A new set of COVID-19 variants, nicknamed FLiRT, is rising in prevalence in the United States.

The variant, labeled KP.2, made up about 25% of the COVID-19 cases in the U.S. in April, according to USA Today. That rise makes it the new dominant variant in the country, surpassing JN.1.

"The CDC is tracking SARS-CoV-2 variants KP.2 and KP.1.1, sometimes referred to as 'FLiRT,' and working to better understand their potential impact on public health," the agency said in an emailed statement to USA TODAY in May.

"Currently, KP.2 is the dominant variant in the United States, but laboratory testing data indicate low levels of SARS-CoV-2 transmission overall at this time. That means that while KP.2 is proportionally the most predominant variant, it is not causing an increase in infections as transmission of SARS-CoV-2 is low," the CDC said in the statement.

Read more at heraldnews.com.

Jack Teixeira, the Massachusetts Air National Guardsman stationed on Cape Cod accused of leaking classified Pentagon information on Discord, could face a trial by court-martial.

During a Tuesday hearing at Hanscom Air Force Base, Air Force prosecutors urged a military hearing officer to make that recommendation.

Teixeira, 22, of North Dighton, pleaded guilty in March to all six counts of willful retention and transmission of national defense information. Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts Joshua Levy has said Teixeira faces between 11 and 17 years in prison.

The preliminary hearing officer will review the evidence and determine whether probable cause exists to support charges against Teixeira, according to an Air Force spokesperson.

Read more at heraldnews.com.

FALL RIVER — Brayton Point LLC is offering to reach a plea deal with the town of Somerset over a criminal complaint pending in Fall River District Court. 

But while the town is seeking $3.5 million in fines for two misdemeanors charges brought by Somerset, the company is offering to now pay $70,200.

Lawyers for the town and for Brayton Point were in court Tuesday, but the case is still pending, and the offer will now go before the Somerset Board of Selectmen.

The next court date on the matter is June 18. 

Fall River District Court Judge Paul Pino, who has presided over the case since the town filed criminal charges in November, again urged the two sides to come to a reasonable agreement on the amount of the fines.

Read more from Jo C. Goode at heraldnews.com.

FALL RIVER — The Massachusetts Parole Board has granted so-called “satanic cult” murderer Robin Murphy release from prison just nine weeks after the 61-year-old Fall River woman made her case to be free once again related to the triple murders that occurred in 1979 and 1980. 

State Rep. Alan Silvia, who was one of the lead Fall River police detectives in the case against Murphy and two other co-defendants back then, said he was contacted late Tuesday morning by the parole board and notified of their decision. 

Silvia, who has attended several parole hearings for Murphy including the most recent on March 5 where he spoke against releasing Murphy, indicated that he was shocked by the parole board’s decision.

Read more from Jo C. Goode at heraldnews.com.

Private equity firms have been buying up hospitals and health care systems, like Steward Health Care, at an increasing rate over the past few decades, according to the Institute for New Economic Thinking.

This growing trend, however, has left patients, doctors, and local politicians concerned that the private equity business model, which consists of acquiring hospitals with the end goal of quickly extracting financial value to deliver large returns to investors, does not lend to high-quality patient care.

That couldn't be clearer in the case of Steward. This now-bankrupt for-profit corporation owns eight Massachusetts hospitals, including Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton, Morton Hospital in Taunton and Saint Anne's Hospital in Fall River.

Read more at heraldnews.com.

Joe Feitelberg didn't just speak to people. He engaged them. Rich, poor and everything in between. He asked questions. He absorbed the answers. He knew everyone he met had a story and he wanted to hear it.

That approach serverd him well, in both business and life. Enormously loved and respected in Greater Fall River and beyond, Joe Feitelberg, civic leader and insurance entrepreneur, died on May 10 while in hospice care in Lincoln. He was 89.

“We lost a good one,” said John Feitelberg, the third of Joe's six children and his father's successor as president of Feitelberg Insurance on Milliken Boulevard in Fall River.

Read more from Greg Sullivan at heraldnews.com.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — The Providence Fire Department is mourning the loss of one of its members.

Providence’s firefighter union posted on social media that Cipriano Illiano died at the age of 41.

Cip, as he was known, worked for the Tiverton Fire Department from 2010 to 2013 before continuing his career in Providence.

Read more at wpri.com.

Comcast is planning a bundle that will include access to Peacock, Netflix and Apple TV, the company’s chair said this week.

The new service, which will be called “StreamSaver,” will be available to Comcast broadband, TV and mobile customers later this year, Variety reported, citing remarks from Comcast Chair Brian Roberts at the Moffet Nathanson Investor Conference on Tuesday.

The service will “come at a vastly reduced price to anything available today,” Roberts said, though he did not offer any details on pricing, the outlet noted.

Read more at wpri.com.

EAST PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — An investigation is underway after a crash in East Providence left four injured and knocked out power to the vast majority of the Riverside neighborhood.

East Providence Battalion Chief Joe Crowshaw told 12 News firefighters rushed to Forbes Street just after 8 p.m. following reports of a two-car crash that took down a utility pole.

Crowshaw said both vehicles were heavily damaged and a nearby tree had caught fire from the downed power lines. That fire eventually spread to the vehicle that had slammed directly into the utility pole but was quickly extinguished, he added.

Read more at wpri.com.

As the black storm clouds of the Steward Health Care system financial boondoggle start to rain ramifications, state lawmakers are seeking silver linings.

“This crisis creates an opportunity, allows us to preemptively design what the health care system should look like in this region and across the commonwealth,” said Sen. Paul Feeney, D-Foxborough, the vice chair of the Senate Committee on Post-Audit and Oversight at its April 24 meeting, held at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW 223) building in Taunton. “It’s an opportunity for a more global view on the way to deliver health care services across Massachusetts.”

The meeting brought together legislators, state officials, policy advisors and the leaders of hospitals most affected by the possible closure of the Steward facilities.

EAST PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — The unofficial start to summer is two weeks away and AAA Northeast says it’s going to be a busy one.

With Memorial Day Weekend around the corner, AAA predicts that nearly 44 million people will hit the road or take to the skies, which is a 4% increase from last year and exceeds pre-pandemic levels for the first time.

Read more at wpri.com.

FALL RIVER — The Spindle City has lost one of is great servants.

Manny Papoula, who gave much of his time and a good deal of his money to help others, died this week. The former Durfee High School and Boston College basketball player was 80.

Paul Silva, of Silva-Faria Funeral Homes, said late Saturday morning that the precise day of Papoula's death was not known and that arrangements are not yet set.

A mathematics teacher, Papoula taught professionally for 30 years, the final 26 in Fairlawn, N.J. In New Jersey, he was once honored as a state teacher of the year. His state pension, which he described as very good, allowed him to take an early retirement and return to his hometown.

Read more at heraaldnews.com.

FALL RIVER — In Steve Winarski's humble assessment, he was but the Durfee softball Ralph Kramden.

“I just drove the bus. The kids did all the hard work,” the Hilltoppers' former head coach said last week.

If Winarski's name isn't already synonymous with Durfee softball, it's about to be. On Tuesday, the beautiful new artificial turf softball field at Durfee will be named for the retired physical education teacher. The dedication ceremony is set for 5 p.m., with a game against Diman Regional to follow at 6 p.m. The public is invited and urged to attend.

The Durfee boss on the diamond from 1997 to 2011, Winarski enjoyed great success, most notably with his Hilltoppers winning two state Division 1 championships — in 1998 and 2004.

The players' hard work, he mentioned, included Sunday practices before Monday games, two-hour practices preseason, and 90-minute/no-standing-around practices during the season. “I wanted to keep everyone busy, everyone always moving,” said Winarski, who recently turned 70.

Read more at heraldnews.com.

FALL RIVER — It’s been a fenced-in eyesore on South Main Street for years, but the renovation of the tiny, but very visible, Jerry Lawton Memorial Plaza pocket park on South Main Street across from the Fall River Justice Center could finally see its much-needed renovation soon. 

“The contract has been awarded to Century Paving. We have had some fits and starts with trying to get the bids,” said assistant planner Christopher Parayno on Thursday. 

Mayor Paul Coogan earmarked $250,000 in American Rescue Plan Act money to upgrade the park, which is noted in the city’s downtown redevelopment plan. 

Parayno, who oversees the project, said the city has gone out for three different bids on the project. 

Read more from Jo C. Goode at heraldnews.com.

NEW BEDFORD, Mass. (WPRI) — Alex DaLomba Tavares was having the time of his life while on vacation in Puerto Rico with his girlfriend.

But it quickly took a turn for the worse when the New Bedford man was swept away by rising floodwaters.

Tavares’ cousin Sandy Duarte told 12 News the couple was visiting the Gozalandia Waterfall in San Sebastian when he was caught off guard by the rapid storm surge.

"He tried so hard to hold on, but the water just took him away,” Duarte explained.

Tavares’ body was eventually found Friday on the banks of the Culebrinas River following an intensive two-day search.

Read more at wpri.com.

State gas prices fell last week and reached an average of $3.59 per gallon of regular fuel on Monday, down from last week's price of $3.60 per gallon, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The average fuel price in state has risen about 28 cents since last month. According to the EIA, gas prices across the state in the last year have been as low as $3.07 on Jan. 29, 2024, and as high as $3.76 on Aug. 7, 2023.

A year ago, the average gas price in Massachusetts was 5% lower at $3.41 per gallon.

Read more at heraldnews.com.

With warm weather now upon the region and East Beach Road still damaged from winter storms, the Board of Selectmen approved funds for road repairs this week, which Town Administrator Jim Hartnett said he hopes will result in a fixed road sometime next month.

On Thursday, Harnett said officials were "hoping to get the paving completed within the next 4-6 weeks depending on bidding and contractor schedules."

At their Monday meeting, the selectmen approved up to $45,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds for the repairs, which Hartnett said consisted of repaving two areas of the road at East Horseneck Beach.

"It's not too bad.... It's drivable," Hartnett said of its state as of Thursday.

Read more at heraldnews.com.

WESTPORT — On Wednesday night, Westport Town Meeting said "no" to legalizing short-term rentals and a project that would have brought town water service to a prime stretch of Route 6. It also amended Westport Community Schools' budget to provide some additional funds Superintendent Thomas Aubin and others said will be badly needed to keep local education moving forward.

"In exchange for a positive vote, I won't make an enthralling speech about how this is all for our children, but it is," said Town Meeting member Kevin McGoff after motioning to add $152,125 to the district's Finance Committee-recommended budget amount of $22,499,082, for a new total of $22,651,207.

The amended total — which was approved by voters after some discussion — was noted as matching the amount recommended by the Board of Selectmen before it was further reduced by the FinCom.

Read more at heraldnews.com.

Former Boston Celtics player Glen “Big Baby” Davis was sentenced Thursday to 40 months in a federal prison for his participation in a scheme New York prosecutors said defrauded an insurance plan for NBA players and their families of more than $5 million.

More than 20 people were convicted in the case, many of them onetime NBA players who submitted fictitious dental and medical claims to the NBA Players’ Health and Benefit Welfare Plan. A jury found Davis and former Detroit Pistons guard Will Bynum guilty in November.

Davis will have three years of supervised release after he serves his term, and he has been ordered to pay $80,000 in restitution. Davis’ attorney, Sabrina Shroff, declined to comment. Bynum was sentenced last month to 18 months in prison and three years of supervised release and also must pay $182,224 in restitution.

Read more at wpri.com.

SWANSEA, Mass. (WPRI) — Three Massachusetts men were arrested Wednesday in connection with an armed robbery outside a Swansea bank.

Federal court documents obtained by 12 News show Steven Madison, Christopher White and Quentin McDonald were taken into custody after investigators executed search warrants at each of their homes.

Prosecutors allege Madison and White committed the robbery, while McDonald acted as the getaway driver.

A courier was zip-tied, pepper-sprayed and robbed of more than $436,000 in cash at the BayCoast Bank on Swansea Mall Drive on the afternoon of Feb. 19, according to police. Since the bank was closed for Presidents’ Day, the courier was trying to use the drop-box outside when he was approached by the masked suspects.

Read more at wpri.com.

REHOBOTH, Mass. (WPRI) — An investigation is underway after a rollover crash in Rehoboth early Thursday morning.

Officials responding to the scene just after 4:30 a.m. in the area of Routes 118 and 44 found a red pickup truck on its roof.

The driver, a 61-year-old East Providence man, was taken to Rhode Island Hospital with serious injuries.

See more at wpri.com.

Several employees of Steward Health Care — which owns hospitals in Brockton, Taunton and Fall River and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this week — said they did not receive their paychecks this morning, according to reporting by WCVB.

Steward Health Care President Mark Rich blamed the delay on a "processing error within the Bank of America system" in a message shared with employees at 8 a.m. this morning, according to WCVB.

"We followed all of Bank of America's procedures following the Chapter 11 filing and were assured by them that this would not happen," Rich said in the message. "We know that this is not an easy time for any of you and we recognize your inconvenience," he said.

Read more at heraldnews.com.

The Massachusetts State Senate has unveiled a proposal for free community college tuition as part of the 2025 state budget.

This proposal would expand on last year’s MassReconnect Plan, extending free tuition to all Massachusetts residents to boost the state’s workforce and expand educational opportunities for all as soon as this fall.

The new program is called MassEducate and would invest more than $75 million in new spending from the fiscal year 2025 budget to cover tuition and fees for all community college students. It would also offer a 1,200 stipend for books and supplies and other fees for students who make 125 percent or less of the state median income.

22News asked administrators at Holyoke Community College what costs are left over in these types of funding models, and they said pretty much all that is left is housing and transportation, but for the latter, the state has baked in some help for low-income students, or those experiencing hardships.

“It removes the stress and the worry of maybe having to use loan dollars to pay for tuition and fees and books and supplies. Now students can use some of that to cover living expenses maybe take a few more classes or work a little bit less,” said Mark Hudgik, Interim Dean of Strategic Recruitment Initiatives.

Read more at wpri.com.

Could America's funniest firefighter be one from Freetown?

On May 17, we'll find out if it's a possibility when Freetown Firefighter Mark "Larry Legend" Lawrence takes the stage to perform a stand-up comedy routine, competing against five other firefighters for the title of New England's Funniest Firefighter in the America's Funniest Firefighter regional finals in Boston.

Lawrence, who lives in Rochester with his wife and two children, started his firefighting career as a call/volunteer firefighter in Rochester in 2012 before going full-time in Freetown, where he says there's no shortage of laughs at the fire station.

"We're all kind of humorous in our own way," Lawrence said.

But the comedy bug bit Lawrence earlier in life, having had his first taste of stand-up as a member of Old Rochester Regional High School's class of '06.

Read more at heraldnews.com.

FALL RIVER — Steward Health Care filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection has led to uncertainty at the company’s 33 hospitals nationwide, including Saint Anne’s. 

The for-profit hospital chain employs more than 30,000 people nationally, 1,500 of them at Saint Anne’s. The hospital on South Main Street is a major medical center for patients across the SouthCoast, serving thousands from walk-ins at its emergency room to cancer patients at the Hudner Oncology Center.

But whether its services will continue long-term is a fluid situation as the matter proceeds through bankruptcy court. The Dallas-based chain is tens of millions of dollars in debt to over 100,000 creditors, including its landlord, Medical Properties Trust.  

Here’s what Saint Anne’s patients in Greater Fall River need to know:

Read more from Dan Medeiros at heraldnews.com.