New Haven police are investigating a serious crash at East Grand Avenue and Quinnipiac Avenue.
Firefighters said two cars are involved.
More details were not immediately available.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
PG&E late Thursday afternoon started restoring power to several areas impacted by proactive outages amid high fire danger.
While many of the hundreds of thousands of customers across Northern and Central California were still in the dark, the utility gave its crews an all clear to start safety inspections on equipment after weather conditions improved. Officials said restorations efforts would begin in many areas impacted by outages.
PG&E's utility's public safety power shutoffs — prompted by dry, gusty weather — left roughly 278,000 customers across the Bay Area to carry out their daily tasks without electricity.
PG&E on Thursday afternoon said improving weather conditions allowed crews an "all clear" to perform safety inspections and that restoration efforts would begin in many areas impacted by outages.
"We faced a choice here between hardship on everyone or safety, and we chose safety," PG&E CEO and President Bill Johnson said. "I do apologize for the hardship this has caused, but I think we made the right call on safety."
Officials late Thursday afternoon reported power was restored to most of San Jose and Morgan Hill areas impacted. Several East Bay cities, including Lafayette, Moraga and Orinda also reported PG&E crews were in the process of restoring power to the areas.
San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo said that the shutoffs affected about 20,000 customer accounts, amounting to roughly 60,000 residents.
The shutoffs also cost the city about $500,000 in extra staffing hours, fuel and more, Liccardo said.
"There's no question that this cost should be borne by PG&E," Liccardo said, adding that he is in discussions with Gov. Gavin Newsom's office about receiving compensation from the energy company.
Liccardo said the city experienced 68 stoplights without power Thursday morning, but that power had been restored to all but four by the evening.
He said the city was unsure when full power would be restored, but "we'll continue to press on until everyone receives power again."
Liccardo added that the city will continue to push for new legislation and initiatives, locally and in Sacramento, that will combat the effects of the ongoing climate crisis.
"We need to address the impacts of climate change, they're quite real and we felt them today," Liccardo said.
The Associated Press and Bay City News contributed to this report.
Several streets are closed in a Groton neighborhood and residents in the area are being told to shelter in place as police negotiate with an armed woman barricaded in a home.
Groton Police were called to the area of Cutler Street and Morse Avenue late Thursday night.
A woman with a gun barricaded herself in the home on Morse Avenue, according to police. A protective order barred the woman from being at the home, police said.
Negotiators have been speaking with the woman, but she has not surrendered.
As a precaution, school officials have delayed the start of school at Marine Science Magnet High School and West Side Middle School for two hours.
A police officer was struck by a vehicle while responding to a car fire in Orange on Thursday night.
Police said the officer responded to Marsh Hill Road at 10:06 p.m. to help the fire department at an incident that was reported as a possible car fire on Marsh Hill Road, near the Outback Steakhouse.
The vehicle was in the center lane on the southbound side of Marsh Hill Road and the officer stopped behind it. As he approached the driver’s side of the disabled vehicle, another vehicle struck him, police said.
The officer was transported to Yale Hospital to be treated for lower body injuries.
The driver who hit the officer remained at the scene and is cooperating with the investigation, which State Police are conducting, police said.
NBC New York is all about covering engaging news stories, but this one was extra special.
As reporter Brian Thompson was at the Jersey Shore covering the storm that is set to soak the tri-state for days, the NBC 4 crew captured a memorable moment for a couple from Highlands, New Jersey: The moment they got engaged.
Tyler Osborne brought Lisa Snyder back to the exact spot where they had their first kiss 15 months ago, to propose to her on what is also her 30th birthday.
Osborne got down on one knee to pull out the ring as the wind blew in, and a very happy Snyder put her hands around his neck and said yes — bringing a bright spot to the boardwalk on an otherwise gloomy day.
The betrothed couple both said they knew they wanted to marry the other on the first day they met.
“Since the second I met her. No doubt,” said Osborne. “There was no doubt in my mind.”
If rain on your wedding day is considered good luck, then maybe a nor'easter on the day of your engagement might bring similar fortune.
Multiple roads in Glastonbury are closed while crews investigate a possible gas leak on Friday morning.
Firefighters said a possible gas smell or leak is being investigated at 2450 Main Street. The building has been evacuated.
Main and Welles streets are closed. Main Street at Hebron Avenue is also closed, fire officials added.
This is a developing story. NBC Connecticut will update this story as details become available.
Police are investigating after shots were fired in New London early Friday morning.
New London Emergency Communications Center received a call reporting a disturbance with possible shots fired near Bank Street around 12:15 a.m.
Officers were immediately called to the scene to investigate, police said.
When police arrived, they said they found spent casings and processed the scene for evidence. An area canvass was also set up.
No injuries were reported.
Authorities do not believe this was a random act.
The investigation is ongoing.
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact New London Police Department at (860) 447-5269 ext. 0.
Anonymous information can be submitted to the New London Tips 411 system by texting NLPDTip plus the information to 847411.
Police have arrested a man suspected of stabbing at least four people in a shopping center in the English city of Manchester on Friday, NBC News reported.
Greater Manchester Police confirmed that four people were stabbed and were were taken to a hospital. Counter-terror police are leading the investigation but there has been no suggestion so far that the incident is terror-related, police said.
Police updated a previous statement which said five people had been hurt.
"In these early stages we are keeping an open mind about the motivation of this terrible and incident and the circumstances as we know them," police said in a statement.
"Given the location of the incident and its nature, officers from the Counter Terror Police North West are leading the investigation as we determine the circumstances," the statement said.
Lawyers for Ambassador Gordon Sondland announced Friday that he will appear for an interview before a joint House committee taking depositions in the impeachment probe of President Donald Trump despite having been ordered by the State Department not to appear.
Sondland attorneys Robert Luskin and Kwame Manley said Sondland will honor a congressional subpoena and "looks forward to testifying" Oct. 17. The lawyers said Friday that Sondland has no agenda apart from answering questions "fully and truthfully."
Sondland is the sitting U.S. ambassador to the European Union and an employee of the State Department.
He has also been ordered to produce "relevant documents" but his lawyers said he won't be bringing documents with him. They said the State Department has sole authority to produce such documents and that Sondland hopes they'll be shared with the committees before his testimony.
Sondland was originally scheduled for a deposition this past Tuesday but did not show up on direction from the State Department. Trump tweeted immediately afterward that he couldn't let Sondland testify because the Democrat-led probe was "compromised."
The joint House committee issued the subpoena for Sondland's testimony hours later.
"Notwithstanding the State Department's current direction to not testify, Ambassador Sondland will honor the Committees' subpoena, and he looks forward to testifying on Thursday," said a statement from attorneys Robert Luskin and Kwame Manley. "Ambassador Sondland has at all times acted with integrity and in the interests of the United States. He has no agenda apart from answering the Committees' questions fully and truthfully."
Democrats want to ask him about text messages released last week that show him and two other U.S. diplomats acting as intermediaries as Trump urged Ukraine to investigate Ukraine's involvement in the 2016 U.S. election and Hunter Biden's involvement with a gas company there.
Earlier this week, the White House sent Congress a letter outlining its opposition to the impeachment probe and refusing to cooperate with requests for information, including interviews with administration officials. The House committees have moved to subpoena officials instead.
The three House committees have scheduled closed-door depositions for almost every day next week — though it's unclear if everyone will show up.
On Monday, Fiona Hill, a former White House adviser who focused on Russia, is expected to testify. Other current State Department officials scheduled for testimony are Deputy Assistant Secretary of State George Kent on Tuesday and Ulrich Brechbuhl, a State Department counselor, on Thursday.
The former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, who was ousted from her post after insisting that Rudy Giuliani's requests to Ukrainian officials for investigations be relayed through official channels, is scheduled to testify on Friday.
Nearly one year ago, the Trump administration fired a panel of scientific experts who assisted the Environmental Protection Agency in its review of air quality standards for particulate matter, NBC News reported.
Now, as the EPA prepares its report on those standards later this month, 20 of the fired scientists are meeting independently to release their own assessment of current air pollution levels, with a focus on the particles from fossil fuels that can make people sick. This group of scientists, engineers and researchers have formed a nongovernmental committee called the Independent Particulate Matter Review Panel.
These scientists and researchers, former members of the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) on particulate matter, said the EPA has stripped the panel down to its core seven members, who are ill-equipped to set air quality standards and don’t have the time to do it.
Dari Farms is closing its distribution centers in Tolland and Milford, according to a notification sent to the state, and the closings will affect 97 employees.
A letter the human resources manager sent to the state Department of Labor said the company plans to close the distribution centers on or around Oct. 18.
The company’s website says it distributes ice cream, beverages and salty snacks between Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and southern New Hampshire.
Police are looking to the person who they say snatched an 82-year-old woman’s purse at a pizza place in Shelton.
Police said the woman was standing in line at Planet Pizza, at 350 Bridgeport Ave., around 4:15 p.m. on Oct. 9 when a man snatched the purse and fled in an older model gold Toyota Corolla.
The woman was not injured. The man appeared to be in his late 30s to early 40s and has blue eyes and dirty blonde hair.
A witness took photographs of the vehicle and police have released them.
Anyone who recognizes the vehicle or has any information should call Shelton Police at 203-924-1544.
State police have arrested a Bridgeport man who is accused of sexually enticing minors on social media to meet for sexual activity.
Police said they received a tip at the forensic lab in Meriden in July and identified 26-year-old Jose Narvaez, of Bridgeport, as a suspect.
He was arrested on Thursday and bond was set at $250,000.
Police are asking any potential victims to call Detective McCord at 203-427-4062.
A Massachusetts school employee accused of raping a disabled student at a Middleborough school turned himself in to authorities Friday after a nearly day-long search.
New Bedford resident Phillip Houtman, 28, had a warrant for his arrest after he allegedly sexually assaulted a 19-year-old student at the Chamberlain International School. Authorities announced their search for the suspect on Thursday.
The suspect
Houtman faces charges that include rape, assault to rape, open and gross lewdness and two counts of indecent assault and battery on a person with an intellectual disability. He is an overnight staff member who had been working at the Chamberlain International School for less than a year, police said.
The school said he was removed from their schedule after the disturbing allegations surfaced. Authorities said the alleged sexual assault happened in a dorm.
The school
The Chamberlain International School is a private boarding school that serves students who have disabilities, development disorders and cognitive disabilities. Students’ age at the school range from 11 to 22.
The response
In a letter sent to parents and guardians, the school said it is informing them of a “serious allegation that a staff engaged in inappropriate behavior with a student.” The school said the alleged assault happened on Sept. 29.
"As a school, we wish to make it clear that the well-being and safety of all students is our top priority," the school’s letter said.
In response to the allegation, the Chamberlain International School said it is reviewing its policies and may make changes to them. The school said that will "likely" include additional training for its staff members and some instructions for its students.
The Middleborough Police Department urged Houtman to turn himself in, which he did Friday afternoon at Wareham District Court.
Houtman was set to be arraigned Friday afternoon as well, police said.
President Donald Trump on Friday announced his intention to nominate Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan as his new ambassador to Russia, NBC News reported.
Sullivan would take on the role during fraught time in the U.S.-Russia relationship. Russia is known to have interfered in the 2016 election, and many experts believe it will try to do so again during the 2020 campaign.
Sullivan's name came up earlier Friday during the private testimony of Marie Yovanovitch, the ousted U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, who told House impeachment investigators that Trump had personally pressured the State Department to remove her.
Yovanovitch said that after she was abruptly recalled from her post in the spring, Sullivan told her that the president had lost confidence in her, according to her prepared remarks.
If confirmed, Sullivan would succeed Jon Huntsman, who submitted his resignation to Trump in August.
Federal judges in New York and California on Friday ordered a nationwide block in cases challenging a Trump administration policy that would make it far easier for the government to deny legal status to immigrants who use or are deemed likely to use public assistance. The rule was set to go into effect next week, NBC News reports.
Judge George B. Daniels, of the U.S. District Court in Manhattan, ordered preliminary injunctions Friday afternoon against the administration’s new “public charge” rule that could have denied legal permanent residency and other forms of legal status to many immigrants in the country who are deemed likely to use public assistance.
"This rule would have had devastating impacts on New Yorkers and our nation, and today’s decision is a critical step in our efforts to uphold the rule of law," New York Attorney General Letitia James said on Twitter.
Later on Friday afternoon, Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton issued a preliminary injunction in a case announced by California Attorney General Xavier Becerra. California was joined by Maine, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C., in the lawsuit.
The Trump administration argues that expanding the meaning of “public charge” helps “protect American taxpayers” and ensures "that noncitizens in this country are self-sufficient and not a strain on public resources.”
A federal judge ruled Friday that President Donald Trump violated federal law when he used his declaration of a national emergency to get millions for building a wall on the southern border, NBC News reports.
The ruling is a victory for El Paso County, Texas, and the Border Network for Human Rights, which sued to stop border construction in their community. They argued that Trump had no legal authority to spend more than what Congress appropriated for the wall project.
In January the president asked for $5.7 billion to build "a steel barrier for the Southwest border," but Congress approved only $1.375 billion. In February, Trump declared a national emergency and ordered that money for Pentagon construction projects would be used instead for the wall.
Federal District Court Judge David Briones said the president's order violated a provision of the budget law approved by Congress which said "none of the funds made available in this or any other appropriation may be used to increase" the funding for the wall project.
Thousands of people are expected in Hartford on Saturday for the 26th Eversource Hartford Marathon, including 10,000 runners, such as Deborah Carpenter of Middletown.
”People come out. They support it. It’s a great route. You’ve got some great water stops, some activities along the way that makes it really nice.”
Around 10,000 people are expected to race, and 60,000 more will watch Saturday. The race course runs through Hartford, West Hartford, East Hartford, and South Windsor, where police said signs have been up for days along Main Street.
”We urge local residents to put their cars on a side street…cross the route if they have to because there won’t be any cars allowed on the race route from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.,” said South Windsor Police Chief Scott Custer.
Marathon organizers urge people to arrive in Hartford by 6:30 a.m., about an hour before all the road closures and plenty of time to find parking.
”There’s a parking map on our website that suggests if you’re coming from the north to park in these lots,” explained Josh Miller, Hartford Marathon Foundation Vice President. “If you’re coming from the south, east or west, to park in certain lots.”
Security will be tight, with several hundred police officers working from Hartford, Connecticut State Police, State Capitol Police, and even members of NYPD.
Officials said while the race has run its course for some, many continue to recognize its value to the city.
“Ten thousand plus runners running for themselves or for charities or just for various causes, just together, to be out here celebrating a great day,” said Miller.
The marathon, half-marathon, 5K and team relay all begin at 8 a.m.
New research suggests the current screening guidelines for lung cancer may be putting first responders at risk.
Research shows show about 30 percent of lung cancers are linked to environmental exposures.
Screenings are only recommended for older adults who are long-time smokers, or quit within the past 15 years. But some health experts say first responders should be getting tested due to the typical exposures on the job. The study found that first responders have a 14 percent increased risk of dying from cancer compared to the general population.
For the study, conducted by the National Institutes of Occupational Safety and Health, researchers used low dose CT to scan nearly 200 first responders who had worked for more than 21 years.
Forty-four percent of the scans resulted in abnormal findings that required follow-up.
"Current practice for lung cancer screenings in most U.S. fire stations include a chest x-ray every five years, but low-dose lung CT is underutilized," said Dr. Vershalee Shukla, of the Vincere Cancer Center in Scottsdale, Ariz. "Fire fighters can only obtain a low-dose lung CT at 55 and older per current cancer screening guidelines."
Shukla is proposing that first responders get routine lung cancer screenings beginning at age 40.
Hartford Police and public health officials are looking at challenged areas of the city to determine what’s fueling the fentanyl epidemic and what can be done to change that.
Behind the scenes spots are just some of the areas where police said they have been called to more drug overdose deaths this year than all of 2018.
“Our community service officers in the area as well as the new basically walk beat that’s in this Wethersfield Avenue area, they’ll come and address that they know all of these hiding spots,” Lt. Paul Cicero said.
The latest numbers released by the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office through the end of August show 90 people have died by drug overdose in Hartford. The cause of death for nearly all of them was acute fentanyl intoxication.
“Numbers are going up and it’s obviously a concern, so we’re looking at are there changes that we’re seeing, other opportunities, are there gaps that we’re not addressing?” said Liany Arroyo, the director of the Health and Human Services for the City of Hartford.
Arroyo said the number of overdose deaths have been on the rise since 2017, she expects an annual increase this year of 15 to 20 percent.
Cicero said fentanyl’s grip on the city squeezes well beyond drug users.
“A lot more drug dependent people, when you see a lot of drug dependent people in an area you see a lot of property crimes go up, a lot of burglaries, a lot of car breaks,” he said.
So far this year, the Hartford Police detective bureau alone has seized more than 48,000 bags of fentanyl. Officers now hoping increased drug product tracking, overdose mapping and resources from both the state and federal level can help stabilize the numbers, along with the new Hartford Alternative to Arrest Program that helps drug users instead of putting them in handcuffs.
“The last thing we want to do is arrest anyone that is drug dependent, we want to try to help them as best we can to try to stop the cycle,” Cicero said.
