WEST TEXAS – A storm chaser not only captured a massive tornado touching down in Hawley, Texas, on Thursday, but ended up rescuing a family of four whose home was destroyed by it.
In the harrowing, live video from Freddy McKinney, he yells at the family to “Hurry, get inside!” as they run for their lives, begging him for help.
They sped towards the hospital, which was miles away.
Kasey and Wes Lambert, along with their 7-year-old son and 5-year-old daughter, have a variety of lacerations, bruises and broken bones, but are otherwise okay.
“We saw it hit our friend’s house and we went into the closet,” said Kasey Lambert. “Sat down and grabbed hands. What did we do? We prayed, ‘Please keep us safe.’ Bricks are falling on us. I look up. Our house is crashing down.”
She tried to hold onto both of her children, but the wind was too powerful.
“Lane was sucked out and thrown 25 feet,” Lambert said. “I remember screaming for him. I thought he was dead. I thought he was gone and I had already begun mourning. And I had the only fear I ever have as a mom is not being able to rescue my child in a dangerous time. And that’s exactly what happened.”
When the tornado had passed over their home, Lambert said they were able to quickly find Lane and run to McKinney for help. If he wasn’t there to take them to the hospital, she said she’s not sure her son would have survived because of the bleeding.
The Lamberts said they are incredibly grateful for the outpouring of love and support from the community as they heal and cleanup what’s left of their home.
Several other homes in Hawley were damaged or destroyed by the tornado. The National Weather Service believes it was likely a strong EF3 or a weak EF4, but the agency will need a few more days to review the data before making a final determination.
Caroline Vandergriff joined the CBS 11 News team in September 2019. She grew up in Arlington (go Lamar Vikings!), and is thrilled to be back home in North Texas.
A tornado touched down in the city of Hawley, Texas, late Thursday, destroying several homes. One family whose young son was injured described the life-threatening ordeal. Omar Villafranca reports.
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The difference between a Flood Watch and a Flood Warning can become confusing.
But knowing the difference between the two could help save your life. It doesn’t take much water to sweep you off your feet or move your vehicle, so you should stay prepared.
Watch the video above to learn the meaning behind the two alerts and what you should do when the National Weather Service issues one for your area.
Being angry is bad for your health. Even a brief amount of anger could negatively impact blood vessels, increasing the risk of stroke and heart disease, according to a new study published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
What You Need To Know
A brief episode of anger may negatively impact blood vessels
Blood vessels’ inability to relax increases the risk of stroke and heart disease, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association
The new study bolsters an AHA finding that mental well-being can positively or negatively affect a person’s health
Anxiety and sadness have also been linked with heart attack risk
“Observational studies have linked feelings of negative emotions with having a heart attack or other cardiovascular disease events,” Columbia University Irving Medical Center Dr. Daichi Shimbo said in the journal article accompanying the study results. “The most common negative emotion studied is anger, and there are fewer studies on anxiety and sadness, which have also been linked to heart attack risk.”
For the study, researchers randomly assigned 280 adults to one of four emotional tasks for eight minutes. They either had to recall a personal memory that made them angry, a personal memory that made them anxious or read a series of depressing sentences that evoked sadness or count repeatedly to induce a state of emotional neutrality.
The researchers then assessed the cells lining their blood vessels both before and after the assigned task to determine if the vessels’ ability to dilate was impaired or if it increased cell injury or the cells’ capacity to repair.
The only one of the four tasks that caused impairment to blood vessel dilation was recalling a personal memory of being angry.
“We saw that evoking an angered state led to blood vessel dysfunction, though we don’t yet understand what may cause these changes,” Shimbo said.
Blood vessels’ ability to relax is important for proper blood flow, according to the American Heart Association. Impaired blood vessels may increase the risk of atherosclerosis, of cholesterol building up in the artery walls, which may increase the risk of stroke and heart attack.
The new study bolsters an AHA report from in 2021 that found mental well-being can positively or negatively affect a person’s health.
The 2024 Atlantic hurricane season is less than one month away, and the time to prepare is now. National Hurricane Preparedness Week began on May 5 and runs through May 11.
What You Need To Know
It is National Hurricane Preparedness Week
Atlantic hurricane season begins on June 1
It’s time to review your hurricane preparation plans
How to prepare?
Even if you are not in a storm’s path, there are ways to prepare in advance that will make it easier for you when the time comes. It’s important to know if you live in an evacuation zone, and if so, to develop an evacuation plan for you and your family.
You can assemble a hurricane kit, including items like non-perishable food for your family and pets, water, flashlights, a first aid kit and more.
Also, reviewing your insurance plans if you own a home and to sign up for flood insurance if it is a separate plan.
Colorado State University released its outlook for the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season in April, and their researchers are forecasting above normal activity this season. It’s the most activity ever forecasted in a preseason outlook since CSU began issuing them in 1995.
This year’s forecast includes several factors, primarily record warm sea surface temperatures in the eastern and central Atlantic. Warm water acts as fuel for tropical systems.
Global climate models and forecasters also suggest a transition to La Niña conditions by the peak of Atlantic hurricane season. According to CSU, “La Niña typically increases Atlantic hurricane activity through decreases in vertical wind shear.”
The National Hurricane Center is introducing some fresh changes to the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season you can expect to see.
Two new names are on the list this year after Florence and Michael were retired after the 2018 season. The new names replacing them will be Francine and Milton. Here is what to know about the 2024 Atlantic hurricane names.
Along with the new names, the National Hurricane Center will experiment with some tweaks to the cone of uncertainty this season. Inland tropical watches and warnings will now be shown on an experimental map with the cone to better convey threats.
Our team of meteorologists dives deep into the science of weather and breaks down timely weather data and information. To view more weather and climate stories, check out our weather blogs section.
New Mexico has reached a record settlement with a Texas-based company over air pollution violations at natural gas gathering sites in the Permian Basin.
The $24.5 million agreement with Ameredev announced Monday is the largest settlement the state Environment Department has ever reached for a civil oil and gas violation. It stems from the flaring of billions of cubic feet of natural gas that the company had extracted over an 18-month period but wasn’t able to transport to downstream processors.
Environment Secretary James Kenney said in an interview that the flared gas would have been enough to have supplied nearly 17,000 homes for a year.
“It’s completely the opposite of the way it’s supposed to work,” Kenney said. “Had they not wasted New Mexico’s resources, they could have put that gas to use.”
The flaring, or burning off of the gas, resulted in more than 7.6 million pounds of excess emissions that included hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and other gases that state regulators said are known to cause respiratory issues and contribute to climate change.
Ameredev in a statement issued Monday said it was pleased to have solved what is described as a “legacy issue” and that the state’s Air Quality Bureau was unaware of any ongoing compliance problems at the company’s facilities.
“This is an issue we take very seriously,” the company stated. “Over the last four years, Ameredev has not experienced any flaring-related excess emissions events thanks to our significant — and ongoing — investments in various advanced technologies and operational enhancements.”
While operators can vent or flare natural gas during emergencies or equipment failures, New Mexico in 2021 adopted rules to prohibit routine venting and flaring and set a 2026 deadline for the companies to capture 98% of their gas. The rules also require the regular tracking and reporting of emissions.
Ameredev said it was capturing more than 98% of its gas when the new venting and flaring rules were adopted, and the annual capture rate has been above 98% ever since.
A study published in March in the journal Nature calculated that American oil and natural gas wells, pipelines and compressors were spewing more greenhouse gases than the government thought, causing $9.3 billion in yearly climate damage. The authors said it is a fixable problem, as about half of the emissions come from just 1% of oil and gas sites.
Under the settlement, Ameredev agreed to do an independent audit of its operations in New Mexico to ensure compliance with emission requirements. It must also submit monthly reports on actual emission rates and propose a plan for weekly inspections for a two-year period or install leak and repair monitoring equipment.
Kenney said it was a citizen complaint that first alerted state regulators to Ameredev’s flaring.
The Environment Department currently is investigating numerous other potential pollution violations around the basin, and Kenney said it was likely more penalties could result.
“With a 50% average compliance rate with the air quality regulations by the oil and gas industry,” he said, “we have an obligation to continue to go and ensure compliance and hold polluters accountable.”
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TEXAS — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Monday announced he has sued the Biden administration to stop the expansion of the gender equity law known as Title IX.
What You Need To Know
Texas Attorney Generla Ken Paxton has sued the Biden administration over the expansion of the gender equity law known as Title IX
The changes were announced last week and are set to take effect in August
According to the Department of Education, the update prohibits discrimination “based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics in federally funded education programs”
Paxton, in a news release announcing the lawsuit, said “Texas will not allow Joe Biden to rewrite Title IX at whim, destroying legal protections for women in furtherance of his radical obsession with gender ideology”
The Biden administration last week detailed changes to Title IX that add protections for transgender, LGBTQ+ and pregnant students to federal civil rights law on sex-based discrimination. Those changes are set to take effect in August.
Also set to change is a Trump-era guidance on how schools should handle cases of sexual assault.
Specifically, according to a Department of Education fact sheet, the update prohibits discrimination “based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics in federally funded education programs.” That includes protections for transgender students.
Paxton, in a news release announcing the lawsuit, characterized the changes as an attack on women.
“Texas will not allow Joe Biden to rewrite Title IX at whim, destroying legal protections for women in furtherance of his radical obsession with gender ideology,” Paxton said. “This attempt to subvert federal law is plainly illegal, undemocratic, and divorced from reality. Texas will always take the lead to oppose Biden’s extremist, destructive policies that put women at risk.”
Paxton said America First Legal is serving as co-counsel. It’s president, Stephen Miller, who was senior adviser to former President Donald Trump, said the update will force women and girls to share locker rooms and bathrooms with assigned males at birth.
“America First Legal is honored to stand with the great Ken Paxton and the State of Texas in filing this emergency lawsuit to stop Biden’s war on women. Biden’s new Title IX regulation is a vile obscenity: it forces women and girls to share locker rooms and restrooms with men,” Miller wrote.
The 1,577-page regulation finalized last week seeks to clarify Title IX, the 1972 sex discrimination law originally passed to address women’s rights.
At least 11 states have adopted laws barring transgender girls and women from using girls’ and women’s bathrooms at public schools.
The new regulation opposes those sweeping policies.
It states that sex separation at schools isn’t always unlawful. However, the separation becomes a violation of Title IX’s nondiscrimination rule when it causes more than a very minor harm on a protected individual, “such as when it denies a transgender student access to a sex-separate facility or activity consistent with that student’s gender identity.”
A Texas man died after police say they responded to an exposure call and ultimately tased the man.
Screengrab from Houston Police Department’s video on Facebook
A Texas man died after police say they responded to an exposure call and ultimately tased him.
Just after 7 a.m. April 28, police responded to a southeast Houston neighborhood after they were called about a naked man running around in the street, Houston Police Assistant Chief Wyatt Martin said at a news conference streamed on Facebook.
People in the area reported they could hear the man screaming. When officers arrived, they found the man inside a back enclosed porch of a home in the neighborhood.
Martin said police confronted the man and ordered him to come out, but he was uncooperative. The officers backed off and called for backup because the man was in an “agitated state”, Martin said.
When fire crews and backup units arrived, police tried to take the man into custody, Martin said.
“He fought with the officers and was eventually tased,” Martin said.
The man, whose identity has not been released, was placed into handcuffs, and about a minute later he became unresponsive, police said.
Paramedics were already on the scene and treated the man but were not able to revive him, police said. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
“We use tasers as a less lethal weapon quite often, most of the time people have no adverse effects. This gentleman, we do know for certain was on a narcotic, and that very likely, given what he was on, could have contributed,” Martin said.
Martin said the man was tased at least one time after wrestling with officers. He said a full investigation into the man’s death will be done.
A cause of death has not yet been determined.
Jennifer Rodriguez is a McClatchy National Real-Time reporter covering the Central and Midwest regions. She joined McClatchy in 2023 after covering local news in Youngstown, Ohio, for over six years. Jennifer has made several achievements in her journalism career, including receiving the Robert R. Hare Award in English, the Emerging Leader Justice and Equality Award, the Regional Edward R. Murrow Award and the Distinguished Hispanic Ohioan Award.
More than a dozen tornadoes touch down across Texas, Oklahoma and Nebraska; High schoolers organize benefit dinner for young cancer patients and families
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More than a dozen tornadoes have touched down in three states – Texas, Oklahoma and Nebraska. Video shows a massive twister tearing across the interstate north of Lincoln, Nebraska, as large pieces of debris flew through the air. Omar Villafranca reports from Ennis, Texas.
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Editorials and other Opinion content offer perspectives on issues important to our community and are independent from the work of our newsroom reporters.
Driller Cristo Flores, left, and Michael Manga, a rig manager, address a drill issue in 2017 on a rig in Midland, Texas. (Ilana Panich-Linsman/The New York Times)
ILANA PANICH-LINSMAN
NYT
As the election draws closer and record inflation wreaks havoc on the economy, President Joe Biden has dropped behind former President Donald Trump in nearly every battleground state. In a bid to regain ground, Biden’s administration recently unveiled a desperate proposal to wipe out student loan debt for 30 million borrowers — portraying it as a dream come true for young Americans.
Once you peel back the veneer of generosity, this action reeks of a blatant bribe to win the votes of young Americans. As imperative as it is to maintain our status as a leading global force with a proficient, unburdened and dynamic workforce, Biden’s politically driven maneuver lacks foresight. It fails to offer sustainable solutions for students and young professionals, instead burdening diligent taxpayers with an unwarranted bill. Instead, we should redirect focus toward vocational and career training in high-demand sectors, where skilled labor commands lucrative salaries.
It comes down to the numbers. In many cases, it has become a financially unwise decision to get a university degree unless you get a STEM degree. Choose whichever cliché proverb you like, whether it’s “rob Peter to pay Paul” or “teach a man to fish,” but Biden’s action won’t miraculously give these kids a higher-paying job or solve their struggle with inflation. Today, the average university degree costs about $43,000 and has increased 70% over the last 24 years. The only people benefiting from skyrocketing costs are the legions of administrative bureaucrats at colleges and universities.
It’s past time our country redefined “higher education” and reevaluated what it means to ‘live the American Dream.’ Our nation needs more workers ready to roll up their sleeves and do the “dirty jobs” that Mike Rowe describes. We need more blue-collar Americans to help rebuild the nation’s infrastructure and re-establish our energy independence.
Today’s youth should be encouraged to attend technical colleges. Students can get a degree in just two years, compared to four, and come out making the same salary, around $40,000, with some degrees paying nearly double. They’re also half the cost or less of a traditional university and have a hiring rate at about 90%.
The Texas oil and natural gas industry is always looking for hard-working individuals to keep the state the top producer in the nation. The industry makes up about one-third of Texas’ economy and pays billions in taxes and royalties each year, literally fueling our state government. About 1 million Texans work in oil and gas because it pays an average salary of about $140,000 — about 103% higher than other industries.
With ongoing international conflicts and inflation remaining high, global demand for energy remains vital. Texas has played a key role in providing that energy, with record production and employment in 2023.
In 2019, the U.S. became a net exporter of energy for the first time in 67 years, surpassing Saudi Arabia and Russia to become the largest producer of oil and gas in the world. This gave us affordable energy, thousands of new jobs, economic growth, and improved national security. Our country achieved this by simply empowering — instead of attacking — domestic producers.
America needs more skilled workers, not more taxpayer-subsidized bachelor’s degrees. That’s how you grow an economy, and that’s how you build a robust middle class.
Wayne Christian, a Republican, is one of three members of the Texas Railroad Commission, which regulates oil and gas production.
Wayne Christian
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Police broke up a demonstration against Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza on Thursday at Emory University in Atlanta, the latest flashpoint in a growing movement on college campuses around the country. Hundreds of people have been arrested in California, Massachusetts, Texas and other states during the tense protests, following several rounds of arrests in New York in recent days.
Several dozen protesters set up tents in an encampment on Emory’s quad early Thursday morning, Assistant Vice President Laura Diamond said in a statement. The initial group of protesters wasn’t associated with the university, but they were later joined by some members of the Emory community, Diamond said.
Protesters chanted slogans supporting Palestinians and opposing a public safety training center being built in Atlanta.
The school’s police department told the group they were trespassing, and police took around two dozen people into custody and cleared the quad when they refused to leave, Diamond said. Some officers carried semiautomatic weapons, and video showed officers using a stun gun on one protester who they had pinned to the ground.
The Georgia State Police confirmed later Thursday that officers used a Taser on one protester who they said was resisting arrest. The protester was tased twice before he was taken into custody, according to Courtney Lund, a public information officer for the state police.
Police officers detain a demonstrator during a protest against the war in Gaza at Emory University on April 25, 2024, in Atlanta, Georgia.
Elijah Nouvelage/AFP via Getty Images
The Emory and Atlanta police departments requested assistance from state law enforcement authorities after being met by university protesters who threw bottles and refused to leave, Lund said.
The university police called city and state authorities after deciding that the initial group of protesters were not affiliated with Emory University based on their refusal to confirm their connections, Cheryl Elliott, the university’s Vice President for Public Safety, said in a statement Thursday evening, adding that the individual who was tased also “is not a member of the Emory community.”
“Due to the direct assault of officers, law enforcement released chemical irritants into the ground to assist with crowd control,” Elliot said.
At 7:41 a.m. a few dozen protestors arrived on campus. When they arrived, these individuals ignored and pushed past EPD officers stationed on the Quad and set up tents in an area where equipment and materials were staged for Commencement. Based on their actions and refusal to confirm their connection to Emory, EPD made the assessment that these individuals were not Emory community members.
At Emerson College in Boston, chaos erupted overnight as police tried to break up a pro-Palestinian alleyway camp. Police said Thursday 108 people were arrested and four police officers suffered injuries that were not life-threatening.
Video shows police first warning students in the alleyway to leave. Students link arms to resist officers, who move forcefully through the crowd and throw some protesters to the ground.
“As the night progressed, it got tenser and tenser. There were just more cops on all sides. It felt like we were being slowly pushed in and crushed,” said Ocean Muir, a sophomore at Emerson.
“For me, the scariest moment was holding these umbrellas out in case we were tear-gassed, and hearing them come, and hearing their boots on the ground, just pounding into the ground louder than we could chant, and not being able to see a single person,” she said.
Police move in to arrest pro-Palestinian supporters who were blocking the road after the Emerson College protest camp was cleared by police in Boston, Massachusetts, April 25, 2024.
Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images
Muir said police lifted her by her arms and legs and carried her away. Along with other students, Muir was charged Thursday with trespassing and disorderly conduct.
Emerson College leaders had earlier warned students that the alley has a public right-of-way and city authorities had threatened to take action if the protesters didn’t leave. Emerson canceled classes Thursday.
In nearby Cambridge, Harvard University had sought to stay ahead of protests this week by limiting access to Harvard Yard and requiring permission for tents and tables. That didn’t stop protesters from setting up a camp with 14 tents Wednesday following a rally against the university’s suspension of the Harvard Undergraduate Palestine Solidarity Committee.
Harvard law student Tala Alfoqaha, who is Palestinian, said she and other protesters want more transparency from the university.
“My hope is that the Harvard administration listens to what its students have been asking for all year, which is divestment, disclosure and dropping any sort of charges against students,” she said.
In Philadelphia, more than 100 students at Temple University walked out of class and marched from campus to City Hall, CBS Philadelphia reported. The protesters were also joined by students from Drexel University.
George Washington University in the nation’s capital on Thursday evening called anti-war encampments “an unauthorized use of university space” and said they were in violation of several university policies.
Indiana University’s police department similarly said a gathering of tents at Dunn Meadow was in violation of the university’s policies and that 33 people were arrested after refusing to take them down.
Students protesting the Israel-Hamas war are demanding schools cut financial ties to Israel and divest from companies enabling its monthslong conflict. Some Jewish students say the protests have veered into antisemitism and made them afraid to set foot on campus as graduation nears, partly prompting a heavier hand from universities.
USC
Another 93 people were arrested Wednesday night during a protest at the University of Southern California and accused of trespassing, the Los Angeles Police Department said. There were no reports of injuries.
Tensions were already high at USC after the university canceled a planned commencement speech by the school’s pro-Palestinian valedictorian, citing safety concerns. On Thursday, the university canceled its main-stage commencement ceremony, which is attended by as many as 65,000 people, because of the amount of time needed to process the crowd in line with new safety measures, USC said. Individual school ceremonies would still be held.
After scuffles with police early Wednesday, a few dozen demonstrators standing in a circle with locked arms were detained one by one without incident later in the evening.
Officers encircled the dwindling group sitting in defiance of an earlier warning to disperse or be arrested. Beyond the police line, hundreds of onlookers watched as helicopters buzzed overhead. The school closed the campus.
“Both sides of my family were displaced from Palestine, and I’m here using my voice because my grandparents couldn’t,” protester Randa Sweiss told CBS Los Angeles.
University of Southern California safety officers try to disperse students protesting Israel’s war in Gaza, at the school’s Alumni Park in Los Angeles, California, April 24, 2024.
Reuters/Zaydee Sanchez
In Northern California, students at California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, barricaded inside a building for a third day, and the school shut down campus through the weekend and made classes virtual.
UT Austin
At the University of Texas at Austin, hundreds of local and state police — including some on horseback and holding batons — moved against protesters Wednesday, at one point sending some tumbling into the street. Officers pushed their way into the crowd and made arrests at the behest of the university and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, according to the state Department of Public Safety.
A photographer covering the demonstration for Fox 7 Austin was in the push-and-pull when an officer yanked him backward to the ground, video shows. The station confirmed that the photographer was arrested. A longtime Texas journalist was knocked down in the mayhem and could be seen bleeding before police helped him to emergency medical staff.
Dane Urquhart, a third-year Texas student, called the police presence and arrests an “overreaction,” adding that the protest “would have stayed peaceful” if the officers had not turned out in force.
University of Texas police detain a man at a protest over Israel’s war in Gaza at the University of Texas in Austin, Texas, April 24, 2024.
Jay Janner/Austin Statesman/USA Today Network via Reuters
“Because of all the arrests, I think a lot more (demonstrations) are going to happen,” Urquhart said.
Police left after hours of efforts to control the crowd, and about 300 demonstrators moved back in to sit on the grass and chant under the school’s iconic clock tower.
In a statement Wednesday night, the university’s president, Jay Hartzell, said: “Our rules matter, and they will be enforced. Our University will not be occupied.”
On Thursday, university spokesperson Brian Davis said not everyone at the protests were students. “There was significant participation by outside groups present on our campus yesterday,” Davis said in a statement. He said 26 of the 55 people arrested were unaffiliated with the university.
The Travis County Attorney’s Office, which prosecutes misdemeanor crimes, dropped 46 cases stemming from Wednesday’s protests after finding deficiencies in the probable cause affidavits, a spokesperson said in a statement.
A student stares at a row of Texas state troopers as students protest the Israel-Hamas war on the campus of the University of Texas in Austin, Texas, on April 24, 2024.
Suzanne Cordeiro/AFP via Getty Images
Columbia University
While grappling with growing protests from coast to coast, schools have the added pressure of approaching May commencement ceremonies. At Columbia University in New York, students defiantly erected an encampment where many are set to graduate in front of families in just a few weeks.
Columbia continued to negotiate with students after several failed attempts to clear the encampment and over 100 arrests in recent days.
The university averted another confrontation between students and police Wednesday. University President Minouche Shafik had set on Tuesday a midnight deadline to reach an agreement on clearing an encampment, but the school extended negotiations for another 48 hours.
Late Thursday night, the school said, “The talks have shown progress and are continuing as planned. … We have our demands; they have theirs. A formal process is underway and continues. There is a rumor that the NYPD has been invited to campus this evening. This rumor is false.”
Nevertheless, two police buses were parked nearby and there was a noticeable presence of private security and police at entrances to the campus.
Just past midnight, a group of some three dozen pro-Palestinian protestors handed out signs and started chanting outside of the locked Columbia University gates. They then marched away as at least 40 police officers assembled nearby.
Students prepare to spend another night maintaining a protest encampment in support of Palestinians on the Columbia University campus in New York City, April 24, 2024.
Reuters/Caitlin Ochs
A group of Columbia University students filed a federal civil rights complaint against the school Thursday, accusing it of discriminating against Palestinian students and pro-Palestinian protesters, CBS New York reports.
On a visit to campus Wednesday, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, called on Shafik to resign “if she cannot immediately bring order to this chaos.”
He claimed the university is being taken over by a radical and extreme ideology, citing several recent incidents of antisemitic language by protesters on and off campus.
“We need the National Guard, law enforcement or someone to come in here and take control,” Johnson told CBS News correspondent Nancy Chen. “Desperate times call for desperate measures.”
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul accused Johnson of politicizing the protest by coming to campus and said she has no plans to call in the National Guard for now.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell took a measured approach Thursday on how to handle the demonstrations, telling CBS News he’d wait to see if university presidents “can get control of the situation” before taking more forceful measures.
On Wednesday evening, a Columbia spokesperson said rumors that the university had threatened to bring in the National Guard were unfounded. “Our focus is to restore order, and if we can get there through dialogue, we will,” said Ben Chang, Columbia’s vice president for communications.
Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, whose daughter was involved in the protests, visited the protesters on Thursday.
“I had the honor of seeing the Columbia University anti-war encampment firsthand,” Omar wrote on social media. “Contrary to right-wing attacks, these students are joyfully protesting for peace and an end to the genocide taking place in Gaza. I’m in awe of their bravery and courage.”
Columbia graduate student Omer Lubaton Granot, who put up pictures of Israeli hostages near the encampment, said he wanted to remind people that there were more than 100 hostages still being held by Hamas.
“I see all the people behind me advocating for human rights,” he said. “I don’t think they have one word to say about the fact that people their age, that were kidnapped from their homes or from a music festival in Israel, are held by a terror organization.”
On Wednesday about 60 tents remained at the Columbia encampment, which appeared calm. Security remained tight around campus, with identification required and police setting up metal barricades.
Columbia said it had reached an agreement with protest representatives that only students would remain at the encampment, and that the protesters “have taken steps to make the encampment welcome to all and have prohibited discriminatory or harassing language.”
Elsewhere in Manhattan, at New York University this week, police said 133 protesters were taken into custody. And on Monday, more than 40 protesters were arrested at an encampment at Yale University in Hew Haven, Connecticut, and charged with criminal trespass, a misdemeanor.
The 2024 Atlantic hurricane season doesn’t begin until June 1, but we’re already watching an area of low pressure in the eastern Atlantic.
What You Need To Know
The system has low development odds
Upper-level winds will limit any future development
Atlantic hurricane season begins on June 1
The disturbance is about 900 miles northwest of the Cabo Verde Islands. As this system moves southwestward, it will get torn apart by strong upper-level winds tonight and Thursday.
The 2024 hurricane season outlook from Colorado State is calling for an extremely active season. You can read their seasonal outlook here.
Our team of meteorologists dives deep into the science of weather and breaks down timely weather data and information. To view more weather and climate stories, check out our weather blogs section.
At least 10 pro-Palestine protesters were arrested Wednesday on the UT Austin campus.
Getty Images
Getty Images/iStockphoto
Law enforcement officers on Wednesday handcuffed and removed at least 10 people participating in a student protest on the University of Texas at Austin campus in support of Palestine amid the Israel-Hamas war.
UT Austin students demanding that the university divest from manufacturers supplying Israel weapons in its strikes on Gaza gathered outside the university’s Gregory Gym with plans to march to the South Lawn, where they said they would sit down throughout the day. More than 200 students had gathered as of noon.
Authorities detained the protesters after telling students they could face criminal trespass charges if they didn’t disperse. One of the protesters was helping organize the event. An officer singled him out and told other officers he would be the first to be arrested.
After they were taken away, officers told the shrinking crowd that more arrests could happen if the students didn’t disperse.
Dozens of Texas Department of Public Safety officers in horses and riot gear were also present at the scene. Some could be seen pushing protesters with their batons.
The arrests at UT Austin come a day after pro-Palestine students staged a sit-in at the University of Texas at Dallas with similar demands, The Dallas Morning News reported.
In the six months since the decades-old conflict in the Middle East reignited in horrific violence, tensions have bubbled in campuses across the U.S. between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel groups.
Hamas militants attacked Israel in a surprise offensive in October that resulted in the deaths of 1,200 people and the abduction of about 250 hostages. In response, the Israeli military launched a campaign that so far has killed over 34,000 Palestinians and wounded nearly 77,000 people, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Two-thirds of the casualties are women and children.
The devastating violence — much of which has been shared over social media — has prompted demonstrations on campuses across the country.
Last week, Columbia University called on the New York Police Department to empty a campus encampment of pro-Palestinian protesters, which resulted in the arrest of more than 100 people. According to the Columbia Spectator, the university’s student newspaper, NYPD did not report violence or injuries. Some Jewish students have reported feeling unsafe and harassed due to the protests.
In response to the arrests, Columbia’s faculty senate planned to hold a vote on a resolution to censure President Nemat Shafik. Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle have called for Shafik’s resignation for what they say was a failure to protect students from antisemitism.
Similar protests have been held at other universities, including New York University, Yale University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Protests on Texas campuses have already tested administrators’ handling of the fraught subject and their commitment to free speech on campuses. As pro-Palestine and pro-Israel students engage in protests and heated discussions, school leaders have struggled to strike a balance between their roles as moderators and facilitators of intellectual debate on campus.
Universities have also faced pressure from state leaders, who have been public about their support of Israel. Gov. Greg Abbott, who traveled to Israel in November to reaffirm his support, issued an executive order last month requiring schools to update their free speech policies and punish what he described as “the sharp rise in antisemitic speech and acts on university campuses.”
“Texas supports free speech, especially on university campuses, but that freedom comes with responsibilities for both students and the institutions themselves,” Abbott wrote in the order.
Ikram Mohamed and Annie Xia contributed to this story.
Schools will need to phase in meals with less sugar and salt under new nutrition standards the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Wednesday. The new rules will phase in gradually between fall 2025 and fall 2027.
What You Need To Know
Schools will need to limit sugar and salt in meals under new nutrition requirements the USDA announced Wednesday
The new standards call for limiting added sugars in cereals, yogurts and flavored milks by fall 2025
Sodium will need to be reduced 10% in breakfast and 15% in lunches by fall 2027
Around 30 million children receive breakfasts and lunches at K-12 schools currently
“This is designed to ensure that students have quality meals and that we meet parents’ expectation that their children are receiving healthy and nutritious meals at school,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said Tuesday during a briefing on the new rules.
The new nutrition standards call for limiting added sugars in cereals, yogurts and flavored milks by fall 2025 and reducing sodium 10% in breakfasts and 15% in lunches by fall 2027. Beginning this fall, schools will also have the option of requiring unprocessed agricultural products to be locally grown, raised or caught when purchased for school meal programs.
“The goal here is to make sure that we are doing everything we can to be supportive of our own producers and our own industry,” Vilsack said.
Schools will have limits on the percentage of non-American grown and produced foods they can purchase starting with the 2025-2026 school year. Non-American foods will be capped at 10% in fall 2025 and reduce to 8% by fall 2028 and 5% by fall 2031.
The USDA expects the new rules will result in a 1% cost increase over the next 10 years.
About 30 million children receive breakfasts and lunches at K-12 schools. The USDA says school meals are the main source of nutrition for more than half of the children who receive them.
Earth Day marks the birth of the modern environment movement in 1970.
It falls on the same calendar day each year, April 22.
Its popularity has grown around the globe with more than 1 billion participants each year. Not only is Earth Day a day where people pick up trash around the world, but its ideas also led to policy changes within governments to push toward a cleaner environment.
Watch the video above to see how Earth Day got its start.
The Tarrant County Jail on Tuesday, October 11, 2022.
Amanda McCoy
amccoy@star-telegram.com
An inmate died after he was pepper sprayed while fighting with detention officers at the Tarrant County Jail during a check for contraband, the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
Anthony Johnson, 31, died just before 10 a.m. Sunday, according to the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Jailers were conducting what the sheriff’s office called routine contraband checks in cells just before 9 a.m. Sunday morning when Johnson refused to exit his cell so it could be searched, according to the release. He began fighting with detention officers and they used the pepper spray “to assist in bringing the inmate under control,” the sheriff’s office said.
After he was pepper sprayed, Johnson was examined by John Peter Smith Hospital medical staff working at the jail and was not responsive, the release said.
Medical staff peformed CPR and Johnson was taken to JPS, where he died.
Johnson was arrested Friday by Saginaw police on charges of possession of a controlled substance in penalty group 1, tampering /fabricating physical evidence with intent to impair and evading arrest or detention and was taken to the Tarrant County Jail on Saturday, according to the release.
The sheriff’s office said Johnson was arrested after police responded to a call about a man standing in an intersection wielding a knife at a driver. When officers arrived, the sheriff’s office said he attempted to flee on foot.
A detention officer was also injured and was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. The Texas Rangers will be leading the investigation.
The medical examiner’s office will determine the cause of death.
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James Hartley is a breaking news reporter with awards including features, breaking news and deadline writing. A North Texas native, he joined the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in 2019. He has a passion for true stories, understated movies, good tea and scotch that’s out of his budget.
A man was arrested and taken to the Jacksboro County Jail on a murder charge after authorities found a woman dead inside a home on Saturday, the Jacksboro Police Department announced in a news release.
Around 12 p.m. Saturday, Jacksboro police were dispatched to the 400 block of North 4th Street about a deceased person.
When officers arrived, they found a man sitting on a chair on the porch and the front door to the residence was open. As officers approached the home, they found a woman laying face down on the floor, according to the release.
She was confirmed to be dead, police said.
Investigators determined the woman had been beaten to death. The man, 35-year-old Lee Martinez, was found to have injuries on his hands indicative of the incident, according to the release.
The suspect was arrested and taken to the Jacksboro County Jail.
Nicole Lopez is a breaking news reporter at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. She graduated from the University of Texas at El Paso, where she studied multimedia journalism. She also does freelance writing.
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