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Alwyn Cashe set to become first Black recipient of Medal of Honor for service in post-9/11 war on terror

December 16, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden on Thursday is set to award the Medal of Honor — the nation’s highest military award for valor — to three U.S. soldiers for their service during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, including Sgt. 1st Class Alwyn Cashe, the first Black service member to be honored for heroic actions during the war on terror launched after the 9/11 attacks.

Cashe suffered fatal injuries while serving in Iraq on Oct. 17, 2005, after rescuing fellow soldiers from a burning vehicle during Operation Iraqi Freedom in the Salah Ad Din Province, according to the White House. He will be honored posthumously.

Cashe died 16 years ago at the age of 35 and his widow, Tamara Cashe, is set to accept the award on his behalf during a ceremony at the White House.

Cashe’s sister Kasinal Cashe-White recalled her brother as “very rambunctious,” a “daredevil” and “a good kid all around.”

She told ABC News in an interview on Wednesday that receiving the Medal of Honor “means everything” to the family.

“We lost our brother. He can’t be replaced. But this award means that his name his legacy will go down in history,” she said.

Cashe grew up in Oviedo, Florida, and enlisted in the U.S. Army in July 1989 after graduating from Oviedo High School. He was deployed in the 1991 Gulf War and served in Korea and Germany before being deployed to Iraq in 2005 while serving as a a platoon sergeant in the 3rd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division at Fort Benning, Georgia.

Asked how she feels about Cashe being the first Black soldier to receive the highest award for valor for service during the war on terror, Cashe-White said her brother “earned” the honor through his actions.

Biden will also posthumously honor Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Celiz, an Army Ranger who died at 32 years old during a 2018 firefight in Afghanistan, as well as Master Sgt. Earl Plumlee, a Special Forces soldier who fought off Taliban suicide bombers in Afghanistan in 2013 and is set to attend the ceremony, according to the White House.

Each of the service members demonstrated courage and gallantry by putting their own lives on the lines to aid their comrades and the actions that led them to receive the honor, a White House press release said.

When the vehicle that Cashe was commanding became engulfed in flames during an attack, his uniform caught fire and he sustained severe burns while extinguishing the flames and rescuing his fellow soldiers, according to the White House. Even after sufering injuries, he repeatedly approached the vehicle and helped four soldiers escape while being targeted by live fire.

“Despite the severe second and third degree burns covering the majority of his body, Sergeant First Class Cashe persevered through the pain to encourage his fellow Soldiers and ensure they received needed medical care,” the White House said. “When medical evacuation helicopters began to arrive, he selflessly refused evacuation until all of the other wounded Soldiers were first evacuated.”

Celiz, who died of wounds he received in combat on July 12, 2018, in Afghanistan’s Paktia Province, was attacked while leading an operation to disrupt attacks against the U.S. and allied forces and saved six live through his actions, the White House said.

His wife, Katie Celiz, told ABC News in an interview Wednesday that her husband was a “family man” who had an “amazing relationship” with their daughter.

“Chris believed in putting his men and his mission first,” she said. “Chris believed that we should always do good, whether it was the easy thing to do or not.”

During the operation he “voluntarily exposed himself to intense enemy machine gun and small arms fire” to help the U.S. and its allies reach safety and to administer aid to a wounded soldier, the White House said.

After he was hit himself, he signaled for the aircraft to depart without him.

“His selfless actions saved the life of the evacuated partnered force member and almost certainly prevented further casualties among other members of his team and the aircrew,” the White House said.

Plumlee, who spoke with ABC News on Wednesday, is also being honored for his heroic actions while serving in Afghanistan.

While responding to an explosion on the U.S. base, he fought off 10 Taliban suicide bombers dressed in Afghan National Army uniforms and came under fire several times, according to the White House. He placed himself in harms way by leaving cover to protect his base and helped render first aid to a wounded soldier, carrying him to safety.

“Without cover and with complete disregard for his own safety, he advanced on the superior enemy force engaging multiple insurgents with only his pistol,” the White House said.

ABC News’ Luis Martinez contributed to this report.

Senators take aim at fraudsters flooding the market with fake masks

December 16, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — Two senators are taking aim at the widespread issue of fake and ineffective masks flooding the U.S. market.

A new bill announced Thursday and obtained exclusively by ABC News will grant more authority to the Food and Drug Administration to enforce and punish counterfeiters in the mask industry. It’s a bipartisan effort by Sens. Chris Murthy of Connecticut, a Democrat, and Mike Braun of Indiana, a Republican.

It is the first piece of legislation in a large pandemic response package that will be rolled out by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions in the next few weeks.

The wide-ranging bipartisan package, which the committee has been working on for months, will target various holes in the nation’s pandemic response infrastructure by improving the supply chain for medical equipment and addressing health inequities that have put minority populations at higher risk, among other measures.

The legislation announced Thursday, called the Protecting Patients from Counterfeit Medical Devices Act, comes as public health experts are urging Americans to renew their vigilance on masking in the face of omicron, a quickly-spreading COVID-19 variant of which infections have increased sevenfold in the U.S. over the last week.

New York, California, Illinois, Nevada and several other states have recently reimposed indoor mask mandates.

“In looking at early data on transmissibility of omicron from other countries, we expect to see the proportion of omicron cases here in the United States continue to grow in the coming weeks,” CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said at a White House briefing on Wednesday.

“What does this mean for individuals and families as we head into the winter months? A time when families may be gathering with one another over the holidays?”

“It means that it is vital for everyone to get vaccinated and boosted if they are eligible. Given the increase in transmissibility, this also means continuing to be vigilant about masking in public indoor settings, in areas of substantial or high community transmission. And as of now, this represents about 90% of all counties in the United States,” she said.

The new bill is also aimed at protecting health care workers who could face a surge of patients this winter.

Last February, the Department of Homeland Security announced it seized 10 million counterfeit 3M N95 masks, including some possibly headed for hospitals.

Since the start of the pandemic, Customs and Border Patrol has seized more than 34 million counterfeit masks, and nearly 60% of the counterfeits were seized in 2021, according to the FDA.

Earlier this year, the FDA asked for broader powers to seize and punish counterfeiters, telling Congress that the agency is currently limited to destroying certain fakes.

The current ability to enforce the rules around fraudulent PPE “is incomplete and there will be limited deterrence for the selling of counterfeit devices, especially domestically,” the FDA said in its 2022 budget request.

“The revisions proposed will help keep counterfeit devices like these out of the United States and facilitate enforcement actions against those that find their way into interstate commerce,” the FDA said.

‘Juice WRLD: Into the Abyss’ unveils the many layers of the late rapper, director says

December 16, 2021 by WDNY Radio

A new documentary aims to reveal a lot about the dreams and demons that drove Juice WRLD, a rapper who died of an accidental drug overdose two years ago in Chicago. Tommy Oliver directed Juice WRLD: Into the Abyss, which premieres tonight on HBO, and he tells ABC Audio that viewers will learn that Juice was more than just a rapper.

“He was somebody who cared about mental health,” Oliver explains. “He was somebody who used his platform to try to move that conversation forward in trying to destigmatize it. He was somebody who could hang with the hardest rappers or somebody who could bang out with people who don’t like rap, but they love rock and all of it.”

Additionally, Oliver, who admittedly was just a casual fan when he started on the project, adds that he learned a lot about the late artist and even ranks him among the greatest.

“I learned so much of just how sweet of a person he was and that he is the GOAT freestyler bar none and that he’s one of the best artists of all time,” he says.

Given that the documentary film is based on Juice WRLD’s life, audiences will see a lot of drug use on camera, which Oliver explains was pretty much unavoidable in an effort to accurately tell the rapper’s story.

“I genuinely don’t know how I could have told his story, especially in this version without the drugs, because the drugs were omnipresent,” he says.

“I was never going to glamorize them or the usage of them, was never going to sensationalize it,” Oliver adds. “It was about offering context for the situations, for him, but there was no telling his story without it.”

Five children dead after wind lifts bouncy castle 32 feet into the air in Australia

December 16, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(HONG KONG) — Five children died in Australia on Thursday after wind lifted the bouncy castle they were in about 32 feet into the air, local police said.

Nine children were in the castle at about 10 a.m. local time when it fell to the ground, Tasmania Police said in a statement. The students at Hillcrest Primary School had been celebrating the end of the school year, the statement said.

“On a day where these children were meant to be celebrating their last day at primary school, instead we are all mourning their loss,” Police Commissioner Darren Hine said.

Two girls and two boys were killed, police said in an initial statement. Another five children with serious injuries were rushed to the hospital, where one later died, police said. Three children were still in serious condition at about 1 a.m. local time. The students were in 5th and 6th grade, officials said.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison called the incident “unthinkably heartbreaking.”

“Young children on a fun day out together with their families and it turns to such horrific tragedy, at this time of year, it just breaks your heart,” Morrison said.

Police said a “significant local wind event” caused the castle to lift about 10 meters, or 32 feet, off the ground.

Two helicopters and other emergency vehicles rushed to the scene in Devonport within minutes of the incident, police said.

“The loss of any child impacts significantly on our community and this tragedy is understandably distressing for us all,” Hine said. “This incident will impact all of us in different ways so it’s important that we all look after each other at this difficult time.”

Police said they’ve launched an investigation with help from WorkSafe Tasmania, the country’s workplace-safety regulator.

Four children dead after wind lifts bouncy castle 32 feet into the air in Australia

December 16, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(HONG KONG) — Four children died in Australia on Thursday when wind lifted the bouncy castle they were in about 32 feet into the air, local police said.

“On a day where these children were meant to be celebrating their last day at primary school, instead we are all mourning their loss,” Police Commissioner Darren Hine said.

Two girls and two boys were killed, police said. Another five children were rushed to the hospital with serious injuries, police said. The students were in 5th and 6th grade, officials said.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison called the incident “unthinkably heartbreaking.”

“Young children on a fun day out together with their families and it turns to such horrific tragedy, at this time of year, it just breaks your heart,” Morrison said.

Police said a “significant local wind event” caused the castle to lift about 10 meters, or 32 feet, off the ground.

Two helicopters and other emergency vehicles rushed to the scene in Devonport within minutes of the incident, police said.

Police said they’ve launched an investigation with help from WorkSafe Tasmania, the country’s workplace-safety regulator.

COVID-19 live updates: More universities cancel events, move exams online

December 16, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — As the COVID-19 pandemic has swept the globe, more than 5.3 million people have died from the disease worldwide, including over 801,000 Americans, according to real-time data compiled by Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering.

About 61% of the population in the United States is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:

Dec 16, 6:14 am
France to ban non-essential travel with UK over omicron surge

France announced Thursday that it will ban non-essential travel to and from the United Kingdom due to the country’s surge in cases of the omicron variant.

Starting Saturday, France will require people to have “a compelling reason” to travel between the two countries. Travel for tourism or work will not be allowed. French citizens, however, can return to France, according to a statement from the French prime minister’s office.

All travelers from the U.K. will be required to show proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken less than 24 hours before departure. Upon arrival in France, they must self-isolate for a week, but that period can be ended after 48 hours if they test negative for COVID-19 again.

The new rules apply to people regardless of their vaccination status.

“Faced with the extremely rapid spread of the Omicron variant in the United Kingdom, the Government has chosen to reinstate the need for an essential reason for travel from and to the United Kingdom, and to strengthen the requirement for tests on departure and arrival,” the French prime minister’s office said in the statement Thursday. “The Government is also calling on travelers who had planned to visit the United Kingdom to postpone their trip.”

Dec 16, 4:24 am
Indonesia confirms 1st case of omicron variant

Indonesia announced Thursday its first confirmed case of the omicron variant.

The case was detected in a janitor who works at the COVID-19 Emergency Hospital of Kemayoran Athletes Village in Jakarta, according to a statement from Indonesian Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin.

The hospital’s cleaning staff are routinely tested and the results for three people were positive for COVID-19 on Dec. 10. Those samples were then sent to a genome sequencing lab, which identified the omicron variant in one of the samples on Wednesday, according to the statement.

Indonesia’s Ministry of Health has also identified probable cases of omicron among five travelers who were in quarantine — two Indonesian citizens who had just returned from the United Kingdom and the United States, and three foreigners from China. Their test samples are being sequenced and the results will be known in a few days, according to the statement.

The health minister urged Indonesians “not to panic and to remain calm,” and to get vaccinated against COVID-19 if they haven’t already.

“The arrival of new variants from abroad, which we identified in quarantine, shows that our defense system against the arrival of new variants is quite good, we need to strengthen it,” Sadikin said. “So it’s normal to stay 10 days in quarantine. The goal is not to make it difficult for people who came, but to protect the people of Indonesia.”

Dec 15, 4:46 pm
Forecast: US could see up to 845,000 deaths by early January

Forecast models used by the CDC suggest weekly death totals and hospital admissions will rise over the next four weeks.

The U.S. could reach a total of 845,000 deaths by Jan. 8, according to the forecasts from the COVID-19 Forecast Hub at UMass Amherst.

The COVID-19 Forecast Hub team monitors and combines forecasting models from the nation’s top researchers. They then create an ensemble, usually with a wide cone of uncertainty. Nicholas Reich, a biostatistician who runs the forecasting model, told ABC News Wednesday that he doesn’t think the forecasts included omicron in their predictions because the majority of data isn’t publicly available yet in a format that can be easily incorporated into a model.

-ABC News’ Arielle Mitropoulos

Dec 15, 4:20 pm
US cases up 45% in the last month

The U.S. is now reporting nearly 118,000 new cases each day — up by 45% in the last month, according to federal data.

Daily COVID-19-related hospital admissions have leapt by 46% in the last month.

Maine and New Hampshire are now averaging more new cases than at any other point in the pandemic, according to federal data.

New Hampshire currently holds the nation’s highest case rate, followed by Rhode Island, Maine, Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

-ABC News’ Arielle Mitropoulos

Strong storm system sparks rare December tornado in Midwest

December 16, 2021 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — A storm system is impacting the Midwest and 29 states are on alert for damaging winds, heavy snow and avalanches.

A tornado threat was issued for Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin, with a tornado touching down in Plainview, Minnesota, just outside Rochester, on Wednesday night, according to the National Weather Service. This was the first time Minnesota has recorded a tornado in December.

There is already snow on the ground in parts of Minnesota where more tornadoes could occur Wednesday into Thursday.

Heavy rain is expected for Kentucky, Tennessee and Arkansas on Thursday and Friday. There could be between 2 to 4 inches of rain in the area, which was severely impacted by the deadly storms last weekend.

Forty-four deadly tornadoes tore through nine states last weekend, killing at least 88 people. Kentucky was by far the hardest hit.

Severe storms were impacting Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin Wednesday afternoon and into the evening across the Mid-Missouri Valley to the Upper Mississippi Valley.

“Widespread severe wind gusts of 60-75 mph along with at least a few tornadoes are likely from late afternoon through this evening,” according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Embedded gusts of 80 to 100 miles per hour and a strong tornado or two are also possible, particularly across western to northern Iowa and southeast Minnesota.

Hundreds of thousands of customers in the area — from Colorado to Kansas and Minnesota — were without power at 9:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

Areas from Texas to New York could see very strong winds ahead of the storm. Wind gusts could be between 40 to 70 mph.

There is an avalanche warning in place for the West, where 5 feet of snow was reported in the mountains. More snow is still expected.

This storm system has already brought more than 8 inches of rainfall in Southern California. The state also saw mudslides and debris flow, forcing some people to be rescued. There is also an avalanche warning issued for California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains.

Whiteout weather conditions shut down Interstate 90 from California to Nevada Monday night. Parts of Northern California saw rockslides and mudslides.

‘The Bachelor’ season 26 cast revealed! Meet Clayton Echard’s lovely ladies!

December 16, 2021 by WDNY Radio

The 31 ladies who will compete for Clayton Echard‘s heart on The Bachelor season 26 have been revealed.

The 28-year-old medical sales rep from Columbia, Missouri will meet a group that includes five nurses, along with couple of other medical professionals, a former Olympian, a spray tanner and a bar mitzvah dancer.

He’ll be helped out by former New York Giants football player, former Bachelor and current ESPN football analyst Jesse Palmer, who will serve as host.

Clayton was first introduced as one of Michelle Young’s suitors in The Bachelorette‘s current 18th season and was sent home in one of the most gut-wrenching eliminations in franchise history. Clayton’s genuine desire to find a partner and start a family won over the hearts of Bachelor Nation and earned him a second shot at finding love.

Echard’s season of The Bachelor premieres Monday, January 3 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

Meet the 31 women who will vie for Clayton’s heart:

Cassidy, 26, an executive recruiter from Los Angeles, Calif.
Claire, 28, a spray tanner from Virginia Beach, Va.
Daria, 24, a law student from New Haven, Conn.
Eliza, 25, a marketing manager from Berlin, Germany
Elizabeth, 32, a real estate advisor from Highlands Ranch, Colo.
Ency, 28, a sales manager from Burbank, Calif.
Gabby, 30, an ICU nurse from Denver, Colo.
Genevive, 26, a bartender from Los Angeles, Calif.
Hailey, 26, a pediatric nurse from Orlando, Fla.
Hunter, 28, a human resources specialist from Charlotte, N.C.
Ivana, 31, a bar mitzvah dancer from Queens, N.Y.
Jane, 22, a social media director from Los Angeles, Calif.
Jill, 26, an architectural historian from Scituate, R.I.
Kate, 32, a real estate agent from Lake Hollywood, Calif.
Kira, 32, a physician from Philadelphia, Pa.
Lindsay D., 27, a neonatal nurse from Jacksonville, Fla.
Lyndsey W., 28 an industrial sale representative from Houston, Texas
Mara, 32, an entrepreneur from Collingswood, N.J.
Marlena, 30, a former Olympian from Gainesville, Fla.
Melina, 27, a personal trainer from West Hollywood, Calif.
Rachel, 25, a flight instructor from Clermont, Fla.
Rianna, 26, a registered nurse from Dallas, Texas
Salley, 26, a previously engaged spine surgery robot operator from Charlottesville, Va.
Samantha, 26, an occupational therapist from San Diego, Calif.
Sarah, 23, a wealth management advisor from New York City, N.Y.
Serene, 26, an elementary school teacher from Oklahoma City, Ohio
Shanae, 29, a recruiter from Sycamore, Ohio
Sierra, 26, a yoga instructor from Dallas, Texas
Susie, 28, a wedding videographer from Virginia Beach, Va.
Teddi, 24, a surgical unit nurse from Highland, Calif.
Tessa, 26, a human resources specialist from Brooklyn, N.Y.

Jack Harlow fears the end of his success: “I’m terrified to fall off and lose my spot”

December 16, 2021 by WDNY Radio

As the featured artist on one of the biggest hits of the year, Lil Nas X‘s “Industry Baby,” Jack Harlow is riding a wave of success. He received two Grammy nominations for the song, attended the Met Gala, and now sits courtside with household names at basketball games.

However, the Louisville, Kentucky, native knows fame can be fleeting.

“I’m terrified to fall off and lose my spot or lose the ground I’ve covered, or not reach the potential that people see,” Harlow admits to Variety. “Every time I sit courtside at these games or go to the Met Gala or maybe the Grammys, what’s in my head is, ‘I’ve gotta be here next year.’ I don’t want this to be the last time.”

Meanwhile, the “Whats Poppin” rapper says that while he is focused on his creativity, he finds that as his popularity rises, music has become less important.

“Once you become actually famous, it’s only half about the music,” he says. “They’re just showing up to see you in the flesh, put you on their Snap, throw some panties at you, whether they know a single lyric or not.”

Harlow also wishes that, like Kendrick Lamar and Eminem, he had an alter ego to hide behind.

“Sometimes artists will assume characters for a verse or a feature — Kendrick does that, Em had it with Slim Shady, and sometimes in the studio my engineer will even encourage me to ‘get out of Jack Harlow,'” he says. “That’s something I’d have to work on intentionally, and maybe I will.”

Jimmy Eat World releases full video of ‘Phoenix Sessions’ streaming concerts

December 16, 2021 by WDNY Radio

Jimmy Eat World has released all three of the band’s Phoenix Sessions streaming concerts to watch for free on YouTube.

The virtual shows originally premiered earlier this year and included full album performances of “The Middle” outfit’s latest release, 2019’s Surviving, as well as 1999’s Clarity and 2004’s Futures.

“In a time seemingly more uncertain than now, we wanted to give something to you amazing people, while selfishly fulfilling our need to play music together,” Jimmy Eat World says. “We are eternally grateful for each and every one of you who helped make this happen by purchasing tickets and all the beautiful fans we met during those meet and greets.”

“Here’s to seeing you all IRL in 2022!” the band adds.

Audio recordings of the Phoenix Sessions streams were previously released on digital outlets in November.

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