Posts by Stan Podorski

The Dent County Sheriff’s office released some reports for December. On Sunday December 15th deputies responded to the 18000 block of Highway C for a reported burglary at the Lenox Fire Department. The reporting party, a 60-year-old Salem man, advised entry was forced into the building and multiple items were stolen. The case remains active. Then on Wednesday December 18th deputies took a report for a theft that occurred in the 100 block of County Road 6245. The victim, a 40-year-old Salem woman, advised multiple kayaks were stolen from her property.  The next week on Monday December 23rd deputies responded to the 8000 block of N. Highway 19 for a reported disturbance. During the course of the investigation, it was determined that a 52-year-old Salem woman was injured during a physical confrontation with a 33-year-old Salem woman.  On Christmas eve December 24th deputies responded to the 2000 block of County Road 6210 for a reported domestic assault. The victim, a 38-year-old Jadwin woman, advised she was physically assaulted by her estranged paramour, a 41-year-old Jadwin man. The investigation is ongoing. if you have any information on an ongoing investigation please call the Sheriff’s office at 573-729-3241. 

The Salem Board of Aldermen held a special meeting of the Board Thursday evening at 5:30. After approving the agenda, the Board listened to the first and second reading of Bill Number 3636, an ordinance that would approve the Change Order #2 for the City Sidewalk TAP Grant project. This Change Order will be an increase to the City’s expenditures, with no match from MoDOT, in the amount of $10,807.00. This will be the cost to tear out and replace the heated sidewalk areas from Main to Washington Street on the south side of the road. The replacement portion from the original plans was for the apron only, but this change order also moves the snow-melt systems into the ADA-compliant sidewalk as well. The original total for the project from prior years funds was $73,409.84. With the two new change orders adding $1,943 from Change Order #1, and $10,807.00 from Change Order #2, the total cost from prior year’s funds would be $86,159.84. After approving Bill  Number 3636, the meeting adjourned.

Many people used their credit devices over the holidays for shopping and other everyday uses, but that opens the door for scammers to be able target innocent consumers like you. In a world of Artificial Intelligence, we can no longer immediately believe something even if we see or hear it. If something out of the ordinary comes up, don’t be afraid to say you are going to verify this with your company. Don’t be bullied! Just stop, hang up and call the company. Another rule of thumb is that anyone is asking for your payment card is up to no good. As a rule, never give your card to anyone, even if the card has been cut up, because it can still be used if the chip is intact. Trending scams show that scammers are now capable of taking personal devices and authorizing payments from people’s phones. Make sure your apps have multi-factor authentication like biometrics and one-time-passcodes required to access and transact. Investing can be exciting, but don’t let yourself get caught up in promises of fast returns. Counterfeit investment apps and digital currencies that require you to pay unexpected fees are an active threat. If someone emails or texts you a link to download an app, don’t click on it because it may take you to a site that looks like the real thing but is fake. Instead, go to the app store and download it from there. Before investing, do your research and make sure the investment platforms are secure. Certain information, such as card and account numbers, online credentials, etc. should be shared with extreme caution. Never share information that can be used in a security question anywhere. Stay vigilant to protect your accounts and make 2025 a great year!

The Dent County Commission met for the first time in 2025 at the courthouse and Presiding Commissioner Gary Larson welcomed in new road commissioners Keith Green for District 1 and Jimmy Williams for District 2. In their first road report, Green said District 1 crews were grading Dent County Roads 4220 and 6460, and were also getting the equipment ready for the possibility of a winter storm this weekend. Williams said District 2 crews were adding rock to and grading Dent County Road 3260, while only grading was being done on county road 5240. Williams said rock would also be added to county road 2570. Williams said the county took fuel bids for regular unleaded gas and the low bid went to County Fuels. He also said that he, Commissioner Green and newly elected assessor Alisa Brookshire all attended the MAC training for newly elected county officials. He said the training was very informative. Dent County Clerk Angie Curley reported filing has ended for the April Municipal Election and all tax entities will need to have their election certification to the county clerk’s office by 5:00 on January 28th. She said the county continues to work on the 2025 budget and said a tentative budget would be ready for the public by Monday, January 13th at 10:00 in her office. The final county budget hearing will be held at 10:00 in the morning on January 23rd in the commissioners’ office in the courthouse which will be open to the public. The next meeting of the commission will be Monday morning at 9:00 at the courthouse and it is open to the public.

Colonel Eric T. Olson, superintendent of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, provided the following preliminary statistics related to the New Year’s holiday. The 2025 New Year’s holiday counting period began at 6:00 Tuesday evening, December 31st, 2024, and ended at 11:59 Wednesday night, January 1st, 2025. The 2025 New Year’s Holiday Traffic Statistics showed that Troopers investigated 44 Traffic Crashes, resulting in 21 Traffic Crash Injuries and there were no Traffic Crash Fatalities. Troopers made 50 DWI arrests. There were no boating crashes and no drownings over the 2025 New Year’s holiday counting period. The fatality statistics in this news release could change if late deaths occur, or if other departments report fatal traffic crashes after this news release is sent to the media. Follow the Missouri State Highway Patrol on X @MSHPTrooperGHQ.

The Creative Arts Center will hold a Sunday Crafting starting this Sunday and held every Sunday through January 26th from 2:00 until 6:00 with Nicole Curtis. Bring your supplies to the Creative Arts Center and hang out, spending time with other crafty people. You do have to have all your own supplies and only the front room and bathrooms will be available. The class is open to all those 16 years of age and older with a suggestion donation of $5.00 that goes towards utilities. No children without an adult please.

The Salem Board of Aldermen have rescheduled their special meeting of the board for tonight at 5:30 at the Old City Hall Auditorium. The original meeting was canceled due to not enough members to form a quorum. At their meeting, the board will do the first and second reading of Bill #3636 that would approve the change order #2 for the City Sidewalk Tap Grant project. The cost of the change order is for $10,807 which will be the cost to tear out and replace the heated sidewalk areas from Main to Washington Street on the south side of the road. The replacement portion from the original plans was for the apron only, but this change order also moves the snow-melt systems into the ADA compliant sidewalk as well. The original total for the project from prior years funds was $73,409.84. With the two new change orders adding $1,943 from Change Order #1, and $10,807.00 from Change Order #2, the total cost from prior year’s funds would be $86,159.84 if MoDOT approves Change Order #2. The board will also discuss and hold the first and second readings of Bill #3637 that would amend items A and B from Section 710.330 regarding sewer billing to make these items applicable to all utility accounts, and remove items C, D, and E. The meeting will then be adjourned. The special meeting of the City of Salem Board of Aldermen tonight is open to the public.

An accident occurred Monday evening at 5:19 on Highway 72 North of Salem near Dent County Road 2230 that took the life of a 72-year-old Female pedestrian. According to the Highway Patrol report the woman entered the roadway in front of a southbound 2007 Dodge Charger driven by a 35-year-old Salem Female. The victim was taken by Salem Memorial Ambulance to SMH where she was pronounced deceased at 6:00 by Dr. Charles Featherly. The Dodge sustained minor damage and was removed from the scene by Whitaker’s Towing.

The Salem Memorial Hospital Board of Directors held their regular meeting Monday night at 7:00 in the Hospital Library. After approving the agenda and minutes from the previous meetings, Hospital CEO Brooke Bollman gave her report, stating there is no new news on the affiliate program. The hospital experienced total operating revenue of about $3.1 million and total operating expenditures of about $1.9 million, leaving total profit of $1.3 million for the month of November. Bollman did clarify that they are still working with the auditors to adjust some accounts, including taxes and retirement. 340B revenue for November was $250,000, total expenses were $71,000 leaving a total profit of $178,000. The hospital currently has 32 days worth of cash on hand. During the CNO report, Bollman stated that there are seven nursing position openings across various departments. EMS attended a first responders appreciation night; through the ARPA Fund they received $90,000 in new equipment. There have been two new hires in the Med/surg department and two resignations. During the QAPI Report, it was noted that the hospital continues working on their patient experience project, and their medication events project. Ten organizations submitted more than $700,000 in requests for ToRCH Grant Funding. The recipients of this grant will be announced on January 6 via press release. Deborah Gorman with Infection Prevention gave an update on illness, stating there has been a rise in COVID cases at the hospital, including 4 positive cases in long term care. There have been two positive cases for RSV, and seven positive cases of the flu in December. There have not been any new candidates for the open board position and due to the finance committee not having the required three members, those meetings have been halted until further notice. There will be a bi-weekly special director’s meeting, to discuss acquisition, every other Tuesday evening at 7:00. One of those meetings will be held the same day as the regular board of director’s meeting. The board approved Brooke Bollman to conduct funding research to replace the hospital’s Pulmonary Function Test machine. The current machine is no longer working at optimal capacity and the parts are not replaceable due to being obsolete and no longer compatible with the current operating system. Bollman will be looking for ways to fund this purchase within the budget as well as any possible grant opportunities. Once purchased, the new machine may take up to 120 days to be delivered and come with a five year warranty. The meeting then adjourned to closed session. The date for the next board meeting has not yet been announced.

The Board of Aldermen scheduled a special meeting last night at 5:30 in the Old City Hall Auditorium to hear the first and second readings of Bill #3636 that would approve the change order #2 for the City Sidewalk Tap Grant project. The board was also going to discuss and hold the first and second readings of Bill #3637 that would amend items A and B from Section 710.330 regarding sewer billing. However, there were not enough members to hold a quorum, and so the meeting was canceled. At this time, the meeting has not been rescheduled.

The Dent County Commission held their regular meeting Monday morning at the Dent County Courthouse. It was the last meeting for outgoing commissioners Wes Mobray and Gary Polk, and Presiding Commissioner Gary Larson wanted to thank them for their time serving the public in their roles as district commissioners. Mobray served the county for four years while Gary Polk served the county for just under two years. Mobray said he learned a lot from his four years including parts of the position of commissioner he didn’t even know existed. Polk also stated the job was very educational and he appreciated being given the opportunity to serve the public. In the road report, District 1 Commissioner Mobray said the work crews would be servicing a grader to finish up the year. District 2, Commissioner Polk stated that rock would be added and grading done on Dent County Roads 4370, while only grading would be done on county road 3180. He also said crews would be installing a spreader and plow on truck #116. Presiding Commissioner Gary Larson said the courthouse would be closed New Year’s Day. Dent County Clerk Angie Curley said the swearing in of the newly elected officers would be at 10:00 this morning in the courthouse in the courtroom. She also said she would be working on the budget that the county will begin working on in 2025. At the least meeting, Michael Smith with Hope Construction finished fixing the water leaks in the Judicial Building and County Annex Building. Mike Elliott from Town and Country Insurance came in with the new coverage form for the county auto and property insurance. The new annual premium is $268,539. The next meeting will be Thursday morning at the courthouse and the meeting is open to the public.

Over the Christmas 30-hour holiday counting period, three people died in traffic crashes between 6:00 Tuesday evening and 11:59 Christmas Night. The 2024 Christmas holiday traffic statistics show there 65 traffic crashes, 38 injuries, three fatalities and 17 DWI arrests. There were no boating crashes or drownings over the 2024 Christmas holiday counting period.

Colonel Eric T. Olson, the superintendent of the Missouri State Highway Patrol who will be retiring February 1, 2025, after almost five years as superintendent and 34 years as a member of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, encourages everyone to make good decisions regarding their New Year’s celebration. No one wants to start 2025 with a traffic crash or DWI arrest. During the 2023-2024 New Year’s period which was a 72-hour counting period, there were 821 traffic crashes with 293 traffic crash injuries, nine traffic crash fatalities, with the Missouri State Highway Patrol issuing 139 DWI incidents in Missouri. The 2024-2025 New Year’s holiday counting period begins at 6:00 Tuesday evening and ends at 11:59 Wednesday night, January 1st, 2025. If your plans to welcome the new year include alcohol, please designate a sober driver to ensure you arrive home safely. The roadway is no place for a driver under the influence of drugs or alcohol. If you kill or injure someone, you’ll pay the price for the rest of your life. If you plan to drive this New Year’s, remember to buckle up and make sure all your passengers do the same. Pay attention, obey all traffic laws, and when in doubt, yield the right-of-way. Be sure to use your turn signal to communicate your intentions. Download the MoDOT Traveler Information app to your smartphone, and check road conditions before you travel. Allow extra time during inclement weather or consider staying home. Missouri law states if you’re using your windshield wipers, your headlights must be turned on. The public is encouraged to call the Patrol’s Emergency Assistance Number (800) 525-5555 or *55 on a cellular phone if they witness criminal activity or experience an emergency.