Augusta, GA
Augusta prepares for potential weather as city reviews emergency plans
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The city of Augusta is preparing for a potentially significant ice storm this weekend, with officials holding multiple planning calls and reviewing emergency protocols.
Mayor Garnett Johnson said the city has had multiple calls with the National Weather Service and the Georgia Emergency Management Agency, with more planning calls scheduled.
Johnson said it will likely be another 12 to 16 hours before the city lays out a concrete plan or decides whether to activate its Emergency Operations Center, where multiple departments and agencies coordinate response efforts.
Emergency response levels
Augusta’s Emergency Operations Plan, last updated in December 2020, outlines how the county should respond to winter weather. The plan draws on lessons learned from the 2014 ice storm.
The plan establishes three levels of Emergency Operations Center activation. At the lowest level, the city monitors weather and checks in with agencies. The middle level brings more departments in and starts moving crews around. The highest level is an all-hands-on-deck response.
Preparation recommendations
Augusta’s Emergency Management Agency director advised residents to charge their devices and get battery packs. She also recommended closing off any drafts in homes and leaving faucets dripping at night.
Regional preparations
Aiken County will hold a news conference on Thursday at its Emergency Operations Center to discuss its plans. Officials in Burke County, McDuffie County and Columbia County have not yet released their preparation plans.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The South Augusta YMCA will not renew its lease at the Tobacco Road location, the Y confirmed.
The shopping center is being sold, and the current lease ends in October.
The Y has not announced a final day at the current location. Officials said they plan to announce that date and next steps for South Augusta later this month.
The YMCA said it still plans to serve South Augusta after the lease expires.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – A man who was previously wanted for questioning in an Augusta deadly shooting has now been charged with murder in the case, according to authorities.
The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office says Kemfton Quewanaki Kenon, 27, was arrested on Friday in connection to the shooting death of Khyla Rodriguez, of Augusta.
Kenon is booked into the Charles B. Webster Detention Center and charged with murder and possession of a firearm during a crime, according to jail bookings.
Rodriguez, 25, was found dead after deputies received a call about a shooting on May 15 at 1:11 a.m. on Cameron Drive.
The Richmond County Coroner’s Office said Rodriguez was pronounced dead at 2:27 a.m.
Kenon was previously wanted for questioning in the case and was located in Miami-Dade County, Florida. He was interviewed and arrested on an unrelated warrant.
Deputies were also interviewed two other subjects in the case. They were not arrested in the case.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) – People who live in South Augusta are raising concerns about the future of the Family Y on Tobacco Road.
Officials say the facility has been operating at a loss for years, and have had a low number of memberships. The location also has a new owner. The cost of the lease is too high and the facility is also in need of renovations, which are said to be costly.
“The reality is we couldn’t afford the current lease that we were in,” said Catie McCauley, president and CEO of Family Y of Greater Augusta. “Over the last 10 years we’ve been subsidizing this lot. So we got to look at a model that we can sustain for the next several generations not just the next couple years.”
The location is set to close in October, but officials say they are working with community members and contractors for a new building that they can move into and are committed to staying in South Augusta.
Photojournalist credit: Gary Hipps
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