The Stranger's morning news roundup. by Nathalie Graham What does the TSA even do? A woman in her 30s made it through a Seattle-Tacoma International Airport checkpoint without a boarding pass on Monday, stayed overnight in the terminal, and then walked onto a Delta flight bound for Hawaii—again sans ticket. The stowaway made it to Hawaii and off the plane, but was soon caught and arrested in a bathroom on suspicion of criminal trespass and making a false statement.  Please refrain from popping that shirt off: The former Washington County chief district attorney is under investigation for sending shirtless selfies to his colleagues, talking inappropriately about the bodies of his male and female colleagues, and discussing his sex life. Though he's retired now, the investigation is ongoing. It's unclear how many people were subject to this alleged bad behavior, but investigators interviewed 18 witnesses.  The weather: It's going to rain. And then rain some more. Then—you guessed it—it will rain even more.  Oh no, not again: I fear bird flu is going to be a major plot point for 2025. Last week, the first severe case of bird flu turned up in a human from Louisiana. This week the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the samples from that severe case had mutated. The mutation occurred in the hemagglutinin (HA) gene, according to Reuters, which "is the part of the virus that plays a key role in it attaching to host cells." This means it's likely mutated to become more transmissible to humans. The CDC still says the threat to the public is low. Still, you can't help but worry how this will develop, especially under a government helmed by Donald Trump.  Big cats down: Bird flu killed 20 exotic cats at the Wild Felid Advocacy Center in Shelton, Washington. Among the bird flu dead are "a Bengal tiger, four cougars, a lynx, and four bobcats," according to the Guardian. The center's director said these cats usually die from old age and that they haven't seen anything like this "pretty wicked virus."  Good news, revelers: Sound Transit and King County Metro are making fares free on New Year's Eve. Be safe. Don't drink and drive. Take the train or the bus. You have no excuse.  Celebrate late, ride safe!Sound Transit will join other regional transit agencies to provide free rides this #NYE. Plus, we'll run extended 1 Line service. Learn more about Fare Free New Year's Eve from our friends @KingCountyMetro and plan your trip: https://t.co/tbPWBQwD0l pic.twitter.com/xaXX8qh8rE — Sound Transit - 🚆 🚈 🚍 (@SoundTransit) December 26, 2024   Don't blame him: A Marysville house caught fire Thursday afternoon. The homeowner, a 76-year-old woman, said the fire started when her cat knocked over a lit candle, igniting nearby flammable materials. The alleged purrpetrator was unable to plead his own case since he fled the scene. The fire was contained to a living room and caused an estimated $35,000 in damage. This is the kind of slow news the post-holiday and pre-New Years limbo week breeds and I am all for it.  Hey, did you read my latest column? For my most recent exploration into Seattle's subcultures and hobbies. I tagged along to a friend group's "Shark & Whiskey" movie night. It was silly and weird and so sweet. It's a story about a ridiculous gathering and the efforts people go to in order to stay together as life pulls them apart. Please read!   Another impeachment for South Korea: You know the age old saying "Why have one impeachment when you can have two?" Two weeks after South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law and was impeached and suspended, lawmakers voted to impeach his replacement, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo after he refused to appoint three judges to fill vacancies in the Constitutional Court, the body that will have the final word on Yoon's impeachment. In reaction, the country's currency, the won, plummeted.  There's a "massive" coyote on Capitol Hill: The Seattle Times' Sydney Brownstone dove into whether the coyote is truly massive (spoiler alert: it's likely just rocking a big winter coat) and whether coyote reports are increasing in Seattle.  Senator Nguyễn Named Commerce Director: Washington State Senator Joe Nguyễn (D-34th District) is trading his Senate gig for a new role as the Director of the Department of Commerce under Governor-elect Bob Ferguson. Nguyễn has championed policies like the Working Families Tax Credit and affordable housing funding since his election in 2018. His new role will unenviablely task him with juggling 100+ programs while ensuring Washingtonians feel the economic love. His departure opens up his Senate seat, bringing the total number of Democratic senators leaving the Washington State Senate by early 2025 to eight. Israel sieges Gaza's last remaining hospital: Israeli forces stormed into Kamal Adwan in Beit Lahia, one of the last functioning hospitals in the besieged region, and removed hospital staff and patients. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, "The operating and surgical departments, laboratory, maintenance, and emergency units have been completely burned, and the fire is now spreading to the buildings." The siege follows Thursday's Israeli airstrike on a building opposite the hospital, which killed 50 people. Happy holidays from the Israeli Defense Forces.  BREAKING: The Israeli occupation military has stormed Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, forcing doctors and patients to walk on foot to the southern part of the region. pic.twitter.com/HCLLXAHx1N — Quds News Network (@QudsNen) December 27, 2024   WHO director caught in airport bombing: Israel's multiple attacks in Yemen on Thursday included one on Sanaa International Airport. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said he was inside the airport at the time of the attack. He and his WHO colleagues, who were in Yemen to "negotiate the release of United Nations workers detained there and to assess Yemen's humanitarian crisis," were okay, according to NBC News.  NASA probe didn't melt: NASA's Parker Solar Probe came within 3.8 million miles of the Sun's surface—the closest a man-made probe has ever come to everyone's favorite hot ball of gas—and survived. Now, we can get even more information about the Sun.  Hate when this happens: Kentucky funeral home, J.B. Ratterman & Sons Funerals & Family Cremation Care, is being sued for allegedly mixing up people's ashes. One family believes the funeral home lost their loved one's ashes. They figured this out because the funeral home gave them "ashes" but the ashes were actually soil. The funeral home also allegedly outsourced cremations to a different funeral home that was not licensed to perform cremations.  A song for your Friday: Are we all tired of seasonal tunes yet? Too bad.