(NEW YORK) — Farmers in one of the most prominent agricultural communities in the country will likely be living an underwater nightmare for the foreseeable future.
Central California’s Tulare Lake is filled past the brim, but with the blessings of an ample water supply also comes a curse: spillage that experts say could continue to drown fields and roadways for years to come. The flooding has left farmland, streets and properties under several feet of water.
Visual evidence of the decades-long megadrought that plagued the West and left reservoirs nearly depleted has nearly disappeared. An onslaught of moisture from dozens of atmospheric rivers that pummeled the West over the winter season has insured available water supply for the first time in several years, but it has also wreaked havoc in a region of California that yields a vast amount of the country’s produce.
The flooding that began in the Tulare Lake Basin in March, and then increased rapidly in the months that followed, is so vast it extends up to 24 miles past the lake’s rim, measuring at about 600,000 acre-feet of water with depths up to 15 feet, Kings County Sheriff David Robinson told ABC News, adding that an ecosystem unique to the floodwaters has even appeared.
About 90,000 acres of farmland in Kings County, California, is currently serving as the lake bottom for Tulare, Dusty Ference, executive director for the King’s County Farm Bureau, told ABC News. The water not only destroyed cropland but forced the evacuations of cattle and poultry, Ference said.
The flooding has also overtaken roadways, shops and homes around the region, displacing many residents in Tulare and Kings Counties. The water is expected to take up to two years to recede, Robinson said.
“The water’s going to be here for a while,” he said, adding that the California Department of Emergency Management has approved funding to purchase airboats in anticipation of the long-term flooding.
The regions within the Tulare Lake Basin are known for producing much of the country’s cotton, tomatoes, pistachios, almonds, walnuts, alfalfa, wheat, barley and cow milk. So far this year, the industry has seen $140 million in losses, Ference said.
The cost for these products will soon soar as attainability diminishes — not just in the U.S., but around the world, Ference said.
“Price will be affected because availability will be affected — the number of products on a store shelf,” he said.
The precipitation that fell as rain filled up the reservoirs first. As the weather began to warm in the spring, more and more of the record snowpack that fell in the Sierra Nevada mountains melted, causing several of the largest lakes around the state to replenish — some to capacity.
Lake Oroville, one of the many important reservoirs in the West that reached critically low levels during the height of the megadrought, reached full pool earlier this month.
Several other large reservoirs in the state are also close to full pool, including Lake Shasta, its largest, and San Luis Reservoir in Merced County, the fourth-largest, according to the California Department of Water Resources.
The images of floodwaters in the Tulare Lake Basin are in stark contrast to the nearly bone-dry reservoir that subsisted off minimal precipitation for several years on end, and the change happened fast. While satellite images from Feb. 1 show a lake bed barely filled with water, images taken just three months later show water spilling over the edges of the lake.
But this isn’t the first time the lake has flooded.
Tulare Lake, which is fed by the rivers and streams running down from the Sierra Nevada, was once the largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi River. But in the 1880s, the water was diverted for agricultural use, and the lake dried up.
Farmers began to cultivate the dried-up land for crops and cattle, and the region grew into the largest dairy-producing county in the nation. Now, much of that valuable farmland is currently underwater, with similar events documented in the 1940s and again in 1983.
The Tachi Yokut indigenous tribe, native to the San Joaquin Valley, is hoping that water remains in Tulare Lake in order to heal the local ecosystem, tribe members told the Los Angeles Times. The lake is considered sacred by the Tachi Yokut and is considered part of the tribe’s origin story.
Water levels in Tulare Lake have now peaked and begun to recede. So far, 66,692 acre-feet of water has been diverted away from Tulare Lake and will be used to recharge groundwater and replenish storage, the office of California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced on Wednesday. The governor has also pledged more than $500 million in the 2023 to 2024 state budget to support flood response and projects to protect communities from future floods.
The mere inches of receding floodwaters do not negate the losses the billion-dollar agricultural industry in the region has suffered, Ference said.
“The river conditions have settled and given everybody a reprieve, but everybody is affected right now,” he said. “There’s not a farmer that’s not affected somehow.”
The influx of water may not be over. There is still snow melting in the Sierra Nevadas, and an El Nino event is expected to bring additional moisture to Southern and Central California, forecasts show.
But water management officials in the Tulare Lake Basin are confident that those events should not produce a massive increase in water flow to the lake, Ference said, perhaps saving the region from further inundation.
“We’ve got to get the lake dry,” Ference said. “That’s kind of our number one goal for stabilization right now.”
(NEW YORK) — Embattled Rep. George Santos is set to appear in court Friday morning in his first court appearance since pleading not guilty last month to a 13-count indictment accusing him of fraud, money laundering and theft of public funds.
The Republican New York congressman, who has denied wrongdoing, is scheduled to appear at noon Friday for a status conference hearing in front of U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert on Long Island.
Friday’s appearance comes a week after it was revealed that Santos’ father and aunt guaranteed his $500,000 bond, according to court documents that were unsealed over the congressman’s objection.
ABC News’ Rachel Scott was first to report that Santos’ bond was guaranteed by Gercino dos Santos Jr. and Elma Santos Preven.
Under the terms of the bond, neither of them were required to provide any funds for Santos’ release — only to be financially responsible “if the defendant does not comply with the conditions” of his release.
Santos maintained that he objected to the names being unsealed out of fear of harassment.
“I can handle that; I ran for public office,” he told reporters. “They did not; they’re private citizens.”
Santos, who has been accused of misrepresenting large swaths of his employment record, his education, and his family history, has admitted that he lied about portions of his background while running for Congress.
He’s also facing an investigation by the House Ethics Committee, which issued a rare letter last week stating that the committee had issued more than 30 subpoenas and more than 40 voluntary requests for information in their probe.
The panel also said it had expanded its probe to look into allegations of unemployment insurance fraud.
(WASHINGTON) — The Supreme Court on Friday will hand down its final opinions of the term, including highly-anticipated decisions on student loan forgiveness and free speech and LGBTQ+ protections.
The justices will issue decisions at 10 a.m. ET to finish the term it began back in October. Three cases remain out of the 59 argued.
Their rulings will decide the fate of tens of millions of Americans with federal student loans and have an impact on free speech rights and LGBTQ+ protections.
Already this week, the court handed down blockbuster decisions on affirmative action and election law.
The court’s conservative majority on Thursday struck down race-conscious admissions policies Harvard University and the University of North Carolina as unconstitutional, effectively ending decades of legal precedent and reshaping the college admissions process in the U.S.
On Tuesday, the court strongly rejected the “independent state legislature” theory, a fringe legal concept that threatened to upend state election laws around the nation if adopted in its most extreme form.
Here’s a closer look at the three remaining cases:
Student loan forgiveness
The Supreme Court will rule on two challenges to President Joe Biden’s student debt forgiveness plan, one brought by six Republican-led states and the other by two individual borrowers.
The cases are Biden v. Nebraska and Department of Education v. Brown.
Biden’s plan, which invoked emergency powers because of the economic hardship brought by the pandemic, would cancel $10,000 in student debt for all borrowers who made less than $125,000 and up to $20,000 for borrowers who also received Pell grants while they were in school.
Challengers contend the administration exceeded its authority while also unfairly excluding Americans who don’t qualify and costing loan servicers revenue.
The court appeared wary of the administration’s assertion the Department of Education had the power to unilaterally waive $400 billion in debt.
“We take very seriously the idea of separation of powers and that power should be divided to prevent its abuse,” Chief Justice John Roberts said during arguments back in February.
But questions remained on whether the plaintiffs even had legal standing to sue the administration and how they would be injured by the policy.
The White House, asked about the court’s pending decision earlier this week, continued to decline to say what a “Plan B” would look like.
First Amendment and LGBTQ+ protections
In 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis, the justices are being asked to resolve a case that pits the First Amendment right to free speech against legislation aimed at rooting out discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community and other groups.
Lorie Smith, a Colorado website designer, is challenging the state’s public accommodation law requiring her to serve LGBTQ+ customer or face a fine. Smith contends the measure forces her to express support for something that goes against her religious beliefs in violation of her right to free speech.
Lower courts ruled in Colorado’s favor last year, stating officials had an overriding interest in ensuring equal access to publicly available goods and services. But the Supreme Court’s conservative majority appeared sympathetic to Smith’s point of view during oral arguments.
(BUFFALO, N.Y.) — Two University of Buffalo football players have been charged after a video of them allegedly beating a miniature poodle with a leather belt was posted on social media.
Blake Hiligh — 19-years-old from Alexandria, Virginia — and Zachary Pilarcek — 20-years-old from Endicott, New York — were arraigned in Buffalo, New York, on Thursday when they appeared before Amherst Town Court Justice Geoffrey Klein in regard to accusations that they beat a miniature poodle with a leather belt.
The defendants became the subject of an investigation after the SPAC Serving Erie County received a report of animal abuse after a video of the alleged beating was posted on social media.
“It is alleged that on the evening of June 13, 2023, at approximately 9:00 p.m., the defendants, while acting in concert with one another, beat a dog under their care and custody with a leather belt,” read a press release from the Erie County District Attorney’s Office published on Thursday. “The alleged crime occurred inside of an apartment on Sweet Home Road in the Town of Amherst. A video of the alleged incident was posted on social media.”
“The following day, on June 14, 2023, the SPCA Serving Erie County seized the dog, a 4-year-old male miniature Poodle named “Kobe.” Both defendants were charged and given an appearance ticket to be arraigned,” read the press release. “The dog was immediately transported to the SPCA Serving Erie County’s veterinary team where he received treatment for bruises and abrasions. “Kobe” remains under the care of the SPCA at an undisclosed location.”
Both Hiligh and Pilarcek were charged on Thursday with one count of overdriving, torturing and injuring animals and one count of failure to provide proper sustenance. If convicted of these charges, both men could face a maximum sentence of one year in jail.
Hiligh and Pilarcek both played football at the University of Buffalo but were subsequently suspended and then dismissed from the program following the incident.
“I want to thank our partners at the SPCA for their work in this investigation and the many services that they provide to help animals in our community. I also commend the University at Buffalo and the UB Football program for taking immediate action, which further demonstrates that animal abuse will not be tolerated in this community,” said Erie County DA John Flynn.
Pilarcek is scheduled to return to court on July 27 at 9:30 a.m. for further proceedings regarding this case while Hiligh is scheduled for August 3 at 9:30 a.m.
“Both were released on their own recognizance as charge is a non-qualifying offense for bail,” said Erie County’s District Attorney’s Office. “Judge Klein issued a temporary order that prevents that defendants from owning or caring for any animals while the case is pending.”
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Christine M. Garvey of the Felony Trials Bureau and Assistant District Attorney Richard K. Barney, III of the Justice Courts Bureau.
Both Hiligh and Pilarcek are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The investigation is ongoing.
(NEW YORK) — Millions of Americans are on alert for unhealthy air quality as smoke from wildfires in neighboring Canada drifts to the United States.
Wildfires have burned a record of more than 19.5 million acres across Canada so far this year, with no end in sight. There are nearly 500 active wildfires throughout the country and over 250 have been deemed out of control, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center. The smoke has been making its way to the U.S. for more than a month.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Jun 30, 6:03 AM EDT
20 US states under air quality alerts as wildfire smoke lingers in East for another day
At least 20 U.S. states are under air quality alerts on Friday morning as Canadian wildfire smoke lingers in the East for another day before it’s forecast to dissipate over the weekend.
The thickest smoke on Friday will stretch from the eastern Great Lakes to the Interstate 95 travel corridor and down to parts of the Southeast.
Skies will be clearer by Saturday, but some light haze could still hang over the East Coast.
Jun 29, 3:47 PM EDT
Air quality alerts in 21 states
Air quality alerts are in effect in 21 states Thursday afternoon as the Canadian wildfire smoke infiltrates the Midwest, Northeast and parts of the South.
Jun 29, 1:58 PM EDT
Pittsburgh air quality ‘very unhealthy,’ MLB game delayed
The Air Quality Index in Pittsburgh climbed to 231 Thursday afternoon, which falls under the “very unhealthy” category. Any number over 100 is considered unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Thursday afternoon’s MLB game in Pittsburgh between the Pirates and San Diego Padres was delayed 45 minutes due to the poor air quality, according to The Associated Press.
Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey is encouraging residents to stay inside on Thursday.
Jun 29, 1:14 PM EDT
New York to roll out air quality phone alerts
New York will be rolling out phone alerts to remind residents to take precautions amid the poor air quality, Gov. Kathy Hochul said Thursday.
The Air Quality Index is currently in the “unhealthy” category in Rochester and Buffalo.
“The truth is, there is no end in sight,” Hochul said at news conference, noting the conditions could linger off and on through the summer. “This is the new normal for New Yorkers.”
Phone alerts will be sent in areas where the Air Quality Index is above 200 for one hour or longer. Announcements will also be made on mass transit, where hundreds of thousands of masks will be handed out.
Hochul said it is too early to know about the air quality over the July 4 holiday.
“We don’t know what is going to happen beyond the next couple days — today will be very bad, tomorrow will be very bad. We expect to see the winds start to dissipate over the next couple days. It is impossible for us at this point to predict the holiday celebrations,” she said.
Jackie Bray, commissioner of New York’s Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, added that it’s “totally appropriate to keep the pools open today, totally appropriate for people to be out, as long as they don’t fall into these sensitive groups.”
-ABC News’ Aaron Katersky
Jun 29, 12:59 PM EDT
Columbus, Ohio, hits its worst air quality ever
Columbus, Ohio, hit an Air Quality Index of 244 on Thursday morning, the highest reading ever for the city.
The AQI has since lowered to 169. Any number over 100 is considered unhealthy for sensitive groups.
-ABC News’ Jeremy Edwards
Jun 29, 11:36 AM EDT
Pittsburgh air quality reaches ‘very unhealthy’
The Air Quality Index in Pittsburgh climbed to 220 Thursday morning, which falls under the “very unhealthy” category.
Any number over 100 is considered unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey is encouraging residents to stay inside on Thursday.
Jun 29, 8:03 AM EDT
Wildfire smoke forecast to dissipate by the weekend
The Canadian wildfire smoke drifting into the United States is expected to largely dissipate by the weekend.
By Friday morning, the smoke is forecast to linger in the eastern Great Lakes from Detroit to Ohio, Pennsylvania, western New York state, down to Virginia and the Carolinas.
New York City is not expected to see much smoke, but skies over the Big Apple could still be a bit hazy due to the nearby plumes.
By Friday evening, the smoke will really begin to diminish in the East with lingering effects from New York to the Carolinas.
Jun 29, 5:20 AM EDT
Videos show Canadian wildfire smoke casting haze over US cities
Videos verified by ABC News show smoke from Canada’s wildfires casting a haze over several U.S. cities on Wednesday.
One video, taken by a driver and posted on Twitter, shows the wildfire smoke hanging over a highway near Lawrenceburg, Indiana, as the state and much of the Midwest were under air quality alerts.
Lawrenceburg is located some 100 miles southeast of Indianapolis, near the state border with Ohio and Kentucky. The city is about 25 miles west of Cincinnati, Ohio.
-ABC News’ Matthew Holroyd
Jun 28, 6:05 PM EDT
Over 100 million Americans under air quality alerts
Air quality alerts remain in effect for more than 100 million Americans across the Midwest and into the Northeast Wednesday evening, as wildfire smoke from neighboring Canada blankets large swaths of the United States.
Air quality alerts remain in effect for more than 100 million Americans across the…Read More
Hard-hit Chicago, Detroit and Minneapolis remain among the top five places in the world with the worst air quality as of Wednesday evening.
The air quality alerts are mainly for people in sensitive groups who have upper respiratory issues.
Near-surface smoke is expected to stretch from Wisconsin to Kentucky and into t…Read More
The near-surface smoke is expected to stretch from Wisconsin to Kentucky and into the Carolinas Wednesday evening. Some of the smoke will likely make its way into the mid-Atlantic overnight. Pittsburgh to Syracuse are forecast to see hazy, smoky skies and poor air quality Wednesday night.
Through Thursday, the smoke is expected to move out of the Midwest and linger farther east but not be as heavy. No significant smoke issues are forecast at this time for major Northeast cities, including New York City.
-ABC News’ Melissa Griffin
Jun 28, 1:10 PM EDT
Air quality health advisory issued in New York
While the poor air quality is mostly hovering over the Midwest, the dangerous smoke is also drifting toward the East Coast.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has expanded Wednesday’s air quality health advisory to include the entire state.
“Air in Western New York, Central New York, and the Eastern Lake Ontario regions is forecast to be ‘Unhealthy,'” Hochul’s office said. “The forecast for the remainder of the state, including New York City and Long Island, is ‘Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups.'”
Jun 28, 12:39 PM EDT
Chicago’s Air Quality Alert in effect until Wednesday night
In Chicago, where the Air Quality Index is in the “very unhealthy” category, an Air Quality Alert is in effect until Wednesday night.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is urging “particularly sensitive populations, including individuals with heart or lung disease, older adults, pregnant people, and young children” to avoid outdoor activities.
Camps have been moved indoors where possible, the mayor said, and he’s encouraging “Chicagoans without access to properly ventilated and safe indoor conditions” to “please utilize our public libraries, senior centers, Park District facilities, and the Cultural Center or the six community service centers that operate from 9am-5pm.”
Jun 28, 12:30 PM EDT
White House monitoring air quality issues as Biden visits Chicago
President Joe Biden has touched down in Chicago for fundraising and an economic address, and the White House said his schedule has not been modified due to the poor air quality in the city.
“No modifications to today’s schedule that I’m aware of as a result of this,” principal deputy press secretary Olivia Dalton said. “But certainly, we are monitoring the air quality issues across the country closely and federal agencies are ensuring that federal resources are available in affected regions as appropriate.”
The Air Quality Index in hazy Chicago reached 207 on Wednesday morning. Any number over 100 is considered unhealthy for sensitive groups.
-ABC News’ Molly Nagle
Jun 28, 8:59 AM EDT
Where the smoke is concentrating and why
The latest round of unhealthy air quality due to smoke from wildfires in Canada has pushed into the United States, and it’s ability to concentrate over areas from Wisconsin to Kentucky is aided by recent storms that spawned tornadoes, large hail and [damaging winds]).
Winds at the mid-levels of the atmosphere are causing the Canadian wildfire smoke to concentrate over a specific area of the midwestern and eastern U.S.
Meanwhile, a heat dome that’s been causing stagnant deadly heat in the Deep South for weeks is keeping the smoke largely out of the region.
The next round of widespread showers and thunderstorms for this area of the eastern Midwest and the East is forecast to arrive on Friday and continue through the weekend, which will clear the smoke.
But as long as the wildfires continue to rage in Canada, these events of dense smoke plumes will likely continue to disperse into the U.S. Canada’s wildfire activity typically peaks from June to August.
Jun 28, 7:59 AM EDT
What to know about the Air Quality Index from wildfire smoke and how it affects human health
Heavy blankets of smoke billowing over the United States from wildfires burning in neighboring Canada are threatening the health of millions of people — even non-vulnerable populations with no preexisting conditions. But what about the smoke makes it so hazardous for humans to be around?
Wildfire smoke contains fine particulate matter, known as PM2.5, which are microscopic solid or liquid droplets — often 30 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair — that can be inhaled and cause serious health problems, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Most particles form in the atmosphere as a result of complex reactions of chemicals, such as sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides — pollutants emitted from power plants, industries and automobiles. But wildfires likely contain PM2.5 that is up to 10 times more harmful than the same type of air pollution coming from combustion activity, according to a 2021 study conducted in California.
PM2.5 is considered unhealthy for “Code Orange” and sensitive groups once the Air Quality Index surpasses 100, according to AirNow, a website that publishes air quality data. Once the AQI surpasses 150, it is considered “Code Red,” unhealthy for some members of the general public who may experience health effects, with sensitive groups experiencing more severe effects.
The AQI is at “Code Purple” once it surpasses 200, considered “very unhealthy” with increased health risk for all populations. “Code Maroon” is labeled as “hazardous” and a health warning for emergency conditions once the AQI reaches 300 and higher.
At Code Maroon, “everyone is more likely to be affected,” according to AirNow.
A “good” AQI is measured at 50 and below, and a “moderate” air quality index ranks between 51 and 100.
Jun 28, 7:45 AM EDT
Chicago air quality hits ‘very unhealthy’ category
As Canadian wildfire smoke infiltrates the midwestern United States, the air in Chicago has deteriorated to the Air Quality Index’s> “very unhealthy” category.
The AQI in hazy Chicago reached 250 on Tuesday afternoon. Any number over 100 is considered unhealthy for sensitive groups.
“We recommend children, teens, seniors, people with heart or lung disease, and individuals who are pregnant avoid strenuous activities and limit their time outdoors,” Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson warned in a statement. “For additional precautions, all Chicagoans may also consider wearing masks, limiting their outdoor exposure, moving activities indoors, running air purifiers, and closing windows.”
The smoke is forecast to clear on Friday when showers and thunderstorms hit the region.
Earlier this month, the AQI in the northeastern U.S. reached near maximum with levels in the high 400s.
Jun 28, 7:03 AM EDT
20 US states under air quality alerts
As of Wednesday morning, 20 U.S. states are under air quality alerts from Minnesota down to Georgia and as far north as western New York.
Wildfire smoke from neighbouring Canada is currently blanketing large swaths of the United States, from Iowa to western Pennsylvania to North Carolina and most everywhere in between. Only Chicago is getting a small reprieve on Wednesday morning due to a lake breeze, which isn’t expected to last for long.
Later on Wednesday, the smoke is expected to cover areas from Minnesota to Washington, D.C. and down to the Carolinas.
By early Thursday morning, the smoke will be seen in Minneapolis, Chicago, Indianapolis, Atlanta and Pittsburgh. But by the afternoon, it will linger from Detroit to Atlanta and east to Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia.
New York City could be impacted as well, but most of the smoke from the Canadian wildfires is expected to stay in western New York state, Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey.
(PARIS) — Widespread rioting continued in the streets of France for a third night amid anger over the fatal police shooting of 17-year-old Nael M.
Protesters erected barricades, set buildings and cars ablaze, threw fireworks at riot police and ransacked stores. Police stations, schools and town halls were among the buildings targeted. Riot police used tear gas, water cannons and non-lethal dispersion grenades to fend off violent groups.
A total of 667 people were arrested nationwide on Thursday night as curfews were in place in multiple cities, according to French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin. About half of the arrests were reportedly made in the Paris region alone.
“Last night, our police, gendarmes and firefighters courageously faced rare violence,” Darmanin said in a Twitter post on Friday morning.
Among those arrested were 14 people who allegedly broke into a flagship Nike store at the Chatelet station in the heart of Paris, according to an official in the Paris Prefecture Office.
Some 40,000 law enforcement officers had been deployed across France on Thursday evening to quell potential violence, including about 5,000 in the capital and its inner suburbs. Nearly 250 of those officers were injured overnight, according to the interior minister.
Protests over the teenager’s death also took place in Belgium’s capital on Thursday night, with some rioters allegedly attacking officers in Brussels, a spokesperson for the Belgian Federal Police told ABC News. A least eight people were arrested there, the police spokesperson said.
Dozens of police officers were deployed in the city center of Brussels on Thursday night and two subway stations were shuttered.
The violent unrest in France kicked off after a 17-year-old driver was shot and killed by a police officer during a traffic check in the northwestern Paris suburb Nanterre on Tuesday morning. The officer has been detained on suspicion of voluntary homicide amid an ongoing investigation into the incident, according to the local prosecutor’s office.
Nanterre prosecutor Pascal Prache said Thursday that the officer did not meet the requirements to discharge his weapon and will remain in custody awaiting trial.
France’s Inspectorate General of the National Police, which investigates allegations of police misconduct, is also conducting a probe into the fatal shooting.
Lawyers for the victim’s family identified him as 17-year-old Nael M. and said they intend to file complaints against the officer accused of pulling the trigger and another officer who was at the scene.
While tensions have remained highest in the Paris suburbs, almost every region of France has been hit with unrest since Tuesday.
French President Emmanuel Macron and the interior minister have both repeatedly called for “calm” as authorities investigate the teen’s death.
ABC News’ Tom Soufi Burridge and Aicha El Hammar Castano contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — A University of California, Berkeley graduate student was killed in Mexico, ABC News has learned.
Gabriel Trujillo, a botanist who was a fourth-year Ph.D. student in the Department of Integrative Biology, was killed in the Mexican state of Sonora last week while doing field research, according to a statement from UC Berkeley obtained by San Francisco ABC station KGO on Friday.
The university, located in Northern California, said it received confirmation of Trujillo’s death on June 23.
“Local police authorities are investigating,” UC Berkeley said in the statement. “This is heartbreaking news and campus officials have reached out to his family to offer support and assistance.”
Sonora is located in northwestern Mexico, sharing the U.S.-Mexico border primarily with Arizona.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(PHOENIX) — An Arizona woman is fighting for her life after contracting fungal meningitis following a plastic surgery procedure at a private clinic in Matamoros, Mexico.
Alondra Lomas is one of nine confirmed cases of the life-threatening infection in an outbreak the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says is tied to cosmetic surgery clinics in the Mexican city that borders Brownsville, Texas. So far, at least seven women have died – one in Mexico and six Americans, according to the CDC.
The fatalities, Lomas says, include another woman she says she befriended in Mexico and who had plastic surgery at the same clinic just two hours after her own procedure.
When asked what her greatest fear is, an emotional Lomas told “Impact x Nightline” from her hospital room, “Death. And I only say that because I have not seen one lady leave. I have not seen no girl go home yet.”
The latest “Impact” episode, “If Looks Could Kill,” explores the medical tourism industry in Mexico, the destination for some patients who travel from the U.S. seeking less expensive medical care, including elective cosmetic surgery. Mexico was the second most popular destination for medical tourism around the world in 2020, according to Patients Beyond Borders. Thailand was the No. 1 most popular destination.
Lomas, a mother of two, sought out plastic surgery, specifically liposuction and a so-called Brazilian butt lift, after she says two C-section births left her with sagging skin on her stomach area.
The surgeon she chose, Dr. Luis Manuel Rivera de Anda, offered a variety of cosmetic surgeries at what seemed like bargain prices, Lomas said. At first, Lomas says she was nervous and scared, but then started to feel happy at the prospect of being able to “get the body that [she] wants.”
Lomas flew to Brownsville, Texas, then crossed the border to Matamoros. Dr. Rivera worked out of Clinica K-3, Lomas said. Like many Mexican clinics, surgery there is done using epidurals for anesthesia.
After the procedure, Lomas says she began to experience headaches and back pain while home in Arizona until it finally got so bad that she couldn’t walk. Lomas immediately reached out to the surgical coordinator and doctor, but she says they didn’t have any real answers. Throughout April, the symptoms would come and go.
Lomas said she began to experience worsening symptoms, including fatigue and hallucinations. On May 7, she went to St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Phoenix, where she was diagnosed with fungal meningitis.
“The doctors told me that if I didn’t go in time, I could have died within 24 hours because this is a fatal infection,” Lomas said.
Meningitis occurs when an infection causes inflammation in the protective membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord. Most of the time, the infection is viral or bacterial. Fungal meningitis is much more rare. Symptoms like backaches, headaches and sensitivity to light usually appear gradually, making it harder to diagnose.
Getting treatment as early as possible is critical to survival, according to Dr. Tom Chiller, who runs the fungal disease branch of the CDC.
By May 11, the CDC had enough cases in the U.S. to notify Mexican officials about the outbreak, linking them to cosmetic surgery in Matamoros. They identified two private clinics – Riverside Surgical Center and Clinica K-3, where Lomas had her surgery.
“The strongest hypothesis right now is that a batch of these drugs used for anesthesia, either epidural or spinal anesthesia, were contaminated,” Dr. Vicente Joel Hernandez Navarro, state secretary of health for Tamaulipas, Mexico, told “Impact.”
Both Clinica K-3 and Riverside have been shut down, Navarro said, adding that 10 other clinics are being investigated and currently closed for failing to comply with health requirements.
Both clinics linked to the outbreak, along with Dr. Rivera, did not respond to a request for comment.
The CDC has issued an alert, telling anyone who had procedures under epidural anesthesia at the two clinics between Jan. 1 and May 13 of this year to go to their local emergency room and get tested for meningitis. The CDC is tracking about 200 people they know had surgery in Matamoros and could be at risk.
This isn’t the first time Mexico has dealt with an outbreak. Just six months ago, there were 80 confirmed cases of fungal meningitis linked to a medical center in the Mexican state of Durango, the New York Times reported. Thirty-nine women died.
The issue isn’t limited to Mexico. In 2012, dozens died after 14,000 people were exposed to tainted steroid injections in the U.S, according to the CDC.
After more than a month in the hospital, Lomas said her treatment didn’t appear to be working, so doctors performed brain surgery to create a port that delivers the anti-fungal medication directly to the infection. It appears the surgery worked, she says, but she’s not out of the woods yet.
“So I try to, you know, stay positive, because I need to be there for my children, you know? I don’t wanna have another party in the hospital because my son’s birthday is in August. I wanna be able to go home and be present,” Lomas said.
“Impact x Nightline” is now streaming on Hulu. The episode was produced by ABC News’ Knez Walker, Stephanie Fasano, Zach Fannin, Caroline Pahl, Jaclyn Skurie, Anne Laurent, Tara Guaimano and Candace Smith Chekwa.
(PARIS) — Widespread protests continued for a third night over the fatal police shooting of a teenager in a Paris suburb.
More than 100 people have been arrested across the country so far, as curfews are in place in multiple cities, according to French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin.
Fourteen people were arrested after allegedly breaking into a flagship Nike store in Chatelet, in the heart of Paris, according to an official in the Paris Prefecture Office.
Some 40,000 law enforcement officers were deployed nationwide on Thursday to quell potential violence, including about 5,000 in the capital and its inner suburbs, according to Darmanin.
Riots are also taking place in Brussels, Belgium, in response to the teen’s killing, with some protesters allegedly attacking police, federal police told ABC News. Eight people have been arrested so far, police said.
Dozens of police officers are currently deployed in the city center of Brussels, and two subway stations have been closed.
The unrest comes after a 17-year-old driver was shot and killed by a police officer during a traffic check in Nanterre on Tuesday morning. The officer was detained on suspicion of manslaughter amid an ongoing investigation into the incident, according to the local prosecutor’s office.
The Nanterre prosecutor said Thursday that the officer did not meet the requirements to discharge his weapon and will remain in custody awaiting trial.
The shooting sparked violent protests, with police stations, schools and town halls “set on fire or attacked,” Darmanin said. More than 150 people were arrested around the country stemming from Wednesday night’s protests, according to Darmanin, who condemned the “night of unbearable violence.”
Lawyers for the victim’s family identified him as 17-year-old Nael M. and said they intend to file complaints against the officer who fired the lethal shot and another officer who was at the scene.
France’s Inspectorate General of the National Police, which investigates allegations of police misconduct, is also conducting a probe into the fatal shooting.
French President Emmanuel Macron and Darmanin have both called for “calm” as authorities investigate the teen’s death.
ABC News’ Aicha El Hammar Castano, Anna Rabemanantsoa and Morgan Winsor contributed to this report.
(PICKFORD, Mich.) — Seann Pietila the 19-year-old who allegedly subscribed to a neo-Nazi ideology, was indicted by a grand jury — and the indictment offers more details about what Pietila allegedly said about carrying out a mass attack.
“I won’t be taken alive, I’ll make sure of that,” Pietila allegedly wrote in an Instagram message to another unnamed user. “Remember ‘Heil Hitler!’ boom red mist.”
Authorities initially charged Pietela, 19, of Pickford, Michigan, via criminal complaint with transmitting a communication containing a threat to injure another.
When they searched his home in Michigan, he allegedly had ammunition, magazines, a shotgun, a rifle, a pistol, various knives, firearms accessories, tactical vests, mask, a Nazi flag, a ghillie suit, gas masks and military sniper and survival manuals. Also seized was Pietela’s phone, and in the Notes app, he had identified a particular synagogue in East Lansing, a date, and a list of equipment.
Court documents unsealed on Wednesday allege that Pietila wanted to carry out his shooting online for people “so they could screen record and send it to other people.”
He also allegedly went into detail about which guns he were to use and why and expressed his disdain for Jewish persons.
In communicating with users on Instagram, he allegedly sent pictures that showed Nazi paraphernalia and were supportive of the ideology of the New Zealand shooter.
In 2019, a shooter in New Zealand killed dozens of people in back-to-back shootings at two mosques.
“The crimes alleged in this indictment have made members of our community feel unsafe as they practice their religion. No American should fear engaging in their constitutionally protected rights,” said James A. Tarasca, special agent in charge of the FBI in Michigan. “I appreciate the coordinated efforts of our state and local law enforcement partners to disrupt this defendant before he could put his plans into action.”
Pietila’s mother, Brittany Stob, told ABC News earlier this month her son began consuming antisemitic content online when he was isolated during the pandemic and didn’t have access to the mental health treatment he needed.
“He said some stuff online that he shouldn’t have,” she added.
But Stob asserts she believes her son is not violent and was not truly planning an attack.
“He’s a good kid,” she said. “He would never hurt anybody.”
