South
North Carolina crews rescue over 150 swimmers from rip currents during 1st week of summer
Powerful rip currents plagued North Carolina over the weekend, with crews rescuing more than 150 beach swimmers last week. Rip currents are anticipated to continue to be a hazard across the mid-Atlantic region until at least next weekend, Fox Weather predicted.
There were 152 rip current rescues between New Hanover and Carteret County beaches between Wednesday and Saturday, WNCN reported, with more than 80 of them taking place on Carolina Beach.
The dangerous currents are the result of an east-southeast swell and this weekend’s full moon, according to the National Weather Service.
SWIMMERS WARNED OF MORE LIFE-THREATENING RIP CURRENTS ALONG US BEACHES AFTER MULTIPLE DEATHS
Rip currents led to multiple deaths already this summer, Fox Weather reported, and the Fox Forecast Center expected them to remain a problem at least through next weekend. At least seven people have been killed by rip currents in Florida over the past several days, the outlet reported.
A sign warns swimmers to swim along the shoreline if they get caught in rip currents until they escape its pull. (Hutchinson Island Florida Facebook page)
Florida is seeing a high risk of rip currents along the Panhandle, while the east coast of the state from West Palm Beach to Jacksonville is seeing a moderate risk of rip currents.
Most of the North Carolina coast was at a moderate risk for rip currents over the weekend, with swimmers encouraged to swim near lifeguards. People were warned to stay out of the water in high-risk zones, which are dangerous for all levels of swimmers.
As of Tuesday, there is a moderate risk of rip currents along Cape Hatteras and a high risk just to the south along the North Carolina coast. The National Weather service issued a beach Hazard statement for North Carolina beaches from Cape Lookout to Surf City on Tuesday to continue at least through this evening.
A reported shark bite, an alligator scare and two youths stranded nearly a half mile offshore added to the lively weekend for lifeguards and first responders in North Carolina.
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Waterfront beach houses are seen on the Outer Banks in North Carolina. (John Greim/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Crews rescued two youths who had drifted about 2,000 feet out to sea on a paddle board from the coast of Oak Island on Wednesday, according to WNCN. Oak Island Water Rescue and the U.S. Coast Guard were involved in the rescue around 3:35 p.m., using a drone with a camera and speaker to communicate with the two youths, the Oak Island Fire Department told the outlet.
On Tuesday, a 20-year-old man was bitten on the lower leg while swimming off the eastern side of Sunset Beach and taken “immediately” to a hospital by Brunswick County Emergency Medical Services, according to the Sunset Beach Police Department.
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The U.S. Coast Guard and Oak Island Water Rescue retrieved two boys who floated nearly half a mile off the coast of Oak Island on a paddleboard last Wednesday. (Oak Island Fire Department)
The incident was initially reported as a shark bite, according to WNCN, but the department could only confirm to the outlet that a cut on the man’s leg was caused by “some sort of sea life.”
Also at Sunset Beach, an alligator lurked under a car outside a Mexican restaurant on Thursday. Although it was only 5 feet long, per WNCN, the animal’s head “looked menacing” sticking out from under the vehicle.
Sunset Beach Police officers had to control and relocate an alligator who positioned itself under the driver’s side of a vehicle last week. (Sunset Beach Police Department)
“When the officers arrived, the alligator was tucked under the vehicle with his head peering out from the driver’s side door, blocking access to the vehicle,” police said, per the outlet.
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Crew and police were able to get the alligator under control and take it to a nearby pond, police said.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Newly obtained records show the Georgia Peace Officer Standards & Training Council moved to revoke the certifications of eight Richmond County school police officers tied to an online training cheating scandal.
It’s a case investigators described as involving shared answer keys, deleted group texts and a department culture where some officers said cheating had become routine.
POST opened the investigation around Sept. 3, 2024, after allegations that Richmond County Board of Education Police Department officers cheated on online training courses for which they received POST credit.
The two courses identified in the file were Introduction to Human Trafficking and De-escalation for Law Enforcement, administered online through Virtual Academy. The core allegation is that officers shared screenshots/test answers in a group text so others could complete required online training faster.
Our previous reporting showed the case had grown to nine officers, with Officer Tajuana Jones receiving 24 months of probation and being ordered to take an ethics and professionalism course, while the remaining cases were still open because the officers had requested hearings.
POST records appear to show the next step: for eight officers — Dorothy Holmon, Kara Anderson, Anthony Dubois, Brian Jackson, Wallace Lebrane, Kellie Holland, Jacquez Williams and Nathan Mercer — the POST Probable Cause Committee recommended revocation, and the full council accepted those recommendations in June 2026.
According to the file, the Board of Education hired a third party entity to investigate. That investigation found Sgt. Dorothy Holmon and Cpl. Kara Anderson shared test answers. Officers identified as being in the group text and receiving answers included Brian Jackson, Jacquez Williams, Anthony Dubois, Wallace Lebrane and Kellie Holland.
POST also noted a limitation: there were other phone numbers in the group text, but the group had been deleted or disbanded before POST started investigating, preventing investigators from identifying every number
They have 30 days to file a formal appeal. The process requires submitting a written request for a pre-hearing conference or administrative hearing, a notarized written response to the allegations, and a required administrative fee.
The school system said it couldn’t comment because this is an active personnel matter.
The officers
Dorothy Holmon
• POST paints Holmon as one of the central figures. She admitted taking screenshots of test questions and answers and sending them to subordinates in a group text, and she described what she called a “culture of cheating” going back to 2000. POST says she also encouraged subordinates to go ahead and take the tests after sending the answers. The PCC recommended revocation, and the Full Council accepted it
Kara Anderson
• Anderson also admitted supplying test answers to the group text and acknowledged she knew it was wrong. She told POST her motivation was to get mandatory training completed quickly because of staffing issues. The PCC recommended revocation, and the Full Council accepted it
Anthony Dubois
• Dubois admitted receiving the group text and using the information to check his answers before submitting his test. He also described a broader culture of cheating in the department. POST records say his test score matched Holmon’s and that he missed the same questions. PCC recommendation: revocation. Full Council: accepted
Jacquez Williams
• Williams admitted receiving answer-key screenshots from Holmon and Anderson and admitted using them to complete his Virtual Academy testing. He also admitted he did not report the cheating up the chain of command. PCC recommendation: revocation. Full Council: accepted
Wallace Lebrane
• Lebrane admitted receiving a text from Holmon containing test answers and acknowledged it with blue-heart emojis, according to POST. He denied using the answers, but POST noted his test results matched Holmon’s, including missed questions. PCC recommendation: revocation. Full Council: accepted
Brian Jackson
• Jackson admitted receiving a group text from Holmon containing test answers but said he did not use them and did not take the tests at issue. POST’s concern appears to be that he did not report the message, despite being a supervisor. PCC recommendation: revocation. Full Council: accepted
Kellie Holland
• Holland admitted receiving a group text from Holmon but said the image was blurry and that she did not report it. POST records also say she admitted receiving answers for required Board of Education “GCN” testing from teachers. PCC recommendation: revocation. Full Council: accepted
Nathan Mercer
• Mercer’s case is different from the group-text cases. The file focuses on statements about whether Holmon was going to help him with a test tied to University of Georgia football special-duty work, and whether his account conflicted with statements from other officers. PCC recommendation: revocation. Full Council: accepted
Tajuana Jones
• Jones was covered in a March story. POST records at that time showed she received 24 months of probation, had to complete an ethics and professionalism course, and was accused of receiving answers but not reporting the misconduct.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
WASHINGTON (7News) — A man was stabbed to death in Northwest D.C. early Saturday morning, according to D.C. police.
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Officers responded to the 2900 block of 14th Street NW shortly before 1:00 a.m., where the victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
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Anyone with information about the incident is urged to contact the police at (202) 727-9099 or text a tip to 50411.
Additional details were not immediately available.
TEXAS — According to Redfin, a national real estate brokerage firm, the top three most affordable cities for renters in the country are in Texas. The firm released its study in 2025, which also lists the median incomes needed to afford the average rent.
Renters living in the Sawyer Heights neighborhood near downtown Houston say apartments in that area come with a hefty price tag.
“It’s not cheap to live in this city, especially with income the way it is,” said Evan Camp, a renter.
Jacinto Cepeda shares his sentiment, adding you get what you pay for.
“It’s just increasing in price if you want to live somewhere nicer or a little bit safer, I would say, it’s definitely on the pricier side,” Cepeda said.
However, Redfin’s report ranking the top 10 most affordable metros for renters across the country shows renters in the Houston metro area may be better off compared to other Texans. Austin, Houston and Dallas took the top three spots, respectively.
The study analyzes Census Bureau data on median incomes and average rent costs, based on the affordability criteria of renters spending no more than 30% of their income on rent.
“In the most recent American Community Survey, we found that, for the first time, the majority of renters in Harris County in Houston are cost-burdened, meaning they spend more than 30% of their income on rent,” said Dr. Stephen Sherman, an associate director of research at the Kinder Institute for Urban Research at Rice University.
Sherman says while some may consider Houston rent as more reasonable than New York City and Los Angeles, Harris County incomes have not kept up with inflation.
“When you start to look at how that compares to people’s incomes, how high eviction rates are, the quality of multifamily building here, you start to see that that cheery story has some cracks and fissures,” he said.
The Redfin study shows the typical U.S. renter earns nearly $9,000 less than the income needed to afford the median apartment. It shows a median rent in the Houston metro of $1,239, meaning the affordability required for annual income needed is closer to $50,000. As of December 2024, Houston’s median renter income was roughly $58,000, which was nearly $9,000 more than needed to cover the rent. Sherman says that means nearly half of renters don’t make enough.
“Apartment rents and home prices, as well, have stabilized, but when you look at incomes, especially after adjusting for inflation, they’ve actually gone down,” said Sherman, adding this is while expenses like groceries and gas have gone up. “Everything is a trade-off. You can find affordable places to live in Houston, but it might be in an older building in dire need of repairs.”
Cepeda said walkability is one thing he appreciates about the Heights area.
“It’s just a matter of where you’re willing to live where you’re willing to live, and how you’re willing to live is the most important thing,” he said.
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