Month: October 2025

By WUPA Staff

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    ATLANTA (WUPA) — With Halloween just a week away — and a chill in the air — metro Atlanta families are finishing final touches on costumes and making plans to keep their trick-or-treaters safe.

In Dunwoody, neighborhoods are already decked out for the holiday. Nine-year-old Lexie Meach and her brother Jasper are counting down the days. Lexie plans to dress up as a pop star, while Jasper is channeling Harry Potter — and, like many kids, he’s most excited about the candy.

But for their mom, Annic Jobin, safety is always the priority.

“I always check the candy before the kids eat — for allergies and for safety reasons,” she said.

Jasper is allergic to peanuts, so Jobin makes sure all treats are safe for him to eat. She also outfits her kids in reflective gear — especially important for her son on the autism spectrum.

“Because we have a kid on the spectrum who can run when overwhelmed, we use neon yellow or orange gear that can be seen from a distance,” Jobin explained.

According to Dr. Maneesha Agarwal, a pediatrician and professor at Emory University School of Medicine, Halloween is one of the most dangerous nights of the year for children.

“Kids are twice as likely on Halloween night to be hit by a car,” Dr. Agarwal said. “It starts with awareness — pick out bright costumes that are easy to see.”

She says the most common Halloween injuries are pedestrian accidents and choking hazards — particularly when kids eat candy that’s not age-appropriate or that contains nuts.

As the excitement builds for costumes, songs, and candy, families are being reminded to slow down, stay alert, and make visibility a top priority.

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By WBZ Staff

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    Massachusetts (WBZ) — A local union confirmed the two people killed in Friday’s crane collapse on the waterfront in Everett, Massachusetts were members.

“Our union is mourning the loss of two of our Brothers after an incident on a job site this afternoon. We put a strong emphasis on prioritizing our efforts to ensure the safety of our members. It devastates us that our members and their families were impacted by this unfortunate incident,” said the Pile Drivers & Divers Local 56 in a statement. “We will do all that we can to provide comfort and support to those affected. We would like to thank emergency responders and others on-site who did all they could for our Brothers.”

The workers’ names have not been released.

The collapse happened Friday afternoon at a site on Rover Street, near the Encore Boston Harbor casino. Everett Mayor Carlo DeMaria said a cable snapped and the crane fell on workers cutting pipes off the dock.

The crews had been working to dismantle a former Exxon Mobil facility as part of a multimillion-dollar renovation to the waterfront. Everett Landco, which owns the site, said work has now stopped in the area after the collapse.

The deaths are being investigated by the Middlesex District Attorney’s office, Everett and state police, and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

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By Caroline Foreback

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    BALTIMORE (WJZ) — WJZ has obtained the body cam footage of police confronting a student at Kenwood High School after an A.I. gun detection system mistakenly detected that a student had a weapon.

Baltimore County leaders are now calling for a review of that system.

During the footage from Monday’s incident, officers are seen approaching the student, searching him, and then stunned when they themselves realize what A.I. flagged as a gun was just a bag of Doritos chips.

With guns drawn, Baltimore County Police surrounded a group of students after the Omnilert AI Gun Detection System warned school leaders that a student had a gun.

Body camera footage shows police detaining all of those students and then searching one of them.

Though the student never had a gun. Instead, what Omnilert detected was a bag of chips.

After confirming there was no weapon, the Department of School Safety and Security reviewed and canceled the initial alert.

“Just so you guys are aware…basically, the cameras around the system, they pick up on things that look like guns…I guess just the way you were eating chips…Doritos, whatever…. it picked it up as a gun,” an officer explained.

County leaders call for review of AI gun-detection system Officials with the school and Omnilert said the system was working properly, but county leaders have called for its review, concerned that the false alarm traumatized the students.

“How did it come to be that we had police officers with guns drawn approaching a kid because of a bag of Doritos?” said Julian Jones, Baltimore County Councilman.

“…the program did what it was supposed to do, which was signal an alert and for humans to take a look to find out if there was cause for concern in that moment,” Myriam Rodgers, the superintendent of Baltimore County Public Schools, explained during a press conference.

As police conclude their investigation, one of the responding officers is heard pointing out the system’s faults on bodycam footage, stating, “AI is not the best.”

Kenwood’s principal wrote in a letter to the school community that counseling will be provided to the students who were involved in the incident and will be available to any student who may need support.

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