THOMAS MILL CREEK – HENRY COUNTY – LAKE EUFAULA: The clear 2026 winners of the Best Firework Show are Ben and Eric.
They teamed up with some good help, and a ton of boats on the water watching, for a Super – Terrific – Spectacular Fireworks show. It was in the mouth of Thomas Mill Creek. All safety precautions were in place for a safe and enjoyable time.
Today has been a heartbreaking day for our community.
At approximately 1:37 p.m., the Coffee County 911 Center received a 911 call reporting a possible drowning involving two missing individuals at the bridge at the intersection of Alabama Highway 27 and Alabama Highway 84 near Elba.
Responding agencies quickly arrived on scene and determined that two individuals had gone underwater and did not resurface. The preliminary investigation indicates that 21-year-old Benji Falvo went underwater while attempting to cross the river. His stepfather, David Thomas Rubright, entered the water in an attempt to rescue him and also went underwater.
At approximately 5:00 p.m., Mr. Rubright was recovered. At approximately 6:13 p.m., Mr. Falvo was recovered.
This incident remains under investigation by the Elba Police Department, the Coffee County Coroner’s Office, and the 12th Judicial District Attorney’s Office.
We would like to thank all of the agencies that responded and worked tirelessly throughout the afternoon and evening, including Elba Fire Department, New Brockton Fire Department, Enterprise Rescue, Enterprise Air 1 and Air 2, Coffee County EMA, Bullock Fire Department, Opp Fire Department Dive Team, Houston County Dive Team, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Marine Patrol/Game Wardens, and the Coffee County Sheriff’s Office.
Both individuals will be transported to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences for autopsies as part of the ongoing investigation.
On behalf of the Coffee County Coroner’s Office, we extend our heartfelt condolences to the Falvo and Rubright families. We ask everyone to please keep these families, their friends, and all of the first responders involved in your thoughts and prayers during this incredibly difficult time.
Out of respect for the families and the integrity of the investigation, no further information will be released at this time.
s we celebrate our nation’s independence today, I hope you’ll also help celebrate a different kind of victory.
Not one won with fireworks or parades.
But by a 15-year-old boy who refuses to stop fighting for his life.
If you’ve been following Will Roberts’ journey with me, you know this Alabama teenager is battling Stage 4 osteosarcoma.
After exhausting nearly every treatment available, a viral video helped his story reach people across the country and opened the door to an experimental treatment in California that his family prayed would give him one more chance.
Then, just days ago, everything took another frightening turn.
Will developed a fracture in his spine. His pain became so severe that even powerful medications could no longer control it. He began bleeding internally, his platelet count dropped so low doctors had to stop the very treatment they had traveled across the country to receive, and he was rushed by ambulance to another hospital as doctors fought to stabilize him.
Many of you also watched the heartbreaking conversation his father shared from Will’s hospital room.
Sitting beside his son’s bed, he told Will how proud he was of him. He reminded him that no matter what happened, God would never leave him. He told his son that even through this unimaginable battle, he had already accomplished something bigger than most people ever do by bringing others closer to Christ through his faith.
It was a conversation no father ever hopes to have.
Today, though, this family finally has reasons to smile.
Doctors now believe the frightening complications happened because a large number of Will’s cancer cells began dying all at once. His medical team says the treatment appears to be attacking the tumors so aggressively that his body has struggled to clear everything fast enough, creating a rare complication doctors don’t often see with osteosarcoma.
While they are still far from out of the woods, Brittney says Will’s numbers are beginning to improve.
He was able to sit up in bed today.
He even ate half a banana.
His double vision is almost completely gone.
His grandmother sat beside him, gently giving him a massage to help reduce the swelling, while family friends who flew all the way from Alabama simply sat in the waiting room for hours because they wanted to be close if they were needed.
Through a little creativity and the kindness of hospital staff, they were eventually able to spend time with Will before flying back home.
Brittney also wanted everyone to know how grateful they are for the doctors and nurses at Rady Children’s Hospital. She believes they recognized this rare complication early enough to prevent something much worse, and she says the level of care they’ve received has been extraordinary.
The prayers aren’t over.
Will still needs the bleeding in his urinary system to stop. His liver and kidneys still need to remain strong. His fractured spine still can’t be repaired until his body recovers from this latest setback.
But for the first time in several days, this family is celebrating something they desperately needed.
Hope.
As families gather today to celebrate America’s freedom, I hope you’ll take just a moment to celebrate this young man’s courage too.
Please continue praying that Will’s body keeps responding to treatment, that his blood counts continue improving, that his pain becomes manageable, and that this unexpected setback becomes the breakthrough his family has been praying for all along.
Statement From Dothan District 4 Commissioner Dave Stock About Recent Shootings
The shooting/gun battle on July 3rd at the Wiregrass commons mall, the shooting hours later on July 4th off Hutchins, the shooting early morning on July 5th off Fortner, and the numerous other shootings that have occurred in the past months and years continues to tarnish the image of our city.
Dothan police, Houston County Sherrifs Office, and Dothan fire and our EMS partners do a great job responding to incidents, securing the scenes and saving lives, and investigating the crimes. They are very proactive and do a lot behind the scenes to include investigating leads everyday, but I think it may be time that we ask ourselves if we need help.
1. I think we need to consider if a formal violent crimes task force, made up of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies is needed to increase our manpower and put more law enforcement professionals on our streets so we can find criminals before they commit their next acts of violence. Most murder or attempted murder perpetrators aren’t first-time offenders.
Again, the Dothan Police and Houston County Sherrif are doing a great job and asking for help isn’t a dig on them. We need full community support for our law enforcement officers and operations, to include the Wiregrass Aviation Support Program, and we need more law enforcement and crime prevention programs until we can get this under control.
2. We need a community crime prevention forum that brings together our elected officials, law enforcement agencies, community advocates, and residents to collaborate on ways to reduce our crime. This should be held on a regular basis for the long term.
3. There are a lot of bad people with bad intentions carrying guns all over this city and state. We need to consider what if any law changes would help police, provide a deterrent to gun violence, and provide harsh penalties for those who use guns during a crime. The recent passage of the Alabama constitutional carry law allows anlmost anyone to carry a gun without a permit. Many law enforcement agencies were against that law because the old permit system helped to expose criminals with illegal weapons (criminals didn’t apply for permits). I’m a huge supporter and defender of our second amendment rights, I beared arms in support of our country for over 23 years, and I don’t want to restrict any rights of my fellow law abiding citizens. Florida has very strict laws and mandatory sentencing when guns are used or even present during a crime. I understand these things would require legislative actions and that’s why we need to get our entire team of elected officials involved with this crime forum.
4. Parents need to be held accountable for their children, to include where they are and when, and what they’re doing so we may need to start strictly enforcing a curfew for minors. Parenting isn’t easy and I support our parents, grandparents, and other legal guardians who are responsible for these children, but if the kids can’t be controlled then we need to step in and get those kids in youth discipline camps, counseling, or other homes. There are too many teens being charged as adults for very serious crimes (and they should be charged that way), so parents need to be put on notice and held accountable for their actions. Recent reports state a grandma gave her car keys to a 14 year old which resulted in racing other cars through downtown with kids hanging out the windows before wrecking and injuring people. Grandma was charged and that’s a good thing. If you enable this stuff you should feel the consequences.
5. I do believe we are witnessing a breakdown of our society in real time, mainly due to a breakdown of families and the values we once held near. We need to reinforce the importance of family, hard work, and jobs and provide more job training opportunities. I’m all for helping people who want to help themselves, but generational poverty that is perpetuated by a system that doesn’t demand more is clearly not helping. This problem is affecting our schools, our communities, and our future. We need God, we need tight-nit families and communities, strong work ethics, and we need the rule of law reinforced in every household.
6. People need to be accountable for those who live with them. If someone in your residence commits a crime and you don’t report them, or you protect or harbor them, you should be investigated and face real consequences like evictions and possibly jail time. Covering for criminals or enabling them is almost as bad as committing the crimes and people need to understand that they’re hurting their community. Our community leaders, advocates, supporters, and residents need to all work together to help our law enforcement by telling them, confidentially if needed, who the trouble makers are so we can get them out of our neighborhoods.
I think most people agree that it’s gotten a lot worse over the past few years and it’s time to take a robust and comprehensive approach to reducing violence in Dothan. These comments and ideas are to start the conversation. I’m open to other ideas and suggestions, but we need to start somewhere and we need to start now. The status quo and political statements without REAL solutions has not made our community safer. I’m embarrassed and upset that our city is struggling with this, and I know many of our residents are also embarrassed and upset.
I’m very grateful that innocent bystanders were not hit by stray bullets at the mall Friday, but I’m afraid we may not be that lucky forever and I don’t want to wait and wish we would have done more sooner. The police can’t be in every situation where a person pulls out a gun and starts shooting, so we need to use all tools, methods, and deterrents at our disposal before it’s too late. We live in a great city that I am many others love…Hope is not lost but the time to act is now. Thank you for your attention and support!
DOTHAN: 12:25 PM A two vehicle accident on Montgomery Highway and Plum, which is near WalMart North.
Reports from citizens, a KIA Soul and a Toyota attempted to occupy the same space at the same time.
Dothan Fire Engine 6 ( Napier Field Road ), Pilcher Ambulance and Dothan Police responded. While the vehicles had extensive damage the injuries are not reported to be critical.
Dothan Police is in charge of the accident investigation.
