Shooter kills three in Texas before arrest
Austin, Aug 12: A gunman opened fire in the parking lot of a Target store in Austin, Texas, killing at least three people. The suspect, a man in his 30s with a mental health history, fled the scene in a stolen car, wrecked another, and stole another from a dealership. He was captured 32 km away in south Austin. Officers found three people shot in the Target parking lot. The shooting came amid back-to-school shopping ahead of the upcoming academic year. Austin Mayor Kirk Watson expressed his heartfelt condolences to the victims and their families. The Target shooting comes just over two weeks after an attack at a Walmart store in Michigan, where a man accused of stabbing 11 people has been charged with terrorism and multiple counts of attempted murder. (AP)
Probe ongoing in Pennsylvania steel blast that killed two
CLAIRTON, Aug 12: An explosion at a steel plant outside Pittsburgh has left two dead and 10 injured, including a person who was rescued from the rubble. The explosion sent black smoke spiraling into the midday sky in the Mon Valley, a region of the state synonymous with steel for more than a century. Allegheny County Emergency Services reported a fire at the plant in Clairton, which has approximately 1,400 workers. US Steel’s chief manufacturing officer, Scott Buckiso, did not give details about the damage or casualties and said they were still trying to determine the cause of the blast. Allegheny Health Network treated seven patients from the plant and discharged five within a few hours. The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center is treating three patients at UPMC Mercy, the region’s only level one trauma and burn center. The plant is considered the largest coking operation in North America and is one of four major US Steel plants in Pennsylvania. (AP)
Thousands evacuated as wildfires sweep across Spain
MADRID, Aug 12: Thousands of people in Spain faced evacuation orders as wildfires continued to burn across the Iberian Peninsula during a heatwave expected to reach temperatures of 44 degrees Celsius in some places. A blaze outside Madrid killed a man who suffered burns on 98% of his body, affecting over 1,000 hectares. Firefighters were battling blazes in several Spanish regions, including Castile and Leon, Castile-La Mancha, Andalusia, and Galicia. Over 700 firefighters in Portugal were working to control a fire in Trancoso, about 350 kilometers northeast of Lisbon. Scientists warn that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness in Southern Europe, making the region more vulnerable to wildfires and the health impacts of extreme heat. Europe is warming faster than any other continent, with temperatures increasing at twice the speed of the global average since the 1980s. Deforestation, wildfires, and various factories also contribute to climate change. (AP)