September 18, 2013 (Wednesday)
Business and economy
- The United States Federal Reserve announces that it will continue its stimulus program due to concerns about weakening growth. (The Age)
Disasters and accidents
- Hurricane Manuel:
- More than 2,000 tourists have been airlifted by the Mexican Army after floods caused by Hurricane Manuel isolate the resort city of Acapulco with many tourists and residents stranded. (BBC)
- At least 58 people are missing after a mudslide caused by Hurricane Manuel buries approximately 70 people in the Mexican town of Atoyac de Alvarez. (CNN)
- At least 6 people are dead in Ottawa after a collision between a Via Rail train and a double-decker OC Transpo bus. (CTV)
- Teen Graciela Martinez is found dead after school from possible heat stroke in a locked BMW in which the doors would not open. (Los Angeles Times)
International relations
- Iranian President Hassan Rouhani releases 11 political prisoners. He will visit the United States tomorrow. (The New York Times)
Law and crime
- The French parliament moves to ban children's beauty contests in an attempt to halt what one former minister called the hyper-sexualization of young girls. (The Guardian)
- In Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Antonio Feliu fatally shot his ex-girlfriend and her adult daughter, and killed another woman in a head-on crash during a police chase. He shot himself as police approached his stopped car. (Epoch Times)
Politics and elections
- Tony Abbott is sworn in as the 28th Prime Minister of Australia together with his Ministry. (BBC)
Science and technology
- iOS 7, the seventh iteration of Apple Inc.'s iOS mobile operating system, is officially released. The new OS includes major changes to the user interface. (Huffington Post)
- Cygnus 1 (also known as Orbital Sciences COTS Demo Flight) launches the first planned flight of the Orbital Sciences' unmanned resupply spacecraft Cygnus, its first flight to the International Space Station and the second launch of the company's Antares launch vehicle. The flight is under contract to NASA as Cygnus' demonstration mission in the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program. The launch site is MARS on the Delmarva Peninsula in Virginia. (NASA)
Sport
- Ken Norton, a boxer who was one of the few to defeat Muhammad Ali, dies, aged 70. (ESPN)