Today is Election Day with polls open until 7:30pm. Early voting totals included Burke County 26,026, McDowell County 12,667, Catawba County 48,766 and Caldwell County 25,570. The Big Dawg 92.1 and AM 1430 WMNC will provide election return updates after the polls close.

Because of increased fire risk, the N.C.Forest Service has issued a ban on all open burning and canceled burning permits for the following WNC counties, Alexander, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Cherokee, Clay, Cleveland, Gaston, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Swain, Transylvania, Watauga and Yancey. The burning ban will be in effect until further notice. Under NC law, the ban prohibits all open burning in the affected counties, regardless of whether a permit was issued.

Due to an extremely high risk of wildfire, 14 state parks in WNC have placed temporary bans on campfires, according to NC State Parks. Wildfires of less than 100 acres have erupted at Chimney Rock State Park and South Mountains State Park. Backcountry trails and campsites at South Mountains have been closed. Campfire bans are in effect at Chimney Rock, Crowders Mountain, Elk Knob, Gorges, Grandfather Mountain, Hanging Rock, Lake James, Lake Norman, Mount Mitchell, Morrow Mountain, New River(including Mount Jefferson State Natural Area), Pilot Mountain, South Mountains and Stone Mountain State Parks. Cooking fires using propane and other approved camp stove fuels are allowed in designated areas. Check the park page at www.ncparks.gov for fire restrictions that may be in place.

Morganton's new Development & Design Director was introduced and council approved a motion to adopt an ordinance to permanently close undeveloped streets in Monday night's regular Morganton City Council meeting. A public hearing was held to consider an ordinance that would permanently close and abandon unopened portions of Murphy Street, McEntire Avenue and an un-named street between Murphy Street and Carbondale Lane. The public hearing was a result of a petition from soneone who owns a number of lots near and mostly between the Murphy Street and McEntire Avenue intersection and Carbondale Lane. No one spoke during the public hearing and the ordinance was adopted to close the unopened portions of these streets unanimously. Phillip Lookadoo, the new Development & Design Director for the City of Morganton, was introduced to council before a resolution was passed to appoint Lookadoo as the Review Officer for Planning and Zoning as it is a statutory requirement. Council approved 5 items on the consent agenda. Some of those items include gutter installation for fire stations #1 and #3 and Catawba Meadows Maintenance Building, and landscape agreements with NCDOT for I-40 exit 104/Enola Road and exit 105/Sterling Street. The agreement will ensure the I-40 exits and entrances into town are maintained to the city's standards.