News in Brief -2024-09-19

Storm toll rises to 23 in Europe
PRAGUE, Sept 18: The toll from the extreme weather unleashed by Storm Boris in central and eastern Europe rose to at least 23 people, as Czech police said Wednesday they had found a fourth victim. Since last week the storm has brought widespread flooding and torrential rain, with victims also in Austria, Poland and Romania. Czech police spokesman Jakub Vincalek told AFP on Wednesday that eight people were still missing after the deluge. The fourth Czech victim, a woman from the northeastern village of Kobyla nad Vidnavkou, had been missing since Sunday morning. — AFP
N Korea fires short-range ballistic missiles
SEOUL, Sept 18: North Korea fired a salvo of short-range ballistic missiles early Wednesday, Seoul's military said, Pyongyang's second such weapons test in a week. Leader Kim Jong Un's regime has staged dozens of launches this year, part of a testing spree that experts say could be linked to North Korea's alleged illicit supplying of weapons to ally Russia for use in Ukraine. Pyongyang has denied any sanctions-busting weapons trade with Russia, but with diplomacy long stalled, it declared South Korea its "principal enemy" this year and recently moved nuclear-capable weapons to border areas. — AFP
Portugal wildfires force new evacuations
LISBON, Sept 18: Deadly wildfires raging in Portugal have forced more people to evacuate their homes as crews battled dozens of blazes on Wednesday in the nation's north. Stifling heat and strong winds have fanned a spate of forest fires across the north and centre of the country that have killed seven people dead since the weekend. Civil protection authorities listed 42 active fires on its website on Wednesday and said they had mobilised around 3,900 firefighters and over 1,000 vehicles. — AFP
Ukraine drone attack causes fire in Russia
MOSCOW, Sept 18: A partial evacuation has been ordered in Russia's Tver region after a "massive" Ukrainian drone attack sparked a fire there, the local governor has said. Igor Rudenya said emergency services in the town of Toropets were trying to "localise" the blaze caused by falling drone wreckage. He did not say whether there were any casualties. Unverified footage has emerged purportedly showing a massive blast in the town. Video footage circulating on social media showed detonations and smoke covering a large stretch of sky. The military site reportedly housed fuel tanks, as well as artillery shells, ballistic missiles, and explosives, in a series of warehouses. These are all weapons that have been used in Russia's relentless full-scale invasion of Ukraine. — BBC