The Met Gala has inspired pajama-clad New Yorkers to fundraise for medical debt relief at an alternative benefit called the Debt Gala. Some 200 attendees dressed for its “Sleeping Baddies” theme to raise money for medical bill relief on Sunday. Hosted in Brooklyn one night before the Met Gala, the benefit’s thrifty getups and raunchy comedy routines are a far cry from its glitzy, star-studded namesake. It’s one of several alternative galas that have emerged to democratize the exclusive springtime fundraiser’s spectacle and highlight other causes. This year’s beneficiaries include Dollar For, a non-profit that says it has eliminated almost $50 million in medical debt.

Tornadoes touched down Monday evening in rural Oklahoma as large hail pelted parts of Kansas. Forecasters have issued a rare high risk warning for the two states. The storm chasers detected several small funnels emerging from clouds Monday before identifying a twister near the small Oklahoma town of Okeene. A dispatcher for Kingfisher County, Oklahoma, says there was a report of tornado damage to a single home, but it wasn’t immediately known if anyone was hurt. Meanwhile, apple-sized hail was reported near Ellinwood, Kansas, northwest of Wichita. The severe weather follows heavy rainfall in Houston, where floodwaters began to recede Monday.

Boeing has called off its first astronaut launch because of a balky rocket valve. The two NASA test pilots had just strapped into Boeing's Starliner capsule when the countdown was halted Monday night, two hours before the planned liftoff from Cape Canaveral, Florida. A United Launch Alliance spokesman says the problem involves an oxygen relief valve on the Atlas rocket's upper stage. There was no immediate word on when the next launch attempt might be for the flight to the International Space Station. Starliner's first test flight without a crew in 2019 failed to reach the space station and Boeing had to repeat the flight.

Pro-Palestinian protesters blocked by police from accessing an encampment at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology broke through fencing to retake the area, as Columbia University canceled its university-wide commencement ceremony following weeks of demonstrations. Other protesters at MIT Monday sat on Massachusetts Avenue, blocking evening rush-hour traffic in Boston. Officials at Columbia in New York City said in a statement Monday that instead of a large graduation event, it will focus on smaller school-level graduation ceremonies. Emory University says it's moving its commencement from its Atlanta campus to a suburban arena. Campus protests have sprung up across the U.S. stemming from the conflict that started when Hamas militants attacked southern Israel in October.

Floodwaters in the Houston area and parts of Southeast Texas are starting to recede, allowing residents to begin returning to their homes and assess damages after days of heavy rainfall. The flooding had led to hundreds of rescues — including people who were stranded on rooftops. Officials in Harris County, where Houston is located, are reporting no deaths or major injuries from the flooding. But Gov. Greg Abbott says there were at least three deaths in the state, including a 4-year-old boy. Harris County officials said Monday they’re transitioning from a response phase into recovery mode and cleanup. Abbott has issued a disaster declaration for 91 counties impacted by the severe weather.

The Federal Aviation Administration has opened an investigation into Boeing after the beleaguered company reported that workers at a South Carolina plant falsified inspection records on certain 787 planes. Boeing said its engineers have determined that misconduct did not create “an immediate safety of flight issue.” An executive who leads the 787 program said in an April 29 email to employees that a worker observed an “irregularity” in a required test of the wing-to-body join and reported it to his manager. Boeing investigated and learned that several people had falsified inspection records by saying they had completed certain tests when they hadn't. The executive says Boeing is taking “swift and serious corrective action.”