The Columbus Fire Department has hired its newest firefighter.

31-year-old Samuel Burnett was sworn in Tuesday morning by Mayor Jim Lienhoop at the Board of Public Works and Safety meeting at City Hall.

Burnett is a Columbus native and a graduate of Columbus East High School and Indiana University where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree. Burnett is a state certified Basic Emergency Medical Technician as well as certified as a Firefighter I & II.

Burnett was previously employed with the City of Columbus Clerk Treasurer’s office.

He will now begin the fire department’s orientation program before being assigned a station and shift.

New Columbus firefighter Samuel Burnett was sworn in Tuesday by Mayor Jim Lienhoop. Photo courtesy of Columbus Fire Department.

The city of Seymour is announcing that the city’s Department of Public Works as well as other city offices will be closed Thursday and Friday for the Christmas holiday.

Normal Thursday trash and recycling routes will be picked up on Wednesday instead. Normal Friday routes will be picked up on Monday.

The Seymour drop-off area will be closed Thursday through sunday.

The Indiana Department of Natural Resources is warning that you could see more coyotes on the move.

While some animals hunker down for the winter, coyotes actually get more active. Breeding season begins in January and young coyotes are setting off on their own to find territories. Without the spring and summer greenery, you are more likely to see the coyotes on the move. And because of their heavy winter coats, they may appear larger than normal.

However, DNR says seeing coyotes is normal, even in urban and suburban areas. it should not be a cause for alarm.

You can get more information on preventing conflict with coyotes here.

Purdue University Extension will be offering a virtual workshop after the start of the year to educate those thinking of starting a farm.

The Beginner Farmer Workshop will be held over eight sessions with individual work assigned between the sessions. It will address the realities of starting a farm, assessing your farming assets, define realistic goals and create feasible plans to achieve those goals.

The statewide sessions will start on January 13th with the first session from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in the evening. You must register by January 3rd. The cost is $75 per person.

You can register here.

The Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Division of Fish and Wildlife is increasing its fees for hunting, fishing and trapping licenses. But the agency says this is the first increase in 15 years.

Combination hunting/fishing licenses for adults will go up from $25 to $32. Adult fishing licenses will increase from $17 to $23 and adult hunting licenses will increase from $17 to $20.

The new revenue will allow the department to continue restoring habitat, maintaining public lands, conducting scientific research and education. It will also help equip the division of law enforcement so they can better provide for public safety and enhance laws that govern natural resources, according to the agency.

The new license prices were determined by comparing Indiana fees to comparable fees in other states.

The increases apply to personal licenses starting with the 2022-23 license year, which go on sale in January.

You can find a link to the new fees here. 

INDOT is urging you to reinforce your mailbox before severe winter weather hits.

The agency says that there are steps you can take to reduce the danger of a plow damaging your mailbox. INDOT points out that while plow drivers are careful to avoid mailboxes, the weight of snow thrown by the snowplow blades can still damage mailboxes that are not properly secured or that have weak supports.

INDOT recommends you place a new mailbox as far from the edge of the roadway as a mail carrier can reach. Clearing snow from the access area near a mailbox can also ensure safer mail deliveries.

The agency suggests that you inspect your mailbox, making sure it is firmly in the ground and securely mounted. You should check for deteriorated/rusted posts and/or mounts.

You should also place a six-to-eight-inch piece of reflective tape on the mailbox so that it can be seen at night.

A study released last week says that Indiana is the least safe state for COVID-19.

WalletHub compared 50 states and the District of Columbia and Indiana came in dead last. According to the survey, Indiana ranked 48th for vaccination rate, 49th for positivity testing rate, 46th for hospitalization rate, 45th for death rate and 31st for transmission rate.

According to the latest numbers from the Indiana State Department of Health, Indiana had 2,554 new positive cases with 18,842 new tests administered and a 13.5 percent positivity rate. Since the start of the pandemic, Indiana has had 17,853 deaths from COVID-19.

Bartholomew, Jackson and Jennings counties are all shown as red on the state’s color-coded spread map, indicating a severe spread of the disease. Brown, Johnson, Shelby and Decatur counties all remain orange, showing a serious spread.

Bartholomew County has 39 people hospitalized for COVID-19 according to the most recent numbers, down from 58 on Dec. 10th, this year’s high. 56 percent of Bartholomew County residents are fully vaccinated and about 20 percent have received a booster shot.

Bartholomew County has had 197 deaths from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.

Bartholomew County government offices will be closed Thursday and Friday for the Christmas holiday.

However, the Bartholomew County Solid Waste Management District says that the county landfill and recycling center will be open on Thursday. The recycling center will also close on Friday and the Bartholomew County Landfill will close at 1 p.m. on Friday.

On Christmas Day, Saturday, all district facilities will be closed including the Petersville and Harrison Township convenience sites.

The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department is announcing that it is taking part in a nationwide effort to crack down on drunk and impaired drivers over the holidays.

More than 200 agencies around Indiana are taking part in the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over blitz, showing zero tolerance for anyone caught driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

The high-visibility overtime patrols will be taking place through New Year’s Day. They are being funded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration through the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute.

According to the institute, last December, 73 people lost their lives in fatal crashes in Indiana. Of those, 11 involved a drunk driver.

Local Republican lawmakers are asking you to fill out a survey to help them determine priorities for the upcoming legislative session.

Information on the legislative survey is being mailed to residents, or you can fill out the survey online.

To complete a member’s survey, you must must be a resident of the district. Bartholomew County is represented by Columbus Rep. Ryan Lauer, Shelbyville Rep. Sean Eberhart and Seymour Rep. Jim Lucas.

Lauer’s district includes central and western Bartholomew County including Taylorsville, Columbus and Jonesville, Eberhart’s district is far eastern Bartholomew County including Hope and Hartsville and Lucas represents part of south-central Bartholomew County including Elizabethtown.

Lauer said the feedback is important as legislators consider issues related to education, taxes and individual liberties. He said he is looking forward “to hearing from constituents and learning more about their opinions before the start of the legislative session.”

The survey questions are intended to reflect issues that may come before the Legislature.

The deadline to fill out the surveys is Dec. 31st. The 2022 legislative session begins January 4th and must conclude by mid-March.

State Rep. Sean Eberhart (R-Shelbyville) at in.gov/h57

State Rep. Ryan Lauer (R-Columbus) at in.gov/h59

State Rep. Jim Lucas (R-Seymour) at in.gov/h69