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PRINCE EDWARD DEPUTY INJURED IN ACCIDENT

A sheriff’s deputy from Prince Edward County is recovering, after a traffic accident Saturday. The single car accident happened west of Prospect on Prince Edward Highway, according to officials from the Prince Edward County Sheriff’s Office.

According to information released Saturday night by the office, a deputy was involved in a single car crash in the eastbound lane of the highway just after 6 p.m. That deputy was transported soon after, taken by Med-flight to Lynchburg. As of Monday, the deputy was still resting in stable condition.

“All the calls, texts, support and prayers are greatly appreciated,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement. They added they were grateful for the concern, but there have been simply too many calls and texts to respond to them all right now.

“We appreciate all of the calls and texts of concern but we simply cannot answer all of them at this time,” sheriff’s officials said in the statement. “Thank you for understanding. A big thank you to all that responded. Prayers are appreciated!!!”

FIREFIGHTERS ASSOCIATION SETS NEW DATE FOR TRACTOR PULL

The severe storms that came rolling through July 15 knocked down power lines, caused property damage and left some roads closed for a few hours. But it also led to some cancellations, namely the annual Buckingham Firefighters Association Truck and Tractor Pull. Originally, the group tried to reschedule for the next day, July 16, but that just wasn’t enough time for fields to try and make it possible to drive out to the site, which had turned into a pool of mud. Association officials at the time told everyone to wait a bit and they would come up with a new date, later on in the year.

Now we know when that will be. On Saturday, the Association announced they’ve decided to hold the event on Friday, Sept. 22, beginning at 7 p.m. It’ll be held at 364 Wingo Road in Dillwyn, but with one big difference: people won’t have to pay this time. After the July 15 event was rained out, Association members promised no one who had bought tickets would have to pay for the rescheduled version. Now, they’ve decided to extend that to the whole community.

“This will be a free to the public pull, but there will be people at the gate accepting donations for those who were not there on July 15 or whoever feels inclined to (give),” Association members said in a statement. “We are happy to be able to reschedule this event for the community and hope to see everyone there!”

Officials said they pushed it back to September in order to fit in with the schedule for Dragon Motorsports, which sanctions the seven-class event.

LONGWOOD SOFTBALL ADDS TRANSFER

The Longwood softball program has added a new transfer student to the team, head coach Dr. Megan Brown announced Friday afternoon.

Avery Drake is set to join the Lancers in the fall to round out the roster. The Belton, Texas native comes to Farmville after spending the past four years at Houston Christian University.

Drake comes to Longwood following a senior season that saw her start 53/53 games for the Huskies, batting .326 with 57 hits, five doubles, one triple, 14 RBIs, and 17 stolen bases. She was awarded with a 2nd Team All-Southland Conference for her efforts during the 2023 season. She will be pursuing a Master’s of Business Administration during her time at Longwood.

“Farmville feels a lot like my hometown of Belton, Texas and I loved everything that Coach Brown had to say about Longwood University, the softball program and the community,” said Drake. “I am looking forward to being apart of the Longwood family and I can’t wait to contribute to the competitive championship streak.”

Drake joins a Longwood team that finished at the top of the Big South standings in 2023 and claimed two top-ten upsets over #4 Florida State and #8 Duke.

RICE WORK ON TRACK

The Rice Convenience Site should be open again in just a couple weeks. That’s the latest update from Prince Edward County officials. As it stands, the contractor has finished his portion of the project and the county has accepted his work on the site. Now, the county’s Solid Waste Department just has a few pieces to finish before things open back up.

Department staff are currently sealing all of the concrete to help keep the site clean. They also want to have some solid grass established to help manage rain and runoff at the location. And finally, staff are waiting for new “catwalks” to be delivered, which will be put up between the taller containers to make it easier for residents to use.

Currently, the Rice site is set to reopen on Friday, August 4.