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Authorities looking for Hall inmate
who walked away from work
detail, insider
Sunday, December 25, 2022 | GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA | gainesvilletimes.com
Honestly Local
Hall riding out first phase of freeze
78 Georgia Power customers lost electricity in Hall; Jackson EMC had 48
BY BRIAN WELLMEIER
bwellmeier@gainesvilletimes.com
Hall County roads appear
“mostly clear” and dry after an
arctic blast swept through north
Georgia early Friday morning,
accompanied by 15-25 mph winds
and freezing temperatures.
The National Weather Service
projects a high of 19 and a low of
9 degrees Friday night, with tem
peratures staying below freezing
until Sunday afternoon. Condi
tions are expected to remain dry
through the weekend.
Hall County’s Operations and
Special Project Manager for
Emergency Management Zach
ary Brackett said that while the
winter storm has had “minimal”
impact on the roads, drivers
should remain cautious when
traveling, as downed trees have
been reported throughout the
county.
“We have seen our tempera
ture fall to 15 (degrees) and
wind gusts up to 35 mph with
approximately 25 trees fallen
across the county,” Brackett
said. “There were two trees that
fell onto homes with no injuries
reported by the occupants. Hall
County Public Works is working
to clear the trees across county
roads while the municipalities
are clearing theirs.”
Brackett reminded residents
that this is only the first phase of
a winter storm expected to last
through the weekend.
“This is the beginning of the
event, not the middle or the end,”
Brackett said. “Tonight’s going to
be much colder. I’m still looking
at lows of 8 degrees and wind
chills of -11.”
Hall County has seen an aver
age of about 3,500 residents
without power since 4:30 a.m.,
according to Brackett, though
utility providers have been work
ing through the early morning to
resolve outages.
Georgia Power reported 17
outages affecting 78 customers
in Hall County, and Jackson EMC
had 48 customers without power
in the area around noon Friday.
“Our teams are working safely
and as quickly as possible to
restore service in these extreme
winter conditions, as we con
tinue to deal with high winds and
icy roads,” said Georgia Power
Manager of Storm Center Opera
tions Ryan Poole. “To our cus
tomers directly affected by this
winter storm, we recognize it’s
extremely cold and that we’re in
the midst of the holiday season.”
GDOT announced that 1-85
express lanes and 1-75 south
metro express lanes are safe for
travel, and the 1-75 northwest cor
ridor express lanes are expected
to reopen to southbound traffic
early Friday afternoon.
GDOT also urged caution to
those who decide to travel, and
to report any obstructions in the
roadways.
“There are some reports of
fallen trees and down power
lines,” a statement from GDOT
said. “If motorists come across
downed trees, please report
them to 511 as soon as possible
so crews can remove them. If
motorists come across downed
power lines, report them to local
authorities or 911 and find an
alternate route.”
‘Support has been really fantastic’
Photos by SCOTT ROGERS I The Times
Two men drink coffee Friday, Dec. 23, at the former Set Free Ministry building in Gainesville as Good News at Noon and other
nonprofits and churches are using the building as a temporary homeless shelter during the dangerously cold snap.
Emergency homeless shelter saving lives during icy weather
BY BEN ANDERSON
banderson@gainesvilletimes.com
Michael Fisher, left, of Ninth District Opportunity Inc., talks with a group of men Friday,
Dec. 23, at the former Set Free Ministry building in Gainesville.
Two older homeless men walked into
the shelter Friday morning on the verge
of hypothermia, their teeth still chattering
half an hour later.
Had it not been for Mike Fisher, Jim
Froehlich and many others who pitched
in to open an emergency homeless shelter
on Dorsey Street, these men might have
frozen to death during what the National
Weather Service is calling a “once-in-a-
generation” arctic blast.
Forecasts show a low of 9 degrees Fri
day night, with temperatures staying
below freezing until Sunday afternoon.
“You don’t know if you’re going to wake
up or freeze to death,” said Victor Ledford,
58, one of the men who found refuge at the
old Set Free Ministry, across the street
from the Good News at Noon homeless
shelter.
The Set Free building is serving as an
emergency homeless shelter during one of
the coldest periods in Hall County in years.
It opened Wednesday, and organizers
hope to keep it open until the icy weather
relents and it becomes less dangerous for
the homeless to stay outside.
Jim Froehlich, a physician at Good
News at Noon who has led the effort, said
Friday morning that they had about 30
homeless folks staying at the shelter.
Local nonprofits and churches have
donated money, blankets, sleeping bags,
gloves and food. And the city, he said, paid
for some portable toilets.
“The weather is brutal and being
exposed to these elements would be brutal
for anybody,” Gainesville Mayor Sam Cou-
villon said. “I’m just really proud of our
community as a whole coming together,
supporting the cause.”
“The community support has been
really fantastic, with the churches and
individuals bringing over blankets and
sleeping bags and food,” Froehlich said.
“It’s really been very endearing how the
community has supported the plight of the
homeless in this weather situation here.”
But they have run into some problems.
The women’s toilets became backed up,
and Froehlich was waiting on a plumbing
■ Please see HOMELESS, 3A
17-year-old
charged with
rape, child
molestation
BY NICK WATSON
nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com
A 17-year-old Gainesville was charged with
rape and child molestation
after the girl reported it to
a counselor, according to
authorities.
Jason Carter Berry was
arrested Thursday, Dec.
22 in White County. He was
booked in to the Hall County
Jail, where he remains with
no bond.
The Hall County Sheriff’s
Office said both charges
relate to the same girl, who was not identified
beyond being under the age of 16.
The Sheriff’s Office said Berry raped the girl
at her residence on Aug. 27. Authorities said the
two knew one another before the incident.
“Deputies were notified of the incident by a
counselor on Sept. 9, after the victim disclosed
the crimes,” Sheriff’s Office spokesman Derreck
Booth wrote in an email.
Investigators obtained warrants for Berry
Thursday and arrested him later that day on
Tommy Cowart Road in White County.
The Sheriff’s Office did not provide any fur
ther information on the case.
Man with machete
robs Food Mart,
authorities say
BY NICK WATSON
nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com
A man entered an East Hall convenience store
with a machete and robbed the business before
running from the scene, according to authorities.
The Hall County Sheriff’s Office is looking for
the armed robbery suspect from an incident
around 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 22 on Ga. 52/Old
Cornelia Highway.
The Sheriff’s Office said the suspect demanded
money from the East Hall Food Mart clerk and
left with an undisclosed amount of cash.
The clerk was uninjured.
A K9 unit searched the area to no avail.
The suspect was seen wearing dark-colored
clothing, including a hooded sweatshirt, pants,
sunglasses and a ski mask.
Anyone with information can contact the
investigator at 770-718-5159.
Berry
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