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| The Justice Department charged 47 people with stealing $250 million from a pandemic food program for kids. How you can help people affected by Hurricane Fiona in Puerto Rico. And what's next for King Charles? |
| 👋 It's Laura Davis. It's Tuesday. And it's time for the news. Let's get going. |
| But first, this thing fell out of the Ugly Tree and hit every branch on the way down. 😅 A clown-like deep sea shark that looks more like a nightmare than a fish was recently caught in Australia – and people have questions. Check it out here. |
| The Short List is a snappy USA TODAY news roundup. Subscribe to the newsletter here or text messages here. |
| 🌤 What's the weather up to in your neck of the woods? Check your local forecast here. |
Feds: 47 exploited pandemic to steal $250M from food program |
| In the largest suspected COVID-19 fraud scheme yet, 47 people in Minnesota were charged with conspiracy and other counts after Justice Department officials say they stole $250 million in relief money. Prosecutors described "a brazen scheme of staggering proportions" that exploited a program to feed needy children in Minnesota during the pandemic. U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger, the chief federal prosecutor in Minnesota, said the suspects used a Minnesota nonprofit as cover to claim reimbursements for meals never provided and spent the money on luxury cars, houses, jewelry and resort property abroad. A look into the allegations. |
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Hurricane Fiona intensifies after pummeling Puerto Rico |
| Hurricane Fiona grew more powerful Tuesday after it blasted Puerto Rico, where most people remained without electricity or running water and rescuers used heavy equipment to lift survivors to safety. Turks and Caicos Islands officials imposed a curfew Tuesday as the Category 3 bore down on the small territory. Storm surge could raise water levels up to 5 to 8 feet above normal, the National Hurricane Center said. |
| 📸 Flooded homes, streets: Photos show Hurricane Fiona's aftermath. |
| • | Earlier: Fiona pounded Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic with up to 30 inches of rain that caused flooding, mudslides and destruction. | | • | In Puerto Rico: More than 80% of people were without power Tuesday, water service was cut to two-thirds of the island, and at least 2,300 people and 250 pets were in shelters, officials said. | | • | In the Dominican Republic: More than 1 million people were without running water and 700,000 were without power, authorities said. | | • | Lives lost to Fiona: At least three deaths were reported: two in Puerto Rico and one in the Dominican Republic. | |
| 👉 How can I help? Mutual aid, nonprofits providing relief to Puerto Rico. |
 | | A flooded street is seen in the Juana Matos neighborhood of Catano, Puerto Rico, on Sept. 19, 2022, after the passage of Hurricane Fiona. | | AFP via Getty Images | |
What everyone's talking about |
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Now that the funeral is over, what's next for King Charles? |
| After 10 days of pageantry and services, Queen Elizabeth II was buried in a quiet and intimate service away from cameras in Windsor Castle, where she was reunited with her husband, Prince Philip, and her parents. Now Charles and his family will begin seven more days of private mourning for the queen. But after that, what kind of king will emerge? |
| • | First things first, when is King Charles' coronation? Probably within a year. The ancient ritual of the coronation requires planning, although a lot of that has already been done. There hasn't been a coronation since June 1953, when Elizabeth was crowned. | | • | What are his plans? Charles has made no secret of his desire to "slim down" the monarchy – reduce the number of working senior royals supported by taxpayers – and reduce the overall multimillion-pound annual cost of the royal show. | | • | Ratings rise: A few days after the queen died, attitudes toward the king already improved, according a survey. Asked how they anticipate his reign, 63% said they think Charles will do a good job, up from 32% four months earlier. | |
| What kind of king will Charles be? Will he unite the commonwealth? And what do critics have to say about him? A look at the future under King Charles III. |
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 | | King Charles III joins the funeral procession for Queen Elizabeth II as it leaves Westminster Abbey. | | Jasper Colt, USA TODAY | |
How memes can blur the lines between fact and fiction online |
| A well-crafted meme works like a virus; it tricks participants into passing it on. By tapping into human nature, memes can spread through an online community and infect every member, carrying its message through each "like" and "share." USA TODAY reviewed thousands of internet memes and found a seemingly endless supply designed to sow discord and blur fact and fiction, and they flourished despite pledges by social media companies to curb such content. Experts said the memes have been weaponized to spread disinformation and polarize the population. |
| 👉 A look at how such memes have played a key role in almost every disinformation campaign of the digital age. |
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 | | Sara Aniano is a meme researcher and disinformation analyst at the Anti Defamation League Center on Extremism. | | USA TODAY | |
Real quick |
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| Chicago building explodes: At least eight people were hospitalized after an explosion inside a building Tuesday on Chicago's West Side, authorities said. Photo and video showed rescue officials gathered in a street littered with debris where the top floor of a four-story apartment building collapsed. The cause remains unknown, but is under investigation. |
 | | The fourth floor of an apartment building collapsed due to an explosion on the same floor at the corner of Wend Wen Avenue and N Central Avenue in Chicago's South Austin neighborhood, Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022. | | Anthony Vazquez, AP | |
🕷 Seeing more spiders lately? |
| They might just be lookin' for love in all the wrong places. This fall, some unannounced, startling guests might make their way into living rooms across the country: spiders! Even though you're bound to see spiders in your home throughout the year, the chances of seeing one heighten in the fall. But it's not to scare you for Halloween – it's to look for love. Or, in more proper terms, it's when the eight-legged creatures begin to mate. And if you do happen to spot a spider in your home, please don't kill it! They're mostly harmless and could help get rid of other pesky bugs. More to know about spider season. |
A break from the news |
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| Laura L. Davis is an Audience Editor at USA TODAY. Send her an email at laura@usatoday.com or follow along with her adventures – and misadventures – on Twitter. Support quality journalism like this? Subscribe to USA TODAY here. |
| This is a compilation of stories from across the USA TODAY Network. Want this news roundup in your inbox every night? Subscribe to the newsletter here or text messages here. |
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