COVID-19 UPDATE

27 new cases of COVID-19 since Monday as reported Friday by Burke County Public Health for a total of 10-thousand-242 positives.

Figures show 224 cases remain active, while 6 Burke residents are in the hospital.

McDowell County reported a single new case yesterday bringing the county total to 5-thousand-139 positives.

37 residents remain in quarantine.*

Officials with the Burke Health Department state for those interested in getting a COVID-19 vaccine to visit myspot.nc.gov to find vaccine locations in Burke and surrounding counties.

For those without computer access, call the Burke County Health Department at 764-9150 and press ‘0’ for the operator.

Shooting Update

A Morganton man is charged with shooting his neighbor on Pea Ridge Road Thursday.

61-year-old Kenneth Aubrey Reed reportedly shot the victim using a 12-gauge shotgun shortly after 2:30.

A news release indicates the individual was transported to a local hospital after suffering an apparent gunshot to his ankle and foot.

As officers with the Burke Sheriff’s Office arrived, the shotgun was secured and Reed was arrested without incident.

He was charged with assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury and received a 25-thousand dollar secured bond. 

Authorities did not release a motive for the shooting.

Checkpoint Seizure

A man stopped at a McDowell license checkpoint is caught with drugs and a firearm.

On May 11^th, 51-year-old Brian Wesley Berry of Dwight Berry Road in Marion approached the checkpoint, but turned into a nearby driveway.

Deputies discovered Berry had outstanding warrants for his arrest and upon searching him and his vehicle, they discovered a stolen gun and meth.

Berry was charged with possession of meth, possession of a stolen firearm, and driving while license revoked.

Lottery Wins

Three big wins in one drawing makes for a lucky night for NC – those words coming from the executive director of the state’s education lottery following Wednesday night’s wins.

One of the three wins was a 50-thousand dollar ticket purchased at WalMart in Morganton.

The winning 2-dollar ticket matched the numbers on four of the five white balls and the Powerball.

A one-million dollar ticket was purchased in Harnett County, and a 100-thousand dollar ticket was bought in Iredell County.

Congratulations to the lucky winners!