By DAVID NICHOL
T-H Staff Writer
Counseling Services of Eastern Arkansas celebrated the opening of its newest facility Thursday, with a ribbon cutting and guided tours of the site.
CSEA, which offers mental health services, has sites in six counties. The St. Francis County site, located on Highway 1 North (Washington) in Forrest City, besides offering services, will also house administrative offices.
Bonnie White, executive director, said there was a good geographical reason for locating the administraiton in St. Francis County.
"Given our catchment area, this is the center point of all the counties that are served out of CSEA" White said. "And we thought this would probably be the best point to have the administrative officers."
The building also has a large seminar room, to offer training opportunities for the staff.
"And travel to this (location) would be more centralized than having to travel across the entire catchment area," she said. "So, there were a lot of reasons to locate this office here."
White said everyone is glad to have the new facility up and running.
"We're really excited abou it," she said. "I think it's much more accommodating (than the former, smaller site on East Broadway).
"Now, in the outpatient clinic, there's one side that's specifically for children and families. It's laid out with drawings on the wall and toys, things like that," she continued.
"And on the other side it's for adults. It gives them a little bit more of what they might need, and a more quiet setting while they're waiting to see someone."
She said that in the old facility, sometimes children and adults were in the same waiting room, which at times could be difficult for both the children and the grownups.
White also said the seminar room can be used for more than staff education.
"The seminar room, I think, is not just something to offer to our staff, but the commuity," she said. "We're really looking at commuity eduction programs that we can provide and invite the public to come in and participate. It offers an opportunity for people to come in who might not otherwise choose to, and learn more about what we do. I think the design really lends itself well to meet the public's needs."
In addition to St. Francis, CSEA's service area also includes Crittenden, Cross, Lee, Monroe and Phillips counties.
Greencoats from the Forrest City Area Chamber of Commerce were on hand to assist with the ribbon cutting.
By KENDALL OWENS
T-H Staff Writer
St. Francis County residents beware. A disaster is headed this way in the form of an earthquake scheduled to hit this area on either Friday, April 30, or Friday, May 7.
The planned earthquake will serve as this year's disaster preparedness drill, and unlike drills in the past, plans are to involve the entire county in the drill.
"Last year, we concentrated on Forrest City. This year we need to involve the entire county so that we can stretch our resources and see what it would take to cover everyone's needs," said Bill Dooley, Office of Emergency Services Coordinator.
Officials from municipalities across the county filled the quorum court room at the courthouse Thursday to begin to make plans for the annual event. Unlike past drills, officials are looking to keep this year's event as close to real as possible, including the use of an unannounced time for the start of the drill.
"Last year, one of the main complaints that we had was that the event was too staged. The teachers who were involved knew when everything was supposed to happen and that made everything happen too perfectly," said Lisa Drake, who was representing the Forrest City School District.
Officials decided on the usage of an earthquake for the drill based on the varying amount of damage that can be caused with a strong magnitude quake.
"One of the things that we need to know is that each municipality will be able to handle themselves in case of anything until we can get the Search and Rescue Team or the Sheriff's Department out there to help them. If we have a large enough earthquake, then we might have one of the bridges to Hughes out, and would need to find alternate routes. This scenario will give us other options that we'll have to explore to see our effectiveness," said Ray Woods, head of the SFC Search and Rescue Team.
The effort may also include agencies from other counties due to the usage of ambulance services from other counties in the surrounding areas. "If we want this to be as realistic as possible, then we will have to get in contact with the ambulance service that comes from Monroe County. First response is where it counts so you can handle your areas quickly," said Wheatley Mayor Larry Nash.
According to Nash, as part of the effort, communities need to reinforce their current disaster plans.
"In 1999, when the tornado hit, we had a system of block leaders established that went in and helped account for people and find out who was injured before county officials could even get over there. We still have those people out there, but we haven't been as dilligent as we should be, and this will give us an opportunity to work on that as well," Nash said.
By TAMARA JOHNSON
Managing Editor
Not guilty pleas were entered Thursday afternoon on behalf of a Forrest City police officer charged with driving while intoxicated after causing a wreck last month.
Attorney Frank Morledge entered the pleas on behalf of Frank Frymire during a hearing in St. Francis County District Court. Frymire did not appear in court.
Frymire, a 22-year veteran of the Forrest City Police Department, is charged with DWI and reckless driving following an accident on Dec. 29 in which he struck a car nearly head-on on Highway 1 North near Caldwell. A blood alcohol test performed at Baptist Memorial Hospital-Forrest City just after the wreck showed Frymire's BAC to be .22. The legal limit is .08.
After hearing the pleas, District Court Judge Steve Routon set Frymire's trial for 1:30 p.m. on Monday, March 8 because he said Judge Richard Proctor of Wynne would probably hear the case. Routon attempted to set the trial for Feb. 8, but that conflicted with Morledge's schedule.
As part of a judge exchange program, Proctor and Routon hear cases in each other's court on the second Monday of each month.
Frymire remains on active duty with the FCPD.
David Dunn of Forrest City today announced his candidacy for the House of Representatives District 51 seat.
"For many years now, I have been involved in the economic development of our state. I have always had the desire to make this area a better place to live, work and play," Dunn said. "We are at a crossroads right now, and we need to decide if we want to be economically successful or fall by the wayside. I feel we should restart the economic development engine and create jobs and opportunities for our citizens."
Dunn said he hopes to draw on his experience as director of the Forrest City Area Chamber of Commerce if he is elected as a state representative. "During my years at the Forrest City Area Chamber of Commerce, we were able to create an organization that truly helped develop this area. We created jobs, lobbied for highway development, lobbied for tourism dollars and were successful in creating a better quality of life."
He is also the former president of Union Planters Bank in Forrest City and a former industrial project manager for the Arkansas Department of Economic Development. He attended the University of Arkansas.
Dunn has since entered the private business sector, and is currently in management with Concrete Cutting Services.
"Because I am involved with a small business, and I deal daily with issues that small businesses face, I feel we should be proactive in our pursuit of legislation to help our schools, our families and to create a pro-business environment that is attractive to employers," Dunn said.
Dunn said he and his wife of 17 years, Lorri, are raising their family in Eastern Arkansas and know first-hand the day-to-day struggles identified with families in the Delta. "I will work diligently to protect the things important to you and to give us all more and better opportunities in the future. This is our home, and together we can make it work."
The Dunns have four children, Sunni, 15; Ross, 14; Jack, 6
and Susie, 3. They attend the First United Methodist Church.
A woman was raped Thursday in a convenience store bathroom as she was closing the business for the night.
The Forrest City Police Department received a 911 call from Murphy USA about 1:25 a.m., from the victim.
The 31-year-old woman told police she was taking out the trash, and while she was in the restroom, a black male walked up and turned off the lights. When she opened the door, the victim told police the suspect entered the bathroom and grabbed her by the hair.
According to the police report, the suspect told her he had a gun and demanded money. When she told him the money was in the safe, the suspect allegedly forced her to perform oral sex before forcing her to take off her clothes and raping her. Some time later, the victim was able to push the suspect off her and she ran to the office where she called police.
The victim and a witness told police the suspect ran from the bathroom toward nearby apartments.
Police also found the victim's car with a door open, leading them to believe the suspect may have also gone through her vehicle.
The FCPD describes the suspect as a black male who was wearing a gray sweatshirt with a hood, black jeans and white shoes. He is about 120 pounds and five feet, seven inches tall.
A 43-year-old Brinkley man wanted in Pine Bluff and Colorado was arrested Thursday in Palestine after falsely identifying himself as a police officer.
According to a report from the Arkansas State Police, Ronald Wayne Terrell of Brinkley was stopped on Highway 70 near Palestine for an improper turn. Police reported when officers approached the vehicle, Terrell appeared nervous and opened his billfold showing a police badge. He then gave the officer a driving permit which did not fit his physical or age description. After taking Terrell into custody, officers learned that he had felony warrants in Jefferson County and in Colorado.
Terrell was charged with improper turn, criminal impersonation, driving on a suspended driver's license and first-degree impersonating a police officer. He was released on bond.
According to officials with the St. Francis County Jail, the Colorado county involved released Terrell from its charges.