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A plume of smoke and ash from a volcanic eruption
A volcano in Tonga erupted for several days this weekend, cutting the nation's communication lines. Tonga Geological Services

Good morning, Portland! Fog season continues today, so keep your eyes extra peeled for pedestrians if you’re driving. Now, on to the headlines!

In local news:

• The Center for Covid Control—the COVID testing company currently under investigation by the Oregon Department of Justice—received $123 million dollars from the federal government, a USA Today investigation found. The money was supposed reimburse the company for the COVID rapid and PCR tests it distributed at over 300 testing sites nationally. However, many state health departments—including the Oregon Health Authority—have not received the results of any of the tests the company was reimbursed for. (If you hit paywall on the USA Today story, WW has the highlights.)

• Six people were shot outside of WOW Hall, a popular music venue in Eugene, Friday following a concert. The mass shooting is the “highest profile shooting” the city has ever seen, according to Eugene Police Chief Chris Skinner. As of Saturday, one of the shooting victims is in critical condition and five are in stable condition.

• A group of Portland school nurses allege Portland Public Schools is telling families that schools are safe without actually following through on COVID-19 safety protocols. “The reality is that the classrooms and hallways are crowded, windows are closed, HEPA filters are too few, masking is not of medical grade, children are testing positive at a rate that is too fast to track, the tests provided are expired, and staffing in every department is stretched too thin,” a letter signed by 36 school nurses said.

• The Oregon coast had a tsunami warning Saturday, with waves expected to reach up to three feet. How did Oregonians react to the warning? They flocked to the beach. The highest recorded swells reached 1.5 feet near Port Orford.

In national and international news:

• A gunman held four people hostage for 11 hours at a synagogue in Texas this weekend. The hostages were able to escape after the synagogue’s rabbi threw a chair at the gunman. According to the rabbi, he was able to take action because of years of security training he took, prompted by threats to synagogues.

• “Twin earthquakes” hit western Afghanistan Monday afternoon, killing at least 22 people according to local authorities. The earthquakes occurred two hours apart and registered at magnitude 5.3 and magnitude 4.9. The death toll is expected to rise.

• Heavy snow, thunderstorms, and high winds are plaguing the northeastern US. The storm has already dropped over a foot of snow, ensnarling roads and triggering several New York towns to institute travel bans for safety.

• A volcanic eruption Saturday in Tonga destroyed all the houses on one of the nation’s smaller outer islands, according to the government Tuesday. Tonga officials, who were finally able to communicate with aiding countries three days after the blast, need evacuation and rescue assistance. However, officials are worried that foreigners sent to help the cluster of islands will bring the nation’s first cases of COVID-19 with them.

• And let’s end on some good news: giant turtles!