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Global Events Unfold: Asia Battles Nipah Virus, Sicily Faces Landslide, Haiti Grapples with Sexual Violence, Sweden Fines Amusement Park, and French Hotel Suffers Fire
Several significant events unfolded across the globe on Wednesday, January 28, 2026, ranging from public health concerns in Asia to natural disasters in Europe and escalating violence in the Caribbean.
Across Asia, authorities in Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia implemented precautionary measures, including temperature screening at airports, following the detection of two Nipah virus cases in India, according to Sky News. The Indian health ministry reported the cases in the eastern state of West Bengal on January 27. Nipah virus is a highly lethal disease, prompting urgent action to prevent its spread.
In Sicily, Italy, a landslide triggered by heavy rain caused significant damage to the town of Niscemi, forcing the evacuation of over 1,500 people. Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni visited Niscemi, where dozens of houses were left "teetering on the edge of a cliff," rendering them "uninhabitable," Sky News reported. The landslide caused the edge of the town to collapse.
Meanwhile, in Haiti, gang violence continues to surge, exacerbating a sexual violence crisis. Doctors Without Borders (MSF) reported a tripling in the number of sexual abuse cases being treated at a clinic in Haiti's capital over the past four years. "The extent to which numbers have increased, it has shocked us," said Diana Manilla Arroyo, the head of mission in Haiti for MSF, according to Euronews. Gangs control approximately 90% of the capital, a situation that has worsened since the 2021 assassination of then-President Jovenel Moïse.
In Sweden, an amusement park was fined nearly €588,000 (approximately £491,000) in connection with a 2023 rollercoaster derailment at the Gröna Lund park that resulted in one death and nine injuries. The incident occurred on June 25, 2023, on the Jetline ride. Witnesses described a chaotic scene where the front of the train appeared to jump off the tracks, with one car tilted toward the ground. Three people were thrown from the rollercoaster, Euronews reported.
In France, a major fire at the Grandes Alpes hotel in Courchevel led to the evacuation of nearly 300 people on Tuesday evening. Firefighters were called around 7 p.m. as flames spread quickly through the roof spaces of the five-star property. By Wednesday morning, more than 100 firefighters, backed by around 60 vehicles and reinforcements from neighbouring departments, were still working to extinguish the blaze, according to Euronews. Four firefighters sustained minor injuries while battling the fire.
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