News

At Least 95 People Die In Devastating Flash Floods In Spain

Published

4 weeks ago

2024-10-30

UTIEL, Spain — Flash floods in Spain turned village streets into rivers, destroyed homes, interrupted transportation, and killed at least 95 people in the greatest natural disaster to strike the European country in recent years.

Rainstorms that began on Tuesday and continued through Wednesday produced flooding throughout southern and eastern Spain, from Malaga to Valencia. Muddy floods hurled automobiles along streets at breakneck speeds, while rubbish and household goods swirled in the water. Police and rescue personnel utilized helicopters to transport people from their homes and rubber boats to reach drivers stranded atop their vehicles.

Emergency services in the eastern district of Valencia verified the death toll of 92 people.
“For those who are looking for their loved ones, all of Spain feels your pain,” Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said in a televised speech.

At Least 95 People Die In Devastating Flash Floods In Spain

Rescue workers and around 1,100 troops from Spain’s emergency response teams were dispatched to the impacted districts. Spain’s central government formed a crisis committee to coordinate rescue efforts.

Javier Berenguer, 63, evacuated his bakery in Utiel as crushing water threatened to drown him. He claims it swelled to 2.5 meters (8.2 feet) inside his shop, and he worries his livelihood is lost.

“I had to climb out of a window as quickly as possible because the water was already up to my shoulders. “I took refuge on the first floor with my neighbors and stayed there all night,” Berenguer told The Associated Press. “It’s taken everything. I have to empty the bakery, including the freezers and ovens.”

María Carmen Martínez, another Utiel resident, witnessed a dramatic rescue.

“It was just dreadful. “There was a man there clinging to a fence, falling and calling for help,” she explained. “They couldn’t help him until the helicopters came and took him away.”

Paiporta, a Valencian town, sustained an unprecedented loss. Mayor Maribel Albalat told RTVE that approximately 30 individuals died in the town of 25,000 residents. Six of them lived in senior housing. News outlets published footage of elderly in chairs and wheelchairs at a Paiporta nursing home, some of whom cried out in apparent panic as the water surged beyond their knees.

“We don’t know what happened, but in 10 minutes the village was overflowing with water,” Albalat recalled.

Spain’s national weather office said it rained more in Valencia in eight hours than in the previous twenty months, describing the deluge as “extraordinary.”

Valencia, located south of Barcelona on the Mediterranean coast, is a tourist attraction famed for its beaches, citrus plantations, and the origin of the rice dish paella. The region features gorges and little riverbeds that are dry for much of the year but quickly fill up with water when it rains. Many of them travel through populated areas.

As the floodwaters retreated, thick muck and trash rendered some streets unrecognizable.

“The neighborhood is destroyed, all the cars are on top of each other, it’s smashed up,” Christian Viena, a bar owner in the Valencian village of Barrio de la Torre, said over the phone. “Everything is a complete shambles, ready to be discarded. The muck is over 30 cm (11 inches) deep.

People were gathering outside Viena’s tavern to see what they might save. Cars were stacked high, and the streets were littered with clumps of waterlogged branches.

Spain has seen comparable fall storms in recent years. Nothing, however, compares to the damage of the previous two days, which is reminiscent of floods in Germany and Belgium in 2021 that killed 230 people.

The death toll is expected to grow as neighboring regions report deaths and search activities continue in remote areas.

At Least 95 People Die In Devastating Flash Floods In Spain

“We are facing a very difficult situation,” Minister of Territory Initiatives Ángel Víctor Torres remarked. “The fact that we can’t give a number of the missing persons indicates the magnitude of the tragedy.”

Spain is still recuperating from a severe drought and has recently experienced record-high temperatures. According to scientists, rising extreme weather episodes are most likely due to climate change. The extended drought makes it harder for the land to absorb large amounts of water.

The storms also produced a rare tornado and a freak hailstorm, which ripped holes in car windows and greenhouses.

Transportation was also disrupted. A high-speed train carrying over 300 people derailed in Malaga, but rail officials claimed no one was injured. High-speed train service between Valencia and Madrid has been disrupted, and the transport ministry has stated that owing to line damage, it may take up to four days to restore it to the capital. Bus and commuter rail routes were also disrupted. Many flights were canceled on Tuesday night, leaving approximately 1,500 people stranded at Valencia’s airport overnight. Flights resumed on Wednesday.

Soccer games between Valencia and Levante were canceled, and players from Barcelona and Madrid observed a moment of remembrance for flood victims before training on Wednesday.

Valencian regional President Carlos Mazón recommended residents stay at home, citing challenging traffic conditions owing to fallen trees and broken automobiles. Downed power lines and power outages impeded rescue attempts, and the regional emergency service reacted to approximately 30,000 calls, Mazón reported.

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, told reporters in Brussels that the EU will “help coordinate the rescue teams” with its Copernicus geo-monitoring satellite system.

Some residents used social media, television, and radio to seek information about their lost loved ones.

Leonardo Enrique told RTVE that his family spent hours searching for his 40-year-old son, Leonardo Enrique Rivera, who was driving a delivery van when the rain started. Enrique claimed his son sent a message claiming his van was flooding and that he had been hit by another car near Ribarroja, an industrial town that is one of the worst impacted.

Orted one death.

“Yesterday was the worst day of my life,” Ricardo Gabaldón, mayor of Utiel, a municipality in Valencia, told national radio RTVE Wednesday. He stated that six residents died and others were missing.

“We were trapped like rats. Cars and rubbish containers were moving down the streets. “The water was rising to 3 meters (9.8 feet),” he explained.

Spain’s government proclaimed three days of mourning beginning Thursday.

SOURCE | AP

News

Trudeau Rocks to Taylor Swift While Montreal Burns

Published

8 hours ago

2024-11-24

Geoff Brown

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has come under fire yet again after a video surfaced on X, showing him dancing at a Taylor Swift performance while anti-Nato protestors ransacked downtown Montreal.

Trudeau attended Taylor Swift’s concert in Toronto on Friday night. Before Taylor Swift approached the stage, X shared a viral video of him dancing and singing along to the song “You Don’t Own Me.”

The image of Trudeau dancing amid violent protests in Montreal generated widespread indignation online. Some social media users even compared Trudeau to the ancient Roman dictator Nero, known for “fiddling while Rome burned.”

Don Stewart, a Member of Parliament (MP) representing part of Toronto, called out the prime minister in a post on X.

Lawless protestors run roughshod over Montreal in violent protest.

The Prime Minister dances.

This is the Canada built by the Liberal government.

Bring back law and order, safe streets and communities in the Canada we once knew and loved. pic.twitter.com/PVJvR6gtmf

— Don Stewart (@donstewartmp) November 23, 2024

“Lawless protesters run roughshod over Montreal in violent protest. The Prime Minister dances,” Stewart wrote. “This is the Canada built by the Liberal government.”

“Bring back law and order, safe streets and communities in the Canada we once knew and loved,” the MP added.

On Saturday, the day after Taylor Swift’s concert, Trudeau condemned the anti-NATO protests, calling them “appalling.”

Anti-NATO activists set off smoke bombs and marched through Montreal’s streets waving Palestinian flags. According to the Montreal Gazette, rioters set fire to automobiles and battled with police.

Pro-Palestinian protests

Protesters also tossed tiny explosives and metal objects at officers. At one point, the mob torched an effigy of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Police used tear gas and batons to disperse the gathering, and three persons were arrested for attacking officers and impeding police operations.

Masked protesters were seen burning flares and bashing storefront windows in videos and photographs shared on social media. Pro-Palestinian protests have been taking place across Canada since the Israel-Gaza conflict began late last year.

Critics have lambasted Trudeau for doing nothing to stop the violent pro-Palestinian marches, with some claiming he has fueled anti-Israel sentiment in Canada.

On Friday, Trudeau stated that Canada would respect the orders of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which issued an arrest warrant for Mr Netanyahu, even if it meant arresting the Israeli prime leader on Canadian soil.

Trudeau Called the Greatest Threat to NATO

Trudeau Called the Greatest Threat to NATO

News

Calgary Zoo Admits Human Error in Death of Baby Gorilla

Published

9 hours ago

2024-11-24

Geoff Brown

The zookeeper's negligence caused the death of a 2-year-old baby gorilla

The Calgary Zoo has admitted in a public statement that a zookeeper’s negligence caused the death of a 2-year-old baby gorilla. Eyare, a newborn gorilla, died last week after being slammed in the head by a hydraulic door.

The accident occurred when a zoo worker attempted to separate Eyare from the rest of the gorilla tribe for a solitary training session.

The gorilla died from significant head injuries, according to the zoo’s statement.

“This tragedy has struck us all in the deepest way imaginable,” Colleen Baird, director of animal care at the Calgary Zoo, said during a news conference. “Eyare’s brief but meaningful existence gave so much joy to our community, and all will sorely miss her. We will do everything possible to prevent repeat accidents.”

According to Baird, the staff member involved was immediately removed from the workplace and will be reassigned to another area of the zoo. The Calgary Zoo stated that it would take preventive steps, such as specialist personnel training and animal behavioral training, to avoid a similar incident.

Calgary Zoo Questioned

It is not the first time an animal at the zoo has died from negligence at the Calgary Zoo. A capybara was accidentally crushed by a hydraulic door similar to the one that killed Eyare in 2019.

An otter died in 2016 after being entangled in an “unauthorized” pair of jeans that a zookeeper had dropped in its enclosure. In 2013, a penguin died in “a freak accident” after swallowing a stick.

Animal Justice, a Canadian group that promotes animal welfare, has called for an independent investigation of animal safety and oversight at the Alberta facility.

“The Calgary Zoo appears to have a higher rate of animal deaths compared to other zoos, and in light of Eyare’s death there should be a systematic review of the zoo’s operations and practices, conducted transparently by the government or another outside party,” according to Camille Labchuk, the executive director of Animal Justice.

The Calgary Zoo refuted that it has more animal deaths than other zoos, emphasizing that it adheres to operating requirements and has maintained accreditation by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ independent Accreditation Commission since 1978.

“We love and care for more than 4,000 animals representing over 100 species that call our zoo home,” stated a Calgary Zoo representative.

“Human error-related deaths in animals are quite infrequent. We have lost two animals in the last ten years: a North American river otter in 2016 and ‘Eyare’ this week.

While rare, even one human-caused death is too many. These unfortunate instances have served as vital learning experiences, prompting us to examine and tighten protocols to provide the greatest level of care.”

Baird said at the news conference that using hydraulic doors is “common practice with accredited zoos,” adding that the facility will consider switching to alternate doors to improve safety.

The Calgary Zoo, which established the Wilder Institute in 2021, caters to nearly 4,000 creatures, including six more western lowland gorillas.

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News

Canada’s Lotto Max jackpot Climbs to $80M

Published

9 hours ago

2024-11-24

Geoff Brown

Lotto Max in Canada has reached $80 million for only the second time in Canadian lottery history. Friday’s draw sought a winner for a $75 million pool, but the top reward remained unclaimed as of Saturday, increasing the jackpot.

Only once did the jackpot reach $80 million in September, when it broke the previous record. Before that, the prize was $75 million, a record.

The Lotto Max prize maximum was boosted earlier this year, enabling for jackpots of more than $70 million. The cap is now at $80 million.
While a greater fee may encourage more people to play, the odds of winning the lottery remain extremely low.

According to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, the odds for a $5 ticket are around one in 33,294,800.

While there was no jackpot winner in Friday’s draw, someone did match six of the seven winning numbers, plus a bonus, earning them a payout of more than $320,000.

Lotto Max History

Lotto Max is one of three national lottery games in Canada, overseen by the Interprovincial Lottery Corporation. The game was introduced on September 19, 2009, and its inaugural draw occurred on September 25, 2009. It replaced Lotto Super 7.

The odds of winning the Lotto Max are 1 in 33,294,800. This is correct to a point but misleading.

Let’s have a look at the rules:

Players choose 7 numbers out of 50
Numbers cannot be repeated
Numbers are automatically sorted into ascending order
Each play buys 3 lines
Each play costs $5

Seeing that players choose 7 out of 50 non-repeating numbers, the equation for the total number of possible combinations (this is different from permutations where the order in which the numbers appear is significant) when playing the Lotto Max is 50! / (7! x 43!)