News from Neighbors
2017 field day feared to be final one
AKRON NEWS-REPORTER, June 21 — The 110th annual field day held at the Central Great Plains Research Station Wednesday, June 14, may have been the last field day held at the station.
Dr. Merle Vigil opened field day and said, “President Trump cut 13.5 percent from the budget for USDA-ARS, and in turn, the Department of Agricultural wants to close down 12 research stations, and Akron’s is one of those they want to cut.”
Colorado Association of Wheat Growers President, Mark Linnebur said, “The association has already talked to both the senators and representatives from Colorado, but we need all of you to contact your government officials and tell them how important this station is to everyone in the state of Colorado, as well as the surrounding states around us.”
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Christi Christner accepts Wauneta Breeze editor role
WAUNETA BREEZE, June 22 — Change ahead finds Sheri Hink-Wagner preparing to turn over Wauneta Breeze editorial responsibilities to Christi Christner, according to Breeze Co-Publisher Lori Pankonin.
Christner is no stranger to either the Breeze or the community as she served as a Breeze intern during her Wauneta-Palisade school days.
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Motor home drives off cliff; driver OK
IMPERIAL REPUBLICAN, June 22 — Afternoon lake activities were interrupted Tuesday when a motor home drove off the end of a trail road on the southwest end of Enders Reservoir.
Antronette Lynn Janowetch of Imperial, Nebraska, was the lone occupant trapped inside the motor home that had flipped on its side. She was rescued in a joint effort of the Chase County Sheriff’s Office and Imperial Volunteer Fire Department and then transported to the hospital by EMS.
According to Sheriff Kevin Mueller, Janowetch was treated and released with no serious injuries.
According to Mueller, after investigation, it was determined that Janowetch came to the end of a trail road, failed to stop and drove off the cliff.
The accident is still under investigation as both alcohol and drugs are suspected to be a contributing factor, said Mueller.
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Firefighters quench bacon truck fire
STERLING JOURNAL-ADVOCATE, June 22 — Firefighters were called to literally save a trucker’s bacon Tuesday afternoon.
Lt. Brett Dowis of the Sterling Fire Department said two fire engines and Fire 1 (command truck) were dispatched to U.S. Highway 6 at the I-76 interchange to extinguish a truck fire shortly before 3:30 p.m. Tuesday. Dowis said a tractor-trailer rig hauling bacon had experienced a brake lockup while traveling on I-76 and the driver had pulled off to effect repairs.
The brakes had overheated, however, and started a fire that quickly spread to the wheels and then to the trailer and cargo. Dowis said the four firefighters and the chief “quickly and aggressively attacked the fire” and had it doused within about two minutes. However, another hour was needed to open up the truck, remove most of the cargo with a City of Sterling front-loader and make sure there were no “extensions” of the fire.
“It actually smelled pretty good,” Dowis quipped.
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YCSO deputies utilizing new mobile fingerprint technology
WRAY GAZETTE, June 21 — The days of lying about one’s identity to deputies in Yuma County are in the past. Earlier this month, the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office began implementing mobile fingerprint scanners into their repertoire of law enforcement technology. This week, every deputy on patrol in Yuma County has been equipped with their own mobile fingerprint scanner to use day to day.
Created by Morpho and supplied to the sheriff’s office for free by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, the MorphoIdent device is an iPhone-sized digital fingerprint scanner that can be used in the field to obtain fingerprint-based identification records from federal and state databases.
Traditional methods of positively identifying possible criminals takes a lot of time and subsequently taxpayer money. The mobile functionality of the device will allow deputies to identify subjects in the field quickly, taking a process that normally takes hours down to a matter of seconds, all with a simple touch of a finger.
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