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We know a lot happens throughout the week, and you may not catch all of our stories here at WXYZ. So we've decided to gather the most talked-about stories from the past week all in one place that you can check out during your free time over the weekend.
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Here are the buzz-worthy stories from the week of Aug. 26:
Tree crashes into Canton home during storm, injuring one, neighbors seek support for homeowner
Tree crashes into Canton home during storm, injuring one, neighbors seek support for homeowner
The biggest story of the week was the severe storms that rolled through metro Detroit on Tuesday afternoon, leaving more than 300,000 people without power, knocking over more than 1,000 power lines and causing destruction across the metro area.
In Canton, a huge section of tree fell on Jessy Starr's mobile home.
“It just felt like I couldn't get a break," Starr said. "Still feels like I can't get a break if I'm being honest.”
The last 48 hours have been a struggle for Starr, who was sleeping early Wednesday morning when he felt his home shake and heard his brother, who’s disabled, calling for help.
“My brother came into the kitchen and called out to me that he had an emergency and he needed help," Starr said. "That's when I saw him there in the kitchen just bleeding from his back.”
His brother had been sleeping when a huge chunk of a tree came crashing down right on top of him. Starr says his brother went to the hospital for stitches, leaving Starr and his 4-year-old daughter, who was in the home that night, in disbelief.
His brother is now OK but without insurance, Starr doesn't know how to repair his home. The tree also landed on his car, which he hasn't been able to drive since.
Former President Donald Trump's speech at Detroit National Guard convention draws mixed reaction
Trump's speech at Detroit National Guard convention draws mixed reaction
There was mixed reaction from military members and their families Monday as former president Donald Trump delivered remarks at the 146th National Guard general convention at Huntington Place in Detroit.
Although both Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris were invited, only Trump came.
After listening to his speech, Puerto Rico National Guard member Hector Ocasio told 7 News Detroit, "For me personally, his message was a message of encouragement for the military forces and their families."
Tanairi Ochoamartinez who is a wife to a National Guard member said, "It was a little bit disappointing to see NAGAUS becoming so politicized, an event where soldiers are supposed to only see red which is their blood."
Trump also focused on his recent endorsement from RFK Jr., his experience working with the military during his term as president, and what he sees as looming danger with international relations.
He said he believes we've never been closer to World War III, and continued on to talk about potential conflict.
"We do a lot of reports that are stupid reports. Like a report that came out a couple weeks ago that we would lose in a war with China, you saw that report?" questioned Trump. "You don’t do reports that we are going to lose to China in a war. Stupid people do that, like the people that are in office right now."
In response to statements like this Ochoamartinez said, "The message was very divided, he never mentioned unity, he never mentioned working together as one, it set the tone for separation."
Teen reunites with hero who thwarted kidnapping; awards plaque
Teen reunites with hero who thwarted kidnapping; awards plaque
A heartfelt reunion took place in Clinton Township Wednesday between a teen and her hero.
Alexis Shings, 15, was nearly abducted on Aug. 13. Clinton Township police said the incident was one of two related attempted abductions that afternoon.
7 News Detroit was there as Alexis and her family met Paul Biliter.
"I want to give you a hug," Tabytha Shings, Alexis' mother, told Biliter. "I’m just grateful you were there."
Biliter replied, "Oh, praise God. It was all by the grace of God because if she would’ve been 15 feet further, I wouldn’t have seen it. It would have been done and over with.”
He was in the right place at the right time. Biliter said he saw the commotion while doing yard work. Alexis was on foot walking by his home on Clinton River Road. He said that's when a vehicle did a sudden U-turn, the driver confronted and grabbed Alexis and tried to put her in his car.
"I'm eternally just awed by him because what he did for me that day. I don't think there's enough words to describe how I feel about it," Alexis said.
She added, “I’m just so blessed that he was there for me that day and if he wasn’t, then I would be here right now.”
Clean-up effort begins at Clinton Township explosion site
Clean-up effort begins at Clinton Township explosion site
The Environmental Protection Agency is set to begin cleaning up the site of an explosion and fire in Clinton Township.
The incident happened on March 4. An investigation later revealed thousands of illegally stored canisters of nitrous oxide and butane were the cause.
The fire sent canisters flying into the night sky for miles. One of those canisters hit and killed 19-year-old Turner Salter .
"First of all, I’d like to give my condolences out to the family that lost their child. That’s devastating and I wouldn’t even imagine," said Kevin Kupiec, who lives near the explosion site.
The image of the night is hard to forget for neighbors like Kupiec. He says the repeated explosions continued well into the next day.
The EPA says they expect the cleanup to take around 100 working days. The agency plans to ramp up work after Labor Day, starting by separating hazardous material. Eventually, all material will be discarded. The agency says there are safety concerns at the site.
"We still have in tact cans of ultra refined butane and we still have in tact compressed gas cylinders containing nitrous oxide. Now nitrous oxide is not flammable, but it’s an oxidizer. So you have an oxidizer next to a flammable, which is ultra refined butane. It’s just like going to a hospital and they say don’t smoke. It’s the same thing here. If there’s an ignition source, there’s always a potential threat that it could set off another fire," said EPA federal on-site coordinator Sean Kane. "As we go in, we have to evaluate what is the threat level here? Are there still cans of ultra fine butane? Are there other things in there that we don’t know about?"
Should school start before or after Labor Day? Metro Detroit parents weigh in
Should school start before or after Labor Day? Metro Detroit parents weigh in
It was only a few years ago that students didn't go to school until after Labor Day. But in recent years, districts decided to let out for the summer earlier, due to heat concerns.
7 News Reporter Meghan Daniels took to the streets to see what parents think about this. The parents we spoke to are divided. Some say, there is no good reason for kids to be in school this early, while others say, they should go back earlier.
"They're coddled enough," said Canada Foster, a mother of seven. "They need to know, hey, sometimes it's hot you need to work, sometimes it's cold you have to work."
"They should have just waited until this week to start school instead of this week if they knew it was going to be hot," said Teandra Brown, a mother of one.
"It's just a waste of time, Waste of uniform, waste of lunches," Brown continued.
Many parents told us that while they can't control the weather, they feel situations like this are completely avoidable by having air conditioning in all school buildings.
Gas-powered or EV? Presidential election outcome could influence fate of car sales
Gas-powered or EV? Presidential election outcome could influence fate of car sales
How will the upcoming election will affect the auto industry, manufacturing, and sales of electric vehicles?
Both Vice President Kamala Harris and Former President Donald Trump have talked about their views toward green technology, and across southeast Michigan, I’m hearing how that could influence the future of EVs.
As a customer of Szott M-59 Jeep and an electric Cybertruck owner, Greg Neuffer likes the technology used in modern EVs, the performance, and the cost.
"Price is a part of the whole package," said Neuffer.
It's a package that’s drawn more and more car buyers to go with electric vehicles yet Neuffer and others tell me the need for more taxpayer-subsidized infrastructure remains.
Kyle Stoney showed me his Tesla Model 3 but admits he doesn’t take long trips and range is a huge factor when comparing against internal combustion engines aka "ice."
In his case, he values practicality.
"You don’t have to go to the gas station. I just plug in at home, so we installed a home charger," said Stoney.
Thad Szott with Szott M-59 Jeep, took me outside to see a state-of-the-art, high-powered charger he recently installed on site.
"Level 3, $200,000 charger we had to install, think about the infrastructure and what dealers have to do, let alone the rest of the U.S.,” said Szott.
Make-A-Wish Michigan celebrates 40 years
Make-A-Wish-Michigan celebrates 40 years
After 40 years of fulfilling lifelong wishes for children with critical, long-term illnesses, Make-A-Wish Michigan is reflecting on the last four decades and looking ahead to their next few years.
“It’s still summertime and back-to-school time and, you know, we’re trying to make things normal for these kids who may not feel well, who are not at home, who are not playing sports," said Luanne Thomas Ewald, chief operating officer at the University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital.
Ewald says it helps to bring some normalcy back to these children's lives and distracts them from treatments and hospital beds.
Eleven-year-old Bailey and her mom say it was a celebration of a big step in her healing journey.
“I was like well after, it could be a little celebration for me," Bailey said.
Michael Hull, president and CEO of Make-A-Wish Michigan, says their goal is to make sure every kid with a critical illness in the state has their wish fulfilled.
“We help kids with critical illnesses, but we need to know that the kids are there for us to help and so we want to grant even more wishes than we ever have in our history,” Hull said.
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