[ad_1]
For WORLD Radio, I’m Kent Covington.
The Pentagon announces the end of its evacuation mission in Afghanistan » Taliban militants fired their guns into the sky over Kabul on Monday in celebration after learning that the last US military planes had left the airport.
A few hours later, General Frank McKenzie confirmed this report.
MCKENZIE: I am here to announce the completion of our withdrawal from Afghanistan and the end of the military mission to evacuate American citizens, third country nationals and vulnerable Afghans. The last C-17 took off from Hamid Karzai International Airport on August 30, this afternoon, at 3:29 p.m. EST.
Earlier Monday, ISIS militants fired a rocket salute at Kabul airport.
The Pentagon said the rocket defense systems were able to remove the rockets before they hit the airport. But some of the rockets landed across the city, hitting residential buildings.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Monday that the evacuation mission was now over – officials do not yet know how many Americans have been left behind.
PSAKI: We think there are still a small number. I understand that you are asking for the exact number of people remaining. We’re trying to figure out exactly how much.
But Republican House Leader Kevin McCarthy said the exact number didn’t matter.
MCCARTHY: They’re making a conscious decision to leave the Americans behind. Why would you do that?
The two-week airlift sparked scenes of despair and horror. At first, people desperate to flee the Taliban regime swarmed the tarmac, and some died after clinging to a departing plane.
An ISIS suicide bombing attack on an airport gate on Thursday killed nearly 200 Afghans and 13 US servicemen.
The remains of Ida spin inland, leaving destruction in their wake ” The storm that was Hurricane Ida is now spreading across northern Alabama and eastern Tennessee. There is still heavy rain and winds of 30 miles per hour.
The storm has already cut a path of destruction from the coast of Louisiana to the north of the Mississippi.
President Biden said on Monday that the federal government will help in any way it can.
BIDEN: We have a million people in Louisiana without electricity. And for a while, Ida literally changed direction on the Mississippi River. And some people still struggle with the storm surge and flash floods.
Rescuers boarded hundreds of boats and helicopters to reach those trapped in the floodwaters on Monday. This as residents living amid the maze of rivers and bayous along the Louisiana Gulf Coast desperately retreated to their attics or rooftops.
The storm is responsible for at least two deaths: a drowned motorist in New Orleans and a person affected by a fallen tree outside of Baton Rouge.
New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said the good news is that the city’s dike system has passed a major test.
CANTRELL: Worst case scenario, that didn’t happen. We didn’t have another Katrina. And this is something, again, for which we should all be grateful. However, the impact is absolutely significant.
She said the city and state are only beginning to assess the destruction.
The damage to the power grid was so severe that officials warned it could be weeks before it could be repaired.
A forest fire threatens Lake Tahoe and forces evacuations ” Firefighters ordered more evacuations near Lake Tahoe as the Caldor blaze roared through the forests southwest of the lake along the California-Nevada border.
The fire destroyed several homes on Sunday along Highway 50, one of the main roads leading to the southern end of the lake. The fire also roared through the Sierra-at-Tahoe ski resort, destroying several buildings.
And the weather doesn’t seem to be cooperating. Forecasters say the extreme heat and triple-digit temperatures could last for several days.
The fire that broke out on August 14 has already burned about 250 square miles. It’s a bigger area than Chicago.
COVID cases reach January levels ” New COVID-19 infections have reached levels not seen since January of this year, the peak month of the pandemic so far. WORLD’s Kristen Flavin reports.
KRISTEN FLAVIN, JOURNALIST: About 150,000 Americans test positive every day, according to a 7-day moving average. This is a return to January levels, but not yet near the mid-January peak of a quarter of a million daily infections.
These are, of course, only the recorded numbers. Experts say the actual number of cases is likely much higher, as many of those who contract the virus never get tested.
And deaths from COVID-19 are also still on the rise, quadrupling since early July. Nearly a thousand Americans die again from COVID-19 every day. Authorities estimate that about 98% of these deaths are in unvaccinated patients.
But vaccinations are also on the rise. About 450,000 Americans now receive their first injection each day. That’s a 73 percent increase since the end of July.
Report for WORLD, I’m Kristen Flavin.
I am Kent Covington. For more information, features, and analytics, visit wng.org.
WORLD Radio transcriptions are created within an emergency time frame. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative recording of WORLD Radio’s programming is the audio recording.
[ad_2]
Source link