Axios

At least 4 people across the Midwest have died from historic flooding in the region, while heavy rain and flash flood watches go into effect across America's South on Saturday morning.

Why now: These floods are the result of spring snowmelt and a series of storms that have added to the amount of water flowing into the Mississippi River.

Up to a million of Earth's estimated eight million species face extinction, many of them within decades, according to a UN report on biodiversity due out Monday.

The big picture: The 1,800-page report by 400 scientists says the pace of species loss "is already tens to hundreds of times higher than it has been, on average, over the last 10 million years," according to a draft obtained by Agence France-Presse.

According to a new joint study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Public Health and Transportation departments in Austin, Texas, 271 people sustained potential scooter-related injuries from September to November 2018.

By the numbers: Almost half of those 271 riders in Austin experienced head injuries, while 15% sustained traumatic brain injuries. Approximately 55% of riders were injured in the street, while just 33% were injured on a sidewalk. Another 33% of riders said they drank alcohol in the 12 hours prior to any injuries experienced on their electric scooter.

Cyclone Fani barreled ashore in India as a Category 4 storm early Friday, bringing extreme winds and storm surge flooding to the city of Puri and points to the north and east, but a threat looms for a more far-flung location: the Himalayas.

The big picture: This is climbing season on Mt. Everest and other peaks nearby, as dozens of elite — and some not-so-elite — climbers attempt to summit the tallest mountains in the world. Although Fani is tracking toward the northeast, along India's coast toward Kolkata and Bangladesh, the storm is also pushing a surge of moisture-laden air from near the equator toward the Himalayas. This could result in heavy snows that may endanger climbers.

Tropical Cyclone Fani made landfall near the city of Puri, India, early Friday morning as a fierce Category 4 storm. Reuters reports "extensive" damage in the city. Media reports indicate about 1 million people evacuated coastal areas of Odisha state before the cyclone hit.

A Tesla official said Thursday that a shortage of key minerals used in electric vehicle batteries could emerge years in the future absent more investment in mining projects, according to reports in Reuters and Bloomberg.

Why it matters: Growing demand for EVs will require higher volumes of lithium, copper (more on that below) and other materials. The topic was discussed at a closed-door meeting in Washington yesterday that included U.S. officials and mining industry, per the outlets.

Democratic White House hopeful Jay Inslee unveiled a plan this morning that requires all U.S. electricity to be "carbon-neutral" by 2030 and mandates all new car and light truck sales to be zero-emissions vehicles by the same date.

Why it matters: It's the first detailed policy plank from Inslee, the Washington governor running on the untested theory that a campaign devoted to fighting global warming can gain traction in national politics.