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Illegal weapons smuggling from US to Haiti surges: Officials

August 22, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(MIAMI) — U.S. authorities in South Florida are stepping up efforts to crackdown on a recent surge in weapons smuggling to Haiti and the Caribbean, according to Homeland Security officials.

An unusual uptick in the number of high-caliber weapons coming out of the U.S. is believed to be connected with spikes in violence driven by transnational criminal organizations.

“It’s been alarming and disturbing to see the spike of violence coincide with a spike in weapons trafficking out of Miami towards Haiti,” Anthony Salisbury, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations Miami, told ABC News.

HSI is actively pursuing dozens of open investigations in the region related to smuggling. Officials are hesitant to release exact numbers and specifics to avoid compromising prosecutions.

“We will push these investigations as far as we can,” Salisbury said. “It’s not just the people buying guns, it’s not just the people shipping guns — we will go after and, if we can, prosecute the individuals who are receiving the guns out of these countries. That does include both trying to extradite them back to the United States in some cases and working our foreign offices and our foreign counterparts to help prosecute them down in these countries.”

The enforcement crackdown has been coordinated through multiple federal agencies that are part of specialized teams including Customs and Border Protection, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Department of Commerce.

One area of particular focus is the Miami river, home to one of the most unique ports of entry in the United States due to the distance it spans into the interior of the United States.

The Haitian freighters that dock along the 3-4 mile stretch of river are different than the hyper-organized container ships typically seen at large ports. These smaller vessels that dock along the Miami river are more like giant tugboats. Individual packages are often loaded by hand, making it a prime situation for smuggling.

“We’re not going to tolerate this activity,” Salisbury said. “We’re not going to let South Florida willingly be a launching pad for weapons heading down to these countries.”

Last month marked one year since the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse which led to a scourge of gang violence that persists today.

Hurricane season, which runs from June to November in the Caribbean, also threatens to further destabilized the island nation. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has forecasted an increased likelihood of tropical storms turning into major hurricanes.

ABC News’ Ahmad Hemingway contributed to this report.

Thomas Rhett will “Bring the Bar” to Canada in early 2023 with new leg of his tour

August 22, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Thomas Rhett isn’t done with his Bring the Bar to You Tour just yet.

The singer just announced that he’s extending the trek into 2023, and he’s headed up north to do so, with 10 Canadian shows booked for the month of February. Things kick off with an arena date in Vancouver on February 9.

“It’s been an absolute blast being back out on the road this summer and we are so excited to take the tour to Canada next year,” the singer says.

“It’s been forever since we were last able to play for these fans,” he continues. “They always bring an insane amount of energy and we cannot wait to get up there and see them again.”

For the Canadian leg of his tour, TR will bring Jordan Davis and Kameron Marlowe out as his opening acts. Tickets for those shows are going on sale August 26 at 10 a.m. local time.

The Bring the Bar to You Tour is named after one of the new songs off TR’s Where We Started album, which he dropped back in April.

Columbus teachers union votes to strike days before school year begins

August 22, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(COLUMBUS, Ohio) — The Columbus teachers union in Ohio is on strike after a vote on Sunday, just days away from the district’s first day of school on Wednesday.

Teachers began picketing outside over a dozen of the district’s schools on Monday morning. The union said it will gather outside schools from 7 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. every day until a deal is reached.

The Columbus Education Association, with 4,000 members, reached a 94% majority on the vote Sunday.

“It is with a full understanding of the sacrifices that students, parents, and teachers will make together to win the schools Columbus Students Deserve that CEA members overwhelmingly rejected the Board’s last, best and final offer tonight and voted to strike,” Columbus Education Association spokesperson Regina Fuentes said on Sunday in statement.

The Columbus Board of Education called the decision to strike “incredibly disappointing” in a statement on Sunday.

Fuentes said Sunday the board has “tried desperately” to make the compromise about teacher salary, teacher professional development and teacher leaves.

“Let me be clear,” Fuentes said. “This strike is about our students who deserve a commitment to modern schools with heating and air conditioning, smaller class sizes, and a well-rounded curriculum that includes art, music and P.E.”

Jennifer Adair, Columbus Board of Education President, said in a statement on Sunday the board’s offer “put children first and prioritized their education and their growth.”

Adair said the board offered a generous compensation package for teachers and responded to the concerns raised by the teacher’s union during the negotiations process.

The union and board last met in a mediated discussion on Aug. 18, where the board offered guaranteed raises of 3% annually for three years and $2,000 per CEA member in retention and recruitment bonuses.

According to the board, by the end of the contract, a teacher with a current average salary of $74,000 will earn more than $91,000.

The board’s last offer also stated that it committed funds to install air conditioning in every school, with the exception of one that already has central air in about 50% of the building and is slated to be replaced by a new school in a proposed facilities master plan, the board said.

With the 2022-2023 school year scheduled to begin on Wednesday, the board has decided to make back-to-school virtual, led by substitute teachers, in order to begin instruction on time, according to their statement on Sunday.

Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther said in a statement Sunday night that there needs to be another negotiation, in order to get students back in the classroom.

Ginther said the past few years have “underscored the value of our teachers, the resiliency of our kids and the need for Columbus City Schools to position itself for the future.”

He added the pandemic, “more than anything,” made clear that it is essential to get students back into the physical classroom.

“A responsible solution is within reach, but only if negotiations restart now,” Ginther said.

About an Eddie: ‘Stranger Things’ actor Joseph Quinn reveals Nirvana “obsession”

August 22, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Before he shredded Metallica‘s “Master of Puppets” in the Upside Down, Joseph Quinn was rocking to Nirvana.

The actor, who plays the Dungeons & Dragons-loving metalhead Eddie Munson in the latest season of Stranger Things, tells Metal Hammer that the “Smells Like Teen Spirit” outfit was his “first proper band obsession.”

“I was obsessed with Kurt Cobain and had all of his posters in my wall,” Quinn reveals. “It’s kind of cliché, but it’s true.”

Quinn also names Jimi Hendrix as one of his “guitar heroes,” sharing, “I was always very enamored with him.”

When it came to preparing to play Eddie, though, Quinn turned to the heavy stuff.

“I listened to Master of Reality by Black Sabbath over and over,” Quinn says. “Master of Puppets, as well, Slayer … all that kind of stuff. That was my way into that whole world, really. Black Sabbath were my guys, and Led Zeppelin, too, but I guess they’re less metal.”

Quinn’s performance of Metallica’s “Master of Puppets” in the season 4 finale of Stranger Things led to renewed interest in the 1986 thrash classic, which made its first appearance on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 chart following the episode’s premiere. The season also made a resurgent hit out of Kate Bush‘s “Running Up That Hill,” which has run up all the way to the top five on the Hot 100.

Stranger Things season 4 is streaming now on Netflix.

Guitar played by Dave Grohl in Foo Fighters’ “Monkey Wrench” video going up for auction

August 22, 2022 by WDNY Radio

The 1990 Gretsch White Falcon guitar featured in the video for Foo Fighters‘ “Monkey Wrench” video is going up for auction.

While frontman Dave Grohl plays the guitar in the video, the instrument originally belonged to guitarist Pat Smear, who used it on the 1997 Foos album The Colour and the Shape.

The guitar will be sold by the U.K. auction house Gardiner Houlgate on September 7. It’s expected to fetch between 15,000 and 30,000 British pounds, which is between about $17,700 and $35,400.

The person with the winning bid will also receive a number of photographs, including one of Drew Barrymore holding the guitar.

The “Monkey Wrench” video currently has over 40 million views on YouTube. It’s notably the first Foos video to feature late drummer Taylor Hawkins.

Is Andy Grammer a talented chef, too?

August 22, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Would you let Andy Grammer cook you breakfast?

According to his latest stint on E!’s Celebrity Beef, his skills might leave you saying, “Honey, I’m Good.”

Host Joel McHale pitted Grammer against actor Justin Baldoni in a fight to the finish, tasking the two with whipping up their version of French toast. Both men decided to go above and beyond in an attempt to be named the winner.

Baldoni decided to make a deluxe French toast breakfast sandwich, almost like a Monte Cristo, which left both McHale and Grammer smacking their lips.

“Wow. There are like nine flavors that are hitting me,” Grammer praised and nonchalantly licked his fingers. He also added, “It’s pretty hard to mess up French toast” and jokingly called out Joel for continuing to eat Baldoni’s sandwich when it was his turn to get judged.

McHale defended himself by saying the sandwich was “really good.”

Grammer won in terms of presentation, with McHale noting he feels he’s “about to cut into a piece of art,” because he arranged the toast to look like a flower. That praise caused the hitmaker to enjoy a premature victory lap.

“I can’t believe that this is mine,” he shouted as McHale cut the artisanal French toast in half, revealing a center filled with bacon and maple syrup.

“You know what Andy is known for?” McHale cracked. “Humility.”

But the good times ended there because, after all three took a bite out of the confection, McHale ruled, “Wow, Andy, you can really taste the bread.”

Guess that means Grammer should stick to his day job.

Three months’ worth of rain pounds Dallas area overnight, flash flood warnings in effect

August 22, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(DALLAS) — Flash flood warnings are in effect in Dallas Monday morning as three months’ worth of rain pounded the region overnight.

Eastern Dallas has been hit with more than 9 inches of rain within six hours — and more rain is on the way Monday morning. During an average summer, Dallas sees a total of 8 inches of rain.

At one point overnight, the rainfall rate was more than 5 inches per hour, forcing drivers to abandon their cars on roads.

Dallas Fort Worth International Airport issued a ground stop Monday morning due to thunderstorms.

Dallas’ school district warned that some buses may be delayed on Monday due to flooded streets.

The flood watch now stretches across central and northeastern Texas, where 2 to 5 inches of rain is expected. More than 8 inches is possible in isolated areas that see stalling, heavy rain.

The extreme rainfall has made this the third-wettest August on record for Dallas/Fort Worth area, based on records dating back to 1899.

This comes after the Dallas area faced an exceptional drought, the highest category assigned by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

This rain will slowly push east; heavy rain and flooding will likely continue into the Shreveport, Louisiana, area for Tuesday morning.

ABC News’ Kenton Gewecke contributed to this report.

Dr. Anthony Fauci to step down from his role as NIAID director in December

August 22, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Dr. Anthony Fauci will step down from his roles of director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and chief medical adviser to President Joe Biden this December, he announced Monday.

“While I am moving on from my current positions, I am not retiring,” Fauci said in a statement. “After more than 50 years of government service, I plan to pursue the next phase of my career while I still have so much energy and passion for my field.”

Fauci, who turns 82 in December, has said for months that he plans to step away from his public role as a national leader on the pandemic once COVID-19 reaches a “steady state.”

Biden, commending Fauci’s work not just on the current pandemic, but for the six presidents before him, said in a statement Monday that Fauci’s “commitment to the work is unwavering, and he does it with an unparalleled spirit, energy, and scientific integrity.”

“As he leaves his position in the U.S. Government, I know the American people and the entire world will continue to benefit from Dr. Fauci’s expertise in whatever he does next,” Biden said. “The United States of America is stronger, more resilient, and healthier because of him.”

Fauci has been director of the NIAID for 38 years, beginning his tenure under President Ronald Reagan.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Fauci was famous for his work on HIV and AIDS, as well as Ebola and Zika, among other threats like West Nile Virus and the anthrax attacks in 2001.

“It has been the honor of a lifetime to have led the NIAID, an extraordinary institution, for so many years and through so many scientific and public health challenges. I am very proud of our many accomplishments,” Fauci said in a statement.

Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, who oversees Fauci’s department, said Fauci’s decision is one “we all knew would eventually come but hoped never would.”

“When I arrived at HHS, the world was one year into the COVID-19 pandemic. I quickly came to rely on Dr. Fauci’s wisdom and counsel in our response, and along with his scientific acumen, I treasure his ability to break down complex science in simple terms to the American people to save lives,” Becerra said.

Back in July, Fauci explained that he didn’t intend to leave the public health field for a while, but that he wanted to conserve his remaining years to work on personal projects, teaching and writing.

“Obviously, you can’t go on forever. I do want to do other things in my career. Even though I’m at a rather advanced age, I have the energy and the passion to continue to want to pursue other aspects of my professional career. And I’m going to do that sometime. I’m not exactly sure when, but I don’t see myself being in this job to the point where I can’t do anything else after that,” Fauci said on CNN at the time.

“So that’s the reason. It has nothing to do with pressures, nothing to do with all the other nonsense that you hear about, that has no influence on me,” Fauci said in the same interview.

In a Washington Post interview published on Monday, shortly after Fauci announced his imminent role change, Fauci said he was interested in teaching higher education and lecturing about the lessons he’s learned throughout his career. In the past, he’s also mentioned an interest in writing a memoir about growing up in Brooklyn in the 1940s and ’50s.

“I love everything about this place. … But even with that, I said I’m going to have to leave some time,” Fauci told The Washington Post. “I don’t want to be here so long that I get to the point where I lose a step.”

ABC News’ Emily Shapiro contributed to this report.

Blake Shelton’s early-2000s first impression of Gwen Stefani? “That girl that holds up the orange”

August 22, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Back at the beginning of both their careers, Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani were living in very different musical worlds. Blake was cutting his teeth in Nashville honky-tonks and putting out his first singles, while Gwen was beginning to notch hits with her band, No Doubt.

It would be years before they’d cross paths on the set of The Voice, fall in love and eventually get married — in fact, Gwen has admitted that early on she had no idea who Blake was and she’d never listened to his music.

Blake knew Gwen from her No Doubt stardom, but in a new interview with ET Online, he jokes that his first impression of her had little to do with her music.

“I would have probably said, ‘Are you talking about that girl that holds up the orange in her video?’” Blake replies, when asked what his younger self would have thought if he could have seen himself marrying Gwen in the future. He was referring to No Doubt’s video for “Don’t Speak.”

“I never understood until now that she’s from Orange County,” he adds. “‘Oh my God, she’s so hot, but why is she obsessed with this freaking orange,’ you know?”

Blake and Gwen tied the knot in August 2021. Their romance has produced a couple of duets, too: They had hit duets with “Nobody But You” and “Happy Anywhere.”

Robert Plant: Reuniting with Led Zeppelin wouldn’t “satisfy my need to be stimulated”

August 22, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Robert Plant has long insisted he has no interest in reuniting with Led Zeppelin. In a recent interview with the Los Angeles Times, he again addressed the issue when it was suggested fans of his old band would love to hear him sing with the group once more.

“Going back to the font to get some kind of massive applause — it doesn’t really satisfy my need to be stimulated,” said Robert, who currently is touring the U.S. as a duo with acclaimed folk/bluegrass artist Alison Krauss in support of their 2021 album Raise the Roof.

When the interviewer asked if his reluctance to revisit his past glories “make you feel like an outlier among your classic-rock peers,” Robert responded, “I know there are people from my generation who don’t want to stay home, and so they go out and play. If they’re enjoying it and doing what they need to do to pass the days, then that’s their business, really.”

Meanwhile, Plant celebrated his 74th birthday on Saturday, August 20. To mark the occasion, he got a surprise visit from his son Logan and Logan’s two children while performing with Krauss in Stateline, Nevada.

As seen in fan-shot video posted on YouTube, Logan and his kids wheeled out a birthday cake and some golden balloons as Robert chatted to the audience between songs during the show.

“This is my family,” Robert told the crowd. “They’ve come all the way from England to give me … a chocolate microphone.” He then blew out the candles, before Logan led the audience in a rousing rendition of “Happy Birthday.”

Plant and Krauss’ tour continues Tuesday in Napa, California, and is scheduled to wrap up on September 12 in New York City.

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