Morning rundown: 5,000 dead following earthquakes; NYC lifts vax mandate

KARAH RUCKER: NEW YORK CITY IS LIFTING IT’S COVID-19 VACCINE MANDATE. AND LAST MINUTE CHANGES TO PRESIDENT BIDEN’S SPEECH AHEAD OF THE STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS.

BUT FIRST WE BEGIN WITH OUR TOP STORY. THOUSANDS OF MORE VICTIMS HAVE BEEN FOUND IN THE RUBBLE FOLLOWING YESTERDAY’S EARTHQUAKE.

THIS IS STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS. UNBIASED. STRAIGHT FACTS.

AT LEAST 5,000 DEAD FOLLOWING EARTHQUAKE

THE DEATH TOLL HAS DRAMATICALLY RISEN IN TURKEY AND SYRIA…WITH AT LEAST 5 THOUSAND PEOPLE DEAD FOLLOWING MONDAY’S EARTHQUAKE. TENS OF THOUSANDS OF OTHERS ARE INJURED.

MORE THAN 300 AFTER-SHOCKS — INCLUDING A 5.7 MAGNITUDE QUAKE THIS MORNING — CONTINUE TO RUMBLE THE REGION – MAKING RESCUE MISSIONS THAT MUCH MORE DANGEROUS.

MORE THAN 20 THOUSAND PEOPLE ARE ON THE GROUND SEARCHING FOR SURVIVORS. MANY OF WHICH HAVE LOST EVERYTHING..HOMELESS IN COLD WINTER CONDITIONS.

CHEMICALS RELEASED FROM DERAILED TRAIN

PAUL COCHRAN: “I wish it would just get over with. I mean, it’s really a scary experience if you ain’t never experienced something like it, but it is.”

FOR THREE DAYS — OFFICIALS IN OHIO HAVE BEEN DEALING WITH THE AFTERMATH OF A FIERY AND DANGEROUS TRAIN-DERAILMENT.

RESIDENTS NEARBY HAD TO EVACUATE THEIR HOMES AS OFFICIALS WARNED OF A POTENTIALLY CATASTROPHIC EXPLOSION DUE TO CHEMICALS INSIDE THE RAIL CARS.

NOW — CREWS ARE RELEASING THOSE TOXIC CHEMICALS INTO THE AIR IN HOPES OF PREVENTING AN EXPLOSION.

OFFICIALS DEALT NO EASY DECISION HAVE MOVED FORWARD WITH A CONTROLLED CHEMICAL RELEASE.

TOXINS THAT COULD POTENTIALLY BLOW UP 5 RAIL CARS WERE LEAKED OUT OF THE CONTAINERS — REDUCING THE CHANCES OF AN EXPLOSION.

FLAMES AND BLACK SMOKE BILLOWED HIGH INTO THE SKY ABOVE THE DERAILMENT SITE AS “VINYL CHLORIDE” WAS RELEASED.

OFFICIALS ARE MONITORING THE AIR QUALITY AS MANY RESIDENTS HAVE BEEN ORDERED TO EITHER STAY AWAY OR SHELTER IN PLACE.

PAUL COCHRAN | EAST PALESTINE RESIDENT: “I hope it never happens again. I mean that’s what I really hope because you know that old phrase, death riding a big black horse? That’s what it felt like. I’m serious, it really did.”

BP REPORTS HISTORICALLY BIG PROFIT

ANOTHER MAJOR OIL COMPANY IS REPORTING RECORD-HIGH PROFITS — B-P MORE THAN DOUBLING IT’S ANNUAL PROFITS YEAR-OVER-YEAR. 

AT A TIME WHEN FOSSIL FUEL PRICES SOARED WORLD-WIDE — B-P RAKED IN NEARLY 28 BILLION DOLLARS PROFIT. COMPARED TO 12.8 BILLION THE PREVIOUS YEAR.

THE COMPANY FITS RIGHT IN LINE WITH ITS COMPETING GIANT-OIL COMPANIES. SHELL ALSO MORE THAN DOUBLED INTO ANNUAL PROFITS IN 20-22 COMPARED TO THE PREVIOUS YEAR.

SHELL, EXXON, CHEVRON, AND NOW BP — ALL POSTING RECORD-HIGH PROFITS. SOMETHING LAWMAKERS ARE TAKING NOTICE OF…AND COULD POTENTIALLY TAP INTO THROUGH A WINDFALL TAX.

VACCINE MANDATE LIFTED FOR NYC WORKERS

STARTING NEXT WEEK — NEW YORK CITY EMPLOYEES WILL NO LONGER BE REQUIRED TO GET VACCINATED AGAINST COVID-19.

MAYOR ERIC ADAMS ANNOUNCING AN END TO THE VACCINE MANDATE…WHICH WILL EXPIRE FRIDAY — NEARLY 15 MONTHS AFTER THE POLICY WAS FIRST IMPLEMENTED.

96 PERCENT OF THE CITY’S WORKFORCE HAS ALREADY BEEN VACCINATED.

BUT THIS MEANS 18 HUNDRED CITY EMPLOYEES PREVIOUSLY FIRED FOR NOT COMPLYING WITH THE MANDATE ARE NOW ELIGIBLE FOR REHIRE. 

SPACEX LAUNCHES SPANISH SATELLITE

SPACEX HAS DONE IT AGAIN. SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHING A HIGH-POWER **SPANISH COMMUNICATIONS SATELLITE.

GOVERNMENT AND CORPORATE USERS IN THE AMERICAS, GREENLAND, AND ALONG THE ATLANTIC OCEAN “AIR AND MARITIME SHIPPING CORRIDORS” WILL BE ABLE TO 

ACCESS THE SATELLITE FOR IMPROVED CONNECTIVITY SERVICES.

MOBILE NETWORK COMPANIES WILL ALSO BE ABLE TO ACCESS THE SATELLITE TO BROADEN THEIR CELLULAR COVERAGE AREAS.

BIDEN TO DELIVER STATE OF THE UNION

LASTLY, LOOKING AHEAD – PRESIDENT BIDEN WILL DELIVER HIS SECOND STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS TONIGHT…PLANNING TO LAY OUT ACCOMPLISHMENTS BIDEN FEELS ARE NOTEWORTHY UNDER HIS ADMINISTRATION.

BUT AMERICANS HAVE A HEIGHTENED INTEREST IN WHAT THE PRESIDENT HAS TO SAY OVER FOREIGN POLICY AFTER THE RECENT CHINESE SATELLITE WAS FOUND HOVERING OVER THE U.S.

AND ACCORDING TO NBC NEWS — THE WHITE HOUSE IS MAKING LAST MINUTE CHANGES TO THE SECTION OF THE STATE OF THE UNION SPEECH THAT ADDRESSES CHINA.

KARINE JEAN-PIERRE | WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: “I’m not going to get ahead of the president on what he’s going to speak to as it relates specifically to China. You know, I just laid out at the top that it is going to be up to China. It’s up to China to see how they want to see this relationship moving forward.”

THE PRESIDENT WILL BEGIN SPEAKING AT 8 O’CLOCK CENTRAL TIME THIS EVENING.