← Georgia Today
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Welcome to the Georgia Today Podcast. Here we bring you the latest reports from the GPB newsroom. On today's episode, a report finds a corroded sprinkler sparked the Biolab fire in Conyers. More Georgians are defaulting on student loans and early voting to replace U.S. representative David Scott ends this week.
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I want to make sure that the counties get the $40 million and get what they deserve.
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Today is Tuesday, July 21st. I'm Peter Biello and this is Georgia Today. Nearly two years after a chemical fire at the Biolab facility in Conyers, the federal government's lead investigators for chemical disasters released their final findings today. GPB's Pamela Kirkland reports.
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The U.S. chemical Safety Board says a corroded sprinkler failed wetting water reactive pool chemicals. The the reaction produced toxic gases and two fires that destroyed the warehouse they were being held. Investigators say Biolab has documented the corrosion problem for years, all the way back to 2023 when more than 1,100 sprinkler heads were found corroded during an inspection. The warehouse contained nearly 14 million pounds of oxidizers, more than double what they told Rockdale county they were storing. The chemicals involved are not currently regulated under federal safety rules for ultrahazardous substances. The CSB is renewing recommend recommendations first made to federal agencies more than 20 years ago to close that gap. Biolab ceased manufacturing in May of last year and listed the property for sale in January. For GPB News, I'm Pamela Kirkland.
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One of two US Soldiers killed by an Iranian missile strike in Jordan last week lived primarily in Georgia. The Defense Department yesterday identified the soldiers as 25 year old First Lieutenant Tyler James Feehan of Hawaii and 19 year old Private Isabella Gonzalez, Dallas of Texas. Fean's father told CNN he lived primarily in Georgia. The New York Times reported that he lived as a child with his grandparents in Marietta, north of Atlanta. Iranian authorities say US strikes in just the past three weeks have killed at least 50 people and wounded more than 500 others. Both sides have targeted civilian infrastructure relied on by millions of people, workers on ships as well as foreign workers and others in Gulf nations. Israel and Lebanon have also died in the conflict. US President Donald Trump has said the war is necessary to stop Iran from developing nuclear weap. The FBI says it seized 95 drones during the month long FIFA World cup events in Atlanta. GPB's Sarah Kallis reports on what could happen to those drones and their operators.
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Most of the drones seized by the federal government belong to Hobbyists and content creators, not necessarily nefarious actors. Despite their findings, FBI Atlanta Special Agent in Charge Marlo Graham says it's still important for fliers to respect expect the temporary flight restricted zone set by the faa.
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It could be nefarious, but it's unsafe. We need to be safe in the air as well as on the ground and so to make sure that we're safe in the air so that our drones can fly and be clear without crashing with the hobbyists.
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Violating a no fly zone is a federal crime. In Graham says the FBI is working with the U.S. attorney's office to decide what, if any, charges will be filed against the pilots and if any of the drones will be returned to their owners. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kalis in Atlanta.
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More student borrowers in Georgia are defaulting on their loans as repayment policies change. The pandemic paused payments for three years and then a one year on ramp temporarily shielded borrowers from the harshest consequences of missed payments. But in late 2024, scheduled payments became mandatory again. New federal data and an Associated Press analysis released yesterday show how much Georgians are struggling with the payment restart. The number of borrowers living in Georgia who are more than a year delinquent has grown by 191,000. That now means nearly a quarter of resident borrowers are delinquent. Early voting ends this week in a metro Atlanta congressional district where five candidates are seeking a short term in office. The race comes after US Representative David Scott died in April. In May, Democratic state Representative Jasmine Clark won her party's primary to replace Scott for a full term starting in January. She's heavily favored to win November's ballot in the largely Democratic district, a special election on July 28 could determine who fills the seat until January. Since Clark chose not to run. Whoever wins will serve only for a few months. Scott's daughter, Democrat Marcy Scott, says she's running because without a representative, the district will lose federal funds.
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I want to make sure that the counties get the $40 million and get what they deserve. That's my number one priority, and I'm doing that for the 13th district and doing that for my father.
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Democrat Everton Blair is the only candidate who also ran in the May primary. He says the party needs new blood.
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The need for bolder fighters who are also able to tap into different parts of our electorate, galvanize new pockets of our constituency and deliver an agenda is not something that's gon to be done in four months, but it's something that
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can be started three other candidates, including a disqualified Democrat and two Republicans, will appear on the ballot. If no one wins the special election by more than 50%, then a runoff will be held a month later, giving the winner even less time. In Washington, Tyler Perry Studios is moving ahead with a major investment in virtual production technology. The Atlanta studio has announced a partnership with Synapse Virtual Production to build a new soundstage featuring LED walls and real time digital environment. The announcement comes two years after Perry paused an $800 million studio expansion, saying advances in artificial intelligence had raised concerns about the future of film industry jobs. In announcing the new partnership, Perry said he's focused on moving forward with new technology while protecting traditional production jobs and keeping film crews at the center of the creative process. The new soundstage is expected to be operational by the end of this year.
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Each story you hear on Planet Money starts with a question. What happens if we refund tariffs? Why are groceries so expensive? At npr, we stand for your right to be curious because the forces shaping our world can be hard to see. Follow NPR's Planet Money wherever you get your podcasts and start seeing how the economy really works.
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In sports, Bryce Elder pitched six strong innings and provided rest for Atlanta's bullpen as the Braves beat the San Diego Padres last night. 32 Ozzy Albee's hit his 15th homer of the season in the sixth inning. The Braves face the Padres again tonight for the second of the four game series at Truest Park. Ronaldo Lopez is scheduled to get the start tonight and the Braves enter tonight's matchup at the top of the National League east only three games ahead of the Phillies. Also, Braves catcher Drake Baldwin has been selected the National League Player of the Week. It's the first time for Baldwin and well deserved. On Sunday against the Rangers, he went 5 for 5 with two home runs. And that's a wrap on Georgia Today. Thanks for tuning in. We hope you'll come back tomorrow. The best way to remember to do that is to subscribe to this podcast. When you do, we're going to be there automatically in your podcast feed. You won't even have to remember. We'll be right there. And you can always check gpb.org news for the newest headlines as well as updates to the stories you heard on the podcast today. And your feedback is incredibly valuable to us. It helps shape this podcast cast and our reporting. Send your news tips and your suggestions to Georgia today@gpb.org. i'm Peter Biello. Thanks again for listening. We will see you tomorrow.