Holiday Lights Come Alive

Democrats celebrated winning North Carolina's lone toss-up race for the U.S. House this month as Wiley Nickel won the 13th District seat. The victory creates a 7-7 split in the state’s delegation — the best showing for Democrats in a decade. But there’s a good chance Nickel’s district and others will be altered for the 2024 elections, returning the advantage to Republicans. The current lines are only being used for these elections. New lines will be drawn by Republicans, who still control the General Assembly. And a new GOP majority on the state Supreme Court likely will be more skeptical of legal challenges that scuttled previous boundaries.

A helicopter pilot and a meteorologist who worked for a North Carolina television station died following the crash of the station’s helicopter next to an interstate highway in the Charlotte area. WBTV broadcasters who had been reporting on the crash identified their colleagues on air Tuesday about three hours following the deadly incident. The men were identified as meteorologist Jason Myers and pilot Chip Tayag. The crash occurred along Interstate 77. Johnny Jennings, chief of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, said no vehicles were involved in the incident. The chief said preliminary witness accounts indicate that the pilot made some “diversionary” maneuvers and “probably saved some lives."

A historically Black university in North Carolina says it has filed a complaint with the Department of Justice seeking a review of a search of a bus carrying students during a traffic stop in South Carolina last month. Shaw University President Paulette Dillard has accused law enforcement officers of racially profiling students traveling to a conference in Atlanta. Spartanburg County Sheriff Chuck Wright called the accusations false, saying officers stopped the bus because it was swerving. Dillard says the issue is how the alleged minor violation turned into a drug search. The complaint states that a lane violation would be insufficient justification for a search and students’ privacy was violated because they didn’t consent to a luggage search.

The white gunman who massacred 10 Black people at a Buffalo supermarket has pleaded guilty to murder and hate-motivated terrorism charges. Payton Gendron’s plea means he’ll spend his life in prison without parole. The 19-year-old modified a legally purchased semiautomatic rifle into an assault weapon before targeting the Tops Friendly Market in May. He said in writings posted online that his goal was to terrify Black people and preserve white power. His own lawyer said Monday’s plea “represents a condemnation of the racist ideology that fueled his horrific actions.” Gendron previously pleaded not guilty to separate federal hate crime charges that could carry the death penalty.

Hawaii’s Mauna Loa, the world’s largest active volcano, has started to erupt for the first time in nearly four decades, prompting volcanic ash and debris to fall nearby. The U.S. Geological Survey says the eruption began late Sunday night in the summit caldera of the volcano on the Big Island. Early Monday, it said lava flows were contained within the summit area and weren’t threatening nearby communities. The agency warned residents at risk from Mauna Loa lava flows to review their eruption preparations. Scientists had been on alert because of a recent spike in earthquakes at the summit of the volcano, which last erupted in 1984.

Officials say more than 2 million people in the Houston area remain under a boil order notice after a power outage caused low water pressure at a water purification plant. The advisory — which means water must be boiled before it’s used for cooking, bathing or drinking — also prompted schools in the Houston area to close Monday. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner says the city believes the water is safe but a boil order was required because of the drop Sunday in water pressure. He says water sampling will begin Monday morning and the boil order could be lifted 24 hours after the city is notified the water is safe. Turner said two electrical transformers failed, causing power outages at the water plant.

Here’s a collection curated by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists of what’s arriving on TV, streaming services and music and video game platforms this week.

Days after flocking to stores on Black Friday, consumers are turning online for Cyber Monday to score more discounts on gifts and other items that have ballooned in price because of high inflation. Adobe Analytics, which tracks transactions for top online retailers, forecasts Cyber Monday will remain the year’s biggest online shopping day and rake in up to $11.6 billion in sales. Some analysts expect the amount of items consumers purchase could remain unchanged - or even fall - compared to prior years. And profit margins are expected to be tight for retailers offering deeper discounts to attract budget-conscious consumers and clear out their bloated inventories.