What to Know
- Newly homeless residents of wine country awoke after wildfires killed at least 17 people and destroyed more than 2,000 homes and buisnesses
- The new timeline for the Vegas massacre raises questions about whether better communication might have allowed cops to respond more quickly
- During BET's Hip Hop Awards, Eminem performed a freestyle, slamming Trump as "a kamikaze that'll probably cause a nuclear holocaust"
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17 Dead as Fires Ravage Northern California With Shocking Speed
Newly homeless residents of California wine country awoke to shattered lives after wildfires killed at least 17 people and destroyed more than 2,000 homes and businesses. A fire chief said a total of 17 large fires still burning across the state charred more than 115,000 acres in just 24 hours. Area hospitals have reported treating more than 100 patients with fire-related injuries. As many as 2,000 homes and businesses have been destroyed, according to authorities, who warned that all those figures were expected to climb in the coming days as more information is reported. Eleven deaths have been confirmed in Sonoma County and two in Napa County. Farther north, three people have been confirmed dead in Mendocino County and one in Lake County. Mandatory and volunteer evacuations were widespread in Napa and Sonoma counties and stretched into Solano County. Several evacuation centers have opened for residents to take shelter.
Could Vegas Police Have Taken Down the Gunman Sooner?
The revised timeline given by investigators for the Las Vegas massacre raises questions about whether better communication might have allowed police to respond more quickly and take out the gunman before he could kill and wound so many people. Sheriff Joe Lombardo said Stephen Paddock shot and wounded a Mandalay Bay hotel security guard outside his door and sprayed 200 bullets down the hall six minutes before he opened fire Oct. 1 from his high-rise suite on a crowd at a country music festival below. That was a different account from the one police gave last week: that Paddock shot the unarmed guard, Jesus Campos, after unleashing his barrage of fire on the crowd, where 58 people were killed and hundreds injured. A spokeswoman for Mandalay Bay questioned the latest timeline of events provided by police. The sheriff had previously hailed Campos as a "hero" whose arrival in the hallway may have led Paddock to stop firing.
USS McCain Commanding Officers Relieved of Duty After Deadly Collision
Local
After the USS John S. McCain's collision with a merchant vessel that resulted in the deaths of 10 sailors, the ship's commanding officers have been relieved of their duties, NBC News reported. Cmdr. Alfredo J. Sanchez, the commanding officer, and Cmdr. Jessie L. Sanchez, the executive officer, were said to have exercised poor "judgement" and "leadership," respectively, the U.S. Pacific Fleet said in a statement. The statement added that the two officers were relieved because of "loss of confidence." The USS John S. McCain collided with a 30,000-ton tanker near Singapore in August, killing 10 sailors and injuring five. Earlier in June, the USS Fitzgerald slammed into a Japanese merchant ship in June resulting in seven sailors deaths. Admiral Scott Smith announced his retirement from Command of the Pacific Fleet because of the two incidents.
Spanish Government Holds Urgent Meeting on Catalonia Independence
The Spanish Cabinet met in Madrid to work out its response to an announcement from the head of the wealthy Catalonia region that he was proceeding with a declaration of independence, further fueling Spain's worst political crisis in decades. Prime minister Mariano Rajoy, who is due to address the national parliament later in the day, chaired the closed-doors meeting at the government's headquarters in the Moncloa Palace, on the outskirts of Madrid. Rajoy was to make a televised statement following the meeting. Catalan regional president Carles Puigdemont said he would proceed with the secession but would suspend it for a few weeks to facilitate negotiations. But the government has given little indication it is willing to talk. In a highly anticipated speech, Puigdemont said the landslide victory in a disputed Oct. 1 referendum gave his government in the regional capital, Barcelona, the grounds to implement its long-held desire to break century-old ties with Spain.
Eminem Slams Trump in Rap During BET's Hip Hop Awards
The real Slim Shady stood up — to President Donald Trump. In a video during BET's Hip Hop Awards, rapper Eminem performed a freestyle feature, slamming Trump as "a kamikaze that'll probably cause a nuclear holocaust." "Racism's the only thing he's fantastic for," Eminem rapped. Later in the number, he mentioned the hypocrisy of black soldiers who are confronted with "tiki torches" and told to "go back to Africa." Eminem called Trump's feud with the NFL a "form of distraction" that takes away from Puerto Rico and gun reform conversations because Trump would rather "cause a Twitter storm with the Packers." The rapper raised his fist in the air to show solidarity with former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who was the first player to protest during the national anthem last year. Kaepernick responded to the gesture on Twitter. "I appreciate you Eminem," he tweeted with a fist emoji. And at the end of the video, Eminem spoke to his fans with a specific message: You can be an Eminem fan or a Trump fan. But you can't be both.
