International aid reaches Tonga with clean water, supplies
Aid flights from Australia, Japan and New Zealand carrying food, water, medical supplies and telecommunications equipment landed in Tonga over the weekend, as the Pacific nation grapples with the aftermath of an underwater volcanic eruption and tsunami.
Greece: Thousands spend night outdoors after powerful quake
Red Cross distribute food to local residents after an earthquake in Damasi village, central Greece, Wednesday, March 3, 2021. An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of at least 6.0 struck central Greece Wednesday and was also felt in neighboring Albania and North Macedonia, and as far as Kosovo and Montenegro. (AP Photo/Vaggelis Kousioras)ATHENS – Fearful of returning to their homes, thousands of people in central Greece were spending the night outdoors late Wednesday after a powerful earthquake, felt across the region, damaged homes and public buildings. The shallow, magnitude-6.0 quake struck near the central city of Larissa. Ad___ Elena Becatoros and Theodora Tongas in Athens, Llazar Semini in Tirana, Albania, and Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey contributed.
Child burned in Brevard house fire, officials say
COCOA, Fla. – A child was injured Tuesday morning in a house fire in Canaveral Groves Shores, fire officials said. The fire broke out at a home on Cabbage Palm Street, southwest of I-95 and Port St. John Parkway. [TRENDING: Winter storm shuts down Fla. schools | Fla. man arrested in Capitol riot: I was following Trump’s orders | Shoe removed from 341-pound croc]A child was injured Tuesday morning in a house fire in Canaveral Groves Shores, fire officials said. The child, whose age has not been released, suffered minor burns and was treated by Brevard County Fire Rescue paramedics, officials tweeted. The Red Cross said it was helping two adults and two children after the fire, providing them with emergency relief funds.
1920s beachside house destroyed in fire
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – A 1920s beachside house was destroyed in a fire sparked by a space heater, Daytona Beach fire officials said. The fire broke out around 1:30 a.m. Monday on Flamingo Avenue. Fire officials said the house was engulfed by flames when firefighters arrived, but they were able to get the blaze under control and keep it from spreading to the house next door and two RVs that were parked nearby. Four adults living in the house were able to safely escape. Firefighters determined the cause of the blaze was an unattended space heater that malfunctioned on the second floor of the home.
Belgium fears ICU beds could reach capacity next month
FILE - In this Thursday, April 23, 2020 file photo, nurses cheer as a patient who had COVID-19 leaves the intensive care ward at the MontLegia CHC hospital in Liege, Belgium. Belgium's intensive care units will hit capacity by mid-November if new coronavirus cases continue to soar at the same pace, according to the country's health authorities. File)BRUSSELS – Belgium’s intensive care units will hit capacity by mid-November if new coronavirus cases continue to soar at the same pace, the country’s health authorities warned Wednesday. The latest COVID-19 figures published Wednesday by the national institute of public health show that Belgium has seen 7,360 new coronavirus cases over the last 24 hours. Van Laethem said the country is currently the second-worst in Europe in terms of new coronavirus infections, behind the Czech Republic.
Red Cross of Central Florida deploys volunteers to assist Hurricane Laura victims
To assist with disaster relief efforts, the Red Cross of Central Florida region deployed more than 20 volunteers. “The team that I’m on, we go out there -- we’re the first team in for the Red Cross, both at home and out there on disaster relief operations. I mean, he just lost it and that was probably one of the most memorable moments that I ever had.”The Red Cross Central Florida region is deploying 21 volunteers: about 6 of them from Orlando. On Tuesday, News 6 caught up with two volunteers as they were getting ready to fly out to Houston and Louisiana. “When you’re there as a Red Cross responder and you’re able to provide that comfort to that individual and show them that little light at the end of the tunnel, that little ray of hope.
Central Florida volunteers head to Texas, Louisiana to help during Hurricane Laura
ORLANDO, Fla. – Kathy Burkett and Sammy Conneen are volunteers with the American Red Cross of Central Florida. On Tuesday, the two got on a plane to Texas to help ahead of Hurricane Laura. The National Hurricane Center expects Hurricane Laura to strengthen into a major hurricane before it reaches landfall between Texas and Louisiana. [LIVE TRACK: Turbocharging Laura could strike US as Category 3 hurricane]Conneen, who's been volunteering for six years, said she's been in Texas for other natural disasters. “I know that if it was us they’d be coming to help us so it’s our turn to help them,” Conneen said.
6,000 passengers kept on Italy cruise ship as Wuhan coronavirus fear spreads
Six-thousand passengers were being held on a cruise ship off Italy on Thursday while doctors checked on two tourists from Hong Kong who had a fever, the Red Cross said. The pair becoming ill sparked fears they could have contracted a new virus, Italian media said. The Red Cross was on hand in case the tourists need to be transferred to the special hospital in Rome - the Lazzaro Spallanzani National Institute for Infectious Diseases. It comes as China counted 170 deaths from the new virus Thursday and more countries reported infections, including some spread locally, as foreign evacuees from China's worst-hit region returned home to medical observation and even isolation. The new virus is from the coronavirus family, which includes those that can cause the common cold as well as more serious illnesses such as SARS and MERS.