DEADLY TORNADOES DEVASTATE MIDWEST: United States
Several midwestern states in the U.S. – especially Kentucky – were hit with a swarm of tornadoes that proved deadly.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear spoke to media after the Dec. 10-11 storms, and announced that over 70 people are feared dead after multiple tornadoes ripped through his state – and that more fatalities are expected. Over people have been declared missing in that state alone, and workers inside a candle factory were trapped as their building collapsed under the high winds. There have been allegations that the employees were ordered to stay inside and work by management, but that has not been confirmed. They were not the only workers trapped inside a place of work, as Amazon employees in Edwardsville, Illinois were also pinned under the rubble of a tornado there.
So far, at least 39 tornadoes have been reported across Kentucky, Arkansas, Illinois, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee. One of the twisters is estimated to have been on the ground for over 120 miles. Intensity levels reached as high as EF3+ on the modified Fujita scale.
In response to the historic storm, President Biden gave comments on the destruction:
“Jill and I pray – and I’m – sincerely mean this – pray for those who have lost loved ones and for those who are uncertain of the fate of their loved ones. And the debris that you see scattered all over the hurricane’s [tornado’s] path.
“They lost their homes. They lost their businesses. And it’s a tragedy. It’s a tragedy. And we still don’t know how many lives were lost or the full extent of the damage.
“But I want to emphasize what I told all the governors: The federal government will do everything – everything it can possibly do to help.”
Hours after, Biden issued a disaster declaration for Kentucky, and has said that he would sign off for other states if they submitted claims.
RACING’S NEWEST CHAMPION CROWNED MIDDLE EAST
By Walter Elliott
The 10-month, 22-race Formula One World Drivers Championship between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen came down to the last lap of the season-ending Abu Dhabi GP here Sunday night.
Hamilton, who got the drop on polesitter Verstappen at the start and had been leading 45 of the race’s 58 laps on the Yas Marina Circuit, suddenly faced a fill course caution on lap 52.
Montrealer Nicolas Latifi had been battling Mich Schumacher for a non-points position when he lost his Williams-Mercedes’ rear end and backed into the Turn 9 wall.
Verstappen, who was running second to Hamilton, stopped his No. 33 Red Bull Racing-Honda in the pits for his third set of tires without losing his position. The second-generation driver, however, had four lapped cars between him and Hamilton’s No. 44 factory Mercedes.
Hamilton, who was on the same set of hard tires since lap 14, asked his AMG Mercedes crew about a tire change. Team Manager Toto Wolff, concerned about losing the lead and “we don’t know if the race will go green again,” kept the Briton out.
Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Perez, who led six laps and was running third, pitted his car on lap 55 and bowed to a mechanical problem.
Race control meanwhile dithered on the four backmarkers between Briton Hamilton and Dutchman Verstappen.
They initially decided against the quartet moving ahead of the safety pace car. Three laps later, race stewards told the lapped drivers to move aside on the restart and give Hamilton and Verstappen a straight fight.
Verstappen – once the pace car pulled in and the green flag was shown – ousted Hamilton in Turn 5 of the 15-turn, 3.281-mile road course. Hamilton made his last charge in Turn 9 but Verstappen won by 2.256 sec.
Verstappen’s 10th GP win of the season earned him his first World Drivers Championship and for the Red Bull-Honda combine. His final points tally was 395.5 against the dethroned Hamilton’s 387.5.
The duo entered the season finale with an even 369.5 points each. It is the first time since 1974 when the top two drivers were so tied.
Hamilton’s teammate, Valtteri Bottas, finished sixth to secure Mercedes its eighth straight World Constructors Championship.
Mercedes team triumph gives Honda a partial going-away gift. Honda will be turning over its engine building unit to Red Bull while the company focuses on becoming globally carbon-neutral by 2050.
Canadian Lance Stroll brought his Aston Martin-Mercedes home 13th. Schumacher brought his U.S.-based Haas-Ferrari home 14th. Teammate Nikita Mazepin, due to COVID concerns, did not start. Perez and Latifi were placed 15th and 16th in the official results.
2007 F1 WC Kimi Raikkonen ended his career by brushing his Alfa Romeo-Ferrari against a wall and parking it in lap 27 – ending a record 196 starts.
MISS INDIA = MISS UNIVERSE: INDIA
Amid the elegance, pageantry, and anticipation of any Steve Harvey faux pas, there was a new Miss Universe crowned in Eilat, Israel.
On Dec. 12, Miss India Harnaaz Sandhu earned the title of Miss Universe 2021. The 21-year-old beat out 79 other contestants from various countries and territories. Sandhu beat out runner-up Miss Paraguay Nadia Ferreira and second runner-up Miss South Africa Lalela Mswane in taking the crown.
Outside of pageants, the new Miss Universe is a thespian who draws inspiration from iconic Indian actress Priyanka Chopra, who is married to New Jersey native Nick Jonas. Sandhu is also an advocate for women’s empowerment, and enjoys yoga, dancing, cooking, horse riding and playing chess in her spare time.
For those wondering, outside of a teleprompter goof, Harvey did not commit any major gaffe like when he once announced the wrong winner.
MAN ADMITS TO COCAINE CHARGE CARIBBEAN
A Puerto Rican man admitted Dec. 14 conspiring to distribute over 250 kilograms of cocaine, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced.
Mariano Enrique Arroyo Perez, aka “Humilde,” 29, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas to a superseding indictment charging him with conspiracy to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court: From 2017 through July 2019, Arroyo Perez and his conspirators conspired to distribute approximately 250 kilograms of cocaine. They conspired to transport cocaine on private planes, including approximately 150 kilograms of cocaine from Puerto Rico to New Jersey on a private plane on Nov. 18, 2018, which law enforcement intercepted.
After several men boarded a private plane in Puerto Rico destined for a Teterboro Airport in New Jersey, the pilots became suspicious, as the men were not on the manifest for the flight and their luggage was particularly heavy. Their luggage contained the 150 kilograms of cocaine. Law enforcement arrested the four passengers.
After this seizure, law enforcement learned that Arroyo Perez had coordinated this shipment. Law enforcement also reviewed judicially authorized wire intercepts that showed that Arroyo Perez and a conspirator discussed and coordinated the Nov. 18, 2018, events and shared the names of the four passengers.
The count of conspiracy to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine carries a statutory mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum penalty of life imprisonment and a fine of up to $10 million. Sentencing is scheduled for April 21, 2022.
Acting U.S. Attorney Honig credited special agents and task force officers with the Drug Enforcement Administration in New Jersey, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Susan A. Gibson in Newark, as well as special agents and task force officers with the Drug Enforcement Administration in Colombia, the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico. She also thanked the U.S. Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Marshals Service for their assistance with the case.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Repole of the Economic Crimes Unit in Newark and Assistant U.S. Attorney Francesca Liquori, Chief of the OCDETF Unit in Newark.
