Chart shows how dramatically homicides dropped in Worcester last year
In 2025, Worcester saw the lowest number of homicides in more than 30 years, according to data from the Worcester Police Department and the FBI. Only two homicides, both of them shootings, were reported in Massachusetts’s second-largest city last year, according to the Worcester Police Department. It is the...
Bus carrying children to school skids off the road amid icy conditions in Rutland
A bus carrying children to school on Wednesday morning amid wintry conditions skidded off the road and down an embankment in Rutland, police say.
Central Mass. pizzeria abruptly closes, provides no additional details
A pizzeria in North Grafton announced Wednesday they would be closed until further notice. Neko’s of New York made the announcement on Facebook and did not provide additional details about the reason for or duration of the closure. The pizzeria did not immediately respond to requests for comments on...
Leominster man arrested for brandishing gun at employee supervising adults with disabilities at Whitney...
LEOMINSTER — On Friday, December 5, 2025, at approximately 1:24 p.m., Leominster Police Officer Avery Benvissuto was among several officers dispatched to The Mall at Whitney Field at 100 Commercial Road following a report of an older white male in a blue pickup truck brandishing a firearm after being asked why he was...
From dishwasher to owner: Meet the chef opening a new Worcester Mexican restaurant
Though he’s worked in the culinary industry for nearly half a century, Jaime Avila never had a restaurant of his own. From beginning as a dishwasher in California to working as a cook, bartender, server, manager and food truck operator in five other states, Avila, 50, has devoted a majority of his life to the world...
Young professionals say they’ll abandon Massachusetts. That should terrify Beacon Hill
It’s often said that people vote with their feet. So here’s the Massachusetts corollary: They’re voting with their U-Haul rentals. And some prominent business leaders are sounding the alarm. For at least the second year in a row, the Bay State saw more people leaving than arriving....
Uxbridge police officer killed while helping driver on Route 146
Uxbridge, Massachusetts police officer Stephen LaPorta was killed in a crash on Route 146 early Wednesday, police said.
SEE THE GOOD: Local teenager runs state probation service for a day
BOSTON (WHDH) - A local teenager recently ran the Massachusetts Probation Service for a day. Mattapan’s Marli Forrester, a ninth grader, was named MPS’ co-commissioner for the day. She was sworn in during a special ceremony on Monday. Forrester helped create a gardening club to promote healthy eating...
School closings, delays in Massachusetts for Wednesday, Jan. 7
Many Western Massachusetts schools are closed or have delayed openings on Wednesday due to freezing rain that’s expected to create slippery roads overnight. Most of the state is under a winter weather advisory until 10 a.m. Wednesday. The National Weather Service predicts that all but southeastern Massachusetts could...
State forecasts lower winter heating bills for most Mass. homes
As an investigation of utility bill cost drivers gets underway, state government has projected that about three-quarters of Massachusetts homes could spend between 4% and 9% less than last year on heating this winter. The combination of a “slightly milder” winter and the expectation of lower fuel costs spells good...
