Phoenix’s record streak of temperatures above 110F ends after 31 days | First Thing
Relief expected to be brief with forecasts of highs above 110F this week. Plus, the man who hopes to shut down the coal industry with his drone
Good morning.
Phoenix's record stretch of daily highs over 110F (43.3C) ended yesterday as cooling monsoon rains tempered the dangerous heatwave that suffocated the American south-west throughout July.
Are people still in danger? Potentially, yes. More than 50 million Americans remain under a heat advisory amid one of the hottest summers recorded, and a heatwave continues to affect swathes of the country.
What is happening in the south-west? The hot and dry weather in the south-west of the US has set off a wave of wildfires. California and Nevada are battling a large blaze that is uncontrolled. Another, which originated in Washington state, has spread into Canada, forcing residents in the town of Osoyoos, British Columbia, to flee their homes.
What has Ukraine said about the drone attacks? Ukraine has not acknowledged responsibility for the attacks but the strikes came two days after the Ukrainian president said the war was coming to Russia, after three drones were shot down over Moscow on Sunday. Gradually, the war is returning to the territory of Russia - to its symbolic centres and military bases. This is an inevitable, natural and absolutely fair process," Volodymr Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address on Sunday.
What else is happening? The Russian defence ministry says it successfully repelled a unmanned boat drone attack on two of its ships in the Black Sea fleet - the Sergey Kotov and the Vasily Bykov.
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