At least 34 people across five U.S. states have been confirmed dead after a swarm of tornadoes tore through communities across the South and the Midwest over the weekend. There were at least 40 tornadoes reported across nine states between Friday night and early Saturday morning -- unusual for December in the United States. Kentucky was the worst-hit state, with at least 20 confirmed fatalities, according to local officials. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear warned Sunday that the death toll from what he described as "the most devastating tornado event in our state's history" could exceed 100, but then later said the tally might be closer to 50. Two of his relatives were among those killed. MORE: Deadly tornado updates: 8 dead, 8 still unaccounted for after candle factory is destroyedBeshear said at least 300 members of the Kentucky National Guard have been deployed across the state to help remove debris and search for survivors as well as victims. "We are still hoping for miracles," the governor told ABC News' David Muir on Sunday. "We are finding people and every single moment is incredible." "This is going to take years to rebuild," he added. Among the dead were eight night-shift workers at a candle factory in Mayfield, a city of about 10,000 people in western Kentucky. There were 110 employees inside the Mayfield Consumer Products facility when a tornado closed in late Friday night. Ninety-four workers have been accounted for, while eight remain missing, Mayfield Consumer Products CEO Troy Propes told ABC News. One of the survivors, Kyanna Parsons, recalled hunkering down at the candle factory with her coworkers when the tornado hit. She said she felt a gust of wind and her ears popped. The lights flickered before going out completely and the roof of the building suddenly collapsed, she said. "Everybody just starts screaming," Parsons told ABC News on Sunday. "I definitely had the fear that I wasn't gonna make it," she added. "It's a miracle any of us got out of there." Mayfield Mayor Kathy Stewart O'Nan said she was at the scene of the destroyed factory the following morning. She saw first responders from Louisiville, Kentucky's largest city, more than 200 miles away, "who had already gotten there, who had got in their trucks as quick as they could and come to help us." "The offers from all over the United States are overwhelming," O'Nan told ABC News' Robin Roberts on Monday. "We are so blessed with the state and federal support." The mayor said her city lost its sewage treatment plant and a water tower, in addition to many homes and businesses. Mayfield still has no power, natural gas or flowing water, according to O'Nan. "The immediate needs of our city people and our responders are being met with just wonderful donations," she said. "But our infrastructure is damaged so severely that getting that up and running is our absolute greatest priority at this time." MORE: How to help tornado victims in South and MidwestO'Nan, who lives about four blocks from the center of the city's downtown area, said she knew from watching the news last week that this storm would be "different." "This was not a storm that us Kentuckians like to go out on the porch and watch roll by," she said. When the tornado touched down on Friday night, O'Nan said she took shelter in the basement of her home and waited there until she heard it pass overhead. "That is a horrifying sound that I hope I never hear again," she said. A few minutes later, O'Nan said, she got a call from the city's fire chief saying the couldn't get the firetrucks or ambulances out of the bay at the fire station, because the doors wouldn't open. He ultimately had to attach a chain to his truck to pry the doors wide so firefighters and emergency workers could be deployed out into the field, according to O'Nan. MORE: What makes Kentucky's devastating tornadoes so rare"To watch them work tirelessly as they have during the last two days so far has just been heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time," the mayor said. "When I'm ever asked what's the greatest asset of our community, it is always our people," she added. "We've had small tragedies before and every time immediately the people bond together. I've seen that so much now, but we're joined by so many people from all across the commonwealth, all across the United States." Meanwhile, six people were killed in Illinois, where a tornado hit an Amazon facility. Four others were killed in Tennessee. There were two deaths reported in Arkansas and another two in Missouri, according to local officials.
A tornadic supercell left an extraordinarily long path of destruction -- about 200 miles long -- as it swept across four states on Friday night. It was unclear whether the storm involved one or multiple violent tornadoes that moved along the path. MORE: Tips on how to stay safe from a tornado after 40 reported in 9 statesOn average, there are 69 tornado-related fatalities in the U.S. each year, according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The deadliest tornado on record to hit Kentucky occurred on March 27, 1890. There were 76 deaths. U.S. President Joe Biden declared a state of emergency in Kentucky on Saturday, ordering federal assistance to support the local response efforts. On Sunday night, Biden updated the declaration, making federal funding available to affected individuals in the Kentucky counties of Caldwell, Fulton, Graves, Hopkins, Marshall, Muhlenberg, Taylor and Warren. He also made it possible for residents to get assistance, such as grants for temporary housing or business repairs. - CNN
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London (CNN)Britain is facing a "tidal wave" of infections from the new Omicron coronavirus variant, ministers have warned, as they sound the alarm on rapid transmission rates in London and across the country.
On Monday, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed the country's first death of a person with the variant. He told reporters at a vaccination clinic: "I think the idea that this is somehow a milder version of the virus, I think that's something we need to set on one side and just recognize the sheer pace at which it accelerates through the population." The United Kingdom increased its Covid-19 alert level on Sunday and is once again accelerating its rollout of booster jabs in an effort to respond to the new wave of cases.Health Secretary Sajid Javid warned on Monday that the data on Omicron infections is unlike that of earlier variants."It's spreading at a phenomenal rate, something that we've never seen before -- it's doubling every two to three days in infections," Javid told Sky News on Monday. He added that it was too soon to tell if cases of the new variant are milder. "That means we're facing a tidal wave of infection, we're once again in a race between the vaccine and the virus," he added, echoing language used by Johnson in a televised address on Sunday night. On Sunday, the Prime Minister set a new target of offering all adults a third shot by the end of December -- a month earlier than originally planned. He had previously cut the interval between second and third doses from six months to three. The British government has focused its Covid response around the vaccine program since last summer, and had resisted reimposing restrictions until the Omicron variant came to light."I'm afraid it is now clear that two doses of vaccine are simply not enough to give the level of protection we all need," Johnson said, citing early data that showed the effectiveness of a two-dose regimen is diminished by the new variant, but that boosters still provide a good level of protection. "No-one should be in any doubt: There is a tidal wave of Omicron coming," Johnson said. "But the good news is that our scientists are confident that with a third dose -- a booster dose -- we can all bring our level of protection back up." The UK has so far reported 3,137 cases of the Omicron variant, though the true number is likely to be higher. Javid said "about 10 people" are in hospital with the new variant. Overall, the country's seven-day rolling average of Covid-19 cases has surpassed 50,000 a day. Omicron was probably behind around 40% of infections in London, Javid said on Monday. But Johnson said that "tomorrow it'll be the majority of the cases," underlining how rapid the spread of the new strain has been in its first weeks in Britain. New guidelines asking people to work from home came into force on Monday. The UK has also brought back its mask mandate for shops and public transport, and now requires proof of vaccination or a negative test for attendees of large events. The recent flurry of new restrictions marks a sharp turn from the past few months, during which Johnson resisted Europe's turn towards long-term mitigation measures like vaccine passports and mask mandates.But the embattled Prime Minister has faced a significant rebellion from his own Conservative backbenchers over his move to reintroduce Covid rules, relying on support from the opposition Labour Party to pass them into law. Johnson is also embroiled in a scandal over reports that Downing Street held a number of staff parties last winter when the rest of the UK was living under strict rules banning social mixing. He has been forced to deny he fast-tracked Covid rules in order to distract from his political woes. - CNN As the COVID-19 pandemic has swept the globe, more than 5.2 million people have died from the disease worldwide, including over 788,000 Americans, according to real-time data compiled by Johns Hopkins University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering. Just 59.9% of the population in the United States is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Monday announced a vaccine mandate for all private sector employees. On the talk show "Morning Joe," the mayor called the mandate, which goes into effective Dec. 27, a "preemptive strike."
New York City will also now mandate two vaccine doses, instead of one, for indoor activities, and will require proof of vaccination for indoor dining for kids ages 5 to 11. - ABC News Teen fatally shot on Florida college campus after armed confrontation with officers, police say12/6/2021 Alhaji Sow, a sophomore originally from Georgia studying aeronautical science, died from his wounds at the scene of the late Friday shooting.t the scene of the late Friday shooting. An 18-year-old student at the Florida Institute of Technology was fatally shot in an armed confrontation with officers over the weekend, police have said.
Alhaji Sow, a sophomore studying aeronautical science at the college, which is based in Melbourne, southeast of Orlando, was shot late Friday, police said in a press release. The Melbourne Police department said officers responded to the campus after reports of a male allegedly "armed with a knife and assaulting students" around 11 p.m. Friday evening. Officers and campus security members entered Roberts Hall, a residence hall for freshman, and confronted Sow, who “was armed with an edged weapon," police and school officials said. During the confrontation, Sow, who was originally from Riverdale, Georgia, allegedly “lunged at the police officer with the weapon." The officer and a security member then both discharged their firearms, striking Sow, police said. The officers attempted life saving measures, but Sow succumbed to his injuries on scene, they said. The Melbourne Police officer who opened fire was a 5-year veteran of the department. He sustained an injury in the confrontation but it is not clear what type of injury. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the officer involved shooting. The school is arranging counseling and support services for the campus community in the wake of the incident. “My heart goes out to everyone in pain. I mourn any loss of life, while I also remain steadfastly thankful for the men and women who invest their lives in protecting us," University President Dr. T. Dwayne McCay said in a statement on Saturday. "The safest university campuses are the ones where students, staff, faculty and others look out for one another. We do that at Florida Tech," McCay said. - NBC News Warnings over the risk that Christmas could lead to a surge in Covid cases and possible restrictions in the new year lead the Daily Mirror. The paper quotes an expert as saying it is a "terrible time" for the emergence of the Omicron variant, while Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has issued a plea for anyone who has not yet been vaccinated to get a jab. The Daily Telegraph is reporting that ministers have been accused of ignoring the people most vulnerable to Covid-19 over booster vaccines. The paper says at least 300,000 housebound people are yet to get a third jab after GPs opted out of home visits to administer them. Relatives of elderly and vulnerable people say they have been given "no answers" by the NHS. The backlash over the new stricter travel rules due to come into force on Tuesday leads the i paper. The travel industry have called it a "hammer blow" that people will need to test negative for Covid-19 before arriving in the UK. The paper says the new policy could add up to £800 to the cost of a family holiday. The Sun leads on the tragic case of murdered six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes, whose father and stepmother were jailed for his death this week. Arthur's grandfather has said his killers should never be released, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson "poised" to back a review of their sentences this week, the paper reports. The Metro front page is warning another winter storm - named Barra - is due to hit the UK, with thousands of families in northern England still without power after Storm Arwen 11 days ago. Storm Barra will bring gusts of more than 70mph across the UK, with heavy snow forecast in the areas still recovering from Arwen, the paper says. The prime minister is set to kick off a "fresh war with judges" over possible plans to allow ministers to "throw out any legal rulings they don't like", the Times reports. Boris Johnson wants to reduce the power of the courts to overrule the government through judicial review and has ordered Justice Secretary Dominic Raab to "toughen plans" for reforming judges' powers, the paper says. The Daily Star is on the hunt for Justice Secretary Dominic Raab's "missing brain", after he said claims a Christmas party were held in Downing Street in breach of lockdown rules did not need to be investigated because the alleged incident took place a year ago. The government has insisted no rules were broken. And finally, the new boss of Lloyds bank is looking to expand the banking group's ambitions in the property market and wealth management sector after years of poor growth, the Financial Times is reporting. The paper says Charlie Nunn has been "plotting" his annual update since taking over as chief executive in August, with an extra £4bn "war chest" to play with. Many of Monday's papers cover the government's drug strategy announcement, focusing on the the proposed punishments for middle-class illegal drug users, who could face losing their passports or driving licenses. The Guardian says the measure is meant to "target wealthier users" who the government will argue are "fuelling exploitation with their demand". Meanwhile, Home Secretary Priti Patel has written in the Daily Mail that the actions of "recreational" users are leading to an increase in violent crime and people dying but they pay no price, which she says this strategy intends to change. "More than 300,000 housebound yet to get booster jab" is the Telegraph's headline. The paper says ministers have been accused of ignoring those who are at the greatest risk of becoming ill with Covid. An NHS spokesperson says local health officials are contacting eligible patients and additional funding is being provided to help teams get additional staff.
The Sun features an interview with a grandfather of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes, the six-year-old boy who was tortured and killed by his stepmother and father. Peter Halcrow tells the paper he had not realised how much his grandson had suffered until the court case and adds he believes the killers should never be released. The Guardian is reporting that children's safety groups are calling for the UK data watchdog to introduce age verification for adult websites. They have written to the Information Commissioner's Office saying that the current failure to prevent children seeing pornography is causing lifelong trauma and putting them at risk of abuse, the paper says. Downing Street is to begin a "fresh war with judges" around plans to "let ministers throw out any legal rulings they do not like", the Times reports. The paper says Boris Johnson wants to reduce the power of the courts to overrule ministers through the process of judicial review. He's also ordered Justice Secretary Dominic Raab to "toughen plans" for reforming judges' powers in such circumstances. The Daily Mail says Prince Harry has "risked another public rift with his father" after claiming he had raised concerns about a Saudi donor who was given a CBE. The paper reports that Mahfouz Marei Mubarak bin Mahfouz has been accused of giving money to charitable causes close to Prince Charles in the hope of obtaining an honour and British citizenship. Clarence House has said Prince Charles has no knowledge of the accusations. "Smile and the whole world might think you're older" says the Telegraph. It reports on a study suggesting that a grin could be adding years to the appearance of someone's face, but this doesn't seem to apply to those over the age of 60. An expert says this suggests older people already have "so many facial wrinkles" that any "smile-related wrinkles" make little difference to their perceived age. - BBC News |