West
NORAD detects, tracks 4 Russian military aircraft near Alaska airspace
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) detected four Russian aircraft off of Alaska in international airspace on Thursday.
NORAD said in a statement shared with Fox News that the Russian aircraft were operating in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone and didn’t enter U.S. airspace.
“The Russian aircraft remained in international airspace and did not enter American or Canadian sovereign airspace,” NORAD said. “This Russian activity in the Alaska ADIZ occurs regularly and is not seen as a threat.”
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In this U.S. Navy handout, a F/A-18 Hornet strike fighter intercepts one of two Russian Tu-95 Bear long rang bomber aircraft as it approached the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Nimitz Feb. 9, 2008, south of Japan. (U.S. Navy via Getty Images)
The statement added, “An ADIZ begins where sovereign airspace ends and is a defined stretch of international airspace that requires the ready identification of all aircraft in the interest of national security.”
NORAD said the aircraft didn’t enter U.S. airspace off Alaska. (Jean-Erick PASQUIER/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)
NORAD said it has a “layered defense” of satellites, airborne and ground radar and fighter jets that can “detect and track aircraft and inform appropriate actions” in such situations.
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This week, the Russian government also released a video that claimed to show a strategic Russian bomber flying near Alaska.
A Russian Tu-142 maritime reconnaissance aircraft, top, is intercepted near the Alaska coastline, March 9, 2020. (North American Aerospace Defense Command via AP / File)
Similarly, in February, four Russian aircraft were detected in the Alaska ADIZ and last August.
The latest detection comes after the U.S. passed a comprehensive aid package that included strategic military funding to Ukraine against Russia following its 2022 invasion.
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Nevada
Southern Nevada shelters brace for annual kitten season surge of newborn cats
LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — As temperatures rise in Southern Nevada, animal shelters are bracing for the annual surge of newborn cats known as “kitten season.”
Kitten season happens every year between about March and October, when warmer weather leads community cats to breed, and shelters begin seeing little kittens trickle in.
Animal care officials urged residents who spot kittens in their neighborhoods to avoid intervening right away.
The best thing to do, they said, is to leave the kittens where they are because their mother is likely caring for them.
Even if the mother cat is not immediately visible, she may be nearby searching for food.
The mother cat is taking care of the kittens, and removing them can reduce their chances of survival.
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Their best chance, officials said, is for the kittens to stay with their mom, who can provide nourishment.
New Mexico
2nd inmate dies at MDC within a week
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – A 36-year-old inmate died at the Metropolitan Detention Center after a medical emergency in custody.
The Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center said Julian Wilgress was in custody when staff called a medical emergency code at about 1 p.m. on April 28.
MDC said Wilgress was booked into the jail on April 27.
MDC personnel said a medical team from the University of New Mexico Hospital responded, but Wilgress died.
The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office came to the facility to investigate. MDC’s Office of Professional Standards is also investigating under standard protocol.
The New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator will determine the official cause and manner of death.
This marks the second inmate death at MDC after Derrick Benavides died on Monday morning.
Oregon
Texas teaching pro takes title at PGA Professional Championship in Oregon
BANDON, Ore. – It was the kind of beautiful shot golfers dream about. Pure contact, the ball soaring against a blue sky and sliding just a touch a right before touching down on the green near the flagstick on the closing stretch at iconic Bandon Dunes Golf Resort. And it was all propelled by a late bathroom break and a quick walk back into the fairway that left little time to overthink a pressure-packed situation.
This particular shot, an 8-iron from 173 yards, had significant meaning. Jesse Droemer, a teaching professional at Riverbend Country Club near Houston, was tied for the lead through 16 holes in Wednesday’s final round of the PGA Professional Championship. His lead had been as many as three during the back nine, but he had been run down by Ben Kern. Droemer needed to make something happen.
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On No. 17 of the resort’s Bandon Dunes course, Droemer faced a challenging shot into the green with the flag tucked on the left behind a knob as strong winds blew off the left. He nailed that 8-iron to within birdie range. He missed the putt and settled for a par, but that proved to be enough. Kern, playing in the final group behind Droemer, soon after landed his approach on the right side of the putting surface and watched the ball slide off the green into the rough. Kern’s ensuing bogey gave Droemer a one-shot lead, and after both players parred the 18th, the title was Droemer’s.
Jesse Droemer won the 2026 PGA Professional Championship at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Oregon.
What were Droemer’s thoughts as he left the 17th tee on his way to what would prove to be the tournament-deciding shot? Probably not what you would think, as Droemer explained after receiving the trophy.
“Well, honestly, I had to use the restroom so bad, I had to run from the tee over to the Porta Potty that was like 200 yards away,” Droemer said with a smile. “[Caddie Carl Everts] got the number, and I said, ‘Give me a yardage,’ and he had it, and I just stepped up and hit the shot. No time to think, just react. I do think that was one of the shots of the tournament, for sure.”
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After nearly holing a 77-yard approach shot into the par-5 18th that set up the winning par, Droemer finished with a 2-under 70 in the final round, good for a 4-under total of 283. Kern, of South Bloomfield, Ohio, shot 71 in the final round to finish in second place at 3-under. Michael Kartrude of Royal Palm Beach, Florida, was third after a closing 70 and a 2-under total. It was the second straight day of strong breezes that at times surpassed 20 mph, causing havoc for club selection and making it tough to hole putts of any length.
“I was just embracing the challenge,” said Droemer, 34. “I knew it was gonna be windy. I knew the conditions were gonna be tough, and I was just really was trying to embrace the elements. And, you know, I’m glad it was windy. I’m glad it was playing hard.”
Droemer, Kern, Kartrude and 17 other players now have a new challenge: the PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club on May 14-17. The top 20 from the PGA Professional Championship qualified for the major in Pennsylvania. It will be Droemer’s third appearance in the PGA Championship, having first qualified via the PGA Professional Championship in 2023 and again in 2025. He missed the cut in both those tries, but the victory at Bandon Dunes inspired fresh confidence.
“Well, this will be my third one, and the first one was in ’23, and I realized that I was a lot more comfortable last year after that one,” Droemer said. “But going into that tournament, I’m not trying to just enjoy it. I’m trying to go out and win a golf tournament. I said it last year: I’ve never played a tournament to try to lose, so I’m gonna go out and try to win a golf tournament.”
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Droemer had experience to lean on in the PGA Professional Championship. He finished second behind Tyler Collet in 2025 at PGA Golf Club in Florida, and he tied for 11th at Twin Warriors and Santa Ana Golf Club in 2023 in New Mexico.
Droemer worked for years as an assistant professional before switching to teaching full-time, and he commits long hours to combine golf instruction with his own needs to practice — such is the life of most of the contenders in the PGA Professional Championship who represented 41 PGA of America sections at Bandon Dunes.
“Sometimes I have to get to the golf course at 6:30 and practice before (giving) my 8 o’clock lesson,” Droemer said. “I have to stay until dark. But I love to compete. This is why I practice, being in situations like this. So I just have to make a lot of time for it.”
All that work in Texas, well-known for its frequently windy golf, helped prepare him for Bandon Dunes. Most people would think the toughest shots in the breeze are those up in the air, but at Bandon Dunes, it was the putting that was most difficult for most competitors. When winds exceed 20 mph, a rolling ball often breaks in unexpected ways. “Honestly, that was the hardest thing of the week, making putts,” Droemer said.
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He hired Everts, who has caddied at Bandon Dunes for seven years, to help. Evert’s experience reading putts in the breezes proved invaluable in all four rounds. Droemer had played at Bandon Dunes Golf resort in the 2011 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship and qualified for the match play portion then, so he was familiar with the resort’s typically firm and bouncy turf conditions, but he wanted all the help he could get from his caddie on the greens in this PGA Professional Championship.
“It was huge,” Droemer said. “I mean, he saved me I couldn’t even tell you how many shots, with different reads that I didn’t see. I just trusted him. I told him, ‘Just whatever you see, tell me,’ and I wouldn’t have been able to do without him. No chance.”
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Texas teaching pro takes title at PGA Professional Championship in Oregon
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