WDBJ 7 morning news for 09/19/99

[2-11Prison-Break]

[ANCHOR=Denise]

[NEWSCAST=sun Am]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=99-]
[GRAPHIC=none]

Authorities are still searching for an inmate who disappeared from the Augusta Correctional Center Friday morning.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Augusta Co.]

They're looking for 38- year- old Anthony Lee Belcher, an inmate serving a 12- year- sentence for statutory burglary, grand larceny, escape, and assault.
Guards were unable to account for Belcher during an inmate count, at 11 o'clock Friday morning... They have no idea how he may have escaped.
[SOT O3:05:04]
[IN Q=Since then we have State Police]
((DEBBIE SWISHER/OPERATIONS OFFICER: SINCE THEN WE HAVE STATE POLICE, THE AUGUSTA COUNTY SHERIFFS DEPARTMENT, SEVERAL OF THE LOCAL CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES HAVE SENT ADDITIONAL STAFF. WE HAVE OUR CANINE UNITS, AND THE SEARCH IS ON-GOING, AND WILL CONTINUE TO BE SO UNTIL WE APPREHEND OR FIND WHERE THIS INDIVIDUAL IS.)) [RUNS:20]
[OUT Q=where the individual is.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Authorities are asking anyone with information on Belcher's whereabouts to call the Augusta Correctional Center or the Virginia State Police.
(------------)

[Henry-Ax]

[ANCHOR=Denise]
[NEWSCAST=Sun. AM]
[WRITER=tar]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=fatal accident]

An early morning accident on 220 claims the life of a Henry County woman.
32-year-old Sherry Carter Young was killed when she was ejected from the car she was riding in.
State police say the driver of the car, John Allen Carter, was driving recklessly when he ran his car off the road and skidded sideways into an embankment.
Both passengers were thrown from the car. Young died at the scene.
Authorities say alcohol was a factor in the accident.

[11Franklin-Fire]

[ANCHOR=Denise]
[NEWSCAST=sun am]
[WRITER=ejo]
[TAPE#=99-25 1:59:23]
[GRAPHIC=Fire]

A house in Franklin County went up in flames.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Franklin Co.;]
It happened along Valley View Road near the Coopers Cove area. Firefighters never had a chance. This house was fully on fire when they arrived just before six yesterday morning.
No one was home at the time. Fire officials say there is NO evidence that the blaze was deliberately set.
(------------)

[Miss-America]

[ANCHOR=Denise]
[NEWSCAST=Sun Am]
[WRITER=dal]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]

The first woman from Kentucky has won the Miss America Crown.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=04-ABC-Miss America Organization;]

Heather Renee French is Miss America 2000.
The 24 year old edged out Miss Illinois Jade Smalls.
Miss Pennsylvania, Miss Maryland and Miss Texas rounded out the top five.
French is a fashion design student at the University of Cincinnati.
She plans to spend her year as Miss America campaigning for outreach for homeless military veterans.
(------------)

[Festival]

[ANCHOR=Eric]
[NEWSCAST=11pm]
[WRITER=eea]
[TAPE#=99-26 16:06]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Downtown Roanoke was singing the blues yesterday.
Hundreds of people enjoyed the Taste of the Blue Ridge Blues and Jazz Festival.
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[SOT 00:09:45]
[IN Q=]
((NAT SOUND BLUES ))
[RUNS=06]
[OUT Q=]
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[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke]

The Blue Ridge Jazz Ensemble, a group of regional artists, brought in the day's first taste of jazz. There were plenty of other flavors floating around Elmwood park, as several area restaurants backed up the bands with some of their specialties.
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[Floyd-Flooding]

[ANCHOR=Denise]
[NEWSCAST=Sun AM]
[WRITER=dal]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=floyd aftermath]

Flood waters from Floyd may have wiped out members of a North Carolina family.
Searchers recovered the bodies of a mother and her daughter yesterday after their boat capsized.
Two other family members aboard the boat are feared dead.
Residents of North Carolina are just starting to assess the damage from Floyd.
Jennifer Jones has more.
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[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=07-Sean Montague; :43]
[SUPER=07-Terry Lucas; :56]
[SUPER=01-Larry Zensinger/FEMA; 1:19]
[SUPER=01-Jennifer Jones/CBS News; 1:36]
[RUNS=1:59]
[OUT Q=CBS News]
((Hurricane Floyd may be history... but the storm's legacy lingers on in North Carolina. Some areas are still dealing with devastating floodwaters - a problem that doesn't appear to be going away anytime soon.
((nat sound))
From up above, a daunting view of the damage caused by Floyd. Homes almost completely submerged... farm crops ruined... and roads virtually impassible. And as the death toll continues to climb, rescue teams are busy searching for people stranded or still missing.
Residents in this rural neighborhood just 20 miles outside of Raleigh also hit hard
SUPER: Terry Lucas
No more water but plenty to talk about

(nat)

And lots of their worries for their neighbors
SUPER: Sean Montague

((sot))

President Clinton has declared much of (the eastern two-thirds of North Carolina) a disaster area. Also on that list: four counties in New York State... as well as portions of New Jersey where floodwaters have receded... but power outages and other problems still remain.

((sot: Larry Zensinger, FEMA Director of Human Resources, Response and
Recovery)) "Our objective in working with the states as part of the recovery process is going to be to help move people to the shelters to various kinds of temporary housing... and provide individuals in the declared states the assistance to help them get back on their feet."
((standup))

))[Reel-Open]

[ANCHOR=Andrew]
[NEWSCAST=Sun AM]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=Reel Open]
[GRAPHIC=Virginia Newsreel]

As far as Floyd goes, There's no doubt we dodged the bullet this time. But there are other times when this area has not been so lucky..... and those memories still haunt residents. In this week's Virginia Newsreel Keith Humphry looks at several storms including Hurricane Hugo that blasted through Southwest Virginia 10 years ago this week.

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[Hurricane-Reel]

[ANCHOR=Andrew]
[NEWSCAST=Sun Am]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=Newsreel]
[GRAPHIC=wipe]

[wipe wipe wipe wipe wipe]

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[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=21-Nelson Co./1969; :07]
[SUPER=21-Tom Huffman; :22]
[SUPER=21-Roanoke/1985; :39]
[SUPER=21-Roanoke/1989; 1:12]
[SUPER=21-Keith Humphry/Reporting; 1:26]
[super=21-Thomas Porter; 1:47]
[RUNS=2:13]
[OUT Q=I'm K H]
((When people think about hurricanes, high winds are generally the first thing to come to mind. But in Southwest Virginia water causes the most problems. 30 years ago remnants of Hurricane Camille dumped 30 inches of rain on Nelson County in eight hours . The mountains liquefied into walls of water and mud.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 99-24 22:27:28]
[IN Q=We began to realize]
((TOM HUFFMAN/LOST 22 FAMILY MEMBERS/WE BEGAN TO REALIZE MORE THAT SOMETHING WAS WRONG BECAUSE OF THE SMELL OF THE FRESH EARTH, AND THE BOULDERS. YOU COULD HEAR THE BOULDERS HITTING TOGETHER, AND WE REALIZED THEN THAT THE EARTH HAD BEGUN TO MOVE.)) [RUNS14]
[OUT Q=begun to move]
Whole families were washed away. 153 people lost their lives. In 1985, leftovers of Hurricane Juan drenched Roanoke. 6.63 inches of rain fell in a 24 hour period across the Roanoke Valley.
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[SOT ]
[IN Q=I live in Willow]
((I LIVE IN WILLOW RIVER AND IT'S TOTALLY UNDER WATER. I WAS IN THE BASEMENT APARTMENT AND IT'S TOTALLY GONE, I LOST EVERYTHING EXCEPT MY CAT.)) [RUNS15]
[OUT Q=EXCEPT MY CAT].

The flood waters caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage. Ten people were killed and 26-hundred homes were damaged or destroyed.
Ten years ago high winds caused problems when what had been Hurricane Hugo blew through the area. Winds is excess of 50 miles an hour snapped trees and knocked down power lines. Highway workers stayed busy cleaning up; as soon as one tree was cleared another would fall. Homes were damaged. A mother and her three children had to leave their apartment when a tree fell on the roof of Brandon West Apartments. For other people, rising water was on their minds. Thomas Porter watched the Roanoke River come over its banks.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 89-61 31:17]
[IN Q=when you look]
(()) [RUNS17]
[OUT Q=stay prepared]

At the height of the storm 90-thousand Appalachian Power Customers were left in the dark.
Though we were spared the brunt of Hurricane Floyd, Southwest Virginia has plenty of reminders of Mother Natures wrath. That's Virginia Newsreel, I'm Keith Humphry.))

[Sports-Plays]

[ANCHOR=Denise]
[NEWSCAST=Sun AM]
[WRITER=dal]
[TAPE#=sports plays]
[GRAPHIC=boxing]

Felix Trinidad won the battle of the unbeaten and the welterweight unification title over Oscar De La Hoya.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Las Vegas, NV;]

Trinidad fought back from a slow start to take control in the late rounds with rights that appeared to take a toll
on a tiring De La Hoya.
It was a close fight, one judge had Trinidad ahead by two, another had him one over De La Hoya.
[super=03-Gainsville, FL/CBS Sports;]

Fourth-ranked Florida paid back second-ranked Tennessee for beating the Gators last year with a 23-to-21 victory last night in Gainesville.
The Gators overcame five turnovers to win their 30th straight home game.
Doug Johnson tossed a couple T-D passes.
The teams combined for 25 penalties with each team penalized more than 100 yards.
The Gators improved to 3-and-0. Tennessee is 1-and-1.
(------------)

[Tenn-Fla]

[ANCHOR=Eric]
[NEWSCAST=11]
[WRITER=ejo]
[TAPE#=99-34 48:46]
[GRAPHIC=College Football]

The big game brought Volunteer and Gator fans together in the same building.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke Co.]

This is what it was like at the Big Lick Public House last night.
On one floor, devoted Florida fans, who got some of the first chances to whoop it up.
But it wasn't long before Tennessee supporters just above got their chance.
The Tennessee crowd didn't have the upper hand by game's end, but they did have the upper floor.
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[SOT]
[IN Q=The Tennessee fans]
[SUPER=01-John Starnes/Tennessee Class of '58; :00]
[SUPER=01-Kevin Myers/Bartender-Manager; :10]
[RUNS=:16]
[OUT Q=have a good time.]

[Church-Shooting]

[ANCHOR=Denise]
[NEWSCAST=Sun AM]
[WRITER=dal]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]

Church services continue today for the 7 victims of Wednesday's church shooting in Fort Worth, Texas.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Fort Worth, TX;]
Yesterday, mourners packed funeral services for four of the victims.
Seventeen-year-old Justin Ray was a devoted Boy Scout who had developed an interest in the audiovisual arts and wanted to pursue a career in film and sound production.
Both Shawn Brown and Susan Jones were 23 years old and eulogized with laughter and tears.
A bagpipe led the funeral procession for 36-year-old Sydney Browning, a children's choir director.
(------------)

[11Prison-Break]

[ANCHOR=Denise]
[NEWSCAST=sun Am]
[WRITER=jda]
[TAPE#=99-29 1:03:49]
[GRAPHIC=News7 at 11]

The search is on for an inmate from the Augusta Correctional Center, who disappeared from the state prison Friday morning. Eric Earnhart has more.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=OPENS ON NAT SOUND]
[SUPER=03-Augusta Co.; :02]
[SUPER=01-Debbie Swisher/Operations Officer; :27]
[RUNS=1:03]
[OUT Q=E E News 7.]
(([OPENS ON NAT SOUND OF GUARD YELLING "HEEL"]
[IN Q=]
[RUNS:02]
[OUT Q=]

Guards and their tracking dogs searched for a scent outside of the prison's fences, while others continued the hunt inside the correctional center near Craigsville.
They were looking for 38- year- old Anthony Lee Belcher, an inmate serving a 12- year- sentence for statutory burglary, grand larceny, escape, and assault.
Guards were unable to account for Belcher during an inmate count, at 11 o'clock Friday morning... They have no idea how he may have escaped.
[SOT O3:05:04]
[IN Q=Since then we have State Police]
((DEBBIE SWISHER/OPERATIONS OFFICER: SINCE THEN WE HAVE STATE POLICE, THE AUGUSTA COUNTY SHERIFFS DEPARTMENT, SEVERAL OF THE LOCAL CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES HAVE SENT ADDITIONAL STAFF. WE HAVE OUR CANINE UNITS, AND THE SEARCH IS ON-GOING, AND WILL CONTINUE TO BE SO UNTIL WE APPREHEND OR FIND WHERE THIS INDIVIDUAL IS.)) [RUNS:20]
[OUT Q=where the individual is.]

The prison has been open since November of 1985. This would be the first successful escape.
Authorities are asking anyone with information on Belcher's whereabouts to call the Augusta Correctional Center or the Virginia State Police. EE News 7))

[11NW-Neighborhood]

[ANCHOR=denise]
[NEWSCAST=Sat am]
[WRITER=jda]
[TAPE#=99-32 56:46]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Residents of a Roanoke neighborhood celebrated their success... and encouraged other families to join them.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=It's a quiet neighborhood]
((PEARLINE TANNER/GILMER AVE. RESIDENT: I'M ENJOYING IT. IT'S A QUIET NEIGHBORHOOD. CLEAN NEIGHBORHOOD. WE TRY TO KEEP IT CLEAN. AND A PEACEFUL NEIGHBORHOOD.))
[SUPER=01-Pearline Tanner/Gilmer Ave. Resident;]
[RUNS=:08]
[OUT Q=a peaceful neighborhood.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke]

Pearline (purr-leen) Tanner has lived on Gilmer Avenue for two years, and says she's hopeful that others will make their home in the Gilmer- Loudon neighborhood.
The Northwest Neighborhood Environmental Organization has been working for almost twenty years to revitalize the area, and provide affordable housing. The group's efforts are paying off.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT ]
[IN Q=Right now we have about]
((RIGHT NOW WE HAVE ABOUT 29 HOMES THAT ARE AVAILABLE FOR RENT AND SALE, AND WE FEEL THAT BY ALLOWING PEOPLE TO COME INTO THIS NEIGHBORHOOD AND LOOK AT SOME OF THE HOUSES THAT WE BUILT THEY WILL FEEL BETTER ABOUT INNER CITY LIVING AND THEY WILL BE ATTRACTED TO LIVE IN THIS COMMUNITY.))
[SUPER=01-Susheela Shende/NNEO Executive Director;]
[RUNS=:18]
[OUT Q=live in this community.]
(----------)
[ANCHOR=denise]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Yesterday's event included a neighborhood tour and open house. Organizers say they are trying to fight stereotypes about affordable housing, and the quality of life in Roanoke's inner city neighborhoods.

[11Road-Safety]

[ANCHOR=Denise]
[NEWSCAST=Sun Am]
[WRITER=jda]
[TAPE#=99-30 1:28:29]
[GRAPHIC=Highway Safety]

The focus was on highway safety in Salem, as a group of Roanoke Valley truck drivers fired up a friendly competition.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Salem]

The 15th Truck Safety Roadeo brought 45 drivers to Salem High School, where they negotiated a written test and a challenging road course.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 07:23]
[IN Q=What our drivers do]
((WHAT OUR DRIVERS DO IS COME OUT AND PRACTICE THEIR PROFESSIONALISM, SHOW HOW THEY DRIVE THROUGH THE COURSE SAFELY WITHOUT HITTING THE BARRICADES.))
[SUPER=01-Tim Fitzgerald/Truck Safety Roadeo; ]
[RUNS=:09]
[OUT Q=without hitting the barricades.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

The annual event is sponsored by the Safety Council of Southwest Virginia and Volvo Trucks.
(------------)

[Business-Review]

[ANCHOR=Eric]
[NEWSCAST=]
[WRITER=sgo]
[TAPE#=Business Review]
[GRAPHIC=Business Week in review]

Rubatex union workers walk the walk ... but won't talk to anyone.
And another apparel company takes another big hit.
Scott Goldberg has those stories and more in this week's News-7 Business Review.
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[SOT]
[IN Q=music/animation]
[SUPER=03-Bedford; :01]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke; :22]
[SUPER=03-Hillsville/File Tape; :32]
[SUPER=04-File Tape; :46]
[SUPER=03-Christiansburg; :58]
[RUNS=1:26]
[OUT Q=i'm sg]
[NOTHING ON CHROMAKEY THIS WEEK] [99-43 at 8:47] (( This week on the Review:
Rubatex says there's a seat reserved at the bargaining table ... should striking Steelworkers accept the invitation to sit down.
The union refuses to say why its members won't work.
Contract talks have been dead for a week. [99-24 at 2:03:40]
In Roanoke, Valley Metro drivers approved a new contract.
And THEY talked about it.
Their new deal raises pay and provides better medical benefits.
The contract's good through June 2002. [98-26 at 1:05:15]
Another bundle of jobs going south from the apparel company that closed six plants last year, including one in Hillsville.
Bassett Walker will shut down sewing facilities in Brookneal and in North Carolina...
sending another 400 jobs to Mexico. [trains]
Norfolk Southern is taking the town of Marion to court.
Town council passed an ordinance banning train whistles at night unless it's an emergency.
N-S says accident rates skyrocket when whistle bans are enforced. [99-29 at 1:00:07]
First a free-trade zone at the airport in Dublin, now an International Trade Association.
New River Valley business leaders formed the group this week.
They say it's another step toward putting small Virginia towns on the big map of international trade. [DOW JONES PRE PRO]
It was a losing week on Wall Street.
The Dow dropped 225 points, closing at 10-thousand, 803.
The Nasdaq lost 17.
That's this week's Review.
I'm Scott Goldberg.
(------------)))

[60-Minutes]

[ANCHOR=Denise]
[NEWSCAST=Sun AM]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=None]
Imagine a public school whose students study 12 hours a day, six days a week and get only a month off in the summer. The school is called KIPP - or the "Knowledge is Power Program" . It's making a huge difference for formerly poor scoring students who are now being offered scholarships to the country's finest prep schools. Here's Mike Wallace with a preview of tonight's 60-minutes .

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[SOT -10:22:18 10NA - Friday Sports Copy]
[IN Q=There are no]
[RUNS=33]
[OUT Q=anything they want to do]
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[ANCHOR=Denise]
[SS=None]

That story and more on 60 Minutes tonight at seven here on your Hometown Station.

[Profile-Open]

[ANCHOR=Andrew]
[NEWSCAST=sun Am]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=Profile]
[GRAPHIC=VA Profiles]

They're big, bad birds, but for one Southside man, they're ideal farm animals.
Marya Jones talks to Tony King... Pittsylvania County's original ostrich farmer ... about the perks -- and perils -- of raising some BIG birds.

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[RUNS=:05]
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[WIPE WIPE WIPE WIPE WIPE]

[Va-Profile]

[ANCHOR=Andrew]
[NEWSCAST=Sun Am]
[WRITER=mjo]
[TAPE#=VA-Profiles]
[GRAPHIC=wipe wipe]

[wipe wipe wipe]

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[SOT]
[IN Q=As Virginia farmers go,]
[SUPER=03-Pittsylvania Co.; :00]
[SUPER=01-Tony King/Ostrich Farmer; :19]
[SUPER=01-Courtney Foster/King's Daughter; 1:20]
[RUNS=1:39]
[OUT Q=MJN7, Pittsylvania County.]

(( As Virginia farmers go, you might say Tony King is a rare bird.
[NATSOT 56:56:30 - :33]
((NATSOT TONY KING: SEE, THEY'RE JUST PECKING AT ME RIGHT NOW, BUT IT DOESN'T HURT.))
[RUNS:03]
He started one of the first ostrich farms in the state eight years ago and now raises about 100 of the birds on his farm.
But at 6-feet, 300-pounds, his fine, feathered friends aren't so friendly.
[SOT 1:17:50 - 1:18:04]
((TONY KING: BY AND FAR, THEY'RE NOT HAPPY TO SEE ME. DURING BREEDING SEASON, THEY'RE VERY AGGRESSIVE, THEY COME UP AND KICK THE FENCE. I'M THE ONE THAT'S FED THEM ALL THESE YEARS AND THEY DON'T APPRECIATE IT.)) [RUNS:14]
An ostrich stepped on him and broke his ankle last month.
But he doesn't hold that against them.
Afterall, ostriches are the backbone of his unusual business venture.
[NATSOT 59:37 - :40]
((NATSOT TONY KING: OH, HE'S A STRUTTER, TOO, LOOK AT HIM. HE'S SHOWING OFF.))
[RUNS:03]
The birds live 70 to 90 years and can lay up to 100 eggs a year. King says that makes them a much better long-term investment than other livestock, like cows. [1:24:33 - :35] ((TONY KING: THEY'RE A LOW-MAINTENANCE BIRD.)) [RUNS:02]
King breeds, incubates and hatches them right on his farm. And those that he doesn't keep, end up as ostrich burgers or steaks.
But it doesn't end there... he has a store in Gretna...where he sells ostrich leather goods... boots, purses, hats and saddles.
The business has become a family affair. His daughter, Courtney, works in the store.
[SOT 1:34:04 - :15]
((COURTNEY FOSTER/KING'S DAUGHTER: ALL MY FRIENDS AT SCHOOL THOUGHT "HE'S CRAZY." AND I DID TOO. BUT HE ALWAYS MAKES THINGS WORK SOMEHOW. SO, WE ALL HAD KIND OF FAITH IN HIM. )) [RUNS:11]
Tony King says he has faith that it will only be a matter of time before Virginians flock to buy ostrich goods.

[COVER WITH BIRDS sot 1:12:58 - :59]
Marya Jones, News 7, Pittyslvania County. ))((KING: IT'S HERE TO STAY.))