WRAL Newscasts
6AM News on WRAL - Tuesday, July 2, 2024
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The destruction it's already caused as people in its path prepare for the worst. Pedestrian safety is top of mind here in the Bull City just ahead of a look at federal funding that's going to help make the streets here in Durham safer. It is busy right now at RDU and the biggest rush of travelers for the holiday week is still to come. The record numbers TSA is expecting after some of the busy days ever in the past month. If you're getting ready to head out on your 4th of July trip, we're here to get your day started and if you have to work. We're also here as well. I'm Renee Chiu. I'm Jeff Hogan. Thanks for making us part of your Tuesday. Here's what we get things started. When's the last time we could describe a morning as crisp? You know, when you step outside it's been a little while. Yeah, not July, usually. Elizabeth Gardner, I got to guess it was before the US opened there at Viners. Absolutely, boy. You remember it was really hot during the US Open. We had a hot June for sure. We're going to have a hot 4th of July, but we had this little window just of lovely weather. Get outside and enjoy it, especially this morning. It looks beautiful here. I'm in Pinehurst at the resort and country club 60 degrees right now. Our due point is at 56. That feels so nice. It is 62 in Clinton, 58 in southern Pines, 56 in Goldsboro, 58 South Hill, 60 degrees in Durham. So just a rare treat out there for us this morning. Now it'll be a hot afternoon. Feeling like yesterday, 87. We'll see lots of sunshine and the humidity remains low this afternoon. But tomorrow we start to see it creeping up and it's just going to be hot for the holiday and into the weekend. I'll show you the heat index coming up. Of course, here's a look at powerful Hurricane barrel, a category 5 storm with winds at 165. It will continue to trek through the Caribbean, brushing past Jamaica right there. That's where it's likely to come closest before it makes landfall again. Potentially it's a category 1 storm there on the Yucatan Peninsula. We'll talk about why it will weaken and of course another storm system that's back to the west and where it could be headed coming up. Thanks, Elizabeth. Let's take a look at traffic. I'm Brett Neeson for Ken Smith this morning on Tuesday at 6-0-1 and so far so good out there. We got a lot of green on the board, which is really good news. Coming in from Windell on 64-264, we're looking good. And then over in Durham, the Durham Freeway looking good and I-40 all the way through Chapel Hill. No issues to report. For 40 at Glenwood Avenue, that's our look. As you go back up Glenwood Avenue as you're coming into Raleigh and then those cars going by on the Beltline, the Beltline looking good in both directions so far this morning. A little more information on Hurricane barrel this morning since it's such a potentially catastrophic category 5 storm. This is video from Grenada where that storm leveled 90% of the buildings on that island yesterday. Also did considerable damage to several of the other Windward Islands. It is expected to hit islands including Haiti and the Dominican Republic later today. At least one person in St. Vincent and the Grenadines is dead as a result of that storm. Now, barrel is the earliest category 5 hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic. Earliest in the season. The storm could eventually hit Mexico. People in Cancun are getting some schools ready to use them as shelters. Jeff, let's look at some more storm damage that we've seen across the Caribbean. Good morning folks. I'm Chris Lovengut here in the WRA Live Center. Show you some of the video from the Barbados there. You see how intense the waves are there because of Hurricane barrel. This video taken yesterday there. But you'll also see there's some storm damage to that roof there from St. Vincent right there and Calder. There's also been that rooftop there that's ripped from it. So it just shows you the power that we have seen from this category 5 storm. Throughout the day, we're going to keep on looking at other video to see what exactly will be coming from the damage from Hurricane barrel. Of course, as we heard Elizabeth mention a little bit ago that Hurricane headed towards Jamaica. We'll be watching closely to see what damage, if any, will happen there. Chris, thanks. Be prepared for busy concourses and long lines at RDU where you're looking live. Skies are clear this morning. Just days ago, the TSA says we set a new record nationally when nearly 3 million people passing through safety checks in just one day. That record breaking travel is only going to ramp up this week. WRA's Kelsey Coffey is live at RDU and Kelsey the 4th of July. The major summer holiday is going to be busy. Renee right now, two out of the five parking areas here at RDU are full for the rest of the week. This morning, we're in the central parking deck and there's still some spots left here. But we'll give you a look now at RDU over Mother's Day weekend when there was a one day record. Nearly 59,000 people travel through RDU on Mother's Day. And looking ahead now to the 4th of July, we're expecting record breaking numbers. More than 5.7 million Americans are expected to fly this week. That's a 7% increase from last year, a record high according to AAA. We want to encourage our customers. Try to get here two hours early for domestic flights and three hours for international. That leaves you plenty of time to get through the ticket counters, get through the checkpoint itself and get to your gate. And remember, most airlines board 40 minutes before the flight actually leaves. And if you want to give yourself a little bit of extra time, if you're headed to RDU, be sure to book your parking online. There's still some parking available in the Premier lot and the Express lot. Just remember that you have to book your parking 24 hours in advance. Kelsey Coffee, WRAL News Live at RDU. A plan is in the works to make Durham streets safer for people. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg will be in town today to take a look at how a federal grant will be used for the project. WRAL's Laura Levine is in Durham this morning where we have seen an area a lot of crashes happening right in that spot. Laura, good morning. Yes, Jeff. We know that this funding will help improve pedestrian safety around bus stops like this here in Durham. We're at a stop on Fayetteville Street where you can see there's a lack of lighting around here signage. You don't see a whole lot of benches or enough shelter. And this is what leaders hope to improve. Here's a look at the area of focus now on your screen, the Holloway Street Project, which is the city's busiest transit route that has also seen high crime and traffic fatalities. It starts at the eastern edge of downtown Durham. The goal is to help riders feel more comfortable and secure at the bus stop. They want to build new sidewalks, upgrade the bus stops, improve crosswalks, install new lighting, add bike racks and ADA approved ramps. The transportation secretary today will celebrate the recent announcement of the $12 million grant to also improve 33 intersections in downtown Durham. Now he will meet with some of the small business owners and community members that will be directly impacted by this investment. The project will hopefully begin construction in 2026 with the goal to be completed by 2027. Laura Levine, WRLU's live in Durham. President Joe Biden is condemning a Supreme Court decision, ruling that presidents have absolute immunity for official acts while in office. He issued a warning over what this could mean if former President Donald Trump wins another term. Perhaps most importantly, American people must decide. They want to entrust the president once again the presidency to Donald Trump, now knowing he'll be more emboldened to do whatever he pleases whenever he wants to do it. A landmark decision dramatically enhances the power of the presidency. The ruling also means former President Trump can and likely will claim broad immunity in his pending federal election interference case. A local mayor is now facing his fourth DWI arrest since he was first elected in 2018. Sharpsburg mayor Robert Williams was arrested Monday afternoon in Rocky Mount. Police say he was driving erratically a North Wesleyan boulevard. He was charged with DWI, driving while license revoked, open container and concealed handgun permit violation. Williams was also charged with DWI in February and in December. He was even arrested for DWI the night he was elected in 2018. Sharpsburg's mayor pro 10 has been in charge ever since town commissioners voted to strip Williams of his mayoral duties in January. Today Raleigh City Council will meet. They plan to consider the rezoning of more than 700 properties for the New Bern Avenue corridor of the BRT, which stands for bus rapid transit. They'll also talk about other issues. That meeting is at 1 this afternoon. An evening session is also planned for 7 p.m. We're getting some new information from prosecutors about the investigation into the so-called shoot to kill gang that led to federal charges. WRL investigates first broke this story a week ago. An indictment with more than 50 pages obtained by WRL connects kidnappings, robberies and assaults to a gang with a deadly history in the triangle. US Attorney Michael Easley spoke with WRL to share more details about the elaborate scheme and the six people indicted in the case. In this case in particular, alleged in the indictment and the criminal filings suggest that the defendants use a GPS tracking device to further advance their crimes. And the indictment claims the gang put the GPS on a person's car to track him and then robbed him before kidnapping him. Easley says a collaboration with local law enforcement called the violent crime action plan helped them make those arrests. A bill that officially defines anti-Semitism is now law in North Carolina. Governor Cooper signed the bill yesterday. Critics worry the bill could impede First Amendment rights. It passed the state legislature almost unanimously. Governor Cooper says it's needed because incidents targeting Jewish people are on the rise. Supporters say a law like this could help with education and also with hate crime prosecutions. For more specifics, visit the NC Capitol section of WRL.com. Fire companies from across Moore County battled a large fire on Monday. That fire broke out on Parker Road in Eagle Springs. Authorities say dry conditions outside and a strong breeze helped that fire to spread rapidly. The North Carolina Forestry Service also brought in equipment to help contain the fire. There are no reports of any injuries or damage to any buildings. UNC officials are looking to determine where they should build their next basketball arena. By the end of the month, UNC will have the results of a study to replace the Dean Dome. The University is paying more than $217,000 for the work and a final report for sites on campus and off. The report will address parking, traffic, transportation, as well as cost and revenue implications for each site. The Dean Dome was built in 1986. Ten after six right now, dozens of people are heard after severe turbulence on a flight across the Atlantic. The plane was forced to make an emergency landing after that rough ride. The parent company of Redbox DVD rental kiosk supplies for bankruptcy. The huge amount of debt it's facing from hundreds of predators. At a glorious start to the day, nice low humidity, comfortable temperatures through the afternoon. But very quickly, we climb back into some dangerous heat for the weekend. I'll show you your fireworks forecast coming up. As you get into your cartoon to WRAL news plus on your radio in Raleigh on 99.3 FM. In Durham, 96.5 FM at everywhere on 101.5 HD 3. Your heart, it's the only one you have. Fortunately, you also have a choice. Expert cardiologists, talented surgeons, highly skilled specialists, all of whom chose WakeMed. Why? The main reason is the same reason patients choose WakeMed. Everything you need for the best possible care is right here. Learn more at WakeMed.org. WakeMed Heart and Vascular Physicians, your heart, your choice. If you're a facilities manager at a warehouse and your HVAC system goes down, it can turn up the heat, literally. But don't sweat it, Granger has you covered. Granger offers over a million industrial grade products for all your operations, including warehouse HVAC maintenance. And even better, they offer access to experts and fast delivery, so you and your warehouse can both keep your cool. Call 1-800-GRANGER, click Granger.com, or just stop by. Granger, for the ones who get it done. 614, it is a gorgeous morning out there. Pretty sunrise and progress. This is a live look at Apex this morning. I'm surprised that there are not hordes of people out walking and running, but it only is 615. Hopefully, a few folks are maybe sleeping in. But it's so pretty out there this morning. This is a morning not to be missed. Try to spend a little bit of time outside. Temperatures are in the upper 50s and mid 60s. Very comfortable with our nice low do points. Lunch outside. This time of year, that can get tricky. It just can be just too hot. But looking at 82 at lunchtime with low humidity under an umbrella would feel delightful. Even dinner outside, the heating would be just fine. Of course, we do have more intense heat in our forecast starting July 4th into the weekend. I'll show you how hot it will feel with the heat index coming up. Thanks, Elizabeth. Let's look at traffic right now. We are delay-free across the board coming in and out of Raleigh on all of our major routes. We do have one earlier incident there. That's an earlier hit and run investigation, in the clearing stages at this point. Over in Durham, same goes over there. All of our major routes in and out of Durham are looking good. This is 440 a capital boulevard, looking back up capital boulevard. See the sun poking through the trees there. Looks good. And we are free-flowing in both directions. Head over to Jeff Hogan now. Jeff, rough ride over in Madrid. Man, we keep seeing this happen in the air, I tell you. Folks on a flight dozens were injured when a flight from Madrid to Uruguay hit some strong turbulence. And it was a Boeing Dreamliner plane as well. 787 Dreamliner operated by Spanish airline Air Europa. You can see the damage from inside the plane's cabin there after that intense turbulence. At least 30 people were hurt. The plane made an emergency landing in Brazil. Some people are being treated at a hospital there. Nearly a year after being attacked by a shark, two survivors are revisiting the beach in Florida where the attacks happened. This morning on today, Brandon Boncor sits down with NBC's Sam Rock to talk about his encounter. I think it was kind of the fight or flight moment where you don't really have time to think about that. We were out to leash around my foot and from there, I mean, you just think about the blood loss. I was served for next to a paramedic. So he came in and helped me out. I got really lucky. I mean, it was a bad situation but a really good time for people to help. More of Boncor's interview, including why he thinks he's so lucky despite what happened that day in the water, that's all coming up on today. It starts right here on WRL at 7. The parent company of Redbox DVD rental kiosks has filed for bankruptcy. Yeah, they're still around. The company has accumulated almost a billion dollars in debt. Redbox operates kiosks at retailers across the U.S. The company Chicken Soup of the Soul Entertainment bought it in 2022. It was in debt with Walmart, Walgreens and hundreds of other creditors. An NC Courage player will be representing Canada in the upcoming Olympic Games. Defender Sydney Collins has been named to the Canadian Women's National Team's 18-player Olympic roster. She's been on the team for two years now. Collins has been on injured reserves since March after an ankle injury during the Women's Gold Cup. She says she couldn't be more excited and honored to represent Canada in the Olympics. W-R-L is your home for the Summer Olympics. Our Liz McLaughlin will be in Paris, bringing you live reports. We'll also have live coverage all day from July 26 to August 11 right here on W-R-L. Fourth of July celebrations are coming early to the town of Wendell. Why wait, right? Fireworks will be on display tonight at Wendell Community Park. It's on West 3rd Street. Gates open at 6. Fireworks start at 9. There'll be more than a dozen different food trucks out there as well as outdoor activities and music. 6-18 is our time right now. Elizabeth Gardner over in the W-R-S Severe Weather Center. We know about barrel, barreling through the Caribbean there. But how about the rest? It's pretty active down there. It really is. So we started watching the system as it was crossing the Atlantic. And of course it became a Category 4 storm with rapid intensification. The first Category 4 storm this early in the season. And of course then in the last 24 hours, that Category 5 storm, the earliest and the last 24 hours. It moved across the southern-leaguered islands there and caused a lot of damage to several islands and possibly a death. And it will continue to move westward. It's likely to brush past Jamaica, which is right here. It has winds at 165 right now, moving to the northwest at 22. So it's moving along pretty quickly. Notice that by the time it passes by Jamaica, it's likely to be a Category 3 storm. And then Category 1 as it heads towards Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. The reason for that is strong upper level winds. It has plenty of hot water to move over down here in the Caribbean. Maybe I should just call it warm, but very warm, warmer than normal. And that's what the storms feed off of. But occasionally, as they're moving, they're going to run into an area where the winds are blowing strong and the upper levels of the atmosphere. And that can cut the top of the storm off and cause it to weaken. And that's exactly what's likely to happen. You can see it looks like it's going to make landfall here with the hurricane forecast right there on the coast of Mexico. But it's possible that it gets a little swing around, depending on where this high pressure system is. High pressure systems rotate clockwise. And that is what's going to push this storm westward toward Mexico. But if it starts to bobble a little bit farther to the east, watch what happens with some of the computer models. And kind of start to swing it a little bit farther, maybe up to the coast of Texas. A couple of them give it that swing a little bit earlier. Those are unlikely, but we'll be watching to see it. Is it going to be in Mexico or Texas where it makes landfall? At that point, though, it should be much, much weaker. It's being weaker. We've been tracking this next potential system, and it looks much weaker, just a 30% chance that it develops, which is good because we take a look at the computer model plots. And it looks like that there's certainly a lot more potential real estate in the path of that storm. But again, just a 30% chance that it develops. Pretty sunrise there in Goldsboro. You take a look at that and say, "Oh, it looks like it's going to be hot." But yeah, it's going to be hot by the time we get to the 4th of July. But we're really looking at a very pleasant day today. By the weekend, the heat index is up above 100 again. We also have the chance for some scattered storms. Our forecast high for the 4th of July, 98 degrees, feeling more like around 100. A small chance for storms on Thursday, 30% on Friday, and then it goes up a bit more on Saturday and Sunday. If that high on Friday, 100. Coming up in just a little bit, we'll talk more about our potential for some storms over the weekend. Brett? Thanks, Elizabeth. Let's take a little bit of traffic. 6.20 right now here on your Tuesday morning. You have a couple of incidents out there. One near Raleigh is an earlier hit-and-run investigation. Should be gone by now. That one over there in the nightdale area just popped up. So I'll get her to check on that in the next few minutes. But other than that, we have green across the board, which is really good news. Over at i40 at i85, that's our camera right there. In both directions, 40 looking good. I know that's a trouble spot some mornings, but we'll continue to watch it and let you know if anything changes. The new superintendent of Durham Public Schools is now on the job. What Anthony Lewis says his big goals are as he takes over after a troubled year. Grammy Award winner SZA meets Simone Biles and challenges her to a handstand competition. Look at how these two stacked up straight ahead and what's trending. Here's Brandon with Parkway Sleep Centers. Tired of waiting for a sleep treatment? At other sleep centers, it can take six to eight months just to get an appointment and cost you thousands more. Not Parkway Sleep Health Centers. We schedule you within weeks and we'll save you money too. We have over 20 years of experience serving the triangle. Let our expert team help you sleep better sooner. And your sleep problems live your best life. Experience the Parkway Sleep Difference. Visit parkwaysleep.com and start your journey to better sleep today. Parkway Sleep Health Centers, Sound Sleep, Sound Health. 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 at arcanicinvenience@wakemed.org. This What's Trending Report, sponsored by Rugged Home. And welcome back. What's trending here this morning as we take a look at today, what's happening in Grammy Award winner, SZA, has some gymnastic skills of her own. Do you believe? Let's check it out. She appears along with Simone Biles in this new promotional video for the Paris Olympics on NBC. So you can see SZA and Simone going side by side in this handstand competition. And after a quick practice run, you can see SZA really holds her own against a three-time Olympian. So here's the thing, SZA spent more than a decade at a very high level of gymnastics. When she really wasn't going to make it on the national level, that's when she said, "I'm going to try something that I think I can do pretty well as well." And singing took over. Okay, so well, first the handstand competition. I want to know if Simone Biles sings because we can do a sing-off. Yeah, we'll see that. Good news for people who are excited about the wicked movie. Okay, it's now coming out five days earlier than originally planned. The studio is moving it up to the weekend before Thanksgiving to avoid going head-to-head with the opening of Moana 2. So it won't go up against Moana 2, but that day, gladiator 2 is coming out, so we'll go head-to-head with that. And I didn't know this. Wicked is a two-part release, so they're doing this first movie, this Thanksgiving-ish around then, and then another part for Wicked will come out next November. That time of year, it's up against tough competition, always doesn't matter, but I'm sure it'll hold its own. Increase its chances. Take a look at this. The National Park Service on Cape Hatteras has found two leatherback sea-turtle nests. This is the first time since record-keeping, started 20 years ago. The seashore has two nests in one season, and the nests were found exactly a week apart. The first is in Avon and the second on Okra-Kok Island. The eggs are roughly the size of a billiard ball. Leatherbacks are classified as endangered on both federal and state levels. Here's something that might make you feel old. Apple now considers it to iPhone X and first-general air pods as vintage items. What? That is the classification Apple gives its products to stop distributing more than five years ago. You can still get them repaired by Apple in another two years, though. Those items will be considered obsolete. And this morning, the rush that's happening right now at RDU, where you are looking live here, the TSA says eight of the 10 busiest travel days ever have been in the past month. And what we're expecting as more comes this holiday week. And the rush to get outside today. Enjoy it while we have it feeling very comfortable. And then once we get to the 4th of July holiday and the weekend, we're back to some dangerous heat. I'll show you what it will feel like. A local mayor is now facing his fourth DWI charge since he was elected to that position. The traffic stop that led to Robert Williams' latest arrest and how the town of Sharpsburg is responding. 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