Irma lashes Bahamas and Cuba on a path towards Florida
Hurricane Irma lashed Cuba and the Bahamas as it drove toward Florida on Friday after hitting the eastern Caribbean with its devastatingly high winds, killing 21 people and leaving catastrophic destruction in its wake.
As Irma, one of the most powerful Atlantic storms in a century, was expected to hit Florida on Sunday, Governor Rick Scott starkly warned residents to get out if they were in evacuation zones.
"We are running out of time. If you are in an evacuation zone, you need to go now. This is a catastrophic storm like our state has never seen," Scott told reporters, adding that the storm's effects would be felt from coast to coast in the state.
US President Donald Trump said in a videotaped statement that Irma was "a storm of absolutely historic destructive potential," and called on people to heed recommendations from government officials and law enforcement.
Irma was about 360km east of Caibarien on Cuba's central-north coast, and 610km south-east of Miami, the National Hurricane Centre (NHC) said in an advisory at 2pm EDT on Friday (2am on Saturday, Singapore time).
'Active shooter' arrested at Ohio school, no injuries
A student brought a gun to his Ohio high school on Friday and began shooting, but the quick actions of a school employee prevented bloodshed.
Police in Columbus, the US state's capital, accused 18-year-old Adan Abdullahi of firing a gun inside Schioto High School on Friday morning - sparking multiple calls of an "active shooter."
The entire incident was over within minutes, however, thanks to the actions of a school employee, police said. A staff member "was able to talk to that person while he was still armed, and at least calm him down long enough for us to take him into custody," police said.
Two-thirds of American adults get news from social media: Survey
About two-thirds of American adults are getting "at least some of their news on social media" with two-in-10 doing so often, according to a Pew Research Centre survey.
About 67 per cent of American adults somewhat rely on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat for news, the survey showed, compared with 62 per cent in 2016.
For the first time in the Centre's surveys, the research also found that 55 per cent of Americans adults over 50 were consuming news on social media sites, up from 45 per cent in 2016.
Football: Lewandowski criticises Bayern's spending policy
Top striker Robert Lewandowski has said Bayern Munich must spend more on star players or risk being left trailing their rivals.
"Bayern have to think something up and be more creative if the club wants to attract a world-class player to Munich," Lewandowski told magazine Der Spiegel in a critical interview.
"If you want to play on the front foot, you need the quality players."
Lady Gaga says taking a break after fifth album tour
Lady Gaga said on Friday she plans to take a break after her current Joanne World Tour ends in mid-December.
"I'm gonna take a rest," she told a press conference at the Toronto film festival for the premiere of the documentary film Gaga: Five Foot Two. "I don't know how long."
"That doesn't mean I won't be creating, it doesn't mean I don't have things up my sleeve that I'm not going to tell you today. But I'm looking forward to reflecting and slowing down for a moment and healing, because that's important."
