Preparations for Durand Fun Fest are underway. Yesterday 2nd avenue West and Madison Street between 1st and 3rd avenue west were closed as the carnival arrived in town. The main tent will be arriving in Memorial Park and on Friday, 1st avenue west will also be closed for the car show. Durand Fun fest is this Friday through Sunday.
An Ellsworth man has been sentenced for ramming a Pierce County Squad Car in 2019. Luke Anderson was convicted of battery, disorderly conduct, and second-degree recklessly endangering safety. In June of 2019, officers were called to a domestic incident and Anderson drove his vehicle into a Pierce County Squad Car, nearly hitting the deputy inside the squad. Pierce County Judge Elizabeth Rohl sentenced Anderson to 45 months in prison along with three years of extended supervision.
One person was injured in a motorcycle accident in Burnside Township on Monday. According to the Trempealeau County Sheriff's Department, 24yr old Steven Santiago of Independence was traveling westbound on Hwy 121 when he lost control of the motorcycle and was ejected from it. Santiago was taken to the hospital with major injuries. He was cited for not having a motorcycle endorsement on his driver's license.
Over $35 million in funds from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will go toward 40 projects to improve Wisconsin roads, state officials announced Tuesday. Gov. Tony Evers and the Wisconsin Department of Transportation stated that this first round of local road funding will target rural areas and urban areas with fewer than 50,000 people. Projects in Western Wisconsin that were awarded funding included the City of Menomonie for 21st Avenue, Barron County for Hwy P, and Chippewa County for Hwy C. The funding was awarded in four categories based on population, and WisDOT noted there were over 300 applicants.
Minnesota-based Xcel Energy says it is the first energy company in the U-S to add all-electric bucket trucks to its fleet. The trucks have one electric source for the drive train and one for the lift mechanism. Officials say they have a 135-mile driving range and the ability to operate the bucket for a full day on a single charge. C-E-O Bob Frenzel says Xcel’s goal is to provide 100 percent carbon-free electricity by 2050.
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos is leading a group of Republican lawmakers calling on the E-P-A to lift the rule that requires reformulated gasoline to be sold in southeastern Wisconsin. The request comes at a time the state is experiencing record pump prices. W-I-S-C/T-V reports the Republicans have sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan asking for the change this summer. They say it would provide “much-needed relief” to Wisconsin drivers buying gas. The lawmakers say the reformulated product costs an average of 40-cents a gallon more than the prices seen in areas of Wisconsin where blended fuels aren’t required.
Wisconsinites turned in a lot of unwanted drugs this spring The state Department of Justice announced Tuesday that Wisconsin ranked number one in the nation for most prescription medications collected during the spring 2022 Drug Take Back, with more than 59-thousand pounds of unwanted medications turned in. According to DOJ, Wisconsin has collected more than a million pounds of unwanted medications since Drug Take Back began in 2010 under the leadership of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, ranking third behind California and Texas.
A man who shot and killed a retired judge has died. The Department of Justice says 56-year-old Douglas Uhde shot and killed retired Juneau County Judge John Roemer and then shot himself. Uhde was found alive but unresponsive at the scene and taken to a hospital where he was later declared brain dead. He was kept on life support to allow for organ transplants to occur. The D O J says Udhe had a list of targets he was planning to shoot alongside Judge Roemer.
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development is reporting a record number of job openings in the fourth quarter of 2021. DEED Commissioner Steve Grove says job openings topped 214-thousand even as employers continue to add jobs. The seven-county metro area had 127-thousand vacancies and Greater Minnesota had just over 87-thousand. Fourth-quarter vacancies were up 68 percent compared to the same period in 2020.
Low-interest U-S-D-A loans are now available to eligible ag producers in 60 Minnesota counties who have physical structure or livestock damage from this spring’s severe storms and/or flooding. But there’s no decision yet whether there will be an “ag disaster declaration” to cover crop loss. Dan Mahoney with the U-S-D-A Farm Service Agency in Saint Paul says they “have to be able to assess (a) 30-percent loss” before the U-S-D-A can start talking about crops as an eligible expense or loan.
A Wisconsin man is turning an old Northwoods motel into much-needed housing in Laona. As businesses in northern Wisconsin look for workers – especially seasonal workers – people wanting to take the jobs have struggled to find a place to live. Tim Shimek says he noticed the closed motel on Highway 8 and bought it last year. Now, it’s being renovated into low-income apartments. Shimek says people snap them up as quick as he lists them. W-A-O-W/T-V reports seven have already been rented and work is being done on three more. He says he’s not accepting applications yet while he gets them ready for new residents.
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The Wisconsin Fire Inspectors Association says an alarming number of people have died in residential fires this year. Thirty-three people have died so far this year. W-B-A-Y/T-V reports that compares to 40 in all of last year. Neenah-Menasha Fire Rescue Assistant Chief Adam Dorn says in all of the fires there was a constant – no working smoke detectors. The Association is now involved in a campaign of educating people on the importance of having working smoke detectors on every level of every home, including the sleeping areas.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court rules that the state Department of Health Services can release data on COVID-19 infections at businesses Tuesday’s 4-3 decision comes in an October 2020 suit filed by Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce against DHS and the Evers administration. WMC was concerned that the release of information about positive COVID cases could be harmful to businesses. Liberal justices, Ann Walsh Bradley, Rebecca Dallet, and Jill Karofsky, and conservative Justice Brian Hagedorn, ruled that the information can be released in response to media open records requests. Conservatives argued personal health information could be inadvertently released.
The state Justice Department’s Division of Criminal Investigation is reportedly examining the social media accounts and the computer and phone owned by the 56-year-old suspect accused of killing a judge. Authorities say retired Juneau County Judge John Roemer was targeted. A hit list containing 13 names was found in Douglas Uhde’s car. Investigators say they are tracing Uhd’s digital football to see if he had any ties to militia groups. Among the names on the list were Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
Wisconsin’s new system for tracking sexual assault kits is reportedly getting positive feedback from victims. The kits are tacked as they pass from hospital staff to law enforcement and crime lab testing. Advocate Aurora Health spokesperson Sharain Horn says the victims like having the barcode, knowing how to track their information, and being able to follow it through the system. They’re no longer just waiting for a contact from law enforcement and not knowing when that contact might be coming. Crime victims are able to use the barcode to view the status of the sexual assault kit for their case as it progresses through the testing process.
A 29-year-old shooting suspect is being held in the Wood County Jail on a charge of attempted first-degree intentional homicide. Jason Schultz was taken into custody after a shooting in the town of Richfield last week. W-S-A-W/T-V reports authorities were called to the Marshfield Medical Center May 30th at 7:15 a-m for a 33-year-old man with a gunshot wound. Witnesses say Schultz and the shooting victim had been arguing over an air compressor when the victim was shot. His name hasn’t been released. A June 14th hearing will determine if the case moves forward to trial.
The University of Minnesota is getting more than 66 million dollars to establish a new Antiviral Drug Discovery Center for Pathogens of Pandemic Concern. U-S Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith said the funding will be used for researching and developing coronavirus antivirals, especially those that can be taken at home or in an outpatient setting, and treatments targeting specific viruses with high potential to cause a future pandemic. The U of M is one of nine schools across the nation selected and will be the only center in the Midwest. Medical School Dean, Doctor Jakub Tolar says their faculty, “rallied to respond to the COVID virus in early 2020 and this award recognizes their innovative efforts.”
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