Authorities in Decatur County rescued a bald eagle that had been struck by a vehicle on the Fourth of July.

According to the Decatur County Sheriff’s Department, a caller reported that the bird had been struck along Interstate 74 at about 12:30 p.m. on Thursday. State Police Trooper Jason Hankins was first on the scene and kept the bird safe while the Decatur County Communication Center organized rescue efforts. A plastic dog crate were brought in by the Decatur County Animal Shelter along with blankets from the county detention center.

The rescue workers named the juvenile bird “Pete” and he was loaded into a sheriff’s department patrol van to be taken to the Indiana Raptor Center in Nashville.

Volunteer Wayne Sprinkle said that he and other another rescuer are both combat veterans and he would treasure the memory of working to save the American icon on one of the country’s most important holidays.

Pete was scheduled to be seen by a veterinarian over the weekend. If you would like to help with his care, you can contact the Indiana Raptor Center online at indianaraptorcenter.org or through their Facebook page.

Photo courtesy of Decatur County Sheriff’s Department

We could see some severe weather Tuesday as remnants of Hurricane Beryl are expected to move through our area.

The National Weather Service in Indianapolis says that Beryl is making landfall on the Texas coast today. Beryl hit land near Matagorda, Texas, about 90 miles southwest of Houston. The Category 1 storm is bringing heavy rains and winds to the Texas coast. The National Hurricane Center puts the storm’s maximum sustained winds at 80 miles per hour.

Beryl is expected to become a tropical depression and move northeast into our area Tuesday. We could see rain and storms Tuesday evening into Wednesday, with our area in the path of the greatest threat of severe weather. The greatest danger is heavy rains with 2-3 inches of rainfall likely. Hurricane remnants can sometimes spawn weak, short-lived tornadoes, forecasters say.

However, the greatest threat will be in southwestern Indiana, where the Wabash Valley could see four inches of rain and flooding.

INDOT contractor E&B Paving, Inc. plans to reduce southbound I-65 to one lane between Franklin (Exit 90) and Edinburgh (Exit 80) on or after Monday, July 8th, to begin nighttime milling and paving operations in both Johnson and Shelby Counties.

Work will begin in the southbound driving lane at Exit 90 in Franklin and will continue south to Exit 80 near Edinburgh. After southbound driving lane work is complete crews will reduce northbound I-65 to one lane to begin nighttime work on the northbound I-65 driving lane. Following the completion of work on both the northbound and southbound driving lanes, crews will transition to begin work on the left lanes of I-65, beginning with southbound work and finishing with northbound work.

The nighttime lane closures will take place from 8 p.m. to 7 a.m. and are expected to take up to eight weeks altogether, weather permitting.

This work is part of a $7.3 million contract awarded to E&B Paving in April 2024. INDOT reminds drivers to slow down, use extra caution and avoid distractions when traveling near work zones. All work is weather-dependent and schedules are subject to change.

Early Wednesday afternoon the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department received a 911 call about a single vehicle motorcycle crash involving serious injury.
The crash occurred near CR 300 East and CR 300 South, just East of State Road 39 in Brownstown Township.
Jackson County Lieutenant Adam Nicholson assisted by Sheriff Rick Meyer and Deputy Aaron Wilkins responded to and investigated the crash.
After resuscitative efforts from first responders and Jackson County EMS, the driver Kim C. Kaufman, 66, of Vallonia, IN was pronounced dead at the scene by a member of the Jackson County Coroner’s Office.
The initial investigation indicates that Kaufman was traveling West bound on CR 300 South on a silver 2002 Harley Davidson motorcycle. Kaufman had passed a passenger car that was also West bound and then attempted to pass a dump truck. While attempting to pass the dump truck Kaufman lost control of the motorcycle and left the South side of CR 300 South. The motorcycle struck a mailbox and Kaufman was ejected.
An autopsy and toxicology testing is scheduled for Today, July 5th.
The Brownstown Police Department, Jackson County EMS, Brownstown Volunteer Fire Department, and Jackson County Coroners Office assisted at the scene.

The Columbus Human Rights Commission is adding two new members to three year terms.

This week the Columbus City Council appointed Deanne Annandale and Kenna Huber to fill the open positions on the board.

Annandale is the Program Director at McDowell Education Center. She has a Bachelors and law degree from the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. She and her family relocated to Columbus two years ago and before moving to the US, she was a litigation attorney.

Huber holds a Bachelors from the University of Evansville. She is a Quality Assurance Specialist for Ossium Health in Indianapolis.

The appointments brings the commission up to its full capacity.

The Columbus Human Rights Commission’s mission is to building and maintain an inclusive community by enforcing the Human Rights Ordinance, educating the public, challenging attitudes and systems that create barriers to equality and empowering community members to advance the mission.

A program to encourage and assist at-risk students is celebrating that all of its high school seniors graduated on time this school year — a first in the 12 year history of the iGrad program.

The Bartholomew County support program for middle and high school students works with those who need additional support, such as coaching, mentoring, and tutoring, so that they can graduate and achieve college or career readiness. It is operated by Ivy Tech Community College in the Columbus area.

This school year there were 127 seniors taking part in iGrad, including 116 from Bartholomew Consolidated schools and 11 from Flatrock-Hawcreek schools. Overall, 637 students took part in iGrad at all grade levels.

In previous years, the program has averaged about a 96 percent on-time high school completion rate.

iGrad has three full time staff members through the college, and 14 part-time staff members including 12 graduation coaches and two college and career readiness coaches. it is funded by Bartholomew Consolidated and Flat Rock Hawcreek schools.

Dr. Steven Combs, Chancellor of Ivy Tech Community College Columbus said that the achievement speaks to the dedication, support and guidance of the staff and program volunteers. He said that “They are truly making a difference in the lives of these students.”

A golf tournament fundraiser for Our Hospice of South Central Indiana raised more than $28 thousand dollars for the agency.

The 30th annual Decatur Golf Tournament was held last month at the Greensburg Country Club with 16 teams and 64 golfers. Julie Davis with Our Hospice said that including this year, the tournament has raised over $778 thousand dollars for the organization.

She cited the support of golfers, donors and sponsors, including Decatur County Memorial Hospital, K.B. Specialty Foods and an anonymous donor who honored all of the workers at the hospice.

Organizers also thanked Russ Hubler Ford which sponsored a hole in one contest on Hole 17 with a chance to win a new Ford truck.

The first-place team this year was DC Integrated Medicine.

Photo courtesy of Our Hospice of South-Central Indiana. DC Integrated Medicine Team at 30th annual Decatur Golf 

One person died and two others were seriously injured in a Bartholomew County crash Tuesday afternoon.

According to the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department, deputies were called to the scene of the crash on East County Road 100S and South Road 525E at about 4:11 p.m. Tuesday afternoon after a passenger car and pickup collided. Deputies discovered two people trapped inside the car and one person in the pickup. Both vehicles were extensively damaged.

The driver of the car, 51-year-old Tonya Whiteside of Greensburg, was removed from the wreckage of her vehicle and treated at the scene by medics but she was pronounced dead.

A passenger in her vehicle, 47-year-old Christopher Harris of Greensburg and the driver of the pickup, 21-year-old Tyler Myers of Bedford were extricated and then flown to IU Methodist Hospital for treatment.

According to he police investigation, Whiteside failed to stop at the intersection, causing the accident. Neither drugs nor alcohol are believed to have been a factor in the accident.

This investigation by the Bartholomew County Accident Reconstruction Team remains ongoing.

Photo courtesy of Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department.

The Bartholomew County Historical Society will be hosting its first ever FarmJam later this month, with music, barbecue, beer and wine at the county’s historic farm.

The FarmJam will feature performances by Ben Wever and The Revelators and One Night Only with Allen Purtlebaugh. Divine BBQ will be selling food, Hog Molly Brewing Company will be offering beer and Swine and Dine will be serving wine and other drinks.

Proceeds will benefit the Bartholomew County Historical Society. The society’s mission is to collect and preserve Bartholomew County artifacts, photographs, and historic documents.

The FarmJam will be from 6 to 10 p.m. on Saturday, July 13th at “The Farm,” off of County Raod 100W near Edinburgh, formerly know as the historic Henry Breeding Farm. Tickets will be $15 per car load in advance, or $20 the night of the event. Gates will open at 5:30

You can get tickets through EventBrite or at the museum on Third Street in Columbus.

You can get more information at bartholomewhistory.org

Photo courtesy of Bartholomew County Historical Society.

Two Seymour police officers who entered a burning home to try to save a victim’s life, were recognized Tuesday by the Indiana State Fire Marshal.

Fire Marshal Stephen Jones presented officers Sam Hughes and Joe Fagan with the Medal of Valor at a ceremony at the police department. Jones, reading from Hughes certificate

The two officers were on a routine patrol over Memorial Day weekend when they noticed a fully involved home fire at Hancock and Euclid Streets. They found a woman outside the home suffering from smoke inhalation. She said another victim was still inside and the officers tried to rescue that person, but the fire was too intense and they had to retreat. The body of the male victim was recovered from the home after the fire was extinguished.

Both officers had to be treated for smoke inhalation at Schneck Medical Center after their efforts, along with the woman.

Photo: Seymour officers Joe Fagan and Sam Hughes receive Medals of Valor from State Fire Marshal Stephen Jones. WRB photo.,