Author: CNN Newsource

By Matt Schooley, Jordyn Jagolinzer

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    CAPE COD, Massachusetts (WBZ) — A family swam to an island off the coast of Cape Cod and spent two nights there waiting for help after their boat caught fire early this week.

The U.S. Coast Guard said the family of three was rescued Wednesday morning after becoming stranded on Naushon Island. All three were seriously injured.

“Disasters at sea are often pretty terrifying, but to hear one especially like this, right here, we don’t really get that,” said Falmouth resident Eric Frost.

Coast Guard officials said the Sullivan family departed from Eel Pond near Falmouth, Massachusetts Friday on their boat named Third Wave. In a statement from the family, they said they had been asleep early Tuesday morning when the family’s dog started barking, alerting them to a fire. By that time, the boat was engulfed and while the family was able to escape, their dogs tragically died.

Though the boaters were expected to return Tuesday afternoon, they were overdue and a concerned family member reported them missing that night. A search for the boat began soon after, including Coast Guard members, the Falmouth Police Department, Falmouth harbormaster, and volunteers from Naushon Trust.

The Coast Guard received a mayday call from the family Wednesday morning. Nashuon Trust volunteers found the missing boaters and provided first aid.

A Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod crew arrived to Naushon Island and airlifted members of the family to Cape Cod Hospital. The Sullivan family said in a statement that Cici Sullivan remains in the ICU in critical but stable condition and her husband Patrick was taken to Brigham and Women’s for treatment in their burn center. Their son, Tyler, suffered third-degree burns on his arm and smoke inhalation, but is in stable condition.

“The family would like to express our deepest gratitude to the U.S. Coast Guard and all emergency personnel who participated in the search and rescue efforts,” said the Sullivan family in a statement.

“It’s awful, I hope everyone turns out OK. It has been very windy lately,” said Mashpee resident Dennis Flaherty.

Located between Buzzards Bay and Vineyard Sound, Naushon Island is the largest of the Elizabeth Islands. It is centered between Pasque Island and Nonamesset Island.

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By Mike Hellgren

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    MARYLAND (WJZ) — A software error caused 293 former state workers to receive twice their buyout payments, WJZ Investigates has learned.

Maryland officials are advising those who received the excess funds not to touch the extra money in their accounts, which will be taken back automatically.

The payments will be taken out of the accounts over the next several weeks, and the state promises to put the correct amounts into the accounts by November 19.

Maryland officials said they notified those impacted by email and by phone.

Maryland formally eliminated more than 500 positions in state government on Wednesday, most of them from a voluntary buyout program. The move helps Maryland’s struggling budget.

The state’s spending board approved the cuts without question during its meeting on Wednesday.

Gov. Wes Moore authorized the buyouts for 332 employees. Almost 900 workers applied for the Voluntary Separation Program.

Approximately 170 positions that were already vacant are also being eliminated to save the state tens of millions of dollars.

“None of these choices is easy,” Gov. Moore said at the Board of Public Works meeting. “I do want to ensure the public, including all of our public servants, that we will continue to protect our people.”

The position eliminations are expected to save the state $10.5 million during fiscal year 2026 and $22 million in general funds during fiscal year 2027.

The glitch in the Voluntary Separation Program (VSP) was revealed this week. WJZ Investigates found the state mistakenly double-paid 293 of those workers, and they are now working to take the money back.

That includes $40,000, instead of the agreed-upon $20,000 lump sum, plus double the $300 for each year of service.

One of those workers who asked to remain anonymous is outraged at how it was handled.

“It’s sad for our government,” she said. “It’s sad for our state. It’s sad for the employees.”

In an email she received, the state blamed a “software error” and asked those who received the buyout payments to “please retain these funds. The entire amount (correct payment and overpayment) you received will be automatically debited from your account within the next 2 weeks. A new, correct payment will be transmitted to you on November 19th. Apologies for the inconvenience this may cause… .”

“I’m not giving them permission to go to my account and take out money,” the former worker told WJZ Investigates. “Yes, I know it’s not my money, but let’s talk about it. Don’t just send me an email and say, ‘Don’t touch any of that money. We’re taking it back sometime in two weeks when we decide.'”

She continued, “I was alarmed, scared, frustrated, and to think that they can now just go back into my account, really without my authorization, and take the money.”

In a statement to WJZ, Senior Advisor and Communications Director David Turner said once the overpayments went out, there was nothing they could immediately do.

“On October 20, the Department of Budget and Management discovered a file error that resulted in double payments to 293 VSP participants,” Turner wrote. “As the electronic payment process for all state employees was already in progress, there would have been considerable risk in modifying the payment file. Therefore, the state paid all state employees on schedule—providing notice to VSP participants that, due to a software error, the funds they received will be recalled and the correct amount reissued.”

Turner warned that Maryland will take action to get the overpayments back.

“If overpayments are not returned in full, the state may pursue recoupment via employee leave balance payouts, standard collection procedures, or, in the worst cases, tax refund intercepts to recover the funds,” Turner said.

The former worker who discovered the problem said it has shaken her trust in the state government.

“I didn’t go to you and say, ‘Hey, buy me out to fix your deficit.’ You offered that to me,” she said. “We’re publicizing that we want to help federal employees with employment. Well, you’re not paying the employees who have dedicated themselves to you already. I would’ve rather them just not give me anything and to say, ‘Hey, there’s a glitch, you’ll get paid in two weeks.'”

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By Sharon Chin

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    OAKLAND, California (KPIX) — A retired stockbroker is giving some elementary school students in Oakland a foundation in finance to break the cycle of poverty.

“They’re getting a foundation, a foundation and exposure for finance,” Val Chapman said.

The retired stockbroker wanted to help break the cycle of poverty among at-risk children. So, she founded Financial Literacy for Kid$ in 2020.

“They’re learning about managing their own money, saving for college, building their own businesses, and they’re having fun at it,” said Chapman,

She teaches four classes a week at Franklin Elementary School in Oakland. Fourth and fifth-graders like Maurice Young manage their own simulated portfolios and share their moneymakers.

“Trump Media,” said the fifth grader. “‘Because he’s going up $2.”

They’re also learning diversification. And, like fifth grader Praise Tamang, the right time to buy.

“I like to buy them while they’re down,” Tamang said. “I’ve made $200 in equity so far.”

Student Anuhea Lopez understands that if she starts young, she can grow a nice nest egg.

“You could have more money and live a better life,” said the 5th grader.

Teacher Benita Yeager said Chapman’s lessons are turning a profit in student learning.

“They’re broadening their horizons, and expanding their minds, and they really love it, which is the best part of it all,” Yeager said.

It’s evident Chapman loves it too.

“You can see the joy,” Yeager said. “This is her passion. This is what she wants to do.”

On this day, students pitched new product ideas to a guest speaker from ELF Beauty in Oakland. It’s the entrepreneurial arm of Financial Literacy for Kid$.

Students build their own startups and compete in Tiger Tank, their school’s version of Shark Tank. They pitch their products like homemade soap and jewelry.

“We have students who’ve hired other classmates to work with them. And they’re earning 30 to 40 dollars a week,” Chapman said. “That’s pretty impressive, and that also helps them build their math skills and research skills.

Some of the students have won regional prizes in the National Stock Market Game, where they manage a hypothetical $100,000 portfolio.

Financial Literacy for Kid$ is fiscally sponsored by the Oakland Public Education Fund. Chapman is seeking more corporate partnerships and grants, so she can bring the literacy lessons to all of the 4th and 5th graders in Oakland’s public schools.

She also teaches a weeklong tuition-based summer program on financial literacy. Chapman is seeing early returns on her investment, students are opening savings accounts, and there’s a ripple effect at home.

“Not only are students learning more about investing, but they’re also talking to their parents and families about saving and investing as well,” Chapman beamed.

So, for opening doors of economic opportunity through Financial Literacy for Kid$, this week’s CBS News Bay Area Icon Award goes to Val Chapman.

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By Dean Fioresi

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    ENCINO, California (KCAL, KCBS) — A group of bears was spotted relaxing in the trees above a neighborhood in Encino on Wednesday afternoon, drawing a small crowd of onlookers.

The bears were first spotted at around noon near Ashley Oaks Drive, close to Balboa and Ventura boulevards. The family of bears, a mother and her three cubs, remained in the neighborhood for hours, with some neighbors telling CBS LA that they were lingering even at around 9 p.m.

Both the Los Angeles Police Department and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife were called to the scene after the bears were first spotted.

SkyCal was overhead as the four bears moved around in the trees later in the afternoon.

There were no reports of direct interaction with any of the residents in the area and DFW said that none of the bears needed to be tranquilized or removed from the area.

Wildlife officials said that they’ve been tracking the mother bear, known to them as Yellow 2291, for years. She was found roaming in Claremont in May last year. he’s been relocated to the Angeles National Forest several times in recent months, but somehow always made it back to the Santa Monica Mountains. They say that she welcomed her three bear cubs in March.

It is reportedly the first time that a bear was ever reported in the city of Encino, residents told CBS LA.

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By Mike Hellgren

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    BALTIMORE COUNTY, Maryland (WJZ) — Investigators are working to determine the cause of the collapse of a 145-year-old bridge in Baltimore County on Monday, while the brother of a septic truck driver is relieved there were no injuries.

The historic, one-lane bridge on Carroll Road in Phoenix, Maryland, is used by thousands of vehicles daily, and the structure fell apart as the septic truck drove over it.

“I’m so glad he is alive,” the brother of the septic truck driver told WJZ Investigates.

Sudden bridge collapse

The first calls came in just after 5 p.m. Monday about a bridge failure less than a 10-minute drive from Hunt Valley Town Center.

“Alert rescue boats. Philpot Road and Carroll Road for a bridge collapse with a vehicle on top,” the dispatcher said.

The truck’s windshield was smashed, and pieces of the green metal truss were strewn about. An SUV behind the truck had a dented roof and a smashed windshield.

Thankfully, no one was injured.

“Actually, it was pretty shocking,” said Molly Moroney, who lives a short distance away and drives over the bridge almost every day. “It was worse than I thought it was going to be. A tree had fallen. It was pretty much right after a truck had gone over the bridge. The tree was huge.”

First responders arrived at a stunning scene. The pin-truss bridge had collapsed with a septic truck on top. A large tree also fell into it.

A state environmental team also responded but found no dangers or leaks.

“I just thought about our family and our neighborhood and these little kids and maybe smaller cars or something,” Moroney continued. “I don’t think it would’ve ended well with anything smaller than that big truck.”

Truck driver’s perspective

In several messages, the brother of the septic truck’s driver told WJZ Investigates the truck weighed under the posted weight limit and said the truck was not to blame.

He added that supports on the bridge were “inadequate to support the posted loading maximums.”

He wrote. “My brother is the driver. Luckily, he is OK. He is a local small business owner, always conscientious of posted weight limits and restrictions, and that truck is his pride and joy. …Had the massive tree fallen a split second earlier onto the cab of the truck, my brother could have been killed or seriously injured.”

Police investigation

Baltimore County police are leading the investigation. They told WJZ they are using a team of certified commercial vehicle inspectors

Police said the cause of the collapse has yet to be determined.

Inspection report

The county inspects all bridges more than 20 feet long every two years as mandated by the federal government.

WJZ Investigates looked at those records and found the Carroll Road bridge received a “fair” rating in December 2023.

It was inspected again last year, and that inspection did not show unusual structural issues with the bridge, which was constructed in 1879.

With growth in the area, the single-lane bridge is now seeing an average of more than 2,500 vehicles and more than 120 trucks every day, according to the report, more than three times the traffic 20 years ago.

Moroney said it is critical to her to find out about the bridge’s inspection and maintenance.

“Actually, it’s really important to me just because we have small children who go to school, and we go back and forth over that bridge all the time,” she said. “So, it’s pretty important to find out what went wrong.”

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By Doug Myers

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    Texas (KTVT) — A dramatic rescue operation unfolded Wednesday after a tow truck crashed and ended up hanging over an overpass near Highway 121, also known as the Sam Rayburn Tollway, and Hardin Boulevard in McKinney.

Units from the McKinney Fire Department responded along with other emergency personnel. Crews worked to stabilize the vehicle and rescue anyone who may have been trapped.

Tow truck flipped while driver avoided crash

One person was rescued, officials said. He sustained no major injuries, was evaluated at the scene by Medic 11, and declined transport to the hospital.

The tow truck driver told McKinney emergency workers that he didn’t collide with any other vehicles, but flipped and ended up dangling over the overpass while trying to avoid a crash.

All southbound lanes of the Sam Rayburn Tollway at Hardin Boulevard were closed following the crash, according to officials. Two northbound lanes were also shut down due to the incident.

Drivers urged to seek detours

Authorities are urging drivers to avoid the area and use alternate routes.

CBS News Texas will provide updates as more information becomes available.

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By Blaine Montgomery

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    CAPE CORAL, Florida (WBBH) — Burnt Store Road has reopened after a deadly crash claimed three lives near Sand Road — but for one Cape Coral resident who rushed to help, the emotional impact is lasting.

Bryan Greenwell, who lives nearby, heard what he thought was a car hitting his house late Monday night. Stepping outside, he noticed an unusual silence on the typically busy two-lane road. That’s when he knew something was wrong.

Driving toward the quiet, Greenwell found a horrific crash involving three vehicles near Janis Road. He ran to check on the victims — and what he saw will stay with him forever.

Inside one car, a husband and wife sat motionless. The vehicle was nearly on its side. Greenwell says the woman appeared to be reaching for her husband, and he was holding her hand — a final embrace in their last moments.

Cape Coral Police identified the couple as Norma Jean Ralston and Gary Galiher. Also killed in the crash was 48-year-old Laura Beasley, a wife, mother, and grandmother.

Greenwell says the tragedy left him shaken, but that moment of connection between the couple — even in death — offered a small sense of peace.

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