NEWS
--Due to the Winter Storm Warning, all Little Falls, Pierz, Royalton, Upsala, Swanville, Pillager, Brainerd schools are closed today. Pierz, Royalton, Pillager and Brainerd have implemented E-Learning days others may too so check with your local schools. Others schools such as Staples-Motley, Long Prairie-Grey Eagle and Browerville schools were going 2-hours late at press time but that could change. All after school and evening activities for closed schools and many with e-learning are canceled tonight and will tried to be rescheduled. Christmas programs and others items like at Mary of Lourdes and Holy Trinity Schools will have to be rescheduled also with no school.
--From the Morrison County Sheriff's Office. The National Weather Service has issued a WINTER STORM WARNING FOR MORRISON COUNTY IN EFFECT UNTIL 6PM today. Heavy snow expected. Snow accumulations of 5 to locally 11 inches is possible by early Friday morning. The hazardous conditions could impact the morning or evening commute. If you must travel, make sure you have a full tank of gas, keep an extra flashlight, a fully charged cell phone, extra warm clothes, food and water in your vehicle in case of an emergency. Slow down and use caution when traveling. Make sure your headlights are on. Plan ahead and give yourself extra time to reach your destination safely. Make sure others know your travel plans. Monitor the latest forecasts for updates. The latest road conditions for Minnesota can be found at 511mn.org or by calling 511 on your cell phone. The sheriff's office stated that the icy conditions Tuesday night into Wednesday that turned to heavy wet snow that blanketed the area with many 3-7 inch amounts caused a number of trees down over township roads yesterday morning. Crews worked through the day to remove trees and debris from the roadways. Some power outages were also reported from power lines with icy buildup snapping in some areas on Wednesday. After the snow ends late Friday or early Saturday then bitter cold returns with highs barely above zero by Monday and Tuesday next week and lows being below zero for long periods of times through next weekend. Be Safe!!.
--Brainerd Police have released the name of the woman found inside a structure fire on Friday. 58-year-old Judith Meyer of Brainerd was found deceased inside the home. The fire is still under investigation by the Minnesota State Marshal's Office.
--A St. Cloud man has pleaded guilty to 1st-degree attempted murder, moments after a Benton County judge ruled him competent to face the charge. Twenty-year-old Christian Kane pleaded guilty in what authorities say was a murder-for-hire in Sauk Rapids. Kane is accused of stabbing a man in his garage at the direction of the man's wife, 55-year-old Maria Foster. Foster and Kane's wife, 25-year-old Katrina Hunt, are also charged in the case. Their cases are still moving through the court system. Court records show Foster picked up her husband from the airport and had him sit in a specific chair in the garage. When she went to get him coffee, Kane came at the husband from behind and stabbed him multiple times in the chest, neck, and back. The victim was taken to the hospital with severe stab wounds and cuts. Court records show Kane said Foster had told him that her husband was abusive and she wanted Kane to kill him. She allegedly told Kane that he and Hunt could move into the house once her husband was dead. Foster also allegedly said they could have all of her husband's belongings once he was dead. Kane will be sentenced on February 24th.
--An 18-year-old from Little Falls was injured Wednesday afternoon at 1:43pm in Ripley Township. Peyton Magney was operating a snowmobile on Highway 115 near Haven Road when it hit the railroad track and she was thrown from the machine. Magney was taken to the hospital in Little Falls and treated for her injuries.
--A Nisswa man suffered a serious injury Monday after he fell from a tree on the 3000 block of Linden Boulevard in Nisswa. The Nisswa Fire Department responded to the fall at 4pm. The man was in the woods removing his tree stand when he slipped and fell from the tree, severely injuring his back. The injury was life-changing. About 10 firefighters were on scene for about 45 minutes retrieving the man from the woods. Nisswa firefighters state that you should “Be careful when you're removing your equipment from the woods,” “Keep safety in mind and make sure you always have a helper.”
--An 85-year-old man was uninjured Monday after his vehicle went into a swampy area off Highway 371 in Crow Wing County. The Minnesota State Patrol and Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office responded to the crash, reported just after 4pm in Unorganized Territory, north of Baxter. According to law enforcement, a 2013 Ford truck went approximately 40 feet off the road into a foot of water near Gull Lake Dam Road Northwest and Victory Road. The driver of the truck, Rodney Meyer, suffered no injuries. The Minnesota State Patrol reports the cause of the crash is under investigation.
ENTERTAINMANT NEWS
--Stephen "tWitch" Boss, best known as the longtime DJ for "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" has died. He was 40 and been the DJ for Ellen for the past 8 seasons before she announced her retirement earlier this year. TMZ reported the death was a suicide in California.
BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENT
--Mitchell and Alyssa LeBlanc of Little Falls, girl on December 13th
DEATH NOTICES
--Johann “Hans” Rohrer, age 80 of Pierz.
WEATHER
WINTER STORM WARNING TODAY UNTIL 6PM.
TODAY= snow likely, heavy at times, 4-7 inches by evening temps will hover around 32 early then drop into the 20s by late in day.
TONIGHT= snow likely before midnight 1-3 more inches, low 24.
FRIDAY= snow showers at times, temps at 25 then dropping into the teens by later afternoon and evening, up to 1 inch of new snow.
SATURDAY= mostly cloudy AM, clearing late, high 18, low -2.
SUNDAY= sunny and cold, high 10, low around -11.
SPORTS
Again with schools closed today, games scheduled for those schools are postponed tonight. Makeups are possible.
HS BHK= Little Falls at Rock Ridge in Eveleth, Friday night, pregame at 6:45pm on Q92 WYRQ and fallsradio.com.
HS BBB= Crosby-Ironton at Pierz Friday 7:15pm on 94ROCKS.
NFL= Vikings host Indianapolis Saturday the first game of a triple header of NFL action live starting at 11:30am on AM960 KLTF.
--Next Wednesday will be the drawing for three $50 Dairy Buckets from the ADA and AM960 KLTF for the winners of the Dairy Recipe Contest on Party Line on KLTF Radio.
--Ho Ho Dough Grand Prize Drawing will be Tuesday on LF Radio.