TOP STORIES: SITW gets leeway, General Assembly delayed, Trump's expansion pack
The Something in the Water music festival gets thrown a lifeline by the Virginia Beach City Council. In a 8-2 vote Tuesday, the music festival will move forward but it must provide weekly updates to the council.
Pharrell's Oceanfront music festival breached their sponsorship agreement when they failed to announce a lineup or ticket sales before the end of 2024.
This led to Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer proposing an ultimatum to organizers of SITW — release ticket sales and a lineup within five days, or else — the city council's deferral vote gave the organizers more time.
Councilwoman Dr. Amelia Ross-Hammon proposed instead that the council would receive weekly updates from festival organizers beginning Jan. 14, and that Dyer would have the right to call a special session if further action was needed.
"We can put this together in a meaningful way because of the economic impact it will have on us. The ultimate goal is that we have a magnificent event in April,” said Dyer.
Virginia Beach City Manager, Patrick Duhaney, says no money from the city has been given to festival organizers yet.
Something in the Water gets more time for lineup, ticket sales after Virginia Beach council voteVirginia's General Assembly gets delayed before its first legislative session of 2025. The ongoing water crisis in Richmond forced the legislative body to take a brief recess.
Both the House and Senate will meet briefly at noon Wednesday (as required by the Constitution of Virginia) before going on a recess until Monday, Jan. 13.
A water treatment plant's power outage led to valves getting stuck, allowing water to flood into a basement in which equipment is located. The city announced a water boil advisory as a result.
“We are actively coordinating with local and statewide officials to support Richmond’s efforts to resolve the issue and restore water service to residents as quickly as possible,” Speaker of the House Don Scott said.
Additionally, the General Assembly and Capitol buildings will be closed through the end of the week.
President-elect Donald Trump restated his intent to acquire the Panama Canal and Greenland in a press conference on Tuesday. Trump refused to rule out the use of military force to take control of these regions.
These comments have caused friction among world leaders.
Denmark, a NATO member, currently owns the Greenland territory. The president of Panama, José Raúl Mulino, affirmed that "every square meter of the canal belongs to Panama."
Trump said he hopes to protect America's economic security with these proposed acquisitions. The loss of ice in Greenland due to climate change has made the country its surrounding waters more viable for economic development.
In addition to expanding the United States' territories, Trump wants to rename the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America."
"Because we do most of the work there, and it's ours...we're going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. Gulf of America," he said. "What a beautiful name. And it's appropriate."
This morning's weather: Sunny, cold, breezy again
Meteorologist Myles Henderson says highs will return to the upper 30s but it will feel colder with a NW wind at 10 to 15 mph. Clouds will drift through tonight with a few flurries possible.Wind will ramp up again on Thursday, NW at 10 to 20 with gusts to 30 mph. Expect sunny skies with highs in the mid 30s, but a wind chill in the 20s.
We have another chance to see some snow late Friday night into Saturday morning as an area of low pressure slides across the Southeast. As of now, snow showers will build in Friday night, snow will change over to rain by mid-morning Saturday, and rain showers will move out in the early afternoon.
For the latest weather updates, watch Myles live on News 3 This Morning here.
This morning's traffic:
So far this morning, there haven’t been any major traffic incidents in our area.
Interactive Traffic Map
For the latest traffic updates, watch Conor live on News 3 This Morning here.
We Follow Through: How alcohol can increase cancer risk
The U.S. Surgeon General recently released a report warning that alcohol consumption is the third-leading preventable cause of cancer, behind tobacco and obesity. As a recent cancer survivor, that caught the attention of News 3's Kurt Williams.
He sat down with Dr. Nina Balanchivadze with Virginia Oncology and Sentara Health to get her reaction the Surgeon General's advisory.
"Well, I'm not surprised, because the medical community is aware of those health risks. It can be linked to seven different types of cancer. It's not just excessive alcohol use — even alcohol in moderation can increase risks of various cancers, like breast cancer, cancer of the mouth, and other cancers as well," she said.
Dr. Balanchivadze says alcohol can increase our risk for cancer because it can impact our DNA and cells.
"Alcohol byproduct is acid aldehyde, which can damage DNA, so, therefore, our DNA doesn't have the ability to repair... Additionally, alcohol depletes some important nutrients that are important for our cell regeneration," Dr. Balanchivadze said.
Does that mean Dr. Balanchivadze is advocating completely not drinking, period?
"Well, it's hard to say that, right? If you have holidays, celebrations... everybody deserves to have a glass of wine. And again, it has to be within moderation and understanding that it really has to be, truly, in moderation—celebratory instances, rather than something that one does daily," she advised.
So, what is the takeaway?
"Limiting alcohol — even wine — as much as possible would be the best thing, in light of the research that we have available." said Dr. Balanchivadze, adding that she tells her patients to pay attention to diet, alcohol, and exercise, among other things.
Dr. Balanchivadze also stressed there's been a surge of non-alcoholic options and taking breaks like "Dry January," an opportunity to detox and show your body it can be done.
Watch the full story on News 3 This Morning here.
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