ABC11 Eyewitness News - Eyewitness News at 9am - June 27, 2026

Episode Date: June 27, 2026

Eyewitness News at 9am - June 27, 2026 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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. The Iran war escalating to new levels this morning. The U.S. strikes Iran after a major attack on the cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz. Stay with us for the latest updates from overseas. Day two of the NHL draft kicking off in a matter of hours. The canes are wheeling in a moment of hours. Dylan while star player Seth Jarvis faces a significant setback. And it's the first alert day possible storms threatening millions of people across our area as temperatures climb into the 90s dangerous heat returns to the region next week.

Well, let's go ahead and take a look at the Raleigh skyline right now here at 9 o'clock. It's the first alert day. We're good for most of the day though, Steve. Oh, we are. Yeah, it's later this afternoon and evening coming in from the north. We'll see some thunderstorms. Some of those are going to be a bit on the strong side. We do have a level two risk for the entire viewing area.

today and a level one risk for tomorrow. A little less coverage for late in the day storms. We'll keep an eye on that for tomorrow as well. Today probably making it to the low 90s. Last few days have been in the 80s, so a little bit hotter and definitely more humid. The average is 90s. So basically a typical day and we have some rain in the rain gauge

for the month, but only four days we've had measurable rain. And back on the 23rd, we had over an inch and a half of rain in one day. It's been 320 days since we've done that. So it was definitely needed to get that soaking rain. Meantime, if you're out playing some golf today later in the day, keep an eye to the sky for those showers and thunderstorms. Skies are going to get a bit dark later on. Not everyone gets rain, but the areas that do expect some heavy downpours and also some gusty winds. Here we go with the latest runner predictor got some thunderstorms scattered

about as we get into four or five o'clock this afternoon. By the evening hours, that's when we'll see some storms kind of drifting south across the triangle. And again, with this, there is that potential for frequent lightning, really heavy downpours. likely going to get a few severe thunderstorm warnings issued later today. Right now, though, we're looking at 79 degrees with some high-level clouds. A dew point is up at 72. It's muggy out there, a southwest breeze at about seven miles an hour. Wide spread mid to upper 70s across the board, but you see those higher dew points.

That is a lot of fuel for these thunderstorms to tap into later on for today. Speaking of later on today, if you're down in Fayetteville and you're going to watch the woodpeckers play, there's a risk. There could be a delay with some thunderstorms possible. Meantime, brutal heat is coming later next week. More on that coming up in just a few minutes. Bianca. All right, Steve, thank you.

We'll see in a moment. We've got some breaking news this morning. Raleigh police investigating a deadly car crash from overnight. It happened near the intersection of Martin and Dawson Street near Nash Square and Parkside Restaurant. Authorities tell us a car hit a building, tree, and parked vehicle. The driver identified as 36-year-old Michael Graham died at the scene, and officials say he was likely not wearing a seatbelt.

Also breaking this morning the search for a minute. Missing child escalating statewide. Newborn police issuing an Amber Alert for 15-year-old Isaiah Kvon Owens. They describe him as 5'4-foot-4 black teen boy there, 15 years old. He's autistic and has a speech delay. Authorities believe he's with 43-year-old Kenneth Brantley, who's driving a black Yukon with South Carolina's license plate. Well, developing right now, the U.S. launching a new round of strikes in Iran in response to an Iranian drone strike on a cargo ship in the Strait of Formoos. telling ABC news the strikes involved six U.S. aircrafts, and the official says the targets included Iranian missile and drone storage locations as well as the coastal radar sites in the Persian Gulf. Now, these airstrikes are the first since U.S. and Iran signed a memorandum of

understanding on June 17th. The urgent search for survivors is underway after two very strong, devastating earthquakes rocked Venezuela. More than 900 people are dead. And officials say at least 50,000 people are unaccounted for. It's now a race against the clock before the so-called golden window closes. And so the first 48 to 72 hours after an earthquake are critical to reach people who are trapped under Rubble ABC's Michelle Franzen has the latest. This morning, the urgent rescue in Venezuela after a pair of historic earthquakes. A 7.2 magnitude followed by a 7.5 seconds apart struck the coast. The twin quakes knocked down buildings in the nearby capital of Caracas earlier this week,

sending residents racing into the street. Building after building destroyed in the coastal city of Ligwira. 22 high rises brought down within a single mile, according to an ABC News analysis of video and satellite imagery. Rescuers cutting through concrete and listening for signs of life. What we need here is heavy machinery, this woman says. Human strength isn't enough. There are people still alive.

Cruz rescuing an 18-day-old baby named Juan and his mother. Teams cheering as he was reunited with his father. The U.S. government launching three urban search and rescue teams, including one from Fairfax, Virginia, to join the mission. The British military sending 250 firefighters and six dogs trained to find survivors. Aid agencies consider the first 48 to 72 hours critical for rescuing people alive, although that increases if they have access to food and water.

Michelle Franzen, ABC News, New York. So we've got some groups across the Triangle, really stepping up to collect supplies for earthquake relief. That includes Christian churches of carry on southwest Mainard Road, the L. Mendado supermarket on East Milbook Road in Raleigh, B.B.'s Grill in Durham and Delugio Grill in Raleigh. Well, helping people affected by Venezuelan earthquakes by donating to the Red Cross. It's listed there on your screen. Your donation actually helps the Red Cross workers prepare for, respond to, and help people recovering from this devastating disaster.

Well, now to some other local headlines here. We're following two firefighters that are recovering after getting hurt, battling a house fire in Garner. The fire breaking out at this home on Old Cascade Drive. It's what happened in the Meadows Brook Estates neighborhood. eyewitness news cameras capturing the response, including crews from Wake in Johnson County's officials telling us that smoke detectors woke up the homeowner who was able to escape safely. The two firefighters who were hurt, they suffered some minor injuries and were treated there at the scene. An 80-old woman recovering after crashing into a Dollar General Store in Johnson County,

it happened yesterday near Keene Road in US 701 near Four Oaks. The woman was pulling into a parking space when the car suddenly accelerated. The car then jumped the curb, slammed into the side of the building. here in the pictures and the woman suffered some minor injuries. She was treated there on scene. And Johnson County, the building inspectors, they were called to evaluate the structural integrity of the store.

Happening today, the Fayetteville Fire Department will host its annual Women's and Fire Service Day. The event is for women interested in joining the fire service or learning more about becoming a firefighter. It'll run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Fayetteville Fire Training Facility on Raider Road. Happening today in Raleigh, day two of an expanded version, version of Raleigh's annual Pride celebration, Out Raleigh Pride. It's back for the 14th year.

The event is expected to attract thousands of people to Fayetteville Street. They're going to have live music, artists, food vendors, kids own, beer garden, and displays from community organizations. And organizers say that this festival's more than just music and entertainment. It's about creating a place where LGBTQ plus people feel safe, seen, and supported. And so Out Raleigh Pride wraps up Sunday with a drag brunch. The event helps raise money for the LGBTQ Center. of Raleigh and ABC 11. We're a proud sponsor. Also happening today, day two of the NHL draft. The Carolina Hurricanes staying busy. The team used their three full minutes to trade down yesterday. They acquired two second round selections from Nashville in exchange for the 31st overall pick.

And this comes as a key player, Seth Jarvis, recovers from a shoulder injury. Jarvis is expected to return in four to six months. Well, we are just a week away from Fourth of July. Can you believe it? Time is flying. And Raleigh is getting ready. hearing up for a festival at Dix Park. So that's going to be big. And we've got details coming up. Plus, we're hearing from Wake County mom raising concerns over her child's hot classroom. Here is what she has to say coming up later on this hour. It's going to be a hot one today, Steve. Yeah, seasonably so. Yeah, some low 90s, what we would do normally expect, but a lot of humidity out there.

And watch out for some late day storms. Temperatures right now are in the mid-offer 70s and humid. And guess what? We're going to make it to the 90s with late-day storms. More of this. tomorrow too. Details after the break. When you're a mid-sized business, you need every competitive advantage you can get. Like an AI solution that works for you, not against you. SAP Grow is built with AI embedded at its core, working across every system. And it's ready to go from day one so you can hit the ground running. Bring it with SAP Grow, AI Cloud ERP for any size business.

Welcome back, everybody. And it's a first of our day today. It's going to be a typical day Temperature-wise, the upper 80s and low 90s, and then watch out for some late-day storms. I think better chance of farther north you live, and these chances will go down a little bit as you push to the south until we get to the evening hours. But everyone has an opportunity for a strong storm later on. Got some passing clouds right now. Thunderstorm is well off to the north and west closer to a front, which is going to get a little closer tomorrow. We'll make it to the 80s. Good pool day today.

It's really humid out there. But as we get later on, that risk of shower and thunderstorm activity is going to be increasing late afternoon. hours near 80 right now. Two point at 72. It's sticky out there. 78 Rocky Mount Wilson, 81 southern pines and 78 in the Chapel Hill. If you're out this evening, again, there's that risk of a shower or thunderstorm, especially early evening hours. Could have some gusty winds and really heavy downpours. And look at all the rain there. You see across the Tennessee Valley and in Kentucky and West Virginia and for us as well. We have that level two risk over us, but level one from Louisville all the way over to Kansas City and more severe weather in the

northern tier. this morning all the major hubs, no delays. Got you 70 in a few minutes, Bianca. All right, Steve, thank you. Well, we're looking ahead to Independence Day next weekend, the city of Raleigh, going all out for the 4th of July. Dix Park bringing back its big fireworks show for America's 250th birthday. This year's celebration could be even bigger than ever. The city is expecting at least 25,000 people. The fun kicks off mid-afternoon, runs through the night. In addition to the fireworks, there's, of course going to be some live music, a craft station, some long games, food and beverage vendors, of course.

High witness news, we're presenting sponsors, so you can watch it right here on ABC 11. There's a big focus on road safety ahead of 4th of July, though, holiday weekend, and so starting Monday, law enforcement, they'll be cracking down on impaired driving with Operation Firecracker, Booz It and Lose It campaign. Every year the 4th of July is one that ranks as one of the deadliest nationwide because of drinking and driving.

The campaign runs through July 5th. Also on the roads, the NCDOT temporarily suspending most highway construction projects between July 2nd and 7th to help keep holiday traffic moving. A new hands-on traffic safety course. Kids now have a safe place to learn the rules of the road. What Wake County families need to know to take part. Plus, the push to merge 911 centers in Fayetteville will take a closer look at the major effort underway. And as we had to break, here goes a live look into downtown rally. as you start your Saturday. Maybe you're headed to the par to, you know, play some golf or the pickleball court or just out for a morning run.

Enjoy it. We are. This spring, denim gets a softer, lighter update. Introducing Old Navy's drapey denim wide leg, a new fit that moves with you. It's everything you want denim to feel like for summer. Easy, breathable, and effortlessly cool. With a fit that creates natural movement and a wide leg that feels modern, not overwhelmed. Plus that signature wait for this price moment old Navy's drapy denim wide leg

local news ABC 11 eyewitness news continues now as kids across the triangle gear up for summer fun a new program helping them stay safe while riding on two wheels there's a new hands-on course in Wake County that's teaching children the rules of the road before they get out on their bike scooters or their own two feet Lauren Johnson reports for Harris Rollins Riding her scooter is a sure sign of summer. I ride with my sister and my mom and dad. Today, she's switching lanes, rolling with the new crew,

new friends from a Durham summer camp. They can come out and learn things about the safety, how to stop, where the crosswalks are, and all kind of different traffic signs. Danielle Kelly runs Lollipop Kid Summer Camp and loved the idea of her campers test driving, a course designed to keep kids safe on the road. The Post Center,

for health education is opening Wake County's first permanent traffic safety course, giving kids a hands-on place to learn. From stop signs to crosswalks, it's all about knowing when to speed up and when to slow down. Harris says those lessons stick. Because if you don't follow them, you might hurt someone. Injuries and unintentional deaths helped drive the program with nearly 200 bicyclists and pedestrians killed on North Carolina roads, Each year, organizers say teaching those skills early could help prevent tragedy down the line. We don't want any more fatalities, frankly, and we want to do our part. That was our Lauren Johnson reporting, and the course will be open to families on weekends,

giving kids a safe place to practice before heading back on the road. All right, and so if you and your kids are going to be outdoors at maybe some parks and things, some tips to keep in mind and also staying hydrated on the road. this warm day. Yeah, absolutely. A typical summer day. We're going to see some low 90s today, but the risk of thunderstorms is going up a bit for later in the day, and some of those will be strong to severe, not just today, but even tomorrow. Tomorrow it's a level one risk, but a risk nonetheless. Seasonally hot, though, low 90s and humid, good pool day today or head out to the lake, but a brutal heat wave gets here midweek and lasts all the way through Thursday, Friday,

Saturday and Sunday, as we'll see that really impressive ridge building right over the top of us, that sinking air compresses and heats up. Also is not very conducive to thunderstorm activities. So low rain chances during this time period. But Wednesday near 100 and over 100 for a few days. And we're talking record highs possible. And the feels like temperature could be near 110 Thursday and Friday and Saturday, which would prompt the national weather service to issue extreme heat warnings on those days.

We don't get those every year. Recently we have, but generally speaking, that's pretty impressive. So a level two risk for today, late after. afternoon early evening with some thunderstorms coming here from the northwest. Coverage is probably 30 to 50 percent. So some of us don't get the rain today. But the areas that do, it's going to come down quite heavily. This is a precipitable water graphic, meaning how much moisture is in the air. And you see these darker colors there. That's in that high category. So we're going to see the rainfall rates really heavy. And we could squeeze out a quarter half inch quickly. Some areas could get a little bit more. So there's decent potential your house could get a soaking today. As we go through. through the morning to early afternoon hours likely dry good day out on the lake UV index is way up there about an eight or nine but as we get late day into the evening hours that's when those thunderstorms could start rushing in here we go this is the latest run of predictor showing a few storms around two or three this afternoon but once we get closer to four or five o'clock we'll see some thunderstorms starting to push in some of these again are going to have some fairly gusty winds not everyone gets the rain however out there right now 79 degrees and cloudy with a southwest breeze at about 7. Seville, 74 in Oxford, 78 in the Raleigh and Fayville currently at 75 degrees. Heading out this evening, there's that risk. We get a shower or thunderstorm around. Again, with the gusty winds potential. And then those chances are going to go down in the triangle later on the evening. That front's going to be close by as we go into Monday.

Just an isolated storm and that's about it. That front settles to the south. The warmth takes over. Mid-90s on Tuesday, so a hot day. There'll be a wave of low pressure that develops along this front. National hurricane. Hurricane Center going to give it about a 20% chance of development. They'll keep an eye on that over the coming days. But for us, our focus is this brutal feels like temperatures. All these numbers feeling like over 100. That's heading in our direction. So we got to be ready for that.

Upper 80s and low 90s today, a risk of a late day thunderstorm. And that risk continues into the evening hours. Lows will be in the upper 60s and low 70s. First alert, 7 day, a level one risk tomorrow. So yet another first alert day, about 92. Monday, just a stray storm heating up Tuesday. The heat wave begins on Wednesday and both Thursday and Friday, potential record highs. And that's saying something in July with temperatures over 100.

It feels like numbers close to 110. Bianca. All right, Steve, thank you. Again, with our first alert for today and tomorrow, go ahead and download the free ABC 11 mobile app. We'll send all these headlines to your devices, and you can check the seven-day forecast at any time. The prolonged dry conditions have more snakes slithering out and about into everyday places after the break. We're going to test your knowledge about the reptile. what you should know if you ever run into one.

924 on this Saturday morning. All right, school's in session. Let's test your knowledge about snakes. Are snakes more active in the intense heat and a drought like the one that we're in? Are they about searching for water? Well, if you answered yes to those questions, you're wrong. Let's get the facts on it from a snake expert.

If this is on your big list of fears, know this. In North Carolina, we do have a lot of snakes, almost 40 species of snakes, and most of them are harmless. But they're around. If you see one, just leave it alone. Especially this one, the only common venomous snake in our state, the copperhead. Fortunately, they're really easy to identify if you know the trick. Copperheads have a really beautiful pattern that looks like kind of melted Hershey kisses.

So upright triangles in a line repeated on their side that are darker than the surrounding background. So if you see Melty Hershey kisses on the side of a snake, it could be a copperhead and definitely keep your distance. Copperheads are nocturnal and Owen says they don't want to bite you. So if you garden wear gloves, if you run or hike, wear clothes-toes shoes and beware of ivy and tall grass. If you have anything like this in your neighborhood or in your yard, this is the kind of stuff that a copperhead might be found in because this is also the stuff that we would see mice and rats and chipmunks. So if you don't want snakes in your yard, you might want to keep your yard a little bit more clean and tidy and remove ivy, especially on the ground, because that's really great for snakes. Snakes don't operate based off of seasons. They operate based on temperature. So as long as the temperature is over 60 degrees,

there's a chance that a snake is going to be awake in your area. The hotter and drier it is, the more they're kind of going to go dormant. They're going to reserve their energy and stay out of the hot sun. So they're probably going to be less active than they would be if it was really moist and there was a lot of food around. So we might expect to see fewer copperheads in this really, really intense dry heat than we would otherwise. If the snake does bite, see your doctor immediately, but also know this. They only bite in self-defense if you're bigger than maybe a mouse. So if you see a copperhead or any other snake, as long as you're not stepping on it or grabbing it or trying to pick it up,

that snake doesn't want to have anything to do with you and will leave you alone if you leave it alone. All right, and that was our Barbie Gibbs reporting. And if you're concerned about kids and pets, the state biologist says to teach your children how to identify a copperhead. And you can do the same snake aversion training for your dog so that they know to stay away from a snake if they see one. Well, coming up, the Vance County Sheriff responding to safety concerns over jail conditions amid protests. Stay with us for an update. From the Canes Parade last weekend, Pride this weekend, July 4th next weekend, Raleigh is just path with parties and events. key safety tips coming up.

But as we head to break here goes alive looking to downtown Durham, as you head outdoors, maybe to walk the dog, go on your morning walk or just sit out on the porch. We are Local News. ABC 11 eyewitness News continues next. We are Local News. This episode is brought to you by Accenture. When your advertising operations fall out of sync,

everything else follows. Spotify and Accenture are working together to reinvent the rhythm of ad sales. Using automation, analytics, and smarter workflows to simplify campaign delivery and access better data across the business. The result? Less time spent on operations, more time connecting brands with the moments and fandoms that matter most. Learn more at Accenture.com slash Spotify. ABC 11 eyewitness news continues now.

Here is alive looking to downtown Durham right now at 9.30 in the morning. Good morning, Carolina. Time to wake up. It's Saturday. I'm Bianca Holman. You're watching eyewitness news right now on ABC 11 and wherever you stream. The top stories in all the day's news is just ahead. But first, we need to check in with meteorauts and Steve Stewart on this first alert day. More so for the evening. You still got it all day to enjoy. Late afternoon, early evening, we'll see some storms around. You're right. And not everyone gets it, but the ones that do watch out for some gusty winds and really heavy downpours in a few areas. Level two risks for the entire area today and a level one risk for tomorrow for some more late day storms around. Take it to the low 90s up for today. Watch for those late days scattered showers and thunderstorms. The average is 90s, so a little bit above that today. 88 yesterday. Matter of fact, last few days, we've been in the 80s. But we've had four days of measurable rainfall and that's it this month.

Back on Tuesday, though, we got over an inch and a half. It's been 320 days since we've had that much rain in one 24-hour window. So fairly impressive to say the least. Meantime out and about, if you're golfing, you might see the darker clouds later in the day. So just keep that in mind. Most of the day, you'll be fine. but the clouds will start to thicken up later afternoon. We'll get to the low 90s. It's humid out there. And then we'll watch and see if we could get some of these thunderstorms to come in from the north and the west. Don't take the position and timing.

Literally just know there should be some thunderstorms around later for today. Right now we're looking at 79 degrees and dew point at 72. Really sticky out there. Widespread mid to upper 70. Southern pines right now touching 81 already. And then dew point is 74 there. Really sticky and dew point is 75. Look at Clinton at 7.

So really humid out there. And if you're down in the sand hills, if you're heading out to watch the woodpeckers play, there could be a delay. There might be some thunderstorms around during the evening. Coming up, we've got brutal heat coming later next week. More on that in just a few minutes. Bianca. All right, Steve, thank you. We've got some breaking news this morning. Raleigh Police investigating a deadly car crash from overnight. It happened near the intersection of Martin and Dawson Street near Nash Square and Parkside Restaurant. Authorities tell us a car hit a building, tree, and parked vehicle. The driver identified as 30. six-year-old Michael Graham died at the scene. And officials say he was likely not wearing a seatbelt. Also breaking this morning the search for a missing child escalating statewide. Newburn police issuing an amber alert for 15-year-old Isaiah Kavon Owens. They describe him as 5'4-4, a black teen boy. He's autistic and has a speech delay. Authorities believe he's with 43-year-old Kenneth Brantley, who's driving a black Yukon with a South Carolina license plate. Well, now to the heat, humidity, and storms all likely to end back major events happening this weekend. Day two of the Out Raleigh Parade kicking off today, and it comes just one week after nearly 200,000 feet folks and canyacs were backed into the city of Oaks to celebrate the Carolina hurricanes.

And one week before, the big celebration for America's 250th birthday. Our John Dowding has some key safety tips for all the parties. I believe in everyone having a fair shake. everyone being seen for who they are. Raleigh Celebrates Pride as back-to-back events takeover downtown. Out Raleigh Pride kicked off Friday night in Brick Universe. A Lego-themed event is also at the convention center this weekend. Visit Raleigh staff say all the downtown activity is a major win.

Having events like what we experienced last weekend, what we have this weekend and certainly next weekend as well really helps many of our retail businesses, restaurants in particular to get people down here on the weekend. But these events come as potential triple-digit temperatures are set to arrive. The challenge when it gets to be so many days in a row, the effects can be cumulative. So each day you're starting to lose volume and it's going to get harder each day to go out. That was our John Dowding reporting. So concerns are growing over safety conditions at the wake that the Vance County Jail,

as protests escalate outside the facility and former inmates and families say there's problems inside, including overcrowding, staffing shortages, and recent escapes. County leaders say they've approved funding but now want answers and are pushing for a public safety meeting with the sheriff. The sheriff responding to eyewitness news saying in parts that these reports of neglect are far from the truth at no time do we neglect or ignore the care and safety of our inmates and staff. Our board of commissioners has provided several millions of dollars to renovate our facility. The project has been going on for quite some time. on to say that he cannot comment any further on recent escapes attempts as they are under investigation. Now in Wake County, SAS Institute says it's cutting 300 jobs throughout the company.

The employees who are affected can apply to open positions or take advantage of transition services. SASS, the prominent North Carolina analytics software provider did not share specifics on the location of these layoffs. The company sharing a statement with eyewitness news saying in part these changes are intended to align SAS resources. with our long-term strategic priorities as we continue to invest in key growth areas, including R&D and sales and cloud. SAS has more than 400 offices worldwide with its main campus in Kerry. Well, Fort Bragg's Red, White, and Boom Fest returns today.

The annual Independence Day celebration will take place on the main post parade field. Not only will there be fireworks, there also be vendors, a bounce house for the kids, parachute demonstration by all veterans' parachute team. Gate opens at 3 o'clock this afternoon. Firework Show is at 945 and the event is free and open to the public. We're hearing from a Wake County mom who says she's worried about rising temperatures inside classrooms with no working AC. What she's doing to try and help her son and their classmates beat the heat. Plus details on a new push to merge 911 centers in Fayetteville.

But first, check outside, Steve. All right, listen, if you're stepping outside, it is really muggy out there. You can see the haze in the air. That's all that humidity. Numbers are in the upper 70s already in many spots. on our way to the 90s and some scattered showers and thunderstorms some of those could be strongest severe details after the break welcome back everybody it's the first alert day today for some scattered showers and thunderstorms later today into the evening hours coming in probably from the north and the west higher probabilities so far the north that you live of getting some of these storms got a couple showers coming in the mountains right now we're going to see some activity again later today but not everyone gets the rain if you're out of the pool just be aware the clouds are going to thicken up a little bit later in the afternoon and then we're going to see some activity again later in the afternoon and then we'll see some activity again later in the We might see some of those storms coming on in. But before that, kind of a typical day.

We'll make it to some low 90s, but really humid out there. 79 into North Hills right now with a dew point at 72. Boy, that's muggy. 77 Lewisburg, 78 Sanford, Southern Pines now at 81 degrees. And the dew point there is at 74. Evening out, that's that risk. We'll get a shower, thunderstorm around the triangle. Those chances are going to go down.

The temperature mid-70s as we get closer to the midnight hour. A lot of thunderstorms there across the Tennessee Valley through Kentucky and parts of the Ohio Valley and for us as well. And it is a level two risk for us today. Level one from Louisville all the way back to Kansas City and the northern tier could have some severe weather as well. So far all the major hubs looking pretty good. Got you seven day in a few minutes. Bianca. All right. Thank you, Steve. So with heat expect to very dangerous levels next week, it's a real concern for anyone spending time outside. And one Wade County mom is worried about what the rising temperatures mean inside classrooms not equipped with working air conditioning. To be surprised,

close look. My son loves school. Today was a last day of first grade for Ashley Sightle's son at Holly Springs Elementary School. He goes back to class next month as a second grader on the year-round schedule. I'm not comfortable with my son starting school in that class. She says the classroom is located inside a trailer behind the school and she's worried about things heating up inside. On Tuesday we went to meet the teacher. So that is when you go into the classroom. We all were kind of looking at each other realizing like, oh, it's very muggy in here. It's very hot in here. Ashley said even with three fans going and the door propped open, it was still too much. So I asked her directly after feeling it some of the paper and I was like, hey, kind of what's

with all the fans. And she said that she had been having issues since January and has very rarely had heat or air conditioning in her room. Heating and cooling problems have plagued Wake County Public Schools for years. Last school year, due to ongoing H-FAC problems, students were dismissed early a total of 40 days, which interrupts instructional learning time. We have neighbors who kids are in this class. They've had to move in the building at times within clement weather. And lately it's been almost daily that they've had to move after recess because it's well

into the 80s in the classroom. We reported earlier this year in February that Holly Springs Elementary would get a full H-FAC replacement. It's not clear if that includes trailers. I want the classroom fixed for not only my son, but the other kids, for the teacher. If I was a landlord, I would be legally required to provide heat and air conditioning to my tenants. So why our school board is not being held to the same level of responsibility is very disappointing. Meanwhile, Ashley has started a go-fund me to raise money for an air conditioning unit for her son's future classroom.

Kids are resilient, but it's still not fair for them to have to deal with this. And that was our Jimmy Price reporting. Bedbugs forcing a Durham DMV office to close for weeks. We've got an update on Condition Street ahead. And as we head to break, here goes a live look into downtown Raleigh. As the Out Raleigh Festival gets started for day two, it's on Fayette Street. We are local news. ABC 11 eyewitness news continues now.

on this Saturday morning, buying a computer, iPad or video game is about to get even more expensive. Prices are rising in some cases dramatically because of the shortage of computer chips. Now being called a crisis. Here's ABC's Andrea Fuji. Two tech giants are raising prices by hundreds of dollars on their most popular products, blaming the booming demand for memory chips, calling it chipflation. AI is eating the world's memory chips. Apple says it's increasing the macs. Apple says it's increasing the MacBook Pro by $300 to nearly $2,000.

And the iPad Air is up $150, now selling for $749. Microsoft joining suit, saying by August some Xbox consoles will increase by $150. Why the big jump? The shortage of memory chips, which are being used in expanding artificial intelligence technology, leading to huge demand and increasing prices from the three companies that produce the chips. It's the same memory that goes into your laptop. That same memory is the same thing that goes, it goes into data centers. And so everybody is racing to build these data centers, and that's what's eating up all of the world's chips by the truckload.

Consumers not happy. What? The prices were already pretty raised. I feel bad for anybody that ain't got that Xbox yet. Apple explaining, we have never seen a component price increase this much this quickly. Microsoft adding, the entire. Higher consumer electronics industry is struggling with the current components crisis. Experts warn prices may go even higher. This is just the beginning of price increases, unfortunately.

Apple and Microsoft are two of the most premier players in this field. And if they are increasing their prices, we're going to see other competitors following suit. iPhone prices remain unchanged for now. But with news that Apple is raising prices and other products, its stock fell, nearly 5%. Thursday. Andrea Fugge, ABC News, New York. Andrea, thank you. Durham DMV office closing for the next two weeks because of bed bugs.

So this DMV office is in East Durham on South Miami Boulevard. It's going to be closed until July 13th. A spokesperson tells eyewitness news a customer carried the bed bugs into the office. Examiners from the location will be reassigned to other offices during the closures. Customers with appointments at this location will be able to reschedule for a date and time and location of their choice. their choice. Well, the clock is ticking for Fayetteville City leaders in Cumberland County Commissioners to sign a joint resolution by Monday. The merge their 911 call centers. The move

comes amid mounting pressure from state lawmakers to streamline their emergency response operations. Thursday night, Fayetteville City leaders approved a proposal during a special meeting. Yesterday, county leaders reviewed the resolution and they've been, they've sent it back to the city. Supporters say the merger could lead to faster response times and improve. services during emergencies. Because the importance of doing it right is more important to me than doing it quickly. The mayor and I both talk about the highest level of service, the highest standard. That's what our citizens deserve. That's what our taxpayers deserve.

So when you consolidate it, you get that, you get that highest standard. You get that best practices. Questions remain about how the transition will happen, what will mean for current employees, and who will lead the center. A legit filet worker in Wilmington is a huge hit with his customers. his customers. Gilbert Martin greets people when they come in and at 92 years young he helps bring a smile to people's faces. And how you doing today sir? Do you get everything okay? Yeah so that's uh gill and he's been working there for about the past six years as a dining host. He previously worked of decades in natural gas industry and then when he retired he became

a greeter for sam's club until they got rid of his position and he says after that he got so bored so he put in an application at Chick-fil-A and then since then it's been a pleasure to go to work even at 92 years old. Isn't that crazy? He does better than I do around 69. Do you feel 92? I don't know what 92 is supposed to be but I feel great. That's what we like to hell. Here, Gill doesn't just work one or two days a week. He works Monday through Friday. Five days a week he's staying active, Steve. That's what they say. Even when you retire, You got to stay moving. That's right.

Keep moving. All right. That's good for him. That's awesome. All right, listen, I got a couple fair weather clouds out there right now, but a lot of haze.

That's that humidity. Boy, you can feel it as your step outside. And we have a risk for severe weather today, not only today, but tomorrow as well for some isolated strong storms later this afternoon and evening. And we'll repeat that again tomorrow. Although tomorrow's risk is down to a level one. Seasily hot, though, the next few days.

Pool the lake. If you're out and about, numbers, the low 90s, but rather humid. But a brutal heat wave starts midweek. July 1st on Wednesday and then after that we'll see a few days over 100 degrees. That core of the high is really going to build in here and it's impressive. This is sinking air. Substance is what we call it. That compresses the air really heats it up.

Also makes it hard for thunderstorm activity. But look at these numbers. And Thursday and Friday and Saturday, if these numbers verify, they would be record high temperatures. You're talking records in July. That's a big deal. And the feels like temperature could be close to 110 for a few days. If we reach that, that would be extreme heat warnings for the area. Level two risk for today.

It's again late afternoon, early evening. Not everyone gets it. The coverage is 30 to 50 percent. Straight line wind and locally heavy downpours with rain. We could be dealing with, this is a water vapor and you're not a water vapor, but a precipitable water graphic. Shows all this moisture that's available. That's a lot there in the high category. So any thunderstorm, the rainfall rates will be significant.

Could easily get a quarter half inch quickly. A few areas are going to get more than that with some of these impressive downpours. Out on the lake today, we're looking good most of the day. It's late in the day. We'll start seeing that risk of showers and thunderstorms and moving in. Just be aware of that. We could get some gusty winds. There's predictor showing some storms around 3, 4 o'clock.

That line potentially could be sagging south right over us as we get into the evening hours and then pressing farther to the south after that. 81 right now out at North Hills with a dew point at 73. It is muggy out there and a lot of available fuel for these thunderstorms to tap into widespread 70s, but again, a couple of low 80s already. It's the evening hours. We'll keep an eye on some of those thunderstorms that potential those chances are going to go down as we get later on the evening. There's going to be a front that's kind of draped over us close by on Monday. There could be an isolated storm. That pushes to the south. Warm air starts to move in. We'll be in the mid-90s on Tuesday. But along this front, there'll be a little wave of low pressure that develops. Something we'll keep an eye on.

The hurricane center giving it a 20% chance of development. We'll see how that pans out. But all this heat, these brutal feels like temperatures, they're heading in our direction. I'm gonna be with us for days next week. So here we go, 80s and low 90s today. There's a risk of those late day storms coming in from the north and west and that'll be with us

into the evening hours. Low temperatures, upper 60s and low 70s. First alert seven day, another first alert day tomorrow for a level one risk, maybe a little less coverage than today. Monday a stray storm heating up Tuesday. The heat wave begins on Wednesday will be in the high 90s, but it's really Thursday, Friday and Saturday, which is the fourth. Feels like temperatures could be flirting with 110 degrees. Bianca. All right, Steve, thank you. Now's a great time to go ahead and download the ABC 11 mobile app. We're going to send all this information straight to your devices. We'll be right back.

Well, Durham has a brand new bakery, electrocafe and bakery officially opening its doors to customers. It's inside the American tobacco campus. Lutra is known for its sweet and savory buns, soft pretzels, and breakfast sandwiches. All right, looking pretty good. So maybe as you had out the door, if you're in Durham, we want to stop by there and get some breakfast. That's where I want to go, Steve. It looks fantastic. I look so good. All right, listen, first alert day today. We've got some strong storms later today. Not everyone gets them, but they'll be around. And it's a level two risk today, a level one risk tomorrow, but still the first alert day. And then get ready for the heat.

The heat wave really cranks in on Wednesday and could have record highs Thursday, Thursday, Friday. Saturday, over 100. It feels like temperatures close to 110. So that is a brutal heat wave leading into the holiday weekend. All right. Find yourself at the pool coming up. Good idea. Goodness.

All right. Well, the second hour of Good Morning America is next. From the eyewitness news center, I'm Bianc Holman for Steve Stewart and the entire eyewitness news team. There they are. And Caitlin, going to give us a wave and Taylor. All right. Thanks for watching.

Well, of course, check us out online. ABC11.com. ABC 11 eyewitness news is sponsored by Ruggin Home of Raleigh. Experience the Extraordinary.