Morning Briefing June 26, 2021: Severe flood damage from storms reported across Metro Detroit, report showed major damage before Florida condo collapse, Madagascar droughts push 400K toward starvation

Here are this morning’s top stories

Severe storms leave homes flooded, cars stranded across Metro Detroit

Communities across Metro Detroit are still dealing with damage from Friday’s storms as more severe weather is expected Saturday.

Friday’s storms left homes flooded and cars stranded. Some are comparing the damage to the 2014 floods in Metro Detroit.

Local 4 News reporter Larry Spruill was live Saturday morning with a closer look at the flood damage.


Report showed major damage before Florida condo collapse

The oceanfront condominium building that collapsed near Miami had “major structural damage” to a concrete structural slab below its pool deck that needed to be extensively repaired, according to a 2018 engineering report on the building.

The report was among a series of documents released by the city of Surfside as rescuers continued to dig Saturday through the rubble of the building in an effort to find any of the 159 people who remain unaccounted for after its collapse. At least four people were killed.

Read more: Victims in Miami condo collapse came from around the world


UN: Madagascar droughts push 400,000 toward starvation

The U.N. World Food Program says southern Madagascar is in the throes of back-to-back droughts that are pushing 400,000 people toward starvation, and have already caused deaths from severe hunger.

Lola Castro, WFP’s regional director in southern Africa, told a news conference Friday that she witnessed “a very dramatic and desperate situation” during her recent visit with WFP chief David Beasley to the Indian Ocean island nation of 26 million people.

Hundreds of adults and children were “wasted,” and hundreds of kids were skin and bones and receiving nutritional support, she said.


Weather: Flood watch with rain showers and thunderstorms return Saturday


COVID in Michigan 💉

The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in Michigan has risen to 893,949 as of Friday, including 19,707 deaths, state officials report.

Friday’s update includes a total of 40 new cases and 15 additional deaths.

This is the fewest number of cases announced for a single day in Michigan since March 17, 2020, when there were 11 new cases.

Testing has been steady around 20,000 diagnostic tests reported per day on average, with the 7-day positive rate below 1.2% as of Tuesday, the lowest on record. Hospitalizations have declined over the last several weeks.

The state’s 7-day moving average for daily cases was 133 on Tuesday -- the lowest since June 2020. The 7-day death average was 13 on Monday, the lowest since March. The state’s fatality rate is 2.2%. The state also reports “active cases,” which were listed at 14,000 on Monday.

Michigan has reported more than 9 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine administered as of Monday, with 61.2% of 16+ residents having received at least one dose while 52.2% of 16+ residents are considered fully vaccinated.

Details: Michigan coronavirus cases up to 893,949; Death toll now at 19,707

Here’s a look at more of the data:


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