Memphis

MEMPHIS — The Tennessee Highway Patrol is still investigating the Oct. 11 collision at Hickory Hill and Raines roads. A Memphis police vehicle carrying two officers and a car carrying six people collided around 12:30 a.m., and five of the six people in the car died. Officers were responding to a call about a person down or a homicide near Flowering Peach Drive and Mendenhall Road. Both officers were released from the hospital. THP's preliminary report, issued four days later, named the dead as Rodney McNeal Jr., Carlesha Fifer, Syria Fifer, Messiah Lee and a 17-year-old from Mississippi. It gave no account of the moments before impact or of fault. One victim's sister criticized the report. Surveillance video reported by Action News 5 shows the civilian car's light was red. MPD policy requires lights and sirens and extreme caution at intersections. THP has not released findings on whether officers followed that policy.

MEMPHIS — Memphis Light, Gas and Water is proposing yearly increases of 11% for gas and 16% for water in 2027, 2028 and 2029. The utility estimates that, once all are in effect, the average residential customer would pay about $28 more per month, or roughly $336 a year. The MLGW board is scheduled to vote on the proposal Oct. 21. The City Council would take it up in committee on Nov. 10, with a final vote expected Nov. 24. CEO Doug McGowen said the increases are meant to cover deferred maintenance on existing customers' systems and are unrelated to data center costs. Separately, residents have complained to Action News 5 about October electric bills that doubled or tripled, with one customer reporting $1,299. MLGW buys power from the Tennessee Valley Authority, which recorded peak demand in September during extreme heat.

MEMPHIS — The Shelby County Commission voted 5-4 on Monday, Oct. 12, to advance a proposed temporary moratorium on data centers in unincorporated parts of the county. Four commissioners abstained. Several members questioned the need for a pause when no projects have been identified outside city limits. Commissioner Henri Brooks has sponsored a one-year moratorium. Supporters said data centers harm nearby neighborhoods and strain natural resources. Commissioner Sugarmon said coordination with the city matters because Memphis rules could affect surrounding unincorporated communities. Under county rules, abstentions and recusals do not count when determining whether an item passes. The commission must next decide whether to pursue a pause, set regulatory guardrails or combine the two. The Memphis City Council is scheduled to vote on its own moratorium Oct. 20.

MEMPHIS — The Memphis Symphony Orchestra and Opera Memphis join forces Saturday night for a concert performance of Verdi's Rigoletto. Music Director Robert Moody conducts. The performance runs about two hours, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., at the Cannon Center. The orchestra describes the concert format as putting Verdi's score at center stage. The collaboration is a highlight of the MSO's 75th season, which Moody has previewed as including a new partnership with Opera Memphis. Single-ticket prices were not listed on the orchestra's calendar page. The MSO also offers a monthly membership, Orchestra 901, at $9.01 a month. It includes one ticket to each concert a member chooses to attend. The symphony's next date is Oct. 30, when Orchestra Unplugged: The Planets plays at the Halloran Centre.

MEMPHIS — Cazateatro Bilingual Theatre Group's Día de Muertos Parade and Festival has a new home Downtown this year. The parade runs 11 a.m. to noon. It starts at Court Square Park, goes south along the pedestrian-only Main Street Mall and ends at the Halloran Centre. The festival follows from noon to 3 p.m. at the Halloran Centre. It includes art-making, face painting, community altars, vendors and live performances. The scheduled acts include a Cazateatro folkloric dance at 1:20 p.m., the University of Memphis Marimba Ensemble at 1:35 p.m., singer Marisol Pierre at 2:05 p.m. and norteño group Banda Konquistadora at 2:35 p.m. Mariachi Guadalajara plays throughout the afternoon. Cazateatro is organizing the event with the Memphis Art Museum and the Orpheum Theatre Group. Admission is free, and organizers recommend registering ahead.

MEMPHIS — Several arts dates fall within the week. Today at 4 p.m., Tennessee Shakespeare Company ends its free 10th-annual Shout-Out Shakespeare series with Love's Labor's Lost at Davies Manor Historic Site in Bartlett. The Dixon Gallery and Gardens holds its annual Hot Off the Wall art sale Oct. 20 to 25. On Friday, Oct. 23, the Memphis Jazz Orchestra plays with Grammy-nominated trumpeter Terell Stafford at 7:30 p.m. in the Crosstown Arts Green Room. Urban Bush Women perform at 7 p.m. that night at the Buckman Performing Arts Center. Collage Dance Collective presents ORIGINS at Playhouse on the Square Oct. 23 to 25. On Sunday, Oct. 25, Morris Day & The Time and The S.O.S. Band play the Orpheum at 7 p.m. Ticket prices were not listed for most of these events.