Author: Dick Mangrum

A Seneca wrecker service operator says the city’s policies covering which wrecker service may tow vehicles involved in accidents is unfair to him and forces his company to rely on out of town business. Bobby Cartee, who spoke during the public comment period at last night’s city council meeting, says he’s a third generation member of a local family that […]

Mike Crenshaw, Oconee’s Sheriff-elect, is planning to make the announcement on who will be second-in-command during his administration. And that announcement could be just hours away today. Crenshaw told 96.3/WGOG NEWS that his chief deputy will be a member of the current Oconee Sheriff’s Department. Meantime, Crenshaw is making use of a conference room at the Law Enforcement Center to […]

An error appeared in yesterday’s announcement on how how Oconee public schools fared in the Education Oversight Committee’s report card. It was reported that Blue Ridge Elementary School had attained an excellent rating in the category governing achievement measures for the 2012 school year. The correct rating for that Seneca school is average, meaning that in the case of Blue […]

Attorneys for eight employees have filed a personal injury lawsuit against Tenneco, the largest employer in Hart County in northeast Georgia. WLHR Lake Hartwell Radio reports the workers, two of whom live in South Carolina, claim Tenneco failed to adequately protect them from the chemical hexavalent chromium. The chemical is described as caustic and dangerous and, after long-term exposure,is known […]

A late night fire killed one person Monday night in Stephens County, Georgia. WNEG in Toccoa reports the fire marshal there is attempting to determine what caused the fire on 123 in the vicinity of Osborne Wood Products. Oconee County’s Cleveland Volunteer Fire Department was among several responding fire departments.

In spite of changes at midstream, Pioneer Rural Water district is pushing ahead with plans to build its first treatment plant, using a substitute Lake Hartwell location for its raw water intake line. According to its consultants, the district is pursuing a location inside the Golden Corner Commerce Park for its plant and a Durham Road, Lake Hartwell location for […]

A 65-year old Easley man has been sentenced to almost 20 years in federal prison for his involvement in a silver Ponzi scheme. The judge also ordered Ronnie Gene Wilson to pay $57 million in restitution to the 798 victims of the fraud. According to the U-S Attorney’s Office, a Ponzi scheme, in general, is a financial investment operation that […]

After a closed session, Seneca City Council voted last night to add two more years to the contract of its long-time administrator, Greg Dietterick. Mayor Dan Alexander says Dietterick had three years left on his contract. He’s now being extended an additional two years. After last night’s meeting, Alexander told 96.3/WGOG NEWS that further negotiations with Dietterick will also determine […]

Investigators say they have determined arson as the cause of the fires yesterday morning on the Blackjack Road near Westminster. According to county fire chief Charlie King, investigators for Oconee Emergency Services and the Oconee Sheriff’s Department are working leads to determine who set the fires. Anyone with information about the case or anyone who may have seen something in […]

At Salem, Russell Patterson out tallied Ray Cameron 36-6 to be the unofficial winner of yesterday’s special election to fill a vacancy on the town council. The seat opened when Tony Moore resigned and moved to Michigan.