A vegetation fire in California rapidly spread to 1,000 acres on Sunday, prompting evacuations of parts of Inyo and Mono counties. (Cal Fire)
(BISHOP, CA) — A vegetation fire in California rapidly spread to 1,000 acres on Sunday, prompting evacuations of parts of Inyo and Mono counties.
The fire was first reported just after 2 p.m. PT near Highway 6 and Silver Canyon Road north of Bishop, California, a city east of Fresno, according to Cal Fire.
Officials named the fast-moving blaze the Silver Fire.
Cal Fire said Sunday evening that the blaze crossed Highway 6, threatening multiple structures and power lines. The fire remained at 0% containment as of 8 p.m. PT.
There are no known injuries associated with the fire, officials said.
Fighting the blaze was impacted by strong winds, with gusts reaching up to 35 mph at Bishop Airport, according to Cal Fire, which noted extreme turbulence grounded some firefighting aircraft.
The National Weather Service forecasts continued windy conditions for the region, with a High Wind Warning in effect through Monday evening.
ABC News’ Timmy Truong and Tristan Maglunog contributed to this report
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(LONDON) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for further “tough measures” against Russia to push President Vladimir Putin into a ceasefire agreement, suggesting after another round of drone strikes that Moscow “couldn’t care less about diplomacy.”
Long-range cross-border strikes have continued throughout U.S.-mediated efforts to secure a ceasefire in Ukraine, intended as a springboard for a broader peace deal to end Russia’s 3-year-old invasion of its neighbor.
Both Kyiv and Moscow last week agreed to freeze attacks in the Black Sea and on energy infrastructure, though both have since accused the other of violating the pause on attacking energy targets.
In a Sunday evening video address, Zelenskyy reported “more strikes and shelling” in seven Ukrainian regions. “The geography and brutality of Russian strikes, not just occasionally, but literally every day and night, show that Putin couldn’t care less about diplomacy,” he said.
“For several weeks now, there has been a U.S. proposal for an unconditional ceasefire,” Zelenskyy continued. “And almost every day, in response to this proposal, there are Russian drones, bombs, artillery shelling and ballistic strikes.”
“Russia deserves increased pressure — all the tough measures that can break its capacity to wage war and sustain the system that wants nothing but war,” Zelenskyy said. “Sanctions against Russia are essential. More air defense for Ukraine is essential. More cooperation and unity among all partners is essential.”
President Donald Trump on Sunday hinted at his apparent frustration with the lack of progress toward a peace deal in Ukraine, telling NBC News he was “very angry” at Putin after the Russian leader again criticized Zelenskyy and called for his removal in favor of a transitional government.
Trump added that he would consider applying new sanctions on Russia’s lucrative oil exports and on any nations purchasing its oil. China and India are among the most significant customers for Russian oil products.
The president later told reporters on Air Force One that his administration was making significant progress toward ending the war. Asked about his relationship with Putin, Trump responded, “I don’t think he’s going to go back on his word.”
“I’ve known him for a long time,” Trump said. “We’ve always gotten along well despite the Russia, Russia, Russia hoax.”
The president said he was “disappointed” by Putin’s latest attacks on Zelenskyy. “He considers him not credible, he’s supposed to be making a deal with him, whether you like him or you don’t like him, so I wasn’t happy with that.”
Asked if there was a deadline for Russia to agree to a ceasefire, Trump suggested there was a “psychological deadline.” He added, “If I think they’re tapping us along, I will not be happy about it.”
Russia and Ukraine continued cross-border strikes through Sunday night into Monday morning.
Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched two missiles and 131 drones into the country overnight, of which it said 57 drones were shot down and 45 lost in flight without causing damage. The Sumy, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kyiv and Zhytomyr regions were affected by the attack, the air force said in a post to Telegram.
Russia’s Defense Ministry, meanwhile, said its forces shot down 66 Ukrainian drones overnight — 41 over Bryansk region, 24 over Kaluga region and one over Kursk region.
ABC News’ Hannah Demissie and Will Gretsky contributed to this report.
Members of the Chicago White Sox grounds crew struggle to deploy the rain tarp in the bottom of the seventh inning as hail and rain delay a game against the Los Angeles Angels at Rate Field on March 30, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Matt Dirksen/Getty Images)
(CHICAGO) — More than 400,000 customers across the Midwest were without power in the early hours of Monday after severe weather battered the region.
As of 5:30 a.m. ET, more than 292,000 customers were without power in Michigan, according to poweroutage.us — a website that tracks power outages throughout the country.
Another 56,000 were disconnected in Wisconsin, 53,000 in Indiana, 15,000 in Kentucky and 13,000 in Ohio, the website said.
ABC News Chicago affiliate WLS reported that one person was killed in Valparaiso, Indiana, when “severe crosswinds” blew a tractor and a trailer onto their sides, according to a statement by Sgt. Benjamin McFalls of the Porter County Sheriff’s Office.
Severe weather was forecast for much of the Midwest and South as the storm traveled eastward through the weekend.
More than 75 million Americans were in the threat zone of the storm as of late Sunday. The system was expected to bring a range of hazardous weather impacts, including severe thunderstorms and a wintry blast on the northern side.
Sunday’s forecast said the severe weather was due to move to the East Coast and I-95 corridor from Upstate New York all the way south to Tallahassee and New Orleans on Monday.
Damaging winds will be the biggest threat for northern cities but tornadoes cannot be ruled out across southern areas.
ABC News Darren Reynolds and Jessica Gorman contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — In a recent court filing, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has submitted what they believe is a document that the Trump administration uses to identify members of a Venezuelan gang and remove them under the Alien Enemies Act.
The filing is part of their request for a preliminary injunction to bar the administration from deporting migrants under the act.
The document, titled “Alien Enemy Validation Guide,” appears to be a checklist that the administration is using to identify Tren de Aragua (TdA) members with a points-based system, according to the filing.
ACLU attorney Oscar Sarabia Roman submitted a declaration, stating that the organization believes the document is used “to determine whether Venezuelan noncitizens are members of Tren de Aragua and subject to summary removal under the Alien Enemies Act.”
ABC News has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment.
The checklist submitted by the ACLU is divided into six categories including “Criminal Conduct and Information,” “Self-Admission” and “Judicial Outcomes and Official Documents,” and assigns varying quantities of points to different types of evidence that can be used to score the migrants.
Migrants who score eight points and higher are “validated as members of TdA,” the document says. But the document also appears to leave a lot to the discretion of ICE officers conducting the review, stating that even migrants who only score six or seven points may still be considered members of the gang after the officer consults with a supervisor and the Office of the Principal Legal Advisor and “reviewing the totality of the facts, before making that determination.”
The document indicates that individuals who score five points or less should not be validated as a member of TdA but encourages officials to initiate removal proceedings under other existing authorities.
Communicating electronically with a known TdA member is worth six points, in other words, it appears to be enough evidence for an official to classify a person as a member of the gang.
One of the categories labeled “Symbolism” includes a section about “tattoos denoting membership/loyalty to TdA” and social media posts by the subject displaying symbols of TDA. According to the document, individuals with tattoos that are believed to be associated with TDA are worth four points.
The document informs officers to consult with supervisors before classifying migrants as TdA members or initiating removals if they score eight points or more on the “Symbolism” or “Association” categories alone.
In their motion for preliminary injunction, the ACLU also claims intel gathered across different agencies on TdA are “internally contradictory.”
One document submitted by the ACLU — that they state is from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) — includes photos of tattoos that they say HSI considers identifiers of TdA which include tattoos of crowns, trains, stars and clocks. Additional identifiers, according to the document, include “often wear sports attire from U.S. professional sports teams with Venezuelan nationals on them” and “dressed in high-end urban street wear.”
But a separate document the ACLU alleges is from the Border Patrol’s El Paso Sector Intelligence Unit says they “determined that the Chicago Bulls attire, clocks, and rose tattoos are typically related to the Venezuelan culture” and are not indicators of being members or associates of Tren de Aragua.
The ACLU also submitted a document called the “Notice and warrant of apprehension and removal under the Alien Enemies Act” claiming the government may require each alleged TdA member to sign. They say that the five plaintiffs represented in their lawsuit did not receive the document.
“You are not entitled to a hearing, appeal, or judicial review of this notice and warrant of apprehension and removal,” the document states.
(WASHINGTON) — Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., said on Sunday that if information had been leaked from top Trump national security officials’ Signal chat discussing plans to bomb the Houthis in Yemen, American lives could have been lost.
“I was, yesterday, down in Hampton Roads. I did two big town halls, Virginia Beach and Chesapeake. There are people in the town hall who are either friends or relatives of folks who are on the [aircraft carrier USS Harry S.] Truman. Those folks were saying if their friends or loved ones were flying those jets and that information had been released and the Houthis were able to change their defensive posture, we could have lost American lives,” Warner, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in an interview with co-anchor Martha Raddatz on ABC News’ “This Week.”
On Monday, a journalist revealed that national security adviser Mike Waltz had inadvertently included him in the chat with top Trump officials discussing plans for the Yemen attack. The Trump administration has pushed back against claims that the information included in the chat was classified information.
Warner said, “There is no question, regardless of agency, that this was classified … and those folks who are obfuscating and giving them the benefit of the doubt, I think they’re lying about they should know this is classified.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(LONDON) — Tehran has rejected direct negotiations with the United States in regarding its nuclear program, responding to a letter from President Donald Trump, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Sunday, according to the Islamic Republic News Agency.
However, he added, the path for indirect negotiations remains open, the state news agency reported.
“In this response, although direct negotiations between the two parties are rejected, it has been stated that the path for indirect negotiations is open,” Pezeshkian said.
Speaking at a cabinet meeting, Pezeshkian stated that Iran’s response to the U.S. president’s letter was sent via Oman.
He emphasized that Iran has never avoided negotiations and blamed the United States for not fulfilling its former commitments, including terminating the former nuclear deal in Trump’s first term in 2018.
It was the breach of commitments that caused problems on this path, which must be addressed to restore trust, the letter underscored, according to Pezeshkian.
“It will be the actions of the Americans that determine whether negotiations continue,” he added.
(MERIDIAN, IDAHO) — A 70-year-old man was charged with aggravated assault after allegedly striking a counter-protester with his vehicle outside a Tesla dealership in Idaho, law enforcement said.
About 30 people attended an anti-Tesla rally on Saturday outside a dealership in Meridian, a gathering that drew a counter-protest of about 200 others, the Meridian Police Department said in a press release.
Tesla vehicles and dealerships have in recent weeks become targets for vandalism and protests, as the carmaker’s chief executive, Elon Musk, has taken on a prominent and divisive role in President Donald Trump’s second administration.
An anti-Musk group had called for a series of “Tesla Takedown” protests to be held this weekend at dealerships and other Tesla facilities throughout the country, including the dealership in Meridian.
As a 49-year-old man arrived at the Idaho rally, Christopher Talbot, 70, of Meridian, allegedly “made an obscene gesture” toward him and then struck him with his car, police said. Officials identified the man who was struck as a counter-protester, saying he had non-life-threatening injuries and that he drove himself to a nearby hospital.
“Reports indicate the victim had been driving a truck with pro-Trump flags and had just parked and exited his vehicle when Talbot struck him with his car,” police said.
Police used the license plate from Talbot’s vehicle to find his home, where he was later arrested. Talbot was booked into Ada County Jail and charged with one count of aggravated battery, a felony, according to the Ada County Sheriff’s Office.
“The Meridian Police Department reminds people to respect everyone’s right to protest and express their 1st Amendment Rights without resorting to violence,” the police department said in a statement.
(LONDON) — Ukraine has accused Russia of committing a war crime after a Russian drone struck a military hospital in Kharkiv overnight.
Ukraine’s General Staff said the strikes were a “deliberate, targeted striking” of the hospital and that it appeared soldiers being treated there were injured. It said the medical center and nearby residential buildings were damaged as a result of a “defeat of” a Russian Shahed drone.
Photos from the scene appear to show damage to the hospital, with an entrance way demolished.
Russian drones also hit apartment blocks and a shopping mall in the center of Ukraine’s second largest city, killing at least two people and wounding 25, according to Kharkiv’s governor.
“War crimes have no statute of limitations. The relevant evidence will be transferred to the bodies of international criminal justice,” the General Staff wrote in a statement on the hospital attack.
Ukrainian cites are bombed by dozens of Russian drones every night, and this weekend has seen a particularly intense wave of attacks in civilian areas of major cities. Dnipro in southeast Ukraine suffered on Friday night heavy strikes that started major fires.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday said over the past week Russia had launched over 1,000 drones, nine missiles and over 1,300 guided aerial bombs, with most of Ukraine’s regions coming under attack. He said Ukraine had shot down a “significant number” of the drones and missiles.
“Russia is dragging out the war,” Zelenskyy wrote in a statement on X, saying Ukraine had shared information on Russia’s strikes with its allies and that it expects a “response from the United States, Europe and all our allies to this terror against our people.”
Russia has also intensified its ground offensive operations in recent days amid, according to Ukraine’s military, amid the ongoing efforts by the Trump administration to end the war.
Ukraine’s General Staff as well as Ukrainian military analysts report in the past few days Russia has launched some of the largest number of ground assaults since the start of the year.
“The number of enemy assaults has exceeded 200 times per day for the last three days,” Deep State, a blog account that tracks the war and is close to Ukraine’s military, wrote Friday. This is the highest three-day intensity of the year.”
It follows warnings this week by Zelenskyy that Russia is preparing to launch a major spring offensive, even as it tries to drag out negotiations with the Trump administration.
The Russian attacks are focused most of all in eastern Ukraine, in the direction of Pokrovsk, an important defensive hub that Russia has been trying to seize for more than 6 months.
Russian forces had scaled back their attacks in recent weeks in part due to poor ground conditions and apparently also worn down by extremely heavy losses. But it appears they are now renewing their offensive operations.
Ukrainian and western officials warned that President Vladimir Putin of Russia will try to use protracted negotiations as an opportunity to also advance on the battlefield, hoping to crack Ukraine’s defenses as the Trump administration weakens western support for Kyiv.
A red giant star and white dwarf orbit each other in this animation of a nova similar to T Coronae Borealis. Image via NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center.
(NEW YORK) — The once-in-a-lifetime explosion of T Coronae Borealis, also known as the “Blaze Star,” is still pending — but the event will be occurring soon, according to astronomers.
Stargazers watched the skies with bated breath on Thursday night in hopes that T Coronae Borealis, a system consisting of a hot, red giant star and a cool, white dwarf star about 3,000 light-years away, would be visible with the naked eye once the explosion occurred.
In June, NASA predicted that the Blaze Star could explode before September. Another prediction came in October, when astronomers at the Paris Observatory predicted that the explosion would happen on March 27, 2025.
Now that those dates have come and gone, viewers have zeroed in on later predictions, including Nov. 10, June 25, 2026, and Feb. 8, 2027.
It is difficult to predict the exact date of explosion, Louisiana State University physics and astronomy professor Bradley Schaefer, told ABC News last year.
The explosion of T Coronae Borealis, a recurring NOVA, only happens once every 79 to 80 years, according to NASA. It is one of 10 known recurring novas in the Milky Way that erupt on timescales of less than a century.
The last recorded outburst was in 1946. When it explodes, it will be in the top 50 brightest stars in the night sky, astronomers say.
“It’s going to be one of the brightest stars in the sky,” Schaefer said.
Since March 2023, the Blaze Star has displayed a pre-eruption dip in brightness, typically a sign that an outburst is imminent, according to the American Association of Variable Star Observers.
It is typically far too dim to see with the unaided eye at a magnitude +10, according to NASA, but it will jump to a magnitude +2 during the explosion.
The Blaze Star is located in the Northern Crown, a horseshoe-shaped curve of stars west of the Hercules constellation, according to NASA. Once the explosion occurs, viewers can look for it between the bright stars of Vega and Arcturus.
ABC News’ Leah Sarnoff contributed to this report.
(LONDON) — The American embassy in Syria has warned all U.S. citizens to leave the country due to “the increased possibility of attacks” during the Eid al-Fitr holiday at the end of March, which marks the end of Ramadan in the Muslim world.
The embassy posted a notice to its website late on Friday cautioning citizens of potential attacks targeting “embassies, international organizations and Syrian public institutions” in the Syrian capital Damascus.
“Methods of attack could include, but are not limited to, individual attackers, armed gunmen, or the use of explosive devices,” the embassy notice said. “Leave Syria now,” it added.
The State Department’s current travel advisory for Syria is at level 4 — its highest alert meaning Americans are advised not to travel to the country for any reason.
“This advisory remains in effect due to the significant risks of terrorism, civil unrest, kidnapping, hostage-taking, armed conflict and unjust detention,” the embassy said in its latest notice.
The U.S. embassy in Damascus suspended operations in 2012 shortly after civil war erupted between former President Bashar Assad’s regime and a patchwork of rebel groups. Assad was deposed late last year by a collection of opposition forces led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group. HTS leader Ahmed al-Sharaa is now Syria’s interim president.
“The U.S. government is unable to provide any routine or emergency consular services to U.S. citizens in Syria,” the embassy wrote. “The Czech Republic serves as the protecting power for U.S. interests in Syria.”
“U.S. citizens in Syria who are in need of emergency assistance should contact the U.S. Interests Section of the Embassy of the Czech Republic,” it added.
