Top story: it snowed a little
Just as we predicted, WLOSers led with the fact that it snowed a little here in the mountains of WNC. Ashvegas got a dusting, as did the rest of the region. The snow had melted away by noon. But that didn’t keep Kassandra “Special K” Pride from taking us to some of the “hardest hit” areas, such as the Pigeon River Gorge in Haywood County. There, Special K found one car that hit the back of a tractor trailer and slid off the road.
There were 10 early morning wrecks, mostly on Interstate 40, in Ashvegas, Special K said. Nobody was injured.
Arrest made in WCU student’s death
In a story that seemed buried, WLOSers announced that an arrest had been made in the death of Western Carolina University student Andrew Sides. Sides died in December and police at first said they thought the death was from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. But now police have charged somebody with voluntary manslaughter. WLOSers gave no further details.
This story begs for a follow-up.
Concert for Seth’s Playground
WLOSers came out and covered the Concert for Seth’s Playground Sunday afternoon at Dickson Elementary School. The concert, featuring local musicians, was aimed at raising money for a new school playground built in honor of Seth Olson, a 22-year-old kindergarten teacher who died in 2005 from a heart ailment. WLOSers said they’d tell us the story of Seth’s life at 11.
In other news…
A brush fire near Fairview that burned 15 acres and one structure is now out… A Polk County deputy hit by a car that police were chasing on Saturday is still recovering… There are no suspects in shootings Saturday on Depot Street and at Livingston Street Apartments… The Western Carolina University business professor arrested during class a month or two ago will appear in Jackson County court on Tuesday. The prof was charged with four counts of child abuse… And local Jews celebrate Purim, what WLOSers described as the “Jewish Mardi Gras,” a celebration marking their freedom from oppression.