Emergency crews responded to the Quaker Oats plant in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, after a large fire tore through the facility.

Video shared online Saturday evening captured a towering column of black smoke above the Cedar Rapids factory as flames spread through the building.

Cedar Rapids police and firefighters arrived at approximately 4:45 p.m. EST and reported finding what appeared to be “evidence of an explosion and subsequent fire.” Officials said all plant employees had been accounted for roughly 45 minutes later.

The Battalion Chief’s office told the Daily Mail around 6 p.m. that the emergency remained “dynamic and ongoing.”

By 7 p.m., the fire department said there were no reported injuries or deaths. A video posted by the department on X showed extensive damage to the plant, including one section coated in dark ash.

First responders surrounded the facility as darkness began to fall. A stretcher was also prepared at the scene, although it did not appear to be needed.

The cause of the suspected explosion and the full scale of the damage have not yet been determined. Witnesses told local ABC affiliate KCRG they felt a blast before seeing thick black smoke rise from behind the Quaker Oats facility.

A PepsiCo Foods US spokesperson, whose company owns Quaker Oats, confirmed to the Daily Mail that a fire had started at the plant. Officials will investigate how it began.

“We can confirm all employees are accounted for and we are grateful to the first responders who continue to operate at the facility to control the fire,” the spokesperson said.

In a video message, Cedar Rapids Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell said the fire began in an area used to move products, where employees were not present.

She praised the firefighters working at the scene, saying: “This is what these folks train for every day. How grateful we are to have them here.”

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According to the mayor, relatively few workers were near the area of the blast, and firefighters were able to bring the blaze under control quickly.

O’Donnell said area hospitals were prepared to assist with the emergency response, though their support ultimately was not required.

The mayor also described Quaker Oats as an “iconic” company and an important part of life in Cedar Rapids.

Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley said on X that he had been informed about the fire and was “praying for the safety of those in or near the building and for the first responders on the scene.”

Josh Turek, a representative and Senate candidate, said: “Praying for all the workers, the first responders on scene, and everyone nearby at the Quaker Oats factory in Cedar Rapids right now.”

Iowa Representative Ashley Hinson wrote: “Praying that everyone is safe at Quaker Oats in Cedar Rapids.”

‘Thank you to the first responders working to put this fire out and keep the community safe. Our office stands ready to assist in any way we can.’

The Quaker Oats facility is no stranger to flames. In 2024, personnel were evacuated, and an employee was sent to the hospital after a piece of machinery started smoking, KCRG reported at the time. 

In 2018, firefighters responded to the facility after a product inside an oven caught fire and smoke engulfed the building’s tenth floor, according to CBS 2 Iowa. 

A year before the brand became Quaker Oats, the American Cereal Company plant in Cedar Rapids suffered a massive explosion, claiming the lives of two workers. 

Investigators determined the blast was caused by spontaneous combustion and rebuilt the plant in 1905. 

The Daily Mail has reached out to local authorities for additional information.

Kim Kardashian turned heads at the Rome premiere of All’s Fair season two, arriving in a dramatic couture look for Saturday night’s event at the Auditorium Parco Della Musica.

The 46-year-old fashion entrepreneur embraced vintage glamour in a strapless Yves Saint Laurent leopard-print gown from 1998. The figure-hugging design accentuated her signature curves.

She completed the statement ensemble with a coordinating chiffon scarf draped across her shoulders and a pair of black heels.

All’s Fair features Kim as Allura Grant, a formidable Los Angeles divorce attorney whose firm focuses on securing major settlements for women. The second season premieres on Disney+ on 4 November.

Kim shared the red carpet with fellow stars Naomi Watts, 58, and Sarah Paulson, 51, ahead of a screening held as part of the city’s film festival.

Naomi brought her own dose of high-fashion polish in a black satin Roksanda gown, featuring a paint-splatter design and an eye-catching sculptural skirt.

Watts plays Liberty Ronson, a sharp-minded attorney and co-founder of the all-female Grant, Ronson & Greene law firm, while Paulson portrays Carrington Lane, a lawyer who finds herself in competition with the firm.

Paulson opted for a custom white Miu Miu gown, with intricate beadwork adding texture and sparkle to the elegant look.

Kim arrived in Rome earlier in the week alongside her mother, Kris Jenner, who also attended the premiere.

Kris, 70, made a striking entrance in a black scorpion cape. The appearance also showcased the results of the $150,000 facelift she reportedly underwent last year.

The bespoke cape was recreated from Elizabeth Taylor’s famous Tiziani Roma design, which Kim wears in the second season of the series.

The Ryan Murphy-created legal drama also stars Glenn Close and Niecy Nash. Nash highlighted her curves in a strapless gown combining white fabric with a black corset-inspired bodice.

The lavish premiere comes despite a harsh critical response to All’s Fair. Although the series boasts a star-studded cast and has received extensive promotion, early reviews branded the show a “crime against television.”

The Times‘ Ben Dowell awarded the show zero stars and wrote, “This may be the worst TV drama ever.” Meanwhile, USA Today‘s Kelly Lawler called it, at minimum, “the worst TV show of the year.”

Critics also singled out Kim, who serves as an executive producer on the project. Dowell questioned her casting as a lawyer, writing: “Does Kardashian make a convincing lawyer? No, she does not. She is to acting what Genghis Khan is to a peaceful liberal democracy.”

Angie Han of The Hollywood Reporter writes that ‘Kardashian’s performance, stiff and affectless without a single authentic note, is exactly what the writing, also stiff and affectless without a single authentic note, merits.’

While Lucy Mangan for The Guardian opened her review with the musing ‘I did not know it was still possible to make television this bad… But I was wrong. All’s Fair is terrible. Fascinatingly, incomprehensibly, existentially terrible.’

Ed Power of The Telegraph was one of the few reviewers to bestow one star on the drama, but his write-up wasn’t any less scathing, and he blamed Murphy. 

‘Ryan Murphy is the high priest of tacky, tasteless television, and this year he has outdone himself with a show of mind-bending horror sure to trigger nightmares in the unsuspecting viewer.’  

Kim recently admitted she feared she had ‘ruined’ the series when it debuted a year ago, her first time leading a scripted series.

And the reality star blamed herself for the terrible reviews surrounding the legal drama and dark comedy, as she told The Times in a recent interview.

The show initially received overwhelmingly negative reviews, even reaching a disastrous zero per cent critical rating on Rotten Tomatoes and 19/100 on Metacritic. 

While online scrutiny and scathing criticism are nothing new to Kim – ‘I am so used to it, I have a really thick skin,’ she told the outlet – she did worry how the other stars would feel.  

All’s Fair boasts an impressive cast: Naomi Watts as Liberty Ronson, Niecy Nash-Betts as Emerald Greene, Sarah Paulson as Carrington Lane, Glenn Close as Dina Standish and Teyana Taylor as Milan.

But Kim’s anxiety soon fell away. Her co-stars turned out to be good sports.

‘I mean, at the beginning, to the girls, my cast, I was like, “Wait, are we OK? Did I ruin everything?” And they were like, “Listen, we are OK”,’ the SKIMS founder recalled.

‘I didn’t realise that in the film business as well you get so much criticism.

‘But we had so much fun,’ she added. ‘We’ve just finished season two. We thought we were a bit more serious last year, but the audiences thought we were really comical, so we’ve leant into that.’

Despite the negative reviews, All’s Fair has managed to generate good viewing figures.

It had an impressive debut as it logged in 3.2 million views, which was calculated as total viewing minutes divided by running time, worldwide in the three days following its November 4 premiere.

Hulu proudly announced that All’s Fair saw the best start for an original scripted series on the platform in three years. Season two drops November 4 on Hulu.

Kim is actively pursuing a more serious acting career.

The mother of four wrapped the upcoming Netflix comedy flick The Fifth Wheel in March. Directed by Desperate Housewives star Eva Longoria, it’s expected to premiere later this year or early 2027.

‘I don’t sing, I don’t dance, I don’t act, but I am not lazy. I love stepping out of my comfort zone. I want to grow, learn and expand. It keeps me motivated, keeps me inspired,’ she told The Times.

Strip away the dense terminology and political vocabulary in City Bridge Foundation’s new 12-page mission statement, and it could easily be mistaken for a Green Party pamphlet or a climate campaign blog.

The document celebrates “cross-cutting strategic ambitions” centred on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, alongside Climate Action. It repeatedly invokes the language of climate, racial, social and economic “justice”.

Yet the statement comes from a 700-year-old City of London charity with a clear and practical responsibility: looking after the capital’s non-rail bridges across the Thames. Its portfolio includes Tower Bridge, one of Britain’s most recognisable landmarks. Thanks to investments worth around £1.5 billion, that work is carried out without cost to taxpayers.

The latest policy document, titled Standing With Londoners, suggests that the current board has priorities beyond helping people travel across the river. The word “Thames” appears only once, while far more attention is given to the ambition of becoming a “social-justice funder” for “all Londoners”.

Critics would argue that serving the public means using this substantial financial reserve to focus more closely on the foundation’s original purpose, rather than directing large sums towards selected charities and left-leaning campaign organisations.

One London Conservative MP described the foundation’s approach as “woke nonsense” last night.

The foundation has awarded major grants to organisations including Spectra CIC, which received £1 million to help “build capacity in the trans and sex-worker sector”, and Race On The Agenda, given £1.5 million to “combat racial injustice”. Those projects may support particular communities, but critics ask why a charity created to maintain bridges is not using more of its wealth to repair and preserve them.

London’s bridge problems have already made the capital an international punchline. In 2020, The New York Times mocked Britain’s inability to carry out basic repairs after Hammersmith Bridge became a symbol of infrastructure failure. The Victorian landmark, also seen in the most recent James Bond film, was described as evidence that “London’s bridges really are falling down”.

Six years later, the bridge remains closed to traffic. Elsewhere, Albert Bridge has endured a year-long closure, while Waterloo Bridge is reportedly facing serious concerns of its own. That raises an obvious question: could the richly funded City Bridge Foundation help?

Its answer is no. The foundation says its core responsibility is maintaining the five bridges under its direct care. Its additional role is to provide grants to charities supporting communities across Greater London. But that wider remit was created by the organisation itself in 1995, when it sought permission from the Charity Commission to amend its governing rules. If those rules could be changed once, critics argue, there is nothing preventing another application.

That leads to more fundamental questions about ownership and accountability. Who does the money belong to, and who authorised these priorities? The funds ultimately derive from Londoners and their predecessors, who paid tolls to cross the river. Over hundreds of years, those proceeds have been transformed into a vast investment portfolio.

The foundation has a single overarching trustee: the City of London Corporation. The corporation appoints the board, which in turn selects the committee responsible for deciding how the money is distributed.

For decades, the political Left has portrayed the City of London as the ultimate stronghold of wealthy, pinstriped capitalism.

But a different philosophy now appears to have taken root in the Square Mile. Has the City itself gone woke? That is the question critics are asking after a City-linked charity with centuries of experience protecting routes across the Thames awarded £1.2 million to an organisation alleged to have links to Hamas, a proscribed terrorist group.

The story begins with medieval monks and merchants who established what was then known as Bridge House Estates in the 12th century. Its purpose was straightforward: to create and maintain a way across the river.

They built a stone London Bridge to replace its wooden predecessor and funded the project by charging travellers a toll.

Careful investment of that income eventually enabled them to construct Blackfriars Bridge and Tower Bridge. The organisation now also oversees Southwark Bridge and the Millennium Bridge, once nicknamed the “Wobbly Bridge”. After almost eight centuries of accumulation, the City’s leaders made a major decision in 1995.

They concluded that the organisation could move beyond the routine business of civil engineering and begin using some of its surplus wealth to support charitable causes.

Since when, as the rebranded City Bridge Foundation, they have quietly given away £840 million to hundreds of charities, some very deserving, some less so, some overtly political and some with no obvious connection to the City.

Last week, The Times revealed that two cheques amounting to a whopping £1.2 million had been handed to an organisation called the Muslim Charities Forum. Its treasurer just happens to be chief executive of another foundation, Al-Khair, which is alleged to have connections to Hamas. The Charity Commission has opened a statutory inquiry into Al-Khair after one of its associates was arrested in the UK and charged by the US with allegedly providing ‘material support’ to Hamas.

No one is suggesting the City Bridge Foundation had any idea of a possible Hamas link. However, it all adds to the impression of an organisation with more money than it knows what to do with.

As well as appointing its own poet in residence, for example, it pays each one of its 29 staff more than £60,000 a year.

The revelation about the Muslim Charities Forum surfaced in detailed research undertaken by Looking For Growth, a pro-business campaign group.

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One of its priorities for London is to break the bureaucratic logjam that has closed Hammersmith Bridge because two councils and the Mayor of London cannot work out a way of reopening it. The knock-on effect across west London’s other bridges and the impact on business has been severe.

Looking For Growth took a deep dive into the City Bridge Foundation and its finances. It was astonished to find that the charity was not simply just giving handouts to conventional charities – from Age UK to Mencap – but big sums to lobbying groups and activists.

‘Hammersmith Bridge has been shut since 2019, but the City Bridge Foundation’s rules stop them from being able to step in and fix it,’ says Dr Lawrence Newport, chief executive of Looking For Growth.

‘Instead of using its money to fund social justice causes – including a group campaigning against a new river crossing – the City of London Corporation must change the Foundation’s rules to get it back to its original purpose.’

Within the City Bridge Foundation there is dismay that this low-profile, ancient body is suddenly under attack for its philanthropy. Speaking to some of those on the inside, I find incredulity that they should be expected to fund bridges other than their own.

One senior figure, not unreasonably, asks why a well-run charity, which has been carefully managing its funds for centuries, should pay out hundreds of millions because the halfwits running 21st century local authorities have been so inept.

We can all sympathise with that argument. Yet this is a charity that has paid out £840 million to do plenty of other things that are the responsibility of the state – whether fighting racial injustice or looking after elderly people.

Furthermore, Looking For Growth points out that the charity has been paying millions to organisations with clear political agendas. Why is a body in charge of bridges giving £5 million to the Esme Fairbairn Foundation to ‘tackle the causes of deep-rooted structural injustices facing people in towns and cities across the UK’?

Established 65 years ago, the Esme Fairbairn Foundation has a long track record of good deeds, but also support for controversial single-issue causes such as pro- immigration outfit Right To Remain or the Media Standards Trust, precursor to the anti-Press group Hacked Off.

With more than £800 million of its own in the bank, does Esme Fairbairn really need another £5 million, which might otherwise be spent on bridge-building?

The foundation also commissioned a deep-dive into its connections with the slave trade. It would, no doubt, have cheerfully handed millions to the reparations crowd were it not for the frustrating discovery that it had next to nothing to do with slavery. That’s the problem with a charity that predates slavery, I suppose.

The City Bridge Foundation might cling to rules of its own making and insist it can only maintain ancient City bridges. But it circumvented those rules to take on the Millennium Bridge in 2003. And, if it is happy to spread its largesse far beyond the Square Mile, why can’t it help bridges beyond the City, too?

In response to questions from The Mail on Sunday, a spokesman for City Bridge Foundation said: ‘Our first responsibility is the maintenance of five Thames bridges at no cost to the taxpayer. Only funds not required for the bridges are available for our charitable work supporting Londoners.’

As for the possible Hamas connection: ‘Our grant was specifically made to Muslim Charities Forum for its work in London.

‘Every grant application is subject to robust checks and ongoing monitoring.’

There remains zero enthusiasm for helping any other Thames crossings. ‘Our five bridges are open, safe and in good condition. London’s other bridges are the responsibility of other organisations, which we work with through other industry groups.’

Pressure for change is not going to go away, though.

‘Our bridges have been left to wrack and ruin, making it more difficult to get around and leaving Londoners more divided,’ says Tory MP and Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp.

‘We are being sold down the river by this Left-wing pressure group masquerading as a charity,’ the MP for Croydon South adds.

‘They should spend less time and money on divisive campaigning and more time building bridges.’

He urged a clean sweep of the board ‘so this charity can return to its purpose of improving London’s infrastructure – like Hammersmith Bridge – instead of wasting money on woke nonsense that actually undermines our society.’

That view is echoed by urban analysts, such as Ike Ijeh, head of housing, architecture and urban space at the leading think-tank Policy Exchange. ‘At a time when London’s bridges are increasingly in need of urgent repair, the City Bridge Foundation should be reminded that its vast revenues are not its inheritance but Londoners’,’ he said.

‘And it is high time that inheritance was used to the strategic benefit of the majority of Londoners and not to line the coffers of the social justice identity complex that all too often divides London.’

Ultimately, here is a classic case for students of what academics call ‘groupthink’.

Just look again at the foundation’s website. The board and the funding committee are full of professionals keen to trumpet their City credentials and charity experience. However, out of the 15 people responsible for an organisation that builds and mends bridges, I count just two engineers.

Additional reporting by Nicholas Pyke

Snezana Wood reportedly contacted a friend last year to ask how she could leave her eight-year marriage to The Bachelor star Sam Wood, according to a new report.

Speaking to the Herald Sun, a friend of the mother-of-four claimed Snezana had been facing difficulties privately, despite the couple’s polished public image.

“Everyone has known what’s gone on. It was an open secret in Brighton. Snezana wanted to find a way out,” the friend alleged.

The claims have emerged as Sam, 46, prepares to return to the Supreme Court on November 4 to seek bail again after spending three weeks in custody.

A second friend also alleged that Snezana had no access to her own finances or the couple’s shared bank accounts during the marriage.

Those claims come against the backdrop of the couple’s substantial property and business dealings in recent years.

Sam reportedly sold his online fitness company to a Melbourne billionaire for $71 million, while the couple’s Elsternwick property is said to have fetched $6 million when it was sold in May.

He later bought a $2.7 million home in Mount Martha. Meanwhile, the family’s Brighton residence has been listed for $7.15 million.

A former partner of Sam has also spoken about what she described as unpredictable conduct during their relationship.

She alleged that, after one disagreement, he threw her clothing onto the front lawn of her home.

“If things didn’t go his way, he became increasingly erratic. He was always tight with money … looking for ways to save a buck. He even tried to get Snezana’s engagement ring for free,” she claimed.

Snezana has recently been seen without her wedding ring and has not appeared on social media in recent days. Her daughter Eve, who had also maintained an active online presence, has likewise been absent from the platforms.

Since the allegations surfaced, Sam has reportedly lost more than 15,000 Instagram followers, while Snezana and Eve have attracted thousands of new followers.

Sam remains in custody and has since been transferred to another prison.

The personal trainer was arrested and charged with domestic violence offences earlier this month following an alleged incident at the couple’s $3,000-a-night holiday home in Noosa.

Bail was denied when he appeared before Maroochydore Magistrates’ Court over the allegations involving Snezana, who is understood to support the prosecution proceeding with the charges.

Prosecutors allege that during the incident, which was reportedly witnessed by Snezana’s 21-year-old daughter Eve, Sam pushed his wife into a wardrobe, grabbed her by the throat, threw her against a wall and struck her head on the floor. Eve then called triple-0.

When he faced court in Queensland, police prosecutor Sergeant Jeanette Grigoris noted he had previously choked Snezana in a similar incident.

Sergeant Grigoris said Sam had not been charged over that alleged attack, but told the court his behaviour had been ‘escalating’.

It is alleged that a row broke out in Noosa ahead of the couple returning to Melbourne, and Snezana was pushed into a wardrobe before Eve intervened.

The court heard Eve told Sam to stop shouting, prompting him to approach her ‘aggressively’ before Snezana tried to get between them. 

He is then alleged to have put his hands around Snezana’s throat and forced her to the floor, where he pinned her down and banged her head, leaving her unable to breathe.

She told police, ‘This was it… my life was going to end’, and said she thought Sam was ‘going to kill her’, the court heard. 

Snezana had also told police Sam was ‘volatile and prone to angry outbursts’, and said she had to ‘walk on eggshells around him’.

Mr Cuskelly said his client suffered from severe depression and might rely on self-defence if the case went to trial.

Meanwhile, fans are urging Snezana to take over as the face and name of 28 by Sam Wood.

Sam founded the fitness business 10 years ago, before selling its parent company, Australian Life Tech, to myDNA for a reported $71 million in 2022. He remained involved with the brand under its new ownership.

The online fitness and nutrition program was designed around 28-minute workouts, meal plans and lifestyle support.

DBG Health, which owns myDNA, has quickly distanced itself from Sam, terminating its commercial arrangements with the former Bachelor star shortly after his arrest on these charges.

Snezana first captured Australia’s attention when she won Sam’s heart on The Bachelor in 2015.

Their romance became one of the franchise’s most celebrated success stories, with the couple marrying in 2018 and welcoming three daughters together.