NPR News: 07-04-2026 12PM EDT
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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janine Herbst. Fourth of July celebrations are getting underway in cities and towns across the country today, but a dangerous heat wave is forcing schedule changes, prompting some cancellations and raising concerns about heat-related illnesses. NPR's Brian Mann has more.
For a lot of Americans, like 8-year-old Logan Longsworth from New Jersey, this holiday is just about having fun.
How I'm going to be celebrating the 4th of July is I'm going to light some firecrackers and stuff like that. And we also saw the Statue of Liberty.
But people in much of the country are facing dangerous heat. An Independence Day parade scheduled for today in Washington, D.C., was canceled. Many events have been rescheduled to start later to avoid the hottest part of the day. Fireworks have been banned in parts of the country because of high wildfire risk. Officials are warning the public to take lots of precautions, limit your time outdoors, bring water, and stay in the shade whenever you can. Brian Mann, NPR News, New York.
As the West faces hot and dry conditions, many large wildfires are burning uncontrolled across Colorado, including one outside of Pueblo that's destroyed more than 150 structures. Meanwhile, Grand Junction hosts a public memorial tomorrow for three wildland firefighters killed last weekend. Colorado Public Radio's Dena Sig has more.
Emily Barker, Nick Hutcherson, and Sidney Watson will be remembered in an outdoor public memorial under skies still smoky from wildfires burning across the region. Governor Jared Polis has ordered flags to be flown at half-staff. The firefighters died near the Utah border after deploying their fire shelters while fighting what would eventually be known as the Snyder Fire, a blaze that crews have now almost completely contained. Several other large wildfires are burning within a few hours of where they died, including one that's forced evacuations outside the mountain town of Ouray. For Empire News, I'm Steena Sieg in Grand Junction, Colorado.
In Venezuela, hospitals are overwhelmed in the aftermath of twin deadly earthquakes that struck the country more than a week ago, killing more than 2,000 and injuring thousands of others. Survivors are still living in tents, where dehydration and respiratory illnesses are a major concern. NPR's Dury Baskaran has more.
At least three hospitals were destroyed in the earthquakes, and according to the World Health Organization, another six are only partially functional. Many health workers lost their lives. Dr. Ligia Gordon is an OB-GYN for Project Hope, a medical non-profit. Gordon and her team have set up a mobile clinic at a shelter offering primary care. especially ultrasounds for pregnant women who survived the earthquakes with minor injuries and are now staying in tents. Derry Buscarin, NPR News.
You're listening to NPR News from Washington. A month after Peru's presidential runoff election, Keiko Fujimori has officially been declared president-elect, winning by a slim margin. Simeon Tegel has more.
Her victory has triggered fears that Peru could slide back into dictatorship. Fujimori is the daughter of 1990s strongman Alberto Fujimori, whose presidency collapsed in 2000 amid accusations of vote-rigging, human rights abuses and corruption. She has sought to assuage those concerns by talking about the need for dialogue and national reconciliation.
Simeon Tego reporting from Lima, Peru. The World Health Organization is declaring the Hantavirus outbreak officially over. NPR's Jonathan Lambert reports the final contact of a person exposed to the virus on a cruise ship has completed their quarantine.
The outbreak was first reported in early May when passengers aboard the MV Hondias cruise ship tested positive for hantavirus. The disease can be deadly. Typically, humans get the virus through exposure to rodent urine, feces, or saliva. But the outbreak on the cruise ship sparked concern that it might be spreading more readily through the air from person to person.
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