It’s Tuesday, November 17th - and NBC 6 has the top stories for the day.
No. 1 - Two adults and two children were injured in a shooting Monday evening in Golden Glades.
Miami-Dade police responded to the 200 block of South Biscayne River Drive, where a subject in a black sedan approached some residents, opened fire into a large crowd, and then fled the scene. The victims - a 21-year-old woman, a 22-year-old man, a 6-year-old boy and a 3-year-old girl - were found suffering from apparent gunshot wounds and were taken to the hospital in stable condition. Further information was not available. Anyone with information about the shooting was asked to call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS.
No. 2 - Miami-Dade County will get a new mayor Tuesday - and for the first time in history, a female will take control of what some call the "second most powerful political position" in the state of Florida.
Daniella Levine Cava will be sworn in during a ceremony, two weeks after her win over Esteban "Steve" Bovo on Election Day. Levine Cava defeated Bovo after they were the top two finishers in the August primary. On paper, it was a non-partisan race, though Levine Cava had mostly aligned herself with Democrats and becomes the first progressive to hold the office since Alex Penelas from 1996 to 2004. Levine Cava won her first commissioner race for District 8 in 2014 and was re-elected in 2018, but resigned her county commission seat to run for mayor.
No. 3 - Since public schools in Broward and Miami-Dade County reopened six weeks ago. 45% of Miami-Dade students and 25% in Broward are currently learning in the classrooms, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has said he would not allow entire school districts to shut down again.
The superintendents know that, of course, but seem to be keeping that option open regardless of the governor’s edicts. The Covid-19 positivity rate is just under 8% in South Florida, much higher than the benchmark used to reopen the schools, which was 5%. Each district is planning to consult with its respective Covid-19 pandemic task force of health experts this week as they seek guidance on how to proceed. For more on their perspective plans, click here for the story from NBC 6 education reporter Ari Odzer.
Local
No. 4 - Forced to confront long hold times, uninformed employees and unresolved disputes, many families are surrendering to lousy customer service and leaving money on the table - in the middle of an economic recession.
Those are the key findings of a new nationwide survey from NBC- and Telemundo-owned TV stations. The non-scientific survey of consumers who chose to participate, conducted online in late October and early November, garnered more than 1,420 responses. Our survey suggests COVID-19 has not aided customer service. The vote among viewers was not even close. 75% of respondents said customer service has worsened during the pandemic. To hear what else customers are saying, click here for the story from NBC 6 consumer investigator Sasha Jones.
No. 5 - In a one-two punch, Hurricane Iota roared ashore as a dangerous Category 4 storm along almost exactly the same stretch of Nicaragua's Caribbean coast that was devastated by an equally powerful Hurricane Eta 13 days earlier.
Iota had intensified into an extremely dangerous Category 5 storm during the day Monday, but the National Hurricane Center said it weakened slightly as it neared the coast late Monday and made landfall with maximum sustained winds of 155 mph. It hit the coast about 30 miles south of the Nicaraguan city of Puerto Cabezas, also known as Bilwi. People hunkered down even before the hurricane arrived, already battered by screeching winds and torrential rains. Forecasters warned that Iota's storm surge could reach 15 to 20 feet above normal tides.
No. 6 - Local weatherwise, the latest cold front arriving Tuesday in South Florida will bring showers and storms, but beautiful weather later in the work week. Keep your NBC 6 app handy for push alerts on any severe weather as well as First Alert Doppler 6000.
