The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Nathalie Graham Mystery fireworks strike again: A private firework show in Commencement Bay sent fireworks caterwauling through the September sky for around 20 minutes. Nobody knows who set off the fireworks. To make things weirder, this mystery private firework show happened around the same time and around the same place last year. According to the Seattle Times, these sorts of mystery shows have been happening like this since 1998. The true source of the fireworks remain a mystery. However, we know whoever bankrolled this needs access to wads of cash since fireworks shows consistently cost around $2,000 per minute. As the Times has tried to find the firework funder, they've unearthed layers of shell companies, connections to millionaires and a bunch of luxury yachts. Their best guess is the funder is a mysterious Microsoft billionaire. License plate shortage: More than half of Washington counties are out of stock of standard embossed license plates and there's a six-week lag for more. Why? The equipment in the prisons where incarcerated people make our license plates is aging. The Department of Licensing is now weighing whether or not it should use non-embossed plates.  A little quake: Did you feel a shake or two on Sunday morning? Blame it on the 3.2 magnitude earthquake that hit the Bremerton area.  PRELIM Earthquake: M3.2, 4.4 km ENE from Bremerton, WA at 2024/09/29 07:49 PDT https://t.co/BgUNYceCzO Did You Feel It?: https://t.co/2L8X18KYv9 pic.twitter.com/k58VaBsvbY — PNSN (@PNSN1) September 29, 2024 Debates tomorrow! On Tuesday, couch-fucking   America's slimy step-uncle, JD Vance, will square off against America's new dad, Tim Walz. But, wait, there's more! Stay tuned after the debate to watch the Seattle City Council Position 8 candidates debate moderated by Seattle Nice podcast hosts Erica C. Barnett, Sandeep Kaushik, and David Hyde. You can watch Council Member Tanya Woo try to remember what it is she believes in while she debates against progressive challenger Alexis Mercedes Rinck. The weather: Sunny and 65 today. Enjoy.  Seattle Animal Shelter director resigns: The Seattle Animal Shelter has gone to the dogs! That's basically what director Esteban Rodriguez said in a letter announcing his resignation last week. Rodriguez blamed his departure on funding shortage frustrations, inadequate facilities, and a lack of internal support. Earlier this year, Cascade PBS exposed how over 20 current and former shelter workers and volunteers feared retaliation from Rodriguez and experienced communication issues as well as safety returns. Rodriguez denied these claims. By order of the chief: If you get pulled over by a cop in a Geno Smith jersey today, then do not panic.  By order of the Chief. pic.twitter.com/qIAyEODDBX — Seattle Police Department (@SeattlePD) September 27, 2024 Gun gate: Hey, have you seen 23 guns lying around? The Office of the Washington State Auditor is looking for them. The Seattle Police Department reported these guns missing in August. The catch is that nobody has seen the guns since 2017.  Israel bombs residential area, kills Hezbollah leader: Israel laid siege on a Beirut suburb Friday with an "overwhelming air raid" using munitions and likely US-made bombs. The raid wounded at least 108 people and killed 11, including Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave the go-ahead to bomb the secret underground complex where Nasrallah was from. Hezbollah in turn issued a defiant statement against Israel. Now, Israel says it will launch a ground invasion into Lebanon.  110 dead from Hurricane Helene: The destruction in the wake of Hurricane Helene is horrific. Communities in Florida where the hurricane first hit are covered in sand and debris, but the real devastation came from the rains a downgraded Helene dumped on the Carolinas and Tennessee. Towns in the mountainous regions of North Carolina are under water. Roads to and from North Carolina towns have been destroyed or are inaccessible. In Tennessee, rescue teams scooped up dozens of hospital workers and patients on the hospital roof as flood waters climbed higher and higher. At least 110 people are dead as of Monday morning. Officials say that toll will likely climb, as many remain missing and as supplies dwindle. This is a climate change nightmare realized. And, more storms brewing stronger and stronger in the hotter and hotter Atlantic ocean are coming. Forecasters say a new tropical depression could become a strong hurricane later this week.  🚨 #BREAKING: At least 50 patients and staff are trapped on the roof of Unicoi County Hospital in TennesseeThis is terrifying.Emergency crews attempted to evacuate people by ambulance and boats, but the water began rising way too quickly and and is moving too rapidly to… pic.twitter.com/2uaw8B6gdy — Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) September 27, 2024 Devastation in North Carolina: The small, mountain town of Asheville, North Carolina was underwater, a mishmash of toppled trees and flooded rivers. Around 600 people in the area are missing. Those left in town are scrambling to find resources. The only WiFi is at the public library. The few open stores are only accepting cash, so the ATM line is an hour long. Gas stores are low. Meanwhile, the state is trying to get supplies in, but the roads are a mess.  Asheville is over 2,000 feet above sea level, and ~300 miles away from the nearest coastline. No place is safe from climate change. We all suffer the consequences. We must all take action. We are all in this together.pic.twitter.com/Jhq07cU2xy — Dr. Lucky Tran (@luckytran) September 29, 2024 We know a woman: The GOP's newest ad strategy is to assure voters that the party's candidates know women. Sometimes these women are also in their lives! They love these women and would not make legislation that takes away their rights to their own bodies! Wait, no, they wouldn't go that far. The New York Times studied this new phenomenon in ads for conservative candidates. Many are using their wives and daughters as props and mouthpieces. In an election where abortion is on the ballot, these candidates feel they must appeal to other women. One guy, Derrick Anderson, who is running for a seat in Virginia’s 7th District, posted footage of himself with a woman and three young girls who appear to be his wife and children. Nope, those are his friend's wife and children. Anderson actually lives alone, sans wife and daughters.  Astronauts bum a ride ... in February: The two astronauts stranded in space since June have a way home. The SpaceX capsule sent to bring them home docked at the International Space Station where they've been stuck. Unfortunately, that capsule won't be returning to earth until February. Just a few more months to wait!  RIP Kris Kristofferson: The country singer and songwriter died on Saturday. He was 88.