2013 – Page 32 – The Mississippi Link

Elvis birthplace opens Elvis Week

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For the 13th year in a row, Les Horne of Oxford, England, began Elvis Week in Tupelo at the birthplace of Elvis Presley.

“Every year we come, it has gotten a little better,” Horne said.

Hundreds of fans from around the world were in Tupelo on Saturday for the 36th Fan Appreciation Day at the Elvis Presley Birthplace Park, The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reported.

This year, for the first time, entertainment and food were in an amphitheater and theater opened on the grounds last August. An evening concert by an Elvis impersonator was moved to the Civic Auditorium because rain threatened. […]

Jackson County to get $10 million from FEMA for dredging

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Jackson County is getting a multimillion-dollar boost from the federal government to help erase the effects of Hurricane Isaac last year.

The Sun Herald reported that the county will receive $10 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for dredging silt that Isaac swept into the mouths of bayous and channels. Matching money from the state and county will pay for an additional $4 million in dredging work.

County Board of Supervisors President Mike Mangum said the work could start in October and take about a year to complete.
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Man gets 10 years for exposing person to HIV

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A Meridian man has been sentenced for deliberately exposing someone to the HIV virus while he was a patient in the hospital. Judge Lester Williamson sentenced Laderrick Rencher, 37, to serve 10 years — the maximum sentence allowed for one count of knowingly exposing another person to HIV.

“Judge Williamson threw the book at this guy, who took advantage of a vulnerable person,” said Attorney General Jim Hood.

Williamson sentenced Rencher to the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC). He was also ordered to pay $630 in fines. […]

Greenwood man dies after falling in hotel pool

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A man who was found in a downtown Jackson hotel pool Friday night has died, WLBT reported.

According to Jackson Fire Department Chief Arson Investigator Greg Travis, the incident occurred just before 10 p.m. at the Marriott on Amite Street.

Authorities said 28-year-old Ben Johnson was pulled from the pool, but there is no indication as to how he fell in. Firefighters, AMR, and Jackson Police responded to the scene. […]

MDOT begins bridge project on Highway 80

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The Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) will be replacing a bridge on Highway 80 in Rankin County. Work will begin on Tuesday, Aug. 13 at 9 a.m. with an anticipated completion date of March 2014.

Traffic will be switched from the mainline of Highway 80 to a temporary detour located 0.85 miles west of the Scott and Rankin County Line as crews begin a bridge replacement project. […]

State officials report second West Nile Virus Death of 2013

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The Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) reported the second West Nile virus (WNV) death for 2013 last week, along with four new human cases. The death occurred in Bolivar County, and the new reported cases occurred in Forrest, Hinds and Rankin counties. These new reported cases bring the state total for 2013 to 12 cases, with two deaths.

The first death was an elderly man from Duck Hill in Montgomery County on July 2.

So far this year, cases have been reported in Forrest (3), Lincoln, Lowndes, Madison, Montgomery, Wayne, LeFlore, Bolivar, Hinds and Rankin counties. The MSDH only reports laboratory-confirmed cases to the public. In 2012, Mississippi had 247 WNV cases and five deaths. […]

Man dies after being shot in the leg

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A 38-year-old man is dead after authorities said he was shot while standing outside a residence Friday night. Morton Police said Marvin R. Thomas was shot once in the leg while talking to two men outside a home on Ratliff Street just after 6 p.m.

Morton Police Chief Nicky Crapps said Thomas ran back in the house and told those inside he’d been shot. He was transported to the emergency room at Scott Regional Hospital where he later died. […]

Rep: Jazz keyboardist George Duke dies at 67

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George Duke, the Grammy-winning jazz keyboardist and producer whose sound infused acoustic jazz, electronic jazz, funk, R&B and soul in a 40-year-plus career, has died. He was 67.

A representative for Duke said the performer died Monday night, Aug. 5, in Los Angeles. Duke was being treated for chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Duke’s son, Rashid, thanked his father’s fans in a statement Tuesday. […]

CSLC Summer Youth Program a huge success academically, enriching lives

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The Mississippi Link Newswire

LEXINGTON – As students head back to school across the state of Mississippi, 53 of them in Holmes County can say they had a fun and enriching summer that also enhanced their lives academically.

Recent raw data from pre- and post-tests administered during the Community Students Learning Center’s (CSLC) Summer Youth Program indicated that the majority of the students showed academic improvement in reading, math and language after the six-week summer program…. […]

Harrison county inmate dies in prison

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An inmate at the Harrison County jail died Monday after he started having difficulty breathing.

Sheriff Melvin Brisolara said Gregory Woodall, 50, began having problems around 7am. Once notified, the medical staff began CPR immediately.

Woodall was taken to Garden Park Medical Center where he was pronounced dead due to natural causes. Woodall was reportedly disabled. […]