CCSD SEARCHING FOR MISSING PERSON
The Calloway County Sheriff’s Department is requesting the public’s help in locating 31-year old Glen Carter of Murray who was reported missing by his family yesterday. He was last seen Wednesday afternoon near his residence on Arbor Drive in Murray. Glen Carter is approximately 5 feet 8 inches tall, weighs approximately 200 pounds, has brown eyes, brown hair, and a beard. He takes medication which he is believed to not have with him. Anyone who has information related to the whereabouts Carter is encouraged to call the Sheriff’s Department at 270-753-3151.
MPD ADDS NEW OFFICERS
Four Murray Police Department recruit officers graduated yesterday from the Kentucky Department of Criminal Justice Training basic academy. Murray Police Chief Jeff Liles congratulates Officers Zach Tyler, Zach White, Daniel Griggs, and Dylan Bobo for their accomplishments. The 20-week course of in-person instruction includes patrol procedures, physical training, vehicle operations, defensive tactics, legal, traffic, DUI, criminal investigations, and tactical responses to crisis situations. Four individual awards were presented to officers for special achievements. These officers will now move on to field training with veteran officers in the department.
VISITATION RESUMES AT SPRING CREEK
With the successful administration of the COVID-19 vaccination for most residents and staff, and as the vaccines have been shown to help prevent COVID, Spring Creek Healthcare is reopening for visitation effective immediately in accordance with the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services guidelines. All visits need to be scheduled in advance. The date, frequency, and duration will have to be factored into scheduled visits in order to accommodate all residents and family members who would like to visit. A face covering or mask must be worn during the visit, covering both the nose and the mouth. Window visits and video chats will still be offered if this is your preferred way of visiting.
KENTUCKY VACCINATIONS RAMP UP
On Thursday, Governor Andy Beshear announced all Kentuckians 50 and older can sign up for COVID-19 vaccination appointments on or after March 22. He said all Kentuckians age 16 and older will be able to sign up for appointments by April 12. The Governor also announced three new regional vaccination locations, raising the state’s total number of vaccination sites to 570. One of the new sites is Kentucky Dam Village Convention Center in Gilbertsville.
CCHD REPORTS 2 NEW COVID CASES
The Calloway County Health Department reported 2 new cases of COVID-19 yesterday. That brings the total number of county cases during the pandemic to 3,395. Of that total, 3,330 have recovered, 16 are isolated at home, none are hospitalized, and there have been 49 deaths. Neither the Murray Independent School District or Calloway County School District have reported any COVID cases or quarantines this week. Murray State University also has not reported any new cases this week. The Purchase District Health Department reported 7 new cases in McCracken County, 2 in Ballard County, and 1 in Hickman County.
CALLOWAY AND LYON INCIDENCE RATES FALL
Calloway County’s Incidence Rate per 100,000 on Thursday was 5.1%, which was down from Wednesday’s rate of 5.5%. Lyon County’s state leading rate fell to 276.7%, which is down by almost 500%. The rate is mostly due to over 550 active cases at Kentucky State Penitentiary. Lyon County’s rate is still over 4 times higher than second place Simpson County’s rate of 63.1%.
AUDIT ADDS OVER 400 TO STATE’S COVID DEATH COUNT
At Thursday’s COVID-19 update for Kentucky, 785 new cases and a daily record 448 deaths were reported, raising the total to 5,504 Kentuckians who are listed as covid deaths. Governor Andy Beshear explained that 417 of those deaths were determined to have been caused by COVID-19 after an additional death certificate audit. When Ohio and Indiana conducted the same type of audit, they reported 4,000 and 1,500 additional deaths respectively. As of Thursday, there have been over 4.73 million coronavirus tests performed in Kentucky with a positivity rate of 3.23%, which is lower than last Thursday’s rate of 3.95%. There are 449 Kentuckians hospitalized which is 74 less than last Thursday, including 110 in ICU, which is 26 less than one week ago. At least 48,964 Kentuckians have recovered from the virus.
MISD GETS STEM GRANT
The TVA, in partnership with Murray Electric Service and Bicentennial Volunteers Incorporated, recently awarded Murray Independent School District $5,000 for a STEM education project. The grant award is a part of $800,000 in competitive STEM grants awarded to nearly 200 schools across TVA’s seven-state service territory. Murray is one of the 10 Kentucky schools awarded and competed with almost 600 applications requesting over $1.2 million in award funding. MISD Digital Learning coach, Mechelle Morgan said funds will be used to purchase Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality technology for the classroom through the Exploring the World with AR/VR program.
TENNESSEE MAN CHARGED WITH ASSAULT POLICE OFFICER
Mayfield Police officers responded Wednesday to the area of North 5th Street after receiving a report that 28-year-old Rodney Nance of Jackson, Tennessee was causing a disturbance. Upon contact with Nance, officers allegedly saw an illegal drug in plain view. During questioning, Nance told police he had methamphetamine on him. While trying to be detained, Nance began to resist and assaulted an officer. Nance was subsequently arrested and transported to the Graves County Jail. He was charged with assaulting a police officer, resisting arrest, criminal trespass, and possession of methamphetamine.
LOWES TO CLOSE PERMANENTLY ON JUNE 30
West Kentucky Star reports that the Graves County Board of Education voted 4-1 Thursday to close Lowes Elementary School permanently on June 30. In December, the school district drafted a plan that listed the school as a priority 1 project with $10.8 million in needed renovations. The plan was sent to the Kentucky Department of Education for comments. The state indicated that the school’s enrollment would only allow it to qualify for $6 million.
BARKLEY AIRPORT GETS COVID FUNDING
Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell announced yesterday that Barkley Regional Airport Authority in McCracken County received over 1 million dollars to support its operations during the coronavirus pandemic. The federal funding, distributed by the FAA, was made available by the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act. According to the FAA, the funding can be used for costs ranging from operations and personnel to sanitization and combating the spread of pathogens at the airport. Barkley Regional Airport Executive Director Dennis Rouleau said the funds will enable the airport to continue to operate after suffering significant losses from parking, fuel sales, passenger, and concession revenue.
IN AND AROUND KENTUCKY
FRANKFORT—Governor Andy Beshear is extending the curfew on bars and restaurants. Beshear announced yesterday that bars and restaurants can now serve until midnight and can stay open until 1 a.m. The change goes into effect today. A maximum capacity of 60-percent still applies.
FRANKFORT—Kentucky is expanding accessibility to COVID-19 vaccines. Governor Andy Beshear announced yesterday that the commonwealth is expanding Group One-C to include people ages 50 and older. Beshear says the ultimate goal is to have the vaccine available to people ages 16 and older by April 12th.
FRANKFORT—Kentucky is extending its deadline for filing individual taxes. The Kentucky Department of Revenue says the new deadline for filing 2020 individual income taxes is May 17th. The move corresponds with the revised federal income tax filing deadline of May 17th. The extension is part of the income tax relief provisions issued Wednesday by the IRS.
WASHINGTON DC—Senator Rand Paul is clashing with the White House chief medical advisor over masks. The Kentucky Republican questioned Dr. Anthony Fauci in a hearing yesterday over the need for vaccinated people to continue to wear masks. Paul asked if it was “just theater” to require vaccinated people to wear them because, in Paul’s words, “there’s virtually zero-percent chance” they’re going to get COVID. Fauci shot back, saying “masks are not theater” and the emergence of highly contagious variants poses a threat to people who have recovered from COVID or who have been vaccinated.
LEXINGTON—Scott County Coroner John Goble and retired KSP Trooper Michael Crawford are both named in a newly-released federal indictment. The indictment alleges that Goble and Crawford bought KSP-owned guns and later sold them in 2017. They are also accused of buying thousands of dollars’ worth of KSP-owned ammo. Both are also facing two counts each of conspiring to commit theft.
LOUISVILLE—The largest regional COVID-19 vaccination site in Kentucky will open in Louisville next month. The state’s largest site will be located in a parking lot at the University of Louisville’s Cardinal Stadium. Governor Andy Beshear says there will be a soft launch on Thursday, April 8th before being fully operational the week after. There will be 24 lanes for cars to go through, vaccinating four-thousand people each day.
OWENSBORO—Downtown Owensboro will be the capital of bluegrass music this weekend. The Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame and Museum will host Grammy-winning artist Rhonda Vincent today. Rhonda Vincent and The Rage will play two shows due to limited seating to meet social distancing requirements. Vincent’s performances will be followed by the 47th Official Kentucky State Fiddle Championship tomorrow.
TENNESSEE—There are over 600 new coronavirus cases in Tennessee. The Tennessee Department of Health reported 661 new COVID-19 cases yesterday, bringing the total since the outbreak began to nearly 796-thousand-630. Nearly two-dozen additional COVID-19-related deaths were reported, bringing the total number of coronavirus-attributed deaths statewide to over eleven-thousand-680. There are over 600 COVID-19 patients hospitalized statewide.
TENNESSEE—Tennessee lawmakers are expected to consider a bill next week to raise minimum wage to 12-dollars an hour. Democrats Senator Sara Kyle and Rep. Jesse Chism introduced the bill last month to increase the state’s minimum wage from seven-25 an hour. If it becomes law, the bill would raise the minimum wage gradually over four years. It would also establish that the minimum-overtime-hourly rate for employees working more than 40 hours a week must be one-and-a-half times the regular wage rate.
TENNESSEE—Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream has a new flavor. Jeni’s says the flavor was specially made for Tennessee-native Dolly Parton. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. It hasn’t been released yet but Dolly’s fans can go to jenis.com/dolly to sign up notifications when the new flavor is available.
TENNESSEE—Calling all Bigfoot enthusiasts. The first Smoky Mountain Bigfoot Festival is scheduled for this summer for both serious believers and those who might turn out for its humor. Bigfoot seekers are invited to the event set for May 22nd to share their “research” and take part in fun activities. It will kick off at the Townsend Visitors Center with a Five-K run.
ILLINOIS—Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker will make all state residents over the age of 16 eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine on April 12th. Pritzker announced yesterday he will direct local health departments, vaccination sites, and pharmacy partners to expand eligibility. The city of Chicago is not included in the order because they are receiving their own vaccine shipments and setting their own opening standards. Pritzker was hopeful the city will be on the same page as the state. Illinois joins Ohio, Michigan, and Massachusetts to announce they will make all adults eligible for the vaccine before President Biden’s May 1st deadline.
