Monkeypox in Mecklenburg + UNC boosts strong starting lineup

Hey there! Audience Growth intern Sydney Bergan here. Your usual newsletter correspondent KJ Edelman is taking a much-needed break. So in the meantime, I’m here to give you all the news you need this afternoon. Let’s get started.

1. Mecklenburg confirms first county case of monkeypox, days after first NC case

Monkeypox virus test results document with stethoscope
Monkeypox virus test results document with stethoscope

After the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services reported that the first case of monkeypox virus infection had been found in the state, someone has tested positive in Mecklenburg County.

Monkeypox is a rare but potentially serious viral illness that involves flu-like symptoms, swelling of the lymph nodes and a rash. It’s typically spread through skin-to-skin contact.

“Though this is the first confirmed case in the County, we know there are likely other cases,” county health director Dr. Raynard Washington said in a statement.

More on that story from Hannah Smoot.

Other resources:

2. UNC basketball roster for 2022-23 season is set. Four things to expect from Tar Heels

North Carolinas Armando Bacot (5) and R.J. Davis (4) react after securing a lead over Saint Peters in the first half during the NCAA East Regional final on Sunday, March 27, 2022 at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pa.
North Carolinas Armando Bacot (5) and R.J. Davis (4) react after securing a lead over Saint Peters in the first half during the NCAA East Regional final on Sunday, March 27, 2022 at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pa.

The roster is out and Carolina will boast one of the most experienced starting fives in the ACC and nation after returning four starters from last season’s national championship game.

Armando Bacot will be a preseason contender for Player of the Year in the ACC and on watch lists for the award nationally. Caleb Love and R.J. Davis will be considered one of the best backcourts in the nation after making big leaps as sophomores. Leaky Black should finally get his due as one of the best defenders in the nation too.

Add in Pete Nance as the potential fifth starter and that could mean the Heels play with two juniors, two fifth-year seniors and one fourth-year senior.

Read more insights on the UNC team from C.L. Brown.

3. Charlotte’s newest grocery store features fresh sushi, meals to go and local goods

Food Lion at 5939 Weddington Road in Charlotte will open Wednesday with fresh sushi and meals ready to go.
Food Lion at 5939 Weddington Road in Charlotte will open Wednesday with fresh sushi and meals ready to go.

Food Lion is coming to the Wesley Chapel neighborhood.

The 46,000-square-foot south Charlotte Food Lion store will debut at 8 a.m. Wednesday at 5939 Weddington Road, in a former Harris Teeter location. Matthews-based Harris Teeter closed the specialty-concept store in December 2020.

The new Food Lion features fresh sushi, fresh-cut fruit, grab-and-go meals, plus organic, gluten-free and plant-based items, according to the grocer.

Food Lion’s latest expansion is part of an ongoing supermarket battle for grocery dollars in the Charlotte region.

More on the store’s features from Katherine Muccigrosso.

4. ‘Not a panacea’: Do gas tax relief proposals stand a chance in Congress, NC legislature?

A man pumps gas at a mini-mart in Pittsburgh on Wednesday, June 15, 2022. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
A man pumps gas at a mini-mart in Pittsburgh on Wednesday, June 15, 2022. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

It’s old news that gas prices have skyrocketed in the past few weeks. But the measures to fix the problem are well underway, with some backlash from state legislators.

Biden’s proposed “gas tax holiday” would stop the collection of the federal tax on gasoline and diesel — 18.3 cents per gallon for gas and 23.4 cents per gallon for diesel. The administration says the break would help Americans strapped for cash amid rising prices and inflation.

Neither of North Carolina’s U.S. senators has expressed support for the bipartisan political will to suspend the gas tax.

“The Biden Administration needs to give the energy industry certainty so they can work to expand refinery capacity and actually work to bring gas prices down for North Carolinians,” U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis said in a statement.

Will Wright has all the information here.

5. Some more stories to read

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Here’s the author card for Sydney Bergan, an Audience Growth intern for The Charlotte Observer and Raleigh News & Observer.
Here’s the author card for Sydney Bergan, an Audience Growth intern for The Charlotte Observer and Raleigh News & Observer.