Surviving hiker tells of fleeing eruption
MILAN -- A pair of hikers found themselves trapped by flames after a volcano erupted on the Sicilian island of Stromboli and thought they had escaped to safety but only one of the men survived, a Brazilian tourist said Thursday.
Thiago Takeuti, 35, told Italian news agency ANSA that after Stromboli volcano's eruption Wednesday, he and his friend, Massimo Imbesi, sought safety in an area flames had already passed.
"But as we ran through the rocks and lapilli, we fell down. He was breathing with more difficulty. I tried to bring him back, but there was nothing else to do," Takeuti said.
Imbesi, a 35-year-old Sicilian, was the sole victim of the eruption, which frightened dozens of tourists who jumped into the sea for safety.
Firefighters using helicopters and motorboats continued to douse fires ignited by falling molten material, but said most were under control by Thursday afternoon.
Lipari Mayor Marco Giorgianni told ANSA that about 100 people evacuated Stromboli island after the eruption sent glowing rock fragments and lava spewing into the air, setting off the blazes. He temporarily banned hiking excursions.
Giorgianni said electricity had been restored to much of the island.
Twister hits in Chinese city; deaths at 6
BEIJING -- A tornado blew through a city in northeast China, damaging factories and buildings, killing six people and injuring another 190, state media outlets reported Thursday.
The tornado hit Kaiyuan, a city in Liaoning province, Wednesday afternoon, authorities said in a brief online statement. Footage from state broadcaster China Central Television showed a stretch of collapsed low-rise buildings where firefighters were working through the debris. Windows in homes and cars were blown out.
Liaoning resident Li Yuan said he owns a factory just 500 yards from where the tornado struck. His workers told him they initially thought it was "just a large cloud."
"But when it came closer, they felt a strong gust of wind," Li said in a phone interview. "All the trash, papers and leaves on the ground were blown into the sky. We heard ambulance and police car sirens all night."
The tornado damaged factories and equipment in an industrial park, the state broadcaster said. More than 210 people were rescued, and another 1,600 were evacuated. Power was set to be restored to homes Thursday, while businesses will regain power in the next three days, the broadcaster said.
Rainy Japan beset by floods, mudslides
TOKYO -- Heavy rain caused flooding and mudslides Thursday in southern Japan, injuring four people, damaging dozens of homes and leaving hundreds of others without power.
One person was missing and possibly was buried under the same mudslide where another had been confirmed dead earlier, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasutoshi Nishimura told reporters. The casualties occurred in the hardest-hit southern district of Kagoshima.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledged to "do our best for rescue and lifesaving activities."
Nearly 80 houses were damaged in Kagoshima and the two other southern districts, Miyazaki and Kumamoto. About 1,700 houses were without power.
Kagoshima Gov. Satoshi Mitazono requested the help of military personnel in the rescue effort. About 14,000 troops were on standby.
Rainfall since the weekend has exceeded 3 feet in areas, he said, and cautioned residents against landslide risks and urged them to pay attention to weather reports.
Australia bills target returning militants
CANBERRA, Australia -- Australia's government on Thursday proposed new laws that would prevent extremist Australians from returning home for up to two years, as the country prepares for the repatriation of Islamic State supporters from the Middle East.
Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton introduced the legislation based on British law as part of a raft of counterterrorism and asylum-seeker bills in the first parliamentary session since elections in May.
The law would give Dutton the power to prevent suspected Australian extremists from returning home for up to two years while law enforcement authorities made plans to manage the risk posed. The orders could also apply to Australians who intelligence agencies assess to be a "risk to security for reasons related to politically motivated violence."
Dutton said 230 Australians had flown to Syria and Iraq to fight with extremist groups since 2012.
"Around 80 are still active in conflict zones. The advice of Australia's national security agencies is that many Australians of counterterrorism concern who have traveled to Iraq and Syria to engage in that conflict are likely to seek to return to Australia in the very near future," Dutton told Parliament.
The order could not be applied to people under 14 years old. When considering making an order against children aged 15 to 17, Dutton must make the child's interests his primary consideration, the bill says.
A Section on 07/05/2019