Disaster

The New York Daily News reports: Gov. Hochul Thursday declared a state of emergency for New York City and the entire surrounding region after the remnants of Hurricane Ida spawned catastrophic rain and flooding. “Torrential rainfall has resulted in flash flooding, power outages, travel disruptions and damage in impacted areas posing a threat to public health and safety,” Hochul said. …

The New Orleans Times-Picayune reports: The massive storm, which arrived on the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, sent rescuers scrambling to retrieve people from attics as flood waters poured into places like Lafitte, LaPlace and Braithwaite. The winds, matching the highest speeds ever recorded in Louisiana, tore roofs off homes, toppled transmission towers and left historic buildings in ruin. But …

The Associated Press reports: Fire officials ordered more evacuations around the Tahoe Basin as a two-week old blaze encroached on the threatened mountain towns surrounding glimmering Lake Tahoe. By nightfall, all residents on the California side of the Lake Tahoe Basin were warned to evacuate the region, after fire officials had stressed for days that protecting the area was their …

USA Today reports: Mayor Tim Kerner said much of the Town of Jean Lafitte, a community of 2,000 people just outside Jefferson Parish levee protection system, was underwater. Kerner told WGNO the levees were overtopped by rapidly rising water. Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng told the station that “people are in attics in Lower Lafitte.” “Total devastation, catastrophic” Kerner said. …

The Associated Press reports: At least 22 people were killed and rescue crews searched desperately Sunday amid shattered homes and tangled debris for dozens of people still missing after record-breaking rain sent floodwaters surging through Middle Tennessee. Saturday’s flooding in rural areas took out roads, cellphone towers and telephone lines, leaving families uncertain about whether their loved ones survived the …

CNN reports: The US Geological Survey said it’s likely that casualties are “high” after a 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck near Haiti Saturday morning. “High casualties are probable and the disaster is likely widespread,” according to the USGS. Haiti’s Civil Protection told CNN there have been fatalities and damage. A tsunami threat that had been issued for the region has passed, according …

Miami’s ABC News affiliate reports: On June 24, the Champlain Towers South building collapsed, killing 98 people. Officials are still in the early stages of determining the cause of the catastrophe. The town has already received an offer on the property, but what the future holds for this land is in limbo. Some families want to see a memorial where …

The Hill reports: Some firefighters battling the massive Dixie Fire raging in Northern California have faced some unforeseen challenges when trying to evacuate residents in harm’s way. Local KPIX reported that firefighters working to evacuate the historic mountain town of Greenville last week encountered residents who refused to leave their property and threatened firefighters with weapons as the blaze moved …

Politico reports: The Dixie Fire burning in two Northern California counties is now the largest single wildfire in recorded state history, exploding in size overnight as drought-stricken lands continue to fuel the flames. The fire, which has burned for 23 days and forced mass evacuations, razed the Gold Rush town of Greenville on Thursday, destroying 91 buildings and damaging five …

Miami’s NBC News affiliate reports: Officials in Miami-Dade County said Monday the last remaining missing person has been accounted for and identified in the Surfside condominium tragedy. Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said all 98 families have been notified regarding the deaths of their loved ones. A total of 242 people are accounted for, the mayor said. Levine Cava said 97 …

Miami’s ABC News affiliate reports: After 29 emotionally and physically difficult days of search, rescue, and recovery efforts at the site of the Champlain Towers South condominium collapse, members of two task forces were saluted as they demobilized Friday at noon. “Providing closure to families was the ultimate test of everybody here, and I think we did our best to …

Changing America reports: The intense smoke and heat from an Oregon wildfire is producing “fire clouds,” also known as pyrocumulus clouds, above the far-ranging fire — creating plumes of smoke and ash that have reached a height of over a mile into the sky. Fire clouds can spew ash and embers, sometimes even lightning, to other areas and further increase …

Miami’s ABC News affiliate reports: Disturbing reports are emerging of a hacker taking advantage of those who were killed in the partial collapse of the Champlain Towers South condominium building in Surfside. Officials said the criminal is seeing the victims’ names in the news and then stealing their identities. Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett told Local 10 News that he is …

The Associated Press reports: At a hearing, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Michael Hanzman ordered that the process begin to sell the site of Champlain Towers South, which could fetch $100 million to $110 million according to court records. The court-appointed receiver handling finances related to the condo, attorney Michael Goldberg, said the judge wants the sale to move quickly. Goldberg said …

Miami’s CBS News affiliate reports: Exhausted crews are on day 21, and nearing the end, of their search for victims as the site of the Champlain Towers South collapse in Surfside. The death toll stands at 95. The county’s medical examiner’s office said every individual that was found in the building collapse will have the same cause of death – …

The Associated Press reports: Wildfires that torched homes and forced thousands to evacuate burned across 10 parched Western states on Tuesday, and the largest, in Oregon, threatened California’s power supply. Nearly 60 wildfires tore through bone-dry timber and brush from Alaska to Wyoming, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. Arizona, Idaho and Montana accounted for more than half of …

NBC News reports: The Bootleg Fire in southern Oregon nearly doubled in size from Saturday to Sunday to more than 150,000 acres as extreme heatwaves and wildfires continued to scorch the West. The intense flames in the Fremont-Winema National Forest broke out on July 6, burning for its sixth day on Sunday, according to an incident report. The out-of-control wildfire …

Miami’s CBS News affiliate reports: Search-and-recovery efforts continued uninterrupted at the site of the Champlain Towers South collapse in Surfside into the night and Sunday morning. “Our teams worked tirelessly, as ever, to make progress on the collapse site. Truly, it is a remarkable operation,” Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava Mayor Cava said. “Our team continues to make incredible progress …

The Miami Herald reports: Binx, a cat that lived on the ninth floor of Champlain Towers South condo, was found safe two weeks after the building collapsed and has been reunited with its family, an animal rescue organization said. The cat was found near the rubble and was taken Thursday night to Kitty Campus, an organization that cares for community …

Reuters reports: The confirmed death toll in the collapse of a Miami-area condominium tower increased to 78 on Friday after workers recovered an additional 14 bodies and whittled the rubble down close to ground level, officials said. A total of 62 people remain missing and feared dead in the concrete and steel ruins of the 12-story building in the oceanfront …