Thursday, July 14 top stories
It is Thursday, July 14. Here are today’s top stories.
Heavy flooding hits southwestern Virginia
Southwestern Virginia was hit with heavy rains on Tuesday night that brought severe flooding and landslides. Over 100 homes were damaged with some of them being ripped off their foundations.
There are three people who are missing as of Thursday morning. Other than them, there are no reports of injuries or fatalities.
First responders said they struggled to reach people because of impassable roads, but the floodwaters were receding today.
10-year-old Ohio girl had to go to Indiana to obtain abortion after rape
In Ohio, a 10-year-old girl became pregnant and had to get an abortion. She became pregnant when she was allegedly raped by a 27-year-old in May.
Later on, a few days after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the girl went to Indiana to obtain an abortion at the end of June because Ohio had restrictive abortion laws.
The suspected rapist’s name is Gerson Fuentes. He lived in Columbus for the past seven years and is an undocumented immigrant who is in America illegally. He came from Guatemala. Police said the suspect was arrested on Tuesday, confessed to the crime, was charged with felony rape, and is being held on a $2 million bond.
President Biden talked about this case on Friday when he signed an executive order on abortion access. He spoke in critical terms of the Supreme Court. Biden said, “Imagine being that little girl… Does anyone believe that… a 10-year-old girl should be forced to give birth to a rapist’s child?”
This case has become a political flashpoint.
Trump says he already made decision on 2024
Donald Trump said in an interview with New York Magazine that he has already made a decision in his own mind about whether he would run for the presidency in 2024. Trump said his big decision would be whether he would announce it before or after the midterm elections in November.
The Washington Post reported today that according to two Trump advisers, Trump is now “eyeing a September announcement” to run.
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Russian airstrike kills 21 in central Ukraine
On Thursday morning, Russian bombs hit an office building in central Ukraine, killing at least 21 people, including three children. The city is Vinnytsia.
Ukrainian authorities said three rockets hit the center of the city and that 52 people, including four children, were hospitalized. There are searches for 46 other people.
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy said, “Every day, Russia destroys the civilian population, kills Ukrainian children, and directs rockets at civilian objects. What is this, if not an open act of terrorism?”
In other news in Ukraine, the Ukrainian military said it launched a long-range rocket strike that hit a Russian military target in southern Ukraine and killed 52 people. The long-range rocket may have come from a U.S.-supplied HIMARS mobile artillery system.
Utah’s Great Salt Lake at record low levels
Scientists say Utah’s Great Salt Lake’s levels are now at its lowest recorded level and are concerned that the lake could continue to dry out and bring out dust in the region.
The causes of the receding water are pinned on an ongoing drought and humans diverting water for their purposes that would have otherwise gone into the lake.
Scientists are concerned about increasing dust levels because they could be laced with dangerous chemicals that can be linked to cancer and birth defects. A receding lake would also affect wildlife ecosystems that include birds and brine shrimp.
Bill Gates donating $20 billion to his foundation
Bill Gates announced on Wednesday that he would donate $20 billion to his and his ex-wife’s foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
The foundation now has an endowment of $70 billion and aims to spend about $9 billion a year to fight diseases, reduce childhood deaths, address climate change, and achieve gender equality around the world.
Gates said he wants to move off the list of the world’s richest people one day. He said he feels he has an obligation to return his resources to society.
Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft, currently has a net worth of $114 billion, but that should go down to $94 billion after his donation.
That is all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/07/14/world/russia-ukraine-war-news
https://abcnews.go.com/US/man-charged-rape-ohio-10-year-police-traveled/story?id=86754013
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/13/us/virginia-flooding-missing.html
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/donald-trump-2024-decision.html
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/07/14/trump-2024-announcement-fall/