A Democratic Congressional candidate running in Southwest Virginia says he wants to protect constitutional rights he believes are under attack. That story from WFIR’s Clark Palmer.

Area residents used a protest in downtown Roanoke to call for ICE to be abolished in the wake of a fatal shooting in Minneapolis. Details from WFIR’s Clark Palmer:

Northern Virginia Democratic Congressman Don Beyer says Secretary Noem and Trump aide Steven Miller should resign from their posts following the shooting:

Roanoke area GOP Congressman Ben Cline told Fox News that ICE agents were enforcing the law when Good was shot:

With CDC data revealing that visits to the doctor’s office for flu-like symptoms have reached a 30 year high – with 5000 deaths or more nationwide this flu season, a Carilion Clinic physician says things aren’t so bad in the Roanoke area. Carilion Clinic’s Chief of Infectious diseases, Dr. Thomas Kerkering, displayed charts yesterday that showed peak season for positive flu tests administered at Carilion facilities peaked at 865 for the week around the Christmas holidays – when family and friends typically gather.

Nearly one in ten outpatient visits nationwide for the week ending December 27th were for flu-like illnesses per the CDC. More from WFIR’s Gene Marrano:

In remembrance of the January 6th insurrection, House Democrats held a special hearing at the U.S. Capitol yesterday, featuring reflections from a former Virginia congresswoman on the events of that day. WFIR’s Conner Arthur has details:

From the WFIR News room this is your Culture Calendar – With a look at some of the local events coming up this weekend and in the near future. Sponsored by the Roanoke Cultural Endowment. The Roanoke Regional Writers conference is back for a 17th year at Hollins University January 16th-17th. The opening concert at The Exchange – a 1000 capacity music hall located inside a repurposed neo-classical bank building in downtown Roanoke – was a sell out featuring Grace Potter and Holy Roller on New Years Eve.

An area Democratic Congressional candidate says the recent operation in Venezuela hurts America’s reputation globally. WFIR’s Clark Palmer has that story.

A Botetourt County department has launched its annual reimbursement fund application to help improve and expand recreational activities across the county. WFIR’s Conner Arthur has details:

https://www.botetourtva.gov/475/Recreation-Incentive-Fund

A record 760,000 passengers in 2024, and projected 2025 totals that will “blow those numbers out of the water,” says the Roanoke-Blacksburg Airport executive director. ROA executive director Mike Stewart says extending the east-west runway over I-581 for safety reasons has been on the wish list for a long while – and is part of the Master Plan which must be approved by the FAA. The Federal Aviation Administration will let the Airport Commission put together the runway extension plan, but Stewart says the passenger numbers aren’t there yet to receive federal funding. That’s a future project says Stewart; for now the security checkpoints will be addressed. WFIR’s Gene Marrano reports:

As the new year gets underway, the co-owner of a local event management company is looking back on their New Year’s Eve debut inside downtown Roanoke’s former First National Exchange Bank.  WFIR’s Conner Arthur has that story:

Is this the year you *promise* to tone up and lose a few pounds? The New Year often means resolutions that this time – this year – those who set goals pledge to keep them. Often it involves being more fit, and a YMCA officer locally says people at just about any level of fitness can make a plan, as WFIR’s Gene Marrano reports: