1. At least 24 people are dead as the tragic fires in Southern California continue. More than 150,000 people remain under evacuation warnings. Firefighters are trying to contain the multiple fires before the Santa Ana winds whip up again this week. The biggest blazes, the Palisades and Eaton fires, are both under 30 percent containment. (CNN)
2. Maine State Police responded to more than 50 crashes and road slide-offs Saturday after southern Maine woke up to some light snowfall. State police reminded drivers to take caution, especially during snowy conditions, in a Facebook post. (PH)
3. Governor Janet Mills has proposed raising Maine’s tobacco tax by $1 per pack of cigarettes, a move she says could generate $80 million in revenue over the next two years while addressing public health concerns. The proposed tax hike has sparked outrage among smokers. (WGME)
4. Last week The Department of Marine Resources withdrew a proposed rule to increase the minimum size requirements for lobsters to be caught in Maine. Opponents argued the rule change would have given Canadian lobstermen an unfair advantage as they would not have been impacted by the change. (WGME)
5. Former New England Patriots player Mike Vrabel has been hired as the team’s new head coach, the team said Sunday morning. Vrabel, who won three Super Bowls with the Patriots, was the NFL’s Coach of the Year in 2021. After he was fired by the Titans in 2023, he spent the past season as a consultant with the Cleveland Browns. (WMTW)
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