Breaking News, Latest Philippines Headlines, World, Entertainment, Politics, Weather & Video News
HOUSTON, United States (AFP) — A private plane crashed when attempting to take off Tuesday in Texas, with all 21 passengers and crew on board scrambling to safety before the aircraft burst into flames. Television images showed fire fighters spraying water onto the burning remains of the plane, which had plowed through a fence and come to a halt across a track in a field, surrounded by trees and bushes. The fuselage was reduced to […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Texas’ Republican governor Gregg Abbott on Monday announced he was banning Covid-19 vaccine mandates for any entities in his state, including private companies. “I issued an Executive Order prohibiting vaccine mandates by ANY entity in Texas,” the governor wrote on Twitter. “The COVID-19 vaccine is safe, effective & our best defense against the virus, but should always remain voluntary & never forced,” he said. The tweet included an attachment of […]
HOUSTON, United States (AFP) — Two people were shot and two others injured when an 18-year-old student drew a gun and opened fire during a classroom fight at a Texas high school on Wednesday, police said. Arlington assistant police chief Kevin Kolbye said a suspect, identified as Timothy George Simpkins, had been arrested after the shooting at Timberview High School in Arlington, a suburb of Dallas. Kolbye said Simpkins, who turned himself in after fleeing […]
HOUSTON, United States (AFP) — Storm Nicholas strengthened to a hurricane Monday as it tracked up the Texas coast just before its expected landfall, with meteorologists warning of dangerous levels of rainfall. Nicholas was packing maximum sustained winds of 75 miles (120 kilometers) per hour, and was expected to dump up to 18 inches (around 460 millimeters) of rain in the Houston area, weather officials said. Nicholas is bringing “heavy rains, strong winds, and storm […]
SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Texas on Thursday made it illegal for popular social media platforms to ban users “simply based on their political viewpoints.” Political conservatives have accused Facebook, Twitter and other social media giants of stifling their voices, providing no evidence to support the claims. Social media platforms have consistently defended themselves against such accusations. Former US president Donald Trump was booted from Facebook and Twitter after a group of his supporters […]
by François PICARD HOUSTON, United States (AFP) — Daniel Wilkinson survived two tours of duty in Afghanistan but died of gallstones, deteriorating slowly as his under-equipped doctors looked on helplessly. Wilkinson, 46, lived only 90 minutes by car or 30 minutes by helicopter from Houston, renowned for its top-flight hospitals. The problem is the Texas health care system has been utterly overwhelmed by people suffering from the Delta variant of the coronavirus. In this wealthy […]
by Lucie AUBOURG Agence France-Presse WASHINGTON D.C., United States (AFP) — Rapid warming of the Arctic is likely a key driver of extreme winter weather in the United States, according to a new study that addresses a longstanding apparent contradiction in climate science and could explain events like February’s cold snap in Texas. The paper, published in the journal Science, used observational data and modeling to establish a link between planetary warming linked to human […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — A Texas mother of four refused a Covid-19 vaccine, but after losing her husband to the virus and contracting it herself, her dying wish was clear: get her children immunized. Lydia Rodriguez, 42, a piano teacher in the small town of La Marque died on Monday, two weeks after her husband, Lawrence, 49, succumbed to the virus. Rodriguez’ cousin Dottie Jones told the local television station ABC13 that the couple […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The Republican governor of Texas, who has been a forceful opponent of mask mandates, has tested positive for Covid-19, his office said Tuesday, one day after attending an indoor public event. Greg Abbott, who is fully vaccinated, “has been testing daily, and today was the first positive test result,” said a statement from his spokesman Mark Miner. “The Governor will isolate in the Governor’s Mansion and continue to test daily,” […]
HOUSTON, United States (AFP) — More than 150 employees at the Houston Methodist hospital in Texas were fired or resigned after failing to comply with orders to get a Covid-19 vaccination to continue working there, a hospital spokeswoman said Tuesday. Officials Houston Methodist told its staff they needed to have received a Covid vaccination by June 7 or be suspended for two weeks. Hospital spokeswoman Gale Smith told AFP that 153 employees “either resigned in […]
HOUSTON, United States (AFP) — Gunfire erupted in a busy entertainment district in the Texas city of Austin early Saturday, injuring 14 people, according to authorities who were still searching for a suspect. Police said they responded to multiple shots fired just before 1:30 am in bustling downtown Austin, where a large crowd began to disperse. “Our officers responded very quickly,” Austin’s interim police chief Joseph Chacon told a news conference. “They were able to […]
BRYAN, United States (AFP) — One person was dead and several in critical condition following a shooting at a business in Texas Thursday, just hours after US President Joe Biden called gun violence an “epidemic” and unveiled plans to tackle the crisis. The suspect was “in custody,” according to the police department in the east Texas town of Bryan where the attack took place. Officials said the individual shot and wounded one officer following the […]
