Vet Survived Afghanistan, But Not Wait In COVID-Crowded Hospital

Good morning! It’s Tuesday, Aug. 31. The final flight to evacuate U.S. troops and civilians from Afghanistan has departed, effectively ending America’s longest war after a bloody several days that killed 13 U.S service members and left at least 170 Afghans dead.

Here are some of the other stories we’ll tell you about:

• As Hurricane Ida cleanup continues, help comes from states a distance away.
• A Texas man came home with a Purple Heart after two tours of duty in Afghanistan, but it was a gallstone that killed him — and surging COVID-19 infection rates are the reason.
• An 80-pound cougar wasn’t living so comfortably in a Bronx home.

The Taliban claimed a victory after the United States officially exited Afghanistan.

“American soldiers left the Kabul airport, and our nation got its full independence,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said after the final plane left. » Final Plane Leaves Afghanistan After Longest American War Ends, via Across America Patch

Here at home, a reckoning awaits on the overarching reality of Afghanistan: After 20 years, the United States failed to defeat the Taliban, failed to establish a functioning democracy, failed to stop the spread of ISIS extremism and, columnist Ishaan Tharoor wrote for The Washington Post, even failed to leave Afghanistan on its own terms. » America Reckons With Defeat In Afghanistan, via The Washington Post

No Room At The ICU

Michelle Puget’s son, Daniel Wilkinson, had come home to Texas from two tours of duty in Afghanistan with a Purple Heart, but “it was a gallstone that took him out,” his mother said.

The surgery that would have saved Wilkinson’s life would have taken about 30 minutes, but the 46-year-old Texas man had to wait seven hours for an ICU bed in hospitals overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients. By then, it was too late. Dr. Hasan Kakli, the attending physician at a Bellville, Texas, hospital emergency, told CBS News that he had “never lost a patient from this diagnosis, ever.”

He’s worried about the situation being repeated again and again as the U.S. health care system struggles to keep pace with surging COVID-19 infection rates. About 100,000 people a day are hospitalized with coronavirus illnesses, the most since a winter surge before vaccinations became widely available.

"We are playing musical chairs, with 100 people and 10 chairs," Kakli told CBS. "When the music stops, what happens?” » Afghanistan Vet Dies Of Treatable Illness Due To ICU Bed Shortage, via Houston Patch

Ida Loses Its Fury

Nearly 1.1 million Louisianans and Mississippians were still without power late Monday afternoon as they cleaned up from Hurricane Ida, one of the most powerful hurricanes ever to hit the U.S. mainland. At least two people are dead, and it could be weeks before power is fully restored. » Hurricane Ida Traps Louisianans, Shatters Power Grid, via Across America Patch

Ida made landfall as a powerful Category 4 storm but has weakened to a tropical storm as it works its way inland with torrential rain and shrieking winds.

As often happens in disasters, people from states a distance away are pitching in to help with recovery.

Celebrity chef, World Central Kitchen founder, and a Montgomery County, Maryland, restaurant owner José Andrés is on the ground in New Orleans, supplying over 100,000 meals to people in need following the storm. » Chef José Andrés Dishes Up Relief In New Orleans, via Bethesda-Chevy Chase, Maryland, Patch

Cougars Are Awful Pets

An 11-month-old, 80-pound cougar rescued from a home in Bronx, New York City, “is relatively lucky that her owners recognized that a wild cat is not fit to live in an apartment or any domestic situation,” an official with the Humane Society of the United States said.

Kelly Donithan, director of animal disaster response for the HSUS, said “the owner's tears and nervous chirps from the cougar as we drove her away painfully drives home the many victims of this horrendous trade and myth that wild animals belong anywhere but the wild.”

The cougar was cared for by veterinarians and Bronx Zoo animal care staff members after the owners voluntarily surrendered her over the weekend. Now, she’s headed to a sanctuary in Arkansas. » Cougar Rescued From Bronx Home, via New York City Patch

Around ‘The Patch’

California Wildfires Latest: Red flag wind conditions in the north hamper firefighting efforts, while lightning storms in the south threaten to ignite new blazes, via Los Angeles Patch.

Ivermectin Treatment Ordered: An Ohio judge sided with a woman seeking to force a hospital to administer the animal dewormer to her husband, who has been in the ICU with COVID-19 for several weeks, via Across Ohio Patch.

Jan. 6 Jordan-Trump Calls: U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) and at-the-time President Donald Trump reportedly spoke on the phone more than once on the day of the U.S. Capitol insurrection, via Cleveland Patch.

Just Your Type: The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog at the first Type-In at Evergreen Park, Illinois, where 40 typewriter enthusiasts gathered to celebrate the ultimate writing machine, via Evergreen Park, Illinois, Patch.

“My Idiot Brother” Star Found Dead: Matthew Mindler, who starred as a child in "My Idiot Brother," was found dead after he was reported missing from Millersville University, via West Chester, Pennsylvania, Patch.

Spa Shooting Hearing: The man accused of killing eight people in Atlanta-area massage businesses was back in court Monday after already having pleaded guilty in four of the killings, via Across America Patch.

Monarch Migration: You don’t have to be a Marylander to see the annual migration of these orange and black beauties that weigh no more than a paperclip and fly thousands of miles to their winter homes, but several educational events are planned, via Annapolis, Maryland, Patch.

Find Your Patch

Patch is in more than 1,000 communities across America. Find your community and see what's happening outside your front door.