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US state department official Matthew Miller says Julian Assange 'put the lives of our partners, our allies and our diplomats at risk'. The WikiLeaks founderwalked away a free man on Wednesday after pleading guilty to a single criminal count of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified defence documents, in a deal that allowed him to return home to Australia and brought a conclusion to a 14-year legal saga. Miller says the involvement of the state department was 'very limited' in this case, as it mostly pertained to law enforcementSubscribe to Guardian Australia on YouTube

Evacuation alerts sent to more than 1,000 homes and businesses as latest blaze erupts amid high temperaturesGusty winds fueled a rapidly growing wildfire in central Oregon, the latest blaze to erupt in the US west as high temperatures envelop the region.The fire broke out just outside the community of La Pine, in central Oregon, on Tuesday and rapidly grew to 2,415 acres (9.7 sq km) by Wednesday morning. Fire crews were able to get 30% containment on the blaze, officials reported on Wednesday, but winds continued to threaten progress.Wildfire breaks out in California near Paradise, site of state's deadliest blazeMultiple disasters all in one day': New Mexico's brutal week of fire and floodUS wildfire season has arrived. Here's why it could be an explosive summerBroken toilets, bed bugs and rats: US firefighters are in a housing crisis Continue reading...

Judge rules Dharmesh Patel, whose car dove off cliff in 2023, will be monitored by GPS and check in with court weeklyA California radiologist accused of trying to kill his family by driving off a cliff along the northern California coast will receive mental health treatment instead of standing trial, a judge ruled.Prosecutors charged Dharmesh A Patel, 43, with attempted murder after the Tesla he was driving plunged off a 250ft (76 meters) cliff along the Pacific Coast Highway in San Mateo county, injuring his wife and two young children. All four survived the 2 January 2023 crash in what one official called an absolute miracle". Continue reading...

Judge to decide fate of ex-prison guard trainee Zephen Xaver, who pleaded guilty to 2019 execution-style murdersA jury on Wednesday recommended a former prison guard trainee be sentenced to death for his execution-style murders of five women inside a Florida bank five years ago.Jurors voted 9-3 to recommend Zephen Xaver, 27, receive the death penalty for the 23 January 2019 murders at the SunTrust Bank in Sebring, about 85 miles (135km) south-east of Tampa. Continue reading...

Prosecutors say scheme - like something out of a mob movie' - was hatched to stop conviction in Covid fraud caseFive people have been charged with conspiring to bribe a Minnesota juror with a bag of $120,000 in cash in exchange for the acquittal of defendants in one of the country's largest Covid-related fraud cases, the US attorney's office and the FBI announced on Wednesday.Court documents made public reveal an extravagant scheme in which the accused researched the juror's personal information on social media, surveilled her, tracked her daily habits and bought a GPS device to install on her car. Authorities believe the defendants targeted the woman, known as juror 52, because she was the youngest and they believed her to be the only person of color on the panel. Continue reading...

Leftwing groups write to top House Democrat Hakeem Jeffries raising dire concerns' about pro-Israel lobby groupProgressive groups reacted with disappointment and anger over Jamaal Bowman's decisive primary loss to a moderate Democrat in New York's 16th district, calling for the party to cut ties with pro-Israel lobbying groups they blame for the result.In a letter to the House Democratic leader, Hakeem Jeffries, more than a dozen progressive organizations said they had dire concerns" over the party's continued association with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac), the future of the Democratic Party, the future of our multiracial democracy, and the future of our planet". Continue reading...

Pro-Palestinian protesters accuse companies of trying to sell stolen land in the West Bank, and question legalityEfforts to market homes in Israel and stolen land in West Bank to Jewish Americans are continuing to spark protests across North America, with the latest angry confrontations happening outside a synagogue in one of Los Angeles's most prominent Jewish neighborhoods.The volatile protest and counter-protest outside a real estate event at the Adas Torah synagogue on Sunday prompted denunciations from Democratic politicians, including Joe Biden, who said protests targeting a house of worship were antisemitic and unacceptable. Continue reading...

Juan Orlando Hernandez said all Honduran political parties accepted drug money, but denied taking bribes himselfJuan Orlando Hernandez, the disgraced former president of Honduras, has been sentenced to 45 years in prison for enabling drug traffickers to use his military and national police force to help ship tons of cocaine into the United States.US federal judge P Kevin Castel sentenced Hernandez to 45 years in a US prison and fined him $8m. A jury convicted him in March in a Manhattan federal court after a two-week trial, which was closely followed in his home country. Continue reading...

Potential tie-up with meal-delivery firm Doordash was reportedly discussed but rejected in May

Putting his own interests above his country's is nothing new for the Israeli prime minister, but it is increasingly blatantWhile Benjamin Netanyahu picks fights at home and abroad, he is more closely tied than ever to the worst parts of the domestic political realm. Last week, Israel's prime minister laid into its chief ally, the US, which has reproved him but done little to stop the war in Gaza, or avert the looming and surely disastrous conflict with Hezbollah. On Monday, Israel's ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, labelled AntonioGuterres an accomplice to terror" and alleged his sole aim had been to help Hamas survive this war", after the secretary-general accused Israel (without directly naming it) of spreading misinformation about him.Yet Mr Netanyahu will go to any lengths to keep his far-right coalition partners in the fold. He grantedpolitical legitimacy to the Otzma Yehudit partyof Itamar Ben-Gvir, the national security minister, and to the Religious Zionist party of the finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, when he invited them into power. He clings to them increasingly desperately. Without them, he faces not only the loss of his positionbut trial on the corruption charges that have hung over his head for so long. The far right saw off USattempts to reach a ceasefire and hostage deal, laying bare the growing rift between the Israel DefenseForces and the government. Continue reading...

Those who voted leave still feel ignored and marginalised. The pressure will be on for Labour to boost growth and narrow regional dividesIt is one of the oddities of this weirdest of election campaigns that the issue that helped give the Conservatives an 80-seat majority in 2019 has barely been mentioned. As far as the main parties are concerned, Brexit is a done deal. The decision has been made. Time to move on.To be sure, much has happened since 2019, most notably a global pandemic, a cost of living crisis and the brief - yet drama-packed - premiership of Liz Truss. Making ends meet features more prominently in voters' lists of concerns than whether the UK should rejoin the single market.Larry Elliott is the Guardian's economics editor Continue reading...

Six members of motorcycle club's Bakersfield chapter charged with kidnapping, robbery, assault and othersThe entire Bakersfield chapter of the Hells Angels motorcycle club has been arrested in California on various violent charges.The Kern county sheriff's department said on Tuesday that six members of the motorcycle club's Bakersfield chapter were arrested, including its president and vice-president. Continue reading...

Brennon Washington, 25, invited girl to speak to him in his car and then drove to her residence, indictment saysProsecutors on the Japanese island of Okinawa have charged a US air force man with the kidnapping and rape of a teenage girl in December.According to an indictment dated 27 March, Brennon Washington, 25, invited the girl to speak to him in his car at a park on 24 December and drove her to his residence before committing indecent acts. Continue reading...

It's one of the most baffling of all art forms, and the most mocked. Laugh all you like; these musicians are working miraclesI went to watch some jazz and everyone laughed at me. Family, friends, anyone on the bus who heard me and my friend talking on the way there, all sniggering, scoffing, smirking. There ought to be a jazz standard called Sniggering, Scoffing, Smirking.What's so funny? I think that Fast Show sketch is partly to blame - John Thomson as Louis Balfour, host of a TV programme called Jazz Club, brilliantly, if unfairly, sending up an entire genre of music. Fans of classical music, opera, drill, grime, folk, punk or whatever don't get this kind of treatment. If you're into jazz you're to be mocked, because you're either an old fart, a fervent hipster or a chin-stroking pseud. Or possibly all three. I'm none of those, arguably. Continue reading...

Former US president uses familiar tactics of denigrating Biden and debate hosts to minimise the event's importanceDonald Trump has unleashed a fusillade of baseless accusations against Joe Biden and CNN moderators ahead of Thursday's first US presidential debate in an apparent pre-bunking" exercise designed to have his excuses ready-made if he is declared the loser.In a familiar rehash of tactics used in previous campaigns, the presumptive Republican nominee has intensified demands that Biden should take a drug test and accused him of being higher than a kite" in last January's state of the union address, when the president won praise for an energetic performance. Continue reading...

Former representative says he's a proud conservative' who has put democracy and our constitution above all else'Former Republican representative Adam Kinzinger has endorsed Joe Biden for president, as the Biden campaign attempts to win over anti-Trump voters ahead of the 2024 presidential election.In a video released Wednesday, Kinzinger said he was a proud conservative" who has put democracy and our constitution above all else. Continue reading...

While Aipac and their allies can eliminate nearly any adversary if they throw $20m at a primary election, this is not a sustainable strategyThe Democratic primary in the congressional race in New York's 16th congressional district between the incumbent congressman Jamaal Bowman and the Westchester county executive, George Latimer, was a victory for Latimer, and one of the first successful primaries by the right wing of the Democratic party against the left. The contest was by far the most expensive congressional primary in history, and came to be viewed as a battle for the soul of the Democratic party, and specifically a fight around the Israel-Palestine issue, with Latimer and his advocates in the American Israel Public Affairs Committee spending over $20m to elect him, and to rebuke Bowman's criticism of Israel and support for a ceasefire.Bowman's defeat represents a victory for Aipac and a defeat for the progressive and pro-Palestine movements. But it is a pyrrhic victory. The first election overtly fought on the Israel-Palestine conflict has resulted in a victory for pro-Israel forces, and the movement for Palestinian rights has been dealt a severe blow at the ballot box. Elected officials will be far less willing to take a stand in the near term. But the result of this election masks a considerable shift in the balance of power within American politics away from unconditional support for Israel as an unquestioned political consensus.Ben Davis works in political data in Washington DC Continue reading...

Almost 300 products made by Wisconsin coffee maker are being recalled over risk they may contain deadly toxinUS coffee consumers, often pre-occupied with elaborate rituals of strength and method, have a new concern after regulators warned that products from a Wisconsin coffee maker might contain botulism.Last week, the US food and drug administration announced that almost 300 canned coffee products made by Snapchill are being recalled across the United States because of fears they may contain the bacterial toxin that causes a potential fatal form of food poisoning. Continue reading...

Biden goes into debate against Trump with set of challenges that he must overcome to sell voters on re-electing himAccording to Donald Trump, Joe Biden is either a very accomplished or utterly incompetent debater.When details of the presidential debate, which takes place in Atlanta on Thursday, were announced last month, Trump mocked Biden as the WORST debater I have ever faced", adding: He can't put two sentences together." And yet, while speaking to the All-In podcast last week, Trump commended Biden's showing in the 2012 vice-presidential debate. Continue reading...

After pleading guilty to violating US espionage law in a deal ending an extraordinary 14-year legal saga, the WikiLeaks founder has arrived home in Australia. Plus: Suing big oil for heatwave deathsGood morning.Julian Assange has walked free from a court in the Northern Mariana Islands, a US territory in the Pacific, after a plea deal that brings to a close an extraordinary 14-year legal saga that included five years in a high-security prison and seven years at an Ecuadorian embassy.What did Assange say in court when he pleaded guilty? Assange took a long pause before answering the judge that he was indeed pleading guilty to the charge. He has long maintained that he had believed that the US first amendment, which protects free speech, shielded his activities.How has the US responded? Assange faced 18 criminal charges and up to 175 years in prison. But immediately after the three-hour hearing, the US government withdrew its extradition request from the UK, dropped all remaining charges pending in the US, and banned Assange from returning to the US without permission.What's next for Assange? Assange's plane has touched down in Canberra, Australia, where he was reunited with his family. Continue reading...

Trump has convinced many Americans that stridency is a sign of strength while truth and humility signal weaknessI just turned 78, and frankly I'm scared about what might come down Thursday evening when the oldest candidates ever to compete in a presidential race debate each other.I'm less worried that Joe Biden will suffer a mental lapse or physically stumble than I am that Biden will look weak and Donald Trump appear strong.Robert Reich, a former US secretary of labor, is a professor of public policy at the University of California, Berkeley, and the author of Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few and The Common Good. His newest book, The System: Who Rigged It, How We Fix It, is out now. He is a Guardian US columnist. His newsletter is at robertreich.substack.com Continue reading...

The 19-year-old has been derided as a nepo-baller. But growing up around one of the greatest players of all time could help him build a long career as a role playerThe 2024 NBA draft is considered to be one of the weakest in recent memory, lacking any generational prospects or even a consensus No 1 overall pick when the names are called on Wednesday night. But it's generating plenty of buzz because of a 6ft 2in guard projected to get picked late in the second round: LeBron Raymone James Jr, or Bronny James.Bronny is a relatively unproven prospect, with just 25 games of college experience. But his decision to leave the University of Southern California after one disappointing season, hire Rich Paul's Klutch Sports Group to represent him, and declare for the draft has been framed as some sort of nepotistic power arrangement that has more to do with his father than his ability. There is even speculation that a team may target Bronny in order to land LeBron, who could be an unrestricted free agent this summer and has spoken about wanting to play with his son, with the Los Angeles Lakers reportedly willing to explore the notion of adding Bronny James" in an attempt to re-sign his father. Continue reading...

The Lakers legend sees parallels between the WNBA rookies and the rivalry that defined his career. Both relationships have plenty to say about America itselfIn the 1970s, the NBA was sputtering. Playoff games were on tape-delay. Many of the league's teams were in debt, baseball was still firmly America's game and lesser-known small market franchises were winning titles. But then an influx of talent changed the entire operation. The 1979-80 NBA season saw rookies Magic Johnson and Larry Bird explode on to the scene with the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics, respectively. But even then, the two were known quantities and so, too, was their budding rivalry. It all began in college the year prior. The 1979 NCAA title game featured Johnson's Michigan State team defeating Bird's Indiana State in what is still the most-watched basketball game ever in the US. It was a matchup that featured Magic's flash and charisma against Bird's quiet genius. Two skilled passers making their teams better. Fast-forward 45 years and history is repeating itself, this time with the WNBA's Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark. Just ask Magic himself.Larry and I heightened the NBA's overall popularity," Johnson wrote on X on Monday. The Lakers and Celtics sold out arenas throughout the league and increased television viewership exponentially. The higher viewership numbers led to the NBA signing significantly larger TV contracts which then led to higher salaries for the players. Caitlin and Angel are now doing the same thing, selling out arenas and increasing the viewership." Continue reading...

Edward Kang, 20, allegedly broke in to the home of the victim and attacked him over an online feudAn online gamer from New Jersey recently flew to Florida, broke into the home of a fellow player with whom he had feuded digitally but never met in person, and tried to beat him to death with a hammer, according to authorities.The allegations leveled by the Nassau county, Florida, sheriff's office against 20-year-old Edward Kang constitute an extreme example of a phenomenon that academics call internet banging" - which involves online arguments, often between young people, that escalate into physical violence. Continue reading...

Julian Assange's longest serving legal adviser, Jennifer Robinson, celebrates his 'historic' release outside the federal court in the US Pacific island territory of Saipan. Speaking to media moments before Assange walked free, Robinson claimed his prosecution 'should be of concern to journalists everywhere'. Assange, who had flown to Saipan from London after his prison release, arrived at court accompanied by Australia's US ambassador Kevin Rudd and high commissioner to the UK Stephen SmithSubscribe to Guardian Australia on YouTube

Congressman Bowman defeated by George Latimer, backed by pro-Israel groups in most expensive House primary everJamaal Bowman, the progressive Democratic congressman whose criticism of Israel's war on Gaza made him a target for pro-Israel lobbying groups, lost his primary race on Tuesday night.The Democratic primary in New York's 16th district became the most expensive House primary in history after Bowman was challenged by George Latimer, a pro-Israel centrist. Continue reading...

Bitter intraparty fight is one of two elections that could help determine control of Congress in NovemberDespite a series of personal scandals, Lauren Boebert, a hard-right Colorado Republican who narrowly avoided defeat in 2022, won out over a crowded field of other Republican primary candidates in the fourth congressional district - previously led by Ken Buck - which leans more heavily Republican.Boebert's primary win is one of the most closely watched results of Colorado's primary elections, which chose the winners in several bitter intra-party fights among the state's Republicans, including in two competitive House districts that could help determine control of Congress in November. Continue reading...

Apache fire, which prompted evacuation orders, was contained 15% due to favorable' weather conditionsA wildfire is threatening a community in rural northern California near Paradise, where the state's deadliest wildfire struck six years ago.The blaze, dubbed the Apache fire, broke out on Monday and had grown to more than 600 acres (243 hectares), prompting evacuation orders. Continue reading...

Closing arguments conclude in trial that has captivated Massachusetts and triggered conspiracy theoriesJury deliberation is under way in the high-profile murder trial of Karen Read, a woman accused of killing her boyfriend, a Boston police officer.Closing arguments from both sides concluded earlier on Tuesday following a two-month-long trial that has captivated Massachusetts and triggered a wave of conspiracy theories. Continue reading...

New, equally controlled joint venture will share electric vehicle architecture and software, companies saidShares in Rivian surged after Volkswagen agreed to invest up to $5bn in the Amazon-backed electric carmaker.Volkswagen will initially invest $1bn as part of a partnership with Rivian to form a new, equally controlled joint venture to share electric vehicle architecture and software, the companies said on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Announcement comes in response to pro-Palestinian protest at synagogue that made global headlinesAs Covid cases rise across California, the Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass announced that city officials were exploring the legality of wearing masks at demonstrations.The announcement came as a response to a pro-Palestinian protest outside a Los Angeles synagogue that made international headlines. Continue reading...

Trump is now free to talk about Stormy Daniels and Michael Cohen before the first presidential debate of 2024The New York judge who presided over Donald Trump's hush-money trial has partially lifted a gag order that has been hanging over the former president since he was convicted of the accounting fraud charges last month.Under the revised order by Judge Juan Merchan, Trump is now free to criticize trial witnesses, who include Stormy Daniels and his former lawyer Michael Cohen, but must maintain restrictions on his comments about individual prosecutors and others involved in the case. Continue reading...

US district judge Aileen Cannon suggests she will deny Trump's attempt to exclude documents seized by FBIThe federal judge overseeing Donald Trump's criminal case for retaining classified documents suggested she would deny his attempt to exclude the documents the FBI seized at the Mar-a-Lago club, saying at a hearing Tuesday that the warrant for the search had been properly granted.The former president's lawyers had contended the warrant was unconstitutionally vague and the FBI affidavit, used to convince the magistrate judge to find there was probable cause for a crime at the club, contained contextual omissions. Continue reading...

This live blog is now closed. For the latest on Trump's trial, read our full coverage here.While his primary contest may be too close to call, the vote count thus far shows Republican congressman Bob Good trailing his challenger John McGuire by a small amount.Good is now casting aspersions on the fairness of the election, NBC News reports:Good claimed during an appearance on Steve Bannon's War Room" podcast Monday that Lynchburg did not secure their drop boxes."There's no accountability for when those boxes were opened," Good said. They were apparently left to be stuffed for two or three days after the election." Continue reading...

District of Columbia court hints at further repercussions, including possibility of being permanently disbarredHunter Biden's right to practice law in Washington DC has been suspended following his recent conviction on federal gun charges, with the possibility that he could be permanently disbarred.The District of Columbia court of appeals issued an order on Tuesday suspending Biden's licence, citing the guilty verdict on three felony charges following this month's trial in Wilmington, Delaware, which it said were defined as serious crimes" under the district's bar rule. Continue reading...

Hunger's role in Jewish philosophy and history makes it all the more horrifying that civilians in Gaza are eating garbageFor many months now, it has been no secret that one of America's closest allies has been using hunger as a weapon against a civilian population. That hunger is being used by Israel is supremely ironic, given the particular role that privation from food plays both in Jewish philosophy and in the grim history of the Jewish people. It is a charge that the Jewish State has repeatedly denied in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary.Beginning this past winter, Human Rights Watch and Oxfam both condemned Israel's use of starvation as a weapon of war. Governmental organizations have also begun to echo those accusations. In Gaza, we are no longer on the brink of a famine, we are in a state of famine," the European Union's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said several weeks ago. The Gaza population was facing a manmade disaster", Borrell reported. The United Nations World Food Program concurs: a full-blown famine" is taking place in northern Gaza, according to the head of the program. This was followed by the international criminal court considering issuing warrants against leaders of both Hamas and Israel, and, in the case of the Israelis, for the war crime of starvation of civilians.John Oakes is the author of The Fast: The History, Science, Philosophy and Promise of Doing Without. He is publisher of The Evergreen Review Continue reading...

Pennsylvania woman, 26, was pronounced dead after being swept over St Mary Falls in Glacier national parkA woman has drowned after falling and getting swept over by a waterfall at a popular national park in Montana.On Monday, federal officials announced that a 26-year-old woman from Pennsylvania drowned after falling into the water above St Mary's Falls on the east side of Glacier national park. Continue reading...

This case remains alarming despite his release. The battle for press freedom must be vigorously pursuedJulian Assange should never have been charged with espionage by the US. The release of the WikiLeaks founder from custody in the UK is good news, and it is especially welcome to his family and supporters. He is due to plead guilty to a single charge of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified US national defence documents at a hearing early on Wednesday, but is not expected to face further jail time. The court in Saipan, a remote Pacific island which is a US territory, is expected to approve the deal, crediting him for the five years he has already spent on remand in prison.His opportunity to live with his young family comes thanks to Australian diplomacy under the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, who had made clear his desire for a resolution, and the Biden administration's keenness to get a controversial case off its plate, particularly in an election year. Seventeen of the charges have been dropped. The one that remains, however, is cause for serious alarm. It was the Trump administration that brought this case. But while the Biden administration has dropped 17 of the 18 charges, it insisted on a charge under the 1917 Espionage Act, rather than the one first brought against him of conspiracy to commit computer intrusion. Continue reading...

The defending 800m Olympic champion won't defend her title after a stumble in a single race. Her absence is a needless wound for Team USAThe track and field events at this summer's Olympics don't start until August, but Team USA are already losing medals in June.Athing Mu, who won gold in the women's 800m in Tokyo and followed up with a world championship the next year at the age of 20, isn't going to Paris. Neither are Brooke Andersen, the 2022 world champion in the women's hammer throw, or Laulauga Tausaga-Collins, the 2023 world champion in the women's discus. Continue reading...

Rowlands, 93, who played an Alzheimer's patient in son's 2004 film, is in full dementia', says Nick CassavetesGena Rowlands, the screen actor whose career spans over seven decades and includes two Oscar nominations and an honorary Academy Award, has Alzheimer's disease, according to her son Nick Cassavetes.Speaking to Entertainment Weekly on the 20th anniversary of his film The Notebook, in which Rowlands played a character with the disease, Cassavetes said his mother, now 94 years old, was in full dementia". Rowlands memorably played Allie in the film, the older version of the character played by Rachel McAdams, whose dementia is tended to by her husband Noah (James Garner).This article was amended on 25 June, 2024 to correct Gena Rowlands's age. She turned 94 on 19 June. Continue reading...

News comes amid anti-diversity legislation that has gutted inclusionary programs at several public universitiesAfter 21 years of service, the University of Utah's LGBT Resource Center will close on Friday, as the second-largest public university in the state comes into compliance with HB 261, Utah's version of the anti-DEI legislation that has swept the country and gutted inclusionary programs at several public universities.As we've evaluated how best to comply with the legislation, I want to be clear that we've faced very difficult decisions," the vice-president for student affairs, Lori McDonald, said in a statement. The law and subsequent guidance require a foundational change in how we approach student support, and we will follow the law. This isn't about changing the words we use; we're changing how we approach the work." Continue reading...

Former secretary of state, who has debated both men, says Trump starts with nonsense and digresses into blather'Hillary Clinton has said it would be a waste of time" for Joe Biden to attempt to refute Donald Trump's contentions in Thursday's presidential debate because it's nearly impossible to identify what his arguments even are".The former secretary of state wrote in a New York Times opinion piece that Trump starts with nonsense and then digresses into blather". Continue reading...

Former US president made the claim in a fundraising email that advertised coffee mugs featuring his mugshot

Alieu and Isatu Wurie died during the hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia as temperatures exceeded 120FA Maryland couple died recently while completing the hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia amid extreme heat.Alieu Wurie, 71, and Isatu Wurie, 65, of Bowie, Maryland, were among the more than 1,300 people who died during the pilgrimage as temperatures exceeded 120F (48.9C). Continue reading...