عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Varieties

Monsoon Flooding Closes Schools and Offices in India’s Southern IT Hubs

People use a boat on a flooded street to reach safer place during heavy rains in Chennai, India, Wednesday, Oct.16, 2024. (AP)
People use a boat on a flooded street to reach safer place during heavy rains in Chennai, India, Wednesday, Oct.16, 2024. (AP)
TT
TT

Monsoon Flooding Closes Schools and Offices in India’s Southern IT Hubs

People use a boat on a flooded street to reach safer place during heavy rains in Chennai, India, Wednesday, Oct.16, 2024. (AP)
People use a boat on a flooded street to reach safer place during heavy rains in Chennai, India, Wednesday, Oct.16, 2024. (AP)

Schools, colleges and government offices were shut Wednesday in parts of southern India as heavy monsoon rains triggered severe flooding.

The worst-hit cities included Chennai and Bengaluru, the country’s industrial and information technology hubs. Power cuts and flight cancellations caused disruption, and thousands of residents prepared for more downpours over the next 48 hours.

The June-September monsoon season has receded in northern parts of the country. However, the northeast monsoon has brought heavy rains to coastal Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and southern Karnataka state. At least 33 people died last month in rains and floods.

Residents of the high-security Poes Garden area in Chennai, where top politicians, industrialists and celebrities live, woke up to severe flooding following overnight rains. Television images showed people struggling through traffic congestion in knee-deep floodwaters.

The India Meteorological Department said that winds of 60 kph (37 mph) were expected to lash the southern region until Thursday.

The Tamil Nadu state government said more than 200 boats and disaster response teams have been deployed and schools, colleges and government offices were closed.

Disasters caused by landslides and floods are common in South Asia. Scientists and weather forecasters have blamed climate change for heavier rains in recent years.

Most Viewed

 
 
Varieties

Mounted New York Police Officer and His Horse Corner Suspected Purse Snatcher in Manhattan

A view shows the downtown Manhattan skyline in New York City, US, July 22, 2025. (Reuters)
A view shows the downtown Manhattan skyline in New York City, US, July 22, 2025. (Reuters)
TT
TT

Mounted New York Police Officer and His Horse Corner Suspected Purse Snatcher in Manhattan

A view shows the downtown Manhattan skyline in New York City, US, July 22, 2025. (Reuters)
A view shows the downtown Manhattan skyline in New York City, US, July 22, 2025. (Reuters)

A New York City police officer on horseback nabbed a suspected purse snatcher after chasing her through the streets of Manhattan at full gallop — a wild scene evoking the clip-clopping past of a city where lights, sirens and squad cars are the norm.

The late Wednesday morning pursuit began when the victim reported the theft. The officer — whose name has not been released — and his horse quickly took up the chase that was captured on his bodycam and also by a television news crew that happened to be in the area for an unrelated story.

The officer repeatedly screamed at the suspect to stop running, but she refused while denying she had taken the purse.

The brief hoof chase went along sidewalks, under scaffolding, between parked cars and across streets before the woman was stopped by a pedestrian and then detained by the officer.

The woman was charged with larceny and providing false information. Authorities said she had been convicted of murder in the April 2000 fatal shooting of a cab driver and had served time in prison before being released. She is currently on lifetime parole.

No injuries were reported in the chase.

Varieties

Back on Earth, Artemis II Crew Still Finding their Footing

HOUSTON, TEXAS - APRIL 16: Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, Mission Specialist Christina Koch, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen speak during a press conference at the NASA Johnson Space Center on April 16, 2026 in Houston, Texas. Danielle Villasana/Getty Images/AFP
HOUSTON, TEXAS - APRIL 16: Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, Mission Specialist Christina Koch, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen speak during a press conference at the NASA Johnson Space Center on April 16, 2026 in Houston, Texas. Danielle Villasana/Getty Images/AFP
TT
TT

Back on Earth, Artemis II Crew Still Finding their Footing

HOUSTON, TEXAS - APRIL 16: Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, Mission Specialist Christina Koch, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen speak during a press conference at the NASA Johnson Space Center on April 16, 2026 in Houston, Texas. Danielle Villasana/Getty Images/AFP
HOUSTON, TEXAS - APRIL 16: Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, Mission Specialist Christina Koch, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen speak during a press conference at the NASA Johnson Space Center on April 16, 2026 in Houston, Texas. Danielle Villasana/Getty Images/AFP

Nearly a week after their Pacific splashdown, the astronauts who crewed the Artemis II mission that flew around the Moon told reporters Thursday they have yet to fully grasp the magnitude of the moment.

"It's been a week of medical testing, physical testing, doctors, science objectives," mission commander Reid Wiseman said during a press conference at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

"We have not had that decompression," he added.

The 50-year-old led fellow Americans Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and Canadian crewmate Jeremy Hansen, on a mission that took them farther into space than anyone has ever gone before.

Adjusting to life on Earth is taking a beat, AFP reported.

"Tomorrow will be one week, and I just was trying to live in a little hole for one week, been off social media, not on the news. So, no, I don't know," Glover, who piloted the mission, told reporters.

Nonetheless, he said his children and neighbors have clued him in to the excitement.

Artemis II was the first crewed mission to venture to the Moon's orbit since 1972, and the only one in history to include a woman, or a Black astronaut, or a non-American. Their voyage was broadcast live by US space agency NASA, and the media coverage of the launch and return to Earth was watched by millions of people.

For Koch, waking up to the reality means remembering gravity has taken hold.

"In the first few days, I thought I was floating. I truly thought I was floating, and I had to convince myself I wasn't," Koch said.

Their mission lasted almost 10 days, but NASA has ambitions to return to the Moon for longer visits to establish a base in preparation for future missions to Mars.

The United States is targeting a lunar landing in 2028, before the end of President Donald Trump's term and a deadline set by rivals in China.

Varieties

Hidden Cave, Hippo Bones Under Welsh Castle May Rewrite History

Previous small-scale excavations at Pembroke Castle have already uncovered evidence of early humans and animals. PHOTO: UNIVERSITY OF ABERDEEN
Previous small-scale excavations at Pembroke Castle have already uncovered evidence of early humans and animals. PHOTO: UNIVERSITY OF ABERDEEN
TT
TT

Hidden Cave, Hippo Bones Under Welsh Castle May Rewrite History

Previous small-scale excavations at Pembroke Castle have already uncovered evidence of early humans and animals. PHOTO: UNIVERSITY OF ABERDEEN
Previous small-scale excavations at Pembroke Castle have already uncovered evidence of early humans and animals. PHOTO: UNIVERSITY OF ABERDEEN

A prehistoric hidden cave and hippo bones found beneath a Welsh castle could transform understanding of ancient life in Britain, researchers said Thursday, calling the site a "once-in-a-lifetime discovery".

Previous small-scale excavations at Pembroke Castle have already uncovered evidence of early humans and animals, including a now extinct hippopotamus that roamed Wales 120,000 years ago.

A major five-year archaeological project led by the University of Aberdeen will investigate the "enormous" cave, accessed via a spiral staircase from the 11th Century castle, AFP reported.

"There is no other site like it in Britain -- it is a once-in-a-lifetime discovery," said Rob Dinnis, who will lead the project.

The cave, previously thought to have been emptied by the Victorians, is now described as "one of the most important prehistoric archives in Britain".

"Despite the limited work done so far, we can already say that Wogan Cavern is a truly remarkable site," Dinnis said in a statement.

"Not only is there extremely rare evidence for early Homo sapiens, there are also hints at even earlier human occupation, probably by Neanderthals."

"We have also found hippo bones, which probably date to the last interglacial period, around 120,000 years ago," he added.

Earlier finds have revealed bones of mammoth, woolly rhinoceros, reindeer and wild horse, alongside stone tools and evidence of human occupation across multiple periods.

With larger-scale excavation due to resume in May, the researchers hope to gain "insights into past climate change, extinct species, and the multiple periods when humans called the cave their home".

They said the site could chart a long sequence of human activity, from hunter-gatherers after the last Ice Age around 11,500 years ago to some of Britain's earliest Homo sapiens between 45,000 and 35,000 years ago, and possibly even earlier Neanderthal presence.

"Wogan Cavern provides a unique chance to use all the scientific techniques now available to archaeologists," said professor Kate Britton of the University of Aberdeen.

"Because the bones are well preserved, we can learn a lot about past environments and ecosystems," she added.

At Pembroke Castle, staff say the discovery adds a new dimension to the site's long history as a medieval fortress and birthplace of Henry VII in 1457.

"This is incredibly exciting news for everyone at the castle," said castle manager Jon Williams.

"We are thrilled that work on this wonderful cave will continue."