Asheville NC

Some relief arrived Sunday for Western North Carolina residents frustrated by weeks of fire restrictions. The N.C. Forest Service lifted its statewide open burn ban for 81 counties, including all Western North Carolina counties, effective 8 a.m. May 3. But state and local officials are urging caution: the drought that prompted the ban in the first place is not going away anytime soon.

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — As lawmakers in Raleigh remain at a standstill on North Carolina's state budget, impacts are already being felt in Asheville – particularly for school leaders trying to plan for the year ahead. "As soon as they can get that information out to us is...

SWANNANOA, N.C. (828newsNOW) — Buncombe County is asking residents in Swannanoa and nearby communities to weigh in on a long-range plan that will help guide growth, transportation and development in the area over the next 20 years. The Swannanoa Small Area & Resilience Plan covers communities — including Riceville,...

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — Organizers of AVL Sounds Fest have announced the first wave of bands and musicians set to play the multi-day music festival in 2026. AVL Sounds Fest, formerly known as AVLFest, is a citywide music festival in Asheville that will take place this fall, from Thursday, Aug. 6, through Sunday, Aug. 9. More than 150 artists from across the region and...

BUNCOMBE COUNTY, N.C. (WLOS) — Time is running out for Buncombe County property owners to appeal their property's reassessment: The deadline to appeal is Tuesday, May 5. Counter leaders said this is the largest jump in home values in more than a decade, which has led to thousands of appeals. That gap is due to the county's last reappraisal taking place in 2021 and today's...

Sign up for free email updates from The Watchdog. You’ll be notified whenever we publish our latest award-winning investigative reporting, John Boyle’s Answer Man and Opinion columns, Tom Fiedler’s Democracy Watch, and more!. Upwards of 18,000 current and former Mission Health employees are entitled to back wages...

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — A 32-year-old Asheville woman will spend at least seven years in prison following her guilty plea to drug trafficking. According to a May 4 news release from District Attorney Todd Williams, Jami Marie Lee Lynn Tressler pleaded guilty on May 4 in Buncombe County Superior Court to felony fentanyl trafficking. Superior Court Judge Jacqueline Grant presided.

HENDERSON COUNTY, S.C. (FOX Carolina) - The District Attorney for Henderson, Polk, and Transylvania Counties sentenced a Saluda man for a 2022 murder. Shane Archie Waters, 53, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder on Friday. He was sentenced to a minimum active sentence of 192 months (16 years) and a maximum sentence of 243 months (20 years).

A weekend outing near a popular Florida Keys sandbar ended in tragedy Saturday afternoon when a 50-year-old man died after diving into shallow water near Marvin Key in the Lower Florida Keys. People on nearby boats told authorities they saw the man dive in, then later found him unresponsive. Florida...

Shooter sentenced after "love triangle" murder in WNC