Georgia Today: Helene death toll rises; More eligible voters; Braves' season over

 

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast from GPB News. Today is Thursday, Oct. 3. I'm Peter Biello. On today's episode, the death toll from Hurricane Helene in Georgia has risen to 33. Voting rights groups search for possible eligible voters among people who have committed felonies. And the Atlanta Braves have been eliminated from the postseason. These stories and more are coming up on this edition of Georgia Today.

 

Story 1

Peter Biello: Several Metro Atlanta community groups say they want the BioLab plant in Conyers shut down. This after a fire at the chlorine production plant east of Atlanta in Rockdale County on Sunday. Officials continue to recommend residents shelter in place nightly until the plant stops emitting heavy smoke. Devin Barrington-Ward speaks for the nonprofit Black Futurists group.

Devin Barrington-Ward: They've had fires in 2020. They had a fire in 2004. I remember I was in high school with lockdown and fallout from the chemical gas. And so how many more times are they going to be allowed to pollute our environment and exposed residents to this type of irresponsible behavior?

Peter Biello: Federal officials are investigating what led to the fire and how it's been handled.

 

Story 2

Peter Biello: The death toll from Hurricane Helene in Georgia has risen to 33. That number comes from Gov. Brian Kemp, who updated Georgians on recovery efforts this morning. GPB's Chase McGee reports.

Chase McGee: Kemp says many of reported deaths came from trees falling on homes. He says he spoke to President Joe Biden by phone Thursday morning to thank him for increasing the federal disaster declaration from 11 to 41 Georgia counties. He says he's pushing for more counties to be included after he and Georgia first lady Marty Kemp spent two days touring the state.

Gov. Brian Kemp: I mean, we've been on the ground really from Valdosta all the way up through Augusta, Thompson and McDuffie County. And just the width of the destruction compared to even Hurricane Michael is so, so much greater.

Chase McGee: Kemp says he heard stories of dramatic rescues and saw pecan orchards with every tree laid over, among other damage. For GPB News, I'm Chase McGee.

Peter Biello: Georgia utilities are reporting progress on restoring power to customers who lost it during Hurricane Helene. Georgia Power officials say as of midday today, about 1.2 million customers have had their power restored. And Georgia's electric cooperatives, which serve mostly rural areas, still have 150,000 customers without power. That's down from 435,000. President and CEO of Georgia EMC, Dennis Chastain, says it's going to take some time to rebuild thousands of damaged poles and miles of downed lines.

Dennis Chastain: You know, in the best of circumstances, we tell people it takes a line crew four hours, as much as six hours to replace a broken pole. That's in the best of conditions. And these are far from ideal conditions.

Peter Biello: In hard-hit Augusta, about two-thirds of customers who lost power have had it restored. Both Georgia Power and the state's electric cooperatives expect power restoration work to continue through the weekend.

 

Story 3

Peter Biello: The Harris-Walz campaign is reaching out to conservative voters in the final weeks of the presidential campaign. Former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan today kicked off Republicans for Harris in Georgia. The hope is to target voters who cast ballots for Nikki Haley in the March presidential primary. The effort could make a difference in a tight contest, says Harris-Walz principal deputy campaign manager Quentin Fulks.

Quentin Fulks: Actually going to the places that these voters live in and speaking directly to them, knowing that we may lose their county as a whole but at the end of the day, making sure that we're communicating and showing that we're willing to go places where Democrats may not normally go.

Peter Biello: Vice President Kamala Harris is campaigning in Wisconsin with Republican and former congresswoman Liz Cheney today. You can hear the full interview with the Harris campaign tomorrow on Morning Edition.

 

Caption

PBS News Hour JD Vance’s political views and how they have shifted in recent years

Story 4

Peter Biello: Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance is scheduled to speak in Floyd County tomorrow afternoon at one. The event will be held at The Mill in Lindale, about five miles south of Rome. The Floyd County government website reminds the public that there will be heavy vehicle and pedestrian traffic and to expect delays as the campaign motorcade travels through Rome and Floyd County.

Story 5

Peter Biello: As we've mentioned, this presidential election is expected to be close, especially in battleground states like Georgia. Organizations across the state are trying to find votes wherever they may be, and that includes among those who have felony convictions. Contrary to popular misconception, people found guilty of a felony do not permanently lose their right to vote. And some researchers say nearly half a million Georgians with a past conviction are eligible, though many don't know it. GPB's Amanda Andrews reports on those who are trying to get the word out.

Amanda Andrews: It's a rare cool summer day in Augusta and a group of canvassers in bright yellow shirts are gathered outside an old church building, preparing to go door to door to register people to vote tomorrow.

Kareemah Hanifa: Vote in my honor! Vote in my honor!

Amanda Andrews: Kareemah Hanifa and others with the Inner City Muslim Action Network are part of the Vote in My Honor campaign, a project to motivate voters led by people who've been incarcerated and had their voting rights revoked.

Kareemah Hanifa: We got three young people that go register to vote today, that's not registered.

Amanda Andrews: Hanifa is a lead organizer at IMAN Atlanta. She says the work of registering voters, particularly those who've been convicted of a felony, is especially important with Georgia being a swing state.

Kareemah Hanifa: I know that if my people — when I say "my people," those that are directly impacted by the criminal justice system — get out and vote, that we can be so powerful and have such a strong impact in the community.

Amanda Andrews: Hanifa is one of hundreds of thousands of Georgians who's had her right to vote taken away after going to prison.

Kareemah Hanifa: This does not feel like work to me. This just feels like me loving on my people, me empowering my people and me supporting my people and me encouraging my people.

Amanda Andrews: Hanifa is facing something called felony voter disenfranchisement. It's part of Georgia law that says a person cannot vote until they're out of prison, off probation and off parole. The law seems simple, but data shows Georgia has the longest average probation sentences in the country at around seven years — doubling the national average. Ann Colloton is a policy and outreach coordinator with the Georgia Justice Project.

Ann Colloton: We're No. 1 in probation, No. 4 in incarceration. So it is not our crime rate that drives our felony disenfranchisement. It is our response to crime.

Amanda Andrews: In 2021, advocates with the Georgia Justice Project, including Dominique Harris, went to the state capitol to support a bill that would qualify some Georgians to end their probation after three years.

Dominique Harris: Prior to that, you had to do all your time on probation. So that's — And since 2021, we've got roughly around 20,000 people's probation terminated out of that 175,000. So that's a sense of hope.

Amanda Andrews: Hope is really important for people after incarceration. Harris says when he was navigating his return from prison, he wasn't thinking about elections.

Dominique Harris: Basic needs are the first requirement: food, shelter, clothing, things like that. So why would I think about voting?

Amanda Andrews: Now, Harris says he brings a unique perspective.

Dominique Harris: You fought the system so you know the ins and outs of the system. So that person has to be empowered because his voice is more important than really a lot of people, because he's been through every part of that.

Advocate (on the street):  — Understand that you can vote. If you have people locked up that ain't been convicted, let 'em know that they can vote. So that's what we're out here ...

Amanda Andrews: Back in Augusta, organizer Ikethia Daniels is still going door to door to share her story. After 12 years in prison and eight on parole, she's still waiting to be able to vote. She says educating others makes her feel like she has a voice in politics.

Ikethia Daniels: You know, I can't do it, you know? And what's stopping you from going to do it? You know you don't want to order off the menu? Are you willing to eat whatever we get, you know, in office? And that starts from below all the way to the top.

Amanda Andrews: The deadline to register to vote in Georgia is October 7. For GPB News, I'm Amanda Andrews in Augusta.

 

Story 6

Peter Biello: It's Day 3 of a dockworkers strike today. The shutdown of U.S. ports from Maine to Texas is prompting concerns over shortages and higher retail prices. Georgia Southern University logistics professor Scott Ellis says proactive managers started ordering in advance weeks ago, but:

Scott Ellis: The warehouses are only so big. They can only store so many raw materials or finished goods. And so much perhaps depends on the duration of the strike.

Peter Biello: Thousands of dockworkers at the ports of Savannah and Brunswick are part of the work stoppage, demanding higher wages and protections against automation.

 

Story 7

Peter Biello: A new report from the American Cancer Society finds that while breast cancer mortality rates have gone down, disparities remain. GPB's Ellen Eldridge reports.

Ellen Eldridge: Overall, breast cancer mortality rates nationwide have dropped. But for women under 50, the numbers are increasing. Dr. Bruce Waldholtz is with the American Cancer Society. He says there's also disparities in mortality rates, with Black women having a higher chance of dying than white women. And there are two reasons for this.

Dr. Bruce Waldholtz: One is, unfortunately, African-American women are more likely to have triple negative breast disease, which does not have responses to the normal hormonal manipulations and medication. And No. 2, decreased rates of mammography.

Ellen Eldridge: Waldholtz says in addition to the number of women overall in Georgia, getting mammograms is less than recommended. For GPB News, I'm Ellen Eldridge.

Caption

A view of a flag at a hole on Augusta National Golf Course during The Masters Tournament.

Credit: File

Story 8

Peter Biello: In sports, the chairman of Augusta National Golf Club says he's confident next year's Masters tournament will go on as the club focuses on community recovery from Hurricane Helene. Masters chairman Fred Ridley says the club, like the community, sustained a lot of damage and has been without power and water since Friday. He spoke today in Japan, where he was attending the Asia Pacific Amateur Tournament. The Masters is scheduled for mid-April. Augusta National and the Community Foundation for the Central Savannah River area have announced a joint $5 million donation to a fund providing essential services in the region.

 

Story 9

Peter Biello: The Atlanta Braves have begun the offseason. The injury-plagued team lost the best-of-three wild card series against the San Diego Padres last night. The season has in some respects felt cursed from the beginning. The team lost starter Spencer Strider to a season-ending elbow injury after about a week of play. Ronald Acuña Jr was out after a couple of months. Michael Harris II, Ozzie Albies and Sean Murphy all faced long recovery periods for various injuries, and both Austin Riley and Chris Sale were unavailable for the postseason. Braves manager Brian Snitker spoke to the press after last night's game.

Brian Snitker: We have a lot of depth in your organization. We did everything right with these guys. We, you know, it's just — you never, you never know when you coulda had a little more adversity.

Peter Biello: Still, Snit says the drive, the consistency and the work ethic of these players is admirable.

Brian Snitker: The energy never waned. Their attitudes never waned. You know, I just talked to them, too. I'm most proud of the team as I've ever had, quite honestly, with how they handle everything.

Peter Biello: The Braves finished the season with an 89 and 73 record.

 

Story 10

Peter Biello: And the Atlanta Dream have fired coach Tanisha Wright. The team made the announcement yesterday. Wright took over the team in 2021 and helped them reach the playoffs in the last two seasons. The Dream lost both years in the opening round of the postseason, including to New York last month. Atlanta went 15 and 25 this year.

And that is it for this edition of Georgia Today. Thank you so much for listening. If you want to learn more about any of these stories, visit GPB.org/News. And remember to subscribe to this podcast. We'll be back in your podcast feed tomorrow afternoon with all the latest news from Georgia. And we'd love to hear your feedback, if you have any. Send it to us by email. The address is GeorgiaToday@GPB.org.

I'm Peter Biello. Thanks again for listening. We'll see you tomorrow.