🌱 Indictment For Hotel Rape, Robbery + New Flood Insurance Rates

Happy Friday, people of Five Towns! Here's everything you need to know to start today off on an informed note, shall we? Here's everything you need to know in Five Towns today.

First, today's weather:

Increasingly windy. High: 54 Low: 37.

Here are the top three stories in Five Towns today:

1. A man was indicted Thursday for forcing his way into a woman's hotel room in Woodbury and attacking her last year. Isaih Giles, 26, was arraigned on charges of first-degree rape, first-degree criminal sexual act, first-degree burglary as a sexually motivated felony, first-degree burglary, second-degree robbery as a sexually motivated felony, second-degree robbery and first-degree sexual abuse. He pleaded not guilty. (Patch)
2. Three out of four Long Island homeowners will see their flood insurance rates rise. Policies renewing starting Thursday will be subject to the National Flood Insurance Program’s new system for setting prices. (Subscription: Newsday)
3. Village of Lawrence residents' tax rate could increase $2 to $127 if a proposed $6,785,850 million budget for the new fiscal year, beginning June 1, come to fruition. A public hearing on the tentative budget will be part of the village’s April 7 meeting at 8 p.m. (LI Herald)

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Today in Five Towns:

• Hewlett Theater Company Spring Play, Hewlett High School, 7 p.m.

From my notebook:

• Five Towns residents react to higher grocery store prices. From February 2021 to February of this year, grocery prices increased 8.6 percent overall, especially the price of meat. (LI Herald)
• April is Esophageal Cancer Awareness Month. Esophageal cancer has increased over 733% increase in the past four decades. (Patch)
• Hewlett-Woodmere fifth grade students designed and built marble roller coasters using the engineering design process in STEM. (Facebook)

More from our sponsors — thanks for supporting local news!

Events:

• Can market volatility help you pursue your financial goals? (April 5)
• Yiddish Fight Club with Dr. Eddy Portnoy (April 6)
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That's it for today. See you all tomorrow for another update!

— Jackie