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Trump Visits North Carolina and Los Angeles in Tour of Disaster Zones

President Donald Trump is briefed on the effects of Hurricane Helene at Asheville Regional Airport in Fletcher, North Carolina, Friday, Jan. 24, 2025, as first lady Melania Trump looks on. (AP)
President Donald Trump is briefed on the effects of Hurricane Helene at Asheville Regional Airport in Fletcher, North Carolina, Friday, Jan. 24, 2025, as first lady Melania Trump looks on. (AP)
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Trump Visits North Carolina and Los Angeles in Tour of Disaster Zones

President Donald Trump is briefed on the effects of Hurricane Helene at Asheville Regional Airport in Fletcher, North Carolina, Friday, Jan. 24, 2025, as first lady Melania Trump looks on. (AP)
President Donald Trump is briefed on the effects of Hurricane Helene at Asheville Regional Airport in Fletcher, North Carolina, Friday, Jan. 24, 2025, as first lady Melania Trump looks on. (AP)

US President Donald Trump visited disaster-hit western North Carolina on Friday and was traveling later to Los Angeles, promising help while stoking partisan tensions with Democratic rivals over recovery efforts.

Trump's first trip since reclaiming the presidency on Monday could provide an opportunity to assure residents that the federal government will help those whose lives have been upended by hurricanes, wildfires and other natural disasters.

On arrival in Asheville, North Carolina, he sharply attacked the Federal Emergency Management Agency's handling of the after-effects of September's Hurricane Helene. FEMA was run by then-President Joe Biden's administration for the last four years.

During a briefing about recovery efforts, the Republican Trump promised to speedily help North Carolina "get the help you need" to rebuild.

He said he would prefer the states be given federal money to handle disasters themselves rather than rely on FEMA to do the job. He said he would sign an executive order aimed at what he said would address problems inherent to FEMA.

"I think we're going to recommend that FEMA go away," he said.

Trump complained that Biden did not do enough to help western North Carolina recover from the hurricane, an accusation the Biden administration rejected as misinformation.

Trump also sharply criticized Democratic officials' response to wildfires in Los Angeles that have caused widespread destruction this month. His Republican colleagues in Congress have threatened to withhold disaster aid for the region.

Trump was due to visit Los Angeles later in the day while three massive blazes still threaten the region.

NEWSOM TO GREET TRUMP IN LOS ANGELES

In an interview with Fox News on Wednesday, Trump also threatened to withhold aid and repeated a false claim that California Governor Gavin Newsom and other officials have refused to provide water from the northern part of the state to fight the fires.

"I don't think we should give California anything until they let the water flow down," Trump said.

He has falsely claimed that Newsom, a Democrat, prioritized the preservation of endangered fish over public safety. Newsom has said there is no connection between the fish and the fire.

The governor told reporters on Thursday that he planned to be on hand at Los Angeles International Airport to greet Trump.

"I look forward to being there on the tarmac to thank the president and welcome him," Newsom said.

Trump has accused Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass - who was out of the country when the fires broke out - of "gross incompetence," pointing to what he called a lack of preparation and ineffective or harmful water management policies.

“It's ashes, and Gavin Newscum (sic) should resign. This is all his fault!!!,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, denigrating the governor by misspelling his name.

Water shortages caused some hydrants to run dry in affluent Pacific Palisades, hindering the early response. When the fires broke out, one of the reservoirs that could have supplied more water to the area was empty for a year. Officials have promised an investigation into why it was dry.

Mayor Bass and fire officials have said the hydrants were not designed to deal with such a massive disaster, and stressed the unprecedented nature of the fires.

Trump has focused some of his criticism on California's complicated policies for sharing the plentiful water supply found in the northern part of the state with the parched south. The diversion results in the discharge of some water into the ocean, something Trump has depicted as a callous waste.

Newsom has dismissed those attacks as groundless, and experts have said that the diversions, in part designed to protect agricultural interests, have played little or no part in the difficulties encountered in fighting the fires.

Since the fires broke out on Jan. 7, they have killed 28 people and damaged or destroyed nearly 16,000 structures, authorities say. Much of Southern California remains under a red-flag warning for extreme fire risk due to strong, dry winds.

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World

Russian Strikes Kill Five in Ukraine, Say Regional Authorities

A US-made Humvee driven by a Ukrainian serviceman equipped with additional anti-drone protection drives on a road in the Kharkiv region on March 17, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
A US-made Humvee driven by a Ukrainian serviceman equipped with additional anti-drone protection drives on a road in the Kharkiv region on March 17, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
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Russian Strikes Kill Five in Ukraine, Say Regional Authorities

A US-made Humvee driven by a Ukrainian serviceman equipped with additional anti-drone protection drives on a road in the Kharkiv region on March 17, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
A US-made Humvee driven by a Ukrainian serviceman equipped with additional anti-drone protection drives on a road in the Kharkiv region on March 17, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)

A barrage of Russian missiles and drones killed five people across Ukraine on Tuesday, regional authorities said.

Sirens wailed overnight in nearly all of the country, as the attacks killed two people in the Poltava region, with Zaporizhzhia, Kherson and Kharkiv each reporting one death.

On the eve of the strikes, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had warned in his daily televised address that "there is information from our intelligence that the Russians may be preparing a massive strike".

A 61-year-old passenger on an electric train in Kharkiv "died on the spot" after the train was hit at around 5:20 am (0320 GMT) by a drone, according to the Kharkiv Regional Prosecutor's Office.

The strikes also "killed a civilian resident of Kherson in his own home", Yaroslav Shanko, head of the Kherson city military administration, said.

Media outlet Suspilne Poltava published images on Tuesday morning showing residential buildings with blown-out windows and scorched facades.

Two people were killed and seven wounded in the Poltava region, emergency services said.

Farther south, Russia carried out a "massive combined missile-drone strike" in Zaporizhzhia, according to Ivan Fedorov, head of the regional military administration, with emergency services reporting one person killed and five wounded.

Russia attacked two districts of the Dnipropetrovsk region "with drones and artillery more than 20 times", according to Oleksandr Ganzha, head of the regional military administration.

"A 76-year-old woman was wounded" and hospitalized, Ganzha posted on Telegram.

In Sumy, a 65-year-old driver of an empty minibus was injured when his vehicle was hit by a drone, according to the head of regional military administration Oleg Grygorov.

Separately, Russia's defense ministry said on Tuesday that its air defenses intercepted "55 Ukrainian fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles" over various regions in the preceding night.

World

Ukraine's Front Line… A Laboratory for Drone Innovation

A soldier of the 127th Separate Territorial Brigade mounts a drone at a workshop on the front line in the Kharkiv region Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Nikoletta Stoyanova)
A soldier of the 127th Separate Territorial Brigade mounts a drone at a workshop on the front line in the Kharkiv region Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Nikoletta Stoyanova)
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Ukraine's Front Line… A Laboratory for Drone Innovation

A soldier of the 127th Separate Territorial Brigade mounts a drone at a workshop on the front line in the Kharkiv region Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Nikoletta Stoyanova)
A soldier of the 127th Separate Territorial Brigade mounts a drone at a workshop on the front line in the Kharkiv region Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Nikoletta Stoyanova)

The night air in eastern Ukraine is crisp, and a myriad of stars scatter above a small crew of soldiers watching for Iranian-designed Shahed drones that Russia launches in waves.

Such teams are deployed across the country as part of a constantly evolving effort to counter the low-cost loitering munitions that have become a deadly weapon of modern warfare, from Ukraine to the Middle East.

While waiting, the crew from the 127th Brigade tests and fine-tunes their self-made interceptor drones, searching for flaws that could undermine performance once the buzzing threat appears, according to a report published by The Associated Press.

When Shahed drones first appeared in autumn 2022, Ukraine had few ways to stop them. Today, drone crews intercept them in flight with continually adapting technology.

In recent years, Ukraine's domestic drone interceptor market has burgeoned, producing some key players who tout their products at international arms shows.

But it's on the front line where small teams have become laboratories of rapid military innovation — grassroots technology born of battlefield necessity that now draw international interest.

“It’s not like we sat down one day and decided to fight with drones,” said a pilot with Ukraine’s 127th Brigade, sitting at his monitor after completing a preflight check. “We did it because we had nothing else.”

Moments earlier, the pilot carefully landed his interceptor drone to avoid damaging it. He spoke on condition of anonymity because military rules did not allow him to be quoted by name.

Though designed to be disposable, limited resources mean Ukrainian crews try to preserve every tool they have, often reusing even single-use drones to study their weaknesses and improve them.

“Just imagine — a Patriot missile costs about $2 million, and here you have a small aircraft worth about $2,200,” the pilot said. “And if it doesn’t hit the target, I can land it, fix it a bit and send it back into the air. The difference is huge. And the effect? Not any worse.”

How the Drone War Began

Ukraine’s 127th Brigade is building an air defense unit centered on interceptor drone crews — a model increasingly adopted across the military.

Leading the brigade's effort is a 27-year-old captain, who previously served in another formation where he had already helped organize a similar system. He also spoke on condition of anonymity because military rules did not allow him to be quoted by name.

He clearly remembers the moment about two years ago when everything changed. He said he was assigned to lead a group of soldiers ordered to intercept Russian reconnaissance drones using shoulder-fired air-defense missiles.

The approach quickly proved ineffective. Agile drones equipped with cameras could easily maneuver away from the slower, less-flexible weapons, he said.

Determined to find a better solution, the young officer began searching for alternatives, asking fellow soldiers and volunteers supporting the front.

The answer turned out to be simple: another drone.

The captain still remembers the day a Russian Orlan reconnaissance drone hung above a Ukrainian position, transmitting coordinates to guide Russian artillery. A pilot from his unit downed it by using another drone, he added.

“That’s when I realized — this is a drone war. It had begun,” he said. “We had been moving toward it for some time, but that was the moment I saw it with my own eyes.”

They never found the wreckage of the Orlan, which burned as it fell to the ground.

Downing Shaheds

Another challenge soon emerged: how to intercept the hundreds of fast, durable Shahed drones flying far beyond the front line.

The young captain's search for a solution led him to the 127th Brigade in Kharkiv and to cooperation with a local defense company. Their joint efforts resulted in aircraft-style interceptor drones capable of matching the speed of the Shaheds.

Kharkiv is not only where they work — it's where their families live, a city that regularly comes under Shahed attacks.

Working with the company allows soldiers to test interceptor drones in real conditions and quickly refine the technology through direct feedback.

The company's Skystriker drone differs from more widely known interceptor systems such as Sting or P1-Sun, which are based on modified first-person view, or FPV, drones. Instead, it resembles a small aircraft with wings, allowing it to stay aloft longer.

“Yes, this is a joint effort,” said the director of the company, who spoke on condition he not disclose the name of the firm or his own identity for security reasons.

“It’s not enough just to build it. It has to work — and work properly — and perform real combat tasks,” he said. “That’s why communication with the military is so important. They give us feedback and help us improve it every time.”

In Ukraine, cooperation often goes beyond the military and manufacturers. Volunteers frequently act as intermediaries between the two, sometimes even helping them find one another.

The Come Back Alive Foundation, a nonprofit think tank and charity that raises money to equip Ukraine’s forces, launched a project called “Dronopad,” loosely translated as “Dronefall,” in summer 2024.

The idea grew from battlefield reports that FPV drone pilots were occasionally able to track and intercept aerial targets — early cases that helped shape efforts to counter the Shaheds.

“At that moment it wasn’t clear whether this was even a scalable solution or just isolated incidents,” said Taras Tymochko, who leads the project. “Our goal was to turn it into a system — to help units that already had their first successful cases build the capability and scale what they had achieved.”

World

At Least 66 Killed in Military Plane Crash in Colombia

Members of the military gather at the site of a Colombian military plane crash in Puerto Leguizamo, Putumayo, Colombia March 23, 2026. La Voz de Amazonia/Mare Rafue/Handout via REUTERS
Members of the military gather at the site of a Colombian military plane crash in Puerto Leguizamo, Putumayo, Colombia March 23, 2026. La Voz de Amazonia/Mare Rafue/Handout via REUTERS
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At Least 66 Killed in Military Plane Crash in Colombia

Members of the military gather at the site of a Colombian military plane crash in Puerto Leguizamo, Putumayo, Colombia March 23, 2026. La Voz de Amazonia/Mare Rafue/Handout via REUTERS
Members of the military gather at the site of a Colombian military plane crash in Puerto Leguizamo, Putumayo, Colombia March 23, 2026. La Voz de Amazonia/Mare Rafue/Handout via REUTERS

A military transport plane with 128 people on board, mostly soldiers, crashed shortly after taking off Monday in Puerto Leguizamo, Colombia, killing at least 66 people and leaving dozens injured, the head of Colombia’s armed forces said.

General Hugo Alejandro López Barreto said that four military personnel were still missing.

“Sadly, as a consequence of this tragic accident, 66 of our military elements died,” The Associated Press quoted him as saying.

“At the moment, we have no information, or indications, that it was an attack by an illegal armed group,” Barreto added.

In a video posted on social media, Deputy Mayor Carlos Claros said that the bodies of the victims were taken to the small town's morgue, and that the only two clinics in town treated the injured before they were flown to larger cities. Puerto Leguizamo is located in Putumayo, an Amazonian province that borders Ecuador and Peru.

“I want to thank the people of Puerto Leguizamo who came out to help the victims of this accident,” Claros told Colombian television station RCN.

Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez said on X that the plane that crashed Monday was transporting troops to another city in Putumayo.

Images shared online by Colombian media outlets showed a black cloud of smoke rising from a field where the plane crashed and a truck with soldiers rushing to the site.

The airplane had 128 people on board, including 115 were from the Army, 11 crew members and 2 from the National Police. Baretto said 57 people were evacuated.

Media outlets shared videos of soldiers being rushed from the site on motorcycles driven by local residents, while another group of residents tried to put out the fire that the plane crash had created in a field surrounded by dense foliage.

Carlos Fernando Silva, the commander of Colombia’s air force, said details of the crash were not yet known, "except that the plane had a problem and went down about two kilometers from the airport.”

The air force commander added that two planes, with 74 beds, were sent to the area to fly the injured back to hospitals in the capital, Bogota, and elsewhere.

Petro seized on the accident to promote what he called his longtime campaign to modernize planes and other equipment used by his country’s military, saying those efforts have been blocked by “bureaucratic difficulties” and suggesting that some officials should be held accountable.

“If civilian or military administrative officials are not up to the challenge, they must be removed,” Petro said.

Critics of the president pointed out that military aircraft have been given less flight hours under the Petro administration due to budget cuts, which leads to less experienced crews.

Erich Saumeth, a Colombian aviation expert and military analyst, said that the Hercules C-130 that crashed Monday had been donated by the United States to Colombia in 2020. Three years later, it went through a detailed revision known as an overhaul, in which its engines were inspected and key components were replaced.

“I don't think this plane crashed because of a lack of good parts,” Saumeth said. He said that investigations will have to determine why the engines of the Hercules, which has four propellers, failed so quickly after takeoff.

In a message on X Monday, Defense Minister Sánchez said that so far there were no signs indicating that the plane was attacked by rebel groups that operate near Puerto Leguizamo.

Sánchez wrote that the accident was “profoundly painful for the country,” adding that: “We hope that our prayers can help to relieve some of the pain.”

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