Here’s a check of the latest from WataugaOnline.com.
A North Carolina State Highway Patrol trooper responded to a fatal head-on collision on US 421 at Mabel School Road in Zionville Monday morning at approximately 9:59 a.m. A Ford F250 driven by Henry Bontrager, 64, of Ellenboro, crossed the centerline while traveling north and collided head-on with a Hyundai Kona driven by Carol Geiger, 67, of Shady Valley, Tennessee. Geiger died at the scene; Bontrager was treated for minor injuries at Watauga Medical Center. Troopers say speed and impairment do not appear to be factors, and Bontrager has been charged with misdemeanor death by motor vehicle, careless and reckless driving, driving left of center, and driving with no operator’s license.
Boone Police have charged Tristan Joseph Schreiber, 29, of Lenoir, in connection with a hit-and-run collision that left two pedestrians with potentially life-threatening injuries on West King Street last week. The collision occurred Wednesday, September 23, at approximately 11:34 p.m. near 1358 West King Street, when a vehicle left the roadway and struck 20-year-old Joshua Dotson, of Vilas, and 29-year-old Deedra McCullough, of Boone, before leaving the scene. Both victims were transported to Watauga Medical Center. Investigators used vehicle debris recovered at the scene to identify and locate the driver. Schreiber has been charged with two counts of felony hit and run resulting in serious bodily injury and one count of failure to maintain lane control; he was taken to the Watauga County Detention Center with no bond set and is scheduled to appear in court November 25.
On the second anniversary of Hurricane Helene, volunteer members of Linville-Central Rescue Squad returned to the Elk River Falls area in Avery County to continue the search for Kim Ashby, who was swept from her home by floodwaters when the Elk River surged during the storm two years ago. Ashby’s body has not yet been recovered. Monday’s operation brought together squad volunteers trained in search and rescue, K9 handler teams certified in human remains detection, and members trained in swift water rescue. In the storm’s immediate aftermath, the all-volunteer squad performed 16 technical evacuations, 23 swift water rescues, 54 high water evacuations, 3 collapsed structure rescues, and more than 1,000 welfare checks. The squad asks that the community continue to keep Ashby’s family in their thoughts.
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— WataugaOnline