Chattooga Headlines

Balloon festival heats up this weekend

Get ready for some strange sights near Menlo Friday-Sunday. The Northwest Georgia Festival of Balloons is set to go with some bizarre air ships due to drop in.

Among them: The Flying Purple People Eater piloted by John Cavin of Menlo. Also due is Dr. John Goddard of Griffin; he'll be piloting the Double Dos. Another pair of veterans, Steve and Connie Lambert of Anderson, S.C., also are scheduled to attend. Prior to moving to Anderson, they carried tourists over Central Florida including Disney World.

Balloons will fly, weather permitting, at 6 p.m. both Friday and Saturday evenings.   Morning flights will begin at 6 a.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Events include:

>South 107 remote Friday 5-7 PM

>Local musicians appearing throughout the event

>Buck & Duke Concert at 3 p.m. Saturday, $2 fee.

>2 Ton Annie plays earlier Saturday

>A $5 parking fee will be charged.

The festival is set for 9 a.m. until closing Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Tillotson Sports Complex off Ga. 48. Proceeds benefit the Menlo Recreation Department and the Chattooga County Tourism Board. (Click)

For more on the festival, contact Comments@menlopto.com or call Gail Wilbanks at 706-895-2285.

Politics/Reece vs. Brady for state House seat

Betty Brady of Summerville has qualified as a Republican to challenge state Rep. Barbara Massey Reece, D-Menlo, in the Nov. 4 general election. Reece qualified on April 28 to see a new term. Brady, 54, is with Brady Realty Inc. while Reece, 65, is a former teacher> Politics

Georgia unemployment insurance initial claims down slightly

Source: Georgia Department of Labor

The April unemployment insurance claims report is out and it shows double-digit increases in Northwest Georgia with the exception of a 1.2 percent drop in Floyd county. Statewide, applications soared by nearly 53 percent year over year.

The largest increase was in Polk County where first-time applications jumped 44.5 percent to 597 people from 413 a year earlier. One Polk employer, Pierre Foods, announced closing plans earlier this year.

Bartow County saw a large month-over-month gain, with applications climbing from 496 in March to 740 in April,  a 49.2 percent increase. Compared to a year earlier, applications were up 10.1 percent.

Floyd's report hung in the mid-800s, starting at 847 in April 207 to 835 in March and 837 in April. Floyd has been rocked by layoffs at Wheeler's and Mohawk.

Gas watch/Updates on local prices (updated 5/9)

>Statewide average climbs to $3.62: A year ago, we were paying $2.87 for a gallon of unleaded and were fuming about it. This morning, the statewide average is at $3.62, up four cents since Monday. Locally, climbed by several cents. .