Thursday, January 23, 2025
It is Thursday, January 23, 2025. Here are today’s top stories.
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New wildfires in L.A.
There was a big new wildfire that erupted on Wednesday in northern Los Angeles County called the Hughes Fire. The fire spread to over 10,000 acres and forced over 30,000 people to be under evacuation orders with many more under evacuation warnings. Firefighters said they were challenged by extreme fire behavior, terrain, and weather. AP News said overnight aerial water drops helped to stop it from spreading out of control.
There was another wildfire called the Laguna Fire that erupted in Ventura County, and it was quickly put under control by water-dropping helicopters.
Weather forecasts said there should be rain in Southern California this weekend, which will help to tamp down the fires, but there are concerns that there may be mudslides or toxic runoff.
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Trump’s actions on immigration
CNN reported that President Trump is dispatching about 1,500 troops to the U.S.-Mexico border to follow through on a promise to crack down on illegal immigration. In separate but related news, the House of Representatives voted to pass the Laken Riley Act, which would require detention of undocumented migrants charged with certain crimes, such as theft or assaulting law enforcement officers. The Senate has already approved the bill, so it will head to Trump’s desk for signature and become a quick legislative win for his administration.
Another major action on immigration is Trump’s executive order to end birthright citizenship, but this was put on a temporary block by a federal judge who said it was unconstitutional. The block will remain in place while legal proceedings continue.
https://www.cnn.com/2025/01/22/politics/laken-riley-act-house-immigrant-detention-vote/index.html
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/judge-temporarily-blocks-trump-birthright-citizenship-executive-order/
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Updates on Nashville school shooting
NewsChannel5 in Nashville reported that the high school shooter in yesterday’s incident was a 17-year-old boy named Solomon Henderson. The report said he wrote on a social media account the reasons why he wanted to carry out a shooting and had a layout of the school and the weapons he wanted to use. The report said Henderson said he was “ashamed to be Black, was an incel, and had anti-Semitic writings.
He shot and killed a 16-year-old girl, Josselin Corea Escalante, before turning the gun on himself. His father said he was heartbroken and he never thought that when he sent her off to school that it would be the last time he’d see her.
The shooting happened in a cafeteria. A 17-year-old boy was grazed in the arm and was not seriously injured.
There were two student resource officers in the school when the shooting happened but by the time they got to the area of the shooting, it was over.
The director of the Metro Nashville Public Schools district said it was a heartbreaking day for the school community.
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Thailand holds first same-sex weddings
CBC News said Thailand held its first same-sex weddings today after a new marriage equality law took effect. The law changed the words “husband and wife” to “spouse.” Thailand is the third territory in Asia to legalize same-sex marriages after Taiwan and Nepal. Thailand’s parliament flew rainbow flags and there were many Pride celebrations.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/thailand-same-sex-marriage-1.7439167
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Lonely sunfish becomes happy
An aquarium in Japan that has a sunfish said when it underwent renovations that prevented visitors from coming, the sunfish seemed to lose its appetite. Workers noticed that the fish rubbed itself against the tank’s walls. They thought that maybe the sunfish became lonely without visitors and caused it to lose its appetite. So workers propped up cardboard cutouts of human faces and put clothes on them to make it look like there were visitors. Workers said the sunfish’s behavior changed and it became better. Sunfish are known for being curious fish.
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That is all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.