Trump to skip first Republican primary debate next week.
Former President Donald Trump is reportedly choosing to skip Wednesday's debate (9 pm ET, Fox News) in Milwaukee, hosted by the Republican National Committee, to instead sit for an online interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson. The details of the platform and timing of the interview have not been released.
First-ever tropical storm watch issued for Southern California.
Hurricane Hilary, which reached Category 4 status in the Pacific Friday, is moving on a path toward the west coast of the Baja California peninsula, with maximum sustained winds of 145 mph, as of this writing. Hilary is expected to weaken to a Category 3 by today and diminish to a tropical storm by tomorrow. Heavy rainfall is expected for the Southwest. See previous write-up here.
Wildfires force 20,000 to evacuate Yellowknife, Canada.
More than 200 fires have been raging in Canada's Northwest Territories this week, prompting evacuations in a number of communities, including the capital city of Yellowknife. Canada has seen a record number of wildfires this year, with more than 5,700 fires having burned nearly 14 million hectares of land. See data here.
Maui emergency chief quits amid criticism over wildfire response.
The head of the Maui Emergency Management Agency, Herman Andaya, submitted his resignation a day after defending the agency's decision to not activate Maui's alert system during last week's fatal wildfires. Andaya said the agency feared the alert system—created to respond to tsunamis—might have caused people to move inland and inadvertently run into flames.
India's lunar lander sends close-up photos of the moon.
India's space agency released the new images taken from its Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft as it approached the moon's south pole. The spacecraft, which launched last month, is expected to attempt a landing on the moon's south surface Aug. 23. Russia launched its own lunar mission last week and is expected to attempt a landing two days before India.
WeWork plans for 1-for-40 reverse stock split to retain NYSE listing.
WeWork is moving forward with its planned reverse stock split, in which every 40 shares held by an investor will become a single share. The split, effective Sept. 1, will bring WeWork's share price above the $1 threshold for the company to remain listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Shares fell to 12 cents—the company's lowest intraday level on record—following the announcement and closed at 14 cents per share Friday.
American referees selected for Women's World Cup final.
Referee Tori Penso and assistant referees Brooke Mayo, Kathryn Nesbitt, and Armando Villarreal have been chosen to officiate Sunday's World Cup final between England and Spain (6 am ET, Fox). Their selection marks the first time US soccer referees lead the officiating crew in a senior FIFA World Cup final. US referees have officiated 28 of the 64 matches at the Women's World Cup this year.
