News and Weather Briefing for Monday, October 19, 2026

(since this is a quick forecast intended to cover the whole county, bear in mind that higher elevations may experience cooler temperatures than this and the lower elevations may experience higher temperatures than those in the forecast)

.TODAY.…Sunny. Highs in the upper 60s. Low relative humidity could lead to rapidly spreading fires. Northeast winds around 5 mph this morning, becoming light and variable.

.TONIGHT.…Mostly clear. Lows in the lower 40s. Northeast winds around 5 mph.

.TUESDAY.…Sunny. Highs around 70. North winds around 5 mph in the morning, becoming light and variable.

.TUESDAY NIGHT.…Mostly clear. Lows in the lower 40s. Light and variable winds, becoming northeast around 5 mph after midnight.

.WEDNESDAY.…Sunny. Highs in the upper 60s. Light and variable winds, becoming northwest around 5 mph in the afternoon.

.WEDNESDAY NIGHT.…Clear. Lows in the lower 40s.

HAZARDOUS WEATHER

Low relative humidity could result in fires getting out of control this afternoon, so please exercise care when burning outdoors.

Hazardous space weather is not in the current forecast.

Pollen levels are expected to be in the low-medium range (4.0 out of 12) today with Ragweed, Chenopods, and Grasses being the main culprits. Tomorrow is expected to be in the low-medium range (3.2 out of 12.0)

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(send your event to [email protected])

LIVE SATURDAY MIDDAY MUSIC CALENDAR FOR OCTOBER 2026

11a to 1p at Friends of the Greenway, Inc.
573 E Main St, Franklin, NC 28734
contact: [email protected]; 828-369-8488

TBA

To find out more about the Greenway and our organization, our website is: littletennessee.org.

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Record Weather Events for this date in Macon County (1872-2025)

Highest Temperature 83°F at the Coweeta Experimental Station in 1984
Lowest Temperature 21°F at the Coweeta Experimental Station in 1948
Greatest Rainfall 3.20 inches in Highlands in 1916

Record weather events for October in Macon County

Highest Temperature 91°F in Franklin on Oct 5, 1954
Lowest Temperature 12°F in Highlands on Oct 30, 1910
Greatest Rainfall 1.0 inches in Highlands on Oct 4, 1964
Greatest Snowfall 1.0 inches in Highlands on Oct 20, 1913

Weather Extremes for North Carolina for the month of October

Highest Temperature 103°F in Wadesboro, Anson County on Oct 3, 2019
Lowest Temperature 8°F in Banner Elk, Avery County on Oct 21, 1952
Greatest One-Day Rainfall 12.53 in Lumberton, Robeson County on Oct 8, 2016
Greatest Snowfall 11.0 inches in Mount Mitchell, Yancey County on Oct 25, 1990

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Meta data center neighbors reflect on 13-year noise fight | WLOS-TV (Asheville), NC

NOAA Releases Winter Weather Outlook | Farm Journal

• 7 Free or Cheap North Carolina Spots Where You See the Milky Way With Your Own Eyes [Unearth the Voyage]
• Reactions vary to Vice President JD Vance’s planned Hendersonville visit [WLOS-TV Asheville, NC ]
• Western North Carolina voter’s guide for 2026 midterm elections [Asheville Citizen-Times]
• Getting connected at Tech Time [The Franklin Press]
• Taxes, opioid settlement plans lead busy Macon County agenda [Macon Sense]
• How unfounded charges flipped one man’s life upside down [ The Mountaineer ]

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Firefighters honor Andrew Brokes at funeral; tributes continue across Durham | WTVD-TV (Durham, NC)

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Is a blue wave coming, and how will Trump react? | Washington Week PBS

ABC World News Tonight with David Muir – Oct. 18, 2026 | ABC News

NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas Full Episode – Oct. 18 | NBC News

America’s Book Club Treasures with Elliot Ackerman & James Stavridis | C-SPAN

• Homan: Investigators have a ‘strong case’ against Omar [The Hill]
• Oregon father is the latest armed civilian to confront a gunman in a US mass shooting [AP News]
• What we know about the investigation into the Bend school shooting Yahoo News]

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2,400 arrests in France’s worst street violence for decades | BBC News

70% of Albertans support remaining in Canada ahead of referendum: Ipsos | Global News

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Trump turns on Zelenskyy as Ukraine launches massive strikes on Russia | DW News

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The Evolution of the Russian Military – Its Strengths and Shortfalls in 2026 (With Michael Kofman) | Perun

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This $4 Trillion Bet Will Trigger The Next Financial Crisis | Bravos Research

France PM Calls Crisis Meeting After Weekend Riots | Daybreak Europe 10/19/2026 | Bloomberg Television

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First Ever Microblazar Found! Here’s What This Means for Astronomy | Anton Petrov

• Japan prepares to launch sample return mission to Phobos [Astronomy Magazine]
• TWiV 1366: Clinical Update with Dr. Daniel Griffin [Microbe TV]
• TWiV 1367: Turning Off Hepatitis B Virus Without Cutting its DNA [Microbe TV]
• New Research Reveals How Long Stays in Space Affects the Human Genome [Universe Today]
• Physicists create a bizarre new quantum state called a fractional fermi sea [ScienceDaily]
• This Week’s Sky at a Glance, October 16 – 25 [Sky & Telescope Magazine]

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Let’s Talk About Tesla’s Rocket Car…. Even Though I’m Supposed to be On Vacation | Scott Manley

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Largest Land Battle Before WWI Caused the First Russian Revolution | Kings and Generals

Forget Vienna: The Battle That ACTUALLY Broke the Ottomans – Párkány, 1683 HistoryMarche

The Collapse of the American Dream: How 20 Years of Renting Beat Buying | The Infographics Show

Unsettling Reasons The Universe May Be Beyond Understanding | Daniel Whiteson | Event Horizon

What’s Coming Is Worse Than the Great Depression: Top Economist Explains | ProfSteveKeen

The NEW Tesla Roadster: My Honest Reaction | Marques Brownlee and Auto Focus

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Has the Q4 Equity Correction Finally Arrived? | Benjamin Cowen

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Flock Cameras Are Not Even the Worst Part of the System | TREX LABS

• Brickbat: Unlicensed Search [Reason Magazine]
• Police say Flock cameras help solve crimes, but critics call them an invasion of privacy [PBS News]

• Schmidt v. Norfolk [ACLU]

• Chatrie v. United States [SCOTUSblog]

• Under Surveillance: Constitutional Concerns Surrounding Flock Cameras [North Carolina Journal of Law & Technology]

• Research Report on Automatic License Plate Readers: Legal Status and Policy Recommendations for Law Enforcement Use [Brennan Cebnter for Justice]

This Flock Camera Leak is like Netflix For Stalkers | Benn Jordan and 404 Media

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Public Records Request for Macon County Flock Safety Cameras

As an independent citizen journalist covering local government in Macon County for over 16 years, I have submitted a public records request to the Macon County Sheriff’s Office for documents related to the Flock Safety automated license plate reader system. This request seeks contracts, board approvals, usage policies, camera locations, performance data, and related correspondence to promote full transparency and public accountability in how this surveillance technology is funded, deployed, and operated with taxpayer resources. By making these records available, we can separate facts from myths, address community concerns about privacy and effectiveness, and ensure informed civic dialogue about tools that impact public safety and individual rights in our rural mountain community.

Sheriff’s Office Public Records Custodian,

Pursuant to the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. Chapter 132), I request the following records related to Flock Safety (or any automated license plate reader/ALPR system):

1. All contracts, agreements, amendments, proposals, invoices, payment records, and correspondence between Macon County Sheriff’s Office (or County) and Flock Safety (or Flock Group, Inc.), including any subscription, installation, maintenance, or data access terms.
2. Board of Commissioners agendas, minutes, resolutions, motions, or approvals authorizing the purchase, funding, or use of Flock cameras (including budget line items from FY 2023–2024 onward).
3. Policies, procedures, manuals, training materials, or guidelines for use of the Flock system by Sheriff’s Office personnel (including access controls, data retention, audit logs, and privacy protections).
4. Any usage statistics, reports, or summaries on camera performance, alerts generated, cases assisted, or data shared (redacted as necessary for law enforcement sensitivity).
5. Location list or map of all deployed Flock cameras in Macon County.
6. Any privacy impact assessments, legal opinions, or correspondence regarding compliance with NC law or data sharing.

Preferred format: Electronic copies (PDF/email) where possible. I am willing to pay reasonable costs; please notify me in advance if fees will exceed $50.

Please provide these records as soon as practicable. If any portion is denied, please provide a written explanation with the specific legal basis and contact information for appeal.

Thank you for your assistance. I can be reached at [email protected].

Sincerely, Bobby Coggins, Publisher Macon Media [[email protected]]

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