News Near You for Nov. 28

NEWS NEAR YOU

Petersburg A Hopewell mother whose son died in an accidental shooting three years ago will host a gun-safety event today in memory of her child. Volunteers and local law-enforcement officials will help Heather Jiggetts distribute several thousand donated gun-safety locks outside The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at 1800 Johnson Ave in Petersburg from

Bowling Green A State Fair of Virginia survey shows that the event attracted an older crowd at its new location this year. State Fair President Curry Roberts shared some of results of the survey this week at a meeting of the Caroline County Board of Supervisors. The questionnaire was given at random to some of the 248,000 who attended the 11-day fair in Caroline this fall. Roberts said the results show an increase in fairgoers ages 45 and older, and a decrease in those ages 12 to 17. The major concerns were traffic and parking, which Roberts said will be a priority for improvement next year.

Richmond Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and first lady Anne Holton plan to help light the official Capitol Christmas tree on Friday. After the lighting of the tree, the governor and first lady will receive guests at the Executive Mansion during an open house.

AROUND THE STATE

Amherst Virginia Tech's Seismological Observatory says a small earthquake that struck central Virginia prompted numerous reports of weak to light shaking but didn't cause any damage. The observatory and the U.S. Geological Survey say the 2.7 magnitude quake occurred at 5:24 p.m. Wednesday. The epicenter was about 10 miles east of Amherst. Amherst County Public Safety Director Gary Roakes says some residents reported pictures falling from walls, and there was one report of a roof gutter falling. Some residents in Nelson County also reported shaking. Seismological Observatory Director Martin Chapman says earthquakes of this size are routine in Virginia.

McLean Five members of Virginia's congressional delegation are calling for sound walls to be installed along portions of the Dulles rail corridor to shield residents from the noise of a new Metro line. U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Jim Webb, both Democrats, have joined U.S. Reps. Frank R. Wolf, R-10th, James P. Moran,

Staunton Gov. Timothy M. Kaine will be on hand for the groundbreaking Tuesday of a new psychiatric hospital here. A new $125 million, 246-bed Western State Hospital is being built on a site adjacent to the current facility in Staunton. Western State Hospital opened in 1828, although the campus currently in use opened in 1950. At its height, the hospital had about 3,300 patients. Today, about 245 patients are treated there. The General Assembly has committed $110 million to the project, with the rest coming from the city of Staunton. The new facility is slated to open in 2013.

Radford Vultures again have descended on Radford, skulking over a school and a child-care center. Over the past five years, the city has seen hundreds of black and turkey vultures flock in trees and on homes. This year, the hunched birds are roosting on top of McHarg Elementary School and Radford Child Care and Preschool. Police fire what they call "bird bangers" to shoo the vultures. The birds are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The vultures are part of a flock that once lived at the Radford Army Ammunition Plant, which had one of the largest roosts east of the Mississippi River.