TROPICAL WEATHER

‘Our heart breaks’: South digs out from Zeta’s wrath

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Trees on top of buses and cars. Roofs ripped off homes. Boats pushed onshore. Hundreds of thousands of people left in the dark. Hurricane Zeta has come and gone, but residents across the South are still digging out from the Category 2 storm that made landfall in Louisiana before racing northeast and out to sea. Six deaths have been linked to the storm. Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards says the damage was “catastrophic” in Grand Isle, a barrier island community south of New Orleans that was one of the hardest-hit areas. Zeta was the 27th named storm of a historically busy Atlantic hurricane season.

AP-NC-POLICE SHOOTING-NORTH CAROLINA

Police: Burglary suspect shot after he fired gun at officer

GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — Police in the North Carolina city of Greensboro say that an officer has shot and wounded a burglary suspect. Greensboro police said a statement that the incident occurred shortly before midnight on Thursday. Police said they had received a report of a burglary in progress. They said that the officer approached on foot, and that the suspect shot at the officer. Police said the officer returned fire, striking the suspect. Police said officers took the suspect into custody and rendered aid before he was taken to a local hospital. They said that suspect Aaron Nehemiah Turner was listed in critical but stable condition.

AP-NC-NAIL TRAP

US Forest Service investigating ‘nail trap’ in NC wilderness

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — The U.S. Forest Service has used leave blowers to clear a remote mountain road in North Carolina where a man recently stepped on a so-called “nail trap.” But they didn’t find any more of the crude devices. The Asheville Citizen-Times reported Friday that incident is being investigated by the U.S. Forrest Service. It occurred Sunday in a remote area of western North Carolina’s Pisgah National Forest.  A man suffered deep puncture wounds from the trap. It was buried in a rut and covered with leaves. The trap was made of plywood and 2-inch nails with the points facing up.

FATAL SHOOTING-CHILD

Police: 8-year-old boy accidentally shot, killed in N.C.

CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — Police say an 8-year-old boy was shot and killed early Friday morning when a man accidentally fired a gun inside a house in North Carolina. The Concord Police Department said the child was dead when officers were called to the home shortly after 2 a.m. Police say the man suspected of shooting the child is a resident of the home and has been cooperative with investigators. They say early indications are that the shooting was an accident, and authorities are not looking for other suspects.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-TRUMP RALLY

Two attendees at Trump North Carolina rally get COVID-19

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Two people who attended President Donald Trump’s rally last week in Gastonia, North Carolina, have tested positive for the coronavirus. The Gaston County Department of Health and Human Services says the cases do not mean the virus was transmitted from the rally. The county recommends anyone who attended the president’s Oct. 21 rally to assess their own risk, monitor for symptoms and get tested if necessary. The news comes days before the Nov. 3 presidential election. North Carolina is a key battleground Trump needs to win to boost his prospects of defeating Democratic nominee Joe Biden.

ELECTION 2020-GOVERNOR-NORTH CAROLINA

Cooper rakes in millions more than Forest in election leadup

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Democratic North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper entered the final weeks of his reelection campaign having significantly outraised his opponent. Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Forest took in nearly $4 million from July 1 to Oct. 17. Cooper received more than $17 million during that time. The bulk of contributions to Forest came from individual donors. Cooper got most of his money from outside political groups. Democrats in other statewide races have raised substantially more than Republicans. Billionaire Michael Bloomberg is spending aggressively to elect Democrat Yvonne Holley for lieutenant governor. Holley is a state House member running against Republican Mark Robinson.

AP-US-EARLY-VOTING-BLACK-LIVES-MATTER

Town says Black Lives Matter signs to remain at polling site

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — The North Carolina State Board of Elections ordered the town of Carrboro to remove Black Lives Matter signs from its voting site after receiving complaints, but the town says the signs will stay put. Carrboro is a small town west of Chapel Hill that is known for its progressive stances. In a letter to Carrboro officials, elections board executive director Karen Brinson Bell said there were several complaints about the signs from voters. Bell says the flags could be interpreted as an official endorsement by the board of elections in favor of a particular movement. But officials have rebuffed Bell’s order.

ELECTION 2020-SENATE-NORTH CAROLINA

Storm halts Tillis stops; Cunningham discreet in campaigning

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Severe weather has prevented North Carolina Republican Sen. Thom Tillis from making campaign appearances with former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and President Donald Trump. High winds and storms from the remnants of Hurricane Zeta on Thursday caused the cancellation of a morning campaign event in Greensboro with Christie and postponed Trump’s evening rally in Fayetteville. Tillis already has appeared this week with Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and has events scheduled with former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley. Democratic challenger Cal Cunningham has kept to small, unannounced events, particularly since he recently acknowledged exchanging suggestive texts with a woman who’s not his wife.