Author: admin@primenews

At least eight people are known to have died and dozens injured in a huge fire that broke out in a high-rise apartment block in Vietnam’s capital Hanoi. State media said around 70 people had been rescued from the nine-storey building, with many taken to hospital. The fire, which broke out during the night, has been extinguished but rescue operations are continuing. Authorities in fast-growing Hanoi say many newly-built apartments do not meet fire safety regulations. The city’s population has quadrupled in the past 20 years. Residents described hearing a loud bang at around 2300 local time, and then seeing…

The southern Indian state of Kerala has issued an alert after it confirmed that two people have died from the rare Nipah virus. One of the deaths occurred earlier this month while the other took place on 30 August, both in the state’s Kozhikode district, officials said. Two relatives of a victim have also tested positive for the virus and are being treated in hospital. The is the fourth Nipah outbreak in Kerala since 2018. The Nipah virus infection is a “zoonotic illness” transmitted from animals like pigs and fruit bats to humans, according to the World Health Organization. It…

At long last, Apple is killing its proprietary Lightning port in the iPhone 15 and embracing a charging cable that’s compatible with non-Apple products. That’s one less extra cord cluttering your nightstand. One less thing to forget when packing for a weekend getaway. But the move, hastened by a European regulatory mandate passed last year, is a largely symbolic measure that comes years after most other gadgets switched to USB-C. And it won’t do much to shrink the mountains of e-waste piling up around the globe. “I would classify the EU law and Apple as an evolution, not a revolution,” says Marian Chertow, a professor of industrial…

Everyone ages 6 months and older should get an updated Covid-19 vaccine, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday, to help lower the risk of severe illness, hospitalization or death from the coronavirus. Dr. Mandy Cohen, director of the agency, signed off on recommendations from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices or ACIP, a panel of experts that advises the CDC on its vaccine recommendations. The CDC said in a news release that the shots from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna will be available this week. “Vaccination remains the best protection against COVID-19-related hospitalization and death,” the agency said. “Vaccination also…

Dunkin’ is elevating the pumpkin drink wars with, what else, donuts. Beginning Wednesday, its newest fall drink combines Munchkin pumpkin-flavored donuts mixed with frozen coffee and topped with whipped cream and caramel drizzle, marking the chain’s first time it has added donuts directly to its beverage lineup. The drink, called “Ice Spice Munchkins Drink,” is a collaboration with rapper Ice Spice and perhaps Dunkin’s biggest fan, actor Ben Affleck. The duo stars in a TV ad promoting the drink, which notes that fans of the rapper are called “munchkins.” It’s also the second ad that Affleck has starred in for Dunkin’ after…

Global oil prices climbed above $92 a barrel on Tuesday for the first time in nearly 10 months as the energy market braces for supply disruptions caused by catastrophic flooding in Libya. At least 2,000 people have died and 10,000 are believed missing following the deadly flooding that broke dams and swept away countless homes there. Brent crude, the world benchmark, jumped nearly 2% to an intraday high of $92.38 a barrel. That’s the highest price since November 17, 2022. US oil prices popped 2.3% to as much as $89.29 a barrel, also the highest level since November. The latest rally for oil prices…

“You’ll never be successful,” Errol Musk in 1989 told his 17-year-old son Elon, who was then preparing to fly from South Africa to Canada to find relatives and a college education. That’s one of the scenes Walter Isaacson paints in his 670-page biography of Elon Musk, who is now the richest person who ever lived. The biography allows readers new glimpses into the private life of the entrepreneur who popularized electric vehicles for the masses and landed rocket boosters hurtling back to Earth so they could be reused. But Musk’s public statements and actions have become increasingly unhinged, filing and threatening…

BP CEO Bernard Looney has resigned after admitting that he had not been “fully transparent” about “historical relationships with colleagues,” according to a statement from the oil giant on Tuesday. Murray Auchincloss, the company’s CFO, will act as CEO on an interim basis. “In May 2022, the Board received and reviewed allegations, with the support of external legal counsel, relating to Mr Looney’s conduct in respect of personal relationships with company colleagues. The information came from an anonymous source,” the statement said. During that review, Looney disclosed “a small number of historical relationships with colleagues prior to becoming CEO,” but…

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin met at a remote space launch site in Russia’s far east Wednesday, ahead of anticipated arms talks and just hours after North Korea launched two ballistic missiles into waters off the Korean Peninsula. The face to face meeting at the Vostochny Cosmodrome, is seen as a significant development, bringing together two leaders who are increasingly isolated on the world stage and coming amid Russia’s protracted and faltering war on Ukraine and crippling UN sanctions. Video released by the Kremlin Wednesday showed the two leaders shaking hands while images show…

Russia says Ukraine has launched 10 missiles and three unmanned boats in an attack on the home of its Black Sea fleet in Crimea. The attack caused a large fire at a Sevastopol shipyard which left 24 people injured, Russia said. Moscow-installed governor Mikhail Razvozhayev claimed most of the weapons were intercepted. Russia said two of its ships were damaged as a result of hits by cruise missiles. A photo shared by Mr Razvozhayev on Telegram shows flames engulfing what appears to be a vessel at a port as he stands speaking into his phone. Images circulating on social media,…