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00:02:
Hawaii Governor Josh Green urges people who still have their homes to open them up.
00:07:
We are going to need to house thousands of people.
00:10:
How can the state help those fleeing the wildfires?
00:12:
I'm Steve Innskeep with Sarah McKemmon, and this is up first from NPR News.
00:21:
Should the Sankler family be able to use a bankruptcy settlement to shield themselves
00:26:
from liability for oxycontin. The Supreme Court will try to answer.
00:30:
It will be the decision that really sways whether these are even bankruptcy
00:35:
deals on the first place. Also, Poland sends more troops to its border with
00:40:
Belarus. Leaders in Warsaw are keeping an eye on mercenaries from Russia's
00:44:
Wagner Group. What are the mercenaries doing there? Stay with us. We've got the
00:48:
news you need to start your day.
00:57:
The wildfires on the island of Maui are changing many people's lives.
01:00:
Hawaii's governor says the fast-moving fires that have killed at least 55 people have also destroyed hundreds of homes.
01:08:
We've been reporting this week on the fires that swept through a historic town and far beyond.
01:13:
Residents have to go somewhere in both the short and longer term.
01:17:
Hawaii Public Radio's Bill Dorman is following the story high bill.
01:21:
Hi, Aloha, Sarah.
01:23:
So how are authorities helping the people who fled the fires on it?
01:27:
Short term, the focus is on sheltering those who need it
01:31:
and trying to find the missing and connecting families.
01:34:
Also, basic supplies from water to fuel are becoming an issue.
01:39:
It's a story as we've been saying all week about the west side of Maui Island.
01:44:
that's where people lost lives and where the most destruction is taken place.
01:47:
You know, the word devastation is when you keep hearing and there's a profound sadness
01:53:
with all of these losses, but especially the loss of life.
01:57:
The governor says the burning of all these homes makes housing a priority.
02:02:
We are going to need to house thousands of people.
02:05:
It's our intent to initially seek 2,000 rooms so that we can get housing for people.
02:11:
That will mean reaching out to all of our hotels and those in the community.
02:15:
The governor asked people across the state that if you have space in your home,
02:19:
if you have the capacity to take someone in from West Maui, please do.
02:23:
The governor also spoke about President Biden issuing a federal disaster declaration for Hawaii.
02:28:
A lot of that money is going to be targeted at housing. It's a critical need.
02:33:
So are some people having to leave the island entirely?
02:36:
Yes, those evacuations are continuing. Buses moving people from West Maui to the main
02:41:
airport in Kahalui, which is in the more central part of the island. And then the flights from there,
02:47:
whether those are tourists heading back to the continental United States or residents,
02:51:
many of whom are coming to hold a lulu here on the island of Oahu. As for residents who remain,
02:56:
Maui Mayor Richard Dixon talked about that today. I did want to also speak to the folks whose
03:01:
homes were not damaged. And I know the question on your mind is when can I get back to my home?
03:07:
Just as soon as we can try to provide the certainty that we have recovered those that have perished.
03:14:
And that's for goal right now.
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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.
03:23:
Really, Grimm, is it possible that some people are still alive and stuck in the burning areas?
03:28:
Yes.
03:29:
It's possible they could just be uncounted.
03:32:
You know, teams are working on this, but it's very difficult.
03:35:
Parts of West Maui are simply burned to the ground, especially in the town of LaHina.
03:39:
Maui Police Chief John Pelleteer said we have a scar on the face of Maui that's going last a long time.
03:44:
And while it might sound relatively simple, the question of how many people are missing is just inexcrustuating one.
03:52:
Honestly, we don't know.
03:53:
And here's the challenge.
03:54:
There's no power.
03:57:
There's no internet.
03:59:
There's no radio coverage.
04:01:
Our pack sets were having a hard time getting through on that.
04:06:
This challenges of communication a big reason.
04:08:
It's so difficult to nail down numbers, how many lives lost, how many buildings burned
04:12:
to the ground, and clearly that's not the priority.
04:16:
There are people to help needs to be met and the people who did not survive need to be treated with respect.
04:22:
Hmm.
04:23:
Bill Dorman with Hawaii Public Radio.
04:24:
Thanks so much.
04:25:
Thank you. [♪ INTRO MUSIC PLAYING [♪
04:42:
That's the question at the center of a case involving
04:44:
oxy-contin and its maker Perdue Farma and members of the
04:48:
Sackler family who own that company.
04:51:
The Supreme Court on Thursday temporarily blocked the
04:53:
corporations, $6 billion bankruptcy agreement with its creditors.
04:59:
The deal would have shielded the sackeders from lawsuits related to the opioid crisis.
05:04:
Now the US Supreme Court agreed late yesterday to review that controversial agreement.
05:09:
NPR's Addiction Correspondent Brian Mann has been following the story and joins us hype, Ryan.
05:13:
Morning, Sarah.
05:15:
This bankruptcy deal has been fought over in the courts for years now.
05:18:
A lot of people fought it was settled.
05:20:
Why is the Supreme Court intervening now?
05:22:
Yeah, this bankruptcy deal was approved by a federal judge back in 2021, but it allowed
05:27:
members of the Sackler family, even though they're not bankrupt, to pay a big chunk of
05:31:
money in exchange for immunity from lawsuits.
05:34:
The Justice Department appealed, and so now the Supreme Court's agreed to look at one really specific legal question.
05:40:
Here's Lindsey Simon.
05:41:
She's a bankruptcy law expert at Emory University.
05:44:
It's not getting into the merits of whether the Sackler's deserve releases.
05:48:
strictly this idea of does the bankruptcy code give the court, the bankruptcy court, the power
05:54:
to confirm a plan like Purdue Farmers Plan that gives the saccharge releases?
06:00:
Justices are going to hear arguments on this in December and until then Sarah, none of the
06:04:
six billion dollars in this proposed settlement will be paid out to opioid victims or communities.
06:09:
Right, so no victims will get settlements until then. How are people harmed by these drugs
06:13:
responding to that? You know, the overwhelming majority of opioid victims, people who
06:17:
suffered addiction or lost loved ones to oxycontin overdoses. They've backed this deal. If it's upheld,
06:24:
they'll get $750 million in compensation, communities that sued Purdue Pharma also support it. They're
06:30:
in line to receive billions. So really, the Justice Department is the last hold out here appealing
06:36:
this. And in legal briefs, the DOJ argued that if the Sackler's get away with this, it will serve.
06:41:
And I'm quoting here, it will serve as a roadmap for wealthy corporations and individuals to misuse the bankruptcy system.
06:48:
And that's an important point.
06:49:
I mean, we do know that this Supreme Court, of course, sets precedent.
06:52:
What might this mean for other types of big bankruptcy cases?
06:56:
Well, it could be huge.
06:57:
What's happened over the last decade
06:58:
is all kinds of wealthy companies and individuals accused of wrongdoing have done this.
07:03:
They've used the power of bankruptcy court
07:05:
to block lawsuits, to limit their liability
07:08:
without ever having to actually file for bankruptcy.
07:11:
Critics, including the DOJ and many legal experts say that's an effort to skirt accountability.
07:16:
And Brian, other examples of this,
07:18:
have other big companies done this before?
07:20:
Yeah, absolutely.
07:21:
We've been talking about the Sacklers and Prudu Farma,
07:23:
but the Koch brothers who are also billionaires
07:26:
used a bankruptcy maneuver in his bestest case,
07:29:
Johnson and Johnson, one of the richest corporations in the US,
07:32:
drew a lot of attention when they used bankruptcy
07:34:
to try to block tens of thousands of lawsuits linked
07:37:
to claims that it's Tauk baby powder caused ovarian cancer.
07:41:
Lindsey Simon at Emory University says the Supreme Court is now going to settle once and
07:46:
for all whether bankruptcy courts were meant to wield this kind of power.
07:50:
It will be the decision that really sues whether these are even bankruptcy deals in the first place.
07:57:
So this case is going to bring the sacculars and the opioid crisis before the Supreme
08:00:
Court at a time when tens of thousands of people are still dying from overdoses every year,
08:05:
but the outcome could affect a whole lot of bankruptcy cases ranging from product safety
08:09:
lawsuits to environmental claims and even sexual assault cases.
08:13:
Lots at stake there.
08:15:
That's NPR's Brian Mann.
08:16:
Thanks much, Brian.
08:17:
Thank you, Sarah.
08:29:
Tensions are rising between Poland and a Russian ally on its border, Belarus.
08:33:
Leaders in Warsaw plan to send another 10,000 Polish troops to that border.
08:38:
Poland is a NATO ally and a vital friend of neighboring Ukraine.
08:43:
Supplies and weapons pass through Poland to support Ukraine's defense against Russia.
08:47:
Now Polish officials think Russia could be sending trouble their way.
08:52:
Fighters from Russia's Wagner Group are stationed in Belarus and Poland is worried they could destabilize NATO's eastern flank.
08:59:
NPR's Rob Schmitz joins us now from Berlin to talk about it, Hyrob.
09:04:
Morning, sir.
09:05:
This seems like a dangerous military escalation in a region very close, of course, to Russia's war in Ukraine.
09:10:
What's going on here?
09:11:
Yeah, this latest flare-up began last month when Wagner's soldiers were relocated to Belarus.
09:17:
Poland's government said Wagner might send its soldiers into Poland and neighboring Lithuania.
09:22:
Then, a little over a week ago, Poland accused Belarus of violating its airspace by sending military helicopters across the border.
09:29:
And now we've got this.
09:31:
Poland has been deploying troops to the border for some time, hasn't it?
09:34:
Yeah, that's right. This 250 mile border between Belarus and Poland has been tense for a couple of years.
09:40:
In 2021, the government of Belarus began handing out visas to migrants from mostly the Middle East and Africa.
09:47:
And soldiers and Belarus were assisting these migrants across the border into Poland,
09:52:
as well as into neighboring Latvia and Lithuania. All of these are EU member states.
09:56:
And that prompted Poland to mobilize troops and build a steel border fence.
10:01:
This was all part of an effort by Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko to destabilize Europe.
10:06:
It appears his efforts are ongoing.
10:09:
Lukashenko, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, said this week that he has had to quote,
10:15:
�restrain vognor fighters who want to attack Poland.�
10:19:
So the big question, Rob, I mean, based on your reporting, what can you say about the
10:22:
likelihood of an escalation between Poland and Belarus?
10:26:
Well, more troops certainly makes it likely.
10:29:
I mean, when he announced this true build-up Polish defense minister, Marius Blacheck said Poland is preparing for different scenarios.
10:36:
Here's what he said.
10:41:
And Sarah, he's saying here that this true build-up is meant to scare away what he calls the aggressor or Belarus,
10:47:
and to ensure that Belarus does not attack Poland.
10:50:
It's worth noting here that the military of Belarus issued a warning to Poland this week telling Polish citizens
10:55:
that they should stop their government from starting a new war.
10:59:
So there's a lot of rhetoric on both sides of the border.
11:01:
Is there any truth to that claim?
11:04:
You know, well, this troop buildup comes two days after Poland's president kicked off the official election campaign for the ruling party,
11:11:
which is up for re-election in mid-October.
11:14:
And critics point out that while the threat from Belarus and Russia is very real,
11:18:
the ruling right-wing party of Poland is going into an election here,
11:22:
and it needs all the votes it can get.
11:24:
and many observers say this party is not above pumping up threats like this border escalation to accomplish that.
11:31:
So between the election season and Poland and efforts from Belarus and Russia to South
11:36:
chaos in Poland, what's real and what's bluster has sort of become difficult to parse out.
11:41:
But what is clear is that with more troops along this already fraud border, the potential for danger is going up.
11:48:
That's NPR's Rob Schmitz joining us from Berlin.
11:50:
Thank you Rob.
11:51:
Thanks.
11:57:
And that's up first for Friday, August 11th.
11:59:
I'm Sarah McCammon.
12:00:
And I'm Steve Innskipe.
12:01:
Up first is produced by Monsey Karana, Claire Marashima and Lily Kiros.
12:05:
Our editors are Kevin Drew, Amra Posich, Denise Rios, Allie Schweitzer, and Michael Sullivan.
12:11:
Our director is Keiti Klein, who may be pointing at me any second now to tell me something to do.
12:16:
Our technical director is Zach Coleman with engineering support from Stacey Abbott and our executive producer is Erica Aguilata.
12:22:
Can I just say such an impressive team every time I come over here and hang out, I'm impressed
12:26:
with what it takes to get this show on me.
12:28:
And you're welcome anytime, by the way, come by, come by, come by, and stay.
12:32:
And don't forget up first, airs on Saturday, two, Ayesha Roscoe and Scott Simon have the
12:36:
news, so look for it wherever you get your podcasts.
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