4 Women Survive After Lightning Strikes Hut They Were Sheltering Under During Florida Storm, So They Got Matching Tattoos

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  • 4 Women Survive After Lightning Strikes Hut They Were Sheltering Under During Florida Storm, So They Got Matching Tattoos</p>

<p>Sam GilletteJune 26, 2025 at 5:45 PM</p>

<p>Four women were sheltering under a hut on the beach in Florida when it was struck by lightning on June 21</p>

<p>Three of the women suffered minor injuries, and all four were transported to a local hospital</p>

<p>After the scary incident, the women got matching lightning bolt tattoos</p>

<p>Four women were vacationing in Florida when a storm hit. They sought shelter under a tiki hut, which was struck by lightning.</p>

<p>Now, they're speaking out about the harrowing incident – and why they got matching lightning bolt tattoos.</p>

<p>On the afternoon of Saturday, June 21, sisters Danielle and Taylor Sturgill and their two friends, Becky Johnson and Kelli Bryant, were staying at the JW Marriott Beach Resort on Marco Island when the storm struck, Good Morning America, ABC affiliate WZVN and ABC News reported. The survivors did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's requests for comment.</p>

<p>"The siren went off, and we knew there was a storm coming. And the nearest thing to us was a little tiki hut, and that's where we decided to take shelter," Danielle told GMA. "I can remember really heavy pressure on my head, and then, after that, I was gone."</p>

<p>Emergency responders received a 911 call for the lightning strike at 3:47 p.m., Fire Chief Chris Byrne of the City of Marco Island Fire Rescue Department tells PEOPLE. Three of the four women were reported to have suffered minor injuries while at the scene, and all four were transported to a local hospital.</p>

<p>He says that the lightning struck the hut they were under, resulting in an "indirect strike."</p>

<p>"So, the lightning bolt didn't have direct contact with any of the people, but the energy from it, the electricity from it did," Byrne explains.</p>

<p>Byrne says the victims were relatively calm while receiving treatment on the beach.</p>

<p>"They were presenting with obvious injuries from a lightning strike," he says. "Although it is frightening, and they obviously were scared, once some care was given, they were calm."</p>

<p>Johnson told WZVN that her body struggled to function after the strike.</p>

<p>"I completely fell backwards. It knocked me completely out," she recalled. "Like, I went unconscious, and then, when I woke up, like, I had a pounding in my head, like the shock went through my body. I couldn't hear. I can hardly see. I could barely walk."</p>

<p>The women, who all hail from Kentucky, said they're thankful to be alive. It's why they've decided to get matching tattoos.</p>

<p>Getty</p>

<p>Marco Island in Florida.</p>

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<p>"So, we're here getting lightning bolt tattoos, matching tattoos to remember our girls' trip," Danielle told WZVN while at the tattoo parlor. "And just thank God that we're here today."</p>

<p>"We're lucky to be here," her sister added, according to the outlet. "And we're so grateful to be here."</p>

<p>Byrne says there's a reason Florida is the lightning capital of the United States. Generally, afternoon thunderstorms roll into the area at around 3 p.m. every day.</p>

<p>"We always preach [that] when those conditions start to change, you need to get off the beach," the fire chief says, "Get into a sheltered area, a building or something with a hard roof over it, and just wait it out."</p>

<p>He adds, "Typically, if you're out in an open area and you hear thunder and you're still out there, you're already at risk."</p>

<p>on People</p>

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4 Women Survive After Lightning Strikes Hut They Were Sheltering Under During Florida Storm, So They Got Matching Tattoos

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Secrets on Iran nuclear strike spill into open as Pentagon defends bombing

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  • Secrets on Iran nuclear strike spill into open as Pentagon defends bombing</p>

<p>ANNE FLAHERTY and LUIS MARTINEZJune 27, 2025 at 5:22 AM</p>

<p>The Pentagon on Thursday released an extraordinary number of details about the military's top-secret bombing of Iran's nuclear facilities and its defense of an air base in Qatar.</p>

<p>The unusual disclosures – including analysts briefed at secret locations, bombs dropped into ventilation shafts, and a small group of young service members left behind at a base to shoot down Iranian missiles – is being orchestrated by a White House angry over questions about the effectiveness of the U.S. strike, which targeted three Iranian nuclear targets on June 21.</p>

<p>Trump insists Iran's nuclear program has been "obliterated," while an early military intelligence assessment said the strike might only have set back Iran's program by "months." Military officials say they need much more time to assess the damage.</p>

<p>Here's what we've learned:</p>

<p>There was a 15-year, top-secret mission to figure out how to destroy Iran's Fordo nuclear facility</p>

<p>In 2009, a U.S. officer working for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency was brought into a vault at an undisclosed location and shown highly classified photos of a construction site in the Iranian mountains, according to Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.</p>

<p>Andrew Harnik/Getty Images - PHOTO: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Dan Caine appears during a news conference at the Pentagon on June 26, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia.</p>

<p>MORE: Trump admin launches full-court press defending Iran strikes as questions remain</p>

<p>Caine said the officer and another colleague would go on to spend 15 years studying the site. They analyzed the weather and the geology of the mountain, along with any items discarded from the site. They eyed ventilation shafts, electrical systems and environmental control systems too, he said.</p>

<p>"Every nook, every crater, every piece of equipment going in and every piece of equipment going out -- they literally dreamed about this target at night when they slept," Caine said.</p>

<p>When the analysts realized they did not have a weapon to strike Fordo if needed, Caine said they teamed up with industry in a top-secret effort to build the Massive Ordnance Penetrator, or GBU-57, specifically to hit it.</p>

<p>Andrew Harnik/Getty Images - PHOTO: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Dan Caine turns to watch a video of a bombing test of the GBU-57A/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator during a news conference at the Pentagon, June 26, 2025, in Arlington, Virginia.</p>

<p>MORE: Trump, Hegseth slam news coverage of US intel report on Iran attack, say B-2 pilots upset</p>

<p>"Then, on a day in June of 2025, more than 15 years after they started their life's work, the phone rang and the president of the United States ordered the B-2 force" to strike the target, Caine said.</p>

<p>One of them later told Caine, "I can't even get my head around this."</p>

<p>Andrew Harnik/Getty Images - PHOTO: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Dan Caine turns to watch a video of a bombing test of the GBU-57A/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator during a news conference at the Pentagon, June 26, 2025, in Arlington, Virginia.</p>

<p>MORE: Israel-Iran live updates: Hegseth defends Iran bombing, says media undermining 'success'</p>

<p>12 bombs were dropped down two ventilation shafts capped with concrete.</p>

<p>In a bid to defend the strikes as successful, both Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in recent days have publicly disclosed that 12 of the 14 Massive Ordnance Penetrators used in the June 21 strike were dropped on the nuclear facility at Fordo.</p>

<p>At the briefing on Thursday, Caine went further, describing that six bunker-buster bombs were dropped down each of the two ventilation shafts with fuses programmed to detonate at specific times.</p>

<p>Caine said the Iranians had covered the ventilation shafts with concrete caps, but the first bomb blew off the caps. After that, the next four bombs were programmed to drop more than 1,000 feet per second and "explode in the mission space." The final bomb was designated as a "flex weapon," or backup, he said.</p>

<p>"All six weapons at each vent, at Fordow went exactly where they were intended to go," Caine said, adding that the result was "a mix of overpressure and blast ripping through the open tunnels and destroying critical hardware."</p>

<p>Caine said the fighter pilots who trailed the B-2 bombers said that after the first bomb struck the target "the pilots stated, quote, this was the brightest explosion that I've ever seen. It literally looked like daylight."</p>

<p>Andrew Harnik/Getty Images - PHOTO: A poster of the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant is displayed as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Dan Caine and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth hold a news conference at the Pentagon, June 26, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia.DIA says Fordo damaged, but questions remain on impact to Iran's nuclear program.</p>

<p>About a day after the attack, the Defense Intelligence Agency produced an early assessment estimating Iran's nuclear program was set back by "months."</p>

<p>According to the two people familiar with the classified report, the bombing sealed off the entrances to two of the three nuclear sites targeted in the attack but that most of the damage was done to structures above ground, leaving the lower structures intact. The assessment also found that at least some enriched uranium remained – possibly moved from the nuclear sites ahead of the blasts.</p>

<p>President Donald Trump insists the enriched uranium wasn't moved in advance.</p>

<p>Hegseth, visibly angry that details of the report had leaked, said "new intelligence" estimates the Iran program has been knocked back by "years," not months, and he read from the classified assessment to reporters.</p>

<p>"It points out that it's not been coordinated with the intelligence community at all," said Hegseth, adding that the report was labeled "low confidence."</p>

<p>Andrew Harnik/Getty Images - PHOTO: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks during a news conference at the Pentagon, June 26, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia.A couple of dozen service members in their 20s defended a U.S. airbase in Qatar.</p>

<p>Two days after the strike, U.S. officials got word that Iran was planning to launch a retaliatory attack on an American air base in Qatar called al-Udeid.</p>

<p>According to Caine, officials quickly evacuated the base in part of extend the security perimeter, leaving behind two Patriot missile batteries and some 44 soldiers.</p>

<p>Of the troops left to defend the base, the oldest was a 28-year-old captain.</p>

<p>Caine said the group listened to "chatter" of the impending attack in the oppressive heat and were told to ensure their missile batteries were pointed north. Iran began launching short- and medium-range missiles, prompting the soldiers to unleash "round after round" of Patriot missiles from their canisters.</p>

<p>Caine called the operation the "largest single Patriot engagement in U.S. military history," noting the Qataris aided in the defense.</p>

<p>"I'm not going to tell you how many rounds were shot," Caine said, noting the number was classified. "But it was a bunch."</p>

<p>ABC News' Chris Boccia contributed to this report.</p>

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Secrets on Iran nuclear strike spill into open as Pentagon defends bombing

<p>- Secrets on Iran nuclear strike spill into open as Pentagon defends bombing</p> <p>ANNE FLAHER...
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Lawmakers remove 'revenge' tax provision from Trump's big bill after Treasury requests its removal

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  • Lawmakers remove 'revenge' tax provision from Trump's big bill after Treasury requests its removal</p>

<p>FATIMA HUSSEIN and JOSH BOAK June 27, 2025 at 5:38 AM</p>

<p>Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent talks to reporters about his lunch meeting with Republican senators and the schedule for getting the Republican megabill to President Donald Trump's desk by July 4, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) ()</p>

<p>WASHINGTON (AP) — Congressional Republicans agreed to remove the so-called revenge tax provision from President Donald Trump's big bill Thursday after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent asked members of Congress to do so earlier in the day.</p>

<p>The Section 899 provision would allow the federal government to impose taxes on companies with foreign owners, as well as investors from countries judged as charging "unfair foreign taxes" on U.S. companies.</p>

<p>The measure was expected to lead many companies to avoid investing in the U.S. out of concern that they could face steep taxes.</p>

<p>Bessent said in an X post that he made the request to lawmakers after reaching an agreement with other countries on the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development Global Tax Deal. He said that after "months of productive dialogue," they would "announce a joint understanding among G7 countries that defends American interests."</p>

<p>After he made the request, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith, R-Missouri, said "we will remove proposed tax code Section 899" from the bill and "Congressional Republicans stand ready to take immediate action if the other parties walk away from this deal or slow walk its implementation."</p>

<p>The removal of the provision will provide "greater certainty and stability for the global economy and will enhance growth and investment in the United States and beyond," Bessent said in his post.</p>

<p>An analysis by the Global Business Alliance, a trade group representing international companies such as Toyota and Nestlé, estimates that the provision would cost the U.S. 360,000 jobs and $55 billion annually over 10 years in lost gross domestic product.</p>

<p>The Global Business Alliance was among several groups that signed a letter addressed to Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo of Idaho, warning of the consequences of Section 899.</p>

<p>The removal of the provision adds a wrinkle to Republicans' plans to try to offset the cost of the massive package. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that the bill would spike deficits by at least $2.4 trillion over the next decade.</p>

<p>Republicans are rushing to finish the package this week to meet the president's Fourth of July deadline for passage.</p>

<p>Earlier Thursday, the Senate parliamentarian advised that a Medicaid provider tax overhaul central to the spending bill does not adhere to the chamber's procedural rules, delivering a crucial blow to Republicans, who are counting on big cuts to Medicaid and other programs to offset trillions of dollars in Trump tax breaks.</p>

<p>___</p>

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Lawmakers remove ‘revenge’ tax provision from Trump's big bill after Treasury requests its removal

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State Dept. layoffs could start as soon as Friday, as high court decision looms

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  • State Dept. layoffs could start as soon as Friday, as high court decision looms</p>

<p>Camilla Schick June 26, 2025 at 10:53 PM</p>

<p>ALASTAIR PIKE/AFP via Getty Images</p>

<p>The State Department may begin laying off hundreds of Washington, D.C.,-based employees as soon as this Friday, according to internal correspondence among staff that was shared with CBS News, amid an effort by Secretary of State Marco Rubio to streamline what he has called a "bloated" bureaucracy.</p>

<p>The precise timing of the cuts could be affected by a looming decision by the Supreme Court which could soon hand down a ruling on whether to leave in place a lower court's order that temporarily paused government-wide layoffs. The Justice Department asked the high court earlier this month to lift the district court's injunction and allow it to move forward with the administration's plans for reductions in force, or layoffs.</p>

<p>In a statement issued Wednesday, the president of the American Foreign Service Association, which represents American foreign service officers, said the association "urgently calls on the Department of State to comply with a federal court order that prohibits federal agencies from executing mass layoffs while litigation is ongoing."</p>

<p>"Sources inside the department tell us that layoffs will be announced as soon as the end of this week or early next week," AFSA President Tom Yazdgerdi said. "Unless the Supreme Court intervenes, the department is legally barred from taking any action outlined in its reorganization plans."</p>

<p>But a senior State Department official told CBS News, "AFSA's statement is false, and the Department has no plans to violate a court order."</p>

<p>Multiple sources shared internal correspondence between State Department staffers that described the potential impending cuts. Some sent screen shots of what employees had been told by the department.</p>

<p>Some of the internal notes circulated within State Department ranks said that the notices of reduction in force — or RIF — could impact over 2,000 staffers, including 700 D.C.-based foreign service officers, and could begin Friday, likely in the morning.</p>

<p>The same internal notes said large conference rooms inside the department's Washington headquarters have been reserved for Friday morning "with no reason given," but with the expectation that they would be used to process the terminated staffers.</p>

<p>A notice circulated Wednesday in the department's Bureau of Overseas Building Operations — which manages the department's overseas diplomatic property — contained instructions on how to process terminated employees. The email, which was reviewed by CBS News, has a checklist — one item directed departing employees to turn in their badges and IT equipment issued by the State Department.</p>

<p>The State Department aims to reduce its domestic workforce by up to 3,448 personnel — according to a more than 130-page notification it had submitted to Congress last month that affected around 18% of its existing staff.</p>

<p>The notification included a deadline of July 1, 2025, for the reductions.</p>

<p>Rubio first announced in April that the department, which he described as "bloated" and "bureaucratic," would undergo "comprehensive reorganization."</p>

<p>An AFSA official also noted that the department had made unilateral changes to the Foreign Affairs Manual — which the State Department describes as the "single, comprehensive, and authoritative source for the Department's organization structures, policies, and procedures" — without the association's agreement.</p>

<p>"While the Secretary of State holds legal authority to implement RIFs, long-standing procedures were based on a transparent, merit-based process that ranked employees globally. The department's recent changes bypass these norms, penalizing employees based solely on their current domestic assignments," the AFSA statement reads.</p>

<p>Young Cuban girl asks Trump to lift travel ban stopping her from joining mom in U.S.</p>

<p>Planning details revealed in U.S. strikes against Iranian nuclear targets</p>

<p>White House says no date set for Iran meeting</p>

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State Dept. layoffs could start as soon as Friday, as high court decision looms

<p>- State Dept. layoffs could start as soon as Friday, as high court decision looms</p> <p>Camill...
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How a GOP accounting maneuver hides $3.8 trillion in red ink from Trump's 'big, beautiful bill'

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  • How a GOP accounting maneuver hides $3.8 trillion in red ink from Trump's 'big, beautiful bill'</p>

<p>Ben WerschkulJune 27, 2025 at 12:09 AM</p>

<p>As Senate Republicans barrel toward votes in the coming days on President Trump's Big Beautiful Bill, they are using a controversial budget maneuver to hide $3.8 trillion in red ink.</p>

<p>This Senate-preferred accounting approach is known as using a "current policy baseline" and takes the stance that extending current tax rates should be counted as having zero cost even if they are set to expire.</p>

<p>What doesn't change is the underlying fact that those changes are projected to add trillions to the national debt if they become law.</p>

<p>The approach is being derided as an "egregious budget gimmick" and upends decades of accounting practices with trillions in economic consequences.</p>

<p>This bit of Washington arcana was front and center this week after the Joint Committee on Taxation analyzed the tax provisions in the bill using this "current policy" approach and found a total cost of about $442 billion in the coming decade.</p>

<p>But after economists untangled the math — and put things into the more comprehensive "current law" framework — the true impact on the national debt was shown to be nearly 10 times higher at about $4.2 trillion.</p>

<p>The focus comes as GOP senators struggle to overcome internal disagreements on the price tag as well as other provisions in the coming days.</p>

<p>Senate Majority Leader John Thune is pushing for first votes on the package to start on Friday but acknowledged to reporters Thursday that he may "have to adjust the timing and schedule a little bit" after a series of new complications emerged and compromise on other issues has so far remained elusive.</p>

<p>As for the price tag, Republicans leaders have tried with mixed success to end debate on that question by citing the "current policy" total and saying it is more realistic.</p>

<p>"Extending the Trump tax cuts prevents a $4 trillion tax increase — this is not a change in current tax policy or tax revenue," Senate Finance Committee Chair Mike Crapo said in a recent statement. "This score more accurately reflects reality by measuring the effects of tax policy changes relative to the status quo."</p>

<p>'An egregious budget gimmick'</p>

<p>But the maneuver has been pilloried by economists.</p>

<p>The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget this week called the approach "an egregious budget gimmick" that could have the larger effect of allowing trillions in new government borrowing in the years ahead.</p>

<p>Andrew Lautz of the Bipartisan Policy Center has detailed how the method changed the score on a range of key tax issues in the bill.</p>

<p>In one case, the "current policy" approach says Senate provisions to extend tax rates for individuals will cost about $83 billion over the coming decade. The full cost to the national debt, meanwhile, is projected to be over $2.2 trillion.</p>

<p>Likewise, on plans to extend a higher standard deduction, the price tag moves from $165 billion to $1.3 trillion under the different frameworks.</p>

<p>The US Capitol Building is seen in May. (Kevin Carter/Getty Images) (Kevin Carter via Getty Images)</p>

<p>In an interview, Lautz added that many of the new additions to the tax code that are counted fully under "current policy" — notably Trump's campaign promises — are temporary and that eventually extending them could drive up the underlying costs further.</p>

<p>"We see that happening with no tax on tips, overtime, a whole bunch of temporary provisions in both the House and the Senate," he noted, saying it is reasonable to interpret that as "an effort to drive down the on-paper cost of the bill" but with Congress likely to extend them down the road if they prove popular.</p>

<p>Such a future extension could cost zero under the "current policy approach, a possibility that has worried economists since Senate Republicans began to signal this as their approach earlier this year.</p>

<p>"If this becomes the norm, then you could see both parties abuse it," said Erica York of the Tax Foundation, noting how Joe Biden could have leaned on this idea for a range of his priorities.</p>

<p>From her perspective — as someone worried about debt — she added, "It's not a good development."</p>

<p>Ben Werschkul is a Washington correspondent for Yahoo Finance.</p>

<p>Click here for political news related to business and money policies that will shape tomorrow's stock prices</p>

<p>Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance</p>

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How a GOP accounting maneuver hides $3.8 trillion in red ink from Trump's 'big, beautiful bill'

<p>- How a GOP accounting maneuver hides $3.8 trillion in red ink from Trump's 'big, beautiful bill'<...
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Louisiana is latest state to redefine natural gas -- a planet-warming fossil fuel -- as green energy

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  • Louisiana is latest state to redefine natural gas -- a planet-warming fossil fuel -- as green energy</p>

<p>JACK BROOK and JENNIFER McDERMOTT June 27, 2025 at 5:09 AM</p>

<p>FILE - A flare burns at Venture Global LNG in Cameron, La., April 21, 2022. (AP Photo/Martha Irvine, File)</p>

<p>Louisiana is the latest state to redefine natural gas as green energy under a new law the Republican governor signed this week, even though it's a fossil fuel that emits planet-warming greenhouse gases.</p>

<p>Three other states led by Republicans— Indiana, Ohio and Tennessee— have passed similar legislation. In some Democratic-led states, there have been efforts to phase out natural gas. New York and California cities like San Francisco and Berkeley have moved to ban natural gas hookups in new buildings, though some of these policies have been successfully challenged in court.</p>

<p>President Donald Trump has signed a spate of executive orders promoting oil, gas and coal, which all warm the planet when burned to produce electricity. The European Union previously designated natural gas and nuclear as sustainable, a move that Greenpeace and the Austrian government are suing over.</p>

<p>Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, a major booster of the state's petrochemical industry, says the new law "sets the tone for the future" and will help the state "pursue energy independence and dominance."</p>

<p>Environmental groups say these new laws are part of a broader push by petrochemical industry-backed groups to rebrand fossil fuel as climate friendly and head off efforts to shift electric grids to renewables, such as solar and wind. It's "pure Orwellian greenwashing," said Tim Donaghy, research director of Greenpeace USA.</p>

<p>Globally, the term green energy is used to refer to energy derived from natural sources that do not pollute — solar, wind, hydropower and geothermal energy. Louisiana's law could enable funds slated for state clean energy initiatives to be used to support natural gas.</p>

<p>Natural gas has been the top source of electricity generation in the United States for about a decade, since surpassing coal. Coal and natural gas both produce carbon dioxide that warms the planet when burned, but coal produces over twice as much.</p>

<p>Switching from coal to natural gas lowers carbon dioxide emissions, but it can increase emissions of methane. The primary component of natural gas, methane is an extraordinarily powerful greenhouse gas, more potent at trapping heat than carbon dioxide and responsible for about 30% of today's global warming.</p>

<p>Besides coal, everything else is better than gas for the planet, said Rob Jackson, a Stanford University climate scientist. Building new gas plants locks in fossil fuel emissions for decades, he added.</p>

<p>Redefining natural gas</p>

<p>Louisiana's law orders state agencies and utilities regulators to "prioritize" natural gas, along with nuclear power, on the grounds that it will improve the affordability and reliability of the state's electricity.</p>

<p>The law's author, Republican Rep. Jacob Landry, runs an oil and gas industry consulting firm.</p>

<p>"I don't think it's anything crippling to wind or solar, but you got to realize the wind don't blow all the time and the sun don't shine every day," Landry said. The legislation "is saying we need to prioritize what keeps the grid energized," he added.</p>

<p>Landry told The that he used a model bill by the American Legislative Exchange Council as a template. ALEC is a conservative think tank with ties to the oil and gas industry's billionaire Koch family.</p>

<p>ALEC helped shape Ohio's 2023 law to legally redefine natural gas as a source of green energy, according to documents obtained by watchdog group Energy and Policy Institute and first reported by the Washington Post. Ohio's legislation was also heavily influenced by an advocacy group led by Republican megadonor Tom Rastin, a now retired gas industry executive.</p>

<p>According to Dave Anderson, policy and communications manager for the Energy and Policy Institute, these laws are part of a long-running disinformation campaign by the gas industry to cast their product as clean to protect their businesses and prevent a shift to renewable energy sources that will address the climate crisis.</p>

<p>"The goal is to elbow out competition from renewables from wind and solar, and in some cases preempt localities' ability to choose to pursue 100% truly clean energy," Anderson said, adding that ALEC's legislation makes natural gas "eligible for state and local clean energy standards and funding."</p>

<p>Questions over grid reliability</p>

<p>Gov. Landry and other proponents of the new law said they want to make sure that residents and businesses have a reliable electric grid. Nearly 80% of Louisiana's grid is already powered by natural gas.</p>

<p>Landry said that businesses will come to Louisiana if they know they can count on the state's electric grid. He highlighted Meta's plan to build a massive AI data center powered by three natural gas plants.</p>

<p>Louisiana's law orders utilities providers to prioritize nuclear energy as well. Nuclear power does not emit greenhouse gases while producing electricity. However, critics say it is more expensive than solar and wind and the U.S. does not have a sufficient long-term solution for storing the waste.</p>

<p>Consumer advocates say states do not need to embrace natural gas at the expense of wind, solar and other technologies to have a reliable grid.</p>

<p>Legally mandating that utilities prioritize natural gas is "blind to innovation, market evolution, and the practical demands of modern electric systems," Jeffrey Clark, president of the Advanced Power Alliance, a renewable energy advocacy group, wrote in a statement opposing Louisiana's law.</p>

<p>It's unclear to what extent Louisiana's utilities regulators will act on the order to prioritize natural gas over renewable energy. While Public Service Commissioner Davante Lewis, a Democrat, called the law "unenforceable" and pledged to ignore it, his Republican counterpart Jean-Paul Coussan said promoting natural gas "aligns well" with the state's economic growth.</p>

<p>___</p>

<p>McDermott reported from Providence, Rhode Island.</p>

<p>___</p>

<p>Brook is a corps member for The /Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.</p>

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June 26, 2025

Louisiana is latest state to redefine natural gas -- a planet-warming fossil fuel -- as green energy

<p>- Louisiana is latest state to redefine natural gas -- a planet-warming fossil fuel -- as green energy</p> ...
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Rita Ora Says She's Like a 'Fairy Godmother' to Husband Taika Waititi's 2 Kids in Rare Comments About Their Relationship

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  • Rita Ora Says She's Like a 'Fairy Godmother' to Husband Taika Waititi's 2 Kids in Rare Comments About Their Relationship</p>

<p>Hannah SacksJune 27, 2025 at 5:19 AM</p>

<p>Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty</p>

<p>Rita Ora offered some rare insight into her relationship with husband Taika Waititi's two kids</p>

<p>The singer compared herself to a "fairy godmother" as she spoke about the "fun" relationship she has with her stepkids</p>

<p>Waititi shares his two kids with ex-wife Chelsea Winstanley</p>

<p>Rita Ora is sharing that she plays a special role in her stepkids' lives.</p>

<p>The singer, 34, appeared on the Begin Again with Davina McCall podcast and gave some rare comments about her role as a stepmom to husband Taika Waititi's two kids — Te Kāinga o te Hinekāhu, 13, and Matewa Kiritapu, 9 — whom he shares with ex-wife Chelsea Winstanley.</p>

<p>"It is so fun. I just have the best time with them," Ora says. "I'm like the fairy godmother [who] gives them all the sugar and all the ice cream, and then sends them back. And their mother, who I love dearly, is like, 'They're bouncing off the walls.'"</p>

<p>"I think that's the fun part of being a stepmom, like you can do those naughty things. I take them out, and I took them to an Ed Sheeran concert," she continues. "They met Ed Sheeran, like, I was giving it all to these kids!"</p>

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<p>Araya Doheny/WireImage</p>

<p>Taika Waititi and Rita Ora</p>

<p>Ora and her filmmaker husband Waititi first sparked dating rumors in 2021. They went on to tie the knot the following year.</p>

<p>The two started as friends and eventually became romantically involved when they both found themselves working in Australia, as she revealed during a February 2023 appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show.</p>

<p>"He's so, so great. We're friends, and we met long before we decided to ruin everything," Ora quipped at the time. "We were friends for six years."</p>

<p>Amy Sussman/Getty</p>

<p>Rita Ora (L) and Taika Waititi (R) attend the Los Angeles premiere of Searchlight Pictures' "Next Goal Wins" at AMC The Grove 14 on November 14, 2023 in Los Angeles, California</p>

<p>In August 2022, a source confirmed to PEOPLE that the director and singer got married in a "very small" ceremony. During an interview with Heart Breakfast in January 2023, Ora revealed that there was a wedding. "They say everything happens for a reason. I am officially off the market, people!" she said.</p>

<p>Later in the conversation, she described the intimate wedding as "just nice and perfect."</p>

<p>Their romance has also influenced their work, such as Ora's album, You & I, which features the title track that was inspired by their wedding day. "My biggest supporter and advocate is Taika," she told PEOPLE in July 2023.</p>

<p>At the time, she also admitted that growing their family was something that she'd long wanted. "My biggest supporter and advocate is Taika," said Ora. At the time, she also said she hopes to "one day" expand their family. "That's always been a dream of mine."</p>

<p>on People</p>

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June 26, 2025

Rita Ora Says She's Like a 'Fairy Godmother' to Husband Taika Waititi's 2 Kids in Rare Comments About Their Relationship

<p>- Rita Ora Says She's Like a 'Fairy Godmother' to Husband Taika Waititi's 2 Kids in Rare Comments...
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