10 things you need to know today: September 13, 2020

(Image credit: ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)

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1. Dozens still missing in Oregon as improved weather provides some aid to firefighters
2. Trump bashes Biden at Nevada rally
3. AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine trials resume in U.K.
4. 2 L.A. County deputies shot while sitting in patrol car
5. Russian voters test Putin's power in local elections
6. Bloomberg to spend at least $100 million to help Biden in Florida
7. Thousands of women march in antigovernment protests in Belarus
8. Former U.K. prime ministers publish joint letter criticizing government's plan to breach Brexit deal
9. Osaka captures 2nd U.S. Open title
10. NFL gets ready for first slate of Sunday games

last updated 13 September 2020

1. Dozens still missing in Oregon as improved weather provides some aid to firefighters

Dozens of fires are still raging across the three West Coast states, burning millions of acres, as crews search for survivors in Oregon, where "mass fatality" incidents are feared. At least 26 people have been killed in California, Oregon, and Washington in the blazes, which Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) has called a "once-in-a-generation event," since early August. Dozens of people are still missing. Firefighters did make some progress in containing the fires Saturday, aided by calmer winds and cooler, moister conditions, although smoke and ash continue to darken the sky, creating some of the world's worst air-quality levels. President Trump on Monday will visit California, where he'll meet with federal and state officials to discuss the fires.

President Trump traveled to Nevada for a campaign rally in Douglas County on Saturday as he sets his sights on winning over the state he narrowly lost in 2016. A recent New York Times/Siena College poll showed Trump trailing his Democratic challenger, former Vice President Joe Biden, in the Silver State, but the race is considered a close one, and Nevada remains one of Trump's best chances at flipping a Hillary Clinton-won state in 2020. At the rally, Trump warned he was ready to "be really vicious" during the campaign's stretch run, and he gave the audience a taste during his speech. Trump called Biden a "pathetic person" who "doesn't know he's alive." He also accused Nevada's Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak of trying to "rig the election" because the Trump campaign had to move the rally out of Reno because of COVID-19 restrictions.

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AstraZeneca announced Saturday that it received confirmation from the United Kingdom's Medicines Health Regulatory Authority that it was safe to resume clinical trials for the company's coronavirus vaccine in the U.K. after they were paused over safety concerns earlier this week. The statuses of trials elsewhere remain unclear, CNBC reports. The vaccine candidate, which was developed in partnership between AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford, is considered one of the world's most promising, but phase three of its trials was temporarily halted after a woman in the U.K. reportedly displayed neurological symptoms consistent with a spinal inflammatory disorder called transverse myelitis after receiving the vaccine. AstraZeneca isn't authorized to provide further medical information so the company statement didn't explicitly say whether the woman's illness was found to be unrelated to the vaccine.

Two Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department deputies — a 31-year-old female and a 24-year-old male — were shot Saturday night while sitting in their patrol vehicle in Compton, the department tweeted. Both deputies were left in critical condition with multiple gunshot wounds and underwent surgery at a hospital in Lynwood. "They are both still fighting for their lives," the department said in a tweet. Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva and Capt. Kent Wegener said during a briefing that the shooting took place at 7 p.m. local time. Wegener said the suspect approached the vehicle from behind, walked along the passenger side of the car, and shot multiple times, hitting both deputies. A video released by LASD appears to show the incident, which ended with the suspect running away. The search for the shooter, for whom investigators only have a "very generic description," is still ongoing.

Russians cast their ballots in dozens of local elections Saturday, with nearly 160,000 candidates vying for seats in local parliaments and governors being elected in several regions. The voting has been overshadowed by the recent, non-fatal poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, whose team alleges the attempt was carried out on the orders of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Before he fell ill last month, Navalny had been encouraging Russians to vote against Putin's ruling party, United Russia, in the local elections in the hopes of loosening its grip across the country, and his camp believes the campaign could be why he was targeted. The local elections are reportedly seen as a dry run for next year's national parliamentary elections, although early results from the Far East show Kremlin-backed candidates winning easily.

Billionaire and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg plans to spend at least $100 million campaigning for the Democratic Presidential nominee, former Vice President Joe Biden, in Florida, The Washington Post reports. Bloomberg's advisers refused to give a specific amount of money, but said the plan was "nine figures." Most of the money will go to television and digital ads in English and Spanish. Kevin Stacey, a Bloomberg adviser, said the investment in Florida should free the Biden campaign and other Democratic groups to allocate their resources to other swing states, especially Pennsylvania. Bloomberg also reportedly wants to encourage early voting in Florida, so that a potential Biden victory in the state could be called soon after polls close on Nov. 3.

Antigovernment protests continued this weekend in Belarus, as demonstrators call for President Alexander Lukashenko to resign. About 10,000 women marched through Minsk, the capital, on Saturday, with riot police violently detaining dozens of the marchers, many of whom carried portraits of Maria Kolesnikova, a leader of the opposition Coordination Council who was jailed this week after police unsuccessfully tried to force her from the country. Lukashenko, who has ruled for 26 years, has refused to meet with the Coordination Council, which seeks a new presidential election following accusations that the last one was fraudulent. Tens of thousands of people reportedly took to the streets in Minsk again on Sunday, and police have said around 250 protesters have been arrested.

John Major, a former Conservative U.K. prime minister, and his former adversary and eventual successor, Labour's Tony Blair, joined forces Sunday, publishing a letter in the Sunday Times criticizing the "shocking" announcement from the British government last week that it plans to pass legislation that would break international law by breaching parts of the Withdrawal Treaty it signed in January when the country formally left the European Union. Meanwhile, the U.K.'s Justice Secretary Robert Buckland, also a member of the Conservative Party, warned he could resign if the law is "broken in a way I find unacceptable." Prime Minister Boris Johnson says the controversial legislation is necessary to clarify the Northern Ireland protocol element of the Brexit deal and protect free trade between the four nations of the U.K.

Naomi Osaka came back to defeat Victoria Azarenka 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 on Saturday in the women's U.S. Open final, which was played in front of a mostly-empty Arthur Ashe stadium in Queens, New York. The win marks Osaka's second U.S. Open crown, and it was the third Grand Slam overall for the 22-year-old star. For the first time since 1994, the woman who lost the first set of the U.S. Open final won the next two sets to claim the victory. Before the match, Osaka stepped onto the court wearing a mask with Tamir Rice's name on it — throughout the tournament she wore several different masks bearing the names of Black victims of violence. Both Osaka and her coach said her off-court activism has helped her energy and mindset during matches, The Associated Press reports.

The first full slate of NFL games kicks off Sunday, as the league begins play amid the coronavirus pandemic. The season officially began Thursday night when the Kansas City Chiefs launched their Super Bowl title defense with a 34-20 win over the Houston Texans, but the rest of the league will get going Sunday. Week 1 features quite a few rivalry games, including a matchup between the Green Bay Packers and the Minnesota Vikings. Reigning MVP Lamar Jackson will be back under center for the Baltimore Ravens, who are hosting the Cleveland Browns. The main draw of the day, though, will take place at 4:25 p.m. E.T. on Fox when the New Orleans Saints take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who will be led by quarterback Tom Brady as he dons a new uniform after two decades with the New England Patriots.

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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.