[7-11Anthrax]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=jmc]
[TAPE#=None]
[GRAPHIC=None]
The F-B-I has determined a threatening letter sent to the Planned Parenthood office in Roanoke did not contain anthrax.
Planned Parenthood and 17 other clinics across the country got one of the letters earlier this week.
The staff member who opened the envelope containing brown powder is getting medical treatment as a precaution.
[7-City-Council]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=jsu]
[TAPE#=99-52?]
[GRAPHIC=Campaign 2000]
Roanoke City Council elections are getting closer and Democrats are already preparing for them.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke]
The Democratic Committee in Roanoke voted yesterday to hold a mass meeting on February 15-th to determine which candidates it will endorse for city council.
Holding a primary was not an option -- because the deadline to have one had already passed.
Currently, all seven council seats are held by Democrats.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT4:09:22]
[IN Q=I think people are watching]
((GEORGE MCMILLAN/SHERIFF: I THINK PEOPLE ARE WATCHING THE DEMOCRATS TO SEE WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO. I THINK IN THE END AFTER WE HAVE THIS MASS MEETING . I THINK YOU'LL SEE THE DEMOCRATS COMING TOGETHER TO SUPPORT WHOEVER WE DO NOMINATE))
[RUNS= 13]
[OUT Q=do nominate]
[Super=01-George McMillan/Sheriff;]
(--------------)
[VO-NAT]
Mayor David Bowers, Linda Wyatt, Jim Trout, and Carroll Swain hold the four seats that will be up for grabs.
(------------)
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[GRAPHIC=HOLD]
The mass meeting will be held February 15th at 7 p-m at a local school.
[7-11Tanglewood]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=sgo]
[TAPE#=99-45 1:36:00]
[GRAPHIC=Tanglewood "On the Block"]
They are calling it a new beginning for Tanglewood Mall.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke Co.]
That's management's spin on the mall's future.
[PRE PRO]
It comes after a notice in the paper says the mall's been foreclosed ... and it's going to be put on the auction block on January 26th.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 16:55:28]
[IN Q=on january 27th]
((LYNDA MCNUTT: ON JANUARY 27TH, ONCE THIS TRANSACTION TAKES PLACE, IT'S ONLY GOING TO BE A POSITIVE MOVE FORWARD FOR THIS PROPERTY. HERITAGE REALTY WILL PUMP CAPITAL INTO THE PROPERTY. WE'LL SEE IMPROVEMENTS THAT WE'VE NEEDED FOR SOME TIME NOW.))
[SUPER=01-Lynda McNutt/Mall Spokeswoman]
[RUNS=14]
[OUT Q=some time now]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
Tanglewood managers expect the Boston company that represents the mall's lender to seize the property.
It spans nearly 54 acres and is home to the mall ... Barnes and Noble ... Kroger ... a restaurant and movie theaters.
County records from last year say the property is worth 40-million dollars.
(------------)
[7-11Goalposts]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=mjo]
[TAPE#=99-50 1:04:18]
[GRAPHIC=VT-Goalposts]
Virginia Tech officials are crying foul now that a piece of Hokie football history is in a Blacksburg bar.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg;]
Fans tore down the goal posts after Tech won the game against Boston College ... ending its first 11 and O regular season.
Now a 30-foot section of the goal post is on display in Big Al's bar, where fans left it after the game.
Tech's athletic director has made attempts to reclaim it, but the bar is holding out.
And many Tech fans say it should.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 57:42 - :48]
[IN Q=It is for the fans.]
[SUPER=01-Jeff Keeney/Virginia Tech Junior;]
((JEFF KEENEY/VIRGINIA TECH JUNIOR: IT IS FOR THE FANS. THEY TOOK IT, THEY PUT IT THERE, THE PARADE DOWN MAIN STREET, THEY TOOK IT THERE. I THINK IT WILL CONTINUE TO STAY THERE. I THINK THE FANS WILL KEEP IT THERE. ))
[RUNS=:06]
[OUT Q=keep it there.]
(------------)
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[GRAPHIC=HOLD]
Tech officials say MOST of the goalpost pieces have been returned.
They intend to go after those that have NOT.
Tech still hasn't said what it plans to DO with them.
[7Weather]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=tar]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=]
Here's a look at your Friday forecast.
Mostly sunny and windy today.
Temperatures warm up into the upper 40s to low 50s.
Tonight clear and chilly with light winds.
Lows in the 20s.
The extended forecast...
[SUPER=X5000; set dissolve]
[SUPER=314-Mostly Sunny/Winds NW 10-20/48-52/Clear & Chilly/Winds NW 5-10/20-25;]
[SUPER=#555; reset]
[45-Postal-Worker]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]
A postal worker died yesterday in an accident while on her mail route.
It happened at 2:45 in Henry County.
State Police say 51 year old Sheila Heyeck (High-yack) stopped to deliver the mail when her vehicle began to roll and struck a tree.
She died at the scene.
[45-11Flu]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=tfl]
[TAPE#=99-49 48:55]
[GRAPHIC=Flu]
The real Y-2-K bug has arrived.
The flu has hit the nation like a storm, filling hospital waiting rooms and doctors' offices with ailing patients -- especially along the East Coast.
But as Tonya Flory reports- so far, the worst of it hasn't hit Virginia.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT ]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke; ; :01]
[SUPER=01-Cami Jones/Lewis-Gale ER Director; :08 ]
[SUPER=01-Lucas Snipes/Carilion Hospital Director; :34 ]
[SUPER=@Tonya2; ]
[RUNS=:59]
[OUT Q=News 7.]
(( The Emergency Department at Lewis-Gale Medical Center has added 35-percent more staff to adjust for this years flu season.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT tc 00:14:17]
[IN Q=There has been]
((CAMI JONES/LEWIS-GALE ER DIRECTOR: THERE HAS BEEN A LARGE INCREASE IN VOLUME NOT ONLY IN OUR ER, BUT IN DOCTOR'S OFFICES AND OTHER HEALTH CARE FACILITIES ACROSS THE STATE AND IN THIS REGION. WE HAVE INCREASED OUR STAFFING TO TRY TO ACCOMMODATE THAT.))
[RUNS:16]
[OUT Q=accomodate that.]
Neither hospital has canceled any elective surgeries like one Baltimore hospital.
Right now the only inconvenience patients in the Roanoke Valley will notice is a longer wait.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT tc 00:08:37]
[IN Q=It may]
((LUCAS SNIPES/CARILION HOSPITAL DIRECTOR: IT MAY TAKE US A LITTLE LONGER TO FIND A BED AND GET IT READY FOR PATIENTS TO OCCUPY IF THEY NEED TO BE ADMITTED.))
[RUNS:07]
[OUT Q=be admitted.]
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT tc 00:15:28]
[IN Q=Sometimes patients have]
((CAMI JONES/LEWIS-GALE ER DIRECTOR: SOMETIMES PATIENTS HAVE TO WAIT A LITTLE LONGER IN THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT, SOMETIMES PATIENTS THAT ARE ADMITTED HAVE TO WAIT A LITTLE LONGER BEFORE THEY GET UP TO THEIR ROOM.))
[RUNS:08]
[OUT Q=to their room.]
Still, flu levels are average in Southwest Virginia right now.
But we're not out of the woods yet, remember last years peak flu season occurred in mid-February.
Tonya Flory, News 7.))
[45-11Patrick-Hospital]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=jda]
[TAPE#=599-17 1:16:02]
[GRAPHIC=Patrick Co. Hosp. Layoffs]
Twenty-percent of the employees at Patrick Community hospital have been laid off as part of its reorganization plan.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Stuart/June;]
The Hospital has filed for bankruptcy protection, and the layoff is part of the effort to reduce expenses.
The move should save about 700- thousand dollars a year.
(//////////////////)
[SOT 01:42:23]
[IN Q=The employee base]
((THE EMPLOYEE BASE, ON THE PAYROLL, MAKES UP ABOUT 60 PERCENT OF THE EXPENSES OF THE HOSPITAL AND UNFORTUNATELY IT'S THE MOST LOGICAL PLACE TO START. THERE ARE OTHER CONTRACTS AND OTHER EXPENSES WE'RE LOOKING AT, BUT WE WERE OVERSTAFFED AND WE HAD TO MAKE SOME CUTS AND THAT WAS THE OBVIOUS PLACE.))
[SUPER=01-Chip Magee/Hospital Attorney]
[RUNS=:16]
[OUT Q=was the obvious place.]
(---------------)
[VO-NAT SOT]
The hospital is eliminating 40 positions, but the acting administrator says the facility still has adequate staff to provide quality care.
(------------)
[45weather]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=tar]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=]
Taking a break from the news to check weather...
Mostly sunny and breezy today, with pleasant highs around 50.
Clear and chilly overnight, with lows in the lower 20s.
The five day forecast is mostly sunny through tomrrow...then clouding with showers possible by Sunday.
[SUPER=X5000; set dissolve]
[SUPER=314-Mostly Sunny/Winds NW 10-20/48-52/Clear & Chilly/Winds NW 5-10/20-25;]
[SUPER=#555; reset]
[8-City-Democrats]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=jsu]
[TAPE#=99-52 48:56]
[GRAPHIC=Campaign 2000]
Four seats on Roanoke's City Council are open for the May elections, and Democrats want to fill them.
The Democratic Committee has decided to hold a meeting to determine which candidates to endorse.
Joy Sutton has more.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=Angela Norman]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke;00]
[SUPER=01-Angela Norman/City Council Candidate;22]
[SUPER=01-Linda Wyatt/City Council Member;33]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke/December 1999;41]
[SUPER=01-George McMillan/Roanoke City Sheriff;49]
[RUNS=1:10]
[OUT Q=News 7 Roanoke]
((Angela Norman is one of several candidates who has announced she is running for Roanoke city council.
Norman along with dozens of other democrats met to determine how the committee should go about picking which candidates to endorse.
And the overwhelming majority decided it was best to have a mass meeting -- where democrats could come to one place at one time to vote.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT4:02:49]
[IN Q=That means that]
((ANGELA NORMAN/CITY COUNCIL CANDIDATE: THAT MEANS THAT WE'RE REALLY GOING TO HAVE TO INTENSIFY AND STRESS TO THE TAX PAYER THE IMPORTANCE OF SHOWING UP AT THAT ONE MEETING. IT'S JUST GOING TO BE MORE INTENSE BECAUSE WE'RE NOT OPENING IT UP))
[RUNS= 11]
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 4:05:06]
[IN Q=I don't think it will be]
((LINDA WYATT/INCUMBENT CANDIDATE: I DON'T THINK IT WILL BE HARDER PROBABLY LESS EXPENSIVE WHICH IS GOOD FOR EVERYBODY))
[RUNS=I don't think it]
[OUT Q=everybody concerned]
Democrats currently hold all seven seats on city council.
But the seats of Mayor David Bowers, Carroll Swain, Jim Trout and Linda Wyatt will be up for election.
The Mass meeting will be held on February 15th -at 7pm.
It will be held at a local school.
Joy Sutton, News 7, Roanoke))
[8-M'Ville-workers]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=none]
Laid off Tultex workers in the Martinsville area will get eight-and-a-half (M) million dollars in federal aid. Governor Gilmore announced the package yesterday.
The textile manufacturer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in December and laid off 15-hunded workers.
The federal aid comes mostly under the Trade Act.
It will pay for benefits and job training and development under Virginia Employment Commission review.
[8-11Ericsson]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=ssm]
[TAPE#=99-51 31:29]
[GRAPHIC=None]
Lynchburg's Ericsson Corporation is saying goodbye to the private radio systems business, but not its 500 local employees.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Lynchburg]
Ericsson announced it is selling its radio division to Pittsburgh- based "Com-Net" Critical Communications.
Com-Net plans to lease local production space, allowing current Ericsson workers to stay in Lynchburg.
The division makes radio systems for police, fire and rescue agencies.
(------------)
[8-Railroad-Checks]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=none]
At least 500 former railroad workers from Roanoke and New River Valley have not received their retirement pension checks.
Complaints have flooded into the Railroad Retirement Board this week.
A board spokesman says these are the only two areas in the country with a problem.
The U-S Treasury Payment Center in Philadelphia mailed the checks on December 29th.
But Roanoke Postmaster Billy Martin said the checks never arrived there.
[8weather]
[ANCHOR=Melanie]
[NEWSCAST=AM Cutins]
[WRITER=tar]
[TAPE#=]
[GRAPHIC=]
Let's take one more look at the Friday forecast...
Lots of sunshine today, and rather windy.
Highs near 50.
Clear and chilly tonight, with lows of 20 to 25.
The five day forecast is mostly sunny through tomrrow...then clouding with showers possible by Sunday.
[SUPER=X5000; set dissolve]
[SUPER=314-Mostly Sunny/Winds NW 10-20/48-52/Clear & Chilly/Winds NW 5-10/20-25;]
[SUPER=#555; reset]
by SS