Newspaper Page Text
Vol. 140, No. 5 - Waynesboro, Ga. 30830
Established in 1882
Wednesday, March 18, 2020 - $1.00
Community comes
together to deal with virus
DIANA ROYAL
jdianaroyal@gmail.com
While the nation’s concern over
health and public safety grows
alongside the number of confirmed
COVID-19 cases, the Burke County
community is weathering the worry
together.
Amidst school and church
closures, postponed proms and
primaries and bare shelves in the
grocery stores, community leaders
and business owners are trying to
figure out what the best solution
is here in Burke County following
two confirmed cases of the virus in
neighboring Richmond County and
many more across the state. Though
there is no short answer to that, Gina
Richardson, County Nurse Manager
at B. Lamar Murray Public Health
Center, stressed this is a time to
prepare, not panic.
“Taking precautions, such as
washing your hands, cleaning and
disinfecting consistently touched
surfaces, is a must,” she said, adding
that social distancing is equally
important. “Distance yourself from
those who are sick. Please be mindful
of others as well if you are sick and
stay home from work. In preparing
to protect ourselves, these are the
best precautions that we can take
individually to prevent the spread
of disease.”
Some of those social distancing
tactics have already been
implemented as all Burke County
public and private schools have
closed their doors and don’t plan to
reopen until at least the end of the
month. Faith Christian Academy
ROY F. CHALKER JR.
rchalker@bellsouth.net
A 17 year-old male was wounded
in a shooting on Westgate Drive on
Saturday.
At about 2 p.m. Waynesboro
Police Department Officers and
Deputies with the Burke County
Sheriff’s Office responded to reports
of a shooting at the location. Once
students attended their last day on
Monday with a possible return at
the end of the month, while Burke
County Public Schools and Edmund
Burke Academy held classes through
yesterday (Tuesday) with return
dates tentatively planned for April
14 and 13, respectively. Both high
schools have also postponed their
junior-senior proms, with BCHS
opting for May 9, and EBA hoping
for April 17. On Monday, Georgia
Gov. Brian Kemp signed an executive
order closing all public elementary,
secondary and post-secondary
public schools in the state through
March 31. Athletic events and other
extracurricular activities have also
been suspended for the time being.
Colleges and universities have sent
students home, many of them set to
finish the semester through distance
learning.
“Because this is a new virus, and
we have seen global transmission,
I think it is best to err on the side
of caution,” Richardson said,
adding that it’s important to start
taking more aggressive action now
to mitigate the spread based on
information provided by the CDC
(Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention). She explained that
social distancing means remaining
out of congregate settings, avoiding
local public transportation, such
buses, trains and ride shares, and
maintaining distance (approximately
6 feet) from others. “In the event
of a pandemic, social distancing is
important and helps to prevent the
spread of infection. Social distancing
is different than isolation, which
separates those who are sick with a
on scene, they located a 17-year-old
black male with an apparent gunshot
wound to the buttocks. The injured
man was transported by Burke
County EMA to Augusta University
Medical Center for treatment of non
life-threatening injuries.
Deputies on the scene located
a victim who had been driving by
when the shooting occurred. The
driver’s vehicle was struck several
contagious disease from those who
are not to avoid transmission. Again,
it is recommended that if you are
sick, please stay home and isolate
yourself from others.”
“Because we are hearing more and
more about COVID-19 from major
media outlets, our community has a
heightened sense of awareness, and
I can appreciate that,” she went on
to say. “We know that 80 percent
of individuals with confirmed
COVID-19 have mild symptoms, and
that the risk right now is relatively
low. We certainly want to keep this
outbreak in perspective. We would
like to stress that most people will
be fine and experience little to no
symptoms should they contract
the disease. For most people, the
virus causes only mild or moderate
symptoms, such as fever and cough.
For some, especially older adults
and people with existing health
problems, it can cause more severe
illness, such as pneumonia. Most
people recover within a couple of
weeks.”
Although there are two confirmed
cases in Richmond County, Burke
itself has none. On Monday, a
spokesperson for Georgia Power
said three of its Plant Vogtle Units
3 & 4 employees had been tested.
“We are awaiting results for two
workers. Currently, no workers
have tested positive. A third worker
was tested and determined to be
negative,” the spokesperson said,
adding the company remains focused
on protecting the safety
and health of workers at b
the site.'The company’s VIRUS,
rigorous preparations 13
wounded
times causing significant damage.
According to Chief Deputy Lewis
Blanchard, the case is still in an early
stage of the investigation and is being
worked by the WPD and BCSO
Investigative Divisions. Anyone with
information regarding this incident is
asked to contact the Sheriff’s Office
Criminal Investigation Division at
706-554-6633. Callers can remain
anonymous.
Shooting leaves one
Presidential primary
postponed until May
DIANA ROYAL
jdianaroyal @ gmail.com
With safety concerns over
COVID-19, the illness caused by
the coronavirus, spreading across
Georgia, the Secretary of State’s
Office made the call to postpone
the presidential primary originally
scheduled for March 24. Instead,
Georgia voters will have the option
to select their presidential preference
along with local and state races
during the May 19 general primary.
The postponement also means the
cancellation of early voting, which
was supposed to continue through
this Friday.
According to Laveme Sello, who
serves as the executive director
for the Burke County Board of
Elections Office, she and her staff
operated through Saturday, the
one weekend day that was offered
during this particular early voting
period. In Burke alone, 298 early
voters showed up in person for the
presidential primary. Sello said
voters may still request absentee
ballots by mail through this Friday,
March 20, and that they will be
mailed on that afternoon. She went
on to explain that those who have yet
to vote in the presidential primary
will receive a different ballot during
the general primary which contains
both the state and local races as well
as the presidential candidates and
special election TSPLOST question.
The ballot for those who have
already voted for the presidential
primary will have a ballot containing
only the local and state races. In
both primaries, voters are required
to select a political party to support.
Though the election is postponed,
unregistered voters have already
missed their opportunity to
participate. They may still register
between March 26 and April 20 to
vote in the general primary only.
Following President Donald
Trump’s declaration of a national
emergency and Governor Brian
Kemp’s declared public health
emergency, Secretary of State Brad
Raffensperger acknowledged that in-
person voting presents increased risk
to voters and poll workers "Events
are moving rapidly and my highest
priority is protecting the health of
our poll workers, their families and
the community at large,” he said as
Georgia became the second state to
postpone the presidential primary.
As of Tuesday afternoon, Kentucky,
Louisiana, Maryland and Ohio were
also on the list of states to postpone
primaries.
Statewide, around 250,000
ballots had already been cast
during early voting before precincts
across the state closed, a decision
Raffensperger’s office said was not
easy to make, especially considering
Georgia elections officials were
using this primary as their first major
test of the state’s 30,000 new voting
machines.
He stressed that the votes of those
who voted early will still count.
Former commission
head Allen DeLaigle
dies at age 80
ROY F. CHALKER JR.
rchalker@bellsouth.net
Former Burke County Commission
Chairman Allen DeLaigle has died at
the age of 80 after a long illness.
He had served on the commission
for more than 11 years and was
chairman from 1977-79.
The Burke County native and
lifelong resident was retired from
Augusta Newsprint and had been
engaged in a number of business
ventures in the county.
This week current commission
chair Terri Lodge Kelly said, “The
entire board of commissioners and
staff are saddened to hear of the
passing of former chairman Allen
DeLaigle. We have truly lost a
community leader. Allen cared
about the Burke County community
and wanted it to grow and prosper.
One of the last projects that Allen
worked for was the funding for the
YMCA to improve the quality of
life the citizens. Our thoughts and
prayers are with the family of former
chairman Allen DeLaigle.”
County Manager Merv Waldrop
said, “Mr. DeLaigle served Burke
County as a business leader for many
years. He was elected four times to
Allen DeLaigle
the Board of County Commissioners
and served over 11 years before he
resigned due to health concerns.
He was chosen by his peers to be
chairman of the board for the last
three years he served. He was
instrumental in providing leadership
during the construction of the new
Judicial Center and was an advocate
for building an Animal Shelter in
Burke County. He was known as a
consensus builder on the Board of
Commissioners.”
Funeral services for Allen
DeLaigle will be held at 2 p.m.
Wednesday, March 18 at Botsford
Baptist Church.
330 US HWY. 25 NORTH, WAYNESBORO - 706-554-2114 - www.mizellford.com