🗞️ Lantern flies attack Kernersville is ground zero

🗞️ Atrium Health and the State Health Plan reach a deal, keeping Baptist in network for 2027

🗞️ Home Runs and Hot Rods fills Glenn High's parking lots with more than 300 cars

🗞️ Your Thursday in Kernersville: morning fog, a warm 78 Friday and clocks fall back Sunday

🌤️ Morning fog, then mostly sunny | High: 73°F | Low: 49°F

Allow a little extra time on the morning drive. Patchy fog is likely between about 7 and 10 a.m., then it burns off into a mostly sunny, pleasant afternoon with a high near 73 and barely a breeze. Skies clear tonight and it cools to around 49. Friday turns even warmer, sunny with a high near 78.

If it feels like spotted lanternflies are on every porch rail, car door and tree trunk in town, you're not imagining it. The Town of Kernersville says Kernersville is the epicenter of the outbreak, and it's asking residents to help fight back with a free trap.

The invasive bugs change as they grow. Young ones are black and white, then they turn red and white, and the adults are larger, gray-winged and surprisingly fast jumpers. The N.C. Department of Agriculture has been treating for them in spots all over town and beyond, but the town points out that each insect can lay up to 100 eggs, which helps explain why there seem to be more of them than ever.

Keep stomping the adults, the town says, but now is the time of year to go after the eggs. The Town of Kernersville and Mid-Atlantic Roofing Supply are giving away 500 free lampshade trap kits, and you must sign up in advance to pick one up. To set one, find a tree the lanternflies love to climb, ideally one about 6 to 8 inches in diameter, and place the trap about 4 feet off the ground.

Would you rather build your own? The town posted simple step-by-step instructions. Sign up for a free trap kit or get the DIY trap instructions.

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Good news for teachers, state employees and retirees who see doctors at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist. The N.C. State Health Plan and Atrium have agreed to a multi-year contract that keeps Atrium in the plan's network next year, the Winston-Salem Journal reports.

Earlier this month, Baptist's main campus and other Atrium hospitals were headed for out-of-network status in 2027 as the plan rolled out its new tiered network. Under the new deal, all remaining Atrium hospitals and physicians join Tier 2, including Baptist's main campus and its locations in Bermuda Run, High Point and Lexington. Tier 2 providers have agreed to keep 2027 out-of-pocket and deductible costs almost identical to 2026. Novant Health and UNC Health remain Tier 1 preferred providers.

"We hope this agreement provides members with more clarity about provider tiers and puts concerns to rest while avoiding drastic premium and benefit changes statewide," said State Treasurer Brad Briner, who chairs the plan's board of trustees.

Open enrollment runs through Nov. 6, so the plan's more than 750,000 members still have time to review their choices for next year.

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Glenn High School's baseball program held its fourth Home Runs and Hot Rods car show this past Sunday afternoon, and the "Grand Slam Edition" drew well over 300 cars, trucks and vans, the Kernersville News reports. The show had been moved from Oct. 4 because of rain, but the weather cooperated and the cars filled the front lot on Union Cross Road, a side lot and the lot between the stadium and the cafeteria.

"It is crazy to see how it has grown and evolved over the years," said Ijames, who leads the Glenn baseball program. He credited assistant coach Michael Robbins, who is active in the car show world, for organizing it. During the event, Robbins also honored the memory of former Glenn player Neal Parnell, a four-year Bobcat who died unexpectedly a couple of weeks ago and who, with his wife, a longtime Glenn teacher, supported Glenn athletics for years.

The show is the baseball program's biggest fundraiser. "We use it to get equipment for the guys so they can have a better experience on the field," Ijames said.

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Here's what to know heading into Halloween weekend.

Fog first, then sunshine. Patchy fog is likely between 7 and 10 a.m., so take it easy on the morning drive. After that it turns mostly sunny with a high near 73. Tonight is clear and cool, around 49. Friday is sunny and warm with a high near 78, and Halloween Saturday is partly sunny and cooler, around 67.

Three days left to vote early. Both Kernersville early voting sites, the Recreation and Event Center on Shields Road and Paddison Memorial Branch Library on Harmon Lane, are open 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. today and Friday. Saturday, Oct. 31, is the last day, and polls close at 3 p.m. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3. See sites and hours.

Halloween weekend is here. Friday night brings the Spirited Halloween Ball at Körner's Folly, Fall Fest at The Crossing Church and the Walkertown Little League Trunk or Treat. On Saturday, catch the Bunker Hill UMC Trunk or Treat from 1 to 3 p.m., the VFW Post 5352 Trunk or Treat from 4 to 8 p.m., Downtown Trick or Treat from 6 to 8 p.m. and the Masonic Lodge No. 669 Trunk or Treat from 6 to 9 p.m. Check the events calendar above for addresses and links.

Fall back Sunday. Daylight saving time ends at 2 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 1, so set your clocks back an hour before bed Saturday night.

Batteries are about to be banned from the trash. Starting Dec. 1, North Carolina will prohibit lithium-ion batteries, like the ones in phones, laptops and power tools, from landfills. The Town of Kernersville asks residents to keep them out of trash and recycling carts and recycle them properly instead. Learn more.