What Happened Was...

A lightning fast comprehensive recap of the week's biggest events for August 7th - August 13th, 2023

A surviving resident holds a stack of dishes that were salvaged from the rubble of a home destroyed by wildfire on August 12, 2023 in Kula, Hawaii. At least 80 people were killed and thousands were displaced after a wind-driven wildfire devastated the towns of Lahaina and Kula on Tuesday. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/via Getty Images)

Below is a catch-up of the significant events of this past week. You can check in with a minimal time commitment, read about the big stuff, and stay in the know before we’re on to the next. If you want more information on the past week's events, you can scroll through my Twitter feed for more detail on other topics that I don’t mention below.

Gun Violence This Week

There were nine separate mass shooting incidents in the United States this past week, where seven people were killed and 36 were injured. My Sunday recap covers this, as well as the week's most critical news. Here at SHERO, we document all mass shooting incidents for the week every Sunday, so please take a moment to review them and remember to keep up the fight for sensible gun reform. 

1. Sunday, August 6, 2023: Edinburg, Texas

2. Sunday, August 6, 2023: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

3. Monday, August 7, 2023: Bothell, Washington

4. Thursday, August 9, 2023: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

5. Thursday, August 9, 2023: Crystal Lake, Illinois

6. Saturday, August 11, 2023: Pine Bluff, Arkansas

7. Saturday, August 11, 2023: Minneapolis, Minnesota

8. Saturday, August 11, 2023: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

9. Sunday, August 13, 2023: Cincinnati, Ohio

• Another scathing report from Pro Publica this week revealed that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas accepted more vacations and gifts from billionaire benefactors than previously reported, including at least 38 vacations, 26 private jet flights, eight flights by helicopter, and a dozen VIP passes to sporting events.

• About 49,500 people took their own lives last year in the United States — the highest number ever — according to new government data that suggests suicides are more common in the US than at any time since records were kept at the end of World War II.

• Hawaii emergency management records show no indication that warning sirens were triggered before a devastating wildfire killed at least 55 people earlier this week and wiped out the historic town of Lahaina in Maui.

  

• COVID-19 hospital admissions have inched upward in the United States since early July in a small-scale echo of the three previous summers, with an updated vaccine still months away.