Liberty Festival Precautions
<bt>The Sheriff’s Office reminds residents who plan on attending Loudoun County’s Liberty Festival on Saturday, July 5, that fireworks and alcohol are prohibited. According to the Codified Ordinances of Loudoun County the use or discharge of fireworks, firecrackers, explosives or rockets of any kind is prohibited in any park, recreation area or community center, unless the activity is sponsored by the Department of Parks and Recreation.
The Sheriff's Office is also recommending to residents who are driving to the Dulles Town Center event that they travel by using either the Dulles Town Center exit off of Harry Byrd Highway (Route 7) or by using the Nokes Boulevard entrance from Sully Road (Route 28).
<sh>Information Sought on House Fire
<bt>The Fire Marshal's Office is seeking information on a house fire that occurred on the evening of Saturday, June 28, at 42834 Waxpool Road in Ashburn. The Fire Marshal is asking anyone with information about the suspicious fire or person(s) that may be involved in the fire to contact them at 703-737-8716.
According to fire and rescue reports, Loudoun County Fire and Rescue Services received at 911 call around 11:37 p.m., Saturday, for a structure fire at the Waxpool address in Ashburn. Fire and rescue personnel from Ashburn, Arcola, Sterling and Leesburg responded to the scene and found a single-story abandoned house fully involved. The cause of the fire, which destroyed the house, is under investigation.
<sh>Fuel Oil Spill
<bt>On Friday, June 27, around 11:56 a.m., fire and rescue members from Leesburg and South Riding responded to a reported fuel oil spill along the W&OD Bike Trail at Catoctin Circle in Leesburg. While fire and rescue personnel contained the spill, an environmental company was brought in to do the clean up. The incident is still under investigation by the Loudoun County Fire Marshal's Office.
<sh>Weekend Fire
<bt>On Saturday, June 28, around 1:16 p.m., Loudoun County Fire and Rescue Services received numerous 911 calls for a kitchen fire at the Macaroni Grill Restaurant located at 21055 Dulles Town Circle. Fire and rescue personnel from Sterling, Ashburn and Dulles Airport responded to the scene. Upon their arrival, the firefighters discovered the kitchen fire had been put out by the sprinkler systems and that all patrons and staff had been evacuated. One employee who was injured in the flash fire was transported to Loudoun Hospital Center for treatment. The Loudoun County Fire Marshal's Office has determined that the fire, which was accidental, started when the gas line to the pasta machine broke. The gas was quickly ignited by a nearby heat source. The Macaroni Grill was temporarily closed pending repairs.
<sh>Adult Day Care Gains Grant
<bt>The Loudoun County Area Agency on Aging, a division of Parks, Recreation and Community Services, has been awarded a grant in the amount of $72,106 from the Virginia Department for the Aging. The grant, made available under the Virginia Respite Care Grant Program, is for enhancement of adult day-care services in the county.
The agency will use the money to purchase a 20-passenger bus with special features to support transportation of disabled elderly residents of western Loudoun to adult day-care services. Currently, no public transportation is available for these seniors to the County's licensed Adult Day Center in Leesburg. A second licensed Adult Day Center is planned as part of the future renovation of the historic Carver School in Purcellville. For more information, contact the Loudoun County Area Agency on Aging at 703-777-0257.
<sh>County Programs Honored
<bt>Loudoun County has received two 2003 Achievement Awards from the National Association of Counties (NACo). The programs recognized with awards include the Reverse Commute Bus Service of the Office of Transportation Services, and the county’s Frontline Customer Service Forums.
The Reverse Commute Bus Service provides a direct, low-cost connection between the West Falls Church Metrorail Station in Fairfax County and two major employment sites within Loudoun County, the campuses of MCI and America Online (AOL). The program was instituted in September 2002 in partnership with the Virginia Regional Transportation Association (VRTA).
The Frontline Customer Service Forums were initiated and organized by an interdepartmental team composed of front-line employees. The forums give the employees the opportunity to network, exchange ideas, identify the organization’s strengths and weaknesses with respect to customer service, develop strategies for improvement, and learn about county programs, processes and issues.
<sh>Operation Accountability Continues
<bt>Three juveniles and one adult were arrested June 18 during Operation Accountability. The Loudoun County Court Service Unit (Juvenile Probation and Parole) working in conjunction with the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office and Leesburg Town Police conducted unannounced probation checks on 60 juveniles and adults on probation and parole with the Juvenile Court Service Unit.
The arrests were for probation and parole violations including testing positive for alcohol and marijuana. Four juveniles were also arrested on outstanding detention orders.
Of the eight offenders taken into custody during the operation two were released into the Supervised Release Program, one placed at the Youth Shelter, four were continued in secure detention and one was released on bond.
This was the 17th time that Operation Accountability has been conducted in Loudoun County during the past four years. The program is designed to ensure that juveniles and adults on probation and parole are following their rules of probation and parole.
<sh>Homeless Shelters Ready
<bt>Renovations to all three of Loudoun County's Emergency Homeless Shelters are now complete and all are being used to provide shelter for those in need. The renovations included painting, plumbing, electrical, installation of handicapped-accessible ramp, bathroom and bedroom. The Emergency Homeless Shelters operate with 24 beds and are staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, providing a place for the homeless to stay for up to 89 days. The shelters also assist the homeless in regaining self-sufficiency through referrals and case management for education, employment, medical treatment and housing services.
People seeking a space at the shelters may call the operator of the facilities, Volunteers of America, Chesapeake Inc. at 703-669-4921. The telephone number is staffed 24 hours a day.
Referrals to the shelters may also be processed through the Loudoun County Department of Social Services at 703-777-0353, or Housing Services at 703-777-0389 (V/TTY).
For more information, contact Cindy Mester, director of Loudoun County's Housing Services, at cmester@loudoun.gov or 703-777-0389 (V/TTY).
<sh>Health Commission Needs Help
<bt>Loudoun County citizens, health professionals and others who would like to shape the future of the local health-care system are encouraged to apply for membership on the newly created Loudoun County Health Care Commission.
The Board of Supervisors established the commission on June 16 to develop strategies to improve the health of the community. In addition to representatives of the general public, the board is seeking members who will represent: the Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce and the business community, primary-care and specialty-care physicians, health-related nonprofit organizations, long-term care and assisted living facilities, the faith community and higher education.
Anyone interested in serving on the commission is encouraged to send a letter of interest or resume by Aug. 30, to the Board of Supervisors, Attention: Sally Keefer, 1 Harrison St., S.E., P.O. Box 7000, Leesburg, VA 20177.
The commission, which will continue the work of the Loudoun Health Care Task Force, is expected to be ready to meet by Oct. 1.
<sh>Suspicious Device
<bt>On Monday, June 23, around 7:55 p.m., a suspicious device was found along the roadway in the 700 block of Galloway St., S.E., Leesburg. The Loudoun County Bomb Squad and the Leesburg Police Department responded to the scene. The device was rendered safe and taken as evidence by the Loudoun County Fire Marshal's Office and is being sent to a forensics lab for analysis. The incident is being investigated by the Loudoun County Fire Marshal's Office.
<sh>Motorcycle Accident
<bt>An Arcola man was recovering in an area hospital June 26 after being involved in a motorcycle accident on Gum Springs Road (Route 659) the night of June 25. The single-vehicle accident occurred around 6 p.m. when the motorcyclist, 56-year-old Tony Rowland, according to police, lost control of his 1994 Harley Davidson and ran off of the right side of the roadway.
MedStar airlifted Rowland to the Washington Hospital Center where he was treated for nonlife-threatening injuries.
The victim was traveling north on Route 659 just north of Braddock Road when the accident occurred.
<sh>Bloodhound Training
<bt>In July the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office and the Virginia Bloodhound Search and Rescue Association will hold their 12th annual training seminar for man-trailing bloodhounds in Loudoun County.
The seminar, held July 6-11 at the Institute Farm in Aldie, Va., will train members of law enforcement and volunteer search-and-rescue groups to provide vital assistance at crime and search-and-rescue scenes. During this time period, groups of K-9 handlers along with their bloodhounds will be training throughout Loudoun County.
The attendees will receive approximately 40 hours of classroom training and fieldwork. More than 42 handlers from all over the country and Canada will attend the training sessions that will take place in Leesburg, Aldie and Middleburg.
The co-host of the event, the Virginia Bloodhound Search and Rescue Association, provides continuous training and education for bloodhounds, handlers and support personnel to improve and develop capabilities to insure competent and capable bloodhound teams.
<sh>Leesburg Homeless Receive Grant
<bt>Loudoun County has received $137,000 from the state SHARE Homeless Intervention Program for its homeless program in Leesburg. The funding, provided through the state Department of Housing and Community Development, will be used to provide short-term rental and mortgage assistance to prevent low-income families and individuals from becoming homeless.
<sh>Construction Worker Recovering
<bt>A construction worker is recovering from injuries he sustained June 23 after he fell three stories to the ground.
According to police, the man, 33-year-old Jose Hernandez of Washington, D.C., was working from a ladder cleaning windows at the Fairways Apartments on Heatherstone Terrace in Lansdowne when the incident occurred. MedStar airlifted the man to Washington Hospital Center where he is recovering from nonlife-threatening injuries. Investigators say the incident, which occurred around 11 a.m., appears to be an accident and there are signs of foul play.