VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) -- City Council is poised to form a committee to help plan for a permanent memorial that'll pay homage to the 2019 mass shooting at the municipal center.

If approved Tuesday evening, the resolution on the council's agenda directs City Manager Patrick Duhaney to hire two outside consultants that will help the committee complete its work.

While it has been 18 months since the tragedy, Emily Labows, Director of Cultural Affairs stressed to council in September that a memorial process "can not be rushed."

"Our commitment (is) to a special place of remembrance," Labows said. "To ensure the victims, survivors, and those who responded on 5/31. Will never be forgotten."

It was on May 31, 2019, a city engineer shot and killed 12 people and seriously hurt four others before being killed by police at Building 2. Almost all victims were city employees.

The community donated hundreds of trinkets to form a memorial near the police station in the immediate aftermath. Those items have since been collected and documented.

Labows, along with Recovery Program Manager Lauren Heath, told council that in studying other cities that have undergone similar tragedies, establishing a committee for the memorial was the right way to go.

The ultimate goal for the committee is to gather public input, look for possible locations and provide funding and design recommendations to the memorial.

The resolution sets aside $115,000 for the city manager to hire two outside consultants. One would serve as a liaison between the victim's family & survivors and the committee and the other would gather input from the rest of the community on what they want to see in a memorial.

Both would assist the City Council in coming up with the makeup of the body. Council members will ultimately appoint the committee members.

Jason Nixon, whose wife Kate worked in Public Utilities and was killed, said he has already expressed interest in being on the committee.

Nixon has often criticized the cities handling of the tragedy, being one of the louder voices looking for investigations into the massacre. Thus far no motive has been found.

Nixon said a memorial should have already been erected and that consultants would only waste money.

"I already did the leg work," Nixon said.

Nixon is referring to sketch of a grief stricken King Neptune with 12-broken turtle shells at its base.

"That's Virginia Beach. That is what we families are feeling," Nixon said.

The goal of the committee is to find consensus. The role of the liaison will be to ensure that the memorial "has elements that speak to each of the families, survivors and their loved ones."

While no firm timeline is set. Council's resolution calls for a progress report no later than June 2021.

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VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — A crash has closed all eastbound lanes of on I-264 late Monday evening.

Officials say the call for the crash came in around 9:40 p.m. at mile marker 21.8 near Laskin Road in Virginia Beach.

Traffic is currently being diverted to Exit 20 following the crash.

No injuries were reported.

Traffic is being diverted to exit 20 following a crash on I-264 east near Laskin Road. #hrtraffic https://t.co/slRiso94yi

— VDOT Hampton Roads (@VaDOTHR) December 1, 2020

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CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY) — Chesapeake Public Schools shifted 3 classrooms after employees tested positive for COVID-19.

Over the weekend, school epi-links were discovered at two Chesapeake Intermediate schools, Crestwood and Truitt Intermediate.

Epi-links mean test results that were received are believed to be linked to previously reported
cases. Fortunately, the affected classrooms had already made the shift to online learning.

In each case, an employee tested positive for the virus in mid-November, and all students in the affected classrooms, as well as any employees determined to be close contacts, were sent home to quarantine.

Since that time, two additional employees, one in each location, who had been on active quarantine received positive test results as well, bringing the total number of cases in each location to 2. As a result, the Chesapeake Health Department has determined the two cases in each location are linked; and, therefore, were labeled as an outbreak.

Officials say the district is closely monitoring the situations.

Chesapeake Public Schools began welcoming students back to on-campus learning in September and families were offered a choice between on-campus and at-home learning. Currently, students at the elementary level can attend school five days per week if their parents selected that option.

The district worked closely with the Chesapeake Health Department throughout their investigation. Since all individuals impacted by these situations were already quarantined, school officials say there was no need to change the operational status of the schools.

CPS has had its youngest learners on campus for two months without any known student-to-student, student-to-teacher, or teacher-to-student transmissions in schools.

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NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — The Norfolk Department of Public Health is working with local churches to hold a free COVID-19 testing event.

The event will be held on Thursday, December 10, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at 1010 East 26th Street.

Testing will be available for anyone age 3 and above.

The #NorfolkVA Dept. of Public Health, in partnership with local churches, is holding a free drive thru & walk-up #COVID19 testing event + free flu vaccines on Thursday, Dec. 10 from 1-3pm at 1010 E 26th St. Testing is available for any individual ages 3+, while supplies last. pic.twitter.com/DgZMhvNenx

— City of Norfolk, VA (@NorfolkVA) November 30, 2020

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(NEXSTAR) – Disney+ added a special opening credit to "Black Panther" to honor late star Chadwick Boseman on what would have been his 44th birthday Sunday.

The 30-second tribute shows Boseman, who played T'Challa/Black Panther, and a redesigned Marvel logo remembering Boseman, who died in August after battling colon cancer.

Disney Executive Chairman Bob Iger hinted Saturday that something was coming, tweeting, "To all fans of #BlackPanther: watch the film on #DisneyPlus late tonight, for a special tribute to someone that was and will always be near and dear to our hearts."

To all fans of #BlackPanther: watch the film on #DisneyPlus late tonight, for a special tribute to someone that was and will always be near and dear to our hearts.

— Robert Iger (@RobertIger) November 28, 2020

Marvel shared the updated opening, which you can see below:

Long live the King. #WakandaForever pic.twitter.com/uW1KisOkTq

— Marvel Entertainment (@Marvel) November 29, 2020

Boseman's death shocked the movie world as he had not spoken publicly about his diagnosis, which doctors made four years before his death, his family said in a statement Aug. 28.

He died at his Los Angeles-area home surrounded by his wife and family.

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RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC)- With two vaccine candidates now seeking federal approval, health officials say distribution in Virginia could start by the middle of December.

On Monday, Moderna became the second vaccine maker to ask the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for regulatory clearance after a clinical trail found their immunization was 94 percent effective at preventing COVID-19. Pfizer was the first to request an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA).

If either candidate is approved, it would give them the greenlight to ramp up production for a widespread vaccination campaign.

The Virginia Department of Health said 70,000 doses are expected initially--a share that is based on the state's population size rather than relative need. State Epidemiologist Dr. Lilian Peake told lawmakers in a virtual briefing on Monday that Virginia will get less than 3 percent of the first batch because of this federal criteria.

Peake said the state is still waiting for a CDC advisory group to release recommendations on who should be prioritized first. She said healthcare workers are likely to be at the top of the list, followed by residents at long-term care facilities and others with high-risk health conditions.

“Early on, there likely wouldn’t be enough for all healthcare workers so that will need to be broken down into subgroups and we’re still working with the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association (VHHA) to determine that," Peake said. "The level to which it's broken down is going to depend on how much vaccine we have and we don't know that yet."

Right now, Peake said officials are focused on getting those first doses out fast by pre-positioning some ahead of FDA approval. She said the state has identified 16 facilities and health systems that can store the Pfizer vaccine in ultra-cold conditions--something Moderna's immunization doesn't require.

During Monday's hearing, multiple members of the House Health Welfare and Institutions Committee questioned Peake about the possibility of a vaccine mandate.

"My understanding is that is not something that is being considered at this time," Peake responded.

Peake was also asked about a possible requirement for public schools. She said this has yet to be deliberated because the vaccines that are currently up for approval still haven't been studied in children. She said that's typical for this stage of development.

"Those studies still have to be done before the vaccine would be recommendation for children so that's one reason why we haven't started that planning yet around school vaccinations," Peake said.

In an interview with 8News on Monday, Gov. Ralph Northam tried to reassure Virginians who're concerned about possible side effects.

"One of the issues that we know is going to be present as we move forward is trust," Northam said. "We want to make sure we work with local leaders, our faith leaders and talk about how this vaccination is safe and effective."

Peake said it's too soon to say when herd immunity could be reached in the commonwealth but ramping up vaccine production is expected to take several months.

Northam hopes the general public will have the opportunity to be vaccinated by the summer of 2021.

"My message to Virginians is that there is hope for all of us, there is light at the end of the tunnel but there is still going to be a couple of months where we will have to remain vigilant and follow the guidelines," Northam said.

Northam announced $22 million in federal CARES Act funding to support mass vaccination planning through 2020 but it's still unclear how the state will fund the rest of what's expected to be a $120 million effort overall.

In an email to 8News, Virginia Department of Health Public Relations Coordinator Tammie Smith said they're expecting Congress to allocate additional funding in its next relief package but Virginia is prepared to use state resources if all else fails.

In the special session, the General Assembly passed a revised budget that directs the Virginia Department of Health to make a plan for the equitable distribution of a COVID-19 vaccine once one becomes available. The first report on that plan's progress is due to the General Assembly on Tuesday.

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RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Two people were killed in a six-vehicle crash on Thanksgiving night in Richmond's Northside. Family has identified one of the victims as 58-year-old Kevin Hancock, a beloved youth football coach.

On Monday night, Richmond Police identified the second victim as Karen Murphy.

The horrific crash shut down the intersection of Chamberlayne Avenue and Brookland Park Boulevard on Thursday night. Just before 8 p.m., Richmond Police say the driver of a white pick-up truck barreled through a red light hitting two cars in the intersection, causing a chain reaction. The collision caused the vehicles to spin out of control and three more cars were hit.

Police say a woman died from her injuries at the scene while another man, with life-threatening injuries, died at the hospital. Family has shared that Kevin Hancock was a passenger in one of the six cars and died as a result of his injuries.

Christopher Lee, one of Hancock's sons, tells 8News his family is trying to cope with the sudden loss. Lee and his younger brother, Kevin Christian, sat on the front porch of their siblings home on Monday talking about the good times and last moments with their father.

"I had just seen him on a family zoom call earlier," shared Lee. "We did this thing because of COVID where we all got a zoom link, my cousins and everybody got online. My dad peaked his head in and said alright 'I'm gone'."

Lee and Christian were both on that Zoom call and never imagined that the chilling words of 'I'm gone' would be the last they heard from their father.

The brothers told 8News that their dad was headed home on Thanksgiving night, traveling in the car with a family-friend and their uncle when they were blindsided. Lee says the family-friend was driving at the time of the crash and is the woman police say died at the scene. He goes on to say his uncle suffered from multiple broken bones and is expected to be released from the hospital in the coming days.

Hancock's youngest son, Chrisitan said, "I don't know how to say how I feel right now".

8News visited the crash site on Monday and there is a growing memorial on the sidewalk near the Walgreens. The memorial is filled with flowers, a cross, and clothing.

• 

• 

Lee said he wants his dad to be remembered for all the good he's done in the Richmond community.

"The biggest thing about my dad was that he was a legend in the neighborhood he grew up in."

A legend in the Mosby and Church Hill neighborhoods, where their dad is better known as Coach Hancock. The beloved youth football coach has been mentoring young men on and off the field for more than three decades, winning ten championships.

"He was a father figure for a lot of kids," explained Lee. "He paid for a lot of the uniforms and equipment out of his own pocket. I'm 37 and he's been coaching my whole life. He volunteered, never got paid. He had so much love for the neighborhood and for the community."

Hancock's sons say they are planning a service to honor their father and will release details in the near future.

8News reached out to RPD multiple times to learn more about the name of the driver who ran the red light and any pending charges, but have not heard back. Both Lee and Christian say they are angry at the careless nature of the crash and want justice, but too have not heard anything from the department about the driver.

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CHESTERFIELD, Va. (WRIC) -- The Laurels of Bon Air, a skilled nursing and rehabilitation center in Chesterfield, is dealing with a COVID-19 outbreak. According to the most recent data from the Virginia Department of Health, the care facility has over 100 coronavirus cases.

An employee reached by phone at The Laurels of Bon Air confirmed to 8News that three people died from COVID-19 today.

"Every COVID-related death is a loss to our residents’ families and our facility staff. We are not unlike other facilities who have had COVID outbreaks with losses," says Communications Manager Ryan Zimmerman.

Zimmerman says there have been five total COVID-19 related deaths associated with this outbreak. Of the five lives lost, three people were receiving hospice care prior to contracting the virus.

This is not the first that the time facility has experienced loss due to the virus. VDH reported that there was a smaller COVID-19 outbreak at the facility in April that resulted in 12 cases and five deaths.

A staff member at Laurels of Bon Air, who wished to remain anonymous out of fear of retaliation, said they got sick with coronavirus at work.

"I am not doing well," the staff member said. "I have a hard time breathing. I can't eat, I cannot smell, I cannot taste my food. Nothing."

The staff member said they are not being paid for time spent recovering from COVID-19.

"I work there and they don't want to pay me," the staff member said.

Between Nov. 17 and Nov. 20, VDH officials conducted an unannounced inspection which found the facility to be in "substantial compliance." The inspection revealed that out of 106 residents, 28 were positive for COVID-19.

On Nov. 25, the care facility reported on their website that 62 residents and 17 staff members were positive for COVID-19. This was a significant jump from the day before on Nov. 24 when the facility reported that 30 residents and 23 staff members were positive. Six staff members reportedly recovered from the virus.

As of Nov. 30, their website is reporting 62 residents and 17 staff currently infected with COVID-19 at the facility. In the last seven days, two residents and five staff members have started to see "new onset respiratory symptoms."

According to health officials, long-term care facilities are experiencing outbreaks of COVID-19 due to staff unknowingly getting the virus and passing it on to their high-risk patients.

Dr. Alexander Samuel, Chesterfield Health District Director, said today that:

We were notified of the initial case on November 5 with a majority of the cases following within the next two weeks.  The facility had not been allowing indoor visitation, so the most likely source would be an infected staff member reporting to work, which has been consistent with what we are generally seeing at long-term care facilities lately, as case numbers are increasing so steeply in the community.  We're currently aware of fewer than five deaths at the facility so far.  

Dr. Alexander Samuel, Chesterfield Health District Director

Dr. Samuel said the facility is working to address the outbreak using surveillance testing to locate residents and staff who might be positive but aren't showing symptoms.

However, a staff member claims the facility has not been quarantining patients. On top of that, the staff member said they have been allowing people to come and go -- people coming into the facility from hiring agencies or those being hired to make repairs.

According to Zimmerman, everyone entering the building is screened for temperature and symptoms.

"I see with my own eyes how they bring these patients downstairs with COVID-19, moving people around and around and around," the staff member said.

Zimmerman says all residents who have tested positive are moved to isolated COVID containment units at the facility. Staff working in these units are exclusively working with these patients and no one else.

Residents who test negative for the virus are separated and "cohorted according to potential exposure."

"Because of this, we essentially have a 'negative and no known exposure' unit as well as a 'negative and potentially exposed' unit," Zimmerman said. "Those in the 'negative and potentially exposed' unit are individuals we believe may have had direct contact with someone who has tested positive."

Dr. Samuels encourages family members to support residents through phone and video calls during this time.

"While positive cases in skilled nursing facilities like The Laurels of Bon Air are unfortunately something to be anticipated due to the recent increased spread of COVID-19 across the state and country, it is a difficult situation for everyone involved and we empathize with our residents, employees, families and community during this unprecedented time," said Regional Director of Operations, Scott Williamson in a press release.

Stay with us for updates as we continue to report on this story.

READ: Findings from VDH inspection -- Laurels of Bon Air

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PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) - A Portsmouth man is recovering at home after his vehicle was hit by a train 10 days ago. 

The crash happened in downtown Suffolk as the man was heading to work. 

The family of Howard Vass gave 10 On Your Side an update on his recovery.

His wife, Shanequa Vass, said it’s a miracle he survived. He has a months-long recovery ahead of him so a fund has been set up to help while he’s out of work. 

Vass said the photos of her husband’s car are a startling reminder of how close she was to losing him.

“That really could’ve been a fatality,” she said.

Howard was driving to work around 5:00 in the morning on November 20. He crossed the train tracks at Liberty Street in downtown Suffolk when a Norfolk Southern train collided with his car.

Disoriented but alive, Howard called his wife.

“He said what he can remember is just kind of like patting and reaching down and realized his phone was still in his pocket so he wanted to let someone know as quickly as possible,” Vass said. “He was grimacing. You could tell he was in a lot of pain over the phone.”

First responders rushed Howard to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital where Vass reunited with him.

“He had several fractured ribs, vertebrae broken in his neck, lacerations to his liver and kidney,” Vass said, describing her husband’s injuries. “Of course, I was just so extremely grateful that he was still here.”

Howard also had a broken tibia and a collapsed lung. Amazingly, he left the hospital just five days after the crash.

“The pain is still significant as you can imagine but he’s progressing and he starts physical therapy (on Tuesday),” Vass said.

A close friend started a fund to help the family while Howard is on the mend. It’s already passed $5,000.

“It’s truly appreciated. My heart is full,” Vass said.

The family is grateful for the support and continued prayers.

“He definitely feels like he has a second chance at life,” Vass said.

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RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Gov. Ralph Northam, First Lady Pamela Northam and a number of cabinet members and state legislators volunteered at food banks across the state today. Many food banks all over the country have begun to see an increase in need due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Leading up to the pandemic, there were around 850,000 food insecure Virginians. Now months into the virus's spread that number could be over a million. Feeding America says that in Virginia it is projected that an additional 275,000 people have become food insecure due to the pandemic.

Northam says 9% of Virginians were food insecure before the pandemic and now in some areas the number is 20% higher.

The governor volunteered at Feeding Southwest Virginia today while his wife helped out at the Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia and the Eastern Shore. Cabinet members and state legislators divided to help at those two locations as well as Feed More in Richmond and the Virginia Peninsula Food Bank in Hampton.

Northam says he wants to encourage everyone to be part of the solution to make sure nobody goes hungry. "When there's this high degree of food insecurity, we all need to be part of that team and really reach out and help individuals," Northam said.

There are seven regional Feeding America food banks in Virginia that work to help partners in their region. To volunteer or donate to these locations, click here.

“We rely heavily on volunteers to get donated food items packaged in a way that we can distribute it to our local partner agencies,” said President and CEO of Feeding America Southwest Virginia Pamela Irvine. “Volunteers are the backbone of our organization, and we welcome everyone who wants to come help provide this critical service in our community.”

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MATHEWS COUNTY, Va. (WAVY) — A man has been arrested after allegedly shooting another man several times in Mathews County.

Mathews County Sheriff's Office say they were called to a report of a shooting in the 700 block of Chapel Neck Road on November 25, the day before Thanksgiving.

When deputies got to the scene, they found a victim who had been shot multiple times. The victim was airlifted to Riverside Regional Hospital in Newport News and is now in stable condition.

Initial investigations revealed that the suspect, later identified as 39-year-old Eric lee Smith from Shacklefords, allegedly opened fire whit what is believed to be an automatic weapon striking the victim and his vehicle multiple times.

The suspect then reached inside the victim’s vehicle and removed property belonging to the victim before fleeing the scene. Surrounding jurisdictions were notified of the suspect’s description and his vehicle. King and Queen County Sheriff’s Office located the vehicle and later apprehended the Smith without incident.

Smith has been charged with armed robbery, aggravated malicious wounding, and two counts of use of a firearm in commission of a felony.

He is currently being held at the Middle Peninsula Regional Security Center without bond.

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This Giving Tuesday your donation could go even further toward helping the community when you donate to the United Way of South Hampton Roads. That's because GEICO is stepping up with a $20,000 match.

"On Giving Tuesday we've gone ahead and given to this great cause that's addressing social equity specifically with the African American Community," GEICO public affairs and community relations manager, Toiya Sosa told WAVY.

The United Way of South Hampton Roads is making Social Equity their focus.

"We have been working in this field for many many years so we really see the disparities," said President and CEO, Michele Anderson.

For example, she said, "We have a neighborhood in Norfolk from one zip code to another. These neighborhoods butt up to each other. There's a 23-year difference in life expectancy and the biggest factor is one zip code is 98% black."

They have two programs, they're especially focused on "United For Children" and "A Mission United."

These programs focus on children and veterans.

GEICO employees donated more than $1.5 Million last year and hope to help bring unity to the community in 2021 by investing not only money but time. They're encouraging other Hampton Roads businesses to do the same.

You can make a donation by texting EQUITY757 to 41444 or go to the United Way South Hampton Roads webpage.

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WASHINGTON (NewsNation Now) — Dr. Scott Atlas has resigned as special adviser to President Donald Trump on coronavirus.

Honored to have served @realDonaldTrump and the American people during these difficult times. pic.twitter.com/xT1hRoYBMh

— Scott W. Atlas (@ScottWAtlas) December 1, 2020

Stanford doctor Scott Atlas, who has no prior background in infectious diseases or public health, was one of the president's lead science advisers on the pandemic. Atlas has been a public skeptic about mask-wearing and other measures widely accepted by the scientific community to slow the spread of the virus.

Stanford issued a statement earlier in November saying his views were inconsistent with the university's approach to the pandemic.

The Faculty Senate of Stanford University also adopted a resolution criticizing Atlas. He responded, saying in part he has "always used science and factual evidence to help generate the best possible policies to save lives."

This is a developing story.

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VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) -- Back in the 1990s, watermen started noticing shrimp were getting caught in their gill nets in waters just off Virginia Beach. In response, the Virginia Marine Resources Commission in 2018 issued free shrimp permits to a couple of watermen in Virginia Beach who would haul in 300 pounds of shrimp on a good day.

Today 12 watermen, with permits, work the waters for shrimp and on a good day, the haul is more than a thousand pounds. 100 people applied for 2020 permits but only 12 permits were issued to watermen in Virginia Beach and the Eastern Shore in a lottery system.

Shrimping is also a game of chance.

"One day I think I caught 16 shrimp, two days later [I caught] 1700 pounds," said Captain Pat Foster who joined the experiment this year. "They are more plentiful this year. I don't know if it's global warming. It seems that everything is moving north," said Foster.

Pat Geer, the Chief of Fisheries Management for VMRC confirms because of warmer ocean water the state has seen exponential growth in the amount of shrimp off the coast of Virginia Beach and the Eastern Shore. Conversely, fish such as summer flounder have moved farther north. Geer is pleased with the experiment which is in its second year. " It's been very successful so far- we want to grow this industry slowly and carefully," said Geer.

Last year Virginia watermen hauled in 60-thousand pounds of green tail white shrimp which is known for its subtle and sweet flavor. So far this season, which runs from October 1 through New Year's Eve, 72,000 pounds of shrimp have been netted off the coast of the resort city.

Captain Pat Foster, of Virginia Beach Shrimp, spent 20-thousand dollars to modify the Alanna Kay to catch shrimp with a 16-foot net that's allowed in the water in 30-minute intervals per haul. So far, Foster, who has worked the waters since 1996, says the investment has paid off.

State officials say the shrimp experiment generates 350-500-thousand dollars a year. Once shrimping becomes a regulated industry, it could become a multi-million dollar industry. Waterman Bobby Crisher says look no further than North Carolina for evidence.

"One shrimp trawler in North Carolina drags more nets than all ten of us[ Virginia Beach watermen] put together. We drag 16 feet they drag four 55 foot nets with one trawler," said Crisher, who was the first waterman in Virginia to obtain a permit for commercial shrimping.

The commerce side of the business is fueled by social media, word of mouth, and handmade signs that are propped along the entrance to the Virginia Beach Fishing Center and along the 300 block of Winston Salem Avenue. Just behind Big Sam's restaurant, the Alanna Kay docks around 3:30 pm, almost daily, to customers who are waiting with coolers and ice.

Marty Nopper, a regular, likes to cook a pound and then freeze a pound. His post-Thanksgiving meal is Italian inspired.

"Shrimp and linguini pasta tonight- this is the only place where I buy my shrimp," said Nopper.

Pierside shrimp along Rudee Inlet sells for $5.00 a pound. North Carolina shrimp, heads off, sells for $12.99 at a nearby grocery store. Captain Foster offers a video tutorial for anyone who has never had the pleasure of beheading the coveted crustacean.

Local shrimpers hope the state will expand the fishery and the length of the season. Currently, the fishery is limited to an area between Dam Neck Rd south to the North Carolina line and within three miles from the shore.

"There's plenty up north[to Cape Henry] that we want fish now- if they expanded that that would be great," said Captain Foster.

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(NEXSTAR) – An object of uncertain origin is expected to hurtle safely past our planet Tuesday, but the object is not a true UFO. Astronomers have been tracking the visitor, known as 2020 SO, since September when it was spotted from an observation station in Hawaii.

Originally thought to be an asteroid, NASA scientists have since suggested that it's a piece of space junk left over from early U.S. space exploration.

"The object is likely not an asteroid," NASA officials wrote in a November 12th research update. "It's probably the Centaur upper stage rocket booster that helped lift NASA's ill-fated Surveyor 2 spacecraft toward the Moon in 1966."

NASA officials say the 2020 SO's orbit did not look like a typical asteroid and much more closely resembled something originating from Earth. Computer modeling helped their team trace the likely origin to the 1966 launch.

"Shortly after lift-off, Surveyor 2 separated from its Centaur upper-stage booster as intended. But control of the spacecraft was lost a day later when one of its thrusters failed to ignite, throwing it into a spin. The spacecraft crashed into the Moon just southeast of Copernicus crater on Sept. 23, 1966," NASA wrote of the mission. "The spent Centaur upper-stage rocket, meanwhile, sailed past the Moon and disappeared into an unknown orbit about the Sun."

Researchers say it's likely the object has passed through the Earth's orbit in the past. This relatively close flyby Tuesday – at the proximity of about one-seventh the typical distance to the moon – should give skywatchers a close enough look to further confirm or disprove the rocket theory.

In 1966 @NASA launched Surveyor 2 to the Moon. Over 50 years later, #PlanetaryDefense experts at @PanSTARRS1 and @NASAJPL detected what could be the upper stage of the rocket that carried Surveyor 2 off our planet: Learn more about this temporary visitor: https://t.co/zVV9P0rXyK pic.twitter.com/oAmEnbFcKd

— NASA Asteroid Watch (@AsteroidWatch) November 12, 2020

The object is believed to be in the range of 15 to 30 feet wide, according to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. It should fly by harmlessly in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

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HAMPTON, Va (WAVY) - A blood drive in Hampton Monday provided several opportunities to help the community Monday.

With help from the Virginia Department of health and Celebrate Healthcare, flu shots, COVID antibody tests, and blood donations were made for the sickle cell disease community.

Sickle Cell is an inherited disease in which there aren't enough healthy blood cells to carry oxygen to your organs.

98 percent of sickle cell patients are African Americans.

The disease is not contagious and can be treated by blood transfusions.

"Due to COVID-19, we’ve had a tremendous shortage of African American donors and of the course the patients, they still need to have the transfusions. They still need the blood products to help eliminate the pain and suffering," said Eric Majette with the Red Cross.

Majette said typically, the best blood type match comes from people within your same ethnic or race group.

“During this time, people are afraid to donate blood during Covid and sickle cell patients need transfusions, they need the blood, "said Gaylene Konoyton with Celebrate Healthcare.

James Day has the trait for the disease but does not suffer, so he decided to help in any way he can.

“I know that I can affect others that actually have the disease itself that trait. Although it doesn’t affect me as much, knowing that I can help out may allow me to tie myself to what I can do," said Day.

The drive also had opportunities to get a free flu shot and COVID antibody test.

“It tests for COVID. It also tests to see if your body came in contact with COVID and your antibody fought the disease off and just didn’t know it. So there are multiple things that the test will give you," said Eric.

He said he understands the fear of COVID because that as well has impacted the African American community greatly, but hopes with all the different resources they offer, more people from the African American community will step up to help.

They hope by spreading the word to the African American community, they will step up and help donate, while also getting a COVID antibody test.

To find a Red Cross donation center near you click here.

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WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) -- With just 11 days to pass a spending bill to avoid a government shutdown, some lawmakers believe Congress is spending too much as the country's debt continues to grow.

Sen. Joe Manchin, a Democrat from West Virginia, says he wakes up every morning with a message.

"First text I get every morning, OK? The national debt [is] 26 trillion dollars," he said.

Manchin says that growing number makes him concerned about what lies ahead for future generations.

"I can't look at your generation, I can't tell you everything is going to be hunky-dory," Manchin added.

Manchin and a group of bipartisan senators said they're working to tackle the debt crisis before it falls into the laps of millennials.

"We're now looking at, without question, the greatest generational transfer of money, certainly of debt, in human history,” Weston Wamp, founder of the Millennial Debt Foundation said.

Wamp is working with members of Congress and with the nation's millennial business leaders to reduce the debt.

"It's time to make tough decisions. This is not funny money," Wamp added.

This week, Congress is working to pass a $1.4 trillion spending bill to keep the government running, as well as consider annual military funding and another round of coronavirus relief.

Manchin says all that spending matters.

"I'm making people aware of the debt. I want people to know the debt," he said.

With President-elect Joe Biden recently naming his economic team, the Millennial Debt Commission is now set to meet again just after inauguration as they work to keep Congress and the country on track.

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The year 2020 is one to remember, a difficult time for many of us, and Mother Nature hasn’t made it any easier. Storm after storm, the 2020 Hurricane Season has been the most active ever.

Captain Ryan Smithies, a U.S. Air Force Hurricane Hunter Pilot knows this first hand, as he and his crew members fly the large C130J directly into these systems. And this year it seemed never-ending, in fact, Smithies mentioned that he had doubled the number of passes through a hurricane this year over what he had last year by the first week of September.

This year racked up 30 named storms, 13 hurricanes, and 6 major hurricanes. There were 12 landfalling systems in the United States, 6 of which were hurricanes. Five systems made landfall on Louisiana’s coastline. It’s the 5th year in a row with at least one Category 5 hurricane, the list of records seems endless. Most notable is the fact that 10 tropical cyclones underwent rapid intensification.

Rapid intensification is when a tropical cyclone increases wind speed by 35mph or more in a 24-hour window. It’s something that used to only happen a few times a year, but now seems to be happening more frequently, and closer to land. Why? There is more energy in the atmosphere.

A changing, warming climate simply means there’s more heat in both the atmosphere and in the oceans. Heat is just a measure of energy, so more heat equals more energy. More energy simply means more extremes.

So the duties of the Hurricane Hunters are vital now more than ever (collecting and feeding real-time data of tropical cyclones, dissecting them so to speak), as the intensity of these systems remains so difficult to forecast. And several of the storms Captain Smithies flew through were on the level of extreme. Take Laura for example, a more memorable mission of his, flying during its rapid intensification process before landfall in Louisiana.

“Whether it’s how the thunderstorms are painting on our radarscope, you know you can see the organization, or just how it feels,” said Smithies. “There may be a pass where you don’t really notice any turbulence, you’re in the eye and the thunderstorms aren’t really organized, and then an hour and a half later, you’re getting rocked.”

Our planet, and especially our oceans, possess a unique energy. It’s one that fuels this power and force, but also one that fuels joy. A joy that some on the East Coast would call, stoke.

“I think it’s really cool that we, as forecasters, have the ability to instill stoke on other people,” said Rob Mitstifer, a surf forecaster for Surfline on the Outer Banks. Just like there are always two sides to every story, there are usually two sides to every extreme, and those that paddle out on the East Coast try to take advantage of that. 

Mitstifer grew up surfing in New Jersey, a true East Coast surfer, and studied meteorology because he always wanted to know how waves got good. Now, forecasting with Surfline, he’s able to marvel at large tropical cyclones while providing useful information for fellow surfers to find stoke, as hurricane season can fuel that joy.

Mitstifer explained the ideal tropical cyclone to provide optimal East Coast surf - it’s a large, powerful storm that poses no threat to land, and one that takes a specific path. A path that runs parallel to the East Coast at a slow pace - almost like Paulette, Teddy and Epsilon did this year. These large systems provided fun waves for numerous surf breaks from the Outer Banks to Virginia Beach. And with the way 2020 has been, fun waves were something many were very grateful for.

“It’s not a cliche to say that surfing is therapy for a lot of people,” added Mitstifer. “That we can just go out, get out in the ocean and take your mind off all world events and just have fun.”

So with more energy to create extremes, there’s more energy to fuel the stoke, just as there’s more energy to fuel power and force.

“Don’t take it for granted,” added Smithies. “Just because a storm doesn’t get you this time, you know it’s more a matter of when.”

Hurricane season is half of a year, six months, from June 1st to November 30th - take the time to make a plan. Whether there are 30 storms or just one, being prepared makes those six months a whole lot less stressful.

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OCRACOKE, N.C. (WAVY) -- A section of North Carolina Highway 12 is closed Monday due to overwash.

NCDOT announced Monday morning that the overwash is causing closures between the ferry terminal and the National Park Service's Pony Pens.

Due to ocean overwash, NC12 on Ocracoke has been CLOSED between the ferry terminal and the NPS Pony Pens. Overwash is expected to continue through the day today. On Hatteras, NC12 is OPEN, but there are several areas of deep standing water due to rain. Please drive carefully. pic.twitter.com/fcTfVqQ0mq

— NCDOT NC12 (@NCDOT_NC12) November 30, 2020

The overwash was expected to continue through the day. That led to suspension of the Hatteras Inlet Ferry.

There's no timetable for reopening at this time. NCDOT says NC12 on Hatteras was open, but there were several areas under deep water due to the rain.

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NEW YORK (AP) — On Dec. 31, China reported a cluster of pneumonia cases of unknown origin to the World Health Organization. By Jan. 31, WHO declared an outbreak of a novel coronavirus a global health emergency. Come March 11, the world was facing down the COVID-19 pandemic.

Parents sat children down to explain what a pandemic is. Related terms usually restricted to medicine and science stormed into everyday conversation. Over time, we were pandemic baking and pandemic dating and rescuing pandemic puppies from shelters.

All of which led Dictionary.com on Monday to declare “pandemic”its 2020 word of the year.

Searches on the site for the word spiked more than 13,500% on March 11, senior research editor John Kelly told The Associated Press in an interview ahead of the announcement.

“That's massive, but even more telling is how high it has sustained significant search volumes throughout the entire year. Month over month, it was over 1,000% higher than usual. For about half the year, it was in the top 10% of all our lookups.”

Another dictionary, Merriam-Webster, also selected pandemic as its word of the year earlier Monday.

Kelly said pandemic beat out routine lookups usually intended to sort more mundane matters, such as the differences between “to, two and too.”

“That's significant,” Kelly emphasized. “It seems maybe a little bit obvious, and that's fair to say, but think about life before the pandemic. Things like pandemic fashion would have made no sense. The pandemic as an event created a new language for a new normal.”

Lexicographers often factor out routine lookups when evaluating word trends.

The pandemic, Kelly said, made us all worthy of watercooler chatter with Dr. Anthony Fauci as our knowledge grew about aerosols, contact tracing, social distancing and herd immunity, along with the intricacies of therapeutic drugs, tests and vaccines that can help save lives.

“These were all part of a new shared vocabulary we needed to stay safe and informed. It's incredible,” said Kelly, who works with a team of lexicographers to come up with words of the year based primarily on site traffic.

Asymptomatic, furlough, non-essential, hydroxychloroquine and a host of other pandemic-related words saw massive increases in lookups as well.

Jennifer Steeves-Kiss, chief executive officer of Dictionary.com, said one key ingredient in the hunt for the site's word of the year is sustained interest over time. Pandemic met that standard.

“This has affected families, our work, the economy,” she said. “It really became the logical choice. It's become the context through which we've had dialogue all through 2020. It's the through line for discourse.”

The word pandemic has roots in Latin and the Greek pandemos, meaning “common, public.” Breaking it down further, “pan” means “all” and “demos” means “people.” As evidenced in a medical text by a Dutch-born physician, Gideon Harvey, pandemic entered English in the 1660s in the medical sense, Kelly said. He noted that “demos” is also the basis for the word democracy.

A pandemic is defined by Dictionary.com as a disease “prevalent throughout an entire country, continent, or the whole world; epidemic over a large area.” Its broader sense, as evidenced in its roots, can be used thusly: “A pandemic fear of atomic war.”

Dictionary.com also noted other worthy search trends beyond the pandemic. After the May 25 death of George Floyd under the knee of a Minneapolis police officer, words around racial justice experienced spikes, including fascism, anti-fascism, defund and white fragility.

“There was no way for us to leave that out of the conversation this year,” Kelly said.

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(NEXSTAR) -- McDonald's McRib sandwich will return Wednesday, its first nationwide comeback since 2012.

“The McRib has been a beloved menu item at McDonald’s since its inception nearly 40 years ago,” Vice President of Menu Innovation Linda VanGosen said in a release. “We’re proud to serve the McRib nationwide for everyone to enjoy.”

it’s always “when is the McRib coming back” and never “how are you doing person who runs the McDonald’s account”

— McDonald's (@McDonalds) October 23, 2020

 The popular sandwich, which debuted on menus in 1982, will be back in the U.S. for a limited time, unlike in Germany, where it's available year-round.

The McRib features boneless pork topped with barbecue sauce, onions and pickles. Last year, McDonald's sold the sandwich at 10,000 of its 14,000 restaurants in the U.S.

got 10,000 McRib sandwiches in my office rn

— McDonald's (@McDonalds) November 29, 2020

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NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) -- William & Mary men's basketball will pause all team activities for two weeks after a positive coronavirus test in the program.

The university made the announcement on Monday morning, saying the program was notified on Sunday of a positive test in the team's Tier 1 personnel after regular surveillance testing. William & Mary didn't specify whether it was a player that tested positive, but Tier 1 includes players, coaches, trainers and managers, all of which will now quarantine for 14 days.

The Tribe (0-1) have only played one game this season, an 86-78 loss at Old Dominion on Saturday. It's unclear if the news will affect ODU going forward.

The two-week quarantine means William & Mary won't play several upcoming games, including Monday night's game vs. N.C. State and games against Hampton (Dec. 3), at George Washington (Dec. 5), at Norfolk State (Dec. 9) and at Virginia (Dec. 12).

"The health and safety of our student-athletes, staff and community will always be the priority," interim Director of Athletics, Jeremy Martin said.  "We will continue to work closely with university leadership and our medical personnel to ensure we are maintaining the safest possible environment for all involved."

The team is expected to return to normal activity on Monday, Dec. 14, barring any setbacks, the university says. Their next game would be Dec. 19 vs. High Point before starting conference play.

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