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Grammy-winning folk singer-songwriter Nanci Griffith dies
Nanci Griffith, the Grammy-winning folk singer-songwriter from Texas whose literary songs like “Love at the Five and Dime” celebrated the South, has died. She was 68.
Her management company, Gold Mountain Entertainment, said Griffith died Friday but did not provide a cause of death.
“It was Nanci’s wish that no further formal statement or press release happen for a week following her passing,” Gold Mountain Entertainment said in a statement.
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Griffith worked closely with other folk singers, helping the early careers of artists like Lyle Lovett and Emmylou Harris. She had a high-pitched voice, and her singing was effortlessly smooth with a twangy Texas accent as she sang about Dust Bowl farmers and empty Woolworth general stores.
Griffith was also known for her recording of “From a Distance,” which would later become a well-known Bette Midler tune. The song appeared on Griffith’s first major label release, “Lone Star State of Mind” in 1987.
Her 1993 album “Other Voices, Other Rooms,” earned a Grammy for best contemporary folk album. Named after a Truman Capote novel, the album features Griffith singing with Harris, John Prine, Arlo Guthrie and Guy Clark on classic folk songs.
In 2008, Griffith won the Lifetime Achievement Trailblazer Award from the Americana Music Association.
Country singer Suzy Bogguss, who had a Top 10 hit with Griffith’s song “Outbound Plane,” posted a remembrance to her friend on Instagram.
“I feel blessed to have many memories of our times together along with most everything she ever recorded. I’m going to spend the day reveling in the articulate masterful legacy she’s left us,” Bogguss wrote.
Darius Rucker called Griffith one of his idols and why he moved to Nashville.
“Singing with her was my favorite things to do,” he wrote on Twitter.
Keeping in line with the tradition of folk music, Griffith often wrote social commentary into her songs, such as the anti-racist ode “It’s a Hard Life Wherever You Go,” and the economic impact on rural farmers in the 1980s on “Trouble in the Fields.”
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“I wrote it because my family were farmers in West Texas during the Great Depression,” Griffith told the Los Angeles Times in a 1990 interview. “It was written basically as a show of support for my generation of farmers.”
Griffith gained many fans in Ireland and Northern Ireland, where she would often tour.
Covid: 11 more die at Rajshahi hospital
As many as 11 more Covid patients have died at Rajshahi Medical College and Hospital (RMCH) in the past 24 hours, officials said on Saturday.
Nine of them died of Covid-19, while one had symptoms of the virus and the remaining one succumbed to post-corona complications, said hospital director Brigadier General Shamim Yazdani.
READ: Covid: 13 more die at Rajshahi hospital
Of the deceased, four each were from Rajshahi and Natore districts, two from Naogaon, and one from Kushtia district.
Besides, 26 people have been admitted to the corona unit of the hospital in the past 24 hours. On the other hand, some 14 people were discharged from the hospital after recovery during the period.
Currently, 330 patients are undergoing treatment at the hospital which has 513 beds. Of them, 19 are being treated in the ICU, said the hospital director.
READ: Rajshahi sees 9 more Covid deaths in 24 hrs
Of the admitted patients, 179 have tested positive for Covid-19, while 90 are with symptoms and 61 have post-Covid health complications.
Covid: 13 more die at Rajshahi hospital
Thirteen more Covid-related deaths were reported at Rajshahi Medical College and Hospital (RMCH) in 24 hours, health officials said on Friday.
Five of them were confirmed Covid-19 patients while seven showed symptoms and another died of post-corona health complications, said hospital director Brigadier General Shamim Yeazdani
Of the deceased, eight were from Rajshahi district, three from Pabna, and one each from Chapainawabganj and Natore districts. Seven of them were men while the remaining were women.
READ: Rajshahi sees 9 more Covid deaths in 24 hrs
Shamim said that 40 new patients have been admitted to the corona unit of the hospital in the past 24 hours. On the other hand, 44 people were discharged from the hospital after recovery during the period.
Besides, some 325 people are currently undergoing treatment at the 513-bed corona unit of the hospital.
READ: Covid: 10 more people die in Rajshahi
RMCH has been one of the most stretched hospitals in the country during the second wave of Covid-19, particularly since the latter part of May when the deadly Delta variant of the virus was identified in multiple samples of Rajshahi division.
Police: 6 dead, including suspected shooter, in UK city
Police in southwest England said six people were killed, including the suspected shooter, in the city of Plymouth Thursday in a “serious firearms incident” that wasn’t terror-related.
Devon and Cornwall Police said in a statement on Twitter that several other casualties were receiving treatment following the shooting. They declared a “critical incident” but did not provide details of what occurred in the Keyham district of the city. The area has been cordoned off.
“Police have confirmed that six people have died in the shooting in #keyham in #plymouth. More people are being treated for their injuries in hospital. Just so unspeakably awful,” Plymouth Member of Parliament Luke Pollard tweeted.
Also read: 1 Chicago officer killed, 1 wounded in traffic stop shooting
Emergency services, including air ambulance and senior paramedics, responded to the incident at around 6:10 p.m. local time.
Officers found two women and two men dead, police said. Another man, believed to be the offender, was also dead at the scene. All are believed to have died from gunshot wounds. Another woman was treated at the scene for gunshot wounds, but died later in a hospital.
Johnny Mercer, one of Plymouth’s lawmakers, said in a tweet the incident is “not terror related, and neither is the suspect on the run in Plymouth.”
Also read: Police: 3 dead, others hurt in Florida grad party shooting
Devon and Cornwall Police also said it was not terrorism related.
Awami League leader Farhad Rahman no more
Farhad Rahman Makki, an Awami League leader and father of Barrister Shah Ali Farhad, Prime Minister's Special Assistant, has passed away.
Farhad Rahman, a former government employee, who later played the role of a member of Sarail Upazila AL, breathed his last at 5:00 pm while undergoing treatment for cancer at Bangladesh Specialized Hospital in Shyamoli, Dhaka.
"Last year uncle (Farhad Rahman Makki) was diagnosed with lung cancer after recovering from Coronavirus. Though there was no symptom, his entire body was getting affected with cancer due to Covid-19," said Tonmoy Ahmed, a coordinator of CRI and a former colleague of barrister Farhad.
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"Following the 2001-election, the BNP-led government awarded him forced retirement from his government job as a deputy secretary. He was reinstated in his position in 2009 after Awami League formed the government."
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He left behind three sons and a daughter to mourn his death.His Namaz e Janaza will be arranged at Sarail Annada School, Brahmanbria after Johr prayers on Wednesday.
241 more die in Bangladesh as Covid refuses to slow down
As the Covid infection rate continues to swell in Bangladesh, the country recorded 241 more deaths in 24 hours till Wednesday morning.
According to a handout issued by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), 13,817 more people came out positive with the virus during the period after the test of 49,514 samples.
The fresh numbers pushed the country’s death tally to 21,638 today with the caseload mounting to 1,309,910.
Meanwhile, the daily test positivity rate fell slightly to 27.91 % from Tuesday’s 28.58%, while the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a 5% or below rate.
The recovery rate, however, rose to 87.12%, and the case fatality remained static at 1.65% compared to the same period, said the DGHS.
READ: Covid: Khulna aims to inoculate over 1.16 lakh residents
Around 16,112 Covid-19 patients have recovered during the last 24-hour period.
Dhaka division continues to be on top of Covid fatalities with 93 deaths followed by 36 in Khulna, 15 in Rangpur, 12 in Rajshahi, seven in Mymensingh and five each in Barishal and Sylhet divisions.
Of them, 125 were men and 116 were women.
Among them, five were within 21-30, 22 between 31-40, 25 between 41-50, 55 between 51-60 and 134 were above 60 years old, added the DGHS release.
READ: Covid in Bangladesh: Seniors far more likely to face the worst
With the vaccination drive slowly gaining momentum, 216,534 people got their first Sinopharm jab during the period.
Besides, 11898,10,931 and 1026 people received their second dose of Astrazeneca, Sinopharm and Moderna vaccines respectively during this period.
Bangladesh is planning to vaccinate one crore people in six days through a special drive from Aug 7 to 12.
Two teens drown in Sylhet canal
Two teenagers drowned after their boat capsized in a canal in the Bisnakandi tourist area of Sylhet's Goainghat upazila on Friday, police said.
The deceased were identified as Sagor, 17 and Rumel, 16.
READ: 2 children drown in Gaibandha pond
"The victims drowned after the boat carrying them sank while crossing the canal,” officer-in-charge of Goainghat police station Parimal Deb told UNB.
The teenagers were rescued soon and rushed to Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College and Hospital, where doctors declared them dead on arrival, he added.
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A 17-year-old madrasa student, named Imran, reportedly drowned in the same canal on Thursday. However, his body is yet to be recovered.
Global Covid cases top 193 million
The global Covid-19 caseload has now surpassed 193 million as the highly contagious Delta variant continues to devastate several countries even with mass inoculations underway.
The total caseload and fatalities stand at 193,165,622 and 4,143,105 respectively, as of Saturday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University (JHU).
So far, 3,780,890,033 vaccine doses have been administered across the globe.
The US, which is the world's worst-hit country in terms of both cases and deaths, has so far logged 34,400,655 cases. Besides, 610,720 people have lost their lives in the US to date, as per the JHU data.
Brazil has registered 1,412 more Covid-19 deaths in the past 24 hours, raising its national death toll to 548,340 till Saturday.
As many as 49,757 new cases were detected during the period, taking the total caseload to 19,632,443 the ministry said.
Read: Americas account for 40% global Covid deaths, 25% cases: WHO
Brazil currently has the world's second-highest pandemic death toll after the United States, and the third-largest caseload after the United States and India.
The third worst-hit country, India's Covid-19 tally rose to 31,293,062 on Saturday as 35,342 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours across the country.
Besides, as many as 483 deaths due to the pandemic since Friday morning took the total death toll to 419,470.
According to AP, India’s excess deaths during the pandemic could be a staggering 10 times the official Covid-19 toll, likely making it modern India’s worst human tragedy, according to the most comprehensive research yet on the ravages of the virus in the South Asian country.
Read: India's deaths during pandemic 10X official toll
The report released Tuesday estimated excess deaths — the gap between those recorded and those that would have been expected — to be 3-4.7 million between January 2020 and June 2021. It said an accurate figure may “prove elusive” but the true death toll “is likely to be an order of magnitude greater than the official count.”
Situation in Bangladesh
Although the Covid-related deaths dropped to 166 in Bangladesh on Friday from 231 on July 19, the country’s health system still remained overwhelmed.
The country saw the below 200 fatalities for the third straight day.
Also, Covid-19 infections are at 81% of the peak now, with 9,632 new cases reported on an average each day. The highest daily average was recorded on July 15.
Bangladesh recorded 6,364 new infections in 24 hours till Friday morning after testing 20,493 samples.
With Covid's Delta variant spreading fast, the country's fatalities have been hovering at nearly 200 for the past two weeks. It reported the highest daily Covid fatality figure – 231 – on July 19 and 13,768 infections on the 12th of the month.
There have been 1,146,564 infections and 18,851 coronavirus-related deaths here since the pandemic began, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Meanwhile, the daily test positivity rate fell to 31.05% from Thursday's 32.19%.
Read: Bangladesh sees 173 more Covid deaths as pandemic eclipses Eid celebrations
Amid growing concerns about the highly infectious Delta variant, Dhaka division reported the highest 60 deaths, Khulna and Chattogram 33 each, Rangpur 12, Barishal 10, Sylhet eight, Rajshahi seven, and Mymensingh three.
However, the death rate stood at 1.64% and the recovery rate rose to 85.35%.
Floods & landslides in India kill over 100
More than 100 people have died in landslides and floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains in the western Indian state of Maharashtra over the last two days, officials said on Saturday.
Maharashtra is experiencing the heaviest July rains in four decades. Raigad district, some 70 kms from state capital Mumbai, is the worst hit.
Of the over 100 deaths, some 36 occurred in three landslides in Raigad district alone on Thursday, where several houses were swept away by the floodwaters rendering hundreds homeless.
"While 32 people died in Taliye village, four people were killed in Mahad city. Rescue operations are still on," Raigad district collector Nidhi Chaudhary told the media.
In the neighbouring rain-hit Satara district, some 27 bodies have been recovered in the past 24 hours.
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"The Indian Army has been called out to assist in rescue operations and military choppers have been pressed into action to ferry the stranded to safer locations," said Satara's police chief Ajay Kumar Bansal.
Local TV channels reported that over 84,000 people, including 40,000 in Kolhapur district, have been shifted to safer places.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday took to Twitter to offer condolences to the families of the deceased. "Anguished by the loss of lives due to a landslide in Raigad, Maharashtra. My condolences to the bereaved families. I wish the injured a speedy recovery."
"The situation in Maharashtra due to heavy rains is being closely monitored and assistance is being provided to the affected," the PM added.
Barely a week back, some 30 people were killed in house collapses triggered by heavy monsoon rains in Mumbai. The deaths occurred in the hilly Chembur area, a suburb, and neighbouring Vikhroli area.
READ: China blasts dam to divert floods that killed at least 25
The Indian PM then announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the deceased.
Building collapses are common in India, particularly during the monsoon months of June, July and August. Poor construction quality is often blamed for such collapses.
Covid: Khulna division sees 40 more deaths in a day
J Forty more people have died of Covid-19 in different districts of Khulna division in the past 24 hours until Saturday morning, health officials said.
According to the health director's office, ten people died in Khulna and Jashore districts, eight in Kushtia, and five in Chuadanga, three each in Meherpur and Jhenaidah and one in Magura district.
Besides, 539 people tested positive for Covid-19 during the period, said Rasheda Sultana, director of the divisional health department.
READ: 11 more die of Covid at Khulna hospitals
The total death toll in the division has crossed 1,844, said the health officials.
Some 80,076 cases have been detected in 10 districts of the division since the onset of Covid, of which 51,665 patients have recovered so far.
In Khulna division, the first case of Covid-19 was detected in Chuadanga on March 19, 2020.
READ: Khulna division logs 32 Covid deaths in a day