A LaFayette man has additional warrants added to already outstanding warrants after a chase out of Floyd County this past weekend.  

According to a report from the Chattooga County Sheriff's Department, deputies received a "Be on the Lookout" regarding a Ford Explorer traveling out of Floyd County on Highway 27 on Saturday, February 14.  The driver of the vehicle was wanted on unspecified outstanding warrants, according to the report.

A Chattooga County deputy spotted the green 1995 Ford Explorer that was the subject of the BOLO, traveling on Highway 27 in the Gore area.  The Explorer was passing vehicles on the right-hand shoulder of the road in order to outrun the deputy.  The deputy lost site of the Explorer as it went over Taylor's Ridge.  Another deputy was at Pleasant Hill Church Road and never saw the Explorer pass.

Deputies then traveled down Butler Dairy Road, Spring Creek Road and Penn Bridge Road searching for the vehicle.  Someone told a deputy that the vehicle was on West Spring Creek Road headed towards Mountain View Road.  Additional units were called in. Deputies then spotted the Explorer and pulled the vehicle over on East Halls Valley Road.  However, the suspect wasn't driving the vehicle.  Instead a female drive told deputies that the suspect had fled on foot.  The driver cooperated with deputies and took them to the place the suspect had fled.  

The suspect was identified as Melton Andrew Padgett, Jr. of LaFayette who is now facing additional warrants from the chase. 

Earlier this week a woman came to the sheriff's department and reported that she beleived she had been the victim of financial identity theft.

The woman said she received a receipt in the mail from a doctor's office in Rome saying that her Master Card had been charged for a bill.  The problem is the woman does not have a Master Card.  She told the deputy that she had received a pre-approved offer from Master Card in the mail, but the letter had been opened and there was no card inside.

The case has been turned over to investigations.  

The free community lunch that was to have been held at Summerville First Baptist Church on Saturday has been canceled due to the threat of inclement weather. 

The Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) will help artificial-turf manufacturer Field Turf hire about 90 workers for its facility in Gordon County. 

The company manufactures synthetic turf for athletic fields, such as football, baseball and soccer fields. 

The recruitment will be held Friday, March 6, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Gordon County Agricultural Service Center, 1282 Highway 53 Spur SW in Calhoun. Staff of the GDOL’s Rome Career Center will be on hand to screen the applicants prior to interviews with the company. 

The company is hiring sew-on coater operators, fork-lift drivers, tufting inspectors, inventory controllers, warehouse workers, and others. Some of the jobs are temporary and will continue through September. 

Due to U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations, applicants must be at least 18 years old. They must also have a high school diploma, or a General Education Diploma (GED), and at least six months experience. Veterans are encouraged to apply. 

Salaries range from $10.50 to $13 an hour, depending on the type of job and experience of the applicant. 

The company will conduct background checks and drug-screening tests on selected applicants. 

Applicants may receive more information about the company and the jobs that are available by visiting the company’s web site atwww.fieldturf.com 

For additional information about the recruitment, contact the GDOL’s Rome Career Center at (706) 295-6051. 

Let’s face it – nobody likes getting shots. But a shot lasts a second; diseases last much longer. 

In an effort to protect every adult and child, the Georgia Department of Public Health established Georgia Preteen Vaccine Awareness Week, observed February 22-28, 2015, to serve as a reminder for parents to talk with their preteens and teens about getting immunized against vaccine-preventable diseases.

“Our preteens are branching out. They go to overnight camps, attend parties and play team sports – they are becoming increasingly social. While these are all fun parts of being a teenager, they can also increase their risk for contracting potentially life-threatening diseases,” said Chattooga County Health Department Acting Nurse Manager Judy Wesson.  “Let’s help our children grow and protect them every way we can – including their future health and those around them with immunization against vaccine-preventable diseases.”

According to the Georgia Department of Public Health Rule (511-2-2), all students born on or after January 1, 2002, entering or transferring into seventh grade and any “new entrant” into eighth – twelfth grades in Georgia need proof of an adolescent pertussis (whooping cough) booster vaccination (called “Tdap”) and an adolescent meningococcal vaccination (MCV4). This law affects all public and private schools including, but not limited to charter schools, community schools, juvenile court schools and other alternative school settings (excluding home school).

Vaccines are the best defense we have against serious, preventable and sometimes deadly contagious diseases. They help avoid expensive therapies and hospitalization needed to treat infectious diseases like influenza and meningitis. Immunizations also reduce absences both at school and after school activities and decrease the spread of illness at home, school and the community.

The CDC currently recommends the following vaccines for preteens and teens:

·        Tetanus, Diphtheria and Pertussis (Tdap)

·        Influenza (flu)

·        Human Papillomavirus (HPV) – three doses

·        Meningococcal Disease (MCV4)

Georgia Preteen Vaccine Awareness Week is an opportunity to raise awareness through schools, health care providers and the media regarding preteen immunizations, particularly Georgia’s new pertussis and meningococcal requirements for incoming seventh-grade students. Speak with your physician today to find out if your preteen is up-to-date and if not, make a date to vaccinate.

For more information, visit http://dph.georgia.gov/immunization-section

Chattooga County Schools – Already on the calendar to be closed for today

DeKalb County, Alabama Schools –  Closed

Georgia Northwestern Technical College – All Campuses – Closed at Noon Today

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