Senin, 19 Oktober 2026

Vance Visits NC, Bed Bugs in Books, and Superwomen of Charlotte

Monday, October 19, 2026

Good Morning! On this day in 1874, R.J. Reynolds bought his first lot beside the rail lines in Winston from the Moravian Church, where he built what he called the “Little Red Factory.” That humble shop grew into the tobacco empire that built Winston-Salem.

Vice President JD Vance will speak at a campaign rally in Hendersonville today. Learn more in Top Stories.

The most important places in American history aren’t where you think. Some of the moments that shaped this country happened in towns with one stoplight, a single gas station, and a tumbleweed rolling across Main Street. Do you ever wonder where the Cold War got its name? Which town spent three years officially not existing while it helped win a world war? Or where the most famous invention in American history finally got off the ground? One of these towns could be in your state, and you may have even driven through it without knowing what happened there. On today’s episode of Flyover Focus, we count down 10 small towns that changed American history. Tune in here!

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Vance Rallies in Hendersonville Today

Vice President JD Vance will headline a midterm campaign rally in Hendersonville today at the Hyder Warehouse on Chestnut Gap Road. Doors open at 11 a.m., according to the event site, and Vance is scheduled to speak at 1:15 p.m.

The event, hosted by a Trump-aligned committee, requires an RSVP. Organizers say the visit is aimed at boosting Republican Jennifer Balkcom in the contested race for Western North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District against Democrat Jamie Ager, co-owner and CEO of Hickory Nut Gap Farm.

Vance’s stop kicks off a week of high-profile Carolinas campaigning. President Trump is scheduled to rally in Greenville, North Carolina, on Tuesday, and in Clemson, South Carolina, on Wednesday.

Western Carolina University political scientist Chris Cooper said the schedule reflects a focus on competitive seats.

Lumbee Council Approves Gaming Ordinance

The Lumbee Tribe’s governing council voted 14-2 on Thursday to approve a gaming ordinance that could clear the way for a casino along I-95 in Robeson County.

The ordinance would permit class III, or “casino-style,” gambling on tribal land, but only if tribal members approve it in a referendum and the state agrees to a compact. Chairman John Lowery has 10 days to certify the measure.

Tribal leaders have pitched a resort along I-95 that would include a casino, hotels, a convention center, condos, and a golf course, calling it an economic engine for a struggling region.

The vote revives a push that stalled in June, when tribal members rejected a constitutional amendment on gaming by roughly 62%.

The Lumbee, North Carolina’s largest tribe, won full federal recognition in December 2025.

UNCW Studies PFAS in Blue Crabs

Researchers at UNC Wilmington are testing whether PFAS, aka “forever chemicals,” are building up in blue crabs and other seafood along the North Carolina coast.

PFAS are synthetic compounds used in products like nonstick cookware and waterproof gear that don’t break down in the environment or the body. In the Cape Fear River watershed, the contamination has been tied to the Chemours plant upstream from Wilmington.

The state has issued advisories for some freshwater fish after finding PFAS in the Cape Fear and Brunswick rivers, but little is known about levels in crabs or commercially sold seafood. UNCW master’s student Nicholas Angeli is studying blue crab larvae to help close that gap.

The research comes about six weeks after North Carolina valued damages at $590 million with Chemours, DuPont, and Corteva over the contamination.

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➤ Triangle: Flu season has hit the area’s hospitals early, with an ER doctor saying cases are rising three to four weeks ahead of normal. Walgreens says cold and flu medicine sales are up nearly 22% over last year. (More)

➤ Wake County: Bed bugs turned up in returned books at Oberlin Regional Library in Raleigh. The county has run multiple pest-control treatments since August and pulled affected materials while checking whether other branches were hit. (More)

➤ Raleigh: A contracted security officer gave birth to a baby girl Thursday morning at Millbrook Magnet High School, delivered with help from school staff, including first responder K'Mani Freeman, who is also the school’s bookkeeper. (More)

➤ Mooresville: Three people were injured Saturday and hospitalized after a falling tree limb struck a horse-drawn wagon at Lazy 5 Ranch near Mooresville, startling the horses and causing the passengers to fall off. (More)

➤ Shelby: A massive Sunday morning fire destroyed Dover Baptist Church, canceling services. No one was injured. The cause remains unknown, and investigators suspect no foul play. (See Photos)

➤ Buncombe County: The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission will hold a public hearing Wednesday at A-B Tech on a proposed rule banning feeding bears in Buncombe County. An identical emergency rule takes effect today. (More)

➤ Outer Banks: NC 12 remains open from the Marc Basnight Bridge to Ocracoke despite the pounding nor’easter, NCDOT says, though crews warn conditions could worsen as the storm lingers offshore into next week. (More)

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➤ The Carolina Panthers outgained the Philadelphia Eagles 399-222 but committed 13 penalties, resulting in a game that remained tight until late in the fourth quarter, with the Panthers taking home a 25-14 win. (More)

➤ No. 1 UNC women’s soccer suffered its first ACC and road loss of the season, falling 3-1 to No. 4 Wake Forest on Sunday. (More)

➤ The Carolina Hurricanes extended their win streak to seven games this weekend, with a 3-2 win over the Winnipeg Jets. Additionally, Hurricanes forward Mark Jankowski scored for the sixth straight game. (More)

➤ Wake Forest is continuing to climb up the AP Poll rankings, coming in at a season-high of No. 17 this week. (See Poll)

➤ Wake Forest baseball head coach Tom Walter has been placed on leave from the university, the team confirmed over the weekend. The reasoning and duration are not yet known. (More)

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➤ The most important moments in American history didn’t all happen in Philadelphia or Boston. Some happened in towns you've never even heard of. (Tune in here)

In the latest episode of Flyover Focus, we count down 10 small towns that changed American history. These are towns where wars ended, legends were born, and modern technology took off. We are talking about moments that shaped the entire country, tucked away on rural country roads. How many of these stories do you actually know?

In case you missed it, last week’s Flyover Focus counted down 10 things you should stop paying for. How many are still quietly draining your bank account every month? (Watch Now)

➤ Utili-Serve will add 105 jobs and invest $24.8 million to expand its Conover headquarters with a 25,000-square-foot manufacturing facility, creating a regional hub for East Coast grid projects. (More)

➤ Carolina Ascent FC, Charlotte’s professional women’s soccer club, hosted DC Power FC on Friday in its “Superwomen of Charlotte” match, pairing the game with a networking soiree where female entrepreneurs competed for a $25,000 grant. (More)

➤ Truist Financial’s new CEO Mike Lyons reshuffled leadership of the Charlotte-based bank’s consumer and small-business divisions, and announced plans to sell its direct-to-consumer personal lending business, a key digital initiative of his predecessor. (More)

➤ King Arthur Baking Co. will open its first North Carolina pop-up shop at Apex SouthPark in Charlotte on Nov. 7, with plans to keep it open there through early 2028. (More)

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➤ North Carolina ranks 14th among America’s happiest states in 2026, scoring 56.77 based on an index measuring well-being, work environment, and community factors. (See Ranking)

➤ Raleigh and Durham share the same favorite dog breed, the golden retriever, according to a new Rover report ranking the most popular breeds across U.S. cities. (More)

➤ Duke University students are examining one of the few surviving copies of the Declaration of Independence by engraver William J. Stone on display at the Nasher Museum of Art through January 2027. (See Photos)

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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.

➤ An Air Force officer died after falling from the Alamodome rafters while rappelling onto the field before Saturday’s UTSA-Navy game. (Hear More)

➤ A truck drove through a crowd at a youth soccer game in Wichita, killing a 6-year-old boy and a man. The driver was released without charges. (Listen Now)

➤ Modern reruns of the infamous 1961 Yale shock experiment found even more people obey than before, and researchers now know why disobeying is so hard. (Tune In)