NPR News Now - NPR News: 08-24-2025 3AM EDT

Episode Date: August 24, 2025

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Americans are living longer than ever before. On the Sunday story from Up First, we look at a growing number of people using these extra years to find new meaning. You get at a point where you start asking, what did you do in your life that was significant? A look at the transformative power of human passion and finding your purpose in the third act of life. Listen now on the Up First podcast from NPR. Live from NPR News, I'm Dale Wilman. Gaza health officials say Israeli strikes and gunfire have killed at least 33 Palestinians this weekend, including women and children. Some of those killed were sheltering in tents.

Israel, meanwhile, continues its preparation for a strike in Gaza City, and NPR's Jackie Northam says not everyone in Israel is in support of more military action. There is a lot of anger, and there have been protests. Last weekend, we saw hundreds of thousands of Israeli take to the streets, including here in Tel Aviv. many people want to cease fire deal to bring home the Israeli hostages. And there's a fear that a new Israeli offensive in Gaza City could lead to the deaths of more hostages, you know, as well as Israeli troops. That's NPR's Jackie Northam reporting from Tel Aviv. An NTSB investigation is underway into the bus crash near Buffalo, New York Friday, that killed five people and injured dozens of others. Tom Chapman of the NTSB says everything is on the table as they try to figure out just what happened.

We are particularly interested in issues relating to occupant protection and seatbelt usage, driver performance, and operations and oversight of the motor carrier. Chapman says the bus did have passenger seatbelts, but it's not clear how many people were actually wearing them when the crash occurred. The tour bus was returning to New York City after a visit to Niagara Falls. A fire continues to burn in southeast Louisiana this weekend. An explosion at an automotive supply company on Friday sparked the fire, and nearby residents, along with an elementary school, have been evacuated from the area.

Officials say no one was injured in the explosion, and the cause so far is not known. The local parish president says it's a godsend that no one was hurt. More than 1,200 first responders are fighting a northern California wildfire that's been burning since Thursday. For member station KQED in San Francisco, Juan Carlos Lara has our reports. The picket fire has burned through a sparsely populated. section of Napa County that was ravaged by the glass fire five years ago. Local officials issued new evacuation orders as the fire spread east between Friday and Saturday. Jason Clay is a public information officer for Cal Fire's Sonoma Lake Napa unit.

One of the objectives is to work on fortifying the control lines that are around that side to keep it out of those areas. As of Saturday evening, the blaze was only 7% contained and had burned over 4,600 acres. Clay says full containment could take weeks. For NPR news, I'm Juan Carlos Lada in San Francisco. A major heat wave meanwhile is continuing in the Western U.S. this weekend. In Portland, Saturday, at least one participant in an annual relay race lost consciousness after running four miles. Some 1.2 million people are currently facing extreme heat risk,

and temperatures are expected to stay dangerously high there. More than 18 million other people nationwide are facing major heat risk. You're listening to NPR News. In Sudan, at least three trucks were destroyed in North Darfur following a drone strike on a 16-truck U.N. convoy that was carrying food to the region. Officials with the World Food Program say it's not clear who's responsible for the attack, but they say everyone in the convoy is safe. North Darfur is facing famine as fighting in Sudan that began in April of 2023 continues. Millions of children born during the global pandemic are starting kindergarten this year. And Pierre's Vanessa Romo reports on studies that show they may not be ready.

3.6 million children were born in 2020 as the coronavirus ushered in one of the most extraordinary periods in modern history. And experts are still trying to figure out its long-term effects. Kristen Huff is Head of Measurement at Curriculum Associates, which provides national grade-level testing. Its latest study looked at the 2023-24 school year. Even students who were not in school because they were too young to be in kindergarten during the pandemic are less prepared. Just 81% of five-year-olds are arriving kindergarten-ready in reading. That's down from 89% in 2019. Huff says teachers and students can buck the trend with the right support.

Vanessa Romo, NPR News. Hawaii kicked a field goal as time expired to beat the stand-fired. Cardinals Saturday, 23 to 20, it's the first time Hawaii's beat a power conference team since 2019. Iowa State, meanwhile, beat Kansas State in Dublin, 24 to 21. Rocco Beck was 14 for 28 in the wind passing for two touchdowns and running for another, and UNLV beat Idaho State. I'm Dale Wilman and PR News. There's a lot of news happening.

You want to understand it better, but let's be honest, you don't want it to be your entire life either. Well, that's sort of like our show. here and now anytime. Every weekday on our podcast, we talk to people all over the country about everything from political analysis to climate resilience, video games. We even talk about dumpster diving on this show. Check out here and now anytime, a daily podcast from NPR and WBUR.