Across the area

Blaze clears Milliken plant

About 70 people were evacuated Monday from the Milliken & Co. textile plant in Johnston, S.C. , after a machine caught fire, a company official said.

A ball bearing in one of the machines overheated, causing cloth fibers to catch fire, said Christina Trainor, the human resources director at Milliken.

She said the fibers were pulled into the plant's ventilation system and created a large amount of smoke.

Employees were evacuated from about 10:45 a.m. until about 12:30 p.m.

No one was hurt.

Man mowing lawn is hit by car, hospitalized

A man mowing his lawn was critically injured in a hit - and - run accident Monday afternoon, said Georgia State Patrol Cpl. Ritchie Howard.

Columbia County sheriff's Capt. Steve Morris said Leon Barnes, of the 6400 block of Jamison Drive in Harlem, was arrested near his home after leaving the scene of the accident, which took place near Harrison Road and Mimosa Street at about 1:25 p.m.

The victim, George Robert Boyd, 56, of Harlem, was taken to McDuffie Regional Medical Center and later airlifted to Medical College of Georgia Hospital, where he was in critical condition, according to an MCG spokeswoman.

Police look for robber of sandwich shop

Richmond County sheriff's investigators are looking for a man who robbed a sandwich shop Monday night.

Investigator James Kelly said that an armed man wearing a green mask entered the Subway in the 4100 block of Windsor Spring Road and demanded money.

After taking the money, the robber left through the front door and ran toward a wooded area nearby.

Police reviewed video surveillance of the robbery.

Work will shut lane of Walton Way Extension

The northbound lane of Walton Way Extension at the Interstate 20 bridge will be closed today from 7 p.m. until midnight , according to a Georgia Department of Transportation news release.

The southbound lane will remain open , with flagmen positioned to alternate the traffic flow.

Traffic below the bridge in the westbound lane of the interstate will be paced by law enforcement vehicles in order to slow traffic.

The deputies will also close exits 200 and 199 to prevent vehicles from entering I-20's westbound lanes.

The lanes will be closed to set beams for the new bridge.

Group points gun at girl, steals clothing

Three people entered a home in the 3000 block of Mistletoe Avenue on Sunday, held an 11-year-old girl at gunpoint and stole $1,000 in clothing, according to a Richmond County sheriff's report.

A Hephzibah woman told deputies she left her niece alone at her home for about 30 minutes, the report said. When she returned home, the girl told her two men and a woman entered the front door.

One man grabbed her by the neck and pointed a gun at her head.

The robbers took 14 pairs of shoes, four boxes of sunglasses and a large container filled with clothes, the report said.

Customer scares away intruder at business

An employee of Bain's Army Surplus and Video in the 3700 block of Mike Padgett Highway says a man entered the store Sunday and forced her to the ground, according to a Richmond County sheriff's report.

She said the intruder then licked her on her neck. He left when a customer pulled into the store's parking lot, the report said.

$3,000 stolen from civic center office

A lock-box filled with $3,000 was stolen from the Augusta-Richmond County Civic Center between Saturday evening and Sunday morning, according to a Richmond County sheriff's report.

The money was stolen from Feld Entertainment Inc., the company responsible for conducting the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, the report said.

The money was taken from a lower-level office.

Woman accuses man of biting her finger

An Augusta man remained in jail Monday after being accused of assaulting his child's mother.

Rodney Gerald Miller, of the 1900 block of Wylie Drive, faces battery and aggravated stalking charges in a July 12 incident at the woman's Griggs Court home, a Richmond County sheriff's report states.

Latoya Washington told police that as she and Mr. Miller were arguing, he bit her right ring finger.

Mr. Miller was also charged with giving police a false name, the police report shows.

Work release inmate found after escape

A 39-year-old inmate at the Lower Savannah Work Release Center briefly tasted freedom early Monday morning, escaping from the minimum security prison for a few hours before being captured.

Wallace McCluggage , who apparently had two addresses in Edgefield County, was discovered missing from the center on Wire Road shortly after 1 a.m.

A report filed with the Aiken County Sheriff's Office said he was last seen around 11:30 p.m. Sunday.

Mr. McCluggage, who was sentenced to two years for possession of crack cocaine, was found at about 3:40 a.m. on U.S. Highway 1 near Exit 22, according to the South Carolina Department of Corrections.

The department's Web site states that Mr. McCluggage had served just over 10 months of his sentence and had a projected release date of October.

- From staff reports