
-
Trump tariffs spark fears for Asian jobs, exporting sectors
-
Stocks and dollar sink, havens rally as Trump tariffs fan trade war
-
Runners fly to North Korea for first post-Covid Pyongyang Marathon
-
Hamilton rubbishes claims he's lost faith in Ferrari
-
Nintendo Switch 2 sparks excitement despite high price
-
Sri Lanka's crackdown on dogs for India PM's visit sparks protest
-
S Korea police raise security levels ahead of impeachment verdict
-
China vows 'countermeasures' to sweeping new US tariffs
-
Trump jolts allies, foes and markets with tariff blitz
-
France says EU to target US online services after Trump tariffs
-
Tsunoda vows to bring 'something different' after Red Bull promotion
-
Verstappen not happy with Tsunoda-Lawson Red Bull swap
-
Experts accuse 54 top Nicaragua officials of grave abuses
-
Remains of 30th victim of Los Angeles fires found
-
EU to target US online services after Trump tariffs: France
-
How Trump's 'liberation day' tariffs will impact China
-
Malaysia suspends search for long-missing flight MH370
-
Search for long-missing flight MH370 suspended: Malaysia minister
-
Europe hits out at Trump tariffs, keeps door open for talks
-
Myanmar's junta chief to head to Bangkok summit as quake toll surpasses 3,000
-
Lawson vows to prove he belongs in F1 after shock of Red Bull axing
-
Australia sweats through hottest 12 months on record: official data
-
Livestock theft is central to jihadist economy in west Africa
-
South African artist champions hyenas in 'eco-queer' quest
-
Danish PM in 'unity' Greenland visit amid US takeover threats
-
Taiwan says US tariffs 'highly unreasonable'
-
Lawson says ruthless Red Bull axing was 'tough to hear'
-
Heat humble Celtics for sixth straight win, Thunder roll on
-
Trump escalates trade war with sweeping global tariffs
-
Japan says US tariffs 'extremely regrettable', may break WTO rules
-
South Koreans anxious, angry as court to rule on impeached president
-
Juve at in-form Roma with Champions League in the balance
-
Injuries put undermanned Bayern's title bid to the test
-
Ovechkin scores 892nd goal -- three away from Gretzky's NHL record
-
Australian former rugby star Petaia signs for NFL's Chargers
-
China says opposes new US tariffs, vows 'countermeasures'
-
Athletics world watching as 'Grand Slam Track' prepares for launch
-
Heat humble Celtics for sixth straight win, Cavs top Knicks
-
Quake-hit Myanmar's junta chief to head to Bangkok summit
-
New Spielberg, Nolan films teased at CinemaCon
-
Shaken NATO allies to meet Trump's top diplomat
-
Israel's Netanyahu arrives in Hungary, defying ICC warrant
-
Shiny and deadly, unexploded munitions a threat to Gaza children
-
Stocks tank, havens rally as Trump tariffs fan trade war
-
Altomare hangs on to tie defending champ Korda at LPGA Match Play
-
Paraguay gold rush leaves tea producers bitter
-
Health concerns swirl as Bolivian city drowns in rubbish
-
Syria says deadly Israeli strikes a 'blatant violation'
-
Financial markets tumble after Trump tariff announcement
-
Starbucks faces new hot spill lawsuits weeks after $50mn ruling

Hawaii officials say 'no regrets' about lack of wildfire sirens
Embattled officials in Hawaii who have been criticized for the lack of warnings as a deadly wildfire ripped through a town insisted Wednesday that sounding emergency sirens would not have saved lives.
At least 110 people died when the inferno levelled Lahaina last week on the island of Maui, with some residents not aware their town was at risk until they saw flames for themselves.
But the head of Maui's Emergency Management Agency, which operates a network of 80 sirens, on Wednesday defended the decision not to sound them as fire bore down on Lahaina's more than 12,000 people.
"The sirens are used primarily for tsunamis. The public is trained to seek higher ground in the event that the siren is sounded," Herman Andaya told a press conference.
"Had we sounded the siren that night, we're afraid that people would have gone (into the hills)... into the fire."
Criticism has swelled since the disaster, with survivors complaining there were no official warnings, with the mobile phone networks and electricity supply knocked out, limiting the channels by which alerts are usually delivered.
Andaya on Wednesday queried whether anyone would have noticed if the sirens had blared their 121-decibel warning -- a level the American Academy of Audiology says is equivalent to a jet plane taking off.
"A lot of people who are indoors, air conditioning on whatever the case may be, they're not going to hear the siren," he said.
"Plus the winds were very gusty (that day)... it was very loud, so they wouldn't have heard the sirens."
Asked if he regretted the decision not to activate the system, he replied: "I do not."
Hawaii's Governor Josh Green last week ordered a probe into the before-during-and-after of the tragedy, to see if lessons can be learned.
Survivors have complained that the government has been slow to help them; that the body recovery is inching along, and that they are being prevented from going back to their homes.
Disaster officials have bristled at suggestions local people have lost trust in them, insisting it is outsiders who are complaining.
"You think that people that live here that are helping don't care?" said Maui Mayor Richard Bissen at a sometimes-testy news conference.
"Talk to the people born and raised here. Talk to the people who are trying to piece it together. The reason you should trust us is because this is our home."
- 'Difficult' -
Over a third of the disaster zone has now been searched by specially trained dogs, and the death toll is expected to continue to rise as they work through the remainder.
"This is a really difficult search operation," Deanne Criswell, the administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), told reporters.
"The dogs have to navigate the heat. They have to deal with issues with their paws walking through glass and debris and in these conditions. The dogs require frequent rest.
"I want to be honest with everyone: this is also going to be a very long and hard recovery."
Only a handful of bodies recovered from Lahaina have been identified so far, two of whom were named by Maui County officials as Robert Dyckman, 74, and 79-year-old Buddy Jantoc, both from Lahaina.
Experts in forensic pathology, some of whom worked in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, have flown to Maui, as efforts are stepped up to identify remains.
Authorities on the island have begun collecting DNA samples from people whose relatives are missing. But the presence of so many tourists was a further complicating factor, and could necessitate a much larger network for capturing samples, said Adam Weintraub of Hawaii Emergency Management Agency.
"We're going to have to establish some kind of system where if you have family who are vacationing on Maui and you haven't been able to contact them, you can go to your local police station" to give a sample, he said.
- Biden 'committed' to Hawaii aid -
The White House said President Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, will "meet with first responders, survivors, as well as federal, state, and local officials" in Maui on Monday.
"I remain committed to delivering everything the people of Hawaii need as they recover from this disaster," the president wrote on social media.
Biden had quickly declared a major disaster in Hawaii after last week's inferno, allowing the deployment of emergency assistance from the federal government.
But he has been criticized by the Republican opposition for what they characterized as a timid response to the fires.
The White House said emergency officials had advised that "search and recovery efforts are expected to be at a stage early next week to allow for a presidential visit."
O.Johnson--AMWN