The first customer for a new high-speed fiber optic Internet service in Bartholomew County is now online.

According to Bartholomew County Commissioner Tony London, provider Gigabit Now has announced their first connected customer.

London said the county has been working on the project to bring high speed internet to the most rural areas of the county for more than three years. By next year, the service is expected to be available to 10,000 customers and in 2025 the entire county should have high-speed access.

According to London, the first connection is in the area of County Road 600N in the Armuth Acres neighborhood.

Gigabit Now says that the speed test shows upload and download speeds of more than 2.1 megs at that location. London has previously said that in his neighborhood, he pays more than $70 a month for speeds of less than a tenth of the cheapest package from GigabitNow. London said that many rural county residents have no access to high-speed internet.

GigabitNow is working concurrently to provide service to Columbus city residents.

You can find out the company’s progress or sign up for service when it reaches your area at Gigabitnow dot com slash bartholomew county.

A Madison man is facing charges stemming from child seduction attempts made while he was a school resource officer.

According to the Indiana State Police, the investigation began in August of last year with accusations that 63-year-old Timothy L. Armstrong had inappropriate communications with a male student on many occasions while Armstrong worked at Madison Consolidated Schools. Armstrong resigned his positions at the time as school resource officer and Jefferson County Sheriff’s Deputy.

Jackson County Prosecutor Jeffrey Chalfant is acting as special prosecutor in the case and after a review of the investigation, a warrant was issued on multiple felony charges. Those include: attempted child seduction, attempted promotion of child sexual trafficking, vicarious sexual gratification, child solicitation, attempted child exploitation and official misconduct.

Armstrong was arrested yesterday afternoon in Madison and was taken to the Jennings County Jail.

State Road 11 will be closing in Seymour this weekend while crews work on a railroad track crossing.

According to the Indiana Department of Transportation, CSX Railroad plans to close State Road 11 or Broadway Street between 2nd and Circle Streets in downtown Seymour starting Saturday. The road is expected to reopen on Tuesday. The work schedule is dependent on the weather.

The detour will take U.S. 50 East to Interstate 65 North and then to State Road 11.

INDOT asks you to to slow down, to drive without distractions and to use extra caution in all work zones.

A Columbus teen has died following a crash Tuesday on South Marr Road.

According to the Columbus Police Department, 16-year-old Kole D. Shewmaker of Columbus has died at IU Methodist Hospital after the crash Tuesday afternoon.

Shewmaker was a passenger in a car that crossed the centerline and then crashed into another vehicle at about 1:30 p.m. Tuesday afternoon in the 700 block of South Marr Road. Shewmaker was critically injured in the crash and was flown by IU Lifeline helicopter to Methodist Hospital.

The driver of the car that Shewmaker was in, 16-year-old Luis Y. Otero of Columbus, was seriously injured in the crash and was also flown to Methodist Hospital. The other driver, 66-year-old Cheryl A. Hanner of Norman, suffered serious but not life-threatening injuries. Police say that they have no updates on their conditions.

The crash is under investigation by the Bartholomew County Accident Reconstruction Team.

The local economy will be bolstered next year by a strong manufacturing base, but will see some drag by the continued difficulty getting workers with a shrinking population, according to predictions at the IU Economic Outlook Panel held yesterday.

Dr. Steven Mohler with IU Columbus gave the local forecast, saying that local Gross Domestic Product will likely shrink by 2 to 5 percent next year.

Mohler said that the Columbus metropolitan area has the strongest manufacturing base of any of the other metros in the state. He said that since 2001 manufacturing has made up an average of more than 50 percent of the local GDP.

Mohler said Cummins continues to be the largest influence on local manufacturing. The company’s sales have increased from about $6 billion in 2001 to $28 billion in 2022 – a five fold increase.

He said the supply chain will continue to be affected by global disruptions ranging from geopolitical disturbance to cyberattacks.

Mohler said the local population actually declined in 2020 and still has not returned to pre-pandemic levels. But he said that a bright spot is neighboring communities who provide 7 to 8 thousand workers commute into Bartholomew County.

The panel was put on by the IU Columbus business department and the Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce.

The Bartholomew Consolidated Schools superintendent is being recognized as a volunteer of the year by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce.

At a Tuesday luncheon hosted by Cummins, the state organization presented the 2023 Samuel C. Schlosser Volunteers of the Year awards to three people, including Dr. Jim Roberts with BCSC.

According to the chamber, Roberts had served on the board of advisors for the Wellness Council of Indiana (WCI), a subsidiary of the Indiana Chamber, for more than a decade. The chamber praised Roberts passion for mental health saying that he weaves wellness into the daily lives for employees and students at BCSC. He has served as a presenter at the council’s annual Wellness Summit. The summit is “a two-day event that brings together Hoosier health and wellness professionals offering best practices to enhance well-being for Indiana’s workplaces and communities.”

Roberts said that he appreciates the interaction as businesses across the state learn a variety of ways to take care of their staff at the summits.

Also receiving the volunteer awards were Lori Danielson, president of leadership development consulting firm GoTime Coaching LLC in Terre Haute and Andy Bowman, partner with the Dentons Bingham Greenebaum law firm in Indianapolis.

Three people were injured Tuesday afternoon in a crash on South Marr Road in Columbus.

According to the Columbus Police Department, officers were called to the 700 block of South Marr Road at about 1:30 p.m. in the afternoon about a two-vehicle crash. Officers found that a car driven by 16-year-old Luis Y. Otero of Columbus was driving north when he lost control, crossed the centerline and drove head-on into a car driven by 66-year-old Cheryl A. Hanner of Norman.

A passenger in Otero’s car, 16-year-old Kole D. Shewmaker of Columbus was critically injured in the crash and was flown by IU Lifeline helicopter to Methodist Hospital where he remains in critical condition. Otero was also flown to Methodist Hospital and he remains in serious condition. Hanner was taken to Methodist Hospital for treatment of significant, but non life-threatening injuries.

The crash is under investigation by the Bartholomew County Accident Reconstruction Team.

Edit: This story has been updated

Columbus police removed a pipe bomb from a vehicle in downtown Columbus Tuesday.

According to the Columbus Police Department, officers were called to the 700 block of 13th Street at about noon Tuesday on a report of a possible explosive device in a vehicle. Police discovered what appeared to be a pipe bomb inside the vehicle and the CPD Bomb Squad was called to the scene.

Lt Matt Harris with the police department explains that a crew was working in the area and a witness saw the device inside of a truck belonging to a worker. The CPD Bomb Squad was called to the scene.

Harris said the bomb squad found the device to be exceptionally volatile and it was safely detonated at a remote location. During the operation,  the 1300 blocks of Sycamore and Pearl Streets were blocked off for the safety of the public.

The device appears to have been homemade Harris said.

32-year-old Jorden L. Perry of Whitley City, Kentucky was arrested on a preliminary charge of possession of a destructive device.

The incident remains under investigation.

Photo courtesy of Columbus Police Department

The Alliance for Substance Abuse Progress in Bartholomew County and Soul’s Truth Coaching will be holding a workshop Thursday night to help you deal with the stress of the holidays.

The event will be facilitated by Skye Nicholson with the coaching company.

The effort is part of ASAP’s Rethinking Wellness initiative. The initiative is working to prevent substance misuse in Bartholomew County by educating vulnerable populations on adopting sustainable habits for overall well-being.

The Managing the Stress Cycle Workshop will be from 6 to 7 at Mill Race Center. It is free and you are invited to attend. You can register or get more information at at 812-376-9241.

Menards has a toy drive underway at its Columbus center.

You can drop off new toys to be donated to Toys for Tots or purchase a toy in the store.

Store manager Lee Dardis explains.

Dardis said that in previous years the drive has raised more than 800 toys for those in need.