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(CARACAS, Venezuela) — Two powerful earthquakes — a 7.2 magnitude quake followed just seconds later by a 7.5 — rocked the coast of Venezuela on Wednesday evening, killing dozens of people, knocking down buildings in the capital and sending residents racing into the street.

In an address the nation Wednesday night, Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodriguez said her office received reports of at least 32 deaths and more than 700 injuries. She declared a nationwide state of emergency and said there was severe damage in the capital Caracas and other areas in the aftermath of the quakes.

She said Metro and rail services are suspended in the city and the Maiquetía International Airport, which was earlier reported to have sustained damage, is closed.

At least 20 aftershocks have been reported following the initial tremor, she said.

Photos and videos from Caracas showed some crumbled buildings, rescue crews searching through rubble and people being cared for on the street.

Crews responded to collapsed buildings in the areas of Alta Mira and Palos Grandes, according to authorities.

The U.S was preparing to send search-and-rescue teams, according to the State Department.

In a post on social media, Deputy Secretary of State Chris Landau said the U.S. was “mobilizing assistance” for Venezuela. 

“The US stands with the Venezuelan people in the aftermath of this evening’s devastating earthquakes. We’re in touch with the authorities and mobilizing assistance,” he said. 

Jeremy Lewin, the State Department’s under secretary for foreign assistance, said the department has “mobilized a disaster assistance team and task force to deliver and coordinate critical assistance to the Venezuelan people.”

He added: “Working with our partners in the interim Venezuelan government, the U.S. will be sending search and rescue teams, medical and humanitarian supplies and other resources in the crucial first days after this tragic natural disaster.”

Another State Department official confirmed that all staff at the U.S. embassy in Caracas are accounted for.

The first earthquake — a magnitude 7.2 — was what the U.S. Geological Survey calls a “foreshock,” recorded near San Felipe, Venezuela. Just 39 seconds later, a more powerful 7.5 “mainshock” was recorded in Yumare, according to the USGS.

The USGS estimated a “red alert” for potential fatalities from the quake, saying: “High casualties and extensive damage are probable and the disaster is likely widespread.”

Past red alerts have required a national or international response, according to the USGS.

Following the quake, a tsunami advisory was issued, with the potential for hazardous tsunami waves possible for coasts within 300 kilometers of the earthquake epicenter. However, the tsunami advisory later expired.

 

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(LONDON) — Countries across Europe were on Thursday in the middle of one of the most brutal heat waves within the last 50 years, with temperatures breaking June records in the United Kingdom and France.

Weather officials in the United Kingdom said temperatures on Wednesday rose in some areas to 35.7 degrees Celsius, or about 96.2 degrees Fahrenheit, topping a June 1976 record of 35.6 C.

The Met Office updated its Red Extreme Heat Warning, spreading the warning along most of the southern and western areas of the United Kingdom.

“This is exceptional heat for June with temperature records expected to be broken this week,” Met Office Chief Forecaster Matthew Lehnert said in a statement. “Red warnings are reserved for the most severe events and we’re expecting significant impacts from this heatwave, with health issues likely, even beyond those who are more vulnerable to the heat.”

The Met also set Amber Heat Warnings for Friday and Saturday.

Warnings were still under review and constantly being updated, with the Met Office predicting that Friday could be the peak of the heat wave here in the United Kingdom, with temperatures soaring up as high as 100.4 F.

In France the north, west, and half of the southern areas of the country were on Thursday under red heat warnings, under which residents were being told to stay “Absolutely vigilant.”

French authorities said on Thursday they expected that the heat to stay in the red for many hours ahead.

The country on Wednesday notched its highest-ever temperature, according to weather officials at Meteo-France, the national weather service. They said the country’s national heat index — a daily average including regions around the country — hit 30 C, or about 86 F.

“Another exceptional day is expected in terms of temperatures, with the peak of this historic heatwave anticipated,” Meteo-France said in a bulletin on Thursday.

The Louvre and the Eiffel Tower were closing early for a third day in a row.

To stay safe in the heat everyone is being encouraged to stay hydrated, avoid the sun during peak hours, around midday, and staying home to keep cool.

They have recommended keeping curtains, blinds and windows closed during the day and opening windows at night to keep your house as cool as possible.

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(NEW YORK) — France has confirmed its first Ebola case linked to the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) as the United Nations warned that the outbreak is the fastest-growing in Africa’s history.

The patient in France is a humanitarian doctor who recently returned from the DRC and has been transferred to a specialist hospital, authorities confirmed.

French health officials said the case was detected quickly, the necessary precautions are in place and that there is no indication of local spread.

“France has specialized capabilities for managing highly transmissible infectious diseases,” France’s Ministry of Health said in a statement announcing the case. “Patients are treated in a designated healthcare facility, following strict biosafety protocols (negative pressure room, dedicated equipment and protocols). Health authorities are fully mobilized and the situation is being continuously monitored.”

“All precautionary measures, including the patient’s isolation, were taken upon his arrival in the country, with transfer to the hospital under secure conditions to prevent any risk of contamination,” the statement continued.

Officials said a thorough epidemiological investigation is underway to identify individuals who may have been in contact with the patient and that they will be contacted “without delay” by the regional health agency before undergoing 21 days of home isolation while being closely monitored the entire time.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said on Wednesday that the risk of infection is “low” for European residents and travelers to areas of active transmission, and “very low” for the general European population.

The development comes as U.N. officials warned on Tuesday that the Ebola outbreak in the DRC is spreading at an unprecedented pace.

As of Monday, there were 1,048 confirmed cases and 267 deaths, making it the largest number of confirmed Ebola cases recorded during the first month of an outbreak in Africa, according to Dr. Abdirahman Mahamud, director of heath and emergency alert and response operations at the World Health Organization.

Mahamud said it took just 37 days for the current outbreak to reach 250 deaths, compared to 78 days during the 2014 and 2016 West Africa outbreaks and 130 days during the 2018-2019 DRC outbreak.

Mahamud added that there are some signs the response has been scaled up to match the pace of the outbreak’s spread.

The number of beds available for treatment has risen in the last two weeks, “going from a handful to over 500 beds across 19 health zones,” he said.  

Additionally, the U.N. said laboratory capacity has also increased from 30 tests a day in Kinshasa, the DRC’s capital, at the start of the outbreak to more than 2,000 tests per day through eight labs in the three provinces at the center of the outbreak.

Paolo Cravero, senior office of communications and media relations at the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said there is “a lack of trust in the response” among affected communities and that the organization is “working hard with communities to bridge that gap.” 

“Rumor and misinformation are creating some difficulties,” he said.

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(NEW YORK) — France has confirmed its first Ebola case linked to the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, officials said.

The patient is a humanitarian doctor who recently returned from the DRC and has been transferred to a specialist hospital, authorities confirmed.

French health officials say the case was detected quickly, the necessary precautions are in place and that there is no indication of local spread.

“France has specialized capabilities for managing highly transmissible infectious diseases,” France’s Ministry of Health said in a statement announcing the case. “Patients are treated in a designated healthcare facility, following strict biosafety protocols (negative pressure room, dedicated equipment and protocols). Health authorities are fully mobilized and the situation is being continuously monitored.”

“All precautionary measures, including the patient’s isolation, were taken upon his arrival in the country, with transfer to the hospital under secure conditions to prevent any risk of contamination,” the statement continued.

Officials said a thorough epidemiological investigation is underway to identify individuals who may have been in contact with the patient and that they will be contacted “without delay” by the regional health agency before undergoing 21 days of home isolation while being closely monitored the entire time.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control has assessed the risk of infection as “low” for European residents and travelers to areas of active transmission, and “very low” for the general European population.

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(LONDON) — Satellites don’t always stay in orbit. As they get closer to Earth, atmospheric drag can pull them lower and lower until they burn up, with solar activity speeding up the process.

NASA’s Swift Space Observatory is facing that fate — its orbit is decaying, and if left alone, it will be destroyed in a matter of months. 

But in a first-of-its-kind mission, Katalyst Space, a startup, is teaming up with NASA to try and rescue Swift using the company’s newly developed robotic spacecraft, LINK.

“This is a historic mission, you know, some would call it the first of its kind, a robotic spacecraft that can go and capture an unprepared satellite,” said Robert Lamontagne, vice president of strategic partnerships at Katalyst Space.

Swift’s original orbit was around 370 miles above the Earth’s surface. But over the years, it’s fallen to less than 250 miles, according to NASA. Now it’s a race against the clock to keep Swift from falling even further and burning up in Earth’s atmosphere.

To save the satellite before time runs out, the Arizona-based company built its 935-pound rescue spacecraft in just 250 days. LINK was designed to physically interact with Swift despite the observatory not being designed for this kind of operation.

“Over the last nine months, we have gone from a clean sheet to a spacecraft that is currently integrated on a rocket, on an airplane ready to go to college for launch,” added Kieran Wilson, the principal investigator for LINK at Katalyst Space. “This is an absolutely unprecedented development timeline for this program.”

If all goes as planned, LINK will be launched into space on Saturday aboard a Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL rocket, which will be launched from a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar carrier aircraft taking off from Kwajalein Atoll in the South Pacific.

Once in orbit, it will take about three weeks for LINK to rendezvous with and capture the 22-year-old observatory. Over two to three months, the spacecraft will use its thrusters to raise Swift into a more stable orbit. The two will then separate as LINK lowers itself back into Earth’s atmosphere, where it will burn up, keeping it from adding to the rest of the space debris in our orbit.

The hope is that the maneuver will add 10 years to the mission and allow NASA to resume its scientific operations. The space agency had to stop most of the observatory’s scientific operations to reduce drag and slow its descent from orbit.

“No one thought it was going to be possible,” said Shawn Domagal-Goldman, NASA’s division director for astrophysics. “No one thought we would get as far as we’ve already gotten today.” 

The clock is ticking for the $30 million mission to be completed. According to NASA, Swift is currently falling at roughly eight kilometers per month, and the space agency estimates it will drop below 300 kilometers sometime around October. 

According to Wilson, at that point, the satellite will be “too low” for the rescue mission to be executed.

A potential blueprint for saving satellites

Earth’s orbit is littered with lots of aging satellites. If the mission is successful, NASA and Katalyst hope it could help establish a blueprint for future satellite rescues so fewer spacecraft are abandoned. Katalyst envisions having a fleet of spacecraft that can repair, refuel and upgrade satellites in need of help.

“Katalyst is here really to kind of mark the end of that throwaway model and the start of a new model where we think the spacecraft operators should no longer be constrained by the silly decisions that were made before launch,” Lamontagne said.

There’s no guarantee the rescue will be successful. Swift wasn’t designed to be grabbed by another spacecraft, and its age could make it vulnerable to damage during the capture.

“We still have to get spacecraft on orbit. We have to operate the spacecraft there successfully. And as we’ve all seen before, that’s a very challenging thing to do,” said Wilson.

“Rendezvous is going to be a challenge. It’s always a technical challenge, but we think we’re ready to handle that,” he added.

NASA says space weather and how the Earth’s atmosphere interacts with the spacecraft could also impact the outcome.

“If my confidence proves true and this team pulls off everything perfectly, the darn sun puffing up the darn atmosphere, at the wrong time,” Domagal-Goldman said. “There are still unknowns, both in terms of the dynamic nature of this part of Earth’s atmosphere, and its response to solar activity that is beyond all of our control.”

The Swift Space Observatory is a NASA satellite built to study gamma-ray bursts, the brightest and most powerful explosions in the universe. Swift uses multiple instruments, including three multiwavelength telescopes that can collect data in visible, ultraviolet, X-ray and gamma-ray light. NASA has used it to study black holes, stars, comets and other celestial objects.

“Swift can routinely conduct follow-up with things that go bump in the night within minutes. It really is NASA’s first responder,” said Brad Cenko, Swift’s principal investigator at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.

Launched in 2004, the observatory was supposed to last only two years. But it’s been operating for more than two decades.

“Last year, Swift received five requests from the community to follow up newly discovered sources each and every day. That’s more annual community requests than any other NASA facility,” Cenko added.

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(LONDON) — The number of people who experience heat stress around the world every year has increased exponentially in the last several decades due to climate change, according to new research.

One billion more people are currently facing at least one day of “extreme heat stress” annually compared to the 1970s, according to a study published Monday in Nature Climate Change.

Heat stress is defined as the net heat load on an individual and can be influenced by temperature, humidity, wind and radiation, according to the paper. Heat stress is the leading cause of weather-related deaths and can exacerbate underlying illnesses, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, mental health and asthma, according to the World Health Organization.

“Heat is a leading cause of weather-related mortality at the global scale,” Rebecca Emerton, senior scientist for the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, in Reading, U.K., and lead author of the paper, told ABC News.

Researchers quantified the Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI), a thermal stress index, essentially a feels-like temperature that accounts for temperature, humidity, wind speed, solar radiation and how the human body reacts to the environment, Emerton said.

The scientists analyzed a global dataset of human heat stress from 1950 to 2024 to determine that the hottest days of the year looked like in decades past, especially in the 1970s, when the global feels-like trends started to rise, Emerton said. They then compared those figures to maximum UTCI values that are being seen today.

They found that the 10 warmest nights of each year have warmed faster than the 10 warmest days — by about a global average rate of .58 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the paper.

Extreme feels-like temperatures are also more frequent on every continent, the new research shows. Subtropical regions, including southern North America, southern Europe and northern and southern Africa, now experience up to 50 additional days annually with “strong to extreme heat stress,” defined by researchers as a UTCI greater than or equal to 89.6 degrees and 114.8 degrees Fahrenheit, respectively.

Exposure to at least one day of extreme heat stress has risen from 16% to 22% of the global population, equivalent to about one billion people, according to the paper.

As a result, global heat stress is increasing in frequency, severity and duration — both during the day and at night, the researchers found.

Nighttime heat is especially significant for health, because if the temperatures remain high overnight, the human body doesn’t have as much of an opportunity to recover from the heat of the day, Emerton noted.

Extreme heat stress, now occurs 2.5 times more often in Europe and South America, twice as often in North America and 1.8, 1.7 and 1.2 times more often in Africa, Oceania and Asia, respectively, according to the paper.

The increased instances of heat stress experienced by modern populations is a direct result of climate change, Emerton noted.

While empirical evidence shows that heatwaves are becoming more frequent, longer and more intense, the changes experienced by people around the world — including how the heat impacts them both during the day and at night — has not yet been well-studied, the researchers said.

Action plans for heat health, as well as early-warning systems, urban cooling interventions and the integration of heat stress metrics in climate risk assessments, will be necessary to protect populations from increased heat stress, according to the paper.

“We hope this helps people across the world understand the changes that are happening, and we hope that information can support decision-making on how to plan and adapt for the future,” Emerton said.

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(LONDON) — Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Monday he would resign as the leader of his party and as prime minister, setting the stage for the United Kingdom’s seventh prime minister within a decade.

Starmer, who said he spoke on Monday with King Charles, said he expected to remain in office until a successor was chosen from within his Labour Party.

“The question my party is asking now is whether I am best placed to lead us into the next general election,” he said outside 10 Downing Street. “I have heard the answer of my parliamentary party to that question, and I accept that answer with good grace.”

Starmer, who had led Labour since 2020, was elected to lead the country in a general election 2024. His replacement is expected to be chosen by his party.

Starmer said he asked party leaders to open nominations for a successor on July 9. He did not give a date for his departure from 10 Downing Street, but said he expected a new prime minister to be in place by September, when Parliament returns from its summer recess.

The resignation announcement followed months of turmoil for Starmer, with some members of his own party criticizing his leadership, saying he had not been able to deliver the rapid change needed after taking office following 14 years of Conservative Party rule in Britain.

Many in Starmer’s Labour party had written to Starmer asking him to step down following local elections in May, which saw the party lose more than 1,000 seats on local councils, results that were widely interpreted as a repudiation by British voters of Labour’s performance under the prime minister’s leadership.

A formal challenge to his premiership had not yet begun as of Monday, but some members of his party have in recent weeks coalesced in public support of Andy Burnham, the former mayor of Greater Manchester, as his potential successor.

Burnham, who won a special election on Friday to become a member of parliament representing Makerfield, was expected to be sworn in in the House of Commons on Monday.

Following Starmer’s announcement, Burnham said on social media that he would seek a nomination in the Labour leadership contest.

“People want to see progress on economic growth, cost of living, public services, housing and opportunities for the next generation,” he said. “Political change should never distract from the responsibility to improve people’s lives.”

Another potential successor, Wes Streeting, a member of parliament who resigned from his position as Starmer’s health secretary in May, threw his support behind Burnham on Monday.

“We could spend the summer exaggerating our small differences, or we can roll up our sleeves and help [Burnham] to deliver the change our Party and our country needs,” Streeting said in a statement. “That is the choise that I am making and I hope that everyone else will back Andy, too.”

Starmer long said he intended to see out his full five-year term, which began with his party’s 2024 landslide election victory, which also delivered Labour a historic majority in the House of Commons.

Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the EU Commission, praised Starmer after his announcement, saying, “It can take many leaders years to grow into the statesman you became in just two years. European and Ukrainian security is stronger because of you. Thank you, dear Keir.”

ABC News’ David Brennan, Jamie Dorrington and Zoe Magee contributed to this report.

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(LONDON) — The man arrested and charged after a 3-year-old boy wound up in a crocodile enclosure at a British zoo was released on bail Friday as the investigation continues, police said.

The unidentified 30-year-old suspect from Norfolk was released after investigators said he “was assessed as unfit for police interview,” according to the Cambridgeshire Constabulary.

The incident occurred on Thursday afternoon at Johnsons of Old Hurst, a family-run farm and zoo located in Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire, when the unidentified boy “ended up in the crocodile enclosure,” police said.

The boy sustained “serious injuries” while in the enclosure and was pulled out by staff from the zoo. He received medical treatment at the scene before being taken to the hospital, according to the police.

He was listed in critical but stable condition as of Friday. The suspect, who will remain on bail until September, is not known to the victim, according to police.

The suspect was arrested under suspicion of attempted murder.

Johnsons of Old Hurst said its tropical house, which is home to multiple species of crocodiles and other reptiles, will remain closed until further notice “out of respect to the family.”

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the boy and his family following the incident that occurred today,” Johnsons of Old Hurst said in a statement on social media Thursday. 

-ABC News’ Meredith Deliso contributed to this report.

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(LONDON) — A giant, ancient oak tree located in the the Sherwood Forest — the iconic setting of the “Robin Hood” legend — has died, one of the U.K.’s top bird and wildlife conservation charities said.

Famous for its enormous trunk — about 36 feet in circumference — and gnarled branches, the Major Oak was believed to be about 1,200 years old, according to the RSPB Bird & Wildlife Conservation Charity.

The tree had been in “visible decline” for several years, the charity said and failed to produce any leaves this spring.

“Whilst the tree’s failure to produce leaves this year is heart-breaking for everyone — from the many people over the years who have looked after this magnificent tree to the millions who have travelled here to see it — we know the Major Oak will have a lasting legacy, first and foremost because it is so inextricably linked to Robin Hood and Sherwood Forest,” Hollie Drake, senior site manager at RSPB Sherwood Forest, said in a statement.

The organization said it couldn’t determine the exact cause of the tree’s demise.

Among the factors cited were poor soil and a weakened root system as well as “well-intentioned efforts to preserve the tree’s impressive shape” over the years, including metal bracing and coverings that prevented the tree from aging naturally, the organization said.

The group also cited the effects of climate change and recent heat waves and drought.

While the tree has died, the organization said the oak will remain standing in its place in the park, “continuing as an emblem in the landscape and providing valuable decaying wood habitat.”

In addition, acorns and cuttings from the tree have already been grown into saplings.

“There are Major Oak saplings planted in locations right around the world, so we are planning work to ensure that its offspring will grow and generate their own acorns — and legends — for centuries to come,” the organization said.

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(NEW YORK) — A man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a 3-year-old boy wound up in a crocodile enclosure at a zoo in eastern England, suffering serious injuries, according to police.

The “distressing incident” occurred Thursday afternoon at Johnsons of Old Hurst, a family-run farm and zoo located in Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire, police said.

The boy “ended up in the crocodile enclosure” and was taken to a local hospital, where he was in critical but stable condition, Cambridgeshire police said.

A 30-year-old man who is an apparent stranger to the child has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder in connection with the incident, police said.

“At this stage we are speaking to people who were at the zoo at the time of this distressing incident to understand more about the circumstances,” Det. Insp. Verity McCann said in a statement. “We do not believe the man arrested and the child are known to each other.”

The incident remains under investigation.  

Huntingdon Member of Parliament Ben Obese-Jecty said his “thoughts are with the young victim and his family during a hugely traumatic and difficult time.”

“This is now a live criminal investigation and I would ask people to refrain from speculation online,” he said in a statement on social media.

Johnsons of Old Hurst said its tropical house, which is home to multiple species of crocodiles and other reptiles, will remain closed until further notice “out of respect to the family.”

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the boy and his family following the incident that occurred today,” Johnsons of Old Hurst said in a statement on social media Thursday.

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