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Good morning, Des Moines! It is Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, and this is your Daily Umbrella Podcast. Here’s what’s happening in Iowa, across the country and around the world. …

Iowa’s U.S. Senate race took center stage Tuesday night as Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson and Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek met for their second and final debate. The candidates addressed issues important to Iowans, including rising cancer rates, health care, Social Security and technology. …

Central Iowa veterans recently traveled to Washington, D.C., on an Honor Flight to visit memorials and receive recognition for their military service. Marine veteran George Rowe, who served in Vietnam, said he had watched veterans from other areas make the journey but doubted he would be able to go because he is largely confined to a wheelchair. Having the flight depart from Des Moines made the trip possible. …

One person was hospitalized with suspected serious injuries after a car collided with a train Tuesday afternoon near Bondurant. Polk County sheriff’s deputies responded around 4:05 p.m. to the crash in the 4300 block of Northeast 102nd Avenue. …

Around Iowa, in North Liberty, dozens of residents spoke against keeping the city’s Flock license plate-reading cameras during a City Council meeting Tuesday. The city is reconsidering the cameras, which police say have helped locate missing people and stolen vehicles. …

Around the world, the Vatican says Pope Leo XIV spent a peaceful night in a Rome hospital following surgery to remove the lower lobe of his right lung. Doctors confirmed the pope has lung adenocarcinoma, a common type of lung cancer. …

And in Georgia, the death of a man who was thrown from a Six Flags roller coaster is drawing renewed attention to amusement park ride safety. Although modern rides continue to push the limits of speed and height, officials say deaths on roller coasters remain extremely rare. …

Looking to the weather forecast, today will be cloudy, with a high of 66 degrees and a low of 56. There is a 20% chance of rain. Thursday brings clouds and rain, with an 80% chance of precipitation, a high of 62 and a low of 42. Friday looks mostly sunny, with a high of 56 and a low of 36. The allergy alert for today is 3, in the low-to-medium range. The top allergens are ragweed, sagebrush and chenopods. …

In baseball, Tampa Bay evened its American League Championship Series against Cleveland with a 3-1 victory Tuesday night. Starter Freddy Peralta delivered a powerful performance, averaging a career-high 96.9 mph on his fastball and reaching 99.4 mph. In football, the Dallas Cowboys’ defense continues to struggle. After allowing an NFL-worst 30 points per game in 2025, the team entered this season hoping for improvement, but opponents are again finding opportunities. And in hockey, Brady Tkachuk recorded a hat trick while his brother Matthew Tkachuk collected five assists as Florida dominated Columbus. …

On Oct. 14, 1892, Arthur Conan Doyle’s “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes” was published as a collection of stories that had previously appeared in magazines. In 1964, civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. won the Nobel Peace Prize for his nonviolent resistance to racial prejudice in America. At age 35, he was the youngest recipient at that time. …

Here's today’s morning chuckle: What steals from you when you are in your bathtub? Think you know the answer? Email your guess to tammy@iowalivingmagazines.com before noon today for a chance to be featured in the next edition. And be sure to subscribe to our full email version of The Daily Umbrella for free at www.TheDailyUmbrella.com.