Latest news with #Dunwoody
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
‘Extreme weather' damages Dunwoody home, causes power outages
A fast-moving, quick storm rolled through a Dunwoody neighborhood in DeKalb County Saturday night. Power was knocked out and trees toppled over near Glenbonnie Drive and Peeler Road. One of the homes damaged belonged to a family whose neighbors say just moved in days ago. Jennifer Rao saw the destruction and said, 'you can see the insulation, you can see inside of their house, it's scary.' Georgia Power reported around 9 p.m. that close to 400 customers were without power in the area. The utility company said, 'Extreme weather caused widespread outages.' 'It was blowing really hard,' said Quinton Alberto. 'The trees in the back were swaying back and forth for a minute.' [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Zachary Suhanek to Channel 2's Cory James, the storm was short and 'a lot of rain just hit [him] immediately.' Georgia Power did not have an estimate of the number of crews that were out working or when power would be restored. However, the company encourages customers to sign up for text alerts so that they can get updates immediately. DeKalb County Fire said no one was injured in the home that was damaged by the toppled tree. TRENDING STORIES: 2 arrested after chase that started in Villa Rica, involved 2 collisions, police say 8-year-old shot in South Fulton Body of missing 17-year-old boater found in Allatoona Lake [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Memorial Day fire leaves 27 homeless, Red Cross stresses need for help
Damage assessments and cleanup with start Tuesday morning at a Dunwoody apartment complex. A fire burned down eight units at Parkwood Village Apartments on Winters Chapel Road, according to DeKalb County Fire Rescue Department. The fire started around 1:00 pm on Monday. Neighbors said more families were home than usual because of the Memorial Day holiday. 'It was coming out of the porch, the windows, and then you see the roof caving in a little bit,' Brandon Flores told Channel 2's Courtney Francisco. No one was hurt, but American Red Cross volunteers said most people had seconds to escape. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] 'That's exactly what happened. They run out with the clothes they have on,' volunteer Bernie Wasserman said. 22 adults and five children lost their homes, according to DeKalb County Fire Rescue. 'Those apartments are not livable. They're destroyed,' said Wasserman. The volunteers gave families gift cards to help with hotels, food, and clothing. They also connected them to long-term recovery resources. 'They basically go into shock when we're talking to them,' said Wasserman. 'You're giving them instructions, but they're looking right through you.' He and Cindy Sedran have a combined 70 years of experience guiding families through it. TRENDING STORIES: Missing pregnant woman found safe after walking away from Atlanta hospital Man accused of gunning down Georgia Tech student in targeted shooting has turned himself in Trooper injured after fleeing driver crashes into his patrol car and runs away However, this job, on Memorial Day, nearly brought them to tears. They said they're in desperate need of volunteers this summer due to the uptick in natural disasters and fires. They said they're proud of what they've been able to accomplish with a small team, but hope they can inspire others to join them this time. 'Especially on Memorial Day when we're out there thanking everybody for saving us, for doing what they did, and giving up their lives for us,' said Sedran. 'This is just what I needed to do, and these people, they're so grateful. They're so humble.' They're also anxious to find out what caused this fire so they can prevent it from happening again. DeKalb County Fire Rescue has not confirmed a cause at this time. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Associated Press
11-05-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Restaurateur Doubles Revenue Through AI and Digital Strategy, Launches Nonprofit to Empower Minority-Owned Businesses
Patrick transformed a failing restaurant into a thriving catering brand using AI and digital tools—now he's helping other immigrant entrepreneurs do the same. 'Digital Ready gave me the roadmap I didn't know I needed. It changed how I run my business, and now I'm using those lessons to help others do the same.'— Patrick Cheng, Founder of General Tso's and NextGen Impact DUNWOODY, GA, UNITED STATES, May 10, 2025 / / -- What began as a pandemic-era pivot has transformed into a scalable, system-driven business success. Patrick Cheng, a Chinese-American entrepreneur, has more than doubled the revenue of his Georgia-based restaurant, General Tso's, by integrating digital tools, automation, and AI-powered training into every layer of his operation. Now, he's launching a nonprofit to share that playbook with others. In 2020, Cheng acquired a struggling Chinese restaurant in Dunwoody after the pandemic shuttered his short-term rental business. Leveraging his family's background in food distribution and his own drive for innovation, he rapidly converted the restaurant into a high-volume catering operation. 'We were working harder, not smarter,' Cheng said. 'We lacked systems, structure, and digital presence. Everything changed after I got connected to the Verizon Small Business Digital Ready program.' Through the platform's free training courses, Cheng shifted his focus from short-term survival to long-term strategy. He upgraded his point-of-sale system, implemented automated promotions, launched loyalty programs, and used AI to build bilingual SOPs and training manuals. The result: streamlined operations, higher employee retention, and exponential growth. Today, 70% of General Tso's business comes from corporate catering, and Cheng's average daily revenue has more than doubled. But Cheng's ambitions extend far beyond profit. He is now launching NextGen Impact, a nonprofit initiative designed to support minority and immigrant entrepreneurs facing language or cultural barriers. 'Thousands of family-owned restaurants struggle due to outdated systems and limited access to resources,' Cheng said. 'We want to change that—through mentorship, technology, and community.' With a mission to uplift underserved business owners and modernize perceptions of Chinese-American cuisine, Cheng's story stands as a model of resilient, responsible, and digitally empowered entrepreneurship. Patrick Cheng General Tso's +1 646-812-0922 email us here Visit us on social media: LinkedIn Instagram Facebook YouTube TikTok X Other Legal Disclaimer: EIN Presswire provides this news content 'as is' without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
CTV News
07-05-2025
- General
- CTV News
‘It was a lifesaver': Essex parents share story ahead of McHappy Day
Mother Kelly Dunwoody and father Todd Gee with their twin daughters Haisley and Olive are seen in this supplied photo. (Source: Kelly Dunwoody)
CBS News
26-04-2025
- CBS News
Denver utilizes AI bot to streamline help for residents
The city of Denver has rolled out an artificial intelligence bot to help residents answer questions relating to city policy, regulations and rules. The bot is an extension of the city's 311 helpline that allows residents to call and ask their questions to a staff member. CBS Most people don't want to pick up the phone only to wait in a queue to speak to someone, and then be placed on hold again to get an answer. Denver realized there's a more efficient way to serve its residents and visitors; thus, Sunny the artificial intelligence chatbot was born. The agents for Denver's 311 program take thousands of calls a day, and they now have some help. "We really needed a way to provide customer service where they already are, which is on their smart devices," said Laura Dunwoody, who came up with the idea to establish Sunny. Sunny speaks more than 80 languages and can be accessed 24/7 on or through text and WhatsApp at HEY311. "Every night, the chatbot, Sunny, ingests the entirety of all 2,300 plus pages of Dunwoody said. "So, as our web authors, which we have 150 across the city representing all the agencies, is updating their information, Sunny is reading that every night." With that being said, Sunny should be able to answer just about any question one might have, including whether a neighbor can have those chickens. "When we first launched the chatbot, we were watching every transaction," Dunwoody said. "We had one neighbor who wanted to report to the Department of Health that her neighbor had chickens, which she was fine with, but she was letting the chickens in her house, and she was concerned that this was going to hurt her property values. Ultimately, within a couple of back-and-forth clarifying questions with Sunny, what she learned was that the woman can bring her chickens into the house as long as they're wearing chicken diapers." Aside from getting educated about chicken diapers, you can also use it to report concerns such as potholes or ask questions about permitting for a home improvement project. "You could say, 'I want to build a fence. Do I need a permit for that?' The bot has the ability to default to a person if the bot cannot answer the question. That happens very rarely, but we're there for it if it happens." Sunny has been so successful, the city of Aurora created a bot of its own called Access Aurora, and other cities such as Boulder and Broomfield are also looking into adapting the technology. Sunny launched about a year ago but really took off in March as more and more people learned about it. "We had our busiest month in Sunny in March, and I expect that when we're done with April, we'll see this was the busiest month," Dunwoody said.
