The Short List

Wed Sep 6 2023

Laura L. Davis | Audience Editor

@lauradavis

Hurricane Lee formed and is getting stronger, but it's uncertain which way the storm will go. A community is on edge as the search for an escaped killer reaches a seventh day. And several huge asteroids will be passing close by Earth this week.

👋 Hi! Laura Davis here. It's Wednesday. Or is it Blursday? Either way, here's the news!

But first: Chatbot. Nepo baby. Crony capitalism. 📝 If you're unfamiliar with those terms, you're definitely not alone. The good news: You can find out what they mean on Dictionary.com, along with 500 others that were just added.

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Hurricane Lee forms, forecast to rapidly intensify soon

Where will it be, Lee? A strengthening Hurricane Lee was churning a treacherous path across the Atlantic on Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center said. Forecasts indicate Lee will probably curve north before hitting Florida next week, but the potential impact along the rest of the East Coast remains uncertain. With a wind speed of 75 mph, the storm is now a Category 1 hurricane, and winds are expected to approach 150 mph – a strong Category 4 hurricane – by the weekend. Lee is the fourth hurricane of the 2023 season. 🌀 Here's a look at the full forecast.

•	Schools forced to close, change schedules amid heat wave in mid-Atlantic, Northeast.

Russian missile kills 17 as Blinken visits Kyiv

Shortly after Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Kyiv to unveil a $1 billion aid package and demonstrate an "unwavering" U.S. commitment to Ukraine sovereignty, a Russian missile slammed into the eastern city of Kostiantynivka on Wednesday, leaving at least 17 civilians dead. At least 32 people were wounded and more than a dozen buildings were damaged in the strike on a downtown market, officials said. Blinken's visit comes amid concerns about the much-anticipated but slowly progressing counteroffensive Ukraine began almost three months ago. 👉 Follow our live coverage.

•	Does Putin's North Korea outreach show he's getting desperate in Ukraine?

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, right, and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, walk at the Alley of Heroes at the Berkovetske cemetery in Kyiv on Wednesday.

Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Press Service, AP

What everyone's talking about

•	Maryland officer suspended after video shows him enter police car with woman.
•	'My tractor is calling': Jennifer Garner traces roots back to her Oklahoma family farm.
•	Trump's big lead: Among nonvoters, many suspect elections are rigged.
•	Idalia swamped their homes. They still dropped everything to help with a house fire.
•	Inside the Rolling Stones' 'Hackney Diamonds' London album party with Jimmy Fallon, Sydney Sweeney.

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Manhunt for Pennsylvania prison escapee rolls into 7th day

The small town of Mendenhall in southeast Pennsylvania has been swarming with law enforcement over the past few days, setting residents on edge in the search for Danelo Cavalcante – a convicted killer who escaped prison on Aug. 31. As the search entered its seventh day Wednesday, hundreds of police officers using helicopters, drones and dogs focused on a perimeter a few miles south of the prison in hopes of forcing the fugitive into a mistake. Cavalcante made his way out of the Chester County Prison, about 25 miles west of Philadelphia, just days after he was sentenced to life without parole for stabbing his ex-girlfriend to death in front of her two children. 👉 Here's the latest on the manhunt.

Danelo Souza Cavalcante escaped from a Pennsylvania prison on Aug. 31.

PROVIDED: Chester County District Attorney's Office

5 asteroids to pass by Earth this week

Wave hi! 👋 Five asteroids will fly near Earth between Wednesday and Sunday, though none is on a trajectory that makes it a planetary threat, according to NASA. Three of the asteroids are about the size of a commercial jetliner, and the largest is 170 feet long. Dubbed 2023 QE8, that asteroid is expected to pass within 945,000 miles of our planet on Sunday. None of the other four asteroids is expected to fly nearly as close. But all five are large enough and close enough to Earth for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory to consider them "potentially hazardous." ☄️ Here's what we know about the incoming asteroids.

A break from the news

•	📲 Whoops! Accidentally delete a text? Here's how to get it back.
•	🍁🍂 It's time, leaf peepers! The best mountain towns for fall foliage.
•	🛳 Bring the bikini, leave the kids: All about sailing on Virgin's adults-only cruise.

Laura L. Davis is an Audience Editor at USA TODAY. Say hello:laura@usatoday.com.This is a compilation of stories from across the USA TODAY Network. Support quality journalism like this? Subscribe to USA TODAY here.