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31 Aug 2011 22:52

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U.S.: Texas, Oklahoma wildfires damage buildings, force evacuations

  • The ground is so dry, because of the drought, that one welding spark or a cigarette tossed could easily ignite a fire.
  • Jesse Moore, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Fort Worth, Texas • Commenting on how easy it is to start wildfire. Texas is seeing one of the worst fire seasons on record, including the devastating fires earlier this year in April. The fires started on Tuesday; as of Wednesday night, the wildfires have damaged 39 homes and buildings over 6,200 acres of land. These wildfires are also threatening cities in Oklahoma. Authorities have asked local residents to evacuate, so stay safe, guys. source

23 Jun 2011 16:25

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U.S.: Southwest fires slowly (but surely) getting contained

  • monument Officials told the last of the evacuees from this fire that they can return home today. That’s the good news. The bad news: Though firefighters hope to declare potential victory soon, the fire is only 59 percent contained and may keep burning until mid-July.
  • wallow That one is still burning. The largest active fire in the U.S. and the largest in Arizona’s history, it’s currently around half the size of Rhode Island. A highway around the area is open now, but homes are still being evacuated. This fire is about 60 percent contained. source

02 Mar 2011 10:43

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World: David Cameron steps up British efforts to help out in Libya

  • last week The British government faced criticism over the speed in which it got its own people out of a very volatile situation in Libya. Rescue planes only came to oil fields days after the crisis started.
  • this week As a sign in contrasts, David Cameron is now planning on evacuating 6,000 Egyptians from the border of Libya and Tunisia. The decision caught British officials off guard with its speed. source

01 Mar 2011 13:20

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World: U.N. worried about conditions for mass of Libyan refugees

  • 150,000 people have fled from Libya source
  • » The concern: Too many people evacuating too fast, causing difficult food, water and health conditions for refugees. The agency said that it was “becoming critically important that onwards transport becomes quickly available to avoid a humanitarian crisis.”

02 Feb 2011 22:43

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World: U.S. State Department: Plan to leave Egypt tomorrow, Americans

  • before The U.S. started offering Americans in Egypt an opportunity to get out of the increasingly-volatile country. Many took them up on it.
  • now The U.S. is telling Americans to go to the airport ASAP if they plan to go, because it’s unlikely they’ll fly out after Thursday. source

31 Jan 2011 10:20

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World: The U.S. starts evacuating American citizens out of Egypt

  • 2,400 Americans on the waiting list (so far) source
  • » Only around 219 have left so far: With 52,000 Americans situated in Egypt at the moment, getting them all out, or even a good portion, might be quite the ordeal. And it’s not a cheap one for the evacuees, either. The U.S. is having the evacuees sign a clause promising to pay the government back for the trip elsewhere. The “elsewhere” varies – one flight headed to Cyprus while another headed to Athens.

30 Jan 2011 11:22

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World: United States, Turkey, Iraq encourage citizens to leave Egypt ASAP

It’s certainly not under the best of circumstances, what with the protests and all. The U.S. had previously suggested avoiding travel to the country. This is a step further than that. source
 

08 May 2009 14:03

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U.S.: California wildfires have residents running for the hills

  • 20,000+ people have fled the scene of massive wildfires near Santa Barbara, Calif.
  • 75 homes have been destroyed, and 3,500 more homes are in jeopardy source