Augusta, GA
Gates locked at Augusta cemeteries nearly 3 months after Helene
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Gates are locked at Augusta city cemeteries nearly three months after Hurricane Helene hit our area.
Families have not been able to visit the final resting places of their loved ones because of the devastation.
However, the process for cleaning these cemeteries is a very delicate thing.
City leaders are dealing with large amounts of debris inside Augusta’s city-owned cemeteries including Magnolia, Cedar Grove and Westview.
Leaders want you to know they are working to clean things up as delicately as they can.
Beyond the locked gates at Magnolia Cemetery, the place looks anything but peaceful.
“Cemeteries and historic properties have a different process,” said Steve Cassell, ISM Engineering. “They have to go through a review first.”
Which comes from FEMA and the state historic preservation office.
“What we’ve gotten approval to do right now is just remove the debris off of the graves without disturbing the root balls, you know, the uprooted trees,” said Cassell.
The next step is where things can get tricky.
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“We have to then come in with an archaeologist to come in and sift through that stuff and figure out what’s been there and how to rebury it,” said Cassell.
A delicate process for all involved.
“We don’t want to actually pull up any remains or anything else that could be under there, but so far it looks like there are some underground bricks and stuff like that, but we haven’t discovered anything yet,” he said.
Because the last thing workers want is to disrupt these final resting spots even more.
“The last thing we want to do is do more damage,” said Cassell. “It’s already been done. The cemetery is over 200 years old and we want to at least get it back to as close to normal as it was.”
And as far as costs go –
“All this is reimbursable from my standpoint, but you know, to be reimbursable, you have to follow the process to make sure that you do everything that you know within the guidelines,” he said.
Doing so with the goal of preserving and protecting.
“They had to do the evaluation before we could even come in here,” said Cassell.”So letting the general public in here before the officials that come in here and see it would have been not proper.”
Cassell says they don’t have a date right now as to when the cemeteries will open, but they are working with FEMA on the clean-up.
Copyright 2024 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The second annual Juneteenth trail ride took place on Old Waynesboro Road in Augusta on Saturday.
The event featured trail rides with horses and ATVs, a mechanical bull contest and music.
People shopped at vendors, and there was entertainment for kids, including a petting zoo, inflatables and games.
“It’s really a privilege just to be able to have the opportunity to share my space, to share my area, and to share for an event with so much value, to give back to my community and a place to celebrate,” said Davon Wallace, chief of operations at Crimson Hills.
Wallace said they will be hosting more events, with a haunted trail coming in October.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) — The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office has made multiple arrests in a deadly shooting that left one teenager dead and another injured early Saturday morning.
According to deputies, the incident happened June 20, at approximately 12:50 a.m. in the 200 block of Warren Road, where authorities responded to reports of shots fired involving two gunshot victims.
When deputies arrived, they located two 18-year-old men from Augusta.
Officials identified the victims as Eric Markquis Bartley Miller and Joseph Lamar Thomas.
Investigators say Miller sustained at least one gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Thomas was also found with at least one gunshot wound and was transported to a local hospital for treatment.
The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office says the circumstances surrounding the shooting remain under active investigation.
As of Saturday afternoon, three teenage suspects have been arrested and charged in connection with the incident.
18-year-old Dmihjay Collins, 17-year-old Tayshaun Thomas, and 17-year-old Joseph Thomas have all been arrested and charged with Murder, Aggravated Assault, and Possession of Machine Guns. They are all currently being held at the Webster Detention Center.
A fourth teenager, 17-year-old Reante Byrd was also arrested, but investigators have not linked him to the murder case. Byrd has been charged with Possession of a Pistol or Revolver by a Person Under the Age of 18. He is also being held in the Webster Detention Center.
No further details in the investigation have been released.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Students showcased drones they built during a two-week summer camp at Augusta Regional Airport on Friday.
12 junior and high school students attended the camp, where they learned to fly and build drones designed to help others.
Anderson Puryear, a student, said the camp focused on delivering small medical supplies.
“It was focused on delivering small medical supplies like an EPI pen or glucose packet for like diabetics and for people with allergies in need in the real world that could obviously help save lives, and if people are like in a place in a boat or like in the desert or in the forest where they can’t easily access those supplies it can save their lives,” Puryear said.
The airport partnered with Georgia Tech, state troopers and the Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Department for the Air Edu Summer Camp.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
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