A powerful U.S. B-52 bomber flew low over South Korea on Sunday, a clear show of force from the United States as a Cold War-style standoff deepened between its ally Seoul and North Korea following Pyongyang’s fourth nuclear test.
North Korea will read the fly-over of a bomber capable of delivering nuclear weapons — seen by an Associated Press photographer at Osan Air Base near Seoul — as a threat. Any hint of America’s nuclear power enrages Pyongyang, which links its own pursuit of atomic weapons to what it sees as past nuclear-backed moves by the United States to topple its authoritarian government. The B-52 was joined by South Korean F-15 and U.S. F-16 fighters and returned to its base in Guam after the flight, the U.S. military said.
As Hurricane Florence threatens the Carolina coast with its slow-moving approach, meteorologist Chris Gloninger is in North Carolina to cover the potentially catastrophic storm.
Last year, he covered the effects of Hurricane Harvey in Texas and Hurricane Irma in Florida for NBC10 Boston and necn.
Gloninger delivered his first live report at 4 p.m. Wednesday and will continue providing updates as the storm nears the U.S.
The National Hurricane Center's projected track has Florence hovering off the southern North Carolina coast from Thursday night until landfall Saturday morning or so, about a day later than previously expected. The track also shifted somewhat south and west, throwing Georgia into peril as Florence moves inland.
Just before sunset, the last remaining residents evacuated Wrightsville Beach as the hurricane flags waved in a warm summer breeze. Twenty minutes away in Wilmington, it was a mad dash for some to finish final preparations.
Massachusetts
The latest news from around the state
At 11 p.m., Florence was downgraded to a Category 2 hurricane. Officials continued to warn that the storm was dangerous.
Waves 83 feet high were measured near the eye of Florence, according to a tweet from the National Hurricane Center. But that was out in the open ocean, where deeper water means bigger waves.
As of Tuesday, about 1.7 million people in North and South Carolina and Virginia were under warnings to evacuate the coast, and hurricane watches and warnings extended across an area with about 5.4 million residents. Cars and trucks full of people and belongings streamed inland.
