Hawaii fissure spurs new evacuations
PAHOA, Hawaii -- A new fissure emitting steam and lava spatter spurred Hawaii officials to call for more evacuations Sunday as residents braced for an expected eruption from the Kilauea volcano.
The Hawaii County Civil Defense issued an alert that an 18th fissure was discovered along a road west of a major highway on the Big Island. Residents on that road were being told to evacuate, and two nearby community centers were serving as shelters for people and pets.
Popping, exploding and sloshing sounds could be heard from the fissure as far as 1,500 yards away.
The fissures, ground deformation and abundant volcanic gases indicate eruptions on the eastern flank of Kilauea are likely to continue.
The latest opening came the morning after two other fissures opened on Saturday. Most of the lava outbreaks have occurred in and around the Leilani Estates neighborhood, where molten rock has burst through the ground, destroying more than two dozen homes and resulting in evacuation orders for nearly 2,000 people.
N.J. city reaches deal on Polish statue
An acrimonious battle in New Jersey over plans to move a waterfront statue commemorating the 1940 massacre of Poles has ended.
Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop and local Polish groups announced late Saturday that they have reached an agreement on relocating the Katyn Memorial. Details on the deal will be announced today.
Fulop, a Democrat, called the deal a "win-win" in a tweet announcing the agreement. He wrote that the goal was one that "respects/cares/keeps the monument in an extremely prominent location to honor sacrifices" while also giving the city "a chance to re-purpose our waterfront."
City officials wanted to move the statue as part of a renovation of the plaza where it currently stands, on the waterfront across from downtown New York City. The head of the group organizing the renovation has called the statue "gruesome" and has said he prefers that it get a new home, according to published reports.
But the Polish groups opposed that and had sought a court order in recent days to block the move.
The bronze statue depicts a Polish soldier bound, gagged and impaled by a bayonet. It sparked strong emotions in Poland, where Katyn is remembered as one of the worst tragedies to befall the nation in a long tragedy-filled history.
Shooting in Oklahoma wounds 2 people
OKLAHOMA CITY -- Authorities say no arrests have been made after an early morning shooting that injured two people in downtown Oklahoma City.
Police responded to reports of a fight in the Bricktown entertainment district at 2:09 a.m. Sunday. Authorities say officers heard gunfire as they arrived but were only able to find shell casings.
Investigators stopped a car that was seen speeding away from the scene, and they found a gunshot victim inside. The second victim was located at a nearby intersection.
Police say both victims were stable Sunday.
The victims were not immediately identified. Police say each of them was in possession of large amounts of drugs and cash at the time of the shooting.
Police study Tesla car's status in crash
SOUTH JORDAN, Utah -- A Tesla sedan with a semi-autonomous Autopilot feature rear-ended a fire department truck at 60 mph apparently without braking before impact, but police say it's unknown if the Autopilot feature was engaged.
The cause of the Friday evening crash, involving a Tesla Model S and a fire department mechanic truck stopped at a red light, was under investigation, said police in South Jordan, a suburb of Salt Lake City.
The crash, in which the Tesla driver was injured, comes as federal safety agencies investigate the performance of Tesla's semi-autonomous driving system.
The Tesla's air bags were activated in the crash, South Jordan police Sgt. Samuel Winkler said Saturday. The Tesla's driver suffered a broken right ankle, and the driver of the Unified Fire Authority mechanic truck didn't require treatment, Winkler said.
A Section on 05/14/2018