News Staff

A new principal selected for Ray Miller Elementary in Kirksville. Nicole Marshall will take over next school-year. She will replace Kristin Van Rie who is retiring. Marshall has been teaching 4th grade classes at Ray Miller for 22 years.

Two teens in a wreck Sunday afternoon on Highway 36 near Hannibal. The patrol says their SUV blew a tire. It careened into the median then flipped over in the opposite lane. The 16 year old boy who was driving had minor injuries. A 16 year old girl with him had more serious injuries, and she was flown to University Hospital in Columbia. The patrol says neither of them were wearing a seat belt.

Some good news: a break on your natural gas bill. The Public Service Commission says Kirksville area customers of Liberty Utilities will see a rate decrease beginning on February 23rd.

There will be a cut of 36-cents per hundred cubic feet of natural gas used.

That translates into a drop of $19.44 in the monthly bill for a typical Kirksville residential customer.

Missouri gas prices. Down three cents in the last week. AAA says the statewide average is $3.07….that’s 14-cents higher that a month ago. In Adair county, 3.10 a gallon…3.17 in Sullivan and Linn counties.

Schools should not keep secrets from parents when it comes to gender issue.

That’s the gist of a bill in the state Senate. It was passed by a committee on Tuesday. The bill would require teachers to tell parents if students question their gender or ask to go by different pronouns. And they would have to notify parents within a day.

A number of other states considering a similar law.

The city of Kirksville with a reminder for businesses. Time to renew your business license. Renewals were mailed on January 6th and they’re due back by February 28th with the forms filled out and the renewal fees.

For licensed contractors, plumbers, and electricians, renewals received after the February 28th are considered late and that not only means a penalty — but also starting the process over again.

Kirksville’s first ever K-9 officer is off for six weeks of training. The 18 month old German Shepherd, named Erno, will learn to sniff out drugs.

For the last four weeks of his training — his handler from the department, officer Jacob Hubbard — will also train with Erno. The idea is to develop a strong bond with the dog. Police believe Erno will help officers locate illegal narcotics and play a big part in cracking down on the local drug trade

It’s still winter time, but it’s not too early to sign-up for baseball and softball.

Kirksville Parks and Rec is operating the leagues now. Early bird registration has started, and if you register early you can save $10.

Coach Pitch for 5 and 6 year olds is $50 per player if you pay now. Early cost for Coach Pitch for 7 and 8 year old is $60 and those 9 and up will pay $70 if they register by March 19th.

In Moberly — the SWAT team was called out to help arrest Cornell Luchien.

After a five hour stand off, he was put in cuffs about 1o o’clock Wednesday morning on Myra Street. Luchien had several warrants and he was also wanted for speeding away from police in Moberly back in January.

Sullivan county health department reports three new cases of COVID-19 on Monday. No details on the ages of patients and whether they had other health condtions.

Meantime, covid does not rank as something Americans are very worried about. New survey finds they’re more concerned about the economy and terroism.

Pew Research found only 26% say coronavirus should be a priority for government. That’s down from 78% two years ago