Hurricane Laura pounds Gulf Coast, 3 dead after Pontiac apartment shooting, eviction aid coming to Detroit

THURSDAY NEWS HIT - Hurricane Laura pounded the Gulf Coast Wednesday night and Thursday morning with 150 mph winds and threatened the Louisiana and Texas coastlines with torrential rain and rising seawater, threatening those that decided to bear the storm.

For those that did remain, it will be a long time before recovery efforts can help them. Fears of blocked roads, downed power lines, and flooding would make helping those that stuck around difficult. The Category 4 hurricane slammed into the coast around 1 a.m. last night, hitting the 400-person community of Cameron first.

The storm system was eventually downgraded to a Category 2 hurricane, but not before a potential storm surge threatened to saturate the coast up to 40 miles inland from the gulf waters. Weather forecasters labeled the storm surge "unsurvivable."

More than 580,000 coastal residents were under orders to flee the region that was burdened by an already strained emergency system in the area. With COVID-19 complicating relief efforts, many found themselves sleeping in hotels and cars since mass shelters posed their own kind of threat due to the virus.

An area already scarred by Hurricane Rita in 2005, many decided to leave after getting the warning. However, some remained.

"It's a very sad situation," said Ashley Buller, assistant director of emergency preparedness. "We did everything we could to encourage them to leave."

Laura was the seventh named storm to strike the U.S. this year, setting a new record for U.S. landfalls by the end of August. The old record was six in 1886 and 1916, according to Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach.

This information was reported with assistance from the Associated Press

4 shot, 3 dead in deadly Pontiac apartment shooting

Three people have died after a quadruple shooting at a Pontiac apartment complex took place around 9 p.m. Wednesday night.

A heavy police presence was on scene at the Spring Lake Village Apartments near Carriage Circle and Auburn Avenue after reports of gunfire.

The situation remains under investigation, however, police say the shooting, which also left a fourth person in serious condition stemmed from a dispute between neighbors. 

"I heard gunfire and I'm like what - where did that come from. Then I hear ambulances and sirens and everything and when I came down here, people were just laid out," said a neighbor.

Among those killed was the cousin of Pontiac's City Council president.

"This has been the toughest year for everybody, but for Pontiac especially and now to have this - it's just so sad. But we still have hope, and we just need to wrap our arms around everybody here," said City Councilman Kermit Williams. "I just pray with the families and I'm asking the viewers to do the same thing."

Police do report they have a suspect in custody but declined to release any more information.

All four victims were men in their late 20's and 30's.

Eviction assistance coming for struggling Detroiters

With a moratorium on evictions in Detroit ending earlier this month, Mayor Mike Duggan said thousands of people risked being forced out of their homes.

With COVID-19 exacerbating the financial difficulties of an already impoverished city, many residents now face the prospect of being kicked out onto the street for being unable to pay rent.

"With the failure of the federal government to effectively do anything to stop the evictions and to effectively support the folks who are out of work we are very concerned about the housing security," Duggan said help is on the way, through a beefing up of the city's eviction prevention program.

The city says it has almost $12 million available for use to help residents make rental payments. 

Typically, attorneys working for the city's program would represent tenants in eviction hearings at 20 to 50 cases a month. They're currently aiming for 500 to 600 cases per month.

For more information regarding help with evictions, check out the city's site www.detroitevictionhelp.com or call 866-313-2520.

Dept. of Justice requests nursing home data from Whitmer administration

On Wednesday, the U.S. Justice Department sent a letter to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer requesting data on nursing homes to assess if any COVID-19 policy mandating facilities that house the elderly also house COVID-19 patients.

Among the information that the department is requesting includes the number of COVID-19 infections in the homes, COVID-19 deaths associated with the homes, and state-issued directives and executive orders. The information is due in 14 days. 

The Whitmer Administration pushed back on the request, saying it would respond appropriately but argued the request was "nothing more than election year politics."

New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey's governors also received data requests.

No injuries in traffic stop where someone shot at Detroit Police officers

Police have three suspects in custody after individuals fired shots at Detroit officers Wednesday night.

After two units had made a traffic stop and two arrests, they were waiting for a tow truck when a White Kia Sorrento drove by and shots were fired from the vehicle. It was near McNichols and Telegraph, forcing the closure of the road for an investigation.

Police located between 5-10 shell casings on Telegraph.

There were no injuries to any police officers and no evidence of bullet impacts to any surrounding areas. 

"Police officers were out here working hard, getting guns off the street and making the city safe and for no reason what so ever. This person was completely unrelated for what they were here for, so it's befuddling and it's upsetting," said Capt. Micheal Dicicco. "Of course these are my people out here and all the citizens should be upset when things like this happen to officers who are trying to keep them safe."

The suspects under arrest include two men, a 19-year-old and a 20-year-old, as well as a 14-year-old girl. They were arrested in the area of Outer Drive and Blackstone.

Daily Forecast

It could climb to 88 degrees before noon, followed by heavy storms later in the afternoon.

Sheriff believes Kenosha shooter was part of group that requested he authorize civilians to make arrests

City leaders, Kenosha police and Kenosha's mayor spoke out Wednesday afternoon, Aug. 26 following a deadly night in Kenosha, the third night of demonstrations following the police shooting of Jacob Blake Sunday. A white, 17-year-old police admirer was arrested after two people were shot to death Tuesday night -- violence condemned by officials who told people not to bring guns to the protests so trained law enforcement can do their job.

City and county leaders vowed to be tougher on people who are out past the 7 p.m. curfew, in effect through Sunday, Aug. 30 east of I-94.

"We are going to be very assertive," said Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth. "If you don't follow the curfew, we will take you into custody."

The warning from Sheriff Beth came three days of mass destruction of property around Kenosha, and the two lives lost.

Witness cellphone cameras captured an individual shooting into a crowd of people in the street, as well as into a parking lot, killing the two victims and wounding a third. Beth believes the shooter was part of a group that called him Tuesday, requesting that he authorize civilians to make arrests.

"And I'm like, 'Oh, hell no,'" said Sheriff Beth. "Once I deputize somebody, they are a liability to me and the state of Wisconsin."