As the summer officially comes to a close, it should be noted that it was another hot one, not only because the thermometer hit record numbers yet again, but also because of the many newsworthy events. Wildfires devastated Canada and Hawaii, “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” along other major titles were released, Taylor Swift went on tour and many more things dominated headlines. But, for those who need a re-cap, the following is a quick run-down of the major stories for the summer of 2023. 
Canada faced extreme wildfires which started in April but began to worsen later in May. Wildfires in Canada are very common in western provinces such as British Columbia and Alberta, but this year the wildfires spread to the eastern provinces of Nova Scotia, Quebec, and Ontario. Over 5,000 wildfires were reported in Canada and over 33.9 million acres of land were destroyed. Smoke from the wildfires drifted into the U.S. during July. New York City experienced an AQI of over 300 and the sky was tinted orange from wildfire smoke in early June. Iowa was also hit with poor air quality from the wildfires in late June as AQI numbers were close to the 260s in the eastern part of the state. As of now, the wildfires are still burning, and over 20,000 people in Yellowknife, the capital of the Northwest Territories, had to evacuate due to the spread of the wildfires.
Taylor Swift started her “Eras Tour” this year which looks back at her discography from her entire career. It started March 17 of this year and will continue through Nov. 23, 2024. More than 2 million people have attended these concerts and more dates have been added onto the tour in the U.S. and Canada. The opening show in Glendale, Arizona broke the record for the most attended concert by a female artist in the U.S. with 69,000 people, breaking the previous record of 63,000 held by Madonna from 1987. The Eras Tour is estimated to gross over $1 billion which would surpass Elton John’s record of the biggest tour in music history. Fans of Swift are also breaking records as they caused a 2.3 magnitude earthquake in Seattle, Washington on July 22 and 23. The earthquake caused by the fans lasted four hours. In 2011 a similar situation occurred at a Seattle Seahawks game after fans celebrated a touchdown.
On May 29, The Davenport in downtown Davenport collapsed leaving many people living there without homes. Three people died in the rubble from the collapse and many others were injured. Residents complained of structural issues of the building, and the day prior to the collapse a 911 call was made to report the “bulging” on the side of the building. Some people are pressing charges against Andrew Wold, the owner of the apartment, as he was neglecting the building and putting tenants at risk. Wold ended up pleading guilty and paid a $300 fine to the City of Davenport.
The Denver Nuggets won the 2023 NBA Championship, their first win in their 47 years in the NBA. The Denver Nuggets won against the Miami Heat, 94-89, in a best of seven series. Nikola Jokić, the Nuggets center from Serbia, was named the NBA finals most valuable player. Jokić scored 28 points and 16 rebounds, leading the Nuggets to their victory. Fans of other NBA teams congratulated the Nuggets on their first win.
OceanGate Expeditions was a company that allowed people to go underwater in submarines to explore the ocean. OceanGate offered a mission to explore the remains of the Titanic on a 10-day trip costing $250,000 per person. The submarine, The Titan, started its descent on June 18 with 5 passengers aboard including 3 businesspeople, the son of a Pakistani businessperson onboard, and a Titanic researcher. One hour and 35 minutes into the two-hour dive to the remains of the Titanic, the U.S. Coast Guard lost contact with the submarine. An investigation soon began. On June 22, pieces of the OceanGate submarine were found near the Titanic wreckage that support a “catastrophic implosion” that killed the 5 passengers. Since pieces of the submarine were found, Oceangate Expeditions has suspended all operations.
Kim Reynolds signed many bills that affect the 2023-24 school year. Reynolds signed a bill that banned gender affirming care for those under 18. This bill also affected schools because students are only allowed to use bathrooms that align with their assigned sex. Another bill was signed that banned books that depict or describe sexual acts. Teachers are not allowed to instruct students about sexual or gender identity in schools from K-6. The bill also notifies parents if their child preferred a different name or pronoun other than what is put in the school’s system.
This summer temperatures reached record breaking numbers. July alone was the world’s hottest month on record. A heatwave hit the West and Southwest causing many places to have heat watches, advisories, and warnings. Death Valley, California reached a high of 128 degrees fahrenheit because of the heatwave. Towards the start of the school year in late August, a heat dome formed over the South, Midwest and Great Plains causing temperatures to rise. Bettendorf was under heat watch for a week as temperatures reached the 100s. Many states reached record high temperatures including Texas, Louisiana and South Dakota. Questions and worries about climate change have arisen from the extreme heat as well.
Maui, Hawaii is facing multiple wildfires across the island. The wildfires first began on August 8th, in Kula along the Olinda road which destroyed 19 homes. Since then, more wildfires started in Lahaina causing power outages and roads to overflow with traffic. Many people were trapped in their homes as the fire spread and those looking to escape were unable to due to road blockages. No alarms were set off and the warnings given out were vague with details of where to evacuate. There are 114 confirmed deaths from the fires in Lahaina and 66 people are unaccounted for, the number dropping from 3,000 in the first few days of the fire. As of Sept. 6, the Kula fire is 95 percent contained, and the Lahaina fire is 100 percent contained. Some smaller brush fires started on Sept. 4, near the Pulehunui Industrial Park with no damage being reported.
Many movies came out over the summer. “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” were two of the most talked about movies in July as they were both released on July 21. “Barbenheimer,” the combining of the words “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer,” was used to talk about the date and helped promote the movies even more. “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” was also a highly anticipated movie which came out on June 2, and was the second highest grossing movie in box office during the summer at $381,210,457. “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” the third highest grossing movie, and “The Little Mermaid,” the fifth highest grossing movie, were also popular, both coming out in May.
Spain won their first women’s World Cup on Aug. 20, in a 1-0 against England. Although this was a major accomplishment for Spain, it was overshadowed by Luis Rubiales, the president of the Spanish soccer federation, kissing one of the players. After Spain’s win, Rubiales kissed Jenni Hermoso on the lips, sparking a lot of controversy online. Although Rubiales said Hermoso consented, Hermoso denied those statements and also claimed she was pressured into supporting Rubiales. FIFA suspended Rubiales for 90 days, but Rubiales resigned as the president on Sept. 10.
