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Economic Times
a day ago
- Business
- Economic Times
Juneteenth federal holiday in US: Check what's open and closed
What remains open and what's closed on Juneteenth? Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel Americans will celebrate Juneteenth Thursday, which commemorates the end of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth became the newest US federal holiday in 2021, but it has held significance for many Black Americans for a long though US President Donald Trump and its administration has attacked diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts, Juneteenth is observed as a federal holiday in the United States, according to the Office of Personnel Management. Many Americans will enjoy the day off from work, despite the private sector also edging away from DEI. This year, Juneteenth falls on Thursday, June to CNN, most major retailers and grocery stores will remain open on Juneteenth. Walmart and Target will be open during normal hours. A wide range of grocers will also be open, including wholesale retailer Costco, Kroger and the roughly two dozen chains under Kroger's banner, the report stores will remain open during their regular hours on Juneteenth; however, most of their pharmacies will be closed, with the exception of 24-hour and select locations. CVS pharmacies will also be open, though some may operate on reduced post offices will be closed for retail transactions and there will be no regular residential or business mail deliveries on Thursday, June 19, according to the US Postal Service's website. However, all UPS and FedEx services will be open and will be closed, and Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange will not be trading on Thursday. Juneteenth is a banking holiday observed by the Federal Reserve. Major banks like Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Bank of America and TD Bank will also be closed. Online banking services and ATMs will be offices will be closed in observance of Juneteenth, though many schools will already be on summer not all federal or state government employees receive a paid day off. According to a Pew Research analysis, as of 2023, at least 28 states officially recognized Juneteenth as a public holiday, granting state workers paid time off. Other states may instead observe the day through commemorations or West Virginia, for instance, Governor Patrick Morrisey's administration announced that state employees would not have the day off, reversing the recent practice. Instead, the governor encouraged all residents to pause and reflect on the significance of the end of slavery in the United pickup and delivery services will be available on Juneteenth, according to the company's website. UPS Store locations will also be open. Check with your local store for specific hours of operation.
The Hill
a day ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Is Juneteenth a paid holiday?
(NewsNation) — For more than 150 years, Juneteenth has held deep significance in many Black communities as a symbol of liberation and resilience. While it is now recognized as a federal holiday, only some states have followed suit in making it a paid state holiday. According to a 2024 Congressional Research Service report, at least 30 states and the District of Columbia have designated Juneteenth as a permanent paid and/or legal holiday through legislation or executive action. Those states include: Those states with no official provision for Juneteenth include Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Wisconsin and Wyoming. New Mexico is not included in this list. While the state personnel board approved adding Juneteenth to the list of 2022 paid state holidays, Juneteenth is not recognized as a legal state holiday, according to the report. West Virginia also does not recognize Juneteenth as a paid holiday, as confirmed by Gov. Patrick Morrisey on Thursday, NewsNation affiliate WOWK reported. While some states have acknowledged Juneteenth in symbolic ways or through commemorative events, others have chosen to mark the end of slavery differently, or in some cases, still observe Confederate-related holidays. For example, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a proclamation recognizing the holiday in 2020, but not since. Florida does recognize the day slavery ended in the state, according to the Tallahassee Democrat. The event is marked as Emancipation Day and celebrated in May, though it isn't a paid holiday. Additionally, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas commemorate some Confederate holidays throughout the year, according to a separate Axios analysis. Mississippi and Alabama each celebrate three Confederate holidays as paid days off for state employees, including Robert E. Lee Day, Confederate Memorial Day and Jefferson Davis' Birthday, according to Axios. Juneteenth marks the day in 1865 enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, found out they had been freed — after the end of the Civil War and two years after President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation. Since it was designated a federal holiday in 2021, Juneteenth has gained more widespread recognition beyond the Black community. Many people get the day off work or school, and there are a plethora of street festivals, fairs, concerts and other events. Over the decades, Juneteenth has also been called Freedom Day, Emancipation Day, Black Fourth of July and Second Independence Day among others. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
CBS News
2 days ago
- Climate
- CBS News
As flash floods in West Virginia kill at least 8, Gov. Morrisey aims to rally residents during clean-up
It's been a challenging and heartbreaking few days for West Virginians since deadly flooding devastated many communities. The death toll continues to rise, search and rescue operations are still underway, and clean-up efforts are far from over. "I do have some somber news to report. We now can clearly state that eight people are confirmed dead in Ohio County," said Gov. Patrick Morrisey. The grim update from Gov. Morrisey came several days after flash flooding destroyed homes and washed away roads in the Wheeling-Ohio County area. A man was found dead Wednesday morning in the Ohio River, bringing the death toll to eight. "We can't take that back, but we can honor their memory by coming together and doing everything we can to help the remaining people that might be out there, and help rebuild in Ohio County," Morrisey said. Crews didn't know the man who was found Wednesday was missing. They found him while looking for a woman who's still missing. "We have at least one unaccounted for, but we don't know whether there will be others. We're going to continue to look. That's the top priority right now," the governor said. "We retrieved a person this morning, and we all knew that even though we had eight, there might be people who were never witnessed and were in the water," said Lou Vargo, the Ohio County Emergency Management Agency Director. As much as four inches of rain fell in the northern panhandle within just 40 minutes Saturday night. Marion County was also hit hard by flooding. Governor Morrisey said everyone there is alive and accounted for. He said he's been in touch with the White House for assistance and will send damage surveys to FEMA once they're all submitted by flood victims. He and Vargo urged residents impacted by the floods to submit those surveys. "I know President Trump cares deeply about West Virginia, he really does, and so I'm going to make my best argument to him as to why Ohio County and West Virginia, and Marion County, all these areas deserve the help to get our citizens back on the right track," Morrisey said. Despite the tragedy and the long road ahead, West Virginians are strong, and they'll rebuild together. "One thing that's true about West Virginians: We're never, never going to give up," Gov. Morrisey said. "We're going to come back from this stronger than ever, and we're going to work together." "Volunteers are stepping up in a way that we haven't seen before. Everyone is reaching out to help their brothers and sisters in need. The coordination on the ground has been excellent," he added.
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Climate
- Daily Mail
Warning over biblical flooding set to thrash US as 3-year-old becomes latest victim to drown
At least six people are dead, including a three-year-old child, after a biblical flash flood swept through West Virginia. The storm struck Ohio County Saturday night, dropping a shocking four inches of rain in just 30 minutes, trapping residents in cars and homes immediately as the storm began. The flooding continued into Sunday in Ohio County, with Wheeling Creek rising seven feet in under two hours. Residents captured the devastation of the flooding as it turned entire roadways into fast-moving rivers and caused local apartment buildings to collapse. At least two people are still missing, according to officials with Wheeling-Ohio County Emergency Management. West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey said: 'Our top priority right now is search and rescue. There are still people unaccounted for. Stay off the roads so crews can work quickly and safely.' AccuWeather meteorologist Chad Merrill told on Monday that the area could see even more flooding throughout the week. The same system that caused Ohio County's floods to rage out of control has stalled over the region and is not expected to break up until Thursday. Merrill added that the lightning-quick flood was 'a unique event' that resulted from a perfect storm of weather and unfortunate weather conditions. As for how West Virginians were caught so off guard by the flash floods, Merrill revealed that 'the event was forecasted, but the magnitude was not captured very well.' 'We did have an abnormally dynamic final warming event in the stratosphere in March that led to the collapse of the polar vortex for the season, and the ripple effect has been felt across the US in these abnormal weather trends,' Merrill explained. AccuWeather's senior meteorologist noted that all of that will begin to change next week as 'dry weather and dangerous heat return to the East.' Facebook has even sent an urgent notification to residents in West Virginia and neighboring Ohio, asking people in the flood zone to mark themselves as 'safe' online if they are not in danger. Merrill added that the persistently cooler temperatures many states have been experiencing into June will likely end after this new system moves in. Over the weekend, vehicles were swept into swollen creeks while some people sought safety in trees. A mobile home was even seen catching fire. Nearby Fairmont experienced severe flooding on Sunday afternoon, which destroyed an apartment building and forced the evacuation of the residents. Around 2,500 power outages were reported in northern West Virginia on Sunday. As for the deadly flash flood that drenched Wheeling in just 30 minutes, the weather expert detailed how all of the right circumstances had to come together to produce this downpour. First, the amount of water in the atmosphere over West Virginia was 170 percent above normal, meaning it was holding nearly double the average for mid-June. Although forecasters said there was only about 1.8 inches of rain in the atmosphere, two major factors threw this total off entirely. One was a low-pressure system pushing through West Virginia. This added to the rising motion of the air and the air lifting over the hills in northern West Virginia. Those conditions allowed the atmosphere to squeeze out even more water than meteorologists predicted before the storm began. Morrisey has declared a state of emergency in Ohio and Marion counties as emergency crews had to conduct 19 swift water rescues during the flash floods. Merrill warned that, even as the summer heat approaches, West Virginia isn't out of the woods yet. That low-pressure system that exacerbated the flooding over the weekend remains stalled over the state. 'It will be the focal point for additional flooding problems until the pattern finally breaks following the passage of a cold front on Thursday,' Merrill forecasted. To protect themselves during flash floods, Merrill urged Americans to move to higher ground when the rain begins. If you're driving and arrive at a flooded roadway, don't drive through it. The meteorologist warned that the water is usually deeper than it appears, which could leave you trapped if the car stalls or is swept away by rising flood waters. The best thing to do in this situation is to turn around and attempt to find an alternate route.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
'Mother Nature at it's worst:' Death toll from flash floods climbs to 6 in West Virginia
WHEELING, (AP) — The death toll from weekend flooding in West Virginia rose to six as residents tried to clean up with the threat of more rain on the way. At least two people remained missing in the state's northern panhandle after torrential downpours tore through the region Saturday night, Gov. Patrick Morrisey said Monday. As much as 4 inches (10 centimeters) of rain fell in parts of Wheeling and Ohio County within 40 minutes. Among the six dead was a 3-year-old child, the governor said. About an hour to the southeast, heavy rains battered the Marion County community of Fairmont on Sunday, ripping off the outer wall of an apartment building and damaging bridges and roads. No injuries were reported. Morrisey has declared a state of emergency in both counties. He said at least 60 homes, 25 businesses and an estimated 30 roads were impacted by the floods. "It's just Mother Nature at its worst," Morrisey said. In the northern panhandle, vehicles were swept into swollen creeks, some people sought safety in trees and a mobile home caught fire. Morrisey toured the small community of Triadelphia on Sunday. 'That was just pure devastation,' he said. 'That was brutal.' Rich Templin, his wife, Michelle, and a family friend, Chuck Ullom, were cleaning out two storage garages Monday across the street from their Triadelphia home. The garages on lower ground along Little Wheeling Creek were nearly destroyed by flash floods. Templin's home is on elevated ground and was not damaged. Templin was at work when his wife called him. When he did not answer, she texted him to say their street was flooded, a trailer they owned had washed away and that 'cars were floating by with people in them.' Templin said he received the text messages within 15 minutes after it started to rain. 'I've talked to numerous people, they said it was like a tsunami. They saw water coming down the road like two or three feet high,' he said. Templin used the garages to store tools used in a trucking service company formerly operated by his father. 'We're trying to see what's salvageable and what's not and just start the rebuilding process,' he said. Most of West Virginia was under a flood watch through Monday night. The region around Wheeling, about an hour southwest of Pittsburgh, has seen its share of flooding. Saturday's floods occurred 35 years to the day after more than 5 inches (13 centimeters) of rain in less than three hours killed 26 people and destroyed 80 homes in nearby Shadyside, Ohio. Last year, severe storms washed out about 200 tombstones at a Wheeling cemetery. There were deadly floods in the region in 2017 and 2022. And in 2004, the remnants of Hurricane Ivan sent floodwaters to the tops of lamp posts and trees in Wheeling's park and amphitheater along the Ohio River. ___ Associated Press writer John Raby in Charleston contributed.
