In today's newsletter, Ann Arbor figure skaters in shock after D.C. plane crash, a look at top 50 school districts in Michigan for 2025 and Michigan Republicans propose bathroom and sports restrictions for transgender students. |
Move over, Punxsutawney Phil—Michigan’s Woody has the better forecast |
As winter drags on, you might have started counting down to the sunnier days of spring. We still have a ways to go before the Spring Equinox on March 20, but Groundhog Day, Feb. 2, could offer a sneak peek to how soon we will experience warmer weather. Groundhogs—also called woodchucks—are usually a nuisance to gardeners and homeowners. But Groundhog Day is their time to shine as Punxsutawney Phil of Philadelphia pops out of his burrow to predict whether we'll face six more weeks of winter or an early spring. His forecasts have a 30% accuracy over the past 10 years, while Michigan’s own weather-predicting woodchuck, Woody, boasts a more impressive 65% success rate since 1999. For a more reliable outlook on the upcoming weather, here is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's long range February forecast for Michigan. |
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Woody the Woodchuck emerging from her den at the Howell Nature Center February, 2, 2024. |
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See a ranking of top 50 school districts in Michigan for 2025 |
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Michigan weekend weather: Only one area of snow, 1 day near 40 degrees |
The weekend ahead: The weekend weather across most of Michigan won’t be too crazy. There is one period of snow and rain we will contend with, but for early February it’s a fairly weak winter set-up. Saturday will not have any precipitation. The storm system bringing a rain and quick snow Friday afternoon and evening will be over by midnight, leaving us with a dry Saturday. The air will be colder Saturday but nothing extremely cold. Measuring up: When looking at Michigan’s snowfall we usually see areas above normal and below normal each year. It’s that case right now, and with a big spread in snowfall amounts.The most accurate snowfall report for far southeast Lower Michigan is Detroit with 14.1 inches so far. This is a full 10 inches less than average up to January 30. The heaviest official report MLive meteorologist Mark Torregrossa can find is Gaylord at 140 inches. Let it snow: The type of storm system heading our way Friday usually results in a swath of significant snow at this time of year. In this case it won’t be a snowstorm, but just a small area with a time period to watch for slick roads. We always watch storm systems moving toward Michigan from the southwest. These storms have ample moisture to produce a six inch or heavy stripe of snow. |
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‘We’re all grieving’: Ann Arbor figure skaters in shock after D.C. plane crash |
Heart breaking: The Ann Arbor figure skating community is in shock after a plane crash over the nation’s capital presumably killed nearly 70 people, including members of U.S. Figure Skating. Among those confirmed dead are 1994 pairs world champions Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, along with skaters Jinna Han and Spencer Lane and their mothers, the AP reports. Willow Fedewa, 16, a figure skater who trains at Ann Arbor’s Ice Cube, said she is struggling with suspense of not knowing for sure whom the community has lost. At least 28 bodies were pulled from the icy waters of the Potomac River after the helicopter apparently flew into the path of the jet late Wednesday as it was landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, officials said. The plane carried 60 passengers and four crew. Three soldiers were aboard the helicopter. There was no immediate word on the cause of the collision, but officials said flight conditions were clear as the jet arrived from Wichita, Kansas, with U.S. and Russian figure skaters and others aboard. It was preparing for a routine landing at the time of the collision. |
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Michigan Republicans propose bathroom, sports restrictions for transgender students |
Transgender students in Michigan would be forbidden from shared restrooms used by the “opposite biological sex” under a new bill from House Republicans. The bill introduced Tuesday, Jan. 28, would require trans students to use bathrooms designated for their sex assigned at birth, covering bathrooms and changing rooms in private and public elementary and secondary schools, along with colleges, universities and other educational institutions. House Republicans also introduced a bill this week that would require trans athletes' scores to be recorded based on their sex assigned at birth. Both bills come on the heels of President Donald Trump last week ordering no federal funding go toward gender affirming care. That same order also declared the U.S. government would only recognize a person’s sex assigned at birth and that the definition of sex is limited to male and female. On air: While promoting her latest book, “True Gretch: Young Adult Edition,” on NBC’s “Late Night with Seth Meyers”, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer talked about topics ranging from Michigan auto manufacturing to commonalities with President Donald Trump and her 2026 Super Bowl prediction. |
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From CMU to the Smithsonian: A crime-solving laptop’s sometimes-wacky journey to D.C. |
Making history: A Michigan-connected MacBook Pro used to catch a couple involved in one of the nation’s biggest money heists now sits in the Smithsonian Institute’s National Museum of American History. The computer's recent journey into the museum’s National Numismatic Collection — which in part chronicles items related to the U.S.’s monetary history — in some ways began about 20 years ago during a Central Michigan University fraternity event for accounting majors. Found: A Southwest Michigan man who was missing for more than a week has been found safe in Indiana, police said. Tyler Kenneth-Duane Visel had been missing since Jan. 21, when he was last seen by a family member in the Niles area, police said previously. Visel was found in good health in Goshen, Indiana, police said on Jan. 30. His family has been notified. A Detroit priest who also bills himself as an exorcist was charged in Illinois this week in connection with a November incident in which he allegedly flossed his teeth with the hair of a teenage girl. According to Fox 2 Detroit, Rev. Carlos Martins surrendered to police in Illinois and is facing a misdemeanor battery charge that could land him in jail for up to one year. |
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Thanks for starting your day with the Morning Briefing. I hope that you have a fun-filled weekend. Catch up on the the latest Michigan news at MLive.com. While you're there, consider becoming a subscriber. See you on Monday! — Cara |
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