The large object flying through the sky in Tucson Arizona on Tuesday night wasn’t a bird, a plane or Superman.
A large meteor raced across the evening sky causing a sonic boom that shook up residents during dinner. Residents said the boom caused items on shelves to shake and NASA scientists said the meteor was an example of the “sporadic background” meteors that fly through the atmosphere daily.
Scientists did hail the timing of the large meteor because the annual Geminid meteor showers were scheduled to begin tonight. The meteor Tuesday night was identified as not being part of the Geminid meteors because it only moved at 45,000 miles per hour compared to a Geminid’s 78,000 miles per hour.
NASA estimates the meteor was at least 100 pounds and about 16 inches thick to cause the bright flash as it burned up in the atmosphere.
A US Airways Express flight from Texas to Arizona ended up being more dramatic than passengers had expected when they boarded.
First responders boarded the plane upon landing in Phoenix and removed a man who was told to put on a medical mask. A spokesman for US Airways said the airline was notified after the plane left Austin the passenger’s status had been changed to “no-fly” because of medical conditions.
Passengers told Fox News they were told to get tuberculosis tests and vaccinations by a first responder who boarded the plane while it was on the tarmac. Federal and Maricopa County health officials said they had no immediate confirmation the passenger had an infectious disease.
However, a spokeswoman for the Maricopa County Department of Public Health told ABC15 passengers “faced little risk of contagion.”
Tuberculosis can be spread through the air.
A drug that causes skin to rot away has been found in the United States.
Krokodil, which first began making the rounds in Russia a decade ago, has reportedly been found in Arizona. Continue reading →
Recently released court records show that Arizona judges have approved almost 75% of requests from minors for an abortion without their parent’s consent.
Since 2010, 95 of 128 minors who asked a judge to permit the abortion without parental consent received the order. State law requires parental consent for abortion by minors but a minor can trump their parent’s wishes through a court. Continue reading →
The deadly Yarnell Arizona area wildfire that killed 19 firefighters has officially been designated as half contained. Over 600 firefighters are now on the front line of the fire that has burned over 13 square miles.
And as their brothers-in-arms are paying tribute to the fallen firefighters, local officials have stated that they believe it’s possible residents who refused to listen to evacuation orders died in the flames. They will not be able to get an official death toll until the flames are extinguished. Continue reading →
The Yarnell, Arizona blaze that killed 19 firefighters has quadrupled in size since the deaths.
The incidents with the firefighters is the largest single loss of emergency personnel in the U.S. since 9/11. It is the third deadliest loss of personnel in a wildfire in U.S. history. Continue reading →
A fast moving wildfire has taken the lives of at least 19 firefighters in an area 85 miles northwest of Phoenix, Arizona.
According to officials on the scene, members of the “Prescott Granite Mountain Hotshots” were on the front lines of the fire when somehow there was a shift that trapped the firefighters in the middle of the flames. Continue reading →
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has struck down an Arizona law that banned abortions after the 20th week of pregnancy. Continue reading →
A Phoenix, Arizona man who served in the Army has been arrested charged with fighting as part of Al Qaeda in Syria.
Eric Harroun, who left the Army on diability after a truck accident in 2003, faces charges of conspiring to use a rocked-propelled grenade while fighting with Al-Qaeda. Harroun had admitted to being a “Muslim freedom fighter” during a Skype interview with Fox News on March 11th. Continue reading →
A new report is showing that a fungal infection called Valley Fever is up across the Southwest United States.
More than 22,000 cases were confirmed in 2011, a rise from 2,265 cases in 1998 according to the CDC. The report only looks at cases in Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah. Texas also houses the fungus that causes the disease but they do not report statistics to the CDC. Continue reading →