Displaying items by tag: North America

As of 7^th July, the total number of confirmed deaths due to the collapse of the Florida apartment block stands at 36, while 109 residents are still missing.  Emergency teams are increasingly pessimistic of finding any more survivors among the rubble and say they have detected no signs of life since the immediate aftermath.

Nearly 2 weeks after the collapse, the search continues but with few positive signs.  The building’s collapse occurred at about 1:20 a.m. on June 24 while almost all of the residents were sleeping. The structural failure initially began in the pool deck and garage areas, which engineers believe triggered the collapse of the midsection of the tower and then the front part facing the ocean. Fifty-five of the 136 condo units were destroyed.

Particular help has come from local synagogues given the apartment block, Champlain Tower South Condo, was in the area of Surfside, which has a tight knit Jewish community.

Many members are affected by the disaster: at least 34 of the missing are Jewish, one local synagogue told journalists.  Synagogues in the neighbourhood have been collecting money and providing food for rescue workers and survivors. One synagogue raised more than $100,000 in just a few hours.

Pope Francis sent a message to the Archbishop of Miami, the Most Revd Thomas Wenski, on Saturday, and offered “heartfelt prayer that Almighty God will grant eternal peace to those who have died, comfort to those who mourn their loss, and strength to all those affected by this immense tragedy”.

The cause of the collapse is not clear, although an engineer’s report from 2018, revealed on Saturday, referred to “a major error” in the original design of the 12-storey sea-front Champlain Towers. It said that the fault prevented water from draining away from the base of the building.

The Bishop of Southeast Florida, the Rt Revd Peter Eaton, said that prayers were said in the diocese on Sunday. “We pray for the dead and the grieving, the injured, and those still unaccounted for, and their family and friends who are waiting anxiously for news of them. We also pray for those who are now homeless, and who have lost everything.”

He asked Episcopalians: “Please remember in your prayers, as well, those who are working around the clock to search for survivors, to recover the dead, and to account for the missing.”

Sources / More: The Church Times, MSN News

Pray:

Pray with us for grieving families and individuals, that they may be comforted by the overwhelming peace of God. (Psalm 34:18)
Pray for the search and rescue teams, that they may be sustained in hope and strength even as they grow wearier and more despondent.
Pray with us for the local Church, that they will know how best to reach out in love and support to those affected.

Prayer at the Heart of America, For the Heart of America is a national call to prayer taking place Friday, July 23rd, at the geographical center of the 48 contiguous states. This Prayer Gathering is the result of a vision birthed in the heart of Doug Small and his passion for a fresh awakening across the United States of America.

Prayer At the Heart is a call to the family of faith, and the invitation is extended to everyone who believes that God is able to heal our land and that He is our hope for revival and restoration. Without question, our nation has turned its back on its Judeo-Christian heritage and foundation. The truth of God’s Word is being ignored and rejected. Our sin has increased, and the moral fiber of our nation has been defiled.

Biblically and historically, we discover that we must turn our face and faith toward God as a nation. The call is for the people of God who are called by His name, humble themselves and pray. Seek His face and turn from our wicked ways with the promise that He will hear our prayers, forgive our sins and heal our land.

‍We pray, Yes, Lord, have mercy upon America and send us a fresh awakening. You will want to join us in Lebanon, Kansas, Friday, July 23rd, as we make our appeal to heaven. Help us spread the word, and let’s make the journey to the heart of America as we pray at the heart of America.

IPC and a number of our partners across USA are partnering with this event.

More info and Sign Up at: https://www.prayerattheheart.com/

250 deaths have been reported across the Pacific northwest. Unprecedented numbers have died in Canada from unbearable heat that has smashed temperature records. Vancouver police responded to over 130 sudden deaths. Casualties were mostly elderly or those with health conditions a contributing factor. British Columbia broke temperature records 3 days in a row (49.6C or 121.3F). A spontaneous wildfire forced the village of Lytton to evacuate on 1 July, a day after it recorded the country's highest-ever temperature. The fire spread through the village of 250 people in just 15 minutes. The USA also has record highs; fatalities will rise as some areas have yet to collate the numbers. Pray for those without air conditioning and the families of heatstroke victims. Pray for fire brigades working to prevent wildfires and for communities to help each other to stay cool. May relatives and neighbours recognise danger signs and ensure the vulnerable stay in the shade, wear a hat, and other things they may need reminding of.

As temperatures reached 106F (41C) in Montana and Arizona, animals scorched their paws on blistering asphalt. Texas residents must limit cooking and cleaning to preserve the power grid in one of the most excruciating heat waves to hit the USA this early in the year. 40 million people are experiencing 100F (38C) temperatures, and 50 million are under excessive heat warnings. Across the south-west wildfires have spread, with lightning and gusty winds threatening to spark more. The extreme heat and drought complicate firefighters’ efforts to contain the blazes. Arizona’s large aerial firefighting tankers couldn’t fly due to high temperatures and diminished water supplies. Cooling and hydration stations have opened across the American west and the hottest months of the year are yet to come. Scientists say, ‘Climate change is a human engineered change; fire suppression is a human thing too. It is a result of our activities and decisions.’

President Joe Biden is launching a renewed effort to tackle crime in the US, as a series of major cities experience spikes in violent offences. Police departments define violent crime in slightly different ways, but the data usually includes murder, robbery, assault and rape. There were 25% more murders recorded in 2020 than the previous year. Major US cities have tended to follow the national trend in becoming safer since the 1990s, but some have recently seen a sharp rise in murders. Spikes in the biggest cities are a considerable concern to Biden's administration, with Chicago having the worst records for murders and a continuing upward trend in 2021. A rise in the number of shootings in many major cities runs parallel with the president's attempts to strengthen firearm regulations to combat gun violence. The administration hopes strong action now can stem the violence and prevent murders increasing further this summer.

An international group of scientists has ditched ethical guidelines so that they can grow babies for forty days, for the sole purpose of killing them for research. The International Society for Stem Cell Research issued new guidelines that lift restrictions on certain types of unethical research that manipulate, alter, or destroy human embryos. It wants to remove a 14-day rule for research on human embryos, established in 1979, which stated scientists may only experiment on human embryos up to 14 days after fertilisation. This rule has been the current policy in the United States and generally a scientific standard throughout the world. The new guidelines have removed all restraint, creating the potential for ‘baby in a bottle’ experiments. It also wants to use three-parent human embryos (human embryo with DNA from three individuals), which is currently prohibited, and to allow creating a cell from animal and human cells, characteristic, or tissues.

At least 1,068 people have been killed by police since the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, in Minnesota on 25 May 2020. His killing triggered worldwide protests demanding justice and an end to systemic racism. In April 2021 Floyd’s killer was found guilty of murder and manslaughter; sentencing is on 25 June. Between January 2013 and May 2021, US police killed at least 9,179 people, according to data compiled by Mapping Police Violence, a research and advocacy group. Since Floyd’s death, the group has recorded at least 1,068 police killings across the country – an average of three killings every day. Despite being 13% of the population, black Americans are three times as likely as white Americans to be killed by the police. The group also found that ‘levels of violent crimes in US cities do not determine rates of police violence’.

6 May is the National Day of Prayer in the USA. It comes at a complex time in American history, with political division, racial tension and violence, and a global pandemic and its devastating consequences. The deep divisions feel insurmountable. The hurts and griefs seem unresolvable. Many Americans feel powerless. But we serve an all-powerful God. With one word from His mouth, America’s entire spiritual trajectory can be reversed. If a move of God is America’s only hope, then prayer is the most important thing we can do. Pray for a move of the Holy Spirit that replaces national indifference with widespread repentance. Pray for radical love for God and people to heal and unite a divided Church. Pray for godly men and women to take courageous and humble leadership. Pray for vast resources to be leveraged for God’s glory among all nations.

President Biden marked 100 days in office with a speech that put into focus his domestic agenda, the most dramatic shift in federal economic and social welfare policies since Ronald Reagan forty years ago. Reagan’s philosophy resulted in decades-long squeezes on domestic spending and tax policies that benefit the wealthiest. If Biden gets his way Reagan’s policies will be replaced by ones directly addressing long-standing economic, racial and gender inequities. His speech reflected his presidency to date, appealing for bold action by a leader whose demeanour is opposite to that of Donald Trump. Biden believes there is an urgent need to act, an opportunity to do so, but limited time to get it done. He said the nation needs ‘a once-in-generation investment in families and children.’ But because of the Democrats’ narrow majorities and a nation still divided over the president’s performance, Biden’s agenda represents a political gamble.

Authorities arrested 36-year-old Aditya Singh after he had spent three months living in the secure side of Chicago's O'Hare international airport, relying on the kindness of strangers for food, sleeping in terminals and using the bathroom facilities. He was caught by an airport employee asking for his ID. Singh is one of many individuals residing in terminals for weeks, months or years. Since 2018 there has been a rise in the number of homeless people in large airports. Officials try to provide aid and crisis intervention teams to connect homeless people to housing and other services. But most would prefer a solution where airports no longer operated as homeless shelters.