Georgia DOT Continues Cable Rail Repair Along I-575 in Cherokee
Press Release October 3, 2017
Georgia DOT Continues Cable Rail Repair along I-575 in Canton, GA
CANTON Ga. – A Georgia DOT Maintenance crew resumes today its work on repairing the cable rail along Interstate 575 in Cherokee County. Work will proceed daily between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m., weather permitting.
It is Georgia DOT position that guardrail and cable rail maintenance and repair are essential to keeping our roadways safe for the traveling public. Our maintenance workers do their best to keep track of the damage to guard/cable rails and make repairs as quickly as possible in order to preserve road safety.
Each day, hundreds of Georgia Department of Transportation employees and contractors work on dozens of highway, bridge and intersection improvements throughout the state. Their work often brings them and heavy machinery in close proximity to travel lanes. Fifty-seven Georgia DOT personnel and many more motorists, passengers and contractors’ workers have been killed in highway work zone accidents since 1973. Please help us prevent these tragedies by slowing down; being especially attentive and cautious as you pass through construction work zones; and always driving responsibly. Safer Driving; Safer Work Zones; For Everyone. For information on the Department of Transportation, visit http://www.dot.ga.gov. You also may follow us on (www.facebook.com/GDOTNW) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/GDOTNW).
Search Nets Drugs
Press Release June 20, 2018
Murphy, NC— Sheriff Derrick Palmer announced the June 14th, 2018 arrest of 36 year old Stephen Louis Weston, a Murphy North Carolina man on numerous charges for violations of the North Carolina Controlled Substance Act.
On June 7, 2018 the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Unit received information from the Zell Miller Mountain Parkway Drug Task Force that Weston was a target of an ongoing investigation in which Weston was suspect in the sale and delivery of controlled substances. That information provided by the Zell Miller Mountain Parkway Drug Task Force enabled members of the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Unit and the Murphy Police Department to conduct a search of the residence of Stephen Louis Weston located at 43A Tennessee Street. During the search of the residence, over 4 ounces of Cocaine, approximately 21 grams of Methamphetamine, 5 ounces of Marijuana, Diazepam, and MDMA (Ecstacy) pills were seized. Weston, at the time, was incarcerated in Georgia on narcotic related charges.
On June 14th, 2018 members of the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Unit received information that Weston was vacating his residence on Tennessee Street. After setting up surveillance a traffic stop on the U Haul vehicle that Weston was operating was made to make the arrest of Weston. During a search incident to arrest of Weston’s person and in the vehicle he was operating located several Hydrocodone tablets and marijuana residue.
Weston was arrested and booked into the Cherokee County Detention Center on a $105,000.00 secure bond for the following charges: POSS W/I MANUF/SELL/DEL SCHEDULE II CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE, MAINTAIN PLACE CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE, FELONY POSSESSION MARIJUANA, TRAFFICKING IN COCAINE, POSS W/I MANUF/SELL/DEL SCHEDULE II CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE, POSS W/I MANUF/SELL/DEL SCHEDULE VI CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE, SIMPLE POSSESSION SCHEDULE IV. Weston is expected to be in Cherokee County District Court on June 26th, 2018.
Sheriff Derrick Palmer stated “We appreciate the useful information from the Georgia Task Force that enabled us to get a good sized amount of drugs off the street.”
To report suspicious activity and suspect violations of the law please call 828-837-3144 or submit a tip at [email protected].
Georgia Woman Charged with Child Abuse
Press Release June 13, 2018
Murphy, NC— Sheriff Derrick Palmer announced the June 5th, 2018 arrest of Elisha Keri Lowman, a 28 year old Ellijay Georgia woman for possession of methamphetamine and child abuse.
On June 5th, 2018 a Deputy with the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office observed Lowman operating a vehicle in which she committed a traffic violation. While the Deputy was investigating the traffic violation he observed in plain view an article of paraphernalia. A second Deputy arrived on scene and found a container that had a small amount of methamphetamine. Lowman was arrested for the possession of the illegal substance.
During the traffic stop the deputies found three small children in the car along with a pit bull. A Cherokee County Department of Social Services worker came to the scene and arranged for the children to go home with a relative at the request of Lowman. The pit bull was brought to the Sheriff’s Office where it was kept until another relative of Lowman could come get it.
Lowman was taken to the Cherokee County Detention Center where she was taken before the North Carolina Magistrate set a $5,000.00 bond. Lowman is currently incarcerated awaiting either bond or a June 12th, 2018 District Court date.
Sheriff Derrick Palmer stated “Good work by the deputies both with getting the drugs off the street and making it safe for the children. We also thank the Cherokee County Department of Social Services for their assistance in the matter.”
To report suspicious activity and suspect violations of the law please call 828-837-3144 or submit a tip at [email protected].
Benton MacKaye Trail Association (BMTA) Press Release
Community November 20, 2017
PRESS RELEASE:
The Benton MacKaye Trail Association (BMTA) is seeking volunteers to help with trail maintenance for an upcoming work trip.
According to Barry Allen, Georgia work trip coordinator for the BMTA, a work trip is planned for Saturday, Nov. 25, on a section of trail within the Big Frog Wilderness Area in Tennessee. Blowovers and downed trees will be the focus of the work trip, and Allen hopes to assemble a team of six to seven sawyers to work the trail south of Forest Service Road 221. Participants in this trip can expect about a five-mile out and back hike, Allen said.
Depending on the turnout and the number of certified crosscut workers, a second team may work another section of the BMT that follows Dry Pond Lead Trail north to Kimsey Hwy. (FS 68). Allen stated this section has not been worked in over a year and will likely also need lopper work even if only a few trees are down. This section is four miles one way and is a gradual uphill climb.
All work trip participants are asked to wear sturdy shoes or boots, long sleeve pants and shirts, work gloves and, for cold-weather trips, multiple thin layers that can be easily shed one at a time. Also, a daypack for storing food, water or other items is always a good idea for work trips. Food and water are not supplied by the BMTA on work trips. The BMTA recommends workers to bring at least two quarts of water for the trip.
Those interested can meet either at The Home Depot in Blue Ridge, Georgia, at 8:30 a.m. or at Thunder Rock Campground eight miles west of Ducktown, Tennessee, off of U.S. Hwy. 64 at 9 a.m.
The Benton MacKaye Trail spans three states – Georgia, Tennessee and North Carolina – and nearly 300 miles from Springer Mountain, Georgia, to Davenport Gap in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and is enjoyed by thousands of hikers and outdoor enthusiasts each year.
For anyone with questions or needing further information, contact Barry Allen at [email protected].