AP National News

The Latest: Greece tests more cruise ship crew amid outbreak

ATHENS – Health inspectors in Greece are carrying out additional COVID-19 tests on crew members of a cruise ship with more than 1,500 people on board, ordering the ship to stop at a testing area at the country’s largest port near Athens.

The Maltese-flagged Mein Schiff 6, which is on a Greek island cruise, was docked Tuesday at the port of Piraeus after sample testing of the crew found 12 crew members were positive but asymptomatic, the Greek Merchant Marine Ministry said.

Passengers had undergone coronavirus tests before boarding.

But since only 150 of the ship’s 666 crew members had been

Sen. Doug Jones: Ginsburg Replacement Should Wait Until After Election

MONTGOMERY, Ala. – U.S. Sen. Doug Jones of Alabama said he will not support any U.S. Supreme Court nominee before the outcome of the presidential election. Jones, a Democrat, said Friday that the nomination to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg should be made by the winner of the November presidential election. Jones accused Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell…

Tropical Storm Sally Set to Become Hurricane and Threaten U.S. Gulf Coast

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) – Tropical Storm Sally churned northward on Sunday, poised to turn into a hurricane and send life-threatening storm surge along the northern Gulf of Mexico. Sally is expected to become a hurricane on Monday and reach shore by early Tuesday, bringing hurricane conditions to a region stretching from from Morgan City, Louisiana, to Ocean Springs, Mississippi….

Alabama Last in Census Response as Much of Deep South Lags

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) – Alabama ranks last in the country for response to the 2020 U.S. Census with Louisiana, Mississippi and Georgia also in the bottom five. . Numbers from the U.S. Census show Alabama so far has the lowest percentage of households responding of any state in the country. About 81.5% of Alabama households have been counted as of…

Child Care Crisis Pushes U.S. Mothers out of the Labor Force

NEW YORK (AP) – Research is increasingly pointing to a retreat of working mothers from the U.S. labor force, as the pandemic leaves parents with few child care options and the added burden of navigating distance learning. The trend threatens the financial stability of families in the near-term. In the long-term, the crisis could stall, if not reverse, decades of…

Cybercrime on the Rise During Pandemic

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) – State securities officials say cybercrime including email attacks are on the rise during the pandemic. A statement from the Alabama Securities Commission said social engineering attacks have been increasing with more people working at home and children using virtual learning because of the Coronavirus outbreak. Commission Director Joe Borg said information is more accessible than ever,…

Three Alabama Locations Added to National Historic Register

MONTGOMERY, Al — Three spots in Alabama are being added to the nation’s honor roll of historic locations. The state says The Alabama Book Store in Tuscaloosa is joining the National Register of Historic Places. The shop has been located near the University of Alabama campus since 1942. The two other additions include Bricklayers Hall in Montgomery, which was used during…

Individuals Chosen to Design Mississippi Flag Without Rebel Symbol

The State Flag of Mississippi waves one last in the breeze over the City Hall of Tupelo Mississippi Monday, June 29, 2020, just moments before city officials lower the flag for the last time and present it to the city’s museum.(Thomas Wells/Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, Via AP) JACKSON, Miss. (AP) – A mayor, a former state Supreme Court justice, and…

Trump Reins in Major Environmental Law to Speed Big Projects

ATLANTA (AP) – President Trump is rolling back an influential environmental law from the Nixon era that he says delays infrastructure projects. The law is credited with ensuring that major projects get full scrutiny and that local communities have their say. Trump announced the change at a UPS facility in Atlanta. The changes deal with regulations for how and when…

As U.S. Grapples with Virus, Florida Hits Record Case Increase

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — With the United States grappling with the worst Coronavirus outbreak in the world, Florida hit a grim milestone Sunday, shattering the national record for a state’s largest single-day increase in positive cases. Deaths from the virus have also been rising in the U.S., especially in the South and West, though still well below the heights hit in…