Up First from NPR - Maui Fire Evacuations, Purdue Bankruptcy Blocked, Poland Moves Troops to Border

Episode Date: August 11, 2023

Mass evacuations continue after deadly Maui wildfires. The Supreme Court agrees to review a controversial bankruptcy case involving Purdue Pharma. Wary of Belarus, Poland to send troops to its border.Want more comprehensive analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.Today's episode of Up First was edited by Kevin Drew, Amra Pasic, Denice Rios, Ally Schweitzer, and Michael Sullivan. It was produced by Mansee Khurana, Kaity Kline, Claire Murashima, and Lilly Quiroz. Our technical director is Zac Coleman, with engineering support from Stacey Abbott.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Hawaii Governor Josh Green urges people who still have their homes to open them up. We are going to need to house thousands of people. How can the state help those fleeing the wildfires? I'm Steve Inskeep with Sarah McKemmon, and this is Up First from NPR News. Should the Sackler family be able to use a bankruptcy settlement to shield themselves from liability for OxyContin? The Supreme Court will try to answer. It will be the decision that really sways whether these are even bankruptcy deals in the first place. Also, Poland sends more troops to its border with Belarus. Leaders in Warsaw are keeping an eye on

mercenaries from Russia's Wagner Group. What are the mercenaries doing there? Stay with us. We've got the news you need to start your day. Now, Our Change will honor 100 years of the Royal Canadian Air Force and their dedicated service to communities at home and abroad. From the skies to our change, this $2 commemorative circulation coin marks their storied past and promising future. Find the limited edition Royal Canadian Air Force $2 coin today. The wildfires on the island of Maui are changing many people's lives. Hawaii's governor says the fast-moving fires that have killed at least 55 people have also destroyed hundreds of homes. We've been reporting this week on the fires that swept through a historic town and far beyond.

Residents have to go somewhere in both the short and longer term. Hawaii Public Radio's Bill Dorman is following the story. Hi, Bill. Hi, aloha, Sarah. So how are authorities helping the people who fled the fire zone? Short term, the focus is on sheltering those who need it and trying to find the missing and connecting families. Also, basic supplies from water to fuel are becoming an issue. It's a story, as we've been saying all week, about the west side

of Maui Island. That's where people lost lives and where the most destruction has taken place. You know, the word devastation is one you keep hearing, and there's a profound sadness with all of these losses, but especially the loss of life. The governor says the burning of all these homes makes housing a priority. We are going to need to house thousands of people. It's our intent to initially seek 2,000 rooms so that we can get housing for people. That will mean reaching out to all of our hotels and those in the community. The governor asked people across the state that if you have space in your home, if you have the capacity to take someone in from West Maui, please do.

The governor also spoke about President Biden issuing a federal disaster declaration for Hawaii. A lot of that money is going to be targeted at housing. It's a critical need. So are some people having to leave the island entirely? Yes, those evacuations are continuing. Buses moving people from West Maui to the main airport in Kahului, which is in the more central part of the island. And then the flights from there, whether those are tourists heading back to the continental United States or residents, many of whom are coming to Honolulu here on the island of Oahu. As for residents who remain, Maui Mayor Richard Bisson talked about that today.

I did want to also speak to the folks whose homes were not damaged. And I know the question on your mind is, when can I get back to my home? Just as soon as we can try to provide the certainty that we have recovered those that have perished. That's our goal right now. It's a grim goal, but as we move into Friday here in Hawaii, it's another painful day and very difficult work is continuing. Really grim. Is it possible that some people are still alive and stuck in the burning areas? Possible. They could just be uncounted. You know, teams are working on this, but it's very difficult. Parts of West Maui are simply burned to the ground, especially in the town of Lahaina.

Maui Police Chief John Pelletier said, we have a scar on the face of Maui that's going to last a long time. And while it might sound relatively simple, the question of how many people are missing is just an excruciating one. Honestly, we don't know. And here's the challenge. There's no power. There's no internet. There's no radio coverage. Our pack sets, we're having a hard time getting through on that. There's challenges of communication, a big reason it's so difficult to nail down numbers, how many lives lost, how many buildings burned to the ground. And clearly that's not the priority. There are people to help, needs to be met, and the people who did not survive need to be treated with respect. Bill Dorman with Hawaii Public Radio. Thanks so much. Thank you. Aloha.

Should corporations and the people who run them be allowed to use bankruptcy court to avoid liability for allegations of wrongdoing? That's the question at the center of a case involving OxyContin and its maker, Purdue Pharma, and members of the Sackler family who own that company. The Supreme Court on Thursday temporarily blocked the corporation's $6 billion bankruptcy agreement with its creditors. The deal would have shielded the Sacklers from lawsuits related to the opioid crisis. Now, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed late yesterday to review that controversial agreement. NPR's addiction correspondent Brian Mann has been following this story and joins us. Hi, Brian. Good morning, Sarah. This bankruptcy deal has been fought over in the courts for years now. A lot of people thought it

was settled. Why is the Supreme Court intervening now? Yeah, this bankruptcy deal was approved by a federal judge back in 2021, but it allowed members of the Sackler family, even though they're not bankrupt, to pay a big chunk of money in exchange for immunity from lawsuits. The Justice Department appealed, and so now the Supreme Court's agreed to look at one really specific legal question. Here's Lindsay Simon. She's a bankruptcy law expert at Emory University. It's not getting into the merits of whether the Sacklers deserve releases. It's strictly this idea of does the bankruptcy code give the court, the bankruptcy court, the power to confirm a plan like Purdue Pharma's plan that gives the Sacklers releases?

Justices are going to hear arguments on this in December. And until then, Sarah, none of the $6 billion in this proposed settlement will be paid out to opioid victims or communities. Right. So no victims will get settlements until then. How are people harmed by these drugs responding to that? You know, the overwhelming majority of opioid victims, people who suffered addiction or lost loved ones to OxyContin overdoses, they've backed this deal. You know, if it's upheld, they'll get $750 million in compensation. Communities that sued Purdue Pharma also support it. They're in line to receive billions. So really, the Justice Department is the last holdout here appealing this. And in legal briefs, the DOJ argued that

if the Sacklers get away with this, it will serve, and I'm quoting here, it will serve as a roadmap for wealthy corporations and individuals to misuse the bankruptcy system. And that's an important point. I mean, we do know that the Supreme Court, of course, sets precedent. What might this mean for other types of big bankruptcy cases? Well, it could be huge. What's happened over the last decade is all kinds of wealthy companies and individuals accused of wrongdoing have done this. They've used the power of bankruptcy court to block lawsuits, to limit their liability without ever having to actually file for bankruptcy. Critics, including the DOJ and many legal experts, say that's an effort to skirt accountability. And Brian, other examples of this. Have other big companies done this before? Yeah, absolutely. We've been talking about the Sacklers and Purdue Pharma, but the Koch brothers, who

are also billionaires, used a bankruptcy maneuver in an asbestos case. Johnson & Johnson, one of the richest corporations in the U.S., drew a lot of attention when they used bankruptcy to try to block tens of thousands of lawsuits linked to claims that its talc baby powder caused ovarian cancer. Lindsey Simon at Emory University says the Supreme Court is now going to settle once and for all whether bankruptcy courts were meant to wield this kind of power. It will be the decision that really sways whether these are even bankruptcy deals in the first place. So this case is going to bring the Sacklers and the opioid

crisis before the Supreme Court at a time when tens of thousands of people are still dying from overdoses every year. But the outcome could affect a whole lot of bankruptcy cases ranging from product safety lawsuits to environmental claims and even sexual assault cases. Lots at stake there. That's NPR's Brian Mann. Thanks so much, Brian. Thank you, Sarah. Tensions are rising between Poland and a Russian ally on its border, Belarus. Leaders in Warsaw plan to send another 10,000 Polish troops to that border. Poland is a NATO ally and a vital friend of neighboring Ukraine. Supplies and weapons pass through Poland to support Ukraine's defense against Russia. Now Polish officials think Russia

could be sending trouble their way. Fighters from Russia's Wagner Group are stationed in Belarus, and Poland is worried they could destabilize NATO's eastern flank. NPR's Rob Schmitz joins us now from Berlin to talk about it. Hi, Rob. Morning, Sarah. This seems like a dangerous military escalation in a region very close, of course, to Russia's war in Ukraine. What's going on here? Yeah, this latest flare-up began last month when Wagner's soldiers were relocated to Belarus. Poland's government said Wagner might send its soldiers into Poland and neighboring Lithuania.

Then a little over a week ago, Poland accused Belarus of violating its airspace by sending military helicopters across the border. And now we've got this. Poland has been deploying troops to the border for some time, hasn't it? Yeah, that's right. This 250-mile border between Belarus and Poland has been tense for a couple of years. In 2021, the government of Belarus began handing out visas to migrants from mostly the Middle East and Africa, and soldiers in Belarus were assisting these migrants across the border into Poland, as well as into neighboring Latvia and Lithuania. All of these are EU member states. And that prompted Poland to mobilize troops and build

a steel border fence. This was all part of an effort by Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko to destabilize Europe. And it appears his efforts are ongoing. Lukashenko, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, said this week that he has had to, quote, restrain Wagner fighters who want to attack Poland. So the big question, Rob, I mean, based on your reporting, what can you say about the likelihood of an escalation between Poland and Belarus?

Well, more troops certainly makes it likelier. I mean, when he announced this troop build-up, Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszek said Poland is preparing for different scenarios. Here's what he said. And Sarah, he's saying here that this troop build-up is meant to scare away what he calls the aggressor or Belarus and to ensure that Belarus does not attack Poland. It's worth noting here that the military of Belarus issued a warning to Poland this week telling Polish citizens that they should stop their government from starting a new war. So there's a lot of rhetoric on both sides of the border.

Is there any truth to that claim? You know, well, this troop buildup comes two days after Poland's president kicked off the official election campaign for the ruling party, which is up for reelection in mid-October. And critics point out that while the threat from Belarus and Russia is very real, the ruling right-wing party of Poland is going into an election here, and it needs all the votes it can get. And many observers say this party is not above pumping up threats like this border escalation to accomplish that. So between the election season in Poland and efforts from Belarus and Russia to sow chaos in Poland, what's real and what's bluster has sort of become

difficult to parse out. But what is clear is that with more troops along this already fraught border, the potential for danger is going up. That's NPR's Rob Schmitz joining us from Berlin. Thank you, Rob. Thanks. And that's Up First for Friday, August 11th. I'm Sarah McCammon. And I'm Steve Inskeep. Up First is produced by Mansi Khurana, Claire Murashima, and Lily Quiroz. Our editors are Kevin Drew, Amra Pasich, Denise Rios, Ali Schweitzer, and Michael Sullivan. Our director is Katie Klein, who may be pointing at me any second now to tell me something to do. Our technical director is Zach Coleman, with engineering support from Stacey Abbott.

And our executive producer is Erica Aguilar. Can I just say, such an impressive team. Every time I come over here and hang out, I'm impressed with what it takes to get this show on the air. And you're welcome any time, by the way. Come by. Come by again. And don't forget, Up First airs on Saturday, too. Ayesha Roscoe and Scott Simon have the news, so look for it wherever you get your podcasts.