ABC11 Eyewitness News - Eyewitness News at 5am - February 9, 2026

Episode Date: February 9, 2026

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Right now, live coverage from your local news leader, breaking stories from overnight and this morning, and your first alert forecast. Here's what's happening where you live. This is ABC 11 eyewitness news. Let's get your work week started at 5 a.m. Good morning, Carolina. Welcome on this Monday. It is February the 9th. I'm Joel Brown. And I'm Bianca Holman in for Anna Rivera this morning. Thanks for joining us. You know, Joe, it's a chilly start to this week. But thankfully, while the temperatures are ahead. That's right. Yeah, it's frigid out there this morning. Temperatures are in the teams for now, but we're going to warm up nicely. Matter of fact, tomorrow can be in the mid-60s. And this morning we're following some breaking news out of Harnick County, a driver hospitalized after crashing into a tree. What investigators say led to the wreck. Election season is upon us. Early voting kicks off this week. We'll break down some of the key races happening across our area. The Seahawks, Super Bowl champions for the second time.

And overnight, the Seattle Seahs. Seahawks dominating Drake May and the New England Patriots to become Super Bowl champions all the highlights and the mixed reaction from fans here in the triangle. Seahawks pulled it off. Time for a first check of weather and traffic together. Meteorologist Steve Stewart is here for Quaylin Murphy. Look, first weekend and a couple without any snow, no ice. That does not mean I wanted to go outside though. Oh, yeah. Very, very cold. It was so cold. 33 was all we got yesterday. So no thanks. We're going to start to get a little bit better. but it's frigid out there this morning. One of the colder mornings we've had so far this winter,

some areas getting down close to the single digits. 43, though, later this afternoon. Still cold. We should be at 55, but a far cry from the 33 ahead. Yesterday, 75 and 9 are the records on the state. You see the deficit continuing to grow for the month. For the winter, we've only had three and a half inches of precipitation. That's four inches behind and Fayetteville's behind. Widespread severe drought across the area.

We need to get some rain in here. And the chances are going to be going up as, we get into the weekend late Saturday into Sunday. There's a potential for a good soaking rain. Wednesday there could be a spotty shower. The best bet is going to be probably south and east of the triangle. Meantime, get that car wash today. Probably got a lot of the assault and stuff on the car.

Numbers climbing to the 40s, lots of sunshine as we go throughout your day today. Right now we're looking cold though, 17 out at North Hills. That's about five degrees colder than yesterday with widespread teens. Look at Lewisburg flirting with a single digit. Same thing at Roanoke Rap. It's both at 10. in Fayetteville at 21 degrees this morning. Evening out, going to be chilly, but not as cold. We'll get down to around freezing as we get closer to 10 o'clock in the evening hours.

And please make some plans. Next two days, we'll be in the 60s. More on that coming up in just a few minutes. All right, Steve, thank you. Here goes to look at our traffic map. Still pretty early. No crashes to report. Things are going smoothly right now. Breaking overnight to drivers in the hospital after crashing into a tree in Harnet County. First responders arriving at the scene in Irwin around 1130 last night. The victim's Toyota partially in the roadway with severe damage to the passenger side. The driver was found laying in a nearby ditch, we're told the car lost control on a curve in the road crashing into a tree. The driver was rushed to the hospital.

No word on their condition. All right. Now to your voice, your vote. Early voting starts later this week in North Carolina and several key races already generating plenty of attention for the upcoming primaries. ABC 11's Michael Perchuk, joining us. now alive in Apex where election officials in Wake County will show off their new setups for an early voting site later today. Bianca, good morning. So much of the work to prepare for these elections happened months in advance. That includes training for staffers who are going to be working at the polls, greeting voters who do come out for both early voting and, of course, election day next month.

The Senate race at the top the ticket likely to spur turn up. But there are plenty of down ballot races also expected to be hotly contested. As a result of redistricting in North Carolina, political analysts say in some races, the primary serves as a de facto general election itself, with a candidate who advances entering November as an extreme favor to win the seat. Recently, Republicans surpassed Democrats in statewide voter registration for the first time, but unaffiliated voters remain the largest voting block, and they are able to choose to participate which primary they want to vote in.

Now, on your screen, a couple important dates for you to make note of, including the start of early voting on Thursday, and the absentee ballot request deadline of Tuesday, February 17. It's now early voting, a great option for flexibility, and that could be important as we do see that turnout tick up closer we get to election day. In 2022, we said the highest turnout for a primary during a midterm in 20 years. I'm Michael Perchick, ABC 11, eyewitness news. All right, Michael, thank you. And here's a look at the seven early voting sites in and around Cumberland County.

It's important to note voters will only have one Sunday to vote early in Cumberland. County. That's February 15th from 2 to 5 p.m. No early voting sites will be open Saturday and Sunday, February 21st and 22nd. The future of Raleigh's historic Liggin Magnet Middle School is still up in the air and now the public getting a new opportunity to weigh in on the debate. The school district is holding another community meeting today on the renovations to the once all black school. Cindy Bay live at Liggin Middle this morning taking a closer look at the discussion. Cindy, good morning. Good morning, Joel. Well, Liggin is back in the spotlight as the district considers ways to transform the school. Liggin was opened in the 1950s as an all-black high school and was eventually integrated and later turned into a middle school. In 2025, it's been targeted for renovation with the older building deemed not suitable for students. And so the district already slated about $140 million to renovate. But three options remain, including whether to tear down the building. and build rebuild on site or stay within the existing structure.

Some community members say the school is worth preserving and currently according to the timeline the district is continuing to gather community feedback and so that brings us here the district is aiming to complete construction in the 2029 2030 school year and so I'll have more on the time frame and what to expect ahead on eye witness news back to you. All right we'll see you soon Cindy thank you now to Super Bowl 60 and the Seattle Superhawks, Seattle Superhawks, the Seattle Seahawks dominating the New England Patriots last night, winning 29 to 13. It was the first time in 11 years the Seahawks made it to the Super Bowl.

Quarterback Sam Darnold found a new home in Seattle after his bounce back season last year with the Vikings. And despite many tries, the Patriots led by 23-year-old former UNC quarterback Drake May could not keep up with Seattle's defense. It's hurt. No, no doubt. You know, it definitely hurts. Just came up short, didn't play our best, and that's what happens. This is the second Super Bowl win for the Seattle Seahawks coming up later in our 7 a.m. streaming hour will have a full breakdown of all the highlights from the game. And back here at home, hundreds of fans gathered at Brickhouse and Raleigh for the official North Carolina Patriots fans watch party. Although the team lost, they say they're excited about the future.

Some said that they are excited to see former UNC player Drake May lead the team to the big game, becoming the second youngest quarterback to start in a Super Bowl. Until eyewitness news, they're excited to see what the Tar Hill can bring to the franchise moving forward. I mean, good Lord, he's only 23 years old, and look at what he's doing. I mean, I love the fact that he's a North Carolanian boy, and he have that connection, but more so I just appreciate just the type of player he is and just how he's handling everything. A lot of pressure. Well, despite the disappointment, the group says their numbers have grown over the years with many transplants from up north moving to our state. Patriot fans well represented and saying with a UNC alum at the helm, it makes the event even more special for him.

It was also an historic night for Bad Bunny making history as the first Spanish language halftime show performer. The 31-year-old transforming the Super Bowl field into a Puerto Rican neighborhood. surprising the audience with special guests, Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin. I know. It was a good. It was a good. It was a really good. It was a good show. It was had some historical things in there, the sugar cane fields and even the power line workers because, you know, Puerto Rico struggles with the power. It got deep, you guys. Okay, we're not going to go into. It got, it got a little deep. I tuned in for the show. All right. And are I on the economy. President Trump accepting ownership of the current economy saying he's very proud of it.

And our 7 a.m. streaming hour, a new poll reveals what Americans think about the job Trump is doing. Steve. All right, it is cold out there this morning. Kind of scared to show you these numbers. Look at that teens. Fayetteville, the warm spot of 21, only 13 in Roxborough, but it gets better. Details after the break. With MX Platinum, almost every purchase made with your card can be covered with points, including new tastes, new fits. and virtually everything in between. That's the powerful backing of Amex. Conditions apply.

This is First Alert weather from ABC 11 I Witness News. Good morning, everyone. Look how cold. It is North Hills at 17 right now. It's a good 5 degrees colder than yesterday. Thank goodness, not much of a breeze out there. The wind show would be really bad. Lewisburg's 10 this morning. 12 in Oxford, 10 in Roxburgh and Roanoke Rapids as well.

19 and Irwin and Fayetteville at 21. pretty darn cold out there to get our day started. If you're out later on this evening, look west, you'll see Jupiter in the night sky. And just to the left of that, you'll see the bright stars serious. Good travel day, not much weather going on. Look at Dallas in the 80s, Denver's near 70, and the Pacific Northwest gets some rain and mountain snow. Got you seven day coming up in a few minutes, Bianco. All right, Steve, thank you.

All right now you can keep children warm in the triangle. Welcome, Baby. A family resource program in Durham is an urgent need of winter clothing for local families. Organizers say they need some pants, jeans and long-sleeved shirts. Those are the top of the list, including boy and girl sizes, 2T through 5T. You can drop off your donations at Welcome Baby on Foster Street. U.S. News and World Report is out with its new list of the most desirable counties in America. And out of the top 10, six of the counties are in the Carolinas.

Topping the list is Brunswick County on the North Carolina coast. And I'm sure our beach is there could be the reason why it's the most desirable county in the country. County, South Carolina is number two. The beaches alone in the Myrtle Beach area making it a hot spot. Kataba County near Charlotte, Greenville County, South Carolina, Dorchester County, South Carolina, and Gaston County, North Carolina also making the top 10. Carolina's very well represented. Way County, we need to get some beaches or something. Yeah. We got a lot. It doesn't work to do. Five-13 is the time this morning, a breakdown of all those Super Bowl commercials. Straight ahead. We'll take a look at last night's hits and some of those misses.

The time now 516. For the first time, a spot during last night's game topped eight figures. And considering some of the big celebrities in those ads, it actually, the actual cost was probably much higher. So here's ABC's Danny New to break down how that money was spit. With around 130 million people watching, Jen Spark, give me the day off. Super Bowl advertisers competed Sunday night for an evening with a rare opportunity. This is one event where you can get them to watch this. the commercials. There's no skip ad button. For insight, I spoke with marketing consultant Alan

Adamson, who entered this field about three decades ago. Long before 30-second commercials were creeping over the reported $10 million mark we saw this year. Overall, Alan says there were two main industries dominating the brakes this year, AI, and as you just saw tennis great Serena Williams vouching for, weight loss medications. And when it comes to the latter, The benefit of those is a product who really does work and makes people's lives different. So you may not need to do much explaining. Isn't that your girlfriend? Of course, there were many commercials with more than one celebrity.

This Duncan Goodwill Hunting Spoof featured Ben Affleck, Tom Brady, and I think one million actors from 90s sitcoms. Yes, Wi-Fi finds a way. And how about some more 90s? X-Finity united the cast of Jurassic Park simply by fixing the island's internet. Mostly these ads are entertaining, but there's a little bit. old ad phrase that was many years ago, it ain't creative unless it sells. Please, please. Meanwhile, the New York Times ranked this Squarespace ad as the number one commercial of the night,

as actress Emma Stone continually smashes laptops when she sees that Emmastone.com is already taken. If you need to attract people that really want to get the Danny New brand, and they're concerned that it's going to be taken by Danny Old, you better pay attention to Emma. I'll be right back. Alan also noted that to him there appeared to be fewer automobile commercials, and he remembered in previous years, but we did have one from our parent company Disney, where Baby Yoda is pulled by a group of Tonton,

so that's transportation. In New York for ABC News, I'm Danny Neu. Is Biancahomond.com taken? No, actually, I have my domain. Oh, okay, good, of course. She doesn't have them kind of Emma Stone problems. Those are normal people problems to pay that a long time ago. Steve Stewart.com, how are you?

I'm doing good and that one guaranteed is wide open. I'll tell you that. Listen, it is cold out there this morning. If you're getting out early this morning, really bundle up. We've got temperatures in the teens, in some cases flirting with a single digit. So after the fridge it started, be a little bit warmer than yesterday. I mean, it was only 33 at RTEU yesterday. We'll be about 10 degrees warmer than that. But make some plans the next two days. We're talking nice warmth. Mid-60s tomorrow and similar as we get into Wednesday, although Wednesday features more clouds and maybe a spotty, light shower, especially in the sandals. But a soaking rain is looking more likely, but the timing has changed. It looks to be later and later now. It's getting a little slower. This is likely going to be Saturday night into Sunday. And there might even be a little thunder on Sunday as well. We need it, though. You look at the reservoir levels way below full pool. You can see the banks there on all of our lakes. So we need to get some soaking rain in here and Sunday will help. 20 is around 8 o'clock this morning, but teens right now getting up above freezing by 11 o'clock in the morning. It has been a long. long stretch of very cold temperatures. Last 15 days, they've all been below average and some significantly below. So the next two are going to feel really nice. And then we'll see temperatures coming down to near 50 to finish the work week. And then our rain chance is really going to ramp up as we head later into the weekend. 17 right now. It is cold out there. It's five degrees colder than yesterday with a few areas flirting with single digits right now. It's really cold. This is not a windshield. This is actual temperatures. A little bit better in the sand hills closer to 20 degrees there. 65 on our Tuesday bright pleasant temperatures in those mid 60s. We'll see some clouds and maybe a spotty shower. The best bet is going to be in the sand hills as that front settles in. Cooler weather will eventually get here Thursday and a Friday, but a couple days in the 60s. Something to look forward to. Mainly 40s today from low 40s north to mid 40s in the sandhills. A few afternoon clouds. Clear but not nearly as cold tonight. Instead of teens, we're back to the 20s, sitting here 30 degrees. First of the 7 day,

Then looks like tomorrow is going to be the pick day of the week, mid-60s, lots of sunshine, Wednesday and more clouds. There could be a spotty shower, mainly in the sand hills, partly sunny on Thursday, Friday, sun and clouds in 50. And then for now, I think daytime could be dry. But as we get after sunset, the rain chances ramping up on Valentine's Day and a good soaking rain comes into play on Sunday. Steve, thank you. Let's take a look at the real-time traffic map at this hour. Good news. It is completely clear.

Now, zero. 521 is the time and plenty of people went to the movies. Yeah, because it was warm inside there. Well, sometimes it's cold. They brought blankets. We'll break down the top five films and theaters. And you can now catch up with breaking news and the latest headlines with the ABC 11 eyewitness news podcast.

Listen to any time, anywhere, any place. Just follow ABC 11 eyewitness news, wherever you get your podcast. We'll be right back. ABC 11 first alert weather on eyewitness news every day. 524 is the time in the big game has come and gone, but the ad suggests AI is here to stay. Here's ABC's Hannah Batah with this morning's TechBites.

In today's TechBites, AI ads stealing the spotlight at the Super Bowl, Amazon tapped Chris Hemsworth to let his imagination run wild with Alexa Plus. Meta showing off its Oakley-branded AI glasses with the help of Spike Leap, And they were shaking their bots off in an AI-generated ad for Svedka. New York State has introduced a bill to halt the development of data centers for three years. Supporters of the legislation want more time to assess the impact and update regulations. AI data centers have been blamed for driving up household electricity rates. Five other states have similar bills.

And AT&T has launched its own phone for kids. The Amigo Jr. is a Samsung smartphone that allows for the use of parental controls via an app. That means mom and dad can change settings and set screen time limits on their kids' phones. Those are your tech bites. I'm Hannah Beto. Have a great day. All right, let's take a look at the weekend box office. Dracula debuted in fifth place, grossing $4.5.5 million. Straight kids, the Dominate Experience, made $5.6 million, opening at number four. Iron Lung took third place with $6.7 million. Solo Mio, about an American. left at the altar in Rome earned $7.2 million to debut in second place.

The horror comedy sent help took in $10 million to keep the weekend crowns. Okay, check out a couple of movies. There you go. I've got some choices. All right, with awards season and full swing, some of the hottest stars in Hollywood gathered. And Beverly here is for the AFCO Awards. The African American Film Critics Association hosting its 17th annual award ceremony on Sunday honoring a diverse slate of impactful films and storytellers. Among the honorees was Wooni Mosaku for her

performance and sinners. Abbott Elementary star Cheryl Lee Ralph was there to present her of the award. Some people perform. Some people just are. I was like, whoa, Ryan Kubler, you are amazing for finding Woonie and bringing her to all of us. I feel like our film is for everyone, And I love that people feel seeing her depreciated and valued when they see our movie. People seeing themselves on screen really matters. And it can't just be one homogenous story we're trying to tell. Yeah, this year, Sinners broke a record with 16 Oscar nominations. And you can tune in to the Oscars on Sunday, March 15th.

You can see it right here on ABC and Hulu. I did not know the name Woonie Mosaku. before I saw sinners, but I know it now. Exactly. She was so good. She is great. 527 is the time, and it is a chilly start to the week, but milder temperatures are ahead. But how soon can we expect this warm up? I hope it's very soon. So meteorologist Steve Stewart has your forecast in the next half hour.