Police are investigating after a child shot himself in the hand Thursday afternoon in Hartford. 

According to police, a four-year-old child went into an older sibling's room on Van Block Avenue, found a small handgun, and shot himself.

The child is being treated at Connecticut Children's Medical Center where he is listed in stable condition, police said. 

Hartford Police Major Crimes Division Detectives are investigating and everyone involved is cooperating, according to police.

With Black Friday sales beginning on Thanksgiving for many retailers, Walmart and Target are getting the ball rolling with a variety of new events that experts say are intended to draw online shoppers and seize upon the first holiday season without a beloved children's toy haven.

Walmart recently announced its first-ever “Light Up Black Friday” parties in stores at 4 p.m. on Thanksgiving. Walmart also added 30 percent more toys to its brick-and-mortar locations.

The retail giant is hoping to make holiday shopping as convenient as possible for this generation of customers, writing in a press release that with its early sales, festive events and color-coded store maps, "it’s never been easier for customers to shop – and save – at Walmart on Black Friday.”

And Target vowed to organize in-store experiences around the newly added quarter-million square feet of space dedicated to toys across more than 500 stores, according to CNBC. The retailer also promised to host 25,000 hours of in-store events later in the year, with many events allowing children to play with new toys.

Target's executive vice president said that for customers with a top priority of "finding the perfect toy to wrap up and give their little loved ones this holiday, ... We want them to know that Target is here to help."

Both retailers are even deploying staff members throughout the stores to help shoppers beat long lines and check out the customers with mobile devices.

With the increased number of in-store holiday events, some experts say Walmart and Target are trying to combat the growing influence Amazon and other online retailers have over consumers. And playing an important role in their competition with online retailers is their new focus on toy sales during the first holiday season after the closure of Toys “R” Us.

Sridhar Balasubramanian, a professor of marketing and Roy and Alice H. Richards Bicentennial Distinguished Scholar at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, said the extensive marketing campaigns are in response to how much Black Friday shopping has changed due to the growing popularity of online retailers.

Crowds have traditionally flocked to stores on Black Friday, waiting in line for hours to get access to long-awaited holiday deals, Balasubramanian said. But Amazon, "the 800 lb. gorilla of the online market," Balasubramanian added, has made those deals available all the time.

“With online [shopping], you lose the sense of shopping at a particular time and at a particular place,” Balasubramanian said. “That convenience is something that traditional retailers have really struggled to recreate.”

In Deloitte’s “2018 Retail Holiday Survey,” 66 percent of customers said they would go shopping online versus 56 percent who said they’d shop in-store. Respondents ranked convenience, free-shipping and time saving as the top three reasons to shop online.

Katrijn Gielens, an associate professor of marketing and Sarah Graham Kenan Scholar at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, said online shopping has made it increasingly difficult to attract customers into stores. For example, it is easier to avoid the impulse buying of additional items while shopping online.

Gielens added that stores have had to turn to strategies like in-store events to court customers, and targeting toys allow the whole family to get involved in the shopping process.

“Once they’re inside the store you can tempt them with other things and that is the ultimate goal to a certain extent,” Gielens said. “If there’s one type of consumer that is easily tempted, it’s probably children. Ultimately, the parents will pay for it, but it’s also hard to say no to children.”

Balasubramanian said that because children have a different perspective of shopping than adults do and that the in-store experience is more meaningful to young children than online shopping is.

“With children, it is often a ritual to go to the store with their parents and have all the excitement around them — to touch, feel, experience the toys — and then to get something right then and there,” Balasubramanian said. “That makes it fun for the family.”

Balasubramanian said that Walmart and Target’s event-heavy, child-friendly marketing strategies also seem to be an “experiment” to see if they can capture Toys “R” Us’ former customers year-round and increase their presence in the toy market.

“I would certainly expect that some of the traffic from Toys 'R' Us is going to go definitely toward Walmart and Target,” Balasubramanian said. “But it’s not clear to me that given how shopping habits have been shifting that Walmart and Target are necessarily going to capture all of the Toys 'R' Us’ traditional customers.”

Balasubramanian noted that Toys “R” Us went out of business because its toy-only model could not compete with Amazon and other online retailers, who took over “a big chunk of that toy market.” Balasubramanian said, however, that because Walmart and Target’s offerings cover a wide range of categories, their current business “will remain robust” even if they can’t increase their toy sales.

Although Gielens thinks the events could bolster the number of in-store visits on Black Friday, she said “the jury is still out” on whether the strategy would be useful in the long-run. She warned that retailers should not market the events and toys to the point that consumers are distracted from looking through the rest of the store.

Gielens also noted that because these events promote products at lower prices, the stores’ profits might be affected. Gielens acknowledged that the retailers are being forced to take the risk to beat their competitors, but she advised that the companies should organize the events in such a way that they don’t lose money.

“Ultimately, what are [the stores] all trying to achieve: that they don’t lose market share and that they don’t lose their consumer to their competitors,” Gielens said. “But it can accommodate huge costs in that it’s simply not profitable.”

Manchester police are investigating after a person crashed a car into a building on Main Street before fleeing on foot Thursday night. 

Police said the crash took place around 10 p.m. in the area of 145 Main Street.

There was some damage to the building, but it was not structurally compromised, according to authorities. 

Witnesses reported the driver fled on foot before police arrived at the scene. 

The investigation is ongoing. Police ask anyone with information to contact Manchester police at 860-645-5500. 

Wind and rain arrived in Northern California this week, providing welcome relief to a region buffeted by the state's deadliest wildfire and then besieged for nearly two weeks by a dome of thick, noxious smoke, NBC News reported.

Forecasters expected 25 mph winds and rain to blow away the worst of the fallout by Friday. While that would improve air quality, the cleaner air does not mean that the health risks are over. Doctors in Berkeley said that they continued to see a slight uptick this week in emergency room visits, particularly from asthmatics, the elderly and children — groups most vulnerable to polluted air.

Longer-term impacts of such exposure, meanwhile, are little understood. Few studies have been conducted to track the health of people months, and years, after they have been exposed to high concentrations of “particulate” pollution. The emissions are similar to the toxic particles released with the burning of fossil fuels. But fire fumes could pose an additional risk, because they include chemicals released when homes and cars — and their attendant insulation, plastics and metals — burn.

Researchers at the University of California, Davis, began last year to recognize how little was known about longer-term impacts of smoke from wildfires. So they launched studies into the impacts of the 2017 Tubbs Fire in Sonoma County and other giant wine country blazes that killed more than 40 people. Scientists are also trying to better understand exactly what is in the smoke that comes from fires in the so-called "wildland-urban interface." When cars and homes burn, along with trees, it means the release of chemicals that went into paint, plastics, insulation and metal.

US submarine veterans cooked up a massive Thanksgiving meal Thursday to share with the community.

They’ve been hosting the dinner for nearly two decades to ensure everyone on the Naval Submarine Base and nearby can celebrate the holiday properly.

Veterans cooked up 180 turkeys for the annual tradition, which guarantees that sailors and the rest of the community can have a meal cooked with love on Thanksgiving.

“We give them a place to feel like home,” said retired US Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Jeff Walsh.

They work to ensure no sailor has to go without a hot meal.

“Some of these young sailors, it’s their firs time away from home,” Walsh added. “We give them a place to feel like home.”

All day service members and others from the community made their way in to grab a bite, have a drink and watch the game surrounded by love, enjoying a home-cooked meal. The endeavor required 700 pounds of potatoes, 200 pounds of butternut squash, 12 cases of green beans and 12 cases of cranberry sauce.

For Navy men and women who know what it’s like to answer the call of service away from home, the chance to sit at this kind of holiday table is a special one.

“We remember what it was like when we were young sailors. I remember being in Great Lakes, Ill. for my first Thanksgiving in the Navy… it was terrible. We sat in the galley and ate bad food,” said Navy veteran Kevin Crisman.

The group also delivers food to those who can’t make it to them. They serve a total of around 900 meals.

“The submarine force is a huge family. It’s been our family away from home,” said Justin Liedel, Assistant Engineer, USS San Juan.

The generosity doesn’t end with the meal. Any food leftover from the event is donated to other charitable organizations so that the spirit of Thanksgiving can stretch even further.

Watertown police have arrested a Litchfield man accused in a violent home invasion.

Police said 30-year-old Adam Benet broke into a home on Cherry Avenue around 3 a.m. Thursday and attacked a person inside, kicking and punching the victim.

When officers responded to investigate, they found fence leading to the home’s backyard broken and the locked rear glass door broken.

Benet was charged with home invasion, first-degree burglary, third-degree assault, breach of peace and criminal mischief. He was released on a $50,000 bond and is due in court on Dec. 4.

Police said this was a targeted attack and there is no threat to the neighborhood.

Hundreds of volunteers filled a New Britain Veterans of Foreign Wars post on Thanksgiving night to wrap holiday gifts for troops stationed overseas as part of a “Giving Back to Our Troops” night hosted by the Berlin-based non-profit Hero Boxes.

Active-duty soldiers were on hand passing out 400 care packages filled with some creature comforts like cookies and candy, and essentials like fresh socks, foot powder, and wet wipes that can be sorely needed at remote desert stations in Afghanistan and Iraq. Cotton buds commonly used to clean rifles are packed as well.

“Nothing like this is given to them. If they want extra treats and things like that, they have to purchase them,” said Karen Cote, who founded Hero Boxes in 2015 after her son Nicholas was deployed to Kuwait. She sent her first hundred Hero Boxes to his company. Since then, her small army of volunteers has assembled boxes every Thanksgiving.

Nicholas Cote returned home in the spring. Along with a dozen other veterans, he sealed and labeled the packages his friends were once so grateful to accept.

“When you’re that far away, sometimes you feel forgotten. Sometimes you feel like you don’t matter,” he said.

Veteran Paul Trigila brought six members of his family from Newington to help, teaching his grandson Ryan it can be better to give than receive. His favorite part?

“Thinking that the troops will open this and be like oh my gosh,” the nine year-old said.

With so many hands making quick work of the packaging, the boxes were assembled at relatively little cost, but shipping them is an entirely different matter. The organization expects to pay at least $12,000 to get the boxes to the men and women they are meant for.

With enough donated funds and man-power, the organization hopes the Hero Boxes will arrive just in time for the holidays. Drawings, cards, and pictures of the families that packed them will be sitting right at the top of each one as reminders of their gratitude.

Hero Boxes has a wish list of items for purchase and they accept financial donations on their website HeroBoxes.org

A Hamden man is accused of stabbing his father-in-law during an argument on Thanksgiving, according to Hamden police.

Police arrested 23-year-old Rasheen Johnson Thursday.

Officers were called to a home on Whitney Avenue for a report of a domestic incident around 9:30 p.m. According to police, the investigation determined that Johnson and his father in law, 37-year-old Kareem Henderson, were arguing when things got physical and Johnson stabbed Henderson in the "left armpit area."

Henderson was taken to Yale-New Haven Hospital for treatment. He was charged with breach of peace. He is due in court Friday.

Johnson was arrested and charged with second-degree assault and breach of peace. He was released on a $10,000 bond and is due in court on Friday.

Interstate 91 southbound is closed in Enfield due to a crash, according to Connecticut State Police.

Police confirmed the crash happened in the area of exit 49. Drivers should find alternate routes.

More information was not immediately available.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

From the malls to the big box stores, even up against the bitter cold, Black Friday shoppers turned out for the deals in droves.

Westfarms started its Black Friday shopping Thursday night, with nearly a dozen stores staying open throughout the night. A lot of the shoppers told NBC Connecticut they weren’t going to let a little sleep get in their way of cashing in.

Some of them started even before all the doors had opened at Westfarms.

“We started at 9 p.m.,” said North Haven resident Amanda Montano.

She said she’s been making the rounds across Connecticut.

“We started at Clinton Crossing then we went to Westbrook outlets and then we went to Walmart,” she said.

These shoppers were all in search of Black Friday steals and deals.

“We did turkey in New York then we drove home and now we’re here,” said Francoise Leger of Hartford.

For Leger, shopping is also an excuse for quality time with her girls.

“They are visiting from college we do this every year. It’s a little tradition.”

Karen Ross waited in line for Legos.

“Got to make sure that we get everything so this makes me happy that we got this. I feel like I’m already now for Christmas and we got that checked off the list right there,” Ross said.

Matthew Quintana put on a show as his mom and others braving the bitter cold lines at Best Buy.

“Yea I do it for fun it’s going on Snapchat,” he explained of his dancing, which entertained the shoppers.

A discount dance to keep warm—while others opted for lots of layers.

“I have wool socks knee-high socks, boots my jacket, another jacket or a sweatshirt or long sleeve shirt gloves to hats and a hood,” said Bristol resident Alana Levesque.

Westfarms is open until 10 p.m. Friday. Even if you’re not big Black Friday shopper those deep discounts are expected to continue until Monday.

Connecticut State Police are trying to identify a man who used someone else’s name during an arrest in October.

Police said the man pictured above used someone else’s identity when he was arrested in Norwich. He is believed to be living somewhere in New London County.

Anyone who recognizes the suspect is asked to contact Trooper Brennan at 860-848-6500 ext. 5126.

Five dogs were killed in a kennel fire in Voluntown Friday.

Quinebaug Valley Emergency Communications confirm crews were dispatched to a fire at kennel on Hodge Pond Road at 1:30 a.m. Cathy Proulx, whose son owns the kennel, said emergency crews did everything they could, but five dogs housed in the kennel were killed.

“The fire department came out right away, the paramedics came they did everything they possibly could but we did end up losing all five puppies," Proulx said.

Proulx said her son raises dogs as hunting dogs and travels around the world with them.

“It was heartbreaking to lose these pups,” Proulx said.

She added that while their loss is horrible, they've been comforted by an outpouring of support from the hunting community.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

NBC Connecticut is Connecting You to Joy with Winterfest Hartford!

From November 23 through January 6, Hartford’s Bushnell Park is alive with winter activities.

There is free fun for the entire family. Enjoy outdoor ice skating, free of charge from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Skate rentals are free.

The historic Bushnell Park Carousel is open for $1 carousel rides on weekends. Santa’s Workshop is open on Saturdays and Sundays through December 23. You can also sign up for a free skating lesson.

On Wednesday, December 12, join us for NBC Connecticut and Telemundo Connecticut Day. Together with Comcast, we’ll be at Bushnell Park from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Come meet the team, get a goodie and even get an up close and personal look at Snow Monster.

You will also be able to check out gingerbread houses and take part holiday sing-alongs.

Click here for more information and a complete calendar of events during Winterfest.

Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry was involved in a multi-car crash Friday right before 9 a.m. on Highway 24 in Oakland, according to the Oakland California Highway Patrol.

According to CHP, Curry was hit twice when a car spun out and hit him, and then another car rear-ended his black Porsche Panamera. His car was damaged, but Curry, wearing a black hoodie, appears to be doing alright. CHP said the rainy weather in the Bay Area may be to blame for the crash.

A source from the Warriors organization confirmed Curry was involved in a "minor accident" and that he "appears to be OK."

According to NBC Sports Bay Area, Curry arrived at shootaround shortly after the crash to receive treatment for his groin injury.

The two-time MVP is still recovering from a strained groin and has not played since Nov. 8. Curry is averaging 29.5 points and 6.1 assists per game this season.

Stay tuned for more updates on this breaking news story.

Steph is okay and he arrived at shootaround. https://t.co/WkAVKk6x9o

— Kerith Burke (@KerithBurke) November 23, 2018

Breaking: @warriors star @StephenCurry30 got into a car accident this AM along Hwy 24 in Oakland. The good news: he’s ok. The bad news: his Porche isn’t. Just spoke to his dad who is here too. Tells me Steph is doing fine. Curry is still recovering from a groin injury pic.twitter.com/m58eZqjKyD

— Melissa Colorado (@melissacolorado) November 23, 2018

A dozen people were forced from their homes into bitterly cold temperatures Friday when fire broke out at a multi-family house in Waterbury.

Fire crews responded to the blaze at 150 Waterville St. around 1:30 p.m. Everyone escaped safely, but the damage is extensive.

The smoke from the fire was so heavy it could be seen in the sky miles away.

The exact cause of the fire is under investigation. The initial call came in as a heater fire.

Temperatures were below freezing in Waterbury Friday afternoon. Fire officials said four engines, two trucks and a total of 35 firefighters all responded.

Tamara Lanier-Hanna lives in the home and had to rush out when the alarm went off.

“When I heard someone yell it’s a real fire everybody get out the house, that’s when I said OK it’s time to go because I live on the third floor so I didn’t know what side of the house the fire was on so we just ran out the back and got out safely," Lanier-Hanna said.

The American Red Cross has been called in to assist the displaced families.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

The United States is already feeling the heat from climate change — and the damage could cost hundreds of billions of dollars by the end of the century if more preventive measures aren't taken now, a new federal report has found.

Climate change has worldwide implications as well, which also means more trouble for the United States, NBC News reported. And it warns of a "cascading effect" that will alter lives and economies across the country, causing fuel shortages and increased power outages.

"The impacts of climate change beyond our borders are expected to increasingly affect our trade and economy, including import and export prices and U.S. businesses with overseas operations and supply chains," it says. "With continued growth in emissions at historic rates, annual losses in some economic sectors are projected to reach hundreds of billions of dollars by the end of the century — more than the current gross domestic product (GDP) of many U.S. states."

"Extreme weather and climate-related impacts on one system can result in increased risks or failures in other critical systems, including water resources, food production and distribution, energy and transportation, public health, international trade, and national security," the report says.

Make sure to tie down those holiday decorations rain and strong gusty winds will overspread the state later this evening. 

Temperatures for much of Connecticut will rise into the 40s and even 50s today. However valley locations of Hartford and Litchfield county may struggle to see temperatures rise out of the 30s.

Meteorologist Josh Cingranelli says these valley locations could experience a very brief period of freezing drizzle at the onset of the storm before switching over the plain rain. This could lead to a few icy patches for a brief period.

Look for moisture to develop between 6 and 8 this evening. 

The heaviest precipitation will occur during the late night hours after midnight. The wind will also become quite gusty from late tonight through Sunday morning.

Rainfall totals of 1 to 2 inches should be expected.  

Winds will gust up to 30 mph inland with gusts up to 40 mph along the shoreline.

Showers will linger early Sunday morning before clearing skies by the late morning and afternoon.

Another round of rain will move through the state on Monday which could bring with it another inch or so of rain.

Stay with the NBC Connecticut First Alert weather team for continuous updates. 

As far as Craig Bryden knows, he’s the only deaf private quarterback coach in the country. He’s also never played football.

“I always wanted to play football, but my parents wouldn’t let me because I was deaf,” Bryden said at a Saturday coaching session at Bloomfield High School.

Instead, he played flag football and the video game “Madden”. That was until he had a little boy of his own.

“My son told me he wanted to be a quarterback, so I started looking for quarterback coaches for him,” said Bryden.

He took his son, Daron, to different coaches and camps, all while watching and learning from the sidelines. That’s where one coach suggested Bryden might try his hand at coaching, too.

“So at first I hesitate, I wasn’t sure if I should,” said Bryden. “And I’m like, okay I give it a shot.”

Now, four years later, Bryden has trained more than 250 players across Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and New York. Still, it’s watching his first student that never gets old and Bryden hopes his son can catch the attention of a Division I program.

“The last two, three years I’ve sent some of my students to Division I colleges,” said Bryden. “I know that I’m doing something right.”

So, there are certainly things that stand out about Bryden, but he doesn’t want to be one of a kind.

“Hopefully I can influence some deaf coaches that they can coach hearing kids,” said Bryden. “If you can see me, what I’m doing, they can do the same thing.”

Fire officials are investigating after a fire at a manufacturing plant in North Haven on Saturday morning.

Officials said the fire broke out at the Parker-Hannifin Corporation on Defco Park Road around 3:10 a.m.

Nobody was in the building at the time of the fire.

Investigators are working to determine what caused the fire.

The holiday season is officially underway in Middletown.

On Friday, local choir kids joyfully sang favorite songs for a delighted crowd. It was all part of the city’s 33rd annual Holiday on Main Street.

“It’s good to get out with the kids. Just do something, see people,” said Amy Feldhouse, of Middletown.

There was plenty to do.

People warmed up with hot drinks or food, took a quick wagon ride or got some time with the big guy himself.

“We come every year. This is unbelievable. We love it. It’s a good family event that we look forward to every year,” added Thomas Nemecek, of Middletown.

Nemecek and his family were among the thousands who checked out the sights and sounds.

And for the Nemecek’s, one of the big draws was the show in the sky.

“This year I like it because of how they did the fireworks, too" said Triton Nemecek.

It was a dazzling display on a chilly night.

“It’s colder, but the fireworks were definitely awesome. We just love it. It’s magical down here," added Kristina Nemecek.

If you didn’t make it Friday, the fun continues Saturday.

Holiday on Main Street will run from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m., with more family-friendly activities.