A west Montgomery community is helping a family who lost two children in a house fire in January. A groundbreaking was held Monday on Alexander Street. Jessica Byrd is getting a new house courtesy of Whitehurst Construction Company, businessman William Boyd and others. In January, a house fire claimed the lives of Byrd's two children, ages 3 and one month old, a third child, a two-year-old suffered severe burns. Montgomery Fire officials said a toaster oven caused the blaze. Construction on the new house is expected to take about 90 days to complete.
Creating Bylaws
In the 2015 legislative session, Alabama lawmakers came closer to passing the Tim Tebow Act than any previous session. The bill would allow home-schooled students to participate in public school sports. That was enough for the Alabama High School Athletic Association to look at creating its own bylaw, rather than abiding by one created by the Legislature. Executive Director of the Association Steve Savarese says a committee would establish the bylaw that member schools would eventually vote on. He believes home-schools students could be able to play on public school teams by the 2016-2017 school year.
Confederate Flag
Montgomery County's probate judge wants Governor Robert Bentley to remove the Confederate flag from any state-issued license plate. Steve Reed told the Montgomery County Commission Monday that he sent a formal request to Governor Bentley. Meanwhile, the South Carolina Senate votes today on whether to send to the State House Confederate flag legislation, senators voted 37-3 to take down the flag and the pole it flies on.
Seven Fatalities
Alabama Law Enforcement Agency officials say seven fatalities were reported on the state's roads and waterways over the holiday weekend. A spokesman says the agency responded to four fatal traffic accidents in Butler, Madison, Pickens and Sumter counties and three boating fatalities in Limestone, Lauderdale and Colbert counties between Friday morning and Sunday night.