Georgia restricts water use; New funding for opioid crisis; Early voting starts today

Summary

Georgia Today Podcast – Episode Summary April 27, 2026
Host: Peter Biello – Georgia Public Broadcasting (GPB)
Episode: "Georgia restricts water use; New funding for opioid crisis; Early voting starts today"

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Overview

This episode of Georgia Today covers the aftermath of weekend rains on South Georgia wildfires, the introduction of new drought-driven water use restrictions, the state's allocation of opioid settlement funds, updates on the U.S. Senate primary race, the opening of a new health services facility in North Fulton, and a quick Braves baseball update. Host Peter Biello, together with GPB reporters and expert interviews, delivers a concise breakdown of headline news impacting communities across Georgia.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. South Georgia Wildfires & Ongoing Drought

• Rain Impact
  • Recent rains provided limited relief, helping crews slightly contain wildfires in South Georgia, but conditions remain dangerous.
  • Over 100 homes destroyed; the largest blaze in Clinch and Echols counties has scorched 50+ square miles.
• Cause & Continued Risk
  • Brantley County fire attributed to a foil balloon hitting power lines.
  • Pineland Road fire caused by sparks from welding.
  • Fire risks persist due to "extreme drought, gusty winds, climate change and dead trees" ([01:48]).
  • Quote:
    • Joey Cason, Brantley County Manager:

      “This is a dynamic fire event that is wind driven and we will have winds later in this week that could re stoke that fire to be just as bad as it was on Saturday.” ([01:17])

• Support & Relief
  • Red Cross opened a third shelter; Georgia Forestry Foundation kicks off a $10,000 relief fund for affected landowners and first responders.

2. Water Use Restrictions Amid Drought

• Level 1 Drought Response
  • Georgia Environmental Protection Division’s “Level 1 drought response” underway.
  • No immediate new usage limits, but public advisories required from local water systems via various platforms ([02:46]).
  • Additional restrictions may follow soon.
• Public Watering Changes
  • Existing restriction: No public watering between 10am and 4pm.

3. Opioid Settlement Funding Roll-Out

• $20 Million in Grants
  • Georgia launches its third year of opioid crisis abatement grants, targeting affected communities ([03:34]).
  • Focus: North Georgia receives special attention for high overdose rates.
• Funding Priorities
  • Commissioner Kevin Tanner emphasizes targeting local service gaps.
  • Quote:
    • Kevin Tanner:

      “One of the things we really want to move toward is identifying what gaps still and start creating opportunities to open up funding to fill those gaps. But this round of funding is open to any innovative idea.” ([04:13])

  • Collaboration with the Data Clearinghouse helps target resources.

4. U.S. Senate Republican Primary Intensifies

• Debate Highlights
  • Five candidates, with U.S. Reps. Buddy Carter and Mike Collins trading the strongest blows during a debate ([04:37]).
  • Key Exchanges:
    • Buddy Carter criticizes Collins over an ethics investigation:

      “Mike, if you're our candidate, we lose. You're under federal investigation. I'm telling you that the Democrats will eat that up.” ([05:07])

    • Collins dismisses the inquiry as “a nothing burger,” and counters Carter as a “career politician” with his own ethical issues ([05:20]).
  • Former football coach Derek Dooley also in the running.
• Key Dates:
  • Early voting for the May 19 primary now open.

5. New North Fulton Health & Human Services Facility

• Service Launch
  • Facility in Alpharetta includes health, records, and senior support services.
  • Quote:
    • Pamela Rochelle, COO, Fulton County:

      “One is a senior center which will have a host of activities from arts classes, fitness classes, everything you need to remain engaged in the community and keep your body and mind and your spirit healthy.” ([06:23])

• Looking Ahead
  • A state-funded behavioral health crisis center joins the campus in two years.

6. Atlanta Braves Update

• Team Status
  • Braves have the best record in Major League Baseball, lead their division.
  • Recent roster changes and notable player updates previewed ([07:00]).

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Notable Quotes

• Wildfires:

  “This is a dynamic fire event that is wind driven and we will have winds later in this week that could re stoke that fire to be just as bad as it was on Saturday.”
  — Joey Cason, Brantley County Manager ([01:17])

• Opioid Abatement:

  “One of the things we really want to move toward is identifying what gaps still and start creating opportunities to open up funding to fill those gaps. But this round of funding is open to any innovative idea.”
  — Kevin Tanner, Behavioral Health Commissioner ([04:13])

• Senate Race:

  “Mike, if you're our candidate, we lose. You're under federal investigation. I'm telling you that the Democrats will eat that up.”
  — Buddy Carter ([05:07])

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Wildfires & Drought Update: 00:48 – 02:46
• Water Restrictions Detailed: 02:46 – 03:34
• Opioid Crisis Funding: 03:34 – 04:37
• U.S. Senate Debate & Primary: 04:37 – 05:46
• North Fulton Health Facility: 05:46 – 06:40
• Braves Baseball Update: 06:40 – 07:30

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Tone & Language

The episode maintains a straightforward, public radio tone—direct, community-focused, and attentive to policy and public service. Speaker quotes and on-scene interviews infuse the narrative with local expertise and urgency, especially around wildfire risk and community health.

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For more details or updates on these stories, visit GPB News, and catch new episodes every weekday afternoon.

Transcript

[GPB Announcer]

GPB belongs to Georgia and you are the center of everything we do. Become a GPB sustainer today or increase your monthly gift to fortify our work enriching Georgians of all ages. Visit gpb.org to donate today and thanks.

[Peter Biello]

Welcome to the Georgia Today Podcast. Here we bring you the latest reports from the GPB newsroom on today's episode. Weekend rain helped only a little in the fight to contain South Georgia wildfires. Applications open for projects funded by opioid settlement money and the race among Republicans vying to take on Georgia's incumbent Democratic U.S. senator Jon Ossoff, is heating up.

[Buddy Carter]

If you're our candidate, we lose, you're under federal investigation. I'm telling you that the Democrats will eat that up.

[Peter Biello]

Today is Monday, April 27th. I'm Peter Biello and this is Georgia Today. Rain slowed the progress of two sprawling south Georgia wildfires this weekend. The rain also allowed crews to contain more of the fires that have destroyed more than 100 homes. But the Georgia Forestry Commission says the rain wasn't nearly enough. Crews responded to 10 new blazes throughout the state yesterday. Brantley County Manager Joey Cason is warning residents that conditions could change.

[Joey Cason]

This is a dynamic fire event that is wind driven and we will have winds later in this week that could re stoke that fire to be just as bad as it was on Saturday.

[Peter Biello]

The Brantley county fire was 6% contained as of figures released this morning. The biggest blaze in Clinch and Echols counties has scorched more than 50 square miles and at least 35 homes in a sparsely populated and heavily wooded part of the state. Authorities believe the Brantley county fire was sparked by a foil balloon hitting live power lines that created an electrical arc that ignited combustible material on the ground. They think the Pineland Road fire was started by sparks from a welding operation. Firefighters have been battling hundreds of blazes across the Southeast. The fire threat has been amplified by a combination of extreme drought, gusty winds, climate change and dead trees and other vegetation. The Red Cross has opened a third shelter in South Georgia for families displaced by wildfires. Red Cross shelters are now open in Jessup, Brunswick and Lake Park. The Red Cross isn't the only organization lending a hand with wildfires. A Georgia nonprofit supporting the state's forestry industry has launched a fund to support landowners, federal families, firefighters, first responders and communities impacted by wildfires. The Georgia Forestry foundation announced the fund on Friday, saying it had an initial investment of $10,000. Georgia environmental regulators have taken the first step in restricting water use as a result of the ongoing severe drought across much of the state. GPB's Grant Blankenship has more.

[Grant Blankenship]

The Georgia Environmental protection division's Level 1 drought response does not dictate any new limits on water use. It does mean that water systems across the state are required to tell their customers about the drought, its impact on water supply and the need for water conservation. That communication could come through newspaper ads, inserts in water bills and social media. More rules on water use could come in following days. Meanwhile, public watering is already restricted during the heat of the day between 10am and 4pm For GPB news, I'm Grant Blankenship.

[Peter Biello]

Georgia has committed to spending millions of dollars on projects that address the opioid crisis using money from settlements reached with drug manufacturers. Friday marked the official rollout for year three of the funding. GPB's Sophie Gradas has more.

[Sophie Gradas]

This year, $20 million will be allocated across the state to pay for programs aimed at mitigating opioid addiction and overdoses. Applications to Georgia's Opioid Crisis Abatement Trust will be open for a month at an information session for applicants in North Georgia slated to receive the largest share of the funding due to its high rate of overdose deaths. Behavioral Health Commissioner Kevin Tanner said the best applications will address specific local needs.

[Buddy Carter]

One of the things we really want to move toward is identifying what gaps still and start creating opportunities to open up funding to fill those gaps. But this round of funding is open to any innovative idea.

[Sophie Gradas]

Tanner says. The trust will work with the Data Clearinghouse this year to pinpoint where more services are needed. Grant recipients will be announced in the fall. For GPB News, I'm Sophie Gradas.

[Peter Biello]

The race among Republicans vying to take on Georgia's incumbent, Democratic U.S. senator Jon Ossoff, is heating up. GPB's Orlando Montoya reports. Two of the candidates traded barbs in

[Orlando Montoya]

a debate yesterday with no dominant frontrunner and no endorsement from President Donald Trump. In a crowded race, US Representatives Buddy Carter and Mike Collins stood out in the five man debate by addressing each other. Carter brought up an ethics investigation launched against Collins over accusations of misusing congressional funds.

[Buddy Carter]

Mike, if you're our candidate, we lose. You're under federal investigation. I'm telling you that the Democrats will eat that up.

[Orlando Montoya]

Collins called the accusations, quote, a nothing burger and responded to Carter in kind.

[Peter Biello]

I find it ironic that a career

[Joey Cason]

politician is talking about ethics in your career.

[Peter Biello]

It's been littered with complaints.

[Orlando Montoya]

Another major candidate, former football coach Derek Dooley, also appeared in the debate, one of 18 that the Atlanta Press Club and GPB will present this week. Early voting in the May 19 primary elections begins on Monday. For GPB News, I'm Orlando Montoya.

[Peter Biello]

Early voting starts today for the May 19 general primary elections. The election will determine the Democratic and Republican Party candidates. Residents in north Fulton now have their own Board of Health, vital records and support for seniors with the opening of Fulton County's new Health and Human Services facility in Alpharetta. Pamela Rochelle is the chief operating officer for Fulton county government. She says among the services there are two programs for those 55 and older.

[Pamela Rochelle]

One is a senior center which will have a host of activities from arts classes, fitness classes, everything you need to remain engaged in the community and keep your body and mind and your spirit healthy.

[Peter Biello]

A state funded behavioral health crisis center is also planned to be open in about two years on the 24 acre campus. In baseball, the Braves have the day off today as they prepare for a three game series against Detroit starting tomorrow. Pitcher Ronaldo Lopez, who opened the season as Atlanta's number two starter, is moving to the bullpen. More changes could be coming with right hander Spencer Strider possibly making his season debut in this weekend's series at Colorado after opening the season on the injured list because of a strained oblique one month after opening day, the Braves have the best record in Major league baseball with a 29 record and and are dominating the NL east with second place Marlins six and a half games back. And that is all the news fit to put on the podcast today. Thank you for listening to Georgia Today. If you want to learn more about any of these stories, you can check for updates at gpb.org news Our reporters are always posting news stories there as well. And remember to subscribe to this podcast because we're going to be back in your podcast feed every weekday afternoon with all the day's top headlines and you can help shape the headlines. If you have an idea, something that we should be covering, perhaps send us an email. The address is Georgia todaypb.org that's also where we take your feedback on this podcast. Again, Georgia Todaypb.org I'm Peter Biello. Thank you again for listening. We'll see you tomorrow.

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