Author: CNN Newsource

By Aaron Hegarty

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    OMAHA, Nebraska (KETV) — In 2021, an Omaha housing inspector came to Fred Astaire’s birth house.

They noted several violations at the home overlooking 10th Street just south of Martha, including household debris, with some areas piled up to three feet high. A bright yellow “Danger – Closed” sign was placed on the home.

Ron Hug, before he was an Omaha City Council member, took notice.

“I used to flip houses,” Hug said. “I got pretty excited. I thought, oh, there’s an opportunity there.”

Hug leads the nonprofit that owns the home.

He said the goal is to prevent it from becoming a rental property again.

The city has no more code violations on the property, according to a city official. The final violations were removed in December, Hug said.

Hug shared the progress with KETV. Built in 1880, the house originally had gas lights, so Hug had the first outlets put in the floors rather than the walls.

“It’s a great thing for Omaha, because there’s one more thing we can draw people’s attention to from around the country, around the world,” said Bruce Crawford, who has hosted classic film tributes in Omaha for 33 years. “He created things that people can’t even touch today and come close to what he did. Anything connected to him in Omaha must be preserved.”

Astaire briefly recalls his time in Omaha in his autobiography, Douglas County Historical Society Executive Director Tom Neal said. But he remembers a home on 19th Street. Omaha World-Herald archives report it was on the 1400 block of North 19th Street.

But it appears that home is long gone. But 2326 S 10th Street, the home he was born in, is still there.

Hug said they’re working to make the birth house look like an average late-1800s, early 1900s home.

At one time, he said the goal was to make it a museum. That’s in flux, he said. It could become an event venue.

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.

By Renee Maloney

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    LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (WLKY) — When temperatures get chilly, the winter fun has just begun.

James and Bob Pike spent hours working on their latest cold creation.

An ice carousel!

The pair spent hours carving it into a pond using chainsaws and attached a motor to help it spin.

They were inspired by seeing someone do something similar in a YouTube video. They even invited friends and family over enjoy it together.

According to Bob’s most recent post on Facebook, the fun may have come to an end as the spinning circle of ice cracked in several places. Thankfully, no one fell in.

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.

By Yunier Martinez

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    UNDERHILL, Vermont (WPTZ) — For the Rodriguez family in Underhill, Sunday football is a tradition, even if it means cheering for opposing teams.

Dad Gerber Rodriguez has been a Seattle Seahawks fan since his youth in Seattle, where the city’s teams were central to his sports identity.

When his son Sam was born, he introduced him to the Seahawks, dressing him in team gear. But growing up in New England, Sam developed his own loyalty to the New England Patriots, embracing a sports identity distinct from his father.

The experience goes beyond wins and losses, creating a bond between the two. One defining moment occurred during Super Bowl 49, when a goal-line interception became a lasting point of memory for the family. Sam recalls the play vividly and has never allowed his father to forget it.

As Super Bowl 60 approaches, the Seahawks and Patriots will meet again, bringing a renewed sense of excitement to the Rodriguez household.

The game will be marked by friends, food, and spirited debate, but at its center is the connection between father and son, grounded in shared dedication to the sport.

“This is something that brings us closer together,” Sam said. “It’s a time we can spend together watching the game that we both love.”

For Gerber, the most rewarding part has been watching his son develop his own passion for football.

“It’s been remarkable seeing him grow and how much love he has for the game. It’s just great,” he said.

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.

By Alanna Flood, Nicole Poitras

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    MANCHESTER, New Hampshire (WMUR) — Adam Soucy and his friend, Lee Card, grew up riding bikes and jumping off decks in Manchester. Now, they’ve shared an experience that gives the term “blood brothers” new meaning.

Earlier this month, Card gave a portion of his liver to Soucy through a living donor transplant.

Following a series of health problems, Soucy was diagnosed with a rare type of liver cancer. He was 40 years old and had just gotten married two months prior, in August 2024.

His medical team first tried to fix the problem with stents.

“And then they said, this isn’t going to work. Let’s put you on the transplant list,” Soucy said.

He was put on the national donor database. That’s when Card asked what it would take to be a donor.

“When Lee stepped up, they were like, ‘Oh my goodness, this is so much easier. We have a living donor who could possibly be a match,'” Soucy said.

After 15 months of testing, the two were cleared and the transplant took place Jan. 20.

The two friends got released from the hospital Jan. 29.

For more information on how to become an organ donor, visit organdonor.gov.

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.

By Jon Schoenheider

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    GORHAM, New Hampshire (WMUR) — A bill moving through the state legislature could give New Hampshire Gold Star families more options for license plates, led by Gorham parents who lost their son overseas.

In November 2023, SSgt. Tanner Grone died in a helicopter crash before being brought home to a town-wide ceremony to honor him.

The 26-year-old was one of five U.S. Special Operations aviation soldiers to die during a routine training flight near Cyprus. Reports indicated the crash was due to an in-flight emergency, and not due to hostile actions.

To honor him in her own way, Tanner’s mom, Erica, got a “Gold Star Mother” vanity license plate in August 2024. At the time, she was the only family member who could get such a plate.

“It just didn’t seem right that I was the only one receiving this,” she said.

Since there were no additional vanity plate options for other family members, the Grones decided to make a change. The goal was to create a Gold Star plate for Steve as Tanner’s dad, and one for their daughter, Emily

“(Emily) was by my side the whole time,” said Erica, “and Steve and I made choices raising them together, it wasn’t me on my own.”

The family reached out to their local representatives to ask for more options. That included contacting State Rep. Michael Murphy, who is now the prime sponsor for House Bill 1070, the bill that would add more options.

Murphy said this wasn’t the first time other plates were suggested, as others have tried in years past.

“It wasn’t feasible monetarily,” Murphy said. “It cost a lot of money to change things over the plates, and that was taxpayer money. So that’s kind of why it all got shot down before.”

With support from other lawmakers and the state Department of Motor Vehicles, the Grones say they were informed the design would stay similar. Instead of “Mother” on the bottom of the star printed on the left side of the plate, the word would change to options like “Father” and “Family” on the new additions.

“We just wanted everybody to have their choice of what they wanted,” Murphy said.

It’s a choice that the Grones have heard other families want, too, which has bolstered their efforts. They say the idea has received traction online from other Gold Star families, some of whom tried to propose the same idea in the past.

“The time has come for it,” said Tanner’s father, Steve. “It’s the right thing to do.”

The bill was approved by the State House Committee and Finance Committee last week. It’s now waiting for approval in the State Senate.

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.

By Felicity Taylor

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    PITTSBURGH (WTAE) — Ice covering Pittsburgh’s three rivers causes extra work for the Army Corps of Engineers as they try to keep barge traffic moving. Most years, folks only expect the Allegheny River to look the way all three do.

“This is exceptional. We are seeing ice formation on the Monongahela River, which, of course, flows south to north, so typically it’s warmer than the Allegheny,” Col. Nicholas Melin said. “But even on the Ohio, we’re seeing freezing temperatures and ice formation that we’ve not seen in quite a number of years.”

Barges are still moving on the Monongahela and Ohio rivers, though less frequently than usual. That is because the Army Corps of Engineers has kept all 22 locks and dams across the three rivers open. There is still ice on the river.

“Ice buildup on the gates, ice buildup on the dam can cause excess weight on the gates, which can cause issues and breakages,” Sean Myers, a maintenance mechanic supervisor at the Emsworth Lock and Dam, said. “We have to be able to respond to that when it does happen.”

Officials stressed that while the rivers may look frozen solid, the water beneath the ice is still moving and dangerous. They are warning people against walking out onto the ice, noting that falling into water this cold can be deadly.

“The river is still flowing. Even if you don’t see the water, it is still moving underneath the ice,” Melin said. “The ice is under pressure, so it’s shifting and reforming. Even though it might look as though the river is solid ice, there could be cracks and fissures, and ice could be moving without you knowing it.”

Eventually, the ice will melt, and how that happens will decide their next steps for the river.

“If the temperatures rise gradually, the ice will melt, and we’ll move it through our locks and dams and move it down the Ohio River,” Melin said. “If we see a rapid rise in temperature and a lot of rain, that’s when we would potentially see high water conditions on our rivers.”

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.

By Greg Ng

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    COCKEYSVILLE, Maryland (WBAL) — Crews rescued a worker who became trapped in an elevated sand hopper in Cockeysville, according to the Baltimore County Fire Department.

County fire officials said rescue crews were called around 1:21 p.m. Friday to the 10800 block of Beaver Dam Road, where a worker was trapped waist-deep in an elevated sand hopper.

County fire officials said first responders helped free the man from sand nearly 75 feet in the air, and h was able walk out with assistance.

A Medevac helicopter and the Shock Trauma Go-Team were called to the scene, and Baltimore City sent mutual aid.

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.

By Jennifer Franciotti

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    ESSEX, Maryland (WBAL) — A dramatic rescue of a cat clinging to life in a 100-foot-tall tree was caught on video after last weekend’s snowstorm.

Warm and safe now, the cat named “Oak” has quite a story.

The little guy wasn’t curled safely in a crate during last weekend’s storm; he was actually stuck at the top of a 100-foot sweetgum tree for more than 24 hours.

Dawn Cannella runs Peninsula Colony Cats, which helped with the rescue, along with neighbors, watched in horror as the cat, who is likely a stray from a nearby apartment building, clung to the tree’s branches.

“Emotionally, horrible. It was awful. I couldn’t sleep. We knew we had to get the cat out of the tree before he died,” Cannella told WBAL-TV 11 News.

All the while, Oak was stuck in the snow, sleet and freezing rain.

“The wind started blowing, and the ice was just starting. It was just awful,” Cannella told WBAL-TV 11 News.

Onlookers became distraught. They first called the Baltimore County Fire Department. When help couldn’t come, they called Patrick Dotson with Healthy Trees Tree Service to save the day.

“I thought God was calling me to rescue the cat, that was the first initial thing,” Dotson told WBAL-TV 11 News. “I’ve done training area rescues for climbers. I’ve never rescued a cat before. I put it on my (business) card just to be ready.”

Dotson described the moment he first attempted the rescue.

“Initially, I thought this was (going to) be an easy climb because Oak was about 20 feet down from where he originally ended up,” Dotson told WBAL-TV 11 News. “I got about 5 feet to him. They sent up cat food; I thought maybe he’ll smell the food, he’ll come down. No, he just kept going up higher and higher.”

Dotson had to turn to plan B, which was to cut the branch and create a bridge to grab Oak.

“We began to cut the branch as it peeled over. I guess he got scared,” Dotson told WBAL-TV 11 News.

Oak then jumped off the tree as the heart-pounding video showed the moment rescuers finally got him.

“He was covered in ice. His eyes were all crusted,” Cannella told WBAL-TV 11 News.

Oak suffered from a broken leg in two spots, but Cannella hopes he’ll recover fully.

“Hopefully, he won’t need surgery. He has some frostbite areas, and other than that, he’s relatively healthy,” Cannella told WBAL-TV 11 News.

All thanks to bravery, teamwork and generosity.

“It’s an amazing job that you do,” Cannella told Dotson.

“We showed up to be a great team,” Dotson said.

“It was wonderful,” Cannella said.

Oak still needs to recover for a few more weeks before he’s ready for adoption. Not surprisingly, he has already had much interest.

For those who would like to follow his story, or see more about some of the cats that are up for adoption, follow Peninsula Colony Cat Rescue on social media.

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.

By Emma Benson

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    SOUTH JORDAN, Utah (KSL) — For most people, food is fuel. But for ShayLee Hunter, survival comes another way.

“At 6 months old, I had my first surgery and had a third of my large intestine removed,” she said. “By the time I was 2, I got my first feeding tube.”

Hunter was born with a rare digestive disorder called chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction, a condition where the nerves and muscles of the gut don’t work properly. Food and fluid can’t move through her body as they should.

At age 16, she underwent ostomy surgery. Hunter relies entirely on Total Parenteral Nutrition — liquid nutrition delivered directly into her bloodstream through an IV line.

“My life expectancy was not to surpass 20 years old,” said now-27-year-old Hunter. “I was told I probably would never graduate high school, I probably would never get married or have kids.”

But Hunter refused to accept that prognosis.

“I was like, well, I’m gonna show them that they’re wrong,” she said.

For 25 years, one person has helped make that possible: Paul Wolford, a clinical pharmacist with Intermountain Health Home Services.

“We want them to be home and be as independent as possible and live as normal a life as possible,” Wolford said.

Wolford helps manage Hunter’s complex care — overseeing her customized IV nutrition, adjusting prescriptions and working closely with her doctors.

“We’re always in touch,” Wolford said. “We always work with her providers to try and coordinate care and make sure she’s getting the best care possible.”

To Hunter, that consistency has meant everything.

“He’s always right there, ready to answer any questions and just be there for you and his patients,” she said.

Despite decades of weekly calls and constant coordination, the two had never met in person — until Jan. 27.

“In a lot of ways, they sort of become like a second family,” Wolford said.

Hunter said that support has helped her live far beyond what doctors once predicted. She’s earned a college degree, traveled internationally and even competes in pageants to raise awareness for invisible disabilities. She has also worked as a child advocate for a domestic abuse shelter and is currently a chapter coordinator for a nonprofit that preserves the arts.

“I love that they’re willing to explore those options and help me with my dreams,” she said. “This is my life, and I think I should have that option to live it fully — I don’t think just a medication should hinder me from that.”

Hunter recently nominated Wolford for Intermountain Health’s L.OV.E. Award, recognizing exceptional caregivers. He received the award on the same day the two met face-to-face for the first time.

Intermountain Health Homecare Services includes home infusion therapy, infused specialty pharmacy medications and digestive health IV nutrition therapy. Nutrition therapy helps to deliver essential nutrients when a person cannot consume food orally or absorb nutrients through the digestive system. These therapies ensure that the body receives the necessary vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, proteins and fats needed for energy, growth and healing.

In 2025, Home Services delivered high‑quality care to more than 135,000 patients across eight medical specialty service lines. Nearly 2,000 caregivers, including over 100 providers, traveled 8.5 million miles across five states (Utah, Idaho, Colorado, Montana and Nevada) to meet patients where they are.

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.