BOSTON — New England is bracing for a heat spell that could last through the July 4 holiday and beyond.
The National Weather Service says heat and humidity will be building across the region starting on Friday and temperatures could top 90 degrees for several days in much of the region.
The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency is urging residents to avoid long periods of exposure to the heat and protect against sun damage.
Providence officials are opening a dozen water parks in the city Friday, a few days ahead of schedule. Public pools will open Monday.
Several Connecticut towns have opened cooling centers at public libraries and other municipal buildings.
Coastal communities, meanwhile, are bracing for huge crowds. Onshore sea breezes are expected to keep things a little cooler at the beach.
LYNN — An 18-year-old man has been ordered held without bail in connection with a shooting in Lynn last week that left one man dead and two others injured.
Victor Figueroa-Flores was arraigned Friday in Lynn District Court on a murder charge. A not guilty plea was entered on his behalf.
The Lynn Item reports that a prosecutor told the judge Figueroa-Flores texted that he was going to an “enemy party,” and then “lay in wait” before fatally shooting 25-year-old Romel Danis in the early morning hours of June 23.
Two other people were hospitalized.
A spokeswoman for the Essex District Attorney’s office says a 16-year-old Lynn boy has also been arrested in Middletown, N.Y., in connection with the killing. It’s unclear when the teen will return to Massachusetts.
BOSTON — Police say a suspected drunk driver nearly struck two police officers patrolling outside Fenway Park in Boston.
Prosecutors say police spotted the 58-year-old man driving erratically outside the baseball stadium shortly after a Red Sox game ended Wednesday night.
Officers tried to stop the vehicle, and police say the man came close to hitting two officers on two separate occasions. Investigators say the driver went on to a sidewalk at one point, causing pedestrians to leap out of the way.
The man was eventually stopped in Brookline and arrested. Police say they found malt liquor in the man’s car, and he had a suspended license.
The suspect is facing multiple charges, including assault with a dangerous weapon and operating under the influence.
BOSTON — Boston police are stepping up their presence around area media outlets following the deadly shooting at a Maryland newspaper.
Department spokesman James Kenneally tells the Boston Globe officers will be making a concerted effort to swing past newsrooms more frequently Friday as part of their regular patrols. He didn’t disclose which media outlets would get the additional protection.
Kenneally added that the directive was put in place shortly after the Thursday shooting at The Capital Gazette in Annapolis, which killed at least five and injured several more. And Police Commissioner William Evans stressed his department isn’t aware of any similar threats directed toward Boston media.
The New York Police Department also posted officers near the offices of The New York Times, ABC News and other major outlets.
PITTSFIELD — Union representatives for nurses working in the Berkshires have voted to ratify new terms for their contracts.
The registered nurses at Berkshire Medical Center bargained for 22 months over a new contract and temporarily walked off the job in October. The Berkshire Eagle reports Members of the Massachusetts Nurses Association voted Thursday, with 97 percent in favor of approving terms that will cut short a planned second strike this month.
In a statement Thursday night, the union called the contract a huge success for patients, nurses and the community.
The contract provides assurances from the hospital that workloads for registered nurses will not grow worse. The agreement also includes wage gains and an agreement that nurses will pay higher premiums for individual health policies.
BOSTON — Marijuana regulators may be closer to issuing the first retail license to sell recreational pot in Massachusetts.
The Cannabis Control Commission is slated to consider on Monday recommendations from its staff on a retail application submitted by Cultivate Holdings of Leicester.
The company currently operates a medical marijuana dispensary in the Worcester County town.
Even if a provisional license were to be issued, it’s unclear how long it would take for retail sales to begin at the site.
The state’s voter-approved recreational marijuana law called for pot shops to open on Sunday, but the commission has yet to award any retail licenses. Local concerns about the stores and the lack of any marijuana testing facilities required under the law are among factors cited for missing the July 1 target date.
From Associated Press