Daily Briefing: A water emergency in Mississippi

Thousands of residents remain without safe drinking water in Jackson, Mississippi. A Trump lawyer will testify in a probe on election interference. And Serena Williams wins big on her tennis farewell tour.

🙋🏼‍♀️ I'm Nicole Fallert, writer of Daily Briefing, a morning news roundup from USA TODAY. You might notice 5 Things to Know isn't here. We'll be trying Daily Briefing instead for a while. Love it? Leave it?  Please keep submitting your thoughts on this form here. A lot of you shared your feedback already — thank you.

Now let's get to the news. Here's a few things you need to know this Tuesday, Daily Briefing style: 

Governor declares water emergency for Mississippi capital

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves said Monday night that he is declaring a state of emergency after excessive rainfall exacerbated problems in one of Jackson's water-treatment plants. The water issues caused low water pressure through much of the capital city. Reeves said that on Tuesday, the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency will start distributing both drinking water and non-potable water in the city of 150,000 residents, and the National Guard will be called in to help. Read more

What to know: This is just the latest of many longstanding problems with Jackson's water system. 

• The catalyst: A slow-moving weather system that has soaked a swath of the South, forcing evacuations and washing away roads.  Jackson and central Mississippi have experienced heavy rainfall throughout August.

• Mississippi's governor said he understands people in Jackson don’t want to have water system problems. But who's looking out for the most vulnerable Americans affected by climate change?

• Meanwhile in California, an incoming heat wave could be the state's hottest and longest this year, forecasters say.

Trump lawyer set for questioning about fake electors scheme

John Eastman, the Trump lawyer who pushed efforts to assemble fake slates of Trump electors to subvert President Joe Biden's victory, is expected to testify Tuesday after losing a bid to quash the subpoena. Prosecutors expect to question Eastman about a Dec. 3, 2020 appearance before the Georgia State Senate in which the lawyer referred to the plan to assemble electors to support Trump. The Trump attorney, according to court documents, told lawmakers that they had a “duty” to replace the slate of Democratic Party electors, citing unfounded claims of voter fraud in the state. Read more

• Lindsey Graham warns of ''riots in the street'' if Trump is prosecuted, claims ''double standard.''

• The Department of Justice says some privileged documents have been identified in a screening of seized Mar-a-Lago documents.

• Biden will give a primetime speech this week on 'the continued battle for the soul of the nation' as he amps up his rhetoric against Republicans before the midterms.

More news to know now:

• ⚫ An Oregon Safeway employee tried to disarm a gunman who fatally shot two people.

• 🧊 A melting Greenland ice sheet will raise sea levels by nearly a foot, study finds.

• 🚀 Nicole Aunapu Mann will become the first Native American woman in space.

• 🎃 Starbucks' Pumpkin Spice Latte returns today. See what else is on the fall menu.

• 🎧 On today's 5 Things podcast, education reporters Alia Wong and Kayla Jimenez look at an ongoing teacher shortage. You can listen to the podcast every day on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on your smart speaker.

Fighting rages around Europe's biggest nuclear power plant

The United Nations announced plans on Monday to access the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant near the city of Enerhodar. The United Nations' nuclear watchdog has warned of a possible nuclear disaster unless fighting in the zone surrounding the plant stops. The safety of Europe's largest nuclear facility has prompted Ukrainian authorities in recent days to run disaster response drills near the plant. Zaporizhzhia has been occupied by Russia since it was captured in March, but it is still run by Ukrainian technicians. Read more

• Six months into the Russia-Ukraine war, the entire world is losing. Here's a look at where we go from here.

Serena Williams is not done yet

Serena Williams kicked off her final Grand Slam tournament with a win in her first match at the U.S. Open. With a bevy of celebrities paying tribute Monday night in Arthur Ashe Stadium ranging from former president Bill Clinton to Mike Tyson, the 40-year old Williams dismissed 80th-ranked Danka Kovinic of Montenegro, 6-3, 6-3. Williams survived a shaky first set and took full control in the second, building confidence against an opponent who struggled with the enormity of the moment. Williams, a six-time U.S. Open champion, will face No. 2 seed Anett Kontaveit in the second round on Wednesday. Read more

• US Open fans surprised Williams with a heartwarming arena card celebration.

• Gatorade honored Williams with an iconic logo change and a commercial narrated by Beyoncé.

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• 🏠 Is the US housing market in a recession or a correction? A few scenarios are possible.

• 📝 Four years after the death of John McCain, my father's legacy is more important than ever.

• 🏫 Is there a teacher shortage? Here's what the data says.

These articles are for USA TODAY subscribers. You can sign up here. Already a subscriber and want premium content emailed to you every day? We can do that! Sign up for the Your Day newsletter.

NFL roster deadline will bring surprises

All 32 NFL teams have until 4 p.m. ET Tuesday afternoon to trim their rosters to 53 players. And the teams are already making headway at cutting down the lists of players to compete in the regular season. Running back Sony Michel and veteran receiver Mohamed Sanu Sr. were among 12 players that the Miami Dolphins cut Monday. Two veteran punters lost their jobs. The Tennessee Titans told three-time Pro Bowl punter Brett Kern that he will be released, and ten-year pro punter Sam Martin lost his job when the Denver Broncos waived him. Read more

• Jimmy Garoppolo, 49ers agree to restructured contract that includes incentives.

• Here's how college football would look if it were set up like the NFL with 32 teams.

📷 Photo of the day: Best photos from college football 'Week 0' 📷

College football is back, with match-ups across the country — and the ocean. Nebraska lost 31-28 to Northwestern in the season opener in Dublin, Ireland. The Cornhuskers and Northwestern lead the list of winners and losers from an abbreviated Week 0 slate kicking off the 2022 season. Read more

Click here to see more photos from "Week 0" of the 2022 college football season.

Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note, shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com or follow along with her musings on Twitter. Support journalism like this – subscribe to USA TODAY here.

Associated Press contributed reporting.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Mississippi flooding, Greenland ice sheet, NFL roster deadline: Daily Briefing Tuesday