Kentucky floods: Death toll rises to 30, 'hundreds' still missing
BBC
At least 30 people have now died in the Appalachia region of eastern Kentucky, as the region braces for more rainfall.
At least six children - including four siblings, aged one to eight, who were reportedly swept from their parents' grip - are among the dead.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said the death toll would continue to rise as "hundreds" remain unaccounted for.
More than 12,000 households remain without power, and hundreds of homes and businesses have been flooded.
The damage to roads, bridges and other infrastructure will take millions to repair, the governor said on Monday.
Climate endgame: risk of human extinction ‘dangerously underexplored’
The Guardian
The risk of global societal collapse or human extinction has been “dangerously underexplored”, climate scientists have warned in an analysis.
They call such a catastrophe the “climate endgame”. Though it had a small chance of occurring, given the uncertainties in future emissions and the climate system, cataclysmic scenarios could not be ruled out, they said.
“Facing a future of accelerating climate change while blind to worst-case scenarios is naive risk management at best and fatally foolish at worst,” the scientists said, adding that there were “ample reasons” to suspect global heating could result in an apocalyptic disaster.
The international team of experts argue the world needs to start preparing for the possibility of the climate endgame. “Analysing the mechanisms for these extreme consequences could help galvanise action, improve resilience, and inform policy,” they said.
As Western flames spread, California sees its largest 2022 fire
NPR
Crews battling the largest wildfire so far this year in California braced for thunderstorms and hot, windy conditions that created the potential for additional fire growth Sunday as they sought to protect remote communities.
The McKinney Fire was burning out of control in Northern California's Klamath National Forest, with expected thunderstorms a big concern Sunday just south of the Oregon state line, said U.S. Forest Service spokesperson Adrienne Freeman.
"The fuel beds are so dry and they can just erupt from that lightning," Freeman said. "These thunder cells come with gusty erratic winds that can blow fire in every direction."