Today's Top Headlines

Wednesday, July 15

Good morning Wypierdalaj,

It's another hazy day across New England, as heavy smoke is forecast to swarm over the region through at least tomorrow. Other news we're following includes the latest after a man was killed in a shooting during an encounter with ICE agents in Maine on Monday. Plus, officials are celebrating the new MBTA Harbor Loop Ferry, which connects four major destinations across the water. I'm Kaitlin McKinley Becker, and these are your headlines.

Thunderstorms continued to move through northern New England overnight but they had weakened by early Wednesday morning.

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Heavy smoke is forecast to swarm over New England through at least tomorrow.

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Have you noticed that the sky over New England has a milky dusk appearance today?

It’s being caused by wildfire smoke being blown into our area from Canada, and it’s sticking around — the smoke will thicken Wednesday and remain in the upper atmosphere Thursday.

Most of the smoke is forecast to remain aloft over New England, as it is blowing in with the jet stream, but we’re still watching air quality closely through the end of the week. If it does begin moving closer to the surface, air quality will deteriorate quickly.

Trump administration officials told Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to suspend most vehicle stops after two deadly shootings within a week, people familiar with the decision said Tuesday.

The order came after an ICE officer shot and killed a Colombian driver Monday in Maine and a week after one shot and killed a motorist in Houston, renewing criticism of the agency’s tactics during enforcement operations.

The suspension is not absolute and there’s room for exceptions when executing a criminal warrant or working with partner agencies, according to a person who spoke Tuesday on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive law enforcement operations. Matthew Felling, a spokesman for Maine Sen. Angus King, said the senator’s office was also told by the Department of Homeland Security that ICE was suspending vehicle stops.

Florida put to death one of its oldest prisoners in its history on Tuesday, a 74-year-old man convicted in the murder of a woman from Massachusetts 44 years ago.

Dennis Sochor, one of three older inmates scheduled for execution within the span of a month in the nation’s busiest death penalty state, was pronounced dead at 6:16 p.m. following a three-drug injection at Florida State Prison near Starke. He was convicted of killing Patricia Gifford on Jan. 1, 1982, just hours after meeting the 18-year-old woman at a New Year’s Eve party.

Sochor was already strapped to a gurney with an IV in his arm when the curtain to the death chamber went up at the 6 p.m. execution time. Asked by the warden if he had any last words, Sochor said he did.

Boston Harbor has connected the city for centuries. And now, the MBTA is putting it to work in a new way.

Whether you’re heading to work, catching a flight, or just trying to avoid the traffic, the T’s newest addition gets you off the rails and road and onto the water. It turns out the fastest way to get around Boston’s waterfront might just be on a boat.

“We live in Brookline. We just came down to see the (tall) ships, and we thought, ‘Perfect, we’ll take the train down to Aquarium and take the Harbor Ferry over to Seaport. Perfect,'” one man said after riding it.

A traffic cone got a welcome in Boston fit for a head of state on Tuesday as local officials continue to commemorate the sudden and deep bond formed between the people of Boston and Scotland during the World Cup.

The cone, inscribed with the phrase, “No Boston, No Party,” was feted at Logan International Airport by Gov. Maura Healey and Mayor Michelle Wu, who both paid tribute to the Tartan Army fan group’s spirit of generous fun that took over the city as Scotland’s national team played two games at Boston Stadium.

“The peaceful invasion of the