Robert Carter
BirminghamWatch
Robert Carter is a reporter with BirminghamWatch, a nonprofit, independent news site. WBHM and BirminghamWatch collaborate through a content-sharing partnership.
UAB Doc Predicts New Cases Of COVID Could Rocket To 13,000 A Day By The End Of August
New modeling shows that Alabama could reach a peak of 13,000 new cases per day by the end of August.
Alabama’s COVID New-Case Average Quintuples In 10 Days, As Health Officials Struggle To Get More People Vaccinated
Health officials in the region are sounding the alarm as COVID-19 cases continue to increase. Across the Gulf States, hospitalizations have reached levels not seen since the Spring.
“It’s Playing A Game With Us”: Researcher Says COVID Delta Variant Is Spreading In Alabama
New data shows the delta variant made up almost 71% of cases tested at one local lab in recent weeks.
COVID Hospitalizations Among Elderly Now Fewer Than Young Adults
Vaccine rates statewide have fallen significantly over the past six weeks. Public health leaders are grappling with how to encourage more people to get vaccinated.
“The Edge of the Woods”: UAB Epidemiologist Says Herd Immunity Could Be Reached By Late Spring
An epidemiologist at UAB Medicine thinks that Alabama may be headed toward a long-sought goal in the COVID pandemic and may reach that goal sooner than many had expected.
Bruno Event Team Takes Over JCDH Vaccine Call Center
The Jefferson County United Command Center will bring in a sporting event group to answer more calls to the COVID vaccine hotline.
Fultondale High School Too Badly Damaged By Tornado To Use Again
Fultondale High School is permanently closed because of damage from last week's tornado.
Variant Of COVID-19 Virus Detected In Three Alabamians
Alabama has identified multiple cases of a new COVID-19 variant originally reported in the United Kingdom.
Next Phase of COVID-19 Vaccinations In Jefferson County Could Start Next Week
The state authorized all counties to begin vaccinating first responders and people 75 years and older. But health officials say it will likely be next week before they can start doing that.
Hotels, Recovery Rooms And Waiting Rooms Pressed Into Service As UAB’s Patient Load Rises
UAB Hospital is daily caring for a record number of new COVID-19 patients. These patients have been hospitalized because they are very sick or may be unable to survive without intensive medical care, according to UAB.
‘Oh My God!’ Alabama Running Out Of ICU Beds, And The Christmas Rush Hasn’t Even Begun
Alabama's ICU beds are filling up and the state has not yet seen the rush of new cases from holiday gatherings, according to the president of the Alabama Hospital Association.
UAB’s Marrazzo Concerned About Rising COVID Numbers, But Hopeful About Vaccines
Alabama ranks third in the nation in per capita hospitalizations for COVID-19.
Moderna Vaccine For COVID-19 Has Arrived In Alabama
Alabama will receive its first shipment of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine today.
Rapid Rise Of Alabama, National COVID-19 Numbers Worries UAB Doctor
Alabama's number of new COVID-19 cases and deaths continues to rise.
Birmingham City Students Return To Classrooms In November
The school system will return to a blended model of instruction, though many families still prefer virtual learning.
PSC Allows Alabama Power To Raise Fee Charged To Solar Power Users
Solar power users in Alabama will see a new fee after a vote by the Alabama Public Service Commission this morning.
Jefferson County Schools To Go Virtual-Only For First Nine Weeks; Start Sept. 1
The Jefferson County Board of Education voted Tuesday to begin the 2020-2021 school year with nine weeks of online education only and no option for traditional classroom learning.
COVID-19 Cases Hit Record High Average For The Past Two Weeks
The 14-day moving average of COVID-19 cases has now surpassed the 700 mark.
Alabama’s COVID-19 Case Averages Reach New Highs
Moving averages of new COVID-19 cases have reached their highest levels since the start of the pandemic.
Shelby, Jones Side With Their Parties as Senate Acquits President Trump of Impeachment Charges
Both United States Senators from Alabama cast their votes along party lines as President Donald Trump was acquitted Wednesday of both articles of impeachment filed by the House of Representatives.
Jones Sides With Senate Democrats, Will Vote to Convict Trump in Impeachment Trial
Sen. Doug Jones will vote to convict President Donald Trump of two charges in his impeachment trial.
Court Says Gardendale Must Pay Opponents’ Legal Fees in Failed School System Breakaway
The City of Gardendale will have to pay $850,000 to the lawyers of black students, according to a new court ruling.
Walter Gonsoulin Named New JefCoEd Superintendent, Its First African American Leader
Walter Gonsoulin, who has served as interim superintendent of the Jefferson County Schools since the departure past month of Craig Pouncey, now holds the position for good.
One Birmingham City Council Seat Goes to a Runoff; Two Incumbents Returned to the Council
One Birmingham City Council seat will be up for a runoff after none of the candidates won more than 50 percent of the votes in Tuesday’s balloting.
Several Birmingham Special Election Results on Hold Until Wednesday
Special elections for three Birmingham City Council seats, plus renewals for three ad valorem taxes, will not have results declared until Wednesday morning because of an error in the handling of electronic machine memory cards at three different precincts.
Jefferson County Board of Education Makes History With Appointment of First African American as Interim Superintendent
It was a history-making moment for the Jefferson County Board of Education.
#DougMeetsMiles: Jones Takes Questions Via Twitter at Forum With College Students
Sen. Doug Jones told an audience of students from Miles College that when he went to Washington, D.C. he didn’t realize that he was going to be a part of a government that functioned according to what someone says on Twitter — an oblique reference to President Donald Trump’s penchant for tweets that make the nation’s capital go topsy-turvy.
Birmingham Iron’s Season Ends Early, as Alliance of American Football Suspends Operations
Even quicker than it came to life, the Alliance of American Football — and with it, the Birmingham Iron — has gone on life support.
Another Pro Football League Takes the Field in Birmingham. Will This One Stay Afloat?
It’s almost become a tradition for football fans in the Magic City. Every few years, yet another professional football league comes to Legion Field, with aspirations to bring some semblance of high-level gridiron action to The Old Gray Lady on Graymont.
Fairfield Council Gives Mayor the Boot, but Ed May II Isn’t Backing Down
The long-running feud between Fairfield Mayor Ed May II and the City Council has reached a boiling point, as the council voted to remove May from office because he was continually absent from council meetings.
Conquering Hero or Political Villain? How Alabama’s Conservative Voters Will View Jeff Sessions After Turbulent AG Tenure
The end of Jeff Sessions’ topsy-turvy time as attorney general came abruptly, a day after one of the nation’s most important mid-term elections. After nearly two years of being publicly berated by President Donald Trump, Sessions is out and free to return home to Alabama, the state that sent him to the U.S. Senate for 20 years.
EPA Southeast Administrator, Former ADEM Commissioner Indicted on State Ethics Charges
A former director of the Alabama Department of Environmental Management, who’s now the regional administrator for the EPA, has been indicted on state ethics charges related to the case in which an executive of Drummond Corporation and a partner in the Balch and Bingham law firm were convicted earlier this year.
