AP
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) _ With some weather extremes in the forecast, Appalachian Power is rolling out a new alert system for customers. The new system notifies customers by text message or email when their home or business is affected by a power outage. Customers enrolled in outage alerts will receive a notification when power failures have been reported in their area. They’ll continue to get updates as Appalachian Power crews determine the outage cause and predict when power is expected to be restored. By visiting www.AppalachianPower.com and logging into their account, customers can enroll in power outage alerts. They can also modify their specific notification preferences. Appalachian Power has approximately 1 million customers in Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ Virginia Commonwealth University is leaving the door open for Sweet Briar College students. VCU says it has extended its transfer application deadline and will work with Sweet Briar students who want to continue their educations in Richmond. Sweet Briar announced this week that the Class of 2015 will be its final at the private women’s college. Some 700 students are enrolled at Sweet Briar. Sweet Briar students interested in transferring to VCU should visit the office of admissions or send an email to ugrad(at)vcu.edu.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ Nearly 400,000 Virginians have registered to participate in a statewide tornado drill. The March 17 drill is intended to prepare businesses, schools and colleges, families and individuals in the event of a tornado. The annual drill is a joint effort of the Virginia Department of Emergency Management and the National Weather Service. Jeff Stern is state coordinator of emergency management. He says 12 tornadoes hit the state in 2014, causing numerous injuries and more than $700,000 in property damage. Registration for the tornado drill is not necessary, but people can learn more by signing up at www.ReadyVirginia.gov.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ Critics say new ethics legislation passed by the Virginia General Assembly won’t accomplish its main goal: preventing another scandal like the one that engulfed former Gov. Bob McDonnell. Lawmakers passed ethics reform bills in the final minutes of the 2015 legislative assembly last week. Proponents said the bill, with new limits on gifts and travel, will help restore the public trust following McDonnell’s conviction on corruption charges last year. But critics say there were many issues highlighted by the McDonnell scandal that lawmakers have not addressed in two straight legislative sessions. For instance, Fairfax County Democratic Del. Scott Surovell said there’s still no provision preventing public officials from accepting loans with highly generous terms like McDonnell and his wife did with vitamin salesman Jonnie Williams.
SWEET BRIAR, Va. (AP) _ Sweet Briar College will shut down this summer because of financial issues. The private women’s college in Sweet Briar announced the Aug. 25 closure Tuesday in a news release. The college says its board of directors approved the closure on Saturday. Sweet Briar attributed the decision to what it calls “insurmountable financial challenges.” President James F. Jones says in the release that he, the board and several alumnae have searched for solutions. But they concluded they couldn’t change two realities. Jones says one reality is a decline in the number of students who choose to attend small, rural, private liberal arts colleges. The other is the unsustainability of an increase in the college’s tuition discount rate.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) _ Campus safety is the focus of three town hall meetings at the University of Virginia this week. The Daily Progress reports that each meeting will be hosted by a working group covering one of three topics _ prevention, response and culture. The Prevention Working Group met on Monday, followed by the Response Working Group’s meeting on Tuesday. The Culture Working Group will meet on Wednesday. The groups will take their suggestions to the Ad Hoc Group on University Climate and Culture. University President Teresa A. Sullivan appointed the ad hoc group in December following a Rolling Stone article about an alleged fraternity house gang rape. Police have said there’s no credible evidence of an assault and other parts of the story have been called into question.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ Exports of goods from Virginia to more than 230 destinations around the globe increased about 6 percent in 2014. The Virginia Economic Development Partnership says exports rose to $19.2 billion last year, up from $18.1 billion in 2013. Manufactured goods accounted for 79 percent of all Virginia merchandise exports in 2014, followed by agricultural exports and mineral fuel. Agricultural exports rose 16 percent to $2.9 billion. Virginia’s top commodity was industrial machinery, totaling $2.5 billion. Electrical machinery was the second-largest, followed by vehicles and plastics. For the 18th consecutive year, Canada topped the list of destinations for Virginia exports and totaled about 19 percent of all the state’s exports. China was second on the list with 10 percent of the exports and Mexico was third with more than 6 percent.
Bob and Maureen McDonnell
(Associated Press photo)
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ Former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell is appealing his public-corruption convictions. McDonnell filed a “notice of appeal” Monday with the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia. The court has scheduled arguments in the case for the week of May 12. A jury in September found the McDonnells guilty of doing favors for a nutritional supplements executive in exchange for $165,000 in gifts and loans. The former governor was sentenced last month to two years in prison. His wife was sentenced on Feb. 20 to one year and one day in prison. Both are free on bond. Maureen McDonnell’s notice of appeal was filed earlier Monday. In the appeal, Bob McDonnell argues that his convictions were based on a definition of bribery that would make virtually every politician a criminal.
NEW YORK (AP) _ Norfolk Southern has named company President James Squires as its next CEO. The railroad company says Squires will replace 63-year-old Charles Moorman on June 1. Moorman, who has been CEO for about nine years, will stay on as executive chairman of the company’s board. Squires, 53, joined Norfolk Southern in 1992. He has held several positions in the law department. He was named president in 2013. Shares of Norfolk Southern Corp., based in Norfolk, Virginia, rose 58 cents to $109.74 in morning trading Monday.
TOANO, Va. (AP) _ Lumber Liquidators is refuting a “60 Minutes” report that raised health concerns about some of its laminate flooring products and pushed its stock price to its lowest level in more than two years. In a printed statement on Monday, Lumber Liquidators said all of its laminate flooring meets the safety standards set by regulators throughout the U.S. The defense came the day after “60 Minutes” aired findings that some of Lumber Liquidators’ flooring made in China had high levels of formaldehyde, a carcinogen. The tests by three certified labs concluded the amounts of formaldehyde failed to meet California’s emissions standards. Lumber Liquidators’ stock plunged $11.15, or more than 21 percent, to $40.71 in early afternoon trading. Earlier in the session, the shares fell to $8.19, the lowest since July 2012.