INSIDE TODAY
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Primary election approaches with no interesting races.
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THE WETUMPKA HERALD Elmore County’s Oldest Newspaper - Established 1898
Wetumpka, AL 36092
50¢
WEDNESDAY • FEBRUARY 10, 2016
THEWETUMPKAHERALD.COM
VOL. 118, NO.6
House fire on Balm Road a ‘100 percent loss’ By JOHN W. PEELER Managing Editor
A house fire on Balm Road on Jan. 29 caused the destruction of the home and caused one person, to be airlifted to the University of Alabama Birmingham Hospital, as a result of the blaze. Chris Moore, assistant fire chief with the Seman Fire Department, said he was the first on the scene. “I was actually the first on the scene … it (the home) was fully involved when I got there,” he said. “It is a 100
Submitted / The Herald
A house fire on Balm Road was declared a total loss. One person was reportedly airlifted to a Birmingham hospital.
percent loss.” Moore said volunteer fire departments from Seman, Santuck, Real Island and Buyck all responded to the scene. “We get help from them (the other fire departments) all the time,” he said. It’s an automatic aid, which means anytime one of (these) four fire departments gets called out, we all respond because of personnel … we have a great working relationship with all the fire departments.”
Prison reform, storm cleanup at forefront for commission meeting
Edgewood seniors compete in Rotary Club Contest By JOHN W. PEELER Managing Editor
In an annual event that puts the best against the best, Wetumpka Rotary Club 2016 Speech Contest kicked off Feb. 2 with competition slated for Feb. 9 and the finals Feb. 23. Prior to the event, Bob Reneau said the event is held every year and this year the overall winner will walk away with an award of $1,000 while the runnerup will receive $500. The first round was Feb. 2 with three seniors from Edgewood Academy looking to advance to the finals. Seniors J.P. Lee III, Emily Strickland and Emilee Ellis competed with Ellis winning the event and advancing to the finals. Both Lee and Strickland were awarded $250 for participating in the “Edgewood” round. Ellis, winner of See ROTARY • Page 2
By COREY ARWOOD Staff Writer
Prison reform sat at the top of the list on issues Monday at the Elmore County Commission Meeting, above lawsuits, letters and talk of elections. The upcoming election also got some John W. Peeler / The Herald prominent play. Above, The ‘Pride of the Tribe’ Wetumpka High School marching band led the way across Bibb Graves Bridge SatCounty Administrator Grace McDuffie urday during the Fourth annual Order of Cimarron Mardi Gras parade. Bottom, A float from one of the wireless tele- was first to mention prison reform during phone companies crosses Bibb Graves Saturday during the Fourth annual Order of Cimarron Mardi Gras parade. her work session report. She said on Wed. Feb. 10 at the DOT Conference room, the Department of Pardons and Parole would have a meeting concerning Act 2015-185 on the statewide changes to the prison system, which passed By JOHN W. PEELER as Senate Bill 67 in the 2015 legislative Managing Editor session. “Elmore County is a pilot program on The City of Wetumpka made sure the citizens this and we just kind of need to know what of Elmore County didn’t have to drive to far to they expect of the county and the manageget a taste of New Orleans-style Mardi Gras. ment of this program concerning the prison Hundreds flocked to the Bibb Graves Bridge reform,” McDuffie said. and lined South Main Street Feb. 6 to meet and Commission chairman David Bowen watch the floats — and collect the beads and immediately spoke about what he called prizes being thrown from the floats as the city the “revamping” of the prison system. celebrated the Fourth annual Order of Cimarron He said the state wanted to build three Mardi Gras. or four mega-site prisons to take the place Barbara Sayers of Shorter, Alabama, said she of the current prisons and he voiced his came to the event before, and looked forward to concerns about them not being in Elmore this year’s event. See COMMISSION • Page 2 See MARDI GRAS • Page 2
MARDI GRAS WETUMPKA STYLE
Alleged ‘Hate group’ joins in Confederate flag saga
CONTACT US 334-567-7811 • Fax: 334-567-3284
South, or LOS, based out of Wetumpka. In a phone interview, Richard Cohen, SPLC president said, “We consider the The ongoing issue with the Confederate League of the South to be a hate group.” flag and Elmore County, specificalCohen cited what he said was the group’s ly the Tallassee chapter of the Sons of “incendiary racism” and “their belief that Confederate Veterans, took a turn when the the South should secede from the union Tallassee Tribune was notified of a connec- again,” as evidence for the classification. tion to a group, classified as an extremist Dana Jones, of Georgiana, Alabama, hate-group by the Southern Poverty Law warned that she had consulted her lawyer Center, a civil rights law organization out of regarding the online blogger who had sent Montgomery. the email to the Tribune, and said yes, she An email sent to the Tribune indicated was an avowed member of the LOS. the SCV supporter who gathered funds “As far as the League of the South? Am to raise a 50-foot Confederate flag in I a member of the League of the South, I downtown Montgomery within blocks of sure am. I’m proud to be,” Jones said. “If Alabama State University had ties to the you want an article about the League of the white-supremacist group the League of the South I could hook you right up personalBy COREY ARWOOD Staff Writer
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Moore said although the fire departments didn’t come off the scene until about 1 a.m. Jan. 30, the departments had the blaze under control in about an hour. He said the fire apparently started in the kitchen, and although the report hasn’t been completed, there was nothing unusual about the fire that raised any red flags to cause the fire to be investigated. The name of the victim was not released.
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ly with the president of the League of the South … I would love to get you a interview with the president of the League of the South, he would be glad to do that.” At Jones’ request, the Tribune spoke to LOS president Mike Hill to learn in its own words, its influence in the Tallassee SCV chapter and whether it had any involvement in the attempt to raise the flag in downtown Montgomery near historically black ASU. In a phone call Friday, Hill said his group, the LOS, had nothing to do with the initial efforts of Jones and a group she co-founded, the First Capitol Flaggers. However, Hill said they would be involved now, likely in the form of a See LOS • Page 3