Sixth-Largest Quake Ever Recorded Prompts Mass Tsunami Evacuations
Millions were ordered to flee. RFK strikes again. A divided Fed holds steady. Kamala says no. Arab League draws a line. Plus: Ozzy Forever.
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Yesterday brought the surreal experience of reporting tsunami warnings across much of the West Coast. While the threat ultimately passed without major incident, these kinds of extreme events are becoming increasingly common. So we thought it worth diving into the science: What exactly is a tsunami (spoiler, it's not just a big wave) and why do they happen? We nerd out on the geology below.
Elsewhere today: RFK Jr. continues importing anti-science views into federal health policy; Gaza sees both worsening humanitarian conditions and a significant political shift as Arab nations essentially give Hamas its walking papers; the Trump administration rolls back climate regulations; and we say farewell to the Prince of Darkness himself.
Breaking: Kamala Says No in ‘26. Is that a yes in ‘28? Former Vice President Kamala Harris announced she won’t run for California governor. The uncertainty about her plans was keeping possible contenders on the sidelines, so this frees them to jump in the race. Former Congresswoman Katie Porter already announced her intention to seek the seat. Speculation now turns to former LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, and Los Angeles real estate developer Rick Caruso, who waged and lost a competitive bid to become Los Angeles mayor in 2022. Current Governor Gavin Newsom is term-limited and expected to run for president in 2028. The question is, will Harris do the same? In her statement Harris said, “We must be willing to pursue change through new methods and fresh thinking — committed to our same values and principles, but not bound by the same playbook.” The political guessing game continues.
Brown University Makes a Deal: Brown University reached a deal to restore federal research funding the Trump administration has been withholding. The university agreed to pay $50 million to Rhode Island workforce development organizations, remove consideration of race from admissions, and use the Trump administration’s definitions of “male” and “female.” Read more here.
Hold the Line: The Federal Reserve announced today it is maintaining current interest rates for the fifth consecutive time. That will frustrate Trump, who wants the rates cut. Interestingly, two governors on the Fed’s board voted for a rate cut, against the consensus, the first time in three decades that’s happened.
Making Waves: Hawaii and parts of the West Coast were struck by tsunami waves yesterday, which were caused by a massive earthquake near Russia’s Far East. Millions of people across the Pacific were under a tsunami warning and told to evacuate. Traffic on multiple Hawaiian islands came to a standstill as thousands fled to safety. Several people were reportedly injured in Russia and Japan, but no one seems to have been hurt in the US, nor have major damages been reported. A tsunami advisory remains in effect for Hawaii, with people advised to stay away from the water. This all happened because Tuesday night (early Wednesday morning local time) an earthquake with a magnitude of 8.8 occurred off the Kamchatka Peninsula in Eastern Russia. It was the sixth largest ever recorded. See pictures of those affected here.
Hotspot: This area of the world is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, a horseshoe-shaped belt of volcanoes that is prone to earthquakes. About 90% of all earthquakes occur in this zone, which stretches from New Zealand to Japan, up to Russia and Alaska, and down America’s Pacific Coast to Chile. Why? The Ring of Fire lies along the boundaries between various tectonic plates. These plates are constantly moving; that movement, and the interaction between plates, generates trenches, mountains, volcanoes, and yes, earthquakes.
When They Go Low: This earthquake occurred on something called a “megathrust fault.” That’s where the Pacific Plate and the Okhotsk Plate meet. The Pacific Plate is moving westward at a rate of 3 inches per year. Because it’s the denser plate, it’s pushing under — “subducting” — the Okhosk plate. This “geological activity” isn’t gentle. The plates get stuck, building up energy that is suddenly released when the plates unstick. That’s what causes an earthquake. These kinds of earthquakes are the most powerful on Earth. Learn more from an expert here.
In Context: This earthquake was about half as powerful as the 2011 quake that devastated Japan or the 2004 quake that killed hundreds of thousands in South Asia. It was five times weaker than the strongest quake ever recorded, a 9.5 on the Richter scale, which left millions homeless in Chile in 1960.
What’s in a Wave: It’s easy to think of tsunamis as nothing more than a giant wave. That’s a dangerous misconception. Instead, you could conceive of a tsunami as a series of waves often carrying tons of debris. It’s not a wave you can duck under or crest and escape. It’s a wall of water filled with objects that are dangerous at high speed. You don’t want to reckon with one.
What’s Next: An earthquake is rarely isolated. There have been at least 10 aftershocks above a magnitude of 5. There was a 7.4 quake in the area two weeks ago; that’s called a “foreshock”. Could this 8.8 quake be a foreshock to an even larger disaster? Experts say that’s unlikely but possible — which could be the tagline to 2025.
Gaza Update: Two major stories from Gaza today, one on the humanitarian crisis and the other a major political development.
Hunger and Aid: The leading international authority on food crises yesterday warned “the worst-case scenario of famine is playing out in the Gaza Strip.” According to the World Health Organization, there have been 63 malnutrition-related deaths in Gaza this month, 38% of them children under the age of five. In the first half of 2025, only 11 such deaths were recorded.
Aid Increasing: Over 200 aid trucks entered the Strip yesterday, according to Israel’s customs authority. That’s an increase from the 120 trucks that entered on Sunday, but some aid groups argue 600+ daily trucks are needed to counter the threat of famine. “The situation on the ground has not changed,” one aid worker in Gaza said. Israel blames Hamas for the suffering of Palestinian civilians; Netanyahu’s main political opponent declared that “humanitarian aid management” has collapsed in Gaza and called on the government to ensure “there is no hunger.”
End of the Line for Hamas? For the first time, the 22 members of the Arab League called on Hamas to give up its arms and cede control of the Gaza strip to the Palestinian Authority. Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Egypt are among the nations insisting Hamas must play no role in future leadership of Gaza and a Palestinian state. This declaration came at the end of a UN conference on a two-state solution attended by members of the Arab League, the EU, and other nations. CNN reports the group also proposed that the UN oversee a “temporary international stabilization mission” to guarantee security inside Gaza at the end of the war. The declaration condemned Hamas's October 7 attacks that killed over 1,200 people and sparked the current war. The US chose not to attend the conference and was not party to the declaration.
State of Play: The UK announced yesterday that it will recognize Palestine as a state in September unless Israel “takes substantive steps to end the appalling situation in Gaza.” These include an immediate ceasefire, committing “to a long-term, sustainable peace,” and ensuring no further annexations of land in the West Bank. The statement also demanded “the immediate release of the hostages.” Some critics condemned the statement for presenting Palestinian statehood as a bargaining chip, rather than the right of its people to self-determination. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the UK of appeasing Hamas.
Today conservative news outlets are running with a story they clearly think smacks of hypocrisy. "Michigan Dems Want ICE Agents Jailed for Wearing Masks—After Forcing You to Wear One for Years," declares Townhall, a right-leaning outlet. Meanwhile, not a single left-leaning publication is covering this story. Ground News calls it a Blindspot for the left. Their "Blindspot" feature reveals exactly which stories each side of the political spectrum is ignoring. I rely on this tool to better understand what partisans on both sides aren't seeing. My audience gets 40% off the Ground News Vantage Plan, bringing it down to just $5 a month. It's an excellent way to escape your filter bubble and stay better informed. To subscribe, visit my link at GroundNews.com/NNN.
Health of the Nation: We’ve got a few updates from the “Make America Healthy Again” movement.
War Against Vaccines: Health Secretary RFK Jr announced Monday he will overhaul the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program. The government created this program in 1986 to let people seek financial compensation if they believe vaccines harmed them. It has paid out $5.4 billion to 12,000 petitioners over nearly four decades. RFK wants it to pay out significantly more money, including to people who claim Covid vaccines injured them. One expert warned RFK is attempting to “make the program compensate cases out of hand without actually evaluating” them. Flashback: RFK previously served as closing counsel in a 2022 lawsuit that attempted to hold a doctor liable for giving a child autism by vaccinating them; the lawsuit failed.
Depressing Situation: An FDA advisory panel recently urged the agency to warn pregnant women not to use antidepressants, specifically SSRIs. Panelists claimed the drugs could cause miscarriage, birth defects, and autism. Multiple psychiatrists pushed back hard, accusing the panel of essentially spreading misinformation. Research shows no solid evidence that antidepressants cause these problems. Extensive studies demonstrate that these medications can improve and save the lives of millions of people, including mothers, suffering from mental health issues.
Leader at Last: After months of uncertainty, the Senate finally confirmed a new director for the CDC. The vote was along party lines. Susan Monarez is the first CDC director without a medical degree in over 70 years. Trump withdrew his first pick, Dave Weldon, after lawmakers criticized Weldon’s anti-vaccine history.
Repealing Science: The Trump administration announced yesterday it will revoke the finding that greenhouse gases endanger human health. This action removes the legal foundation for all greenhouse gas regulations in the US — from those governing vehicle tailpipes to those covering power plants and smokestacks.
Hot Air: EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin claimed this would cut $54 billion in regulatory costs and end “years of uncertainty for automakers and American consumers.” But the EPA’s own draft impact analysis shows the change could cost Americans more, not less. This is without accounting for the cost of air pollution and climate change, which will both be worsened by deregulation. As we’ve previously reported, air pollution is thought to cost the US $790 billion every year; a federal report concluded in 2023 that extreme climate events cost the US $150 billion annually. If Democrats retake control of Congress or the White House in coming elections, they will almost certainly move to reenact science-based regulations. Which is cause for manufacturers to avoid dramatic changes under Trump’s EPA. All this drives more uncertainty, which is not good for business.
What It Means For You: If automakers go ahead and start selling less-fuel-efficient cars, you could end up paying more in the long run from the extra gas your vehicle will consume. At the very least, you’ll be more exposed to changes in gas prices.
What’s Next: Various groups are preparing to fight the move. “If EPA finalizes this illegal and cynical approach,” the Natural Resources Defense Council warned, “we will see them in court.”
Serious Damage: A 27-year-old man shot and killed four people in a high-rise building on Park Avenue in Manhattan yesterday, before killing himself.
Motive: The perpetrator left a note referencing CTE, or chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Law enforcement believes he intended to target the NFL’s HQ but took the wrong elevator. They say he accused the NFL of knowingly concealing the danger CTE poses to players. CTE isn’t well understood, and can currently only be diagnosed by autopsy. It’s a brain disease caused by repeated head injuries that causes the brain to degenerate; participants in contact sports seem to be more at risk. The perpetrator was a promising football player who suffered from persistent psychological issues; he claimed in his note that football gave him CTE and reportedly asked for his brain to be studied. (He shot himself in the chest, preserving his brain.)
Not Playing Ball: The NFL only acknowledged the link between football-related head injuries and CTE in 2016, despite investigating the matter for years. The league continues to deny claims from players who died with CTE. Its refusal to protect professional players effectively allows colleges and high schools to do the same with young athletes who are most at risk, like yesterday’s perpetrator — with tragic consequences.
Hardball: Trump today announced he will add a 25% tariff to goods from India, starting Friday. He also threatened a “penalty” for India’s policy of buying energy from Russia.
He Just… Said It: Trump yesterday told reporters that Jeffrey Epstein “stole” young women who were working at Mar-a-Lago’s spa. Specifically, Trump confirmed that Epstein “stole” Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s main accusers. Giuffre died by suicide in April. “The toll of abuse is so heavy,” her family said, “it became unbearable for Virginia to handle its weight.”
Timeline: Giuffre accused Ghislaine Maxwell of approaching her at Mar-a-Lago in 2000 to recruit her for Epstein. She was 16 years old at the time. Giuffre alleged that she was then “sexually exploited by Epstein’s adult male peers” while a minor employed as his personal masseuse. Remember, at this time Trump was reportedly still close friends with Epstein. In 2002 — years after Giuffre was “stolen” from Trump’s resort, and after she’d allegedly been sexually abused by Epstein’s cabal — Trump told New York magazine that Epstein was a “terrific guy” who is “a lot of fun to be with.”
Back Scratcher: Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for conspiring with Epstein, offered to testify to Congress — but only if certain conditions are met. Her conditions: she wants the questions in advance, a pardon or immunity, and a decision by the Supreme Court on her petition to have her conviction overturned. The House Oversight Committee already said no to her request for immunity, and the Committee’s top Democrat is against giving her the questions. The Supreme Court will consider Maxwell’s petition on September 29, at the start of its new term. If Maxwell sticks to her demands, this will remain unresolved for at least two more months, which is bad news for the Trump team.
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