10 things you need to know today: September 27, 2014

1. Death toll from Ebola outbreak passes 3,000 people

The World Health Organization said on Friday that West Africa's death toll from the Ebola virus has reached at least 3,080 people, marking the first time an outbreak has claimed more than 3,000 lives. Officials have confirmed more than 6,500 cases, and recent worst-case estimates show that as many as 1.4 million people could become infected by January. And as clinics and health workers struggle to keep pace with the outbreak, the hardest-hit countries are also facing "collateral" deaths. "The health services of West Africa have to a very large degree broken down," Jeremy Farrar, director of the Wellcome Trust international health charity, said.

Time Reuters

2. The United Kingdom votes for airstrikes in Iraq, but not Syria

As expected, the British Parliament overwhelmingly approved Prime Minister David Cameron's proposal to join the U.S.-led campaign of airstrikes against ISIS militants in Iraq on Friday. Parliament did not approve airstrikes in Syria, though, echoing Cameron's political defeat last year, when he proposed airstrikes against Syrian government forces but was rejected. Britain's contributions against ISIS are expected to be similar in size to that of nations such as France, the Netherlands, and Australia. "This is not a threat on the far side of the world," Cameron told lawmakers as he opened the debate.

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The Washington Post

3. Chelsea Clinton gives birth to baby girl

Bill and Hillary Clinton's daughter Chelsea gave birth to her first child on Friday, a girl named Charlotte Clinton Mezvinsky. The new mom announced the news via Twitter, saying she and husband Marc Mezvinsky "are full of love, awe and gratitude." Chelsea Clinton, 34, married Mezvinksy in 2010, and she announced her pregnancy at a female empowerment forum in New York City, in April. New grandmother Hillary Clinton, who is reportedly eyeing another run for the White House, has nevertheless said that becoming a grandparent would be her "most exciting title yet."

The Associated Press

4. Fire at Illinois FAA radar center grounds thousands of planes

A man set a deliberate fire at an FAA radar center in Aurora, Illinois, on Friday morning, grounding thousands of planes. Officials said the incident was a "local issue," and there were no indications of terrorism. The fire caused the facility's radio frequencies to die, which led to the grounding of all flights into and out of Chicago's O'Hare and Midway airports. At least 800 flights were delayed, and more than 1,700 flights were canceled. Planes in the air were diverted to other air traffic control centers, and airlines said trying to rebook passengers onto later flights will be difficult because most of those planes are already full.

The Chicago Tribune

5. North Korean state TV: Kim Jong Un 'suffering discomfort'

North Korean state media made its first official acknowledgement of leader Kim Jong Un's "discomfort" in an hour-long documentary broadcast on Thursday. "The wealth and prosperity of our socialism is thanks to the painstaking efforts of our marshal, who keeps lighting the path for the people… despite suffering discomfort," the voiceover says. Kim had not been photographed in public for several weeks, and was absent from a meeting of the country's official parliament. He has also been seen walking with a limp, possibly from a case of gout, and he has gained a significant amount of weight since taking power following the death of his father Kim Jong Il.

Reuters

6. Recently fired man beheads former coworker at Oklahoma company

Police say a man fired from his job at Vaughan Foods Co., in Moore, Oklahoma, on Thursday beheaded one of his former coworkers (Colleen Hufford, 54) and stabbed another (Traci Johnson, 43). Employees told police that Alton Nolen had recently tried to convert his coworkers to Islam; Moore police have asked the FBI to assist in investigating the beheading. Mark Vaughan, the business' chief operating officer and a reserve Oklahoma County deputy, confronted and shot Nolen; the attacker and his stabbing victim were transported to a nearby hospital, and officials said their injuries are not life-threatening.

The Oklahoman

7. 'Bond King' William Gross leaves Pimco for Janus Capital

William Gross, called the "Bond King" of Wall Street, left Pimco, a money management firm he helped create, for Janus Capital on Friday. Gross' decision to leave reportedly came after he became aware that Pimco planned to either force him out or fire him. Gross, 70, headed Pimco's $222 billion Total Return Fund, and he is personally estimated to be worth $2.3 billion. But sources at Pimco said Gross had displayed bizarre behavior in recent months, from showing up at an industry forum wearing sunglasses to waxing nostalgic on his dead cat in a monthly letter to investors.

The New York Times

8. The state of Kansas is auctioning off sex toys

In an effort to make up some of the $160,000 a Kansas business owner failed to pay in taxes, the state government has elected to auction off his inventory — which consists of sex toys and porn. "While we do not agree with the type of business involved here, it was nonetheless a legal business that was closed due to failure to pay taxes," a spokesperson for Republican Gov. Sam Brownback said. "This is the same process used by previous administrations." The items, which range from DVDs and drinking games to lingerie, will be auctioned off online in 400 lots of dozens of items each.

The Topeka-Capital Journal

9. Study finds cowbells could be hurting cows' ears

Researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology found that cowbells worn by Swiss cows could damage their hearing, and the bells may also be affecting the cows' eating habits. The researchers studied more than 100 cows, all of which wore 12-pound cowbells, from 25 farms in Switzerland. The bells can create noise levels of 100 to 113 decibels, roughly equivalent to the noise level of a jackhammer. Some farmers said replacing the bells, which are used to track cows that escape their farms, with GPS chips could damage Switzerland's traditional image.

The Local

10. Bruges City Council approves underground beer pipeline plans

The Bruges City Council, in Belgium, approved a proposal from brewery Brouwerij De Halve to construct a 1.86-mile-long tunnel, capable of transporting 6,000 liters of beer per hour. The brewery will handle the cost of the project, which is expected to begin next year. Brouwerij De Halve CEO Xavier Vanneste said the pipeline, which will move beer from the brewery to an offsite bottling facility, will eliminate the need for as many as 500 delivery trucks, clearing Bruges' roadways and lowering environmental waste.

CityLab