BRIEFS: NEWS NEAR YOU

NEWS NEAR YOU

Petersburg Third-grade students at Walnut Hill Elementary School, 300 W. South Blvd., will perform a holiday play, "The Incredible Reindeer," on Tuesday at the school. Performances will be at 2:20 p.m. and 6 p.m.

Henrico Marching bands from Highland Springs and Henrico high schools excelled at the Asymmetrix Entertainment National High Stepping Marching Band Competition held recently at North Carolina A&T University. The Highland Springs Marching Battalion placed second overall, and the Henrico Warrior Band won third place.

Richmond Thursday's record rainfall isn't expected to translate into any flooding along the James River in the Richmond area. The National Weather Service said Richmond got 2.62 inches of rain Thursday, well above the previous mark of 1.85 inches, set in 1960. The rain pushed the James River from about 4 feet at the Westham gauge to slightly over 7 feet last night on its way to an expected crest of 7.9 feet late this morning. Flood stage is 12 feet.

Hanover Two Hanover fire departments are having breakfasts with Santa today. The Hanover Courthouse Volunteer Fire Department and the Chickahominy Volunteer Fire Company will both have breakfast from 8 to 11 a.m. The cost at Hanover is $6 for adults, $3 for children 10 and younger. For details about that breakfast, call (804) 365-4905. At Chickahominy, it's $6 for adults, $3 for children ages 5 to 12, and children can get photos with Santa. For details there, call (804) 550-3473.

Chesterfield Chesterfield police are investigating the death of a person whose decomposed body was discovered yesterday in the 12000 block of Jefferson Davis Highway. Police said someone discovered the body at noon and called police. The cause of death will be determined following a forensic exam by the State Medical Examiner's Office, police said.

Henrico County police have arrested a teenager on charges of telephoning in a fake gun threat at Hermitage High School. Police said they arrested a 15-year-old on charges of making a false call to police and disorderly conduct in connection with Thursday's incident. The teen's identity was not released because of his age. Police said someone called Hermitage shortly before 3 p.m. to say someone had a gun at the school. The school was locked down for about 30 minutes while police searched, only to determine it was a false call.

Goochland The county's 2009 reassessment, nearly complete, indicates that real estate assessments are up 2.7 percent from 2008. Current numbers show that about 11 percent of properties will decline in value, 25 percent will hold steady and 64 percent will increase. There have been 24 foreclosures in the county in 2008, compared with 13 in 2007. Reassessment notices will be mailed Jan. 15.

AROUND THE STATE

Surry A second attempt to sell suspended NFL quarterback Michael Vick's former house and dogfighting compound in Surry County at auction failed yesterday. None of the prospective buyers produced the necessary 10 percent deposit, said Tim Dudley of Motley's Auction and Realty Group in Richmond. He said seven groups of would-be buyers showed up to bid on the five-bedroom house on 15 acres, for which the current owner wanted at least $590,000.

Newport News The Navy is scheduled to christen its sixth Virginia-class nuclear submarine today. The New Mexico is scheduled to be christened at 10 a.m. at Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding in Newport News. The Navy has a multibillion-dollar plan to replace Los Angeles-class submarines with 30 Virginia-class subs.