Author: CNN Newsource

By Jessica Davis

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    SUFFOLK, Virginia (WTKR) — A Suffolk community rallied together to evacuate 28 horses from Harmonia Equestrian on Copeland Road after a nearby brush fire rapidly spread.

The fire burned about 100 acres and took firefighters five hours to contain. The Suffolk Fire Marshal’s Office charged one person with carelessly causing a fire. No injuries were reported, and every horse made it out safely.

Jennifer Rose Musicaro and her daughter Reagan Rose were about to ride horses at their farm when they noticed smoke rising above the trees nearby.

“We were about to pull out the horses and we started seeing smoke in the corner over here,” Musicaro said.

At first, they thought it was a controlled burn, but quickly realized it was not.

“The brush was starting to burn down the powerlines and then there were some side piles of big stacks of logs that were on fire. But as we were checking that out the fire department started so we thought they’re here everything is under control like let’s head back to the farm,” Musicaro said.

The fire spread rapidly, forcing them to evacuate all 28 horses. Musicaro turned to social media for help.

“My husband is away in Maryland with our bigger trailer, if for some reason we have to move horses could the community come and start helping move horses? And within 5 minutes of making that post and showing that video I was flooded with phone calls,” Musicaro said.

In just one hour, every horse on the property was moved to nearby farms. Some were taken to their other property, Kay’s Acres, while others were sheltered by neighbors who offered space.

“A big one was Seahorse, right around the corner. They offered to get us one of their big fields so we were able to put over ten horses over there and then a lot of folks with the small private offered up their farms too,” Musicaro said.

While the evacuation took just an hour, it took most of the next day to bring them all back home. The owners said the rescue would not have been possible without the community.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By JoBeth Davis, Krista Tatschl

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    RICHLAND TOWNSHIP, Kansas (KMBC) — According to the Miami County Sheriff’s Office, “at least 10 structures” sustained damage during tornado-warned storms Sunday night.

Miami County Undersheriff Matt Kelly said at least 10 structures were damaged in the northwest part of the county, most of it along 247th Street stretching between Indianapolis and Pleasant Valley Road.

KMBC 9 News reporter Krista Tatschl says at least seven utility poles are down along the roadway, making the area difficult to access.

One family told KMBC their barn collapsed and blew away.

Utility crews worked to restore power Sunday night, with outages reported mainly outside the town’s main corridor.

An Evergy worker said crews had already checked about 10 homes for damage and expected to work through the night to restore service.

Residents described sudden and intense conditions.

One family said they were away when a neighbor called to report their barn had been destroyed.

Another said they watched the storm until debris began flying sideways.

No injuries were reported.

Flooding also caused problems, especially on low-lying roads.

A business owner along Main Street said heavy rain briefly turned the roadway into what looked like a river.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Patrick Talbot

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    ENID, Oklahoma (KOCO) — Clean up continues in Enid as the city recovers from an EF-4 tornado that hit the community on Thursday evening.

Days later, the damage is still hard to describe. Homes were flattened, windows were blown out and roofs were blown off of houses, and debris remains all across the area.

But people from all across the U.S. and the state of Oklahoma, including Vance Air Force Base, made their way to the Gray Ridge neighborhood to help those impacted by the storm.

“It’s just another part of the job. Our service, it doesn’t stop when we hang our hat when we retire, and our oath extends beyond just our duty day. So, it’s just another part of being a servant to the people,” Patricia Kimball, the volunteer coordinator for the City of Enid, said. “We put out a call the first day on Friday, and within a couple of hours, we already had 150 people from the base say that they could show up, and then by the end of Friday, we had over 400 community members who were signed up, ready to go at a moment’s notice.”

But the volunteers and service members in the community aren’t the only ones stepping up. Support came from all over Oklahoma.

“My biggest encouragement is twofold. One, from the community locally. The churches that are here, the city members that are here, volunteers and leadership both, and then how many people are filling leadership roles within that. I really appreciate that. I’m really encouraged by it. I’m also very encouraged by the state participation,” volunteer Bradley Jennings said. “It’s a really big outpouring. I really love what we’ve got coming from the state of Oklahoma.”

This support showcased the Oklahoma Standard for all to see.

“People coming in asking, ‘Hey, what can I give? What can I do? What is needed over there?’ As well as hearing reports about people just showing up here and doing whatever that they can. So, it was extremely heartwarming,” Kimball said. “It was simply amazing to see how much people care about their community and what they did to step in.”

Enid Fire Chief Jason Currier said the department is extremely appreciative of the response it has seen from volunteers, organizations and Vance Air Force Base.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Jennifer McRae

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    LITTLETON, Colorado (KCNC) — Firefighters in the Denver metro area rushed to a fuel truck fire and possible hazmat situation on Santa Fe near Belleview early Monday morning. According to South Metro Fire Rescue, crews were alerted to the situation about 5:23 a.m.

Investigators said the fuel truck was on fire near the 4800 block of Santa Fe, and all directions were shut down to traffic at that time. Drivers were urged to avoid the area during the closure to allow for emergency vehicles to gain access. All northbound lanes reopened just after 11 a.m. and southbound lanes remained closed at Oxford Avenue.

Firefighters were letting the fuel burn off.

“Really, the biggest thing as to why we’re letting that fuel burn off instead of applying plain water. When we apply water to hazardous materials like this, it creates runoff, which creates hazardous waste, and in this case, the Platte River is right here where this incident is occurring, so we’re trying to prevent any of that fuel from getting into the river,” said Matthew Assell, the South Metro Fire Rescue public information officer.

Investigators said the call was upgraded to a commercial structure fire due to the proximity of nearby buildings. There was also an extension into the grass area, but crews quickly extinguished that fire.

South Metro Fire said there were no injuries reported. There were several vehicles impacted but those vehicles did not catch on fire.

The fire was extinguished just after 11 a.m. Crews continued cleanup in the area.

Other agencies that responded included the Littleton Police Department and the Englewood Police Department.

What caused the fire is being investigated.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Penny Kmitt

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    Massachusetts (WBZ) — Janette MacAusland, the Wellesley mother charged with killing her two young children, waived extradition rights in a Vermont courtroom Monday afternoon and will return to Massachusetts to face murder charges.

She appeared in Rutland Criminal Court via a video feed from jail on a fugitive from justice charge. MacAusland was wearing a padded vest during the proceedings.

“She’s decided that the best thing is to get back to Massachusetts as soon as possible,” her attorney said during the court appearance.

MacAusland will be held without bail, the judge said. She is expected to be arraigned on two murder charges in Massachusetts within the next two weeks.

The investigation began late Friday night when MacAusland showed up at a relative’s home in Bennington, Vermont bleeding, with a neck injury and appearing “highly distraught,” according to police.

Officers in Bennington then called Wellesley Police to check on MacAusland’s daughter and son, ages 7 and 6, at their home on Edgemoor Avenue. When officers arrived, they found the children dead inside the house.

MacAusland was taken into custody by Bennington Police as a fugitive from justice. The Norfolk District Attorney’s Office got an arrest warrant and charged her with two counts of murder. She’s been held without bail at the Marble Valley Correctional Facility.

There’s no word yet on how the children died or a motive in the case. Court records show MacAusland’s husband Samuel had filed for divorce last October and he filed for custody of the children and their home.

Cale Darrah, the family’s babysitter, told WBZ-TV she didn’t see this tragedy coming.

“She seemed to just deeply love her children, like any other mother that I’ve come across,” Darrah said. “They had, like, very small, insignificant kind of arguments in front of me. Nothing that raised any, like, huge alarm bells.”

According to Wellesley Public Schools Superintendent Dr. David Lussier, the children were students at Schofield Elementary School. One was a second grader, and the other was in kindergarten.

“She was a bit of a girly-girl, she always loved when I would do her hair, loved the color purple,” Darrah said of the children. “He loves to read, especially a lot of books about planes, trains, trucks, all that good stuff.”

Support was offered to students, staff, and families at the school on Monday.

“This is an unimaginable loss that will be deeply felt not just at Schofield but across our entire community,” Lussier said in a statement. “I ask that we all keep this family in our thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.”

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Jason Rantala

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    ST. PAUL, Minnesota (WCCO) — Several dozen people gathered at Lake Como in St. Paul, Minnesota, Sunday, hoping to have their voices heard as they protested the lifting of the mining ban near one of the state’s last true wilderness escapes.

Despite hours of pleas from Minnesota lawmakers, the U.S. Senate recently voted to open up 225,000 acres of land to copper sulfide mining near the Boundary Waters.

Sunday’s event was put on by The Singing Resistance, a grassroots organization that uses song as a form of nonviolent protest. Organizers said well over 100 people showed up.

“We sing to bring that collective grief and that collective empowerment here to grow our masses and speak up for what we want and what we believe in,” said Amanda Roloson, outreach coordinator for The Singing Resistance.

“My largest concern is that they start mining, right, and our waters are then contaminated and polluted and the wildlife will die, the waters, you know, will no longer be pure,” said Claire Roth, a member of The Singing Resistance.

Advocates of mining near the Boundary Waters said it could bring in hundreds of jobs to northern Minnesota. Twin Metals Minnesota said they are “…committed to moving forward with the responsible development of our mineral resources for the benefit of Minnesota communities…”

Speakers at Sunday’s event told the crowd to contact their elected officials. They did just that Sunday, sharing what they said was Gov. Tim Walz’s personal cell phone number.

“I know there are some more steps that can be taken and we are out here gathering support,” said Roloson.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.