3 h. ago Alaska’s Juneau orders evacuations as record glacier flood looms

Mendenhall Glacier outburst threatens homes, with scientists warning events are intensifyingAlaska’s capital city of Juneau is urging many residents to evacuate, bracing for the arrival of what could be record floodwaters flowing downstream from a basin dammed by the area’s Mendenhall Glacier, with the event being driven by climate change amid glacial retreat, according to a federal agency.Summer glacial flooding, known as a glacial lake outburst flood, or GLOF, threatens parts of the city due to a combination of rainwater and snowmelt. Continue reading...

Events

19 h. ago Man arrested after police firearm discharged inside Sydney domestic airport

Airport spokesman said no injuries resulted from the incident at terminal twoFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA man has been arrested after an incident at Sydney airport this morning that involved a police firearm being discharged inside the T2 domestic terminal.An Australian federal police spokesperson said the agency has launched an investigation into the incident and a crime scene had been established. There was no ongoing threat to the public. Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago William H Webster, former director of FBI and CIA, dies aged 101

Appointed by Carter to head FBI in 1978, Webster helped improve the image of an agency tarnished by scandalWilliam H Webster, the former FBI and CIA director whose troubleshooting skills and integrity helped restore public confidence in those federal agencies, has died, his family announced on Friday. He was 101.Webster led the FBI from 1978 to 1987 and the CIA from 1987 to 1991, the only person to guide the nation’s top law-enforcement agency and its primary intelligence-gathering organization. Continue reading...

Events

4 d. ago Trump executive order gives politicians control over all federal grants, alarming researchers

An executive order signed by President Donald Trump aims to give political appointees power over the billions of dollars of grants that are awarded by federal agencies

Politics

5 d. ago Florida updated agreement on handling detainees at 'Alligator Alcatraz,' but a month after it opened

Florida's corrections agency and ICE updated an agreement on handling federal immigration detainees, but they did it more than a month after ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ opened

Politics

6 d. ago Former Superman actor Dean Cain reveals he’s becoming an Ice agent to support Trump’s mass deportation agenda

The actor will be sworn in ‘ASAP’ amids the federal agency’s recruitment drive and unprecedented immigration raids that have sparked protest across the USFormer Superman actor Dean Cain has announced he has signed up to join Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice), in order to support US president Donald Trump’s anti-immigration agenda.The federal law enforcement agency has aggressively ramped up immigration raids since Trump’s return to the White House and was recently awarded $75bn in extra funding as part of his “big beautiful bill”, which includes billions for hiring an additional 10,000 Ice agents by 2029. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago RFK Jr’s health department to halt $500m in mRNA vaccine research

Agency to end 22 federal contracts, questioning safety of technology credited with helping end Covid pandemicThe US Department of Health and Human Services said on Tuesday it would terminate 22 federal contracts for mRNA-based vaccines, questioning the safety of a technology credited with helping end the Covid pandemic and saving millions of lives.The unit, Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, helps companies develop medical supplies to address public health threats, and had provided billions of dollars for development of vaccines during the Covid-19 pandemic. Continue reading...

Science

7 d. ago North Carolina residents can now seek state aid after Tropical Storm Chantal

Residents in several central North Carolina counties affected by last month's Tropical Storm Chantal can now apply for state-funded financial aid

Events

1 week ago Transgender pool star loses discrimination case as judge explains why ban from competition must stand

The English Blackball Pool Federation (EBPF) banned players who were not born as biologically female from its women's competitions in August 2023.

Events

3 w. ago ‘A disaster for all of us’: US scientists describe impact of Trump cuts

President’s assault on science –particularly climate science – has led to unprecedented funding cuts and staff layoffs“Our ability to respond to climate change, the biggest existential threat facing humanity, is totally adrift,” said Sally Johnson, an Earth scientist who has spent the past two decades helping collect, store and distribute data at Nasa (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) and Noaa (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration).Donald Trump’s assault on science – but particularly climate science – has led to unprecedented funding cuts and staff layoffs across federally funded agencies and programs, threatening to derail research tackling the most pressing issues facing Americans and humanity more broadly. A generation of scientific talent is also on the brink of being lost, with unprecedented political interference at what were previously evidence-driven agencies jeopardizing the future of US industries and economic growth. Continue reading...

Politics

3 w. ago Camp Mystic leader may not have seen urgent alert before Texas flood, family spokesman says

A spokesman for Camp Mystic, the Texas enclave devastated by a July 4 flash flood, is raising concerns about communication failures during the disaster

Events

3 w. ago 20 states sue FEMA for canceling grant program that guards against natural disasters

Twenty Democratic-led states have filed a lawsuit against the Federal Emergency Management Agency over the cancellation of a disaster mitigation grant program

Events

3 w. ago Trump administration sued by 20 states for cutting disaster prevention grants

Lawsuit claims Fema lacks power to cancel multibillion-dollar Bric program after it was approved by CongressA group of 20 mostly Democratic-led US states filed a lawsuit on Wednesday seeking to block the Trump administration from terminating a multibillion-dollar grant program that funds infrastructure upgrades to protect against natural disasters.The lawsuit filed in Boston federal court claims that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) lacked the power to cancel the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program in April after it was approved and funded by Congress. Continue reading...

Politics

4 w. ago Federal agency shifts stance on transgender discrimination complaints, but hurdles remain

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has decided to allow some transgender discrimination complaints to move forward

Events

4 w. ago US supreme court allows Trump to resume gutting education department

Justices lift federal judge’s order that reinstated nearly 1,400 workers affected by mass layoffs in win for presidentThe US supreme court on Monday cleared the way for Donald Trump’s administration to resume dismantling the Department of Education as part of his bid to shrink the federal government’s role in education in favor of more control by the states.In the latest high court win for the president, the justices lifted a federal judge’s order that had reinstated nearly 1,400 workers affected by mass layoffs at the department and blocked the administration from transferring key functions to other federal agencies. A legal challenge is continuing to play out in lower courts. Continue reading...

Politics