Archive for 2022

The Cosmopolitan Club’s Variety Show and Miss Salem Pageant was held Saturday evening at the Salem Civic Theatre. Denise Stoner, sponsored by The Bank of Salem, was voted Miss Personality by the other contestants. The second runner up in the pageant was Kaitlynn Stephan sponsored by Carrell’s Garden, and the first runner up was Riley Darby sponsored by Curt’s Mobile Homes. The winner of the 2022 Miss Salem Pageant was Sierra Rusco sponsored by Moser Pharmacy. Congratulations to all of the contestants. If you missed the variety show and pageant you can watch the stream on YouTube. Just go to the KSMO radio website and click on local event videos.

The Dent County Commission met Thursday morning at the courthouse for their regular meeting. District 1 Commissioner Wes Mobray said the fuel lift pump part that was ordered for the downed grader was lost and another has to be ordered. Mobray said he attended the Extension Council meeting held on Monday, February 28th. Mobray reported he received a petition to close 1.2 miles of Dent County Road 5490 between the farms owned by Donny Hodges. Signatures have been gathered from the neighbors in support of the closing. The commission set the road closure hearing date for March 24th at 10:00 in the commission offices. Mobray will post the notice in three locations that serve the area for opposition or comments. The road is basically a creek bed road. District 2 Commissioner Gary Larson stated crews installed culverts and materials on Dent County Roads 2330 and 3253. Presiding Commissioner Darrell Skiles said he attended the FFA Supporters Association Breakfast held Thursday morning and wanted to congratulate the Salem FFA Chapter on the fine work they do. Skiles said the county received a transportation needs survey from the MRPC that will need to be completed and returned as part of the Regional Transportation Plan update. At 10:00, the commission held a road closure hearing on two county roads in District 2. The first road was Dent County Road 2053 in the Watkins Township that is surrounded by property owned by Larry Daniels. The petition was to close the entire 1/10th of a mile road. The second road was Dent County Road 3283 in the Spring Creek Township that is completely surrounded by the property of Eddie Parsons. The petition was to close the entire quarter of mile road. There was no opposition to either road being closed and the commission approved the closing of those roads with a unanimous vote. Dent County Clerk Angie Curley said the deadline to register to vote in the April Municipal Election will be March 9th, and absentee voting for that election continues in her office at the Dent County Courthouse. The last day to mailout a ballot for the Municipal Election will be March 23rd. The next meeting of the commission is this morning at 9:00 at the courthouse and the meeting is open to the public.

Today is the last day for the public to comment on the National Park Service’s proposed amendments to the special regulations for motorized vessels within Ozark National Scenic Riverways. These proposed changes were included in the park’s General Management Plan as part of the Preferred Alternative. The General Management Plan was finalized in 2015 after a long public planning process. The NPS proposes to create seasonal non-motorized zones along the upper stretches of the Current and Jacks Fork rivers where low water levels during the peak season typically restrict access for motorboats. These zones would provide areas without conflict between motorized and non-motorized users during peak visitor season, when it can be challenging for non-motorized vessels and motorboats to navigate narrow river channels at the same time. Peak visitor season usually begins the day after the last day of trapping season and end the day before gigging season, which would currently be April 1st through September 14th. The NPS is also looking for comments to legalize the use of 60/40 horsepower (HP) motors with jet propulsion. These motors are the most popular with motorboat users today. Under existing regulations for motorized vessels within Ozark National Scenic Riverways, the 60/40 HP motors are not legal because they exceed 40 HP at the powerhead. They are also looking for public comments on the and establish a 150 HP limit for jet propulsion and 105 HP limit for motors with a propellor on the Current River between Big Spring and the southern boundary of the park. These limits were proposed to address visitor concerns about safety, degradation of experience and increasing boat sizes resulting from no limits on boat motor size. Members of the public may submit comments on the proposed rule, identified with the Regulation Identifier Number (RIN) 1024-AE62, through March 7th, by going online to www.regulations.gov. In the Search box, enter 1024-AE62. Follow the instructions for submitting comments. You can also submit written hard copies by U.S. Mail or hand deliver to: Superintendent, Ozark National Scenic Riverways, 404 Watercress Drive, P.O. Box 490, Van Buren, MO. 63965. Only comments submitted online through the Regulations.gov site or by hardcopy will be accepted. For more information, call 573-323-4236.

An accident happened in Jefferson County Thursday evening at 7:36 on Highway 21 just south of Perkins Road. According to the highway patrol report, a 2017 Dodge Ram 1500 driven by 25-year-old Brendan Mitchell of Steelville, was traveling northbound and traveled off the right side of the roadway. The front side of the Dodge struck a series of small trees while the left side of the Ram struck a utility pole. Mitchell suffered moderate injuries and was transported by the Valle Ambulance to the Mercy Hospital in Jefferson County. Mitchell was wearing a seat restraint at the time of the accident. The Dodge Ram sustained extensive damage and was towed from the scene by Haberberger Towing.

Today is FFA Day on KSMO Radio and being video streamed live on ksmoradio.com, KSMO Stream Facebook page and on KSMO’s YouTube page, where current FFA students talk about their future plans in FFA, experiences, activities, teams they are on or want to be on, officer goals and more. Former FFA Advisor Bob Parsons will be the moderator for the broadcast that will begin around 8:10 or so on KSMO Media.

After two postponements due to lack of a quorum and hazardous road conditions, the Dent County Health Center Board of Trustees met for their regular monthly meeting on February 25th. Administrator Zach Moser updated the Board on the current COVID status in Dent County. In January, there were 621 new cases of COVID-19 investigated. According to MoDHSS, as of February 23rd, 36.3% of Dent County residents have received their first dose of vaccine and 32.4% have completed the series. Dent County’s 7-day Positivity Rate was 17% as of February 23rd. He said the Health Center gave 58 monoclonal antibody injections in January. Moser noted that adult and Pediatric C19 vaccines are available at the Health Center and adult vaccine is available at the local pharmacies. Moser stated that 94 appointments for blood draws in the lab were held in January and that the Health Center can conduct most blood tests at a reduced cost for those without insurance. Anyone can have their labs done at the Health Center. The number of COVID tests has continued to increase with 508 being done during January. The cost of the rapid antigen test is $10, $35 for a Covid/Flu combo test, and $50 for a molecular C19 Test. PCR tests can be sent to the state lab and Labcorp under certain circumstances and are now available at the Health Center. Most people can qualify for free testing at the health center and no doctor’s orders are required. Zach reported that 278 COVID-19 vaccine doses were administered during the month and that the Health Center continues to offer the $50 gift card to Country Mart through a program funded by the state for anyone getting their first or second dose of COVID-19 vaccine. There was a total of 962 appointments for the month of January. Moser informed the Board of the receipt of the ID Now testing equipment that will test for COVID, Influenza, Strep, and RSV and is a very accurate molecular NAAT test. He reported the agreement with CureMD to process billing of services requires the Health Center to accept electronic funds transfers for payments from insurance companies. The Board approved the process and had previously approved electronic funds transfer (EFT) instead of paper checks. Moser updated the Board on the construction progress, which should be finished in March or early April. Zach presented bids for the replacement of glass and seals on the front of the building from Miller Glass and St. Robert Glass. The low bid of $7,168 from St. Robert Glass was approved by the Board. The Board approved cabinetry for the laboratory and the pharmacy/immunization room and the laboratory for a total of $7,612.97. Health Center financials for the month of January were approved and Moser presented the 2022 budget that showed a decrease in cash for 2022 of $71,349.69 due to the renovations of the building, $28,000 spent on the new roof, and other capital expenditures. In contract updates, Moser said that the Enhancing Laboratory Capacity (ELC) CARES expansion contract would cover the $22,500 cost of a Biofire Filmarray instrument, which is a true PCR device that tests for COVID-19, and a variety of other respiratory illnesses. The Board approved the expenditure. He noted that the Maternal-Child Health (MCH) contract was renewed, and that child safety is the focus of this contract. Tonya Akers is a new employee of the Health Center, and she has several skills which compliment this program, including car seat installation certification and CPR instructor certification. WIC appointments continue to be steady and Sho-Me Healthy Women, which provides free breast and cervical screenings for women who qualify, can be scheduled by calling the Health Center at (573) 729-3106. Moser reported that the Health Center was awarded a $17,000 grant to improve the rates of cervical and breast cancer screenings in Dent County, and that the Health Center was one of 9 health departments awarded a new deliverables-based grant for $150,000 from National Association of City and County Health Officials to improve COVID-19 vaccination rates. Before adjournment the Board set the next regular meeting date for Tuesday, March 15th.

State Auditor Nicole Galloway announced that her office has begun a regularly scheduled audit of Texas County, located in south-central Missouri. The most recent audit of Texas County was completed in November 2017 and gave the county an overall performance rating of “poor,” the lowest possible. Auditor Galloway said her office will conduct an independent review of government operations in Texas County to ensure that taxpayer resources are used effectively and appropriately. Individuals who would like to provide information for consideration in this or any audit may contact the State Auditor’s Whistleblower Hotline at moaudit@auditor.mo.gov or by calling 800-347-8597. Concerns may also be submitted anonymously online at auditor.mo.gov/hotline.

A special waste collection for residential and farm electronics, appliances, metals and tires will be held from 9:00 to noon tomorrow at Enhancements Inc, 200 Frizzell Street in Potosi. The collection is for residential items only and is open to residents from Crawford, Dent, Gasconade, Maries, Phelps, Pulaski and Washington counties. No materials from businesses will be accepted! To assure safety, those bringing items to the collection are asked to stay inside their vehicles, and assistants will unload items. For more information on items accepted or the fee structure, please contact Jill Hollowell at MRPC at 573-265-2993 Ext. 109 or at jhollowell@meramecregion.org.