34 dead in California boat tragedy

Agencies
September 4, 2019

Santa Barbara, Sept 4: Officials on Tuesday said that 34 people died after a boat packed with scuba divers caught fire near an island off the Southern California coast and they have called off search efforts for survivors.

The Coast Guard and law enforcement said no one has been found alive after flames tore through the dive boat early Monday as passengers on a recreational scuba diving trip slept below deck.

The Conception carried 33 passengers and six crew members, and only five of the crew sleeping on the top deck were able to escape by jumping off and taking a small boat to safety. Investigators have not yet determined how the fire broke out.

Santa Barbara County Bill Brown said the bodies of 20 victims have been recovered and divers have seen between four and six others in the sunken wreckage. He said authorities are trying to stabilize the boat that sank in about 60 feet (18 meters) of water so divers can recover those remains.

Most need to be identified by DNA analysis and officials are collecting samples from family members, Brown said.

One passenger, marine biologist and veteran diver Kristy Finstad, 41, was identified in a Facebook post by her brother, Brett Harmeling of Houston.

"Please pray for my sister Kristy!! She was leading a dive trip on this boat," Harmeling wrote.

The missing and dead were among 39 passengers and crew who had departed Santa Barbara Harbor on Saturday aboard the boat for a Labor Day weekend trip.

The fire broke out about 3 am Monday as the Conception was anchored off Santa Cruz Island, about 90 miles (145 kilometers) west of Los Angeles. The crew appeared to quickly call for help.

"The call was garbled, it was not that clear, but we were able to get some information out of it to send vessels," Coast Guard Petty Officer Mark Barney said.

Captain Paul Amaral of the vessel assistance company TowBoatUS also launched a fast boat from Ventura Harbor, but it was some 30 miles (48 kilometers) away. By the time it got there around 5 a.m., a Coast Guard helicopter and a fireboat were on scene.

Amaral said he first searched the water and shoreline, then turned back to the Conception, which was adrift. He attached a line and pulled it into deeper water so the fireboats could reach it.

"We launched that boat knowing that the vessel was on fire, lots of people aboard," he told The Associated Press.

The five crew members, meanwhile, went on a dinghy to a private fishing boat, The Grape Escape, that was anchored near the north shore of Santa Cruz Island. Two had minor injuries.

That boat's owners, Bob and Shirley Hansen, told The New York Times they were asleep when they heard pounding on the side of their 60-foot (18-meter) vessel about 3:30 a.m. and discovered the frightened crew members.

"When we looked out, the other boat was totally engulfed in flames, from stem to stern," Hansen said. "I could see the fire coming through holes on the side of the boat. There were these explosions every few beats. You can't prepare yourself for that. It was horrendous." Hansen said two of the crew members went back toward the Conception looking for survivors but found no one.

The 75-foot (23-meter) Conception was on a three-day excursion to the chain of rugged, wind-swept isles that form Channel Islands National Park in the Pacific Ocean west of Los Angeles. The fire broke out as the boat sat anchored in Platt's Harbor off Santa Cruz Island.

The Conception, based in Santa Barbara Harbor on the mainland, was owned by Santa Barbara-based Truth Aquatics, founded in 1974. A memorial outside Truth Aquatics in the Santa Barbara Harbor grew Monday night as mourners came to pay their respects.

Dave Reid, who runs an underwater camera manufacturing business with his wife, Terry Schuller, and has traveled on the Conception and two other boats in Truth Aquatics' fleet, said he considered all three among the best and safest.

"When you see the boats they are always immaculate," he said. "I wouldn't hesitate at all to go on one again. Of all the boat companies, that would be one of the ones I wouldn't think this would happen to." His wife said Truth Aquatics crews have always been meticulous in going over safety instructions at the beginning of every trip she's been on.

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Agencies
February 5,2020

New Delhi, Feb 5: Days after a gunman opened fire in Delhi's Shaheen Bagh, the epicentre of anti-CAA movement, YouTuber Gunja Kapoor was detained at the protest site on Wednesday after she was caught covertly filming the protests in a burqa.

Kapoor runs the channel ‘Right Narrative’ on YouTube and her pinned tweet on Twitter says she is followed on the microblogging site by PM Narendra Modi.

According to police, the protesters turned suspicious after Kapoor asked them "too many questions". She was caught by some of the women protesters after they identified her as the popular YouTuber. The incident led to a commotion at Shaheen Bagh, the epicentre of protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), a senior police official said.

She was taken to Sarita Vihar police station where her identity was ascertained, police said.

The incident sparked outrage on social media. Many took to Twitter to question why Kapoor was at the protest in disguise. Others expressed concern about her motives at secretly filming the protests.

Meanwhile, praises flew in for the women of Shaheen Bagh who can be seen defending Kapoor from angry protesters after she was caught.

This is not the first time that a right wing social media activist has landed in trouble in Shaheen Bagh where residents and other women and children have been sitting in protest for nearly two months since the passing of the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act 2019 in December last year.

In January, Deepa Sharma had posted videos online about the "traumatic" experience she had when she was allegedly heckled and harassed by Shaheen Bagh protesters. While the woman's claim could never be verified, other pieces of rampant fake news aimed at delegitimising and villainising protesters has taken social media by storm.

From doctored videos of women protesters allegedly accepting they were paid Rs 500 to attend protests to alleged fights over biriyani and anti-India sloganeering, trolls on social media seem to be working overtime to taint the ongoing protests.

The latter, however, show no signs of giving up. In fact, as Delhi nears elections on February 8, protesters have arranged for music performances by eminent artists, including pop celebrity Prateek Kuhad, till February 7.

Sit in protests take place 24x7 with women showing up in thousands to spend the night and sing songs of protest. And with polls around the corner, the protests have become an active part of political discourse with Aam Aadmi Party's Manish Sisodia expressing his support for the protesters at a recent press conference.

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Agencies
May 10,2020

Paris, May 10: The number of coronavirus cases worldwide topped four million as some of the hardest-hit countries readied Sunday to lift lockdown restrictions despite concern about a second wave of infections.

Governments around the world are trying to stop the spread of the deadly disease while scrambling for ways to relieve pressure on their economies, which are facing a historic downturn with millions pushed into unemployment.

Despite the intense political pressure to reopen, nations are also keen to avoid second waves of infections that could overwhelm healthcare systems, with reminders over the weekend of the threat posed by the virus.

In the United States, media reported Saturday that the nation's top infectious disease expert, Anthony Fauci, was among three members of the White House coronavirus task force who will self-isolate after potential exposure.

And in South Korea, the capital Seoul shut all bars and clubs on Saturday as more than 50 cases were linked to a man who tested positive after spending time in one of the city's busiest nightlife districts.

Despite the risks, some governments in hard-hit Europe have said are signs of progress that justify cautious steps towards normality.

Officials in France on Saturday said the day's death toll of 80 was the lowest since early April, while nursing home fatalities also fell sharply as the nation prepared to relax curbs on public movement imposed eight weeks ago.

The easing, to begin Monday, has brought mixed reactions.

"I've been scared to death" about the reopening, said Maya Flandin, a bookshop manager from Lyon. "It's a big responsibility to have to protect my staff and my customers."

French health officials have warned that social distancing must be kept up even as restrictions are eased.

In Spain, about half the population will be allowed out on Monday for limited socialisation, and restaurants will be able to offer some outdoor service as the country begins a phased transition set to last through June.

With lingering fears of a resurgence, authorities excluded Madrid and Barcelona -- two COVID-19 hotspots -- from the first phase.

Belgium is also easing some restrictions on Monday, and in some parts of Germany, bars and restaurants reopened on Saturday with further easing set for Monday.

In Britain, Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected Sunday to lay out a plan for the nation to emerge out of its current lockdown.

Media reports have suggested that Britain may introduce a mandatory 14-day quarantine for international arrivals to stop the spread of the virus.

Global economic figures are pointing to the most acute downturn in nearly a century, with businesses forced to shut and supply lines badly disrupted, and pressure is growing on leaders around the world to find a way out as the worldwide death toll topped 277,000 and infections crossed four million.

In the United States, the country with the highest death toll and where more than 20 million people have lost their jobs, President Donald Trump has insisted that next year would be "phenomenal" for the economy, urging reopening despite the virus still claiming well over 1,000 lives daily in the country.

The scale of the challenge was brought in sharp focus over the weekend as US media reported that top disease expert Anthony Fauci, who has become the trusted face of the government response to the pandemic, is going to self-isolate after possible exposure to an infected White House staffer.

Fauci told CNN that he will undergo a "modified quarantine" as he had not been in close proximity to the staffer, the network reported. He will remain at home teleworking, and will wear a mask for two weeks.

Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Stephen Hahn, the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, will also self-isolate, CNN added.

All three will still testify at Tuesday's Senate coronavirus hearing, with Redfield and Hahn participating via video link, according to Senator Lamar Alexander, chairman of the chamber's health committee.

It is believed Fauci will attend wearing a mask, CNN reported.

President Trump has faced sharp criticism from his predecessor Barack Obama, who said on a leaked tape that Trump's handling of the crisis was an "absolute chaotic disaster".

With people wearying of being indoors and under economic pressure, anti-lockdown protests have been held in a number of countries in recent weeks, with some demonstrators arguing that such restrictions violate their rights and others promoting conspiracy theories about the pandemic.

Ten people were arrested and a police officer injured in Melbourne, Australia, on Sunday in the latest such protest, where around 150 people gathered to demand an end to the shutdown.

Participants were promoting a number of conspiracy theories, such as linking 5G cellular communications to the disease.

Australian chief medical officer Brendan Murphy said there was "a lot of very silly misinformation out there", including the 5G allegation.

"I have unfortunately received a lot of communication from these conspiracy theorists myself," he said.

"It is complete nonsense. 5G has got nothing at all to do with coronavirus."

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Agencies
February 20,2020

Chennai, Feb 20: Three people, including an assistant director were killed and 9 others injured when a crane used for the shooting of “actor Kamal Haasan starrer “Indian 2” film crashed down at Nazarathpet near Poonamallee here late on Wednesday night.

Police said the accident occurred when a group of workers were engaged in erecting a set for a scene at EVP film city, private studio. As the crane crashed down, a heavy-duty light stand that was mounted on it also fell on the workers.

Mr Haasan and the film director S.Shankar escaped unhurt in the accident.

The deceased were identified as Krishna (34), an assistant director of the film, Madhu (29) and Chandran (60), who was part of the catering team.

Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Services personnel, along with a fire tender from Irungattukottai rushed to the spot and retrieved the bodies from the spot.

Mr Haasan, who was at the accident spot, also helped to transport the injured people to a private hospital near Poonamallee.

The bodies were sent to the Government General Hospital for post-mortem.

The Nazarathpet police have filed a case and are investigating the cause of the accident.

Meanwhile, Mr.Haasan condoled the death of three people during the film shoot. “The accident is the most horrific I have seen in my film career. I have lost three colleagues, but my pain pales in comparison to the grief of those who have lost their loved ones.

My deepest sympathies to them, he tweeted.

The Lyca productions also expressed condolences over the tragic accident. “We are extremely saddened with the unfortunate accident happened at the sets of Indian 2. We have lost three of our most hardworking technicians, it tweeted.

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