Four guest chefs have been confirmed to participate in AquaCurean's Coastal Chef's Table event on Aug. 28 and throughout the entire weekend's festivities at The Westin Savannah Harbor Golf Resort & Spa: Paula DaSilva, Juan Carlos Gonzales, Jeff Roberto and Jimmy Reyes. 

The Coastal Chef's Table is an interactive five-course Grand Ballroom event featuring live jazz, active culinary presentations and cocktail demonstrations. Talented chefs from coastal regions around the country will gather with Executive Chef Steve Black and the Westin's culinary team to create each course for the dinner, with wine and spirit experts creating perfect pairings to accompany each course. 

Paula DaSilva is the executive chef of 3030 Ocean in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., known for her farm-to-fork dishes that highlight the flavors and freshness of South Florida's local ingredients. She appeared on season five of "Hell's Kitchen" with Gordon Ramsay and was named "Best Celebrity Chef" in the Broward/Palm Beach New Times 2009 Best Of issue. She was invited as a guest chef at the James Beard House in New York City and is a seven-time participant in the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival in Orlando. She is currently collaborating with Blue Point Brewery to create her own specialty beers to pair with her seafood dishes. 

Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Juan Carlos Gonzalez was inspired to pursue a culinary career by the bold flavors of his Spanish and Italian heritage. After beginning with an apprenticeship at Le Bernardin in New York City, Gonzalez relocated to New Orleans in 2000 to work for Commander's Palace, where he discovered Creole food and Louisiana cuisine. He also worked at Cafe Adelaide then moved to Houston to become executive chef at Bistro Alex & Bistro Bar. Gonzalez returned to New Orleans in 2012 as the executive chef of SoBou where he combines traditional cooking methods with the flair of New Orleans street food. 

Jeff Roberto is a traditionally trained sushi chef with more than 25 years' experience in the sushi industry. He is president and owner of Sushi on a Roll, a sushi catering company in San Diego that provides for hotels, full-service catering companies and large-scale events. Along with teaching sushi classes, Roberto consults with several restaurants and hotels in San Diego, creating sushi bars and designing their sushi programs, including Yakitori II, E Street Alley, Fish Market, Mr. Sushi, Seau's the Restaurant and Red Lion Hanalei Hotel.

Trained in Classical French cuisine at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts, Jimmy Reyes has developed a unique Modern French style to his menus. His experience includes eight years at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin in various positions as well as working at the Westin Diplomat, the Porterhouse Grill in Miami and El Atril in Spain. Reyes is now executive chef of Todd English's Bluezoo in Orlando and uses local ingredients in his recipes in support of the community of farmers.

There are only 400 tickets for the Coastal Chef's Table at $125 per person or $199 for two people. There are also Combo Ticket Packages and Stay & Play Packages for the best savings value. Tickets for the Coastal Chef's Table are available online HERE. 

 AquaCurean will feature a spirited Cocktail Challenge and Chef's Competition on Aug. 29 along with a "VIP Insider's" and "Coastal Pop-Up" events, featuring all local restaurants and chefs. The weekend concludes with a "Fresh Catch and Cocktails" event on Aug. 30.

Several Effingham County residents were injured in the collision of a truck and an SUV at Ga. 204 on an entrance ramp to Interstate 95 on Sunday evening.

The Major Accident Investigation Team of the Savannah-Chatham police department is investigating the 7:54 p.m. crash on the northbound ramp to the interstate, said Julian Miller, police spokesman.

A Ford pickup driven by Dallas Dasher, 20, of Meldrim, was traveling westbound on Ga. 204 at a high rate of speed. The pickup passed a vehicle and collided with the SUV that was turning left onto the northbound entrance ramp with a green arrow.

Five passengers in the white Hyundai Sante Fe and two in the truck were transported via Southside EMS ambulance or air lifted to Memorial University Medical Center with serious injuries. The driver of the SUV, Hugh Kesler, 37, of Rincon, was transported later for complaints of injuries.

Listed in critical condition were Keaton Kesler, 5; Savannah Kesler, 10; Brianna Kesler, 11, and Tyler Kesler, 13. Listed in serious condition were Holley Kesler, 34; Dustin Johnson, 13, and Austin Johnson, 14.

Westbound lanes of 204 and the entrance ramp were shut down for several hours during the investigation.

MAIT continues to investigate.

Read the obituaries.

Florence K. Alterbaum, Savannah, GA

Shirley Benton, Allendale, SC

Judy Branstetter, Burton, SC

Mr. Norman Capers, Savannah, GA

Mr. Charles Carter, Pembroke, GA

Gale Chambers, Uvalda, GA

Gladys Thelma Crumley, Savannah, GA

Mary Sue Elton Day, Hazlehurst, GA

Martha Edwards, Savannah, GA

Julia Freyermuth, Rincon, GA

Jerry Green, Burton, SC

Marelle Burgess Griffin, Hinesville, GA

Robert D. Harris, Savannah, GA

Mr. Jamell Law, Savannah, GA

Lorelle H. Lee, Savannah, GA

William Richard Meridth, Savannah, GA

Otha L. Mitchum, Ludowici, GA

Ralph E. Pace, Hazlehurst, GA

Del Parrish, Savannah, GA

Rev. Clementa Carlos Pinckney, Ridgeland, SC

Don Powell, Sr., Lyons, GA

Dorothy  Robinson, Fairfax, SC

Mr. Johnnie S. Russell, Savannah, GA

Barry P. Sherrod, Stilson, GA

Janice L. Sturgis, Allston, GA

Mr. Leverne Sumpter, Sr., Savannah, GA

Mrs. Wanda Kay Williams Walker, Portal, GA

Lessie Watkins, Savannah, GA

Savannah-Chatham Metro police will be operating radar hot spots along Jimmy DeLoach Parkway.

Police remind drivers there is zero tolerance for speeding in school zones.

A Wilmington Island home was burglarized on June 12.

Jewelry and various other items were stolen. Police say that similar burglaries have occurred recently on Wilmington Island.

Anyone with information should contact CrimeStoppers at 234-2020, send an e-tip though the CrimeStoppers website or by texting CRIMES (274637) and using the keyword CSTOP2020. All information provided to CrimeStoppers is anonymous.

A cash reward of up to $7,500 is available for new information that helps to solve this case, said CrimeStoppers spokeswoman Catherine Neal.

Summer is officially here and many folks are heading to the beach. What a better time than now to learn how to shag dance.

In this week's Savannah How, Savannah Ballroom Dance Studio instructors Alonzo Boschulte and JaeLynn Fulks teach you the basic steps to shag dancing. 

Savannah How is a weekly video series that answers every day, how-to questions. Visit the Savannah How page for other videos. Have an idea for Savannah How? Email your suggestions to jennifer.menster@savannahnow.com. 

Take a step back in time with these photos from the late 1970s as reenactors demonstrated Savannah's Revolutionary War at its 200th anniversary.

View slideshow.

Jail bookings from June 23–24 for Savannah-Chatham County are now posted.

Click through this slideshow to view photos and information obtained from the Chatham County Sheriff’s Department.

All individuals posted have not been convicted of a crime and are innocent until proven guilty.

Find previous jail bookings at savannahnow.com/booked.

Jail bookings from June 22-24 for Bulloch County are now posted.

Click through this slideshow to view photos and information obtained from the Bulloch County Sheriff’s Department. All individuals posted have not been convicted of a crime and are innocent until proven guilty.

Find previous jail bookings at savannahnow.com/booked.

The Chatham County Health Department has placed Tybee Island’s beach from 11th to 18th streets under a swimming and fishing advisory. The advisory is only for the specified area near the pier, and does not impact any other areas on the island, health department staff said.

The beach water advisory was issued to alert the public of a possible risk of illness associated with water contact, but does not mean the beach is closed.

The health department advises against swimming or wading in the water in the specified area. Fish and other seafood caught there should be thoroughly washed with fresh water and cooked well before eating, as should fish or seafood caught from any waters, health department staff said.

The area will be retested and the advisory will be lifted when tests show the bacteria levels meet the Environmental Protection Agency’s recommended standard.

City workers responded to a minor sewage spill in midtown Savannah early Wednesday afternoon.

The 12:35 p.m. spill at 1312 East 70th Street was the result of an overflowing manhole caused by a sewer main grease blockage, city staff said. The total volume discharged was estimated to be 210 gallons. The amount of this spill is classified as a minor spill under State Environmental Protection Division guidelines.

The spill was cleaned up before 1 p.m.

City staff will install a manhole monitor alarm to notify staff when future surcharges and resulting overflows occur. Spill notifications will be put at spill site into Casey Canal, at Eisenhower at Canal, at Sallie Mood at Canal and at Montgomery Crossroad at Canal. All agencies required by the State EPD were notified.

Police are asking the public to help them identify and find a woman they say took money from someone’s purse at a Savannah thrift store late last month.

The woman was seen on video in the Goodwill store in McAlpin Square on Victory Drive May 29 picking up a purse that another woman had left on the counter. She walked to a restroom in the back of the store with it and then left. The purse, minus the cash that was in it, was found in a trash can, said Julian Miller, Savannah-Chatham police spokesman.

The woman was white, 5 feet 2 inches to 5 feet 4 inches tall, 160-175 pounds and was wearing a gold, white and black blouse, black capris pants and black flip-flop sandals. She had gray hair and was wearing glasses.

Police ask anyone with information on the case to call the anonymous CrimeStoppers service at 912-234-2020 or text CRIMES (274637) using the keyword CSTOP2020. Tipsters’ identities remain confidential and they may qualify for a cash reward.

The Chatham County Sheriff’s Office says it has received more than 20 calls in the past three days from potential victims of a jury duty scam.

The calls, said department spokeswoman Gena Bilbo, mirror those of previous victims of the scam. The caller tells whoever picks up the phone he or she must pay a fine because of a missed jury summons. The suspect has identified himself at Sgt. Jackson and orders unsuspecting victims to go to Kroger to buy a Kroger card to pay their fine, Bilbo said.

While it’s possible someone might receive a legitimate call about a jury summons, Bilbo said, the sheriff’s office will not demand payment or request personal finance information. Deputies do not contact anyone by phone directing them to put money on an account to pay a bond or fine. A deputy will deliver a subpoena or any process in person, and any jury notices will come by mail.

The sheriff’s office asks anyone who feels they have been a victim of this scam or who has any information to call investigators at 912-652-7681.

Three juveniles are in custody after a victim and a bystander led Savannah-Chatham police in a foot pursuit following break-ins of two vehicles in downtown Savannah Tuesday. One of the suspects had been released from a juvenile detention center a day earlier, said Julian Miller, Savannah-Chatham police spokesman.

Downtown Precinct patrol units were flagged down by the owner of an SUV that had been entered at the Chatham Area Transit bus station at 900 E. Gwinnett Street at 11:45 a.m. At the same time, a witness was following the juveniles on foot and was soon joined by responding officers.

The juveniles were apprehended after a brief pursuit, returning cell phones, cigarettes and a knife stolen from a vehicle. A tablet computer and another cell phone were recovered hidden under a church in the area, Miller said.

The juveniles were transported to the Regional Youth Detention Center.

Two of the youths also had been detained last Friday when police converged on a shed that was broken into behind a house on Rose Dhu Glen Drive. One, who already was on probation, was charged after police found marijuana, cigarettes and stolen credit cards in his pockets. He had been placed under house arrest on Monday. The other had been turned over to his mother last Friday.

Police Chief Joseph Lumpkin said the case should be alarming to the Savannah community.

“That youths this age already are prolific offenders is as much a cry for help as a crime,” he said.

“I am concerned … and the rest of this community should be as well … that someone this young already so openly breaks the law and is allowed to do so. I can only guess what the future may hold for some of these youngsters if no intervention is provided. But our officers can do only so much.”

He also thanked the citizens, “for their participation in the shared responsibility of public safety,” adding, “Police need the citizenry’s eyes and ears to be effective.”

Anyone with information on the identity of the fourth suspect is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 912-234-2020 or text CRIMES (274637) using the keyword CSTOP2020. Tipsters remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward.

A Tip Line also is open directly to investigators at 912-525-3124 and most area clergy have agreed to serve as liaisons for anyone who would like to share information with police anonymously.

New property transfers in Effingham, Bryan and Chatham counties have been added to our database.

Search here by buyer, seller, address, city, zip or month of sale for all property transfers reported in 2015. 

All data are public records and are obtained from each county or municipality, unless otherwise sourced. Information fields may vary. 

The public is being asked to help identify and locate a woman photographed attempting to use a credit card stolen from a car at Wormsloe Historic Site on June 14.

The heavy-set, white female with long blonde hair was seen attempting to use credit cards at an area Target store only moments after a purse was taken from a North Carolina family’s car between noon and 1:40 p.m. She is believed to have been driving a brown or tan Nissan, said Julian Miller, Savannah-Chatham spokesman.

The purse was locked in the car while its owner and her family hiked in the state park. They returned to find a tool had been used to force open the door to retrieve the purse. The owner immediately cancelled the financial transaction cards moments before the suspect attempted to use them. Also taken were the burgundy purse with gold emblem, her drivers’ license and insurance cards, Miller said.

Anyone with information on identity or location of the suspect is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 912-234-2020 or text CRIMES (274637) using the keyword CSTOP2020. Tipsters remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward.

Here are the top stories for Thursday, June 25, 2015:

 3 indicted for involuntary manslaughter in jail death of Savannah man Mathew Ajibade

By Jan Skutch and Dash Coleman

Two former sheriff’s deputies and a contract health care worker who worked at the Chatham County jail were indicted Wednesday on involuntary manslaughter and related charges stemming from the Jan. 1 in-custody death of Mathew Ajibade in the jail.

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Fort Stewart soldiers help run Combat Camp

By Corey Dickstein

Standing in the shade, Lorenzo Ventura ripped the drab, olive green gas mask from the top of his head.

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Savannah State coaches building camaraderie through community project

By Nathan Deen

Last football season was so busy for Savannah State head coach Earnest Wilson III, he never had time to get to know his assistant coaches away from the field. With them, it was always coaches meetings, reviewing game film, running practices, hitting the recruiting trail and then on to the spring.

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S.C. Rep resists flag flap

By Sarita Chourey | Morris News Service

COLUMBIA — Rep. Chris Corley isn’t falling in line with the political movement: He says the Confederate battle flag should stay put on grounds of the S.C. State House.

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NATIONAL

Louisiana Gov. Jindal declares 2016 GOP candidacy 

By Melinda DeSlatte | Associated Press

NEW ORLEANS — Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana said Wednesday he was entering the 2016 presidential race and he began trying to distinguish himself in a field packed with better known rivals.

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Republican-led Congress hands Obama major win on trade

By CHARLES BABINGTON AND DAVID ESPO

WASHINGTON — In a triumph of divided government, the Republican-controlled Congress passed major trade legislation Wednesday that was long-sought by President Barack Obama but vehemently opposed by most lawmakers in his party.

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Boston Marathon bomber sentenced to death in 2013 attack

By DENISE LAVOIE | Associated Press

BOSTON — In a startling turn, Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev apologized for the lethal attack for the first time Wednesday just before a judge formally sentenced him to death.

Savannah-Chatham Metro police will be operating radar hot spots along Victory Drive.

Police remind drivers there is zero tolerance for speeding in school zones.

Read the obituaries.

Donna M. Bayne, Savannah, GA

Ms. Barbara Blake, Savannah, GA

Mr. Cleveland Brewton, Savannah, GA

Mr. Norman Capers, Savannah, GA

Mr. Charles Carter, Pembroke, GA

Mr. Isaac Chaplin, Savannah, GA

Charisa M  Combs, Ellabell, GA

Gladys Thelma Crumley, Savannah, GA

Bro. Ernest Crump, Columbia, GA

Daisy Jo Edenfield, Millen, GA

Mr. Willie James Elmore, II, Savannah, GA

Ann S. Falconer, Savannah, GA

Mrs. Rosa Lee Frazier, Savannah, GA

Julia Freyermuth, Rincon, GA

Charles Henry Hill, Garden City, GA

Willie J. Jenkins, Fairfax, SC

Ms. Tretess Johnson, Savannah, GA

Harold Lowery, Uvalda, GA

William Richard Meridth, Savannah, GA

Mrs. Mary J. Owens, Savannah, GA

Del Parrish, Savannah, GA

Mrs. Bessie Scott, Savannah, GA

James Smith, Sr., Claxton, GA

Carlton Thigpen, Rockledge, GA

Ann Newton Todd, Savannah, GA

Harry J. Waters, Clyo, GA

Mr. John Traton Weever, Jr., Savannah, GA

ATLANTA – Metro Savannah’s unemployment rate for May was 5.9 percent, up five-tenths of a percentage point from 5.4 percent in April, the Georgia Department of Labor announced today. The rate in May 2014 was 7.1 percent.

The rate rose as jobs declined and new layoffs increased.

The number of jobs in Savannah decreased by 1,800, or 1.1 percent, in May to 169,700 down from 171,500 in April. Most of the job losses came in state government, primarily in non-contract school workers, as well as in leisure and hospitality, retail trade, and manufacturing.

However, there was an over-the-year gain of 4,200 jobs, or 2.5 percent, from 165,500 in May 2014. Most of the job growth came in professional and business services, trade, transportation and warehousing, and the goods-producing sector, which includes manufacturing, mining, logging and construction.

The number of initial claims for unemployment insurance rose by 213, or 29.7 percent, to 930 in May, up from 717 in April. Most of the increase came in transportation and warehousing, accommodations and food services, and administrative and support services. Over the year, claims were down by 486, or 34.3 percent, from 1,416 filed in May 2014.

Metro Gainesville had the lowest area jobless rate at 5.1 percent, while the Heart of Georgia-Altamaha region had the highest at 7.7 percent.

Meanwhile, Georgia’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for May was 6.3 percent, up from a revised 6.2 percent in April. It was 7.3 percent in May 2014.

Local area unemployment data are not seasonally adjusted. Georgia labor market data are available at www.gdol.ga.gov.