Month: January 2022

13 people, including several children, were killed on Wednesday when fire broke out at a row house in Philadelphia’s Fairmount neighborhood. Firefighters arrived at the three-story property at about dawn and found heavy smoke coming from the second floor of the home, which is owned by the Philadelphia Housing Authority. Officials said it took crews almost an hour to get the blaze under control.

Philadelphia Deputy Fire Commissioner Craig Murphy told reporters during a press conference:  “It’s a sad, sad day for the Philadelphia Fire Department and the city. I’ve been around for 35 years now and this is probably one of the worst firsts I’ve ever been to.”  Murphy added: “There were four smoke detectors in that building and none of them operated.  There was an inspection done by the PHA in 2019. When they went out in 2019, they installed four smoke detectors. And there was another inspection in 2020. When they went out that time, they installed two smoke detectors.”

The home was divided into separate living spaces and 26 people were living there at the time of the fire. The PHA is the nation’s fourth-largest public housing authority and owns more than 14,000 affordable housing units, according to its website. Officials said the fire doesn’t appear to be suspicious, but the cause is under investigation. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is aiding in the inquiry.

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Authorities in New Hampshire said Wednesday that the father of missing 7-year-old Harmony Montgomery has been arrested in connection with her disappearance in 2019, which remains unsolved. Adam Montgomery, a 31 year-old from Manchester, was arrested on a warrant charging him with felony second-degree assault arising from 2019 conduct against Harmony, as well as one misdemeanor charge of interference with custody and two misdemeanor charges of endangering the welfare of a child pertaining to Harmony, the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office said. Despite the arrest, the search for Harmony continues, authorities said. Montgomery was arraigned around noon in Hillsborough County Superior Court North Wednesday but did not appear in court after his arraignment and bail conditions were agreed to by lawyers.

According to court documents, Harmony’s mother first notified police in November that her daughter was missing, but police were unable to find Adam Montgomery, who had legal custody of the child. Last week, the state’s Division for Children, Youth and Families contacted police saying they couldn’t find the girl either. Harmony’s mother had lost custody to Adam Montgomery because of substance abuse issues, according to court documents, but upon regaining sobriety, she started looking for Harmony. After hearing from DCYF last week, Manchester police eventually found Adam Montgomery living in a car. He told police he gave Harmony to his mother around Thanksgiving 2019. However, police found his story inconsistent and Montgomery refused to cooperate.

Detectives have been investigating “non-stop” since becoming aware that Harmony was missing, the department added. They are working in conjunction with DCYF and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and the FBI has also joined the investigation. Harmony is described as 4 feet tall, weighing about 50 pounds, with blond hair, blue eyes and glasses. Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to call Manchester police at (603) 668-8711. Anonymous tips can also be called in to the Manchester Crimeline (603) 624-4040. Manchester police said a reward is being offered in connection with the case, which was increased on Wednesday to $43,000.

On Tuesday, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its guidance on the recommended Covid-19 isolation period, stating that if people have access to a Covid-19 test, the best approach is to use a rapid test toward the end of their five-day isolation period. The agency has faced pressure over the past week from outside medical experts to include a testing component in its new shortened isolation period.

The updated recommendations do not advise a test for isolated people, but they offer guidance on how those people should respond to a test result if they choose to take one. If the test is positive, isolated people are advised to continue their isolation until 10 days after their symptoms started. If the test is negative, isolated people can end their isolation but are advised to wear a mask around other people until day 10.The recommendations advise people who are isolating to avoid places where they can’t wear a mask, such as restaurants and gyms, and to avoid eating around others until day 10. People who are isolating are now urged to wait to travel until at least 10 days after the start of symptoms. Those who must travel on days six to 10 should wear a mask for their entire trip.

The updated guidance advising people to stay isolated until day 10 if they have a positive rapid test after five days in isolation appears to contradict Walensky’s claim to CNN last week that “we wouldn’t change our guidance based on the result of the rapid test.” Walensky repeatedly defended the CDC’s decision not to include recommending a rapid test in earlier guidance, telling CNN last week, “We opted not to have the rapid test for isolation because we actually don’t know how our rapid tests perform and how well they predict whether you’re transmissible during the end of disease.”

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The Virginia state police said that the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) road crews have continued to clear abandoned vehicles on Interstate 95 after rain, snow and ice stranded drivers along a 40-mile stretch.  In a briefing Tuesday, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam confirmed that that there have been no reports of fatalities or injuries, saying that the perfect storm created an “incredibly unusual event” that resulted in the major backup.  Northam said that road crews from VDOT and emergency responders have been working around the clock to tow disabled vehicles and get traffic moving again.

Said Northam: “First we had rain, which meant that VDOT couldn’t adequately pretreat the roads. Then we had slushy snow that fell a lot faster than our snowplows could move it, and then as the night fell, the temperatures dropped below freezing. All of those together created the perfect storm for what happened on I-95 last night.”   

Multiple tractor trailers, blocking the highway led to miles of backups with people stuck in their cars for many hours. Northam said that the region was not prepared for the weather that swept through the region:  “We were prepared for the storm that was predicted — a few inches of snow, but instead, Mother Nature sent more than a foot of snow to the Fredericksburg area.”  Northam said that the state has not called upon the National Guard for assistance because it takes time to deploy them and that their road crews. The VDOT anticipated that I-95 would be cleared of vehicles ahead of Wednesday’s rush hour.

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Former President Trump’s son Donal Trump Jr, and daughter Ivanka Trump, have refused to comply with subpoenas issued by the New York State attorney general’s office as it conducts a civil investigation into the way the family real estate business valued its holdings.

A document filed Monday said ‘a dispute has arisen between the OAG and the Individual Trump Parties regarding the Subpoenas.’  The document, filed jointly by New York Attorney General Letitia James and an attorney for the Trump Organization, said Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump will now be named as respondents in James’ ongoing inquiry, which parallels a criminal investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney’s office.  A spokesperson for the Attorney General said: “As her investigation into financial dealing of the Trump Organization continues, Attorney General James is seeking interviews under oath of Donald Trump, Donald Trump Jr., and Ivanka Trump. Despite numerous attempts to delay our investigation by the Trump Organization, we are confident that our questions will be answered and the truth will be uncovered because no one is above the law.”

Former President Trump and his company have denied wrongdoing, claiming the investigation is political. Thus far, the ongoing criminal investigation has resulted in indictments against the Trump Organization and its longtime chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg on tax charges.

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