Town wants PD re-established
GARLAND — After a decision was made to bring back a police department, town officials are now waiting to get the blessing of state and federal officials.
Consultant Bobby Kinlaw, the former Elizabethtown police chief, made a presentation to the board of commissioners Sept. 13 after which commissioners passed the favorable resolution. The decision followed several months of work to start a new police department after ending ties with the Sampson County Sheriff’s Office.
The resolution will be sent to state agencies before it’s sent to the FBI and other organizations to move forward.
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School bus bursts into flames
FAYETTEVILLE — A quick-thinking Fayetteville school bus driver is being called a hero after she noticed smoke and got 15 middle-school students off the bus before it became engulfed in flames Wednesday.
It happened about 3 p.m., at the intersection of Bingham Drive and Bailey Lake Road in Fayetteville.
The students were from 71st Classical Middle School.
When fire crews arrived, they found heavy fire and thick black smoke showing from School Bus 194.
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Rabid cat caught in Robeson County
LUMBERTON — A rabid cat has been captured in Lumberton, according to the Robeson County Health Department.
The black, male cat was located near the intersection of 18th and Walnut streets on Wednesday, Bill Smith, Robeson County Health Director, said in a statement. On Thursday, the Robeson County Health Department was notified that the cat had tested positive for rabies.
This is the fourth case of rabies in Robeson County in 2016, but the first that was not a wild animal, Smith said.
Anyone that sees an animal demonstrating unusual behavior is urged to contact Robeson County Animal Control at 910-865-2200.
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Child found, sex offender charged
WILMINGTON — A 6-year-old girl who was the subject of an Amber Alert in North Carolina has been found, and a registered sex offender has been charged with kidnapping.
New Hanover County Sheriff Ed McMahon said at a news conference that the girl was found Thursday morning in Wilmington, in woods about two miles from her home.
The sheriff identified the suspect as 46-year-old Douglas Edwards. Media outlets reported that charges of indecent liberties with a child were added Thursday afternoon.
McMahon said the child was doing well a day after she had been reported missing from the mobile home park in Wilmington where she lives.