Today's Top Headlines

Wednesday, January 29

Snow is zooming away early Wednesday morning, and while sun will greet many commuters, there still may be some slippery spots out there.

If you’re not in the mood for cleanup (and who is by midwinter?) Mother Nature is up for the task. Highs leap back into the 40s this afternoon and since this was a fluffy snow, there’s very little water content. We’ll lose it all in the “warmth” of the afternoon sun.

As the cold comes rushing back in, squalls will erupt in the mid/late afternoon. There will be lots of wind with these bursts of mix and snow, so expect gusts to 40 to 45 mph at any time. Our “mild(ish)” temperatures will crumble late day and evening, falling back to the 20s to near 30.

Wednesday marks three years since the death of John O’Keefe, the Boston police officer who was found dead outside the home of another officer in Canton on a snowy morning in January of 2022.

O’Keefe’s death was a tragedy to his family, and marked the start of the ongoing case against Karen Read, his girlfriend who has been accused of hitting and killing him with her SUV.

People were standing at the display set up for O’Keefe to honor him at the Canton Police Department early Wednesday morning. People have been at the display since 8 a.m. Tuesday, and the plan is for them to stay until 8 a.m. Wednesday.

More than a month after a woman’s murder in Boston’s South End, the father of her three children is facing charges.

Shantel Gillespie, 30, was found dead on Dec. 12 at her luxury apartment building on Harrison Avenue. While authorities initially gave limited information, they said the following week that the case was being investigated as a murder.

Eric McPhail of Boston is due to be arraigned Wednesday afternoon at Boston Municipal Court, Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden announced Tuesday.

The fishing community of Gloucester, Massachusetts, is mourning the loss of the Miss Sandy, a 56-foot fishing boat that sank off the coast of Massachusetts.

The incident began on Jan. 17 with a broken-up mayday call that alerted authorities to the vessel’s distress. On board was the ship’s captain and a NOAA observer. 

“I heard a mayday in the background, very faint, so I knew it was serious,” Gloucester Harbormaster Chris Lucido said. “I listened closely to the radio and heard Al Cottone take over the call.”

An order from President Donald Trump to freeze federal funding has been paused by a judge, but nonprofits and advocacy groups in Massachusetts are continuing to brace for the potential impact.

The order called on all federal agencies to halt funding temporarily so the Trump administration can review what is necessary and what’s not.

It was supposed to take effect at 5 p.m. Tuesday, but U.S. District Judge Loren L. AliKhan extended the deadline to Monday.

Slowly but surely, Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs are gaining ground on Tom Brady and the New England Patriots dynasty.

The Chiefs are headed to their fifth Super Bowl in the last six years. They’ve won three Super Bowl titles in that span and will look to become the first NFL team ever to win three in a row.

Kansas City has actually enjoyed even more success in the first seven years of its dynasty than New England. It has made seven conference title appearances, five Super Bowl appearances, and three Super Bowl wins since Mahomes took over as starting quarterback in 2018.