Tuesday, November 3, 2026

Good Morning! On this day in 1949, actor and writer Michael Evans was born in Salisbury. He’d grow up to play Lionel Jefferson on All in the Family and The Jeffersons, then co-create the sitcom Good Times.

It’s Election Day! If you’re heading out to vote, the polls are open across North Carolina from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and anyone in line by 7:30 p.m. can still vote. Refer to our guide in yesterday’s edition for more information.

The squeeze of the cuff, the beep of the machine, and a number in your chart before you’ve rolled your sleeve back down. A blood pressure check is so routine that most of us never stop to wonder whether the number is actually right. The American Heart Association says seven everyday mistakes can quietly inflate a reading, and in one test of 30 health care professionals on how to take one properly, only three passed. Ayla counts down the seven mistakes that throw off your blood pressure reading on today’s episode of The Flyover Podcast. Tune in here!

Later today, you'll receive a special email from Incogni about how to remove your personal information from hundreds of data broker sites and help protect yourself from scams. Plus, there's an exclusive Black Friday offer to save 58% on annual plans.

Today’s sponsor, FinanceBuzz, is sharing 18 little-known Costco shopping secrets that could help you uncover hidden deals, maximize your membership, and save more money on your next shopping trip.

NC ACC Basketball Teams Open Strong

Most of North Carolina’s major men’s college basketball programs opened the 2026-27 season with victories last night.

No. 2 Duke routed Army 84-50 in Durham, while UNC held off Western Carolina 80-72 in Chapel Hill for Michael Malone’s coaching debut. NC State defeated Campbell 83-64 in Raleigh, and Wake Forest beat Maryland Eastern Shore 83-62 in Winston-Salem.

In ACC women’s basketball action, No. 12 UNC fell 91-79 to No. 21 Oklahoma at the 2026 Oui Play in Paris. No. 25 NC State opened with an 80-50 win over Wofford behind Zoe Brooks’ 23 points and Ky’She Lunan’s 21, and Wake Forest edged South Carolina Upstate 65-58 in its home opener.

Overall, it was a successful tip-off for North Carolina’s ACC programs, with the four major men’s teams all securing opening wins and two of the three women’s squads also starting the season on a high note.

$35.8M Boosts Western NC Rail Plan

The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded NCDOT $35.8 million to help restore passenger rail service to Western North Carolina, which lost it in 1975.

The money will fund design, construction, and the upgrade of more than 40 highway-rail crossing signal systems between Salisbury and Hickory, NCDOT said.

The state’s NC By Train service aims to connect Salisbury to Asheville, and a 2025 state study found that reviving the line would boost the mountain economy, jobs, and transit. Once finished, the corridor would connect the mountains to Charlotte, the Piedmont, and the Triangle.

Tickets will soon be on sale for NC By Train’s one-day-only Santa Train, which will travel from Raleigh to Charlotte and back, featuring Santa, Mrs. Claus, refreshments, and festive fun for passengers along the full route.

NC State Studies Appalachian Wildfire Risk

North Carolina State University won a $1.79 million National Science Foundation grant to study whether violent swings between wet and dry weather are raising wildfire risk in the southern Appalachians.

Researchers call the pattern “hydroclimatic whiplash”: rapid swings between extremes, such as flooding followed by severe drought in the same season.

In the mountains, Hurricane Helene damaged about 822,000 acres of forest in 2024, leaving a tangle of dead wood behind. That debris helped fuel a more active 2025 fire season, and the North Carolina Forest Service has warned it could feed wildfires for years.

The multiyear project aims to help communities and land managers prepare for the next fire.

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➤ Statewide: North Carolina requires print, radio, and TV political ads to disclose who paid for them, but that rule doesn’t extend to internet or social media posts, the State Board of Elections says. (More)

➤ Sampson County: One person was killed Sunday when a pickup crossed the center line and hit a tanker truck carrying methane gas head-on on U.S. 421. Both vehicles burned, but the methane stayed contained and never ignited. (More)

➤ Macon County: A sheriff’s deputy was fired for misusing Flock license-plate-reader equipment and is now under State Bureau of Investigation review. The firing comes three months after county commissioners voted to end their Flock contract. (More)

➤ Charlotte: Blue Line riders face single-tracking and Rail Trail detours in South End as crews build a new light-rail station. Through Friday, all trains share the southbound track between New Bern and Bland stations, with periodic adjustments continuing through Dec. 11. (More)

➤ Harrisburg: A $3 Powerball ticket sold at a Sam’s Mart on N.C. 49 in Harrisburg won $2 million in Saturday’s Halloween drawing, the N.C. Education Lottery announced. (More)

➤ Bodie Island: The National Park Service has begun a roughly four-month rehabilitation of the Bodie Island Light Station boardwalk and observation platform, replacing worn planks and cables and repairing railings. The boardwalk is closed during the work, but the light station remains open to visitors. (More)

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➤ The Carolina Hurricanes’ Pyotr Kochetkov stopped all 26 shots and became the third goalie in NHL history to open a season 10-0 as Carolina routed the Winnipeg Jets 7-0 Sunday in Raleigh. The Canes play at Nashville tonight. (More and See Who Won)

➤ The North Carolina Courage beat Denver Summit FC 1-0 on a stoppage-time own goal Sunday but missed the NWSL playoffs when Seattle clinched the final berth. The Courage finished 14-13-3, and Ashley Sanchez won the Golden Boot with 20 goals, tying the league’s single-season record. (More)

➤ Wake Forest quarterback Gio Lopez suffered an apparent knee injury in Saturday’s 51-7 win over Virginia, but initial reports are positive, according to head coach Jake Dickert. (More)

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➤ The 9-Cent Grocery Item Your Cardiologist Never Mentions. A study in the European Heart Journal linked a common grocery-store item to 41% fewer fatal heart events. It costs about nine cents, and most people walk past it every week. So why hasn't your doctor brought it up? It isn't a drug, so no drug rep ever puts it on their desk. And the few people who do find it often take far too little. See what it is (and how much to take)

➤ The Golden LEAF Foundation, a Rocky Mount nonprofit that invests tobacco-settlement dollars in rural North Carolina, named Ted Lord its fourth president and CEO. Lord joined Golden LEAF in 2005 and served as acting president in 2019. (More)

➤ Wake Forest University hosts its annual sustainability conference Friday, uniting scientists, business leaders, and educators to explore AI-driven solutions for environmental challenges. (More)

➤ Work is underway on two major projects at Albert J. Ellis Airport in Jacksonville: relocating a section of N.C. 111 and adding 900 feet to the runway, which will grow to 8,000 feet. The runway work is expected to finish in fall 2027. (See Photos)

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➤ Looking for your next favorite gadget? Explore this roundup of gadgets sold on Amazon and find inspiration for your shopping list. Whether you’re browsing for yourself or hunting for a gift, take a look through the featured picks. Your next discovery could be a click away.

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➤ The Angus Barn in Raleigh is nearly finished decking its dining rooms for Christmas with what owner Van Eure says are billions of lights and decorations, inside and out. This year’s displays include a new room honoring her grandfather, Thad Eure, North Carolina’s secretary of state for 52 years. (See Video)

➤ A plane that crash-landed off Oak Island last year is getting a second life. Its owner donated it to Cape Fear Community College, where aviation students will use the saltwater-damaged aircraft to learn how corrosion attacks metal and how to treat it. (See Photo)

➤ A new NC State Extension publication, Spiders of North Carolina, explores the state’s more than 1,000 spider species across 50-plus families, highlighting their ecological benefits and diverse hunting strategies. (More)

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➤ Simplify your brushing routine with the Sonic Glow Brush. Its soft, U-shaped mouthpiece uses sonic vibrations to clean teeth simultaneously, with cycles as short as 30 seconds. Featuring multiple cleaning modes and a rechargeable battery, it’s convenient for home or travel. See how it works today.