Residents of Westport in Decatur County are dealing with colder than usual conditions. The Decatur County Emergency Management Agency says that power went out for much of the town sometime before 2 p.m. Authorities say that power won’t be restored until sometime after 6 a.m. Saturday.
Authorities say that South Decatur High School is now open for those needing food and shelter. Residents needing a ride should call (812) 222-4911.
Decatur County Dispatch says that sections of Greensburg lost power just before 7 p.m. No word on the extent of that power outage.
Section of pavement damaged in Wednesday’s crash/fire on I-65 in Jackson County; Photo courtesy of Indiana State Police
The Indiana Department of Transportation says that the southbound lanes of I-65 in Jackson County are expected to be reopened to traffic sometime Thursday morning.
An early Wednesday morning crash involving a semi and two other trucks caused havoc on I-65 about seven miles south of Seymour. Indiana State Police say that a chemical fire ensued and that nearby homes had to be evacuated.
Jacqueline Watts; photo courtesy of the Columbus Police Dept.
Columbus police have discovered the body of a missing Indianapolis woman whose running car was found abandoned on Riverside Drive Friday afternoon.
Lt Matt Harris, spokesman for the police department, said that the body of 33-year-old Jacquelyn Watts was discovered by officers on a sandbar in the Flat Rock River at about 8:30 a.m. Saturday morning. Police had been searching for her since late Friday afternoon when her car was discovered in the 2300 block of Riverside Drive with the engine running and the emergency flashers on.
Harris said that the Columbus police, along with officers from the Indiana State Police, Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department, and Indiana Department of Natural Resources Conservation Officers searched overnight including help from a Louisville police helicopter and a IU Lifeline helicopter. There were also several boats in the river last night searching, he said.
They started the search again about 730 a.m. Saturday, this morning when police on foot found the body. He said there is no word yet on the condition of the body and an autopsy is pending.
Harris said that Watts was in Columbus to drop off her pets at a relative’s home which is in the area of where her car was located. There was no information available on the location of the pets or whether she had already dropped them off with the relatives.
Harris also decried some social media posts that provided false or misleading information. In one case, social media posted that a person covered in blood emerged from the woods where police were searching, and surrendered to police. But that information was false.
The investigation into Watts’ disappearance is continuing. If you have any information on the disappearance of Jacquelyn Watts you can call the Columbus Police Department at 812-376-2600.
Duke Energy is reporting an outage in north eastern Bartholomew County affecting about 1,500 customers, with about 800 more affected in the Westport area. They are estimating power will be restored by about 8 am for some customers. Bartholomew County REMC is reporting about 200 more outages.
The Sheridan Police Department is investigating the abduction of a child from Sheridan, Indiana.
Madison Lloyd is a 17-year-old white female, 5 feet 3 inches tall, 187 lbs., brown medium length hair, and blue eyes. The type of clothing she was wearing is not known.
The child was last seen at 1 a.m. Monday, October 3, 2016 in Sheridan, Indiana and is believed to be in extreme danger. Sheridan is 36 miles north of Indianapolis, Indiana.
The Sheridan Police Department believes the child was abducted by Dustin Fisher, a 20-year-old white male, 5 feet 6 inches tall, and 187 lbs., with brown hair.
Suspect vehicle is a tan 1997 Chevy, Blazer, with Indiana plate number XPZ251.
If you have any information on Madison Lloyd, contact the Sheridan Police Department at 1-888-58AMBER (582-6237) or 911.
