A person prepares to pump gas at a Valero gas station on June 16, 2026 in Austin, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Gas prices in the United States topped $4 per gallon on average Monday as an escalation of the Iran war renewed fears of a global oil shortage.
Prices at the pump have jumped 13 cents per gallon, or 3%, over the past week, AAA data showed, with the average price per gallon now at $4.003.
The recent cost rise brings gasoline prices back to a level achieved soon after the Iran war began in late February. The Middle East conflict prompted Iranian closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the maritime trading route that facilitates transportation of about one-fifth of global oil supply. The historic oil disruption sent gasoline prices surging.
Gas prices temporarily fell below $4 a gallon last month after the U.S. and Iran struck a preliminary agreement aimed at ending the war. Before the Iran war, fuel costs had last exceeded $4 a gallon in August 2022 following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
An exchange of strikes between the U.S. and Iran in recent days has reignited large-scale fighting and dampened prospects of a resolution.
President Donald Trump on Sunday said the U.S. hit Iran “hard” in honor of the U.S. service members who were killed by Iran over the weekend.
U.S. Central Command said two service members were killed in an attack on Jordan on Friday, and that a third service member remained missing. Another service member was killed in Iraq on Saturday, CENTCOM said.
The U.S. resumed its naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz last week, reversing a key commitment made as part of the agreement. That move came after Iran fired upon oil tankers in the strait.
The Iran war triggered one of the largest oil shocks ever recorded, sending the national average price of gasoline as high as $4.56 a gallon on May 21, AAA data showed.
Oil and gasoline prices began to fall in late May, however, as Iran and the U.S. appeared willing to strike an agreement that would reopen the strait. By late June, those prices gad fallen fell to their lowest level since before the war began.
Relief at the pump helped bring down prices overall. Inflation dropped more than expected in June as gas prices eased, federal government data on Tuesday showed.
Gas prices rose 3.5% in June compared to a year earlier, marking a retreat from a year-over-year inflation rate of 4.2% in the prior month. The reading for June marked the lowest inflation since March, though the pace of price increases remains more than a percentage point higher than its pre-war level.
Even after easing last month, overall inflation stands markedly higher than the Federal Reserve’s target rate of 2%.
ABC News’ David Brennan contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — More than a dozen reported tornadoes tore through part of the Central U.S. on Thursday night, including a powerful storm in northwestern Oklahoma that spurred a tornado emergency from the National Weather Service.
A tornado emergency is the highest alert level for tornadoes.
The weather service said a “large and destructive tornado” was confirmed on the ground at 8:21 p.m. local time in the area of Enid, Oklahoma, near Vance Air Force Base, and urged residents to take cover.
“You are in a life-threatening situation,” the weather service said. “Flying debris may be deadly to those caught without shelter. Mobile homes will be destroyed. Considerable damage to homes, businesses, and vehicles is likely and complete destruction is possible.”
Enid, a city of roughly 50,000 people, is located about 90 miles north of Oklahoma City
Garfield County Sheriff Cory Rink told Oklahoma City ABC station KOCO that search-and-rescue operations were underway in “hard-hit” areas. He said he did not have word yet on any injuries.
A county emergency management official told KOCO there were reports of 10 to 11 people with minor injures and that the search and rescue operations in the Grayridge area was wrapping up.
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, in a social media post, asked for prayers for the Enid community, which he said “has been severely impacted” by Thursday’s tornado.
“I have spoken with Enid’s local leaders and will continue working with them as they assess the damage and identify needs,” he said in the post.
Overall, there were 17 reported tornadoes Thursday night from Oklahoma to Iowa, and there were still several active tornado warnings along a line of dangerous storms stretching from Oklahoma to Missouri to Iowa.
Thursday is the first day of a multiday outbreak of severe weather for the Plains.
Sunisa Lee prepares to perform her routine during the Artistic Gymnastics, Women’s Balance Beam Final at the Bercy Arena during the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games on August 5th, 2024, in Paris, France. (Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Olympian Suni Lee is officially returning to competitive gymnastics.
The 23-year-old made the announcement in a video shared Tuesday on her Instagram page that featured clips of her from past practice sessions and in competition.
“I know what I’m capable of. I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get there,” Lee can be heard saying in a voiceover.
The end of the short video also included a message, which read: “This is more than a comeback, stay tuned.”
USA Gymnastics celebrated Lee’s return in its own Instagram post. “The journey continues! Welcome back, Suni!” the organization captioned the post, re-sharing Lee’s video.
Fellow gymnasts and Olympians also shared excitement for Lee’s big news.
“She’s back!!!!” Jordan Chiles wrote in a comment.
“yesssss,” Hezly Rivera added.
Lee, a two-time Olympian, has won six medals in her Olympic career so far, including two gold medals, one silver medal and three bronze medals. She specializes in the uneven bars and became the first American woman to win two medals in uneven bars at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
When she was honored with the 2025 ESPY for best comeback athlete, Lee gave Dr. Marcia Faustin, co-head team physician for the USA Gymnastics Women’s National Team, a shoutout in her acceptance speech.
“Thank you for guiding me through the toughest moments, reading every scan and report by my side,” Lee said.
An undated photo of 18-year-old Nolan Xavier Wells, whose body was believed to be recovered after going missing on July 4, 2026. (Courtesy of the Wells Family)
(NEW YORK) — The parents of Nolan Xavier Wells, Christine and Elmore Wonsley, broke their silence on their son’s mysterious death in an interview with “Good Morning America” anchor Michael Strahan on Friday morning.
“We just want honesty and transparency. We want a thorough investigation,” Christine Wonsley said. “We want that same respect that would be given to anybody else, and that’s it. We just want answers.”
The Wonsleys, who were joined by their attorney Ben Crump, called for a “thorough” and independent investigation.
They also expressed the need to shed more light on unanswered questions, including what they allege are deleted messages from their son’s phone, that have led them to become “suspicious” about his death following a July 4 boating trip.
“Nolan was just like this bright light … his smile, his energy was just, just so infectious,” Christine Wonsley said. “He was just a genuinely a good person. Like I always say, all the best parts of me are with him.”
Elmore Wonsley said Wells “was very loving.”
“There was not a friend that he couldn’t make … he’s gonna be really missed,” he said.
Wells, who played football at Southwest Mississippi Community College, went missing during a Fourth of July celebration with high school friends on Horn Island, a popular undeveloped island just south of Ocean Springs, Mississippi, officials said.
The 18-year-old’s body was recovered on Monday. Authorities said they suspect Wells drowned, but are still investigating. An autopsy was conducted but results could take weeks, officials said.
The disappearance
According to Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter, a friend of Wells contacted the Coast Guard around 11 p.m. last Saturday, July 4. Separately, Wells’ mother contacted the sheriff’s office about her son around midnight leading into Sunday, July 5.
The Wonsleys cast doubt on claims by friends that Wells decided to stay behind on the island, while his friends left.
“That we cannot answer,” Christine Wonsley said when asked why Wells would stay behind. “I just, I can’t — I can’t fathom why he would.”
Elmore Wonsley said that would have gone against the advice they gave Wells.
“We always told him, if you go with a group, you stay with a group,” he said.
Ledbetter told ABC News in an interview that aired on “GMA” on Friday that nothing “yet” from the evidence they collected indicates that foul play was involved in Wells’ death, but the investigation will take time and is ongoing, he added.
“We’re working towards the same goal as the family. We want a thorough investigation. We’re trying to find out everything ,” he said. “We are providing a thorough, professional, and accurate investigation. That’s what we’re going to continue to do, until we arrive at the answers that the family deserves.”
Crump, the attorney representing the Wonsleys, told ABC News Live in an interview on Wednesday that Wells could swim, his family is “not accepting that Nolan drowned accidentally.”
Unanswered questions
Christine Wonsley told “GMA” that his family tracked his phone, but when she went to pick it up from Wells’ friends, she said it appears that some texts and SnapChat messages had been deleted. It is unclear which friends Wells’ phone was retrieved from and who could have been in possession of it prior to that.
“When we finally got his phone, me and my sister went through the phone. We went in his Snapchat. He had two accounts. Absolutely nothing,” Christine Wonsley said. “It wasn’t even 24 hours, which is how long videos and pictures stay in Snapchat … even my sister was like ‘Yeah, that’s suspicious.'”
Crump, who joined the Wonsleys on “GMA” Friday, said that the family has questions about a cell phone video of an “argument” that was posted online.
“You can hear an argument going where Nolan is saying, ‘Give me my freaking phone! What are you freaking doing?’ And so then his phone ends up missing,” Crump said.
“No young person leaves their cell phone,” he added. “It’s not adding up, and that is the problem when you think about the history of Mississippi. Yeah, so there are so many questions that need to be answered.”
Ledbetter told GMA on Thursday night that Wells’ phone has not been turned over to investigators yet.
“It may be important, may be a piece that we haven’t got yet,” he said.
Ledbetter noted that the “argument” video will be part of the investigation.
As the family searches for answers, the investigation will continue in Washington, D.C., Crump said, where “we are having an independent autopsy done at behest of his family.”
He noted that former NFL football star Colin Kaepernick helped pay for it.
“We flew his body up from Mississippi to D.C. because they wanted an autopsy done by a person with no interaction with the Mississippi law enforcement because there’s an issue of trust here that is really important,” Crump said.
Ledbetter told “GMA” that the sheriff’s office welcomes the independent investigation.
“By all means, that’s more information looking into the death of Nolan that will be made available and another set of eyes looking at it,” he said.
Ledbetter asked the public for “patience” as investigators look into a “substantial amount” of tips, in addition to reviewing photo and video evidence.
The sheriff’s department stressed Wednesday that the investigation is ongoing and urged anyone who was on or near the northwest tip of Horn Island to come forward with photos or videos, “particularly those depicting alleged altercations or containing images of, or believed to include Nolan Wells.”
ABC News’ Sasha Pezenick, Kirk Cohall and Mark Guarino contributed to this report.
