An image from Hurricane Ike in 2008.
An image from Hurricane Ike in 2008. MARK WILSON / GETTY

Hurricane Harvey Could Be a Category 3: Say experts who upgraded the hurricane's intensity ranking to a Category 2 overnight. This means that the hurricane heading towards Corpus Christi could make landfall with 111 mile-per-hour winds and flood areas with 35 inches of rain. Seven counties on the Texas coast have ordered mandatory evacuations, and Houston is within the flood zone.


Pedestrian Finds Sick Bat in Ballard: This is the second rabid bat found in Seattle in a week. The most recent bat was lying on the sidewalk at the intersection of NW 73rd and 8th Avenue NW. You can tell a rabid bat by that kind of behavior: If they're not flying and lying down instead, not a good sign. Unless you picked it up, though, you're probably okay. If you did pick up the bat, you should call King County Public Health at  206-296-4774.

The Lummi Nation Has Declared a State of Emergency Over Farmed Salmon Pen Escape: "These fish are headed to every river in Puget Sound,” Brian Cladoosby, chairman of the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, told the Seattle Times. “We have been saying all along it was not a question of if, but when, this would happen. The wild salmon stocks are already endangered. It is time to shut these operations down. Period.” Farmed salmon are an invasive species, and a 305,000-fish escape like this one threatens wild salmon runs.


A Flat Rate Fare for King County Metro: FINALLY! Maybe. King County Executive Dow Constantine has proposed that riders pay a flat fee of $2.75 on Metro buses instead of having to pay $3.25 if you cross city lines, $2.75 at peak traffic hours, and $2.50 at non-peak. No more penalizing commuters who take the bus. "According to Constantine, 65 percent of Metro riders would see no change in fare or a fare reduction with a $2.75 flat rate," KUOW reports.

Seattle Could Break Record for Warm Summer Days: The National Weather Service predicts that this summer will be the first time that temperatures in Seattle were 70 degrees or higher for every day of July and August. This month could also have the hottest average temperature recorded in Seattle.

Amazon Says It's Going to Cut Prices at Whole Foods After Acquisition: The global logistics company says it'll cheapen items like eggs, kale, beef, chicken, salmon, bananas, and avocados. But they will still get you with overpriced snacks at checkout.

Lesbian and Bisexual Older Women Suffer Worse Health Outcomes Than Straights: Strong predictors of chronic health problems like these? Discrimination and victimization, University of Washington social work professor and researcher Karen Fredriksen-Goldsen said. “Most people think gay and bisexual men would have more adverse health effects, because of the HIV risk,” Fredriksen-Goldsen said. “Lesbian and bisexual women tend to be more invisible, less often considered when it comes to health interventions. This is a population that isn’t getting the attention it deserves."

Beacon Hill Parent Who Raised Money to Wipe Out Lunch Debt Is Going Statewide: Jeff Lew already raised $100,000 to wipe out student lunch debt in Seattle Public Schools. But as of today: "The Seattle parent hopes to raise at least $600,000, which is the estimated total amount of lunch debt in districts across Washington," the Seattle Times reports.

DC Judge Rules that DOJ Can Get Data from Protest Site: "D.C. Superior Court Chief Judge Robert Morin told lawyers for the Justice Department that they could proceed with a narrower version of their warrant. But the government needs to develop a plan to 'minimize' the exposure of 'innocent users,' as he put it," KNKX reports. Thousands of people protested using information from DisruptJ20 on inauguration day.

Finally, Tweet of the Day: