It’s inexplicable:' Venezuelan mother loses husband in earthquake after deportation

 Less than 10 days ago, Johana Pineda lived in Nashville, Tennessee, with her husband, Richard Pereira, and their 7-year-old son, Richie. The couple worked for Amazon, and their son attended martial arts classes during summer break.

Pineda and her son are now in Venezuela after the family was deported, and her husband is dead. Pereira was killed on June 24 when a hotel near Caracas that housed more than 100 people who were deported from the U.S. collapsed during deadly earthquakes that struck the coast of Venezuela.

Over 2,500 people have died as a result of last week's earthquakes, Venezuelan officials said, and nearly 50,000 remain unaccounted for, according to the Internati

"It's inexplicable," Pineda told ABC News in Spanish.

Pineda said she and her family entered the U.S. in 2022 on humanitarian parole. They initiated the asylum process and complied with routine check-ins for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, including one in December.

But in June, Pineda said, immigration authorities during a check-in presented two options: detention or voluntary departure. She told ABC News that her family chose to leave to avoid detention.

Pineda said ICE agents informed the couple that they had until August 15 to depart the U.S. but required weekly check-ins and ordered them to wear ankle monitors. 

We went back that Monday," Pineda said. "And the [ICE] agent said, 'Everything is ready, and you are all leaving today.'"

"I started to cry," she said. "My son was listening to everything. My husband, who never cries, started to tear up."

Pineda said the family was detained and transported to Texas, where they were held until Wednesday before their deportation. Upon arriving in Venezuela, Pineda said, she and the other deportees were taken to a hotel near La Guaira. She said she was separated from her husband because men and women were housed in different rooms.

That afternoon, the building collapsed during the deadly earthquakes.

"I grabbed my son to protect him," she said. "I hugged him and protected him with my body. I never lost sight of him."

Pineda said she searched for an exit in the rubble.

"When the light came in, I saw a hole," she said. "I couldn't get out, but my son could. He began to scream for help, and I screamed, too.""They pulled him out, but he was severely injured and did not survive," she said.

Pineda buried her husband on Wednesday, one week after their deportation and the earthquake.

Pineda and her son were rescued. She told ABC News that the following day, she learned that her husband died from injuries at a hospital.

"We always tried to do the right thing," she added.

In a statement to ABC News, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said the June 24 flight "safely reached Venezuela, and all individuals on board were returned."

When an individual is no longer in ICE custody, ICE is no longer responsible for them," the spokesperson added.

"They don't care if you have a life or a family," Pineda said. "They only care about deporting."

Pineda said the hardest thing to accept is the loss of her husband, whom she had known since she was 13.

"It is difficult because I lost my friend and my husband," she said. "My son is left without his dad. Why did this happen? You try to do things the right way so that bad things don't happen."

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FBI will have nuclear-detecting plane, drone-takeover technology to guard July Fourth celebrations

 There will be unprecedented levels of security around the country for the United States' 250th birthday celebrations over the weekend, according to a top FBI official, and the government will have the latest technology at its disposal including being able to take over drones and a nuclear-detecting plane.

FBI Co-Deputy Director Christopher Raia told ABC News' Chief Justice Correspondent Pierre Thomas that it's an "all hands on deck" situation.

"We have several of our resources, the vast majority of our resources right now dedicated in one shape or another to protecting our citizens and our visitors who have come here to enjoy themselves," Raia said. "Whether it's at a FIFA match, whether it's at America 250, or whether it's at one of these other great celebrations around the country."

In Washington, D.C., authorities are raising the celebrations on the National Mall and surrounding areas to the highest security level. Officials have said they are not currently tracking any credible threats.

There are nearly 19 miles of anti-scale fencing, 3.5 miles of road closures, 3 miles of the Potomac River are closed and thousands of federal agents and nearly all of the Metropolitan Police Department officers will be working in sweltering temperatures.

For the first time, the annual Fourth of July fireworks display on the National Mall will be designated a "National Special Security Event," with security levels on par with presidential inaugurations. People entering the National Mall grounds will have to pass through TSA-like screening, said Tara McLeese, the Secret Service Special Agent in charge of the Washington field office.

In years past "you could just walk up and put a lawn chair and a blanket out. That will be different this year," she said. "You won't be able to just show up. There will be specific places, designated places to go through security before you can get on the Mall."

In the air, teams from the National Nuclear Security Administration will be scanning for any hazardous material in Washington.

"We are flying missions to make sure that there are no radiological threats. But this is just the part that you see -- we also have a lot of people with radiation detectors and backpacks that are traversing the Mall and maintaining that constant presence," Brandon Williams, the administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration told ABC News. "The truth is we've been there in the background for decades on all of these kinds of major events."

We have technology now that we're able to take control of those drones and either send them back to their pilot, which is good for us -- now we figure out who the pilot is, we can interview that person, get investigative leads, see if there's something more to it -- or we can send that to a what we call a designated safe zone," he said.

Independence Day celebrations come in the most challenging threat environment since 9/11, with the ongoing terror threat, a rise in political violence and continuing fears about lone-wolf offenders, according to Raia.

"In this job, people ask me all the time, 'What keeps you up at night?' and that lone offender threat that we just talked about, ... that is the one that keeps me up at night and that is the one that we are going to be working feverishly as an agency. We will continue to work every angle,” he said. "Analytics, intelligence, enforcement, everything to make sure that our Americans are protected not only during 250, celebration of FIFA, but every day across the country."

Trump designated disaster aid to 9 Republican-leaning states while plugging GOP candidates

 

President Donald Trump announced he approved more than $846 million in disaster relief funds for Republican-leaning states in a series of posts on his social media platform, combining the announcements with praise for candidates he endorsed in those states' upcoming elections.  

"I am pleased to announce that the Great State of Louisiana has been approved to be given $8.6 Million Dollars in its Disaster Declaration Request. Louisiana is truly a special place, with Governor Jeff Landry, Senator John Kennedy, soon to be Senator Julia Letlow, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, and Congressman Clay Higgins," Trump said in one of the nine social media posts he made relating to aid approvals Tuesday evening.

The disaster relief approvals come as people across the U.S. experience severe weather events in recent days -- from a wildfire in Utah approaching 100,000-acres to extreme heat in the Midwest and Northeast to a declared state of emergency due to flash flooding in Kentucky.

The president has repeatedly approved a higher percentage of aid requests for Republican-leaning states than for Democratic-leaning ones in his second term, according to the nonpartisan think tank Urban Institute. Nearly 84% of disaster requests from states that voted for Trump in 2024 were approved, compared to about 42% from states that voted for Kamala Harris, according to an analysis of public FEMA data from Andrew Rumbach, senior fellow at the Urban Institute.

In April, Trump rejected aid requests relating to wildfires and flooding from Colorado's Democratic Gov. Jared Polis. Last year, more than 19 states sued the Trump administration for withholding FEMA funds, all led by Democratic attorneys general.

Following a bomb cyclone storm in November, Trump denied Washington state's request for aid, refusing both then Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee's initial request and Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson's later appeal. FEMA had documented $34 million in damage from the storms and flooding.

Trump's aid approval announcements Tuesday showed a similar pattern. All nine of the states whose disaster requests were approved voted for Trump in 2024.

Asked for comment about Trump's disproportionate disaster aid approvals to Republican-leaning states, a White House spokeswoman told ABC News in a statement, "President Trump provides a more thorough review of disaster declaration requests than any Administration has before him. The President responds to each request for Federal assistance under the Stafford Act with great care and consideration, ensuring American tax dollars are used appropriately and efficiently by the states to supplement -- not substitute, their obligation to respond to and recover from disasters."

"There is no politicization to the President's decisions on disaster relief, unlike under the Biden Administration where FEMA officials refused aid to disaster survivors who displayed political signs and flags they disagreed with," the spokeswoman continued. "The Trump administration remains committed to empowering and working with State and local governments to invest in their own resilience before disaster strikes, making response less urgent and recovery less prolonged."

As ABC News has reported, a FEMA supervisor was fired during damage response from Hurricane Milton in 2024 in one storm-ravaged Florida town for allegedly asking team members to not inspect homes that had signs supporting Trump. About a month prior, Trump had repeatedly pushed misinformation during Hurricane Helene recovery efforts, falsely claiming that disaster funds were being used on immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally rather than Americans impacted by disasters. 

Democratic senators have moved to demand greater transparency regarding the Trump administration's review of disaster declaration requests. Michigan Sen. Gary Peters and New Jersey Sen. Andy Kim led 15 Democratic senators in sending a letter to the Office of Management and Budget on June 16, which they believe assisted the president in reviewing disaster declaration requests. 

"Federal regulations require FEMA to provide recommendations based on specific, verifiable criteria," wrote the senators. "To date, President Trump's Administration has provided no further information regarding what this new approval process entails or what metrics or other considerations it relies on, causing uncertainty that leaves disaster survivors in the dark." 

The governor of a state affected by disasters is the one who sends official aid requests to FEMA. Six of the nine states hold gubernatorial elections in 2026 and Trump officially endorsed candidates in all six races.

In his Tuesday posts, Trump noted that he spoke with Republican governors about the aid approvals. But for the states with Democratic governors -- Wisconsin and Kansas -- he doesn't mention the governors, instead saying that he spoke with the states' senators and other lawmakers. The two largest aid designations were given to Florida, with $415.9 million in aid for severe storms in the Panhandle, and to Georgia, with $318.3 million in aid relating to Hurricane Helene.

Trump has twice endorsed Rep. Byron Donalds in Florida's governor race. In Georgia, voters rejected Trump's pick for governor, opting for healthcare tycoon Rick Jackson.

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's wedding festivities to kick off at Madison Square Garden: Sources

 Wedding festivities are reportedly set to begin Thursday for Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

A Chevrolet Suburban SUV with tinted windows believed to be transporting Swift was spotted arriving at MSG around 5 p.m. Thursday, according to a photo released by Reuters.

The first event for Swift and Kelce will be held at the arena around 6 p.m., with a guest list of about 100 people, sources familiar with the plans told ABC News earlier this week.

Details about the event have been kept under wraps. 

Just hours before the event on Thursday, Swift and Kelce had donated $26 million to charities, a representative for Swift confirmed to ABC News. ABC News is also reaching out to charities.City Harvest, New York City's first and largest food rescue organization, shared a press release on Thursday revealing that the couple donated $1 million to the organization.

In a statement from City Harvest CEO Jilly Stephens shared in the press release, Stephens said, "This donation is a love letter to New York, and a bold commitment to our efforts to ensure that no New Yorker goes hungry."

On Friday, a second event will take place at the arena, starting around 4 p.m. with a cocktail hour, according to the sources. One thousand people are expected to be in attendance, the sources said, and the event isn't scheduled to end until 4 a.m. Saturday morning.

The sources said both events will have a strict no-phone policy for everyone inside the venue, including guests, vendors and security personnel. 

Outside of the venue, streets will be shut down. The sources said an event company has obtained permits to close portions of West 31st Street and West 33rd Street for the duration of the events. Streets will also be closed to both vehicles and pedestrians, according to the sources. NYPD on THursday announced a dozen street closures impacting pedestrian and vehicular traffic around MSG during the two days of events, as well as limited access to Moynihan Train Hall and Penn Station, where commuters access Amtrak and subway trains.

Those hoping to get a glimpse of attendees arriving at this week's events might be out of luck: the sources explained that tents and canopies will be set up to prevent the public from seeing those entering and exiting the venue. 

Multiple trucks were seen outside the arena earlier this week, leading up to the events, with workers loading in equipment with boxes labeled "Garden Party." Workers were also spotted rolling out a red carpet. 

Representatives for Swift and Kelce have not confirmed any details about the events.

Swift and Kelce have been linked since 2023, when Kelce, a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, attended one of Swift's Eras Tour shows at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, and tried to give Swift a friendship bracelet with his number on it.

The "Love Story" singer attended her first Chiefs game in September 2023 and attended Super Bowl LVIII several months later to support Kelce as his team beat the San Francisco 49ers.

The duo appeared to make their relationship Instagram official on July 24, 2025, when Kelce shared photos of the two spending time together in the NFL offseason. 

The pair shared news of their engagement on Aug. 26, 2025, in an Instagram post captioned, "Your English Teacher and your gym teacher are getting married 🧨." 

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Heat wave forecast: Dangerous temps to continue into July 4 holiday

A dangerous heat wave is bringing prolonged extreme heat to more than two dozen states across the Midwest, the South and the East Coast.

The heat wave began in the Midwest on Monday and has since spread east, where it's set to last into the Fourth of July weekend.

With holiday travel in full effect, Amtrak canceled over a dozen trains in the Northeast Thursday due to the heat.

On Thursday, the heat index -- what temperature it feels like with humidity -- is expected to hit a scorching 111 degrees in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., 106 in Boston, 102 in Chicago, 108 in Detroit, and 110 in Nashville, Tennessee.

New York City's heat index reached 106 degrees on Thursday. The actual temperature in Central Park hit 100 degrees, marking the first triple-digit day there since 2012.

The city has activated its heat emergency plan and is opening hundreds of cooling centers.