North Carolina
LIVE: Harris visits North Carolina to survey Helene’s damage, provide update on relief
President Joe Biden tours Helene-damaged areas of Florida
President Joe Biden was in Florida Thursday to observe the damage left behind by Hurricane Helene.
WASHINGTON – Vice President Kamala Harris arrived in North Carolina on Saturday to survey the catastrophic damage wrought by Hurricane Helene and console communities amid ongoing recovery efforts.
“I’ve been seeing and hearing the stories from here in North Carolina about strangers who are helping each other out, giving people assistance in every way that they need, including shelter, food and friendship and fellowship,” Harris said during a briefing at the North Carolina Air National Guard, according to a White House pool report.
Harris, the 2024 Democratic presidential nominee, met with officials Saturday where she received updates on recovery efforts for the area and announced that Mecklenburg County, home to the battleground state’s largest city, Charlotte, had been added to the federal disaster declaration.
The vice president on her tour of the state is expected to meet with residents impacted by the Category 4 storm – which has killed more than 200 people and left thousands without power or drinkable water since it made landfall along Florida’s Big Bend region on Sept. 26. Harris is also scheduled to provide updates on the federal emergency response efforts in North Carolina and other states in the Southeast.
Her visit comes exactly one month ahead of the 2024 presidential election, in which she is locked in a tight race against former President Donald Trump. North Carolina is viewed as a pivotal swing state, and the speed and effectiveness of Biden administration’s response efforts could have ramifications on the race.
Trump has also visited disaster-struck regions in Georgia, Florida and North Carolina over the last few days.
Upon arriving to Charlotte Douglas International Airport, Harris was greeted on the tarmac by North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, Attorney General and gubernatorial hopeful Josh Stein, FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, Rep. Alma Adams, D-N.C., Rep. Jeff Jackson, D-N.C., and Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles.
Catch up with the USA TODAY Network’s latest updates.
President Joe Biden urged members of Congress to replenish critical disaster relief programs that have run out of money, or that soon could run out.
In a Friday night letter to congressional leaders, Biden warned that the Small Business Administration’s disaster loan program is set to run out of funds in a matter of weeks. He also said the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s disaster relief funds could face a shortfall by the end of the year. Biden called on Congress to restore funding and provide FEMA with additional resources.
Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has suggested Congress can wait until after the election to pass Hurricane relief measures.
– Karissa Waddick
As search and rescue teams continue to examine stream beds and debris piles across North Carolina, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee, the toll of lives lost in Helene’s horrific flooding mounts daily. At least 214 people have died as a result of the storm. Hundreds are still missing and officials expect the number to rise.
But already Helene is the fourth deadliest landfalling hurricane in the mainland U.S. since 1950. It ranks behind Hurricane’s Katrina (2005), Audrey (1957 and Camille (1969).
– Dinah Voyles Pulver
Donald Trump is expected to hold a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on Saturday. The former president will return to the venue where he first survived an assassination attempt in July.
Trump held a campaign rally in Fayetteville, North Carolina on Friday evening.
– Karissa Waddick
Disaster politics are a staple of presidential elections, and this year is no different. With just a month to go until the election, Donald Trump has sought to make Biden and Harris’ Hurricane Helene a focus of the campaign.
“There’s nobody that’s handled a hurricane or storm worse than what they’re doing right now,” Trump said to supporters Thursday night in Saginaw, Michigan.
Trump’s indictment has included falsehoods – he claimed that federal disaster money went to migrants and that Georgia GOP Gov. Brian Kemp had trouble reaching Biden, but neither were the case – and the 2024 Republican nominee for the White House has been accused of playing politics with disaster relief during his presidency.
– David Jackson
Kamala Harris pledged “long lasting” federal support to get residents and neighborhoods battered by flooding from Helene “back up and running” during a visit to Augusta, Georgia earlier this week.
“We’re here for the long haul,” Harris said.
The Biden administration has so far approved requests from Georgia, Florida and North Carolina for the federal government to fully cover the state and local costs of debris removal, search and rescue efforts, mass-feeding and other hurricane-related emergency response activities.
– Joey Garrison
North Carolina
How to watch Penn State Nittany Lions: Live stream info, TV channel, game time | Dec. 29
The North Carolina Central Eagles (4-10) and Freddie Filione V’s Penn State Nittany Lions (8-4) hit the court at Bryce Jordan Center on Monday, Dec. 29, beginning at 1 p.m. ET.
We provide more details below, and that includes how to watch this game on TV.
Here is what you need to prepare for Monday’s college basketball action.
Penn State vs. North Carolina Central: How to watch on TV or live stream
- Game day: Monday, December 29, 2025
- Game time: 1 p.m. ET
- Location: University Park, Pennsylvania
- Arena: Bryce Jordan Center
- TV Channel: BTN
- Live stream: Fubo – Watch NOW (Regional restrictions may apply)
Check out: USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll
Watch college basketball on Fubo!
Penn State vs. North Carolina Central stats and trends
- Penn State is averaging 78.2 points per game (173rd-ranked in college basketball) this season, while surrendering 74.9 points per contest (222nd-ranked).
- The Nittany Lions have struggled to accumulate rebounds this season, ranking 20th-worst in college basketball with 28.6 boards per game. They rank 109th by allowing 29.4 rebounds per contest.
- Penn State ranks 249th in college basketball with 13.5 dimes per contest.
- The Nittany Lions rank 10th-best in college basketball by averaging only 9 turnovers per game. In terms of forced turnovers, they rank 159th in college basketball (12.3 per contest).
- This year, Penn State is draining 6.8 threes per game (276th-ranked in college basketball) and is shooting 34% (181st-ranked) from three-point land.
- The Nittany Lions rank 324th in college basketball by allowing 9.4 three-pointers per game, but they are allowing a 37.8% shooting percentage from beyond the arc, which ranks ninth-worst in college basketball.
- Penn State is attempting 38.7 two-pointers per game this year, which account for 65.8% of the shots it has attempted (and 75.9% of the team’s baskets). Meanwhile, it is attempting 20.1 three-pointers per contest, which are 34.2% of its shots (and 24.1% of the team’s buckets).
Penn State vs. North Carolina Central Odds and Spread
- Spread Favorite: Nittany Lions (-22.5)
- Moneyline: Penn State (-12500), North Carolina Central (+2600)
- Total: 149.5 points
NCAA Basketball odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds updated Monday at 2:23 a.m. ET. For a full list of sports betting odds, access USA TODAY Sports Betting Scores Odds Hub.
Watch college basketball on Fubo!
Follow the latest college sports coverage at College Sports Wire.
While the North Carolina Tar Heels’ defense has been the most consistent feature of the team, the offensive operation has been up and down throughout the course of the season.
Those struggles extended into December, but with Seth Trimble returning to the lineup, there have been glimpses of what the offense can be when at full strength. The veteran guard had missed nine consecutive games, dating back to early November. Trimble had not played since Nov. 7 against the Kansas Jayhawks.
Let’s take a closer look at how North Carolina’s offense performed in the month of December.
Assessing the Tar Heels Offense in December
Through the first six games of this month, North Carolina is averaging 79.1 points per game, which is inflated by a 99-point outing against East Carolina this past Monday. The scoring output has not been the issue for Tar Heels. The problem has been the team’s slow starts, specifically when Trimble was not in the lineup.
While speaking with the media earlier this month, head coach Hubert Davis discussed North Carolina’s sluggish starts and how it was becoming problematic.
- “I don’t want them to take time because every team is different,” Davis said. “When you go into conference play, everybody has a way that they play on both ends of the floor. I don’t want to get off to slow starts. I felt like we did. It wasn’t just defensively. I didn’t feel like we were sharp on the offensive end. I think the first 12 shots that we took, seven of them were from three.”
- “I thought on both ends of the floor it took us a little while to get into the rhythm, and once we did, which it started with us defensively, I felt like it translated on the offensive end as well,” Davis said.
- “No, I don’t. I wouldn’t necessarily say that we’ve consistently gotten off to slow starts,” Davis said. “I would say that at times we haven’t been consistent at the beginning, where we’ve gotten off to a fast start and then we had a four- or six-minute lull on both ends of the floor. We allow a team to come back. We’re in a situation where maybe we could extend the lead.”
It is difficult to say that North Carolina has completely figured it out in Trimble’s first two games back in the fold, as the Tar Heels were lackluster in the first half against Ohio State, but were firing on all cylinders against East Carolina. It is somewhere in the middle, but conference play will reveal exactly where this offense stands. Overall, the offensive performance was a mixed bag in December.
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North Carolina
Wendell woman shares experience at an immigration detention center after being released
WENDELL, N.C. (WTVD) — A Wendell woman, detained by Border Patrol for more than a month, is sharing her experience at an immigration detention center after being released earlier this week.
Fatima Velazquez-Antonio was detained by Border Patrol agents on Nov. 18 while at an HVAC job site in Raleigh. For the last month, she stayed at a detention center in Georgia.
After having bond denied, she was finally released on Monday, and returned home to North Carolina on Tuesday. Her attorney had to file a habeas corpus petition, asking a judge to determine whether her detainment was legal.
“I’m so happy to be back home with my family,” said Velazquez.
It felt like an eternity.
– Fatima Velazquez-Antonio, on her month in immigration detention
Her boyfriend, Bryan Sanchez, said her return home was the greatest Christmas gift they could have asked for.
“I mean, it’s amazing that we got her back home,” he said.
Fatima Velazquez-Antonio came to the U.S. from Honduras as an unaccompanied minor at 14.
Velazquez came to the U.S. from Honduras as an unaccompanied minor at 14.
According to federal documents, Velazquez has no aggravated felony convictions, and the government identified her detainment as involving a non-criminal individual.
As previously reported, Velazquez’s attorney said Velazquez has no criminal record, and said she was allowed to stay in the country as her asylum case processed.
ABC11 asked Velazquez whether she received any explanation as to why she was detained.
“No, no one gave me any explanation,” she said.
For the last month, Velazquez said she spent 24 hours a day in a room with 60 other women.
“When you go to the bathroom, you have no privacy. It’s the same thing when you have to bathe. Everyone can see you,” she said. “It’s hard.”
Velazquez said her faith kept her strong.
“I prayed to God every day. Every day after I woke up and before I went to bed,” she said. “I asked him to help me, give me patience, and give me the strength to get through my ordeal. But it felt like an eternity.”
She said seeing the support from people in Wake County also helped her get through her time at the detention center, including a rally held by neighbors and elected leaders calling for her release.
“All the community and the governor, the congresswoman. I mean, all of that support helped a lot,” said Sanchez. “We appreciate that a lot, with all my heart.”
Velazquez said she hopes that one day she can personally thank everyone who has shared her story and called for her release.
“I know many of them didn’t know me, but I have to thank them from the bottom of my heart for their support,” she said. “Just, thank you so much. One day, I’d like to see them and thank them in person.”
Velazquez and her family are raising money to cover her legal expenses.
Sanchez is saving up money again to eventually buy her an engagement ring. The money he was saving for the ring had to be spent to retain an attorney for her.
Velazquez has a hearing next week for her case.
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