Georgia Speaker of The House David Ralston Talks About Rural Georgia Issues, Health Care…
Featured, Politics April 17, 2017
Our interview Friday with Speaker of The House David Ralston focused on rural Georgia. Ralston went into detail about the new Rural Georgia Economic Council. This council will be co-chaired by (R) Terry England from Auburn, (R) Jay Powell from Camilla and Vice Chair (R) Sam Watson from Moultry. The council will be holding meetings across Georgia to hear from elected officials, local businesses and citizens about how they feel rural Georgia economy can best be improved. Ralston said jokingly that he better not find out that one meeting took place in Atlanta.
Health care is a major concern in rural Georgia. Several hospitals have closed in rural Georgia areas including one in Ralston’s district in North Georgia. We spoke to Ralston abut one possible solution to meet rural Georgia health care needs. Ralston used the example of the first stand alone emergency room, opened by Piedmont Mountainside Hospital in Gilmer county. In this interview we asked Ralston if Gilmer county still had the possibility of having a full hospital.
Ralston told us that sometime within the next month Governor Nathan Deal would be visiting Gilmer county’s Fire Station 1 to sign the fire fighter’s workmen’s compensation bill. We asked Ralston the difference in this years campus carry bill opposed to last year’s bill which Governor Deal vetoed. Not being able to speak for the Governor, Ralston said he felt they made the changes necessary to get Deal to sign the bill. We also discussed the pay raises agreed upon in the 2017 legislative session for teachers, state law enforcement, and D.F.C.S workers.
Our final question in our interview friday: Speaker Ralston do you see the governor’s mansion in your future?
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High Speed Chase in Downtown Blue Ridge
News August 10, 2015
A high speed chase in downtown Blue Ridge ended with a disabled car on Sunday night, August 9th. An unidentified driver was attempting to flee from police out of Gilmer County when he crossed over into Fannin.
FetchYourNews.com spoke with CPL Michael Green, of the Blue Ridge City Police Department, regarding the chase. Green told us he, along with the Georgia State Patrol, pursued the dark colored Honda Civic from around LL Beanery to West Main Street to Mountain Street and downtown by the local gym. The Honda, driven by an unknown person at this time, was forced by officers to jump a small grass bank which damaged the vehicle. The chase continued and Green told us, “I ran into heavy oil around Mountain BBQ which almost made me lose control.”
The driver, attempting to flee, was losing so much oil he created a safety hazard for Green and also the Georgia State Patrol that was also in pursuit. After hitting the oil the Georgia State Trooper took over the chase and they both continued in pursuit until they lost the vehicle in the vicinity of the Fannin Middle School. The vehicle was found on the next driveway past the school, damaged and the driver had fled.
According to authorities the perpetrator was apprehended on Monday, August 10th by Fannin County Sheriff’s Office in the area around Harmony Church, still in Fannin County. It is believed the driver is from Murray county but that is uncertain at this time. FYN will update as more information becomes available. No one was injured in the incident.
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Schools Increase Security Following Sandy Hook Tragedy
Community, Featured Stories December 18, 2012
Fannin County Schools are tightening security today in the wake of Friday’s school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. (more…)
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