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Middletown police department earns third state reaccreditation

The Middletown Police Department has received its third reaccreditation from the Rhode Island Police Accreditation Commission, the department announced Thursday. The reaccreditation follows a comprehensive review of the department’s policies, procedures, training and operations, measured against 230 standards established by RIPAC. Those standards cover administration, personnel, operations, prisoner services and technical support functions. Officer Jean […]

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Outlook for Newport Hospital birthing center dims after Brown University Health logs $18M Q1 loss

by Nancy Lavin, Rhode Island CurrentMarch 19, 2026 Executives at Brown University Health never mentioned the Newport Hospital birthing center during a 30-minute call with investors Thursday, nor was it included in a 17-slide PowerPoint presentation detailing the health care system’s first quarter financial results. But the accredited labor and delivery unit — the only […]

Posted inCity & Government

Newport City Council to take up parking overhaul, speed camera funds at Wednesday meeting

The Newport City Council meets on Wednesday, March 25, at 6:30 p.m. in Council Chambers at City Hall, 43 Broadway, with a packed agenda that includes second readings on a sweeping residential parking program overhaul and a continued debate over how to spend speed camera revenue. The meeting opens with a proclamation recognizing Greek Independence […]

Posted inArts & Culture

Salve Regina professor to explore legacy of Ireland’s Blasket Islands at Newport Irish History lecture

The Museum of Newport Irish History will present the fifth and final talk of its 24th Annual Lecture Series on Monday, March 23, at 6 p.m. at the Wyndham Newport Hotel, 400 Aquidneck Ave., Middletown, and via Zoom. Dr. Sean O’Callaghan, an associate professor at Salve Regina University, a native of Ireland and an Irish […]

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Rhode Island sees spike in drug overdoses, health officials issue statewide alert

Rhode Island health officials are warning the public after a spike in non-fatal drug overdoses last week surpassed a statewide threshold for the first time since 2023. The Rhode Island Department of Health reported 55 people received care at emergency departments for suspected drug overdoses between March 10 and March 16 — exceeding the state’s […]

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Rhode Island hockey team rallies to championship after ice rink shooting

By KIMBERLEE KRUESI Associated Press PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — As Colin Dorgan stood before a deafening crowd exploding in pride for his high school hockey team’s championship win, secured by a goal in an exhausting yet exhilarating quadruple overtime, three seats were noticeably empty in the Rhode Island arena. The high school senior’s mother, brother […]

Posted inArts & Culture

Preservation Society of Newport County announces plan to sell, transfer parts of its collection

The Preservation Society of Newport County announced Wednesday a deaccession initiative aimed at strengthening its permanent collection by removing items that no longer align with the organization’s interpretive mission. The initiative covers the organization’s wide-ranging permanent collection, which includes paintings, sculpture, furniture, ceramics, silver, textiles, tapestries, photographs and period dress housed across its 11 historic […]

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Sail Newport steps aside as St. Pete-Clearwater named next North American stopover of The Ocean Race

St. Pete-Clearwater, Fla., will serve as the North American stopover of The Ocean Race 2027, race organizers announced Wednesday, with Sail Newport confirming it chose not to pursue the bid. Sail Newport, Rhode Island’s Public Sailing Center — which hosted the race in 2015 and 2018 under the Volvo Ocean Race name and again in […]

Posted inCity & Government

Edwards again pushes bill to shift coastal oversight from CRMC to DEM

For the second consecutive year, a Tiverton lawmaker is pushing to strip the Coastal Resources Management Council of its authority and hand coastal oversight to the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. Rep. John G. Edwards (D-Dist. 70, Tiverton) introduced legislation this session — bill 2026-H 7996 — that would abolish the CRMC and replace […]

Posted inBusiness

Newport International Boat Show reports $22.5 million in economic impact for Rhode Island during 2025 event

The Newport International Boat Show generated more than $22.5 million in economic impact for Rhode Island during its 2025 event, according to a newly released economic impact study. The show, which took place Sept. 11-14, 2025, at the Newport Yachting Center in downtown Newport, drew 30,000 attendees from across the country and around the world. […]

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What if the bar came to you on St. Patrick’s Day? These mini Irish pubs make it a reality

By LEAH WILLINGHAM Associated Press READING, Mass. (AP) — Just before St. Patrick’s Day, an Irish pub appeared one night beneath a basketball hoop in a suburban Massachusetts driveway. Neighbors packed around the bar as music played and Guinness flowed — inside a miniature pub that had been towed in for the night. Instead of heading […]

Posted inCity & Government

McKee visits Newport to push for elimination of Rhode Island’s tax on Social Security benefits

Gov. Dan McKee visited the Edward King House senior center Monday to promote his proposal to eliminate Rhode Island’s tax on Social Security benefits, joining AARP Rhode Island State Director Catherine Taylor and Office of Healthy Aging Director Maria Cimini to make the case directly to older adults. “Many people here have been paying taxes […]

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16 motorists arrested for impaired driving during regional enforcement campaign on parade day

A regional law enforcement campaign targeting impaired drivers on Saint Patrick’s Day Parade day resulted in 16 arrests across Aquidneck Island and South County, Newport Police Chief Ryan Duffy announced Monday. Officers from the Tiverton, Portsmouth, Middletown, Newport, Jamestown, North Kingstown, South Kingstown and Narragansett police departments, along with Rhode Island State Police, participated in […]

Posted inNonprofit

Newport Mental Health adds five new members to board of directors

Newport Mental Health has appointed five new members to its board of directors, the organization announced Monday, adding community leaders with backgrounds spanning real estate law, product management, mental health advocacy and nonprofit work. Sue Metzger, John Toracinta, Ruth Ellen Scott, Patrick Barry-Nolan and Joshua Blumen join the board at what the organization describes as […]

Posted inCity & Government

We’ve got the power: Revolution Wind begins delivering electricity to regional grid

by Nancy Lavin, Rhode Island CurrentMarch 16, 2026 Rhode Island’s electric grid now includes some power from its first utility-scale offshore wind project, Revolution Wind, project developers announced Friday night. The initial power delivery is not the final achievement: The 65-turbine project is 93% complete and not expected to hit its full 704-megawatt nameplate capacity […]

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Scientists made a breakthrough in the study of whale sounds. Here’s a look at the numbers

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Researchers on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, recently discovered the oldest known recordings of whale sounds and believe the discovery could help understand how the animals communicate. The recording is the song of a humpback whale, a species of large whale known for its complex songs. Researchers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Falmouth, Massachusetts, said […]

Posted inMartha's Vineyard

Oldest known whale recording could unlock mysteries of the ocean

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A haunting whale song discovered on decades-old audio equipment could open up a new understanding of how the huge animals communicate, according to researchers who say it’s the oldest such recording known. The song is that of a humpback whale, a marine giant beloved by whale watchers for its docile nature and spectacular leaps […]

Posted inArts & Culture

Newport’s Opera House has been under renovation for 25 years. It’s still not open.

When first conceived, organizers were exuberant about the possibilities a reopened historic opera house on Newport’s Washington Square would bring to the community.  The Newport Performing Arts Center project received more than $4.2 million, second largest of nine grants from a 2014 Creative and Cultural Economy Bond. Randy Rosenbaum, then executive director of the Rhode […]

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Open containers, disorderly conduct top charges as Newport police issue 46 citations and arrests on parade day

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect corrected figures provided by the Newport Police Department. An initial arrest log sent to media Sunday morning listed 26 entries. Capt. Joseph C. Carroll later clarified that the department’s new records system had difficulty separating custodial arrests from municipal court citations, and that the correct totals […]

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Construction finishes on a major offshore wind farm, the first during Trump’s tenure

Construction is finished on a major Massachusetts offshore wind farm, the first project to reach this stage during President Donald Trump’s time in office. Offshore construction was completed Friday night on Vineyard Wind with the installation of the final blades, Craig Gilvarg, a spokesperson for the project, said Saturday. Trump, who often talks about his hatred […]

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