Severe thunderstorms raked Jackson, Banks, Barrow and Madison counties Friday night. One fire was reported in the North Jackson area due to a lightening strike.

The threat of river flooding in Jackson County appears to have diminished Sunday morning as the Middle Oconee River is now predicted not to exceed flood stage. The river was at 11.9 ft. Sunday morning and is predicted to drop during the day rather than rise into flood stage as earlier predicted.

The Jackson County Board of Education approved a sweeping set of financial cutbacks Wednesday morning, including the elimination of 38 teaching and non-teaching positions, closing the Regional Evening School program, furloughing 12-month employees for five days and the suspension or eliminat…

A flood watch has been issued for the Barrow, Jackson, Banks and Madison County areas.

Freedom Bank of Georgia based in Commerce became the 17th bank taken over so far in 2009 by the FDIC.

The Jackson County School System will use two planned student holidays as make-up days for the recent snow days.

Power has been restored to most areas of Jackson County officials of Jackson EMC said Wednesday morning with only 354 customers in the area still without electricity.

All schools in Jackson, Barrow, Banks and Madison counties are closed Monday due to a heavier than expected snow storm that swept across Northeast Georgia Sunday. In addition, some other government offices and businesses will be closed Monday.

A student from East Jackson Comprehensive High School was killed and two other people, including another teen, were injured Tuesday afternoon when a truck hit a car broadside on Hwy. 129 in the South Jackson community of Redstone.

The State Fire Marshall’s Office is investigating a fire that destroyed a home early Monday morning in Maysville. The double-wide mobile home owned by Tony Smith was totally destroyed in the blaze.

Thousands of pallets burned up and a storage shed was destroyed Wednesday afternoon in a fire at Lanier Pallet Recycling, located on Hwy. 334 just south of Commerce.

A rollover wreck of a large SUV at the Jefferson exit on I-85 closed the southbound lanes of the interstate around 1 p.m. Tuesday.

The Kenny Lumpkin family of Winder are in Washington D.C. for Tuesday's Inauguration of Barack Obama as the nation's 44th president. For story, click here.

In an attempt to curb losses that have already hit $1 million halfway through this fiscal year, BJC Medical Center is laying off approximately 45 employees.

Two adults and three students in Jackson County were transported to area hospitals following a rollover bus wreck Tuesday afternoon. The injuries were not life threatening and all but one of the adults had been released by Wednesday.

Freedom Bank of Georgia based in Commerce has entered into a “cease and desist order” with state and federal regulators to overhaul the bank’s operations. The bank agreed Dec. 17 to the order and it becomes effective Dec. 27. The bank will maintain its current services and hours and all depo…

A judge’s ruling Monday has put plans for a new hospital in Braselton into doubt.

Two of the three Piedmont Judicial Circuit Superior Court judges who serve Jackson, Barrow and Banks counties are facing serious medical issues.

A Banks County Sheriff's Deputy was injured in a two-vehicle wreck around 8:45 p.m. Friday at the intersection of Hwy. 441 and Interstate 85, Banks Crossing.

Two White County residents have been charged with Sunday’s murder of the youth minister of Pendergrass Baptist Church.

A fire whipped by gusty winds destroyed a large 4,000 sq. ft. two-story home on Jefferson River Road Tuesday. Several Jackson County fire departments responded to the blaze, which happened about midday. The fire happened at 8825 Jefferson River Road in South Jackson. The house was listed for…

Barrow County Judge David Motes has dismissed a 2007 lawsuit filed against the Town of Braselton by the developers of a high profile commercial project in Barrow County on Hwy. 211, saying the developer’s lawyers had engaged in judicial “misconduct.”

Trying to shave its operating deficit, BJC Medical Center is closing its labor and delivery services, leaving three doctors scrambling to make alternative arrangements for patients.

Details of Tuesday's election results from Banks, Barrow, Jackson and Madison counties:

Results from Banks, Barrow, Jackson and Madison counties:

Following a request from the Jackson County Board of Commissioners to cut each department’s budget by five percent, Sheriff Stan Evans has called for a two-day furlough for all of his employees. The employees will take two days off without pay before the end of the year. “The Jackson County …

With two town hall meetings slated for the coming week, the head of Hoschton’s finance committee is again calling for the town to impose a property tax to fund city expenses.

Three people were injured Monday morning when their car crashed into the back of a firetruck.

Incumbent members of the Arcade and West Jackson fire departments will face challengers in the Nov. 4 General Election.

Braselton’s police chief thinks the new cable barriers on I-85 helped to prevent a deadly head-on collision on Monday afternoon.

The Commerce Police Department has confirmed that officers arrested a Braselton man wanted on charges related to an early morning crime spree in Winder.

The Jefferson Police Department confiscated some $40,000 in marijuana and arrested one person Wednesday in a raid on a Jefferson home.

The U.S. Stock Market began to tumble Monday afternoon after the House of Representatives rejected a bailout bill 228-205.

A twin-engine plane had a rough landing Thursday afternoon at the Jackson County airport. According to emergency dispatchers, the plane's landing gear failed and the plane landed on the fuselage, skidding off the right side of the runway.

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Louisiana Pacific Corp. will cease production at its Athens OSB plant, located on U.S. 441 in Center, Oct. 1, the company has announced. The move will result in layoffs for all but 27 of its 120 employees, according to Mary Cohn, manager of corporate affairs.

The maternal grandmother of the baby who died after being left in a hot van last week said the state’s foster care system “is broke and needs to be fixed.”

Full story here

Commerce was cleaning up Wednesday morning following the touchdown of a tornado Tuesday afternoon.

Colton Standridge reportedly responded to his parents by squeezing their hand over the weekend at Egleston Children's Hospital, where he remains in stable condition.

Business is booming at the Banks-Jackson Emergency Food Bank in Commerce. That is never a good thing.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation found no evidence of wrongdoing in its investigation into allegations of missing items from the Jefferson Police Department’s evidence room.

Beer and wine may be served at two concerts set for the Hoschton Fall Festival in September.

Brad Smith will be the new District Attorney for the Piedmont Judicial Circuit. Smith won the runoff election against Donna Sikes 5,502 to 4,218. The balloting for the seat was in Jackson, Barrow and Banks counties.

A Lula man died Monday morning after being shot during a standoff with the Hall County SWAT team.

Spring Break will remain a full week for the Jackson County School System after all. Superintendent Shannon Adams announced Wednesday, March 11, that the district will no longer will use Monday, April 6, as a make-up for the recent snowstorm.

A number of people in Jackson and Banks counties received misleading phone calls Tuesday related to the runoff elections. Officials said they are getting reports from a number of people about calls which tell the person answering the phone that they would be inelgible to vote in November and…

Three heated races in Jackson, Barrow and Banks counties will be decided today as voters go back to the polls for the Primary runoff elections. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. to decide who will be the county commission chairman in Jackson and Barrow counties and who will be the nex…

A Banks County High School junior died as a result of injuries suffered in a one-vehicle accident on Hwy. 441 Saturday evening, just north of the county sheriff’s office.