News Headlines - 19 November 2020

▽Japan records high of daily virus cases, amid worrying spike

Japan reported a record number of daily coronavirus infections Thursday, amid a worrying spike in a country that has been spared the worst of the pandemic and hopes to host the Olympics next year... Tokyo saw a record number of single-day cases twice this week, and the Health Ministry said Thursday that the national number hit a record with 2,179 new cases.
That’s the first time Japan has had more than 2,000 daily cases since the pandemic began. The previous high was set Saturday.

▽Landslide in Ecuador Kills 5 at Illegal Mine - The New York Times

A landslide killed at last five people on Wednesday and sent emergency workers on a frantic rescue mission in a remote part of northern Ecuador known for illegal gold mining.
The landslide was caused by illegal excavations, according to the country’s natural disasters and emergency response service, and occurred as Ecuador and neighboring nations like Colombia struggle to combat the illicit industry, which has surged with the rise of international gold prices.

▽Boeing's 737 Max Gets FAA Approval To Take To The Skies : NPR

After 20 months on the tarmac following two fatal crashes, Boeing's troubled 737 Max airliner has been given the green light to resume passenger flights, the Federal Aviation Administration announced Wednesday.
The plane's return to the skies will not be immediate, however. The FAA is requiring a series of design changes laid out in a 115-page directive. It also put forward training requirements for pilots and maintenance requirements for airlines.

▽World's last known white giraffe gets GPS tracking device

The only known white giraffe in the world has been fitted with a GPS tracking device to help protect it from poachers as it grazes in Kenya. But despite its singular status, the lonely male doesn’t have a name.
The white giraffe now stands alone after a female and her calf were killed by poachers in March, the Ishaqbini Hirola Community Conservancy said in a statement Tuesday.
A rare genetic trait called leucism causes the white color, and it makes the one surviving giraffe stand out dangerously for poachers in the arid savannah near the Somalia border.

▽China rescue: British diplomat Stephen Ellison saves drowning woman - BBC News

Stephen Ellison, 61, consul-general in Chongqing, was walking by a river in a nearby village when the woman, 24, slipped on rocks into the deep water.
Footage filmed by onlookers showed her struggle in the fast-moving current, disappear under a footbridge and emerge face down, apparently unconscious.
Mr Ellison took off his shoes and dived in to save her. She has not been named.