Local News

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — On Tuesday, the Berkeley County Commission adopted a levy rate of 13.39 for the upcoming 2024-2025 fiscal year, leaving the rate unchanged from the current year. A press release from the Commission reports the levy rate for 2024-2025 is projected to generate $28,915,496 million in property taxes in support of Berkeley County’s […]

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — Five people received their sentence this week for distributing fentanyl across the Eastern Panhandle.        Christopher Arthur Jones, 39, also known as “Smooth,” of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 300 months in prison and 15 years of supervised release for racketeering enterprise (RICO) conspiracy and fentanyl distribution charges. Jones was […]

CHARLESTON, W. Va. – Sample Ballots for West Virginia’s May 14 Primary Election are now available online for registered voters to review before they vote.  A press release from the WV Secretary of State’s Office link to an online search tool for voters to use to find the Sample Ballot assigned to them. According to […]

BOONSBORO, MD — The Boonsboro Police Department is reflecting on the passing of Police Chief Kevin Morgan at the age of 63.  Morgan’s obituary reveals Morgan was in his 42nd year in law enforcement when he passed away April 13th. “Loss is difficult and no amount of time, age, nor circumstances lessen the sting. Saturday […]

GERRARDSTOWN, W.Va. — A stolen ATV out of Frederick County Virginia has been located in Gerrardstown, along with illegal drugs and a growing operation. The Berkeley County Sheriff’s Department tells the Panhandle News Network they got a request for assistance Sunday from their counterparts in Frederick County who were attempting to locate a stolen Polaris […]

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — A toddler is in critical condition following a drowning incident over the weekend. The Berkeley County Sheriff’s Department reports the incident involving the one-year-old was reported Sunday evening just before 7:30 p.m. at a home in Martinsburg. A press release indicates the drowning happened in the back yard pool of the home. […]

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. —February 14th is a day known to most of us as romantic, a day to love and be loved. For 5 Martinsburg City Police officers it was a day of heroism. At Thursday’s Martinsburg City Council meeting the officers were presented with a Lifesaver Award. Police Chief Erin Gibbons  explained that on the […]

The Red Cross is Assisting Storm Impacted Communities Volunteers are conducting damage assessment and providing assistance  Visit redcross.org, call 1-800-RED CROSS or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation. CHARLESTON, WVA, April 5, 2024 — The severe storm system that affected our area on Tuesday, April 2nd has caused widespread damage across the Central Appalachia […]

RIPPON, W.Va. — A Mount Hope woman who was killed while working flag operations last week in Jefferson County will be laid to rest this weekend. Kathy Ruth, 62, was standing on the shoulder of Rt. 340 in the work zone and had traffic stopped when a vehicle driven by a Harpers Ferry woman swerved […]

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. — The first black woman to become a licensed horse trainer was born in Charles Town in 1920. Sylvia Rideoutt Bishop had a pony as a little girl, according to her daughter, LaVerne Bishop.  Her love for horses was sealed when a family visiting from New York took her to the racetrack in […]

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. – Martinsburg police answered a ‘shots fired’ call in downtown Wednesday afternoon.    Chief of Police Erin Gibbons tells The Panhandle News Network the incident occurred in the 500 block of North Queen Street April 10th around 2 p.m. Officers found evidence of a shooting but do not believe anyone was struck by […]

BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. — The Town of Bath is inviting volunteers to help out Friday and Saturday as the Warm Springs Watershed Association and Friends of the North Berkeley Rail Trail host a clean-up of the stream and banks of Warm Springs Run between North Berkeley Park and Jimstown Road. On Friday, April 12, volunteers […]

HEDGESVILLE, W.Va. — A new 15-point improvement project to help alleviate congestion along West Virginia Route 9 was announced by Gov. Jim Justice this week. The governor was at the Martinsburg Regional DMV Office Tuesday afternoon to lay out the project for the roadway alongside Senate President Craig Blair, R-Berkeley, and state Transportation Secretary Jimmy […]

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — The Berkeley County Sheriffs Department has reported two separate vehicle pursuits within two days this week. Berkeley County Sheriff Chief of Staff Eric Burnett tells The Panhandle News Network the first pursuit happened Sunday night just before 11:00 when Berkeley County Dispatch reported a pursuit was ongoing from Jefferson County Sheriff’s deputies of […]

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — State regulators have opened a general investigation into notifications by utilities and cable providers regarding service outages. The Public Service Commission of West Virginia has notified 14 regulated utilities, including those serving the Eastern Panhandle that they should explain how they notify their individual customers when they are affected by service outages. […]

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — A state police trooper who was injured after being shot four times during a December continues to make progress. Brian Bean, the father of Trooper Abe Bean, issued a statement to MetroNews Wednesday. “Thank you to everyone who has supported our family during this time. We appreciate the kindness our community has […]

HAGERSTOWN, MD — The Hagerstown Police Department says a suspect in a 2020 slaying in Hagerstown has been arrested in California. Police Lt. Rebecca Fetchu tells The Panhandle News Network Raymond Garfield Campbell, 36 was arrested March 21st in Sacramento California. He had been a fugitive since October of 2020 when an arrest warrant was […]

ROMNEY, W.Va. — Four deer killed in Jefferson County have tested positive for chronic wasting disease. Although it’s the first detection of the cervid virus in Jefferson County, West Virginia Division of Natural Resources officials said it was a matter of “when” and not “if” the county would eventually have positive cases. “It was going […]

  MARTINSBURG, W.Va. – A ribbon cutting ceremony was held Friday for the 1-67th Airlift Wing in Martinsburg to rededicate  Fuel Maintenance Hangar 305.  Maintenance Squadron Commander Major John Alexander talked about the importance of a dedicated hangar for fuel cell maintenance for the Wing’s C-17 Globemaster III fleet: Commander Martin Timko says this will be […]

  MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — Beginning Friday evening, the intersection of Rock Cliff Drive and Tavern Road in Martinsburg will be closed through Monday morning as the intersection is converted to a roundabout from a four-way stop. Berkeley County Office of Emergency Services Director Randy Lilly said they never like to close down an intersection like […]

RIPPON, W.Va. — A woman working flag operations at the work zone on Route 340 South in Jefferson County was killed Thursday after another woman allegedly drove around a vehicle that had stopped in the work zone and ran over her. Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office Lt. RS Sell tells The Panhandle News Network that Kathy […]

  BURLINGTON, WV – The Rock Cliff Drive/Tavern Road Intersection, in Berkeley County, will be closed from 6 p.m. on Friday, April 5, 2024, through 6 a.m. on Monday, April 7, 2024, to allow for the conversion of the intersection from a four-way stop to a permanent roundabout configuration. The West Virginia Division of Highways […]

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. – Some top brass will be in town Friday when the 167th Airlift Wing rededicates a hangar that has been largely out of service since 2018. Maj. Gen. Bill Crane, The Adjutant General of West Virginia Guard, will join leaders from the West Virginia Air National Guard to host a ribbon cutting ceremony for […]

 MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — Martinsburg/Berkeley County Parks and Recreation Director Joe Burton says despite the rain in the Panhandle this week, there’s still opportunities for area kids to stay active as part of their Spring Break lineup: Burton says soccer participation is growing in the Eastern Panhandle and so their programming is increasing for both indoor […]

BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. — Morgan County Emergency Services saw a decrease in calls for services during the first quarter of 2024. They also saw a big decrease in the number of 911 hang up calls. After averaging 4.6 such calls a day last year, the first quarter of the year saw those numbers decrease by […]

HAGERSTOWN, MD —  Saying it is a “proactive effort to enhance emergency preparedness and interagency collaboration,” Washington County government has announced a multi-agency emergency drill along the C&O Canal later this month. Dubbed a SAREX Drill (for Search and Rescue Exercise, the April 18th event will be held along the C&O Canal between Dam 3 and […]

  UPDATE — Following are some road closures that have come into the Panhandle News Network news room this afternoon. As they always caution, local emergency services are warning motorists if they come upon standing water in a roadway, “Turn around, Don’t drown.” HAGERSTOWN, MD (April 3, 2024) – The Washington County Highway Department announces […]

UKRAINE — As Pastor Tim Guerino of the Martinsburg Union Rescue Mission continues a mission trip aimed at serving those in war-torn Ukraine, he has been sending updates to the Panhandle News Network as he is able.  The most recent came on Wednesday morning and it was just a map, but it tells a story […]

CHARLESTON, W. Va. –  Counties in the Eastern Panhandle are among the top fives in a recently tabulated list from the West Virginia Secretary of State’s Office, which reports registering 1,317 new businesses statewide during the month of March. A press release from Secretary of State Mac Warner reports Wayne County led the state in […]

MARTINSBURG, W.Va.  – A man has been arrested for a November stabbing in Martinsburg. The U.S. Marshals Mountain State Fugitive Task Force, working with the Berkley County Sheriff’s Office SWAT, on Monday arrested a Martinsburg man wanted for a November 2023 malicious assault. Oliver King had been charged with two counts of malicious assault and […]