North Carolina
State officials: No NC recreational flounder season in 2024
The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries announced the recreational flounder season will not open this year “in order to preserve the southern flounder resource.”
Citing continuing pressures on the fishery, state officials announced Thursday that there will be no recreational flounder season in 2024.
The move comes after years of smaller and smaller windows for recreational fishermen to catch the popular fish, culminating in last year’s short two-week harvest window.
But officials said even that short fishing period was too much for the already depleted flounder fishery.
“Estimates from 2023 indicate the recreational catch exceeded the quota allowed under a stock rebuilding plan that was included in Amendment 3 to the Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan and adopted by the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission,” stated a release from the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries.
Under current rules, exceeding a quota in one year means the following year’s allowable catch number must be reduced by the amount that exceeded the limit.
“After subtracting the recreational overage from 2023, the recreational quota remaining for 2024 is not large enough to allow for a season opening. The leftover quota will be used to account for the anticipated dead discards that will occur due to incidental catch and release,” states the release.
“The commission discussed holding a special meeting to consider alternatives to not holding a 2024 recreational season but ultimately did not move forward with that approach.”
The state’s move on Thursday continues a series of steps that regulators hope will help the struggling fishery rebound, although the moves have frustrated local anglers who never had to deal with a closed flounder season until 2019 and watch neighboring states adopt much less stringent rules.
NEW RULES COMING: Catch a flounder or red drum? NC recreational fishermen will soon have to report it
Among the responses to the restrictions on the fishery, which many recreational fishermen see as heavy handed, has been a lawsuit filed by the Coastal Conservation Association of North Carolina alleging the state has mismanaged its coastal fisheries, including flounder.
Pressures on the flounder fishery have been growing for decades, with recreational fishermen and commercial fishermen blaming each other for depleting near-shore flounder populations.
Climate change is another concern among scientists, with warming sea temperatures potentially impacting the sex ratio of the fishery. Since juvenile flounders hang out in shallow, inland estuary waters, warmer water temperatures likely trigger more of the fish to be male. That also could be a growing problem because female flounders grow bigger than males, and thus are more highly sought than the smaller males.
For the past two years, recreational fishermen have caught more flounder than allowed under the recreational quota approved by the marine fisheries commission in the N.C. Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan Amendment 3. The amendment, adopted in May 2022, called for a 72% reduction in the southern flounder harvest, with both commercial and recreational fisheries seeing dramatic cuts.
Reporter Gareth McGrath can be reached at GMcGrath@Gannett.com or @GarethMcGrathSN on X/Twitter. This story was produced with financial support from the Green South Foundation and the Prentice Foundation. The USA TODAY Network maintains full editorial control of the work.
Less than two weeks after losing its head coach to Duke University, a North Carolina high school football program has been promoted from within.
Kevin Reddick will become the new head coach at Rolesville High School, replacing Ranier Rackley, who became the Director of Player Development at Duke University.
News of the decision was first reported by High School OT.
Reddick was the defensive coordinator for the Rams for the past three seasons, helping the team win 25 games during that run. Last year, Rolesville allowed just under 15 points per game with Reddick in charge of the defense.
North Carolina High School Promotes Defensive Coordinator To Head Coach
Rolesville finished 9-4 last season under Rackley and Reddick.
Reddick is a graduate of New Bern High School, helping the Bears capture the 2007 Class 4AA North Carolina High School Athletic Association State Football championship. He was tabbed the most valuable player of that title game as a sophomore fullback after scoring two touchdowns in a 28-17 victory over Independence.
At New Bern, Reddick earned conference defensive player of the year honors and was all-state at lineback as a senior after recording 189 tackles, eight quarterback sacks, six forced fumbles and four blocked punts. He also ran for over 160 yards and scored six touchdowns.
Kevin Reddick Was College Standout, Had NFL Career Before Becoming Coach
Following his high school career, Reddick signed with North Carolina as a four-star prospect, earning first team all-ACC honors as a senior. He also had offers from North Carolina State, Virginia and Clemson.
With the Tar Heels, Reddick played in 50 games, recording 275 tackles, including 36 for loss, with 8.5 quarterback sacks, two interceptions and two forced fumbles.
Reddick signed with the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted rookie free agent, and also had stints with the San Diego Chargers, Carolina Panthers and Buffalo Bills.
Rolesville reached the North Carolina High School Athletic Association State Football championship game with Reddick on the coaching staff and the third round this past season.
Rolesville Returns Top Rusher, Several Other Key Players
The Rams will be replacing starting quarterback Kaleb Williams, who had almost 2,500 yards passing and 22 touchdowns, as freshman Chase Williams was 8-for-8 for 98 yards with a touchdown in three games.
They will have top running back Amir Brown back, as he ran for 1,374 yards with 22 touchdowns and six games of 100 yards rushing as a junior. He also had 13 receptions for 106 yards and another TD.
Anthony Roberts is another key player back, as he caught 35 passes for 656 yards and nine TDs. Top tacklers Jayden Broadie, Javon Campbell, Genesis Allen and Keonte Sutton are all set to return, as well.
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At least two people are dead and “several” others are injured after a “planned fight” at a North Carolina park escalated into a mass shooting, authorities said.
Police have identified several victims and suspects after Monday’s shooting at Leinbach Park near Jefferson Middle School, according to the Winston-Salem Police Department.
Authorities confirmed there were multiple victims in the shooting, but did not provide an exact number. The suspects were still at large over two hours later.
Officers were called to the park just before 10 a.m. after reports of a fight, which then escalated into multiple people shooting each other.
Area schools are not in lockdown, and classes are operating as normal, police said.
“Due to the number of people involved, efforts are ongoing to account for everyone. At this time, some of those involved in the incident are juveniles,” police said.
According to local news station WFMY, at least three people were taken to the hospital. Officials have not shared their conditions.
Police said the shooting was an isolated incident and remains under investigation.
This is a developing story
The NC Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at Sunday, April 19, 2026 results for each game:
Winning Pick 3 numbers from April 19 drawing
Day: 6-2-0, Fireball: 6
Evening: 4-1-7, Fireball: 5
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from April 19 drawing
Day: 7-6-9-4, Fireball: 4
Evening: 8-1-5-6, Fireball: 6
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 5 numbers from April 19 drawing
02-21-32-35-37
Check Cash 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Double Play numbers from April 19 drawing
18-26-27-31-42
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from April 19 drawing
32-42-52-53-55, Bonus: 05
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
All North Carolina Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $599.
For prizes over $599, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at North Carolina Lottery Offices. By mail, send a prize claim form, your signed lottery ticket, copies of a government-issued photo ID and social security card to: North Carolina Education Lottery, P.O. Box 41606, Raleigh, NC 27629. Prize claims less than $600 do not require copies of photo ID or a social security card.
To submit in person, sign the back of your ticket, fill out a prize claim form and deliver the form, along with your signed lottery ticket and government-issued photo ID and social security card to any of these locations:
- Asheville Regional Office & Claim Center: 16-G Regent Park Blvd., Asheville, NC 28806, 877-625-6886 press #1. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- Greensboro Regional Office & Claim Center: 20A Oak Branch Drive, Greensboro, NC 27407, 877-625-6886 press #2. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- Charlotte Regional Office & Claim Center: 5029-A West W. T. Harris Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28269-1861, 877-625-6886 press #3. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- NC Lottery Headquarters: Raleigh Claim Center & Regional Office, 2728 Capital Blvd., Suite 144, Raleigh, NC 27604, 877-625-6886 press #4. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.
- Greenville Regional Office & Claim Center: 2790 Dickinson Avenue, Suite A, Greenville, NC 27834, 877-625-6886 press #5. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
- Wilmington Regional Office & Claim Center: 123 North Cardinal Drive Extension, Suite 140, Wilmington, NC 28405, 877-625-6886 press #6. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
Check previous winning numbers and payouts at https://nclottery.com/.
When are the North Carolina Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 11 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 10:38 p.m. daily.
- Pick 3, 4: 3:00 p.m. and 11:22 p.m. daily.
- Cash 5: 11:22 p.m. daily.
- Millionaire for Life: 11:15 p.m. daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Carolina Connect editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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