Hello! The Carolinas News Editor is Tim Rogers. The breaking news supervisor is Skip Foreman.

A reminder this information is not for publication or broadcast, and these coverage plans are subject to change. Expected stories may not develop or late-breaking and more newsworthy events may take precedence. Advisories and digests will keep you up to date.

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TOP STORIES:

DUKE ENERGY-PIEDMONT NATURAL GAS

RALEIGH — Duke Energy Corp.’s purchase of Piedmont Natural Gas Co. will create a company with the financial resources to expand the distribution of natural gas across the country as utilities shift further away from coal to the cleaner-burning fuel, the chief executive of the country’s largest electric company said Monday. Duke Energy is spending $5 billion for Piedmont Natural Gas to secure natural gas and control costs for its own power plants and to position for a national expansion in future gas demand, Duke Energy CEO Lynn Good told utilities regulators in North Carolina. By Business Writer Emery P. Dalesio. SENT: 540 words.

With:

— DUKE ENERGY-PIEDMONT NATURAL GAS-THE LATEST.

EARNS-BANK OF AMERICA

NEW YORK — Bank of America’s earnings fell 20 percent in the second quarter, the bank said Monday, as historically low interest rates dented the bank’s profitability, just as it has for BofA’s major competitors. The Charlotte, North Carolina-based banking giant earned $3.87 billion, or 36 cents per share, before dividends to preferred shareholders. That’s down from $4.8 billion, or 43 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier. By Business Writer Ken Sweet. SENT: 360 words, AP Photo NYBZ101.

IN BRIEF:

— FATAL TRAIN COLLlSION, from LOWELL — Emergency officials in Gaston County say one man has been killed after a freight train hit a Waste Management truck in the town of Lowell. SENT: 80 words.

— DOCTOR’S DEATH INVESTIGATED, from ASHEVILLE — Authorities in Buncombe County are looking into the death of a local doctor at his home in Arden. SENT: 120 words.

— XGR–LGBT RIGHTS-NORTH CAROLINA, from RALEIGH — North Carolina has left mostly intact its law limiting protections for LGBT people that has sparked protests and federal lawsuits. SENT: 120 words.

— BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY PARK, from SYLVA — Another 50 acres is being added to what will be a park within a park along the Blue Ridge Parkway. SENT: 90 words.

— DOUBLE FATAL, from FAYETTEVILLE — The North Carolina State Highway Patrol is investigating after two people were killed and two injured in a crash in Cumberland County. SENT: 100 words.

— FORT FISHER VISITOR CENTER, from KURE BEACH — A new $9 million visitor center is planned for Fort Fisher in North Carolina to better tell the story of one the last strongholds of the Confederacy. SENT: 130 words.

— POLICE THANKS, from FAYETTEVILLE — A North Carolina police officer got some unexpected notes of thanks at a time when police officers have been shot and killed around the country. SENT: 120 words.

— DOUBLE SHOOTING-CUMBERLAND COUNTY, from FAYETTEVILLE — Authorities say a man and a woman are dead after an exchange of gunfire during a weekend robbery attempt in the community of Eastover near Fayetteville. SENT: 110 words.

— CAMPUS PRESIDENT LEAVING, from GRAND ISLAND, Neb. — A North Carolina community college board has chosen a Nebraska educator to become the college’s next president. SENT: 120 words.

— BATTLESHIP NORTH CAROLINA, from WILMINGTON — Engineers are kicking off construction on a kind of dam that will make repair work possible on one of North Carolina’s favorite tourist attractions. SENT: 130 words.

— CHILD DROWNS, from MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — A 6-week-old child from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, has drowned in a pond near a mall in Myrtle Beach. SENT: 130 words.

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The AP, Raleigh