Category: CNN Regional

By Jay Motiwala

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    MOUNT AIRY, N.C. (WXII) — Businesses along Riverside Drive in Mount Airy are reeling from extensive damage, with owners and the community coming together to clean up and rebuild.

“It’s like complete shock, just to see everything’s destroyed,” property owner Maria Perez said.

The damage spans from one business to the next, leaving owners devastated.

“It’s heartbreaking. You know this is my livelihood. This is how I feed my family, so it hurts,” said Shania Cornigan, owner of S & N Salon.

Cornigan said she is determined to move forward despite the challenges.

“I guess now we just have to rebuild it, start all over,” she said.

Other businesses in the area are facing similar struggles as they work to recover.

“We got about three feet worth of damage, water, level,” shop owner Beth Moore said.

For now, the focus is on cleaning up and salvaging as much as possible.

“In the moment it’s like, this is a total loss. When are we going to get back up and running for the community?” one person said.

Amid the destruction, a sense of community has emerged, with people coming together to support one another.

“I walked over and chatted with the owner of the Chop Shop, Jessica. We gave each other a big old hug,” Moore said.

Jessica Cockerham, the owner of the Chop Shop, expressed her gratitude for the outpouring of support.

“We have just a wonderful group of people that have come out and helped us,” Cockerham said.

Community members are encouraging others to lend a hand in any way they can.

“You can help by just doing the little things, bringing drinks, snacks, food, boxes,” Cockerham said

Cornigan added, “If you see somebody doing something, just help them.”

“Be there for your neighbors,” Moore 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 Jamy Pombo Sesselman

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    BOSTON (WCVB) — Boston Celtics champion and legendary NBA coach Don Nelson has died at the age of 86, his family announced Sunday.

Nelson, a three-time NBA Coach of the Year and five time champion with the Celtics, died surrounded by his family.

“On Sunday morning our beloved husband, dad, grandfather and great-grandfather Don Nelson peacefully went to be with the Lord, surrounded by his loving family. Throughout his last week, friends and family encircled him with love, sharing the blessing of his friendship and revisiting treasured memories,” the family said in a statement.

Nelson, who pioneered “Nellie Ball,” played for the Celtics for 11 years and had his number 19 retired by the franchise in 1978.

“Don Nelson’s success as a Hall of Fame Coach is so vast, that it could overshadow his playing career, but it would be a mistake to do so. A favorite of Red Auerbach’s, “Nellie” was a tough and reliable all-around player whose tenacity and ability to “think the game” was on full display throughout his 11 seasons with the Boston Celtics, where he was a key member of five championship teams across two eras,” the Celtics said in a statement.

The Celtics said Nelson’s most celebrated moment as a player came in Game 7 of the 1969 NBA Finals against his former team the Los Angeles Lakers, when Nelson converted one of the most famous shots in playoff history—a foul-line jumper which dropped through the basket after hitting the back rim and bouncing several feet straight up.

“The shot, taken with just over a minute to go in the game and the Celtics clinging to a 103–102 lead, was an essential play in helping secure Boston’s 11th NBA title in 13 seasons. Nellie’s number 19 was raised shortly after he retired following yet another championship season in 1976,” the team said.

Before the Celtics, Nelson played for the Chicago Zephyrs and Los Angeles Lakers.

Nelson coached the Milwaukee Bucks, the New York Knicks, the Dallas Mavericks and the Golden State Warriors.

“He was a true basketball visionary who saw the game differently and was never afraid to challenge conventional thinking. His approach helped shape the game and paved the way for generations of players and coaches who followed. More than anything, Don Nelson will be remembered for his authenticity, larger-than-life personality, and incredible passion for basketball, and his influence on the Warriors franchise will endure for years to come,” the Warriors posted 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 Felicity Taylor

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    YOUNGWOOD, Pa. (WTAE) — Residents on North Fifth Street in Youngwood are cleaning up after Friday’s flooding, which they say is part of a long-standing problem that has yet to be resolved despite a grant secured six years ago.

Clifford Domasky, a Youngwood resident, described the scene.

“It was like a river from there, clear over to that brush pile over there,” Domasky said.

Floodwaters inundated the street and five surrounding homes in less than 30 minutes, leaving significant destruction in their wake and coating everything in mud.

Jeff Gilligan, another resident, recounted the struggle to protect his home and carpentry shop.

“We were holding the doors tight the best we could to the wall so that it didn’t, because it was just spewing through the walls,” he said.

Gilligan said the flooding ruined nearly everything in his home and shop, much of which had just been recovered from a previous flood on the Fourth of July.

“Took us about two and a half weeks to clean out everything. We just got to clean, and it just happened again. And you’re talking that muck gets into everything. So it could be another couple weeks till I get it all taken care of,” he said.

Residents say the flooding has been a recurring problem for nearly 20 years, caused by an undersized four-foot pipe in their section of the creek.

“This one’s four foot. So all that water goes, and once it hits there and can’t go no more, it just turns or turns around and comes back,” Domasky said.

According to neighbors, State Rep. Eric Nelson’s office and local councilmembers secured a grant six years ago to replace the pipe with a larger one, but no action has been taken. Nelson visited the area on Saturday, but residents are still waiting for answers.

“Someone tell us what they’re going to do to fix it, because they know what the problem is and said they have the money to do it. Why aren’t they doing it? That’s all we want to know,” Domasky said.

Nelson’s office has been contacted for an update on the project.

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 Logan Smith

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    MESA COUNTY, Colorado (KCNC) — On a day with record-setting heat, a mountain biker suffered a mechanical failure on the Palisade Plunge Trail, which claimed the life of a Colorado Springs cyclist four years earlier.

A mechanical breakdown threatened to strand the unidentified cyclist Monday about 10 miles from the trail’s end. Mesa County Search and Rescue (MCSAR) personnel responded and met the cyclist at a memorial shade structure erected last November by the family and friends of Jeff Higgins.

Higgins, 52, died of heat exposure and dehydration on June 11, 2022. He was found unconscious beside the trail by three other cyclists who called 9-1-1 and stayed with Higgins. But those cyclists had also run out of water and needed help.

Monday, nearby Grand Junction broke its record high temperature for the day by three degrees.

Mesa County’s rescue team reached the cyclist by driving an all-terrain vehicle up the trail to the shade structure. The cyclist was given water and time to rehydrate before those rescuers hauled that rider and broken bicycle downhill into Palisade.

“We’re grateful this mission ended safely and that a space created in Jeff Higgins’ memory provided shade and comfort when it was needed,” MCSAR stated on social media. “Our hearts are with Jeff’s family & loved ones, and we hope it brings them comfort knowing his memory is helping others along the Plunge.”

That is certainly the case.

“It’s exactly the reason we put it there,” said Higgins’s widow, Amy. “Jeff would never want to discourage someone from doing something they wanted to do, and still return home safe to their family.”

Amy Higgins fought back tears as she described the effort to put the shelter near where he husband passed away – from commissioning a Grand Junction artist, Jeff Bates, to design and build it to coordinating with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Town of Palisade, and City of Grand Junction for permission to locate it. In November, members of the Palisade mountain biking community joined the family to place the shelter at what she called “the bailout,” the last convenient point for cyclists to exit the trail or first responders to reach them.

Less than a year after it was put there, it has already served its purpose, Amy Higgins marveled.

“And I’m really happy for that,” she shared.

Less than a year after it was put there, it has already served its purpose, Amy Higgins marveled.

“And I’m really happy for that,” she shared.

Jeff Higgins’s brother Dan was there when shovels hit the dirt last November.

“We’re thankful knowing the structure built in Jeff’s honor has now helped a rider,” he told CBS Colorado. “That’s what it was meant to do.”

He noted that section of trail now has much better signage to alert cyclists to the “bailout” point and shelter.

The Palisade Plunge is a 32-mile path from the top of Grand Mesa to Palisade. It opened in 2018.

The Higgins family has been unable to make contact with the three cyclists who stopped to help Jeff Higgins on the trail four years ago. Amy Higgins said she wants to meet them and thank them, if possible.

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 Austin Turner

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    BIG BEAR LAKE, California (KCAL, KCBS) — Jackie, the bald eagle famous for raising several eaglets in Big Bear with her partner Shadow, is in critical and unstable condition as veterinary teams continue to care for her in Ventura County.

“The past 24 hours have been incredibly difficult,” the Ojai Raptor Center said in a post to Facebook on Sunday afternoon. “[Jackie] remains critically ill, and her condition is currently unstable.”

The bald eagle has been in Ojai Raptor Center’s care for three weeks after she was rescued following a fight with two other eagles. She subsequently fell ill, with the center describing her as anemic.

Jackie’s packed cell volume was as low as 6% on Saturday. It rose to 9% on Sunday, the center said.

“While this is a small improvement, her PCV remains critically low and her overall condition remains extremely serious,” the center said.

As recently as a couple of weeks ago, her PCV was 17%.

Ojai Raptor Center said there were no further updates on her health.

“Our entire focus remains on [Jackie’s] welfare and providing the care she needs,” the center said. “Every decision continues to be guided by her medical condition and what is in her best interest.”

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 Carmela Karcher, Jose Fabian

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    STOCKTON, California (KOVR) — Two people were killed after a trench collapsed at a construction site in north Stockton early Saturday morning.

A memorial of flowers and candles was growing Sunday near the site of the collapse, in a parking lot near East Hammer Lane and North El Dorado Street, in front of the former Lion Supermarket and ABC Tile storefronts.

Stockton firefighters were called around 5:15 a.m. Saturday to a report of a trench collapse with two people trapped inside.

Fire officials said the trench had been about 10 feet deep before the collapse. Crews secured and stabilized the area before beginning a technical rescue operation.

With help from Stockton Public Works and heavy equipment, crews worked for hours to reach the two people. Both were eventually found dead.

Stockton police and code enforcement remained at the scene after firefighters completed their operation, and Cal/OSHA was brought in to assist with the investigation.

The exact circumstances surrounding the collapse remain under investigation.

Sergio Garcia, a personal injury attorney who has worked on similar cases, said investigators will likely examine whether the workers had proper equipment and information about potential hazards, as well as whether the trench met workplace safety requirements.

“Were they equipped with – were they provided with the right equipment? Were they given the right intelligence about the job and what the requirements and the safety hazards were before they were sent out?” Garcia said. “Also, you want to find out if the trench was prepared to OSHA standards, if it met all the requirements to be safe.”

Garcia said families in cases like this can be left waiting for answers while multiple agencies investigate.

“They do not get the information they need in a timely basis,” Garcia said. “But they should be able to provide at least the basic information that the families will need right at the onset.”

By Sunday, the trench had been filled with dirt and gravel.

CBS News Sacramento has reached out to the Stockton Fire Department and San Joaquin County Coroner’s Office for more information about the two people who died and what company they worked for.

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.