Augusta, GA
Augusta city leaders look to hire full-time EMA director
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The city of Augusta has no full-time EMA director.
Despite this, we’ve experienced several weather events in the last six months, including Hurricane Helene and both winter weather events.
“It’s been an interesting year. We haven’t seen snow in, oh my gosh, it’s been years. I mean, snow on the ground. It’s been several years I can think of,” said Commissioner Catherine Smith-Rice.
Two winter storms in less than two weeks, while many are still recovering from Hurricane Helene.
Mayor Garnett Johnson said: “I certainly have learned a lot from Hurricane Helene and these two more recent snowfalls, snow incidents that we need a full-time EMA director.”
Right now, Augusta Fire Chief Antonio Burden plays dual parts, being the fire chief and EMA director.
Commissioner Jordan Johnson said: “This conversation is not just about a position in my mind. It’s about expanding a department and how much money will we have to amend our budget to meet this expectation.”
Mayor Johnson says the funding is there.
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- Augusta leaders discussed several topics at Thursday’s commission meeting, including floating homestead exemption, beautification, improvements at 600 Broad and charter review.
“There is a deputy position already. We’re going to use funding to create a director’s position, but the EMA department already has a coordinator, so there’s already a department there. We just got to stand it up with having a full-time director,” said the mayor.
The mayor says Augusta hasn’t had a full-time director for more than 20 years.
“You look at a city of our size. It warrants having a full-time, dedicated EMA director who makes sure that we’re on the cutting edge of technology for preparedness, for disseminating information to all of our community partners and for the hire that we expect to make. I would expect them to have all of those abilities to do that,” said Mayor Johnson.
Of course, moving forward there will be tough conversations.
Commissioner Johnson said: “I know we had a big conversation about not having money in our budget. So, my concern is are we going over budget? Are we getting ready to put ourselves on a budget in a situation that we can’t get ourselves out of?”
Smith-Rice said: “With what we’ve experienced, we need to be cautious, and we need to go ahead and commission needs to get on the ball and start doing our search.”
Because if they’ve learned anything here, preparedness is key.
Johnson says the process to hire a full-time EMA director is getting underway.
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An Augusta biomanufacturer will start making ammunition in the global fight against malaria.
Manus last week broke ground at its local plant on Lovers Lane on a production facility to produce artemisinin. The chemical is a key starting component in drug treatments to treat the deadly mosquito-borne illness. Malaria killed more than 600,000 people worldwide in 2024, according to the World Health Organization
“This groundbreaking reflects a shift from dependence to capability,” said Ajikumar Parayil, Manus’ founder and CEO. “For decades, the U.S. has relied heavily on overseas supply chains for the building blocks of essential medicines. What we’re establishing in Augusta is a new model – one that restores control, strengthens resilience, and proves that advanced biomanufacturing can be deployed at scale, here at home.”
About 80% of key ingredients for essential U.S. medicines are made or sourced overseas, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
That has led companies such as Manus to pursue biomanufacturing production models capable of making medical compounds domestically, efficiently and on a large scale.
Earlier in 2026, Manus won federal funding to expand production to make shikimic acid, a key compound in the antiviral medication oseltamivir, better known by its brand name Tamiflu.
On April 30, Manus announced a partnership with the University of Georgia to start a structured biomanufacturing apprenticeship program in Augusta. With a UGA “academic blueprint,” according to Manus, apprentices would receive extensive training on live production equipment to produce more experienced professionals for bio-industrial manufacturers nationwide.
Manus reopened Augusta’s old NutraSweet plant in 2019. In 2021, it introduced NutraSweet Natural, a zero-calorie stevia sweetener made using a smaller environmental footprint.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) – Brent McMillian is being appointed as the new director of athletics at Augusta University, President Russell Keen announced Monday.
McMillian will begin the role on June 8, 2026.
According to AU, McMillian brings 13 years of athletics experience to the position. He previously served as Senior Associate Athletic Director for External Engagement and Revenue Generation at Lipscomb University at Nashville.
“His vision aligns seamlessly with our goals for Jaguar Athletics: to champion student-athlete wellbeing, strengthen our competitive success, deepen community engagement, and build a vibrant, spirited campus culture,” Keen said. “His experience, combined with his personal connection to Augusta University, positions him to hit the ground running in a meaningful way.”
McMillian is a graduate of Greenbrier High School and attended Augusta University before completing his degree at the University of Tennessee.
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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJBF.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Local restaurants hosted brunches for Mother’s Day, allowing neighbors to celebrate the day with the special women in their lives.
The Brunch House of Augusta on Greene Street hosted a brunch. The restaurant served berry pancakes and French toast, waffles, ham and cheese breakfast sliders and more breakfast foods.
One of the owners said the holidays are a great time for them to make connections with the community.
“We just had a group here come here that’s been coming here every year Mother’s Day for three years, every year basically since we’ve been open, they come in every year for Mother’s Day. We have people from out of town come and travel and visit us, so it’s definitely building that connection,” said Ashley Brown, co-owner of The Brunch House of Augusta.
Brown said they will be offering some specials for the upcoming Juneteenth holiday next month.
The Frog and the Hen also hosted a Mother’s Day brunch. The restaurant had about 350 people come in as of around 3 p.m.
They served foods like fried chicken, cheddar biscuits, French toast casserole and more.
The general manager said she enjoys seeing families come in for holidays like Mother’s Day.
“I feel like these are all my children here, so I feel like this day just in general, like I get to be the mother here, and so this is like I’m mother hen, so I get to take care of all this. I love supporting all the people as well and just being able to get the best food possible, the best chicken everywhere,” said Sheridan Roberts, general manager of Frog and the Hen.
Roberts said they often have to stop making reservations a few weeks ahead of the holiday due to the amount they receive.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
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