Quinton Richards Essays (1034 words) - Las Vegas Strip,

Quinton Richards Professor Bell Sociology 101 October 9, 2017 CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES Deadly wildfires roared across California on Monday, forcing evacuations and destroying homes and businesses in their paths. The biggest fires burned in the wine country of Napa and Sonoma counties. The fires ignited Sunday night and Monday and spread with alarming speed because of dry conditions California Fire Director Ken Pimlott said at a news conference more than 20,000 people evacuated some with little notice. These fires have destroyed structures and continue to threaten thousands of homes necessitating the evacuation of thousands of residents the governor's emergency proclamation said. These fires have damaged and continue to threaten critical infrastructure and have forced the closure of major highways and local roads. According to social media postings the fire spread smoke across the San Francisco Bay area and the Anaheim area fire turned the sky red over Disneyland. The National Weather Service in San Francisco on Sunday issued a "red flag warning" for the Bay Area becaus e of current or impending critical fire weather conditions. The warning cited dry windy locations through the Napa Valley and northern Sonoma County valleys. Gusts ranging from 35 mph to more than 60 mph were recorded. But the winds and the fire weather threat will decrease Tuesday in the north, but a threat will remain in Southern part of California the weather service said. Forecasters said the warning will likely remain in effect because of the warm and dry conditions and the presence of wildfires. US Warship Approaches Korean Peninsula for Drills with South Korea The USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier along with a guided-missile cruiser and a nuclear-powered submarine are on their way to the Korean Peninsula to prepare for a potential war with North Korea, while Pyongyang reportedly plans new missiles tests. As of Friday afternoon, the USS Ronald Reagan with nearly 80 aircraft on board, was in the South China Sea on its way to the shores of US ally South Korea. The two allies will conduct joint drills to detect, track, and intercept ballistic missiles in addition to anti-submarine warfare training. North Korea has carried out a series of nuclear tests over the past few months, in response to which the UN Security Council imposed several rounds of harsh sanctions against Pyongyang. President Donald Trump and the North Korean leader have since exchanged a series of threats, with Trump saying the US coulddestroythe North if attacked and that Kim Jong-un who he often refers to as Rocket Manwon't be around much longerPyongyang responded in kind ca lling it a declaration of war and threatening to shoot down American planes and unleash a nuclear attack on the US and its allies. Hurricane Maria Leaves Puerto Rico Facing Months Without Power Hurricane Maria the most powerful storm to hit the U.S. territory in almost a century ravaged the island demolishing homes and knocking out all electricity. It could take half a year to restore power to the nearly 3.5 million people who live there. The eye of the storm moved offshore overnight but the danger remained Thursday Intense flooding was reported particularly in San Juan where many residential streets looked like rushing rivers. The storm has been blamed for the deaths of 18 people including two in Puerto Rico but many fear that toll could climb as authorities were beginning to assess the extent of the damage and search for survivors. Las Vegas Shooting On the night of October 1, a gunman opened fire on a large crowd of concertgoers at the Route 91 Harvest music festival on the Las Vegas Strip killing 58 people and injuring 489. Between 10:05 and 10:15 p.m. PDT 64-year-old Stephen Paddock of Mesquite, Nevada fired thousands of rifle rounds from his suite on the 32nd floor of the nearby Mandalay Bay hotel. About an hour after firing ceased, he was found dead in his hotel room from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. His motive is unknown. The incident is the deadliest mass shooting committed by an individual in the United States. The crime reignited the debate about gun laws in the U.S. with attention focused on bump firing, a technique Paddock used to allow his semi-automatic rifles to fire at a rate like that of a fully-automatic weapon. Country