Monday, January 10, 2005

Water Leak Costing Halifax Hundreds Daily

A ‘significant’ water leak that is costing Halifax roughly $500 a day was found last week in the water line under Main Street in front of the Halifax County Administration Building, according to town employees.

Halifax Councilmen were shown a video of the leak Thursday night that showed water gushing in a manhole.

“This is a significant leak,” Halifax Town Manager Carl Espy said, while noting it may not account for all the town’s missing water.

While the exact amount of the water being lost from the leak is unknown, Halifax Water Plant Chief Operator Ned Strange estimated the water loss around 30 to 35 gallons per minute.

That translates to between 43,200-50,400 gallons of water lost everyday and between 2,592,000-3,024,000 gallons lost every 60 days.

Much of the water from the leak is finding its way back into the town’s sewer system, so the town is paying to treat the water and then process it at the sewage plant, Reynolds said.

According to Espy, Earl Watts has been called in to locate the exact source of the Main Street leak and clamp it.

A leak from the same water main was clamped several months ago in front of the county courthouse, Espy said.

This is a short-term solution, according to the town manager, as officials look at ways to incorporate broad water/sewer upgrades into the town’s overall revitalization effort.

The town is currently receiving bids from several firms to replace the line under a portion of Main Street.

Council also looked at options for improving the town’s sewage treatment process, which is currently using treated water from the town’s water system to process sewage.
“I just think we’re throwing money away using water from our water system to treat sewage,” Councilman Phil Hollis said.

A pump, estimated at $25,000, is needed to pump untreated water from a holding tank to the sewage plant to process waste.

Halifax Finance Manager Rocky Reynolds said the estimated cost savings of not using treated water would pay for the pump in about a year.

According to Strange, the sewage plant is using approximately one million gallons every two months to run the press at the sewage treatment plant.

Members of the town’s water/sewer task force will be at a kick-off meeting with representatives of Draper Aden Associates and task force members from the county and South Boston on Tuesday at 1 p.m. in the County Administration Building for information on the group’s upcoming study of the area water/sewer system.

Council also decided to take action at their next meeting against town sewer customers who aren’t paying their sewer bills.

According to Reynolds, there are nine customers, primarily on Crawford Road, who owe the town about $3,500. The largest debtor owes the town $1,191, he said.

The customers have been contacted on multiple occasions and some have come in to the town office to work out payment plans, according to Reynolds, but none have honored their agreements.

“If the only thing these people are saying is you can’t do anything,” Councilman Buddy Gutherie said, “then we have to do something.”

Sewer service cannot be cut off without notifying the Department of Health and once the service is discontinued the home is condemned and the residents are evicted.

“We need to work with the Department of Health,” Halifax Mayor Leon Plaster said. “They need to understand the consequences, that their homes will be condemned and they’ll have to move out.”

Councilman Jack Dunavant suggested installing a gate valve on new sewer customers’ lines so in the future the lines could more easily be cut off for nonpayment, as opposed to digging up yards to get to sewer lines.

Council is expected to vote at their meeting to authorize the town manager to send certified letters to the nine delinquent residents, the building inspector and Health Department officials notifying them that nonpayment will result in discontinuance of sewer service.

In other business, bound copies of Halifax’s updated town code are expected to ship before the end of the month, Espy said. Digital versions on CD will accompany the new bound versions. The town code will be available to the public, Espy said.

Council addressed the two recent vacancies on the town’s Planning Commission with the terms of Richard Dunavant and Sharon Graves expiring at the end of 2004.

Council has compiled a list of several interested candidates and will forward the list to the Planning Commission for their consideration.

“Put it back to the Planning Commission,” Plaster said. “Let them recommend two individuals.”

The Thursday evening work session also addressed changes to the town’s zoning ordinance regarding telecommunications towers. Council is expecting recommendations from the Planning Commission within the next 90 days, according to Espy.

The current zoning ordinances are vague and open to interpretation, according to the town manager. Also, they have not had a comprehensive update since 1982, Espy noted.

Council is waiting on the recommendations to make the ordinances clearer and more current with telecommunication technology.

The town has also received a $15,000 CDBG Grant under the community telecommunications initiative to study options for ‘last mile’ connectivity to the new broadband fiber along Route 58.

Also on the agenda, Council is considering requiring businesses to submit a tax form stating their gross receipts along with their business license application. The price of the license is $1 for every $1,000 of gross receipts. Currently the town is operating on an honor system with businesses. Under the new regulations C Corporations would be required to submit Form 1120, Sub-chapter S Corps would submit Form 1120s, LLCs would submit page 1 of Form 1165 and Sole Proprietorships would need Schedule C.

“If they’re (businesses) doing it right,” Councilman Chuck Parker said, “it shouldn’t make any difference.”

Council also started moving forward on setting benchmarks and timelines for the town’s 2005-06 fiscal year budget. Departments must have their budget requests in by April 1 and are currently reviewing them now, Espy said.

The town is working towards having a permanent blueprint for the town budget that will lay out salary brackets for town employees and make it easier to plan long-term projects.

Halifax To Address Delinquent Accounts

Halifax Town Council will address delinquent sewer-only accounts when it meets for its regular meeting Tuesday.

The meeting will be held at 7:30 p.m. at Halifax Town Hall.

Notification letters will be sent to delinquent account holders and subsequent action for non-payment will be addressed.

Council will also offer nominees for the town’s planning commission vacancies.

The April 30 deadline for town business licenses and the required documentation will be addressed.

Council will hear citizen comments and petitions as well as handle any old business.

A joint meeting of Halifax Town Council, Halifax County Board of Supervisors and South Boston Town Council will be held on Tuesday, January 18, in the Mary Bethune Complex.

 

Tobacco Co-Op To Fight Lawsuit

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

RALEIGH, N.C. – The board of the cooperative that has run the tobacco price support system for decades said Friday it will fight a lawsuit by some farmers who want the group dissolved.

Seven farmers filed the lawsuit Thursday in Wake County Superior Court against the Flue-Cured Tobacco Cooperative Stabilization Corp. The lawsuit contends the cooperative isn’t needed because of the tobacco quota buyout and the end of the federal tobacco program.

But the cooperative’s board said in a statement that its program is needed, especially to help farmers who don’t have or don’t want sales contracts with cigarette makers. In the past, companies bought most tobacco at auctions.

The board said it feels “termination of the tobacco program makes Stabilization’s continued operation more important than ever by virtue of its ability to provide its members, particularly those with contracts, an opportunity to continue to grow and market flue-cured tobacco.”

The co-op has run auction sales since the rise of contract sales forced commercial warehouses to close. The organization also has bought a cigarette factory near Roxboro to provide an outlet for leaf that isn’t under contract.

At its meeting, the board approved a marketing plan that will provide members who sign contracts an advance price of $1.40 a pound for tobacco.

The organization was founded in 1946 and ran the federal price-support program since then, representing farmers from Virginia to Florida. It removed farmers’ tobacco from the market when it didn’t fetch the government support price at auction.

Since its founding, the co-op has taken in more than 7.2 billion pounds of tobacco, warehousing it until it can be sold later at higher prices to international leaf dealers or cigarette-makers.

That role disappeared under a federal buyout of tobacco quotas passed this fall. Now, the Raleigh-based organization plans to become a leaf dealer that buys tobacco only from growers who remain members and agree to sell their entire crop to the co-op.

The cooperative spent $26 million in July to buy a leaf-processing and cigarette-making plant from Liggett Vector Brands so it could process leaf and even produce cigarettes. It’s now called the U.S. Flue Cured Tobacco Growers plant.

The co-op contracted with New Century Tobacco Group LLC in Miami to distribute its cigarettes, which co-op official Arnold Hamm Jr. described as discount or deep-discount brands.

Leaf from other countries is increasingly squeezing more expensive U.S.-grown tobacco out of the market. Hamm said that the co-op’s own cigarettes will use only 100 percent U.S.-grown burley and flue-cured tobacco.

Some farmers have said the cooperative isn’t needed and has become a self-perpetuating bureaucracy that won’t pay dividends to members from more than $240 million in stockholder equity accumulated over the years.

“As far as everyday tobacco farmers out here, I don’t know what’s legal, but I know what’s fair. And they should receive a share of that money back,” said Richard Renegar, a grower in Iredell County who wasn’t one of the farmers named in the lawsuit.

Hospital’s Wound Care Center Unique To Region

Halifax Regional Hospital officially opens its new Center for Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine to patients today. Housed in the Physicians Pavilion on the hospital’s campus, the Center offers specialized treatments for those suffering from chronic, non-healing wounds.

The only one of its kind in the region, Halifax Regional wound care facility will provide advanced clinical treatments for those with diabetic ulcers, pressure sores, neuropathic ulcers, burns, radiation injuries and many other hard-to-heal wounds.

The staff includes Manager Melinda Powell, an administrative assistant, a registered nurse clinical coordinator and a certified hyperbaric technician.

Several physicians on Halifax Regional’s medical staff have completed wound care and hyperbaric training. These include the Center’s medical director, Dr. Andrew Ribner, ENT and Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery; Dr. Babita Patel, Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases; Dr. Michael Marvin, Podiatry; Dr. Terry Ketchersid, Nephrology; and Dr. Broderic King, Internal Medicine.

The Center’s staff and the physicians will coordinate treatment plans with each patient’s primary care physician.

Traditional treatments such as compression therapy, wound dressing, edema management, debridement, and skin grafts are especially effective in helping boost the body’s healing ability. However, for the approximately 20 percent of patients who will benefit from hyperbaric oxygen therapy, these patients will find that the therapy will stimulate their body’s natural wound-healing mechanisms at a faster pace.

Hyperbaric therapy can be used to treat crush injuries, gangrene, stubborn inflammation of the bone and bone marrow, non-healing skin grafts and flaps, brown recluse spider bites, radiation tissue damage and many problem wounds in the legs and feet caused by complications from diabetes.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is an advanced treatment in which a patient will breathe 100 percent oxygen while inside a pressurized chamber. This allows the participant’s blood plasma to become saturated with oxygen, carrying 20 to 30 times the amount of oxygen to body tissues. Oxygen-rich blood not only stimulates the body’s natural healing tendencies, but also is effective in fighting certain types of infections, stimulates the growth of new blood vessels and improves circulation.

The Center is opening with one Perry Baromedical Sigma Plus hyperbaric chamber and has additional space for a second chamber to be added at a later date. The Perry chamber is among the largest available single-patient chambers and is noted for patient comfort and safety. A treatment is approximately 90 minutes, with 15 minutes before and after to allow for pressurizing and de-pressurizing.

In addition to developing individualized treatment plans to address each patient’s specific needs, the staff will also provide valuable wound care education and help coordinate treatments with the patient’s family and/or with home health care services.

Statistics collected by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) show that almost 5 million Americans suffer from chronic wounds caused by diabetes, circulatory problems and many other conditions. The American Diabetes Association reports that amputation rates could be cut in half for the approximately 1.5 million people with diabetic ulcers if they would seek proper treatment at the earliest possible time.

For more information about Halifax Regional’s Center for Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine, contact Melinda Powell, manager, at 434-517-3910. A brochure discussing various treatments is also available.

 

No Obituaries

 

Win Slips From Comets’ Grasp

Franklin County Used A Last-Second Shot To Steal A 61-60 Win From Halifax County Here Friday Night

BY Joe Chandler
G-V STAFF WRITER

This was truly one that got away.
Halifax County saw its bid for first place in the district standings slip away as Franklin County, with a well-excecuted back screen and last-second shot by Mark Vent on the final play of the game, escaped with a 61-60 win over Halifax County here Friday night.
“It’s unbelievable," said Franklin County coach Doug Conklin.
“I think it’s amazing to come down here and steal one. This is a tough place to play. Coach (Dillard) and I both said before the game that it’s important to protect home court. You can’t let someone come in and steal one from you. That’s what we did."
While Friday’s loss to Franklin County is big, it is not as devastating at this point as it would have been later in the season.
“You have to look at history and look at the possibilities and keep fighting," said Comets coach Garrett Dillard.
“We play in a tough district and anything can happen on any night. Franklin County and GW play each other Tuesday night and one of them will be where we are if we beat Patrick Henry. If this game (the Franklin County game) was the last game of the year and the winner was the district champion, you would be a little more hurt. But, with six more district games ahead of you, you have to find a way to bounce back and not let this be the beginning of a crumble for “Hal-Heat."
“I’m a believer in that it’s never over until it’s over," continued the Comets coach.
“I just don’t believe this one loss will make us or break us."
The Comets had their share of chances to put the game away but never did.
Two key turnovers in the final minute of the game and a miss by Quintin Brown on the front end of a one-and-one opportunity at the free throw line with 21 seconds left with the Comets leading by a point left the door of opportunity open for Franklin County.
The Eagles had the ball under their basket with two seconds left and got the game-winning shot by Vent off after running a well-executed screen play.
“Coach Conklin drew up a great play," said Comets coach Garrett Dillard.
“He put everybody on the ball side, had two guys in the paint, got then in an “I" formation, set a backscreen and the guy (Vent) rolled right back to the basket."
Dillard said his team’s focus was to not let the Eagles’ center, Lewis Witcher, get the ball and score by jumping over the top of his Comets players.
“We wanted to make sure they didn’t throw the ball into the Witcher kid," said Dillard.
“The Witcher kid was not the one that came back to basket. It was the other kid (Vent) that came up to fake the backscreen and roll back. We should have had guys switching, but that didn’t happen. The guys followed their man. At the end of a ballgame you tend to do that. They ran a good play. They got a good look and put it in. Coach Conklin, it was a great call."
The Comets were led by Craig McCargo who scored a game high 25 points, Quintin Brown with 14 points and Derek Brooks with 12 points but shot a paltry 37.7 percent from the floor (17-45), mark that included an 8-21 mark from 3-point range.
A season’s-best night at the free throw line, an 18-21 mark, kept the Comets in the game. Franklin County’s poor free throw shooting, an 11-22 mark that included seven straight misses, helped the Comets further.
Twice in the first half, the Comets appeared to be on the verge of putting the game out of reach.
The Comets fell behind in the first minute but three back-to-back 3-pointers, one each from Craig McCargo, Derek Brooks and Jeremy Jeffress, lifted them to 9-2 lead. Halifax led 11-4 with five minutes left but failed to score again and fell behind 13-11 at the end of the first eight minutes.
Halifax County regained the lead in the first minute and a half of the second quarter on a 15-foot jumper from Brown and a three-point play by McCargo and went on to open up a six-point lead when Brooks hit a trey with 3:31 left in the half.
But, Franklin County bounced back to make it a two-point game at 31-29 at halftime.
Halifax County led by as many as six points early in the third quarter only to have the Eagles battle back to take the lead twice and deadlock the game at 45-45 at the end of the quarter.
The Comets fell behind by three points in the first minute and a half of the fourth quarter but got a basket from McCargo and had Brown convert a three-shot opportunity at the charity stripe to give them the lead at 52-50 with 5:35 left. A trey by Brown with 5:02 to play put the Comets up 55-50.
Franklin County tied the game at 55-55 on a shot by Vent with 3:13 left. The Comets held a two-point lead and the ball but turned the ball over when the Eagles’ Brock Mattox stole the ball from Brown.
B. Mattox dove to the floor, shoveled the ball to teammate Demario Mattox and Mattox slam dunked it to tie the game again with 2:07 left.
A 3-pointer by Jeffress with 1:49 left gave the Comets a three-point lead at 60-57. The Comets had the ball with a three-point lead on two occasions after that but committed two turnovers that spoiled opportunities to build the lead and milk the clock.
After Mattox hit two free throws with 23 seconds left to cut the Comets’ lead to a point, the Comets missed their only foul shot in the fourth quarter as Brown failed to hit the front end of a one-and-one opportunity.
That left the Comets with a 60-59 lead and set the stage for the frantic last few seconds of the game.
“We had our chances to make sure we won," Dillard said.
“W were up three with the basketball two different times. What more can you ask for with under 30 seconds to play, especially when you’re shooting 86 percent from the free throw line?
“We should have been up five or six (points) on that last possession.," added Dillard.
“We made three or four turnovers in that last minute and a half and that’s what did us in."

 

HCHS Comets Girls Track Team Scores Major Win; Boys Team Places Seventh

The HCHS Girls Indoor Track Team Won Saturday’s Heritage Invitational Meet, Scoring Its First Major Invitational Meet Win In Six Years

BY Joe Chandler
G-V STAFF WRITER

The Halifax County High School girls track team has seen good success among its individual members over the past several seasons.

This past weekend, however, the team as a whole hit a major milestone.

The Comets girls downed 25 other schools to win Saturday’s Heritage High School Invitational Meet and score its first major invitational meet win since 1998.

“ I knew the girls were capable of winning, but I think they doubted themselves," said Comets coach Mary Douglas.

“I talked with them every day and told them they were going to win. Hopefully, they understand now, that if you believe, you can achieve.”

The Comets girls scored 72 points in the meet, enough to edge Charlottesville High School by three points.

Shemelia Brandon led the Comets by scoring 42 of the team’s points and qualified to compete at the state AAA track and field meet in the 55-meter dash and the triple jump.

In addition, Brandon improved her regional qualifying mark in the 300-meter dash and the long jump.

Brandon won the 300-meter race with a time of 43.26 seconds and won the 300-yard run with a time of 39.16 seconds. In addition, she placed second in the 500-meter race with a time of 1:23.84 and was the runner-up in the 600-yard run with a time of 1:31.34. Also, she placed third in the 60-meter race with a time of 7.48 seconds.

In the field events, Brandon was the runner-up in the long jump with a leap of 16 feet and 11 inches. She finished eighth in her first ever attempt at competing in the triple jump, hitting a mark of 37 –9.

While Brandon scored the most points, she was not the only member of the Comets track team to shine.

Shaday Coleman contributed to the team’s success by running her personal best time of 9.37 seconds in the 60-yard hurdles and placed fifth.

Ashlee Coleman placed second in the shot put with a throw of 34-5.5 an d LaDonna Canada placed fifth in that event with a toss of 30-11.

Juanita Kincy and Marteia Ferrell took fourth and fifth in the high jump with Kincy jumping 4-10 and Ferrell leaping 4-8.

The Comets girls 880 relay team consisting of Tanashia Medley, Leanora Coleman, Shaday Coleman, and Juanita Kincy earned a second-place finish ina time of 1:56.65. In addition, the Comets girls mile relay team consisting of Medley, Felecia Bowman, Donise Newton, and Kincy finished fourth with a time of 4:33.5.

The Comets boys track team under coach Ralph Robinson also had a one of its best outings in quite awhile with a seventh-place finish in Saturday’s meet, a finish that put the Comets ahead of the other competing Western Valley District teams.

“I’m very proud of this team," Robinson said.

“This is a good group of guys and they have improved a great deal. I was very pleased. This was a great effort on the part of these kids."

Junior David Anderson led the Comets’ effort in the meet, picking up a win in the 300-yard race with a time of 34.9 seconds.

“He’s probably going to be one of the favorites in the Northwest Region Meet," said Robinson, “and probably will do well in the state meet."

Anderson also placed fourth in the long jump with a jump of 20-9, missing the qualifying standard for the Northwest region meet by a mere three inches. In addition, he placed 11th in the 60-meter race with a time of 6.8 seconds.

In the shot put, the Comets got a 13th-place finish from Corey Jackson with a throw of 38-5 and a 17th-place finish from Kori Clark with a toss of 34-10.

In the long jump, the Comets picked up a sixth-place effort from Jamand Edmonds with a jump of 19-8.

Comets hoops standout Derek Brooks and Vattell Coleman finished in a tie for sixth place in the high jump with both hitting a mark of 5-10.

Patrick Terry, a member of the Comets jayvee basketball team, placed fourth in the 60-meter race with a time of 6.7 seconds.

In the 60-meter high hurdles, Travis Word placed seventh with a time of 8.7 seconds and Jeremy Clauden placed 13th with a time of 8.9 seconds.

Chris Rorrer and Ronnie Link recorded times of 5:15 and 5:30 respectively in the mile but neither runner placed in the event.

In the 600-yard race, Taron Rogers placed seventh with a time of 1:23.48 and freshman Amanual Coleman placed 26th with a time of 1:30.

In the 1,000-meter race, Ronnie Link placed 12th with a time of 2:41 and Justin Davis placed 16th with a time of 2:46.

Tony Barbour, who is nursing an injury, competed in the 300-meter race and finished 13th with a time of 36.3 seconds.

The Comets boys 4x220 relay team placed seventh with a time of 1:44.30.

In addition, the Comets boys 4x400 relay team consisting of Rogers, Word, Coleman and Anderson placed eighth with a time of 3:57.34.

The Comets girls and boys track teams will compete in a quad meet Thursday at Heritage High School, the final meet for the teams prior to the Western Valley District championship meet which is set for February 5.

 

Lions Boys Run Over Wyatt 64-17

Halifax Improves To 7-0 With Win

BY Doug Ford
G-V STAFF WRITER

It was no contest from the opening tip here Saturday, the Halifax County Middle School boys basketball team scoring the first 15 points of the game on its way to a 64-17 rout of E.W. Wyatt.

The win gave the Lions a 4-0 record in the Southside Middle School Conference and 7-0 mark overall.

Halifax raced to a 19-3 lead after one quarter, and led 35-5 at halftime. It was 50-10 going into the fourth quarter, with the Lions reserves getting a lot of playing time down the stretch.

Lions coach Mike Hailey thought his team played well coming off a tough road contest Thursday at Martinsville.

“When you feel your talent is a little better than your opponent, that’s the way you’d like for it to go, but it doesn’t always work out that way," said Hailey.

“I thought we were pretty focused, I thought we played hard, and I thought early on we played smart.

“We gave the ball up, we rebounded well and we defended well. It’s a good, solid win, and we gave a lot of kids some action."

The Lions raced out of the gate to grab a 19-3 advantage after one quarter, Durrell Chandler scoring seven points, Tremel Lipscomb scoring five points (including a trey), Lemal Adams four points and Delquan Torian two points in the surge.

Halifax collected eight of a possible 10 points at the foul line during the quarter, a key improvement over earlier games.

Halifax continued to use its quickness to get inside looks in the second quarter, hitting six of eight from the charity stripe as part of a 16-2 run that included a follow shot by Deshon Dabbs to give the Lions a 35-5 halftime lead.

The Lions reserves took over in the second half with little effect on the team’s performance, Marcus Williams hitting four of four foul shots on drives to the basket, and Adrian Anderson and Sam Lantor hitting the offensive glass to score a basket each.

Dabbs scored twice inside, the second on a strong move to the basket, and he completed a three-point play on the later to help give Halifax a 50-10 lead going into the fourth quarter.

Williams scored six more points in the fourth quarter, including two more at the foul line, and a follow shot by Jeremy Dixon helped the Lions to the final margin.

The Lions played a good all-around game, according to Hailey, and were 27-37 as a team, an improvement he noted after a glance at the scorebook.

“We’ve done some things in the last week to get them to concentrate more at the foul line, and it seems to have worked," said Hailey.

“I could tell a difference in their approach at the line and we’ll do it again until we get it around 75 or 80 percent, which is where it ought to be."

The Lions play at Bluestone tomorrow and return home Wednesday to face Powhatan, and Hailey is pleased with how his team has progressed.

“After Tuesday and Wednesday, we play only about one game a week until the tournament, but that’s how it is," said Hailey. “It’s the same for the other teams, and I don’t think anyone gains or loses anything.

“We’ll be alright, and I’m kind of happy with where we are at this moment. We’re healthy and don’t have any injuries. My kids are playing really hard and really smart.

“Today was not bad at all, all the way around."

The Lions play both games this week immediately after the Lions girls games, scheduled to start at 4:30 p.m.