News & Sports For August 26th

Wilkes County Hit By Earthquake Aftershock
Portions of Wilkes County were hit Wednesday night with what experts are calling the aftershocks of an earthquake. Around 11pm Wednesday, an earthquake registering 3.8 on the Richter scale hit Eastern Tennessee near the community of Hot Springs. Less than an hour later, aftershocks from that quake were felt in Western North Carolina, including portions of Wilkes. Families in Millers Creek , Moravian Falls, Wilkesboro and Purlear all reported rumbling and shaking, however there were no reports of damage and no one injured from the quake. It’s unknown why the quake happened, as there previously hadn’t been any major seismic activity in the area.

Pressure Washer Stolen From Millers Creek Residence
Sheriff’s deputies were called out to a Millers Creek residence on Wednesday, after the homeowner returned to find someone had been in his garage. The lock was broken on the building and a pressure washer that had been stored inside was missing. The joke appears to be on the thieves however, as the washer was falling apart and being held together with green cord. Deputies are continuing the investigation.

Wilkes County Citizens Could Be In For A Refund
Phone fraud is a major problem across the United States and here in North Carolina, the Attorney General’s office is doing their best to deal with it. Now comes news that Wilkes County citizens, along with other people in the state, might be owed some money. Anyone who was involved with American Savings Discount Club, will soon be able to get their money back. The loan company conned 20,000 people here in Wilkes and across the state into signing up for overpriced and illegal loans. ASDC officials would call people and promise them loans ranging from $500 to $1500 in price, all in exchange for an up front payment of $100 and then $30 each month. What actually happened was that once customers signed up, they were told about an additional $30 membership fee, along with a loan repayment fee. As a result, the company has been forced to pay out $2.1 million in refunds and to receive one, you must fill out a claim form, then return it by October 6th. To find out if you qualify or to get a form, you can call the Claims Administrator at Analytics Inc. Their toll free number is 866-890-4856.

Car Vandalized At Traphill Residence
A Traphill man called sheriff’s deputies earlier this week after returning home to find that someone had tried to steal his car. The steering column was broken and over $300 worth of damage was done to the vehicle. Despite the damage, no one in the area heard or saw anyone come near the house. That investigation is ongoing.

Central Wilkes Middle School To Hold First Falcon Night
This coming Monday, students and parents are being invited to Central Wilkes Middle School for the First Falcon Family Night. Information will be available about the school’s athletic programs, also about some new laws that will affect how PE and Health classes operate. There will also be free blood pressure and diabetes screenings at the event, along with several other activities. That will be held this coming Monday, August 29th from 6-8pm in the gym of Central Wilkes Middle School. Anyone who attends the school is invited along with their parents. For more information you can call Chris Gambill at 667-7453.

Ronda Woman Falls Victim To Prank Calls
A Ronda woman called deputies earlier this week after constantly receiving harassing phone calls on her cell. A person keeps calling every few days, not saying anything to begin with but then cursing at the woman before hanging up. However the woman’s cell has caller ID on it, so the phone number was turned over to sheriff’s deputies and traced. Still the caller continues to harass, as the woman has received at least 13 calls over the last three weeks from the same person. Deputies are continuing the investigation.

Recall Of Frozen Meat Affects Wilkes Consumers
A recall is going on of an estimated 900,000 pounds of frozen beef patties across the country. The problem is that some of them have been contaminated with the deadly E. coli bacteria and are a health risk. The recalled products all come from Flanders Inc. and include all three and five pound packages of Flanders Bun Buster 100% Beef Burgers. Also all two, five and ten pound packages of Flanders Beef Patties, and all ten pound packages of Flanders Homestyle Cubed Beef Patties. Finally all two pound packages of America’s Pride Beef Patties, ten pound packages of Flanders Patty Mix, five pound packages of Value Time Beef Patties and all five pound boxes of Grill Master Beef Patties have been recalled. All of the affected products have an establishment number on them of EST 9145 and you can see that by looking inside the USDA seal of inspection. North Carolina was one of several states across the nation to receive the bad beef. You can return the meat to where you bought it for a refund and if you have any questions, the USDA Meat & Poultry office has set up a hotline at 1-888-674-6854.

Moravian Falls Man Is Victimized By Illegal Dumping
Why dump your garbage on someone else’s lawn? That’s what a Moravian Falls man is wondering today, after coming home to find that someone had dumped clothes and trash in his yard. Then just two days later, he returned home to find that a broken down air conditioner was sitting in his yard as well. There are currently no suspects in the case however deputies are continuing the investigation.

Thief Leaves After Pushing Out Window
A witness stopped a would be thief from breaking into a Wilkesboro residence this week. A neighbor of the victim saw a woman trying to climb in through the front window, prying it open and shattering it. After being seen, the thief took off down the road, but not before being recognized. The woman’s name and description were turned over to police by the neighbor and the investigation is ongoing.

State News

High School Athletes Asked To Pay
For the second time this year, a city in North Carolina is asking their high school athletes to pay in order to play. Athletes at Page High School in Greensboro were asked to pay $30 for each sport they’re involved in, a move designed to help the school recoup the nearly $20,000 in debt they’ve amounted. Currently no high school in North Carolina charges a required fee in order for players to take part and Page officials don’t want to change that, saying that the $30 fee would be completely voluntary. For the most part students and their parents have agreed to help fund the school, with fundraisers being organized for later this year. However some families have questioned how much of their money will be going to the athletic programs, as they already have to pay for things like gloves and warm up gear. There are 27 separate athletic teams at Page High School with an athletics budget of $135,000.

Libertarian No More
The State Board of Elections handed down a ruling this week, eliminating one political party from the upcoming elections. The Libertarian Party was removed from consideration, due to the fact they failed to at least get 10% of the votes in last year’s governor’s and presidential races. Under state law, official political parties have to at least achieve that 10% margin or their members and candidates become listed as unaffiliated. The Libertarian Party didn’t even come close, finishing with ¼ of the needed votes. With that being the case, unaffiliated candidates have to get signatures totaling up to 4% of the voters in their area, in order to be placed on the ballot. Party leaders say that they plan to sue the state to get the rule overturned.

16 Tons Of Copper Wire Stolen From NC Town
Why would you steal 16 tons of copper wire? Officials in Warrenton North Carolina are trying to figure that out today, after arresting and charging two men with the theft. Two of the town’s employees, 51-yr-old Gregory Reese and 34-yr-old Frank Gutskey used their positions to steal the wire from an abandoned textile plant. After stealing the copper wire, which was estimated at a value of $20,000, the two then sold it in the Rocky Mount community. It’s believed at this time that the two used town equipment, including a forklift, to steal the wire and then took it out of town to sell. Gutskey, who’s in charge of garbage collection and Reese, who supervises the town’s water and sewer systems were also suspended from their jobs without pay until a verdict is handed down in the case.

100 Year Old Man Rounds The Track
In Belmont, Roy Lawing celebrated his birthday by driving around the track at Lowes Motor Speedway. His 100th birthday. Speedway president Humpy Wheeler first took Lawing on a lap around the track, hitting speeds of 100 in honor of the man’s 100th birthday. Then Lawing took the wheel himself and drove the pace car around the track for two laps. Afterwards he was treated to a cake with the words Aged To Perfection on it. Lawing reached 75 mph during his laps but said if he knew he was being timed, he would have gone faster.

More North Carolina Troops Headed To Iraq
More soldiers from here in North Carolina have received the call to ship out to Iraq. 1500 troops from the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg have been called to deploy and set up protection for the October 15th referendum on the country’s constitution. Then if Iraqi citizens approve the constitution, the soldiers will stay in place for the national elections in December. Officials estimate that the troops will be over in Iraq for a total of 120 days. An exact date of when the soldiers will be shipping out has not yet been announced.

Kannapolis Residents Get More Than They Expected At The Faucet
Strange things happened when residents of Kannapolis went to turn on the water Wednesday night. Instead of the normal clear water, liquid poured out in different colors, some dark and as some residents called it disfigured. City officials said that there wasn’t any health threat due to the colored water and the problem was being corrected. What had apparently happened is that maintenance work was going on Wednesday on the fire protection system in downtown Kannapolis. Mud and other sediment had apparently got into the water system somehow and into the drinking water. The problem was solved by early Thursday.

Sports Headlines

High School Football Tonight On 3WC
The second week of high school football got underway last night as East Wilkes beat North in JV football 33-8. Coming up tonight Ken Byrd and Keith Briand will be over in Moravian Falls, as Wilkes Central plays host to West Wilkes as our 3WC Game Of The Week. Brian will be over at the station, keeping you up to date on the other major game going on, between North High and East. That’s coming up tonight at 7:15 with kickoff set for 7:30, on your home for local sports, 1240 3WC.

Tarheels Land Another Football Recruit
Taking a look at the college scene, the UNC Tarheels have landed another football commitment for 2006. Ed Barham, a 6-5 tight end from Virginia agreed to come play at Chapel Hill. The senior from Surry County High School is a two way player, working both as a defensive end and also as a tight end, the position he’ll be assuming at UNC. Last season Barham had 110 tackles and eight sacks on defense, while also catching 20 passes for 500 yards. This marks the 23rd player to commit to the Heels for 2006.

ACC Basketball Schedule Highlights Part Two
Yesterday we told you about some of the highlighted games on the ACC basketball schedule this season. Now taking a look at the second half of the year, NC State will tip things off against North Carolina on Saturday Jan. 7th, while the next day Duke travels to Wake Forest to take on the Deacons. The Wolfpack head to Durham on Jan. 18th, before going home to host Wake Forest on the 21st. February 7th is a date going to be circled on a lot of calendars this year as that’s the first matchup between Duke and Carolina in Chapel Hill. Four days later, Wake Forest will host UNC Charlotte, before going on the road to play the Blue Devils on February 14th. North Carolina will face off against Wake Forest in Winston Salem Sunday, February 19th, then go on the road against NC State Feb. 22nd. Then the final game between Duke and UNC will take place in Durham on Saturday March 4th, the same day NC State and Wake Forest square off in Winston Salem.

Minor League Scoreboard
In the minor leagues, the Hickory Crawdads lost a player as catcher Neil Walker was promoted to the Pirates other single A team, the Lynchburg Hillcats. The 19 year old Walker ranked second in the league with 146 hits so far, good enough to be named to the South Atlantic League All Star Team. Walker had averaged .301 for the season, hitting 12 home runs and driving in 68 runs during his stay in Hickory.

Former Tarheel Looking To Make A Name In NFL
It’s been four years since Ronald Curry suited up and heard the roar of an ACC crowd. Now the former Tarheel is looking to stake his claim in the NFL, as he works to solidify his hold as the third receiver of the Oakland Raiders. Curry is coming off major surgery, as a tear in his Achilles’ tendon forced him out of the last four games the team played in 2004. A seveth round pick, Curry finished second on the team in receiving last season, despite the injuries, having put up 50 catches for 679 yards.

Dale Junior Looking For A Family Connection
Dale Earnhart may look to family connections to plug the holes in his team next season. Earnhart, while not officially announcing it, has all but said his cousin Tony Eury Jr. will be crew chief on the No. 8 in 2006. Junior told reporters thatit was pretty obvious what DEI plans to do with the team, after Eury Jr. signed a long term contract. Junior also wants Tony Eury Sr. to serve as team manager for his Busch Series team, but no decision has been made. With several months still left in the season, it’s unlikely an officially announcement regarding Eury Jr. will come for a while, as he’s currently the crew chief for Michael Waltrip’s No. 15 Chevy.