Washington, D.C
Washington DC reporter Derrick Ward dies at 62: An ‘inspiration’ who ‘touched countless lives’
Community members and family members are mourning the loss of a veteran journalist from Washington, D.C. who died Tuesday.
Derrick Ward Sr., a reporter at NBC4 Washington (WRC-TV) and formerly of radio stations WPFW, WAMU and WTOP, died Tuesday from complications after a recent cardiac arrest.
“Derrick has been an inspiration and cherished member of our family and his hometown community,” the 62-year-old’s family said in a statement shared publicly by WRC-TV.
“As a distinguished journalist, Derrick’s storytelling, prolific writing, warmth, and humor touched countless lives. Our children and our entire family will miss him dearly,” his family wrote.
WRC-TV also issued a statement about his passing, calling him the station’s “resident DC historian and poet.”
Ward just celebrated his 62nd birthday last month, according to his Facebook page.
‘He shined when he had a pen, a microphone, or guitar in his hands’
Ward grew up in the southeast Washington, D.C. neighborhood of Marshall Heights, WRC-TV reported.
Ward went to H.D. Woodson High School and the University of Maryland, then worked for local radio stations such as WTOP. He eventually crossed over to television news, starting at WKBW-TV in Buffalo and then making his way back to D.C. in 2006 to report for WRC-TV.
According to the station, Ward was able to touch those around him through words and music.
“He shined when he had a pen, a microphone, or guitar in his hands,” the station wrote.
Ward lived through multiple moments in D.C. history, including the 1968 riots after Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination. He covered events such as the Iran-Contra hearings, the September 11 attacks and the Washington sniper shootings, according to his online biography.
Although his X account has been inactive since 2023, his last post gave social media users a glimpse into the work he did.
“Descendants of enslaved and enslavers join hands at Arlington House, Lee Family Plantation house,” Ward wrote on April 22, 2023.
His Facebook page also speaks to the journalist’s love for music as he shared clips of famed musicians performing. Up and down Ward’s timeline are clips of Caribbean band Byron Lee and the Dragonaires, soul band Geno Washington & the Ram Jam Band and Cameroonian musician Manu Dibango.
And when he wasn’t jamming and reporting, Ward loved playing golf and also spent lots of time with his three children, Derrick Jr., Ian, and Marisa, according to WRC-TV.
His family plans to share memorial information in the coming days, they wrote in their statement.
Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY’s NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Follow her on Twitter at @SaleenMartin or email her at sdmartin@usatoday.com.
Washington, D.C
Police search for suspect caught on camera slashing tires in Georgetown
Washington D.C. police are searching for a vandal who was caught on surveillance video slashing the tires of multiple vehicles in a Georgetown alley on Tuesday afternoon. The suspect, who fled the scene on a red bicycle, targeted a Chevy Suburban and a Ford Escape on the 1700 block of 35th Street Northwest.
Washington, D.C
Reflecting Pool being drained – again – as Trump administration tries once more to fix DC landmark – WTOP News
Crews began draining the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on Sunday, according to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, for the second time in three months.
(CNN) — Crews began draining the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on Sunday, according to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, for the second time in three months.
In an interview released Tuesday with Katie Miller, a conservative podcaster and wife of President Trump’s deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, Burgum said they started draining the pool as planned after the July Fourth fireworks show, noting some of the fireworks debris was still in the water.
Asked about the schedule for this round of renovations, he gave no specifics beyond a broad overview.
“Drain the water. Clean up the fireworks stuff. Repair the vandalism that was done. Fill it back up again,” Burgum said.
As of Tuesday evening, there was still water in the pool, and it was unclear if it will be drained further. Burgum indicated over the weekend that it may only need to be partially drained.
The move comes after weeks of problems – algae blooms, green-hued water, a chipping bottom and allegations of vandalism – have plagued the iconic landmark, making its woes the subject of a national fixation.
Members of the Trump administration, including President Donald Trump, have said vandals caused damage to the Reflecting Pool by gashing the lining, though they have not provided evidence to support that claim. In late June, the president said the pool would be drained after the July Fourth holiday to fix it.
The administration will use the same contractor, Virginia-based Atlantic Industrial Coatings, for this next round of repairs. Previously, the company landed a no-bid contract worth more than $14 million for their part of the work – sealing the pool and painting the bottom “American Flag- blue.”
Asked about the timeline for his part of the repairs, Eddie Gross, owner of Atlantic Industrial Coatings told CNN that “nothing has been set yet.” He declined to answer questions about his contract and the cost of additional repairs.
The Department of Interior did not respond to questions about the timeline for this round of repairs.
Burgum, in an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union” Sunday, suggested the repairs could happen with the pool only being partially drained. He sought to portray the costs as minor.
“It’s going to be a small number because the majority of the work was related to the labor and the materials for the liner,” Burgum said.
“We’ll use the same company, because they did a fantastic job,” he said.
Burgum also said the government could “absolutely” prove the damage was caused by vandals, and that there are photographs supporting the claim. But he dodged a question about whether those photographs show anyone damaging the pool.
The secretary also denied that Trump having his motorcade drive through the pool mid-renovation in May did any damage to the site.
“No, I was with him when we came that night … We were driving in a Cadillac Escalade. It is one of the presidential fleet of cars,” Burgum said, adding that the vehicle Trump took on the ride was “substantially lighter” than the armored presidential limousine known as “The Beast.”
“The whole base level of this industrial rubber layer was not yet completed, and so there was no damage that night whatsoever,” he said. “That was one of the questions we asked before we even brought the presidential motorcade there, but not a chance.”
The other contractor involved in the project, Greenwater Services, previously told CNN that when the pool is drained it will not affect their system, which is up and running.
Chas Antinone, the president of Greenwater Services, told CNN the company can shut down and then restart the so-called ozone nanobubbler, as necessary.
Companies involved in the renovation have found themselves at the center of national news as Reflecting Pool issues continued.
The-CNN-Wire
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Washington, D.C
DC is second riskiest city for driving, Allstate says
D.C. is the second riskiest city for driving, an insurance company report says.
Allstate said it looked at the number of crashes, how often they happen and certain types of behavior behind the wheel.
“On the phones, bike lanes, people on motor scooters having no regard for the law,” one driver told News4. “It is risky, yeah. I’ve seen a lot of close calls.”
The average driver around D.C. goes just about four years in between collisions. Drivers in the least risky city — Brownsville, Texas — go about 15 years in between collisions.
D.C. also got dinged for bad driving — like being on phones a lot — and plenty of nighttime driving, which increases risk.
Allstate analyzed property damage claims from January 2023 through December 2024 to rank cities. Here’s the Top 10:
- Boston
- D.C.
- Baltimore
- Worcester, Mass.
- Springfield, Mass.
- Glendale, Calif.
- Providence
- Sunrise Manor, Nev.
- Los Angeles
- Philadelphia
But local Allstate agent Rudy Alston says D.C. drivers themselves may not deserve the bad rap.
“I think a lot of it isn’t so much from D.C. natives,” he said. “I think it’s a lot of people coming from outside of D.C. — coming from Maryland and Virginia that commute to D.C. — that maybe aren’t as familiar with the traffic laws in D.C. and how congested D.C. is with the influx of pedestrians, Uber drivers, the Door Dash guys on the scooters, the Metrobuses. So, I just think when they get here, they’re just not familiar with it.”
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