Latest news with #HamptonRoads
Yahoo
20-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
These Hampton Roads candidates raised the most money in House of Delegates races
Four out of the top five biggest fundraisers for House of Delegates races in Hampton Roads are Democrats. All 100 seats are up for election in the fall, and Democrats have fielded candidates in each race. Republicans have candidates in 83 races. Top fundraising Democrats in the region include House Speaker Don Scott of Portsmouth, who raised about $3.4 million; Del. Jeion Ward of Hampton, who raised $394,000; Del. Michael Feggans of Virginia Beach, who raised $378,423; and Jessica Anderson, a Democratic candidate for District 71, who raised $357,000, according to the Virginia Public Access Project, which consolidated numbers from campaign finance filings made last week. Republican Del. Barry Knight, who represents Virginia Beach, rounded out the top five candidates, raising about $312,000. In Hampton Roads, House candidates who have raised top dollar amounts received funding from groups such as utility company Dominion Energy, developer Comstock Hospitality Holdings and Virginia Trial Lawyers PAC. Much of Scott's funding came from large donations, categorized for General Assembly races as over $1,000. In addition to $125,000 from Dominion, he received $35,000 from East Coast Amusements, which sells arcade machines, and $30,000 from PPE Resort Casino Petersburg. Dominion gave $25,000 to Ward, but also to Republican candidates in other districts. Donations include $20,000 to Knight, $15,000 to Del. Amanda Batten of James City and $7,500 to Del. Anne Tata of Virginia Beach. VPAP characterizes Scott's and Ward's districts as strongly Democratic — Scott doesn't have a Republican challenger, and Ward opponent John Chapman has so far raised a little more than $800. Each has donated to other campaigns. Scott's PAC is the fourth largest donor in Virginia, contributing more than $2.2 million to other campaigns. Most of that money went to the House Democratic Caucus, but the campaign has also given smaller amounts to individual candidates such as Del. Patrick Hope of Arlington, who received $25,000. Scott's campaign also has supported down-ballot races in Hampton Roads. Matthew Hamel and Stephanie Morales each received $10,000 for their campaigns for commonwealth's attorney of Chesapeake and Portsmouth, respectively. Ward's PAC donated $150,000 to the House Democratic Caucus. Knight is in a similar boat in a strongly Republican district, having raised about $312,000 to opponent Cheryl Smith's $12,500. Knight's PAC donated $41,000 to other Republican campaigns between 2024 and now, with $21,000 going to the Republican Commonwealth Leadership PAC and $5,000 to Del. Chad Green, who represents parts of Gloucester and James City County. He also donated $5,000 to Felisha Storm, who is challenging Del. Nadarius Clark in District 84. Districts 71, 86, 89 and 91 are considered competitive by VPAP, with no clear party favorite. Democrats have so far raised more money in those districts. In District 71, Anderson has outpaced Batten, raising about $357,000 to the Republican incumbent's $306,000. Likewise, Democrat Virgil Thornton raised about $150,000 to Republican incumbent AC Cordoza's $106,000 in District 86, which includes parts of Hampton and York. In Virginia Beach's District 97, Feggans has raised $378,000 to Republican challenger Tim Anderson's $241,000. District 89 is up for grabs after Republican Del. Baxter Ennis announced his retirement this year. Democrat Karen Carnegie and Republican Mike Lamonea, are in a tight fundraising race, with Carnegie raising $205,000 to Lamonea's $195,000. Both won primary elections in June to secure their party's nomination. Democrats running for statewide office are outpacing Republicans in two of three races. Democratic gubernatorial nominee Abigail Spanberger has raised $27.1 million to her opponent Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears's $11.6 million. Democrat Ghazala Hashmi, a state senator, has raised $3.5 million in her campaign for lieutenant governor. Her Republican opponent, conservative radio host John Reid, has raised about $441,000. Breaking the trend, incumbent Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares has raised $9.4 million to Democratic nominee Jay Jones' $4.9 million. Both are from Hampton Roads — Miyares from Virginia Beach; Jones from Norfolk. Kate Seltzer, 757-713-7881,
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
So long Chantal. Hello again, heat.
Chantal is moving away from Hampton Roads, but the heat is back. The National Weather Service has issued a heat advisory from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday for the entire region, including Hampton Roads, the Eastern Shore, Middle Peninsula and northeast North Carolina. Heat index values could reach 105 degrees or higher. Also beginning Tuesday, forecasters say we could see afternoon and evening showers and thunderstorms through the end of the week. These storms likely won't be too dangerous, but there are some low-end threats of damaging wind and flooding. These types of storms are normal for July, forecasters note. There is also a moderate threat of rip currents Tuesday across our beaches. To stay safe in the heat, health experts said, do the following: Drink water — don't just wait until you're thirsty Stay cool — try and stay inside in some air conditioning Limit physical activity — if you need to do things outdoors, trying doing them at the coolest times of day like in the early morning or evening Dress for the weather — wear loose and lightweight clothing as well as lots of sunscreen, which should be reapplied regularly Stay informed — tune into local forecasts and check the weather before activities Don't leave pets or children in cars — temperatures in cars quickly rise to being about 20 degrees warmer than outside; leave windows cracked Check on others — especially the elderly; know the signs of heat-related illness and make sure pets are attended to
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Geologists uncover new evidence from ancient asteroid that hit the Chesapeake Bay
An illustration of the bolide impact in the Chesapeake Bay 35 million years ago. (Illustration by Nicolle Rager-Fuller /U.S. National Science Foundation) By Katherine Hafner/WHRO About 35 million years ago, Hampton Roads was underwater, with the coastline dozens of miles west toward Richmond. Dinosaurs were long gone, but the ocean teemed with marine creatures such as ancient whales, sharks and sea stars. That is until one unfortunate day, when life across what's now southeastern Virginia was obliterated within seconds. A bolide – an extraterrestrial object such as an asteroid or comet – hurtled out of space and landed in the lower part of the Chesapeake Bay. 'There was a kill zone that would have been several hundred miles out in every direction,' said Rich Whittecar, a geologist and emeritus professor at Old Dominion University. The volcanic-like lateral blast from the impact ripped through faster than the speed of sound, with exponentially more explosive power than atomic bombs detonated by humans, Whittecar said. Plants and animals would be 'totally shredded' by all the material – and simultaneously incinerated by the intense heat. 'Not a good day,' Whittecar said. Geologists first pieced together the story of the Chesapeake Bay impact crater in the 1990s. It's the largest known bolide strike in the U.S. and among the largest in the world. But new research is the first to document the far-reaching impacts of the collision. Scientists say they uncovered a site 240 miles away in the Sandhills of North Carolina showing traces of a massive tsunami caused by the Virginia asteroid. And the discovery all started by chance. Almost a decade ago, retired consulting geologist Bob Ganis was investigating some fossils in Moore County, N.C. when he got a call from a local property owner nearby. A pipeline was set to be constructed through the edge of her property called Paint Hill Farm, and she wondered if Ganis might like to come investigate the temporary trench as part of his research. Ganis accepted the offer and it became 'one of the most strange days of my life,' he said. He took a look at the rock layers exposed about 10 feet deep and was 'totally baffled.' What he saw didn't align with his geological understanding of the region. 'I had no idea what it was, and no reports of this kind of geology were available to understand what it was,' he said. Thus began a yearslong quest to get to the bottom of the mystery trapped in sediment. The first piece of the puzzle was determining the age of the rock layers in question. Ganis said he found fossilized shark teeth nearby and worked with peers who helped date them to the late Eocene era, which lasted from about 56 to 34 million years ago. Next Ganis connected with Ralph Willoughby with the South Carolina Geological Survey, and described the mysterious sediment layers. They methodically went through the rock beds to try and explain each within the geological context of the region. 'When we get to the top, this explanation of all this rubble at the top, we're still scratching our heads,' Ganis said. ''What is this stuff?'' One day, looking at photos from the trench site, 'a light bulb goes off,' he said. 'It struck us (that) this is a tsunami deposit.' There was no geological history to explain why such a deposit would be there, except for one: the meteoroid strike up in Virginia on that fateful day 35 million years ago. The asteroid, moving at about 44,000 miles per hour, was about 2 to 3 miles wide and blasted an enormous crater into the continental shelf of modern day Virginia, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Much of the crater is still underwater in the bay, which is why it took until recent decades for scientists to discover. The circular outline of the impact in Hampton Roads includes the bottom half of the Eastern Shore, northern edge of Norfolk and eastern outskirts of the Peninsula and Middle Peninsula. Like any object that lands in water, the asteroid caused a big splash – a giant tsunami likely thousands of feet high, 'the kind of tsunami that the world rarely sees,' Ganis said. It likely washed over the Blue Ridge Mountains and swept across the Southeast – maybe even over the Atlantic Ocean to lap at the shores of Africa and Europe, he said. Scientists described such a wide-reaching tsunami when they first investigated the Chesapeake Bay impact crater but no one had found actual remains of it. Ganis' team homed in on the tsunami as a likely explanation for the Paint Hill rock formation, but needed more evidence to prove it. The bottom layer featured charcoal, natural glass and other rock fragments; materials you would expect to fly out of the impact, Ganis said. It also had the hallmarks of a 'tremendously hot blast.' Another layer contained ash from the explosion. Whittecar, the ODU geologist, came in to help figure out the top layer, a sandy conglomeration including petrified wood and what looked like a substance called plinthite. The team needed an expert to confirm. 'I went down (to) look at this stuff and basically said, 'Yep, that's plinthite,'' Whittecar said. The material is an iron-rich, clumpy reddish clay common in tropical regions. Researchers believe the Virginia tsunami swept up this material from the seabed and ended up at Paint Hill. The presence of iridium in the sediment helped nail down the team's tsunami theory. It is an extremely rare metal on Earth but common in asteroids. The researchers published their collaborative findings in the peer-reviewed journal Southeastern Geology last month. Paint Hill's owner recently sold the 300-acre property to the nonprofit Nature Conservancy, which plans to turn it over to the state park system to expand the Weymouth Woods Sandhills Nature Preserve. The tsunami deposits will be preserved and may become a 'highlight of the park' through related exhibits and educational activities, Ganis said. Whittecar said geologists are interested in this type of work largely out of curiosity and advancing knowledge for future generations. 'From the practical hazard prevention side of things,' he said, 'of course it does give a little weight to the notion that if we can stop one of these (asteroids) from hitting, it is worth getting out there and nudging that thing out of the way.' This story was originally published by the Mercury's media partner WHRO Public Media, the Hampton Roads region's largest media company. 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Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Yahoo
Here's how government services will be affected by the July 4 holiday
Chesapeake, James City County, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Poquoson, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Virginia Beach, Williamsburg, York County: closed Friday Chesapeake, Newport News, Portsmouth, Virginia Beach: Friday's collections will be picked up Saturday. Hampton: Friday's collections will be picked up Wednesday. James City County, Poquoson, York County: Friday's recycling will be collected Saturday; no trash collection changes. Norfolk, Williamsburg: No collection changes Friday. Suffolk: Collections for the week will be delayed by one day. Hampton Roads Transit: On Friday, bus, light rail, base express, paratransit, and on-demand ridesharing will operate on a Saturday schedule. The ferry will operate on its regular schedule. The customer service call center, transit center information booths and public access to all administrative facilities will be closed. Post offices will be closed Friday, with no regular mail delivery. Chesapeake, Hampton, James City County, Newport News, Norfolk, Poquoson, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Virginia Beach, Williamsburg, York County: closed Friday Chesapeake, Hampton, James City County, Newport News, Norfolk, Poquoson, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Virginia Beach, Williamsburg, York County: closed Friday DMV: Customer service centers will be closed Friday.
Yahoo
28-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Committee recommends adding party designations to Newport News City Council elections
The Newport News Charter Review Committee unanimously voted to recommend eliminating the city's prohibition on partisan primary elections for City Council candidates. The change would not add anything to the current voting process. If multiple candidates filed under the same political party run for City Council, then those candidates would be added to the existing partisan primary ballot for other races, where party designations would be visible to voters. 'By doing this, that's not going to dictate whether or not there's a primary,' committee co-chair Lee Vreeland said during Thursday's meeting. 'It's just as long as there is a primary, then it will be reflected.' Norfolk community members challenge school closure plan Ahead of a possible move out of state, Armed Forces Brewing Co.'s fundraising falls short Criticized natural gas compressor station project in Chesapeake will be reconsidered Norfolk to offer 2 hours of free deck parking, increase meter rates July 1 Virginia Beach Trail receives $24 million grant for next phase of the project The recommendation is one of a series of city charter changes the committee is presenting to the City Council for review. To change the city's charter, the City Council must ask the General Assembly to make amendments. State law bars party designations in local elections from appearing on general election ballots. Most cities in Hampton Roads are barred by their city charters from having partisan council elections, but some Virginia cities do hold primaries for those positions. The change would create a system where general election ballots do not contain party designations, but the final candidates are implied to be from different political parties. Independent candidates would still be allowed to run, and a primary would not be held for them. Vreeland said during the meeting her vote was a reflection of the community feedback voicing overwhelming support for the change. 'There has not been a single person who has said that they don't support it,' Vreeland said. 'For me, it's important that it is known that I listened.' The committee received eight emails from residents voicing support for partisan voting, along with one speaker. One came from Mary Vause, a Newport News resident who said partisan primaries minimize the risk of spoiler candidates winning a City Council seat. 'Without partisan local elections, most voters do not know the party affiliation of candidates who are running for local office, making it difficult for voters to make an informed decision' Vause wrote in an email. The vote came during the committee's last meeting before submitting its report to the City Clerk's office June 30. It will then be up to the City Council to review. City Council appointed members to the committee in April 2024 to examine the City Charter and look for areas of improvement, and its first meeting was last July. The city considered requesting several charter change amendments in 2023, but ultimately held off due to a lack of consensus. Other recommendations already approved for City Council review include having council appoint School Board members rather than hold elections, and making the mayor a full-time position, limited to two terms. However, the committee rejected recommending shifting the power to remove department heads from the city manager to the mayor, and is definitively against creating a strong mayor system in Newport News. 'If it was to imply of leave open for interpretation whether or not a full-time mayor would leave any room for a strong mayor, I would have to not vote for full-time mayor,' Vreeland said. 'I think we do need to make a statement.' Additionally, the committee opted not to make a recommendation on ranked choice voting in Newport News, because council already has the authority to adopt it without a charter adjustment. Devlin Epding, 757-510-4037,
