ABC11 Eyewitness News - Eyewitness News at 6pm - March 29, 2026

Episode Date: March 29, 2026

Eyewitness News at 6pm - March 29, 2026 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Right now, live coverage from your local news leader, investigating new information tonight, and your first alert forecast. Here's what's happening where you live. This is ABC 11 eyewitness news. Well, right now at 6th, we are following two big breaking stories for you this half hour tonight. First, UNC is putting a pause on discussions about the proposal to relocate the Dean Smith Center as they search for their next men's head basketball coach. and dry conditions and strong winds leading to a massive woods fire in Moore County right now here Fort Bragg. You are watching eyewitness news at 6 tonight. I'm Dwan Hoggard. Thank you so much for joining us on this Sunday evening. Now that fire in Moore County comes as the entire state, as you see here, remains under a burn ban,

a statewide burn ban because of dangerous fire conditions. Dry conditions and strong winds leading to multiple wildfires across the state. I want to go ahead and walk you through what we know so far about that fire in Moore County at this half hour. According to Pine Bluff Fire Rescue, it is Highway 211 near Carolina Road just east of Aberdeen. About 15 acres are burned. We're working to learn how much that fire has been contained. Several agencies have responded to that fire, and it's unclear tonight if the fire is threatening any structures. And on that note, we do want to talk about this a little bit more in depth with meteorologist Cruz Medina.

Now, Cruz, we know that these dry conditions played a role in these wildfires. We're seeing pop up right there behind you. What can we expect, at least in terms of rain? Any help that they can get? Yeah, we might see some rain through the middle and end of the week. But as far as right now, it's very dry outside. We continue to see severe drought conditions across the state. And in some cases, even extreme drought conditions.

If you're watching from areas like Wilson, Nashville, Edgecombe County, you are included in those extreme drought conditions. But we know that the gusty winds, along with low relative humidity. So that's dry air. That could cause additional wildfires to spread. So like Dewan was saying, that state burn ban remains in effect indefinitely. And so any open outdoor burning is not advised at this time. So over the next three days, we are going to see the temperatures rise.

And with the temperature rising, we will also see the humidity rising as well. So as it turns a bit more muggy, that should help to kind of lessen the chance of wildfire starting going forward. But that burn ban will still remain in effect. Now you can see by the time we get into April 1st, which is Wednesday, that's where we have our next storm. It's just an isolated storm chance during the evening. But as far as widespread rain, we might not see any of that until Easter Sunday for the second half of that day. Now, no rain to affect your evening plans tonight. If you're heading out to walk the dog soon, it's still somewhat mild outside.

Tipters will fall into the 50s pretty quickly though. So if you're going, I'd say even in the next two hours, you might even want a light jacket with you. And you might want one stepping out the door tomorrow, but tipters won't be as cold as they were to start the day today. So we're only going down into the 40s tonight, close to 50 degrees. and Raleigh to start the day tomorrow. And then for the afternoon, it'll be much warmer than anything we've seen throughout this weekend. So the temperatures are going to go all the way into the low and middle 70s throughout the day tomorrow. We're going to turn that up a notch.

Obviously, jump against those 80s through the middle of the week. We'll talk about how long that sticks around coming up in your seven-day forecast. Duwant. All right, Cruz, we'll see you again in a couple of minutes. But now let's go ahead and get to the other breaking story for you this evening. UNT Chapel Hill telling eyewitness news. They are pausing discussions about the proposal to relocate the Dean Smith Center as the Tar Hill are currently in the search for a new men's head basketball coach.

Kate Roderson live here in studio with us tonight on more on this decision. What a week it's been, right? Dewan, just when you think things might take a chance to settle the complete opposite, the University of North Carolina has had a place to play men's basketball since 1986. That's how long they've called the Dean Dome Home. But right now, they don't have anybody to coach their team after firing Hubert Davis on Tuesday night. In a statement sent to ABC 11, Carolina Athletic says, quote, The University of North Carolina is suspending the ongoing discussions about the future of the Smith Center in order to focus on identifying and selecting the new men's basketball coach.

Our meeting will resume after the new head coach has had time to acclimate to the program and focus on future needs. End quote. The university fired Davis after the Targills were eliminated in the first round of the NCAA tournament for the second consecutive season. Davis led Carolina to the national title game in 2022, but didn't deliver consistent championships or won seeds like program stakeholders. that hope for. UNC is chasing some of college basketball's biggest name in their search for their next head coach. The transfer portal opens on April 7th, so when it comes to finding someone to lead their

program to one, UNC has to act quick. Yeah, and quick is something that they need to do expeditiously because, look, this transfer portal is it's opening up pretty soon. One week away. Thanks, Kate. All right, it's also a big day for our local college basketball team. The other one that is, Duke, Women, and the Men also playing today in the NCAA tournament. Unfortunately, the Duke women, their season came to a close in Sacramento after they lost to UCLA this afternoon.

70 to 58 was her final score in that contest. The Blue Devils led by as many as 10 points in the first half. UCLA responding in the third quarter going on an 11-2 run and never turning back from there. The one-seeded Bruins advanced to the final four in Phoenix. Meanwhile, the Duke men's team, they are taking on Yukon as we speak, hoping to reach the final four. and that game is at the break right now. So we have team coverage for you tonight. Tom George is in Durham talking with excited fans

as they cheer on the Blue Devils. But first let's go ahead and start things off with Trayvon Miles. You're there at Capital One Arena at the half. You have to like what you see, what Duke is putting there on the court against a pretty strong Yukon team. Trey. Yeah, DeWan, I just walked out of the arena sitting on Press Row.

Unbelievable performance by Duke so far in the first half. They have a 15-point lead on Yukon, 44 to 29 is the current score. On offense, things are going great for this team. Caden Boozer has 13 points. He's 4 for 4 from the field. He has not missed a shot. His twin brother, also not bad. 14 points for Camboozer on 4 of 11 shooting. He also has five rebounds. Duke getting it done with a lot of different players so far. One, two, three, four, five, six players have already scored for this Duke team. On defense and on the other side of the ball, they are doing good, a great job limiting Yukon and what they like to do.

They like to run a lot of flare screens. They like to shoot a lot of threes. They are currently one for 11 from the three point line is Yukon. And their star player, Alex Caraband, is 0 for 3 from three point range. He has zero points in 18 minutes. So Duke doing the job on him. Of course, I know it's going to be a long second half. This Yukon team is a tough team.

and Dan Hurley's a tough coach. I know they will make a run in the second half, but so far Duke Cruze, and as you said, you really got to love what you see. We'll have to see if they got it in it for 20 final minutes to punch their ticket to Indianapolis, DeWan. Yeah, Tray, nothing's final until everything gets final. So I know Yukon, they're going to come out strong for the second half,

so hopefully those Duke guys don't let up. No complacency there in the second half. They can advance to the Final Four. Again, thanks so much. We'll see you later tonight. Meanwhile, Duke fans here at home are cheering on their team. Tom George live in Durham and this evening talking with some of those excited fans. Tom, look, I see some of those folks there behind you.

I know that they want to see a men's blue devil win tonight. Yeah, they're excited here. A little sigh of relief at the half. As you said, nothing's final till it's final, but good to be up by 15 if you're Duke. So they got some. So they're excited, and we got a Tully here. He is a Duke crad student. What's it been like watching this team so far?

It's really exciting, especially after last year, too, to be able to see us go this far again. It's I think we're going to go all the way this time. So go redemption art. Yeah, I mean, up 15 at the half over a tough Yukon team. You got to be feeling good. Yeah, I'm feeling great. I think we're going to pull this one out. And, you know, what's it like being out here in downtown Durham? I mean, so many Duke fans here today and kind of going, venture out a little further from campus, but enjoying it. It's a great environment. It's good having everybody here. It's a lot of energy. So, yeah, really excited. All right. So still more basketball to be played. We got some So excited to be out here, excited to see themselves on ABC 11 right now as they wait until the start of the second half.

More basketball to be played. But Duke fans hoping to possibly punch their tickets at the final four to one. 44 to 29 at the half, Duke on top. 20 more minutes left of college basketball there and that elite eight. So again, thanks so much. We'll see a bit later on. Well, still ahead, the airport travel chaos continues tonight. TSA workers expected to get paid tomorrow after President Donald Trump signed an order on Friday.

for those long lines that many folks across the country have been sitting at airports. And this is the fight against hunger, the annual Durham Crop Hunger Walk returning to Durham today. We will take you to the big event. At Desjardin, our business is helping yours. We are here to support your business through every stage of growth, from your first pitch to your first acquisition. Whether it's improving cash flow or exploring investment banking solutions, with Desjardin business, it's all under one roof.

So join the more than 400,000 Canadian entrepreneurs who already count on us. And contact Desjardin today. We'd love to talk. Business. When WestJet 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 West Jetting since 96. Travel back in time with us and actually travel with us at westjet.com slash 30 years. Welcome back. It is day 44 of the partial government shutdown in the House and the Senate each passing their own plans to reopen the Department of Homeland Security. But lawmakers have been unable to agree on a bill that would end at the impasse and fund the department. And with TSA officers still not getting paid, travelers have been facing long wait times to get through airport security lines. While on Saturday, more than 10% of TSA workers called out across the country.

Tonight, here's ABC's Mollongue. Reporting from BWI Airport in Baltimore. For weeks, travelers have been dealing with hours-long security lines at airports across the country. TSA officers who have gone weeks without paychecks have been calling out in record numbers. On Saturday, over 30 percent of TSA workers called out in Houston, Baltimore, New York's JFK, and Atlanta. They just need to pay the guys, you know, just get them their salary on time. The president signing an executive order on Friday to redirect funds to pay TSA personnel their back pay. Over the weekend, security lines at some airports have seen signs of improvement, including here at BWI,

though airport officials advise arriving three hours prior to departure. Meanwhile, lawmakers remain at an impasse. House Republicans rejected the Senate's bill because it's stripped out funding for ICE and Border Patrol, even though both of those agencies are already fully funded under President Trump's mega bill passed last year. and Democrats passed the Senate that would immediately fully fund TSA while we continue to negotiate reforms to ICE, a lawless ICE operation. And the Republican Speaker of the House refused to even have a vote on that in the House and went home. Democrats have been pushing for reforms to immigration enforcement. Their

demands include ICE agents wearing body cameras and banning face masks, but they've got none of that. The House passed its own short-term bill to fund DHS for eight weeks. We have very big differences between the House and the Senate. The Senate bill they sent over, by the way, defunds about 7,000 positions at the Department of Homeland Security. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer says that plan is dead on arrival in the Senate, which, along with the House, is currently in a recess until April 13th. Mollongi, ABC News, Baltimore, Washington International Airport. Now let's go and check in with Lindsay Davis at ABC News headquarters in New York City for a preview of what's coming up shortly on World News Tonight.

Coming up, thousands more American ground troops arrive in the Middle East. The Pentagon is reportedly drawing up plans for a possible ground invasion of Iran. And with TSA paychecks on the way, will those long airport lines finally ease up? All right, Lindsay, we'll see you shortly. But coming up all new for you at 6, North Carolina Central, receiving a generous donation today. We'll tell you all one local church stepped up to show support for the HBCU. 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. Well, new tonight, North Carolina, Central University, receiving a major donation in Durham's St. Joseph A.M.E. Church, asked their congregation to raise $10,000 in support of the school, but they were able to double that amount to $20,000. The church presented the university's chancellor, Dr. Kerry Dixon, with the money during today's service. The gift is to show the congregation's steadfast support to their neighboring HBCU institution there.

Also in Durham today, ending hunger one step at a time. The annual Durham Crop Hunger Walk kicked off today. ABC 11 was a proud sponsor of the event. Our very own Joel Brown, you see him there, served as MC on the afternoon. Dozens of people participated in today's walk to raise awareness in the fight against hunger. Well, last year, Durham led the nation in raising money to fight hunger in the U.S. and overseas. Speaking which, it is almost that time of the year to get moving again for a good cause. In less than a month, thousands of people will hit the streets of Raleigh for the annual ALS walk.

Registration is now open for anyone who wants to join the ABC 11 Stogner Strong Team. The ALS Walk takes place on Saturday, April the 25th in downtown Raleigh at Halifax Mall. All right, so this is a lot of kids, at least in Wake County, they will be on spring break this week. So I know that they're looking at the calendar. They're wondering what's the weather going to be like for this next week? Well, I'll say, you know, even for families that aren't going anywhere like the beach and the mountains, the one, it's going to be warm here. So you honestly could do some outdoor activities with the kiddos. Get them outside on the trails or local parks.

It's going to be a great week for that. Temperatures are going to jump back into the 80s pretty quickly. Do have some rain chances. There's an isolated storm chance on Wednesday. Aside from that, our next best rain chance is actually trending toward Easter Sunday. But that'll be for the second half of the day, at least if that timeline holds as it's looking right now. For this evening, no rain in this forecast. If you're heading out for an evening walk soon, probably get a really nice sunset since we've had some

where the clouds around today. Tipters stay in the 60s for another hour and then we're going to fall into the 50s. But you can see the tipters aren't going to tank. So we stay even in those lower 50s. They're about midnight and waking up tomorrow, we should only be in the 40s. So it's not going to be super cold,

but in the morning, if you're a person who's very, you know, cold all the time, you might want a light jacket stepping out the door. We'll have a partly cloudy sky in the morning and staying partly cloudy through the afternoon with a bit more sun in the afternoon hours. Tipters will range from the low to mid-70s.

And what's driving up our tipters is the fact that the winds will be back out of the southwest. So today was warmer than yesterday. Tomorrow will be even warmer as those southwest winds pick up in speed. So tomorrow's forecast all across the region, whether you're watching from our northern counties, the triangle or the sand hills, should be warm all across the board. Tipters warmest likely down in the sand hills, but you're going to spend time outside with these nice conditions and you suffer from allergies. This is going to be a tough week for you. Keep in mind, we just had some rains that washed away the yellow. That does not mean the pollen went away, if anything, now that the trees have the water, they're growing more, that kind of accelerates the growth.

And so the pollen is going up, and it's four tree allergens. So pine, ash, oak, maple, birch, any of those things could cause you your allergies to trigger throughout this week. So a high pollen count going forward, and that's because the rain chances are going to stay pretty low. Now, as I mentioned, Tuesday is dry. Tipters jump into the 80s then, and then by Wednesday, that's where we're watching the tipter's to be the weather. the warmest of the week, mid 80s there, and a risk of a late day storm as this front gets closer and some of that energy is thrown in our direction.

If you're just joining us now, let's take a quick look outside. This is downtown Raleigh from our Pindo sky cam. It's 66 degrees in the city of Oaks right now, 64 in Sanford and 65 in Fayetteville. Again, tonight, not as cold as what we had last night. So temperatures are only in the 40s tonight. Partly cloudy, south winds are going to keep flowing. So we'll be a bit breezy overnight, but that south wind is what's going to keep us milder. into tomorrow southwest winds sustained between 10 to 15 miles per hour. Just a reminder with those dry conditions and winds gusting at times up to 20, 25 miles per hour. That burn ban remains in effect across the state, and that means no outdoor burning is permitted under any circumstances. All right, your seven-day forecast.

This shows that tipters will stay in the 80s even after we get through the middle of the week. So Thursday, that's when we're looking at tipter's in the low 80s. Could be a spotty shower round. The same goes for Friday. both of those days the rain chance only about 20% so most of us will stay dry. And as we go into next weekend, it warms up again, mid-80s back on Saturday,

Easter Sunday, 82 degrees, warm and breezy, but late in the day, there will be some showers as our next cold front enters the region. Hey, stay with us. We're back after a quick break. Whether it's with your besties or date night, get to all the hottest concerts with Go Transit. Go connects to all the biggest entertainment venues and makes it affordable with special e-ticket fares.

A weekend pass offers unlimited travel across the network on any weekend day or holiday for just $10. A weekday group pass offers the same weekday travel flexibility, from $30 for two people, up to $60 for $5. So no matter what day of the week, Go's got you covered. Find out more at go-transit.com slash tickets. Where are my gloves? Come on, heat. Any day now? Winter is hard, but your groceries don't.

have to be. This winter, stay warm. Tap the banner to order your groceries online at voila.ca. Enjoy in-store prices without leaving your home. You'll find the same regular prices online as in-store. Many promotions are available both in-store and online, though some may vary. A phenomenal season for Duke of Miss basketball, back-to-back appearances in the elite eight. They won the ACC regular season title, the ACC tournament title. Of course, they didn't get to the final four.

They were hoping to make it there for the first time in 20 years. But something to be proud of in this landscape and era of college basketball where it's so hard to find consistency. Care lost in the Blue Devils did that. Yeah, and absolutely like with what we saw tonight, I mean, it reminded me a little bit about LSU's game where you had that lead and then toward the very end you just saw how much of that transition took place. So I know it's got to be bitter, but you're still pretty, you know, you have to be proud

of of how those women handled things on the court. Oh, absolutely. And I know Duke as a whole is rallying behind the men's team now. So hopefully they, you know, do well for the rest of the tournament. That's coming from an NC state fan. I just want somebody in the triangle to do good, right? Somebody to do good. So, of course, the NCAA Women's Championship will be right here on ABC 11 next Sunday.

So we're going to see who it's going to be right now. Yukon and UCLA are the two teams who have punched your ticket to the final four to more opportunities. We'll find out tomorrow. It's that time of year on Tobacco Road. We'll see if Duke can be the one team in our area that brings home a title. All right. Well, Championship Sunday is next Sunday. Tip off is at 3.30.

We hope that to choose to join us right here on ABC 11 for that matchup. We're gonna pause for the rest of the evening. We'll see you a little bit later on for IWness News at 11. Have a great night.