Chelsea Donovan
Reporter
Wilmington, NC
:no_upscale()/s3.amazonaws.com/arc-authors/raycom/90cfff47-b2d0-4899-8b07-8673833483f6.png)
Chelsea Donovan is excited to be back in television news after a brief hiatus! After graduating from East Carolina in 2004 with a degree in Broadcast Journalism, Chelsea signed on as a producer at WITN-TV in Greenville. NC. After a year producing she moved to Reporter and Fill-In Anchor, and finally spent her final 3 years in the market as the Jacksonville Bureau Chief covering the military, and the Eastern Carolina Coast. Chelsea spent 6 years, writing, shooting and editing stories of Eastern Carolinians in more than 30 counties.
After a career change to Event Sales that lasted 4 years here in Wilmington, Chelsea constantly had the "itch" to return to reporting. Her parents have recently retired to Wilmington, and Chelsea and her two Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, call the Port City home.
In her spare time Chelsea enjoys experiencing everything Wilmington has to offer! Taking her dogs to the beach, traveling, trying new restaurants and spending time with her boyfriend, family and friends.
Education
Awards
Updated: Apr. 24, 2019 at 3:12 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
The owners of Slainte Irish Pub in Downtown Wilmington feel they're being singled out by an outdated city ordinance.
Updated: Apr. 23, 2019 at 4:14 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
District Attorney Ben David says Raise the Age is the most important law change he has been a part of in his 20 years as a prosecutor.
Updated: Apr. 22, 2019 at 2:59 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
Quaneik Allen, 20, is sitting in the New Hanover County Jail, admitting that on Easter Sunday he shot a man five times. The man Allen admits to shooting was seen beating a pregnant woman in a video that has been viewed thousands of times online.
Updated: Apr. 16, 2019 at 4:29 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
Thanks to Hurricane Florence, a Carolina Beach inn lost out on seven months of business, and what owners believe is more than $100,000 in revenue.
Updated: Apr. 16, 2019 at 4:17 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
Alban Pelletier was inside his Wilmington bakery when a news alert came across his cell phone that the iconic Notre Dame cathedral in Paris was on fire.
Updated: Apr. 15, 2019 at 5:15 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
The doors outside Phil Furia’s office in Kenan Hall at UNCW are littered with letters thanking him for his amazing teaching style, humble nature, and general love for his students. It’s easy to see Furia had a profound impact on the Creative Writing department at UNCW.
Updated: Apr. 12, 2019 at 3:25 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
Tahtah Edwards’ entire life is contained in 325 square feet.
Updated: Apr. 11, 2019 at 6:58 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
Crystal Bentley walked into Wilmington Oral Surgery on Feb. 12, 2016, to see Dr. Michael Hasson for a medical procedure, an event that she said would leave her traumatized to this day.
Updated: Apr. 5, 2019 at 12:18 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
There were more than 5,000 complaints in 2018 according to the BBB concerning travel agencies and services.
Updated: Apr. 3, 2019 at 6:14 PM EDT
|By Clint Bullock and Chelsea Donovan
A New Hanover County man arrested and charged with fatally shooting his neighbor’s dog last week over excessive barking is facing another count of animal cruelty.
Updated: Apr. 3, 2019 at 4:09 PM EDT
|By Clint Bullock and Chelsea Donovan
A New Hanover County man was arrested on animal cruelty charges after he allegedly failed to provide fresh water and food to his pet fish.
Updated: Mar. 28, 2019 at 3:34 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
It’s a vaccine that hit pharmacy shelves last year, and since then, keeping it in stock has been tough.
Updated: Mar. 26, 2019 at 6:11 AM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan and Alex Guarino
The Brunswick County Board of Education on Monday hosted the first of two public meetings to share staff proposals on school lines for a new middle school and proposed changes for an overcrowded elementary school.
Updated: Mar. 20, 2019 at 2:54 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
The Venus flytrap is a rare, protected plant that grows in the wild only in a 75-mile radius around Wilmington.
Updated: Mar. 19, 2019 at 4:19 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
Vacationers who visit the quaint coastal town of Southport will soon have a new waterfront option for their overnight stay.
Updated: Mar. 14, 2019 at 4:10 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
Mike Moser isn’t going to let a governmental decision get in the way of a promise he made after Hurricane Florence hit southeastern North Carolina.
Updated: Mar. 13, 2019 at 2:02 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
Four mailboxes and several garbage bins were destroyed early Monday morning in a Monkey Junction neighborhood.
Updated: Mar. 13, 2019 at 12:19 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
A popular Port City breakfast and lunch staple will close its doors Friday after 22 years in business.
Updated: Mar. 12, 2019 at 1:12 PM EDT
|By Jim Gentry, Clint Bullock and Chelsea Donovan
West Bladen Principal Peggy Hester said in a letter to parents Monday that Aldo Hernandez, an 11th grader at the school, died Monday afternoon.
Updated: Mar. 11, 2019 at 12:23 PM EDT
|By Chelsea Donovan
For six months, Sand Hills AME church in the tiny community of White Stocking has been a beacon of hope for residents in the community who lost everything during Hurricane Florence. The church has helped victims even with their own doors closed.
Updated: Mar. 8, 2019 at 4:10 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
One in four children in New Hanover County struggles with hunger, according to Nourish NC.
Updated: Mar. 7, 2019 at 5:42 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
Coppola said Turney woke up with complaints of a headache, nausea and blurred vision on Sept. 23, 2018. He went to a hospital, where he was given an IV. Turney got up to use the bathroom, collapsed and went into cardiac arrest.
Updated: Mar. 6, 2019 at 7:23 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
During a cold snap, we add extra layers of clothing to combat the cold but for farmers, the frigid temperatures mean potentially million dollars in crop losses.
Updated: Mar. 5, 2019 at 2:57 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
Time is something Sharon Martinhuss can never get back with her son but she hopes to keep his memory alive through awareness.
Updated: Mar. 4, 2019 at 3:15 AM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan and Gabrielle Williams
Kure Beach leaders are hosting an educational session about coyotes and how to live with them on Monday, March 4 at 6 p.m.
Updated: Mar. 1, 2019 at 4:35 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
Elizabethtown has a new 4,000 square foot airport, and the terminal is named after a hometown hero.
Updated: Feb. 28, 2019 at 6:24 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
The Bladen County Sheriff’s Office said an Elizabethtown woman was driving drunk when she slammed her car into several tombstones at the Garden of Memories Cemetery located on Highway 53 in Kelly Monday evening.
Updated: Feb. 28, 2019 at 3:58 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
No one likes long lines and while they are certainly a staple at DMV locations in our area, they could get even longer.
Updated: Feb. 27, 2019 at 7:51 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan and Clint Bullock
A pastor in Columbus County was hit and killed by a vehicle while checking on a driver whom he had been in a minor accident with himself.
Updated: Feb. 27, 2019 at 5:40 AM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
The hotel has been closed since Sept. 11, 2018, days before Hurricane Florence blew through.
Updated: Feb. 26, 2019 at 7:07 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
Nearly six months after Hurricane Florence, a Carolina Beach inn remains vacant.
Updated: Feb. 25, 2019 at 3:33 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
Many hands make light work and if you are interested in restoring one of southeastern North Carolina’s oldest churches, a volunteer group is looking for you.
Updated: Feb. 21, 2019 at 7:02 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
The town home project called Settler’s Village was approved unanimously by Leland Town Council on Thursday night. It has been the topic of hot debate for several months, and the development had been continued four times at town council meetings.
Updated: Feb. 19, 2019 at 5:05 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
Gov. Roy Cooper made a pit stop in Wilmington on Tuesday looking to drum up support on two issues: More money for schools and expanding the Medicaid program.
Updated: Feb. 18, 2019 at 3:18 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
New Hanover County has released a detailed, nine-page report that focuses on areas of strength and what needs to improve in how the county handled its response to Hurricane Florence which struck the region more than five months ago.
Updated: Feb. 15, 2019 at 3:12 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
Wilmington resident Kylie Sheaffer was getting ready to drift off for a Thursday afternoon nap when she heard her phone bing. It was her Ring app alerting her to a nearby bank robbery.
Updated: Feb. 14, 2019 at 4:59 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
The man who filed a federal lawsuit against New Hanover County law enforcement officers claiming they used excessive force while taking him into custody during a November encounter that went viral has been released from jail.
Updated: Feb. 14, 2019 at 4:13 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
A judge on Thursday ordered an oral surgeon accused of sexually assaulting more than a dozen patients while they were under anesthesia remain jailed under a $1 million bond.
Updated: Feb. 14, 2019 at 10:55 AM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
The owner of a New Hanover County cab company is fighting for his life after he was allegedly beaten with a flashlight by an ex-employee and left on the side of the road last week.
Updated: Feb. 12, 2019 at 4:38 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
A former employee at a New Hanover County Walmart is accused of pulling a knife on workers and stealing a cart full of items from the store.
Updated: Feb. 12, 2019 at 3:35 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
As Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, celebrates what would be his 209th birthday Tuesday, a new bronze face mask created by a renowned sculpture has been unveiled in the Port City.
Updated: Feb. 12, 2019 at 11:18 AM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan and Clint Bullock
A New Hanover County firefighter is accused of damaging the Wilmington Fire Department’s headquarters and trying to take a grill after a night of drinking.
Updated: Feb. 11, 2019 at 3:22 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
It’s a drug that is crossing county lines, according to the Bladen County Sheriff’s Office.
Updated: Feb. 8, 2019 at 6:49 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
Jody Greene will remain acting sheriff in Columbus County for at least a few more days.
Updated: Feb. 8, 2019 at 2:27 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
The town of Carolina Beach has lost a significant number of officers who are now switching forces and heading to the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Department.
Updated: Feb. 7, 2019 at 4:22 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
The Cape Fear Crossing is an approximately 9.5-mile proposed road and bridge aimed at improving traffic and enhancing freight movements from US 17 and I-140 in Brunswick County to US 421 near the Port of Wilmington in southern New Hanover County.
Updated: Feb. 6, 2019 at 4:50 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
Aimed at identifying where overdose and drug use occurs in Wilmington, the Overdose Detection Mapping Application Program (ODMAP) is new technology the Wilmington Police Department started using in April 2018.
Updated: Feb. 5, 2019 at 3:15 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
Cape Fear Community College recently added a Doron Precision Systems simulator to the truck driver training, law enforcement, and emergency response programs. The system helps students prepare for driving in hazardous conditions and on challenging terrain.
Updated: Feb. 4, 2019 at 10:00 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
Michael Hasson was in the New Hanover County Jail under a $600,000 bond, but he bonded out sometime Monday, according to a jail employee who was reached by phone Monday night.
Updated: Jan. 31, 2019 at 3:53 PM EST
|By Chelsea Donovan
Kevin Mott and his wife Mary have lived in Pender County for three decades. Their lives were thrown into disarray when Hurricane Florence swept through the region back in September.
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/7YAFYA6YT5FPTKAUVCDSQ77QKE.jpg)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/PYHDS3JNGNAUBEFDYZIGGMOGAU.jpg)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/EFZGUWAGHVGGJG5TTDR6MIT4BE.bmp)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/6DSOQ4BUM5BFNGP75RCPQS4ZN4.jpg)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/BSIYY5P5EBFXRGUV37EBS77GF4.jpg)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/UHR3Q5H5LBFZJBU42W637DIXHY.png)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/GCDEIYAQBZAFRB345KAMFE4CZM.jpg)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/M4YDETM5IVDBBCVXG2VO5KICMM.jpg)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/7ACHKFLE5KXKZSX537BRGUW7DA.jpg)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/IV77QLFSPJFNRGQJCUKXSGDBZU.bmp)
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/MGKZM5ZSP5BRTFWGT5BGIOVOHU.jpg)