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GOOD AFTERNOON, PORTLAND! Oooo-weeeeee, this week is gonna be another HOT one with temps swooping up to a blistering 97 tomorrow and staying in the 90s until at least Thursday. Stay cool, papi—and check out this scorchin' NEWS.
IN LOCAL NEWS:
• Even though TriMet has reduced the frequency of 10 bus lines and are experiencing a historic driver shortage, they have unveiled new, 60-foot-long stretchy buses that are predicted to arrive every 12 minutes and will hopefully make up for their recent losses. Our Isabella Garcia has the details.
• Two victims and the gunman have been identified from this weekend's mass shooting at a Bend Safeway. Check out this heartbreaking graph from OPB:
Bend police identified those victims Monday as Glenn Edward Bennett, 84, and Donald Ray Surrett, Jr., 66. Surrett was an employee with Safeway, and police said he attempted to disarm the shooter, identified as 20-year-old Ethan Miller, possibly saving more lives.
• ALSO:
If you have the Bend suspect's manifesto, don't amplify it.
— A9 (@A9Collective) August 29, 2022
"Extremism researchers have pleaded the same case: Don’t amplify the message."https://t.co/X6pZS5E8zR
• Oregon Governor Kate Brown has declared a state of emergency after southwest Oregon's Run Creek Fire grew to dangerous proportions this weekend, forcing evacuations, and looking increasingly dire for firefighters due to drought and this week's hot weather.
• The 69-year-old McMinnville man who is thought to have committed "suicide by cop" last week after pulling a gun on police, was actually only carrying an air gun that looked like a pistol. And this is what happens when police respond to mental health calls.
• Calling all trash aficionados! 🦝 It's time for the latest fun 'n' gossip from Elinor Jones and THE TRASH REPORT. This week: Biden puts haters on blast, Republicans go home, and... are we okay with Virgos? 🤔
There's plenty of late summer happenings on the calendar as August fades into September, from Leon Bridges to Lose Yr Mind Fest and from the Grand Prix of Portland to the Oregon State Fair. https://t.co/rqHhDFSbBp
— EverOut Portland (@EverOutPortland) August 29, 2022
IN NATIONAL/WORLD NEWS:
• Trump's foot-dragging request for a "special master" to review the classified documents recovered from Mar-a-Lago by the FBI came too little, too late—the government has already examined the lion's share of the files, according to the DOJ. And before any Trumpers out there squeal "but, but, BUT," the FBI has also already set aside documents that could contain any attorney-client privilege. (Shoot... I wanted that dirt, too.)
• Good news/bad news for Georgia Governor Brian Kemp: Despite his attempts to avoid appearing in front of a grand jury about 2020 election interference, a judge has ordered him to show up anyway. Not so great news (and much to the chagrin of governor candidate Stacey Abrams), the judge also said he could wait to appear until AFTER the upcoming November election.
Kinda true? pic.twitter.com/honZmQayNY
— Meredith Salenger (@MeredthSalenger) August 28, 2022
• REMINDER: Starting Friday, the government will no longer be sending free COVID-19 tests to any American who requests them—so if you want some, SIGN UP NOW. (I just did.)
• Hate to be a downer, but thanks to human-caused climate change, and according to a new study, a massive sheet of "Zombie Ice" out of Greenland is expected to raise global sea levels 10 inches all on its own, which is twice as much as what scientists previously expected. Worse still, no matter what we do at this point, nothing can be done to stop it.
Chris Rock is not a good person and says very slappable things very often. https://t.co/uRYEssrzpn
— Frederick Joseph (@FredTJoseph) August 29, 2022
• Due to an engine problem, the launch of NASA's Artemis 1 rocket designed to orbit the moon (a first step toward eventually heading toward Mars) has been temporarily scrubbed, with the next launch window coming on Friday.
• And finally... at first I was like, "C'MON"—then I was like, "TOTES WORTH IT."
He paid $800 for the Optimus Prime Transformer 👀😳 pic.twitter.com/a2M4djzgGN
— Daily Loud (@DailyLoud) August 29, 2022