Weekend roadwork lessens for Easter weekend

Submitted by Beth Sawicki, Where U Live Producer

Friday, April 18th, 2014, 9:26am

Weekend roadwork lessens for Easter weekend

(WXIA) -- Only one major daytime closure will affect drivers on Atlanta's highways this weekend.

The leftmost lane on I-285 north will be closed between I-20 and Ga. 400 on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Crews must close the lane to remove a barrier wall.

"With only that one closure on I-285, everyone should have an easier time getting to their destination," Georgia Department of Transportation District Construction Engineer Shun Pringle said in a statement.

Nighttime closures will still occur in a handful of locations.

Three right lanes of I-20 west between Wesley Chapel and Candler roads will be closed for striping every night from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Two left lanes of I-285 north between I-20 and Peachtree Dunwoody Road will be closed nightly from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. Crews will work to replace a barrier wall in that location.

Other scheduled closures for sweeping, drain cleaning and slab replacement include:

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Submitted by Beth Sawicki, Where U Live Producer

Friday, April 18th, 2014, 5:43am

LILBURN, Ga. -- Lilburn Police are investigating a motorcycle accident that killed a 35-year-old man.

The wreck happened at around 11:40 p.m. Thursday in the 200 block of Hood Road.

Lilburn Police Chief Bruce Hedley said the motorcyclist was driving south when he lost control of his bike and crashed into a mailbox.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene. His name was not released, pending notification of next of kin.

Hedley said police are working to determine how the accident occurred.

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Submitted by Keith Whitney, 11Alive Reporter

Friday, April 18th, 2014, 2:20am

LILBURN, Ga. -- During Operation Iraqi Freedom about 7,000 US servicemen and women lost their lives.

If that is a sobering number, then the next one is downright terrifying. Deaths by suicide among US veterans from roughly that same time frame are ten times that, according to government figures.

It is a crisis that has become an epidemic.

The vets desperately need our help, and one woman in Lilburn is waging her own war to do just that. But she's already paid a terrible price with the suicide of her husband.

When he served in Iraq, Melvin Burgess Jr. was more than a soldier with a big gun. He was a soldier with a big heart. But after two tours of duty, something changed.

"Short fuse, irritable, not sleeping at all or hardly at all, and weight loss," recalled Burgess. "Any symptom you could think of for post traumatic stress disorder… it was very apparent."

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Submitted by 11Alive News Staff

Monday, April 14th, 2014, 7:03pm

LILBURN, Ga. -- A disciplinary hearing was held Monday for a student accused in a locker room fight at Parkview High School last month.

In an incident caught on camera, David Egan was punched in the face twice by a fellow student at Parkview High in Lilburn.

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The student who threw the punches faces a criminal charge of battery. Photos and cell phone video will play a key role in a school disciplinary hearing set for this afternoon.

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Submitted by Michael H. King, Digital Executive Producer

Friday, April 11th, 2014, 5:46pm

Road work continues this weekend over parts of Metro Atlanta

(WXIA) – Motorists will face a number of lane closures this weekend around Metro Atlanta.

I-285 Northbound from Hollowell Parkway (US 78/278) in Atlanta to Paces Ferry Road in Vinings will have one left lane closed for sign replacement.

I-20 West and Eastbound will have two left lanes closed between Ga. 5 in Douglasville to Liberty Road in Carroll County for ongoing concrete construction.

Nightly lane closures will continue on the Downtown Connector, along with portions of I-75 and I-85 inside the Perimeter for overhead sign replacement.

Retaining wall construction continues on Techwood Drive between 16th Street and 18th Street in Midtown Atlanta.

Construction continues on I-75 Northbound between I-675 and Mount Zion Boulevard in Clayton County. Two right lanes are closed in that area.

Landscaping operations are continuing along I-285 Westbound near Bouldercrest Road in DeKalb County.

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Submitted by Beth Sawicki, Where U Live Producer

Tuesday, April 8th, 2014, 12:50pm

19 Gwinnett high schools among America's Most Challenging

(WXIA) -- The Washington Post has unveiled its 2014 list of America's Most Challenging High Schools.

The newspaper determines the annual rankings through a ratio: the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Advanced International Certificate of Education tests a school gives each year, divided by the number of graduating seniors.

Nineteen Gwinnett County schools made the list, which features more than 2,000 high schools across the country. The listed numbers are each school's national ranking.

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Submitted by 11Alive News Staff

Tuesday, April 8th, 2014, 12:05pm

LILBURN, Ga. -- One woman died after her car went into a creek and was swept away Monday.

Gwinnett County authorities say it happened on Dickens Road at the bridge over Jackson Creek. The woman was identified as Fawzia Jamshidi, 57, of Loganville.

A witness told authorities the car veered off the road right before a bridge and plunged into the water. It then headed downstream with the engine submerged.

Another witness told 11Alive's Duffie Dixon he tried to use his 4-wheel drive to get down the creek's bank and help, but got stuck.

Gwinnett County Fire Department and Police Department swift water rescue crews launched a raft, and used divers and long poles during the search. Fire spokesman Colin Rhoden says the car was found downstream with Jamshidi inside.