5 On Your Side digs into potential fire hazards all over your home. Found inside phones, toys, cars, and lawn tools, lithium-ion batteries can cause serious damage. At 6 p.m., WRAL shares simple steps to protect your home from lithium batteries.

On WRAL at 6:🔥Fire hazards inside toys and lawn tools. 5 On Your Side shares simple steps to protect your home from lithium-ion batteries.

Compared to pre-pandemic prices, ground beef is up 35%, chips are up 45%, bread is up 57% and a 12-ounce can of soda is up 66%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which tracks trends on common grocery store items.

WRAL Investigates: 'Greedflation' and other drivers behind inflation at the grocery store

A look at inflation at the grocery store

Stores that sell electronics, like Best Buy and Staples, offer convenient and accessible solutions for North Carolina residents looking to responsibly dispose of their electronics.

How to recycle your old electronics: A guide for North Carolina households

Old electronics 

<b>SMITHFIELD, N.C.</b> — Johnston County authorities are investigating a fight between two teenage girls on a school bus Thursday morning.

Sheriff's officials said that two 14-year-old girls got into a fight on a bus at 10:11 a.m. Thursday. During the fight, one girl bit another girl's face.

The victim was taken to Johnston Memorial Hospital. The other girl is in custody.

The motive of the fight and other details are being investigated by the Johnston County Sheriff's Department.

The fight happened on a Johnston County South Campus Alternative School bus this morning at the location of Highway 70 westbound and Wilson's Mills Road near Smithfield.

One Girl In Custody After Teens Fight On Bus

More than 21% of North Carolina's four-year-olds enrolled in the state's pre-kindergarten programs during the 2022-2023 school year, up from the prior year but still below the state's pre-pandemic highs, according to the National Institute for Early Education Research.

North Carolina ranks 29th in public pre-K enrollment, new report shows

Durham County budget increases funding for pre-K students

Armadillo Grill has closed its Glenwood Avenue location in Raleigh, owners announced Wednesday. 

After more than 20 years in business, Glenwood South restaurant announces closure

Armadillo Grill

It was a brazen theft: thousands of gold bars and millions of dollars in bank notes stolen a year ago from Toronto's international airport.

Nine people, including an airline worker, arrested in $14.5 million gold heist

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NEW YORK (AP) — Jury selection in Donald Trump ’s hush money trial enters a pivotal phase as the former president returns to court. Attorneys will need to pick 12 more jurors to serve on the panel that will decide the first-ever criminal case against a former U.S. commander-in-chief after a previously seated juror was dismissed Thursday morning.

The Latest | Seated juror in hush money trial excused as prosecutors ask judge to sanction Trump

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A grand jury on Tuesday indicted Tevin Leach, 30, of Holly Springs, on a charge of first-degree murder in the shooting death of his ex-girlfriend last month.

Ex-boyfriend indicted on murder of woman in Apex parking lot

Tevin Leach, 30

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Nightly N.C. Education Lottery drawings during the 11 p.m. News.

Evening Pick 3 Pick 4 and Cash 5

Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday Powerball drawings, as shown live on WRAL.

Powerball Drawing

A crash has shut down all but one lane of Interstate 540 westbound near Buffaloe Road in Raleigh. Sky 5 is over the scene

Crash shuts down I-540 West near Buffaloe Road in Raleigh; Sky 5 is over the scene

Videos

NCAA athletes will be immediately eligible to play no matter how many times they transfer -- as long as they meet academic requirements -- after the association fast-tracked legislation Wednesday to fall in line with a recent court order.

NCAA allows transfers to be immediately eligible, no matter how many times they've switched schools

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The NHL has set the start times for game 1's across the Eastern Conference. The Canes are the opening act with puck drop Saturday at 5 pm from PNC Arena.

Get ready for 'Saturday Night in Raleighwood' as the NHL sets game 1 start time

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Over the course of her career, Ashley Twichell has pushed through situations that might have otherwise been the end of it, including a recurring shoulder injury and the COVID pandemic.

Triangle-based Olympic swimmer finds new balance while embarking on motherhood journey

Ashley Twichell

The Carolina Hurricanes are no stranger to playoff hockey. They're in the postseason for the sixth-straight season and are regarded as a Stanley Cup contender.

Chaos-causing Canes start chase for the cup as favorites

After the death of a Harnett County teenager, the softball community in Eastern North Carolina remembers her through stickers and fighting the stigma around mental health.