No one was injured in a house fire in Fountain City Wednesday morning. Firefighters from Fountain City, Tri-Community, Alma, and Waumandee responded to the blaze at 180 South Hill Street in Fountain City. Upon arrival, there were visible flames coming out of the second-floor window. The occupants were able to exit the home safely. Firefighters were able to contain the fire to the second floor. The cause of that fire is still under investigation.
A 14yr old rural Kellogg boy is in serious condition at St. Mary's Hospital in Rochester after falling in a sand hole Tuesday. According to the Wabasha County Sheriff's Department, emergency responders were called to a rural Kellogg home on the report of the 14yr stuck in the hole and becoming covered in sand. The boy was rescued and life-saving measures were performed. That incident remains under investigation.
Two Western Wisconsin Counties are ranked in the top 10 healthiest counties in Wisconsin according to new County Health Rankings & Roadmaps data from the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. Pierce was ranked 4th and Buffalo was ranked 10th in the state. This year’s analysis finds counties with well-resourced civic infrastructure have higher rates of high school completion, higher household incomes, less income inequality, and lower rates of children in poverty and uninsured adults. Dunn County was ranked 14 and Pepin County was ranked 27th. Visit countyhealthrankings.org to learn more.
A Barron County man has been found guilty of possession of child pornography. The jury found Duane Wisner of Cameron guilty Wednesday afternoon. Wisner was a convicted sex offender when he was charged last year with possessing child pornography. The Department of Criminal Investigation found more than a dozen images on his computer. He will be sentenced in June.
Three teenagers accused of making terroristic threats have pled not guilty in court. An attorney entered the plea as 18-year-old Alex Pataska and 19-year-olds Hunter Gundlach and Brady Hove stood silent yesterday. The three are accused of yelling "you die" at elementary school kids out on recess. Gundlach admitted to driving near the school but says he never yelled anything out the window. Bullets were found in a backpack in the car, but no weapon was found.
A La Crosse man is facing several felony drug charges after he was revived with Narcan after an overdose. Simon Kleinertz was arraigned yesterday after police were called to a home on Ferry Street for two people who had stopped breathing. Hunter Melby was also taken to the hospital for treatment. Police found over 15 thousand dollars in cash, marijuana cocaine, mushrooms, LSD, nitrous oxide canisters, and substances believed to be fentanyl or heroin.
Food service workers for Hastings Public Schools are back at work after a nearly two-month-long strike. The district announced yesterday that the school board had approved a tentative agreement with the food service workers. The board also approved a strike settlement agreement. The union has announced that its members ratified the agreement Friday after workers had hit the picket lines to call for better wages and employee recruitment and retention.
Officials are urging Wisconsin residents to take advantage of a state program meant to help with heating bills. The moratorium on winter utility shut-offs is ending on April 15th which means families who may have been struggling to keep up with monthly bills could be without service in a matter of weeks. Income guidelines and applications for the Wisconsin Home Energy Assistance Program are available by searching energy-and-housing-dot-W-I-dot-gov.
Governor Tony Evers is requesting additional pay for corrections officers as lawmakers begin work on the state's new budget. Recommendations from the governor's office include a big boost to starting pay for prison staffers, up from just over 20 dollars per hour to 33 dollars. Right now, officers are getting a temporary bonus of four dollars per hour over their base salary, which corrections officials say has helped with employee retention. The proposed salary increases are aimed at combatting staff shortages, with the state's prison system currently seeing a roughly 33 percent vacancy rate among officer and sergeant positions.
Vietnam War Veterans from Wisconsin were honored Wednesday with a "proper welcome home" event in Milwaukee. Fifty years ago on March 29th, the last of the U.S. troops and prisoners of war came home from Vietnam. During that time, many Vietnam War Veterans weren't welcomed with open arms because of the controversy of the war. Yesterday a "welcome home" procession took place, followed by a "lived experience" panel discussion by the Wisconsin Vietnam Veterans, and a wreath-laying ceremony.
A trial is underway where the state of Minnesota is accusing an e-cigarette maker of marketing to youth. Attorney General Keith Ellison gave the opening statements yesterday in the case against Juul Labs. He said the defendant and co-defendant Altria Group baited, deceived, and addicted a whole new generation with fruity flavors and fun ads. The state of Minnesota is seeking more than 100 million dollars in damages in the lawsuit.
A state agency is asking for help after the Nashville school shooting. The Wisconsin Department of Justice Office of School Safety is asking state lawmakers to make room in the budget for funding to keep school safety efforts going in the wake of the deadly attack. The agency’s director, Trish Kilpin, says their office has grown but existing funding is close to drying up. Kilpin says they’ve been getting by through federal grants and COVID relief dollars, but Kilpin says they’ll require ongoing state funds to continue their work. The Office of School Safety provides resources to help develop safety plans and they teach threat assessment, among other anti-violence efforts.
At the Capitol, work is underway on a new two-year state budget. Joint Finance Committee co-chair, Beaver Dam state Representative Mark Born, says they’ll model their work on the last state budget. Co-chair, Spring Green Senator Howard Marklein, said the committee may begin voting on budget provisions as early as the first week in May.
The state’s health agency submits its plan for the latest round of opioid settlement funds. The Wisconsin Department of Health Services submitted its plan to use nearly $8 million in opioid settlement funds to the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Finance. DHS wants to use the money to support prevention, harm reduction, and capital projects to address the state’s opioid crisis. The money is part of the $400 million the state receives in annual installments through an agreement with major pharmaceutical firms. The agency is required to submit a plan for the anticipated settlement funds to the JFC every year.
Four Wisconsin cities are in the top percentile when looking at where people have the highest credit scores. The WalletHub study says De Pere, Mequon , Muskego, and Pewaukee all rank in the 99th percentile for high credit scores. WalletHub says people in De Pere have the third-highest average credit score in the U.S., 798. Madison is in the 82nd percentile.
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is holding a contest to design next year's Wisconsin State Park and Forest vehicle admission sticker. The contest is open to Wisconsin high schoolers. Designs can be sent in until the end of April on the DNR's website.
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