Georgia State D.O.T. officials are hoping to get Highway 337 open today or tommorrow.  There had been some rumors that it would be Friday before the state road re-opened.

AM 1180 Chattooga County Radio learned that the state is waiting on the righ sized culvert to go into the spot that washed out causing the road to drop around 18 inches last Saturday night.  A Chattooga County Deputy on patrol found the drop in the roadway and the road was closed by Sunday morning.

Chattooga County Commissioner Jason Winters and Public Works Director Lamar Canada have offered assistance to the State D.O.T., however the county did not have the proper size culvert for the repair. 

The road closure is causing a hardship for residents in the Menlo and Cloudland areas of Chattooga County and also residents in the Jamestown and Blanche areas of Cherokee County, Alabama that work in LaFayette.  Area residents that work at Roper and Bluebird in LaFayette use the road for their daily commute.

According to the Associated Press two leading Republican candidates for governor in Georgia have already turned to hefty bank lines of credit to help pump up their campaign warchests months before the primary in July.

State Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine and U.S. Rep. Nathan Deal have each secured $250,000 lines of credit from local banks whose officials have ties to the candidates. The banks are Brand Banking Co. and the Chattahoochee Bank of Georgia, repspectively.

The two candidates are among the top fundraisers in the GOP race to succeed Gov. Sonny Perdue, who cannot seek a third term.

Officials with the banks extending the credit are generous campaign contributors who have poured thousands of dollars into the campaigns, an Associated Press review of campaign documents showed.

Oxendine is slated to be in Chattooga County this week to speak to the Optimist Club on Friday.

While Chattooga County is seeing warmer temperatures this week it didn’t stop some areas from having some icy conditions on Monday.  With the rain over the weekend freezing on some roadways on Sunday night and into Monday morning it made for some slick spots in some parts of the county.

AM 1180 reported on Monday that there was an accident on Shinbone Valley Road in Menlo where a concrete truck hit a patch of ice.  In the weekly report from the Georgia State Patrol in Rome, another accident was blamed on icy conditions on Monday.

According to the report Bradley Stallings of a Orchard Road address in Summerville was travelling north on East Armuchee Road and lost control of his 2006 Ford Econoline Van on a patch of black ice while negotiating a curve.  The van left the roadway and struck a mailbox with the mirror and then hit an elevated driveway causing the van to flip on its left side. 

There were no injuries reported in the accident.

A new House Bill could curb some driver’s text messaging addiction. Rep. Allen Peake (R-Bibb County)introduced HB 938, which will impose fines on drivers caught sending text messages while behind the wheel.

The bill would "prohibit use of wireless telecommunications devices for sending or reading text messages while operating a motor vehicle," according to the language of the bill. If the bill passes, those in violation of the new rule would see $50 – $100 fines and two points added to a violator’s license.

State Representative Barbara Massey Reece (D-Menlo) told AM 1180 on Tuesday evening that the bill deserves careful consideration.

Calhoun Times / AM 1180

THE WALKER COUNTY YOUNG FARMERS WILL HOST A MEETING ON "PRESCRIBED BURNING" THIS WEEK.  FUNDING IS AVAILABLE FOR CLEARING UNDERBRUSH THROUGH PRESCRIBED BURNS… AND SPEAKERS FROM THE USDA AND FORESTRY SERVICE WILL EXPLAIN. COST IS $5 FOR THE MEAL.  CALL BRENT JACKSON TO RESERVE A SPOT AT 706 638 7739.  THE MEETING WILL BE HELD AT THE WALKER COUNTY AG CENTER THURSDAY AT 6 PM.

WQCH

An attorney for a former Ft Payne resident convicted of killing two individuals on a horse farm in New Hampshire, is currently requesting that the New Hampshire Supreme Court, grant a new trial in that case.

The attorney representing Sheila LaBarre claims that police violated her privacy by going onto her property in Epping, New Hampshire to check on the well-being of one of her ex-boyfriends – doing so without a warrant.

Evidence collected at the location included sneakers and a human bone.

LaBarre admitted to killing both Michael Deloge in 2005, and Kenneth Countie in 2006 but said she was insane at the time.

A jury threw out that claim and she was sentenced to Life in Prison, in 2008.

What , if anything , will come about as a result of the new argument being presented by LaBarre’s attorney, remains to be seen.

WEIS Radio

The Town of Lyerly is planning a fundraiser on Saturday, February 6 in observance of Georgia’s Severe Weather Awareness Week. The newly installed tornado siren will be sounded so that Lyerly’s citizens will be able to recognize it in the event of an actual tornado.

The Lyerly Volunteer Fire Department will be selling hotdogs and hamburgers from 10 am to 2 pm on that day.  Stay tuned to AM 1180 for more information on this event.

The Georgia Department of Transportation is advising motorists in northwest Georgia of lane closures on I-75 between exits 345 and 348, scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday.

The right lane of I-75 northbound between mile markers 347 and 348, and the left lane of the Interstate southbound between mile posts 344.2 and 345 will be closed Wednesday afternoon from 1:30 p.m. until 5 p. m., to allow the department’s maintenance crews to work on repairing deteriorating asphalt patches.

The two left southbound lanes of the Interstate between mile markers 346 and 347.4 will also be closed for maintenance work on Thursday from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.

This maintenance operation and the lane closures it necessitates are weather-permitting and subject to change."

“Georgia DOT wants to constrict traffic flow in this area as little as possible, but delays at times are almost unavoidable,” said Kent Sager, district engineer at the DOT office in Cartersville.

“We have made every effort to minimize the impact this maintenance operation may have on the heavy traffic on I-75 in Catoosa County," he continued. "Working in phases; informing the public in advance of this operation; and scheduling the lane closures after the morning rush hour, and reopening these lanes before the evening rush hour are only a few examples of these efforts."

Georgia DOT urges travelers to call 511 for updated information about this or any other road project on interstates and state routes.

Georgia 511 is a free phone service that provides real-time traffic and travel information statewide, such as traffic conditions, incidents, lane closures, and delays due to inclement weather.

Callers also can transfer to operators to request assistance or report incidents 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

More information is available at http://www.511ga.org.

Walker County Messenger

A Rome man was jailed Tuesday morning after police say he would not allow a woman to open the door when police arrived at the home, reports stated.

According to Rome police reports and Floyd County Jail records:

Charles Humberto Cezar, 27, of 131 Dodd Boulevard is charged with felony false imprisonment and is being held for violating his probation.

A third party called Emergency 911 requesting that police go to the Dodd Boulevard residence because Cezar would not leave the residence. Police attempted to contact the complainant, who was within the house. She told police "she wanted to open the door but he would not let her" after the police made a forced entry into the home.

Cezar remained in jail this morning.

Rome News Tribune