Multiple people killed after small plane crash in North Carolina: NPS
Wright Brothers National Memorial from the air, Kitty Hawk, Kill Devils, NC, Feb. 6, 2022. — Joe Sohm/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
(KILL DEVIL HILLS, N.C.) — Multiple people were killed after a single-engine plane crashed into the woods near the Wright Brothers National Memorial’s First Flight Airport in North Carolina.
The crash occurred on Saturday at approximately 5 p.m. ET, according to a press release from the National Park Service (NPS).
The number of people killed and their identities have not been released.
Eyewitnesses reported that the airplane crashed while attempting to land at the airport, according to the NPS.
The plane caught fire as a result of the crash and was extinguished by the Kill Devil Hills Fire Department and other local fire departments, according to the NPS.
An investigation into the crash is being conducted by the National Transportation Safety Board, and the Federal Aviation Administration has been notified.
Wright Brothers National Memorial is closed Sunday as the investigation continues, according to the NPS.
ABC News’ Victoria Arancio contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — Three major wildfires were raging across Southern California Tuesday, threatening thousands of homes as firefighters and the state National Guard were battling to bring the flames under control amid a triple-digit heatwave, officials said.
The Line Fire in San Bernardino County, the Airport Fire in Orange County and the Bridge Fire in Los Angeles County are all being fueled by extremely dry vegetation and spreading rapidly, officials said.
The Line Fire
As of Tuesday afternoon, the Line Fire was threatening 65,600 structures, including homes and commercial properties, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Prevention (Cal Fire).
Fire crews achieved 5% containment on the blaze on Monday night as Gov. Gavin Newsom deployed the state National Guard to support the ongoing response to extinguish the blaze.
While evacuation orders were issued for 9,200 structures in the area, with another 56,400 structures under evacuation warnings, Cal Fire said no buildings have been destroyed or damaged.
“We’re pouring resources into this incident aggressively by deploying more air and ground support through the California National Guard,” Newsom said in a statement. “This is on top of nearly 2,000 firefighters, nearly 200 engines, and air assets we already have tackling this fire. California stands with these communities and has their backs.”
Newsom said the California National Guard will support the ongoing response to the Line Fire, the cause of which remains under investigation. Eighty troops split into four 20-person teams and one military police company have been sent to the fire scene to assist the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department with traffic control in evacuated areas.
National Guard troops are also helping firefighters battle the flames. Four UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters for water bucket dropping operations and two C-130 aircraft with Modular Airborne Fire Fighting Systems are among the resources deployed by the National Guard, Newsom said.
The fire, which ignited Sept. 5, is burning in steep and rugged terrain, making access difficult, Cal Fire said. Firefighters are working to build “control lines” to contain the blaze.
“Stronger winds are predicted Tuesday which could help fire spread and contribute to longer range spotting. Mid-week cooling may moderate fire activity and increase fuel moistures,” Cal Fire said.
The Airport Fire
Another major fire in Southern California broke out Monday afternoon in an unincorporated area of Orange County, prompting the evacuations of 1,427 homes, according to Cal Fire. The fast-moving Airport Fire in Trabuco Canyon in the hills southeast of Irvine had burned 9,333 acres by Tuesday afternoon, according to Cal Fire.
The fire was 0% contained Tuesday afternoon, according to Cal Fire.
Two firefighters battling the blaze were hospitalized with heat-related injuries and one civilian suffering from smoke inhalation was also treated at a hospital, Cal Fire said. The Fire was burning in the direction of the Cleveland National Forest.
At least four people, including a couple and their 3-year-old child who were hiking on a trail in the area, had to be airlifted to safety, officials said. A man and his cats were airlifted to safety from their home, officials said.
Several emergency communication towers on Santiago Peak in the fire zone, as well as towers operated by local broadcasting stations, were being threatened by the fire, officials said.
As of Tuesday afternoon, no structures had been destroyed or damaged, according to Cal Fire.
The Airport Fire began around 1 p.m. PT on Tuesday, sparked by county public works crews working on a fire prevention project by trying to move boulders to prevent public access — mostly by motorcyclists — to an area of the canyon with a lot of dry vegetation that could ignite easily, officials told ABC Los Angeles station KABC.
“The fire has been classified as unintentional,” said Orange County Fire Authority Deputy Chief TJ McGovern.
At least 1,000 firefighters were battling the blaze Tuesday.
The Bridge Fire
Elsewhere, the Bridge Fire, which started on Sunday afternoon in Los Angeles Country, had burned 4,178 acres as of Tuesday afternoon. The fire north of Azusa in the Angeles National Forest was 0% contained.
Evacuation orders are in place for a mobile home park, campgrounds and a small river community.
The water buffalo is seen in this still from a Ring camera video in Pleasant Hill, Iowa, on Aug. 26, 2024. (Courtesy Jessica Eshelman)
(NEW YORK) — Police in Iowa said they have captured a “dangerous,” injured water buffalo that had been on the loose since Saturday.
The Pleasant Hill Police Department said the animal was transported Wednesday morning to the Iowa State University Veterinary Hospital after being located in Des Moines the previous evening.
The capture followed a dayslong search that at one point saw an officer shoot the animal, nicknamed “Phill” by some in the community, and sightings of the water buffalo in yards and on a home Ring camera.
Officers said they initially responded to a call Saturday about an “animal in the road” in Pleasant Hill, located about six miles east of Des Moines.
The owner “shared that it was an aggressive animal they were preparing to butcher for its meat and asked the Pleasant Hill Police Department to ‘put it down,'” the Pleasant Hill Police Department said in a statement Wednesday.
The responding officer said the department does not “put animals down” unless they pose a threat to the public, according to the police department.
An officer did shoot the animal, injuring it, later Saturday morning after the water buffalo showed “aggressiveness” toward responding officers, the police department said. The water buffalo was near a busy intersection “creating a dangerous situation,” police said.
The injured animal was then able to escape.
Pleasant Hill police said they employed ATVs to search bicycle trails and a creek for the loose animal. They said they also partnered with the Polk County Sheriff’s Office to use their drone technology and with “local individuals who have expertise in containing this type of animal,” they said.
Amid the search, the water buffalo was seen on Ring footage on Monday near the front door of a home in Pleasant Hill. A Pleasant Hill resident also filmed the animal in his backyard on Monday.
The water buffalo was located around 7:30 p.m. CT Tuesday in water in a sand pit in Des Moines, though first responders decided to wait to corral the animal until daylight, police said.
The animal was coaxed out of the water and a tranquilizer dart was administered around 9:30 a.m. CT on Wednesday, police said. A second tranquilizer dart was administered about 30 minutes later, police said.
The immobilized water buffalo was then loaded into a trailer and treated with reversal drugs, antibiotics and vitamins, police said.
“The water buffalo was awake and prognosis is guarded,” police said.
The animal was transported to the veterinary hospital to be monitored and receive any necessary medical care, police said.
The Polk County Conservation, Blank Park Zoo, Animal Rescue League of Iowa and other law enforcement agencies were involved in the capture, police said.
“An investigation into the escape of the animal is being conducted,” the Pleasant Hill Police Department said. “Based on the results of the investigation charges may be filed.”
The owner has since surrendered the animal to the Des Moines Police Department, police said. The animal is now a resident of the Iowa Farm Sanctuary and won’t be sent to slaughter, the organization said while commending the humane capture of “Phill.”
“The local community absolutely rallied for Phill and didn’t rest until he was given a fair chance at safety and freedom,” the Iowa Farm Sanctuary said in a statement on Facebook. “The outpouring of love for Phill, a farmed animal, in the epicenter of animal agriculture, is so incredibly heartwarming.”
(NEW YORK) — The United Auto Workers Union has filed federal labor charges against former President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, the union said Tuesday.
In a thread on X, the union said Trump and Musk had illegally attempted to “threaten and intimidate workers who stand up for themselves by engaging in protected concerted activity, such as strikes.”
Musk — who has endorsed Trump for president — interviewed him for two hours Monday night on X Spaces in a conversation that reached over 1 million users.
During the interview, Trump praised Musk as the “greatest cutter,” seemingly referring to the mass layoffs he conducted when he took over X, then known as Twitter.
“I mean, I look at what you do. You walk in, you say, ‘You want to quit?” Trump said. “I won’t mention the name of the company, but they go on strike, and you go, ‘You’re all gone.'”
Going on strike is considered protected activity under the National Labor Relations Act, and workers cannot legally be fired for doing so.
“When we say Donald Trump is a scab, this is what we mean,” UAW President Shawn Fain said in a statement. “When we say Trump stands against everything our union stands for, this is what we mean.”
“Donald Trump will always side against workers standing up for themselves, and he will always side with billionaires like Elon Musk, who is contributing $45 million a month to a Super PAC to get him elected,” Fain continued. “Both Trump and Musk want working-class people to sit down and shut up, and they laugh about it openly. It’s disgusting, illegal, and totally predictable from these two clowns.”
Musk has denied reports he is contributing $45 million a month to get Trump elected. He has long been outspoken against workers forming unions, however.
On Tuesday, Musk replied to a post on X about the labor charges, criticizing Fain, responding, “The last two UAW presidents went to prison for bribery & corruption and, based on recent news, it looks like this guy will join them!”
ABC News has contacted the Trump campaign and X for comment.
Musk told BBC’s James Clayton in April 2023 during a Spaces interview that the cuts at Twitter were “one of the hardest things he’s had to do.”
