These are the school closings that have been reported to Now Habersham. Check back here for updates.
Banks County Schools – School from Home Day
Barrow County Schools
Clarke County Schools – At Home Learning Day
Gwinnett County Schools – Digital Learning Day
Jackson County Schools
Madison County Schools – Independent Learning Day
Air travel is returning to normal after winter weather disrupted flights at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. The storm, which brought snow and ice to the Southeast from Houston, Texas, to Georgia, caused over 1,400 flight delays and cancellations in Atlanta.
Historic amounts of snow and ice snarled road travel across the state on Wednesday, Jan. 22. Some South Georgia locations reported six to nine inches.
Snow fell in central Georgia, including Macon, which hasn’t seen snow in seven years. The same is true for Savannah, where some residents decided to make the most of the city’s snowfall by sledding kids down quiet streets. Beach scenes turned into snowscapes in the coastal Georgia city.
Meanwhile, South Georgia’s Crisp County may have set a new snowfall record on Tuesday, Jan. 21. Crisp County Sheriff Billy Hancock reported that his department measured seven inches of snow in Cordele just before midnight.
This article appears on Now Habersham in partnership with GPB News
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House Wednesday passed legislation that greatly expands mandatory detention requirements of immigrants charged and arrested on petty crimes, among other crimes.
In a 263-156 vote, 46 House Democrats voted with Republicans to send the bill, S. 5, to President Donald Trump’s desk to be signed into law. The passage of the measure gave Trump — who campaigned on an immigration crackdown and promised mass deportations — an early victory for a president not even a full week into his second term.
The GOP-led bill is named after 22-year-old Georgia nursing student Laken Riley. The man convicted in her murder was said by immigration officials to have entered the country without proper authorization and was later charged in the United States with shoplifting.
“I am proud the Laken Riley Act will be the very first landmark bill President Trump signs into law, and it is proof that President Trump and the Republican Senate Majority stand ready to come turn promises made into promises kept,” Alabama GOP Sen. Katie Britt, who led the bill, said in a statement.
Many immigration attorneys and advocates have argued the passage of the bill will help fuel Trump’s promise of mass deportations, because it would require mandatory detention of immigrants without the ability for an immigration judge to grant bond.
Additionally, there is no carve-out for immigrant children in the bill, meaning if they are accused or charged with shoplifting, the bill would require them to be detained.
And while the bill aims to target immigrants who are in the country without proper legal authorization, immigration attorneys have argued that some immigrants with legal status could be ensnared as well.
Another concerning provision pointed to by some Democrats and immigration attorneys is the broad legal standing the bill gives state attorneys general to challenge federal immigration policy and the bond decisions from immigration judges.
That same authority could also force the secretary of state to halt the issuing of visas on the international stage.
There’s also the issue of resources. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement estimated the cost of enforcing the law would be at least $26.9 billion in its first year, according to NPR. The budget for ICE for fiscal year 2024 is about $9 billion.
Twelve Senate Democrats joined with Republicans to pass the bill out of the upper chamber on Monday. The House already passed the bill earlier this month, but because amendments were added to the measure in the Senate, it went back to the House for final passage.
Those Senate Democrats included Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, Ruben Gallego and Mark Kelly of Arizona, Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock of Georgia, Gary Peters and Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, Jacky Rosen of Nevada and Mark Warner of Virginia.
A majority of those Senate Democrats are up for reelection in 2026 or hail from a battleground state that Trump won in November.
Senators also agreed to attach two amendments to the bill that expand the mandatory detention requirements even further.
One amendment by Texas GOP Sen. John Cornyn requires mandatory detention for assault of a law enforcement officer. Another from Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa includes mandatory detention requirements to apply to the serious harm or death of a person.
Geraldine Marie True, age 76, of Mt. Airy, Georgia, went home to be with the Lord on Sunday, December 22, 2024.
Ms. True was born on July 22, 1948, in Waterbury, Connecticut, to the late Gerard R. Gibeault and Irene M. Albert Gibeault. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her sister, Ruth Solla.
Geraldine spent her life serving others as a Registered Nurse, dedicating decades to the medical field. Her compassion and gentle touch left a lasting impression on the countless patients she cared for throughout her career. Geraldine was of the Catholic Faith. Outside of her work, Geraldine found joy in life’s simple but meaningful pleasures. She enjoyed sewing, creating cherished keepsakes for her loved ones. A gifted cook, her kitchen was always filled with the comforting aromas of her home-cooked meals and her signature homemade candies. Geraldine was affectionately known as “Grammy” and “Grandma” to her beloved grandchildren, who were the light of her life.
Survivors include her son, Jarett True, of Las Vegas, NV; son and daughter-in-law, George and Roberta True, of Lawrenceville; son, David True, of Mt. Airy; brother, Raymond Gibeault. of Savannah; John Gibeault, of Stafford Springs, CT; sister, Linda Gibeault, of Savannah; grandchildren, Dylan True and Natalie True.
Memorial Services will be held at 2:00 p.m., Friday, January 24, 2025, at the Whitfield Funeral Home, North Chapel, with Rev. John Graham officiating.
The family will receive friends from 12:00 p.m. to 1:45 p.m., Friday, January 24, 2025, at the funeral home prior to the service.
Arrangements have been entrusted to the Whitfield Funeral Home, North Chapel at 245 Central Avenue, Demorest, Georgia 30535. Telephone: 706-778-1700.
(Cleveland) — The White County Coroner’s Office has released the name of the person killed in a residential fire this past Saturday. White County Deputy Coroner Josh Barrett said 76-year-old Frances Sutton died as a result of the fire on Tom Bell Road at McGee Drive.
The fire was reported at 5.52 on Saturday, January 18.
Arriving White County Fire Service crews initiated an aggressive search for an entrapped individual while subsequent arriving units worked to suppress the fire and support search operations.
Bryce Barrett, White County Public Safety spokesperson said, “The entrapped individual was located inside the structure but had succumbed to their injuries.
The coroner’s office withheld releasing the victim’s name until positive identification could be made.
The State Fire Marshal’s office is conducting an exhaustive investigation of the blaze. No additional information is available from the fire marshal’s office.
Two positive cases of rabies have been reported in North Georgia, according to District 2 Public Health.
The first was found on Jan. 8 in a raccoon in Franklin County that tested positive after the animal is believed to have exposed a canine to the virus.
A second case was reported on Jan. 13 in Dawson County, where a raccoon tested positive and exposed two dogs and their owner to the virus.
Although preventable, rabies is a serious and potentially fatal virus that primarily affects wild mammals such as raccoons, skunks, bats and foxes in Georgia. The virus can also spread to other animals like pets, livestock and humans through bites, scratches or contact with the saliva of an infected animal.
Once contracted, rabies can travel to the brain and cause inflammation that is almost always fatal once symptoms appear. Rabies is treatable if immediate medical attention is sought after exposure.
Public health officials urge North Georgians to take precautions to prevent rabies such as vaccinating pets, avoiding contact with wild animals and seeking immediate medical care if bitten or scratched by an animal.
WASHINGTON (States Newsroom) — President Donald Trump Wednesday invoked an executive order he signed on his first day in office to send 1,500 military troops to the southern border, despite encounters at the U.S.-Mexico border being the lowest in several years.
“President Trump is sending a very strong message to people around this world – if you are thinking about breaking the laws of the United States of America, you will be returned home. You will be arrested. You will be prosecuted,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters, according to pool reports.
While Leavitt said 1,500 troops would be sent, she did not specify from where or when they would arrive at the border.
The comments by Leavitt followed a flurry of immigration-related orders that Trump signed on his first day in office cracking down on immigration in multiple ways.
One declared a national emergency at the southern border that outlined military support would be deployed “through the provision of appropriate detention space, transportation (including aircraft), and other logistics services in support of civilian-controlled law enforcement operations.”
Other orders, some of which are already facing legal challenges, include the end of asylum and the move to end birthright citizenship for immigrants in the country without authorization, among other stipulations.
It’s not the first time an administration has sent U.S. military to the southern border. The Biden administration did so in 2023 amid high encounters of migrants. In fiscal year 2023, there were about 2.5 million encounters, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data.
Troops largely handle administrative work rather than law enforcement work due to the Posse Comitatus Act, which bars the U.S. military from performing civilian law enforcement duties.
However, that could change.
A separate executive order Trump signed Monday directs the secretaries of the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Defense to evaluate within 90 days if the Insurrection Act should be invoked, which allows military action to be used in civilian law domestically.
The troops heading to the southern border will be doing so at a relatively quiet time period, as the most recent CBP data in December showed 96,000 encounters, compared to the December of fiscal year 2023, when there were 252,000 encounters.
A potentially tragic situation took a positive turn early Wednesday morning when deputies from the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office located an elderly woman who had gone for an overnight walk before she fell in the woods, where she was stranded for hours.
Authorities say family members discovered that a relative – a woman in her late 90s who lives alone – had left home for a walk around 1:30 a.m. Wednesday morning. She started out onto Goshen Mountain Road in the Batesville community, dressed in thin pants, a puffer coat and shoes.
Concerned, the family contacted authorities and deputies from the Habersham County Sheriff’s Office, along with units from Habersham County Emergency Services, immediately responded to the area.
Searchers requested a bloodhound from the Banks County Sheriff’s Office and a drone from Habersham County Emergency Services. Before they arrived, a deputy located the missing woman.
It was around 5 a.m. when Habersham County Deputy Justin McClain found the woman alive, conscious, and responsive. Her clothing – the pants in particular – pulled the deputy’s attention as he passed the area in his vehicle a second time.
She was located 50 yards down the road from her home in a wooded area. Authorities say the woman had fallen and was lying in the woods for several hours. The temperature was just 12 degrees.
“There was about 15 to 20 feet of grass, then woods and she was over in the wood-line,” Lt. Matt Wurtz said. “Her pants caught his eye. He had already ridden by a couple of times. She was alert, conscious, and breathing but very cold.”
The woman, who has not been identified, was transported by ambulance to Northeast Georgia Medical Center Habersham for treatment.
A fire destroyed Sweet Acres Winery in Alto on Jan. 22, according to Hall County Fire Rescue officials.
Hall County Fire Rescue responded to reports of a commercial fire at the winery on Bill Wilson Road just after 1 p.m. Wednesday. Multiple agencies arrived on scene and found a three-story commercial building engulfed in flames.
Engines on the scene deployed water onto the blaze and the surrounding area to prevent its spread. However, with limited water access at the location, HCFR Public Information Officer Kimberlie Ledsinger says a tanker from the Habersham County Fire Department arrived to assist with suppression efforts.
While the flames were eventually contained, fire crews remained on scene to monitor the structure and extinguish remaining hot spots.
Authorities say the building was unoccupied prior to the incident, and there were no injuries reported. The cause of the fire is still unknown as the Hall County Fire Marshal’s Office conducts an investigation.
The Sweet Acres Winery website describes the business as a “small family farm” and Hall County’s “first winery.”
It all began when a neighbor of his Aunt Isabell Lumsden asked him about his interests. At the time, John Lumsden and his wife of 43 years, Kay, were young, newly married, and building a home in Sautee. Chief Lumsden shared that he loved the outdoors and adventure, which led the neighbor to invite him to a meeting on a Thursday night, not telling him what the meeting was about. He went, signed the dotted line to become a volunteer firefighter, and as they say, the rest is history.
For 32 years, Fire Battalion Chief John Lumsden has dedicated his time and efforts to serving the people of White County as a volunteer firefighter. His commitment to public service is deeply rooted in his family’s legacy of service. His grandfather worked as a postal carrier using a horse and buggy. Over his thirty-plus years delivering the mail, he only missed two days—one of which was due to snow. “He had spikes put on his horse’s shoes! I guess you could say it was the first snow tires!” Chief Lumsden laughs as he recalls.
His father, Dr. Tom Lumsden, was a respected physician in Northeast Georgia. “My father taught me that sometimes when people are struggling, there’s not much you can do for them except be there and care about what’s happening,” he reflected.
That lesson has guided Chief Lumsden throughout his career.
He fondly remembers the community events, like the “Pig-Out” fundraiser, where neighbors came together for bluegrass music and smoked meats. It was always held the Saturday before Memorial Day and raised crucial funds for the fire station.
Chief Lumsden has always valued the importance of continuous learning. “When I’m around someone who thinks they know everything, that’s someone I want to stay clear of,” he said, emphasizing his commitment to growth.
His wife Kay has been his biggest supporter throughout his journey. “I couldn’t have done all this without her,” Chief Lumsden shared. The couple has two children, Jesse (29) and Avery (27). Jesse has followed in his father’s footsteps, working in wildland fire services.
Throughout his long career, Chief Lumsden has faced difficult calls without happy endings. “It’s always tough when tragedy strikes anyone, but I’ve made it my practice to do the best I can with what I have and let people know that I am there for them,” he said.
White County Fire Services will celebrate Battalion Chief John Lumsden’s retirement on January 23 at 6 p.m. at White County Fire Station 3, located at 33 Garland Bristol Rd., Sautee, Georgia. The community is invited to honor his 32 years of volunteer service to the county.
White County Fire Services welcomes friends, co-workers, and former colleagues to gather and celebrate Chief Lumsden’s contributions to both the fire service and the community.
Currently, Chief Lumsden has been working as the Director of Facilities at Rabun Gap Naccoochee Valley School for the past six years.
John Lumsden made his final call on January 1, 2025. After 32 years of dedicated service, his “10-7” out-of-service call was received by dispatch and colleagues who had worked alongside him for so long, helping those in need.
“Battalion Chief John Lumsden, out-of-service.”
There are people who dedicate their lives to making a difference in their community, and Battalion Chief John Lumsden is one of those people who has certainly made his mark.
RELATED: Retirement reception Jan. 23 for Battalion Chief John Lumsden
First responders blocked a portion of Tommy Irvin Road earlier today after a residential fire at a 2,000-square-foot Mt. Airy home.
Multiple agencies responded at 11:19 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 22, to find the fire in the basement of the home, according to Habersham County spokesperson Rob Moore. Moore said no injuries occurred during the blaze, which has since been extinguished.
Authorities say most of the damage was limited to the basement of the structure, with minor extension to an upstairs bathroom.
“We were able to locate the source of the fire pretty quickly and get a knockdown on it,” Habersham County Emergency Services Battalion Chief Dwight McNally said. “No injuries at the scene and everyone was out of the house at the time we
arrived on scene, so we were fortunate for that.”
The cause of the fire is under investigation, according to Moore, though officials believe it started in the basement.
All of the cities of Habersham County have scheduled a joint public meeting to discuss the effects of HB 581 on their communities. City leaders will not only discuss the effect of the bill but whether to stay in or opt out.
The meeting will take place in Cornelia at the Community House on January 22. Phil Sutton from Sutton Consulting, LLC will be providing a presentation and answering questions that may arise during the meeting.
All of the cities have said that they may have a quorum of their council or commission present, indicating that they may take a vote during the meeting. Habersham County Manager Tim Sims stated that the county will have representatives at the meeting but probably not a quorum of the commissioners.
“The County’s vote is really a moot point since we already have a floating homestead exemption in place which already meets the requirement of HB 581,” Sims said. “We do want to show our solidarity with the rest of the municipalities, however, and will do what we can to support this meeting,” he added.
The reason for the meeting is for the cities to understand where each stands as it relates to opting out of the law. If a city opts out, property owners in that city will not receive the tax relief intended by the law. Also, if any one city opts out, the county can not move forward with placing a referendum on the ballot later this year for a new sales and use tax called FLOST, Flexible Local Option Sales Tax.
The new tax can only be used for property tax relief in the form of a millage rate rollback, if approved by the voters.
In November, 65% of Habersham County voters approved the statewide referendum for property tax relief provided by HB 581.
The joint city public meeting will be held Wednesday, January 22, at 5:30 p.m. in the Cornelia Community House located at 601 Wyly Street in Cornelia.
