Accident closes

I-74 East for hours

LUMBERTON — Shirley Jones of Rowland was airlifted Thursday after her Toyota passenger car collided with a tractor-trailer on Interstate 74. The wreck happened about 12:36 p.m.

Jones was attempting to merge onto the interstate from a ramp and collided with the rear of a tractor-trailer operated by Scottie Locklear near Exit 200. Both vehicles drifted to the right side of the shoulder and hit a barrier.

The tractor-trailer overturned on top of the car, and a portion was hanging off the bridge.

Jones was airlifted to an undisclosed medical facility for injuries not thought to be life-threatening. Locklear was not injured in the crash.

Both lanes near the crash were blocked for hours, but reopened at 5:03 p.m.

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School of Nursing

established at UNCP

PEMBROKE — The name that now occupies the new School of Nursing at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke bears the remembrance of a women who, despite many obstacles and setbacks strived for a career that better the lives of others.

The naming was made possible by former UNCP board of trustee Mary Ann Elliott, who gifted $6 million — the second largest in the university’s 134-year history — to go toward expanding and transforming UNCP’s nursing program into the new School that will be housed in Weinstein Building.

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FirstHealth now

requiring vaccine

PINEHURST — FirstHealth of the Carolinas announced Wednesday that it will require all of its employees, medical staff, volunteers, students agency staff and vendors to get the COVID-19 vaccine by Nov. 19.

CEO Mickey Foster said in a press release that this vaccine requirement is in the “best interest” of the hospital chain’s staff.

“We are committed to the health and safety of our FirstHealth family and the communities we serve,” Foster said. “Requiring COVID-19 vaccines is the right decision for our system, but it’s not one we take lightly.”

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BOE hears plans for

construction projects

HAMLET — The Richmond County Board of Education heard from three architectural firms about their potential plans and designs for three future construction projects.

The planned projects will be done at Richmond Senior High School, Fairview Heights and Mineral Springs Elementary Schools for a total projected cost around $13,000,000.

All of the projects must be completed by Sept. 2024 as they are subject to federal guidelines through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relieffunds.

From Champion Media reports