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Influencer stuck in Antarctica since June can leave after paying £22,000

Influencer stuck in Antarctica since June can leave after paying £22,000

ITV News4 days ago
Ethan Guo was on a mission to help raise funds for children's cancer and break a flying record.
But in June, his journey around the world took an unexpected turn, and for the past two months, Guo has been stuck in a remote location in Chilean Antarctic territory.
The influencer began his journey last year, attempting to become the youngest person to fly solo to all seven continents.
At the same time, he was raising money for children's cancer research inspired by his cousin's battle with the disease.
Antarctica was the next destination on his list.
But upon arriving there, local authorities accused Guo of landing his small plane illegally after providing false flight plan information to officials.
Prosecutors say Guo was authorised to fly his plane over Punta Arenas, but instead, he kept going south, heading for Antarctica.
On June 29, Guo was charged with handing false information to ground control and landing without authorisation.
He was not allowed to leave the region and stayed at a military base for his two-month sojourn.
In addition, severe weather and wintry conditions meant flights were cancelled, and officials suggested that his plane was not in a fit state to fly.
Ethan began his journey in 2024, with the hopes of being the youngest pilot to fly to all seven continents whilst raising money for children's cancer.
On Monday, a judge dropped the charges against Guo as part of an agreement with his lawyers and Chilean prosecutors.
The agreement requires the influencer to donate $30,000 (around £22,000) to a children's cancer charity within 30 days, to avoid going to trial.
He's also required to leave the country as soon as conditions allow him to do so and is prohibited from returning to Chilean territory for three years.
Chilean prosecutor Cristián Crisoto told reporters that Guo's plane 'does not have the capabilities to make a flight", but did not say what this meant.
But the influencer said he is talking with this lawyer to see if there's a way he can fly it.
Speaking to ITV News' US partner AP, Guo said he remains "in Antarctica awaiting approval for my departure flight.
'I sincerely hope they give it to me soon so that I and my plane can continue with my original mission.'
The prosecutor's office said Guo must also pay all costs for his 'aircraft security and personal maintenance' during his stay at the military facility.
He also needs to cover all expenses for his return.
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Flash floods triggered by torrential rains kill 280 in India and Pakistan

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Flash floods triggered by torrential rains kill 280 in India and Pakistan
Flash floods triggered by torrential rains kill 280 in India and Pakistan

Western Telegraph

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  • Western Telegraph

Flash floods triggered by torrential rains kill 280 in India and Pakistan

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Stranded pilgrims are helped across a water channel using a makeshift bridge a day after flash floods in Chositi village, Kishtwar district, Indian-controlled Kashmir (Channi Anand/AP) Chositi, in Kashmir's Kishtwar district, is the last village accessible to motor vehicles on the route of an ongoing annual Hindu pilgrimage to a mountainous shrine at an altitude of 3,000 metres (9,500ft). Officials said the pilgrimage, which began on July 25 and was scheduled to end on September 5, was suspended. The devastating floods swept away the main community kitchen set up for the pilgrims, as well as dozens of vehicles and motorbikes. More than 200 pilgrims were in the kitchen at the time of the flood, which also damaged or washed away many of the homes clustered together in the foothills, officials said. Sneha, who gave only one name, said her husband and a daughter were swept away as floodwater gushed down the mountain. The two were having meals at the community kitchen while she and her son were nearby. Local residents look at flash flooding due to heavy rains in a neighbourhood of Mingora, the main town of Swat Valley, north-western Pakistan (Naveed Ali/AP) The family had come for the pilgrimage, she said. Photos and videos on social media show extensive damage with household goods strewn next to damaged vehicles and homes in the village. Authorities made makeshift bridges on Friday to help stranded pilgrims cross a muddy water channel, and used dozens of earthmovers to shift boulders, uprooted trees and electricity poles and other debris. Throughout Friday, authorities evacuated nearly 4,000 pilgrims stranded in various parts of the forested area, officials said. Kishtwar district is home to multiple hydroelectric power projects, which experts have long warned pose a threat to the region's fragile ecosystem. 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Flash floods triggered by torrential rains kill 200 in India and Pakistan
Flash floods triggered by torrential rains kill 200 in India and Pakistan

Glasgow Times

time13 hours ago

  • Glasgow Times

Flash floods triggered by torrential rains kill 200 in India and Pakistan

In Pakistan, a helicopter carrying relief supplies to the flood-hit north-western Bajaur crashed on Friday due to bad weather, killing all five people on board, including two pilots, a government statement said. Sudden, intense downpours over small areas known as cloudbursts are increasingly common in India's Himalayan regions and Pakistan's northern areas, which are prone to flash floods and landslides. Cloudbursts have the potential to wreak havoc by causing intense flooding and landslides, impacting thousands of people in the mountainous regions. India's National Disaster Response Force and other security personnel carry out a rescue operation after flash floods in Chositi village, Kishtwar district, Indian-controlled Kashmir (Channi Anand/AP) Experts say cloudbursts have increased in recent years partly because of climate change, while damage from the storms has also increased because of unplanned development in mountain regions. In India-controlled Kashmir, rescuers searched for missing people in the remote Himalayan village of Chositi on Friday after flash floods a day earlier left at least 60 people dead and at least 80 missing, officials said. Officials halted rescue operations overnight but rescued at least 300 people on Thursday after a powerful cloudburst triggered floods and landslides. They said many missing people were believed to have been washed away. At least 50 seriously injured people were treated in local hospitals, many of them rescued from a stream filled with mud and debris. Disaster management official Mohammed Irshad said the number of missing people could increase. Weather officials forecast more heavy rains and floods in the area. Chositi, in Kashmir's Kishtwar district, is the last village accessible to motor vehicles on the route of an ongoing annual Hindu pilgrimage to a mountainous shrine at an altitude of 3,000 metres (9,500ft). Stranded pilgrims are helped across a water channel using a makeshift bridge a day after flash floods in Chositi village, Kishtwar district, Indian-controlled Kashmir (Channi Anand/AP) Officials said the pilgrimage, which began on July 25 and was scheduled to end on September 5, was suspended. The devastating floods swept away the main community kitchen set up for the pilgrims, as well as dozens of vehicles and motorbikes. More than 200 pilgrims were in the kitchen at the time of the flood, which also damaged or washed away many of the homes clustered together in the foothills, officials said. Photos and videos on social media show extensive damage with household goods strewn next to damaged vehicles and homes in the village. Authorities made makeshift bridges on Friday to help stranded pilgrims cross a muddy water channel. Kishtwar district is home to multiple hydroelectric power projects, which experts have long warned pose a threat to the region's fragile ecosystem. Houses are submerged in floodwater following flash flooding due to heavy rains in Buner district, in Pakistan's north west (Provincial Disaster Management Authority via AP) In northern and north-western Pakistan, flash floods killed at least 164 people in the past 24 hours, including 78 people who died in the flood-hit Buner district in north-west Pakistan on Friday. Dozens were injured as the deluge destroyed homes in villages in Buner, where authorities declared a state of emergency on Friday. Ambulances have transported 56 bodies to local hospitals, according to a government statement. Rescuers evacuated 1,300 stranded tourists from a mountainous Mansehra district hit by landslides on Thursday. At least 35 people were reported missing in these areas, according to local officials. Rescuers backed by boats and helicopters worked to reach stranded residents. More than 477 people, mostly women and children, have died in rain-related incidents across the country since June 26, according to the National Disaster Management Authority. Household goods are strewn around next to buildings damaged by flash floods in Chositi village, Kishtwar district, Indian-controlled Kashmir (Channi Anand/AP) Deaths were reported from different parts of Pakistan on Thursday. Bilal Faizi, a provincial emergency service spokesman in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said rescuers worked for hours to save 1,300 tourists after they were trapped by flash flooding and landslides in the Siran Valley in Mansehra district on Thursday. The Gilgit-Baltistan region in Pakistan has been hit by multiple floods since July, triggering landslides along the Karakoram Highway, a key trade and travel route linking Pakistan and China that is used by tourists to travel to the scenic north. The region is home to scenic glaciers that provide 75% of Pakistan's stored water supply. Pakistan's disaster management agency has issued fresh alerts for glacial lake outburst flooding in the north, warning travellers to avoid affected areas. A study released this week by World Weather Attribution, a network of international scientists, found rainfall in Pakistan from June 24 to July 23 was 10% to 15% heavier because of global warming. In 2022, the country's worst monsoon season on record killed more than 1,700 people and caused an estimated 40 billion dollars in damage.

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