PROVIDENCE — An announcement final week that the Group of the Petroleum Exporting International locations, or OPEC, would lower manufacturing has ended a 16-week stretch of falling costs, with the state common climbing by 19 cents per gallon up to now seven days.
At $3.50 per gallon for normal, unleaded gasoline, Rhode Island’s state common nonetheless stays 42 cents decrease than the nationwide common. It’s 20 cents increased than a month in the past and 33 cents increased than on the identical day final 12 months.
“The introduced plans by OPEC+ to chop manufacturing definitely had an affect on oil costs, however that alone wouldn’t account for the will increase we’re seeing domestically this week,” stated Diana Gugliotta, director of public affairs for AAA Northeast. “Inventories are considerably low, and low provides result in increased costs on the pump.”
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The final time Rhode Island gasoline costs elevated was in the course of the week of June 13 after they reached an all-time-high of $5.02 per gallon.
At $3.92 per gallon, Tuesday’s nationwide common is 21 cents increased than a month in the past and 65 cents increased than on the identical day final 12 months.
FAIRFIELD, CT — A 28-year-old Providence, Rhode Island man was arrested on a warrant by Connecticut State Police this week in connection with a strangulation assault on Dec. 7 at the northbound I-95 rest area in Fairfield.
Ariel Dejesus Valdez, who state police said had overstayed a visa from the Dominican Republic, was charged with the following:
Risk of Injury to a Child
Reckless Endangerment 2nd Degree (2 counts)
Strangulation or Suffocation in the 2nd Degree
Criminal Mischief 2nd Degree
Larceny 3rd Degree
Breach of Peace 2nd Degree
The incident began at about 6 p.m. when Valdez got into an argument with a person, strangling them and smashing a window in a truck that sent shards of glass that cut an infant inside.
Find out what’s happening in Fairfieldwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Valdez then ran off.
Fairfield police were first called to the scene, and temporarily evacuated the rest area while searching for Valdez, but did not find him, according to state police.
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Find out what’s happening in Fairfieldwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Valdez was eventually found back in Rhode Island, and was taken into custody this week. He was turned over to Connecticut State Police on Monday.
Valdez was released after posting bond on bail of $30,000, and he is scheduled to appear in Bridgeport Superior Court on Jan. 23.
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To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.
Video captured the moments when four zebras were seen running though traffic in Washington state.
Which states have the worst drivers? Rhode Island is one of them, according to a new study.
The online marketplace platform LendingTree released a new study revealing the worst drivers across the country, and Rhode Island took the second spot.
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The silver lining is you can still say Massachusetts drivers are worse, as they took the top spot.
The study was compiled based on insurance inquiries from November 2023 to November 2024. Researchers tallied the number of accidents, DUIs, speeding-related incidents and general citations and calculated the total per 1,000 drivers in each state.
Alternatively, other New England states like Vermont and New Hampshire were ranked among the best drivers around the country.
Why does Rhode Island have bad drivers?
Rhode Island has the second worst drivers in the country because it has one of the highest rates of driving-related incidents, at 60.6 incidents per 1,000 drivers between November 2023 and November 2024.
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The only state with a higher rate, Massachusetts, has 61.1 incidents per 1,000 drivers.
Rhode Island has the second-highest accident rate, at 39.7, tying with California.
The Ocean State also ties with Wisconsin for the 13th-highest DUI rate, at 1.9.
As for speeding-related incidents, Rhode Island ties with Hawaii as the 28th-worst at a rate of 2.4 incidents per 1,000 drivers.
Which states have the worst drivers?
These are the states with the worst drivers, according to LendingTree:
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Massachusetts
Rhode Island
California
District of Columbia
New Jersey
North Carolina
Washington
Maryland
North Dakota
Utah
Which states have the best drivers?
These states have the lowest number of driving-related incidents per 1,000 drivers, making them the best drivers:
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Rhode Island officials sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture on Tuesday for assistance to ensure residents are able to stay enrolled in essential services in response to the RIBridges cyberattack.
In the letter, U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and U.S. Representatives Seth Magaziner and Gabe Amo asked the federal government to work with the state of Rhode Island to help residents stay enrolled in Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.
On Dec. 5, the RIBridges system was hacked by international ransomware group Brain Ciper, which put the personal data of about 500,000 Rhode Island residents at risk, according to officials.
In the letter, officials said RIBridges was shut down, and as a result Rhode Island residents must submit paper applications, rather than online applications, to enroll for their benefits.
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Officials said this time period is when people apply to renew coverage, and ask for the government to “grant the state of Rhode Island any assistance and flexibility it requires within all application rules and regulations.”
In the letter, the Rhode Island’s Congressional delegation said:
Dear Secretaries Becerra and Vilsack:
In light of a major cyberattack, we write to urge your Departments to grant the State of Rhode Island flexibility and time to comply with administrative requirements related to its public benefits programs and to provide any additional support to ensure that eligible individuals do not lose access to needed benefits.
On December 5, 2024, RI Bridges, the State of Rhode Island’s integrated online platform for social services, was hacked and the personal data (including names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and bank information) of approximately 500,000 people was stolen and has been held for ransom. The State directed the vendor responsible for administering the platform to shut down RI Bridges in order to remove all malicious code and remediate the threat. Individuals now must submit paper applications to secure their benefits. The impact could be large since RI Bridges manages enrollment and eligibility verifications for programs, including Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and more. HealthSource RI, the state’s Affordable Care Act marketplace was also affected by this hack, which comes during the annual open-enrollment period for health insurance, when people apply for or renew coverage.
We appreciate everything your Departments have done already to assist Rhode Island with this situation, but given the scope of this hack and that it has targeted our most vulnerable constituents, we ask that you grant the State of Rhode Island any assistance and flexibility it requires within all application rules and regulations.
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Thank you for your attention to this request, and we look forward to your prompt reply.
In the meantime, Rhode Island officials advise residents to protect their data, freeze your credit, monitor your credit, request a free fraud alert on your files, use two-factor authentication for accounts, and be aware.
For more information, call the RIBridges call center at 833-918-6603 or visit cyberaltert.ri.gov.
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