About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 13, 2024)
Record-cold caucuses expected after many chilly Iowa campaign events, inside, 4a Sunday, January 14,20241 GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA I gainesvilletimes.com Seventh grader from North Hall wins district spelling bee. INSIDE, 3A Honestly Local NTSB: Plane hit trees, exploded on impact in crash BY NICK WATSON nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com Witnesses to a Dec. 21 fatal plane crash saw the aircraft flying low over Lake Lanier before hitting trees and the parking lot, leading to an explosion, according to a report released this week by the National Transportation Safety Board. The report details the crash that killed Howard Lee Joe, 60, of Dunwoody, who was the only person onboard the Beechcraft Bonanza single engine plane. Joe's family told authori ties the plane was based at DeKalb-Peachtree Airport in Atlanta and “the purpose of (the) flight was to perform a local flight in the area," according to the report. The plane departed the Atlanta airport at 5:01 p.m. heading north, but 11 minutes later, the ground speed and altitude of the plane started to decrease, according to the report. At 5:14 p.m., the plane was a tenth of a mile north of the See Plane 14A NTSB Investigation: ERA24FA072 A drone image shows the path of a plane over Lake Lanier before hitting trees and crash ing on Dec. 21, 2023. Image provided by NTSB Big chill on tap Photos by Scott Rogers The Times Pedestrians deal with rain showers Friday, Jan. 12, as they walk along Bradford Street in downtown in Gainesville. in Hall; freezing expected next week Canada geese gather along the Midland Greenway showered in rainfall. More rain arrives BY BRIAN WELLMEIER bwellmeier@gainesvilletimes.com Hall County saw rain and strong winds as severe weather moved across Georgia Friday. Up to a half-inch of rain and wind gusts exceeding 50 mph were expected between 3 p.m.-6 p.m. before relenting around 9 p.m. Friday night. Freezing temperatures Next week, temperatures across the northeast Georgia region could plunge to below-freezing starting Monday night with lows in the 30s. Hernandez said temperatures Tues day will reach highs in the 30s before a drop to around 14 degrees that night. The record low in Gainesville for next Tuesday, which will see the high range from upper 30s to low 40s, was set at 4 degrees in 1912. With the wind chill, she said the air outside will feel more like 3-5 degrees Wednesday morning. Wednesday's high will stay in the low-to-mid 30s. Forecasts show only some relief for the rest of the week, as a minor warming trend pushes highs to the mid-40s and lows in the 30s. Chances of precipitation next week for now are low, according to Hernan dez, so the roads should remain dry and safe for travel. “We're still very much evaluating it," she said. “I wouldn't rule out a flurry for the area, but we're not expecting accumulation...again, things could change.'' Starting the evening of Friday, Jan. 12, a warming center at 881 Dorsey Street in Gainesville will open for those without shelter during the cold. Pastor Jerry Deyton said the warm ing center operated by Good News at Noon could open in the daytime hours when temperatures are in the 30s next week. He said he aims to keep the center open through winter as necessary. He added that he's accepting donations for coffee and small snacks like breakfast bars for those at the shelter. As temperatures fall Tuesday, pet owners should bring all outdoor ani mals indoors to protect them from the extreme cold. Last year, the Hall County area saw record-breaking cold on Christmas Eve after temperatures plunged to a low of 5 degrees and left about 1,000 Gaines ville water customers with leaks or pipe breaks. To prevent water lines from bursting, wrap outdoor pipes and spigots with some form of insulation, leave indoor faucets dripping and open cabinets under sinks to keep pipes warm. Newly installed water tower has familiar Atlanta names and logos BY JEFF GILL jgill@gainesvilletimes.com Familiar Atlanta names and logos are on Flowery Branch's newest water tower. Emory Healthcare's logo features prominently on the city's 152-foot tall, 250,000-gallon tower atop Main Street at Gainesville Street, overlooking downtown. Atlanta Falcons and Flowery Branch's blossom logos are also on the tower, as well as the Falcon's “Rise Up" mantra and the words “Presented by: Emory Sports Performance And Research Center.'' The Falcons and Flowery Branch logos have long been on the city's Rob erts Drive tower. The newest participant is Emory Healthcare, which opened the Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center at the Atlanta Falcons complex at 4400 Falcon Parkway, Flowery Branch, in February 2021.The Falcons have been in Hall County since 2000. The Emory facility provides Falcons' players with immediate access to medi cal treatment and procedures, such as MRIs, but it also is open to the public. “We were working with the Falcons (on the new tank's logo), and Emory entered the conversation,'' Flowery Branch City Manager Tonya Parrish said. “We have such a great working relationship with both of them.'' Emory paid the city $25,000 for the tank's paint job, which is expected to last about 10 years, she added. The total cost of the effort was $134,000, Parrish said. See Water Tower 14A Jeff Gill The Times Flowery Branch’s new water tower bears the names and logos of Emory Healthcare and Atlanta Falcons, as well as the city’s familiar blossom logo. 2024 MLK Day Celebration to include parade and observance BY BEN ANDERSON banderson@gainesvilletimes.com For more than 50 years, the Newtown Florist Club has assem bled a parade in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. on his birthday. The longstanding Gainesville civil rights club will host its 54th annual MLK Day Celebration at noon Monday, Jan. 15. About 200 people are expected to assemble and march in honor of the late civil rights leader who was assassinated more than 55 years ago. The parade is expected to last about an hour. This year's route will begin at Peach State Bank on E.E. Butler Parkway and end at the newly renovated E.E. Butler Center, where an observance program will commence at 1:30 p.m. Kyn- dra Cohen, the center's adminis trator and director of Hall County Family Connection, will lead the observance. “We did that intentionally to build upon the work that is cur rently going on there (at the E.E. Butler Center),'' said Newtown Florist Club Director Rose John son. “This is the place where you can come for healthcare. This is the place where you can come for recreation. This is the place where you can come for resources to help make your fami lies stronger.'' The theme of this year's cel ebration is “Rebuild the Village, Share the Work, Live the Dream.'' “For the last three or four years, our theme has been focused on rebuilding the village,'' Johnson said. “There are communities all throughout the city where the investment in the lives of the people — the children, the youth, the young adults and families — needs a whole lot more nourish ment, needs to experience the feeling of family togetherness that we once shared in the com munities where we grew up." “There's a lot of work that needs to be done," she said, “to live out Dr. King's dream of what the beloved community could be like.''
