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Shannon Casas | Editor in Chief
770-718-3417 | news@gainesvilletimes.com
The Times, Gainesville, Georgia
Thursday, December 13, 2018
4.4 quake, aftershock felt in Georgia
BY JOSHUA SILAVENT
jsilavent@gainesvilletimes.com
A magnitude 4.4 earthquake
struck eastern Tennessee early
Wednesday morning and could
be felt in Northeast Georgia and
metro Atlanta, according to the
U.S. Geological Survey.
The light earthquake occurred
about 4:15 a.m., and was centered
about 7 miles northeast of Deca
tur, Tenn., a city northeast of Chat
tanooga and about a three-hour
drive from Gainesville.
About 15 minutes later, a 3.3
magnitude aftershock struck.
On one social media thread
shared with The Times, residents
of Hall County and their friends
said they were momentarily per
plexed by the tremor.
“This morning’s earthquake
woke me up,” Arturo Adame, who
lives in East Hall, said on Face-
book. “I felt my house shake” for
about six to eight seconds.
Adame thought that, perhaps, a
family member in his home had
started the washer. Or was it just
the trash truck rumbling past?
“It’s funny, when you’re in ‘dan
ger’ in the comfort of your own
warm bed, you don’t fear death,”
Adame said. “I was just like, ‘I
guess this is my time, I’m not get
ting up.’”
Adame’s friend, Erin Parks, had
a similar reaction, she said.
“At first, I thought it was my
dogs scratching and bumping
against the bed,” Parks said.
“Then when it registered to me, I
was like, ‘Oh, OK. I’m going back
to sleep.’”
With an LOL, Parks added, “If
it’s not strong enough to cancel
work, it’s not strong enough to get
out of bed for.”
There didn’t appear to be any
immediate reports of injuries,
according to the Associated Press,
but people definitely felt it.
Emergency 911 dispatchers
in Tennessee said some people
reported their beds shaking and
dishes rattling.
The Tennessee Valley Author
ity said engineers were inspecting
the Watts Bar Nuclear Plant as a
precaution, but the facility didn’t
appear to be affected and was con
tinuing to operate safely.
It turns out that, according to the
USGS, the Eastern Tennessee seis
mic zone is one of the most active
earthquake areas in the entire
Southeast.
The zone extends across parts of
Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama.
And with that in mind, Hall
resident Diana Vela-Martinez
summed up the sentiments of
those who slept through the whole
thing.
“I’m more concerned about the
fact that everyone felt this earth
quake ... and I didn’t,” she said.
The Associated Press contributed to
this report.
NICK WATSON I The Times
Sgt. Ryan Daly shows off the in-car terminal inside a Hall County Sheriff’s Office patrol car Monday Dec. 10. The move to
a new records management system has made the system easier for Daly and other officers.
SYSTEM
■ Continued from 1A
difference. It’s amazing how
you scan a couple things,
push a couple buttons — I
don’t even have to pull out a
pen,” Daly said.
When Daly or any other
officer makes an arrest
and is headed to the jail, the
person can be pre-booked
and entered into a book
ing queue. By the time the
detainee arrives at the Bar
ber Road jail, everything is
ready for processing.
Clerical training coor
dinator David Kelley said
it can double the output in
terms of people moving
through booking.
“It’s a much faster,
streamlined version of what
we used to do, where every
thing had to be entered by
hand, piece by piece,” he
said.
While some staff at the
courthouse have experi
enced trouble in November
during the switch between
systems, McCusker and oth
ers worked on training and
improving access for court
house employees needing
certain information.
As of Dec. 5, McCusker
and others created access
for more than 100 users at
the courthouse into the new
system.
“Anytime there’s a
conversion, there will be
a learning curve,” Hall
County Management Infor
mation Systems Director
James Thomas said in a
statement. “That is why
we are taking our time,
working out bugs, hold
ing frequent meetings to
evaluate our progress, and
above all, making sure
that citizen safety is never
compromised.”
Thomas said in a news
release he believes the
systems “will become
completely integrated into
county operations dur
ing the first few months of
2019,” with all speed bumps
being smoothed out by then.
At the jail, Sgt. Jeff Ash
ley said a good amount
of human error has been
removed from the system,
including a feature that
keeps members of rival
gangs separated.
“When it goes time for
the classification process
and I’m going to place (an
inmate) in housing, that
pod location doesn’t even
become available for me to
even put that inmate in the
same pod,” he said.
Without having to run
around to several different
departments, Kelley can
generate reports all from
his laptop that were previ
ously not possible.
“There’s a lot of reports
in here that help me see
how efficiently we’re run
ning, clearly stating how
many we’ve booked today,
how many we booked yes
terday, same time last year,
month to date, year to date,”
he said.
FIRE
■ Continued from 1A
to get to the bottom of it.
Payne is leading the investigation with three of
the Gainesville Fire Department’s investigators.
“It’s going to be kind of difficult to conduct the
investigation because there’s so much metal and
wood,” Smith said. “Once they do the investiga
tion, then they’ll put the pieces together. It could
be several days, or unable to determine.”
Only yards away, the staff at Tire Barn Tire
Pros witnessed the blaze unfold. Jack Payne, co
owner of the business, said after spotting the fire
it only took around 30 minutes for the building to
burn to the ground.
He said the Tire Barn employees avoided
walking outside because the heat from the fire
was unbearable.
Despite the raging fire that took place next
door, customers weren’t deterred from getting
their tires and oil changed Tuesday.
“Business was normal, we just had a little extra
action going,” Payne said.
A crew from
ATT works to
repair lines
Wednesday,
Dec. 12,
damaged by
Tuesday’s
fire in a
vacant
building on
Bradford
Street. The
building was
a complete
loss in the
blaze.
SCOn ROGERS
The Times
Law office on
Green Street
has safe stolen
BY NICK WATSON
nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com
A safe was stolen from a Green Street law office after
a break-in, police said.
The burglary was reported at 403 Green St., which
houses Gillsville Law and Ibrahim & Rao, happening
between 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 9 and 7:05 a.m. Sun
day, Dec. 10.
Gainesville Police Sgt. Kevin Holbrook said a small
safe with $500 was reported missing.
“The report states the office door (was) forced open
with some type of tool or item,” Holbrook wrote in an
email.
Attorney Inez Grant said no case material was
missing.
No suspects are listed.
Authorities find
$20,000 in drugs
in Baldwin home
BY NICK WATSON
nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com
A North Georgia drug task force found roughly
$20,000 in methamphetamine and marijuana at a Bald
win home Wednesday, Dec. 12.
The Appalachian Regional Drug Enforcement Office
executed a search warrant at a Hubert Harris Road
home following six months of investigation.
“Authorities seized 6 ounces of methamphetamine,
5 ounces of marijuana, a handgun and $1,660,” Geor
gia Bureau of Investigation Assistant Special Agent in
Charge J. Michael Marlar wrote in an email.
The estimated street value of the drugs is $20,000.
John Mark Sims, 52, was arrested and charged with
trafficking methamphetamine, possession of a firearm
by a convicted felon and possession of marijuana.
He was transported to the Habersham County Deten
tion Center.
FLOWERY BRANCH
Police on lookout
for construction
equipment thieves
BY NICK WATSON
nwatson@gainesvilletime.com
Two people stole a Caterpillar skidsteer construction
machine last week in Flowery Branch, police said.
Flowery Branch Police are asking for help finding
the suspects in the theft Dec. 4 at a construction site at
Sterling on the Lake.
Police found the skidsteer, which looks like a small
bulldozer, behind a house on Amber Cove Way in Flow
ery Branch.
“In reviewing security video from the Shell Conve
nience Store located at Spout Springs Road and Capi-
tola Farm Road, we identified two suspects in a later
model black Chevrolet Sienna 2500 pickup truck pulling
a trailer,” Investigator Robin Kemp wrote in an email.
Anyone with information is asked to call Kemp at
770-967-6336.
PORT
BRUNCH
■ Continued from 1A
■ Continued from 1A
“We didn’t want to get out ahead of
the announcement by the governor,”
Syfan said of Wednesday’s vote.
The project was announced earlier
this year, but state officials, including
Gov. Nathan Deal, touted and gave
more details about the project at a
gathering with area business and gov
ernment leaders Dec. 3 at Lee Gilmer
Memorial Airport in Gainesville.
Construction is expected to start in
August 2019 along a long, thin strip of
land next to Norfolk Southern railroad
lines.
The port will serve the Interstate 85
region of Georgia, “an important (area)
for the production of heavy equipment,
food and forest products,” Deal said at
the Dec. 3 meeting.
It could eventually employ up to 20
people but “will also act as an economic
development tool, drawing new invest
ment from business and industry to Hall
and its surrounding counties,” the gov
ernor said.
12:30 p.m. on Sundays.
The “brunch bill” only applies to restaurants, not grocery
stores.
Braselton Town Manager Jennifer Scott said the Braselton
Town Council approved a new ordinance to adjust sales times
in November. The rules have been in effect since then, she
said.
Oakwood followed suit on Monday, tweaking its alcohol ordi
nance to reflect voters’ November approval of earlier Sunday
sales.
Oakwood City Manager Stan Brown told the Oakwood City
Council Monday that the cities and the county “are looking at
the implementation date” of Feb. 3.
“We’re just trying to eliminate confusion between different
jurisdictions,” he said.
The Gainesville City Council will vote on the changes on Jan.
8, with earlier Sunday sales also starting on Feb. 3, city spokes
woman Nikki Perry said.
Feb. 3 will also be the first Sunday with early sales in Flow
ery Branch, and the City Council there will hold two readings
of the new ordinance on Jan. 3 and 17. The Council will vote on
Jan. 17, according to City Clerk Melissa McCain.
The Hall County Board of Commissioners will hold two pub
lic hearings on Jan. 10 and 24, voting on Jan. 24. The county will
have the same effective date as other areas, with Feb. 3 being
the first Sunday affected by the change.
Staff writer Jeff Gill contributed to this report.
Ga. 53 bridgework may cause delays
Dawsonville Highway drivers may encounter some nighttime delays
as they cross the eastbound bridge over the Chattahoochee River.
S & D Industrial Painting of Florida is starting a project to paint the
bridge’s steel structure and replace the joints, with work taking place
nightly from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., according to the Georgia Department of
Transportation.
The project, which may reduce the bridge to one lane overnight, is
expected to be completed in mid-January, weather permitting.
A similar “bridge preservation” project is planned to start in 2019 on
the southbound Thompson Bridge Road bridge over the Chattahoochee
River.
The overall work will cost $1.2 million, according to the DOT.
Compiled from a Georgia Department of Transportation press release
Rabid raccoon located in Murrayville; 7th case
A rabies case has been reported in North Hall.
There was contact between a rabid raccoon and a dog in the 5800 block
of Bark Camp Road in Murrayville. Hall County Animal Control learned
Tuesday that the raccoon, which had been shipped to the Georgia Public
Health Lab in Decatur, tested positive for rabies.
Positive alert signs will be posted in the area where the raccoon was
found. People in the area who see an animal acting abnormally are
advised to contact Hall County Animal Services at 770-531-6830 or during
non-working hours call Hall County Dispatch at 770-536-8812.
Rabies vaccines are available at the Hall County Animal Shelter for
$10 Tuesday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., at 1688 Barber Road in
Gainesville.
This is the seventh confirmed case of rabies in Hall County in 2018.
Compiled from Hall County Government press release
