Menlo water customers were under a boil water advisory last weekend after a trace amount of fecal contamination was found at one of the city’s water sources – the Alpine Well.  City Mayor Allen Keen says that there was never any real danger to any water customers because the water is chlorinated and the sample came from pre-treated water at the well.  However, the state does mandate the boil water advisory that was issued.  The city disinfected the well over the weekend and by Tuesday, the city notified WZQZ News that the boil water advisory had been lifted.  The cause of the fecal contamination at the well has not been determined.

Chattooga High School boys and girls soccer teams have a new head coach.  Kaitlyn Cromer has been named head coach for both teams.  Cromer is a third-grade teacher at Leroy Massey Elementary School and has over twelve years experience playing soccer.  She has coached soccer for two years at the middle school and high school level. Cromer says that she is looking forward to the opportunity to coach at Chattooga High School in the upcoming school year.

Chattooga High School’s commencement exercises will be livestreamed tomorrow night.  Chattooga’s Graduation will be live streamed on YouTube: HERE  And on Facebook: HERE

Predicted inclement weather for Friday is impacting graduation exercises for Chattooga High School.  School officials have made the decision to move Friday’s Chattooga High School graduation indoors and it will be held at the Tribe Pride Arena – the Chattooga High School Gymnasium.  Because of limited seating, each senior will be issued 9 tickets to give to family and friends to attend Friday’s graduation exercises.

WZQZ News spoke with Trion School Supt. Dr. Phil Williams this (Thursday) morning about Trion’s graduation which is also planned for Friday at Sam R. McCain Stadium / Blevins Field.  Dr. Williams said that a decision about Trion’s graduation would be made by noon tomorrow.  Dr. Williams added that in the past when inclement weather impacted Trion’s graduation exercises, it was moved to Saturday morning.  That will NOT be the case this year.  Dr. Williams says that Trion will be graduating on Friday evening – whether that will be outside at Sam R. McCain Stadium or inside the Trion High School gymnasium, will be determined tomorrow.

Here is the latest arrest report from the Chattooga County Sheriff’s Office for Thursday, May 23, 2024:

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Beating an incumbent sheriff is always a historically tall order in Georgia as two challengers to two Northwest Georgia incumbent sheriffs found out on Tuesday.  Longtime Walker County Sheriff Steve Wilson in neighboring Walker County proved able to win his eighth election as sheriff by defeating former State Trooper Don Stultz with over 74% of the vote.  Floyd County Sheriff Dave Roberson was challenged in the Republican Primary by Robbie Whitfield.  Roberson received over 80% of the vote from Floyd County voters.  In Chattooga County, Sheriff Mark Schrader ran unopposed in the Primary Election.  Sheriff Schrader was first elected in 2012 when he defeated incumbent Sheriff John Everett in the Democratic Primary.  Schrader switched political parties in 2019 and has ran unopposed twice as a Republican.

A forty-year-old Trion man was arrested on Saturday of last week after a call to 911 about a “peeping Tom” in the Airport Road area.  The complainant told a responding deputy that a man was peeping in her window.  When the woman retrieved a gun, the subject ran off.  The residence was inside a gated area, according to the report.  Deputies later located the suspect, identified as Matthew Ralls Jennings. Jennings was carrying a large knife.  Jennings told deputies that he had “heard noises” at that is why he had gone to the house on Airport Road.  Jennings was arrested and taken to the Chattooga County Jail on charges of loitering and prowling and being a peeping Tom. According to Georgia law, “peeping Tom” means: a person who peeps through windows or doors, or other like places, on or about the premises of another for the purpose of spying upon or invading the privacy of the persons spied upon and the doing of any other acts of a similar nature which invade the privacy of such persons. Georgia Code § 16-11-61

Clarence Blalock and Shawn Harris will face off in a runoff for the Democratic nomination for the 14th Congressional District, one of which will face off with U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene in the November 5th General Election.  Either will face a tough challenge in beating Greene, who is one of the most controversial members of Congress.  In Chattooga County, only 324 people voted in the Democratic Primary on Tuesday.  Blalock lead the vote total in Chattooga County, garnering 136 votes to Harris’ 127 votes.

A thirty-four-year-old Chattooga County woman was charged with DUI after she claimed an oncoming vehicle forced her car into a ditch on Back Penn Road last Thursday.  According to a report from the Chattooga County Sheriff’s Office, a deputy responded to a call about a single-vehicle accident shortly before 6 PM.  When he arrived he spoke with Allie Shropshire who said that she was traveling to Rocky Hollow Road on Back Penn when an oncoming vehicle was driving down the middle of the road and forced her car into the ditch.  The deputy noticed the smell of alcohol and that the driver’s eyes were bloodshot.  After a field sobriety test, Shropshire was arrested and charged with DUI and DUI / Child Endangerment and failure to maintain a single lane and was booked into the Chattooga County Jail.

Blood Assurance and Chattooga County EMA / 911 will be sponsoring a blood drive coming up next month on Friday, June 14th from 2 PM – 7 PM.  Blood Assurance is a full-service regional blood center and serves more than 70 health care facilities in Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Kentucky and North Carolina.  Blood Assurance says that one blood donation can save three lives.  Each donor at next month’s blood drive will receive a Blood Assurance “color-changing” cup and a “cooling towel”, while supplies last.  You can find out more by visiting http://www.bloodassurance.org/chattoogacounty or by calling Pamela Vaughn at Chattooga EMA at 706-857-3400.  The blood drive will be held at the Chattooga EMA Building, located at 10 Farrar Drive in Summerville.