Connect with us

Published

on

Former US presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr has said he is being investigated for cutting off the head of a dead whale with a chainsaw.

Speaking during a campaign event for Donald Trump in Glendale, Arizona, RFK Jr said: “I received a letter from the National Marine Fisheries Institute saying that they were investigating me for collecting a whale specimen 20 years ago.”

The 70-year-old did not go into detail about the decapitation of the whale, but his daughter previously described how he had used a chainsaw to cut the head off a dead whale 30 years ago.

Kathleen “Kick” Kennedy, 36, described how when she was six her father had taken the head of the whale after it washed ashore in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, and lashed it to the family’s car with bungee cords to drive it to their home in New York.

“Every time we accelerated on the highway, whale juice would pour into the windows of the car, and it was the rankest thing on the planet,” she told Town & Country magazine in 2012.

“We all had plastic bags over our heads with mouth holes cut out, and people on the highway were giving us the finger, but that was just normal day-to-day stuff for us.”

RFK Jr said he had responded to the letter from the National Marine Fisheries Institute and added: “This is all about the weaponisation of our government against political opponents.”

More from US

He told NBC News he has never killed a whale.

After the story about him beheading a whale resurfaced last month, an environmental group called on federal officials to investigate.

“Kennedy may think that his name and privilege mean the rules don’t apply to him, but if he had a shred of integrity left he’d surrender this whale skull and any other illegally collected wildlife parts to the authorities,” said Brett Hartl, political director for the Center for Biological Diversity Action Fund (CBDAF).

“If he doesn’t, NOAA law enforcement should open an investigation and potentially bring charges against him.”

The CBDAF said that under the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act it is illegal to possess any part of an animal, dead or alive, protected under either law, and transporting the whale skull from Massachusetts to New York, across state lines, represented a potential felony violation of the Lacey Act.

Read more from Sky News:
Eight dead after attempting to cross Channel
Putin won’t bully West, foreign secretary says
Billionaire astronaut and crew return to Earth

Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with former independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during a rally in Glendale, Arizona, U.S., August 23, 2024. REUTERS/Go Nakamura
Image:
Robert F Kennedy has now endorsed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Pic: Reuters

Dead bear prank

Last month RFK Jr announced he was suspending his independent campaign for the presidency to lend his support to Mr Trump.

It comes after he was criticised for abandoning the dead body of a young bear in New York City’s Central Park.

He said he initially intended to skin the bear but decided to try to make it look like the cub had got hit by a bike in the park, adding: “We thought it would be amusing for whoever found it or something.”

At the time, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation said it was against the law to dispose of a dead bear the way RFK Jr said he did. He could have faced a fine but the statute of limitations for such offences was a year, it added.

RFK Jr’s father, Robert F Kennedy, was assassinated as he ran for president in 1968. His uncle, former Democratic US president John F Kennedy, was shot dead in 1963.

Continue Reading

US

Hurricane Milton: Category 3 storm makes landfall in Florida

Published

on

By

Hurricane Milton: Category 3 storm makes landfall in Florida

Hurricane Milton has made landfall in Florida, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) has said.

The category 3 storm hit shores near Siesta Key in Sarasota County around 8.30pm local time on Wednesday, bringing sustained winds of 120mph, the NHC in Miami said.

More than one million homes and businesses were without power – the highest of which were in Sarasota County and neighbouring Manatee County, according to poweroutage.us, which tracks utility reports.

Hurricane Milton latest: Follow live updates

Milton is expected to bring a deadly storm surge to much of Florida’s Gulf Coast, including densely populated areas such as Tampa, St Petersburg, Sarasota and Fort Myers.

At the time of landfall, nearly 100,000 people were in evacuation centres across Florida, Sky News’ US partner network NBC reported, citing Kevin Guthrie, executive director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management.

A Lee County Sheriff's officer patrols the streets of Cape Coral, Fla., as heavy rain falls ahead of Hurricane Milton, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
Image:
The streets of Cape Coral in Florida before Hurricane Milton hit. Pic: AP

Speaking from the White House earlier on Wednesday, President Joe Biden said Milton is expected to be “one of the most destructive hurricanes in Florida in over a century”.

He said it carries “incredible destructiveness and can wipe out communities and cause loss of life” while urging everyone in its path to listen to the advice of local officials.

The projected path of Hurricane Milton
Image:
The projected path of Hurricane Milton

Within minutes of Milton making landfall, a gust of 100mph was recorded in the Egmont Channel, south of St Petersburg, according to the NHC.

‘Daylight will reveal the full impact’

Reporting from Tampa, as the storm made landfall 60 miles away, Sky News US correspondent James Matthews said you could feel its “devastating power”.

“You can hear it in the roar, and sense it. You can feel it in the wind,” he said.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Hurricane Milton ‘matter of life and death’

“They have called this a historic hurricane. The strongest to hit this part of Florida for more than 100 years.

“Reduced from a category 5 to a category 3 storm by the time it hit, but that doesn’t mean that it is not extremely powerful, extremely dangerous, and will have, one imagines, a devastating impact.

Ron Rook, who said he was looking for people in need of help or debris to clear, walks through windy and rainy conditions on a deserted street in downtown Tampa, Fla., during the approach of Hurricane Milton, Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Image:
A man wanders through deserted streets in Tampa. Pic: AP

“This is all happening in the hours of darkness, daylight will reveal the full impact of Hurricane Milton.”

On Wednesday, officials issued last ditch attempts urging the near two million people under evacuation orders to flee or face slim chances of survival.

Cathie Perkins, emergency management director in Pinellas County, said: “Those of you who were punched during Hurricane Helene, this is going to be a knockout. You need to get out, and you need to get out now.”

"Pray for Orlando" reads on wood that was placed at a Home Depot before the arrival of Hurricane Milton, in Orlando, Florida, U.S. October 8, 2024. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez
Image:
Pic: Reuters

While Paul Womble, Polk County emergency management director, said: “Unless you really have a good reason to leave at this point, we suggest you just hunker down.”

A stream of vehicles was pictured headed north on Interstate 75, the main road on the west side of the peninsula, as residents followed evacuation orders.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Why is Hurricane Milton shocking experts?

Traffic also clogged up the southbound lanes of the road for miles as others headed for the relative safety of Fort Lauderdale and Miami on the other side of the state.

Meanwhile, animals at Tampa’s zoo took shelter in hurricane-hardened buildings.

Read more:
Popular TikTok user ignores hurricane evacuation order
Why a meteorologist was reduced to tears describing Hurricane Milton

Follow Sky News on WhatsApp
Follow Sky News on WhatsApp

Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News

Tap here

The region is still reeling from Hurricane Helene, which caused heavy damage to beach communities and killed more than 200 people.

Once past Florida, Milton should weaken over the west of the Atlantic Ocean, possibly dropping below hurricane strength on Thursday night, but storm-surges will still pose a threat to the state’s Atlantic coast.

Continue Reading

US

Google faces threat of being broken up after US Justice Department warns of need to end ‘illegal monopoly’

Published

on

By

Google faces threat of being broken up after US Justice Department warns of need to end 'illegal monopoly'

US officials have confirmed they are considering breaking up Google’s “illegal monopoly” of internet searches.

The tech giant could face restrictions on its own products – including its Chrome browser, Play Store and Android operating system, the US Justice Department said.

It comes after a judge found in August the company had broken anti-trust laws to ensure its dominance of online searches.

Officials have now outlined a series of proposals to dismantle the company’s monopoly in a court filing.

The plans include blocking Google from paying other tech firms to have its search engine pre-installed or set as the default option on new devices.

The firm paid out more than $26bn (£20bn) in 2021 to companies such as iPhone maker Apple as part of the practice.

A Justice Department spokesperson said: “Fully remedying these harms requires not only ending Google’s control of distribution today, but also ensuring Google cannot control the distribution of tomorrow.”

Google said the court filing was part of a “long process” and confirmed it would appeal against the ruling.

Lee-Anne Mulholland, the company’s vice president of regulatory affairs, said the “radical changes” proposed went too far and accused the US government of having a “sweeping agenda that will impact numerous industries and products”.

She added the move would risk the privacy and security of users, hamper the development of its artificial intelligence products and “break” software such as Android.

Read more from Sky News:
Florida braces for hurricane’s arrival

Israel airstrike videos do not tell full story
Tadpoles take top prize at photo awards

The government’s announcement comes following earlier reports that officials were considering moves to tackle Google’s monopoly.

Meanwhile, in a separate case on Monday, a judge ordered Google must open up its app store to greater competition, including making Android apps available from rival sources.

Judge James Donato said the firm should stop requiring its own payment system to be used for apps on the Play Store.

The ruling follows a court battle between Google and Epic Games, which makes the popular video game Fortnite, over in-app purchases.

Continue Reading

US

Hurricane Milton: Florida braces for 160mph winds as approaching storm forces mass evacuation

Published

on

By

Hurricane Milton: Florida braces for 160mph winds as approaching storm forces mass evacuation

Florida is bracing for winds of up to 160mph as people continue to evacuate ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Milton.

The storm has the “potential to be one of the most destructive hurricanes” the area has seen when it makes landfall late Wednesday or early on Thursday, according to the US National Hurricane Center.

Some residents have insisted they will stay after millions were ordered to evacuate, while officials warned anyone staying behind will face grim odds of surviving.

Milton has been a Category 5 hurricane during much of its approach and despite the recent downgrading to a category 4, it remains “major and strong”, Florida governor Ron DeSantis said.

It is expected to bring widespread destruction to the Tampa Bay area, which is home to more than 3.3 million people.

President Joe Biden postponed an upcoming trip to Germany and Angola in order to oversee preparations for the storm – in addition to the ongoing response to Hurricane Helene.

“This could be the worst storm to hit Florida in over a century, and God-willing it won’t be, but it’s looking like that right now,” Mr Biden said.

Follow live: Tourists stranded in Disney resort as deadly hurricane nears

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Inside a plane flying through Hurricane Milton

Heavy rain is already spreading across many communities with conditions expected to rapidly deteriorate throughout Wednesday and into Thursday.

Experts warned of the risk of catastrophic and life-threatening flash flooding, while several tornadoes were also likely across parts of central and southern Florida.

Such is the power of Hurricane Milton, it could land a once-in-a-century hit on the cities of Tampa and St Petersburg, engulfing the regions with possibly deadly storm surges.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Area becomes ghost town ahead of potentially deadly storm

Forecasters warned the storm could bring eight to 12ft (2.44-3.66m) storm surges, leading to further possible evacuation orders being issued along the Gulf Coast.

Eleven states in Florida have issued mandatory evacuation orders with up to nearly six million people said to be in the potential path of the storm.

graphic

‘We haven’t seen a storm like this’

Pasco County is located on Florida’s west coast and its director of emergency management Andrew Fossa echoed the warnings from other officials.

“I hate to say it like this – Pasco County’s going to get a black eye from this one,” he said.

“We haven’t seen a storm like this in a lifetime.”

Cars drive during heavy rainfall as Hurricane Milton makes landfall in Orlando.
Pic: Reuters
Image:
Heavy rainfall in Orlando. Pic: Reuters

A view shows a barrier at Tampa General Hospital, as Hurricane Milton makes landfall.
Pic:Reuters
Image:
Protective barriers surround Tampa General Hospital. Pic: Reuters

Tampa, Florida
Image:
Conditions have started to worsen in Tampa

Tampa mayor Jane Castor said up to 15ft (4.6m) of storm surge being forecast for her city would be deep enough to swallow an entire house.

“So if you’re in it, basically that’s the coffin that you’re in,” she warned.

Pic: Goes-East/Noaa/Planet Pix via ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

Catastrophic Hurricane Milton Creeps Toward Florida, Gulf of Mexico, United States - 08 Oct 2024
Dawn view of Hurricane Milton, currently a catastrophic Category 4 hurricane with winds of 155 mph, continues to churn across the Gulf of Mexico heading for Florida, shown on the GOES-East satellite at 10:09 GMT, October 8, 2024 North of The Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico.

8 Oct 2024
Image:
Hurricane Milton approaches Florida. Pic: Goes-East/Noaa/Planet Pix via ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock

The National Hurricane Center said the storm was ‘extremely dangerous’ and posed a ‘serious threat’ to Floridians.
Image:
The storm as seen from space. Pic: Matthew Dominick

People board up businesses as Hurricane Milton approaches Fort Myers, Florida, U.S. October 8, 2024. REUTERS/Ricardo Arduengo/File Photo
Image:
People board up businesses in Fort Myers, Florida. Pic: Reuters

A lengthy line of vehicles has been heading north as residents moved to safer areas, while hundreds of flights have been cancelled with many more expected to be grounded.

Read more on Sky News:
What we know about Hurricane Milton
Why a meteorologist was reduced to tears

In Riverview, south of Tampa, several drivers waiting in a long line for fuel said they had no plans to evacuate.

“I think we’ll just hang, you know – tough it out,” said Martin Oakes, of nearby Apollo Beach.

“We got shutters up. The house is all ready. So this is sort of the last piece of the puzzle.”

Forecasters predicted the storm will retain hurricane strength as it crosses central Florida on Thursday on a path east toward the Atlantic Ocean.

‘Hurricane fatigue’ has become a thing, over time. Just not this time

As if it didn’t feel ‘ghost town’ enough, our drive through the abandoned streets around the Tampa Bay took us past a skeleton strapped to a balcony railing.

It was a nod to Halloween, of course, but was entirely in keeping with the eerie nothingness of deserted streets.

Floridians know a thing or two about hurricanes, to the extent that ‘hurricane fatigue’ has become a thing, over time. Just not this time.

They read and heed the warnings of a hurricane far stronger than they’re used to and have followed the official advice to evacuate.

Everywhere you see evidence of a state that knows the drill. Windows are boarded up, cars are propped up on driveways to raise them above flood water level.

For the same reason, cars are left parked on raised bridges and I counted a golf cart among them – it wouldn’t be Florida without one.

What traffic there was consisted of truck drivers offered a couple of hundred dollars, and a police escort, to transport debris lying on the ground in the wake of Hurricane Helene. It is debris that could become projectiles as the wind picks up.

Adding to the spooky air, a police car tours empty streets with a loud hailer message warning of looming danger. It is a warning that’s been heard by people here – evident in the amount of property lying empty.

Absenteeism is to be encouraged in the panhandle state over the next 24 hours.

Continue Reading

Trending