International
Power starting to return to Cuba after departure of Hurricane Ian
AFP
Authorities were slowly restoring electricity in Cuba on Wednesday following an 18-hour power outage in the country caused by Hurricane Ian, which killed two people and left widespread damage.
Western Cuba was battered Tuesday by the fierce tropical storm that left the country’s power network damaged and its 11.2-million population in the dark.
“Work is underway in all of the affected municipalities in the western provinces. A detailed study is being carried out to determine and quantify the damage to begin the process of restoring the system,” said the state electricity company Union Electrica, the only authorized power supplier in the communist nation.
Union Electrica said that shortly after 5:00 pm on Tuesday, two high-voltage lines triggered protection systems after cables were broken by the fierce winds.
“This situation provoked a power imbalance due to the excess generation in the western area and the lack of generation in the central-eastern zone,” leading to “a total outage.”
By midday on Wednesday, the progressive restarting of eight central thermoelectric plants and generators had begun.
“It’s back!” shouted residents in Havana’s old town as they ran to check on the food inside their refrigerators.
Power was restored for some residents in Havana and another 11 provinces, but not in the three worst-affected provinces in western Cuba.
President Miguel Diaz-Canel visited Pinar del Rio, one of the hardest-hit provinces, on Wednesday to view the damage.
The state electricity company had said late Tuesday that the entire country was “without electrical service.”
Cubans have had to get used to increasingly frequent power cuts since May, but not on a nationwide scale.
Much of the country’s power infrastructure is obsolete and poorly maintained.
“The electricity went out yesterday at 6:00 pm and we don’t know when it will be back on,” farmer Alejandro Perez, 35, told AFP by telephone from the eastern town of Santiago de Cuba earlier on Wednesday.
By contrast, on Isla de la Juventud island, which was the first part of the country struck by Ian, “we have had electricity since 5:00 pm yesterday,” Roxana Gonzalez, 75, told AFP.
Given the island lies 340 kilometers (210 miles) south of Havana, it has its own separate electricity grid.
Ian caused five buildings in the capital to collapse, while another 68 were partially damaged, authorities said.
International
Police investigate deaths of Rob Reiner and wife as apparent homicide
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) is investigating the deaths of Hollywood actor and filmmaker Rob Reinerand his wife as an “apparent homicide,” amid a wave of tributes to the director of classics such as When Harry Met Sally.
According to U.S. media reports on Sunday, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner were found dead at their Los Angeles mansion with what appeared to be stab wounds.
Several political figures shared messages of condolence following the reported deaths of the director of A Few Good Menand his wife.
While the LAPD did not officially confirm the identities of the victims, it stated that homicide detectives were dispatched to the Reiner residence.
“At this time, no additional details are available and the investigation into an apparent homicide is ongoing,” the Los Angeles Police Department said in a statement posted on social media.
LAPD Deputy Chief Alan Hamilton told reporters that no arrests have been made and that no individuals are currently being questioned as suspects.
“I’m not going to confirm whether anyone is being questioned at this moment or not. We are going to try to speak with as many family members as we can,” Hamilton said.
CNN reported that a family spokesperson confirmed the deaths of Reiner and his wife.
California Governor Gavin Newsom, former U.S. President Barack Obama, and former Vice President Kamala Harrisissued statements expressing their condolences.
International
U.S. and Mexico Reach Deal to Address Water Deficit Under 1944 Treaty
The United States and Mexico have reached an agreement to comply with current water obligations affecting U.S. farmers and ranchers and for Mexico to cover its water deficit to Texas under the 1944 Water Treaty, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a statement.
The department уточified that the agreement applies to both the current cycle and the water deficit from the previous cycle.
On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump accused Mexico of failing to comply with the water-sharing treaty between the two countries, which requires the United States to deliver 1.85 billion cubic meters of water from the Colorado River, while Mexico must supply 432 million cubic meters from the Rio Grande.
Mexico is behind on its commitments. According to Washington, the country has accumulated a deficit of more than one billion cubic meters of water over the past five years.
“This violation is severely harming our beautiful crops and our livestock in Texas,” Trump wrote on Monday.
The Department of Agriculture said on Friday that Mexico had agreed to supply 250 million cubic meters of water starting next week and to work toward closing the shortfall.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, quoted in the statement, said Mexico delivered more water in a single year than it had over the previous four years combined.
Trump has said that if Mexico continues to fall short of its obligations, the United States reserves the right to impose 5% tariffs on imported Mexican products.
Mexico’s Deputy Foreign Minister for North America, Roberto Velasco, said that a severe drought in 2022 and 2023prevented the country from meeting its commitments.
International
Several people shot in attack on Brown University campus
Several people were shot on Saturday in an attack on the campus of Brown University, in the northeastern United States, local police reported.
“Shelter in place and avoid the area until further notice,” the Providence Police Department urged in a post on X. Brown University is located in Providence, the capital of the state of Rhode Island.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social that he had been briefed on the situation and that the FBI was on the scene.
At 5:52 p.m. local time (11:52 p.m. GMT), Brown University said the situation was still “ongoing” and instructed students to remain sheltered until further notice.
After initially stating that the suspect had been taken into custody, Trump later posted a second message clarifying that local police had walked back that information. “The suspect has NOT been apprehended,” the U.S. president said.
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