A local police dog has died unexpectedly after a medical emergency.

According to the Greensburg Police Department, police dog Dino died on Monday, the same day he and his handler Officer John Amis transferred to the city force from the Jennings County Sheriff’s Department.

Dino began his law enforcement career in September 2022. A Belgian Tervuren, he was certified through the International Police Work Dog Association. Police say that “whether tracking suspects, detecting narcotics, or standing alert during high-risk operations, Dino performed every task with unmatched dedication.”

The Jennings County Sheriff’s Department says Dino helped take numerous narcotics off of the streets of Jennings County and served the community bravely.

Greensburg police say that the dog’s passing is a loss to the community he served, the officers who stood beside him and the handler who never left his side.

Photo courtesy of Jennings County Sheriff’s Department.

Authorities say the air on the Fourth of July will be unhealthy for some people.

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management has declared an Air Quality Action Day for Friday.

A high pressure system is expected to settle over the region, creating stagnant atmospheric conditions. Combining the hot temperatures, sunny skies, and light winds that are expected tomorrow as well as emissions in the air from fireworks are leading to an orange or unhealthy level warning from the agency. They say that there are expected to be high levels of fine particulates in the air making it hard to breathe for some.

That could be unhealthy for active children and adults and for those with respiratory diseases, such as asthma. If you are at risk, you should limit prolonged exposure outdoors tomorrow.

The warning is in effect from midnight tonight to midnight Friday.

You can get more information here: http://www.in.gov/idem/airmonitoring/smogwatch/

With the expected high heat over the next few days, Bartholomew County is making some locations available where you can get inside and cool off if you need to.

The National Weather Service in Indianapolis is forecasting highs of 91 Friday and 92 Saturday.

According to Bartholomew County Emergency Management, if you need to get out of the heat on Saturday, you can stop at either the downtown Columbus or Hope branches of the Bartholomew County Public Library. The library on Fifth Street in Columbus will be open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and the branch on the Hope Town Square will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Officials say that neither food, showers nor areas for sleep will be available. They ask that you respect the rules of the facility and respect others at the library while you are there.

There are currently no cooling stations open for the Fourth of July or Sunday. The Community Engagement Center on Second Street in Columbus will be closed Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

After 5 p.m. in the afternoon, the Brighter Days Shelter on Mapleton Street can be used to cool off.

A bill co-authored by a local legislator was signed into law by the governor in a ceremony recently.

The law, co-authored by State Rep. Ryan Lauer of Columbus, creates new grant programs for pediatric and breast cancer research. . Lauer says the programs will target grant funding toward researching novel cancer therapies and treatments. The goal is to bring new discoveries and help save lives.

According to the Indiana Department of Health, more than 300 new cases of pediatric cancer were found each year between 2016 to 2020. The Indiana Department of Health says more than 5,000 Hoosiers were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2019.

The new law went into effect on July 1st.

Two rest stops in Bartholomew County could be expanding their truck parking space and planners want to hear your thoughts.

On Tuesday July 15th, INDOT will be holding a public meeting about the plans for the rest stops on Interstate 65 near Taylorsville . Organizers say that the project would reduce truck parking congestion by providing more capacity and improved facilities.

The project is expected to start this fall and would close the rest stops for almost two years. Both rest stops will be closed at the same time and there is no anticipated traffic disruption on the highway during the work.

The meeting will be at Ivy Tech Community College’s Moravec Hall on Central Avenue in Columbus. Doors will open at 5:30 and you will have a chance to talk with the project team and view displays about the project. A presentation will start at 6 p.m. and public comments will be taken.

If you can’t make it to the briefing, you can submit your comments online or by mail. Questions can be submitted to Imtiyaz Dalal with Janssen & Spaans Engineering, Inc. at [email protected], or via mail at 9120 Harrison Park Court, Indianapolis, Indiana 46216

Project information, including the presentation will be available online at bit.ly/TaylorsvilleRestAreaConversion.

Columbus Fire Department says a veteran firefighter with more than 40 years on the service is retiring and two firefighters are being promoted.

Lieutenant Rick Mullis retired, effective June 9th. He was a 41-year veteran of the department joining in 1984.

Inspector Andy Johns has received a promotion to the rank of lieutenant. Johns has been with the Columbus Fire Department since 2015 and has served in the Inspection and Investigation Division since 2024. He will continue working in that division.

Firefighter Samantha Smith is being promoted to the rank of Lieutenant. Smith has served with the Columbus Fire Department since 2017 and has been assigned to Battalion B. She will serve as company officer at Fire Station 1.

Photos courtesy of Columbus Fire Department

Low-income area residents will have a chance for free legal advice on Tuesday.

River Valley Legal Aid offers the phone clinics for low-income residents of its eight-county district to receive legal advice and assistance.

If you take part you will have a brief consultation with a volunteer attorney to answer general questions, to offer legal information or to receive other advice over the phone.

The phone clinic will be from 3 to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday. To take part, you must first register between noon and 2 p.m. by calling 812-378-0358.

Ivy Tech Community College will be holding an open house next week at its Franklin campus.

Prospective students, their families and community members are invited to attend the open house to learn more about the school’s programs. There will be opportunities to tour the campus, to meet with faculty and to get help from financial aid experts on tuition assistance options.

The open house will be from 4 to 6 p.m. on Wednesday at the campus at 2205 McClain Drive in Franklin. Registration is not required and you are welcome to drop in.

Centra Credit Union is making donations to three local organizations as part of its Pay It Forward campaign.

According to the Columbus based credit union, the Pay it Forward campaign encourages team members to lead groups in mini service projects to help local nonprofit groups.

Centra is providing $2,000 in support to:

• Just Friends Adult Day Service
• Lincoln Central Neighborhood Family Center
• Love Chapel

A Centra team also provided lunch for Habitat for Humanity workers and nurses at Our Hospice. Another team worked with Firefly Children & Family Alliance to support a family in need living in Columbus.

Company officials say Centra actively seeks new ways to give their team members more opportunities to give back to the communities it serves.

Centra President and CEO Rick Silvers said he is “proud to lead an organization where our Team Members care so deeply about their communities.”

A former township trustee in Decatur County has been arrested, accused of theft and official misconduct.

According to Indiana State Police, the special investigations division began investigating the allegations in October of 2023 against Washington Township trustee Christian Rust. Rust was accused of taking more than $29,000 and removing files from government computers.

The results of the investigation were turned over to the Decatur County Prosecutor’s Office and charges of theft and official misconduct were filed against Rust. The 36-year-old turned himself in yesterday.