Virginia
VDOT provides updates on Virginia roadways after Helene
GRAYSON COUNTY, Va. (WDBJ) – Around 400 roads in Virginia were closed when the remnants of Helene moved through over a week ago.
Since then, VDOT crews have worked around the clock to open most of them back up, with only 13 secondary roads and two primary roads left to repair.
“The fact that we are able to safely and quickly get a lot of these roads back open, it’s a testament to just how much work is being done, just around the district and across the state,” said Joey Barker, the VDOT Bristol district communications specialist.
The two main roads crews are still working on are Route 21 in Grayson County and Route 58 in Damascus. They were completely swept over by water and yards of debris, causing them to be severely damaged.
While crews are putting rocks back in to stabilize and rebuild Route 21, Barker also said they are making progress despite a few challenges.
“Just the steepness of the slope and just the sheer terrain that they have to deal with, it’s pretty tough to have to deal with that., but these guys are professionals. They’ve been doing it for a long time,“ said Barker.
Due to the extent of the damage, there is no set reopen date for Route 58 in Damascus at this time.
It is expected to take four to five weeks to reopen Route 21 in Grayson County.
Copyright 2024 WDBJ. All rights reserved.
Virginia
Virginia transfer Jalen Warley sets Gonzaga visit for Friday: Report
The Gonzaga men’s basketball team will reportedly host Virginia transfer Jalen Warley on a visit in the coming days.
According to college basketball insider Jon Rothstein, Warley will be in Spokane on Friday — when the Bulldogs host UMass-Lowell at the McCarthey Athletic Center — and Saturday before taking a trip to Ames, Iowa, for a visit with Iowa State. The 6-foot-7 senior told Rothstein earlier this week that he planned on visiting Gonzaga, Iowa State and Texas A&M, though he has not scheduled a date with the Aggies yet.
Warley was the first Cavalier to enter the portal during the 30-day window that was opened by Tony Bennett’s surprise retirement on Oct. 18. He indicated to Rothstein that he plans on taking a redshirt year for the 2024-2025 season.
Warley transferred to Virginia after spending three seasons at Florida State, where he briefly crossed paths with current Gonzaga assistant coach, R-Jay Barsh. Warley was a sophomore when Barsh was an assistant coach on Leonard Hamilton’s staff in 2022-23. Warley finished top 20 in the ACC in total steals (41, 17th) and assists (105, 18th) that season.
As a junior in 2023-24, Warley put up 7.5 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 33 games, including 32 starts. He once again finished in the top 20 in the ACC in total steals (42) and steals per game (1.3). Though Warley is known more for his reputation on defense, he did have three straight games with 10 or more points to end his season and had a 23-point outing against Louisville in February.
Warley won’t be eligible this season, though a commitment from him would be a big step toward replacing the six seniors on the roster who will graduate this spring. That includes all five starters plus 6-foot-7 wing Michael Ajayi, who came off the bench in Gonzaga’s wins over Baylor and Arizona State. Colgate transfer Braden Smith took a redshirt upon joining the Bulldogs this offseason and will likely play a crucial role in 2025-26.
Bennett retired roughly two weeks before the start of the college basketball season. He served 15 years as head coach of the Cavaliers, and under his leadership the program went 364-136 and won the national championship in 2019. Ron Sanchez was named the program’s interim coach for the 2024-25 season, though the school will conduct a national search to fill the full-time head coaching position after that.
Virginia
Navy Virginia-Class Submarine Was 'Netted' By a Norwegian Fishermen
What You Need to Know: Norwegian fishermen recently snagged an unusual “catch of the day”: the U.S. Navy’s nuclear-powered submarine, USS Virginia. While halibut fishing, the Øygutt’s fishing net became entangled with the submarine’s propeller, dragging it over two nautical miles before finally detaching.
-This unique incident isn’t the first of its kind. A tragic 1999 event saw a British submarine accidentally snag a fishing vessel, leading to the vessel’s sinking and the loss of four crew members.
-These close calls underscore the dangers of crowded seas and the potential for deadly submarine-fishing vessel interactions.
Norwegian Fishermen Accidentally Snag U.S. Submarine Near Barents Sea
Many an angler has told of the big one that “got away,” but a group of Norwegian fishermen has a “whale of a tale” to tell to top all others. And a very big one did get away because it was nuclear-powered and filled with U.S. Navy sailors.
On Wednesday the fishermen were sailing for halibut near where the Barents and Norwegian Seas meet, but instead netted the U.S. Navy’s cruise missile attack submarine USS Virginia (SSN-774).
“We had just emptied the nets and put them out again, and [were] on our way back to shore at Sommarøya when we were called by the Coast Guard on channel 16 on the VHF-radio,” Harald Engen, the 22-year-old captain of the Øygutt, a 10 meter-long fishing vessel, told NRK Troms, per The Barents Observer.
It was truly the catch of the day, or perhaps for Engen a catch of a lifetime. It wasn’t an oversized halibut, but rather the submarine, which was on the surface when its propeller snagged the net, dragging it more than two nautical miles before it was finally cut off.
The crew of the Øygutt is out a net, yet, they can say a truly big one got away!
“I know about other vessels that have sailed over fishing nets, but no one out here has ever heard about a submarine doing so,” added Engen.
It Could Have Turned Tragic – A Lesson From History
The waters of the Barents and Norwegian Seas are now increasingly frequented by NATO and Russian warships, and this isn’t likely the first time a military vessel has snagged a net in the area – and most certainly won’t be the last.
The oceans may be vast, but they’re heavily traveled. Subs and nets don’t mix.
In November 1999, the UK trawler Antares was off the coast of the Isle of Arran when she floundered and sank after her trawl line was snagged by the Royal Navy’s Trafalgar-class nuclear-powered fleet attack submarine HMS Trenchant. The submarine had been engaged in a training exercise with a student in command, but under the supervision of a commanding officer.
In the early morning hours of November 22, 1999, a pair of vessels was detected on the surface by the sub’s sonar – in fact, there were three vessels. The submarine turned to avoid contact, but the crew soon heard a loud bang followed by scraping noises. After returning to periscope depth, two fishing vessels were spotted, and neither seemed to be in any distress. Unknown to the crew of HMS Trenchant at the time, it had snagged the trawl line from Antares.
Even after it was determined that the submarine had collided with a net, it was assumed to be from one of the trawlers spotted on the surface. Only later after the submarine returned to port and the damage became apparent – including to the sonar dome – was it determined that something far more serious had occurred. The Royal Navy’s submarine had snagged a fishing net, which was still attached to the fishing boat causing it to capsize. The trawler was then dragged along the surface before the wires snapped.
Antares sank to the seabed with all four of her crewmen on board. Even worse was the fact that any rescue operation wasn’t launched until eight hours after the incident occurred. That led to changes in how Royal Navy submarines operate near fishing waters – but it remains a reminder that in a battle between a fishing boat and a submarine, the fishermen should be lucky if the big one gets away or else they could be the catch of the day.
Author Experience and Expertise: Peter Suciu
Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].
Image Credit: Creative Commons and/or Shutterstock.
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Virginia
Virginia mother declares 'victory' after school system quietly removes 'X-rated' LGBTQ graphic novel
A Virginia mother who publicly spoke out against the inclusion of an “adult-themed” LGBTQ graphic novel in Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) is declaring “victory” after the book was quietly removed from school libraries.
In emails obtained by Fox News Digital, FCPS told Stacy Langton, a mother of six, that “Queer: A Graphic History” by Meg-John Barker was removed by librarians “due to outdated terminology that is no longer used in the LGBTQ+ community.”
The school system told Langton the book was retired from most of their schools in June 2023 – after she had expressed concern about the book during school board meetings. Langton only learned about the decision in October 2024 correspondence with FCPS – and was surprised this information was not previously passed on to her and other parents.
“It’s not appropriate for minor children at all. It’s an adult-themed book. It shouldn’t be in any school library. I think they didn’t want me to know that they took it out because it’s a win for me, you know? I mean, let’s call it what it is. It’s a victory,” Langton told Fox News Digital, describing debate about age-appropriate books as a “political football.”
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The FCPS Assistant Superintendent of the Instructional Services Department, Noel Klimenko, emailed Langton that her school board remarks likely prompted librarians to pull the book for review.
“As a nonfiction book on an evolving topic, it is critical that the book contains current information. It is within the responsibilities of the librarian to make these decisions. I did not direct any school to remove the book,” she said.
Klimenko noted that librarians determined other books in their collections provide more accurate, up-to-date information on LGBTQ sources that were “superior sources of information” on the topic.
She also revealed that the book was retired during a process known as weeding, wherein librarians commonly remove items to maintain a relevant, current and appealing collection.
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Klimenko also pushed back after Langton snapped a recent picture of the book in Fairfax High School’s library – suggesting that its presence was part of a display created by the Gay Student Alliance club to promote LGBTQ history month.
“This text is part of a large display in a locked cabinet that our clubs are allowed to sign up for and promote awareness, club activities, and inclusion,” she added.
Langton initially brought the book to the attention of school board members on May 11, 2023, when she printed out one of the graphic novel’s most shocking images – a naked man and woman engaging in a sexual position where the traditional gender roles are reversed.
AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION CLAIMS ‘CENSORING’ SEXUALLY EXPLICIT BOOKS TARGETS LGBTQ+ COMMUNITY
“There are many images, probably about half a dozen, that are completely X-rated depictions of sex acts,” Langton told Fox News Digital. “The worst one I printed out onto a board and I showed it at the meeting at the podium. I showed it to the board. And I remember thinking as I was looking at them their eyes were really wide. I think they were shocked at the nature of this material in particular. It was quite bad.”
Barker’s publisher did not return Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Langton said she will continue to fight to get other adult-themed books, such as “Gender Queer” by Maia Kobabe, out of Fairfax schools.
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“Gender Queer” has reportedly been banned in more libraries in states than any other book. The author, Maia Kobabe, has defended the book’s sexually explicit images, describing them as “tame.”
“I honestly think the book is a lot less explicit than it could be,” Kobabe told “Morning Edition.”
FCPS did not return Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
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