ABC11 Eyewitness News - Eyewitness News at 11pm - May 9, 2026

Episode Date: May 10, 2026

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Right now, live coverage from your local news leader, preparing you for tomorrow starting tonight and your first alert forecast. Here's what's happening where you live. This is ABC 11 eyewitness news. Centering pass, save Lador, the series is over. Well, tonight, New York Carolina hurricanes are Eastern Conference finals bound, sweeping the Philadelphia Flyers, four games to zero, and getting a win tonight in overtime. So those brooms are out. are now the first NHL team to sweep the first two rounds of the Stanley Cup playoffs since the league went to four best of seven rounds for the 1987 playoffs. I want to say thank you so much for joining us for the late edition of eyewitness news at 11. I'm Dwan Hoggard. We have Trayvon Miles.

He was in the house for that incredible overtime win. Trey, look back to back sweeps for the canes. We were talking about it before the show. Now is history. DeWan, you set it off the top of the show. It's something we've never seen. This hasn't happened since the NHL switched to all seven game series some 40 years ago. The Cains, what they're doing right now, simply historic.

Eight and O in these playoffs, four wins against the Ottawa Senators, two on the road, four wins against the Philadelphia Flyers, these last two on Thursday, and then last tonight, I should say, also on the road. Incredible stuff we've seen by this team as of late. As far as tonight in particular, of course it was the line of Taylor Hall, Logan Stankhoven, and Jackson Blake, right? Those are the guys who have been adamant and added all playoffs long. Those three guys have led the team in scoring during this run. Stankovin had a big goal in the second period.

Blake had two big ones, including the game winner in overtime. The 22-year-old super excited after on the podium. here he is reflecting on the win. Our first period wasn't great tonight, but I just love the way that Halsey and stinks, like they battle and they compete every single night. And in the second period, we just said we're going to play a little more simple and do it the way we know we can.

And, you know, fortunately we got a couple there to help the team win, but I think every night, you know, you're not going to score every night, but you're going to do everything you can to help the team win. And tonight, fortunately, we did. And how valuable is that type of time? of mentality. You're not going to score every night, but every night you're going to help the team try to win. When you're getting 22 and 23 year olds to buy into that, along with a 34-year-old line mate in Taylor Hall, I'd say the canes are clicking on all cylinders right

now. And defenseman Jacob Slavin said just that in the locker room. We'll take you into the locker room a little bit more when you come back later in sports to Juan. What a night here in Philadelphia. I mean, look, it ended the way that it was supposed to. Now the canes are going to have a nice little break before they take on the winner of the Canadians and the Sabres. So we'll see how that game shapes up and how the rest of that series goes. Trey, thanks so much. Get home safe. Meanwhile, I want to show you a live look here at RDU International Airport where the Cains are

expected to arrive on their charter flight at about the top of the hour, close to midnight this evening. The team is taking tomorrow off. The no practices scheduled as they will wait to see who they will play, as just mentioned, between the Buffalo Sabres or the Montreal Canadiens for the Eastern Conference finals. Meantime, fans packing the Carolina L House and Kerry this evening showing up well before the puck drop, cheering on Carolina from afar with the help of Stormy. Now, this is the first time in franchise history. The team has won eight straight playoff games, surpassing their

previous high marks set during the 2006 Stanley Cup run. Caniacs sharing their excitement with us and believe this team can reach new heights. The energy feels a little bit different. The, you know, The team feels like they've got everything they need to kind of make that final push. And the feeling is good this year. I think Anderson is doing awesome. I played soccer in high school and I was a goalie, so I have a little bit of a bias there, but he's my favorite. I really enjoy it. I'm actually pushing a lot to go and see it, maybe more than him sometimes.

It's actually cool that some of the players are from Denmark. That also gives me some pride. Well, Carolina will play the winner of Buffalo and Montreal, as just mentioned, the next round. That series is currently tied at one game apiece. All right now at 11, we are just minutes away from Mother's Day and millions of dollars are expected to be spent on moms this year. It's a big weekend as well here in the triangle. Not only are we celebrating mothers, but people are here for graduations as well. And all of those guests translating into some pretty big bucks for businesses. Michael Perchuk is joining us from NC State with an eye on the economy.

It's always special when you can get together with loved ones to celebrate even more. more so when there's more than one occasion on the docket. That's led to pack schedules across the weekend. From walking across the stage... With hard work, you're going to get rewarded and working every day to get what you want. To giving flowers, literally. You have graduation, you have Mother's Day, you have birthdays, you have anniversaries, because people are also getting married right now.

Like, we definitely turn down some weddings for this weekend, too. Everyone is on overdrive this weekend. Today we saw an increase in guests, and tomorrow we're expected. to double that. Saturday saw a consistent stream of diners at Parkside in downtown Raleigh. General manager Brian Tenorio says shifting consumer habits means an even greater emphasis on customer service. We make sure all of our servers and bartenders make you feel like you're a friend. Stretches like this especially welcome in the face of rising fuel prices that have trickled down. Have we seen an increase in like cost of stuff that we bring in? Yes, but at the end of the day,

we make sure we put our customers first. Over at TG Floristry, they've worked to navigate water restrictions. Having the drought here and then also having our farmers being impacted by that, we did have to import more of our flowers. Still, owner and lead designer Tierra George was able to source about 80% locally this holiday, working down to the wire to fulfill all those orders. You're reaching so many people, potentially like triple what you would normally reach. So, you know, making sure that you're still doing the same things and following up in the same ways. So hopefully those orders like go even more, you know, for next year.

According to the National Retail Federation, flowers top the board when it comes to some Mother's Day spending, with 75% of consumers planning on making a purchase. In total, Mother's Day spending is projected to hit a record $38 billion this year, up more than 11% from 2025. In Raleigh on Michael Perchick, ABC 11, eyewitness news. Michael, thank you. New tonight, UNC Chapel Hill has nearly 7,200 new alumni. The University holding its commencement ceremony this evening at Keenan Stadium. North Carolina Native and country music star Eric Church was the commencement speaker.

He delivered a unique address that included a little guitar playing and singing using the six strings of a guitar as the pillars of life. Six strings, six strings of life and willingness to keep them in tune. Six principles, six pillars. When all six are in tune with each other, the chord your life makes is full and resonant. and truth. All six will drift, not one or two, all six in their own time, in their own season. Your faith will go quiet when you need it loud. Your family will get complicated in a way only the people who love you most can complicate things. You will go through hard seasons with your spouse. Your ambition will hollow out and your resilience will wear thin. Your community

will start to feel like an obligation and your world will try to sand down the edges of exactly who you are. This is not failure. This is not weakness. It's the inevitable, universal experience of living in an imperfect world that doesn't stop to let us tune up. And the difference between a life that sounds like music and a life that sounds like noise is whether you stop and listen. Well, Eric Church wrapped up his commencement speech by serenading the graduates with his hit song, Carolina. He was honored as well with an honorary. degree. It was also a commencement day for Wolfpack Nation, NC State University holding its

ceremony this morning at Carter-Finley Stadium. More than 7,400 students receiving their degrees. Harry Sedaris, CEO of Duke Energy and NC State grad, was the commencement speaker. Meanwhile, in downtown Raleigh, Shaw University holding its commencement ceremony at the Raleigh Convention Center, award-winning film, TV and theater actress Edwina Finley Dickerson was the guest speaker for the Bears as well. Eagle Pride amplified in Durham. today, hundreds graduating this earlier today over at NC's Central University. It was the HBCU's 147th commencement exercise. An estimated 162 students earned their degrees, including more than 500 bachelors, nearly 400 masters, and nearly 900 law degrees. Bianca Holman has more on their

milestone day. I'm not finished writing your story yet. We got work to do, right? We got work to do. In a sea of Burgundy and white families mark a major milestone. For this family, their daughter, Achidimo Ukabi, turning her tassel after earning a degree in mass communications. You can't describe the feeling. It's out of this world, but very phenomenal for me. Thank God for that. Ukabi recognizing the importance of this moment for her family's legacy. Education takes you places that, you know, you dream to go. So I would say it's very important.

Featured Speaker's attorney Dina King and pro football Hall of Fame, Ray Lewis, offering words of wisdom and encouragement. Because life doesn't just give you what you want. It responds to who you are. For this family from Orlando, Florida, they welcome another Eagle graduate into the bond. That we're all NCCU alone. In the midst of celebration, many already thinking about what's next.

The class of 2026 entering a challenging labor market with graduates facing rising unemployment rates. I'll continue to further, go further in my field of broadcast media. She might be on TV, though. I would go into digital media and social media. Social work on the hour. I got a subject to Howard for the fall. MSW.

I'm not done yet. It's still more work to be done. Bianca Holman, ABC 11, eyewitness news. Bianca, thank you. And tomorrow Duke University wraps up their weekend of honoring graduates. The procession of candidates begins at 9 o'clock in the morning, with the ceremony getting underway at 9.30 there at Wallace Wade Stadium. Amy Hood, Duke University grad and Microsoft Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer is the commencement speaker.

Well, new tonight, addressing food insecurity here in Central Carolina. We'll show you how mail carriers worked to stamp out hunger today. Plus, a shocking video as a tractor trailer slams into several cars in Goldsboro today, what we're learning tonight about this serious crash. And the latest from Spain as a cruise ship with the Honte virus outbreak is set to. to dock and the Canary Islands tomorrow. We'll tell you what's next for the Americans who are on that ship. Don?

And it's a mild night out there. Temperatures in the 60s. Not much to show you in the way of rainfall on the radar network, just some radar trash. But we will see this light up with rain over the next 36 hours. So we'll tell you when the rain arrives in your complete forecast. Coming up. Some gifts say, I thought of you. The best ones help you discover more.

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Today, offer ends May 10th. Terms apply. Well, tonight we are working to learn what led up to a shocking crash in Goldsboro today. 11 people were injured when a tractor trailer plowed into a line of cars and that entire crash all caught on camera. I want to go ahead and show you this dashboard video. This was shared to us by Rico McDowell. You can see here on the left hand side of your screen

that white semi barreling down the road, driving into those row of cars there. The drivers were waiting at the stoplight. This all happened on US 70 at North Oak Forest Road. In all, 11 people were injured. Two of those victims were airlifted to ECU Health Medical Center in Greenville. Their conditions have not been released to us just yet. The crash remains under investigation.

Meanwhile in Samson County, the State Highway Patrol releasing the names of three people killed in an early morning wrong way collision on I-40. Troopers believe the driver of a Chevy Camero was traveling westbound in the eastbound lanes when the driver slammed head on with the Honda Accord. The two people in the Camero were killed. They have been identified as 21-year-old Jonathan Zacharias and 20-year-old Gabriel Zacharias, both of Fayetteville. A 14-year-old passenger in the Honda was also killed. Her name has not been released. At this point, the State Highway Patrol has not said how that Camaro ended up on the wrong side of the interstate. On new tonight, several people were transported to a hospital following a possible boat explosion off the water of Miami.

The Miami-dayed fire and rescue reports first responders rushed to haul over sandbar following calls of an explosion just before 1 o'clock in the afternoon. They found multiple victims. Fire officials initially said 15 people were immediately transported to the hospital. Later in the afternoon, fire officials said that 11 people were hospitalized. The cause of the explosion remains under investigation. What happening tonight, authorities are currently investigating eight cases related to the Hantavirus outbreak on a Dutch cruise ship and its origins. Three passengers have died so far, and the ship is set to anchor early Sunday off Spain's Canary Island. where health officials say they have a plan in place to safely bring passengers ashore and get them on flights home.

Tonight, here's ABC's Allison Kosick with the latest. Tonight, the luxury cruise ship linked to an outbreak of hanta virus is just hours away from anchoring in Spain's Canary Islands. Authorities in Tenerife racing to prepare Grenadilla port before the ship anchors offshore. The World Health Organization Director, along with Spanish officials visiting the port, ahead of the coordinated operation. We will do everything tomorrow to make the operation a success. Tenerife is ready, prepared. ABC's Maggie Rooley is there. This right here is where we expect the ship to be anchored offshore,

arriving in the early hours tomorrow morning. And we've been here at the port watching as police and authorities rushed to prepare for those passengers. You can see a multiple police set up right now. That is where the passengers will finally disembark that cruise ship. The ship's arrival is causing concerns among locals, bringing back memories of their early. days of the COVID-19 pandemic, but health officials emphasize the risk to the public remains low. There will be small boats that will bring the passengers in groups to the dock. There will be a medical screening that will be done. If there's anybody that developed symptoms, anybody that has

symptoms, they will immediately go to a medical evacuation plane and be taken to the Netherlands for care. Authorities in the U.S. are tracking nine people across six states that have potentially been exposed. So far, none has developed symptoms. officials say that there is no mandatory quarantine for the 17 Americans returning home from the ship. It's only symptomatic people that are passing on hanta virus, and so people are asymptomatic. They are not at risk based on what we know today. Once off the ship, the American passengers will be met by the CDC, flown back to the states, and sent to the national quarantine unit in Nebraska for assessment before self-monitoring for any potential symptoms at home.

ABC News, New York. Well, tonight, the Museum of Life and Science in Durham is mourning the loss of their beloved alpaca. The museum posting this picture of Equinox on social media. The museum's animal care and vet team had been closely monitoring the 19-year-old alpaca due to several age-related health conditions. This morning, the team discovered that she had passed peacefully overnight. Equinox and her daughter joined the museum back in 2021. and over the years, she has become a popular member there in the farmyard.

Well, today, letter carriers in the community pitching in for the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina's Stampout Hunger Annual Drive. 36 post offices across seven counties participated in the event, and it comes as food insecurity remains a growing issue. The Food Bank Network reports demand for food assistance is up as much as 60% over the past year. Well, at the U.S. post office there on Ren Drive and Carry, we, we'll be. with volunteers sorting donations out this afternoon. We have a small pantry so we're always restocking.

We're always getting food in, getting it out immediately. The more we get from the public, the more we're able to offer families that come and shop in our pantry. And that's really important to us to have the consistent contributions from the neighbors. These donations are expected to serve more than 180,000 people facing hunger in Durham and Wake counties. All right, this weekend we are celebrating moms. So I'll know a lot of folks are going to be outside tomorrow, Don, with brunch reservations

outside. And you were saying earlier, at least the weather's looking pretty right for mom. Mom's got a great day tomorrow. Afternoon, if you're out for lunch or something later in the afternoon, it's going to be warm though. Temperatures mid-80s. We'll show that to you right now. We're topping out tomorrow at 85 degrees.

That's the warmest day of the next seven. The shower's holding off now until Monday. Scattered showers around 70. Tuesday, 78, Wednesday, 78, and back into the 80s by Armed Forces Day on Saturday. Let's take a look at your fast forward forecast. That's what we saw today. We saw mostly cloudy skies, sunset around 809. Now, if we fast forward into tomorrow, you'll notice the clouds will still be around,

mix of clouds and sunshine. They'll be thicker in the morning, and it will be warmer. Instead of being in the 70s, we will be in the mid-80s. Not seeing any showers out there tonight on the first alert, Doppler, not scanning the skies. dry across our part of the Carolinas, so we take a live look on our mutual tower, SkyCam into downtown Durham, 63 and mostly cloudy. We do see a southwest wind at five miles per hour. Maniota Murphy tonight, 60s down at the coast, 63, down at ECU at this hour, 63 in Chase City, 64 out in the triad, 10 degrees cooler out in Boone, 61 in Asheville tonight.

Overnight, we'll see the numbers down into the 50s for lows. Could have some patchy fog, not widespread. but there will be a little fog if you wake up around 7, 8 o'clock in the morning. Plenty of clouds up above. We zoom it out. You can see showers down to the south. Strong storms out in Oklahoma tonight, but we stay dry. Your first alert predictor forecast model will run this ahead until 8 o'clock tomorrow morning. Headed out to church.

Take mom to brunch. Temperatures will be in the 60s. By the afternoon, we recover into the 80s. Could be a shower southeast of I-95, but most of us will not see anything. It's Monday. Watch the clouds approach up here. As we go through the day on Monday, that will bring the showers in Monday afternoon into Monday evening. Forecast looks like this for tomorrow.

Temperatures across the region topping out at 84 Durham, 85 Raleigh, 86 Fayetteville, and back to that seven-day forecast. And we see those 70s in, not an all-day soaker on Monday, just some scattered showers in the afternoon. Tuesday, bright, pleasant, 72, although you wake up in the 40s. Wednesday, rain after sunset 78, Thursday, 76, Friday, 77, and back. into the 80s as we celebrate Armed Forces Day next week. But bookends of 80s, 70s for the rest of the week, DeWan. Yeah, still got to pick out that day on the 7th day,

where I'm going to call out sick because weather's so nice, Don. I would say Tuesday, you're looking like you might have a fever. You said it. Just saying. All right. Thanks, Don. Sure. All right, next tonight, a big honor for former Disney CEO, Bob Iger. Coming up, see how Howard University recognized him today for his leadership

during the university's commencement ceremony. Welcome back. New tonight, Howard University is giving a special recognition to the former CEO of Disney, Bob Iger. Today, Iger receiving an honorary doctor of law degree from Howard, calling it a tremendous recognition. I must say there's something very special about this. Part of it is the personal connection that I have through Chadu Bosnia and my friend Reggie Simmons. Part of it is just what Howard stands for. Its reputation, its meaning. Both Iger and Disney have special history with Howard. Under his leadership, the company established the Disney Storytellers Fund and supported the building of the Chadwick-Bosman College of Fine Arts Center. Disney is the parent company of ABC. I love it.

All right, here in studio, we've got Kate Rodgerson. We have a lot of reasons to be excited tonight, four, to be exact. Another sweep. The brooms out. The Carolina Hurricanes are halfway there. You need 16 games, 16 wins to reach Stanley Cup. They have eight of them tonight that Cains pulled off a. insane finish in Philly, sweeping the flyers in game four. We show you how they got the job done and checking with Trey Miles.

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