The eye of Hurricane Irma grazed the Turks and Caicos Islands on Thursday, rattling buildings after it smashed a string of Caribbean islands as one of the most powerful Atlantic storms in a century, killing 14 people on its way to Florida. A storm batters as Hurricane Irma descends on Providenciales, in the Turks and Caicos Islands, in this still image taken from September 7, 2017 social media video. With winds of around 185 miles per hour (290 km per hour), the storm the size of France has ravaged small islands in the northeast Caribbean in recent days, including Barbuda, Saint Martin and the British and U.S. Virgin Islands, ripping down trees and flattening homes and hospitals. Winds dipped on Thursday to 165 mph as Irma soaked the northern coasts of the Dominican Republic and Haiti and brought hurricane-force winds to the Turks and Caicos … [Read more...] about Monstrous Hurricane Irma kills 14 in Caribbean, heads for Florida
Major airports in florida
Florida shooting suspect could face death penalty
MIAMI — The US authorities have charged the Iraq war vet accused of fatally shooting five people and wounding six at a Florida airport with federal crimes that could carry the death penalty. The Justice Department on Saturday charged Esteban Santiago, 26, with firearms offenses and carrying out an act of violence when he opened fire at the busy Fort Lauderdale airport. Santiago, who had earlier shown signs of "erratic behavior," arrived Friday on a flight from Alaska. At baggage claim, he retrieved a 9mm semi-automatic handgun and ammunition that he had declared and stowed inside his checked luggage, then allegedly loaded the weapon in a bathroom and opened fire in the crowded baggage claim area of Terminal 2. Once his ammunition was exhausted Santiago lay on the floor with his arms and legs spread out and peacefully surrendered when a sheriff deputy approached him, witnesses quoted in US media said. The hail of bullets sent thousands scrambling for safety and shut down the … [Read more...] about Florida shooting suspect could face death penalty
Obama cheered in Havana at start of historic visit to Cuba
President Barack Obama arrived to small but cheering crowds on Sunday at the start of a historic visit to Cuba that opened a new chapter in U.S. engagement with the island's government after decades of hostility between the former Cold War foes. The three-day trip, the first by a U.S. president to Cuba in 88 years, is the culmination of a diplomatic opening announced by Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro in December 2014, ending an estrangement that began when the Cuban revolution ousted a pro-American government in 1959. "It's a historic opportunity to engage directly with the Cuban people," Obama told staff at the newly reopened U.S. Embassy who were gathered at a hotel, his first stop after arriving in the afternoon. Groups of Cubans watched the motorcade from balconies and backyards as Obama was driven downtown, where a small crowd of Cubans braved a tropical downpour and tight security. They chanted: "Viva Obama, Viva Fidel," as the president and his family left after … [Read more...] about Obama cheered in Havana at start of historic visit to Cuba
U.S. Coast Guard calls off search for crashed U.S. plane
US Coast Guard cutter during the search for the plane belonging to real estate executive Larry Glazer offshore of Port Antonio, September 6, 2014. … [Read more...] about U.S. Coast Guard calls off search for crashed U.S. plane
Tornadoes kill at least 17 in US
Tornadoes swept across the Southern United States and killed at least 17 people across three states, ripping up a hospital and a high school, CNN and Fox News reported on Friday. They said nine were killed in Georgia, where a hospital was hit, seven in Alabama where a high school was torn open and collapsed, and one, a little girl, in Missouri. A rescue worker looks through the Church of God in Lady Lake, Florida … [Read more...] about Tornadoes kill at least 17 in US