HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Fall is here, but summertime temperatures stick around for several days this week. The first fall front will approach Southeast Texas through midweek, potentially bringing some much needed rain to portions of Southeast Texas. We’re also keeping a watchful eye on the Gulf with an area of interest now in the western Caribbean.
Temperatures Monday will start in the low-mid 70s with afternoon highs back in the low 90s. there is a 20% chance for showers too in the afternoon as a sea breeze develops and move inland.
How long do you expect these summertime temperatures to continue?
High temperatures should remain at or above 90 degrees for several days this week. However, the combination of the midweek cold front and what could be hurricane Helene in eastern Gulf could decrease the humidity, so it might not feel as hot later this week. Needless to say, temperatures will be near or above 90 degrees all week.
Any promising rain chances in the near future?
A cold front will approach Southeast Texas Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. And while this front won’t bring the first taste of fall this time, it could help produce some showers and storms each day depending on when the front arrives. This front will also probably not make it to the coast, but there is a 40% chance for rain for everyone Tuesday and Wednesday.
How long will we have to wait for our first real taste of fall air?
At this time, it looks like we’ll have to wait until the first week of October for any chance of a meaningful cool front to visit us here in Southeast Texas, but next week’s front should at least drop the humidity and bring us some mornings in the 60s by next weekend.
What are you tracking in the tropics?
We continue to see signs that a tropical low could lift out of the Caribbean and into the Gulf this week. There are a lot of scenarios on the table for what it could do and where it could go, so our best advice right now is to simply stay weather aware until we get a better handle on where it is most likely to track. Head to our daily Tropical Updatepage for the latest on what’s happening in the tropics.
Capturing the vastly diverse landscape of America is no easy feat, but one new study analyzing diversity across all 50 states has determined Texas is the second most diverse state in the country.
The video above is from ABC13’s 24/7 livestream.
According to WalletHub’s annual “Most Diverse States in America” report, Texas’ diversity falls second to California, which ranked No. 1. The study ranked each state based on six main categories: socioeconomic diversity, cultural diversity, economic diversity, household diversity, religious diversity, and political diversity.
Texas earned 70.48 points out of a possible 100, falling behind by less than a third of a percentage point behind California’s 70.77 score.
To read the rest of this story, visit our partners at Houston CultureMap.
MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota (KTRK) — In a Week 3 showdown, the Houston Texans look to maintain their winning streak against the Minnesota Vikings on the road on Sunday afternoon.
Both teams are unbeaten with identical records at 2-0, and a reunion of sorts for former Vikings, Stefon Diggs and Danielle Hunter.
Diggs was selected by the Vikings in the fifth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. Not to mention, the four-time Pro Bowl wideout will set foot on the gridiron at U.S. Bank Stadium since his departure from Minnesota in 2020.
Hunter was drafted in the same year as Diggs, but was a third-round pick. In eight seasons with the Vikings, the veteran defensive end added four Pro Bowl selections to his résumé.
Concerning notable injuries to some of the Texans star players, Houston will be playing without running back Joe Mixon, who didn’t travel with the team to Minnesota due to an ankle injury.
During Wednesday’s practice, Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans mentioned running back Cam Akers to get the reps with Mixon out for Sunday’s game.
“He did a good job for us, so we’ll see where Cam is as we go throughout the week as well,” Ryans said on Akers’ impact on the team heading into Week 3.
As for the Vikings, the team already lost rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy due to a season-ending injury after suffering a torn right meniscus in the NFL preseason. Despite Minnesota’s strong start in the first two games behind starting Vikings QB Sam Darnold, star wide receiver Justin Jefferson is expected to play against Houston despite a lingering quad injury.
In the city known as the “Twin Cities,” Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud and his squad will face off against a tough Vikings’ defense, which has thrived early on within Minnesota’s first 2 games of the season.
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Fall begins Sunday, but it will continue to feel more like summer for the foreseeable future. There is a front in the forecast next week that should drop the humidity a tad, and we’ll also have to keep a watchful eye on a tropical low entering the Gulf of Mexico.
Temperatures Sunday started off in the mid 70s and we’ll heat up into the mid 90s by the afternoon under partly cloudy skies. There is the chance for a spot shower to pass by you Sunday with the help of a sea breeze, but it’s only a 10% chance at this time.
How long do you expect these summertime temperatures to continue?
High temperatures should remain at or above 90 degrees for the next 10 days, but we do see some humidity relief late next week behind a weak cool front that could approach Southeast Texas midweek next week.
Any promising rain chances in the near future?
A cold front will approach Southeast Texas Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. And while this front won’t bring the first taste of fall this time, it could help produce some showers and storms each day depending on when the front arrives. This front will also probably not make it to the coast, but there is a 30% chance for rain for everyone both Tuesday and Wednesday.
How long will we have to wait for our first real taste of fall air?
At this time, it looks like we’ll have to wait until the first week of October for any chance of a meaningful cool front to visit us here in Southeast Texas, but next week’s front should at least drop the humidity and bring us some mornings in the 60s by next weekend.
Four people were killed and at least 18 others injured in a shooting in Birmingham, Alabama, on Saturday night, police said.
The shooting — which occurred just after 11 p.m. in the 2000 Block of Magnolia Avenue South, in the Five Points South Entertainment District — was “not random and stemmed from an isolated incident where multiple victims were caught in the cross fire,” police said in a statement.
Police are seeking multiple suspects who they said “fired upon a large group of people who were outside in a public area” and then fled the scene in a vehicle.
“Officers arrived on the scene when they observed two adult males and one adult female lying unresponsive on a sidewalk suffering from multiple gunshot wounds,” police said. All three victims were pronounced dead at the scene by Birmingham Fire and Rescue personnel.
Additional victims were then located in the area, while others began arriving at local hospitals. One man was pronounced dead at UAB Hospital, police said.
As of Sunday morning, police said there were a total of 22 gunshot victims — four dead and 18 wounded, “with injuries ranging from non-life-threatening to life-threatening.”
During a press conference Sunday morning, police said they believe it was a “targeted shooting,” and that the targeted individual was among those who are dead. They did not identify the person or say why they might have been targeted.
Birmingham Police Chief Scott Thurmond extended “heartfelt condolences” to the victims and their families.
“Our hearts go out to them as we work through this,” Thurmond said.
Mayor Randall Woodfin called for an end to gun violence, saying his “first priority is public safety.”
“Do not tell me this is not solvable — at the same time, do not tell me this is only on the police to solve it,” Woodfin said. “Elected officials — locally, statewide and nationally — have a duty to solve this American crisis, this American epidemic of gun violence.”
More than 100 shell casings were collected at the scene, and police said they believe a modified automatic weapon with a “gun switch” may have been used in the incident.
No arrests have been made as of Sunday morning.
The police urged anyone with information on the shooting to contact the BPD Homicide Division at 205-254-1764 or anonymously via Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777. Crime Stoppers may award tipsters up to $5,000 in cash for information, the police added.
The Birmingham Police Department is working with the FBI and ATF on the investigation, the department said. Authorities are also seeking information from witnesses.
Dr. Steve Bynon was accused of changing figures in a database so certain patients on the waitlist would be unable to receive a new liver.
He admitted to his actions in newly-obtained documents from the Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
ABC13 obtained the 30-page report on Friday morning.
Bynon is referred to as “The Transplant Surgeon” throughout those pages, but Memorial Hermann confirmed he’s the doctor responsible for making “inappropriate changes” to patient information.
“This was all done to ensure patients were safely transplanted,” Bynon was quoted as saying in the report.
JD Davis and Tommy Hastings are both attorneys representing clients who have filed lawsuits as a result of Bynon’s actions.
They said the report, which they first saw Friday, left them shocked.
“It just infuriates me,” Davis said.
The documents give more specific examples of what Bynon did to patients who were waiting for a new liver.
For example, the database stated on Nov. 9, 2022, that “Patient No. 1” could receive a new one from anyone ages 0-to-80 years.
Bynon changed it to a maximum of eight years.
Weight was also a figure manipulated by the doctor.
“Patient No. 3” could receive a liver from anyone weighing 15-to-200 pounds on Feb. 19, 2018.
The minimum was raised to 150 pounds later that year.
No patient names were used in the documents.
Bynon said he was the only doctor at Memorial Hermann who participated in this practice, but Davis believes this was the result of a larger problem within the hospital.
“I can’t even imagine how this was allowed to happen,” Davis said. “It’s mind-boggling that Dr. Bynon was able to go in there and change data without anyone from Memorial Hermann noticing.”
Bynon no longer oversees the transplant program, but Memorial Hermann said he’s still affiliated with the hospital.
“Our top priority continues to be ensuring the continuity of compassionate care for our patients,” the hospital said in a statement to ABC13.
ABC13 has also confirmed Bynon is still a professor of surgery at UTHealth Houston.
On Friday evening, Memorial Hermann sent a statement to ABC13:
“Memorial Hermann first became aware of issues within the liver transplant program on Friday, March 22, 2024, when we were informed by the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) of inappropriate changes to the donor acceptance criteria within the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) transplant information database for patients awaiting a liver transplant at Memorial Hermann – TMC. At that time, we undertook an immediate investigation.
Within days, we inactivated our liver transplant program, and removed the physician responsible for making the inappropriate changes to the donor acceptance criteria within the UNOS transplant information database, Dr. Steve Bynon Jr., from his leadership role. Dr. Bynon is employed by UTHealth Houston as the director of the Division of Immunology and Solid Organ Transplantation and is affiliated with Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center.
These inappropriate changes to the donor acceptance criteria are limited to the liver transplant program and did not impact any other transplant program. However, because there was a shared leadership structure over both the liver and kidney transplant programs, we made the difficult decision to voluntarily inactivate the kidney/pancreas transplant program and evaluate a new physician leadership structure.
In response to the CMS survey which took place in April 2024, we have implemented appropriate corrective action to ensure these issues cannot happen again. These changes include limiting access to UNet, expanded documentation requirements, two-person validation processes for data entry, and additional enhanced protections. The Transplant Quality Manager performs an audit, and the Transplant Oversight Committee reviews the process.
A recent survey by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and Texas Health and Human Services of our abdominal transplant program noted that we had taken appropriate corrective action and are fully compliant. Our top priority continues to be ensuring the continuity of compassionate care for our patients.”
Ted Colbert, the president and chief executive officer of Boeing Defense, Space & Security (BDS), will be leaving the beleaguered company, Boeing announced Friday.
Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg told employees in a letter that the company’s priority “is to restore the trust of our customers and meet the high standards they expect of us to enable their critical missions around the world.”
“I want to thank Ted for his 15 years of service at The Boeing Company, supporting our customers, our people and our communities,” he said in the letter.
Steve Parker will oversee BDS until a permanent replacement is found, according to Ortberg.
The company has endured tremendous financial pressures and extra scrutiny following a series of failures involving its aircraft and supply.
On Jan. 5, a door plug blew out of the company’s 737 Max 9 aircraft at around 15,000 feet in altitude during an Alaska Airlines flight, prompting a federal investigation.
Boeing Starliner, a spacecraft that was being developed for NASA Commercial Crew Program, was hit with several delays and rising costs before its first crewed launch to the International Space Station in June.
However the spacecraft was forced to return without its astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita “Suni” Williams earlier this month after tests showed there was too much risk with regard to the vehicle’s thrusters for re-entry.
The astronauts are scheduled to return next year aboard another craft, extending their stay at the ISS by several months.
Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun and board chairman Larry Kellner both announced their resignations in light of the investigations.
Last week, tens of thousands of Boeing workers voted to strike after rejecting the proposed contract.
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A 29-year-old Houston rapper has been sentenced to life in prison for sex trafficking three minors and an adult, U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani said.
According to court documents, Jacorey Nathaniel Anderson, also known as Slando Kareem, lured victims from Houston to Austin with social media, text messages, and co-conspirators Lelonnie Stephon Jackson, 33, and Thomas Jarrett Barraza, 37.
Victims were used in sexually explicit advertisements for commercial sex online and instructed to walk an area known for prostitution, officials said.
Some of the victims were as young as 15 years old, court documents said. While some escaped within a day, one victim stayed with Anderson for weeks.
Throughout the process, Anderson starved the victims, gave them drugs, and took all the proceeds from the commercial sex.
One of the young victims told the court Anderson’s actions took her childhood away and left a negative impact on all her relationships.
According to officials, Anderson’s music mirrored the lifestyle he lived.
At the trial, the jury saw two of Anderson’s rap videos. In one video, a female victim’s hands and feet are bound while duct tape covers her mouth as Anderson physically assaults her.
“This case exemplifies how art sometimes imitates life. Anderson… performed vile songs glorifying the pimp/prostitute relationship,” Hamdani said.
Anderson was finally arrested in Dallas for attempting to traffic who he thought was a minor but was an undercover officer. His phone was taken as a part of the arrest, which led investigators to his victims.
Co-conspirators Jackson and Barraza pleaded guilty to their involvement in the trafficking. Jackson faces five years in prison and Barraza’s sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 12.
HOUSTON — Justin Verlandersat out almost two months this summer because of a neck injury.
After his latest tough start Friday night in theHouston Astros‘ 9-7 win over the Los Angeles Angels, the 41-year-old right-hander said he should have taken more time to recover.
“I think I came back from the neck injury a little fast,” he said. “Obviously I know the schedule, I know the calendar, and I want to be an asset for this team and to do that I need to be able to pitch and find out where I’m at. Obviously, the results have not been good, but there’s nothing you can do besides trying to pitch.”
Verlander gave up eight hits and six runs in 4 innings. It’s the third time in four starts in which the three-time Cy Young Award winner has given up eight hits and at least five runs.
His struggles have led some to speculate that he could be left off the playoff roster for the American League West leaders, whose magic number dropped to four with Friday’s win.
Manager Joe Espada deflected when asked after the game if he thought Verlander could help the team in the postseason.
“I’ve talked to you guys every single day,” he said. “I’m not going to get into playoff implications. We’re trying to get to the playoffs, right? And we’re trying to put these guys in a position to succeed so we can get to the playoffs.”
Verlander went on the injured list June 15 and returned Aug. 21. He has won only one of six starts since his return and hasn’t pitched longer than five innings in any of those outings.
“I haven’t been good since I’ve been back, so it’s hard,” he said. “But I’ve had hard stretches in my career before [and] just got to find a way to work through it.”
Verlander received a nice ovation as he walked off the mound Friday night in his last home start of the regular season. He patted his chest and waved to the crowd just before he stepped into the dugout.
“These fans know the game, they pay attention,” he said. “They know I’m out there grinding and trying to give everything I can. I’ve worked as hard as humanly possible trying to bounce back as quick as I can from the injury and get back out there, and for them to have that ovation after such a difficult day, yeah, they touched me.”
Verlander, who is in his 20th MLB season, said this has been one of the most difficult stretches of his illustrious career. He is 4-6 with a 5.55 ERA in 16 starts this year.
“Every time I pitched, I’ve felt like I’m kind of inching closer to where I want to be,” he said. “But it’s just not even close to consistent. You see that with the results. At this level, the margin for error is so small. The first couple of innings today I felt were where I wanted to be, where I’ve been kind of searching for, and then it just obviously wasn’t great after that.”
Asked about the possibility of not being included on the playoff roster, he said that’s “not his decision” before adding he probably rushed back in an attempt to help the team come October.
“I see the calendar. I know what time of year it is,” he said. “That’s why I had to come back and try to find myself. … Sitting there, trying to give myself time wasn’t possible. I needed to figure out where I was at. It’s been hard. It’s been a tough lesson. But I don’t regret it. I want to show up for these guys. I want to be there.”
General Motors is recalling more than 449,000 of its SUVs and pickup trucks because the electronic brake control module software may fail to display a warning light when a loss of brake fluid takes place.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Friday that the recall includes certain 2023-2024 Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESVs, 2023 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, 2023-2024 Chevrolet Tahoe and Suburban 1500, 2023 GMC Sierra 1500, 2023-2024 GMC Yukon and Yukon XL models.
A General Motors logo is displayed outside the General Motors Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly plant on Jan. 27, 2020, in Hamtramck, Mich.AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File
The agency said that without the warning light, a vehicle may be driven with low brake fluid, which can reduce braking performance and increase the risk of a crash.
A free software update will be provided to vehicle owners.
Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed Oct. 28. Vehicle owners can contact GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006.
