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Brisbane, Australia, braces for powerful Tropical Cyclone Alfred

SYDNEY (NYT) — A swath of Australia’s eastern coast around Brisbane, the country’s third-largest city, was bracing for the first cyclone forecast to make landfall in the region in decades, as the authorities warned of the potential for widespread flooding and destructive winds.

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The slow-moving Tropical Cyclone Alfred was expected to come ashore late Friday or early Saturday near Brisbane, where about 2.7 million people live. At midday Thursday, it was hovering about 150 miles off the city and already creating towering waves of record heights. Local authorities have issued “prepare to evacuate” warnings for parts of the city and nearby regions, saying tens of thousands of structures in low-lying areas were at risk of being flooded.

US agency blocks effort to repeal California electric vehicle rules

WASHINGTON (Reuters)— The Government Accountability Office said on Thursday the Biden administration’s approval of California’s landmark plan to end the sale of gasoline-only vehicles by 2035 is not subject to review and potential repeal by Congress.

Last month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under President Donald Trump sent the approval to Congress saying it was properly considered a rule under the Congressional Review Act. The GAO said the decision should be considered an order and is not reviewable.

As a candidate, Trump vowed to rescind waivers granted by the EPA under the Clean Air Act to California to require more EVs and tighter vehicle emissions standards. Those rules have been adopted by another 11 states, including New York, Massachusetts and Oregon.

Job cuts surge 245% in February on federal government layoffs

WASHINGTON (Reuters) — Layoffs announced by U.S.-employers jumped to levels not seen since the last two recessions amid mass federal government job cuts, canceled contracts and fears of trade wars, offering the clearest sign yet of the toll taken on the labor market by the policies of President Donald Trump’s administration.

Global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray &Christmas said on Thursday that planned job cuts vaulted 245% to 172,017 last month, the highest level since July 2020, when the economy was in the grips of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the highest February total since the Great Recession 16 years ago.

Government accounted for the bulk of layoffs, with Challenger tracking 62,242 announced job cuts by the federal government from 17 different agencies. The government has laid off about 62,530 workers in the first two months of the year, a whopping 41,311% increase compared to the same period in 2024.

Breakup of SpaceX’s Starship rocket disrupts Florida airports

(NYT) — Air traffic was disrupted across Florida when a SpaceX Starship, a prototype of the spacecraft that Elon Musk says will one day take people to Mars, disintegrated during its latest test flight.

For the second consecutive time, the upper stage of the most powerful rocket ever built malfunctioned. It started spinning out of control after several engines went out and then lost contact with mission control.