John Norwood, who was injured as Hurricane Helene made landfall, speaks with “Good Morning America” about his missing fiancé, Oct. 1, 2024. (ABC News)
(NEW YORK) — As Helene swept through North Carolina last week, John Norwood and his fiancé, Julie le Roux, sought shelter at a neighbor’s house.
As they attempted to wait out the worst of the storm, which made landfall in Florida as a Category 4 hurricane, a mudslide destroyed the home they had taken shelter in.
“We looked outside and there was a 30-foot-tall wall of water and rocks and tree debris just coming at us,” Norwood told ABC News.
The debris knocked the house “straight down,” flushing out those who had been huddled inside, he said, adding, “And we all got washed downriver.” Norwood was rescued, but le Roux is still unaccounted for, he said. She’s one of hundreds of people who are unaccounted for after the storm, according to officials.
The storm was “unprecedented” for western North Carolina, requiring an “unprecedented response,” Gov. Roy Cooper said Monday. At least 40 people were killed by the storm in Buncombe County, in the western part of the state, local officials said Monday.
Hundreds of people were missing or unaccounted for as of Monday throughout the southeastern United States, Homeland Security adviser Liz Sherwood Randall said as she gave a lengthy update on the federal response to Helene, including a warning that much is still unknown about the situation.
“When I said there could be up to 600 people lost my point was, there 600 people unaccounted for,” Sherwood Randall said. “That’s the number we’re tracking right now and that we can essentially validate from multiple sources.”
But, she added, there was still uncertainty in that number. It included many who hadn’t been heard from, but they may just be out of contact, she said.
“And as the president said this morning, we’re very hopeful that some of those people just don’t have cell phones working and actually are alive,” she said.
Elsewhere in North Carolina, there were gas lines stretching from stations, as survivors waited for fuel. Officials were busy supplying water and ready-to-eat meals, Will Ray, the director of the state’s Emergency Management agency, said.
In Marion, a city in the state’s hard-hit western area, rescuers used a pulley system to pull Norwood to safety, carrying him over rushing flood waters. A ceiling rafter had crushed his legs, he said, but at least he was rescued. He said he hasn’t seen le Roux since the mudslide hit.
“I crawled around screaming, looking for her,” he said as he fought back tears, “and I just couldn’t find her.”
(LOS ANGELES) — The man accused of hijacking a Los Angeles Metro bus, fatally shooting a passenger and leading police on an hourlong chase last week is now facing a slew of charges, including murder and kidnapping, prosecutors announced Monday.
Los Angeles County DA George Gascon announced 12 counts against the suspect, 51-year-old Lamont Campbell.
The charges include murder, carjacking, kidnapping during carjacking, assault with a semiautomatic weapon, attempted murder, robbery, kidnapping, felony evading and felon in possession of a firearm, according to the DA’s office.
Campbell faces a maximum sentence of 90 years in prison.
The incident began at approximately 12:46 a.m. on Sept. 25 when the Los Angeles Police Department received radio calls about a disturbance on a bus in the area of Manchester Street and Figueroa Street in southern Los Angeles, Deputy Chief Donald Graham said in a briefing last week.
“The officers quickly learned from the passengers that there was an armed suspect on the Metro bus. They attempted to stop the bus but were unsuccessful, later discovering that the armed suspect had instructed the driver not to stop,” Graham said.
Multiple spike strips were deployed by officers during the pursuit, deflating several tires on the bus and ultimately causing it to stop, according to LAPD.
“SWAT personnel quickly observed that a victim was down inside the bus, formulated a tactical plan, and made entry without delay. The suspect was taken into custody without further incident,” authorities said.
Officers immediately began to render medical aid to the victim who was suffering from gunshot wounds. The male victim was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Campbell is being held at a local jail in lieu of $2 million bail.
(WASHINGTON) — Over 100 years after a white mob attacked a then-thriving Black community in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the Department of Justice announced the first-ever federal probe into the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.
The attack on the Greenwood neighborhood, often referred to as “Black Wall Street,” left up to 300 people killed and homes and businesses in ruin.
Kristen Clarke, the assistant attorney general for civil rights who announced the review in a statement Monday, referred to the massacre as “one of the deadliest episodes of mass racial violence in this nation’s history.”
The DOJ’s announcement comes after the Oklahoma Supreme Court in June dismissed a reparations case filed by survivors of the massacre without going to trial.
The federal review is being conducted by the Civil Rights Division’s Cold Case Unit, which is investigating the crimes under the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act.
In July, survivors Lessie Benningfield Randle, 109, and Viola Ford Fletcher, 110, made a plea to the Biden administration to invoke the 2007 Act, which allows for cold cases of violent crimes against Black people committed before 1970 to be reopened and investigated.
Damario Solomon-Simmons, lead attorney for the Tulsa Race Massacre Survivors, celebrated the decision in a press conference Monday.
“I’m so excited to announce that this morning, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, Kristen Clarke announced that the United States Federal Government Department of Justice will open a review and evaluation of the 1921 Tulsa race massacre,” Solomon-Simmons said.
“It is about time! It only took 103 years,” he added.
Solomon-Simmons said that this decision is credited to the multiple meetings with the Department of Justice, both in Washington D.C. and on Zoom, and the continuous fight of the community.
“This community would never stop fighting for reparations. This community would never forget what happened to our people, just for being black, just for being successful,” Solomon-Simmons said.
“So we are excited today. This has been a difficult journey, a lot of obstacles, a lot of odds, a lot of opposition, but today we have a victory,” he added.
Tiffany Crutcher, a descendant of a survivor of the massacre and founder and executive director of the Terence Crutcher Foundation, said the massacre has been “ignored for far too long.”
“Today, my family and community are deeply grateful that the U.S. Department of Justice is finally preparing to review the 1921 Tulsa race massacre. This tragedy has been ignored for far too long,” Crutcher said during the press conference.
“I leave you with this quote from my mentor, our mentor, Bryan Stevenson, this community will continue to stand on hope, and hope is what will get you to stand up when people tell you to sit down, and today, we continue to stand,” she said.
An ABC News graphic shows the latest weather conditions and warnings in the wake of Helene, on Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. — ABC News
(NEW YORK) — The storm surge, wind damage and inland flooding from Hurricane Helene have been catastrophic, flooding neighborhoods, stranding residents, destroying homes and toppling trees in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee.
Dozens have been killed.
Helene, which made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region Thursday night as a massive Category 4 hurricane, was the strongest hurricane to make landfall in the Big Bend on record.
Here’s how the news is developing:
FEMA has delivered 1 million liters of water and 600K meals to North Carolina
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper called the impact of Hurricane Helene on the state “absolutely catastrophic” in a statement Monday.
“This is an unprecedented response and an absolutely enormous coordinated effort by the state, federal and local partners,” Cooper said.
Cooper, who inspected the staging area at the Asheville airport Monday, said “Hundreds of thousands of pounds of supplies are being flown in, packed onto helicopters and flown into areas that can’t be reached by vehicles.”
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has delivered 1 million liters of water and 600,000 meals to people in North Carolina, Cooper said.
The governor added that there are 92 search and rescue teams working to help bring residents to safety.
Biden says he’ll travel to North Carolina on Wednesday
President Joe Biden told reporters from the Oval Office he will travel to North Carolina on Wednesday to survey the damage.
He said he plans to land in Raleigh for a briefing and then do an aerial tour of Asheville to avoid straining on-the-ground resources.
He said he will visit Georgia and Florida “as soon as possible after that.”
Asked by ABC News’ Karen Travers how Americans can help out, Biden recommended people reach out to the Red Cross — and gear up for a long recovery.
“There is a lot to do, and this is just beginning,” Biden said. “We’ve been through this before, but not — not like this. This is the worst ever.”
Harris to impacted communities: ‘Our nation is with you’
Vice President Kamala Harris called the storm damage throughout the Southeast the “worst destruction and devastation that we have seen in quite some time” during remarks from FEMA’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., Monday afternoon.
“In coordination with state and local officials, President Biden and I will continue to make sure that communities have the support and the resources that they need — not only to respond to this storm and its immediate aftermath, but also the resources they will need to recover,” Harris said.
Harris said more than 3,300 federal personnel are on the ground to assist with recovery efforts, including deploying food, water and generators as well as helping to restore water and power.
“To everyone who has been impacted by this storm, and to all of those of you who are rightly feeling overwhelmed by the destruction and the loss, our nation is with you,” she said. “We will continue to do everything we can to help you recover and to help you rebuild. No matter how long it takes.”
Harris said she has spoken to Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and plans to be “on the ground as soon as possible” without disrupting any emergency response operations.
Storm ‘unprecedented’ for western North Carolina
Helene is “an unprecedented storm” for western North Carolina, requiring an “unprecedented response,” North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said Monday.
“We’re dealing with a situation that is unlike anybody’s ever seen in western North Carolina,” he said.
The damage is “extensive and devastating” and is “going to require significant resources, both in the short-term and the long-term,” the governor said.
Ninety-two rescue teams are out conducting search and rescues right now, Cooper said.
More than 300 roads are closed and some bridges have been destroyed, officials said.
Over 7,000 North Carolina residents have registered for FEMA individual assistance and that money is already flowing in, according to Will Ray, director of North Carolina Emergency Management.
FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell promised that the agency will “be here as long as it takes to finish this response and continue through the recovery.”
“We have the resources here in North Carolina to help,” Criswell said. “We will continue to send additional resources in.”
Full extent of damage still unclear: Homeland security adviser
Homeland security adviser Liz Sherwood Randall said the full extent of the damage from the hurricane is still unclear.
“It probably will take several more days, as communities begin to be opened up by the debris clearance on the roads, and we can get in, and really understand what’s happened to them,” she said.
Sherwood-Randall said about 600 people are unaccounted for.
“We’re very hopeful that some of those people just don’t have cellphones working and actually are alive,” she said.
Sherwood-Randall said 3,500 federal response personnel have been deployed to the region and additional personnel is expected to arrive in the coming days.
With communication remaining a major challenge, Sherwood-Randall said, “Today, FEMA will install 30 Starlink receivers in western North Carolina to provide immediate connectivity for those in greatest need.”
She also highlighted that in states that have received major disaster declarations, FEMA is working to distribute serious needs assistance, which gives “an immediate $750 direct payment to eligible households, to allow them to pay for essential items like food, baby formula, water, medications and other emergency supplies.”
-ABC News’ Molly Nagle
Sen. Rick Scott calls for Senate to reconvene to pass emergency aid
Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., is calling upon the Senate to reconvene to approve an emergency aid package for victims of Hurricane Helene.
“While I know from my experience with previous hurricanes that FEMA and [Small Business Administration] damage assessments take time, I am today urging Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to immediately reconvene the U.S. Senate when those assessments are completed so that we can pass the clean supplemental disaster funding bill and other disaster relief legislation, like my Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act, needed to ensure the full recovery of families in all impacted communities,” Scott said in a statement Monday.
Any additional funding, beyond the funding approved by President Joe Biden and able to be drawn down from FEMA, would need to be approved by both chambers of Congress.
The Senate let out on Wednesday after approving a stopgap funding bill to keep the government funded through Dec. 20. The Senate is not scheduled to return until Nov. 12. The House is also out of session and would need to return to approve any aid.
-ABC News’ Allison Pecorin
How to help
Click here for a list of charities and organizations that are supporting relief efforts, including the Red Cross and Americares.
Trump visits hard-hit Valdosta, Georgia
Former President Donald Trump visited hard-hit Valdosta in southern Georgia on Monday to distribute supplies and “stand in complete solidarity with … all of those suffering in the terrible aftermath of Hurricane Helene.”
“Valdosta has been ravaged,” Trump said. “The town is, very, very badly hurting, and many thousands are without power. They’re running low on food and fuel. We brought a lot of it down with us.”
“We’ll continue to help until you’re bigger, better, stronger than ever before,” Trump said.
The former president held a “moment of silence and prayer” for those killed in the storm.
Twenty-five people in Georgia have died in the storm, Gov. Brian Kemp said.
Trump said he’ll also visit North Carolina as the state works to recover from Helene.
Biden plans to visit storm zone Wednesday or Thursday
President Joe Biden said Monday that Helene is “not just a catastrophic storm — it’s a historic, history-making storm.”
Biden said he will travel to the impact zone as soon as possible, ideally Wednesday or Thursday. He said he’s been told it’d be disruptive to visit immediately, and he does not want to interfere with these areas accessing the relief they desperately need.
“Communities are devastated. Loved ones waiting, not sure if their loved ones are OK, and they can’t contact them because there’s no cellphone connections. Many more folks displaced have no idea when they’ll be able to be return to their home, if ever, if there’s a home to return to,” he said.
“There’s nothing like wondering, ‘Is my husband, wife, son, daughter, mother, father, alive?’ And many more who remain without electricity, water, food and communications,” he said.
Biden said he’s directed his team “to provide every available resource as fast as possible.”
Biden vowed, “We’re not leaving until the job is done.”
Helene ‘spared no one’ in Georgia, governor says
Hurricane Helene “literally spared no one” in Georgia, Gov. Brian Kemp said Monday.
Twenty-five people in Georgia have died in the storm, Kemp said. The victims include: a 27-year-old mother and her 1-month-old twin boys, who died when a tree fell on their home; Leon Davis, an assistant fire chief from Blackshear, who died when a tree fell on his car while he was responding to a call; and a 7-year-old boy and a 4-year-old girl who died when a tree fell on their burning house, he said.
More than 500,000 customers in Georgia remain without power after Helene damaged over 5,000 poles, the governor said. Kemp said Georgia Power officials are calling Helene the most devastating storm they’ve faced.
Former President Donald Trump is scheduled to visit hard-hit Valdosta, Georgia, on Monday.
35 dead, hundreds unaccounted for in hard-hit Buncombe County, North Carolina
Thirty-five people are dead and 600 people remain unaccounted for in hard-hit Buncombe County, North Carolina, which encompasses Asheville, according to county officials.
County officials said people will go door-to-door to check on those who have been reported missing.
Shelters are at capacity, officials said.
The city of Asheville has partnered with Verizon to establish a temporary cellphone tower, officials said.
-ABC News’ Alex Faul and Jessica Gorman
600 people still unaccounted for in hard-hit Buncombe County, North Carolina
Six-hundred people remain unaccounted for in hard-hit Buncombe County, North Carolina, which encompasses Asheville, according to county officials.
County officials said people will go door-to-door to check on those who have been reported missing.
Thirty people in Buncombe County have been confirmed dead from the hurricane, the sheriff said Sunday.
Buncombe County remains under a state of emergency.
-ABC News’ Jessica Gorman
Helene remnants move into mid-Atlantic
After dumping more than 30 inches of rain on North Carolina and producing the biggest local flood in recorded history, the remnants of Helene are forecast to move on Monday into the mid-Atlantic.
As southeastern United States worked to clean up from Helene, some of its remnants are moving into Mid-Atlantic today with heavy rain forecast for West Virginia, Virginia and Maryland.
There is an elevated flood threat on Monday in Virginia and West Virginia, where the already saturated ground could get additional 1 to 2 inches of rain, which could produce flash flooding.
-ABC News’ Max Golembo
Harris planning visit to communities impacted by Helene
Vice President Kamala Harris intends to communities impacted by Hurricane Helene “as soon as it is possible without disrupting emergency response operations,” according to a White House official.
Harris, who was briefed by FEMA on the federal response to the hurricane, reached out to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp.
At a rally in Las Vegas on Sunday, Harris addressed those who were impacted by the hurricane by sending her “thoughts and prayers” and thanking first responders.
“I know that everyone here sends their thoughts and prayers for folks who have been so devastated in Florida, in Georgia, the Carolinas and other impacted states. And we know that so many have been impacted. Some have died, but I want to thank everyone for doing everything you can to think about them,” Harris said. “Send them your thoughts and your prayers. I want to thank the first responders who have done so much. I stand with these communities for as long as it takes to make sure that they are able to recover and rebuild.”
-ABC News’ Gabriella Abdul-Hakim, Fritz Farrow and Will McDuffie
Gov. DeSantis says power restored to all but 111K in Florida
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis shared a major update on power restoration progress in the state on Sunday.
DeSantis said a post on X that most customers who lost power after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend area last week, have had their electricity restored.
The governor said power was back for 2.3 million customers, and 99% of the state has power.
He added that power remains out for 111,000 customers.
Biden intends to visit hurricane zone this week
President Joe Biden spent his Sunday evening receiving briefings on the damage from Hurricane Helene, and speaking to local officials from the impacted areas.
In a statement, the White House said Biden intends to travel to the impacted areas this week, “as soon as it will not disrupt emergency operations.”
Additionally, Biden spoke by phone Sunday with Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, Valdosta, Georgia, Mayor Scott Matheson and Taylor County, Florida, emergency management director John Louk, according to the White House.
The president also reached out to additional officials across North Carolina, Tennessee, Florida and South Carolina.
“In each conversation, the President received updates on response and recovery efforts, and he shared how the Biden-Administration will continue providing support to impacted communities – for as long as it takes,” the White House said in the statement.
-ABC News’ Sarah Kolinovsky
Trump to visit Valdosta, Georgia
Former President Donald Trump is scheduled to visit Valdosta, Georgia, on Monday to receive a briefing on the damage caused by Hurricane Helene, help distribute supplies and deliver remarks, his campaign said.
President Joe Biden said Sunday that the photographs showing Hurricane Helene’s damage are “stunning.”
When asked by reporters about his message to the victims, Biden said, “It’s tragic.”
“My FEMA advisor is on the ground in Florida right now. … We’re working hard,” Biden said.
Asked by ABC News if there are more resources the federal government could be providing, Biden responded, “No, we’ve given them. We have pre-planned a significant amount, even though they didn’t ask for it yet — hadn’t asked for it yet.”
-ABC News’ Michelle Stoddart
25 dead in South Carolina
Hurricane Helene’s impact on South Carolina has been “devastating,” and the storm has claimed the lives of 25 people in the state, Gov. Henry McMaster said Sunday.
“We don’t want to lose any more,” McMaster said.
Nearly 1.3 million customers lost power in South Carolina at Helene’s peak. As of Sunday afternoon, more than 800,000 customers remain in the dark.
The governor emphasized that power companies are working around the clock to restore electricity. Thousands of workers are on the ground, but downed trees tangled in power lines are delaying efforts, he said.
-ABC News’ Jason Volack
FEMA sending more search and rescue teams to North Carolina
FEMA Director Deanne Criswell said the agency is sending more search and rescue teams to western North Carolina, where residents are facing “historic” flooding from Hurricane Helene.
“I don’t know that anybody could be fully prepared for the amount of flooding and landslides that they are experiencing right now. But we have had teams in there for several days. We’re sending more search and rescue teams in there,” Criswell told CBS’ Face the Nation.
Gov. Roy Cooper described Hurricane Helene’s damage in western North Carolina as “catastrophic.”
“This unprecedented storm dropped from 10 to 29 inches of rain across the mountains, leading to life-threatening floods and landslides,” he said Sunday.
Water systems have been impacted and some roads have washed away, hampering the ability for officials to set up food and water distribution sites.
“We have sent bottled water in, but we also have the Army Corps of Engineers that’s getting ready to start assessments today to see what we can do to help get those water systems back online quickly,” Criswell said.
“We’re also moving in satellite communications, Starlink satellites, into the area to help facilitate the lack of communication that part of the state is experiencing,” Criswell added.
An F-16 Fighting Falcon, assigned to the 354th Fighter Wing, Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, flies over the Joint Pacific-Alaska Range Complex, Alaska, during exercise Red Flag-Alaska 24-1, April 26, 2024. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Julia Lebens, FILE)
(WASHINGTON) — A Russian fighter jet crossed the path of an American F-16 last week coming within 50 feet of the nose of the American jet, said North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), which said the Russian pilot’s action “endangered all.”
NORAD released dramatic video on Monday that showed just how close the Russian fighter flew ahead of the American aircraft at a high rate of speed.
The close encounter occurred on Sept. 23 during a flurry of activity by Russian aircraft that over the span of several days had flown through the Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) off of Alaska. The Alaska ADIZ is international airspace that stretches 150 miles from the Alaska coastline, but the U.S. requires that any aircraft transiting through it must identify themselves or be intercepted by NORAD aircraft.
On that day, two U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter jets were sent to intercept two Russian Tu-95 bombers and the two Su-35 fighter jets that were escorting them.
The video released by NORAD was taken from a camera mounted in the canopy of the F-16 aircraft providing a view of what the pilot was seeing as the fighter flew near one of the Russian bombers.
Suddenly one of the Russian jets entered the field of view at a high rate of speed coming at what NORAD said was within 50 feet of the American plane’s nose rolling to one side as it flew past.
The video then showed the F-16’s nose wobbling from left to right, either as the American fighter pilot flew through the Russian aircraft’s wake or the pilot maintained control of the aircraft after the close encounter.
“The conduct of one Russian Su-35 was unsafe, unprofessional, and endangered all – not what you’d see in a professional air force,” said Gen. Gregory Guillot, NORAD’s top commander, in a comment posted on X.
A NORAD statement about the intercept that day did not provide any indication that NORAD aircraft had intercepted the Russian planes only detailing that it had “detected and tracked four Russian military aircraft operating in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).”
“The Russian aircraft remained in international airspace and did not enter American or Canadian sovereign airspace,” said the release. “This Russian activity in the Alaska ADIZ occurs regularly and is not seen as a threat.”
The close encounter capped two weeks of incidents where NORAD said it had detected and tracked the aircraft as they flew through the ADIZ.
(NEW YORK) — Vandals have destroyed a specialized viewfinder that allowed colorblind visitors to see the vibrant fall foliage in Tennessee, officials said.
The incident took place sometime during the night on Sept. 21 when officials from the National Park Service said that vandals not only destroyed the specialized viewfinder located in the Big South Fork National River & Recreation Area in Oneida, Tennessee, but also managed to rip “a large hole in the floor of the overlook balcony that has been temporarily repaired but will have to be completely replaced later this autumn,” according a statement from the National Park Service released on Monday regarding the incident.
“Individuals with protanopia and protanomaly — more commonly known as red-green color blindness — are not able to fully observe the effect of nature’s transition from deep green to brilliant shades of red, orange and gold,” officials said. “The viewfinder featured lenses for alleviating red-green color deficiencies, enabling visitors with color blindness to see the foliage just as it appears to people with typical vision.”
The National Park Service had partnered with the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development to install the specially-equipped viewfinder at Big South Fork’s East Rim Overlook, a popular overlook that offers impressive views of the Big South Fork River gorge.
“The National Park Service strives to provide opportunities for people to enjoy their park to the greatest extent possible,” said Superintendent Niki Stephanie Nicholas. “But thanks to an act of sheer, wanton vandalism, visitors with color blindness will no longer be able to experience the joy of seeing the majestic fall colors of this beautiful landscape.”
Anyone with information concerning this incident is encouraged to contact the NPS at 423-215-9740 or leave a confidential message on the Resource Protection Tip Line at 423-569-7301.
A view of the damaged area at Asheville along with the western part of North-Carolina is devastated by the heavy rains and flooding after Hurricane Helene in Asheville, United States on September 30, 2024. (Peter Zay/Anadolu via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Asheville, North Carolina, has been called a potential safe haven for climate refugees by real estate researchers, praised for its temperate mountain weather, distance far from the coast, experiencing less extreme heat and fewer wildfires.
The city of around 95,000 people was believed markings of a place where those escaping the harsh impacts of the climate crisis could go for safety.
Certainly, there are locations that are going to be able to withstand some of those impacts more than others, according to Dave Reidmiller, the director of the Gulf of Maine Research Institute’s Climate Center.
However, the fatal floods and landslides seen after Helene ripped through Buncombe County, which encompasses Asheville, highlight that “no place is truly untouched by climate change, anywhere in the world,” said Reidmiller. Asheville is nearly 400 miles away from where the storm made landfall in Florida last Thursday.
Experts say human-caused climate change has caused an increase in rainfall, increasing the severity and frequency of rainfall events, and more across the country. As extreme weather worsens amid global heating, the crisis is displacing people not just in the U.S., but around the world.
Because of this, Antonia Sebastian, a professor at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Department of Earth, Marine and Environmental Sciences, doesn’t believe in climate havens.
The designation of a “climate haven” has been denounced by climate experts, who told ABC News that it’s not a widely accepted or official term and that the criteria is unclear.
“Climate change is sort of a pervasive issue that is going to affect communities all over the world — not equally — but definitely it will impact everyone, everywhere in some way,” Sebastian told ABC News.
Helene, which made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region as a massive Category 4 hurricane, was the strongest hurricane to make landfall in the Big Bend on record. It traveled inland, hitting not just Florida, but also Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee.
Helene dumped more than 30 inches of rain on North Carolina, producing the biggest local flooding in recorded history. The path of the storm’s devastation has spanned more than 600 miles.
More than 30 people are dead and 600 people remain unaccounted for in hard-hit Buncombe County, according to county officials.
“When you get a really extreme rainfall in mountainous regions, you see flooding, you see the potential for landslides. You see a lot more road washouts than you might in a coastal area with the same kind of storm. That’s that elevation component. The topography component really adds to the severity of the flooding that that people experience,” Sebastian said.
“It’s really not only the volume of water that’s really out like astounding — we’re talking thousand-year-levels of rainfall by some measures — but it’s the ferocity with which that water is flowing, the speed and the real intensity of the flood that they had to experience out there,” she noted.
Across Helene’s path, more than 100 people have been killed.
Kristina Dahl, senior climate scientist at the Union of Concerned Scientists, argues that society needs to move away from viewing some groups as refugees of the climate crisis and instead acknowledge the need for everyone to invest in measures that will make communities and individuals more resilient to extreme weather.
“What folks have experienced over the last few days of Hurricane Helene is unprecedented and terrifying, they’re certainly not alone in experiencing it,” Dahl said in an interview.
The international think-tank Institute for Economics & Peace estimates that 1.2 billion people could be displaced globally by 2050.
Despite Asheville’s status as a climate resilient city, Amber Weaver, its sustainability officer, announced earlier this year that it was in the process of developing a resilience assessment to adapt to the growing list of major climate-related dangers.
Reidmiller urged cities nationwide to invest in climate change mitigation and preparedness, adding that the cost of climate change — in both damages and human life — will continue to add up unless action is taken.
“You pay, frankly, pay for climate readiness now, or Mother Nature is going to charge you later with interest,” Reidmiller told ABC News. “As we rebuild, we kind of need to ask ourselves, do we need to rebuild higher, stronger, with different permitting and regulatory requirements to make sure that what we are building back is more capable of withstanding these stronger, more intense, more frequent, longer lasting, greater-in-spatial scale events?”
Letcher County Sheriff Mickey Stines (Letcher County)
(NEW YORK) — The Kentucky sheriff accused of fatally shooting a judge in his chambers is retiring, according to a letter from the murder suspect’s attorney.
Letcher County Sheriff Shawn “Mickey” Stines, 43, was charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of Kentucky District Judge Kevin Mullins, 54, who authorities said was gunned down inside his chambers in the Letcher County Courthouse on Sept. 19.
Stines “has made the difficult decision” to retire on Monday, attorneys Jeremy Bartley and Kerri Bartley stated in a letter addressed to S. Travis Mayo, deputy counsel at the Kentucky governor’s office.
“This decision is made, not as a result of any ultimatum or in any way as a concession to any allegations made by the Commonwealth of Kentucky,” the letter stated. “Rather, Sheriff Stines has made this decision to allow for a successor to continue to protect his beloved constituents while he addresses the legal process ahead of him.”
Stines pleaded not guilty to the first-degree murder charge during his first court appearance last week.
There was no discussion of a bond during the hearing, Lexington ABC affiliate WTVQ-TV reported.
He is expected back in court on Tuesday.
Stines could face the death penalty if convicted, according to a special judge appointed to preside over the case.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear had previously called on Stines to resign in the wake of the incident by Sept. 27. If not, Beshear said there is a “removal process” he can start.
“Every Kentucky county needs an active and working sheriff,” Beshear said at an unrelated press briefing last week. “Right now, Letcher County doesn’t have an active and a working sheriff.”
Mullins was found with multiple gunshot wounds after a 911 caller reported shots being fired inside the courthouse, and Stines was taken into custody without incident at the courthouse, police said.
The shooting allegedly occurred “following an argument inside the courthouse,” according to Kentucky State Police, and investigators are still searching for a motive.
The two had had lunch together the day of the shooting, Letcher County Circuit Clerk Mike Watts told WTVQ.
Days before the shooting, Stines was deposed in a lawsuit, which alleged he had failed to investigate one of his deputies who sexually abused a woman in Mullins’ chambers.
(MEMPHIS, Tenn.) — Attorneys for two of the three former Memphis police officers facing charges in the January 2023 beating death of Tyre Nichols rested their cases on Monday.
Demetrius Haley’s and Tadarrius Bean’s lawyers said they wouldn’t call any more witnesses to the stand, according to WATN-TV. The two ex-officers did not testify at the trial, but Justin Smith, the third defendant, might be called to the stand. Martin Zummach, Smith’s attorney, said in opening arguments that the former officer will testify, according to WATN.
Smith, Bean and Haley were charged on Sept. 12, 2023, with violating Nichols’ civil rights through excessive use of force, unlawful assault, failing to intervene in the assault and failing to render medical aid. These charges carry a maximum penalty of life in prison if convicted, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. The officers have pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Emmitt Martin III and Desmond Mills Jr., the two other officers who were also charged in this case, have pleaded guilty to some of the federal charges.
Mills pleaded guilty to two of the four counts in the indictment — excessive force and failing to intervene, as well as conspiring to cover up his use of unlawful force, according to the DOJ. The government said it will recommend a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, based on the terms of Mills’ plea agreement.
Martin pleaded guilty to excessive force and failure to intervene, as well as conspiracy to witness tamper, according to court records. The other two charges will be dropped at sentencing, which has been scheduled for Dec. 5, according to the court records.
Michael Stengel, Haley’s lawyer, and John Perry, Bean’s attorney, each called for the testimony of police-use-of-force experts in previous days attempting to justify the officers’ actions during the encounter with Nichols.
Zummach called Jared Zwickey, who had been in law enforcement for 50 years, to the stand as an expert witness, according to WATN. Zwickey testified that the actions of Smith, who was characterized as the unit’s team leader, were consistent with Memphis police and national policing standards and training.
“Hit him,” Smith could be heard saying on police body camera video during the beating, according to WATN.
“It’d be appropriate if the officer needed help,” Zwickey said when asked if Smith’s statement was appropriate during the Nichols’ encounter.
Body-camera footage shows that Nichols fled after police pulled him over on Jan. 7, 2023, for allegedly driving recklessly, then shocked him with a Taser and pepper-sprayed him.
Officers allegedly then beat Nichols minutes later after tracking him down. After the police encounter, Nichols was transferred to the hospital in critical condition.
Nichols, 29, died in the hospital on Jan. 10, 2023. Footage shows the officers walking around, talking to each other as Nichols was injured and sitting on the ground.
Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis said she has been unable to substantiate that Nichols was driving recklessly. The incident triggered protests and calls for police reform.
After the police encounter, Nichols was transferred to the hospital in critical condition. The medical examiner’s official autopsy report for Nichols showed he “died of brain injuries from blunt force trauma,” the district attorney’s office told Nichols’ family in May 2023.
The prosecution told ABC News earlier this month that they will not have any statements until after the trial. The defense attorneys did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
The five former officers charged in this case were all members of the Memphis Police Department SCORPION unit — a crime suppression unit that was disbanded after Nichols’ death. All of the officers were fired for violating MPD policies.
Students are seen on campus at the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles, April 16, 2024. (Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — California has become the fourth state to ban legacy admissions in the college application process, a practice that has long been criticized as favoring white or wealthy students based on their familial alumni connections.
“In California, everyone should be able to get ahead through merit, skill, and hard work,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a Monday statement. “The California Dream shouldn’t be accessible to just a lucky few, which is why we’re opening the door to higher education wide enough for everyone, fairly.”
The decision affects private and nonprofit universities. The University of California system eliminated legacy admission preferences in 1998, according to Newsom’s office.
Legacy admissions have come under heightened scrutiny following the Supreme Court’s decision to limit race-based affirmative action programs for colleges and universities in June 2023. California law had banned affirmative action in 1996.
“In light of this shift, proponents of AB 1780 advocated for admissions criteria that additionally ensure that factors like wealth or personal relationships do not unduly influence admissions decisions,” the governor’s office said in a statement.
The majority of Americans — 75% of those surveyed in a April 2022 Pew Research study — believe a student’s relationship to an alumni should not be a factor in admissions.
“AB 1780 aims to ensure that admissions decisions are based on merit rather than personal connections — reducing biases in the admissions process at private colleges in California,” the governor’s office said.
All private colleges and universities in California must now submit an annual report to ensure compliance.
Research has shown that legacy applicants are admitted at higher rates, but are not more qualified or academically superior applicants. They are also a less racially diverse population.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology and University of Colorado-Boulder analyzed 16 years of data from an unnamed elite university in a September 2022 study released in the journal American Sociological Review.
It found that 34.2% of legacy applicants were admitted, compared to 13.9% of non-legacy applicants — most of them white, and most of them wealthier than their counterparts. These students are from ZIP codes with higher mean incomes and are less likely to apply for financial aid with their application, the study said. They are also flagged by the school as having high donor potential.
An analysis from the Institute for Higher Education Policy in 2021 found that 53% of selective four-year colleges consider legacy status in their admissions decisions.
California joins Colorado, Maryland and Virginia in banning these practices, reinforcing bans that hundreds of colleges have already implemented.
