An Indianapolis man was seriously injured in crash on U.S. 31 north of Columbus Sunday afternoon.

According to reports from the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department, the accident happened near the intersection of County Road 550N and U.S. 31 at about 4:25 p.m. An SUV rolled over near the railroad tracks and the driver 34-year-old Christopher Cobb was ejected from the vehicle.

Cobb was first taken to Columbus Regional Hospital and then flown by helicopter to the University of Louisville hospital.

Photo courtesy of Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department

State Road 58 will be closing for up to three months in Jackson County near Spraytown starting next Monday.

INDOT says that Milestone Contractors will be replacing a bridge on the highway over Branch Runt Run, about two miles east of State Road 258.

The detour route follows State Road 135, U.S. 50 and I-65.

The work schedule is dependent on the weather.

INDOT asks you to slow down, to drive without distractions and to alert to worker safety in all construction zones.

A police chase early Sunday morning led to the arrest of a Columbus man.

According to Columbus Police Department reports, officers were notified of a possibly intoxicated driver in the south parking lot of Nexus Park at about 2 a.m. Sunday morning. When officers arrived, the driver sped away, eventually driving the wrong way down Caldwell Place. Police soon lost track of the vehicle and called off the pursuit.

Bartholomew County deputies found the vehicle at Pence Place Apartments. Police say that the driver, 28-year-old Marcos A. Maravilla Grimaldo had bloodshot and glassy eyes and the strong odor of alcohol on his breath.

Marcos failed field sobriety tests and tested at a blood alcohol level of .131%. He is facing preliminary charges of resisting law enforcement in a vehicle and operating a vehicle while intoxicated with endangerment.

There were no drugs or alcohol detected in the Greenwood Park Mall shooter’s blood according to results of toxicology tests.

That’s according to the Johnson County coroner.

Coroner Mike Pruitt said 20-year-old Jonathan Sapirman did have cotinine in his body, which is a substance found in tobacco.

On July 17th, Sapirman of Greenwood, came to the mall with two rifles, several magazines with more than 100 rounds of ammunition and a handgun. At just before 6 p.m. he emerged from the mall restroom and began firing, killing three people and injuring two others.

Seconds later he was fatally shot by Eli Dicken, of Seymour.

On Thursday, federal authorities said they could not recover any data from Sapirman’s laptop, which he left baking in an oven in his apartment.  Just before the shooting, Sapirman  chucked his cell phone in a mall bathroom toilet and authorities are still trying to recover data from that device.

Story courtesy of our news-gathering partners at Network Indiana.

The Columbus Board of Public Works and Safety will be moving its meeting this week.

Mayor Jim Lienhoop will be swearing in six new firefighters at the meeting set for 10 a.m. Tuesday and the meeting is being moved to the Cal Brand Meeting Room to accommodate the new employees and their guests.

The board will return to its normal meeting location in the Council Chambers of Columbus City Hall next week.

Foundation For Youth, Sans Souci and Lincoln-Central Neighborhood Family Center are rescheduling their Back to School Palooza event for Wednesday, Aug. 31st at Ninth Street Park.

The event will include giveaways of ice cream and lunchboxes to the first 100 people, as well as STEM kits from the Columbus Robotics Team, bikes from Lincoln-Central and school clothes from Sans Souci.

The celebration will be from 5 to 7 p.m. in the afternoon.

Two people are under arrest in Seymour after police found more than 70 grams of methamphetamine and other drugs during a traffic stop early Friday morning.

According to reports from Seymour police, officers pulled over an SUV on West Tipton Street near West Brown Street early Friday morning after the driver made a traffic violation. Police suspected criminal activity was going on and searched the vehicle, where they discovered the methamphetamine, marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

The driver, 51-year-old Michael D. Moore of Mitchell was arrested on preliminary charges of dealing in and possessing methamphetamine, as well as possession of paraphernalia and marijuana.

A passenger, 36-year-old Amanda E. Chrzanowski of Bedford, is facing charges of eealing in and possessing methamphetamine, possession of a syringe and paraphernalia.

A man and two children were seriously injured in a dirt-bike accident Saturday in Brown County.

According to reports from Indiana Conservation officers, officers were called to the crash in the 8200 block of Highland Drive at about 12:30 p.m. Saturday afternoon.

Officers say that 30-year-old Cody Cooper was in the woods, operating a dirt bike with a juvenile passenger when they collided with a second dirt bike being driven by a juvenile.

Both of the children were wearing helmets.

All three were seriously injured and were flown by IU Health Lifeline helicopter to Riley and Methodist hospitals in Indianapolis.

Other agencies assisting at the scene included Brown County Sheriff’s Department, Hamblen Fire Department and IU Health Ambulance Service.

Applied Laboratories is planning a $7 million dollar expansion of its facilities on Brian Drive, off of Indianapolis Road in Columbus.

The company and Moravec Realty are asking Columbus City Council for a tax break on $4 million of real property improvements and $3 million in personal property.

According to paperwork filed with the city, when the company expanded in 2018 and 2019 it converted 30,000 square feet of warehouse space into packaging and manufacturing space. With its continued expansion, the company now plans to add 45,000 square feet of warehouse space. The company also plans to spend $3 million dollars in filling and packaging equipment for its nasal saline products.

The company expects to add 10 more jobs by 2024, bringing its total employees up to 159.

The company is asking the city for a tax abatement that would phase in property taxes over 10 years. If approved, the abatement would save the company about $723,000 in property taxes. However it will still be paying about $648,000 more in taxes over the life of the abatement than it does now.

Columbus City Council meets at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Columbus City Hall.

The Columbus Parks and Recreation Department is announcing the winners of this year’s Jack Cramer: Ideals of Athletic Competition Awards.

The 2022 recipients are Carrie Utterback, Harry Crider and the team of Bob Arthur and Sandy Freshour. The award is in memory of Cramer, former local athlete who died at the age of 33 in 1978. It is presented annually to athletes, coaches or sports organizers.

An awards ceremony will be held Wednesday, Sept. 14th at Donner Center on 22nd Street, starting at 5 p.m. The event is free and you are invited to attend.