Good evening, Central New York. We’re wrapping up the day for you with the most important stories you need to know and your weather outlook.
Your Weather Planner
Tonight will be variably cloudy with spotty showers possible. Lows will be in the 30s and low 40s, with 20s across the Adirondacks.
Unsettled weather returns to the forecast as rain chances increase Saturday. Highs will be in the 40s and 50s.
The rainiest weather looks to be around Central New York, the Finger Lakes and the Southern Tier. Drier and quieter weather will prevail across the North Country and Adirondacks.
Quieter weather builds back in for all Sunday and Monday with highs in the 50s and 60s.
Tomorrow’s Forecast
Central NY Hourly Forecast | Southern Tier Hourly Forecast | Northern New York Hourly Forecast
Stream Spectrum News+
Watch the latest news and more local stories from across the country.
Today’s Big Stories
1. Mattydale Fire Department volunteer arrested in connection to 2017 criminal sex act with boy
The Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office is looking for the public’s help in an investigation in Mattydale. Donald Bender Jr., 61, is charged with third-degree criminal sexual act. The arrest stems from a 2017 sexual encounter between a man who was 16 at the time and Bender.
2. Cazenovia, Morrisville-Eaton school boards to review merger plans
Both districts are currently in the midst of a state-supported feasibility study.
3. How former inmates say violent culture could change inside New York’s prisons
As assaults between inmates and correction officers continue to rise over the last 10 years in New York, advocates and former inmates say each side involved needs to change to reverse the trend. Robert “Luca” Lucas, who was incarcerated for seven years and founded Voice of Da Voiceless, a nonprofit that supports inmates and those who have been released, says unsubstantiated allegations fly from both sides.
4. Lack of disciplinary action by DOCCS leads to an ‘oppressive environment’ for inmates
Data and disciplinary records show New York state correction officers rarely lose their jobs as a result of abusing the incarcerated, which former inmates say can create an environment that doesn’t allow them to speak out, causing tensions to rise inside.
5. A look back at nuclear fallout shelters in New York
Sunday is the 40th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster. A nuclear power plant in Ukraine in the former Soviet Union exploded, causing 31 direct deaths and nearly 100,000 more as a result of radiation. Nuclear energy, whether used for power or as a weapon, is a reason so many communities built fallout shelters. While those buildings are no longer used in that capacity, they are still standing.
6. Trump dispatches Witkoff and Kushner to Pakistan for new talks with Iran’s foreign minister
President Donald Trump is sending his envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Pakistan, the White House said Friday, just hours after Iran’s top diplomat headed to the South Asian nation where officials have been trying to get the United States and Iran to convene for a second round of ceasefire negotiations.