Triangle/Local
First disappointment and then a celebration as video captures high school band’s big surprise
SNOW HILL, N.C. (AP) — It had been decades since Greene Central High School’s band competed in North Carolina’s statewide competition for musicians. While band members hoped to do well, they weren’t prepared for the surprise they got. It started when band director Andrew Howell…
North Carolina judge challenging outcome of race wore Confederate uniform in college photo
By BRIAN SLODYSKO and MICHAEL BIESECKER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A judge challenging the outcome of his North Carolina Supreme Court race was photographed wearing Confederate military garb and posing before a Confederate battle flag when he was a member of a college fraternity…
North Carolina Senate majority leader to resign from chamber
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A top lieutenant to North Carolina Senate leader Phil Berger announced on Tuesday his resignation from his Senate seat, creating a leadership vacancy as the Senate enters a more intense work period this year. Republican Senate Majority Leader Paul Newton is…
North Carolina justices decide family can sue over unwanted COVID-19 shot
By GARY D. ROBERTSON Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina mother and son can sue a public school system and a doctors’ group on allegations they gave the boy a COVID-19 vaccine without consent, the state Supreme Court ruled on Friday, reversing…
North Carolina’s largest public university NC State names new chancellor
By MAKIYA SEMINERA Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The University of North Carolina Board of Governors has chosen the next person to lead the state’s largest public university by enrollment after its longtime chancellor is set to retire soon. Kevin Howell was named the…
State/Regional
First rain and then fire chase people from their homes in North and South Carolina
By JEFFREY COLLINS and BRITTANY PETERSON Associated Press When Nicole Taylor and her family moved to their new home in the South Carolina mountains six months ago, the gorgeous view of Table Rock Mountain was the clincher. She ended up with a porch-side seat to one of…
Chief lawyer’s position at alma mater prompted Newton’s departure from North Carolina Senate
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — A leader among the North Carolina Senate Republicans who resigned this week from the General Assembly is the next chief attorney for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. University Chancellor Lee Roberts announced on Thursday the hiring of outgoing Senate…
More evacuations as wildfires burn in the Carolinas. Forecasts aren’t encouraging for firefighters
More people have been asked to leave their homes in the North Carolina and South Carolina mountains as wildfires spread and the forecast for the rest of the week is not encouraging — dry and windy. A half-dozen large fires are burning in the Blue Ridge Mountains, putting a…
North Carolina government makes big tax revenues quickly from first year of sports betting
By GARY D. ROBERTSON Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina government cashed in early when it came to reaping fiscal benefits from authorized sports wagering in the ninth-largest state. A report presented Wednesday to the North Carolina State Lottery Commission, which regulates the betting, says…
Wildfires in North and South Carolina fueled by drought, wind and fallen trees from Hurricane Helene
Dry conditions, wind and trees downed by Hurricane Helene fueled wildfires in North Carolina and South Carolina, where evacuation orders were in effect Tuesday. About 80 miles (129 kilometers) west of Charlotte, North Carolina, officials ordered mandatory evacuations for roughly 165 properties in rural Polk County. Three…
World/National
Smell of death permeates Myanmar cities after quake kills over 1,600 and leaves countless buried
By THEIN ZAW, DAVID RISING and GRANT PECK Associated Press MANDALAY, Myanmar (AP) — The smell of decaying bodies permeated the streets of Myanmar’s second-largest city on Sunday as people worked frantically by hand to clear rubble in the hope of finding someone still alive,…
Plastics are seeping into farm fields, food and eventually human bodies. Can they be stopped?
By MELINA WALLING and RODNEY MUHUMUZA Associated Press KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — In Uganda’s Mbale district, famous for its production of arabica coffee, a plague of plastic bags locally known as buveera is creeping beyond the city. It’s a problem that has long littered the…
Myanmar’s earthquake death toll jumps to 1,644 as more bodies are recovered from the rubble
By DAVID RISING and JINTAMAS SAKSORNCHAI Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — Myanmar’s ruling military said Saturday on state television that the confirmed death toll from a devastating 7.7 magnitude earthquake rose to 1,644, as more bodies were pulled from the rubble of the scores of buildings that…
Was classified information shared? Senators overseeing military request probe into Signal leak
By STEPHEN GROVES, AAMER MADHANI and MICHAEL KUNZELMAN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The top Republican and Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee requested an investigation Thursday into how Trump national security officials used the Signal app to discuss military strikes and a federal judge said…
3D printed and factory-built homes could help tackle housing crisis
By JESSE BEDAYN Associated Press/Report for America DENVER (AP) — As Americans struggle under backbreaking rental prices, builders are turning to innovative ways to churn out more housing, from 3D printing to assembling homes in an indoor factory to using hemp — yes, the marijuana cousin…
Entertainment
What to know about the bird flu outbreak in wild birds and what it means for backyard bird feeders
By CHRISTINA LARSON AP Science Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Bird flu has devastated poultry and dairy farms, and sent the price of eggs soaring in the United States since it was first detected in North America in late 2021. But what has been the toll on wild birds? More than…
Why are clocks set forward in the spring? Thank wars, confusion and a hunger for sunlight
By JAMIE STENGLE Associated Press DALLAS (AP) — Once again, most Americans will set their clocks forward by one hour this weekend, losing perhaps a bit of sleep but gaining more glorious sunlight in the evenings as the days warm into summer. Where did this all come…
Angry Birds, Frogger and others are finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) — This year’s finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame include trailblazers in esports, electronic pets and portable gaming, as well as the arcade favorite brought to life in a 1998 episode of “Seinfeld.” The Hall of Fame revealed the…
The Florida attorney general’s office is investigating Andrew and Tristan Tate
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida’s attorney general announced Tuesday that his office has opened a criminal investigation into Andrew and Tristan Tate, who are charged with human trafficking in Romania, days after they returned to the U.S. Attorney General James Uthmeier announced on social media that he directed his…
Carl Dean, Dolly Parton’s husband of nearly 60 years who inspired ‘Jolene,’ dies at 82
By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer Carl Dean, Dolly Parton’s devoted husband of nearly 60 years who avoided the spotlight and inspired her timeless hit “Jolene,” died Monday. He was 82. According to a statement provided to The Associated Press by Parton’s publicist, Dean died in Nashville,…
Sports
Sears, Alabama can’t duplicate record 3-point night, fall to Duke with Final Four at stake
By DAN GELSTON AP Sports Writer NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Mark Sears shot a free throw late in the second half that could have cut Alabama’s deficit to 10 — a last-gasp effort at a comeback still within reach — and watched the ball clang…
Proctor, Flagg help No. 1 seed Duke roll past Baylor 89-66 to reach Sweet 16 of March Madness
By AARON BEARD AP Basketball Writer RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Tyrese Proctor couldn’t miss. And top-seeded Duke showed the toughness to push back when pushed. Proctor had career highs of seven 3-pointers and 25 points to continue his recent tear, helping Duke beat Baylor 89-66…
NC State officially announces hiring of McNeese’s Will Wade as new Wolfpack men’s basketball coach
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — N.C. State has made it official: McNeese’s Will Wade is the Wolfpack’s new men’s basketball coach. The school announced the hiring Sunday, coming a day after Wade’s McNeese team lost to Purdue in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. An introductory…
Tobacco Road is front and center of March Madness with 3 women’s sites and men’s site in area
By DOUG FEINBERG AP Basketball Writer DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Oregon coach Kelly Graves was excited when he saw his team was headed to Duke to play in the NCAA Tournament. The Ducks had success there a few years back when they played in the…
Tar Heels and Rebels fighting for respect going into NCAA tourney matchup
By RICH ROVITO Associated Press MILWAUKEE (AP) — On one side of the court, it’s Seth Trimble and North Carolina. On the other, it’s Jaemyn Brakefield and Mississippi. Two motivated teams facing off in the NCAA Tournament on Friday. North Carolina was a controversial selection…