NEWS --Join Little Falls Community Schools Superintendent Stephen Jones on KLTF Community Events today at 8:45am for an update on school projects, and recent developments after May's referendum vote.
--The Little Falls Fire Department responded to a dryer fire in Little Falls Sunday night. At 8:09pm 25 local firefighters responded to the Meadow Ridge Apartments at 775 Buck Lane. The laundry area sustained a bit of smoke damage from the fire, likely caused by the dryer unit. There were no injuries. Another local note is the Little Falls celebration of National Night Out is at the Little Falls Fire Hall on Tuesday, August 9th. Most National Night Out celebrations across the country are one week earlier on Tuesday, August 2nd.
--The Morrison County Sheriff's Office arrested a 31-year-old man on July 9th for a domestic assault from an incident in Cushing. Sheriffs officials also arrested a 40-year-old man after a two-vehicle crash in the overnight hours of July 9th in Royalton. In this incident the man was arrested after deputies found the vehicle to be stolen. A breath test found the man to be at .282 blood alcohol content, well over the legal limit of .08 intoxication. The drunken man reportedly got into the wrong vehicle by mistake. Deputies also arrested a 28-year-old on First Avenue Northeast in Little Falls on July 7th after a vehicle stop where the driver was found to have a suspended license. A search of the vehicle found 3.19 grams of methamphetamine and a meth pipe. All the cases have been turned over to the county attorney's office.
--An Albany man was hurt in an ATV crash after losing control of the ATV. The incident happened Saturday shortly before 4:00pm at 23250 320th Street Albany Township. 46-year-old Donald Schleppenbach of Albany rolled his ATV and was unconscious. Schleppenbach was treated on scene by Albany Rescue and taken to St. Cloud Hospital Emergency room. The crash is being investigated by the Stearns County Sheriff’s Office.
--A sauna on fire at a rural Staples home drew response from the Todd County Sheriff's Office and the Staples Fire Department. Just after 8:00pm Wednesday, the sheriff's office received a 911 call from a residence on the 46000 block of Red Oak Road. Firefighters and sheriff's deputies responded to the home, and the fire was contained to the sauna and the building it was in. The building and sauna sustained damage, but there were no injuries as a result of the fire.
--A fire destroyed a building in Paynesville on Sunday morning. Stearns County reported the building and two-sem trailers were a total loss from the fire reported at 8:17am at Visseman Trucking in Paynesville. There were no injuries. The cause of the fire is under investigation and the state fire marshal has been called in to aid.
--A St. Cloud man was able to walk away from a one vehicle rollover Monday. Around 12:30pm 31-year old Shaun Field lost control of his vehicle on a curve of Stearns County Road 184. The car ended up lying on it's roof in a cornfield. Field did not require hospitalization.
--Former Minnesota Governor Wendell Anderson died Sunday at the age of 83. He had struggled with Alzheimer’s for some time before dying of pneumonia. In just six years in office, Anderson upended Minnesota government, shifting the tax burden from property levies to the more progressive income tax, while equalizing school funding between rich and poor districts — a policy and political achievement so stunning that historians have dubbed it the “Minnesota Miracle.” He also appeared in 1973 on the cover of Time Magazine.
--33-year old Kenneth Myron Hart Jr. of Little Falls, was convicted July 7th of felony third degree assault. The conviction stems from a December 1st incident in which law enforcement was dispatched to a domestic situation at a residence in Royalton. As part of a plea bargain, two felony second degree assault charges and a felony domestic assault charge were dropped. Hart was sentenced to two years in prison and fined over $3,000.
--Earlier this month, St. Cloud was named the 12th healthiest city in the country by 24/7 Wall Street. The list detailed 24 other cities in the country, with five being in Minnesota. Rochester was named the healthiest city in the country. To comprise the list, 24/7 Wall Street looked at the amount of premature deaths, obesity, adults without health insurance and median household income. The article mentioned St. Cloud is at a slight disadvantage with only 68 percent of residents having access to places for recreation. According to the article even though the city is at a disadvantage, residents are more likely to participate in physical activity than most Americans.
--Two drivers suffered non life threatening injuries from a rear end collision on Highway 371 in Crow Wing County. Around 1:40pm Monday a vehicle driven by 67-year old Roger Heyer of Nisswa was heading north on 371 near mile post 38 as he was rear ended by a car driven by 46-year old Carl Borleis of Breezy Point.
--The Minnesota Supreme Court publicly reprimanded a St. Cloud-area criminal defense attorney Wednesday after he was convicted in Stearns County of domestic assault and interfering with a 911 call. Robert Stoneburner had asked for a private admonition, but the state's highest court disagreed. The court first found that a referee who heard testimony during a disciplinary hearing was erroneous to conclude that Stoneburner didn't violate the rules of professional conduct for lawyers. The referee recommended that the disciplinary petition filed against Stoneburner be "dismissed in its entirety."
NATIONAL NEWS --The Republican National Convention kicked off yesterday in Cleveland with Donald Trumps' wife Melania as the key speaker. The convention continues tonight with live coverage tonight and again Wednesday and Thursday from 8-11pm on AM960 KLTF.
BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENT --Kendra Englehart of Pierz, mother of a baby boy on July 15th
DEATH NOTICE --Angela Marie Maschler, age 44 of Williston, North Dakota
WEATHER EXCESSIVE HEAT WATCH IN EFFECT WED THRU FRI. TODAY= increasing clouds, afternoon thunderstorms, high 85. TONIGHT= storms likely, some heavy early, low 70. WEDNESDAY= clearing, sunny and hot, high 92, heat index 100. THURSDAY= sunny and very hot, high 96, heat index near 106.
SPORTS TWINS= Detroit holds off Twins in a pitchers duel 1-0 Monday. The Twins at Detroit game 2 tonight 5:30pm on Q92 WYRQ TWINS= Twins announced Monday that General Manager Terry Ryan has been fired. Rob Antony will replace him as interim GM.