Lights Go Out In Wilkes County
Some people in Wilkes County woke up without electricity Wednesday morning near the Millers Creek area. 2000 people were affected all total as Duke Power reported an equipment malfunction at a local substation. The incident happened around 6:30am and power was restored to everyone by 8:30am.

Thieves Break In To Rip Radio Out
Always lock your car when you leave. A Wilkesboro man found out why that’s a good idea this week, after returning to find thieves had paid him a visit. He had parked one of his cars at home Sunday night and forgot about it. Coming back to it on Tuesday, he found the CB radio inside had been torn out. All the wires had been cut, however nothing else was either missing or damaged inside the vehicle. That investigation continues.

Focus On Grief
All of us have to face the death of friends and family at some point. How we deal with that grief can affect our lives for months, years or possibly the rest of our lives. Still there really isn’t a strict set of rules to go by when dealing with grief. Coming up today on Focus on the Foothills, Brian's guest will be Margo Wheeler from Hospice. They'll be discussing ways of dealing with grief and also the upcoming classes on the subject put on by Hospice. That’s coming up today at 1:05pm right after the midday stock report.

Truck Damaged In North Wilkesboro
A North Wilkesboro man got a surprise when he walked outside Tuesday morning. Over $100 worth of damage had been done to his truck, as someone had keyed the tailgate. There are suspects in the case and sheriff’s deputies are continuing the investigation.

Breaking The Bank Part IV: Planning Ahead
College is expensive for both the parents and prospective students. How can you afford a dorm room, tuition and the books you'll need? Throughout this week on the 3WC News, we’ve been taking a look at ways you can cover the cost without breaking the bank. But what if college is still a few years off for your child? One option for parents to consider is setting up a 529 plan. Each year over 7 million families use the plans to help in setting aside money for college. Coming up today in the 3WC News, Brian will be talking with Carol Owens from financial service Scott and Stringfellow about what the plans are and who qualifies.

Just Came By To Drop Some Stuff Off
Someone decided to use a Wilkesboro woman’s property as their own personal dump this week. She came to have a look around and found that a pile of cement blocks, tin, metal pipe and wire and been dropped off on her yard. It’s unknown exactly when this happened, as the woman had been gone for several months and the neighbors couldn’t recall seeing or hearing anything unusual. That investigation continues.

3WC Eye On Safety: Protect Yourself While Shopping
With the weather getting warmer, more people are shopping and taking part in local activities. But while you're out and about, it's a good idea to take some precautions and stay safe as we explain in today’s 3WC Eye On Safety. First, always keep your car doors locked and windows rolled up when leaving the vehicle. Over the past few weeks here in Wilkes several reports have come in of thieves opening unlocked doors and running off with items from inside. Also don't leave packages on the seat of your car. The reason being, would be thieves can see the items as they're walking by and it serves as a temptation to them. Once you buy something, put it in your trunk or behind the seat, out of sight. Finally, keep a grip on your purse, handbag or wallet and make sure not to set it down on either the top of your vehicle or off to the side when loading your purchases. That way thieves can't grab it and take off running before you've had a chance to react. Overall just watch out and enjoy the return of spring.

Salvation Army Offering Help
Many families can find themselves in a time of need as it can be hard to pay the bills and also put food on the table. The local Salvation Army is helping to solve that by taking applications for their financial assistance program. The program is open to anyone who can demonstrate a need for help paying utility or rent bills. However before going out, please remember that you can only be seen with an appointment, during either Tuesday or Thursday from 1-5pm. Also there is a limited amount of money available to help, given out on a need based approach. The Salvation Army is located in the Wilkes United Way office building, at 910 C Street in Wilkesboro. For more information or to set up an appointment you can call 651-7800.

State News

Troops Coming Home
Some good news for military families across North Carolina, as 200 soldiers made their way home this week. On Wednesday, members of the 1st Brigade Combat Team of the 82nd Airborne Division made their way back to Fort Bragg, marking the first time in over five years the entire division has been on leave. The 200 troops are the first of over 1100 that are expected to come back in the next few months from service in Afghanistan.

Gun Brought Into Fayetteville School
A 12-yr-old boy has been arrested in Fayetteville, after bringing a gun to his school. School authorities at Pine Forest Middle School discovered that the boy was carrying a fully loaded, semi-automatic handgun just before 1pm on Tuesday. He has since been arrested for bringing a weapon onto school grounds. No other information has been made available to the media.

Layoffs Coming For Winston Workers
Bad news for workers in Winston Salem today. US Airways has announced plans to transfer several hundred jobs out of the area beginning next month. As part of their merger with America West, US Airways will transfer their revenue collections department to the Tempe, Arizona area in a move expected to save the company millions of dollars. Company officials said that no jobs are being eliminated and that employees have the option of moving to the new location. If they decline, they’ll be given a severance package from the airline. The relocation is on track to start April 28th.

Accident With Gun Puts A Greensboro Girl In Hospital
A 6-yr-old girl is in the hospital today after an accident in a Greensboro store. The girl and her 9-yr-old friend were hunting for candy in a Mexican store owned by her grandmother, when they opened up a drawer and found a gun. The girl picked up the loaded weapon and as the boy tried to take it away, the gun went off. The 6-yr-old, whose name has not been released, was taken to Moses Cone Hospital for surgery and her family has asked that no information be released on her condition.

Cigarettes Taken From Store
The FBI are investigating a large scale theft that happened this week in Greensboro. Four tractor trailer trucks from Lorillard Tobacco had their cargo vanish, with several million dollars worth of cigarettes taken. Questions are being raised if the expiring contract with the trucking union had anything to do with the theft as it had been set to expire Tuesday night when the cigarettes went missing. While talks continue, the contract has since been extended to March 7th.

Sports Headlines

High School Baseball Tonight
With spring on the way, it’s time to toss the first pitch for our high school baseball coverage. Tonight we’ll be broadcasting from Moravian Falls, as Wilkes Central plays host to East Wilkes. Gametime is set for 7pm and we’ll go on the air with the McDonald’s pregame show at 6:45.

NCAA Scoreboard
Around the college scoreboard last night, it was UNC Charlotte over Duquesne 77-71. The 49ers got 27 points and 10 rebounds from Curtis Withers, improving to 18-10, good enough for second place in the Atlantic 10. Meanwhile in the ACC, it was a blowout on Senior Night, as North Carolina took care of Virginia 99-54. Senior David Noel led the way with a career high 26 points as the Heels improve to 20-6. And in a major upset, it was the unranked Florida State Seminoles beating the Duke Blue Devils 79-74. Duke got 30 points from J.J. Redick and 20 points along with 16 rebounds from Shelton Williams but it wasn’t enough to overcome the FSU attack. With the loss Duke drops to 27-2 and runs the risk of dropping in the rankings when the new Top 25 poll comes out next week.

NBA: Charlotte vs. Utah
Taking a look at the senior circuit of the NBA last night, it was Charlotte over Utah 104-89. Gerald Wallace had 19 points, 5 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 blocks as the Bobcats improve to 16-43. Next up on their road trip is a visit to Dallas Friday night.

NHL: Boston at Carolina
On the ice last night, the Carolina Hurricanes had no problems getting back on track. Coming off the Olympic break, the team beat Boston 4-3 in front of the home crowd at the RBC Center. Aaron Ward had two goals to lead the Hurricanes, who improve to 40-14, tied with Detroit for the best record in the NHL.

NC Skater Working For Charity
North Carolina speed skater Joey Cheek already has plans to go to work now that the Olympics are over. Cheek, who picked up a gold and silver medal in speed skating, donated his bonus money from the games to help rebuild the war ravaged Darfar region of the Sudan. Now he plans to go to Zambia on a humanitarian mission. He’ll be working with Right To Play, a group that uses sports as a way to promote healthy lifestyles for children in the Third World. In addition, Cheek laid down a challenge when he donated the prize money, calling on his sponsors and other corporations to match the money. So far $300,000 has come in to help the charity, with more on the way from individuals.