Starkville leaders discussing extending city’s leisure and recreation district

STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) – Starkville city leaders could be extending the city’s leisure and recreation district. The Board of Aldermen will consider calling for the first public hearing on moving the borders of the entertainment district from University Drive up to Collegeview Drive and Adkerson Place. In leisure and recreation districts patrons are allowed to have open containers of alcohol…

“Blue Flu” at Columbus PD has passed, officers back at work

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – The “Blue Flu” at the Columbus Police Department appears to have passed, for now. Police Chief Fred Shelton says the five officers that called in “sick” this past Friday returned to work over the weekend. Mayor Keith Gaskin told WCBI the organized call out was in response to working conditions and promotion within the department. Some…

Zachary’s hosts 4th annual fundraiser to support the Humane Society

Folks in the Friendly City are supporting their furry friends.

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – Zachary’s hosted their 4th annual St. Patrick’s Day Party. Zachary’s invited the community of Lowndes County to the restaurant to help support the Lowndes County Humane society. Folks in the Friendly City are supporting their furry friends. Zachary’s is kicking off the 4th annual St. Patrick’s Day Pawty to raise funds for the Lowndes County Humane…

Vernon man charged with elder abuse

LAMAR COUNTY,Ala. (WCBI)- A Lamar County jury returns a guilty verdict against a Vernon man charged with felony elder abuse. Vernon Police arrested 30-year-old Terrance Moore after a confrontation with a 70-year-old woman on July 11th back in 2020. Moore didn’t know the woman and he was parked in front of her house for half an hour that evening. The…

Adjusting to new normal: Business owners share pandemic concerns

Many if not all people felt the initial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic

WEST POINT, Miss. (WCBI)- The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was felt throughout the U.S.   On March 11, 2020; the World Health Organization declared COVID-19, the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2, a pandemic. From safety restrictions and finding other methods of serving the community, dozens started the shift in adjusting to a new normal. The virus impacted schools, businesses,…

High School students see real life medical scenarios as part of “Code Blue and Red” drill

The exercise is meant to spark an interest in the medical field among students

TUPELO, MISS. (WCBI) – Students from four area high schools got a chance to see real-life medical scenarios as part of a drill at the ICC Tupelo campus. The drill was called “Code Blue and Red” and it used ICC’s Health Science students to help simulate three scenarios,  a COVID patient, labor and delivery and a trauma accident. ICC’s President…

A fourth grade student writes book to stop bullying in schools

The fourth grader shows her class about the power in words. 

CLAY COUNTY,Miss. (WCBI)- It happens in classrooms, on the school bus, on the playground. Bullying. A student at West Clay Elementary is tacking the issue cover to cover. The fourth grader shows her class about the power in words. Classroom worksheets and recess, that’s the agenda for most students. But, there are some issues that go beyond the playground, like…

Students question their spring break plans as gas prices rise

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – Spring Break is almost here and students are getting ready to crank their cars up and head down the road. But the spike in gas prices has some students checking their wallets to see if they can stretch their cash enough to get to their destination. It’s the week students have been looking forward to since…

MDE investing millions of dollars into online health and safety platform

JACKSON, Miss. (WCBI) – The Mississippi Department of Education is investing millions of dollars to provide a web-based health and safety platform for school districts around the state. The platform will provide several features including surveillance cameras with the ability to detect crowd congestion, virtual tours of schools for situational awareness in schools, a mobile app for emergency notifications and…

Lowndes County inmate facing another charge after escaping custody

LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – A Lowndes County inmate is facing another charge after briefly escaping from custody. 42-year-old Bobby Joe Stafford Jr. was wanted for possession of stolen property. He’s now also charged with escape. Sheriff Eddie Hawkins says while Stafford being brought to Columbus from Monroe County he kicked out the window of a patrol vehicle. When the…

Oktibbeha county deputies make chase through Starkville

OKTIBBEHA COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – Oktibbeha deputies go to make a traffic stop but it ends in a chase through Starkville. 40-year-old Odell Robinson the third is charged with felony fleeing, tampering with evidence, and possession of marijuana with intent to distribute. Investigators tell WCBI that a K9 attempted to stop Robinson on Highway 12. The pursuit went out into…

Federal jury in Oxford convicts Louisiana man in child sex case

OXFORD, Miss. (WCBI) – A federal jury in Oxford convicts a Louisiana man in a child sex case that stretched from Gonzales, Louisiana to Monroe County. Ronald Joseph Latiolais the third has been found guilty of transporting a minor in interstate commerce with intent to engage in unlawful sexual activity. The charges stem back to April 2019 when the then…

Lowndes County narcotics agents make large drug bust

LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – Lowndes County narcotics agents make a large drug bust and complete a two-year investigation. Now, 45-year-old Antonio Cockrell is charged with possession of methamphetamine, along with trafficking meth, cocaine, and marijuana. He’s also charged with three counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and two counts of possession of a stolen firearm….

“Blue Flu” running through CPD after 5 officers call in sick

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – Five out of seven police officers called in sick today for their shift, leaving the city of Columbus without a full patrol force. This is an attention grabbing move according to one source, because these officers feel mis-treated within the department. Five officers with Columbus Police Department called work to say they weren’t coming in.. Those…

Vernon Milling training truck drivers to be more fuel-efficient amid record-high gas prices

VERNON, Ala. (WCBI) – The current gas crisis is having a dramatic effect on the trucking industry. Vernon Milling Company in Lamar County says roughly 39 percent of their operating costs go to fuel as their drivers deliver to customers from Oklahoma to Pennsylvania. “Usually I pick up down around Mobile, Alabama then I go to just north of Pittsburgh,…