Disaster

CNN reports: A massive crane inched closer to Baltimore’s scene of destruction Friday, tasked with clearing up to 4,000 tons of precarious debris that has hampered search crews after this week’s catastrophic collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge. The crane – the largest on the East Coast – was headed to the site in the Patapsco River where a …

Roll Call reports: Federal officials told Maryland lawmakers that it could cost at least $2 billion to rebuild Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, which collapsed after being struck by a malfunctioning freighter. Although a very early estimate, it sets a steep price tag for President Joe Biden’s promise Tuesday to cover the total cost of reconstruction — especially as Transportation …

The Daily Beast reports: Dali, the ship behind the fatal bridge collapse in Baltimore on Wednesday, had suffered from a “severe electrical problem” for days before it lost power during its ill-fated trip out of the Maryland harbor, a port worker told a CNN affiliate on Thursday. Julie Mitchell, co-administrator of Container Royalty, a company tracks the tonnage on container …

The Baltimore Sun reports: Maryland State Police Superintendent Roland Butler said Wednesday evening that divers found a red pickup truck Wednesday morning with two bodies inside. Butler identified the victims as Alejandro Hernandez Fuentes, 35 of Baltimore, and Dorlian Castillo of Dundalk. Fuentes was from Mexico, and Castillo was from Guatemala, state police said. “We have exhausted all efforts around …

The Telegraph reports: “Dirty fuel” may have triggered power blackouts that sent a container ship careering into a harbour bridge in Baltimore, which then collapsed, investigators have said. The investigation into the crash, in which six people are presumed to have died, will look at the possibility that the fuel was contaminated, sources said. The Dali cargo ship was hit …

The Associated Press reports: A senior executive the company that employed the construction workers said six of the company’s workers are presumed to be dead and one worker was hospitalized. Jeffrey Pritzker, executive vice president of Brawner Builders, said the crew was working in the middle of the bridge’s span when the crash happened and crumbled the bridge. The bodies …

The Associated Press reports: A container ship lost power and rammed into a major bridge in Baltimore early Tuesday, causing it to snap and plunge into the river below. Several vehicles fell into the chilly waters, and rescuers searched for survivors. The operators of the ship issued a mayday call moments before the crash that took down the Francis Scott …

CNN reports: The container ship Dali, which had just left the Port of Baltimore and was en route to Colombo, Sri Lanka, was not being piloted by its own crew, but by local pilots who are used specifically to avoid accidents like the one that occurred early Tuesday morning. “Pilots move ships in and out of the Port of Baltimore,” …

The Baltimore Sun reports: Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed early Tuesday morning after a support column was struck by a vessel, sending cars and at least one tractor-trailer into the Patapsco River and prompting Gov. Wes Moore to declare a state of emergency. A spokesperson for the Baltimore City Fire Department said a major rescue operation was underway with …

The Associated Press reports: A rare, powerful earthquake struck Morocco late Friday night, killing more than 800 people and damaging buildings from villages in the Atlas Mountains to the historic city of Marrakech. But the full toll was not known as rescuers struggled to get through boulder-strewn roads to the remote mountain villages hit hardest. People woken by the quake …

The Daily Beast reports: Even though Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) is no fan of President Joe Biden, and vice-versa, the right-wing lawmaker had nothing but praise for the commander-in-chief over the federal government’s response to Hurricane Idalia. With Florida Gov. (and GOP presidential hopeful) Ron DeSantis apparently looking to avoid a Chris Christie-Barack Obama photo-op on Saturday, Scott—a former governor …

The New York Times reports: For the first time, Maui County officials publicly blamed Hawaii’s largest electric utility for the wildfires that killed at least 115 people this month, claiming in a lawsuit filed that “intentional and malicious” mismanagement of power lines had allowed flames to spark. The lawsuit accused the utility, Hawaiian Electric, of failing to respond to ominous …

The Weather Channel reports: Millions of people braced for more flooding Monday as tropical storm H​ilary continues to bring rain to parts of Southern California. On Sunday, the tropical storm left roads underwater and cars stranded, triggered a rock slide that closed a portion of interstate and prompted a state of emergency for much of the region. H​ilary was the …

Hawaii News Now reports: President Biden and the first lady will travel to fire-ravaged areas of Maui on Monday to meet with wildfire victims, first responders and government officials. Maui is preparing for the presidential visit as the grim and difficult work of searching for remains in historic Lahaina continues. Teams armed with cadaver dogs have searched about 78% of …

Hawaii News Now reports: The Lahaina wildfire death toll increased by five on Wednesday — to 111 — more than a week after flames ripped through the historic town. Meanwhile, Maui continued to slowly release the names of those who have perished. Three more victims, all elderly, were identified on Wednesday and authorities said positive IDs were made on others. …

The Associated Press reports: CLAIM: Two images of beams of light reaching up the sky prove recent wildfires on Maui were started by an “energy weapon.” AP’S ASSESSMENT: False. Both images are unrelated to the fires on Maui. One photo shows the launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from a California military base in May 2018. The other shows …

The Independent reports: Hawaii Governor Josh Green gave a stark warning to the world in the aftermath of the “fire hurricane” that destroyed the historic town of Lahaina on the island of Maui. The state’s drought conditions from climate change and difficulties with water management had combined with 60mph winds from Hurricane Dora which had just passed the island, Mr …

Hawaii News Now reports: Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his fiancee Lauren Sanchez announced they’ll donate $100 million to Maui wildfire relief efforts. “Jeff and I are heartbroken by what’s happening in Maui. We are thinking of the families that have lost so much and a community that has been left devastated,” Sanchez wrote. The couple says the money will …

The Associated Press reports: As the death toll from a wildfire that razed a historic Maui town reached 93, authorities warned Saturday that the effort to find and identify the dead was still in its early stages. It’s already the deadliest U.S. wildfire for over a century. Crews with cadaver dogs have covered just 3% of the search area, Maui …

Reuters reports: Maui’s wildfires have killed at least 55 people, a toll expected to rise, and unleashed destruction on the resort town of Lahaina that will take many years and billions of dollars to rebuild, Hawaiian officials said on Thursday. Governor Josh Green said the inferno that reduced much of Lahaina to smoldering ruins was the worst natural disaster in …