A body found Thursday in a shallow grave has been identified as a missing Columbus woman and her boyfriend is being charged with murder.

The body, found just off of County Road 400N, has been identified as 37-year-old Heather A. Steuver, who had been missing since Aug. 22nd. She died of blunt force trauma to the head, according to Bartholomew County Coroner Clayton Nolting.

A missing person’s report was filed on Aug. 26th and assigned to Sheriff’s Department Detective Kevin Abner, who believed the circumstances were suspicious.

During the investigation, her boyfriend 38-year-old Patrick E. Doyle, of Columbus, was arrested and taken to the jail on a preliminary charge of possession of child pornography. He has since been additionally preliminarily charged with murder.

Chief Deputy Maj. Chris Lane praised the work of Detective Abner, saying the detective put in long hours and worked diligently to obtain the result.

Photo of Heather Ann Steuver courtesy of Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department.

Columbus Regional Health is suspending all elective surgeries in several departments due to the surge in COVID-19 cases.

The hospital announced Friday afternoon that it is suspending those procedures in the Surgical Services, Endoscopy Center and Outpatient Cath Lab as of Monday. That is for all elective, non-urgent surgeries and procedures.

The suspension of non-urgent and non-emergent surgical procedures is geared toward the preservation of healthcare resources, which are at critical capacity.

Patients with scheduled surgeries and/or procedures will be contacted by their physician’s offices about the changes. If you have questions, you are encouraged follow up with their physician or surgeon office directly.

CRH is prioritizing procedures and interventions that are emergent and cannot safely be delayed for the patient. A team of physicians will be determining on a case-by-case basis which procedures meet the criteria.

The third of the smaller scale Ethnic Expo events will be in downtown Columbus tomorrow with the Ganesh Festival of India on Fourth Street from 3 to 8 p.m.

The event, sponsored by the Columbus Ganesh Mandal, the city of Columbus and the Columbus Area Visitors Center will include food vendors, bazaar booths and free henna tattoos. There will be live music from 3:30 to 4:30, a dance workshop from 5 to 5:30, a celebration of India from 5:30 to 7:30 and a Dhol Tasha Performance from 7:30 to 8 p.m.

The annual downtown festival was split into four events this year to reduce crowd size and allow for social distancing due to COVID-19.

You can get more information at ethnic expo dot org.

Authorities have discovered what are believed to be human remains in a shallow grave just off of Bartholomew County Road 400N between U.S. 31 and River Road.

An autopsy and identification of the body is scheduled for this afternoon by the Bartholomew County Coroner’s office.

According to reports from the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department, the remains were discovered as part of a search for a missing person Thursday afternoon. Sheriff’s detectives, Columbus police, Indiana State Police and the coroner’s office discovered the remains yesterday.

The road was closed for several hours while the scene was being processed.

Sheriff Matt Myers praised the cooperation of the agencies, saying that being able to use resources and manpower from other agencies is the future of law enforcement.

Drivers in Seymour will see traffic tie-ups on U.S. 50 while crews install a box culvert under the road between Holiday Square Drive and Agrico Lane, starting this morning.

During the work, the westbound lanes of U.S. 50 will be reduced to a single lane Friday through Sunday. Traffic should return to normal by Monday. The two eastbound lanes will remain unchanged to begin with. The following weekend the eastbound lanes will be reduced to a single lane for the second half of the work.

If you are driving in the area, you should use extra caution in the area while lanes are restricted. Changeable message boards will be placed on I-65 showing State Road 11 as an alternate route.

INDOT asks that you slow down, use extra caution and drive without distractions in all work zones. The work schedule depends on the weather.

The Jackson County Chamber of Commerce will be hosting its 90th annual awards dinner, September 16th as a drive-in event at the Aerial Farmer hanger at Freeman Field. starting at 6 p.m.

Awards winners be recognized including small, medium and large businesses being inducted into the Hall of Fame including Pewter Hall, Dennis & Blish CPA Group and Rumpke Waste and Recycling. Teachers of the year, Linda Hume, Nathan Owen and Cathy Reasoner will be recognized as well as Sasha Norman as the young professional of the year and Eddie Murphy as spirit of the chamber.

You can make your reservation at the chamber website at www.jacksoncochamber.com or by contacting the chamber office at 812-522-3681 or at [email protected]. Reservations are $45 per person.

Gov. Eric Holcomb toured the facilities at Camp Atterbury this week, meeting with soldiers and Afghan refugees.

The governor’s office says Holcomb and Brig. Gen. Dale Lyles, Indiana National Guard’s adjutant general, visited Camp Atterbury on Wednesday to learn more about “Operation: Allies Welcome.”

As a part of this federal mission, Afghanistan evacuees are staying at Camp Atterbury with the support of the Indiana National Guard.

Holcomb said he is proud of the work of the Guard. There has been an outpouring of kindness from Hoosiers, to welcome those who aided and protected Americans serving in Afghanistan, Holcomb said.

Task Force Atterbury, made up of active-duty and National Guard service members, is providing housing, medical, logistics, and transportation support to the Afghan refugees.

Photos courtesy of Gov. Eric Holcomb’s office.

Columbus Regional Health’s Dr. Raymond L. Kiser is receiving statewide recognition from the Indiana Hospital Association.

At the association’s virtual annual meeting yesterday, Kiser received the Douglas J. Leonard Caregiver of the Year Award. The award recognizes individuals in the health care industry whose delivery of care is considered exemplary by patients and peers.

Kiser, the director of Hospital Care Physicians at CRH, is a hospitalist and inpatient nephrologist at the hospital. In his more than 7 years there, he has served in various leadership roles including associate chief medical officer and chief of staff. Kiser graduated from Ohio State University and completed his internship in internal medicine and fellowship in nephrology and hypertension at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Hospital President and CEO Jim Bickel praised Kiser’s clinical and leadership skills, his compassion and commitment. Bickel said “Throughout the pandemic response, Dr. Kiser was unwavering and worked tirelessly to stay on top of the ever-changing situation.”

A reminder, that Columbus emergency workers will be recognizing the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks with a ceremony at City Hall on Saturday.

The outdoor ceremony will begin at 8:40 a.m., with a moment of silence at 8:46, the moment the first plane struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center. There will be a dispatch over the emergency radios honoring the nearly 3,000 people who lost their lives that day.

Members of the Columbus Fire Department and Police Department Color Guard will take part in the ceremony. The ceremony is scheduled to last about 30 minutes.