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Rockbridge Report •

New details emerge about police searches during W&L lockdown

Virginia State Police dispatched 17 troopers to four different sites as they investigated a threatening email sent to Washington and Lee University officials earlier this month.

The police searched the Kappa Sigma fraternity house, W&L’s campus, a downtown church and the Woods Creek Montessori school, according to a state police incident history report obtained by the Rockbridge Report via a Freedom of Information Act request.

W&L was on lockdown for nearly four hours Nov. 1 after receiving th
Rockbridge Report •

Wildfires ravage region, smoke blankets Rockbridge County

A large wildfire continues to grow four days after it broke out. People in Lexington, Buena Vista and Rockbridge County are feeling the effects of the smoky, heavy air that is making breathing difficult, especially for those with respiratory conditions. The “Matt’s Creek Wildfire” is spreading across much of the Jefferson National Forest. It has burned over 2,700 acres so far. Firefighters from across the country were called in and helicopters are being used to contain the flames. Weather expert
Rockbridge Report •

Red Hen is open … for now, closing planned for year end

Another centerpiece of Lexington’s downtown dining scene will close at the end of the year.

The Red Hen restaurant will undergo an overhaul and reopen at an undisclosed date. The owners wouldn’t offer many details, but said the restaurant will feature a new name and menu in the same little brick building on the corner of Washington and Randolph Streets.

The restaurant gained international notoriety in June 2018 when one of the owners kicked out White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sander
Rockbridge Report •

Lexington’s school board chair to leave after next meeting

Lexington City School Board chairman Tim Diette is leaving his post at the end of December.

Diette, an economics professor at Washington and Lee, has accepted a job as the Dean of the Faculty at Hampden Sydney College beginning in January.

His departure comes at a time of controversy on the board. Members have yet to agree on the best policy about book selection and removal in the wake of parents’ outrage over books some say are sexually explicit.

“The school board has important issues facing
Rockbridge Report •

Buena Vista School Board race remains too close to call, as 5 candidates vie for 3 seats

With two of three precincts reporting Tuesday night, newcomer Paula Charlton is leading the Buena Vista School Board race with 22.51 percent of votes cast. In second, Teresa Ellison has 21.04 percent of the votes and Wayne Flint has 20.43 percent.

Incumbent is Allen “Mac” Felts Jr. is only 18 votes behind Flint.

The race features five candidates who are facing off for three seats up for election: the three incumbents – Ellison, Felts and Flint – and a newcomer, Charlton. The fifth candidate, K
Rockbridge Report •

Rockbridge High faced shooting threat on top of bomb scare Oct. 10

New information uncovered by the Rockbridge Report shows that there was a shooting and bomb threat on Oct. 10. School officials have previously mentioned only a bomb threat. Students describe the day as chaotic as school officials through the cafeteria shouting “code red” because the school did not have a PA system. Also, some students were barricaded in their classrooms believing there was a school shooter. School officials maintain that all students and staff were evacuated in a calm manner.
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