Emergency and disaster management briefing for November 3o, 2018: The search for victims of the deadly Camp Fire in California has officially ended, five students were hospitalized after eating marijuana tainted gummy bears, wildfire burn scars create high risk of mud flows as heavy rainfalls inundate portions of California, a strong Bay Area storm caused flooding and gusty winds on Thursday amid fears of possible mud flows, Fort St. John, British Colombia experienced a 4.2 magnitude earthquake, a new report by the World Meteorological Organization shows that the last four years were the hottest on record, a reservation database breach exposes the personal information of about 500 million Marriott guests, and a deputy U.S. Marshal was killed in the line of duty Thursday while serving an arrest warrant.
The search for remains of victims from the most deadly and destructive wildfire in California has ended. The official death toll stands at 88, with another nearly 200 people reported missing. Officials noted that as evacuation areas are reopened to residents, bones and bone fragments could be discovered. More that 1,000 personnel took part in the search for victims, methodically combing through the remnants of approximately 18,000 homes and other buildings, including cadaver dogs, forensic anthropologists, coroners, and National Guard troops.
A 12-year-old boy is facing felony charges after passing out gummy bears laced with marijuana to at least six 7th graders. The children experienced stomach aches, nausea, and dizziness, and resulted in five of the six children that ate the gummy bears to be hospitalized. Authorities are working to determine how the 12-year-old boy acquired the gummy bears, and are seeking to understand why he chose to offer it to those six children.
As strong and severe weather makes its way through the central part of California, areas that experienced wildfires have a new concern--mud or debris flows. Recent major wildfires across California have left massive burn scars, or areas that have been stripped of most or all vegetation--making soil susceptible to mudslides from heavy rainfalls. The areas at highest risk for mud or debris flows, and flooding from strong storms that produce heavy rainfall, include the following wildfire locations, the Carr and Delta Fires, Mendocino Complex Fire, and the Carr Fire--all of which have left massive burn scars.
A strong storm battered the San Francisco Bay Area Thursday with scattered thunderstorms, torrential rainfall, and gusty winds, prompting a wind advisory throughout much of the area. The storm toppled trees, knocked out power, and flooded roadways across the Bay Area, and Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) noted that by noon, nearly 2,400 customers were without power. The storm was expected to drop anywhere from 3 to 6 inches of rain across the coastal mountains in the Bay Area, with most other locations accumulating anywhere from 1 to 2 inches of rain.
A magnitude 4.2 earthquake occurred near Fort St. John, British Columbia (BC), Canada on Thursday, and at least two moderate aftershocks were felt. The quake occurred at a depth of about 6.2 miles, and was centered about 13.6 miles from Peace, BC, but while people felt shaking, there was no reported damage from the earthquake. Some information indicates that the quake could have been induced, such as with fracking, and the Oil and Gas Commission in Canada is investigating.
A new report issued by the World Meteorological Organization states that the past four years have been the hottest on record since 1850. The 20 hottest years on record have also occurred over the past 22 years, with the global mean temperature rising 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit above the pre-industrial average from 1850-1900. The report did note that 2018 was not as hot as other recent years due to the cooling of tropical waters in the Pacific Ocean from La Niña.
Marriott International announced Friday that the personal information of about 500 million guests was potentially exposed during a database hack of its Starwood Hotel brand. The brand was bought by Marriott in 2016, but company officials stated that unauthorized access to the Starwood network database has been occurring since 2014. A company investigation into the breach shows that an unauthorized party had copied and encrypted information that likely consisted of a combination of personal information such as name, mailing address, phone number, email address, passport number, birth date, and may include credit card numbers.
A deputy U.S. Marshal was shot in the line of duty on Thursday evening while serving an arrest warrant. The officer, whose identity has not yet been released, was shot by the suspect, Ryan Schlesinger, 26, of Tucson, Arizona when he opened fire on the officer, striking and fatally wounding him. The warrant being served was for stalking a law enforcement officer.