Here is the news and weather briefing for Macon County.
GENERAL OUTLOOK
Dry high pressure will remain over the area today. A weak cold front crosses the North Carolina mountains early Saturday, with cooler air spreading over the area beginning Saturday afternoon. A dry, warming pattern returns and continues through the middle of next week.
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Local Weather
General Forecast Through Sunday Night
Franklin Area
Today
Cloudy, with highs in the lower 60s. Calm winds in the morning increasing to come out of the southwest 5 to 10 mph in the afternoon.
Tonight
A 50 percent chance of showers, mainly after 9pm. Mostly cloudy, with lows in the mid 30s. Winds out of the south 5 to 10 mph shifting to come out of the northwest after midnight. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
Saturday
A 20 percent chance of showers before 8am. Partly sunny, with highs in the mid 40s. Winds out of the northwest 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Saturday Night
Mostly cloudy, with lows around 19. Winds out of the northwest 5 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Sunday
Sunny, with highs in the low-to-mid 50s.
Sunday Night
Clear, with lows in the low-to-mid 20s.
Highlands Plateau
Today
Mostly cloudy, with highs in the low-to-mid 50s. Winds out of the northwest 5 to 10 mph in the morning shifting to come out of the southwest in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph.
Tonight
A 50 percent chance of showers, mainly after 9pm. Mostly cloudy, with lows in the mid 30s. Winds out of the southwest 10 to 20 mph shifting to come out of the northwest after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 30 mph. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
Saturday
A 20 percent chance of showers before 8am. Partly sunny, with highs near 40. Winds out of the northwest 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 35 mph.
Saturday Night
Mostly cloudy, with lows in the lower 20s. Winds out of the northwest 10 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.
Sunday
Mostly sunny, with highs in the mid 40s.
Sunday Night
Mostly clear, with lows in the mid 20s.
Otto and South Central Macon County
Today
Mostly cloudy, with highs near 60. Calm winds in the morning shifting to come out of the south 5 to 9 mph in the afternoon.
Tonight
A 50 percent chance of showers, mainly after 9pm. Mostly cloudy, with lows in the mid 30s. Winds out of the south 5 to 10 mph shifting to come out of the northwest after midnight. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
Saturday
A 20 percent chance of showers before 8am. Partly sunny, with highs in the mid 40s. Winds out of the northwest 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.
Saturday Night
Mostly cloudy, with lows around 20. Winds out of the northwest 5 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Sunday
Mostly sunny, with highs in the low-to-mid 50s.
Sunday Night
Clear, with lows in the mid-20s.
Nantahala Area
Today
Mostly cloudy, with highs in the mid-to-upper 50s. Calm winds in the morning shifting to come out of the southwest 5 to 10 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph.
Tonight
Showers likely, mainly between 11pm and 4am. Mostly cloudy, with lows around freezing. Winds out of the southwest 5 to 10 mph shifting to come out of the northwest after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.
Saturday
A 30 percent chance of snow showers, mainly before 7am. Partly sunny, with highs in the upper 30s. Winds out of the northwest 5 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Little or no snow accumulation expected.
Saturday Night
Mostly cloudy, with lows in the lower 20s. Winds out of the northwest 5 to 10 mph decreasing after midnight.
Sunday
Sunny, with highs near 47.
Sunday Night
Clear, with lows around 26.
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Hazards
Hazardous weather is not expected today or tonight.
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Record Weather Events for February 16th
Record weather events for this date in Macon County
(1872-2016)
Highest Temperature 77°F at the Coweeta Experimental Station in 1989
Lowest Temperature -4°F in Highlands in 1991
Greatest One-Day Rainfall 3.08 inches in Highlands in 1942
Greatest One-Day Snowfall 6.0 inches in Highlands in 1895
Weather Extremes for Macon County for the month of February Data available from 1872
Highest Temperature 79°F at the Coweeta Experimental Station on 01-28-1996
Lowest Temperature -19°F in Highlands on 02-13-1899 (also a state record)
Greatest Rainfall 6.37 inches at the Coweeta Experimental Station on 02-13-1966
Greatest Snowfall 15.0 inches in Highlands on 02-14-1912
Record Weather Events for February 16th in North Carolina
Highest Temperature 83°F in Chapel Hill, Orange County in 1989
Lowest Temperature -16°F in Mount Mitchell, Yancey County in 1991
Greatest Rainfall 4.98 inches in Lake Toxaway, Transylvania County in 1990
Greatest Snowfall 15.0 inches in Gastonia, Gaston County in 1969
Weather Extremes for North Carolina for the month of February Data available from 1872
Highest Temperature 88°F in New Bern, Craven County on 02-28-1962
Lowest Temperature -20°F in Brevard, Transylvania County on 02-17-1958
Greatest Rainfall 8.83 inches in Lake Toxaway, Transylvania County on 02-13-1966
Greatest Snowfall 24.00 in Mount Mitchell, Yancey County on 02-12-1985
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Macon Calendar
(send your event to calendar@maconmedia.com)
Music Lineup for Friends of the Greenway, Inc.
Frog Quarters Music Schedule (located at 573 East Main Street in Franklin)
February 2024 Schedule
2-17-24---Paul Linser and Charlie Simmons—Two award-winning finger-style pickers that we’re always happy to have at Frog Quarters. You’ll hear covers and originals from Charlie and Paul as they keep us all entertained for MidDay Music.
2-24-24---Jim Austin’s Classic Country Band---Enjoy hearing Jim’s Band as they play the big sound of real, classic country—songs that you don’t hear on the radio anymore. Jim and the fellas are always a popular group with the crowd at Frog Quarters.
Frog Quarters is open 9a to 2p, Wednesdays thru Saturdays—beside the River Bridge. We are the Non-Profit supporting the Greenway with monies from sales from our Coffee & Gift Shop, Memberships and Donations. As always, thank you for your support!
Mountain Findings
432 Spruce Street (physical)
Highlands, North Carolina 28741
Web: MountainFindings.org
Mountain Findings (a thrift store) is open every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 10 am to 1 pm until October 2023.
News Briefing
---STATE AND LOCAL---
NC Lawmakers take steps toward banning 'gas station heroin', tianeptine | WXII-TV (Winston-Salem, TV)
• 'Every dollar matters': Attorney General Josh Stein appeals Duke Energy rate increase [xxx]
• A ‘history changing’ moment in NC education as universal private school vouchers arrive[Raleigh News and Observer]
• Report reveals patient safety issues, including patient death in hallway at Mission Health [WLOS-TV (Asheville, NC)]
---RECENT STATE AND LOCAL NEWS---
• North Carolina program seeks applications for bike, pedestrian project plans [WLOS-TV (Asheville, NC)]
• Warrant: 12-year-old boy found cold, stiff at NC wilderness camp [WBT=TV (Charlotte, NC)]
• (video) NC candidates, experts respond to Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson comments House Bill 2 [WRAL-TV (Raleigh, NC)]
• Under the Dome podcast: Primary endorsements, Black voters and Cotham challengers [Raleigh News and Observer]
• Swain County Manager headed to Jackson [BPR]
---RECENT LOCAL GOVERNMENT MEETINGS--
Franklin Town Council (Feb 2024) | Macon Media
• NC DPI Awards $62 Million Grant for Construction of a New Franklin High School [Macon Media]
• Macon County Board of Education January 2024 Regular Meeting [Macon Media]
• Macon County Board of Commissioners | January 2024 Regular Meeting | [Macon Media]
• Franklin Town Council (January 2024 Regular Meeting) [Macon Media]
• Macon County Board of Commissioners (Dec 2023) [Macon Media]
• Macon County Board of Education December 2023 Meeting at Franklin High School [Macon Media]
• Franklin Town Council (Dec 2023) [Macon Media]
---NATIONAL---
• U.S. Disrupts Hacking Operation Led by Russian Intelligence [New York Times]
• Bill could ban cold beer sales in Tennessee [The Hill]
• FBI informant charged with lying about Joe and Hunter Biden’s ties to Ukrainian energy company [Politico]
• Kansas City and Chiefs fans mourn after another public tragedy [Washington Post]
• Catholic bishops in Mexico say they negotiated for possible peace accord with drug cartel leaders [xxx]
• Jeffrey Epstein victims sue FBI for alleged failure to investigate 'sex trafficking ring for the elite' [Fox News]
---2024 ELECTION ROUNDUP--- • Why Is Nikki Haley Struggling in South Carolina? ‘Relationship Management 101’ [Politico Magazine]
• ‘She was with me’ Nikki Haley signs note for student missing class for campaign event [The State]
• Trump’s New York hush-money case will start March 25. It’s the first of his criminal trials [AP News]
• 5 explosive moments from Fani Willis' heated testimony in Trump Fulton County case: 'If this happens again …' [Fox News]
• Ex-F.B.I. Informant Is Charged With Lying Over Bidens’ Role in Ukraine Business [New York Times]
• Robert Hur, special counsel in Biden documents case, to testify before Congress on March 12 [CBS News]
International News Headlines
• Russian nukes in space: Why the intelligence leak might be more serious than the threat itself [France 24]
• China Revives Socialist Ideas to Fix Its Real-Estate Crisis [Wall Street Journal]
• In Germany, protesters against the far right are hoping for a political jolt [Le Monde]
• Indonesia-China ties: will president-elect Prabowo confront Beijing or maintain Widodo’s economic deals? [South China Morning Post]
• China's intimidation of Taiwan is a global issue [Taiwan News]
• Japan 'paying attention' to remarks from N. Korean leader's sister: top gov't spokesman [Yonhap News Agency]
Washington Today (2-15-24): Judge orders first criminal trial against Donald Trump to start March 25
Global National: Feb. 15, 2024 | Family doctors sound alarm over retention, burnout
ABC World News Tonight with David Muir Full Broadcast - Feb 15 2024
"CBS Evening News" Full Broadcast | Feb. 15, 2024
Nightly News Full Broadcast - Feb 15 | NBC News
PBS NewsHour full episode, (February 15, 2024)
---Science, Technology, Culture, and History News Roundup---
EP28 Superhumanly Inhuman (The Holocaust) | Dan Carlin
• EP28 Superhumanly Inhuman (audio) [Dan Carlin (via Google Podcasts)]
• The Sky This Week from February 9 to 16: Comet Tsuchinshan and galaxies galore [Astronomy Magazine]
• This Week's Sky at a Glance, February 9 – 17 [Sky and Telescope Magazine]
The Level1 Show February 16 2024: A Sellout of Epic Proportions | Level1 Techs
Returns Weren't Part of the Vision - DTNS 4707 | Daily Tech News Show
AI Generated Videos Just Changed Forever | Marques Brownlee
• Tel Aviv University Researchers Harness CRISPR Technology for Water-Efficient Tomato Cultivation [Seed World]
• Don’t Fall for the Latest Changes to the Dangerous Kids Online Safety Act [Electronic Frontier Foundation]
• White House confirms US has intelligence on Russian anti-satellite capability [CNN]
• Air Canada must pay damages after chatbot lies to grieving passenger about discount [The Register]
• Why Bloat Is Still Software’s Biggest Vulnerability: A 2024 plea for lean software [IEEE Spectrum]
• Nvidia provides the first public view of its fastest AI supercomputer — Eos is powered by 4,608 H100 GPUs, tuned for generative AI [tom's Hardware]
---Science, Technology, Culture, and History Video Section---
Microplastics: The Hidden Health Crisis | ColdFusion
UV light kills viruses. Why isn't it everywhere? | Vox
This Toxic, Drying U.S. Lake Could Turn Into the ‘Saudi Arabia of Lithium' | WSJ
---COVID News Roundup---
Office Hours with Earth's Virology Professor Livestream 2/14/24 8 pm eastern | Microbe TV
• Beyond the Noise #27: When vaccine fears mimic SNL skits [Microbe TV]
• TWiV 1082: Clinical update with Dr. Daniel Griffin [Microbe TV]
• TWiV 1083: AI builds better viruses [Microbe TV]
---Russo-Ukraine War News Roundup---
How the Russian Empire Tried to Russify Ukraine | Kings and Generals
Day 721: Ukraïnian Map | Ukraine News TV
Ukraine War Update NEWS (20240216b): Military Aid | ATP Geopolitics
• Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, February 15, 2024 [Institute for the Study of War]
• Russo-Ukrainian war, day 722: Ukraine and NATO establish first-ever joint defense institution; Ukrainian vs Russian forces are 1:7 in Avdiivka [Euromaidan Press]
Sir Richard Shirreff - Conflict and Chaos are Advantageous for Russia's Neo-imperialist Ambitions | Silicon Curtain
• Ukraine updates: Russia decries Belgorod attack [DW News]
• Ukraine Russia war: US warns Avdiivka could fall [BBC News]
• Russia Hides Its War Toll. We Pieced Together the Clues [New York Times]
• Ukraine's Zelensky to sign security pacts with Germany and France [France 24]
• Ukraine and NATO establish joint center for defense analysis, training, education [Euromaidan]
• Kyiv aims to use more Ukrainian drones; Trump, Biden clash on NATO [Al Jazeera]
---PRO-RUSSIAN NEWS OUTLETS---
• Putin calls for global fight against ‘Nazi propaganda’ [Russia Today]
• Tucker Carlson: Acting as an Agent? [Pravda]
• Kiev displayed disregard to safe operation of civilian nuclear facilities — statement [TASS: Russian News Agency]
---Israel-Hamas War News Roundup (aka Iraninan Proxy War with Israel)---
• Iran Update (Hamas-Israel War), February 12, 2024 [Institute for the Study of War]
• US working on Gaza hostage deal, Israel sends delegation to Cairo for hostage release talks [Haaretz]
• Israel’s war on Gaza liveblog: CIA chief in Egypt as Rafah attacks intensify [Al Jazeera]
Inside the USS Eisenhower as it targets Houthis | ABC News
• Egypt Builds Walled Enclosure as Israeli Offensive Looms [Wall Street Journal]
• Nasser hospital in 'catastrophic' condition as Israeli troops raid [BBC News]
• Israel-Hamas war: US says Gaza hostages deal 'possible' [DW News]
• US conducts attack on suspected Iranian spy ship [Al Arabiya News]
• Deadly tango between Israel and Hezbollah could end in war [YNET News]
• (video) Israeli forces storm besieged Nasser Hospital in Gaza [Al Jazeera]
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On This Day
February 16th is the 47th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 318 days remain until the end of the year (319 in leap years).
Historical Events
(Please note that the Wikipedia articles often contain a bibliography and links to where you can learn more about a historical event)
1249 – Andrew of Longjumeau is dispatched by Louis IX of France as his ambassador to meet with the Khagan of the Mongol Empire.
1270 – Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeats the Livonian Order in the Battle of Karuse.
1630 – Dutch forces led by Hendrick Lonck capture Olinda in what was to become part of Dutch Brazil.
1646 – Battle of Torrington, Devon: The last major battle of the first English Civil War.
1699 – First Leopoldine Diploma is issued by the Holy Roman Emperor, recognizing the Greek Catholic clergy enjoyed the same privileges as Roman Catholic priests in the Principality of Transylvania.
1742 – Spencer Compton, Earl of Wilmington, becomes British Prime Minister.
1796 – Colombo in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) falls to the British, completing their invasion of Ceylon.
1804 – First Barbary War: Stephen Decatur leads a raid to burn the pirate-held frigate USS Philadelphia.
1862 – American Civil War: General Ulysses S. Grant captures Fort Donelson, Tennessee.
1866 – Spencer Compton Cavendish, Marquess of Hartington becomes British Secretary of State for War.
1881 – The Canadian Pacific Railway is incorporated by Act of Parliament at Ottawa (44th Vic., c.1).
1899 – Iceland's first football club, Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkur, is founded.
1918 – The Council of Lithuania unanimously adopts the Act of Independence, declaring Lithuania an independent state.
1923 – Howard Carter unseals the burial chamber of Pharaoh Tutankhamun.
1930 – The Romanian Football Federation joins FIFA.
1934 – The Austrian Civil War ends with the defeat of the Social Democrats and the Republikanischer Schutzbund.
1936 – The Popular Front wins the 1936 Spanish general election.
1937 – Wallace H. Carothers receives a United States patent for nylon.
1940 – World War II: Altmark incident: The German tanker Altmark is boarded by sailors from the British destroyer HMS Cossack. 299 British prisoners are freed.
1942 – World War II: In Athens, the Greek People's Liberation Army is established
1943 – World War II: In the early phases of the Third Battle of Kharkov, Red Army troops re-enter the city.
1945 – World War II: American forces land on Corregidor Island in the Philippines.
1945 – The Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945, the first anti-discrimination law in the United States, was signed into law.
1959 – Fidel Castro becomes Premier of Cuba after dictator Fulgencio Batista was overthrown on January 1.
1960 – The U.S. Navy submarine USS Triton begins Operation Sandblast, setting sail from New London, Connecticut, to begin the first submerged circumnavigation of the globe.
1961 – Explorer program: Explorer 9 (S-56a) is launched.
1962 – The Great Sheffield Gale impacts the United Kingdom, killing nine people; the city of Sheffield is devastated, with 150,000 homes damaged.
1962 – Flooding in the coastal areas of West Germany kills 315 and destroys the homes of about 60,000 people.
1968 – In Haleyville, Alabama, the first 9-1-1 emergency telephone system goes into service.
1968 – Civil Air Transport Flight 010 crashes near Shongshan Airport in Taiwan, killing 21 of the 63 people on board and one more on the ground.
1978 – The first computer bulletin board system is created (CBBS in Chicago).
1983 – The Ash Wednesday bushfires in Victoria and South Australia kill 75.
1985 – Hezbollah is founded.
1986 – The Soviet liner MS Mikhail Lermontov runs aground in the Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand.
1986 – China Airlines Flight 2265 crashes into the Pacific Ocean near Penghu Airport in Taiwan, killing all 13 aboard.
1991 – Nicaraguan Contras leader Enrique Bermúdez is assassinated in Managua.
1996 – A Chicago-bound Amtrak train, the Capitol Limited, collides with a MARC commuter train bound for Washington, D.C., killing 11 people.
1998 – China Airlines Flight 676 crashes into a road and residential area near Chiang Kai-shek International Airport in Taiwan, killing all 196 aboard and seven more on the ground.
2000 – Emery Worldwide Airlines Flight 17 crashes near Sacramento Mather Airport in Rancho Cordova, California, killing all three aboard.
2005 – The Kyoto Protocol comes into force, following its ratification by Russia.
2005 – The National Hockey League cancels the entire 2004–05 regular season and playoffs.
2006 – The last Mobile army surgical hospital (MASH) is decommissioned by the United States Army.
2013 – A bomb blast at a market in Hazara Town, Quetta, Pakistan kills more than 80 people and injures 190 others.
2021 – Five thousand people gathered in the town of Kherrata, Bejaia Province to mark the two year anniversary of the Hirak protest movement. Demonstrations had been suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic in Algeria.
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Published at 5:00am on TFriday, February 16, 2023
Author: Bobby Coggins
Resources used to compile the information in this article include, but are not limited to rthe following websites or books: MaconMedia.com, youtube.com, weather.gov, airnow.gov, wikipedia.com, onthisday.com, ncdcr.gov, ncsu.edu, utah.edu, https://www.microbe.tv/twiv/, wolfram.com, biorxiv.org, aps.org, nejm.org, plos.org, cell.com, researchsquare.com, cureus.com, spc.noaa.gov, nhc.noaa.gov, ncdenr.org, medrxiv.org, archive.org, ncpedia.org, nasa.gov, https://ww2days.com, nih.gov, carolinapublicpress.org, microbe.tv, smokymountainnews.com, psypost.org, blogspot.com, pollen.com, franklinnc.com, maconnc.org, spaceweather.com, solarham.com, loc.gov, ncleg.net, senate.gov, house.gov, whitehouse.gov, drudgereport.com, politico.com, realclearpolitics.com, ushmm.org, This Day in North Carolina History, World War II Day By Day, The Holocaust Encyclopedia, The Timetables of History, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, The World History and Book of Facts (multiple years), On This Day In History: Over 4,000 facts, The NASA Archives. 60 Years in Space, This Day in North Carolina History, The Smithsonian History of Space Exploration: From the Ancient World to the Extraterrestrial Future, Spaceflight, 2nd Edition: The Complete Story from Sputnik to Curiousity, The Story of Civilization (11 volumes), The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, American History, Volume 1: 1492-1877, American History, Volume 2: 1877 - Present, A Complete Chronolgy of the Second World War. Weather and Almanac data and information sources: Sources (except where otherwise credited): heavens-above.com, Ian Webster's Github, National Centers for Environmental Prediction, The National Weather Service, National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, National Hurricane Center, Penn State University Electronic Wall Map, The State Climate Office of North Carolina, Storm Prediction Center, U.S. Naval Observatory, University of Utah Department of Atmospheric Sciences, and the Weather Prediction Center.
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