Annual Vernon Rockville United Methodist Church did the annual Good Friday walk for charity.

Several animals were rescued and moved to a safe area when fire broke out in Animal Hall at Earthplace Museum in Westport this morning.

Westport firefighters responded to 10 Woodside Lane at 5:55 a.m. and found smoke coming from a room on the first floor at the back of a building.

The fire damage was limited to the room where the fire started, according to the fire department.

Mutual aid was called in and the Westport fire marshal’s office will investigate the cause of the fire.

Fire officials said the area of damage was secured and turned over to the property owners for repairs.

A post on the Earthplace Facebook page says the vacation day programs will continue as planned. Animal Hall was the only room affected.

Firefighters from the Wethersfield Volunteer Fire Department rescued two cats from a fire in Wethersfield. 

As firefighters were fighting a fire at 22 Oakdale St., someone asked if two cats that were in the home were found. There were no signs of the cats, so they went back inside to find the animals. 

When firefighters located Luna and Jupiter, the cats were scared and covered in soot. Crews provided oxygen and wrapped them in clean towels and a veterinarian is checking them to ensure they are OK. 

No one was injured in the fire and the Wethersfield fire marshal’s office is investigating the cause of the fire. 

Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced the company was planning to introduce a new semi-truck in September, with an electric pickup truck to follow in about 18 to 24 months, NBC News reported.

The big truck was first hinted at last July, when Musk unveiled his "Master Plan, Part Deux." He had previously expressed interest in a pickup several years ago, about the same time Tesla began searching for a site for its Gigafactory battery plant.

"Tesla Semi truck unveil set for September," Musk said on Thursday, the tweet adding, "Team has done an amazing job. Seriously next level."

Exactly how big the truck will be is unclear. A Tesla spokesperson confirmed there would be no additional information beyond what was in the Musk tweets.

The kielbasa from Martin Rosol’s in New Britain is an Easter tradition and the line formed Good Friday morning as people shopped for the makings of their holiday meal. 

Customers grab a number, then wait for their turn at the Polish market that makes the kielbasa and other meats that bring in a customer base from all over the state. 

“I grew up in New Britain, so I’ve been having this since I’ve been born,” Sue Devine, of Plainville, said. 

Martin Rosol’s has been in business since 1928 and the draw Friday was the famous Easter kielbasa. 

“They have unique spices they add to the Easter one every year,” Devine said. 

Joan Veley made her first trip to the shop Friday, her parents are from Poland and she but said Polish traditions have always been part of the fabric of her family. 

“We lost our dad and I guess it’s sort of just an honorary thing for the family tradition,” she said. 

The staff members at Rosol’s spend weeks preparing for this weekend.

The southbound side of the Wilbur Cross Parkway was closed in New Haven after several minor crashes but it has reopened.

There was a three-car crash before the tunnel and a four-car crash inside the tunnel, according to state police. 

Minor injuries are reported.

A moose was out and about Thursday in Winsted and Joseph Colombie got quite a video of it.

He was driving around on the west side of Highland Lake in Winsted when he came across one.

Colombie slowed down so that cars behind him were aware of the moose and he was then able to get this video.

“I wanted to urge it in the direction of the woods heading west of the lake so it wouldn’t get hit by another car. From what I saw, it made it into the woods but I am not sure if it came back or not!” said Colombie.

Find out more about moose on the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

You can report a moose siting here. 

A New Britain man is accused of trying to suffocate a woman with a pillow, police said. 

Police arrested Anthony Dipierdomenico at 8:30 p.m. on April 10 following a physical domestic disturbance report at an undisclosed location in New Britain.

While investigating the incident, police discovered that second domestic abuse claim involving Dipierdomenico happened on the same day at 10:30 a.m., according to New Britain Police. 

The victim claimed that in the morning, Dipierdomenico had attempted to suffocate her with a pillow after she got off the phone with his lawyer. 

The victim and lawyer were discussing a lawsuit Dipierdomenico filed where he claimed he fell. While the victim was the only one to witness the event, she told his lawyer that she did not have a clear view, police said.

Dipierdomenico became upset with the victim when he heard the conversation and accused her of costing him $300,000. After, he placed a pillow over the victims face and told her she was going to die, according to New Britain Police.

According to the victim, police said Dipierdomenico counted back from 15 to four before removing the pillow. He told her he would give her four more seconds to live and walked away.

There were no serious injuries reported. 

Dipierdomenico was charged with disorderly conduct and violation of a protective order for 8:31 p.m. incident.

In addition, he was charged with criminal attempt to commit murder, strangulation, reckless endangerment and unlawful restraint for the second incident discovered. 

Dipierdomenico's bond was set at $100,000. 

Litchfield County is celebrating one of its Norfolk emergency dispatchers for instructing a couple on how to deliver a baby on Friday. 

Veteran dispatcher, Matthew Ludwig, who has been with the department for 15 years, "jumped into action" when he got the 911 call at 5:45 a.m., according to Litchfield County Dispatch. 

Ludwig was able to provide mommy and daddy with detailed instructions to assist deliverying their baby boy. Over the phone, Ludwig was able to tell the parents how to support the baby's head and neck during delivery, tie the umbilical cord and tend to the after birth. 

"Matthew's 15 years of experience shown through brightly as he handled the call with compassion and professionalism," Litchfield County Dispatch said in a release.

The family welcomed a healthy son, thanks to the help of Dispatcher Matthew Ludwig.

We're forecasting another big warm-up and this time it arrives just in time for the Easter holiday.

Temperatures will be mild on Saturday with sunshine early in the day. Clouds will fill in through the afternoon with a few rain showers by the evening hours. 

Here's a look at future radar Saturday evening which shows the scattered showers moving through the state.

The rain showers will move out of the state late Saturday night. 

This will leave us with very pleasant weather for Easter Sunday. No weather issues are expected for sunrise services. Sunrise is at 6:10 a.m. on Sunday.

Here's a look at the planner for Easter Sunday.

Temperatures Sunday afternoon will warm into the 80s for inland areas of the state. Coastal areas can expect temperatures in the low 70s.

Water was off for 17 businesses on West Dudley Town Road in Bloomfield after a water main broke. 

Officials from MDC said a 12-inch water main that was installed in 1969 broke and the main was shut down at 8:20 a.m. 

The 17 businesses affected are between 99 and 111 West Dudley Town Road. 

The repairs were expected to take from six to eight hours.

All water service has been restored as of 2:50 P.M. 

Three women are facing 26 felony charges after police say they found loaded handguns, alcohol, daggers and other sharp and sharp blades inside a daycare in northwest Indiana. 

Authorities say Merrillville police officers and the Indiana Department of Children's Services made an unannounced check on a home daycare at 1730 W. 53rd Tuesday. When they arrived, officials encountered a mother who said she was there to check on her 4-year-old son who had suffered a head injury. She said the daycare alerted her but the owner would not open the door. 

Officers climbed through a window of the home and found the young boy on a bed surrounded by bloody napkins with an open wound on his forehead, police said. It was not immediately known how he was hurt. 

The boy was one of 15 children police discovered to be inside the home at the time. Three other children were missing from the daycare and later found in a different location, according to police. 

During a search of the home, authorities found two loaded handguns, two shotgun, daggers, and sharp blades to be within reach of the children, police said. Bottles of whiskey and vodka were strewn on the floor of the bedroom where the children were found, according to police. 

Tawana Cole, Roberta Sanders, and Adriana Johnson were each charged with one count of neglect of a dependant resulting in bodily injury and multiple counts of neglect of a dependent and criminal confinement.

Cole has been arrested and police are searching for Sanders and Johnson. An attorney for Cole, who is on probation for battery with a deadly weapon, could not immediately be reached for comment.

Police said the home daycare center’s license had expired in March, and the daycare was only approved for a maximum capacity of 12 children.

With the summer season almost here, the City of New London is looking for ways to tout its waterfront and all its downtown area has to offer.

The New London Port Authority thinks the best option is teaming up with an outside force: the Thames River Water Taxi LLC.

The city is in talks to have the water taxi company manager the docks and moorings along Waterfront Park. 

The Thames River Water Taxi LLC operates a water taxi service that shuttles people to different attractions in New London and Groton. That’s why owner Jackie Dietrich said she and her husband, David, know what New London has to offer. This could be a way to tap into the city’s potential and promote tourism, she said.

How that will be done is still in the planning stages, she added.

“I think we have it all. I just don’t think people understand what a great destination it is,” said New London Mayor Michael Passero, who is also the chief executive officer of the New London Port Authority.

Passero said the partnership would be a way to attract yachts, charters and pleasure boaters to the city, put New London on the map as a boating destination, and boost activity and revenue downtown.

“A pleasure boat that comes into New London and ties up for the afternoon, for overnight, it’s going to have three, four, five people on it. That’s going to be lunch or dinner. That’s going to be people walking around,” Passero said.

Passero pointed to Ocean Beach Park as a successful example. In a similar business model, the city partnered with an outside company to manage the city-owned property. According to Passero, business has since grown, the city has made money, and people are proud of the way the property is cared for.

Hot Rod Cafe in New London overlooks Waterfront Park.

Owner of the cafe, Roderick Cornish, said the area could be used more.

“I’ve had a lot of people come here on boats and they often say they think it’s underutilized—once they find out about it,” Cornish said.

David Bureau, owner of The Bistro in downtown New London, said it’s about time the city creates a partnership like this.

“A lot of people downtown have been talking about—they wanna get all the boats in here,” he said, adding people don’t realize the diversity and quality of restaurants in the city.

“There’s no reason New London can’t be better than Mystic,” Bureau said.

A student who was wounded in the shooting at a San Bernardino elementary school earlier this week is now home and recovering, a school district spokesperson said Friday.

Nolan Brandy was shot when Cedric Anderson, the estranged husband of his teacher, walked in to North Park Elementary School Monday and opened fire, killing his wife, Karen Smith.

Anderson also shot another student, 8-year-old Jonathan Martinez, before turning the gun on himself.

Leon and Rachel Brandy, Nolan’s parents, released a statement Wednesday thanking the community "for the outpouring of prayers and support."

They said Nolan is recovering very well, adding that they are "grateful."

A day after the shooting officials said the boy was in stable condition, watching cartoons and expected to recover.

"Please continue to pray for him and also for Jonathan Martinez’s and Karen Smith's families," the Brandy family said.

United Airlines issued an updated policy Friday in the wake of criticism sparked by a video showing a doctor being dragged off a plane at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. 

The new policy says crews traveling on United aircraft must be booked at least 60 minutes before a flight's scheduled departure. 

"This ensures situations like flight 3411 never happen again," the company's statement read. "This is one of our initial steps in a review of our policies in order to deliver the best customer experience."

The move comes one day after attorneys for Dr. David Dao said the Kentucky man, who was dragged from the United Express flight, suffered a significant concussion, broken nose and lost his two front teeth in the ordeal. 

After he was dragged down the aisle of the jet, video shows him standing in the aisle with blood on his face and saying quietly, "I want to go home, I want to go home."

Dao’s lawyer criticized the flight’s crew for standing by idle as police used “violent” force to remove a 69-year-old from the plane, noting that Dao was not a threat to passengers or United employees.

In a statement issued Thursday, United said it "cannot stress enough that we remain steadfast in our commitment to make this right."

"This horrible situation has provided a harsh learning experience from which we will take immediate, concrete action," the statement read. "We have committed to our customers and our employees that we are going to fix what’s broken so this never happens again."

"No one should ever be mistreated this way," United CEO Oscar Munoz said in a statement earlier this week, his most contrite apology yet as details emerged about the incident. 

Munoz also pledged to conduct a wide-ranging review of company policies.

On Thursday, United added that it will not ask law enforcement officers to remove passengers unless it is a "matter of safety and security."  

The event stemmed from a common air travel issue — a full flight. United was trying to make room for four employees of a partner airline, meaning four people had to get off.

At first, the airline asked for volunteers, offering $400 and then when that did not work, $800 per passenger to relinquish a seat. When no one voluntarily came forward, United selected four passengers at random.

Three people got off the flight, but Dao said he was a doctor and needed to get home to treat patients on Monday. He refused to leave.

Three Aviation Department police officers got on the plane. Two officers tried to reason with the man before a third came aboard and pointed at the man "basically saying, 'Sir, you have to get off the plane,'" said Tyler Bridges, a passenger whose wife, Audra D. Bridges, posted a video on Facebook.

One of the officers could be seen grabbing the screaming man from his window seat, across the armrest and dragging him down the aisle by his arms.

Other passengers on Flight 3411 are heard saying, "Please, my God," ''What are you doing?" ''This is wrong," ''Look at what you did to him" and "Busted his lip."

United Airlines has since announced that all passengers on Flight 3411 will receive refunds for their tickets.

On Tuesday, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel called the way Dao was treated "completely unacceptable" and praised Aviation Commissioner Ginger Evans for taking "swift action." He promised that a city investigation would "ensure nothing like this ever happens again."

Dao’s lawyer said he doesn’t believe the incident was racially motivated and that it appears that airlines don’t have standard procedures for kicking people off plane.

The U.S. Department of Transportation announced Tuesday that it is reviewing Sunday's events to see if United violated rules on overselling flights.

A Wilbur Cross High School drama teacher is accused of sexual assault, according to the school. 

Jennifer Frechette faces sexual assault and risk of injury to a minor charges, a letter sent out by the New Haven Public School said. 

"A breach of that responsibility by any staff member is cause for concern. The arrest of a New Haven teacher on allegations of sexual assault and risk of injury is deeply troubling," the letter reads.

District administrators and security staff responded to allegations of inappropriate conduct with Frechette and a student on Jan. 5, according to the school.

The studnet's parents were notified and Frechette was immediately placed on paid leave pending the results of a police investigation. 

It is not clear when her court date will be.

Governor Dannel Malloy has been an ally for the immigrant community in Connecticut, according to John Lugo, an organizer for Unidad Latino En Accion in New Haven.

“Through him we were able to have the driver licenses, to pass the Trust Act which limited collaboration between law enforcement and immigration,” Lugo said. “I guess it’s going to be a big loss.”

A lifelong Connecticut resident, Frank Zoni from Hamden said he sees Malloy’s decision to not seek re-election as a win for the state.

“I feel wonderful,” Zoni said, “he’s made a mess out of Stamford and he’s made a mess out of this state financially.”

Zoni told NBC Connecticut he would like to see someone from the Republican Party become the state’s next governor.

“In fact, the whole legislature should come from the Republican Party cause the state legislature isn’t doing any good,” he added.

Now that Malloy won’t be fighting for a third term as governor, Connecticut’s Democratic Party Executive Director Michael Mandell said he can focus on priorities in his agenda during his remaining 20 months in office.

“Politics is not the end all be all,” Mandell said. “That what he’s focused on is resolving the budget, is pushing a criminal justice reform agenda, is making that we have a vibrant and sustained economy.”

National politics will play a role in the 2018 race for governor, Mandell said.

“We’ve got a cast of characters on the other side of the aisle that are fighting to get close to Donald Trump,” he said.

In New Haven, Lugo just hopes the next leader of the state will listen to the concerns of the immigrant population.

“I think it’s important to keep the legacy of Malloy and maybe to strengthen some of the policies that he create at the state level,” Lugo said.

On the democratic side, Middletown Mayor Dan Drew has raised more than $100,000 for a potential run for governor in 2018.

Republican State Rep. Dr. Prasad Srinivasan of Glastonbury and Shelton Mayor Mark Lauretti have officially entered the race to replace Malloy.

Major renovations are underway at the North Haven Shopping Center on Washington Avenue after a new developer completed a multi-million dollar purchase of the property.

“This plaza is recognized as one of the oldest strip shopping centers in New England actually,” said Larry Lazaroff, the vice president of Arnold’s Jewelers.

The shopping center has been the home for Lazaroff’s family business for half a century.

“In the 80’s and 90’s when this plaza was full you couldn’t find a parking spot out there," Lazaroff said.

Over the decades, the condition of the shopping center has deteriorated, as the NBC Connecticut camera captured inside a vacant gym.

“We have to thank the Luciani family, they’ve been wonderful corporate citizens here for years, but time goes on and things change,” said North Haven First Selectman Michael Freda.

Now big changes are coming after the Luciana family sold the plaza to Cheshire real estate developer Joseph Mourizzi.

“Re-doing the entire plaza from top to bottom,” Lazaroff said. “Bringing in new tenants which therefore provides jobs for the town, provides aesthetically beautiful plaza in the center of town.”

Fran Bartlett from North Haven has shopped here since the center was built sixty plus years ago.

“It was our first plaza,” Bartlett said. “It used to be really crowded, I mean it will be great to see new stores come in here.”

“We’d like to see a food store obviously,” Lazaroff said. “We’d like to see something in clothing as well. We’re looking for a good combination of bigger stores as well as smaller stores like myself.”

While there is 85,000 square feet of vacant space now, Freda said that won’t be the case once renovations are complete sometime in the fall.

“I’m convinced and I’m very positive that this plaza will be fully populated,” Freda said.

Lazaroff, the longest tenured tenant in the plaza, cannot wait to meet the his business’ new neighbors.

“People were always saying why you staying? Why you staying? I said because I believe in this plaza, I love this location, and I’m going to wait and its finally here,” Lazaroff said.

April the pregnant giraffe is pregnant no more — the long-necked beauty has finally given birth to a healthy male calf! 

More than a million viewers tuned into Animal Adventure Park's YouTube live stream to watch the birth of April's fourth calf, which happened within about two hours (WARNING: Some may find the live stream and photos below graphic).

The mom protectively stood over her baby as she licked him lovingly. The calf lay sprawled out on a bed of hay after dropping from his mother's womb minutes before 10 a.m. Oliver peered his head over his pen to catch a glimpse of his son and trotted around as the new dad anxieties began to set in. 

Owner Jordan Patch beamed with pride as he told more than 2 million viewers tuned in to the zoo's Facebook live stream that everything went "absolutely perfect" and the staff "couldn't have planned it better." 

"There you have it guys, we have a baby," he said. "We're going to let mom and baby do their thing for a bit. This is great, awesome, everything went according to plan." 

Patch says the eager-to-nurse calf is already nibbling on his mom.

The calf's spindly legs wobbled as he attempted to stand on its own. But shortly before noon, the zoo shared an adorable photo of April nuzzling him while he stood beneath her trying to nurse. 

"All is well," the caption reads.

The long-necked beauty went into labor shortly before 8 a.m. Saturday. Fans got a sneak preview of the birth through a captionless photo posted to Facebook showing what appeared to be the leg of a giraffe calf.

About an hour after her labor was announced, two little legs and the calf's front hooves were seen dangling from April's backside in a livestream posted to the Harpursville, New York, zoo's Facebook page. Her keepers were all smiles as they anxiously watched from outside her pen.

April has teased her millions of global adorers for weeks now, showing signs of near-but-not-quite labor and otherwise enchanting her audience with cute right-at-the-camera gazes and tongue flicks, snack noshing and nuzzling with her much younger but handsome 5-year-old beau. 

April's pregnancy was catapulted into global headlines in late February after YouTube briefly yanked the zoo's live stream following complaints by animal activists that it violated the site's policies concerning "nudity and sexual content." Thousands upon thousands of commenters voiced their frustration on Facebook and YouTube, and the stream was restored within an hour or so.

Patch says the natural curiosity surrounding giraffes and their birthing process has been a huge factor in drawing crowds. 

"I think the fact that she's a giraffe and she's a neat species that people are interested in, that's fostered a lot of the attention," he said. "The fact that you'll get to witness the miracle of birth from an animal that you really don't get to see give birth — that's neat."

He added that April's pregnancy was more than just live entertainment, but a teachable moment and source for education.