The $1 million set aside for towns to test homes for crumbling foundations is the target of a political furor in Washington, D.C. and in Hartford.

The backlash started when Congressman Joe Courtney, who represents Eastern Connecticut where the issue is most prominent, wrote a letter questioning the sweep of $750,000 meant for municipalities to use for testing homes. The money was part of a larger grant from the federal government.

He wrote to the Evonne Klein, Connecticut’s Housing commissioner, “given the urgency of and deep community interest in this issue, a decision of this magnitude should have prompted diligent and proactive communication with legislators, municipalities, and other key stakeholders.”

Municipalities were tasked with applying for the funds. In the end, only Coventry filed an application on behalf of the town and seven other small towns. The application was successful, leading to $250,000 being provided by the state.

The rest of the money was reallocated within the Department of Housing, something both Democrats and Republicans in the Connecticut General Assembly said was an acceptable outcome.

“What happens is if the state doesn’t encumber that, the feds take a look at that and say, well, it looks like you didn’t need that so it looks like you’re going to lose $750,000 in perpetuity and that is money that is spent across the communities in ways that they need,” said Rep. Jeff Currey, (D – East Hartford), who has worked on the crumbling foundations issue.

Republican Kurt Vail said in a statement, “It’s important for our towns to realize that they are still eligible to apply for grant money in the future. The reallocation of money earmarked for those affected by crumbling foundations highlights the fact that all stakeholders must work closely together in order to provide viable solutions to homeowners.

Klein defended the moving of the funds, citing the lack of interest, and said, "This program has a longstanding track record of supporting low and moderate-income families. To that end, it would have been irresponsible for us to keep the funding set-aside any longer when municipal leaders have demonstrated very little interest in the crumbling foundations testing program and it would have jeopardized our future federal funds.”

Lawmakers said they hope to come up with a way in the future to have the funds available for a longer period of time.

South Windsor Republican Tom Delnicki also weighed in.

“The money didn’t really go away. It wasn’t swept away purposely. It’s still in the state’s control and conceptually we could address it again," he said.

President Donald Trump continued to decry the Russia investigation as a “hoax” Wednesday, and said his team has fully cooperated with Mueller’s investigators. “Nobody has ever been more transparent than I have,” Trump claimed during a joint press conference on trade and North Korea with Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Wednesday. Trump also said months of speculation that he would fire special counsel Robert Mueller and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein had proven wrong.

Killingly school officials are looking into opening the high school to neighboring towns without one.

Officials are considering the plan in part due to decreasing enrollment and a desire for better student opportunities. Killingly High School is fit to hold 1,100 students. Currently enrollment sits around 800, according to Superintendent Steven Rioux. He’s seen declining enrollment in grades two through eight.

With more kids, Killingly can maintain the quality programs the school has and possibly add even more.

“If we can get students up to around 900 that offers us to expand our current offerings of foreign language,” Rioux said.

They would also have the capacity to potentially hire more teachers and expand programs, he added.

The school is equipped with a Regional Agricultural Education Center — there are sheep and goats on campus — a Head Start program that has students working hands-on with pre-schoolers, and technology classes with 3D printers, Rioux explained.

“There are just opportunities here to allow other school districts to send students to Killingly High School at no additional cost to them,” Rioux said.

Towns would pay for tuition and transportation, according to Rioux who said that many districts already provide students transportation to the agriculture program at Killingly.

Killingly High School already is a designated school for Brooklyn students. About 120 currently attend, Rioux said.

“They probably just would have to get more teachers to handle to volume of students, but I think it’s a good idea,” Lori Gardiner said. She has two daughters in Killingly schools. One is at the high school, the other, Katelyn, is in the seventh grade.

Katelyn said the potential move could help out other districts plus bring her friends to her school.

“It would be nice to see them in school instead of just out of school,” Gardiner said.

Rioux said he’s had three superintendents reach out to him to explore this over the last year. The next step is reaching out to the districts in the area to get the conversation started. It will be a lengthy process, he added.

A simple night out at a softball game turned into a major event for two teenagers from Wallingford.

In March Jordan Davis and Tre Childers were involved in a horrible car crash. Now the community is rallying around them during their long recovery.

“Nothing but God’s grace and mercy,” said Ernest Childers.

Ernest Childers counts his blessings watching his son and his son’s friend out and about after surviving a violent car crash last month in Wallingford.

“I’m great. I’m doing really good,” said Jordan Davis.

Jordan and Tre were in the car together when police say the Toyota Scion lost control and hit a tree on Highland Avenue near Route 68.

The violent impact sent the two Sheehan High School students to the hospital with serious injuries.

“It’s really heartbreaking to hear something like this happen,” said Sheehan junior Riley Wolcheski.

That’s why students decided to help the pair. At Wednesday’s Sheehan softball game against Lyman Hall, fundraisers collected money for the boys’ medical bills.

“Anything that happens, we’re really close. So we just wanted to do something really nice for the families and all that because we know they’re going through a really hard time right now,” said Sheehan senior Sam Iannone.

Now with both Tre and Jordan out of the hospital, the boys and their families credit the community for helping with the recovery, which still has a ways to go.

“Really thankful for all of the support that everyone came out, visited in the hospital and everything,” said Tre.

“It means a lot and all of the support, it’s absolutely amazing,” said Jordan.

Jordan hopes to be back in school next week, while for Tre it’s going to take a little bit longer.

We reached out to police for an update on the investigation but have not yet heard back.

Do you think you’re a safe driver? Connecticut drivers are the worst in the country, according to a new report.

The 2018 Safe Driving Report released by EverQuote Wednesday ranks Connecticut drivers as the worst in the country, followed by our neighbors in Rhode Island. 

The report says drivers in the Northeast had the lowest safe-driving ratings overall, being most-likely to engage in unsafe habits like speeding, aggressively accelerating, or using the phone while driving. The Midwest boasts the safest drivers.

Connecticut didn’t do much better in last year’s study – in 2017, Connecticut ranked 49th.

EverQuote determined the scores by analyzing 781 million miles worth of driving data from 2017 collected by their EverDrive app. The EverDrive app collects data from different parts of the car, including the GPS, accelerometer, device screen on/off and gyroscope.

While Connecticut has a distracted driver law that makes it illegal to use handheld devices while driving, the report says Connecticut drivers use their phones on 34 percent of trips.

The report also found that Connecticut drivers sped on 56 percent of trips, aggressively accelerated on 17 percent, brake hard on 30 percent, and turn hard on 12 percent.

On average across the country, drivers sped during 38 percent of trips, used their phones on 37 percent of trips, braked hard on 23 percent, aggressively accelerated on 14 percent, and turned hard on 11 percent.

The report also noted that despite laws against it, distracted driving has had a significant impact on insurance rates across the country.

Rates will be going up for Eversource customers, according to the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority, but the rate increases will be smaller than the amount the utility company was asking for. 

The Public Utilities Regulatory Authority, or PURA, issued a ruling Wednesday on the rate increase application Eversource filed on Nov. 22 and said the average residential customer will pay an additional $5.40 per month in the first rate year. 

That rate is based on a customer using 700 kWh. It amounts to an increase of 3.8 percent in the first year, followed by increases of .78 percent in the second year and .73 percent the following year. 

Eversource wanted to increase the average residential customer’s bill around $13.7 a month, or 9.8 percent, according to PURA, but its ruling allows a 1.6 percent increase in the first rate year and a monthly residential charge reduced to $10.80 from the current $19.25. 

Philadelphia police are investigating the “suspicious” death of the father of former Trump administration national security adviser H.R. McMaster.

Herbert McMaster died Friday at the Cathedral Village home on the 600 block of Cathedral Road in the Roxborough section of Philadelphia. He was 84.

Law enforcement sources told NBC10 McMaster's death is being investigated as suspicious due to allegations of neglect and dereliction of duty.

According to the sources, McMaster fell and hit his head and was placed in a recliner but was not treated or monitored. He later died from blunt impact to the head and his death was ruled accidental by the medical examiner.

Investigators are looking into whether workers at the home falsified paperwork and gave the McMaster family misleading information, according to sources.

Philadelphia police, the attorney general's office, district attorney's office and the Health Department are all investigating.

NBC10 reached out to Cathedral Village for comment but has not yet recieved a response.

The official announcement nearly six decades in the making took place Thursday morning as Miguel Diaz-Canel was named the new president of Cuba — the first person not named Castro to hold that title since 1959.

Diaz-Canel was the country’s first vice president and a long-time protégé of Raul Castro, the leader of the communist nation since 2008, when he took over from the longtime leader, his brother Fidel. The 57-year-old was hand picked in an effort to ensure the continuation of one of the globe’s last surviving communist states.

The presidential result were essentially clear since Cuba’s national assembly approves all executive branch proposals by margins of 95 percent or higher. 603 of the assembly's 604 members voted for Diaz-Canel, with the new president being the only person not to cast a vote.

Diaz-Canel is known to Cubans in the central province of Villa Clara as a modest-living, hard-working member of the party that has been in control for generations. He is an electrical engineer who previously served as the minister of education.

“They’ve put in a nondescript civilian who doesn’t belong to the military, which is very important, and doesn’t have any control over any of the businesses,” said Jim Cason, a former U.S. diplomat to Cuba. “He’s an apparatchik so I think it’s a succession.”

Raul Castro will still be the most powerful person in Cuba for the time being as he will continue to be the leader of the Communist Party on the island.

“You can look at it as a generational transition, but it’s not a real transition to something new and different in Cuba,” Cason said.

Some of the issues Diaz-Canel will face include a stagnant economy at home, with growing disenchantment on the island with slow market reforms Castro introduced in 2011.

The country is also receiving fewer dollars from American tourists, as President Donald Trump has reinforced some restrictions eased under the administration of former President Barack Obama.

A 44-year-old motorcyclist was killed in a crash on Highland Street in Manchester Saturday, according to Manchester police.

Police have identified the man as Thomas Tortora, of Manchester, and said he was speeding down Highland Street when he hit a guardrail and was thrown from the vehicle.

Medics pronounced Tortora dead at the scene.

The investigation is underway, but police said the preliminary information indicates that speed was a factor in the crash.

The Manchester Police Department Traffic Unit and the Mero Traffic Accident Reconstruction Team are investigating. Anyone who witnessed the crash should call Officer Augusto at 860-645-5560.

State police have canceled a Silver Alert for a missing man after a search in the area of Witch Meadow in Salem.

State police had been searching for 35-year-old Thaxton Kaye, who had been missing since Tuesday.

The alert was canceled just before 10:30 a.m.

Michael Cohen, the embattled lawyer for President Donald Trump, has dropped his lawsuit against BuzzFeed over the media organization's publication of a dossier that contained lurid allegations about the president, NBC News reported.

Cohen, who is currently dealing with other legal issues after the FBI raided his office and hotel room last week, has denied parts of the dossier, a 35-page document compiled by former British intelligence agent Christopher Steele, in which he is mentioned. Cohen filed the lawsuit in January in New York, claiming that the "entirely and totally false" allegations in the Dossier had damaged his reputation.

In a court document filed on Wednesday, Cohen's lawyer, David Schwartz, served notice that the lawsuit against BuzzFeed and four of its employees had been dropped.

BuzzFeed published the dossier in January 2017 and noted at the time that the allegations in the document had not been substantiated. Still, the publication of the dossier stirred controversy and helped ignite speculation on Trump's connections to Russia. In response to Cohen's decision Wednesday, Buzzfeed communications director Matt Mittenthal said that it "suggests that Donald Trump's personal lawyer no longer thinks an attack on the free press is worth his time."

Police have responded to Wyllys and Groton streets in Hartford, near Hartford Hospital, after a car hit a man and the roads will be closed through the morning rush hour, according to police.

The man has been transported to the hospital. No information has been released on his condition.

Clothes and a backpack are in the middle of the street and a driver is cooperating with police. 

Police warn drivers to expect delays on Columbus Boulevard.

Check back for updates.

The New York Yankees are going to bat for a 10-year-old girl who shared a heartbreaking story on social media about years of bullying she’s endured at her Pennsylvania school.

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The New York Post reports 10-year-old Cassidy Slater posted a video on Facebook detailing the traumatizing stories of bullying she has gone through. In the video, the Scranton fourth-grader holds up sheets of paper with the harrowing messages of abuse written on them.

One sheet detailed how a group of kids came up to her at recess, hitting her, kicking her, pulling her hair, stepping on her and even spitting on her.

The video, along with her Facebook page, was taken down by the social media company because she is not 13 and doesn't meet the site's age requirement, according to her mother, Jenn Slater, who reposted the video on her own page. Slater also alleged in her post that her daughter was initially threatened by the school's principal to remove the video before the school district contacted Facebook to report Cassidy's page.

Slater pleaded with the Facebook community to share her daughter's story and help her "put a smile back on her face." The video racked up thousands of views and caught the attention of the New York Yankees.

The team’s official Twitter account shared Cassidy's video Wednesday along with a video of their own, mimicking the style of hers. The two-and-a-half minute video features 23 Yankees players and manager Aaron Boone holding up written messages of support.

"Hey Cassidy - we saw the video you made and from all of us here at the New York Yankees, we want you to know that you are not alone. We have your back!" the team wrote.

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It begins with starting pitcher CC Sabathia holding up a sign reading "My teammates and I wanted you to know that we care about you."

About 45 seconds into the video, first baseman Greg Bird holds up a sign that reads, "We may be older than you. We may be taller than you.” Then relief pitcher Dellin Betances finishes the message saying, “But we want you to know that we look up to you."

The video ends with Boone inviting Cassidy to meet the team.

Slater thanked the Yankees in a Facebook post, writing that she has "much respect" for the team and their gesture made her cry. 

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An E. coli outbreak that health investigators believe is linked to chopped romaine lettuce has expanded, with 53 cases now reported in 16 states, and nearly three dozen hospitalized, at least five of whom suffered kidney failure.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention added 18 more cases to the total in its update Wednesday, a marked increase since the prior update less than a week earlier, and said five more states reported sick people: Alaska, Arizona, California, Louisiana and Montana.

Officials believe the contaminated lettuce was grown in Yuma, Arizona, though they have not identified a grower, supplier, distributor or brand.

Cases have been reported across the tri-state area, the most in New Jersey (7); New York and Connecticut have three cases each. Pennsylvania has the most (12) in this outbreak, followed by Idaho (10). Check the CDC's case count map.

The CDC added nine more hospitalizations to its count from last week, bringing the total in this outbreak to 31. Five of those cases involved a type of kidney failure called hemolytic uremic syndrome, a serious condition caused by the abnormal destruction of red blood cells. No one has died.

Consumers who have bought romaine lettuce - including salads and salad mixes containing romaine lettuce - are advised to throw it away, even if some of it was eaten and no one has gotten sick.

Before purchasing romaine lettuce at a grocery store or eating it at a restaurant, confirm with the store or restaurant that it is not chopped romaine lettuce from the Yuma, Arizona, growing region. If you cannot confirm the source of the romaine lettuce, do not buy it or eat it.

Restaurants and retailers are advised to take similar precautions.

Health officials say the outbreak started in late March. Symptoms vary and can range from mild to severe diarrhea to nausea and vomiting. Usually, there is little or no fever present. E. coli can spread from an infected person, contaminated food or water, or by touching contaminated surfaces, the CDC says. It is very contagious and can spread quickly in places such as daycare centers and cruise ships.

“Individuals with this infection usually get better within about 5 to 7 days, however, some illnesses can be serious or even life-threatening,” New Jersey Health Commissioner Dr. Shereef Elnahal said in a statement last week. “Anyone experiencing symptoms of this illness should see a healthcare provider.”

Hartford Public High School was evacuated after two fires broke out in the building at 55 Forest Street Thursday morning.

The fires started in the boys' bathrooms on the second and third floor, according to fire officials.  The damage was contained to those bathrooms, they said.

Students were dismissed for the day to allow the building to ventilate.  School will be in session on Friday, according to Hartford Public Schools officials.

Both Hartford fire officials and Hartford police are investigating the cause of the fires.

The superintendent of schools in Montville and the principal and assistant principal of Montville High School have been placed on leave after they were arrested, accused of failing to report an alleged fight club in a classroom it in October and the board of education plans to hold a special meeting tonight.

State police said their investigation started on Dec. 14 after Montville police initiated an investigation and contacted Department of Children and Families about a 15-year-old boy having symptoms of being traumatized.

The teen told the DCF social worker that three other students at Montville High School had robbed and beaten him during school, according to police.

As police investigated they viewed video, which they said showed a teacher present, encouraging the fighting and doing nothing to stop it. 

Former Montville High School substitute Ryan Fish, 23, of Bozrah, had been fired in October after videos of fighting in his classroom surfaced, according to state police.

Fish, who was arrested last week, said he did not realize what was happening at the time and issued an apology. 

He has been charged with two counts of risk of injury to a child, four counts of second-degree reckless endangerment and breach of peace. 

Officials said earlier this week that they would be deciding whether to charge school officials with failing to report the alleged “fight club” and charges have now been filed against Supt. Brian Levesque, 45, of Brooklyn, Principal Jeffrey Theodoss, 64, of Shrewsbury, Massachusetts and assistant principal Tatiana Patten, 59, of Niantic.

The arrest warrant applications released on Thursday include details of interviews state police conducted with them in December and January.

Supt. Levesque told police he had received a video on Oct. 5 from a board of education member and it showed two boys fighting in a class and an adult wearing a school ID who was not intervening, according to the arrest warrant application. He then forwarded it to Principal Theodoss.

Theodoss told police that he was not at the school on Oct. 5, but received an email from Levesque over the weekend about two boys fighting in class. The superintendent also sent over video and asked if it was recorded at Montville High School, according to state police. Theodoss said he then forwarded the video to Patten, who confirmed the video had been taken at the school, according to state police.

When police spoke with Patten, she initially said she was made aware of a fight club at the school on Oct. 10, according to state police.

But during a later interview, she said a guidance counselor had gone to her on Oct. 6 and said a parent wanted the school to be aware of a slap boxing incident in a classroom and that Fish might be involved, but there was no evidence at the time, according to state police.

Two days later, she received an email from Theodoss asking that she check it out and she confirmed the video had been taken at Montville High School.

Theodoss told police that he had asked Levesque if police should be notified and he said no. Patten told police that Theodoss instructed her not to say anything to anyone about the incident.

When police spoke with Levesque, he said Fish had been terminated and the students involved in the fighting were disciplined and he was done with the issue and did not contact police, according to the arrest warrant application.

The board of education in Montville will hold a special meeting at the Montville High School Library and Media Center at 5 p.m. and there will be an executive session to discuss a "personnel matter related to the incident at the high school."

Laurie Pallin, the assistant superintendent of Montville Public Schools, released the following statement on Thursday:

“It is with a heavy heart that, as assistant superintendent, I try to make sense of a very unfortunate situation.

“Today is a sad day for our district. Three well-known and highly respected members of the Montville Public Schools administrative team turned themselves in to state police Troop E this morning. These people are not only my colleagues, but they are my friends. As of today, the superintendent, the high school principal, and the assistant principal have been placed on leave pending the outcome of our internal investigation as well as the ongoing state police investigation.

“There is much that, legally, I cannot address, and, due to the fact that I was not part of this investigation, I do not have many of the details.

“What I can tell you is that we cannot and will not let this current situation define who and what we are at Montville Public Schools.

“I would like to take this opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to our students and our families. The incident that occurred in a high school classroom was unacceptable but it is an exception to how Montville Public Schools operate- it does not illustrate the priority we place on student safety. It is our fundamental belief that every student in every one of our schools shall have a rich learning environment that is safe and nurturing.

“We are exceptionally proud of our schools, our students, our educators, and our community. Our students and staff deserve to be recognized for all that makes our school community such a special place.”

Levesque, Theodoss and Patten are due in court on May 3.

There was no answer at the homes of Levesque or Patten.

Interstate 84 was closed at exit 16 in Southbury after a construction company hit a gas line, but it has reopened, according to state police. 

They said the company hit the gas line on Route 188, at Judd Road, and traffic was diverted off exit 15 and back on at Exit 17. 

New Britain police have located a 7-year-old boy and his mother who were reported missing on Monday safe in Pennsylvania.

Silver Alerts were issued for 7-year-old Jensen Colon and his mother, 36-year-old Denisse Colon Monday night.

According to New Britain police, Denisse picked her son up from school Monday accompanied by an unknown man, who identified himself as Luis Angel Gonzalez Martinez. Investigators believe Denisse recently met him online.

Denisse told school officials that she and her son were moving to Pennsylvania, but her family was not aware of this. The alerts were issued when no one heard from Denisse or her son.

Police said Thursday that they located the pair in Pennsylvania and that they are safe. More details were not available.