Web Staff
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The Roanoke Valley Resource Authority is raising the price of solid waste disposal for Roanoke, Roanoke County, and Vinton for the first time in 10 years. CEO Daniel Miles says increasing costs forced the hike from $45 to $47 per ton for household waste. WFIR’s Jay King has the story.
The Virginia Department of Health is teaming up with Walgreen’s to offer free HIV testing today at 13 locations across Virginia, including one in Roanoke. Health officials say more than 1.1 million people live with HIV in the U.S., and 20% of them do not know it. WFIR’s Jay King has the story.
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Carilion Health System is locating its three helicopters in rural satellite bases so patients can be transported to the hospital more quickly. The Smith Mountain Lake hangar is only 12 minutes from the level one trauma center at Roanoke Memorial Hospital by air. WFIR’s Jay King has the story.
Homelessness is dropping at the Roanoke Rescue Mission, just as it is across Virginia. Rescue Mission officials say after a spike in 2011, they are now seeing a 9 1/2% drop in persons needing the Mission. This comes a day after Governor McDonnell reported a statewide drop in homelessness of 16%, since he has been in office. WFIR’s Bob Clark has the story.
Competition begins today at the Salem Civic Center in the 42nd annual Roanoke Valley Horse Show. This year, the horse show will be honored by the US Equestrian Federation as a heritage competition event, the highest designation established by the national group. Organizers expect over 500 horses and 20,000 spectators through Saturday. WFIR’s Jay Kin has the story.
Click here for full horse show information.
Appalachian Power estimates full service restoration in the Roanoke, Rocky Mount, Moneta and Lynchburg areas may take until late Monday night. The utility says these areas were among the hardest-hit in its Virginia Service area. Power is being restored slowly to more than 100,000 Appalachian Power customers in Virginia after trees were downed, power lines snapped, and poles toppled by near 70-mile-per-hour winds Thursday. WFIR’s Jay King has the story.
Click here for the latest Appalachian Power outage information.
New research at Virginia Tech’s Fralin Life Science Institute reveals mosquitoes who develop in cooler water may be more likely to spread disease. Viral infections like West Nile fever and dengue fever are transmitted by infected mosquitoes, and the VT team’s research shows temperature does affect the mosquitoes’ immune systems. More from WFIR’s Jay King.