4:30AM News on WRAL - Tuesday, May 12, 2026

Shot in 4K Ultra High Definition. Your number one source for local news. WRAL News. Cover it, you can come on. And it's a little bit of a foggy start out there this morning. I'll show you what it will look like is you head out for your commute. Lowering costs at the pump. President Trump is calling for the federal gas tax to be suspended. How the tax is used and what this could mean for you at the gas station. Risk of infection. At least one passenger on the ship where the haunted virus began is from North Carolina. Why local experts say the risk of it reaching our state remains low. A lot to dig into here on this Tuesday morning. Good morning, everyone. I'm Renee Chu. It is 430. We're glad you're up with us. Let's get you started with the weather and get to meteorologist Elizabeth Gardner with that dense fog advisory, Elizabeth. Yeah, let's take a look at what's going on out there right now. This is a look at visibility, and we're down to half a mile in Roxborough and half a mile in Rocky Mount right now. We aren't seeing fog everywhere, but it is likely to increase as we get through the morning. Take a look at Pittsburgh. You can really see it here as you look past the courthouse, a good bit of fog there. It's also really chilly out there this morning, looking at 44 degrees in the triangle, so I definitely came in in my jacket. Watch out for some areas of dense fog up until around 8 or 9 o'clock this morning. lights off, you'll be able to actually see a little bit better. It's chilly in Roxborough and South Hill 37 degrees, 42 in Rocky Mount, 45 in Southern Pines, so it's a whole lot colder than it was this time yesterday. Anywhere from 10 to 25 degrees cooler as you had out the door this morning. It will warm up nicely this afternoon. We'll be almost 70 at lunchtime and highs will climb into the mid-70s. Today stays dry and so does the bulk of the day tomorrow, but overnight tomorrow night. We do have the potential for a front to come through with some showers and storm. We'll talk about the timeline and how much we can see. Renee? Elizabeth, thank you. This morning, a push to lower gas prices. New data from AAA shows the average cost of gas in North Carolina is $4.15 a gallon. In Wake County, it's $4.26. And in Durham County, it's $4.27. Now, the president is suggesting that the federal gas tax be suspended. W.R.S. Kelsey Coffee joins us live from a gas station in Kerry this morning to explain what this would mean for the prices that people pay at the pump. Kelsey, good morning. Renee, good morning. The answers to that question about what it means is this could be quite complicated. The federal gas tax accounts for about 18 cents of the price that you see here at the pump. But if that tax is removed, it's still not clear how much drivers could save. President Trump is now calling to suspend the federal gas tax. Congressional approval is required to make that move happen. WRL reached out to all North Carolina congressional lawmakers. whether they'd support suspending the gas tax. None responded. A study on state gas tax holidays found that about 60 to 80% of the tax cut was actually felt at the pump. We spoke with drivers about how they feel about a possible federal tax cut. Not really. No, it's going to have to be more than 18 cents. Not if it's going up every day. Yeah, anything helps.

It adds up over the course of year. That's probably a couple hundred bucks in the pockets. Another big question here is if that tax is suspended, then what does that mean for the revenue it generates? Federal gas tax revenue is primarily used for major transportation projects across the country. So if the tax is suspended, that could affect progress on all those projects. Kelsey Coffey, WRL News, live in Kerry. New this morning, a Spanish passenger from the Haunted virus-stricken cruise ship is the third person to test positive since the ship was evacuated. The Spanish health ministry says the person is in isolation at a hospital in Madrid after testing positive. A French woman who tested positive is in intensive care, according to the French Prime Minister. 18 Americans are at the University of Nebraska Medical Center's National Quarantine Unit. One of them is in a contamination unit after their positive test. The Hanta virus outbreak killed three people on that cruise ship. The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services is monitoring the haunted virus outbreak. We now know one person from North Carolina was on board the ship and is being quarantined. WRO's Adley Calabar joins his line from UNC Health in Raleigh. Ali, medical experts are saying it is highly unlikely for the virus to spread to the general public. Yeah, and we spoke with the medical director of the Department of Disease Prevention, Infection Prevention here at UNC. And even though a passenger on board the ship is from North Carolina, he says that the likelihood of reaching the state is low. Now, the virus may bring up memories of the COVID pandemic and social distancing. Medical experts from UNC say that shouldn't be the case with Hanta virus. It's more deadly than COVID, but... Haunted virus does not spread as easily, and it is not airborne like COVID. Another difference, medical experts with UNCs say we know the people who are exposed to the virus. Unlike COVID-19, where by the time we realized that it existed, it had spread to hundreds or thousands of people. Here we know everyone who was on the boat. I think the risk to the public is minimal. And I think since we know the people who are exposed, we have the ability to completely protect our health care personnel.

And we have a full article on WRAL.com explaining Haanta virus and how it impacts you. You can read more about it there. Reporting, Lyman Raleigh, Alicathabar's WRL News. Adley, thank you. Today, a push in the state legislature to keep your taxes from going up. Lawmakers plan to discuss a proposed constitutional amendment meant to prevent big tax hikes. It's part of the legislature's broader efforts to tackle property taxes. The proposed changes would limit the ability of city and county governments to collect property taxes in the future. If approved, the proposal would be on the ballot for voters statewide to decide. Lawmakers are also expected to discuss a proposal to limit property tax exemptions for affordable housing projects. W.R.R. reported in March that Wake County is losing out on about $745 million a year in property tax revenue due to such exemptions. This morning, we'll get new information about how quickly the prices you pay are going up. The Consumer Price Index for April is due out at 830. The Department of Labor reported the cost of goods rose almost 1% from February to March. That's the largest increase in four years. Gas prices, by the way, drove up most of the increase. Today, a Wake County School Board Committee is set to discuss new numbers on school building and renovation costs. The cost of schools construction is soaring, and that's putting pressure on school systems, budgets, and taxpayer wallets. Costs are up 40 to 50 percent since 2021, according to new data from the state and the Wake School System. W.R. Education insider Emily Walkenhor says these costs are largely funded by property tax revenue. There's some lottery funding that goes towards school construction in North Carolina, but a lot of what is funding school construction is actually coming from the counties themselves, so property taxes. Today's meeting starts at 1 p.m. Tune in for updates on the education section of w.orgia.com. This morning, an 18-year-old is facing charges in connection with last month's shooting at Triangle Town Center. Raleigh police say Marcus Neal opened fire inside the mall, injuring three people. He faces charges including assault with a deadly weapon, inflicting serious injury. Investigators have also filed juvenile petitions against three teens for misdemeanor rioting and misdemeanor assault. Raleigh Police Chief Rico Boyce says what stands out most is the age of these suspects. We're seeing this trend of younger offenders committing serious offenses. So very thankful that we have the 18-year-old in custody, and we're holding those juveniles responsible on juvenile petitions. We've asked Raleigh Police how they were able to identify Neil and why it took nearly a month to charge him. As of this morning, we have not heard back. We are also working to learn more about the other teens police say were involved in the shooting.

A man accused of shooting someone at a Durham restaurant on Mother's Day will remain in jail without bond. Samir Salian Al-Mamud is charged with... assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill. Police say he got into a fight with the coworker at Silver Spoon Restaurant and then shot a man who tried to step in. During yesterday's court appearance, the prosecutor said Al Mahmood told detectives at the scene that if he got out, he would, quote, finish the job. The victim is in critical condition. Today, Raleigh City Council will get new insight into the city's energy usage. In March, council members requested a report on energy usage and the city's efforts to mitigate costs and impacts. They are also expected to discuss information about data centers and management of the city's energy use related to AI usage. Today's meeting starts at 4. In just a few hours, tickets for the next Carolina Hurricanes playoff games go on sale. The Canes will host games one and two of the Eastern Conference Final at Lenovo Center. Now, the Canes are awaiting who they're going to play for the conference final. They will play the winner of the series between Buffalo and Montreal. The Canes have yet to lose a game in the playoffs. They are the first NHL team in more than 40 years to win their first. eight games of the postseason. Conference final tickets go on sale at noon today. The dates for the games have not been set yet. Changing disaster response. Millions of dollars meant for Helene recovery could go elsewhere. The questions we're asking about a new bill that would affect future funds granted to the state. And a redistricting battle. The response from states after a Supreme Court ruling that weakened the Voting Rights Act, where some states are in the approval process. Our next weathermaker is this cold front that's back to the west. It arrives on Wednesday night. In the meantime, this high pressure system is sending us some chilly air as you walk out the door this morning. I'll show you what it will feel like. Want to sell your home just like that? Snap away the stress and contact sold it in a snap.com. Why deal with the costly repairs and endless showings? Sold it in a snap offers a smarter way. Simply provide a few quick details, schedule an in-home walkthrough with a Jim Allen group expert, and get your personalized cash offer in a snap. Skip the selling hassles and reach out to sold it in a snap.com today and get your competitive cash offer. That's sold it in a snap.com.

He also went on to thank the work that the Secret Service does as Police Week is now underway. And giving you a live look at our W.R.L Tower this morning, it is lit up in blue as a tribute to fallen law enforcement. Members of the Raleigh Police Department, including their mounted patrol, came to the station last night to see the lighting in person. 448 now. And as we have some fog out there, also very chilly temperatures for May 12. Elizabeth Gardner is tracking it all for us. And Elizabeth looks foggy in Pittsburgh. It does. They're not seeing a lot of fog on the cameras. Pittsburgh is one of the foggiest looking cameras that we're seeing right now. But I'd just be on the lookout for some fog as you're headed out this morning. Fog is something that tends to come and go pretty quickly. And typically as we get closer to sunrise, we see more of it. So we'll keep track of it. And keep checking back with us. right now in the triangle. We're looking at temperatures climbing up to 70 by lunchtime. So it's just a chilly start to the day and then we warm up nicely later this afternoon. Quarter mile visibility in Rocky Mount and in Roxburgh. Quarter mile is typically the threshold where we're looking at fog. We take a look at temperatures. It's chilly. Just 41 in Durham right now and 40 in Wake Forest. 41 in Jay Clayton, 43 and Kerry, 44 in Apex. So it's much colder than it was this time yesterday. Anywhere from about 10 to around 20 degrees cooler. That's a big change in the morning. So I definitely. came in in my little puffy coat. I was happy about that. But it's a very nice afternoon in store. Mid-70s in the triangle, looking at upper 70s this afternoon in Fayetteville, and lots of sunshine all day. Tomorrow will be a little bit warmer. A cold front comes in. Typically, we see more of a southerly flow ahead of a front, so it'll warm us up to around 80. And then Wednesday night will have the chance of some scattered storms. Behind the front, it's breezy and cooler on Thursday, but then temperatures ramp right back up on Saturday and Sunday, and that may start a much warmer trend. So looking at Thursday, 70, 77 on Friday. And then we're going to see a lot of warmth pushing in a Saturday at 88 and then 92 on Sunday. So we have a big change in our forecast. We take a look at our temperature outlook. And that may last all the way through the next 10 days. Once we get past the weekend, it looks warmer than normal, a good bit warmer than normal. In terms of rain chances, they are few. Wednesday night, tomorrow night will be our best chance. Saturday, it's only a 20% chance, 20% chance again. Sunday. Coming up, we'll talk more about the timing for Wednesday night's front and how much rain we might see. Renee. Elizabeth, thank you. New in streaming. A new kind of Fast and Furious is coming to Peacock. Plus, Reacher will return for another season. That and more just ahead in today's Hollywood Minute.

A new Fast and Furious show is coming to Peacock. Plus, Reacher will be in for this season. Here's David Daniel with today's Hollywood Minute. The Fast and Furious universe is expanding to streaming. Vin Diesel says Peacock is launching four Fast and Furious shows, though Variety and the Hollywood reporters say only one is currently in active development. The 11th and supposedly final film in the $7 billion franchise, Fast Forever, is due in theaters in 2008. Mr. Richard, the record. It's impressive. Prime video certainly thinks so. The streamer has renewed Reacher for a fifth season before season four has even premiered. There are some 30 books in the Lee Child series that inspired the show starring Alan Richson, so there's plenty of source material. No word on a release date for season four.

The Nordic Noir series, Black Sands, is back for a second and final season. The thriller about revelations in a town with a dark history returns to the Via Play streaming service Thursday. In Hollywood, I'm David Daniel. The trial has begun for the man accused of stealing unreleased music by Beyonce. Last July, Beyonce's choreographer and whatever dancers said thieves broke into their SUV in a parking garage in Atlanta. The thief stole electronic drives containing unreleased music as well as plans for her show and past and future set lists. Police arrested the suspect in September. Netflix is also facing a new legal battle. Texas is suing the media company over surveillance and data concerns. The state's attorney general Ken Paxton is accused, is accusing the streaming service of spying on Texans and collecting users' data without their knowledge or consent. The lawsuit also accuses Netflix of being addictive. Netflix says the suit lacks merit and is based on inaccurate information. The company says it takes its members' privacy seriously. Chatham County is helping families feel safer around water this summer. The county is offering a free, two-part water confidence and safety class at Jim Jordan Lake on May 27th and June 3rd. Classes are open to everyone 12 and older. The program will focus on basic water safety and confidence skills. The Wilson Warbirds are honoring first responders this weekend. Saturday night's game includes a special jersey giveaway for the first 1,500 fans through the Bill Gates. The replica home jerseys are part of the team's first responders night celebration presented by Wilson Medical Center. Ahead at five, lowering the price at the pump. The president wants the federal gas tax to be temporarily paused. The relief it may give you at the gas station. Increasing worker pay, lawmakers are nearing a deal on pay raises for state employees. The issues they are running into as North Carolina still has no state budget.

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