Your briefing on Thursday

Flooding increases misery in Ukraine’s war zone

Flooding along more than 80 kilometers of the Dnipro River following the destruction of the Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine has led to massive devastation in a war-ravaged and depopulated region.

Water supplies have been polluted, crops have drowned and thousands of people have been displaced from their devastated homes by the flooding. The reservoir that many Ukrainian farmers need to irrigate their fields and that the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant uses to cool its radioactive fuel has also been drastically reduced. Here are maps of the floods.

Local officials on the Russian-controlled riverbank said nearly the entire town of Oleshky was flooded. Residents pleaded for help in an online chat group, looking for missing loved ones and help as floodwaters rose. Ukrainian officials claim Russian forces blew up the dam to impede a Ukrainian offensive, although there is little evidence of what happened so far.

First person: “We started to get used to the shelling, but I have never seen such a situation,” said Larisa Kharchenko, a retired nurse in Kherson, which was occupied by Russian troops for months last year. “It just keeps coming.”

Smoky skies disrupt life in New York City

Smoke from Canadian wildfires quickly darkened New York City’s skies and caused the air quality index to climb above 400 yesterday, well into the “dangerous” range. The figures were the worst since US authorities began measuring air quality in 1999. Warnings were also in effect across much of the Northeast and Midwest.

The smoke forced people inside and led to outdoor event cancellations and some flight delays due to poor visibility. Governor Kathy Hochul called New York’s deteriorating air quality “an emergency” and warned it could last several days. “People need to prepare for this in the long run,” she said.

Canada, where hundreds of fires were out of control as of early yesterday, also experienced more haze. Parts of Quebec and Ontario were issued a smog warning, and experts warned that the air in Toronto and elsewhere was likely to worsen.

risks: The poor air quality can have widespread consequences for healthy people and serious ones for people with respiratory diseases. Such high readings are typical in smoggy megacities like Jakarta or New Delhi, but rare in New York, where decades of state and federal laws have helped reduce emissions.

‘A dystopian nightmare’ in Darfur

Deadly fighting between two military factions has engulfed Sudan as far as the western region of Darfur, an area ravaged by genocidal violence for decades. At least 280 people were killed in two days in mid-May after gunmen backed by paramilitary forces launched a frenzied attack on the town of El Geneina.

Displaced people, humanitarian workers, UN officials and analysts say the region is now besieged by levels of violence not seen in recent years. More than 370,000 people have fled Darfur in the past seven weeks, seeking refuge in neighboring countries.

“The situation is catastrophic in parts of Darfur,” said Toby Harward, the Darfur coordinator for the UN refugee agency. “The people live in a dystopian nightmare where there is no law and order.”

negotiations: Ceasefire agreements have failed to end the fighting and peace talks in Saudi Arabia were formally suspended last Thursday.

THE LAST NEWS

Around the world

It’s never too late to go on a trip with your best friend. Eleanor Hamby, 81, and Dr. Sandra Hazelip, 82, who have been dubbed “the TikTok traveling grannies,” have traveled from the icy shores of Antarctica to the rocky majesty of the Grand Canyon in 80 days.

Hazelip gave some advice to those who dream of adventure: “Get out of your couch,” she said. “Step out of your comfort zone. Make some plans and live.”

Lives lived

Andrew Bellucci, a New York pizza visionary who experienced the highs of stardom and the lows of federal prison, has passed away at the age of 59.

SPORTS NEWS FROM ATHLETICS

The battle between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf: Won money. Morale always came second.

How to stop football’s most irrepressible player: What Inter Milan should do Saturday in the Champions League final to keep Erling Haaland quiet.

From the time: The football star Lionel Messi confirmed that he had turned down an offer to play in Saudi Arabia and was instead planning to sign a contract with Inter Miami.

ART & IDEAS

A history of insults

When King Saul said, “Thou son of the perverted rebellious woman,” he was in fact using the Old Testament version of the well-known “you SOB.” In “Titus Andronicus,” Shakespeare used a similar barb: “Scoundrel, I have done thy mother.”

Deb Amlen dug up those tidbits and more as she explores the history of insults. She found that insults haven’t really evolved over thousands of years: they’re still deeply personal comments about someone’s status, appearance, sexual prowess, or courage — or lack thereof.

PLAY, WATCH, EAT

What to cook

That’s it for today’s briefing. Thank you for coming to me. — Natasha

PS Like Wordle? Grab a group of friends, relatives or colleagues and play Wordle Golf.

“The Daily” is about a Times investigation into migrants left at sea by Greece.

You can reach Natasha and the team at briefing@nytimes.com.