Here and Now

Hurricane Irma has been downgraded to a Category 4 storm, but it still threatens to bring deadly storm surges and winds to South Florida this weekend. For many in the region it dredges up memories of Hurricane Andrew, which in 1992 became the costliest hurricane in U.S. history.

Here & Now‘s Robin Young talks with The Weather Channel hurricane specialist Bryan Norcross (@TWCBryan), who says Irma will be even worse than Andrew.

Those super-brief ads that air before videos on the web are making their way to your TV screen: Fox is introducing them this weekend to NFL viewers.

Here & Now‘s Robin Young talks with Here & Now media analyst John Carroll (@johncarroll_bu) about what six-second ads might mean for TV viewers.

Hurricane Irma hit hard in Turks and Caicos early Friday, knocking out all communications with the islands. Earlier this week the storm destroyed most of Barbuda and wreaked havoc on St. Martin and St. Barts.

Here & Now‘s Jeremy Hobson talks with Hugh Riley, secretary general of the Caribbean Tourism Organization, a development agency representing all 28 Caribbean countries. Riley is in Antigua, where he arrived Thursday night as part of an emergency response team.

Each summer, around 600 Mexican women come to Hooper’s Island in Maryland under the H-2B visa program to do jobs their employers say Americans don’t want.

Armando Trull (@trulldc) of WAMU reports that for more than two decades, the women have helped keep the iconic seafood alive.

As Hurricane Irma brings devastating winds closer to the mainland United States, the 6 million people who live in South Florida are preparing for the worst. Broward County, which includes Fort Lauderdale, on Thursday issued an evacuation order for people living east of U.S. Route 1.

In the aftermath of Harvey and with Hurricane Irma gaining strength in the Atlantic, people need essential items when they evacuate from their homes: medications, clothing and, for some families, diapers.

Courtney Collins (@courtneylc82) of KERA in Dallas reports that shelters are making sure they’re well-stocked.

Florida Keys residents are beginning to make the 113-mile journey on the Overseas Highway to the mainland, ahead of Hurricane Irma.

Here & Now‘s Jeremy Hobson checks in with WLRN’s Nancy Klingener (@keywestnan), who is on Key West.

Hurricane Irma devastated Barbuda on Wednesday and residents on its sister island, Antigua, which was less hard hit, are cleaning up and trying to help their neighbors.

Here & Now‘s Jeremy Hobson gets an update from Carl Joseph, a reporter for Antigua News Room (@AntiguaNewsRoom) news agency.

President Trump bypassed members of his own party Wednesday, reaching a deal with Democratic congressional leaders to pass Harvey relief funding and a three-month extension of the debt ceiling.

Here & Now‘s Robin Young discusses with NPR’s Domenico Montanaro (@DomenicoNPR).

President Trump overruled congressional Republicans and his own treasury secretary Wednesday and cut a deal with Democrats to fund the government and raise the federal borrowing limit for three months, all part of an agreement to speed money to Harvey relief.

Here & Now‘s Robin Young discusses the latest with NPR’s Domenico Montanaro (@DomenicoNPR).

Now that school’s back in session, first-year college students are making the adjustment to campus life, which can be a big change from high school. And high school seniors who are applying to college should be thinking about who to ask for recommendation letters.

Here & Now‘s Jeremy Hobson speaks with Lisa Micele (@LisaMicele), director of college counseling at the University of Illinois Laboratory High School in Urbana, Illinois, to get some advice for students.

The name “Calhoun” will be removed Tuesday from a residential building at Yale University. John C. Calhoun was a Yale graduate, U.S. vice president and a white supremacist who supported slavery. Student activists, faculty and some members of the community lobbied the administration to change the name, which they viewed as a symbol of racism.

Here & Now's Phoebe Petrovic (@phoebepetrovic) reports.

Thais Marques was marching at the base of New York’s Trump Tower Tuesday when the White House announced its plans to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, known as DACA.

Marques (@thais_tweets), who was brought to the U.S. illegally from Brazil at the age of 5, has been a beneficiary of the program for more than four years. Here & Now‘s Robin Young speaks with her.

Hurricane season is in full swing and another powerful storm is brewing in the Atlantic. Irma, a Category 5 hurricane, is expected to make landfall in the Virgin Islands, Cuba, Hispaniola and Puerto Rico this week. Florida is also taking precautions for Irma’s blow.

Here & Now‘s Robin Young speaks with Jeff Huffman (@HuffmanHeadsUp), director and chief meteorologist of the Florida Public Radio Emergency Network, about Hurricane Irma.

The United Nations Security Council held another emergency session on North Korea Monday after criticizing Pyongyang’s nuclear test over the weekend.

Here & Now‘s Meghna Chakrabarti speaks with Abe Denmark (@AbeDenmark), director of the Asia Program at the Wilson Center and a former deputy assistant secretary of defense for East Asia.

Harvey was a 1,000-year flood event, according to a new analysis from the University of Wisconsin’s Space Science and Engineering Center. As recovery efforts continue, scientists are studying how much climate change had to do with Harvey’s record-setting rainfall and unusual path over Texas, drawing on data gathered from Hurricane Katrina and Superstorm Sandy.

Like many families in Houston, the Garcia family was forced to leave their home as floodwaters rose. They tried to save important documents, photos and some other items.

Now that the floods have receded, the Garcias have returned home to clean up and see what’s salvageable. Christopher Connelly (@hithisischris) of KERA reports.

In the wake of disasters, there are a lot of people who need help — and a lot of people who want to offer it.

Here & Now‘s Jeremy Hobson talks with Bob Ottenhoff (@BobOttenhoff), president and CEO of the Center for Disaster Philanthropy, about the best ways to give after a disaster.

Beaumont, Texas, is without running water after service from the main pump station broke down due to rising waters from the Naches River. Beaumont was hit by an intense second round of rain Wednesday, which left that region underwater.

Here & Now‘s Robin Young checks in with NPR’s Debbie Elliott (@NPRDebElliott) from Beaumont.

Lorrine Adamore is holed up in one of the three shelters the city of Dallas has set up for people fleeing Hurricane Harvey, now a tropical storm. It’s a familiar, and unsettling feeling. Twelve years ago she was rescued by boat when her New Orleans home was swamped by Hurricane Katrina and she relocated to Houston.

It’s been four days since Harvey struck Texas’ southeastern coast as a Category 4 hurricane. Harvey, now a tropical storm, has dumped more than 43 inches of rain in southern Houston since Friday, and forecasts predict more is on the way for the region and parts of southwestern Louisiana.

Hurricane Harvey is expected to make landfall near Corpus Christi, Texas, late tonight or early Saturday. Officials are warning the storm surge and torrential rain could cause significant damage.

KUT reporter Claire McInerny (@ClaireMcInerny) is in Victoria, Texas, and joins Here & Now‘s Lisa Mullins with the latest on evacuations and storm preparations.

In Yemen, years of war have driven millions of people from their homes and left millions more without enough food and at risk of cholera.

Matthew Tueller (@USEmbassyYemen), the American ambassador to Yemen, tells Here & Now‘s Meghna Chakrabarti that the U.S. hopes to bring the warring sides together to try to negotiate a resolution.

Life-threatening allergic reactions to foods have increased by five times over the last decade, according to a new analysis of private insurance claims by FAIR Health, an independent nonprofit that collects and analyzes data on privately billed health insurance claims.

The National Hurricane Center says Tropical Storm Harvey is now Hurricane Harvey and is forecasting it will become a major hurricane to hit the middle Texas coastline.

Here & Now‘s Meghna Chakrabarti finds out what to expect from the storm over the weekend from Jen Carfagno (@JenCarfagno), meteorologist and host of “AMHQ” at The Weather Channel.