Graduation exercises for both local high schools will be held on the same evening this year. Trion High School and Chattooga High School will both have graduation this Friday, May 26, 2023 at 8 PM.
According to a new study, Forsyth County is the healthiest county in Georgia. The University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute has released its latest edition of the “County Health Rankings & Roadmaps.” It ranked all of Georgia’s 159 counties from healthiest to least healthy, with Hancock County coming in last. Chattooga County was in the bottom third of counties in the health ranking.
Georgia gas prices experience a modest decrease at the pump compared to a week ago. Georgia drivers are now paying an average price of $3.25 per gallon for regular unleaded gasoline (subject to change overnight).
A host of activities are scheduled for this Saturday’s Trion Fire Department Third Annual Community Day. In addition to vendors and food, there will be inflatables and games for the kids and there will also be a fishing tournament on the banks of the Chattooga River in Trion. The fire department will also have demonstrations and information on fire safety and will be offering smoke alarms for anyone that needs them. Life Force will be on hand with their air medical transport helicopter and there will be a live vehicle accident reenactment. Also, there will be pro-wrestling and Chip Rowland will be in concert. The fire department will also be selling Boston butt plates and whole Boston butts. The community day events will get underway at 10 AM this Saturday, May 27, and go until 3 PM on Park Avenue beside the Chattooga River.
Last week, a portion of Butler Dairy Road was closed and Chattooga County Public Works worked on removing a hill on the road in an effort to make the road safer for commuters. The area is a hazard for drivers on a road that is a popular cut-through from the foot of Taylor’s Ridge on Highway 27, back towards Trion. County work crews cut into the hill and lowered it to provide better visibility for travelers. The county also had to move about 300 feet of water line and straightened a curve in the road. While the county work crews were wrapping up the work last week, the portion of the road remains unpaved, so commuters should use some extra caution in the area. The county plans to bid out the paving for that section of Butler Dairy Road and have it paved in the coming months.
The City of Summerville is working on the 2023-2024 fiscal year budget and is looking at ways to increase revenue for the city. Already, the city is looking to offer $5,000 incentives for longtime employees to go ahead and retire. The idea is that the city can replace the older employees with new employees that won’t be making as much money. Also, the city is instituting rate hikes for sewer bills, the hotel-motel tax and is discussing the idea of reinstating city property taxes for residents. The council met in a budget work session on Monday evening to discuss the upcoming fiscal year budget.
Troopers in neighboring Cherokee County, Alabama have released more information about a fatal car crash over the weekend that took the life of a Georgia resident and a juvenile. Reports indicate that seventy-two-year-old Teri J. Brann and a twelve-year-old juvenile lost their lives when a 2022 Jeep Cherokee collided head-on with a 2009 Toyota Corolla. Brann was a passenger in the Jeep and the juvenile was a passenger in the Toyota. Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Troopers say Brann was transported to Atrium Health Floyd Medical Center in Rome, where she succumbed to injuries sustained during the crash. The 12-year-old was also transported to a hospital and pronounced dead. Nothing further is available as troopers with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s Highway Patrol Division continue to investigate.
Work continues on Atrium Health Floyd’s freestanding emergency room just north of Walmart in Trion. Atrium Health officials are looking for a completion date sometime in October. The building is actually pre-fabricated and is being assembled on site.
Here is the latest arrest report from the Chattooga County Sheriff’s Office for Monday, May 22, 2023:
Three Chattooga FFA students placed second in the UGA Beef Teem and Georgia Cattleman’s Association’s “Top Hand Stockmanship” statewide competition over the weekend.