Tropical Cyclone Lusi Kills 3 in Vanuatu Islands

The Vanuatu Islands were roughed up on Friday, by tropical cyclone Lusi.

Three people were confirmed dead, with another six missing.

Lusi caused flooding and did damage to the country's crops.

The storm headed for New Zealand, losing strength as it went, and is expected to make landfall on Saturday.

2 Killed at SXSW When Car Plows Into Crowd

Two people were killed and twenty-three injured when a car plowed through a crowd at SXSW in Austin, Texas.

The accident occurred shortly after midnight Thursday morning.

Witnesses say that the driver appeared to be drunk.

After plowing through the crowd and striking two other vehicles, he attempted to escape the scene, but was brought down by a police officer's stun gun.

SXSW is the South by Southwest music and film festival, this was it's twenty-seventh year.

Tanker Crash Damages Train Service in New Jersey

A tanker crash and explosion damaged train tracks nearby, early Thursday morning, in Newark, New Jersey.

A car collided with the gas tanker, causing a fire and then an explosion of about eighty-five hundred gallons of gas.

Amazingly no one was injured in the incident.

It happened on McCarter Highway, right next to Amtrak train lines.

Damage to signals, wires, and tracks was being repaired as quickly as possible.

Service delays are to be expected throughout the rest of Thursday, but Amtrak hopes to have everything back to normal for Friday.

An investigation of the crash is underway.

Death Toll in New York City Rises to 7, 9 Still Missing

Rescue workers continue to comb through the rubble of two apartment buildings in New York City.

The buildings collapsed after a gas explosion, Wednesday morning.

Over night, crews pulled four more bodies from the rubble, bringing the death toll up to seven.

Nine people are still missing and at least sixty were injured.

Ohio Pileup Kills 3, Severely Injures State Trooper

Three people were killed in a fifty-three car pileup in Ohio, on Wednesday.

A spate of accidents occurred on the Ohio Turnpike between Cleveland and Toledo, leaving it closed in both directions.

The massive pileup occurred just north of Clyde, on the eastbound lanes.

An Ohio State Trooper was severely injured while trying to assist other drivers, and is in critical condition.

A smaller pileup closed the westbound lanes just south of Sandusky.

Snowy weather combined with windy conditions are being blamed for causing the accidents.

Explosion in New York City Kills 3

Three people were killed and sixty-four injured when an explosion destroyed two apartment buildings, in New York City.

Another nine people are still missing after Wednesday morning's explosion, at Park Avenue and 116th Street.

More than one hundred and fifty firefighters took part in putting out the five alarm fire, caused by the blast.

Officials say that a gas leak was to blame for the incident.

An investigation is underway to determine what caused the leak.

Protests in Venezuela Leave 3 More Dead

Three more people were killed during protests in Venezuela, on Wednesday.

All three deaths occurred in the city of Valencia.

Dozens more were wounded in the fighting, between police and protesters.

The opposition accuses the government of hiring motorcycle gangs to shoot at protesters.

They also accuse the gangs of shooting randomly, even when there aren't protests nearby.

Caracas, the capital, saw competing rallies of at least ten thousand each.

Police were able to keep the government supporters and opposition members separate.

Protests are taking place in much of the country now, as Venezuelans grow increasingly unhappy with their economic state.

The daily protests have been going since the end of January and show no sign of stopping, despite the violence, which has now left twenty-five dead.

IDF Strikes Back After Hamas Fires 90 Rockets at Israel

Members of Hamas fired at least ninety rockets out of the Gaza Strip at Israel, on Wednesday.

Five of the rockets struck in populated areas, but miraculously no one was hurt.

Israeli Defense Forces struck back, striking at twenty-nine locations used by Hamas.

Hamas launched the rockets in retaliation for an Israeli airstrike, on Tuesday, which was itself in response to rockets being launched.

2 More Dead in Protests in Turkey

Two more people fell victim to violence in Turkey as protests continued, on Wednesday.

Protests renewed, on Tuesday, after a fifteen year old died from wounds sustained in July.

At least thirty-two towns and cities are currently seeing protests.

Police are trying to put the protests down using tear gas, water cannons, and rubber bullets against the tens of thousands taking to the streets.

The protesters are demanding that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan resign and that police be punished for using excessive force.

Crimea Declares Independence From Ukraine as Russia's Troops Continue to Pour In

Crimea's parliament declared independence from Ukraine, on Tuesday, in a closed doors vote. On Sunday, they have set a referendum for the region to vote on whether or not to join Russia.

Ukraine's interim national government declared that Crimea's parliament is now dissolved and has no basis to make any decisions. Arrest warrants have already been put out for the leaders of the separatist movement.

However, it is unclear how Ukraine will enforce anything in Crimea with it under occupation by Russian forces. As many as fifty thousand Russian troops are now in the region, with two hundred and fifty thousand near Ukraine's eastern border.

On Tuesday, Ukraine announced the formation of a new National Guard, which will be compromised of their veteran troops and the best equipment. The government called upon the US, UK, and NATO to aid them militarily as they are outmatched by the Russian forces.

NATO did begin flying AWACs over the eastern borders of the alliances' territory. This allows them sight over Ukraine and part of southwest Russia to look for any attempts to send Russian troops into eastern Ukraine.

Russia continues to deny it is their troops in Crimea, noting that they do not have any kind of Russian insignia or unit markings, and claims that they are militia from within the Crimea. Despite their attempts at denial, it is clear they are Russian due to the numbers, weaponry, quality of training, and that they speak Russian. Various news sources have also caught them crossing over from Russia.

Monday saw the troops begin clearing out besieged Ukrainian bases, which had previously been disarmed. This continued on Tuesday, though they seem to be only taking over a couple bases per day. However, by the end of the week none of the bases will remain Ukrainian.

Militias are still maintaining a presence along the region's border, keeping international observers and everyday Ukrainians out. However, reports have come that in some cases they are kidnapping Ukrainian activists and reporters who attempt to cross over. In all known cases they were women in their twenties.