Saturday, October 3, 2026

Good Morning! On this day in 1880, the first passenger train arrived in Asheville at a Depot Street station, greeted by crowds. After years of delays due to the mountains, the Civil War, and the construction of the Swannanoa Gap Tunnel and other tunnels, rail service opened the region to tourists and growth.

We want to thank all the loyal readers who referred Flyover North Carolina to their friends and family this week as a timely, unbiased news source to read every morning. It was an overwhelmingly positive response to us hitting a benchmark of 300,000 readers, and we truly appreciate it. If you’re enjoying Flyover North Carolina and want to share the newsletter with your friends, please click here.

Sick season is here. Plenty of people are coughing and clearing their throats through every conversation, but that stubborn tickle might have nothing to do with the cold going around. Doctors point to a surprising culprit, and your go-to remedy could be making things worse. Amy breaks down that stuck-in-your-throat feeling on today's episode of The Flyover Podcast. Is your trusty allergy pill actually helping? Which popular nasal spray should never be used for more than three days? And what if that lump in your throat isn't really there? Tune in here!

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Drought Still Grips 62 NC Counties

Sixty-two North Carolina counties remain in drought, according to the latest weekly assessment from state drought officials.

Parts of Guilford and Rockingham counties are in exceptional drought, the worst category. Extreme drought covers areas of Stokes, Caswell, Person, Granville, Lenoir, and Greene counties.

Kerr Lake sits nearly 11 feet below normal, its fifth-lowest level on record, and Kerr Dam cut hydropower output by about 44% last week. Some coastal areas just logged their first or second driest September on record.

Parts of Western North Carolina got 2 to 4 inches of rain, causing flash flooding, but the heaviest totals fell where drought had already lifted.

State officials are urging residents in the hardest-hit areas to conserve water. Rain in this weekend's forecast could bring some relief.

NC Drops Math 3 Requirement

North Carolina high schoolers will no longer have to take Math 3 or Math 4 under new standards the State Board of Education approved without opposition Thursday.

Students still need four math credits, including revised versions of Math 1 and Math 2. For the final two, they'll choose from eight electives tied to college, career, or military plans, from AP Calculus to new courses in data science and statistical modeling.

State education officials say students lose interest in math in the upper grades, while employers keep asking for workers with data and statistics skills. NC State education professor Sunghwan Byun said too many students get pushed toward calculus, which matters most for engineers, not nurses.

The standards take effect in 2028, the first math update since 2017. North Carolina is one of more than 20 states reworking how it teaches math.

NC Gets First Meta Payment

North Carolina has received $45.2 million, its first payment from Meta's $17.1 billion child safety settlement with 47 states.

The state is guaranteed at least $451 million and could collect up to $645 million, with nine more payments due each Jan. 15 through 2035.

The states sued in 2023, accusing the Facebook and Instagram parent of designing its platforms to hook children while downplaying mental health risks. Meta settled in August to end a trial in federal court in Oakland, California, and had already rolled out separate teen accounts with added protections.

The deal sets a default two-hour daily limit for teens, blocks feeds from midnight to 6 a.m., and silences most notifications during school hours.

The General Assembly will decide how to spend the money. Attorney General Jeff Jackson wants it aimed at after-school programs, youth crisis hotlines, and school health staff.

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➤ Charlotte: The N.C. Department of Public Instruction will join investigations into Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools' finances after allegations that thousands of dollars were spent without contracts or purchase orders. Board members blame a switch to a new system. The state auditor and the SBI are also investigating. (See Details)

➤ Plymouth: State and federal regulators proposed a settlement with Domtar to restore stretches of the Roanoke River damaged by more than 50 years of pollution from the town's pulp mill. The plan would protect about 760 acres of wetlands, and public comments are due Oct. 16. (See Details)

➤ Winston-Salem: Randy Bridges took over Thursday as interim superintendent of Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, the district's seventh superintendent in seven years. Bridges, who has led seven school systems on an interim basis, inherits a district working through roughly $45 million in debt. (More)

➤ Brunswick County: Residents of the Lakewood Estates neighborhood near Shallotte were allowed to return home Thursday night after a roughly 50-acre wildfire forced evacuations. The fire remains active, but no injuries or damaged structures have been reported. (See Details)

➤ Fort Bragg: The U.S. Senate approved giving North Carolina about 20 acres of Fort Bragg land in Harnett County for a new state veterans home. It would replace the 150-bed Fayetteville home, which closed in 2024 over structural problems and displaced 85 veterans. (See Details)

➤ Transylvania County: The Girl Scouts' Camp Pisgah near Brevard fully reopened Wednesday after two years of Hurricane Helene repairs. Its renovated Westfeldt Troop House now operates year-round, and community rentals are open for the 2027 season. (Read Story)

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➤ The Hurricanes lost 2-5 against the Capitals Friday night at Lenovo Center, leaving the defending champions winless after two games. Sebastian Aho and Logan Stankoven scored for Carolina, which plays at Philadelphia tonight. (Recap)

➤ The Wolfpack (2-2) hosts Louisville (2-2) at 3:30 p.m. today at Carter-Finley on ACC Network, with both teams carrying one ACC loss. NC State beat App State 41-31 last week after the Mountaineers erased a 21-0 deficit, while Louisville fell 30-27 to Wake Forest. (More)

➤ Wake Forest (3-1) hosts Stanford (2-2) at noon today at Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium on ACC Network. Stanford has lost 12 straight road games, the longest skid in program history, while Wake Forest is fresh off a 30-27 upset at No. 16 Louisville. (More)

➤ Contentment Golf Club in Hays earned an honorable mention among new clubhouses in Golf Inc.'s 2026 Clubhouse of the Year competition. The House and central courtyard were inspired by Appalachian farmhouses, barns, and churches. (See List)

➤ Yesterday’s Results: NCAAF | NHL | WNBA | Soccer | Golf

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➤ A 4-year-old German shorthaired pointer named Airlie spent about 20 minutes chasing a dolphin and getting chased back during an afternoon swim in Wilmington. Her owner, Jordan Coffin, said the dolphin kept splashing its tail by the seawall whenever Airlie climbed out. (See Video)

➤ A Wilmington couple turned a 1940s Gothic Revival church into three residences sleeping up to 22, with 10 king bedrooms themed after their travels. Carly and Jason Foreman kept the heart pine floors and found over half the furnishings at Habitat for Humanity ReStore. (Read Story)

➤ NC State researchers found a way to use powdered eggshells, which are 95% calcium carbonate, to make stronger magnesium alloys for cars, aircraft, and medical devices. The method skips the energy-heavy step of producing calcium materials from mined ore. (See Details)

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The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes, straight from the heart of the country.

➤ Sick season is here, and doctors say relief for that stubborn throat starts with one surprising fix. (Listen Now)

➤ Nobel watchers say the International Space Station is a serious Peace Prize contender this year, alongside far more contentious earthbound names. (Hear Names)

➤ Pope Leo XIV is urging artists to join the church in a fight to protect human creativity from artificial intelligence. (Podcast Available)