Across Virginia
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (AP) _ The number of people who’ve died in fires in Virginia is up by 40 percent this year. The Daily Press in Newport News reports that fires claimed the lives of 35 people across the state as of May 29. At that time last year, 28 people had died. The Virginia Department of Fire Programs said smoking was behind most of the fire deaths. Other causes included portable heaters, candles and electrical problems. Most of the victims were older adults. The median age of the deceased was 70 years old. Many had mobility issues. State fire marshal Brian McGraw said some deaths can be specifically tied to smoking in bed or smoking while on home oxygen. Another cause was improper disposal of cigarette butts, including throwing them into mulch.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) – Authorities in Virginia are expected to resume their search for a person who went missing during flash floods last week. The Daily Progress in Charlottesville reported that search and rescue personnel would continue searching Monday using dog and boat teams. Albemarle County Fire Rescue personnel had postponed operations Sunday after officials determined that rainfall and increased creek depth had created unsafe conditions. The missing individual was one of two people swept away in a Toyota Prius by a rain-swollen Ivy Creek on Wednesday. The body of one of the victims was found Thursday. Authorities on Saturday also found the body of a Culpeper County woman who went missing in Madison County after the vehicle she was in got caught up in flood waters.
HAYMARKET, Va. (AP) — Police in Prince William County are trying to find out who vandalized a high school’s football field and bleachers by scattering dead animal parts and spray-painting profane messages.
Photo: Denver Riggleman Facebook
LOVINGSTON, Va. (AP) — Republicans selected distillery owner Denver Riggleman on Saturday as their nominee for Virginia’s 5th Congressional District to replace outgoing U.S. Rep. Thomas Garrett. After several rounds of balloting by a 37-member committee, the race became a showdown between Riggleman and Cynthia Dunbar, who last month unsuccessfully sought the GOP nomination in the 6th District, where she actually resides. Some analysts had expressed doubt that Dunbar, who made her name with social conservatives during a tenure on the Texas State Board of Education, would be viable candidate in a general election. Riggleman trailed Dunbar in all three preliminary rounds. He trailed 15-6 after the first round. He won the final ballot 19-18.
In a phone interview, Riggleman acknowledged he did not expect to be nominated after seeing the first-round results. But he said that would he would not have been particularly perturbed to have lost, given that he has never had a burning desire for a career in politics. “Was I worried? No. Did I think I was going to win? No,” Riggleman said. He said that “anger” is his primary motivation for running. As a business owner, he said he became increasingly frustrated at the regulations and taxes imposed by government. “If you don’t get involved, other people get involved for you,” he said.
Riggleman said his overarching concern is minimizing government intrusion into people’s lives. His stances on social issues including gay marriage and abortion have placed him at odds with elements of the GOP. Riggleman said he has no qualms about gay marriage and that he believes abortions should be permitted in cases of rape, incest and when a mother’s health is in danger. Riggleman, a former Air Force intelligence officer who made an aborted run for governor last year, faces Democrat Leslie Cockburn in November.
The district stretches from Fauquier County in northern Virginia down to the North Carolina border. It last elected a Democrat to Congress in 2008. Riggleman said he does not expect to have a problem uniting Republicans behind him after the drama of Garrett’s sudden departure and Saturday’s crazy nomination battle. He said the greater challenge is raising money from scratch with a general election just five months away. Garrett, a freshman Republican, announced Monday he will not seek re-election to focus on a recovery from alcoholism.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Officials in Virginia say a trade war with Canada, the European Union and Mexico would be “particularly troubling” for farmers, fishermen and wood growers. At stake are sales of lumber, leaf tobacco, seafood and other goods.
The state’s Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services said in a statement Friday that the nation should maintain trade agreements with its closest allies — not escalate tensions.
The statement followed Thursday’s decision by President Donald Trump to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum from Europe, Mexico and Canada. Those countries promised to quickly retaliate against U.S. exports.
Virginia’s farm and forestry exports to Canada and Mexico amounted to about $800 in 2016. That’s 30 percent of the state’s exports.
Last year, Virginia sold about $300 million worth of goods to the European Union.
Memories by Midora Firebaugh
From Press Release: Congressman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) announced today that Midora Firebaugh, a rising 11th Grade student at North Cross School in Roanoke, is the winner of the Sixth Congressional District of Virginia’s 2018 Congressional Art Competition. Her pencil drawing, Memories, will be featured in the Cannon Tunnel of the U.S. Capitol for one year as part of a display of artwork by high school artists from across the nation. Midora resides in Roanoke and is the daughter of Wayne and Lisa Firebaugh. Her art teacher at North Cross School is Amy Jackson.
Goodlatte: “Throughout my time serving the Sixth District, the Congressional Art Competition has been something I’ve looked forward to each year. I am always impressed by the talent and creativity of student artists in our area, and this year is no exception. I am pleased to announce that Midora Firebaugh, a student at North Cross School in Roanoke, is the Sixth Congressional District of Virginia’s 2018 Congressional Art Competition winner! Midora’s artwork represents her late grandfather by capturing each object he loved most. Congratulations, Midora! I look forward to this thoughtful drawing representing our part of Virginia in the U.S. Capitol for many to see. Thank you to every student who participated in the Congressional Art Competition as well as the teachers and parents for encouraging them to learn more about art and test out their own talents.”
Republicans running in this month’s primary for U.S. Senate are taking state legislators to task — those who voted to expand Medicaid coverage as part of the next state budget. Delegate Nick Freitas says fellow lawmakers are buying votes from current constituents at the expense of future ones. Corey Stewart says it is another case of weak Republicans in Virginia voting more like Democrats, and that will lead to more GOP defeats in the commonwealth. WFIR’s Evan Jones has the story:
UPDATE: Authorities in central Virginia say one of the two people swept away by a flooded creek has been found dead. Lt. Miller Stoddard of the Albemarle County Police Department said in a news release Thursday that one occupant of the Toyota Prius that was caught in the raging creek the night before had been located. Authorities were searching for the second person. Police did not immediately identify either person.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) – Virginia’s Supreme Court has rejected a challenge to the state’s 2011 redistricting process and found that 11 challenged state House and Senate districts are constitutionally valid. The high court issued its ruling Thursday in a lawsuit brought by OneVirginia2021, redistricting advocacy group that alleged lawmakers violated a state constitutional requirement that legislative districts be compact. The group argued that the current redistricting process focuses too heavily on protecting incumbents and helping political parties. Last year, a Richmond Circuit Court judge rejected the challenge brought by OneVIriginia2021. The state Supreme Court agreed with the judge’s finding that evidence presented at trial would “lead reasonable and objective people to differ” regarding the compactness of the districts and it was “fairly debatable” whether the districts violated the compactness requirement.
Republican lawmakers said it was the embrace for work requirements for Medicaid recipients that help get the measured passed this year. WFIR’s Lillian Boyd with that report.