– Fans of a British soccer club in the Premier League may need to take their zeal down a notch after an incident over the weekend that reportedly ended up costing their own team nearly $50,000, reports the Telegraph. Crystal Palace devotees determined to make a literal mark on rival team Middlesbrough the night before the two teams faced off descended early Saturday upon what they believed to be the Middlesbrough bus parked at a hotel in a London suburb. The vandals spray-painted "Crystal Palace FC" on the side of the vehicle in red, white, and blue—a move that did little but serve as an ownership tag, because the bus was actually Crystal Palace's. A groundsman for the CP team grumbled about the incident on Twitter in a now-private tweet, noting, "£40,000 worth of damage on our coach thinking it was the Boro coach. Nice one!" The Sun notes that the hotel where the bus was parked, near Crystal Palace's home stadium, is often frequented by visiting soccer teams. Despite an assertion by Sky Sports that the vehicle was on loan to Middlesbrough from Crystal Palace because they'd flown to the match, the BBC reports that was not the case. The Guardian notes the CP team had to arrange for another bus to take the players to their Middlesbrough matchup, which they won 1-0. A Crystal Palace rep says the cops have been notified. (This soccer player's national anthem protest was foiled—by the opposite team.)

Expand this summary.

Crystal Palace fans cause £40,000 damages to one of team's own buses

 Crystal Palace's team coach was vandalised by their own fans before win over Middlesbrough - Pic credit: Jack Willis

 Crystal Palace fans accidentally vandalised their own team bus before Saturday's vital 1-0 Premier League win over Middlesbrough.

 The vandals caused an estimated £40,000 in damages by painting Crystal Palace FC in red, white and blue graffiti along one side of the coach.

 They are believed to have thought it was Middlesbrough's team bus, when it had been loaned to the club by Palace after Aitor Karanka's squad flew down to London on Friday.

 The coach was vandalised while parked at a hotel near Palace's Selhurst Park home.

 Crystal Palace 1-0 Middlesbrough

 A Crystal Palace spokesman told The Sun: "The team bus was covered in graffiti with the words "Crystal Palace" overnight on Friday ahead of the game on Saturday. Police have been informed."

 Palace went on to claim three valuable points and move out of the bottom three thanks to a single goal from January signing Patrick van Aanholt.

 New customers: Grab a NOW TV Sky Sports Month Pass for £20pm for the first 2 months and catch a blockbuster period of live Sky Sports action. No contract. ||||| Tweet with a location

 You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| Palace's defaced team bus

 Crystal Palace's team coach was vandalised prior to Saturday's 1-0 win over Middlesbrough, with the club's name and colours sprayed on to it.

 Contrary to speculation, the coach had not been provided for Boro to use for their visit to Selhurst Park.

 The Eagles used another bus to travel to the Premier League game.

 A club spokesman said: "The team bus was covered in graffiti overnight on Friday ahead of the game on Saturday. Police have been informed." |||||


When Linda Hooper met her son, Cruz, in the fall of 1981, she loathed him.

 A veteran elementary teacher, Hooper's conscience told her it was wrong to hate a child, especially a student. But Cruz Riojas' tendency toward frequent, violent outbursts made it difficult for Hooper to think of him as anything other than a "holy terror."

 In the 33 years following that school year at Brown Elementary School, however, Riojas would not only change Hooper's opinion of him forever - he would also change his last name.

 Infamous classroom legend

 "There evidently is a very thin line between love and hate," Hooper said during an hourlong interview at her home last week. Cruz, who lives in San Antonio, was in West Texas visiting family for the Fourth of July weekend.

 It's a long, emotional story of how teacher and pupil became mother and son, and one they chose to tell for the first time in almost 35 years.

 "What had happened was for like about five years before I got him, I was warned, 'You don't want that child,' because he was really a holy terror," Hooper, 68, said. "He had a reputation, and he intended to live up to it."

 Sometimes Cruz misbehaved, using his still-prevalent sense of dry humor to distract the class from the teacher's lesson. Other times, he threw chairs or stabbed his peers. His academic standing made for an extra challenge. He had dyslexia and was two grade levels behind in reading, so he was considered a special education student.

 By the time Cruz reached sixth grade, he had become a Brown

 Elementary legend. His notorious antics led Hooper to tell her principal, "If you put that Riojas kid in my class, I'm going to quit."

 Though she never made good on that promise, Hooper said she wasn't joking.

 "I really had hoped that he'd be put in another person's room, but at that time I was the only one who could really handle the hard discipline problems," she said.

 'Total squalor'

 Cruz, now 45, said when he was growing up he did anything to get attention. The violence stemmed from a constant need to defend himself at home.

 During his sixth-grade year with the woman he once called Mrs. Hooper, Cruz's biological mother was on husband No. 5 - an abusive, tyrannical man Cruz doesn't like to talk about.

 Cruz, his four half-siblings, their mother and "No. 5" lived in a one-room lean-to on a turnrow in the middle of a field.

 He wore the same green pants and striped shirt to school every day, Hooper remembers, and the only shoes he had to wear were his sister's. He and his siblings were sent home with lice 12 times that year.

 "It was total squalor," Hooper said. "I would not let my animals live the way they had to live."

 Cruz described it this way: "We slept on the floor and ate ----."

 That's all one needs to know to understand the situation, he said.

 Change of heart

 In December of that school year, Cruz changed, Hooper said. He starting asking if he could help around the classroom, and it wasn't long before Hooper and her husband, Gale, hired him to do odd jobs at their home and rental properties for cash - money his stepfather didn't let him keep.

 As a healthier relationship developed between Cruz and his teacher, the Hoopers' home became a refuge for the troubled student. Whenever he and No. 5 fought, Cruz ran 7.5 miles from his house to theirs.

 His home life worsened as he entered seventh grade at Atkins Junior High School.

 One cold, snowy day in February 1983, Cruz had the last fight he would have with his stepfather - one in which he told the man in no uncertain terms he would beat him up when he got older.

 No. 5 kicked him out. He was 12.

 Cruz's mom packed everything he owned in a cardboard box, called Hooper and took her son to hide at a nearby truck stop. When Hooper arrived, she found the two behind an 18-wheeler, and Cruz's mom asked if Hooper could keep him for the weekend - just until things at home calmed down.

 "He never left," Hooper said. "I had him from then on."

 From student to son

 Neither Cruz nor Hooper thought his stay would be long term, but neither complained as the days, months and years went by.

 "If it was an hour, it was an hour I didn't have to spend there," Cruz said. "You think, 'Hey, lunch? Lunch is great.' Lunch worked its way into dinner, and here we are 35 years later."

 Hooper said her husband, a retired firefighter, never questioned her decision to let Cruz stay, which she admires him for to this day. Gale and Cruz formed a bond of mutual respect Cruz had never experienced with the other father figures in his life.

 As Cruz settled into his new life, the Hoopers bought him a new wardrobe and helped him get his first job, an Avalanche-Journal paper route, so he could make his own money and buy things he'd never had.

 Cruz also started performing better in school - credit that goes to retired special education teacher James Harris, Hooper said, who became another positive influence in Cruz's life. Under Harris' instruction, Cruz tested out of special education by his high school graduation.

 Everything was going well for the family until Cruz hurt his knee at school. Emergency room doctors would not give him stitches without a parent or legal guardian present.

 "That was the first catalyst of my going to his mother and asking for permission, No. 1, to be able to give him stitches," Hooper said. They also wanted to take Cruz on vacation to Fun Valley, Colorado, but would again need her signature.

 They got it, and Hooper carried that paper everywhere, eventually laminating it to keep it from fraying.

 "I lived in fear every single day that they would just come jerk the whole thing away from me," Hooper said. "Until he was about 16, I lived in absolute total fear that there would be a knock on the door saying, 'He is not yours. We want him back. There's nothing you can do about it.' And I would've had to give him up. I had no rights at that time."

 Hooper said by the time Cruz was 16, she thought if someone did try to take him away, she could take the matter to court and keep it there until he turned 18.

 "He was obviously mine by then," she said. "After you show somebody what they can have, when they've got their own bedroom, when they've got their own clothes, when they've got a reason to get up in the morning and they change their whole attitude - he was no longer chip-on-his-shoulder anymore and happy all the time - then going back would be worse. It would be worse than if I had never shown him any of it."

 Hooper's choice to claim him as her own didn't come without opposition. Her mother and friends - who now love Cruz, Hooper said - thought she had lost her mind.

 "It was a different era," Cruz said. "Back in the early '80s, white people didn't adopt Mexican kids. It just didn't happen."

 There was no formal adoption, however. At least not for a while.

 "He had asked many, many times to change his name to ours," Hooper said. "We were afraid that he was young, that he might not understand what he was getting into, that you cannot change your ethnicity by changing your name, and all these things. We never said no, but we just never did it."

 Hooper said she was on a school trip in Dallas when she got a phone call - her "biggest joy" - shortly before Cruz's 30th birthday. He wanted to be adopted.

 Becoming Cruz Hooper

 Cruz said he had thought about legally changing his name since he was 18, but for one reason or another, it never happened. When he got married, he and his wife went by the surname Riojas.

 At age 29, however, Cruz decided to go through with it, and his attorney-aunt told him the easiest way would be to have the Hoopers adopt him.

 Cruz said at first he thought he was a little old for that, but decided it was the best option.

 "I just thought it would honor my parents," he said, holding back tears.

 In a formal adoption ceremony Jan. 5, 1998, Cruz and his wife, Anel, legally became part of the family - last name and all.

 "This was such a joy because we had four girls so there was not going to be a boy that would carry our name," Hooper said. "When he asked us it was such a joy to us. Gale was so thrilled. Because see, now we have a son, and he will carry our name, and our grandchildren's names are Hooper. It was such a blessing to me even to be asked."

 But Hooper didn't need legal papers to prove what she had known in her heart for so long.

 "He was my son from the day I kept him," she said. "In December of that year ... he was such a brat, I had already started loving him."

 Cruz does well in his job for payroll company Corporate Solutions in San Antonio, and the Hoopers joke he could buy and sell them any day. He generally keeps quiet about his past - Hooper recalled a time recently when someone told him, "You wouldn't understand. You were born with a silver spoon in your mouth," and Cruz said nothing - choosing rather to focus on the present.

 Gale, a man of few words, didn't say much as he listened to his wife and son tell their story, but did interject one time to add, "He's made me very proud."

 Cruz changed their lives, Hooper said, and in doing so, he changed the way she taught for 18 years after he left her classroom. She looked at students differently, thinking of them all as her Cruzes.

 As the interview neared the end, Hooper wanted to make sure she said one more thing about her son, the boy who once caused her so much grief - the man who's now her pride and joy.

 With tears filling her eyes, Hooper paused.

 "I think he's really the one thing in my life I've done right."

 natalie.gross@lubbockonline.com

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 @AJ_NatalieGross ||||| Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| moms Classroom ‘terror’ adopted by loving teacher: ‘She just wouldn’t give up’ July 15, 2014 at 2:54 PM ET

 Teacher Linda Hooper had been warned about a “holy terror” of a student rising up through Brown Elementary School in Lubbock, Texas. So by the time Cruz Riojas was set to enter the sixth grade, she issued a warning to the school’s principal: “I will quit if I have him in my class.”

 Courtesy of Linda Hooper

 But then the story, as first reported in the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, began to change. Sure enough, it was Hooper's classroom that the 12-year-old walked into in August 1980. He was far behind in academics — two years behind in reading and classified as special ed — and she quickly experienced his troubling behavior.

 “He had outbursts, threw chairs," Linda, now 68, told TODAY. "If a child touched him, they’d be down on the floor in two seconds.”

 Cruz, who is only now opening up about his story, lived with his mother, stepfather and five half-siblings, and suffered years of physical abuse at the hands of his stepfather. He was bused to Linda’s school wearing the same clothes every day, and he brought his troubling homelife with him.

 “I made a joke about everything,” Cruz, now 45, told TODAY. “I wouldn’t let my stepfather see me cry, and I carried that with me to school.”

 Cruz’s sixth-grade year included frequent clashes with his physical-education teacher, who sent him to Linda. “Every day (that teacher would) send him in and say, 'I’m not dealing with this kid, he’s yours,'" she recalls. "I didn’t know what to do, but he was in there, so I started letting him help me. I had him reshelving books, grading papers, to make that period go by. And he began to like to do stuff.”

 And the student recognized that his teacher cared about him. “I saw that she just wouldn’t give up," Cruz said. "She said, 'This persona that you project isn’t who you really are.' ”

 Linda started having Cruz come to the home she shared with her husband Gale, a firefighter, and their four daughters. She’d give him money for small household chores, and arranged for his first job, a paper route.

 Courtesy of Linda Hooper

 Cruz developed a particularly remarkable relationship with his teacher's husband. “He never had a man in his life that was worth anything and he respected Gale," Linda said.

 He began spending more and more time at the Hooper home, and would frequently run the 7.5 miles between his home and theirs when he had a fight with his stepfather. But one day in February 1982, Linda received a call from Cruz’s mother that would change all of their lives.

 “His stepfather had beaten him, so she called me and asked, can I keep him until things blew over?” Linda recalls. “She put everything he owned in a cardboard box, and they huddled behind an 18-wheeler until I came to meet them.”

 Cruz thought he'd only be staying with his teacher's family for an hour, but that hour turned into days, months, and then years.

 Linda recalls the first time Cruz stopped calling her "Mrs. Hooper." “We were in a grocery store, and he wanted everyone to know I was his mother, because people would look at us funny. He said, 'MOTHER can I have this?' He was getting everyone’s attention, to say, 'Everybody look, this is my mom.'"

 Courtesy Linda Hooper

 Thanks to the Hoopers and another dedicated teacher, Cruz moved out of the special-education program and graduated with his peers. He went on to study at Texas Tech University and later met Anel Montemayor, his future wife. And just before his 30th birthday, Cruz called Linda to ask if she and Gale would officially adopt him. The answer was obvious.

 “He said he wanted to honor us, and it was a big honor," Linda said. "I’ve always known he loved me, but this really showed he loved us.”

 Cruz and Anel Riojas became Cruz Riojas Hooper and Anel Montemayor-Hooper. They now live in San Antonio with their two children, Hannah, 13, and Greyson, 9.

 Cruz is careful to teach his children about their Mexican roots while also honoring the traditions and cultures from the Hooper side. He hasn’t yet shared with them the full story of his journey, but he’s getting there.

 “My parents taught me to never give up. Just persevere," he said. "My father would always say, 'The light at the end of the tunnel isn’t always a train. It’s a light, and move toward it.'"

  |||||

Write a summary.

– Cruz Riojas came from a troubled home: He was reportedly beaten by his stepfather, lived in a decrepit one-room lean-to with six other family members, and wore the same clothes to school every day, according to the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. He also caused trouble in school and was known as a “holy terror,” says Linda Hooper, a teacher who first encountered Cruz in the early ‘80s, when he was 12 years old. But then an amazing thing happened: He started spending more time with Hooper, who would give him tasks to do around the classroom. He eventually began coming for visits at her home, where she lived with her husband and four daughters, often running the nearly eight miles between their two houses to get away from his stepfather. After an incident with his stepfather in 1983, Cruz’s mother asked if he could stay with the Hoopers for a few days till everything blew over. "He never left" after that, Hooper says. "I had him from then on." He became a part of the Hooper family, taking on a paper route to make money and doing better in school, placing out of special education classes by the time he graduated. More than a decade later, he was still part of the Hooper family—but he wanted to make it official by asking the Hoopers to adopt him right before his 30th birthday. “He said he wanted to honor us, and it was a big honor," Hooper tells Today. "I’ve always known he loved me, but this really showed he loved us.” The adoption went through in 1998, but Cruz "was my son from the day I kept him,” Hooper says. The family is just now telling their story for the first time. (Click for the full article, or read the story of a police officer who found a baby alive at a murder scene—and adopted her 30 years later.)


News article:

(Photo: Office of the Governor)

 President Donald Trump called Texas Governor Greg Abbott Thursday to discuss Hurricane Harvey, which is expected to make landfall on the Texas coast Friday night, according to the Governor's office.

 Trump told Abbott that all available resources from the federal government will assist in preparation as well as rescue and recovery efforts. Abbott told Trump that he will let him know any needs that Texas may have in the coming days.

 Abbott also spoke with Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke and Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Brock Long Thursday to discuss hurricane preparedness.

 Abbott preemptively declared a State of Disaster in 30 Texas counties on Wednesday in preparation for the hurricane.

 You can find information and updates about Hurricane Harvey here.

 © 2017 KVUE-TV ||||| In preparation for Harvey, Houston gets boozy

 txbbqmemes Y'all stay safe out there txbbqmemes Y'all stay safe out there Photo: Instagram

 chinocochinohuy people be at the grocery store going crazy for water. i be like, Kroger this the best wine you got? chinocochinohuy people be at the grocery store going crazy for water. i be like, Kroger this the best wine you got? Photo: Instagram

 kellbuckley101 Bunch of raging alcoholics in League City! #hurricaneharvey kellbuckley101 Bunch of raging alcoholics in League City! #hurricaneharvey Photo: Instagram

 michelley1515 Thanks Walgreens for the sale on Chandon! I am now prepped for #hurricaneharvey michelley1515 Thanks Walgreens for the sale on Chandon! I am now prepped for #hurricaneharvey Photo: Instagram

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 stayawhiledesigns My Hurricane game is strong, y'all. Time to hunker down! #staysafe #hurricaneharvey #beerfridge #stayawhiledesigns stayawhiledesigns My Hurricane game is strong, y'all. Time to hunker down! #staysafe #hurricaneharvey #beerfridge #stayawhiledesigns Photo: Instagram

 guns_of_houston I know #Houston is 4th largest in the #USA but we damn well aren't made to hold all this rain coming w #hurricaneharvey guns_of_houston I know #Houston is 4th largest in the #USA but we damn well aren't made to hold all this rain coming w #hurricaneharvey Photo: Instagram

 slogerot Bring it, #HurricaneHarvey. We prepared. slogerot Bring it, #HurricaneHarvey. We prepared. Photo: Instagram

 jaguarlandroverhoustonnorth Ya'll get out there and stock up on your hurricane supplies. jaguarlandroverhoustonnorth Ya'll get out there and stock up on your hurricane supplies. Photo: Instagram

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 amyerickson315 #hurricaneharvey amyerickson315 #hurricaneharvey Photo: Instagram

 brittexanemily Hurricane Harvey is getting real!! Specs is low on Titos. That's a crisis. Where's the National Guard?! #hurricaneharvey #titos brittexanemily Hurricane Harvey is getting real!! Specs is low on Titos. That's a crisis. Where's the National Guard?! #hurricaneharvey #titos Photo: Instagram

 pyanez713 hurricane ready #hurricane #hurricaneharvey #drunks pyanez713 hurricane ready #hurricane #hurricaneharvey #drunks Photo: Instagram

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 Photo: Instagram Image 1 of / 14 Caption Close In preparation for Harvey, Houston gets boozy 1 / 14 Back to Gallery

 Projected to be a Category 3 hurricane, Harvey is expected to hit the Houston area Friday, according to the National Weather Service. Massive flooding and major power outages could occur this weekend, and it's extremely important to be prepared, says the NWS.

 As a result, Houstonians are experiencing city-wide closures and chaos at grocery stores and gas pumps. Naturally, the internet's ablaze with folks who are heeding the advice of professionals and stocking up on the essentials: alcohol.

 "It's kind of hectic, chaotic," Louis Tellez, beer and wine specialist for the H-E-B off San Felipe St., said. He arrived at the store at 12:30 p.m. Thursday, and he said the business was steady all day. "We're doing the best we can to accommodate shoppers."

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 The H-E-B off Alabama St. echoed the sentiment.

 "It's way, way busier," a beer and wine employee said. "We've always had a little bit smaller area for parking, but this morning, there was no parking to be had. It's as good as a regular Saturday."

 So far, Tellez said the most-sold drinks were local, craft beers, with the additional national beers such as Miller High Life and Coors Light. There were some holes on the wine shelves, he said, but those sales were secondary.

 For Theresa Hunt, a bartender at Houston's Restaurant, buying beer for the hurricane is the right idea because "it's basically a food group," she said. "People used to live off [beer] when water was often unsafe to drink."

 Liquor stores were also no strangers to shoppers. After calling three Spec's locations, whose manager's were unable to speak because they were too busy, Ryan Holder, the manager of the downtown store, simply said, "it's brisk. Busy."

 Holder didn't notice an increase in alcohol sales, however. Primarily, his customers were purchasing water, candles, chips, dips and batteries. "We have plenty," he said. "Good day. Come see us."

 Regardless, if you're craving hard liquor this weekend, Hunt suggests making a GreyHound, which is vodka and grapefruit juice. "It's light, refreshing and simple. There is a hurricane happening! Ain't no one got time for a complicated, multi-step process."

 Hunt says she'll be drinking wine during the storm "and lots of it," and suggests 19 Crimes Cabernet. "It's like a knockoff of the Prisoner from the Orin Swift winery."

 #MOOD #HurricaneHarvey 🍺🍻 A post shared by 👻sherrthepilot (@sherrthepilot) on Aug 24, 2017 at 6:21pm PDT

 As far as supplies go, Tellez says he doesn't believe his H-E-B will run out of beer and wine soon, but as some products diminish, the stocking will rely on the vendors' deliveries Friday. "It's going to depend on the weather and whether our vendors can get to the store," he said. "There's a delivery tomorrow, so we'll see how it goes.

 "I just hope we get minimal rain. I hope we don't experience flooding. I've already been through this once." ||||| Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM Hurricane Harvey damage | 1:16 A look at Port Aransas, Texas, after Hurricane Harvey tore through the community. Wochit 1 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM Harvey Recovery: Corpus Christi City Crews assessing downtown damage | 0:41 Julie Garcia with an update from the downtown district the morning after Hurricane Harvey made landfall. Wochit 2 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM South Texas residents respond to Hurricane Harvey | 0:49 While some residents chose to evacuate, others faced Hurricane Harvey head on. See how some residents are handling this major storm. Caller-Times staff 3 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM Reporter Travis Pettis reports from the Coastal Bend during Hurricane Harvey | 6:47 Caller-Times reporter Travis Pettis drove around the Coastal Bend hours before Hurricane Harvey made its landfall on the Texas Coast Aug. 25, 2017. TRAVIS PETTIS/CALLER-TIMES 4 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM Heavy rains, wind make their way downtown ahead of Harvey | 0:37 Heavy winds and rain blow through downtown Corpus Christi ahead of Hurricane Harvey. Caller-Times Staff 5 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM Evacuating with pets, what you need to know | 1:46 Be aware that you will be separated from your pet if you evacuated from Corpus Christi to San Antonio via the city's arrangements. Those who are pet owners were greeted with the option to check their pets in for free care during their stay at a local shelter. The good news is you can visit with your pet anytime you want. Beatriz Alvarado/Caller-Times 6 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM With supplies in short supply, residents stock up for Hurricane Harvey | 0:33 Residents in Corpus Christi rushed to H-E-B to stock up on supplies as Hurricane Harvey bore down on the coast. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times 7 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM Runners race down the Corpus Christi Bayfront before Harvey makes landfall | 0:17 Runners get one last race down the Bayfront before Harvey makes landfall Caller-Times Staff 8 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM Generator at Spohn Hospital Shoreline sinks during Hurricane Harvey | 0:09 A generator at Spohn Hospital Shoreline has sunk in the mud as Harvey's rains slam Corpus Christi. Travis Pettis/Caller-Times 9 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM Corpus Christi resident ready for Hurricane Harvey with friend-delivered boudain | 0:36 Lori Mahaffey tells us she readied for Hurricane Harvey and didn't have to make a trip to HEB for supplies thanks to a timely delivery from a friend. Kirsten Crow/Caller-Times 10 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM Hundreds evacuate Corpus Christi before Hurricane Harvey | 1:30 The Corpus Christi RTA brought hundreds of Corpus Christi residents to San Antonio on Aug. 24 and Aug. 25 in the hours before Hurricane Harvey makes landfall. Julie Garcia/Caller-Times 11 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM Salvation Army receives supplies ahead of Hurricane Harvey | 1:06 The Salvation Army is preparing with water, cleanup kids and food ahead of Hurricane Harvey. The disaster response team from Dallas brought water and cleanup kids and additional canteen units are heading to Corpus Christi. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times 12 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM The Salvation Army of the Coastal Bend prepares for Hurricane Harvey | 1:02 Capt. Patrick Gesner, commanding officer of the Salvation Army of the Coastal bend, speaks about some preparations made in anticipation of Hurricane Harvey on the Texas Coast. Alexandria Rodriguez/Caller-Times 13 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM South Texas residents prepare for Harvey to make landfall | 0:45 South Texas residents and officials begin the process of preparing for Harvey to make landfall. Harvey is expected to make landfall as a category 3 hurricane. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times 14 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM Tips for Homeowners ahead of Hurricane Harvey | 0:55 Mark Hanna with the Insurance Council of Texas gave some tips for homeowners, business owners to prepare for Hurricane Harvey. Aug. 24, 2017. NATALIA CONTRERAS/CALLER-TIMES 15 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM Tropical Storm Harvey: Expect long lines for sandbag pickup Thursday | 0:29 Long lines of residents wait to get sandbags from the city distribution site on Civitan and Ayers. Travis Pettis/Caller-Times 16 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM TAMU-CC readies for Tropical Depression Harvey with evacuations | 0:53 Texas A&M Corpus Christi: University officials have issued a mandatory evacuation for students already living on campus and postponed move-in date for other students until noon Sunday at the earliest. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times 17 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM South Texas makes preparations for Tropical Depression Harvey | 0:41 Preparations are underway for in South Texas for Tropical Depression Harvey. Aransas Pass gave households five sandbags and H-E-B stocked water throughout the day. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times 18 of 19 Skip in Skip x Embed x Share CLOSE HARVEY 2017: TEXAS COASTAL BEND BEFORE AND AFTER STORM Corpus Christi's evacuation plan | 0:52 If you can't evacuate on your own during a hurricane, the city of Corpus Christi has you covered. Fares Sabawi/Caller-Times 19 of 19 Last VideoNext Video Hurricane Harvey damage

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 Corpus Christi's evacuation plan

 Buy Photo A sign is placed at JB's German Bakery & Cafe as Hurricane Harvey approaches the area on Thursday, Aug. 24, 2017, in Corpus Christi. (Photo: Gabe Hernandez/Caller-Times)Buy Photo

 Hurricane Harvey is forecast to make landfall along the Texas Gulf Coast as a category 3 hurricane, and as residents prepare, many are wondering what conditions will be like once the storm hits.

 “This is a very huge deal," said Douglas Voglesang, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Corpus Christi. "This could be very damaging, particularly if you’re not leaving; you’re putting yourself in harm’s way.”

 Category 3 storms are considered major hurricanes according to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, with sustained winds ranging between 111 to 129 miles per hour.

 According to the National Weather Service website, residents who stay to ride out the storm should expect that well-built framed homes may receive damage with possible removal of roof decking or shingles. Trees may snap or uproot, resulting in property damage, debris and road blockages. Water and electricity could be unavailable to residents anywhere from days to weeks after the storm.

 Vogelsang noted that storm surge could range from 6 to 12 feet as the storm moves inland, but copious amounts of rain will inundate the area with between 15 to 20 inches of rain with isolated amounts of nearly 30 inches.

 More: Know the terminology: Hurricanes, storms, depressions

 "People who are not going to evacuate, please make sure your house is boarded up, that you have plenty of supplies and flashlights because we don’t know if there will be electricity," Corpus Christi Emergency Management Coordinator Billy Delgado said. "Have nonperishable foods; if you have medication make sure you have plenty of it.

 For comparison, Hurricane Katrina was a Category 3 storm when it made landfall in Louisiana in 2005 and Hurricane Ike, which made landfall in Galveston in 2008, was a Category 2.

 More: What was the last hurricane to hit Corpus Christi?

 “The end result will be flooding likely not seen for a long time.The storm surge has potential to do damage along the coast line and maybe even in Flour Bluff," Vogelsang said.

 Read or Share this story: http://callertim.es/2xxbEYe ||||| Hurricane Safety Tips and Resources Important NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards and Emergency Alert System Changes Hurricanes are among nature's most powerful and destructive phenomena. On average, 12 tropical storms, 6 of which become hurricanes form over the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, or Gulf of Mexico during the hurricane season which runs from June 1 to November 30 each year. In the Central Pacific Ocean, an average of 3 tropical storms, 2 of which become hurricanes form or move over the area during the hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to November 30 each year. Guam, the Northern Marianas and Micronesia experience typhoons all year round but the main season in July through November with a peak from mid-August to mid-September. Over a typical 2-year period, the U.S. coastline is struck by an average of 3 hurricanes, 1 of which is classified as a major hurricane (winds of 111 mph or greater). By knowing what actions to take before the hurricane season begins, when a hurricane approaches, and when the storm is in your area, as well as what to do after a hurricane leaves your area, you can increase your chance of survival. If you, or someone you know, have been a victim of a hurricane, please share your story, including the town and state you were in and the year the event took place.. Please note that NS will then have permission to use your story for educational campaigns. Sharing this information may help save someone’s life in the future. Read stories from survivors and learn how to stay safe. Hurricane Hazards While hurricanes pose the greatest threat to life and property, tropical storms and depression also can be devastating. The primary hazards from tropical cyclones (which include tropical depressions, tropical storms, and hurricanes) are storm surge flooding, inland flooding from heavy rains, destructive winds, tornadoes, and high surf and rip currents. Storm surge is the abnormal rise of water generated by a storm's winds. This hazard is historically the leading cause of hurricane related deaths in the United States. Storm surge and large battering waves can result in large loss of life and cause massive destruction along the coast.

 Storm surge can travel several miles inland, especially along bays, rivers, and estuaries.

 Flooding from heavy rains is the second leading cause of fatalities from landfalling tropical cyclones. Widespread torrential rains associated with these storms often cause flooding hundreds of miles inland. This flooding can persist for several days after a storm has dissipated.

 Winds from a hurricane can destroy buildings and manufactured homes. Signs, roofing material, and other items left outside can become flying missiles during hurricanes.

 Tornadoes can accompany landfalling tropical cyclones. These tornadoes typically occur in rain bands well away from the center of the storm.

 Dangerous waves produced by a tropical cyclone's strong winds can pose a significant hazard to coastal residents and mariners. These waves can cause deadly rip currents, significant beach erosion, and damage to structures along the coastline, even when the storm is more than a 1,000 miles offshore. ||||| A long line of cars, trucks and trailers carrying boats clogged the northbound lanes of Interstate 37 Thursday night as nervous residents fled the Corpus Christi area ahead of Hurricane Harvey’s landfall.

 Corpus Christi resident Angie Flores said she agonized over the decision to leave behind her home, which sits just a few blocks from a waterfront. But she said Thursday’s warning from Gov. Greg Abbott to evacuate, and the prospect of winds well over 100 miles-per-hour, convinced her and her husband to take their four dogs to Austin.

 “This is a pretty serious thing,” she said while giving her dogs a quick walk at a highway gas station in Pleasanton, just southeast of San Antonio. “We decided to leave while there was still a window of opportunity instead of being stuck in a real life-threatening situation.”

 The family was headed to a pet friendly hotel in Austin, where they hope they won’t have to stay long. One of her small dogs — Little Boy — is blind and diabetic. “He was shaking in the car,” she said.

 Hurricane Harvey is expected to be a Category 3 — or possibly Category 4 — storm by the time it crashes ashore near Corpus Christi on Friday night or early Saturday. With winds up to 125 miles per hour, storm swells could reach 12 feet and the system could drop more than 30 inches of rain in some spots. Abbott on Thursday activated 700 service members of the Texas Army Guard, Texas Air National Guard and Texas State Guard to help with responses to the monster storm.

 “There is no doubt in my mind that the city will flood,” said Flores, a senior advisor to State Rep. Todd Hunter, a Corpus Christi Republican. “There are some people who aren’t going to leave because they think it’s going to be a good time. I worry about them.”

 Flores said heavy traffic caused drivers to slow to 20 miles per hour at some points during her drive out of the Coastal Bend on Interstate 37. ||||| A sign is displayed at JB's German Bakery & Cafe as Hurricane Harvey approaches the area on Thursday, Aug. 24, 2017, in Corpus Christi, Texas. (Gabe Hernandez/Corpus Christi Caller-Times via AP) (Associated Press)

 WASHINGTON (AP) — Hurricane Harvey is following the perfect recipe to be a monster storm, meteorologists say.

 Warm water. Check. Calm air at 40,000 feet high. Check. Slow speed to dump maximum rain. Check.

 University of Miami senior hurricane researcher Brian McNoldy said Harvey combines the worst attributes of nasty recent Texas storms: The devastating storm surge of Hurricane Ike in 2008; the winds of Category 4 Hurricane Brett in 1999 and days upon days of heavy rain of Tropical Storm Allison in 2001.

 Rainfall is forecast to be as high as 35 inches through next Wednesday in some areas. Deadly storm surge — the push inwards of abnormally high ocean water above regular tides — could reach 12 feet, the National Hurricane Center warned, calling Harvey life-threatening. Harvey's forecast path is the type that keeps it stronger longer with devastating rain and storm-force wind lasting for several days, not hours.

 "It's a very dangerous storm," National Weather Service Director Louis Uccellini told The Associated Press. "It does have all the ingredients it needs to intensify. And we're seeing that intensification occur quite rapidly."

 WARM WATER

 Warm water is the fuel for hurricanes. It's where storms get their energy. Water needs to be about 79 degrees (26 Celsius) or higher to sustain a hurricane, McNoldy said. Harvey is over part of the Gulf of Mexico where the water is about 87 degrees or 2 degrees above normal for this time of year, said Jeff Masters, a former hurricane hunter meteorologist and meteorology director of Weather Underground.

 A crucial factor is something called ocean heat content. It's not just how warm the surface water is but how deep it goes. And Harvey is over an area where warm enough water goes about 330 feet (100 meters) deep, which is a very large amount of heat content, McNoldy said.

 "It can sit there and spin and have plenty of warm water to work with," McNoldy said.

 WEAK WINDS

 If winds at 40,000 feet high are strong in the wrong direction it can decapitate a hurricane. Strong winds high up remove the heat and moisture that hurricanes need near their center and also distort the shape.

 But the wind up there is weak so Harvey "is free to go nuts basically," McNoldy said.

 PERFECT PATH

 Before it hits the Texas coast, Harvey is projected to go over an even deeper and warmer eddy to supercharge it a bit more, just like what happened to Hurricane Katrina in 2005, but not quite as bad, Masters said.

 If that's not bad enough, there's a good chance that after Harvey hits it will follow a track so close to the coast and not so much inland that it will essentially keep a toe in the water. The storm could be big enough that not all of it is over land. Because of that, the National Hurricane Center forecasts that it will remain at least tropical storm strength — and 40 mph winds — through Tuesday, maybe into Wednesday.

 SLOW SPEED

 Because it looks like Harvey will be meandering at around 10 mph and then will likely stall out over the coast or just a bit inland, that means it will stay over one place and keep raining, Masters said. Day in, day out until the middle of next week.

 "We're talking feet of rain, not inches," Masters said.

 And the storm's heavy rains can last not just a few hours but "over a two-, three-, four-day period" from Texas to Louisiana, Uccellini said. ||||| CLOSE WTSP Meteorologist Bobby Deskins says Hurricane Harvey is not letting up as it heads toward the Texas coast. USA TODAY

 Mark Jones helps board up windows in Port Aransas ahead of hurricane Harvey on Aug. 24, 2017. (Photo: Courtney Sacco, Caller-Times via the USA TODAY Network)

 Hurricane Harvey will turn into a "beast" of a storm, meteorologists say, one that's forecast to bring catastrophic, life-threatening flooding to much of Texas.

 Even after the storm makes landfall late Friday or early Saturday near Corpus Christi as a likely Category 3 hurricane — potentially the USA's strongest hurricane in 12 years — Harvey will stall and spin for the next three to five days, dumping up to 2 feet of rain across the region.

 "The forecast for Harvey continues to grow more dire," warned the National Weather Service in Corpus Christi.

 Though a 4-6 foot storm surge and howling, 100+ mph winds will be a deadly threat, the storm's biggest concern may eventually turn out to be flooding from days of torrential rain.

 Harvey "may be nothing short of a flooding disaster," for Texas, according to AccuWeather meteorologist Alex Sosnowski, who said that some communities could be underwater for days.

 The storm will cause much worse damage from flooding and wind than would normally occur from a fast-moving storm of similar size, he said.

 Once it moves ashore, even if it weakens to a tropical storm, Harvey will essentially be "trapped" between two sprawling areas of high pressure, the National Weather Service said. One high-pressure area will be over the Desert Southwest and the other central Gulf of Mexico, Weather Channel meteorologist Jon Erdman said.

 More: Gas prices at risk of rising as Hurricane Harvey bears down

 More: Hurricane Harvey roars toward Texas coast, should be 115-mph storm at landfall with 'life-threatening' flooding

 This will leave Harvey as a potent but rudderless rainstorm with nothing to steer it or push it around.

 While it sits and spins, phenomenal amounts of rain will be wrung out of Harvey; some projections say as much as 60 inches. It's possible Harvey's heavy rain may not entirely exit the areas of Texas it soaks until next Wednesday.

 "This could become a prolonged and very dangerous rain event," the weather service in Houston said.

 In all, the storm could dump at least 15 trillion gallons of water on Texas, WeatherBell meteorologist Ryan Maue said.

 In addition to the Corpus Christi area, near where the storm should make landfall, Harvey "has the potential to cause very serious flooding in such highly populated, flood-prone regions as the Austin-San Antonio corridor and the Houston metro area," Weather Underground meteorologist Jeff Masters said.

 Harvey may be the strongest landfall in this area known as the Texas Coastal Bend since infamous Category 3 Hurricane Celia hammered the Corpus Christi area in August 1970 with wind gusts up to 161 mph, the Weather Channel said.

 Celia damaged almost 90% of the city's businesses and 70% of its residences.

 Read or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2xwJblj ||||| (CNN) Hurricane Harvey made landfall Friday night between Port Aransas and Port O'Connor, Texas, as a Category 4 storm with winds of 130 mph, the National Hurricane Center said.

 Harvey is the first Category 4 hurricane to make landfall in the United States since Hurricane Charley in 2004.

 The storm is poundng the Texas coast and its millions of residents with hurricane-force winds knocking down trees, power poles and signs, and with torrential rain deluging streets.

 In its 11 p.m. ET update, the National Hurricane Center said the center of the storm had passed over San Jose Island, bringing with it a dangerous and powerful eye wall.

 The hurricane center warns that some areas will see as much as 13 feet of storm surge and large, destructive waves.

 And there's the rain that the slow-moving storm is expected to produce. Because it is expected to come to a near halt inland, Harvey could drop as much as 40 inches of rain in some places, and up to 30 inches in others, by Wednesday.

 #Harvey made landfall at 10 PM CDT as a category 4 hurricane near Rockport, Texas, with max winds of 130 mph and min pressure of 938 mb. pic.twitter.com/98y5wpKmBw — NHC Atlantic Ops (@NHC_Atlantic) August 26, 2017

 The combination of wind and water could leave wide swaths of South Texas "uninhabitable for weeks or months," the National Weather Service in Houston said.

 Such daunting language hasn't been seen by CNN's experts since Hurricane Katrina , which left more than 1,800 people dead in 2005.

 The threat has prompted officials in at least one town to ask residents who stay behind to write their Social Security numbers on one of their arms in case. It will make identifying bodies easier.

 "Texas is about to have a very significant disaster," said Brock Long, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

 Gov. Greg Abbott warned of record-setting flooding and called on people to flee the area before the storm hits.

 "My top goal is to be able to make it through this storm in a way in which we lose no lives," Abbott said. "Put your life first and your property second."

 The golden arches atop a McDonald's in Galveston were downed by high winds.

 Residents were urged to evacuate. A mass exodus from the coast caused extensive traffic jams along the state's highways, while other people boarded up windows and stocked up on food and water ahead of the storm, the effects of which are expected to last for days.

 The storm will stall and dump rain on South Texas and parts of Louisiana into the middle of next week, forecasters predicted.

 Latest developments

 -- Rockport, Texas, officials are advising residents who refuse to evacuate to write their names and Social Security number on a forearm, Mayor Pro Tem Patrick Rios told CNN. Rios said it will "help out first responders should they find a body."

 -- The National Weather Service in Corpus Christi issued an extreme wind warning for portions of the Texas coast. "Widespread destructive winds of 115 to 145 mph will produce swaths of tornado-like damage," the agency said.

 -- Texas' governor requested additional federal help with a presidential disaster declaration. The White House is considering the declaration.

 -- President Donald Trump, who will visit the area next week, has signed a disaster declaration for the state.

 I encourage everyone in the path of #HurricaneHarvey to heed the advice & orders of their local and state officials. https://t.co/N6uEWCZUrv — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 25, 2017

 FEMA prepared for 'significant disaster'

 JUST WATCHED What Hurricane Harvey looks like from space Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH What Hurricane Harvey looks like from space 00:41

 Those who stay should "elevate and get into a structure that can withstand potentially Category 3 winds from a hurricane," said Long, the FEMA director.

 "The bottom line message is, right now, if people have not heeded the warning, again, their window to do so is closing," Long said. "If they refuse to heed the warning, that's on them."

 Long said he is "very worried" about storm surge, or "wind-driven water," slamming coastal areas, saying it has the "highest potential to kill the most amount of people and cause the most amount of damage."

 Trump tweeted that he has spoken with the governors of Texas and Louisiana, saying he is "closely monitoring Hurricane Harvey developments and here to assist as needed."

 Record flooding expected

 Christopher Beafneaux, left, Ernesto Villarreal, center, and Roman Lopez board up windows of a business in Galveston.

 Officials worried that Harvey's deluge of rain will drench Texas and the region for several days.

 "We could see this storm park for almost five days in some places, and we hear three feet of rain," said Bill Read, the former director of the National Hurricane Center. "That's just going to be a huge problem for these areas."

 "The water is going to be the issue," Corpus Christi Mayor Joe McComb said. "We've never had anything like this."

 Harvey is also causing concern in New Orleans, where heavy rain could usher in as much as 20 inches of rain through early next week and overwhelm the city's already-compromised drainage system

 Storm nears shore

 Joey Walker, 25, works with the Galveston Island Beach Patrol and is riding out the storm from a house on Galveston Island. He posted video of near-white out conditions overlooking Stewart Beach.

 Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said anyone not leaving should plan to stay off the roads once the storm starts.

 "People need to know, this is not a one-, two-day event and done," Turner said.

 'I'm trying to be strong'

 The threat of Harvey became evident Thursday when several coastal Texas counties issued evacuation orders, leading to hordes of residents sitting bumper to bumper for miles.

 Traffic on Interstate 37 between San Antonio and Corpus Christi was backed up for miles Thursday.

 Rose Yepez told CNN it took her twice as long as usual to drive 140 miles from Corpus Christi to San Antonio, en route to Texas Hill Country.

 Private vehicles -- along with city buses packed with adults and children carrying backpacks -- jammed roads for hours.

 "I'm shaking inside, but for them, I'm trying to be strong," a Corpus Christi woman who was waiting with her two daughters to board a bus out of town told CNN affiliate KRIS.

 Workers at 39 offshore petroleum production platforms and an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico also evacuated Thursday, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said.

 A sign reading "Be Nice Harvey" was left behind on a boarded-up business in Port Aransas.

 First responders such as Brittany Fowler stayed behind and waited for the storm.

 "Hopefully, it doesn't do any damage, but if it does, we've prepared," Fowler, a firefighter in Corpus Christi, wrote on Instagram.

 Fowler's family helped by boarding up windows and doors at her home, and she bought plenty of water, food and a small power generator.

 Special thank you to my Dad, brother and Marz for boarding up the house and getting it squared away for #Harvey! Hopefully it doesn't do any damage but if it does we've prepared. #HurricaneHarvey #WeatherChannel #CorpusChristi #hurricane #gulfcoast A post shared by Brittany Fowler (@bafowler1) on Aug 24, 2017 at 1:56pm PDT

 Despite the warnings, Elsie and David Reichenbacher prepped supplies and planned to stay put in Corpus Christi.

 "I've gone through a lot of hurricanes. I've lived here most of my life," Elsie Reichenbacher said. "I'd rather take care of my home and my animals and be safe here. I'm on high ground with my house." ||||| For critical weather information, please visit www.weather.gov. To learn more, see www.commerce.gov. Parts of the U.S. Government are closed. However, because the information this site provides is necessary to protect life and property, it will be updated and maintained during the Federal Government shutdown. |||||
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– Texas is bracing for the arrival of Hurricane Harvey, a storm that meteorologists say could turn into a slow-moving "monster" that batters the state for several days. Harvey is expected to make landfall as a Category 3 hurricane late Friday or early Saturday, and AccuWeather meteorologist Alex Sosnowski says it "may be nothing short of a flooding disaster" for Texas, USA Today reports. Forecasters say that after it moves ashore, Harvey is likely to end up trapped between two areas of high pressure, keeping it stalled over Texas for up to five days, dumping as much as 35 inches of rain on parts of the state. The latest developments: The National Weather Service says ingredients including warm water and calm air high up have made Harvey a potentially life-threatening storm, with a possible storm surge 12 feet high and winds up to 125mph. "It's a very dangerous storm," National Weather Service Director Louis Uccellini tells the AP. "It does have all the ingredients it needs to intensify. And we're seeing that intensification occur quite rapidly." The service's safety resources can be found here. The latest from the National Hurricane Center is here. Harvey strengthened to a Category 2 hurricane early Friday, CNN reports. Several counties along the coast had already issued evacuation orders. If it does become a Category 3 by the time it is expected to make landfall around 70 miles northeast of Corpus Christi, it will be the first storm that size to hit the US since Hurricane Wilma in Oct. 2005 The Corpus Christi Caller-Times looks at what people can expect from a Category 3 hurricane—and at what people who choose to ride it out instead of following recommendations to evacuate should do. With massive flooding and power outages possible in the Houston area, people have been rushing to stock up on essentials, causing chaos at grocery stores and gas stations, the Houston Chronicle reports. Liquor stores are also experiencing a huge rise in demand. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's office says President Trump has called the governor and offered whatever federal resources are needed, KHOU reports. Abbott has already declared a state of disaster in 30 counties. He has also activated 700 Texas National Guard members. Interstate 37's northbound lanes were clogged with traffic late Thursday as people fled the Corpus Christi area. "There is no doubt in my mind that the city will flood," resident Angie Flores, who went to Austin with her husband and their four dogs, tells the American-Statesman. "There are some people who aren't going to leave because they think it’s going to be a good time. I worry about them."


Write a summary based on this article:

The best friend of Sergei Skripal believes the poisoned double agent and his daughter Yulia are so critically ill they should be allowed to die.

 Ross Cassidy, a haulage contractor, met Mr Skripal when he moved in next door in Salisbury in 2010, shortly after the Russian arrived in a spy swap with Moscow.

 Image: Sergei Skripal and Yulia Skripal are in hospital after being poisoned. File pic

 He told Sky News: "Quite frankly, what future have they got? I don't know the properties of this weapon that was used on them and my guess is they are probably being kept alive by artificial means and what life will they have if they survive?

 "We've already been told they will be severely mentally impaired and I don't think they would want that. I think death would probably be merciful."

 :: Poisoned ex-Ukrainian president: 'I know what Putin fears'

 8:26 Video: 'Putin sanctioning poisoning unlikely'

 Mr Cassidy got to know Sergei, his wife Lyudmila, his son Alexandr (who was known as Sasha) and Yulia.

 Mr Skripal, 66, a military intelligence officer, had been convicted and jailed in Russia for spying for MI6.

 Mr Cassidy said: "It was a bit unusual having a Russian family there, but they were very friendly and when they bought their own home nearby and moved out we continued our friendship. Sergei's English was okay, though his wife's wasn't and she didn't mix so much, but Yulia was almost fluent.

 "We became great pals and I introduced Sergei to a lot of things, including English beer and he introduced me to vodka."

 :: Salisbury public areas to be decontaminated

 0:52 Video: World has 'united' behind UK stance on Russia

 Mr Cassidy, 61, has spent many hours with counter-terror detectives investigating the poisoning, but would not discuss the police operation.

 "I was aware of his background and I can't say I approve of treachery, but that was none of my business," he said.

 "Sergei spent a lot of time out of the country and there were times when I didn't see him, but he used to call me his English friend. He was very generous and never forgot my birthday, usually buying me an expensive bottle of whisky."

 :: Britain's ability to respond to Salisbury attack was underestimated

 0:37 Video: Salisbury nerve agent bench removed

 On Saturday 3 March, Mr Cassidy drove Mr Skripal to Heathrow to collect Yulia, who had moved back to Moscow and was visiting her father. It had been snowing and Sergei asked his pal if they could use his four-wheel-drive pick-up truck.

 The next day father and daughter were found collapsed in Salisbury city centre after being attacked with the nerve agent novichok.

 Mr Cassidy said: "I remember when my wife Mo came upstairs to tell me. We had heard about the incident in the town and we didn't know who it was, but Mo said the couple who had been poisoned were Sergei and Yulia.

 "To say we were shocked is the understatement of the century. I realised from that moment on it was going to be massive and it has occupied every part of our lives."

 :: Recap: Belgium joins nations expelling diplomats

 Image: Police officers in protective suits and masks at the scene of the nerve agent attack

 Mr Cassidy said he had spent so much time with the police and dealing with media inquiries that he had barely considered the serious plight of his friends.

 "It wasn't until about 10 days later I started thinking, 'Hang on a minute, Sergei and Yulia are in hospital and are probably going to die', and I actually felt guilty that I hadn't thought more about that," he said.

 Last week, in a court ruling about the Skripals' medical needs, a judge quoted the consultant treating them in Salisbury district hospital: "The hospital has not been approached by anyone known to the patients to enquire of their welfare."

 Mr Cassidy was upset by the suggestion there wasn't anyone who cared enough to want to go and see the Skripals.

 He said: "That is misinformation, because we care. I asked the police several times if we could go and see them, quietly and away from the media, but I was told quite categorically that we were not allowed. We asked the question and the answer was 'no'.

 "We were also upset that if his family and friends in Russia got to hear about this lack of concern it would cause them extra anguish."

 Two weeks after the nerve agent attack, police recovered Mr Cassidy's truck he used to collect Yulia. He has just been told they found no trace of contamination.

 He said: "I just want to go back to being the old Ross Cassidy, putting on my boots each morning and going to work, then having a pint at the weekend. But I don't think I will ever see Sergei and Yulia again, even if they recover."

 Meanwhile, Viktoria Skripal, Mr Skripal's niece, told the BBC she was hoping for a miracle.

 She said: "We are all grown up and we don't believe in miracles but I can't stop thinking that maybe it's not them.

 "Maybe a miracle will happen and it will turn out not to be them.

 "But everyone is saying that, even if they recover, the long-term prognosis is not good." ||||| Video

 Viktoria Skripal, the niece of the poisoned Russian spy, Sergei Skripal, told the BBC she hopes a miracle will happen.

 Three weeks after the nerve agent attack in Salisbury, Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia remain in a critical condition.

 Viktoria Skripal is one of their closest living relatives and she spoke exclusively to BBC Russian's Olga Ivshina in Russia about how the family are coping. ||||| Viktoria Skripal not hopeful about former Russian spy and daughter in nerve agent attack

 The niece of the poisoned former Russian spy Sergei Skripal has said he and his daughter Yulia have only a slim chance of surviving.

 Viktoria Skripal said the prognosis for both “really isn’t good” following the novichok nerve agent attack in Salisbury, Wiltshire, on 4 March.

 She told the BBC: “Out of 99% I have maybe 1% of hope. Whatever it was has given them a very small chance of survival. But they’re going to be invalids for the rest of their lives.”

 Salisbury health risks assessed as £1m aid package approved Read more

 She also revealed that Skripal’s mother had not been told of the incident, adding: “The first priority was to protect our granny so that she wouldn’t hear or find out anything.”

 Countries across the world have joined the UK in taking diplomatic action against Russia, which has been blamed for the attack.

 Theresa May said the “unprecedented series of expulsions” of Russian diplomats sent a strong message to Moscow that it could not ignore international law.

 Briefing the cabinet on Tuesday, the prime minister reported that 23 countries had expelled more than 115 Russian intelligence diplomats. She told her colleagues this demonstrated to the Kremlin “that we will not tolerate their attempts to flout international law, undermine our values or threaten our security”.

 The Russian embassy in the UK said the prime minister had still not presented evidence that the country was responsible for the poisonings, adding that “no one in the wider world would take British words for granted”.

 May wants west to develop long-term response to Russia Read more

 On Wednesday, Ireland became the 24th country to join the the UK in taking diplomatic action against the Kremlin.

 Nato announced it was cutting the size of its Russian mission by a third, removing accreditation from seven Russian staff and rejecting three other pending applications. Jens Stoltenberg, Nato’s secretary general, said the permanent size of the Russian mission would be cut from 30 to 20 people, adding that the gesture was “a clear and very strong message that there was a cost to Russia’s reckless actions”. |||||

– Theresa May predicted that ex-spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia may never fully recover after being poisoned with a nerve agent March 4 in Salisbury, England. Now a family member tells the BBC, via the Guardian, that the outlook for the pair "really isn't good" and that her family has kept news of what happened from Skripal's own mother. "I have maybe 1% of hope," Viktoria Skripal, the ex-spy's niece, says. "Whatever it was has given them a very small chance of survival." And if they do make it, she adds, "they're going to be invalids for the rest of their lives." Still, she says that even though "we are all grown up and … don't believe in miracles," her family is still hoping for one, per Sky News. (The UK believes the poison path leads right back to the Kremlin.)


Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| For the first time in history, the complications of preterm birth outrank all other causes as the world's number one killer of young children.

 Of the estimated 6.3 million deaths of children under the age of five in 2013, complications from preterm births accounted for nearly 1.1 million deaths, according to new findings published in The Lancet by a research team coordinated by Robert Black, M.D., of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, together with World Health Organization and London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

 Specifically, direct complications from preterm births accounted for 965,000 deaths during the first 28 days of life, with an additional 125,000 deaths between the ages of one month and five years. Other main causes for young child deaths include pneumonia, which killed 935,000 children under-five, and childbirth complications, which caused 720,000 deaths (662,000 in the neonatal period, most on the first day of life, and 58,000 in the post-neonatal period).

 "This marks a turning of the tide, a transition from infections to neonatal conditions, especially those related to premature births, and this will require entirely different medical and public health approaches," says Joy Lawn, M.D., Ph.D., of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, a member of the research team and a long-term advisor to Save the Children. "The success we've seen in the ongoing fight against infectious diseases demonstrates that we can also be successful if we invest in prevention and care for preterm birth."

 Groundbreaking research to discover why preterm births occur is now underway. These unprecedented efforts, backed by $250 million in new funding, involve more than 200 researchers and are expected to identify ways to prevent or alleviate this global health problem within three to five years, saving countless infant lives.

 The countries with the highest numbers of children under-five dying from preterm birth complications each year are: India (361,600), Nigeria (98,300), Pakistan (75,000), Democratic Republic of the Congo (40,600), China (37,200), Bangladesh (26,100), Indonesia (25,800), Ethiopia (24,400), Angola (15,900) and Kenya (13,300).

 Some of the highest rates of preterm deaths are in West Africa, particularly in the countries currently being decimated by Ebola, where the risk will now be even higher given the challenges faced in those countries, notably Sierra Leone and Liberia.

 The 10 countries with the highest percentage of under-five deaths directly resulting from preterm birth complications are: Macedonia, 51.0 percent; Slovenia, 47.5 percent; Denmark, 43.0 percent; Serbia, 39.8 percent; the United Kingdom, 38.7 percent; Hungary, 37.4 percent; Slovakia, 34.9 percent; Poland, 34.8 percent; Republic of Korea and Switzerland, 32.7 percent. All of these exceed the global average of 17.4 percent of under-five deaths, partly because of success in reducing infectious diseases.

 In the U.S., 28.1 percent of under-five deaths are from direct complications due to preterm birth, which translates to 8,100 deaths of children under-five. The U.S. ranks 141th worst on the list of 162 countries, followed by Oman, Georgia, Egypt, Canada, Germany and Qatar. The Epidemic of Prematurity

 Since 2000, the worldwide mortality rate of children under-five has declined dramatically from 76 to 46 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2013. This is an annual reduction rate of 3.9 percent. Almost half of the overall reduction is a result of the massive progress made against deaths from pneumonia, diarrhea, measles, HIV and tetanus. In contrast, preterm mortality rates have declined at only 2.0 percent annually based on WHO global mortality rate for preterm birth in 2000 and 2013.

 The reason: vaccines, bed nets for malaria, antibiotics, antimalarial and HIV treatment have received major investments. However, these have had a small impact on deaths resulting from preterm birth complications. Compounding the problem is the fact that the global prematurity rate of more than one in ten babies, or 15.1 million being born too soon, has continued to increase.

 "Some 7,600 newborns die daily," explains Andres de Francisco, M.D., of the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health (PMNCH), a coalition of more than 600 partners. "We have an epidemic of preterm and newborn deaths that represents one of the greatest health challenges of the 21st century. Two-thirds of these deaths could be prevented without intensive care."

 Prematurity is moving higher up on the global agenda. In addition to new research to solve the problem, global health partners are intensifying joint efforts to advocate for investment and policy approaches to reduce preterm birth and improve newborn health. A key moment in this effort is World Prematurity Day (WPD). World Prematurity Day

 More than 200 countries, non-government organizations, UN agencies, medical and health organizations will participate this year in the Fourth World Prematurity Day on Monday, November 17th. More than 60 countries have planned special events that focus on prematurity and premature babies.

 Last year's WPD activities reached 1.4 billion people via radio, TV, print, Internet and social media. Of that, the global public service announcements featuring Celine Dion and Thalia reached more than a billion people on CNN International and CNN en Español. The partners of WPD also hosted a 24-hour Twitter relay that involved nearly 30 million people. WPD reached another 7.3 million people via Facebook through a collection of more than 3,000 personal family stories about prematurity.

 National parent groups affiliated with the European Foundation for the Care of Newborn Infants and the US-based NGO March of Dimes lit some of the world's most famous buildings and landmarks purple, the representative color of WPD: Empire State Building (New York), Niagara Falls (New York/Canada), Brandenburg Gate (Germany), Peace Bridge (New York/Canada), Belfast City Hall (Ireland), First Direct Arena (England), CN Tower (Canada), Singapore Flyer, National Museum (Poland), Bratislava Castle (Slovakia), El Moro (Mexico City), the Bosphorus Bridge (Turkey), General Motors Headquarters (Detroit), and the Las Vegas Strip (Nevada).

 WPD is part of the Every Women Every Child initiative. This umbrella initiative, spearheaded by the UN Secretary-General, was created to rapidly advance the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 4 and 5, to reduce under-five child and maternal mortality by two-thirds and three-fourths respectively.

 "On World Prematurity Day, I urge all partners to recognize the vital importance of addressing prematurity as we strive to improve women's and children's health,"says United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon.

 "Intensifying our focus on prematurity will sustain gains in child survival, accelerate progress towards the Millennium Development Goals, and help lay the groundwork for ending all preventable deaths of women and children by 2030. The Every Woman Every Child movement is working with all stakeholders to end this tragic and preventable reality."

 The Every Woman Every Child movement was launched four years ago and has grown to include 300 partners and 400 financial, policy and service delivery commitments, such as training midwives. In total, $27.3 billion has already been disbursed, according to PMNCH.

 "Adding to the successful Every Woman Every Child movement, WHO and partners have been working on two complementary approaches: the Every Newborn Action Plan (ENAP), led by WHO and UNICEF and adopted by 194 countries at the World Health Assembly this year, and Ending Preventable Maternal Mortality (EPMM)," says Flavia Bustreo, M.D., WHO's Assistant Director-General for Family, Women's and Children's Health. "ENAP and EPMM have articulated strategies and set targets to improve maternal and child health in the post-MDG era and both have attracted unprecedented commitments from countries and development partners."

 ENAP has attracted some 40 commitments from a broad range of donors and partners, including the Islamic Development Bank, the Norwegian Government, Johnson & Johnson and Phillips. India and Nigeria have already launched their own ENAP programs. New Research Initiatives to Address Premature Birth

 Four major research initiatives, with some $250 million in funding, are now underway. Researchers seek to discover the unknown causes of prematurity and find effective ways to prevent or delay preterm births. Precisely what events trigger the start of labor at full-term, let alone preterm labor, remain a mystery. More than half of preterm births occur spontaneously.

 1. The Global Coalition to Advance Preterm Birth Research (GCAPR) is a new partnership initiated by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), the March of Dimes, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Global Alliance to Prevent Prematurity and Stillbirth (GAPPS). Some 16 institutions are now members of the coalition. GCAPR will advance needed research into the field of preterm birth, a blueprint of which was detailed in The Lancet Global Health in December 2013.

 2. The March of Dimes has launched a $75 million Campaign to End Premature Birth, a "medical Manhattan Project" to create a specialized network of five research centers conducting team-based research to discover the unknown causes of prematurity. Two of these research programs are well underway. The remaining three will be named by the end of 2014.

 "The March of Dimes initiative is looking at the whole spectrum of prematurity," says Joe Leigh Simpson, M.D., senior vice president for research and global programs at the March of Dimes. "Some 200 scientists from 20 disciplines already are involved in this research effort and those numbers are expected to double by next year."

 3. The University of California at San Francisco's (UCSF) Preterm Birth Initiative (PTBi) has launched a 10-year global initiative to slow the epidemic of preterm births and improve the health of preterm babies. PTBi is currently in a planning phase to determine where UCSF and its partners can have the greatest impact. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Marc and Lynne Benioff are co-funding this $100 million initiative.

 4. The last research effort led by the Global Alliance to Prevent Prematurity and Stillbirth (GAPPS), a program started by Seattle Children's Hospital, is focusing its research on discovering the causes and mechanisms of prematurity, work that may lead to interventions to prevent it. Seven research projects are underway with more in planning stages. The work has $20 million in funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and a $1.3 million USAID grant.

 "To be successful, this has to be a team effort," says Larry Rand, M.D., director of Perinatal Services at UCSF and co-director of PTBi. "Effective collaboration will accelerate discovery, increase access to interventions that work and optimize the project's impact on rates of early preterm birth and mortality."

 Prematurity is complex. Thus, research groups are from 20 diverse fields. Besides obstetrics/gynecology, neonatology, genetics, immunology and infectious diseases, the trans-disciplinary initiatives include experts in engineering, statistics, physics, biochemistry and mathematics.

 One group is working to identify a pacemaker in the uterus that initiates labor while another seeks to discover the source of the electric signals that initiate labor and discover whether the process is triggered by mother or fetus.

 Another group is focused on identifying biomarkers, proteins and molecules in the circulations of both mother and fetus, gene-environment interaction and the maternal microbiome (the total collective of genomes of microorganisms in the mother).

 One research team is investigating why Somali women living in the U.S. have very low rates of premature births, while most black women in the U.S. have very high rates of premature birth.

 Researchers are studying how poverty, nutrition, pollution, stress and other compounding factors affect preterm birth.

 "This unprecedented collaborative effort will yield results in three to five years," anticipates Dr. Simpson. "I expect the net effect to be greater than the sum of the parts, to be the product of collaboration among the centers." Helping Premature Babies and Mothers

 Measures to help premature babies and mothers include an emphasis on family planning, prevention of infections and use of antibiotics, and wider use of Kangaroo Mother Care, a technique that holds the infant skin-to-skin on the mother's chest to keep the baby warm and make breastfeeding easier.

 An international conference on Kangaroo Mother Care is scheduled for the week of November 17th in Rwanda, coinciding with World Prematurity Day. It is estimated that greater use of this simple technique could save as many as 450,000 preterm newborns each year.

 Known preventions to reduce risk of premature birth:

 Family planning to improve spacing and avoid pregnancy in women under 17 and over 40.

 Reducing the number of embryos transferred as part of fertility treatment.

 Eliminating C-sections before 39 weeks that are elective and not medically necessary.

 Risk factors linked to premature births include obesity and high blood pressure. These also are risk factors for both stillbirths and birth defects.

 Major donor countries are also recognizing the growing demand to improve survival rates of preterm babies. Last month, the U.S. Agency for International Development announced a new five-year, $9 million program, called Every Preemie--SCALE, to expand evidence-based and underutilized interventions to improve survival rates among preterm and low birth weight babies in 24 priority countries across Africa and Asia. The program is supported by a partnership among Project Concern International, GAPPS and the American College of Nurse-Midwives.

 To assist professionals in scaling up proven interventions, the March of Dimes and the International Federation of Gynecology & Obstetrics have created a Global Collaborative Network to Prevent Preterm Birth that identifies best practices.

 In addition, Survive and Thrive is a public-private partnership that engages U.S. pediatric, Ob/Gyn, and midwifery membership organizations with the private sector and the U.S. Government to collaborate with international and national professional associations and global health scholars to strengthen maternal, newborn, and child health programs. This initiative is working in the three highest burden countries - Ethiopia, India and Nigeria - to improve essential newborn care training including neonatal resuscitation and care for small and sick newborns. Prematurity Major Problem in U.S.

 The preterm birth rate in the U.S. declined between 2006 and 2013. The March of Dimes estimates that 231,000 fewer babies were been born prematurely during this time, saving about $11.9 billion in health care costs.

 However, the U.S. still has one of the worst preterm birth rates of any high-resource country. In 2013, 11.4 percent of babies in the U.S. were born preterm, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. The statistics suggest some of the reasons. Nearly 10 percent of single births are premature, while 57 percent of twins and more than 90 percent of triplets are born prematurely and 46 percent of deliveries by C-section are premature.

 The U.S., with 28.1 percent of its under-five deaths resulting from preterm birth complications appears awful, but there are other developed countries with higher rates: Denmark (43.0 percent), United Kingdom (38.7 percent), Switzerland (32.7 percent), Germany and Canada (29.1 percent).

 In the U.S., race makes a difference with premature delivery rates of 16.3 percent among black women, 13 percent among American Indian, 11.3 percent among Hispanic, and about 10 percent for Caucasian and Asian/Pacific Islanders. World Prematurity Day Partners 2013

 Country partners: Afghanistan, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guinea, Hungary, Ireland, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Kenya, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Malaysia, Malawi, Mexico, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania, Taiwan, Turkey, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States and Uruguay. Partners: Aga Khan University, American Academy of Pediatrics, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundations, CARE USA, Children's Investment Fund Foundation, CIDA, CORE Group, Council of International Neonatal Nurses, Development Media International, DFID, ELMA Foundation, European Foundation for Care of Newborn Infants, Family Care International, Family Planning 2020 Partnership, Federal Ministry of Health Nigeria, Free State Department of Health (South Africa), GBC Health, Global Alliance to Prevent Prematurity and Stillbirths, GSK, GSMA, Guttmacher Institute, Harvard School of Public Health, Healthy Newborn Network, International Confederation of Midwives, International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics, International Pediatric Association, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johnson & Johnson, Latin American and Caribbean Neonatal Alliance, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Makerere University (Uganda), MamaYe, March of Dimes, Maternal and Child Health Integrated Program, MDG Health Alliance, Medical Research Council University of Pretoria, Ministry of Health Uganda, NORAD, Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health, PATH, Peking University Center of Medical Genetics, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Zambia to the UN, Save the Children, SNV World, UN Foundation for Every Woman Every Child, UNFPA, UNICEF, University College London, University Research Council (Uganda), USAID, Wellbeing foundation, White Ribbon Alliance, Women Deliver, World Health Organization, World Vision, The Miracle Babies Foundation (Australia), National Premmie Foundation, Eine Handvoll Lebe, VVOC, CHU St. Pierre, Alliance of Bulgarian midwives, Canadian Premature Babies Foundation, ASPREM PREMATUROS, Home for Premature Babies, Klub roditelja nedonoscadi "Palcici", The Association of Friends of the NICU, BabyKangaroos (BabyKlokanci), Dansk Præmatur Forening, Wellmark Health OÜ, Keskosvanhempien yhdistys Kevyt, SOS Préma, Association of Neonatologists of Georgia, Alb Fils Kliniken, Bundesverband "Das frühgeborene Kind" e.V., Carl-von-Basedow-Klinikum Saalekreis, Freundes- und Förderkreis Klinikum Ernst von Bergmann e.V., Universitätsklinikum Essen, Perinatalzentrum der Klinik für Kinder, Klinikum Saarbrücken, Verein für Frühgeborene und kranke Neugeborene Schwarzwald-Baar, Das Frühchen e.V. Heidelberg, Klinikum Karlsruhe, die Initiative Frühchentreff Karlsruhe e.V. and Kindertagesstätte Klinikzwerge, Harl.e.kin - Nachsorge für früh- und risikogeborene Kinder, Förderverein Frühstarter Datteln e.V., Perinatalzentrum Datteln, die Vestische Kinder- und Jugendklinik and St. Vincenz-Krankenhaus Datteln, Kinderklinik Dritter Orden, Traglinge e.V., LittleBigSouls, KORE, Irish Premature Babies, LAHAV - For The Premature Babies in Israel, Piccino Picciò Onlus, Il coraggio di vivere - ONLUS, ERACLE, Associazione Lilliput, Nati per Crescere, Amici Neonatologia Trentina, Frühgeborene Südtirol, Neišnešiotukas, Lulka / Little Giants, The National University of Malaysia, Con Amor Vencerás, Pequeño NuNu, Kleine Kanjers, Amphia-ziekenhuis in Breda, Sophia Nidcap Training Centrum, Red Nicaragüense de la Prematuridad, Fundacja Wczeniak Rodzice-Rodzicom, Fundacja Świadomi Rodzice, Neonatologii i Intensywnej Terapii Noworodka WSSz, Pirogowa w Lodzi, XXS Associação Portuguesa de Apoio ao Bebé Prematuro, Pais Prematuros, One and One & Micolino, "Little Miracles" (Russia), Mali Div - dece rodjene udru�enje prevremeno roditelja Srbije, Udruzenje roditelja prevremeno rodjene dece Optimistik, Institut za neonatologiju, Beograd, The Cozy Project, Nasmalicek Obcianske zdru�enie malícek, Newborns Trust, AVAPREM, APREM, Prematura, Svenska Prematurförbundet, Premature Baby Foundation of Taiwan, El Bebek Gül Bebek, Bliss, Tommys, AUPAPREM, NIDCAP Federation International, BornGreat and Million Moms Challenge. |||||

Write a summary.

– Each day, more than 3,000 children under age 5 die from preterm birth complications—meaning that, for the first time ever, premature birth is the biggest killer of young children around the globe. A new study in the Lancet finds that of the 1.1 million such deaths in 2013, 965,000 of them were a direct result of being born too early, with the child dying within 28 days of birth. But another 125,000 deaths happened between the age of 1 month and 5 years, according to a press release. Meanwhile, the overall mortality rate for children under 5 has declined since 2000, as vaccines, antibiotics, and other advances have reduced deaths from pneumonia, measles, and other causes. "The success we've seen in the ongoing fight against infectious diseases demonstrates that we can also be successful if we invest in prevention and care for preterm birth," says a researcher. The first step, which is already underway with $250 million in new funding: Figure out what causes preterm births. Obesity, high blood pressure, and later-in-life motherhood are all risk factors, but the exact trigger for premature labor remains a "mystery," the Telegraph reports. The countries most affected are often poor: India has the highest number of deaths from preterm birth complications, followed by Nigeria and Pakistan. But even in the US, 28% of under-5 deaths are caused by such complications, which is above the global average of 17.4%; the US has "one of the worst preterm birth rates of any high-resource country," the press release notes. Among the new research initiatives: identifying the electric signals that trigger labor and figuring out whether that process is initiated by the mother or the fetus. (A dad singing to his premature baby boy recently went viral in a heartbreaking video.)