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Community Corner

Wake County Expands Masking + School Studies + Deputy Honored

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Christina Fullford, Neighbor
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(Patch Media)

Happy National Radio Day,

Today there's a whole lot of mask news, as well as potential political conflict of interest, and a grant to honor the Wake County Deputy who was shot in the line of duty back in June. Read all about that, events, and more below.

Today's weather, 8/20: Rain and humid throughout the day. High: 85 Low: 73.

Here are the top stories today in Raleigh:

  1. Wake County board off Commissioners Chairman Matt Calabria has officially signed an emergency declaration issuing a mask mandate for 83% of the county. The new mandate takes effect at 7:00 am this morning and is set to last until November 1 unless changing data requires adjustment. The only cities that will not require masks indoors are Fuquay-Varina, Apex, Holly Springs, Wendell, and Wake Forest. The Wake County order currently has 14 exceptions including children under two and actively eating and drinking. The mandate does require vaccinated individuals to comply, including while in grocery stores, gyms, office buildings, and restaurants. (Spectrum News 1, CBS17)
  2. Researchers from NC State and UNC are studying effectiveness of masks in schools as well as random testing. The study evaluated three different scenarios with four conditional variables. The study aimed to see the effect of masking and random testing. The study still needs to undergo the peer review process, however it found that more than 75% of students would be infected with COVID-19 by the end of the semester without precautions in place. The scenarios that included mask wearing and random testing saw a reduction by more than 50%. The study is being funded by the CDC and the Council for State and Territorial Epidemiologists. (CBS17)
  3. A pending lawsuit that has made its way to the Supreme Court, but two of the justices that are set to hear the case raise questions regarding conflict of interest. The NAACP sued the General Assembly over the lawfulness of constitutional amendments on the ballot in 2018. One justice, Phil Berger Jr. is the son of one named defendants, Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger. The other justice, Tamara Barringer was a member of the senate when the lawsuit was filed and was originally a defendant in the case. There have been calls made for the two justices to recuse themselves over conflict of interest. (NC Policy Watch)
  4. Ronald Waller, the Wake County deputy who was shot in the line of duty, is being presented with a $10,000 grant from Running 4 Heroes. The organization is a non-profit based out of Florida, created by 11-year-old Zechariah Cartledge. The grant is being awarded to Waller following several surgeries to help him recover from the AK-47 shots that he endured. The grant will be officially presented during the Wake County Sheriff's Office Community Day at Roberts Park on Saturday. (CBS17)
  5. Raleigh police are investigating a shooting that occurred on Wednesday night. Police arrived on North Raleigh Boulevard around 10:40 to find the victim who was transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Police believe that the suspect and victim knew one another and do not believe that there is an ongoing threat to the general public. There were also two unrelated shooting incidents in Durham on Wednesday that saw five other victims injured. (CBS17)

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Today in Raleigh

Bonus: Here's WRAL's weekend picks (WRAL)

Raleigh Patch Notebook

  • In honor of National Radio Day, check out all the stations you can tune into and discover your travel flow. (Radio Locator)
  • GoRaleigh is unveiling one of its first electric buses this weekend! (HeraldSun)

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Ok friends, you are officially in the know and ready to go. (Dr. Seuss moment) I hope you are able to kick off your weekend right and find something that brings you joy to do. Tomorrow I'll have more news and events for you to enjoy. Until then, go make the most of today!

— CJ Fullford

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Raleigh Daily? I'm all ears. You can contact me at raleigh@patch.com.

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