On the version of Hot off the Wire posted Aug. 12 at 7:30 a.m. CT:

SAINT-DENIS, France (AP) — The 2024 Olympics closed Sunday with an elaborate closing ceremony at the Stade de France just north of Paris. As the Olympics close in Paris, Los Angeles has now taken the torch. The city will become the third to host the games three times.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — An official in the Kursk border region of Russia is urging residents to evacuate due to the “very tense situation” in the area, where Russian forces are scrambling to respond to a surprise Ukrainian attack. Russia’s emergency authorities say more than 76,000 people have fled their homes in areas of Kursk where Ukrainian troops and armor poured across the border seven days ago.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon says U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has ordered a guided missile submarine to the Middle East and is telling the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group to sail more quickly to the area.

BEL AIR, Md. (AP) — Fire officials say two people were killed and 12 families displaced after a Maryland house exploded amid reports of a possible gas leak. 

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The weather system dubbed Debby isn't quite done affecting parts of the U.S. After arriving in Florida as a hurricane Aug. 5, the storm spent nearly a week unleashing tornadoes and flooding, damaging homes and taking lives along the East Coast before moving into Canada on Saturday. 

KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — The death toll from a mountain of rubbish that collapsed in the Ugandan capital rose to 24 on Monday as rescuers with excavators continued searching for victims, according to the city authority.

PARIS (AP) — French police evacuated the area around the Eiffel Tower after a man was seen climbing the Paris landmark hours before the Olympics closing ceremony Sunday. Police intervened and the man was arrested, Paris police said. 

In other news:

—The Associated Press

About this program

Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.