Joseph Payton

Huntington, Ironton

Reporter at WSAZ-TV (Huntington, WV)

Reporter at @WSAZNews | Ohio U. ‘18 | St. Joe ‘14 Formerly: @14News | #OhioAgainstTheWorld [email protected]

Articles

Wheelersburg softball’s “Heavenly Field” under construction

1 week ago | wsaz.com | Joseph Payton

WHEELERSBURG, Ohio. (WSAZ) - Softball is a big deal in Wheelersburg, Ohio. Many little girls who attend the Wheelersburg School District grow up wanting to be a Lady Pirate someday. If you ask Kimberly Chaffin, the buzz around the sport began more than two decades ago when one Pirate group reached the Little World Series. “Once that happened in 2001, it changed the entire dimension of the community because they had hope,” Chaffin said. That team set the standard and success is now an expectation.
South beats North 29-22 in All Star Football Classic

2 weeks ago | wsaz.com | Joseph Payton

SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) - The best high school football players across West Virginia descended upon South Charleston High School for the North-South All Star Football Classic. The South Cardinals defeated the North Bears 29-22. Here are the highlights,Copyright 2025 WSAZ. All rights reserved.
Shawnee State University set to close Children’s Learning Center

2 weeks ago | wsaz.com | Joseph Payton

PORTSMOUTH, Ohio (WSAZ) - In late May, Shawnee State University announced its decision to close its Children’s Learning Center (CLC). The CLC provides a childcare option for Shawnee State University (SSU) students and employees and is used as a teaching lab for students in the SSU School of Education. It will permanently close on Aug. 8, 2025. Whit Bales, who sends his child to the CLC, said it will be a tough ‘goodbye’. “We don’t even think of the workers as just someone who watches our kids.
JB Nets receives $100,000 broadband infrastructure grant

2 weeks ago | wsaz.com | Joseph Payton

GALLIA COUNTY, Ohio (WSAZ) - Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine recently announced more than $23 million worth of funding that will be dispersed across the state to advance broadband internet access. JB Nets, a local internet service provider in Gallia County, is one of several companies to receive funding. JB Nets was awarded $100,236 to reimburse infrastructure costs.
No new evidence found in search for human remains

3 weeks ago | wsaz.com | Joseph Payton

SCIOTO COUNTY, Ohio (WSAZ) - Investigators in Scioto County said they did not uncover any additional evidence or human remains at a second excavation site along Pine Creek Road. The investigation relates to three missing persons cases that are several decades old. In early April, Scioto County Sheriff David Thoroughman said detectives were tipped off to two locations in rural Scioto County. At the first excavation site, a few items of interest were collected including a bullet.
Coal Grove Community Building damaged by truck

1 month ago | wsaz.com | Joseph Payton

COAL GROVE, Ohio (WSAZ) - The village of Coal Grove has shut down its community building. Village officials say a large truck backed into the building while trying to turn around in the Paul Porter Park parking lot last Thursday. Mayor Andy Holmes said that, at first glance, the damage to the building appeared to be minimal, but a further assessment showed it that is worse than he originally thought. “When you go into the interior side of the building, you see that it is quite a bit worse.
157th Memorial Day Parade celebrated in Ironton

1 month ago | wsaz.com | Joseph Payton

IRONTON, Ohio (WSAZ) -- It’s the longest-running Memorial Day parade in the entire United States. The Ironton-Lawrence County Memorial Day Parade took place Monday in downtown Ironton for the 157th time. The parade and all events leading up to it are planned year-round. The parade committee will soon start planning for next year’s parade -- the 158th. For the full story from WSAZ’s Joseph Payton, check out the video above. Copyright 2025 WSAZ. All rights reserved.
Hometown Hero | South Point Elementary Principal Bill Christian

1 month ago | wsaz.com | Joseph Payton

SOUTH POINT, Ohio (WSAZ) - The South Point Board of Education recently nominated Bill Christian for WSAZ’s Hometown Hero award. Christian is the principal at South Point Elementary School who nearly lost his life last October when a man stabbed him inside the school building. While under attack, Christian could be heard yelling to alert nearby students and teachers to lockdown. Christian was critically injured, but his heroic efforts ensured that nobody else was harmed.
Gallipolis Municipal Pool set to open for first time since 2023

1 month ago | wsaz.com | Joseph Payton

GALLIPOLIS, Ohio (WSAZ) - Gallipolis Municipal Pool will open for the summer starting at noon Saturday, May 24. The pool has been closed since 2023 while the city completed enhancements and upgrades to its filtration system. Gallipolis City Commission President Michael Fulks said the cost of replacing the pool’s filter cost more than $270,000.
First responders await S.R. 217 repair project

1 month ago | wsaz.com | Joseph Payton

LAWRENCE COUNTY, Ohio (WSAZ) - State Route 217 near Andis has been closed since April 10. Heavy rains in early April washed out the land around dangerous curve along the road, causing it to slip. “There hasn’t been anything but road blockage since then. People can’t get through; emergency vehicles, fire trucks, ambulances, state patrols, deputy sheriffs, nobody can get through legally,” said Chief Cecil Coffman of the Lawrence Township Fire Department.