Toxic metal. Bill string of businesses set to close down leading to public outcry. Youll find out why they are forced to pack up and move o o and what might be replacing them. People are locating them, drilling out the locks and posting it on craigslist for a great deal. Kayla cmpd receiving five calls a week of possible squatter cases all over charlotte. They take us to one neighborhood where a squatter had a history of runins with police. What neighbors did in response. Good evening and thank you for joining us for fox 46 news, im kayla ayres. Bill and im bill melugin. First on fox tonight, thousands in South Carolina, they are just learning the water theyve been drinking might have been contaminated. Kayla three different neighborhoods two, in york for the toxic metal lead. Results show up to four times above federal standards. David sentendrey spent the afternoon in one of the neighborhoods, joining us live in the studio with what neighbors had to say. Reporter hey, kayla, contaminated water can cause a wide range of health issues. New testing shows levels have dropped back to normal. This has plenty of people thinking what they may have unknowingly been drinking. Clean Drinking Water is something many people and even animals take for granted. Theyre drinking more of it than i am. My dogs have been drinking this, theyre like my kids, sure im concerned. Reporter r orothy patrick runs jesses place Animal Rescue in york county. She lives in the river hills neighborhood, one of three South Carolina neighborhoods where the water tested positive for lead this january. Up to four times the federal standard. Plenty of People Living here had no clue until we showed up. This is about everybody, this is about pets, about children. Reporter Carolina Water Service says water levels have the problem is from household material that has lead in it. Carolina Water Service says, quote a lot of people cant take high doses of anything. Reporter in flint, michigan thousands may have been exposed to high levels of lead in the water supply. Though its a different situation than were seeing in South Carolina, its opened the eyes of many to the potential health risks of drinking contaminated water. And dorothy says shes going to bottled water not just for herself, but for her dogs. Yes, i definitely still have concerns. Reporter and the two other neighborhoods where high levels of lead were found are foxwood in york county and cedarwood in lexington county. Kayla thank you, david. Carolina water Officials Say you should let water run for 30 seconds to flush before drinking it. It will continue to test at bill all new at 10 00, Winter Weather continuing to affect the mountain areas west of charlotte. Ashe county schools running on a twohour delay tomorrow, and avery county schools operating on a twohour delay as well. New at 10 00, from bus routes to diversity, to tightly knit neighborhoods, some of the issues regarding possible student assignment. Cms faculty will give families opportunities to ask questions and talk about concerns in small groups. They want to move students around schools in order to better balance the number of poor and highneeds students at each school. I think it was great to see the engagement from the representatives, both the district representatives as well as head reps, it was great to see turnout from the parents and folks concerned about this. Bill it wont be until at decision is made regarding reassignment plan which wouldnt take effect until the following school year in 2017. Stay with fox 46 for more details as they develop on this topic. Kayla today, leaders in Mecklenburg County discussed how things are going in the area during state of the county address. Some of the highlights, a bold announcement calling for universal prek for every child in Mecklenburg County, a move that will help bridge the education gap. Only 40 of third grade students are reading at grade level. That leaves 60 who just arent hitting the mark. We know that Early Childhood education, quality Early Childhood education is key to creating Economic Opportunities for people. Kayla another Big Initiative called putting people to work would link applicants up with employers, giving jobseekers the training they need to filt8,000 entry level positions that are available in the county. Now an update to a story county commissioners approved a 170,000 Economic Development grant for red ventures, bringing 500 jobs to charlotte. City council has already approved a Business Investment grant for the company. Bill health Officials Say theyve confirmed a case of the mumps here in Mecklenburg County. As a result of this, theyre asking everybody to make sure hands are washed and get medical attention if you show symptoms. Authorities tell us its related to another case in iredell county. Health officials are working to find any other people who might have contracted the illness. Mumps outbreaks can happen in highly vaccinated populations, the sickness is spread from saliva or thickness from the mouth, nose or when a person sneezes or speaks. By the time youve developed swelling, youve been infectious for two days, so sometimes mumps is a little controlled. Bill and some symptoms of the mumps include fever, headache, tenderness or swelling of the glands below the ears. Official ask people with symptoms to immediately call a doctor, the best defense is to get vaccinated and practice good hygiene like regularly washing hands. Kayla one town has been named as one of the worst commutes in the nation, according to a list populated on msn. The average commute time in indian trail is about 29. 9 minutes. Nearly 35,000 people live in that town. Number one on the list is Temescal Valley in california. Bainbridge island in washington at number two followed by scarsdale new york. One neighborhood is growing quickly and some living nearby are afraid the growth will spike traffic in the area. City Council Voted to give Grub Properties the green light for apartment complex and retail space. Complexes popping up in the area. Im thrilled about the ones coming in on abby place, what was there needed to be replaced. New apartments is great there. Kayla Council Voted to move forward with the project owned by Grub Properties and space for a hotel if the owners can find someone to operate it. Now at 10 00, businesses in the elizabeth neighborhood have to relocate and the owners are not happy about this. Those businesses are part of a Shopping Center near the Central Piedmont Community college. Bill sam smith spoke with Business Owners and many of them turned out theyre trying to figure out what options are. Hes joining us live with the newsroom with what plans could possibly be. Hi, sam. Reporter hey, bill, not every business received a notice to vacate. The Property Owner telling me he has no choice but to sell. The location of this Shopping Center is the reason why many businesses moved in here. Its right next to the for crown station, its the place theyve called home for five years. It seems were going to have to vacate at the end of march. Reporter the coffee house and pub is a live venue for music and comedy. The place means a lot to the area. A lot of people in town have, been here, through here, started their comedy career here or dj career or anything like that. People have got their start in this small place, it means a lot to the people of charlotte. Service central piedmont here. Reporter Textbook Brokers havent been asked to vacate yet. Were expecting a letter soon. Reporter their lease runs through june first and dont anticipate an offer to renew. Have namely atmosphere, for that to come crashing down, thats kind of tough. Reporter the Property Owner tells me hes owned the Shopping Center for 20 years, and says its heart breaking relocate, but he needs to sell due to financial reasons. Central piedmont plans to buy the property to provide space for the future growth of the campus. Business owners cant help but feel frustrated over the situation. To have the rug ripped out from underneath of you at this point in time is heartwrenching. Reporter Business Owners plan to reopen at some point in a new location. They just dont have a last day set. Theyre working with lawyers to discuss their options and current lease agreements. In the newsroom, sam smith, fox 46 wjzy. Bill thank you. Cpcc is waiting for the state board to meet before they can move forward with the purchase of that Shopping Center. Kayla one Business Owner went above and beyond to help families stranded in the ice and cold. He turned his gas station by day into a safe haven for the night. Hitesh patel owns saluda truck plaza. Two women, one traveling with slick roads in cars and got stuck near patels gas station last night. The business was supposed to close at 10 00 but he let the family spend the night in the gas station lounge. He brought in cots, a space heater to keep them warm and a tv for entertainment. I saw one of the girls she looked like my niece, she lives in lincolnton, north carolina. I said if that will be my sister or niece, then what anybody can do it . I said just leave it open. Kayla so kind. The mom whose children got a warm place to stay for the night called patel an angel. Her kids decorated postit notes to thank him for his generosity. Go to fox 46. Com and use the easy navigation tools you are looking for. Found somebody on craigslist and thought it was bill cmpd dealing with a serious squatting problem, why squatting is on the rise for the last couple of years . I can tell this is the first one i flash flood my entire year. Kayla the Salvation Army gets a very valuable donation. That story is still to come. Hey, brian. Brian hey, kayla. Snow showers in the mountain, rain showers in the valleys. Bill welcome back. A story all new at 10 00 tonight, cmpd is getting between three and five calls every single week about possible squatter cases. Kayla as they work to tackle the issue all over the county, Neima Abdulahi shows us one neighborhood hit hard by this problem. Reporter from bogus rental agreements to breaking into homes, cmpd says in the last two years, theyve seen a rise in the number of people moving in illegally to foreclosed homes. According to police, some say theyre unaware theyre getting scammed. Who are you . I live here. Who says you can move to my house . This guy, this woman owns the house. Reporter cmpd detective Andrew Phillips says sometimes squatters are scammed by fake craigslist ads and people squatting are intentionally trespassing. What were finding out is a lot of the abandoned houses drilling out locks and posting on craigslist for a great deal. Reporter officer bill hain says the Community Near murphy hill recently had a bit of a squatting problem. People moved into this foreclosed home without lawfully owning the Property Owner. They found somebody on a good deal. They paid the first and last months rent and keys provided. Reporter this neighbor who did not want to show his face for safety reasons had a conversation with one of the squatters who had a long list of arrests and a few months later died from gunshot wounds. Felt i wasnt able to protect my family. I feel like all honesty, that we were against a situation we had no control over. Reporter neighbors notified police after seeing suspicious activity. Cmpd wants home owners to be aware of the signs to look out for as the problem continues detective phillips says if you have questions or concerns, find out who owns the property to see if its in foreclosure. If you still have concerns, contact police. If someone is illegally squatting, they could face charges. Providing all kinds of false documentation, everything they told is a complete lie, then the owner can press charges for breaking and entering. Reporter cmpd says when they find out a house is foreclosed, they notify the neighborhood to make sure everyone keeps an eye on the home and reports anything suspicious. Neima abdulahi, fox 46 wjzy. Kayla detectives are encouraging neighbors to ask any new people who move in questions in an effort to get to know them better. Weather. Im hoping that groundhogs predictions are right. I want spring to get here. Yesterday was not a fan of that. You like the cold weather. Kayla no, i almost fell on my balcony when i got home. It does look like were going 60s. For more on what we can expect, heres brian basham. Brian yeah, over the weekend, people are cursing the poor rodents, return of springlike weather to the areas. Look at headlines tonight, were going to be seeing showers in the area. We see the potential for snow in the mountains and into the foothills as well. That sunshine, it will be back tomorrow, okay . No worries there, and a warm weekend ahead of us, it does include in the tail end sunday, a chance for rain as well. Well get to that in just a little bit. Take a look and see whats going on in the area right now. Heres boon jefferson to the north. Showing us green right now. Were seeing snow in that particular region at this point. Were going to continue to see some issues there through tonight. By the time its said and done, could be getting 3, 4 of snow. Heres a camera from beach resort in the north ski resort, and some of the camera some you can see the snowfall, big, fluffy snowflakes, if youre thinking about going skiing tomorrow, should be good snow, another opportunity for snow in that area on sunday night. Now, the other issue is the fog. Starting to build up in the mountain ranges as well. Visibility in jefferson under a mile at this point. We got two mile visibility in boon it. Hasnt affected the lower elevations too much just yet but are going to see patchy fog build in the overnight hours with wind speeds hour. Out of the northnortheast at five miles an hour, temperatures cooling but not too bad. 46 degrees here, a cool night for us, but keep the temperatures above freezing tonight. So lets track our weather here over the next 24 hours. Expecting some rain across the areas around mecklenburg and to the north, if youre in the southern edge, not a ton of rain in the area. Continue to see snow showers take a little break tomorrow, see the cloud cover clear as we get towards the afternoon hours. This is 12 16 right here. And more opportunities for snow to build in the mountain ranges through wednesday night into early thursday. So looking at our temperatures tonight, above freezing at 37. Well continue to see light showers, wind speeds 23 miles an hour, thats when well see fog buildup there, once the wind speeds hit that number and look at the next three days here. How do you like this . Wednesday, thursday, friday, all sunshine and 50s. Bill anything above freezing is good to me. Sounds good. Ill take the 50s. Authorities want the Supreme Court to keep in place a court order that prevents primary elections in the boundaries. A recent federal court ruling struck down the states first and 12 congressional districts it runs through part of Mecklenburg County. Kayla 16 years since anyone has seen asha degree, and investigators are asking for help. Asha was nine years old when she left her home in shelby on february 14th, 2000. They saw her asleep in her bedroom around 2 30 a. M. And an hour and a half later, seen by drivers walking along highway 18. More than a year later, ashas book bag was discovered buried along the same highway in burke county. The fbi continues to offer a reward of up to 25,000 for information related to disappearance that leads to arrest. Bill additional charges could be on the way for a man accused of shooting and killing a woman in hickory. James hacker is charged with assault with a deadly weapon. Officers say the two of them were involved in a domestic dispute at the time of that shooting. Kayla more than 80 new jobs Crystal Engineering llc is opening a Production Facility in the area. The floridabased Company Plans to invest 28. 9 million at the site over a fiveyear period. They make projects integrated into aerospace, automotive, industrial, medical and the telecommunication fields. No one at the school knew she was sick because it never affected her demeanor at all. Bill coming up, youll find out how a local school is pitching in to help a beloved what students and cowowowo. Kayla a local community is coming together to help a teacher in need. Kari jones is a first grade teacher at elon park elementary. Shes been out of the classroom for a month because of a medical emergency. After going to the emergency room, she found out she needed a kidney transplant, and jones has been on dialysis since teachers started donating sick days to make sure she could take care of medical needs. Jones is grateful for all of their help. They came to see me in the hospital, they took over my classroom, made sure the subs were all prepared, that i didnt have to worry about doing anything. Kayla the community started a gofundme page to help her with medical bills, as she waits for the donor thats a right match, the struggle is easier to bear knowing she has such a strong support system. A rare donation landed in the hands of staff at Salvat