Are you in Irma’s path? We’ve got a checklist of what you should do — and get — to keep your family safe. Here’s what else you need to know to 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. Hurricane Irma
Irma has weakened a bit — it’s been downgraded to a strong Category 4 storm — but don’t let your guard down. This is still one of the most dangerous storms we’ve ever seen, and it’s killed at least 10 people. Irma’s maximum sustained winds are 155 mph, and it’s headed straight for Florida. This morning, the storm is between Cuba and the Turks and Caicos, after pummeling Barbuda and St. Martin, and is expected to pass through the Bahamas before slamming into Miami this weekend.
Hurricane and storm surge warnings are in effect for South Florida, where gas is in short supply and highways are jammed as millions of residents evacuate. Nursing homes are getting prepped, hospitals are evacuating and nuclear plants are shutting down as a precaution. Mandatory evacuations have also been ordered for parts of Georgia and South Carolina.
The two other hurricanes that are out there are gaining strength, too. Hurricane Jose is now a Category 3 storm and could pass close to Antigua and Barbuda Saturday. Hurricane Katia is approaching Mexico’s east coast. All this, and hurricane season hasn’t even peaked yet.
Meantime, all five living former Presidents have banded together to launch an appeal for help for Harvey victims.
2. Mexico earthquake
A mammoth earthquake hit early this morning off the coast of southern Mexico. The 8.1-magnitude quake killed at least four people, triggered tsunamis and was felt as far away as Mexico City and Guatemala City. The power is out in parts of Mexico City, and people have gathered in the streets, some in their nightclothes. The epicenter of the quake was near the Mexican states of Chiapas and Oaxaca, two of the country’s more impoverished areas, and damage there is expected to be extensive.
3. Equifax data breach
Hackers hit one of the big three credit-reporting companies in one of the one of the worst data breaches in history. Equifax says cybercrooks accessed the names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses and driver’s license numbers of as many as 143 million Americans. Think about that number for a second. That’s almost half of the country. The breach happened between mid-May and July, although Equifax said it didn’t discover it until the end of July. You should check to see if you’re affected by the hack, and Equifax is providing free credit-file monitoring and ID-theft protection for a year.
4. Rohingya
The story of the Rohingya people fleeing violence in Myanmar just keeps getting worse. At least 164,000 people have fled their homes in western Myanmar since August 25, and many have been killed trying to make it out. Dozens of Rohingya women and children have drowned while trying to get into neighboring Bangladesh by boat. Others have been injured by landmines placed along the border. The Rohingya Muslims are considered to be among the world’s most persecuted people — with predominantly Buddhist Myanmar saying they are Bangladeshi and Bangladesh saying they’re Burmese.
5. Russia probe
Donald Trump Jr. told Senate judiciary committee staffers Thursday that he did not recall the details of White House involvement in the public response to his 2016 meeting with a Russian lawyer and did not know much about the Air Force One meeting that allegedly led to the production of the statement, sources told CNN. Trump Jr. was explicitly asked whether he either took any of the Russian participants in the June 2016 Trump Tower meeting to see his father — now President Donald Trump — or whether he told his father about the meeting after, sources said. He insisted he did neither.
Trump Jr. reportedly told investigators that he set up a 2016 meeting with a Russian lawyer after being promised damaging information about Hillary Clinton because it was important to learn about her “fitness” to be President, according to a New York Times report about the conversation.
Also, Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team has approached the White House about interviewing staffers who were aboard Air Force One when the initial misleading statement about Trump Jr.’s meeting with the Russian lawyer was crafted, three sources familiar with the conversations said.
BREAKFAST BROWSE
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Causing a ruckus
“Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli is at it again. This time, he’s ticking folks off by auctioning off the sole copy of Wu-Tang Clan’s epic, “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin.”
Playing through
This isn’t some epic Photoshop job. It’s a real picture of golfers on a course in Washington state playing a round while a massive wildfire rages behind them.
No spoilers here
ABC has a new “Bachelor,” and he’s someone who’ll be very familiar to fans of “The Bachelorette.”
Clean sweep
Outer space is getting kind of junky thanks to old satellites and rockets. So, scientists are dreaming up ways to clean it all up.
AND FINALLY …
Now you see me, now you don’t
Need a break from, well, everything? Now’s as good a time as any to play peek-a-boo with this cute baby owl. (Click to view)