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The first vaccine in New York was administered Monday -- and the person they chose to give it to speaks volumes about very real concerns regarding safety and mistrust of the government.

The recipient was intensive-care nurse Sandra Lindsay, a Black woman working in healthcare, and she got the shot at the Long Island Jewish Medical Center in Queens. Before the deed was done, Sandra was hailed for her bravery ... for getting vaccinated in public, and for months of work treating COVID patients on the front lines.

As the doctor, also a woman of color, injected the needle ... Sandra didn't even flinch, and got a big round of applause.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo was on standby, watching the inoculation virtually. He noted Sandra didn't make a fuss about it and that the doc who did it -- Dr. Chester --- must have a good touch. Sandra responded that it felt like any other shot or vaccine she's gotten before.

The fact New York decided to publicize the first Pfizer vaccination with 2 women of color shouldn't be lost on folks.

As we've mentioned, and as the federal government has noted too, African-Americans are highly suspicious of this vaccination effort, and many say they won't take it or don't trust it.

There's a myriad of reasons why, but we got an up-close and personal look at that mindset this weekend with none other than Offset ... who told us straight-up he wasn't planning to get the shot.

Elon Musk, we have a problem.

SpaceX's much-hyped high-altitude test flight of Starship -- a spacecraft designed to take people and cargo to the moon and Mars -- ended in a fireball as it crash-landed Wednesday in South Texas.

Video shows the large reusable capsule, which is supposed to land vertically, came down way too hard and instantly exploded. However, even though the footage is crazy ... it was not unexpected.

Musk predicted Starship would likely crash land, but said data gathered in the test flight would be critical in moving the mission forward. SpaceX stated ... "With a test such as this, success is not measured by completion of specific objectives but rather how much we can learn."

Spike Lee praised Darnella Frazier -- the teen who captured George Floyd's death on video, sparking worldwide protests -- while presenting her with an award for courage.

The famed director said he was "proud of my sister" in presenting Frazier with the 2020 PEN/Benenson Freedom of Expression Courage Award during Tuesday night's PEN America Virtual Gala. Spike made note of what everyone's been saying about Frazer ... her courage to stand there for more than 10 minutes to record every minute of George's last dying breath reverberated around the world.

For her part ... Frazer said everything that transpired after posting the video on social media has been a lot to take in and NOTHING she would have ever imagined. She also said she felt honored about Spike presenting the award.

The org noted Frazer didn't set out to change the world on May 25 ... just another teenager looking out for her young cousin heading to a nearby store when she saw Floyd's encounter with cops ... including ex-cop Derek Chauvin pressing his knee on Floyd's neck.

As we reported ... Darnella's bravery didn't come without her facing her own consequences in the aftermath of her video. Her family told us they sought therapy to help Darnella cope with the emotional trauma.

Russia's vodka industry is taking a major hit -- leaders over there are telling citizens to lay off the sauce when they get the coronavirus vaccine.

Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova says Russians who receive the Sputnik V vaccine -- which is administered in 2 phases 21 days apart -- must abstain from alcohol for 42 days ... because it's an immunosuppressant.

That's not all -- Russians planning to get the vaccine are also supposed to give up drinking 2 weeks before their first injection. So, that's about 2 months of sobriety for people living in the nation known to be one of the world's leading alcohol consumers.

Anna Popova, head of Russia’s consumer watchdog agency, says beer and liquor are a strain on the body, adding ... "If we want to stay healthy and have a strong immune response, don’t drink alcohol." Smoking cigarettes is also being discouraged.

So far, Russian officials estimate 100,000 have received the Sputnik V vaccine.

Joe Biden said the LGBTQ+ community would be represented in his cabinet, and sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ, Pete Buttigieg is actively under consideration for various posts, but we're told he didn't get his first choice.

Sources privy to the selection process tell TMZ, Buttigieg is being vetted for what could be a significant appointment. We're told the possible appointment includes Secretary of Commerce and HUD. We're told he's also under consideration to head the EPA.

Our sources say another post that has been a subject of discussion is Veterans Affairs. As you know, Pete served in Afghanistan and has a strong connection to the military. We're told, although the V.A. remains a possibility for Pete, it's unlikely.

We're told what Buttigieg really wanted was U.N. Ambassador, but obviously, that position has already been filled.

The founder of Luminar Technologies -- a potential major player in self-driving cars -- is snatching the crown Kylie Jenner once wore ... now that he's the world's youngest self-made billionaire.

Austin Russell's only 25, but he's worth a whopping $2.4 BILLION after his company's stock market debut Thursday ... which saw its share price soar to $22.98, giving the company a market value of about $7.8 billion.

Russell owns about a third of that, so do the math ... and yeah, the dude's balling. Forbes dubbed him the world's youngest self-made billionaire, and his wealth is expected to climb even more Friday along with Luminar's stock price.

As you'll recall, Forbes had previously given Kylie that title in August 2018, but earlier this year -- after some forensic accounting -- determined she actually came up about $100 mil short.

Of course, Kylie's "self-made" status was also called into question, but that doesn't seem to be the case for Russell ... who dropped out of college in 2012 to start Luminar.

AR's company's pretty cool ... it makes a device called lidar scanners that use lasers to give autonomous cars a 3-D view of the road and surroundings. The company's already struck deals with Volvo, Daimler Truck and Intel’s autonomous vehicle unit ... and is projected to start raking in billions annually.

Rescuers from 3 different conservation groups are sticking their necks out for 8 giraffes that have been stranded on an island in Kenya ... and 2 have already made it back to safety.

Here's what's happening -- the poor Rothschild's giraffes got trapped on an island in Lake Baringo due to rising water levels flooding it ... which separated them from the resources they need to survive.

In order to save them, the Kenya Wildlife Service, a U.S. nonprofit called Save Giraffes Now and an African conservation org called the Northern Rangelands Trust have combined their efforts in an unusual rescue mission ... using a barge built for a giraffe to float them back to the mainland one at a time.

So far, 2 of the 8 giraffes have successfully made the 4-mile trek from the island ... and have been relocated to a special sanctuary where they can survive and thrive.

One of them was a female named Asiwa that was stranded on a more remote part of the island, making her rescue a top priority. However, the president of Save Giraffes Now says there's major urgency to saving the rest as well ... as they are an endangered species in Africa, and only about 800 left in Kenya.

As for the barge, get this ... it was engineered by local community members, who have also learned how to train the giraffes to enter the barge voluntarily.

Here's hoping everything goes well with the other 6.

Casanova is now in federal custody following his indictment in a gang-related racketeering conspiracy case ... TMZ has confirmed.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the Brooklyn rapper surrendered at NYPD's Midtown South Precinct Wednesday night at around 11:15 PM. We're told his attorney was with him, and the FBI quickly swooped in to take him into custody.

According to docs, Casanova and 17 others are part of the Untouchable Gorilla Stone Nation gang that's "committed murder, shootings, robberies, and assaults against their rivals and against fellow members of Gorilla Stone." According to the indictment, the gang's also accused of selling crack, coke in NYC and surrounding suburbs.

And, get this ... federal prosecutors allege the gang "engaged in brazen fraud by exploiting benefits programs meant to provide assistance in response to the COVID-19 pandemic."

Casanova -- who was the last alleged gang member still at large -- was hit with one count of conspiracy to commit racketeering, one count of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, and one count of possession of a firearm for drug-trafficking. If convicted, he could get life in prison.

There's a mysterious object hurtling toward Earth right now that will whiz past us early Tuesday morning, and in perfect 2020 fashion ... nobody's sure what the heck it is.

The unknown space mass has been dubbed "2020 SO," and is set to fly by our planet at an extremely close, but safe, distance of 31,605 miles at 3:50 AM ET December 1.

The object was discovered by the Pan-STARRS survey in Hawaii back in September, and initially, it was believed to be an asteroid measuring an estimated 15-33 feet across.

However, scientists at NASA's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) soon began to postulate it wasn't an asteroid or even a "natural body" at all.

Instead, CNEOS director Paul Chodas is on record saying he believes the object is the Centaur rocket booster from NASA's failed Surveyor 2 lunar mission ... which launched way back on September 20, 1966.

Chodas used a bunch of computer science and math to track 2020 SO's orbit backward to come to the conclusion ... that it likely launched from Earth.

Of course, scientists will be able to more closely observe the object as it approaches to determine exactly what it is ... and here's to hoping it's more exciting than a hunk of space junk.

Not likely, though.

The Vanderbilt University football team made history this weekend by enlisting the athletic prowess of one its star soccer players for their own sport ... and this time it's not a man.

Sarah Fuller took the field Saturday in Vandy's NCAA match against the Missouri Tigers -- where she suited up and kicked off to the opposing team in the second half ... and etching her name in the record books while doing so.

She delivered an effective onside kick to the Tigers, and then jogged off the field to lots of applause. Her play marks the first time a female has played in a Power 5 college football game ... which is a huge deal. The first woman to play the game ever at the college level was Liz Heaston in 1997 ... but that wasn't NCAA.

In 2001, Ashley Martin did the honors there ... but as far as Power 5 (the most competitive tier of collegiate football), Sarah is the first to ever do it -- an historic feat.

Now, as for how this came to be ... word is a few players on Vanderbilt's squad -- including some kickers -- are out right now due to COVID-19, so they were in need of some emergency reinforcements from other athletic departments on campus.

Sarah's actually the goalkeeper for Vanderbilt's women's soccer team, which just won the SEC championship. The Vanderbilt football coach reportedly was considering different options amid his team being down a handful of guys, and thought of Sarah because of how good she was with the soccer ball. One thing led to another, and they had her practice with a football. Obviously, she was a fit.

Some folks -- including certain media personalities -- criticized the move and questioned Vandy's motives for recruiting a female soccer player instead of a guy ... wondering if it was all for publicity and more for PR than actual merit.

Meghan Markle shared her grief Wednesday, going public about suffering a miscarriage back in July ... and it all relates back to a reporter asking her a question long ago, "Are you okay?"

Markle wrote an op-ed piece for the NYT, revealing on a July morning she was tending to baby Archie ... "After changing his diaper, I felt a sharp cramp. I dropped to the floor with him in my arms, humming a lullaby to keep us both calm, the cheerful tune a stark contrast to my sense that something was not right."

Meghan's fears were realized ... "I knew, as I clutched my firstborn child, I was losing my second."

She then describes the heartbreak ... "Hours later, I lay in a hospital bed, holding my husband's hand. I felt the clamminess of his palm and kissed his knuckles, wet from both our tears."

Meghan confessed, "I tried to imagine how we'd heal" ... and then, months later, she remembered that reporter's simple question, "Are you okay?" She recalled how her answer resonated with people ... that she was NOT okay, and it was liberating to honestly explain.

She says she wanted to share her heartbreak ... "Losing a child means carrying an almost unbearable grief, experienced by many but talked about by few. In the pain of our loss, my husband and I discovered that in a room of 100 women, 10 to 20 of them will have suffered from miscarriage. Yet despite the staggering commonality of this pain, the conversation remains taboo, riddled with (unwarranted) shame, and perpetuating a cycle of solitary mourning."

Meghan goes on to talk about 2020 and its horrors -- coronavirus, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, a country ripped apart by strife, and on and on.

This tops every video this week ... an enormous elephant hoisted from a well and pulled to safety ... and it only took 12 hours!!!

It was an incredible feat. The majestic beast fell into a deep well in India and rescuers jumped into action. The dilemma -- how to pull all that tonnage up to solid ground.

The rescue effort began in daylight Thursday but extended into darkness, as the elephant was secured by ropes and then a crane was dispatched to lift the creature.

The animal was sedated and slowly ... it was lifted from the base of the well and ascended.

When all was said and done, the elephant emerged from the darkness ... with cheers from rescuers and onlookers. It was freed from the ropes and stood with obvious relief. The elephant's fine!

Apparently, wells are an attractive nuisance for elephants ... 2 others have fallen into Indian wells recently ... not to be confused with Indian Wells outside Palm Springs.

Walmart is going from always low prices to almost no prices for at-home COVID-19 tests that they'll drop off at your pad via drone ... if you're in a certain area, that is.

Here's the deal ... two Walmarts in El Paso, TX and Cheektowaga, NY are doing a pilot program in which there's no pilot at all -- sending free COVID test kits to folks that live within a mile radius of their stores, and doing so through a nifty drone delivery service.

It's pretty simple -- people can hop online and fill out a questionnaire to get the nasal swab test sent to their home, where they can administer it to themselves in private ... and then send the whole thing back to a Quest Diagnostics lab, which is also on the house.

Walmart is saying this is all same-day from the time you request it online -- they're also saying asymptomatic people can get tested without issue ... a huge relief for those who've wanted to get tested, but have been turned away on the ground.

Eventually, you'll get your results back through an app. So, in other words, you'll never have to leave your living room to see if you're positive or negative. No lines, no waits ... and no having anyone awkwardly watch you get a stick jammed up your nostrils.

As for why Walmart's doing this in these specific locations -- it could be any number of reasons ... not the least of which might pertain to the infection rates. In El Paso, for instance, cases are at an all-time high ... some are even calling it a new epicenter.

It's so bad inmates are collecting bodies and placing them in mobile morgues -- and there are at least 10 of those already up and running.

A jetliner tragically hit a brown bear while landing in the dark of night, causing an alarming amount of damage to the jet -- but, thankfully, a nearby cub narrowly survived.

It was an Alaska Airlines plane that got caught up in the freak accident early Saturday morning, with the flight coming in from Cordova, AK and touching down at the Yakutat Airport before the sun had come out.

According to reports, all normal procedures were followed prior to landing -- airport personnel on the ground didn't see the mama brown bear and her cub crossing the runway ... this just 10 minutes after they'd done a scan and given the all-clear.

The plane struck the bear after it had landed and was coming to a stop, before taxiing to the gate. The aircraft's left engine hit the bear, and was clearly damaged afterward. Considering the size of a 737 compared to your average car ... you get a picture of just how dangerous an afternoon drive could be in Alaska.

No one on board the plane was injured, and a 2-year-old cub that was with its mom avoided the jet.

In a year where so many good things have gone virtual, here's one tradition carrying on just like normal ... the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree!!!

The 75-foot-tall Norway Spruce was chopped down Thursday and loaded onto a huge flatbed trailer in Oneonta, NY ... about 170 miles north of its Midtown Manhattan destination.

The massive tree will be erected Saturday, though the popular lighting ceremony isn't until December 1.

Rockefeller Center organizers, along with Mayor Bill de Blasio, have yet to reveal exactly how they'll deal with holiday crowds wanting to gather for the event or see the tree up close, as the city's facing another crisis with rising COVID-19 cases.

The Mayor simply says they will take extra precautions to make sure it's safe for people to visit the spectacle in person ... which he says still evokes a "childlike wonder" for him.

A reporter and photographer are beyond lucky to be alive after raging floodwater washed away a bridge right from under their feet ... and it happened while they were live on TV.

The scary incident went down Thursday in Alexander County, N.C. on the Hiddenite Bridge where FOX 46 reporter Amber Roberts was in the middle of her live report when a huge chunk of the bridge broke off and fell into the water.

Check out the video ... Amber screams in terror as she quickly realizes the danger just a few feet away from her and her crew. The collapse left about a 10-foot wide gap in the bridge, and you can see a man on the other side fleeing to safety.

Amber didn't waste any time sending it back to the studio after narrowly avoiding catastrophe. The Carolinas are getting slammed with heavy rain ... triggering flash flood warnings across several counties. More than a dozen campers were trapped by the rising water.