SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO, 12 February 2018 (AP) – An explosion and fire at an electric substation threw much of northern Puerto Rico into darkness late Sunday in a setback for the U.S. territory’s efforts to fully restore power more than five months after Hurricane Maria started the longest blackout in U.S. history. The island’s […]
11 February 2018 (Desdemona Despair) – The year 2017 was the second-worst year for wildfires in the U.S., according to data published by the National Interagency Fire Center. Nationwide, wildfires burned a total 10,026,086 acres, just 99,063 acres shy of the record, 10,125,149 acres, set in 2015. In December, 2017 was on track to be […]
By Dino Grandoni 7 February 2018 (The Washington Post) – A group of Democratic senators is demanding that Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt recuse himself from repealing one of President Obama’s signature environmental rules, which is intended to curb the release of greenhouse gases from the nation’s power plants.Late Tuesday, the four senators — […]
By Marwa Eltagouri 6 February 2018 (The Washington Post) – At least 53 children across the country have died during a nasty flu outbreak that is already one of the worst on record, even though the season typically peaks in February.But Texas televangelist Gloria Copeland thinks there’s nothing to worry about. In fact, the minister […]
By Patricia Mazzei And Agustin Armendariz 6 February 2018 (The New York Times) – The mission for the Federal Emergency Management Agency was clear: Hurricane Maria had torn through Puerto Rico, and hungry people needed food. Thirty million meals needed to be delivered as soon as possible. For this huge task, FEMA tapped Tiffany Brown, […]
By Patricia Mazzei and Mary Williams Walsh 24 January 2018 (The New York Times) – The devastation wrought by Hurricane Maria has made Puerto Rico’s already dire financial situation even worse: The island’s leaders acknowledged late Wednesday that they will not be able to pay down any portion of their more than $70 billion debt […]
By Jonathan Watts 2 February 2018 (The Guardian) – The slaughter of people defending their land or environment continued unabated in 2017, with new research showing almost four people a week were killed worldwide in struggles against mines, plantations, poachers and infrastructure projects.The toll of 197 in 2017 – which has risen fourfold since it […]
By Nicole Carr 2 February 2018 ST. THOMAS, Virgin Islands (WSB-TV) – A trip along the winding mountain countryside in Saint Thomas reveals scenes that are not scattered across network news shows anymore. Tarps cover the homes of people fortunate enough to have a promise of federal aid. Music equipment that used to amplify voices […]
By John D. Sutter 1 February 2018 On the path of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico (CNN) – Each morning before work, Héctor Luis Rodríguez Nieves showers with a garden hose behind his tattered home. He uses the jungle as his restroom.He sleeps on a mattress in what once was the kitchen. Above the bed, […]
By Angela Fritz and Jason Samenow 18 January 2018 (The Washington Post) – Near-record warmth in 2017 helped fuel extreme weather around the planet that caused catastrophic destruction, human suffering, and loss of life. NOAA and NASA both reported Thursday that last year ranked among the three warmest on record. All four of the hottest […]
