(WASHINGTON) — An Afghan interpreter who helped rescue then Sen. Joe Biden during a congressional delegation visit to Afghanistan in 2008 has been evacuated from the country, the State Department and the nonprofit that coordinated his travel confirmed to ABC News on Monday.
The interpreter and his family were among more than 200 “at-risk” people in Pakistan who have now been moved “to safety,” the Human First Coalition said in a statement.
The organization, comprised of volunteers efforting evacuations, thanked Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the State Department for their help facilitating their travel. It said Blinken held late-night phone calls and helped coordinate a “path” out of Pakistan for the group. It also thanked Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for welcoming the evacuees after they first got out of Afghanistan.
During his 2008 visit to Afghanistan, a helicopter carrying Biden, along with then-Sens. John Kerry and Chuck Hagel, made an emergency landing because of a snowstorm. A group of U.S. service members and their Afghan partners helped rescue them over land, including a man identified as Aman Khalili by the Wall Street Journal, which first reported his story.
After Biden ended the U.S. mission in Afghanistan and withdrew all troops and personnel in August, Khalili pleaded for help getting out — sharing this message for Biden with ABC News: “Please do not forget me and my family. Please find a way to get me out.”
In a statement to ABC News on Monday, the State Department also confirmed Khalili and his family had successfully been evacuated from Afghanistan and had “initiated onward travel from Pakistan.”
“They did so with extensive and high-level engagement and support from the U.S. government, and we are grateful for the many others who also supported him along the way,” a spokesperson from the Department of State told ABC News.
Khalili was one of thousands of Afghans who worked for the U.S. military and diplomatic mission, but had not been able to get a Special Immigrant Visa for their service. It’s unclear whether he was granted a visa now and where he and his family are headed.
(PLANTERSVILLE, Texas) — When Tim Halfin learned during Bible study about a toddler missing in the thick woods of southeast Texas, he said God told him to go search for the child.
In an interview on ABC’s “Good Morning America” Monday, Halfin said he can only credit “divine” intervention for leading him on Saturday to find 3-year-old Christopher Ramirez, who survived nearly four days alone in the woods of Grimes County, about 50 miles northwest of Houston.
“It’s a miracle,” Christopher’s mother, Araceli Nunez, said during a news conference Monday after bringing her son home from the hospital.
Nunez later met with Halfin and thanked him for finding her son.
“Words cannot describe how I felt when I held him for the first time,” Nunez said of being reunited with her boy, who she held in her arms as he played with a toy car. “It was incredible.”
After hearing of the child’s disappearance, Halfin said he went to the woods around 11:45 a.m. Saturday near his home in Plantersville. About 10 yards in he heard what sounded like a child’s whimper.
“I said, ‘Christopher is that you?'” Halfin said. “Then he speaks again and I’m like, ‘Whoa, praise God.'”
Halfin said Christopher was calm and healthy.
“I don’t know what to make of it. All I know is he was found safe,” Halfin said. “When I picked him up, he was still talking. He wasn’t shaking, he wasn’t nervous. The things I would expect. Maybe he just sensed, ‘I’ve been found.'”
Halfin said he picked up the boy, who had shed his clothes and was completely naked, and called 911. Sheriff’s deputies took Nunez to him.
Speaking in Spanish as a sheriff’s sergeant interpreted, Nunez said she held her child and told him that she loves him.
Before meeting with Nunez, Halfin was shown a photo of the smiling little boy after he was reunited with his mother. “That’s what it’s all about right there.”
“That’s what it’s all about right there,” Halfin said. “That’s why everybody was praying. That’s why God laid it on my heart to go look, to reunite that boy with his mom.”
Grimes County Sheriff Don Sowell said Halfin found Christopher about five miles from the child’s home, where he vanished after purportedly following a neighbor’s dog into the woods.
The boy was treated for dehydration and minor scratches on his face at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston before being sent home Monday afternoon.
“He ought to be the ultimate Army Ranger, Navy SEAL, Air Force when he wants to grow up. He’s already passed the first test,” said Sowell, who during the news conference presented Christopher with an honorary junior deputy badge.
Christopher vanished around 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday in the two minutes Nunez said she was carrying groceries into her house from her car.
The Sheriff’s Office immediately organized a search party after a neighbor told them she saw the little boy follow a dog into the woods.
Using drones, aircraft, K-9 units and numerous volunteer searchers on foot, the rescue party combed the woods night and day, but turned up no sign of the child.
“They told me, ‘We didn’t feel like we could sleep because we knew he wasn’t sleeping and he wasn’t found,'” Halfin said of search-and-rescue volunteers and law enforcement officers.
“I think the story is do not give up hope,” Halfin said. “Even though things look bleak, there’s always tomorrow.”
(NEW YORK) — Scientists are beginning to paint a clearer picture on just how many people will be affected by climate change if current warming trends continue.
About 85% of the world’s population already lives in areas experiencing the affects of human-induced climate change, according to a study published in Nature on Tuesday.
Researchers in Berlin compiled data from more than 100,000 impact studies analyzing detectable environmental signals of human-inducted climate change, finding that the evidence for how climate change is impacting communities is continuing to grow.
“In almost every study where we have enough data, we can see, [the world] is getting hotter, and it’s getting hotter in a way that is consistent,” Max Callaghan, a researcher at the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change in Berlin and one of the authors of the study, told ABC News.
The research also looked at how rising temperatures change precipitation patterns and affect crop yields and local ecosystems, and it found that human-attributable changes in temperature and precipitation are now occurring in 80% of the world’s land area, where about 85% of the global population resides, Callaghan said.
The impacts will be felt the strongest in the least developed countries, but little is known about exactly what those effects will look like, he added, describing the lack of data as an “attribution gap” that needs to be filled.
“In high income countries, almost all of those people live in an area where there is also lots of evidence about how that warming trend affects other systems,” he said. “But in low income countries… there is little evidence about how that warming trend is affecting other things.”
The new research is allowing scientists to attribute with near-certainty that global temperatures are increasing because of human influence on the planet, Callaghan said. While previous studies often focus on possible scenarios by 2050 or 2100, it is clear that climate change is “already happening.”
Countries will need to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the near future to mitigate the extremity of pending disasters, the researchers said.
“As long as we continue burning fossil fuels, things will get worse,” Callaghan said. “Until we reach net-zero, things will continue to get worse.”
(SAN DIEGO) — A small twin engine plane crashed in Santee, California, near San Diego, fully engulfing at least one home in flames, Santee Fire Chief John Garlow said.
There are at least two burn victims who are believed to be from the home, Garlow said.
The FAA said the twin engine Cessna C340 crashed at 12:14 p.m. local time. It’s not yet clear how many people were on board.
The plane also hit a UPS box truck and knocked out a hydrant, Garlow said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(NEW YORK) — Police in Dayton, Ohio, have released body camera footage that appears to show police officers dragging a partially paralyzed man out of his car by his hair.
When officers repeatedly ask Owensby to exit the vehicle during a Sept. 30 traffic stop, Clifford Owensby, 39, can be heard telling them that he is paraplegic and could not do so.
He says he does not want to be touched and calls someone to come to the scene and witness what is going on.
Owensby is then dragged out of the car by the officers, who appeared to use his hair to pull him out, the video shows. He’s handcuffed on the ground and continuously held by his hair as he yells for help, according to the video. Police are seen hauling him into a police cruiser.
Owensby accused the Dayton Police Department of unlawful arrest, illegal search and seizure, profiling and failure to read his rights before being taken into custody. He has since filed a complaint with the Dayton NAACP chapter on the incident.
“We’re not talking about his past. We’re not talking about the activity by which the officer was conducting the search or drug activity. We’re talking about this incident and how the incident was handled,” said Derrick Foward, president of the Dayton unit of the NAACP.
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley called the video “concerning.”
“That is why, immediately following this incident, the city released the body camera footage,” Whaley said in a statement to ABC News. “Everyone involved is owed a thorough investigation, and one is already underway. This incident shows why our community-led police reform process, which includes providing transparency, is more important than ever. The goal is always to ensure our police force has the resources to do its job, while treating all of our citizens with dignity and respect.”
According to the police department, officers were patrolling the area and had been sent to a suspected drug house. They initiated a traffic stop on a white Audi that was seen leaving the residence.
According to a police briefing on the incident, Owensby provided his identification when officers approached. Based on Owensby’s felony drug and weapon history, officers say they requested a Narcotics Detection K-9 at the scene for a free-air sniff on the vehicle.
Dayton police policy requires the occupants of the vehicle to exit for their own safety and the safety of the K-9 officer to perform the free-air sniff.
Police reported that a large bag of cash containing $22,450 was found on the floor of Owensby’s car and based on the K-9’s response the bag may have been in close proximity to illegal drugs.
Owensby denies any wrongdoing and says the cash that was found was his savings.
Owensby was charged with obstructing official business and resisting arrest. The case will be referred to the City Prosecutor’s Office, where it will be decided if the city will pursue the charges against Owensby, police said.
The Dayton Fraternal Order of Police told ABC News that officers “followed the law” and defended the use of force.
(NEW YORK) — The former Facebook employee who testified before lawmakers last week will now address her concerns with Facebook’s Oversight Board.
Whistleblower Frances Haugen alleged blatant disregard from Facebook executives when they learned their platform could have harmful effects on democracy and the mental health of young people during her testimony before a Senate Commerce subcommittee last Tuesday.
Haugen, a former Facebook product manager, accused Facebook of “choosing to prioritize its profits over people” in her opening statement before lawmakers.
“You can declare moral bankruptcy and we can figure out a fix [to] these things together because we solve problems together,” Haugen said.
Her remarks sparked a backlash toward Facebook from lawmakers and others on a range of issues, such as Facebook’s ability to hold high-profile users accountable to its rules through its so-called “cross check” program, the effectiveness of which was called into question by a Wall Street Journal investigation.
“In light of the serious claims made about Facebook by Ms. Haugen, we have extended an invitation for her to speak to the Board over the coming weeks, which she has accepted,” the board said in a statement Monday. “Board members appreciate the chance to discuss Ms. Haugen’s experiences and gather information that can help push for greater transparency and accountability from Facebook through our case decisions and recommendations.”
The Oversight Board teased that “scrutinizing cross-check” will be among the issues discussed with Haugen. Further details on the upcoming meetings with Haugen were not immediately disclosed Monday.
“As the Board shared in September, we are currently looking into whether Facebook has been fully forthcoming in its responses on its ‘cross-check’ system and will share our analysis in our first release of quarterly transparency reports later this month,” the panel said in a statement. “Facebook has also said it will ask the Board to review how cross-check can be improved and to offer recommendations.”
The Oversight Board was launched to operate independently of Facebook and it decides how the company handles controversial issues, such as the decision to ban former President Donald Trump. Critics though have questioned how much autonomy and power the panel actually possesses when regulating the tech giant.
Facebook has responded to critics who claim the board is an attempt to shirk regulation on its website, saying the Oversight Board is “not a panacea.”
“Facebook sees the board as an important but single piece within a wider content moderation regime, which includes updated internet regulations,” the company stated on its website.
In a statement on Twitter, Haugen said she welcomes the opportunity to meet with the Oversight Board.
“I have accepted the invitation to brief the Facebook Oversight Board about what I learned while working there,” she wrote. “Facebook has lied to the board repeatedly, and I am looking forward to sharing the truth with them.”
(SAN FRANCISCO) — Pacific Gas & Electric warned tens of thousands of customers in California that their power may be shut off Monday to help prevent wildfires due to severe wind and drought conditions in the area.
The preemptive shutdowns, at the inconvenience of customers, come as the company is still reeling from fallout related to deadly blazes in 2018 and 2020 authorities say were sparked by trees hitting the power grid. They also come as climate change has exacerbated California’s wildfires, stoking conditions experts say have led to the larger and deadlier blazes seen in recent years.
The company sent shutoff warnings to nearly 25,000 customers spanning 22 counties — including Alameda, Fresno and Napa — in northern and central California on Sunday.
On Monday, PG&E updated on its website that shutoffs were required and its map of outages indicated power had been temporarily turned off in a slew of communities in the state’s Northern Sierra Foothills region, North Coast region and beyond.
“Since Friday, PG&E meteorologists have been tracking the weather system, which is expected to start Sunday night and bring wind gusts of up to 50 mph by Monday morning,” the company said in a statement Sunday. “PG&E’s in-house meteorologists, its Wildfire Safety Operations Center and its Emergency Operations Center continue to monitor conditions closely.”
Customers impacted were notified via text, email and automated phone calls beginning Saturday, the company said. More information on the latest status in specific neighborhoods can be found on PG&E’s website, along with tips for customers on how to prepare for the planned outages — such as unplugging appliances and using battery-powered flashlights.
Counties that would likely see the most customers impacted include Tehama (where 5,342 customers were sent warnings), Solano (4,561 customers) and Lake (4,008 customers). PG&E initially said it expects “minimal impact” to be felt by customers in the Bay Area and Central Valley.
The National Weather Service has warned of high winds in California due to a powerful storm in the west bringing a “critical fire weather” warning in central and northern California through Tuesday.
The so-called Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS), which proactively turn off power in an effort to reduce the risk of wildfire from energized power lines, come as California has been battling larger and deadlier blazes in recent years linked to climate change.
The preemptive power shutdowns also come as PG&E has been embroiled in controversy linked to the wildfires. Late last month, the company was charged with involuntary manslaughter and other counts related to the 2020 Zogg Fire, which was sparked by a tree contacting a PG&E electric line.
PG&E CEO Patti Poppe disputed the criminal charges in a statement shortly after they were announced, saying, “We’ve accepted CAL FIRE’s determination, reached earlier this year, that a tree contacted our electric line and started the Zogg Fire. We accept that conclusion. But we did not commit a crime.”
“This was a tragedy, four people died. And my coworkers are working so hard to prevent fires and the catastrophic losses that come with them. They have dedicated their careers to it, criminalizing their judgment is not right,” Poppe added.
The latest legal action taken against the firm comes after the company pleaded guilty last year to 84 counts of involuntary manslaughter and one count of unlawfully starting a fire for its link to the ignition of the devastating 2018 Camp Fire.
In her statement, Poppe noted steps the firm is taking to prevent wildfires, saying it is investing more than $1.4 billion in 2021 alone in vegetation management, removing 300,000 trees and trimming a million more, working toward burying 10,000 miles of power lines and more.
(NEW YORK) — The United States has been facing a COVID-19 surge as the more contagious delta variant continues to spread.
More than 713,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 while over 4.8 million people have died from the disease worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
Just 66% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the CDC.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Oct 11, 12:41 pm
Daily death average nearly 8 times higher than in mid-July
Although daily deaths have declined by about 17% in the last four weeks, the U.S. is still reporting an average of 1,465 new deaths each day, according to federal data. Over the last four days alone, the U.S. reported another 7,500 confirmed COVID-19 deaths.
The death average is nearly eight times higher than in mid-July when the national average had dropped to a near pandemic low of 192 daily deaths, according to federal data.
But hospitalization admissions have dropped by about 11.4% in the last week, according to federal data.
There are currently about 65,000 COVID-19 patients in U.S. hospitals, down from 104,000 patients in late August.
In the Mountain Region — Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming — hospital admissions are steadily trending up, federal data show. In the Northeast, hospital admissions are no longer trending down.
-ABC News’ Arielle Mitropoulos
Oct 11, 12:13 pm
Boston Marathon returns with COVID protocols in place
The Boston Marathon returned with 18,000 runners on Monday following a two-year hiatus.
The field size was reduced by 36% this year while another 28,000 runners participated in the race virtually.
Runners were required to provide proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test. Although masks were not mandated for the 26.2-mile course, face coverings were enforced on participant transportation, as well as for volunteers who interacted with participants.
According to the Boston Marathon Association, 95% of all Boston Marathon volunteers were vaccinated and 100% of Boston Marathon medical volunteers were vaccinated.
(NEW YORK) — Children can safely celebrate Halloween this year even as the coronavirus pandemic upends the holiday for the second straight year, according to the nation’s top infectious disease expert.
White House chief medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNN Sunday that kids can “go out there and enjoy Halloween,” an approach he attributed to the fact that more and more people are now vaccinated against COVID-19 and that most Halloween activities, including trick-or-treating, are held outdoors.
“It’s a good time to reflect on why it’s important to get vaccinated,” he said, urging unvaccinated adults and teens to get shots before Halloween. “But go out there and enjoy Halloween.”
“This is a time that children love,” Fauci added. “It’s a very important part of the year for children.”
Fauci’s go-ahead on Halloween comes as COVID-19 hospitalizations, cases and deaths are declining nationwide.
But experts caution the virus could rebound if enough people remain unvaccinated.
Last week, Pfizer and BioNTech submitted a request to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for emergency use authorization for their vaccine for kids ages 5 to 11. But the timing means the vaccine will not be available for kids in that age group before Halloween.
The Pfizer vaccine is currently authorized for emergency use in children ages 12 to 15 and is approved by the FDA for people ages 16 and older.
Dr. John Brownstein, an epidemiologist and chief innovation officer at Boston Children’s Hospital, is the father of two young children. He said he plans to have a more “normal” Halloween with his kids this year, complete with outdoor trick-or-treating.
“It’s safe to say that trick-or-treating is an activity that all kids can partake in,” said Brownstein, who is also an ABC News contributor. “Kids can feel quite excited by the fact that I think they will have a generally normal Halloween compared to last year.”
Here are four questions answered by Brownstein about how to have a safe Halloween this year.
1. Does my child need to wear a mask while trick-or-treating this year?
In most cases, no, according to Brownstein.
“Every parent has to make their own sort of risk calculation, but given where we are in this pandemic, I think, generally, mask wearing outside is probably unnecessary,” he said, noting that data from nearly two years of the pandemic show that outdoor activities are “generally safe,” even for children who are not yet vaccinated.
“Of course, every family should make decisions that are right for them and the underlying risks of their kids and household members,” Brownstein added. “And luckily, Halloween costumes can make mask-wearing less stigmatizing.”
2. Are indoor Halloween events safe for my kids to attend?
While Brownstein is planning to trick-or-treat outdoors with his kids, he said they are planning to wait another year before attending big, indoor Halloween events.
“The bigger questions that come into play around indoor activities may involve unvaccinated people,” he said. “That’s where masking and good ventilation may be more appropriate.”
Brownstein added that people who do choose to attend indoor Halloween events this year should make sure that people at the event are vaccinated if they are eligible. He also suggests relying on additional layers of protection like social distancing and COVID-19 testing, in addition to masking and good ventilation.
3. Should my family use rapid tests? Are they reliable?
Brownstein said that in addition to vaccination, another major difference between this Halloween and last is that rapid tests are now widely available for use and are particularly smart for indoor events.
“Because rapid tests are becoming more and more pervasive, we should all be using them as a tool to limit the risk to unvaccinated people or the risk of breakthrough infections,” said Brownstein. “Within a short time frame of an event, taking a rapid test, while not 100% foolproof, will give some good reassurance that you’re not putting other people at risk by joining an indoor event.”
“I have a bunch on hand at home, ready to use as needed, so I think those are incredibly effective,” he said.
4. Does a ‘normal’ Halloween mean we’ll also have a ‘normal’ Thanksgiving and Christmas?
Brownstein said he is hopeful that more and more families and friends will be able to spend the holidays safely together this year, but stressed the importance of maintaining good public health practices to keep everyone safe, especially since the upcoming holidays typically involve more travel and time spent indoors.
“While this holiday means that we can gather more seamlessly and in a slightly more normal way, there are small things that we can all do to try to limit transmission,” he said, citing masking as a critical tool. “Transmission takes place through droplets and aerosols so whatever we can do to limit transmission will ultimately have a direct impact on whether we see a surge post-holiday.”
He added, “As we know, those surges can lead to even more significant public health measures that we’re all trying to avoid, so the small things we do during the holiday can mean even a more enjoyable life post-holiday.”
(NEW YORK) — The United States has been facing a COVID-19 surge as the more contagious delta variant continues to spread.
More than 713,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 while over 4.8 million people have died from the disease worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
Just 66% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the CDC.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Oct 11, 12:13 pm
Boston Marathon returns with COVID protocols in place
The Boston Marathon returned with 18,000 runners on Monday following a two-year hiatus.
The field size was reduced by 36% this year while another 28,000 runners participated in the race virtually.
Runners were required to provide proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test. Although masks were not mandated for the 26.2-mile course, face coverings were enforced on participant transportation, as well as for volunteers who interacted with participants.
According to the Boston Marathon Association, 95% of all Boston Marathon volunteers were vaccinated and 100% of Boston Marathon medical volunteers were vaccinated.
