Briefly

AUSTRALIA

3 die after Canadian air tanker crashes

A Canadian-owned C-130 Hercules air tanker crashed while fighting bushfires in Australia's alpine region on Thursday, killing all three of its crew, authorities said. All three victims were US citizens, Australian authorities said, adding that they did not immediately know why the plane crashed as it was carrying a load of fire retardant. A spokesman for Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority said that the aircraft went into a valley to drop the retardant and didn't come out. Fitzsimmons said the plane had been leased by Canadian aerial firefighting company Coulson Aviation, which had a second C-130 Hercules working in the Australian bushfires operation. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau has sent a team of investigators to the crash site to collect evidence.

UNITED STATES

1 killed, several injured in Seattle shooting

At least one person was killed and seven others, including a child, were wounded on Wednesday after gunfire broke out in downtown Seattle, authorities said. Police said at least one suspect was being sought in connection with the shooting that took place near a McDonald's fast food restaurant, just blocks away from the Pike Place Market. Seattle television station KOMO-TV, citing witness accounts, reported that two men were seen arguing on the street before pulling guns on each other and opening fire as pedestrians around them scattered for cover. It was the third shooting in the area in less than two days, and the latest incident of gun violence that has affected churches, cinemas and other public places.

Agencies Via Xinhua