Monday, April 18 top stories
Judge voids mask mandate for planes
Today a federal judge in Florida voided the U.S. mask mandate on people traveling in airports and other forms of public transportation such as buses, trains, or ferries. The judge said U.S. health officials exceeded its authority. The mask mandate was recently extended through May 3 but with the judge’s decision, it is not clear if travelers will be required to wear masks. It is possible that the Biden administration will seek to block the judge’s order and file an appeal. We should have a clearer picture by tomorrow.
Kenyans win Boston Marathon
The Boston Marathon took place today on its traditional date in April for the first time since 2019. 30,000 people participated in the race. Kenyans won both the women's and men’s races: Peres Jepchirchir and Evans Chebet.
Seven killed by Russian missiles
Here are three updates on the war in Ukraine.
The first: in Lviv, seven people were killed by Russian missile strikes. Lviv is in the western part of Ukraine and is close to the border with Poland. A Russian military aircraft flying in Belarus launched the missiles. They struck military warehouses and an auto repair shop. The shop owner said four of his employees died with the youngest being 30 years old.
Secondly, in Kharkiv, in eastern Ukraine, a Russian missile destroyed a kitchen that partnered with the World Central Kitchen, an organization founded by celebrity chef José Andres to provide humanitarian meals to those affected by disasters. Four staff members were injured. The organization’s CEO said staff would bring food and kitchen equipment to another location and vowed to keep on cooking, saying “cooking is a heroic act of bravery.”
The third news: Ukrainian officials say there is heavy fighting in Mariupol, a coastal city in southeastern Ukraine. This is the same city where a maternity ward and a theatre was bombed. The Russian military issued an ultimatum to Ukrainian defenders to surrender by Sunday or be eliminated. That date has passed and Ukrainian fighters are still in battle. News reports said there is heavy fighting around a large steel plant.
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Deadly flooding in South Africa
In the Durban, South Africa region, over 440 people were killed by severe flooding and mudslides caused by extremely heavy rain. Many roads and bridges collapsed, cutting off affected communities. The region is called KwaZulu-Natal. About 4,000 homes were destroyed. South Africa said it would send military personnel to support search and rescue operations.
Infowars files for bankruptcy
Infowars, a far-right radio and news outlet founded by conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy with a $10 million liability. Two other companies owned by Jones also filed for bankruptcies.
Jones has lost several defamation lawsuits from parents of students killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Jones claimed on his show that the shooting was a giant hoax and that resulted in lawsuits.
Jones refused to cooperate in the court cases, and judges have found Jones to be liable for damages by default. This means that because Jones didn’t show up or refused to cooperate with the court, he automatically lost and is liable. There will be a trial in the future to determine how much Jones should pay in damages to affected families.
That is all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2022/04/18/mask-mandate-transportation-airplanes/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/olympics/2022/04/18/boston-marathon/
https://apnews.com/article/biden-health-business-travel-tampa-3408cc825582126fbda5fbedd3a49dd3
https://apnews.com/article/biden-health-business-travel-tampa-3408cc825582126fbda5fbedd3a49dd3
https://www.axios.com/lviv-russian-missile-strikes-5ab6e49f-99eb-4765-8d7c-425e8f545ec1.html
https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-putin-new-04-18-22/index.html
https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/jose-andres-ukraine-charity-kitchen-destroyed/index.html
https://twitter.com/natemook/status/1515634712961761280