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Country star Joe Diffie is seen on stage in this file photo from 2009 Jamboree In The Hills in Morristown, Ohio. (AP FILE PHOTO)

Country star Joe Diffie is seen on stage in this file photo from 2009 Jamboree In The Hills in Morristown, Ohio. (AP FILE PHOTO)

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Country star Joe Diffie dead at 61 from Coivd-19

NEWS STAFF
Monday, March 30, 2020
Country singer Joe Diffie, who frequently performed in the area and was scheduled to play this year’s Suwannee River Jam, has died after testing positive for COVID-19.
More than one-fifth of the world’s population was ordered or urged to stay in their homes Monday at the start of what could be a pivotal week in the battle to contain the coronavirus in the U.S. and Europe.

More than one-fifth of the world’s population was ordered or urged to stay in their homes Monday at the start of what could be a pivotal week in the battle to contain the coronavirus in the U.S. and Europe.

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Coronavirus: 1.5 billion globally told ‘stay home’

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Monday, March 23, 2020
NEW YORK — With masks, ventilators and political goodwill in desperately short supply, more than one-fifth of the world’s population was ordered or urged to stay in their homes Monday at the start of what could be a pivotal week in the battle to contain the coronavirus in the U.S. and Europe.
A lone pedestrian wearing a protective mask walks past the New York Stock Exchange as coronavirus concerns empty a typically bustling downtown area in New York on Saturday. (AP FILE PHOTO)

A lone pedestrian wearing a protective mask walks past the New York Stock Exchange as coronavirus concerns empty a typically bustling downtown area in New York on Saturday. (AP FILE PHOTO)

Stocks slump as virus bill stalls again

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Monday, March 23, 2020
NEW YORK — The Federal Reserve did what it could to help financial markets and the economy Monday. But investors are still waiting for Congress and the White House to do the same.

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Brannan brings home $8.9 million for Columbia County

CARL MCKINNEY
Friday, March 20, 2020
A spending package that includes $8.9 million for two major projects in Columbia County is on its way to the governor’s desk. A tentative state budget allocating $6.2 million for a new STEM building at Florida Gateway College and $2.

Coronavirus: U.S. Rep. Dunn helps speed up supply chains

NEWS STAFF
Thursday, March 19, 2020
Congressman Neal Dunn released the following statement after the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced that they’ve expanded their national emergency declaration for commercial vehicles delivering relief in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Coronavirus: Trump signs aid package into law

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Wednesday, March 18, 2020
WASHINGTON — Describing himself as a “wartime president” fighting an invisible enemy, President Donald Trump on Wednesday invoked rarely used emergency powers to marshal critical medical supplies against the coronavirus pandemic.
Ovidiu and Sondra Deaconescu are seen aboard ship. (COURTESY)

Ovidiu and Sondra Deaconescu are seen aboard ship. (COURTESY)

‘Cruise couple’ back after COVID-19 delay

TONY BRITT
Wednesday, March 18, 2020
After more than 10 days away from home, Ovidiu and Sondra Deaconescu were finally able to sleep in their own bed Tuesday night after getting back to Columbia County late that afternoon. They just happened to be on a cruise when the COVID-19 virus was turning the world on its head.
Travis Tomlin, an employee at the Lake City Chick-fil-A, stands outside the business, which has closed off its dining area to customers and gone to drive-through-only service. Other fast food chains are doing the same. (CARL MCKINNEY/Lake City Reporter)

Travis Tomlin, an employee at the Lake City Chick-fil-A, stands outside the business, which has closed off its dining area to customers and gone to drive-through-only service. Other fast food chains are doing the same. (CARL MCKINNEY/Lake City Reporter)

Coronavirus: Local business owners are feeling the pinch as concerns spread

CARL MCKINNEY
Tuesday, March 17, 2020
The normal flow of day-to-day Lake City life has been disrupted. Limited restaurant service, bar closures and a general slow-down of commercial activity are set to be the new normal for the foreseeable future, as the economic impact of the coronavirus epidemic continues to creep closer to home.