(NEW YORK) -- Dangerous wildfire smoke is impacting more than a dozen states on Saturday morning as air quality alerts span from the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes to New England, south through the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.

More than 900 wildfires are burning across Canada, sending smoke into the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, though a storm system moving through Saturday could help clear some of the haze.

The Midwest and Upper Great Lakes are expected to see poor air quality through the weekend as northwesterly winds push a plume of smoke into the region.

Meanwhile, the Storm Prediction Center has issued a Level 3 of 5 risk for severe storms across parts of the Ohio Valley, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. Major cities along the Interstate 95 corridor, including New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, D.C., could be affected. Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Buffalo are also expected to see strong storms.

The rounds of showers and storms will bring the threat of damaging winds, hail, a few tornadoes and chances for flash flooding in certain areas.

Flood watches are in effect for parts of the Northeast, including New York City and Philadelphia, through Saturday evening as heavy rainfall could trigger flash flooding.

Elsewhere, monsoonal moisture is expected to extend from West Texas and southern New Mexico into central and northern Arizona and southern Utah, where daytime heating could trigger thunderstorms capable of producing heavy rainfall and flash flooding.

A severe storm threat also extends into parts of Virginia and the Carolinas, where scattered storms could produce damaging winds and heavy rainfall as Charlotte, Raleigh and Virginia Beach are among the cities that could be affected.

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(NEW YORK) -- Dangerous smoke from hundreds of Canadian wildfires has seeped down to the U.S., impacting over 100 million Americans across more than a dozen states.

Air quality alerts on Friday stretch from the Midwest to the Great Lakes to the Northeast to the Mid-Atlantic, impacting major cities including Chicago, Detroit, Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia.

Canada has nearly 900 wildfires burning, with over 100 categorized as out of control. Almost 200 of the fires are in Ontario.

Heavy rain by the Minnesota/Canada border on Friday may help with some fires, but the storms could also bring strong winds and lightning, which can spark new fires and create more erratic fire activity.

Passing showers and thunderstorms are also possible in Ontario Friday, but that rain won't be enough to put the wildfires out, and the winds may make conditions worse and lightning could spark new wildfires. There are more chances for rain over Ontario on Saturday and again on Tuesday. 

In the U.S., the smoke Friday spans from Duluth, Minnesota, to Richmond, Virginia, impacting states including Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and Delaware.

Philadelphia issued a "Code Purple Air Quality Emergency Day" Friday.

"Everyone may experience negative health effects from particulate matter in the air," Philadelphia officials warned. "Members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects."

The worst air quality Friday afternoon is in northern Minnesota and Wisconsin.

In Milwaukee, where the air is in the hazardous category, the Milwaukee Brewers are allowing ticket holders to exchange tickets for Friday night's game for another regular season home game. 

The air is expected to improve on Saturday in the Ohio Valley, Northeast and the Mid-Atlantic, when rain moves in. But parts of the Midwest and Great Lakes will continue to see dangerous air quality.

Smoke is probable over New York City on Sunday when Spain plays Argentina in the FIFA World Cup Final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, though it is still too early to know exactly where the smoke will be. Sources familiar with the situation told ABC News that "all involved authorities are monitoring."

Smoke contains fine particles that can travel deep into the lungs. For those who need to work outdoors, are more sensitive to smoke or are in a high-risk group, Kai Chen, an associate professor of epidemiology at Yale School of Public Health, told ABC News that the best type of mask to wear is an N95, which is designed to filter at least 95% of airborne particles.

In New York City, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said free KN95 masks are available at hundreds of locations.

Click here to read more on how to stay safe.

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(WASHINGTON) -- Newly-declassified documents touted by President Donald Trump during his address on election security Thursday cast doubt on some of his claims about "shocking vulnerabilities" in the country's election infrastructure.

While Trump claimed during his address that the nation's election systems are vulnerable to "hacking, exploitation, and foreign interference," the intelligence reports released by the White House concluded overall that the main infrastructure used to conduct elections in the United States "would be difficult to manipulate on a wide enough scale to alter the election outcome."

"Great damage has been done to our country. Our elections were left vulnerable to being rigged and stolen, and the trust of the American people was lost," Trump said, without providing evidence.

'Difficult to manipulate at scale'

The documents noted that although some internet-connected election infrastructure -- like voter registration databases and pollbooks -- are vulnerable to cyberattacks, the systems used to tabulate, transmit, and display election results cannot be manipulated on a wide scale, and audits and paper trails "would uncover such efforts in the nearly all U.S. states."

"We assess that hostile actors could also manipulate systems that count or tabulate votes -- such as voting machines -- on a localized basis, but it probably would be difficult to coordinate a campaign to alter voting results on a wide scale," said an August 2020 report from the National Intelligence Council. "Similarly, foreign actors would have difficulty coordinating a large scale campaign to manipulate mail-in voting, and robust postal tracking probably would detect any large-scale effort."

The report concluded that cyber attacks could potentially delay voting but "probably would not affect the integrity of certified results."

While another report said that foreign adversaries such as Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea "have the capability to access and potentially manipulate data in U.S. election-related computer systems," the report did not identify "specific plans to interfere with the functioning of these systems" or past instances when results were changed due to the actions of foreign actors.

"We assess that vote tabulation systems would be difficult to manipulate on a wide enough scale to compromise election results," said a January 2020 report from the National Intelligence Council.

"Although an adversary could manipulate voting results across multiple jurisdictions and enough states to influence a presidential election, we judge that conducting such a campaign would be difficult and that postelection audits and paper trails very likely would uncover such an effort," that report said.

According to the August 2020 report from the National Intelligence Council, the only country that was observed attempting to target or manipulate election systems during the 2020 election was Russia, which used "a range of measures primarily to denigrate former Vice President Biden" and share largely favorable information about President Trump.

'Delays on Election Day'

According to the National Intelligence Council's January 2020 report, the systems vulnerable to disruption are official election websites or registration databases -- which are often publicly accessible -- or poll books, which are used by election officials to look up eligible voters.

The report said that bad actors could "alter data to potentially prevent individual voters or groups of voters from voting, causing delays on Election Day or forcing voters to use provisional ballots" -- but those actions wouldn't affect the votes themselves.

"We assess that cyber operations targeting the electronic tabulation of results could delay results reporting from affected jurisdictions, potentially creating public uncertainty but probably not affecting the integrity of certified results," the report noted.

According to a 2026 report from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, election-related software is "subject to the same security concerns as most other software systems." The report called for election officials to be transparent about issues to improve public trust.

"By openly acknowledging incidents and describing mitigation steps, vendors and localities can show that they are proactively defending critical infrastructure rather than obscuring vulnerabilities. This transparency encourages continuous improvement, drives investment in stronger defenses, and reinforces that protecting elections is a collective national priority," the report said.

'Russia, China, Iran'

A January 2020 memo from the National Intelligence Council warned that countries like Russia, China, Iran and North Korea "have the capability to access and potentially manipulate data in U.S. election-related computer systems" -- but a subsequent report said such manipulation would be hard to do on a widespread basis.

"We judge that Russia, China, Iran, as well as many nonstate actors, have the capability to conduct such activities, although it would be difficult for them to manipulate voting processes at scale and without detection," the report said.

Russia and China have pushed back against those claims.

The January 2020 report noted that Russia "almost certainly" surveyed election networks in 2016, accessed election infrastructure in two states, and exfiltrated voter data from one state.

According to the August 2020 report, Russia sought to amplify discord in the United States ahead of the 2020 election, spread false claims about then-candidate Joe Biden, and boost positive information about Trump.

The 2020 CIA memo noted that China probed presidential campaigns in every election since 2008 to get insights on U.S.-China issues.

According to the memo, the intelligence community detected Chinese state-sponsored cyber actors specifically targeting the Biden campaign "to gather intelligence that could enable future operations."

"The IC assesses that China does not currently intend to covertly interfere to try to sway the outcome of the election, although this activity could enable such operations," the report said.

An August 2020 report from the National Intelligence Council concluded that China "did not intend to try to affect the election" though it "prefers that President Trump be defeated."

"We assess that China prefers that the President whom Beijing sees as unpredictable and tough on China does not win reelection," the report said.

However, an October 2020 memo noted the overall intelligence community believed that China considered but did not deploy influence efforts for the upcoming 2020 election. The memo said that Chinese leadership believed Trump appeared likely to lose and that "there is little point to taking the risk of an influence effort because they believe their preferred outcome is probable."

"As early as [REDACTED] this year, Chinese [REDACTED] assessed that the pandemic and economic downturn had diminished the President's reelection prospects and since then Beijing has been planning for either electoral outcome and conducting outreach to both candidates and their campaigns, [REDACTED]," the memo said.

The August 2020 report noted that Iran "is conducting an influence campaign to undermine the current President and US democratic institutions, and to divide the country in advance of the 2020 elections."

However, the report noted that Iran is focusing on covert online influence -- such as sharing memes and recirculating news reports that are critical of Trump.

"Iran could attempt to manipulate or attack election infrastructure as it has in elections in the Middle East and South Asia -- but we do not have any information indicating that it intends to do so in the United States," the report said.

'An election outside of Venezuela'

The release of documents included a CIA assessment from June 2026 summarizing the last two decades of intelligence related to Venezuela's manipulation of voting systems, following longstanding claims by Trump's far-right supporters of Venezuela's involvement in 2020 election interference.

The memo said that Venezuelan government officials developed the capability to manipulate electronic voting systems in their own elections, including replicating and overwriting voting data to make fraudulent votes legitimate.

However, the report noted that the intelligence "did not definitively confirm that large-scale electronic fraud was successfully executed in specific Venezuelan elections."

Notably, the report noted that there was no evidence that the Venezuelan government was able to manipulate election results outside of their own country, because their ability to rig elections "rested in part on its ability to control every stage of the electronic voting process."

"Neither [the voting machine company] Smartmatic nor the Venezuelan Government had the capability -- that is the level of control or access required -- to manipulate the outcome of an election outside of Venezuela in a predictable fashion," the report said.

'False narratives'

In addition to assessing technological vulnerabilities in the election system, a newly-declassified memo from the National Intelligence Council explicitly raised concerns about adversaries exploiting most Americans' lack of knowledge about voting systems to "undermine confidence in U.S. democratic processes."

"Much of the voting public probably knows little about the process of administering U.S. elections, which could allow false narratives to gain traction," said the January 2020 memo.

The memo noted that efforts to "publicly invalidate such claims could take weeks or months" and that "disproving claims would also be impossible if adversaries evaded U.S. intelligence collection."

"A widely publicized compromise of election infrastructure probably would undercut public confidence in the election, even if the compromise was not used to manipulate election-related data or systems," the memo said.

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(RUSKIN, Fla.) -- Two deputies were airlifted to a Florida hospital Thursday after they were shot while approaching a suspect who was accused of holding a woman hostage overnight, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.

The suspect, identified as 34-year-old Chris Dmuchowski, was shot by a third responding deputy and died after being transported to the hospital, the sheriff's office said.

Both deputies are receiving care and are expected to make a full recovery, according to an update from the sheriff on Friday.

Deputies arrived on the scene on West Shell Point Road in Ruskin, Florida, after a report that the suspect had taken his ex-girlfriend hostage overnight, Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said in a press briefing Thursday.

The suspect allegedly restrained his ex-girlfriend at her residence and threatened to kill her, and then released her after she regained consciousness in the morning, Chronister said.

That morning, she went to a sheriff's office building to request an order of protection, after which authorities sent a drone to the scene upon identifying the suspect and learning of his criminal record, according to the sheriff.

An exchange of gunfire ensued in the parking lot outside of the residence after the suspect exited the building, the sheriff said.

"Our suspect ambushed our deputies from the moment they arrived on scene," Chronister said. "He was intent on taking the life of a deputy sheriff."

The suspect opened fire at two deputies, striking one in the face and another in the neck area, after which a third deputy approached and shot the suspect multiple times, Chronister said.

Chronister said on Friday that one of the deputies was preparing to go into surgery. He had multiple fractures on his hand and wrist and had gotten stitches on his face where the bullet struck, according to the sheriff.

The other deputy who was shot in the neck experienced no damage to vital arteries and hopes to be released Friday, Chronister said.

Dmuchowski was a one-time convicted felon on charges of tampering with physical evidence.

The sheriff's office said there is no threat to public safety at this time.

"Thank you to every single deputy who was on scene and responded to this scene today," Chronister said.

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(NEW YORK) -- The family of a Westchester grandmother who died after falling into an open manhole in Midtown Manhattan filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the utility responsible for the manhole, alleging its workers failed to properly seal the cover.

Donike Goncaj, 56, fell into the manhole at 52nd Street and Fifth Avenue on May 18 and died of scald burns and thermal inhalation from the steam. The lawsuit, filed in New York State Supreme Court on Thursday, says she suffered "severe, horrifying, and catastrophic injuries."

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner ruled Goncaj's death an accident.

The utility, Con Edison, concluded a truck ran over the manhole and dislodged the cover and noted in a statement in May that "while this is a rare occurrence, manhole covers can get displaced by heavy vehicles."

The lawsuit, filed by Goncaj's son on behalf of her estate, and her domestic partner, alleged ConEdison "should have known that dislodged and displaced manhole covers presented a recurring and foreseeable danger to pedestrians" and accused the utility of negligence, carelessness and reckless disregard for their mother's safety.

Someone falling to their death in a manhole "ordinarily does not occur in the absence of negligence," the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit contended that ConEd and its contractors "had a duty to maintain" the manhole "in reasonably safe conditions," including warning pedestrians and providing a ladder or staircase to exit it.

ConEd did not immediately comment on the suit. In May, it said it was investigating the situation and working with the city in its probe.

"Our thoughts remain with her family, and safety remains our top priority," ConEd said in a statement a day after the incident.

According to the lawsuit, Goncaj's domestic partner, Jashar Kameraj, witnessed her falling into the scalding hot manhole and tried to rescue her, to no avail.

Kameraj and Goncaj's son are seeking unspecified damages.

-ABC News' Ivan Pereira contributed to this report.

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(NEW YORK) -- A man is facing charges, including menacing as a hate crime, after he allegedly snuck into an NBC building at New York City's Rockefeller Center looking for "Today" show weather anchor Al Roker, authorities said.

The suspect, Andrew Truelove, gained access to the "Today" studio on Thursday morning by entering the lobby and closely following an NBC employee who used an ID card to scan into the building, Rockefeller Center security personnel told authorities.

Truelove allegedly loitered at the bottom of a stairwell before calling out, "Where is Roker?" according to a criminal complaint.

He then allegedly took steps toward "Today" anchor Craig Melvin and repeatedly uttered a racial slur, the complaint said.

Truelove, 41, of Manhattan, was detained by an NYPD officer working a paid detail, police said.

He was charged with burglary as a hate crime, menacing as a hate crime, criminal trespass as a hate crime and harassment, according to police. He appeared in court on Friday, where a judge set bail at $10,000.

Police sources told ABC News Truelove is a Sandy Hook school shooting denier who has been arrested numerous times, including in his native Virginia, for allegedly stealing signs dedicated to Sandy Hook victims.

Melvin wrote on Instagram after Thursday's incident, "I'm doing just fine. Thanks for reaching out." He added on "Today" on Friday, "We are cooperating fully with the NYPD as they investigate the matter and we are just very happy that everyone is safe."

Roker wrote on Instagram Friday morning, "A really heartfelt thank you to all who reached out over the last 24 hours to check in on my brother, craigmelvinnbc. We are both okay. It's moments like these that serve to pull us together."

NBC News did not respond to ABC News' request for comment, but Melvin shared a statement from NBC News on Instagram, which said the person "entered an unauthorized area " and "approached anchor Craig Melvin, who alerted security."

"The individual was detained and taken into custody by law enforcement without further incident. There was no altercation, and no one was injured," NBC said.

NBC said it takes "the safety and security of our employees, talent, staff and guests extremely seriously. We are reviewing the incident and our security protocols and remain committed to providing a safe and secure environment for everyone who works at and visits our studios."

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(WASHINGTON) -- Private equity billionaire Leon Black walked out of his transcribed interview with the House Oversight Committee regarding his decades-long relationship with Jeffrey Epstein after refusing to answer questions about nondisclosure agreements allegedly related to the disgraced sex offender, according to a transcript of the June 26 interview released by the committee Friday.

While he said he would be willing to talk about three women involved in lawsuits against him, Black repeatedly declined to answer questions about how many nondisclosure agreements he was involved in, citing the advice of his attorneys. 

"I'm not here to talk about confidential NDAs," Black said, later adding. "I'm not here to talk about who has NDAs."

Black was issued two subpoenas after his refusals -- one compelling him to participate in a deposition and another to turn over any NDAs. A House Oversight Committee spokesperson said Black's attorney confirmed Black would appear for a deposition on Sept. 3, and he will turn over the NDAs sometime next week. 

Black, who maintained a social relationship with Epstein since the mid-1990s and eventually paid him more than $170 million for "tax and estate planning advice," according to the Senate Finance Committee, appeared before the Oversight panel as part of its ongoing probe into the government's investigation of the convicted sex offender.

Black acknowledged that he discussed at least one nondisclosure agreement with Epstein, though he denied he sought Epstein's advice on the matter. According to Black, he agreed to pay a woman with whom he had a six-year affair after she allegedly "blackmailed and extorted" him, ultimately agreeing to pay her more than $21 million over 15 years. Because Epstein was helping manage his finances, Black said he made Epstein aware of the agreement and payments. 

"I don't know whether he had any experience on NDAs. He was not my NDA adviser," Black said of Epstein, according to the transcript. 

Black was served the two subpoenas after he declined to answer broader questions about other alleged nondisclosure agreements. His lawyers argued that Black was not at liberty to discuss confidential agreements he was a party to, and called the subpoenas a stunt. 

"Mr. Black came here voluntarily to assist the committee. This was nothing more than a planned political stunt," said Black's attorney Aaron Cutler. "Mr. Epstein had no involvement with any NDAs, whether they exist or not."

Before the interview was cut short, Black faced questions about his decades-long relationship with Epstein, who he first began to see socially before hiring him to manage part of his estate. While Black acknowledged that he saw Epstein somewhat regularly -- about once a month -- he claimed they were not close friends. 

"Friendship is an amorphous term. This is somebody who knew intimately the goings on in my family tax and estate planning entities. It's also something where, as I mentioned, I'd go over and meet his friends. I know there are emails where he claims that we're best friends. We were never best friends," Black said, per the transcript. 

Lawmakers pushed back when Black sought to distance himself from Epstein, including by asking about a message Black wrote for a book that Maxwell, Epstein's longtime associate, created for Epstein's 50th birthday. According to the Wall Street Journal, Black wrote a two-line poem -- "Blonde, Red or Brunette, spread out geographically ... with this net of fish, Jeff's now 'The Old Man and The Sea'" -- which he signed "Love and kisses, Leon."

Asked to explain the note, Black said he was referencing how Epstein "seemed to know women all over the world," though he denied knowing any of the women were underage. 

"He enjoyed the company of good-looking women, and he was a bachelor," Black said, saying how Epstein's surrounding himself with "mostly good-looking women" was "a little bit out of like a James Bond movie." 

The interview was cut short after the topic transitioned to nondisclosure agreements, and Black was not asked about the more than $158 he paid Epstein for "tax and estate planning advice." During his opening remarks, Black claimed that he paid Epstein so much because he solved a "massive estate problem ... that would have destroyed enormous value." He denied that the money was related to any illegal activities. 

"I have never paid Epstein for access to women. I was never blackmailed by Epstein. I was not involved with, and had no knowledge of, any of Epstein's heinous conduct," Black said, according to the transcript. 

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(SAN FRANCISCO) -- The body of a 58-year-old woman has been recovered after a boat capsized and sank near Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay, marking the second person confirmed dead from the incident.

The San Francisco Medical Examiner's Office identified the second victim as Tondra Madruga. Two people remain missing.

Madruga's relatives said in a statement that they're "heartbroken by the loss of our beloved mother, daughter, sister, and aunt."

"Our hearts remain with every family impacted, and we sincerely appreciate your kindness and understanding," the family said. "We extend our heartfelt thanks to the U.S. Coast Guard, the San Francisco Fire Department, the San Francisco Police Department, all of the first responders, and the civilian boaters and community members who selflessly assisted in the search and rescue efforts. Your dedication and support mean more to our family than words can express."

Authorities said they believe 20 people were aboard the Volare, a 50-foot cabin cruiser based out of Stockton, California, when it was hit by a wave Tuesday evening, causing it to capsize.

One man who was aboard was taken to the shore severely injured and, despite CPR being administered, was pronounced dead, officials said. He was identified by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner as 79-year-old Clifford Joseph Boisa.

A dog also died, San Francisco Fire Chief Dean Crispen said.

Three people were taken to the hospital and later released, Crispen said.

Crispen told reporters that authorities believe there was a memorial service that the 20 passengers, all adults and mostly comprised of family members, were taking part in on the vessel when it capsized. One survivor said it was a memorial for her sister, ABC San Francisco station KGO reported.

The Coast Guard announced Wednesday that it suspended search operations

Jarod Toczko, commander for U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Francisco, said the decision to suspend the search was not easy, but his teams swept through 950 square nautical miles and hadn't found the missing people or the boat.

Toczko said there was a "high possibility that individuals could have been trapped in the vessel."

Rescuer Justin Marceline told KGO that some passengers were "banging on the windows, trying to get out" of the boat.

"It was pretty wild, seeing that, honestly," Marceline said, adding that conditions in the water were "really bad."

"The people that were bobbing in the water, we pulled them out first," Marceline said. "The people in the water were elderly folks, they were conscious, but people were too tired and worn out."

Toczko praised those who jumped to save the passengers.

"No question, no doubt...those people saved lives," he said.

ABC News' Emily Shapiro and Jennifer Watts contributed to this report.

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(NEW YORK) -- Air quality alerts are in place on Thursday across at least 18 states, from Minnesota to New Hampshire to Virginia, as dangerous smoke continues to waft into the U.S. from Canadian wildfires, including more than 100 blazes burning out of control.

Smoke from at least 850 active wildfires in Canada is traveling more than a thousand miles to reach U.S. locations including New York City. At least another nine large fires are burning in northern Minnesota.

On Thursday afternoon, Minneapolis surpassed Detroit for having the worst measured air quality in the world among major cities, according to the air quality monitoring website IQAir.

Earlier Thursday, Detroit, which dropped to second on the list, reached an air quality index, or AQI, of nearly 570. IQAir rates the most dangerous air quality index, described as "hazardous," as 301 or above.

Chicago was third on the IQAir's AQI scale for the worst air quality on the planet while Toronto, Ontario, was sixth on Thursday afternoon. Toronto is more than 1,100 miles from where some 180 wildfires are burning in sparsely populated areas of Ontario province.

Meanwhile, all of New York State, including New York City, and parts of New Jersey are under an Air Quality Advisory on Thursday due to the wildfire smoke.

The extreme smoke will continue through Thursday evening in the Upper Midwest, including northern Wisconsin, northern Michigan, the New York City area and across the Northeast. Heavy smoke will also stretch from Chicago to Detroit and from Philadelphia to Boston. 

New York City could see orange skies on Thursday afternoon as dense plumes of hazardous smoke continues pour into the area.

According to the Canadian Wildland Fire Information System, 859 active wildfires are burning as of late Thursday afternoon, including 37 new fires that ignited Thursday. At least 109 of the wildfires were burning out of control Thursday afternoon, according to the agency.

So far this year, according to the agency, Canada has had 3,549 wildfires that have burned a total of 2.3 million hectares, or more than 93,000 square miles, which is roughly the size of the United Kingdom.

The smoke and ash from the Canadian wildfires was even affecting commercial air traffic. On Thursday, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it was slowing arriving flights into the Philadelphia International Airport due to low visibility from wildfires smoke.

An American Airlines pilot told Philadelphia air traffic controllers on Thursday that ash was sticking the windshield of his aircraft, according to a recording of the communications provided by ATC.com.

"I've never seen it stick to the windshield like this," the pilot was heard telling air traffic controllers.

American Steve Ventling of Montana told ABC News that he witnessed the Canadian wildfires up close this week when a blaze began while he was on a fishing trip in Northern Ontario. Ventling shared photos with ABC News of billowing smoke and flames quickly spreading through a lakeside forest.

"I've seen plenty of fires in my lifetime. Nothing prepared me for this. The flames exploded through the treetops. Entire trees vanished in seconds," said Ventling, adding that he and others he was fishing with evacuated the area in a boat.

On Wednesday, the wildfire smoke cast a yellowish haze over New York City, leaving a strong stench of smoke in the air.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani warned that "a combination of dangerous heat and unhealthy air" will continue to be a serious threat to the health of New Yorkers on Thursday.

"This is very serious," Mamdani said at a news conference on Thursday morning. "We are reaching into a level of air quality that is dangerous for every single New Yorker."

In a social media post on Wednesday night, Mamdani advised New Yorkers to "stay somewhere cool with air conditioning, limit your time outdoors, drink plenty of water, and check on your neighbors – especially older New Yorkers and anyone with a health condition."

The mayor said the city is providing free masks to help people cope with the smoke.

By Thursday noon, air quality was rated as "unhealthy" in New York City, with air quality in the Long Island and Lower Hudson Valley regions forecast to also become unhealthy before the end of the day, according to the air monitoring site AirNow.

Air quality in the Central and Western New York regions and the Eastern Lake Ontario region of New York state were rated as "very unhealthy," according to AirNow.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said smoke will be thick on Thursday and spread across the rest of the state throughout the day.

“Distant wildfires have impacted New York State in recent years, and this week unfortunately will be no different with expected hazy skies and poor air quality," Hochul said in a statement on Wednesday. "We are now closely tracking these conditions and I strongly encourage New Yorkers to stay informed and take appropriate precautions to stay safe. Sensitive groups should take particular caution."

By Friday morning, the smoke is expected to push farther south, affecting areas through Ohio and Virginia, including Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, throughout the day. 

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(NEW YORK) -- A bird strike likely caused last year's tourist helicopter crash in New York City's Hudson River that killed all six people on board, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.

The more than 2,000 pages of information released by the NTSB is not the final report and does not state the probable cause, but the documents show the chopper slammed into multiple large birds before the crash.

The birds hit the rotor blades and the horizontal stabilizer, according to an analysis by the Smithsonian Institution’s Feather Identification Lab. Samples of “mixed species” of birds were found, including Canada Geese and black-backed Gull. Canadian Geese can sometimes weigh more than 10 pounds each.

Videos showed the rotors flying off the helicopter as it plummeted to the water. 

The chopper crashed into the Hudson in April 2025 while carrying a pilot and a family from Spain: Siemens executive Agustin Escobar, his wife Merce Camprubi Montal, and their three children.

One witness told ABC News she watched the helicopter "fall out of the sky" from her apartment window.

"I heard five or six loud noises that sounded almost like gunshots in the sky and saw pieces fall off, then watched it fall into the river," she said.

Bird strikes are common; there were 20,876 bird strikes to civilian aircraft in the U.S. in 2024, according to the Wildlife strikes to Civil Aircraft report. 

It is not clear when the NTSB’s final report -- which will list the probable cause of the crash -- will be released.

ABC News has reached out to the helicopter company for comment. New York Helicopter Charter inc. shutdown following the crash.  

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(NEW YORK) -- At least one person has died as a result of the flash flooding emergency currently ongoing in Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott confirmed on Thursday.

The death was reported overnight between Kerrville and Comfort, Texas, Abbott said. More than 70 people have been rescued so far, he added.

Rescue operations are underway for people stranded in homes and potentially larger facilities, with 1,300 emergency personnel responding, according to the governor.

For the third day in a row, torrential rain prompted flash flood emergency warnings for Texas Hill Country as water levels in creeks and rivers rose rapidly.

Three flash flood emergencies were issued Thursday across Texas Hill Country.

As of early Thursday morning, there were two flash flood emergencies, impacting Kerrville -- the city where the deadly Camp Mystic flooding occurred in July 2025 -- Hunt, Uvalde and Knippa.

Evacuations and water rescues were reported in all four areas, with warnings of life-threatening flash flooding and reports of water entering buildings.

The Guadalupe River at Hunt rose from 9 to 19 feet between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. CT, cutting off access to some roads and bridges. Just before 6 a.m., the Guadalupe River gauge measured 37 feet at Hunt, and more rise is possible, according to the Kerr County Sheriff's Office.

No camps along the river had sustained any damage as of Thursday afternoon, Abbott said. Warning sirens were activated and functioned properly.

The National Weather Service issued another flash flood emergency later Thursday morning along the Pedernales River, located just north of the Guadalupe River.

A large and deadly wave was moving down the Pedernales River -- with the gauge at Fredericksburg rising to more than 31 feet and counting, according to the NWS.

Engineers assessed the bridge over the Guadalupe River on Highway 87 into Comfort, Texas, due to fears that the force of the water may have made it unstable, Kendall County Judge Shane Stolarcyz told ABC News. The engineers concluded that the bridge is structurally sound for now, ABC News has learned.

The fast-moving water below the bridge could be seen carrying debris within the current. The water is starting to recede, but authorities anticipate there could be a second wave later Thursday. They do not believe it will be anywhere near the level seen in the morning. 

A "large and deadly flood wave" that began along the Guadalupe River around Kerrville moved downstream through Center Point onto Comfort and Waring, Sisterdale, Crown and Bergheim.

The river gauge at Center Point rose 32 feet in four hours and was expected to reach a crest similar to the catastrophic July 4, 2025, river flood.

A rainfall rate of 2 to 4 inches per hour was forecast for the region. Up to 20 inches of rain had fallen in the Uvalde area over the previous 48 hours -- more than six months' worth of rain for this area -- with 8 inches falling in 2 hours.

On Wednesday afternoon, the NWS issued a flash flood emergency warning for Boerne, located in Texas Hill Country about 55 miles southeast of Camp Mystic, urging residents to relocate to higher elevations immediately.

A rain gauge near Boerne measured 3.5 inches of rain within one hour Wednesday morning, according to the NWS. The Cibolo Creek rose 10 feet in just 90 minutes and measured at a record-high level of more than 22 feet.

A flash flood emergency was also issued Wednesday for D'Hanis, Texas, about 60 miles southwest of Boerne. The Seco Creek was rapidly rising, prompting local officials to advise those in flood-prone areas to move to higher ground without delay.

Intense rainfall began in parts of Texas Hill Country on Tuesday, where some areas received between 6 inches and 16 inches of rainfall in 24 hours.

The NWS had previously issued a high risk for flash flooding -- a level 4 out of 4 -- for the same region on Wednesday due to a forecast of an additional 6 to 12 inches of rain.

A "high risk" is a rare occurrence. It's only issued about 4% of days, but accounts for around one-third of all flood-related fatalities and 80% of all flood-related damages, according to the National Weather Service.

When will the heavy rain, flooding risk end

The flood watch across Texas Hill Country remains in effect through Thursday.

The same area faces a level 4 of 4 risk for flash flooding on Thursday, with the heaviest rain expected between 2 a.m. and 2 p.m. Another round of heavy rain could occur Thursday night.

Isolated additional rain totals of more than a foot are possible through Thursday, forecasts show.

There is the potential for life-threatening flash flooding through Thursday night, with an additional 4 to 8 inches of rain possible on top of what has already fallen.

By Friday, the heaviest rain will start moving north of Texas Hill Country. The region will finally see drier conditions from Friday, lasting into next week.

Why Texas Hill Country is prone to flash flooding

Texas Hill Country is often referred to as "Flash Flood Alley," one of the most flood-prone regions in the U.S., because the weather and landscape in the south-central Texas allow for rapid flood events, according to the Texas Water Resources Institute (TWRI).

The "alley," which stretches from Dallas to San Antonio and encompasses the Colorado and Guadalupe River basins, is highly susceptible to dangerous flood events due to its steep terrain, shallow soil and repeated high rainfall events.

Much of the region is situated on a floodplain between tall hills, funneling any rainfall into rivers and creeks, causing them to rapidly rise. In addition, the clay soil does not easily absorb water and triggers high water runoff once wet, the TWRI said.

Major floods have occurred over nearly all sections of the Guadalupe River Basin, according to U.S. Geological river streamflow records dating back to the 1800s.

High rainfall intensities are a common occurrence because the Gulf provides an infinite source of moist air, as does the Pacific, which produces monsoonal moisture as well as cool air masses from the north that converge to produce extreme rainfall events.

Last year, more than 100 people died, including 25 girls at Camp Mystic, as a result of catastrophic flooding along the Guadalupe River during the Fourth of July weekend.

The torrential rain that turned the river into a raging wall of water was fueled by unique atmospheric conditions, meteorologists and climate scientists told ABC News last year.

Heavy rain combined with slow-moving thunderstorms caused the Guadalupe River to rise 26 feet in less than an hour, officials said.

ABC News' Melissa Griffin and Faith Abubey contributed to this report.

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(WASHINGTON) -- A new bill in Washington, D.C., would allow foster youth to help define their own families — and it's crafted by the very young people it seeks to serve.

Former and current foster youth helped create the Support, Opportunity, Unity and Legal Relationships Act, known as the SOUL Act. It's a Washington, D.C., bill that would allow teens -- ages 16 and up -- to legally enlist multiple guardians, blood relatives or other trusted adults for support without having to completely cut legal ties to their birth parents.

Five of the youth involved in the legislation process sat down with ABC News' Alex Presha in an exclusive interview for ABC News Live Prime.

The SOUL Act, which received unanimous support in the D.C. City Council, was signed by Mayor Muriel Bowser and sent to Congress where it has bipartisan support. It's expected to take effect in September.

Kay Kay, 26, was born and raised in Washington, D.C., and placed in the foster care system when she was eight years old. She and the other foster youth advocates did not want to give their last names to ABC News for privacy reasons.

Kay Kay said her mother -- who was raising her and her four sisters alone -- just didn't have the resources to care for them. "My mom did what she could," Kay Kay told ABC News. "We all knew we was in poverty."

She said she shuffled between foster homes and relatives until she turned 16 years old. Kay Kay learned to advocate for herself, figuring out her rights and speaking up as a teenager. She said she demanded that social workers include her in decisions about her own life.

"I was just speaking up for myself, like in an advocacy role," Kay Kay said. "I thought I just always was an advocate for myself, for people, for thing. ... I just always had that spirit in me." That experience is what motivated her to team up with other current and former foster youth to help make a difference for the next generation.

"This would be the first permanency plan embracing that social norms and a family dynamic look different for each and every person," Cierra, 28, a foster youth advocate and former foster child who worked on the bill, said to Washington, D.C., councilmembers during a council hearing she attended to advocate for the bill. Kay Kay, along with over 20 other youths who lived through D.C.'s foster care system, were enlisted by the Children's Law Center and Family & Youth Initiative to craft the legislation.

If successful, our nation's capital would be the second jurisdiction with a law like this on the books. Kansas passed similar legislation in 2024.

Through the SOUL Act, trusted adults who are chosen by youth and have been approved by the city, can aid them in making decisions about education, financial management, accessing health care and can even provide financial assistance and a home for them to live in.

"Your family can be your coach, your family can be your teacher, your family can be that auntie, uncle, cousin," Princess, 27, an advocate and former foster child who worked on the bill, said in an interview with Presha. "Your family can, should be, and will always be your choice, no matter what anybody tells you. And I hope that they carry that within their hearts."

Many D.C. teens choose to stay in the foster care system for resources, like education programs, housing placement and an assigned social worker after they age out, according to the Children's Law Center. And while some have family members who can support them in certain ways, not all can provide a stable place to live. Under the new law, teens would be able to build their "SOUL family" and maintain that stability.

Youths who age out of foster care without support are more likely to experience housing insecurity, incarceration, unemployment, or have children at an early age, according to the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

According to federal data, between 15,000 to 20,000 young people a year exit the foster care system -- nationally -- without adoption, a legal guardian or reunification with their biological family. In D.C., 18% of foster youth age out of the system without that support -- twice the rate of the national average.

The estimated annual cost of a "SOUL family" in Washington, D.C., is about half of the price for a current foster care placement -- $24,000 per year vs. $45,000 per year — according to the Children's Law Center.

"I'm hoping that the youth can have something that I never had...Every child deserves a great childhood," said 19-year-old- Zaniya.

Cierra continued, "I believe that there is a youth who's coming after me who deserves a community...doesn't matter about your behavior, doesn't matter what you look like, it doesn't matter where you came from. You deserve to have a family."

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(LOUISVILLE, Ky.) -- A teenager has been arrested in the 2025 fatal shooting of three people outside of a DMV in Kentucky. Another shooter remains at large, police said. 

The unnamed teen, who was 17 years old at the time of the murders, has been charged with three counts of murder complicity, five counts of first-degree wanton endangerment and receiving stolen property, according to the Louisville Metro Police Department. 

The teen is now 19 years old, according to police. 

The teen was identified as one of the three shooters after police used a DNA profiles obtained from a stolen vehicle to tie him to the killings, according to the LMPD. 

Investigators believe a second shooter was killed in a separate incident and said they are working to identify the third shooter.

The February 2025 shooting happened outside the Driver's License Regional office in Valley Station, Kentucky, according to LMPD. 

The three shooters allegedly approached a line of people standing in line to go into the DMV and opened fire toward the line, fatally shooting three people, Louisville Metro Police Department Lt. Les Skaggs said at a press conference Thursday. 

Leslye Harbin Jr., 18, died at the scene while his mother, 33-year-old Antwanette Chillers, and another victim, 29-year-old Raysa Valdes, were taken to a hospital where they died, Skaggs said.

The three shooters fled the scene of the shooting in a vehicle, Skaggs said.

LMPD marked vehicles were parked near the scene while officers were at a business next door, according to Skaggs. By the time the officers reached the scene the suspects had fled, Skaggs said. 

Shortly after the shooting, police identified a suspect vehicle, enabling them to track the vehicle’s movements. Investigators were able to recover the vehicle the same day, police said. 

The vehicle was stolen from a dealership, but the dealership had not noticed the vehicle was missing until after the shooting had occurred, according to Skaggs. It had been stolen several days before the shooting, he said. 

Investigators obtained evidence from the vehicle, which was sent to DNA Labs International. DNA Labs International was able to get several DNA profiles from inside the vehicle, Skaggs said. 

In the last 17 months, detectives have written and served around 50 search warrants to obtain evidence that helped them identify the individual arrested Wednesday, Skaggs said. 

The DNA profiles have also helped investigators identify other people who may be involved in the murder, Skaggs said. 

One possible suspect identified by the DNA profile has since been murdered in a separate incident, police said.

Police are still working to identify the third suspect in this incident. 

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(WASHINGTON) -- President Donald Trump's longtime teleprompter operator is believed to have made tens of thousands of dollars by placing bets on more than a dozen of Trump's speeches on the prediction market Kalshi, federal investigators with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission found, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.

Gabriel Perez, a technical assistant to the president who has been operating Trump's teleprompter since 2016, is in talks with federal regulators to settle allegations he used his inside knowledge of the president's speeches to win more than $100,000, the sources said.

According to the sources, Kalshi alerted its regulator, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), to the suspicious activity on its "Mentions" market, where users can bet on whether specific words, phrases or topics are uttered during a public speech.

"Our surveillance team promptly flagged and referred these trades to the CFTC, and we are cooperating and assisting regulators," Kalshi's lead lawyer, Bobby DeNault, said in a statement provided to ABC News.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Thursday afternoon, following ABC News' report, that Perez has been put on unpaid administrative leave. Leavitt said she spoke with President Trump about it, and he thought it was a "disgrace" and made the decision himself to put Perez on unpaid leave.

Leavitt said she was unaware of any other White House staffers who have made such trades.

"The White House has strict ethics guidelines that we expect all staffers and officials to follow," said White House spokesperson Davis Ingle when contacted by ABC News.

A spokesperson for the CFTC declined to comment.

In addition to February's State of the Union address, sources said CFTC investigators discovered that Perez placed bets on more than a dozen Trump speeches over a three-month period, including a December primetime address, a January speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and Trump's remarks in March during a Medal of Honor ceremony.

Later in March, the White House issued an internal memo warning staff against using nonpublic information to place bets on prediction markets, sources previously confirmed to ABC News.

Perez continues to serve as one of Trump's teleprompter operators -- a role he has served since Trump's first presidential campaign.

Of all Trump's closest aides, sources say Perez typically has the final eyes on nearly all of the president's prepared remarks -- and is often known to take last-minute edits from Trump himself. He previously came under scrutiny by congressional and federal investigators over the edits that were made prior to the delivery of Trump's remarks surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Trump is known to frequently deviate from his prepared remarks, as he himself often acknowledges.

"You know, when you go up here, you take a big chance, especially me because I go off teleprompter about 80% of the time," Trump said during remarks in January to the Detroit Economic Club, another speech federal investigators believe was among those Perez betted on.

In certain instances, investigators uncovered times when Perez would back out of certain bets mid-speech when Trump skipped over a portion of the speech that included a word he had previously bet would be mentioned, the sources said.

According to sources familiar with the investigation, Perez sat for an interview with regulators in recent months and acknowledged some of the trades. At some point during the investigation, the sources said the CFTC alerted federal prosecutors in Manhattan, who declined to open a criminal investigation.

Regulators at the CFTC have expressed a willingness to settle with Perez, and have discussed terms with him that would require Perez to give back his profits and refrain from making similar trades, according to sources familiar with the ongoing discussions.

Kalshi has a policy against users placing bets based on information obtained as part of their jobs.

Last month, the company updated its policies to require users to disclose their place of employment.

"If you have information by virtue of your job or your employment, something that you have a legal duty surrounding, and you have an obligation not to take that, misappropriate it for yourself," DeNault told ABC News in May.  

The Department of Justice in recent months brought the two first cases of insider trading on prediction markets, involving a special forces soldier who allegedly bet on the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, and, separately, a Google employee who allegedly bet on user searches using internal company data. Both pleaded not guilty.

President Trump has occasionally criticized prediction markets, but said in April that he supports them because the United States could be "left out in the cold" if the country does not allow companies like Kalshi and Polymarket to operate.

"Well the whole world, unfortunately, has become somewhat of a casino, and you look at what's going on all over the world in Europe and every place they're doing these betting things. I was never much in favor of it. I don't like it conceptually, but it is what it is," Trump told reporters.

Last October, Trump's social media company, Trump Media and Technology Group, announced it was looking into launching its own prediction market offering.

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(MINNEAPOLIS) -- Minneapolis' air quality ranked the worst in the world among major cities Thursday due to thick smoke from wildfires burning throughout northern Minnesota and Ontario, Canada.

Much of the city's air quality entered the "hazardous" category Wednesday night and remained there into Thursday. 

Parts of the city reached an air quality index, or AQI, of 460. A hazardous AQI is categorized as 300 and above. 

The air quality in Detroit also ranked worst in the world alongside Minneapolis. 

All people are advised to remain indoors while the air quality is hazardous. 

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey urged residents to "please take this seriously" in a post on X Thursday morning.

"If you can, stay indoors, avoid activity outside, and keep indoor air as clean as possible," Frey said in the post. "The risks are greater for kids, older adults, and anyone with heart or lung conditions."

As of midday Wednesday, there are 15 active wildfires burning across Superior National Forest, including four in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, according to the U.S. Forest Service. The Forest Service noted several fires have merged since earlier reports.

In a press briefing Wednesday, officials warned the fires could keep burning until the fall. 

While light rain is in the forecast in northern Minnesota on Thursday, Phil Manuel, incident meteorologist at the National Weather Service, said in the briefing it would not be enough to put out the fires.

"How are we going to end this? Weather's going to have to change," Manuel said. "It takes rain with a name to put out big fires."

The fires in northern Minnesota come amid a slew of wildfires raging throughout Canada, which are sending dangerous smoke down to the Northeast and upper Midwest of the United States. 

More than 183 wildfires were burning in Ontario on Wednesday, its Ministry of Natural Resources reported.

The Minnesota fires spread so rampantly because of hot, dry and windy conditions, as well as increased lightning strikes, officials said during the briefing.

Temperatures in the area recently rose into the 100s, while they typically only get to the upper 70s at this time of year, Manuel said.

First responders conducted door-to-door evacuations to bring residents and visitors to safety, and were continuing evacuations as of Wednesday, according to officials.

Firefighters continue working to extinguish the fires in coordination with Canadian first responders.

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(WASHINGTON) -- Rep. Joaquin Castro, along with more than 110 Democratic members of Congress, has sent a letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin urging the shutdown of the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas.

The facility, which is the only family detention center in the country, was closed during the Biden administration but was reopened last year as part of the Trump administration's ongoing immigration crackdown. 

In the letter, which was first obtained by ABC News, they write, "There is no humane way to imprison a child and their family. It is nothing more than a trailer prison that detains families. In fact, the Dilley facility is the only place in the United States dedicated to detaining families with children who have not been charged with a crime."

"Former and current detained families describe horrific conditions perpetuated by CoreCivic and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that are meant to strip them of their dignity and make them feel hopeless," the letter says, referring to the private prison contractor that operates the Dilley facility.

The letter outlines how parents have described "horrendous conditions at Dilley," including allegations of food "contaminated with worms and mold," drinking water that leaves detainees feeling sick, lights that stay on through the night and inadequate education and medical care that has led to "severe depression, hopelessness and suicidal ideation amongst their children," according to the letter.

Medical care "is delayed, denied, and in many cases outright dismissed, even when children are suffering life threatening medical emergencies," the letter says, describing an alleged incident in which a young boy was not taken to the hospital until after several days of "severe stomach pain," after which he was diagnosed with appendicitis and required surgery. 

Immigrant advocates, medical professionals and lawmakers have previously raised concerns about conditions at the South Texas facility. 

ABC News in February interviewed a couple who said their 1-year-old daughter contracted COVID-19 and RSV during their 60-day detention. The family alleged that medical staff at Dilley dismissed their daughter's symptoms.

Rep. Castro raised his own concerns about a 2-month old he encountered while visiting another family at the facility in February.

At the time, the top medical official at the Department of Homeland Security, which operates the nation's migrant detention centers, disputed any suggestion that detainees are being denied proper care.

"These allegations of illegal aliens being denied proper medical care in ICE custody are FALSE," DHS Chief Medical Officer Dr. Sean Conley told ABC News in a statement. "It is both policy and longstanding practice for aliens to receive timely and appropriate medical care from the moment they enter ICE custody. This includes medical, dental, women's health, mental health services, any needed follow up medical appointments, as well as 24-hour emergency care."

"This is better, more responsive health care than many aliens have ever received in their entire lives," Conley's statement said.

"These representatives remain quiet about the humanitarian crisis that was manufactured by the Biden Administration's open border policies over the last four years and the scores of children exploited, trafficked and missing," a DHS spokesperson said. "Do they plan to mention the psychiatric impact on the tens of thousands of children who were smuggled across the border -- many by human and sex traffickers?"

"We've jumpstarted our efforts to rescue children who were victims of sex and labor trafficking by working with our state and local law enforcement partners to locate these children. President Trump and DHS are laser-focused on protecting children and will continue to work with federal, state, and local law enforcement to reunite children with their families," the spokesperson said.

"These allegations are not consistent with documented conditions at Dilley," CoreCivic spokesperson Steven Owen said in a statement. "Independent state and local testing confirms the water -- the same municipal water the surrounding community drinks -- is safe. Families receive three meals daily from menus reviewed and approved by a registered dietitian, and care from pediatricians, child psychiatrists and other clinicians who serve them every day with skill and compassion."

"Decisions about who is detained and for how long rest with the federal government, not CoreCivic," Owen said.

The Democrats' letter claims that children are held at the Dilley facility beyond the general 20-day limit established under the Flores Settlement Agreement, a legal settlement from the 1990s that outlines appropriate protections and conditions for detaining minors.

"Families at Dilley report being held well beyond that limit with no clear timeline or explanation," the letter says. "In February and March 2026, the government has stated that children's average time in custody at Dilley was approximately 57 days, and the median time in custody was approximately 44 days, with 92 children being detained for 61-90 days, and 80 children detained for more than 91 days."

A DHS spokesperson, responding to a February ABC News report about the extended custody times, said, "For years, the Flores consent decree has been a tool of the left to promote an open borders agenda. It is long overdue for a single district in California to stop managing the Executive Branch's immigration functions. The Trump administration is committed to restoring common sense to our immigration system."

"No child should be in a place like the Dilley Trailer Prison," Castro said in a statement. "Under Trump, ICE is ripping children away from their families, school, and lives. They should be treated like kids -- not criminals. I am grateful that over 100 of my colleagues in Congress are joining the fight to shut down the Dilley Trailer Prison."

In addition to shuttering Dilley, the letter demands that DHS terminates the contract it has with CoreCivic, alleging that "CoreCivic is prioritizing profits over humane treatment of its detainees."

"No child and family should be imprisoned for seeking safety by legitimately following United States immigration laws," the letter says. "The United States has the tools, the resources, and the legal framework to process these families without detention."

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(HOUSTON) -- A man is facing charges after allegedly critically wounding another person in a shooting at a Kroger grocery store near Houston, authorities said.

Deputies responded to an active shooter report at the Cypress grocery store Wednesday afternoon and quickly apprehended the suspect, 20-year-old Kaden Ausbrooks, as he was leaving the store, according to the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable's Office.

The shooting victim was taken to a hospital and is listed in "stable but critical condition" on Thursday, authorities said.

Ausbrooks is also being treated at a hospital, authorities said. He is being guarded by deputies, authorities said, and when he's released, he'll be booked for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon causing serious bodily injury.

One witness called the shooting "terrifying," telling ABC Houston station KTRK, "I heard some yelling. ... Then round fired, then some more rounds fired, at least two or three, everyone bolted out."

Kroger said in a statement it was "deeply saddened."

"We are cooperating with local law enforcement, who have secured the store and parking lot," Kroger said. "The store will remain closed while the police investigation continues, and we have initiated counseling services for our associates."

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(KATY, Texas) -- The driver in a deadly Tesla crash in Texas pressed the accelerator to 100% before colliding into a house, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.

On June 19, the driver, Michael Butler, was behind the wheel of a 2025 Tesla Model 3 electric car when it went off the road and crashed into a home in Katy, killing 76-year-old resident Marta Avila, officials said.

Butler, who said the car was in self-driving mode, was arrested for manslaughter on July 1. He's not entered a plea and is set to be arraigned next month.

The NTSB said on Wednesday that, at the time of the collision, "the driver had engaged Tesla's Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS), Full Self Driving (FSD) (Supervised)."

But data shows that before the crash, Butler "manually overrode FSD (Supervised) by pressing the accelerator pedal to 100%," the NTSB noted.

The Tesla was driving over 70 mph when it struck the house, the NTSB said, noting that the speed limit on Avila's residential road is 30 mph.

"All aspects of the crash remain under investigation while the NTSB determines the probable cause, with the intent of issuing safety recommendations to prevent similar crashes," the NTSB said in a statement.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is also investigating, the NTSB said.

Butler's attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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(SAN FRANCISCO) -- The Coast Guard said it has suspended search operations for the three people unaccounted for after a boat capsized and sank in San Francisco Bay near Alcatraz Island.

Jarod Toczko, the commander for U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Francisco, told reporters earlier that the decision to suspend the search was not easy, but his teams swept through 950 square nautical miles and hadn't found the missing people or the boat.

"We have completely saturated the search area," he said.

"We always hold out hope," he later added.

Overall, crews spent a total of 54 combined hours searching for the missing people, the Coast Guard said in a statement late Wednesday announcing the search had been suspended.

Authorities said they believe 20 people were aboard the Volare, a 50-foot cabin cruiser based out of Stockton, California, when it was hit by a wave Tuesday evening, causing it to capsize.

One man who was aboard was taken to the shore severely injured and, despite CPR being administered, was pronounced dead, officials said. He was identified on Wednesday by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner as 79-year-old Clifford Joseph Boisa.

A dog was also killed in the incident, San Francisco Fire Chief Dean Crispen told reporters Wednesday.

Three people were taken to the hospital and later released, according to Crispen.

Crispen told reporters that authorities believe that there was a memorial service that the 20 passengers, all adults and mostly comprised of family members, were taking part in on the vessel when it capsized.

Toczko told reporters that there was a "high possibility that individuals could have been trapped in the vessel."

One survivor said it was a memorial for her sister, ABC San Francisco station KGO reported.

Rescuer Justin Marceline told KGO that some passengers were "banging on the windows, trying to get out" of the boat.

"It was pretty wild, seeing that, honestly," Marceline said, adding that conditions in the water were "really bad."

"The people that were bobbing in the water, we pulled them out first," Marceline said. "The people in the water were elderly folks, they were conscious, but people were too tired and worn out."

Toczko praised the work of the Good Samaritans who jumped to save the passengers.

"No question, no doubt...those people saved lives," he said.

The San Francisco Fire Department said it initially received a call for a fire on the boat at 3:30 p.m. local time. However, authorities said they haven't yet seen evidence that there was a fire on board.

Earlier, authorities said they believed there were 19 people aboard and that they were looking for two missing passengers.

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(ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Minn.) -- A northern Minnesota county declared a state of emergency and an air quality alert was issued on Tuesday due to wildfires raging across northern Minnesota and Canada.

St. Louis County in northeast Minnesota issued a State of Local Emergency and a State of Local Disaster due to wildfire damage and the utilization of public resources needed.

The U.S. Forest Service reported at least 17 wildfires burning across Superior National Forest, including three in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, on Tuesday.

"I've seen a lot of fire in my 25 years on this forest," Nick Petrack, fire staff officer for the Superior and Chippewa National Forests, said at a Wednesday press conference. "This is probably the most and the largest number of fires that I have seen in July."

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency issued an air quality alert across much of the state due to wildfire smoke from 9 a.m. on Tuesday through 11 a.m. Friday.

Air quality reached the hazardous category in parts of the state Wednesday afternoon. The agency advised anyone in the hazardous region to avoid all outdoor activity and remain indoors.

Firefighters and first responders are continuing to evacuate visitors and nearby residents as the fires burned across the region.

Petrack said it is "no easy feat" evacuating visitors from the region, as first responders access parts of the boundary waters via canoe.

Phil Manuel, incident meteorologist at the National Weather Service, said in the press conference that hot, dry and windy conditions, along with a high number of lightning strikes, have allowed the fire to spread.

"Normal high temperatures here are in the upper 70s," Manuel said. "Where have we been the last three days? Over 100 degrees in some cases. I saw some temperatures of 104."

Though rain is in the forecast in the coming days, Manuel said the scale of the fires and the low probability that rain would stop the fires entirely.

"Odds are, these fires will be here until it snows," Manuel said.

While fires are natural in these forests, as they are fire-dependent ecosystems, blazes at this scale are not normal, officials said.

The fires have burned through at least 33,000 acres as of Tuesday afternoon, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

Officials said they are awaiting the arrival of federal first responders who plan to assist in firefighting efforts.

In a social media post Wednesday, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said two groups of YMCA campers stranded by the wildfires near the Minnesota-Canada border were rescued.

The smoke has also spread into Michigan. Michigan's Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy issued an air quality alert for Wednesday and Thursday across the state.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer urged Michiganders to limit time spent outdoors, especially seniors, children and anyone with respiratory conditions.

Tom Hall, agency administrator for Superior National Forest, said in the press conference that first responders conducted 17 air rescues on Monday and none have been conducted since.

St. Louis County said it set up temporary evacuation points at a municipal center to serve people from St. Louis and Lake Counties impacted by the fires. It said public health staff is at the evacuation points to connect people with necessary resources.

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