08:25-01

7Fatal-Fire

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=Dal
TAPE#96-2
GRAPHIC=Fatal Fire

The Red Cross is seeking donations for a Roanoke woman who lost her family in a weekend house fire.
Four small children and their grandmother were killed in a blaze that's described as the city's worst in 30 years.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT
IN Q=Smoke billowed
SUPER=03-Roanoke/Saturday Night; :00
SUPER=01-Tony Sheppard/Neighbor; :32
SUPER=01-Chief Jim Grigsby/Roanoke City Fire Dept.; :48
SUPER=01-Tina Fisher/Neighbor; 1:19
SUPER=@Denise1; 1:37
RUNS=1:58
OUT Q=News 7

((Smoke billowed from the house on Stewart Avenue in Roanoke.
Inside six year old Mark, his brothers five year old Clyde, four year old Patrick and their sister three year old Nancy, along with the childrens' grandmother, Goldie Christie Duncan, were all trapped by the flames.
The mother of the children, Patricia Leftwich told fire fighters she smelled smoke.
She went downstairs to investigate.
The fire spread so quickly she was unable to get back to her children and mother.
A neighbor dialed 9-1-1 and tried to help. ((TONY SHEPPARD/NEIGHBOR: SMOKE COMING OUT OF THE TOP OF THE HOUSE. KIDS HOLLERING OUTSIDE THE WINDOW. WENT BACK IN MY HOUSE, PUT ON A COAT AND GRABBED A FLASHLIGHT. WENT IN THE FRONT DOOR THERE WAS JUST TOO MUCH SMOKE.)) ((CHIEF JIM GRIGSBY/ROANOKE CITY FIRE DEPT.: THE STAIRWELL TO THE SECOND FLOOR IS IN THE BACK. THEY WENT AND WERE ABLE TO GET A FAIRLY QUICK KNOCK DOWN OF THE FIRE AND WE DISCOVERED THE BODIES INSIDE THE HOUSE.))
The fire apparently started in the kitchen.
Investigators say a short in an extension cord connecting a space heater to an electrical outlet is the cause of the fire.
Family members say Patricia Leftwich is in shock.
Neighbors say they too are devastated by the loss. ((TINA FISHER/NEIGHBOR: SHE WOULD SMILE AND WAVE. HAD A LITTLE ANGELIC FACE AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT I'LL MISS MOST. SHE WAS SO PRECIOUS. I MEAN THEY WERE ALL PRECIOUS.)) ((WE ARE DEALING WITH OUT FIRE FIGHTERS RIGHT NOW AND TRYING TO DE-BRIEF THEM. IT'S A VERY EMOTIONAL ISSUE FOR ALL OF US. IT'S A TRAGEDY FOR THIS NEIGHBORHOOD.))
Neighbors say Patricia Leftwich was planning to move her family this Friday.
In addition to the move family members say she was working hard to better her life by studying to be a nurse.
Fire investigators say they'll finalize their investigation early this week.
But family members say their struggle to understand this tragedy may never end.
Denise Allen News 7.))

7L-BURG-FIRES


ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=DAL
TAPE#95-105
GRAPHIC=Fire

Authorities in Lynchburg are investigation three trailor fires.
Two homes in the 44-hundred block of Wards Road burned Saturday night,
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Lynchburg/Yesterday;
and then firefighters responded to a third call yesterday morning.
Officials told News 7 they secured the fire scene Saturday night.
But when they returned to the area yesterday the front door to one of the burned trailers was open and another trailer was fully engulfed.
None of the mobile homes was occupied.
There is no word on the cause of the fires.
(----------------)

7Schoolwatch


ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=cro
TAPE# none
GRAPHIC=school information

A number of schools are delayed or closed due to flooding and icy road conditions. Take Boards
(mel ad lib schoolwatch)

7Weather


ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=nle
TAPE#
GRAPHIC=

Turing now to weather -
The beginning of your week is going to start off sunny, with highs in the upper 40s.
Tonight, temperatures will be cold again, with lows 25 to 30 degrees.

55Wythe-Murder


ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=Dal
TAPE#None
GRAPHIC=Murder

The case of a missing teenager has ended in murder.
Wythe County officials found the body of a teen yesterday, one day after his mother reported him missing.
One of three suspects now charged in the case led deputies to the body near a creek on Route 6-18.
19- year- old Jason Dennis Hibbs and 20- year- old Eric Dwayne Ball, both of Max Meadows, are charged with abduction and first degree murder.
An unnamed 17- year- old is charged with abduction.
The cause of death is unknown, and authorities have yet to release the victim's name.

55Shooting


ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=Dal
TAPE#95-106
GRAPHIC=Shooting

Meantime, Lynchburg authorities are investigating a fatal shooting early yesterday morning outside a nightclub.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Lynchburg/Yesterday;

Investigators say 24-year-old Robert Lewis Allen had apparently been fighting in the parking of The Glass House.
Allen was shot in the chest.
He was taken to Lynchburg General Hospital, where he died.
Police are not saying if they have a suspect.
(----------------)

55West-Virginia


ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=Dal
TAPE#None
GRAPHIC=none

Despite the extra water in Pendleton County, West Virginia residents in the town of Franklin are being asked to conserve.
Weekend flooding has caused several of the county's water tanks to run dry.
Public Safety officials also say residents should boil water for at least a minute before drinking.
Pocahontas County and Greenbrier County are also struggling in the aftermath of the flood.
The National Guard is removing debris and repairing bridges in the area.
Red Cross shelters are still assisting almost 300 people whose homes have been damaged by water.

55Lee-Jackson


ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=rjo
TAPE#96-1
GRAPHIC=None

The weather postponed last week's rememberance of Confederate Heros Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson until yesterday.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Roanoke/Yesterday;

In downtown Roanoke members of the Fincastle Rifles dressed in traditional confederate soldier attire, played bagpipes, and participated in military ceremonies.
They say the Confederate flag is a symbol of tradition and way of life.
(/////SOT/////)
IN Q=My ancestors bought
SOT 15:19:55
((LT. CMDR. JOHN BRISCOE/FINCASTLE RIFLES: MY ANCESTORS FOUGHT UNDER THIS FLAG FOR THEIR HOME COUNTRY. IT IS SIMPLY OUR SYMBOL. THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE WHO HAVE ABUSED IT AND WE DON'T STAND FOR THAT. BUT WE ALSO PUBLICLY PROCLAIM IT AND WE CARRY THE FLAG PROUDLY.)) ((LT. CMDR. JERRY ALDHIZER/FINCASTLE RIFLES: MY GREAT GRANDFATHER DIED FIGHTING UNDER THIS FLAG. WE WERE FIGHTING FOR SOUTHERN INDEPENDENCE FIGHTING A NORTHERN AGGRESSION COUNTRY THAT INVADED THE SOUTH. THE SOUTH AT THAT TIME WAS A DIFFERENT COUNTRY... IT WAS THE CONFEDERATE STATES OF AMERICA.))
SUPER=01-Lt. Cmdr. John Briscoe/Fincastle Rifles;
SUPER=01-Lt. Cmdr. Jerry Aldhizer/Fincastle Rifles; :22
RUNS=:35
OUT Q=confederate states of America.
(----------------)
VO-NAT

A wreath of flowers was also laid at the foot of a memorial for the two Confederate Generals.
(----------------)

55Schoolwatch


ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=cro
TAPE# none
GRAPHIC=school information

The Flooding and some icy road conditions are forcing more schools to close or delay opening this morning.
(mel ad lib schoolwatch)

55Weather


ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=nle
TAPE#
GRAPHIC=

Turing now to today's weather -
After a cold start it will be sunny, with highs in the upper 40s.
Tonight will be cold again, with lows in the 20's or low 30's.
Tomorrow will be partly sunny and a bit warmer, with temperatures in the mid to upper 50s.

8Fatal-Fire


ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=Dal
TAPE#96-2
GRAPHIC=Fatal Fire

A weekend house fire in Roanoke took the lives of four children and their grandmother.
Authorities are calling it the worst fire in 30 years.
The Red Cross is asking for donations for the mother who survived the blaze.
Denise Allen reports.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT
IN Q=Smoke billowed
SUPER=03-Roanoke/Saturday Night; :00
SUPER=01-Tony Sheppard/Neighbor; :32
SUPER=01-Chief Jim Grigsby/Roanoke City Fire Dept.; :48
SUPER=01-Tina Fisher/Neighbor; 1:19
SUPER=@Denise1; 1:37
RUNS=1:58
OUT Q=News 7

((Smoke billowed from the house on Stewart Avenue in Roanoke.
Inside six year old Mark, his brothers five year old Clyde, four year old Patrick and their sister three year old Nancy, along with the childrens' grandmother, Goldie Christie Duncan, were all trapped by the flames.
The mother of the children, Patricia Leftwich told fire fighters she smelled smoke.
She went downstairs to investigate.
The fire spread so quickly she was unable to get back to her children and mother.
A neighbor dialed 9-1-1 and tried to help. ((TONY SHEPPARD/NEIGHBOR: SMOKE COMING OUT OF THE TOP OF THE HOUSE. KIDS HOLLERING OUTSIDE THE WINDOW. WENT BACK IN MY HOUSE, PUT ON A COAT AND GRABBED A FLASHLIGHT. WENT IN THE FRONT DOOR THERE WAS JUST TOO MUCH SMOKE.)) ((CHIEF JIM GRIGSBY/ROANOKE CITY FIRE DEPT.: THE STAIRWELL TO THE SECOND FLOOR IS IN THE BACK. THEY WENT AND WERE ABLE TO GET A FAIRLY QUICK KNOCK DOWN OF THE FIRE AND WE DISCOVERED THE BODIES INSIDE THE HOUSE.))
The fire apparently started in the kitchen.
Investigators say a short in an extension cord connecting a space heater to an electrical outlet is the cause of the fire.
Family members say Patricia Leftwich is in shock.
Neighbors say they too are devastated by the loss. ((TINA FISHER/NEIGHBOR: SHE WOULD SMILE AND WAVE. HAD A LITTLE ANGELIC FACE AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT I'LL MISS MOST. SHE WAS SO PRECIOUS. I MEAN THEY WERE ALL PRECIOUS.)) ((WE ARE DEALING WITH OUT FIRE FIGHTERS RIGHT NOW AND TRYING TO DE-BRIEF THEM. IT'S A VERY EMOTIONAL ISSUE FOR ALL OF US. IT'S A TRAGEDY FOR THIS NEIGHBORHOOD.))
Neighbors say Patricia Leftwich was planning to move her family this Friday.
In addition to the move family members say she was working hard to better her life by studying to be a nurse.
Fire investigators say they'll finalize their investigation early this week.
But family members say their struggle to understand this tragedy may never end.
Denise Allen News 7.))

8Shooting


ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=Dal
TAPE#95-106
GRAPHIC=Shooting

An argument outside of a Lynchburg night club turned deadly Sunday morning.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Lynchburg/Yesterday;

Investigators say 24-year-old Robert Lewis Allen had apparently been fighting in the parking lot outside a night club, The Glass House.
He was taken to Lynchburg General Hospital, where he died.
Police are not saying if they have a suspect.
(----------------)

8Schoolwatch


ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=cro
TAPE# none
GRAPHIC=school information

Weekend flooding and some icy road conditions are forcing more schools to close or delay opening this morning.
(mel ad lib schoolwatch)

8Weather


ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=cutin
WRITER=nle
TAPE#
GRAPHIC=

Turing now to the weather - Nightime temperatures will be in the mid to upper 20's. Today is going to be sunny with highs in the upper 40's.
by SS