News – Tuesday, September 22nd, 2026

An accident occurred Sunday afternoon at approximately 3:15 in Texas County on Highway AA 4 miles southeast of Success. According to the Highway Patrol report an eastbound 2024 Kawasaki Motorcycle, operated by a 29-year-old Houston, Missouri man, ran off a curve and struck a fence post. The man suffered serious injuries and was transported by Air Evac to Mercy Hospital in St. Louis. The report stated that the man was wearing a safety device. The motorcycle sustained extensive damage and was removed from the scene by Arrington’s Automotive of Plato at trooper’s request.

An accident occurred Sunday night at approximately 11:58 in Lawrence County on I44 one quarter of a mile east of Halltown. According to the Highway Patrol report an eastbound 2014 Chevrolet Silverado, driven by an 18-year-old man from Licking, skidded off of and back onto the roadway and was struck by an eastbound 2024 Freightliner Cascadia driven by a 36-year-old man from Clovis, California. The Chevrolet driver suffered moderate injuries and was transported by EMS to Mercy Hospital in Springfield. The report stated that the 18-year-old was not wearing a safety restraint. The Chevrolet was totaled and removed from the scene by Henry’s Towing. The Freightliner sustained moderate damage and was also removed by Henry’s Towing. The report stated that the driver of the Freightliner was wearing a safety restraint.

The City of Salem Board of Aldermen will hold its regular board meeting tonight at 6:00, located in the Old City Hall Auditorium at 202 North Washington Street. After approval of the agenda and consent agenda, the board will hear public comments. The board will then consider approval of several bids, including for utility poles, an electric service truck, electric department garage doors and openers, and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software. After, the board will consider approval of an end user licence agreement between the city and OpenGov, Inc. for its ERP software. Under new and miscellaneous business, the board will consider approval of several conditional use requests made during the Sept. 9th public hearing of the Planning and Zoning Commission, including the addresses of 809 W. Glendale; 403A & 403B S. Henderson; 400B S. MacArthur; 402A & 402B S. MacArthur; 700 S. Askins; and 603 S. Carty. The board will also consider the subdivision of Lot 4 of the Westwood North Subdivision, alongside the vacating of a 40’ wide strip of an undeveloped street, as requested by the Salem Housing Authority. This is in anticipation of a proposed multifamily 40-unit housing project development at 301 E. Tenth St. Additionally, the board will be considering the rezoning of 301 E. Tenth St. from single family residential (R1) to multifamily residential (R3) and the approval of the Spring Creek Ridge subdivision plat, as presented. The board will also be considering approval of an infrastructure grant agreement, as well as a state block grant agreement, between the city and Missouri Highway and Transportation Commission for improvements at Salem Memorial Airport. Reports of city officials will then be presented. After, the board will be taking a vote to enter closed session pertaining to legal actions before adjournment. This meeting is open to the public until closed. To watch this meeting live streamed, visit youtube.com/@CityofSalemMissouri.

The Dent County Commission met for its regular meeting Monday morning at the courthouse. Under public comments, resident Cindy Jones noted that Gov. Mike Kehoe’s recent executive order established restrictions on Flock cameras. For road reports, District One Commissioner Keith Green shared that since it has rained,   crew members are able to begin grading the following county roads: 6500, 6505, 5630, and 5150. Crew members will also be hauling rock to County Road 6280 and cutting brush on County Road 6350. District Two Commissioner Jimmy Williams reported that crew members will be hauling rock to County Road 2590, changing grader blades, and grading on County Roads 4280, 2590, 2600, and 2593. Williams noted  that phone calls have been received from residents of Lenox and Sligo requesting road maintenance. He encouraged patience as crew members will be working their way through the county. Presiding Commissioner Gary Larson reported that he will be attending a meeting with the Meramec Regional Community Foundation (MRCF) on Tuesday. Larson also reported that the courthouse, judicial building, and annex building is now seeking applicants for a part-time custodian. In County Clerk Angie Curley’s reports, she stated that payroll and bills are to be approved and noted that absentee ballots will begin to be mailed out Tuesday to anyone who has requested one. The next meeting of the Dent County Commission will be 9:00 in the morning on Thursday at the courthouse and will be open to the public.

The planned citywide power outage will be Wednesday from 1:00 to 3:00 in the early hours of the morning. The power will be turned off so crews can safely replace an insulator on the transmission system serving Salem. Residents and businesses are encouraged to charge phones and other important devices before going to bed the night before. Customers should also keep flashlights nearby and turn off or unplug sensitive electronic equipment. Anyone who depends on electrically powered medical equipment should make sure a safe backup power source is available. Security systems, medical alerts, electronic clocks, timers and other devices may also be affected. If your power remains off after the City of Salem announces that service has been restored, call or text 833-703-4811.