ABC11 Eyewitness News - Eyewitness News at Noon - December 30, 2025

Episode Date: December 30, 2025

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Right now at noon, breaking news right out of the gate, a small plane making an emergency landing near Lewisburg, what we're learning. Also, new details rolling in about that deadly apartment fire in Fayetteville leaving a child in critical condition. Meantime in the triangle, business owners calling for a resignation after a Facebook post. And as lottery sales go up, less money is coming in for North Carolina schools. What we're learning from the state auditor. And federal agents going door to door in Minnesota, a tax. Fraud sweep. Details ahead. And President Trump confirming strikes as the U.S. pressure mounts on the South American nation of Venezuela. It's all coming up next year at noon.

Right now, live coverage from your local newsleader. Today's top stories you need to know and your first alert forecast. Here's what's happening where you live. This is ABC 11 eyewitness news. Hi there. Good afternoon. I'm Joel Brown covering for Barbara and Amber. who have the day off. I'm joined by meteorologist Cruz Medina in today for the news at noon a very cold morning and it's not getting much higher in the afternoon. Yeah, that's right. It's going to be cold with highs in the 40s, but it's going to feel much colder because we know it's been it's been windy over the past 24 hours. Those windy conditions will persist today. The good news is it won't be quite as gusty as yesterday. So the tipgers right now, this is not the feels like temperature, the actual air temperature is in the 30s across the region. We are above freezing in Raleigh. Some, spots back to our west are still below freezing like Greensboro and then in the mountains, very cold, only 18 degrees in Boone. So here's a closer look at Central North Carolina.

Tipters are in the middle to upper 30s across most of the region right now. Wind gusts will be in the range of 20 to 25 miles per hour at times through this afternoon. So that's keeping the feels like temperature or the wind chill down into the 30s today. So the tipters you see here, these are the tipters you want to dress for if you are stepping out soon for lunch and then as we go into the evening, those feels like tipters will remain in the lower 30s. Now tonight we drop into the 20s, 25 the low and Raleigh.

It'll be mostly clear at times, maybe a bit breezy, but definitely not as gusty as what we see this afternoon. And then for tomorrow, we should reach a high around 50. So it'll be more seasonable. This is what we expect this time of the year. But if we look back at the whole month

in its entirety, we've actually had more days below average than above. So going into the new year, we should be pretty seasonable. We'll check out that seven day forecast coming up in just a few minutes. All right, Cruz. We will see you soon. Hey, we've got more on that breaking news out of Lewisburg, a small plane making an emergency landing near Triangle North Executive Airport. We've been following this in the breaking news center since 10 o'clock. Chopper 11 over the scene. And investigators are out there as well trying to figure out what went wrong. We sent Duan Hogarth to get the check to check out things on the ground. He's live in Lewisburg with what we're learning. Dewan. Well, Joel, good afternoon to you here at the Triangle North Executive Airport, here out here on the airfield.

I want to go ahead and take a look right behind me here. You can see that White Cirrus plane over on the embankment there of the runway. And here's what we know. This all happened around 9.30 this morning. We're told that the pilot here was attempting to make a landing here at the airport when a gust of wind blew him pretty much right off the runway. And he landed here to the embankment just right of runway to 3 here. We're told that that pilot suffered very, very minor injuries, but thankfully was able to walk away. There has been damage here to the front of the plane, moderate damage, we're told, to the front of the plane, damage done to the landing gear, as well as damage done to the wing.

Now, I had to talk just with the public information officer, as well as the airport director a few moments ago, as to why these sort of things have happened here with the wind. They said that this pilot was already, he's local to the area, was in the area doing some sort of pattern, probably even a touch and go, where pilots tend to practice landing and taking off. But from flight records, from what we can tell, that this pilot essentially kind of took a loop, if you will, around this runway, this airport rather, and then came down relatively hard and then landed here. Now, I did ask about this particular pilot, if this was an experienced pilot, I'm only told that the pilot here was local. to the area and was visibly shaken up. But thankfully, here in the aviation industry,

in order for you to have a landing like this, if you are to walk away, that's certainly something that a lot of folks in the industry will say is something that you absolutely want. But in terms of damage to the plane, we're still working to learn how much it, how much will actually cost for the damages. We also know with that landing behind us,

that that pilot actually did take out a couple of lights here at the airport, which they're still assessing to find out how much money will end up being assessed in terms of how much that damage was. So still working through a lot of information at this particular hour. But we're live here in Lewisburg. Dewan Hogart, if it's 11, I went his news. No, but you certainly nailed down some details for us. A strong gust of wind blowing that small plane off of the runway and the pilot is okay.

Duan Hoaggart and Lewisburg, For us. Dewan, thank you. Now to a fatal fire at a fatal fire at a Fayetteville apartment complex that left one woman dead and a toddler critically injured. Penelope Lopez gathering new details live at the scene in Fayetteville. Penelope, what's the latest? Good afternoon and Joel. We're still trying to gather details on how the fire unfolded. We know that one of the neighbors called in after noticing some smoke coming out of the Kensington Court apartments.

We now know that 35-year-old Portia Quarles died after being rushed to the hospital. Fayetteville firefighters rushing to Kensington Court apartments off of a Yakin Road Monday afternoon. Neighbors reported the call after seeing smoke coming from the second floor. I witnessed news learning 35-year-old Portia Quarles and a one-year-old child were inside the bedroom. Upon arrival, emergency personnel were able to get Quarles and the child out safely and both were rushed to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center with serious injuries. Quarles later died. Now the one-year-old is still in critical condition. authorities are still trying to figure out how this fire started. They do not suspect foul play.

Live in Fayetteville, Penelope Lopez, ABC 11, eyewitness news. Penelope with a tragic update out of Fayetteville. Penelope, thank you. Now to the growing firestorm swirling at Shop Local Raleigh. Triangle business owners now calling for the resignation of the group's executive director after a controversial Facebook post. Elina Athens tracking the fallout live in Raleigh for us. Elena, bring us up to date on this. Well, I did just speak with the owner of Bad Cat Coffee. He was a longtime member of Shop Local Raleigh. She says her business has been inclusive since its inception, and she finds it rather

concerning about the social media posts, but she tells me she's waiting to see what the Shop Local Raleigh Board of Directors does next before deciding what to do with her membership for this organization. So Jennifer Martin is the executive director of Shop Local Raleigh. She is accused of posting anonymously last week on the Facebook group networking women of the triangle and appear to dismiss transgender youth. The administrator of this page can see who posts anonymously and then publicly attributed the comments to Martin. That administrator does now have legal representation. I reached out to her

attorney for comment and waiting on a response. At least one small business has ended their shop local Raleigh membership over this controversy. There is an online petition, calling on Martin to issue an apology and undergo sensitivity training, more than a thousand people have signed their names. I personally reached out to Martin a couple of times today for comment on these posts, and I'm still waiting to hear back on that. We're live in Raleigh, Elena, Athens, ABC 11, eyewitness news. We'll stay on top of it, Elena. Thank you. Now to a deadly U.S. strike on a suspected drug trafficking boat in the eastern Pacific. It comes as new questions emerge over what appears to be the first known U.S. strike on Venezuelan soil. ABC's Nicole Di Antonio

in Washington with the details. U.S. military releasing video of the latest strike on a suspected drug trafficking boat in the eastern Pacific, killing two people. It marks the 30th U.S. strike of its kind at sea in recent months. And it comes as President Trump shares updates on the first land attack. Trump's saying the United States hit a dock in Venezuela. There was a major explosion in the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs. They load the boats up with drugs.

So we hit all the boats. and now we hit the area. In a radio interview last Friday, the president saying the U.S. knocked out a big facility in Venezuela. Meanwhile, the president welcoming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-Lago club, where he was pressed by reporters for more details on the strike, including whether the action was carried out by U.S. military.

I know exactly who it was, but I don't want to say who it was. But you know, it was along the shore. The U.S. has been building up its military presence in the region with nearly 15,000 troops and several. warships standing ready in the Caribbean. Earlier this month, Trump ordering what he called a complete blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers going into and out of Venezuela. And adding to the pressure on Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro, Trump said last

week that it would be smart for him to step down. Meanwhile, Maduro said Venezuela would continue to trade oil and has said regime change will just not happen. Nicole De Antonio, ABC News, Washington. Still ahead here at noon, experts not expect. major traffic trouble on new years, but winter weather is impacting air travel. Plus, flu cases spiking nationwide, the CDC issuing new warnings and ringing in 2026 with greener goals for the new year. Keep it here. Watch Lauren Johnson tonight on ABC 11. I witness news.

We're back at noon and happening today. Another busy day for the holiday travel rush. Here's a live look at conditions along I-40 right now. Minimal traffic is expected on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. Meantime, winter weather could cause more problems for air travel today. Thousands of flights were canceled and delayed yesterday as storms disrupted major airline hubs. At RDU, there were more than 30 flights delayed and three cancellations. Make sure to check in with the carrier for the latest updates. American Airlines meantime is expanding its service at RDU Airport.

Starting in February, the carrier will add two more daily flights to Chicago O'Hare. bringing the total on some days to six flights between the two cities. American says this is part of its spring expansion in Chicago, offering more options to customers. Still to come here at new, new CDC numbers showing flu surging across the U.S. and new federal funding targets rural health across the country. The Trump administration announcing new funding for the first year of the Rural Health Transformation Program. The program will award $50 billion over five-fifference.

years. The awards for each state range from $145 million to $281 million. North Carolina will receive a little over $213 million. The program is aimed at improving the health and well-being of rural communities across the country. The CDC is releasing new numbers on the flu today, giving us a better idea of how quickly it's spreading. Cases are on the rise and so are hospitalizations. The CDC estimates there have been nearly 50,000 hospitalizations. ABC's Perry Russell in Washington. The CDC releasing new numbers on the flu today as cases spike across the country. The agency says cases have been very high in Louisiana, Colorado, and New Jersey.

New York State seeing its worst flu outbreak ever recorded, more than 71,000 cases in one week alone. It's so important to note here, the flu season this year is earlier and stronger than last year. And if we remember, last year was one of our highest hospitalization rates. Cases are being linked to a new flu strain called subclade K, a type of influenza A. Symptoms appear to be similar to previous years, fever, body aches, and fatigue. But doctors say with this year's strain, symptoms are coming on faster and stronger. I couldn't even walk. I could barely talk. For symptoms and children, doctors say they are seeing more vomiting.

The CDC recommends everybody over the age of six months to get a flu shot. Doctors say will help lower the risk of severe illness, hospitalizations, and death. One survey finds about a third of adults, 34 percent, got their shot this year. Also important to note, there are many states where pharmacists can test and treat. That means that with a positive test, you can get treatment from your pharmacists like Tamiflu. Flu season is typically between October and May. Doctors say it is not too late to get your shot. The CDC says it takes about two weeks to develop protection after getting vaccinated.

Perry Rustom, ABC News, Washington. All right, Cruz, Medina, let's talk about the weather because after our mild holiday week this morning, it felt like a slap in the face. It was brick outside, like the kids say. It was brick city ballers. Yeah, that's right. Very, very gusty, very cold outside. And that's kind of going to be the case for the rest of the day as well.

So let's take a look at your extended forecast. And for today, you could expect tipter's to stay in the 40s for highs. And then as we go into the new year, New Year's Eve is chilly. It'll be chilly bringing in those plans. But the New Year itself, New Year's Day, is seasonably chilly. So Tipter is right around those lower 50s. Now, as far as rain chances, they're going. looking pretty limited at this time. Most of the rain that we had in the forecast for Saturday is looking to stay to our south. We'll recap that here in a second in your seven-day forecast. But we'll take a live look outside. This is our Pendo SkyCam and downtown Raleigh. Tipters are in the 30s right now. Once again, many spots like the triangle in the sandhills will rise into the low 40s this afternoon. But some areas across the north may not make it out of the 30s today. So Roxborough, you're only at 32. I would not be surprised if you end up close to 40, but don't quite make it past that threshold. So lunch plans. Definitely an indoor.

lunch day kind of day. Tiptures will be in the low 40s by this afternoon with plenty of sunshine. But the wind will be another factor today. So you may catch occasional gusts up to 20 or 25 miles per hour. And then for this evening, if you have plans out, tipter should be falling into the 30s by then. Now as we go into tomorrow, we start the day with sunshine, but tipgers will be cold again just like this morning. We will be in the 20s. The wind not as strong tomorrow. So we won't be seeing those harsh feels like Tipter's, at least for the most part. But by the the afternoon pushing to near 50 degrees and of course a decent amount of sunshine expected then as well. So from start to finish tomorrow not looking bad at temperatures will be in the 20s for the morning closer to 50 for the afternoon so warmer than today but kind of where we should be for this time of the year and as high pressure dives to the south this will kind of give way for a disturbance to slide in. We see some clouds throughout the day on Wednesday. They're just fair weather clouds so not expecting any rain here. It'll stay pretty sunny and overnight those

tipters drop into the 30s, but we're back in the low 50s for Thursday. You can kind of see this front is going to divide air masses across the region. It'll be warmer to our south and much, much colder as you go to our north. But back to New Year's Eve, if you have any plans to bring in the new year, especially if you're going to be outside, I would definitely dress warm for that as Tipters will be in the middle to upper 30s. And then in your seven-day forecast, you could see at least to end out this week, tipter should be in the 50s. So like I said, that's seasonable. It's where we should be this time of the year. The rain chance for Saturday has mainly dived to ourselves, so check back for updates on that. But Sunday, a little cooler and then warmer again as we go into

early next week. Joel, back to you. Cruz, Medina, keeping your champagne cold on New Year's Eve. That's right. Some cold weather. Cruz, thank you, still to come. Small New Year's resolutions can make a big difference for the planet. ABC's chief climate correspondent, Ginger Z, joins us. She'll tell us how in two minutes. Witness News. The new year approaching means it's time to start setting goals and intentions for 2026, and that can include our relationship with the Earth. When we start setting our resolutions for the new year, there are ways for us to think

sustainably for both ourselves and the planet. ABC's chief climate correspondent, Ginger Z has more. As the ball drops and we ring in 2026 around the world, many people are setting goals for the upcoming year. Whether losing weight or saving monies on your list, there are New Year's resolutions that can help us invest in ourselves and the planet. What's really cool is we get to think about what we get to add to our lives that will make our lives better. Sustainability goals can look as simple as shopping less to limit consumption, taking public transportation, of course, and eating plant-based meals. If it all sounds daunting, UCLA lecturer Tamar Christensen says, to get started, just think about places where you can make a difference. They can look at like

what kind of individual action they can take, what kind of political or governmental action they might be able to take, and then what kinds of corporate action they might be able to take. Christensen suggests breaking down sustainability goals into smaller, more approachable steps. You can just say, maybe I'm plant-based before dinner, or maybe I'm plant-based on the weekends or just on the weekdays. And you can kind of like amp up slowly. And I think this is the best way to build a really good habit that's going to stick.

And it's going to be exciting and adventurous for you along the way, along the way and not feel like a burden. Additionally, Christensen says your mindset can help maintain the momentum and stick to your resolutions throughout the year. I think if we can think about the framing slightly differently, it's going to go a long way. What is our approach here? What do we care about? What are we enjoying about this process?

Because if we don't enjoy the process, we won't keep doing it. For some easy sustainability goals for the new year, Christensen suggests switching your toilet paper for recycled paper, changing your bank account to a local credit union. to invest in your community or making your own peanut butter in a food processor. With this Climate Minute, I'm Ginger Z. Ginger, thank you. Eyewitness News will be in downtown Raleigh as the clock strikes midnight and the acorn drops ringing in 2026.

First night Raleigh takes place right there on Fayetteville Street outside of our downtown newsroom. The celebration begins at 2 p.m. with the children's celebration. And we hope you will join us tomorrow night as we ring in the new year. Tune in for Dick Clark's New Year's Rocking Eve with Ryan Cicrest. The fund starts at 8 on New Year's Eve right here on ABC 11. Just ahead here at noon, more lottery players, but less lotto revenue for North Carolina education. More on the new state audit after the break.

Plus, an eyewitness news exclusive, the mayor of Kerry speaking out after the town manager resigns amid questions over mismanagement of taxpayer money. The one-on-one interview you'll only see on eyewitness news. And Minnesota fraud crackdown agents targeting dozens of businesses going door to door in the state's tax fraud sweep.