The Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust renewed a three-year, $495,000 grant for the Border Belt Independent, the trust recently announced. “Our journalism is funded by grants like these and donations from readers,” said Publisher Les High. “We do not sell advertising, and all content is free. Without the support of organizations like the Kate B. […]
Border Belt Independent
Posted inCourts & Justice
Homicides in Bladen, Columbus, Robeson and Scotland counties in 2024
The Border Belt Independent is tracking homicides in Bladen, Columbus, Robeson and Scotland counties in southeastern North Carolina. The map will be updated each week using information from local law enforcement agencies and media reports. Click on the pins within the map for details. Bladen, Columbus, Robeson and Scotland counties typically record violent crime rates […]
Posted inEnvironment
Chemours asks federal appeals court to negate EPA health goal for GenX
By Lisa Sorg NC Newsline This story was originally published by NC Newsline. Chemours, the company responsible for polluting the drinking water of 800,000 people in the Lower Cape Fear River Basin with GenX, is asking a court to negate the EPA’s health advisory for the toxic chemical. The Third Circuit Court of Appeals, based in […]
Posted inHealth
Medicaid expansion starts Dec. 1 in NC. Here’s how Border Belt counties are preparing
By Rachel Baldauf rachelbaldauf@borderbelt.org Medicaid expansion will begin in North Carolina on Dec. 1, opening the door for hundreds of thousands of people who were previously ineligible to enroll. The Scotland Health Care System in Laurinburg wants to be prepared. The hospital now has three on-site employees dedicated to helping people through the sign-up process, […]
Posted inNews
Clouds over Columbus County
By Carli Brosseau and Sarah Nagem This story is co-published by The Assembly and the Border Belt Independent. Not three months after Bill Rogers accepted an appointment as Columbus County sheriff, he received a subpoena to testify before a federal grand jury in Raleigh. At the center of the investigation was his predecessor as the […]
Posted inHealth
How did hospitals in NC’s Border Belt fare in latest safety grades?
Hospitals in Bladen, Columbus, Robeson and Scotland counties received B and C safety grades from The Leapfrog Group.
Posted inHealth
‘We want to change lives.’ Mobile drug treatment clinic serves Robeson County
The ATLAS (Addiction Treatment: Linking Access & Services) mobile health clinic serves patients every Wednesday in Robeson County.
Posted inHealth
Kids in foster care often need mental health care. But options are limited in rural NC
A lack of mental health resources is especially apparent for children in foster care in rural southeastern North Carolina.
Posted inNews
Hurricane survivor to ReBuild NC: ‘Are we just a number? Is anybody out there a human being?’
Hal Lowder, Whiteville’s emergency management director whose house was damaged by storms, is tangled in Rebuild NC’s bureaucracy.
Posted inNews
While 3,100 hurricane survivors lack permanent homes, ReBuild NC employees earn big salaries
ReBuild NC “believes it has enough funding to cover its obligations to homeowners that have applied for assistance.”