan man is accused of fatally shooting his neighbor after getting into an argument with him on the street, officials said.
Devereaux Christopher Johnson, 47, of Canton, was arraigned Monday on first-degree murder in connection with the shooting, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office said.
The victim — 35-year-old father-of-two Nathan Morris, also of Canton — was shot and killed while on a walk Saturday morning, the prosecutor’s office said.
“It is alleged that the defendant initiated a verbal argument when he saw Mr. Morris walking down the street,” the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement. “Defendant Johnson then produced and fired a handgun multiple times, fatally wounding Mr. Morris who was unarmed at the time he was killed.”
The suspect allegedly started threatening Morris’ family after one of Morris’ daughters touched the neighbor’s mulch, according to former RNC National Committeewoman Hima Kolanagireddy, a friend and colleague of the victim’s, according to her statement shared on the Michigan GOP X account. Morris stayed behind to try and “diffuse” the situation while his family went home, her statement continued.
Canton police officers responding to a reported shooting shortly before noon Saturday found Morris lying in the street suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, the prosecutor’s office said.
Morris was transported to a local hospital, where he died, police said.
Johnson barricaded himself inside his home following the shooting before ultimately surrendering, according to police.
Johnson was additionally charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm and two counts of felony firearm, the prosecutor’s office said. Judge Jim Plakas entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf to all charges during his arraignment on Monday.
Johnson’s attorney, Wade McCann, requested a referral to the Center for Forensic Psychiatry to assess competency and criminal responsibility, which Plakas allowed.
The suspect was remanded to jail without bond and is next scheduled to appear in court on Aug. 23. ABC News has reached out to his attorney for comment.
The charge of first-degree murder carries a sentence of life without parole if convicted, police said.
“This was a senseless act of violence toward the victim,” Canton Police Chief Chad Baugh said in a statement following the incident. “The Canton Police Department sends our deepest condolences to the victim’s family, and to the neighbors who may have witnessed this tragic event.”
Morris worked as an engineer at Ford Motors, according to Kolanagireddy, an executive committee member of the Wayne 6th County Republican Committee, where Morris served as the secretary.
“Nathan is one of those few guys who are near perfect,” Kolanagireddy said. “He would do no harm and think no harm. He is just an amazing and gentle soul. He will be missed dearly.”
He is survived by his wife of 10 years and two girls, ages 5 and 2, according to his church, St. Michael Lutheran Church of Canton.
His friend, Edward McCall, called the incident “surreal” and said the victim’s family and friends are “numb and shocked.”
“He was a great man, and a real gentleman, a real father figure,” McCall told ABC Detroit affiliate WXYZ-TV. “I’m just kind of sorting through the kind of loss that represents for his family.”
(WASHINGTON) — D.C. police officer Wayne David died on Wednesday evening after he suffered an accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound while trying to recover a weapon from a storm drain, police have announced.
Officers were responding to reports of a suspicious vehicle when a man jumped out of a car, ran onto the I-295 highway and placed the gun inside a storm drain, ABC News has learned. The suspect then fled the scene on the back of a motorcycle.
When police then tried to retrieve the weapon, it went off, striking David — a 25-year veteran of the police force — in the upper torso. Other officers rendered aid and David was transferred to a local hospital.
Executive Assistant Chief of D.C. Police Jeffery Caroll told reporters earlier in the day that David — a crime scene search officer — was “trained to recover evidence and firearms,” and had recovered “hundreds of guns” in his career.
Pamela A. Smith, the D.C. chief of police, said in a statement: “Our hearts are heavy tonight after the tragic loss of one of our own.”
“Investigator Wayne David, a veteran MPD officer, lost his life while serving in the line of duty. There are few words to express the hurt and pain that Officer David’s family and the entire MPD is feeling right now,” Smith said.
“Investigator David was the epitome of a great officer. He was a dedicated and highly respected member of the department, and this is a tremendous loss for all of us,” she continued.
“For more than 25 years, Investigator David dedicated his life to protecting and safeguarding the District of Columbia. He served with passion and honor and had the utmost respect of his peers,” Smith added.
“I will be forever grateful for Investigator David’s service to the Metropolitan Police Department and his life will never be forgotten,” the statement read.
Police are still searching for the suspect who ditched the gun, and said there is no indication that the man knew the motorcyclist whose vehicle he escaped on. The department has released an image of the suspect.