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Aug. 8 (UPI) — Thousands of people were ordered to evacuate their homes as a massive wildfire spread through western Canada on Saturday.

The Bald Range fire in British Columbia has doubled in size since it was first reported on Friday, the BBC reported.

Power went out in the district of Summerland, whose 12,000 residents were ordered to evacuate.

Another 8,000 people have been ordered to evacuate in nearby areas, The Independent reported.

The blaze remained uncontrolled as of Saturday.

British Columbia Premier David Eby declared a state of emergency on Saturday.

“Throughout the night and into this morning, first responders, BC Wildfire Service crews, RCMP officers, emergency management teams, and local communities worked tirelessly to keep people safe and fight the fire near Summerland,” he said in a statement on X. “They continue to do everything possible to protect people and communities.”

But, Eby added, “If you’re under an evacuation order, leave now.”

Authorities said there were some 100 wildfires burning across the province.

Aug. 1 (UPI) — At least seven states have suffered cyberattacks on water systems as cities and states work to keep the water supplies safe.

There has been no indication that any water supply is unsafe to drink, the New York Times reported. Minnesota first reported a cyberattack and now Michigan has also reported attacks.

The Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency said in a release that it’s “observing a significant increase in cyber threat actors targeting programmable logic controllers in the Water and Wastewater Systems sector. CISA urges critical infrastructure owners, operators, and integrators to remove publicly exposed PLCs and other operational technology from the Internet as soon as possible. Threat actors targeting exposed PLCs have modified passwords to lock out operators and disconnected the PLCs by changing their IP addresses. This activity has resulted in boil-water notices and sustained manual operations.”

Officials told The Times that Iran has increased cyberattacks on American systems, but that the water attacks haven’t been definitively declared to have come from Iran. But Iran has targeted water systems in the United States in the past. Because there’s no financial motive, an attack by hacking criminals is less likely, The Times said.

Michigan had “a small number of reports from Michigan communities indicating activity consistent with what federal agencies described,” Dale George, director of communications for Michigan’s Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy, told CBS News.

“All systems continued to operate safely, issues were addressed by local operators, and there are no known impacts that posed a public health concern,” George added.

CBS reported that more than 30 community water systems in Minnesota were affected.

On Friday, President Donald Trump blamed Minnesota and Gov. Tim Walz for the attacks.

“I think that Minnesota is behind it,” Trump said during a televised Cabinet meeting at Camp David. “You know who’s behind it? Minnesota. Because they’re grossly incompetent. I think the governor’s behind it. I don’t think there was an Iranian cyberattack. I think that Minnesota ought to get its act together.”

“They like to say, ‘Oh, it was Iran.’ Iran should be so lucky. Iran’s got bigger problems than worrying about Minnesota,” the president said.

Walz responded to the jabs from Trump in a post on X.

“DOGE took an ax to CISA and left the U.S. exposed to cyber attacks. Thankfully, our experts in Minnesota were able to identify the vulnerability quickly and work with local communities to stop it,” Walz said.

Braham, Minn., Mayor Nate George said federal and local officials don’t doubt the source.

“We’re getting bits and pieces of information from the state of Minnesota and the FBI,” George told The Times. “They are pretty sure it’s Iranian actors” but are reluctant to say so publicly.

There’s still no vaccine for the Bundibugyo strain of the virus as the country struggles for control in infected areas.

The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has killed more than 1,500 people, as the spread of the virus continues to outpace response efforts, new statistics have revealed.

DRC has now recorded 3,442 cases of the virus and 1,521 deaths, a government update said on Thursday. The data marks a 50 percent increase in the death toll over the past week, with authorities continuing to struggle to rein in the outbreak in the east of the country, where decades of conflict with rebel groups have left government control and infrastructure lax or absent.

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said that the sharp rise since last week partly reflects a backlog of cases and deaths that had not yet been confirmed or recorded.

The lack of a proven vaccine for Bundibugyo, which is the rarest of the four variants of Ebola known to affect humans, and the fact the epidemic is unfolding in an area of active hostilities between armed groups, producing a shortage of public health resources, has helped to allow the virus to spread “like wildfire”, a public health consultant who helped establish Africa CDC told Al Jazeera earlier this month.

Africa CDC added that delays in contact tracing, difficulties accessing affected areas, and mistrust from communities have hindered an effective response.

The outbreak is mostly concentrated in eastern Congo’s remote Ituri province, which accounts for nearly 90 percent of cases, but five other provinces have confirmed cases, including one of the country’s largest cities, Kisangani.

Neighbouring Uganda declared itself free of Ebola on Tuesday following the discharge of the country’s last patient in mid-June.

Africa CDC Director-General Dr Jean Kaseya said 63 percent of confirmed deaths in the last two weeks occurred outside treatment centres.

This is largely due to the “unsafe handling of infected bodies” by residents, including touching the remains of the deceased, whose bodies remain highly infectious.

Earlier this month, some healthcare workers in Ituri went on strike over unpaid wages and unsafe working conditions, which has also impeded efforts to hold back the disease’s rapid spread.

In Ituri’s Nyakunde health zone, international partners supporting the Ebola response had to temporarily relocate after a July 15 attack on a hospital and a treatment centre, prompted by a patient’s death. Officials said this disrupted surveillance, contact tracing and supplies.

Despite the accelerated death toll in DRC, the World Health Organization has said the risk of a global spread remains low because Ebola does not travel through the air, making it much harder to spread than respiratory viruses.

Cases detected outside the DRC have so far been quickly identified and contained without leading to sustained transmission, the agency said.

June 26 (UPI) — The National Weather Service on Friday evening issued its first Dangerous Situation Red Flag Warning in the history of Salt Lake City, Utah, based on concerns about rapid growth of wildfires in the state.

NWS issued warnings for an area in southwest Utah that it considers to be in significant danger based on ongoing wildfires and weather conditions, the agency said in a series of posts on X.

NWS has predicted low humidity levels — less than 10% — and wind gusts of at least 50 miles per hour, which could help to grow the Cottonwood Fire, which has already burned nearly 72,000 acres, KSL-TV reported.

The fire started Monday near Beaver, Utah, before spreading to cover more than 70,000 acres as gusty winds and dry conditions helped the flames to spread, NBC News reported.

“This is the first formal PDS Red Flag Warning we’ve issued since it was formalized by NWS,” the agency said in a post on X.

“This is the first time we’ve reached the Weather Risk Outlook level of ‘Extreme,'” NWS said of the language it has not used in a notification since 2021. “In short, this combinaton of high winds, low humidity, very dry fuels and a large fire is a rare and dangerous situation!”

Utah this year experienced its lowest-ever snowpack and a heatwave that started in March prompted Utah Gov. Spencer Cox to sign an executive order limiting fireworks celebrations throughout the state through July 5.

Utah meteorologist Jason Stroud told The Washington Post that the warning, which has been in place for the last few days, that the danger from fires in the area could be devastating and potentially life-threatening.

“This shows that the combination of weather effects that are coming in the next 48 hours are extremely concerning,” Stroud said, reiterating that the fact that Salt Lake City’s NWS office has never issued the type of warning that is currently in effect.

There have been tens of thousands of cases but infection is preventable

Health experts have warned of two diseases spreading in Spain and other parts of Europe and urged UK holidaymakers to take precautions this summer. According to new data from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), gonorrhoea cases across Europe reached 106,331 in 2024 – a 303% increase since 2015.

At the same time, syphilis cases more than doubled to 45,577. Spain recorded some of the highest numbers of infections reported in Europe, with 37,169 gonorrhoea cases and 11,556 syphilis cases in 2024.

Gemma Nice, sex and relationships coach at condoms.uk, said: “People often behave differently on holiday because routines disappear and inhibitions lower. Alcohol, spontaneity, and the ‘holiday mindset’ can all lead to riskier sexual behaviour than people might normally engage in at home.

“We’re not saying people shouldn’t enjoy holiday romances, but many people wrongly assume that pregnancy prevention and STI protection are the same thing. Condoms remain the only form of contraception that helps protect against both pregnancy and STIs.”

Experts also warn that many travellers underestimate how common symptomless STIs can be, meaning infections can unknowingly spread between partners. Gemma said: “One of the biggest misconceptions is that you would immediately know if someone had an STI – or if you had one yourself. In reality, many infections can remain symptomless for weeks or even months while still being transmissible.

“We’re also seeing growing complacency around condoms, particularly where people rely on other forms of contraception or assume someone is ‘low risk’ without having open conversations around testing.”

The ECDC has warned that widening gaps in testing and prevention are contributing to rising infection rates across Europe, with officials urging people to use condoms with new or multiple partners and seek testing if symptoms appear.

According to experts at condoms.uk, several common holiday behaviours can increase STI risk while travelling – particularly when combined with alcohol, spontaneity, heat, and lower inhibitions.

Common mistakes include:

• Storing condoms in hot beach bags or cars Excess heat can damage latex and increase the risk of breakage without people realising.
• Using suncream before handling condoms Oil-based products can weaken latex and increase the likelihood of condom failure.
• Having sex in pools, hot tubs or the sea Water reduces natural lubrication, increasing friction and the chance of irritation or condom breakage.
• Relying on local shops or vending machines for protection Travellers may struggle to find familiar brands, sizing, or products that meet UK standards.
• Assuming oral sex carries little STI risk Infections including gonorrhoea and syphilis can still be passed on through oral sex.
• Skipping sexual health checks before or after travelling Many STIs can remain symptomless, making regular testing important after new sexual encounters.

Gemma added: “Many holiday-related STI risks come down to small, avoidable mistakes. Packing protection, checking condoms are stored properly, and having open conversations around sexual health can make a huge difference. It’s also important to always check the expiry dates on all condoms and lubricant products.

“Holiday sex should still be safe sex. Planning ahead and carrying protection is one of the easiest ways to protect both yourself and your partner.”