These days, there's so much news.

It can be hard to keep up with what it all means for you, your family, and your community.

The Consider This Podcast from NPR features our award-winning journalism.

Six days a week, we bring you a deep dive on a news story and provide the context and analysis that helps you make sense of the news.

We get behind the headlines.

We get to the truth.

Listen to the Consider This podcast from NPR. Hey, good morning. It's Patricia Murphy. It's Wednesday. This is Seattle now. We've flipped

the calendar and an atmospheric river this week gave us a windy, rainy welcome to Junuary.

Don't fret sun lovers, the National Weather Services, things are going to warm up.

But with the heat also comes drought, wildfires, and smoke.

Deputy State climatologist Karen Bumbacco is here to talk about this week's weird weather pattern and what it means for summer.

But first, let's get you

caught up. The Seattle City Council passed legislation yesterday that will make it easier

for the fire department to order the demolition of vacant unsafe buildings. The legislation will take

effect immediately if signed by the mayor. Among other things,

it amends the Seattle Fire Code to streamline the process for demolition and requires property

owners to pay for work to make dangerous buildings or sites safe. Just this week in the Roosevelt

neighborhood, one person was killed and three people were injured during an early morning fire in a vacant building.

A coalition charged with reducing collisions, injuries, and fatalities in King County will meet tomorrow for a planning session.

There is a lot of work to be done. Last year, the county recorded 167 roadway fatalities more than any other year. Nearly a thousand

other people were seriously injured. The planning session will be packed with experts trying to tackle

the grim reality about safety on our roadways. And an Italian court is expected to deliver a

...