There's a warning about warm temperatures and a risk for wildfires in western Wisconsin. Durand and the Chippewa Valley could see record highs today and tomorrow. The National Weather Service says both days will be above 65 degrees. That warmth, some winds, and a lack of rain are pushing the fire danger up. The Wisconsin DNR says Pepin, Pierce, Buffalo, Dunn, Eau Claire, and Chippewa Counties are too dry, and in danger of seeing wildfires. The lack of snow this winter has started the fire season early. Forecasters are tracking a slight chance of rain Thursday into Friday and cooler temperatures this weekend.
A man is sentenced to ten days in jail for shooting a deer in Menomonie city limits while drunk. A witness says she saw a car stop in a residential area, heard a shot, and saw a deer fall over in October 2022. Investigators found shotgun pellets in a nearby garage and vehicle. Investigators say Cody Wolfe and Isaiah Draeger took the deer to a nearby apartment, saying they wanted venison but were poor students. Wolfe, who pulled the trigger, failed a breathalyzer test. He pleaded guilty yesterday and will get a year and a half of probation after his sentence.
Dunn County is scaling back its summer well testing program. County water specialist Heather Wood says last summer the county tested nearly one-thousand wells, and this year's number will be 240. She explains the idea is to get a baseline for water quality across the county. Her office isn't looking for anything specific. If more than 240 people sign-up to have their well tested, there will be a waiting list. Wood says they would tackle that once they find the money.
Three wildlife activist groups have filed a lawsuit looking to protect the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge. The National Wildlife Refuge Association, Driftless Area Land Conservancy, and Wisconsin Wildlife Federation filed a lawsuit against the Rural Utilities Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to stop a power line from going over the river and wildlife refuge. They claim the Fish and Wildlife Service did not give enough time for public comment and that the 1997 National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act was violated.
The Durand Fire Department may be waiting a bit longer for the new ladder truck. At the last City Council meeting Fire Chief Jamie King says the truck is now on the build list for May of this year due to some supply delays, while the department has received a new brush truck. Meanwhile, demolition of the Tarrant Park Pool will begin today. The new pool is expected to open in 2025.
Authorities in Clark County say a crash that killed nine people on Friday is one of the worst in Wisconsin history. A semi truck hauling milk ran through a van carrying an Amish family. Only a two-year-old inside the van survived. The sheriff's office says the truck driver died as well. The Amish family was from Virginia and headed to see relatives in Wisconsin. The state's deadliest crash came in 2002 when ten people lost their lives in a 45-car pile up in Sheboygan County on a foggy day.
School leaders in Tomah say the weekend threat that sent police officers to the school came from outside the country. The Tomah Area School District received an email threat on Saturday. Police were called and officers searched the building but didn't find any danger or anyone hurt. The district's IT department tracked the email to someone overseas. Tomah Schools say they will be keeping an eye out when kids return to class today.
The largest business lobby in the state is appealing a judge ruling that gave the Department of Natural Resources' ability to regulate large dairy farms. This comes after a judge in January struck down a challenge by the Wisconsin Dairy Alliance and Venture Dairy Cooperative. The permit plan is applauded by environmental groups because it requires farms with a thousand or more animal units to have plans on how to store and get rid of the massive amounts of manure produced by the animals.
Wisconsin lawmakers are moving to fire two UW regents who opposed the move to pause diversity, equity and inclusion efforts at the university. A state Senate committee on Thursday recommended that the full Senate let Dana Wachs and John Miller go. They both voted against the agreement that would limit DEI efforts across the UW system. Senate President Chris Kapenga said the decision to place their "sacred ideology" over getting students ready for their careers cost them their jobs.
Townships across Minnesota will be holding their annual meetings tomorrow. The Minnesota Association of Townships calls tomorrow's meetings grassroots democracy on display. The organization says the meetings will help set local tax levies, elect township officers and provide a forum for discussing community issues. The state has more than 17-hundred townships representing more than 900-thousand Minnesotans.
Wisconsin added nearly 10-thousand jobs in January, leading to a record-breaking number of jobs in the state. The Department of Workforce Development says more than five-thousand nonfarm jobs and 47-hundred private jobs were added during the first month of this year. Both sectors are at an all-time high, along with construction jobs. Wisconsin unemployment is currently at three-point-two percent, point-five-percent less than the national average.
The University of Wisconsin is officially moving forward with its guaranteed admission program. The school unveiled the Wisconsin Guarantee program Thursday. State lawmakers approved a plan this year that guarantees a spot at UW-Madison to all Wisconsin high schoolers who finish in the top five-percent of their class. Kids who finish in the top ten-percent are guaranteed a spot at other UW schools. Students will have to apply to be part of the program, even though some will likely also qualify for direct admission. The Wisconsin Guarantee website has more information.
A bill that could ban TikTok is advancing out of committee. The House Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously voted to advance the bipartisan bill. It would require the popular social media app's China-based parent company ByteDance to divest the app. The "Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act was introduced by Wisconsin Republican Mike Gallagher and Illinois Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi last week. If the bill gets passed into law, ByteDance would then have about five months to sell TikTok before the ban goes into effect.
Minnesota's unemployment rate is unchanged after the state gained three-thousand jobs in January. State officials released the latest employment numbers for the state yesterday. The unemployment rate in January remained at two-point-seven percent as nearly two-thousand Minnesotans exited the labor force. Average hourly wages grew slightly in January, reaching 37-dollars and 56-cents per hour across all sectors of employment.
Wisconsin has some great cheeses, but apparently, it doesn't have the best cheese in the world. That goes to a Swiss cheesemaker who won this year's World Championship Cheese Contest for its Hornbacker cheese. The Mountain Dairy Fritzenhaus in Bern, Switzerland also took top honors in 2020 and 2022. Wisconsin cheese makers took top honors in 39 of the 142 categories. The contest has been hosted by the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association since 1957 and had over three thousand entries this year.
The Minnesota State Fair is offering funds to first-time livestock exhibitors. Fair officials announced yesterday that they will be offering Beginning Exhibitor Livestock Learning Experience grants for the fourth year. Large-animal exhibitors may receive 500-dollars, while small-animal handlers can get 250-dollars. A maximum of 15 grants will be awarded. More information is available on the state fair website.
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