The Rundown: Top headlines today: Friday, July 29, 2022
Stay up to date on the developing stories making headlines.
Latest Stories
ABC NewsEngineers to set off explosives at Francis Scott Key Bridge wreckage site
Engineers are scheduled Sunday to set off controlled explosives in the steel remains of the Francis Scott Key Bridge to help remove the debris from the freighter that crashed in March. The explosives will split a large section of truss at specific locations to allow "salvors to use cranes and barges already on scene to remove these sections of the bridge and ultimately remove the MV Dali from the channel," Unified Command, the group in charge of the recovery and salvage operations, said in a statement. "Sound levels outside of the noise radius will be no louder than a standard fireworks show and will last two to five seconds," Unified Command said.
- ABC News
Ukraine strikes Russian apartment building, local governor says
A 10-story residential building in Belgorod, Russia, was struck overnight by a Ukrainian missile, a local governor said. "The Belgorod city and the Belgorod district came under a massive attack by the Ukrainian Armed Forces," Vyacheslav Gladkov, governor of the Belgorod region, said in a post on Telegram. The Ukrainian Tochka-U missile that struck the building was among several that Ukraine launched overnight, the Russian Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
- ABC News
Recipient of first pig kidney transplant dies nearly 2 months later
The 62-year-old man who received the first-ever pig kidney transplant in the world has died, his family announced on Saturday. Richard Slayman underwent the four-hour procedure in March at Massachusetts General Hospital and was discharged from the hospital two weeks later on April 2. The hospital emphasized there was no indication Slayman's sudden passing was due to the transplant.
- ABC News
3 Atlanta police officers shot during response to call
Three Atlanta police officers were shot while responding to a call Saturday evening, officials said. The unidentified officers were called to Desoto Avenue SW shortly after 5 p.m., about a call of a man with a gun, Atlanta PD Chief Darin Schierbaum told reporters. The officers encountered the suspect, who was allegedly armed with a handgun and knife, when shots rang out, Schierbaum said.
- Good Morning America
Taylor Swift talks new album during 'Eras' tour stop in Paris
Taylor Swift continues to surprise fans with songs from her latest album, "The Tortured Poets Department (TTPD)." Swift expressed her excitement about the "TTPD" premiere in Paris, stating, "So Paris is the very first city to ever see the new TTPD chapter of the 'Eras' tour." Swift also revealed that planning for the "TTPD" chapter began nearly a year ago, long before the album's release in April.
- ABC News
Justice Department seeks 40-year sentence for Paul Pelosi attacker
Federal prosecutors are seeking a maximum sentence for the man who was convicted of breaking into former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's San Francisco home and attacking her husband Paul with a hammer in 2022. The Department of Justice filed a sentencing memorandum Friday in anticipation of next week's sentencing of David DePape, saying he should be held in prison for 40 years for his crimes. DePape was convicted in November for the Oct. 28, 2022, break-in and attack of Paul Pelosi.
- ABC News
Eurovision contestant disqualified after police investigate 'incident' with production crew
The Dutch contestant in Europe's popular Eurovision Song Contest has been disqualified after an "incident" occurred with a female member of the production crew, the European Broadcast Union announced Saturday. Swedish police are investigating a complaint made by a female member of the production crew against the Dutch contestant, 26-year-old Joost Klein, according to the EBU. "While the legal process takes its course, it would not be appropriate for him to continue in the Contest," the EBU said.
- ABC News
Pausing military aid seen as key tool in a president's foreign policy toolbox
Although congressional Republicans have been slamming President Joe Biden over his decision to withhold certain bomb shipments to Israel, such a move is not unprecedented, as they've claimed. Previous presidents, including Republican ones, have withheld aid to send a clear message to Israel and other allies, a foreign policy expert told ABC News. Sullivan, a retired U.S. Army colonel who was involved with U.S. arms transfers, noted that Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush both halted key aid to Israel during their terms over concerns about Israeli actions.
- Good Morning America
1 dead after shooting inside Regal Cinemas theater in Ohio
A late night shooting inside an Ohio movie theater has left one man dead, police said. The shooting took place at approximately 11 p.m. when the Massilon Police Department were notified of a shooting inside a Regal Cinemas movie theater in Massilon, Ohio -- some 50 miles south of Cleveland. “Massilon Police Officers responded and found a male deceased near the front lobby,” authorities said in their statement early Saturday morning detailing the shooting.
- ABC News
Scientists have figured out way to make algae-based plastic that completely decomposes
Scientists may have found the answer to manufacturing plastics products that actually break down without forming into microplastics, or tiny pieces of plastics that could linger for thousands of years. Researchers at the University of California, San Diego, and materials company Algenesis said they found a way to construct plastic with polyurethane, a “bio-based” polyurethane polymer that could compost and break down in the natural environment, compared to typical petroleum-based plastic polymers, which typically are inaccessible to biological processing, according to a study published in Scientific Reports earlier this year. "The argument then was always put back to us, 'How do you know they're just not making microplastics?'" Skip Pomeroy, a professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at U.C. San Diego and one of the authors of the study, told ABC News.
- Good Morning America
Home prices are soaring. Is this another bubble?
Roughly 15 years after a housing bubble triggered the worst U.S. financial disaster since the Great Depression, some observers are voicing concern that the industry has fallen into another bubble. Home prices are soaring, despite high mortgage rates that in theory should crimp demand and push down prices. The share of U.S. homeowners under serious financial strain, meanwhile, jumped slightly at the outset of this year when compared with the final months of 2023, real estate data-firm ATTOM found in a report this week.
- ABC News
The worst isn't over as flooding is set to continue through the weekend in Brazil
Large parts of the southern state will see close to 4 inches of rain this weekend, according to INMET, the National Meteorology Institute. At least 113 people had died as of Friday morning, according to Rio Grande do Sul Gov. Eduardo Leite, while hundreds of neighborhoods have been devastated and destroyed in the weeklong flooding. There are also 146 people missing, 69,617 people in shelters and more than 330,000 people displaced by the flooding, Leite said.
- ABC News
Barron Trump declines Florida GOP delegate position due to 'prior commitments'
Former President Donald Trump's youngest child, Barron Trump, is declining an opportunity to serve as Florida's GOP at-large delegate to the Republican National Convention due to "prior commitments," former first lady Melania Trump's office confirmed to ABC News. "While Barron is honored to have been chosen as a delegate by the Florida Republican Party, he regretfully declines to participate due to prior commitments," the Office of Melania Trump wrote in a statement to ABC News.
- ABC News
Maryland primary to set up unexpectedly tight Senate race
Maryland's Democratic Senate primary is careening toward a bitter finish as voters decide who to nominate in an unexpectedly competitive race in the deep blue bastion. Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks and Rep. David Trone are the two main contenders in a primary that has sparked debates over everything from money in politics to electability to Democrats' commitment to diversity to Senate control. Trone, the wealthy founder of Total Wine & More and congressman in his third term, has dumped more than $50 million of his own money into the race, has racked up endorsements from congressional colleagues and has insinuated that Alsobrooks isn't ready for the major leagues of federal politics.
- ABC News
Biden admin doesn't have 'complete information' to verify whether Israel used US arms to violate international law in Gaza
The Departments of State and Defense on Friday said they could not compile enough evidence to prove that Israel used American arms in violation of international humanitarian law, according to a new report ordered by President Joe Biden. The report was mandated by National Security Memorandum 20 to examine the use of U.S.-supplied arms in active conflict zones. "We do not have complete information to verify whether US defense articles covered under NSM-20 were specifically used in actions that have been alleged as violations of [international humanitarian law] or international human rights law during the period of the report," the report said.
- Good Morning America
At least 125 tornadoes reported across the country since Monday
There have been at least 125 reported tornadoes in 22 states since Monday, as the severe weather outbreak continued Friday in parts of the South. There were at least five reported tornadoes Thursday across Iowa, Missouri, Georgia and Mississippi. A tornado warning was issued in Tallahassee in Leon County on Friday morning, with "multiple circulations and radar-confirmed tornadoes," according to the National Weather Service (NWS).
- ABC News
Calls to poison centers for fentanyl exposure in kids increased nearly 54-fold since 2016
Calls to poison centers for illicit fentanyl exposures in kids under 6 years old increased from 10 cases in 2016 to 539 in 2023, according to a press release from America's Poison Centers. The figures come on the heels of a new study showing that over 321,000 children lost a parent due to drug overdose from 2011-2021. "It is imperative that the community provides resources to end the fentanyl epidemic and that people who use illicit drugs secure them from children by using opaque child-resistant lockable containers," said Dr. Robert Hendrickson, medical director of the Oregon Poison Center and professor of emergency medicine at the OHSU School of Medicine, in a press release.
- Good Morning America
Woman to celebrate Mother's Day for 1st time after welcoming baby via surrogacy
A former Broadway performer-turned-nonprofit founder and yoga teacher is getting ready to celebrate her first Mother's Day after surviving an uncertain breast cancer diagnosis and treatment, and embarking on a surrogacy journey. Sarrah Strimel Bentley, who first shared her breast cancer and fertility journey on "Good Morning America" and "GMA3" in October, said she is "incredibly grateful" to fulfill her longtime dream of becoming a mom. "And so I just prayed and I put all of my faith that this Mother's Day, I would be holding [my son] Chance."
- ABC News
3 big takeaways from Day 15 of Trump's hush money trial
Before that, Friday started with the conclusion of the cross-examination of former White House aide Madeline Westerhout, who spoke glowingly of the former president and said she felt he was hurt by hush money revelations due to concerns for his family. Trump is on trial for allegedly falsifying business records to hide the reimbursement of a hush money payment his then-attorney Michael Cohen made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in order to boost his electoral prospects in the 2016 presidential election.
- Good Morning America
Justin Bieber's mom congratulates him and Hailey following pregnancy news
Justin Bieber's mom, Pattie Mallette, is excited to become a grandmother. In a sweet video she shared on Instagram Thursday following Justin and Hailey Bieber's pregnancy news, the author told the couple that they're going to be "the best parents ever." Justin and Hailey Bieber, who tied the knot in 2018, announced on Thursday that they are going to be parents.