News Near You for Sept. 22

NEWS NEAR YOU

Hopewell The Hopewell City Council will hold a special meeting tonight in Council Chambers, 300 N. Main St. The open session starts at 7:30 p.m. and includes two public hearings on zoning amendment requests and a discussion of an ordinance on the personal property-tax rate.

Henrico An off-duty Henrico County patrol officer was charged with driving under the influence Sunday after running into the back of another vehicle on Interstate 64 near Gaskins Road, authorities said. Officer J.L. Crain, an eight-year veteran of the force, was involved in the wreck about 1:30 a.m., said police spokesman Lt. Doug Perry. Electronic court records show that Crain's blood-alcohol concentration was greater that 0.20 percent, more than twice the legal limit to drive, 0.08 percent. The driver of the car that Crain hit was treated for minor injuries at a hospital and released. Perry said Crain is "currently not working" as an officer, but personnel rules prohibited Perry from releasing further information about Crain's employment status.

Petersburg The Petersburg Police Department will hold a "Police and Community Together" meeting at 8:30 a.m. Saturday at Mount Olivet Baptist Church, 800 Augusta Ave. This is an opportunity to take a look at crime trends and strategies in crime reduction. To RSVP, call (804) 863-2703 by tomorrow.

Fort Lee Army chef and Sgt. Brad Turner, a New Orleans native, will be featured on the Food Network show "Throwdown!" with chef Bobby Flay tomorrow at 9 p.m. Turner, nicknamed "Grill Sergeant," has served as a chef in the Army for 19 years and has been executive chef at the Army Executive Dining Facility at the Pentagon. He's known for his barbecue chicken and potato salad, which are featured on the Food Network show. The episode was filmed at the Army Center of Excellence, Subsistence field-training site and features soldiers as audience members.

Petersburg The Disciplinary Committee of Petersburg City Public Schools will meet in closed session for student disciplinary hearings today, tomorrow and Thursday. All meetings will begin at 6 p.m. and will be held at the school system administration office, 255 S. Boulevard East.

AROUND THE STATE

Norfolk The USS Bainbridge crew received a hero's welcome yesterday as the guided-missile destroyer returned to Norfolk Naval Station from a deployment that included the dramatic rescue of an American ship captain held by pirates off Africa.

Blacksburg Virginia Tech plans to test its alert system for the Blacksburg campus on Oct. 1. The full-scale test of the VT Alerts system will include messages sent to the school's home page and electronic message boards in classrooms, sirens and loudspeakers, phone calls and text messages, and alerts sent to computers. Virginia Tech expanded its emergency-notification system after the April 2007 massacre in which 32 people were killed.

Portsmouth The Coast Guard says two Chesapeake boaters reported missing over the weekend have returned to shore safe and sound. Petty Officer Andy Kendrick says Kenneth Johnnie Guithues and Billie Jo Harris returned to the Jordan boat ramp on the Elizabeth River on Sunday afternoon. Kendrick says the boaters encountered navigation problems Saturday and decided to spend the night on the water before heading back to shore Sunday.

Virginia Beach A group of senior citizens in Virginia Beach is selling a nearly nude pin-up calendar to raise money for the Princess Anne Courthouse Volunteer Rescue Squad. The "Pin-Up Boys of Atlantic Shores" calendar features nine men ages 69 to 90 wearing rolled-up shorts as they simulate nudity with strategically placed props. Calendars will be available for purchase at local retailers or at http://www.atlanticshores.com.

-- From Staff and Wire Reports