Wilmington North Carolina News

3 minutes ago WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — For yet another year, home insurance rates are on the rise  Starting in June, North Carolina will see a baseline increase of 7% this year. Homes in coastal areas will see an increase of 10%, and homes on or near the beach will see an increase of 16%.  National Insurance Inspection Services President Curtis Goldsboro said as severe weather like hurricanes become stronger and more unpredictable, insurance companies…

7 minutes ago Jae C. Hong – staff, AP LOS ANGELES (AP) — The first significant storm of the season brought snow and downpours to Southern California that doused wildfires and caused some ash and mud to flow across streets in the Los Angeles area on Monday. More than an inch (2.5 centimeters) of rain fell in many areas, loosening Los Angeles hillsides burned bare by the recent blaze near the Pacific Palisades neighborhood, where crews cleared…

17 seconds ago Credit: Cropped Daniel Vorndran / CC BY-SA 4.0 / MGN LONDON (AP) — Millions of people in Ireland and northern parts of the U.K. heeded the advice of authorities to stay at home Friday in the face of hurricane-force winds that disabled power networks and brought widespread travel disruptions. Forecasters had issued a rare “red” weather warning, meaning danger to life, across the whole island of Ireland and central and southwest Scotland….

13 seconds ago The Menendez Family (Credit: HANDOUT / MGN) LOS ANGELES (AP) — A new sentencing hearing for brothers Lyle and Erik Menendez in the killing of their parents has been delayed for nearly two months because of Southern California’s wildfires. Recently elected Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a statement Friday that the hearing planned for Jan. 30 and 31 has been pushed to March 20 and 21 because the wildfires have interfered…

8 minutes ago (AP) — Millions of Southern Californians were on edge as winds began picking up during a final round of dangerous fire weather forecast for the region Wednesday where two massive blazes have killed at least 25 and destroyed thousands of homes. A day after firefighters got a reprieve with lighter winds than expected, gusts were hitting up to 35 mph (56 kph) on the coast and valleys and 55 mph (88 kph)…

18 seconds ago MGN_1280x960_50110C00-RXJMO Credit: MGN LOS ANGELES (AP) — Investigators are considering an array of possible ignition sources for the huge fires that have killed at least 24 people and destroyed thousands of homes and businesses in the Los Angeles area. In hilly, upscale Pacific Palisades, home to Hollywood stars like Jamie Lee Curtis and Billy Crystal who lost houses in the fire, officials have placed the origin of the wind-whipped blaze behind a home on Piedra Morada Drive,…

January 13, 2025 Fire Photo: MGN The National Weather Service’s Los Angeles page screams “Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS)” in hot pink letters against a gray background. It’s a rare warning aimed at seizing attention ahead of extreme wildfire risk that’s predicted to start in Southern California at 4 a.m. (1200GMT) Tuesday. PDS warnings were first used to warn of tornado outbreaks in the Midwest. More than a decade ago, three meteorologists proposed expanding their use to disasters…

1 hour ago (Photo: KAKE) LOS ANGELES, CA (AP) — Firefighters battled Thursday to control a series of major fires in the Los Angeles area that have killed five people, burned at least 10,000 structures from the Pacific Coast to Pasadena and sent thousands of people frantically fleeing their homes. Ferocious winds that drove the flames and led to chaotic evacuations calmed somewhat, though forecasters warned the high fire weather risk would continue into Friday. Firefighters…

50 seconds ago Charlotte Hornets (Photo: NBA/ MGN) LOS ANGELES (AP) — The NBA postponed the Los Angeles Lakers’ home game against the Charlotte Hornets on Thursday with several massive wildfires burning across the greater Los Angeles area. It is the second straight day a game slated to be played in downtown Los Angeles has been postponed. The NHL’s Los Angeles Kings were scheduled to host the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night. The date for the rescheduled…

5 minutes ago (Photo: KAKE) LOS ANGELES, CA (AP) — Fierce wildfires are raging in the Los Angeles area, fueled by powerful Santa Ana winds, sending residents fleeing from burning homes through flames, ferocious winds and towering clouds of smoke. Thousands of firefighters were battling at least three separate blazes on Wednesday, from the Pacific Coast inland to Pasadena. One of the fires was the most destructive in the modern history of the city of LA. Here’s the…

10 minutes ago Photo: LiveNOW from FOX/MGN LOS ANGELES (AP) — Multiple massive wildfires tore across the Los Angeles area with devastating force early Wednesday as residents made a desperate escape from burning homes through flames, ferocious winds and towering clouds of smoke. At least three separate blazes were burning in the metropolitan area, from the Pacific Coast inland to Pasadena, home of the famed Rose Parade. With thousands of firefighters already attacking the flames,…

8 minutes ago LELAND, NC (WWAY) — A dad and daughter from the West Coast are helping families in Western North Carolina still displaced by Hurricane Helene. Emergency RV is a nonprofit that provides housing to those affected by natural disasters. Founded by Woody Faircloth, a North Carolina native, he felt compelled to help when the area was hit hard by Helene. The organization collects donated motorhomes, restores them, and hands them over to families…

11 minutes ago The photo shows flooding on Interstate 95 in Lumberton after Hurricane Florence in 2018.  (Photo: NCDOT) RALEIGH, NC (WWAY) – A federal grant awarded Monday will enable state transportation officials to create a program that better guides the agency’s use of drones when it responds to natural disasters like Hurricanes Helene and Florence. The U.S. Department of Transportation announced the award of a $1.1 million grant to the N.C. Department of Transportation’s Division…

6 minutes ago FILE – Hannah Woodburn holds an eastern hellbender salamander near its cage, where it will stay for 48 to 60 hours after relocation, on the Watauga River near Boone, N.C., June 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File) You never forget your first time seeing a giant salamander, according to Andy Hill. He was a teenager, standing thigh-high in the Watauga River outside Boone, North Carolina, casting a line on an early fall…

7 seconds ago Asheville NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The town of Asheville, known for its artists and restaurants, is a tourist destination and the economic hub of North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountain communities. In September, it was devastated by flooding from Hurricane Helene. Even businesses not physically damaged suffered weeks without power and water, and Asheville was essentially closed to tourists during its busiest season. Now, besides hoping that visitors will return for the holidays,…