Archive for 2019

The Dent County Commissioners met for regular meeting Thursday morning in the Dent County Courthouse. Dent County Treasurer Denita Williams was in to report the CART Tax receipts for August of $60,037.34, which is $493.65 below August of 2018. Year-to-date Cart Receipts are down $5,977.49 or about 1.3%. In the road report District One Commissioner Dennis Purcell said that with 3 to 4 inches of rainfall Wednesday and Thursday his crews were out checking for washouts, downed trees and limbs, plus cleaning out culverts. He said a tree had to be cleared off of Dent County Road 4150 and brush was being cut on county road 5170. Purcell said that on Monday he attended a Tourism Committee meeting where four proposals were submitted and approved, while three reimbursement requests were approved. He reported that on Tuesday he attended the South Central Community Action Agency meeting in Winona and that funds are still available for all programs. Purcell reported that just last week funds were approved for jobs for 14 to 24 year old youths including those with disabilities and those in school. He noted there are dollars available for low income energy assistance and weatherization. Income guidelines do apply and to get more information call Sarah at 573-729-3500. District Two Commissioner Gary Larson reported that his crews were out checking roads for washouts and that truck #65 was being worked on. He also reported that quarry rock was going to be stockpiled at the Road and Bridge Department for use in emergencies on weekends. Presiding Commissioner Darrell Skiles reported that on Wednesday he attending a SEMA meeting in Jefferson City about community planning for economic recovery from disasters. Dent County Clerk Angie Curley said that the Commissioners were approving bills for payment. Nick Smith and Dwight Ramsburg were in to provide a jail project update. The next meeting of the Commission will be Monday morning in the Courthouse and the meeting is open to the public.

The Dent County follow-up community conversation on the opioid epidemic will be held on Tuesday starting at 5:30 at the Salem Community Center @ the Armory located at 1200 West Rolla Road in Salem. Join in the discussion along with the panel of experts as they listen and educate on how the opioid epidemic impacts our community and what local leaders are doing in response to the crisis. The town hall meeting, which is hosted by Your Community Cares Rural Health Coalition, will include professionals from local law enforcement, the medical community and recovery advocates. The event is free but attendees are asked to please RSVP for complimentary appetizers and drinks. RSVP to Felisha Richards at 573-426-6711 or email Felisha at frichards@your-chc.org.

The Salem Police Department has released a number of reports. On Friday afternoon, August 9th, at approximately 12:30 an officer located a 21-year-old male of Salem in the 700 block of South Washington who had two active arrest warrants from Rolla. The suspect was taken into custody on the warrants and incarcerated pending extradition. That evening at approximately 6:16, a vehicle was stopped for a traffic violation. The investigation of the stop led to the arrest of a 27-year-old male of Lenox for driving while having his license suspended. The suspect was issued a summons to appear in court and released. Just minutes later at about 6:44, an officer located a 37-year-old male of Salem in the 800 block of Highway 32 West who had an active arrest warrant from the City of Salem. The suspect was taken into custody on the warrant and incarcerated pending a court appearance. On Saturday morning, August 10th near 1:46, an officer was dispatched to the area of Westwood Drive and Roosevelt in reference to peace disturbance. That investigation revealed two vehicles were parked alongside each other on Roosevelt. The driver and a passenger of a red 1999 Ford Explorer were having a dispute with the driver and sole occupant of a silver 2007 Chevrolet Impala. During the dispute, the 18-year-old male passenger of Salem in the Explorer fired a shot from a handgun into the Impala occupied by a 20-year-old female of Salem who was not struck by the bullet. Further investigation led to the arrest of the suspect for 1st degree assault and unlawful use of a weapon. The suspect was incarcerated pending the application for a warrant. Please contact the Salem Police Department at 573-729-4242 if you have any information regarding an investigation.

Weather permitting, crews with the Missouri Department of Transportation will make repairs to low water crossings along Dent County Route TT from Monday, August 26th through Thursday August 29th. One lane of traffic will be open as a result of the work. However, the installation of culvert pipes will force the complete closure of Route TT on Monday, August 26th and Tuesday, August 27th from 6:30 in the morning until 6:30 at night each day. Message boards will advise motorists of the closures and detour routes. MoDOT appreciates the patience of travelers during the work. For more information about this project or other transportation-related matters, please call 1-888-ASK-MoDOT (275-6636) or visit www.modot.org/central.

The Salem Memorial District Hospital held a tax rate hearing before their regular board meeting Tuesday evening in the Hospital Library. The total assessed valuation for the year 2020 comes to $252,648,448 from the four counties that make up the hospital district. That is a two-million dollar increase from 2019. The board elected to keep the rate at 19.25 cents per $100 assessed valuation and that will produce approximately $486.348.00 for capital improvements. In the regular meeting, the board heard a presentation from Zach Moser, the Pharmacy Director who gave an overview of the Pharmacy Department in the past, currently and in the future. They only have three people in the department but play an integral role in the hospital operations. Martha Tibbs, the new Lab Director, gave a report on her department that had nine fulltime and two part time people. She wanted to remind everyone that the Health Fair would be held at the Salem Community Center@The Armory on September 18th and 19th. Monica Stogsdill gave the summary of operations for the month of July which was a busy one for the hospital. They had 133 inpatient admissions with 468 inpatient census days which comes to an Acute Care Occupancy percentage of 60.4. Stogsdill believes that is a record high for the hospital. The hospital showed a gain from operations of $174,633 and revenues over expenses after taxes of $178,805. Cash increased for the month by $78,846 with the days in net account receivables dropped to 55 from 65 days last month. During the month, there were 826 emergency room visits to go with 217 ambulance runs with 164 patients being transported. In July, there were 30 surgery cases, 1,899 outpatient registrations, 389 home health visits, 9,119 lab tests, 1,417 radiological procedures including 826 rehab treatments. Chief of Nursing Debbie Hines gave the Acute Care Staffing versus patient acuity for the month. Hospital Administrator Kasey Lucas said the next Hospital Auxiliary meeting will be held Tuesday, September 3rd at the Salem Community Center@The Armory. He said the “Wings and Strings” Fundraiser held August 3rd lost about $6,500 but much of that loss was in advertising money that will be reimbursed the Tourism Tax Committee. They have tentatively set next year’s event for September 12th. The hospital will have an ambulance at the Chamber of Commerce Rodeo Labor Day weekend and will also have an ambulance at the home football games starting in September. Lucas also said they will soon offer a First Responder Training for the Salem Police Department, Dent County Sheriff’s Department and Dent County Fire Department. The SMDH Renovation of the Long-Term Care unit may begin as soon as September 9th as work continues with the architects on the overall plan. The Finance Committee appointments were made and Ray Bruno will be the new chairman with Mike Swyers and Sue Terry on the committee. The board will hold their annual bylaw review next month and they also approved to sell the original tractor which is taking up room in the garage. The board then went into closed session.

An accident happened Tuesday afternoon at 5:05 in Phelps County on Highway 68 about 13 miles south St. James that took the life of a woman from Winona. According to the highway patrol report, 43-year old Melissa Allison of Rolla was driving a Ford F-150 southbound when she began hydroplaning and crossed the center line and struck head-on a 1999 Buick Regal driven northbound by Ellen Walker of Winona. The Ford then overturned and struck a 2003 Chevy Impala driven northbound by 34-year old Corey Wilson of Owensville. Walker was pronounced dead at the scene and her body was taken to the Rolla Crematorium by Deputy Coroner Gavin McDonald. Allison suffered serious injuries and was transported by Mercy Air to the University Hospital in Columbia. Wilson also suffered serious injuries and was transported by the St. James Ambulance to the Missouri Baptist Hospital in Sullivan. Walker and Wilson were wearing seat restraints at the time of the accident but it was unknown if Allison was. The Ford and Chevy Impala were removed from the scene by Dishman’s Towing while the Buick was removed from the scene by Spurgeon’s Towing. The Missouri State Highway Patrol was assisted by the St. James Fire Department, St. James Ambulance and MoDOT.

The 2019-2020 Missouri Official Highway Map is now available. The free map features all miles of state-maintained routes and also shows locations for public-use airports, hospitals, colleges and universities, national forests, state parks and conservation areas. Improvements include larger fonts and better color contrasts for users who may be visually impaired or have trouble with color recognition. You can order a map by going online at modot.org or by calling 1-888-ASK-MODOT.