TY O’NEIL

Police block the area after a vehicle caught fire and exploded outside the lobby of President-elect Donald Trump's hotel Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
Firework mortars, gas cannisters stuffed inside Tesla that exploded outside Trump’s Las Vegas hotel
Firework mortars and camp fuel canisters were found stuffed into the back of the Tesla Cybertruck that exploded outside President-elect Donald Trump’s Las Vegas hotel early Wednesday.
 
Only handrails are visible after a beachfront swimming pool was inundated with sand displaced by Hurricane Milton, at Sea Villas condominiums in Venice, Fla., Friday, Oct. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Residents slog through flooded streets, clear debris after Hurricane Milton tore through Florida
Florida residents are repairing the damage caused by Hurricane Milton and cleaning up debris. The storm smashed through coastal communities, tore homes to pieces, flooded streets and spawned a barrage of deadly tornadoes.
 
Spectators watch as hot air balloons take off during the mass ascension at the 52nd Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, N.M., on Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Roberto E. Rosales)
‘Magical’ flotilla of hot air balloons take flight at international fiesta amid warm temperatures
A flotilla of hot air balloons ascended into a clear desert sky on Saturday to kick off a colorful mass ascension at the 52nd annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.
 
A runner and their pacer run as the sun rises behind them on California Route 190 during the Badwater 135 mile (217 kilometer) ultramarathon in Death Valley, Calif., Tuesday, July 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
First runners reach the finish in the annual Death Valley ultramarathon called the world’s toughest
The first of 97 runners are starting to hit the finish line after pushing off in desolate Death Valley for an annual ultramarathon billed as the world’s toughest foot race.
 
A stop sign warns tourists of extreme heat at Badwater Basin, Monday, July 8, 2024, in Death Valley National Park, Calif. (Daniel Jacobi II/Las Vegas Review-Journal via AP)
Tourists still flock to Death Valley amid searing US heat wave blamed for several deaths
Hundreds of Europeans touring the American West and adventurers from around the U.S. are still being drawn to Death Valley National Park. The desolate region is known as one of the Earth’s hottest places.
 
A long exposure image of the thermostat at the Furnace Creek Visitors Center taken just after 10:00 p.m., in Death Valley National Park, Calif., Sunday, July 7, 2024. Forecasters say a heat wave could break previous records across the U.S., including in Death Valley. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
Tourists still flock to Death Valley amid searing US heat wave blamed for several deaths
Hundreds of Europeans touring the American West and adventurers from around the U.S. are still being drawn to Death Valley National Park, even though the desolate region known as one of the Earth’s hottest places is being punished by a dangerous heat wave blamed for a motorcyclist’s death over the w
 
A paddle boarder tows an inflatable unicorn on a temporary lake in Death Valley on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2024, in Death Valley National Park, Calif. A series of storms have brought more than double the parks annual rainfall in the past six months. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
Kayakers paddle in Death Valley after rains replenish lake in one of Earth’s driest spots
Kayakers have been paddling in one of the driest places on Earth after a series of storms battered California’s Death Valley and replenished Lake Manly.
 
Women hug after digging through rubble of a home destroyed by a wildfire on Friday, Aug. 11, 2023, in Lahaina, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
New fire prompts evacuation as survivors of Maui’s wildfires return after death toll rises to 67
Police say a new fire burning on the Hawaii island of Maui on Friday night has triggered evacuations of a community to the northeast of the area that burned earlier this week.
 
Wildfire wreckage is left behind following a stubborn blaze on Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023, in Lahaina, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
‘Ash and debris': Journalist covering Maui fires surveys destruction of once-vibrant Hawaii town
A Las Vegas-based video journalist for The Associated Press dispatched to cover devastating wind-fueled wildfires in Hawaii says the scene over Maui was one of the worst he’s seen in more than eight years of covering the disasters.
 
In this photo provided by Tiffany Kidder Winn, burned-out cars sit after a wildfire raged through Lahaina, Hawaii, on Wednesday, Aug. 9, 2023. The scene at one of Maui's tourist hubs on Thursday looked like a wasteland, with homes and entire blocks reduced to ashes as firefighters as firefighters battled the deadliest blaze in the U.S. in recent years. (Tiffany Kidder Winn via AP)
53 people have died from the Maui wildfires, governor says, and historic Lahaina has burned down
Hawaii Gov. Josh Green says 53 people were killed in the devastating Maui wildfires, and the death toll will likely continue to rise.
 
Burned landscape with Joshua Trees damaged from the York Fire in the Mojave National Preserve on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023, in Nipton, Calif. The York Fire was partially contained by Tuesday morning after the blaze ignited Friday in a California wildland preserve and spread into Nevada. (AP Photo/Ty O'Neil)
Progress made against massive California-Nevada wildfire but flames threaten iconic Joshua trees
Firefighters aided by rain have made progress fighting a massive blaze that swept through the California desert into Nevada and is threatening the region’s famous spiky Joshua trees.
 
A Joshua Tree burns during the York Fire on Sunday, July 30, 2023, in the Mojave National Preserve, Calif. Crews battled “fire whirls” in California’s Mojave National Preserve this weekend as a massive wildfire crossed into Nevada amid dangerously high temperatures and raging winds. (AP Photo/Ty O'Neil)
Crews balance firefighting and protecting a fragile ecosystem in containing California-Nevada blaze
Firefighters battling a massive blaze in California’s Mojave National Preserve on Tuesday are facing the difficult task of stopping the fire without using heavy equipment that could damage the region’s famous Joshua trees and other sensitive plants.
 
A sign stands warning of extreme heat Tuesday, July 11, 2023, in Death Valley National Park, Calif. July is the hottest month at the park with an average high of 116 degrees (46.5 Celsius). (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
Death Valley visitors drawn to the hottest spot on Earth during ongoing US heat wave
Most visitors to Death Valley National Park only make it a short distance to any site at the hottest and driest place on Earth before returning to the sanctuary of an air-conditioned vehicle.
 
Performers celebrate at the finish of the Mahu Magic drag show at the Western Regional Native Hawaiian Convention, Tuesday, June 20, 2023, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Long heritage of Native Hawaiian gender-fluidity showcased in Las Vegas drag show
The concept of gender-fluidity -- or “mahu” -- has existed in Hawaii for hundreds of years and is the hallmark of a culture that allows space between the concepts of male and female.