Untreated water used by a Florida cucumber grower is one likely source of salmonella food poisoning that sickened nearly 450 people across the U.S. this spring, federal health officials said Tuesday. But that grower doesn’t account for all of the cucumber-related illnesses and 125 hospitalizations that were reported from late March through early June, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. Salmonella found in untreated canal water used by Bedner Growers Inc. of Boynton Beach, Florida, matched a strain of the bacteria that caused some of the illnesses in reported in more than 30 states and Washington, D.C. Additional types of salmonella were detected in soil and water samples collected at the site, FDA officials said.

Hurricane season is upon us, known for disastrous flooding and high-speed winds in coastal areas of the United States and in the Caribbean and Central America, and emergency management officials are urging people to stay prepared. Unlike previous hurricane seasons, this summer brings record hot temperatures nationwide and an early onset of storms. Hurricane season runs June 1 to Nov. 30, but usually the most hurricanes occur in September and October, said Jaime Hernandez, the emergency management director for Hollywood, on Florida’s Atlantic Coast. “That’s a little bit different this year because of the reality we’re dealing with with global warming, warmer sea surface temperatures, atmosphere conditions that are more favorable to tropical cyclone development,” Hernandez said.

U.S. officials have approved another Alzheimer’s drug that can modestly slow the disease, providing a new option for patients in the early stages of the incurable, memory-destroying ailment. The Food and Drug Administration approved Eli Lilly’s Kisunla on Tuesday for mild or early cases of dementia caused by Alzheimer’s. It’s only the second drug that’s been convincingly shown to delay cognitive decline in patients, following last year’s approval of a similar drug from Japanese drugmaker Eisai. The delay seen with both drugs amounts to a matter of months — about seven months, in the case of Lilly’s drug. Patients and their families will have to weigh that benefit against the downsides, including regular IV infusions and potentially dangerous side effects like brain swelling.

In an article discussing the topic of the day – US President Joe Biden’s fitness to be president – White House aides and administration officials spoke to the New York Times about their interactions with the president in the last few weeks. Most agreed that Biden has moments of sharpness but also has increasing moments of confusion and disorientation. In the article, entitled Biden’s Lapses Are Said to Be Increasingly Common and Worrisome, some White House officials rejected doubt about Biden’s ability to lead by providing the example of the night Iran attacked Israel, April 13, when he very forcefully ordered Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu not to carry out a large-scale retaliatory attack against Iran.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is likely to meet US President Joe Biden during the prime minister’s trip to Washington later this month to address Congress, a White House official said. According to a CNN report, the details of the meeting are still being finalized. In response to a query by the Times of Israel, a White House official stated: “The President has known Prime Minister Netanyahu for three decades. They will likely see each other when the prime minister is here over the course of that week, but we have nothing to announce at this time.” Netanyahu’s speech to Congress is scheduled for July 24. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

The recent visit to the U.S. by six senior roshei yeshiva from Eretz Yisroel not only marked an unprecedented moment in Jewish history, but also sparked an equally unparalleled revolution of American Jewry rallying to the support of the Lomdei Torah thousands of miles away in Eretz Yisroel through the newly established Keren Olam Hatorah. Over the course of the roshei yeshiva’s short trip, an astounding $83 million was raised from philanthropists in the tri-state area and Toronto. Of that figure, $14.8 million was raised in Lakewood, $13.3 million in Brooklyn, $12.4 million in Manhattan, $11.5 million in Deal, $9.9 million in the 5 Towns, $8.5 million in Monsey, and $6 million in Toronto.

Three Israelis were injured in a stabbing attack on the second floor of a mall in Karmiel in northern Israel on Wednesday at about noon. Two are in very serious condition and the third is in moderate to serious condition. The terrorist was neutralized at the scene of the attack. This is a developing story. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)

A five-week-old infant from the Jerusalem area whose mother refused to get vaccinated for whooping cough during pregnancy died of the disease about a week ago. Two days later, a seven-year-old girl from Netanya, whose parents refused to vaccinate her against tetanus, was hospitalized in the pediatric intensive care unit at Laniado Hospital after contracting the serious and excruciatingly painful disease. Ynet reported that the lowest vaccination rates against whooping cough are found almost exclusively in Jerusalem and in religious and Chareidi communities outside the capital. The report quoted Dr. Maurit Beeri, a pediatrician and the director of ALYN Rehabilitation Hospital for Children and Youth, who slammed parents who neglect their children by refusing to vaccinate them.

Hundreds of soldiers from the Netzach Yehudah battalion who fought in Gaza participated in a joyous Hachnasas Sefer Torah on Tuesday, marching from the Gazan border to the shul at the Erez base. The Sefer Torah was donated by members of the Syrian community in Brooklyn headed by HaRav Ezriel Mansour who spoke to Rav Yosef Tzvi Rimon, the Chief Rabbi of Gush Etzion, and told him that they were interested in donating a small Sefer Torah that could serve the needs of troops operating in Gaza. Ra Rimon recommended that the Sefer Torah be donated to Netzech Yehudah, whose soldiers are operating in Gaza and lost precious members.

A flight from Madrid to Montevideo, Uruguay, operated by Air Europa, experienced severe turbulence on Monday, leaving dozens of passengers injured. The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, flight UX045, was forced to make an emergency landing at Natal Airport in northeastern Brazil just after 2:30 a.m. According to the health secretariat of the state of Rio Grande do Norte, around 30 passengers were taken to local hospitals in Natal with minor abrasions or orthopedic traumas. One passenger even became lodged above an overhead bin during the chaos. The interior cabin was left in disarray, with ceiling panels torn off and oxygen masks suspended above seats. Ambulances were waiting outside the cabin window to transport injured passengers. (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)