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Much of Puerto Rico loses power as controversy over its electricity providers intensifies

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San Juan, Puerto Rico — A widespread power outage hit Puerto Rico Wednesday night, leaving more than 340,000 customers without electricity after two of the U.S. territory’s power plants shut down.

The capital of San Juan was left without electricity as well as neighboring municipalities including Bayamón, Caguas and Carolina.

Luma Energy, which operates transmission and distribution for Puerto Rico’s power authority, said on X that the outage was tied to an issue with the power plants’ transmission lines. It provided a statement to The Associated Press saying it was investigating the outage that coincided with the shutdown of units operated by Genera PR, which operates and maintains state power generation units.

Gov. Pedro Pierluisi condemned the outage and said he was demanding answers and solutions from Luma and Genera PR.

“The events that have been occurring in recent weeks with our electrical system are unacceptable,” he posted on X. “While it is true that we have old plants and transmission lines in terrible condition, the people continue to suffer the consequences of the lack of sense of urgency that private operators are demonstrating.”

Both Luma and Genera PR were selected as private operators under Pierluisi’s administration.

The outage is the most recent in a string of blackouts to hit Puerto Rico, which is still trying to rebuild the grid after Hurricane Maria razed it in 2017 as a Category 4 storm.

The outage prompted the mayor of the San Juan capital, Miguel Romero, to declare a state of emergency late Wednesday as he accused Luma of sharing limited information about the ongoing blackouts.

“There are thousands of children with specific feeding needs, as well as older adults who often need therapy machines to protect their health and often save their lives,” the decree stated.

Scores of Puerto Ricans took to social media to condemn the most recent outage and demand the ouster of Luma, noting that it occurred amid excessive heat warnings. Not all on the island of 3.2 million people and a poverty rate of more than 40% can afford generators or solar panels.



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Las Vegas man who called 911 for home invasion killed by police: “He was screaming for help”

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Las Vegas man who called 911 for home invasion killed by police: “He was screaming for help” – CBS News


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A Las Vegas father was shot and killed by police in his home after calling 911 for help in a home invasion. Newly released police body cam video shows Brandon Durham struggling with an alleged intruder before an officer opens fire. Now his family is calling for that officer’s arrest. Warning: This video is disturbing to watch.

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Russia says Ukraine fired 6 U.S.-made ATACMS missiles at Bryansk as Moscow warns such strikes risk world war

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Zhytomyr, Ukraine — Exactly 1,000 days after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine, Russia’s defense ministry accused Ukrainian forces on Tuesday of firing six U.S.-made and -supplied ATACMS missiles at the Russian region of Bryansk. If confirmed, it could be the first time Ukrainian troops had taken advantage of President Biden easing restrictions over the weekend on Ukraine’s use of the U.S.-made missiles to strike targets deeper inside Russian territory.

Ukraine’s military said it hit a Russian weapons depot in Bryansk overnight, but it didn’t say what weapons were used. U.S. officials confirmed to CBS News on Tuesday that U.S.-supplied ATACMS had been used on targets inside Russia.

In a statement carried by state media, Russia’s Defense Ministry said the military had shot down five ATACMS fired by Ukraine and damaged another. The reports said fragments had fallen at or near a military facility and that some of the debris had ignited a fire, but the ministry said there was no damage or casualties.

Range of ATACMS missiles
An infographic shows the range and other details of the U.S.-made ATACMS missiles supplied to Ukraine.

Murat Usubali/Anadolu/Getty


The strike in Bryansk came hours after another Ukrainian residential neighborhood was left charred and smoking. Ukrainian officials said 10 people were killed Monday in a Russian drone and missile attack on the southern city of Odesa. 

The strike came a day after another strike on the power grid in Odesa, which also destroyed several homes.

With Mr. Biden finally granting Ukraine the long-sought permission to fire ATACMS — which have a range of about 190 miles — deeper into Russia, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s forces had a new option to retaliate for the latest carnage.

Aftermath of Russian shelling of Odesa on November 18, 2024
People look at an apartment building hit by a Russian missile strike in Odesa, Ukraine, Nov. 18, 2024.

Ukrinform/NurPhoto/Getty


Russia, however, has accused the U.S. of adding fuel to the fire. 

In September, President Vladimir Putin warned that if the U.S. allowed Ukraine to use ATACMS inside his country, it would mean the U.S. and its NATO allies were at war with Russia.

Putin has yet to respond directly to Mr. Biden’s weekend decision, but lawmakers in Moscow fumed over the move on Monday, including a senator who called it “a very big step toward the beginning of the third world war.”

Neither side has confirmed its death tolls during the war, but Ukraine’s military has paid a steep price for trying to defend the country from the invasion, with around 70,000 troops believed to have been killed. More than 100,000 soldiers from Russia — a country with a population more than three times larger than Ukraine’s — have been killed, according to U.S. officials.


Russia condemns Biden’s decision to let Ukraine fire missiles deep into Russia

02:18

Col. Maksym Balagura, a special forces commander in Ukraine’s state border guard, acknowledged the vast size discrepancy when asked by CBS News if his country was short on manpower, saying it “isn’t possible to compare Russia and Ukraine… Their country is 10 times the size of ours, and of course they have more manpower.”

But with the grueling ground and air war showing no signs of letting up, Russia’s military has already been bolstered by more than 10,000 North Korean soldiers, according to Ukrainian, South Korean and U.S. officials.

Zelenskyy warned Tuesday that the North Korean contingent supporting Russia’s forces could grow to 100,000, as the two Western adversaries deepen their security ties.

contributed to this report.



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Bodycam shows Las Vegas man who called 911 for help killed by police in his home

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A family is demanding answers after a Las Vegas father was shot and killed in his own home after calling police to report a potential home invasion.

Newly released police bodycam video shows Brandon Durham, 43, struggling with an alleged intruder over a knife in the early hours of Nov. 12. The intruder, later identified as Alejandra Boudreaux, 31, was wearing a red hoodie, while Durham was shirtless, the video shows. Durham’s 15-year-old daughter was home at the time, but was not at the scene, officials said. 

Las Vegas police said Officer Alexander Bookman entered the home and ordered the pair to drop the knife before firing his weapon, police said. Durham was struck and fell to the floor. Bookman then fires five more rounds, the video shows.

screenshot-2024-11-19-at-9-14-31-am.png
Alejandra Boudreaux and Brandon Durham.

CBS Mornings


Durham was pronounced dead at the scene. Now, his family is pushing for answers. 

“He called the police for safety and instead, he was brutally murdered,” his daughter Isabella said in a news conference. 

“Someone needs to explain to me why my son is not here with us today,” added Durham’s mother. 

Bookman is on paid leave while the Las Vegas Metro Police Department investigates whether he acted appropriately or should face criminal charges. Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson told Durham’s family the investigation could take 30 to 90 days, according to CBS affiliate KLAS.

screenshot-2024-11-19-at-9-13-41-am.png
Brandon Durham.

CBS Mornings


“Every time a police officer used force, he has to be able to articulate why he used that force,” Felipe Rodriguez, an adjunct professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and a former detective sergeant for the NYPD, told CBS News. “And even if he did use one round, you know, how is it that he was, you know, he continued shooting after the person was down in such a rapid succession? It’s going to have a lot of explaining.” 

Boudreaux was arrested and faces multiple charges, including one count of home invasion with a deadly weapon, a count of assault with a deadly weapon, a count of performing an act of willful or wanton disregard of safety resulting in a person’s death, and one count of child abuse, according to police

Boudreaux and Durham knew each other and had a sexual relationship, according to an arrest report obtained by KLAS 8. Boudreaux told detectives she intended to have police kill her on the day of the home invasion, the station reported, and Boudreaux has refused to appear at two court hearings. 



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