10 most popular stories of 2018 on Local10.com

Some tragic, some horrific, these stories captured South Florida's attention

From the Parkland school shooting and the FIU bridge collapse to the death of XXXTentacion, Local10.com was there through it all.

PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. – As 2018 comes to a close, Local10.com takes a look back at 10 of the most impactful, tragic and talked-about stories of the year.

Parkland school shooting (Feb. 14)

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Seventeen people were killed and 17 others were wounded when former student Nikolas Cruz walked onto the campus of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland with an AR-15 rifle and opened fire, forever changing the lives of those families impacted by the mass shooting and intensifying the national debate on gun control.

FIU bridge collapse (March 15)

Barely a month had passed since the Parkland school shooting when another tragedy befell South Florida. This time, six people were killed when a newly installed portion of a pedestrian bridge connecting Florida International University with the city of Sweetwater collapsed. The 950-ton section crumbled onto Southwest Eighth Street, crushing vehicles beneath it and injuring several other drivers in an instant.

David Hogg's home swatted (June 5)

The Coral Springs home of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School student David Hogg was swatted while he was in Washington to accept a humanitarian award. The Broward Sheriff's Office SWAT team found no hostage situation and determined the call was a prank. Hogg told Local 10 News he believed the incident was "really a distraction from what we're trying to fix here, which is the massive gun-violence epidemic in this country."

Woman killed in Davie alligator attack (June 8)

Shizuka Matsuki was walking her dogs at the Silver Lakes Rotary Nature Park in Davie when she was eaten by an alligator. The 47-year-old Plantation woman's arm was found inside a captured gator's stomach later that day.

XXXTentacion shot to death (June 18)

South Florida rapper XXXTentacion was fatally shot during a robbery shortly after leaving RIVA Motorsports in Deerfield Beach. Four suspects were later arrested in connection with the crime.

Woman arrested after driving with boyfriend on hood of car (June 27)

A 24-year-old woman was arrested after she drove onto Interstate 95 with her ex-boyfriend clinging to the hood of her car. Junior Francis told Local 10 News that he had a complicated relationship with Patresha Isidore, who faced a charge of crimes against a person exposing them to harm. Francis said he needed the car and jumped on the hood to keep her from leaving, but she drove off anyway. A motorist on I-95 recorded Francis riding on the hood.

Florida candidate poses with fake diploma (Aug. 11)

Melissa Howard, a Republican candidate for the Florida House, lied about having a college degree and posed for a photograph with a fake diploma after a news outlet questioned her credentials. The diploma in the photo showed that Howard graduated with a degree that doesn't exist at Miami University in Ohio. She later dropped out of the race.

Kodak Black walks out of jail (Aug. 18)

South Florida rapper Kodak Black didn't have much to say as he was released from the main Broward County jail. "I don't really talk too much," he said before stepping inside a black Bentley Bentayga that was waiting for him. He had been jailed since his January arrest, earning his general equivalency diploma and legally changing his name to Bill K. Kapri while behind bars.

Priests accused of having oral sex in car (Sept. 3)

Diego Berrio, 39, and Edwin Giraldo-Cortez, 30, were arrested by Miami Beach police on suspicion of having oral sex in a parked car along Ocean Drive in South Beach. Berrio was a Catholic priest with the Mission of San Juan Diego in Arlington Heights, Illinois, while Giraldo-Cortez served at another Chicago-area parish.

Man killed by stray bullet at holiday party (Dec. 15)

A man was shot and killed by a stray bullet during a holiday party in southwest Miami-Dade County. Cellphone video later obtained by Local 10 News showed Yemil Arguelles, 40, sitting in a chair while a woman was singing karaoke in the background when he suddenly grabbed his chest and collapsed to the ground.