• A truck carrying oxygen exploded in a fatal I-66 crash Sunday. One person died in the multi-vehicle wreck in the westbound Express Lanes near Dunn Loring around 4:10 p.m., snarling traffic for hours. State police are still identifying the victim and haven't said how many vehicles were involved. Virginia State Police

• A 16-year-old girl was killed at a packed Old Town Manassas event Friday night. Police say two shooters exchanged gunfire near the Manassas Train Depot around 9:30 p.m. as roughly 10,000 people gathered. One suspect, 21-year-old Tasheem Douglas, was wounded and arrested; a second shooter remains at large. Manassas police

• The search for a missing 81-year-old in Loudoun enters its third week. Carolyn Taylor was last seen Aug. 23 near Foundry and Hughesville roads southeast of Purcellville, where she often walked. Crews have combed 6,000 acres on foot with dogs, drones and a helicopter; her son is no longer under investigation. WTOP

• The 9/11 death toll is still climbing among the people who responded. More than 400 FBI employees have been diagnosed with illnesses tied to their work at the Pentagon, Ground Zero and Shanksville, and dozens have died. Over 30 names are memorialized near the Judiciary Square Metro. WTOP

• A Manassas-based group is racing to help Nepal after catastrophic flooding. Former Haymarket councilman Madhu Panthi and the America Nepal Helping Society are raising money after floods along the Nepal-China border killed more than 1,300 people. Hundreds of workers are believed trapped in buried hydropower tunnels. WTOP

• Government: Federal, state, Fairfax, Arlington, Loudoun and Falls Church offices are closed today.
• Libraries: County library branches across Arlington and Fairfax are closed for the holiday. ARLnow
• Trash & recycling: Expect delays. Most jurisdictions push collection back a day for the rest of the week, so check your county's schedule.
• Transit: Metro and local buses run on modified or holiday schedules; plan for reduced frequency.

• Chase down a last-of-summer treat in Ashburn. Fleen's Dessert Studio just opened in Old Ashburn with dessert charcuterie boxes, macarons and cakesicles in the old Bilstad's Beignets space. Its grand opening lands Sept. 12. The Burn

• Halloween is already elbowing in. Busch Gardens Williamsburg fires up Howl-O-Scream on Sept. 11 with haunted houses and "Amplified Scares" not meant for kids. Closer to home, Spirit Halloween pop-ups are landing in Ashburn, Dulles Town Center and across NoVA this month. Secret DC, The Burn

• Circle a Tuesday-midnight ticket drop. McLean's Alden Theatre unveiled its 2026-2027 season, with original "Rent" cast members and director Robert Townsend among the headliners. Tickets go on sale at midnight Sept. 8. FFXnow

• Fairfax may spend $300,000 cleaning up Royal Lake Park after June's microburst; supervisors vote Sept. 15. FFXnow
• A Centreville man got six years of active time for fatally shooting an 18-year-old over a marijuana deal outside a Dunkin'. FFXnow
• Smoothie chain Fresh Monkee is opening its first Virginia store in Fairfax. The Burn
• Ebisu Sushi & Thai closed for good in downtown Leesburg after a year and a half; a new tenant already signed on. The Burn

Labor Day is supposed to be the region's exhale, but the weekend didn't cooperate: a fatal crash on 66, a girl killed in a crowd of thousands, an 81-year-old still lost in the tall grass west of Purcellville. NoVA takes the day off; the week apparently didn't.

That's the briefing. Enjoy the day off, and look out for each other. See you tomorrow.

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