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TRELEW, Argentina (AFP) — A lagoon in Argentina’s southern Patagonia region has turned bright pink in a striking, but frightful phenomenon experts and activists blame on pollution by a chemical used to preserve prawns for export. The color is caused by sodium sulfite, an anti-bacterial product used in fish factories, whose waste is blamed for contaminating the Chubut river that feeds the Corfo lagoon and other water sources in the region, according to activists. Residents […]
LIMA, Peru (AFP) — Rural school teacher Pedro Castillo on Monday was declared Peru’s president-elect, making him the country’s first leader with no ties to the elites that have governed the Andean country for decades. The 51-year-old far-left trade unionist was largely unknown until he led a national strike four years ago that forced the then-government to agree to pay rise demands. He was born to peasants in the tiny village of Puna in the […]
by Susan NJANJI Agence France Presse JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AFP) — Stores and warehouses in South Africa were hit by looters Tuesday for a fifth day running despite the troops President Cyril Ramaphosa deployed to try to quell unrest that has claimed 72 lives. As pillaging erupted in the economic capital of Johannesburg and the southeastern province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa’s main opposition accused radicals of stoking the unrest. The armed forces were sending […]
SAO PAULO, Brazil (AFP) — The highly contagious coronavirus Delta variant “is already circulating” in Brazil’s most populated state, Sao Paulo, said authorities Wednesday in the country with the world’s second-highest death toll. The variant, which has boosted infection numbers even in countries with high vaccination rates, “is already indigenous, that is to say, it is already circulating in our environment in people who have not traveled or have had contact with someone who had […]
BRASILIA, Brazil (AFP) — The Brazilian Amazon has suffered its worst June for forest fires since 2007, official data showed Thursday, indicating another devastating dry season for the world’s largest rainforest. The INPE research institute said its satellites detected 2,308 fires last month, an increase of 2.3 percent from June 2020. The previous record for the month of June was in 2007 with 3,519 fires. The grim statistic comes after May this year saw the […]
SAO PAULO, Brazil (AFP) — Brazil set a new record for Covid-19 infections on Wednesday, with 115,228 new cases identified within 24 hours, the Health Ministry said, confirming the arrival of a third wave of the pandemic. During the same period 2,392 new deaths were recorded, bringing the total to 507,109. Brazil is the second worst-hit in the world in absolute numbers of fatalities, behind the United States which has suffered more than 600,000 deaths. […]
LIMA, Peru (AFP) — A strong earthquake shook Lima and regions of central coastal Peru late Tuesday, with no immediate reports of casualties or damage. Peru’s Seismological Center said it was magnitude 6, while the US Geological Survey which monitors earthquakes worldwide pegged it at magnitude 5.8. It struck at 9:54 pm local time (0254 GMT Wednesday), with an epicenter 33 kilometers southwest of Mala — some 100 kilometers south of Lima — and at […]
BOGOTA, Colombia (AFP) — Colombia’s death toll from Covid-19 passed the 100,000 mark on Monday with a new 24-hour record of almost 650 deaths, the health ministry said. After three weeks of demonstrations that have brought thousands of people into the streets to protest the government of conservative President Ivan Duque, the South American country of 50 million is suffering its worst moment since the pandemic began. It has now recorded 100,582 dead, including 648 […]
CUCUTA, Colombia (AFP) — A car bomb blast inside an army base in the Colombian city of Cucuta wounded 36 people Tuesday, officials said, blaming the attack to ELN guerillas. The initial theory is that members of the National Liberation Army (ELN), the country’s last recognized guerrilla group, were behind the attack, Defense minister Diego Molano said, as he condemned the “terrorist act.” Involvement of FARC guerrillas that refused to sign a 2016 peace agreement […]
by Martín SILVA COCHABAMBA, Bolivia (AFP) — The alarm in the Bolivian hospital pierced through the din of beeping life support machines and hissing ventilators — a patient lay unconscious, oblivious to the warning that his life hung by a thread. The monitor was flashing red. “Low oxygen pressure” it alerted, showing a reading of 25. “It should be 75!” doctor Daniel Quispia said as he jumps to the patient’s aid, adjusting the controls in […]
SAO PAULO, Brazil (AFP) — Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was fined $100 Saturday for violating Covid-19 containment measures in Sao Paulo state by failing to wear a face mask and provoking huge crowds at a motorcycle rally for supporters. Thousands of roaring motorcycles took part in the “Accelerate for Christ” rally in Sao Paulo, led by the far-right president, who wore an open-faced helmet and no mask, in violation of state health regulations. Bolsonaro, […]
MIAMI, United States (AFP) — A fire at an electrical substation in Puerto Rico left thousands of customers in the dark Thursday, shortly after the power company reported a cyberattack that it did not immediately link to the blaze. “There was a fire in a transformer at the Monacillo substation” in San Juan, Luma Energy said, two hours after it said it was the target of a DDOS, or denial of service, attack with two […]
