The Evening: ‘Evacuate now, now, now’

Also, the Supreme Court appeared open to limits on "ghost guns."

View in browser|nytimes.com October 8, 2024 By Matthew Cullen Good evening. Here's the latest at the end of Tuesday. An exodus ahead of Hurricane Milton A Supreme Court case on "ghost guns" Plus, Ali Wong's new stand-up special Debris from Hurricane Helene, which hit Florida less than two weeks ago. Zack Wittman for The New York Times Millions are fleeing Florida's Gulf Coast ahead of Milton The threat of Hurricane Milton, a Category 5 storm now barreling toward Florida's Gulf Coast, has prompted one of the largest evacuations in the state's history. More than five million people have been ordered to find safer ground before Milton makes landfall tomorrow, causing a mass exodus that has clogged the highways and drained the area's gas stations. The storm is headed for the Tampa Bay region, a metro area that is highly vulnerable to storm surge and hasn't had a direct hit from a major hurricane since 1921. Here's a live look at Milton's projected path. President Biden, who canceled a foreign trip to oversee the government response to Milton, urged Floridians to "evacuate now, now, now." FEMA is already stretched thin, but Gov. Ron DeSantis said that Biden had approved everything he'd asked for. For many residents, the storm is a demoralizing second punch after Hurricane Helene flooded the region. My colleague Patricia Mazzei, who is reporting from the area, watched the Florida National Guard rushing to remove debris from Helene that could become dangerous in the winds from Milton. Milton's unusually quick intensification was fueled by record warm ocean temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico. Global temperatures are rising over the long term because greenhouse gases from the burning of fossil fuels trap heat near the planet's surface. For more: An astronaut captured video of the hurricane from a spacecraft. Kent Nishimura for The New York Times The Supreme Court seemed open to limits on 'ghost guns' A majority of the Supreme Court justices appeared sympathetic during oral arguments today to the Biden administration's regulations on kits that allow people to make untraceable homemade guns. The case centers on whether federal regulators acted lawfully when they restricted "ghost guns" — which can be purchased online and easily assembled in less than an hour — after they surged in popularity. At least five justices, including the conservative justices John Roberts and Amy Coney Barrett, seemed to favor the limits. The ghost guns case is the first of a handful of major cases that the Supreme Court will hear this term, including a case on transgender rights and another gun dispute. The docket has returned to a sort of normalcy after a few momentous years, my colleague Adam Liptak explained, but that could change fast if the presidential race is contested. Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Finland, in 2018. Doug Mills/The New York Times A new book says Trump secretly stayed in touch with Putin Donald Trump secretly spoke with President Vladimir Putin as many as seven times after leaving office, according to a new book by the journalist Bob Woodward. The book also reports that Trump, while still in office during the pandemic, quietly sent Putin what were then rare Covid test machines for personal use. Efforts by my colleagues to confirm the communications were not successful. Nineteen current and former Trump and Biden administration officials and career intelligence officials we spoke to said they had no knowledge of contacts between Trump and Putin after Trump left office. On the campaign trail The presidential election is 28 days away. Kamala Harris leads Trump by four percentage points nationally, a new Times poll found. She is trailing Trump by six percentage points in Texas and 13 points in Florida. Trump and his Republican allies are betting big on anti-transgender advertisements. We answered the 10 most common questions teenagers asked about the election. Do you have questions about the election? Send them to us, and we'll find the answers. Bryan Anselm for The New York Times The U.S. required lead pipes to be replaced The Biden administration unveiled a landmark rule today that would require water utilities to replace virtually every lead pipe in the country within 10 years. The measure would tackle a major source of a neurotoxin that is particularly dangerous to infants and children. If you're worried about your pipes, here's what you should do. More top news Middle East: Israel carried out airstrikes in Damascus, Syria, targeting a Hezbollah official. Economy: The U.S. budget deficit rose to $1.8 trillion in 2024. TikTok: More than a dozen states sued the company for creating an app designed to be addictive to children and teens. New York City: Sheena Wright resigned as first deputy mayor, and a former City Hall official, Mohamed Bahi, was arrested. Nobel Prize: John Hopfield and Geoffrey Hinton were awarded the prize in physics for pioneering A.I. research. Social media: Brazil lifted its ban on X after Elon Musk capitulated in his fight with the country's Supreme Court. Mexico: A double cross ripped apart the Sinaloa cartel and turned Sinaloa State into a war zone. Gender: The C.D.C. found that 3 percent of U.S. high schoolers identify as transgender, and that these teens report alarmingly higher rates of bullying, sadness and suicidal behaviors. Ukraine: Russian troops entered Toretsk, a strategic hilltop city in the Donetsk region. N.F.L.: The New York Jets fired Robert Saleh, who was in his fourth season as coach with a 20-36 record. TIME TO UNWIND Ali Wong and Hannah Gadsby. Netflix, Ian Laidlaw Ali Wong and Hannah Gadsby offer different portraits of fame The comedian Ali Wong has a new Netflix special out today, "Single Lady," in which she confesses that being a divorced 40-something celebrity is a pretty great life. It's a dramatic change in tone from Wong's last special, which ended on an earnest tribute to her husband. And it draws an even sharper contrast with the new live show from Hannah Gadsby, who also became a phenomenon on the strength of a Netflix special, our critic Jason Zinoman writes. In "Woof!" Gadsby takes a dark view, worrying that success, and specifically money, has had a corrupting influence on their life. David Geffen Hall in New York City. Todd Heisler/The New York Times Did $550 million fix the Philharmonic's sound? David Geffen Hall, the home of the New York Philharmonic, reopened on this day in 2022 after a $550 million renovation. The interior of the performance space was entirely gutted and rebuilt, with the intention of breaking the acoustical curse that had plagued the hall for decades. Now two years of concerts later, Philharmonic players and conductors said their new space is a noticeable improvement, but still a work in progress. "The sound is honest," one member of the orchestra said. "You hear everything — for better or for worse." Marcella Townsend. Kendrick Brinson for The New York Times Dinner table topics Healing wounds: Marcella Townsend was unrecognizable after a propane explosion. A placenta restored her face. Michel Houellebecq: France's most controversial novelist is also its most celebrated. Famous read: In a new memoir, Elvis Presley's daughter and granddaughter take turns exploring a messy legacy. Art or trash? Two beer cans were displayed in a Dutch museum. Then they were accidentally thrown out. WHAT TO DO TONIGHT Craig Lee for The New York Times Cook: This simple frittata is healthy and delicious. Watch: "Born to Fly" is one of the best action movies to stream right now. Read: Alan Hollinghurst's new novel, "Our Evenings," is an exquisite queer odyssey. Ride: Check out these five irresistible fall train trips. Style: Statement dressing is back. Exercise: How you time your meals can influence your workout. Here's what to know. Compete: Take our quiz to see how well you know books adapted for Broadway. Play: Here are today's Spelling Bee, Wordle and Mini Crossword. Find all of our games here. ONE LAST THING Graham Dickie/The New York Times There's a 10-hour line for 3 minutes in this van The hottest event at this year's New York Film Festival isn't a film at all. It's a van. Hundreds of movie enthusiasts waited hours in line for their turn to enter a mobile version of the Criterion Closet — a tiny space stocked with DVDs and Blu-Rays of prestigious films in the Criterion Collection. It offers visitors a chance to enact their own version of the company's Closet Picks videos, in which celebrities pick out their favorite titles and evangelize about them. Have a curated evening. Thanks for reading. I'll be back tomorrow. — Matthew Sean Kawasaki-Culligan was our photo editor today. We welcome your feedback. Write to us at evening@nytimes.com. Writer: Matthew Cullen Editorial Director: Adam Pasick Editors: Carole Landry, Whet Moser, Justin Porter, Jonathan Wolfe Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for The Evening from The New York Times. To stop receiving The Evening, unsubscribe. 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