The families sat in lawn chairs, watching big yellow machines claw through the earth.

The summer sun bore down on the empty lot in Largo nestled between a Baptist church and the Pinellas Trail. Drivers and pedestrians stopped, curious, as about a dozen forensic investigators continued their rhythm of digging: shovel, sift, discard.

They were searching for the remains of Retha Hiers.

In the 39 years since Hiers went missing, the Berlin Wall fell, the internet was born and America elected its f

Editor’s note: This story was produced through a partnership between the INDY and The 9th Street Journal, which is published by journalism students at Duke University’s DeWitt Wallace Center for Media & Democracy.

Health threats from carbon monoxide leaks plunged hundreds of McDougald Terrace residents into a crisis last winter.

After Durham County EMS Assistant Chief Lee VanVleet noticed an unusual number of EMS calls linked to the hazardous gas, nearly 900 residents were evacuated from Durha