Category: BuzzNews (anglais)

The winter season has well and truly begun in Canada, and much of the country – from the Western provinces to the Maritimes – is set to experience extreme winter weather conditions over the next few days, with freezing temperatures and heavy snowfalls.

A polar vortex is ushering in Arctic air, bringing the coldest temperatures in 70 years for some areas on the Prairies.

Wind chills could reach -50 degrees Celsius! 🥶#ABwx #SKwx #MBwxhttps://t.co/i34WVmHt70

— The Weather Network (@weathernetwork) January 11, 2024

Several warnings have been issued by Environment Canada for extreme weather conditions in western Canada.

In fact, British Columbia is facing brutally low temperatures, with -30 degrees Celcius felt on the north and central coasts, including northern Vancouver Island.

In the Prairie provinces, thermometers are reading as low as -40 degrees Celcius, particularly in Alberta and Saskatchewan. In northern Manitoba and the Yukon, temperatures will drop to -50 degrees Celsius with the wind chill.

In Ontario and Quebec, further snow accumulations are also expected.

In Ontario, high winds and snowfall amounts of 15 to 30 centimetres are expected over the weekend.

The coming weekend promises to be an intense one across Quebec, with a powerful winter storm, strong gusts of wind and even a little rain in some areas.

Southern Quebec and the Gaspé Peninsula will be particularly vulnerable.

Just hours before closing arguments in Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial, Judge Engoron, who presides over the trial, was the victim of a bomb threat at his home.

A bomb threat was made to the home of the judge overseeing Trump's civil fraud trial, just hours before closing arguments are set to begin https://t.co/XUGD6PKOOi

— CNN (@CNN) January 11, 2024

Nassau County police quickly investigated the incident and determined that the call was unfounded.

The trial will go ahead on schedule despite this worrying event, but security has been tightened around Judge Engoron. The prosecution and defense will deliver their final arguments in front of the courtroom, whose security has also been reinforced.

The former president, who had indicated his intention to participate directly in his defense’s closing arguments, had his request denied by Judge Engoron as Trump refused to obey certain rules, including refraining from criticizing New York Attorney General Letitia James or her team and avoiding turning his closing arguments into a campaign speech.

But this incident intensifies the already palpable tension surrounding Trump’s many legal proceedings, since Judge Engoron isn’t the first to have a link to various Trump court cases and fall victim to this kind of maneuvering.

Judge Engoron is expected to render his decision by the end of the month.

Alaska Airlines experienced an emergency that could have had serious consequences for the 177 passengers and crew last Friday, when a piece of the plane broke off mid-air, leading to a grounding order for further inspection of the Boeing 737 Max 9.

The wreckage was found in a residential area of Oregon.

A missing door plug that could be key to the investigation into what caused it to detach from a plane midflight has been found in the backyard of a Portland area resident, officials say. https://t.co/PsFfckvaWy

— NBC News (@NBCNews) January 8, 2024

An investigation is now underway into the incident involving Alaska Airlines flight 1282, during which a door plug on the Boeing 737 MAX 9 separated from the aircraft at an altitude of 16,000 feet. Shortly after takeoff, the flight from Portland, Oregon, to Ontario, California, was forced to make an emergency landing in Portland, as the detachment of the plug caused rapid decompression in the cabin.

This situation caused chaos among passengers and crew.

Fortunately, the emergency landing was uneventful. The 171 passengers on board and the six crew members suffered no serious injuries. This incident is just one of many challenges the Boeing 737 Max has faced, including two fatal crashes in five months between 2018 and 2019.

In total, 346 people lost their lives.

The immediate grounding of Boeing 737 Max 9s, which share a similar configuration to the aircraft involved in the Alaska Airlines incident, has been ordered. This directive will affect around 171 aircraft worldwide, which will have to undergo an immediate inspection of cabin door plugs, components and fastenings.

The cancellation of several hundred flights has caused major disruption to the networks of both airlines. While the carriers deal with the consequences of these cancellations, customers have been advised to check the status of their flights and consider rebooking.

The airline industry claims that the 737 Max is a reliable aircraft, but the recent incident will do little to reassure an already nervous public…