Associated Press stories, Page 1528

MIAMI — An Ohio man was arrested in Florida during the weekend after being accused of groping two female flight attendants and punching a male flight attendant during a flight from Philadelphia to Miami, officials said. Maxwell Berry, 22, of Norwalk, Ohio, was arrested Saturday at Miami International Airport and...

NEW YORK — The U.S. nursing home industry’s resistance to forcing workers to get vaccinated against covid-19 for fear that too many of them might quit began to crack this week when its biggest player announced its employees must get the shot to keep their jobs. The new requirement at...

This year’s Gulf of Mexico “dead zone” — an area where there’s too little oxygen to support marine life — is larger than average, according to researchers. Scientists supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration determined that the area off Louisiana and Texas’ coasts covers about 6,334 square miles,...

TYRONE — A coroner has ruled that a woman killed in a house explosion in Pennsylvania last month was killed by the explosion itself rather than the ensuring fire. The (Altoona) Mirror reports that Blair County Deputy Coroner Samantha Kimberling said “injuries from the blast” that occurred July 26 in...

Stocks gave back some of their recent gains Wednesday after a disappointing jobs report stoked worry about the strength of the economic recovery as a highly contagious variant of the coronavirus spreads. The S&P 500 fell 0.5%, easing back from the all-time high the benchmark index set a day earlier....

WASHINGTON — The State Department said Wednesday it’s looking into the apparent disappearance of a nearly $6,000 bottle of whisky given more than two years ago to then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo by the government of Japan. Pompeo knows nothing about the gift or an inquiry, a representative said. In...

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Crowds of bikers are rumbling their way toward South Dakota’s Black Hills this week, raising fears that covid-19 infections will be unleashed among the 700,000 people expected to show up at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. The rally, which starts Friday, has become a haven for those...

TOKYO — Five years after their quest for a first Olympic gold medal was denied in the semifinals, the United States women’s volleyball team has returned to that stage after a relatively easy quarterfinal win. The short-handed Americans overcame the absence of two starters to beat the Dominican Republic, 25-11,...

NEW YORK — Naomi Osaka. Simone Biles. Both are prominent young Black women under the pressure of a global Olympic spotlight that few human beings ever know. Both have faced major career crossroads at the Tokyo Games. Both cited pressure and mental health. The glare is even hotter for these...

GREENVILLE, Calif. — California’s largest wildfire continued to grow Wednesday as thousands of firefighters prepared for a tougher fight as dangerous weather returns. A red flag warning was issued through Thursday because of hot, bone-dry conditions with winds up to 40 mph (64 kph). That could drive flames through timber,...

The New York International Auto Show has become a casualty of the fast-spreading coronavirus delta variant. Show organizers said Wednesday that they’ve decided to cancel it this year, a little over two weeks before the scheduled start. The reasons are the growing spread of the variant and recent restrictions announced...

DHAKA, Bangladesh — Lightning killed at least 16 people who were traveling to a wedding party in western Bangladesh and injured several others, including the groom, an official said.. Local government official Sakib Al-Rabby said the bride was not with the group when the incident occurred Wednesday in Shibganj in...

The Mexican government sued United States gun manufacturers and distributors Wednesday in U.S. federal court, arguing that their negligent and illegal commercial practices have unleashed tremendous bloodshed in Mexico. The unusual lawsuit was filed in U.S. federal court in Boston. Among those being sued are some of the biggest names...

American Athletic Conference Commissioner Mike Aresco vehemently denied that his league has ever “plotted” with ESPN to undermine another conference by poaching its schools. Aresco addressed conference realignment Wednesday during the AAC’s virtual football media day, saying the league is not actively looking to add schools. “Our conference has never...

As the world staggers through another summer of extreme weather, experts are noticing something different: 2021′s onslaught is hitting harder and in places that have been spared global warming’s wrath in the past. Wealthy countries such as the United States, Canada, Germany and Belgium are joining poorer and more vulnerable...

PLYMOUTH — A book checked out a half-century ago has been anonymously returned to a library in northeastern Pennsylvania, officials said. The Wilkes-Barre Citizens’ Voice reports that the 1967 copy of “Coins You Can Collect” by Burton Hobson arrived last month at the Plymouth Public Library in Luzerne County along...

BROOKLYN, Ill. — An Illinois police officer died early Wednesday while trying to stop a car fleeing police into Missouri, authorities said. The officer from Brooklyn was struck around 3 a.m. on the McKinley Bridge, which connects the two states. He was setting up stop sticks, which flatten tires, when...

MONROE, La. — Federal prosecutors are investigating whether Louisiana State Police brass obstructed justice to protect the troopers seen on long-withheld body camera video punching, dragging and stunning Black motorist Ronald Greene during his fatal 2019 arrest. It marks a significant expansion of the federal inquiry that began as a...

LONDON — The U.K. is to offer coronavirus vaccines to 16 and 17-year-olds in the coming weeks after the independent body of scientists that makes recommendations over the rollout changed its advice. The four nations of the U.K. all accepted the change in advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination...

KABUL, Afghanistan — U.S. and Afghan airstrikes hit Taliban targets overnight in southern Helmand province in an effort to dislodge the insurgents after they captured much of the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah, officials said Wednesday. The United Nations and Human Rights Watch asked both sides to take care to...

FLINT, Mich. — Three young Michigan men who were teens when they were part of a rock-throwing incident that killed a motorist on Interstate 75 were put on probation after spending more than three years in custody while their case was stuck in court. The court hearing Tuesday ended a...