The water keeps rising in Houston and more rains are on the way. The recovery from Harvey will take years and here’s how you can help. Get Up to Speed and Out the Door. (You can also get “5 Things You Need to Know Today” delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up here.)
1. Tropical Storm Harvey
THE SCALE: The sheer scale of the disaster that’s unfolding in Houston and other parts of Texas right now defies imagination. One weather analyst says Harvey has already dumped 11 trillion gallons of rain on the state. There’s already been 2,000 rescues in Houston alone. Sixty-two counties are under a disaster declaration. And the saddest number of all — two people are dead, but that number will surely rise.
THE FORECAST: The flooding in Houston and southeast Texas is already unprecedented, but it’s about to get worse. That’s because the remnants of Hurricane Harvey moved back into the Gulf of Mexico, where it’ll refuel on moisture before moving over Galveston and Houston again. That’ll bring four more days of rain. And if you live in Louisiana, watch out because Harvey is headed your way.
THE RESCUES: We’ve seen a ton of rescues of people from rooftops and stranded vehicles. People have been using social media to tweet for help. Thousands of people are stuck on cruise ships because it’s too dangerous for the ships to return to port in Galveston. And nursing home residents in Dickinson, Texas, waited patiently to be rescued as floodwaters rose around them.
THE REACTION: In Dallas, officials are prepping a “mega-shelter” for evacuees. In Houston, critics have pummeled Houston’s mayor for not calling for a mandatory evacuation. The nation’s fourth-largest city is flat and prone to flooding, but Mayor Sylvester Turner decided against a large-scale evacuation, saying it would’ve created an even worse “nightmare” if he had “put 6.5 million people on the road.”
2. Navy ship collision
The bodies of all 10 sailors missing after the USS John S. McCain collided with a merchant vessel have been found. The Navy had suspended search-and-rescue operations, but divers continued to look inside the ship’s flooded compartments. The 10 deaths occurred on board the ship. The McCain collision was the fourth a US warship had been involved in this year in Asian waters.
3. President Trump
As the nation’s attention was focused on the Gulf Coast and Hurricane Harvey over the weekend, a LOT of news came out of the White House. First, controversial counterterrorism adviser Sebastian Gorka left the White House. Then President Trump signed a directive banning transgender military recruits. Finally, Trump pardoned ex-sheriff Joe Arpaio, who was convicted of criminal contempt for disregarding a court order and targeting Latinos in his quest to crack down on illegal immigration.
4. Alps deaths
It was a deadly weekend in the Alps. Seven climbers fell to their deaths in two separate incidents. Five died after falling 1,000 feet in the Austrian Alps. Two other climbers — a man and woman who were part of a group that was roped together — died in the Italian Alps.
5. Spain peace protest
Half a million people took part in a massive peace protest in Barcelona over the weekend. It comes after a pair of terror attacks in the Catalonia region killed 16 people. Among those at the protest were Spanish King Felipe VI and Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy. The march was organized on social media with the hashtag #NoTincPor — Catalan for “I am not afraid.”
NUMBER OF THE DAY
31
The number of people killed in clashes in northern India after a controversial guru was convicted of raping two of his followers
BREAKFAST BROWSE
People are talking about these. Read up. Join in.
So serious
The MTV VMAs are usually one big party, but not this time as the pop music world’s reaction to events in Charlottesville dominated the night.
That’s what social media’s for
Facebook and Instagram were both down briefly over the weekend, so of course everybody headed over to Twitter to complain.
Billionaire’s club
Floyd Mayweather didn’t just win a boxing match when he beat Conor McGregor. He won the money fight too, joining the billionaire athletes club.
Meet the new boss
Money woes and a toxic culture have plagued Uber for a while, but the ride-hailing startup hopes for a fresh start now that it has a new CEO.
Spoiler alert
Remember, not every watched the “Game of Thrones” season finale in real-time. Here’s a handy chart of how NOT to spoil it for them.
AND FINALLY …
Song of the season
Summer’s almost over, but it’s not too late to catch up on not only 2017’s song of the season but every song of summer since ’58. (Click to view)