ABC11 Eyewitness News - Eyewitness News at 4pm - March 31, 2026

Episode Date: March 31, 2026

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The countdown is on to a lunar mission. And an astronaut with ties to the triangle will be on board that historic launch. The new reaction is ahead at 4 o'clock. Also at 4 gas prices climbing. The national average now surpassing $4. The ripple effect households are feeling. And more troubles for local TSA workers now getting paid, but some are telling us they were forced to use their paid time off for those missed days.

The confusion, they say, is causing federal workers. And the new details, we're learning about Tiger Woods behavior moments after he, He crashed his SUV in Florida. And what authorities say they found in the legendary golfer's pockets. I witness to four is next. Right now, live coverage from your local news leader, keeping you connected to your community and your first alert forecast. Here's what's happening where you live. This is ABC 11 eyewitness news.

Right now for getting those steps in on the last day of March. No need for jackets today as temperatures climb. to near record territory. March going out like a lamb. The pleasant weather is expected to last through Easter weekend. Thank you for joining us for the news at four. I'm Barbara Gibbs. And I'm Lauren Johnson in for Amber Repent to the dry weather will be good for all

those Easter egg hunts happening this weekend, but we desperately need the rain as the drought here continues. Meteorologist Cruz Medina is in the first alert forecast center with the look at our chances for any rain in the coming days. Hi, Cruz. Hi there. Yeah, rain chances are looking pretty slim until we get into Easter day itself. So the second half of Easter, that's

we'll have to watch out for that rain chance. It's not going to be a super heavy rain or a soaking rain, but it looks like most of us will get rain sometime in the evening hours on Sunday. That'll linger into Sunday night and it clears all as we go into early next week. But today has been super dry, so we still have the elevated fire conditions. A bit breezy at times this afternoon, but those winds out of the southwest have us running five to 10 degrees warmer than we were at this time yesterday. So your evening drive could be windows down and shades on.

how nice the weather's going to be for this evening. So very warm through 6 p.m. Still at 80 degrees and then falling into the 70s. We will only drop into the 60s tonight, even though we will have the clouds sticking around at points throughout tonight. But also back to this evening, you have extended daylight hours. So today's sunset at 736. You can see as we go into the end of the upcoming months of tomorrow, April 1st, April 30th. That's our first 8 p.m. sunset. And then by the time we get to the end of May, we're looking closer to 830. Back to tonight. We will have tipters around 60 degrees. Southwest winds will continue to pump in that warmer air in the overnight hours. And then for tomorrow, that's where we're near record.

So not necessarily today, even though it was warm, but tomorrow we do reach those mid 80s. And we can see another day near records as we go into Thursday. We'll talk about how long those near record tipter stick around and also an extended look at that Easter forecast coming up in just minutes. Lauren, back to you. All right, Cruz. We'll see you then. Thank you now at 4 for for the first time in four years. the average price of a regular gallon of gas nationally has top $4 a gallon. Yeah, that's the first prices that we've seen that high since 2022. The war with Iran fueling the increase, which also impacts other industries. Michael Perchick joining us now live in Raleigh with the impacts. Michael, good afternoon.

Good afternoon, Barbara and Lauren. We all see and feel the pain of the pump behind me when filling up, but the trickle-down effects are far-reaching. I've watched the gas prices tick up uncomfortably high. Sean Doddsauer expressing the feelings of so many. According to AAA, gas prices have jumped more than a dollar over the past month, both nationally and here in North Carolina, though state averages remain slightly lower. We are under very unique sets of circumstances here when it comes to the price volatility, especially. Really, in no time in modern times have we had a situation where we have looked at a price point that has increased so much, so rapidly. Despite the U.S. being a producer of crude oil, the global.

global nature of the commodity, tied with cuts from oil producers in the Middle East and the closure of the street of Hormuz, have put pressure on the energy sector. Rising transportation costs are being felt across the supply chain. Logistics providers are charging what they call a fuel premium, or they bump up the price of transporting goods. And, of course, that's passed on to the retailer, and the retailer is going to pass that on to the customer. coming up at five we visit a family farm in johnson county how they are dealing with those increased costs in raleigh on michael perchick a bc a bc 11 eyewitness news right michael thank you meantime in the war with iran the u.s is ramping up its attacks while threatening to expand its operations if the iranian regime does not strike a deal some 50 000 u.s troops are now in the region as the president

urges allies to step up and help reopen the strait of hormuz iran striking a corps of warrants iran striking a oil tanker in the strait of Hormuz, ensuring the critical petroleum trade waterway stays virtually closed. The president today telling other countries to either purchase U.S. oil or to, quote, just take it from the strait. The U.K.'s prime minister has repeatedly insisted they will not be dragged into this war. Last time I checked, there was supposed to be a big bad Royal Navy that could be prepared to do things like that as well. And in another front in the war, strikes intensifying in Lebanon today where Israel says it's launching strikes at Iranian backed Hezbollah forces. Here at home, back pay is finally hitting bank accounts of TSA workers nationwide.

They went without a paycheck, as you know, for more than a month due to the partial government shutdown. And tonight, there's a new problem for TSA workers at RDU. They say they're being forced now to use paid time off for the days that they called out when they weren't being paid. John Downing is live at RDU. John, good afternoon to you. What is the response from union leaders?

Well, Barbara, we're hearing from these union leaders who are saying this isn't typically the norm for a time like this. They say usually when there's a government shutdown, if employer, if TSA officers have to miss work because of the shutdown because they can't get into work, usually those missed days would be considered furlough days. But they're saying now something has changed. And they say that now they fear some TSA officers could face disciplinary action moving forward. It's just unbelievable. It truly is.

Tonight, confusion among TSA workers at RDIU. One day after they got their first paycheck in more than a month, Union leaders say members tell them time missed during the current partial government shutdown is not being handled the same as in the past. TSA management officials are to you are denying those furlough requests and pretty much coercing employees to utilize their paid annual leave or their sick leave balances. Union leaders say dozens of employees could not afford to go to work during the partial government shutdown. They say those days are no longer eligible as furlough days. Union leaders tell eyewitness news it's causing confusion among TSA workers. In all previous government shutdowns, all employees were, if they had in the absences,

they were granted the default status of furlough. Just a lot of questions from TSA officers here at RDU. We reached out to the TSA for clarity and for a comment about some of those claims from the officers here at RDU. We are still waiting for a response back. But union leaders tell me that TSA officers here at RDU are at the U, are the only ones being faced with this issue. Coming up at five, the other airports here in the south that are facing some of these issues

that union leaders say that they are hearing from TSA officers where those continued problems could be. Live here at RDEO, I'm John Dowding. ABC 11, eyewitness news. All right, John, thank you. Today in Raleigh, the Joint Education Oversight Committee hearing from the Department of Instruction on Revision to Math Standards and data on cell phones and classrooms. An assistant professor at UNC helped to co-author a study tracking middle and high school students' behaviors.

They found teens spent one-third of their time on their phones. But let's get to this breaking news here at 4 o'clock moments ago. The Board of Trustees at NC State voted to approve the hiring of Justin Ganey to become the next men's basketball. Coach Ganey was a point guard for the Wolfpack from 1996 to 2000. NC State advanced to the postseason in each of his four seasons at state. This will be Ganey's first head coaching job. He most recently has been associate head coach for the University of Tennessee. NC State is expected to announce him as head coach during a news conference tomorrow.

And we have more breaking news. We're tracking here in the eyewitness News Breaking News Center. Hi, everyone. I'm Steve Daniels. Chopper 11 over a very bad crash right now in Harnet County. I want to show you the live feed coming in. That big rig you can see right there plowed into that blue car. This is the northbound lanes of NC 87 near Sawyer Road.

This is just south of Lillington in Harnock, County. Traffic is backed up for miles right now. As you can see, live from Chappre 11, they're detouring those northbound lanes of NC 87. Right now we are trying to figure out the extent of the injuries of the people in that blue car, if anyone in the truck was injured and the cause of that crash that happened about an hour ago. It will be a big traffic mess. Northbound NC 87 near Sawyer Road south of Lillington. We'll keep an eye on it live from Chopper 11. And here in the Breaking News Center when we learn more, we'll pass it along. Lauren. All right. Steve, thank you today in Raleigh. The Joint Education

Oversight Committee hearing from the Department of Instruction on revision to math standards and data on cell phones and classrooms. An assistant professor at UNC helped to co-author a study tracking middle and high school students' behaviors. They found teens spent one-third of the school day on their phones checking them dozens of times often for social media and entertainment. The study shows frequent checking is linked to weaker attention span and lack of self-control. And this data could be used to shape future policies. Despite policies being in place in the schools that we sampled, many are continuing to use their phones and existing policies are not necessarily always enforced or followed. Teachers are more likely than the students to report device-related distractions, and many are reporting stress for managing their student device use. And again, I really want to highlight this point of school-issue devices in which misuse of these devices is potentially an error that needs greater attention that is not receiving perhaps.

the attention that needs at this point within the scientific literature. A new state law passed last year requires all school districts to have cell phone policies in place in districts like Wake County. Students must silence and store their phones in their backpacks or the lockers during designated times. Next year at 4 o'clock wildfire danger. We have an update on the wildfire burning out of control in western North Carolina. And those horses forced to evacuate as flames closed in on them in the sandhills. and crews. All right, time for a check of First Alert traffic. This is I-40 at Avent Ferry.

Things are moving along smoothly in both directions. So as we head to break, here are your traffic hotspots brought to you by the First Alert Weather Team. The ABC 11 First Alert forecast team is working to keep you safe. Oneies across the region. Some cloud cover starting to build. That rain is going to push on through. Cold air coming in.

The First Alert Forecast team. Only on ABC11, I Witness News. When Westcham first took flight in 1996, the vibes were a bit different. People thought denim on denim was peak fashion. Inline skates were everywhere, and two out of three women rocked, the Rachel. While those things stayed in the 90s,

one thing that hasn't is that fuzzy feeling you get when WestJet welcomes you on board. Here's to WestJetting since 96. Travel back in time with us and actually travel with us at westjet.com slash 30 years. Eyewitness News. We are Local News Weeknights 4 to 630 and 11.

Now at 4, the Supreme Court strikes down Colorado's controversial ban on so-called conversion therapy for minors. In an 8-to-1 decision, the justices ruled that the ban is a violation of counselors' free speech rights under the First Amendment. Conversion therapy or the practice of trying to change someone's sexual orientation or gender identity has been widely discredited by major American medical groups for decades. Half the states in this country have restricted the practice, but today the U.S. Supreme Court said that many of those laws may violate the First Amendment protection for free speech. Justice Katanji Brown Jackson is the only dissenter. Now at 4, there is new

information in the DUI arrest of golfer Tiger Woods after his rollover crash in Florida last week. Yeah, police say he had bloodshot eyes and had opioids in his pocket. Steve joins us now with more on what those court records reveal he told police. Hi, Lauren and Barbara. Yeah, Tiger Woods crashes SUV, as you know, near his home on Jupiter Island last Friday. The arrest affidavit says the 82-time PGA winner was sweating profusely and appeared lethargic and slow, and he had hydrocodone pills in his pocket. Officers on the scene did perform a breathalyzer test, which detected no alcohol. Authorities say Woods refused to take a blood or a urine test, and they determined his

physical and mental abilities were impaired, and he was unable to safely operate a car. Your analysis would have showed evidence or not of other drugs. He was charged with DUI with property damage and failure to take a lawful test, both misdemeanors. Police say Woods was traveling at a high rate of speed on this two-lane road passing a truck when he crashed and rolled over. That, as you see right there is his land rover flipped over on its side. According to the affidavit, the 50-year-old told officers he was looking down at his phone and changing the radio station and did not realize the truck in front of him slowed down right before he crashed into it, Lauren. All right. Turning now to weather in the ongoing drought conditions across the state.

It is so extreme in Union County. That's near Charlotte. Most lakes in the town are, measuring eight feet under where they need to be. The city has been keeping the lakes closed to recreation since the start of the season. The city is in stage one or voluntary water conservation and that will not likely change unless spring showers come soon. In Wilkes County, a wildfire that has scorched 600 acres is now 50% contain. That blaze has proven difficult to fight because of rugged terrain there. Officials said the fire is also moving through area still littered with debris from Hurricane Helene adding to the challenge for firefighters. Right now, a statewide burn ban remains into effect.

Now we turn to the sand hills where two intense wildfires caused some serious damage over the weekend. One fire is 25 acres burning in Aberdeen in just 15 minutes away. Another large fire burned up to 60 acres at Camp McCall in Richmond County. Thankfully no one was hurt, but the flames crept dangerously close to stables, leaving horse owners anxious. Yeah, Penelope Lopez is in Cumberland County with how those fires affected the local equestrian community there. It was a long weekend for fire officials. The fire was so massive, it took nearly seven hours to contain. Horse owners I spoke with say they didn't hesitate.

They loaded their horses and left everything behind. This was the scene at Whitney Weston's home in Aberdeen Sunday afternoon. Trees burning, smoke filling the air. It was very scary. Weston, owner of Valkyreysport horse, where riders of all ages learn and horse trees for competition described the ordeal as nerve-wracking. It's been so dry and it just kept spreading. Whitney evacuated with 16 horses to Caroline Horse Park,

which offered to help. Aberdeen fire officials said 50 to 60 firefighters battled the fire after an ATV malfunction and sparked the larger blaze, burning 25 acres. Whitney says she is grateful to the equestrian community for rallying behind her in time of need. in time of need. Friends hauling in horse trailers, calling, asking if they could come and help,

and those boots on the ground was huge. We are so lucky to be where we live in such a tight-knit community. It just gives me chills. Fortunately, no one was injured, including Whitney's horses. Coming up in the next hour, we'll hear from Carolina Horse Park, who welcomed to Whitney's 16 horses, why they say it was important to help. Reporting in Cumberland County, I'm Penelope Lopez, and eyewitness news. The drought conditions continue and now the horse is in danger is really scary. Yeah, that is scary.

I think there was like an ATV or UTV that also set something on fire the other day. Just it's that time of the year. You've got to be very vigilant. We know going into the growing season, these dry conditions are not helping. So just a reminder to all of you watching that a statewide burn ban does remain in effect.

And this is until further notice. So we're not expecting any major relief from drought conditions here. in the near future, but I can tell you the moisture content. So the humidity is going to rise a little bit over the next few days as temperatures continue to rise. So this could be near record heat. I've listed out the records here. So standing record for tomorrow in Raleigh, 89 degrees. I'll set back in 1974. We're forecasting 86 right now. We'll have to see how close we can get to that. But as we go into Thursday, that record a little higher right around 90 degrees. So we're likely not to tie it. on Thursday, but tomorrow will definitely give that record a run for its money. All right, tomorrow is also April 1st, so let's talk about what we normally expect during the month of April. For the first of the month, we expect an average high around 68. Obviously, tomorrow we're going to start out much above average in those 80s.

Then by the end of the month, our average highs are in the middle to upper 70s. So even compared to what we would see at the end of the month, it looks like tomorrow is going to smash those averages. But on an average, this is usually a pretty wet month. So hopefully we get at least this amount of rainfall that you're seeing here. It's not likely that we will start out wet, but maybe through the middle of the month, we see a pattern change that eventually brings us submit official rainfall. I'll take you out to Kerry. It's 82 degrees there.

This is downtown Kerry Park, and you see some folks walking around out there. You're going to take a walk this evening. Great weather for that. You're going to stay in the 80s through about 6 p.m. And then we should come down into the 70s throughout this evening. But staying very warm for this time of the year, and even overnight, it's the weather. It's going to stay mild. First alert predictor shows that through the course of tonight, there could be a few fair weather clouds out there. Tipper start out near 60 degrees tomorrow.

And then for the afternoon, partly cloudy, temperature is pushing all the way into the mid-80s. So tomorrow has potential to be the warmest day that we see so far throughout this week. But if you're getting game of golf in tomorrow early in the day, looks like you can leave your jacket at home. Temperatures will be in the 60s and 70s through the morning hours, jumping into those 80s for the afternoon highs. again that is near record but there's not a whole lot of rain chances in the forecast until we get into this weekend and so the pollen count is going to stay high for the foreseeable future so it's those tree allergens pine oak maple sweet gum birch and even cottonwood that's the first time i've seen that one show up in the pollen count today but just know those pollen counts will remain elevated

going into the back half of the week I mentioned the moisture content rising and so we talk about low relative humidities with fire conditions it looks like the humidity is going to be rising. So hopefully that helps to mitigate that fire risk as we go into the end of the week. All right, your seven day forecast shows that we can't expect some rain late in the day on Easter Sunday. So that'll mainly be an evening thing. And that's going to cool us down into the 60s as we go into early next week. Barbara, back to you. Cruz, thank you. Well, Nike sues over a data breach. Next at four, what that class action lawsuit claims the sports apparel giant failed to do. And it is deadline day for households needing assistance to pay.

those high energy bills, what you need to know. That's coming up. In 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. It is time now for some news you can use a class action lawsuit. alleges Nike failed to protect sensitive information and waited far too long before notifying customers about a data breach back in January. The complaint alleges the sports apparel giant breached its duties under common law, contract law industry standards, and the Federal Trade

Commission to act to implement reasonable and adequate data security measures. The lawsuit claims Nike discovered the breach around January 21st, 2026, but did not notify victims until more than a month later? Nike has not commented. JetBlue raising its bag fees as the war with Iran drives up the cost of fuel. Passengers will now be charged $39 for pre-purchasing a check bag. That's an increase of $4. And those who wait until the day of their flight to pay for a bag, they will have to pay an extra $10. If you plan to travel during peak periods like summer or a holiday, prepare to pay a pretty premium to check a bag. Across North Carolina, today is the deadline to apply for the low-income energy assistance program. Social Services

departments have funds available to help qualified families with those heating. and cooling costs. You can apply online or in person through tonight. That is news you can use. Barbara back to you. All right Lauren, thank you. Well, if you're a parent with kids using a teen Instagram account, you're going to see the PG-13 rating a lot less. That's because Meadow will substantially limit the use after a deal with a motion picture association, which owns the trademark to the PG-13 rating. It is widely known the type of content of PG-13 rating indicates, which is what made it attractive to the social media platform. The motion picture Association objected to its use because the association didn't actually issue that rating,

so it threatened to sue, along with limiting the use of the reference. Meta will also make a distinction between its rating and that of the Motion Picture Association when it does use it. All right, well, the Capitol City is booming. New numbers rank the Raleigh Metro among the fastest growing in the country. Coming up, we'll take a look at what's fueling that surge. And there is a new team in town. The Wilson Warbirds are just two weeks from their opening debut. and the hype is growing. New at four. A look at the economic impact. The new minor league baseball team could bring to Wilson. And we continue to follow Breaking News. NC State hires Justin Ganey as its new head men's basketball coach. We are live on campus. We are local news. ABC 11 eyewitness news continues now. And we continue to follow breaking news in Raleigh this afternoon.

The Board of Trustees at NC State votes to approve the hiring of Justin Ganey to become the next men's head. basketball coach. Ganey was a point guard for the Wolfpack back in the 90s to 2000. NC State advanced to the postseason in each of the four seasons at state when he was on the team. This will be Ganey's first head coaching job and we will continue to follow more on this breaking story as we get more information. Tom George is live for us on campus with reaction. Hey Tom. Hey good afternoon. Yeah a lot of fans tell me they are excited about the new hire. Of course Justin Ganey a familiar face in Wolfpack Nation. Of course, as a player himself and then now coming back full circle as a head coach now he had previously

been on the coaching staff at tennessee but obviously it has been a crazy couple of years the short-lived will wade era here he's now abruptly going to ls u and a quick search process here ending again with uh justin gany now officially approved by the board of trustees this is something that fans just now hearing the news about this saying they're excited to see a former player come back and they think it's going to be a good era for NC State basketball. Of course, all this still unfolding now. We're still going to be talking to some fans, talking to some people connected to the team and have much more a little bit later. But as that news just came down, a lot of excitement here on campus at NC State guys. All right, I was looking at his social media,

Tom. He was voted on 2026 100 most impactful high major assistant coaches in the country. Now he ups the ranks and it becomes a head coach. So we'll see what happens from here. Tom George, Thank you. Now at four, a live look at the Raleigh Skyline, where it seems new buildings are going up every single day. That's right. And more people are calling Raleigh home. We've seen them on the roads with us. According to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Raleigh Metro area is one of the fastest growing regions in the country. Elena Athens joins us live in Raleigh with more on what's behind all this growth and the impact on the housing market. Elena, what'd you learn? Well, some developers, Lauren, are maximizing available land, especially inside Raleigh. Raleigh's beltline just here behind me. The developer is putting two homes on a single plot and it's

in an effort to help meet the growing demand. New census data ranks Raleigh Carey as the tent, fastest growing metro in the country. Dinaji's core moved her family to carry from Florida six months ago right after she had her second child. She was drawn to the area for better schools. Everything is great here. So I think that's the biggest reason. The data also finds Way County had the fifth most growth of any county last year. Eddie Wilson is with the Raleigh is growing real estate group. He says inventory is catching up with demand, which is impacting the average sale price. We're seeing a price point of around 426,000, so that's down a little bit, but that's also meaning that buyers have negotiating room, which we haven't seen in over 10 years.

All right, just in time, that wiggle room for the spring market. There is another community here in our viewing area that's also making the cut with this new census data. Sanford. So the accolade on tap for that town will have it coming up head at 6 o'clock. For now we're live in Raleigh, Elena Athens, ABC 11, eyewitness news. All right. Yeah, they're getting creative. You have to, right? Let's build up, not out. Elena, thank you. All right, covering the Carolinas, and we begin with the big vacancies at the North Carolina State Highway Patrol, the agency telling eyewitness news, they are working to fill 285 vacancies. The Highway Patrol says one of the biggest reasons for the large number of

vacancies is that none of people are applying for those jobs. The pay is also a factor as North Carolina ranks 49th in the nation for starting pay for state troopers. And Academy is now underway. The next hiring process for the division opens on May 4th. In South Carolina, Republican Mark Sanford is looking to make a return to Congress. Sanford, a former South Carolina governor, also former congressman, filed candidacy paperwork just hours ahead of the deadline. He plans to run in the Republican primary in June for South Carolina's first district seat, which is, He held twice before. Sanford's political career, you may remember this, was temporarily derailed by a scandal in 2009. He had an extramarital affair. He disappeared to see his lover in Argentina, while his staff told reporters that the governor was hiking the Appalachian Trail. In 2013, Sanford won back his old seat and then went on to serve three terms. He also briefly ran for president in 2020, challenging Donald Trump for the Republican nomination.

It is that time of year again when migratory birds begin their journeys north to their breeding grounds. Most birds, they fly at night using the stars to navigate. From now until May 30th, you are asked to help make their journeys a little bit safer by turning off your non-essential outdoor lights from 11 p.m. until 6 a.m. Most cities like Raleigh, Durham and Carborough will also participate by turning off non-essential lighting at city-owned buildings. All right. Well, if you're headed to the North Carolina Coast, Spring Ferry schedules begin today. NCDOT is expanding service on four of its seven routes, including from Okrakoek to Hatteras, Swan Quarter, and Cedar Island, as well as Southport to Fort Fisher route. You can also find a full schedule on the DOT website. New at 4 o'clock, the Fayetteville Police Department tells eyewitness news. It is investigating an incident that happened at a youth football game over the weekend. The incident has gone viral after a coach allegedly knocked out a referee. This happened at a youth 7-on-7 event at an athletic complex off Ramsey Street. Police say that The suspect left the scene prior to officers arriving there. No word yet about who that person is or any potential charges.

All right. Baseball is back in Wilson with a new team, a $63 million stadium and a big impact. We sit Cindy Beda Wilson as the buzz grows ahead of opening day. Opening day is just two weeks away. April 14th and the first game is already sold out. The city just unveiled its new stadium this past weekend and soon every seat will be filled. The Wilson Warbirds are ready to take flight. Minor League baseball is back in Wilson, and the excitement is building. Oh, I think it's a wonderful opportunity. I think we'll see a lot of growth. The Worley Dogs Hot Dog Shop opened downtown two years ago. Now it's expecting a boost as the inaugural season begins.

Well, it's pretty exciting, you know. It's a very good outlet for us to have more business and to become more well-known. and share our purpose and, you know, provide so much good food to so many people. The warbirds are expected to have a big impact on the community. How the team plans to play a role is ahead on eyewitness news at 530. In Wilson, Cindy Bay, ABC 11 eyewitness news. All right, Cindy, thank you. Well, a Hillside High School grad is a rising star. He was just cast in a new streaming series.

We'll have the details ahead. And the countdown is on. A North Carolina state grad is about to fly to the moon. we are on campus with reaction to this historic mission. And Swifties, did you hear about this? Taylor Swift being sued by a Las Vegas showgirl. We'll tell you why. And as we go to break, here's a live look at the Raleigh Skyline

on this last day of March cruise. The 80s are back. Yes, and we can expect 80s all the way through Easter weekend as well. But Easter itself is going to coincide with the rain chance. We'll talk more about that coming up in your seven-day forecast. All right, new and four a shout out from Durham Public School. to one of their own. Another graduate from the historic Hillside High School is headed back to the small screen. Joshua Suter has been cast as an Andre in the upcoming Netflix series sequel to a different world. That is the Cosby show spin-off about college life that ran from 1987 to 93. Souter also started in the Hulu series All's Fair. So congratulations. Yeah, good job, Joshua. Yes. All right, we are also highlighting an NC State graduate who is about to blast into the history book. We're talking astronaut Christina Cook.

She's among the four-member crew set to return to the moon. The Artemis II mission scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral just before 630 tomorrow night. So here's a live look at the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center. This 10-day journey will travel 685,000 miles around the far side of the moon. It will be the first crew lunar flight in more than 50 years. Dwan Hoggard is on the NC State campus where Wolfpack Pride is high. Well, former NC State alum and physics phenom. Christina Cook is set to put her name in the history books yet again by becoming the first woman in history to fly around the moon.

It's the day before NC State alum, Christina Cook will join her fellow astronauts and do something no woman in history has ever done before. Fly around the moon while traveling farther into space than any other woman. It's amazing. I mean, she's already made history for the longest spaceflight by a woman from her stint on the ISS. I talked with her former physics professor today as we looked at the significance of the Artemis 2.000. launch and the history in the making. The word wow comes to mind. I think it goes back to her just approach to life and she's

just fearless and she is willing to take on any challenge. Wednesday at 6.24 p.m. a four-person crew of astronauts is set to embark from the Kennedy Space Center on a 10-day mission with the goal of exploring future lunar surface missions and possibly

a trip to Mars. She's just that kind of person who wants to push the envelope. North Carolina is proud of You know, she's really set an example of what kids from North Carolina can do. I also had a conversation today with her former undergraduate advisor. He shared with me just how much of an impact she made on the department, but also how much of an impact he had in her life. I had for you at 530 a recommendation letter that he wrote for her back in 1999 that he shared directly with me.

On the campus of NC State University, Duan Hogarth, Ebis 11, IWness News. He wrote back in the 1900s, as the kids say. That's a relic, but that's cool for us to be able to hear that. So cool. Looking forward to it. We'll be watching all of the stuff tomorrow. So tune in. All right, the American Heart Association out with its new diet guidance.

Next at 4 o'clock. Look at the new guidelines. It emphasizes a plant-based diet. An a brazen escape caught on camera. See what happened. Can you believe this woman? She wriggles her way out of this police cruiser's window with handcuffs. And your health check at 4 o'clock.

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Find your advisor at IDPrivatewealth.com. The American Heart Association issued new diet guidance today. It urges Americans to get more protein from plants instead of meat and choose low fat or fat-free dairy. It recommends using olive and soybean oils over butter and beef tallow. The group also points to diets rich in beans and lentils as heart healthy. The AHA says its advice is based on decades of science. The AHA's new guidelines highlights growing disagreements between federal officials and medical groups. earlier this year, the Department of Health and Human Services released new dietary guidelines

featuring an upside down pyramid with meat, cheese, and vegetables at the top. A new vaccine for Lyme disease could become available. Last week, Pfizer said it plans to seek regulatory approval of a new shot it has developed, but vaccines for Lyme disease have had a troubled past. One was approved in 1998. Its manufacturer pulled it from the market just a few years later in 2002 due to soft demand. That was based largely on fears it caused our even though the FDA concluded it did not. Nearly half a million people are diagnosed and treated for Lyme disease in the US each year.

The disease is caused by a bacteria found in ticks. Well, in sports news, the National Football League is launching a professional flag football league for men and women. The league announced a $32 million investment in the league months ago and now big names like Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, and Serena Williams will help lead the effort. League officials say flag football is growing rapidly with more than four million kids now playing nation.

There's no official launch date yet, but the league is expected to begin play before the Los Angeles Olympic Games. The NBA Board of Governors approves the sale of the Portland Trailblazers. Controlling interest goes to an investor group led by Dallas billionaire Tom Dundon. The NBA says the sale, which is valued at about $4.25 billion, should close this week. The estate of the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen owns the team right now. Taylor Swift is being sued over the name of her latest album, The Life of a Showgirl, a performer, in Las Vegas claims she had the showgirl title trademark since 2015 as part of her live shows, writings and content on digital media, and claims Swift's album infringes on her title and can

confuse consumers. So far, Swift has not commented on that lawsuit. Well, now today's tough trending stories and real news. First, a great escape caught on camera in Michigan. This is crazy. You got to watch it. Watch as this handcuffed woman in police custody manages to wiggle her way out of the open window of that car. Watch, the brazen escape plays out on Saturday. She gets out. She doesn't fall on her head. This happened in Muskegon Heights. Robert Williams streamed this live on Facebook. He could be heard commenting behind the camera in shock that nearby officers were oblivious to the escape. The woman is on the lamb. However, that was short-lived. Police tractor down today. She's now back in custody. But wow, that is something else. Not falling. All right.

We'll now to Massachusetts and a pint-sized superhero. Thank you, Super JJ. It's not very often that we have superheroes come into town to help us on a case. Well, that is four-year-old Jackson, JJ White. Stepping in when the city of Marblehead needed him most to defeat the evil villain, Triple Z. JJ has an aggressive brain tumor, but did not let that slow him down. Thanks to his good friends, make a wish he wore his cape and tights to save the day. his mom says that she's always seen him as a superhero.

He's a fighter and he's determined. You can't hold him back. And so just seeing that and letting everyone else see, you know, there's more to his story than just his medical history. Yeah, keep fighting, JJ. Even as he continues with intensive treatment, he is strong and active. And on his good days, his mom says he can be found biking

and riding scooters with his twin brother, Luke. And that is real news. Back to you, Lauren. All right, get ready for all things furry. Riskerd returns to the Durham Convention Center this Thursday through Sunday. It's hosted by local nonprofit, NC Anthro Society. And this annual furry convention will be packed with activities, including gaming events, dance competitions, a night market, and paper discussions. So you might be asking what is a furry? According to B. Whiskerd, furries are people who have a love for animals with human characteristics, also known as anthropomorphic animals.

All right. Welcome to Durham. Welcome to John. Have fun while you're here, right? That's right. Yeah. We're going to have some good weather, I think, so that's the good news. Because when you're in those costumes, we've seen in the point, it gets hot. You don't want it to be too hot.

Yeah, well, it's going to be pretty warm the next two days. Mid-80s, that's kind of more summery, right? For sure. Thankfully, it's not summertime humidity just yet, but the moisture content will be rising over the next few days. And so that's good news as far as fire conditions are concerned. They're still elevated, but more moisture in the air will kind of limit that potential. All right, so tomorrow, the start of April, Mid 80s there, mid 80s into Thursday, low 80s as we go into Friday, but very warm for the foreseeable future.

And today was the start of those 80s. So a live lookout at RDU. It's 82 right now in Raleigh. That's probably going to be your high for the day. 81 in Fayetteville and 79 and Roxburgh at this time. Getting out this evening for walking the dog should be very warm all throughout the evening hours. Tipters even at 10 p.m. still at 70 degrees. And waking up tomorrow, we're going to start near 60 already in the morning.

So a mild start, very warm in the afternoon. Nearing records, I don't think we quite break a record tomorrow, but we will be pretty close to it with those mid 80s in the forecast. And then going forward in time, we should stay pretty warm even as we go into Easter weekend. So Saturday, very warm in the mid 80s. Sunday, we could be near 80 degrees, but there is a chance of some showers, especially for the second half of the day. So just a heads up for that, any of those Easter egg hunts, you might want to do them for the first half of the day, or at least early in the afternoon. afternoon and then we'll see the temperatures fall as a result of that front coming through into the 60s as we go into early next week. All right, Steve joins us now with what's coming up at 5.

Hey Steve. Hi, Cruz. Thanks a lot. Yeah, we'll have the latest on the breaking news in Raleigh coming up at 5 o'clock. The NC State Board of Trustees has signed off on the new basketball coach and it's a homecoming for Justin Ganey who played for the pack. We now know what investigators say sparked a shooting inside a pizza shop in Southern Durham. An employee pulled a gun out of his pocket and he killed someone. Also things are changing in our downtown Raleigh neighborhood. One of the high-rise hotels has been sold along Fayetteville Street. It's getting revamped and it'll become a Weston. And a Wake County middle school student is getting big honors for her artwork highlighting the role of aircraft in

emergency responses when seconds count and lives need to be saved. Lauren I'll see you for the news at five here in just a few minutes. All right I will be here. Steve, thank you. Eyewitness News is celebrating Women's History Month. Coming up next and four, We highlight two women who are turning passion into purpose, opening a nonprofit dance studio, how this is helping girls find their rhythm and their confidence. Here's tonight's ABC Primetime Preview. At 8.7 Central, it's Will Trent. Amanda seeks help from Will and Faith when her gun is used in a self-defense shooting,

and suspicion begins to mount around her. Then at 9-8 Central comes high potential. Morgan and the team are on the hunt for the crew behind a series of elite private vault, only to uncover a potential cyber attack that could cripple the city of Los Angeles. How bad is it? On a scale of one to Godzilla, they've got three major plays. Shut down the power grid, ways in the water, or scramble air traffic. And up next at 10-9 Central is RJ Decker, where RJ unravels the truth about a little

league coach whose family is being mysteriously targeted. That's followed by your late local news, then Jimmy Kim Alive with guests, Zendaya, and Jeff Ross. Thank you.