It's Getting Hot Out There: The HUB

The HUB is a daily newsletter designed for what you want — to be caught up on the most interesting, important news in 5 minutes or less. It's a little bit of this, a little bit of that, but if there's something you want more or less of, email me at alex.newman@patch.com.

Today is Wednesday, August 11. Let's get started.

The National Weather Service has issued a heat advisory in Massachusetts starting Wednesday, and continuing through Friday.

The forecast calls for temperatures in the 90s for the next three days, with heat indices in the 105-109-degree range on Thursday and Friday. The NWS expects Thursday will be the hottest of the bunch, feeling like 105 degrees at times in the Boston area.

That'll do more than make you sweat – temperatures that high can be dangerous. Boston Mayor Kim Janey has declared a heat emergency, and the city and several others are opening cooling centers for people who do not have sufficient indoor cooling.

In worse news, the NWS says we shouldn't expect much relief from the heat at night. Oh, and there's a few "strong and severe storms" on the radar.

Top stories

A troubling United Nations report has Boston mayoral candidates sweating climate change. The gist: now's the time to act. And City Hall hopefuls are discussing how Boston can be at the forefront of that fight. (Boston Globe)

Boston Superintendent Brenda Cassellius may not get her license back until September. In the meantime, state education officials say someone else should take the reins when it comes to the important stuff. DESE Commissioner Jeff Riley is requesting that "a district employee who holds a superintendent license review and sign off on any matter that requires, as a matter of law, action by a superintendent." (Boston Herald)

A man was rushed to the hospital after being stabbed in the back and neck in broad daylight in Dorchester. The stabbing came on the heels of a violent few days in Boston, during which two people were fatally shot, and one person was stabbed to death. (Patch)

Local voices

Twenty years after 9/11, the full extent of Saudi Arabia's possible role in the attacks remains shrouded in mystery. The Boston Globe Editorial Board is calling on President Biden to declassify the investigation into potential links to the Saudi government. (Boston Globe)

If you have a minute

From Lily Robinson, Commonwealth Magazine

"Melanie Small has been out of a home for about a month. She was living in a rental in Orleans with her 8-year-old daughter until her landlord sold the unit and she had to move out. She was given advance notice and had about a year to look for a new place, but inventory was low and what was available wasn’t affordable.

Small works three jobs. In the summer she shucks oysters for the Holbrook Oyster Company, during the school year she is a cafeteria worker at Orleans Elementary School, and she just started a year-round bartending position at Hog Island Beer Co., a brewery in Orleans.

Since their lease ended, she and her daughter have been relying on friends and family for shelter and moving often. “It’s hard for an 8-year-old to have to keep moving so much. It’s just kind of stressful not really knowing where we’re going to go,” she said.

Small is far from alone in her struggle to find housing she can afford on Cape Cod, where she grew up and put down roots."

A lighter touch

The famous North End "Spite House" – sometimes known as "The Skinny House" – is back on the market, this time with a million-dollar price tag. Legend has it, a man built the home in the 1800s to thumb his nose at his brother, whose home took up most of the land left to them by their father. (Boston.com)

Weather: Well, you already know that one.

Stay cool out there.