Firefighters from Fountain City, Tri-Community, Trempealeau, and Dodge Fire Departments responded to a wildfire on the side of a bluff near W571 Castlerock Lane in the town of Buffalo on Saturday. According to the Buffalo County Sheriff's Department, the fire burned approximately 10 acres and no structures were damaged in the blaze. The fire is believed to have been caused by a rekindling of the fire that occurred at nearby Burt Lane on March 11th. No one was injured.
While the calendar may say it is spring, winter is forecast to return to Western Wisconsin later this week. The National Weather Services says a large storm system will move into the area on Thursday bringing snow and colder temperatures. While the exact track of the system is still uncertain, the weather service says most areas could see up to two inches of snow on Thursday night. Another system is forecast to bring snow for the weekend and into early next week, but the exact location and amounts remain uncertain.
The Durand Police, Fire, EMS, and Pepin County Sheriff's Department are hosting a first responders explorers program The program is open to all students in 6th through 12th grades with an interest in a career as a first responder. The course will be held two Sundays in April. The departments will have an open house on April 3rd from 5-6pm at Durand City Hall for sign ups and to answer questions. You can also visit durand wi police dot com for more information.
This is the last week for HSHS' hospitals in the Chippewa Valley. Both Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire and St. Joseph's Hospital in Chippewa Falls are set to close on Friday. HSHS announced back in January that it was going to close the hospitals because of costs and 'industry pressures.' Eau Claire's other hospitals say they are ready to handle the influx of patients from HSHS. Many of the people who work at HSHS have also gotten new jobs with other hospitals in the area. In all, Sacred Heart and St. Joe's make-up about a third of the care in the Chippewa Valley.
Governor Evers went to Eau Claire to blame Republicans for a lack of money for the city's to-be closed hospital. The governor yesterday said Wisconsin Republicans are blocking his plan to spend 15 million-dollars on hospitals throughout the Chippewa Valley. The money was originally earmarked for the area's other emergency rooms once Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire and St. Joseph's Hospital in Chippewa Falls close on Friday. The governor says he changed that plan so hospitals had more flexibility to spend the money as they see fit. Chippewa Valley Republicans say the governor gummed-up their agreement, and say he's the one standing in the way of the money being spent.
Eau Claire County residents will going to have to pay to have old couches or TVs taken away. Eau Claire County yesterday said it will no longer cover the costs for bulky item pickup. The county says it was costing too much money. County leaders also say they want to keep things out of the local landfills. People will need to call their waste hauler and make an appointment for crews to grab larger things off the curb. The county says people can always take their brush and yard waste to the city of Eau Claire's brush site.
One person was injured when a former church, now a home started fire in Hixton on Monday morning. According to the Hixton Fire Department, firefighters responded to the former United Methodist Church and found heavy flames coming from the ceiling and walls. One person who lived in the renovated church was med flighted to the hospital with burns. The cause of that fire is still under investigation.
A potential federal ban on the social media app Tiktok could have farther-ranging consequences than just removing the app from the US. UW-Madison cyber security strategist Dave Schroeder says other companies harvest the same sort of data that TikTok does. Proponents of the ban say that data is being sent to Chinese government officials and that those same officials are using the app to push propaganda to its users in the US.
The former Milwaukee election manager who mailed three fake absentee ballots to a state lawmaker back in 2022 is finally going to trial. Opening arguments began yesterday in Kimberly Zapata's case. Prosecutors claim she broke the law by mailing the fake military ballots to state Representative Janel Brandtjen's house two years ago, but her lawyers say Zapata is a political whistleblower who exposed a loophole in the state's election law. She is facing one felony, and three misdemeanor charges. Her trial is expected to wrap-up by the end of the week.
In-person absentee voting begins across Wisconsin today for the presidential primary and two constitutional amendments. Even though President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have gotten the delegates needed for the presumptive nomination, Wisconsinites can still cast their votes. The amendments up for vote include one that would restrict private grant money use in state election administration. The second will only allow election officials that are designated by law to oversee elections. Voters can go to their local absentee polling place to vote until the 29 for local races.
A library named after former Israeli Prime Minister Gold Meir was vandalized on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. The school said two people allegedly threw an object through a window on the first floor and sprayed graffiti on the exterior of the building that says "Free Palestine." It reportedly happened late Saturday night and the university said it will not tolerate vandalism or antisemitism. Pro-Palestinian student protesters have made an issue of the library before, including a protest last month where protesters demanded that the library change its name. However, the school isn't linking those student groups to the vandalism.
Kids in Crandon won't be back in school for two more weeks because of the mystery illness that made dozens of people sick last week. The school district called-in the Forest County Sheriff's Office after 10 students and teachers reported feeling ill on Thursday. By the end of the day, that number grew to 39. Crandon Schools say they are extending spring break by a week, and using the time to check and clean their school buildings. Kids are due back in school in Crandon on Tuesday, April 2nd.
A second man is being charged in connection to the 2005 theft of a pair of ruby slippers from "The Wizard of Oz." Worn by Judy Garland in 1939 film, the ruby slippers were stolen from the Judy Garland Museum. Seventy-six--year-old Jerry Hal Saliterman is accused of helping Terry Jon Martin steal the slippers and witness tampering--threatening to release sex tapes of a woman to conceal the theft. The slippers were found by the FBI in 2018. Martin pleaded guilty in October to the theft, while Saliterman has not entered a plea.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz is unveiling his 2024 budget proposal. Speaking this afternoon, Walz announced his plans for the 226-million-dollar spending plan. They include funds for public safety and emergency services and modernizing the state's child welfare and social services reporting system. The budget also calls for spending on water quality and infrastructure for in-home water treatment and well replacement.
Jill Stein says the Green Party will not be a spoiler in November. Stein, who is expected to be the Green Party's presidential nominee in November, was on UpFront on Milwaukee TV over the weekend. She says she expects the Green Party to get about five percent of the vote in November if she's allowed on the ballot. Stein says Democrats have abandoned their base, and have no one but themselves to blame if voters leave them for the Green Party.
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