Katie Peralta Soloff/Axios Raleigh The number of fatal overdoses has declined rapidly in North Carolina over the last year — far outpacing how fast they’ve fallen nationally. Why it matters: Overdoses kill more than 100,000 people in the U.S. a year — but the number appears to be dropping quickly,...

Cory Vaillancourt/Smoky Mountain News  Hurricane Helene has dealt serious damage to Pactiv Evergreen’s shuttered Canton paper mill, but the St. Louis-based demolition and development company owner trying to buy the 185-acre parcel remains undeterred. Back in May, Eric Spirtas of Spirtas Worldwide signed a letter of intent to purchase the...

Brianna Atkinson/WUNC Radio An organization that advocates for North Carolina’s private colleges has launched a fund for campuses impacted by Helene. The North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities is looking to provide support to seven colleges and universities located in Western North Carolina: Brevard, Gardner-Webb, Lees-McRae, Lenoir-Rhyne, Mars Hill, Montreat...

Brenna Flanagan/Port City Daily Plotting is underway for New Hanover County’s next comprehensive plan, which will likely determine the fate of the county’s remaining untouched land and plans for accommodating a growing population. NHC planning staff, including director Rebekah Roth, and Clarion Associates consultant Leigh Anne King provided an update...

Aaron Keck/WCHL Chapelboro Saturday, October 12, is University Day: UNC’s annual celebration of its founding in 1793, marking the anniversary of the laying of the cornerstone at UNC’s first building, Old East. The University is marking the occasion a day early this year, with a ceremony in Memorial Hall on...

Christopher Flavelle/The New York Times The amount of rain that Tropical Storm Helene unleashed over North Carolina was so intense, no amount of preparation could have entirely prevented the destruction that ensued. But decisions made by state officials in the years leading up to Helene most likely made some of...

Jaymie Baxley/NC Health News In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene’s deadly lurch through western North Carolina, the oft-overlooked race for commissioner of insurance is likely to be one of the more closely watched contests in November’s election. An untold number of homes and businesses were damaged or destroyed by the...

Carolina Public Press The rate of recovery and flow of information across Western North Carolina remains uneven nearly a week after Tropical Storm Helene veered to the east of its predicted track and dropped massive amounts of rain across North Carolina mountains and valleys that were already experiencing flooding from...

Liz Bell & Katie Dukes/Education NC Child care in Western North Carolina was hard to come by before Hurricane Helene devastated the region last week, taking lives and leaving communities underwater. Now, child care programs will need even more support to rebuild, recover, and serve families, said Amy Barry, director...

Shawn Musgrave/The Intercept On the evening of January 6, 2021 — as the Capitol Police were doing final sweeps of ransacked buildings and senators were preparing to resume the electoral vote count — former President Donald Trump asked the White House switchboard to get Mark Martin on the phone. A...

Brian Burns/WUNC Radio Helene ravaged western North Carolina last weekend, bringing devastation and destruction to homes and businesses throughout the region. This event has caused major harm to the entire area, which of course includes the music scene. Here’s what we know so far: One important casualty from the storm...

Cory Vaillancourt/Smoky Mountain News A bouquet of flowers, likely on someone’s porch or kitchen table hours earlier, lies on a Maggie Valley sidewalk alongside other debris from Jonathan Creek. Cory Vaillancourt photo A bouquet of flowers, likely on someone’s porch or kitchen table hours earlier, lies on a Maggie Valley...

Kenneth Lee Jr./WFAE Radio Huntersville-based 23XI Racing — co-owned by Michael Jordan — and Mooresville-based Front Row Motorsports have filed an antitrust lawsuit in North Carolina against NASCAR and its CEO Jim France, alleging that the stock car racing circuit and its leadership have used anti-competitive practices to stifle the...

Peter Castagno/Port City Daily A federal ruling and state law last year removed protections for vast expanses of North Carolina’s wetlands, but appropriate enforcement of regulations remains in controversy. The Biden administration’s 2022 Waters of the United States definition gave federal protection to wetlands adjacent to large waterways — including...

Pat Kimbrough/The High Point Enterprise A large portfolio of High Point real estate has changed hands. EveryAge, a nonprofit operator of senior living facilities, on Tuesday completed its acquisition of the Providence Place retirement center and adjacent commercial properties in the 1700 block of Westchester Drive. It paid a total...