ABC11 Eyewitness News - Eyewitness News at 5am - January 7, 2026

Episode Date: January 7, 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. Good morning, Carolina. Welcome on this January 7th. I'm Sean Coffey and today for Joel Brown. And I'm Anna Rivera. Thanks so much for joining us today. This morning, we are following breaking news out of Cumberland County. A pedestrian is killed after being hit by a car in Fayetteville. ahead everything we know about the crash and a mild start this morning even warmer this afternoon but we're also tracking potential for some morning fog i'll have more in that my forecast this morning teachers at several schools are

holding walkouts across north carolina including right here in the triangle what they are demanding from state leaders but it is time for a first check of weather and traffic together meterologist quailan murphy joining us quail and we're talking about some 70 degree Yeah, bring it on. Love it. I know. Some shoulders take and run this way. Near record highs this afternoon.

The record is 75, so we'll top out around 70 degrees at RDU. This morning, partly cloudy skies, not too chilly. Temperatures 40s and around 50 degrees will be at sunny skies this afternoon with that temperature around 70 degrees. Not much fog showing up right now around downtown Raleigh. We have partly cloudy conditions right now, 48 degrees. Winds are, though, from the southwest at 6. You can see that warm up at 6 plus degrees. right now. But the dew points are in the upper 40s, so the moisture content is increasing right

now. So temperatures mid-40s to the low and mid-50s out the door, 54 in Fayetteville, Durham 48 Chapel Hill 45-43 in Oxford. There's the big change from yesterday, but also tracking some fog dense around Sanford. You're now down to zero miles at times down to a quarter mile for Irwin and Smithfield and Roxburgh, Oxford, two and a half miles. So we do have some pockets of fog travel with care this morning. Partly cloudy on the skies right now, but until late morning, early afternoon. you should expect more sunshine and a really nice evening two temperatures will be in the 50s by around eight o'clock this evening we do introduce some spotty rainfall not so much on Friday but definitely on Saturday but ahead of that we're watching a big warming trend more near record highs into the weekend now have more on that my full forecast Anna back to you okay quailan thank you and here in the breaking news center we are following a deadly crash in Fayetteville officers responding to the seam sometime sometime before three o'clock this morning in Gillespie street and west mountain our breaking news crew says a pedestrian was hit and killed by a driver and a Dodge Durango. So far, no word on any arrests.

We will keep you updated as we learn more. Otherwise, things looking pretty good on the traffic map so far. You can see a little bit of that orangey yellow color, which is that fog that Kowlan was talking about. So just keep that in mind if you're heading out this morning. But crash count's still sitting at zero. Let's take a live look at 40 in Airport Boulevard, where traffic is moving nicely and still fairly light.

This morning, Raleigh police are searching for two men after a driver got away during an attempted traffic stop. Police identifying the suspects as 21-year-old Jose Colado and 19-year-old Norville Young. These are pictures of the two men from previous arrests. Police say the incident started yesterday when officers were attempting to stop a white Honda driven by Young as it was driving recklessly near New Bern Avenue. As they approached the vehicle, police say the passenger, now identified as Collado, jumped out, started running, and in the process dropped a gun causing it to discharge.

He then ran off into the woods. During the search, Young backed up the car and sped away. Young faces a charge of felony fleeing to elude arrest. Colato faces several charges, including possession of a weapon of mass destruction, possession of a firearm by a felon, and resisting delaying or obstructing an officer. Happening this morning, teachers at 52 schools across the state, including Wake County, are planning to walk out of the classroom, protesting for better working conditions. Bianca Holman, live at one of those walkout locations.

Good morning, Bianca. Hey, good morning, you guys. So we are right here near the North Carolina State University. a bell tower. This is going to be one of those walkout sites. But this comes as the education law center recently ranked North Carolina near the bottom of funding for public education. And so this is truly a grassroots effort. The group really wants lawmakers to put public education first and invest more into education across the state. And so the group is called North Carolina Teachers in Action. And these are some of their demands. They first, they want to the restoration

of longevity and master's pay, eliminating the 15 to 24 year pay freeze and support a livable wage, cap employee premium increases as far as health care, restore retire health care benefits for retired teachers, fully funding of the Leandro plan, and we spoke with

two of the organizers. They tell us what happens in the classroom impacts everyone, and they believe everyone should care. I would be hard-pressed to find a parent that wouldn't want to give their child everything. Your child, hopefully, is in public school. Why wouldn't you want to give your child everything?

And so we've reached out to Wake County to see if they were aware of these walkouts. They say, as far as yesterday, when they got back to us, they do not expect any disruption to the school schedule. Now, these walkouts are scheduled for 745, and the group tells, us that they plan to do these walkouts the seventh of every month leading up until April 7th when the gym adrenal assembly will meet again back to you and these are concerns we have heard before bianca holman on top of it for us thanks bianca eyewitness news has learned the raleigh convention center plans to soon host events again after last month's two alarm fire tamar

tamar scott joining us live outside the convention center with an update on the work underway good morning tamar hey good morning shani yeah things are looking up for the convention center as they plan to host events by the end of the month here as they finish up the recovery. The executive director says they're expecting to get an occupancy permit either today or tomorrow, and this will allow for them to host a volleyball tournament during Martin Luther King weekend and for the downtown Raleigh home show to move forward at the end of the month. Now today, repairs will begin for the administrative office and a crane will be coming by next Friday to remove the damaged equipment from the roof. Meantime, a mobile kitchen is being installed

at the Red Hat Amphitheater as a temporary fix for upcoming events this month. This is a relief for downtown businesses who say they already saw a financial hit the last month with the center being out for being out of commission all the events to come back everything to come back that's what keeps Favill Street alive we definitely saw a downtick from previous years where it was open and so the Raleigh City Council is also moving forward with the recovery they're expanding the authority of the city manager to approve of repairs for over $500,000 back to you okay Tamara thank you and now to the Raleigh

City Council holding a public hearing focused on a rezoning request from Kane Realty that would allow for taller buildings to go up near North Hills. Last night, several people shared their thoughts about the proposal during the hearing, including people who support the idea and some who strongly are against it. I have sympathy for folks who live right on the front line of that growth. I live really close to downtown south. I am experiencing that as well. I think that if you are worried about traffic, then you should be pro-density. If you're worried about traffic you should be pro-transit and the reality is six forks road has not been addressed the traffic is already projected to be way overloaded and adding three thousand three

million square feet of additional mixed-use space which would be a combination of businesses people going in and out and plus residents there is no way that the area is is going to be able to absorb it. The city council voted to continue the North Hills rezoning conversation at their January 20th meeting. Meantime, the director of development at Kane Realty said in a statement to eyewitness news, quote, this rezoning request isn't about building more. It's about building better. The request does not propose any increase in density or traffic beyond what is already allowed today.

This morning, President Trump, eyeing military intervention in other parts of the world following that strike on Venezuela, which country the president has his sights on next. It's been one year since the historic wildfires in Southern California burned down thousands of homes forever changing the landscape. We'll take a look at the progress happening there. Good morning, Clay. Good morning. You may need some extra time. This is the view from RDU. You see the fog out there. Visibilities are low around the triangle area, south and west as well. We're warmer this morning, though 48 degrees right now with Heistner's 70 this afternoon. Change is coming. I'll have more on that my forecast.

Welcome back coming up on 511 on this Wednesday morning. A live look from. carry no major fog issues here but we do have some dense fog around many locations from smithfield into johnston county to irwin sanford siler city down to zero now we've been seeing that fluctuation north of the triangle two and around the airport we're seeing some fog with that fog creeping now into parts of fuque and holly springs partly cloudy conditions right now more sun by the afternoon warming up to around 70 in the sandhills and the triangle mid 60s north today nice evening temperatures grow from around 60 at 6 into the upper 50s at 7. We do have some rainfall on the way into the weekend.

I'll have more in that my seven-day forecast. Anna, back to you. Quailan, thank you. So it might not feel like winter this week, but we know we are not done with the cold just yet. Yeah, we're asking you to join us for this weekend. For an eyewitness news special, your first alert to winter.

We're breaking down what to expect for the rest of the winter months, plus how the changing temperatures can take a toll on your body and how the state's largest school district decides on a snow day or school day. You can join the first alert weather team this Saturday at 7 p.m. right here on eyewitness news. And this week is the final week to donate to the 13th annual Welcome Baby Coat Drive. Friday is the last day you can drop off gently used and new children's coats to the locations right there on your screen. The coats will be distributed to welcome baby families during their weekly giving closet event.

This year's goal is to collect more than 1,400 coats for Durham County Youth breaking last year's record. Make sure you stick around for Good Morning America. Ahead at 7, the proposal gone wrong, and the hero who saved the day for one happy couple, they are sharing their unforgettable. story. Watch Amber Rupenta. Today on ABC 11, I Witness News. This morning, as questions mount about the future of Venezuela, a source tells ABC news the U.S. has set two conditions the interim government must meet.

Those are cut economic ties with Russia, China, and Iran, and partner exclusively with the U.S. in oil production. President Trump announcing Venezuela will turn over 30 to 50 million barrels of sanctioned oil as he extends his demands. The president vows the oil will be sold at market rate to, quote, benefit the people of Venezuela and the United States as he steers some focus to his renewed threat to take over Greenland, a territory that is part of Denmark, a NATO ally.

We need Greenland from a national security situation. It's so strategic. Right now, Greenland is covered with Russian and Chinese ships all over the place. The White House has floated using the U.S. military drawn. condemnation from major European powers, several world leaders, and concern from some members of Congress. One of the most notorious spies in U.S. history has died at the age of 84. The U.S. Bureau of Prisons says Aldrich Ames died in custody on Monday. A Maryland medical examiner will determine the cause of death. The former CIA case officer was arrested by the FBI in 1994 and sentenced to life in prison for espionage

against the U.S. He was responsible for the arrest and eventual execution of numerous Soviet Russian officials secretly working on behalf of the U.S. intelligence community as double agents. The eldest son of former president Ronald Reagan has died. Michael Reagan passed away on Sunday after a battle with cancer. His father's presidential foundation and institute announced the death in a social media post. Michael Reagan was 80 years old. He worked to carry on his father's conservative legacy that included serving as chairman and president of the Reagan Legacy Foundation. He was also a commentator and radio host. Reagan leaves behind his wife and two children. In morning, there are signs of progress in Southern California after the costliest wildfires in U.S. history.

One year ago today, the Eaton Fire in Altadena and the Palisades Fire in Los Angeles destroyed thousands of homes and took 31 lives. One man has been charged with sparking the Palisades fire, which started as another fire days before. Across the region, only a fraction of homes have begun to be rebuilt, a process described as complex and exhausting. L.A.'s mayor says she's inspired by the pace of rebuilding and says more than 400 homes are in. now under construction. All right, let's take a live look outside. Here's a view of downtown Raleigh from our Pendo Sky Cam at 301 Hillsborough Street. Nice morning here. We have some fog in the area as well. But Kuelan, we are talking about some really warm temperatures. Yeah, and I think what people will appreciate this morning is it's not as cold right now. Temperatures

It was so nice when I walked out. I know, 40s and 50s. They're really mild the afternoon. Right around 70 degrees. We may climb just north of that this afternoon. And that's about 20 degrees above average mid-60s tomorrow back to the 70s Friday and Saturday and then by the second half of your weekend into early next week we're cooling back down 40s by Monday we do have a shot at some showers on Saturday into early Sunday but the weekend overall shouldn't be a washout as the next timing of that front will push that rainfall through we do have some fog out there could be more impactful for those of you heading out very soon especially south and west of the triangle even north of I85 we're seeing some bigger impacts with some dense fog likely until around

9 o'clock this morning. So keep that in mind early on. After that, though, really nice day ahead. Here's a live look downtown. We have partly to mainly cloudy skies right now. We're at 48 degrees warmer than yesterday between 5 and 15 degrees warmer. Overall, we're looking at temperatures in the low 50s in Goldsboro. 50 Rocky Mountain Wilson, 46 Roanoke Rapids and Durham 48. Fayetteville, you're at 54, 50 in South Hill, Rocksboro, 43 degrees. And the winds coming in generally west, southwest this morning. They're pretty light, but we'll have a breeze by the afternoon. Notice by the afternoon. Notice by. by late tonight. We'll get a shift from the north. That's the front that's going to work through later tonight. So again, some clouds in play now. We'll see some clearing by the afternoon. Here's that front that's going to track through later tonight. No rainfall with it, but it does bring more clouds into Thursday and also cools us down into the mid-60s, although that's still about 10 to 15 degrees above average. And then we'll see temperatures climbing again because that front lifts back as a warm front. So that's going to help bring back that southerly flow. So Friday, we're back to the 70s. And the moisture starts building around the Gulf Coast areas off to our west. That arrives. So the weekend, which is why the rain chances are heading up. And we of course need the rainfall because we have a deficit not only for this month, but also back towards September. So our drought conditions continue here at home. Highs today, upper 60s, low 70s, above average by almost 20 degrees. Tonight we will be chillier behind the front. So tomorrow morning, first alert, you'll need temperatures. You'll need the heavier coat. We'll be in the mid 30s to around the low 40s in the triangle in north tomorrow morning. And around the mid 40s in Fayetteville, Clinton, the San Hills area is 43 in Rayford tomorrow morning. Here's that first of the 7 day forecast 40 degrees tonight back to around 65 tomorrow with more clouds around but still warmer than average mid 40s Thursday night into Friday morning we're back to 71 Friday afternoon and mainly cloudy Sunday we're looking at temperatures back into the 50s once those showers move through and that front passes and Sunday night we're back down into the upper 20s so it's going to be a colder start to early next week Monday Sunday with a high temperature only in the upper 40s 20s again Monday night and then Tuesday the high temperature near 53 which is average for this. time of the year under mainly cloudy skies. Web and traffic together. Anna, back to you. Quailan, overall picture still looking good. Of course, we do have those foggy spots that you were talking about, so just keep that in mind if you are going to be north of the triangle or even south of the triangle this morning. Let's take a live look outside because we do have a serious crash

already. It's at 440 and Sunnybrook Road. It's near the ramp. You can see they are blocking one lane as the first responders arrive on scene. It looks like there's a white car that's off to the side, kind of up that embankment just a little bit. We do have an ambulance on scene and a fire truck on scene as well. We are working to get some details on this. As soon as we have more information, we'll definitely let you know. But for now, that area may be a little bit slow down to one lane. Lenovo reveals a new concept that could be an ideal gaming laptop. We'll break down the futuristic designs and its features that is straight ahead in Techbytes. And you can now catch up with breaking news and the latest headlines with ABC 11 eyewitness news podcast.

Listen anytime or anywhere. Just follow ABC 11 eyewitness news. you get your podcasts. We'll be right back. Watch Don Schweniger. Tonight on ABC 11, I Witness News. Lenovo is showing off a new concept laptop at CES, and it has a pretty impressive party trick. Here's ABC Sophie Flea with this morning's Techbytes. And today's TechBites, Lenovo's expanding laptop for gamers. The Legion Pro Rollable is only a concept computer for now.

Its 16-inch green expands to nearly 24 inches with the press of a button. No word yet if Lenovo plans to mass-produce it. A new high-tech manicure will let you switch up the look of your nails in a matter of seconds. Eye polish is rolling out press-on acrylic nails that change colors with a touch of a tiny charging wand, with 400 shades to choose from. The nail sets will cost $95. And finally, just unveiled a landline-inspired phone for kids. It looks just like the classic kitchen wall phone, but works over Wi-Fi.

The company behind it is named Pinwheel. Says it's for parents looking for a screen-free alternative to smartphones. Price tag, $99. Those are your TechBites. I'm Sophie Flight. Have a great day. Today on Tamarin Hall, she sits down in an exclusive interview with the couple currently at the center of one of the biggest viral stories of the new year.

Mega church pastors Jamal and Carrie Bryant are speaking out in their first television interview about the dress she wore that garnered. attention, not seen since Jay-Lo's famous Grammy dress. It did, however, stand out to me that there were religious leaders who used their platforms to say things that I just, I truly was confused by it. We talk about grace. We talk about understanding. There was at least one bishop who said that you, and I'm paraphrasing here, because it's

actually really hard to even say, but implied that you were treating. treating her like a prostitute, essentially is what he said. Yeah, it was very painful. I don't use my platform to preach against other preachers when there's so much that's going on in the world. What they have to say to those who think the dress was inappropriate for the church's first lady to wear, plus they're sharing the habits they say change their marriage for the better.

You can watch Tamron Hall weekdays at 2 p.m. right here on ABC 11. The city of Raleigh receives new funding to address storm flooding behind Crabtree Valley We'll break down what we know about the sewer improvement project and when construction is set to begin. And North Carolina Supreme Court Justice Anita Earls reveals her breast cancer diagnosis. The latest on her health battle straight ahead. Thank you.