U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly was in Columbus on Tuesday. During his visit, Donnelly stopped by the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Office.

Judy Jackson, department spokesperson, says that Sheriff Matt Myers, Chief Deputy Maj. Chris Lane and Senator Donnelly discussed the war on drugs in Bartholomew County. Specifically, the trio talked about the heroin and methamphetamine problem. Jackson says that Myers spoke about his decision to place a local deputy in Indianapolis to work directly with the Drug Enforcement Administration, noting the benefits that Bartholomew and surrounding counties are seeing because of this relationship.

Jackson says that the trio also discussed the increase in jail populations due to mental health and substance abuse issues, along with the need for treatment facilities. In addition, she says the three talked about the importance of lifting restrictions on asset forfeitures as a way to benefit law-enforcement agencies facing budget issues.

“Senator Donnelly is a champion for public safety and he is extremely supportive of our Sheriff’s office,” said Sheriff Myers. “The Senator, or members of his staff, are frequent visitors to BCSO and we certainly appreciate this close working relationship”, added Myers.

Columbus firefighters are urging you to be safe while you are enjoying your Christmas celebrations.

Capt. Mike Wilson says the key is to be aware of what you have in your home and what the dangers might be.

if you have a live tree, Wilson to make sure you keep it well hydrated.

“The live Christmas trees, when they are dry, they can ignite and rapidly burn, which spreads fire very quickly through a home,” Wilson said.

Wilson also suggested you should never string more than three strands of Christmas lights together at a time. If you are using an artificial tree with pre-installed lights, you should check it before setting it up to make sure there are no obviously frayed wires. And if you are having intermittent light problems, such as flickering or turning off and on, it could be a short in the lights. In that case, it would be better to forgo using the installed lighting and instead use separate strands of lights.

Wilson also says to make sure to keep any flammable material away from open flames such as candles. He recommends keeping a clear area three feet around drapes and other possible fuel sources.

“When we talk about candle safety… it is important to remember that the candles have to be a safe distance away from any combustible material,” Wilson said. “It is very important to remember that.”

Wilson says that you should take care if you are hanging stockings on the mantle.

“If you are using a wood burinigng fireplace and you plan on hanging stockings or decorations from that area, you might want to consider having a spark arrester on the front of the fireplace to prevent popping wood from expelling hot embers out into the living space area,” Wilson said.

“Make sure that the materials you are using aren’t so close that they could ignite and spread a fire throughout the home.”

And he stressed the importance of having working smoke detectors and that families have a fire escape plan in place and that they have practiced. That safety tip goes year-round, Wilson said.

A woman suspected of driving drunk, walked away from a crash while her passenger was still trapped in the wreckage yesterday, according to Bartholomew County authorities.

Elizabethtown volunteer firefighters were working to rescue the passenger from the crashed vehicle on State Road 7 and County Road 525E about 10:30 p.m. last night. When Bartholomew County sheriff’s deputies arrived, a deputy found the driver 27-year-old Channel M. Vincent of Elizabethtown, walking away from the crash scene, says Judy Jackson, spokeswoman for the sheriff’s department.

Both Vincent and her passenger were taken to Columbus Regional Hospital for treatment. After being released from the hospital, Vincent was arrested on charges of operating a vehicle while intoxicated with endangerment and disorderly conduct.

Several fundraisers are planned to aid a Seymour police officer and his family, after they lost their home in a Sunday morning fire.

Officer Gilbert Carpenter, the department’s DARE officer, his wife and his two children were uninjured in the fire, but their home is a total loss. The Seymour Police Department is announcing several fundraisers scheduled to aid the family:

• Brewskies will be holding a fundraiser from 5 to 10 this evening, Dec. 21st. For every steak dinner purchased, $4 will be donated to Officer Gilbert Carpenter and his family.
• Tomorrow Dec. 22nd, Celebrations will be having an event with live bands starting at 7 p.m. and a silent auction. Tickets start at $6 or you can reserve a table for $20. Doors will open at 6 p.m.  If you would like to donate something for the auction you can text 812-569-0287 for drop off details.
• On Monday Dec.  26th, Pizza Palace will donate a percentage of all sales that day to the family.
• Sharayah Cornwell Photography is organizing a memory drive to help the family rebuild their collection of family photos which were destroyed in the fire. If you have any photos of the family of Gilbert and Amy Carpenter, you can give them to the photo studio to reproduce.
• A GoFundMe page has been set up for the family. There have been $9,000 in donations toward the $10,000 goal as of this morning. You can find more information here.

Correction: We had the officer’s last name incorrect in an earlier version of this story. We apologize for the mistake.

A Seymour woman was airlifted to an Indianapolis hospital after a two-vehicle crash Tuesday morning in Jackson County.

Sgt. Stephen Wheeles, spokesman for the Indiana State Police, say that at approximately 10 a.m., ISP troopers, Seymour police and Jackson County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a head-on collision on State Road 258, just west of Seymour. Wheeles says that the initial investigation revealed that a semi, driven by 46-year-old Richard A. Santel, of Carlyle, IL, was traveling east on State Road 258 approaching Bell Ford Drive. For an unknown reason, the truck, owned by Rose Acre Farms, crossed the center line and struck a westbound SUV driven by 75-year-old Nancy S. Wilson.

Wheeles says that the collision took both vehicles off of the road. He says that the Seymour Fire Department and Jackson County EMS responded to the scene and extricated Wilson from her vehicle. She was then airlifted from the scene to St. Vincent’s Hospital. Her condition is unknown. Santel was not injured.

Wheeles says that Santel submitted to a drug and alcohol screen. However, he notes that drugs and alcohol are not suspected to be factors in the crash, which remains under investigation.

A road inside of Woodside Industrial Park would be extended under a resolution approved by the Columbus Redevelopment Commission.

The proposal would extend International Drive to the border of the property inside an established Economic Revitalization Area. Specifically, city officials say the project would extend the road approximately 560 feet north to the northern edge of Woodside Northwest. Jason Hester, director of the Greater Columbus Indiana Economic Development Corp., says that this expansion would benefit companies already in the ERA, but new business considering making use of some 60 acres annexed earlier this year as well. He explains that the city has industrial land in this area available for development, adding that one business, Lindal North America, already has plans to make use of approximately 15 acres to expand its operations, creating 30 jobs over the next three years.

The Redevelopment Commission voted Monday night to approve the resolution to extend the road, at a cost to exceed no more than $280,000.

Columbus police have released a photo of a suspect in the armed robbery of La Quinta Inn Saturday night.

The man is accused of displaying a gun and robbing the hotel of an undisclosed amount of cash, police say. He is a black male, 5 feet 10 inches tall to six feet, wearing a distinctive red and black sweatshirt.

The incident happened at about 9 p.m. at the hotel on Carrie Lane on the west side of Columbus.

If you have any information you can call the police detectives division at 812-376-2624

A Columbus police chase ended yesterday after a suspect was found hiding in a trash Toter.

An officer saw a vehicle driving aggressively near Saddle Drive and Taylor Road at about 1:30 p.m. yesterday afternoon, and when the officer tried to stop the vehicle, the driver raced away, says Lt. Matt Harris, spokesman for the police department. Eventually the driver plowed through a concrete median on 10th Street damaging his vehicle and eventually leading to the tire falling off.

Off-duty Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Sgt. T.A. Smith was driving the opposite direction as the pursuing officer and chased the driver into the Quail Run apartment complex, where the driver got out of the car and ran away.

Off-duty police officers Brian Voyles and Travis Harbaugh were in the area and helped in the search, with Voyles eventually discovering 39-year-old Steven R. Burton hiding in a trash bin on 12th Street.

Burton was already wanted on warrants out of Bartholomew and Johnson counties. He is facing new preliminary charges of resisting law enforcement in a vehicle, resisting law enforcement on foot, criminal recklessness with a vehicle, driving while suspended with a prior conviction, possession of drug paraphernalia and leaving the scene of an accident.

A female passenger, 26-year-old Natasha N. Carr, is facing a preliminary charge of false informing.

As a Columbus man made a police report about his stolen truck early this morning, the truck drove by, leading to an arrest, police say.

An officer was taking the report at about 1:30 this morning in a parking lot in the 900 block of Marr Road from the owner who suddenly recognized the sound of his truck’s loud muffler.

The truck then drove by Marr Road and Pavilion Drive, says Lt. Matt Harris, spokesman for the Columbus police . The officer stopped the truck and 34-year-old Terry A. Barnhart was taken into custody. He is facing a preliminary charge of auto theft.

The undamaged vehicle was returned to its owner.

The Indiana State Police are investigating the finances of the Hope Volunteer Fire Department but few details are available on the case.

Fire Chief Randy Wood said that the state police were called in about three months ago after the discovery of a irregularity in the fire department’s books. He said that he cannot discuss details of the case or the size of the irregularity that was discovered.

Wood said that the department is following proper procedures and having it investigated. They are not sure yet if there is any wrongdoing or anything unaccounted for.

“We don’t know,  it is being investigated and that is all that I can say now, until we hear back from the police,” Wood said.

Wood said the fire department’s treasurer, who was not named, has been suspended.

“It is out of our hands right now. It is being investigated. That is all I can say.”

At last night’s Hope Town Council meeting, Councilman Greg Sims asked Ed Johnson, a fire department adviser, if he knew what was going on with the situation and Johnson said he had only been told that there was an Indiana State Police investigation underway.

The Indiana State Police have not yet responded to a request for more information.

The fire department has faced financial problems over the past several years, after cost overruns with a new fire station under construction on the east side of the northern Bartholomew County town. The department was sued by its contractor on the project and while that lawsuit was ongoing, the Hope Town Council refused to pay the department — unless it could ensure that none of the town money went to the new fire station.

The town and volunteer fire department went almost all of last year without a contract and without payments from the town — a major portion of the fire department’s budget. The issue was resolved late last year and the first payments were made to the department in December 2015.