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Catch recaps from UNC and Duke’s Saturday football victories in today’s Sports, Page 7.
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Tuesday, September 15, 2009
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City reports massive wastewater spill BY KARISSA MINN Staff Writer
Nearly 16 million gallons of untreated wastewater likely entered Hamby Creek and flowed into High Rock Lake this summer, according to a report by the city of Thomasville. When the spill was reported to the N.C. Division of Water Quality on
Aug. 4, the city originally stated that it only totaled 385,000 gallons. In a revised report sent to the state last week, the figure increased to 15.93 million gallons, because the spill may have been occurring for weeks. Kelly Craver, Thomasville city manager, said that a manhole collapsed near Baptist Children’s Home in Thomasville,
‘Raw sewage has pathogens, viruses and bacteria ... This went on for 20 days, and people in High Rock Lake were essentially swimming in sewage.’ — Dean Naujoks Yadkin Riverkeeper possibly due to heavy rain as early as July 13. This caused an overflow of untreated wastewater
into North Hamby Creek, which is part of the Yadkin/Pee Dee River Basin. From there, it would emp-
ty into Abbott’s Creek and then High Rock Lake. “Because it was in a remote area, it wasn’t discovered,” Craver said. “It wasn’t one of those things where it was on a city street. It was the outfall line. It was really sort of out in the middle of nowhere.” Craver said that the city followed procedure in reporting the waste-
water released from the time the spill was discovered on Aug. 3 to the time it was repaired on Aug. 4. “In typical situations where you have a leak in the system, that’s a fairly accurate estimation of the amount of the spill,” Craver said. He said that the delay in finding the problem
See SPILL, Page 10
Council to consider restructuring at TPD
Six more arrested in attempted murder case
BY KARISSA MINN
BY ELIOT DUKE Staff Writer
Staff Writer
Randolph County Sheriff ’s Office arrested six more people Friday believed to be involved in a Labor Day weekend altercation that left two men in the hospital with severe injuries. Charles Ray Gordon, 42, of 603 Pennington Ave., turned himself into police Friday, ending a week-long manhunt for a suspect authorities considered armed and dangerous. Gordon and his son, Dustin, were wanted for their involvement in the shooting of Toby Randall McDowell and the stabbing of Clayton Trevor Kindley at 5985 Jim Pierce Road in Trinity. Dustin Gordon, 22, of 1044 Harvest Drive, was arrested by Davie County Police at his job on Sept. 7. Both men are charged with two counts of first degree attempted murder, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, first degree burglary and impersonating a law enforcement officer. As the investigation progressed, more names started surfacing, leading RCSO to issue five more warrants in the Thomasville area. Working with Thomasville Police Department, RCSO arrested Chandra Hill Thrift, 35, of 6698 Myrtle Drive, Joshua Richard Harris, 19, of 717 Fields St., Rodney Ford Duke Jr., of 1297 Kanoy Farm Road, John William Bice, 44, of 265 Myrtle Drive, and Scott Alan Casad, 46, of 7073 Canaan Church Road in Denton. All five suspects are facing the same charges as the Gordons. “We did a little leg work and got one suspect under arrest,” RCSO Lt. Barry
just a pup. You can’t legally hold the owner responsible unless he sicks it on somebody. It’s more of a civil issue.” When the uncle captured the dog and went to its owner, he struck the animal in the head with an object and left it injured on the porch. The dog’s shots were up to date, but the canine had to be taken to a veterinarian in Winston-Salem for its injuries. The dog’s owner was issued a nuisance order by DCSO. Grice said the investigation is ongo-
At its Sept. 21 meeting, Thomasville City Council will consider a reclassification of a police department position from lieutenant to captain, as part of a restructuring plan set forth by Chief Jeff Insley. “We’ve been looking at the police department to try to see if we could improve our efficiency and improve our communication, both internal and external,” Insley said. “I felt like I needed one additional captain. What I’m asking is that one lieutenant’s position be reclassified as a captain’s position, to spread out the load and help us as we improve communication efficiency.” Insley’s recommendations include changing the title of major to deputy chief, with a rank of major; reclassifying one lieutenant’s position to an Investigative Services Bureau Commander, with a rank of captain; and allowing on-call detectives to drive their vehicles home during their oncall week, which is once a month. These changes can be made using current staff, Insley said, with the only costs being the reclassification and the increase in fuel costs. Under Insley’s plan, the department would be organized into the Office of the Chief; the Administrative Bureau, under the direction of the deputy chief; the Field Operations Bureau, under the direction of the Field Operations Commander, captain; and the Investigative Services Bureau, under the direction of the Investigative Services Commander, captain. In other news, two public hearings are set for the
See BITE, Page 10
See TPD, Page 10
See CASE, Page 10
COURTESY PHOTO
Employees with Unilin Flooring participated in United Way of Davidson County’s Week of Caring by cleaning up the Challenge Course for the Thomasville Coalition on Alcohol and Drug Abuse last week.
LENDING A CARING HAND BY ELIOT DUKE Staff Writer As part of the United Way of Davidson County’s Week of Caring, a local company took time out to clean up a piece of land that epitomizes the word teamwork. Unilin Flooring, located at 550 Cloniger Drive, donated time and equipment last week to help clear off the Challenge Course
for the Thomasville Coalition on Alcohol and Drug Abuse. Unilin was one of dozens of area partners with the United Way who took part in the annual week of giving back to the community. “Unilin has come on so strong the last few years,” Lee Jessup, United Way of Davidson County president, said. “They have really increased their efforts the last two years and have energized it into one of our best new
campaigns. Employees putting in time shows their level of commitment to the entire county.” A dozen Unilin employees spent the day picking up garbage and debris from the course and also did some landscaping, trimming and raking. Mary Jane Akerman, Wellness Coordinator for Thomasville City Schools, said the efforts of the Unilin employ-
See HAND, Page 10
Lexington girl hospitalized from dog bite BY ELIOT DUKE Staff Writer A 4-year-old Lexington girl suffered facial injuries Sunday when an overzealous dog bit her trying to get at a lollipop. According to a Davidson County Sheriff ’s Office press release, deputies arrived at 330 Spring Drive, located north of Lexington, to investigate a disturbance call regarding a dog bite. Police found the dog’s owner, who said a man brought the dog home, saying it bit his niece.
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Several witnesses told deputies that the little girl had a lollipop in her mouth and the dog, a 20pound black boxer mix, was trying to get it. The dog then jumped on her, knocking her down and biting her in the face. The girl was taken to Lexington Memorial Hospital and later transferred to Brenner’s Children Hospital in Winston-Salem. Grice said the 4-year-old needed several stitches around her mouth. “The dog did some pretty good damage to the girl,” Sheriff David Grice said. “Every dog owner says their dog isn’t vicious, it’s
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