Briefly

JAPAN

Bill for Tokyo Games delay may reach $2.8b

The cost of the postponed Tokyo Olympics could reach about $2.8 billion, according to figures released on Friday by the Tokyo organizing committee, the Tokyo city government and Japan's national government. The numbers are in line with estimates that have been made in Japan since the Olympics were postponed eight months ago. They are now set to open on July 23. About two-thirds of the added costs are being picked up by the two government entities, with the other third going to the privately funded organizing committee.

UNITED KINGDOM

4 die after blast at wastewater plant

Four people died following an explosion in a silo that holds treated biosolids at a wastewater treatment plant near the southwest English city of Bristol, police said on Thursday. Three Wessex Water employees and one contractor died in the incident, which is not being treated as terror-related, Avon and Somerset Police Chief Inspector Mark Runacres said at a media briefing. A fifth person was injured during the explosion at the plant in the industrial area of Avonmouth, but the injuries are not considered life-threatening, Runacres said. He said the explosion did not create any ongoing concerns for public safety.

UNITED STATES

Warner Bros to stream 2021 films

Warner Bros will release its entire 2021 slate of movies on HBO Max streaming and in theaters simultaneously, including The Matrix 4 and Dune, the studio announced on Thursday in a landmark response to the pandemic. The announcement came as Hollywood scrambles to cope with the reality of theaters closed across much of the United States due to COVID-19, and sees one of Tinseltown's biggest studios shatter the traditional "window" in which blockbuster movies are available only on the big screen at release. The decision, which immediately sent shockwaves through the movie industry, follows Warner's previously announced move to release Wonder Woman 1984 on Christmas Day via its streaming platform at the same time as the big screen.

GERMANY

Bird flu sparks cull of 29,000 chickens

About 29,000 chickens will be slaughtered in Germany after bird flu was found on another poultry farm, authorities said on Thursday. Type H5N8 bird flu was confirmed in a farm in the eastern area of Mecklenburgische Seenplatte, the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state government said. The 29,000 chickens are now being slaughtered and a 10-kilometer observation area is being set up covering 482 nearby farms with about 644,000 birds, the local government added. A series of outbreaks of bird flu has been reported in Europe in recent weeks, with wild birds suspected to be spreading the illness.

Agencies - Xinhua