(NEW YORK) — Efforts were underway Sunday to rescue five people who became trapped in a cave in southwestern Slovenia when torrential rains caused water levels to rise in the subterranean labyrinth, cutting off their exit routes, officials said.
A 22-year-old Slovenian man, his parents and two guides became trapped in the Krizna Jama cave on Saturday morning, Sandi Curk, head of the Regional Civil Protection Headquarters for the Notranjska Region, told ABC News.
Curk said heavy rain in the area caused the cave’s myriad of lakes to rise, stranding the tour group about 1 1/2 miles from the entrance to the cave.
Rescuers, according to Curk, will have to wait until the water level drops to extract the group.
Saturday evening rescue divers located the group and moved them to a safe area where they could set up heated tents, officials told The Associated Press.
Another team of divers on Sunday delivered food, drinking water and warm clothes to the marooned cave explorers, and checked on their psychological state, Curk told ABC News. A doctor, who is also a licensed diver, also examined all five people and is satisfied with their condition, Curk said.
The rescuers are optimistic about getting the trapped group out on Monday.
Curk said it takes rescuers up to five hours to reach the group.
Rescuers are contending with low visibility inside the cave and near-freezing water temperatures, Curk said.
ABC News’ Dada Javanovic contributed to this report.
(PORTLAND) — The Boeing 737 MAX 9 that was forced to make an emergency landing a few moments after takeoff on Friday had only made it to about 16,000 feet before a door plug fell out, opening a hole in the fuselage next to seat 26A.
Had the Alaska Airlines flight made it to its cruising altitude of more than 30,000 feet, the situation may have been much more dire, with passengers potentially walking around the cabin, said Jennifer Homendy, chair of the National Transportation Safety Board.
“We could have ended up with something so much more tragic,” Homendy told reporters late Saturday.
NTSB investigators arrived in Portland, Oregon, on Saturday to begin their investigation into what happened on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282. The board’s “Go Team” included experts on “structures, operations and systems.”
That team is expected to work closely with officials from Boeing, Alaska Airlines, the Federal Aviation Administration, and associations representing pilots and flight attendants, Homendy said.
The FAA said earlier Saturday it was temporarily grounding certain Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft operated by U.S. airlines or in U.S. territory until they were inspected. The FAA said the pause would affect about 171 planes worldwide.
Sunday evening, Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun announced he cancelled a two-day leadership summit and instead will hold an all-employee safety meeting from the 737 factory in Renton, Washington on Tuesday.
Calhoun also sent out a company-wide memo to staff addressing the incident and ensuring that safety is a top priority.
“When it comes to the safety of our products and services, every decision and every action matters. And when serious accidents like this occur, it is critical for us to work transparently with our customers and regulators to understand and address the causes of the event, and to ensure they don’t happen again. This is and must be the focus of our team right now. I am deeply grateful to our colleagues who have been working tirelessly on our company’s response over the past two days,” his statement partially read.
“The FAA’s first priority is keeping the flying public safe,” the administration said in an update Sunday. “We have grounded the affected airplanes, and they will remain grounded until the FAA is satisfied that they are safe.”
Boeing said in a statement that safety is “our top priority.”
“We agree with and fully support the FAA’s decision to require immediate inspections of 737-9 airplanes with the same configuration as the affected airplane,” Boeing said.
Homendy said the situation had been designated as an “accident” rather than an “incident.” That designation is used by the NTSB when an aircraft “receives substantial damage.”
The NTSB announced that the plug that fell out of the fuselage had been found by a teacher in their backyard Sunday.
The organization plans to retrieve it.
It had covered a section of the fuselage wider than a window. Typically, when an airline purchases an aircraft, Boeing constructs the frame and inserts plugs based on the carrier’s needs.
The particular aircraft used on Flight 1282 had been certified for 189 passengers, so Alaska wouldn’t need emergency exit doors installed where the door plug was, Homendy said. If the plane had been configured for a higher density, like 215 or 220 passengers, it would have needed exit doors.
Six crew members and 171 passengers were on board Flight 1282 bound for Ontario, California, the airline said.
“The safety of our guests and employees is always our primary priority,” Alaska said in a statement, “so while this type of occurrence is rare, our flight crew was trained and prepared to safely manage the situation.”
ABC News’ Amanda Maile, Meredith Deliso, Riley Hoffman and Sam Sweeney contributed to this story.
(NEW YORK) — As Sean Bates went for a Sunday walk in Oregon, he was keeping an eye out for the door plug from Alaska Airlines Flight 1282.
The National Transportation Safety Board had asked the public for help locating the plug, which fell out of the Boeing 737 Max 9 moments after it took off from Portland International Airport on Friday night.
Bates had been scanning for the plug or other debris and as he walked along Barnes Road in Portland. But instead of the door plug, he found something that belonged to a passenger, he said.
“I found a phone sitting on the side of the road that had apparently fallen 16,000 feet,” Bates said in a video recorded for social media Sunday.
The phone Bates found under a roadside bush was fairly clean, he said. He noted that there were no scratches on it when he picked it up.
He said he was “a little skeptical” when he first found it, thinking perhaps it may have been tossed out of a passing vehicle. But the phone wasn’t locked, so he opened it up, he said.
“It was in airplane mode with a travel confirmation and baggage claim for Alaska 1282,” Bates said. “So, I had to go call the NTSB.”
Bates said an NTSB staffer told him is was the second passenger phone found from the flight. The NTSB confirmed the incident.
The door plug was found by a teacher in their backyard Sunday, the NTSB said later. The organization said it plans to retrieve it.
Six crew members and 171 passengers were on board Flight 1282 bound for Ontario, California, the airline said. The plane landed safely after the in-flight emergency.
“The safety of our guests and employees is always our primary priority,” Alaska said in a statement, “so while this type of occurrence is rare, our flight crew was trained and prepared to safely manage the situation.”
ABC News’ Amanda Maile, Sam Sweeney and Kevin Shalvey contributed to this story.
(NEW YORK) — More than 40 states from Washington to Massachusetts are set to be impacted by new winter storms on the move.
After up to 18 inches of snow pummeled California to Colorado this weekend, nine states in the West and the Plains are under blizzard warnings Monday. The storm will impact Washington, Oregon, Idaho, New Mexico, Colorado, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska.
Monday night into Tuesday, that snow will move into Chicago, Milwaukee and Green Bay, Wisconsin.
Meanwhile, in the South, tornadoes and flash flooding are possible on Monday along the Gulf Coast, from Texas to Florida. New Orleans to Pensacola, Florida, are in the bull’s-eye, but tornadoes are also possible in Houston.
Schools in Louisiana’s St. James, St. Charles and Jefferson parishes will dismiss early on Monday due to the looming severe weather.
On Tuesday, the severe weather and tornado threat will be from Florida to the Carolinas, including Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Savannah, Charleston, and Charlotte.
In the Northeast, flooding is possible Tuesday from Virginia to Maine, especially along the Interstate 95 corridor from Washington, D.C., to Philadelphia to New Jersey to Connecticut and Massachusetts.
The threat for flooding from the quickly falling 3 inches of rain is further enhanced by the snow melt from this weekend’s storm.
(PORTLAND, Ore.) — The Boeing 737 MAX 9 that was forced to make an emergency landing a few moments after takeoff on Friday had only made it to about 16,000 feet before a door plug fell out, opening a hole in the fuselage next to seat 26A.
Had the Alaska Airlines flight made it to its cruising altitude of more than 30,000 feet, the situation may have been much more dire, with passengers potentially walking around the cabin, said Jennifer Homendy, chair of the National Transportation Safety Board.
“We could have ended up with something so much more tragic,” Homendy told reporters late Saturday.
NTSB investigators arrived in Portland, Oregon, on Saturday to begin their investigation into what happened on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282. The board’s “Go Team” included experts on “structures, operations and systems.”
That team is expected to work closely with officials from Boeing, Alaska Airlines, the Federal Aviation Administration, and associations representing pilots and flight attendants, Homendy said.
The FAA said earlier Saturday it was temporarily grounding certain Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft operated by U.S. airlines or in U.S. territory until they were inspected. The FAA said the pause would affect about 171 planes worldwide.
“The FAA’s first priority is keeping the flying public safe,” the administration said in an update Sunday. “We have grounded the affected airplanes, and they will remain grounded until the FAA is satisfied that they are safe.”
Boeing said in a statement that safety is “our top priority.”
“We agree with and fully support the FAA’s decision to require immediate inspections of 737-9 airplanes with the same configuration as the affected airplane,” Boeing said.
Homendy said the situation had been designated as an “accident” rather than an “incident.” That designation is used by the NTSB when an aircraft “receives substantial damage.”
Among the investigators’ most pressing tasks is locating the plug that fell out of the fuselage, Homendy said. She sought the public’s help, saying she believed it may have fallen to the ground in Cedar Hills, an area a few miles west of downtown Portland.
The plug may have fallen near Barnes Road and Oregon Route 217, she said.
It had covered a section of the fuselage wider than a window. Typically, when an airline purchases an aircraft, Boeing constructs the frame and inserts plugs based on the carrier’s needs.
The particular aircraft used on Flight 1282 had been certified for 189 passengers, so Alaska wouldn’t need emergency exit doors installed where the door plug was, Homendy said. If the plane had been configured for a higher density, like 215 or 220 passengers, it would have needed exit doors.
Six crew members and 171 passengers were on board Flight 1282 bound for Ontario, California, the airline said.
“The safety of our guests and employees is always our primary priority,” Alaska said in a statement, “so while this type of occurrence is rare, our flight crew was trained and prepared to safely manage the situation.”
ABC News’ Amanda Maile, Meredith Deliso and Riley Hoffman contributed to this story.
(NEW YORK) — One winter storm system is set to move offshore as another gears up to trek across the country in its wake, bringing extreme conditions with it.
The first major storm of the new year brought heavy snow into the Northeast on Saturday evening, likely contributing to multiple crashes on roadways overnight.
The storm is on track to drop between 6 and 12 inches across a wide portion of the Northeast, forecasts show.
Unionville, New York, about 45 miles northwest of New York City, has already reported more than a foot of snow. Similar reports from other regions are expected on Sunday.
However, the snow drought remains in New York City, with just .2 inches of snow measured in Central Park. It has been 693 days — since Feb. 13, 2022 — since at least 1 inch of snow accumulated in New York City.
Lingering showers continued in the Northeast on Sunday. While much of the snow accumulation was done by Sunday morning, some regions could experience pockets of heavy snow throughout the day.
The storm could affect multiple NFL games, including the New York Jets against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, at 1 p.m. ET, and the Philadelphia Eagles against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, at 4:25 p.m. ET, forecasts show. The Patriots game has the best chance to see any accumulation on the field during the game.
More than 700 flights were canceled nationwide Sunday due to the heavy snow blanketing much of the Northeast, according to FlightAware.
The storm is expected to move out into the Atlantic by Sunday night, allowing snow plow crews to clear the roads overnight before the Monday morning commute.
Meanwhile, a second cross-country system is coming on the heels of this weekend’s storm.
The next system has already brought heavy rain and mountain snow to the Northwest. Next, the storm is forecast to move across the Rocky Mountains before strengthening over the southern Plains.
By Monday morning, heavy downpours are expected in Texas. The system will draw from the abundant moisture from the Gulf of Mexico throughout the day Monday, leading to severe thunderstorm risk and flash flood potential in much of the South in the coming days.
Louisiana and Mississippi will see the worst of the effects of the storm on Monday, with threats of damaging winds and scattered tornadoes. The extreme conditions will continue into Monday night as the torrential downpours shift farther east.
The storm will continue to push into southern states on Tuesday morning, with activity possible in cities like Atlanta; Charlotte, North Carolina; Nashville, Tennessee, and Tallahassee, Florida.
The Southeast will see the main severe weather threat on Tuesday, with a line of powerful thunderstorms rolling across states like Georgia, Florida and the Carolinas. The effects of the system will be felt from the Midwest all the way to Florida.
The Northeast will see heavy rain, gusty winds and flash flooding into Tuesday night. The snow that remains on the ground could mix with the heavy rain, exacerbating flash flood risks.
(PORTLAND, Ore.) — The Federal Aviation Administration is temporarily grounding certain Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft after an Alaska Airlines flight made an emergency landing shortly after takeoff.
The Alaska Airlines flight returned to Portland, Oregon, soon after takeoff after it “experienced an incident,” prompting the airline to temporarily ground its Boeing 737-9 fleet, the airline said Friday.
Six crew members and 171 passengers were on board Flight 1282 bound for Ontario, California, the airline said.
The cabin became depressurized shortly after takeoff and the pilots asked for an emergency landing, according to the transcript of an air traffic control call from LiveATC.net. A photo posted on social media appeared to show a hole in the fuselage next to a passenger seat.
“The safety of our guests and employees is always our primary priority,” Alaska said in a statement, “so while this type of occurrence is rare, our flight crew was trained and prepared to safely manage the situation.”
CEO Ben Minicucci called the grounding “precautionary,” saying in a statement the 65 planes will return to service “only after completion of full maintenance and safety inspections.”
“We are working with Boeing and regulators to understand what occurred tonight, and will share updates as more information is available,” Minicucci said.
The FAA said Saturday is it temporarily grounding certain Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft operated by U.S. airlines or in U.S. territory until they are inspected. The FAA says this will affect about 171 planes worldwide.
“The FAA is requiring immediate inspections of certain Boeing 737 MAX 9 planes before they can return to flight,” FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said in a statement. “Safety will continue to drive our decision-making as we assist the NTSB’s investigation into Alaska Airlines Flight 1282.”
United Airlines said it is temporarily suspending service on certain Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircrafts to conduct the FAA inspections. The airline said it has 79 of the planes in service, including 33 that have already received the inspections required by the FAA. The suspension is expected to cause about 60 cancellations on Saturday, United said.
Prior to the FAA order, Alaska Airlines said more than a quarter of inspections on its Boeing 737 MAX 9 fleet were complete as of Saturday morning with “no concerning findings.”
Alaska said planes will continue to return to service as inspections are completed.
The airline has cancelled 112 flights — or 15% — of its total flights on Saturday.
“We deeply apologize to our guests whose flights have been impacted,” the airline said in a statement. “Guests whose travel has been impacted can go online to view flight options and rebook travel, place the value of their ticket in their Mileage Plan Wallet for future use, or request a refund.”
American Airlines and Southwest Airlines do not fly the Boeing 737 MAX 9.
The damage that led to the emergency landing appeared to be in the location of a “plug,” said John J. Nance, an ABC News aviation analyst. Those are spots in the fuselage shaped similar to a door that aren’t designed to open, even when the aircraft is on the ground. They could be converted to doors if the airline needs an extra boarding door.
The aircraft involved in the incident has been in service since October 2023, according to Federal Aviation Administration records.
The National Transportation Safety Board said on Saturday they were sending a “go team” to Portland to investigate the incident.
The team will arrive on scene later Saturday and consists of experts in structures, operations and systems, the NTSB said.
Boeing said it has a technical team supporting the NTSB’s investigation.
The aircraft maker also said it fully supports the FAA’s decision “to require immediate inspections of 737-9 airplanes with the same configuration as the affected airplane.”
“Safety is our top priority and we deeply regret the impact this event has had on our customers and their passengers,” Boeing said in a statement.
ABC News’ Clara McMichael contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — Former National Rifle Association operations director Joshua Powell has settled civil claims of fraud and abuse brought by the New York Attorney General’s office.
The admission comes hours after Wayne LaPierre, the executive vice president of the NRA, announced his resignation ahead of a trial scheduled to begin Monday. LaPierre cited health reasons, according to the NRA. The resignation will be effective Jan. 31.
Powell was employed by the NRA from 2016 through January 2020 and in that time “Powell breached his fiduciary duties and failed to administer the charitable assets entrusted to his care by using his powers as an officer and senior executive of the NRA to convert charitable assets for his own benefit and for the benefit of his family members,” the settlement agreement said.
“Joshua Powell’s admission of wrongdoing and Wayne LaPierre’s resignation confirm what we have alleged for years: the NRA and its senior leaders are financially corrupt,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement Saturday.
The attorney general is suing the NRA, which is registered in New York as a non-profit charitable corporation, and its senior management for misappropriating millions of dollars to fund personal benefits, including private jets, family vacations and luxury goods.
The NRA tried to file bankruptcy in 2021 but a federal judge rejected its petition, saying “the NRA did not file the bankruptcy petition in good faith.”
James’ lawsuit seeks an independent monitor to oversee the NRA’s finances.
As part of his settlement, Powell admitted he breached his fiduciary duties of care, loyalty and obedience by using the NRA’s charitable assets for his own benefit and the benefit of his family. He also admitted he failed to administer the charitable assets entrusted to his care properly.
He agreed to pay $100,000 in restitution and accept a permanent bar from serving as an officer in a nonprofit. He also agreed to testify against LaPierre and others at trial.
LaPierre previously said the New York AG’s lawsuit was an “unconstitutional, premeditated attack aiming to dismantle and destroy the NRA — the fiercest defender of America’s freedom at the ballot box for decades.”
(PORTLAND, Ore.) — An Alaska Airlines flight returned to Portland, Oregon, soon after takeoff after it “experienced an incident,” prompting the airline to temporarily ground its Boeing 737-9 fleet, the airline said Friday.
Six crew members and 171 passengers were on board Flight 1282 bound for Ontario, California, the airline said.
The cabin became depressurized shortly after takeoff and the pilots asked for an emergency landing, according to the transcript of an air traffic control call from LiveATC.net. A photo posted on social media appeared to show a hole in the fuselage next to a passenger seat.
“The safety of our guests and employees is always our primary priority,” Alaska said in a statement, “so while this type of occurrence is rare, our flight crew was trained and prepared to safely manage the situation.”
CEO Ben Minicucci called the grounding “precautionary,” saying in a statement the 65 planes will return to service “only after completion of full maintenance and safety inspections.”
“We are working with Boeing and regulators to understand what occurred tonight, and will share updates as more information is available,” Minicucci said.
As of Saturday morning, more than a quarter of inspections on the Alaska Airlines’ Boeing 737 MAX 9 fleet are complete with “no concerning findings,” the carrier said.
Alaska said planes will continue to return to service as inspections are completed.
“We deeply apologize to our guests whose flights have been impacted,” the airline said in a statement. “Guests whose travel has been impacted can go online to view flight options and rebook travel, place the value of their ticket in their Mileage Plan Wallet for future use, or request a refund.”
The damage that led to the emergency landing appeared to be in the location of a “plug,” said John J. Nance, an ABC News aviation analyst. Those are spots in the fuselage shaped similar to a door that aren’t designed to open, even when the aircraft is on the ground. They could be converted to doors if the airline needs an extra boarding door.
The Boeing 737 MAX 9 has been in service since October 2023, according to Federal Aviation Administration records.
The aircraft maker said it had a technical team standing ready to help with the investigation.
“We are aware of the incident involving Alaska Airlines Flight 1282,” Boeing officials said in a statement. “We are working to gather more information and are in contact with our airline customer.”
The National Transportation Safety Board said on Saturday they were sending a “go team” to Portland to investigate the incident.
The team will arrive on scene later Saturday and consists of experts in structures, operations and systems, the NTSB said.
(NEW YORK) — The year’s first significant winter storm in the eastern U.S. is expected to bring heavy snow to more than a dozen states this weekend.
Winter storm warnings are in effect for 13 states, from North Carolina to Maine.
Overall, there is a wide swath of projected 6-12 inches across many interior portions of the Northeast. Some of the highest snow totals will be found in the higher elevations of New England, where more than a foot is likely.
There remains uncertainty in snowfall for some regions. In Connecticut, for example, snow totals will likely rise the farther north you go from I-95. Eastern Massachusetts is another area that may have a sharp gradient of snow totals, with some getting a lot and some getting barely anything.
“The combination of heavy, wet snow and gusty winds from northeast Pennsylvania through much of southern and central New England will result in difficult travel with some power outages and tree damage,” the National Weather Service warned. “Gusty onshore winds may lead to minor flooding along the Mid-Atlantic and southern New England coasts during the Sunday morning high tide cycle.”
Timing the storm
The storm has been making its journey across the country during the last few days, drenching the south Friday while dropping several inches of snow in states including Arkansas, Missouri and Illinois.
By early Saturday afternoon, the storm is forecast to slice through the Mid-Atlantic, possibly bringing a brief wintry mix before switching to rain in cities including Washington, D.C., and Baltimore.
Around 5 p.m. ET, snow is expected to begin to move into the New York City area. There may be an initial “thump” of moderate to heavy snow before the inevitable change to a wintry mix of snow and rain.
By 8 p.m. ET, conditions are likely to begin deteriorating across parts of New England as the snow moves in. While this storm is not a blizzard, low visibility can be problematic in any snowstorm, so drivers are urged to use caution.
Snow is expected to continue across much of the Northeast into the overnight hours. Along coastal areas, any snow on the ground may become slushy as a change to rain occurs. The heaviest snow is forecast to fall overnight.
By Sunday morning, there will likely be lingering areas of snow in much of the Northeast, while the daytime will bring a few spotty snow showers that gradually taper off.
The storm is expected to move out of the Northeast by Sunday evening.
