WDBJ 7 morning news for 11/13/96

06:00-01

HEADLINES

ANCHOR=Melanie
(----------------)
VO-NAT

Ahead on News 7 Mornin,
Flames flare over the sky in downtown Danville.
(----------------)

And a note of explanation is left at the scene of a bizarre murder-suicide.

air-collision

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=mel
TAPE#net
GRAPHIC=plane crash

Search teams in India this morning have have found the black box of the cargo plane that collided in mid-air yesterday with a Saudi jumbo jet.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Charkhi Dadri, India;

Some 350 people were killed, including two Americans.
Doctors say many of the passengers were incinerated before they hit the ground.
Many of the victims were Indian workers returning to jobs in the Middle East.
The crash is the third deadliest in world aviation history.
(----------------)

P-Gun-Plane

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=THa
TAPE# net-g from 96-79
GRAPHIC=none

The pursuit of drug smugglers led investigators to Halifax County yesterday.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Halifax Co.;

The pilot of a small plane was arrested Monday, minutes after landing at the Tuck Airport, near South Boston.
Sources say the pilot is believed to be part of a RING smuggling guns from North Carolina to New York.
Members of a Joint Firearms Task Force had been tracking the plane since it left Greensboro.
Authorities do not know why the pilot decided to land in Halifax County-- he was apparently supposed to fly to New Jersey.
Whatever the reason, the arrest created quite a stir at the airport.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT
IN Q=It didn't
((BEN CLARK/TUCK AIRPORT EMPLOYEE:IT DIDN'T SCARE ME BUT I WAS EXCITED BECAUSE I HAVEN'T EVER EXPERIENCED ANYTHING LIKE THIS BEFORE. ))
SUPER=01-Ben Clark/Tuck Airport Employee; :00
RUNS=:07
OUT Q=this before.
(----------------)
VO-NAT

When authorities searched the plane last night they found 12- high powered weapons.
Authorities say these weapons sell for about a thousand dollars apiece on the streets of New York.
(------0----------)

Car-Fire

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=ssm
TAPE#96-82
GRAPHIC=NONE

Police are investigating a bizarre case of apparent murder-suicide in Lynchburg.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Lynchburg;

The bodies of 29- year- old Sharon Gilliam and 34- year- old Dennis Oxford were found yesterday in this burning van outside the Lynchburg newspaper offices.
Police say Gilliam and Oxford had dated a few times and had a friendly relationship.
A suicide note left in a cooler outside the burning van provided authorities with a motive for the crime.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT 8:07:14
IN Q=Without going
((LT. EUGENE WINGFIELD/LYNCHBURG POLICE: WITHOUT GOING INTO THE EXACT DETAILS OF WHAT WAS CONTAINED IN THE NOTE, OTHER THAN TO SAY THAT MR. OXFORD, WHO APPARENTLY LEFT THE NOTE, SEEMS TO BLAME MISS GILLIAM FOR A MEDICAL PROBLEM THAT HE MAY HAVE THOUGHT HE HAD.))
SUPER=01-Eugene Wingfield/Lynchburg Police; :00
RUNS=:14
OUT Q=thought he had.
(----------------)
VO-NAT

Police recovered a gun from inside the car that had been fired at least once.
Autopsies should reveal whether one or both victims were shot to death before the fire was set.
(----------------)

Danville-Fire

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=THa
TAPE#96-91
GRAPHIC=fire

Smoke and flames filled the sky over downtown Danville last night.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Danville;

Fire broke out at a building at the intersection of Industrial and Jefferson Avenues at around six.
When firefighters arrived there was no hope of saving the building-- which was used as storage for a local construction company.
About 20-fire fighters worked on the blaze.
Chief B-G Lewis says his main concern was keeping the fire from spreading.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT
IN Q=The building
(( ))
SUPER=01-B. G. Lewis/Danville Fire Chief; :00
RUNS=:16
OUT Q=drowned it.
(----------------)
VO-NAT

Fire officials are trying to figure out the cause of the blaze.
(----------------)

L'burg-Council

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=ssm
TAPE#96-95
GRAPHIC=Lynchburg

Lynchburg's trash tag system may be here to stay.
But local civil rights advocates have won their fight to put a mural in city hall.
Steve Smallshaw has more from last night's city council meeting.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT
IN Q=Business as usual
SUPER=03-Lynchburg; :00
SUPER=01-Robert Garber/Lynchburg Council Member; :13
SUPER=01-Junius Haskins/Lynchburg Council Member; :27
SUPER=01-Charles Church/Lynchburg City Manager; :52
SUPER=@ssm1; 1:00
RUNS=1:16
OUT Q=News7, Lynchburg.

(( Business as usual when it came to city council and the issue of trash tags.
Council had a chance to reaffirm or get rid of the controversial refuse collection system.
Instead, it tabled the matter yet again.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT 7:54:12
IN Q=Rather than
((ROBERT GARBER/LYNCHBURG COUNCIL MEMBER: RATHER THAN MAKING OUR INNER CITY AND OTHER PARTS OF THE CITY A DUMPING GROUND FOR ILLEGAL TRASH, I THINK WE SHOULD SEND THIS BACK TO A FULL SESSION, FULL COMMITTEE AND COME UP WITH ANOTHER ALTERNATIVE TO DO THAT.))
RUNS=:13
OUT Q=to do that.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT 7:56:41
IN Q=Unless there's
((JUNIUS HASKINS/LYNCHBURG COUNCIL MEMBER: UNLESS THERE'S A ROCKET SCIENTIST THAT CAN FIND DANGER IN WHAT WE HAVE DONE, I THINK WE CAME UP WITH THE MOST REASONABLE DECISION AND MADE THE RECOMMENDATION.))
RUNS=:08
OUT Q=made the recommendation.

Tags or no tags, city employees will continue picking up the trash as council okayed their three- year contract.
Also, civil rights advocates won their battle to have a mural honoring local black leaders displayed in City Hall.
Council adopted a new policy on what is considered appropriate for a city building.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT 7:47:35
IN Q=It needs to
((CHARLES CHURCH/LYNCHBURG CITY MANAGER: IT NEEDS TO BE A LYNCHBURG- RELATED ITEM THAT HAS SIGNIFICANCE TO LYNCHBURG AND NOT SOMETHING OF GENERAL APPEAL.))
RUNS=:09
OUT Q=general appeal.
(/////SOT/////)
SU 8:33:32
IN Q=City officials
((City officials say the civil rights mural meets all the requirements of the new policy, and more importantly, fits the measurements of the glass display case in the lobby of City Hall. If all goes well, the mural could be in place within a week. Steve Smallshaw, News7, Lynchburg.))
RUNS=:16
OUT Q=News7, Lynchburg.))

Rail-Merger

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=lbe
TAPE#96-92
GRAPHIC=Rail merger

After a period of calm, the bidding war for Conrail may be getting back on track.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=@File;

(Roy-ters) Reuters News service says traders and analysts are speculating that C-S-X may once again increase its friendly offer.
Last week Norfolk Southern upped its hostile bid for Conrail.
It tops the offer C-S-X made by more than one BILLION dollars.
The two Virginia railroads are fighting over Conrail because of its dominant market share in the northeast.
N-S is one of the largest employers in the area, with more than 35-hundred workers.
(-------------)

M'ville-Racing

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=kmc
TAPE#net (edit of 96-98)
GRAPHIC=NONE

Leaders from Martinsville, Danville, and South Boston want to capitalize on racing.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Henry Co./September;

They are asking the General Assembly to declare southside Virginia's official Racing Region.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT 16:53:30
IN Q=This area has
((STEVE SHEPPARD/MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY: THIS AREA HAS A RICH RACING TRADITION. NEXT YEAR, WE'RE GOING TO BE CELEBRATING OUR 50 TH ANNIVERSARY HERE AT MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY. AND WITH A GREAT RACING TRADITION HERE-- I THINK THAT THROUGHOUT THIS REGION, WE'RE TYING IT ALL TOGETHER FOR THE STATE OF VIRGINIA. ))
SUPER=01-Steve Sheppard/Martinsville Speedway;
RUNS=:13
OUT Q=for the state of Virginia
(----------------)
VO-NAT

If Southside does become a racing region, Sheppard believes race fans will fill the stands-- and stick around for the area's other attractions.
(-------------)
2-HEADLINES
SUPER=#4050; Headline Banner
ANCHOR=Melanie

Here's a look at today's top stories.
(----------------)
VO-NAT

Lynchburg police investigate a murder suicide, after a man and woman are found dead inside a burning car.
(----------------)
VO-NAT

In India, one of the black boxes is recovered among the wreckage of one of the deadliest crashes in aviation history.
(----------------)
VO-NAT

And more than a dozen people are dead and hundreds injured in a powerful earthquake that rocked southern Peru.
(----------------)

AND that's what's making news on this Wednesday, November 13th.

Planes

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=mel
TAPE#net
GRAPHIC=plane crash

In India this morning, search teams have found the black box of the cargo plane that collided in mid-air yesterday with a Saudi jumbo jet.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Charkhi Dadri, India;

Some 350 people were killed, including two Americans.
Doctors say many of the passengers were incinerated before they hit the ground.
Many of the victims were Indian workers returning to jobs in the Middle East.
The crash is the third deadliest in world aviation history.
(----------------)

QUAKE

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=mel
TAPE#net
GRAPHIC=none

Officials in southern Peru now say at least 15 people are dead and hundreds others injured following a powerful earthquake.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Nazca, Peru;

As many as 700 were injured and many buildings and homes are in ruins.
Meanwhile, 40 to 60 miners are trapped in an isolated gold mine in the Andes Mountains.
The 6- point- 4 quake lasted about one minute.
(----------------)

SNOW

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=MEL
TAPE#net
GRAPHIC=none

Residents in some of the Great Lakes region are shoveling their way out of one of the biggest early snowfalls on record.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Cleveland, OH;

People in parts of northeast Ohio have gotten as much as four feet of snow since last weekend.
Forecasters say the worst of winter's sneak preview appears to be over.
The snow is expected to taper off later today.
(----------------)

SEX-SCANDAL

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=mel
TAPE#net
GRAPHIC=none

A drill sergeant at an Army post in Missouri is scheduled to be sentenced today in the military's latest sex scandal.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Ft. Leonard Wood, MO;
4:15;29
Sergeant Loren Taylor has pleaded guilty to having sex with three female recruits at Fort Leonard Wood and trying to have sex with another.
He faces up to 14 years in prison and a dishonorable discharge.
Two other male officers face similar charges and seven other sergeants there have been suspended pending further investigation.
(----------------)

Gulf

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=mel
TAPE#net
GRAPHIC=Washington

The Pentagon's own investigation of Persian Gulf War illnesses is under the gun.
Today, a presidential panel that has been sharply critical of the Pentagon, is holding hearings on the issue.
Yesterday, military officials announced that the Pentagon would double the money it's spending to research the illness-- to 27 million.
Investigators will be looking into the destruction of an Iraqi weapons storage bunker in March of 19-91.

interest-rates

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=mel
TAPE#none
GRAPHIC=none

We'll find out later today if interest rates are going up.
Most analysts say they expect the Federal Reserve to leave the rates unchanged.
The committee has not changed the rates since January, when it cut them by a quarter- point, to five- and- one- quarter percent.

Roanoke-Times

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=lbe
TAPE#net (edit of 96-93)
GRAPHIC=NONE

The Roanoke Times just became one of the only papers in the country to eliminate its stock and mutual fund listings in favor of a separate subscription- only publication.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Roanoke;

Last night its business editor told the Ad Federation of the Roanoke Valley why the paper did this.
John Levin explains that because it's going for a targeted audience, the new report has ten times more listings than the old stock page, which was getting whittled away by rising newsprint costs.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT 19:33:41
IN Q=We said
((JOHN LEVIN/ROANOKE TIMES BUSINESS EDITOR: WE SAID THIS IS A PRODUCT THAT HAS A SEPARATE READER BASE. I WONDER IF SUBSCRIBERS WOULD BE WILLING TO PAY FOR IT. LOT OF PEOPLE SAID NO, IT WON'T FLY, FINALLY WE SET A DATE AND SAID COME OCTOBER 15TH, WE'RE GONNA TRY.))
SUPER=01-John Levin/Roanoke Times Business Editor;
RUNS=:19
OUT Q=we're gonna try.
ANCHOR=Melanie
SS=NONE

19-hundred people have subscribed to the new report, which costs an additional 49-cents a week.

2-Danville-Fire

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=THa
TAPE#96-91
GRAPHIC=fire

The sky over downtown Danville last night was filled with smoke and flames.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Danville;

Fire broke out at a building at the intersection of Industrial and Jefferson Avenues at around six.
When firefighters arrived there was no hope of saving the building-- which was used as storage for a local construction company.
About 20-fire fighters worked on the blaze.
Chief B-G Lewis says his main concern was keeping the fire from spreading.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT
IN Q=The building
(( ))
SUPER=01-B. G. Lewis/Danville Fire Chief; :00
RUNS=:16
OUT Q=drowned it.
(----------------)
VO-NAT

Fire officials are trying to figure out the cause of the blaze.
(----------------)

Gas-problem

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=THa
TAPE#NONE
GRAPHIC=NONE

By midnight last night, Gas service was restored to more than a hundred homes in Danville.
Earlier in the day, about one thousand people were without gas service.
Crews were apparently trying to repair a gas line when the malfunction occurred.
Homes in the Schoolfield and Druid Hills areas were affected.

Traffic

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=lba
TAPE#none
GRAPHIC=none

If you take route 6-68, Yellow Mountain Road in Roanoke County to work you may need to find an alternate route.
Starting this morning at 8 a section of the road will be closed to through traffic during daytime hours.
V-DOT officials say the road construction is expected to last through the end of the month.

Gun-Plane

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=THa
TAPE#96-79
GRAPHIC=NONE

A single engine plane made an unexpected landing in Halifax County-
Inside, authorities found unexpected cargo- one dozen high powered weapons.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Halifax Co.;

The pilot was arrested Monday minutes after landing at the Tuck Airport, near South Boston.
He's suspected of illegally smuggling guns from North Carolina to New York as part of an organized crime ring.
Members of a Joint Firearms Task Force had been tracking the plane from Greensboro.
They do not know why the pilot decided to land in Virginia-- he was apparently supposed to fly to New Jersey.
A flight instructor happened to be standing outside when the pilot landed.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT
IN Q=Probably
((MIKE CANNON/PART-TIME FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR:PROBABLY A MINUTE OR SO AFTER THAT A TWIN ENGINE PIPER LANDED, SO LIKE, QUITE AGRESSIVE, LIND OF LANDED LIKE LUNATICS, FLEW IN HERE AND ONE GUY GOT OFF AND ACTED LIKE HE HAD TO GO TO THE BATHROOM BADLY, BUT IT REALLY WAS JUST AN ACT, SO HE WENT INSIDE AND SEVERAL MORE THE POLICE CAME OUT AND THEY APPREHENDED OR GOT THE GUY AT THE PAY PHONE, PINNED HIM DOWN AND HANDCUFFED HIM AND READ HIM HIS RIGHTS AND TOOK HIM INSIDE. ))
SUPER=01-Mike Cannon/Part-Time Flight Instructor; :00
RUNS=:25
OUT Q=took him inside.
(----------------)
VO-NAT

Sources say guns like the ones found on the plane sell for about one thousand dollars each on the streets of New York City.
(----0------------)

P-Car-Fire

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=abr
TAPE#596-28
GRAPHIC=none

Lynchburg Police are investigating an apparent murder-suicide...Two people were found dead in a burning vehicle outside the Lynchburg News and Advance yesterday morning.
Steve Smallshaw reports.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT
IN Q=Firefighters got
SUPER=03-Lynchburg; :00
SUPER=01-Eugene Wingfield/Lynchburg Police; :22
SUPER=@ssm2; :40
RUNS=:58
OUT Q=were suffering from.
(( Firefighters got the call around quarter to eight, after witnesses spotted a car on fire in the rear parking lot of the Lynchburg newspaper offices.
Inside the burned out Chevy van were the bodies of a man and a woman, now identified as 29- year- old Sharon Gilliam and 34- year- old Dennis Oxford.
Police have ruled their deaths a murder- suicide.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT 8:06:41
IN Q=We found a
((LT. EUGENE WINGFIELD/LYNCHBURG POLICE: WE FOUND A GUN IN THE VAN.. ...THOSE AS WELL.))
RUNS=:20
OUT Q=those as well.

The autopsies are expected to show whether Gilliam and/or Oxford died of gunshot wounds before they burned in the fire.
Police say a note found in a cooler outside the car was written by Oxford, and blames Gilliam for a medical condition the two reportedly were suffering from.))

TEXACO

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=MEL
TAPE#net
GRAPHIC=none

The Reverend Jesse Jackson is calling for an immediate boycott against Texaco.
(----------------)
VO-NAT

The civil rights leader met with the company's chairman yesterday but walked away from the meeting saying people should get their gas elsewhere.
Jackson says picketing could begin Saturday at Texaco sites unless a 520-million dollar race discrimination lawsuit is settled.
(----------------)
WIPE/WIPE/WIPE

DISCRIMINATION

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=mel
TAPE#net
GRAPHIC=wipe wipe wipe
(----------------)
VO-NAT
4:24;28
Avis car rental and one of its franchise holders face a class action race discrimination lawsuit.
Three African American women from North and South Carolina say they were denied service because of the color of their skin.
Yesterday, a former Avis manager said the franchise owner told employees to make it difficult for black customers to rent cars.
(----------------)
ANCHOR=Melanie
ss=none

The franchise owner denies the charges.

Reynolds

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=JoeD
TAPE#96-88
GRAPHIC=None

State Police say the death of motorist Alicia Reynolds began as a sexual assault.
(----------------)
VO-NAT

Reynolds was the 25- year- old Baltimore woman who disappeared in March as she drove along U-S 29 near Culpeper.
SUPER=03-Culpeper;

Investigators profiled the suspect at a news conference yesterday, and they predicted he will kill again if he is not apprehended soon.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT
IN Q=We believe this individual
((01-LARRY MCCANN/VA. STATE POLICE: WE BELIEVE THIS INDIVIDUAL WILL BE EMPLOYED IN A BLUE- COLLAR, LABOR TYPE JOB. GENERALLY HE WILL BE KNOWN TO THOSE AROUND HIM AS RESERVED, QUIETLY HELPFUL TO OTHERS AND DEPENDABLE. HE'S GUARDED ABOUT WHAT HE RELEASES TO OTHER PEOPLE ABOUT HIS PRIVATE LIFE. HE'S BASICALLY QUIET ABOUT WHAT HE DOES IN PRIVATE.))
SUPER=01-Larry McCann/Va. State Police;
RUNS=:22
OUT Q=what he does in private.
ANCHOR=Melanie
SS=None

State Police believe the suspect used the name Larry Breeden in conversations with other women, but authorities do not believe that is the killer's real name.

Truck-Strike

ANCHOR=Jean
NEWSCAST=11pm
WRITER=lbe
TAPE#none
GRAPHIC=none

A contract dispute has truck drivers in Marion walking the picket line.
Members of Teamsters Local 549 went on strike at Superior Carriers this weekend.
The president of the union says its main beef is the company's desire to take away layover pay.
Layover pay is given to truckers when trips keep them out of town for at least one night.
Two dozen Superior Carriers employees are picketing in Marion.
Another 50 are on strike in Kingsport, Tennessee.
The company could not be reached for comment.

Heated-Bridge

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=spr
TAPE#96-84
GRAPHIC=None

V-DOT officials think motorists will really warm up to a new bridge.
(----------------)
VO-NAT
SUPER=03-Amherst Co.;

The reason-- it's heated.
The bridge is located on U- S Route 60 just west of Amherst.
And here's how it works.
Sensors determine the temperature and precipitation levels on the bridge.
Once those factors reach a certain level, heat pipes underneath the structure automatically turn on... melting any snow or ice.
If it's successful, other similar bridges may be on the way.
(/////SOT/////)
SOT 14:28:14
IN Q=We'll be
((DAVID GEHR/VDOT COMMISSIONER: WE'LL BE MONITORING THE IMPACT OF THIS PARTICULAR INSTALLATION. AND IF IT WORKS OUT THAN WE'LL LOOK AT OTHER BRIDGES AROUND THE STATE-- PARTICULARLY THOSE THAT HAVE A TENDANCY TO ICE OVER OR MAYBE IN REMOTE AREAS TO TRY ANOTHER INSTALLATION. ))
SUPER=01-David Gehr/VDOT Commissioner;
RUNS=:14
OUT Q=installation
(----------------)
VO-NAT

There are only seven other heated bridges in the entire country.
Officials estimate the cost at 664- thousand dollars.
(----------------)

2-Traffic

4-Scores

ANCHOR=Melanie
NEWSCAST=morn
WRITER=lba
TAPE#none
GRAPHIC=nba

Detroit limited Washington to 30 points in the first half of a 92-to-79 victory over the Bullets.
For all of last night's scores let's check the boards.
(-------------)
wipe to scores
SUPER=#556
SUPER=X5028
SUPER=0096-j/Philadelphia/101//New York/97///j/Detroit/92//Washington/79///;
SUPER=x5009
SUPER=0096-/Charlotte/97/j/Miami/105////Cleveland/83/j/Atlanta/87///;
SUPER=x5009
SUPER=0096-/Portland/97/j/Minnesota/100///j/L.A. Lakers/126//Houston/115//Two
Overtimes/;
SUPER=x5009
SUPER=0096-/Phoenix/89/j/Milwaukee/99//Suns Now
0-and-7//Indiana/82/j/Dallas/103///;
SUPER=x5009
SUPER=0096-j/Seattle/121//Golden State/102///j/L.A.
Clippers/99//Vancouver/92//Two Overtimes/;
SUPER=X5031
SUPER=0103-/Buffalo/0/j/Pittsburgh/3////Washington/2/j/New Jersey/3//Final In
Overtime/;
SUPER=x5009
SUPER=0103-j/Hartford/4//San Jose/3///;
RUNS=:49
oc= LAST SCORE
(-------------)

Wx-Cutin

ANCHOR=
NEWSCAST=
WRITER=
TAPE#
GRAPHIC=