Burbank, CA
Burbank, CA David McNew / GETTY

Washington and Oregon are Burning: Blazing wildfires engulfed swaths of Washington and Oregon, prompting thousands of evacuations. Governor Jay Inslee declared a state of emergency this weekend. Firecrackers may have started one of the fires in northern Oregon. Burn bans are in effect everywhere. Fire map:

Smoke and Ash in Seattle: Smoke from the east and west drifted over Seattle, forming a blanket of haze over the city for the second time in as many months. Ash fell this morning.

California Is Also Burning: Firefighters are taking on nineteen active wildfires in the state. Los Angeles experienced its largest wildfire fire in history, destroying at least three homes.


Hurricane Irma Upgraded to a Category 5 Storm: Swirling at speeds up to 175 mph, the hurricane is expected to pass over Puerto Rico today. Calling the storm "life threatening," Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a state of emergency for the state's 67 counties. Federal meteorologists urged residents to stock up on supplies.


Death Toll From Hurricane Harvey Reaches 60: Flood waters, power outages and delays in responses to medical emergencies have all led to deaths.

DACA Recipient Dies Trying to Save Harvey Victims: His name was Alonso Guillén, a 31-year-old radio host from Mexico. When the hurricane hit, he boated into the waters with friends to find people. Someone found his body floating on Sunday.

Trump Looks Like He Will End DACA: Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, an Obama-era program, shielded as many as 800,000 young undocumented people from deportation. About 19,000 of them live in Washington state. Reports over the weekend hinted at his plan, which includes a six month delay for Congress to come up with a replacement. It's unclear whether the Republican-controlled Congress, however, has the will to do so. Trump officially made his announcement, one that could upend 800,000 lives, in a vague tweet this morning:


14 to 18 Year Gap in Life Expectancy Between King County's Poorest and Richest Areas: The Seattle Times visualized the data, which comes from a study published in The Lancet. The lowest life expectancy for men is in Auburn, (68.4), while the highest is in Clyde Hill (86.7). While King County has among the highest life expectancy rates in the world, only four counties in America have a lower life expectancy than Auburn.

Washington State Testing Pay-by-the-Mile Replacement for Gas Tax: Revenue from the gas tax is shrinking, while highway construction costs increase. That's not sustainable. Next year, 2,000 volunteers will show their miles to the state to determine whether a pay-by-the-mile scheme (currently at 2.4 cents per mile) could bring in the dollars authorities need to maintain our roads.