Augusta, GA
Crews battle brush fire on I-520 in North Augusta
NORTH AUGUSTA, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) – Crews on Friday afternoon rushed to the scene of a large brush fire off Interstate 520.
Officials said the fire was reported around 1 p.m. and moving quickly because of the wind.
By 2:30 p.m., it covered 12 acres.
North Augusta crews were assisted by Belvedere, Midland Valley, Beech Island, Sage Mill and Merriwether firefighters.
Eastbound I-520 was shut down at Belvedere Clearwater Road after the fire broke out around 1 p.m.
One lane reopened around 2:30 p.m.
Five bulldozers were sent to the scene as well as two planes.
Starting around 2:55 p.m., the planes began repeatedly dumping water on the fire.
PHOTO GALLERY: NORTH AUGUSTA BRUSH FIRE
The fire was 70% contained at that time, and the situation only got better as the afternoon went on.
However, officials said it’s expected to burn for several days.
And that means the air will have smoke in it.
“You know, if you’ve got some kind of allergies that you don’t want to be breathing it, I would suggest you stay inside, keep your windows up at your house and just do anything you can to keep from getting involved with it,” said Lt. Allen C. Swann with the North Augusta Department of Public Safety.
He said the situation could have been much worse.
“You know, we train for all kinds of fires, so we got here quick,” he said.
“We’ve got a great outcome. No structures burned.”
It was a challenge because the fire was on a ridge.
“You know, safety-wise with firetrucks and firefighters on the interstate with cars coming by, that’s why we shut the interstate down pretty quick,” he said.
“We don’t want one of us getting hit and then have to worry about that on top of dealing with the fire.”
Nearby Highland Springs Middle School and Belvedere Elementary dismissed students early from school.
Parents who drive their kids to school were asked to come get their children. Buses were taking the other kids home.
All after-school activities were canceled.
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AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) – Augusta Technical College has been awarded a large federal grant to help finish its Jim Hudson Automotive Institute.
The federal investment, according to Augusta Technical College, is in the amount of $6,808,307, and is funded from the Economic Development Administration (EDA) of the U.S. Department of Commerce.
“This grant is a powerful investment in Augusta’s economic future,” said Dr. Kendricks D. Hooker, President of Augusta Technical College. “The Jim Hudson Automotive Institute will directly address critical workforce shortages while creating pathways to high-wage, in-demand careers for our students. By transforming a legacy automotive site into a modern training facility, we are aligning education, industry, and economic development in a way that delivers real value to employers and opportunity to our community.”
The facility, once renovations are complete, is expected to serve as a state-of-the-art automotive workforce training center to help prepare students in careers related to automotive maintenance technology.
“The Institute will expand Augusta Tech’s automotive training footprint and serve hundreds of credit and non-credit students annually,” a statement from Augusta Technical College reads in part. “It is designed to support dealership operations, fleet maintenance, and emerging vehicle technologies, while providing hands-on, industry-aligned instruction that responds to both regional and national labor market demand.”
Augusta, GA
Valette Earns Elite 18 Award; Augusta Men’s Tennis Lands Three on Peach Belt All-Conference Teams – Augusta University
AUGUSTA, Ga. – With the Peach Belt Conference Tournament set to begin tomorrow, the conference office has announced the 2026 men’s tennis all-conference honors. Arthur Valette headlined Augusta’s selections by earning the Peach Belt Conference Elite 18 Award, presented to the student-athlete competing in the championship with the highest cumulative GPA.
A senior from Lyon, France, Valette competed in 18 matches this season for Augusta. He posted a 9-7 singles record and a 6-10 doubles mark, including a 3-3 record in both singles and doubles during conference play.
Augusta also placed three student-athletes on the all-conference teams. David Perret was named Second Team All-Conference Singles, while the doubles tandem of Alexis Bailhache and Perret earned Second Team All-Conference Doubles honors.
Perret, a junior from London, England, has been a key contributor throughout the season in both singles and doubles play. Bailhache, a senior from Nantes, France, teamed with Perret to give the Jaguars a consistent presence in doubles competition.
League major awards were claimed by Thomas Cardona of Columbus State, who was named Player of the Year, and teammate Hugo Didier, who earned Freshman of the Year honors. Columbus State head coach Evan Isaacs was selected Coach of the Year.
PBC Elite 18 Award
Arthur Valette, Augusta
Senior
- The PBC Elite 18 Award is presented at each of the PBC’s 18 championships to the student-athlete competing with the highest cumulative GPA
- Competed in 18 matches this season for Augusta
- Had a 9-7 record in singles and a 6-10 record in doubles
- Ended conference play with a 3-3 singles record and 3-3 doubles record
First Team All-Conference Singles
Thomas Cardona, Columbus State
Hugo Didier, Columbus State
Aniss Rafiq, Flagler
Ilian Borlee, Flagler
Harry Pugh, Lander
Pedro Liborio, North Georgia
First Team All-Conference Doubles
Andrea Sandrone / Elias Peter, Columbus State
Aly El Rafie / Noah Paterson, Flagler
Harry Pugh / Brendan Jayaprakash, Lander
Second Team All-Conference Singles
David Perret, Augusta
Aly El Rafie, Flagler
Simon Malis, Flagler
Chase Martin, GCSU
Daniel García Suárez, Middle Georgia
Alejandro Vizoso Ansedes, Middle Georgia
Joao Silva, North Georgia
Second Team All-Conference Doubles
Alexis Bailhache / David Perret, Augusta
Daniel Hammond / Benedek Szombathelyi, Columbus State
Juan Cruz Blanco / Ben Brandl, North Georgia
Player of the Year: Thomas Cardona, Columbus State
Freshman of the Year: Hugo Didier, Columbus State
Coach of the Year: Evan Isaacs, Columbus State
Elite 18 Award: Arthur Valette, Augusta
Augusta opens Peach Belt Conference Tournament play tomorrow against North Georgia in Columbus, Georgia.
An Augusta Tech plan to create an automotive service training center downtown finally has the funding to get rolling after more than four years of planning.
The U.S. Department of Commerce has approved Augusta Tech’s application for a $6.8 million grant to complete the Jim Hudson Automotive Institute, the workforce development school announced this week.
The campus will use the former site of Johnson Motor Co., a longtime Augusta Cadillac dealership on Walton Way that closed in 2021. Augusta Tech completed its purchase of the 6.5-acre property in December 2022.
“This grant is a powerful investment in Augusta’s economic future,” said Augusta Tech President Dr. Kendricks D. Hooker. “The Jim Hudson Automotive Institute will directly address critical workforce shortages while creating pathways to high-wage, in-demand careers for our students.”
Within a week of each other in April 2022, the Augusta National Golf Club and Columbia, S.C.-based Jim Hudson Automotive Group donated $1 million each to rev up the program.
“Anybody can sell a car,” company founder and principal Jim Hudson said at a June 2022 donation ceremony in the showroom of his Lexus dealership on Washington Road. “It takes a really good technician to keep it sold.”
Vehicles today aren’t just powered by gasoline or diesel fuel. Hybrid and electric vehicles are rising in popularity, and with it, the demand for more auto mechanics with high-tech training to repair increasingly computerized vehicles.
The facility will occupy about 33,000 square feet, or about half of the dealership building. The property’s layout as a working auto dealer will help flesh out the institute’s design “to support dealership operations, fleet maintenance and emerging vehicle technologies, while providing hands-on, industry-aligned instruction that responds to both regional and national labor market demand,” the school said in a statement.
Then-Augusta Tech President Dr. Jermaine Whirl told The Augusta Chronicle in 2022 that the school spent months talking with local auto dealers, transit companies, and other industry stakeholders to gauge interest in helping increase the auto-repair talent pool in the Augusta area.
The Commerce Department’s Economic Development Administration approved the full grant request of $6,808,307, months after U.S. Rep. Rick Allen supported the grant application in a July 2025 letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
“Not only will this grant funding enable Augusta Tech to develop a Center for Excellence in Automotive Technology in Richmond County, but it will also equip hundreds of students and workers with the skills needed to succeed in our booming automotive manufacturing industry,” Allen said Tuesday.
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