TV News LIES

The Democratic governors of Rhode Island and Connecticut promised on Saturday to fight a Trump administration order halting work on a nearly complete wind farm off their coasts that was expected to be operational next year.

The Revolution Wind project was about 80% complete, with 45 of its 65 turbines already installed, according to the Danish wind farm developer Ørsted, when the US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management sent the firm a letter on Friday ordering it to “halt all ongoing activities”.

The Democratic governors of Rhode Island and Connecticut promised on Saturday to fight a Trump administration order halting work on a nearly complete wind farm off their coasts that was expected to be operational next year.

The Revolution Wind project was about 80% complete, with 45 of its 65 turbines already installed, according to the Danish wind farm developer Ørsted, when the US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management sent the firm a letter on Friday ordering it to “halt all ongoing activities”.

“In particular, BOEM is seeking to address concerns related to the protection of national security interests in the United States,” wrote Matt Giacona, the agency’s acting director, adding that Ørsted “may not resume activities” until the agency has completed a review of the project.

Giacona said that the project, which had already cleared years of federal and state reviews, now needs to be re-examined in light of Donald Trump’s order, on the first day of his second term, to consider “terminating or amending any existing wind energy leases”.

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Multiple wildfires have ignited across California as the state continues to scorch in a multi-day heatwave that is expected to last through the weekend.

The largest this week, named the Pickett fire, exploded in size on Thursday as it burned in a remote area of Napa county, and covered more than 3,200 acres (850 hectares) by Friday afternoon. Evacuation orders and warnings have been issued on Thursday for hundreds of residents around Calistoga, a small city in the region known for its wine, as firefighters faced challenging conditions, working through dangerously high temperatures and rugged terrain. The fire’s perimeter is just 5% contained.

“Firefighter safety will be an emphasis once again Friday, with temperatures expected to reach into the upper 90s,” analysts with the state fire agency known as CalFire wrote in an update issued on Friday.

Bob Todeschini, the battalion chief on the Pickett fire, said there had been no injuries or structures damaged, in a video shared on social media on Thursday night. “We’d like to remind everyone to be vigilant and have a plan as we continue with suppression efforts,” he said.

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North Carolina's Outer Banks are already feeling the impact of Hurricane Erin as the storm moves north, hundreds of miles off of the East Coast.

Parts of Highway 12, the main highway through the Outer Banks, were already being flooded by Wednesday afternoon. And the window to evacuate has now closed for vulnerable areas, as officials warn that the evening's high tides will bring some of the storm's biggest impacts. Those remaining should shelter in place, they said.

Mandatory evacuations are in place for Hatteras and Ocracoke islands.

The massive storm was roughly 295 miles from Cape Hatteras, N.C., as of 5 p.m. ET, according to the National Hurricane Center. The National Weather Service office in Newport/Morehead City called it a "large and dangerous hurricane."

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A huge wildfire in central California has threatened hundreds of homes, with blazes churning through the brush-covered hillsides in Los Padres national forest.

At least three people were reported injured, and more than 450 structures were under threat by the Gifford fire, officials said on Monday.

The fire had scorched more than 72,000 acres (29,000 hectares)as of Monday evening, after the blaze grew out of several smaller fires that erupted Friday along State Route 166 between Santa Maria and Bakersfield.

The fire was burning along coastal Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, north of Los Angeles.

By Monday night, the fire was considered 5% contained, according to the CalFire state agency. Officials had earlier cautioned residents conditions could rapidly change due to erratic fire behavior. Hotter and drier weather in the forecast is expected to “facilitate rapid and sustained fire growth”, according to an incident report issued on Monday.

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Tsunami advisory issued in parts of Alaska after 7.3-magnitude earthquake

Noaa initially issued a tsunami warning in the state’s southern coast, which it later downgraded to an advisory.

A stretch of Alaska’s southern coast was under a tsunami advisory on Wednesday after a strong earthquake was felt throughout the region.
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The US Geological Survey described the earthquake as a magnitude 7.3. After the quake, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued a tsunami warning, which it later downgraded to an advisory.

The US Tsunami Center said the advisory was in effect from about 40 miles (64.4km) south-west of Homer to Unimak Pass, a distance of about 700 miles (1,126.5km). The area is sparsely populated – among the larger communities in the area is Kodiak, which is home to 5,200 people.

Meanwhile, officials in the Pacific north-west were evaluating whether there was any threat to coastlines there.

The first waves were projected to hit the village of Sand Point, a community of about 580 people on Popof Island, in the Aleutian chain. The first waves were projected to land there, but the state’s emergency management division said an hour after the quake that it had received no reports of damage.

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In the wake of the deadly flash floods in Texas on July 4, Texas leaders are betting on the lifesaving potential of flood warning sirens.

"What can we do better looking forward? We need sirens," said Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick in an interview this week with NBC 5 in Dallas-Fort Worth. The floods killed at least 120 people.

Weather warning sirens are installed outside on tall poles and make a loud wailing sound to warn people in the area when water levels rise, signaling an imminent flood. Some also broadcast spoken warnings and directions about how to get to safety. These types of sirens are widely used in the United States to warn people about tornadoes and tsunamis but are much less common in areas that flood.

"If you had sirens blasting," Patrick said, "and if people had known 'if you hear a siren get to high ground,' maybe that would have saved some lives."

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