News

NEWS UPDATE: United Kingdom approves Dual-targeted COVID vaccine

The United Kingdom has approved a COVID vaccine hitting at both
the Omicron variant and original virus. According to reports,
The United Kingdom is the first to approve such in the entire world.

The UK medicines regulator has confirmed that the Moderna developed jab
meets her safety, quality and efficacy standards.

The vaccine is likely to be rolled out next month, in a bid to tackle
the winter flu season.

Meanwhile, Moderna confirms that Canada, Australia and the EU has shown
interest for the same vaccine.

JUST IN: Flood rages London Stations as UK experiences more thunderstorms

The Met Office has recently issued a warning stating that the flood is
“danger” to human lives.
All across the internet, videos sighting Victoria and King’s Cross station
being flooded could be seen, caused by heavy downpours.

People should expect more flooding and disruption due to the fact that
an amber thunderstorm warning covering most of the southeast of England,
including parts of London, is in place until 10 pm on Wednesday.

The warning states that “Fast flowing or deep floodwater is likely, causing
danger to life”.

In just an hour, 30mm to 50mm of rain could fall, so homes and businesses are
like to be affected in a rush! The Met Office said.



Train and bus movement cancellations, difficulty in driving, and power cuts could
occur as a result, forecasters warned.

Areas such as Suffolk, Kent, Surrey, and West Sussex according to the warning could
experience more lighting, hail, and very strong winds.

According to the Environment Agency, people are advised not to drive through flood
water, urging that it is “often deeper than it looks and just 30cm of flowing
water is enough to suspend a car.

JUST IN: The United States First Lady tests positive for COVID

The Fist Lady (Jill Biden) has been on vacation with Mr President since 10 August, and
on Monday began to express symptoms of COVID. This is coming after her husband recently
had the infection but has fully recovered.

Spokesperson Elizabeth Alexander said that, the first lady has had two vaccinations and two booster jabs against the disease.

She is experiencing mild symptoms and has been prescribed the antiviral drug Paxlovid.

Mr and Mrs Biden are on vacation in South Carolina. She will isolate there for at least five days, the White House said, and will return home
after two consecutive negative tests.



Mr Biden tested negative on Tuesday, the White House said, but will wear a face mask indoors for 10 days, in line with guidance from the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

It is confirmed that he is back to work!

NAT ABBEY SET TO HOST ARUKAH GOSPEL REGGAE NIGHT

Ghanaian Gospel Reggae Icon, Nat Abbey, after his epic performance at ICGC Night of Choirs and Greater Works is set to host his annual Gospel Reggae Night in collaboration with Events Boutique. This year’s event is dubbed “ARUKAH” a Hebrew word which means complete healing or restoration and will be held on Wednesday, 21st September 2022 (Public Holiday) from 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm at The Junction Mall, Nungua.

The event would see five (5) hours of uninterrupted time in the presence of God with poetry, choreography and gospel reggae medleys from seasoned and renowned gospel musicians, such as Perez Musik, Kofi Owusu Peprah, RZN, Godwin Dash, David Osabutey, Pastor Wisdom Olives, and many more. The hilarious Parrot Mouth will be the MC for the night.

Gospel Reggae Night is a Christian entertainment and charity event that is geared towards entertaining Gospel reggae lovers and helping the less privileged in the society. The first Gospel Reggae event was held on Sunday 1st September 2013 at ICGC – Glorious Temple and it was very successful.

The event host, Nat Abbey is an award-winning Gospel Musician, Recording Artiste, Host of Gospel Reggae Night and WUSH (Worship Until Something Happens), Vocal Coach, Founder and President of Nat Abbey and Towdah Ministries, and Tehiliah Vocal Perfection, Programmes Coordinator at L`AINE Foundation, Music Coordinator at ICGC Greater Works.

He has over 20 years of experience in leading Praise and Worship and has been in the music industry for 12 years. He`s a multiple award-winning Gospel Reggae Gem and an enthusiastically passionate music minstrel.

Speaking about the event, he said “It is my desire that at Gospel Reggae Night, God will heal the land of Ghana through my ministration and that of other spirit-filled minstrels billed.”

This event is sponsored by: Events Boutique, The Junction Mall, Pork Office, Bekofi Studio, Ikwatech Prints Media and Comme Lab.

For more updates on this event, follow Nat Abbey on Instagram; @natabbeyofficial, Facebook; @natabbeygh, Twitter; @natabbeygh and  on Youtube @Nat Abbey.

 

McDonald’s will reopen some branches in Ukraine to support ‘important sense of normalcy’

The US fast-food giant closed its restaurants in Ukraine when Russia invaded the country almost six months ago. McDonald’s also “de-arched” in Russia and sold its outlets to a franchise owner.

Following Vladimir Putin’s invasion in February, McDonald’s closed its restaurants in Ukraine, but has continued to pay more than 10,000 staff employed in the country, while it closed and sold branches in Russia.

It said on Thursday that it will slowly start to reopen some of its branches in the capital Kyiv and western Ukraine. Other major Western companies have also reopened their businesses in Ukraine recently, including Nike, KFC and Mango. “We’ve spoken extensively to our employees who have expressed a strong desire to return to work and see our restaurants in Ukraine reopen,” Paul Pomroy, corporate senior vice president of international operated markets, said in a message to employees. Advertisement “In recent months, the belief that this would support a small, but important sense of normalcy has grown stronger.” Ukraine’s economy has been severely impacted by the war, with the International Monetary Fund expecting its economy to shrink by 35% in 2022, in part due to businesses halting operations because of the war.

McDonald’s has 109 restaurants in Ukraine, but Mr Pomroy didn’t say how many would reopen, when it would happen or the locations.

The company said it would start working with vendors to get supplies into branches, prepare stores, bring employees back and launch safety procedures due to ongoing fighting in the east.

McDonald’s has sold its 850 restaurants in Russia to local franchise owner Alexander Govor, who held a licence for 25 branches in Siberia and who has begun reopening former McDonald’s locations under the name Vkusno-i Tochka or Tasty-period.

McDonald’s opened its first Russian location in Moscow three decades ago. Selling its Russian business was the first time the fast-food giant has “de-arched” or left a major market.

McDonald’s closed hundreds of locations throughout Russia in March, costing the company $55m (£45m) a month.

By: Amar Mehta

News reporter @Amarjournalist_

SOURCE: SKY NEWS

Tonnes of dead fish pulled from River Oder in Poland as officials warn of possible contamination

At least 10 tonnes of dead fish have been pulled out of the River Oder which flows along part of Poland’s border with Germany – as officials warn people not to enter the water due to possible contamination.

Anglers and volunteers removed the dead fish from the 200km (124 mile) stretch of the river north of Olawa in southwest Poland, the head of the agency which manages the country’s national waters has said.

Przemyslaw Daca, head of State Water Holding, also called the situation a gigantic ecological catastrophe.

Poland’s prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki has vowed to punish those responsible after environmental authorities said they notified prosecutors about potential contamination of the country’s second longest river.

Ewa Drewniak, a biologist working with opposition political group Civic Coalition, has accused the government of not responding quickly enough. Advertisement “Dead fish have been flowing in the Oder for the past two weeks and people have not been informed about it, I’ve seen scores of people bathing in the river a week and a half ago, they were not aware of the danger, this is scandalous,” she said. Regional environmental protection authorities in the Polish city of Wroclaw said Oder water samples taken on 28 July showed an 80% probability that they contained mesitylene, a toxic substance, although this was not present in samples taken after 1 August.

Low river levels due to the drought in Europe might have aggravated possible contamination, Mr Daca said on Wednesday.

He added they suspected a strong oxidizing agent might have gotten into the water causing oxygen levels to spike, which can harm fish.

Mr Daca also said there was no reason for panic and the situation was improving.

Several German districts bordering Poland warned locals to avoid the river water and not to eat fish from the Oder as long as the cause of the fish deaths was unclear.

“The reports from the Oder are simply terrible,” Michael Kellner, a senior politician of Germany’s The Greens party, said on Twitter.

SOURCE: SKY NEWS

More than 1,000 firefighters struggling to tackle huge forest blaze in France

Around 6,800 hectares (26 square miles) in the Gironde region and neighbouring Landes have been burnt by the blaze, which began on Tuesday.

At least 16 houses have also been destroyed, and emergency services have forced around 10,000 people to evacuate the area.

Photographs released by firefighters showed flames raging through pine forests, sending clouds of smoke in the air and illuminating the sky with intense orange light.

It comes after the region was ravaged by flames last month and as France tackles its fourth heatwave following its worst drought ever.

“The conditions are particularly difficult: the vegetation and the soil are particularly dry after more than a month without rain,” local officials said in a statement.

“The scorching temperatures are expected to continue until Saturday and combine with very dry air to create very severe fire risk conditions.”

On Thursday, temperatures were due to reach 40C (104F) across the region.

Four firefighting planes, based in Sweden and Greece, have been sent to the country by the European Commission to help put out the blaze.

Nine other aircraft and two helicopters have also been mobilised.

Commission spokesperson Miriam Garcia Ferrer also said firefighting teams from Germany, Poland, Austria and Romania were on their way to help French crews.

“The EU continues to monitor the situation across Europe and stands ready to help the affected countries,” she added.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne and interior minister Gerald Darmanin are due to visit the evacuated small town of Hostens to meet crews, rescuers, local officials and volunteers.

SOURCE: SKY NEWS

A third of Brits face poverty with energy bills set to hit $5,000

Nearly one third of households in the United Kingdom will face poverty this winter after paying energy bills that are set to soar again in January, campaigners say.

About 10.5 million households will be in fuel poverty for the first three months of next year, according to estimates from the End Fuel Poverty Coalition (EFPC) published on Tuesday — meaning that their income after paying for energy will fall below the poverty line.
The UK government defines poverty as household income of less than 60% of the UK median, which stood at £31,000 ($37,500) in 2021, according to official statistics.
The predictions are based on new estimates from research firm Cornwall Insight, also published Tuesday, which show that the average household energy bill is expected to hit £3,582 ($4,335) a year from October, and £4,266 ($5,163) from January — equating to about £355 ($430) a month.
January’s forecast represents a 116% increase in energy bills from current levels. As fuel prices surge, estimates are having trouble keeping pace. Just last week, Cornwall Insight predicted January’s prices would rise by 83% from current levels.
The research firm said it had revised its figures because of a jump in wholesale prices and a change in the way the UK regulator calculates its price cap. But there could be relief on the horizon: Cornwall Insight expects bills to start falling in the second half of 2023.
Fuel bills started rising last year as a global natural gas supply crunch pushed wholesale prices up to record levels. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in late February has only exacerbated the situation.
The averageUKhousehold bill has already risen 54% this year, exacerbating a cost-of-living crisis that has forced many Britons to choose between “heating and eating.”
In May, the government announced a £15 billion ($18 billion) package of support — including a £400 ($484) payment to 29 million households from October — to ease the burden of energy bills.
But Simon Francis, coordinator for the EFPC, said the latest price estimates meant the current level of government support amounted to a “drop in the ocean.”
Craig Lowrey, a principal consultant at Cornwall Insight, said in a Tuesday press release that if “£400 was not enough to make a dent in the impact of [the company’s] previous forecast, it most certainly is not enough now.”
Liz Truss, the UK’s foreign minister and current frontrunner to replace Boris Johnson as prime minister next month, has proposed cutting taxes to help people struggling with their bills, rather than direct help. Her rival, former finance minister Rishi Sunak, has said more support will be needed.
Meanwhile, the CBI — the country’s top business organization — has urged Johnson to bring the leadership candidates together to agree on a way to support households and businesses with their energy bills so that measures can be announced as soon as the October price cap is set on August 26. The new prime minister is not expected to be elected until September 5.
By Anna Cooban
SOURCE: CNN BUSINESS