logo
Collision with moose kills driver and injures passenger near Alaska's Denali National Park

Collision with moose kills driver and injures passenger near Alaska's Denali National Park

DENALI PARK, Alaska (AP) — A driver was killed and a passenger in his car injured after hitting a moose near the entrance to Alaska's Denali National Park and Preserve.
The collision with the moose occurred around 1 a.m. Friday, just south of the entrance to the Denali Park Road near Mile 235 of the Parks Highway, the Anchorage Daily News reported, citing a statement from the park.
The 24-year-old male driver, who was from Bulgaria, was pronounced dead at the scene. The 24-year-old female passenger, who is from North Macedonia, was taken to a Fairbanks hospital.
The National Park Service is working with the Bulgarian Embassy to notify the driver's family.
'The collision serves as a sobering reminder of the hazards of wildlife along Alaska's roadways,' the park said in its statement, urging drivers to slow down in dark conditions and use high-beam headlights.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

William Byron thinks Iowa win can build momentum for NASCAR's playoffs
William Byron thinks Iowa win can build momentum for NASCAR's playoffs

Winnipeg Free Press

time7 hours ago

  • Winnipeg Free Press

William Byron thinks Iowa win can build momentum for NASCAR's playoffs

NEWTON, Iowa (AP) — William Byron was already locked into the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs and was second in the regular-season point standings heading into Sunday's race at Iowa Speedway. Still, Byron didn't like how things were going heading into the closing stretch of the regular season. Byron had five finishes of 27th or worse in the last eight races, and coming to a track where he has had success in the past, he wanted to regain some confidence with the playoffs approaching. 'I think we've been fast every weekend,' Byron said. 'I mean, I can't think of a week when we've been slow, it's just the results haven't come together. And it was starting to wear on us a little bit and starting to create some kind of, 'What's going to happen next?'' What happened next, though, was Byron getting his second win of the season on Sunday, gambling on fuel mileage for a win that he thought had changed the momentum of his season. Byron went the last 144 laps of the 350-lap race without a stop, and a third stage filled with caution flags helped him conserve enough fuel to get to the finish. He left Iowa Speedway, where he has now won in all three of NASCAR's series, with an 18-point lead over Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott for the regular-season title. 'This is going to kind of put the pendulum the other way,' Byron said. Byron won the season-opening Daytona 500, and has eight top-10 finishes this season, including three second-place finishes. But he had a 37th-place finish at Atlanta, a 40th-place finish at the Chicago street race, and 31st-place finish at Dover. He was 16th last week at Indianapolis, when he had to make a late pit stop for fuel. Surviving to win this one is something that crew chief Rudy Fugle expected. 'He's an awesome driver,' Fugle said. 'I think he's the best driver, all-around, in the field right now. He's mine, and I should say that. But I really think he's maturing and getting the experience to show that off. He's very well-diversified, and then he's a fighter. He's got a hard line and fights through anything. There's no quit in him.' Byron had fuel-mileage issues late at Michigan, and again last week at Indianapolis. Even with that, Fugle knew he could still gamble with his driver. 'Those are things that he's gotten better as well over the years, rolling with the punches and what happens next,' Fugle said. 'And next thing you know, you're leading and you get a chance to win.' Byron admitted he was nervous as the laps dwindled on Sunday. 'I knew what to expect,' he said. 'I knew what to look for, and all that in terms of if I ran out of fuel. But I was just thinking about preserving as much as I could, doing a lot of different things in the car, lifting early and just not using a lot of throttle percentage. So just the guys did a really good job coaching me on what to do.' Byron thought there was a little fuel left in the tank at the end. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. 'I felt like if I could get off of (turn) four, come into the white (flag), I could win the race,' he said. 'So that's kind of what was in my head. And that was mostly true. When I did the burnout, at the tail end of the burnout, I had the fuel pressure come up. So I don't know how many laps that would have been.' Now, Byron said, he has new fuel to get to the playoffs. 'I really feel like we needed to win a race like this, we deserve to win a race based on how we've grown all year, and it just wasn't happening,' Byron said. 'It's is just a big relief for us to have one kind of go our way. We've just been running so well this year, I feel like this is going to be a big momentum boost for our team.' ___ AP NASCAR:

Vietnam automaker Vinfast to build factory in India, eyeing growth in Asia
Vietnam automaker Vinfast to build factory in India, eyeing growth in Asia

Winnipeg Free Press

time13 hours ago

  • Winnipeg Free Press

Vietnam automaker Vinfast to build factory in India, eyeing growth in Asia

THOOTHUKUDI, India (AP) — Vietnam's Vinfast is due to break ground Monday on a $500 million electric vehicle plant in southern India's Tamil Nadu state, part of a planned $2 billion investment in India and a broader expansion across Asia. The factory in Thoothukudi will initially make 50,000 electric vehicles annually, with room to triple output to 150,000 cars. Given its proximity to a major port in one of India's most industrialized states, Vinfast hopes it will be a hub for future exports to the region. It says the factory will create more than 3,000 local jobs. The Vietnamese company says it scouted 15 locations across six Indian states before choosing Tamil Nadu. It's the center of India's auto industry, with strong manufacturing, skilled workers, good infrastructure, and a reliable supply chain, according to Tamil Nadu's Industries Minister T.R.B. Raaja. 'This investment will lead to an entirely new industrial cluster in south Tamil Nadu, and more clusters is what India needs to emerge as a global manufacturing hub,' he said. A strategic pivot to Asia Vinfast's foray into India reflects a broader shift in strategy. The company increasingly is focusing on Asian markets after struggling to gain traction in the U.S. and Europe. It broke ground last year on a $200 million EV assembly plant in Indonesia, where it plans to make 50,000 cars annually. It's also expanding in Thailand and the Philippines. Vinfast sold nearly 97,000 vehicles in 2024. That's triple what it sold the year before, but only about 10% of those sales were outside Vietnam. As it eyes markets in Asia, it hopes the factory in India will be a base for exports to South Asian countries like Nepal and Sri Lanka and also to countries in the Middle East and Africa. India is the world's third-largest car market by number of vehicles sold. It presents an enticing mix: A fast growing economy, rising adoption of EVs, supportive government policies and a rare market where players have yet to completely dominate EV sales. 'It is a market that no automaker in the world can ignore,' said Ishan Raghav, managing editor of the Indian car magazine autoX. . A growing EV market in India EV growth in India has been led by two and three-wheelers that accounted for 86% of the over six million EVs sold last year. Sales of four wheel passenger EVs made up only 2.5% of all car sales in India last year, but they have been surging, jumping to more than 110,000 in 2024 from just 1,841 in 2019. The government aims to have EVs account for a third of all passenger vehicle sales by 2030. 'The electric car story has started (in India) only three or four years ago,' said Charith Konda, an energy specialist who looks at India's transport and clean energy sectors for the think-tank Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis or IEEFA. New cars that 'look great on the road,' with better batteries, quick charging and longer driving ranges are driving the sector's rapid growth, he said. The shift to EVs is mostly powered by Indian automakers, but Vinfast plans to break into the market later this year with its VF6 and VF7 SUV models, which are designed for India.. Can Vinfast Succeed Where Chinese EVs Faltered? Chinese EV brands that dominate in countries like Thailand and Brazil have found India more challenging. After border clashes with China in 2020, India blocked companies like BYD from building their own factories. Some then turned to partnerships. China's SAIC, owner of MG Motor, has joined with India's JSW Group. Their MG Windsor, a five-seater, sold 30,000 units in just nine months, nibbling Tata Motors' 70% EV market share down to about 50%. Tata was the first local automaker to court mass-market consumers with EVs. Its 2020 launch of the electric Nexon, a small SUV, became India's first major EV car success. Vinfast lacks the geopolitical baggage of its larger Chinese rivals and will also benefit from incentives like lower land prices and tax breaks for building locally in India. That's part of India's policy of discouraging imports with high import duties to help encourage local manufacturing and create more jobs. The push for onshore manufacturing is a concern also for Tesla, which launched its Model Y in India last month at a price of nearly $80,000, compared to about $44,990 in the U.S without a federal tax credit. 'India's stand is very clear. We do not want to import manufactured cars, even Teslas. Whether it's Tesla or Chinese cars, they are taxed heavily,' added Konda. An uphill battle in a tough market The road ahead remains daunting. India's EV market is crowded with well-entrenched players like Tata Motors and Mahindra, which dominate the more affordable segment, while Hyundai, MG Motors and luxury brands like Mercedes-Benz and Audi compete at high price points. Indians tend to purchase EVs as second cars used for driving within the city since the infrastructure for charging elsewhere can be undependable. Vinfast will need to win over India's cost-sensitive and conservative drivers with a reputation for quality batteries and services while keeping prices low, said Vivek Gulia, co-founder of JMK Research. 'Initially, people will be apprehensive,' he said. Vinfast says it plans to set up showrooms and service centers across India, working with local companies for charging and repairs, and cutting costs by recycling batteries and making key parts like powertrains and battery packs in the country. Scale will be key. VinFast has signed agreements to establish 32 dealerships across 27 Indian cities. Hyundai has 1,300 places for Indians to buy their cars. Building a brand in India takes time — Hyundai, for instance, pulled it off over decades, helped by an early endorsement from Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan. Wednesdays What's next in arts, life and pop culture. VinFast can succeed if it can get its pricing right and earn the trust of customers, Gulia said, 'Then they can actually do really good.' ___ Sibi Arasu contributed from Bengaluru and Aniruddha Ghosal contributed from Hanoi, Vietnam. ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store