Connect with us

CBS News

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo makes good on vow to swim in the Seine river to show its safe for the Summer Games

Avatar

Published

on


Paris — The City of Light placed the Seine river at the heart of its bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics. The opening ceremony will be held along the Seine, and several swimming events during the games are set to take place in cordoned off pools of the river.

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo had vowed that the Seine would be clean enough to host those events — the swimming marathon and the swimming stage of the triathlon, plus a Paralympic swimming event — despite swimming in the badly contaminated river being banned 100 years ago.

To prove her point, she had promised to take a dip herself, and on Wednesday, she made good on the vow, emerging from the water in a wetsuit and goggles to proclaim it “exquisite.”

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo swims in the Seine, in Paris
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo swims in the Seine to demonstrate that the river is clean enough to host outdoor swimming events at the Paris Summer Olympics later this month, in Paris, France, July 17, 2024.

JOEL SAGET/Pool/REUTERS


Hidalgo dived in near her office at City Hall and Paris’ iconic Notre Dame Cathedral, joined by 2024 Paris Olympics chief Tony Estanguet and another senior Paris official, along with members of local swimming clubs.

“The water is very, very good,” she enthused from the Seine. “A little cool, but not so bad.”

Much of the pollution that has plagued the river for a century has been from wastewater that used to flow directly into the Seine whenever rainfall swelled the water level.

A mammoth $1.5 billion has been spent on efforts since 2015 to clean the river up, including a giant new underground rainwater storage tank in southeast Paris.

FRANCE-OLY-PARIS-2024
One boat among a fleet of 55 participates in a technical navigation rehearsal on the Seine river for the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, in Paris, on June 17, 2024.

JULIEN DE ROSA/AFP/Getty


Last week, Paris officials said the river had been safe for swimming on “ten or eleven” of the preceding 12 days. They did not, however, share the actual test results.

A pool of reporters stood in a boat on the Seine to witness Hidalgo’s demonstration of confidence in the clean-up on Wednesday.

Heavy rain over the weekend threatened to spike contaminant levels again, and water testing continued right up until Wednesday.

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo swims in the Seine, in Paris
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo swims in the Seine to demonstrate that the river is clean enough to host outdoor swimming events during the Paris Olympics later in the month, in Paris, France, July 17, 2024.

JOEL SAGET/Pool/REUTERS


There is a Plan B, with alternative arrangements for the Olympic events should the Seine water prove too toxic for athletes once the games get underway on July 26, but confidence has been high, and the country’s sports minister even took a dip on Saturday, declaring the water “very good.”

If the Seine is fit to swim in for the Olympics, Hidalgo will have managed to accomplish a feat with her nearly decade-long cleanup project that eluded a previous effort by former Mayor Jacques Chirac (who then became French president), when he led the capital city for almost three decades from 1977.



Read the original article

Leave your vote

CBS News

911 calls released in deadly Georgia school shooting

Avatar

Published

on


A Georgia county’s emergency call center was overwhelmed by calls on Sept. 4 about a school shooting at Apalachee High School that killed four people and wounded nine others, records released Friday by Barrow County show.

Local news organizations report many of the 911 phone calls were not released under public record requests because state law exempts from release calls recording the voice of someone younger than 18 years old. That exemption would cover calls from most of the 1,900 students at the school in Winder, northeast of Atlanta.

Calls spiked around 10:20 a.m., when authorities have said that 14-year-old suspect Colt Gray began shooting. Many calls were answered with an automated message saying there was a “high call volume,” WAGA-TV reported.

One man called 911 after receiving text messages from a girlfriend. He was put on hold for just over 10 minutes because of an influx of calls at the time of the shooting, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

“She hears people yelling outside, so I don’t know if that’s officers in the building or that’s — I don’t know,” he said, adding that she was eventually evacuated out of the school.

Other adults also called 911 after their children contacted them.

“My daughter calling me crying. Somebody go ‘boom, boom, boom, boom,'” one mother said. The 911 operator responded: “Ma’am we have officers out there, OK?”

Parents of students at an elementary school and middle school neighboring Apalachee also flooded 911 seeking information.

“Sir, my daughter goes to school next door to Apalachee. Is there a school shooter?” one caller asked.

“We do have an active situation (at) Apalachee High School right now,” the operator responded. “We have a lot of calls coming in.”

More than 500 radio messages between emergency personnel were also released Friday.

“Active shooter!” an officer yells in one audio clip while speaking with a dispatcher, CNN reported. Another officer responds, “Correct. We have an active shooter at Apalachee High School.”

The shooting killed teachers Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Cristina Irimie, 53, as well as students Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, both 14. Another teacher and eight more students were wounded, with seven of those hit by gunfire.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation reported Thursday that the suspect rode the school bus on the day of the shooting with the assault-style rifle concealed in his backpack.

He then asked a teacher for permission to go to the front office to speak with someone, and when he received it, he was allowed to take his backpack with him, GBI said. He then went to a restroom, where he hid, and then eventually took out the weapon and started shooting, investigators said. A knife was also found on him when he was arrested.

According to investigators, the suspect enrolled at Apalachee High on Aug. 14, and between Aug. 14 and the day of the shooting, he was absent for nine days of school.

The family told CBS News that the suspect’s maternal grandmother had visited the school the day before the massacre to discuss the suspect’s alleged behavioral issues. 

The suspect has been charged as an adult with four counts of murder, and District Attorney Brad Smith has said more charges are likely to be filed against him in connection with the wounded. Authorities have also charged his father, 54-year-old Colin Gray, alleging that he gave his son access to the gun when he knew or should have known that the teen was a danger to himself and others.

The 13,000 students at Barrow County’s other schools returned to class Tuesday. The 1,900 students who attend Apalachee are supposed to start returning the week of Sept. 23, officials said Friday.



Read the original article

Leave your vote

Continue Reading

CBS News

Pope says Trump, Harris are both “against life”

Avatar

Published

on


Pope says Trump, Harris are both “against life” – CBS News


Watch CBS News



Speaking to reporters Friday, Pope Francis made clear he doesn’t agree with former President Donald Trump’s immigration policy, or Vice President Kamala Harris’ stance on abortion.

Be the first to know

Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.




Read the original article

Leave your vote

Continue Reading

CBS News

9/13: CBS News Weekender – CBS News

Avatar

Published

on


9/13: CBS News Weekender – CBS News


Watch CBS News



Lana Zak has the latest on Boeing factory workers going on strike for the first time in 16 years, an update from the Starliner astronauts still on the International Space Station, and how you can combat election anxiety.

Be the first to know

Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.




Read the original article

Leave your vote

Continue Reading

Copyright © 2024 Breaking MN

Log In

Forgot password?

Forgot password?

Enter your account data and we will send you a link to reset your password.

Your password reset link appears to be invalid or expired.

Log in

Privacy Policy

Add to Collection

No Collections

Here you'll find all collections you've created before.