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NATIONAL
NEWSPAPER
WEEK
OCT. 2-8, 2022
#newspaperpower $©G Poge 6A
The Vidalia Advance Established 1901 The Lyons Progress Established 1894
ncc
National
4-H Week
See Page 19A
Vol. 124 No. 40
Your Newspaper - Toombs, Montgomery & Wheeler County, Georgia
October 5, 2022
Barbecue may not
be the road to
world peace, but
it’s a start.
-Anthony
Bourdain
News
BYTES
Early Voting
Starts
October 17
Early voting in the
November General
Election starts October
17. October 11 is the
last day to register to
be eligible to vote in
the General Election.
Visit the Registrar's
Office in your county
to vote in person or to
pick up an absentee
ballot. (Monday,
October 10, is a state
holiday and registrar's
offices will be closed.)
TWO GLORIOUS DAYS of BBQ, music, and fun are ahead this weekend for folks who mosey
on down to the annual Real Squeal BBQ & Music Festival in Lyons. The event will be held in
downtown Lyons and at the Lyon's Recreation Department's Partin Park on Friday, Octo
ber 7, and Saturday, October 8. The Real Squeal has been a tradition in Lyons each year
since 2011. Admission and parking each day are free,
By Makaylee Randolph
Staff Writer
mrandolphadvance@gmail. com
October is here, which means it is
barbecue time in Lyons! The 13th Annual
Real Squeal Barbecue and Music Festival
will be held next weekend, October 7 and
8 throughout the city The event will fea
ture vendors, barbecue competitions, live
music, a car show, a disc golf tournament,
and more!
Friday Events
Cooking
Festivities will begin at 9 a.m. on Fri
day, October 7, as the Backyard BBQ_Con-
test heats up. This is the amateur cook-off
competition for individuals, teams, fami
lies, and more to earn bragging rights for
their barbecue chicken and pork ribs. The
Grand Champion of this competition
will receive $350 and one Reserve Grand
Champion will be awarded $250, while
Please see Squeal page 2A
w rats jp
OCTOBER 7 - 8 IN LYONS
Exhibit Kicks
Off October 8
"Common Thread/
Common Ground,"
an exhibit, will kick off
with a reception at the
Altama Museum of Art
& History on Saturday,
October 8, from noon
until 2 p.m. The exhibit
will continue through
October 31. The
museum is located at
611 Jackson Street.
Greater Vidalia
Chamber Expo
The Greater Vidalia
Chamber's annual
Business Expo will
be held Thursday,
October 13, from 4
until 7 p.m. at the
Vidalia Community
Center. Admission is
$20 at the door. No
charge for children
under 5.
BPC Gala
Former UGA Bulldogs
Head Coach Mark
Richt will speak at
the Brewton-Parker
College Gala on
October 18 at 6:30
p.m. at First Baptist
Church in Vidalia.
For sponsorship and
ticket information,
visit www.bpc.edu/
presidentsgala.
IN THIS ISSUE
Editorials Page 6A
Obituaries Page 8A
From the Record Page 5A
Your Mind On Line Page 20A
Sports Page 1 B
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Head-on Collision
Claims Two Lives
By Makaylee Randolph
Staff Writer
mrandolphadvance@gmail.com
A head-on collision on Saturday morning
claimed the lives of two drivers on Old River
Road.
The Toombs County Sheriff’s Office was
contacted by a representative from Life360, a
Trooper
Cleared
By Makaylee Randolph
Staff Writer
mrandolphadvance@gmail.com
A Toombs County Grand Jury has
cleared Georgia State Patrol Trooper Wade
Manning, who was accused of misusing force
in a January 9 incident in Lyons that resulted
in the injury of a suspect.
According to Middle Judicial Circuit
District Attorney Tripp Fitzner, a Grand Jury
hearing is standard procedure in any event
where officers use force in which individu
als are injured. The hearing provides an op
portunity for witnesses to present the Grand
Jury with information so that it may be deter
mined whether a trial is necessary.
At the September 22 hearing, the Grand
Jury determined that Trooper Manning’s ac-
Please see Trooper page 3A
popular smartphone app used for families and
friends to track each other’s location and driv
ing, at 8:08 a.m. on Saturday, October 1. The
representative told the dispatcher that the app
had detected a crash through the GPS moni
toring feature, and that the owner of the phone
had not answered any of the representative’s
phone calls to check on the situation.
City Revokes
Hotel's License
By Makaylee Randolph
Staff Writer
mrandolphadvance@gmail.com
In a called session on September 23,
the Vidalia City Council voted to revoke
the business license of a local hotel and to
partner with Francis Energy to apply for a
grant for EV Charging Stations.
According to City Manager Nick
Overstreet, the City has been working
with the State Fire Marshal’s office and
Toombs County Health Department to
ensure that all businesses within the City
are acceptable according to code and stan
dards.
“We’ve dealt with the Econo Inn; now,
we have taken some action on the Budget
Inn. We are going to continue to be look
ing at properties to make sure that they are
Please see VCC page 22A
Georgia Power
Ms for More
Pate Increases
By Dave Williams
Bureau Chief
Capitol Beat News Service
A nearly 12% rate increase
Georgia Power is seeking is just
one of four the utility will be re
questing during the next three
years, a staff lawyer for the state
Public Service Commission (PSC)
said last Tuesday.
If the PSC approves all four,
the average residential customer
bill could soar by $55 to $60 a
month, not just the $16.29 month
ly increase in base rates the com
pany is asking for, Preston Thom
as, representing the commission’s
Public Interest Advocacy Staff,
said on the opening day of hear
ings on the rate hike request.
“Staff have concerns with all
of these different requests for rate
increases in such a short period of
time and the impact it could have
on consumers,” Thomas told com
missioners.
The rate hike, which Georgia
Power proposed in June, would
take effect on Jan. 1. The increase
is front-loaded, meaning $14.32 of
the additional $16.29 would kick
in immediately. The remaining
$1.97 would become effective in
2024 and 2025.
The increase is needed to
strengthen the utility’s electric
grid, add more renewable energy
to its power-generation portfolio
and improve customer service,
Chris Womack, Georgia’s Power’s
chairman, president, and CEO tes-
Please see Rates page 16A
Please see Fatalities page 2A
The Real Squeal
BBQ & Music Festival
October 7 - Downtown Lyons
October 8 - Partin Park
www.therealsqueal.com
• BBQ COMPETITIONS
• CAR SHOW
• STREET DANCE
• FIREWORKS
• ARTS & CRAFTS
* INDIAN ARTIFACT
SHOW
• DISC GOLF
TOURNAMENT
