Dark Waters hits theaters on Friday, and is already generating some Oscar buzz with critics. The movie, about chemicals in drinking water in a town in West Virginia, hits very close to home for people in Southeastern North Carolina worried about GenX.
A parent contacted WECT to say his 6th grade son, who has been a straight A student since kindergarten, was at one point failing his first period math class because he has missed so much instruction due to a chronically late bus.
Months into this school year, New Hanover County Schools has still been struggling to get kids to school on time on some of its bus routes. Administrators are struggling to fill more than a dozen open positions for school bus drivers.
Efforts to push back against the opioid crisis have seen some success, but House said he believes there is still a long road ahead — one that, like the recovery road of an individual struggling against substance abuse, will require a variety of remedies and a shift in perspective.
After an investigation by both school officials and law enforcement, there will be no charges against a middle school special education teacher with a ‘pattern of touching students’ on the head, shoulder, and stomach. The investigation found insufficient evidence that the touching was sexual in natu
Dr. James Rickie Holliday, the former deputy superintendent of New Hanover County Schools, filed his response to a civil suit against him, the current administration, and the board of education.
While the school bus policy issues bothered her, the mother says it was the lack of communication from the school system and apparent lack of knowledge regarding what they could and could not tell her that caused her to become so frustrated she ultimately called the media.
After several strange clues, a Michigan father questions whether his water filters are authentic. Experts say counterfeit filters are a growing problem in the United States.
The parent of a former Hoggard High School student has refiled a retaliation complaint with the New Hanover County School Board. This comes just days after the school board suspended Superintendent Tim Markley for retaliating against another parent, Dr. Clyde Edgerton, in an unrelated incident.
A recently published study shows the total concentration of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in the Cape Fear River before 2017 was nearly 1,000 times more than the state’s recommended “health goal” level for GenX.
Julie Harper gets her water from a well that's among many where PFAS were detected. The results make her feel fearful. “You don’t know the unknown,” she said. "You don’t know what it could do to you and your children."
The first installment of a series where WECT Investigates where we’ve been, where we are, and where we’re going in the battle against opioid addiction.
The Cape Fear Public Utility Authority (CFPUA) has asked for assistance from the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) after a fourth increase in 1,4-dioxane levels this year.
The internal watchdog for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will be evaluating the federal agency’s implementation of its consent order allowing DuPont, and later Chemours, to make GenX.
While county and hospital officials have assured employees their pensions will be protected, many NHRMC employees remain unconvinced, concerned in part by the actions of other hospital systems in the state, and lawsuits filed against them.
It was a tumultuous week for members of the New Hanover County Commission, leadership of New Hanover Regional Medical Center and the thousands of people who work at or utilize the county’s largest employer.
An investigation into sexual harassment claims against Columbus County Manager Mike Stephens “revealed no evidence confirming the substance of the complaint,” according to county attorney Amanda Prince.
One day after a divided New Hanover County commission voted in favor of an “intent to sell” resolution for the county-owned hospital, WECT is learning more about behind-the-scenes dealings that were apparently going on for months before the public was made aware of the possible sale.
A $35.9 million contract to build eight new granular activated carbon (GAC) filters at the Sweeney Water Treatment Plant was approved by the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority Board on Wednesday.
Since many of you are trying to understand the potential impacts of a sale without a lot of time before commissioners vote on exploring a sale, WECT has researched some of the potential hospital buyers, along with a few cautionary tales about hospital systems in other North Carolina markets.
Despite public outcry, state lawmakers have failed again and again to pass legislation requiring fingerprint-level background checks for all job candidates applying to work in public schools.
Former New Hanover County Schools employee Nicholas Oates was repeatedly arrested for violent and sexual assaults against women, that much is a matter of public record. Why the details of those arrests have disappeared – and why they didn’t show up on his background check – remains unclear.
InvestigateTV shows issues with undercounting hate crimes, including the FBI failing to meet a federal mandate to report. After months of reporting on this issue, this documentary also highlights results of the investigation, including police departments amending their records.
Justin Brochure's sentence is a stark contrast with other child pornography cases, including the recent sentencing of 27-year-old Brenan West, who will serve at least 10 years in prison, despite facing fewer chargers than Brochure.
By retirement, financial experts say you should have at least eight times your annual salary saved up. NerdWallet explains how to get there, decade-by-decade.
A WECT review of all daycares in our five county viewing area uncovered 23 facilities had administrative actions taken against them by the state in the past three years.
Starting Monday and continuing through Aug. 2, Chemours will be gathering soil samples to test for levels of polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), including GenX.
It does not matter if an employee is convicted of a felony that isn't related to their work. A teacher could traffic heroin, burn down a house, or even commit murder -- if the crime isn't directly related to their job, then it doesn't affect benefits.
With water quality and safety concerns across the country, many families are turning to water filters. But there are counterfeit filters and filters carrying fake certification marks.
Calvin Norton has sued local officials so many times in lawsuits deemed “frivolous” by a judge, that he has effectively had his right to sue in state court revoked. But that hasn’t stopped the Columbus County man.
The FDA has a new strategy for imported food safety, and Congress has increased seafood inspection funds. But the U.S. still lags behind some other countries when it comes to inspections and regulations.
Two Wilmington law firms have announced they are investigating evidence for a possible civil lawsuit against New Hanover County Schools, after a recent scandal involving students being abused by their teacher.
North Carolina’s compost rules are due for a re-adoption and the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality is allowing the public to express their thoughts.
In Oak Island, 2018's record-setting rainfall exposed and exacerbated ongoing issues with the town’s stormwater system that are still in the process of being fixed.
Law enforcement has been investigating claims raised by a former teacher now convicted of sex crimes against students that New Hanover County school administrators knew about claims he’d been sexually inappropriate with his students, and failed to report the allegations.
It appears that many of these bogus applications are not coming from real people, but bad actors in other countries making up fake identities. They are using those fake names to pose as college applicants, hoping to be issued a student email account.
According to the timeline provided by Bowen in a letter to commissioners, she had a series of disturbing interactions involving County Manager Mike Stephens that she says began in January of this year.
If you take a walk around Greenfield Lake, or any spot alligators tend to frequent in the Cape Fear, you may notice many have orange markings on their heads.
The criminal charges against James Bader were leveled in the midst of a bitter child custody battle, and were later dismissed due to lack of evidence to warrant prosecution.
It has been two years since news broke of GenX found in the drinking water. This unknown contaminant sparked fear and outrage across the Cape Fear. Two years, countless meetings, protests, water samples, and lawsuits later, the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority says the water is far safer to drink
A state prison administrator racked up at least 2,800 unaccounted miles during a three-year period, paving the way for potential misuse, a report released by North Carolina State Auditor Beth Wood on Tuesday found.
Want to get top dollar for your home this spring? Or are you looking to buy your first home? NerdWallet gives tips for those on both sides of the equation.
More than two and a half years after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the Yahweh Center Children’s Village is still mired in litigation, and court documents indicate the mismanagement of the nonprofit’s finances may have been going on for decades.
The addition of eight filters to remove man-made chemical compounds in the water at the Sweeney Water Treatment Plant is part of the 10-year capital improvement plan approved by the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority Board on Wednesday.
As part of its strategy to address compounds in surface water and biosolids, state environmental officials are requiring towns in the Cape Fear River Basin to monitor emerging compounds beginning this summer.
Officials are concerned that a man repairing chimneys in and around Wilmington is doing dangerous modifications, and putting people at risk. The handyman posted dozens of videos of his repair work online the president of a nationwide chimney sweep group says the work is so faulty it's dangerous.
Commissioners voted 3-2 at a meeting Monday night to appeal Superior Court Judge Charles Henry’s decision that the previous H2GO Board of Commissioners’ decision to dissolve the authority and convey its assets to the Town of Belville is “unlawful, void and of no effect.”
The deaths of hundreds of children because of abuse or neglect goes unnoticed every year by agencies that protect kids. Congress and a 45-year-old law are largely to blame.
When children die because of abuse or neglect, child protection agencies are often blamed – they are underfunded and overworked. But there are many other culprits who failed children.
Carfax experts say there are potentially more than one million cars on the roads with false odometer readings - meaning their mileage has been rolled back to make the vehicles look like they have less wear and tear.
Documents subpoenaed from Duke Energy shed new light on concerns that acting Columbus County Sheriff Jody Greene may not have lived in the county prior to his election as required by state law. The documents also indicate there has been an address change on the account.
As development continues, the stormwater system will be subjected to greater and greater pressure, and experts say the importance of intentional management will have long-term effects on both the environment and quality of life for city residents.
CFPUA is welcoming Senate Bill 518, a newly introduced piece of legislation that would set new standards for Gen X and other similar compounds in the state’s water supply.
On March 27, CFPUA sampled finished water at three wells — two serving the plant and an emergency well that doesn't provide drinking water — in an effort to monitor potential movement of PFAS compounds that have been detected in and near an aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) well.
The CFPUA board unanimously approved a resolution Wednesday that authorizes Executive Director Jim Flechtner to complete design and permitting for the project as well as obtain bond funding and construction bids.
“It is Mr. Campbell’s position that, due to the N.C. State Board of Elections position that Mr. Green’s [sic] election was never certified, Mr. Green was without legal or actual authority to either demote or terminate Mr. Campbell.”
The Uniform Crime Reporting Act of 1988 requires federal law enforcement agencies to submit information about their cases to a federal database maintained by the FBI; however, those agencies are currently not submitting data, including information about hate crimes.
