At least 78 people died after a migrant boat carrying hundreds of people sank off the Greek coast in the early hours of Wednesday, that country’s Coast Guard said, as fears mount that there could be more fatalities.

A total of 104 migrants who were traveling on the boat have since been rescued from the water and transferred to the city of Kalamata.

“All the men who have been rescued are between 16 and 41 years old according to what they said,” Kalamata Mayor Thanasis Vasilopoulos said Wednesday. “They also said there were women and children on board,” he added.

The coast guard, which revised down a previous death toll of 79, said the search and rescue operation will stop once it’s dark in the area and will continue with the first light of day tomorrow.

It is unclear how many people were on board the ship when it went under. Survivors say there could have been as many as 750 passengers.

“We fear that the number of dead will rise significantly,” a spokesperson for Peloponnese prefect Panagiotis Nikas said.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) earlier tweeted that it believed that there were “up to 400 people” onboard.

UN chief Antonio Guterres referred to the shipwreck as “horrific” in a post on Twitter, adding: “As I’ve said before – every person searching for a better life deserves safety and dignity.”

State broadcaster ERT, citing initial information from authorities, said the boat had sailed from Tobruk, in Libya.

The NGO Alarm Phone said it first received a call from the boat Tuesday afternoon and that it was “difficult to communicate with the distressed,” who said that they could not survive the night.

Those on board said the captain left the vessel three hours after the first distress call was made and passengers were in need of food and water, accoring to Alarm Phone.

A merchant vessel is said to have provided the boat with water at around 8 p.m. local time on Tuesday evening.

The last time Alarm Phone was able to contact the boat was just before 1 a.m. local time on Wednesday morning. According to Alarm Phone, all that could be heard was “Hello my friend… The ship you send is…” before the call cut off.

Search and rescue operations are being carried out by the Coast Guard in international waters, 47 nautical miles off the coast of Pylos in the southwestern Peloponnese.

The boat’s destination was Italy, according to Greek officials.

Greek President Katernina Sakellaropoulou visited some of the survivors on Wednesday. “We are shocked, we are shocked like everyone in Greece,” Vasilopoulus said.

Greece has been at the heart of the European migrant crisis, offering a way into the European Union for migrants and refugees coming from the Middle East, Asia and Africa.

The number of undocumented people arriving on European shores by sea has skyrocketed this year due to conflict, global inequality and the climate crisis.

More than 36,000 people arrived in the Mediterranean region of Europe from January to March this year, nearly twice the number compared with the same period in 2022, according to figures from the UN’s refugee agency (UNHCR).

It is the highest number since the refugee crisis that peaked in 2015 and early 2016 – during some of the fiercest fighting in Syria’s civil war – when the arrival of more than 1 million people on Europe’s shores led EU solidarity to collapse into bickering and border chaos.

As a journalist, I tend to cover outcomes of the scientific process — a discovery published in a journal or a high-profile award. It’s rare that I get to see the blood, sweat and tears that go into the work.

This month, I spent 10 days as a fellow of the Logan Science Journalism Program at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. I took part in two experiments: gene-editing zebra fish and sampling the bacteria on my tongue to understand the composition of its microbiome, or microbial community.

Getting hands-on experience with the scientific tools I write about was fantastic and humbling — even using a pipette was frustratingly difficult for a fat-fingered newbie like me. I have a deeper respect for scientists and the work they do, which we aim to celebrate in this newsletter. 

Days after I got my first taste of working at a lab bench, a company set forth to prove scientific research can be successfully done in orbit without any humans present.

Look up

The future of medicine may take flight in space.

California startup Varda Space Industries launched its first test mission on June 12, successfully sending a 200-pound (90-kilogram) capsule designed to carry drug research into Earth’s orbit.

The experiment, conducted in microgravity by simple onboard machines, aims to test whether it would be possible to manufacture pharmaceuticals in space remotely.

Research has already established that protein crystals grown in a weightless environment can result in more perfect structures compared with those grown on Earth. These space-formed crystals could potentially then be used to create better-performing drugs that the human body can more easily absorb.

Climate changed

The planet’s coldest, saltiest ocean waters — located in Antarctica — are heating up and shrinking in volume.

This “Antarctic bottom water” plays a crucial role in the ocean’s ability to act as a buffer against climate change by absorbing excess heat and human-caused carbon pollution. The deep waters also circulate nutrients across the ocean.

However, the vital water mass is in decline in the Weddell Sea due to long-term changes in winds and sea ice, according to the British Antarctic Survey, which indicated the trend could have far-reaching consequences for the climate crisis and deep ocean ecosystems.

We are family

Lucy, named for the Beatles song “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds,” is perhaps the world’s most famous fossil.

Unearthed in Ethiopia in 1974 and representing 40% of a skeleton, the remains revealed an early human relative who lived millions of years before Homo sapiens.

Analysis of the find over the past 20 years has suggested that Lucy and others of her species walked upright. New research by paleoanthropologist Dr. Ashleigh L.A. Wiseman at the University of Cambridge has taken things a step further and recreated a component of this ancient ancestor that didn’t fossilize: her muscles.

Through Wiseman’s computer modeling, researchers were able for the first time to understand the shape and size of Lucy’s muscles and how she used them to move, assessing whether it was like the crouched waddle of an upright chimpanzee or the stance of a human.

Meanwhile, other, more recent fossil discoveries are shaking up what we know about early human migration.

Other worlds

A key chemical building block of life has been found on Saturn’s moon Enceladus. The moon’s ice-crusted ocean may be one of the best bets for finding life in our solar system beyond Earth.

Using data from NASA’s Cassini mission, scientists detected phosphorus in salty ice grains released from Enceladus into space by plumes erupting between cracks in the ice shell. It’s the first time the chemical element has been uncovered in an extraterrestrial ocean.

Phosphorus “is essential for the creation of DNA and RNA, cell membranes, and ATP (the universal energy carrier in cells),” according to Dr. Frank Postberg, a professor of planetary sciences at Freie Universität Berlin. “Life as we know it would simply not exist without phosphates.”

Once upon a planet

A recent discovery of organic compounds in ancient rocks in Australia helps illuminate the early history of eukaryotes: life forms with complex, nucleus-containing cells.

Traces of molecules possibly produced by eukaryotes have suggested these organisms — the infinitesimal ancestors of all plants, algae, fungi and animals (including humans) — were abundant 1.6 billion years ago, much earlier than previously thought.

The proto-steroid molecules left by the early eukaryotes revealed they were adapted to a world very different from modern Earth, an international team of researchers said.

Explorations

Check out these remarkable reads:

— Researchers have created the world’s first synthetic human embryo-like structures from stem cells, bypassing the need for eggs and sperm.

— Want to see next year’s total solar eclipse? Make plans now.

— Orcas are popping up in unexpected places, including off the coast of New England.

— NASA’s Curiosity rover has captured a colorful postcard of Mars.

Rickie Fowler will take a one-shot solo lead into the weekend at the US Open following another strong performance at Los Angeles Country Club on Friday.

After he and Xander Schauffele broke the record for the lowest single round score ever shot at the major on Thursday, an eight-under 62, Fowler shot 68 in the second round to pull away from his compatriot.

The 34-year-old, chasing his first major title, holds a one stroke advantage over American Wyndham Clark, who starred yet again to leapfrog tied-third Schauffele into solo second.

Ten-under overall at the halfway stage, Fowler equaled the record for the lowest opening 36-hole score at the tournament, matching Martin Kaymer’s effort in 2014.

It was a rollercoaster round for the world No. 45, who raced out of the blocks with three consecutive birdies. Yet after shooting just two bogeys in his opening round, the five-time PGA Tour winner shot six on Friday, including four across a seven-hole stretch after the turn.

“Being in the lead is nice, but it really means nothing right now,” Fowler told reporters.

“I’m looking forward to continuing to challenge myself and go out there and try and execute the best I can.”

Clark, after missing the cut in both of his previous starts at the major, followed up his opening round 64 with a 67, shooting just one bogey in a composed display to soar into the weekend.

The 29-year-old is comfortably on course to beat his best-ever major finish, a top-75 finish at the PGA Championship in 2021.

McIlroy keeps major dream alive

An electric finish from Rory McIlroy kept the Northern Irishman within striking distance of ending his nine-year wait for a fifth career major.

Two-over par at the turn, the 2011 champion rattled off six birdies across his last nine holes to finish three-under and head into the weekend two shots behind Fowler and tied with Schauffele, who shot an even-par 70.

“No one wants me to win another major more than I do. The desire is obviously there,” McIlroy told reporters.

“I feel like I’ve showed a lot of resilience in my career, a lot of ups and downs, and I keep coming back. And whether that means that I get rewarded or I get punched in the gut or whatever it is, I’ll always keep coming back.”

McIlroy was a whisker away from a walk-off ace when, having started from the 10th hole, his 9th tee shot trickled agonizingly past the cup.

A few inches to the left and the 34-year-old would have become already the fourth player to hit a hole-in-one at the tournament, after defending champion Matt Fitzpatrick made it a hat-trick earlier in the second round.

The defending champion joined France’s Matthieu Pavon and American Sam Burns in finding the 15th hole in one swing, even if he didn’t immediately realize it.

The Englishman struggled to continue the momentum of the first hole-in-one of his PGA Tour career however, double bogeying two holes later and finishing the day at one-over par overall.

“I feel like if I can get the driver going I can shoot a really good score, but could not drive it worse at the minute,” Fitzpatrick told reporters.

Mickelson, Spieth and Thomas crash out

American Harris English sits alone in fifth at seven-under overall, one shot ahead of Australia’s Min Woo Lee and compatriot Dustin Johnson, who rebounded well from a disastrous quadruple bogey at the second hole to card even-par for the round.

“Definitely didn’t get the day started off how I envisioned it starting today,” Johnson told reporters.

“But to battle back and get it back to even par for the day and 6-under for the tournament, still right in the mix going into the weekend, definitely proud of the way I came back and finished off the round.”

Six-time major champion Phil Mickelson and former US Open champion Jordan Spieth headlined a host of big names that failed to progress to the weekend, with the cut line falling at two-over par.

Yet while both only missed out by a single stroke, two-time major winner Justin Thomas endured a truly torrid two days in California, shooting 73 and 81 to finish 14-over par, that tied for the tied-fourth worst score of the 156-player field.

University of Colorado head football coach Deion Sanders is at risk of having his left foot amputated due to poor circulation, according to doctors at the school.

The 55-year-old former NFL and MLB star met with his medical team on an episode of “Thee Pregame Show” on YouTube and revealed he can’t feel the bottom of his left foot.

In the meeting, he discusses the possible next steps to alleviate the daily pain, with doctors suggesting doing an initial surgery on Sanders’ foot to realign one or more of his toes that have had more pressure put on them due to his previous toe amputations.

Earlier this year, Sanders said he had nine surgeries, including eight within a month on the left leg, after developing blood clots that resulted in him having two toes amputated in 2021 while he was the football head coach at Jackson State University. Sanders missed three games due to the amputations.

“You just have to understand what the risks are. Things can cascade,” vascular surgeon Dr. Donald Jacobs tells Sanders, while adding that he was not only at risk of losing another toe but possibly his whole foot if it didn’t heal correctly from the surgery due to the poor circulation.

“Well I know what the risks are. I only have eight toes so I’m pretty sure I understand,” Sanders replied.

“I just want to know what we can do, because I want to do it this summer, because when we get rolling, I’m not going to have time to do it,” he says later.

Sanders’ medical team consists of Jacobs, vascular surgeon Dr. Max Wohlauer, orthopedic surgeon Dr. Ken Hunt and athletic trainer Lauren Askevold, according to the video.

In December, Sanders – now often called “Coach Prime,” derived from his nickname “Prime Time” from his playing days – was hired to become the head coach of the Buffaloes football program. Colorado opens their campaign on September 2 against last season’s College Football Playoff finalist TCU.

“As you know I’ve faced some medical challenges with my foot but I’ve never said ‘WHY ME’ – I keep moving forward, progressing,” Sanders said in a post on Instagram earlier in the week. “I’m CoachPrime and I’m built for this.”

On nothing but a “plank of wood and four wheels,” a group of women are careering down windy mountain roads at breakneck speed, constantly on the lookout for stones, turns and oncoming traffic.

For most people, this could sound less than relaxing – even terrifying. But for Anna Pixner, downhill skateboarding at speed evokes a different feeling: freedom.

Austrian Pixner has been riding concrete like surfers ride waves for six years. When she started competing, she would stand out in crowds of hundreds of men as one of a dozen women. Journalists and spectators are still quick to point out that she is an exception to the norm in the male-dominated world of downhill skateboarding, but Pixner has tired of such comments.

“When I started competing, I realized there are a lot more women out there that are into the same sport, but it was really hard to hear about them or see them because there is no media about it,” the 26-year-old adds.

That is about to change: Pixner’s journey is captured in a new film, “Woolf Women,” which documents the 2019 journey she and four other young women embarked on, taking them 5,700 kilometers (3,541 miles) from London, via Innsbruck, Austria, to the ancient Sumela monastery in the Pontic mountains of Turkey. The women embark on a pilgrimage of sorts, helping fellow rider Jenny Schauerte to come to terms to the sudden death of her father.

The documentary follows the group – German Schauerte, Belgian Jasmijn Hanegraef, Dutch Lisa Peters and Colombian Alejandra Gutierrez – as they navigate bureaucratic border crossings, nail-biting mountain paths and negotiate the ever-present dangers of their sport.

‘Confronting your weakest points’

One of the central themes of the film is mental health, exploring both Schauerte’s battle to process the sudden death of her father and also recovery from a devastating skating accident which left her needing multiple surgeries on her leg and almost took her away from the sport forever.

“In very intense moments, you’re confronting yourself with your weakest points. When you’re skating and you have to push your limits all the time, otherwise you don’t improve and you don’t have fun,” Pixner says.

“I think there’s some part in the sport that feels like a cure, it can also just be purely the adrenaline rush that gives you endorphins and just makes you feel happy physically in that moment. It helps people with depression because it … just gets your body in such a present state.

“If you’re going at that speed, you don’t have time to think about anything else and at that moment, you’re fully present in what’s coming up on the road. That’s all you see and all you are able to focus on. I think it helps us a lot to just be able to feel fully present in the moment, to practice that in whatever way and I think in a playful way, in the end.”

De Angelis says that she was attracted to the women’s story because even now, adventure stories with female protagonists aren’t as common as those featuring men.

“There are very few women adventure stories as a rule, men tend to be the ones that go out there as a pack and, you know, they grab it and then have great adventures. As women, we are slowly learning how to do that: we’re embracing it more and more,” she adds.

“There is not just this physical support for each other to make sure that they’re safe. There is this emotional support, a sort of spiritual support for each other, which I think is quite unusual.”

From the fringes to the mainstream

Once a sport firmly on the fringes of society, skateboarding is becoming more mainstream, and in 2021 became an Olympic event for the first time in the history of the Games.

Pixner is one of a growing number of people who hope that downhill skateboarding will soon become part of the Games’ roster.

“It is a very good spectator sport because it’s kind of like Formula One – in a way we are just racing each other,” she explains, adding that skaters employ similar strategies to car racers.

“Racing sports are always exciting to watch. If it’s a person on just a plank of wood with four wheels, and it’s fully just skill.

“I think it would contribute really well to the Olympics, especially now that skateboarding is already in there. It’s just another discipline… And I would love to see just all those opportunities for the next generation that I always dreamed of.”

“Play big.”

For the last decade, American golfer Wyndham Clark has carried a two-word rule into every competition. This week, the 29-year-old has taken it to Los Angeles Country Club, where he has surged into contention at the US Open courtesy of a blistering first two rounds.

It’s an instruction left by his mother, Lise Clark, who died of breast cancer in 2013 while he was learning his trade at Oklahoma State University.

“When she was sick and I was in college, she told me, ‘Hey, play big,’” Clark told reporters after his second round on Friday.

“‘Play for something bigger than yourself. You have a platform to either witness or help or be a role model for so many people.’

“I’ve taken that to heart. When I’m out there playing, I want to do that for her. I want to show everyone the person I am and how much joy I have out there playing and hope I can inspire people to want to be like me and be better than me.”

The loss left a 19-year-old Clark, out of form and rudderless without his “rock,” seriously considering quitting the sport for good.

Yet he stayed the course, and big plays have defined his US Open start. After opening with a six-under 64, just two shots shy of the tournament-record rounds carded by Rickie Fowler and Xander Schauffele, the world No. 32 followed up with a 67 to soar into the weekend in solo second, just one shot behind leader Fowler.

Having missed the cut on both previous starts at the major, the Denver-born golfer is comfortably on course to beat his best-ever major finish, a top-75 finish at the PGA Championship in 2021.

Clark is enjoying himself, so much so that he even confessed to “feeling a little cocky,” but tangled amid that joy is an ache.

“I was walking down yesterday [Thursday] and was just smiling as I was playing well, and I go, ‘Man, I wish you could be here, Mom,’ because it’s a dream come true to be doing this at the highest level in front of friends and family that are out here,” Clark said.

“I wish she could be here, but I know she’s proud of me, and she’s made a huge impact on my life – I am who I am today because of her.

“She was kind of my rock and my always-there supporter. So when things were tough or when things were going great, she was always there to keep me grounded and either bring me up or keep the high going.

“I’m getting a little choked up. She’s everything, and I miss her, and everything I do out here is a lot for her.”

‘I feel like I can compete with the best players in the world’

It continues a superb 2023 for Clark, who powered to his first PGA Tour crown at the Wells Fargo Championship in May.

A dominant four-shot victory over Schauffele in Charlotte, North Carolina, secured him a $3.6 million winner’s check and ended a run of five years and 133 PGA Tours starts without a win.

Following a string of good performances without silverware to start the year, it was a confidence-boosting triumph for a player who was beginning to wonder if a win would ever come.

“That’s a major championship golf course, and it demands a lot of the same things this does and a US Open would demand, which is all parts of your game being on,” Clark added Friday.

“For me, winning any tournament was big, and then that one in particular felt like a major. I just feel like I can compete with the best players in the world and I think of myself as one of them.”

Clark tees off his third round, alongside overnight leader Rickie Fowler, at 6.40 p.m. ET

Irish island homes

New opportunities are afoot for those dreaming of fixing up a rural idyll far from the chaos of modern life. Ireland has just announced a scheme to revitalize more than 20 of the idyllic islands that lie off its western seaboard, including Inis Mór, whose breathtaking landscape you might recognize from the Hollywood hit “The Banshees of Inisherin,” as well as 10 Irish-speaking Gaeltacht islands.

Increased grants of up to €84,000 (nearly $92,000) will soon be offered to people willing to refurbish vacant or derelict homes and then live in them, with Vacant Home Officers now on the case to identify eligible properties. Would-be islanders should be aware that while there are no restrictions on who can buy property in Ireland, owning a place doesn’t guarantee you the right to live there. The government website has the latest deets on the Our Living Islands policy and the existing refurbishment scheme.

Airplane seats

And in China, Hainan Airlines has faced a backlash after imposing weight restrictions on flight attendants.

Australian airline Qantas has revealed what economy seats will look like on its upcoming record-breaking 19-hour flights between New York and Sydney. The airline promises that its specially designed Airbus A350s will offer passengers more legroom and space to move around the cabin compared with standard flights.

And if the very thought of that is making you a bit crampy, check out our video with five tips on avoiding pain during a long flight.

Our animal friends

A young bear was spotted enjoying a swim alongside beachgoers in Florida on June 11, before hitting the shore and taking off. Woodlands are of course a bear’s usual habitat, and the National Park Service has these safety tips if you encounter one, including not pushing “a slower friend down.”

City leaders in Paris are trying to find out if there’s a way for humans and rats to live peaceably alongside each other. No news as yet on whether that includes rodents living under chefs’ hats à la “Ratatouille.”

How well do you know American food?

Put your culinary knowledge to the test by matching 50 regional dishes with the US states that love them in our 50 states, 50 plates game! Click here to play.

Law and order

Not a week goes by without fresh antics. A man was arrested after jumping into an alligator enclosure in Florida, comedian Marlon Wayans was cited for “disturbing the peace” at Denver’s airport, and Bali is considering banning mountain climbing after a rise in tourist misbehavior, such as semi-nude selfies and other goings-on.

The Republic of Slowjamastan

San Diego late-night DJ Randy “R Dub!” Williams has spent his life attempting to visit every country in the world. And when he was nearly done, he went one further by creating his own: the Slowjamastan micronation in the Californian desert.

In case you missed it

Off the coast of France, a 1,000-year-old citadel rises out of the Atlantic Ocean. 

The stunning creation has played a crucial role in the country’s history.

The heavily armed DMZ separating North Korea and South Korea has become a haven for wildlife. 

Life finds a way. 

Europe is already facing a crazy, blockbuster season of tourism. 

And the madness is about to get a lot worse.

Air travel is toxic for the planet. 

But some airlines are better than others.

More than 50 million people across a large swath of the United States are under a severe weather threat Friday, one day after storms cut a deadly path across Texas, Florida and Mississippi.

One person has died after severe weather swept through Mississippi overnight, the Mississippi Department of Emergency Management said in a release. Preliminary reports show that more than 70 homes have been damaged.

A person in Florida died after being trapped under a tree that fell on their home, Escambia County officials said.

The county, which includes Pensacola, was hit with flash flooding emergencies overnight, leading to high water rescues, the National Weather Service in Mobile, Alabama, reported early Friday, citing local rescuers.

“Widespread and significant” flash flooding was continuing in West Pensacola, Warrington and Gulf Breeze, Escambia County Emergency Management said. “Numerous roadways remain flooded with water entering several structures,” emergency officials said.

Nearly 150 residents of an apartment complex in Pensacola were moved amid the rising water Friday morning and taken to a community center for shelter, county officials said.

Warrington, just south of Pensacola, got nearly a foot of rain in just three hours. Radar estimates indicate as much as 16 inches of rain fell overnight, and more is expected Friday. A flash flood watch is in effect for the area until 7 p.m.

Many of the areas that saw severe conditions Thursday could see storms return as a level 2 of 5 slight risk of severe storms is in place for parts of the South, Mid-Atlantic and Southern Plains.

Large hail, damaging winds and tornadoes are possible in the slight risk areas, which include Montgomery and Mobile in Alabama, Little Rock, Arkansas; Jackson, Mississippi; and Tallahassee, Florida.

A marginal, level 1 of 5 risk is in place from South Dakota to Florida and for parts of the Mid-Atlantic. Cities in the marginal risk area, which could see large hail and damaging winds, include Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, DC, Denver and Jacksonville, Florida.

The destructive tornado that swept through Perryton, Texas, was rated an EF3 that packed estimated peak winds of 140 mph, according to preliminary findings from the NWS. It touched down for about 11 minutes and traveled for a length of more than six miles.

The tornado damaged homes and businesses in the town of some 8,000 residents, including the local fire department and EMS, as well as multiple mobile homes, Dutcher said, noting many of the department’s trucks were damaged.

“There was a time I thought I was going to die,” she said. “Everything went crazy. Dumpsters were flying, hailstones hitting the car.”

James’ home is still standing but the structure next to it is destroyed. She said the tornado is a devastating blow to the city she’s lived in for 15 years. “So many good people in this town. … We look out for one another.”

The city’s power facilities were shutoff for safety purposes, according to Xcel Energy.

“Transmission lines supplying the city with electricity have sustained damage and many lower voltage distribution lines are down in the city,” said Wes Reeves, a spokesperson for Xcel Energy.

“Xcel Energy personnel are working to ensure the safety of Perryton residents and first responders. An estimated time of restoration is not yet available,” he added.

As of 11 p.m. CT Friday, more than 175,000 homes and businesses across Texas were in the dark, according to the tracking website Poweroutage.us. In neighboring Louisiana, more than 130,000 were without power, and outages were also reported in Oklahoma, Virginia and Alabama.

And in Mississippi, more than 100,000 customers remained without power Friday night, according to Poweroutage.us.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration for communities impacted by the severe storms and tornadoes in Ochiltree and Cass counties, according to a news release from the governor’s office.

“The disaster declaration will further support Texas’ recovery efforts in response to extensive damage in those counties,” the news release read. “Additional counties may be added to the declaration as damage assessments are completed.”

The disaster declaration will help streamline the state’s ability to assist local officials recover and rebuild their communities, according to the governor.

Abbott also deployed state emergency resources to “meet urgent life-safety needs in Perryton, Texas,” according to a news release from his office.

“We remain ready to quickly provide any additional resources needed over the course of this severe weather event,” the governor noted in the statement.

Resources from surrounding areas have poured into the city to provide much-needed assistance.

Officials in Beaver County, Oklahoma, sent fire, law enforcement and EMS units to help, according to the county’s emergency manager Keith Shadden.

Neighboring city officials in Stinnett, Texas, also began sending officers and EMS crews. The sheriff’s office in Hutchinson County — which includes Stinnett — also sent rescue and emergency operations following the “devastating tornado,” according to a Facebook post from the office.

Medical help also came from staff at nearby hospitals who swiftly aided up to 100 people after the tornado struck, Ochiltree General Hospital Interim CEO Kelly Judice said.

“A few of them took patients to their hospitals, most of the staff just stayed here and worked,” she added.

On Thursday, there were two tornado reports in Texas, four in Oklahoma and one in Michigan, according to the National Weather Service, with the tornado in Perryton being the most significant.

‘People lost everything today’

The tornado, which was confirmed by the NWS, cut through some of Perryton’s main sections.

The worst damages he saw were in the northwest part of town, where the tornado barreled toward a mobile home park directly in its path, Emfinger explained.

“The storm produced a wall cloud very quickly, and that wall cloud tightened up very rapidly, and then it just went to the ground very quickly,” Emfinger added.

Perryton’s fire department said via Facebook that one of their buildings was severely damaged.

“The Fire Department took a direct hit, [but] our trucks and ambulances are driveable!” the fire department said.

They also shared photos showing a fire station missing its roof and debris strewn throughout the building.

“We have the gym space, and we have the capabilities to help the people that have lost everything and we’re more than willing to do that,” he said. “Sadly, there’s just not a list of things. … You think about that you need on hand, but people lost everything today.”

US Rep. Ronny Jackson, who represents Perryton, said the community needs help.

“If you are in the area, I ask that you do whatever you can to help your neighbors. Food, fuel, water, generators – anything you can.”

The mayor of the Mexican border town of Tijuana has been forced to take up residence at an army base, following escalating threats from organized criminal groups.

Mayor Montserrat Caballero announced on Monday she would start living at the base due to threats, which she said were a result of her administration’s crackdown on gang members.

“Your representative saw herself in the need to live in an army base because we are the police force that has seized more weapons on a national level from criminals…without mentioning the thousands of arrests we did, and because of these actions I suffered an attempted attack,” Caballero said, referencing a shooting incident on May 17.

The mayor also said she believed the move would be permanent.

Mexico’s President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador confirmed the move on Tuesday, explaining that Caballero had already been under protective custody before relocating to the army base.

Baja California Governor Marina del Pilar and Senator Jaime Bonilla were also threatened by the same criminal groups, he also said.

“It was a threat against the governor, the mayor and Senator Bonilla. There are not many details, but it’s better safe than sorry,” Lopez Obrador said.

More than 100 people are now confirmed dead after a boat ferrying hundreds of wedding guests overturned Monday in the river Niger around north-central Nigeria, local police said.

The vessel was carrying around 250 passengers traveling back to Patigi in northcentral Kwara State after attending a wedding party in Gboti, in neighboring Niger State, when it sank early Monday, killing 106 on board, according to police.

Around 144 people were rescued, police said.

“All efforts to draw the attention of the villagers hosting the wedding ceremony for assistance by the persons in the boat proved abortive, leading to the deaths of about 106 people,” the statement added.

Heavy rains and flooding

The overcrowded boat capsized after hitting a tree trunk, he said of the accident which happened at around 3:00am Monday.

It’s unclear if poor visibility contributed to the accident.

“The terrain of the community is terrible when it rains. After the ceremony, it rained, so those who attended with motorcycles could not ride the motorcycles out of the community. They decided to use a big boat to convey people out of Egboti,” Lukpada narrated.

“It was early on Monday between 3:00 – 4:00 am. As they sailed, the boat hit a tree branch hiding in the water and it split into two. The volume of water was high, so it carried the passengers away,” he added, while describing the accident as “a big tragedy.” 

The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (Nimet) had warned of heavy rains that could trigger floods this month as the country observes its rainy season.

Niger and Kwara states lay along the banks of the River Niger, West Africa’s main river, and surrounding communities remain vulnerable when it overflows.

Police said rescue teams were providing care to people rescued from the boat disaster and they will be reunited with their families when “they are fully recovered from the shock and trauma of the accident.”