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Students from war-torn countries find safe haven in the US, compete in a national rocketry competition

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Students from war-torn countries find safe haven in the US, compete in a national rocketry competition

On a humid cloudy day an hour outside the nation’s capital in The Plains, Virginia, teams of middle school students reached for the stars by competing in the American Rocketry Challenge, the world’s largest student rocket building competition. 

The contest is sponsored by the Defense Department, NASA, the Federal Aviation Administration and top U.S. defense contractors.

A total of 922 teams from all over the country applied, but only the top 100 teams were chosen to travel to Virginia to compete. The objective for each team was to build a rocket and launch it as high as possible while carrying an egg and landing without the egg breaking.

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One team from Francis Hammond Middle School in Alexandria, Virginia, had already overcome the odds before stepping onto the field to launch their rocket. The group of students was not born in the United States. Their families fled their homes in Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Ethiopia, Turkey and Ukraine. Their teachers recruited them to join the school’s rocketry club in part to help them learn English and adjust to life in America.

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Artem, 12, came to the U.S. from Ukraine with his mother after Russia invaded in February 2024. Artem was scared by the snipers and tanks outside their apartment building. Now, while his countrymen use artillery and drones to fight the Russian military, Artem is designing rockets. Artem loves using his creativity and has found a home in his school’s art department. He helped design the team’s rocket.  

Yosra and her little brother. Yosra tells Fox News she wants to be a lawyer and work for the U.S. government when she grows up. (Yosra’s family)

“When we needed to put the motor in, the motor didn’t fit, so we needed to make the space bigger. I was doing all that,” Artem told Fox News.

Farhan, 13, fled Afghanistan with his father, mother, grandfather and sister three years ago during the chaotic U.S. withdrawal when the Taliban took control. Now, he is focused on studying physics and wants to be a pilot.

“I’m really happy that we made it all the way to here. I’m proud of us and my team. We accomplished a lot,” Farhan said in an interview.

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What he did not talk about was his journey to get to the United States.

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Farhan’s father worked with the U.S. government for years before the country fell to the Taliban and asked not to be named to protect his family still in Afghanistan. Fearing for his family’s safety, he scrambled to get Farhan’s family to the airport. 

It involved a two-day journey on foot in the scorching heat and being repeatedly beaten by the Taliban. When they reached Abbey Gate, a U.S. Marine on the perimeter watching the crowd recognized Farhan’s father, having worked with him before. The Marine ushered his family into the airport. They were greeted warmly by a young female Marine who just days later was killed in the Abbey Gate bombing along with 12 U.S. service members.

Farhan’s family made it to safety on a U.S. military plane and eventually were brought to the United States. Now, Farhan says, when he grows up, he wants to be a pilot.

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Immigration American Rocketry Challenge 2

Farhan and his family on board a U.S. military plane leaving Kabul (Fox was asked to blur the faces of Farhan’s family to protect their identity).  (Farhan’s family )

“Our country had been taken over, and it wasn’t safe anymore. So we had to move,” Farhan said.

Yosra is another student on the team whose family also fled Afghanistan in August 2021. She wants to be a lawyer and work for the U.S. government when she grows up. But, right now, she loves building rockets, something the Taliban would never have allowed if she had stayed in Afghanistan.

“It feels like I’m free. Like I could do, like I could get anywhere I want. … I wouldn’t be able to dare even speak English if I was there. I mean, not even go to school. So, like, it feels nice. I feel proud,” Yosra said.

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On Aug. 27, Babur left Afghanistan with his family when he was just 10 years old. His father worked as an interpreter for the U.S. military, which is how the family was able to come to the United States. Babur loves studying science and space. He said he wants to work in the aerospace industry when he grows up.

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“I’m thankful because I’m independent, and I have a lot of opportunities to do here. Programs like right now, rocketry club,” Babur said.

On hand to observe the students’ successful launch was NASA astronaut Woody Hoburg, who represented his Pittsburgh high school at the same competition in 2003. Hoburg has spent 186 days in space and just returned last September from piloting the SpaceX mission to the International Space Station.

Immigration American Rocketry Challenge 3

Babur and his father are pictured outside Francis Hammond Middle School. (Babur’s family)

“I’m really passionate about students being able to get their hands dirty and build things, experiment, maybe fail once in a while, find out that flights don’t go perfectly,” Hoburg told Fox News.

After launching 847 feet in the air, the team’s rocket landed in a bush on descent. Anxious to see whether their egg had survived, the students sprinted to the bush in an effort to get it out. After arguing among themselves, they decided to wait impatiently as a competition official came to remove the rocket and its parachute from the bush.

The egg survived, and the students came in 50th place.

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Even though they didn’t win, Farhan is proud of what his team accomplished. He said he wants to continue to make his family proud.

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“We’re going to make our country and them proud,” Farhan said. “We’re going to pay back everything they did for us.”

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Southeast

Passengers intervene on flight when man allegedly attacks woman next to him, video shows

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Passengers intervene on flight when man allegedly attacks woman next to him, video shows

Several passengers intervened on an American Airlines flight this week when a man allegedly attacked a woman sitting next to him, video taken by another passenger appeared to show. 

The incident happened Wednesday on a flight from Miami to Charlotte, North Carolina.

“This evening, there was a violent incident on my @AmericanAir Flight AA 310 from Miami to Charlotte,” another passenger, journalist Arjun Singh, who took the video posted on social media, said. “Several men jumped to subdue another man in first class, who entered an altercation with the lady next to him. The flight landed 26 minutes early, but we aren’t getting off soon.”

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Several passengers intervened on an American Airlines flight this week when a man allegedly attacked a woman sitting next to him, video taken by another passenger appeared to show.  (Arjun Singh, @arjunswritings / TMX)

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“Don’t f—— touch her! Get your f—— hands off of her right now!” one of the passengers could be heard saying to the man in the video.

“You touch her again, you’re gonna get f—— arrested,” he added. 

Flight attendants soon arrived, and the woman said she was OK, but agreed to move to a seat across the aisle from her alleged attacker.

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Passengers intervening

(Arjun Singh, @arjunswritings / TMX)

After the woman moved, she told the man who accused her of assaulting him: “You weren’t assaulted. I put my hand over your mouth to shut you up. I didn’t slap you. I put my hand over your mouth.” 

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Minutes later, after the flight landed, an officer arrived and passengers were asked if any of them had seen him assault her. He began taking statements from those who said they’d seen the attack. 

The alleged aggressor and the woman were escorted off the plane, according to the New York Post. 

It wasn’t clear what the man and woman’s relationship was or if the man was arrested. 

Police officer taking notes on plane

After the flight landed, an officer took statements from witnesses.  (Arjun Singh, @arjunswritings / TMX)

Fox News Digital has reached out to American Airlines and the Charlotte-Mecklenberg Police Department for comment. 

“Two customers traveling together were engaged in an altercation aboard American Airlines flight 310, with service from Miami (MIA) to Charlotte (CLT) on Oct. 2.” American Airlines told the Post.

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“Local law enforcement responded and escorted the customers from the CLT airport. We do not tolerate violence, and we thank our team members for their professionalism in managing a difficult situation.”

The airline wrote in the comments of Singh’s post: “Our first priority is the safety of the crew and our customers, and we take these matters very seriously.”

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Samaritan's Purse continues Helene relief efforts with three water filtration systems in North Carolina

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Samaritan's Purse continues Helene relief efforts with three water filtration systems in North Carolina

Samaritan’s Purse, a Christian humanitarian aid organization, has expanded its relief efforts to hard-hit areas in western North Carolina with three water filtration systems.

The water filters can provide clean water for 10,000 people daily, or up to 50,000 liters. Samaritan’s Purse designed the filtration systems with an in-house team of engineers.

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One of the locations where the water filters have been deployed, Swannanoa, had its water pipeline network completely destroyed during Hurricane Helene. 

“We designed these systems to use overseas—and they work so well—but now the need is in our own backyard,” said Rev. Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan’s Purse in a release.

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The Samaritan’s Purse water filters provide up to 50,000 liters of clean water daily. (Courtesy of Samaritan’s Purse)

“We are airlifting supplies, mudding out homes, removing trees, and doing so much more—all in Jesus’ Name—and we’re thankful for everyone who is helping make it possible. We want to remind each person that we help that God loves and cares for them and hasn’t forgotten them,” the Rev. added.

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Samaritan’s Purse, which is based in Boone, North Carolina, has also delivered emergency relief supplies to communities in need via 19 helicopter operations thus far. Many North Carolina communities were cut off from road systems during Hurricane Helene.

Engineer checking water filtration levels

More than 2,700 Samaritan’s Purse volunteers have brought aid to those affected by Hurricane Helene. (Courtesy of Samaritan’s Purse)

Food, water, infant hygiene kits, and medical supplies have also been airlifted by Samaritan’s Purse to some of the most isolated and affected areas. The organization is operating a 20-bed emergency field hospital in Avery County for those hardest hit by Hurricane Helene and to continue oxygen care for those without electricity.

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Woman filling water

Samaritan’s Purse has also flown supplies to hard-hit areas from Hurricane Helene in 19 separate helicopter operations thus far. (Courtesy of Samaritan’s Purse)

In addition to basic supplies, nearly 3,000 volunteers have answered the call with Samaritan’s Purse to assist over 140 North Carolina families. Volunteers have cleared and cut downed trees, clearing storm debris, and mudding out flooded homes.

Samaritan’s Purse has also deployed Disaster Relief Units to communities in Georgia and Florida which have been affected by Hurricane Helene.

The current death toll from Hurricane Helene sits at 232 at the time of publishing of this article.

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11 Tennessee factory workers swept away in Helene floodwaters, company responds to evacuation decision

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11 Tennessee factory workers swept away in Helene floodwaters, company responds to evacuation decision

Employees forced to work at a Tennessee plastics factory are recounting the day historic flooding took over their parking lot and caused the power to go out. Once the plant shut down, and they were sent home, several of the workers did not make it. 

Floodwaters swept 11 people away, and only five were rescued. Two of them are confirmed dead and part of the death toll across the affected states that passed 150 Tuesday, The Associated Press reported.

“We were all talking to the supervisors and telling everybody, ‘Look, we don’t need to be here,’” Impact Plastic employee Zinna Adkins told WJHL. “Our phone alerts were saying we need to flee the areas. And they never said anything about it. And supervisors didn’t tell us that we could go.”

A statement from management of the company founded in 1987 and the factory located in Erwin sent to Fox News Digital said that Impact Plastics “expressed sympathy for the missing and deceased employees and one contractor.”

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Impact Plastics factory is located in Erwin, Tennessee, and is closed due to extreme flooding in the area, its website says.  (Google Maps)

“At no time were employees told that they would be fired if they left the facility,” the statement continued.  

Impact Plastics says while most employees left immediately following dismissal, “some remained on or near the premises for unknown reasons.”

Jacob Ingram, a mold changer at the plastics factory, filmed himself and four others waiting for rescue as bobbing vehicles floated by. He later posted the videos on on Facebook with the caption, “Just wanna say im lucky to be alive.” Videos of the helicopter rescue were posted on social media later on Saturday.

NORTH CAROLINA OFFICIAL REVEALS SHOCKING DAMAGE TO TOURIST TOWN: ‘ALL OF IT WAS WASHED INTO THE LAKE’

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Erwin, Tennessee flooding

An aerial view of flood damage in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Erwin, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

“They should’ve evacuated when we got the flash flood warnings, and when they saw the parking lot,” Ingram said to the Knoxville News Sentinel. “We asked them if we should evacuate, and they told us not yet, it wasn’t bad enough.”

The two confirmed dead at the Tennessee plastics factory are Mexican citizens, Lisa Sherman-Nikolaus, executive director at Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition told the AP. She said many of the victims’ families have started online fundraisers to cover funeral costs and other expenses.

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Erwin, Tennessee Hurricane Helene aftermath

Another aerial view of the damage following Hurricane Helene in Erwin, Tennessee, where Impact Plastics factory is located.  (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

“For employees who were non-English speaking, bi-lingual employees were among the group of managers who delivered the message,” Impact Plastics statement read. 

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“The company is conducting an internal review of activities and timelines of September 27th and will share the information once complete,” a spokesman told Fox News Digital Wednesday. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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