Daughter of pilot who died in crash while rescuing dogs speaks out about his death
ABC News
(NEW YORK) — Leah Kim remembers her dad for his infectious smile and loving heart.
“His legacy is for people to live their lives with joy,” she told ABC News.
Seuk Kim, 49, was a pilot, animal rescuer and father of three. He began flying during the pandemic and, having a passion for animals, he started rescuing dogs.
“He stumbled across a rescue organization in which pilots could fly animals, dogs, cats, bunnies, you name it,” his daughter said.
On Sunday, Seuk Kim was flying three dogs from Maryland to a shelter in upstate New York when he hit turbulence and poor visibility.
He requested to change altitude, but his plane crashed near Albany. Seuk Kim and one of the dogs he was transporting didn’t survive the crash.
But 18-month-old Pluto was found nearby with minor injuries, as well as Whiskey, who dug a hole in the snow despite having two broken legs.
Pluto and Whiskey are only two of the hundreds of dogs Seuk Kim has rescued in recent years.
There’s nothing he loved more, according to his daughter.
“Over the summer, I actually flew a rescue mission with him,” Leah Kim said. “As much attention as he was paying to flying, he was looking back every couple minutes at the dogs, and he was smiling. And I don’t think I’ve ever seen him smile that much.”
His daughter added that she had wanted pomegranates for months and while she was at work on Saturday, her dad went out, got her one, took out all the seeds and put them in a little container.
“I was crying while I was eating them, but I wasn’t sad at all, because it was just a reminder that he’s always in our lives,” she said. “He’s always looking out for us. He’s still providing even though he’s gone.”
(WASHINGTON) — Special counsel Jack Smith is in active talks with senior leadership at the Justice Department evaluating ways he can end his prosecutions of President-elect Donald Trump, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
The decision is based on longstanding Department of Justice policy that a sitting president cannot face criminal prosecution while in office, sources said.
It is unclear as of today how Smith’s prosecutors will approach dismissing both the federal election subversion case in Washington, D.C., and their ongoing appeal of Judge Aileen Cannon’s dismissal of the classified documents case.
Trump has vowed to fire Smith “within two seconds.”
“We got immunity at the Supreme Court. It’s so easy. I would fire him within two seconds. He’ll be one of the first things addressed,” Trump said on a call into the “Hugh Hewitt Show” on Oct. 24.
But due to Justice Department policy of not prosecuting a president, a firing is unneeded.
Smith was appointed to his position by Attorney General Merrick Garland in November 2022 to investigate Trump and his allies’ efforts to overturn the 2020 election as well as Trump’s alleged unlawful possession of highly classified documents he took from his time in the White House.
On June 8, 2023, Smith indicted Trump on charges he unlawfully retained classified documents and obstructed the government’s efforts to retrieve them. Trump pleaded not guilty to the charges in a federal court in Florida.
On Aug. 1, 2023, Trump was indicted on four felony counts related to his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election. Trump also pleaded not guilty in federal court to those charges.
Both cases were thrown into disarray by the Supreme Court’s decision earlier this summer giving presidents partial immunity against prosecution.
The Jan. 6 case was sent back to a lower court, while Cannon, a Trump nominee, dismissed the classified documents case, ruling Smith’s appointment as special counsel was unconstitutional because he was not appointed by the president or confirmed by Congress.
ABC News’ Ivan Pereira contributed to this report.
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:
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.
(HARRISBURG, Penn.) — Three Mile Island, the shuttered Pennsylvania nuclear power plant that was the site of a 1979 reactor accident that remains the worst commercial nuclear power plant accident in U.S. history, is reopening to generate power for artificial intelligence.
Constellation Energy will restart Three Mile Island Unit 1, one of the facility’s pressurized water reactors, for the launch of the Crane Clean Energy Center, which will generate nuclear energy purchased by Microsoft to power the company’s AI data center, the companies announced on Friday.
Under the agreement between the two companies, Microsoft will purchase energy from the plant as part of its goal to help power its data centers with carbon-free energy.
“This agreement is a major milestone in Microsoft’s efforts to help decarbonize the grid in support of our commitment to become carbon negative. Microsoft continues to collaborate with energy providers to develop carbon-free energy sources to help meet the grids’ capacity and reliability needs,” said Microsoft Vice President of Energy Bobby Hollis in a statement.
The power purchase agreement “makes sense” because it ensures a stable revenue source for the power plant while providing 24/7 emission-free electricity for the data center, Jacopo Buongiorno, professor of nuclear science and engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), told ABC News.
The move is also “further confirmation” of the economic and environmental value of using existing nuclear power plants to meet decarbonization goals in the U.S., Buongiorno said.
“Since building a new nuclear power plant can be so time consuming and expensive, extending the license of current plants or refurbishing and restarting those that have been recently shutdown is a very attractive proposition,” Buongiorno said via email.
The Crane Clean Energy Center (CCEC) is expected to create 3,400 direct and indirect jobs and add more than 800 megawatts of carbon-free electricity to the grid, according to a study commissioned by the Pennsylvania Building & Construction Trades Council.
“The CCEC will support thousands of family-sustaining jobs for decades to come,” said Rob Bair, president of the Pennsylvania State Building and Construction Trades Council, in a statement. “It will help make Pennsylvania a leader in attracting and retaining the types of reliable, clean energy jobs that will define the future.”
Three Mile Island, located on the Susquehanna River near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, was shuttered in 2019 for economic reasons, according to Constellation Energy. Owner Exelon Corp said in 2017 that the closing was due to lack of financial rescue from the state.
On March 28, 1979, the Unit 2 reactor core at the Three Mile Island plant partially melted down when equipment malfunctions, compounded by human operator errors, caused a water pump failure that resulted in a loss of coolant to the reactor, according to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
The Unit 1 reactor is adjacent to Unit 2, which was shut down after the 1979 accident and is in the process of being decommissioned by its owner, Energy Solutions, according to Constellation Energy.
Public support for the restart of Three Mile Island is strong, with residents favoring it by a more than 2-1 margin, as long as funding for the restart doesn’t require increased taxes or electricity rates, according to a recent poll conducted by Susquehanna Polling & Research.
The nuclear energy industry plays a “critical role” in providing safe and reliable carbon-free energy, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said in a statement.
“My Administration will continue to work to cut energy costs and ensure the reliability of our energy grid so that Pennsylvanians can have access to affordable power made right here in Pennsylvania for years to come – and the Crane Clean Energy Center will help us achieve those goals,” Shapiro said.
