Accident Proves Fatal
<bt>A single-vehicle accident shortly after midnight Sunday, Oct. 3, has taken the life of a Leesburg man, according to the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office.
Neil David Dubois, 21, was driving eastbound on Lost Corner Road near Tarara Lane outside of Lucketts when his 1993 Chevrolet Camaro allegedly ran off the right side of the roadway and struck a utility pole. The car was said to have rolled over after striking the poll and Dubois was thrown from the vehicle.
Dubois, who was not wearing a seat belt, was pronounced dead at the scene. According to members of the Sheriff's Office Traffic Safety Unit speed is believed to a factor in the accident.
Sunday's accident marks the 20th traffic fatality in Loudoun County in 2004. There were a total of 24 traffic fatalities in 2003.
<sh>AARP Health-Care Meeting
<bt>The Loudoun County Chapter of the AARP will hold a meeting to discuss senior health-care needs in Loudoun County at the Leesburg Senior Center, 215 Depot Court S.E., from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 12. The meeting is open to the public and lunch will be served. To reserve a lunch, call the Senior Center at 703-737-8039. For more information on the meeting, contact AARP president Esther Trask at 540-338-7546.
<sh>Test Means Free Flu Shots
<bt>Loudoun County is set to go with "Code Flu 04," a one-day event designed to provide free flu shots and test the county's emergency vaccination plan.
A key role of the Health Department is to be prepared to vaccinate or provide medications to everyone in Loudoun County in the event of widespread outbreak of disease. To do this, mass vaccination sites would need to be set up throughout the county.
Assuming the flu vaccine is delivered in time, on Saturday Oct. 16, from 11 a.m.-2 p.m., Loudoun County will test its emergency vaccination plan by providing free flu vaccine to anyone who lives or works in Loudoun County and family members 9 years of age and above at Potomac Falls High School, located at 46400 Algonkian Parkway.
According to David Goodfriend, director of the Loudoun County Health Department, "Each year the flu and pneumonia are among the leading causes of death in Loudoun County." The Centers for Disease Control recommends that everyone age 50 years or older, everyone with chronic heart, lung or immune problems, and everyone who doesn't want to get sick from the flu be vaccinated.
More information is available on the Code Flu hot line at 703-771-5512 and online at www.loudoun.gov/codeflu.
<sh>Route 50 Special Meeting
<bt>The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors Land Use Committee will hold a special meeting on the proposed formation of a Route 50 Task Force Wednesday, Oct. 13, at 6:30 p.m., in the Board Room of the County Government Center, 1 Harrison Street, S.E. in Leesburg.
At the direction of the full Board of Supervisors, the Land Use Committee is considering the formation of a task force to gain insight and recommendations on issues facing the Route 50 corridor. The issues include transportation improvements; a unified theme for the area's architectural style; access and linkage to key historical and cultural sites; and recognition of the area as a gateway corridor. Once the Land Use Committee has issued its recommendations on a task force, it will report back to the full Board.
More information about the project, including background documents and an online task force sign-up sheet, is available on the Loudoun County Government Web site at www.loudoun.gov/bos/route50.
<sh>Three Injured in Accident
<bt>Three people were hospitalized Monday, Oct. 4, after a two-vehicle accident on Route 50 near South Riding, according to the Loudoun county Sheriff's Office.
The driver of a 1997 Honda Accord, Shruti R. Kulkarni, 29, of South Riding, has been charged with reckless driving after she apparently pulled out onto eastbound Route 50 from Elk Lick Road in front of a 2004 Chevrolet Tahoe. The SUV struck the Accord and ended up in the median of the roadway.
Kulkarni was airlifted to Inova Fairfax Hospital where she is being treated for serious but non-life-threatening injuries.
The driver of the Tahoe, Brockett Muir, III, 43, and a front-seat passenger, Catherine Muir, 48, both of Upperville, were taken to Fair Oaks Hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
All three were said to be wearing their seat belts.
The accident occurred just before 7:30 a.m. and caused eastbound commuters to be rerouted for an hour.
<sh>Man Hospitalized after Accident
<bt>A Lovettsville man was airlifted to a local
hospital for precautionary reasons after a single-vehicle accident in which he struck a telephone poll, according to the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office.
Lowery Miller Sr., 54, was traveling southbound on Route 15 a half mile north of Black Walnut Lane near Lucketts when he allegedly swerved to miss several cars that were awaiting a lead car to make a left turn into a private driveway. Miller veered to the right and went up an embankment when he struck the pole.
Miller, who may have been suffering from a minor medical emergency at the time of the accident, was airlifted to Inova Fairfax Hospital.
The accident occurred around 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 2.
<sh>Welsh To Retire
<bt>Cynthia H. Welsh, Loudoun County's director of Parks, Recreation and Community Services since 1991, will retire on Jan. 1, 2005.
Welsh will retire with more than 35 years of service with Loudoun County. She joined the county in December 1969 as a secretary in the Department of Parks and Recreation. Over the years, she rose through the ranks of the department, holding such positions as programmer, recreation supervisor and assistant director. She became the department's director in 1991 following the retirement of long-time Parks and Recreation Director James O. Stup.
As director of parks, recreation and community services, Welsh has responsibility for a variety of programs and facilities, including sports activities for youth and adults, instructional and interpretive classes, programs for senior citizens, visual and performing arts, child care, before and after school activities, trips, camps, educational and prevention programs for at-risk youth, and programming for special populations.
Loudoun County's parks and recreation system grew significantly during Welsh's tenure with the county, including the development of Claude Moore Park and Franklin Park, Banshee Reeks nature preserve, Potomack Lakes Sportsplex, and Loudoun Heritage Farm Museum. The department's programs include Parks Community Centers, Aging Services, Facility Development and Planning, Maintenance Services, Special Services, Youth and Adult Sports, and Youth Services.
A native of Hillsboro, Welsh attended George Mason University, Shepherd College, and Northern Virginia Community College and was an honor graduate of the North Carolina State University Revenue Resource Management School in 1985.
She is currently on the Board of the National Association of County Parks and Recreation Officials (NACPRO) and serves on the National Recreation and Park Association's (NRPA) National Forum Committee, as well as several other professional associations.
<sh>Election Information in Spanish
<bt>The Loudoun County Democratic Committee (LCDC) has launched "Centro de la Eleccion 2004," offering voting and campaign resources in Spanish to its Web site at www.lcdems.com.
Spanish-language offerings at the Democrat site include: voter registration and absentee ballot information and voting rights question and answers. Centro de la Eleccion 2004 also provides several Web forms which allow Spanish-speaking visitors to volunteer with the LCDC, sign up for yard signs, and volunteer to work at the polls.
The Web also links to a new e-mail address, espanol@lcdems.com, for corresponding with a LCDC team of Spanish-language volunteers. Centro de la Eleccion 2004 also links to Spanish-language sections of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry's Web site at www.johnkerry.com/unidos/.
All Northern Virginia counties including Loudoun County have seen substantial Latino/Hispanic population growth. Proportional to its total population, Loudoun's fast-growing population has seen a 368 percent growth rate.
For more information about the LCDC, go to www.lcdems.com or call 703-771-DEMO (3366).