Smyth County News & Messenger

07/02/2024

Recent railroad crossing closures in Marion to allow Norfolk Southern to work on the railway has already been a challenge for drivers this spring, but the work isn’t finished.

07/01/2024

Before the inaugural healthcare scholarships were awarded, recipients heard from Dale Clark, Smyth County Community Hospital’s CEO. Clark, who began his medical career as a pharmacist in 1984, told the

06/28/2024

The case is the most significant to come before the high court in decades on the issue and comes as a rising number of people in the U.S. are without

06/27/2024

The high court had put the settlement on hold last summer, in response to objections from the Biden administration.

06/26/2024

The case is among several before the court this term that affect social media companies in the context of free speech.

06/25/2024

𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐂𝐚𝐬𝐞: 𝑺𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒘𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝑽𝒊𝒓𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒂
Just before 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 19, 1990, Charlie Matney arrived at his single-wide trailer in Wytheville to check up on his property.

A friend who had driven Matney from his home in Jolo, West Virginia, watched as the 63-year-old entered the mobile home, moved about the trailer and then return to the entrance where he appeared to bend down to pick up an object from the floor.

It was at that point an explosion ripped through the trailer, killing Matney and leveling most of the structure.

Thirty-four years later, Virginia State Police are still trying to solve the case.

Story here: https://swvatoday.com/article_5f830b1e-2754-11ef-8687-c349486bec2f.html

06/24/2024

Marion Fire-EMS members will conduct testing on the town’s fire hydrants over the next few months.

Fire Chief Rusty Hamm said the testing is to ensure hydrant flow and that each hydrant is properly labelled according to flow level.

Hamm said residents may notice brief periods of low water pressure or cloudiness due to sediment disturbance during the testing.

“The pressure should return after a few minutes and the cloudiness will dissipate after flowing some water in your home,” he said.

Residents are encouraged to only contact town hall if cloudiness or low water pressure persists for an extended period of time. Hamm additionally cautioned drivers to use care when passing testing locations as fire department members will be working alongside the roadway.

Marion Fire-EMS will post testing locations on its social media as it occurs.

06/23/2024

Update:
Smyth County Sheriff Chip Shuler has reported that human remains were recovered yesterday in the area in which the search for missing person Eric Pennington was conducted. Shuler said investigators collected the remains and some clothing, which will be examined by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Roanoke for a positive identification. The investigation remains ongoing pending the medical examiner's report.

Update:
Smyth County Sheriff Chip Shuler has reported that human remains were recovered yesterday in the area in which the search for missing person Eric Pennington was conducted. Shuler said investigators collected the remains and some clothing, which will be examined by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Roanoke for a positive identification. The investigation remains ongoing pending the medical examiner's report.
*****
Original:
The Smyth County Sheriff’s Office is trying to locate a Chilhowie man last seen fishing in the National Forest last Thursday.

SCSO Sgt. Landon Smith said 47-year-old Eric Wayne Pennington had gone camping with friends in the Skulls Gap area near Chilhowie. The friends told deputies they helped Pennington, who is in poor health, get to a stream where he wanted to fish. Pennington, the friends said, told them he would either meet them back at the camp site or would make the trek along Jerry’s Creek Trail to Rowland Creek where he would catch a ride home.

When the friends realized on Friday that Pennington never made it home, they returned to the area he was last seen to look for him. They returned on Saturday morning for another search and again on Sunday, walking the five-mile stretch of Jerry’s Creek Trail looking for their friend.

With no sign of Pennington to be found, they reported his absence to the sheriff’s office Sunday afternoon. Smith said deputies immediately conducted their own search of the area using tracking K9s and organized a larger search with Black Diamond Search and Rescue, a search team specially trained in assisting and locating people in wilderness and rural areas.

Smith said the Black Diamond team, along with sheriff’s deputies, searched along the trail, in creeks and the forest well into the night on Sunday, picking up again Monday morning and working until late that evening with no sign of the missing man.

Pennington’s disappearance is not considered suspicious, but Smith his poor health gives rise to concern for his well-being.

Pennington was last seen wearing blue jeans, a dark hoodie and a black or blue ball cap. Anyone who may have seen him is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 276-783-7204.

06/23/2024

Children getting close-up, hands-on experience with animals only added to an impressive number this June.

06/22/2024

The Lincoln Theatre will host Matt Elvis Dollar and his band, The Cadillacs, for an Evening with Elvis on Saturday, July 13, at 7 p.m.

06/21/2024

The justices ruled in favor of a 1994 ban on fi****ms for people under restraining orders to stay away from their spouses or partners.

06/19/2024

As the country marks Juneteenth today, Marion’s commemoration took place this past weekend.

06/18/2024

A Chilhowie woman who pleaded guilty last Tuesday to embezzling more than $112,000 from Marion Automotive Group will spend the next five years on probation and has been ordered to pay back the money she took.
That and more here: https://swvatoday.com/article_fb53e826-29d2-11ef-9507-2ff3f7cf9609.html

06/17/2024

A Marion man who shot another man during an altercation last year was handed a two-year prison sentence following his Tuesday guilty plea to a charge of possessing a firearm by a felon.
Michael Tad Milligan II, 37, initially faced additional charges of maliciously shooting into an occupied vehicle and discharging a firearm in public. Commonwealth’s Attorney Phillip “Bucky” Blevins said the events that unfolded just before the shooting made it clear Milligan shot the man in self-defense, leading the commonwealth to drop the other charges.
Details here: https://swvatoday.com/article_05c7074e-29c3-11ef-97d3-33b50fd74e85.html

06/17/2024

Councilman Jim Barker has asked for a review of admission prices to the Marion Waterpark, saying they are far above many others in the region.

06/16/2024

She posted a time of 55.18 seconds in a semifinal heat at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials.

06/14/2024

On Wednesday, family members, friends and community members laid to rest a man long known to the citizens of Smyth County as “The People’s Sheriff.”
Retired Sheriff R. David Bradley died on June 7 at the age of 76, a little more than two weeks after the death of his predecessor, John Grubb Jr.
More here: https://swvatoday.com/article_de05ba56-29f0-11ef-b994-7748b0e12d49.html

06/14/2024

Tony Bennett and Virginia have come to terms on a contract extension for the basketball coach who led the Cavaliers to the 2019 national championship.

06/13/2024

Marion Police Chief John Clair presented Officer Tyler Hayes to the Marion Town Council last week. Hayes recently graduated from the Southwest Virginia Criminal Justice Training Academy. Among the graduates, he earned the top academic award and the top shot award. Clair said Hayes set a new performance standard.

Marion Police Chief John Clair presented Officer Tyler Hayes to the Marion Town Council last week. Hayes recently graduated from the Southwest Virginia Criminal Justice Training Academy. Among the graduates,

06/12/2024

Smyth County’s recognition of Juneteenth is growing. This weekend, activities will extend over two days, while a special exhibit is being developed in Chilhowie.
Details here: https://swvatoday.com/news/community/article_36da2cb2-24fa-11ef-b87b-3b06c19e187c.html

06/12/2024

A Glade Spring police officer is under investigation by Virginia State Police following allegations of “criminal conduct.”
https://swvatoday.com/article_e6ec6bdc-2794-11ef-9533-5b91fa61d0b3.html

06/11/2024

Update:
Smyth County Sheriff Chip Shuler has reported that human remains were recovered yesterday in the area in which the search for missing person Eric Pennington was conducted. Shuler said investigators collected the remains and some clothing, which will be examined by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Roanoke for a positive identification. The investigation remains ongoing pending the medical examiner's report.
*****
Original:
The Smyth County Sheriff’s Office is trying to locate a Chilhowie man last seen fishing in the National Forest last Thursday.

SCSO Sgt. Landon Smith said 47-year-old Eric Wayne Pennington had gone camping with friends in the Skulls Gap area near Chilhowie. The friends told deputies they helped Pennington, who is in poor health, get to a stream where he wanted to fish. Pennington, the friends said, told them he would either meet them back at the camp site or would make the trek along Jerry’s Creek Trail to Rowland Creek where he would catch a ride home.

When the friends realized on Friday that Pennington never made it home, they returned to the area he was last seen to look for him. They returned on Saturday morning for another search and again on Sunday, walking the five-mile stretch of Jerry’s Creek Trail looking for their friend.

With no sign of Pennington to be found, they reported his absence to the sheriff’s office Sunday afternoon. Smith said deputies immediately conducted their own search of the area using tracking K9s and organized a larger search with Black Diamond Search and Rescue, a search team specially trained in assisting and locating people in wilderness and rural areas.

Smith said the Black Diamond team, along with sheriff’s deputies, searched along the trail, in creeks and the forest well into the night on Sunday, picking up again Monday morning and working until late that evening with no sign of the missing man.

Pennington’s disappearance is not considered suspicious, but Smith his poor health gives rise to concern for his well-being.

Pennington was last seen wearing blue jeans, a dark hoodie and a black or blue ball cap. Anyone who may have seen him is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 276-783-7204.

06/11/2024

Jurors in Hunter Biden’s federal gun trial reached a verdict on Tuesday after three hours of deliberations over two days.

06/10/2024

Saturday evening, 15 international travelers were entertained by acclaimed mandolin player Sam Bush at Marion’s Lincoln Theatre. Monday evening, the travelers were the entertainers, singing for the Marion Town Council.

06/09/2024

A Saltville man was one of 25 deaths that occurred on Virginia roadways in seven days.

06/08/2024

Smyth County Woofstock is happening today, June 8, from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. at the Chilhowie Town Park.

06/07/2024

Vice Mayor Brent Foster hated to imagine that Chilhowie’s ambulance and crew might be answering a call in Saltville or Washington County when someone in the town experienced an emergency

06/06/2024

Smyth County is now the owner of two more of its convenience station sites. Over time, officials would like the county to own all the sites rather than leasing some

06/03/2024

A two-vehicle crash in Dickenson County claimed the life of a Saltville man on Friday.
https://swvatoday.com/article_2701fdae-21f5-11ef-8055-2feada5817ab.html

12/08/2023

The Lincoln Theatre in downtown Marion is offering a special Christmas gift this holiday season by hosting two award-winning musicians for a country Christmas celebration.