NEWS
--On Saturday, it took 26 minutes to place the over 4,400 wreaths on the graves at the State Veteran's Cemetery north of Little Falls. The wreaths will remain there until January 27th of next year.
--Icy roads and snow led to a number of accidents in Benton County Friday night. Two teenagers were hurt around 10pm on Highway 15 near St. Cloud when their vehicles collided. Three people were involved in an accident in Maywood Township, though injuries were not serious. There also reports of a number of fender benders and spin outs between 5-11pm Friday due to wintry conditions.
--A Belgrade man was hurt when the pickup he was driving struck a city sign. Around 9:15am Thursday on Highway 23, just east of Chapel Road, near Cold Spring 53-year old Brian Hagen was heading west when he lost control of his pickup. It went off the road and into the ditch, struck a light pole and then the granite boulder holding the Cold Spring sign. Hagen suffered non-life threatening injuries.
--Minnesota health officials say there’s an increase in the number of chicken pox cases this year, and Stearns County is one of the areas reporting the illness. Department of Health spokesman Doug Schultz says nearly 400 cases have been reported, the highest number since 2013 when about 480 cases were reported. 15 cases are in one Hennepin County school and another six cases in Stearns County.
Schultz says that outbreaks typically happen in private or charter schools where there’s a higher percentage of unvaccinated children. Unlike the flu, Schultz says the chicken pox is not a seasonal illness and can happen throughout the year.
--A Park Rapids man was hospitalized and his wife is also recovering after the couple went through the ice on their ATV and into the frigid water for about 25 minutes while going ice fishing December 10th on Little Sand Lake near Park Rapids in northwest Minnesota. 46-year old Jason Funk was in a Fargo hospital with hypothermia conditions that included an increased heart rate and kidney concerns before being released Thursday. His wife, 41-year old Holly Funk was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital in Park Rapids and released after the incident. The ice was only about two inches thick and the lake about 30 feet deep where the incident occurred. Hubbard County deputies arrived at the nearby public access, along with first responders, and began rescue operations. A deputy put on a cold water suit and along with a private citizen they were able to get the two individuals out of the water. Sheriff Cory Aukes said the deputy grabbed onto the couple and pulled them out of the water, while others assisting hung onto them with ropes and pulled them to safety. Holly Funk was taken to the Park Rapids hospital suffering from hypothermia. According to the sheriff, Jason Funk was in "substantially worse shape" and had to be airlifted to a Fargo hospital.
--A Forest Lake man charged with sexual assault of two minors pleaded not guilty at a pretrial hearing on Thursday morning. 68-year old Stephen Louis Cunningham is charged with one count of first degree criminal sexual conduct and two counts of second degree criminal sexual conduct sexual assault. He pleaded not guilty to all charges. Sentence guidelines for first degree sexual assault, with a victim under 13 years of age, is at least 144 months in prison but up to 30 years in prison and/or $40,000. The maximum sentence for second-degree sexual assault, with a victim under 16 years of age, is up to 25 years in prison and/or $35,000.
--Winter truck load increases begin today on unrestricted highways in the north central frost zone. Vehicles will be allowed to operate up to 10 percent over the standard legal maximum loads on unrestricted highways during the winter load increase period. However, trucks must comply with current registration weight laws and not exceed registered gross weight tolerances. Drivers should check with local agencies before increasing any weights on city, county and township routes. The sign erected on the roadway governs the load limit in effect. A winter weight increase permit is required to take advantage of the 10 percent weight increase on interstate highways only. A permit is not required for state trunk highways. For updated road condition information, call 511 or visit www.511mn.org.
--A Cold Spring woman accused of purposely contaminating chicken while working at Gold'n Plump must pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in restitution as part of her sentence. 37-year old Faye Slye pleaded guilty in October to two felony counts of criminal damage to property for purposely contaminating chicken at the Cold Spring plant in 2016. Slye was sentenced to 90 days in jail and will be allowed to serve them on work release in staggered 30-day blocks. She must also pay $202,746.78 in restitution and complete mental health programs. Court records show a worker alerted authorities to chicken that had a dirt or grit-like substance on it. A second, similar incident happened the following day. Slye was also seen reaching for her shirt pockets before brushing her bare hands near her overshirt. Investigators say Slye admitted it was sand the first night and dirt the second night. She collected sand and dirt from the parking lot and put it into a small plastic baggie inside her shirt. Company officials determined total loss caused by product damage, customer claims, disposal of product inventory amounted to more than $200,000.
--Little Falls and Pierz have High School Holiday concerts tonight.
DEATH NOTICES
--Evelyn Dorothy Tholl, age 94 of Motley
--Wesley Anderson, age 33 of Coon Rapids
--Florence Starr, age 91 of Pierz
--Shirley Droge, age 85 of Onamia
--Thomas “Tom” R. Wenzel, age 83 of Little Falls.
--Leona Schneider, age 91 of Sobieski.
WEATHER
TODAY= cloudy skies, unseasonably mild, high 38.
TONIGHT= mostly cloudy, freeze fog after midnight, low 24.
TUESDAY= sunny and windy, high 32, clearing late, low 10.
WEDNESDAY= snow likely by afternoon, high 24, low near 15.
SPORTS
NFL= Case Keenum throws two touchdowns as the Vikings rout the Cincinnati Bengals 34-7 Sunday to win the NFC North Division. The game also marked the return of Teddy Bridgewater who came in with the game out of reach in the 4th quarter. The Vikings are at Green Bay on Saturday night 7pm on AM960 KLTF. Carolina defeated Green Bay 31-24 Sunday with Aaron Rodgers returning from injury.
TODAY IN HISTORY
IN 1966= Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas aired for the first time on CBS TV. Continues to be on TV each Christmas season.