(Missouri Independent) – Kendra Findley had thought the Springfield area had seen the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic in December — a month when cases regularly surpassed 200 a day and that saw a record 98 residents die of the virus. Looking back, that was when the Alpha variant, first identified in the U.K., was […]
In the last three weeks – there has been a major increase in the Delta variant of COVID-19 in Missouri…especially in the Northwest and Southwest part of the state. Kendra Findley, Administrator of Community Health and Epidemiology in Greene County, says this highly contagious strain is now the most dominant in that area. […]
Another national ranking is out about Missouri’s coronavirus case count. Alisa Nelson reports. The New York Times’ nationwide coronavirus tracker ranks Missouri third among all states for the most COVID-19 cases per 100-thousand residents in the last seven days. Four Missouri counties with a population of more than 10-thousand are in the top […]
(Missouri Independent) – Penalties that Spire Missouri issued to suppliers who failed to provide natural gas during a February cold snap that forced power outages across the Midwest could drive bills for hospitals, schools, and businesses to astronomical levels, according to a trio of complaints pending before state regulators. During the worst of the cold snap in February, […]
Stocker cattle make up just 12 percent of the 4.25 million head currently part of the beef industry in Missouri. But these cattle could add as much as $78 million to Missouri’s economy, according to the Missouri Beef Value-Added Study, a 2016 University of Missouri Extension report for the Missouri Agricultural and Small Business Development Authority. […]
A mistrial has been declared in southwest Missouri’s Lebanon in the case of a Camdenton man charged with killing a woman because she was gay. Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth has the update: The mistrial was declared after the jury was seated Monday, but it’s unclear what caused it. Missourinet Lebanon affiliate KBNN reports Steven […]
Legislation that declares it’s the duty of the courts and law enforcement agencies to protect the rights of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms has been signed into law by Missouri’s governor. GOP Governor Mike Parson signed the Second Amendment Preservation Act (SAPA) Saturday in Lee’s Summit, where he was joined by the bill […]
Missouri’s population grew by about 11,000 people from 2019 to 2020. This 0.2% increase is only half the national rate of 0.4%, though it is typical of the modest growth experienced by many other Midwestern states. But the picture gets more complicated when you zoom in to specific regions and counties. “This growth is uneven,” […]
(Missouri Independent) – Missouri and Kansas residents’ utility bills may be helping to bankroll the energy sector lobbying against policies aimed at lowering greenhouse gas emissions. Federal and state rules prohibit utility companies from passing their lobbying costs on to customers through bills. But in both Kansas and Missouri, utilities like Evergy, Ameren, and Spire […]
Completion rates COVID-19 vaccinations, when including total populations, include the united states at 41.6 percent, Missouri is several points behind at 35.2 percent. In this area, Carroll County at 31.3 percent of its residents fully vaccinated, then Livingston 29.9, Linn 29.6, Sullivan 26.8, Caldwell 24.2, Grundy County in sixth place among ten area counties. Grundy […]
Six people died in traffic crashes over the 2021 Memorial Day weekend counting period of 6 p.m., Friday, May 28, through 11:59 p.m., Monday, May 31, 2021. Missouri State Highway Patrol troopers investigated the following over the 2021 Memorial Day holiday weekend: Traffic Statistics Crashes — 270 Injuries — 82 Fatalities — 4 DWI — […]
Missouri’s junior senator is calling on a Senate committee to expedite his bipartisan duck boat legislation, which aims to prevent a repeat of the deadly 2018 duck boat tragedy on southwest Missouri’s Table Rock Lake. The third anniversary of the Table Rock Lake duck boat tragedy is in July. 17 people died when […]
A rare double shooting in southwestern Missouri’s Branson. First responders found two people shot in the parking lot of Famous Daves in Branson. One of the victims died at the scene, while the other died from injuries after being taken to the hospital. Branson police have identified the victims as 38-year-old Krystle L. […]
The 30×30 initiative, also called the “America the Beautiful” campaign, aims to preserve 30% of the nation’s lands and water by 2030. But its pledge to fight the climate crisis could face hurdles. Announced by the Biden administration earlier this year, the initiative acknowledged what’s called a tipping point in damage done to the natural world and […]
A Missouri man was sentenced in federal court today for his role in leading a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in southwestern Missouri. Nathen D. Libertus, 31, of Stella, Missouri, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to 21 years in federal prison without parole. On May 20, 2020, Libertus pleaded guilty to participating […]
Beef producers look at their developing heifers and wonder which one will make them the most profit over her life. With tightening margins the past few years, producers must look to data-driven decisions for their breeding stock, says Reagan Bluel, interim superintendent of the University of Missouri Southwest Research Center in Lawrence County. Bluel says […]
A Fair Grove, Missouri, man who is a member of the Southwest Honkys violent prison gang was sentenced in federal court today for his role in a drug-trafficking conspiracy in which investigators intercepted a shipment of nearly 9.5 kilograms of methamphetamine. William F. Jones, 45, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to […]
(Missouri Independent) – As the case counts of the novel coronavirus began to tick up last March across Missouri, providers who offer tests for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) found their resources were being pulled in two directions. Swabs were in short supply as they became needed for COVID-19 testing. Contact tracers, who reach out to […]
The Missouri Department of Conservation is set to launch a new canine unit through its Protection Branch this summer. The new unit, consisting of five dogs and their conservation agent-handlers, will be stationed around the state and used as necessary to work throughout Missouri. According to MDC, the capabilities of canines are extensive in conservation-related […]
Area schools are holding graduation ceremonies on May 16, 2021. Thirty-eight seniors will graduate from Penney High School of Hamilton at the stadium at 1 p.m. Two seniors graduated early. Valedictorian Julia Kanoy and salutatorian Ashley Brown will speak. Marceline R-5 will have 30 students graduating at the field house at 1 o’clock. Sixteen students […]
