ABC11 Eyewitness News - Eyewitness News at 11pm - April 18, 2026

Episode Date: April 19, 2026

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See what's happening this instant. ABC 11 eyewitness news starts right now. All right now, we are taking you outside on this warm Saturday night. I want to go ahead and have you check out this view of the Raleigh Skyline from our Pindo Sky Camp. The dry weather we've been having will continue. However, some rain in the forecast could change up our plans just a little bit. You're watching Eyewitness News at 11 tonight. I'm Dwan Hogarth.

I want to thank you so much for joining us on this Saturday evening. Now, you may need your umbrella tomorrow because spiny showers, are in our forecast for parts of the viewing area. That rain coming as we continue to deal with some serious dry conditions and an extreme drought. Let's go and bring in meteorologist Cruz Medina for more on that drought. And the rain we could see. Cruz, look, we're talking drought. Rain.

You would like to think that this rain is going to help this drought. How much will it, if at all? Yeah, it's barely going to help Dewan. And that's because not everyone's even going to see the rain tomorrow. And those of you that do, it'll amount to less than 10th of an inch for most of us. Now some of those higher totals could be up near South Hill, Virginia, Roanark Rapids and Rocksboro, but once again, the farther south you go, the less likely it is that you see any rain at all on your Sunday. Still, you'll want to bring an umbrella, rain jacket, just something to be on the safe side, right?

So late morning and into the early afternoon, that's when we can expect a few showers around. We could see a few of those even in the triangle. And then that rain chance backs off significantly as we go into the second half of the day, and that's because the front will already be to our east at that point. Later tonight, we only drop into the upper 60s, and so we're gonna see our warmest point of the day around six or seven in the morning, and notice, temperatures are gonna be very backwards tomorrow.

So normally we see them the lowest in the morning and then climbing throughout the day. You can see an area like the sandhills. You start near 70 degrees. Your afternoon tips will be in the 60s. Some of us will even see 50s during the afternoon, and then we'll briefly come back up to around 60 degrees before the temperatures fall again tomorrow evening.

Now one other thing, other things, than the rain tomorrow is the fact it's going to be pretty gusty. So as that front moves through in the mid to late morning hours, winds could gusts over 30 miles per hour, and then we'll see those winds come down a little bit as we go into the evening hours. Into the start of next week, we're going to see some cooler air working again. We'll talk about how long that sticks around and when the next warmup arrives, that's coming up in your seven-day forecast. Duwon, back to you. All right, Cruz, we'll see you shortly. And as the drought conditions worse than the city of Raleigh is bracing for new restrictions on how they use their water. In less than two days, the new rules are set to go into place. So let's go ahead and walk you through what we know about those rules so far.

If you are looking to run your sprinklers or in-ground irrigation system, you can do so between midnight and 10 a.m. Also, homes with odd-numbered addresses can water on Tuesdays and homes with even-numbered addresses. Well, you guys will have Wednesdays. You can find the full list of restrictions on the city of Raleigh's website. And as the drought conditions continue getting worse, now is a good time to download the ABC 11 mobile app.

You can check the seven-day forecast any time and have it right there in the palm of your hand. Well, tonight, the investigation in the Friday shooting at Triangle Town Center is still ongoing. Today, Raleigh, please, sharing more details about the shooting. They say it all started when a fight broke out between three teens and a mall employee. And during that dispute, police say the mall employee fired shots. John Dowding, speaking with community members tonight, who returned to the mall today as it reopened and as the mall made changes to security staffing. community members tell us they're still on edge tonight after a shooting caused chaos here at triangle town center on Friday. Mall staff tell us they have increased security personnel by 50% since the shooting yesterday,

but somebody spoke to say they still have questions about their safety. It was like, you know, it kind of got me on edge a little bit because it's just like, you know, you need to be protected. It's one of the place you feel like you should be safe. Tonight, a community on edge one day after a shooting at Triangle Town Center injured three people. I probably would have been up yesterday when everything was going on. Cameron Gerald says he and his child always go to the mall on Fridays. Yesterday we would have been in the mall in the play area.

So right when that was going on, we would have been right in the food court. Raleigh police say three teens confronted a mall worker Friday and say they attacked the worker. Investigators say the mall worker pulled out a gun and say they fired shots. The employee and one of the teens was injured and stayed on the scene. Two other teens left the mall. One of them was injured and police say they found them both at a nearby hospital. These young people, they need to do something about this. They got to find that they can do better.

Riley police say they found two guns at the mall. One teen was released. The three others stayed in the hospital overnight. Police wrapped up the investigation at the mall late Friday evening. The mall reopened Saturday and a food truck festival welcomed dozens of visitors. I feel safe. They got security all through the mall. Mall staff say they have increased security personnel by 50% since the shooting.

Still, some say they had to think twice about coming to the mall Saturday. With everything going on, we're like, should we stay home or should we not? But we're just like, we're going to come real quick, figure out what we want, get our food, and then we're going to leave right out. There's no word yet on charges. Raleigh Police say that is in the hands of the Wake County District Attorney, but they are still investigating what happened here yesterday. In Raleigh, I'm John Dowding.

ABC 11, eyewitness News. All right, John, thank you. You're new tonight. A police investigation is underway at a Raleigh apartment complex. This is the Walnut Trace neighborhood near Rock Quay Road, just off of the belt line. Our crew was there as dozens of police officers you hear responded there to the area. You can see yellow tape up around that one particular car in question.

There was also a gun here that you see on the ground. We have since reached out to RPD for more information on what happened. We will update you on air and online as we learned more. Well, tonight a former Raleigh police officer is facing charges in connection to an off-duty domestic violence incident. According to RPD, Officer Ryan Greathouse is accused of a soldier. against ex-girlfriend and her boyfriend on April the 12th at a home in the 6,300 block of Lakecrest Drive in Raleigh. He was placed on administrative leave while that investigation was underway. However, Friday, Great House was fired by the Raleigh Police Department.

He is facing multiple charges, including domestic violence and false imprisonment. Well, in Durham, the fire department is working to learn what caused a large grass fire. It happened behind the East Durham water tank near the intersection of Austin Avenue and Pedigrew Street. hour when this news was there as crews rushed to the scene to put that fire out. Durham Fire tells us the fire started in the grass and then it moved to a nearby dumpster there. Thankfully, no injuries were reported. Well, today a memorial service for former Miss North Carolina, Kerry Everett. The 22-year-old passed away Easter Sunday after an aggressive battle with cancer.

Today's memorial service was held in Everett's home state of Washington. The family says a North Carolina service will happen at a later day. before Everett's remains are taken to Africa, where she will be laid to rest in Liberia. Well, still ahead, the conflict in the Middle East is escalating. Iran reversing course and firing on a ship entering the Strait of Hormuz. And the prolonged drought conditions and record-breaking heat, putting a strain on farmers. I went as news stopping by one local strawberry farm today as they navigate on those dry conditions. But before we head to break, we'll check back in with Cruz.

All right, well, if it's been too warm for you lately, we've got a cool downcoming. temperature will last at least through Tuesday before another warmup ensues. We'll talk about that coming up in your seven-day forecast. Well, now to the showdown between the U.S. and Iran over the Strait of Hormuz, Iran reimposing restrictions on the critical waterway and opening fire on two ships that were attempting to cross. President Donald Trump says the two countries are still talking, but is warning Iran against blackmail. Tonight, here's ABC's Alison Kosuk with more for us. ships under fire in the straight of Hormuz as they try to pass the critical waterway. Audio shared with ABC News, capturing a radio message sent by an Indian-flagged oil tanker.

The crew pleading with Iran's Navy as the ship comes under attack. SEPA Navy, this is Motoring a Sunmar Head, you gave me clearance to go. My name second on your list. You gave me clearance to go. You are fighting now. Let me turn back. That fear and confusion growing over the Strait of Hormuz after Iran declared its reasserting strict control, less than 24 hours after President Trump said the waterway was completely open.

We're talking to them. They wanted to close up the strait again, you know, as they've been doing for years. And they can't blackmail us. A shipping monitor run by the British Navy said it received reports that two Iranian gunboats fired on one tanker, while another ship was hit by an unknown projectile. India, later summoning the Iranian ambassador. Iran says the strait will remain closed until the U.S. ends its naval blockade of Iranian ships. But President Trump insists the blockade will stay until there's a deal.

He also says attacks on Iran may resume if a deal between the two countries isn't reached by the end of the ceasefire, which expires Wednesday. meantime, Israel reaching a ceasefire agreement with Lebanon, where it was engaged with the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he supported the ceasefire with Iran. Alison Kosick, ABC News, New York. Meanwhile, Pope Leo is addressing his public debate with President Trump over the war in Iran. It comes as the pontiff continues his historic four-nation Africa trip.

Pope Leo has been outspoken about his opposition to the war. and called on leaders to stop the violence worldwide. Telling reporters today it was not in his interest to debate with the president. It was looked at as if I was trying to debate again the president, which is not my interest at all. The world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants. It is held together by a multitude of supportive brothers and sisters. The Pope is now in the African country of Angola.

Well, it is the season for picking strawberries and for many families, making plans for a day on the farm. Drought conditions are actually impacting crops. Local farmers here in the Triangle are doing what they can to preserve their existing fruits and vegetables. Bianca Holman reporting today from Page Farms. So you've gone here across the bridge and stand here to the right.

Tons of families spinning the day at Page Farm. You got some more for your basket. I got a lot more. Good day to come on out and pick some fresh strawberries. We are loaded with strawberries best picking the year. This 100-year-old farm has pumpkins in the fall and these bright red strawberries in the spring. But this year, conditions aren't ideal. Anytime when the heat gets up at the 90 degrees, strawberries don't like that.

So we pump water underneath that plastic and cool them down, and that happened to protect the bloom of the strawberries. And strawberry pickers are thankful for the harvest. It was fantastic. There are so many red strawberries. The drought has become so severe, the U.S. Department of the U.S. Department of the United States. of agriculture has designated 82 North Carolina counties as natural disaster areas, making farmers eligible for emergency loans and other relief programs. Fortunately, Page Farms has their own water source, but they are still on high alert. We're okay for right now.

If the drought stays now when it comes to this spring, this summer, you know, then we'll start worrying about the water when we had to start irrigating corn and the pumpkins. Hoping for rain, yes. The berries are big, juicy, sweet, and ready for your next breakfast parfait. It's a little hot out here, but worth it, I think. Make a smoothie out of it. Bianca Holman, ABC 11, eyewitness news. All right, Bianca, many thanks.

Look, whether it's 90 degrees or 79 degrees being out there this time of year, picking those strawberries, it's a lot of fun for the family and for the kids. But what you said, I think we were just saying that at the top of the hour now, certainly some raindrops coming, but how long, when, where? Yeah, so it's not going to be an all-day thing on Sunday. But Sunday it's kind of just a backwards day, especially when you had a nice hot day like today. Tomorrow's going to be cooler. We're going to have a little bit of rain around midday. It's not going to amount to much and not all of you are going to see it. So this rain is very brief. It's literally just about a two-hour, three-hour window that you

could see one of those showers. And behind the front that brings that rain, we cool down significantly. So we're going from 90s like we had today to 70s as we start the week. And in some cases, even 60s. We've got another warm up on the way too as we go into the middle of the week 80s. We'll return to the forecast. Now back to today, we didn't quite reach our record. We did hit 93 degrees at Raleigh. Other areas like Fayetteville were very close to their record as well, but you could see that we've cooled down this evening. Temperatures are in the 60s at this time and 70s. Back to our west, this is that front that's going to bring the rain to us. It's moving through states like Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Georgia, and that's all pushing east throughout the course of tonight.

So we're pretty much cloud-free right now, but the clouds will be increasing throughout the duration of tonight. First alert predictor shows that by the time you wake up tomorrow morning, it's not going to be too much cooler than it is right now. So temperature should be near 70 degrees waking up. The rain is a little bit delayed behind the front. So most of that moisture is going to lag behind it. Here's the mid-morning hour. So 10, 11, maybe even noon. That's when you could expect those showers in an area like the triangle or our northern counties. Again, it's going to move pretty quickly. By the time we get to 4 p.m., that should be completely east of us, and tipters will spend most of the afternoon only in the 60s. So tomorrow, lots of clouds, especially for the first half of the day. Again, that rain chance peaks around midday. So that's late morning and into the early afternoon. Look at these afternoon tipters in the triangle at one. point we'll even drop into the upper 50s. So tomorrow you might even want a light jacket with you. You could just bring a rain coat. That way you're covered by both the rain and of course the chilly

temperatures. So with that front moving in, it's going to be pretty gusty as well. Winds could gusts could gusts over 30 miles per hour. By the time we get into Monday, we're expecting some quieter conditions though. Sunny and a high around 70 degrees. Tuesday is very similar. Tipatures could drop another degree or two, but a chilly morning tipters in the 40s to start out and then the afternoon looks pretty nice. We will see the cooler temperature stick around only for two days in the upcoming week. Then by the end of the week, we should be back to above average temperatures. So we're going to add to this count. We've had 14 above average day so far in the month of April. Only four of those below. But as we go forward, Wednesday all the way through next Saturday will feature above average temperature.

So lots of 80s there. The first day of those 80s Wednesday, that's going to be Earth Day, 83 degrees, from there we go 86 on Thursday, 87 as we go into next Friday and Saturday. So if you don't like the weather, they say just wait five minutes. That's the thing for the state of North Carolina, Dawan. And I'd say with tomorrow getting a little bit of all seasons in the forecast, let's say we're going to live up to that. But if not, I think the seven day tells the story of what to expect in our state. Back to you. Typical North Carolina weather. That's correct. Thanks, Ruth. Up next tonight, a place at the table, the unique food truck rodeo where you can pay what you can. Returns to Raleigh tomorrow.

We're talking with organizers ahead of the event. And it's time for the 26 NBA playoffs. The Phoenix Suns will take on the Oklahoma Thunder in round one. Tip-off is scheduled for tomorrow at 3.30, and you can watch the game right here on ABC 11 at 3.30. Communities across Canada, hourly Amazon employees earn an average of over $24.50 an hour. Employees also have the opportunity to grow their skills, and their paycheck by enrolling in free skills training programs for in-demand fields,

like software development and information technology. Learn more at aboutamazon.ca. Welcome back. People in Raleigh raising awareness for those fighting blindness. The Foundation Fighting Blindness holding its 5K Vision Walk at William Peace University in Rale today. Organizers say they were able to raise more than $177,000 to go toward finding treatments and cures for blinding diseases. ABC 11's Tom George served as MC of the event. Meanwhile, out in Rocky Mount, community members

coming together today for a 5K color walk and efforts to raise money for the Rocky Mount Academy Exceptional Eagles program. It's a program for students with disabilities. In addition to the 5K, there were also food trucks, a kid zone, and other activities for folks to enjoy, all organized by Elizabeth Chestnut, a student at the academy there.

Well, the town of Irwin, is celebrating a major milestone, 100 years. Community members gathering in Al Wardle Municipal Park today for a day full of fun and hometown pride. There was a lot to do and a lot to see, including live performances, local vendors, and activities for the kids. What happening tomorrow, a food truck radio in downtown Raleigh with the mission to make sure no one goes hungry. The popular, pay-what-you-can restaurant, a place at the table is organizing this event. It's the fifth year they have put together the rodeo featuring dozens of food trucks, offering delicious meals and desserts on a pay-what-you-can basis while supporting eight nonprofit partners.

It is different because all are welcome to come and pay what they can. We will have 10 food trucks out there, 10 nonprofits, a huge community event where everyone can come and pay what they can for a good, dignified meal. And then everyone can sit together in the large parking lot across the street and just be. together and build community. All right the pay-what-you-can food truck rodeo is tomorrow from 11 to 2 in downtown Raleigh at 300 West Hargat Street. Well it's a Hawaii vacation with some Disney magic tomorrow get ready to explore Alani a Disney resort and spa from sandy beaches pools and water slides to a world-class spa and incredible restaurants plus plenty of Disney surprises there is something there for everyone.

We took all of the best of Hawaiian culture and the history and that real pride in it, as well as that excellent guest service that Disney provides. And when you put that together, that's the magic of Aulani. Well, be sure to watch Destination Alani, a Disney resort and spot. See you more and watch for The Secret Word to win, because we are giving away a trip for four to experience the resort all for yourself. It's airing at 5 a.m. tomorrow right here on ABC 11. Well, revivals of hit shows, a documentary about a chilling hijacking, and a true crime mystery are all on this week's list of what's streaming?

Here's George Pinocchio with more. My life is fantastic now. All I have to do is stay completely away from my family. Revivals of hit shows are upon us. Malcolm in the middle is back with life still unfair, a four-part series that sees Malcolm with a family of his own. You're so new. You don't know what to expect. It's hard to even take everything that's, you know, you know, know, take everything in and what's going on. So this has been really cool to get another chance to like relive with these people that I love, with the show I love that have made my life. Malcolm in the middle, life still unfair, is streaming on Hulu.

And another revival streaming on Hulu, Scrubs. No, Ego! J.D.I. I'm going down. Engage your chorus, Sea Bear! I'm going up! The return of the beloved comedy brings more antics to the ER with the full season available. full season available to stream now. It's a show about friendship and community,

and I think people really respond to that when it's written well, because everyone is longing for community and friendship, and this show is set in a high-stakes environment of a hospital, and so when you put those two things together, people really responded to it. Seattle Ground, about to take off, it's going to be crazy. In this documentary thriller, Richard Bebo Russell, coined the Sky King, hijacked a plane in 2018, and flew around for over an hour under mysterious circumstances. I've played video games, so you know it up there on a little bit.

I think this story is very deeply about mental health, as much as it is about the experience of working people in our country today. Sky King is streaming on Hulu. Hulu is also home to 2020, with a new episode involving a twisted murder in Vegas. Just when her dreams seemed to be coming true. always danger lurking. Debbie didn't show up. A dancer chasing her showgirl dream lands a role in a Vegas night show. But just before opening night, she vanishes, sparking an investigation later explored.

There had been a burned body found on the side of the river. Could this have been Debbie? 2020 Death of a Showgirl is streaming on Hulu and Disney Plus. George Pinocchio for on the red carpet. All right, well, that's playoff time for a year. Carolina Hurricanes, when we come back from this quick timeout, we've got highlights from game one of the Stanley Cup playoffs. And as we had to break, we do want to remind you of the annual ALS walk. Registration is open for anyone who wants to join the ABC 11th Stogner Strong team.

The ALS walk takes place next Saturday, April the 25th at Halifax Mall. We hope to see you there. This episode is brought to you by Tell Us Online Security. Oh, tag season is the worst. You mean hack season? What? Yeah, cybercriminals love tax forms. But I've got TELUS Online Security.

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