The Physicist and Philosopher - Tonight A Look Back on 2018
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How officials are identifying California's wildfire victims
The search for victims of the deadly Camp Fire in Paradise, California is getting an assist from a new, high-tech tool. Rapid DNA identification technology, invented by a Harvard trained physician, is being deployed for the first time in a disaster. For some families, the quick results are easing the agony of not knowing what happened to loved ones who went missing after the fire. Bill Whitaker reports from Paradise, a town virtually wiped out by flames, on the next edition of 60 Minutes, Sunday, December 2 at 7:00 p.m., ET/PT on CBS. In most mass casualty disasters, it can take months to identify remains using DNA. Butte County Sheriff and Coroner Kory Honea didn't want families to wait that long, so he decided to see if the new technology could accelerate the process. "We've been very pleased with the technology, not only in terms of its ability to confirm the identities but the speed with which it's able to do that," Honea tells Whitaker. "...
Homeland Security asks Pentagon to keep troops at the border through January
The Department of Homeland Security has asked the Pentagon to keep U.S. troops stationed at the southern border through the end of January. That would mean a 45-day extension of troops at the border, although it's unclear whether the same troops will stay or if there will be a rotation, CBS News correspondent David Martin notes. The troops are stationed at the border to help U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials and other federal personnel. "Given the ongoing threat at our Southern border – today the Department of Homeland Security submitted a request for assistance to the Department of Defense to extend its support through January 31, 2019," DHS told reporters. "This request refines support to ensure it remains aligned with the current situation, the nature of the mission, and CBP operational requirements." As of last week, Secretary of Defense James Mattis said more than 5,700 troops were stationed at the southern border. Presid...
Alaska recovers from shock of earthquakes that rattled buildings and tore up roads
ANCHORAGE -- Several strong aftershocks left many Alaskans on edge Saturday morning after powerful back-to-back earthquakes struck on Friday. It happened seven miles northwest of Anchorage, the state's largest city. The two earthquakes measured Magnitude 7 and 5.7 on the Richter scale -- easily powerful enough to shake buildings, collapsing roads and generate a brief tsunami warning. CBS News correspondent Carter Evans reports that despite the damage, there were no fatalities reported. President Trump said the federal government "will spare no expense" on the recovery. Evans stood on Saturday morning next to a highway off-ramp in Anchorage that crumbled as the powerful earthquakes struck. There were cars on the road at the time, but everyone escaped. On Saturday morning the clean-up and repair effort began. Alaska Governor Bill Walker told CBS News on Friday night that the state was just beginning to evaluate the extent of the damage. ...