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Tuesday, June 20, 2023

6/20 Wake-Up Call: Search Underway for Titanic Tourist Sub


U.S. and Canadian ships and planes searched on Monday for a submarine that went missing more than a day earlier off the coast of southeastern Canada while taking tourists to explore the wreckage of the Titanic, officials said. The U.S. Coast Guard said there was one pilot and four passengers on board and that the vessel had the capacity to be submerged for 96 hours, but it was unclear whether it was still underwater or had surfaced and was unable to communicate.

U.S. and Canadian ships and planes have swarmed the area about 900 miles (1,450 km) east of Cape Cod, some dropping sonar buoys that can monitor to a depth of 13,000 feet (3,962 meters), U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral John Mauger told reporters on Monday.

"It is a remote area and it is a challenge to conduct a search in that remote area," Mauger said. "We are deploying all available assets to make sure that we can locate the craft and rescue the people on board," he said. "Going into this evening we will continue to fly aircraft and move additional vessels."

OceanGate Expeditions was founded in 2009 to take wealthy explorers to see the ship, which hit an iceberg and sank in 1912. The wreck was not located until 1985 when it was found 350 miles off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada. Tourists who pay $250,000 to visit the wreck of the Titanic must sign a waiver that declares: 'This experimental vessel has not been approved or certified by any regulatory body, and could result in physical injury, emotional trauma, or death.' The mothership, MV Polar Prince, set off from Newfoundland on Saturday bound for the spot above the Titanic wreck, 370 miles away. The submersible went into the water in the early hours of Sunday.

➤XI, BLINKEN AGREE TO STABILIZE RELATIONS: China and the United States agreed on Monday to stabilize their intense rivalry so it does not veer into conflict, but failed to produce any major breakthrough during a rare visit to Beijing by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomed "progress" after shaking hands with Blinken at the Great Hall of the People, a grand venue usually reserved for greeting heads of state. The top U.S. diplomat and Xi both stressed the importance of having a more stable relationship, as any conflict between the world's two largest economies would create global disruption. China refused to entertain Washington's bid to resume military-to-military communication channels, citing U.S. sanctions as the obstacle. The two sides appeared entrenched in their positions over everything from Taiwan to trade, including U.S. actions toward China's chip industry, human rights and Russia's war against Ukraine.

➤CHANGE AT THE TOP: Alibaba Group said in a surprise announcement Tuesday Eddie Wu will succeed Daniel Zhang as its chief executive, a move that will free Zhang to focus on the company’s cloud intelligence business. This succession plan comes after China’s largest e-commerce company said in March it will restructure its company into six business groups in the most significant reorganization in its history, aiming to reinvigorate the company after slowing economic growth in its home market and tougher Beijing regulations combined to hit its bottom line.

➤RUSSIA LAUNCHES OVERIGHT ATTACKS: Russia launched a widespread overnight air attack on Ukraine targeting the capital and cities from east to west as most of the country spent the night with air raid sirens blasting for several hours. The General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces said that according to preliminary information, Ukraine's air defence systems shot down 28 out of 30 Iranian-made Shahed drones that Russia launched.About 20 enemy targets were identified and destroyed by the forces and our air defence in the airspace around Kyiv, Serhiy Popko, head of the Kyiv military administration, said on the Telegram messaging app.

 "Another massive air attack on the capital," Popko said. The military administration of Lviv, a city of about 700,000 people and 43 mileS from the border with the NATO country of Poland, said Russia hit a "critical infrastructure" in the city, sparking fire.

➤ARREST MADE IN SPEEDING CRASH THAT CLAIMED 5: The son of an expelled ex-Minnesota cop hating state representative with a previous hit-and-run conviction has been arrested and charged with murder for plowing into a vehicle carrying five Somali women , killing them all, in Minneapolis on Friday. Horrifying video shows the moment Derrick John Thompson, 27, smashed into the car carrying Sabiriin Ali, 17, Sahra Gesaade, 20, Salma Abdikadir, 20, Sagal Hersi, 19, and Siham Adam, 19. Thompson has a criminal record that includes a 2018 hit-and-run in California that gave the woman life-changing injuries. She spent several weeks in a coma.


➤SIX SHOT IN MILAUKEE: At least six teenagers were shot Monday afternoon around where Milwaukee's Juneteenth celebration had just wrapped up, according to police and fire officials. The shooting happened about 4:20 p.m. outside Greater Philadelphia Church of God in Christ, according to witnesses and a Facebook Live video taken by a bystander in the immediate aftermath of the shooting, according to local media outlets. Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman said six teens were shot, including a 17-year-old who may have been a gunman himself and is in custody.

📺FOX TO AIR CANDIDATE TIM SCOTT TOWNHALL:  FOX News Channel’s (FNC) Hannity will present a town hall with 2024 presidential candidate Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) on Tuesday, June 20th at 9 PM/ET. Hosted by Sean Hannity, the town hall will take place at the John T. Rhodes Myrtle Beach Sports Center in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Throughout the hour, Hannity will take questions from the audience while discussing the 2024 presidential race, state of the country and the growing GOP field, among other topics.


CANCER WARNING ON BEER, WINE IN IRELAND SPARK INDUSTRY ALARM: New health warnings by Ireland set to be the world’s strictest on beer, wine and spirits have sparked alarm from alcohol-producing countries that argue the labels would impose an obstacle to trade. The US and Mexico have raised concerns over the legislation ahead of World Trade Organization committee meetings this week. Argentina, Australia, Chile, Cuba and New Zealand have also expressed reservations about the law, which Ireland passed last month. While the European Commission gave Ireland the green light, at least nine wine- and beer-producing member countries opposed the measure. People who experienced social isolation had a 32% higher risk of dying early from any cause compared with those who weren’t socially isolated. Participants who reported feeling lonely were 14% more likely to die early than those who did not.

➤LONELINESS OR SOCIAL ISOLATION LINKED TO SERIOUS HEALTH OUTCOMES, STUDY FINDS: A new study found that meta-analysis of 90 studies that had examined the links between loneliness, social isolation and early death among more than 2 million adults. Study participants were followed for anywhere from six months to 25 years. People who experienced social isolation had a 32% higher risk of dying early from any cause compared with those who weren’t socially isolated. Participants who reported feeling lonely were 14% more likely to die early than those who did not.



⚾MLB Marlins 11 Blue Jays 0:
Luis Arraez went 5 for 5 again to raise his batting average to .400, and Jorge Soler homered as the streaking Miami Marlins routed the Toronto Blue Jays 11-0 on Monday night.  Jon Berti had three hits and Jesús Sánchez doubled twice for the Marlins, who won their fifth straight game and finished with 19 hits - their most since getting 21 on June 1 last year in the opener of a doubleheader at Colorado. Miami improved to a season-best 11 games over .500 at 42-31. 'This is fun because we´re winning and everybody gets hits,' Arraez said. 'I'm excited for this team. When we get to the clubhouse, we are a family.'

⚾MLB Reds 5 Rockies 4: Joey Votto put on the Viking helmet and cape. He felt right at home. Votto homered and hit a go-ahead, two-run single in his return to the Reds' lineup after a 10-month absence that followed surgery, helping Cincinnati extend its longest winning streak in a decade to nine with a 5-4 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Monday night.

 'Long time coming,' Votto said. 'Ever since I've watched them put it on each other, I was thinking about how badly I want that on me because it's tied to a winning moment, and that's exactly -- exactly -- what this team´s about. 

⚾MLB Mets 11, Astros 1: Francisco Lindor homered and drove in five runs, and Max Scherzer pitched eight fantastic innings for his longest outing with the New York Mets in their 11-1 victory over the skidding Houston Astros on Monday night. The win was New York's first over the Astros since Sept. 28, 2014, at Citi Field, snapping a seven-game skid. The Mets had lost eight in a row in Houston, with their previous win here coming in May 2011. Scherzer (6-2) gave up just four hits and struck out eight to bounce back from consecutive rough starts against the Braves and Yankees. 

Luis Arraez
⚾MLB SCORES:

  • Cardinals 8 Nationals 6
  • Tigers 6 Royals 4
  • Cubs 8 Pirates 0
  • Red Sox 9 Twins 3
  • Rangers 5 White Sox 2
  • D-Backs 9 Brewers 1
  • Giants 7 Padres 4



⚾ANGELS PLACE ANTHONY RENDON ON IL WITH WRIST CONTUSION: The Los Angeles Angels placed third baseman Anthony Rendon on the injured list with a left wrist contusion Monday, four days after suffering the injury after being hit by a pitch.The Angels, who host the crosstown rival Los Angeles Dodgers for a two-game series beginning Tuesday, are playing some of   best baseball lately, winning 11 of their past 14 games. But Rendon now joins rookie shortstop Zach Neto (oblique strain) and utility infielder Gio Urshela (fractured pelvis) among regulars who have gone down in the past week.

✞LONGTIME ORIOLES PITCHER DICK 'TURKEY' HALL DIES AT AGE 92: Longtime Baltimore Orioles pitcher Dick "Turkey" Hall, a member of the team's Hall of Fame, died Sunday at the age of 92. The Orioles announced his death on Monday. Hall was inducted into the Orioles' Hall of Fame in 1989.


➤TROPICAL STORM BREWS:
Tropical Storm Bret formed over the central Atlantic Ocean on Monday in an unusual development for the basin at this time of the year. All eyes will be on this system as it pushes westward across a zone of abnormally warm waters. AccuWeather forecasters began referring to the system as a tropical rainstorm and issued AccuWeather Eye Path® maps over the past weekend as it already had a concentrated area of rain and thunderstorms. The National Hurricane Center named Bret, which was spinning about halfway between Africa and the Lesser Antilles, at 5 p.m. EST Monday. The system had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph and was moving west at 21 mph. Satellite images taken on Monday afternoon revealed a healthy and strengthening tropical system.


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