11-year-old girl shot in head in McDonald’s parking lot thanks doctors, first responders for saving her life

CNN Newsource on July 4, 2026

By Joan Murray

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    Florida (WFOR) — Nearly a week after being shot in the head while sitting in her family’s car at a Hallandale Beach McDonald’s, an 11-year-old girl is close to being released from Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital after a miraculous recovery.

On Friday, the girl along with her parents, spoke about the traumatic chain of events as they thanked the police, paramedics and doctors for saving her life.

“I feel like I have another chance,” she said. “Thank you for everything I have.”

Her parents asked that her name not be used.

Last weekend, the girl was in a car with her two- and five-year-old siblings and father as her mother went inside a McDonald’s restaurant for their order.

Surveillance video shows a man begin shooting at another man he believed was ambushing him. But The bullets instead went through the car window, hitting the 11-year-old in the head and her father in the hip.

The siblings were not injured.

The girl’s mother Patricia was in the restaurant and heard the commotion. She saw her daughter and called 911.

On Friday she spoke about her anguish dealing with the aftermath.

“You see me strong here, but it’s difficult in the moment when all this happened,” she said in Spanish. “I felt like I was in a movie.”

“We give thanks to God we are alive” her husband Oscar said in Spanish.

Doctors at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital saved the 11-year-old from severe brain trauma, but she will need weeks of occupational and speech therapy.

“Her case is one of the reasons we become physicians and we take out time to be able to see things,” Dr. Wendy Carcamo said.

Police have arrested the accused shooter and said he was in a dispute with a group from Miramar.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

What’s it like at the Aspen Acres fire line? Hear from a wildland firefighter

KRDO on July 4, 2026

Michael Logerwell

PUEBLO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) – For days, firefighters from all over the country have been working to protect people and structures put at risk by the Aspen Acres Fire.

“There’s not really a way to explain very simply how humbling extreme wildfire behavior can be,” Nicholai Allen, a wildlands firefighter, told KRDO13 over a Zoom Video Call on Friday.

→ Find the most up to date information on the Aspen Acres wildfire here

Allen would be the one to know. He has firsthand experience as a wildland firefighter. Allen was part of a squad designated to protect homes in the Palisades fire that burned up parts of California in 2025.

He says it’s a cumulation of factors that make fighting an extreme wildfire like the Aspen Acres Fire challenging.

“It’s not just the direct fire front. It’s the low visibility, the toxic smoke in the air, ” Allen said. “I would say that it is the most uncomfortable, always on super high adrenaline, job that I’ve ever done.” Even without the fire, Allen points out that hiking through a rugged mountainous region in high wind conditions with all the fire gear would be challenging.

Added on top of that is the long hours. Fires don’t take breaks, and Allen says it’s not uncommon for wildland firefighters to work shifts of 24 hours or longer.

“I’d usually eat, like, only one time a day, maybe some snacks here and there, as it’s allowed. But very often when you get into it and if you’re doing structure triage and trying to, help people evacuate and save homes, you’re not really thinking about eating at all, or sleeping,” Allen said.

Surprisingly, Allen says he hasn’t found it too difficult to sleep because the work of a wildland firefighter is so exhausting. Every wildland fire is different, but Allen says typically a trailer is brought in to a safe zone further away from the front line where firefighters can sleep in their off-shift.

When not fighting fires, Allen says he works to educate homeowners on how to keep their homes fire safe. He encourages mitigation work around the home and warns that it’s not always the big wall fire that will ignite your property. It can be small embers that float into your home.

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Homes threatened by fires in Bonneville County

KIFI on July 4, 2026

Dylan Carder

UPDATE AT 10:40PM: Watch Duty reports that forward progress on both fires has been stopped.

Original Post:

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) Several fire crews are fighting at least two fires burning in Bonneville County. They are burning uphill towards some buildings.

Per Watch Duty, units are working a fire in the area of Red Bluff Lane and S. High Willow Lane and another fire in the are of E. Comish Drive and E. 65th S.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated when more information is available.

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29-year-old woman dies in Phelps County crash

KMIZ on July 4, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A 29-year-old woman from Pacifica, California, was killed in a crash Friday morning on Interstate 44 in Phelps County, according to a crash report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The report says the woman failed to stop her 2010 Honda Odyssey at a stop sign on the outer road and went into the westbound lane of I-44.

That led to a 2021 Freightliner Cascadia – driven by a 37-year-old man from El Paso, Texas – to hit the Honda, the report says.

The woman was pronounced dead at the scene by the Phelps County coroner, the report says.

Both drivers wore seatbelts. The El Paso man had no reported injuries. The woman’s body was brought to the mortuary by the coroner, the report says.

MSHP reports do not name those involved in crashes.

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Pocatello Seals 50 Year Time Capsule at Marshall Public Library

KIFI on July 4, 2026

Hadley Bodell

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) – To kickoff the historic America250 Fourth of July weekend, the City of Pocatello celebrated Idaho’s birthday and the community by sealing the 50-year time capsule. Unlike other time capsules buried underground, this one will be held on the second floor of the Marshall Public Library for the next 50 years.

A special America250 Committee has spearheaded the project, led by Representative Rick Cheatum. He had the idea for the time capsule after seeing other communities preserve snapshots in time in similar ways. The hope is that local leadership will open the steel box in 50 years and have an accurate idea of what life in Pocatello consisted of in 2026.

By 2076, it’s possible the forms of media preserved in the time capsule will no longer exist. Things like newspapers, physical articles, Idaho State University merchandise and more trinkets from everyday life filled the box. The capsule itself was built and donated by Partner Steel, and with over 100 total donations to City Hall for the project, they were able to fit everything submitted into the safe.

“There’s stuff in there from the City of Pocatello, taxes, everything to really show where we’re at now,” said J.D. Hansen, events coordinator for the America250 board.

He added it was challenging to decide how the items would best be preserved for 50 years, with the committee purchasing special preservation tools to make it possible.

“We had to order special papers to make sure none of the ink or anything like that spreads or omits any gas,” Hansen said. “Everything is personally sealed individually so that we don’t have any bleeding over anything else or the natural gasses to destroy it.”

Rep. Rick Cheatum spoke at the July 3 ceremony about the importance of preserving our community’s history and honoring the birthdays of both Idaho and the U.S. this year. Mayor Mark Dahlquist was also in attendance and read the proclaimation, stating that Pocatello officially participated in America250 with the time capsule project.

The mayor and members of the city council wrote letters to place inside. Dahlquist added he is honored to be mayor of Pocatello during this special celebratory year.

He reminded the community to continue celebrating in the downtown area of Pocatello throughout the weekend, with the First Friday Art Walk, the Farmer’s Market and both the parade and fireworks show at the Portneuf Wellness Complex on the Fourth of July.

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America 250: Pilot Butte Closed for Bend’s 4th of July Fireworks Show

KTVZ on July 4, 2026

Tyson Beauchemin

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — Pilot Butte is being prepared for Bend’s annual 4th of July fireworks show. It will feature more than 1,000 shells and a massive 12-inch finale shell creating a 1,200-foot diameter explosion. The display is scheduled for Saturday at 10 p.m. and is expected to last about 20 minutes.

Extensive safety measures have been implemented by local parks and fire agencies to prevent fires around the butte during the event. These preparations include months of coordination between various agencies to ensure a safe event for the community.

Sam Wilson, Fire Inspector with Bend Fire & Rescue, emphasized the extensive planning involved. “We’ve spent months of preparation and coordination with all of our surrounding agencies to ensure that the community of Bend has a safe and memorable 4th of July,” Wilson said.

For the duration of the event, Pilot Butte will be completely closed to the public, with only firefighters, security personnel and Sure-Shot Fireworks staff allowed on site.

Each firework will launched out of the the tubes which form a ring around the top of the butte. Some shells are fired by hand and others electronically triggered. The largest shells are sunken into containers of sand to absorb the shockwave generated during launch.

Subaru of Bend is sponsoring this year’s event. Jake Thomas, representing Subaru of Bend, noted the community’s appreciation for such displays. “Central Oregon does appreciate, a good fire display,” Thomas said. “So it’s just something that we wanted to give back and help continue that that tradition.”

Sure-Shot Fireworks has been producing this show for many years. Chris Mattison, owner of Sure Shot Fireworks, expressed his excitement for the nation’s upcoming milestone. “Yeah. We are so excited for for the United States to hit the 250 years, there’s been a lot of sacrifices. There’s been a lot of military, a lot of generations to build what we have today. And today is a good day to mark that. A quarter of a century that we did it. We’re still here and we love it.”

Organizers are continuously seeking additional co-sponsors to help enhance future 4th of July events.

The 4th of July fireworks show is set to begin Saturday at 10 p.m. and will last approximately 20 minutes.

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18-year-old seriously injured in jet ski accident

KMIZ on July 4, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

An 18-year-old man from House Springs, Missouri, was seriously injured in a jet ski accident on Friday afternoon at the Lake of the Ozarks, according to a Missouri State Highway Patrol boat crash report.

The incident occurred at the 28-mile marker of the Lake of the Ozarks in Camden County, according to the report.

The report says the man road a 2012 Yamaha Waverunner northbound “in the wake of a cruiser, rider jumped the wake and impacted his head on the personal water craft and got ejected.”

The man was brought to Lake Regional Hospital by ambulance with serious injuries, the report says.

MSHP reports do not name those involved in accidents.

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Company at center of canceled fireworks displays says refunds can be ‘handled through proper legal process’

KMIZ on July 4, 2026

Euphenie Andre

OSAGE BEACH, Mo. (KMIZ)

Several Mid-Missouri communities will be without their traditional Fourth of July fireworks displays this year after their fireworks vendor filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

The City of Osage Beach, the Mexico Noon Lions Club and Lake Valley Golf Club in Camdenton were all affected. The Lions Club and Lake Valley Golf Club had to cancel its displays, while Osage Beach moved its whole July 4 celebration to July 11.

All three parties had contracts with fireworks supplier AM Pyrotechnics. Arkansas communities were also affected.

The Mexico Noon Lions Club announced its cancellation on Thursday, saying it had worked with AM Pyrotechnics for many years before learning the company would be unable to fulfill its contract. The Lions Club treasurer told ABC 17 News on Thursday that she did not know if or when the club would be refunded.

AM Pyrotechnics said in a statement that it is operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after a November accident at one of its facilities severely disrupted its operations.

CEO and owner Aaron Mayfield wrote in a Friday statement that the accident affected manufacturing, inventory, staffing and its ability to complete every scheduled fireworks display. Mayfield claimed in his statement that the company worked to save as many Fourth of July shows as possible, but ultimately canceled some events when it determined they could not be completed safely.

In a statement, the company apologized for the late notice, saying organizers were notified as soon as final decisions were made. It added that payment, refund and other financial matters related to canceled shows are now being handled through the bankruptcy process.

“The reason for the timing is that we continued working in good faith to save as many displays as possible until it became clear that certain shows could not be completed safely and professionally,” Mayfield wrote. “Once those final determinations were made, affected clients were notified and my Chapter 11 counsel was copied so payment, refund, claim, and bankruptcy-related issues could be handled through the proper legal process.”

Visitors in Osage Beach on Friday shared their dismay with ABC 17 News.

“It’s really a bummer because I was really looking forward to that, and who doesn’t love fireworks in America?” visitor Messiah Williams said. “I love that loud boom.”

Though Osage Beach is having a later celebration, some visitors on Fridau said celebrating after the holiday won’t feel the same.

“You schedule it for next week, it’s not going to hit the same,” visitor Derick Maldonado said. “People aren’t going to have days off. It’s not going to be appreciated as much as it would be for July 4.”

AM Pyrotechnics claims it has completed other fireworks displays this season and continues to operate regional shows.

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Ahead of July 4th, La Quinta homeowner reflects on fight against HOA to keep up American flag

KESQ on July 4, 2026

Athena Jreij

LA QUINTA, Calif. (KESQ) – It’s been over 20 years since La Quinta resident Richard Birdsall fought his homeowner’s association to keep up a 22-foot flag pole and American flag.

This Fourth of July, Birdsall says he’s proud of his fight to fly the nation’s flag, which he first raised after September 11, 2001. But 6 months later, Birdsall says he received a call from his HOA telling him to take it down, per their guidelines.

“I get the call, take it down. I tell them, I’m not taking it down. Well, if you don’t take it down, we’re going to take you to court. I said, you do what you gotta do, and I’ll do what I have to do. So, the fight was on,” he said.

From there, he took his fight to state legislators, who passed Senate Bill 2032 in 2032 on January 1, 2003, prohibiting homeowners’ associations restrictions on flags.

“We had the news media here, NBC, CBS. We had them all here. The Boy Scouts helped me dedicate the flag. I’ve been flying it ever since,” Birdsall said.

As America celebrates it’s 250th birthday, Birdsall says it’s more important now than ever.

“I was never in the service, but all my brothers were. I had three brothers and they were all in the military. I just felt that, you know, this flag means freedom to all of us,” he said.

It comes as other homeowners complain of similar restrictions across California, specifically in San Diego’s San Marcos neighborhood.

His message to them? Keep fighting to fly the flag.

“Definitely. In fact, there were a lot of people who lived in gated communities after we had won, they called and said, we thank you very much for doing what you did. We get to fly our flag, too,” Birdsall said.

More than 2 decades after the fight, Birdsall says he’ll spend the fourth with his flag and family he loves.

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Brian De La Hoya runs for San Luis City Council

KYMA on July 4, 2026

Abigahil Padilla

SAN LUIS, Ariz. (KYMA) – Lifelong resident of San Luis, Arizona, Brian Analiz De La Hoya committed to focusing local as the race for San Luis City Council heats up.

De La Hoya who works as a substitute teacher and is currently studying business administration has plans on improving the local economy.

His focus includes creating jobs, expanding affordable housing, and supporting local businesses.

“My main proposal is to increase employment opportunities in our city. Our city has not reached the level of excellence it should have, we are a border city,” said De La Hoya.

He says his priorities also include attracting new investment, expanding education, and making city government more responsive to residents.

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