Kenya Bus Tragedy Death Toll Rises to 31

^{PHOTO: BUS CARRYING 23 PASSENGERS PLUNGING INTO RIVER IN KITUI COUNTY, KENYA}

INTERNATIONAL: At least 31 people, mostly members of Mwingi Catholic Church choir have drowned when a bus on its way to a wedding was swept away by fast-moving waters while trying to cross a flooded river in Kenya. The choir members were to perform at the wedding to solemnise the marriage union of the parents of one of the members.

The footage shows the driver has stopped and talked to some locals and was close to the other side. Kitui County Governor Charity Ngilu have said the driver of the bus attempted to navigate a submerge bridge through the surging waters of the Enziu River, about 200 kilometers east of the capital Nairobi, when the the bus was swept beneath the churning currents.

The governor has noted that the bodies of 31 people have been found so far during ongoing rescue efforts. She said twelve people have managed to escape from drowning, including four children. But sadly, most aboard the stricken bus were unable to escape before it was swallowed by the muddy tide. Locals gathered at the scene were heard screaming in distress, as some ran over to try and rescue survivors.

Russia Launches a Russian-Japanese Crew to Space

^{PHOTO: SOYUZ SPACECRAFT DOCKING AT THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION, JAPANESE BILLIONAIRE YUSAKU MAEZAWA, MAEZAWA'S ASSISTANT YOZO HIRANO AND RUSSIAN COSMONAUT ALEXANDER MISURKIN ARRIVING AT THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION}

Russia launches a Russian-Japanese crew to space and the Soyuz spacecraft carrying Japanese billionaire en route to the International Space Station.

Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa has arrived at the International Space Station on Wednesday aboard a Soyuz cargo ship piloted by Russian Cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin. Maezawa, a 46-year-old fashion magnate and art collector has been training outside of Moscow in recent months before becoming the first space tourist to travel to the ISS in more than a decade.

The billionaire has launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan along with his assistant Yozo Hirano, who will document the journey, as well as Russian cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin.

Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa has said earlier he could barely contain his excitement before blasting off to the International Space Station in a prelude to a more ambitious trip around the moon with Elon Musk's SpaceX planned in 2023.

Maezawa has become a household name in Japan thanks to his penchant for private jets, celebrity girlfriends and cash giveaways to Twitter followers, in a country known for its conformist corporate culture. He plans to upload footage of his flight to his YouTube channel, which has 795,000 followers. He has called on his supporters to give him 100 ideas of things to do in space, and has said he plans to play badminton aboard the ISS.

The cost of Maezawa's trip was not disclosed but some reports have put the price tag for tourist space flights as high as $50 million.

India’s First Chief of Defense Staff Dies in Helicopter Crash

^{PHOTO: FILE FOOTAGE OF INDIAN DEFENCE CHIEF GENERAL BIPIN RAWAT WHO WAS KILLED IN HELICOPTER CRASH}

And…India's top military commander, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, including his wife, were among 13 people killed on Wednesday when the military helicopter they were travelling in crashed in the southern state of Tamid Nadu. It was confirmed by the air force.

They were en route from an air force base in Sulur and was heading for Wellington town, less than 100 kilometers away, where General Rawat was due to visit the Defense Services Staff College when the Russian-made Mi-17V5 helicopter came down near the town of Coonoor.

Only one of the 14 people on board survived and was in hospital with injuries. The sole survivor of the crash was a captain working at the DSSC.

The 63-year-old Rawat, was appointed as India's first Chief of Defense Staff by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government in late 2019. The position was set up with the aim of integrating India's three military services - the Army, the Navy and the Air Force.

General Rawat had been in-charge of a range of operations including in Indian-administered Kashmir. The Indian Air Force said it had ordered an investigation into the accident, which happened in foggy weather.

A cabinet security committee is holding an emergency session, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

On board with Gen Rawat and his wife were seven other military passengers and five crew members, including the pilot. Rescue efforts were hampered due to the crash site's hilly location, which is thick with vegetation.

Although the Mi-17V5 is among the most sophisticated military transport helicopters, India's ageing air force fleet is often blamed for a high number of crashes. Former army chief J J Singh said it was "a safe, proven helicopter", adding that he himself had travelled on it in difficult situations.

In 2017, seven military personnel were killed in a crash in the north-eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh. The helicopter was on a training sortie. A year before that, another of the helicopters had crashed immediately after take-off during a military drill in the northern state of Uttarakhand. No casualties were reported.