NEWS
--The Morrison County Humane Society and Friends of Linden Hill are teaming up for a Dog Walk Yappy Hour fundraiser on September 4th. The event will be from 5-8pm at Linden Hill. Grab a hotdog off the grill and listen to live music from Boat House. There will be a cash bar and bring your dog (best friend) on a leash to the event. Dogs will receive a treat during the dinner. Tickets are $20 and all proceeds go to help the spaying and neutering costs of the animals at the Humane Society and upkeep costs at Linden Hill. For more information call Mike at the Humane Society at 632-0703.
--Several area county fairs have selected dates already for next year. The Morrison County Fair in 2020 will be held August 13-15th at the fairgrounds east of Little Falls. The Crow Wing and Benton County fairs will both be a week earlier from August 4th-9th 2020.
--A 16-year-old Waite Park boy has pleaded guilty to two charges in connection with an accidental shooting last month. Jakob Allen Brink was charged with one felony count of reckless discharge of a firearm within a municipality and one felony count of possession of a pistol while under 18 years old. Brink pleaded guilty to both charges. Because Brink was 16 years old at the time of the offense and was charged with a felony, the charges against him are public. Law enforcement responded around 1:00pm on July 22nd to a reported shooting in the 200 block of 13th Avenue North in Waite Park. According to court records, Brink entered a bedroom, took a handgun from a dresser and began playing with it. Brink was loading and unloading the magazine clip for the gun with bullets and racking the slide of the gun," when he "pointed the gun at the victim and discharged the firearm striking the victim in the chin and neck area with a .38 caliber bullet." A witness who was in the room at the time called 911 and provided first aid to the victim. Brink ran out of the residence and disposed of the gun. Officers later located the gun. The victim was taken to St. Cloud Hospital in critical condition with a bullet lodged in a vertebra in his upper neck. The victim required surgery. The victim is slowly recovering. Brink admitted to law enforcement he had accidentally shot the victim and that the gun belonged to him.
--Stearns County deputies responded to an unoccupied vehicle parked in a road approach in the area of 395th Street and County Road 186, approximately two miles southeast of Sauk Centre just before 9:00pm Friday night. The blue 2008 Chevrolet Malibu had two bullet holes, one in the rear window and one in the rear bumper. No injuries have been reported. The case remains under investigation and the Sheriff’s Office is seeking information from anyone who noticed anything suspicious in the area Friday evening. Please contact our Office at 320-251-4240 if you have information.
--On Monday crews closed the two-way segment of Highway 10 between Wadena County Road 4 and Harry Rich Drive. Detour signs will be put up along Harry Rich Drive and County Road 4/Sunny Brook Road. The two-month detour is needed to reconstruct the road and replace underground drainage structures near Union Creek. All lanes will reopen in mid-October. There also may be temporary shoulder or sidewalk closures, with crews working in various areas on Highway 10 for the full duration of this project. The mainline work and detours on Highway 10 through Wadena between Third Street West and County Road 4 will be reconstructed in 2020.
--Listen for the Pierz Oktoberfest Clues daily on Little Falls Radio.
– A couple from Rice was injured Monday around 1:30pm on Highway 10 at Hawthorn Street in Royalton. 77-year old Sandra Alferness was exiting the Dairy Queen onto Highway 10 and was struck by a pickup driven by 77-year-old Larry Dewald of Wadena. Alferness and her passenger 76-year old Merwin Alferness were taken to St. Cloud Hospital and treated for non-life threatening injuries. The other driver, Dewald was not injured.
--A Long Prairie man was injured when he fell asleep while driving in Todd County on Monday. Around 7:50am Donald Rousu of Long Prairie was driving southbound on Highway 27 when he fell asleep. Rousu crossed the northbound lane, entered the ditch striking a driveway approach at a residence, vaulted into some trees coming to rest on the vehicles roof. Rousu was extricated from the vehicle and airlifted to St. Cloud Hospital with non life threatening injuries.
--The County State Aid Highway 51 (Quest Road) detour continues today with Morrison County Public Works and then on Wednesday, crews will be conducting a culvert replacement on County State Aid Highway 51 (Quest Road) which will be closed between CSAH 8 (370th Avenue) and County Road 272 (360th Avenue) traffic will be detoured while the project is being conducted. West bound traffic will be directed south on CSAH 8 (370th Avenue) and then west on County Road 270 (233rd Street) then north on County Road 272 (360th Avenue) back to CSAH 51 (Quest Road). East bound traffic will be directed south on County Road 272 (360th Avenue) then east on County Road 270 (233rd Street) then north on CSAH 8 (370th Avenue) back to CSAH 51 (Quest Road). The project is estimated to take one day. Please follow the detour and follow all traffic control devices through the construction area.
--The 66th Princess Kay of the Milky Way will be crowned Wednesday night at the band shell inside the Minnesota State Fairgrounds. Good luck to Donna Honer of St. Cloud and Rachel Paskewitz of Browerville vying for this year's title. Rachel's sister Rebekka Paskewitz is the current Princess Kay of the Milky Way crowned last year.
--Morrison County Commissioners meet today at 9am at the Morrison County Government Center Boardroom.
--Holy Trinity Catholic Schools will host a preschool night tonight from 6-7pm where pre schoolers can check out the school and even ride the school bus to get ready for the school year. There will be an open house for all parents and students from 5-7pm on August 27th at Holy Trinity in Pierz. Mary of Lourdes Schools will host open house events on Wednesday August 28th at the elementary and middle schools. Pre K to 4th Grade at elementary is 7-8pm, 5-6th graders at middle school is at 6-7pm and 7-8th graders at middle school is 7-8pm on the 28th.
DEATH NOTICES
--Quentin Alvin Kottsick, age 88 of Onamia.
--James “Jake” Litke, age 73 of Pierz.
WEATHER
TODAY= strong storms before noon, clearing late day, high 79.
TONIGHT= clear skies and cooler, low near 50.
WEDNESDAY= sunny and pleasant, high 73, low around 48.
THURSDAY= sunny skies, high 72, low around 51.
SPORTS
TWINS= White Sox hold off Twins 6-4 last night. The Twins and White Sox play game 2 tonight 6:30pm on Q92 WYRQ.