Author: Angela Woolsey

Angela Woolsey is the site editor for FFXnow. A graduate of George Mason University, she worked as a general assignment reporter for the Fairfax County Times before joining Local News Now as the Tysons Reporter editor in 2020.

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FCPD: Detectives identify ‘Christmas Tree Lady,’ solving 26-year cold case

By Angela Woolsey
Known as the "Christmas Tree Lady," a woman now identified as Joyce Meyer died by suicide in Annandale in 1996 (via FCPD)

(Updated at 10:55 a.m.) A woman who died by suicide at a cemetery in Annandale 26 years ago has been identified.

The Fairfax County Police Department announced this morning (Thursday) that the woman known colloquially as the “Christmas Tree Lady” was 69-year-old Joyce Meyer. Detectives made the link using DNA tests and genomic sequencing by the Houston-based forensic laboratory Othram Inc.

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JUST IN: Tractor-trailer fire shuts down Capital Beltway at Route 50

By Angela Woolsey
Fire and Rescue vehicles block off southbound I-495 at Route 50 after a tractor-trailer fire (via VDOT Northern Virginia/Twitter)

(Updated at 5 p.m.) A tractor-trailer caught fire on I-495 this afternoon (Wednesday), shutting down all southbound lanes at the Route 50 interchange in Merrifield.

The fire appears to have sparked right as the afternoon rush hour was getting underway. The Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department reported at 4:16 p.m. that it has units on the scene working to extinguish the fire.

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News

McLean Community Center issues apology for Fourth of July fireworks cancellation

By Angela Woolsey
A sign for the McLean Community Center (file photo)

This weekend, McLean got its first Fourth of July fireworks since the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020 — only no one was around to see them.

The McLean Community Center held its annual Independence Day Celebration at Langley High School on Saturday (July 2) to accommodate a staffing shortage at its fireworks vendor, an issue that affected several other Fourth of July events in the area as well.

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Countywide

Flooding possible for Fairfax County this afternoon and evening

By Angela Woolsey
A Flood Watch has been issued for the D.C. area on July 6 (via National Weather Service/Twitter)

Updated at 2:25 p.m. — The Flood Watch has been extended to 5 a.m. tomorrow (Thursday), per Fairfax County.

Earlier: A Flood Watch is on the horizon for much of the D.C. area, including Fairfax County.

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News

Tysons Corner Center to add more electric vehicle charging stations

By Angela Woolsey
Electrify America's electric vehicle charging station at Tysons Corner Center (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

More electric vehicle charging stations are on their way to Tysons Corner Center, though exactly when they’ll arrive and how many there will be remains to be determined.

Right now, locating a station at the mall requires some hunting or the assistance of a mobile app. Of the approximately 11,000 parking spaces, just seven are outfitted with electric vehicle chargers.

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News

Woman hospitalized after car is hit by tractor-trailer on I-66 in Fair Lakes

By Angela Woolsey
The I-66 ramp onto and off of Stringfellow Road in Fair Lakes (via Google Maps)

A woman was hospitalized after her car was hit by components of a tractor-trailer on I-66 in the Fair Lakes area.

The woman was driving onto I-66 East from Stringfellow Road around 1:34 p.m. on Friday (July 1) when her black 2015 Nissan Murano “was struck by a wheel hub and tire assembly lost from a tractor-trailer traveling west on I-66,” the Virginia State Police said on Saturday (July 2).

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News

Fairfax County releases plan for new, two-story Tysons community center

By Angela Woolsey
A rendering of the proposed community center in the southeast corner of Dominion Square West Building C5 (via KGD Architecture/Fairfax County)

Tysons residents will soon get to shape the plan for Fairfax County’s community center in the upcoming Dominion Square West housing development.

The county’s Department of Neighborhood and Community Services (NCS) staff will host a trio of community engagement forums later this month to gather feedback on potential services, activities and programming for the new facility, which will fill 30,000 square feet at the base of a 20-story residential high-rise at 1592 Spring Hill Road.

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Maryland driver charged after I-495 police pursuit ends with car flipping in Tysons

By Angela Woolsey
A Virginia State Police vehicle (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

A Maryland driver has been arrested after leading police on an extended chase down the Capital Beltway yesterday (Monday) that crossed state lines and ended with a car flip in Tysons.

According to Montgomery County police, its officers were on the lookout for 26-year-old Frederick K. Njihia of Germantown after getting a report of a man shooting a rifle at people, including a local sanitation worker whose vehicle was hit multiple times.

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Countywide

Fairfax County expands COVID-19 testing sites, starting today

By Angela Woolsey
Curative will operate COVID-19 testing mobile labs at six sites in Fairfax County (courtesy Fairfax County Health Department)

More than two years into the pandemic, Fairfax County is settling into a more stable approach to COVID-19 testing.

The Fairfax County Health Department will now support free testing at six established sites through a new partnership with the contractor Curative. The mobile lab launched today (Tuesday) in Centreville and Bailey’s Crossroads and will rotate between two sites per day throughout each week.

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Most-read Fairfax County stories of the week: June 27-July 1

By Angela Woolsey
Fireworks stall at Merrifield's Pan Am Shopping Center (photo by Amy Woolsey)

Independence Day weekend is almost here. Before you prepare for the oncoming barrage of fireworks or head to bed for some much-needed sleep, let’s revisit the past week of news in Fairfax County.

Here are the 10 most-read stories on FFXnow this week:

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