Football Team Bus Overturns

A bus carrying Salem High School’s football team overturned late Friday in Rockdale County, sending 22 students and three adults to the hospital.

The team was returning from a game at Greater Atlanta Christian in Gwinnett County when the crash happened around 10:48 p.m. where Highway 138 meets I-20 near Conyers. The bus carried 17 players, seven trainers, two coaches, and the driver.

The Georgia State Patrol said the 74-year-old driver lost control while exiting I-20, crossed all lanes of Highway 138, and struck a Kia Soul before the bus overturned in a ditch. Both drivers were hospitalized.

One person was airlifted, and the school district said many of the injured have been treated and released. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.

  Carr Urges Kratom Ban

Attorney General Chris Carr asked lawmakers Friday to ban all kratom products from Georgia store shelves unless the state approves them first.

Carr told a legislative study committee that current law is hard to enforce because officers must lab-test a product before pulling it. He proposed a registry of approved products, with anything not on the list treated as contraband.

At least four Georgians have died from kratom overdoses this year, and emergency crews have answered more than 315 related calls. Carr also urged convenience stores and smoke shops to pull the products now.

“Consumers can’t tell the difference between a lawfully registered, regulated product and something that can stop your breathing,” Carr said.

At earlier hearings, kratom users praised the substance, and a Marietta man testified Friday that “natural” kratom helped him quit prescription opioids. The testimony is expected to shape legislation next session.

U.S. News Ranks Georgia Schools

DeKalb County magnet schools claimed the top spots in U.S. News & World Report‘s new rankings of Georgia’s public elementary and middle schools.

Kittredge Magnet School ranked No. 1 among elementary schools, while Decatur’s Wadsworth Magnet School for High Achievers topped the middle school list and placed third among elementary schools. Metro Atlanta schools took eight of the top 10 spots on each list.

Outside the metro, Britt David Magnet Academy in Columbus ranked second and Fairyland Elementary on Lookout Mountain ranked fifth. Augusta’s Davidson Fine Arts and Albany’s Robert A. Cross Middle Magnet made the middle school top 10.

Savannah Classical Academy topped a separate list of charter elementary schools. U.S. News ranked about 70,000 schools nationwide, largely on state math and reading test scores.

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➤ Atlanta: FBI agents arrested Inique Hinton, 31, Friday at a Cobb County home in connection with Tuesday night’s attempted arson attack on the downtown ICE field office. He faces federal arson and property damage charges, and U.S. Attorney Theodore Hertzberg called the attack an act of terrorism. (More)

➤ Austell: Six Flags Over Georgia will add seatbelts to Goliath and similar coasters after Atlanta Public Schools teacher Hassan Kariem, 42, was ejected from the ride and killed Oct. 12. Six Flags CEO John Reilly announced the change, and all nine coasters of that type across the chain remain closed. (More)

➤ Oglethorpe County: A rescue team helped free a person who fell through a concrete porch into a 20-foot-deep hole Friday evening. Crews cleared away unstable concrete, then hoisted the person out in a rescue basket using a rope system anchored to a ladder. (More)

➤ Monroe County: Leaders broke ground on a $4 million agriculture center at the county recreation complex, a project first proposed in 2012. Georgia Power donated money for a greenhouse, and Oglethorpe Power is funding a walking trail. (More)

➤ Columbus: The city will cut the ribbon Friday at 1:30 p.m. on the John D. Allen Judicial Center, a 342,000-square-foot complex costing more than $200 million. It replaces a government center built more than 50 years ago. (More)

➤ Norman Park: Neighbors say a pack of seven feral dogs that attacked a 15-year-old boy Sept. 25 is still roaming the Colquitt County community. Animal control traps baited with food and water haven’t caught them, and the teen is still finishing rabies shots. (More)

➤ Statesboro: The city named Assistant City Manager Jason Boyles, a 25-year local government veteran, as the sole finalist for city manager. The council is expected to vote Nov. 17, and Boyles would start Jan. 1. (More)

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➤ Georgia Tech fell 49-27 to Boston College after building an early 10-0 lead. The Yellow Jackets, booed by their homecoming crowd, have lost nine of their last 12 games. (More)

➤ The Atlanta Dream fell 67-62 to the Golden State Valkyries in Game 4 of the WNBA Finals yesterday. The series is now tied 2-2, with Game 6 set for Thursday at 8:00 p.m. at home. (More)

➤ The Atlanta Falcons face off with the undefeated San Francisco 49ers today at 1 p.m., wearing their 1966 throwback uniforms for the first time this season. (More)

➤ The Atlanta Hawks crushed the Charlotte Hornets 128-81 on Friday night, the biggest blowout win in the history of the franchise, surpassing the team’s 46-point margin of victory over the Sacramento Kings in 2017. (More)

➤ Yesterday’s Results: NCAAF | MLB | WNBA | NHL | NBA | Soccer | Golf

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➤ Putt-Putt’s best gathered in Martinez this week as the Professional Putters Association’s national championship returned to the Augusta area after four years away. The field included Greg Newport, who once aced all 18 holes at the Virginia Open. (See Video)

➤ MARTA and Soccer in the Streets opened their seventh StationSoccer field Wednesday at H.E. Holmes Station, turning part of a parking lot into a youth soccer pitch. The program began a decade ago at Five Points Station, and the new field will host league play in 2027. (More)

➤ Todd Copper, Dunwoody’s “Pop Top King,” has collected soda and soup can tabs for Ronald McDonald House Charities in Atlanta since 1996. Copper, who has cerebral palsy, delivers hundreds of pounds a year, and the tabs raise about $3,000 annually for the house. (Read Story)

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The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes, straight from the heart of the country. 

➤ Linda McMahon pursues an unusual career goal: convincing Congress that her own department isn’t needed. (Hear More)

➤ Pooh’s rumored British homecoming fizzled before the bear could pack his pants, which he never wore anyway. (Listen Now)

➤  Michelin inspectors loosened their belts across the South and crowned three new stars, including a restaurant in rural Georgia. (Podcast Available)

The year Georgia Tech industrial design students tried their hand at pumpkin carving:

When did you last play a round of putt-putt?

1. This year
2. A few years ago
3. Too long ago to remember
4. Never have

Yesterday’s Results:

How do you take your grits?

1. Butter and salt: 52%
2. Cheese: 23%
3. Don’t eat grits: 15%
4. Shrimp: 5%
5. Sugar: 5%

Which county is the largest in Georgia by land area?

Show me the answer