NEWS
--The Brainerd Fire Department responded to a house fire at 11:22pm Monday on the 500 block of South Eighth Street. Fire Chief Tim Holmes said a passerby called in a report of smoke coming from the home and the resident was evacuated by Brainerd Police Department prior to the fire department's arrival. The electrical fire likely started in the kitchen. Firefighters not only fought the fire for over three hours, but they were also dealing with extreme cold. The resident was taken to the police department due to the extreme cold and was later assisted by family members. The home was extensively damaged by smoke and fire. The cause of the fire is being investigated by the Brainerd Fire Department. No injuries were reported and Deerwood Fire Department provided mutual assistance.
--Four individuals and three organizations will be enshrined by the Fishing Hall of Fame of Minnesota in 2024, the organization said in a press release. Inductees in the Individual Legends category are Scott Bonnema, Tom Zenanko, Matt Straw and Nancy Koep. In addition, Fishing for Life, Ice Team and Wayzata Bait & Tackle will round out this year’s inductee list. To be selected for the Minnesota Fishing Hall of Fame, individuals must be Minnesota residents who have lived in the state for a minimum of 25 years, be at least 50 years of age and have made meritorious contributions to the sport of fishing. Businesses and organizations may also be nominated, provided they are registered in Minnesota and have made similar noteworthy contributions to fishing. Nominations are accepted from the general public, and the list is reduced to the top 10 by current Hall members, after which finalists are voted on for induction. The official enshrinement will take place on Friday, September 27, 2024, at the Rice Creek Hunting, Rec and Event Center in Little Falls.
--Three school districts in central Minnesota say they dismissed students early on Monday after each received a threatening phone call. Fergus Falls Public Schools says McKinley and Adams elementary schools as well as Kennedy Secondary School, which includes both a middle and high school, each got a call at around noon threatening the safety of those in the buildings. Specifically, the district says the caller threatened to shoot through the schools’ windows. The district went into a lockdown and called officers to each district building. Fergus Falls Public Schools said all students and staff are safe but the decision was made to close early and buses picked up kids starting at 1:30pm. All after-school activities were also canceled. Around 20 miles north, Pelican Rapids Public Schools said someone made a similar call to the district, which prompted a response from police and the Otter Tail County Sheriff’s Department. Then, around 120 miles east, someone called the Aitkin High School office at around 1pm and made a threat, which led the district to go into a full lockdown of all grades. That was lifted at around 2:20pm and students were sent home, with all after-school activities canceled. Grand Meadow Public Schools also received a threat on Sunday, which closed schools on Monday. It’s unclear if any of the threats are related.
--An Eden Valley man was hurt after he lost control of his van and crashed just northeast of Cold Spring. The Stearns County Sheriff's Office says the crash happened on County Road 2 at Island Lake Road at around 1:40am Monday. The sheriff's office says the driver, 25-year-old Dylan Hann, was heading south, hit a patch of ice and snow on the shoulder, lost control, and entered the ditch. Hann was taken to St. Cloud Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
--A Waite Park man with a history of exposing himself to children has been sentenced to six days behind bars and ordered to pay a small fine. According to court documents, on October 11th, 2021, two fourteen-year-old girls were at a park off Maine Prairie Road in St. Cloud when they saw a man in a truck staring at kids playing at the park. They walked by and could see the man wasn’t wearing any clothes. The man was later identified as Eduardo Antonio Lopez. When police spoke to Lopez, he denied doing anything inappropriate. According to the criminal complaint, the woman, whose first language is not English, explained to officers she didn’t know the correct word to describe what she saw and said she witnessed the man in the hall, holding his “thing.” She said he had done this the week before in the same building. The daughter told officers she looked out and saw Lopez exposing himself. She told officers she was deeply disturbed by what she saw and was concerned because children lived in the building. Officers made contact with Lopez, who denied exposing himself but said he had used drugs earlier in the day. Police arrested Lopez and said he had a glass pipe in his possession that is commonly used to smoke narcotics. He was scheduled to be sentenced last week but, during a hearing in November, pleaded guilty to two gross misdemeanor counts of 5th-degree criminal sexual conduct with those under 16 present and one gross misdemeanor count of indecent exposure lewdness or procure another to expose in the presence of a minor under 16. Another charge of indecent exposure and drug possession was dismissed in the plea deal. He was sentenced to one year in jail but suspended all his time behind bars except for the six days he has already served. He was also fined $689. Lopez has served his days in jail already.
ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
--Legendary actress Joyce Randolph, Trixie Norton wife of Ed on TV's The Honeymooners died January 13th at age 99. Also legendary actor and singer Bill Hayes died last Friday at age 98. Hayes had the #1 song “The Ballad of Davy Crockett” in 1955 and starred on “Days of Our Lives” as Doug Williams since 1970.
DEATH NOTICES
--Dave J. Koroll, age 77 of Little Falls.
WEATHER
TODAY= mostly cloudy, high 5 above, not as windy.
TONIGHT= cloudy skies, light flurries at times, low near -3.
THURSDAY= becoming sunny and windy, high 3, low near -11.
FRIDAY= sunny and cold, windy, high near 0, low near -15.
SPORTS
TWINS= Join Inside Twins “Hot Stove” program tonight on the latest for the Twins in the off season tonight at 6pm on Q92 WYRQ.
TODAY IN HISTORY
IN 1861= Thomas Crapper patents the flush toilet.
IN 1928= Popeye the Sailor Man makes cartoon debut.
IN 1954= Jacques Cousteau has 1st network TV special “Omnibus”.
IN 1995= The Los Angeles Rams announced they were moving the team to St. Louis. They moved back to L.A. in 2016.