GUYANADozens missing at seaAn aging ferry carrying more than 100 people capsized off the coast of Guyana, with rescue teams saving 67 people, officials said, as the search continued yesterday. The ferry MV Barima left the small English-speaking country at the northeast corner of South America on Saturday afternoon with at least 133 people aboard for a trip from the capital, Georgetown, to Port Kaituma. Port Kaituma is inland in the oil-rich Essequibo region, and the ferry travels along the coast in the Atlantic before heading upriver to reach its jungle destination. Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill told a press conference on Sunday that a ship manifest listing 133 people on board was not “a true reflection of the occupants on board,” asking family members and loved ones to reach out to officials to create an official tally of those missing. Preliminary findings found that the ship flipped over after being hit by a big wave, Edghill said earlier on Facebook. The rescued victims included 41 men, 11 women, six boys and nine girls, Prime Minister Mark Phillips said in a statement on Sunday. ROMANIADanube water at 30-year low
The Danube River’s water levels fell to their lowest since 1996 over the weekend, prompting irrigation restrictions for farmers and partially disrupting shipping and tourism along its banks. Waterways across Europe have been affected by prolonged heatwaves and drought this year, and the average peak temperature across western Europe yesterday was forecast to be 26.2°C, 2.7°C above the normal high for July 20, the Reuters Climate Monitor showed. The level at the Romanian entry point of Europe’s second-longest river was 1,700m3 of water per second on Sunday, against a July average range of 4,700m3, the state water management agency said. Footage showed long stretches of exposed sand on the banks near the border with Bulgaria, with several ferry services suspended and grain barges standing idle. Authorities had restricted farmer access to water for irrigation in the southeast and controlled water reservoirs to ensure minimum levels required for cooling state nuclear power Nuclearelectrica’s two reactors. Danube levels were projected to increase gradually from yesterday thanks to heavy rain in several counties, the agency said.UNITED STATESFDA clears Taylor FarmsThe Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Sunday said that laboratory experts re-checked lettuce sample results from Taylor Farms in an investigation into an outbreak of the cyclospora parasite and concluded the finding should be considered a false positive. As of Sunday, there were no confirmed positive sample results for cyclospora, it added. The agency on Saturday had said that a sample of shredded iceberg lettuce supplied by Taylor Farms tested positive for the parasitic illness that has sickened thousands of people in the nation. A spokesperson for Taylor Fresh Foods told Reuters that the company was informed the FDA made a mistake. “To be clear, at this moment, FDA has not identified a single positive product test result for cyclospora,” the firm said. UNITED STATESVP welcomes fourth childVice President J.D. Vance and his wife, Usha, on Sunday announced the birth of their fourth child, the first born to a sitting vice president in 156 years. Born on Sunday, Alec Neel Vance joins older siblings Ewan, 9; Vivek, 6; and Mirabel, 4. Vance announced the birth on social media with a statement signed by him and his wife.
