WRAL Newscasts
4:30AM News on WRAL - Wednesday, July 17, 2024
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Also, crews are working to get the power back on for some Raleigh residents after a large tree knocked out of electricity, forcing people to spend a night without air conditioning. And we have two headlines today in the Weather Department. We have a heat advisory again and we have a level one risk for party area. I'll have the timeline for the storms for today coming up. Plus tonight, Americans will hear for the first time from Donald Trump's running mate. What to expect when JD Vance takes the stage at the Republican National Convention? The young senator from Ohio will be making his national debut. I say young because we're older than he is. Good morning, everyone. And he's young, good morning, everyone. It's worth 30 every day too. I'm Jeff Hogan. I'm hanging on 39 mentally. Yeah, okay, right for many, many years. (laughs) Many anniversaries of that. Let's check out that weather situation. Amy Wilmeth in the W.R.O. Severe Weather Center right now honing in on this severe risk we have to our north. We do, we have a level one risk for severe storms that covers most of Wake County and points to the north. The biggest threat with any storms today would be some strong damaging winds. The tornado threat is very low for today. Hour by hour rain chances. First half of the day looks okay. Rain chances very minimal this morning. We start to go up as we get into the afternoon and during the evening commute. It's about a 50% chance through the evening into around midnight tonight. And then we'll have another round of storms tomorrow. A live look at Kerry. It's a quiet morning, but it's warm and it's sticky outside. It's 80 right now in Raleigh and Durham. 78 in Rocky Mount, 76 in Southern Pines, and 77 in Fayetteville. We have a heat advisory. Again, the heat index could get up to 108 today, but we will get a break from the heat. I'll have more on that and our risk for severe storms tomorrow. Coming up. Breaking news, a messy situation this morning in Raleigh after a tractor trailer carrying state sauce over turns with the product spilling onto the interstate. This happened around 145 this morning on I-440 near Wade Avenue. W.R.S. Laura Levine joins us live from the scene and Laura certainly very unusual and some lanes are closed right now because there's cleanup. Yeah, Rene, I have to say there's nothing like the smell of steak sauce at 4 AM behind me. You can see a look at the scene as several crews remain here. We have dumpster trucks on standby as crews continue to work to clean it up. But this is a tractor trailer here flipped on its side down this embankment. They first got the call just before 2 AM about this accident involving the tractor trailing carrying steak sauce. The steak sauce as you mentioned spilled all over the highway. DOT crews were called early this morning to help clean up this mess. You know, Wade Avenue inbound lanes near the on ramp of I-440 East is blocked by police. We saw I counted about three or four police officers down there blocking this so that cars and traffic do not do not try to come this way. But again, just a very messy situation. We do know that no injuries to report from this crash. So that is the good news. Again, dumpster trucks and several crew still on standby working to clean up the rest of this mess. Laura Levine, W.R.A.L. News, live in Raleigh. We also have some breaking news out of Orange County this morning where a crash involving a FedEx truck is causing some backups. It's happening on I-85 North near US-70. You see it on this map here. Nick Pirlin joins us live from that scene, the W.R.A.L. breaking news tracker. Part of the highway completely closed out of all this right now, Nick. And it's probably going to stay that way for a couple more hours. You can see right here firefighters here blocking off this highway as they try to remove a tractor trailer. I want to show you this video from the W.R.A.L. breaking news tracker just so you can get a sense of just how extraordinary this scene is. It's a little bit further back from where I am, but you can see this FedEx tractor trailer flipped over on its side and it laid out into the median. It also looks like part of the tractor trailer, even extending into the southbound lanes. Now we do know two vehicles were involved, obviously that tractor trailer and another car. We still are working to find out if anybody was hurt. But again, it looks like these lanes will be closed for a while as traffic continues to be diverted off of I-85 North once we get more information on injuries and, of course, when the highway reopens, we'll be sure to update you. Live in Orange County, Nick Pearl and W-R-A-L news. More breaking news in Raleigh. Some people living near Dixie Trail finally have power back after spending a night without air conditioning. That's because a large tree fell and knocked out power for hours. The tree was blocking the road for a while before crews were able to remove it. Today, year-round teachers in Durham Public Schools return to work, they will gather at Northern High School today for a day-long kickoff to the school year. They'll hear from the new superintendent, Nicholas King, and participate in professional development sessions. Classes for year-round students start Monday. The Wake School Board has picked Shaw University to be the new partner for the school system's Leadership Academies. Now the school board will need to wait for state approval. The Wake Young Men's and Young Women's Leadership Academies don't have a permanent partner right now. After a fallout with St. Augustine's University over its accreditation, the board's vote starts the process to fix that starting in 2025. Tonight, Vice Presidential nominee JD Vance will address Republican National Convention Goers, and Vance will formally accept his nomination as he speaks at night three of the convention in Milwaukee. His speech is expected to focus heavily on his personal life story. It was first made famous in his 2016 memoir, Hillbilly Elegy. Peter Navarro is also expected to speak at the convention this week after he is released from prison today. Navarro is a former aide to Donald Trump. He's been in prison since March for contempt of Congress after defying a subpoena to testify in front of the January 6th committee. It's not clear yet when he's expected to speak. Night two of the Republican National Convention saw former rivals of Donald Trump rallying behind him. The most anticipated speech of the night came from former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley. She gave the former president her strong endorsement while highlighting President Biden's policies on global affairs. - If we have four more years of Biden or a single day of Harris, our country will be badly worse off. For the sake of our nation, we have to go with Donald Trump. (audience applauding) - Another former rival, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, also spoke as well as one-time presidential hopeful, Vivek Ramaswami. Yesterday's focus was on crime in America, with many of the speakers focusing on immigration and border security. Trump will speak tomorrow after officially accepting his party's nomination. You can find a full list of remaining events at the Republican National Convention on WRAL.com. Coming up in 10 minutes, what investigators say they found in the car and home of the gunman who tried to kill Trump. - Police aren't working to find the person responsible for a stabbing in downtown Raleigh. This is video of the scene on East Davy Street from the WRAL breaking news tracker. Police say this happened around 6.30 last night. One person was stabbed and taken to the hospital that person's expected to be okay. No arrests have been made as of this morning. - The search for UNC's next chancellor will move forward today. The search committee will meet in Chapel Hill this afternoon. UNC is looking for a permanent replacement for Kevin Gusquitz who left for Michigan State in January. Lee Roberts is the interim chancellor. The committee must pass along at least three candidates to the UNC Board of Trustees. The Board of Governors and System President Peter Haunts will make the final call. The committee's goal is to name the new chancellor by the end of the year, but the search could stretch into 2025. - Sources tell our NC Capital team, a Japanese medical device company is moving into North Carolina. State commerce officials will hold a special meeting at 11 this morning. The NC Capital team has learned the officials are expected to discuss economic incentives for the company called Nipro. It is expected to announce a $400 million expansion that could bring about 230 jobs to Pitt County. Governor Roy Cooper is scheduled to make an economic development announcement in Greenville later in the day. - Milwaukee police say they are reviewing their RNC protocols after officers from out of town shut and killed a man near the convention's secure zone. Authorities say offers from Columbus, Ohio, who were assigned to patrol near the security perimeter saw two men fighting. Police say one man charged at the other with a knife and the officer shot and killed him. No one else was hurt. Right before this, police arrested a man near the RNC security zone, who they say was concealing a gun in what they call a tactical backpack. The Milwaukee police department says a 21 year old man did not have a permit to carry a concealed weapon. They have not released the man's identity. - President Joe Biden is back on the campaign trail and Biden spoke to open the NAACP National Convention in Las Vegas yesterday. Biden worked to shore up support among black voters there. He also aggressively slammed former President Trump's policies. He promised voters he is all in to continue his campaign for re-election. - Discriminating against hairstyles will not be allowed in Wake County schools. The school board changed its dress code policy for students and staff. This change means students will not be punished for wearing their hair in braids, twists, or other natural or cultural styles. It's something many black students and families have been asking for. - Tenacious D, the Rock Duo made up of Jack Black and Kyle Gas canceled the rest of its tour. The remarks made by Gas about the assassination attempt on Donald Trump and the band's response. - Big changes are being made to the ACT, what high schoolers can expect when they sit down for the test next year. I'm gonna give you this live-looking Durham from the American Tobacco Campus. It'd be a nice start to our day, but storms are expected to move into our area tonight. Meteorologist, Amy Wellmouth will time it all out for us. - What's next? At Moss Adams, that question inspires us to help people and their businesses strategically define and claim their future. As one of America's leading, accounting, consulting, and wealth management firms, our collaborative approach creates solutions for your unique business needs. We leverage industry-focused insights with the collective technical resources of our firm to elevate your performance, uncover opportunity, and move upward at MossAtoms.com. - This is the story of the one. As head of maintenance at a concert hall, he knows the show must always go on. That's why he works behind the scenes, ensuring every light is working, the HVAC is humming, and his facility shines. With Granger's supplies and solutions for every challenge he faces, plus 24/7 customer support, his venue never misses a beat. Call quickgranger.com or just.buy. Granger, for the ones who get it done. - From the WRAL Severe Weather Center, North Carolina's most experienced team of meteorologists. - Welcome back, I'm meteorologist, Amy Wellmouth M4. Elizabeth, this morning we have the tower lit in green. We do expect some rain and some thunderstorms later on today from Wake County points to the north. You're under a level one risk for severe storms, damaging winds possible. Dog walking forecast, get it done this morning. Temperatures are still gonna be warm in the upper 70s to near 80, but danger seat again. We're under a heat advisory today, a high of 97. A heat index up to around 108. So again, do those dog walks early if you can. Heat index of 100 or higher, really anyone today. It's gonna be another round of dangerous heat for today. Tomorrow, the dangerous heat shifts down to the south. This comes with some rain. I'm talking about when we go under some flood risks and how long that lasts coming up. - We're learning more about the gunman who attempted to shoot former President Trump and law enforcement officials say Thomas Crooks was scheduled to work last Saturday, but told his boss he needed the day off because he had something to do. Told his coworkers he would see them the next day. Authorities at the rally say they first noticed Crooks about three hours before the shooting. After leaving the area, investigators suspect Crooks went to his vehicle to get his rifle. Authorities found a bulletproof vest, three fully loaded magazines, and two remote controlled explosive devices in his car after the shooting. Another bulletproof vest, explosive device, and a 3D printer were found at Crooks home. Investigators say they still haven't determined a motive. - Take a look at the damage to this church after a tornado ripped the roof off of it yesterday. It happened in Rome, New York, about 50 minutes east of Syracuse. The tornado also flipped cars, down trees, and damaged other buildings. The county there is under a state of emergency. Officials warn people not to travel unless necessary and to treat all wires as if they are alive. - Senator Bob Menendez is facing decades in prison after being found guilty on all counts in his federal corruption trial. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called on his Democratic colleague to resign after the jury handed down the verdict yesterday. The New Jersey Senator was convicted of 16 counts, including bribery, extortion, and wire fraud. Prosecutors say he received gold bars, hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, a Mercedes-Benz convertible, and other bribes in exchange for his influence. His sentencing date is October 29th. - Jack Black's rock group Tenacious D is canceling the rest of its tour after a comment about former President Trump's assassination attempt. Band member Kyle Gas made that comment on stage Sunday in Sydney. He was given a birthday cake and asked to make a wish. And that's when he responded, quote, "Don't miss Trump next time." In a statement on Instagram, Jack Black said he was blindsided by his guest's comment and would never condone hate speech or encourage political violence in any form. Gas later issued his own apology, writing that his improvised line was a, quote, "highly inappropriate, dangerous, and terrible mistake." - Some public safety summer interns got to experience what it's like to save lives on the water. Highway Patrol showed the group how to quickly get into a raft, get it out of the water, and then paddle back to shore. The Swift Water Rescue Program can be deployed during natural disasters like hurricanes. The experience may even attract some interns to join the program as a possible career opportunity. - Would we like to recruit every one of these people? Absolutely, but equally important. They're gonna learn some skills today, being on the water and safety. - And the interns learned all about what the Department of Public Safety does. - Parents, listen up. Big changes are coming next year for high school students taking the ACT college entrance exam. The head of the ACT says starting next spring, the test will be shorter down from about three hours to two. The science section will also be optional, and the price to take the test will be reduced. The CEO says the changes will give students more time to answer each question and let them focus on their strengths and abilities. This decision comes after the SAT was shortened and went fully digital earlier this year. - 448 is the time right now. Boy, if they just did that decades ago, I might've had a chance at it, you know? Doin' this live look right now in Zebilin here and Amy Wilmeth in the WRS Severe Weather Center with a look at what's happening today. We're expecting some severe weather to our north later. - That's right, the northern half of the area under a level one risk. And then we're really gonna do a pattern flip. We're going from the dangerous heat that we've had for what seems like forever to a very rainy weather pattern. More on that in just a moment. We do have this cold front that is approaching the area. Eventually it's going to kind of stall over the area and that's what's gonna lead to rounds of rain as we get closer and closer to the weekend. Today we do have the potential for some scattered showers and storms, especially as we head into the afternoon and evening. Severe threats for today on Wednesday. It's a level one risk from Wake County and points to the north. Tomorrow everyone included in the level one risk. Friday we do not have a risk for severe storms. The severe threats for both today and tomorrow, it's mainly going to be flooding. We could have some heavy downpours and some gusty winds, hail, tornadoes. It's a very limited threat for both of those. So let's track future cast and the cold front as it approaches the area. Today we have a week disturbance over us and that's what's going to bring us some afternoon and evening storms. This is 4 p.m. So during the evening commute, we will have scattered showers and storms. I would expect it to be probably a little bit slower getting home later this evening. And then as we head into Thursday, the cold front is approaching us and by the time we get to the afternoon, I'll pause the clock here at one o'clock. That's when the storms are going to start to fire up. We could have some heavy rains, some localized flooding and some gusty winds tomorrow as well. That's going to continue through the evening and then we'll have another round of rain Friday, Saturday and Sunday as well. This is a live look at the WRAL Gardens. They actually had a little bit of rain yesterday evening last night. I heard the thunder last night while I was trying to get to bed. Not everybody had the rain, but really everyone's going to have the opportunity in the coming days. It is warm out there right now, 80 in the triangle. It is 77 right now in Fayetteville. We have a heat advisory today. The heat index getting into the triple digits for most of the afternoon, 107 perhaps by 3 p.m. And then the rain moves in. It's still going to be hot and steamy, but it drops a little bit that heat index values. So it is going to be another day with some major heat. Thursday, that drops to moderate and then Friday and Saturday, a break from the heat, but that comes with some rain. I'll talk more about rain totals coming up in the next half hour. Look at the seven day. Look at the cooler temperatures headed our way with highs in the upper eighties. And I'll also notice storm chances every single day in the seven day forecast. - And that's okay. I like the streak of eighties. NASA transmits a Missy Elliot song to space. Which song the agency chose to send to Venus and the singer's reaction? - Also in just a few hours, the 2024 Emmy nominations will be released. Which shows are expected to make the cut? - At Wake Med MyCare 365, we deliver convenience others only talk about every day of the year. Primary care and urgent care under one roof. Multiple locations, virtual visits, walk in or schedule an appointment online. From annual physicals and routine care to sinus infection strep or the flu, we couldn't be more convenient. Learn more about our kind of care and our kind of convenience at wakemed.org. - Are you ready to buy or sell your home? The Jim Allen Group is a nationally recognized and award-winning real estate team in the triangle. Dedicated to providing exceptional service to meet your needs. With the latest insights and expert market knowledge, they'll make your home buying and selling journey as smooth as possible. Don't wait. Head over to jimallen.com and start your next move today. That's jimallen.com. The Jim Allen Group, your partner in real estate. - The French word "vouve" means widow. So the iconic champagne, if you've heard of it, vouve clico literally means widow clico. David Daniel has talks about a film here that defines the story behind that name in today's Hollywood Minute. Francois willed the vines to me because he knew I would never sell. I would be continuing to care for them myself. - Wine is a very difficult vacation. I dare you underestimate what it will require. - I know what it requires. I've been in fields for years. - Haley Bennett stars in widow clico as the woman who flouted 19th century conventions and revolutionized the champagne industry. Bennett, who also produced the film, says she was drawn to the grand-dom of Champagne. - What I love about widow clico is her connection with nature. I feel like that's something, nature and the divine. And I feel like that's something we share. And I feel like for clico, wine-making was an act of love and connecting with a higher power. And I feel like that making films, I have that same experience. - Widow clico in French, vouve clico, opens in theaters Friday in Hollywood. I'm David Daniel. - Krispy Kreme has some new doughnuts to celebrate the 2024 Paris Olympics. The North Carolina-based company unveiled its passport to Paris doughnut collection. It's inspired by popular Parisian desserts. There are three limited edition flavors, including creme brulee, double chocolate eclair and raspberry and vanilla cream. You can buy them at Krispy Kreme or should we say Krispy Kreme, Jeff, or select grocery stores, near you for a limited time. Krispy Kreme, creme, opened its first store in Paris in December. I mean, say it like the French. - French, they'd probably say creme. You know, if it's possible that there's life on Venus, they heard some pretty good music recently. NASA says it transmitted Missy Elliot's song, "The Rain" to Venus through radio antennas. Took nearly 14 minutes for the song to travel, about 158 million miles to the planet. It's quite a download. Elliot posted to social media saying, "The sky is not the limit, it's just the beginning." NASA did not say why it chose to transmit a song into space again. This is the second time after the Beatles across the universe was sent to a star in 2008. - It is any time again, this morning, the National Academy for Television Arts and Sciences will reveal its nominations. The period drama, "Show Gun" and the anxiety-inducing comedy "The Bear" are expected to have a big day, along with Netflix's baby reindeer. Nominees will be announced around 11.30. It'll be streamed on the Academy's website and YouTube channel. The winners will be revealed at the awards show on September 15th. This year's host has not yet been announced. We'll keep you posted. - A dog in Oregon had a pretty rough go of it during a hike over the weekend. A great Pyrenees walking up Saddle Mountain with its owner suddenly refused to go any farther. Turns out the 160-pound dog cut its paws on wire-fencing on the trail, meant to help with traction. Fortunately, there were some firefighters in the area and they were prepared. They brought a stretcher and carried that pup down to safety. - Timothy Shalme is taking on a new challenge, Ping Pong. He's set to star, star in and produce "Marty Supreme", a fictionalized take on a real pro Ping Pong player, known as the Wizard of Table Tennis. The star recently finished filming a complete unknown where he will play Bob Dylan. No word when that film will hit theaters. - I'm Nick Pearland into W.R.O. breaking news tracker and take a look at this. A FedEx tractor trailer is in the process of being towed away after toppling over on I-85 Northbound in Orange County. Coming up, I'll show you what this crash looked like when it first happened. Also breaking news in Wake County, where crews are cleaning up part of I-440 after a tractor trailer carrying steak sauce overturned on that road. (upbeat music) - Kerry, get ready for the exciting new go-carry downtown loop. Enjoy easy access to downtown destinations like Downtown Kerry Park, Kerry Regional Library, the Kerry Theater and more. The loop operates Thursday through Sunday every 25 minutes and it's free to ride. Driving downtown, park at the town hall parking deck and hop on the downtown loop. With the new go-carry app, you can effortlessly plan your trip and track your bus in real time. The app is free to download and use. Visit go-carry.org to learn more and start your journey today. - What's next? At Moss Adams, that question inspires us to help people and their businesses strategically define and claim their future. As one of America's leading, accounting, consulting and wealth management firms, our collaborative approach creates solutions for your unique business needs. We leverage industry-focused insights with the collective technical resources of our firm to elevate your performance, uncover opportunity and move upward at MossAtoms.com. - An official message from Medicare. - A new law is helping me save more money on prescription drug costs. Maybe you can save too. With Medicare's extra help program, my premium is zero and my out-of-pocket costs are low. Who should apply? Single people making less than $23,000 a year or married couples who make less than $31,000 a year. Even if you don't think you qualify, it pays to find out. Go to ssa.gov/extrahelp. - Paid for by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.