Thieves Hit Medaryville Marathon Station

Posted on Author WKVI

A burglary occurred at the Marathon Station in Medaryville on Sunday, June 5th.

The power had gone out in the store late Saturday and the store was forced to close. At approximately 1:30 a.m. ET, an employee drove around the store to check on it and all doors were secured. The store manager arrived at the business about four hours later and discovered the west door had been kicked open. The suspect(s) went into the cash register area and forced open a change box, but no money was reported missing. After a preliminary inventory check, it was found that seven to eight cartons of cigarettes were stolen, seven or eight 24 pack cases of beer were stolen along with an unknown amount of alcohol.

The police continue to investigate this incident. An Indiana State Police Crime Scene Technician was called to investigate the scene. If you know anything about this incident, call the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department and leave an anonymous tip at (574) 946-6655. The case has been turned over to Pulaski County investigations and the Medaryville Police Department.

Pulaski County Commissioners Grant Request for Full-Time Health Nurse

Posted on Author WKVI
Pulaski County Commissioners Tracey Shorter, Kenneth Boswell, Michael Tiede

Terri Hansen of the Pulaski County Health Department informed the Commissioners this week that she has received a letter from the entire health board requesting permission to hire the current part-time nurse as full-time, which would help tremendously with the amount of work they are now required to do. Last week, the Health Department began charging an administrative fee for vaccinations and other shots, and this has been generating roughly $200 per day. With this new income, hiring the employee full-time should not be a problem, especially since the additional cost of the employee would be covered by the Master Tobacco grant money, and the only cost to the county would be to cover her benefits.

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Star City Man Arrested on Methamphetamine Related Charges

Posted on Author WKVI
Nathan VanDerAa

Nathan VanDerAa, 33, of Star City, was arrested in Monterey on Friday, June 3rd, on suspicion of Possession of Methamphetamine.

An officer from the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department reportedly saw VanDerAa pass by him and noted that he was speeding on 700 North in the area of 450 East. As the officer was turning around to follow VanDerAa, the officer allegedly saw VanDerAa’s left hand reach out of the driver’s window and let go of a bright white bag. The officer retrieved the bag and it contained a white powdery substance that later field-tested to be positive for methamphetamine.

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Two Injured in Motorcycle Accident in Pulaski County

Posted on Author WKVI

Officers from the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department investigated a single motorcycle accident on Tuesday, May 31st, near the intersection of 1000 South and 1400 West. The driver of the motorcycle, Kyle Anderson, 23, of Buffalo and his passenger, Joshua Anderson, 21, were traveling westbound on County Road 1000 South when the motorcycle collided with a deer. The motorcycle then struck a concrete culvert and a utility pole. The pair were located in the ditch on the north side of the roadway and were airlifted to South Bend Memorial for their injuries. The extent of their injuries is unknown. Alcohol is not suspected in this case.

Short Vehicle Pursuit Leads to Drug Arrest

Posted on Author WKVI

A short vehicle pursuit on Sunday, June 5th, lead to the arrest of a suspect on drug charges.

A Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department officer recognized Jeffrey Jacobs, 24, of Winamac, traveling on State Road 14 headed west in his truck. The officer initiated a traffic stop and Jacobs did not stop. Jacobs turned onto Logan Street and continued until heavy traffic forced him to pull over. When Jacobs stopped, he unfastened his seat belt and exited the the door. The officer ordered him to stop. Jacobs did stop and he was placed into custody.

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Monterey Elementary School Closes

Posted on Author WKVI

It was a sad day in Monterey yesterday as the elementary school closed for the last time. In a building that had students enrolled since 1934, there were hugs and tears on that final day.

“We had an awards program this morning and prior to that, we had a photographer come and he took a picture of all the staff and students out in front of the building,” said Principal Julie Berndt of the last day. “At the end of the program, we surprised the kids by loading them up in school buses and the fire department led us through town with the sirens screaming. We took two laps around town and the kids really enjoyed it as well as the staff.” Continue reading →

Monterey Elementary School to Close Doors Today

Posted on Author WKVI
Monterey Elementary School

The Monterey Elementary School is in its final day as a location for learning in the Culver School District. Beginning next school year, the students will be transported to Culver as part of a cost cutting measure.

In 1968, Monterey was consolidated into the Culver Community School District and was turned into a stand-alone elementary school.

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Culver Woman Arrested after Star City Couple Finds her Sleeping on Couch

Posted on Author WKVI
Kelly Patterson

A Culver woman was arrested on Thursday, May 26th after a Star City couple found an her sleeping on their couch without any pants.

According to the police report, Kelly Patterson told police that she was involved in an accident and started walking until she found a residence. She found that the residence on S. Judson Street in Star City was unlocked so she walked in and went to sleep. Patterson’s pants were found on the back porch of the residence where police found drug paraphernalia and several blister packs containing pseudoephedrine tablets which is a key ingredient in the manufacture of methamphetamine. Police also reportedly found a small plastic bag containing methamphetamine in the couch where she was reportedly sleeping. She was arrested on charges of Possession of Methamphetamine, Possession of Paraphernalia and Residential Entry.

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Sheriff’s Memorial Service Today in Pulaski County

Posted on Author WKVI

The employees of the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department will be remembering their fallen comrades in a Sheriff’s Memorial service today at Noon ET at the Sheriff’s Department.

Honored will be Sheriff Charles Henry Oglesby, Sheriff Milo “Mike” Lewis and Deputy Sheriff Shadron Kiley “Shad” Bassett. These officers were killed in the line of duty while serving the citizens of Pulaski County.

All are invited to the service.

Storm Wreaks Havoc in Kankakee Valley

Posted on Author WKVI
Francesville Fire Station Two sustained damage due to a tornado

Several buildings sustained damage after tornadoes touched down in Francesville Wednesday morning. Francesville Fire Chief, Tim Wuethrich, talked about the event.

“It appears that we had a tornado touch down in two spots in Francesville, maybe three,” said Wuethrich. “It took three poles out on the highway, leveled a building that we call Station Two, our other fire station. We had a fire truck in there that’s underneath the rubble. It took part of a roof off a house on the other end of town. I’ve been at Incident Command the whole time so I haven’t assessed the damage yet.” Homeowners with damaged roofs may need to hire local roofers to fix and restore their roofing systems. They may also need to find a supplier of timber roof trusses for their roof replacement project.

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Gas Prices Continue to Fluctuate

Posted on Author WKVI

Do you feel like you’re a yo-yo when it comes to gasoline prices? If you filled up Tuesday night or early yesterday morning you were lucky because by mid-morning the gas prices had spiked higher. Prices that had fluctuated between $3.60 and $3.80 for a gallon of regular suddenly were up to $3.95 locally.

Pulaski Memorial Hospital Auxiliary Volunteers Needed

Posted on Author WKVI
Pulaski Memorial Hospital

The Pulaski Memorial Hospital Auxiliary has openings for volunteers for both men and women. Areas of service include the gift shop, reception desk, hostess program and the patient service program.

If you are a leader of a group, encourage members to consider volunteering at the hospital. It is a great way to make new friends and feel good about yourself. Call (574) 946-2100 for more information.

Officials from Starke, Pulaski Counties Participate in Earthquake Exercise

Posted on Author WKVI

The largest ever Indiana exercise and the first ever national level exercise designed around a natural disaster was held last week. Starke County EMA Director, Ted Bombagetti and Pulaski County Chief Deputy Sheriff, Ron Patrick, who is the District Two Task Force Commander for the Indiana Department of Homeland Security, were involved in the exercise that took place at the Muscatatuck Urban Training Center. Pulaski County Sheriff, Michael Gayer, attended the training and he talks about the training center in Jennings County:

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Former Owner of Gutwein Seed Company Dies at the Age of 92

Posted on Author WKVI
Harvey F. Gutwein

The former owner of Gutwein Seed Company in Francesville has passed away at the age of 92. Harvey Gutwein passed away Sunday in the Jasper County Hospital in Rensselaer. Mr. Gutwein said before he passed that his pleasures were simple: flying his plane, picking citrus in Florida, and spending time with his family.

Spending time with his family could have been a full time job as Mr. Gutwein had 5 living sons, 5 living daughters, his wife, 4 living sisters, 1 living brother, 31 grandchildren, 55 great grandchildren, and 4 great-great grandchildren.

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