News Wrap: Tropical Storm Ophelia drenches communities along Atlantic Coast

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• John Yang:

  Good evening, I'm John Yang. On the day that fall officially begins, a tropical storm is producing a large area of rain as it moves up the Atlantic coast, triggering flood watches and warnings along the way. Ophelia came ashore this morning in North Carolina and is forecast to reach southeastern Virginia by this evening and be over water off the Atlantic coast by Monday.

  With which winds already considerably diminished, the National Hurricane Center says the main threat is flooding from heavy rain. More than a half foot of rain is forecast to fall in some areas. Along the coast, storm surge warnings are up as far north as the Chesapeake Bay.

  Tens of thousands of people have already lost power from North Carolina to Pennsylvania. North Carolina, Virginia and Maryland are all under states of emergency.

  The family of a 17-year-old Black high school student in Texas who has been suspended for his hairstyle is suing Governor Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton. Darryl George's family says Abbott and Paxton have failed to protect his constitutional right against discrimination and his right to freedom of expression.

  George has been serving an in-school suspension since late August when officials at Barbers Hill High School in the Houston area said his dreadlocks violate the school district's dress code. A new Texas State law bans racial discrimination based on hairstyles.

  Car dealers may soon be feeling the bite of the auto workers strike which begins its second week today. With the work stoppage expanding to dozens of GM and Stellantis distribution hubs, the head of the National Association of Auto Dealers said parts shortages would soon put a crimp in dealer's highly profitable repair business.

  President Biden will join a picket line in Michigan on Tuesday, and former President Trump is to visit the striking workers there on Wednesday.

  Meanwhile, negotiators for Hollywood writers and the studios were back at the bargaining table for a fourth straight day, fueling hopes that an end to that nearly five-month-old strike may still be at hand. But little progress is reported in the actors strike.

  And Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas met today with Honduran President Xiomara Castro in McAllen, Texas, to discuss cooperation on illegal migration. The meeting caps a week that saw a big surge of migrants along the border. More than 8,000 people entered the country illegally at Eagle Pass, Texas. Illegal crossings dipped this spring but are on the rise again on pace to match last year's record highs.

  Still to come on PBS News Weekend, driverless rides and the potential risks and rewards of robo-taxis, and cricket's booming popularity in America.

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