Daily Briefing: Storms, fire and sharks (2024)

An onslaught of powerful storms is threatening the holiday weekend. Overnight Israeli strikes targeted Rafah's designated area for displaced Palestinians, killing and wounding dozens. A Carnival Cruise ship coordinated with the Coast Guard to rescue 25 stranded people.

🙋🏼‍♀️ I'm Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author.It'sMemorial Day. Take a minute of silence to remember fallen soldiers.

Memorial Day stained by extremes across the nation

Severe weather and heavy rain are expected to progress into the mid-Atlantic, Southeast and Gulf Coast on Memorial Day.

The extreme weather comes after powerful storms andtornadoes swept across the nation's midsection Sunday killing at least 15 people in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Kentucky, injuring scores and knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses across the region.

• Seven deaths were confirmed in North Texas after an apparent tornado tore through Cooke County, near the Oklahoma border, on Saturday night,officials said. Two children, aged 2 and 5 years old, were among the dead.
• Wildfires could occur in the Southwest and High Plains over the Memorial Day weekend. Dangerous and potentially record-breaking heat is forecast to continue across parts of Texas, the western Gulf Coast and southern Florida.
• And then there's sharks. If you're headed to the beach on Monday, watch out forstinky seaweed, dangerous rip currents, bone-chillingly cold water — and yes, hungry sharks.

Israel strikes at displaced area in Gaza's Rafah

At least 20 Palestinians were killed and dozens of others wounded after a number of Israeli air strikes hit a camp for the displaced inGaza's Rafah, setting their tents on fire, a civil emergency official told Reuters. A final death toll at Tal Al-Sultan camp is still being determined, another medic said, adding that dozens were injured by the fire that ensued after the strikes, which residents are still trying to put out. There was no immediate comment from Israel. Read more

More news to know now

• What's open and closed on Memorial Day?
• An Arizona leader warned threats against election officials are domestic terrorism.
• What does Louisiana's new abortion pill law mean for patients?
• Nicki Minaj was released after an Amsterdam arrest for allegedly "carrying drugs."
• On today'sThe Excerpt podcast,whatVietnam War activistsare saying amid current college protests against Israel's war in Gaza. Listen onApple Podcasts,Spotify, or your smart speaker.

What's the weather today?Check your local forecast here.

Who gets a portion of $7.7 billion in student loan relief?

Student loan borrowers should keep eyes on their accounts in the coming months as the Biden administration pushes forward withstudent loan relief initiatives. Following theSupreme Court's block on Biden'sinitial forgiveness program in 2023, the administration has continued to implement a series of programs to assist some of the43.2 million borrowersstruggling under America's $1.6 trillion in federal student loan debt. Earlier this month, the administration also announced an additional $7.7 billion in forgiveness for undergraduate loan holders. This round of student loan relief will cover debts inthree categories of borrowers.

Vital bird flu tests aren't reaching farmworkers

Farmworkers face some of the most intense exposures to thebird flu virus, but advocates say many of them would lack resources to fall back on if they became ill. So far, only two people in the United States have tested positive, after being exposed to a wave ofbird flu spreading among cows. Those people were dairy farmworkers in Texas and Michigan. Scientists warnthe virus could mutateto spread from person to person like the seasonal flu, which could spark a pandemic. It's vital to keep tabs on farmworkers, experts say, but testing usually only happens once someone is symptomatic. Read more

Keep scrolling

• Golfer Grayson Murray's parents revealed his cause of death in an emotional statement.
• Citizen archivists are helping reveal the untold stories of Revolutionary War veterans.
• Check out these Memorial Day sales.
• These are the movies you need to stream on your day off today.
• Diss tracks keep coming.

Carnival cruise ship rescues 25 people

ACarnival Cruise Line shipresponded to a call from the U.S. Coast Guard and rescued 25 people stranded in a small boat off the coast of Mexico, thecompany announcedSaturday. The 2,984-passenger Carnival Radiance had left Long Beach, California, on Friday and was heading toward Ensenada Mexico for a three-day sailing when the cruise ship's officers were informed by the Coast Guard "about a distress call involving a small vessel." The ship immediately routed toward the location of the vessel and rescued all 25 people on board, including three children. Read more

Photo of the day:Josef Newgarden wins Indy 500

The reigning Indy 500 champion is now a back-to-back champion. Josef Newgardenon Sunday became the sixth driver to win consecutive Indianapolis 500s.

Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note?Shoother an email atNFallert@usatoday.com.