FALL RIVER – Don’t expect a flood of tears. Not when most of the the 1978-vintage Durfee High School building comes a tumbling down next year.Per present schedule, Durfee High School will be operating in its newly constructed building for the school year 2021-2022. The renovated Luke Urban Field House, as well as the Nagle Auditorium, will survive the demolition. But the heart of what is known as Durfee V2 will be demolished, with a multi-purpose athletics field taking ..read more

FALL RIVER – Manny Carvalho figured he was as good as dead.A member of the U.S. Army’s Armor Corps who had just served under General Patton in World War II’s North African Theatre, the Fall River resident was, on Nov. 26, 1943, afloat and terrified in the Mediterranean Sea, just off the coast of Algeria.The Rhona, reportedly a rust-bucket ..read more

“Hello, Dr. Hummel’s office. Yes, of course. I understand.”Dr. Barbara Hummel hung up the office phone with a sigh. Another patient canceling their appointment.Hummel's been running her Milwaukee private practice since 1995.It was her dream job, since she decided to go back to school for medicine when she was 36 years old.At the height of her business, she would see about 16 patients a day. But since the coronavirus pandemic, she's been lucky to see ..read more

FALL RIVER — It’s not dazzling yet. That will come in the next few months.Right now, the interior of the new B.M.C. Durfee High School building is better described as intriguing. A lot of bare bones, which is great, because it allowed two blessed media members taking the guided tour of the Elsbree Street campus last Friday to see what in the not-too-distant future will be be hidden behind walls and ceilings.Head tour guide, Durfee Principal Matthew Desmarais ..read more

FALL RIVER – Manny Carvalho figured he was as good as dead.A member of the U.S. Army’s Armor Corps who had just fought under General Patton in World War II’s North African Theatre, the Fall River resident was, on Nov. 26, 1943, afloat and terrified in the Mediterranean Sea, just off the coast of Algeria.The Rhona, reportedly a rust-bucket ..read more

Fall River recorded 191 more cases of COVID-19 over the weekend, according to the office of Mayor Paul Coogan. To date, the coronavirus pandemic has sickened 3,230 people in Fall River and is 140 deaths have been attributed to it.Meanwhile, the state continues to see a rise in cases since a lull in the summer through September. Another 1,184 positive COVID cases were recorded on Monday, according to the Department of Public Health. Thirteen more deaths were attributed to the illness ..read more

BOSTON -- With about two months of a lame duck session remaining for the Legislature, supporters said Monday that this may be their best chance yet to pass legislation that would allow terminally ill patients to get a prescription for a substance that would end their lives.In late May, bills (H 4782/S 2745) that would legalize medical aid in dying -- sometimes referred to as doctor-assisted suicide or death with dignity -- filed by Rep. Louis Kafka and Sen. Will Brownsberger were ..read more

BOSTON -- Despite Speaker Robert DeLeo warning House lawmakers off trying to use the annual budget to advance major policy changes, the top Democrat blessed a vote this week on an amendment that would codify abortion rights into state law and make abortions legal after 24 weeks if a doctor has diagnosed a fatal fetal abnormality.The amendment to the annual budget bill was filed by Rep. Claire Cronin, a Easton Democrat and the co-chair of the Joint Committee on the Judiciary, which ..read more

BOSTON -- When President-elect Joe Biden's transition team announced his COVID-19 advisory board on Monday, House Speaker Robert DeLeo quickly did the math, pointing out on Twitter that more than half of the members "were educated and/or employed in Massachusetts."And while Boston Mayor Martin Walsh noted Sunday that Biden "can't take everyone from Massachusetts to Washington with him," speculation has started to swirl about which Bay State pols might find a new home in a Biden ..read more

BOSTON -- Hopeful marijuana delivery entrepreneurs and supporters, including a couple of state representatives, huddled virtually to get on the same page and encourage advocacy ahead of a public hearing later this week that could determine what kind of delivery industry gets rolled out in Massachusetts.Home delivery of marijuana has long been allowed under the state's medical marijuana program, and the Cannabis Control Commission has been thinking about a non-medical delivery ..read more