NEWS
--A St. Cloud man was killed in a two-vehicle crash early Wednesday morning. The Minnesota State Patrol says the crash happened just after 3:30am at the intersection of Highway 10 and 30th Avenue Northeast near Rice. A car driven by 41-year-old Frank Eshun of St. Cloud was going south on 30th Avenue Northeast when it collided with a truck. Eshun died at the scene. The driver of the truck was 45-year-old Carlos Auquilla of Coon Rapids. He was not hurt.
--A St. Cloud man charged with multiple crimes including domestic assault, burglary, and arson has reached a plea agreement on the charges. Thirty-six-year-old James Scholtes, also known in court documents as James Jochum has pleaded guilty to 1st-degree burglary and felony threats of violence in Stearns County. He's expected to plead guilty to felony domestic assault next month in Benton County. Several other charges including kidnapping, arson, and burglary have been dismissed as part of the agreement. The agreement also calls for a prison term of more than five years.
--Part of Sartell Middle School was temporarily evacuated due to a fire. Firefighters responded around 12:45pm on Tuesday. All students and staff are safe. According to District 748 officials, some students and staff evacuated the building and went to Riverview Intermediate School as a precaution. The fire was contained before all students and staff needed to evacuate. Sartell Business Manager Joe Prom told firefighters that a heating unit near the back of the school blew, causing a filter to catch fire. Smoke did get circulated in part of the building and the fire department was able to get the fire out and clear the building of smoke. School officials say the Sartell Fire Department and Fire Marshal cleared the building and it is safe for students. Students and staff were back in class in less than an hour.
--This June 27th will mark the 27th anniversary of 27-year-old Jodi Huisentruit being abducted on her way to work in Mason City, Iowa. The Long Prairie, Minnesota native was running late to her job as the morning news anchor of the local news station, when she was taken from the parking lot of her apartment complex. Her case has been a mystery for almost three decades now, but a dedicated team has been diligently searching for answers and keeping Jodi's case in the spotlight. In a post shared at FindJodi.com, it was shared that Jodi's missing person's case will be the focus of the show 20/20 on ABC Television tomorrow night Friday, January 28th. The case had very little evidence and no eye-witnesses. Jodi was declared legally deceased in 2001, no one has been charged with abducting her. Another Central Minnesota abduction case was Jacob Wetterling's. His case was solved 27 years after it happened, so it isn't out of the question for Jodi's case to be solved as well. It just takes the right person who knows anything to come forward. If you have information about Jodi’s case, you can reach the Mason City Police Department at (641) 421-3636. Or you can share information with the Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation at (515) 725-6010.
--According to an updated press release from the Benton County Sheriff’s Office, authorities were able to make contact with the owner of the burned snowmobile located on Little Rock Lake later found on the side of the road. This incident remains under investigation.
--The legislative update at the Little Falls Area Chamber of Commerce is scheduled for 9-10:30am tomorrow at the Little Falls City Council Chambers. Anyone with questions at 320-632-5155.
--The 32nd Pierz Knights of Columbus Buffalo Raffle is at 8:15pm Saturday night with appreciation feed 4-8pm Saturday at the Pierz Ballroom, tickets for both meal and raffle will be sold that night.
--Tony Housey from Camp Ripley yesterday on KLTF stated that they will be busy in 2022. Navy divers on base and Coast Guard doing ice diving at this time from Florida and Hawaii getting a taste of Minnesota winters. Norwegian Home Guard exchange is planned near the end of March with more details to be released next month. Housey said that they are expecting one of their largest units to return in the next couple of days along with their equipment coming back and reorganizing those items back into place. Out of state training units will come in before spring then after spring happens the DNR, field services, state patrol units will all be returning to the military base. For more information on Camp Ripley and their upcoming events call Tony at 320-616-3122 or check out Camp Ripley or the Minnesota National Guard through their websites and social media pages.
--If you have noticed mail delivery being later or delayed in the past weeks you are not alone. Shortages and delays have become a part of life these days, as workers in many industries are being hit hard by labor shortages, and now, the surge in omicron cases. According to the regional office for the National Association of Letter Carriers, staffing was down 20% as of two weeks ago due to COVID, leading to backups and delivery delays. In a statement from the USPS a spokesperson says: "The postal service is committed to providing the best possible service to our customers and we apologize for any inconvenience that may have been experienced." With the numbers of postal carriers down from previous years that will continue for now to cause some later mail deliveries and delays at the mailbox.
DEATH NOTICES
--Patrick “Pat” J. Kalahar, age 81 of Little Falls.
WEATHER
TODAY= AM clouds, then sunny and windy, temps falling thru day.
TONIGHT= clear and very cold, low -17, wind chills near -30.
FRIDAY= sunny and cold, high 11 above, low around -6.
SATURDAY= partly cloudy skies, high 26, low around 7 above.
SUNDAY= sunny and cooler, high near 20, low around 0 then rising.
SPORTS
VIKINGS= The Minnesota Vikings have come to terms with Cleveland Vice President of Player Personnel Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to bring him aboard as the team's new general manager. The Vikings reported yesterday that it was all a done deal to make him the next General Manager replacing Rick Spielman. Media reports stated the Vikings offered Kwesi Adofo-Mensah 4-year, $12 million deal as the new GM.
PRO BOWL= The AFC/NFC Pro Bowl will be February 6th at 2pm in Las Vegas, so far fours Vikings are reported on the NFC Team, Brian O'Neill, Justin Jefferson, Dalvin Cook and Harrison Smith.
COL BB= Gophers host #16 Ohio State tonight 6:30pm on KLTF.
HS BBB= Milaca at Pierz tonight 7:15pm on 94ROCKS KFML.
TODAY IN HISTORY
IN 1785= first U.S. State University chartered in Athens, Georgia.
IN 1888= National Geographic Society is founded in Washington DC.
IN 1918= first “Tarzan of the Apes” film-silent version debuts.
IN 1926= first public demonstration of television is done in London.
IN 1948= the first tape recorder goes on sale in stores.
IN 1967= Apollo 1 fire kills astronauts Grissom, White and Chaffee.
IN 1976= “Laverne and Shirley” debuts as a Happy Days spinoff.