Evacuations ordered in parts of Washington amid threat of ‘catastrophic’ flooding
Heavy rain fall (Photography by Keith Getter (all rights reserved)/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Up to 100,000 people in Washington state could be ordered to evacuate amid a threat of “catastrophic” flooding from an atmospheric river event, officials said.
Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, who announced a state of emergency on Wednesday, pleaded with residents to follow evacuation orders and warned on social media, “Catastrophic flooding is likely.”
In Skagit County, north of Seattle, officials called for evacuations amid the major flooding, saying “residents within the FEMA 100-year floodplain need to evacuate to high ground immediately.”
Multiple rivers are at major flood stage and more are expected to grow into major flood stage later in the day on Thursday.
The Snohomish River at Snohomish reached a record high of 33.9 feet on Thursday morning, and it may stay near this level for 24 hours. The floodwaters are expected inundate much of the river valley and could overtop the levees.
Record flooding is possible at other river locations, including the Skagit River near Concrete and near Mount Vernon, the Snoqualmie River at Snoqualmie Falls, the Cedar River at Renton, and the Snohomish River near Snohomish Monroe.
Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell said on social media she was “alarmed” to hear the Skagit River could peak as high as 5 feet above its record crest level.
“Please please please stay alert and follow evacuation orders,” she posted. “This is not just another flood.”
Roads are flooded and closed across North Bend — a city about 30 miles east of Seattle — and mudslides have closed parts of Interstate 90.
Eastside Fire and Rescue, which services parts of King County just east of Seattle, started conducting water rescues on Wednesday. Three adults and a dog were rescued after their home flooded, and two adults and a child were rescued in another incident.
Eastside Fire and Rescue released video of the moment two drivers were rescued rescued by helicopter Wednesday night. After the drivers were caught in the floodwaters, they were forced to flee to higher ground, with one person climbing to the top of their car and the other seeking safety in a tree, officials said.
“Stay home and don’t travel unless necessary,” the sheriff’s office urged on Thursday.
The flooding was sparked by an atmospheric river event that dumped more than 1 foot of rain at higher elevations of western Washington state over the last three days. The heavy rain is continuing Thursday morning and then will weaken throughout the day.
In this handout, the mug shot of Jeffrey Epstein, 2019. (Kypros/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Democrats on the House Oversight Committee on Friday released another batch of photographs obtained from the estate of Jeffrey Epstein, including some never-before-seen images of Epstein with famous men whose connections to the deceased sex offender have previously been reported.
The disclosure by the committee Democrats includes images of Donald Trump, former President Bill Clinton, Woody Allen, Bill Gates, Steve Bannon, former Prince Andrew and billionaire Richard Branson, among others.
The context, time frame and location of the photographs are unclear.
“These disturbing photos raise even more questions about Epstein and his relationships with some of the most powerful men in the world,” said Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif, the ranking Democrat on the Oversight Committee. “We will not rest until the American people get the truth. The Department of Justice must release all the files, NOW.”
The 19 photos made public are from a cache of more than 95,000 photos turned over to the committee by the Epstein estate in response to a subpoena, the committee Democrats said in a press release.
Other images under review by the committee include thousands of photos of women and Epstein properties, according to the release.
The images come from the hard drive of one of Epstein’s personal computers and one of his email accounts, according to the committee Democrats.
The disclosure includes a rare image of Bill Clinton with both Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. In the photo a smiling Clinton stands in the middle of a group of five people, with Maxwell and Epstein on the right and another unidentified woman and man on the left. The photo includes what appears to be Clinton’s signature.
Vanity Fair magazine previously published an image of Epstein with Clinton that was said to be taken aboard Epstein’s jet in 2002. That photo was credited by the magazine to one of Epstein’s assistants. Epstein and Maxwell were previously seen greeting then-President Clinton in a 1993 photo at a White House event for donors to the nonprofit White House Historical Association. That picture was found in the archives at the Clinton Presidential Library.
Three of the photos show Donald Trump, though Epstein himself appears in only one. That picture appears to be from a 1997 Victoria’s Secret event in New York, and shows Epstein next to Trump as he talks with one of the models at the event. Other photos from that party have been public for years.
Another photo shows Trump seated on an airplane next to a woman -apparently and adult — whose face is covered with a black box. In the third photo, a black and white image shows Trump in the center of a photo with six women, who all appear to be adults and whose faces are also redacted. That image appears to be from a public event, though the location and timeframe are not known.
A spokesperson for the Republican majority on the House Oversight Committee criticized the Democrats’ for “cherry-picking” photos to malign President Trump.
“Once again, Ranking Member Robert Garcia and Oversight Committee Democrats are cherry-picking photos and making targeted redactions to create a false narrative about President Trump,” the spokesperson said. “We received over 95,000 photos and Democrats released just a handful. Democrats’ hoax against President Trump has been completely debunked. Nothing in the documents we’ve received shows any wrongdoing. It is shameful Rep. Garcia and Democrats continue to put politics above justice for the survivors.”
Among the famous men pictured with Epstein in the newly disclosed photos are titans of Hollywood, business, academia and politics.
Appearance of these men in the photos is not evidence of wrongdoing.
In one image, a casually-dressed Epstein is seen chatting with director Woody Allen on what looks like a film set. Allen sits in a director’s chair peering intently at Epstein who appears to be looking at a video monitor.
Allen appears in three other photos: aboard an airplane with former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and his wife, seated at a table with Epstein and a woman whose face is covered with a black box, and chatting with political strategist Steve Bannon, who worked for President Trump during his first administration.
There’s a selfie photo of Bannon with Epstein, apparently taken by Epstein on a mobile phone as the pair stand in front of a mirror, and another of Bannon sitting across from Epstein at a desk.
Billionaire Richard Branson appears in one image, seated outdoors with another man with Epstein standing behind. The smiling men appear to be sharing a chuckle as Branson holds up a page from a notebook. A large black box covers whatever it is that is on the notebook page.
Microsoft founder Bill Gates is shown in two photos, though Epstein is not present in either. One photo shows Gates with the former Prince Andrew, both in suit and tie, gazing at each other in a dark paneled room with other people in the background. Another shows Gates standing next to Larry Visoski, Epstein’s longtime private pilot, beside what appears to be Epstein’s black Gulfstream jet. Gates, in a gray pullover sweater, has books under his arm and a leather briefcase in his hand.
The disclosure by the House Democrats also includes three photos depicting apparent sexual paraphernalia; no people are in those images and the context of the images is unclear.
Another image shows what appears to be a joke or a novelty gift item, a likeness of Trump on what appears to be a condom wrapper that says, “I’m HUUUUGE!”
“Trump Condom, $4.50, FINALLY,” reads a handwritten sign.
Mary Carole McDonnell, the former head of a California company that produced true crime TV shows has been added to the FBI’s Most Wanted list, years after being charged with portraying herself as an heiress to get millions of dollars from lenders. FBI.
(WASHINGTON) — A former TV producer whose company made true crime programs was added to the FBI’s most wanted list last week for allegedly defrauding banks for nearly $30 million by posing as an heiress.
Mary Carole McDonnell, the former CEO of Bellum Entertainment Group, which produced syndicated shows such as “Corrupt Crimes” and “Murderous Affairs,” has been on the lam for nearly seven years after the FBI charged her with bank fraud and aggravated identity theft.
Between July 2017 and May 2018, McDonnell, 73, allegedly went to the Banc of California and additional financial institutions and claimed to be an heir to the McDonnell Aircraft Family, with an $80 million secret trust to which she will have access, the FBI alleged.
She allegedly obtained $29.7 million dollars in cash that she was not entitled to and did not return the money, according to the FBI.
When the bureau issued its arrest warrant on Dec. 12, 2018, McDonnell could not be found.
She is believed to be currently in Dubai, according to the FBI.
Anyone with information related to her whereabouts is urged to contact the FBI at tips.fbi.gov.
Ellen Greenberg,(L) in a photo provided by family. Lamb McErlane PC
(PHILADELPHIA) — The family of Ellen Greenberg is celebrating the prospect of a federal investigation into the way various agencies in Philadelphia handled her death.
The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Thursday that the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania issued subpoenas as part of an inquiry into whether Greenberg’s death was properly investigated.
The family of the 27-year-old teacher has long claimed the case was “embarrassingly botched” and warranted additional investigation.
“The prospects of the federal United States attorneys investigating any aspect of Ellen’s murder is a dream come true for [her parents] Sandee and Josh,” family attorney Joseph Podraza said in a statement to ABC News. “We have only wanted justice for Ellen and now have renewed hope this will occur. Sandee and Josh and their lawyers will continue to pursue and support all avenues to secure justice in this matter.”
The US Attorney’s office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania declined to comment. ABC News has reached out to various offices involved in Greenberg’s case, including the Philadelphia District Attorney’s office and the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s office, which have not immediately returned request for comment.
Greenberg was found by her fiancé in January 2011 in the kitchen of their home with a 10-inch knife in her chest and over a dozen stab wounds. The fiancé told police at the time the door was locked from the inside and investigators said there were no signs of forced entry or defensive wounds.
The Philadelphia medical examiner’s office initially ruled Greenberg’s death a homicide, then switched to suicide.
In October, the medical examiner affirmed she died by suicide after the medical examiner’s office agreed to reassess the case following lawsuits from her family that contested the initial finding. Dr. Marlon Osbourne, the pathologist who performed the original autopsy, stated in a sworn statement in 2024 that “Ellen’s manner of death should be designated as something other than suicide.”
The Philadelphia Medical Examiner’s Office agreed to review the case again as part of a settlement with her family to determine whether her manner of death should be changed to “could not be determined” or “homicide.”
Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Lindsay Simon stated in the 32-page review that it was her opinion that Greenberg’s death is “best classified as ‘Suicide.'”
Simon determined Greenberg had 23 stab and incised wounds in her neck, head and front torso — up from the initial autopsy report’s finding of 20 wounds — many of which “would best be categorized as hesitation wounds.” Additionally, she determined there were another 20 bruises from the initial report, raising the number to 31. No defensive wounds were found on her body, and “the fact remains that Ellen would be capable of inflicting these injuries herself,” Simon stated.
The evidence did not indicate any foul play or that there was anyone else in the apartment at the time of her death, but that Greenberg was “suffering from anxiety at the time of her death” and that the “anxiety appeared mostly to be due to her work as a teacher,” according to the review.
If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide — free, confidential help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Call or text the national lifeline at 988.
