http://www.toledoblade.com The Latest News from Toledoblade.com (v5) Fri, 03 Jul 2026 13:50:44 GMT en-us hourly 1 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/03/extreme-heat-america-250-celebrations-ramp-up/stories/20260703095 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/03/extreme-heat-america-250-celebrations-ramp-up/stories/20260703095#comments Fri, 03 Jul 2026 11:56:02 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/03/extreme-heat-america-250-celebrations-ramp-up/stories/20260703095 WASHINGTON — Festivities commemorating the 250th anniversary of American independence from Great Britain kick into higher gear across the United States on Friday as celebrations are balanced with efforts to stay safe as much of the country bakes under extreme heat. Drones put on a show in the sky near independence hall in Philadelphia on July 2. Statue of Liberty stands next to Empire State Building, left, in New York, as seen from Jersey City, N.J., on May 31. A member of the Texas State Troopers pours cold water over his head during an extreme head advisory near the Lincoln Memorial, while providing extra security ahead of the America 250 July 4th celebration on July 2 in Washington. Visitors react to the heat while attending the Great American State Fair on the National Mall on July 1 in Washington. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/03/sources-3-people-shot-2-dead-fairlane-town-center-dearborn-michigan/stories/20260703104 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/03/sources-3-people-shot-2-dead-fairlane-town-center-dearborn-michigan/stories/20260703104#comments Fri, 03 Jul 2026 19:55:06 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/03/sources-3-people-shot-2-dead-fairlane-town-center-dearborn-michigan/stories/20260703104 DEARBORN, Mich. — Law enforcement officials say three people were shot and two are dead after a shooting at Fairlane Town Center in Dearborn, Mich., on Friday afternoon. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/03/heat-wave-virtually-impossible-fossil-fuel-pollution/stories/20260703096 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/03/heat-wave-virtually-impossible-fossil-fuel-pollution/stories/20260703096#comments Fri, 03 Jul 2026 12:26:09 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/03/heat-wave-virtually-impossible-fossil-fuel-pollution/stories/20260703096 The dangerous, multi-day heat wave is tightening its grip on the eastern US, shattering records, straining the electric grid and raising the risk for millions of people preparing to celebrate the Fourth of July outdoors. And human-caused climate change is making the familiar summer weather pattern far more dangerous. The heat wave was triggered by the strong heat dome parked over the Northeast — a stagnant area of high pressure that traps and enhances hot, humid air. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/03/iran-sends-defiant-message-colossal-funeral-slain-supreme-leader/stories/20260703094 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/03/iran-sends-defiant-message-colossal-funeral-slain-supreme-leader/stories/20260703094#comments Fri, 03 Jul 2026 11:23:03 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/03/iran-sends-defiant-message-colossal-funeral-slain-supreme-leader/stories/20260703094 Four months after he was killed at the outset of the US-Israeli war on Iran, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is being memorialized in a weeklong funeral spectacle stretching across five cities in two countries, with millions of mourners expected to attend. Despite a costly war against two of the world’s strongest militaries and decades of crushing economic hardship, Tehran is sparing no expense to send off Khamenei in a grand ceremony. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/02/russia-lands-heavy-strikes-ukraines-capital-killing-least-21/stories/20260702128 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/02/russia-lands-heavy-strikes-ukraines-capital-killing-least-21/stories/20260702128#comments Thu, 02 Jul 2026 22:12:24 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/02/russia-lands-heavy-strikes-ukraines-capital-killing-least-21/stories/20260702128 KYIV, Ukraine — Russia hammered Kyiv in an 11-hour drone and missile attack overnight into Thursday morning, killing at least 21 civilians in the city and injuring scores more in what Moscow said was retaliation for Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil facilities. A woman looks at an apartment building burning after a Russian missile attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, on July 2. A residential apartment building is seen damaged after a Russian strike on Kyiv, Ukraine, on July 2. A woman walks past a burning apartment building after a Russian missile attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, on July 2. People look at the site of a Russian missile strike that hit a residential building in Kyiv, Ukraine, on July 2. Smoke rises over the city center after a Russian attack on Kyiv, Ukraine, on July 2. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/02/finding-freedom-from-heat-july-4th-will-be-challenge-eastern-us/stories/20260702127 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/02/finding-freedom-from-heat-july-4th-will-be-challenge-eastern-us/stories/20260702127#comments Thu, 02 Jul 2026 22:02:14 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/02/finding-freedom-from-heat-july-4th-will-be-challenge-eastern-us/stories/20260702127 CONCORD, N.H. — Gaining freedom from the heat will be a challenge for the eastern U.S. heading into the long Fourth of July weekend, prompting some communities to cancel, postpone or otherwise alter their Independence Day plans. A vendor pulls out a bottle of water from a tank using dry ice to keep it cold, during a heat wave at the Great American State Fair on the National Mall on July 2. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/02/venezuelan-security-guard-pulled-alive-8-days-twin-quakes/stories/20260702104 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/02/venezuelan-security-guard-pulled-alive-8-days-twin-quakes/stories/20260702104#comments Thu, 02 Jul 2026 13:40:25 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/02/venezuelan-security-guard-pulled-alive-8-days-twin-quakes/stories/20260702104 CATIA LA MAR, Venezuela — Rescuers pulled a 43-year-old security guard alive from a collapsed basement early Thursday, ending a grueling days-long operation that became a symbol of hope after the devastation of twin earthquakes that struck Venezuela eight days earlier. Khaterine Roa cries as members of the Los Angeles County Fire Department search for survivors at a building that collapsed during the earthquakes that struck La Guaira, Venezuela, on June 30. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/02/trump-administration-smart-wall-us-mexico-border/stories/20260702101 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/02/trump-administration-smart-wall-us-mexico-border/stories/20260702101#comments Thu, 02 Jul 2026 12:17:19 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/02/trump-administration-smart-wall-us-mexico-border/stories/20260702101 PHOENIX — For decades, all that separated the U.S. from Mexico was barbed wire. Surveillance technology used by various law enforcement sit on a tower at the border wall in 2025, in Douglas, Ariz. Army soldiers look at the border wall next to a surveillance vehicle during the visit to the U.S. and Mexico border by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in Sunland Park, N.M., in 2025. Concertina wire lines the interior of a border wall separating Tijuana, Mexico, from the United States, in 2025, in San Diego. Migrants walk past large buoys being used as a floating border barrier on the Rio Grande in 2023 in Eagle Pass, Texas. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/02/bloodier-stalingrad-casualties-russia/stories/20260702100 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/02/bloodier-stalingrad-casualties-russia/stories/20260702100#comments Thu, 02 Jul 2026 11:03:36 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/02/bloodier-stalingrad-casualties-russia/stories/20260702100 Russia’s decision to launch a full-scale invasion of Ukraine has now cost the country some 450,000 lives, according to a new study that estimates the war’s total casualty numbers to have surpassed 2 million. The research by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) estimates Russia has suffered 1.4 million casualties. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/religion/2026/07/02/religious-offerings-3-18/stories/20260702006 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/religion/2026/07/02/religious-offerings-3-18/stories/20260702006#comments Thu, 02 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/religion/2026/07/02/religious-offerings-3-18/stories/20260702006 ■ The Ursuline Sisters of Toledo have transferred the leadership of their community to the Sisters of St. Francis in Sylvania. An aerial view from a drone shows the steeple of St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Toledo in 2024. In the background is Lucas County Courthouse. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/medical/2026/07/01/65-lucas-county-residents-cyclosporiasis-outbreak/stories/20260701125 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/medical/2026/07/01/65-lucas-county-residents-cyclosporiasis-outbreak/stories/20260701125#comments Wed, 01 Jul 2026 18:09:32 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/medical/2026/07/01/65-lucas-county-residents-cyclosporiasis-outbreak/stories/20260701125 The Toledo-Lucas County Health Department has reported an outbreak of a rare gastrointestinal disease not native to the country. The Toledo Lucas County Health Department building in shown in downtown Toledo in 2019. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/01/trump-theodore-roosevelt-presidential-library-north-dakota-badlands/stories/20260701109 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/01/trump-theodore-roosevelt-presidential-library-north-dakota-badlands/stories/20260701109#comments Wed, 01 Jul 2026 11:01:42 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/01/trump-theodore-roosevelt-presidential-library-north-dakota-badlands/stories/20260701109 MEDORA, N.D. — President Trump visited North Dakota on Wednesday to see the newly built Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library, a massive facility exploring the life of America’s 26th president. President Donald Trump arrives on the Freedom 250 train July 1 in Medora, N.D., for an opening ceremony at the Theodore Roosevelt President Library. President Trump listens as Interior Secretary Doug Burgum speaks during a ceremony to present Theodore Roosevelt's Medal of Honor that was in the Roosevelt Room at the White House, to be kept on display at the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library, in Medora, N.D., on July 1. President Trump presents Theodore Roosevelt's Medal of Honor that was in the Roosevelt Room at the White House. President Trump speaks at Burning Hills Amphitheatre during the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library opening ceremony. Roughrider re-enactors wait for President Trump's arrival at the grand opening of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library. President Trump tours the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library with Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, right and Robbie Lauf, executive director of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library. President Trump leaves the stage after speaking at the Burning Hills Amphitheater during the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library opening ceremony. Donald Trump Jr., and Eric Trump listen as President Trump speaks at Burning Hills Amphitheatre during the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library opening ceremony. President Trump tours the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library with Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, right, and Robbie Lauf, executive director of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library. President Donald Trump departs after presenting Theodore Roosevelt's Medal of Honor that was in the Roosevelt Room at the White House. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/01/ship-runs-aground-strait-of-hormuz/stories/20260701138 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/01/ship-runs-aground-strait-of-hormuz/stories/20260701138#comments Wed, 01 Jul 2026 19:15:18 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/07/01/ship-runs-aground-strait-of-hormuz/stories/20260701138 DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A ship ran aground in the Strait of Hormuz while using a route not approved by Iran, state television in Tehran reported Wednesday. The vessel was identified as a foreign container ship, with no other details. A group of people stands in shallow water as a cargo ship appears anchored in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran, on June 30. An Israeli soldier work on a tank near the border with Lebanon in northern Israel on July 1. An Ultra-Orthodox Jewish man poses for a photo beside Israeli and Lebanese flags at a memorial site on the border with Lebanon in northern Israel on July 1. An Israeli flag hangs on a damaged building in southern Lebanon as seen from northern Israel on July 1. An Israeli soldier directs an APC near the border with Lebanon in northern Israel on July 1. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/01/extraordinary-heat-clash-revelry/stories/20260701136 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/01/extraordinary-heat-clash-revelry/stories/20260701136#comments Wed, 01 Jul 2026 19:08:48 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/07/01/extraordinary-heat-clash-revelry/stories/20260701136 Multiday warnings of extreme heat landed in New York, Boston and Philadelphia on Wednesday as sultry weather pushed east just ahead of Fourth of July celebrations in a region that revels in its role as a historic hub of U.S. independence. Children reach for cold bottles of water from U.S. National Park Police Officer R. Douglass as they wait in line for the ferris wheel at the Great American State Fair on the National Mall on July 1 in Washington. People cross 15th Street Northwest as a National Guard Humvee blocks the roadway on July 1 in Washington. Visitors wait to enter the Washington Monument on July 1 in Washington. Stephanie McCallister holds a cold bottle of water to her husband Don McCallister's neck as they wait in line for the ferris wheel at the Great American State Fair on the National Mall on July 1 in Washington. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/06/30/who-flies-american-flag-holidays-who-never-flies-one/stories/20260630108 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/06/30/who-flies-american-flag-holidays-who-never-flies-one/stories/20260630108#comments Tue, 30 Jun 2026 20:35:40 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/06/30/who-flies-american-flag-holidays-who-never-flies-one/stories/20260630108 DETROIT — Jerry Esters proudly displays the American flag each day on his Detroit home. A few miles away, Yvonne Pistochini says there is no scenario under which she would allow the Stars and Stripes to cast its shadow where she lives. Miniature American flags flutter in wind gusts across the National Mall near the Capitol in Washington, on Nov. 10, 2025. Jerry Esters stands in front of American flag outside his Detroit home on June 9. Linda and Greg Cunningham fly the American flag outside their Pontiac, Mich., home on June 10. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/06/30/us-envoys-arrive-qatar-meetings-iran-tensions-high-over-hormuz/stories/20260630107 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/06/30/us-envoys-arrive-qatar-meetings-iran-tensions-high-over-hormuz/stories/20260630107#comments Tue, 30 Jun 2026 20:24:24 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/06/30/us-envoys-arrive-qatar-meetings-iran-tensions-high-over-hormuz/stories/20260630107 DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Two U.S. envoys arrived in Qatar on Tuesday for talks with mediators about the implementation of an initial deal to end the war in Iran, an official said. Steve Witkoff, special envoy to the Middle East, listens as President Trump and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte meet in the Oval Office at the White House on June 24 in Washington. Children wade in the water with cargo ships at anchor in the background and a fisherman nearby, in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran, on June 30. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/06/30/supreme-court-strikes-down-limits-on-party-spending-in-federal-elections/stories/20260630097 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/06/30/supreme-court-strikes-down-limits-on-party-spending-in-federal-elections/stories/20260630097#comments Tue, 30 Jun 2026 15:50:40 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/06/30/supreme-court-strikes-down-limits-on-party-spending-in-federal-elections/stories/20260630097 WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday erased limits on how much political parties can spend in coordination with candidates for Congress and president, striking down a federal election law that is more than 50 years old. The U.S. Supreme Court is seen June 29 in Washington. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/06/29/supreme-court-lisa-cook-job-upholds-other-trump-firings/stories/20260629104 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/06/29/supreme-court-lisa-cook-job-upholds-other-trump-firings/stories/20260629104#comments Mon, 29 Jun 2026 20:25:27 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/nation/2026/06/29/supreme-court-lisa-cook-job-upholds-other-trump-firings/stories/20260629104 WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday dramatically expanded presidential power, upholding President Trump’s firings of the heads of independent federal agencies with one important exception: the Federal Reserve. Federal Reserve Board of Governors member Lisa Cook leaves the Supreme Court in Washington on Jan. 21. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/06/29/u-s-iran-pause-strikes-but-disagree-over-next-steps-on-talks/stories/20260629070 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/06/29/u-s-iran-pause-strikes-but-disagree-over-next-steps-on-talks/stories/20260629070#comments Mon, 29 Jun 2026 14:04:55 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/06/29/u-s-iran-pause-strikes-but-disagree-over-next-steps-on-talks/stories/20260629070 DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — President Trump said Monday on social media that Iran had requested a meeting with U.S. counterparts, although one of Iran's top negotiators said no further talks had been scheduled after attacks across the Persian Gulf over the weekend challenged negotiations to end the war. A woman walks past a welcoming billboard featuring Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian along a roadside in Islamabad, Pakistan June 23. https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/06/28/france-records-additional-deaths-extreme-heat-european-records/stories/20260628110 https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/06/28/france-records-additional-deaths-extreme-heat-european-records/stories/20260628110#comments Sun, 28 Jun 2026 14:11:46 GMT https://www.toledoblade.com/news/World/2026/06/28/france-records-additional-deaths-extreme-heat-european-records/stories/20260628110 BERLIN — France saw around 1,000 additional deaths last week at the height of its record-smashing heat wave, the country's public health agency said Sunday, as the head of the World Health Organization warned that Europe is the fastest-warming continent on earth and countries there need to do better to protect their citizens. People refresh in a fountain after the Angelus noon prayer celebrated by Pope Leo XIV from the window of his studio overlooking St.Peter's Square, at the Vatican on June 28. People shelter from sun with umbrellas as they wait for the Angelus noon prayer celebrated by Pope Leo XIV from the window of his studio overlooking St.Peter's Square, at the Vatican, on June 28 A couple walks by a public fountain on a torrid day, as the National Weather forecaster issued an extreme heat code red warning for parts of the country, in the coming days in Bucharest, Romania, on June 27. A prolonged heat wave with high temperatures exceeding caused significant damage to the tram infrastructure in Leipzigv Germany on June 27. Thousands of fans are celebrating at a concert by techno star Paul Kalkbrenner on the Heiligengeistfeld while a water cannon is in operation on June 27 in Hamburg, Germany.