News
Sewer backups in basements and sanitary sewer overflows can occur during heavy rainstorms due to the storm water entering into the sewer system. Rain water can enter the sanitary sewer system in many ways, including storm drain cross-connections, broken service lines, missing cleanout caps, sump pumps, roof and foundation drains. To help identify the sources of rainwater inflow and infiltration, the City of Salem has selected an investigation program utilizing smoke testing of the sanitary sewer system. The CM Archer Group, an engineering firm, will be working with the City of Salem Water Department to conduct smoke tests of the sanitary sewer system. Smoke testing will start this afternoon at 1:00 on Carty Street and be moving on during weekday hours.
The Salem R-80 Board of Education will conduct their monthly meeting tonight at the Salem R-80 Boardroom beginning at 6:00 pm. After approval of the agendas and communications, Superintendent Cindy Rumpf will address a possible natural gas conversion and the Senior High Graduation. In new business, the Board will approve the student insurance renewal from Lawrence E. Smith, consider changing the date of the June meeting, rescinding Salem CFO by-laws and budget revisions. The Board will then approve the surplus property bids and address resignations. The Board will then vote to go into Closed Session for the purpose of discussing personnel. The monthly meeting of the Salem R-80 Board of Education is open to the public.
The Salem High School’s 127th graduation commencement exercises will be held Friday night at 7:00 at the Salem High School Football Field. A total of 129 students are scheduled to participate in the program that will feature 32 different local scholarships, Senior Class Citizenship Awards, the Salutatorian and Valedictorian Awards, and awards for A+ Students. This year there are nine Valedictorians and two Salutatorians. The Valedictorians include Madison Auten, Rachelle Hayes, Mitchell Lo, Crystal Prince, Lindsey Purcell, Sarah Watts, Leah Whelan, Adam Wood, and Sara Young. The two Salutatorians are Carey Davison II and Jacob Kettner. This year, the graduation commencement exercises will be broadcast live on the Fidelity Local 6 channel and streaming online at fidelitylocal6.com, and will be played back throughout the next week on Fidelity Local 6 starting Saturday afternoon at 2:00. DVD’s of the program will be available for $15 each from Fidelity about a week after the ceremony.
The 2011 Annual Water Supply Quality Report for the City of Salem water supply is now available and there were no negative results detected during the year. It was also reported that there were no violations during the 2011-year. A copy of the 2011 Annual Water Supply Quality Report can be read at the City of Salem Administration Building, the Salem Public Library and the KSMO Radio Studios.
Dent County Coroner Gina White released a report involving the death of a teenager from Columbia, Missouri. On Wednesday, May 16th at 2:34 in the early morning, 19-year old Ryan Pickle of Columbia was pronounced dead by Dr. Galinas at the University of Missouri Medical Center in Columbia. Pickle was flown to the University of Missouri Medical Center on Monday, May 14th at 4:25 in the afternoon after a motor vehicle accident that occurred in Dent County on Highway 32 about 6.8 miles west of Salem. The Boone County Medical Examiners office notified White that the cause of death was head trauma resulting in an intra-cranial hemorrhage. No autopsy was performed.
An accident occurred at 11:02 Wednesday morning in Crawford County on Coffey on Road about half a mile from Highway JJ. According to the highway patrol report, a 2011 Hyundai driven by 28-year old Jacquelyn Hunt of Bourbon traveled off the left side of the roadway, struck a utility pole support, traveled into a ditch, and came to rest against some trees. Hunt suffered serious injuries and was airlifted by Arch Helicopter to Mercy Hospital in Creve Coeur. It is unknown if she was wearing a seat restraint at the time of the accident. The Hyundai sustained extensive damage and was removed from the scene by Brad’s Towing.
According to Attorney General Chris Koster a bill passed unanimously recently by the General Assembly to add cell phones to Missouri’s no-call law will benefit millions of Missourians by protecting them from unwanted telemarketer calls. Since becoming Attorney General, Koster has repeatedly asked the General Assembly to pass this important law. The bill now goes to the Governor. By adding cell phones to Missouri’s no-call law will give the Attorney General’s Office the authority to take legal action against businesses that make unwanted sales calls to cell phone numbers. The state routinely sues telemarketers to stop them from making calls to land lines and collects fines and penalties from these businesses for violations. If signed by the Governor, the bill will become law on August 28th, 2012.
The Utility Construction Department with the City of Salem will have Park Street closed from Center Street to Coffman Street starting Monday, May 21st during daylight hours for a utility line upgrade, and until completion of the project. Park Street will be open during non-working hours with only one lane open to traffic. Motorists are asked to proceed with caution when traveling through the area.
Sports [TOP]
Four Salem Tiger Baseball players will be on the field for the St. Louis Cardinals’ batting practice prior to the May 26th game, which Salem will play South Calloway afterwards at Busch Stadium. The players include Jake Artz, Marshall Cramer, Austin Bettigrew, and Brady Floyd. These players were picked due to them selling the most tickets to the game.
Jaime Garcia threw 7 1/3 innings of one-run ball and the St. Louis Cardinals downed the San Francisco Giants, 4-1, in the opener of a two-game series on Wednesday. Garcia (3-2) scattered nine hits and struck out nine without issuing a walk to get the win. Fernando Salas and Marc Rzepczynski combined to finish the eighth and Jason Motte worked around a base hit in the ninth to secure his seventh save of the season. David Freese finished 3-for-4 with a solo home run, Skip Schumaker had a pinch-hit, two-run double and Allen Craig contributed an RBI groundout for the Cards, who have won two straight since dropping four in a row. The Cards and Giants play again this afternoon in San Francisco and you can hear it on KSMO at 2:10.
Adam Jones' solo homer in the top of the 15th inning sent the Baltimore Orioles past Kansas City, 4-3, in the opener of a two-game series. Humberto Quintero hit a two-run single and Alex Gordon had two hits and an RBI for the Royals, whose four-game win streak came to an end. Royals’ starter Felipe Paulino threw seven scoreless innings while giving up seven hits, striking out nine, and only walking two. Nathan Adcock (0-1) took the loss after serving up the deciding blast. The Royals and Baltimore Orioles will play again this afternoon in Kansas City at 1:10.
Obituaries [TOP]
Funeral services for Osa M. Allen of Salem, age 95, will be held today at 11:00 at the James and Gahr Mortuary in Salem. Interment will be in the North Lawn Cemetery. Memorials may be made to the Fair Haven’s Home in Strafford.
Funeral services for Andrew Howard Salter of Rolla, age 60, will be held today at 1:00 at the James and Gahr Mortuary in Rolla. Visitation will be held from 10:00 until service time. Interment will be in the Fort Leonard Wood Veteran’s Cemetery with full military honors.
Weather [TOP]
