National

(NEW YORK) — Hurricane Idalia is forecast to make landfall Wednesday morning in Florida’s Big Bend area, north of Tampa.

The storm is expected to strengthen further as it nears the Sunshine State, possibly becoming a major Category 3 hurricane by Tuesday night.

Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:

Aug 29, 5:32 AM EDT
Idalia strengthens into hurricane with 75 mph winds

Idalia strengthened from a tropical storm into a hurricane early Tuesday as maximum sustained winds reached 75 miles per hour, according to the National Weather Service.

Idalia is “expected to rapidly intensify into an extremely dangerous major hurricane” before making landfall in Florida on Wednesday morning, the National Weather Service said in its latest advisory. Winds are forecast to reach 120 mph by Tuesday night.

As of 5 a.m. ET on Tuesday, the eye of the storm was located about 85 miles north of the western tip of Cuba and about 370 miles southwest of Tampa, Florida. The storm was moving north at 14 mph, according to the National Weather Service.

A hurricane warning, which means hurricane conditions are expected within the warning area, remains in effect for the Cuban province of Pinar del Rio as well as parts of Florida, starting from the middle of Longboat Key northward to Indian Pass, including Tampa Bay. Other weather alerts were still in effect for more areas of Cuba and Florida, as well as Georgia and South Carolina.

Aug 28, 6:38 PM EDT
FAA ‘closely monitoring’ Idalia, airlines issue travel notices

Airlines and The Federal Aviation Administration said it’s monitoring Tropical Storm Idalia as it heads to the U.S.

The FAA posted on social media that it’s “closely monitoring” Idalia’s path, but it isn’t responsible for closing airports and canceling flights.

American Airlines issued a travel alert that allows its customers whose plans are impacted by Idalia to rebook their flights without incurring a change fee.

Southwest Airlines said it anticipates some changes to its schedule and an impact on its operation as the storm approaches. The airline has issued a travel advisory for its customers.

United Airlines has issued travel waivers for customers traveling to and from impacted airports. The company said it’s working to ensure its team is prepared to deal with the expected severe weather.

Aug 28, 6:15 PM EDT
Evacuation orders issued for multiple Florida counties

Multiple counties in Florida are under mandatory and voluntary evacuations as Tropical Storm Idalia barrels toward the state.

People living in zones in Pinellas, Pasco, Citrus, Hillsborough, Levy, Manatee, Sarasota and Taylor counties must evacuate the area, according to multiple county officials.

County officials are also urging people living in mobile homes, low-lying areas and along the coast to leave the area as Idalia approaches.

Officials in Hernando, Jefferson, Manatee and Pasco counties have also issued voluntary evacuation orders for particular zones.

-ABC News’ Michael Pappano, Jianna Cousin and Robinson Perez

Aug 28, 3:24 PM EDT
FEMA encourages everyone in Idalia’s path to ‘get prepared today’

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is encouraging everyone in Idalia’s path to “get prepared today.”

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell spoke to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and “emphasized the agency’s actions and readiness to support the state’s needs.” FEMA is also “closely coordinating” with Georgia and South Carolina to provide support as needed.

President Joe Biden also spoke with DeSantis earlier Monday and approved an emergency declaration.

-ABC News’ Justin Gomez

Aug 28, 11:53 AM EDT
Tampa International Airport to close

Tampa International Airport will close at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday as Idalia nears.

A hurricane warning has been issued from the Tampa Bay area up to the Apalachicola area.

Aug 28, 11:49 AM EDT
Idalia could become hurricane on Monday, major hurricane by Tuesday night

Idalia is forecast to strengthen to a hurricane on Monday and may become a major hurricane by Tuesday night.

Landfall is currently forecast for 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. Wednesday in Florida’s Big Bend region.

Storm surge is expected to be a major threat and could reach as high as 11 feet in the Big Bend area.

Up to 1 foot of rain could drench the Florida Panhandle and tornadoes are possible in Tampa and Orlando.

Idalia will move north Wednesday afternoon and evening, bringing heavy rain and potential flash flooding to Georgia and the Carolinas. Idalia will head out to sea on Thursday.

ABC News’ Max Golembo

Aug 28, 11:36 AM EDT
Idalia could be strongest hurricane for Big Bend since 1950

Idalia is currently forecast to make landfall along Florida’s Big Bend region between Apalachicola and Tampa as a Category 3 hurricane. If this happens, it will mark the strongest landfall for the Big Bend region since 1950, when Category 3 Hurricane Easy made landfall in Cedar Key.

Idalia’s potential landfall in Florida.

No hurricanes have ever made landfall in the Big Bend region stronger than Category 3.

It has been more than half a century since a hurricane of category 2 strength or stronger…

If Idalia makes landfall as a Category 2, it will be the first in the region since Gladys in 1968.

ABC News’ Kenton Gewecke

Aug 28, 11:04 AM EDT
Pasco County, Hillsborough County schools to close

As Idalia approaches, the Pasco County School District, north of Tampa, said its schools will be closed on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Schools in Hillsborough County, which encompasses Tampa, will also be closed Tuesday and Wednesday.

 

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(JACKSONVILLE, Fla.) — The suspected gunman who officials say killed three people over the weekend at a Dollar General in Jacksonville, Florida, before turning the gun on himself had “racist writings and rants” that described a “hatred toward African Americans” and other groups, according to the FBI.

The suspect, identified as Ryan Christopher Palmeter, used an AR-15-style weapon he purchased legally to kill Black shoppers at a Dollar General store in Jacksonville on Saturday afternoon, Jacksonville County Sheriff T.K. Waters said over the weekend. Palmeter left behind a last will and testament and writings that read like “the diary of a madman,” Waters said.

“We’ve identified multiple documents, including racist writings and rants that the depict a hatred toward African Americans, as well as other cultural groups. One of the primary themes throughout the writings is a belief in the inferiority of Black people,” Sherri E. Onks, special agent in charge of the FBI Jacksonville Field Office, told state and local law enforcement partners on a conference call Monday. “And there’s also evidence that he harbored anti-LGBTQ+ and antisemitic grievances.”

It is believed Palmeter, a 21-year-old white man, hoped to inspire others to carry out racially motivated attacks, Onks said.

FBI Director Christopher Wray called the shooting a “hate crime.”

“This was a targeted attack, a hate crime that was racially motivated,” Wray said on the conference call.

ABC News obtained a transcript of the call.

The suspected gunman was put under the Baker Act when he was 15 years old, Waters said on the call Monday. Unique to Florida, the Baker Act allows for the involuntary institutionalization of an individual if it is believed they are going through a mental health crisis.

“He went for a 72-hour evaluation,” Waters said, adding that Palmeter was not committed to a mental institution at that time. Waters said the incident likely didn’t show up on a background check for the gun purchase because he was a minor.

Before the Dollar General shooting spree, the suspect entered a Family Dollar about a mile away, Waters said. The suspect also made a stop before the shooting at Edward Waters University, a historically Black Christian college in Jacksonville, where he was confronted by a school security officer.

Waters said on the call that he believed Edward Waters University was not the primary target.

Wray told law enforcement partners on the call that violence “motivated by racial or ethnic bias is a particularly serious concern.”

“All Americans, regardless of their race, should be able to live their daily lives, to go to the store, to attend worship services, to go to school without fear — things that should seem so routine, so normal, so basic, yet because of racial animus and hatred, combined with violence, have become dangerous at all levels of government. Our fundamental duty is to make sure Americans feel safe and secure in their own communities,” Wray said.

The FBI said it opened both a domestic-terror and hate-crime investigation.

Racially motivated hate crimes across the country have risen to an “all time high,” according to Kristin Clarke, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

“Our prosecutors are already working with FBI investigators to ensure that we hold any and all perpetrators of this heinous act accountable,” Clarke said.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(LAHAINA, Hawaii) — Maui Electric confirmed Monday that downed power lines were the cause behind a morning fire near Lahaina on Aug. 8, however the company maintains they had shut off the power before another fire began in the same area and later engulfed the island.

The utility responded to the lawsuit filed last week by Maui County against it and other electric companies that alleged it was negligent during the lead-up to the fires and ignored warnings of high winds and other potential fire warnings from weather officials.

Shelee Kimura, the president and CEO of Hawaiian Electric, said in a statement that the allegations in the lawsuit were “factually and legally irresponsible.” She claimed the company’s investigation showed it responded to both fires promptly.

The utility released a timeline of what it claimed happened that day and has said that it has provided data to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, which is investigating the cause of the deadly wildfires.

Around 6:30 a.m. HT, on Aug. 8, Maui Electric said that high winds toppled a power line that caused a fire near Lahainaluna High School.

Residents who lived near where the fire started filmed the blaze and told ABC News that firefighters arrived minutes later.

Maui Electric said the fire department fought the fire and said firefighters reported it was “100% contained” by 9 a.m. It was around this time that the utility claimed it had shut off power.

“There was no electricity flowing through the wires in the area or anywhere else on the West Maui coast,” Maui Electric said in a statement.

Around 2 p.m., the fire department left the scene after it declared the blaze extinguished, according to the utility.

Maui Electric said it sent emergency crews to conduct repairs and claimed the power lines were still de-energized, and the power remained off.

At first, the utility’s emergency crews didn’t see any smoke or fire embers, however, around 3 p.m., the crews spotted another fire 75 yards away near another school, according to Maui Electric.

The utility says crews called 911, and firefighters arrived, however, they were unable to control the blaze and it spread toward Lahaina.

Maui Fire and Maui County didn’t immediately return a request for comment to ABC News.

The wildfire has been the most deadly fire in American history, with over 115 people killed, at least 388 unaccounted for and massive damage to buildings, trees and infrastructure.

The cause of the fire hasn’t been determined and the ATF’s investigation is ongoing.

The Maui County lawsuit contends that the island utilities failed to act and make preparations after the National Weather Service issued its Aug. 7 red flag warning: “warm temperatures, very low humidities and stronger winds are expected to combine to produce an increased risk of fire danger.”

The lawsuit alleges that the downed, energized power lines “ignited dry fuel such as grass and brush, causing the fires.”

Kimura said the company was “surprised and disappointed that the County of Maui rushed to court even before completing its investigation.”

“We continue to stand ready to work to that end with our communities and others. Unfortunately, the county’s lawsuit may leave us no choice in the legal system but to show its responsibility for what happened that day,” she said.

Hawaii Electric is also the subject of a class-action lawsuit by affected residents who allege the utility “inexcusably kept their power lines energized” despite forecasts of high winds that could topple power lines and potentially ignite a fast-spreading blaze.

The utility has declined to comment on that lawsuit.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — Sixty years ago, thousands gathered on the National Mall in Washington, DC, to advocate for the civil and economic rights of Black people.

“250,000 people came to Washington, DC. They came together to say, enough is enough. We are sick and tired of being sick and tired,” Courtland Cox, who was just 22 years old in 1963 when he decided to help organize the historic March on Washington, told ABC News.

Cox, now 82, says he and his peers were dedicated to a cause.

“That is the success of the March on Washington, the people coming together to make a statement to the nation about the way we were being treated in terms of racial and economic exploitation,” he added.

Cox was a founder of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, SNCC, a civil rights organization in the 1960s.

“I think one of the things that was most impressive to me, as a young person, both in terms of my peer group and the people I worked with, is that they were determined to make the change,” Cox said.

Cox says it took roughly eight weeks to arrange the demonstration, as civil rights leaders including Bayard Rustin, Whitney Young and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. strategized the order of events.

“I was part of the discussions about how the march would go, and what would happen and who would speak and who would not speak. I was privileged to be involved in the organizing of the march and seeing the results of it,” Cox said.

While August 28’s March on Washington is considered a historical moment during the civil rights movement, much of America today remembers the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

In that historic speech, King confronts the bedrock of the nation’s values, including racism and what it held for his own children. “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character,” King said.

King’s kids are continuing his legacy in the present day, and they believe the country still has far to go.

“Mom and Dad talked about eradicating the triple evils of poverty, racism and violence,” Martin Luther King III told ABC News. “The 60th anniversary is not a commemoration but a continuation of fighting racial inequalities,” he added.

“Daddy was an expert at how to use the King’s English in speaking the truth. He had the healing balm in his tongue,” Bernice King, CEO of The King Center, said. “The dream lives, the legacy continues; there’s still a movement that’s needed.”

“I thought that it was a very important speech, because it gave, it put forth the aspiration and hope,” Cox added. “I think that particularly, for that was the message that the people who were there needed: if we continue the struggle, we will make the difference.”

Reflecting back, Cox says the moment and the movement were a tremendous success.

“It’s one of the grandest things I’ve ever done in my life; to see the sea of humanity of people who were being oppressed and being brutalized, come to the nation and say, ‘No, we need to stop this’ was very important.”

Although the nation has seen resistance in recent years, Cox says he feels ‘reenergized’ thinking about the next generation continuing the fight for freedom and liberty for all.

“At some point, the civil rights movement may be over. But the right for human rights will not be over. I don’t think that will ever end.”

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(CHAPEL HILL, N.C.) — The University of North Carolina was under lockdown after police received reports of an “armed and dangerous” person on or near the Chapel Hill campus Monday afternoon.

Several police officers were on the scene and going through the campus throughout the afternoon. The alert went out around 1 p.m.

Around 4:14 p.m., police gave the all-clear and ended the lockdown.

The school’s police released a photo of the person they were looking for but didn’t immediately identify him.

Classes and events were canceled for the rest of the day due to the emergency, the school said.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper released a statement, saying that he has pledged state resources to help find the person of interest.

“This is a tragic way to start a new semester and the state will provide any assistance necessary to support the UNC community,” Cooper said.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(POMPANO BEACH, Fla.) — Two people were killed when a Broward Sheriff’s Office Fire Rescue helicopter crashed into a small apartment complex in Pompano Beach, Florida, on Monday morning, officials said.

Three people were on board the helicopter at the time, one of whom was killed, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. He was identified as Broward Sheriff’s Office Capt. Terryson Jackson, 50, a 19-year veteran of the organization.

A second person died on the ground, the NTSB said.

Officials said earlier that two crew members on the helicopter and two civilians on the ground were taken to the hospital, and all were believed to be in fair condition.

The fire rescue helicopter was headed to a scene in North Lauderdale at the time of the crash, officials said.

Pompano Beach is about 40 miles north of Miami.

 

 

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — From New York City to London in just 90 minutes? NASA is exploring the potential of a supersonic jet that one day could do just that.

Transatlantic jetliners currently travel at about 600 miles per hour, according to the federal space agency. But NASA’s plane could theoretically travel at Mach 4 — four times faster than the Mach 1, the speed of sound, which is typically 761 miles per hour at sea level.

The plane’s unique shape also would theoretically allow supersonic shockwaves to be spread out, preventing the familiar sonic boom from occurring on the ground when the aircraft breaks the sound barrier.

If the project gets off the ground, it would be the first time in more than two decades that there has been a supersonic transatlantic flight since the Concorde, jointly developed by the British and French over 60 years ago, was retired in 2003 due to operating costs.

The news comes as NASA’s separate Quesst mission involving its X-59 plane gets underway, one of the goals of which is amending the rules that prohibit commercial supersonic flight over land, in hopes of dramatically reducing travel times in the U.S. and overseas, a NASA spokesperson told ABC News.

Starting in 2025, the Quesst mission will see the X-59 fly over some U.S. cities and ask residents to share how they respond to the sound, NASA said. The agency will analyze the data and submit it to U.S. and international regulators in 2027 to consider allowing new commercial supersonic flights, including passenger flights.

NASA said it has been conducting studies on about 50 commercial routes to gather data on how humans respond to the sound generated during supersonic flights. Because the federal government banned all civilian supersonic flights over land 50 years ago, the studies examined transoceanic travel.

Lori Ozoroski, project manager for NASA’s Commercial Supersonic Technology Project, said similar studies were conducted more than a decade ago, looking at flights traveling between Mach 1.6 and 1.8, just over half again as fast as the speed of sound.

“Those resulting roadmaps helped guide NASA research efforts since, including those leading to the X-59,” Ozoroski said in a statement to ABC News. “These new studies will both refresh those looks at technology roadmaps and identify additional research needs for a broader high-speed range.”

The new studies, led by NASA’s Advanced Air Vehicles Program, involve two teams made up of several companies that will “develop concept designs and technology roadmaps” to outline any risks or challenges of flying planes at speeds of Mach 2 or greater.

According to NASA, Boeing is leading the first team, while the second is being led by Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems, which produces aircraft and spacecraft as well as defense technology. The NASA spokesperson said the teams will be looking at gaps in technology as well as early concept designs, but notes there is no technology or aircraft to these ends currently in development.

“The design concepts and technology roadmaps are really important to have in our hands when the companies are finished,” Mary Jo Long-Davis, manager of NASA’s Hypersonic Technology Project, said in a statement to ABC News. “We are also collectively conscious of the need to account for safety, efficiency, economic, and societal considerations.”

“It’s important to innovate responsibly so we return benefits to travelers and do no harm to the environment,” Long-Davis said.

 

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(NEW YORK) — In the wake of the wildfires that decimated Lahaina, Maui police set up a roadblock on Highway 30 that barred everyone but first responders to the historic beachside town. Then, about five days later, officials opened up the road to everyone each day from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.

In recent days, visitors to the area have also included tourists, who have turned Maui’s pain into a spectacle, some locals say.

“Our people haven’t even had a time to grieve on our own,” Courtney Lazo, whose family has lived on the island for about 10 generations, told ABC News.

The search for loved ones on Maui following the devastating wildfires has grown increasingly dire as the community grieves those lost in the blazes. So far, more than 110 people have been declared dead, with roughly 44 of the deceased identified. Between 1,000 and 1,100 individuals remain unaccounted for following the disaster, as of Aug. 22.

The wildfires are also fanning the flames of resentment that have existed for decades, making some feel like tourists matter more than the islanders themselves.

“You have tourists taking pictures of the destruction in Lahaina while there’s still bodies there. They’re snorkeling off the waters while they’re pulling people out of the water. It’s just extremely frustrating, and it feels like a slap in the face,” Lazo said.

On the road to Lahaina, Lazo’s family created a sign that reads “Tourist Keep Out.” Her uncle, Vance Dizon, survived the fires and then passionately helped his family make the sign, setting up a chair on the edge of their neighborhood fence and forming what they consider an unofficial checkpoint.

“In this time, it’s kind of hard to accept people where, you know, our resources is short,” Dizon said.

At the same time, the issue is complex. Despite the frustration, residents are also aware of the economic pressure to rely on tourism dollars, including Tapani Vuori, general manager of Maui Ocean Center at the Hawaii Aquarium.

“We hear that some of the boats are stopping their operations. They are laying people off. Oh, excuse me, I’m sorry. It’s a little bit emotional. We will keep our operations open as long as we can, even if it means we don’t have income coming in,” Vuori told ABC News.

He also worries about how decreased tourism may affect recovery efforts.

“If it takes longer, it’s going to be more painful for more people. So, let’s keep it short,” Vuori said.

Still, Lazo says her family made the sign because they want tourists to stay away from their pain, and at the same time acknowledging the systemic cycle they are in.

“We definitely understand the value of tourism. Maui is open. Lahaina is closed, respectfully,” she said.

 

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(POMPANO BEACH, Fla.) — Two people have been taken to the hospital after a Broward Sheriff’s Office Fire Rescue helicopter crashed in Pompano Beach, Florida, on Monday morning, the sheriff’s office said.

Three people were on board, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

The crash took place near North Dixie Highway and Atlantic Boulevard, the sheriff’s office said.

Pompano Beach is about 40 miles north of Miami.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.