Latest news with #PatrickWingrove
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Canadian wildfire smoke spreads across a third of US
By Patrick Wingrove and Rich McKay (Reuters) -Smoke from wildfires burning in three Canadian provinces covered about a third of the U.S. on Wednesday, forecasters said, but had little effect on air quality except in New England and parts of New York state and the Midwest. The haze, which brought hazardous levels of particulate pollution to Minnesota a day earlier, stretched from the Dakotas through the Ohio Valley, into the Northeast and as far south as Georgia, according to the National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland. It was especially thick in New York and New England. "Much of the smoke is aloft in the upper atmosphere, so in a lot of areas there aren't air quality issues," said the National Weather Service's Marc Chenard. "But there are air quality issues as far south as New York and Connecticut where it's thicker and in the lower atmosphere." Scores of wildfires have spread across Canada since the start of May. More than 212 active fires were burning in the country as of Tuesday afternoon, half of which were out of control, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre. So far, 2 million hectares (4.9 million acres) have burned. Most of the fires were in the west-central provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. Yang Liu, a professor of environmental health at Emory University in Atlanta, said infants, the elderly and other frail people were most susceptible to the smoke, but emphasized that everyone is at risk. "It will affect everyone at some level, all walks of life," Liu said. "It's bad." He said the smoke is comprised of small particles, some of them toxic, that are smaller than 1/40th of the width of a human hair and can get into the lungs and even dissolve into the bloodstream. One of the worst spots for air quality in the U.S. Northeast on Wednesday morning was Williamstown, Massachusetts, near the state's borders with Vermont and New York. It registered a "very unhealthy" reading of 228, according to IQAir, a website that monitors air quality around the world. An air quality rating of below 50 is considered to be "good," and readings between 100 and 300 are deemed "unhealthy" to "very unhealthy," while higher than that is considered "hazardous," according to the website. The ratings in other parts of the U.S. Northeast were much lower, with New York City's standing at 56 on Wednesday morning and Washington's registering at 55. Air quality levels in some parts of the Midwest had also improved on Wednesday morning. Ely, near Minnesota's border with Manitoba, registered a "moderate" reading of 65, down from 336 on Tuesday. Minneapolis, which had ranked as third-worst city in the world for air quality on Tuesday, with a 168 reading, was registering at 96.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Canadian wildfire smoke spreads into US Midwest
By Erica Dischino, Patrick Wingrove and Amanda Stephenson DULUTH, Minnesota (Reuters) -Smoke from wildfires burning in three Canadian provinces is spreading into the U.S. Upper Midwest, stirring memories of the severe pollution that drifted south from Canada two years ago during that country's worst fire season on record. The particulate matter pollution caused by the smoke is already drifting into Minnesota and neighboring states. It is expected to make its way to New York and other East Coast cities in coming days, posing a health risk to the tens of millions who live in those regions. "Airborne particulate matter is the most serious environmental health risk we know of," said Doug Brugge, a public health researcher at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. "It causes cardiovascular, respiratory and neurological harm, and these plumes of smoke are at very high levels compared to what we're usually exposed to in the U.S." Scores of wildfires have swept across Canada since the start of May, forcing thousands of evacuations and disrupting crude oil production in the country. There were more than 200 active fires as of Monday, 106 of which were out of control, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre. So far, 1.9 million hectares (4.7 million acres) have burned, mostly in the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Still, the current crisis does not yet come close to rivaling 2023, when 17 million hectares burned. One of the worst spots in the U.S. for air quality on Tuesday morning as a result of the fires was Ely, Minnesota, near the Manitoba border. It registered a "hazardous" air quality index reading of 336, according to IQAir, a website that monitors air quality around the world. An air quality rating of below 50 is considered to be "good," and readings between 100 and 300 are deemed "unhealthy" to "very unhealthy," while higher than that is considered "hazardous," according to the website. In Duluth, Minnesota, the rating stood at 309 at midmorning Tuesday, while in Flin Flon, Manitoba, about 800 miles (1,300 km) to the north and in one of the areas where the Canadian wildfires are concentrated, the AQI was at 359. In IQAir's list of the world's major cities, Minneapolis ranked as second worst air quality, with a 210 reading, trailing only Kuwait City, which led the list with a 318 reading. VULNERABLE PEOPLE Children, the elderly and people with chronic cardiac, respiratory and other illnesses are most vulnerable to the effects of the smoke, especially those with cardiovascular problems, according to Brugge. "The risk of hospitalization and death is low in people who are healthy and at a young age," he said, adding that there is still evidence that air pollution exposure increases blood pressure and inflammation for those people. Experts have said that particulates from wildfire smoke enter most buildings in high concentrations, although the problem is greater in older structures. The concentration of wildfire pollutants indoors is on average about half of what it is outdoors, but if a building is not well sealed, the concentration may be up to 70% of what it is outside, experts have said. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency advises that during wildfire smoke events, people avoid indoor activities that put more fine particles into the air, such as smoking cigarettes, frying or broiling food, burning candles or incense, and vacuuming without a HEPA filter. Exposure to wildfire smoke may also increase lung cancer patients' risk of dying from their disease, particularly among non-smokers, although the effect may be mitigated by certain cancer treatments, according to a large California study presented last month. Nonetheless, some farmers believe the effects of the fires are not all negative. In online forums like Facebook, some farmers have said some of their best yields ever came from years with a heavy pall of wildfire smoke from Canada. The smoke can protect vulnerable crops from scorching sunlight, they think.
Japan Today
4 days ago
- Politics
- Japan Today
Colorado attack suspect charged with federal hate crime
Law enforcement officers detain a suspect, after an attack that injured multiple people, in Boulder, Colorado, U.S. June 1, 2025, in this picture obtained from social media. X/@OpusObscuraX/via REUTERS By Patrick Wingrove and Rich McKay A Colorado man has been charged with a federal hate crime for his alleged role in a gasoline-bomb attack on a pro-Israeli rally in Boulder that injured eight people, according to an affidavit issued by the U.S. Department of Justice on Monday. Mohamed Sabry Soliman was already facing an array of state charges, including attempted murder, after the attack on Sunday in the city of Boulder on a group seeking to draw attention to hostages seized in Hamas' 2023 attack on Israel. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said the suspect would be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law for what was described as an "antisemitic terror attack." The affidavit, seen by Reuters, said Soliman, 45, had planned the attack for more than a year. Investigators found 14 gasoline-filled Molotov cocktails near where the suspect was detained. The police also found a gasoline canister in his car parked nearby and a weed sprayer filled with gasoline at the scene. Soliman told investigators that he had learned how to make the fire bombs from YouTube. The affidavit references a video posted on social media during the attack showing Soliman "shirtless, pacing back and forth while holding what appear to be Molotov cocktails." The suspect, who was being detained in lieu of $10 million bail, according to official records, told police he "wanted to kill all Zionist people and wished they were all dead," the affidavit said. The attack was the latest act of violence aimed at Jewish Americans linked to outrage over Israel's escalating military offensive in Gaza. It followed the fatal shooting of two Israel Embassy aides that took place outside Washington's Capital Jewish Museum last month. According to the complaint, Soliman lived with his wife and five children in Colorado Springs, a city about 100 miles (161 km) south of Boulder. The affidavit says that he waited until after his daughter's graduation to conduct the attack. Few other details were available about him. Todd Lyons, acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said Soliman had overstayed a tourist visa and had an expired work permit. Federal documents make no reference to his nationality but the New York Times said he was Egyptian, citing the Department of Homeland Security. The departments of Homeland Security and Justice did not respond to requests for comment. The Denver office of the FBI, which is handling the case, did not immediately respond to emails or phone calls seeking details in the case. Officials from the Boulder County Jail, Boulder Police and Boulder County Sheriff's Office did not immediately respond to inquiries. "There are millions of individuals like this that we are attempting to locate from the past administration that weren't properly screened that were allowed in," Lyons said during a press conference in Boston. "I will tell you that's a huge effort for ICE right now." Under former President Joe Biden, ICE prioritized arrests of serious criminals and called for officers to consider humanitarian factors when making arrests. Lyons declined to provide more information, but a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson previously said Soliman had entered the country in August 2022 and filed for asylum the following month. "The suspect, Mohamed Soliman, is illegally in our country," the spokesperson said. U.S. President Donald Trump said in a social media post that such attacks would not be tolerated. "This is yet another example of why we must keep our Borders SECURE, and deport Illegal, Anti-American Radicals from our Homeland," he said. Four women and four men between 52 and 88 years of age were transported to hospitals after the attack, Boulder police said. The attack took place on the Pearl Street Mall, a popular pedestrian shopping district near the University of Colorado, during an event organized by Run for Their Lives, an organization devoted to drawing attention to the hostages seized in the aftermath of Hamas' 2023 attack on Israel. Rabbi Yisroel Wilhelm, the Chabad director at the University of Colorado, Boulder, told CBS Colorado that the 88-year-old victim was a Holocaust refugee who fled Europe. Sunday's attack was not the first high-profile incident of mass violence in Boulder, a university town that attracts many young professionals and outdoor enthusiasts. In 2021, a gunman fatally shot 10 people, including an off-duty police officer, in a local supermarket. © Thomson Reuters 2025.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Colorado attack suspect charged with assault, use of explosives
By Patrick Wingrove and Rich McKay (Reuters) -A suspect in an attack on a pro-Israeli rally in Colorado that injured eight people was being held on Monday on an array of charges, including assault and the use of explosives, in lieu of a $10-million bail, according to Boulder County records. The posted list of felony charges against suspect Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, in the attack on Sunday also includes charges of murder in the first degree, although police in the city of Boulder have said on social media that no victims died in the attack. Authorities could not be reached immediately to clarify. Witnesses reported the suspect used a makeshift flamethrower and threw an incendiary device into the crowd. He was heard to yell "Free Palestine" during the attack, according to the FBI, in what the agency called a "targeted terror attack." Four women and four men between 52 and 88 years of age were transported to hospitals after the attack, Boulder Police said. The attack took place on the Pearl Street Mall, a popular pedestrian shopping district near the University of Colorado, during an event organized by Run for Their Lives, an organization devoted to drawing attention to the hostages seized in the aftermath of Hamas' 2023 attack on Israel. Rabbi Yisroel Wilhelm, the Chabad director at the University of Colorado, Boulder, told CBS Colorado that the 88-year-old victim was a Holocaust refugee who fled Europe. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said Soliman had entered the country in August 2022 on a tourist visa that expired in February 2023. He filed for asylum in September 2022. "The suspect, Mohamed Soliman, is illegally in our country," the spokesperson said. The FBI raided and searched Soliman's home in El Paso County, Colorado, the agency said on social media. "As this is an ongoing investigation, no additional information is available at this time." The attack in Boulder was the latest act of violence aimed at Jewish Americans linked to outrage over Israel's escalating military offensive in Gaza. It followed the fatal shooting of two Israel Embassy aides that took place outside Washington's Capital Jewish Museum last month. Ron Halber, CEO of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington, said after the shooting there was a question of how far security perimeters outside Jewish institutions should extend. Boulder Police said they would hold a press conference later on Monday to discuss details of the Colorado attack. The Denver office of the FBI, which is handling the case, did not immediately respond to emails or phone calls seeking clarification on the homicide charges or other details in the case. Officials from the Boulder County Jail, Boulder Police and Boulder County Sheriff's Office did not immediately respond to inquiries.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
US cancels more $700 million funding for Moderna bird flu vaccine
By Patrick Wingrove (Reuters) -The Trump administration has cancelled a contract awarded to Moderna for the late-stage development of its bird flu vaccine for humans, as well as the right to purchase shots, according to the drugmaker. Moderna in January was awarded $590 million by the Biden administration to advance the development of its bird flu vaccine, and support the expansion of clinical studies for up to five additional subtypes of pandemic influenza This was in addition to $176 million awarded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services last year to complete the late-stage development and testing of a pre-pandemic mRNA-based vaccine against the H5N1 avian influenza. Moderna said it plans to explore alternatives for late-stage development and manufacturing of the vaccine. The company also announced that it had received positive interim data from a mid-stage trial set up to test the safety and immunogenicity of its bird flu vaccine targeting the H5 avian influenza virus subtype.
