N.C. 89 Should Reopen Saturday, Official Says
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A1 LOG ONTO WWW.MTAIRYNEWS.COM FOR ARCHIVE • GAMES • FEATURES • E-EDITION • POLLS & MORE The Mount Airy News Serving Surry County since 1880. INSIDE STORY WEATHER SPORTS ONLINE Gingercookie house Mostly rainy today. Eagles take on Holiday Meals & workshop held for High of 53. Low of Cardinals in close Memories contest at special needs .... A2 33 ........ A2 games .... A6 mtairynews.com Vol. 131, Issue 341 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2011 50 cents daily/$1.25 Sunday N.C. 89 should reopen Saturday, official says Mondee Tilley made even more challenging since can gain access. He said the crews Staf Reporter it came to rest underneath power, will work quickly so that there is phone and cable lines. He said by only a short outage of service, if While N.C. 89/Westfield Road Thursday, platforms will be built any, to those living in the West- remained closed Tuesday after a to support the out-rigging for two field area. Friday afternoon wreck involv- cranes that will be used to lift the “This is quite a detailed process ing a Duke Energy cooling unit, unit. for removal. We are hoping that one local authority said the road He said the effort to move the no services will be interrupted,” should reopen by Saturday. damaged unit will be “extremely said Shelton. John Shelton, director of Surry expensive.” In addition to the two Shelton said the truck carry- County Emergency Services, cranes, two large wreckers will be ing the unit overturned when the urged residents living in the affect- used. Off-duty Surry County Sher- driver thought he was going to hit ed area to be patient until the cool- iff’s deputies are being paid to an overhead power line. He drove ing unit can be safely moved away watch the $1.5 million unit around onto the soft shoulder where the from the roadway. Westfield Road the clock until it can be moved. tractor and unit overturned at has been shut down between One of the major expenses in 2535 Westfield Road, Shelton Reeves Mill Road and Glass Road moving the unit is that power, said. He said the route the truck Mondee Tilley/The News since Friday. phone and cable crews will have took was decided by the North An of-duty Surry County Sherif’s deputy guards the Duke Energy cooling unit that Shelton said moving the unit to work to move the lines that are remains on the side of N.C. 89 on Tuesday. The road should reopen on Saturday if that weighs 140,000 pounds is now above the unit so the cranes See WRECK | A3 everything goes according to plan. Area postal facilities to remain open Tom Joyce at helping the Postal Service Staf Reporter avoid bankruptcy next year. Walton indicated that the While no closings of slower delivery would reflect postal facilities or layoffs are standards being changed for planned in Surry County as the handling of first-class a result of proposed cuts to- mail as part of the plan. taling $3 billion nationwide, Overall delivery standards slower mail deliveries are in would be lowered because store. of increased travel for some “Instead of getting it the mail stemming from closings next day, it may take two of various processing and days,” Carl Walton, a spokes- distribution centers, which man for the Greensboro won’t include the operations District of the U.S. Postal in Greensboro. Service that covers Surry “Surry is not under consid- County, said Tuesday. Walton eration for that,” Walton said said this would include let- of any closings that would ters mailed from one in-coun- directly impact the county ty destination to another. as well as layoffs included That is one projected result among the proposed reduc- of a wide-ranging proposal announced this week aimed See POSTAL | A2 Board celebrates achievements Tom Joyce/The News Morgan Wall Mount Airy High School’s Jack Leach, 92, looks over a newspaper spread illustrating the devastating attack on Pearl Harbor which occurred 70 years Staf Reporter faculty and staff also were ago today. recognized Tuesday night Tuesday was a night of for the school receiving celebration at the Mount the National Blue Ribbon Local man survived Pearl Harbor attack Airy City Schools Board of School status. Education meeting. “It is such a privilege to Tom Joyce his home on Patterson Av- “Jake” Jacobs, now resid- vors Association, to which The meeting saw the work and live in Mount Staf Reporter enue Tuesday on the eve ing in the Winston-Salem Jack Leach belongs, has ceremonial administration Airy, to be in this school, of the 70th anniversary of area — who was at Pearl quit holding reunions on of the oath of office to the to be in this school system. Jack Leach was planning the sneak attack that pro- Harbor. “He’s still living the island of Oahu where school system’s new super- If you’re not here you don’t to finish his breakfast this pelled the United States — he’s in his 90s … as far Pearl Harbor is located intendent, Dr. Greg Little. know what you’re missing. morning — something he into World War II. as I know,” Leach said. because of the declin- Mayor Deborah Cochran This place is certainly home didn’t get to do 70 years With those seven de- “The last time I talked to ing number of members. was on hand to administer to me and the people in this ago today during an event cades having passed, the him, he was in kinda bad “They were all getting so the oath and several mem- room are family,” said Prin- that has lived “in infamy.” former U.S. Army member shape.” old, and everybody had to bers of Little’s family were cipal Sandy George. “It’s “I was in the mess hall now finds himself a mem- With World War II vet- have help to get around also in attendance. See BOARD | A3 when the attack started,” ber of an iconic, but dwin- erans dying at the rate and all that,” he said of the Mount Airy veteran dling fraternity: Pearl Har- of 740 a day, some 1.7 their last gathering. said of the Japanese bom- bor survivors. He is the million of the 16 million Leach recalled that at bardment of Pearl Harbor last-remaining serviceman military members who the most recent statewide on Dec. 7, 1941, when he from that epic event still served in that war are all reunion of Pearl Harbor was 22 years old. “That’s living in Surry County and that remain, based on U.S. vets he attended several what I was doing when the one of the few in North Veterans Administration years ago in Asheville, “I first bomb fell.” Carolina as a whole. statistics. Since the Pearl believe there was seven of Leach, now 92, even re- “As I tell everybody, I fi- Harbor attack occurred us.” calls what he was eating nally got seniority,” Leach before the official start of Only six members re- that day: three thick pan- joked. “I’m the last one the greatest conflict man- main of the 426th Field Ar- cakes, two eggs over light, left.” kind has ever known, the tillery unit he served with, four strips of bacon and a The longtime city resi- ranks of its participants which later was recalled pint of milk. “That’s one dent knows of only one have dwindled by an even when the Korean Conflict Morgan Wall/The News breakfast I remember,” he other surviving veteran greater proportion. began. said during an interview at from Mount Airy — Plato The Pearl Harbor Survi- See PEARL | A8 Dr. Greg Little is joined by his family as Mayor Deborah Co- chran administers the oath of oice to the new Mount Airy City Schools superintendent. NSHS clubs go global with service project Morgan Wall Christmas presents. ey. Our church has always done it Staf Reporter The students in the clubs so I thought it would be a good chose to use their own money project,” said Megan Hawks, North Surry High School stu- to purchase items for the boxes. who represented HOSA. “I did dents are getting into the Christ- They went shopping for small different ages for three girls and mas spirit by making donations toys, school supplies, hygiene two boys.” to children who may be less for- items and other goods such as Students who completed five tunate. small clothing like socks and un- boxes became eligible to travel to This year, students in the dershirts and hard candy. In all, Charlotte on Tuesday to the Op- FBLA and HOSA clubs decided the club members contributed eration Christmas Child Distri- to team up for Operation Christ- almost 100 shoe boxes to the bution Center to work from 5 to mas Child. Operation Christmas cause. 8 p.m. At the center, they will get Child is a program through Sa- “We put shoe boxes together to see the operation in action and maritan’s Purse which allows in- filled with toys to send to kids help to process all of the boxes ar- dividuals to send shoe boxes, or in different countries,” said Har- riving at one of only six distribu- has lately become the trend shoe- ley Atkins, who represented the tion centers still open nationwide box-sized Tupperware contain- FBLA. “I did three guys and two before they are delivered. Morgan Wall/The News ers, to children in other countries girls.” “I’ve always wanted to go who otherwise may not receive “We did it with our own mon- North Surry High School’s HOSA and FBLA clubs decide to ill shoe boxes for See NSHS | A3 Operation Christmas Child as one of their service projects this year.