Kid-friendly e-cigarette flavors driving increase in sales, report finds
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(NEW YORK) — E-cigarettes in kid-friendly flavors are driving retail sales and contain more addictive nicotine than ever, according to a new report from the nonprofit CDC Foundation and advocacy group Truth Initiative.
The report showed a 47% increase in e-cigarette sales at U.S. retail outlets between 2019 and 2023, with flavors like fruit, candy, mint, menthol and desserts accounting for more than 80% of those sales.
Most flavored products are not authorized by the Food and Drug Administration and are therefore on the market illegally, according to Truth Initiative.
Vaping among youth is declining in the U.S., but more than 1.6 million children still vape, and nearly 90% of them report using flavored products, according to the report.
States that have implemented strong enforcement policies have seen a dramatic drop in sales. Massachusetts, for example, saw an 86% drop in overall e-cigarette sales in brick-and-mortar stores, the report said.
The proliferation of kid-friendly flavored vapes is not authorized by the FDA to be in stores, making the booming sales technically illegal — but that could change if the industry succeeds in a major case before the U.S. Supreme Court next month.
Vape makers have sued the FDA, which has blocked the sale and marketing of most flavored products, alleging the agency is stonewalling good science and common sense. They claim flavors like “Jimmy the Juice Man” and “Iced Pineapple Express” are ideal for helping adult smokers quit a cancer-causing habit.
The Supreme Court will delve into the science during arguments on Dec. 2 and decide next year whether the FDA analysis has been flawed and unfair, potentially opening the flood gates to widespread legal production and sale of flavored nicotine products.
There has been a major decline in the number of students who reported current e-cigarette use, according to federal data released last month from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s 2024 National Youth Tobacco Survey.
The number of users was 2.13 million in 2023 compared to 1.63 million in 2024, the report found. Usage among high school students in particular dropped to 1.56 million from 1.21 million over the same period.
ABC News’ Mary Kekatos contributed to this report.
(SEATTLE) — Two people were killed by falling trees in Washington state as a powerful storm hammered the Pacific Northwest.
In Bellevue, a tree fell into a home, hitting and killing a woman while she was in the shower Tuesday night, Bellevue fire officials said.
In Lynwood, a woman in her 50s was killed when a tree fell on a homeless encampment, officials said.
Hundreds of thousands of people lost power in the storm, which snapped power lines and caused significant damage. As of Wednesday evening, about 320,000 customers were still without power, according to Puget Sound Energy CEO Mary Kipp.
“We haven’t had a storm like this since January of 2012,” Kipp said in in a video on X.
Crews were prioritizing restoring power to hospitals and schools, and Kipp estimated power wouldn’t be back for all customers “for at least a few days.”
Another roughly 23,000 customers of Seattle City Light were still without power as of Wednesday evening, according to a post from the utility on social media platform X.
The storm exploded into a bomb cyclone off the coast, near Vancouver Island, Canada, where winds gusted near 101 mph.
A bomb cyclone means the pressure in the center of the storm drops 24 millibars within 24 hours.
The storm is bringing dangerous wind and rain to the West Coast.
Two to 4 inches of rain has been recorded so far in western Washington, western Oregon and northwestern California.
The rain started in northwestern California on Tuesday afternoon and it isn’t expected to stop until Friday morning. Twelve to 18 inches of rainfall is expected by the end of the week.
A high risk for excessive rainfall has been issued. The rain will be the most dangerous on Thursday.
Flash flooding, rockslides and landslides are all likely.
In the mountains of Northern California, blizzard conditions will be possible as wind gusts reach 50 to 70 mph. One to 4 feet of snow is possible at higher elevations. One foot of snow has already hit the mountains west of Redding, California.
ABC News’ Marilyn Heck contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — A new storm — which will strengthen into Hurricane Helene — is taking aim at Florida, where it’s forecast to make landfall along the Big Bend area as a hurricane on Thursday.
Here’s how the news is developing:
Tropical storm forecast to ‘rapidly’ intensify into major hurricane
Tropical Storm Helene was expected to “rapidly” strengthen and grow in size as it moved on Wednesday into the Gulf of Mexico, U.S. weather officials said.
The storm as of about 4 a.m. local time had maximum sustained winds of about 65 mph, the National Hurricane Center said. It was expected to intensify into a hurricane on Wednesday, before further strengthening into a “major” hurricane on Thursday, the center said.
Helene early Wednesday was traveling northwest at about 9 mph, the center said.
“On the forecast track, the center of Helene will pass near the northeastern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula this morning, move across the eastern Gulf of Mexico on later today and Thursday, and reach the Big Bend coast of Florida late Thursday,” the center said.
Biden approves Florida emergency declaration ahead of Helene’s landfall
As Florida residents prepare for Tropical Storm Helene to make landfall Thursday, the White House has approved the state’s emergency declaration.
President Biden’s approval allows for federal assistance to supplement state, tribal and local response efforts.
The Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will coordinate all federal disaster relief efforts, according to the White House’s statement.
Biden’s approval Tuesday comes as officials in Sarasota County announced a Level A evacuation order for portions of two neighborhoods beginning Wednesday morning at 7:00 a.m. ET.
Officials encouraged residents in Curry Creek, Hatchett Creek, Venice and those in Forked Creek, Englewood to be aware of the conditions and stay alert for further updates.
Hurricane warnings issued for portions of Florida’s Panhandle, Big Bend and Gulf Coast
On the current track, Tropical Storm Helene is forecast to make landfall late Thursday night, between 8:00 and 10:00 p.m. ET, as a major Category 3 hurricane with winds up to 115 mph in the Florida Big Bend region.
Hurricane warnings have been issued for Florida’s Panhandle, Big Bend and Gulf Coast regions and hurricane watch warnings have extended into southern Georgia.
Officials have issued tropical storm warnings from Naples and Fort Myers to Orlando and tropical storm watch warnings are in place across Florida’s east coast up to Savannah, Georgia.
Helene’s latest forecast
Helene is expected to strengthen to a hurricane on Wednesday as it enters the Gulf of Mexico and strengthen further to a major Category 3 hurricane by Thursday morning.
A hurricane watch is in effect in Florida from Tallahassee to Tampa, where hurricane conditions will be possible late Wednesday night through late Thursday night.
Wednesday night into Thursday morning, Helene’s outer bands will start to lash Florida’s Gulf Coast. The worst of the conditions will be throughout the day on Thursday.
Helene is forecast to make landfall Thursday night along Florida’s Big Bend region as a Category 3 hurricane. Winds could be up to 115 mph during landfall.
Helene is expected to be a large hurricane, which means impacts will extend significantly beyond the center, impacting most of Florida and much of the Southeast.
After landfall, Helene is forecast to quickly move north into Georgia, bringing heavy rain and strong winds to the South.
A significant flash flood risk stretches from the Florida Panhandle to South Carolina — including Tallahassee to Atlanta — Thursday night into early Friday.
-ABC News’ Melissa Griffin
How much rain, storm surge to expect
Ten to 15 feet of dangerous storm surge is forecast for Florida’s Big Bend area. Tampa Bay could see 4 to 8 feet of storm surge.
Four to 8 inches of rain is expected from Helene, with 12 inches locally, bringing major flash flooding.
Tornadoes are also possible on Wednesday and Thursday.
Damaging wind gusts over 100 mph will be possible in Tallahassee and Florida’s Big Bend area during landfall Thursday night.
-ABC News’ Melissa Griffin
Universities, schools close ahead of Helene
Ahead of Helene, Florida A&M University in Tallahassee canceled class from Tuesday afternoon through Friday. The university will be closed Wednesday through Friday.
Florida A&M said this weekend’s home football game and parents’ weekend will be rescheduled.
Florida State University said its Tallahassee campus will be closed from Wednesday morning to Sunday night.
FSU Tallahassee students can stay on campus during the closure, but should plan for possible power outages and be prepared to possibly stay inside all day Thursday, the university warned.
Officials in Florida are also closing public schools in multiple counties, including Pasco, Pinellas, Hernando, Citrus and Sarasota.
Mandatory evacuations have been announced in parts of Charlotte and Franklin counties.
Helene strengthens to tropical storm: Latest forecast
Helene, currently located about 180 miles east southeast of Cozumel, Mexico, strengthened to a tropical storm on Tuesday morning.
The forecast shows Helene moving through the Yucatan Channel Wednesday morning, bringing near hurricane-force wind gusts to Cancun, Mexico.
By Thursday morning, coastal flooding will reach Florida, including Naples and Fort Myers.
On Thursday night, Helene will make landfall near Apalachicola, Florida.
Dangerous wind gusts up to 105 mph are expected and storm surge will be a major threat for the Tampa Bay area.
By Friday morning, the center of Helene will be near Atlanta, bringing strong winds to Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina and North Carolina.
Downed trees and power lines will be a major danger across the Southeast.
The flash flood threat will continue into the weekend in the Tennessee, Ohio and Mississippi River Valleys.
State of emergency declared in 61 Florida counties
Helene is forecast to be a major hurricane by the time it makes landfall Thursday night, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned Monday.
A state of emergency has been declared in 61 of Florida’s 67 counties, DeSantis said.
“The Big Bend and Panhandle should be especially prepared for a direct impact,” the governor said, and he urged residents to know their evacuation zone.
“You have time to be able to put this place into place,” DeSantis said, noting Helene’s impacts could begin Wednesday.
Latest forecast
Helene will strengthen to a hurricane Tuesday night, and rain is expected to begin in Florida Wednesday afternoon into Thursday morning.
On Thursday evening, Helene will make landfall along Florida’s Big Bend area, located between Tallahassee and Gainesville.
Storm surge could reach up to 15 feet in the Big Bend area.
Heavy rain and strong winds are also major threats.
A hurricane watch is in effect for Florida’s Gulf Coast and a tropical storm watch was issued from Orlando to the Florida Keys.
By Thursday night into Friday, the storm will quickly push into Georgia with very heavy rain, gusty winds and possible flash flooding.
This weekend, the storm will stall over the Mid-South, bringing heavy rain and possible flooding to the Tennessee, Ohio and Mississippi River Valleys.
A flood watch has been issued in Florida from Fort Myers to Tampa to Tallahassee, as well as in southern Georgia and Alabama.
(JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo.) — A Colorado teenager who was shot in the face while looking for a place to take homecoming photos said he knew he was bleeding and told deputies he screamed “I was going to die,” according to an affidavit.
The teenager is hospitalized with serious injuries, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office. Medical professionals told the sheriff’s office they believed there was a fragment of a bullet in the teen’s head, according to the affidavit.
Officers responded to a report of two trespassers on a property on Tuesday to find one of two teens shot in the face. The homeowner had also called her boyfriend to report the trespassers, according to the sheriff’s office.
A 17-year-old and his friend left a Colorado high school around 3:30 p.m. and went looking for a place to take homecoming pictures this weekend, the affidavit said.
The teens drove around and saw a house with a lake and a dock. They stopped to try to contact the homeowner to get permission to take photos near the lake, according to an affidavit.
The boys parked in front of the gate, walked up the driveway to the house and knocked on the door, but received no answer, the affidavit said.
They then walked down the driveway and returned to the car, which was parked on the roadway near the property. One of the boys then took out his school binder and was writing a note to leave for the homeowner when they saw a truck pull up and block their car, the affidavit said.
The driver then got out of the truck and walked toward the front of the car, pulled a handgun from his holster and pointed it toward the boys. They then heard the handgun go off and saw the windshield glass shatter, the affidavit said.
The boys told authorities they heard the truck driver say ‘oh s—, my gun went off,” according to the affidavit.
The boy in the passenger seat then got out of the car, took off his shirt and ran around to the driver’s side and began to help his friend, applying pressure to his wounds, according to the affidavit.
The driver then tried to assist in rendering aid, but the boy pushed him away and asked why he shot his friend, the affidavit said.
The victim told the sheriff’s office he did not think the man “intentionally shot him,” and he didn’t see the gun but heard the shot. After the gun went off, the shooter tried to help the boy, according to the affidavit.
The victim was “bleeding heavily from his face and had blood running down his arm” when officers responded to the scene, according to an affidavit. The 17-year-old’s friend was holding a white t-shirt up to his face to put pressure on the wound, the affidavit said.
An apparent bullet hole in the windshield of the car was centered where the driver’s seat was located.
When an officer tried to ask the man — 38-year-old Brent Metz — if he had shot a gun, he did not answer the question and said he wanted to speak to his lawyer, the affidavit said.
Metz told authorities the gun was in the truck for safety purposes and he was placed in handcuffs, according to the affidavit.
Metz was then arrested and transported to the sheriff’s office, where he was booked into jail for first degree assault, felony managing, illegal discharge of a firearm and reckless endangerment, according to the sheriff’s office.
