TV News LIES

Local offices at the National Weather Service had staffing shortages that might have led to a harder time forecasting Central Texas's severe rain and deadly floods, according to The New York Times.

Former officials told the Times the staffing shortages meant there were less experienced workers who could have helped communicate with local authorities after the flash flood warnings were issued.

Along with the staffing shortages, it seems local communities weren't properly prepared.

Rob Kelly, the Kerr County judge, told the Times that the county did not have a warning system because residents are hesitant to spending money on something so expensive.

“Taxpayers won’t pay for it,” Kelly said.

He added that he doesn't know if residents might reconsider getting them after this deadly flood.

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The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is placing staffers who signed a letter of dissent against the Trump administration’s actions and policies on leave.

The EPA says it has placed 144 staffers on administrative leave as it investigates the letter. It’s not entirely clear whether they will face further punishment after the probe.

“The Environmental Protection Agency has a zero-tolerance policy for career bureaucrats unlawfully undermining, sabotaging, and undercutting the administration’s agenda as voted for by the great people of this country last November,” EPA spokesperson Brigit Hirsch said in a written statement.

In a letter made public on Monday, current and former EPA staffers said that the administration’s policies “undermine the EPA mission of protecting human health and the environment.”

They expressed concerns about five issues in particular, saying that the administration is undermining public trust, ignoring scientific consensus to benefit polluters, reversing EPA’s progress in America’s most vulnerable communities, dismantling the Office of Research and Development and promoting a culture of fear.

“Your decisions and actions will reverberate for generations to come. EPA under your leadership will not protect communities from hazardous chemicals and unsafe drinking water, but instead will increase risks to public health and safety,” the staffers wrote to Administrator Lee Zeldin.

In response, the EPA said Monday that it would “continue to work with states, tribes, and communities to advance the agency’s core mission of protecting human health and the environment.”

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Emergency officials in New Jersey confirmed that firefighters have contained 60% of the state's wildfire in the Wharton State Forest on Saturday.

The Mines Spung Wildfire, first reported by a private pilot on June 13, has burned more than 5,000 acres, according to the New Jersey Forest Fire Service.

Firefighters were "making progress" in containing the blaze in Shamong Township, New Jersey, deploying fire engines, helicopters, bulldozers and ground, according to the state service. The cause of the fire, which has threatened five structures, is under investigation.

"The fire has got some serious burning going on right now and with that, we're having a hard time to control it," the state fire service's Chief Bill Donnelly told reporters during a press conference.

The smell of smoke was reported in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware Friday evening, going into the weekend, according to CBS station KYW-TV.

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A series of earthquakes struck the northern California coast on Thursday morning, rattling communities and activating emergency alerts for both shaking and tsunami risks just before 11am local time.

The largest, registered as a magnitude 7.0 and originating near the historic and picturesque town of Ferndale in Humboldt county, could be felt in San Francisco more than 260 miles (418km) away. Roughly 1.3 million people felt the shaking, according to initial estimates provided by the US Geological Survey (USGS), which also reported that risks to human life remained low.

Cellphones buzzed throughout the region, warning of the incoming shaking and offering ample time to brace and cover. Tsunami alerts also rang out for at least 5.3 million people on the California coast and into Oregon, warning of large waves, strong currents and coastal flooding that could persist through the afternoon.

Following the alert, Bay Area Rapid Transit trains were held as underground stations were cleared, as major delays were announced throughout the system, and the San Francisco fire department began clearing the beaches. The tsunami warning was withdrawn shortly after noon as officials announced the highest risks had subsided.

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California experienced its hottest month on record in July as grueling heat baked the American west for weeks on end.

The state’s average temperature for the month was 81.7F (27.6C), according to the National Centers for Environmental Information, but some areas endured days of temperatures greater than 100F (about 38C). Several cities broke temperature records during a heatwave in early July – Palm Springs hit 124F on 5 July, while Redding in the state’s far north saw a high of 119F on 6 July.

Death Valley, the hottest place on Earth, recorded its hottest month ever in July, according to the National Park Service (NPS). In Nevada, Las Vegas reached 120F on 7 July, its hottest day in history, and set a record for number of days over 115F.

The impacts of extreme heat are being felt across the US and the world as the climate crisis drives increasingly severe and dangerous weather conditions. Last month about one-third of the US population was under warnings for record heat. The Earth saw its hottest day in recorded history on 22 July, breaking a record set just one day earlier.

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