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Aug. 23 (UPI) — At least 30 people were killed during an overnight landslide at a garbage dump in Conarkry, the capital of Guinea, the government of the West African nation said Sunday.

Six others were seriously injured and 16 more sustained minor injuries in what officials described as a landslide at the Dar-es-Salam landfill in the commune of Gbessia.

The incident happened around 2 a.m. local time on Sunday as heavy overnight rains in the bustling port city and national capital caused several homes to collapse.

Emergency personnel and equipment were mobilized immediately to search for any survivors who might still be buried, rescue victims and recover bodies, the government said.

The Red Cross, armed forces members, medical teams, local authorities and nearby residents were on the scene as Guinean Prime Minister Amadou Oury Bah visited the site to “assess the situation and oversee the mobilization of public services.”

He said all necessary measures are being taken to aid the injured, many of whom were taken to Donka University Hospital in Conakry.

“The government extends its deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims, wishes a speedy recovery to the injured, and expresses its profound gratitude to all those involved in the rescue operations,” the official statement read.

Officials urged the public to “remain calm, show solidarity, and strictly adhere to the instructions of emergency services and competent authorities.”

Aug. 22 (UPI) — A 17-year-old girl is dead after a sword attack at a Swedish high school on Friday.

Three students were injured, two of them seriously, in the attack in Fagersta, Sweden.

The alleged attacker is an 18-year-old, male student of the school who carried out the attack while classes were in session Friday. He was arrested and the police are investigating the case as murder and attempted murder. They said they have no reason to believe there were more attackers involved.

The Brinelskolan School principal told local news Saturday that the attacker was a student there.

Vastmanland County said the two injured boys are ages 12 and 17, ABC News reported. The third person is also younger than 18 and was slightly injured. That person has been discharged from the hospital, Swedish News agency TT reported.

The teen girl’s body was found when police entered the school to secure the premises, authorities said.

Police said they fired shots at the attacker, but didn’t hit him. Sweden’s national police said they have carried out two searches of homes connected to the suspect and that they expect to interview many witnesses.

“That’s why we can’t give out too much information, because we don’t want to influence witnesses,” Police Chief Tommy Alriksson said.

No official information on the attacker’s motive has been released.

On Saturday morning, people gathered at a memorial site that the town created, carrying flowers and lighting candles, CBS News reported.

Fagersta city government said it created a crisis center in a sports hall near the school. Fagersta is a town of about 12,000 about 105 miles northwest of Stockholm.

Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and opposition party leader Magdalena Andersson visited the memorial site to lay flowers.

“What must never happen has happened again,” Kristersson said.

Sweden’s parliamentary elections are scheduled for September, so the Swedish political parties suspended their campaigning Saturday.

School attacks have happened in Sweden several times in recent history.

In February 2025, 11 people, including the gunman, were killed in an attack on an adult education center in Orebro. It was Sweden’s worst-ever mass shooting. After the attack, the government tightened gun laws because the suspect had legally owned four rifles. He had brought three of them to the attack.

Two teachers were killed with a knife at a high school in Malmo in 2022, and an 18-year-old later confessed to the killings.

In 2015, three people were killed in a sword attack in Trollhattan, Sweden.

Two-time world champion Zolani Tete has been shot dead outside his home in South Africa.

The 38‑year‑old was killed in what has been described as an ambush in Mdantsane, Eastern Cape on Friday.

Officials said Tete was in his car waiting for the gate to his house to open when two armed suspects in balaclavas emerged from a vehicle and fired “multiple shots” at him and a 27‑year‑old female passenger, who remains in hospital.

South Africa’s minister of sport, arts and culture, Gayton McKenzie, said: “South Africa has lost one of the finest fighters it has ever produced.”

The two suspects fled the scene and a major investigation has been launched, McKenzie added.

Tete held the WBO bantamweight title from 2017 to 2019, as well as the IBF super-flyweight title in 2014.

Tete beat Liverpool’s Paul Butler in 2015 in one of the eight times he fought in the United Kingdom.

He also holds a Guinness World Record for the fastest knockout in a title fight, ending his match with Siboniso Gonya inside 11 seconds in 2017.

Tete last fought in July 2022, beating Briton Jason Cunningham by knockout In London, but it was later ruled a no-contest after he failed a drugs test.

He tested positive for anabolic steroid stanozolol and was given a four-year ban by the UK Anti-Doping Agency.

His ban ended on 29 July, 2026 and after his death, manager Mla Tengimfene confirmed he had been training for a comeback fight.

Tete had 29 wins in 34 fights, with four losses and one no-contest.

Four workers in Japan have died after being struck by a train at Shin-Kanuma Station, north of Tokyo, authorities say.

The collision happened around 10:46 local time (01:46 GMT) while the workers were spraying herbicide, said the Tobu Railway, the operator of the line.

When emergency services arrived at the scene three workers were trapped under the train, while one was on the platform, police said.

Train service has been suspended on the Tobu Nikko Line due to the accident, according to Tobu Railway.

A passenger on the train told Japanese public broadcaster NHK that they heard a “strange noise” before the train made an emergency stop.

He said passengers were stuck on the train for a while as staff announced that they were investigating the noise.

Fatal train accidents are rare in Japan, which relies on a sprawling railway network.

The train involved in Thursday’s incident was a limited express train, according to NHK. These are the second-fastest trains in Japan, after the Shinkansen or bullet train.

Usually, there would be an employee stationed nearby to warn workers on the tracks of approaching trains – but it was unclear what the situation was like on Thursday morning when the accident happened, the Asahi Shimbun newspaper reported.

“The usual lookout system was operating as normal – when a train approaches, a lookout waves a flag and, once the driver acknowledges it, sounds the horn,” a representative from Tobu Railway told the BBC.

“We are currently investigating why the accident occurred despite this.”

A summer trip to France ‘got worse and worse’ for one family as they were greeted by a ‘radioactive’ pool, a dead rodent, poison and broken furniture at their holiday home

What was meant to be a charming holiday home in France resembled more of a ‘horror house’, as a family trip went from bad to worse during a ‘hellish’ experience.

Richard Glendenning, who hails from London, travelled to France this summer for a holiday with his wife, her parents and their eight-month-old puppy. Wanting a quieter and more authentic experience, the couple booked a 10-night stay at an ’18th-century barn, with a private pool and sauna’ through Airbnb, nestled in a rural area of Bars in Bergerac.

Before they arrived, they were aware that the holiday rental was a little rustic around the edges, but at the time, it was all part of the appeal. It was only when they turned up at the property on Monday, 27 July 2026, that they realised it was far from what they had been expecting.

“It looked like a very lovely gîte (self-catering holiday home) online, I thought it’d be charming and nice,” Rich exclusively told the Mirror. “But it was in no way indicative of how hellish the experience was.

“It was actually two buildings next to each other that were part of the same space, and when we first arrived, it was filthy. It was the messiest place, and it looked like nobody had bothered to clean it for a year or so – it was awful.”

He continued: “It was like something from a film set, where you try and make a horror house with insects, cobwebs and spiders, everywhere. In the kitchen, the ceilings were fairly low, and I walked into one of those sticky tape things, covered in flies. There were flies everywhere, alive and dead.

“The bathrooms weren’t clean, and I had to use another bedroom in the other building, but when I went in there, I found a dead rodent, a rat.

“The towels were also tiny; you could barely wrap a toddler in one, and I had a white stain on mine. We were looking around, and in one bedroom, the owners had taken the bed from the mezzanine area, so there were just really horrible mattresses on the dirty floor, like in a squat.

“I walked through one of the bedrooms that was facing the pool, and instead of a bed, there were just stacks of wood pushed against the wall.” Rich added that they had arrived a “little bit early”, which had been previously agreed, and the cleaners did later fix the bed.

However, there were more surprises waiting. “The outdoor swimming pool was a comedy green, it was like a radioactive, glowing green colour, rather than a beautiful blue,” Rich revealed. “There was also a noisy filter machine, and there was an auto-motored machine going around, so that wasn’t done either. The owner had also removed loads of furniture from around the pool that were in the photos and advertised.”

Rich and his wife also spotted a “layer of scum around the edge of the pool”.

Rich and his wife had previously confirmed with the owner that their puppy could stay at the property, and the owner had agreed before their arrival. But the accommodation became worryingly unsafe for them and their beloved pooch.

“I saw this kind of gravel or type of salt across loads of the floors, and it was even across the dining table in the house. So I asked the owner, and she said, ‘Oh, that’s poison we put down’. She knew beforehand we were bringing a puppy, so that was unbelievably dangerous,” he said.

“We knew it was going to be rustic, but we thought we’d spend more of our time outside than in the house. But there’s rustic, and then there’s filthy, broken and items missing,” Rich’s wife added.

They also discovered that what looked like a microwave was actually the kitchen’s main oven, but the couple said, “You couldn’t even fit half a pizza in.” Rich’s wife said that the oven in the other building, which they were offered to use, was “so disgusting” and had “never seen something so dirty”, so they were left without an oven for a few days before it was cleaned again.

While they were caught off guard by the state of the property, the family decided to have some lunch outdoors near the pool on their first day. A platform area had been a “major selling point” for them because of the “beautiful views with a big table under some trees”.

In true French style, they laid out a “huge spread” on the outdoor table by the pool, with wine and cheese. “We put it all on the table, and it instantly collapsed. All the food and wine, everything went everywhere and broken plates”, Rich explained.

During their stay, Rich and his wife said they were in communication with the owner and Airbnb while documenting everything. “We were complaining and telling the owner what we found,” he said.

Airbnb confirmed that it has ground rules for hosts that make clear its expectations and the standards hosts must meet. If they fail to comply, Airbnb will investigate and take action, which may include removing the property from its platform.

“The owner was very responsive and trying to help, but she kept saying that it was her last rental and she’s selling the property,” Rich’s wife said. “She had given up on the property, really.”

To help with their issues, the owner said they could use the second building “freely”. However, this only revealed more, as it was “beyond dirty and dusty” and “uninhabitable”.

The couple explained that cleaners did return to clean the main property again during their stay following the complaints, but “didn’t do what they promised to do”. Although after two to three days, the pool was “back to a blue colour”.

The owner allegedly told the couple that before their arrival, she had around five 20-year-olds staying in the property and said that they had “left the place in a complete state, broken, and that’s why the pool was green.”

When speaking to the owner about the collapsed table, Rich said that the owner nonchalantly told them, ‘Oh, just take the table from the dining room in the house out there.’ He added that the owner had also told them she’d ordered new furniture, although it “never arrived”.

They were offered relocation by Airbnb, as all bookings come with AirCover, which means Airbnb will help guests find a similar place or issue a refund in the rare event that something isn’t as expected on arrival. However, because it was the peak summer period, they had two elderly parents, and one car that didn’t fit them all, they felt it wasn’t a realistic option for them.

Rich said: “The case was closed down without us being satisfied with any outcome”. Airbnb said it is providing feedback to the customer service teams that handled the case, as it did not meet their expectations.

In another turn of events, rain began leaking through the rental’s roof. His wife explained: “It was the final night in my bedroom, and thankfully, we weren’t in that room and didn’t have any lights on, but the rain flooded through the light socket.

“It went all over the bed. I had packed everything; my suitcase was open and directly under the flood. Every single item I owned was soaking wet.

“We were meant to drive back to the UK the next morning, but everything was wet, so I was desperately trying to dry everything before leaving, but didn’t manage to.”

After the ongoing ordeal of their accommodation, Rich said: “We need a holiday after the holiday. It just got worse and worse – it was hellish.”

A spokesperson for Airbnb said in a statement: “We are disappointed to hear about this experience and how it was handled. We have reached out to the guest to provide a monetary refund for the entire cost of their stay and are investigating the host.

“We have standards and ground rules for hosts, which require listings to be clean and free of health hazards, safety hazards and secure. While these reports are rare, we investigate and take the relevant action, which can include removal of listings from Airbnb.”

Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@reachplc.com

Police have launched an investigation after a 33-year-old man was found dead at Charlton Athletic’s football ground.

Officers and paramedics from the London Ambulance Service were called to The Valley stadium in south-east London on Tuesday morning following concerns for the welfare of a person.

The Metropolitan Police said the man was pronounced dead at the scene. His next of kin have been informed and are receiving support from officers.

Detectives are investigating the possibility that the man had fallen from height in the early hours of Monday morning. The death is currently being treated as unexpected as inquiries continue.

In a statement, Charlton Athletic confirmed the club was supporting police with their investigation following the discovery.

A spokesperson for the Championship club said: “Everyone at Charlton Athletic would like to express their deepest sympathies and heartfelt condolences to the individual’s family, friends and loved ones at this incredibly difficult time.

“The club are continuing to assist the authorities with their inquiries and respectfully ask that the privacy of those affected is respected.”

The club added that there was no suggestion of any wrongdoing on its part and thanked its staff for their professionalism in dealing with a “particularly difficult and distressing situation”.

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ZZ Top legend Frank Beard has died at 77, the band confirmed on Tuesday.

The drummer had been forced to pull out of the band’s tour earlier this month due to health issues.

“Today, Elwood and I lost a great friend and collaborator, and the world lost one of the most naturally innovative drummers and a great and true son of Texas,” said ZZ Top guitarist Billy Gibbons.

“His signature backbeat was key to keeping ZZ on top.”

A representative for the Texas-formed band confirmed to USA Today that Frank died on Monday while in hospice.

The drummer was “with family members at his side” at his ranch in Richmond.

Frank dropped out of The Big One! Tour in early August due to health issues and had previously dropped out from touring with the band in March as he was undergoing a “health procedure.”

The band announced that their upcoming shows in Colorado Springs and Salt Lake City would be canceled.

However, the band plans to resume its current tour The Big One! this weekend, with the two shows at Austin City Limits music festival held at The Moody Theater.

The band, which formed in 1969, said the venue was “one of Frank’s favorite venues and in a city that had been something of a second home for him.”

Beard was born on June 11, 1949, in Frankston, Texas, and began playing in bands while still in high school.

He later became part of the Dallas music scene, where he met Dusty Hill, and the pair performed together in several 1960s groups including the Warlocks and American Blues.

In one of the stranger chapters of their early careers, Beard and Hill also played in a fake version of British rock band The Zombies that toured the US after the original group had broken up, Rolling Stone reported.

Beard has been part of ZZ Top for more than five decades and played on all 15 of the band’s studio albums.

He joined Billy Gibbons in 1969 and helped create the group’s classic lineup by introducing the guitarist to his former American Blues bandmate Dusty Hill.

The trio went on to become one of rock’s most recognizable acts, with Beard providing the beat behind hits including “La Grange,” “Tush,” “Gimme All Your Lovin’,” “Sharp Dressed Man,” and “Legs.”

Beard, Gibbons and Hill remained together for more than 50 years until Hill’s death in July 2021 at the age of 72.

At the time, Gibbons and Beard announced that their longtime bandmate had died in his sleep at his Houston home.

“We are saddened by the news today that our Compadre, Dusty Hill, has passed away in his sleep at home in Houston, TX,” they said.

They added, “You will be missed greatly, amigo.”

Hill’s longtime guitar tech Elwood Francis then took over bass duties and continued touring alongside Gibbons and Beard.

The Texas rockers found major success in the 1970s before exploding into the MTV era with their 1983 album Eliminator, which included “Sharp Dressed Man,” “Legs,” and “Gimme All Your Lovin’.”

Beard was famously the only member of the classic ZZ Top lineup who did not sport the huge beard that became part of the band’s signature look.

ZZ Top was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004 after decades of success.

Beard had suffered previous health setbacks over the years, including pneumonia in 2019 and another unspecified health issue that forced him off the road in 2025.

His latest absence came after ZZ Top abruptly canceled its August 5 Hollywood Bowl show because of what the band called “unforeseen personnel matters.”

Michael Monahan was brought in to play drums while Beard stepped away, with Gibbons and Francis continuing the tour.

The cause of Beard’s death has not been publicly disclosed.

ZZ Top is mourning the loss of longtime drummer Frank Beard, who has died at age 77 after years of facing health-related issues.

The band announced Beard’s death on Tuesday via Instagram, with founding member and frontman Billy Gibbons writing in a statement that he and fellow member Elwood Francis “lost a great friend and collaborator, and the world lost one of the most naturally innovative drummers and a great and true son of Texas.”

The Fort Bend County Medical Examiner confirmed to The Times that Beard’s death was reported Monday. A cause of death was not revealed. He died at his ranch in Texas with family by his side after a stay in hospice, TMZ reported.

Beard died weeks after ZZ Top called off its Aug. 5 concert at the Hollywood Bowl, reportedly due to his health issues. In March 2025, the Texas trio also shared that Beard would temporarily step away from the band’s Elevation tour to address a separate health issue, later revealed to be foot and ankle problems. The veteran drummer had also missed shows because of an emergency appendectomy in 2002.

ZZ Top said in Tuesday’s announcement that its concerts in Salt Lake City and Colorado Springs have been canceled in the wake of Beard’s death. The band will continue its The Big One! tour this weekend, including two shows at Austin City Limits, which it said had become one of “Frank’s favorite venues in a city that had been something of a second home” for the drummer.

Beard joined ZZ Top in 1969, soon after the band formed, replacing founding drummer Dan Mitchell.

Times staff writer Andrea Flores contributed to this report.

Actor Hayden Panettiere, the child actor who rose to stardom in television and also spoke with raw frankness about her struggles with fame and mental health, died Sunday, according to her family. She was 36.

Panettiere’s father, Skip, announced the actor’s death in a statement shared with The Times on Sunday.

“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden. She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her — and to the millions who watched her onscreen,” his statement said.

No other details were released.

She starred on “Nashville” (2012-18) and, before that, “Heroes” (2006-10). Her early work included roles in the 1990s on the soaps “One Life to Live” and “Guiding Light.” She was a model and a singer, having released several singles.

Panettiere also starred in the “Scream” horror movie franchise as well as in hits “I Love You, Beth Cooper” and “Remember the Titans.”

She first gained major attention with “Heroes,” where she played a cheerleader with superpowers. On “Nashville,” she played a troubled country music star, doing her own singing and performing on tour.

Panettiere has been candid about her struggles while living so much of her life in the public eye.

Panettiere gave birth to her daughter, with boxing champ Wladimir Klitschko, in 2014 and battled postpartum depression. She gave up custody of the child in 2018, a decision she called “heartbreaking.”

In May, the actor published a memoir, “This Is Me: A Reckoning,” in which she opened up about her alcoholism and depression after the birth of her daughter.

In interviews about the book, she reflected on the scrutiny and cruelty she faced as a young actor.

“It blows my mind that people could be so cruel,” she told the New York Times. “Looking back as an adult and a mother of a daughter, it’s hard to believe that grown adults were OK with ripping you apart at such a tender age. At any age, really.

“I just can’t believe I made it through alive,” she added.

Panettiere started in movies at the age of 9 when she voiced Princess Dot in the 1998 Pixar movie “A Bug’s Life.” Two years later, she made a splash in the role of a young football-obsessed fan and daughter of assistant coach Bill Yoast (Will Patton) in the biographical drama “Remember the Titans.” The actor told “ET” in 2023, “If I had a wish to go back to any time in my life, it would be going back to ‘Remember the Titans.’ … There were so many stars made from this movie.”

Panettiere was passionate about animals and began advocating for whale conservation in her teens. She came out as bisexual earlier this year, telling Us Magazine that she was sad to have waited until age 36 to do so.

She spoke up about her experience with domestic abuse after a public altercation in Los Angeles in 2022 involving a then-boyfriend. Brian Hickerson was on probation at the time following multiple domestic violence charges that dated back to 2018.

In 2025, her brother, Jansen Panettiere, died suddenly of complications from a heart problem. He had struggled with substance abuse and she got him into treatment, she told Us Magazine.

At the height of her fame on “Heroes,” she was regularly followed by the paparazzi and was the focus of much tabloid attention. Looking back on that time recently, she told a podcaster: “It was just sheer terror.”

In the statement on Sunday, Panettiere’s father said the family asked for privacy “as our family takes time to process this unimaginable loss.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The fatal incident reportedly took place amid a rush of devotees at a temple in India’s Bihar state.

At ‌least six people have died, and ⁠several have been injured, in a “stampede-like” incident caused by a falling electricity pole at the Ashok Dham temple in Lakhisarai, in India’s eastern ⁠state of Bihar, according to officials.

“It is being said that an electric pole fell there and people were electrocuted, which led to a stampede-like situation,” Shivam Kumar, ⁠a senior police officer, ⁠told news agency ANI on Monday. “We can tell you the exact reason only after verifying everything.”

The incident occurred amid a rush of devotees at the temple to offer water to the Hindu god Shiva during the holy month of Shravan, according to the Press Trust of India news agency.

At least five people ⁠were injured in the incident, a senior official told ⁠Reuters news agency, as videos from ANI showed relatives gathering in hospitals as rescuers brought in people.

“The incident at Ashok Dham in Lakhisarai is extremely tragic and heartbreaking. I am deeply distressed by the news of the devotees’ deaths in the accident,” Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary wrote on X.

“My heartfelt condolences go out to the bereaved families. The administration has been given necessary instructions to ensure proper and prompt treatment for the injured,” he added.

India’s history of crowd accidents includes ‌30 deaths at the giant Maha Kumbh festival last year, when tens of millions gathered ‌to‌ bathe in sacred waters.