Monday, August 5, 2024
Hello, I’m back from my one-week break. I had a great time with family. Ready for top stories?
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Hurricane Debby hits Florida
Category 1 Hurricane Debby hit Florida’s Big Bend coast along the Gulf of Mexico early this morning. The hurricane hit the town of Steinhatchee with sustained wind speeds of around 80 mph. Many streets were flooded and there were widespread power outages. A 13-year-old boy was tragically killed when a tree fell on his home. The storm has been downgraded to a tropical storm and it is projected to bring heavy rainfall across northern Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina.
Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/08/05/hurricane-debby-live-updates/74666168007/
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Kamala official; Trump debate
On Friday, Kamala Harris officially became the Democratic nominee for president after she won enough votes from Democratic delegates during a virtual voting event. CNN said she is now the first Black woman and first Asian American to lead a major-party ticket.
In related news, a debate date has not yet been set for Donald Trump and Kamala Harris. There was originally a debate scheduled on September 10 between Trump and Joe Biden on ABC, but Trump said he wouldn’t participate because Biden was out and because he had a pending legal case against ABC. Trump proposed a new debate on September 4 and for it to be hosted by Fox News. The Kamala Harris campaign said Trump needs to stop being scared and playing games and show up to the Sept. 10 debate.
Sources: https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/02/politics/kamala-harris-democratic-nomination-election/index.html
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Boy killed after bounce house goes airborne
In tragic news from Maryland, a bounce house with children playing in it was suddenly lifted 15 to 20 feet in the air by a wind gust and a 5-year-old boy died after falling out of it. Another child was injured. This happened on Friday night in Waldorf, Maryland in the area of a professional baseball game. There were many first responders in the area who immediately provided help and the boy was rushed to a hospital, but he was pronounced dead that night.
There have been several incidents in the past with airborne bounce houses causing fatal or severe injuries to children, with one of the worst incidents in 2021 when five children in Australia were killed in a single incident. The Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends that bounce houses not be used when the tops of trees are swaying and/or there are maximum wind speeds exceeding 15 to 25 mph.
Sources: https://abcnews.go.com/US/5-year-killed-after-wind-propels-bounce-house/story?id=112546421
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/04/us/boy-killed-bounce-house.html
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Paris Olympics updates
Here are several updates and highlights from the first week of the Olympics in Paris.
American Noah Lyles won the men’s 100-meter sprint gold medal in an incredibly close finish that required a photo analysis. Lyles was determined the winner based on his torso crossing the finish line first. He’s the first American to win the 100-meter sprint since 2004.
U.S. gymnast Simone Biles finished her Paris Olympics with three gold medals and a silver medal. The golds are for the team event, individual all-around, and the vault. The silver is for the floor exercise. This may be Biles’ final Olympics.
U.S. swimmer Katie Ledecky won her fourth straight 800m freestyle on Saturday night. It was her second gold medal in Paris and ninth in her career.
American shot-putter Ryan Crouser won his third Olympic gold medal in a row in the men’s shot put final on Saturday.
A female boxer from Algeria, Imane Khelif, was thrown into a social media controversy about her gender. There was misinformation online that she is a transgender individual or a male, but the International Olympic Committee said she was born female and lived her life as a female. Khelif asked the public to stop the bullying. She will fight next in a semifinal match in the 66kg women’s boxing category.
The U.S. is currently in the lead in the medal table with 75 total medals. China is second, followed by France, Great Britain, and Australia.
Sources: https://www.foxnews.com/sports/usa-sprinter-noah-lyles-wins-first-olympic-gold-epic-mens-100m-final
https://people.com/simone-biles-wins-silver-floor-2024-paris-olympics-8690152
https://www.npr.org/2024/08/03/g-s1-15235/ryan-crouser-shot-put-olympic-gold-paris
https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/02/sport/who-is-imane-khelif-olympic-boxer-intl/index.html
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That’s all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.