(WXYZ) — Here at 7 News Detroit, we want to make sure you start your day off on the right foot, informed about weather, traffic, the latest news and more. That's why we have the 7 Morning Digest, where we'll get you out the door informed and ready to go.
What's the weather for today?
The sun is back Friday with drier air and a light breeze! Saturday should be wet with storm chances, but not Sunday.
Friday: The sun will be a bit brighter in the north than the south with drier air and cooler temps. Highs will be in the mid to upper 70s. Winds: ESE 5-10 mph.
Saturday: Mostly cloudy with showers and a few storms expected, more in the afternoon than the morning. Highs will be in the low 80s. Winds: SW 5-10 mph.
Sunday: Partly to mostly sunny with highs in the low 80s. Winds: E 5-10 mph.
The top stories to know about
Severe flooding washes away part of Orion Road in Oakland Township
Part of Orion Road in Oakland Township has been closed indefinitely after severe flooding washed away sections of the roadway on Thursday.
The damage occurred after storms hit the Oakland Township area Wednesday night, causing significant water accumulation and road deterioration.
The flooding extended beyond the roadway, filling yards and homes in the surrounding area. Chris Seggie, who lives nearby, is among those severely impacted.
Seggie told us he can't get into his house, and approximately nine other families on Canyon Road are unable to leave their homes.
"This is a street. The street goes down around and is a cul-de-sac," Seggie said. "There are a lot of people in our subdivision that are trapped — they can't get out. There's doctors in here, there's old people in here that need to get out."
Seggie described this as the worst flooding he's experienced in the 25 years he's lived in the area.
"But we've lived through occurrences like this five times at least where people are flooded in and we can't get out, so we know to either come from the subdivision up top or come up and go back in or do whatever we have to do to stick together," Seggie said.
Neighbors like John Bausano are stepping up to help those affected by the flooding.
"We've been dealing with this for 20 years and they all know that when this happens to park in my area, in my driveway, so we can take all the backyards to get to the house," Bausano said.
The Road Commission of Oakland County is currently working on a timeline for repairs. Meanwhile, residents are calling on local officials to implement solutions to prevent future flooding incidents.
'A real-life angel': Pizza delivery driver saves elderly woman who fell in her Warren home
A Jet's Pizza delivery driver in Warren went above and beyond his duties Wednesday when he found an elderly woman had fallen inside her home and couldn't get up.
Aamir Ali was making a routine delivery late Wednesday in the area of Garrick Avenue and Dequindre Road when he noticed something wasn't right. After knocking on the delivery's door with no response, despite lights being on and a dog barking inside, Ali took extra steps that likely saved the woman's life.
"I'm just glad to be at the right place at the right time — that's it," Ali said.
Instead of following standard procedure to leave the food after several attempts, Ali decided to go the extra mile and call the number on the order. The call was answered by Danielle Ratliff in Seattle, who had just ordered the pizza for her elderly mother in Warren.
"It's a wonderful thing too when you're so far away and you can't do everything on your own to have someone that doesn't know anything just stick around," Ratliff said.
With Ratliff's permission, Ali looked through the window after returning to her residence and made a startling discovery.
"The barking of the dog really caught my attention, so I looked a little harder and the mom was on the floor," Ali said.
The woman was barely conscious and unable to move. Ali immediately called 911.
But Ali's assistance didn't stop there. He returned to the home a third time to ensure the woman's dog was taken care of with Rose's help. During that visit, he also noticed the woman's belongings had been left behind.
"So not only did he come back three times, but he then went to the hospital and brought her all her belongings," Rose said.
Governor Whitmer erases $144 million in medical debt for more than 210,000 Michigan residents
Michigan has eliminated $144 million in medical debt for more than 210,000 residents as part of a state initiative announced by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Thursday.
The debt relief comes through a partnership with the nonprofit organization Undue Medical Debt, which purchases medical debt for pennies on the dollar.
"We believe that getting sick or getting hurt shouldn't have to mean going broke," Whitmer said.
Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist noted the widespread impact of medical debt in the state, saying, "We estimate that there are more than 700,000 adults who carry medical debt. That's more than the combined populations of Grand Rapids, plus Lansing, plus Ann Arbor."
The initiative aims to address cases like that of Naqua Atkinson, a 23-year-old who died from a severe infection after avoiding dental treatment due to fears of accumulating more medical debt.
Jenn Strebs, chairperson of the Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners, shared Atkinson's story: "You know he had had serious diabetes most of his life, and he was suffering from a pretty severe toothache at work. And all of us were encouraging to go and get it checked out."
"It was enough debt to make him fear going for care, and that's reality for a lot of people," Strebs said.
Allison Sesso, president and CEO of Undue Medical Debt, explained how the organization operates: "We buy medical debt for pennies on the dollar. One dollar gets rid of at least 100 dollars of medical debt. That's not magic, that's math. There is a for-profit market for medical debt that we take advantage of."
