Stockholm (AFP) Jan 7, 2022 An autonomous drone carrying a defibrillator helped save the life of a 71-year-old man who suffered a cardiac arrest in Sweden, the man and the drone operator said Friday. Emergency services dispatched the drone followed by an ambulance when Sven, a retiree who asked for his last name to be withheld, collapsed in early December while shovelling snow outside his … Continue reading Defibrillator drone helps save Swedish heart attack patient

Colombo (AFP) Jan 8, 2022 Sri Lanka paid a Chinese company $6.8 million despite rejecting its shipment of organic fertiliser as substandard, officials said Saturday, even though Colombo is in the throes of a foreign exchange crisis. The state-run People’s Bank of Sri Lanka said it paid Qingdao Seawin Biotech Group $6.87 million in connection with an out-of-court settlement over the shipment. Fertiliser is one … Continue reading Sri Lanka bows to Chinese pressure over fertiliser

Yangon (AFP) Dec 22, 2021 A landslide at a jade mine in northern Myanmar Wednesday killed at least one person and left dozens missing, a member of the rescue team told AFP. Scores die each year working in the country’s lucrative but poorly regulated jade trade, which uses low-paid migrant workers to scrape out a gem highly coveted in neighbouring China. The disaster struck at … Continue reading One dead, at least 70 missing after landslide at Myanmar jade mine: rescue team

Shah Alam, Malaysia (AFP) Dec 21, 2021 The Malaysian military used boats Tuesday to distribute food to desperate people trapped in their homes after massive floods, as the death toll rose to 14 with over 70,000 displaced. Days of torrential rain triggered some of the worst flooding in years across the country at the weekend, swamping cities and villages and cutting off major roads. Selangor … Continue reading 14 dead, 70,000 displaced in Malaysian floods

Beijing (AFP) Dec 21, 2021 The Chinese city of Xi’an began testing millions of residents for the coronavirus on Tuesday after the detection of more than 40 new cases raised concerns of wider transmission ahead of a busy travel season. China, where the virus was first detected, has slowed new cases to a trickle since the middle of last year through border restrictions, targeted lockdowns … Continue reading China’s Xi’an tests millions as Covid cases rise

Loboc, Philippines (AFP) Dec 21, 2021 Troops raced Tuesday to deliver food and water to typhoon-ravaged islands of the Philippines as charities appealed for aid to help hundreds of thousands left homeless by the deadly storm. At least 375 people were killed and hundreds injured when Typhoon Rai pummelled the southern and central regions of the archipelago on Thursday, wiping out wooden houses, uprooting trees … Continue reading Troops race to deliver aid to Philippine typhoon survivors

General Luna, Philippines (AFP) Dec 22, 2021 Resort and bar owners on a Philippine island popular with surfers and tourists were expecting a bumper Christmas holiday after Covid-19 restrictions finally eased. Then Super Typhoon Rai wiped them out. The strongest storm to hit the archipelago this year cut a swathe through Siargao, a tropical paradise known for its sandy beaches, big waves and relaxed vibe. … Continue reading ‘It’s no more’: Philippine surfing paradise wiped out by typhoon

Washington (AFP) Dec 20, 2021 The US state of California announced Monday it is suing Walmart, alleging the retail giant unlawfully disposes of millions of toxic waste items. The state said it had conducted 58 inspections of trash compactors at Walmart stores between 2015 and 2021 and found items that require special handling when they are thrown out, such as batteries, insect killers, cleaning supplies, … Continue reading California sues Walmart over toxic waste dumping

Rochester NY (SPX) Dec 17, 2021 American democracy is in crisis-a majority of scholars and the public agree. Allegations of unfair voting practices, such as voter suppression and gerrymandering, abuses of executive power, and mounting concerns about the legitimacy of elections have become regular occurrence in the United States, rather than isolated events. If we accept the premise that politicians and political partieshttp://dlvr.it/SFmZxS Continue reading Why don’t all politicians use antidemocratic tactics to stay in power?

Wellington (AFP) Dec 20, 2021 A two-tonne rubber whale can take on a life of its own in the frigid shallows of a windswept New Zealand beach, particularly when a bedraggled group of would-be rescuers is trying to wrestle it into a harness. “Keep the blowhole clear… you’re too close to the tail, one swipe can do a serious injury to yourself and the whale,” … Continue reading Giant rubber whale helps Kiwi rescuers battle beachings