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Disasters - SERIES 204 {12 articles}

How to sum up Japan's summer of disaster in Japanese?

9/25/2018, 6:08:54 AM
The summer of 2018 was one for the books — busting meteorological records, wreaking havoc and devastating entire regions along the coast of western Japan. ✔ どうなっちゃってるの今年の夏 ( Dō natchatteru no kotoshi no natsu , What’s up with this summer?) ✔ Sainan could theoretically be diminished by carrying around an 御守り ( o-mamori , talisman), specifically one for 災難除け ( sainanyoke , avoiding misfortune), or through 善行 ( zenkō , performing good acts)



Tuscany fire: Hundreds evacuated near Pisa as flames ravage Mount Serra

9/25/2018, 7:53:04 AM
A MASSIVE wildfire has forced villagers to flee their homes on a remote Italian mountain. ✔ Around a hundred villagers gathered in the municipal gym after being evacuated ✔ Fire chiefs and civil protection officers said strong winds were hampering the operation to tackle the wildfire ✔ There have been no reports of death or injuries but officials fear the flames are about to reach inhabited areas



Aichi couple sets up phone booth for people seeking to connect with loved ones they have lost

9/25/2018, 6:08:59 AM
A red, wooden telephone booth stands on a hill in Tahara, Aichi Prefecture, overlooking Mikawa Bay. Inside sits a disconnected black telephone. The booth w ✔ A red, wooden telephone booth stands on a hill in Tahara, Aichi Prefecture, overlooking Mikawa Bay ✔ Deep in her heart, she wanted to live, Kazuko said ✔ It is our responsibility as adults, having made this society a place difficult for her to live ✔ This section features topics and issues from the Chubu region covered by the Chunichi Shimbun



After the hurricane comes the deluge on South Carolina coast

9/25/2018, 4:23:44 AM
GEORGETOWN, S.C. (AP) — Eleven days ago, Lee Gantt was at a Hurricane Florence party in her neighborhood in Georgetown, where the story goes that some houses haven't flooded from ✔ The church is on the bank of the Waccamaw River which has already risen above its record crest and is expected to keep rising for several days, forcing thousands of evacuations in the aftermath of Hurricane Florence ✔ (Matt Born/The Star-News via AP) Gray muck is flowing into the Cape Fear River from the site of a dam breach at a Wilmington power plant where an old coal ash dump had been covered over by Florence's floodwaters



EU announces mechanism to ease trade with Iran despite sanctions

9/25/2018, 6:43:38 AM
The European Union said Monday its members would set up a payment system to allow oil companies and businesses to continue trading with Iran in a bid to evade sanctions after the US withdrew from a nuclear agreement. ✔ The participants recalled that these initiatives are aimed at preserving the JCPOA, which is in the international interest, she said ✔ The EU move comes a day before Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani separately address the UN General Assembly, with the US leader expected to take a hard line on Iran



Bali waste dump fire rages for more than a day

9/25/2018, 6:46:13 AM
A massive fire is under way at a Bali waste dump. Authorities are struggling to put it out. It's spewing smoke and has been going for nearly 24 hours now. ✔ The Citarum river, in West Java, has been dubbed the most polluted river in the world ✔ Other then the obvious smell, [there are] health problems ✔ The current landfill will be covered by geo-membrane, the methane gas will be handled, then trees and garden will be planted



Instagram co-founders resign with no explanation

9/25/2018, 7:08:06 AM
Instagram co-founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger are leaving the smartphone photo-sharing service bought by Facebook six years ago for a billion dollars. ✔ CEO Mark Zuckerberg called Systrom and Krieger 'extraordinary product leaders' and said he was looking forward 'to seeing what they build next.' Instagram in June announced it passed a billion active users, and unveiled a new long-form video feature in a bid to attract 'creators' like those on YouTube  The platform has been a hit with young internet users, an audience that Facebook is keen to keep in its fold



Company profits, lower welfare spending drive strong budget

9/25/2018, 5:09:02 AM
The result gives Treasurer Josh Frydenberg his third win in as many weeks in the job. ✔ Mr Frydenberg said the numbers showed the Coalition's economic plan was working, as the government moves its platform of responsibility to the centre of its re-election campaign ✔ Labor was spending money that they thought they might get before they collected it, and that is the reason why the budget ended up in such a bad position after six years of Labor, Senator Cormann said



China Denies U.S. Navy Ship’s Request for Hong Kong Visit

9/25/2018, 6:15:19 AM
The Chinese government denied a U.S. Navy ship permission for a port visit to Hong Kong next month, a decision issued as Beijing also canceled a high-level naval meeting in the U.S. ✔ Huang called the U.S. sanctions a blatant violation of basic norms of international relations and a stark show of hegemony, according to the statement ✔ China’s decision will affect hundreds of service members serving on board ✔ An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated the month was August



Reliable Sources: Kavanaugh gives unprecedented interview to Fox's Martha MacCallum

9/25/2018, 4:55:55 AM
From the standpoint of the Trump White House, going with Martha MacCallum made a ton of sense: MacCallum is a well-credentialed female anchor who hails from the news side of Fox, not the opinion side. ✔ A version of this article first appeared in the Reliable Sources newsletter ✔ News apps were a much better way of finding out what really happened ✔ Read more of Monday's Reliable Sources newsletter.. ✔ And subscribe here to receive future editions in your inbox..



New Documents Further Expose the Yeltsin-US Collusion, Extent of US Meddling in Russian Politics

9/25/2018, 6:24:12 AM
In the early summer, the Clinton Foundation released hundreds of pages of newly declassified documents about conversations between US president Bill Clinton and Russian president Boris Yeltsin between 1996 and 1999. The documents show the extent of US meddling in Russian domestic politics in the 1990s, and are a stark testimony to the groveling of the Russian oligarchy, personified by Boris Yeltsin, before US imperialism. ✔ The increasingly tense conversations between Clinton and Yeltsin from 1998 and 1999 about the US bombing of Iraq in 1998 and of Serbia in 1999 reflect this dynamic ✔ The Russian oligarchy has also maintained its own foreign policy alliances and economic ties, including with other major imperialist powers like Germany, that are at odds with the economic and foreign policy interests of US imperialism



100 armed agents and 143 arrests: the Ice raid that traumatized a small Ohio town

9/25/2018, 6:58:31 AM
Three months after Ice raided Fresh Mark in Salem and arrested 146 immigrants, everything and nothing has changed ✔ It was one of the biggest raids conducted on a workplace by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) in the past decade, and is part of a rise in such tactics under the Trump administration ✔ When I was younger I crawled around picking beans and scrubbed toilets to support my family ✔ Efrian Ruano, a Guatemalan immigrant and now a US citizen, at a Guatemalan shop in Salem



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