EDM Wednesday Briefing: F-22s Show South Korean Support, Apple Resists Court Order, Rockslide Closes Section of I-70 in Colorado

Emergency and disaster management briefing for Wednesday, February 17, 2016: The United States flies F-22 fighters over South Korea in a show of support for the nation amid recent tensions, the CEO of Apple is resisting a federal order to help authorities gain access to San Bernardino shooter’s phone, and a particularly narrow section of I-70 in Colorado’s Glenwood Canyon has been closed due to a major rockslide.

1. Four [link url=”http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2016/02/17/world/asia/ap-as-koreas-tension.html?_r=0″ title=”F-22 fighter jets flew over South Korea on Wednesday before landing at its Osan Air Base“] in what was a show of U.S. power and solidarity with the nation against any aggression from its North Korean neighbor.  The F-22 ‘Raptors’ have advanced capabilities, including the ability to fly undetected by radar. Tensions have increased with the recent launch of a North Korean long-range missile in spite of continued warnings from nations in the region.  This is not the first time in recent weeks that the United States has shown its unwavering support for South Korea – [link url=”http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35593009″ title=”a B-52 bomber with nuclear capabilities was dispatched to North Korea just last month“]. [relink url=”https://amuedge.com/north-korean-missilesatellite/”]
2. After [link url=”http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-fbi-apple-san-bernardino-phone-20160216-story.html” title=”ten failed attempts by the FBI“] to unlock the iPhone of San Bernardino shooter, Syed Rizwan Farook that was given to him by his employer, the San Bernadino County Health Department, a federal judge has ordered Apple to assist. Concerns regarding the 10 failed attempts and the possible auto-erasing of data have [link url=”http://www.wired.com/2016/02/magistrate-orders-apple-to-help-fbi-hack-phone-of-san-bernardino-shooter/” title=”prompted the order.“] Apple is unlikely to be able to decrypt the data, but could bypass the phone’s access code avoiding the auto-data erase, and give authorities access to its encrypted data for analysis.
3. Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, [link url=”https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/technology/judge-apple-must-help-us-hack-san-bernardino-killers-phone/2016/02/16/a7095734-d511-11e5-a65b-587e721fb231_story.html” title=”is resisting the order to unblock the phone and give the FBI access“] to its encrypted data, citing concerns over the development of software that could potentially allow any phone to be accessed without knowledge or authorization. Cook indicates such software, which currently does not exist, could be dangerous in the wrong hands.  [relink url=”https://amuedge.com/a-look-at-cyber-security/”]
4. On [link url=”http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/02/16/massive-rock-slide-closes-major-colorado-highway-indefinitely.html?intcmp=trending” title=”Interstate 70 in Colorado in the Glenwood Canyon, east of Utah by about 125 miles, a major rock slide occurred“], damaging a tractor-trailer but causing no injuries. The [link url=”http://www.cotrip.org/map.htm#/default?TravelAlertId=231213″ title=”major slide occurred on a narrow span of the highway“] that will now be closed indefinitely for slide debris clearing and canyon wall inspections.
5. The [link url=”https://www.codot.gov/news/2016-news-releases/02-2016/i-70-remains-closed-through-glenwood-canyon-due-to-rockfall-just-west-of-hanging-lake-tunnel” title=”Colorado Department of Transportation reports that approximately 300 vehicles“] use the roadway per hour.  Vehicles will have to detour around the area – something that requires adding nearly 140 miles via the shortest route.  The section of roadway where the slide occurred was built in a canyon carved by the Colorado River.  This [link url=”https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/publicroads/04mar/04.cfm” title=”12.5 mile section of roadway runs alongside the river, has multiple tunnels, crosses 40 bridges and viaducts, has a bike bath, and access to recreational river“] areas along the river.
6. Weather [link url=”https://weather.com/forecast/regional/news/snow-rain-wind-west-february-2016″ title=”forecasters are calling for rain across the state of California“], with wind gusts of 45 mph possible in the San Francisco Bay Area.  Snow in the highest elevations could have accumulations of anywhere from 1 to 2 feet, which is good news for the drought stricken state.  This [link url=”http://news.yahoo.com/rain-snow-head-california-days-record-heat-100425688.html” title=”cold front arriving from Oregon follows a holiday weekend of record breaking warm temperatures, including a record 90 degrees Tuesday in Los Angeles“], beating its old 1977 high temperature, and 89 in San Diego, which broke its 1981 record.  [relink url=”https://amuedge.com/comes-the-el-nino/”]
7. Experts are concerned about the Zika virus, indicating its recent upsurge in cases.  However, [link url=”https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/02/17/whats-really-scary-about-the-zika-virus-are-the-things-we-dont-know/” title=”what is even more concerning to various experts is what is still unknown about the virus“].  Recently, [link url=”https://www.rt.com/news/332391-colombia-zika-spread-pregnant/” title=”possible links to the microcephaly birth defect“] and reports of increased numbers of individuals diagnosed with Guillain-Barré Syndrome have been indicated, yet [link url=”https://www.rt.com/news/332391-colombia-zika-spread-pregnant/” title=”research shows less than a one percent link to Zika in more than 4,300 microcephaly cases investigated in Brazil“].  In addition, questions still linger about how the virus can be transmitted, such as through blood transfusions, saliva, and urine, where the virus is shown to be active.  [relink url=”https://amuedge.com/gaining-comfort-with-public-health-emergencies/”]
8. The [link url=”https://www.rt.com/news/332669-genetically-modified-mosquitoes-zika/” title=”World Health Organization is encouraging the use of new and old technologies and methods to help control the spread of Zika“], such as using the Wolbachia bacteria and releasing genetically modified mosquitos.  Previously, criticism from environmentalists regarding the use of genetically modified mosquitos and wiping out an entire insect population were raised amid fears of long-term affects of these actions.  [relink url=”https://amuedge.com/the-zika-virus-dont-underestimate-the-threat/”]
9. The virus only causes symptoms in approximately 1 out of 5 people, making testing for it nearly impossible, but [link url=”https://www.rt.com/news/331303-zika-virus-vaccine-india/” title=”one company located in Hyderabad, India, Bharat Biotech International, has reportedly developed two vaccines that are now set to undergo animal and human trials“].  The company reports that the inactivated vaccines elicit a strong human antibody response in order to defend itself against the Zika virus.