Suspect in custody following spate of stabbing attacks in Seattle: Police

November 9, 2024

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(SEATTLE) — Five people were stabbed in Seattle on Friday, marking the latest incident in a string of stabbings over the past two days in the same area, police said.

A suspect was taken into custody following Friday’s stabbing attack, which appeared to be random, Seattle Police Deputy Chief Eric Barden told reporters at a press briefing.

The suspect, whose name has not been released, is believed to be linked to several of the recent stabbing incidents, police said.

The latest stabbing incident occurred Friday afternoon in the 1200 block of South Jackson Street, in the Chinatown-International District, Seattle police said.

Four of the victims were transported to a local hospital in various conditions, including one who still had a knife in them, Barden said. A fifth victim was treated and released at the scene, police said.

A man matching a description given by witnesses was located nearby and arrested without incident, Barden said. A weapon was also recovered near the suspect, he said.

“This is a horrific tragedy, a mass casualty event,” Barden said.

In addition to the five victims in this incident, five other people have been stabbed in the area in a roughly 38-hour period, according to Seattle police.

The suspect is believed to be linked to four of those stabbings, while one is still being investigated, police said.

The first incident occurred early Thursday, in which a 52-year-old woman was stabbed eight times, police said.

Three other stabbing incidents involving male victims occurred on Thursday, police said. Two of the victims were stabbed multiple times. The other victim told police the assailant tried to stab him in the chest but he managed to block the assault, though sustained a cut to his hand, police said. The victim’s cellphone was also stolen, police said.

Another stabbing occurred early Friday, where a victim was found bleeding “heavily from the neck” and transported to a local hospital in serious condition, police said.

Barden said that beyond the robbery incident, the stabbings appeared to be “just random attacks.”

“This incident was apparently one individual over a 38-hour period of time committing random assaults. That is an aberration. That is not at all the norm,” Barden said. “With a suspect in custody, I think we are returned to normal.”

Tropical Storm Rafael slams Caribbean, may head to Gulf Coast this weekend

ABC News

Tropical Storm Rafael is barreling through the Caribbean and may impact the U.S. Gulf Coast this weekend.

Rafael is bringing gusty winds and heavy rain to Jamaica on Tuesday morning.

The storm is forecast to strengthen into a hurricane Tuesday night as it passes over the Cayman Islands.

Rafael is expected to make landfall in Cuba on Wednesday evening as a Category 1 hurricane, bringing mudslides and damaging winds to the island.

On Thursday morning, Rafael’s outer bands will graze the Florida Keys with gusty winds and heavy rain. A tropical storm watch has been issued.

By Friday morning, the system is forecast to slow down and weaken in the Gulf of Mexico.

As of now it’s not clear what impacts, if any, Rafael will bring to the U.S. Gulf Coast.

Some models predict Rafael targeting the Gulf Coast as a rain maker, while other models show a weakening Rafael heading toward Mexico.

Atlantic hurricane season lasts through Nov. 30.

United flight diverted to Memphis due to ‘severe’ turbulence: Airline

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(NEW YORK) — A United Airlines flight en route to Chicago was diverted to Tennessee after experiencing “severe turbulence” Wednesday, the airline said.

Seven people were injured, including one who was transported to a local hospital, authorities said.

Flight UA1196 encountered “a brief period of severe turbulence” Wednesday afternoon, United Airlines said in a statement. The seatbelt sign was on at the time, the airline said.

The crew reported the severe turbulence over Louisiana before landing safely at Memphis International Airport around 2:40 p.m. CT, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

Paramedics met the aircraft at the gate and transported one passenger to the hospital, United said. The person suffered non-critical injuries, according to the Memphis Fire Department.

Six others declined treatment and transport and the extent of their injuries is unknown, the fire department said.

“We’re grateful to our crew for their efforts to ensure the safety of our employees and customers,” United said.

The Boeing 737-900 was traveling from Cancun International Airport to Chicago O’Hare International Airport at the time, the airline said. There were 172 passengers and seven crew members on board, according to United.

The plane was back in the air on its way to Chicago as of Wednesday evening.

The FAA said it is investigating.

St. Petersburg woman who lives across from Tropicana Field recounts Hurricane Milton: ‘It was horrifying’

ABC News

(ST.PETERSBURG, Fla.) — As Hurricane Milton pummeled the St. Petersburg area, with winds strong enough to shred the roof of Tropicana Field, Kristy Austin said it sounded like a “freight train” was coming through her apartment building.

“It sounded like the ocean was hitting our windows and the water was just pouring through,” Austin, who lives across the street from the stadium, told ABC News on Thursday.

Water was coming in the windows of her eighth-floor apartment, going up to almost her knees, Austin said, while the wind also howled.

“We thought the windows were going to blow and might cut us and kill us,” she said.

Austin said she and her best friend grabbed blankets and emergency bags with their birth certificates and ended up sheltering in the windowless stairwell on the 14th floor of their building all night.

“It still sounded like a freight train coming through the building,” she said. “And the whistling of the storm, it was really scary.”

The St. Petersburg area saw gusts up to 102 miles an hour during Hurricane Milton. More than 18 inches of rain also fell.

The roof of Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay Rays, lay in tatters Thursday, most of it completely ripped off during the high winds. The roof was built to withstand 115 mph winds, according to the Tampa Bay Rays media guide.

No one was injured as the stadium roof was torn off during the storm, officials said. The Tampa Bay Rays said Thursday they are working with authorities to secure the building.

“We are devastated by the damage incurred by so many,” the team said.

Ahead of Hurricane Milton’s arrival, Tropicana Field was set up to serve as a base camp for operations and 10,000 first responders. However, in a press conference Thursday morning, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis confirmed they were moved out of Tropicana as the forecast changed.

“As it became clear that there was going to be something of that magnitude that was going to be within the distance, they redeployed them out of Tropicana,” DeSantis said.

Pinellas County had no no running water in the immediate aftermath of Milton after several water main breaks overnight, officials said. By Thursday afternoon, officials said potable water service was back but that pressure may be low.

As St. Petersburg cleans up from the powerful storm, Steven Kauvaris, who lives near Tropicana Field, wanted to see the devastation firsthand.

“That was honestly just pretty impressive,” Kauvaris told ABC News near the stadium Thursday morning. “It’s definitely impressive to see the kind of damage that this storm created.”

Austin said she decided not to evacuate because her building is secure and on the hospital grid, so she didn’t lose electricity. Between the damage to Tropicana Field and the flooding in her apartment, she said she’s never seen anything like Milton.

“It was horrifying,” she said. “We weren’t sure if we were going to make it out alive.”