May 21, 2022 4:44 am
GAYLORD, Mich. (AP) – A rare northern Michigan tornado that hammered a small town has killed at least one person and injured more than 40. Munson Healthcare spokesman Brian Lawson said Friday that he had no details about the person who was killed or the conditions of those who were hurt by the tornado that rushed through Gaylord, a city of about 4,200, at about 3:45 p.m. Mike Klepadlo, who owns a car repair shop in Gaylord, says he and his workers took cover in a bathroom, and that he feels lucky to be alive because it blew the back off the building. A National Weather Service forecaster said extreme winds are uncommon in that part of Michigan because the Great Lakes suck energy out of storms, especially in spring when the lakes are very cold.
May 21, 2022 4:43 am
POKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) – Russia claims to have captured Mariupol in what would be its biggest victory yet in its war with Ukraine. A spokesman said the Russian defense minister reported the “complete liberation” of the Azovstal steel plant – the last stronghold of Ukrainian resistance – and the city as a whole. The announcement followed a nearly three-month siege that reduced much of the strategic port city to a smoking ruin. More than 20,000 civilians are feared dead. There was no immediate confirmation from Ukraine. A Russian state news agency quoted the ministry as saying that more than 2,400 Ukrainian fighters who had been holed up at the steelworks had surrendered since Monday, including over 500 on Friday.
May 21, 2022 4:42 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – The $40 billion U.S. package of assistance for Ukraine as it tries to fend off Russia’s aggression is hitching a ride on a commercial flight to South Korea so it can be signed by President Joe Biden. The Senate voted Thursday to finalize new military and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine as Biden was making his way to the South Korean capital. A White House official says the bill is being flown to Seoul by a U.S. government official who was already planning to travel to the region on a commercial flight.
May 21, 2022 4:41 am
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) – Boeing’s astronaut capsule has arrived at the International Space Station in a critical repeat test flight. Only a test dummy was aboard the capsule for Friday’s docking, a huge achievement for Boeing after years of false starts. The only other time Boeing’s Starliner flew in space, it never got anywhere near the station. This time, the overhauled Starliner made it to the right orbit following Thursday’s launch from Florida. With Starliner’s arrival, NASA finally realizes its longtime effort to have crew capsules from competing U.S. companies flying to the space station. SpaceX already has a running start.
May 21, 2022 4:40 am
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) – The head of the U.S. Forest Service is suspending planned burning operations to clear out brush and small trees at all national forests while his agency conducts a 90-day review of protocols and practices. Forest Chief Randy Moore made the announcement Friday. He cited the hot and dry weather and extreme winds that have led to explosive fire behavior across the Southwest. Nearly 6,000 firefighters are battling fires in New Mexico, Texas, Colorado and California. Crews at the biggest fire in northern New Mexico worked to reinforce fire lines as winds gusted to 40 mph. Forecasters say several days of cooler, moister conditions beginning Saturday should provide some relief.
May 21, 2022 4:39 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The first flights of infant formula from Europe, authorized by President Joe Biden to relieve a deepening U.S. shortage, will arrive in Indiana aboard military aircraft this weekend. That’s according to the White House, which says 132 pallets of Nestlé Health Science Alfamino Infant and Alfamino Junior formula will leave Ramstein Air Base in Germany and arrive in the U.S. this weekend. Another 114 pallets of Gerber Good Start Extensive HA formula are expected to arrive in the coming days. Altogether about 1.5 million 8-ounce bottles of the three formulas, which are hypoallergenic for children with cow’s milk protein allergy, will arrive this week.
May 21, 2022 4:32 am
PITTSBURGH, Pa. (WPXI) — The Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office announced that they have arrested a wanted fugitive from an altercation at a McDonald’s in downtown Pittsburgh in 2019 that left a man paralyzed. Police said 27-year-old Roneese Davis, of Pittsburgh’s North Side, has been wanted since March 28, 2022 for failing to comply with a sentencing order. According to police, Davis struck a male victim in the back of the head, and the victim lost consciousness and was paralyzed. Davis was originally charged with aggravated assault after the fight. Police said she went to trial and was convicted of a lesser offense of simple assault. Davis was sentenced to 11.5 to 23 months prison, and she failed to appear. Deputies located Davis in the 200 block of Kennedy Avenue in the Northside around 7 p.m. on Friday. She was spotted exiting a home and walking to a parked vehicle. Investigating deputy sheriff’s approached her, and she was taken into custody peacefully. Davis was taken to Allegheny County Jail where she will begin her sentence.
May 21, 2022 2:24 am
The Washington County District Attorney says he plans to seek the death penalty against a Smith Township man accused of killing his 6-month-old son. Jason Walsh cited aggravated circumstances such as the child’s age and that Joshua George killed the boy while in perpetration of a felony. Authorities claim that George was the only person taking care of six-month-old Oliver George when the baby suffered serious injuries, including a fractured skull. A doctor found the injuries consistent with physical abuse. Police say the baby was staying with his grandparents when they called 911 on Dec. 30 of last year. He was flown to Children’s Hospital the next day with severe head trauma and he died a few days later. Walsh says he believes the baby was abused at his home on Francis Road after his mother left for work and before he was taken to his grandparents’ house.
May 21, 2022 1:53 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – Celebrity heart surgeon Dr. Mehmet Oz and former hedge fund CEO David McCormick began staffing up their campaigns with recount specialists as vote counting entered a fourth day in Pennsylvania’s Republican primary for an open U.S. Senate seat. The two remained in a near tie Friday. Both campaigns have hired Washington-based lawyers to lead their recount efforts, and both have hired Philadelphia-based campaign strategists who helped lead the operation to observe vote-counting on Election Day for Donald Trump’s presidential campaign in 2020. With thousands of ballots uncounted, Oz led McCormick by 1,092 votes midday Friday. The race remained close enough to trigger Pennsylvania’s automatic recount law. (Photo: ABC)
May 21, 2022 1:25 am
A new poll shows President Joe Biden’s approval rating dipped to the lowest point of his presidency in May, with deepening pessimism emerging among members of his own Democratic Party. Only 39% of U.S. adults approve of Biden’s performance as president, according to the poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Research. Overall, only about 2 in 10 adults say the U.S. is heading in the right direction or the economy is good, both down from about 3 in 10 a month earlier. Those drops were concentrated among Democrats, with just 33% within the president’s party saying the country is headed in the right direction.
