 |
 |
Post News
Posted On: Fri 15 Feb 2008 | by: Admin
SAVANNAH, GA (WTOC) - Check your bank accounts, even your credit reports. You may be a victim of identity theft.
The State of Georgia has moved up on the victims list in identity theft cases, from number nine nationally to number seven.
While it appears to be a bad thing, the Better Business Bureau says it could be a good sign because of increased awareness and more cases being reported.
Now, state lawmakers are taking action.
WTOC has shown you how easy it is to steal your identity, and warned you about ID theft dangers on the internet, in your mailbox, and through stolen credit card information.
BBB president Ross Howard may be the authority on identity theft, but he's also been a victim.
"Within one hour, they stole my credit card information. And within one hour they wiped out my checking account, nearly $2,000, so it's very very easy for people to commit this crime," Howard said.
Howard is not alone.
Taking a look inside the numbers of identity theft, in 2006 alone, Georgia residents lost $25 million to ID thieves. From 2002 to 2006, there were 34,000 reported cases of identity theft.
And since 2006, Georgia has moved up from number number nationally to number seven, for the number of identity thefts incidents throughout the country. However, while the situation gets worse, Howard thinks the number is deceiving.
"Many people who have not reported it are now reporting identity theft," Howard said.
Howard thinks exposing people to the dangers of identity theft is making a positive difference.
"I think we are seeing it reported more, because there is more attention, and what we could be finding out is the problem has always been this great we are just finding out the severity of it," Howard said.
So severe, Gov. Sonny Perdue is now in the process of forming an identity theft task force to deal with the growing issue.
"He says this will signal the end of identity theft and put ID thieves on notice," Howard said.
Gov. Perdue has pledged $1 million in the budget to help create this identity theft task force. If the plan passes, he says it will give more teeth to the government to go after identity thieves.
And here's why.
Right now, identity theft falls under the Consumer Affairs Department. But, they have no policing power. If the task force is approved, it would be under the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and they can prosecute identity thieves, rather than have local police handle individual cases.
|
Posted On: Fri 15 Feb 2008 | by: Admin
ATLANTA - The State Election Board fined a Valdosta nursing home activity director Thursday for improperly assisting residents in registering and voting.
The board also learned that 71 percent of people casting a provisional ballot because they have no photo ID with them did not return to prove their identity so their votes could count.
The nursing home employee, Courtney Griener of Lakehaven Nursing Home in Valdosta, acknowledged to the board that she had completed the paperwork for two residents to register to vote and completed absentee ballots for three residents. If convicted of intentionally trying to sway an election, her actions could have amounted to a felony.
But Griener says she was trying to be helpful and carry out the wishes of the aging residents, including many who don't follow politics closely.
"You can have a voter who's completely unaware of anything about politics, and they can vote. They can say, 'I'm a Democrat. Put me down,' and they don't know anything," Griener said, choking up as she spoke.
She recounted how she tries to keep residents current on events in the news so they'll be prepared to vote, though she doesn't have much experience her- self.
"I voted one time in my life. And I admit that I was wrong ... but I do apologize. But I was just trying to do the right thing," she said.
Board members individually complimented her for being concerned about helping people vote, but still decided to fine her $1,000. They suggested she get the nursing home to pay it and said they would let her apply that to training fees so she can learn how to legally assist voters.
Board members said the fine was meant to send a message.
"Nursing homes know that this is something that comes before them," said Secretary of State Karen Handel, who chairs the Election Board.
The panel staff also announced Thursday that in the Feb. 5 presidential primary, 416 people cast provisional ballots because they didn't have a photo ID with them, and only 120 returned with an ID within two days so that their ballots could be counted. That means that 296 ballots, or 71 percent of those without IDs, weren't counted.
Board member David Worley, who has opposed the state's voter-ID law from the beginning, said that the mailings the state sent to registered voters who don't have driver's licenses could have discouraged them from going to the polls instead of prompting them to get a free ID from their local voter registrar.
"One of my concerns was that we were in fact engaging in taxpayer-funded voter suppression," he said.
But Deputy Secretary of State Rob Simms said the three mailings before the primary were designed to urge voters to get the needed IDs.
"We took great care in how we designed it and worded it to make sure that we were encouraging them to be part of the process," Simms said.
|
Posted On: Fri 15 Feb 2008 | by: Admin
There's sniffling, sneezing, coughing and no doubt a little aching.
Put them all together and one thing rings true: It's flu season again in Georgia.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has labeled flu activity as "widespread" in Georgia. This means people across the state are reporting flu-like illness to their doctors or at emergency rooms.
"The virus has spread statewide, which means we need to be especially careful to stop the spread of germs," said Dr. Diane Weems, chief medical officer of the Chatham County Health Department.
But some Chatham physicians aren't yet seeing a high number of flu symptoms.
Michael Notrica, spokesman for Memorial University Medical Center, said the hospital's director of infectious diseases reports seeing very few cases of the flu.
Information from Candler Hospital was not available late Thursday.
Ginger Heidel, health department spokeswoman, said there are no firm numbers on the number of flu cases in the Coastal Empire.
"It's not a reportable disease, meaning public health does not get notified of all cases," she said in a prepared release.
"Flu is also difficult to track because there aren't many lab tests done to confirm it. The diagnosis is usually based on symptoms, not a lab test, and we need lab confirmation to call something a true case."
The best way to avoid the flu is by getting an annual flu shot.
"It's not too late to get a flu shot," Weems said.
"As long as the flu is spreading in our community, a flu shot is an excellent way to protect your health and the health of those around you."
Those suffering from the flu can help prevent spreading it by covering their mouths and noses when they sneeze or cough. Hands should be washed with warm, soapy water and people should avoid touching their eyes, nose and mouth.
|
Posted On: Thu 14 Feb 2008 | by: Admin
People are doing everything they can to support the Sugar Refinery victims' family members-- including offering their prayers.
The Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance gathered together for a healing service at Saint Philip AME Church. Members encouraged the community to get involved in some way to help the families with their pain and suffering. "We understand that in the midst of this crisis this is not just a short term thing, but this could be a protracted matter. And so we want prayer to be continued constantly for this family, this community,and for those who need.
|
Posted On: Thu 14 Feb 2008 | by: Admin
ATLANTA - The state's top judge offered a little legal advice Wednesday to any lawyers seeking clients among the victims of last week's explosion at a Port Wentworth sugar refinery: Watch your step.
The bodies of seven people have been pulled from the wreckage and dozens were injured, many with severe burns from the disaster.
Workers still are searching for an eighth missing and presumed dead person.
Supreme Court Chief Justice Leah Sears, a Savannah native, said she hadn't heard reports of lawyers who might be trolling for clients either through ads or with representatives at the site and at hospital waiting rooms.
But she expressed concern.
"There are strict rules about lawyer solicitation," she said. "Any lawyer that might be doing that, they need to be careful."
She gave her comments to reporters after delivering the State of the Judiciary address to a joint session of the General Assembly.
Her main message then was to ask for a 10 percent raise for the state's judges.
Before she spoke, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Wendall Willard, R-Sandy Springs, condemned a newspaper advertisement placed by a Texas law firm seeking clients from the victims of last week's explosion.
Willard said he was considering introducing a resolution blasting the lawyers involved by name.
"I say to you as a lawyer - I think I can speak for all the attorneys not only in this chamber, in the General Assembly, and the vast majority of lawyers in the state of Georgia - these type things need to be condemned and ask you to recognize that," Willard told his colleagues. "This is not the profession we honor as members."
His comments drew applause throughout the chamber, including from House Speaker Glenn Richardson, R-Hiram, who is an attorney.
Willard said he supports attorneys' First Amendment right to free speech, but he considers solicitation of clients to be in bad taste.
If there is legal liability connected to the deaths and injuries, Willard said he was confident it would eventually be litigated without lawyers having to convince anyone to file a lawsuit.
|
Posted On: Thu 14 Feb 2008 | by: Admin
While dodging collapses, search teams have managed to explore all but a small portion of the Imperial Sugar Co. site involved in last week's explosion, officials said Wednesday.Only one of the eight victims lost in the explosion remains in the wreckage. Rescuers announced Wednesday that the body of a seventh victim was found late Tuesday.The body was discovered amid debris in a breakroom located on the second floor of the plant. The identity of the seventh person was not released.Officials have not released the identities of any of the workers who were killed or injured in the Feb. 7 explosion.Crews continue to search for that last worker, said Port Wentworth Fire Chief Greg Long.Williams Fire & Hazard Control, a crew of industrial fire specialists from Texas called in to put out the molten sugar in two silos, on Wednesday began pumping 5,000 gallons of foam and water into the still-burning site every three to four minutes."It's a brand-new fire operation," Long said. "We're kind of writing the book on this."Georgia Search and Rescue Capt. Tod Heil of Savannah Fire and Emergency Services said only 200 square feet of the plant is left to search."We are using search cameras ... " he said at an afternoon news briefing. "We're waiting on a crane to lift heavier portions and steel that has come down."Georgia Search and Rescue helped recover bodies during the devastation that followed Hurricane Katrina, but this is the first time the team has been deployed locally.Heil said he's confident the last worker will be found. He described the scene inside the complex as "similar to what the (World) Trade Center looks like. A lot of collapse in the middle, heavy concrete."Staff photographer Carl Elmore contributed to this article.
Soot and dirt show on the face of Savannah Fire and Emergency Services Capt. Todd Heil, who was working with Georgia Search and Rescue on Wednesday searching the Imperial Sugar refinery. Authorities believe one person is still missing in the fire-damaged factory. (Carl Elmore/Savannah Morning News)
|
Posted On: Thu 14 Feb 2008 | by: Admin
Effingham Sheriff Jimmy McDuffie was right to discipline deputies for prank-calling 911.
THREE EFFINGHAM County Sheriff's Department deputies are lucky that Rincon Police Chief David Schofield is a lenient man.
Last month, two deputies decided to play a joke on Rincon police officers who were on duty in the middle of the night. During the course of about 30 minutes, the deputies made six 911 calls for help from pay phones. Each time Rincon officers responded, they found the phone hanging off the hook and no one there.
Sheriff Jimmy McDuffie rightly fired one of the deputies. The other one quit. The sergeant who worked as supervisor that night has been busted to deputy.
This was no laughing matter. Law enforcement professionals, of all people, should know the serious nature of 911 calls.
The key word, of course, is "professional."
Now that these two would-be comedians are gone, the bar on professionalism at the sheriff's department has been raised. And by deciding not to prosecute the pair, Chief Schofield shows he believes in mercy.
|
Posted On: Tue 12 Feb 2008 | by: Admin
BEAUFORT, SC (WTOC) - A low country business is making it easier to let our servicemen and women know, just how much they're loved this Valentine's Day.
The UPS store at Cross Creek Shopping Center in Beaufort has launched operation Sealed with a Kiss. They're providing free postage for Valentine cards and letters to US military personnel stationed overseas or to veterans in Virginia hospitals.
"Just want to make them feel like they're still thought about and give them the chance to know people are thinking about them even though they're doing what they're doing for our freedom," said Renee Crochit.
Other UPS Stores throughout the country are also participating in this program.
|
Posted On: Tue 12 Feb 2008 | by: Admin
Parts of the Imperial Sugar Co. refinery were still smoldering Monday, hampering efforts to find what are believed to be the last two workers missing since an explosion rocked the plant Thursday night.
Firefighters used a helicopter throughout the day to ferry water from the Savannah River to dump on the silos in an effort to harden molten sugar, which would allow rescuers to resume their search.
Today, Williams Fire and Hazard Control, an industrial firefighting team based out of Texas, will bring specialized equipment designed to fight the silo fires at the plant, authorities announced.
The company has equipment that can pump up to 5,000 gallons of water each minute and uses foam that can penetrate the walls of the silo to get chemicals inside, said Port Wentworth Fire Chief Greg Long.
Emergency workers at times were able to search parts of the plant with trained dogs Monday but made no other discoveries since Sunday, when a sixth body was found in the debris.
Identifying victims
Dr. James Downs, Georgia Bureau of Investigation medical examiner, said the identification of the bodies will take some time.
"We have to draw records from all over the country to get the material that we need to do a comparison," Downs said. "Our concern is with the family and to make sure we do this right for them, to help them and put their minds at ease."
Dental records will be the first line of identification, but DNA matches may also be necessary, he said.
Local officials also declined to provide names of those injured in the blast but indicated they will do so soon.
Dropping water
Throughout the day Monday, a helicopter dropped water from a 120-gallon bucket on the fire in two 80-foot tall silos, near where the major explosion occurred Thursday night.
A sugar-dust explosion is a possible cause, but the investigation is ongoing.
Chatham County Chief Pilot E. Scott Yackel made more than 120 drops, slowly flying his yellow helicopter, the same one used for mosquito control, just 10 feet above the silos. Yackel could feel the heat rising from the sugar and had evidence that each drop hit his target.
"You could see it steaming," he said.
The sugar burned at more than 4,000 degrees, authorities said.
"We are putting water on the top layer to solidify it," Long said.
The hardened sugar cap creates an oxygen barrier to extinguish the fire beneath it.
One of the burning silos is filled up to 55 feet and another to more than 75 feet with sugar, Long said.
"The main thing is to get the fire out because it has weakened the facility," said Savannah Fire and Emergency Services Capt. Matt Stanley. "If the silos were to breach or fall over, it is full of molten sugar. It would look like a volcanic explosion."
Two large cranes were brought in to dump sand at the top of the silos but were not used Monday.
Once the fire is out, crews planned to remove debris to search the last 5 percent of the plant that has previously been inaccessible, Long said.
Dogs assist search
The Georgia Body Recovery Team, based out of Atlanta, sent two canine search units to help find the missing workers. Capt. Tracy Sargent, a canine handler, said the dogs will speed up the search.
"It's very difficult to hide scent from a dog," she said.
Rescuers and dogs - Madison, an Australian shepherd, and Cinco, a black German shepherd - will face dangers going into the wreckage.
On Monday afternoon, a small wall collapsed during their search. There were no injuries. There were also no signs of any other victims. The canine unit plans to continue its search today.
"There's a lot of metal and heavy structure that pose a unique challenge," said Sargent, who has led efforts after hurricanes in Florida, after Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana and in the recent search for a missing Atlanta hiker.
"There are specific areas they asked us to concentrate on, so we'll use the dogs in those areas first," she said "The dogs will not only tell us where something is, but where something isn't."
Reporters Mary Landers and Pamela Walck contributed to this article.
|
Posted On: Tue 12 Feb 2008 | by: Admin
PORT WENTWORTH, GA (WTOC) - Port Wentworth is still mourning. You can see it on every corner, on every face of the faithful who stopped by Our Lady of the Lourdes. While they meet the spiritual need, others organize blood drives to meet the physical need.
Everyone is just trying to do something, but that's still not making the pain go away.
Kimberly Cook has lived next door to Imperial Sugar for 41 years and says her world has changed, "At my house it's quiet. That's not right. I'm supposed to be hearing the plant, smelling the brown sugar and the silence is deafening. It's deafening. It's a constant reminder of what's not going on over there and it's not a good reminder. It makes me sad."
Sad because in a split second it seemed as though this community's backbone broke. Cook says Dixie Crystal is what created the community. That when they came so did everyone else and Port Wentworth grew into what it is today.
It's sad to see the smoke still billowing but there's hope in sight. Imperial Sugar CEO John Sheptor announced today that only 12 percent of the facility is damaged, which means it may not be broken, only bruised.
The news of this traveled quickly and everyone had one thing to say: they were shocked.
Loraine Lanier of Port Wentworth said, "I'm surprised with everything we've seen. The damage it's very surprising, it's good news even though we lost so many people."
"I'm surprised because I've seen the aerial photos on TV," said Cook.
Sometimes pictures can be deceiving and in this case Imperial Sugar may be back in business again.
Now the only question is: can the community bounce back? Well Lanier and Cook and think so.
"I think so hopefully, but it's going to take some time," said Lanier.
"This community can hold itself up while this is going on and then come back up," said Cook.
Once the fire is out Imperial Sugar will be able to assess just how much damage there actually is.
|
More News
|
 |
  |
|
|
Save this
Site to Favorites
